A/N: Kind of a long delay on this chapter. You can see we're closing in on the end, but not there for a while yet. This chapter frankly took a lot of thought because I had several different versions I was trying to decide between. Hope you like this one.
Wade

True to form, the rain started around twenty minutes after Elizabeth and Margaret left Sudbury, and so they were thoroughly soaked and covered in black grime by the time they came to a stop in front of Pemberley. Elizabeth dearly hoped the villagers could find something to cover themselves for the journey, and that her assumption that they would be welcome turned out to be valid.

Elizabeth thought that in a better mood she might well have thought Pemberley the most beautiful estate in the world, but at that moment, 'most beautiful' was a literal translation for 'driest'. She would have been quite content with the shed her father kept his pigs in, so long as it was occupied by enough animals to keep it warm. This was not how she had expected to first see Pemberley, although to be honest, for the longest time she had never expected to see it at all.

Two footmen came racing down to help them down from the horse, both carrying umbrellas and dressed in quite fashionable livery. Much to their credit, neither man seemed to think it all that unusual for young ladies to arrive riding both astride and double, covered in mud, and neither man scrupled to assist the ladies, despite the cost to their attire.

The first footman, a rather handsome man of around Elizabeth's age said, "Allow us to assist you, Miss. Our butler is unfortunately indisposed, as is the under‑butler and the housekeeper, but If you will step inside, I am certain the mistress will want to speak with you. Robert will take the horse around to the stables."

Elizabeth liked the young man immediately, and said, "Thank you, that is very kind. Is the master at home?"

"No, ma'am. He is not expected for some days."

"Who has responsibility for the house? Excuse me, that is an impertinent question… it is just that we must discuss a matter with whomever is in charge, and we must do it immediately."

"Come inside, please, Miss. We can fetch you a bath and some clean clothes. I fear if we let you catch your death, Mrs. Reynolds will have our hides, eventually."

"Mrs. Reynolds?"

"She is the housekeeper, ma'am."

Fortunately, they had been walking as they talked, so Elizabeth stepped into the most beautiful entryway she had ever seen. Not only was it not wet, and not on fire, and not filled with either smoke or pigs – but it was beautiful in an elegant and yet understated way that she found very much to her liking. It was in some ways like Matlock, but even more so. If she had to describe it in one word, it would be 'subtle'. The furnishings were obviously well crafted and probably expensive, but much like Matlock, each piece seemed to be in exactly the right place to serve a purpose. Nothing was overly ostentatious or ornamented. Yes, she found it very much to her taste."

Margaret looked around in wonder, and said, "Lizzy, this entry is amazing."

"Yes, Margie. It is. It is… It is… well, to be honest, it is as I expected."

Margaret just smiled in a very good approximation of Jane in an ebullient mood.

As the ladies were looking Elizabeth noticed a young woman of around Lydia or Kitty's age running down the stairs, followed by an older lady of about Mrs. Bennet's age, showing much more decorum. Elizabeth presumed this must be the lady of the house.

Miss Darcy was tall, and on a larger scale than Elizabeth; and, though little more than sixteen, her figure was formed, and her appearance womanly and graceful. She was less handsome than her brother; but there was sense and good humour in her face, and her manners were perfectly unassuming and gentle.

The young lady ran up to her and said, "Oh, my goodness! Welcome to Pemberley, ladies. This is terrible. You are wet as drowned rats. Please, allow me to arrange baths, and some clean clothing, and then you can tell me what brings you."

The young lady stopped speaking, then laughed an embarrassed sound, and added, "Oh… I am a complete flibbertigibbet. I have not even done introductions, but I hope you will attribute it to concern for your welfare, and not bad manners. You see, I am usually quite shy, and nobody can get a word out edgewise, but when I get excited, I rattle on like a madwoman."

Elizabeth could not help it. She laughed uproariously about the entire episode. Margaret somewhat timidly joined her, until Miss Darcy started tittering, and all had a good laugh before they were done. At that point, she spared a small thought that this could not possibly be the girl Mr. Wickham described, so ergo, everything that man had said must be disqualified. She did not wish to think that at least half of her animosity for the master of this house was probably based on that scoundrel's words. No, she did not think that three or four times over while the three ladies did their best to act like Lydia and Kitty Bennet.

Another footman approached with two blankets and some towels. Elizabeth and Margaret looked at the quality of the materials, and the amount of grime on their sleeves in suspicion.

Miss Darcy said, "Stop that fidgeting, and wrap yourselves in those blankets. You have obviously been in a fire of some sort, and I will not have you dripping all over my clean floor."

Elizabeth laughed, and Miss Darcy laughed as well, before shyly looking at the floor and mumbling, "Please. I know I seem a bit manic at the moment, but I assure you, I am usually more reserved and polite. It is just that we are in a spot of difficulty."

"Not at all, Miss Darcy. You are doing splendidly."

Miss Darcy gave her a big smile, and said, "I am afraid you find me in charge of the manor without a very clear idea of what to do. Perhaps introductions are in order. I am, as you probably surmised, Miss Georgiana Darcy. This is my companion, Mrs. Annesley. My brother, Fitzwilliam Darcy owns the estate. How may I be of service?"

Elizabeth was curious about the lack of a housekeeper or butler, but not overly so. It was no business of hers how Pemberley was run. They gratefully took the towel from the footman and made a quick brush over her hair and the outside of her clothing, and then wrapped herself in the blanket, as Margaret did the same thing. She thanked the footman and asked for his name.

The man, who was about twenty-five and, seemingly quite friendly, gave his name, and subtly suggested to Miss Darcy that a fire might be in order. That lady took the suggestion quite to heart and bustled the pair off to a parlor on the ground floor, where the first footman who had brought them inside was already stoking the fire.

Both Elizabeth and Margaret stood near the fire to warm their hands, then turned their backs and Elizabeth started her disclosure.

"Miss Darcy, I fear my manners are lacking, but you seem quite understanding. Allow me to introduce myself and my companion. This is Miss Margaret Wythe of London. Margaret's father handles all the wool sales for Lord and Lady Matlock among others, but apparently not your brother."

"Miss Wythe, it is a pleasure to meet you. I do hope your parents are about and I might be introduced to them."

"Likewise, Miss Darcy."

Elizabeth continued, "I am Miss Elizabeth Bennet of Longbourn in Hertfordshire."

Quite to her surprise, Miss Darcy gasped, and practically shouted, "YOU are Elizabeth Bennet!"

Feeling somewhat alarmed about what part of her reputation preceded her, Elizabeth said, "Yes, last I checked. I know your brother somewhat, Miss Darcy. He stayed at Netherfield with his friend Mr. Bingley last Autumn, just three miles from my father's estate; and I encountered him again six weeks ago at Rosings, where I was visiting a friend recently married to the parson for Hunsford Parish."

Somewhat timidly, she lowered her voice, and whispered only for Miss Darcy's ears, "What have you heard, Miss Darcy? Am I welcome here? I would not cause you distress for anything in the world."

Georgiana Darcy looked at her quite confusedly, and said, "My pardon, Miss Bennet. That exclamation must have sounded unhinged. I only know that my brother wrote about you quite some number of times last Autumn, and again when he encountered you in Kent, and I just received a note that recommended you yesterday. I know he holds you in the highest esteem, but nothing more. I only reacted that way because he rarely says anything at all about young ladies he meets, so he must have been particularly impressed with you."

Elizabeth let out a huge sigh of relief, wondering why she thought it a possibility that Mr. Darcy might have confided in his sister. She doubted he had consulted with a single‑solitary‑soul and wondered if the Wythes were the only people in the world who knew of his proposal.

Elizabeth took a deep breath, and said, "Miss Darcy, we have just now traveled from Sudbury. I fear that, as you surmised, there was a fire, and we were assisting the villagers. I am afraid at least a third, and possibly half of Sudbury has been burned."

Miss Darcy gasped, and said, "Oh, no! My brother has worried about that for years. Most villages have been using stone for most buildings for some time, but Sudbury still had a lot of the old wood structures. We have been afraid this would happen, but…"

Elizabeth looked at her and said, "I imagine there is a story there, but I do not need it now. The main point is that the church stands but its roof is heavily damaged, and it is not habitable in this weather. The stables are entirely gone, and the Inn is quite damaged. Many of the villagers are without shelter."

Miss Darcy gasped in alarm, and said, "What is to be done?"

Elizabeth stared at the floor for a moment, then gathered her courage and said, "I hope you can someday forgive me, Miss Darcy, but I… well, I said that I knew your brother better than I actually do, and furthermore said they would be welcome at Pemberley. I am hoping you can give them a dry place to sleep for a few days to give themselves a chance to set the village to rights."

Georgiana said, "Of course, Miss Bennet. You are absolutely correct about my brother. They will be welcome here. Although…"

Elizabeth looked alarmed when the young lady stopped, and prompted her, "… Although… what, Miss Darcy?"

Miss Darcy looked alarmed, and said, "Only, I am not certain it is wise. You see… well… I am so confused."

Elizabeth saw what looked like the young lady's courage crumbling right in front of her eyes and could not help but be sympathetic.

Gently, she asked, "Start at the beginning, Miss Darcy. Perhaps I may be of assistance, and if not, Mr. and Mrs. Wythe should be here within the hour."

Georgiana said, "I am not even certain we should have allowed you inside, Miss Bennet. You see, our housekeeper, butler, under‑butler and a few servants have been taken with Measles. Do you know of Measles, Miss Bennet?"

"Yes, I nearly died from it in the outbreak of '08 when I was sixteen. I was confined to my bed for some time, so I made my father procure all the medical books he could get his hands on. I am quite well versed in the disease."

Georgiana said, "Well, I am glad, for I have no idea what to do. Mrs. Reynolds instructed us to quarantine all of them on the second floor in the guest wing. It is well isolated from the rest of the house, and she thought that it was not necessary to quarantine the whole house. Now… well, what should I do, Miss Bennet?"

Elizabeth felt all the panic of having been in Pemberley for all of a quarter hour and already being expected to advise on household matters, but since she was mostly fixing problems that she had created herself, she knew that her courage would have to rise to the challenge. She was at least four or five years older than Miss Darcy, and probably slightly more worldly, so a little advice would not be amiss.

Her hesitation seemed to be too much for Miss Darcy, who asked, "Miss Bennet, might I speak to you privately?"

Elizabeth did not like the sound of that question all that much but agreed, and she walked a dozen paces across the room dragging her blanket behind her.

"Miss Bennet, I am afraid I did not tell you everything my brother wrote about you."

Elizabeth gasped in consternation, wondering just how bad things were.

Gritting her teeth, she said, "Go on, Miss Darcy."

Georgiana Darcy said, "He wrote just a fortnight ago, privately and asked me to keep his confidence."

With a sinking feeling, Elizabeth said, "What did he say?"

Georgiana said, "Please do not look so frightened, Miss Bennet. It was certainly nothing bad or shocking. He said that he had acted badly to you in a certain matter and hoped to set things right when he met you again. He was not explicit, and I would not intrude on your business by asking, but he would very much like to talk to you."

Elizabeth nodded, and said, "I have things to say to him as well, but that is tomorrow's problem."

Looking very relieved, Georgiana said, "Oh yes, let us discuss today's problem. I hope you do not in any way feel that you have overstepped your bounds or done anything improper. My brother, and my father before him, and my grandfather before him, taught us from the cradle that care of everyone within our sphere of influence was a duty of any good landowner. You only did what he would have done were he here."

Elizabeth breathed a large sigh of relief, and said, "Your brother and I do have our differences, Miss Darcy, but we should be able to resolve them amicably if I am still in the county when he returns. I am traveling with the Wythes and must abide their movements."

"They are welcome at Pemberley as long as they wish to stay, and I strongly suspect my brother would like to meet them anyway. We sent an express for him two days ago when we found the outbreak of Measles, so he should be back within the week. I also sent one to Matlock and hope to have my aunt or uncle here within a day or two."

Elizabeth nodded, wondering if she would have the courage to face Mr. Darcy when the time arrived.

"There is one more thing he said, Miss Elizabeth."

"Yes."

"He said that I could learn much from you, and also that I should trust you implicitly."

Elizabeth gasped, and said, "How could he possibly know that I would arrive in such a state."

"I suspect he was just being diligent. I do trust you though. Will you help me?"

Elizabeth nodded, and said, "Of course, what can I do?"

Georgiana very forwardly grabbed Elizabeth's hand and pulled her out of the room, and into the formal dining room where quite a large number of servants, some of whom seemed to work outside the house was gathered and addressed them.

"This is Miss Elizabeth Bennet, and her good friend Miss Margaret Wythe. Miss Bennet is well known to my brother and has his implicit trust. She has agreed to help us in this difficult time, and so I would ask you to treat her suggestions as orders."

Elizabeth gasped and wanted to shout at the upstart young lady like she would Lydia when she was being very naughty, but Miss Darcy looked like she was not particularly up to having her very first bit of management of a household, when she was not even out yet, be the housing of forty or fifty people from a village. Elizabeth on the other hand had been active in her community for some time and had participated in management of fairs and the like for years. She felt that she had a fairly good idea of what to do.

Elizabeth sighed, but then stood up straight. There was nothing to be gained by cowering in the corner. It had done her no good thus far, and it was time for someone to act like a mistress. It was only for a few days. How bad could it be?