NEW CHAPTER 19 - Incorporating the plot change I started in the new chapter 18.

Mr. Darcy was looking forward to seeing his intended that day right after he finished these matters of business. He was pleased he had a quiet and cheerful home once again. He should have started sending his aunt away years ago.

A knock at the door interrupted his happy musings. "Mr. Woodforde, the parson is here to see you, sir."

"Send him in." Mr. Darcy set his quill on the desk then leaned back in his chair stretching his arms over his head. He arched his back with a sigh. He had been determined to finish his correspondence so that he could call upon Elizabeth without any thoughts of business that need to be taken care of. And he could not think of any business he had missed that would require the parson calling at Pemberley.

Mr. Darcy stood as the parson entered his study.

"I am afraid I am bringing bad news, Mr. Darcy. May I sit?"

Mr. Darcy motioned towards one of the chairs in front of his desk. The parson sat as Mr. Darcy lowered himself in his chair with dread. Had Elizabeth changed her mind and called off their engagement? But he could not fathom such an action, as she seemed to be very much in love with him. It was also far more to her and her family's benefit to continue with the wedding. His reputation would survive the wedding being called off, but hers would not.

"Your aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh came to me with serious accusations against your intended but in the discussion I learned news of an even more alarming nature. In the interest of the Darcy name, and your family's reputation, I will not preside over a wedding to another Bennet daughter."

Mr. Darcy's fingers dug into the wooden and leather arms of his desk chair. He should have known when she departed Pemberley far too easily. Would her poison tongue ever stop? "And what was the alarming news as well as the charges my aunt leveled against my intended?"

The parson seemed discombobulated at the equanimity of Mr. Darcy's response. "That your engagement is false as you are engaged to her daughter, Anne de Bourgh. But most important, I was also deceived in a most horrible fashion by the Bennet family regarding the nature of their youngest daughter, Lydia Bennet's, relationship with George Wickham."

When the parson did not continue Mr. Darcy narrowed his eyes. "Is that it?"

The parson blinked, then gathered himself as his duty to the young man of his parsonage, the same man that owned his living, was not yet done. "I was led to believe that they had married in Scotland in that pagan custom of handfasting, which is an affront to God, but the truth is even worse. They had not wed at all but had been living as husband and wife for at least a se'ennight before the wedding!" The parson had stiffened while speaking, such was his outrage.

Mr. Darcy stared at the man. "Those are two separate issues, not at all connected. My aunt has persisted with this idea that my mother and her planned an engagement of myself to her daughter, when my cousin was still in the crib. However, my mother never mentioned it. Indeed, it was only after her passing that Lady Catherine voiced this arrangement. As to the second accusation, did Wickham not have a special license from the Bishop?"

"The Bishop was obviously not aware of the nature of the Bennet girl."

"Would that have made a difference? Compromised couples have wed with special licenses before."

The parson frowned and studied Mr. Darcy. "The deception, the concealment of the true nature of their relationship to me, a man of God, shows a distinct lack of concern for propriety and comportment."

Mr. Darcy studied the older man he had known as his parson for his entire life. He had always considered the man of a serious but genial nature. However his sentiments against the Bennet family's concealment, which was not unfounded, did not lie well with Mr. Darcy. "And how do you think they gained access to a special license?"

"Well, Mr. Wickham went and …er…"

"Does that not show that he planned to wed Lydia Bennet?"

"But that still does not signify the deception and concealment of the character of —"

"I accompanied Wickham to London when he purchased a special license from the bishop, who approved and granted Wickham's request. And I also purchased a special license to wed Elizabeth Bennet." He paused, enjoying the surprised on the parson's face, but it did not wipe away his ire at the man. "For you see we were also compromised," The parson gaped. ",by my sheep who knocked both Miss Bennet and I into the pond at Pemberley."

Mr. Darcy abruptly stood, pushing his chair back silently on the thick rug. "I do not want to hear any more besmirching of Miss Bennet's or the Bennet family's reputation."

The parson's mouth moved, perhaps an apology, but no sounds were uttered. Mr. Darcy walked around his desk and opened the door.

"I can assure you Mr. Woodforde, that Miss Elizabeth Bennet is the most upstanding gentlewoman I have ever met."

The parson gathered himself and stood but Mr. Darcy held up a hand to forestall any more discourse on the subject.

"I am going to marry Miss Elizabeth Bennet but I will certainly not have you as the officiant, per your own wishes. You are dismissed."

After the parson swiftly quit the room, Mr. Darcy closed the door behind him with more force than was warranted.

But then he threw open the door and rushed down the hall, quickly catching up to the older parson. "Did you happen to come to me directly with this information or did you inform anyone else?"

The parson stopped and turned to him, his hands clutching the edge of his cloak. "I had to inform the woman's family that there would not be a wedding."

Mr. Darcy closed his eyes and ran a hand over his face. Then ran past the man while calling for his horse to be readied immediately.

He supposed he should have taken his carriage, but his only thought had been getting to Elizabeth as soon as he could. He did not know what state she was in but he could well imagine her thoughts after the parson had told her he would not marry them.

Mr. Darcy nudged his horse faster at spying the outer buildings of Lambton. He would arrive sweaty and covered in dust, but he could not have waited for a carriage to be readied. And he knew Elizabeth would not mind the state of his clothing. Just the thought of her stricken face had him yelling at his horse to gallop faster.

A cloud of dust enveloped him at the horse's fast stop in front of the inn. He threw the reins to the nearest stabled, then rushed inside the inn.

"I must speak with Miss Elizabeth Bennet." He flicked his hat against his leg.

A throat cleared behind him and he turned to find her father. "Lizzy is out walking with her sister, Jane. We received an unexpected visit from the parson this morning."

Mr. Darcy pursed his lips. "He also just called on me. I rushed here straight away. Where did they walk? I must inform her that the parson is mistaken, nothing has been called off. We are still betrothed."

Mr. Bennet pursed his lips and clasped his hands behind his back. "I must ask you how this wedding will take place if the parson will not marry you in the local church?"

"There are two livings that I am patron of, Kympton is the other. Miss Bennet and I will wed there."

Mr. Bennet cleared his throat. "I see. Very well, I know that they had decided to walk on the outskirts of town to avoid most of the populace. I do not know exactly where they went. If you will pardon me, I have to give the good news to my wife who as you can imagine has been affected greatly by this news."

Mr. Darcy hurried out the door taking the reins back from the stable lad and jumping up on Caesar. He could cover ground faster on horseback which he did but at a slow trot so as not to miss any sign of her. Knowing how much Elizabeth liked to walk on country lanes, he took the closest road out of Lambton near the inn, and found her and Jane not far out of town walking along the packed dirt road.

"Elizabeth!"

At his call the two sisters stopped and turned. As he rode closer he could see that the parson's words had greatly affected her. Mr. Darcy wished a pox of a thousand boils on that man.

He jumped down from his horse and took her hands in his. "The parson just visited me, I must apologize for my aunt." Elizabeth sniffled. "But rest assured, our wedding will still occur and far sooner than waiting for the rest of the Banns to be read. In London, I also procured a special license and we can be we tomorrow in Kympton."

Elizabeth's face, at first stricken and pale was now lit with happiness. She launched herself at him and he held her relieved that his aunt had not scared her off. "Oh, Fitzwilliam!"

He breathed deeply of her particular scent, then stood back to gaze on her tear stricken face. "I apologize again, profusely, for what my aunt has done. Surely, you could not have thought that I would have been so easily persuaded from marrying you?"

Elizabeth laughed. "No, I knew of your affection for me. But I also know how much power your aunt wields. You said we would wed tomorrow in Kympton?"

"I think it best to wed as quickly as possible. My aunt will not give up easily. I underestimated her resolve but I will not do so again."

She turned to him. "The parson will still not officiate our wedding?"

Mr. Darcy saw his intended's distressed features and his ire rose again. "I did not give him the option."

Elizabeth studied him. "You are not considering his removal from the living at Lambton?"

Her compassion for the parson that had caused her so much distress was admirable, and was one of her many fine features that he admired. "I confess, I had been."

She bit her lip, her eyes wandering over his face. "I would not wish him to lose this living over his fierce protection of your family's reputation. It was my youngest sister's thoughtlessness and my family's protection of our reputation that put the parson in an unenviable position."

Mr. Darcy nodded, her request was sound but he would decide upon the parson's living later. After they they were wed. He turned to Jane who was standing near Caesar petting his neck. "I shall walk you back to the inn. I already informed your father, who was alacritous to share the news with your mother."

Elizabeth laughed as they turned to walk back to Lambton. "Yes, she will be quite pleased to know that our wedding will still occur."

She turned to Mr. Darcy. "You did not speak to my mother yourself?"

"I did not." He turned to look at her with a quizzical expression.

"Mama had it in her head that we must have an engagement ball. I am glad she did not bring it up. I was sure she would have accosted you at the first opportunity."

"You do not want an engagement ball? Though it would be a wedding ball after tomorrow. I recall you enjoyed dancing at the assemblies."

"I do love them, but I would not ask it of you. A ball requires planning and several se'ennights of preparation."

"Not for me, it would not. A ball to announce our marriage would be a large enough spectacle, even if no invitations were issued to distant relatives, that Lady Catherine would be unable to continue her machinations." He caught her attention, then looked at Jane and then back to his intended.

Elizabeth beamed and squeezed his hand. "I think that is a wonderful idea, Fitzwilliam."

It was very important to the story the way I envisioned, to have the Lambton parson refuse to marry them. So that's still in the story, but with a new reason. Now the story continues as planned with a slight change in order of events. Chapter 20 will be written new, the old chapter 21 I will rewrite a little for the new plot changes, and then a new chapter 22 will be written and it should be done!

I have an ear infection now, started Monday. Seriously, is my immune system on vacation?