Edith sat at the desk in her office as she edited an article that was to appear in the next week's edition of The Sketch. She was glad to be back in London after leaving all those years ago. She could still remember the day her mother and aunt came to London to try and get her back home. But she refused. She needed to be with Marigold and going back to Downton just didn't seem like the right thing to do. So that night she took Marigold with her to Wales to start her life anew. Of course she knew she couldn't stay away forever so a week before Edith packed her family up and moved to London.
Her husband hadn't minded. In fact he was fond of the idea as long as she promised to let her family know. But he never pushed her to do things so she had planned to delay that particular chore as long as she could.
Ellis Maddox was a good husband to Edith and she was very greatful to have met a man as kind as he was. She smiled as she finished editing thinking about her husband. When they had met each other he had immediately realized that Marigold was hers and with no husband he simply smiled at her and took her in under his wing. He taught her Welsh and in turn Marigold. He was the best father to her daughter. Always there for her and never letting on that she wasn't his.
As Edith thought of her husband and eldest daughter her secretary entered the room.
"There is someone to see you ma'am." she told her.
Edith nodded at her. "Let them in." she said.
She looked up and gasped as her Aunt Rosamund entered her office and shut the door behind her.
Rosamund looked at her niece and smirked. "So the prodigal daughter has returned." she said as more of a statement then a question.
Edith sighed. "Aunt Rosamund. How are you?" she asked not really ready to deal with her relation.
Rosamund snorted. "Well my niece has been gone for 10 years. My brother and his wife have been inconsolable since. My other niece has been married since but they divorced after the youngest was born. Tom Branson and Sybbie have been gone for nearly as long. Oh and my mother is dead. Now tell me Edith Crawley how am I." she stated.
Edith sighed unsure of what to say. "It's Edith Maddox now." she said.
Rosamund nodded. "I see. And your daughter?"
Edith pursed her lips. "She's 11 years old now and adores her step-father to pieces as well as her brothers and sisters." she said.
Rosamund nodded. "Congratulations then. Is Maddox a Welsh name?" she asked.
Edith smiled a bit and nodded. "Yes. I ran away to Wales that night. We got married a year later after our eldest son was born. He's 10 years old in a few months." She said.
Rosamund grimaced. "Another child out of wedlock then?" she asked with disgust evident in her voice.
Edith glared at her aunt. "Is there a reason for this visit?" she hissed.
Rosamund raised an eyebrow. "I heard the editor was back and came to invite you to dinner at Grantham House. You see Mrs. Maddox, the whole family will be there and it would be nice for them to see their daughter after 10 years. Your whole family is naturally invited. Be there before 6 dear." she said before leaving the office. She didn't even bother to ask if she would go or how many children she had as she left the building.
Edith sighed after her aunt left. Now she certainly couldn't delay seeing her family. But first she needed to tell Ellis as soon as possible.
So Edith finished editing and left the office. She went to Soho to were her family lived and walked into their house to see three little boys wrestling while four little girls watched and giggled as they cheered on their brothers.
Edith laughed at her rowdy boys before going over to her amused husband and kissing his cheek. "Ellis my aunt has invited us to dinner." she whispered in his ear. He smiled at his wife and nodded once before going to grab their 3 year old son from the pile of boys.
(This is AU from the point where Cora and Rosamund went to London to retrieve Edith and Marigold. All recognizable characters, places, and events belong to Julienne Fellows. Please Read and Review! I will update once a week!)