At Your Service

Ivy

It had been two weeks since Jimmy had started, and he'd really gotten into the swing of things. He was glad to say that he and Thomas had definitely become friends, but, that didn't stop him from seeing why so many people disliked him. Thomas could be cold, extremely so, to a lot of the people downstairs; he had an air of authority and harshness about him when he spoke to people like Alfred or Miss O'Brian (although she often managed to retaliate with equal distaste), in other words, he now knew why Thomas was on Mr Carson's bad side.
And another thing, Thomas was very... touchy. It didn't bother Jimmy that much, in a way he found interesting how relaxed Thomas seemed to be with him, only occasion did it disconcert him a little. But he couldn't deny he liked him, he was very witty and smooth, and seemed very unaffected by things that went on around him. It was easy to get lost in a game of cards with him, chatting into the night about all sorts of things.

He'd learnt a bit about him, his childhood, his sister, his job at Downton and all the drama that went with it. However, it was all very vague, very generic comments he made; nothing was ever very specific, and he never spoke about particular memories he'd had. In a way, it made him seem even more of a mystery than before. In turn Thomas had learnt about Jimmy too. He had no family at all, had a very lonely childhood but managed to get a job in service easily. His charm and grace always seemed an advantage when applying. Other than that though, Jimmy seemed a blank slate to Thomas. It was obvious he was a bit of a player, as he had suspected, and in a way they were very similar in their sense of humour and the way they worked. However, Jimmy was a lot more popular than Thomas.

He kept his promise to himself, and had introduced himself properly to everyone on his first day, including Ivy. Ivy was the pretty kitchen maid he'd seen when he'd walked in. She was rather soppy, a bit dreamy and rather unsubtly enamoured with Jimmy, he couldn't deny he liked the attention, even if it got him dirty looks from Alfred who was clearly blindly in love with her. It was funny to him though, he found the awkward sort of love triangle very amusing to watch and unfold.
He often dragged Daisy into it as well, watching her get so frustrated did make him feel a little pity for her but generally she just added to the interest of the situation. Daisy was after Alfred, Alfred after Ivy, and Ivy after Jimmy. Jimmy though, was not concerned with any of them, despite his teasing and flirting with Ivy.

It was an average night, everyone seemed quite perky though for no real reason, but it was rather contagious as Jimmy found he was constantly smiling and chatting away with Alfred about some new film that was coming out. Carson strode into the servants hall and they all stood before he waved his hand to let them sit ready for dinner. Thomas was further up the table than him, but the exchanged a warm smile with each other.
They began to dig into their food when Mr Carson cleared his throat.

"I have a bit of an announcement everyone. His Lordship has informed me that the family will be away for about 6 weeks from this Wednesday, and has told me that none of us are to travel with them as they will be cared for at their destination." He hesitated before continuing uneasily. "Now, he has told me that you are all allowed to use this as time to relax and have a holiday of sorts..."
Excitement rose from around the table but typical Carson raised his hand.
"But, I will tell you now that for the first week of this so called holiday we shall be cleaning this house from top to bottom, ready for when they come back."
There was silence, expecting him to say more. His old eyes scanned the table, sensing the staff's happiness. "But apart from that, I deem it acceptable for you all to take the remaining five weeks off."
Shouts and cheers burst from everyone around the table, Jimmy couldn't have been more pleased and every one started to talk about what they'd do.
"Do you know where they're going Mr Carson?" asked Thomas.
"It's a trip to France to visit some old friends, but these old friends are very well off, and so have told his Lord and Ladyship they don't need to bring a single servant with them."

The rest of dinner passed in a happy blur, and Thomas felt utterly grateful he'd be able to have a break from all the hard work. Maybe this would be his opportunity to talk with Jimmy more. But Jimmy had other plans. This was the perfect opportunity to get to know Ivy a lot better. Despite her silly and dreamy sort of personality, he knew she was kind hearted, and of course very lovely looking. Maybe the city life would have to wait even longer, maybe he was meant to settle down. He wasn't sure, and he wouldn't be until he got to know her better.
The next day was the Tuesday, and the buzz of the news still hadn't left them. The only person not looking forward to it was Carson, who seemed practically distraught that he wasn't going to see his precious family for so long, but to be honest Jimmy couldn't care less. Maybe it would be good for the old man to sit and relax for a bit.
The anticipation for Wednesday, for them to go, was high. Jimmy found a little spare time and went to sit in the servants hall for a cup of tea. Ivy and Daisy were in there, sitting and talking, which was an unusual sight.

"What are you two doing in here?" asked Jimmy.
"Nothing to do for the moment, Mrs Patmore said we could take a break for a while," replied Ivy eagerly. Daisy rolled her eyes.
"I don't know if I want to sit in here with you two alone," she muttered to herself.
"Don't be like that! What could we possibly do?" said Ivy.
"You're unending flirting is really starting to annoy me, I don't understand how you can't see he's just playing you," said Daisy plainly. Jimmy held back a smirk, he didn't realise Daisy was so perceptive. But he couldn't let her ruin his fun, so he frowned.
"What are you implying Daisy? I'm not playing anyone, my feelings for Ivy are nothing but proper thank you."
Ivy blushed and Daisy narrowed her eyes. "Honestly," she mumbled, and got up to leave them. Jimmy let slip a small smile as she left, but she ignored him, she had him figured out already.
He turned his attention back to Ivy, whose blush had not faded, and he sat down opposite her.
"You ought not to listen to her Ivy, I wouldn't play you, I like you a lot as a matter of fact."
"Oh I know you wouldn't, you're awfully generous Jimmy, I do wonder how you haven't you haven't got some secret girl you go after."
"Who says I haven't?" he said teasingly. Ivy failed to hide a frown, unable to see it as a joke. So Jimmy reached over and held her hand briefly. "I'm joking," he sighed. She let out a gasp of relief and smiled up at him with rosy cheeks. He shook his head and laughed a little before leaving the room to continue cleaning the silver.