When Jane woke the following morning, she could sense that the house was filled with a different energy before she even opened her bedroom door. Very early she could hear rapid footsteps moving up and down the hall, whispered voices conversing quickly, and the closing and opening of doors with less caution then would normally have been normally shown by servants so early in the morning. But, weddings were busy days and indeed the servants must have been anxious to do their work well, and to prove their ability.

Jane got out of bed soon after she heard the noise outside her room. She had slept better than normal, but still felt tired and groggy as she moved about her room, washing her face and getting dressed for the day. She could not dress alone anymore, for her frame was too bulky and large for her to manoeuvre in the right way. She walked over to her husbands side of the bed, and sat down on the edge, rubbing his arm affectionately.

"Edward darling?"

"Mmm" he grunted into the pillow, stretching out his arm lazily.

"I'm sorry. Will you help me with something?"

He seemed more alert at her words this time. He lifted his head and looked at her, rubbing his eyes.

"Are you alright?"

"Quite alright. I cannot do up the back of my dress"

"But Jane, why are you up so early? The sun is just risen. Could you not sleep?"

"Listen" she said, bringing a silence over the room for a moment, "All those footsteps outside in the hall woke me up. Everyone is so busy, I cannot stay here and sleep while everyone is working so hard"

"Jane" he objected, pushing himself sleepily into a seated position. "You must think too of yourself. It is sure to be a very long day, and you do not want to find yourself falling asleep at the dinner table tonight.I do not mean to advise you, but I thought that you agreed to take on less, that we agreed that you needed to only relax in these final weeks of pregnancy?"

"I appreciate your concern, but I am very well. I promised you I would not push myself past my limits, and that has not changed. Weddings are exciting, and I am happy to be part of this day. I do not intend to overexert myself so much that I cannot even enjoy the day itself. I just know that right now I can help, I can genuinely help. And that is all I wish to do"

"Of course it is" replied her husband, half annoyed and half amused. "Well then"

He flicked back the blankets, exposing himself as he stretched and rubbed his eyes.

"No" objected Jane, "No you need not get up yet. You can sleep for another hour, at least"

"If you are up, so I must be too. As you say, I can be of genuine help"

Jane sat down beside him, taking his arm enthusiastically.

"I was not about to push it on you, but I am very glad you will be up with me. You know far more than I do of these affairs, and you seem to simply get things done in an orderly way with such ease. I suspect today that will be very useful".

Edward laughed and Jane stood, gripping his shoulder for stability.

"Thank you sweetheart". She kissed his lips quickly before departing. "I shall see you downstairs in a few minutes".

. . . . . .

She did not see him for a long time, however. It was so long that she wondered if he had fallen back asleep, and was planning on getting mad at him later. But when breakfast was called separately for both the women and the men, he was no where to be found. It was not until Jane stepped across the hallway that she saw him through the opened front door standing outside, talking to John and several of the men from the stables.

"I know that the shoe cannot be replaced in time, so use the other carriage. I do not think Ms Rivers will mind. We cannot have an injured horse pulling the carriage, if there was an accident my wife would never forgive me"

"Right away sir, we shall change carriages immediately. But there is something else, the priest of the resident parish is away and left the responsibility to another priest. A father Burkley. Father Burkley needs his own copy of both Baptism records for the wedding to take place"

"Good God, is there no end to problems today. Thank you for informing me, John. I shall need to search my study for both now"

He moved so swiftly into the house that he almost did not see Jane standing there. Passing quickly, he gave her a meaningful look before vanishing up the staircase.

'John" Jane called out, suddenly guilty

"Yes Ma'am"

"Would you please take Mr Rochester a plate of breakfast in his study? I am worried he will not eat otherwise"

"Of course madam" he said, smiling, "I think such is a good idea. The ladies, in the meantime, are waiting for you in the parlour"

"Right" Jane said, slapping her hand to her forehead. "Right, that is where I was headed, thank you John"

. . . . .

Breakfast with Diana, Mary and Anne was not what Jane wished it would be. In her mind, Jane imagined a slow, thoughtful meal filled with wonderful and hopeful conversation of the marriage to come between Diana and Mr Rivers. It would be that wonderful time in which women were only with women, and shared in the joys of just being together. In reality, the breakfast was rushed, almost wordless and did not involve much eating.

"I am far too nervous to eat" Diana said, pushing her plate away, "Or perhaps I am far too excited. I do not know which. I think I shall just go and find Jenny to start with my hair, that way you girls will not have to wait so long"

And with that she was gone, not bothering to wait for a response.

"I think I shall do the same" Anne commented, pushing away too her barely touched plate of food. "If I eat too much, I shall surely burst from my dress"

Mary, who had been shovelling food into her mouth paused suddenly and dropped her fork, looking at Anne.

"Perhaps you are right. Perhaps I can wait until this evening to eat. I will go and get dressed. Jane, will you not come?"

Jane looked up at Anne and Mary standing before her.

"I think I shall sit here a little longer. I have been on my feet all morning. I shall join you in a moment!".

"Okay. But hurry upstairs. We want you to be there as we get ready"

"Of course" Jane smiled as they walked out of sight. She picked up her fork and began to eat again, thinking to herself privately that there was no way she was abandoning her breakfast for any reason. She hardly remembered ever being so hungry.

. . . . . . .

Soon after she finished, however, she did make her way upstairs to see the others getting ready. Knocking lightly on Diana's door, she heard a sequel and Diana's voice called out

"Who is there!"

"It is me! Now let me in"

A moment later Jenny appeared in the door, beaming at Jane.

"Hello mistress. She looks lovely indeed"

Jenny was not wrong. Before Jane sat Diana, her hair fashioned in an uncharacteristically intricate way, with braids and curls intertwining on top of her head and large, heavy curls falling around her face. She was seated, but Jane could still see how beautiful the top of her dress was, and how well it suited her figure. Best of all she looked happy, and Jane suspected that this was one of the rare times in her life when she felt truly beautiful. The thought warmed Jane's heart- she remembered feeling that way at several times, and the feeling was a wonderful one.

"Diana. You look radiant. I do not remember a time when you looked so well" Jane said, advancing toward her and taking her hands.

"Sit, please" Diana said, indicating a stool beside her. "Jane, you have always been so right about so many things, you have given the very best advice, and have never lead me astray. I ask for your help again now".

"But of course. Take a moment and breathe, you seem quite feverish. All is well, just relax"

Diana smiled a weak smile at Jane before nodding and closing her eyes, breathing deeply.

"Jane, I am so nervous for what is to come. I am nervous to stand in that church in front of everyone, I am scared of what becoming a new wife will mean for me. I am scared to leave you and Mary to become a wife"

She paused, dropping her voice.

"...I am scared of my wedding night"

Jane reached out her hand and Diana took it with great desperation. Jane could tell such concerns had been on her mind for quite some time.

"Diana, I know when you think of everything at once it can seem overwhelming- but not just overwhelming, it seems impossible. Where you stand is where many, many women have stood before you. Do not let your fear of the unknown spoil your great happiness today. You love the Captain. You love who you are when you are with him. That is what matters- it is all that matters. All will be well, better than well, if you truly believe in what you share together. Trust that all will come that is meant to come in good time".

Diana looked at her for a moment, clasping her friends hands.

"Thank you Jane. I think you must be right"

"I am right. Remember, I was a bride at one time too"

Diana shot her a knowing look.

"No one who ever saw you and Mr Rochester together could say for an instant you were not meant to be together. The same cannot be said for me and the Captain-"

"You love him, and he loves you. Whatever is said by anyone who disagrees with the marriage is wrong, and not worth your time to think about"

At that moment the bedroom door flew opened and Anne and Mary stood in the frame, hands clasped to their mouth, staring at Diana.

"You are a vision!" said Anne, gleefully.

"You are the most beautiful bride the world has seen" said Mary, smiling at her sister.

"And Jane! Wait, you are not dressed yet for the wedding!" Anne said a little frantically. "Jane you must go now, you must get ready. Soon we shall be headed to the church"

"That is my fault" said Diana, "I kept her, talking of important things. She has put my mind to great ease"

"That is all well" continued Anne, "But if we are late to the wedding all shall not be well any longer. Run along Jane, I want to see you looking stunning too".

. . . .

As Jane sat in her room, waiting for Jenny, she thought over how her own first wedding attempt had been. It was similar to how this day felt. She woke to immediate attention from Ms Fairfax and the Sophie, Adele's maid. She had been fussed over as she had never been attended to before. She was dressed, her hair was done and her flowers all gathered without her input, so when she stood and looked at herself in the mirror she hardly knew the women who was looking back at her. She had been dragged to the church at such a rate that she could hardly catch her breath when they stopped. It had been on odd feeling, and an isolating one on her wedding day. She imagined that Diana felt similarly in this moment, for she had never had the money either to ever consider this sort of wedding. And yet, here she was. And as she looked at herself in the mirror, Jane thought that she too was confused by the woman who looked back at her.

Jane's real marriage was far different than this day. She had woken that morning feeling perfectly at ease. No one roused her from premature sleep, no one cut short her breakfast, no one fussed over her. She did not feel any pressure to rush herself until her then day-long fiance came knocking at the door, asking how she was, and inquiring when she would be ready. They had walked slowly to the church, Jane describing the day- the sky, the birds overhead, the brook that ran alongside the path they walked. The memory made Jane smile, for that day he was a different sort of feeling from the first day they had tried to marry. That morning, Mr Rochester was brimming with nervous energy over what he feared would be revealed at the last moment, and his fears had been realised. When they finally did marry his relaxed spirit was only that of love, and truth, and honesty.

The door opened and Jenny stepped inside, looking windswept.

"Jenny! Sit, please. You look exhausted. I imagine you have been busy the whole of the morning"

"Oh ma'am, it has been busy, but I enjoy the work" she promised, wiping her forehead quickly with her arm.

"I have no doubt, you are extremely talented. Still, that is no reason for you not to take a break. Sit with me for a little while"

"But mistress" said Jenny quickly, "We shan't have any time to sit. Your hair must be done, and we must have you dressed in too short a time. I was delayed with miss Mary's hair, I should have started that sooner-"

"Jenny!" said Jane, not allowing her to continue. "Please, you have been marvellous in taking care of everyone thus far" she paused, "Frankly, I do not care anymore what I look like today. This little baby within me is making me feel so ill today, and so I am content with just about anything".

Jenny smiled understandingly, moving behind Jane and starting to take down her hair from the bun it had been fashioned in that morning.

"I shall not have my mistress looking anything but beautiful, for that is what she is. Now, if little Master or Mistress Rochester is making you feel ill then I insist you take it easy while I work"

. . .

An hour later Jane was finished. She was dressed in a beautiful yellow dress that suited her very well. Leah had picked the fabric when it came to the house, and Jane was thankful for her keen eye, for hers was not so distinguished yet, and never would have picked the colour for herself. Jenny styled her hair very attractively, braiding down the sides of her head and wrapping the braids behind her head in a bun, while leaving the rest of her hair down, and gently curled.

The whole experience left her feeling frustrated. As she tried to speak with Jenny, servants continually flew in and out of the room, asking her questions, checking final details on the dinner menu, bringing flowers, reminding her of the time and the need to hurry. Jane could hardly get a sentence out without being interrupted by a member of the household. It was not their fault of course, but it left Jane feeling tired, strained, and flustered.

Jenny eventually left Jane in her room when she had finished, and Jane took advantage of the moment to herself to sit in quiet. It had been the kind of day where a moment of silence felt unnatural. She did not trust the wonderful silence, and had good reason not to. A moment later her bedroom door burst opened and Edward stepped inside, closing the door with a careless force behind him. He did not see his wife at first, so she just turned back around to look out of the window. Edward began discarding his clothes, throwing the different articles around the room. Finally he turned to where Jane was and jumped, his face turning angry as he tried to cover his naked frame with his nightshirt he now held in his hand.

"I have seen all of you before", Jane reminded him, eyeing the shirt.

He dropped his arm and continued with his task at hand with unnecessary force.

"You could have told me you were there, there is no need to sit there in secrecy"

"I am not sitting in secrecy. I am just trying to have some quiet time to myself, which I will now resume, if you do not mind"

For a moment Edward was about to argue, but in seeing her turn around and face the window again he felt the wisest thing to do was fall silent, and finish dressing. When he was fully dressed aside from his tailcoat he lay down on the bed so that his head rested close to the arm of Jane's chair which faced the window. He looked up at the ceiling, and sighed deeply.

"Will you mind if we are alone together?"

Jane felt a small smile attempt to rise to her mouth, and without looking at him, nodded.

There was complete silence for a period until Jane stood up and lay on the bed beside her husband. In that moment she felt herself relax a little bit, for she had realised she had not been alone in feeling overwhelmed by the wedding, and the whole marriage experience. She could tell that Edward was consumed with his own thoughts, and that his mind was occupied with not becoming short tempered and angry as he had been just a few minutes before.

She felt guilty.

Her and Edward had had so little time to communicate in the past few days. With house guests, demands and needs from them, Mr Franklin's advances on Jane, and the general stress of planning a wedding, Jane knew that pent up frustration she was not used to bubbled just under her skin, always threatening to overtake her at the smallest obstacle. The child within her was also making her feel more ill in the past few days then she had felt in months, and this also played into her increasing lack of patience. Jane missed talking at night with Edward. She missed getting her concerns and worries off her chest and having someone to ease her mind before falling asleep. Now, it was a matter of simply making it to bed and collapsing into an immediate sleep. Jane considered it a good night to not fall asleep in some chair, or on a sofa.

Her hands ran over her bump without thought, and her husband turned to look at her. His own hand found hers and brought it to his mouth briefly.

"I'm sorry" Jane began, all built up emotion falling from her lips now, "Edward, I am so sorry for all of this. No, no, listen. I know you will tell me that planning a wedding is not my fault, nor is it anyone's fault, it is simply stressful. But I have put so much onto you- more than you deserved. I did not even realise I was doing it. I just knew I could trust you, and took advantage of you. I mean, recommending you show Lord Franklin the shooting grounds was merely to remove him from Mr Eshton's presence for a while? That was not right."

"Yes, and while you had me do that, you were occupied with all the ladies, all their maids, all the dresses and bows and God knows what else for the wedding. Jane darling, I am only sorry you have been so overworked. I want to be there for you so that you can command work of me when you are overwhelmed. That is what one signs up for when one marries- hosting vast wedding parties for family that you obtain in union and suffering the difficult moments alongside the good moments"

"I know" said Jane, frustrated, "But it isn't only that. We have suffered as a result, and that has been my fault"

"We are fine, my darling. But not being able to kiss you goodnight properly, and not being able to tell you of my day and hear of yours in return has not been good. It has made us both irritable and on edge. I promised I would ease your workload, and try to relieve you of any excess duties, and in that I have failed miserably"

"You cannot help when I sneak off late at night to work in the study, or lie to you about what I am doing"

Jane did not mind admitting this. She was a terrible liar, and knew she did not stand a chance against her husbands knowing glances.

"No" he said, resolved, "I cannot make you less stubborn. And I cannot tell you what to do. My only consolation is that the wedding is in a few minutes and soon all this shall be over. Our house shall be ours again, and we will go back to the way things were before. Is it wrong of me to wish for such?"

Jane shook her head,

"If it is wrong, then we are wrong together. All I want is to be alone with you again, for a little while. Before our child arrives and throws our lives into chaos once more"

Rochester smiled, leaning over to press his lips to Jane's temple. The intimate action made her feel warm, and full.

He moved over her slowly, pressing his lips to her forehead, then to her mouth. His kisses were sweet, and unimposing, and made Jane's heart feel invincible.

"You look so handsome" Jane said, speaking almost to herself as she ran her fingers through his hair.

"Do you think so? Am I presentable?"

"Quite. Though, you must not be charming as well as good looking- you attract far too many women to you as it is, and I do not like it"

He laughed heartily, kissing her forehead once more. He always did such when he wished to wordlessly remind her of his love for her.

"You look beautiful" he said honestly, playing with one of her soft curls.

"I do not. I am puffy and so round I can barely sit and stand, and today am quite red"

Edward looked amused.

"You are perfect. You always are. Especially to me".

Jane eyed him before kissing him softly.

"Come, we have a wedding to attend".