Chapter 3

So sorry for the long wait! Too much work is my only excuse, hope you enjoy despite the spelling errors!

Mrs. Reynolds hardly had time to announce the arrival of the Bennets before Mrs. Bennet's exclamations could be heard in the outside hallway. "Oh what a very long journey! I am in a terrible state and am sure I shall have to lie down before dinner! My nerves are no longer up to such a trip!"

The Darcy's exchanged a glance and managed to stand in time for their unexpected guests to arrive in the door way.

"Lizzy!" Mrs. Bennet nearly shrieked on sight of her second oldest daughter. As Elizabeth was the mistress of the house and quite the richest of her daughters she felt it appropriate to greet her first. "Oh how I've missed you!" she wailed, embracing Elizabeth "and you as well Jane, you don't know what a trial it is to sit alone all day long with no one to even speak a word to, now that Mary is gone."

"Well, well, I like that, no one" Mr. Bennet said, smiling at his daughters and waiting a turn to greet them properly.

"Hello Mama, we didn't expect you" Elizabeth said composedly.

"Oh well yes, I couldn't bear to be away from you any more, you don't know how lonely it is at Longbourn" Mrs. Bennet chattered.

"Yes Lizzy, I would say it has been quite lonely for the past twelve years" Mr. Bennet said, taking Elizabeth's hand "and when your mother heard that Jane and Bingley were to come and see you she decided she must see her two favorite daughters, and you know how difficult it is to dissuade her once she has got an idea, especially when you're not very apposed to it yourself" he finished with a smile, greeting Jane and Mr. Bingley as well.

"Oh yes, my two dear daughters, it's such a comfort for me that you are both so very rich" Mrs. Bennet had not changed in twelve years except perhaps to age, and gain some few pounds, though she denied both vehemently.

"Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, we are glad to receive you, I will have Mrs. Reynolds prepare you a room" Mr. Darcy finally got a word in edgewise as Mrs. Bennet greeted Jane with similar theatrics.

"You are too kind Mr. Darcy" Mrs. Bennet gushed "is not he the kindest of men?" she turned to her husband to support her statement but Emma piped up first.

"Oh yes! Papa is the kindest man ever!" she said fervently, this brought Mr. Darcy's smile back, after the slight shock of having been descended upon by his less than pleasant mother-in-law and without even a proper warning to prepare himself with.

Though it wasn't a total surprise as it had happened before, Mr. Bennet rather liked dropping in when he was least expected. Mr. Darcy had first suspected him of checking to see that his favorite daughter was being well cared for, and then later simply to escape his wife for a time.

Mr. Bennet laughed at Emma's statement "well, well, how's my favorite granddaughter?" he asked, receiving a hug from the little girl that reminded him so very much of his own little girl now grown and married.

"Fine Grandpapa, but you can't say I'm your favorite, Rose, Angela and Beth are here" Emma said, hugging him about the waist.

"Yes of course, they are my other favorite granddaughters" Mr. Bennet relented greeting his other grandchildren, who returned the greeting politely but with less enthusiasm than Emma.

Jane stood "I really must go check on the twins" she said moving gracefully towards the door, Mr. Bingley followed her and the Bennets made their exit shortly there after as Mrs. Bennet claimed a head ach coming on and needed to go to her room. The children, feeling they were once again free to do some playing instead of sitting politely, departed to investigate the "nursery" which had been turned into a play room as the family had no governess.

This was something their mother had deiced, despite the fact that Lady Catherine de Bourgh was always sending her the name of some governess or another and telling her just how she ought to be raising, her children, the Darcy offspring, in her quarterly letter.

Left alone Mr. Darcy offered his wife his arm, Elizabeth accepted it with a sigh "now all we need is for your esteemed Aunt to show up and the party will be complete."

"My Aunt is it. I beg your pardon Ma'am, but when I married you I had to accept your relatives, I believe you have to claim mine as well."

"Is that in the Marriage contract?" Elizabeth asked smiling.

"I declare, I haven't had such a lovely dinner in a long time!" Miss Bingley said delicately taking a spoonful of soup.

"I thought you liked our dinner's sister" Mr. Bingley said.

"Oh, I meant of course the company" Miss Bingley replied.

"Certainly!" cried Mrs. Bennet "it is so nice to have a full table, you don't know how quiet it is at Longbourn now! I wanted to visit my dear Lydia and Wickham, but Mr. Bennet will not hear of it and refuses to oblige me" she said the last with the air of a martyr, but got no pity from any others at the table.

"Have you seen Mary recently?" Elizabeth asked.

"Oh, not so long ago, she is quite fine, I am most disappointed that she married such a pour man, when she had other choices I am sure" Mrs. Bennet fretted.

"But Mama, she is very happy with Mr. Kirkpatrick" Elizabeth protested.

"I daresay she writes his sermons" Mr. Bennet chuckled.

Mrs. Bennet ignored him, continuing where she had left off "yes, she seems to be, I only hope it will last, she could have been just as happy I am sure with a much richer man."

"Have you heard from Kitty lately Elizabeth?" Jane spoke up, thinking of their other absent sister.

"Yes, in fact I had a letter from her just a few weeks ago" Elizabeth answered, pausing in her meal "she is doing well, as are her children and husband, she spoke of many household maters. I believe married life has quite settled her."

"Oh, yes, Kitty, what high hopes I had for her" Mrs. Bennet sighed "here she had such superior company with you and Jane and then she goes and marries an American! If she had only had the sense I taught her to use she would have at least married an Englishman!"

"Mama" Jane reminded her mother politely "Mr. Stebbins is and Englishman, he is only living in America, as it suits his busyness of trade."

"Well, if one is too live in America, one is an American!" Mrs. Bennet huffed "and never thinking twice about how he would take my daughter away from me, quite an unfeeling man!"

Emma pushed her food around on her plate, she didn't like this course, the soup not being to her liking, and the conversation was boring as well. She had never met her aunt Kitty, and besides that, dinners where you had company and were supposed to be quiet were not much fun.

She nudged Peter under the table with her foot, and silently offered him her bowl of soup. Peter was always hungry, and the siblings, sneakily switched dishes.

Rather like her daughter, Elizabeth was eager to change the subject and asked Miss Bingley how her time in London the past year had been, hoping to get her mother on a new track.

"Oh, delightful, I assure you, I met ever so many nice young ladies coming out, so very accomplished! And some very nice young men as well."

Did you happen to meet Mr. Harris?" asked Mrs. Bennet with interest "I hear he is the catch of the year!"

"Yes I did meet him, and found him greatly lacking, not half so many manners as a gentleman ought to have, He didn't fit my ideal at all I assure you!"

"Is that why you never married Aunt Caroline?" Emma asked, used to taking dinners with just her family and talking as she liked.

"My, my, impertinent just like her mother when I first met her, but them I am sure she couldn't help it, I do believe Mr. Darcy rather likes impertinence." Miss Bingley said, then fearing she may have gone too far fell silent.

"You must discern quite a bit in your choice of husband" Mr. Bennet said, smiling as he enjoyed the ridiculousness of the conversation coming from his wife and Miss Bingley.

"Oh! I assure you I do, and I certainly don't have to marry, I enjoy the freedom being unmarried gives me. And truly I just never could find a man I liked well enough to consider marriage" Caroline said offhandedly, delicately buttering her bread. Mrs. Darcy chocked on the drink she had just taken from her glass and went into a coughing fit.

The talk in the sitting room that evening ran a little long, as the ladies seemed to have much to catch up on, and Mr. Bingley cornered Mr. Bennet with some questions that had the to gentlemen talking quite animatedly.

Mr. Darcy, as rude as it was, took his leave with the excuse that he had some business to take care of. He found himself fatigued with the chatter of his mother-in-law and needing a brake, sought some peace and quiet in his study. He left the door slightly open so that in case he was sent for the servants would know they could gain entrance. He hadn't been sitting in the quiet for long though when the door pushed quietly open and Emma slipped in, dressed in her nightgown and dragging a blanket with her.

"Is every thing alright Emma?" He asked, concerned she had been frightened by something.

"No" Emma shook her head, crawling into his lap without and invitation and settling down, Mr. Darcy, a man rather known around the London ballrooms for his stern and sometimes even cold aloofness, was quite a different picture with his small daughter on his lap.

"Well, if you are not frightened, what brings you here?" Mr. Darcy asked, gently brushing away her tangled curls that were escaping the braid they had been forced into.

"You forgot to come and say goodnight to me" Emma said with a yawn, snuggling closer."

"Oh, I see" Fitzwilliam Darcy smiled "in that case, should I say it now?"

"Mm-hmm"

"Goodnight Emma, sweet dreams" he held her for only a few more minutes before he was sure by her relaxed posture that she was asleep.

"Master?' Mrs. Reynolds poked her head in the door after knocking quietly and Darcy motioned for her to be quiet.

"Oh, the poor dear, shall I take her up to her room?" Mrs. Reynolds asked in a whisper.

Darcy shook his head, "I shall do it." In truth he wouldn't miss it for all the world, and carefully carried his daughter up the stairs to her room where he tucked the sleeping child into the blankets.

Pausing in the door way he whispered one more good night, and couldn't help thinking that though Mrs. Bennet's company was rather disagreeable, without her he wouldn't have the little angel now sleeping peacefully in her bed, nor yet Elizabeth, the angel he had fallen in love with.

Suddenly Mrs. Bennet's company was much less detestable and he felt a great need to see Elizabeth again, though they had been scarcely parted for half an hour.

so very sorry for the mistakes, I fixed the ones brought to my attention. again, so sorry!