The morning after the ball I slept until well past eleven in the morning. When I finally woke to the sun streaming into the room, I realized that even Jane was still fast asleep next to me. As I stretched, taking care not to disturb her, I realized just how sore I was. My feet especially felt as though they had been trampled on by an elephant. Suppressing a groan, I rolled out of bed and onto the cold floor. I lay there for a few moments, letting the cold seep into my muscles too sooth them, before I staggered to my feet, using the bed frame as support. I felt truly horrible, but at least I didn't have a headache this time.
I dressed slowly, wincing at every sore muscle. Everything hurt from the dancing last night. I had used muscles that I'd never used to such an extent before. When I was finished dressing, Jane woke and she too groaned as she rolled over.
"Oh, I feel miserable," Jane said as she pulled the covers over her head to block the sun that was streaming in.
I quickly crossed the room and pulled the curtains closed. I heard a muffled "Thank you" from Jane, and smiled.
"That ball was ridiculous," I declared.
Jane then began to slowly push the covers away and slide out of the bed. She winced and put her hand to her head.
"I thought you didn't drink much," I commented, curious as to why she would have a headache.
"I didn't," she replied. "I get headaches when I sleep too late. Which is why I always rise early and why I do not like it when we stay so late at balls."
I nodded in understanding. I was none-too pleased that we had stayed that late, and it hadn't even seemed worth it. Seeing Vivian and Albert again was indeed wonderful, but it wasn't quite worth staying until past four in the morning. No one was quite coherent enough by that point to be able to have a pleasant conversation.
I slipped out of the room to allow Jane to dress for the day and went slowly down the stairs. In the dining room I found Mr. Bennet reading his paper as usual, and Mrs. Bennet was slowly cracking a raw egg into her drink. I winced slightly for the headache she must have this morning. Mary was just finishing her breakfast and was looking quite bored again. Neither Kitty nor Lydia were down yet, and I assumed that they were probably still asleep.
I quietly sat down next to Mary, put a roll and some eggs onto my plate, and began eating. Jane came down then, sat across from us, and she, too, began eating. Mary sighed and stood. She walked around to her piano stool, and I cringed and exchanged a panicked look with Jane. Mary couldn't possibly be thinking of playing right now.
Thankfully, and surprisingly, Mrs. Bennet saved us all then. "Mary, please," she said just as Mary began to run her first scale.
Mary sighed again and then left to go into the sitting room, muttering something about her books appreciating her more than we did. I had to dab my mouth to hide my amused smile. I did feel sorry for her of course, but she had a dry humor about her that she didn't even seem to know she possessed.
Jane and I were almost finished with our breakfast, and Mr. and Mrs. Bennet were still sitting at the table, when the doorbell rang.
At first, Mrs. Bennet groaned loudly, "Oh, what inconsiderate person has decided to call on us at this hour!" But just as quickly as her foul mood arrived, it departed. "I wonder who it is," she said as she rose to go to the doorway. A servant opened the door and ushered in a couple who appeared to be near Mr. and Mrs. Bennet in age.
"Why Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner! How good it is to see you! And to what do we owe this visit?" Mrs. Bennet gushed, as she rushed to hug and kiss them.
"My dear sister!" Mr. Gardiner cried out in a jolly manner as he hugged Mrs. Bennet.
Greetings were exchanged between the Gardiners and the Bennets.
"We have come to meet our long-lost niece," Mrs. Gardiner supplied their reason for visiting.
"Well here she is," Mrs. Bennet replied as she turned to me and pulled me out from between Jane and Mary. "This is Elizabeth. Elizabeth, this is your uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner."
"Oh my dear Elizabeth it is indeed wonderful to see you again," Mrs. Gardiner said, grasping my hands. Her eyes and smile were warm. "I haven't seen you since you were only a little girl. You were such a sweet thing, and your disappearance was hard on everyone."
I was unsure what to say; Thanking her didn't seem the proper response in this situation. Thankfully, I was saved by Mrs. Gardiner herself, who wrapped me in a hug.
"We come with a proposition," Mr. Gardiner exclaimed. "We would like to get to know our niece better and become re-acquainted with her. If it is permissible to Mr. Bennet and yourself, my dear sister, and Elizabeth of course, we would like to take her up north with us. Just for a short trip, perhaps a week at most. So that she can see the life of the towns and the countryside.
Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner looked at us hopefully, and I had to admit that I was touched.
"I think that it is a marvelous idea!" Mrs. Bennet said grandly, perhaps seeing a way to get me out of her house for a while. "Do you not think so, Mr. Bennet?"
"I do think it is a good idea. If Elizabeth is keen on going, then she has my permission," Mr. Bennet said calmly.
Everyone turned to me. "Of course!" I said, "I would love to go. And I am very grateful to you for inviting me."
"Oh, it is no trouble at all!" Mrs. Gardiner assured me. "Now, travel arrangements must be discussed. We were hoping to leave today, but if you need more time to pack your things then we could postpone leaving until tomorrow."
"I believe I could be packed and ready within an hour if necessary," I replied.
"Wonderful," Mr. Gardiner said. "We can rest for an hour or so, and then as soon as you are ready, be on our way. We plan to go as far as we can tonight and then stop for the night in whichever town is appropriate."
"Very good," I replied. "I will go begin packing."
"I will help you," Jane said.
"And so will I," piped up Mary from behind Mr. and Mrs. Bennet.
Jane, Mary, and I walked up the stairs single file. We were halfway up the steps when Kitty and Lydia's bedroom door opened and the two girls themselves stumbled out. They looked quite out of sorts. Their faces were twisted into identical and perhaps permanent grimaces.
The three of us stood against the wall quietly as Kitty and Lydia walked slowly and painfully past us and down the stairs. We could hear the cries of greetings from the Gardiners, and the three of us exchanged knowing looks. They were paying quite dearly for all the wine they drank the night, or morning, before.
We continued up to the bedroom and began once again packing my meager belongings. This time Jane insisted on contributing to my wardrobe, and so it became necessary for me to take my original carpet bag and another smaller bag in order to fit everything.
It did indeed take us the better part of an hour to sort out what I was to bring and then fold it properly to fit everything into the bags. During this time, I asked them what kind of people the Gardiners were.
"Oh, they are truly the sweetest people you will ever meet," Jane said. "They took me to London once, around one year ago." She then fell silent, and I realized that one year ago was when Charles left. If the Gardiners truly had taken the time to take Jane to London in order to get her mind off of her troubles, they were were indeed good people. I hoped at least that they were sensible and that I wouldn't be sitting in a carriage with a type of Mrs. Bennet.
Finally, I was completely packed and there was no longer any reason to delay. I picked up the larger of the two bags, Mary took the other, and we filed down the stairs.
Everyone was gathered in the sitting room where they were drinking tea and talking. We placed my bags in the entrance hall and joined the group.
"Ah! There you girls are! All packed, Elizabeth?" Mr. Gardiner asked.
"Yes sir, I am," I replied, smiling.
"Capital, we shall leave in a few moments I believe."
The clock struck one o'clock then. I decided to have a quick cup of tea and something more to eat before we left and sat down to do just that. The rest of the chatter in the sitting room was idle small talk: the weather, the family, and mutual acquaintances. I found that I was unable to keep up with most of the conversation, so I merely sat back and listened. Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner were excellent conversationalists — they managed to ask everyone questions, and even Mr. Bennet and Mary joined the conversation at times. They asked me a few questions as well, such as how I was liking it at Longbourn and what I thought of the ball.
When the clock struck half-past one, Mr. Gardiner announced that we should be on our way. Everything was happening so quickly, I realized. But I also realized that I was quite relieved to be getting away from Longbourn for at least a week and quite excited to see more of England. And the Gardiners seemed to be quite pleasant people.
Goodbyes were exchanged, baggage was tied on top of the carriage, and we were finally on our way.
The carriage ride was very pleasant, and Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner were very good company. I discovered that they had several children, all of whom were being taken care of by a sister of Mrs. Gardiner's. I wondered that they would go to so much trouble to meet me, and they told me that they had been planning the trip for quite some time, since they heard of my arrival. They had decided to see me for themselves, and in so doing decided to invite me to come along with them for a ways. This was the tail-end of their journey, and so we would go a few days out, and then return me back to Longbourn and they would continue back home.
I also discovered that Mr. Gardiner was very fond of fishing, and I believe that fish would have been the main topic for the entire trip if Mrs. Gardiner had not spoken up and started asking me of my life before coming to Lonbourn.
I told them of my past and was bombarded with many questions about my childhood, my family, and what life was like as an indentured servant. I spared them some of the more unpleasant details, but told them as much as I could.
After several hours, I felt my eyes begin to close, and I had to suppress more than one unlady-like yawn.
"You appear to be quite tired, my dear," Mrs. Gardiner commented.
"I am indeed," I replied, and tried yet again not to yawn. "We did not leave the ball until ridiculously late last night. And I believe it was more morning than night, for the sky was beginning to lighten by the time we left."
"Well then, perhaps you can catch a few minutes of sleep now, although I doubt it with the bumping of this carriage," Mr. Gardiner offered.
"Here, my dear," Mrs. Gardiner said, as she rummaged around in her bag. She pulled out a small pillow and handed it to me, "I always carry this with me while traveling. It supports your head against the back of the carriage just right."
I thanked her and placed the pillow behind my head. It did indeed do the trick, and I was asleep within minutes.
I woke to the carriage jolting to a stop and sat straight up. We had stopped outside an inn, and I looked outside to see where exactly we were. It was pitch black outside, and I realized that it was most likely far past sunset.
"We are going to stop here for the night, Lizzy," Mrs. Gardiner told me, as a footman opened the carriage door and we alighted.
Our bags were brought up to our rooms, and it was decided that we would grab a quick bite to eat before retiring for the night. The dining hall downstairs was quite small, and we were the only ones there. The hostess quickly brought us our food, and I ate in a slight daze, for I was still immensely tired.
When we were finished eating, we went up to our rooms.
"Is there anything you will be requiring, Lizzy?" Mrs. Gardiner asked me before I closed my door.
"No ma'am, thank you," I said with a sleepy smile."Good night."
"Good night, my dear," Mrs. Gardiner replied with a motherly smile.
I quickly changed into my nightgown and collapsed on the large bed. It was soft and wonderful. I was reminded suddenly of Darcy, and the night we spent together in Manhattan. I found I had to fight back sudden tears at the thought of him. I missed him and Georgie so very much. Thankfully, sleep finally overtook me and spared me from my misery.
After a hasty breakfast the next morning, we were finally off once again! Apparently we had made excellent time the day before and had gone almost 30 miles in the space of one afternoon.
As we continued with the journey, I pulled out one of my books and began to read. Mrs. Gardiner looked out the window at the passing scenery, and Mr. Gardiner began to read the newspaper that he had obtained at the inn.
We were about one hour into our trip when suddenly the carriage jolted and then began to lean to one side. I yelped and braced my arm against the side of the carriage to prevent myself from sliding over. Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner did the same, and we could hear the driver yelling for the horses to stop. We finally came to a stand-still, but the carriage was still leaning to one side. I reached over and opened the carriage door and slid out. I turned and helped Mrs. Gardiner out. By this time, the horses were under control, but it had taken both the driver and the footman to calm them down. The footman then hurried around to assist us out of the carriage.
Once we were all finally firmly standing, we turned back to the carriage to assess what had happened. One of the wheels had hit a large stone that was on the road, and as a result, the wheel had broken. We wouldn't be going anywhere until it was fixed.
"Well this is a good mess," Mr. Gardiner exclaimed.
"Do not worry, sir," the driver hastened to assure us. "We have a spare wheel and all of the necessary tools. We will be on our way in under an hour."
"I do not mind the delay," Mrs. Gardiner said, looking around. "I rather like it here, it is very pretty."
And it was very pretty. The trees were large, and the forest lush and green, yet open. The three of us sat down on some boulders that were on the side of the road and waited for the driver and footman to finish their repairs.
"What is that you are reading, Lizzy?" Mrs. Gardiner inquired.
I told her the title and the author, and she began to inquire if I had read other specific titles or authors. That managed to pass the time for a while, but then we eventually fell silent once more.
Suddenly, Mr. Gardiner exclaimed from his newspaper, "Would you look at this!"
"What is it, my dear?" Mrs. Gardiner asked.
"Well it says here that the anniversary of the Pemberley estate is today, and that the house is open to visitors," Mr. Gardiner said.
"Why, Pemberly is not far from here!" Mrs. Gardiner said. "And I have always wanted to see it. Lizzy, have you heard of Pemberly?"
The name sounded familiar, and I wracked my brain, trying to remember why. "I am familiar with the name, but not of the details," I told her.
"It is the home of Mr. William Darcy, a very fine man from what I hear," Mrs. Gardiner told me. "About a year ago he left for some reason or another. I'm not sure why and I'm not inclined to believe the rumors."
I felt frozen. Of course! Pemberley was Darcy's home!
"I would very much like to see it as well," I said, trying to keep the eagerness from my voice.
"Well, then it's settled," Mr. Gardiner said. "We shall find a room at an inn for the night and then spend the rest of the afternoon at Pemberley. Just as soon as this carriage is fixed."
Just then, the driver announced that the wheel was indeed fixed, and we were ready to continue.
I could not even begin to describe to express my emotions. And the worse part was that I had to keep them all inside and not show how excited and yet scared I was to go see Pemberley. It was where Darcy had grown up! It was his home and his estate.
Finally, we arrived at the next town and quickly found an inn, the Rose and Crown. After settling our belongings in our rooms, Mrs. Gardiner expressed her desire to have something to eat and freshen up a little before setting off again. I could barely contain my frustration at yet another delay. But finally, after what seemed to be a long wait, we were off again to Pemberley.
The drive seemed to take forever, even though it was a mere three miles. As we wound through the countryside, my mind was racing. I did not even know why I felt the way I did. I could not explain it, even to myself. I finally settled for forcing my mind to quiet and did my best to enjoy the beautiful scenery.
Suddenly, Mr. Gardiner said, "There it is!" And we all looked out the window to see, across the lake, a very fine, and very large estate. It was a mansion, and it rivaled Lady Catherine DeBourgh's estate!
I watched as the magnificent building drew even closer as we crossed a bridge over the lake and and finally pulled up in front of the entrance and many stone steps. I climbed down from the carriage and then laughed suddenly as I took in the building. It was beautiful, and the architecture was magnificent. We walked up the stairs and were greeted at the door by a lady who introduced herself as the head housekeeper. She said that she would give us our tour and led us inside. She began by giving us a history of the house and of the Darcy family. But I found I could not listen, as I walked slowly behind them and took everything in. The entrance hall was practically the size of the entire Longbourn estate itself. The floors were tiled, and ahead was a very grand staircase that split and curved around in both directions. As I continued to look up, I took in the ceiling, which was amazingly high. It was covered with painted pictures, and I found that I could stare at it for quite some time, working them all out.
Mrs. Gardiner called me then and told me to keep up. I hurried after them and found that they were in a room filled with statues. I walked around slowly and looked at each one. I then became aware of the housekeeper, as she continued to tell the Gardiners all about the statues.
"And here is a statue of Mr. Darcy himself," she said. I turned and quickly sought them out and then began walking toward them. They were looking up at a bust of Darcy, and I felt as though I were looking right at him.
Their attention was soon diverted, but I continued to stare at him. Oh, how I dearly missed him. I suddenly became aware that they were no longer in the room and looked around. I heard them talking then and realized that they had gone back out to the entrance hall. I quickly hurried out, still gazing around in wonder.
I walked out into the hall and was once again captivated by the ceiling murals, when I became aware that the housekeeper and the Gardiners were talking to someone else. I looked to see who it was — and froze.
"Darcy," I whispered, as I stared at my husband.
Hello everyone! Today is the 200th anniversary of Pride and Prejudice! How great is that? So to celebrate, here is another chapter, I hope you enjoyed it. And once again, thank you to everyone who has reviewed. And thank you Edelmira! For being so ridiculously patient in editing the rough drafts of these chapters.