Lizzy awoke to the soft sound of the wind pining at her window. Outside, the trees were merrily dancing back and forth with their leaves swirling together into whirlwinds. In an instant, a broad smile broke across Lizzy's face as she anticipated the day ahead, or more specifically her morning walk. Any other individual, man or woman, regardless of their love for the outdoors, would at least show a moment's hesitation before venturing out in such conditions. But not Lizzy. She quickly got dressed, grabbed her bonnet and headed downstairs.

When she arrived in the kitchen there was only her father, Mr. Bennet, at the table silently enjoying his coffee. It would be some time before the rest of the house would wake, and he intended to enjoy this blissful silence before he was forced to shut himself in his study. It was the only way he could avoid Mrs. Bennet's outbursts, exclamations and appeals. Lizzy grabbed a raspberry tart off the tray and was about to head out into the morning when her father called out to her. He looked to the window, saw the blusterous condition outside then turned to his daughter and smiled saying "Enjoy the winds, my dear!" Lizzy returned the smile and skipped out the door.

Once she was outside, the winds surrounded her, gently playing with the curls that had escaped from under her bonnet. Lizzy initially walked at a brisk pace, but once she was outside of Longbourn she started into a run. She ran, each step filling her lungs with more excitement, all the way to her favorite escape. She soon arrived at a small clearing that was surrounded by trees on three sides, making it a hidden treasure. The clearing was slightly more elevated than the surrounding landscape so it was the perfect place to enjoy the wind. She ran to the middle of the clearing, removed her bonnet and threw her arms out as she slowly twirled in place. Allowing the winds to embrace her. They were not harsh or gusty, rather they gently surrounded her, tickling her curls and causing her to laugh with joy.

Mr. Darcy woke up earlier than usual. He had had trouble sleeping because of his headache from the previous night. The carriage ride with Miss Bingley was the "straw that broke the camel's back", so to speak. He was already very distressed over Georgina's state and wellbeing, especially considering what she had gone through merely months ago. He had done everything in his power to help her; to comfort her, but his sister had retreated into herself and was not the joyful young girl he once knew. He tried to postpone his trip to the country with his good friend Charles Bingley for as long as possible and even considered canceling it all together to stay in London with Georgiana. But Georgiana had not wanted her brother to go back on his word to Mr. Bingley. Even though she assured him over and over that she was well, the thought of leaving her was very difficult for Mr. Darcy. Perhaps time and space is what she needed to heal?

Mr. Darcy finally agreed to undertake the trip, thinking that maybe some time in the country air would be beneficial. Unfortunately, that proved not to be the case on the carriage ride over to Netherfield Park. Miss Bingley, Charles's sister, was chatting nonstop throughout the entire trip and every few sentences, she had tried to pull Mr. Darcy into the conversation. So, what should have been a pleasant, restful journey to the country had instead become a parade of gossip ranging from fashion & festivities, to character assassinations of various members of society. Near the end, Mr. Darcy had developed such a headache that though it was quite impolite, he simply had to take dinner in his room and retire early.

The sounds of the wind outside were promising. After all, he had wanted to enjoy the country air. Mr. Darcy quickly changed into his riding attire and requested that his horse, Magnus, be made ready. As he descended the stairs he noticed the peaceful silence and guessed that the others had not risen yet. "Good" he thought to himself, so it would not seem rude if he was to go for a ride and return before they wake.

Once outside, he took in a deep breath and sighed. His headache was starting to subside. When he arrived at the stables, Magnus was ready for their ride. They started out at a slow trot but with the winds as they were, even that became a challenge. Magnus neighed loudly, suggesting to his master that he was ready for such a challenge. In an instant they were speeding off, the wind pressing against them as they fought to gain speed. Magnus was doing beautifully and in a matter of minutes they had left Netherfield behind. The winds began to die down and Mr. Darcy slowed Magnus back down to a trot. The exhilaration and excitement had done its job. His headache was completely gone. But he did not want to tire out Magnus too much. After all, he was not sure how many more of such escapes he would need during his stay at Netherfield.

As they were heading down the trail, Mr. Darcy heard the sound of laughter being carried by the winds. Curious as to where such a sound could be coming from this early in the morning, he directed Magnus to a smaller trail that was branching off and soon came to the opening of a clearing. In the middle of the clearing was a small hill and atop the hill he saw a young maiden twirling in the wind. Mr. Darcy, mesmerized by what he saw, did not move or make his presence known. As he watched, the young lady would twirl a few times with her arms outstretched and then she would burst with laughter as she brought her hands together in an embrace. As if…as if she were giving the wind a great big hug. The wind reacted to her actions, and caressed her gently in return. The smile and sheer joy on her face was heartwarming. She twirled in this way once, twice, but on the third time as she stretched out her arms, the wind caught hold of the bonnet in her hand and began to carry it off. She laughed at this and began running after the bonnet. It was heading straight towards Mr. Darcy.

Being on horseback, Mr. Darcy had the advantage in terms of height. He directed Magnus in the direction of the flying bonnet and retrieved it in a matter of moments. It was then that Lizzy realized that she was not alone and came to an abrupt halt. Mr. Darcy dismounted and took a few steps towards Lizzy before coming to a stop himself.

Who was this gentleman? How long had he been there? Had he seen her twirling and laughing on the hill? Ma'ma would be furious with her if she were to find out that she had behaved in such an unladylike manner.

Keeping her head down, Lizzy hesitantly took a few steps towards Mr. Darcy and gave a small curtsey.

He in return gave a small bow.

"I believe this is yours madam", he said as he handed her the bonnet.

"Yes, yes it is. Thank you, sir, for retrieving it", she said with her head still down. Then she looked up at him, a quick glance, as she took the bonnet from him.

They both stood in silence for a minute before she curtsied once more and said "farewell".

Mr. Darcy bent forward to bow in return, but when he came back up the young maiden had already disappeared. Mr. Darcy stood there for a few more moments, a bit unsure of what he had seen, who he had met or whether he had seen/met anyone at all. It had all happened so fast, and she vanished so suddenly. All he remembered was her eyes. When she had taken the bonnet from him, she had glanced at him briefly and he found himself staring back into two sparkling green eyes.

He let out a sigh and headed back to Netherfield. At least his headache was gone.

Lizzy hurried through the trees instead of taking the trail as she headed back to Longbourn. She knew the woods well enough to know all the short cuts. She didn't want to risk another encounter with that gentleman. It would not be proper. Who was he? Maybe he was Mr. Bingley? Or someone from his party?

Lizzy stepped back into the kitchen just minutes before her mother entered.

"Lizzy! Your hair is a mess! You didn't go out in this weather, did you?" Mrs. Bennet scolded. But Lizzy wasn't paying attention. Jane was not at the table yet, and Lizzy wanted to tell her about her encounter with the mysterious stranger. Jane was still in their room, just about to head down to break her fast when Lizzy entered.

Jane took one look at Lizzy's hair and smiled, "I see you enjoyed your walk in the wind". Lizzy gave her a big smile, "I did, the wind was glorious. It's such a beautiful day. But that's not what I wanted to tell you about."

"It's not?"

"No, I had a rather unusual encounter today on my walk".

Jane forgot that their mother would soon start yelling if they were not down to break their fast in a few minutes. But she was curious about Lizzy's tale.

The girls sat on the bed as Lizzy told her about the "mysterious gentleman" she had met on her walk.

"Oh, Lizzy! That does rather mysterious! Are you sure it's no one we know?"

"No, Jane. I'm sure I would have remembered if I had seen him before." She blushed as she whispered "He's quite handsome…"

Jane could not help but blush either. Her sister was never one to say such a thing, so whomever this mysterious gentleman was, he must indeed be handsome if he had received such a complement from Lizzy.

"Do you think he was Mr. Bingley, or someone from his party?"

"Perhaps," said Lizzy.

"If he is, then we shall see him again at the ball tonight and I shall get a chance to properly thank him."

With that both girls headed down to break their fast. Both excited about the ball, and to find out who this gentleman was.

Mr. Darcy returned to Netherfield, and with the help of his valet he quickly changed his outfit and headed down to break his fast. He entered the dining room just as the others were beginning to sit at the table.

"Mr. Darcy, how are you feeling this morning?" Miss Bingley asked immediately.

"I'm feeling much better. Thank you." he said as he sat down.

"I saw you had gone for a ride this morning Darcy, what do you think of Netherfield?" Mr. Bingley asked with anticipation.

"I did not get very far on account of the weather," Mr. Darcy replied. Then thinking back on his encounter this morning, especially those mesmerizing green eyes, he then added "but what I did see was very pleasing."

Mr. Bingley was very happy to hear that.

Miss Bingley, not wanting to be left out of the conversation, added her thoughts on the weather.

"Yes, this weather is dreadful. I'm not surprised you were unable to go very far."

"It wasn't like this when we arrived last night," she scowled. "So unpredictable! Not like how it is in town, isn't that right Louisa?" she said.

It wasn't really meant to be a question as Miss Bingley did not wait for an answer from her sister. Still, Mrs. Hurst nodded her head in agreement.

"I doubt that the weather would be so unforgiving at Pemberly, Mr. Darcy", Miss Bingley exclaimed. Again, not a question, as she continued on.

took extra efforts to focus on what was on his plate, so as to avoid a recurrence of his headache.

Five minutes later, Miss Bingley was still going on about the weather. "I do hope the wind dies down before tonight. I do not want to look disheveled when we arrive at the assembly." Miss Bingley let you a sigh. "Either way, I'm sure we'll still be the best dressed, Louisa."

The assembly at Meryton, Mr. Darcy had completely forgotten! His distress slowly began to creep back. He was not fond of public assemblies.

Mr. Bingley finally found an opening in the conversation. "I cannot wait to meet our neighbors. A Mr. Bennet of Longbourn had called upon me last week, and invited us to tea. I hear he has five lovely daughters, it would be nice to make their acquaintance," he said excitedly.

Mr. Darcy began to wonder if the young lady he had seen this morning would be there. Suddenly the idea of attending the assembly seemed slightly less distressing.