Mrs. Hughes did not hide her relief as she saw Mr. Bates.

"Thank God!" she called. "Is Anna here too?"

"She walked back with me," John answered and Mrs. Hughes clapped her hands. "We were caught by the rain and waited beneath a barn until it faded. Then we decided to walk back, as Anna was completely soaked. She's upstairs now, changing."

"Gwen, go and see after her," Mrs. Hughes told the red haired maid and then turned back to John, as Gwen walked away. "We were caught by the rain too but walking back made no sense, as we were already almost at the church. I'm glad nothing happened to you, his Lordship was very worried as both you and Anna never showed up. Maybe you should go upstairs and tell him that you are still alive."

"I will do that certainly," John said and got up from his chair.

"Right," Mrs. Hughes muttered. "Oh, and Mr. Bates?"

John looked at her.

"Thank you for bringing her home safely."

"We both did," John chuckled and nodded before he turned and walked upstairs.

Gwen entered the room and stopped dead in tracks as she spotted Anna inside her bed, reading a book.

"Thank the Lord!" she called and closed the door behind them. "Mrs. Hughes told me I should check on you. Are you alright?"

"I got a bit cold," Anna replied, closing the book that Mr. Bates had lent her to read. "We stood beneath a barn and waited until the rain would fade. Mr. Bates gave me his coat."

"He's such a nice man," Gwen spoke, her lips turning into a small smile. "Did you talk a lot?"

"A little bit," Anna said and smiled back. "He thinks I have a significant other."

"Well, how shouldn't you? If I was a man, I would also think you had a husband."

"I wonder if he has a wife," Anna said. "He never speaks about his private life, so I guess he doesn't."

"Ask him," Gwen said promptly. "He won't mind."

"I can't just ask him if he's married."

"I could ask," Gwen offered, but Anna shook her head.

"Please don't. He will know that I'd be asking. It would embarrass me greatly."

"So I won't," Gwen decided. "You'll have to find out yourself."

She sat down on her bed next to Anna's and smiled at her friend.

"He's nice, isn't he?"

"Very," Anna sighed. "He gave me this book to read, even though he has not finished it yet. I only mentioned that I didn't have anything to read at the moment."

"And he offered you his coat." Gwen grinned even wider. "It means something, Anna."

"It means that he didn't want me to freeze to death," Anna replied softly and got out of the bed. "I'm warm again. Is Lady Mary back yet?"

"Yes," Gwen said, knowing that the topic was off. "I'm sure she has already rung."

"Oh no, I need to be going," Anna said and quickly slipped into her shoes. Luckily she was already dressed.

"I'm sure she won't mind you coming late, she worried about you as well. She will just be happy that you're still alive."

"And healthy, so I can dress her." Anna grimaced buy then quickly reminded herself that Lady Mary was nice to her and that she didn't deserve her talking behind her back.

She nodded at Gwen before leaving the room, rushing to Lady Mary's room as fast as possible.

As Matthew and Isobel Crawley arrived, the mood changed down in the servant's hall.

Miss O'Brien used every free minute to rail against the heir and much to Anna's happiness Lady Grantham once heard her. After scolding her and leaving again, Miss O'Brien thought she could tell Anna that she wasn't friends with the girls.

That made Anna think.

She wasn't much of a good friend of Lady Edith, but she considered herself a friend of Lady Sybil and Lady Mary, especially Lady Mary.

Musing, she returned to what she had done before.

Slowly everyone left to their duties, but Mr. Bates stayed.

"You're quiet," he told her and Anna looked up at him.

"I'm thinking about what Miss O'Brien said. That I'm no friend of the girls."

"Forget what she said," Bates answered. "It's clear why she isn't a friend of Lady Grantham, but why shouldn't you be a friend of the girls? I'm sure you are, as you act different than her. The girls surely have noticed that your cordiality is real, not pretended. Like hers." He nodded into the direction of the door frame, through which Miss O'Brien had walked just a minute before.

"You really think so?"

"What Miss O'Brien said may be true for her but it doesn't mean it's like that for you too."

"I agree," Gwen spoke behind them. "Sorry for listening, but I agree. They like you, Anna. They really do. Do you think they know my name? You're special."

"Well said," Mr. Bates chuckled.

Anna stood up, her cheeks dark. "Don't say I'm special. I'm not anything like that. I'm just ... me."

With those words she stood up and walked out as well, making John and Gwen look after her.

"Her being just her is enough though, don't you think so, Mr. Bates?" Gwen asked and John nodded slowly.

"It is. It definitely is."

Gwen grinned knowingly.

Alone at last.

These words wouldn't leave her mind.

Had he been happy that they were alone in general or that they were alone together?

Anna had cursed the bell as it had rung and everything that had followed, that whole Cheerful Charlies business. Sure it had been funny to see Mr. Carson like that and after they had walked down, her and Mr. Bates had continued talking, but Anna would have loved to spend some more time alone with him.

So she had jumped over her shadow and told him, that his secret wouldn't alter her opinion about him a bit. And she was right.

She wished he'd tell her. Only her. She was his friend, at least she hoped so.

Alone at last.

She couldn't hold back a smile while combing Lady Mary's hair, who of course noticed.

"Are you happy, Anna?" she asked, smiling at her reflection in the mirror.

"Yes, my lady," Anna replied.

"Do you want to tell me?" Mary's grin was wide now. "Don't say a word - you're in love, right?"

"What? No." Anna's smile quickly faded. She wasn't, or was she? No, she couldn't be. But why was her heart fluttering?

"You can't fool me," Lady Mary said knowingly and turned around to look at Anna directly. "I've noticed how you changed ever since Mr. Bates arrived."

"You did?" Anna was surprised.

"Of course. You're always smiling now. He's always on your mind, right?"

"I ... I'm not sure if I should discuss this with you," Anna said shyly, but Lady Mary wouldn't hear anything of it.

"If one of my friends is in love I do want to hear about it," she urged and Anna's heart jumped.

There. She had said friends.

"Oh, okay," she said with a smile. "I'm not sure how and why it happened but it seems we're just ... we're in synch with each other. We understand each other without words, we only need to exchange looks. And only this afternoon, when everyone was gone besides the two of us, he said 'alone at last', and it won't leave my mind."

"Sounds as if he wanted you two to be alone," Lady Mary said with a grin and Anna shrugged.

"I'm not sure, my lady. Maybe he just meant he was glad that we were alone without Miss O'Brien and Thomas."

"I don't think so. I'm sure he likes you. How couldn't he like you?" Lady Mary's smile was honest. "I remember what you told me a few weeks ago, as you've been caught by the rain. He gave you his coat, didn't he?"

"I was cold, of course he did."

"Stop denying it," Lady Mary said and turned back to face herself and Anna in the mirror again. "We need to find a way to leave the two of you alone some time."

"Please don't set up anything, my lady," Anna said. "I would die of embarrassment if he didn't feel the same."

"He'd be a fool if he didn't, though," Lady Mary said dryly.

"I don't know," Anna sighed. "In some moments I think he likes me, but then I get very unsure. He could be only polite. I'm a maid and I'm so much younger than he is. He has been to so many places and I've only always been here."

"Stop making yourself smaller than you already are," Lady Mary scolded her maid. "You're the head housemaid, that is something. I'm sure he admires you. Now not a word of it anymore, I need to think about something."

Anna hoped it wasn't what she thought it was.

Of how to let them get some alone time.