Author's notes: Tomorrow I have to travel again for business / training to Germany and for at least two days I won't post any chapters. There are still 10 to 15 chapters left.
PPP
There were very few things that Darcy tolerated less than meaningless talk and needless flattery, and sadly Sir William and Lady Lucas were characterized by both. After Sir William talked for several minutes about his presentation at court and his desire to buy a house in London, Darcy diverted the conversation and told them that he was going to marry Miss Thompson…
"…I have been telling Lady Lucas for years that Miss Thompson is the jewel of Hertfordshire, though I should say Derbyshire. What a beautiful, lively and intelligent lady! Congratulations Mr. Darcy."
"Thank you very much, Sir William; I agree with you, but I'm not here to talk about my fiancée, but about your son-in-law, Mr. Collins."
"Do you want to talk about Mr. Collins?" Sir William intrigued asked.
Darcy nodded, "I suppose you already know my cousin, Mr. Fitzwilliam, he is Lord Matlock's son and married my cousin Anne De Bourgh, so he is Mr. Collins' patron."
"Indeed, Charlotte told us about the happy event. I have not yet had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Fitzwilliams, but Mr. Collins says she is an exceptional and beautiful lady."
Darcy nodded, "As I was saying, I don't know if you are aware that Mr. Fitzwilliam, as well as my aunt Lady Matlock, and of course the Darcys are very fond of Miss Mary Bennet as she is an exceptional young lady. Do you agree with us?"
"Without a doubt, Miss Mary is an exceptional young lady." Lady Lucas exclaimed.
"Because she is an exceptional young woman, we do not tolerate mean comments about her or about the Bennets. I imagine you understand what I say."
Lady Lucas and Sir William paled, "Well, I don't think Mr. Collins made a malicious comment about Miss Mary or the other Bennet's ladies. Mr. Collins is his cousin…"
Darcy met Sir William's eyes, and made a gesture to cut him off, "I was thinking it would be a shame if my uncle, Lord Matlock, had to speak to his good friend the bishop about Mr. Collins. It would be a shame if Mr. Collins was defrocked for inappropriate behavior. Do you agree with me?"
"I'm sure Mr. Collins would be incapable of saying anything bad about an exceptional young lady like Miss Mary or the Bennet family. The Bennets are a well-respected family in Hertfordshire."
"I'm glad we understand each other. But you know, if I find out that Mr. Collins or some ill-intentioned person says something against Miss Mary Bennet or the rest of her family, that person will have problems with the Matlocks and me…"
A few minutes later, Darcy returned to Netherfield knowing that at least Sir William and Lady Lucas would think twice before saying anything bad about the Bennet family. He knew it wasn't enough to completely quell all the rumors circulating in Meryton and clear the Bennet name... but at least he hoped that in time the people around Longbourn would 'forget' about Lydia Bennet's behavior...
Early the next day they left for London in two carriages. In one of them were Darcy, Elizabeth, Mary, and Johnny, and in the other were the Gardiners, Mrs. Bennet, and their other daughters.
Elizabeth, Mary, and Johnny would stay at Darcy's until Mr. Gardiner leased two small properties, one for Lydia and the other for Mrs. Bennet, Jane, and Kitty.
Since Mr. Gardiner had an acquittance in Liverpool, he had sent him a letter a week ago, inquiring about possible small properties to lease for his sister and nieces. Liverpool had the advantage that it was a long way from Hertfordshire and relatively far from Derbyshire.
In addition, he had to travel to Scotland in a few days with Lydia to lease a cabin for at least six months. Since Fanny told him that due to her nerves she couldn't take care of her beloved Lydia, it was necessary to hire a nurse. Fanny was going to stay in Liverpool with her other daughters… She was still hoping that Elizabeth would change her mind and let her live in Sandstone with Johnny…
