It was less than a year after their visit to Rosings that Fitzwilliam's world fell apart. He was just weeks from his graduating school, and in the process of planning his tour, when an express arrived from Pemberley. There had been an altercation with a landed gentleman of some wealth, and his father's heart had given out during it. He and George Wickham were both summoned home, to be by his side as the doctor said he didn't have long.

When they arrived at Pemberley they were taken to his father's room right away, and it pained him to see the once strong man so weak. "Father, we came as soon as we got your express." He spoke, taking the seat by his father's bed, and taking the man's limp hand into his own.

"I'm glad, I want to see this business settled before I go to join your mother." His father's words confused him, as the man turned to a footman, and asked him to bring someone by the name of Wirth to them.

Had he been looking at Wickham he would have seen the slight worry in the man's eyes, but his attention was focused on his father. "Mr Wirth came to me telling me you seduced his daughter and abandoned her when she told you she was with child. I would see this action made right before I die."

He felt his heart sink, it was one thing to be accused of seducing a maid, it was a whole other thing to be accused of seducing a gentlewoman. He could be forced to marry this woman, and he knew he would if his father pushed him to.

He turned when the door opened, and saw a man and young woman enter. She was prettyish, with blond hair, and dark brown eyes. She was tall with a full figure, however he couldn't help but cringe when she opened her mouth.

"See Willy, I told you my father would fix everything and we would be able to marry." Her voice was shrill, and it was clear to him her parents focus had not been on her education.

"Well, Fitzwilliam, what do you have to say for yourself?" His father turned to him with a stern look on his face, once the girl had confirmed her father's allegations.

"I swear to you, I have never seen this woman before." He spoke, hopeful that his father would believe him.

"See how he lies, I will not stand for it. He has compromised my daughter, she even identified him. I am not going to allow him to treat her thus." The man raged, face red, arms flailing about.

"Of course he wouldn't know me, as if I would associate with a steward's son." The lady cut in, going over to Wickham and wrapping her arm through his. "Why are you not saying anything Willy, are you not happy?"

"What do you mean steward's son? That is Fitzwilliam Darcy!" Her father motioned wildly in his direction.

"No Papa, this is Fitzwilliam Darcy, he told me he wanted to marry me, but when he spoke to his father about it, he refused to support the match, for he was betrothed to his horrible cousin. But I told him you would make his see sense." The lady spoke, and turned her adoring eyes on Wickham.

"You stupid, stupid girl, that is not Fitzwilliam Darcy, that is!" Motioning to Fitzwilliam he said, spoke. "You worthless whore, you gave your virtue to a man who is likely to be the true steward's son."

"No, you're Fitzwilliam, tell them!" The girl looked to Wickham with pleading eyes, "Tell them that I am to be the next Mrs. Darcy. Tell them about all the dresses and jewels I am to have. How I will be the one to set the fashions for the Ton every year. Tell them how you promised me all this and so much more."

"His promises were nothing but lies," Fitzwilliam tried to speak gently to the devastated girl, "It is impossible for him to give any of that for they are not his to give. His name is George Wickham, and he is the son of my father's late steward, a most honorable man, who my father called friend, and who named my father George's godfather."

He then turned to the girl's father, "He grew up the closest thing to a brother I have ever known, but became someone I did not recognize once out of the guidance of my father." The man had not softened an ounce, and he tried harder, wanting to preserve what little chance the girl had left at happiness, upped his game.

"We will recognize Wickham as my father's godson, not as the son of a steward should you allow them to marry. My father intends to give George a living here at Pemberley, but instead we will give him money in lieu of it so that he may support his wife."

"There is also an inheritance of one thousand pounds, that will go to him on my death, which we all can see will happen soon." His father spoke weakly from the bed, and Fitzwilliam's heart broke, wondering if the heartbreak of finding out who Wickham really was had sped the process up.

"That should bring his value to four thousand, should you allow them to marry I will increase that to five. I would suggest you take control of the funds, and allow them to live off the interest, for George is not to be trusted with it or her dowry. It is not much, but it will allow them to live a comfortable life, more so if George finds gainful employment." Fitzwilliam tried to negotiate, his main concern for the girl. George may be a cad, but he wasn't cruel, he was not sure he could say the same for her father.

Besides that, he hoped this could be the wake up call George needed. He hated the man his childhood friend had become, and would give anything to have his "brother" back. He just hoped that George was still young enough to break his dissolute habits.

"I will not have my family shamed by tying it to a steward's son." The man spoke, grabbing his daughter by the arm in a bruising grip. "Come along, I'll deal with you when we get home."

A notice of the girl's marriage ran the same day as the one for his father's death. Just as he feared, she was married off to a known abuser, and a notice of her death ran not even six months later.

"Fitzwilliam, I am proud of the way you handled that, I know I am leaving Pemberley, and more importantly, Georgiana in good hands. I am just sorry it took this long for me to see the truth, a truth you and many others tried to open my eyes to in the past."

"We can talk about this later, after you have rested." He tried to calm his father.

"No, I'm afraid if I don't say this now I may not get another chance." He then turned to Wickham, "George, I see I have done you a disservice. I wanted to give you the life your father wished for you, but I should have never allowed you to live so high above your station. This was unfair to you, as it allowed you to get a taste for something that you will likely never have. I wanted you to have a nice living, with a wife and children, but I can now see you have developed habits that will likely prevent you from having that life I so hoped you to have."

"I am not ready to give up though," He then turned back to Fitzwilliam. "Your idea of someone else controlling his inheritance is a good one. I would like you to send for my attorney, I would like to have my will rewritten."


His father never had the chance to rewrite his will, as he never woke up after falling asleep shortly after this conversation. As such, Fitzwilliam was not surprised when George demanded the money outright, regardless of his Godfather's wishes. Had he had no legal course to argue, he handed the bank draft over, but Wickham grew angry when he refused to give the extra thousand he had offered the girl's father. He shouted that he would make Fitzwilliam sorry for cheating him of his due.

Fitzwilliam explained that he had given him his due, that he had honored his father's wishes for the other man. They had both heard what his father intended the other man to have. However, it was not enough for Wickham, as he said that since he was raised as a brother to Fitzwilliam, he was entitled to an inheritance in the amount of Georgiana's, and that Fitzwilliam was just withholding it out of spite.

In the end, Fitzwilliam refused to bend, knowing that he had followed his father's wishes as best he could, and that he was protecting countless young women by seeing to it Wickham had limited funds for which to mislead them. He watched his once friend storm off, thinking it was likely to be the last time he would ever see him.

For the next year he spent his mourning period throwing himself into the managing of what was now his estate. He had sent Georgiana back to school so he could focus on getting things running to his liking, promising himself that once it was all said and done he would have the time to focus on Georgiana without interruption.

He knew he had made a mistake when she had come home that first year, more despondent than when she left. It was for this reason he had sent her to Rosings, hoping all the ladies there could help lift her spirits. The young girl that returned to him was so much different than the one that left, that he found himself considering himself to be in the ladies debt.

He meant to make a visit to thank them for all they had done for his sister, but any time spent not devoted to Georgiana, was spent on learning to manage the estate, though he had learned his lesson and prioritized Georgiana first.

His only time not focused on Georgiana and the estate came when he was in town for the season. Before his father passed, he hadn't cared much for the events the Ton had to offer, but now he had a duty to his sister and estate to find a wife to help care for both. He had thought finding a wife would be simple, mainly just taking his pick of the lot and being done with it.

Oh how wrong he was. Oh, he had his pick, but all of them wanted him for his money and estate, no one wanted him for himself. The ladies all came across as empty headed, agreeing with everything he said whether they knew what he was talking about or not. It all got to be so exhausting, that he wondered if he would ever find someone he could be happy with.