AU Pride and Prejudice

Fan Fiction

Previously

"I agree with my wife, this is not your fault or this Miss Gunnarsson's; it is her brother's wife's and no one else's'; she could have turned a blind eye to that will as your friend was willing to do. She did not have to talk the Gunnarsson family into backing it up."

Blindsided

Emmaline

Ch. 4

A home with dark brown stone and chimney stacks could be seen near the top of a rolling hill. An early morning fog had been rolling out all morning, but parts lingered around the hills as a few sheep lazily grazed or sat on the ground already having finished their meal. Further down the Gunnarsson property, men could be seen working the land and, as Ivar had told Mr. Bennet, his family members mingled with the working class, lending them a hand in the work; even Emmaline was not in the house.

"I am surprised that cow is letting you milk it," one of the farm laborers spoke as they stepped inside the barn. "She is one of the orneriest cows your family has."

"Yes, well, despite the cow's apparent belief that I was a frozen treat and its attempt to break off a piece of me this morning, I still have all my fingers. But if that stubborn beast tries it again, I will have to give it a cold shower." Emmaline's remark caused the farmhand to laugh as she sat down and began to milk one of the other cows.

"Matilda would roll her eyes if she saw you out here," Dane, one of the farmhands, complained as he came into the barn and saw Emmaline milking. "Christine should be doing that job, not you. Where is she?"

"First, Matilda likes nothing I do; that is nothing new. Second, if my brothers - who are landowners - can be out in the field with their tenants, why should I not be out here milking? And third, I sent your sister home; she was sick; do not worry; as long as you keep your mouth shut and take this pail," Emmaline spoke as she handed him the bucket. "She will still get paid. Matilda -should she happen to step out- will simply think Christine went home as usual and your sister lose only the pay for this evening's milking…unless your other sister is in a position to come and do it."

"Miss Gunnarsson…" Dane choked up. "My family cannot thank you enough; we have been saved by you more than once; we will surely miss you. I hope this Mr. Bennet fellow you are to be wed will appreciate you." He refused to think of the other possibility; there was no way the hired help was going to speak of it.

"If he does, he does; if not, there is nothing you can do about it." Emmaline smiled sweetly. "Therefore, I suggest you get that milk to where it belongs before Ivar's wife suspects something has gone amiss."

"Will do."

Emmaline watched the man hurry away, amazed at how fast he could walk without spilling any of the contents he carried. Turning her attention to the house, she shook her head. The back door opened and out stepped Maja.

Maja was of average height and as thin as the day she had married her late husband, Duncan. Her dark hair was kept under control by a handkerchief and her attention was on the garbage she was tossing out. Therefore, she did not see her sister until Emmaline walked up to the back steps.

"You best count yourself blessed that it was not Matilda who came out this door." Maja's eyes darted around the yard, half in fear that her brother's wife would appear out of nowhere. "She would not be happy to know who really milked that crazy cow this morning."

"If Mrs. Gunnarsson does not know what I do in the morning hours - seeing as how she refuses to do anything but complain about my efforts to help in the house..." Emmaline retorted. "Then she is an ignorant fool - a bigger one than I thought possible." With that, she followed her sister inside and cleaned up. It was only when she sat down at the dining room table that Maja spoke again.

"You really should stay indoors more often and let the men do the outdoor work."

"Doing what? Practicing my singing?" Emmaline rolled her eyes. "I have a startling revelation for you: those cud-chewing critters called bovines that are constantly gracing our pastures are legendary vocalists. They are renowned for their many famous moody and melodic melodies. And I am most certain that I only came out on top in their challenge the other morning because their cow-tars were out of tune."

"Very funny, sister. I would suggest you make an attempt to curtail your tongue this morning. You, our brother and I are to make our departure tomorrow morning. The least you can do, for me anyway, is to not start a fight with Matilda. And, I hope you learn to talk to people outside family and tenants; this Mr. Bennet may be the type to go to London a lot; you would need to learn to be at ease with strangers."

"I am not the one who starts the arguments with Ivar's wife." Emmaline set her jaw firmly in place. "And you know it." She-conveniently left off the bit about talking to strangers.

Her sister might have made a reply, but heavy footsteps could be heard coming down the hall. It was no doubt that they belonged to Matilda. The woman did not know how to walk gracefully, though she claimed to be a lady of wealth and high breeding. Her voice carried through the closed kitchen door and its volume indicated any thing but a lady was speaking. However, Emmaline managed to keep her mouth shut when the door opened and Matilda appeared in the kitchen; not an easy thing to do as the woman's nose gave the youngest of the three women in the room an urge to hang a slab of meat off her nose, and -due to the style of dress the lady insisted on wearing - to set a loaf of bread on each of her hips.

"You will not have to bother packing. I thought I would be of help and packed for you."

"Thank you." Emmaline stood up, highly annoyed that Mrs. Gunnarsson had taken such liberties with personal items that were not hers to touch, but managed to keep her tone on an even keel. "I think I will go upstairs and read a good book." She made her exit before her brother's wife could tempt a sarcastic reply out of Emmaline's mouth.

'Thank heavens, that old crone does not like the attic.' Emmaline spoke only in her mind as she hurried up two flights of stairs before opening a door and climbing the last set of stairs to the top floor of the house.

The attic held multiple boxes, miscellaneous items that had been handed down from generation to generation, and some items that were only pulled out once a year during the holidays. None of that Emmaline cared about. No, she honed in on one of the back corners, to a box hidden away from Matilda's sight. They were not easy to get as they were on a stack of boxes and Emmaline was only four feet eleven inches tall. However, she placed a chair next to the pile and managed to get the container down without any of the family hearing her.

"Praise be, you are still here." Opening the box, Emmaline pulled out a canvas that covered some hard objects. She kept them hidden as she carried them back down to her room and slipped them into the bottom of her bags. "Thank heavens, Matilda is the type who does not look into bags once they are ready to go; especially not the ones she has personally seen to."

Emmaline turned away from her trunk as the bedroom door opened. "Annika!" Ivar's sister threw her arm around an old friend she had not seen in years. "I did not even know you were in the area."

Annika's blonde hair, and high cheekbones, were made prettier simply by her bright smile and sparkling eyes. "I cannot stay long, I am on my way to see a brother, I do not plan to stay long there either. I am due to be wed soon." The lady's smile then quickly vanished. "What was your father thinking?"

"What is done is done." Emmaline kept a smile on her face determined to make the best of life, if her father wanted her with Mr. Bennet, then Mrs. Bennet she would be. She could not allow herself to think of her only other option, for if it came to that she prayed another one would come available. "Let us take a walk and talk before we go our separate ways yet again. You to your groom and me down to London and, hopefully, to Longbourn."