A/N: So here's chapter two~
We haven't hit the actual plot of the show yet, but we will, very soon. I promise.
Disclaimer: Don't own Downton Abbey.
Enjoy!
Mairead knew what to expect when she came to Downton, at least as far as the change in prestige (which, oddly enough, did not deter her as her mam thought it would) and scenery went. What she hadn't expected was to see Tom shortly upon her arrival at the train station, and she couldn't help but wonder why her mam didn't mention that Mairead's cousin was employed by the same family that had just hired her.
Then again, Mairead had thought as she'd been unpacking her things (it wasn't much, just what she'd thought was practical to wear, plus three books, and the small jewelry box she used to keep her letters in), that's one of the reasons you left.
She recalled what she'd told Mrs. Hughes when she'd come to be interviewed for the post, about how she wished to avoid any bias that would undoubtedly come from being the daughter of the housekeeper, which was more than reasonable, wasn't it? She wanted to be successful on her own terms, not just because her mother could promote her if she wanted. Other girls would jump at such a chance, this she knew, and sometimes she wondered what kept her from taking advantage of that, why she held back whenever a chance to show off in front of her mother arose. Such chances were rare, seeing as her mother was more focused on keeping the staff in order than spoiling her children who worked in her household.
"Stop that," she chided herself as she changed into her new uniform and redid her dark auburn hair into an even more simple knot than she'd worn for the train ride from Manchester, having to rush it when she heard a light knock on the door. The day may be nearly over, but there's still work to be done, she reminded herself as she went to answer the door.
"Hullo Mairead," the woman outside her door said, offering Mairead a warm smile. She wore the same uniform as Mairead, with her fair hair swept back into a neat knot at the nape of her neck. "Mrs. Hughes sent me to make sure you're settled in properly."
"Yes I am, thank you," Mairead said, returning the woman's smile. She had a faint memory of meeting the woman when she'd come for her interview earlier in the year, but that memory didn't include her name.
"Splendid. I'm Anna, and if you'd like, I can introduce you to some of the others," she offered, gesturing for Mairead to follow her down the hall where the female staff slept until they came to a room similar to Mairead's own, where three other women were gathered.
The oldest looked to be somewhere in her twenties- maybe a year or two younger than Mairead's brother William- but the other two were closer to eighteen or nineteen years old. All three of them wore a housemaid's uniform, but Mairead knew enough to know that they were only a small portion of the housemaid population here. A great house such as Downton surely had at least twenty housemaids, and there were maybe half that many footmen. She knew she could be wrong, with men leaving to fight on the Western Front, and women taking more jobs in the city. Back in Manchester, there'd been two or three of her fellow parlor maids who'd left to be secretaries or something like that, and the Lord knew that a good bit of the footmen she'd worked alongside had left to fight.
"Ethel, Lucy, Alice, this is Mairead," Anna said, then, gesturing to each of the women as she said their names, she added: "Mairead, this is Ethel, Lucy, and Alice."
"Pleasure to meet you," Mairead said, giving each of them a polite nod. "You can call me Meg, if it's easier."
Anna smiled and clapped her hands together softly- a gesture of finality that Mairead's mother had often performed. "I'll leave you four to get acquainted, I suppose," she said. "Don't take too long, though." And with that she left.
"She acts like a proper lady!" Lucy scoffed as soon as Anna was gone, addressing no one in particular.
Mairead said nothing, she just hung back, observing as Alice elbowed Lucy in the ribs gently, though certainly not playfully.
"She's being polite," the dark-haired housemaid retorted, her expression softening as she met Mairead's eyes. "Don't mind Lucy. She's a bit sore that you get to be third housemaid, when she's been working here for a year."
"Am not," Lucy muttered, rubbing her side and shooting Alice a venomous look.
Ethel watched the two younger girls, her thin lips pressed together thoughtfully as her attention shifted to Mairead. "Where are you from?" she asked.
It was a reasonable enough question, and Mairead didn't see any reason not to answer. "Just outside of Dublin," she told her new colleagues, bracing herself for whatever might follow.
"Isn't that where the chauffeur's from?" Ethel asked Alice and Lucy.
"He's from Bray, which isn't far from where I grew up," Mairead corrected, heat rising in her cheeks as she spoke.
A sly grin spread across Lucy's lips. "How do y'know that? I don't imagine he'd tell you- he's quiet, keeps to himself, y'know."
She felt her cheeks warm with embarrassment (oh, what a fool she must've looked like to them!), and she scolded herself for being so foolish as to blurt out something like that. "He's a dear friend of my family," she lied, using the quickest excuse she could think of for her familiarity with "the chauffeur," one that would explain their relationship without being too problematic.
"Just a friend?" Ethel arched a red brow playfully, but the humor behind the expression- the Lord knew that Mairead had done much the same in jest herself- did not have the effect it was meant to have.
If anything, it only served to make Mairead bristle, but it wouldn't be any use to her if she made a poor impression on her first day, now would it? While it was appealing, the notion of making friends with Ethel, Alice, and Lucy was really a silly one, especially if all they seemed to be interested in were things that weren't any of their business. It was cruel to judge them so quickly, so Mairead decided she would wait and see what their true dispositions were (her mother had always told her that you had to wait until you'd seen them with other people, seen them work, and seen them in a spot of trouble before you could truly identify their character, and Mairead was ready to take this advice), then she would make her decision.
Until then, she'd keep to herself, like she usually did, but she'd keep her eyes and ears open, for sure, at least until she had a good sense of things here. She'd stick with her lie about Tom, and she'd have to tell him what she'd told the staff, about their families being good friends, so he would know what to say if anyone happened to ask him.
"I should prob'ly report to Mrs. Hughes," she said, giving the other housemaids a tight-lipped smile. "Let her know I'm settled in and all."
"Do you need me t'show you where her sitting room is?" Alice offered.
Mairead shook her head, maintaining her smile. "I remember where it is, but thanks," she said, leaving before anyone could say something to her. As she went, she could hear them whispering excitedly - Gossiping, she thought- but she couldn't make out what they were saying.
Thank the Lord for books and work, she thought, smiling in earnest to herself. Without them, she was convinced she might go mad.
A/N: So there's chapter two! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I look forward to actually getting to the plot of the show (as I said, soon, very soon). As always, reviews are welcome.
Thank you for your continued support!
