A/NSorry for the delay. RL has been a pain with papers and thesis projects. I don't know how often I will be posting for the next couple of weeks, but as summer approaches, I look forward to more regular updates returning.
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"Jane!" Lizzie spun to see her beloved older sister standing at the door.

"Why do you always take her side?" Lydia cried.

"Lyddie, that is enough." Lizzie was surprised at Jane's harsh voice. "You have always been blind to the crimes of your husband. I have indulged your wishes for money at every turn, but can you not see what he has done? Remember you are a guest and as such, you must obey the wishes of the master and the mistress that own it."

Everyone was silent.

"Well, my darling. I always knew you could silence the Darcy house." Charles appeared behind her after a few seconds of the uncomfortable silence. "Hello, Darcy! Sorry to intrude. Glad we did though." Lizzie was glad the Bingley's had arrived. They were always calm and collected, and never stopped smiling. They had that effect on the others around them as well.

"Bingley. Could I speak to you for a moment in my study?" William unwrapped his arms from Lizzie's body and she felt cold and exposed. Charles nodded and followed William into the shared study.

"Lizzie, why don't you go and rest. I will come find you later." Jane was closer to Lizzie now. "I have much to tell you." She embraced her lightly and Lizzie reciprocated.

"Why can I not know?" Lydia whined next to her two older sisters.

"Because all you do is gossip. I have had to apologize for you many times in town since you and your husband have returned, and I will not have you run anyone elses names through the mud."

If Lizzie was not worried before, she was worried now. Jane never talked like this, to anyone. Had so much really changed in the few months that they had been apart. Yes, Jane and Charles went on their honeymoon across Europe while Lizzie and William had stayed behind in England. They celebrated their return with a large family diner, and somewhere between that dinner and today, Jane had transformed into a different person.

oOo

"So, how have you been Bingley?" Darcy rested his weight on his hands, which had come to rest themselves on the desk. He realized how tired he was

"What do you really want to know Darce?" William turned around. Bingley now looked grave and stern, much like his own look, as he had been told by Lizzie.

""It is not what I want to know, it is what I want you to know." He went off on his story, starting from Georgiana and ending with today. Bingley found a way to one of the more comfortable chairs in the room and Darcy joined him. As he ended the tale, Bingley just sat there.

And the two of them remained like that for what seemed to be hours, until Bingley finally decided to speak. "That explains so much Darce. Those months you refused to leave Pemberley, you sudden departure from your Aunt's. I went to see you there what is now shortly after you left. It also accounts for your manner in London. But why would he return a year after your wedding. He must have known-"

"Mrs. Wickham has been asking my wife for money for some time. I suspect she has been doing the same with Mrs. Bingley, and probably her parents."

Bingley looked stunned. "But how do you know?"

"Mrs. Darcy told me. I do not know about your wife, or her parents, but I suspect after your wife's change in behavior that I have just witnesses-"

"I know that she has asked my wife for money. That is one of the many reasons why she is behaving so out of character."

"One of the reasons?"

"I think it better to come from your wife." Charles smiled sadly and returned to his drink.

oOo

Jane had successfully managed to banish Lydia from the house. There was much screaming and fussing on Lydia's part, but Jane and Lizzie both managed to keep their voices down, a kind tongue in their heads, and didn't resort to force. Now the two sisters were sitting in the sun room, light keeping the cold at bay.

"Jane, what is wrong?" Lizzie couldn't stand the silence anymore.

"It is a combination of several things, Lizzie." Jane shifted on the couch.

"Well?" Lizzie stood and took the seat next to her.

"I was forced to banish Caroline from both London House and Netherfield. She was just too uncontrollable. She became desperate to ruin my name and when she couldn't, she began trying to ruin everyone around her. She hired women to seduce Charles's friends and my friends husbands, she tried to send a woman to seduce Charles, things just got so out of hand and we were forced to banish her to the north. Charles and I have practically disowned her, say for the small allowance we send." Lizzie grasped Jane's hand.

"Jane. I am sorry. I am glad I don't have that problem to deal with." Jane fidgeted in her seat. "But that is not all, is it?"
"No, Lizzie. You know how I wrote to say that I had good news." Lizzie nodded, remembering how happy Jane sounded in the letter. "Well, that news has changed. I was coming with Charles to tell you I was with child. But when Caroline left right before we came, she paid one of the servants to put something in the dinner and I..." Jane trailed off and tears fell down her face.

"What did that wench do to you?" Lizzie's hand tightened around her sisters.

"I lost the baby." Jane broke down sobbing.

Lizzie wrapped her arms around her sister and held her tight, rocking her back and forth like they used to when they were comforting each other as children. The door opened and both William and Mr. Bingley stepped into the room. Lizzie stood and let Jane's husband take her place and took William's arm. She directed him outside to give her sister privacy.

"What is wrong with Jane, Lizzie?" He stopped and pulled her into an embrace.

"Where to begin. All her sorrows are due to Caroline Bingley, though. That you can be sure." She stepped away and a little farther down the hall, opening the next door into one of the smaller sitting rooms.

"What do you mean?" William stepped in behind her and closed the door.

Lizzie sat in one of the chairs. "Caroline tried to ruin the family by hiring women off the streets to seduce some of Mr. Bingley's friends. Then when she found out Jane was with child just when the were banishing her to the north, she bribed a servant to feed Jane something to make her lose the baby."

She heard William sit indelicately in the chair next to her, making the chair scratch the floor a little. Then the door opened and Mr. Bingley and Jane stepped into the room, taking the couch across from Lizzie and her husband. Jane was still lightly crying and the two were still clutching each other's hands. The door knocked and Mrs. Reynolds stepped into the room.

"Excuse me sir." She looked from couple to couple, obviously aware to the unhappiness in the room.

"Yes, Mrs. Reynolds?" William turned his head to look at her.

"Miss Caroline Bingley has arrived. She is trying to convince some of the staff that she was allowed to stay here for an indefinite amount of time."