"Cora sometimes you can be curiously unfeeling," Robert said as he waited for Cora to get ready for a concert tonight. He was looking quite forward to it and was peeved that his wife was taking so long to get ready.

"Oh Robert, please stop that," she said as she put on her last diamond earring. She wore her hair up and a light pink dress that cut down half-past her thigh. Robert did love beautiful things. His wife's legs were beautiful and he imagined ravishing her right there, but then remembered he was still mad at her. Even Cora knew his anger, even when he seemed calm, it was always hiding underneath. She had learned to control it, but forgotten to fear it. She laughed at it actually.

"Let's go," she said and the led the way as he followed her. Cora had her faults of well, of course. She like to remind Robert of the affair he had with Jane Moorsum, a much younger girl that just wanted to make him happy. She laughed at that thought. She had given him everything: her fortune, three daughters, and nearly thirty years of marriage. Yes, he wanted a son and Jane had one. She would give him something that Cora never could. It was the man's job anyway. She was jealous and vindictive about this, even though it happened long ago and he still loved her passionately, maybe too passionately.

Cora was admiring herself in the side view mirror. "So Robert, how did Jane fuck anyway?" she asked. Oh she did love teasing him. "Did you whisper in her ear?"

"Cora, stop it," he said with clenched teeth. "I have to be presentable tonight."

Cora loved to play with him like this. The affair was the one thing that haunted him; he was not completely honorable after this-at least that's what he thought. He had hit her in the past because of her words, but for Cora, it was truly worth it.

"Jane," she whispered in his ear with a smile on her face.

Robert snapped and began hitting her on her shoulders, all he could reach. The car descended through a tunnel and before he knew it, the car was crashed against the tunnel. He pushed Cora against the door and her head started to bleed. For a long time all he could do is repeat "Oh Cora" and kiss her face repeatedly. In fact, many observers thought he would never drive off and meant never to take her to the hospital. But he drove, as he lost more blood. As he drove to the hospital, he called Mary and told her what had happen. Her sisters were not local, so there was no sense of calling them. "Papa, I'll be right there."

Mary Crawley stood on the bus, standing and holding on. She was quite dressed up, and the teenage boys started to tease her. She rolled her eyes, but there she stood taking their words and things they threw at her. She was to shaken to lash out. Poor dear mama, she thought. Love and passion for a thing can lead to torment. The want to hold it can destroy.

Robert held Cora's hand at the hospital bed. She was unconscious, but the bleeding had stopped. The doctors said their was little chance of her survival, but she was holding on. He couldn't live with himself if he killed her, he would go to, he thought. He had tried already, as they left surgical tools around, but they took them away from he. He would do anything to look into those blue eyes again. "Oh god, Cora," he said and laid is head by her side. Tears fell swiftly and freely. He repeated, "I love you, Cora, my dear." He kissed her hand and felt the warmth of her body. Cora laid with her frail body. And Robert laid in doubt their love could be repaired, it was so passionate too, it was destructive, it was unable to break. He questioned whether Cora could wake after begin so plagued with the destruction he inflicted on her. All he could do was look at her and stay with, hoping their love didn't end in tragedy.

Fun fact: This is based on a dream I had, oh my poor otp :( It must have some meaning though, Robert does bluster about a lot.