December 1810 – October 1811

In December of 1810, Mr. and Mrs. Bingley were in a serious carriage accident and both died a few days later. On his deathbed, Mr. Bingley earnestly asked his son to buy an estate with the £100,000 he would inherit. Mr. Bingley Senior's dream was that his children were accepted by high society...

Since he still had Sandstone leased for several more months, and it was not for sale, Charles decided in the meantime to look for an estate to buy or at least lease. He still did not feel ready to manage an estate...

Another important event that happened in December 1810 was that for his bravery Richard Fitzwilliam was promoted to Colonel and sent on a special mission to the continent. Given the distance and the conflicts on the continent, the family lived in fear that something bad would happen to him.

In early 1811, a sad event completely changed the relationship between Georgiana and Darcy; Unfortunately, Georgiana became very ill at the seminary and was soon transferred to Darcy's home in London. For several days, Georgiana had a high fever, and Darcy was afraid she would die. During the month Georgiana was convalescing, Darcy spent several hours each day caring for and entertaining her. Thankfully, Georgiana eventually recovered.

A few days later, for the first time in her life, Georgiana had an honest conversation with her brother about her fears, doubts, low self-esteem, and especially the seminar...

"Brother, I know you and Lady Matlock think it very important that I continue my education at the seminary, but I would like to return to Pemberley with you. I miss you so much; I miss my life at Pemberley."

"Don't you want to go back to the seminary?"

Georgiana shook her head, "No, I never want to go back to seminary again. I promise to study what you and Aunt Matlock think is appropriate and I promise not to bother you. I know you have many obligations and I am one of them."

Darcy's eyes widened, "Georgiana, you are not an obligation! You are my sister and the most important person in my life! I love you so much, I thought you were happy at the seminary with ladies your own age.

"No, I don't like it. I'm very unhappy there. Several of the Ladies are mean to me because I'm just a gentleman's daughter."

"Why didn't you tell me you were unhappy?"

"Because you told me it was important for my future, and I thought you didn't care for me. Please brother, can I return to Pemberley with you?"

"I'm so sorry Georgiana, of course, you can come back to Pemberley with me..."

After that important conversation, they had several honest conversations that were the pillar to repair the fragile relationship between the siblings. Before returning to Pemberley, at Lady Matlock's suggestion, Darcy hired a companion for her sister, Mrs. Annesley. She was a middle-aged widow with excellent recommendations and had been working as a companion for several years.

Around the middle of 1811, Charles Bingley began looking for possible estates to buy and finally fulfill his father's dream. Of all the available options, the one that best suited his needs was Netherfield Park. The estate was in Hertfordshire, it was bigger than Sandstone, and it also had the advantage that he could lease it for a year, and if he liked it, he could buy it. Caroline was not pleased with her brother's choice of an estate, as she was still hopeful that if she stayed to live in Derbyshire any longer, Mr. Darcy would at some point propose to her.

October 1811

As soon as Darcy stepped out of the carriage, Charles Bingley, very happy to see him again came to greet him, followed by Caroline Bingley.

"Darcy, welcome to Netherfield Park! I'm so glad you were finally able to come."

"Good morning Mr. Darcy, nice to see you again after two months. I hope you had a nice trip."

"Good morning, Bingley, Miss Bingley. The pleasure is mine. Fortunately, the weather was fine and the roads are in very good conditions."

"I hope you are not too tired because one of our principal neighbors, Sir William, has invited us to an Assembly today. I have already accepted the invitation on behalf of all of us."

Darcy sighed and nodded. He knew it was important for his friend to get along with the neighbors…