A/N: Only four chapters to go after this one, and they're all planned out. I'm going to finish this puppy before the new season airs – if Mr. Cumberbatch can loosen his hold on my psyche just a teensy bit. He's so clingy, but I'll manage it.

Now for something important: Trailer Talk! Of course I paid the most attention to the Anna/Bates parts. Glad to see a kiss in there, and a shot of the two of them laughing. But the angsty moments I saw (especially Bates crying) got me shaking in anticipation. To be honest, after all that they've already been through, I don't care what happens to them as long as they are alive and they are together. Because then we know they can make it through anything.

Fourteen

It was a quiet night of early March in Downton Abbey. The only dinner guest was Sir Richard Carlisle, and they hardly needed to go out of their way to impress him since he was becoming more and more of a regular guest. Now the supper was consumed, and the men would remain in the dining room with their cigars and brandy for a while before they would join the ladies in the drawing room. This would last about an hour or two before the guests would leave and the family would ready themselves for bed. That night, the only guest was Sir Richard Carlisle, and because he came more and more frequently now, it was no different than if there had been only the family for dinner.

Shortly after Sir Richard had departed, Mr. Carson found Anna in the servants' hall. "Anna, his Lordship has requested your presence in the library," he said imperiously, but Anna could see the hint of confusion in his eyes.

Upon hearing this, she became confused as well, and shared her confusion with Miss O'Brien silently. But she knew that speculating down here would get her nowhere; best to be prompt and find her answers upstairs. So, she set down her tea and walked out of the servants' hall.

A few minutes later, Anna arrived at the beautiful library (her favorite room in the small castle). She opened the door to find two people inside waiting for her: his Lordship, standing with his hands behind his back.

"Ah, good evening, Anna," said Lord Grantham when he saw her.

"You sent for me, m'lord?" she said, still standing in the doorway, hoping that there was nothing wrong.

"I did. Come in," said Lord Grantham, motioning for her to shut the door. Anna did, and stepped further into the beautiful room. "This evening after supper, Sir Richard Carlisle mentioned that he once made an inquiry about Bates at Mary's request. She told me that she made it on your behalf, and that any more information should be asked from you." His gaze on Anna was gentle, not accusing. "I want it made very clear, Anna: you are not in trouble. I only want the truth, for I would very much like to speak to him."

Anna nodded, her confusion now disappearing. "Yes, m'lord. Last July, I thought I saw Mr. Bates in the village. It confused me, for when he left it was known that he was going to London. Lady Mary saw that the situation had me worried, and said she would ask Sir Richard to find out the truth. A few days later, she came to me with what he had found out: Mr. Bates now works in a public house in Kirbymoorside called The Red Lion."

Surprise crossed Lord Grantham's face at this information, which meant that Lady Mary had left it to Anna to tell him everything – which she couldn't help but appreciate. Her employer took a step closer to Anna. "You've seen him, then?"

Anna nodded. "I have, yes, m'lord."

"And he's well?" inquired Lord Grantham.

"As far as I know," replied Anna, ignoring the stab of wistful sadness as she made her truthful reply. "I've only seen him once, and that was right after I found out his whereabouts. Since then we've only had minimal contact."

Now the emotions that crossed his Lordship's face were worry followed by pity and understanding as he remembered Mr. Bates's marital status. "Are you able to tell me why he is there, Anna?"

Perceptive Anna could hear the real question behind the one he asked, so she addressed the true one. "He's not been back to Downton for two reasons. He's hoping to settle certain matters first with Mrs. Bates."

"And does he think he can?"

"He believes so, m'lord. That's why I only keep minimal contact with him now: to make this easier for him, so to speak."

Lord Grantham nodded in understanding and some relief. "Very good…and what is his second reason for avoiding us?"

Anna bit her lip for a tiny moment before answering, hoping that his Lordship would not shift his mood to an unpleasant one. "The second reason is because he parted with your lordship on bad terms. He felt it might be embarrassing."

Lord Grantham averted his gaze. "Yes, it is for me to be embarrassed…I treated him unfairly upon leaving, and let my temper speak for me." He looked back at the head housemaid with kind gratitude. "Thank you for sharing this with me, Anna. I'm going to go to Kirbymoorside tomorrow to have a talk with him." His look became earnest now. "And if there is anything in my power I can do to help the two of you, I will do it."

Anna's heart filled with gratitude for her kind employer. It reminded her of why Mr. Bates was so loyal to him in the first place, class and occupation be damned. She smiled as she gave bowed her head. "Thank you, m'lord," she said.

"You may go now. I know the girls will be wanting to fall asleep soon."

"Yes, m'lord." With a quick bob, Anna left the room, her heart feeling a bit fuller.

But as she made her way up the stairs, Anna paused as she had a thought. What if his Lordship asked Bates to come back to Downton? With Lang gone, Mr. Carson was taking over the duties of the valet – that had been his position before being promoted to butler years ago – until a proper replacement could be found. Having Mr. Bates come back would certainly solve that problem.

However, Mr. Bates had given his word to stay away until the situation with his wife was resolved. When would that be, anyway? She'd heard nothing from him for nearly two months since the holidays, which only meant things hadn't been resolved yet. Oh, when will they be? I wish I could know…

Anna covered her face with a hand, taking a few deep breaths to strengthen her resolve. I must be patient, and bear anything. He's counting on me to do so, and I will not let him down. And I have faith that he will not break his word to me, though his loyalty to his Lordship runs deep. I must have faith in the man I love.

With that, Anna continued up the stairs, her resolve as strong as ever.

The Red Lion had just closed for the day, and Bates worked in silence, his thoughts of Anna. Supper would be finishing at Downton now. Did she help in the dining room every night, now that most of the young male help was gone? If he were there…oh, to be there…but he couldn't. He'd given her his word to stay away until he was a free man. He knew that would happen eventually, but it was taking much too long! Wanting to save as much money as he could, the local lawyer he had hired was so swamped with other cases more pressing than his that the progress on his case was very slow.

He gathered some empty glasses from the last table after cleaning it. As he walked back to the bar, the bell sounded announcing someone's entrance. He resisted the impulse to give a scowl of exasperation. "We're closed," he called to whomever it was that had opened the door, hoping that the person would just turn around and leave at his words.

But when he turned to look, he saw the last person he had expected to enter this public house: Lord Grantham himself. First Anna, then Lady Mary, then Miss O'Brien and now his Lordship? It's like a parade. Their eyes met, and Lord Grantham took off his hat.

"M'lord," said Bates in astonishment, though he managed to keep his expression in between neutral and mild surprise.

"Hello, Bates," said Lord Grantham, walking towards him. "I'd like to have a talk with you, if I may."

Still surprised, Mr. Bates nodded. He pulled out two of the bar stools. "This will have to do, I'm afraid, since we're nearly all closed up." He waved his hand to indicate all of the tables with the chairs up.

"That's fine, Bates," said Lord Grantham, and the two of them each took a seat on a bar stool, resting a forearm on the bar.

Bates exchanged an apologetic look with Henry, who just nodded and continued to close up. He then turned his attention to Lord Grantham and waited for him to speak.

Lord Grantham met Bates's eyes and heaved a deep sigh. "I would have come sooner, had I known your whereabouts. I only found out last night by a slip of the tongue. Sir Richard Carlisle was dining with us, and after supper, casually mentioned making an inquiry about you by Lady Mary's request. From there, I learned your whereabouts…I understand if my coming here is unwelcome –"

"No, m'lord, not unwelcome," said Bates. "I'm only surprised."

"Anna told me the reasons why you have avoided Downton. I presume since you are trying to settle things with Mrs. Bates that she is not here Yorkshire with you?"

"That's right, m'lord," said Bates. "I left Vera about a year ago. I moved here officially to prove that the marriage is indeed broken." He sighed. "After the way she turned up at Downton and made me leave the way I did, I won't rest until I am legally a free man."

"I'm glad to hear it," said Lord Grantham, folding his hands. "But Carson said your wife made all sorts of threats."

Bates shook his head slightly. "She won't carry them out. Not now. Since I left Downton, I've discovered that she was…untrue to me." Lord Grantham gave an expression which said that he was not surprised at all. "I may have been as bad in my heart, m'lord, but I've done nothing to be ashamed of."

This last statement was said with complete firmness, looking Lord Grantham straight in the eye. But his Lordship could see that he was not speaking on his own behalf, but on Anna's. He gave a tiny nod, indicating that he already knew that the both of them had been nothing but honorable at Downton.

Bates continued. "The point is I can divorce her now, whether she likes it or not."

"But what's to stop her blurting out her stories to the press?" asked Lord Grantham.

"If she agrees to keep silent, I will give her whatever she wants. She can't hold me now, so her choice is between poverty and plenty."

Lord Grantham took a moment to take all of this in. "And what was the tale she was going to tell? Carson never made it clear."

Bates had been expecting that question, and had no desire to break a relationship between father and daughter. So he feigned nonchalance and lack of memory. "Some silly nonsense, m'lord. I wouldn't waste your time with it." He quickly changed the topic by saying: "What's the news from Downton?"

It worked, thankfully, and Lord Grantham went on to describe how Downton had become a home for recovering officers, and all of the adjustments the people both upstairs and downstairs have had to make. Bates listened to every word eagerly, wishing he could be there too.

"I don't know what's harder, Bates," said Lord Grantham after a pause in the conversation. "The Boers nearly killed us, but seeing these young people so scarred in every way by the war, and one can only do so much to help…Mr. Lang, the man who became valet after you left, even he had to resign because the war haunted him too much."

Bates nodded. "I've met him, m'lord. He is staying with his sister here. He comes in once and a while to talk. I think the fact that I'm a former soldier helps him to open up."

"Good," said Lord Grantham. "I'm glad he is getting better…" He looked at Bates. "I haven't found a new valet yet, and I would offer you your job again in a moment…but I have the feeling that you will turn me down."

Bates sighed. "It's not that I don't want to come back, m'lord, because I do. Working for you at that house, I have experienced the best moments of my life. If I could work there all the days of my life, I would be a happy man. But as long as Vera is still legally attached to me, I can't risk going back. I thought I was rid of her once, and look what happened. It nearly destroyed both Anna and me. I gave her my word that I would not come back to Downton and her until I was able to in every way. Can you accept that?"

Lord Grantham looked at his former batman and valet in a new light, and the remorse he felt was more powerful than ever, only matched by the respect he felt for him. When he spoke, his tone was low, serious, and genuine: "I misjudged you, Bates. And I abused you when we parted. I should have had more faith. I'm sorry."

Bates could not deny that he was very touched. It took him a moment to get past the lump in his throat. "God knows you've shown more faith in me than I had any right to. There is no anger on my part, and never has been."

Relief on his face, Lord Grantham held out his hand to Bates, and the two of them shook hands like brothers.

When that was done, Lord Grantham spoke with an air of quiet authority: "I cannot count all of the times you helped me both in the war and at Downton. Now I'm going to begin repaying that debt by helping you and Anna…"

The next morning, Lord Grantham called Mr. Carson, Mrs. Hughes, and Anna to the library for a meeting. The butler and the housekeeper were at quite a loss as to what his Lordship wanted, but Anna had a hopeful feeling in the pit of her stomach since she was called with them.

"Carson, I know you've been taking over the valet's duties when you have enough to do, but would it be too much trouble for you to continue on with them until Easter or late spring?"

Mr. Carson and Mrs. Hughes exchanged a surprised look before the butler turned back to his employer. "If that is your wish, m'lord, then yes, gladly."

"Good," said Lord Grantham, smiling at the news he was about to give. "Because around that time, Bates will be coming back to take the valet position. It would be useless to hire someone for only a month or two."

Mr. Carson visibly beamed; Mrs. Hughes gave a delighted gasp and looked at Anna; the head housemaid closed her eyes in sweet relief and happiness, working hard to surpress the silly grin that was threatening to break out.

"Quite right, m'lord, quite right," said Mr. Carson heartily. "But why the delay?"

"Well, I recently found him and had a talk with him. There are certain things he needs to settle – or rather, dissolve – with Mrs. Bates before coming back to Downton. I hope this will not be too much trouble."

Mr. Carson and Mrs. Hughes now exchanged a happy look. "Of course not, your lordship," said Mrs. Hughes happily. "We will organize everything so that all of the work will be done as usual."

"Thank you," said Lord Grantham. "You two may go."

The butler and the housekeeper left the library promptly. He then turned to the head housemaid that remained, and took a step closer to her. "I've called Murray, my solicitor, and asked him to take on Bates's case. The solicitor he had now was moving too slowly with so many clients, and Murray has assured that, with the evidence Bates has, the case will be put to rest in a matter of weeks, not months."

Anna felt as if a firecracker had been lit up in her heart, and it took all of her strength not to break propriety and give his Lordship a hug of gratitude. So she settled for merely curtseying and saying, "M'lord, thank you, very very much."

Lord Grantham smiled and dismissed her from the library. Anna nearly skipped all the way down to the servants' hall.

It certainly was a happy day at Downton that day, and what the evening brought was merely icing on the cake.

During the servants' supper, Thomas was in a thunderous mood. But he said nothing, merely shooting daggers at O'Brien, who seemed not affected at all.

When he'd gone out for a smoke, Anna turned in confusion to O'Brien. "What's Mr. Stick-it-up-your-jumper sulking about?"

"Oh, I'd say he's not too happy about going back to France to work as a medic in an army hospital there, now that his hand is much better. Even if he won't be on the front lines, it's still a stone's throw from the action."

Anna's eyebrows rose, and she had to fight the smile forming on her face. "Oh, what a pity," she muttered in light sarcasm. "Why is it that he wants to punish you when you're not his commanding officer?"

O'Brien merely shrugged as she smirked, remembering how she had mentioned to her Ladyship how Thomas had been feeling restless here and wanted to be where he could be of real use in the war.

She felt no remorse whatsoever.