AN: Thank you all for being so lovely and commenting :)
liysyl: I will post the link to the dress & other photos on my blog today - fanfik-wordpress-com
BK28: Absolutely every woman should have one, just in case. The amount of random stuff that fails during big events is astounding!
HarnGin: Oh, great story :) I'm always suspicious when a wedding goes without any accident, that means there must be something seriously wrong with the world...
Now, on with the story.
Aunt Mary hid her face in her hand, uttering some muffled curse.
Uncle Richard was shivering, his hand still on Rose's shoulder.
Aunt Jane became slightly pale, red spots blazing high on her cheeks.
Someone in the back of the room started moving the chairs away, but everyone froze at the sound of a piping, clear, child voice.
"Did Mommy just drop that ring?"
Ah. Evelyn.
Uncle Charles pressed his nose with two fingers.
The registrar lady had gone slightly red.
Dad, for once, looked unsure what to do. There was a chair blocking him from taking more than one step from where he was standing, and as he tried turning, Mom's grip immobilised him.
"You stay here," she ordered sharply and snatched the remnants of the box and the multitool from aunt Jane's hands. Swiftly and efficiently, she did something to the second ring, which didn't jump or spring away or even fall to the floor, but obediently rolled into her palm. She caught Dad's left hand and pulled him to face her.
"William, with this ring, I give you the sign of my love and trust and respect. I promise I will always be there and I will listen and I will speak up when needed. You have my heart and you are my future."
The registrar looked strangely pained, but she nodded, and Mom slid the ring on Dad's finger. He flexed his hand and looked up at the official, who grimaced.
"William, I think you will have to..."
Someone slid to a stop right behind Dad - someone in a dark button-down and a very dusty pair of black denims.
"Mr Darcy? I- I found it."
Rose bit her lip and tasted blood.
Dad took a heavy, laboured breath before he turned.
"Thank you, Teddy," he looked at the boy with a strained smile. "I... thank you."
"No problem," Teddy nodded at him and at uncle Richard and stepped away, and a bit closer to the opposite side of the aisle. Of course, that naturally brought him closer to Mina, who smiled at him sunnily.
After Dad had wiped the ring and managed to put it on Mom's finger, the rest of the ceremony went smoothly. Mina sang "A dream is a wish your heart makes", some older ladies in the crowd made cooing sounds when Mom and Dad finally kissed, aunt Georgiana had time to relax her hands when the registrar was saying the closing words and declaring that their parents were finally married. Then there was the signing of the register and Evan was snapping last photos of the newlyweds and the witnesses - all four, even if only two of them were actually named in the large book - and it was finally time to leave.
Rose picked up the poor box insert, discarded on an empty chair after that whole debacle and hid it in her pocket as everyone clapped and applauded and stood up to see Elizabeth and William Darcy walk up to the door as a properly, lawfully wedded couple.
"Incredible," aunt Mary sighed in theatrical whisper.
"What?" aunt Georgiana stretched her fingers and raised them over her harp for the last time.
"There was time when I thought - I suppose we all did - that these two would never again agree on any topic, you see. And now?"
"Hah," uncle Charles patted Dad's shoulder. "Now we got them to actually sign something together."
"Charles... I will ignore that," Dad smiled and shook his hand. "On the condition that you will disarm your wife before any future family celebrations. She is a menace with sharp tools."
Aunt Jane made an outraged sound, but was quickly pulled aside by aunt Mary, thus making place for Mom and Dad to walk between everyone who stood up to see them.
But they didn't.
Dad winked at aunt Georgiana and pulled Mom closer, into, well - a dancing position.
"May I have this one?"
Mom frowned and looked around.
"William...?"
Aunt Georgiana touched the harpstrings.
It was a waltz. A Viennese, and Dad knew how to lead. Obviously.
Rose shot a glance at the lady holding the registry book, but she was smiling and nodding to the rhythm.
They may be crazy, but at least someone set it up in advance.
####
They stood in the large side room where something of a reception had been set up for them, all ready to deal with these guests who weren't invited to the smaller family party planned later at Pemberley. Elizabeth was still reeling from the fact that they had danced out of the chamber where they had been just married - married! - especially after all that weirdness with the rings. William seemed to be already doing much better than she did, but their guests' faces showed varied measures of amusement and surprise. In a moment Richard arrived, carrying Georgiana's harp, followed by her sister-in-law - sister-in-law! - and her music stand. Everyone was ushered to stand around, making room, and then Georgiana started playing again, the same Viennese waltz as before.
Ah.
William pulled her closer and they twirled about the room, taking turn after turn, his eyes boring into hers.
Einmal möcht ich wieder tanzen
so wie damals im Mai
einen rechten, süßen Walzer,
wo das Herz ist dabei.
I just want to dance once again
Just like I did in May
Right and proper, sweet Viennese
In which my heart will be
They only danced for two repetitions of the melody, taking precisely enough time to ensure everyone was gathered and the servers had distributed the glasses. As they approached the main table, adorned with an elaborate flower arrangement, they were handed their own drinks and allowed to sit and rest on the beribboned chairs waiting there.
Charles and Richard looked at each other, somehow communicating mutely.
"William asked Charles and me to be his best men - not sure how it is supposed to work with both of us being the best, but Charles signed the register as the official witness, so I will be the one to torture you all with a speech," he raised his glass and guests murmured a polite disagreement. "First and foremost, I wanted to thank you all for coming here for these two," he nodded to where she and William were sitting and winked broadly. "We weren't quite sure they'd be actually able to go through with this, so it was a nice feeling to have such a strong backup in case they decided to leg it. Fortunately they didn't, so we didn't have to organise you all into searching parties - but don't worry, I had a full plan prepared for that eventuality!"
A smattering of applause interrupted him and Elizabeth sighed, hoping it would be all.
"For all the practical purposes, Charles and I represent here both of the families, so on behalf of the more reasonable groups from both sides - thank you for being here. And now, let's all raise our glasses - to Elizabeth and William, who had finally agreed on some topic!"
"Yes, we also agree that you are annoying," Elizabeth informed him under her breath.
"Elizabeth and William!" Charles raised his glass, and everyone was smiling and they had to stand up and drink the toast to their own happiness.
What followed was the usual round of well-wishing, flowers, hugs, air-kisses, real kisses and, rarely, strangely strained smiles.
She was really hoping the whole thing wouldn't take too long, or she would have to take these shoes off and there was no guarantee she'd be able to put them on afterwards!
But - really - they were married. And that was the most important thing.
She nodded, she shook hands, she allowed herself to be congratulated. William's whispered commentary helped her to put them in the right context - the company, the contractors, someone from the community...
"Lizzy! Fabulous dress!"
"Evie! Well, you know, last minute thing, so it is a bit basic... But tolerable enough, I suppose."
"Come here, you terrible little woman," Evie enveloped her in the first honest hug she had received in the last half hour. "Oooh, you look so well! And I mean it, not only because I made that thing, I really honestly mean it."
"Thanks," she patted Evie's shoulder and they parted a bit. "William, this is Evie, who had sewn this dress and also, quite by coincidence, used to sit behind me on maths for two years."
William frowned, but Evie grinned at him.
"Evie Martin, I knew Elizabeth before she was cool. We bonded over shared love of hard fantasy and disdain for standard school-provided entertainment."
"We were once photographed reading in the corner during a school dance," Elizabeth explained, smiling at William's surprised grin. "And now Evie lives in Lambton and she is the dressmaker who is responsible for this," she gestured to the dress.
"Then I must express my most ardent thanks," William bowed over Evie's hand. "It is a masterpiece."
They both laughed merrily and Evie hugged her again before she made room for new well-wishers.
#
William's family showed up - the whole set of Richard's family, to be precise - his parents, his older brother and said brother's wife. They presented an unified front of 'distant but kind', with Matthew and Leanna being more on the 'kind' side of spectrum.
"We didn't know anything about Catherine's... ideas," aunt Mathilda informed them with distaste. "It is one thing to wish one's children settled, but this idiocy... Well, let me just say, these two are now quite, quite alone in their little family circle of two. We've hosted Anne for some time after they were asked to leave Pemberley, but even Henry grew tired of her incessant complaining about William and finally she was moved to one of the guest lodges. We didn't know they were planning to break into Pemberley!"
"Or, I suppose, to attack Elizabeth in bright daylight," William sighed. "We don't blame you - I've let them live under my roof for way too long and I've never noticed they had been stealing my post, so I can't expect others to be more attentive."
"Thank you, dear boy. I felt a bit guilty about letting Anne stay, but while Catherine is rather self-sufficient, Anne..."
They all grimaced.
"Wherever she was staying, now Anne is no longer our problem. Either she will be found sane and so she will go to prison or she will be diagnosed with some disorder and then, depending on further evaluation, she may even be placed in some isolated ward. I'm not sure what I'd prefer, but I must admit - for the time being I'm mostly focused on these aspects of my life that I can influence."
"Now that you mention influencing, I was thinking about Richard..."
"Uncle!"
"I mean... is this boy right for him? Will Richard settle down?" the old man frowned at his youngest. "I worry about him, all the time. I hoped he'd find someone who would stabilise him and I hope this Evan fellow will be the one..."
William choked a bit and Elizabeth felt it her duty to thump his on his back a few times.
"What...?" uncle Henry turned back to them and looked up at Will. "Oh, really, nephew. I may be old, but I'm not a dinosaur, even if some of my colleagues probably are... If Evan makes Richard happy, then he makes him happy, period. I never expected him to marry a wafer-thin socialite and churn out a set of backup babies for the family needs. I just hope having that boy by his side will convince him to stop mucking about with things that go 'boom'..!"
"Well, I think it's up to them," Elizabeth intervened. "We will support them, no matter which option they choose."
"Oh, we will, too. I just need some reassurance that he will keep the current number of fingers and other pieces..."
#
Most of the guests had left after a round of drinks and a piece of a perfectly acceptable if unexciting cake (delivered by the local bakery), leaving behind a small, glittering heap of gifts. Evan, who had been steadily documenting the whole well-wishing line, promised to have the photos uploaded for them soon, so that they could write the thank-you notes to whoever had made the effort.
The Pemberley employees brought in a large container and removed whatever was supposed to go back to the house, one of them tasked with transporting Georgiana's harp.
Only the closest family was left now - well, that and a few small additions - and everyone was slowly starting to put their coats on. It was getting late and there was a proper dinner waiting for them at the house, so they had to get everyone in their cars and moving. At some point.
Elizabeth looked at the group across the room from her and sighed.
Her younger daughter was looking even more infatuated than she had before. Teddy had been the hero of the ceremony, absolutely, and it seemed like a good moment to talk to him, now that the wild crowd was gone.
Also, now that the crowd was gone, he and Mina came under the scrutiny of no less than three very curious aunts, who were now standing a few meters from them, in conference with Georgiana and Lucy, so it would also be a good time to intervene, before Kitty went into the overprotective mode.
She pulled on William's hand, leading him to where Mina and Teddy were sitting, quietly ignoring everyone and focused very much on each other. Rose was sitting a few chairs from them, intently poking at something dark with a wooden skewer. She looked up when they approached.
"Glue," she said enigmatically.
"Come again?"
"It was glue, Mom. See? It has seeped through the fabric and the rings got stuck to it. Not sure what kind of glue, but there had to be a lot of it, because the whole bottom of this thing is covered with it..." she waved the box insert at them "but it came out easily because the box was smooth. The rings were stuck in it like that," Rose mimicked the direction "and so the glue seeped through and made a little... blockade. That kept the rings stuck. Like a glue padlock."
William took the piece of shaped velvet-covered plastic and pried it apart carefully.
"I will be having a little talk with the jeweller," he sighed. "That was..."
"Ghastly," she finished. "And that's why we are here. Teddy..."
The boy looked up guiltily, tearing his attention away from Mina.
William inhaled slowly.
"Thank you, Theodore. It was... It was good job. Sorry about your trousers."
"Oh..." Teddy stood up, looked down at his legs and grimaced. "Mother won't be happy, I suppose. But, all in a good cause. I saw it ricochet to the side and go under these chairs, so I thought I was probably the only one who knew where to look for it. And, well..." he looked away self-consciously. "I was probably the only one not in a suit. Can't imagine your guests trying to fetch that ring from under the radiator."
"Well, then..." William smiled at him - Elizabeth squeezed her husband's hand. "Maybe you'd like to join us for dinner? I could give your parents a call and then someone would drive you home later in the evening?"
Teddy sighed and shook his head with obvious regret.
"I still have stuff to do today, I promised Mom some chores... I'll have to be heading home in ten minutes."
"Sorry to hear that," Elizabeth reached out to shake his hand. "I will have a slice of cake set aside, Mina can take it to school on Monday."
Teddy frowned and shot Mina a glance, but didn't manage to get a word out.
"Yeah, I'll put it in a box. Mom made Schwarzwald torte, so it's all chocolate, cherries and whipped cream."
"Thank you... Mrs Darcy," Teddy straightened a bit. "Very much appreciated. And I hope the rest of the evening goes without any more - well - excitement."
It is a wonder whole school isn't in love with that boy.
"Thank you, Teddy," William squeezed his shoulder. "We will definitely try to keep it to reasonable level. Mina, we'll be leaving in ten minutes or so, so..." he shrugged and nodded at the two of them shortly. "Be in the cloakroom in five."
Elizabeth heard her younger daughter's soft confirmation and smiled as Teddy sank back to the chair he had been sitting on and Mina leaned on him again, quite silently.
#
The catering company had been let in by the few groundskeepers that had stayed behind for that specific purpose. The large dining room oak table was moved to the side, a few "technical" tables were lined up with warming stations set up on top of them, a table of salads and cold dishes next, juices, water and sweets following.
A group of very kind servers manned the main table, helping everyone to fill their plates and making sure nobody managed to pull one of the hot objects on themselves. As soon as they entered and the kids ran away in all directions, Elizabeth was taken aside by the head of the serving crew and consulted on the exact time when she wished for her cake to be brought in. Soon, most everyone had found themselves something to eat and settled around the main table or, in case of the kids, at the smaller table overseen by a caretaker who was tasked with ensuring that there would be next to no food throwing and that everyone would eat at last one piece of vegetable each ("Mowe sausage!" "Evelyn! You will eat at least one carrot!") and that everyone had enough juice.
Their parents could relax, at least for the time being, and the discussions around the table flew freely, with Mina and Rose listening intently and Jackie trying to behave Like A Grownup as much as she could (in fear of being relegated to the kids' table).
"How long are you staying?" William turned to Evan, who was wandering around the room and making photos of everyone.
"Evan's CO decided that he can, after all, give his main diver a weekend off in November" Richard rolled his eyes expressively. "So we have time until tomorrow evening, just for the family."
"Oh, that's nice," Elizabeth gestured with her fork. "Any plans?"
"Just want to show him the neighbourhood" Richard waved around. "He is mainly stuck in port or out, on a dive and when he finally gets a few days off, he sleeps for most of the time, so it's his first whole weekend in Derbyshire."
"How did the two of you meet?" Mary was watching Jimmy stuff himself full of peas, but managed to hold a conversation at the same time. "If Evan is stationed in one of the Navy bases... And you are mostly stuck on your base, blowing stuff up?"
"Ah."
Richard was blushing.
Elizabeth noticed Mina watching the proceedings with fascination. She and Richard seemed to have mostly buried the hatchet, but still there was something stiff in their interactions. Probably she still hadn't exactly forgiven her godfather his idiotic attempt at terrorising Teddy after the concert, so whatever caused him discomfort was of interest to her.
"He doesn't want to admit it, because it sounds so cliche, but we met during the Pride Parade" Evan patted Richard's arm fondly. "I was there, in my very proper sailor's uniform, my fifth event, I already knew what was what and how it goes... It's hot, it's in full uniform and everyone has to march for what seems to be hours. But hey, I joined every year, because come on."
"And for me it was the first parade ever, so... I didn't. Or if I knew, I didn't factor in the temperature and the distance and, like a stupid tyro, forgot to drink enough beforehand, so I..."
"Swooned."
"Blacked out."
"You totally swooned, Richard. And because we were marching right behind you..."
"I came to and saw that absolutely fit bloke holding me and trying to revive me. And it kind of... evolved."
"So, let me get this clear" judging by her sweet tone, Mina was having definitely too much fun. "Uncle Richard fainted like a Regency lady in a too-tight corset and Evan came to his rescue?"
"It would seem so" Rose confirmed in an equally sugary voice.
"This is just..." Mina scrunched her nose. "Precious. Oh, I'm gonna treasure this forever. And maybe, just maybe, one day, I will consider retelling this to Teddy."
"Oh, you little...!" Richard straightened. "You wouldn't."
Mina sat up and smiled.
"Just like you wouldn't try to tease your only, darling, beloved goddaughter by trying to scare her boyfriend away, would you, uncle Richard?"
Stares were exchanged.
Richard frowned, watching Mina sit back, her arms crossed.
And then yelped and ducked, avoiding the next smack aimed at the back of his head.
"You've been trying to scare away her boyfriend, you idiot?" Evan was brandishing a rolled-up newspaper that had just delivered the hit. "And then you had the temerity to complain to me that she was for some reason not enthusiastic about seeing you!?"
"He said he would consent to me dating once I turn eighteen" Mina informed Evan gladly. "And Teddy has been at his base for a part of his Army Cadets camp, so uncle Richard is kind of like his commanding officer, in a way. There should be some rule saying that your CO should not make it his business who you want to kiss."
"Actually" Evan finally managed to utter - once he stopped laughing. "There are several rules saying exactly that. And anyway, army regulations don't apply to the Cadets, because they are not actually in the Army."
"Does this mean that uncle Richard was usurping himself some kind of power he doesn't have really?"
"Well, I still am your godfather."
"And I still do know you swooned into Evan's arms" she pointed out, grinning. "Nothing wrong about it, it's absolutely sweet and adorable, mind you. I'm sure my boyfriend would be delighted to hear that story."
"You are a cruel little monster."
"Takes one to know one" she stuck out her tongue at him.
#
"So, well" Jane stood up from her place next to Elizabeth and looked at everyone gathered at the table. "Now, guys. Listen for a moment. As the matron of honour - because come on, no way you're saddling me with the 'bridesmaid' title, Liz - I have to say a few words. Liz, Will. I'm so glad you two finally got here. You seem to be doing everything in the wrong order, up to and including having your teenage daughters as parts of your wedding ceremony. And yet, it kind of fits. Elizabeth did a lot of things completely differently from everyone else. She always was my favourite sister - sorry, Mary, Kit, but it's simple maths, I've known her longer than any of you - and I always felt I had to take care of her or she would not survive her teen years. She walked around with her nose stuck in a book, a bit like Belle. But unlike Belle, she focused very much on said book and paid no attention to her surroundings and tended to walk into road signs, lantern posts and people. I'm still surprised she actually noticed Will at all - not that he isn't noteworthy, but simply because she always seemed to be either reading, coding or baking. Blokes weren't, as she said, 'in the scope' of her Project: Elizabeth. I was honestly surprised when they showed up to our wedding as a couple. Now, thirteen years after the most explosive argument in our family, ever, you two are back together again and... Hopefully, this time for good?"
Elizabeth leaned on William's warm shoulder and smiled.
"So, from the Bennet side - welcome to the family, Will. Ignore the naysayers, don't pay attention to whoever tries to make you feel a stranger and remember that the important ones know you love Lizzy and Lizzy loves you. You don't need anyone's validation for your relationship, you just have to be. Thank you for taking the brave step and joining us. Remember, we are always here for you two."
"That sounded like a threat..." Elizabeth mumbled.
"Yes, because we're also here to straighten the two of you out, if needed. Now, Charles and I have a little gift for you. Because, as we've already determined, you two are rather challenging to buy presents for, we were... creative. So, knowing Elizabeth's need for aesthetic in small details and William's appreciation of architecture and urban solutions, we've put together a little trip for you. Everything is booked and organised, you two just need to pack enough warm clothes and go. You leave on the New Year's Eve."
Elizabeth took the thick folder and looked at it in alarm.
"But... But we can't just leave for two weeks! I mean, the girls...!"
"And here is where my part of the gift comes handy" Mary chimed in. "An offer of two weeks... teenager-sitting. As a parent of a kid exempt from school this year, I have certain flexibility in my plans. School holidays are until the 5th, so during the first week they will be home anyway, and I think we can cover that part with Georgina, quite nicely. Same for the first week of school. You two go and enjoy your trip. I know for a fact that neither of you had ever been to Finland, Lizzy has been to Amsterdam once and William to Stockholm, twice. Make use of the time. Do a lot of silly shopping. Celebrate William's birthday!"
Elizabeth felt William's arm around her shoulders.
"Y-yeah" she took a shaky breath. "Thank you all!"
"On that note..." Georgiana rose and smiled. "Here is my present."
Two printed pages, two permission slips... for a school trip?
She looked up at her sister-in-law, not comprehending what it meant.
"The promised school trip to London leaves tomorrow mid-day," Georgiana explained. "And I will be going as an additional guardian. So you will have the house to yourselves."
"B-but, how did you..." Elizabeth blinked, staving off tears.
"Well... these two have more than just you as legal guardians. I am Rose's and Mary is one for Mina. So we signed the trip forms for them and I signed up to go with them. Each six children need one adult to stay with them in their room."
"And the trip is ending on Friday, but Rose and Mina will stay with us until Sunday and we will drive them up here for dinner" Kitty added. "Georgiana needs to come back, with the other kids, but she and Mary already set it up so the girls don't have to."
"In the same spirit..." Richard smiled at Evan and brought their tightly clasped hands up to his lips. "You can call on us and claim a need for someone to tire these two out on any weekend this school year. We promise we will be careful and won't break them. Evan will... Evan has resigned from the Navy, effective end of November, and is moving to Matlock and being hired as civilian consultant. He will be a diving teacher, too, so we can offer the girls some excitement, I suppose."
William straightened, looking at Rick with suspicion.
"And yes, William, I'm not an idiot. I proposed."
The dining room went silent.
"I was actually planning to propose, too" Evan's slightly-accented tenor carried a note of laughter. "I made all these plans, handed in my resignation, bought the ring, planned my speech, found two new jobs in the area... Had arguments ready that it's easier to be a civilian diver than civilian ordnance expert and this one" he punched Richard's shoulder "cut me off! Like a barbarian! On his knees and everything!"
Mina giggled.
Richard glared at her, slightly offended, but when Evan's laughter joined hers, soon everyone was chortling.
"OK, you... you all dreadful people" Elizabeth wiped off her tears. "Congratulations, boys! Oh, dear. That is... I mean, these are wonderful gifts! And I mean it. I absolutely know it is hard to find something appropriate for Will and I am living here, so I know exactly what he has. Bloody everything. But there is one thing that I found that caught my eye... I was considering holding onto it until January, but then... and it will work even better now, especially as we will be in Sweden on your birthday! Girls?"
Rose reached under the table and together with Mina they hauled out a large, dark wood box. With Evan's help they put it on an empty dish trolley and wheeled it closer to William.
She saw his fingers tremble, just a bit, as he opened the clasps holding the wooden cover shut.
"Oh, Lizzy...! It's lovely, but..."
"Fully functional. No buts."
"But how...? I mean, I always wanted one, but it seemed like such a waste of paper and..."
"Shut up, William" Charles suggested amicably. "You got your wished-for typewriter. Now you can write your terrible novels in style."
"Charlie!"
"What? Have you ever read them?"
Jane rolled her eyes.
"All of them. Remember who got Lizzy hooked on the series..."
Elizabeth turned to her sister, unable to form a sentence.
"You... you awful, awful... You...!"
"You broke her" Charles said with a small smile. "Yes, Jane gave you the first three, but you were the one who bought the rest of it!"
"Well..." Kitty coughed. "I suppose now you can get it at the source."
"Kitty!"
#
The rest of the evening was spent in a delightful manner, with some dancing - mostly ballroom dances, and Richard had vowed to teach Rose waltz, if she wanted to and danced with Mina, who had finally allowed herself to be convinced to agree. Others took a turn more or less gracefully, Evan happily pairing up first with Lucy, then with his nieces-to-be (despite Rose's token moan that she doesn't know how to) and ending up with Richard, who fluidly caught him and pulled him across the floor in a quick attempt at a tango.
Kitty and Ted added their present - a voucher for a SPA weekend for two - to the thick folder from Jane and Charles, the children crowded to hand them their well-wishing cards (some still shedding glitter) and there were some hugs and rather sticky kisses to be had by everyone.
"And we have one more thing," Charles pulled an envelope from Jane's handbag and pushed it in Elizabeth's direction. "We've... liberated it from the mail heap at your parents' place. Was stuck between credit card offers and a garden tools catalogue, so it's not like they held it there on purpose, but your father's tendency to not pay attention to their post is the likely culprit."
She prodded it cautiously.
"What is it?"
"Well, it's not like we opened it," Jane pointed out reasonably. "But it does have the logo of Imperial College on the..."
Elizabeth didn't hear anything after that. She snatched the letter and looked it all over. Yes. Her name - old name, now - and the logo of Imperial and a date stamp - three weeks previous - and a return address of the Faculty of Engineering.
"Lizzy?" William's warm breath washed over her cheek. "What is it?"
"Not sure," she turned the envelope slowly in her hands. "But..."
Silently, he handed her a clean knife.
There were several pieces of paper inside. She picked up the first one, trying to understand.
"They are inviting me to a conference," she read the cover letter slowly. "As a guest speaker."
Jane emitted a small squeak.
"But why would they send me an actual... ah..." she pulled a smaller piece of paper, hand-written.
"Mary?"
"Ye-es?"
"Do you still keep in touch with that nice criminal attorney, Timothy?"
"Yes, from time to time. Why?"
"I'm going to kill our father and I'm going to need a defence lawyer."
#
Only after she calmed down and drank another cup of tea, Elizabeth explained to all present the whole idiotic rigmarole of her father being the most prominent reason her so-called academic career died before it properly started, which was capped, right now, by him not passing along the information that the Imperial was trying to contact her - under her old address and phone number. Which her father had apparently answered (it was her parents' landline after all) and then promptly failed to pass the information on to her or to share her current mobile number with the kind lady seeking contact.
"So they decided to write, probably assuming a hardcopy will be harder to lose. Well, with the history we have with letters, I would never be that sure about, but well, it helped in this case."
"So, what do they want?"
Elizabeth shook her head.
"Not sure, really. They have a conference and I fit their profile - not sure how they see it, I have never even been a teacher - so they want me to submit an abstract and ask me to kindly contact them by phone for more details..." she blinked, words on the next page going blurry.
William turned her hand to read it over her shoulder.
"...following successful presentation... would be interested in regular cooperation... meaningful contribution... real-life experience outside of academia... expose our students to range of fascinating... Lizzy? I think they want you to deliver some kind of regular thing."
She found herself a little short of breath.
"They..."
"Seems that after that conference - if it all goes well - they want you to be a regular speaker, due to your experience in the industry and chance to show the kids what the real work in that field is about."
"Oooh," Mary breathed. "You won't have to kill Dad. He will burn of jealousy. Imperial wants you to be a regular guest speaker. Dad hates them because they didn't want him on the board of something or other."
"The Program Board for Computer Engineering Department maybe?" William's voice was quivering with mirth.
"Sounds like that, yes..." Mary trailed off and Elizabeth raised her eyes just in time to see her snatch another part of the letter from William's fingers. "They didn't!"
"They absolutely did," her husband countered.
#
After Elizabeth had taken a small break in the bathroom, washing her face with cold water and undoing the elaborate combination of hair and ribbons, finally allowing her head to rest.
She looked up, into the mirror, into the face of Elizabeth Darcy for the very first time.
"Imperial wants you. The Imperial wants you. It's not Oxford, or Cambridge. But it's Imperial. Elizabeth, Imperial wants you to present something on their conference. You will be calling them on Monday, you will be a big girl and you will agree. And you will write the abstract and work with them like a bleeding professional we all know you are. Clear?"
Her reflection was as pale, freckled, sharp-nosed and wide-eyed as always. She didn't look like a lecturer. She didn't feel like a lecturer. Could she do it?
She sighed, squeezed her eyes shut and waited.
No. Nobody jumping out with a camera to take a quick candid of her and then laugh at her expense forever. This was happening. Imperial asked her for a lecture and suggested they would be open to cooperation if she did well.
She straightened a bit and smiled at the girl in the mirror. She still looked terrified, but at least she didn't look so shell-shocked as before.
Because, demmit, Imperial wants me.
Second in rank university in London and they want Elizabeth Bennet...
...yeah, well. Darcy. And what about the move, I mean...
...damn.
"Lizzy? Are you having a crisis of conscience in there or have you fainted and hit your head? I'm coming in in five if you don't answer!"
"Calm down, Jane. Just... just trying to wrap my head around it. I mean, Imperial!"
"Yeah, Imperial. Come out of there and join the party - there is still that whole cake of yours and Kitty is sending William murderous looks, so please, come back?"
She sighed and combed her hair back.
"Coming. Get me something cold to drink. Lemonade with a heap of crushed ice. I'll be back in a minute."
"OK, but if you're not out when I get back from the kitchen, I'll let your husband take the door off the hinges."
You can do it, Lizzy. This is family.
#
The cake was a success - with everyone except for poor Evan, who turned out to be allergic to chocolate (but he stole most of Richard's whipped cream and several cherries that hadn't touched the dreaded brown poison) - and some children managed to steal entire second slices from their fathers (Charles received a replacement slice and the sounds Evelynosaur made when she dug into her ill-gotten gains were totally worth it).
"Now, Lizzy," Kitty set her cup down and leaned closer to her. "You have seen them, William has seen them and Mina's boyfriend has seen one of them, but none of us have. So, can we please see your rings?"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes and extended her hand to Kitty from where she was sitting in William's lap.
"We've decided that since we are probably a couple unlike any others in this house, we will have a set that is unlike any others before."
"Some people use their parents' rings," Elizabeth shuddered. "We wanted our own, fresh and, well..." she looked up at William.
"Ours," he finished succinctly. "They are tungsten and platinum. Felt appropriate."
"The jeweller in town wasn't very happy, he is more of a traditional gold is good for everyone kind of guy."
"Very nice," Kitty pronounced it with gravity. "But what about your engagement ring? I mean..."
"Oh, this was much more traditional," Elizabeth showed her the other hand. "I think it's early nineteenth century, Will?"
"Late eighteen, more like," he shrugged. "Nobody knows precisely."
"But..." Kitty frowned. "It's so... so plain. I mean, no disrespect, William, but come on, it's so... erm... bland? I mean... no, you know, no diamonds?"
William sighed and Elizabeth felt him move to sit more comfortably for the discussion that was guaranteed to ensue. She took a moment to kiss him by surprise and turned back to Kitty.
"Before he begins - and William has his pet peeves like everyone else - I'm going to give a precis. The diamond industry is a world-wide sham, the whole hype about them being absolutely necessary for an engagement ring is just very good PR, they managed to put product placement about the rings everywhere and the people who originally thought of this idea had limited the diamond market on purpose in order to squeeze more money out of it by limiting the supply. In short, buying a diamond ring makes some very smart bozo richer because his papa had a bright idea to convince you and everyone else that diamonds are valuable. Sorry, Ted."
"No offense taken," her brother-in-law rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "I never dug into the topic, but I remember hearing about it all being a hype several years ago. Didn't pay attention - not like I was looking for a new ring, was I?"
"I bloody well hope not," Kitty poked him in the ribs. "I kind of see it, but... this looks rather, I don't know."
"Like a piece of a weird sculpture?" Elizabeth laughed. "It's even better. Look."
She twisted the ring slowly off her finger, suddenly noticing they had gained an audience.
"Now, when we look at it, it's two hands holding each other, right?"
Mina and Rose joined them, one at each of her shoulders.
"This is what is called a fede gimmel ring. It means that this is not one ring, but..." she twisted the whole thing "...three."
A small 'ooh' from her side made her smile.
And Kitty's suddenly widening eyes at the sight of a garnet heart hidden by the clasped hands were a reward all by themselves.
"That's why you saw three rings when they were on the lawn!"
Rose whistled.
"Nice. How do you make them one ring again?"
"Well, it is a bit of a puzzle. You can try to solve it," Elizabeth handed her older daughter the rings and reclined into William's arms, watching Rose try to put it back together.
It was nice.
She closed her eyes and turned her face to let it rest against William's shoulder.
Nice.
So, this done :)
I will be a bit busy next week - a business trip and a Christmas fair - so I can't promise I'll be able to post anything, but the aim is to have this story wrapped up before Christmas (and the events should end sometime around end of January, maybe Valentine's Day).
Meanwhile, let me know what you think!