𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐓𝐎𝐎 𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐋 || 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐌𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐁𝐘

ONE

"Oh I'm just a kid
I'm afraid of the dark
But I'm obsessed with ideas
One day I'll go far"

- 'Kids', Current Joys

"Jesus fucking Christ, how many times do I have to tell you to get out of the fucking bed Fiadh?! You have school in twenty minutes." Sadbh Casey was at her wits end. Her newfound position as the mother of a thirteen year old wasn't suiting her at all. And her godforsaken brother was absolutely no help, probably slumming it up with some whore he had gone off with last night.

Not that she had anything against whores, she actually respected them quite a lot for what they put up with. God knows she couldn't have dealt with the amount of men they have to work for. She also thought they were fairly enterprising. "Using your assets, sure isn't that what the big business men do as well, the like of yourself I suppose in a way" she'd declared to Arthur Shelby once. He had let out a snort and said she'd ought to get her head screwed on and not let her mother hear her, although he was flattered at being called a "big business man".

That was a long time ago, before the war. She had been just a small bit older than Fiadh, and looking back really had no filter. That was before everything went wrong. She was a shadow of the girl she had been back then, the sparkle in her eyes and ready wit had all but disappeared. She used to be loved by most people in Small Heath (except those who disliked the Peaky Blinders, by extension her brother, by extension her etc etc), but now she didn't have time for anyone.

You could call her a bit of a recluse, only going to work and the occasional call to Polly Gray and Ada Shelby. But she liked it that way, she couldn't get close to anyone else, she'd lost too many in her short twenty years.

Fiadh had made her way down the stairs by the time Sadbh broke out of her trance. Shooting daggers at her older sister, she sad down and poked at the crust of bread left out. By no
means was the youngest Casey a morning person. Screwing up her face, she reached for a knife and cut off what appeared to be a bit of mould. Sadbh's heart dropped as she saw the young girl trying to hide the disgust in her face. As much as they had petty fights, they were close as could be at the end of the day, and Fiadh would never do anything that could really hurt her sister's feelings.

"I know it's a bit shit right now, but I promise I'm trying. I'm thinking of applying for a job as a barmaid in the Garrison. It would be better money, and I'm sure Harry would give it to me for fear of Ruari." Fiadh glanced up at Sadbhs words and nodded, giving a halfhearted smile. "Yeah if you think it's a good idea go for it. I'm sure you'd have no bother with the men, sure Rua practically lives there anyway. He's never around to see us at the minute but he would keep an eye out for you I think." Sadbh nodded, not so sure of that fact. But she could deal with men herself, growing up in Cork and then Birmingham you learn to not take their shit.

"Right, off with you before you're late. You're going to be the first Casey to finish school, I'm telling you. You'll be running the world before I'm done with you!" Fiadh grimaced at the thought of school, but got up and strolled out the door nonetheless.

Sadbh cleaned around the house, doing a few odd jobs. All the while she considered the possibility of the job in the Garrison. Her mind was brimming over with pros and cons, and eventually she made up her mind to talk to someone she knew would set her straight - Polly Gray.

She made her way down the street, it was a quick enough walk considering she only lived a few doors up really. She entered Pol's house and came into the kitchen, and found Tommy and Polly sitting inside. The pair looked up and her and she gave a weak smile. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything, I just wanted a word with you Pol. I can come back later if now isn't a good time."