Chapter Seven

November 11, 1913

Mary approached her father as he sat at his desk in the library the next morning. "Papa, I wonder if you have a minute. I'd like to speak with you about something."

"That sounds slightly ominous, but I'll go with it. Sit down." Robert ushered to the sofa as he stood up and grabbed a biscuit from a tray by the window. "What is it?" he asked as he walked over to her.

Mary took a deep breath and spoke clearly and evenly, "I wondered if it might be possible for me to move into Hawton House. I'd like to take Anna and Ellie with me, but that's it."

"And why is this?" Robert enquired. "Don't you like living at Downton Abbey?"

"Of course I do, Papa. This is my home, but I'm ready for a change. I'm ready for something new and more independent. And besides, Hawton is on the estate, so it's not like I'll be far."

"Very well, but surely you'll need a butler. Anna can clean the house and dress you, but she can't answer the door. That's not the job of a personal servant."

"I know. I've given it some thought, and I have an idea that should be suitable."

"And what is this idea of yours, pray?" Robert asked.

"There's a footman here whom Anna says is quite competent in his duties, Thomas Barrow. He's worked here for ages, and surely Mr. Carson has set a positive example of how to be a butler. Besides, he wouldn't have to do much other than answer doors and bring the post up."

"Okay, you seem quite sure. Thomas Barrow it is." Robert replied. "But surely you would need a cook also."

"No," Mary said instantly before adding, "Anna is quite the competent cook, and I bet I'll be up here quite a lot for dinner anyways. It seems a waste of money to hire a cook only for breakfast and luncheon. Plus, I know a few things in the kitchen too."

"Really, Mary?" Robert raised his voice in exasperation. "Why are you so determined?"

"Papa, I.. I just want to live a normal life with Ellie." Mary's voice broke slightly. "I don't want to go through all the hoopla of being a great lady of the county. Matthew is the heir now, and he and his future wife can be in charge. But as for me, I just want to live simply but still be close to you all. You should be glad I don't want to leave Downton."

"I am glad of that, really." Robert said as he mulled over Mary's argument for a moment. "Okay, if Hawton House is what you want, then Hawton House you shall have. It's quite old, though. I'll send some contractors out there in the next few days to get an estimate of the repairs that need to be done."

"Oh thank you, Papa." She stood up and hugged her father. "Thank you very much."

January 6, 1914

Their house was ready for them to move in, and they found that it was an exciting way to start the new year. Mary had gone through all her clothes before packing everything with Anna. She hadn't wanted to keep much of it because she felt the grandeur of it all was too much for the new, simpler lifestyle she longed to live. She also wanted room to explore other clothing options, maybe some where she could forgo a corset, such as trousers. However, Anna convinced her to keep most of it because she would need to keep up appearances when going to dinners with her family. Mary also said she wanted Anna to feel comfortable borrowing anything from her closet now that they were to live together as wives. She didn't want Anna to feel like she wasn't allowed to have nice things because of her station. She wanted to spoil Anna, and make sure Anna knew she was worthy of all the greatness that was to come their way.

The small servant's quarters in the basement of Hawton House had not been renovated, per Mary's request and much to Robert's dismay, because Mary insisted that Thomas and Anna be given the two rooms on the ground floor, convincing her father by saying it was a luxury they deserved after many years of loyal service at Downton. However, it was still expected servants would not enter through the front door, so a servant's entrance that opened into the hallway between the main floor bedrooms and kitchen had been created. Because the men Robert had hired to move their luggage and a few small furnishings that had yet to be brought over were still milling about the house, Anna had to keep up appearances. Mary longed for the days when her wife would be able to come and go freely through the front door of their home. The house was surrounded by expansive gardens and greenery, and the next closet house was at least a mile away. They were free to be themselves here, at least as soon as the movers had gone.

While Anna technically had a room downstairs, her room was the one she shared with Mary upstairs. After the movers had gone, Mary and her wife had gone to their room to start unpacking their clothes. It didn't take long before the pair were chatting away and giggling over fond memories associated with certain outfits. When their fit of giggles over an embarrassing story that had been associated with Mary's lavender dress had ended, Mary took hold of Anna's hand and looked deeply into her eyes. "I love you." she said in a soft, sincere tone. "And I can't wait to make many happy memories with you and Ellie in this house."

"I love you too." Anna responded, giving her wife's lip a soft peck. "And I'm excited for that too."

"Well, today we shall make our first memory." Mary smiled and gestured to the chair in the corner of their room. "There's a present for you, over there."

"Mary, you shouldn't have." Anna walked over to the chair and picked up the box that was on it.

"I wanted to. Now, open it please." Mary grinned in anticipation of her wife's reaction to the gift, and upon seeing this, Anna took it upon herself to tease her wife by opening it slowly, taking her time to untie the ribbon and lift the lid on the box. Once Anna opened the box, her jaw dropped. She saw a lovely pair of stockings and a lacy garter first, and then she found a pink silk nightgown underneath those.

"They're lovely." Anna said and gave her wife an appreciative smile. "Thank you."

"Of course, my darling. I wanted to make sure you know how much I love you."

"I have no doubt in my mind about how much you love me. And I hope you have no doubt in yours about how much I love you."

"I know I'm very lucky, Anna." Mary said as she caressed her wife's cheek with her palm before giving her a passionate kiss, which Anna reciprocated with a tenderness that further affirmed Mary's love for her. When they broke for air, she picked up the garters from the box and held them out to Anna with one finger as a saucy smile spread over her face. "I would love to see you in these now, darling, but I'm afraid no sooner would they be on than they'd be off."

"You naughty girl," Anna teased cheekily before giving her wife another kiss. As they kissed each other's lips and neck, Mary's hand caressed Anna's thigh through her clothing. She could feel Anna's breath hitch and knew it was time they made the most of their newfound privacy. But as Mary made a move to sit Anna down on the bed and undress her, Anna's words broke their kissing. "Are you sure we should do this?" she said with a shaky breath. "Ellie is napping down the hall and Thomas is downstairs." Maybe it wasn't quite as private as Mary thought, but she still felt confident that now was the right time for them to enjoy each other's company.

"Darling, please don't worry." Mary said in a soothing tone. "The doors in this house are thick, and Ellie is a heavy sleeper. No one will hear a thing. I want us to make love in our marital bed for the first time. This bed is ours, and we need to celebrate that fact." It didn't take further convincing for Anna to succumb to her desire once more and get back in the moment. She kissed Mary again passionately while her wife's fingers made swift work of the buttons on her blouse. She was home. This was their home. And they were going to enjoy it.

February 14, 1914

The family was settled in their new home. The house was smaller than Mary was used to, but she thought it was perfectly cozy. Her family of three and Thomas felt comfortable here, and it was their safe haven. It didn't require nearly as much upkeep as Downton, although it was still rather large for four people. The front door opened into the sitting room, which was connected to the kitchen. There were two bedrooms downstairs along with a small bathroom and a formal living room they rarely used, which they referred to as the drawing room. The upstairs was complete with four rooms and two bathrooms. Despite the size of the house, the three adults managed the chores quite well between them, although Mary did have to be taught how to do a lot of things first. The only chore Mary still hadn't mastered was laundry, which Anna was happy to take on. She found she quite enjoyed going out to the laundry shed and washing things or sitting on the sofa mending outfits, especially seeing which of Ellie's outfits she had torn or outgrown. She couldn't believe how fast their daughter was growing when it seemed like only yesterday she had been by Mary's side during labor.

Her governess had only taught her how to make eggs, coffee, and tea. But as she had gotten older, Mary had also learned some basic knife skills. She could cut up potatoes and vegetables for soups, if someone helped her a little with the broth, and had mastered simple sandwiches. After being in the house for several weeks and spending time with Anna in the kitchen, Mary had added shepherd's pie, chicken pot pie, and lasagna to her repertoire, although she made nearly double the mess Anna typically made in the process.

She quite enjoyed being in the kitchen, especially when Anna and Ellie were there with her, either playing on the floor nearby or helping her cook. This was a place where their family would come together and enjoy each other's company. She imagined her and Anna sitting down and listening to Ellie chat away when she came home from her first day of kindergarten. She imagined them playing board games together: Thomas helping Ellie win, Anna playfully scolding them for not playing fair, and Mary choosing not to take sides because both her wife and daughter had her equally wrapped around their fingers. Of course, these possibilities were years down the line, but they made Mary smile nonetheless while she prepared a Valentine's Day breakfast for her wife. It was their first Valentine's Day together, the first of many she hoped, and she wanted it to be special for Anna. Her wife had worked hard for so long and deserved to be spoiled, today of all days especially.

"Rise and shine my love," Mary whispered sweetly as Anna sat up and yawned. She rubbed her eyes and then saw what Mary had in her hand. The breakfast tray was full of Anna's favorites and two steaming mugs, Anna's with tea and Mary's with coffee. She smiled brightly at Mary.

"Love, you didn't have to do all this."

"Of course I did, Anna." Mary smiled and set the tray over her wife's lap. "It's our first Valentine's Day together, and you deserve to be spoiled for once."

"Well, thank you." She leaned over and kissed her wife. "I have a surprise for you too."

"You do?"

"I do." Anna took a small tip of tea. "Look in my top drawer behind my socks and stockings."

Mary got up and opened the drawer. She reached back and felt a small, velvet box. She took it out and saw that the box was purple and had a silver logo of a jewelry shop on the front.

"What's all this?"

"Open it and find out."

Mary lifted the lid gently and saw a silver wedding band. Her jaw dropped. "Darling, you really shouldn't have."

"I wanted to. You mean the absolute world to me." Anna spoke sincerely. "Now come here and let me put it on you." Mary walked towards the bed. As Anna took the ring from the box and slid it onto Mary's finger, she spoke. "With this ring, I thee wed. With my body, I thee worship." She kissed each of Mary's knuckles softly and rubbed her thumb in soft circles over the ring. "Mary Josephine Crawley, you are the light of my life, my one and only, my wife." They had been calling each other wife since the day they moved into the house, but this time, it had a special sense of gravitas. They had both committed to one another through the act of giving one another a ring. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Mary leaned down to kiss Anna's cheek. "It's beautiful."

"I thought so too. It seemed like it would suit you." Anna smiled. "It's nothing too fancy, but I figured something simpler would be less noticeable to others. I know you were worried about that, but you can just tell them it was your engagement band from Patrick."

"Oh, Anna, it's perfect." Mary gushed. It really was beautiful, and it went well with her silver and diamond wedding ring from Patrick. No one would ask questions, and if they did, she would do as Anna suggested. "What did I do to deserve you? I'm the luckiest person in the world."

"You complete me." Anna said. "And I complete you. That's why we deserve each other."

"Speaking of completing things, you still have to be completely spoiled this morning. And we should have some time before Ellie wakes up." Mary winked as she lifted the tray off of Anna's lap and set it to the side. She gently guided Anna to lay down.

Anna giggled and then smirked. "Well, I suppose it is the day of love after all."