These characters belong to Jane Austen.
Chapter One: An Introduction
Elizabeth Bennet was very fond of walking. Whether it be in fair or foul weather, she found it put her at ease from the stress her dear family caused. Most days she would rise bright and early, much earlier than the rest of her household, and walk along the many paths surrounding her home. There were times that the trails would be filled with mud from the previous night's rain storm or a fallen tree branch. She would always overcome these obstacles and return to Longbourne in a mud stained or torn dress that made her mother squirm.
It was on a similar morning that she was relaxing by a small creek that she had found a few weeks before. She closed her eyes as a soft breeze blew by, ruffling her hair and dress. Lizzy took in the fresh scent of springtime that she adored so dearly. Overwhelmed with the beauty that surrounded her, she slid off her shoes and stockings and grinned when her small toes entered the babbling brook. With all her might, she kicked at the water, splashing it on the rocks, trees, and herself on occasion. She explored the tiny crevices between boulders to find the home of a minnow or a snail. When she became too tired to move on, she collapsed into the tall grass, letting it envelope her in a gentle hug.
"Oh, why can't it be like this all the time?" She mused to herself. Even though she was still quite young, she had been revealed to the truths of society that her mother was very fond of, gossip being one of them. Gossip always seemed to be surrounding her house, even though most of it had nothing to do with the Bennets. In fact, most of Hertfordshire was drowning in irrelevant news. It set the place on edge, like every move was being analyzed by someone who would determine your worth once you became old enough to attend balls.
Mrs. Bennet was obsessed with the idea of her daughters at a ball. She had been training Jane, Lizzy's older sister, and Lizzy herself in how a lady would behave at a ball. The others were much too young to learn such things, according to Mr. Bennet, but Lizzy's mother was often found her whispering little tips to Kitty while she put her to bed or while reading to Mary. Jane seemed to be a natural at the art of being pristine and proper, which made Lizzy slightly jealous. She had been struggling for months on nearly everything their mother taught them. The only thing she seemed slightly proficient at was polite conversation, and even then she stated her firm opinion too much.
Another gust of wind rocked the grass in a mystical dance that enchanted Lizzy. She tended to wonder if the grass was really grass at all and not tiny pixies, showing their appreciation for the beautiful wind. When she was much younger, Lizzy could often be found looking near the roots of trees and bushes to find tiny houses where the tiny fairies and pixies lived.
"Utter nonsense." Her mother had said, "Lizzy, you are getting much too old to be imagining such things. Ladies do not crawl on the ground."
Lizzy didn't look for houses anymore. At least, not around her mother. No one would be capable of removing those hopeful thoughts of magic from her mind.
"Lizzy! Good gracious where has that girl gone off to? Lizzy!"
Her mother's shrill voice made her jump. How Mrs. Bennet could carry her voice that far, Lizzy wasn't certain, but she wasn't going to stick around long enough to hear it get louder. So, she grabbed her shoes from beside her and took off down the path back to Longbourne.
Along the way, Lizzy ran through a great deal of mud puddles, dirtying her dress. Blast, she thought, Mama just washed this. She's sure to be upset. Maybe I'll be able to make it upstairs and change before she finds me.
When she reached the house, she quietly opened the door and tiptoed up the first flight of stairs, but her mother caught her.
"Lizzy, dear, there you are!" Her mother cried, halting her steps up the stairs. "Come now, child. Your father has to speak to you girls." Her eyes trained in on the mud. "I see you've been out. You'll have to wash that yourself if you want it clean."
"But, Mama!"
"I'm afraid I have no time to listen to your excuses, Lizzy. Now get in that room before I have a fit." Mrs. Bennet said sternly.
Lizzy grumbled under her breath but reluctantly followed her mother's instructions. She entered the room to find her sisters and father waiting for her expectantly. "How nice of you to join us, Lizzy." Her father said, smiling at the splotch of mud on the bottom of her dress.
"Sorry, Papa." She mumbled before taking a seat beside her older sister, Jane. Her sister gave her an encouraging smile that seemed to brighten her mood. "What is it you wanted to tell us?"
"Indeed! You've got me terribly worried. You must have very important news if it is necessary to have all of us here. Dear me, I can feel my nerves kicking in already." Mrs. Bennet fanned herself. "I hope it is nothing to dreadful. I don't think I'm ready for another funeral, too much despair in one's life is a hardship that no one can withstand for long."
"I must ask you to silence yourself, my dear, for I bring news that will certainly add to your precious nerves." Mr. Bennet said, leaning back in his large armchair.
Mrs. Bennet pursed her lips, "Very well, get on with it then."
"I have just received word of one of my old, dear friends from my days in London. I'm sure you've heard me mention the name Darcy, Mrs. Bennet?"
She nodded fervently, "Why of course I have. He was the man who so graciously took you in during your days there about three years ago. I remember very fondly."
"Yes well, he and his wife have recently died in an unfortunate accident, leaving behind a wealthy sum and two children. The eldest is just a lad and the other a very young girl."
"Oh my, how awful!" Mrs. Bennet cried, placing her hand on her bosom.
"It certainly is." Mr. Bennet sighed, "Mr. Darcy has left the estate to his son but he is not able to acquire it until he reaches the age of eighteen. You see the dilemma. In the meantime, Mr. Darcy's brother has taken hold of the estate but is not able to keep the children with him as they are not his godchildren."
"Then who is?" Mrs. Bennet was getting excited. The very idea of the wealthy, educated children made her heart sing.
"Mr. Darcy became aware of the fact that we own a fairly large estate and we have plenty of children to keep his own company. In his will he entrusted us to take care of his children until young Master Darcy reaches the age to take back Pemberley.
"Father?" Jane inquired. "Are you saying-"
"The Darcy children will be coming to live with us." He finished.
His statement sent a chill through the room. It wasn't often the Bennets received guests. And if they did, it was mostly the Lucas' who had a daughter nearly six years older than Jane and another younger than Lydia. Never before had they received such esteemed visitors to their humble home.
"My goodness, Mr. Bennet." Mrs. Bennet said, standing and pacing the floor. "This is quite an announcement. You've accepted, I presume?"
"How could I not? They will have nowhere else to go except their aunt's home in the north whom they've never met. From what I've heard she is a most dreadful woman who shall not be crossed. I was certain that children would not do well around her."
"How old are they?" Jane asked her father. "I should dearly love to have playmates. I think Lydia would as well." She tickled her little sister's belly lovingly.
Mr. Bennet smiled down at his eldest daughter. "Fitzwilliam has only just turned 15. His sister, Georgiana, is six years old."
"Playmateth!" Kitty cheered. "Liddy, ithn't thith wonderful?" As young girl of six, Catherine Bennet often had a hard time pronouncing some sounds through the holes in her teeth. Currently, her front two teeth were missing preventing any 's' from poking through her speech.
Jane turned to Lizzy, "What do you think about new guests, Lizzy?"
Lizzy didn't know what to think. What if they turned their noses up Longbourne? Surely they would be used to fine furnishings and ball gowns and a hundred servants attending to them.
"Of course I am." She decided that lying was probably easier than trying to explain her hesitation at their company. "It will be great fun." Maybe it would be. After all, there was a slight chance that they would be kind to them.
That evening, long after their daughters had gone to bed, Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Bennet were talking amiably about their future situation. Mr. Bennet seemed completely unnecessarily at ease while his wife was already planning for their arrival.
"And then there's the matter of sleeping arrangements! Where are we to put them?" Mrs. Bennet worried.
"My dear, they are not meant to arrive for another three weeks. We have plenty of time to prepare for their stay until then. Let us take this last moment of peace and enjoy it?"
Mrs. Bennet did not speak for several minutes. She was so quiet that Mr. Bennet was sure she had fallen asleep in the large armchair she was relaxing in.
"Young Mr. Darcy must marry one of our girls, my love. He simply must. Oh, the things he could do for this family." This earned a hearty chuckle from her husband.
"Do you not believe it is a bit early to be making such plans? Dear Jane is not yet thirteen." Jane, although edging closer to the day that she would enter society, had not yet shown an interest in the opposite sex, which greatly vexed her mother.
"Naturally, Mr. Bennet, naturally. But it would not hurt to push him towards affection of one of our girls." Mrs. Bennet did not mind admitting that the only thing on her mind was the marriage of her five daughters. Once her husband died, heaven forbid it be soon, her family would be forced to leave Longbourne forever.
Mr. Bennet shrunk deeper into the cushions he was laying on. "These poor children have just lost their parents, blossom. The last thing that will be on this boy's mind is a girl who will capture his heart. All we can do once they arrive is welcome them with open arms as if they were out own. We must make them comfortable here if they are to stay until Fitzwilliam is of age."
His wife giggled like a little girl, "I suppose you are right, as always. Heaven knows the sort of trouble I could have gotten into had I married anyone of less intelligence. The children will just have to form relationships of their own, won't they?"
"You would never let that happen." Mr. Bennet said, a bright smile on his face. "I suspect if any wealthy, well-connected man comes forth, you will stop at nothing to thrust our daughters into their arms."
This made Mrs. Bennet laugh, "I certainly will! I only want the best for them; that is all."
Mr. Bennet had no doubt in his mind that she wanted nothing but happiness for their girls. He wanted the same thing. He could not be sure, but something told him that perhaps some of that happiness could be found in the companionship of the forthcoming Darcy siblings.