A/N: Well, here it is, the last chapter. I can't believe the way this story was received. From a story I knew wouldn't be liked, to a story that has eclipsed all of my others with the amount of reviews and favorites and follows. Thank you all so much, especially those who have stuck with me through to the end! I hope this chapter does the end of Elsie and Richard's journey justice.

Richard watched Elsie as she followed the opera with wide, twinkling eyes. Her face showed her awe, and it made his heart swell and ache at the same time. Someone so very beautiful and lovely should have experienced the opera before now, but he was glad that he was the man privileged to be with her for her first time.

Elsie blinked in surprise when she turned to Richard only to find him staring at her. "Richard? Mo chéile, what is it?" she asked quietly as she reached out to squeeze his hand.

Richard caressed her gloved hand, his eyes shining as they moved over her. "You're beautiful," he whispered. "I'll have to bring you to the theater or opera more often."

"Oh," she huffed even as she blushed. "It's much too extravagant."

"Then I'll save it for special occasions, but please don't deny me the pleasure of seeing you experiencing things like this."

Smiling softly at him, she caressed his cheek. "Fine then. Special occasions."

"Would you like to go powder your nose during the intermission?"

Elsie laughed delightedly as she twitched her nose a bit. "Does my nose look like it needs powdering?"

Richard laughed with her and shook his head. "No, mo bhean. You're face is perfect."

"You, my dear husband, are just a bit biased, I think."

"You didn't see the heads you turned when we walked in tonight. Maybe we shouldn't go down and join the others for the intermission drinks. I'd have to fight men off."

"Oh now you're being daft."

Reaching out to tuck wayward strand of hair behind her ear, Richard held her gaze. "No, Elsie. I'm not. You're a beautiful woman inside and out and it draws people to you. Though I think the woman might become a bit catty if their men keep looking at you the way they were."

"It's this dress." Elsie whispered as she placed a hand on her chest. "It's too revealing."

"It's the latest style and you're perfectly modest."

"So you say, but I've noticed those wolfish looks you've been giving me," she gently scolded.

Richard grinned and winked as he leaned close, whispering in her ear. "Only because I know what's beneath the dress."

"Richard," she hissed as she blushed. "You really must behave."

"You can't blame it on the whiskey this time," he teased.

"Cheeky bugger."

EEE

"Richard, should we be dancing so close?" Elsie asked as he swayed her gently to the music.

"Look around, Lass. All of the couples are dancing this close."

Elsie did as he suggested and realized he was right. Some of the couples were even closer than she and Richard. "It's all so," she bit her bottom lip.

"Ah." Richard tutted as he gently tapped her lip. "It's a changing world, Elsie. We're married, it's perfectly alright for me to hold you close as we dance. At least here it is. I wouldn't dare to do this at a village dance. We'd never hear the end of it."

"You'd hold me like this if we were dancing in the privacy of our home, wouldn't you?"

"I would hold you much closer, Lass," he assured her.

"Tonight has been wonderful," she whispered. "Thank you for making our anniversary so special."

"No need to thank me, Elsie. Seeing your eyes so alight with awe at the opera and seeing you dressed like this," he winked at her when she blushed. "It's all thanks enough. I don't get many chances to show you this kind of life, but you deserve it, and it's my pleasure to treat you to it. Besides," he looked around a bit then kissed her nose. "This is as much for me as it is for you."

She mimicked him and looked about at the others, making sure they weren't being watched then pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. "I'm tired of dancing."

"Dinner then? It's rather late, but neither of us have eaten anything since our late lunch."

"Mmm, yes. I am rather hungry, but I'd rather eat back at the flat." She wrinkled her nose at him. "My feet hurt."

Richard laughed as he caressed her cheek. "You should have told me sooner, Lass."

"I was enjoying myself too much," she told him then smiled up at him as he led her back to their table. Finishing her sherry as Richard paid for their drinks, Elsie laughed when he winked at her then took his hand as they made their way to get her wrap and his coat and hat.

Pressing a kiss to Elsie's head as he helped her with her wrap, he winked at her when she looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "Too much drink," he whispered making her laugh.

"Mo chéile," she admonished playfully, having had too much drink herself.

EEE

Elsie's back arched, Richard's name slipping from her lips as a breathy moan, her climax rolling over her one wave after the other. Her fingers dug into his shoulders as she convulsed with one last hard wave then collapsed back against the bed completely boneless.

Richard lay over Elsie, his own body limp and near lifeless. He knew he should move, but no matter how hard he tried, his body wouldn't respond to his brain's commands. He could still hear the sound of Elsie's breathy moans echoing in his ears, making his heart beat just a little faster than he wanted it to at the moment. Moaning when he finally made his body move, he rolled onto his back and smiled when Elsie snuggled up against him.

"Are you alright, mo chéile?"

Richard chuckled a bit and patted her hip. "Yes, mo bhean. I think my brain might have been a bit short circuited for a moment."

Elsie laughed as she pressed a kiss to his chest. "I think we both may have suffered that affliction." Sighing as she settled more comfortably against him, she let her hand rest over his heart, feeling its steady rhythm. "Lying here in your arms it's hard to believe that a year ago I was lying alone, crying myself to sleep as I fidgeted with the unfamiliar ring on my finger. And before you think I was crying because of what I'd done, marrying you, let me assure you I wasn't. I was crying because my world had crumbled and my heart had been broken. If you hadn't been there," she paused, her finger making aimless patterns on his chest. "If you hadn't been there, if you hadn't offered me a new home, a new life, I would have gotten lost just as I'd told Fia."

"No, Elsie. You're too strong for that."

"But, Richard, I wasn't strong. Don't you see? I had opened my heart and let myself love. I was always half broken, Richard, Mr. Carson's actions only finished the breaking." Sitting up, Elsie stared down at her husband. "I was in shock, I think. I remember reading the telegram from my friend, I remember telling Beryl that I was going to go for a walk. I don't remember the walk or arriving at the train station. I only remember staring down at my ticket as I walked back home."

"Oh Elsie." Richard reached up to caress the hair from her shoulder.

Elsie smiled as she took his hand and held it. "I don't remember much of the trip to London. I do remember lying to Lord Grantham about why I was leaving. The trip back home is a blur as well. I remember packing, and trying not to cry when Beryl came to ask me if she could see me off. And I remember looking up to see the kind eyes of the village doctor looking at me with concern. The aftershock, well, it wasn't what I expected. Marrying?" She laughed then settled back against him. "That was definitely not something I thought would happen."

"I didn't expect to marry on that visit home, myself. To be truthful, I'm not really sure why I proposed that arrangement to you. It just came out before I could stop myself, and then after it had happened," he shrugged then continued, "Well once we settled into living together as friends, I slowly found myself falling in love with you. I didn't realize it until the night Matthew Crawley died." Gently combing his fingers through Elsie's soft hair, Richard smiled as he remembered. "So many nights I dreamed of telling you that I'd fallen in love with you, of holding you in my arms, of tasting your sweet lips. I knew those dreams would never come true."

"But then I was ill and near death."

"Yes. I hadn't felt so helpless since the death of my baby sister."

"But you weren't helpless, mo chéile. And look at what came of it," she reminded softly.

"My dreams," he whispered.

Elsie nuzzled his neck. "I love you, Richard Clarkson."

Tugging gently at her hair to tilt her face back, Richard stared down into the blue eyes he some times seemed to drown in. "And I love you, Elsie Clarkson. So very much."