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~MC~MC~MC~

"Ah, thank you William," Mr. Carson said, accepting the small bundle of letters the footman passed to him before taking his seat at the head of the servant's table. Anna watched as William settled into his own chair, glancing at his freshly unbandaged hand. While Dr. Clarkson had said that William would have been fine to begin his normal duties this week, as the injuries to his hand were fully healed, Mr. Carson and, of all people, Thomas seemed to be of a mind that William needed to ease back into his tasks and thus was given easier assignments like fetching the mail from the post office. With Mr. Carson Anna assumed it was a sense of gratitude for not only defending him but also the honor of Downton. As for Thomas…

'Perhaps he is finally growing up,' Anna thought to herself. Thomas had been… different… since that night. Less prone to sniping at people and mocking them. Oh, he still did it of course, as one couldn't turn a cow into a horse no matter what saddle they used, but he certainly wasn't the horrid little rat he'd been in those first few months that Mr. Bates had arrived. The two still butted heads but the valet had confessed to Anna that now it was more of a game of wits between the two and there was, at least on his part, no malice in his verbal jabbing at Thomas. Anna liked to think that her talk with Thomas after the events of that dreadful night with the Turkish Ambassador had been what pushed Thomas over the edge but whatever the case was he'd mellowed out a touch and thus the entire downstairs had found life moving rather smoothly for all of them. With Thomas not egging her on so much Ms. O'Brien had also leveled off a touch; oh, Anna and her would never be friends but at the very least she was spitting venom at everyone. The maid found it amazing how easy life became when there weren't members of the staff slinking about sowing disorder.

Anna was pulled from her musings as Mr. Carson began to hand out the letters. There was nothing for her, which Anna had expected as it was rare for her to get anything from the post. It seemed her life had truly come to revolve around Downton but she found herself not growing upset over such a thing. As a matter of fact she quite liked that she'd found a job she enjoyed and people to work with that she could spend time around. That was more than most got in their entire lives. So many hated their bosses or dreaded their duties. But while Anna would like to sleep in at least one she was happy, for now, with how her life was.

She watched as one of the kitchen maids moved passed them, leaning away as the girl began to sniff again. There was a spring cold coming around and Anna certainly didn't want to catch it. Not only just how miserable colds could make her (as it seemed to always hit her harder than anyone else) but also how the other servants tended to look down on someone when they went to bed sick. The grumbling and the muttering and the dark looks. Anna hated that.

Everyone began to break off shortly after the mail had been given out, Mrs. Hughes going to read a letter she had received while poor William tried to tell Daisy about a letter his mum had sent him but the poor girl just wasn't interested. Even with William being a hero Daisy was too busy making cow eyes over Thomas to notice; to his credit Thomas had stopped leading her on as an attempt to taunt William but the girl was blind and couldn't see she was going after the wrong man.

"Could I talk with you for a moment?" Mr. Bates whispered, coming up and placing his hand on her elbow. Anna started at that, as the valet so rarely touched anyone let alone her, but quickly smiled and nodded. As she followed him over to one of the many little quiet quarters that, strangely enough, existed in the utterly busy servant's hall, she noticed two rather odd things. The first was a rather professional-looking letter that was tucked under Mr. Bates' arm. She couldn't make out the address but it certainly wasn't like the letter William had gotten. No, this one looked like it had come from someone with wealth and for a brief moment Anna feared that Mr. Bates had gotten another position. Perhaps a butler's post, as he had shown when Mr. Carson had been bedridden that he could easily run the downstairs even with his limp. It would explain how happy he seemed, which had been the second thing she'd noticed. He was practically skipping as he led her away from the others. Mr. Bates wasn't a dour man, certainly, but he wasn't one for shows of great humor. So what could make him so happy? A new position, as she feared?

'No, it isn't that,' Anna thought shaking her head. 'He's far too happy here. His Lordship is a friend of his, despite what Ms. O'Brien would say, and the only ones he's had problems with have laid off him recently.' She didn't know if she were speaking the truth or merely trying to convince herself of that fact but in those quiet few moments as they waited for the last of the hallboys to drift away so they might chat in private Anna found herself gripped with fear over how she would handle working at Downton without him. Suddenly the comfort she'd felt over her life faded away and a loneliness settled upon her…

She was pulled from her dark thoughts when Mr. Bates began to speak. "Before the New Year the two of us had a conversation, one that while polite was not one that I think either of us enjoyed." She remembered well what he was referring to, the conversation where she'd first hinted that she had begun to grow close to him and he, in turn, and made it clear that there was something in his past that would keep the two of them apart. "You have been more than patient with me and it is time I rewarded your tolerance in me and my silent broodings." He paused, clearly trying to find the right words. "Many years ago, when I was a different man than the one you see now… a man I dare say the present me would strive to protect you from, I married a woman, Vera. It was a marriage born of two people thinking they loved each other but really were just desperate to do as was expected of them. What happiness we had quickly faded. I was… not a pleasant man and for a long time believed that the punishments I had received were all I deserved for how I had treated her. I came to see later that I was wrong.

"Vera was a thief. She stole silver from my regiment and while I thought at first I was doing the noble thing in taking the blame for her I learned later on, in fact quite recently, that she set me up so that even if I hadn't confessed I would have been found guilty. I served time in prison for theft and when I was freed I swore to lead a better life… and that meant one without Vera. But I couldn't divorce her as… as I felt that what she had done was my fault."

"But it wasn't. It couldn't have been," Anna argued, her heart breaking for the man before her. "Even at your worst you are not guilty for her sins."

"Aye, I see that now," Mr. Bates said with a slight smile. "A while back I was approached by Lady Sybil… I don't know how she'd come to know of… it doesn't matter, what does is that she knew of not only my past but the future I wanted. I assisted her with a small matter and she in turn helped me."

"What matter? Was it with Gwen?"

"Yes, yes of course," Mr. Bates said with a hesitant nod. "It was. But please, don't tell Gwen. She believes that Lady Sybil is her champion and I fear she would be embarrassed if I were revealed to be a part of her quest to become a secretary."

"I suppose you're right about that. Gwen does have a willful pride in her." Anna licked her lips. "And how did Lady Sybil help you?"

"She got Mr. Crawley to find a lawyer in London who could help me with my situation. He found evidence, testimonies… things I would have never been able to find on my own… that forced Vera's hand. Three days ago Vera fled to America. Before she did so she sent a confession admitting that she'd forced me to confess and had planted evidence to strength the case to my new lawyer. With it my lawyer was able to not only prove my innocence but also absolve our marriage." With those words Mr. Bates' face blossomed into the most wonderful smile Anna had ever seen. He pulled out the letter and held it up to Anna. "I've been pardoned! The government has apologized to me! Me! And Vera will never be able to touch me again… even if she did want to she'd be arrested the moment she stepped foot on British soil! Anna… I'm free!"

"That… oh, I'm just so happy for you!" she exclaimed, bringing her hands to her face and blinking back tears. "Of all the men to deserve a second chance it is you, Mr. Bates."

"Thank you, I truly mean that. And I hope you understand what this means." Anna blinked, still smiling even as she tried to puzzle out what he was getting at. "Lady Sybil told me not to waste this chance and I don't intend to. I… I am quite fond of you, Anna Smith, and I hope that, with your blessing, we might discover if there is something more between us."

Now her tears had returned, as had her smile. "I would like that very much!" Anna said, not caring how her voice squeaked with the words.

"Good… because I was thinking with the fair coming tomorrow that we might go down there. I know the others will want to go but I'd like not to go as a group of servants out for a night off but… but just the two of us, on a date." Even as he smiled he grew utterly bashful and Anna's smile grew even more at the sight of it, amused as he squirmed like a school boy. "That is, if you-"

"Yes. I would like to do that very much, Mr. Bates," Anna said firmly, taking his hand in hers.

"I think you should begin calling me John," he teased her and Anna wiped her tears away. "And I feel like I've swallowed a nest of butterflies."

"Me too. Even if it is only for an hour or two… it will be wonderful."

~A~O~O~O~F~

Two Hours Later…

"It will certainly not be just an hour or two!" Lady Mary declared, turning in her chair so she could look Anna in the eye. Anna hadn't meant to tell Lady Mary about her plans with Mr. Bates but she'd just been so giddy that when her ladyship had mentioned the fair Anna had blurted it all out. Not just the date but Mr. Bates'… John's wonderful news. She'd gushed it out despite being mortified but Lady Mary had merely encouraged her to go on, never once letting Anna feel bad for feeling so happy. "No, I won't hear of it, Anna! This is… I am just so happy for you! You deserve this, you truly do. I've seen how you've been these last few months… lighter than air, some would say, and I wondered what might have changed to make you feel so and now I understand!" Lady Mary stood up and began to pace. "But it can't be for an hour or two. That isn't nearly fair. I won't have you worrying about rushing back to take care of me. I will talk with Carson and see to it that you and Bates are both given the day off."

"My Lady!" Anna said, startled by her ladyship's offer. "I… you can't-"

"Oh, I certainly can!" Mary said with a knowing little smirk. "I'm sure when I tell Papa about the reason he will agree that you and Bates deserve a day off as well. Carson won't fight the two of us."

"But… our duties…" Anna stammered.

Lady Mary waved her off. "Oh, those can be handled well enough… oh! Oh, I know just the thing! All of you will want to go to the fair, to be sure, but it would be a drain on Carson to send everyone at once. What if you and Bates did your duties in the morning and then went after? Thomas and Gwen could handle your tasks… Gwen manages Sybil fine enough I can deal with her as well and Thomas helped papa out before Bates came along. Then in the evening Thomas and Gwen could go and you and Bates would be here to mind Downton, should Carson need assistance! Oh, I wager even Carson couldn't argue with that logic."

"He could… but not if you said it," Anna said softly, a smile tugging on her lips.

"Well, that is true," Lady Mary said with a smile. She stood up and took Anna's hands in her own and gave them a squeeze. "I am… just so utterly happy for you." Anna watched as Lady Mary walked over to her window and stared out upon Downton, a blissful look on her face as she watched his Lordship take his dog out for a walk around the grounds. The maid, seeing her ladyship so happy and open… instantly felt a great concern that someone had kidnapped the Real Lady Mary and left this imposter in her place.

When Anna had begun assisting the girls each morning Mrs. Hughes had told her that she would come to know them better than even their parents. "When you've seen a woman as god made her, without benefit of fine jewels or makeup, all her flaws revealed in the harshness of the sun, day in and day out, there is no more them hiding secrets from you. That level of comfort will breed familiarity with even the most rocky hearted battle ax and with you the ones you'll be caring for are girls just beginning to discover what it is to be women. They'll come to look at you as someone to whisper their thoughts and fears too… never forget the gift they have given you and the honor that's been placed on your shoulders. Never take advantage. Because once that trust is gone not only will it never come again but you will quickly realize you gave up a wondrous gift."

She'd been right. While some would have said that Lady Mary talked to her like she was another of her sisters Anna knew that wasn't correct at all… Lady Mary would never confide in Edith the way she did Anna and Sybil would always get the watered down version of many of her tales. Anna had heard things that had made her laugh and cry and made her toes curl in shock and made her bite her lip at the indecent little comments her Ladyship would let slip. Anna knew Lady Mary's secrets and moods and could predict how her charge would behave with a mere glance.

Which was why seeing her standing at the window with her head tilted slightly and a soft, content smile on her face was just so startling. NEVER had Lady Mary been so… happy.

'No, not happy,' Anna thought to herself. 'Content. At peace.'

"Anna?" Lady Mary said, drawing her attention fully back onto her. "Would you mind if I asked you a few questions?"

"Of course, my lady," she said, her hands nervously running along the front of her uniform, smoothing out any invisible creases or wrinkles.

"What is it like… when you and Bates are together?"

"I'm… I'm sorry, my lady?"

Mary's lips twitched into a slight frown but somehow her good mood made even that seem pleasant. "I'm not saying this properly. Let's try again. When you get up in the morning how long does it take for you to think about him? To wonder if he had a good night's rest and when you might see him again?"

Anna considered this for a moment. "Well, I don't wake up instantly wondering where he is, my lady, but I do tend to wonder if we'll have a chance to eat together. Sometimes if his lordship is up early our schedules simply do not complement one another."

"And when you eat together do you prefer to sit across from one another, so you might be able to steal a glance in his direction?"

"I… I suppose so," Anna said, feeling a bit flustered and bashful.

"Though it is also fun to sit side by side, so you might share a quiet word while everyone else at the table focuses on something else?"

"We do that too, my lady. I don't quite get what you're-"

"Do you ever see something and it reminds you of him and for the next hour or so you can't help but smile?" Lady Mary asked, finally turning and staring at Anna fully, her eyes filled with light and her face projecting the serenity and joy she was feeling. "And have you ever heard something or noticed something and your first desire is to find him and tell him all about it? Do you nearly vibrate with impatient energy, like a child waiting to go down and see what Father Christmas left under the tree? Do you ever turn down the last piece of a meal because you know it is his favorite? Does he do the same for you?" The questions just kept come, flowing over Anna like she were on the shore and waves were piling up on top of her. But rather than feel overwhelmed Anna felt herself smiling and blushing because the answer kept being 'yes'. Yes, yes, a thousand times yes. "And this is the most important question of all, dear Anna: if I were to tell you now that you could decide just how much misery would be heaped upon the both of you… would you take it all upon yourself, to spare him?"

"…no," Anna whispered, "because the silly man would be so mad and would refuse any happiness until I got some as well. So we might as well share it."

Lady Mary moved towards her and placed her hands on her shoulders, being far more intimate with the maid than she'd even been before. "Then I am so very happy that you have found this love. Dear, wonderful Anna… no one deserves to feel this as much as you."

Anna blinked at that, her eyes burning slightly as she fought to remain in control. "My lady… how do you know all this?"

"Haven't you guessed?" Mary said with a happy, breathy sigh. "Because I am experiencing it myself!" With that the dignified, proper Lady Mary flopped down on her bed with a graceless 'ompf', leaving Anna staring at her in shock. "I always laughed at the love-drunk maidens in the sonnets and plays but now I find myself quite inebriated on the feeling of love myself! And it is so much richer and deeper than I ever thought!" Mary stared at the ceiling, not caring at all that she was messing up her hair or the carefully made up bed that Anna and Gwen and fixed up a few hours ago. "They always talk of love and sweet words but they never mention the laughter! They speak of love and lust but never the friendship! It's just… I can't put it into words! But why should I, you know what I'm talking about!"

"I do… and I don't," Anna admitted. "I know the feelings you are speaking of-" And she did. She truly did. Even if she had never put them into words as Mary had. "-but not who has made you feel this way."

Mary let out a happy sigh. "Matthew," she breathed.

"Mister… Mr. Crawley!" Anna said in surprise and delight. "Then you mean… you and him… when…"

"Yes, yes… the two of us," Mary said, slowly regaining control of herself. She sat up and gained a bit of her bearing back but Anna could tell her amusement and joy was bubbling under the surface like boiling water under a pot's lid. "I don't know why you are so shocked. I'd have thought everyone was rooting for this."

"It isn't… I'm shocked because I never thought you would consider him."

"Neither did I. Life is funny like that." Regaining more control of herself Lady Mary straightened her dress and returned once more to her chair, allowing Anna to begin the task of undoing all the damage her ladyship had done in her joyful antics. "When I first met him I was so consumed with anger of what I had lost. It took months for me to realize that I had gained something far better in the whole exchange. You have heard me rant about the men I had to spend time with during my first season, before things with Patrick were settled… or settled enough for Papa and Mama. What do you remember?"

Anna, who was currently working on getting several stray strands of hair back in place, shrugged her shoulders. "Well, you complained that some came on too strong and tried to take you in hand like you were a toddler."

"Ah yes, Winthrop," Mary said, remembering one particularly brash and bold suitor. Anna remembered him as well. It had been at Mary's third ball during her first Season, when she'd truly begun to turn heads and attract the interest of the high born sons in need of a wife. Winthrop Powell had thought Mary to be like most young girls with stars in their eyes and a flutter in their heart. He had grabbed her and taken command, trying to force her to try certain dishes and meet the people he knew would sing his praises and have him be the only man she danced with. When she'd begged off he'd tried to convince her to continue on but even back then Lady Mary's tongue dripped acid and she'd sprayed Winthrop Powell with everything she had. She'd never raised her voice; O'Brien had confirmed that, after hearing the tale form Lady Grantham. She'd merely let the man know what she thought of him and by the end he'd been so flustered that even his attempts at bluster failed and he'd been left a fool. "I still say I should have hung his head upon my wall… that is what one does when they bag their first trophy, isn't it?"

"Always found that ghastly myself," Anna joked. "But not all of them were as brash as that."

"No, they were not. Most were like puppies." Mary shook her head in annoyance. "That was the problem with so many of the men mama threw in my path, hoping one would manage to cling to my dress hem and resist being shaken off. They thought they could win me by merely agreeing to everything I said and following my lead and never once confronting me. Sometimes I actually said things I knew were wrong, just to see if they would nod and grin with foolish little smiles on their faces."

"Well, Mr. Crawley isn't like that," Anna said, smiling to herself as he finished up with Lady Mary's hair.

"No, he certainly is not. That man is utterly infuriating, Anna. He challenges me and battles me and with match me step for step. When he knows he is right he will refuse to give up, latching onto an argument like Pharaoh onto a scrap of meat. I suppose that is the lawyer in him but still I found it so startling when he first truly challenged me and refused to back down. Startled… and intrigued." Mary smiled and turned to face Anna, taking her hands in her own. "And yet when I've proven that I'm right he's willing to concede. He doesn't dismiss me because I am a woman… he treats me as an equal and bows to my wisdom when I am right and refuses to back down just because I am some light and tender woman."

"No offense, my lady, but no one would ever call you light or tender." Mary chuckled at that. "So the two of you have decided to see more of each other?"

Mary released her hands to wave Anna off. "We already see each other nearly every day, so it is more like you and Bates deciding to make it official."

"Oh, I don't know about that, milady," Anna said as she went to select a necklace that would compliment Lady Mary's dress. "After all, we don't have dinner parties and chances to go riding."

"The former is hardly romantic, what with the entire family there to watch us dance for their amusement like a pair of Russian circus bears, and the latter is decent enough but I do desire something… more… something…"

"Milday?" Anna asked nervously, seeing the queer look that flashed across Lady Mary's face. It was one she'd seen often on Lady Sybil's face right before she did something rather daring that was sure to stir up the proverbial hornet's nest.

"What is it you and Bates are calling your trip to the fair tomorrow? A date?"

"Yes, milday…" Anna stated carefully. Her worries weren't for herself as she knew Lady Mary would never be cruel enough to take away something she'd already promised. No, it was for what chaos her answer would bring upon all their heads.

"It is something the upper class never do, you know. For us courting means a few quiet moments stolen during a party or a dinner followed by the announcement that they are engaged. Never a chance to be alone, to spend time together and learn about each other. To have a touch of fun! Dating is considered beneath us… for people like, I suppose, a middle class lawyer…"

Anna didn't say a word, already sensing where Mary was heading.

"Oh, it would be brilliant, Anna! You and Bates and I could head down to the fair and then we'd go our own ways once I met up with Matthew. Or perhaps we could send down Bates a bit early, have him meet with Matthew while the two of us walk together. Forget that we are an Earl's daughter and a maid and walk down as friends! Papa wouldn't fuss with it being the Village Fair and Matthew and I could actually have some time together that didn't involve horses! Yes, that would be quite lovely and I'm sure Matthew wouldn't mind… oh, and we must find you something to wear! I'm sure Sybil can help, she's helping Gwen after all with her interviews and such so she would be able to help me find something you could wear. Not any of the dresses, as those would never fit you my dear, but perhaps some of our jewelry… a nice necklace or some earrings-"

"Milady, I couldn't-" Anna said, shaking her head.

"I insist, Anna, I insist!" Mary grinned. "I am one of the wild and determined daughters of the Earl of Grantham, after all… it is expected of me to go against tradition and common sense." Mary stood up and nodded firmly. "Yes, it is decided. I'll see you after lunch, Anna, and we can discuss this more!" And with that Mary was gone, leaving Anna standing in the room wondering what the hell had just happened and how Mr. Bates was going to react to their date being turned into a chance for Lady Mary to playfully rebel.

~A~O~O~O~F~

'Never before have I met a man that both fits every mold I might have for him and shatters them all at the same moment,' Tom Branson thought as he was led by the butler, Mr. Carson, away from Lord Robert Crawley's library. The meeting had been a formality, really, as he'd already been given the job of chauffer by Mr. Carson but the rich liked to play their little games where they pretended that they actually gave a damn about the inner workings of their estates and didn't merely rubber stamp the decisions of the senior staff. Lord Grantham was better than others, as Tom had heard stories at his last job of lords who wouldn't even know what position the man they were talking to had been hired in for. HIs new employer had at least known what Tom did and asked a question about his previous job but Tom didn't take that to mean the man actually had any true say in the hiring of staff. The firing, of course, because the rich did love the power that cane from ruining lives, but building them up wasn't as sweet a dish.

Lord Grantham didn't look like the caricatures he saw in the papers back in Dublin of the aristocrats that sought to return all back to serfdom. He was puffed up, to be sure, with a flabby face and thick build that hid what would have been a strong frame in his youth. But he wasn't the portly, waddling lord the editorials loved to have drawn up, with their corpulent stomachs and heavy jowls that shook when startled or frustrated. He certainly didn't sport the high whiskers or heavy moustaches that were also popular in the depictions. No, Robert Crawley reminded Tom a bit of a prize fighter that had let himself go to seed. He had once been a powerful man with a powerful build but, as it always did, overindulgence led to sloth.

'There is an air about him though,' Branson thought as they made a turn and began to walk down yet another lush hallway filled with paintings that should belong in public museums instead of lining the walls of a rich man's oversized home. 'One can't mistake him for anything else but a lord. He holds himself as one, that's for sure.'

And yet... Tom's mind went back to the books.

The fact that the Lord of Grantham, the Master of Downton Abbey... would let a lowly chauffer touch the books in his library had been shocking. That Tom would be given free rein to select one without question even more so. Damn it all, Tom's last employer hadn't thought him able to read! And Robert Crawley hadn't batted an eye to the idea that Tom might want a book, treating it as a casual thing.

It didn't fit what Tom knew about the upper class.

What did fit were the overly rich halls filled with priceless items that were walked by the family and the drab, plan walls of the downstairs that Tom was led through by Mr. Carson. While it was certainly better than his childhood home back in Ireland and he knew his mother would cuff him across the back of the head for thinking it anything less than a palace compared to what they had lived with… for Tom the servants quarters, in contrasting with what the Family was used to, were a perfect symbol for the horribly outdated and unjust system that still ruled the lives of those in England. It were sights like this that had driven Tom to learn about Socialism and now saw him dreaming of a day where all men and women were equal.

And yet… the books.

Tom shook his head and focused on the tour of the downstairs, his thoughts not returning to the injustices of the world until, after nearly an hour, Mr. Carson left him at the garage that would serve as his domain during his time at Downton. While the family would sleep on feathered beds Tom would have his choice of a stiff mattress in the male servants' quarters or bunking down on a cot in the garage itself. The second would most likely be where he spent most of his nights as the garage would offer him privacy that the servants' quarters would not. Here he had no room mate and no butler checking to make sure he turned out the lights and went to bed. It would mean sleeping in his uniform most nights but for Tom he would take the freedom and privacy at the cost of a bit of discomfort.

'Sometimes it is nice to get away from all the games the working class love to play,' he thought as he walked about the garage, inspecting it carefully. He never understood why so many of the lower classes liked to sabotage their fellow man but it was true and Tom himself had seen how a maid or a valet would try and use biting words and underhanded tactics to establish themselves in the hierarchy. 'We'll see what they make of me but it's nice to know I have my own little spot on this planet where I can be alone-'

"Ah… hello there!"

'Or not,' Tom thought to himself before turning to greet to new arrival. He'd expected a maid or perhaps one of the kitchen girls, come to see the new arrival. Tom wasn't a vain man but he knew that he was attractive and at the last house he'd worked at all the young maids (and a few of the older ones) had quickly tried to cozy up to him. He was careful to be polite but never take advantage; Tom refused to be a cad who would take advantage of a woman with stars in her eyes and dreams of love and marriage. Oh, he hoped for the same thing but now was simply not the time for that. A few years, perhaps, when he met the right person and he had risen up where he made his wealth thanks to his own hands and mind and not the mercies of the upper class. If he were going to have a family they would be supported by his wits and his cunning and his strength of arms and not because he slaved away for a richer man. Tom's children would be able to look upon him with pride, to tell their own child about him without shame.

To his surprise though it wasn't a maid or a girl covered in flour and yeast who stood before him but one of the Earl's daughters; who else could she be, wearing such a lovely and clearly expensive dress? She was an attractive girl who had a face that, to Tom's eye, would always make her look younger than her years. She was someone that with even just a glance he could tell would make all the world fall to their knees in their desire to help her. Someone who made friends fast and lifelong allies just a quick. She wasn't meek either, though she certainly wasn't boisterous. No, here was someone who held herself proud and tall but also didn't demand every second of every day revolve around her. An odd little package but one that Tom knew would allow her to rule whatever domain she wished.

'A shame her life will be consumed with little more than running a house for her husband,' Tom thought briefly. 'What she could accomplish if she were merely allowed to have a voice of her own!'

"Hello there, Lady…" Tom began, waiting for the young woman to supply him her name. He was startled when, rather than instantly speaking up, she cringed slightly, as if she had been struck, before marshalling herself and stepping forward.

"Sybil," she said. "It is good to see you again, Tom"

In the back of his mind Tom was a touch startled that she'd used his first name. The chauffer was always called by his last name, as that was what was demanded by social norms. A driver always occupied a weird place in the hierarchy of staffs; higher than hall boys and footmen and groomsmen so that they earned the right to be addressed by their last names but not enough to earn the title of 'Mister' like a valet or a butler by those that lived downstairs. High enough to have their own room yet it also commonly accepted that they would eat their meals in the garage and not with the rest of the staff, just as the kitchen staff would. He wondered about Lady Sybil, trying to determine if this was an odd powerplay or just a girl who didn't know better. She didn't seem like the kind to enjoy coming down on the staff and Lord Grantham certainly wasn't the sort to play, as the Americans said, 'good cop, bad cop' using his young daughter as an enforcer. Yet the mere fact alone that she an Earl's daughter meant that she should know how to properly address him.

"Again?" he asked, standing at proper attention. "Have we met before?"

"In a way," Lady Sybil said. "I know you from the future."

"The future?" Tom asked.

"Yes. I'm from the future. My soul was transported from the year 1920 to just before the Titanic sank."

"Right," Tom said, folding his arms over his chest and chuckling. Clearly Lady Sybil was jesting with him, to break the tension so that their introduction wasn't so awkward. It was nice of her and he would play along. "I suppose you are here to tell me that I am some great man in the future and you're here to ensure my destiny continues on as it should?"

"Well, I certainly think you were a grand man," Lady Sybil said, her eyes getting a far away look in them. "You became a reporter and a writer and did quite well for yourself."

Tom blinked at that. Writing had been a passion of his and he had dreamed of one day working for a paper and putting pen to pad so that the lower class had a voice through his words. He'd never mentioned it at his previous job though, as servants tended to get uppity if you appeared to want to leave service, so he didn't know how Lady Sybil knew that.

'Most likely just a lucky guess,' he thought before saying. "Well, not quite being declared King but I'll take it."

Lady Sybil laughed at that. "Oh, an Irish Socialist as king? Papa would have a heart attack."

"You know I am a socialist?" Tom asked.

"Of course! In fact you are the one that helped instill what granny called my more 'radical views'."

"So I corrupted you, Lady Sybil?" Tom asked, his laughter not as whole hearted as before. The Earl's daughter was staring at him oddly and he didn't know what to make of it. And this conversation was leading somewhere but he couldn't figure out where.

"Please, Sybil is fine when we are alone. After all, we're going to be married soon enough."

Tom's eyes went wide.

"M-married?"

"Of course. Though this time we won't wait till after the war. I was quite foolish and concerned with what others thought."

"But not any more?" Tom said leery. He wondered if it would be dignified to flee like a frighten puppy, as the Earl's daughter and her odd game were making him insanely nervous. He didn't know what she was getting at but he had a feeling it would only end in chaos. Most likely directed right at him.

"No. Dying tends to get rid of such misconceptions." She smiled at him then and took a step forward.

Tom took two steps back.

"Lady Sybil, perhaps… perhaps it would be best if you headed back to the house. I mean no offense but this is my first day on the job and I really should be focused on settling in-"

"Your mother's name is Claire. You have a brother named Kieran who everyone thinks is your older brother but is in fact a year younger than you and it annoys you to no end when people assume he is older just because of that 'soup strainer of a moustache', especially since you can't grow a proper beard yourself. You were born in Bray and while you love Ireland no town has ever been able to fit you and your desires and as such you tend to move around."

Tom reached out and gripped a work bench, using it to steady himself. "How… how did you learn that? Is this what Lord Grantham does?" He felt a flash of righteous anger flood his veins and he struggled not to lose control. "He researches all his staff and finds out their secrets so he might hold it over their heads?"

Sybil though didn't react with disappointment or anger but rather just shook her head in amusement. "I'd forgotten how stubborn you could be."

"You've never met me!" Tom practically screeched. "I don't know what your game is-"

"You lied about how your father died."

THAT made Tom stop.

"You were 12 and your mother sent you out to find him as he was an hour late from coming back from the lumberyard where he worked and she worried he'd slipped off to have a pint." Lady Sybil took a step forward and this time Tom didn't move as he was frozen in place, gripping the table as if it were his only lifeline. "You found him a kilometer from home with a hole in his stomach, bleeding heavily. He told you he'd been a daft fool, getting startled by a donkey of all things, and fallen down into a ditch and impaled himself on a broken branch. He told you to that you needed to be the man of the house and to 'tell my story true'. But when you got home you lied and claimed that he'd been attacked by a highwayman. You felt it better he died fighting than to have bumbled into his death. You didn't want your mother to deal with the neighbors laughing about your "fool of a father who died because he couldn't walk straight.""

Tom's tongue felt thick in his mouth. "No one knows that. No one. I told no one… I was the only one… how did you-"

"You told me on the anniversary of his death. You'd gotten drunk and wondered if he was mad at you. I held you as you cried and begged him to forgive you." Lady Sybil reached out and touched his cheek, her fingers gliding along his jawline. "And I told you that he loved you and would be proud of you."

"I think… I think I need to sit down…" Tom said.

And then he promptly passed out.

~MC~MC~MC~

Author's Notes: Welcome to what I like to call "Mr. Chaos takes years of romance drama and throws it out the bloody window!" Your table is here, the waiter will be by with menus and bread.

Yes, I am tossing away a TON of the drama the show created because I hate people who worship at the Altar of Moonlighting. Everyone always talks about how Moonlighting showed that you can't do a show where the main characters get together… forgetting that the main characters in Moonlighting hated each other and the romance was sudden! There is plenty of ways to have drama and romance at the same time. Just because you are a crappy writer doesn't mean it is the romance's fault.

So first we have Bates and Anna finally getting together and ensuring there is no Vera nonsense… which is what the show should have done and focused on what happens when you have a couple in the world of the Downstairs. They finally focused on that with Carson and Mrs. Hughes and that was amazing… but I wanted it earlier, damn it!

As for Mary, we see what happens when the Ice Queen finally decides to open her heart… and doesn't have years of pain, grief, and Sir Richard's attention (before he was banished for selling slaves and went across the Narrow Sea) weighing her down. A Mary who hasn't had her heart and soul scarred and been rendered, as shocking as it is to hear, even more cynical than she was at the start of the series. She is still the Mary we all know… but one that can love without burden.

I always knew that Sybil wouldn't manage to hide the truth from Tom. It just isn't the relationship the two of them have. Originally I even planned for their reveal to happen in a Matthew POV, where he has created this elaborate plan to allow Sybil to spend time with Tom and that he'd convince Robert to allow Sybil and Edith and Mary to learn to drive… only for Sybil to see Tom, tell him she was his wife, kiss him, and just smile at Matthew as he stood by, shaken.

Now then, on to the Plot Bunny. And this is one where, like the Star Trek Idea, I have a lot of info to provide someone who would be willing to pick it up.

You guys should know by now one of my most popular series is the Harry Potter: Pokemon Master series. Well… what if we take one of those great tastes and combine it with Downton?

Mary Crawley of Downton Village, in the Albion Region, has a problem. The daughter of the local gym leader, Mary never had an interest in taking over the Downton Gym, and neither did her sisters. They were content to allow their cousin Patrick be next in line, with his father James serving as Robert Crawley's second. But when the SS Titanic sank after an attack by Team Aequalis and James and Patrick were counted amongst the dead suddenly Downton Gym finds itself without an heir. Robert, fearful that Team Aequalis, who is seeking to take over many of the family-run gyms themselves, needs an heir fast just in case he is the next target. And that means Mary.

Too bad Mary hasn't had a traditional Pokemon Battle in ages.

After a trial battle with her father goes horrible (with her Pokemon somehow managing to confuse herself) Robert decides that he needs someone to mentor his daughter. And who better than their distant cousin Matthew, who just managed to win the Kalos League? Mary though isn't happy about any of this. She doesn't want to be a gym leader and she CERTAINLY doesn't want the help of some common trainer who spent his youth wandering Kalos and Unova and Sinnoh! It is unheard of!

Meanwhile, Matthew Crawley of Manchester Town has a problem. Having just won the Kalos Pokemon League he is ready to head to Hoenn to try his hand at their gym challenges when his mother agrees to Matthew training Mary… without asking him. Isobel wants her boy home and has even arranged for them to share a house in Downton. Matthew wants to continue traveling with his team. He does not want to be a glorified babysitter who teaches a woman who can barely remember type advantages how to be a Pokemon trainer.

Let the fun begin.

So I see Robert and the Main Crawley Family as Ice Type trainers, due to their reserved, stuffy nature. Robert's main Pokemon would be a specially bred Alolan Ninetails named Isis but he'd also have a Beartic, an Avalug, a Momoswine, and an Abomasnow. The Abbey itself would be the Gym with the family living on the upper floors. Cora would be from Unova and originally come from a Water-Type gym family but got rid of all her Pokemon when she married Robert, keeping only her Dewgong. Mary would have a Glaceon and a Froslass who were mostly treated as friends with little battle experience. Sybil and Edith would have Eevees with it expected they will evolve them into Glaceons but Edith loves her Eevee as is and Sybil… well, it's Sybil.

Matthew, meanwhile, would have a well rounded team that he used to win the Kalos League. He would have an Alolan Golem, a Talonflame, a Decidueye, a Dragalge, a Seismitoad, and his starter, a Gardevoir. He would be the Matthew we know but rather than having focused on the Law he would have focused on Battling. Isobel Crawley was part of the Joy family before she married Matthew's father and uses a Chansey.

As for the staff, some would work as the trainers in the gym but the rest would be just the staff. Carson would still be loyal to the family, to the point of using Ice Pokemon as well, while Bates is a newly brought in member of the staff who used to work at a Fighting-Type gym. Anna would have a Pidgey that, despite being unevolved would secretly be super powerful and Gwen wants to apprentice under the Region's local Pokemon Professor. Thomas would be a former Team Rocket Grunt who is hiding his past while O'Brien wants nothing to do with the gym aspect of Pokemon. Mrs. Hughes was an amazing trainer and could have gone to a League Conference if her sister hadn't fallen ill and needed her to work a steady job to make money. Mrs. Patmore is still Mrs. Patmore and Daisy once caught a rock and thought it was a Pokemon for five weeks.

Probably the most interesting idea I have is for Team Aequalis. If you can't figure it out from their name Aequalis want to tear down the gym system… they are the Socialists and Tom is secretly a member (perhaps even an Admin!) who has gone undercover to bring down Downton… only to fall in love with Sybil. Will he leave the Team? Convince Sybil to join him (she would look good in a Team uniform…)?

Also, this story would offer chances for cameos. What if one of Robert's neighbors was James Morgan and his wife Jessie, who know that Tom was once part of the defunct Team Rocket? What if during one episode an older Ash arrives to battle Robert? What if Edith meets a certain former Gym Leader-turned-Pokemon Doctor named Brock and falls in love? Plenty of options!