A/N
So here's my Christmas fanfic! I know it's been a while since I've posted anything on here but I've writing this for the past couple of months and I'm quite proud of it! I hope you enjoy it (it's all fluff and it warms hearts in this cold weather) and merry Christmas! Xxx
Christmas had once again come to Downton. But for many, this one was much different from the ones they had gotten to know at the big house. It was 1930, and the Great Depression had made Lord Grantham cut back on the staff and many had retired from life in service, wanting more from life.
The first one to partially leave service was Mr. Molesley. The headmaster of Downton village had discovered Mr. Molesley when Daisy has done her examinations: Joseph was a wise man with a lot of knowledge on diverse subjects. That's why they hired him as a teacher in late 1925. He still worked, when there was grand parties at the big house, as a footman. But still, finding his true passion gave Joseph Molesley the courage to finally admit his feeling to Miss Baxter, who of course reciprocated them. At Jack Bates' christening, somewhere in March 1926, he finally proposed after barely three months of courting. They were married before the end of the year.
Soon after Mr Molesley, Mr Carson left service too. But it wasn't, unfortunately, because he had found his inner calling. It was because he had been diagnosed with Parkinson -or palsy as he called it- in late 1925. So, he was left alone in his small cottage that he shared with his wife, Elsie. Charles was often bored of spending his days doing nothing since the man had work all his life. He would help Thomas Barrow in his new job as Downton's butler, but the younger man was settling in easily in his new job and soon didn't need mentoring. Fortunately the opportunity of a small job caught his attention and he gladly took it. When he wasn't working, he would garden in his yard. The garden was improving daily with old Mr Molesley's weekly advices. He would often surprise, on summer days, his wife with a large bouquet of flowers when she would come back home from a long at at the Abbey.
Later that spring, the Bateses had dropped a bombshell. They had bought the Grantham's Arms and were both leaving service, both wanting to be more present for their son and be a united family. Fixing the hotel took a lot of work, but at the end, it was all worth it. They were much happier being their own bosses. Mr Bates had never done paperwork at the Abbey so he hired Mr Carson to help him out with business. Their son John Jr "Jack" grew healthy and dark, to be his father's portrait and he was soon join by a set of twins, two other boys, Charles who was his mother's and very shy and quiet and Edward who was exactly like his brother Jack at the same age but much more outspoken. A couple of week before Christmas 1930, Anna had announced a third pregnancy. This time, the couple was crossing their fingers for a little girl.
Later during the cold winter of 1926, the Night of Love -it's how they would all call it afterwards- happened at Mr Mason's farm. In one evening, two couples had become engaged. Beryl Patmore and Albert Mason had decide to get married early and so she moved to the farm a couple of weeks after Daisy did.
Earlier that evening, Andrew "Andy" Parker had asked Mr Mason's permission to marry Daisy. As much as it pained the man to see his daughter in law moving on, he was glad that it was with a good guy like Andy. Of course when he proposed, Daisy accepted. But unlike the elderly couple, they decided to wait a while until they tied the knot. Andy had a grand plan for the farmhouse: he wanted, with Mr Mason's help, to build a extension to the house so Daisy and he would have more space for their future family.
They were finally wed on a sunny day of July 1927. By that time the following year, they were now three with their daughter Laura. They also had another daughter in the summer of 1930 named Lisa.
Mrs Patmore... well Mrs Mason retired in 1929, to be a full time grandmother to Laura. She loved the child so much! So Daisy was promoted to cook at the big house. Andy still worked as a footman but helped out at the farm every minute he could.
Mrs Hughes had worked until last fall, when she realized she wasn't getting any younger and wanted to enjoy life a little more. So she retired with her pension and found herself loving being at home with her husband and watching him garden. She and her husband were also very close to the Bateses... their sons called them grandma and grandpa and nothing could warm her heart like that. So she often spent time at their hotel with Anna and her sons keeping her company.
Phyllis Baxter still worked at the Abbey as Lady Grantham's lady's maid but also as a house keeper since Mrs Hughes' retirement. She enjoyed the work but the walk between the village was long, especially on cold winter night. But since Lady Grantham had gotten a breast cancer diagnosis in spring 1930, her workload had lessened much.
Her Ladyship almost spent everyday in bed now surrounded by her husband, her daughters, her grandchildren and her mother in law. The Dowager Countess was still very much alive and always present to the family's every milestone. Lady Mary and Mr Talbot only had one child to dote on from their union, young Miss Violet, and Master George was growing up to be a dashing young lad of nine years old all grown up, away in a boarding school. Lady Edith had one heir, Master Rodger in 1927, and two daughters, Lady Marigold, her daughter from her previous relationship with the editor Michael Gregson and Lady Patricia two years after Master Rodger. Tom Branson finally married Laura Edmond in summer 1929 and moved into a large house in the village. Unfortunately, the new Mrs Branson found out she wasn't able to bear a child which cause much grief to the couple. Young Sybbie grew up to be like her mother, sweet and pretty, making her father proud everyday.
And then there was Thomas Barrow, Downton's Butler since Mr Carson's retirement. He loved his job and for the first time in a long time he was content. Unfortunately, he still hadn't met a handsome man like Jimmy. He still had hope though... his Lordship had promised him a new footman, so maybe he'll be the one. But he enjoyed the work and the proximity with the children which he loved. Young Sybbie might have moved but Master George loved to spend time downstairs with the Butler when he wasn't away and was joined by his cousins and sibling whenever he could bring them. Thomas also grew very close to Andy and Daisy in the past years. He was even Laura and Lisa's godfather.
So Christmas was right around the corner and they had decided to all spend the day together. Thomas could only be at lunch since he had to serve the upstairs supper. They all settled for a late luncheon at the Bateses' hotel since they had much more space than the Carson's cottage or the Mason's farmhouse. Mrs Patmore insisted on making the food and no one argued... especially not Mrs Hughes.
It was Christmas morning.
The morning was cold and the fire was long out. The room was becoming cold so Joseph Molesley snuggled closer to his wife.
"Honey?" Phyllis asked as she felt her husband (how strange it was even after all those years to call him her husband). "You're awake?"
"Yeah..." Joseph mumbled, half asleep.
"You know what day it is?" she asked, a smile on her lips, as she was ran her fingers in the little of hair he had left.
"Thursday?" he said, while sitting up in bed. Phyllis laughed and softly punched his shoulder.
"It's Christmas..."
"Oh! Damn it!" He exclaimed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I have to share you today"
"I know, honey..." she said softly as she rested her head on his shoulder. "But it's not for another while... so, what do you say..."
"We make the most out of it?" He finished her sentence.
A bit on the outskirts of the village, Mrs Carson hadn't slept a wink as her husband came downstairs.
"What are you still doing up?" Charles asked her as he kissed her neck when he arrived in the kitchen to make his tea.
"Well... I procrastinated wrapping gifts a little too late this year," she started as he got the water boiling. "And I didn't have enough time..."
"So you leave me alone in our bed on Christmas night?" He said while he opened every cupboard to find the tea pouches.
"Third one on the left, Charlie..." Elsie rolled her eyes at her husband.
"Got them... so are you done?" He asked his wife, impatient to spend a little bit of time with her before they left for luncheon.
"Almost darling... I just need to wrap Mrs Mason's... and then I'm all yours," she winked at him.
Charles smiled softly at her. "You better be!"
Back in Downton village, at Grantham's Arm, John Bates was caressing his wife's abdomen as she slept. He was enjoying these few minutes of quiet before the day started and there would be no peace.
Soon after, the bedroom door slammed open and three little boys followed. All peace was gone and his wife was wide awake. Edward was the first to come in his fierce character and loud voice, waking his mother up. Then Jack followed, trying to quiet his small brother, while Charles was trailing up behind with his blanket, still very asleep.
Soon they were five in the double bed, as it would often happen in the morning. But this morning, the kids didn't stay, only dragging their parents out of the bed, getting them downstairs.
"You go ahead boys! We're coming!" Anna told them, to have a last instant of peace.
"I wished we would've stayed like that..." John started.
"Well, if I remember correctly, you did say that you wanted our children all around us..." she winked as she got up.
At Mr Mason's old farmhouse, if all anyone would come by, they would smell the delicious Christmas cooking from miles away. Beryl Patmore -Mason, actually- had been up all night, like her friend Elsie, but for completely different reasons. Beryl had been cooking the Christmas luncheon. For many of the guests, it had been a while since they had eaten her food and she was now afraid of disappointing them all.
Around two in the morning, the rest of the household was awoken by Lisa. The baby was just over six months old and had begun teething a couple of weeks prior.
Daisy came downstairs to nurse the baby in the sitting room, Andy following as he often did. Beryl warmed up some tea and they all sat around the kitchen table with their tea.
Daisy couldn't help it and soon, she was helping Mrs Patmore... well Mrs Mason... with the Yorkshire pudding and the stuffing.
Laura had always been an early riser, always waking up before everyone. Andy needed to hurry to get her gifts under the Christmas tree before she woke. But Andy wasn't the most quiet of men and so after he dropped a box or two, Mr Mason was wide awake.
They all chatted and and drank tea as Daisy and Beryl cooked for luncheon, until Laura came down the stairs. Even though she was still yawning, the child was very excited to see what Father Christmas had gotten her.
So, as the plum pudding was cooking, they all moved to the sitting room, just to find outside the window a white blanket on the ground.
In the servants quarter... or what was left of it, the morning was slowly making itself known. There wasn't anyone anymore to wake the staff so Thomas needed his alarm clock.
The little of servants left gathered for breakfast, the kitchen maid warming up the upstairs and downstairs food. Thomas was sitting at the end of the table, where Mr Carson used to sit. Sometimes he couldn't believe that he was Thomas Barrow, Butler of the grand Downton Abbey.
Then, his lordship's bell rang and Thomas went about his daily tasks of dressing his lordship. Lord Grantham was having more and more mood swings since Lady Grantham's diagnosis and the closer they were to the end the worst it was.
Thomas had told his lordship about his plan for the day. Lord Grantham was glad to see that his former servants were still close, and so Thomas was dismissed before ten.
He grabbed his bowler hat and put on his coat. He walked up the narrow path leading to the Mason's farm, so he could spend a bit of time with his goddaughters. On the way, he saw Daisy, who was heading to the Abbey to go check on a or two things on the upstairs' luncheon.
It was around eleven o'clock or soon after when the bell rang for the first time.
Charles and Edward had been sitting at the bottom of the stair since early that morning. For once, Charles had manage to convince his brother to stay still for more than a minute. They weren't technically staying put, as it was a silly notions for young boys. They were playing with their little tin soldiers when the bell rang.
Edward was very eager to see Mr. Carson: it had been a while since the elderly couple hadn't came by. The young lad had received a new train the same morning and wanted to show it with the man, both sharing the passion of engins.
Edward wasn't the only one excited about the Carsons' visit. Last time Mrs Hughes had dropped by, she had promised Charles a couple of ginger bread cookies and milk. The boy's parents doubt the quality of the cookies (Mr Carson warning them all about his wife's skills in the kitchen).
So, when the bell rang, the two boys rose and fought for the knob.
"Check by the window who it is!" Anna screamed from the kitchen, drying her hands on some towels, coming to the door, her husband behind.
Jack came, skipping from the sitting room, and took the decision for his brothers. He was going to be the one greeting Mr and Mrs Carson.
The door flung open and the children hurried to hug the couple, even against their father's warning to be careful. Charles and Elsie didn't mind: they loved the children and were glad to see them again.
Mr Carson had been holding gift boxes for the kids. Mr Bates offered to bring them under the tree. Anna had spent the past week training her oldest to invite the couple to the sitting room like a footman would back at the Abbey.
"Mr and Mrs Carson?" Jack stared seriously at them with freshly cut brown hair and missing front tooth, until they nodded. "May I invite you for a Christmas tea, in the sitting room?"
The adult laughed and accepted the invitation. They all settled with a warm tea, chatting lightly as the kids were showing the couple their gifts.
Anna still had preparations to get going in the kitchen, so Mrs. Carson offered her help. Young Charles didn't want to have either his mother or his surrogate grandmother out of sight, so he joined them.
Even though Mrs Patmore was bringing all the food, Anna insisted on making the cranberry sauce... But it wasn't even finish yet. And Charles wasn't helping at all: he was eating and chatting, Mrs Hughes only laughing, while ruffling the little boy's hair.
When the cranberry sauce was finally done, the doorbell rang again. Jack rose from his spot on the living room's rug and Anna left Mrs Hughes and Charles together in the kitchen to get to the door.
It was the young boy who opened the door. It was the Molesleys. Joseph was smiling proudly, his wife by his side. Phyllis was holding a couple of boxes under her right arm and was holding her husband's hand.
About ten minutes later, the bell rang and the Molesleys were at the door. Anna and Jack greeted them. The young boy found Mr Molesley quite reassuring since he'd be going to school the following fall. He would never admit it -not even to his mother-, but Jack was scared of leaving home, even for a couple of hours everyday.
Mr Bates hadn't put the Molesleys' coats in the closet, when the bell rang once more. His wife open to find Thomas, Andy and Daisy at the door. They were all holding pots of all kinds, somehow still fuming, for the luncheon.
"Mrs Parker?" Edward asked the young woman, who beamed pridefully at her married name, her husband smiling beside her. "Where's Laura and Lisa?"
"The girls are coming with Mr and Mrs Mason very soon!" She said, so glad for the little boys's interest, bending to meet their eyes.
How strange it was... ten years ago they were still all in service, the Carsons weren't even married yet -let alone engaged-, Mr Bates was in jail, Daisy wasn't even a sous-chef, Mr Molesley was still Mr Matthew's valet, Mr Mason had just lost his son...
Mrs Hughes offered to put Daisy's food to warm, giving Anna a well deserved rest. Afterward, they all settled in the sitting room, the men -even Thomas- were standing in from of the fireplace as if they were some upperclass gentlemen in some grand party. They didn't look the part with their mix-matched suits and worn out shoes, but their wives thought so from their confortable seat on the settee. The boys were playing, shouting and running around the house like they always did.
Around noon, the bell rang. It was finally Mrs Patmore and Mr Mason... but most importantly the food. The hosts open, but everyone helped to get the pots to the kitchen, all very eager to eat. Mr Mason was pushing Lisa's pram and Laura was toddling around the elder couple. Daisy was glad to see her daughters again and Laura joined the boys' games, as she often did. They were all very hungry, their breakfast seemed so long ago.
The group all gathered around the dinning table. Mr Carson was at one end, Mrs Hughes at his right and Thomas at his left, with whom he was having a conversation on the actual -disastrous- economy. Next to Mrs Hughes was Mrs Patmore facing Mr Mason who were lightly discussing about this and that gossip from the village. Daisy was feeding Lisa who was sitting in a highchair next to Mr Mason. Mrs Patmore was also including Andy in their conversation who was at her right, while Mr Molesley was trying to get in the conversation, which unfortunately didn't seem to work. Ms Baxter... actually Mrs Molesley, was occupied, telling Daisy how pretty her daughter was. Finally, Mr Bates was at the other end of the table with Anna, they seemed to be talking with their heads close like they used back at Downton.
Mr Molesley, Thomas and Mr Bates had wanted the children at the "grown up" table, but Mr Carson didn't like the thought, by saying "What would his Lordship think! A bunch of mannerless kids... no offence Mr Bates... at Christmas luncheon?" They all wanted to argue but they knew better than crossing Mr Carson... especially on luncheon and mostly on Christmas.
So, the four children -the Parkers's youngest being in a high chair by her mother- were sitting at Jack's drawing table, which was set in the corner of the kitchen. Charles was fussing about the Brussels sprouts like he always did when there was veggies in his plate. Jack was encouraging his younger brother to eat his whole meal while Edward and Laura were talking some non sense until Edward pulled one of brown braid. The little girl screamed and cried until her mother came in her rush, followed by Anna. Edward received a warning and a frown from his mother and Laura a cuddle and a kiss. After managing the crisis, the two women went back to their delicious food, rolling their eyes and laughing together.
The conversation flew naturally between the old friends and the food was soon gone. They stayed at the table for a while longer with coffee, until Anna proposed them to go in the sitting room with tea.
The sitting room was overcrowded. Mr. Carson, Mr Molesley and Mr Mason had somehow managed to all sit on the settee, even though they were awfully uncomfortable. Mr Bates was sitting in his arm chair with Charles on his laps. The other children were all playing with Thomas and Andy on the rug with this and that. Mrs Mason and Mrs Hughes had been sitting on chairs, in the corner, chatting, watching the children and singing Christmas carols like they used to do at the Abbey. Anna and Daisy were still in the kitchen, doing the dishes and gossiping about news from the village.
When all the china was put away in the cupboards, the two younger women joined their friends and family.
As they were all gathered around the fireplace, talking, chatting and watching the children play, they all realized something. They all realized that family isn't sharing the same surname, or the same blood. It's not all living under the same roof and it's not providing. Family, it's them. It's the bond that had been formed through the years, through everything life brought to them, through every single memory in the servant hall to all the laughs in kitchen, making them more than friends. Making them closer and understanding each others in a way only family can.