Downton Abbey Season 6, episode 9
Edith (Laura Carmichael) may finally get a happy ending in the "Downton Abbey" series finale. Nick Briggs/Carnival Film & Television Limited 2015 for Masterpiece

Christmastime on “Downton Abbey” will be a sad occasion for fans. The holiday special airing first in the U.K. and later in the U.S. will serve as the series finale. However, the last episode of “Downton” will give fans more of what they’ve always loved. Expect love stories, happy reunions and an emotional goodbye at the conclusion of Season 6. Check out what we know about the Christmas special:

1. Rose Is Back -- Rose (Lily James) left for America with Atticus (Matt Barber) at the end of “Downton Abbey” Season 5, but she’ll come home for the holidays. “It was amazing going back after a break,” James told the U.K. edition of Harper’s Bazaar (via Yahoo). “You are just totally reinspired by the wonder of it, that grand house against gray skies and all the friends you haven’t seen in so long.”

2. Sisterly Bonding -- Will “Downton Abbey” conclude with Mary (Michelle Dockery) and Edith (Laura Carmichael) getting along at last? The synopsis teased that the elder Crawley “endeavors to build bridges with her sister while Edith’s secret continues to pose a threat, despite having nothing left to lose.” Edith may finally come clean in the series finale.

3. A Possible Wedding -- Edith just might be heading down the aisle. A prop wedding program was reportedly found after shooting wrapped, and it supposedly revealed that Edith is marrying Bertie (Harry Hadden-Paton). TheWrap reported that his mother (Patricia Hodge) was cast for the series finale, and it seems unlikely a new face would be introduced in the last episode without a good reason. A wedding would definitely make his mother a necessary character.

4. Barrow’s Goodbye -- The Christmas special promotional video already showed that Barrow’s exit will be an emotional one. Despite all his schemes, it looks like the Downton crew really will miss him. “I arrived as a boy. I leave as a man,” Barrow says. Watch the series finale trailer below:

5. New Year’s Eve -- The Christmas special will take viewers through to the new year as well. Jim Carter, who plays Carson, already spoiled that the episode would conclude on New Year’s Eve. “All the servants are together in the hall,” Carter told the Mail on Sunday’s Event magazine (via the Telegraph) in September. “It is New Year’s Eve, it’s candlelit and there are Christmas decorations left over. It is dark and we quietly sing ‘Auld Lang Syne.’ It is a nice, low-key, rather muted end to the thing.”

6. Possible Open Ending -- Although the “Downton Abbey” series finale is expected to wrap up all the major plotlines, there might still be room for more stories. Showrunner Julian Fellowes confirmed he is writing a script for a continuation on film, but the movie hasn’t gotten the green light to be made yet. “So much of this depends on the script. For me, it’s the real key here,” he told Vulture last month. “This holds a great deal of interest for me, because I still have more to say with ‘Downton.’ I see this transitioning to film quite well, and I certainly am the person to tell this story.”

The “Downton Abbey” Christmas special will air on ITV in the U.K. Dec. 25, but U.S. audiences will have to wait until March to see it. Season 6 premieres on PBS stateside Jan. 3.