Good Fortune for Some
"I still cannot believe you proposed so soon, Darcy," Bingley said.
"So you have said, Bingley," Darcy said, wearily. "Multiple times. I do not see why you are still harping on it, nor why you have not proposed to Miss Bennet if you are still so determined."
"She will not let me!" Bingley exclaimed.
"Why ever not?" Darcy asked. "Moreover how could you know if she would or would not if you have not posed the question?"
"I asked!" Bingley said, before his expression changed and he qualified his statement "Well, hinted. It was after your engagement was announced— one of those days when you were off walking with Miss Elizabeth; frankly I have no idea how you two can enjoy walking in the cold the way you do..."
Darcy could feel himself flush as he knew the primary draw of those cold walks was the opportunity to be alone with his betroth
Luck is Sometimes Even Less of a LadyFitzwilliam Darcy, husband for a mere two weeks, reluctantly left his currently quite delightfully disheveled wife in order to let her begin her preparations for the ball they would be attending that evening, the first social engagement where they would appear as man and wife. While he hardly wished to emerge from the blissful haven of their home as yet, he did unfortunately recognize that he could no longer ignore the outside world, especially Lord and Lady Gordon who had been close friends to his own parents and who had made such a point of inviting him and Elizabeth to their ball. Of course he realized that he and Elizabeth were currently of high interest because of either the perceived disparity of the match or the fact that while the ton were familiar enough with the Darcys of Pemberley, they had never heard of the Bennets of Longbourn, thus making the former Elizabeth Bennet very much an unknown quality.
Taking the Trouble to Practice.Having made his way past the hosts and a good many of Maria's "close" friends, George found himself looking longingly at the punch bowl and then at the reason why he both wanted to be at the bowl and was not allowed. He glanced around at the assembled throng attending Lord and Lady Gordon's ball, wishing he could feel a thrill at being among such illustrious personages; at one time he would have seen it as a great opportunity, but now it was rather losing its luster."Do not slouch, George," Maria's superior tone made him flinch."No, dearest," he said dutifully."Remember, you are now my husband and a Montcraven; use your charms wisely.""Yes, dearest," he muttered agreeably, while inwardly cursing Lucy Younge for putting him in the path of Maria Montcraven. He could not believe that she had still been angry about Ramsgate. It had be
Ten Years LaterIt was yet another ball of the Gordons, this one in honor of the engagement of one of their nieces. George never could remember their names, and it seemed too much of a bother to. He would make his bow and escape to the punch bowl and the card room soon enough, as his dancing days seemed done, what with the gout he tended to suffer. Not that the ladies were clamoring for his attentions any more. Time had expanded his waistline and receded his hair line to the point that he wished that wigs were still in fashion. Prosperity had its drawbacks as well its blessings.He just wanted to get past the receiving line so he could go his own way, and let Maria, who for some time had been bored enough with him to not care whether he spent his time in his club or a brothel (not that he had enough libidinous interest at the moment to even bother with the latter), pick over the latest bunch of young libertines to find a compan
Note.Here we come to the end of the tale, and this is the first time I've ever written an epilogue with such a time jump, though this is probably the most I will jump as I prefer to leave my happy couples still in their relative youth, so I'm never going to write of them being grandparents or their deaths. Uh-uh, no way. They are immortal. And I know that there are those who really dislike epilogues and that's their privilege. I did try making this a little more than just a recitation of children and people's fates, even if there was a bit of that.Hopefully, the various meetings at this ball interwoven with what are basically infodumps were entertaining at least. Charlotte's fate actually was a late change that happened when I was working on the dinner with Darcy's relatives. When Miss Graves suddenly asked Elizabeth if she truly wished to marry and that she was looking for a sensible woman to be her heir, that'
Pride & Prejudice is in the public domain; however, giving credit where credit is due, it is the work of the absolutely brilliant Jane Austen. Anything you recognize is hers, the rest is mine. I'm just taking the opportunity to shake things up a bit. Or rather take the good fortune and coincidence scattered throughout the work and cranking it up a notch or three.Chapter 1Luck is known to be a fickle creature appearing and disappearing at a whim, though there are those so-called fortune's favorites who seem permanently in her favor while others seem just as equally misfortune's favorites cursed with bad luck. But perception is a tricky thing; what may at first appear to be misfortune may in fact be just the luck someone needs and what may appear to be a lucky step may in fact be bad luck in deed. But that is luck, chaos personified.Take the example of one George Wickham. Th
A week later, on the morning of the day of the Netherfield Ball, Darcy rose from his bed. It seemed pointless to continue to try to sleep when all he had was restless dreams involving the entrancing Elizabeth Bennet. Confused and jumbled dreams where there had been moments of him married to her and happy as well as married to her and scorned and ridiculed, mixed with images of her hair down blowing in the wind. surrounding them, enmeshing them, as he kissed her, leaving him frustrated and miserably entangled in his sheets when he awoke.All his attempts to put her from his mind seemed doomed to failure. Not even reflecting on the unsuitability of her family connections did more than make him reflect on her own personal virtues. No, he would soon need to either flee or surrender, and flight seemed like abject cowardice and surrender seemed...In actuality he could not determine if surrender would be more pleasurable or painful.
Mr. Jones came and went after informing them that Mrs. Bennet did not seem ill beyond a strained larynx and that she should try refraining from speaking for at least a day or two to give it time to heal. It was welcome news in more way than one to Elizabeth though she would never say out loud that it would be a pleasure to not fear her mother's tendency to indiscreet pronouncements to wreck Jane's chances with Mr. Bingley. If she had thoughts of Mr. Darcy, she quickly repressed them; there was no point on dwelling on the man. If she could not retain her dislike, she would at least strive for indifference.Having expressed her relief that her mother was not seriously ill, Elizabeth was unpleasantly surprised to hear that she still intended to go to the ball."But, mother, would it not be better to rest and recuperate?" Elizabeth asked.Mrs. Bennet shook her head vigorously and made it clear by gestures and a
Once past the receiving line at Netherfield, Elizabeth looked around for Charlotte Lucas, whom she had not seen for a week. That she also might be looking to see Mr. Darcy, who was tall enough that it should have been easy enough to spot him, as well, she would most firmly deny. As it was, the familiar company meant her progress through the room was slow as she was greeted by many of her neighbors, among the first being Jonathan Martin who asked her for the first dance as his sister was engaged with her betrothed. She had to repress a smile at his method of asking, but she was pleased to find a partner for the first dance so quickly.After a few more encounters and another dance invitation, Elizabeth spotted Charlotte and was surprised to see her talking with Mary who somehow had maneuvered through the crowd ahead of her. She was equally surprised not to see Mr. Collins by her side, as it had seemed as if he planned to be glued to her side for the