Sorry, this is very, very late!

Sixteen. Elsie could not quite believe it. Anna was 16 now. Watching her eating her breakfast with a small smile on her face, Elsie's mind went racing back to when she had first arrived, nearly four years ago now. Then she was just older than a child, but now, now she was practically an adult. She could get married if her father agreed, for heavens sake! Although Elsie had yet to see any suitors, possibly due to the fact that no young man would be stupid enough to openly court Anna Smith under her watchful eyes, she thought, chuckling to herself. Charles raised his eyebrows at her, and she shook her head, still chuckling. She would tell him later, although it was most certainly obvious to him that it was Anna she was thinking about by the twinkle in his eye. He would tease her mercilessly about that.

Elsie's thoughts returned to the very real dilemma of what to give Anna. After the girl's wonderful belated Mothering Sunday gift she a few years ago she wanted it to be special.

A book perhaps? She knew that Anna like to read, and classics from the Bronte sisters, Jane Austen and even foreign novelists like Victor Hugo had over the years been seen at her side in the Servant's Hall. But then again, Elsie hated choosing other people's books, reading was a very personal matter, she hated to impose her own preferences on others.

Jewellery? She once again chuckled to herself, come off it Elsie, anything nice enough to give Anna would be way out of her price range!

Clothes? Cooking Equipment? Or perhaps something, she shuddered, religious. No, she thought, she wasn't the girl's maiden aunt; it had to be personal, practical perhaps.

Realising that she was not getting anywhere, she resolved to travel into Ripon, for errands of course, and see what sprung out at her. Even if she had to endure Charles' smug looks when she informed him of where she was going to be.

Xxxxxxx

As it happened, she had to endure them for a great deal longer, as he offered to accompany her. This was an offer that secretly warmed her heart. Even if he did keep referring to her as 'Mother Smith', and kept sending her little glances. Although whether he glanced at her in amusement or not she was unable to work out.

Walking through Ripon, they fulfilled her 'errands', picking up groceries for Mrs Patmore and material for O'Brien and, unfortunately, Lucy to work with. Elsie almost felt sorry for Lady Mary at the thought of the girl's backstitch. However, Elsie was struggling to find anything that she felt was worthy of her not-so-little housemaid. It was then they passed a beautiful shop, with a multitude of items in the window, which was surprisingly dust free considering the cluttered nature of it. And Elsie saw what she wanted.

Xxxxxxxx

The day had not gone particularly well after they returned: Lady Mary and Lady Edith had held the fight to end all fights, leading to one being patched up for a black eye and the other having her knotted hair painstakingly untangled. Meanwhile poor Anna was consoling a weeping and traumatised Lady Sibyl, who was present throughout the entire ordeal and had even earned herself a scratch from when Lady Edith had over judged her swing. If these were the Ladies, thought Elsie, she would hate to see what her maids would have gotten up to in their youth.

But the adults were no better: Her Ladyship was insisting upon the complete cleaning of the virtually unused ballroom, down to polishing every candlestick till it gleamed and wiping white gloves along every surface. Elsie suspected this was more to do with her annoyance at the fact that his Lordship had gone out for a ride despite promising to go for a walk with her. The servants meanwhile, in their tired and overworked states, were snapping at each other constantly, and Thomas had already caused three maids and two hall boys to burst into tears with choice remarks.

All in all, not a good day for her lovely, peaceful Anna to have her 16th birthday on. However, she knew that Mrs Patmore was preparing a special treat for the girl, who also held a spot in her heart: strawberry trifle. That was sure to brighten everyone's day.

Xxxxxx

In the end, dinner saved the day. The trifle went down a treat and young William, the new third footman, entertained them all by playing music hall favourites on the piano in the servant's hall. Charles surprised the staff, those who did not know of his past, by singing with a marvellous baritone voice. She suspected that Mrs Patmore may have spiked the trifle. It would certainly explain why O'Brien had actually wished Anna a happy birthday. The look of shock on Anna's face had been hilarious, as was the stuttered thanks that followed.

However, Elsie still hadn't had the chance to give Anna her present. So she collared the young woman, metaphorically anyway, when the others were going to bed, and the girl followed her to her sitting room.

It was a mark of both her growing age and her growing comfort with the older woman that she did not look nervous as she sat down in the spare chair. As they talked of small things, how her birthday had been, the scrap upstairs, the scraps downstairs, it dawned on Elsie that this was what having a daughter was like. Before she burst into tears, she decided to give her the present. Instructing the girl to shut her eyes, she placed the gift in her eyes, and allowed her to open them.

In her hands lay the most beautiful, leather bound diary either woman had ever received, and a wonderful ink pen to go with it. Anna stared at her in speechless gratitude, she wasn't aware that her ability to write well was known to the staff, until she remembered that Mrs Hughes had been the one to hire her. She stuttered out thanks for the second time that evening. Anna then added

'I'm so glad you called me in here!' with a laugh. Elsie smiled fondly, asking

'You didn't think I would forget, did you?'

Anna blushed, before replying

'No, but I didn't expect a gift, and certainly not one as lovely as this. And…' she began, trailing off in embarrassment, before continuing, at Elsie's questioning look 'I was worried that I wasn't going to get to spend time with you, what with everything being so busy.'

Elsie felt her eyes welling up. Now feeling embarrassed herself, she instinctively pulled the girl into a hug, saying

'Oh my dear girl. How could I let you turn 16 without spending time with you'?

The two women stayed like this for a while, and then continued chatting for many hours. Charles Carson meanwhile, having glanced through the door to see Elsie Hughes hugging his young housemaid, had decided, for once, to go to bed without tea, not wishing to intrude upon the little family. Depite this, he found himself smiling. It was good to see them both so happy.