First Impressions: A Tale of Less Pride & Prejudice (Tales of Less Pride and Prejudice) (23 page)

“
It is a pleasure to see you again, Lady Catherine,” Elizabeth said warmly.

“
You may as well call me Aunt Catherine, as I intend to call you Elizabeth. Your sisters’ wedding went well I presume?”

“
Famously, Aunt Catherine.”

“
I’m sure your mother will happily provide all the details.”

Frequently that evening Darcy and Elizabeth stole furtive glances with each other as they eagerly anticipated the morning. Here were their collected families and friends, getting along far better than either had ever dared to hope, and tomorrow would see them man and wife. For both, it was nothing less than a fabulous dream come true.

--

Miss Elizabeth Bennet was married to Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy on a cold but beautiful January morning in the chapel at Pemberley. The bride was dressed simply but the magnificent quality of her gown, complete with Flemish lace, to her mother’s infinite satisfaction, added to her beauty a new grandeur. The Darcy family diamonds – presented to her after her arrival at Pemberley, during a tour of her future quarters – adorned her neck and ears. The groom was impeccable in his perfectly tailored coat while the look in his eyes, as he gazed with love at his new wife, promised this to be a union of unusual happiness. Charlotte Lucas, in a new gown for the occasion, attended Elizabeth while Colonel Fitzwilliam, in his dress uniform, stood with Darcy. Huge quantities of flowers from the greenhouses had been harvested to festoon the seldom used family chapel. The tableau thus created inspired Mrs. Bingley to attempt to render it in embroidery as an anniversary present for her favorite sister.

That same young matron had managed to prevail on her mother not to festoon her head with as many feathers as she deemed appropriate for her daughter’s marriage to Mr. Darcy of Pemberley, a very wise move as more lavish headgear would certainly have blocked her daughter’s delightful view. Charles whispered, “Will each wedding I attend, now that I am married, affect me so? Or is it just that our own bliss is so recent that makes me unduly sentimental?”

“
As long as we remain happy, my love, how can the wedding ceremony not move us? Especially such a magnificent union as this,” she quietly responded.

“
While I am thrilled to be Darcy’s brother, does this not make you, in some respect, my sister as well as my wife?” He barely silenced his mirth at this notion as the couple blushed and beamed at each other, suppressing their urges to laugh.

Georgiana sat next to her uncle and in front of her aunt, both of whom maintained the strictest decorum throughout the ceremony without once hampering her glee. Not that either were in bad spirits – only a few minutes in his nephew’s company had convinced the Earl that the match had made him exceptionally happy – but both believed a certain dignity was due to the occasion. Next to Lady Catherine, an unusually animated Anne de Bourgh helped Georgiana to lighten the sobriety their elders had cast over their family’s side of the chapel with a smile so broad her face ached, though she did not complain. Several of the upper servants of Pemberley attended the proceedings, sitting behind the family. Mrs. Reynolds took great solace in her handkerchief, which she used to stifle the happy sobs that continuously threatened to emanate: not even Mrs. Bennet was so openly overjoyed. The happy couple planned a tour of the Lakes for their honeymoon but would not leave until late spring. For the time being, they would happily nest at Pemberley excepting only a short spell in London, at Aunt Catherine’s insistence.

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The years were good to Mr. and Mrs. Darcy. Their marriage was long, fruitful, and marred only by those tragedies that are inevitable in every life. It was many years before Mr. and Mrs. Collins inherited Longbourn and when the time came Mrs. Bennet remained, not to die for many years after a happy life, virtually devoid of suffering. She and Mary, who also outlived her husband, grew quite close over the years in which they amiably cohabited, finding common ground in the mutual joy they experienced in fretting over Mary’s many sons.

Lydia and Kitty both made excellent progress in school and though the former remained a silly, intellectually insubstantial lady throughout her life, she was perfectly happily married to an equally silly but wealthy young man who doted on her and their children. Kitty, on the other hand, grew quite refined and made an unexpected splash on society. She married a handsome and gentlemanly baronet of old family, thereby gaining the precedence Lydia had always professed to want over her elder sisters and would always begrudge Kitty. Lady Stratton threw herself wholeheartedly into the role of patroness to a village, inspired by the example set for her at Pemberley, and spent her life contentedly fulfilling the obligations of wealth while paying little heed to its entitlements.

Needless to say Jane and Bingley were happy. Mr. Bennet’s dire predictions that two such kindhearted persons would surely be abused proved false, for Mr. Bingley took a strong hand over the estate he eventually purchased not thirty miles from Pemberley. Only the Wickhams still managed to have the run of him, as they always seemed to be just outside their means and in need of only the smallest assistance to get by, but Charles and Jane were good natured enough not to bear a grudge towards the couple.

Who else can I provide with a happy ending? Why one Charlotte Lucas, who often visited Pemberley and after a few years married Mr. Westover, the rector of the nearby village of Kympton, thereby permanently ensconcing herself in the Darcy’s intimate circle. And then, of course, there is Georgiana Darcy. Unfortunately, her tale will have to wait until a muse named Jane once again comes calling.

The End