Lady Mary Crawley had never believed in such things as bad luck, karma and all that sort of nonsense. Yet, that year fate had shown her that finding oneself in the wrong place at wrong time can only be a recipe for disaster.
At 23 years old, Mary had neither a job nor was she in university and was living off her family's good fortune. However brutal and unfair she thought the class system to be, Mary firmly believed it was silly not to take advantage of her position on the social ladder. Some people really needed to work in order to survive, some people didn't need to work at all. Surely it was easy to view one's life that way when one's father was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Nevertheless the Crawley family's good fortune didn't merely stop at leading a first world country, no … The Crawleys were also one of the oldest blue blooded families of the whole kingdom, whose endurance in the 21st century had definitely been facilitated by Mary's father Robert's marriage to one Cora Levinson, heir to one of the richest families of New York and CEO of the European branch of the biggest cosmetic brand of the world: Bliss.
It was no surprise then, that once A-levels were all done, Mary had no intention to continue with her education what-so-ever. She figured she would keep travelling the world and living the high life in the company of her circle of privileged youths until her mother would have inevitably left her the reins of Bliss. Between her ugly duckling desperate-to-impress middle sister Edith, and her youngest aspiring doctor sister Sybil, Mary had no doubt her mother would have chosen as future CEO the daughter who was constantly on the 'Best dressed under 25' list.
It had never occurred to her that one single, fateful moment could have put her stress-free life plan in jeopardy.
"I think you must realise, young lady, the great deal of trouble you have put your family through."
As she sat completely still facing her livid interlocutor with light of the chandelier blinding her eyes, Mary felt more in a police station rather than in her living room at Grantham House.
"With all do respect, Mrs Hughes, but I don't think Lady Mary can be held completely responsible for what happened –"
"My dear Mr Carson, while you'd be the best person to ask when it comes to domestic policy, I am the Prime Minister's campaign manager, so you must allow me to say that, since her father is in the middle of a re-election campaign, it is completely Lady Mary's responsibility to have found herself even in the remote possibility of the situation…"
What was she supposed to do? What were her options? Admission of guilt? Shameless request of forgiveness? It wasn't her style. Plus, it would have bee no use. Growing up in the household of a politician had thought her that no scandal can be resolved with a simple "I'm sorry". And also, what was she supposed to be sorry about?
All she had done was leading the same lifestyle she had carried on for the last five years. Visiting beautiful countries, going to amazing parties, having fun with handsome rich strangers … She had been doing that ever since her father's first campaign, and that hadn't hurt his triumph in the slightest. On the contrary perhaps, it had made their family more interesting and appealing to the general public.
The start of the latest act of her party-girl life hadn't been any different. The avid readers of British tabloids had very much enjoyed her new adventures in Thailand her blossoming romance with the dashing son of the Turkish Ambassador in Britain, one Mr Kemal Pamuk.
Mary had met him at a party given by east Asian royalty upon her first arrival in Thailand, and their attraction had been clear from the very first moment. Kemal had all the charm given by his olive skin and his middle-eastern features, complemented by the impeccable manners acquired in one of the most prestigious English boarding schools. It was a match made in heaven, or at least that was what the papers said.
No one could have expected that exotic romance to turn into a tragedy in so little time. When news broke out that Kemal had been found dead in a Thai brothel, the papers had gone crazy and Mary, together with her family found themselves in the eye of the storm.
What the gossip-hungry tabloids did not know, that had been carefully kept a secret thanks to the excellent diplomatic abilities of Mrs Hughes was that Mary had also been present in that filthy Thai brothel. The reason behind the cover-up wasn't just Robert Crawley's re-election campaign. Mary's presence at the time of Kemal's mysterious death made her a person of interest in the possible murder investigation, and given Turkey's fragile relationship with the West it wasn't only in the Crawleys', but also in the Country's best interest to keep everything from the general public.
"Your parents have obviously laid down some conditions you must respect in order to rebuild your public im–"
"When am I exactly going to see my parents?" Mary broke her silence.
Ever since the tragic episode she had only seen secret service agents and cabinet personnel.
"They are finishing up a press conference but they should be here any minute." Mrs Hughed smiled kindly for the first time she had picked her up from the private plane at London City Airport.
"It is going to be alright, I promise" she added, earning an approving look from Mr Carson.
Of course everything was going to be solved, Mary thought. She would become her father's campaign puppet and his public image would come out spotless. But alright? Mary doubted anything was going to be alright ever again.
"Oh, there you are!" Cora cried as soon as she walked into the room, rushing to hug her daughter in a purely exaggerated American fashion.
The Prime Minister, on the other hand, stood severe in front of his daughter with a concerned look on his face.
"We are not here to condemn you or judge you." He began, "Nobody is saying this was your fault but your … liberal lifestyle of the past few years has definitely not helped in the situation. We have discussed a lot about and I think we have come up with the ideal solution…"
"You are not here to judge me, but to simply give me my punishment." Mary blurted out proudly.
"I wouldn't put it like that. I'd like to think we are giving you a second chance." Her father retorted calmly. Mary had no idea where her father was going with this.
"You are going back to education."
Mary took her time to think for a moment. "So your plan is to have attend some classes at, let's just say King's or Imperial, while I play the charitable puppy supporting your campaign?"
"Nothing of the sort" Robert replied keeping his cool, "You will issue a statement saying that the tragic event has inspired you to re-evaluate your life, you will pack your bags and start a normal university career exactly where you were supposed to."
"Which is?"
"University of Cambridge" Robert said proudly.
"I – I don't understand."
"You got in, remember?"
"Yes, but that was five years ago. No institution holds a place for that long."
"Let's just say I happen to be at the top of their alumni's list at the moment."
While Mary contemplated the length of the personal favours her family was calling from one source to another on her behalf, the door of the drawing room opened again.
"Mary, darling!" Sybil, the sweetest and youngest of her sister cried as soon as she stepped into the room. "I jumped on a train as soon as I was able to squeeze the date of your return out of Mr Carson!" She kept on going breathlessly, as Mary smiled gratefully back at her "You'll see, you are going to love Cambridge! And we are going to see each other all the time, oh I have missed you so much!" she cried excited but was frozen by a sudden realization, "T–That is if Papa has told you already…"
"I have" Robert assured her with a chuckle, saving his youngest from a heart attack.
"So, where is the last member of the Crawley household?" she asked her parents polemically, "Too busy gloating somewhere, I suppose."
"That brings us to the last point of order." Robert stated very seriously.
"We haven't told Edith" Cora anticipated her husband worryingly.
"We thought it best to keep her in the dark about the extent of your implication in the events of the brothel."
"I think you did the right thing." Mary replied gratefully.
"I think the small town atmosphere is gonna do you good, big sis." Sybil interjected stroking Mary's shoulder, "You deserve some peace and quiet".
"There is, however, one small condition." Robert interrupted the lovely sisterly moment.
Although she was still not 100% sure this was what she wanted, Mary sighed annoyed at her father's obvious last words.
"You will have two secret service agents keeping an eye on you, at least for a while."
"Talk about a normal uni experience…"
"Mary!" Cora cried in aggravation.
Mary was no idiot. She knew perfectly well that with the Middle East it wasn't the best of times and her father's measure was ultimately for her own safety and thus completely justified. Nevertheless she couldn't help feeling incredibly stupid for having sabotaged her whole incredibly privileged life for couple of perfectly chiselled cheekbones.
A/N: Hello readers, if any! I don't know if anybody reads Downton Abbey fics anymore, and Modern AU Mary/Matthew for that matter… But I had this idea and I wanted to try.
I wanted to finish with M/M's first encounter but that would have made the intro way too long, so I chose to stop it here. Please let me know if you'd like to read more, and if I have managed to catch your attention!
Who will Matthew be? How is this going to continue? Let me know if you want an answer to those questions…