A/N: Full disclosure - I worked in a law firm for ten years. I set this story in the U.S., mostly because I know next to nothing about the British judicial system. That is, other than the fact that judges wear wigs (I think) and if your name is Bates, you're screwed. All of the characters, except Cora, have British accents in my head. It doesn't have to make sense; this is fanfiction. Still own nothing. Thanks for the reviews! This is really fun to write. :)
Violet Crawley thought she had seen everything in her nearly eighty-one years of age. She had worked beside her husband as an attorney, building a law firm at a time when most women were homemakers. She had seen their business lose value after her husband's death, then seen it thrive anew when their younger protégé, Charles Carson, had become managing partner. She had seen it blossom further when her son Robert joined Carson as a partner.
She had known Carson for over forty years. He had been hired fresh out of law school in 1972 and quickly made his mark. Whether it was writing complicated legal briefs, researching a complex tort case, or preparing for trial, his work was always excellent and thorough. There was never a question of whether he would be managing partner; it was always a question of when. It came sooner than Violet expected, in 1986. At the time, Carson was the youngest managing partner not only in the county, but in the state.
As much as she loved Robert, Violet knew he did not have the head for business. He had other qualities, though, that complimented Carson's. Isobel called him a "social animal", and Violet had to admit that was true. While Carson was formal, and slightly aloof, Robert was warm and engaging. He could bring a much-desired client to the firm over a lunch meeting. But while Robert could bring them in, Carson could keep them. He had lost very few clients in almost thirty years at the helm, Violet mused, a record difficult to break.
She thought that his perpetual bachelorhood was an asset to the job. He was unencumbered by family or spousal drama. She had never known him to have any romantic interest in a woman, not even when he was young. So it came as a massive shock when she arrived at Robert's house for their annual Christmas Day brunch to find that he was engaged to be married.
"But surely you had some kind of prior knowledge!" she gasped, sinking into the sofa. Patting her great-grandson George on the head, she turned back to Robert. "What do you mean, 'you had no idea'?"
"I mean just that, Mama, I had no idea," Robert said, taking a rather long sip of his raspberry mimosa. "Carson has always been private. If he had wanted to say something to me sooner, I'm sure he would have."
"Hmmm," frowned Violet. "Well, I have always admired Mrs. Hughes' aptitude for pushing Carson further along the path than he would wish, to 'move into the future', as our Tom Branson says. But I had no idea she was pushing him into the marital bed!"
"Granny, please," moaned Mary, finishing her mimosa and beginning another. Part of her didn't mind Carson getting married – she was quite happy with Matthew and wanted Carson to be equally happy – but a greater part of her was annoyed and hurt that her godfather had told her nothing of his relationship with Mrs. Hughes.
"I think it's wonderful," Isobel spoke up, turning from admiring the Christmas tree with George.
"You would," Violet said.
"Mama," George said, climbing up onto the sofa next to his mother. "Is it time to call Daddy yet?"
Mary put an arm around her four-year-old boy. He looks so much like Matthew, not a thing like me. "Well, let's check the time. Just after noon. So it's seven o'clock in Germany. Let's try, shall we?" She held out her phone and let him hit the button. The phone started ringing.
"Are you calling him normally? Or are you doing that strange type of communication that's straight out of 2001: A Space Odyssey?" Violet asked.
"FaceTime," Mary said evenly, praying Matthew would pick up. "It's not that strange, Granny, you've done plenty of video chats for meetings. This is like that, just on a phone."
Suddenly, Matthew's face appeared on the small screen. "Hello?" Mary and George broke into wide grins, and Isobel sat next to her grandson on the sofa to be able to see her son. "Oh hello, darling! Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas, Georgie! Merry Christmas, Mother!" They all chorused Merry Christmas back. George immediately launched into a description of his Christmas presents, dragging them from the floor to show them to his father. Mary showed Matthew the rest of the room and everyone else, including Cora, who had finally emerged from the kitchen with the casserole, asparagus and deviled eggs.
"When is everyone else coming over? Later in the afternoon?" Matthew asked. Mary nodded.
"Tom and Sybbie went to Mass with his mother and all the Bransons this morning, they'll be here in a couple of hours," she said. "I'm not sure about Edith."
"Michael called yesterday afternoon," Cora answered Matthew. "Marigold's getting over the stomach bug. It's going around. They're hoping she feels well enough to come today."
"I hope so, poor thing. Give her a kiss from me the next time you see her, will you, Mary?"
"I will," Mary promised. She and Edith had never been best friends, but after Sybil's tragic death, they had tried to mend fences. It helped that George and Marigold got on well.
"Did you have a nice Christmas dinner?" Robert asked. "I know how the military can be. MREs during the holidays are ghastly."
"It was very nice, mostly turkey and ham," Matthew replied. "Major Mitchell brought cigars for most of the JAG Corps personnel." Robert groaned aloud.
"Your mother-in-law won't let me smoke cigars anymore. I've had to beg for an exemption when Bates 2.0 gets here."
"Robert, it's for your own health!"
"When is Anna due?" Matthew asked. "Before I get back, I imagine."
"Late May, so just before," Mary said. "Oh, I forgot. Aunt Rosamund's skipped out. She said she'd rather go to New York for Christmas and meet up with Gary Hagen. Again."
"That sounds like it's getting serious," Matthew said. "He's a friend of Atticus's father, right?"
"Yes, he met Rosamund at Rose's wedding."
"I doubt Rosamund is serious, she's far too independent," Violet interjected. Mary flipped the screen so Matthew could see her grandmother. "But then again, what do I know? Until yesterday, I thought Carson would die a bachelor, but I've been proved wrong."
There was a long pause. "What?" Matthew finally said. "Did I hear that right? Carson's getting married?"
"Yes, he got engaged last night, apparently," said Mary, feeling disgruntled.
"Um…to who? I had no idea he was even seeing someone. Did any of you know? Robert?"
"Here we go," Robert said under his breath before answering. "No, none of us had any idea. It's been quite a shock."
"He's engaged to Mrs. Elsie Hughes, Matthew. You know, the office manager." Isobel said. Matthew went completely slack-jawed. Mary felt a tiny sense of satisfaction. Hardly anything could ruffle him.
"Mrs…Hughes. Well." Matthew sat back in what looked like his desk chair in his room. "Well, I would never have guessed it." On the other side of the screen, Matthew sat in utter shock. Thank God for technology. He'd send Tom a quick message before the day was out. His brother-in-law and Mrs. Hughes always got along well. Maybe he had known in advance. If anyone could keep a secret, Tom could. A successful elopement with Sybil to Las Vegas was far more complicated than this.
They talked for a few more minutes until Cora reminded them that brunch was getting cold. After the meal, the older ladies went out to the sunroom to chat privately (though everyone knew what they would be chatting about), Robert helped Cora wash dishes while Mary dried. George played with Robert's beloved dog, Horus. Mary had just finished drying the last dish when her phone rang. ANNA flashed on the screen. Mary sighed as she picked it up. Prepare to be disappointed.
"Hello, Mary? Merry Christmas! How are you?"
"Merry Christmas," Mary answered. "We're all well here, brunch is over and I'm sure everyone will be asleep at some point in the next hour. I'm surprised you're not napping."
"Well, I'm not really tired just now," Anna said, "Though I'm sure I will be soon. John and Poppy are fast asleep on the couch. She was awake at 5:15 this morning." Mary smiled at the image.
"Oh dear, that's early. Luckily, George didn't come and get me until a little after six," Mary said.
"I know this is sudden, and I really do want to hear about your day so far," Anna said, rushing her words. "But…did Mr. Carson say anything to you? I knew that he went to dinner with Elsie last month, but that was the first I heard of it. At the most, I thought maybe they were dating. But I won't lie, when he called John last night, both of us were knocked for a loop!"
Mary sucked in her breath. "I wish I could say that he told me something beforehand," She couldn't keep the hurt out of her voice. "The first I knew of it was last night, when he called me. He called right after telling Papa and John." She supposed she should feel special that he called her personally. He could have left it to her father.
"What did he say? Anything in particular?"
A sardonic smile crossed Mary's lips. "You're gathering information, aren't you? To spread the gossip,"
"Thomas and Jimmy will be here for dinner. You know how Thomas is. He texted me before six this morning."
Mary sighed. "Honestly, he didn't say much. He said that what he had to say would be shocking," Which it was. "And then he said he'd asked Elsie Hughes to marry him, and she'd said yes. I was so surprised I could barely think of anything to say. I did ask him how long they'd been…seeing each other. Obviously, I didn't mean at work."
"Obviously," Anna replied, open curiosity evident in her voice. "Well, what did he say?" Mary was impressed. Carson and Mrs. Hughes had no idea what this was doing to the attorneys and staff. Matthew looking shell-shocked, Anna fishing for gossip…before the day was out, what was next? She and Edith singing Heart's "Alone" on karaoke? She had a feeling Anna was in for a double shock. She knew she had been.
"He said they'd been seeing each other since last January," she punctuated the last word. Her emphasis was rewarded.
"Last January!? How in the hell have they managed that? I have got to ask John, surely he noticed something…" Anna sat down heavily on the floor. How had she not noticed anything? She thought she was closer to Elsie than that.
"Well, I haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary," Mary said with some heat. She could just hear Matthew (and Tom, and Edith and Michael, and probably even Sybil if she were still here) saying how unobservant she could be.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you upset," Anna said. She was beginning to feel rattled herself. She was thrilled for Elsie and Mr. Carson, but wondered if there was anything else she didn't know.
"Don't be sorry," Mary said quickly. "Look, I should let you go and get some sleep before your company comes. I'll see you tomorrow. George is looking forward to playing with Poppy again."
"Okay, see you then. Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas," Mary replied. She ended the call, smiling softly as she saw George and Horus asleep in front of the fire.
She had no idea only a few miles away the subjects of all this frenzied gossip were asleep as well, due to a feast that had nothing to do with food.