Hello, you awesome people, and many thanks for all the comments - I am getting some good ideas from them and will answer some of the concerns in the next couple of chapters.

Chapter Three

The day following Meryton's autumn assembly, Lady Lucas and her two daughters visited Longbourn to discuss the ball and all the attendees as they had done since Jane's coming out six years earlier. Once Mrs Bennet and her daughters were alone, Jane finally expressed her admiration for Mr Bingley, and with only a little teasing from Elizabeth and Mary, they all agreed to moderate their attitude so that the young man would not be put off from getting to know Jane better. It did take a promise from Elizabeth that she would embroider some flowers around the neckline of Lydia's favourite ball gown to get their younger sister to agree to behave and not flirt at any of the events they would all attend together, but as Elizabeth enjoyed adding roses and orchids to many garments, it was a very small price to pay.

"Now Jane," Mary asked, "what did you think of Mr Bingley's sisters? They hardly spoke to anyone outside of their own party, so I cannot say I formed an opinion yet. They did not appear ready to enjoy the company last night."

"You are correct in that their manners are by no means equal to their brother's," Jane answered, "but I believe that they will turn out to be nice enough neighbours if we give them a chance. I had a very pleasant conversation with them, despite their initial reluctance."

"We will see my dear, we will see." Her mother was a lot more sceptical, but time would tell.

The ladies around Meryton and Longbourn had many occasions to spend time with the residents of Netherfield Park over the following weeks, and while Jane admitted to liking Mr Bingley more and more, none of them could feel quite as delighted with his sisters and friend.

The general opinion of Miss Bingley, and to a lesser extent Mrs Hurst was only worsened by further interactions. The ladies were snobbish, overly proud of themselves and deluded into thinking their money erased their origins in trade while denigrating everyone around them except Jane; even that gentle lady was getting tired of their superior and condescending attitude toward her family and her friends. Mr Hurst was inoffensive, but his lack of interest in anything apart from food and drinks did not make him an interesting addition to the local society.

Mr Bingley was affable and extremely good company, and looked to be quite interested in Miss Bennet; her mother and sisters had cautioned her to take things slowly and carefully, for there may be some hidden deficiency in his character if the young man did nothing to correct his sisters' behaviour soon enough.

The last member of their party, Mr Darcy, had not been as rude as during the assembly since that first night, however, he made no effort to participate in the local society. He often stared at Miss Elizabeth Bennet, which unsettled her more than she would have liked to admit to any of her neighbours.

"I do not know what to think about Mr Darcy." Elizabeth confided to her mother and eldest sister one evening. "What does he mean by staring at me so much? I know he does not rate my looks highly, and it makes me quite uncomfortable at times. Even Mr Bennet has noticed, and his teasing is disconcerting."

As a rule, Mr Bennet did not mock Elizabeth, for she was too useful to him, yet he had implied several times that Mr Darcy was cataloguing her faults, or that the gentleman had poor tastes.

"I also noticed your father's recent comments, Lizzy, and it made me observe the gentleman more carefully than I might have otherwise." Her mother replied. "After all, we know your father to be intelligent and more knowledgeable than I when it comes to men's habits and foibles."

"I believe we have all noticed Papa's unusual behaviour," Jane added in her usual calm voice.

Mrs Bennet hesitated for a moment before continuing. "If I can share my observations with you, you must promise not to be upset." Her daughters both nodded silently. "I believe that Mr Darcy admires you, Lizzy. I cannot see any other reason for a man to spend so much time looking at a young lady and trying to be included in her conversations, as we have all seen him doing. I suspect your father has noticed this, and with his teasing is attempting to ensure you dislike Mr Darcy."

"I cannot imagine you being right, but if you are, what would Mr Bennet's purpose be?" Elizabeth was surprised at her mother's conclusion.

"To keep you in Longbourn of course, my girl, your father would not want you to move to Derbyshire." Mrs Bennet sighed and took her daughter's hand in hers. "I do not think it would be a possibility anyway, my dear, for a man from his sphere in society will not lower himself to marry someone from ours. I do believe he likes you, but I doubt Mr Darcy would ever act on his preference. Please do not let your imagination run wild, and protect your heart. I know you are far too sensible to fall in love just because I ask you not to."

"You have nothing to fear on that count, Mama," Elizabeth laughed uncomfortably, "it will be very easy to not love a man who treats my neighbours, my friends and my family with disdain and contempt. I am not yet fully convinced by your theory, but I am not in any danger, and he will return to London soon enough for the end-of-year festivities."

The conversation returned to the much safer topic of what should be done early to prepare all the tenant and servant gifts for Boxing Day.

Fanny silently reflected that while the Netherfield party made an acceptable addition to their local social circle, it did not look too likely that they would be the salvation she was hoping for her girls. She would need to ask her brother to sponsor some of the girls in London for a few months next year, in the hope one of them would fall in love with a good man.

The militia that was to be quartered near Meryton for a few months had arrived and was settling well, and entertainments or invitations always seemed to include Colonel Forster and his senior officers, to the delight of many young ladies. Being friendly and lively, the two youngest Bennet sisters and their close friends, Miss Maria Lucas and the two Miss Long, could often be found in the company of some of these officers, and many an impromptu dance was requested by one or another of the young ladies.

The officers mostly ignored Miss Bennet, as it was evident that Mr Bingley was courting her. Miss Mary was too serious and quiet, and Miss Elizabeth too sharp and quick for their liking, so their evenings were less impacted by the arrival of the soldiers; they did remain close to their sisters for protection but saw very little to worry them in any of the young girls' behaviour.

One afternoon, at the end of October, Elizabeth was sitting at the small desk she had added to the pink parlour, reviewing the estate's accounts, when Catherine entered the room and silently took her usual seat close to the fireplace. The young girl was crying, quietly lost in her thoughts, and did not notice her sister working on the far side of the room, but her distress was too apparent to be ignored.

"Kitty, dearest, whatever is the matter?" Elizabeth quickly moved to the seat next to Catherine.

"I am just a silly girl, Lizzy, leave me be." Catherine hid her face in her hands.

"I will if you wish it, but it may help you more to talk with me. You know I will not judge you, and often talking about our troubles can bring much comfort." Unconsciously mimicking her mother's actions of so many years before, Elizabeth had started to rub her sister's back in a soothing circular motion.

"I thought maybe now that we were more grown up and interesting, Papa would learn to care for Lydia and me. I am not a stupid girl, and I am not a bad person. I just wanted him to love me, Lizzy, is that so terrible?" Her voice was barely audible by the end of this speech.

"No it is not terrible, Kitty, and you are a bright and lovely girl, I assure you. You are loved by Mama and all your sisters, indeed our whole Gardiner and Phillips family would tell you just the same." She sighed before continuing. "I do not think Mr Bennet has the capacity to love any of us any more. Perhaps, if Jane, Mary or I had been born male, he may have grown to accept and care for his daughters, but without a boy, he never tried. That is no judgement on you or any of us, he has simply become a bitter and disappointed man."

Catherine moved so she could be fully in her sister's embrace. "I heard him. Papa I mean, I heard him talking about us. The younger Mr Goulding was here and they were in Papa's study, while I was outside gathering the last of the roses to make rosewater for Jane. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but when I heard my name I could not move or even breathe properly."

"Oh, Kitty, you know Mr Goulding is vulgar and uncouth, nothing like his father. You should not listen to anything that man says." Elizabeth sighed.

"But it wasn't him upsetting me, Lizzy," Kitty exclaimed, "it was Papa. At first, they were talking of some gossip about the butcher's brother, it was inconsequential and silly, but then they started mocking us, Lydia, Maria and I mostly. They were so cruel and mean, and, Lizzy I cannot even repeat what they said for it was so improper. I was so upset. His laugh, Lizzy, his laugh was so harsh and horrible." Tears were running freely down her cheeks and soaking her sister's dress. "I never want to see Mr Goulding again, and I do not want to see the officers either, for they may think the same dreadful things too. Papa does not love Lydia or me at all, I am certain of it now, and he wants us all to end up lonely and miserable."

Elizabeth felt her anger rising, but she needed to control her voice for Catherine's sake. "There, there, my dearest, let the tears carry all that pain out of your body. We will continue preparing for our future, and in time, we will either find decent men to marry, or we will pool our funds together and be very cosy and comfortable in a little cottage. You will never be alone, sister, I promise you that Mama, Jane and I will never turn our back on any of you, and our aunts and uncles will protect us no matter what happens."

Kitty carried on crying for quite some time before retiring to her room to splash cold water on her puffy eyes. Elizabeth found her mother in her room, preparing for their planned evening at the Phillips' little house in Meryton, and told her of Catherine's heartache.

"Thankfully your father is not coming with us tonight. I will talk to Kitty and I will ask Martha for help. Perhaps it is time for your next two sisters to take a turn in London with my brother's family. My sweet sensitive Mary and Kitty. Yes, I think a little holiday after Christmas will set them up nicely for the year ahead." Mrs Bennet was already planning her next letter to her sister-in-law in Gracechurch Street and Elizabeth returned to her own room to ready herself for yet another evening of socialising.

It took Elizabeth and her mother several days to settle Catherine's spirit after that fateful day, but over time she would come to understand what her second oldest sister had known for over five years; Mr Bennet had not been a father to them, and would never become the man she had hoped to know and love all her life. She had her mother and her sisters, and that was more than many people had. She would be strong and she would find happiness without any reference to the master of Longbourn who despised his family.

The Bennets had just finished their mid-day meal when the footman brought a note and handed it to Miss Bennet.

"Oh, who is it from Jane? What does it say? Make haste, dear." Mrs Bennet asked shrilly.

"It is from Miss Bingley, Mama, she is asking me for dinner tonight as the gentlemen will be dining with the officers," Jane replied with her usual calm demeanour.

"That is unlucky." Her mother replied, frowning. "Maybe you should go on horseback so that you cannot come back tonight and you have a chance to see Mr Bingley," the lady mused.

"Mama, Jane has had a little cough for a day or two, she should not go out if there is a chance of rain," Elizabeth interjected, hoping her father would offer the carriage to vex his wife, allowing Mama a chance to pretend she had been earnest in her desire to send Jane on Nellie.

"I had much rather go in the coach," Jane added. With a smirk directed at his wife, Mr Bennet nodded and told Jane the carriage would be ready when she wanted to leave, before leaving to return to the quiet of his book room.

Mary sighed, "I was worried Papa was not going to contradict you, Mama, that was too close."

Mrs Bennet waived the handkerchief she was holding dismissively. "Do not worry, my love, I would have found something wrong with Jane's riding clothes if needed. But Jane, dearest, is your cough so very bad? I am sorry I have not noticed, would you rather decline the invitation?"

"I will be well, Mama, it does not feel too bad, and I would like to spend more time with Miss Bingley and Mrs Hurst as they have been nice to me." Jane was smiling, looking forward to her evening.

Lydia giggled. "You always say that Jane, even when you are very ill. We can never believe you for you would say all is well even with a high fever!"

Elizabeth walked over to place her hand on her elder sister's forehead. "Well, you do not have a fever, so the decision is yours."

The rain started soon after Jane had left, and continued without intermission for the whole evening and most of the night. Even with the carriage, she would not be able to come back safely that evening.

"Oh, my dear Jane, I didn't mean for her to be stranded at Netherfield overnight." Mrs Bennet lamented to her daughters before they retired to bed.

"She will be well, Mama, we will see her after breakfast I expect," Mary said, attempting to soothe her mother's worries.

Breakfast was scarcely over when the Bennet carriage returned with a note for Elizabeth, but no Jane.

My dearest Lizzy,

Despite remaining perfectly dry and safe yesterday, I find myself quite unwell this morning. My kind friends will not hear of my returning till I am better. They insist on sending for Mr Jones, although I do not feel it is at all required. Please do not let anyone in my dear family be alarmed if you should hear of his having been to me, as it is but a sore throat and a headache with the same cough I have experienced before. Your not very poorly sister, Jane.

"Well my dear," said Mr Bennet when Elizabeth had read the note out, "if your daughter should die of a dangerous illness, it will have been in pursuit of a suitor, which should comfort you."

"Papa!" Elizabeth was anxious and unwilling to let the usual fight develop between her parents, for Jane would have insisted on coming back home had she been able. "I would like to go and see Jane as soon as I can if the carriage is available."

"I do not believe the horses are available this morning," her father replied, "but you can go soon after midday."

"I do not wish to wait, so I will walk. The distance is nothing, only three miles. Could you send the carriage to fetch me in time for dinner, please?" Elizabeth was determined, and her mother, knowing full well her girl would not be deterred from doing what was right and seeing to Jane's recovery only put up a little fight for show.

"We will go as far as Meryton with you Lizzy," said Catherine and Lydia. Elizabeth was glad of the company and the three young ladies set off together.

"Lizzy, will Jane be well?" Lydia asked before they reached town.

"Of course, she is stronger than she looks, and Mr Jones will tell me of anything she needs. What will you girls do in town today?" Elizabeth wanted to change the topic so that her younger sisters did not see her concerns for her dearest Jane.

Catherine made a silly face before replying. "We will smile at all the officers we see to maintain our image of silly girls, but I am not in the mood for any flirting today, or this week really; I would prefer to just go and have a sit-down and a cup of tea with Aunt Philips." Lydia took her sister's hand and smiled at her. "We will go there directly and on the way back I will get you a ribbon to replace the pretty blue one you gave me for my bonnet. We do not have to be silly every day, you know."

Elizabeth laughed with her sisters. The town and Mr Bennet may believe them to be ridiculous like their mother, but the reality was that her little sisters were just two very sweet girls, always looking out for each other.

To reach Netherfield Park by the most direct route, Elizabeth had to cross several fields and jump over a few stiles. After a whole night of rain, there were many puddles she could barely avoid, and she found herself in sight of the house with weary ankles, dirty stockings and her face glowing from the exercise.

She was shown into the breakfast parlour, where her appearance created quite a stir; before long however, Mr Bingley, who had been the only person to warmly greet her, answered her enquiries and had her taken to Jane.

As soon as she left the room, Miss Bingley and Mrs Hurst started mocking her appearance and criticising her actions in walking so many miles just to see her sister.

Mr Bingley's defence of her actions was not heard by them, and Mr Darcy remained mostly silent, with a look of disapproval on his face; his thoughts however were very far from condemning Elizabeth, for he had been entranced by her appearance. Having already accidentally admitted to admiring her eyes in front of Miss Bingley, however, he would refrain from complimenting the lady for fear of raising her expectations and his hostess' ire.

Jane and Elizabeth remained at Netherfield Park for five days, for the second Bennet daughter had been invited to remain and look after her sister by her host. Mr Bingley was again all that was welcoming and friendly.

Politeness dictated that Elizabeth joined her hosts every evening for dinner and, when Jane was sleeping, for some of the evening entertainments. While the verbal sparing with Mr Darcy could be considered invigorating, the constant barbs from Miss Bingley were far too reminiscent of Mr Bennet's attitude; Elizabeth was very glad when the apothecary declared her sister well enough to return home.

Mrs Bennet and her youngest two daughters had visited Jane on the third day of her illness, and as agreed before, the ladies had behaved well, apart from a small impropriety from Lydia; they needed to preserve the appearance of liveliness after all, so the younger girl had reminded Mr Bingley that he had promised them a ball.

Jane had been well enough to join the assembled party after dinner on the last evening of her stay, and while she had thoroughly enjoyed Mr Bingley's attentions, she had not been blind to his sister's hostility toward her Elizabeth, nor did she appreciate Mr Darcy's silence; she was not as convinced as her mother that the man admired her sister, but as a gentleman he should still have attempted to contain Miss Bingley's vitriol when the lady's brother failed to notice it; even if he also despised Elizabeth, that would have been the gentlemanly thing to do. She liked Mr Bingley, maybe more than liked him in fact, but she could not, would not invite another in her life who would treat her sister as meanly as their father did.

By the time the carriage rolled away from Netherfield, Jane had decided to talk to Mr Bingley about his friend and sisters at their next meeting; hopefully, he would understand, but if he did not she would distance herself from the man, no matter how painful this would be in the short term.