A/N: Sort of a rehash of an idea I've used in a previous story, but tell me what you think anyway!
Turkeys
When the Westons' turkeys are taken, what wags tongues most is that though they were stolen soundlessly during the night, a generous sum has been left in their coop as if in payment.
Theories of the thief or thieves' identities vary, from honourable gypsies to drunken (and apparently rich) eccentrics, to the Westons themselves doing it to enjoy the attention (this is Mrs. Elton's firm opinion, anyway).
The furore has hardly died down when, a day or two after the theft, Mr. Knightley invites his closest friends to Donwell Abbey for dinner in order to celebrate finally having a date set for his wedding to Miss Emma Woodhouse of Hartfield.
The Westons give the happy couple cordial congratulations and are genuinely ecstatic for them; the Bates ladies are all delight (very vocal delight on Miss Bates' part); Jane Fairfax's congratulations are quiet but sincere, and if ever Mr. Knightley could look on Frank Churchill with an eye approaching complacent, it is now at his genuine – but yes, slightly shame-faced – well-wishes to Emma and himself; and Mr. Woodhouse, whose consent for the wedding has been gained through fear of the turkey thieves, seems rather more reconciled to the idea of the match, for his only lament tonight is that the food is probably too rich for delicate constitutions (which, incidentally, exactly none of the guests of Donwell Abbey possess – not even excluding the old gentleman himself).
Emma has to disagree with her father. The food is excellent, and thanks to Mrs. Hodges' careful overseeing, the turkeys are cooked to perfection. She catches Mr. Knightley's eye and they share a smile at her father's foibles, but then after a moment her smile becomes wondering as something registers in her mind.
To the best of her knowledge, the Donwell farms don't keep turkeys…