A/N: As usual, my lovely reviewers have come through for me. Surprisingly, I haven't been run off my feet my homework yet, so I thought I might take this opportunity to make a little more progress on this story since it has taken me forever to write this story and I'm impatient to do another story I could keep as my constant.

Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: If I could go back in time and meet Jane Austen, I would fall at her feet and beg her to teach me to write like her.

WARNING: PURE ROMANCE, HUMOR AND FLUFF.

The rooster heralded the arrival of the morning but within Darcy's chambers the morning had long begun. Already dressed in his finest, the man within impatiently paced in the faint morning light streaming through his open blinds. Rubbing his hands carelessly through his dark locks, Darcy strode towards the bedroom door and yanked it open with no little force. Stepping into the near empty corridor, the manservant gave the young master a startled look and rushed towards him for his orders.

"Sir…is there anything you would like? Breakfast will be at 9:00 as Master Bingley is somewhat of a late riser…"

Darcy eyed the man wearily. "Coffee. Black. If you will."

The manservant bowed and retreated from view as Darcy descended the stairs and started towards the breakfast parlor. Nervous butterflies twisted his stomach as he sat down in the nearest chair.

Eyeing the young gentleman wearily, the manservant set the coffee before him and watched as Darcy took a small sip and promptly set it back down, his face twisted in mild discomfort.

The man wrung his hands nervously, "Sir, is there anything the matter with the coffee, perhaps…"

Darcy waved the man off quickly. "No, no. It is fine." In truth Darcy's stomach was feeling a little too unsettled to keep down anything. Instead he rose and proceeded towards the window and took up his usual position. Folding his hands behind him, he stared outwards. The grounds of Netherfield glistened in the morning light, the color of the sunrise reminding him of the glisten in a certain pair of fined eyes.

Sighing in frustration, Darcy let his head fall forwards to rest against the cool pane of the window. His mind wandered to one place and one person. He wondered what her reaction would be, whether she would be glad to see him, whether she would welcome him after all that had occurred at Pemberley.

Deciding that Bingley would be abed for a few more hours, Darcy set out from Netherfield by foot with the intention of clearing his head, the fact that a certain Miss Bennet also favored morning strolls factored strongly in the direction that Darcy chose to take.

Oakham mount glistened in the morning light, the view, breathtaking for the young gentleman who broke from the dark foliage into the clearing.

But it was not the stunning sunrise, which had caught Darcy's breath, but the charming young lady whose sparkling features were framed by the dawn. Her face had turned towards him when she heard the rustling in the greenery, and now, like the perfect angel, her features were framed by the golden morning light like a halo.

If Darcy had been able to move, he would have fallen to his feet before her and worshipped her like she deserved to be. But as it were, Darcy was rooted to earth, his breath caught in his chest, his heart pounding in his ears and his blood like racing flames.

Elizabeth blinked once. Twice. Thrice. Just like she had imagined so many times before, there he was, bathed in morning, his eyes like the blue depths of the ocean. He was dressed handsomely, the dark blue coat matching his hypnotic gaze.

Elizabeth almost frowned at this revelation. He had never worn that coat before in her imaginings but she brushed off any disturbing thoughts. After all that had occurred at Pemberley, this Mr. Darcy could only be the consequence of her imagination and exhaustion. She smiled at the illusion languidly, almost amused that her hallucination seemed so solid.

Darcy's eyes widened almost imperceptibly. The smile had washed through him like a roiling wave and he savored the sight with fervor. Seemingly of their own accord, his feet ventured forwards until they had brought him within arms length. Her scent drifted to him on the light breeze and he leaned forward to capture more of the illusive and addictive fragrance.

Elizabeth watched as he came closer, she could have sworn she could feel the warmth radiating from her vision. Her skin tingled with anticipation and fear. Anticipation because the apparition would always lean forward to kiss her at this moment, fear because his lips would never touch hers before he vanished. Eagerly, she raised her eyes to meet his, held fast by the emotions flashing through the dark depths.

Darcy watched her intensely, lovingly noting the light flush on her cheeks and the passion simmering in her gaze. She looked at him with all the warmth he had imagined in his dreams and his heart rejoiced. Her lips parted as she breathed and Darcy's eyes unconsciously drifted towards them. His control melted away as he slowly leaned forwards, his eyes searching hers silently for permission.

Elizabeth held no qualms as the vision leaned forwards and inched with excruciating slowness towards her. She savored his scent and his warmth, clinging to the fantasy while it lasted. But unlike before, he didn't disappear. Instead, his warmth increased and his scent engulfed her senses. With a quiet gasp, Elizabeth felt warm lips meet hers.

Darcy shivered slightly as warmth and electricity assaulted his senses. It felt so unbelievably right as his lips met hers, like he had waited all of eternity to quench his thirst for her. He heard her quiet gasp but the sound was laced not with fear but with pleasure. Giving up his last semblance of control, Darcy pressed further forward. Gently, his lips parted and he tenderly ran his tongue across her yielding lips.

Elizabeth shivered and parted her lips willingly. Hesitantly, her tongue met his and she trembled with pleasure. It was so real, so perfect and she dreaded the jolt that would recall her to the waking world. Raising her hands, her fingers met the warm material of his coat. Tenderly, she flattened her palms against his stomach and she felt the taught muscles shift under her touch. Hesitantly, Elizabeth's hand moved upwards, over the solid chest and the strong column of his neck. Tingling from his kiss, she felt his hand caress her waist and tangle in her curls.

Darcy revered in her touch and pulled her insistently until she was pressed flush against him. Her soft curves fit so perfectly against him, better and more scorching than even his most vivid dreams. After so long, his hunger for her refused to be sated and eager to please and be pleased, he deepened the kiss and tasted her properly.

Elizabeth returned the kiss with equal hunger and ran her hands through his smooth locks, ruffling it with her fingers. She felt his body pressed against her and gloried in how different he felt compared to her. Deliberately, she slid one hand downwards with agonizing slowness, into the cravat and rested her fingers against his neck. There, beneath her tingling fingers, she felt a throbbing pulse. She jolted. Something was wrong; her dream should not have a pulse let alone one with such an insistent beat.

Darcy felt the yielding lips beneath his freeze and pull away. Protesting with a quiet moan, he opened his eyes to find a pair of very fine, very shocked eyes peering into his. For a moment, the shock he found in her eyes threw him before a faint blush spread across his cheeks.

"Miss Bennet…Elizabeth…Miss Bennet…I…"

Elizabeth gently touched her lips and felt them tingle with sensitivity, her eyes widened in disbelief as she watched in silent fascination as Darcy continued to speak haltingly though she heard not a word of it. She felt the deep rumble of his voice but the sound didn't seem to register in her ears. With stunned fascination, Elizabeth reached up and ran a thumb gently over Darcy's moving lips. Her fingers did not pass through her apparition.

"Oh." Elizabeth quickly withdrew her hand, bit her lip and lowered her eyes to the grass.

Darcy stopped speaking the moment her thumb brushed over his lips. Instantly, his eyes snapped to her and stared at her intensely. Studying her like she was the most fascinating creature on earth, he watched as the blush spread across her skin and her eyes lowered to her feet. Brushing his hand quickly across his face, he attempted to form a coherent sentence.

"Elizabeth, I must apologize. I had no intention of bringing you any offence. It is simply that…"

Elizabeth willed herself to look up but found it nearly impossible to meet his eyes. Her gaze instantly wavered and she averted her eyes upward and instead, focused on his dark hair. A small giggle burst from her lips before she could control herself.

Darcy stopped mid-sentence and stared at her quizzically. Raising an eyebrow, he queried: "May I question what you find so amusing Miss Bennet?"

Lizzy emitted another giggle. She gestured loosely towards his hair before bursting into laughter once more. Once she could bring herself to contain her mirth she brought her eyes once more to his hair, which at that moment seemed to have a life of its own, standing up in all random directions. Humorous though it was, it made Darcy look handsomely disheveled and she was loath to see it go. Stepping unconsciously towards him, she raised a hand and gently smoothed his hair, taking care to brush it away from his eyes. The hair however seemed inclined to disobey her and dropped quickly away from her fingers and hung loosely over his eyes.

At her close proximity, Darcy's eyes instantly darkened.

Elizabeth watched as the blue darkened to black behind the hair that had fallen into his eyes.

Darcy leaned forward, his lips parted sensuously.

Elizabeth was hooked, addicted and tilted her head forward until her lips met his once more.

Pressing to her insistently, Darcy relived the euphoria from just moments before and her warmth mingled with his. This time though, it was Darcy who pulled away from her.

"Elizabeth…please, we need to speak and unfortunately my lips have trouble doing two things at once."

Elizabeth blushed and nodded in agreement. As a precaution, she took a step away from him and stared at him inquisitively.

Darcy almost groaned at the sudden rush of cold air in her absence. He shook his head and stepped forward, closing the distance once more and pulled her to him so that she rested gently against his chest. Resting his chin softly upon her head, he asked a question which had plagued him since he had met Elizabeth.

"Do you love me?"

Elizabeth sighed and buried herself in his arms, taking in the warmth that protected her from the early morning chill. With her usual impertinence, she replied: "I think that is somewhat of a redundant question."

Darcy grinned weakly. "Please Elizabeth, I need to hear the words."

She sighed into his coat. "I love you William. I have for a very long time."

Darcy laughed with relief. "Elizabeth, will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

The body within his arms stiffened and pulled away. Elizabeth's eyes hardened as she turned her back on him and began to descend from Oakham mount. Looking back, she stared at Darcy's stunned expression. "I won't marry you William. I have already told you why."

Darcy's expression froze over. "How many times must I propose to you before you say yes Elizabeth? How many times must I humble myself till you are satisfied with your ability to break me?"

Elizabeth looked down. "That was not my intention William."

"Then why are you subjecting me to another refusal?"

"I won't connect you to my…family." Elizabeth spat out the last word with fury.

"Wickham. I know. But I do not care. Anything for you."

Elizabeth smiled bitterly. "No. Leave."

Darcy watched her retreating figure, almost resigned…but not quite. Within a few steps, he was planted firmly in her path. Never had he been more thankful for his long legs and fast steps.

He fixed his eyes squarely on her. "No."

Elizabeth's eyes flashed dangerously. "No? You cannot control me Darcy! I will not marry you."

Darcy flinched at the use of his last name but stood firm. "Say yes Elizabeth. You love me, I love you. There is nothing else."

Elizabeth scoffed. "Nothing else? You are so deuced stubborn Darcy. Like your dear aunt said, I cannot pollute the shades of Pemberley thus. Go home to your sister, Darcy, marry your cousin, unite the great estates of Rosings and Pemberley. Follow your path Darcy and I will follow mine."

Darcy's eyes glinted. "You path lies with me."

Elizabeth laughed. "Like I said, stubborn."

"If I am stubborn, you are even more so."

Lizzy scoffed in disbelief. "Why won't you just give up? Why can you not see the imprudence of our match?"

"Imprudence?" Darcy chuckled lightly and looked away from her. Suddenly, his eyes snapped back towards her, an idea taking shape quickly within his mind. Donning a nonchalant expression, he turned from her with a bemused smirk.

"Imprudence, you say. I think you may be correct. You begin to sound akin to my dear aunt Catherine. I may as well go home and marry quiet little Anne, in any event, she must be better than a woman who is beginning to take on the characteristics of my overbearing aunt."

Elizabeth flushed. "Your aunt! How dare you even compare me to such a woman!"

Darcy shrugged carelessly. "Imprudence, was that your word or hers? The line between your opinions and hers begin to blur in my mind. Dear me, you are not what I thought."

Her eyes narrowed. "I am not your aunt!"

Darcy raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You have her stubborn attitude and you certainly seem to share her opinions on marriage."

"Listen to me Darcy, don't you dare call me stubborn. You have no right! You are the man who is standing here arguing with the woman who has refused his proposal of marriage thrice! Can you count Darcy? Thrice! And yet, you still refuse to give up."

"And here you are arguing with me on the subject of stubbornness when you are the one who refused me thrice!"

"For good reason!"

"A reason that you are clinging to simply because you have none other! Tell me the truth, Elizabeth, how long has my aunt been training you to be her little disciple or have you simply spent too much time with dear Mr. Collins?"

Elizabeth flushed with indignation and advanced toward him. "I am not my cousin. I am not your aunt."

Darcy smirked and carelessly inspected his nails. "Oh, I understand now."

Her eyes narrowed. "Understand what?"

"You."

"Pardon me?"

"You're stubborn, obedient and…easily scared."

Another step was taken towards Darcy and Lizzy tilted her head to look him in the eyes. "No one and nothing scares me."

"Apparently, I scare you."

"I am not afraid of you."

"Yes you are. There is no point denying it." Darcy turned and began walking away.

Elizabeth followed and stepped in front of him. "I am not afraid."

Darcy stared nonchalantly elsewhere. "You won't marry me. Quite obviously, you fear me."

"I do not fear you! I fear no one. Do you hear me Darcy!"

Darcy shrugged and smirked. "Believe what you will."

Elizabeth let out a quiet scream of frustration. "You…you…Fine Darcy, fine! I…"

Darcy did not allow her to complete her sentence. He reached forward with lightening speed, wrapped his hand around the back of her neck and pulled her in for a fierce kiss. Before Elizabeth could so much as think to struggle against his grip, Darcy had pulled back, a satisfied grin upon his face.

"Brilliant, it's settled. Let us proceed to Longbourn so that I may ask your father for permission."

"Pardon…pardon me? Permission? For what…"

"Our marriage." Darcy answered like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Marriage?! I never agreed to that!"

Darcy smiled. "Yes you did, remember? You said fine. Fine means yes. Yes is an agreement. An agreement signifies that we are in accordance. Thus we are to be married."

Darcy smiled, wrapped a strong arm around her waist and pulled her in the general direction of Longbourn. They had barely taken a few steps before Elizabeth had the sense of mind to struggle.

"That's it? You are going to trick me into marriage?"

Darcy sighed in exasperation. "After what you have subjected me to, I am willing to resort to trickery."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "You are no gentleman!"

Darcy shrugged. "If I have learned one thing from you Elizabeth, it is that sometimes, you require a different approach in persuasion." With that said, he pulled her forward and kissed her deeply. Held her until she felt weak with passion and burnt from his lips.

She made a weak protest. "But I never agreed…I never…"

"We have already covered this point Elizabeth. Though I would love to hear the word from your lips."

"Word? What word?" She asked, confusion lacing her voice.

Darcy nodded and said: "YES," then promptly kissed her.

Faint and dizzy from another kiss, Elizabeth quietly sighed: "Yes? Yes to wha…"

Darcy raised an eyebrow, arm firmly wrapped around her. "Yes? Well, you said it yourself. Now I have a second confirmation. We are to be married. So eager, Elizabeth, one of the many things I love about you. Shall I acquire a special license? Neither of us seems inclined to wait."

Now thoroughly confused and disorientated, Elizabeth could only rely on Darcy to stand as he tenderly smoothed her disheveled curls. "So are we finally in full accordance?" He asked.

The lack of sleep, the kisses, the argument and his proximity all left her dazed and bemused. She wanted nothing more than to simply settle this and stop fighting both him and herself.

"Yes."

Darcy raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

Elizabeth nodded and smiled quietly. "Yes. Fine. Very well."

Darcy smiled in triumph. "We are engaged! You are my fiancé!" Suddenly his look turned serious. "Must you always put up such a struggle?"

Elizabeth smirked amusedly. "It was all token."

Darcy smirked back. "I know."

Abruptly, singular applause broke from a patch of woods and a rustle of leaves and a snapping of branches announced the presence of another person. Both Elizabeth and Darcy's heads snapped towards the sound and eyed the foliage carefully.

From the leaves, a hand emerged, then a top hat, then a cane, then a pair of booted feet.

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "Papa!"

A/N: Tada! How about that! I always fancied Darcy as a guy with a cunning, charming side. And I always thought Elizabeth might need a man who can understand the balance of power. She needed the lesson. Trust me, she did. Amusing though wasn't it?

You know what to do! REVIEW!!!! Or else…or else I won't write the next chapter! I joke, I joke, you know I'd never do that…or would I…

Love C.