Sunday, April 14th 1912. 2300; 40 minutes until the Titanic hits an iceberg.

...

Elizabeth, with Darcy following, made her way down from his deck to her own. Their first stop was the Bennet's cabins, her mother could be heard wailing from within her room. Jane and Mr Bennet were in conference with Kitty, all three crowded in to the cabin she shared with Jane, the door ajar.

"Oh Lizzie, Thank goodness you have come." Jane exclaimed, only casting a quick glance over Mr Darcy. "Kitty, tell Lizzie."

Kitty mumbled something before her father told her to speak up.

"Lydia and I have been visiting with some of the gentleman in steerage."

"They are not gentlemen Kitty, you would do well to remember that!" Her father's voice was a severe as she had ever heard it.

"Lizzie met them, she seemed to approve."

"I did not suggest you spend your days and nights there!" Elizabeth was horrified that her brief visit to steerage was taken as approval.

Kitty looked abashed.

"Go on." Jane urged.

"Last night Lydia brought Wickham here." She was red in the face and her father also. "I stayed away, but I was asked too many questions! So I told her she could not bring him here tonight."

Elizabeth sighed, closing her eyes. Trying to not think of her sister with that man.

"Well, she said she would go to him, and she did. But she swore she would be back. She said there was dancing in steerage, and you know how she loves it. You heard how she complained there was only that one night of dancing! Her friend, Kate, she said the dancing was fun, and you know she has that friend in third also. Leo or something!"

Elizabeth ground her teeth together. It was not Kitty's fault their younger sister was so selfish and foolish.

"Are you certain they will be in steerage?"

Kitty shrugged.

Elizabeth turned to Jane and her father.

"I have sent a message to our Aunt and Uncle. They will look in second."

"Has anyone checked first? The promenade? The gymnasium?"

"We were waiting for you." Jane said.

"We did not expect you to bring a friend to our family drama" Mr Bennet's words were laced with curiosity, sarcasm and censure.

Elizabeth shot him an angry look. "I was with Miss Darcy when I received your note. Mr Darcy has kindly offered to accompany me to third." She turned away from the expected eyeroll. "Jane, mama sounds like she needs your calm presence. Kitty why do you not take Papa to the places in first that you have snuck any other men?"

"We have not been sneaking many men!"

"Just enough to make us all look bad." Elizabeth shot back before turning to Darcy "are you certain you wish to come with me?"

Darcy just nodded, studiously avoiding the eyes of the others in the small room, made smaller by the various emotions that were poorly concealed.

"Come. I think I can find us a way through second class."

She led him to the main stairs and went down to E deck. After a quick glance around she opened the emergency door that led to Scotland road and then hurriedly closed it behind her.

Darcy gave her an incredulous look to which she grinned and pressed her finger to her lips.

They walked along Scotland road towards the stern, the engine noises and vibrations increasing with each step.

They came to a set of double stairs, which were gated and locked.

"This leads to the third class dining room." They both peered down the stairs. There did not appear to be any sound "I guess they have locked it for the night. I think to get in here from F deck you would have to go through the galley."

She looked around. "The men folk are at the front, the families at the back." She wrinkled her nose in concentration "I think."

"Which will be easier to get to from here?"

She nodded towards the stern.

"Let us go that way then."

She nodded again and made her way further along Scotland road, through the staff area. She thought back to their walk earlier in the day, how much lighter their steps were. They got a few odd looks and were challenged once, but a quick word and a coin smoothed their way. They were dressed like first class and the staff were more inclined to turn a blind eye. Had they been dressed as third they would, no doubt, have been stopped long ago.

As they walked past some of the third class cabins they began to meet people. Elizabeth stopped as many as she dared and asked after her sister. A few had seen her, but none recently and none could say where she had been heading or who with. She sighed in frustration after yet another passenger gave them an odd look and a shake of the head.

"Maybe we should find the common room?" Darcy suggested and Elizabeth nodded her agreement and turned towards the rear of the ship.

They made it to the very stern of the ship and proceeded up to the third class general room on D deck. There was still some people laughing and enjoying themselves there. Elizabeth looked around but did not recognise any of the people she knew from her previous time in these parts.

She turned to Darcy "Do you think we should just ask around?" It was then she noticed he had gone stiff.

She touched his arm gently and murmured "Are you well, sir?" He nodded in the direction of a middle aged woman who was laughing and playing cards with a pair of men and another woman. None looked overly respectable, although the woman to whom Darcy nodded had on a dress that was once well made, if a little faded.

Elizabeth frowned up at him, her eyes asking for an explanation if he was willing to give one.

"Mrs Young. She was companion to my sister when..." he closed his eyes and swallowed.

"She knows Wick..." he nodded cutting her off.

She marched over to the woman.

"Mrs Young. I am looking for Mr Wickham and my sister. Can you tell me where they are?" Elizabeth had moved around the table so that the woman still had her back to where Darcy stood.

"What makes you think I know anything?"

Elizabeth just stared at her.

"Voluptuous young thing? Prettily dressed? Loud mouthed?"

Elizabeth's lips tightened but she nodded her head.

"What's in it for me?"

"The goodness of your heart." The deep voice over her shoulder made Mrs Young jump and Elizabeth saw her lose her colour.

Darcy stood towering over her and she seemed visibly afraid.

"Please." Elizabeth added, managing to make her tone pleading, without being desperate.

Mrs Young shrugged and raised her eyebrows. "A shame I am out of money, I must turn my attention to the game."

Elizabeth smacked her hand down, the coins in her palm jangling on the table as she did so. It wasn't much, but Elizabeth needed answers. She saw Mr Darcy frowning at her but she ignored him.

"Last I saw them they were going to the bow to look for icebergs."

"Thank you."

Elizabeth turned and walked away, ignoring the indignant shout when Mrs Young realised she had only put a few pennies down.

"Let's get out of here."

Darcy nodded and turned towards the stairs. "Which is the best way forward?"

Elizabeth smiled at him "probably best to go back up and along the deck."

They moved out of the third class entrance and across the stern third class open promenade. The steps which led up to the second class entrance were, of course, gated but an officer on his walk round let them through with a warning about not trying it in future.

...

Sunday April 14th 1136, 4 minutes until iceberg.

That had made their way up from the third class outside space and crossed the second class promenade to the stairwell that would connect them to the first class promenade. It was then that they felt a change in the engine. They might not have noticed it, except they were so far to the stern of the ship. A slight shudder then a change in the vibrations. Elizabeth stood still, hand clutching the wall for support, frowning.

"The engines have changed. Something is different."

"I feel it too. Could they be turning?" Darcy looked around the stairwell, as if to seek answers from the surroundings.

"But why so suddenly?"

"Maybe they lost a propeller?"

Elizabeth just shook her head and bit her lip. "Come." She said before moving out on to the deck. She had just stepped out of the door, the very same door outside of which Darcy had proposed only one day ago, when the ship shuddered. She stumbled and Darcy grabbed her, stopping her from falling.

They righted themselves but the ship was still shuddering. She clutched his hands, eyes meeting his in fear of what was occurring.

Then the ship evened out and their footing became steady again but as they looked to the starboard side Elizabeth gasped in horror.

Passing by the ship was a large, ominous, iceberg.

She ran to the edge, Darcy matching pace and they looked over. Very little space seemed to be between the ship and the iceberg.

She turned to look at Darcy, eyes wide. "Did we hit that?"

Darcy's face was grim. "I think so. We must have been trying to turn."

"The rudder was too small. I knew that." Even in such a circumstance Darcy could not help but admire the quick mind of the woman in front of him. He held out his hand.

"Come, let us go and find out what has happened."

...

A/N - And. Here. We. Go...