Downton Abbey: The Risk Of Love

Maybe A New Hat

Downton Abbey
April 1920

The whole house was in preparation mode for Edith's big day. There were only two days left and the maids were scrubbing every inch, fluffing every pillow in every bedroom and the footmen were polishing the silver to perfection. Mrs Patmore and Daisy were making the final preparations for the wedding menu while Thomas Barrow was sitting outside in the spring sun, fixing a clock. It was not a part of his job description really, but he was the only one who knew how to do it — so Mr Carson had put him to work. It left him alone with his thoughts, and thoughts he did have. It had been nearly three months since he and Matthew had returned from Manchester and every day since Thomas had longed to be back.

Though it wasn't all bad here at Downton, for once, and today Sybil would arrive and he had not seen his friend in over a year. Now the three people he cared the most about would be under the same roof once again, Mrs Hughes, Sybil and his most wonderful Matthew. It had, however, become increasingly difficult to find time alone with Matthew. There had been too much to do with the change of the estate and Matthew had been on many day trips to scope out farms and how they had modernised — and day trips were not fitting for a valet to follow along on.

But the moments they have had together had been enough for Thomas to get through the days of loneliness and with spring he hoped they could find more excuses to sneak off. The valet removed a cog from the clock and cleaned it with a cloth, taking away dust that had gathered and saw that it had bent slightly.

The servant's entrance door opened and Jimmy popped out "Hello Mr Barrow, what are you doing?"

Thomas looked up from the makeshift table of crates he had made and gave Jimmy a smile "There's a bent cog in this clock" He answered.

"You know how to do that?" Jimmy asked and Thomas raised an eyebrow at him.

"Obviously Jimmy, why else would I do it?" He laughed "Grab a crate and have a seat, knowing how to wind up the clocks is useful, if you know that you have a strong position to be first footman."

Jimmy walked over to the wall and took one of the stacked crates to sit down next to Thomas. He had taken O'Brien's advice and he really wanted to get ahead of Alfred and wipe the smugness off his freckled face. Though many had warned him about Thomas, he didn't see what was so bad about him — he was nice enough to Jimmy at least. "That's how you became the first footman?"

Thomas nodded "I suppose it was one of the reasons, it wasn't because of me personality at least" He said and took out a cigarette.

"Mr Carson seems to have something against you, Mr Barrow" Jimmy said.

Thomas took out a set of pinchers and got to work on bending the cog wheel straight. "He doesn't like that I don't do things without question, he likes obedience."

"And that is not you, Mr Barrow?" Jimmy asked with a grin and picked up a piece of the clock to inspect.

"That ain't me Jimmy" Thomas said with a smirk and then placed the cog wheel back into the clock. "You see the hole on the face of the clock?" Thomas asked and Jimmy nodded "You insert the key into one of the arbours and with your non-dominant hand you have to hold the case still while you wind it." Thomas tried to explain but Jimmy looked confused.

"Here" Thomas said and pinched his cigarette between his lips and took a hold of Jimmy's wrists to guide him. "Hold it steady and twist the key..."

Jimmy nodded, shifting slightly as he sat upon the crate, and began twisting the key "It's not moving" He said and tried again.

"Careful" Thomas said with a smile "You don't have to force it, if it doesn't move you twist the key the other way...."

Matthew rubbed his eyes, he had been over these papers a thousand times with Robert — fighting him on many points. He was growing weary of Lord Grantham's constant push-back and mindset of keeping the estate how it has always been. The biggest of Robert's opposition was the tenants, but a business could not be run like this, it needed to employ them rather than the tenants running the farms. Matthew wasn't just fighting Robert, but Jarvis as well and he had very little patience left. He needed a younger estate agent, someone who could see that Downton Abbey would not survive unless most of these changes were implemented and fast at that — but Matthew could not just fire Jarvis.