As the youngest Shelby child and twin to Finn Shelby, Kezia has spent the last 4 of her 10 years locked away for her mental defectiveness.
She returns to Small Heath under the legal guardianship of her brother, Thomas Shelby. Despite knowing she's s...
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CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Getting older meant getting bored quicker.
Everyone had something to do. Everyone except Kizzie.
She knocked on her twin's open door. "Finnie?"
Her brother sported the same undercut as their older brothers. A right of passage he received two years ago on their thirteenth birthday. Kizzie had gotten a new purse, new sketchbook, and pearl earrings.
Finn stopped short and tucked his fists into his trouser pockets. "Yeah?"
"I was wondering if I could come out with you tonight."
Finn was always allowed to do as he pleased. And the list only grew once the family believed him ready to take on more responsibility. He went out almost every night with his friends—all Peaky Blinders their age. Kizzie knew their names, despite never being properly introduced to them. No boys outside of the family. That was the promise she made Tommy.
Her brother sighed. "You know you can't, Kizzie. If they find out—"
"They won't!" Kizzie stepped into his room. "You know as well as I do that your friends are terrified of Tommy. Why would they risk it? Please, Finn." She sat on his bed. "I just want one night where I'm not cooped up here."
"Fine...but wear something less you."
Kizzie's excitement traveled down into her hands. They flapped like alligator arms at her chest. "Thank you, Finnie! Thank you!"
Her twin's disapproving colors halted her movements. "Yeah."
Kizzie developed a love for ribbons over the last few years. Ever since Esme did her hair one day and tied the back with a bright pink and silk ribbon. And pearls. The tinier the better because they picked up in candlelight the best; they sparkled like stars. Kizzie asked Esme to please sew a few into the ribbons she wore around her neck.
She eyed her vanity with a crooked mouth. Finnie said to not dress like herself. The self-consciousness she felt over her clothes faded some time ago, but it liked to creep up when she came under fire for it. The pearls and ribbons became security. Like how Willy and the marbles and bread did when she was younger. Willy still slept with her every night. And sometimes she'd wake up in the morning with a wet thumb. But Kizzie got better at covering herself. To look more like everyone else. For everyone else. It was a mask. Like the ones actors wore in some of the plays she'd gone to with Tommy.
She frequently let the mask slip and fall when home, especially around Tommy. He never judged her.
Bright colors were also off-limits tonight. Hopefully people-colors wouldn't be so loud. They were going to a pub... Wearing black meant colors were more bright around her.
Kizzie stepped back and felt her heart sink. Maybe this was a bad idea.
No. She couldn't let her head win tonight. If she changed her mind, Finn would never give her this chance again.
Almost all her tops and dresses were paired with a white lace collar. Untraditional and womanly for her age, but if Kizzie wasn't allowed responsibility like the rest of her family, she at least wanted to look like a Shelby.
Dresses were mainly kept here, in the Shelby family home. Kizzie picked the only black one she had, with a white lace collar. She tucked a pearl necklace into the collar. Black stockings weren't hard to find in her room—it was probably the only black item of clothing she had a lot of. Then brown leather boots that came just to the tops of her ankles. The chunky heel ensured she wouldn't fall or roll over her ankle... Which happened. A lot.
The rest of her wardrobe and her life was kept in her and Tommy's new home. Not quite the mansion he promised years ago, but it was coming. For right now, home was a fancy flat some blocks away from the Garrison. It was alright enough. She had a proper room and bed that sat a full hallway down from her brother.
Kizzie didn't know she could love privacy so much.
"Is this okay?" She stood at the bottom of the stairs while her twin put his coat on.
Finn nodded. "Yeah. Get your coat, it's cold out." He watched her struggle trying to take it off the hook. "Do I have your word that you won't bring attention? We're going to a pub where not a lot of Blinders hang out. They come in later in the night but we'll be gone by then."
"'I'll behave."
Finn opened the front door and Kizzie followed, her mask sliding back into place.
Author's Note:
One of the relationships I want to dive more into this season is between Kizzie and Finn.
It's obvious that Finn isn't really interested in hanging out with his sister right now. He wants to be with his friends and have fun (which becomes a theme you may already know if you've watched the whole Peaky Blinder series). Kizzie is "weird" and socially awkward and Finn doesn't want her to embarrass him. Or get him and his friends in trouble since he knows the brothers will have his head if something happens to her. But not "being a good brother" will also get him in trouble. So he's in a predicament.
It will also be fun to explore his dynamic with Tommy. Tommy is not Kizzie's twin, but they are the most closely bonded. There's some jealousy and hostility to be explored there, I think, between them both.
