Clara and Finn watched two of their brothers come towards the Shelby home early that morning. The shop wasn't yet open for the day and the house had been nearly silent until John and Arthur arrived. The only noise came from the few Blinders working on the books and the quiet conversation taking place between the Shelby twins who were sitting just beyond the doors to the shop.

"Fucking Tommy!"

It was Arthur's voice that Clara heard booming through the front door and she flinched at the tone. Arthur was always shouting and it was usually about Tommy but that didn't make it any easier for Clara Shelby to digest. She loved that her brothers were home but there had been a whole lot less shouting when it was just her, Finn, Ada, and Aunt Pol.

Clara and Finn gave their greetings when the boys came into the room. Mad as he was, Arthur didn't take it out on the kids. He ruffled Finn's hair before moving to place a kiss on Clara's hairline, his mustache tickling her as she pushed him away, giggling. They both watched John and Finn engrossed in a whispered conversation, smiles on their faces. John was well on his way to corrupting his younger brother and not a single member of the family had much to say about discouraging it. Arthur turned his attention back to his younger sister.

"Where's Pol, princess?" he asked.

"She went down to church," she answered.

"Ada?" he continued.

Clara shrugged her shoulders. She knew very well that Ada was with Freddy Thorne and that she had stayed with him the night before but she wasn't about to tell her brothers that. Ada had explained to her something about the Shelby girls sticking together and Clara intended to keep her word.

"And Tommy?" Arthur asked although he knew where his younger brother had been. He had heard all about it on his way over to the shop, which was impressive considering Arthur lived just a few doors down on Watery Lane.

"He had breakfast with me and left."

"Okay," he conceded. Arthur didn't believe his sister knew more than that. Clara was sweet and innocent and to Arthur that was about all she would ever be. "Reading?" he nodded towards the book.

She nodded, keeping the book flat in her lap.

"That's my brilliant girl, always reading, best marks in the class."

"Giving us Shelby's a good name at that school. One of us had to," John commented. "We all know Finn isn't."

None of the Shelby's thus far had done anything by the way of making a good name for the family in an academic sense. Arthur had tried but wasn't scholastically inclined. Tommy had had the mind but had done only what he had wanted. John had been willfully resistant. Ada had been wholly uninterested and Finn simply struggled and often gave up.

After the boys made their way into the shop, Arthur was complaining to John and anyone who would listen about Tommy doing the Chinese trick with the horse. Clara kept her mouth shut and continued reading from her spot beside the fire. When Arthur had pushed the men for more information, she hadn't offered a word.

Tommy had told Clara about his plans that morning over breakfast. She hadn't known that her brother was testing her when he said he had a secret she wasn't to share with the others. Tommy was already relatively confident that he could trust Clara. Even at only ten years old, the girl was cleverer than the rest of them put together and fairly reliable, almost to a fault. Even if she couldn't always be trusted to do exactly as she was told, Tommy could trust his Clara with a secret just meant for the two of them.

The twins had essentially been banned from the shop following the boys' return from war. There had been very little discussion on the matter after Thomas had decided that an illegal betting shop was no place for a pair of ten-year-olds. Finn still routinely pushed the boundary when he could manage it. No one other than Tommy made much of a fuss if the kids made their way into the shop so when Finn had edged his way through the doors that had been left open when Arthur and John arrived no one said anything.

Clara preferred the company of her book for the moment and seeing as the boys were complaining about Tommy's actions that morning, she decided to stay out of it. Finn didn't come back to his sister's company until one of the men forced him out of the shop just before opening. He had somehow managed to get a cigarette while in the shop and got to work lighting it as soon as he sat down.

"You're not supposed to be smoking," she said.

"And Tommy said not to be reading his books," Finn retorted. "You're too little."

She wondered how Finn even knew it was Tommy's book. She had snuck in and out of the room right after Tommy had left that morning. Finn had still been fast asleep. Plus, Finn could barely read, so she knew he hadn't identified the title.

"I'm not too little. I'm already on chapter two," she answered, letting silence settle between them until Finn got the cigarette lit.

"Arthur's awful mad at Tommy?" she asked. Bits and pieces of the conversations had floated to her ears throughout the morning.

"Tommy fixed a race," Finn answered in such a tone that it sounded as though he knew precisely what he was talking about and he didn't approve. Finn took a deep puff of the cigarette before holding it to his sister to try. She sucked on the cigarette, feeling the warmth fill her lungs before Finn suddenly pulled it from her lips. Clara scowled at him before a cough forced itself from her chest.

"You breathed in too much, silly," Finn said, shaking his head.

"You scared me," she answered. "Let me try again."

"No, smoking's not for little girls."

"I'm not a—"

She heard their brother's voice outside the door before he had opened it all the way. In the moment that the twins had before Tommy came inside, Finn tossed the cigarette towards the fire. Clara slid the book she was reading out of view on her lap, just beneath the table.

"Arthur's mad as hell," Finn offered, a weak attempt at distraction that did little to divert Thomas. His eyes swept over his youngest siblings. Tommy had already taken in the whole room, cataloguing the twins' various indiscretions.

"He is, Tommy. He was shouting for all Watery Lane to hear," Clara chimed in.

Tommy nodded his head. "What do a couple of ten-year-olds know about hell?" he asked, picking up the cigarette butt and tossing it into the flames after he showed it to both kids.

"I'm eleven Sunday. Maybe Clara doesn't know, but I do." Finn delivered a smirk in Clara's direction and Tommy's eyes followed.

"And I'm eleven on Monday. You're barely bigger than me, Finn."

"You're still the baby, little sister."

"Tell him I'm not, Tommy."

Clara stuck her tongue out at Finn and he then returned the favor. Finn fought hard to maintain his place in the pecking order. Although they were twins, Finn was older by somewhere in the vicinity of a few hours. Their births had spanned two days, with Finn being born late at night and Clara being born in the early hours of the next day. They had never shared an actual birthday.

"Enough of that, you two," Tommy chided as he tapped Finn over the head with his cap. "What have you got there, Clara?"

Tommy raised an eyebrow as he looked to her, waiting for the answer.

"A book," she answered, setting it on her chair before sitting on top of it. A smirk touched Tommy's lips. He took two steps across the room and picked the girl up in his arms. Tommy settled his sister on his hip and picked up the book in the process. He waited until she met his eyes. "What have I told you about my books?"

Instead of answering, Clara placed her arms around his neck. She took the opportunity to nuzzle against her brother's chest, hiding her face as dark blonde waves fell over her arms.

"Tommy," she whined into the fabric of his suit.

"Clara," he echoed.

He set his sister down with her feet on the stool before him. They stood almost eye to eye and he waited patiently. Clara didn't like Tommy's intense gazes combined with silence. She felt compelled to fill the silence, to give him what he wanted.

"But I finished every book in the house and you haven't gotten me another," she pouted, arm crossed over her chest.

She stomped her foot, sending the stool into a wobble which could have ended with her on the floor if it weren't for Thomas steadying her. He used the book to tap her backside, nothing more than a warning to get her attention.

Finn snickered but a glance from both Tommy and Clara quieted him.

"It isn't fair, Thomas," she said.

"I'm Thomas, now, am I?" he said, setting the book down on the table. She watched the book leave his hand before continuing.

"Yes, Thomas. It's not fair that Finn was smoking a cigarette and saying bad words and teasing and he didn't get in trouble and I get punished for reading. You let him get away with everything and me with nothing, Thomas."

Tommy suspected that his younger sister had picked up calling him "Thomas" from their Aunt Pol. When Pol was annoyed with him, the same indignant tone and his full name came from her lips as well. Out of respect for the girl, Tommy didn't laugh at the tone of her voice though it was funny to see this display of power from his 10-year-old sister.

"You were smoking, too," Finn's indignant voice broke through the moment.

Clara's eyes narrowed at her twin and Tommy cleared his throat to regain her attention.

"The two of you aren't meant to be telling on one another. You're meant to look out for one another. That's what we do in this family."

Finn nodded once before looking back to the fire and Tommy turned to Clara. "And I hold you to a higher standard than the rest of them. You're smarter than your brother and you're a proper lady, not a Peaky Blinder. And no one's getting punished."

Clara considered his inquisition and his accusatory tone to be a punishment.

"It isn't fair, Tommy," she answered, pouting.

He ran a hand through her hair, stopping to place his palm on her cheek. "The world often isn't, Clara." Tommy picked the book up, holding it out to her. "Put this back and we'll get another later today."

"Can I pick it out?"

"Can you behave yourself for the rest of the afternoon?"

"Of course," she said.

"No more smoking, no more sneaking into the shop, no fighting," Tommy said, glancing to Finn as well.

She nodded eagerly, holding out her hand.

"Then it looks like we have a deal, Miss Shelby," he said, shaking the little hand.

Clara leaned forward, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you, Mr. Shelby," she answered, hopping off the stool with the book in her arms and running up the stairs.

Tommy glanced to Finn. "Sisters, eh Finn?"

The boy shook his head. "She's a piece of work, she is," Finn answered, having frequently heard his twin sister described as such.

"That she is," Tommy agreed before making his way into the shop.