Hello everyone! Here comes an angsty, new post movie cannon story. This is just the prologue. More will be up soon, but my muse has been mulling over this for a while now and it's finally coming to fruition. Don't worry, my three other stories are still going strong and will be updated very soon.

No Longer Feels Like Home

Summer 1928

The soft sounds of rain beating off the side of the window pane was the only sound that filled their home. Anna noted how normally she would hear laughter or the sound of blocks falling to the floor. But right now, there was nothing. Nothing to remind her that this place housed a family.

Taking in a shuddering breath, Anna remembered her task at hand. With shaky hands, she pulled out the small suitcase from the top of her closet. It nearly toppled on her head and she had to stand on the tips of her toes to keep it from falling with a thud on the ground.

She placed the case on the top of their bed, opened it, and blinked back the tears that were threatening to escape. Turning toward the dresser. She opened up the first drawer to reveal her night gowns. First, she lifted out only one, but then decided it might be best to grab a few of them.

Her fingers got tangled in a bit of ribbon. With further inspection, she found the ribbon was attached to a small bonnet that she had hidden in the drawer months before. A soft sob threatened to escape her lips, but she swallowed it back. Instead, she shoved the bonnet back into the back of the drawer and moved onto grabbing the rest of the things she would need.

When she was satisfied with all she had packed, she moved onto the nursery. It felt strange to see it empty. But she had left Johnny at Downton for the evening, feeling it was best. By the time she was done for the day, it was already past his bedtime. Nanny and Lady Mary said it was quite fine for him to stay the night. And now, Anna was glad she had chosen to allow him to stay.

Quickly, she grabbed some of his things, making sure not to forget his favorite teddy bear. She stuffed them all into the bag and closed it up tightly.

Her eyes then scanned her son's room. It had taken her and John weeks to get the room just right. They painted the walls a soft yellow color and Anna had painted some flowers over by the window. They both had wanted the room to be a bright and happy place for their future children.

With a sigh, Anna blew out the light that had been illuminating the room. Then she picked up the small carrying lamp and began to walk downstairs.

Despite the fact that there was still some light outside on this summer night, it was nearly pitch black downstairs. The curtains had been drawn shut; the house still.

Making her way to the door, Anna was stopped by a voice.

"Where will you go?" Anna glanced up. She could barely see him. But he was turned away from her, staring at the wall. From the light of her lamp, she could see the glass within his hand.

"Does it matter?" Anna asked him, tightening her jaw. "Do you care?"

He didn't respond. Anna bit back the tears. She stepped forward, again.

"Will you let me see my son?" Anna paused at his words.

"Of course, I would never keep Johnny from you," Anna murmured.

The room fell silent, once more. Anna took in a deep breath. She didn't know what she was waiting for. It was time to leave now. There was not going to be any pleading or any promises made to make her stay.

She walked to the door and placed her hand over the knob.

"You know," she began. "You promised me once that nothing bad would happen to me again." She could see him shift in the darkness; the cup still in his hands. "And that was a foolish promise, of course, because you can't keep the world from hurting me. But…I never expected you to be the one to hurt me."

With that, she pushed opened the door and dashed out of their house, allowing the gentle rain to fall upon her head. She couldn't stay there to see how he would respond, because she feared it would only hurt her worse.

Outside, the tears finally began to fall down her cheeks, mixing in with the rain. The sun would be completely set within the next thirty minutes, so she would need to hurry to her destination. She could only hope they wouldn't turn her away.

Reaching the cottage, Anna nervously knocked. Only moments later, Mrs. Hughes was at the door.

"I….I'm quite sorry to bother you, but might….might I…" Her voice was shaky and she was tumbling over her words. Mrs. Hughes gave her a solemn nod.

"Come on in, my dear. You're welcome to stay here, as long as you'd like."

To be continued...

Dark and twisty, yes. We will flash back to the movie timeline and then move forward from there until we reach this moment again. So what has brought Anna and John to this moment? More soon. Let me know if you'd like more! Thank you for reading!