Edith stormed into her husband's study thirty minutes after receiving her Papa's message. She walked in, locked the door and looked at Anthony with eyes full of tears. He stood up and expressed his regret that Mary was undergoing an ordeal.

"I told Robert that I was willing to accompany him to London, but he said that it would be an overcomplication."

"I am quite distressed that Mary 's presence at this event is by your recommendation, but that is not why I find myself so full of emotion. For how long have I told you that your pacifist stance will only be taken as anti-war and unpatriotic? It is so foolish, Anthony. It was one thing when it was just informational evenings and influence, and that you only participated in efforts here in the village. You cannot make your support so public, Mary has been unusually foolish herself by attending meetings in London."

"Hastings was not supposed to be at that meeting. The Peace Society is made up of moderates, peers and conservatives. I can't imagine who invited the damned fellow or publicised it."

"Anthony I feel that you do not quite understand me."

"I understand you. Is that what you think? That I am not a patriot?"

"I would never think that of you. I have asked you to be careful, to rethink your stance, and what happened to Mary is exactly why I do so."

"Edith I have been in a war. It is unnecessary, it is inhumane. If you have seen what I have seen…"

"I respect that Anthony, I do, but I still find it hard to understand you. If you are imprisoned, you leave me with two children. How do I explain it all to Robert and Marigold?"

"That their father was a man who stood by his principles."

Narrator's interjection – unlike the fights between Mary and Matthew, this was not a shouting match. In fact, this was the first real fight the Strallans had had. Anthony was not one for melodramatic scenes, and Edith was more the type to snipe at her husband than confront an issue head on. Such a scene as we are witnessing show the extremis in which we find the Strallans.

Edith does not respond to her husband's last statement. Instead she collapses on the chaise longue and gives in to the tears that she has been holding back. They are tears of worry for her sister, grief for the entire three years that the country has been at war, and the months of frustration that she has had with her husband.

Anthony looks at her with despair. He has never seen Edith so overcome. The love that they share is a gentle, quiet love. He sits by her and takes his hands in hers. "Oh my darling.", he whispers and kisses the tears trailing down her cheeks. She looks him directly in the eye and they feel that the tension and worry that had been building around them had finally been given voice to. He kisses her mouth softly, and she deepens the kiss. And with that, the master and mistress take full advantage of the fact that it is their house, and that the door is locked.

After, he kisses her hand and says, "I think we've ruined this rug."

She blushed and giggled, "I've always thought it was quite old fashioned anyway."

"Darling, I must tell you, you have given me back my life. I'm sorry that you think I take it so lightly."

"I am proud of you my dearest man, I am just afraid to lose you."

"My dearest, dearest, one."

Xx

We speed from this scene of reconciliation ( insert narrative wink here), to the next morning where Lady Mary and her father are sharing a rather frosty car ride.

You couldn't tell it to look at her, but Mary is deeply embarrassed and angry. She can feel the rage emanating from her father and, somehow feels quite offended by his attitude.

"I hope you remember to write Charles Blake a note of thanks. He used his position with the government to ensure that this incident won't be permanently recorded, or that your name won't be on a list that appears in the papers."

Mary doesn't respond.

"I hope that this incident will cure you of this particular interest."

Mary remains quiet, but it is a cold quiet. One could almost imagine icicles forming on the seats of the car.

"You can stay quiet if you wish, but I forbid you from attending these events or continuing your engagement with pacifism."

"You cannot forbid me from anything Papa. If anything, it is Matthew who can place such strictures on me, he is my husband. My husband who is away fighting a war, and yet understands my politics."

"Mary, you cannot imagine that your choices are anything but foolish. And, as far as I am concerned, you are quite quite wrong. "

"Am I? Do you think this war will spare our way of life? It has only exposed the wretched ways in which everyone else lives. War is wasteful, it has no purpose, no sense. My politics have pragmatic motives, I live in reality. Do you even listen to Sybil? Do you read the newspapers?"

Now it is the Earl who does not respond. When they arrive at Belgrave Square, he assists Mary to descend from the car, but requests a last word. Very gently, he says to his daughter,

"Do not imagine that the next time you will escape scandal. As the daughter of an Earl you may be allowed some privileges, but, as you say, you are decisively reconfigured now. You are, at least for several years yet, only the wife of a newly minted government administrator. Matthew is only a Captain in the army, his sphere of influence is still limited. I am sorry, my darling daughter, to remind you that your position in society will always be a precarious one."

This stings, but Mary is the consummate aristocrat. She waits through breakfast, a scolding from her aunt, a bath, a change, and waits for Anna to leave her alone before she, like Edith, sinks onto a couch in tears.

Xx

October 1917

Isobel Crawley looks out at the vast expanse of the sea. She shivers as a cold, salty breeze rips through her bones, and draws her cardigan a little tighter. What an adventure she has had! After moving to the Netherlands, the refugee camp she was working in had been raided by a group who accused the Belgians of being pro-German. Her supervisor had decided to accelerate the movement of the group in their charge from the Netherlands to Torquay, England, but, as it was a last minute decision, they could not arrange straightforward transportation. Isobel had endured a ship, a train, a bus and a rather rickety boat before finally setting her feet on solid ground. She felt great empathy for the scared refugees she had accompanied and hoped that they were finally able to rest and relax. What a waste it all was.

"Mrs. Crawley?", it is a young VAD.

"Yes, Nurse Browning?"

"A message for you from your daughter-in-law. She has arranged a first class train ticket for you tomorrow, to take you to London. She will meet you at Victoria Station and accompany you back to Yorkshire."

"Thank you Nurse."

xx

As the clouds of steam clear at Victoria Station, Mary makes out the familiar figure of her mother-in-law.

She goes to kiss her in a perfunctory manner, but finds herself pulling the other woman into an embrace.

"Mary, dear?", asks Isobel.

"I am very glad to have you back."