Ekaterina stomped down the street. She was a woman on a mission. When someone suddenly seized her arm and whirled her around she automatically raised her walking stick, ready to hit whoever was daring to touch her. Tommy immediately backed away. "Whoa, whoa, whoa." Slowly, she let her hand sink again. Then she turned around and continued to walk a brisk pace. Tommy easily matched her. "What are you planning?" he asked. She stubbornly looked ahead. "I'm going to pack." He scoffed. "So you're leaving?" She didn't react visibly. "I'm out of this place by tonight. I promise you'll never see me again, Thomas."

He laughed bitterly. "So now that it came out you're fucking nobility it's only 'Thomas' now? No 'Mr. Shelby'? What, am I to call you 'princess' or something now?" She glared at him. "What do you want from me? This is my own problem. I never intended to ask for help, hence why I never told anyone." Again, he grabbed her arm and forced her to stop. "Tell me only one thing," he demanded. "Is everything about you a lie? Even the time you spend in Small Heath? You don't care for the people here?" She gritted her teeth. "I never lied to any of you. I just chose to leave you in the dark about my past. But my time here... " she looked down at the floor. "Nothing in my life has ever been more real. I found real friendship in Ada and Polly; I learned a job I love and I even learned to love a dirty place like Small Heath and the, sometimes, brutish people living in it." She looked up again, her eyes burning. "Because I came here by my own choice and I'm free."

Her body relaxed suddenly and she stopped trying to free her arm from his grip. "I bet you think I'm a lunatic for having left behind the luxury and comfort of my home... but you don't know anything. Being nobility means living in a golden cage, especially for women." Her quiet voice suddenly wavered and Tommy slightly leaned down, trying to hear her better. "The moment I was born I had no choice about anything in my life. Everything was decided by my parents... my father. And I always thought it was okay, they are my parents, they know what's best for me." She looked up again. "But I refuse to marry a monster like that, Campbell or anyone else. Ekaterina Chetwynd-Talbot was not born to be put on a leash by the likes of him."

She looked up at him with a gaze stronger than he had ever seen on her before. "So release me at once, Thomas. Let me go and I will be out of your hair. The Peaky Blinders will never hear of me again." Tommy's lips twitched. He was impressed by her strength of will, he had to give her that. "You may be nobility, but you forgot one thing, Ekaterina." The girl shuddered at the way her real name rolled over his lips. "We're in Small Heath and here I'm King. What I say goes. And I'm saying you stay."

He let go of her arm and fished out a cigarette. She scoffed. "What for? Campbell knows I'm here now. Even if he doesn't care for me personally anymore, what I really hope. He will surely tell my parents and they will send someone to get me." Tommy lightened his cigarette and took a long drag. "As long as you stay in Small Heath I can protect you. Also, Campbell wants to talk, so we're going to talk. I'll make it a condition that he'll leave you be." She looked at him surprised but then she sneered. "Don't be stupid. For one, he probably already told my parents. Phones exist now, you know. Besides, you don't parley when you're on the back foot and you've been owned, Thomas." He huffed. "Aye. So I'm going to even out the field."

The blonde sniggered. "And how are you going to do that, exactly?" Thomas looked down at her again, her green eyes clashing with his blue ones. "You wanted to pack your things, so do it. Then bring them over to the house. And if you happen to own a picture of King George, bring that, too." He turned around and started to walk back to his home. "Whatever for?!" Ekaterina yelled after him. He didn't stop, only throwing over his shoulder "I'm lightning a fire."

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A few hours later she approached the fire burning at the middle of Watery Lane. It was obvious what was burning in there: pictures of the King. She came to a halt next to Tommy after the news reporter had left. "Impressive." She complimented. "I'm guessing you know that you could get arrested for treason for burning these pictures?" He smiled lightly and looked down at her. "I know it. You know it. And yet you brought a picture as well." Ekaterina held out the picture frame she had hid behind her back and looked down at it. "The monarchy is the reason my family is nobility and why I was treated that way. So, in a sense, it's also King Georges fault." She muttered. Then she threw it in the fire, yelling "Fuck King George!"

Tommy grinned. "What would your parents say if they heard you talk like that, huh? Small Heath is corrupting their little princess." She huffed. "I don't care. Also, I'm not a princess or lady or anything. I'm just me." She looked up at him with her piercing eyes and for a moment he was lost. Then she turned her face back to the fire.

"I brought my stuff to the house. Though I don't really understand why you had me do that. Are you moving me to a different place?" She asked and he pulled out a cigarette. "No. You're moving in with us." Her head whipped up to him, surprise clearly on her face. "What? I can't." Tommy lightened his cigarette. "You can't live alone, not right now. Alone in your room you're like a sitting duck. Campbell or anyone only has to come knocking. And if that walking stick is your only weapon there won't be much of a fight." He pointed down at the stick with his chin and Ekaterina pouted slightly. "I have you know that it's custom made and more than enough to protect myself. It's made of hardwood and the knob on top is iron. If you're doubting my skills with it just ask Joey Tanner. I think he should be able to speak by now." She held it up and lightly swung it before her.

Right before Tommy had returned from France she had one night been dragged by a man to a dark corner of a street. It had been late and she had been on her way back home from an emergency. She had been tired as hell, and so hadn't really paid attention to her surroundings. Hadn't noticed that someone had started to follow her. This someone had then suddenly grabbed her, pushed her against a wall and tried to kiss her. She had fought back and viciously. Thanks to the walking stick she had broken his nose and his jaw, knocking out a couple teeth to boot. The next day Polly had a few Peaky Blinders "visit" this man and since then Joey Tanner had been nothing but a gentleman to her.

He laughed. "Oh, I heard of your skills, don't worry. Just didn't know this stick was involved." Ekaterina looked at him, surprised. He had laughed. And he looked good doing so. She had never seen him laugh before and honestly sometimes thought he had forgotten how to in France. "Also, I don't like guns." She then muttered. Tommy nodded. "Understandable. I sometimes don't like them, too."

For a few moments, they just stared into the fire. "Seriously, though, Thomas. I can't live with you. I imagine you all don't trust me very much at the moment." She sniffled lightly. "I bet Polly doesn't even want me in the house now." Tommy took a drag from his cigarette. "It was her idea." He stated matter of factly. Her eyes grew big. "Says the Peaky Blinders should be good guys for once and protect the princess."

Ekaterina felt tears prick in the corners of her eyes, when a blonde woman caught her attention, hurriedly making her way down the street; probably on her way to the Garrison to start her shift. Tommy followed the girls line of sight, both of them watching Grace. "You know that the reason the Garrison was spared is walking there, don't you?" She asked and Tommy nodded. Even if Ekaterina hadn't shared her suspicions with him it would have been strange. He had to do something about her. Maybe he could even use Grace somehow for his own benefit.

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Ekaterina moved into Johns old room. She didn't own much in the first place, so the move had been quick and uncomplicated. The first morning she had been afraid of how the Shelbys and Polly now reacted to her, sure that they all knew about her by now. She was especially afraid of how Ada would react. If the boys now thought less of her she could live with that. But if her best friend now saw her differently... it would destroy her.

She entered the kitchen hesitantly, but it was only Polly sitting there, reading papers. She stopped before the table, unsure what to do. "What are you doing?" Polly asked after a while. "Sit down, eat something. You have appointments today too, haven't you?" Ekaterina fumbled with her hands. "Does... everyone know now?" Polly folded her papers in half and looked at the small, fumbling girl. She normally never let on how she felt, always holding herself regal and proud. But the woman had always been able to see through the girl. Deep down Katherine... Ekaterina had always been a very sensitive and, sometimes, even insecure girl.

Polly had always liked her. Were Ada was impulsive and reckless, she was thoughtful and cautious. They balanced each other. Ada helped Ekaterina out of her shell; on the other hand Ekaterina had always looked out for Ada and calmed her down somewhat. Or so her aunt hoped. That's why Polly had welcomed their friendship and the girl herself. That she had proven herself useful for the Peaky Blinders as a nurse, too, had also been a big plus. Truth be told, Polly was still somewhat salty about her lie... but she could understand her to some extent.

She put away the papers. "The boys all know." She then admitted. "After all they have to know what to look out for." Ekaterina looked down. "But I haven't told Ada. Not yet." The matriarch continued and the blonde moved her eyes up again. "Please." She begged. "Let me tell her. I... I want to explain it to her myself." Both women looked at each other, green clashing with dark brown. But then the girl moved her eyes down again. She was no match against the matriarch. "Ada is my best friend." She whispered. "The only real friend I ever had. That's why she has to hear it from me. She deserves at least that much."

Polly continued to look at her. Then she nodded. "I will not tell her." Ekaterina sighed with relief and Polly continued "BUT I can't promise the boys won't tell her. So I would hurry if I were you." The blonde eagerly nodded and the woman took her papers again. "Oh and Katy," the brunette said while doing so. "I don't care if you're a countess or princess or even the bloody Queen of England... you lie to me again, you will pay for it." Ekaterina swallowed and nodded "Yes, Polly."

.

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It was late afternoon when Ekaterina stepped out of the house of Mrs. Holmes; a sweet, old woman. Since her husband had died a couple months ago the blonde made sure to check on her at least once a week. Her grandson was part of the Peaky Blinders and not as attentive to his grandmother as she would have liked. "Katy!" She heard a boy yell and she turned around, watching Finn run up to her. "Hey there, Finn." She greeted him with a smile. "Aunt Polly says you have to come home immediately." The boy announced when he had reached her. She nodded and together they started to walk, Ekaterina wondering what this was about and hoping that nothing had happened.

"Say, Katy." The boy suddenly announced, taking her free hand. "Tommy says you're a princess. Is that true?" The blonde looked down at the boy, who was staring up at her with his huge blue eyes, and smiled gently. She had always liked the youngest Shelby, even though he didn't take his education as seriously as she was hoping, always skipping school and fighting other boys; and he could be a real pain in the neck sometimes. But he was still a child, so Ekaterina could never be angry at him for long. Even when she and Ada had caught him playing with Johns loaded gun she hadn't been able to stay angry for long when he had sobbed in her arms after she, Ada and their aunt had scolded him heavily for it.

"I'm not a princess, Finn. I may be from a more privileged upbringing but I'm still and always will be Katy of Small Heath to you, okay?" The boy smiled and nodded, letting go of her hand again. He wasn't a little boy anymore, after all. Outside of the Shelby house she said goodbye to Finn, watching him run down the street to meet up with his friends again before entering it. Inside Ada and Polly were waiting for her in the kitchen, the young woman looking agitated and the older one angry again. For a moment she was scared that this was about her, but then Polly spoke up. "I want you to examine Ada. Look if she's pregnant."

Ekaterinas eyes grew big and her gaze flew to her friend. "Pregnant...?" In all honesty, it shouldn't surprise her this much. She knew that Ada and Freddie had sex nearly every time they saw each other. She also doubted that they were very careful while doing so, even though she gave Ada a couple condoms whenever she could. Still... maybe she had just hoped her friend wouldn't end up like that... a woman getting pregnant out of wedlock. Ada avoided her gaze.

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An hour later they were in Adas room, Ekaterina cleaning the used instruments and putting them back into the bag. "You can get dressed again." She commented while doing so. Ada fumbled with the hem of her underdress. "So am I or not?" She asked nervously. Ekaterina slowly turned around and nodded. Ada sighed and buried her face in her hands. The blonde sat down next to her. "Will he marry you?" she asked gently. The brunette lowered her hands. "I don't know where he is. He had to leave for a while after the raid."

The blonde sighed. Ada took hold of her friends hand. "He'll come back. I know he will. He... he is a good man, I promise." Ekaterina looked at her with this gaze that made the brunette always feel like she could hide nothing from it. Then she cast down her eyes. "That may be, but still..." She squeezed Adas hand. "Look... I don't know how to do it, but I know someone who does. Just- just if you-" "I'm not getting rid of it!" The brunette interrupted her. Ekaterina put up her hands. "I'm just saying if." She reassured and looked into her eyes. "But no matter how you decide and what happens afterwards, I will always be on your side, okay?" Ada felt tears gather in her eyes and embraced her best friend, muttering "how did I deserve a friend like you?"

Ekaterina swallowed. "Actually... it may not be the best timing... but I have something to tell you, too." She was scared of how Ada would react, but better to tell her sooner than later. Before she heard it from someone else. So she did.

"Earl... Russian princess? What the fuck, Katy!" The blonde twitched at that, fearfully looking at the brunette. "So you're telling me you could have introduced me to rich, nobel men all this time?" She accused jokingly and Ekaterina smiled in relief. "Would you really prefer some snobby son of an Earl or viscount over Freddie Thorne?" Ada laughed and lightly pushed the girls shoulder. "No, of course not. Even if the King himself proposed to me, I would still choose my Freddie." They both giggled, before Ekaterinas face turned serious again. "So... you don't mind? That I'm... different?"

Ada huffed. "Of course not. And to be honest I always expected you to be some kind of fancy girl that ran away from home. You stick out of Small Heath like a sore thumb, Katy." Ada took both of her hands. "Though I thought it was because of something 'scandalous' like an affair or a pregnancy out of wedlock. You know, the usual stuff. Not that you ran away from an arranged marriage with a monster... I'm sorry you had to go through that."

Now Ekaterinas eyes sparkled with unshed tears and they embraced again. Then Ada suddenly let go of her. "Do I have to call you by title now?" She asked in a slightly mocking tone and Ekaterina pouted. "Of course not! I don't hold an official title anyway!" Ada laughed and the blonde followed shortly afterwards. Both girls were in complicated circumstances... but laughing with a friend made everything a tad bit easier.

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Ekaterina was on her way to an appointment when she saw Tommy riding a beautiful horse down the street. The horse suddenly stood on his hind legs, probably startled from the loud noise coming out of the workshop and the girl stopped, scared of having to watch Tommy fall down. That could end badly. But Tommy, seemingly, had no problem at all to stay on top until the horse had calmed down enough to get down on himself. That was quite the impressive feat. She hesitantly approached them as Tommy was talking to the animal.

"Is he okay?" She asked when she reached them. Tommy, who had seen her coming through the corners of his eyes, looked down at her. "Aye. Just got startled a bit. But we'll get through it." Her eyes wandered down to the horses legs. "His right leg seems a bit lame." He cocked an eyebrow. It was true, but almost unnoticeable yet for an untrained eye. "You know about horses?" The girl lightly patted the horses torso. "Hm. I used to have one myself... before I came here." She smiled slightly. "A beautiful black quarter horse called Salazar. I... I often miss him terribly."

Her green eyes returned to him. "What's his name?" Tommy patted the horse nose. "Doesn't have one yet." She stopped her petting. "That's a shame. May I?" He looked at her, unsure. Normally, he liked to name the horses himself. But he decided to amuse her. He could change the name again if he wanted, after all. "Sure. Go ahead." The girl scrunched up her face in concentration and put a hand to her chin - what looked surprisingly endearing. "Hm... he is white, tall and majestic." Suddenly she had to think about the picture of a bust she had once seen in a book about great historical leaders. "How about Caesar? You know, like the great Roman emperor." She looked up at him and Tommy blinked. Her face seemed to glow with innocent, almost childish glee. He found that he quite liked that expression.

He nodded. "So Caesar it shall be." She gave him a tiny smile and then petted the horse again, saying "isn't that a nice name, huh, Caesar?" Then her eyes suddenly went big. "Shoot! I almost forgot I'm on my way to an appointment!" She gathered her longs skirt in one hand, holding her walking stick and her bag in the other. "Good day, Mr. Shelby. I have to run now!" She yelled over her shoulder as she moved her short legs. Tommy looked after her, a smile tugging at his lips at that comical display.

Over at the Garrison, Grace had watched their interaction with interest. The boss of the Peaky Blinders and the escapee daughter of the Earl of Shrewsbury, ex fiancée of her own boss. Together they were quite a sight to behold.


AN: I totally forgot last chapter, but shoutout to shariebery! Thank you for leaving a comment, I always love when people do. You rock!

Lulu 3