A/N

HLW - Chapter 4 for your perusal, hope you enjoy.

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N.

Her Last WordsChapter 4

Exactly eight days later, Darcy found himself riding towards the Bennets' home. As the gates of Longbourn came into view, he looked askance at the quiet man riding alongside. The subdued expression on Bingley's face gave rise to a momentary unease in Darcy's breast. He understood that they were visiting the Bennets on a solemn occasion, but still, it struck him as odd that Bingley's countenance did not betray even a small degree of eagerness when he was meeting Miss Bennet after so many months. It felt odder still that he, who had had his suit rejected by a woman, was more eager to meet her than Bingley was to meet a woman who was almost certainly holding a tendre for him. Perhaps the guilt of having wronged Miss Bennet was troubling Bingley? Darcy mused he shifted his gaze away from his friend.

For a moment, he reflected on his own eagerness to reach Longbourn despite an impatient spectre awaiting him at the other end. He found it nothing short of remarkable that one look of warm approbation from a pair of beautiful gray-green eyes could alter a man's disposition from despair to hope. But in this particular case it was indeed true. That one soft glance from Elizabeth had kept fueled his optimism over the past se'nnight and was making him so impatient to see her.

He attempted to keep in mind his key reason for coming to Meryton – to assist Mrs Bennet in getting her salvation. He also tried to persuade himself that even if she no longer actively disliked him, Elizabeth would hardly be interested in his dismal attempts at courting her, especially now when she was in mourning. But his heart refused to listen to these words of caution. All he could think about was that destiny had given him a second chance to show her that he could indeed behave as a gentleman should. And... and if he acquitted himself well then perhaps – someday in the future – there was a possibility, however remote, that he could get his heart's desire.

~§§§~

When the two gentlemen from Netherfield were announced in Longbourn that day, the girls and Mr Bennet were gathered in what had been Mrs Bennet's favourite parlour. It had become almost a ritual in the past se'nnight – for the family to converge into the room after breakfast. Mrs Bennet's demise had affected each family member in a disparate manner and they all were trying to come to terms with their grief in their separate ways, but just for that short while, they all felt united in their struggles to overcome their loss.

When Mr Darcy and Mr Bingley were announced, a stunned Elizabeth immediately began to ponder the reason for their visit. Miss Bingley had been very resolute in telling Jane that they had no intention of returning to Netherfield – so why were the gentlemen here? Perhaps Mr Bingley had decided to give up the lease on Netherfield and had come here for the paperwork. Then why had Mr Darcy accompanied him? Could Mr Darcy be somehow behind Mr Bingley's visit?

Elizabeth's impression of Mr Darcy had changed significantly in the past fortnight. First, his letter had revealed how flawed her judgement had been about him and Mr Wickham both. Then, the two times she had met him in London, he had shown an entirely new facet to his character. She now knew that he was capable of being extremely kind and considerate – at least when he deemed the need to be so. Would that consideration extend to righting a wrong he had committed? Had he finally revealed the truth to Mr Bingley?

She did not have to wait too long for the answers to her musings. She came out of her reverie to observe that Mr Bingley had made his way to her father and was offering his commiserations.

"I was extremely saddened to hear what befell Mrs Bennet and your family. When Darcy wrote to me that she had suffered a fatal accident while on her way to pay us a visit, I was shocked beyond measure. The least I could do was to come here and pay my respects to her."

So, Mr Darcy has indeed responsible for Mr Bingley's visit, even if indirectly. But how much has he told Mr Bingley? Elizabeth wondered even as Mr Bennet responded suitably to Mr Bingley. She glanced towards Mr Darcy and was a little flustered to find him looking back at her. She hurriedly nodded a greeting and was rewarded with a smile in return.

"Are you planning a long stay at Netherfield, Mr Bingley?" Mr Bennet enquired politely.

"Our plans are not yet fixed, Mr Bennet. In recent months, I have been woefully negligent in my responsibilities as a landlord. Now that I am here, I should address some of the concerns my steward has been raising with me. I... I suppose we will be here a fortnight, maybe more. It all depends on how things progress." Bingley cast a quick glance at Jane Bennet as he replied.

Elizabeth was encouraged by Mr Bingley's response, especially how he glanced towards Jane at the end. Perhaps Jane could still find happiness with him. Naturally, it would not be immediately possible. But... if those two could clear up their misunderstandings, and Mr Bingley remained in the neighbourhood for a while, things should reach their natural conclusion. Unless someone deliberately put obstacles in their path, like last time.

"I hope your sisters are well, Mr Bingley?" Elizabeth asked, hoping to learn if there were going to be impediments in Jane's path this time as well.

"Both of my sisters are well, Miss Elizabeth, I thank you. They were unable to accompany us this time, but they especially tasked me to convey their heartfelt sympathies to all of you."

"How thoughtful of them. Please do convey our gratitude to them the next time you write to them," Elizabeth replied politely. She was truly grateful – grateful that the supercilious sisters had decided to spare them their presence.

Soon, Mrs Hill entered the parlour with tea and refreshments and at Elizabeth's signal placed them in front of her. Elizabeth had been so preoccupied with her thoughts that she had not noticed Mary get up and ring for tea. As she prepared tea for everyone, Kitty took it upon herself to bring the cups to everyone in the parlour.

~§§§~

In a bid to assist Miss Catherine, Darcy went to pick up his own cup. The fact that the good deed allowed him a few moments with Elizabeth was an added incentive.

She looked up and smiled at him as he came to stand next to her. That her smile lacked its usual vivacity was understandable. For Darcy, its absence was compensated by the welcome in her eyes. He had tried not to think about it too much, but he could not help wondering if the warmth he had noticed in her eyes that day in Gracechurch Street had only been a temporary result of their interactions with little Rose.

It was a relief to discover that he had worried unnecessarily. He had decided to confess his misstep to Bingley not only to help Mrs Bennet, but also because he believed it was the right thing to do. As he stood there, observing Elizabeth's sweet smile, he was doubly glad he had chosen to do so. He had been observing her countenance ever since they had arrived here and had realized that Miss Bennet's impending happiness was a major reason behind Elizabeth's present contentment.

"Mr Darcy?"

Darcy came out of his reverie to see her holding out the cup she had prepared for him.

He caught hold of the saucer and began to say, "Thank you, Miss Elizabeth. I..."

"Mr Darcy, what took you so long? I had nearly given up on you!"

The words spoken so suddenly in his left ear rattled Darcy, and his hand jerked in surprise. The end result was predictable; hot tea splashed all over the saucer and his hand, and he yelped in pain.

"What...," he began, then swallowed the rest of the angry words on his tongue with difficulty. He turned his head to cast a quick, frustrated glance at Mrs Bennet. The apparition stood nearby, a contrite expression on her face.

"Oh, I am so sorry... I did not think...," the lady began as her daughter hurriedly stood up to take the cup from Darcy's poor hand. He took off his soiled glove to assess the damage. His hand had just begun to show a red angry welt.

"What happened, Mr Darcy?" Elizabeth asked, surprised, and replaced the cup on the table. Without waiting for a response, she turned and asked Mary to fetch the medicine box while she went to retrieve a flask of water from a nearby table.

The rest of the people in the parlour had paused their respective conversations and were looking at Darcy with surprise.

"Are you well, Mr Darcy?" Mr Bennet enquired after a moment's awkward silence.

"Er... yes... Mr Bennet. It was nothing but a few drops of spilt tea as a result of my carelessness," Darcy lied with a polite smile, even as Mrs Bennet continued to mutter apologies in his ear.

An exasperated Darcy turned away from the rest of the group and whispered urgently, "Madam, please stop apologizing. I know you did not mean to surprise me, and I hope you remember that I cannot be seen talking to you in this room full of people!"

"Oh, of course. I am sor...," Mrs Bennet began once more but stopped when she noticed Mr Darcy's eyebrows rising satirically.

Just then Elizabeth returned with the flask and motioned for Darcy to follow her out of the French windows.

She came to a halt near a large potted plant and gently extended his injured hand over it. She then slowly poured cool water from the flask over the wound.

There was an immediate easing in the burning sensation, which disappeared completely when Elizabeth smiled sympathetically at him and said, "It will soon start feeling better, Mr Darcy."

She appeared to be treating him as she would young Rose. Darcy, who would have been revolted if anyone else had treated a grownup man like a toddler, found to his astonishment that he rather liked the experience. He smiled back at her, and as he gazed into the green depths of her eyes, felt himself getting a little lost. The fact that Elizabeth continued to hold his hand after the flask had been emptied made it even more difficult to concentrate.

After a long moment he cleared his throat and replied, "It is already much better, Miss Elizabeth."

Mrs Bennet, who had followed them out of the parlour, stared in amazement as the two who were known throughout the neighbourhood to dislike each other, stood smiling, in what to her appeared suspiciously like a besotted manner.

"Well... I never," she exclaimed, just as Mary Bennet approached with the medicine box. Darcy could not decide whether to be relieved or disappointed by the twin interruptions. Given how quickly he was falling back under Elizabeth's spell, perhaps it was good that they were interrupted when they were.

"Here is the salve that you wanted, Lizzy," Mary said as she held out a small jar to her sister.

Unfortunately, the overall appearance of the medicine did not inspire much confidence in Darcy. He watched nervously as Miss Elizabeth took out a generous quantity of the mud-coloured salve from the jar.

Elizabeth looked up at his wary expression, and just for a moment her eyes danced with mischief, but then, she said kindly enough, "Do not look so uneasy, Mr Darcy. This medicine is Hill's very special preparation and works wonders on an injury like yours."

"Well... if Mrs Hill is anything like Mrs Reynolds, our housekeeper at Pemberley, then I am quite willing to believe in the restorative powers of this salve," Darcy retorted gamely.

Assuming that he needed to be convinced some more, Mrs Bennet chimed in, "Oh, Hill is a wizard when it comes to preparing salves and tisanes. I am sure you are already feeling some relief now that Lizzy has applied the salve to your hand."

Darcy momentarily forgot that he was conversing with an apparition. "Oh yes, I...," he began, then stopped abruptly as realisation struck.

"Were you saying something, Mr Darcy?" Elizabeth looked enquiringly at him as she handed the medicine jar back to Mary.

Darcy stared at her, nonplussed, then thankfully, rescue came in the form of a resurfacing memory. "Oh, yes. I had an opportunity to visit Mr Gardiner at his home day before yesterday. When Mrs Gardiner learnt that Bingley and I were coming to Netherfield, she sent a letter with us," Darcy replied, pulling out a sealed missive from the pocket of his jacket.

"How very kind...," Elizabeth murmured as she accepted the letter he held out.

Darcy observed the faint glow of pleasure on her face with great satisfaction. The day before yesterday had been a busy day for him. He had lengthy meetings scheduled with his man of business and his solicitor before leaving London for an unspecified period. Walters, his man of business, had not appeared happy when Darcy had interrupted their meeting for an hour – to run an errand! But now as he observed the pleased look on Elizabeth's face, all that running around seemed worthwhile.

~§§§~

When they returned to the parlour, Darcy saw Mr Bennet and Bingley deep in conversation, and decided to join them.

"... after all, Darcy was the college champion in the sport..." Bingley broke off when he saw Darcy approaching them. "How is your hand, Darcy?" he asked his friend.

"Very well, Bingley, especially after Miss Elizabeth's careful ministrations."

"Then you will not mind when I tell you that I have committed you to play a round of chess with Mr Bennet tomorrow."

"I would be happy to do so," Darcy responded politely as he looked between Bingley and their host.

"Well, if it is convenient for you, then join us for supper afterwards," Mr Bennet suggested, much to the surprise of his daughters.

The past se'nnight had been a very difficult one for Thomas Bennet. The sudden loss of his wife had been shocking in more ways than one. It surprised him how much he missed the woman he had spent half his adult life hiding from in his study. Suddenly he felt... alone without her. Her laments about their family having to live in hedgerows had ironically become real only after she was gone.

Life was so very unpredictable; what would happen to his daughters if, heaven forbid, he was to have an accident like poor Fanny. The thought had been keeping him awake at night. In her death, poor Mrs Bennet had achieved what she could never do in her lifetime. Mr Bennet had finally consulted his brother Gardiner about profitably investing Mrs Bennet's jointure. He had also begun to see sense in his late wife's efforts to get their daughters advantageously married.

Now that Mr Bingley had returned, Mr Bennet had decided to aid the young people - within reason, of course. This was the motivation behind his invitation for chess and supper tomorrow. Inviting the two young men to join the family for a quiet meal would hardly violate any rules of propriety. He felt sure that rather than being offended, Fanny would approve of his efforts.

~§§§~

Quite unaware of her husband's resolve, Mrs Bennet was, at this very moment, feeling very impatient. Since the time she had come into the parlour, she had not seen Jane and Mr Bingley exchange even a single word. It was just like Mr Bennet to monopolize the young man without any concern for their daughter's happiness, she thought exasperatedly and quite unfairly. Even dead, she was more bothered than him about their daughters' future! Well... never mind, she had some help now.

"Mr Darcy, do you not think that Jane and Mr Bingley should have an opportunity to discuss their misunderstandings? They will get one if you suggest a walk in the gardens."

Darcy sighed at Mrs Bennet's impatience, though he could sympathise with it. The lady seemed to be forgetting that her family was in mourning - for her! As such Bingley must be struggling to decide how to conduct himself around Miss Bennet without offending her any further. He knew, however, that if he did not acquiesce, Mrs Bennet would not let him hear the end of it. Also, he had no desire learn how spectres reacted when they were thwarted. He sighed once again, encouraging himself to do something he had never done before – proposing a walk in the garden with a gaggle of young ladies.

"Umm... the weather appears to be ideal for a stroll outside. Would anyone of you be interested?" he asked with a forced smile.

As he had feared, Bingley gave him an odd look on hearing the strange request. However, Mr Bennet, who was getting more inspired by the minute to fulfil Fanny Bennet's most dear wish, immediately jumped in helpfully. "That is a very good suggestion from Mr Darcy, my dears. None of you have ventured in the garden in the past se'nnight, not even Lizzy. I believe it would be beneficial for all of you to accompany the gentlemen and get some fresh air."

"Well, finally! There is some hope for the man after all!" Mrs Bennet exclaimed feelingly. Darcy shook his head ruefully as he made his way outside in the general exodus.

~§§§~