A/N: Thank you so much for your kind words about the opening chapter. I am so happy that you liked what you read and are excited to see where its all going to go both in the interludes in the past, and the main narrative in the almost present day. This chapter, takes place in a part of the UK, I love visiting. I haven't been there in over a year, but with things slowly improving hopefully it won't be too long before I can go back there. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter and meeting the present day versions of our beloved characters. The chapter also takes its title from one of my favourite Snow Patrol songs 'This Isn't Everything You Are'.

I own many things, Downton Abbey isn't one of them.

Cardiff Bay, May 2018

The sun had just set on the horizon, casting a duller hue over the dusky colours that had been present as they began their slow transition to the inky black night. As he leaned against the railings and looked out over the bay, Charles studied the reflection of the sky against the water and watched as the reflections of the buildings, boats and birds flickered between minor movement and ripples. It helped him feel a little at peace.

Whenever he visited the city, he liked to come down to the bay area, and soak up the ambience of the twilight hours. Though due to the amount of restaurants in Mermaid Quay, he much preferred to observe the bay from the Scott of the Antarctic exhibition by the barrage where it was far quieter, especially in the early evening.

Of course he hadn't had to come to Cardiff, he could have just sent the composition to his friend at BBC Studios, but Charles had never been that comfortable with sending compositions over the internet, no matter how streamlined and secure the system was, he much preferred to hand it over in person. Or send it recorded delivery. He could have sent this piece in the post, but it had been a long while since he'd last seen Maxwell. Not to mention that it would probably be best if he was out of the city, especially as Alice was planning on moving the rest of her stuff out of the house. He'd signed the final divorce papers on Monday, and they had been received by his lawyer on Wednesday morning. All he had to do now was wait for the dissolution to come through.

He looked down at his left hand, the thin tan line still evident from where his ring had been for the past twenty years. He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his wallet. He pulled out the gold band from the change pocket, before he put his wallet away again. He rolled the piece of jewellery between his thumb and his forefinger. He was in two minds as to whether or not he should throw it into the water, or take it to a pawn brokers. Though there had been some happy times for him and Alice, he wasn't entirely sure he wanted a permanent reminder of a failed marriage around his home.

The cawing of a seagull drew his attention and he leaned a bit further over the railings to watch two seagulls fight over a lone chip bobbing in the murky water. He couldn't help but smile a little, it always happened like that. Whenever he was in a reflective mood, some quirk of nature – human, greenery or animal – always drew his attention before he could get too maudlin.

"Don't do it."

Unlike other venues in the city, the Norwegian Church Arts Centre was not the first place that came to mind for a concert by a string quartet. However, it proved to be a useful rehearsal for the event at the Wales Millennium Centre the following day. Not to mention, they often preferred to perform smaller venues, as it gave a more intimate feeling to their sets and they didn't feel as overwhelmed as they did in the larger venues. Elsie supposed it would feel different if they had been performing together for a long time. As it stood, they'd only been performing as a quartet for eighteen months, and there was still a novelty to everything. Even the often cramped positions they'd find themselves in when it came to 'dressing rooms' in some of the places they performed.

The moment she pulled her bow into its final position, the last note hanging suspended in the moment before ebbing into a faint echo, the crowd erupted in applause. The four women shared a smile as they set their instruments down, and stood up to take the curtain call for those that had come to see them play. They each took an individual bow, before they joined hands and took a final bow. The applause from the crowd continued as the make-shift curtains drew to a close, shielding them from view. Almost at once their smiles dropped from wide grins, to more natural smiles, smaller smiles now that they didn't have to project to the crowd.

"Thanks guys," Elsie said as she turned to face the keyboardist and guitarist they used when they wanted to add a fuller sound to their sets.

Andy and Jimmy gave them a smile, before they started packing up. Their manager Thomas Barrow had hired them for one showcase the previous year, and had kept them on. Though they'd initially been hesitant, they were after all a string quartet, but the added richness to their version of Fleetwood Mac's 'Rihannon' had more than convinced them. Plus by now, the two were essentially family, as Jimmy's cousin Richard, was Thomas's fiance and Andy was dating Daisy who worked at Beryl's bakery.

Elsie walked over to the back of the makeshift stage and picked up her handbag. She rifled through the stuff she had in there and pulled out her mobile. She switched it on and turned back to her friends while she waited for it to come back on. Anna – who played the viola – was sat on one of the chairs while she rubbed her feet, the shoes she'd worn for the performance were not as worn in as she would have preferred them to be. Both Phyllis and Beryl – who played the second violin and cello respectively – were also checking their phones. Elsie looked down at her phone and watched as it vibrated several times with a few messages and the missed call that had arrived in the 60 minutes that they'd been performing. They had all come from the same number and she was in no doubt as to what had happened that had resulted in the flurry of communication.

Despite the fact that they were no longer on speaking terms and had been estranged for half a decade, she found the news hurt more than she'd thought it would. Despite everything, the man had still been her father, and she did love him. She pulled up her contacts and selected a number. Her finger hovered over the call button. While that relationship was less strained, she still had some hesitations.

"Everything alright?"

She looked up to see Beryl looking at her curiously. Elsie nodded, giving her a smile that she hoped looked more natural than forced as she slipped her phone back into her bag. She didn't particularly feel like getting into it right now. Oblivious to anything that had just been said, or rather not said, Anna and Phyllis walked over to the pair.

"You ready?" Anna asked, all smiles. Everyone knew that she was excited to get the restaurant, where Thomas had booked them a private room. The meal itself was inconsequential, it was the fact that her boyfriend John was meeting them there, and she hadn't seen him in a couple of weeks.

"Of course they are," Thomas replied as he joined the conversation, "it's not everyday your wonderful manager books you a private room at Bill's. Not to mention, I have booked you a very high profile charity event next month, a benefit hosted by the Crawley Trust in aid of St Barts."

The group shared wide eyed looks. The Crawley Trust was one of the largest charitable organisations in the United Kingdom. It had been set up in 1919 by the 7th Earl of Grantham, initially to benefit wounded soldiers after the First World War, but over the years the scope had widened with various members of the family dealing with their own patronages and charitable works further afield. For Thomas to have booked them a performance at an event hosted by the organisation was a great achievement in itself. Though privately Elsie had to wonder if the fact that Anna was friends with Mary Crawley, the current head of the legal department or that Phyllis had been at university with Cora Crawley and was still close friends with her, had also played a part in the booking. However, she knew well enough to not look a gift horse in the mouth.

As everyone had their own favourite ways to unwind after a performance, Thomas had suggested an early dinner, so that they could go their separate ways until they needed to be at the Millennium Centre the following afternoon. After they had said good nights, Elsie had decided to take a walk along the Bay to make sense of her scattered thoughts and enjoy the early evening. Though she had put a good face on it, throughout dinner she'd mostly stayed quiet. She was almost certain that Beryl remained unconvinced that everything was fine and knew she wouldn't hear the end of it when she got back to the hotel. Elsie couldn't help but laugh at the image of Beryl peering out of the peephole in the door of her hotel room as she waited for her to come back.

Despite the weather being a vast improvement on the previous week with temperatures reaching as high as 20 degrees and it being a pleasantly warm evening, it was still chilly along the bay front. Elsie pulled her grey cardigan closer, as she drew near to the Scott of the Antarctic exhibition and she noticed another lone figure leaning over the railings. Her heart froze as she took in the scene and a sliver of memory from half a decade ago worked its way to the front of her mind. This time though there was no hesitation in her movements.

"Don't do it!" she called, and prayed the other person would actually be able to hear her.

As she drew closer and the person turned to face her, Elsie flushed a little as she realised her mistake. They hadn't been about to jump at all. "I...I am so sorry," she stammered. "I saw you leaning over and just assumed."

"Oh that's quite alright," Charles commented. "Its good to know that you would have tried to talk me out of it had I been actually planning to jump."

"But you weren't? Right?"

"No."

Elsie nodded as she moved over to the other side of the railings. "I won't disturb you further."

As she watched the reflection of the lights across the inlet start to twinkle and ripple with each gentle wave against the decking, her hand moved up to play with the chain around her neck. Her thoughts turning to her sister Becky. Her sister, had long been a bone of contention between Elsie and her father and had been the inertia for the estrangement between father and daughter. She sighed heavily and leaned forward. She closed her eyes, and willed the tears to not make an appearance.

Though Charles had intended to return to his own reflections after the interruption, he had found his attention continually drawn to the woman at the other end of the decking. It was obvious that like him, her thoughts were in a jumbled mess. He was unsure as to why deep inside he felt the urge to comfort her. He had never seen her before and knew that it was extremely unlikely that she would even want to share her thoughts with a complete stranger.

He watched as she leaned forward, and noticed the way that her hands tightly gripped the posts. He could remember the times when his mother would do something similar to stem an inevitable of emotion. However, he could tell that her attempt had been unsuccessful when he noticed the slight trembling motion in her shoulders.

"Excuse me."

Elsie turned to look at the man that she had been sharing the decking with. Though she had fully intended on giving him a piece of her mind about interrupting her contemplation, it fell away slightly as she noticed what he held out to her. She gave him a grateful smile and accepted the handkerchief that he held out to her. As she wiped away the traces of tears, she took the chance to study him properly.

"So what brings you out here?" Elsie asked as she tried to return the handkerchief, only for him to wave it off.

Charles sighed lowly as he contemplated his answer. "I just wanted somewhere quiet to think," he replied after a few moments silence.

"This is a good place to do it," Elsie smiled, "actually, anywhere there is a substantial body of water is a great place to think."

"Speaking from experience?"

"Something like that," she replied. "I used to live by a loch growing up. I'd be down there from dawn to dusk if I could've gotten away with it. As it was my father…" she tailed as she felt a lump form in her throat. She turned back to the water, and prayed that they would wait a little longer to fall. Once she was certain her emotions were – however brief the time period would be – zipped back up, she turned back to him. "I'm sorry, he died recently. Today actually," she commented sadly, "we weren't that close these past few years."

"It still doesn't lessen the sting though."

"No, it doesn't," she agreed. "I should go, I've got to be up early tomorrow. Thanks for listening."

"It was nothing."

Elsie gave him a small smile, before she turned and walked away. Her hand slipped into the pocket of her cardigan and pulled out her phone. Maybe it was time to call her mother.

Charles watched as the woman got further and further away, before he looked back across the bay. He looked at the ring that was still in his hand, and put it into his wallet, he'd find the nearest pawnbroker or gold dealer when he got to London and sell it. He threw a last glance towards the bay, before he started the walk back towards the train station.

Thanks for reading, I hope you liked it.