Advice

The day of the orchard party turned out to be a warm, clear fall day. The party was scheduled to begin at one. Everyone began to make their way to the apple orchard just after luncheon. The estate workers were standing by to help push wheel chairs, or move ladders as needed. Sybil and Tom had arrived the night before and Isobel Crawley had taken the afternoon off from the village hospital to attend. Edith was terribly nervous that the party would go well and was dashing about double-checking her list to make sure the estate staff and Mrs. Hughes had everything in order. The villagers began arriving and Edith soon realized her fears were for nothing.

Picnic blankets were spread on the ground and the orchard was alive with the sounds of children laughing as they ran about playing tag and people filling the baskets they had brought. Lady Violet and Lady Cora were seated under a small awning with Sybil's son playing on a blanket near their feet. Lord Grantham was busy circulating and welcoming people to the party. Mark came to stand beside Edith.

"Are you feeling less nervous now?" he asked. "Everything is going just as you planned."

"I'm much better, thank you," Edith said sliding her arm through his.

John Biggs, the first man Edith had hired approached them to introduce his fiancée to Edith.

"It's such a pleasure to meet you, Lady Edith. John's told me so much about you," she said. "He's always saying you gave him a chance when no one else would."

"How kind of you to say," Edith replied. "Not many men want to work for a woman. Your fiancée has done an exceptional job."

A few other of the men brought their sweethearts to meet Lady Edith and the comments Edith received all ran along the same lines.

"You certainly have their loyalty," Mark commented. "There are officers who would envy you."

So many of the villagers stopped by to congratulate Lady Edith on her engagement she had little time for much else. Mark noticed that a number of the officers had approached the estate workers who had injuries similar to their own. They were actively involved in conversations regarding how the men had managed to overcome some of the obstacles they faced.

When Mark couldn't stand any longer they found a seat to the side of the family. At one point Sybil and Tom disappeared for a time, only to show up a while later hand in hand. Mark wished he could steal Edith away for an hour or two, but this was her day and she was glowing. About an hour and half into the party, the baskets were full and Lord Grantham moved to the small makeshift stage. He thanked everyone for coming. Everyone clapped when he congratulated Lady Edith and Lady Cora for organizing the event. The children from the village school performed their skits and recited poems. Once the children were finished. Musicians from the village got out their instruments and there was dancing on the grass. Many of the officers were tired out from the afternoon and after thanking Lady Edith and Lord Grantham for the afternoon's activities headed back to the house.

"I wish I could dance with you," Mark commented as he watched the country dancing in front of them.

Edith looked at him admiringly and slid her hand into his.

"Soon, not today, but soon."

The party broke up in the late afternoon and everyone headed back to the house.

"It was a lovely afternoon, Edith," her mother said. "I'm very glad you had the idea."

Her father and the other family members complimented her as well. Edith was a bit embarrassed by all the praise and by the time she had returned to the house she was worn out.

The next afternoon Edith had wanted to talk to Sybil privately. There was no way she could ever discuss parts of her personal life with Mary or her mother. Secretly Edith thought that Mary most likely knew even less than herself, despite the Kamal Pamuk incident. She invited Sybil to go out on the grounds for a walk with her. Sybil had the baby in a pram and they strolled along one of the lanes that meandered through the estate. Edith was fidgety and Sybil waited until they were well away from the house before she said anything. The baby fell asleep almost instantly in the fresh autumn air.

"How are things with you, Edith? Is everything going well with your engagement?"

"Yes...no...can we sit?" Edith asked her.

"What's wrong?"

"Mark's so … hesitant with personal things," Edith finally said. "I practically had to throw myself at him at first. He's awfully nice but he has no confidence especially with personal matters. I don't know what to do."

"His reaction isn't unusual, especially with the extent of his injuries," Sybil said. "When they're in the hospital, they watch the nurses for any sign of revulsion. It takes everything you have at times to not react to what you see. No matter how ill they are, they're still men."

Edith nodded and twisted her hands in her lap.

"You do realize he will never fully recover." Sybil said. "He's always going to have a slight limp on the left and he'll most likely never be able to run beyond a few paces. The stronger he is the better he will be able to compensate and the better his confidence will be."

"I suppose you're right."

"Do you love him?"

Edith nodded.

"Then tell him as often as you can and show him you admire him," Sybil said. "It may be the best medicine he can have. Men are funny that way."

"I'm not quite sure… well that is… I mean to say," Edith didn't know how to ask her sister for sexual advice. "How?" she finally blurted out. "He can't have relations the normal way. At least not right now."

Sybil got a small smile on her face when she realized what her sister was trying to ask her. She was somewhat embarrassed as well to be having this conversation and a blush stole up her face.

"Take charge," Sybil said. She leaned close to Edith and whispered even though there was no one within sight. "Go on top and do the work."

"Oh," Edith said, her eyes wide and hand covering her mouth.

"There are other ways too, but I've never tried it. I've heard about it at work," Sybil whispered.

"Other ways?" Edith asked. She was blushing so profusely she was overheating.

"It involves kissing the other person, you know, there!"

"Oh my!" Edith started fanning herself with her hand.

"Settle down, Edith. You wanted to know, so I've told you." Sybil said, still whispering.

They got up and started walking back towards the house.

"I accidentally got that liniment on his personal parts the other day," Edith told Sybil with a giggle.

"You didn't," Sybil said her eyes round!

"He jumped up so fast. You should have seen the look on his face."

The women were laughing over the incident while they walked back to the house.

"Thank you, Sybil, for being so understanding," Edith said.

"If you can't ask your sister, who can you ask?" Sybil said.

Mark and Tom had come out to meet them when they saw the women approaching. Edith though how attractive they both looked. Mark had a classic handsomeness that stole her breath away. Tom's fair hair and complexion made him so striking he was almost pretty.

"Ask about what?" Tom asked as they arrived and he gave Sybil a peck on the cheek.

"About the things that make the world tick," Sybil replied with a blush.

Edith just blushed and went to Mark to kiss him on the cheek as well. Sybil had told her to show him she loved him at every chance she had and she resolved to do just that.

Sybil arranged a meeting with Mark and the onsite therapist before she left for London. The therapist reviewed Mark's progress and added some new exercises to his routine. He had done so well building his strength with the stair climbing and his exercise routine, it was decided he could try using just one cane and stop using one completely by the end of October. Sybil inquired if bicycle riding would be an appropriate therapy and the therapist agreed as long as Mark took short rides at first and avoided riding anywhere too bumpy or hilly.

Mark had balked a bit at the thought of bouncing around on a bicycle, but had been assured the activity would help him build his leg strength quickly. It was decided that he should still avoid the main staircase and stick to the narrower ones with more support. As well, he could take baths on his own as long as he was careful getting in and out of the tub.

Edith had been out all day driving one of the lorries for the harvest. When she returned to the house that evening she was surprised to find Mark waiting for her with just one cane.

"I'm down to one cane," he proudly informed her. "And I can take a bath on my own."

"Oh," Edith said a little disappointed. She rather enjoyed looking at his naked body when she helped him in and out of the tub every evening.

At the sight of her downcast expression, Mark's excitement was fading.

"I thought you'd be happy. You don't have to treat me like a baby anymore."

Sybil's advice to reassure Mark that she admired him rattled around inside Edith's head. She took a small hesitant step closer to him so she could whisper in his ear, "I was rather enjoying the opportunity to admire your body on a daily basis."

"Oh!" His eyes opened slightly wider and his face colored.

"As soon as we're married, you can admire it all you like," he murmured back as he placed a kiss on her cheek.

Two weeks later Mark still had not heard back from his command regarding his permission to marry and made a series of phone calls to see what he could find out. Then banns were completed and Edith's family was pressing for a date. After four phone calls he was finally able to contact a ranking officer above himself and received verbal permission. The papers would be sent out that afternoon and should be in his possession within a week. A few days after the locked door incident Lord Grantham had gotten him alone and informed him that if they hadn't already been to see the Reverend Travis he would have set the dogs on him. Edith's father was deliberately making it difficult for them to spend time alone and Mark couldn't get the wedding over soon enough.

Lady Cora was overjoyed that the final obstacle to the marriage had been resolved and planning began in earnest. Edith was in a flap with the preparations. Harvest was still going on and she had a great deal of material to get through for her course. She didn't want to get married during the last week of October, as that was Sybil's wedding anniversary and the anniversary of Bill's death, although the latter she kept to herself. It was finally decided they would get married during the first week of November.

"I would rather just go to the church with the family and get married tomorrow," Mark complained. "I've had enough of having you sleep on the other side of a wall."

"Mother and Father would never allow it," Edith said. "Sybil's marriage almost created a huge scandal if Granny and Aunt Rosamund hadn't covered up the facts. We'll just have to grin and bear it."

"Three weeks?" Mark said raising one eyebrow.

"Three weeks for you to build up your strength," Edith replied.

"For?"

"So you can dance with me at out wedding amongst other things," Edith said feigning innocence.