Ooops or Consequence & Consequences Chapter 9, a pride and prejudice fanfic

As I've said on many occasions. I love your comments and the ideas you are giving me. I should warn you though. Sometimes I take your ideas and give them a twist…

btw I thought I might change the name of the story to "Consequence & Consequences". What do you think?

The Duchess has arrived at last. I hope you enjoy.

~~~o0o~~~

It was mid-afternoon when the Bennet and Gardiner carriages pulled up in the courtyard at Barrington. They had left Longbourn on the previous day to make the journey easier.

As soon as the footman opened the door and placed the step, Mr Bennet was the first to exit. He turned back to hand out his wife, who nearly missed the step when she saw the size of the house.

'Mr Bennet, where are we?'

'Welcome to our new home, Mr Bennet.'

'Please do not be so cruel and make fun of me again.'

'My dear Mrs Bennet, I am quite serious, this is the house Uncle George bequeathed to us.'

'But this is a palace. You gave me the impression that your uncle had left you a small house.'

'I am sorry, my dear. I had hoped to surprise you.'

'But this house is fit for a King.'

'As a matter of fact, it is fit for a Duke, and his Duchess.'

Before Mrs Bennet could protest again, Elizabeth and Jane stepped forward, attracting Mrs Bennet's attention. 'Welcome to Barrington, Mother.' Elizabeth smiled at the stunned look on Mrs Bennet's face.

'Welcome, Mama. Please come inside, it is too chilly out here to linger.' Jane also greeted her mother.

The Duke, now Mr Bennet no longer, offered his arm to his bewildered wife and led her into the house. Jane accompanied them, and guided them to a small parlour which had been refurbished.

'Tea has been provided for you. We will ensure that you can speak privately,' Jane informed her parents, before leaving and closing the door.

Mrs Bennet looked around the cosy room, which was one of the smaller chambers in the house and had been decorated to feel warm and inviting. The newly upholstered chairs and sofas matched the curtains and complimented the new wallpaper. A cheery fire warmed the room.

The tea-service had been set up on a small table by the window.

The Duke seated his wife at the table with exaggerated courtesy, and invited her to pour the tea.

Mrs Bennet, in need of fortification, complied, adding extra sugar to her own cup. 'What is going on, Mr Bennet? You led me to believe that your uncle left you a small house, but this is a palace. You did say, this was our new house, did you not?'

'Yes, my dear, this is our new house. I waited to tell you the rest of our good fortune because I did not think you would believe me without seeing this for yourself.'

The Duke took his wife's hand and smiled at her. 'I do not know whether you heard the rumours that great-grandfather Bennet was related to the nobility.'

'I heard some talk about it, but I was convinced it was just that, empty talk.' Mrs Bennet said, although she was starting to suspect that there might have been some truth in the rumour.

Her husband confirmed her suspicion. 'It was entirely true. Great-grandfather Bennet's twin brother was the Duke of Barrington.' He paused to let the information sink in.

'Does that mean…' Mrs Bennet could not bring herself to say the words. Dread rose in her breast.

'It means that as his closest surviving male relative, I have inherited not only his estate, but also his title,' the Duke told her as gently as he could. 'I am the new Duke and you are my Duchess.'

The Duchess stared at her husband in disbelief. It was too much to comprehend. In the space of three weeks, she had gone from being the wife of a minor gentleman, whose estate was entailed to his cousin, who could throw her out into the hedgerows, if her husband died before her; to being a Duchess, and Mistress of an enormous house.

Tears formed in her eyes and streamed unheeded down her cheeks. 'This cannot be, Mr Bennet. I am the daughter of a tradesman. I cannot be a Duchess. I do not know how to be a Duchess. Please tell me that you are only joking,' she pleaded with her husband, her voice rising.

The Duke was disconcerted by her reaction. He had expected shrill excitement, exclamations about all the pin money, dresses, jewels and carriages they could now afford. But not this distraught response.

'I am sorry, my dear wife. It is no joke. You are now the Duchess of Barrington, and you will make a fine Duchess.'

'No, I will not. I will make a complete fool of myself in society. It has been hard enough being the wife of a gentleman, since my mother knew nothing to prepare me for the role; but the wife of a Duke. No… no… I cannot do it,' she wailed.

'My dear Fanny. All will be well. Elizabeth has hired a lady to teach… all of us about proper comportment in the first circles.'

'All of us?'

The Duke chuckled. 'All of us. While it is easier for gentlemen to deal with society, I need to know what not to say for fear of being called out,' he said mendaciously, since he thought his wife would more likely accept instruction, if she thought all of them needed to learn.

'Oh no. That must not happen. You must not be killed, otherwise that odious Mr Collins will become the next Duke, and you promised that we would be safe from him.' Mrs Bennet had lived too long with the fear of Mr Collins inheriting hanging over her, to be sanguine.

Her husband reassured her. 'You are safe from Mr Collins, no matter what happens. He is not in line to inherit under any circumstance. Remember, I told you that in this case, daughters can inherit…'

At his words, the Duchess' face lit up. 'I remember now… you did say daughters can inherit. Even the title?' When her husband nodded with a smile, relieved that she was starting to perk up, the Duchess clapped her hands and exclaimed. 'Oh, that is wonderful news. My beautiful Jane will make a wonderful Duchess. I must go and tell her and congratulate her on her fortune.'

'Stop, Fanny,' the Duke exclaimed sharply, as his wife started to rise.

'Oh, I suppose it can wait until dinner to make that announcement. The Gardiners will be so pleased for her. Just imagine. Jane, the Duchess of Barrington.' She subsided back into her chair with a beatific smile.

'I am sorry to disappoint you, but Jane will never be the Duchess of Barrington…'

'But you just said that girls can inherit,' interrupted his wife. 'She is our oldest and most beautiful daughter, therefore she must be the next Duchess.'

'Great-great Uncle George, the previous Duke, nominated Elizabeth to be my heir, and the King approved his choice,' the Duke pointed out.

'But Elizabeth cannot be your heir. That girl is much too impertinent and bookish, and she is not as beautiful as Jane or even Lydia. You must change this. I insist that Jane be the next Duchess. I can just see it. As your heiress she will have her pick of all the most eligible men. She might even marry a prince.'

'STOP. Elizabeth is my heir. She is just as beautiful as Jane, but more importantly she is intelligent, educated and strong enough to deal with the responsibility.' The Duke was getting irritated by his wife's prejudices.

'But…'

'NO. I will not tolerate you denigrating Elizabeth ever again. Or any of our daughters.' The Duke took a deep breath to bring his temper back under control. He had known about his wife's blind-spot in regards to their daughters, and while it had been amusing to see her so delusional, it was time for her to learn to overcome her prejudices. It was also time for him to take more responsibility for his family and their actions.

'Fanny, all our daughters are beautiful and deserve respect. If you disrespect them, especially in public, the way you have been doing for years, men they meet will disrespect them too. And you do want them to make good marriages.'

Mrs Bennet, no, the Duchess, blushed as she calmed down. 'I never thought of it that way. I was desperate for at least one of the girls to make a good marriage, and since Jane is the most beautiful of our daughters, I tried to promote her as much as possible, because I thought she had the best chance of attracting a husband. But Lizzy is impertinent and bookish, and I know that men always want a beautiful wife, not one who is more intelligent than they are. I only tried to make her see that. I never realised that I was doing wrong.' She sighed. 'I despair of ever learning to be a Duchess.'

'Your Grace, you have only had a few minutes to get used to the idea. You will have help, I assure you.'

They continued their conversation, and gradually Mrs Bennet became reconciled to being a Duchess.

~~~o0o~~~

Meanwhile Jane met up with all her sisters and the Gardiners, who were still standing in front of the house. Their youngest sisters were staring at the building in open mouthed wonder.

The Gardiners, whose carriage had pulled up a little after the Bennet carriage, had only just alighted, and they too were struck speechless by the size of the house.

Mr Gardiner, who had the most warning, found his voice first. 'No wonder you asked me to bring samples of fabrics. Producing curtains for this place will just about empty my warehouses.'

'La, we are rich. Just think of the parties and balls we can have. In a house that big there must be a hundred rooms.' Lydia too found her voice.

'Unless we go bankrupt trying to replace all the curtains…' Elizabeth said dryly. She knew perfectly well that they had enough money to build another house just like it, but she wanted to quash any grandiose ideas the youngest girls might have.

'You are such a killjoy, Elizabeth. If uncle George could afford a house like this, he must have been rich enough to afford curtains. And if he can afford those, just think of all the dresses, ribbons and bonnets we can get.'

'He inherited the house from his father. And before we can do anything else, we have to pay the death taxes on the property,' Elizabeth said repressively.

Before the argument could escalate, Mary asked, 'is this truly our new house and Cousin Collins cannot take it away from us?'

Elizabeth, grateful for the interruption, turned to her sister. 'This is indeed our house and Mr Collins has no right to it.' She now grinned. 'Just wait until you see the inside…'

'I would like to very much, if you are all done chatting,' Mrs Gardiner commented slyly.

'Forgive me, Aunt. Welcome to Barrington.' Elizabeth and Jane briefly greeted the rest of the new arrivals, led them into the house and showed them to their rooms.

~~~o0o~~~

To allow the whole family eat together, including the Gardiner's children, dinner had been scheduled for five thirty.

There was just enough time for everyone to refresh themselves, rest or stretch their legs, depending on inclination, before the family congregated in the drawing room.

The Duke was deliberately late to ensure that everyone else was present. When he entered, with his wife on his arm, he called everyone to attention. He waited until everyone was quiet. Lydia ignored her father and had kept talking to Kitty, until only her voice broke the silence, at which point even she realised that something was happening.

When all eyes were on them, the Duke made his announcement. 'Dear family, I would like to introduce to you a very special lady. My wife, Her Grace, Frances Bennet, the Duchess of Barrington.' He gave a small bow to his wife.

For a moment there was stunned silence, then everyone, except their oldest daughters, rushed to the couple to ask questions and congratulate them on their elevation, when Mr Bennet revealed that he was now the Duke.

When the babel died down, Jane and Elizabeth approached. 'I hope you will forgive us, Mama, for not telling you, but it was Papa's surprise for you and we did not wish to spoil it. I hope you are happy.' Jane beamed at her mother.

'I think I will be, once I stop being nervous,' Mrs Bennet smiled at her daughters. 'I have no idea how to be a Duchess.'

'Mother, may I introduce to you a lady, who I believe can help you.' Elizabeth was delighted at her mother's reaction. Like her father, she had feared that the new title might go to the lady's head.

'I wish you would. At present I would welcome anyone who can make me feel more confident.'

Elizabeth gestured for Lady Sophia to join them, and introduced them. Lady Sophia, who had noticed the uncertainty, immediately strove to put the new Duchess at ease. It helped that the two ladies were very close in age, and apart from colouring, very similar in looks.

The Duchess admired Lady Sophia's gown, which, although her own design, was a present from Elizabeth to ensure she looked the part of friend to the Duchess.

It was not long before the two ladies were chatting like old friends, and Lady Sophia gave some invaluable advice. 'If you do not know what to say, say nothing. Simply smile and nod graciously. People, who listen more than speak, are usually considered wise.'

The Duchess blushed. 'Conversely, since in the past I chattered incessantly, I must have been considered a fool.' She sighed. 'It is not too late to learn though, I hope.'

'It is never too late, Your Grace.'

~~~o0o~~~