#William Mason

[downtondownstairs]

Happy 14th birthday Downton Abbey // 26.09.2010 // original Downstairs cast

[hayleythesugarbowl]

Hey!! I saw your Thomas barrow headcanons and I was wondering if you could write a fic where the reader is a new maid and Thomas takes a liking to her and stands up for her and the reader then begins to fall for Thomas and he finds out somehow and tells her that he can’t love her and the reader understands and they end up as good friends? Thank you so much if you write this I love your writing!!

It’s Nice To Have a Friend || Thomas Barrow & reader • Part 1

⋆𐙚₊˚⊹♡ Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 ⋆𐙚₊˚⊹♡

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ masterlist • thomas barrow masterlist ⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚

summary: when your father dies and you’re forced to get a job as a maid at Downton you are greeted by Thomas Barrow who takes to helping you get settled in

word count: 1.4k

warnings: none

a/n: thank you so much for the request, I’ve been meaning to write for Thomas and so I decided to make this a series. this is the first of a three part series (part 2 and 3 are out now!!) enjoy <3🍒💋

<— another thomas fic • next part —>

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~°~❦~°~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Downton Abbey. You took in the grand estate as you walked up towards the house, clutching your coat tighter around yourself.

     Saying you needed this job would be an understatement. What with your father’s death and your mother’s not being able to uphold the farm, you needed every penny you could get. Sure, being a maid wasn’t your ideal job, but it would do. There were less respectable positions than a housemaid in a estate such as Lord and Lady Grantham’s.

     You stuck your chin up. You were lucky to have gotten this job. And you would make a good maid—you would have to. It wasn’t where you imagined yourself when you were a little girl and dreamed of being the next Mary Shelley. But what were dreams to reality. You shook these thoughts off as you approached the house. 

     As you headed towards where you guessed the the servants entrance was, you thought about the decisions that had got you here. You hoped you’d made the right ones. You stopped for a moment, leaning up against the wall, hoping no one could see you. This had to go well. You took a minute to collect yourself. A door opened a little ways down and someone stepped out. You saw his figure walking towards you. 

     “Can I help you?” The man who now stood before you asked, with a slight air of suspicion. He had dark hair and dark eyes and you couldn’t help but notice how good-looking he was. God does have his favorites, you thought.

     “I’m (Y/n) (Y/l/n), the new housemaid.” You told him, standing up straighter.

     “I didn’t know we needed another housemaid,” the man said. 

     “Well I’m not here to mend cars,” you told him.

     “Ah, of course not,” he smiled, “I see you prefer to spend your time lurking in the shadows.”

     “I was merely looking for the servants entrance,” you countered.

     He looked you up and down, “Right. This way,” he led you farther down, towards the door he had previously exited. 

     “Well, now I’ve introduced myself, who might you be? I don’t suppose you’re the butler.”

     “In time,” he said mysteriously. “But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I’m Thomas Barrow, his Lordship’s valet. It’s a right here.”

     You turned right and were led into the servants quarters, a lively place, bustling with cooks and maids and footmen as they went about their work. As Thomas led you to the back of the room and into a hall you marveled at how many servants worked here. Sure, the house was large but you couldn’t imagine one family needing that much help. 

     “Here we are,” Thomas stopped in front of a room with the door propped open and you were met with a stern looking woman and an even more stern looking man. 

     “Ah, (Y/n), I see you’ve made it,” the woman greeted you, smiling, “I hope your trip wasn’t too rough.”

     “No ma’am,” you answered. 

     “We’re glad to have you (Y/n),” the man said, “Mrs. Hughes and I have been quite busy lately with such a limited staff. Thank you, Thomas, for showing her the way.” 

     Thomas nodded and as you looked around you, the door pushed open a tad and you saw that a maid with blonde hair had entered the room.

     “I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” she said. 

     “We were just welcoming the new maid. (Y/n), this is Anna, the head housemaid. She’ll show you to your rooms.” Mr. Carson said. “You have a few minutes to get settled and then you’ll need to change. Mrs. Hughes can tell you when to get the girls rooms ready and when to turn the guest rooms. Daisy will wake you at 6:00 every morning.”

     The woman who must have been Anna led you down a hall. 

     “I don’t know how I’ll ever remember it all,” you said.

     “You’ll pick it up in no time,” Anna smiled encouragingly. She showed you to the room you were to be sharing with another one of the maids and you set your bag down that held your few possessions.

     Upon walking back to the servants dining room you found most of the people sitting around the table having a rest or mending something, their eyes on you once you walked in. 

      “So, has it always been your dream to be in service or did fate require it?” One woman said, not entirely kindly, you thought.

     “If you’re asking if I mean to be a housemaid my whole life then no, I can’t say that I do.” You answered honestly, maybe too honestly, you realized as the word tumbled out of your mouth. “I have my ambitions, just like the rest of us.”

     “You’ll do good to forget about them,” she drawled.

     “O’Brien doesn’t mean it,” Anna smiled at you, “I think it’s lovely that you’ve got dreams.”

     “You don’t mean to be here long then?” A kitchen girl asked you.

     “Oh I don’t mean that,” you said, “it’s a good position and I’m lucky to be here.”

     Suddenly, a cook with fiery red hair stormed into the room, glaring daggers at the girl who had just spoke. 

     “Daisy I said you could have a break not a day off!” 

     “Coming Mrs. Patmore,” Daisy scrambled off, glancing back at you with a worried look. 

     Thomas walked in just then, Daisy almost running into him, holding a cigarette, “Got a lot of ambitions, do you (Y/n)?”

     “I might,” you answered, looking at Thomas mysteriously. 

     “Well you mustn’t let Mr. Carson hear you talking about ‘em,” he lifted his cigarette to his mouth, “we’re not supposed to have thoughts and opinions down here.”

     “You have no trouble sharing yours,” O’Brien raised an eyebrow.

     “You’re one to talk,” he countered.

     You looked between them, and then turned to Anna, whispering, “They don’t get on, do they?”

     Anna turned to you. “They’re friends really,” she continued in a low voice, taking on a joking tone, “united in their treachery.”

     You didn’t think Thomas had seemed particularly treacherous. Cold maybe. Haughty sure. But not treacherous. However, first impressions were often wrong.

     Mr. Carson entered the room again. Everyone stood up, awaiting instruction. 

     “I’ve rung the dressing gong,” he said, “You must all begin to get ready for dinner. Everyone is ready to be dressed so you should head up at once. Thomas, His Lordship’s new shoes are in the boot room and they need brushing.”

     “Yes Mr. Carson.”

     Mrs. Hughes addressed you. “And (Y/n), if you could help Anna out by fetching Edith’s frock. It was being mended and I haven’t had a chance to send it up.” 

     “Yes Mrs. Hughes.” You went off with everyone else in a rush, heading in the same direction as Thomas.

     “Settling in yet?” Thomas asked you as you walked.

     “As much as I can,” you answered. “I hope so, at least.”

     He was silent a moment before saying, “Always rise when any of the family comes down here. Never appear in the dining room when dinner service is in progress. Prepare to serve long and tiring hours and don’t expect to be acknowledged for it neither. Remember that and you should be alright.”

     You looked at him. “Thank you, you’ve been ever so welcoming. I’ve no doubt you know this house like the back of your hand. If I was Mr. Carson I’d worry I’d be out of a job.”

     Thomas was silent.

     You accepted the silence for a few moments and then sought to break it. “So you seemed keen to talk about ambitions, what are your dreams, Mr. Barrow?”

     “Who says I’ve got dreams?”

     “Everyone has dreams,” you told him.

     “Not me,” he said cryptically. “People like me don’t have dreams.”

     “I don’t believe that. I think everyone’s got a right to hope just as anyone else.”

     “The world doesn’t share your views, my luck,” he said.

     As you pondered over what this meant, you followed Thomas into the boot room. He picked up a pair of shoes and grabbed a brush.

     “I’d like to become a novelist,” you said. “I like to write—that’s my dream.”

     He didn’t say anything

    You gathered a parcel that must have been Lady Edith’s dress and began to leave the room.  “That was a very interesting conversation, Mr. Barrow, thank you.”

     You turned back around before exiting. “I’d like to think we’ll become friends, you and I,” you told him.

     “Oh, (Y/n),” Thomas turned to you, stopping mid-brush, “I don’t have friends here. Everyone knows that.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~°~❦~°~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

<— another thomas fic • next part —>

ˋ°•*⁀➷ part 2 and 3 are up now hope you enjoyed this loves

[madebyteenagefury]

ask anyone who knows me and knows the downton abbey lore (so like, my parents) and they'll tell you i am an absolute thomas barrow apologist, it has been something we've disagreed over plenty of times, idk i just love him. he is one conniving son of a bitch but hes still more than that, he got his mf redemption arc and he deserved it. i usually only rewatch the films, and the last few seasons of the show, due to this however, i often forget just how bitchy he was, like how steve harrington is a fan favorite but because of that i forget the extent of his dick behavior in s1 (also i just never watch that season)

the thing i used to hate most that thomas (and tbf obrien) did was continuously try to sack bates, succeeding at one point, and just overall being a complete ass towards him but i completely didnt remember how he led daisy on just to kick william in the gut FUCK him for that. one of my fav moments is actually when he dances with daisy while william plays piano, because despite how different they all are and the negative feelings between him, obrien and literally everyone else they all laugh and have a good time for a moment and its sweet, but mf knows daisy has this little crush on him and leads her on despite the fact that he just doesnt even like her normally, hes literally gay. disregarding the probability that she will be hurt (i mean not that he cared at the time) just to fuck with william and for what??

one of the reasons i dont completely hate obrien and thomas in the earlier seasons is because i feel like that most of their actions have an explanation besides "just because". mostly they arent being complete jerks just to Be Jerks (not that it makes their actions and behavior any more acceptable, and ofc they say rude things a lot just because but here im talking about their scheming and various ploys) but this, i literally dont see any more reason besides fuck with william and its not just william who faces consequences because of it and when bates shoved him up against the wall to give him a mind to shut the fuck up i was like "yesss tell that bastard"

[angelswing236]

"Follow me if you want to live."

Fictober 24 challenge

Fandom: Downton Abbey

Fanfiction

It was only the slightest of scuffling sounds, but it made both of them look up sharply, fear gripping them.

William clutched his rifle, panic-stricken eyes landing on Matthew, who put his gloved finger to his lips. All they could do was stay silent and pray it wasn’t another German soldier on the other side of the prickly hedge by the ditch in which they were huddling, and that they were not about to be discovered and taken prisoner. Or worse.

‘Suivez-moi si vous voulez vivre,’ a voice whispered through the knotted branches of the hedge.

Matthew and William exchanged a look, surprised and relieved to realise the interloper was female and definitely not an enemy soldier.

‘What’s she saying?’ William whispered, his French no better after all these months.

‘Follow me if you want to live,’ Matthew translated. ‘At least, I think that’s what she said.’

‘Rosbifs, suivez-moi. Zat way,’ the voice repeated, the last words in heavily accented English. ‘Maintenant.’

A small, feminine hand appeared through the hedge, pointing down the ditch to a part of the hedge that dipped into a shallow hollow, the opposing bank higher than the one on which the straggly hedge clung to life.

Matthew lifted his head, peering cautiously through the low, scrubby bushes in front of them at the German soldiers encamped about 250 yards from where they lay. They were talking and laughing, one of them stirring a pot of something over a small fire, the smell of which made his empty stomach rumble. None of them were looking their way.

Hunkering back down, he nodded to William, and they began to crawl as quietly as possible towards the hollow. Once there, they could see a gap, where the hedge skimmed but just missed mingling with another equally wiry hedge. There was a gap between them just big enough for a grown man to squeeze through.

Gesturing for William to go first, Matthew rolled over, taking another cautious peek at the enemy, making sure they were still oblivious to their presence. Once his batman was through, Matthew followed, keeping low to the ground, trying not to get tangled on the thorns in either hedge, glad for the protection of his greatcoat.

On the other side, their saviour waited, a thin-faced young woman – a girl, really – dressed in a thick serge coat, boots and men’s trousers, cinched at the waist with a belt, her hair in a loose ponytail. She put her finger to her lips and then pointed at another ditch running perpendicular to the hedge that had been their hiding place. Without another word, she ran to it, dropping into its embrace and crawling along it on her belly.

Matthew and William exchanged a glance and then followed her, ignoring the mud and the leaves, trying to make as little noise as possible.

After what seemed like an eternity, with every second spent expecting a guttural German shout or a volley of bullets in their direction, they reached the end of the ditch. The French girl rolled out of it, getting to her knees and running in a crouch over to the dilapidated remnants of a stone hut.

She waited for Matthew and William to join her and then grinned at them, a flash of youthful spirit that made her seem even younger than her years.

‘Nous leur avons échappé, les Boches,’ she said, happily.

‘Merci,’ Matthew said, fervently. ‘Merci beaucoup.’

‘Aye, merci, mademoiselle,’ William echoed in an atrocious accent.

‘De rien,’ she replied, her smile shyer now.

‘Do you know which way the British lines are, mademoiselle?’ Matthew asked, scanning their surroundings for familiar landmarks and finding none. They’d been driven further into the woods than they’d been before by the German patrol that had unwittingly pinned them down.

‘Les tranchées anglaises sont par là,’ she said, gesturing towards the area his gut told him was the right direction for the British lines, but then she shook her head, pointing to the ground where they were. ‘Mais restent ici jusqu'à la tombée de la nuit. Il n'est pas prudent d'y aller en plein jour. Il y a trop de patrouilles allemandes.’

‘Can you understand what she’s saying, sir?’ William asked, watching the girl with a degree of fascination.

‘I think she’s saying stay here,’ Matthew replied as the girl watched him, listening, her brow furrowed in concentration. ‘Too many Germans about.’

She smiled, looking pleased. ‘Oui. Stay ‘ere. Jusqu’a la tombée de la nuit. La lune. Ze moon. Il est plus sûr de se déplacer au clair de lune. Vous comprendez?’

‘Au clair de la lune? That’s the song, isn’t it?’ William said, pleased to have deciphered even a small amount of her French. ‘About the moon.’

‘Yes.’

‘Restez ici jusqu'à la nuit,’ the girl said again. ‘Night. Oui?’

‘Stay here until night falls,’ Matthew repeated in English.

She smiled and nodded. ‘Et restez silencieux, vous deux.’

‘And be quiet.’

‘Oui. Soyez silencieux,’ she said, raising her finger to her lips. ‘Vous ne voulez pas qu’ils vous trouvent.’

‘We don’t want them to find us,’ Matthew translated for William’s benefit.

‘No, we surely don’t,’ the young batman said, fervently.

She beamed at them again and then raised a hand in farewell.

‘Wait! Attendez!’ Matthew whispered, urgently. ‘Comment t'appelles-tu?’

‘Hélène.’

‘Merci, Hélène.’

She dipped her head, another smile on her face.

William nodded to her. ‘Thank you, miss. I think you might be an angel.’

She frowned as she translated the English in her head, and then smiled again and shook her head. ‘Je ne suis pas un ange, monsieur. Je suis juste une fille.’

She bobbed a small curtsey and raised her hand again. ‘Bonne chance.’

With that, she darted off, leaving them alone.

‘I think I was right the first time,’ William muttered, watching her go. ‘She is an angel.’

‘Yes, I think she might be,’ Matthew agreed. ‘I might have to call my firstborn daughter Hélène.’

Hunkering down, they settled in to wait quietly for nightfall.

[sir-griswold-of-macelwain]

What kind of plots and character arcs would William and Daisy have had if William had survived after they'd gotten married?

I mean Mrs Patmore would probably have had to come to terms with the fact she pressured Daisy into this relationship. But Daisy and William?

Would Daisy have lied to him about loving him all throughout the years? would she have realized she does love him, although not romantically, or not entirely like that, before their relationship soured? would William have felt guilty to have pestered her into getting married for tax fraud purposes? Would they have had children? And regarding the "soured" relationship, would it have actually soured? Would they have lived their married life like the one Matthew wanted to spare to Lavinia, without being intimate? What if Daisy fell in love later on? Would WIlliam ever be able to trust her again? Would William feel betrayed by her lies or guilty of being too keen on believing them? Would he blame Mrs Patmore?

Would William have become Matthew's valet once he moved into the big house, like Bates used to be Robert's batsman in the war and then became his valet? Would there have been rivality between William and Mr Molesley?

What about Mr Mason? With his son still alive, he wouldn't have had the same relationship with Daisy. I'm sure he'd still be very kind to her, but it wouldn't be the same. What if Daisy still had her outburst at the auction? Would William have taken her side or would he resent her for making his dad lose his job? What about Miss Bunting? Would William have been jealous of the time Daisy spent studying? Would he have joined in the lessons just to spend time with Daisy?

Would William have played the piano at the Carsons' wedding reception? What about Lady Sybil's death, would he have been the one comforting Thomas, his former bully? What about Matthew's death? The man he gave his life to save?

[massiveharmonytiger]

Made another one. Why did I notice this?

[sxnyarostova]

downton downstairs and how they eat their toast:

carson: lightly toasted with a very thin layer of butter on top. look me in the eye and tell me he'd like it done any other way.

mrs hughes: not the biggest fan of toast. prefers scones, but when she absolutely has to eat it, she likes it toasted with jam only. she is eventually influenced by mr carson and puts minimal butter before she slathers it in strawberry jam.

mrs patmore: toast connoisseur; she has to be the one to crisp the bread and will not eat it otherwise. butter and preserves are the way to go. in a modern context she is a marmite lover; not a huge fan of crusts though

thomas: eats it plain with absolutely nothing on it. will put parsley butter if available though (but it never is so the mystery of whether thomas actually puts condiments on his toast remains very much intact). avid marmalade hater.

o'brien: would be gluten-free in a modern context. does not enjoy toast. don't even think about giving her some she will bite your hand off

william: he likes english muffins. if forced to eat toast he nibbles at it until it vaguely resembles an English muffin.

gwen: cuts the crusts off her bread and gets the most bombastic side eye from mrs p. liker of marmalade and heckler of daisy's anti-marmalade stance

anna: does not toast her bread and likes a thin layer of jam, so long as it doesn't overpower that taste that makes bread, well, bread. likes scones more but isn't excessively picky about it. will occasionally pop scrambled eggs onto her toast, and gets mr bates into it.

mr bates: toasts his bread, and puts butter and jam in even quantities. apparently he is a liker of marmalade, but this was only said in response to thomas' denouncement of it at the table. does he actually enjoy it? we'll never know. crust enjoyed. as mentioned above he puts scrambled eggs on his toast every once in a while.

daisy: very particular about how it's done. she wants untoasted bread, lots of butter, and lots of jam, but not too much of either condiment or it'll make her sick. she despises marmalade and would actually cry as a child if someone forced her to eat it. always eats her crusts, and will eat toast as a midnight snack. she's clearly a fan.

ivy: no crusts, no toasting, no butter, and just puts jam. fights with daisy sometimes about their stances on how toast is supposed to be enjoyed. eventually caves and starts toasting it.

alfred: did not inherit his aunt's genes and is a huge fan of bread. he will literally talk to you for hours about baking bread and how much butter is too much butter. will literally not shut up about toast. eats it with what he believes is the golden ratio of butter (it isn't).

jimmy: likes it a little burnt. that's it he has no other preferences

ms baxter: anna got her scrambled egg thing from her. ms baxter is the original inventor of scrambled eggs on toast actually she patented the term

mr molesley: huge toast enjoyer. initially very adamant that it should be eaten with just butter but changes his ways after ms baxter comes into his life <3

[forsuperbang]

I've completely forgotten Daisy kissed William first. Talk about mixed signals, girl had no idea of what she just did 😭

[doodlesdreaming]

Who's the real hot shot?

Quick sketch request for @demon64, featuring Strife(Darksiders) and William Mason(West of Dead). Thank you so much for the ☕️.

[hayleythesugarbowl]

It’s Nice To Have a Friend || Thomas Barrow & reader • Part 3

⋆𐙚₊˚⊹♡ Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 ⋆𐙚₊˚⊹♡

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ masterlist • thomas barrow masterlist ⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚

summary: as you suffer the consequences of your mistake, thomas stands up for you and you can’t deny your growing attraction to him. then he overhears something that might jeopardize your relationship

word count: 1.7k

warnings: some mild swearing at the end

a/n: part 3 let’s gooo!! i had so much fun writing this and i hope you guys enjoy it <3🩰🍓

<— previous part • another thomas fic —>

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“I hope you know the embarrassment and shame you have brought upon Downton this day. A maid in the dining room, ruining dinner! Respect for this household is surely lost to the Hardcastles.”

     All of the servants were assembled downstairs. The mood was somber, that was for sure. You looked down at the floor.

     “I feel awful Mr. Carson,” you spoke up. 

     “As you should,” Mr. Carson said. “This incident is not likely to be forgotten anytime soon. I don’t know what you were doing upstairs in the first place, but you will face severe consequences.

     “Yes, Mr. Carson.”

     Thomas looked at you and back at Mr. Carson. “I suppose you’ve never made a mistake then, Mr. Carson?”

     “Not if I can help it, Mr. Barrow.” He turned his severe look to Thomas.

     “S’pose you would know a lot about mistakes,” O’Brien muttered to Thomas.

     “Well I am human Miss O’Brien. And so’s (Y/n). We all are. And it’d do you some good not to forget it.” Thomas looked around the room. 

     “That’s enough, Mr. Barrow. (Y/n) needs to understand the gravity of this situation. We have a standard to uphold. And a maid carrying food upstairs into the dining room and making a fool of herself! You are very lucky His Lordship was so understanding.”

     “Since when is trying to help a crime?” Thomas challenged.

     “Mr. Barrow—”

     “No it’s alright, I believe I should be getting my things anyways,” You said.

     Mrs. Hughes stopped you. “Now wait just a minute, nobody go anywhere just yet.”

     Mr. Carson started, “(Y/n), I ought to send you on your way—”

     Mrs. Hughes interrupted him with a look, “Mr. Carson—” 

     “But being that it is (Y/n)’s first couple of week here I think we can make some excuses.” It looked like it pained him to say it. 

     “If she burns the place down will you let her off with a slap on the wrist!” O’Brien said incredulously.

      “It was an accident,” Anna said. 

     “Yes, an unfortunate accident which I will impress upon you will never happen again.” Mr. Hughes fixed you with a stern look.

     “Yes Mrs. Hughes,” you obliged, looking down. 

    “Now leave the poor girl be, everyone” Mrs Hughes said, “before she has a spell and that’ll do no good to any of us.”

     “Oh I don’t know, she might be more useful that way,” O’Brien muttered, audibly.

      “I’d advise you to hold your tongue, Miss O’Brien,” Mrs. Hughes fixed a stern look on her.

     The ladies maid set Mrs. Hughes with a look equal to the latter’s. “I don’t know what you mean.”

     “Well you wouldn’t, O’Brien, no one’s laboring under the impression that you understand what it’s like being useful.” Thomas stepped towards you unconsciously.

     Mr. Carson stepped in. “That’s quite enough Mr. Barrow.”  

     “Yes, that will be all,” Mrs. Hughes, “Get back to your tasks, all of you. That’s quite enough excitement for one night. 

     You nodded, walking towards the door but as Thomas went to pass you, you stopped him. 

     “Mr Barrow—thank you, for sticking up for me.” 

     “Mr. Carson made a nightmare of all our first weeks. It’s the least I could do,” he told you. 

     “I’m sure you all didn’t ruin the most important evening of the year with excessive clumsiness.” You rubbed the back of your neck. 

     “You’d be surprised.” He smiled at you. “You’ll not get the sack, not if I can help it.”

     You thought of the other servants saying that Thomas was selfish and distant. You couldn’t help but feel they were wrong, but you didn’t know why it was only you that thought so.

     You smiled back, “Daisy already thinks you’ve taken a liking to me. Careful or the other’s’ll think you’ve got a heart.”

     “Well we can’t have that,” he said with a wink and then was off in the other direction. 

     You turned back towards the kitchen where Daisy and Anna and a number of other maids and kitchen servants were watching you.

     “Are you feeling better?” Anna asked you.

     “I am thank you, still a bit shaken but I’ll get over it,” you said, grateful for her concern. “I’m lucky I’m still here.”

     “Well, we’re all glad you are,” Anna said. 

     “She wasn’t likely to be thrown out, not with Thomas as her knight in shining armor,” Daisy added, as she finished scrubbing a pan.

     “There’s a first,” Mrs. Patmore laughed as she walked by carrying an empty tray. 

     “He’s nicer than you lot give him credit for,” you defended. 

     A couple of the maids giggled.

     “Oh, cut her some slack. She fancies him,” Daisy teased.

     You found yourself blushing, “Wherever did you get an idea like that?”

     “Only that you’re in love with him,” Daisy grinned. “You can’t deny it, I’ve seen the way you look at him.”

     You fumbled for words, and Daisy must have seen the panicked look on your face because she said, “Oh I’m not serious, I’m only poking fun,” Daisy said, “I used to be infatuated with him too before I was brought to me senses.”

     “Whatever do you mean? You don’t think I have my fair shot?” You teased back.

     “Well, it’s not you that’s the problem is it?” Mrs. Patmore said as she rolled out bread dough, presumably for breakfast the next morning. “You have as fair a go as the rest of us ladies.” She laughed. 

     You weren’t sure what she meant by it, but you felt defensive. “Suppose I do, then so what if I fancy—Thomas!”

     His sudden appearance made you jump. “I was just sent to tell Anna that Mrs. Hughes needs to see her,” he said.

     Anna looked back at you sympathetically and then hurried out of the room. You looked to Thomas. He was watching you with a curious expression on his face. You didn’t know how much of the previous conversation he’d heard. You thought about denying everything. But that would be untruthful, you realized. Because maybe you did fancy Thomas. 

     “Don’t suppose you’ve gone momentarily deaf?” You asked him, trying to break the silence that had settled over the kitchen.

     Daisy looked caught between nervous and giddy. 

     “No don’t suppose I have,” he said, turning around and walking out of the kitchen. 

     He chased after him, “Thomas, wait.” He turned down the hall to the male servants rooms, which you definitely weren’t supposed to be in but you weren’t paying attention. 

     When you finally caught up with his brisk pace he was turned around facing the back wall of what must have been his room. 

     “Thomas I’m sorry if I’ve startled you-”

     But he didn’t turn around and you finally gave up, leaving him there, wondering what you did wrong.

*****

     You didn’t speak to Thomas for the remainder of the week. Not for lack of trying, but he seemed determined to avoid you. He turned the other way if you came down the hall and if you tried to speak to him he suddenly remembered something that needed done in the other room. 

     The other staff seemed to notice, especially when he’d been so friendly to you before. 

    As you sat at a chair, mending one of Her Ladyship’s evening gowns, you thought about all of this. Hearing footsteps behind you, you turned to find none other than Thomas standing in the doorway. He ignored you entirely and continued with his business.

     You tried to be kind, “Crazy weather we’ve been having, isn’t it?”

     “No different than any other year, I suppose,” he said indifferently.

     “No, I suppose not.”

     You paused. Oh, what the heck, out with it!

     “Have I offended you?” You asked. “Did I do something to warrant the cold shoulder?”

     Thomas looked pained coming up with a response.

     Finally—     

     “I can’t give you what you want,” Thomas said softly, looking down. 

     “What?”

     “I can’t be a proper gentleman to you,” he set down his work. 

     “And I don’t expect you to, neither. I was only being silly. I know it’s beneath you and I wasn’t asking—”

     He interrupted you and said slowly, “Not you, not any other woman.”

     Understanding dawned on you. His talk about abandoned dreams and romance. His behavior after you’d admitted to fancying him. 

     He watched you, waiting for a response.

     “Well, don’t I feel stupid,” you said. 

     “Not to worry, (Y/n). I couldn’t ask anyone to resist my charms. I’m sure it’s not your fault.” Thomas attempted a joke. 

     You laughed, grinning. “I am certain your charms are already employed on someone else, no doubt.

     “I might have someone in mind,” he said vaguely. 

     “Well, whoever the lucky bastard is,” you said, “he better bloody well deserve you.”

     “Language (Y/n), I thought you were a lady.”

     “Am I?”

     “Oh nonsense,” Thomas said, “you are a lady and you’ll made some bloke more than happy someday.” 

     He paused. “You’ve been kind to me. And I don’t deserve it.”

     “Don’t be silly, you’ve helped me more than anyone else here. 

     “You’re in the minority then. Everyone here would agree that I’m a bad seed,” he said.

     “Well not me.” 

      “You’re biased, you fancy me remember?” He smirked. 

      “Oh leave off!” You swatted at his arm. 

     His expression fell and he became serious, “I understand if you no longer wish to associate with me, if romance was what you wanted.”

    “I don’t give a rats tail about romance! There are more important things you know.”

     He smiled and looked down, silence descending on the room again.

       You furrowed your brow. “I have to ask, if everyone says you’re so awful, why are you kind to me?”

      He took a minute to reply. “You remind me of myself when I started in service. I had dreams. I had hopes. You remind me to dream. Make me feel like maybe I could. And it trust you. Being me is a lonely business. I’ll deny it to my grave but it is.”

     You didn’t know what to say to such a declaration.

     “I think you’re a lot more than you or anyone else gives you credit for,” you said.

     “I’m grateful for you,” he said, “I haven’t had many acquaintances in my life.”

     “Then we stay acquaintances, I hope.” You smiled at him. 

     “I should like to think of us as more than that,” Thomas said, with a glint in his eye. “We’re friends, you and I.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~°~❦~°~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

<— previous part • another thomas fic —>

ˋ°•*⁀➷ hope you guys enjoyed this series and thank you to the anon who requested this fic!! to everyone who read this whole series I’m sending my love your way <3

[madebyteenagefury]

thomas has to flirt with girls like daisy because that's expected behaviour for a straight man, and since he's very easily clockable he needs to be seen Behaving Straightly as being gay carried a prison sentence of two years hard labour. the fact makes creepy misogynistic william upset is a bonus tbh.

once he gets outed to the entire household, he never flirts with another girl again. there's no need. his cover is blown. he could flirt with ivy and piss off alfred (who he hates just as much as william) but he doesn't, because the pissing off was always just a bonus.

okay totally honest here i did not think about that at all, how thomas has to keep up appearances, great and valid point anon thanks for mentioning that. (i thought the entire household, or at least all of the staff bar daisy ofc, knew about him, i guess its been a while since ive had a full rewatch)

i am curious about the anti william sentiment im seeing though. maybe its just because my family really likes william and theyre the only ones i ever watched with so adopted their opinions. i will say, i did not enjoy daisy being pressured into starting a relationship with him then marrying him down the line, however i think that was more due to the other staff (mrs patmore) than william himself. yes he was very overt and pushy about his attraction to her but, i think ultimately (accompanied with, what i perceive as, her own want to be as gentle with him as possible and avoid hurting his feelings) its the pressure from other staff that kicks her over the edge to finally say yes maybe my entire view is distorted because its been ages since ive had a rewatch fully and in order. usually i rewatch the first three or so episodes of season 1 and then skip to post matthew death.

thanks for sending that in!

[historicattractions]

Both Chris and Karla enjoyed this line!

Listen to the episode here!

[downtondays]

Teachers : characters pt. 2

Sarah O'Brien

52, Math teacher, Thomas' godmother, good friends with Vera, lesbian, Irish

Edith Crawley

22, French teacher, lives with her parents, daughter to Cora and Robert, sister to Mary and Sybil, pregnant with her dead's boyfriend baby

Cora Crawley

41, local Middle School headmaster, married to Robert, mother to Mary, Edith and Sybil

Joseph Molesley

50, History teacher, has a small crush unrequited crush on Anna, lives alone, knew John from school

William Mason

16, Year 10 student, Mr Mason's adoptive son, Daisy's step-brother, friends with Rose and Albert

Alfred Nugent

16, Year 10 student, O'Brien's nephew, school bully

Albert Crawford

16, Year 10 student, friends with Rose and William

Vera Yeats

43, musician, divorcee, John's ex-wife, lives in London, friends with O'Brien, bisexual

Charles Carson

59, school keeper, married to Elsie, Anna's dad figure

Daisy Mason

19, assistant lunch lady, she lives with her dad Daniel Mason and her step-mother Beryl, step-sister to William

[sarcasmisfluffy]

There goes Thomas, giving William his sage advice

[liveactionproblematicotd]

Today's problematic ship is Thomas Barrow and William Mason from Downton Abbey

Abusive

Bully/victim

Power imbalance

Requested by @dykebarrow