A/N- Thanks for all the reviews, they mean a lot. I hope you like this one, I've tried to include a bit of Chelsie, and I'm gonna be including a few other ships later too. Let me know what you think xxx

1909

Elsie Hughes

It was late at night, and Elsie couldn't sleep. She had been in bed for a few hours, but yet she was yet to drop off. She put it down to stress, she was having problems with the house party arrangements for next week and if it hadn't been for Mr. Carson she would have stayed up all night sorting it out. But he had said 'leave it till the morning, have a good rest and you'll have a clearer head tomorrow'. It surprised her how caring he could be at times. He'd always been nice to her, ever since she came here, and she liked to think he'd become a dear friend. He helped her out with things as best he could, and of an evening they would often find themselves in his pantry or her office drinking a glass of sherry and discussing the day. And it had slowly but surely come to be her favourite part of the day.

As thoughts of their talk the previous evening entered her mind, she found herself thinking about the house party, again. She couldn't seem to remember if she had arranged where all the guests' valets and ladies maids were to sleep. As she thought about it more and more she knew that the only way she was going to get any sleep was if she went down to her office and checked. Picking up her dressing gown from the bottom of her bed she slipped on and crept out of the room. She tried to be as quiet as possible; the last thing she wanted was for a housemaid to see her sneaking around the house. As she went down the stairs that led to her office she heard what sounded like creaking floorboards coming from upstairs, but she dismissed it, thinking it must just be her tired mind playing tricks on her. But as she passed through the servants' downstairs corridor she heard murmurs coming from the staircase, rounding the corner she decided to see who else was down here and question them as to why. But as she did she saw that it was in fact Lord and Lady Grantham, and that they were heading for the direction of the kitchen. Their hands were interlocked and he had his arms wrapped around her waist.

"Cora," he whispered, "what if someone sees us?" He looked around, checking that no one was down there, and Elsie had to move back behind the corner so as she wasn't seen.

Lady Grantham turned around to look her husband in the eye. "Robert," she said, her American accent spicing his name, "who is going to be down here at this time? And besides, this is our house and that means we're allowed to wonder around if we please." She nodded, and then continued. "And I really am rather hungry." She admitted, a coy smile on her face.

"And we can't have that my love." He smiled, kissed her on the forehead and then led her into the kitchen. Elsie wondered if she should run back upstairs now, or simply go back to her office. She couldn't very well go back upstairs because they would most likely hear her, and she had to admit, a small part of her wanted to stay.

She watched as he scurried around the kitchen, trying to find something his wife could eat. Eventually he found some biscuits and handing the plate to his wife he lit a candle and sat down opposite her. As she ate, he just watched her, watching nothing in particular, just her. Elsie didn't quite know why she was still standing there but she didn't seem able to move. She was entranced by how he was looking at his wife, with such love and devotion. It wasn't often the servants got to see this side of the Earl and Countess, so open, and a part of Elsie wanted to stay and see what she was missing out on, with not having a husband. So she stood still, and watched them. She had stopped eating now, and the plate was discarded at the end of the table. They were now just sat, staring into each other's eyes, with huge smiles painted across their faces. Finally Lord Grantham broke the silence; "Are you happy now my love?"

"I'm always happy, but I'm not hungry anymore if that's what you mean." She giggled.

"That is what I meant." He smiled, taking her hands in his.

Elsie had thought that they were about to leave but he made no effort to move. "What is Robert?" Lady Grantham asked as her husband gazed into her eyes.

"I just, well, I was thinking how glad I am that you are happy." He smiled bashfully. "Because I know that you weren't always." His smiled dropped as he remembered how Cora had felt during the first year of their marriage.

"Oh Robert," she placed her hand on his cheek and stroked his frown lovingly with her thumb, "when are you going to stop thinking about our first year of marriage. It was all very new to you, to both of us, we were bound to have our problems."He tried to interrupt, to say how it was his entire fault but she stopped him. "But what you need to focus on is the life we've had since then, how happy we've been, with each other, with our girls. And if anything that first year has just made me more thankful for what we have now, for us." She smiled at him, and Elsie watched as slowly his smile resembled hers.

"Oh Cora, I do love you so very much." He smiled, and leaned into her, pulling her in with the hand now wrapped around her neck.

"And I love you." She murmured against his lips. Elsie knew she really shouldn't watch anymore so she backed out and went back to her office. She had never really seen that side to Lord Grantham, she had seen the pain on his face when she talked about their troublesome first year of marriage, but she had also seen how lovingly he looked at his wife. His eyes had danced over her features, like he was trying to memorise them again.

Elsie had often wondered what marriage would have been like, and she wasn't exactly the sentimental type but she had to admit that she would have liked that; a marriage, a family. But she now realised that she couldn't have had that with just anybody. He would have to have been a friend, a confidante, someone she could trust, and someone whom she cared for and who cared about her. And to Elsie's upmost surprise Charles Carson's face appeared for a second in her mind.

A/N- I don't really know why I chose this particular moment for this, but I rather like the idea of them sneaking downstairs in the middle of the night. Love to know what you think of this one xxx