Newcastle, 1830

Mrs. Wickham did not realize it was her wedding anniversary until Amy came in with the parcel. It was a unusual big parcel, wrapped in fine white paper and addressed in Mrs. Bingleys beautiful handwriting. Mrs. Bingley sent frequent letters but other than on the children birthdays she never send parcels. Only on that dreadful day in late august she felt the need to send something more than words up to Newcastle.

Mrs. Wickham did not appreciate being reminded of her wedding anniversary. This year the day would mark 18 years of marriage to her husband. She was now longer a married lady than she had been a maiden at her fathers house.

It was save to say that at 34, the novelty and excitement of married life had certainly worn off Mrs. Wickham. Her union with soldier George Wickham had brought her a cramped house in a not quite fashionable town of Newcastle, a mostly drunken or absent husband, two over-worked maids and nine loud children. It was not at all what she had imagined at 16 or what she would want her own daughters to experience.

But as much as she hated the day, Mrs. Wickham did not want to tell her sister to stop sending her something. For one, she did not want to disappoint Mrs. Bingley, who so loved to do her correspondence, and secondly the Wickhams could always use the gifts.

This year her sister had sent some of the fancy soap they produced in London, some books for the boys, a pearl necklace for Mrs. Wickham and new bonnets for her daughters. Mrs. Wickham immediately set the pearls aside for her oldest daughters next ball. She did not doll herself up anymore, she had stopped even trying after Imogens birth, but she did take very apparent pride in her daughters.

„Hurry up, Mama, I have to be at work in half an hour.", her oldest son Benjamin stopped Mrs. Wickhams thoughts on balls and sons in law. He was sixteen now and since last year he had started working in an office belonging to one of the factory owners. He was good with numbers and while he made little money now, he always assured his mother that he would soon make some big numbers and start helping her with the rent. She did not care that much, as long as she had not have to part with him as she had to part with the twins. Curt and Daniel had left them just last month to join one of the ships of the East India Company.

„Can I take Effie later on to visit Gracie? She wanted to show us her new piano.", Amy asked, juggling one of her younger siblings in her arms and trying to smooth her long hair that had gotten tangled with little hands playing in it.

A frown went over Mrs. Wickhams face. Gracie lived in the neighboring part of town and was a nice enough girl. Her family on the other hand was something Mrs. Wickham had always been wary of. Gracie lived with her older brother Jack at her grandfathers house. And while that grandfather was certainly rich, nobody really knew where his riches came from and what he did with them. His grandchildren practically ruled the house, which had given Jack quite a reputation with the ladies and also with unwarranted fights and violence. Mrs. Wickham knew she would have found the family highly fascinating if she had been her daughters age, but now, after all that life had taught her, she did not see their appeal at all.

„Must you go? Surely Gracie can visit us for a bit tomorrow if you want to see her again so badly.", she offered her oldest daughter, already knowing that the argument was lost.

„You forgot the piano, Mama. Do not worry for us, Gracies brother will not even be home. And I can take Katie too, to give you less work.", Amy offered with a slight smile gracing her pretty face. „And if you want we take the wagon with us to get you the new coals when we get back home."

Mrs. Wickham sighed. She had no other choice than to let the girls go. Even if Amy had offered nothing in return she would have let her oldest go off. It was all she could do to make up to all the endless times Amy had cooked dinner, taken care of sick siblings, cleaned diapers and put the wine away if her mother was starting to have a glass too many. And all that she had done without complaining even once. She truly was the child Mrs. Wickham did not deserve but would have gone mad without.

So Amy and her two little sisters went to visit Gracie after breakfast. They had put little Katie in the coal wagon and were pulling her through the crowded streets, chatting away cheerfully.

—

To Effie there was noting better than going out with her older sister. In a house full of brothers Imogen had been a very boyish little girl but now, at thirteen years of age, she did not want to be sorted with the boys anymore. She practically soaked up everything her older sister said or did, taking her as the example of how a desirable young woman should act. Amy was beautiful and charming and men looked after her wherever she went. But most importantly, Amy was friends with Gracie and Jack.

„Do you really think Jack will not be home today, Amy? He promised to show me the new knife he got from London.", she asked a bit worriedly. Effie knew better than to ask such things in front of their Mama but now, safe between the many people walking around the streets, she voiced every thought that came trough her curious head.

„Do not worry, Sweetheart. You will get to see that knife - even if I do not know how something so horrid can interest you so much.", Amy smiled at her little sister. She knew how insecure the girl sometimes was and wanted to make sure not to make her feel wrong for being interested in the strangest things. Even if knifes where truly a strange topic for a girl her age!

„Well I for one do not see how something so horrid as a Jacks unshaved face can interest you so much!", Effie giggled and quickly dashed to the side as Amy tried to nudge her into the side for that comment.

„Do be quiet, Miss Effie Wickham. You know how hurt Mama would get, if something like that would ever reach her ears." Amys scolding was only light hearted. She knew Effie would never say a word about either Jack or Gracie, she enjoyed visiting them way too much. Mama would have understood if she had seen how they were in the privacy of their home or how much fun one could have with them, but Mama did not see that and so there was no reason to tell her everything going one.

They arrived in a more fashionable part of town now. Effie looked down her dress. It had seemed so pretty in the morning light in the room the girls shared. Now it just looked old and faded, the blue not even looking properly blue anymore. She eyed her older sister from the side. Amys dress had the same washed out look, but with her it almost looked intentionally. She had done her light hair up and her white neck looked worthy to be painted.

„Can you put my hair up too?", Effie asked her sister right before they stopped at their destination.

„Do not be ridiculous now, Effie. How would we look right on the street doing your hair?", Amy stopped the wagon and grabbed inside to get little Katie out. The toddler was blabbering something, giving them a cheeky grin.

Effie thought to herself that she would feel no more ridiculous than she felt now, but she kept that thought to herself, as the big door was opened. It was Gracie herself that opened the door and ushered them inside.

Gracie was not as pretty as Amy was. She had chubby cheeks and unruly brown hair that reminded Effie of her own. But she was the most jolly and fun person Effie knew: „Do come in girls! I have been waiting for ages know, as I had the most dreadful sleep and woke up at such an ungodly hour. Not even you could have been awake so early, Amy. Now do not look so serious and give me little Katie there, I have not hold a baby in ages! And let us proceed to the billiard room, the others are already in there and practically starving as I forced them to wait with the food until you came along.", Gracie chatted along, while they crossed richly furnished rooms and hectic servants.

They got into a salon Gracie had titled as the billiard room. There really was a billiard table inside, but also a bar, a big concert piano and plushy cushions where laying around everywhere. The dining table was so low one had to sit on the floor to eat anything; Gracie had told her once that it was how the Arabs did it. Effie could not really imagine that a whole society would forego real tables, but it always made for a funny time sitting on the floor and eating the exotic food Gracie offered.

The salon was already full of people when they arrived. A girl was sitting not in front of but on the big piano while a young man was playing a fast tune on the fine instrument. Two young gentlemen were playing billiard while another girl was actually laying on the carpet, sketching away one a big piece of paper.

„Look who I have found outside! Amy brought not only little Effie with her but also this adorable baby. I am going to keep it if it stays so quiet all this time!", Gracie laughed as she sunk between some big cushions.

„Finally! Amy, you should not have made us wait so long, I was so close to opening all of Jacks gin bottles, so hungry was I.", one of the young men complained before kissing them both on the cheeks and sinking beside Gracie.

„That is certainly due to your alcoholism and not to our being late, Mister.", Amy slapped her friend playfully and reached for Katie, scolding Gracie in her next breath: „Now do not give her steak, you silly goose. Do you want to make the poor little Darling choke?", Amy reached into Katies mouth and pulled the meat out. „Now give me some of the light bread there, that will just be fine for her to eat."

After Amys harsh words, they all started eating. While Effie was having cheese, strawberries and chocolate cake in happy chaos, she watched her sisters friends elegantly hold cigars, exchange confusing stories and laugh louder than polite society would have allowed.

Effie was very proud of her sister. Even in her old dress and with a baby on her lap Amy fitted right in with everyone. Her friends had been all over England, one had even been on the continent, while the Wickham sisters had never left Newcastle. But still Amy seemed every jot the worldly lady. Maybe it were her strict words paired with the soft almost smile, maybe it was her beautiful figure or the naturalness she had while sitting on a pillow in a lavish sitting room, the sleeping Katie in her arms.

„Now, Miss Effie, should you not be at home studying? Last time I checked, girls your age were not found in societies like ours.", Dmitrys voice always sounded exotic to Effie. He had come from Russia when he was her age and worked alongside Gracies brother.

„You are not giving us enough credit, Dmitry. Where could you learn more about life than with us?", one of the other young men laughed. „Do you want something to drink, little one?", he offered her a glass with some clear inside. Gracie wanted to grab it but was quickly stopped by her sister.

„She is still a child of thirteen years, idiot, and certainly not the one you should try to make drunk. Now Effie, take some of the apple cider and eat some more of the pineapple, we will not get it again for a very long time, Darling"

„And here I was thinking I would be the only one you called Darling, Amy. Effie, we might have to fight each other in a duel now."

Effie turned around, when she heard his deep voice from the door. She did not need to turn around to know that Jack was finally back.

—

I am so glad you liked the last chapter! Now this one made a big time lapse, as we are now eighteen years after pride and prejudice ended and almost exactly where my story will properly start. Please read and review as always :-) the positive, the negative, I love to hear every thought or suggestion you have for „her sisters children"