A Royal Bennet

Elizabeth Bennet was enjoying a leisurely stroll
through Hyde Park. The past month had been
unbearable at her father’s estate, Longbourn in
Hertfordshire. Finally, her father stood his ground
with her mother and allowed Elizabeth to take a
holiday in London, at the home of her aunt and uncle.
Mr and Mrs Gardiner were fond of Elizabeth, and they
enjoyed having her visit them. But this visit was
different for their niece, as she had much to think
about.

Being the second born of three daughters of a
country gentleman of small wealth, Elizabeth’s
selections for marriage were slim. But she was
determined to marry for love, rather than for the
security of a home. To her way of thinking, marriage
was not a business partnership, it was a joining of two
hearts.

This way of thinking caused her mother no little
grief. Rather than settling for whomever her mother
wished, Elizabeth refused to accept an offer from her
father’s cousin. The man was the heir to Longbourn,
as the estate was entailed away from the female line.
When the man, Mr William Collins, arrived at
Longbourn to choose a potential wife from his fair
cousins, Mrs Bennet had led Mr Collins to believe that
Elizabeth’s twin sister, Jane, was to soon be attached
to a neighbor. Mrs Bennet then steered Mr Collins
towards her least favorite daughter, Elizabeth.

She was an intelligent young lady, well read and
informed in many areas in which young ladies were
usually ignorant. Elizabeth was able to assist her
father in keeping the books for the estate, speak with
tenants on new techniques in farming, and more. But
it was her caring and kind nature which was her real
asset.

So when Mr Collins, a bumbling clergyman who
thought highly of himself and was a bootlicker to his
patroness, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, of Rosings Park,
arrived at Longbourn, Elizabeth was not impressed
with the man. When her mother began pairing
Elizabeth with the foolish toad of a man, Elizabeth
knew she had to stand her ground and refuse any
attempt to marry her off to the man. Mrs Bennet was
not pleased, for if Mr Bennet was to die, Mr Collins
would inherit the estate and could toss her and her
daughters from their home immediately.

Mrs Bennet pleaded with her husband to force
Elizabeth to accept Mr Collins, but Mr Bennet was not
prepared to take such a stand. Elizabeth had always
been his favorite child, and he could not tolerate the
thought of her being married to such a man.

This decision caused Mrs Bennet to moan daily of
her nerves and the loss of a husband for one of her
daughters, as Mr Collins had left Longbourn within
moments of being given Mr Bennet’s opinion of
forcing Elizabeth to marry him. He then asked for the
hand of one of the Bennets’ neighbors, Miss Charlotte
Lucas.

Learning of Charlotte’s acceptance of the offer,
and that Charlotte would be the next mistress of
Longbourn, Mrs Bennet unleashed her fury on
Elizabeth. Spending many hours each day to ridicule
and chastise Elizabeth for her failure to secure the
futures of all the Bennet ladies, it did not take long
before Longbourn was far too hostile for Elizabeth to
remain.

Mr and Mrs Gardiner had always been disgusted
with Mrs Bennet’s behavior towards Elizabeth, as the
lady had always been harsh on Elizabeth. Mr Edward
Gardiner was appalled by his sister’s behavior, for he
was taken with Elizabeth. The Gardiner children had
always held Elizabeth as their favorite cousin, for she
spent many hours reading to the children or making
up stories, adding funny voices to the characters and
even making puppets for some of the stories.

The morning Elizabeth planned to make her way
to visit Hyde Park, she had received two letters from
her home. The first letter was from her father,
suggesting that Elizabeth should take a holiday
elsewhere, for Mrs Bennet was plotting a way to
secure a husband for Elizabeth. Due to her anger, Mrs
Bennet did not care who the man was. It was clear to
Mr Bennet that his wife would stop at nothing to
torture his beloved Elizabeth. If she were not in
Longbourn or even in Town, Mrs Bennet could not
locate her, therefore the arrangement for a marriage
could not come to be.

The second letter was from her mother. Fanny
Bennet was not waiting for long to arrange a
marriage, this time choosing a man who was known
to treat his wife harshly, for he had already been
married twice and both of his wives had died from
maltreatment. The entire neighborhood knew of the
situation, but there was no proof in the allegation, so
the man was treated with caution. Mrs Bennet was
pleased to see the man come to Longbourn, his desire
was to make a match with the fiery Miss Elizabeth.

But Elizabeth refused to consider returning to
Longbourn, and she would not allow her mother to
force her to marry someone she did not love. Perhaps
her father was correct, it was time for her to make a
trip somewhere.

Fortunately, Mr and Mrs Gardiner were already
planning a holiday away from Town. They had
decided to journey north, to the Peaks, and spend
some time in Lambton, where Mrs Gardiner had lived
as a child. Mr Gardiner was in the middle of a
business deal, and once it was accomplished, the
family was intent on making the journey.

There was a bit of urgency in Mr Bennet’s letter
that made Mr Gardiner uncomfortable. He wondered
if it would be best for him to send his wife, children
and Elizabeth on ahead, meeting them in Lambton,
and from there, visiting the other sights.

Elizabeth was reviewing all her uncle had stated
that morning when she heard a scuffle on the path
ahead of her. There were two men who appeared to
be beating on a gentleman. Elizabeth’s first thought
was that the men were attempting to rob the
gentleman, so she began shouting for assistance.
Picking up a broken tree branch from the ground,
Elizabeth rushed forward, striking the two men with
her weapon. One of the men took the branch from her
hands and was attempting to use it on her, when
sounds of other people coming towards them forced
the culprits to flee the area.

The victim of the attack had fallen to the ground,
and appeared to be injured. When Elizabeth rolled
the man over, she gasped at the sight before her. The
gentleman was known to her, as he had been visiting
the estate near her father’s. Mr Fitzwilliam Darcy had
a cut above his left eye and bruising beginning to
show on his left cheek. He was slowly returning to his
senses, as he had been quite rattled by the force of the
assault.

“Mr Darcy, are you well? We should take you to
your home, and send for a physician to tend you.”
Elizabeth said as she attempted to sit him upright.

“I am well enough, Miss. You have no need to fret
over me.” It was clear that he was embarrassed by
what had happened, and was so distracted that he had
not who noticed his rescuer was. When he finally
turned his gaze upon her, Darcy was surprised to
learn who was kneeling beside him. “Miss Elizabeth,
what are you doing here?”

“I am afraid that is a question for another time, Mr
Darcy. You are bleeding and require some attention.
You would not wish to have the wound become
infected, would you?” She reached into her pocket and
pulled out a handkerchief, placing it over the cut.

“My home is just across the street. I am well
enough to make my way there.” Darcy made an effort
to stand up on his own, only to fall back to the ground.

“There is no need, Miss Elizabeth. I am certain I
can make it there on my own.” Darcy was able to get
to his feet, though he was having difficulty in walking.
After two steps, and Darcy nearly falling to the
ground, Elizabeth quickly wrapped his arm around
her shoulder while she placed one of her arms around
his waist, allowing Darcy to lean against her small
frame for assistance.

Reaching the steps to the front door of Darcy’s
townhouse, Elizabeth called out for the butler to open
the door. Mr Jarvis, the Darcy House butler, opened
the front door. “Mr Darcy, what has happened, Sir?”

“Mr Darcy was attacked in the park, and requires
tending.” Elizabeth stated. Mr Jarvis moved to Darcy’s
other side, giving his master the stability to make his
way up the stairs. Once they were inside, Mr Jarvis
called out for two footmen to come, tasking them with
seeing Mr Darcy up the stairs and to his rooms.

Seeing that Darcy was in good hands, Elizabeth
turned to leave. Mr Jarvis called out to her to stay.
“Miss, I do not know if you are aware of the gentleman
you have just assisted, but he is the best of men. I am
grateful for your service, as are all who are employed
by the Darcy family. Might I have your name and
where you live, in case my master inquires?”

“Mr Darcy knows me, though I will tell you my
name. I am Miss Elizabeth Bennet, formerly of
Longbourn, in Hertfordshire. Currently, I am residing
in Cheapside, though I will be leaving soon. There is
no reason your master would require knowing more
of me, for I assure you that Mr Darcy does not like
me.”

“Madam, I am certain you are wrong. Mr Darcy is
the kindest young man I have ever met. And I know
enough of him to know he will wish to thank you for
your kindness today. Might I tell him where you can
be found? Where in Cheapside will you be staying?”

“I am staying at the house of my uncle, who is in
trade. Forgive me, but I must return before my aunt
becomes worried for me.” Elizabeth turned and
walked out the door and down the stairs. Her
emotions were in turmoil, for she did not know what
to believe. The man she knew when he was staying at
Netherfield Park, the estate which was next to her
father’s estate, which was leased by Mr Darcy’s
closest friend, Mr Charles Bingley, was nothing like
the man described by the butler.

She hurried her steps, as the walk was long and
Elizabeth was in such a state of confusion. The butler
spoke of a kind and caring Darcy, but that did not
match with the dark and brooding Darcy who had
visited her family’s neighborhood.

With each step which took her further from his
townhouse, Elizabeth was dissecting the memories of
each encounter she had had with the Master of
Pemberley.

All of her memories were of a man who looked
upon her as if to find fault in everything she said and
did. The man watched her from across the room, each
time they were together. He never spoke, he always
stared at her. It was unnerving.

From her encounters with Darcy, she was certain
he would never lower himself to contact her, no
matter what she had done for him. And staying at her
uncle’s home, in Cheapside, would only give him
reason to disdain her further.

I am pleased I could come to his assistance, for
those men might have killed him. But Mr Darcy has
always looked down upon me. Look at the night we
first met. When Mr Bingley offered to introduce his
friend to me, so Mr Darcy could ask me to dance, Mr
Darcy refused. He stated clearly that I was not
handsome enough to tempt him and that he did not
dance with young ladies who were slighted by other
men. Did that not tell everyone what he thought of her?
Did his glares from across the room not speak of his
dislike of me?