Thanks again for your amazing reviews! This chapter was written in a hurry, so hopefully there aren't too many mistakes. Enjoy! :)
Christmas 1917
Henry tramped through dark mud, having to press himself against the wet walls of the trench whenever he came across one of the soldiers. Most of them had retreated to the few dry places around the fires. The Germans who were positioned about six miles from them had kept quiet all morning and since it was Christmas Eve no attacks were planned. Henry had been hugely disappointed when his wish to go home for a few days had been denied. He missed the peace and quiet, the safety, but most of all he missed his family. Sometimes he would sit down in a corner where he would be left alone, closed his eyes and remembered his aunts exasperated sighs, the silly giggles of his sister and the raised eyebrows of his mother. Even the grumpy face of his father was a memory he cherished. He missed their voices. The Scottish accents and the deep baritone. Henry never had thought it possible to miss someone he had barely talked to so much like he missed his father, but that one time he had met him, his presence had been as comforting as his mother's. For a moment he could smell fresh cut grass and Aunt Rachel's brilliant Christmas turkey, but the smell of rain, smoke and soup won over the memory. Henry sighed and continued his way. Sinking deeper into the ground than he expected he tripped and grabbed the wall for support. Finally he reached the small fire where his friends already spooned soup.
"Henry, come out of the cold and sit down", Trevor said and Henry gladly accepted the invitation. Trevor was already in his fourties. His greying hair gave his age away. He was a carpenter from some village in the West Midlands. He had two sons, both under fifteen. "I got a letter from my Peggy. Better than good to hear of home these days", he told Henry. "There arrived one for you too. It's from your mother." Trevor handed him the envelope. Henry thanked him with a nod of his head, put the letter into his pocket and started to eat some of the soup to get warmer. One of the others, a young man called Fred, had managed to get half a bread which he shared with them. Apparently some girl in the village two miles south had a crush on him and had given it to him. Fred was only a year older than Henry, shy, but a brilliant shooter. Trevor on the other hand knew how to stay out of the fireline. Henry felt quite safe with these two by his side. He had learned a lot and had developed into a very capable soldier himself.
After their meagre dinner, Henry stayed close to the fire and read the letter. His mother wrote about Downton and described the preparations for the festivities in an attempt to get his mind away from the war and it worked. He could picture everything she wrote about and when she talked about a few silly things his father did he smiled. There was also a short letter from Jo in which she tried to lift his spirits and told him to come home again soon. If only that were so easy, he thought and found a note from his father. He was still trying to figure out how exactly to be a dad, but Henry didn't mind that. He was happy to get word from his dad. It made him feel loved and the wish to meet the man properly grew stronger every day. The letters were a piece of home and he always carried the latest with him. It reminded him of the reason he was fighting for.
A look into the sky made him shiver. Dark clouds were moving towards them and soon it would be as dark as in the night. Eyeing the woods and fields that separated them from the Germans suspiciously he decided to get some rest. Who knew when he would have the opportunity to sleep again?
xoxoxo
Charles watched Elsie closely during their Christmas dinner. She seemed miles away and hardly touched her food. He knew what she was thinking about. It made him sick to think of the place Henry was at while they were trying to have a happy Christmas. But Charles knew that Henry wouldn't want them to be sad, not on this day. Charles leaned a little closer to Elsie. "I know it's difficult", he whispered. She didn't look at him, but gave a small nod. "No one is asking of us to be happy right now, but you ought to eat… please."
Elsie was grateful for him trying to make her feel better and he was right. Instead of replying she started to eat. She could see his relieved expression from the corner of her eyes and searched for his hand under the table. Her fingers brushed against his knee and he jerked slightly at the sudden contact. He looked down and saw her palm facing up, her fingers ready to close around his hand, her whole hand pleading to be taken. Slowly he did as she wished, holding her hand tight and gently brushing his thumb over her knuckles. It surprised him how much steadier that made him and when he looked at her she seemed to feel much better too.
After dinner they parted, but it wasn't long until he knocked at the door of her sitting room only to find her sitting at her desk as white as a sheet.
xoxoxo
Henry's light sleep ended with the sounds of firing guns and men shouting. Alarmed he put the missing layers of clothing back on, grabbed his gun and stormed outside. He jumped into the mud, almost slipping and hurried to one of the ladders close by. He spotted Trevor. "What is it?", Henry asked, unable to see anything in the dark in front of them. He must had slept a few hours, for now it was surely night.
"Bloody Germans", Trevor replied. "They thought they could ran as over during in the dark."
"But where are they? I can't see them", Henry said, checking the darkness in front of him for any signs of movement.
"Aye, because they don't want to be seen. We have to wait until they open fire again, so get your head down here!"
Henry obeyed and focused on the sounds that reached his ear. Most of them came from the men around him, but after a while he thought that there was a muffled sound coming from across the fields. And then the rattling of machine guns filled the air. Henry could hear the bullets hit the ground above him and some earth flew down and ended up on his helmet.
"Fire back! Keep them away from our position!"
Henry didn't know who of the men in charge had shouted orders, but it didn't matter. Carefully he positioned his gun and tried to take aim. Flash of lights appeared where the German machine guns were placed so Henry shot in that direction. He was so focused on reloading his gun and firing that he missed the white cloud moving towards them entirely until someone shouted "Gas! Gas!" and all hell broke loose.
xoxoxo
Charles had brought Elsie to bed after he had found her. She had felt sick and moaned about a terrible headache. Charles had wanted to call get Dr. Clarkson, but she was convinced that she wouldn't need him. Now Charles was lying awake, making up his mind about many things. And he made a decision. He got out of bed and grabbed his dressing gown. He did his best to be quiet when he closed the door to his room behind him and tiptoed as far as that was possible for his large frame down the corridor. It was strange to enter the women's quarters and even stranger to enter Elsie's room in the middle of the night, but they were married after all and that fact put Charles' mind at ease.
Elsie heard how he opened and closed the door. She lay in her bed, facing away from him. She had hoped he would come. The mattress shifted under his weight. Elsie closed her eyes in anticipation of his warm body pressing against her. He crawled under the blanket and his chest was against her back. It was comforting and she felt safer than before. Slowly and gently he put his arm around her. She immediately took his hand with both of hers and pressed it close against her. Charles let her and smiled before he pressed a kiss to her cheek. They lay like this for a while.
"Do you believe in a happy ending?", Elsie asked quietly.
"Do you?", Charles whispered back.
"I don't know. I'm terrified that…", she bit her lower lip. She couldn't say the words.
"It won't happen, love."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I'm not," he admitted and tightened his grip on her.
"If only Henry was allowed home for a few days."
"I wish that too", Charles told her.
Elsie turned to him and pressed her face into his chest. "I love you", she whispered.
"I love you too", he mumbled and both drifted off to sleep.
xoxoxo
Henry woke with a headache. He rubbed his eyes sleepily and looked around to orientate himself. Slowly the events of last night returned to him. The gas attack had wounded dozens of men. Henry had been ordered to help get them into the lazarett. At least he was safe here. But it wouldn't be long until they send him back to the trenches. Waking completely he got up and looked for someone who should be able to tell him what had happened after he had left.
"The Germans had to retreat, but they have weakened us. We need a little luck now", Henry was told. Not sure how to handle that information he found himself a quiet corner to write a letter.
xoxoxo
Elsie was working on the menus when she found a note from Charles asking her to come to his pantry before luncheon. Curiously she went back to work, glancing at the clock more than once.
He was sitting at his desk and staring into the distance when she entered. He blinked a few times and then held his hands towards her. When she took them he guided her to sit down on his lap. "I've been thinking, love", he told her.
She stroked his cheek and tried to read him through his kind eyes. "Thinking or brooding?", she teased him.
"Both, kind of. It's just that I don't think that our secret should be a secret any longer. I can't have it like that. If something happens to you or Henry or Jo I want to be the one who gets informed and takes care. I want us to be a proper family."
Elsie leaned her forehead against his. "What about everyone here?"
"I love them, but they are not my real family."
"We'll be sacked."
"They may sack us, but they cannot ban us from the village. We stay on, close to Jo and our downstairs family. But it will be so much better. What do you say?"
"I've wished for you to say these things for so long", she answered and kissed him deeply.
"Shall we tell them today?", Charles asked and received a nod from his wife.
xoxoxo
"You are married?", Lady Grantham shouted in shock.
"Yes, milady, for nineteen years now", Charles answered, squeezing Elsie's hand to gain strength.
"I don't believe it. And you have children? And all this time you lived and worked here without saying a word?"
"We have."
"I don't need to say that I'm shocked", the Countess said and sank onto the settee. "But I think I can understand, at least in part." She studied the senior staff's faces and sighed. "I will talk to his lordship as soon as there is an appropriate moment. I'm on your side in this, but in the end he will decide.
"Thank you, your ladyship. I'm sorry to bother you now, but the war changed things and…", Elsie apologised, but was stopped midsentence by Lady Grantham raising her hands.
"I am a mother too, Mrs. Hughes. I may not have a son who is fighting in France, but I am a mother."
Elsie nodded understandingly.
"I need this to be a secret for as long as it takes to tell Lord Grantham the story. But with your permission I will tell the Dowager. She is the one who can pull a few strings to ensure that your son is send to Mr. Crawley and William. We are always informed then about all three", Lady Grantham said.
Elsie could feel how Charles tensed when the Dowager came into play, but when the Countess explained utter gratefulness spread across his face. "She won't be pleased, but if the Dowager's disapproval means more safety for my son I will take whatever she has to say," Charles announced and a fond smile lit up Lady Grantham's face. Elsie tried to hide her emotions, but her eyes were shining with tears.
"That's settled then", Lady Grantham said. "Thank you for trusting me with this."
"We have to thank you, your ladyship", Elsie replied and took calm breaths while walking to the door, Charles right behind her. They only started talking on their way downstairs. "That didn't go too bad", Elsie said in an attempt to cheer Charles up. He looked quite uncomfortable.
"I suppose", he mumbled absentminded.
"Wait until everything has been dealt with. No one will think any less of you. You have been so loyal, they could never forget that."
"Thank you", Charles said. "I think you are right about this."
xoxoxo
Charles missed dinner that day, making Elsie wonder where he was.
"Oh, he popped out for some air, told me to save him something to eat", Mrs. Patmore told the housekeeper when she inquired about Charles' whereabouts. A little surprised at the answer, Elsie hurried with her dinner and went to her sitting room, leaving the door ajar to hear when he returned.
xoxoxo
Charles breathed in the icy air. He hadn't walked far and cursed himself for forgetting his gloves and hat. He was freezing and even if that helped his concerned mind, he didn't exactly enjoy it. Wanting to head back, he turned around, but stopped at hearing voices coming from further down the path. He couldn't understand what they were saying, but it was a man and a woman and they seemed to disagree on something. Charles didn't want to be involved in anything, so he walked into the direction of the house. The voices were catching up with him and just when he wanted to sped up he recognised Jo's voice. With a frown he turned back to the dark path. What was Jo doing out here? And then he remembered something Elsie had told him during the day. Jo had wanted to head for a dance in the village. And it seemed not to have gone well. Concerned he decided to wait for her. She didn't seem too far behind. The voices grew louder and Charles' tension grew. When he heard a shocked scream, his jaw was already clenched tightly together and he reacted immediately, running down the path, storming around the corner. Jo was on the ground, protecting her head with raised arms and some man was towering over her. Charles grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him violently away from Jo.
"Leave me alone!", he shouted and tried to punch Charles who was faster and grabbed the man's hand by the wrist. "Stay away from my daughter", Charles hissed and was kicked against the shinbone. Letting out a growl of pain, Charles didn't think twice and found his fist smashing against his opponents chin. He tripped back a few steps, cursing and finally running away. Charles held his hand and shook his head. He felt confused for a moment or two. Then his attention was drawn to Jo. She had gotten up and tried to get rid of the dust from the road.
"Are you alright?", Charles asked, taking of his coat to put it around her shoulders. The cold hit him and he took in a sharp breath. "Are you hurt? Jo?"
Finally, she looked up at him. "Yes, I'm alright, just a few scratches."
"Who was he?"
"Jasper, he…" Jo bit her lower lip. "There was no need to be so rough", she said and walked past Charles.
"What?" He quickly caught up with her.
"He had a little too much to drink. I could have dealt with him."
"Didn't look like it to me", Charles defended himself.
"You don't understand!", Jo exclaimed. "I've known him for ages and now…"
Charles was shocked to see tears in his daughter's eyes.
"He was in France and was wounded. They send him back, because he was no longer fit for service. He saw terrible things and it changed him. I don't know him anymore and I can't help him." Jo broke into tears. "And I keep thinking that it will be the same with Henry."
Charles didn't hesitate to take her into his arms. She cried silently into his chest, grateful for her father's comfort.
"We told Lady Grantham today about the marriage and you two", Charles calmly said into her hair. "And she will tell the Dowager to make her pull a few strings. She will get Henry somewhere safe."
Sniffing, Jo looked into his eyes. "But you'll be sacked…"
"Lady Grantham won't sack us nor give us away. No need to worry", Charles assured her. "And now we should get you back inside. You look like you would fancy tea."
Jo smiled weakly. "I do."
xoxoxo
Elsie jumped out of her chair when Charles and Jo walked into her sitting room. She could see that something had happened to their daughter. They told her the story in a few sentences and after she had given Jo a proper hug, she hurried to get tea and the first aid kit for Charles' hand which was turning blue.
Carefully opening and closing his fingers while waiting for Elsie, Charles found himself not looking forward to the next few days. His hand would give him some trouble. The ice Elsie brought reduced the pain and the salve made it even better. Sitting together with his wife and daughter listening to their chatter made him smile. He truly had a family now and he would double cherish every moment of it for all the years they had missed this. At some point, shortly before they all headed to bed silence fell over them. They needed no words to let the others know that they wished Henry was there too. Jo left for her room and Charles and Elsie soon found themselves snuggled together in Elsie's small bed in the attics. They dreamt of happier days while under the same star filled sky they slept under, Henry fought another battle that night.
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