Who Am I, Higgins?

by ColleenD

Bit of a crossover with LOTR. John on the last day of work at Marlborough Mills, speaking with Higgins. I guess I have to credit J. R. R. Tolkien, Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Elizabeth Gaskell, and Sandy Welch for my inspiration here.

A/N: Okay, I have been bitten by the silly bug here. Just watched LOTR: TT and one of my favorite scenes is the Theoden, "Who am I, Gamling?" scene. Well, inspiration struck me to stick John in that scene (I think my muse must be tipsy today) so here it is…

….oOo….

It's the last day of work at Marlborough Mills. Thornton will soon be on his way to London to give up his lease. He stands pensively in his office, staring off into space, hands hanging at his sides. His back is to the windows where a bright white light is streaming through.

Higgins enters and says. "The final job is done, sir."

"Who am I, Higgins?" Thornton asks blankly.

"You are our Master, sir," Higgins replies encouragingly, taking Thornton's coat off the rack.

"And do you trust your Master?" Thornton asks.

Higgins helps Thornton on with his coat as he continues to stare straight ahead, "Your men, Master, will work for you wherever you go." He hands him the round robin.

"Wherever I go," Thornton repeats in a monotone, "Where are the warp and the weft? Where is the whistle that was blowing? They have passed like cotton through the wheels. Like smoke from the chimneys. The mill has gone down in the North. Behind the wolds, into shadow." Looking up now, and thinking of more than just his lost mill but his broken heart as well, Thornton says, "How did it come to this?"