by Lauren King
“This morning, I have things to do to prepare for the wedding, Mama. Mr. Darcy will be here in a quarter of an hour to take me to meet with Lady Matlock so we can finalize the wedding breakfast. I will not be back until later this evening because Jane and I will have dinner with Mr. Darcy’s family.” Elizabeth explains plainly.
“I should go and meet with Lady Matlock too if you will be speaking about the wedding breakfast. You know nothing about it.” Mrs. Bennet says insensitively. “I can tell her what we expect. Your Father is paying for it so I should have a say in how it should look because it will reflect upon me as the Mother of the Bride.” Mrs. Bennet declares insistently and proudly.
Elizabeth winces, once more. She cannot get over her Mother’s mistaken entitlement to her wedding decisions. “Lady Matlock has advised us of everything; we have already made all the decisions. We are just seeing how everything will be put together. We may not see everything set up until tomorrow afternoon. There is no need for you to go, Mama. You can stay here and enjoy the leisure time and not worry about anything.” Elizabeth tries to distract her Mother from further thoughts of coming to Darcy House. “Maybe you can go to Hyde Park or St. James’ Park for a leisure stroll. They both have very pretty walk ways and ponds. All the fashionable people stroll there.” Elizabeth adds that last bit of information hoping to entice her Mother to forget about going to Darcy House.
“I am not interested in any parks.” Mrs. Bennet responds callously. “I should have a say in the wedding breakfast since your Father is paying for it all. I can just imagine how expensive all this will be. I hope your Father will not have to spend into the family savings in order to afford you a wedding breakfast befitting the first circles. That is just outrageous.” Mrs. Bennet complains and frowns discontentedly. “How many people will there be, anyways? Did Mr. Darcy invite hundreds of his friends and family? I know our family will only have eight adults in attendance. How will your Father be able to afford something this grand, yet he begrudges Lydia and Sergeant Denny of a higher yearly income? They need it to live comfortably.”
Lydia looks very smug at her Mother’s mention of their circumstances. She absolutely agrees with her Mother. Why should Elizabeth get all the good things? It is grossly unfair! She will not be cheated out of her rightful share. She will get her way if it is the last thing she does!
Mrs. Bennet says with irritation, “You do not need a fancy wedding breakfast for hundreds, Lizzy. Some of that money can be given to Lydia for her living. I do not know where your Father will get the money for all of this for you. Do not be selfish and have such a large wedding breakfast. If Lady Matlock is advising you, then everything will be very expensive. She is an earl’s wife; they have that kind of money. Your Father does not – at least from what I know. If he does have that kind of money, then he should give Lydia a higher income.” Mrs. Bennet insists and persists.
At the same moment to Mrs. Bennet’s insistence, Mildred quietly leads Darcy into the drawing room, but the ladies are not yet aware. Mrs. Bennet is still speaking so Mildred does not dare to interrupt to announce Mr. Darcy’s arrival. All the servants steer clear of Mrs. Bennet as much as possible; they are all glad that she is not the mistress of this house. Mildred stands there awkwardly with Darcy stepping into the drawing room further. He can hear where Mrs. Bennet’s speech is going, thus he silently dismisses Mildred with a nod so that she knows to leave the room. He does not want her to overhear any of Mrs. Bennet’s criticisms. It would be too embarrassing for Elizabeth and the Gardiners. How dare Mrs. Bennet say such things, especially in regards to the Dennys’ situation? Does she not remember what Sergeant Denny did to their family? Mrs. Bennet is denser than he ever thought. She is so protective of Mrs. Denny that she is blinded by the facts. This is not surprising because Mrs. Bennet is critical of Elizabeth in everything. Not once, has he heard her be positive towards Elizabeth.
Elizabeth, Jane, and Mrs. Gardiner gape at Mrs. Bennet’s assertions. Elizabeth has no more favorable thoughts for Mrs. Bennet. Her Mother has learned nothing from their last encounter. It is almost as if she forgot all that had transpired, what was said, and the reasons for the discord. Her Father had talked to her Mother, and he thought that she had understood; evidently, her Mother did not understand. How can it be that her Mother is still thinking and talking like she has always done in the past?
Mrs. Bennet carries on, “I hope you will tell Mr. Darcy to decrease his guests and the size of the wedding breakfast.” Mrs. Bennet continues without interruption. “How can you even think of making your Father and family bear such a large expense? Your betrothed is very rich; he should be the one paying for the wedding breakfast if he wants it so extravagant. It is vastly unfair for you to expect your Father to pay for it all.” Mrs. Bennet feels justified. She tries to continue, but she is interrupted.
Darcy cannot stand here another minute to hear Mrs. Bennet disparage and censure Elizabeth any further. “I am paying for everything, Mrs. Bennet. Lizzy and I will have the wedding breakfast in any way we want, and we will have as many guests as we want. It is not a hardship for me.” Darcy discloses speciously politely. Goodness gracious! He dislikes Mrs. Bennet tremendously! She deserves to live with Lady Catherine.
With surprise, all five ladies look towards William standing near the doorway. Elizabeth flinches and is mortified when she hears William’s firm yet casual announcement. He does not look happy, at all. Elizabeth, Jane, Mrs. Gardiner cringe when they see his dour expression. Oh Lord! Elizabeth cannot be more embarrassed at this moment. She knows that this episode with her Mother will upset William even more.
Mrs. Bennet is very irritated that Lizzy did not tell her earlier that Mr. Darcy was paying for the wedding breakfast. Had she known she would not have been so upset. Mr. Darcy is very wealthy; it is only right that he shoulders the expenses of his own wedding, especially if he wants such a large wedding breakfast. Why should her family bear it?
“Good morning, Lizzy, Mrs. Bennet, Mrs. Gardiner, Jane, Mrs. Denny.” Darcy bows properly. He is displeased, to say the least, but he will not say anything further for Elizabeth’s sake.
“Mr. Darcy, how are you this morning?” Mrs. Gardiner swiftly greets Darcy.
“I am well, thank you, Mrs. Gardiner. How are all you ladies?” Darcy says courteously. He desperately wants to speak his mind about Mrs. Bennet’s obtuseness, but unfortunately, he cannot at this point, for the sake of Elizabeth.
“I am well, thank you, sir.” Mrs. Gardiner answers agreeably.
Elizabeth and Jane answer cheerily, but Mrs. Bennet and Lydia respond succinctly as if they are obligated to reply. Darcy could not care less about Mrs. Bennet and Mrs. Denny; he knows them to be ill-mannered and foolish, thus his greeting was really only to greet Elizabeth, Jane, and Mrs. Gardiner. They will only get ill manners thrown back at their own faces if they continue in this fashion. Call him arrogant; he does not care, but he would not even deign to give these two women half a glance if they were not related to Elizabeth. Unfortunately, they are the exact type of people that gives other decent trades people a bad name.
Elizabeth hurriedly approaches William. She does not want him to witness anymore of her Mother’s condemnation. She is going to lead him into the garden. “How are you this morning, Mr. Darcy?”
“I am well, thank you, Miss Elizabeth.” Darcy’s response is not its usual cheeriness when he greets Elizabeth.
Elizabeth clearly recognizes his great discontent and irritation. She knows that it is not directed at her but at her Mother.
“Jane, when is Mr. Morgan to visit you?” Elizabeth asks promptly to redirect the conversation.
“He should be here in half an hour, Lizzy.”
“Alright, then do you still want us to wait for you to see if Mr. Morgan wants to go altogether?” Elizabeth inquires.
Jane replies as she approaches Elizabeth and William with Mrs. Gardiner. “Yes, Lizzy. I am certain that he will be fine with us going to Darcy House and then going sh
opping afterwards.” Jane understands that they want to leave immediately. Jane does too but she has to wait for Mr. Morgan. Jane says quietly, “I am sorry that you have to endure this, Lizzy. Why do we not walk out to the garden while we wait for Mr. Morgan?” Jane suggests.
Elizabeth looks up at William lovingly to ask him, “Darling, will you mind waiting for another half an hour?”
“That is fine, Lizzy. Would you like to go into the garden, then?” Darcy poses. He does not like the sight or the sound of Mrs. Bennet or Mrs. Denny.
“Certainly.” Elizabeth replies with a bright smile and then, quietly, she asks, “Aunt, you will come with us to Mrs. Stanton’s for my last wedding gown fitting, right?”
“Yes, of course; I will be happy to, but what of your Mother? Will she not be angry if she is not asked to come, too?” Mrs. Gardiner asks cautiously and quietly.
Mrs. Bennet and Lydia talk amongst themselves as if they do not have a care in the world. They will go shopping themselves, and then they can do and say whatever they want.
Elizabeth looks over at where her Mother is talking with Lydia, and she cringes at the thought of being in London public with her Mother and Lydia. It could go badly; she does not want to deal with the tension and aggravation. “Aunt, let us go out to the garden for a little bit.”
“Alright.” Mrs. Gardiner responds kindheartedly. Mrs. Gardiner turns to tell Mrs. Bennet that she will be out in the garden. Mrs. Bennet says that she does not want to be out in the garden; she will remain in the drawing room.
In the garden, Elizabeth says, “Aunt you heard how and what Mama said. I am too embarrassed; it is beyond anything I can think of. Mama does not ask me anything; she criticizes me without any ounce of understanding. She does not want to think anything positive towards me. I do not know what more I can do. Nothing has worked all these years. I just do not want to hear it anymore. I am sorry I sound like an ungrateful daughter.” Elizabeth is saddened and disturbed by all of this; she always is when it comes up. However, now her betrothed also must endure it; it is too much!
Darcy pats Elizabeth’s hand that is hooked through his arm. He hates what Mrs. Bennet has done and is still doing to Elizabeth. He will love Elizabeth like no one has ever loved her. She will never lack for attention and love again.
Mrs. Gardiner reaches out and caresses Elizabeth arm tenderly. “I am sorry, Lizzy. I cannot imagine why your Mother is this way with you. You are a wonderful person.” Mrs. Gardiner looks at Darcy and says, “Mr. Darcy, I am sorry that you had to experience Mrs. Bennet’s words.”
Darcy squeezes Elizabeth’s hand while saying, “Mrs. Gardiner, I only care for Lizzy’s words or for the words of people who actually care for Lizzy and me. If certain people do not fall into that category, then I could not care less about them. They will not be included in anything pertaining to us; it is very simple. I am polite only for Lizzy’s sake, but it is being sorely tested at the moment.” Darcy states firmly and straightforwardly; there is no room for misinterpretation in his statement.
Elizabeth pats William’s arm that she is holding, and she gazes at him with affection. She overflows with love for him; her life would be indisputably empty without him.
Elizabeth turns back to her Aunt and says, “Aunt, I think I will bring Mary and Kitty with us today and take them to the pastry shop afterwards. I want to spend some time with them and show them a little bit of London. They should be exposed to these situations a little more so that they can learn to better themselves.”
“I agree, Lizzy; bringing them will be a good idea.” Mrs. Gardiner responds supportively. She always knew that Elizabeth was a good, sensible, responsible person. How Mrs. Bennet can be unfavorable towards her is beyond what Mrs. Gardiner can understand. Her husband is also bewildered by it.
“It will be good for them; I agree, Lizzy.” Jane concurs genially.
Elizabeth smiles happily then says, “Then if everybody wants to see how Darcy House will be set up for the wedding breakfast, Lady Matlock can show all of us. Would that not be nice, William? Do you think Lady Matlock will mind giving us a tour?” She poses good-naturedly to William.
“I think she would not mind having a truly caring and eager audience.” Darcy replies pleasantly. He knows that Elizabeth is trying to brush the troubling incident with her Mother aside for his benefit. He will have to do that for hers, too. She is considerate enough to think of her other deserving sisters. Elizabeth is going to be the best wife and the best mother for his children that he could ever imagine. She will be great for Pemberley, Darcy House, and Darcy Scotland Estate – everything that is Darcy.
“That settles it then. Let me go find them and see if they want to come.” Elizabeth says eagerly before going off to fetch her sisters.
Mildred steps out to the garden and lets Mrs. Gardiner know that Mr. Morgan has arrived. Mildred is to show him into the drawing room. There is no way of not letting Mr. Morgan greet Mrs. Bennet; it would be rude. Everybody steps back into the drawing room.
Mrs. Bennet and Lydia still sit on the sofa talking with each other; they are gossiping about some soldier’s wife. Mrs. Gardiner, Jane, and Darcy stand near the side table as Morgan enters the drawing room behind Mildred.
“Mrs. Gardiner, Miss Bennet, Darcy, how are you all today?” Morgan asks amiably; he does not pay attention towards the other end of the drawing room, so he does not see Mrs. Bennet or Lydia yet.
Everyone answers affirmatively, and then Morgan finally is aware of Mrs. Bennet and Mrs. Denny, thus he says, “Excuse me, everyone; I will greet Mrs. Bennet.”
Mrs. Gardiner and Darcy both nod in acknowledgement of what Morgan said.
“Please, let me go with you, Mr. Morgan.” Jane says kindly. She hopes that this will be a simple greeting, and then they can leave.
As Morgan and Jane go to greet Mrs. Bennet, Elizabeth, Mary, and Kitty come into the drawing room. The two younger sisters are joyous to accompany Elizabeth to go shopping. They are happy that Elizabeth is so considerate and kind to include them in her wedding activities today. They have missed their elder sisters all these months. With more time, Kitty realizes that she does not have to follow Lydia’s lead in order to have fun and have people pay attention to her. Kitty was greatly horrified by Lydia’s problem. She thought that she would be tied to Lydia’s dreadful shame and would have her life be adversely affected by it forever. Her eyes are opened now and Elizabeth and William are the ones to be thanked for it. God bless them both. She will aspire to do better in every aspect of her life.
Mary wants to emulate Elizabeth; she will try her best. Elizabeth has always been the intelligent, sensible, and responsible sister; Mary will endeavor to be independent like Elizabeth. She will try to stand up for herself more.
“I see Mr. Morgan has arrived; are we all ready to go then, Aunt? Mary and Kitty are excited to come with us today.” Elizabeth says cheerfully and then turns to take William’s arm. He contentedly extends his arm without hesitation.
“Yes, I think we will be ready after Mr. Morgan greets your Mother. So I think I will ride with Jane and Mr. Morgan and you two young ladies ride with Lizzy and Mr. Darcy, then?”
“Yes, thank you, Aunt.” Mary says nicely with a small smile.
“Will Mama and Lydia be coming too, Lizzy?” Kitty asks candidly.
Elizabeth looks at Mrs. Gardiner and then at William; afterwards, Elizabeth says, “No, Kitty, but if you would like to spend time with Mama and Lydia, then do not hesitate to do so. I will understand; whatever you want to do is fine. There is no pressure for you to come with us today.” Elizabeth smiles warmly at Kitty. Elizabeth is not offended at all; she thinks that Kitty understands better now about how to behave. She does not think Kitty will blindly follow Lydia anymore – she hopes. Elizabeth could tell that Kitty was very fearful of Lydia’s mistake having awful consequences for herself.
“Oh no, Lizzy. I definitely want to go with you.” Kitty answers swiftly. “I just did not want there to be any…problems
for you.” Kitty says quietly and hesitatingly as she looks down at her hands. She is afraid that their Mother and Lydia will still act like they always do and upset Elizabeth in front of Mr. Darcy which could be embarrassing.
“Thank you, Kitty for being thoughtful.” Elizabeth reaches out to pat Kitty’s arm to show her appreciation. Yes, Elizabeth thinks that Kitty will not follow Lydia’s ways anymore. Elizabeth will try to encourage more of the proper behavior so that Mary and Kitty can follow and be confident of who they can become to better their futures.
“Oh, Jane I hardly got to see you and now you are running off with Lizzy all day. You do not have to go with her. You could go with me and Lydia to buy Lydia’s bonnet. Sergeant Denny is allowing Lydia to buy some new things.” Mrs. Bennet whines and boasts all in one breath.
Jane is embarrassed once again with her Mother’s speech; this time, Mr. Morgan has to hear it. Oh God, this will drive Mr. Morgan away once he realizes her Mother’s propensity to complain and criticize everything and everyone, especially Elizabeth. He will see her insensitive, callous manners.
“Mr. Morgan will not mind escorting three ladies, will you, Mr. Morgan?” Mrs. Bennet has effectively trapped Mr. Morgan into including her and Lydia in their outing today. She will not be left behind.
“Uh, no, Mrs. Bennet; I will not mind.” Morgan knows that he has just been trapped into saying yes; he cannot very well decline. Morgan smiles at Mrs. Bennet and then looks at Miss Bennet. She is unsmiling; she is just serene. He has seen this look before. Miss Bennet is not particularly happy when she displays this simple expression. Miss Bennet did not want Mrs. Bennet to come with them, but he had no way of declining, and she could not answer her Mother’s question for him. He has a feeling that this may be a regrettable outing with Mrs. Bennet.
“Are you and Lydia ready, Mama?” Jane asks simply and unsmilingly. She will have to make the sacrifice for Lizzy. Jane will go shopping with her Mother and Lydia and then come back here as soon as possible. She will not go to Darcy House afterwards so that she can spare Lizzy some distress with their Mother visiting Darcy House.