Quick, fluffy little one shot. They aren't mine, but I sure like to borrow them. :)

Empty Nest

"My what a day," Elsie Hughes sighed through a long stifled yawn. She brought her hands up to her face to fruitlessly rub under her eyes, which undoubtedly begged to shut at any moment. She tilted her head back, allowing it to loll to each side in a small effort to release the tension held throughout her neck and shoulders.

"That it was," Charles Carson answered as he brought her over two aspirin and a tall glass of water. "I must say, she did look beautiful."

Elsie rolled her eyes with a small shake of her head but smiled. His undying love for that silly girl would never end. Though she may not have always shared his sentiments, she did admire that fierce stroke of paternal instinct in the man.

"Thank you. I do believe I am done in." She began to softly rub her temples in an effort to quell the throbbing as she gulped down the mixture of medicine and cold liquid in a single shot.

"It's nothing. I'm afraid I'm going to have to join you," he said as he reached for the second glass of water and additional pills.

The day had gone off without a hitch, just as both of them had planned. The months of preparations all fell into place thanks to the unfailing work of the staff. Daisy had created a wondrous cake, with Mrs. Patmore's help of course. (Lord bless them if they forgot that...) Anna had truly turned Lady Mary into the most beautiful bride this side of the pictures.

Everyone had seemed so happy. Genuinely happy.

Everyone except for Charles Carson and Elsie Hughes.

They wore painted on smiles all day long which managed to pull the wool over most everyone's untrained eyes. There were no such secrets from each other, however. Every time they caught each other's eye, both sensed the ever mounting twinge of sadness. They knew this day was coming, but either refused to acknowledge it.

"Do you want to talk about it," he asked quietly.

"Not especially. I'd much rather sleep it off as it were," she answered, a little more defeatedly than she had hoped. She couldn't help but feel that he needed a bit more from her though. "Why? Do you?"

"I suppose it can wait."

They both looked at each other straight on, their eyes unable to betray what their hearts were dying to spill out into the silence.

In the end, it was Charles who broke.

"It's never easy when the birds leave the nest, I suppose."

Elsie sighed heavily. "But they're not our birds..."

"But they are they closest we've got" he ventured hesitantly. "I know you're feeling the same."

"It's silly, I suppose" she spoke quietly, with just the slightest hint of a laugh begging. "I mean to say, they will be living quite literally down the road."

"Yes, but it won't be the same. It never is. They don't need us anymore."

She dropped her chin and shot him a very pointed sideways glance as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Now when, pray tell, have they ever needed us? If anything, I wonder if we needed them." As soon as the words left her mouth, she was assaulted by the memories of Charles holding Lady Mary during the garden party oh so long ago... and the more recent one of her, letting down the barriers to hold Anna as she cried.

As her arms began to slacken and her eyes started to glaze over, Charles knew that she was thinking about what he had been trying to ignore for months. The girls, their girls, were leaving them behind.

"Maybe we are just a pair of sentimental old fools," he relented as he let his own body collapse in relief.

"If you ever refer to yourself, or I, as old again, Mister Carson, you shall have such Scottish fury reigned down upon your head, you'll regret you ever met me."

He reached over to extinguish the light, leaned across the bed and gently kissed her forehead.

"Never, my dear."