The sound was what awoke Lizzy, from a fitful dream, and she reached out immediately to brush her fingers along the arm of her sister.

But her hand met empty sheets, and she sat up with a gasp, her eyes flying open. Light leaked around the curtains in the windows, pulled tight by the maid last night who had turned down the sheets and warmed them. More light spilled over a rich rug from the fireplace, that crackled merrily in direct opposite to her heart's deepest feelings.

She curled her knees into her chest, the counterpane sliding from the sheet and leaving her in just the cotton gown. The nightdress was soft and warm, and as she pressed her cheek against her knees, feeling very lost and alone.

Even though Jane was next door, it felt like her dearest sister was a world away.

They'd not been apart, not even in their own home, not for more than a scant number of days, their wholw lives.

"Jane," Lizzie whispered, as the fire popped, and a log fell inside the grate. The sound startled her, along with the clatter outside the window-panes of her bedroom. Down in the passageway and back gardens below, servants were hard at work, having started their day much earlier than she had.

Enough laying abed, and feeling poorly for herself. There was a whole city to explore and know, the Ton to acquaint with, and suitors to find for Jane.

Suitors who would overlook her family's lack of status, and the foolish ways of her younger sisters and mother.

With a groan, she slipped out of bed and rang the bell.

Last night she had undressed herself, but today, this morning, that would all change.

"Miss Elizabeth?" There was a light knock on the door, and a sweet, low voice beyond it. Lizzy pulled her arms around herself, hugging across her stomach.

"Enter," she called out, and took a deep breath to steady herself.

A young woman, several years older than Elizabeth, entered the room, her hair coal-black and pulled back into a neat coiled braid at the nape of her neck. Her dress was black, with white apron and cap. She bobbed a curtsey.

"I trust that the room is to your liking and the fire warm enough? I am Sharpe," she introduced herself, and Lizzy thought the name at odds with the woman's kind face and gentle tone.

"Yes, the room is very well," Lizzie replied, unsure of herself. She'd never had a lady's maid before. But Sharpe seemed to know her business, as she immediately walked to the dressing room.

"Mrs. Gardiner has said that your day will be quite filled," Sharpe said as she returned, fresh chemise, stockings, garters, and a corset over her arms. "So let's get you ready to face it all, yes?"

Lizzie allowed herself to be dressed for perhaps one of first times in her life where it wasn't her sister, or mother, assisting her. As she was shifted into her undergarments, which Sharpe seemed to take special care with, Lizzie's heart pounded faster and faster.

"I feel as if I am going into battle," she admitted.

"Battle, Miss?" Sharpe raised an eyebrow, before casting a discerning eye over the chemise, adjusting it at Elizabeth's shoulder.

"Yes, it was one thing to be amongst family, and friends, company all known to me for my twenty years. Now, to go into society, and the Ton, and..."

"I am sure you will be dazzling, Miss, you and your sister. The two of you, so pretty as you are, will have suitors fighting to win your affections, and the other young ladies delighted to make your acquaintance," Sharpe said, as she retreated into the dressing room. With the door open, LIzzy could hear the murmur of another abigail, Jane's, and it amazed her to think they should both have seperate lady's maids, one for each of them.

Truly a gift, one that Lizzy felt she could never repay her aunt and uncle. What had they done, to win the favor of the Dowager? And that they chose to pass on that favor to their neices, when their own children would need support as they went into the world, made their debuts, entered education, as determined by their sex...

Lizzy's cheeks warmed, and her eyes misted. She would not waste a moment in London, for all her fizzing nerves. She would help Jane achieve the pinnacle of joy and happiness.

"Ah, I thought the green quite lovely with your eyes, Miss," Sharpe commented as she returned, a green linen gown over her arm and a smile on her face. "It might give the modiste some clever ideas as well, so that she might see what becomes you and makes your eyes sparkle. A gentleman will want a girl with bright, fine eyes."

Sharpe helped her into the dress, tugging at it here and there until it sat to the abigail's liking.

"Lovely," she commented, "now, let's see to your hair."

Sharpe was just as gentle when arranging Lizzy's hair, and the girl in the looking glass did not so much as resemble Lizzy, as some more polished creature. So much so, that it took her by surprise when she glanced into it. Sharpe had a way with the curling tongs, and soon enough, Lizzy had a neat, soft style atop her head, ringlets framing her face.

"You look quite ready, miss," Sharpe commented, as she smoothed her hands over the top of Elizabeth's head, arranging a curl just so before she pronounced herself satisfied.

It was quite a thing... to be fussed over in such a kind and soothing way. Lizzy felt her heart settling into a calm rhythm, and the butterflies in her stomach, aflutter only a few moments ago, began to settle down.

"I should thank you, Sharpe," Lizzie said, and the maid nodded her head.

"I wish you the best luck for your first day in London," Sharpe murmured, curtseyed, and went into the dressing room. Lizzy wasn't even left with her looking glass and her thoughts for more than a moment when Jane knocked on the door, and let herself in.

If Elizabeth thought herself something of a vision, it was nothing compared to Jane. Her elder sister looked the picture of perfection, in a simple pink frock, and her hair done in a similar fashion to Elizabeth's.

"I feel as if I'm walking on clouds," Jane admitted in a fierce whisper, as Lizzy stood, crossing the room to wrap her hands around Jane's.

"Let us not take a moment for granted then," Lizzy replied, and Jane's smile lit up the very least and littlest corners of Elizabeth's heart.

"No, not a moment, not a breath of it. Luck, Lizzy, my love."

"Luck, Jane, my dearest," Lizzy replied, her heart filling with delighted flutters.

"I'm sorry that neither of you had any time to write letters home this morning," Mrs. Gardiner said, as the coach swayed, conveying them from the townhouse. "But I'm afraid it can't be helped."

Breakfast had been slightly rushed, as Mrs. Gardiner descended and ate with them instead of taking her breakfast in her room on a tray. It seemed that their aunt was determined to usher them into London society with no delay at all, and as soon as they had finished she had urged them to dress in their pelisses and take hold of their reticules.

Lizzy longed for a moment to send a letter to their mother to assure all was well, and another missing to Charlotte who would be curious as to everything that was going on. But that would have to wait, at least until their next free moment.

"There is the modiste first, so that we might beat the rush as much as possible," Aunt Gardiner said with a shake of her head. She was dressed in fine clothes again today, her dress a beautiful cotton lawn sprigged with embroidered flowers by a talented hand. "The other young ladies have had months to prepare, and we have arrived already behind. It could not be helped, of course, and neither of you are to feel badly for it. We will to the modiste, and then to the engraver-"

"The engraver?" Jane asked, and glanced toward Lizzy. "But we have our calling cards, already, Mama had them printed when we first were out-"

"Perhaps acceptable for Meryton and the circling families beyond it, but my dear girls," Mrs. Gardiner cleared her throat as she spoke. "This is your best opportunity to better your lives, and I can assure you, I have all of these plans quite well in hand. We have an appointent with the most sought after engraving artist in all of London. There won't be a silver tray in the city that will be displeased to carry your cards."

"Aunt, I-" Lizzy began, but her aunt waved a gloved hand at her.

"No, Lizzie, Jane, I must insist. It will be no hardship, I promise. The Dowager opens many doors for us, and indeed, her purse as well. You will meet her and see how pleased she is to be sponsoring you in your first Season in London."

The coach beetled onward, and soon they arrived at the modiste's. A large, three-storey building, the windows on the top floor were small, and Lizzie could only imagine they were used by the seamstresses. The main level was filled with bolts of fabric and shelves filled with boxes, an attractive dress on display in the large bay window, lace trimming the sleeves.

"Madame LaVallier has her shop on the first floor, and the workroom in the second," Mrs. Gardiner explained, her hand on the door to the coach. A footman opened the door, and her aunt stepped out, Lizzy and Jane following her.

The inside of the shop was quiet and well-appointed. It seemed not to be the sort of establishment that would cater to the likes of Lydia and Kitty Bennet. The fabrics were expensive and fine, and the help, girls stood behind the counter looked very different from those they were used to at the mantua maker in Meryton. They were all quite fashionable, their hair in interesting braids and buns on top of their heads, with sprigged curls artfully arranged. From their dresses, it appeared that this modiste ensured the girls who staffed her shop were dressed in the very latest, so as to be walking fashion plates of her best wares.

Beside her, Jane reached for her hand, twining her fingers through Lizzy's. Lizzy squeezed back, willing her sister to have strength and courage in the face of such heights of fashion. Surely, this Madame LaVallier was a snobbish person, and would refuse to fit the girls for gowns, even if the Dowager herself was with them.

"Good morning," Mrs. Gardiner said as she as she stepped up to the counter.

"Mrs. Gardiner," the girl closest seemed to know her on sight, curtseying. "Madame LaVallier will see you immediately, won't you come with me?" She gestured for the three of them to follow her, through a set of doors into a rear room of the shop, where a elegantly carved wooden staircase was located. Lizzy was immediately regretting leaving the beautiful shop room, with its falls of ribbons, and bolts of fine fabrics everywhere.

They followed the young lady up the stairs, and were soon led into a room on the second floor. Large windows set deep into the walls had comfortable looking bench seats beneath them, with collections of plush velvet and silk pillows for resting against. The wooden floor was nearly hidden entirely under thick rugs that seemed to muffle the sound of the street outside, and the shop below.

A raised, circular dais was in the middle of the room, and several chaises ranged the room for sitting upon. A number of dress forms sported more gowns, these even more elegant and charming than the ones in the shop below. A woman stood at the window, her back to them, her blonde hair shot with silver.

"Madame," the girl curtsied again, "Mrs. Gardiner and the Bennet sisters are here." The woman turned, and a smile crossed her lips, her blue eyes widening.

"Why, you are all most welcome," she said, clasping her hands in front of her. The girl turned and scurried away, her shoes clattering on the steps as she descended to the shop. "Come here, toward the windows so I may see your coloring better. Your aunt was most modest in explaining your charms and beauty, I can see," she murmured as Jane stepped forward, Lizzy a pace behind her.

Their aunt took a seat on one of the chaises, folding her hands in her lap and watching quietly.

"And you must be the elder, Miss Bennet," Madame said, gesturing Jane to take a seat, and she did. "Yes, I think you will do quite nicely. Such fine hair, and figure. The country air does something delightful for young woman, I believe, and with my fashions on you this Season, you will have no comparable in the entire flock of young ladies." Madame's eyes sparkled, and she turned to Lizzy at Jane's cheeks flushed with the compliments she'd been served.

"And Miss Elizabeth, you are quite lovely, aren't you?" Madame LaVallier commented, casting a glance over her dress. "An unusual color, I have not seen it employed in quite this fashion before, but I find it quite handsome for you. You remind me of the verdant fields, of the stillness in the air just at dusk. We will show the young men of the Ton that you have hidden depths and secrets, Miss Elizabeth, that they will fight amongst each other to discover."

Elizabeth found herself speechless, as the modiste reached up and pulled out a pencil and sheaf of papers, beginning to draw a sketch over a drawing she already had begun.

"Now, I have a few ideas, and we will begin with what we have available. We can't expect new gowns from the shop in a few days, but perhaps in a week. You will have several days to settle, and the Dowager is quite discerning, so she will want you properly attired before you begin your calls. Come, let's drape some cotton upon you and see what shades bring out the light of your eyes."

Jane suited every color she tried as far as Elizabeth was concerned, and when it came for Lizzy's turn, she was amazed to find that there were several shades of green that Madame picked for her, as well as another cotton in buff, and a voile of the most delicate shade of pastel heliotrope that Lizzy had ever seen. She felt in a daze as their measurements were taken, and sketches shown to them, that she wasn't sure if she could trust her own mind when it came to remembering the details of her first day in London, or the excitement of the visit to the modiste.

But when they emerged from the shop, Lizzy holding her head a bit higher, her stomach no longer clenched with nerves. Madame LaVallier had not thrown them out as country hoydens. She had not so much as sneered at them once, and had even exclaimed over the beauty of Lizzy's reticule, the one that had been a gift from Aunt Gardiner, prior to them leaving the shop.

They would return close to the end of the week, for fittings, and final adjustments. It was all... quite beyond anything she had expected.

They returned to the home for a light repast, refreshing themselves before another errand to the engraver's. One step into his studio, the scent of ink rich and paper fairly floating on the air, and Lizzy longed to have a desk and the materials to write to everyone back home.

The gentleman, Mr. Humphries, had a very pleasant disposition, and he was quick and efficient in his work, showing them samples of his engraved cards, some staid and modest with only the simplest curly-cues, and others so fantastically designed with cherubim dancing upon clouds around the sender's name. They were far fancier than the cards the girls currently possessed, and after the girls had chosen designs, and as their aunt placed orders for what seemed like far too many cards, Mr. Humphries presented both girls with engraved card cases each.

"A gift, to two of the Tons newest sparklers," he commented, his eyes twinkling. Jane blushed and demurred but Lizzy met his gaze openly, feeling like the day had already transformed her nerves into something else entirely.

"I'm afraid I shall not have a moment or the energy to write a letter tonight," she told her aunt, who smiled knowingly.

"The first days will be busy ones," Mrs. Gardiner confirmed, as they departed the shop. Their next errand was to the milliner's ("We cannot have you in but the few bonnets you came in, alone."), to another shop to order gloves, stockings, and other fripparies ("The chill will bite you here as much as it does at Longbourn, and I will not send you back to your parents with frostbitten limbs!"), a shoe-maker ("We won't see you with a triple ruffle around your neck, and nary a shoe to wear." "But Aunt, we have boots, and sandals-" "And what is the harm of having several more pairs? Please, it has been my dream since you were but little to provide for you in this way. Do not deny me the pleasure of outfitting you as you ought to be, especially when we are able to use someone elses' purse to do so."), and a curious shop that specialized in feathers of which they bought many to trim out the hats and bonnets they had brought from Meryton. Lizzy felt nearly worn out by all the back and forth, and she had to stifle a groan when Aunt Gardiner snapped her fan shut and smiled at them both as they sat in the coach. "But one more visit, before we retire to the house."

Jane's eyes were curious as they rumbled in the coach to their next destination. When the door was opened by the footman, and Lizzy could see what awaited her, energy rushed back into her limbs, and she fairly sprang from the carriage.

A bookseller! Books, leather-bound and waiting to be pored over, and the scent of paper, greeted her as she stepped inside the shop. Quills, ink, laid out in sparkling cases waiting to be plucked and set to correspondence beckoned to her. Sheaves of thicker paper, water color paints, brushes, crying to be put to good use in bringing beautiful scenes to life also serenaded her. And if she wasn't mistaken, there was a whole display of sheet music. She had never spent much time at the pianoforte, leaving it to Mary, but now that they were in London...

Perhaps she could try her hand at it again.

"You may purchase whatever pleases you," Mrs. Gardiner told the two sisters. Lizzy's heart skipped a beat.

Jane, ever the angel, immediately went to the music, but Lizzy was drawn deeper into the shelves. The circulating library in Meryton had served her well enough, as well as Mr. Bennet's personal collection of books, but this was something else entirely. Her fingers walked along the spines of the books, names, unrecognizable to her, but soon she had a small pile of them in her arms. She made it up to the counter with several quills, paper, new sealing wax, and even some water colors.

Jane was still perusing the music and soon joined her.

"I picked a few that we might duet with each other, or perhaps you to sing, and I to play," Jane said, her eyes sparkling. "Oh, Lizzy, I cannot believe this. Beyond any dream I might have had, any imagining. And we have only been here less than a day."

Lizzy's heart squeezed, and she hugged the books closer. "We are truly blessed," she replied. And it was true. Not less than a day, and their entire lives had changed, it was hard to even think of Longbourn, of Meryton...

It felt like in a week she would be an entirely different person.

And that very thought struck both fear, and excitement, inside her.


Thank you so much for your patience, dear friends! I have been traveling for work and so was not able to upload a new chapter. I have been astonished by the number of you reaching out to me personally and thank you for your kind words. Your continued support means everything, and if you would like to, this book is available on Amazon to Preorder it now!

Love

Nora