Elizabeth paused once again on her way up the stairs, bracing herself for the oncoming contraction.
"Lizzy, will you not allow me to help you? It is apparent you are in a great amount of pain; it pains me to see you so and not be able to assist you." Mr. Darcy grimaced as Elizabeth squeezed his injured hand. She was beginning to break a sweat, her face red. Elizabeth let out a small cry.
"Darcy…" Not receiving an answer beyond that Mr. Darcy scooped her up in his arms and carried her up the remaining flight of stairs. The pain in his arm nearly made him cry out, but he checked himself, not wishing to worry an already distraught Mrs. Darcy. He set her down on the bed and moved out of the way of Jane. Jane rushed to Elizabeth's side and began preparing to receive the baby. Mr. Darcy did not wish to leave just yet, but was prompted to by the midwife. He quickly planted a kiss on Elizabeth's forehead.
"You'll do fine, Elizabeth. I love you," he murmured in her ear. She gazed at him before returning his kiss.
"I love you too. Now go, love. This is not going to get any prettier." She smiled at him slightly before he departed. As he closed the door he could hear her cry out in pain.
"Darcy, you look as if you've seen a ghost. Do not worry, Jane will take good care of her. Few women actually die of childbirth nowadays." Mr. Bingley exclaimed over Mr. Darcy's haggard appearance.
"Ah! Must you bring that up? especially when my own mother died in childbirth?" Mr. Darcy sighed. "I hate to think of losing her."
"I must admit I was just as anxious when Jane had Adelaide. Nothing you said could ease my worries." Mr. Bingley confessed this with great sincerity, looking kindly at Mr. Darcy, whose present state of mind closely resembled what his own had been.
"Yes, you blabbered on as if the world was coming to an end. If you hadn't been my friend I might have laughed at such a comical sight; though you must confess you always take an active part in any conversation, no matter what the subject." Mr. Darcy stopped pacing to smile at his friend knowingly.
"You know me too well, Darcy. It is true I am quick to jump into conversations; I always wish for my opinion to be heard. You, however, never participate unless forced."
"That is not true, I participate frequently. Unlike you, however, I do not always wish my opinion be heard; I know when to hold my tongue." The two gentlemen smiled at each other a moment before Elizabeth's wail brought them back to the present. Mr. Darcy paled, and resumed his pacing.
Jane joined the men in the hallway saying, "Elizabeth is doing fine, Mr. Darcy, calm yourself. I believe it will only be another hour before she is ready to give birth." Mr. Darcy stopped pacing to stare at her before replying,
"Only an hour! By God…is there no way I can see her?" He ran his hands through his hair, anxious to see his wife.
"No, believe me, you do not wish to go in there. Lizzy is in a terrible mood, and I can't blame her. Things will start to get ugly soon, and I must return. Mama! What are you doing here? I thought you were helping Papa with Lydia?" Jane flushed from the surprise at seeing her mother; goodness knows if she knew what was happening in the next room with out her.
"Jane! You are so accusatory! Is that any way to greet your mama? Lydia is up, your Papa is taking care of her. I thought I heard a strange cry…what ever is the matter? I thought at first Wickham had returned, but then it stopped and I thought not. Please do not keep secrets from your mama, tell me, what is happening?" Mrs. Bennet insisted upon Jane's admitting the situation, though no matter how persistent she was, Jane would not confess to her the facts. Mrs. Bennet had made her personal experience a horror, and Jane did not wish for the same fate to befall her sister.
"I am sorry, Mama, I did not mean to sound so accusatory. Lizzy is not in the best of moods, she is terribly upset about Wickham's interference. She is having a crying jag at the present, I had best return." Jane hastily slipped into the room, making sure her mother did not see the true occurrence of the evening. Before she left she eyed Mr. Darcy and her husband, communicating that they were in charge of distracting her. The two men exchanged a glance before turning to Mrs. Bennet.
"My poor Lizzy, she did have quite the run-in tonight." Seeing Mr. Darcy's bleeding arm, "Oh, Mr. Darcy, your arm, it has not yet been tended to. The doctor has not arrived yet, I am absolutely certain he will be here soon. Do you want me to aid you? It needs proper attention, Mr. Bingley do help me persuade him. It will become infected if we do not do something soon, and then you will die. Oh! You will die before you meet your child; Lizzy will be a widow! Oh, Mr. Darcy, do let me help you, I would hate to have such terrible things happen. Mr. Bingley, do help me, he is so stubborn."
Mr. Bingley laughed at her last statement. "Yes, I daresay he can be at times. Come Darcy, even if you will not let Mrs. Bennet aid you, at least let someone else. We certainly can not allow you to die with a wife and child to support." Mr. Bingley tried to suppress his laughter and nearly succeeded, he allowed a couple of chuckles to escape. Before Mr. Darcy to reply, Mrs. Bennet cut him short.
"Oh! I can not wait to be a grandmamma! Of course I already am, but I wish it to happen again! It will not be long; I do wish Lizzy would let me help her, she is so stubborn." This odd bit of foreshadowing struck the two gentlemen as entirely comical, and they had to work hard to suppress any smiles or laughs that may surface.
"I will allow someone to tend to my injury if you return to Mrs. Wickham, she has more want of your services than I." Mr. Darcy calmly complied, ignoring his own mention of the name 'Wickham'.
"Ah, Mr. Darcy this certainly is an odd request, especially coming from you. Nevertheless, I will do as you ask. Take care to…" They did not hear the rest of her advice on account of her not stopping to make sure they heard her. Finally, she was out of sight. Yet another wail from Elizabeth; Mr. Darcy resumed his pacing.
Another half of an hour passed in a like manner. The two gentlemen were silent, both meditating on their own thoughts. Cries were heard from Elizabeth increasingly throughout the evening. The later it got, the more distressed Mr. Darcy became.
Finally, Jane emerged from the room., the baby crying in the background. Mr. Darcy jumped up from his seat. Motioning for him to follow, they entered the now silent room.
"She's a little girl." Jane murmured to him. Mr. Darcy gazed at his exhausted wife and daughter. Elizabeth was sweating profusely, her hair matted with it. Smiling, in her arms she held their newly born daughter.
"Is she not beautiful? She looks just like you." Elizabeth, tears in her eyes, smiled up at her husband before returning her attention to the child in her arms.
"She is magnificent. Oh, Elizabeth, darling, I am so glad you are alright. My poor nerves could not handle it if…" They both laughed heartily at his joke before staring at their gorgeous daughter. "Truly, Elizabeth, I am glad you are okay. I would have hated to lose you. My own mother died in childbirth…" Mr. Darcy looked at his wife lovingly.
"Hush, Mr. Darcy. I am perfectly alright. I was more worried about you, earlier when Wickham came at you…" Elizabeth shut her eyes at the sheer memory of it, the short while ago it was. Mr. Darcy kissed her forehead.
"Lizzy…" They kissed passionately. The baby started to waken, yawning; she was handed over to Mr. Darcy. He looked into her eyes and said,
"She has your eyes."
OMYGOSH! my first f.f. story to be finished, i am giddy w/ glee! review, please! also, tell me what i should start on after The Reurn to Pemberley, (see my profile page). hehe!