Downton Abbey: The Risk Of Love

A Perfect Summer Day

Downton Abbey
July 1920

Mary was sitting at the breakfast table with her father and Tom. Edith had left for London yesterday to meet with the editor of the magazine she had been published in. It was a fairly quiet morning despite last night's argument about Sybbie's baptism. Her father had put up one last fight against the catholic church and Mary had needed to step in; telling him that it had been Sybil's wish for the child to belong to the same church as Tom, who was Sybbie's father after all. From that a new fondness had grown between Mary and Tom, a friendship at last. Yet that was not all on Mary's mind; with the sorrow of her sister slowly starting to lift she had been thinking of her own life. There were no suitors she held interest for, she was not over Matthew yet, nor the heartache she had suffered — she also didn't think it was the right time to search for a husband. Instead she had found herself more interested in the estate, especially after Tom explained Matthew's plans to her — which, surprisingly, Mary didn't not find horrible at all.

"When Matthew returns from galavanting around Manchester with Mr Barrow — " Mary said which caused her father to glare at her; warning her not to bring that subject up again, but she ignored him and continued " — I shall tell him I wish to take a more active role in the estate."

This caused Robert's glare to turn positively livid. "My heir is fighting me at every corner, my only grandchild will be catholic, my darling Sybil is gone — Edith writes to a magazine and now you — Mary!" He said and stood up from the table. "I'm afraid I have lost my appetite."

Mary and Tom shared looks between each other and shook their heads. Robert truly didn't handle changes very well.

"I think it's a lovely idea, Mary, Matthew could use all the help he can get— he's fighting Jarvis and your father." Tom said and took a sip from his tea "Two old men, stuck in their ways."

"Don't speak so ill of father." Mary said.

"And what do you think he says about me, when I am out of the room?" Tom said and then shook his head. "But I am tired of the fighting, which is why I intend to leave."

"I still wish for you to reconsider, to have Sybbie here with her family." Mary pleaded with her brother-in-law.

"I can't simply sit around a house and do no work — it's not how we planned on raising Sybbie in Ireland." Tom said and his face fell as he thought of his wife that now laid buried and he'd never see again. "I think I'll take Sybbie to see her today." Tom said.

"Would you mind terribly if I came with you, Tom?" Mary asked. "I can't bear to go there on my own."

"Of course I would not mind, Mary" He answered.

Mary thought for a second to ask Tom about Thomas and Matthew; since Sybil had been so close to the valet as a friend. But she instantly shrugged that thought away and felt an immense guilt for doing so. Life might be moving on, but to use this as an opportunity to find out what was going on between Thomas and Matthew? Even Mary had her limits, and that was one of them. She did not want to tarnish a visit to her sister's grave with other intentions. In all honesty, she had but forgotten about her determination until Matthew had vanished to Manchester and taken his valet with him. A part of her wished it would have remained forgotten because now it was back to being an itch she could not get rid of and the more she thought about it the worse it got.

Manchester,
July 1920

In the early morning Thomas awoke and rolled over in bed. His arms found a sleeping, naked, Matthew and he wrapped them around him. His body felt sore but in such a perfect way that it made him remember last night and how their love-making had reached new heights. Thomas placed a kiss on Matthew's temple and brushed his hairs from his forehead and he thought how perfectly content he was with his life. His mind constantly wondered 'how can I, of all people, deserve this?' but here he was, with the love of his life in a house that accepted them — with men like them.