First and foremost: I do not own Downton Abbey, any characters or situations related to it. If you recognize it, it's probably not mine. The mistakes, however – those are all mine.
A few notes before we begin:
One, there are going to be murders and amateur detective work throughout. This was heavily inspired by the Miss Fisher's series and the episode Cocaine Blues. It's going to be very familiar to any fans of the books/show. All credit where credit is due, as much as I watch mystery shows and read detective novels, I am not actually good at planning out murders.
Two, there will be discussions of abortion as well as what can happen to a woman when an abortion is not done properly. I have done my best not to be graphic, but it is a part of the plot. I will place warnings in the notes for any chapters where the procedure and aftermath are discussed if this is something you wish to avoid. In addition to abortion there may also be instances of period (and canon) typical ableism/internalized ableism, homophobia, sexism, strong language, and general bad taste. I will try to mark any chapters that are going to be delving into any of these topics (and others) in depth, but just know that throughout there might be instances of any and all of the above.
Three, this is not going to be particularly historically accurate. And I apologize in advance for this fact. While I don't plan on going full post-modern, there will be times I will have simply not done my homework. I hope you can suspend your disbelief. Furthermore, it is probably quite obvious by now that I am an American therefore not only will my spelling have a distinct lack of 'u's but I also have no beta and no one to brit-pick this. I apologize if I completely miss the nuances of London, Yorkshire, or the aristocracy.
Four, there's going to be a slug of original characters bouncing around alongside some canon favorites. In this vein, and in line with point one, this is going to be full blown AU starting more or less after episode four of season three. Chronology might get moved around, people might live, people might die who do/do not in canon, and so forth. Speaking of death, this story in particular is not very nice to Michael Gregson. Sorry to spoil it for you, Michael Gregson is going to be dead in about three chapters. If you adore him, I'm sorry, back out now or forever hold your peace.
Five, While Sir Anthony Strallan does not personally appear in this story, I do have plans to make this a series. The series will be Andith (aka Sir Anthony Stallan/Lady Edith Crawley) cnetric. I'm using this story to set up the new, alternative universe and for Edith to get herself sorted and settled. He will however be mentioned, a lot. I'm a shipper, I loved him, and he's the endgame. If you don't like him/this pairing back out now or forever hold your peace.