Author's Note: This fanfiction is an idea that has been in the pipeline for a very long time and I have been coming up with along with a lovely friend of mine who has given me so much support and encouragement with it. I am so relieved that it has finally started to come together in this way and I truly hope that you all like this!

Side Note: The years of birth for the children have been changed for this fic just so they are the accurate ages to go to war. So nothing major, I just thought that I would make you all aware so it makes a little more sense.

"I'll go."

Watching her husband reach for his cane and stand from the breakfast table at hearing a knock on the front door, Anna watched him leave the kitchen before she reached for her teacup and leaned back in her chair. She sipped at her tea as she risked a glance in her daughter's direction and she felt her heart sink at the look on her face. Hardly a bride on the brink of wedded bliss. She was getting married tomorrow morning and one would expect her to be full of life, wreathed in smiles and excited for what was to come, but instead she was rather cast down. It was understandable though. The war had been raging for almost four years now and Johnny had been away fighting for two of them. She was proud of him, they all were, but she missed him something rotten and it had been a while since she last received any word from him. Now it was looking like he wouldn't even be there to watch her walk down the aisle and it was clearly breaking her heart.

She watched her push her eggs around on her plate for a minute and she was just about to say something when John re-entered the kitchen with some letters in hand. Margaret looked up from her plate when he took up his seat next to her again and, for a moment, she spotted a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "Is there anything from Johnny, Dad?" She asked him, setting her fork down on the edge of her plate so she could reach for her glass and take a sip of her orange juice.

John sifted through the letters in his hand, humouring her even though he already knew what the outcome would be, before looking her way and sighing with a shake of his head. "I'm afraid not, darling," He told her, watching her face fall as she returned her glass to the table and slumped back in her chair. "I'm sorry."

She was silent for a second then, but then she found her voice again. "Mum, can I go?"

"You need to eat something, Maggie." Anna told her gently.

"I'm not hungry. I need to finish packing for this weekend. Please?" She forced herself to meet her eye.

Looking over at her husband, Anna laid a hand on her knee under the table when he gave her a nod. "Alright. I'll come up and help you when we're done."

Margaret gave her the smallest smile in acknowledgement before she pushed back her chair and rose from the table, pushing a hand through her hair as she left the kitchen. Neither Anna nor John said anything as they listened to her make her way upstairs, but when they heard her close her bedroom door she sighed. "I don't know how much longer I can do this." She confessed, reaching for her fork so she could go on eating her breakfast before it went cold.

"It won't be much longer now. He said he was catching an early train, so he should be here before lunchtime." John said.

"It just feels wrong not telling her," She replied after finishing her mouthful. "She can't even be excited about tomorrow because she thinks he won't be there."

He understood where she was coming from. "I know, but he wants it to be a surprise and he's been planning it for weeks. We can't spoil it for him now."

She hummed in agreement.

"Are you excited?" He asked her with a knowing smile.

"What do you think?" She chuckled. "I can't wait to see him and Caroline's going to be thrilled. I think she knows George was granted leave, but not him."

"It'll do them good to see each other one more time before the baby gets here," He sipped at his cup of coffee. "How much longer does she have to go now?"

"Just under three months. Apparently the sole topic of conversation at the house at the moment is how uncomfortable and impatient she is."

"I don't envy her."

"Me neither," She shook her head. "I loved being pregnant, but those last few months were always the hardest. It gets to a point where you've just had enough."

"Well, she won't have to put up with it much longer," He said. "It's just a shame Johnny won't be here for the birth."

"I know…" She trailed off, thinking to herself for a brief moment. "How…how do you think he's going to cope with it all?"

He didn't pretend not to know what she was talking about. He'd not been caught up in it for as long as some, but the war had had an effect on their boy and it was becoming more and more evident with each telegram he sent them. His once impeccable penmanship was now shaky and, on some occasions, nearing on intelligible. He knew the signs of shell shock and tremors were one of them. "Honestly? I don't know," He admitted. "It depends on how severe his shell shock is and how much of a handle he has on it. He might cope brilliantly, but there's also the chance he's going to struggle with all of the changes that come with it."

She nodded slowly. "Maggie has all this to come, doesn't she? She's going to be in the same position as Caroline when Arthur gets called up."

"Our girl is stronger than we give her credit for," He reminded her. "And she's not going to be dealing with it alone. We're going to be here to help her out."

"I just wish they didn't have to deal with this," Her voice was rather quiet. "When they were growing up, I never once thought this was going to be their future."

He looked at her for a moment in silence before pushing back his chair, the sound of the legs against the tiles causing her to look across the table at him. "Come here," He told her, gesturing with his head for her to go to him before she rose from her chair and made her way around to where he was sitting. She sat down on his good knee then, shifting her weight slightly, and put an arm around his shoulders to steady herself while his arm circled her waist. "It's not forever. I can't say how long this is going to last any more than you can, I know, but it has to have an end-point. When it does, the boys are going to come back home and we can all settle into our new normal. I'm not saying it's going to be straightforward because it won't be, but it's something for us to hold on to for the time being."

She smiled. "You're right."

"And we don't have to worry about Maggie right now either. Let's just get through tomorrow before we start thinking about any of that." He told her.

"How are you feeling about it?" She brought a hand to his chest, brushing her thumb against his jacket.

He sighed. "Mad as it sounds, I'm dreading walking her down the aisle."

"John. Before and after she walks down that aisle, she's going to be our little girl. It doesn't change a thing. Besides, you know she still loves you the most."

"Does she?"

"Of course she does, daft beggar," She tutted. "You're her father. You're the first man who ever loved her and she adores you. You have nothing to worry about."

He felt his spirits lift slightly at that. "You still know exactly what I need to hear. After all these years."

"Haven't lost my touch yet then?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Not at all." He assured her before leaning in to steal a kiss, smiling against her mouth when she brought a hand to his cheek as it lingered.

She eventually pulled back and allowed her hand to return to its place upon his chest. "I should go and see if she needs some help with her packing."

"Shouldn't take too long. She only wears the same four pairs of slacks." He jested.

"And there I was, thinking she'd be such a typical girl when she grew up," She laughed. "I can't remember the last time I saw her wear a dress of her own accord."

He chuckled as she stood from his lap. "She'd be walking down the aisle in slacks if we let her."

"Oh, I don't doubt it." She smirked, giving his shoulder a squeeze before she walked out of the kitchen and began to make her way upstairs.

Alone with his thoughts for the first time that morning, John reached for his cup of coffee and sighed to himself as he took a sip. He was looking forward to the wedding tomorrow, of course. Arthur was a stand-up lad, he and Anna had known him all his life near enough, and there was no doubt in his mind that he adored Maggie. It was hard, that was all, the thought of losing a part of her to him. He longed for time to slow down so she could remain his little girl for a little while longer, but that wasn't going to happen. She was ready for this, ready to start her life and have a family of her own, and he was going to support her.

No matter what.

Returning to her bedroom once she had taken her toiletries from the bathroom, Margaret put the bottles in the suitcase and – finally done packing – shut the lid and fastened the clips. She sat down on the edge of the bed then and looked around the room, feeling her chest tighten slightly. It was weird to think that tonight would be her last night in this room. For the time being at least. She and Arthur had succeeded in obtaining a cottage on the estate, not too far from her parents' house, and they would be living there until he was drafted. While he was gone, she and her parents had already decided, she would move back in because she hated the thought of living alone and would no doubt be in need of their support. She was doing her best not to think that far ahead at the moment though. She wanted to make the most of both her wedding and honeymoon – even though the current state of the world meant the latter was to take place at The Grantham Arms – and thinking about him being taken away from her would only put a dampener on it. No, for now she was simply going to live in the moment.

"Maggie? Can you come down for a second please?"

The sound of her mum calling up the stairs to her pulled her from her thoughts after a time and, running a hand through her hair, she got up from the bed and made her way across the room to the door. It took her seconds at the most to leave her bedroom and make her way downstairs and, when she got there, her parents were standing together in the hallway. She could tell by the way they were looking at her that something was happening, though she had no idea what.

"What…?" She asked, her brows knitting together.

"There's something outside for you. An early wedding present." Her father replied.

Turning in place, she looked at the front door and then back at her parents. She did it once or twice more before eventually making her way down the hall to the door and opening it. What she saw made her heart stop beating and, for what seemed like an eternity, she was completely frozen in place and unable to move.

"Finally passed your test then? About time." Johnny beamed from where he was standing near her motorcar at the end of the path.

"Johnny!" She sobbed, running out of the house and up the path before practically throwing herself into his arms and burying her face in his shoulder. Her arms tight around his neck, she chuckled tearfully into the fabric of his uniform when he picked her up and span her around before setting her down on the ground again. She clung to him for a time, not wanting to let go in case it was a dream and he'd be gone when she did, but in the end he was the one to move her back so he could look at her. "You…you're here! How are you here? I thought you didn't get leave. I didn't think you were going to make it." She said through tears.

He scoffed. "You really thought I wouldn't be here to see my baby sister get married? I would have gone AWOL if I'd had to, but luckily I managed to avoid it."

Running her hands down his arms through his sleeves, she smiled at him before looking back at the house to see her parents now standing there in the doorway. "Did you both know he was coming home?" She questioned them, wiping her tears when they gave her a look that told her they had known for some time now.

"Don't be annoyed with them," Her brother told her. "I asked them not to say anything. I wanted my being here to be a surprise."

"You succeeded." She laughed.

"I was going to look in on Caroline on my way here, but she wasn't at the cottage." He said, taking her by the arm and leading her back towards the house.

"She's been staying at the Abbey for the past couple of weeks," Anna explained while closing the door behind her children once both of them had walked inside, the look of concern on her son's face not going unnoticed by her. "She and the baby are doing fine, don't worry, she just wanted to be nearer her mum since she's getting closer to the end of the pregnancy. Maybe you and Mags can pop up there this afternoon. She can show you the set up for the reception tomorrow."

Margaret smiled. "Aunt Mary has gone a little overboard. I did say I was okay with it being a smaller affair, but she wouldn't hear of it."

"That sounds like her," Johnny laughed. "Carrie's been keeping me up to date with all her elaborate plans for the nursery in her telegrams."

"She's just excited as we all are," Anna laid a hand on her son's arm, giving it a gentle squeeze. "But come and sit down. Have some lunch before you go."

He nodded before turning to his sister again. "We are walking, right? I'm not sure I trust you with that thing given it took you four attempt to pass your test."

"Three, actually." She corrected him.

"And how many times have you crashed it so far?" He smirked.

"Dad!" She whined, turning to their father.

John couldn't help but chuckle. "Leave your sister alone. She actually happens to be quite good behind the wheel."

"Ha!" She elbowed her brother in the ribs before walking off down the hall to the kitchen, Johnny following her while the two of them continued to bicker.

Shaking his head, John put an arm around his wife's shoulders and smiled when she wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning her head against his chest for a moment. "Well," He buried a tender kiss in her hair, lingering for a second to breathe her in. "I suppose that's an end to the peace for the next couple of days."

"Mmm…" She hummed while tightening her hold of him. "And I couldn't be happier."

"No, me neither," He had to agree. "Me neither…"

"Someone call the papers; my little sister is actually going to be wearing a dress tomorrow!" Johnny laughed while sat in the passenger seat of the motorcar.

"Oh, shut up," Margaret chuckled with a roll of her eyes, turning onto the road that led up to Downton. "I think Dad was convinced I would show up in my slacks."

He looked her way. "Be honest, would you have? If you had things your way?"

"…Probably," She shrugged after being silent for a minute. "Arthur said he'd still marry me if I did, but we're in church so I thought better of it."

He smirked at that and made himself more comfortable in his seat. "Speaking of Arthur, I bumped into to him earlier on my way through the village."

"Really? How is he?" She inquired.

"Excited. Nervous too, but that's to be expected. I think he just wants tomorrow to be here now." He told her.

She hummed in response. "I know the feeling. Once the ceremony is over and done with, I think I'll be fine. I just don't like the thought of all eyes being on me."

"I get that," He nodded. "Caroline was the same leading up. I just told her to look at me and pretend the congregation wasn't there and it seemed to help."

"That's good advice." She said.

"See, I'm not just a pretty face." He teased.

"Barely even that to some," She shot back, earning herself a slight nudge. "Are you excited to see Caroline?"

He smiled to himself, reaching up to fix his fringe. "Excited doesn't even begin to cover it. Has she been alright? Truly? She, Mum and Mary will just sugar coat it."

"She hasn't said much to me about it, but I know she's been talking to Mum and Aunt Mary about how she hasn't been sleeping too well lately and her nausea is driving her mad," She replied. "But it all sounds like it would be a normal part of pregnancy to me, I don't think you should be worried about her or the baby."

"Right…" He replied before changing the subject, attempting to keep himself from worrying. "Have Sybbie and Marigold arrived yet?"

"Not yet. Sybbie said she doesn't think she and Antoine will be able to get here before six because of the train schedules and the Pelhams are hoping to be here for around four. I told Sybbie that I'll go and pick them up from the station so they aren't waiting around for a taxi. I mean, we're all here tonight anyway so it makes sense to me," She explained. "I'm so grateful to Aunt Mary for letting us stay. I think it'll be easier, getting ready here in the morning than it will at home. There's no way that me, Mum, Sybbie, Caroline and Marigold would all fit in my room and we need the space to get sorted. My things will be here for when we get back from the church too, so it all works quite nicely. I haven't had to take care of too many details over the past couple days, I'm not sure if you could tell."

"Oh no, not at all," He said sarcastically, causing her to laugh before he let out a breath. "I still can't believe my little sister will be married this time tomorrow."

She grinned. "I can't wait. I love Arthur so much and I can't imagine spending my life with anyone else."

"I'm happy for you," He told her. "But I hope he knows he'll have me to deal with if he dares step out of line."

"Believe me, he knows how you and Dad are, so he assures me he'll be as good as gold."

"Glad to hear it."

A comfortable silence fell over the two of them then while Margaret drove the remaining short distance to the house. When she pulled up at the front, she put the handbrake on before the two of them opened the doors and climbed out of the car. She could tell that, despite his excitement at the thought of seeing his wife for the first time in half a year, her brother was nervous at the same time. It was understandable though. Things were different now to when he left and his life was changing so much. Reaching out, she took him by the hand and the small smile he gave her told her that he was grateful for the silent support. They made their way up to the front door together then and she rang the bell before they waited together on the doorstep for a moment for someone to come and answer it. It wasn't long until they heard the sound of footsteps approaching and then the door opened, revealing Jack on the other side who gave them both a smile. The relief he was feeling at seeing Johnny back in one piece was evident in his eyes too as he ushered them both inside before closing the door behind them again.

"Johnny," He offered him his hand which he shook firmly. "You have no idea how much of a relief it is to see you both back in one piece."

"A relief to me too." Johnny chuckled.

"And Mags, how are you feeling? Excited about tomorrow?" Jack raised an eyebrow at her.

"Excited and nervous, but mainly excited, yes." She laughed.

He clasped his hands together. "Fabulous. Now, Caroline and Mary are in the library, come on."

Glancing up at her older brother, Margaret gave him a smile before he took a deep breath to ready himself and they started following Jack across the hall in the direction of the library. The minute they entered the room, Caroline looked up from her needlepoint and the soft, audible gasp that came from her at seeing him only made Johnny fall all the more in love with her. He was just about to open his mouth to tell her to stay where she was, not wanting her to strain herself, but she was already on her feet and all he could do was chuckle as she hurried across the room to him. She collided with him with such force that it knocked some of the air from his lungs, but he couldn't find it in him to care as he wrapped an arm around her waist and threaded his free hand into her hair. "My darling…" He murmured against her crown, kissing her there softly as she nuzzled her cheek against his chest. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this moment."

For a minute or so, the two of them just stood there holding each other, but then she tilted her head back on his chest to look at him and she gave him the most beautiful smile. She reached up then and caught his hand, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes, and after easing it from her hair she brought it to her belly so he could feel what she was feeling. His breath caught in the back of his throat at the feeling of the little kicks against his palm and she laughed tearfully when he met her gaze again. "This is your daddy, little one," She said as she glanced down at her bump for a second. "And you have no idea how lucky you truly are."

For a moment, he was utterly speechless as he tried to get his head around the fact that this was his first contact with his unborn child. For months, Caroline had been writing to him, attempting to convey with mere words just how incredible this feeling felt, and now he was feeling it for himself. She had tried her hardest, but her words didn't even come close to how truly magical it was. He doubted any words ever could. "I love you both so much." He told her, his voice trembling.

"We love you too." She brought her hand up to rest on his cheek, her thumb running over the stubble there as her gaze moved between his and his mouth.

From where she was standing nearby, Mary noticed the look on her daughter's face and the corner of her mouth twitched into a smirk. "Come along, Margaret, I want to show you how they're getting along with the set-up for tomorrow," She said to the fair-haired girl, Margaret giving her a knowing smile before she walked towards her and the two of them, along with Jack, left the library to give the couple some long-awaited privacy. "How are your parents doing? Relieved to see Johnny home?" She inquired as she and Margaret split from her husband and made their way outside, slowly venturing around to the back of the house.

"They really are. I have no idea how Mum managed to keep it a secret for as long as she did." Margaret laughed.

"If there is one thing your mother excels at then it's secret keeping," Mary told her. "Trust me, she's had a lot of practice."

Margaret gave her a look, but chose to keep her questions to herself. "Aunt Mary, I wanted to thank you for doing this. You really didn't have to."

"Nonsense," Mary laid a hand gently on her back. "You're family and it's not as if we don't have the space. It ought to be a lovely day weather-wise as well."

"I hope so. It'll be a nice memory for Arthur to hold onto." Margaret said.

"George tells me he'll do his best to keep an eye on him when he gets called up," Mary smiled. "Of course, he can't make any promises."

Margaret shook her head. "No, I understand that. It means a lot to me that he's going to try though."

"I know it's easier said than done, darling, but just try not to think about what's coming for the moment. Focus on tomorrow." Mary advised.

"I will," Margaret assured her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Mary gave her a comforting squeeze before leading her further off into the garden.

Caroline set her glass of water down on the table in front of her and turned her head in her husband's direction, sighing under her breath at the sight of him as he sat in the chair next to her. It was nearing the end of dinner and everyone was still having a grand old time, talking about the wedding tomorrow and how exciting it was, and while she was excited too, she was worried about Johnny. He had done so well all afternoon. He had coped with the large amount of people and managed to keep up with what was being said, but it was late in the evening now and he was getting tired and the fatigue was doing him no good at all. She'd pretended not to notice initially because she'd been able to tell he was doing what he could to be discreet, but he was only fidgeting more as time passed and there was no ignoring it now. "Sweetheart…" She said in as quiet a voice as she could, reaching out to lay a hand on his knee beneath the table. His gaze found hers at her touch and the fear she saw in his eyes broke her heart. Whether it was due to the number of people or the noise level, she wasn't quite sure, but something was frightening him. "I'm here. You're safe, I swear, and you are doing so well. It won't be much longer now until we go through. Hold my hand."

It took him a minute, but he moved his hand under the table and when he slid it into hers she laced her fingers with his own and gave his hand a warm squeeze. It seemed to help too, her doing so, because his shoulders relaxed ever so slightly and she heard him let out a trembling breath as he squeezed his eyes shut. She was so proud of him. He was doing his best to make it through dinner without causing a scene. No one would mind if he did, she knew that wholeheartedly, because it was understandable given the horrors he had witnessed, but he would mind. In his mind, tonight was about his little sister and nobody else and the thought of taking the attention off of her for even a moment bothered him. If she had it her way then she would excuse both him and herself from the table and get him someplace quiet, but she knew he wouldn't be pleased with her for that. He wanted to be there. He wanted to support Margaret and so he would stay.

"Is everything alright?"

She was pulled from her thoughts by her aunt Edith whispering to her from where she was sat on the other side of her and, looking her way, she gave her a smile.

"Fine," She assured her with a nod. "I think he's worn out, that's all, what with all the travelling today."

"I can imagine." Edith nodded.

"I think we'll turn in after dinner. He needs some proper sleep before tomorrow and I could do with an early night too. Hopefully, I can actually sleep." She said.

"Baby been keeping you up?" Edith asked her with a knowing look.

She chuckled. "It seems to think the ideal time to practice its forward rolls is in the middle of the night."

"Babies and their timing," Edith rolled her eyes. "I remember it well. Not much longer to go now though, is there?"

"Nope. Only three more months and that's if it behaves and stays put. The way things are going, I can't see that happening." She tutted.

Just as Edith was about to respond, the two of them heard Mary from the other end of the table saying that it was time for them to go through. Caroline had to admit that she couldn't be more relieved. She doubted Johnny would have coped much longer. His hold of her hand tightened almost painfully a number of times during her chat with her aunt. Turning to her husband again, she gave him a reassuring smile before the two of them rose from their chairs and he offered her his arm. Still such a gentleman. Taking hold of his arm, she kissed his shoulder through his jacket before they followed the rest of the family through the dining room and out into the hall. "Mum? Mama?" She managed to catch the attention of both Anna and her mother before they entered the library and they stopped, allowing everyone else to go inside before they turned to her and Johnny. "We were thinking we might go up now. Both of us are worn out after today and with it being such a long day tomorrow as well, we just thought it might do us both some good if we had an early night. You don't mind, do you?" She asked them.

She could tell by the looks on their faces that they could tell something wasn't right.

They were mothers, of course they could read her like a book.

To their credit though, they seemed to sense that it wasn't something to talk about here and now.

"No."

"We don't mind at all."

The two of them spoke at the same time, Caroline giving them a smile as she dropped her husband's arm for a second to step forward and give both of them a kiss on the cheek. She waited for Johnny to kiss his mother on the cheek too before he returned to her side and she slipped her hand into his, holding it gently. "Well," She said to them both. "We'll say goodnight."

"Goodnight." Both mothers said.

She and Johnny turned and made their way over to the staircase then, ascending them together before they turned onto the corridor that would lead them to the room they were sharing. "Thank you for not saying anything," She heard him say as they walked together. "The last thing I wanted to do was talk about it."

"I know and that's why I didn't mention it," She explained, reaching up to run a hand down his arm through the sleeve of his jacket. "You are exhausted, my love. You haven't stopped all day and that won't be doing your mental state the slightest bit of good. You just need to get into bed and go to sleep. I doubt you'll get through tomorrow if you don't let yourself rest tonight and I don't want that for you. I want you to be able to enjoy yourself."

"I always enjoy myself when I'm with you." He gave her a flirtatious little smile.

She giggled. "Such a charmer. Reminds me of why I fell in love with you."

"You didn't fall in love with me because I'm a charmer." He frowned.

"No?" She looked up at him, resting her cheek against his arm.

"No," He replied. "You fell in love with me when I gave you that sunflower on Valentine's Day."

She snorted. "Johnny, we were eight and you couldn't even call it a sunflower it was that crushed by the time you got around to giving it to me."

"Still earned myself a kiss on the cheek, so it counts." He shrugged.

She couldn't help but smile. "You are the love of my life, you know that?"

He ran the back of a finger down her cheek, watching her eyes close for a second. "And you're mine."

It took them little time to reach their bedroom after that and, making their way inside, they ventured over to the bed before he all but flopped onto the end of it. He was so tired now, she could see it in his face as she sat down next to him, and she knew it wouldn't be long before he was out for the count. "Come on," She ran a hand down his thigh through his trousers, standing from the bed again so she could walk over to the bag on the chair and pull out his nightclothes. "If you let me help you change; we can get to bed so much sooner."

"Is this your way of trying to seduce me, Mrs Bates?" Fatigue laced his voice as he reached for her, resting his hands on her waist.

"If either one of us had the energy, absolutely…" She smirked, brushing her lips softly against his. "But that might have to wait until tomorrow night instead."

He pouted, displeased, and she couldn't help but chuckle.

She couldn't love him more.

Setting his nightclothes down next to him on the bed, she reached for the buttons on his shirt and began easing them through the holes while he busied himself with running his hands over her waist and the small of her back. When she had the front of his shirt open, she removed it carefully and had to swallow the gasp that came from the back of her throat. He'd lost so much weight and bruises, some faded and some far more recent, covered the upper half of his body. Clearly, he'd been through so much in the time he'd been away. It didn't bear thinking about though, not tonight, and so she simply reached for the nightshirt laid out on the bed and helped him into it before making quick work of the buttons. "Can you manage your trousers while I go and fetch a nightgown?" She asked gently.

"Of course." He assured her before she turned and made her way across the room to the armoire in order to pick out a nightgown to sleep in.

It didn't take her long to choose one and when she turned back to the bed he had placed his old clothes on the armchair and was pulling up his trousers. As she set about removing the bow from her hair and shedding her dress, she watched him make his way around the bed and laughed when he pulled back the quilt and made quite a show of collapsing onto the mattress. He could be such a fool at times, but he meant the world to her and she would rather have a lovable fool for her husband rather than a total bore. Once she had finished discarding her clothes and put her nightgown on, she made her own way over to the bed with a yawn before he pulled the quilt back for her and she climbed in next to him. He reached over to turn the lamp on his nightstand off, allowing hers to be the only light, and when he opened his arms to her she moved into them without hesitation. She had to smile against his chest when his hand settled upon her belly on instinct.

"I think it knows Papa's here," She said sleepily while he buried a kiss in her hair. "Any other night, it'd be kicking up a storm right about now."

"None of that tonight," He smiled against her crown. "Time for Mama to get some actual sleep for once."

Tilting her head back on his chest, she draped an arm over his stomach and looked up at him. "I can't wait to be a proper family with the two of you."

He pecked at her lips. "I am going to com home to you both as soon as I can, and when all of this is over I am never leaving either of you again."

"You promise me?" She curled her hand into his shirt, snuggling further into his side.

"I do," He smoothed his free hand over her dark curls and pressed his lips against her forehead. "I promise you."

Once she had changed into her nightgown and given her face a quick wash, Margaret got into bed and smiled to herself as she reclined against the headboard. This was it. Her final night as a fiancée. In just a matter of hours, she would be up and getting ready for what was to be the biggest day of her life and though she was anxious about tomorrow, her excitement outweighed that. The thought of going downstairs in the morning and her father seeing her in her dress, the thought of walking down the aisle and seeing Arthur standing there waiting for her, it was all just so thrilling and she almost wanted it to be morning already. She was still a little nervous about having the whole congregation fixated on her, but she was just going to do what Johnny said. She was going to focus on her husband-to-be and nothing else. He would help her through the ceremony, she was sure of it, and then they could relax and make the most of the reception.

The reception was going to be her favourite part of the whole day; she was certain of it. She was going to get to speak to her friends, some of whom she hadn't seen in months given they lived so far away, she was going to get to spend some quality time with her new husband, and – one of the highlights for her – she was going to get to share a dance with her father. From the moment Arthur proposed to her, she'd known she wanted to dance with her father at the reception. He was her best friend. She adored him more than she could put into words and she wanted that moment with him. It hadn't been easy to convince him, what with his knee being the way it was, but in the end she had worn him down and he'd agreed. He just reminded her that, should he show her up, she would have brought it on herself. It hadn't bothered her in the slightest though because she knew without a doubt that that wasn't going to happen. He'd be marvellous.

Before any of those things could happen though, she needed to at least try to get a little sleep to ensure she wouldn't be nodding off throughout the ceremony. It wouldn't be the best of starts to her marriage, that was for sure. Chuckling under her breath, she snuggled down beneath the covers and felt her heart race with excitement as she tucked a hand beneath her pillow and settled down. She was ready. She was ready to be a wife and ready to start a life of her very own.

Honestly, she was ready for anything.

Author's Note: Thank you so much for taking the time to read chapter one. I had so much fun writing this and I am just so relieved that this fic is finally coming to life after so much planning and waiting. I would appreciate it so much if you would leave a review to let me know what you thought if you have the time. See you all soon!