The storyline, new character development, new events, and new characters are my intellectual property. Glorioux
CHANGE OF HEART
"I do not think that Jasmine is hungry. She just went outside and had water and food," Lizzie explained. Nonetheless, she called the rebellious dog, "Come out, my darling, my sweet girl, your daddy is sad. You need to go with your daddy, poor Mr. Darcy." The answer was a bark, not a nice one, followed by a nasty snarl.
Mr. Darcy, though, What a bad dog; she is not a sweet girl or my darling. He sighed, frustrated, then said, "May I," pulling the desk chair and sat, furtively peeking at the papers over the desk. He is made a mental inventory, being nosy, hmm, neat writing, elegant penmanship, ah, this a page with quantities; perhaps these are formulas for their perfumes. She is clever, besides being lovely, he thought. He also noticed several small bottles; he read and found out they were colognes with pasted labels with their names. He pointed at the bottles, "Miss Elizabeth, are these the ones you make?"
Lizzie eagerly asked, "Those are old tries; you remember what I told you? I guess so. Did you like the ones we sent? Smell those."
He opened them and liked them: "Of course I liked them; these are also excellent. My sister will like it. You see, she fell from a tree." He felt at ease with them, which was highly unusual.
"Oh no, how?" Lizzie asked.
Jane asked if his sister was well. Everyone inquired with genuine interest.
"She was trying to escape from the lady who is her companion. She has a new one after Geor," he coughed; he had almost said, George.
But Mr. Sharp, as a knife, Bennet heard him, saw his face, and thought. Hmm, George, he was going to say.
"You see, she is 15." Mr. Darcy told them.
Mr. Bennet said, "There is no need to explain further; I understand." He smiled and looked at his daughters.
Mary, who was no longer so shy, said, "Ah, she's like Lydia and Kitty. Don't worry, it is the age." She shrugged.
The five sisters giggled, and the parents sighed.
Mrs. Bennet asked, "Mr. Darcy, perhaps you would like something to eat, maybe some tea; I will see what else is available." She heard his stomach rumbling.
"Most kind, please, but maybe here. When Jasmine comes out, I want to be here." His stomach rumbled; he was hungry and hoped nobody heard it.
Mrs. Bennet brought him a tray that looked excellent, a small feast. He saw small rolls, cold chicken, cheeses, sausages, a meat pie, and more. He had not eaten much and did not want to eat dinner with Miss Bingley. Everything was delicious. There were also potatoes with vinegar and a little bacon, pickles, herring, slices of pound cake, and biscuits. He kept saying it was delicious, trying to lure Miss Bad Dog out; too bad her belly was full.
Though he kept saying, "I do not think I can eat it all," he kept eating. Mr. Bennet noticed, amused.
Two hours later, and no Jasmine. But the time went fast, talking. Lizzie looked again, "She is asleep. I could try."
Good sense made him exclaim, "No, please. She is a bad girl like her grandmama." He showed them a large scar on his other hand. "She bit me because I took away from her the beef roast for dinner, bigger than her, she stole from the table." He smiled. "She had a bad temper if you touched her food." He looked at Lizzie, who melted, seeing him smile. Lydia and Kitty sighed. Jane looked at their mother, and both smiled.
The Bennet laughed at the story.
"Perhaps you are right, though I want to try." Lizzie did.
But he said, "I thank you, but I don't want you to get hurt; her mother and sisters are the same. You could get an infection; it is not worth it."
Jane and Mary sat on the bed, and Lydia and Kitty sat on the floor with Lizzie, occasionally looking under the wardrobe. They kept calling Jasmine, who ignored everyone.
Lizzie asked him to repeat what he had told Miss Bingley if he recalled it; amazingly, he did. They were laughing and listening to him. He had never been the one making others laugh, and he was enjoying it. Lydia and Kitty applauded when he told them he had asked Miss Bingley why Lizzie should want to look like her and how irritated he was when she insulted Miss Elizabeth.
Jane laughed so hard that tears rolled down her cheeks. The younger sisters's laughter lightened his heart, feeling wrapped in the family's warmth. This was better than the Ton, heartfelt, making him wish he had a big family. Never mind, the food was delicious. It finally occurred to him that he could have this big family, though Tobias, more than likely, had already won Miss Elizabeth's heart.
Lydia asked, "Mr. Darcy, did you really tell Miss Bingley that her orange attire did not go with her ginger hair? Good for you; they do not go; she should know." She wrinkled her nose, asking. Mr. Darcy chuckled, agreeing.
Lydia wanted him to tell the story twice more, and he obliged, making them laugh. He confessed her perfume gave him a headache. Nobody liked Miss Bingley, and the younger girls made him feel good. As for Mrs. Bennet, she no longer thought he was rude, liking him for defending Lizzie.
Everyone was outraged when Lizzie told them how she fell when Miss Bingley pushed her chair, but they all laughed when she said Jasmine bit her.
Mr. Darcy thought the younger girls behaved well at their home. Once again, he noticed they all were pretty and loathed that the ruffian assassins were bound to get them all. What a shame, he thought, remembering something Charles said, "Lucky them who don't have a sister like mine." He remembered Lord Adler, Mr. Bennet's older brother, a nice gentleman. He did not have a nasty sister, but he had offended Lizzie earlier; what was wrong with him? He wished he could take it back. He wished he could find out about Tobias. Or should he care about Tobias? After all, Tobias left, and he was there with Miss Elizabeth; ..something to think about.
He did not know Mr. Bennet's family well but asked about the property here. Mr. Bennet explained, "This property is from my mother's family, my father's third wife. I have twin sisters, much younger, around Jane's age. One is married to one of Tobias's cousins. The unmarried one lives with my oldest brother. They are the only girls in the family. My second brother inherited it from his mother; her father had no sons, and Fred was the only issue on his mother's side."
He also said his mother had a maternal uncle who was not well, and he would inherit since he was the closest male relative. His uncle was a second cousin of Tobias Hurst's father, something Darcy nearly expected to hear. Now, he was certain the Hurst were everywhere. "So, I am familiar with the Hurst." Mr. Bennet concluded.
Finally, it was getting dark, and Mr. Darcy had to give up. Lizzie said that when Jasmine came out, they would bring her by; they had a torch. But he said he would return in the morning, hoping to stay there for a while.
He had figured out that as long as Jasmine was hiding out, he could come back and have a chance to talk to Miss Elizabeth and win her heart. What did Tobias say? Ah, that Jasmine had good taste. He had to agree; Jasmine had wonderful taste by liking Lizzie. How he wished he could call her Lizzie. She was so pretty, clever, and just perfect.
"Miss Elizabeth, I, err, I am sorry if I was rude. I love my girl; she looks exactly like my old girl. She was Jasmine's grandmother, a present from my father. She had two small litters of two pups each time." He explained. Everyone was quiet, listening. Lizzie's sisters sighed, thinking that a gentleman like him was apologizing.
Lizzie was graceful, "I understand you were upset; Jasmine is cunning. But how did she know to climb on the carriage."
"I think she understands what people say." Kitty answered. Her sisters and father agreed.
Mr. Darcy kept hoping to ask about Tobias but wasn't sure how. Meanwhile, Mrs. Bennet asked how well he knew Lt Wickham. Lizzie blushed, but her father, who sat next to Mr. Darcy also wanted to know, "William, " he asked, "what is Lt Wickham's name?"
"Sir, I don't want to speak ill of him. His name is George Wickham," He lowered his voice, almost a whisper, "He should not be coming here."
Mr. Darcy wondered why they asked, and why Lizzie had blushed. He would check if George were after her. If so, he wanted to punch him a few times.
"William if you wish we could fix you a room, it is no bother. I believe Jasmine will be happier and come out." Mr. Bennet liked him a lot for Lizzie. William was a bit proud, but he had a sense of humor and had stood up for Lizzie.
"No sir, I don't want to inconvenience you, but if something goes wrong at Netherfield, I might return tonight." Mr. Darcy wanted to leave the door open because he did not trust Miss Bingley, besides, he did not want to be around her.
"Then come as early as you wish. Or come back tonight if it does not work out; you are welcome. There are rooms for your people as well. My wife sets a nice table." Mr. Bennet smiled.
"She sure does, I enjoyed the food she brought me; it was excellent. As you noticed I managed to eat everything." Mr. Darcy answered and chuckled.
When he readied to leave, he saw the small handkerchief, at the edge of the desk, he had been checking for a while. It had an embroidered E, and a couple of in stains. When no one was looking, he pocketed, not thinking it was wrong. Though he was aware he was acting different.
Lizzie walked him to the door, and he wanted to ask her about Tobias, but decided to wait till the next day. He thanked her for taking care of the naughty dog that bit her, and she made him laugh by doing a little curtsy. "You are welcome my Lord." He had laughed today more than in a long time. Lizzie's heart sped up looking at him laughing.
Lydia and Kitty sighed, saying nobody looked as good as him, making their parents smile. They said that about many gentlemen.
His valet who sat with the Hill and the coachmen and footmen, smirked. They saw him laughing with the nice Miss and no dog. So much for he was getting his dog back from the thieves. The Miss was not only pretty but also nice.
The valet saw the bandage and asked what happened. Mr. Darcy explained, smiling. "You need pain tonic and a good salve. I will bandage it again." The valet told him and twisted his lips in disapproval of the bandage.
Five minutes later, Jasmine came out, slowly. Lizzie asked her sisters to help, and they ran down the steps, trying to stop the carriage, but The carriage was too far gone.
Her parents were laughing, her father said, "My dear, you seem to have a problem; I believe Miss Jasmine wants to stay instead of going back to her daddy." Mr. Bennet grinned.
"I have the perfect solution. Lizzie dearest you could marry him so you could share Jasmine; he is divine." Kitty suggested and Lydia nodded, agreeing.
Her sisters agreed, but not Lizzie, "I don't think Mr. Darcy wants to marry me." Lizzie sounded disappointed.
Jasmine growled hearing her daddy's name and her mommy's sadness.
Mrs. Bennet shook her head, "He might; he looks at you like he loves you, or at least cares for you. I wouldn't be so sure that he doesn't want you. I feel that my daughters will be married very well within a few years, and hopefully live near your father's uncle house, since your father has a copy of the will. As for Mr. Collins, your father's married sister might still have a boy, or his other sister might marry and have a son, and then Mr. Collins won't get Longbourn; wouldn't that be grand?"
Mrs. Bennet had realized her daughters would be sought after by rich gentlemen, so it was best to keep Mr. Collins away, considering that Longbourn would never be his.
She asked her husband, "My dear what do you think he meant when he said he would rather do not speak ill about Mr. Wickham. It sounded like Mr. Darcy didn't like him. I wonder why."
"He will tell me, but in the meantime, we must keep him away from this house. My dears, listen to me; there are wonderful gentlemen that are going to wish to court you, so do not ruin your chances with those like Lt Wickham. I have the feeling the Hurst will be coming back." He grinned, "In Eaton and Cambridge, others called them the Black Knights; I mean the younger men's fathers. I knew them or saw some of them. The Hurst have a reputation of getting what they want; some say their fortunes where gain by serving the crown. The Hurst were the meanest and the bravest, they have a Lion's heart. I wouldn't mind seeing some of my daughters married to them. They are loyal and faithful to the ones they love. What else can I wish for my daughters."
Mary and Jane looked at each other, both hoping.
"Now, the Darcy have reputation for being proud and a bit ruthless. Mr. Darcy's father's bad temper was legendary in Eaton, I imagine his son has inherited some of it. I was surprised he did not get into a fight over Jasmine, though it looked like he wanted to. However, I like Mr. Darcy. And Lizzie, I believe that your sisters are right; he likes you. He more than likes you, so, let's see what happens. Don't lose hope. He couldn't have better than you." Mr. Bennet told his daughters.
Jasmine growled whenever he said Mr. Darcy, making them have great fun.
Mr. Bennet said, "Observe, Jasmine is not gonna want to go with him, since she growls whenever someone mentions his name. She must wish to stay here, considering she was so cunning to get in a carriage and come here. Do you wonder how she did it? I agree with Kitty she understands us, let us see. Jasmine, do you like Mr. Darcy?"
They heard a growl.
Lizzie asked, "Darling, do you like Miss Bingley?" Jasmine started barking nastily, so they played for the while with the dog.
"I want us to keep her. Could you ask Mr. Darcy to give her to you?" Lydia asked Lizzie.
Their father said, "No, my dears, that is not going to happen. I heard George Darcy's parents would come to visit with his dog. As proud as they are, the Darcy and the Fitzwilliam took their dogs everywhere. When he arrived here, I felt how angry he was. I expected he would call you a thief."
Lydia and Kitty shook their heads, "No, he is too polite and too nice." Both said.
Jane rolled her eyes, in their eyes Mr. Darcy was perfect. Mary winked at Jane and Lizzie and all grinned.
When Mr. Darcy sat in the carriage, he pulled out the handkerchief and put it to his nose. It smelled like Miss Elizabeth; nobody was like her or smelled as wonderful. He was still to see how wrong was stealing the handkerchief. He reasoned the handkerchief was old and stained, so, he would send an express to his secretary telling him to buy linen and lace handkerchiefs, from the shop his mother had liked, for all the Bennet ladies, with their , and send his valet to buy sweets for the ladies. He knew, he would tell Miss Lizzie that somehow, he put in his pocket, but only if she should ask; otherwise he would not say anything.
Now, he was wishing he had accepted the invitation to stay, dreading being around Miss Bingley. He thought he was hopeless. His grandmother agreed.
A/N I hope you are enjoying how has he changed in a few hours.