The cook, the maid, her friend and his lover.
A/N Title shamelessly stolen from Peter Greenaway's 1989 film starring Dame Helen and Sir Michael - a must see imho!
So actually nothing in this story belongs to me, not even the title.
Hope you like it, x george
o-o-o-o
Mr Carson was usually the first staff member to get up in the morning, second only to Mrs Patmore. He had found he needed some time for himself before the other staff came down for breakfast and the early mornings were perfect for preparing himself for his duties for the day. In wintertime it was often hard to leave his warm bed so early but now, in May, he enjoyed the soft morning sunshine and the loud, exuberant singing of the birds in the gardens. He entered his office and opened the window, it was pleasant enough to allow some fresh air inside. The familiar sounds of Mrs Patmore rattling pots and pans in her kitchen made him relax even more. A beautiful morning it was, really. He opened his drawer and deliberately chose the most boring of his many ledgers; the Library Dusting Schedule. Every now and then the many books, some of them very old had to be dusted off and inspected for any damage done by insects or mould, and while the maids were executing that job he had to keep the list. What irked him about the job was that many recent additions to the library were not up to his standards of what the library of an estate like Downton Abbey should contain. Finding a copy of The Hound of the Baskervilles in the drawing room had sent shivers down his spine. Did his Lordship actually read that nonsense? No, no, impossible. It had to be one of Lady Rose's books. Or Lady Edith's maybe, she was an avid reader of modern literature.
But there was nothing he could do about it and so he set to work and wrote out a rota for the coming month. Satisfied with himself, he got up and went to the kitchens to have his usual cup of tea with Mrs Patmore just before the fuss of staff's breakfast broke loose.
On his way to the kitchens however, a foul smell entered his nostrils. He sniffed the air again and wrinkled his nose. Good heavens, he thought and hurried towards the kitchens. Entering he found Mrs Patmore stirring a pan, her mind obviously not with the job at hand because she didn't seem to notice the pan was boiling over. Mr Carson rushed towards the stove and pulled the pan of burning milk from the burner.
'Mrs Patmore, are you all right?' he shouted while trying to wave the foul smell away.
'Are you all right?' he repeated, and went to the window to throw it open.
The cook shook her head. 'I'm sorry, I was checking on the eggs. I'm all right, don't worry! It's only slightly burned, I'll have it cleaned in a minute,' she said.
'What's going on? Mrs Patmore, what's wrong?!' Daisy stormed into the kitchen, alarmed by the smell. 'Mr Carson, is she all right?' she asked the butler.
'I am quite well, thank you! I was checking the eggs and you know how easily milk boils over. Nothing to worry about!' Mrs Patmore told them firmly. 'Only fifteen minutes before breakfast, I'm sorry to skip our cuppa today Mr Carson but I need to prepare milk for the porridge again. Daisy, make sure the toast is prepared!'
'Yes Mrs Patmore,' the assistant cook answered, knowing this wasn't the right moment to have a talk with her superior and off she was.
The staff's breakfast in the servant's hall went on as usual. No one noticed anything amiss, but in the kitchen a few maids sniffed the air when they went in. The blackened pan had been put in soapy water and the fresh morning air had blown most of the smell from the room. 'Did we forgot to turn off the stove last night?' Beth asked anxiously but Mrs Patmore shook her head. 'No, no, nothing like that. I spilled milk on the burner and I didn't notice it,' she explained.
But Daisy frowned her brow, and later that morning, in the quiet half hour before lunch, she decided she needed to speak to her friend.
o-o-o-o
A/N the actual title of the Peter Greenaway film is The cook, the thief, his wife and her lover.
If you haven't seen it yet, make sure that you do!