Price of Goodness

By Jo

Beginning, Next Section

Chapter 1

Posted on Monday, 25 September 2000

"Three days he has been here and still he shuns us!", exclaimed Mrs. Bennet in frustration.

Elizabeth, Jane and Kitty were passing their afternoon in the parlour with their mother and were more or less tired of her constant whining, when they suddenly heard her scream out loud joyfully:

"He has come! He has come! Lizzy, come to look! Jane, you must go and change your gown immediately!"

But when Jane started to make her way out of the room, Mrs. Bennet had already changed her mind: "No, stay where you are!", she exclaimed.

Elizabeth went at the window to please her mother and she saw Mr. Bingley arriving on horseback, alone. She hadn't really expected that his friend would have accompanied him to Netherfield, let alone Longbourn, but she couldn't help a little feeling of disappointment creeping into her mind.

What did I expect? That he would come here and renew his proposals, not caring about the fact that I already have refused him once and that marrying me would make Mr. Wickham his brother-in-law? How could I even think of that? Lizzy thought, and to turn her mind from Mr. Darcy she turned her attention to Jane and Bingley, who now stepped in and was greeted warmly by Mrs. Bennet (a little bit too warmly as Elizabeth noticed in mortification).

Bingley seemed to be happy to see Jane again and he looked at her a great deal, but Elizabeth saw that there was something wrong. Bingley wasn't as cheerful as usually and, in fact, he looked almost sad.

Maybe he is still uncertain about Jane's feelings , Elizabeth thought Or maybe he doesn't have his friend's permission.

Before she could go any further in her thoughts she heard her mother ask: "And your friend, Mr. Darcy", she said coldly, "He didn't choose to come here to shoot with you?"

Mr. Bingley turned grave and the smile that seeing Jane had brought to his face vanished when he replied,

"No, Mr. Darcy is at the moment very ill. He caught a scarlet fever when he had some business in the lower part of the town, and I understand that he is in a very bad shape right now. I wouldn't have left his side had I had the scarlet fever myself, but as I have not, the doctor gave me very strict orders to stay away."

Elizabeth turned pale at Mr. Bingley's words and for a moment everyone sat in silence. Even Mrs. Bennet didn't seem to know what to say. She didn't, after all, want to displease Mr. Bingley by going on with her joyful chatter.

Finally Elizabeth managed to compose herself enough to ask how dangerous it was and was there a chance that Mr. Darcy might...die. The last word was merely a whisper that could hardly be heard.

Mr. Bingley tried to reply cheerfully, but failed miserably. He had the doctor's words too clearly in his memory,

"We will see. If he survives this week and the next he might have a chance.", had the doctor said and left, shaking his head.

Soon after this Mr. Bingley left. Elizabeth excused herself and run upstairs to her room.

Chapter 2

Posted on Friday, 29 September 2000

Elizabeth sat down on her bed to recollect what she had just heard. Mr. Darcy was very ill and could die...without knowing that she loved him.

And it is all my fault. , Elizabeth thought. If I had not told him about Lydia's elopement, he probably would never have found out about it and would not have gone to London to find Wickham....and he would never have taken ill.

Before she could go any further in her self accusations, Elizabeth heard a light knock on her door and then Jane's gentle voice: "Lizzy? Can I come in?"

Elizabeth quickly dried the tears that had filled her eyes and then invited her in, trying to sound as normal as possible.

"Are you all right?", asked Jane as she opened the door and stepped in, taking a seat beside her sister.. "I saw your reaction when Mr. Bingley told us about Mr. Darcy's sad condition."
She hesitated a moment and then continued. "Is there something you want to tell me? I thought you were not very close to Mr. Darcy."

"No, not at all....I just...."Elizabeth started and then fell silent. She considered a moment and then went on. "I mean, yes, there is something....It is just that I feel guilty abut what has happened."

Jane looked at Elizabeth questioningly. "But, surely, there is no reason for you to feel guilty. You refused him, that is true, but I don't think that has anything to do with his illness."

"No, it is not that. I really am guilty...I am the one to blame." Elizabeth started and then told Jane about the part Mr. Darcy had played in finding Lydia and Wickham and making them marry, and how she was the one who had told him about the elopement in the first place.

It took a while for Jane to take in this new information. She was amazed and felt even more sorry for poor Mr. Darcy than she had felt before.

"Oh, Lizzy, I had no idea.", she then spoke. "Why did you not tell me before? Does father know?"

"No, he doesn't, I haven't told him. Aunt Gardiner wrote me in her letter that it was Mr. Darcy's and very likely also Wickham's wish that it would not come out." Elizabeth explained. "But Jane, what am I to do? If something happens to Mr. Darcy..."

"Hush...nothing will happen. And it was not your fault. It was Lydia's thoughtlessness and Mr. Darcy's own goodness that led into this. It was not as if you had asked him to go." Jane tried to comfort Lizzy. "But tell me...is there something more to this? Is it mere quilt that you are feeling?"

Elizabeth blushed and would not give a direct answer: "I - I only think that he is a very good man and does not deserve this. Why it could not be Mr. Wickham to take ill? He would have deserved it, not Mr. Darcy."

A teardrop came down Elizabeth's face, but Jane pretended not to see it. She did, however, start to get a clearer picture of her sister's feelings. "Yes, Mr. Darcy is a very good man and I am sure he will survive." Jane smiled at Lizzy reassuringly. "But perhaps a little change would do you good. What do you say of going to London to visit our aunt and uncle for a few weeks?"

Elizabeth smiled and hugged her sister. That was exactly what she had wanted, to go to London and be as near Mr. Darcy as possible.

When Jane left the room, Elizabeth started immediately to make preparations for the trip. The sooner she would be in London, the better. The only thing she regretted was that Jane could not accompany her. As long as Mr. Bingley stayed at Netherfield there was no chance of Mrs. Bennet letting Jane go.

Elizabeth sighed and then took a piece of paper and wrote to Mrs. Gardiner.

Darcy's townhouse, London:

Mr. White shook his head as he closed the door of the master's bedchamber behind him. The good old doctor had been in the Darcys' service for years and had seen many colds and little illnesses, but never had he been so worried as he was now. Mr. Darcy showed no signs of making any quick recovery. The only turns his condition had taken during his illness had been for worse.

Mr. White sighed and proceeded to the music room where he heard Miss Darcy practicing a sad tune.

When the doctor stepped, Georgiana stopped playing and stood up to greet him and to inquire after her brothers condition.

"Mr. White", she said and curtsied." I hope you have good news about my brother."

"Good-day, Miss Darcy", the doctor bowed. "As much as I would wish to ease your anxiety, I'm afraid I have no good news. Mr. Darcy's fever is very high and he is delirious."

Mr. White hesitated and then continued. "I cannot make out what he is saying, but it sounds like he keeps repeating a name. I am not quite sure what is it, but I think I heard something like... El...Eliza- something....perhaps Elizabeth." The doctor shook his head. "I am not sure. Is there any Elizabeth in you acquaintance?"

Georgiana looked concerned when she heard how ill her dear William was, but the mentioning of Elizabeth made her face clear for a while. "Yes. William met a Miss Elizabeth Bennet when he was visiting Hertfordshire with his friend, Mr. Bingley, last year. And I had the pleasure of meeting Miss Bennet at Pemberley"
Georgiana sighed and continued silently. "And then William suddenly left to London and took ill."

"I see", said the doctor and started pacing around the room. "This Miss Bennet seems to be important to your brother. It seems as if he wanted to say something to her..."

Mr. White stopped pacing and looked at Georgiana. He was just about to say something as they heard the doorbell ring.

A moment later a servant came in, bowed and announced:

"Miss Caroline Bingley."

Chapter 3

Posted on Friday, 13 October 2000

Darcy's townhouse, London:

"Dear Georgiana!", cried Miss Bingley, a fake smile on her face and arms wide open, as soon as she had made her way to the music room where Georgiana and Mr. White were having their conversation.

"Miss Bingley", said Georgiana and curtsied with much more restrain.

Mr. White bowed and looked at Georgiana questioningly. Who was this woman?

Georgiana noticed the doctor's inquiring look and blushed as she realised how lousy hostess she was. What would William think of me?, she thought and then collected herself to make the introduction.

"Oh...Miss Bingley, this is doctor White. He is taking care of William." Georgiana said and then turned to the doctor: "And Mr. White, let me present you Miss Bingley. She is Mr. Bingley's sister. I am sure you remember Mr. Bingley, a very good friend of William.."

Caroline's smile widened as she turned to the doctor and curtsied. "Mr. White. It is a pleasure to meet you. I do hope you can tell me that Mr. Darcy is better. I have been so miserable ever since I heard about his illness."

I bet you have, thought Georgiana, wishing she could just order Caroline to go away.

"It is..eh...a pleasure to make your acquaintance too, Miss Bingley.", said the doctor, not quite sure what to think of this new acquaintance. "I believe I have indeed met your brother, Mr Bingley, a few days ago. I remember telling him to stay away from here as he hasn't had the scarlet fever."

"Oh yes, Charles was so sad he couldn't be there for Mr. Darcy. They are such great friends ", said Caroline in an anguished voice. " I dare say Charles would be more than delighted if I visited Mr. Darcy for him."

Caroline then turned to Georgiana: " Would you be so kind as to show me to Mr. Darcy's chamber? I am sure the poor man will be happy to receive visitors and hear from his friend."

Georgiana could barely hide her disgust. Her brother was lying sick in bed, so sick that he could die, and Miss Bingley had nothing but her own interests in her mind. At a moment like this to try to secure her own future well-being! Georgiana would not have it. There was no way she would let Miss Bingley to go to see William and use his sad situation to achieve her own goals.

Helped by her anger, Georgiana collected all her courage to tell Caroline to go away as firmly as possible.

"Dear Miss Bingley", she started "I am very much touched by your concern, but I am afraid you haven't quite understood the nature of my brother's illness. He is very ill indeed and, therefore, in no condition to have any visitors outside his very nearest family. I am sorry, but I cannot let you meet William right now."

Caroline looked a bit taken aback. She had not expected this from Georgiana. She had been sure of her success.

The moment of confusion didn't, however, last long for Caroline. Soon her fake smile returned and she tried again: "I understand that, but surely, there can be no harm if I sit by his side a minute or two."

Georgiana looked at the doctor pleadingly. Someone had to tell Caroline that she could not just come and expect to be let to Darcy's room in a triumph.

Mr. White caught Georgiana's glance and as he already had decided to dislike Miss Bingley, he cleared his throat and came to Georgiana's rescue: "Indeed, Miss Bingley, I am sure you mean well, but I am afraid I cannot let you to meet my patient now...his situation is very critical. It was very nice of you to come to inquire after his health and I dare say I appreciate your gesture as much as Miss Darcy, but I must remain in my decision. No people, apart from Mr. Darcy's closest relations, are to visit him at the moment."

Miss Bingley looked from Georgiana to the doctor and from the doctor back to Georgiana. She realised she would not be allowed to visit Mr. Darcy. She had to admit her defeat and forget all about the plans she perhaps had entertained.

Georgiana, seeing Caroline's disappointment, was relieved, but remembering her duties as a hostess, asked Miss Bingley to have some tea with her. Caroline, however, was in no mood for tea or friendly conversation anymore. She suddenly seemed to remember an important appointment and after excusing herself, she turned around and headed out of the door, leaving Georgiana to sigh in relief.

After a short silence Georgiana smiled at Mr. White and thanked him for his help: "I am very grateful to you doctor. I do not think Miss Bingley would have given up so easily had you not come to support me."

"I understand", said the doctor "I have seen many people of her type in my life. They are of no good to anyone. I am glad you didn't let her deceive you."

Georgiana smiled. She liked Mr. White. He had always cured her colds when she had been little and he was always very nice to her. He was one of the few people she felt herself at ease with.

Georgiana was quite sorry when the doctor after a while took his leave to go and see his other patients. He promised, however, to come back shortly to see if there were any changes in Mr. Darcy's condition.

"Call for me at once if anything happens while I am away" he said as he stepped out of the room "And don't trouble yourself with too much worry or I shall soon have two patients here, let the nurses do their jobs." With that the doctor was gone

Georgiana moved back to her pianoforte and finished the song she had started. Then she stood up and headed to her brother's bedchambers.

Longbourn:

Shortly after sending her letter to Mrs. Gardiner, Elizabeth received and invitation from the Gardiners for her to stay with them in London.

Elizabeth didn't want to lose any more time than she already had lost and so she went directly to the library to see Mr. Bennet and tell him about her plans to go to London.

"To London?", asked Mr. Bennet surprised "Whatever for? You have only just returned from Derbyshire and now you are going again. And, you know, as Mr. Bingley is here it is only a matter of time when he will propose to Jane. You can ask your mother." He winked at her daughter. "Do you not consider that diverting enough? What better could London possibly have to offer?"

Elizabeth tried to smile and answer cheerfully "Oh, I am sure there can be no fun, but the Gardiners have invited me and I would like to see my young cousins again."

No fun, thought Elizabeth sarcastically, That, at least, is true

Mr. Bennet raised an eyebrow and looked at Elizabeth searchingly "But you know they are all coming here for Christmas, and that is not so very far away."

Elizabeth avoided her father's glance when she replied "I know they are coming, but...I think a little change would do me good and Christmas is not yet so very close..."

Mr. Bennet didn't look quite satisfied. There was something bothering his dearest child and he would have liked to know what it was. Yet Elizabeth would not tell. It seemed, however, that for some reason it was very important for her to get to London.

Mr. Bennet sighed and said "Elizabeth, I know you, and I can see that there is something you are not telling. I won't ask you what it is, but if you want to tell me I have no objection to hearing it."

Elizabeth turned to face her father: "I would rather not say...it is quite...personal, if you don't mind."

"Very well", said Mr. Bennet "I will let you go if it is so important to you"

Elizabeth smiled and kissed her father on his forehead. Then she ran back upstairs to finish her packing.

Elizabeth left for London early the next morning. Later that day she reached Gracechurch Street and was warmly welcomed by the Gardiners.

Chapter 4

Posted on Thursday, 28 December 2000

London, Cheapside:

"Lizzyyyy!!!! She's coming!!!", shouted young Edward enthusiastically, when he finally saw his cousin's carriage arriving from a distance. ( He had been at the window waiting for Elizabeth since breakfast and his mother was quite shocked to learn that he actually was able to sit still so long.)

"Is she indeed?" asked Mr. Gardiner and put down the newspaper he had been reading. "Are you sure? Last time when you thought she was coming, we all rushed outside just to see an empty carriage going nobody knows where." he said smiling at his son.

"But, this time it really is Lizzy!", insisted master Edward, "Look, the carriage is slowing down."

Mr. Gardiner stood up and stepped across the room to see if his son had been right this time and he soon had to admit his own error. It was Lizzy and the carriage had already stopped before their front door.

"My love!" He called his wife, who was playing somewhere with the rest of the children. "I think we have visitors!"

Mr. Gardiner had hardly finished his sentence, before the doorbell rang. Young Edward jumped up and rushed through the hallway to open the door.

Elizabeth couldn't help but smile and forget about Mr. Darcy for a while when Edward opened the door and drew her in, his face beaming like the sun (or like Mr. Bingley on a good day). Her smile grew even bigger when after a moment all the other Gardiner children ran down the stairs to meet their cousin and Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner wished her warmly welcome.

Dinner was served shortly after her arrival and the evening was so full of laughter and happiness that Elizabeth was able to forget her own sorrow for some time, but when she finally retired to her room and shut the door behind her, she sat down on her bed and sighed. She knew the night would be long and sleepless, the short moments of sleep filled with dreams of someone so dear to her.

The next morning Elizabeth woke up more tired than she had been when retiring. She had hardly slept at all, but had finally made her decision: she would learn more about Mr. Darcy's present condition as soon as possible, otherwise she could not have a moment of rest. Whit that in her mind Elizabeth soon stood up and dressed herself up for breakfast.

Chapter 5

Posted on Thursday, 4 January 2001

When Elizabeth entered the breakfast room she realised she was early, even earlier than she usually was. The servants were only bringing receptacles to the table and it seemed like everyone else in the house was still asleep. Elizabeth stopped one of the servants to ask what time it was.

The girl looked surprised to find someone awake at the time of day: "Why, it's 6 a.m. ma'am. Can I do something for you?"

"No, I don't think I need anything." Elizabeth replied, "It seems like I'm just a little bit too early this morning. Can you tell me when the breakfast will be served?"

"Not before 7, I'm afraid. That is when the master comes to have his breakfast before starting his day's business."

"Yes, of course," Lizzy smiled, wondering how she could spend this hour she now had to wait.

If she had been at home there would have been no problem at all; she could have gone out for a walk. But now it would not do. She could not go to walk around the streets of London alone, at six a.m. in an area like Cheapside. That would have been too improper and unsafe for any respectable young female.

Elizabeth was about to turn around and go back to her room, when suddenly a thought crossed her mind. She turned back to face the servant girl, who still was waiting in the room.

"Excuse me..." Elizabeth started, trying to remember the girl's name. She seemed to be new in the house, because Elizabeth was almost certain that she had not seen her before. "Can you tell me your name?" She then asked.

"It's Sarah, ma'am.", replied the girl and curtsied.

"Nice to meet you, Sarah. You can call me Miss Elizabeth if you like, I'm afraid I'm not quite used to being called ´ma'am´, Elizabeth said and smiled at the girl.

"Yes ma'am...um....Miss Elizabeth."

"That's much better", Elizabeth laughed. Then, getting serious again, she continued: "Sarah... this may sound a bit strange for you, but I wonder if you know any servant here in London that works for a Mr. Darcy?"

Now it's said, let's just wish that the whole London won't know tomorrow how interested I am in Mr. Darcy's business

Elizabeth new well how all the rumours spread quickly through servants, but she didn't really care if in return she would get some valuable information about Mr. Darcy's condition.

However, the reaction that followed Elizabeth's words was quite unexpected: Sarah blushed deeply and wouldn't say anything for a while. She looked at Elizabeth and seemed to be somewhat scared. Then she finally managed to utter: "H- how did you know...?"

Elizabeth was confused. She had no idea what the girl was talking about. "What do you think I know?" She asked, "I'm afraid I don't quite understand you."

Sarah looked quite as confused as Elizabeth. "So you didn't know? But then why did you ask... ?"

Elizabeth started to grow worried. What on earth was the girl talking about? Was there something she should have known about Mr. Darcy? Was he still alive?

"Can you please tell me what you are talking of?", she finally managed to ask, her voice shaking slightly.

"M- my engagement", muttered Sarah, her eyes cast down.

"Your engagement?" Elizabeth didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Yes, my secret engagement to Mr. Dar....."

Before Sarah could finish what she was saying, she was interrupted by Mrs. Cook, the housekeeper, who seemed to be anything but pleased to find Sarah from the breakfast room without anything to do.

"Come here, Sarah! Now! I have a task for you." She said harshly, not even noticing Elizabeth, who was standing in the shadow.

"But..." tried Sarah, pointing in Elizabeth's direction.

"No buts. Come now."

With that Mrs. Cook, dragging Sarah with her, left the room. Elizabeth was left alone, Sarah's last words whirling in her mind:

"My secret engagement to Mr. Dar..."

What can she have meant by that? She can't possibly be engaged to Mr. Darcy himself, can she? No, that is impossible. She probably meant one of Mr. Darcy's servants, but didn't have time to finish her sentence., Elizabeth told herself quite reasonably. But because people in love hardly ever are reasonable, she couldn't stay content for long:

But why would the engagement be secret if she only was to marry another servant?. It doesn't make sense. There must be something more into this.

Elizabeth knew she was being stupid, but she decided to wait for Sarah anyway, if not to ask who she really was engaged to, then at least to inquire after Mr. Darcy, which had been her original intention. If the girl was engaged to one of Mr. Darcy's servants it was quite likely that she should know something of him, at least if he was still a live, and that was all Elizabeth wanted to know.

She didn't have to wait long for Sarah came soon bringing a large bowl of budding to the table. She seemed quite surprised to find Elizabeth still in the room.

"Is there anything I can do for you, Miss?" She asked

"No, I would just like to finish our conversation," Lizzy replied as naturally as she could, "I was going to ask you something before you had to go."

Sarah blushed again. "I don't understand....Why should you want to know of my engagement to Frederick?"

"Frederick?"

"Mr. Darcy's valet, my fiancé."

Mr. Darcy's valet. That is what she was trying to say, Elizabeth thought, letting out a little sigh of relief. Then she started feeling almost irresistible urge to laugh at herself. How could I have been so stupid, that I could, even for one second, think that she could be engaged to Mr. Darcy! I, who always prided my own judgment.

Elizabeth didn't, however, laugh at herself. She had much more important things in her mind, when she continued:

"I assure you I knew nothing of your engagement to Mr. Darcy's valet. I merely wished to know if you knew anyone in Mr. Darcy's service, because...because I have heard that my old acquaintance, Mr. Darcy, is very ill and I was only wondering if you knew anything of his present condition."

"Oh," sighed Sarah somewhat relieved, "Yes, I believe I have heard Frederick talking about his master. A very good man he is, Mr. Darcy, I mean. Always treats my Frederick very well and Frederick's been so worried of him lately. They say he will die..."

Elizabeth turned pale and Sarah shut her mouth. What had she said to upset this nice lady so? She watched Elizabeth taking a seat and staring quietly on the wall.

"Come now, Miss. That is just what I have heard." She continued hastily, when she realised what she had said. "I know nothing of what the doctors say, and I'm sure they know much better. Maybe it's not that bad after all. You do know how all the rumours are usually grossly exaggerated."

"Yes, of course. That must be the case." Elizabeth managed to say, not at all assured. "Thank you for telling me this. You may go now." She then continued, when she realised the girl was still standing there.

Sarah took one more look at Elizabeth's pale face. Then she turned around and hurried back to kitchen, where the housekeeper was waiting for her.

Elizabeth found herself sitting alone at the breakfast table that now was almost ready and she realised she would have to compose herself before everyone came to eat breakfast. She decided to get up and take a little turn in the house before facing anyone.

When Elizabeth returned 10 minutes later were Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner already sitting at the table and waiting for her.

"Good morning, Lizzy!"

"Good morning!" Elizabeth replied and even managed to smile. (a reaction that seeing the Gardiners always caused.)

"I hope you slept well after a long journey," asked Mrs. Gardiner.

"Yes, thank you, very well." Lied Lizzy. She didn't want her aunt to worry for her.

But Mrs. Gardiner wasn't so easily deceived. She looked at Elizabeth and noticed that something was wrong. "You look a bit pale.", she said, "are you sure you are all right?"

"Quite so. All that matters me is that I missed my morning walk." Elizabeth replied

Mrs. Gardiner smiled. She knew her niece and wasn't convinced, but decided to drop the question. Lizzy would speak when she was ready, if there was something she wanted to talk about. So, instead of making any more questions, Mrs. Gardiner continued as if she had believed what Elizabeth had said:

"You can never get enough of walking, can you?", she said teasingly. "Well, don't worry, we can go out for a walk after breakfast and maybe do some shopping as well."

"That sounds good," replied Elizabeth, who could hardly spare a thought for shopping, absentmindedly. Then she sat at the table for a while, barely touching her food and not paying much attention to the conversation. When Elizabeth thought she had sat there long enough, she excused herself and said that she would go to her room to prepare for the walk

When Elizabeth was out of sight, the Gardiners exchanged worried looks and made a silent decision to find out what was troubling their niece.

Darcy's townhouse, London:

At the same time in another part of the town, where almost everyone was still asleep, was one house fully awake and in a terrible uproar:

"Miss Georgiana, Miss Georgiana!" Came a worried voice that belonged to the housekeeper, through Georgiana's bedroom door. "Wake up! The master has taken turn to worse. He is sleeping very restlessly and the fever is rising again!"

Georgiana woke up and was out of her bed before she even realised. "Where's the doctor?" She asked, while hurriedly dressing up.

"Mr. White has been called for. He is on his way, but he may come too late. What shall I do, Miss?"

Georgiana, who now was dressed, opened her door and quickly followed the housekeeper, Mrs. Hammond, to the master's bedchamber.

As soon as Georgiana entered the room she hurried to her brother's side. She sat down and touched his forehead and after realising how hot it was, she quickly ordered a servant to bring some cold water and a towel to be put on his head. This was done in a minute, but it wasn't much of help. Georgiana had little idea about how she should act if the doctor wouldn't arrive soon.

A teardrop fell down Georgiana's face as she watched his beloved brother. He didn't seem to recognise her or anyone else around him.

"Will...?" Georgiana whispered, "Can you hear me?"

No answer.

"Will, please don't leave me. I don't have anybody else in this world. What will I do if I lose you?" She tried again, tears falling down her face.

Still no answer.

Georgiana felt hopeless. She could do nothing before the doctor's arrival and it looked like he would never make it in time.

Chapter 6

Posted on Monday, 8 January 2001

"Just tell me, Miss, if there is anything I can do for you or the master." said Mrs. Hammond, who had been watching Georgiana from the other end of the room.

She was a good woman and been on the Darcys' service as long as Georgiana could remember, but she had little experience on nursing and usually whenever any member of the family had been ill, she had been the first one to be wanting to call a doctor. When the doctor came Mrs. Hammond would show him to the patient's room, but would then stay out of way. Now, however, when her excellent master was fighting for his life and the doctor was nowhere to be seen, she found it impossible to continue her normal routines; She felt she had to do something, but hardly knew what.

Georgiana knew all this and highly appreciated Mrs. Hammond's offer, but unfortunately her own experience on nursing was not much better than that of Mrs. Hammond's. There was nothing Georgiana could think of that could be done for her brother, and this she had to acknowledge to the housekeeper:

"Thank you, Mrs. Hammond", she said "It is very good of you to offer your help, but I don't know what could be done. I don't even know if William knows that we are here."

Georgiana sighed and at the same moment something was heard from Mr. Darcy's direction:

"...Liz..."

Georgiana almost jumped at hearing her brother's voice.

"What is he saying?", asked Mrs. Hammond, who was standing near the door, almost as far away form Mr. Darcy's bed as was possible, and could hardly hear his delirious mumbling.

"I am not quite sure..." Georgiana replied hesitantly, "I think I heard him saying 'please', as if asking us to do something..."

"But what does he want us to do? I would do that at once if I only knew what it was that he wanted." Said the housekeeper, trying to imagine what her master could possibly be wanting.

"I wish I knew", sighed Georgiana, "But, from what I heard, he didn't say anything else, only that one word."

Georgiana looked at her brother with a hopeless expression on her face, when she silently added: "Oh, if I only knew how to help him..."

"And if only the doctor would arrive." added Mrs. Hammond, shaking her head

Mrs. Hammond's remark brought the doctor back to Georgiana's mind. She turned to look at the clock on the wall and realised the should already be there.

"I hope nothing has happened to him." Georgiana said in a worried tone, "He lives but a few blocks away. What can be taking so long?"

Georgiana was about to go look from the window if anyone was coming, when the door was opened and doctor White announced.

"There you are!", exclaimed Mrs. Hammond, when the doctor entered. "We were getting all worried already, I almost thought you would not come at all."

"I came as soon as I could, there is no need to be worried," replied the doctor as he took a seat beside Mr. Darcy's bed. "Now, how is my patient?"

"Not very well. His fever is very high and I am afraid he does not even recognise us." responded Georgiana.

The doctor frowned and turned to have a look at Mr. Darcy. He looked indeed very bad, but this Mr. White would not tell the ladies. Instead, he turned to them and said:

"If you excuse me, I would now examine my patient and see what can be done. You can stay in the room if you want to, but there is nothing you can do right now." Then he continued, now directing his words more to Georgiana: "I would advice you to go and have some breakfast or at least a cup of tea. You look like you needed some refreshment now."

Georgiana did as she was told, but only after the doctor had assured her that she would be called for at once, if anything alarming happened.

On her way out Georgiana suddenly remembered her previous conversation with doctor White:

"I cannot make out what he is saying, but it sounds like he keeps repeating a name. I am not quite sure what is it, but I think I heard something like... El...Eliza- something...perhaps Elizabeth."

Those were the exact words he had used. Was that what William had tried to say? If so, it seemed to be very important for him. Georgiana knew she had to do something about it, but what?

It was almost noon when Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardiner finally left for their intended walk. It had been their intention to leave straight after breakfast, but the Gardiner children had made the plan impossible. They would not let their cousin go anywhere before she had spent a couple of hours in their company, playing games and telling stories.

This delay didn't bother Elizabeth much. She was only happy to play with the children and forget her own worries for a while, even though it was not easy after her conversation with Sarah in the same morning.

What really bothered Elizabeth, was that she had no idea what she should do next: She desperately wanted to do something for Mr. Darcy, but hardly knew what. She longed to see him, but was uncertain if he had any wish to see her. The last time they had met, Mr. Darcy had made it very clear that he wanted nothing but to be out of her sight, that Elizabeth remembered too well. And even if all this could be overlooked, there still remained the fact that it would be quite improper for her to try to contact Mr. Darcy in any way.

But I could call on Miss Darcy. , Elizabeth thought There is nothing improper if I want to renew my acquaintance with her, and my aunt could accompany me...

But still Elizabeth knew she could not bring herself to do that. She did want to meet Miss Darcy again as well as Mr. Darcy, but she did not want to intrude. Elizabeth felt that she, or any other visitors, could hardly be wanted, when the master of the house was seriously ill.

Elizabeth sighed. It seemed to be a hopeless case. She could not think of any way that she could be near Mr. Darcy with being an intruder. After all, it was not likely that he wanted to see her at all. Maybe it would be better for her to return home as soon as possible.

In any case, when it was time for her and her aunt to go out, Elizabeth made a quick decision to enjoy the walk and not think of Mr. Darcy before back in her room again.

It was indeed a wise decision, but very hard to keep, especially when Elizabeth after a short walk realised Colonel Fitzwilliam standing on the street, only a few yards away from them.

Chapter 7

Posted on Sunday, 22 April 2001

"Are you all right?" Elizabeth heard her aunt's voice asking, "You look like you had seen a ghost."

"I beg your pardon?" Elizabeth was forced to clear her mind from all the thoughts that seeing Colonel Fitzwilliam had brought there. "Yes...I am quite all right" she then stated, but did not manage to sound quite convincing, because, instead of giving her aunt a reassuring look, she still kept her eyes fixed on the Colonel, and before she even realised, her thoughts had run back to the Fitzwilliam family.

What am I going to do now?, Elizabeth thought. She wanted to go to talk to him and ask about his cousin, but she was afraid she would reveal too much of her feelings by doing so. She was afraid that she could not hide her anxiety and....if Mr. Darcy's condition again had taken a turn for worse, she did not want to hear it in the middle of a crowded street where anyone could see and hear her reactions. But before Elizabeth could make any further decisions on what to do next, she heard her aunt again calling for her attention. Unfortunately she had again missed Mrs. Gardiner's words and she had to beg her to repeat what she had said.

"Oh, never mind, it was nothing of great importance," said Mrs. Gardiner, but did not sound satisfied. She wanted Elizabeth to tell what was wrong, but she did not want to make her tell it against her will.

Before Elizabeth could find any excuse for her absent-mindedness, she saw the colonel turn his head, and for a moment their eyes locked. Colonel Fitzwilliam was clearly surprised to see Elizabeth, but if anything could be told from the smile that soon appeared to his face, the surprise was by no means unpleasant. With a few steps he instantly moved closer to the two ladies and, before Elizabeth could do anything to prepare herself for the conversation that now had to follow, he addressed her, "Miss Bennet! What a pleasant surprise to find you in town this time of year."

"Colonel Fitzwilliam," Elizabeth said and curtsied. The colonel was all ease and friendliness and of that Elizabeth was grateful. It made the unexpected meeting much easier for her than she had at first believed "It is indeed a pleasure to meet you. I believe you have not yet met my aunt, Mrs. Gardiner." Turning to her aunt, Elizabeth continued, "Aunt, this is Colonel Fitzwilliam. He was visiting his aunt, Lady Catherine, in Kent last April."

"Delighted to make your acquaintance, madam", said the colonel and bowed.

Mrs. Gardiner replied in the same manner and looked at the man approvingly. His kind, easy manners reminded her very much of his cousin, even though he perhaps was not quite as handsome as Mr. Darcy. After the introduction Mrs. Gardiner, however, drew back a little and settled to listen to the conversation between her niece and this gentleman. She had a strong feeling that it might perhaps give her a clue of what was going on in her niece's mind.

"I hope your family is in good health" asked the colonel soon, turning his attention back to Elizabeth.

"Yes, thank you, they are all in excellent health" replied Elizabeth and she knew that it was now or never that she would have to ask the colonel about his family's health if she was going to do that at all. For a moment Elizabeth stood in silence, unable to decide what to say next and when she realised she had to say something, she decided to stay on easy topics and avoid the issue that was foremost in her mind.

"Do you intend to stay long in town?" she asked in lack of anything better to say, but was soon ready to slap herself for such a stupid question, because it lead the conversation to the very direction that she had tried to avoid.

"As long as it is necessary", replied the colonel after a short pause "Last week I received news of alarming nature that called me to town immediately."

"Oh", was all Elizabeth could say. It was not very hard to guess what the news had concerned, but what Elizabeth really wanted to know was exactly how alarming the news had been.

"Yes" said the colonel "And it is most unfortunate that I could not come earlier, because the news were about my cousin, Mr.Darcy." He paused for a moment as if to see if his words had caused any reaction on Elizabeth, but as she stayed silent and kept her eyes fixed on the ground, he soon continued: "You probably have not heard, but he is very ill and has not been able to leave his room for many days."

Mrs. Gardiner raised her eyebrow. This was something she had not expected to hear. Mr. Darcy had been perfectly well when she had seen him at Lydia's wedding. It suddenly occurred to her that this might be the reason for her niece's uneasiness during the past few days. But how could she have learned of Mr. Darcy's illness? Mrs. Gardiner turned her worried look at Elizabeth to see how she was taking the news.

Elizabeth felt her aunt's eyes upon her and she blushed lightly as she responded to the colonel: "Actually I did hear from Mr. Bingley, when he returned to Netherfield, that Mr. Darcy had taken ill. But I was hoping that he would be better already."

Colonel Fitzwilliam shook his head: "I wish I could tell you so, but I am afraid it is actually the opposite situation. I have not seen him yet as I arrived only late last night, and I do not have the latest information of him, but before I parted from my regiment I received a message from Miss Darcy hurrying my arrival. I understood that my cousin's situation was not very promising."

"I am very sorry to hear it." Elizabeth managed to say. She was in no mood for any further discussion with the colonel, for he had brought her news that she had not wanted to hear. "I feel I cannot hold you hear any longer if you were on your way to see your cousin."

"Indeed I was on my way to see Darcy, but do not be distressed Miss Bennet, this short delay has by no means been unwelcome for me. It is always a pleasure to see you," said the colonel smiling. "But if you excuse me, I believe I shall have to take my leave now. Good-day, Mrs.Gardiner. Good-day, Miss Bennet."

"Good-day, sir."

Colonel Fitzwilliam bowed and then disappeared to the crowd. Mrs. Gardiner and Elizabeth stayed behind in silence. They were both too preoccupied with their thoughts to say anything. Mrs. Gardiner was just starting to realise the reason for her niece's low spirits and Elizabeth was thinking of the conversation she had had with the colonel. She felt miserable because none of the news she had heard of Mr. Darcy during the past few days had given her any hope of his quick recovery.

Chapter 8

Posted on Monday, 23 April 2001

Meanwhile, at Darcy's townhouse, Georgiana had finished eating her breakfast and was now anxiously waiting for any news of her brother. It was almost noon and the doctor was still with Mr. Darcy. He had not come to speak to Georgiana, nor had he sent any word of her brother's condition. Georgiana had never felt more frustrated in her life. She could do nothing but wait, and so she waited. But time passed without anyone exiting or entering Darcy's room. The entire house was quiet, as if waiting for something big to happen. Georgiana walked restlessly from one room to another, around the house. She sat down for a while and tried to play piano in order to relax, but it was all in vain.

Not knowing what to do Georgiana stood up again and was just about to start wandering around the house again when she finally heard something. It was the doorbell. Someone was coming.

Oh no, not Caroline again, Georgiana thought, horrified. I don't think I could bear her visit right now. What am I to do?

But the visitor was not Miss Bingley. Georgiana's face lit up and she almost jumped of the joy when she heard the familiar voice of her cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam, from the hall. He had finally come and Georgiana felt like a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Now she would finally have someone to talk to and to share her fears with.

"Richard!" Georgiana cried as she ran to the hall to greet her cousin. "I am so happy that you are here."

The Colonel smiled. "Why, is it not my favourite cousin?", he said playfully, but turned serious when he saw how pale and tired Georgiana looked. "I am so sorry I could not come earlier. Poor girl! How much you must have suffered here all alone."

Georgiana said nothing, but the Colonel knew her well enough to know that this had indeed been the case, and he cursed his regiment for not allowing him to leave at once, when he had first received the news of Mr. Darcy's illness.

"I am here now and I will not let you bear this all alone anymore.", he said reassuringly and then gave her a smile that instantly made the girl feel a lot better.

The colonel then offered his arm to Georgiana and lead her to the tea room, where he spoke again: "We shall now have some tea and you will tell me everything that is troubling you, and then you must go to have some rest. You look tired and it pains me to see you like that...and it would pain your brother as well, if he knew."

Georgiana blushed slightly. The Colonel was so kind to her, and she had almost forgot how it was to be taken care of by someone. Ever since her brother had become ill there had been no one to comfort her, and instead of being advised, she had been the one to give orders to everyone else. But, as much as Georgiana now liked being taken care of by Richard, she did not want to make him worry any more than was necessary.

"You are very kind, Richard, but I am fine", she assured the Colonel. "There is nothing wrong with me. I am just a little tired because I had to wake up so early this morning."

"I am happy to hear it", replied the Colonel, "But I would still like you to rest a little in the afternoon, so that you will also stay in good health."

Georgiana promised to take care of herself, and after this was settled, the two could started discussing about all the matters concerning Mr. Darcy's illness. Georgiana told everything that had been troubling her and the Colonel listened and assured her that everything would turn out to be all right.

When Georgiana had related all her hopes and fears concerning her brother and told of all the changes that there had been in his condition, she finally decided to speak to the Colonel of Darcy's delirious mumbling.

"There is yet one thing that I would like to hear your opinion of", she started, and them hesitated a while. "You see, my brother has been in delirium for a couple of days now, and there seems to be a certain name that he keeps repeating all the time."

The Colonel raised an eyebrow and was seemingly interested. Georgiana decided to go on, "It is all very strange", she continued. "It was the doctor who first noticed it, I believe, and this morning I heard it myself. First I thought William said 'please', but then I remembered what the doctor had said and I am almost sure that it was a name he was trying to say."

"A name?", asked the Colonel. "Have you any idea of whose name he is repeating?"

"I do not know for sure", replied Georgiana. "The doctor said it sounded like 'Elizabeth', and I believe I heard him say 'Liz', which could very well be an abbreviation of Elizabeth."

"Elizabeth?", repeated Fitzwilliam. "Interesting. We have no close relations of that name, so it must be an acquaintance. I wonder if it could be...?", the Colonel trailed off.

"...Miss Elizabeth Bennet?" Georgiana finished his sentence and then blushed for being so forward in her assumption. "I mean...she is the only Elizabeth that I could think of. I had the pleasure of meeting her this autumn at Pemberly and I believe my brother...likes her. I understood that you had met her as well, last April in Kent, when you were visiting Aunt Catherine with William."

The Colonel smiled and did not seem to be too surprised to hear Georgiana's speculations about her brother's feelings towards the lady in question.

"Yes, I had the pleasure of meeting Miss Bennet in Kent, as I had the pleasure of meeting her again this morning, " he finally said.

Georgiana looked at her cousin in bewilderment. She could hardly believe her ears. "Miss Bennet is in London? Oh, how I would long to se her again." Georgiana sighed.

"Then why don't you pay a visit to her?" asked the colonel. "You need to get out a bit, I am afraid you have stayed indoors for too long, and this would be a good chance for you to do so."

"But - I am sure she does not expect a visit from me." Georgiana said, almost horrified. "I do not know how I could dare to go alone. William always accompanied me whenever he could, if I had to pay a visit somewhere. And, besides, I do not even know where Miss Bennet is staying."

Georgiana was more than willing to renew her acquaintance with Elizabeth, who she had so much liked from their very first meeting and who she new to be very important for his brother, but she knew not how to overcome her shyness.

Fitzwilliam, who had known her young cousin from the day she was born knew very well what was bothering her, but as he also was certain that this visit would do only good for Georgiana, he decided to encourage her: "I met Miss Bennet with her aunt, Mrs. Gardiner - I believe you have met her as well - and I assume she is staying with her." The colonel said, smiling reassuringly. "I am sure they would both be very happy to see you again."

Georgiana sat quiet for a while. She wanted to go, especially if she could see the Gardiners at the same time, but she still felt she could not find the courage to go alone. "Will you not come with me, Richard?" she tried.

The colonel smiled. "I do not believe it to be quite proper, my dear cousin", he replied. "I have never met the master of the house, Mr. Gardiner, and I have only briefly been introduced to Mrs. Gardiner. They can hardly expect a visit from me. Besides, now that I am in town, I have some business to settle here, and the spare time I have I would rather spend here to see that your brother will be fine."

"Of course", sighed Georgiana. It was evident now that if she was to go, she would have to go alone.

"But you will be a good girl and go by yourself?" asked the Colonel, as if reading her thoughts.

Georgiana hesitated a moment and took a deep breath before she replied: "I believe I shall. I will pay a visit to the Gardiners and Miss Bennet tomorrow morning, after breakfast."

"I am happy to hear it, and I am sure your brother would be very proud too, to hear that you have been able to overcome your shyness", said the Colonel. "And of course you do not, and must not go quite alone. Mrs. Annesley will of course accompany you," he added.

They sat for a while together and the Colonel finished his tea. After a while he rose and looked at Georgiana. "I believe you should indeed have some rest now", he said "And I had better go to see your brother and meet the doctor."

Georgiana rose too. "I will do as you wish, but only if you promise to dine with me here tonight", she said. "I do not know how I could bear yet another lonely dinner with only Mrs. Annesley sitting across the table. She is very good, of course, but of little company."

"Then it is settled", replied the Colonel playfully. "I will join your merry party and try not to spoil the evening."

Then he turned on his heels and went to hear what the doctor had to say of his cousin, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy.

Chapter 9

Reposted on Saturday, 23 February 2002

The room was dark when Colonel Fitzwilliam went in to see his cousin. The doctor was sitting on a chair beside Darcy's bed and was obviously deep in his thoughts, so deep in fact that he hardly even noticed Fitzwilliam's entrance. The patient was lying on the bed, sleeping rather peacefully at the moment, but the doctor had his eyes fixed on Darcy's deadly pale face.

Fitzwilliam remained at the door for a while carefully contemplating both his cousin and the old doctor who hardly seemed to notice his presence. Finally, after making the sad notion that his cousin had never looked so ill and weak in his life, the Colonel stepped in and cleared his throat so that the doctor could hear him.

Startled, the man looked up, and for a while he stared at the Colonel as if he had no idea where he had come from and what he was doing in Mr. Darcy's bedchamber. Then he sighed, shook his head and smiled "I believe you must be Colonel Fitzwilliam. Forgive me Sir, Miss Darcy did mention that you were expected to arrive soon, but with all the other things in my mind, I nearly forgot about that."

"Yes, I am Richard Fitzwilliam." replied The Colonel politely "Mr. Darcy is my cousin and a very close friend of mine. And you - you must be Doctor White?"

The doctor nodded and showed Fitzwilliam the chair he had been sitting on. "If you have come to see your cousin, I believe you can take my place now so that I can safely take my leave for a while. There are some other patients I still have to see tonight."

"Thank you, sir, it was indeed my intention to see my cousin. But would you first be so kind as to tell me how he is doing at the moment?" asked the Colonel, looking at his cousin with great anxiety.

The doctor shook his head as he replied: "Mr. Darcy's fever was very high this morning. I have now fortunately managed to get it down again and I believe he should be better for the rest of the evening, but we have not won the illness yet. Mr. Darcy is very weak at the moment and there has not been very much hope of better so far. In other words, he should be getting better by now, but it looks like he was instead doing the opposite, little by little getting worse."

The Colonel only nodded his head for this piece of information. Then he stepped closer to Darcy's bed so as to better observe him, and what he saw shocked him greatly. Again he had to admit himself that he had never seen his strong cousin so weak, so sick and so pale. Darcy had always been the healthiest in the entire Fitzwilliam family and there had not yet been anything to keep him in bed for longer than a day or two, and now he had been lying there hardly conscious on his bed for days without any sign of getting better.

"What do you think doctor", asked the Colonel finally. "Do you believe that Darcy will get through this?"

The doctor hesitated for a moment. "I do not know," he then said. "Yesterday I was more hopeful than any time previous, but the drawback of this morning has again made me doubt his recovery. I am afraid the fever in the morning had a very bad effect on Mr. Darcy's recovery process."

The doctor then paused for a moment to take breath and to look around the room, as if to make sure there was no one else in there. Finally he continued: "I did not tell this to Miss Georgiana, but it seems to me that Mr. Darcy is somehow loosing his grip of this world. He hardly even notices the people around him anymore. It looks like he is slipping away from us before our very eyes and not even trying to do anything about it. I am afraid he will not hold on for much longer."

"Thank you, sir", said the Colonel quietly and sat down on the chair beside Darcy's bed. "Is there anything at all that I could do for him?"

"I believe sitting beside him and maybe trying to talk to him are the only things you, or anyone else, can do right now", said the doctor, wishing he could give more hope to the Colonel. "Only time will show what will happen. Let us hope for brighter future and believe that he will recover. "

"Yes, let us do that", replied the Colonel when he realised the doctor was waiting for his reply, but he was in no mood for conversation as he needed time to take in everything the doctor had said.

After standing for a moment in silence without receiving any further questions or remarks from the Colonel, the doctor soon excused himself and, after promising to be back later, he bid Fitzwilliam good-bye and left.

When the doctor was gone Fitzwilliam sat on his chair for a while in silence, just looking at Darcy and trying to find some colour or any other signs of health from his face, but it was all in vain. Suddenly he realised the awful truth that he might never be able to talk with his cousin - a cousin that was almost like a brother to him - again. He feared that Darcy would fade away just like the doctor had predicted, without ever getting fully conscious again, and that thought Fitzwilliam could not bear. What would he do if something happened to Darcy? And how could Georgiana bear loosing her beloved brother, after already loosing her both parents at a very young age? For the first time in his life the Colonel felt hopeless and knew not what to do, nor what to think.

It remains uncertain as to how long Fitzwilliam would have continued his questioning had he not suddenly heard a sound, a quiet groan, coming from Darcy's direction.

The Colonel instantly looked up at his cousin. "Darce?"

Another groanish sound from the bed.

"Darcy? It is me, cousin Fitzwilliam.", tried the Colonel, wishing that Darcy would just open his eyes and welcome him as if he had just been taking a nap. But with the doctor's words still clear in his mind the Colonel did not want to give himself too much hope and therefore did not really believe that Darcy would recognise him at all.

The more surprised he was when he soon heard yet another sound from Darcy's direction, and this time he could hear his own name being spoken by his cousin: "F-Fitz...?"

"Yes, Darce, I am here", Fitzwilliam hurried to reply. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

But, as soon as the moment had come, it was gone and Darcy was back to his normal state, before the Colonel had even finished his sentence. It did not help that the Colonel sat beside Darcy for a long a while to wait and see if his cousin would again say something. No - it all seemed to be in vain. The moment of recognition had been short and it was already gone, perhaps forever. After some more waiting Fitzwilliam finally gave up and was just about to leave the room when he suddenly heard Darcy's voice again:

"No, do not go, I beg you. Do not leave me." Fitzwilliam heard his cousin say, and he instantly turned around on his heels and ran back to Darcy's side...only to realise that it was not him that Darcy had been calling for. No, actually Darcy seemed to be totally unaware of the Colonel's presence, and he just continued his lament with closed eyes:

"Elizabeth...please don't go...I...I cannot..." , and thus his voice slowly trailed away. His sleep had become restless again, and Fitzwilliam could see pain written on his cousin's face, and it was not just the pain of his illness, there was something more to it, of that Fitzwilliam was now certain.

The Colonel stood still for a while, looking at Darcy and forming his decision. Determination was evident on his face as he soon knew what he had to do. He leaned gently toward his cousin and whispered into his ear: "Sleep now, cousin. I will bring Miss Elizabeth to you, if that is what you desire." He paused for a moment and then continued: "I will do everything that there is in my power to make you feel better. Just promise to hold on a little longer, will you?"

Fitzwilliam knew not whether Darcy had heard his words or not, but somehow he seemed to relax after the Colonel had spoken, and when Fitzwilliam soon after that left the room, Darcy was sleeping more peacefully than he had done in a long while.

Chapter 10

The following morning found Elizabeth sitting by the window of her room, reading a letter from Jane. It was a long letter, full of happy chatter about everything that went on in the neighbourhood and, as Elizabeth soon noticed, almost every paragraph included at least one mention of Mr. Bingley. It seemed as if the man half lived at Longbourn and was very courteous towards every member of the Bennet family. Jane seemed determined to consider Bingley only as a friend of the family, but Elizabeth could read between the lines that there clearly was more to it than her sister herself would admit.

When Elizabeth finally put the letter down, she was smiling, and that was the first genuine smile she had managed since learning of Mr. Darcy's illness. It was also the first time in days that Elizabeth actually felt there was hope. She hardly knew where this feeling had come from, nor did she have any idea of what it was based on, all she knew was that her mind had been at ease all the morning. She had thought of Darcy, but not with the same pain and distress she had felt earlier.

It was with these thoughts and mind that Elizabeth was about to join the others when she suddenly heard a carriage nearing the house. She turned back to the window, and to her great surprise she could see that the carriage belonged to Mr. Darcy, and that it seemed to be slowing down as if intending to stop in front of the house.

Elizabeth hardly knew what to think of and whether or not to believe her own eyes. She knew too well that the visitor could not be Mr. Darcy as Col. Fitzwilliam had only the day before informed them that he was still sick in bed, but neither could Elizabeth believe that Miss Darcy would come all alone to Cheapside, while her beloved brother was so close to death, only to meet people she had not met but once at Pemberley.

Before Elizabeth could think of anyone else who possible could arrive with the Darcys' carriage, she saw how the door was opened and that it was indeed Miss Georgiana Darcy who stepped out of it, followed soon after by a lady, who Elizabeth recognised to be Mrs. Annesley.

Elizabeth hurried to the drawing room to warn her aunt of the visitors and to be ready to meet them herself. Mrs. Gardiner had, however, already made the same notion and, although clearly amazed at Miss Darcy's visit, was already preparing for it. The children were sent away with their nurse and their toys were hurriedly collected from the floor. It was no sooner than this was done that they could hear the bell ring, and only a few moments later were Miss Darcy and Mrs. Annesley announced.

An awkward silence followed, during which Elizabeth tried to clear her thoughts and Mrs. Gardiner took one last look around the room to be sure that everything had indeed been cleared after the children. But before Georgiana could start feeling any despair because of her arrival at perhaps too early an hour, Mrs. Gardiner seemed to be satisfied with the room and turned to welcome her guests properly. Georgiana was soon made to feel truly welcome and all the fears which she might have had about the visit, began to vanish.

And Georgiana had indeed had her fears. She had in fact gone so far as to consider turning back when she already was on her way, but then she had thought of Col. Fitzwilliam and how very much he had wished that she would make the visit. In fact, this morning the Colonel had seemed more determined than ever that she should call on Miss Bennet, and as Georgiana believed it had something to do with her brother, she had felt she could not let the Colonel, much less her brother, down.

That was how Georgiana finally had made the decision to go, but it had not made the task any easier for her. At the moment they had entered, Georgiana had wished she could have hidden herself behind her brother's back like she always had before, and when Mrs. Gardiner warmly welcomed her to her house, she found it very hard to find the words to reply as was expected. Fortunately there was Mrs. Annesley to accompany her, and the lady soon replied to Mrs. Gardiner with all the civility and warmth that was needed, thus giving Georgiana some more time to gather her courage.

The visitors were soon invited to sit down and make themselves comfortable while some refreshments were called for. The two elder ladies soon engaged in a lively conversation about various topics, and they soon discovered that they had some mutual acquaintances both in London and Derbyshire. With pleasure Georgiana could notice that Mrs. Gardiner and Mrs. Annesley were fast becoming friends. They seemed to have a lot to talk about and their conversation required little partaking from Georgiana's side. Perhaps this visit would turn out to be an easy one after all.

Elizabeth, too, had been happy to only listen to the two ladies' conversation for a while, but after few minutes she decided to make an attempt to get to know Georgiana better and, even though she would not admit it to herself, also to try to get some information about her brother.

"Miss Darcy," she whispered, not wanting to disturb the others. "It's been a while since I last had the pleasure of meeting you."

Georgiana smiled shyly. She had wished to talk to Miss Bennet, but had not been able to overcome her shyness well enough to address her. Now that Elizabeth had done it for her she was ready to do her best to keep the conversation alive.

"It is indeed," she said, desperately trying to think of something wiser to say. She wished to tell Miss Bennet how much she had liked her at their first meeting and how much she wished that they could become friends, but she could not bring herself to make such a declaration. She did, however, add: "I hope we could meet each other more often now that we are both in London."

Elizabeth smiled. "That would be a pleasure."

A silence fell between the two of them for a while. Normally Elizabeth would have had no problems in finding topics to discuss, but now she found her mind too often wandering from Miss Darcy to Mr. Darcy, to turn it into any conversation. Georgiana, on the other hand, was too shy to start any discussion, even if she had been able to find a topic. Besides, at the moment she too found her mind too preoccupied with the health of his brother to think of anything to say.

Finally Elizabeth, however, decided there had to be some conversation if she wanted to learn to know Miss Darcy as she had intended, and so she picked the first topic that crossed her mind:

"Are you intending to stay long in town this year?" she asked.

"I don't know," Georgiana replied. "I wish we could all return to Pemberley for Christmas but..." Georgiana's voice trailed away.

"...but you don't know if your brother will be back in health by then." Elizabeth finished the sentence with a deep sigh, before even realising what she had just said and how much the way she had said that might have revealed. But Georgiana did not seem to notice anything peculiar about her words. She only sighed "yes", hardly audibly.

"I am deeply sorry for your brother," Elizabeth said, after having convinced herself that the topic could no longer be avoided. "Is he not any better?". She tried to hide her anxiety, but was not so sure of her success.

Georgiana looked at Elizabeth, as if only now realising what she had said just a moment ago. A new thought crossed her mind. Did Elizabeth understand her pain? Could it be that she too cared for William...?

"I hardly know," Georgiana then replied. "Yesterday morning was bad, but ever since last night he has slept more peacefully. The doctor had not yet arrived when I left, so I don't know what he thinks of it, but I believe my brother is better now than he was the day before." Georgiana took a deep breath. She had never believed herself capable of such a long speech, but she soon felt truly rewarded as Elizabeth smiled warmly in response.

Elizabeth did indeed smile, actually she was so happy she could almost have laughed. This was good news indeed! This was the first time Elizabeth had heard anyone saying that she believed Darcy to be better instead of being worse. But she had to remind herself that this was Georgiana's own view and it was not yet confirmed by the doctor's opinion. It was, however, encouraging to hear that all hope was not gone.

"I am very happy to hear that you think so, Miss Darcy," Elizabeth finally said, after composing herself. "It must be quite a relief for you and your family."

"It is indeed. We have all been so worried for such a long time," Georgiana sighed. It felt good to talk about her feelings and fears. She had kept it all to herself for so long. Colonel Fitzwilliam's arrival had of course helped a lot, but Georgiana knew he could never understand her like another female close to her own age could. That was why she had always wanted to have a sister.

If only I could make my brother and Miss Bennet meet each other again Georgiana thought. Then, perhaps, I might get the sister I have always dreamt of, and William would be happy and get better.

"Miss Bennet," she began, but didn't seem to know how to go on.

"Yes?"

"I- I would be very happy if you would call me Georgiana instead of Miss Darcy, it is so formal."

Elizabeth smiled. "Of course, Georgiana, but only if you will call me Elizabeth...or Lizzy, like my closest friends and family do."

Georgiana blushed. She liked the idea of being a close friend to Elizabeth. In her sheltered life she had never before had anyone who she could really have called a friend, no one to share all her thoughts and secrets with. But Elizabeth was exactly the kind of person she would like to call a friend - or even a sister, if that only could be arranged.

"Do you really think you could like me enough to become my friend?" Georgiana asked shyly.

"Of course," Elizabeth replied with a smile. "I think that would not even be hard."

"Then we will meet again very soon?"

"I do hope we will."

Georgiana hesitated. She wanted to invite Elizabeth to spend an afternoon with her, but she was not sure if it would be wise - and safe. "Miss. Bennet...Lizzy...Have you ever had the scarlet fever?" she finally asked

"Why, yes. I had it when I was a child," Elizabeth replied, puzzled

"Then, would you do me an honour and visit me some day, even tomorrow if that is convenient enough?" Georgiana asked with all her courage. "I feel so lonesome when I am alone in such a large house."

Elizabeth could hardly believe her ears. This was something she had been hoping for ever since she had left Longbourn: To be as close to Mr. Darcy as possible. And being under the same roof with him was surely the closest she could get.

"I would be delighted to come...that is, if it will not in any way disturb your brother's rest," she finally replied.

Elizabeth was more than willing to accept the invitation, but she wanted to be absolutely certain that she would not be in the way. Maybe Darcy did not want her near him at all, and her presence would only cause complications. It was a painful, but not altogether impossible idea. The last time they had met at the inn at Lambton, he had clearly wished to be out of her sight. The temptation to go, however, was great, and as Georgiana assured her that there would be no inconvenience of her visit at all, she finally accepted the invitation.

Soon it was settled between the two of them that the following morning Georgiana would send her carriage to fetch Elizabeth, they would spend the entire day together and after dinner the same carriage would take Elizabeth back home.

When everything concerning the following day was settled, Georgiana noticed that Mrs. Annesley was preparing to leave and realised, much to her surprise, that they had already stayed at the Gardiners over half an hour. It was time to be off and so Georgiana soon stood up with Mrs. Annesley, curtseyed and bid Mrs. Gardiner and Elizabeth good-bye.

Once back in the carriage, Georgiana could not help smiling. She was more than satisfied with the outcome of the visit. Tomorrow she would have an entire day to spend with Elizabeth and to become friends with her.

Elizabeth too was happy when she watched the carriage disappear from her sight. This morning had been better than she could even in her wildest dreams have expected. She had heard that Mr. Darcy was slightly better, and the following day she would meet Miss Darcy again and perhaps hear something new of her brother as well.

Chapter 11

Posted on Monday, 25 February 2002

The following day dawned beautiful and sunny when Elizabeth woke up early in the morning. For the first time in many days she had slept well, and the morning sun that welcomed her when she opened her eyes gave her hope that this would be a good day for her. The promising news Elizabeth had heard from Georgiana the day before had given her new hope of Darcy's recovery, and the day she now was to spend with Georgiana at the Darcys' townhouse would give her the chance to hear again the latest changes in his condition. It was almost too good to be true.

The only thing Elizabeth regretted was that she knew it to be impossible for her to get to see Mr. Darcy in person, as he still could not leave his bed, but she told herself that given the conditions she should be happy to even spend a day under the same roof with him. Besides, she had remind herself, even if Darcy was well enough to receive visitors, she probably would not be on the top of his list of people he wanted to see, not after Lydia's and her entire family's disgrace.

It occurred to Elizabeth that Mr. Darcy would probably not want any member of her family to have anything to do with Georgiana either, but she could not bring herself to give up the visit. She really wanted to learn to know Georgiana better and more than anything she desired to learn the latest news of Mr. Darcy, and because it was most unlikely that Darcy would know about her visit, Elizabeth decided it was safe to go, even if it was only for this once.

So it was then, that soon after breakfast a carriage sent by Georgiana did arrive and Elizabeth entered it full of anticipation and anxiety of the upcoming day at the Darcys.

The way from Cheapside to the other end of the town was not short, but the ride seemed to be over all too soon for Elizabeth, whose thoughts were still unsettled of the expectations and fears she had. She knew she would be well received by Georgiana, no matter what her brother's opinion of her might be, and she was sure she would greatly enjoy her company. But to be so near to Darcy and yet be unable to see him was something that was not so easy to overlook.

Elizabeth was, however, enough at ease to smile warmly at Georgiana when she stepped out of the carriage to meet her outside. Georgiana had been eagerly waiting for her new friend's arrival all morning, and she had ran downstairs and out of the door as soon as she could see Elizabeth's carriage nearing the house, and the smile with which she was greeted was just the thing to make Georgiana's day nearly perfect. Quite perfect, however, it could not be as long as her brother was not well.

For a while the two of them stood there smiling at each other before Georgiana realised she was expected to say something.

"Good morning Miss Bennet", she finally managed to say. "I hope you had a pleasant ride"

"Yes I did, thank you", Elizabeth replied with a smile "It was quite pleasant, but didn't you yesterday agree to call me Elizabeth instead of Miss Bennet?"

Georgiana blushed. "Yes, I did, but I was not sure if you meant it. I thought you were perhaps only being nice to me."

"Would it have been very nice of me if I had told you to call me by my first name without really meaning it?" Elizabeth, who decided it was best to take a light approach to this, sighed with mock disappointment "I really was hoping you thought more highly of me than to believe me capable of such behaviour."

Georgiana smiled shyly as she realised she was being teased and replied, still blushing a little bit "You know I would not think that of you, Elizabeth."

A silence fell again between them for a short while before Georgiana could remember that they were still standing outside and that it was her responsibility as a hostess to invite Elizabeth in.

"I - I am sorry to have kept you standing here" she said apologetically "Let us go inside before we both catch cold."

The two then entered the house while the carriage was taken to the stables, and once inside Elizabeth could only stand still and wonder at the grandeur of the hall. It was large and beautifully decorated, much in the same tasteful style as Pemberley was, and when Georgiana led Elizabeth through the house to the drawing room, she could notice that the same beauty and taste were evident also in the corridors and other rooms they passed.

Elizabeth was tempted to ask who was responsible for the decorations, but she had not time to form her question before they entered the drawing room and Georgiana spoke:

"This is one of my favourite rooms. My mother made many changes in this house when she married my father, but this is the room she has designed nearly all by herself. This room was totally neglected when she came and she wanted to bring it back to life again. I think she made this one of the most beautiful rooms in the entire house and it is here that I feel I am closest to my mother."

Georgiana looked around and sighed. Then she realised she had perhaps spoken too much and looked at Elizabeth to see her reaction to her spontaneous speech. But she needed not fear: Elizabeth was only very touched that this shy girl wanted to share her deepest thoughts with her and she wanted to reassure her that the attempt of forming a closer friendship was appreciated.

"It is indeed a beautiful room", she said while looking around her and silently admitting to herself that the room truly was uncommonly pretty. "I don't think anyone with any sense could disagree about that."

"Well, Lady Catherine does", Georgiana smiled and rolled her eyes. She was already beginning to feel at ease with Elizabeth. "She says it is not grand enough and that she would never have a room like this at Rosings."

Elizabeth chuckled. "I can well imagine that. But I believe I did say 'anyone with any sense'."

"You did indeed, and I believe that pretty much rules Aunt Catherine out."

They both laughed heartily for a while, both feeling very satisfied about the way their friendship was so quickly forming. Then Georgiana again had to remind herself of her duties as a hostess and, after composing herself, she asked if Elizabeth wanted any refreshments or if she would prefer to take a turn in the house.

The idea of seeing more of the beautiful house was tempting and so Elizabeth soon declined any refreshments, stating: "I think a turn in the house would be more acceptable. I've seen enough of it now to know I want to see more."

"Would you care to see the library then? Or music room? Or perhaps the green room?" Georgiana asked excited. She wanted to show Elizabeth everything, but she was polite enough to ask if she had any wishes herself.

Elizabeth, however, guessing Georgiana's thoughts, replied that she would like to see anything Georgiana wanted to show her, and then gently suggested they would first go see the library.

"I take it you like books then?" Georgiana asked with much enthusiasm.

"Indeed I do. I used to spend a lot of time in my father's library when I was small, and I read all the books he recommended to me."

"Oh, I like reading too", Georgiana said in return. "William always buys me new books to read and he always takes very good care of the library and sees to it that all the new books of any significance will be added there." Georgiana paused, and then added with a deep sigh: "That is, he used to take very good care of it when he was in health."

Elizabeth, who much to her surprise had been able forget Mr. Darcy almost entirely during the merry morning she had had with Georgiana, was now again sadly reminded of him and for the first time it occurred to her to ask how he was doing this morning. She wasn't sure however whether this was the right moment to do so, or if it would be better to try to lift Georgiana's spirits again. But finally the temptation grew too great and she decided she had to find out.

"How is your brother right now?" Elizabeth asked after a short silence. "I believe you told yesterday that he was a bit better.....Is he still so?"

"I don't know", Georgiana replied almost tearfully. "I thought he was better because he was finally able to sleep rather peacefully. He slept quite well last night too, but the doctor was still not quite so sure. He says William might be getting better, but that the peacefulness could be interpreted in another way as well."

"In what way?" Elizabeth asked, scarcely able to draw breath.

"I do not know, the doctor was not very precise, but I fear - I fear he meant that William is so calm because he is....he is d-dying soon." Georgiana stammered out before bursting into tears.

The pain Elizabeth felt at hearing this was perhaps greater than she had ever felt before and she felt her knees going weak, but she tried to fight back her tears for Georgiana's sake.

"Oh, dear Georgiana. I am so sorry I have made you cry", she managed to say, but when she realised that no words would help, she went to hug her and let Georgiana cry on her shoulder while she herself tried to control her own pain.

"No, it is not your fault", Georgiana sobbed. "I am happy that you are here. Without you I would have spent the entire day crying in my room."

Then, getting control of herself again, she pulled back and tried to dry her tears. "It is I who should be apologising. I invited you here and had every intention of having a nice day with you, but now instead I am drawing you to my worries and making everyone miserable." Georgiana said and then paused to take a look at Elizabeth, only to see how pale she had turned. She then decided to swallow her tears, and after a short pause she was ready to continue again, now in a bit lighter tone: "And I really should not have brought that up at all, because I may just as well have misinterpreted the doctor's words. I have been so worried about my brother lately that I have begun to believe all kinds of things. And even if the doctor meant what I thought he did, he still did say that there was also hope that William might indeed be getting better."

Elizabeth tried to find something reassuring to say, but she feared that if she opened her mouth now she would not be able to keep her feelings secret any longer. She was not sure how much her face had already betrayed her, but she knew there was nothing she could do about that.

After a short silence, however, Elizabeth forced herself to speak:

"Let us hope that that is indeed the case." she said in as normal a voice as she possibly could manage. "But if you feel the need to cry, remember that you do not need to be ashamed to do so in my company."

Georgiana smiled "Thank you."

The girls stood still for a while, both wondering how to get their conversation back to the light chatter they had been enjoying before getting to the subject of Mr. Darcy. Finally Elizabeth remembered that they had been on their way to the library, and she suggested they would go to see it now.

"Yes, that would be an excellent idea!" Georgiana exclaimed, happy to find anything new to turn her mind into. "Perhaps we could now get those refreshments as well."

"Very well" replied Elizabeth, who now was most ready to accept.

"Will you go to the library while I go order us something? It is just down the hall, last door on the left. You can't miss it."

"Thank you, I will be waiting for you there." Elizabeth replied with a smile as she turned to go the way Georgiana had showed.

She had already spotted the door leading to the library when she noticed another door nearby that was half open. First Elizabeth intended to pass it, as she knew she had no business there, but curiosity drew her to look what was inside. The room was dark and it took a while for Elizabeth's eyes to adjust to the lack of light, but little by little she could discern some pieces of furniture, and finally a large bed, on which someone was lying, in the other end of the room.

Chapter 12

Posted on Monday, 4 March 2002

With a gasp Elizabeth realised that the man on the bed was none other than the very person she had both longed and feared to see for a long time now, Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth new perfectly well that this was the moment she should turn around and go where she originally had been going, that is to the library, but she also knew that this might be her only change to ever see Mr. Darcy again.

Elizabeth looked behind her back. She could see the library's door, but there was no sign of Georgiana, nor was there anyone else in the corridor. Drawing a deep breath, Elizabeth cautiously took one step forward, telling herself she would only go a couple of steps closer, so that she could see Darcy's face, and then she would leave the room directly. That much, she was sure, she could do without any risk of getting caught.

Quietly Elizabeth took a couple of more steps and was soon fully inside the room and at a distance where it would be possible for her to see Mr. Darcy well enough as soon as she would be ready to lift her gaze. She felt ashamed at being, so totally uninvited, in a gentleman's bedroom, especially as the gentleman in question was there lying on his bed. But it was too late to turn back now. Her strong feeling of guilt and the fear of getting caught made Elizabeth once more look behind her to make sure nobody was coming. Then, after finding the corridor still empty, she slowly turned her head to finally inspect closer that beloved face she already had thought she would never see again.

What she could see was not very different from what Colonel Fitzwilliam, Doctor White and Georgiana already had witnessed before her. Darcy's face was pale and he looked very tired and worn out. But he did not seem to be in any way delirious. Instead, his eyes were firmly closed and it seemed like he was fast asleep.

For a while, all Elizabeth could do was stand still and watch the man with tears in her eyes. She had not expected to find him healthy after everything she had heard, but it still shocked her to see him so powerless. Georgiana's words, spoken to her only a couple of minutes earlier, returned now to Elizabeth mind, and with great regret she had to admit to herself that it was possible, even likely, that Georgiana's fears had not been exaggerated.

No, when Elizabeth looked at Mr. Darcy, she knew it was impossible to deny that he might indeed be dying; in fact he looked so pale, so quiet and so calm, that one might even have believed him to be dead already.

For a while Elizabeth remained in the room, trying to fight back her tears and to find again the hope she had still had in the morning, telling herself that a strong and healthy man like Mr. Darcy would not be so easily beaten by an illness, not if he fought against it. Then, realising she had already spent a good while there, she knew it was time to stick to her plan and leave, quietly, without anyone finding out she had ever been in Mr. Darcy's room. Still, at the same time, Elizabeth was unwilling to go because she was desperate to know for sure that Darcy at least at the moment was still alive and breathing.

A quick glance towards the corridor behind her assured Elizabeth that Georgiana was not yet coming. Perhaps it would be safe to stay a little while longer after all. Biting her lip, Elizabeth then moved a bit closer to the bed and would have proceeded even further, to make sure Mr. Darcy was still warm and breathing, had she not at that moment been startled by a groan that was made by the man himself.

Surprised, she stepped back, staring at him in joy and disbelief. But even though this sound clearly was enough evidence of the fact that Mr. Darcy indeed was still alive, Elizabeth only found it harder to leave the room now. Perhaps the man needed something, and there was nobody else around to help him. So she stood still, waiting for something to happen, and hoping and fearing that Mr. Darcy next would open his eyes. Hoping because that would the most promising sign she could think of, and fearing because it would not do if Mr. Darcy upon opening his eyes would find her, of all people, spying on him in his bedroom. No, the right way for him to wake up would be with Georgiana and Col. Fitzwilliam beside him, not her.

With that resolution made, Elizabeth decided it was time for her to be off. She would see to it that a servant would go to take care of Mr. Darcy if necessary, but she could not stay any longer herself. It had been wrong of her to come in the first place. Slowly, Elizabeth turned around, and was almost out of the door, when she heard Mr. Darcy's voice, weak and quiet, but still clearly audible for her:

"Water..." he groaned.

Elizabeth turned back to see if Mr. Darcy had woken up, but his eyes were still shut.

"Water..." she heard the voice, that had now gone almost desperate, again, and found herself unable to move out of the door without trying to ease his thirst.

Elizabeth's eyes wandered through the room, trying to find a solution, and finally she noticed a table, next to Darcy's bed, on which there was a glass full of water. For a while Elizabeth hesitated: should she go fetch Georgiana or a nurse to give Darcy water, or should she just give that to him by herself. Finally, Darcy's third plea for water settled it for her: she could not leave him alone so helpless, even for a short while, when she could just as well ease his suffering by helping him drink that water before she exited the room for good.

Having made up her mind, Elizabeth directly moved back to the room to Darcy's side, sat on a chair beside the bed, took the water-filled glass from the table, and carefully brought it to his lips. With great thirst, Darcy quickly swallowed the water, and before Elizabeth could even realise, the glass was empty.

While wondering whether Mr. Darcy was still thirsty, she could hear a quiet "Thank you" from the bed, but when she turned to look at the man, she saw that his eyes were still shut. Perhaps he was conscious, but was too tired to open his eyes.

Relieved that all had gone well, Elizabeth now stood up and was finally ready to leave, but when she made an attempt to move away from the bed, she saw Darcy lift his hand, as if trying to reach out for her and stop her from going. This attempt was soon followed by his words:

"Don't go, please! Don't leave me alone!"

Elizabeth was torn between her wish to stay and comfort him, and the need to go. She knew she had already stayed much longer than she should have, but at the same time she felt that she could not leave Darcy all alone when he was pleading her not to go, even if she had a reason to doubt that he would be wanting her to stay if he knew who she was.

Finally Elizabeth decided it would be better for her to leave and make someone else go to keep company for Mr. Darcy. She was not the right person to do it.

"Don't distress yourself", Elizabeth whispered reassuringly. "I may have to go now, but I will see to it that you will not have to stay alone for long, Sir."

Having said that, Elizabeth quickly fled the room before anything else could happen and prevent her from leaving. She made it to the corridor just in time to be there before Georgiana emerged from a nearby corner with a maid carrying the promised refreshments. But so quick had her escape been that she did not have time to notice how Darcy, at the sound of her voice, finally opened his eyes.

Chapter 13

Posted on Thursday, 7 March 2002

"I am so sorry to have kept you waiting!" Georgiana exclaimed immediately when she saw Elizabeth standing in the corridor, for she feared that her guest had already grown tired of waiting for her in the library. "I had to give Betty here orders of how to treat William, because the nurse we have had so far had to go to attend to a sick relative this morning." she explained, motioning towards the young servant girl beside her.

Well, that explains why Mr. Darcy was alone, Elizabeth thought, happy that everything was now settled and that she would not have to find anyone to look after Darcy after all. Then she turned her attention back to Georgiana and was quick to assure her that she had suffered no inconvenience during her absence.

"Please, do not distress yourself because of me", Elizabeth said. "Of course your brother's health is more important now than anything else. Besides," she added with a smile "I hardly even noticed the time passing. I wouldn't have minded even if you had stayed away a bit longer."

"You are very kind", Georgiana replied as she opened the door to the library and let Betty carry the refreshments in. Then she turned to Elizabeth and continued: "Shall we now go to have a moment of peace before I will show you the rest of the house? That is, if you still want to see it."

"Of course I do" Elizabeth smiled, and after stealing a quick glance towards a certain door that Betty now was opening, she followed Georgiana to the library.

Once inside, Elizabeth had to draw breath again. She had always thought her father's library to be quite considerable, but she had to admit that it was nothing compared to what she now could witness before her very eyes. The large room was full of books in different languages, all of them carefully organised, and on the walls she could see maps of various far-away lands she had never even dreamt of visiting. And, unlike her father's desk, Darcy's desk in front of the window was clean. There were no errant papers to be seen, only one lonely book lying there in front of the chair. Perhaps Mr. Darcy had been reading it the night before getting seriously ill.

Elizabeth leaned closer to see the name of the book: "Shakespeare's Sonnets", she whispered to herself, and she was just about to take the book in her hands to inspect it more closely, when she heard Georgiana's voice from the other end of the room:

"How do you like the library?" the girl inquired shyly.

"I like it very much" Elizabeth replied, putting down the book of sonnets and joining Georgiana at the table that had been laid for them. "I must confess I have never seen so many books in a one library."

"This is large", Georgiana agreed, "but it isn't as large as the one at Pemberley"

"I should have known" Elizabeth smiled. "But I never had the chance to see the library when we were visiting Pemberley." she added with a sigh.

"Perhaps you will get that opportunity some other time." Georgiana ventured to say with a blush. "I would be very happy to see you again at Pemberley some day."

Before Elizabeth had time say anything to this, the door was opened, and a servant that Elizabeth soon recognized to be Betty, entered the room hastily.

"Miss Georgiana, come quick!" she breathed.

"What is the matter?" Georgiana asked, worried. "Has something happened to my brother?"

"No, I mean yes." The girl replied. "He is awake, and he is asking for you."

Elizabeth sighed with relief and quietly sat down on the nearest chair to keep her emotions hidden, but Georgiana let out a cry of joy, and for a while she was speechless and unable to take any other action than to hug the maid and then sit down on a chair beside Elizabeth to draw breath. Then she blushed at her own behaviour and stood up again, twitching her handkerchief.

"Go to him" Elizabeth said with a small smile as soon as she felt she was in control of herself again. "Go to him while he is still awake."

Georgiana turned to look at Elizabeth, again blushing at her own behaviour. "I am sorry. I was so overwhelmed by this news that I almost forgot where I was. My brother hasn't even recognised me in a long time, and now he is awake and wants to see me."

"There is no need to apologise for your behaviour. Any loving sister would have behaved the same way." Elizabeth replied, smiling reassuringly. "Just go to your brother now."

"Of course", Georgiana replied, and was already on her way out when she suddenly turned back. "But what about you?" she asked, unwilling to leave her guest again.

"Don't worry about me. I have never had problems entertaining myself in a library." Elizabeth assured her.

"I am happy to hear it, but I promise I will only stay a while."

"No, stay as long as your brother needs you." Elizabeth insisted, for she did not want to be in the way. "Perhaps it is better if I leave now, so that you can spend time with him without having to worry about me."

"Oh no, this day would not be perfect if you had to leave because of such a happy event." Georgiana cried. "I know it is very selfish of me to ask you to stay while I can't spend all my time with you, but I would be more than happy if I could still find you here after having seen my brother. Then we could finally go see the house and get to know each other better."

"I could come some other time..." Elizabeth suggested, still not ready to give up. But Georgiana would hear none of it, and finally Elizabeth was obliged to promise that she would stay.

"Very well then" she sighed, and then added with a smile "I see you can be as stubborn as your brother when need to be."

Georgiana blushed with delight, and as soon as she had thanked Elizabeth for her decision to say, she exited the room and finally went to see her beloved brother.

Chapter 13 continued

Posted on Wednesday, 24 July 2002,

Darcy looked around, trying to understand where he was and what had happened to him. The last thing he could remember for sure was a most uncomfortable pain in his head and some worried looking faces around him, but he had hardly any memory of whatever had taken place after that day. All he could remember of this period of time seemed to be a series of indistinct dreams, or nightmares, that had kept following one another with neither beginning nor end, except for one dream; the one which he had been dreaming just before waking up. He could still remember it as clearly as if he had just witnessed the scene before his very eyes instead of only dreaming it. It had seemed more real than any other dream he had ever had before.

He had been sleeping on the very same bed he was still lying on, and Elizabeth had come in to the room to nurse him, but just as he had gathered his strength to open his eyes she had vanished.

Just like it always happens in my dreams Darcy thought bitterly I should have known it was too good to be true.

Being now fully awake Darcy tried to get up, but found himself lacking the strength to do so. With a deep sigh he leaned back on his pillows as he realized that he must have been ill in bed for quite some time to be feeling so weak and powerless. Even the glass on the table beside him seemed to be too far to reach, but as it was almost empty anyway Darcy decided he would have no use of it, even if he was feeling slightly thirsty.

It would do better to try to relax and get some more sleep...if only he could forget that vexing dream. How was he to sleep when even now he thought he could hear that heavenly voice coming from the corridor or a room nearby? Of course she wasn't there for real, Darcy knew it to be impossible. It was probably only his illness that made him see and hear things that weren't. After all, the only place Elizabeth could ever be close to him was in his dreams, and that was the truth Darcy knew he would have to learn to accept.

Still Darcy could not stop his heart from taking an extra leap only a moment later, when the door to his room was suddenly opened. The visitor, however, was only a servant girl bringing him more cold water. Darcy knew he should have been thankful for this, but he couldn't help but feel a sinking feeling of disappointment; it had all been only his dreaming and imagination after all and he had been a fool to believe anything else even for the shortest of moments.

"Y-You're awake, Sir!" stammered the girl, who apparently had expected to find her master anything but conscious.

"Um...yes", replied Darcy, quite unsure of whether he actually was awake. That voice coming from somewhere outside of his room had sounded so real...

Darcy knew he must be going insane, but he also realised that it was perhaps better to appear as normal as it was possible after spending several days, maybe even weeks, ill in bed. It would not do to scare the servants, especially this young one who already seemed to be most frightened and uncomfortable in his company.

Therefore Darcy forced himself to push away all the disturbing thoughts as he repeated in a much firmer tone: "Yes, I am perfectly awake now."

"I am happy that you are so, Sir" the girl said as she curtsied "Is there anything I can do for you? I brought this water..."

"Thank you, that was very kind of you" Darcy replied hastily, as he, having now found himself able to think more clearly again, suddenly remembered his little sister: "Please tell me how is Miss Georgiana?"

"She is fine, I believe. She's entertaining a quest right now, but I shall fetch her at once if that is your wish."

"A guest?" Darcy was now all ears.

"A young lady, slightly older than Miss Georgiana"

Could it be...? Darcy thought. But no, he wouldn't make the same mistake again. It would be foolish to let his hopes rise again only so that they could be crushed once more. There was no way Elizabeth Bennet could be in that house. The visitor was most likely Caroline Bingley, and Darcy was definitely in no mood to hear anything about her. But he was longing to see Georgiana again:

"I do believe I know who you are talking of" Darcy sighed. "And I'm sure this person will do fine even if you do get Georgiana here for a while. I just want to see that she is really doing fine, and not burdening herself with too much worry."

"I shall fetch her at once, then" the girl curtsied again before hurrying out of the room.

Leaning back in his bed Darcy watched the maid disappear behind the door, and once again he was captured by a memory of his dream; he felt like he had, only a moment before, seen Elizabeth disappearing from that door just like the servant girl had done.

Will she ever stop haunting me? he sighed to himself as he settled to wait for his sister.

Chapter 14

Posted on Monday, 29 July 2002

Darcy did not have to wait for long. It was only minutes after the maid had left that Georgiana rushed in, letting out a cry of joy as she noticed that her brother was indeed awake and fully conscious. She then hurried over to take a seat beside the patient, and as she sat down she touched Darcy's forehead to find out that the fever almost gone. Georgiana sighed with relief and for a moment the two sat in silence inspecting one another's faces, both trying to find assurance that the other was doing well. Finally Darcy spoke:

"You look tired. Are you sure you are in health?"

But Georgiana would not reply. Suddenly her eyes were filled with tears and her voice failed her before she could answer, but she didn't really mind, because this time the tears were those of joy happiness, for having her brother back and for having someone to take care of her again. Darcy, however, grew worried.

"Hush now" he said as Georgiana finally laid her head on his shoulder and let all the tears she had been trying to hold back for so long flow "Everything is alright now. You will not have to take care of anything anymore."

"I know" Georgiana sighed, and looked up to smile at her brother reassuringly. "I know"

For a while Georgiana stayed still in her brother's embrace feeling safe and sound for the first time in many days. No words were necessary. They both knew everything would be better again from now on. Or almost everything, Darcy thought with at deep sigh as he thought of a certain young lady that he would probably never see again.

Finally Georgiana pulled away from her brother to have a better view of him again. Although clearly conscious and without fever, he still looked so pale, thin and fragile that Georgiana could not help but feel some of her former fears returning.

"Are you sure you are strong enough to sit up?" She asked cautiously. "Maybe you should lie back down and get some more sleep. Or should I fetch the doctor?"

"Please don't trouble yourself anymore, George" Darcy replied even though he realised she was right; He still wasn't feeling all that good. "I am feeling perfectly well", he lied in order to save Georgiana from any further distress. "It is you who should be having some rest rather than me."

"You know I cannot rest unless you do the same." She smiled. "Besides, I really think the doctor should examine you and say what he thinks of your recovery. I won't be able sleep properly before he has announced that you shall indeed be well again."

"Call the doctor then, if that is the only way to make you happy" Darcy sighed. "And in the meanwhile you should probably go back to your guest before she gets tired of waiting for you" he added and groaned inwardly as he pictured Caroline Bingley making the most of her time by planning what changes she would make in the house if she ever...But no, he did not even want to think of such a possibility. The mere thought of Caroline ever being the mistress of his house was enough to make Darcy feel even weaker than he already was.

Georgiana, however, got up quickly. She had almost forgotten about Elizabeth, and felt guilty for not remembering her dear guest and friend, who hopefully still was waiting for her in the library. But how did William know that she was there?

"You know about my guest?" Georgiana asked, curious

"Yes, the maid who I sent to fetch you told me you had a visitor."

"Oh" Georgiana said, wondering why William didn't show any more interest if he knew Elizabeth was visiting her. "Is there any regards you would like to send with me to her?" she then asked. "Or shall I just tell her that you are feeling better?"

"You can tell her what you wish" Darcy said, trying to find a more comfortable position in his bed for a nap. "Tell her that she can tell Charles that I am getting better and that I will write to him as soon as possible."

Charles? Georgiana thought puzzled. Why would Elizabeth be writing to Mr. Bingley? Or perhaps he meant that Elizabeth should write home to her family in Hertfordshire so that one of them could tell the news to Mr.Bingley? Georgiana could not quite understand the mind of her brother, but she hurried to reassure him:

"I will tell Miss Bennet that you are better, then" she said and when there was no answer, added: "I will go to her now if you want to have some sleep here."

"Do that, George" Darcy replied sleepily. "Go to you guest now if you must, and..." Suddenly Darcy came to a halt and was fully awake again, as something that Georgiana had just said reached his mind. "W-wait!" he exclaimed.

Georgiana, who had already stood up to go back to Elizabeth, sat down again a look of worry on her face. "What is the matter William?"

"D-Did you just say 'Miss Bennet'?" Darcy asked hastily. "I mean, is it not Miss Bingley who is visiting you right now?" he added as he noticed the quizzical look upon his sister's face.

"Miss Bingley?" Georgiana repeated, still looking puzzled. She was beginning to worry that the illness might somehow have affected her brother's brain. "Why would I invite Miss Bingley to keep me company? She did make a short visit the other day, but..."

"So, you are saying that it is not Miss Bingley who is waiting for you but Miss Bennet?" Darcy interrupted "Miss Elizabeth Bennet?"

"Why yes of course!" Georgiana exclaimed. No wonder William hadn't shown any interest in her guest if he had been under the impression that it was Miss Bingley. Georgiana couldn't blame him.

"I thought you knew." She then continued. "I mean, didn't you just say that you knew?"

"I just knew that you had a visitor" replied Darcy weakly "I could only assume her personality." He was beginning to feel hot and dizzy as his head was soon full of thoughts and questions:

Could it be that he had really seen Elizabeth in his room a while ago instead of just dreaming about her? Darcy still doubted it, but there was one thing he knew for sure: If Elizabeth was in the house, he would have to see her now, this instant, or he would go crazy. He tried to get out of his bed, but fell back. It was hopeless, he was still too weak.

"Are you alright?" Georgiana asked, her voice full of concern as she watched her brother. Not only was she worried about his sudden attempt to get up, but also because of the fact that this attempt had made him go all red and sweaty, and it had brought quite a feverish look upon his face again.

"I am fine" Darcy breathed, trying to calm down. "It is just that...I mean, I had no idea that Eliz...Miss Bennet was here. I should not have..."

"You should not have scared me like that" Georgiana finished the sentence as she poured him a glass of water. "Drink this", she continued, helping Darcy to a comfortable position to swallow the water "and promise me you won't try anything like that anymore. You are not strong enough to get up"

"I promise" Darcy sighed after drinking the water.

"So I can leave you now without having to worry about you doing something stupid again?"

"Yes," Darcy said promptly "I was just wondering if you could..." he hesitated.

"Yes?"

"I was just wondering if it would be very improper to bring Miss Bennet to my room? Only for a while?" Darcy bit his tongue. He knew he should not have said that. He knew perfectly well himself that the suggestion was improper. But he was desperate, desperate to see Elizabeth again.

"Well" Georgiana hesitated. She was more than willing to bring Elizabeth to her brother if that was his wish, but she was uncertain of how the lady in question would react to it. After all, it was quite unheard of that a young unmarried lady would visit a gentleman in his bedchamber, even if it was to happen in the man's sister's presence. "I suppose I could ask Miss Bennet, but..."

Darcy sighed. He understood it was probably better to wait until he was able to get out of his room himself:

"Maybe you should just go to keep her company now" Darcy forced himself to say "Forget what I just said"

"But I thought you wanted to see her?"

"Just tell her my regards" Darcy said with a sigh "And maybe, if she does not seem totally unwilling to see me, you could ask her to stop quickly by my door before leaving, so that I could at least have a glimpse of her."

"I will do that" Georgiana promised "I am sure she will have nothing against seeing you again."

I wish I could be so sure Darcy thought before saying aloud: "I hope you are right. Just don't let me keep you any longer. Miss Bennet is waiting for you."

"I will be back soon" Georgiana smiled "And I will bring Miss Bennet with me."

With that, Georgiana stood up again and left the room, leaving Darcy to his thoughts and visions of Elizabeth.

In the library Elizabeth was spending her time pacing about the room in distress, her mind wandering in the part of the house where she knew Mr. Darcy to be. How would he react to finding out that she was in his house, not uninvited, but still probably most unwelcome to the master of the house himself? Elizabeth did not fear that Mr. Darcy would have her thrown out; she knew he was too much a gentleman to do so, but it most likely would not be any good for his recovery to have to worry about his sister having visitors that he could not approve of, visitors that were connected to Mr. Wickham.

Elizabeth sighed. It had been wrong of her to come, but she could not bring herself to regret it. She had had wonderful time with Georgiana and she had been one of the first ones to know that Mr. Darcy was awake and doing a good recovery. She had been dying to be near Mr. Darcy and to know as much of his condition as possible, and in that respect this visit had been an answer to all of her dreams. But now, waiting alone in the library, Elizabeth was beginning to regret the promise she had given to Georgiana that she would stay and wait for her while she visited for her brother.

If Mr. Darcy did not want her in the house, he would probably let Georgiana know about it, and that would leave the poor girl in an awkward position where she would not know what to do with her guest. To avoid such a situation Elizabeth was more than willing to leave before Georgiana could return, but still a little part in her heart resisted: What if Mr. Darcy did not mind her being there? What if he still, even if he himself could never again consider a marriage to her, was not against his sister having her as a friend?

I wish I knew what he is thinking right now Elizabeth sighed, and sat down How does he feel now that he has found out I am here. Angry? Happy? Totally indifferent?

Elizabeth shuddered. She felt uncomfortable to even think of Mr. Darcy as being totally indifferent towards her. Anger at least was a feeling, but what if Mr. Darcy didn't feel anything about her anymore? It was hard to decide which would feel worse: to be despised by Mr. Darcy or to mean absolutely nothing to him. But whatever Mr. Darcy's feelings were, they were hardly in any way favourable to her, and Elizabeth was beginning to believe that she did not even wish to know more. She would have to go.

After making her decision Elizabeth stood up and hurried out of the room. She felt bad breaking the promise she had given to Georgiana, but she assured herself that her going away would make things easier for her hostess as well if Mr. Darcy wanted her to be gone.

"Where are you going Miss Bennet?" Elizabeth heard a voice from behind her. She turned back to see the same maid that had come to fetch Georgiana for Mr Darcy earlier.

"Please tell Miss Darcy my excuses" Elizabeth said hastily, trying to remember the way out of the house "Tell her that I had to leave."

"Yes, ma'am" said the maid as she curtsied. "Shall I see you out?"

"Please, do. I'm afraid I'm quite lost" Elizabeth said, forcing a smile to her face.

The girl did as she was told, and Elizabeth soon found herself in the hall she had been marvelling at earlier that day. She was all ready to get out as quickly as possible. There was only one problem: having left so hurriedly she had not given any thought to how exactly she was going to get back to Gracechurch Street. No carriage had been ordered, and she wasn't familiar enough with London to walk back even if it hadn't been improper for a young lady like her to walk around the town unescorted.

However, before Elizabeth could reach any decision on how she could leave with as little ado as possible, she saw the front door open and a familiar figure enter the house. It was Colonel Fitzwilliam.

Chapter 15

Posted on Wednesday, 14 August 2002

For a moment both Elizabeth and Colonel Fitzwilliam stood still, staring at each other, the first almost in horror and the latter simply in much surprise. It was the Colonel who spoke first:

"Miss Bennet!" He cried in surprise "I can scarcely believe my good fortune in finding you here!"

"Colonel Fitzwilliam", Elizabeth managed to utter, while wondering how she was to escape now without attracting too much attention.

"I am coming directly from the Gracechurch Street where - I was informed - you have been staying with your aunt and uncle." Continued the Colonel, not noticing Elizabeth's discomfort "It was my intention to call on you this morning, but I found none of the family at home."

Elizabeth looked at the Colonel in astonishment. It was amazing enough that he had chosen to call on her even though their short acquaintance in Kent many months ago would by no means have required any such attentions. But that he had come so shortly after arriving to the town himself, his hands probably full of all kinds of things to settle even without his cousin's illness, made it all even more astonishing. The Colonel's attention seemed particularly strange now that Wickham's marriage to one of her sisters had been made public. Shouldn't he too as Georgiana's guardian be avoiding her rather than seeking her company? After all, he too had to feel that any connection to such a family might be unwise for the sake of Georgiana.

The Colonel noticed Elizabeth's puzzled expression and, understanding some of the reasons for her astonishment, hastened to explain himself:

"I was talking to Georgiana the other day and she spoke very fondly of you and your aunt and uncle, and while I encouraged her to call on you, it occurred to me that it might not be so bad if I were to renew my acquaintance to you as well." He said with a smile. "After all, I am Georgiana's guardian and I feel I should be at least acquainted with the people she spends time with."

The Colonel grinned and offered his arm to Elizabeth "So, now that I have seen you are still the amiable young woman I remembered you to be, shall we go find our hostess?"

Elizabeth could only assume that the Colonel had not read the wedding announcements of his newspapers, but that was hardly enough to make her feel any better. Sooner or later he too would find out, and she had no wish to be around when that happened. Elizabeth felt she had already caused enough harm to the family and she knew that she should leave before upsetting any more people that had been so pleasant to her.

"I am sorry", Elizabeth therefore replied, without taking the offered arm. "But I was actually just leaving."

"Leaving? But it is still early, you must only have arrived!" The Colonel exclaimed sounding severely disappointed. He had been entertaining great hopes of brining Elizabeth to his delirious cousin like he had promised, and much sooner and with less effort than he had ever dared to hope.

"Yes, I am indeed leaving", replied Elizabeth now with more determination. And to get Colonel Fitzwilliam's mind elsewhere, she continued: "Perhaps you have not yet heard, but your cousin has woken up and Miss Darcy is with him right now."

"Indeed?" The disappointment in the Colonel's expression soon gave way to delight.

"So, I thought it would be better for me to leave now before intruding any more on such happy family event." Elizabeth then added to make her point clear.

"But that is nonsense, Miss Bennet, if you allow me to say so" exclaimed the Colonel after recovering from this new pleasant surprise. "I dare say my cousin's friends have been quite as worried of him as have his family members, and therefore I cannot see why a friend could not stay to enjoy as well as any member of the family."

"I am afraid I have not much claim to Mr. Darcy's friendship." Elizabeth replied quietly "I am sure he would rather not have me here intruding."

"Oh no, I assure you that you are indeed mistaken, madam" the Colonel insisted, remembering all too well how desperately his cousin had been calling for her in his delirium. "I know my cousin would be more than delighted to see you here. Indeed, he will be most severely disappointed if he does not meet you while you are visiting his house."

If you only knew everything sighed Elizabeth. She was close to tears, thinking of how accurate the Colonel's description of Mr. Darcy's reaction to her presence would have been only a few weeks ago, before Lydia's elopement. But now everything was different and no respectable man would ever again want anything to do with anyone of her family, Mr. Darcy least of all.

Still Elizabeth forced herself to smile before speaking again: "You are too kind Colonel Fitzwilliam, but I really feel I must go."

"Is the carriage already waiting for you?" asked the Colonel, not yet ready to give in.

Elizabeth blushed: "It is not actually" she replied not a little embarrassed. "It was never ordered."

"In that case I must insist that you stay", said the Colonel, smiling almost triumphantly. "You cannot walk out alone, and I cannot come to escort you before I have seen my cousin."

Elizabeth sighed as she realised that there was nothing she could do. Her only consolation was that at least the Colonel now should know that she had tried to leave, and therefore was not willfully intruding, even if it would soon turn out that she was no longer a welcome guest to the house.

"Shall we go to find Georgiana then?" asked the Colonel, offering his arm anew as he noticed the resigned look on Elizabeth's face.

This time Elizabeth took the offered arm and with a sigh she followed Colonel Fitzwilliam back to the house, wondering how much more she would have to bear before the visit would be over.

In the meanwhile Georgiana had made her way back to the library only to find it deserted and so, after learning from a maid that her guest had indeed left the house, she decided to go directly back to her brother to inform him that he would not have the chance to see Elizabeth after all.

Georgiana sighed as she thought of the task that lay ahead of her. She had wished to bring happiness and health back to her brother's face before the day was over, but now it seemed she would only be able to increase his pain. And at the same time it wasn't even only her brother that she felt sorry for, as she couldn't help but pity herself as well. She had left Elizabeth all alone for so long that it was no wonder she had left. Georgiana was certain she had now spoiled the new friendship she had been so happy about, and that Elizabeth now had every right to think of her as a bad hostess and as someone who she did not wish to befriend with.

Georgiana sighed once more when she reached Darcy's door and knocked, but then tried to obtain a happier face before entering the room. She found her brother sitting up in his bed as straight as he could, trying to arrange his messy hair that had not been combed or washed in days. Georgiana's heart sank as she thought of the disappointment she would now have to bring to him.

"Well?" Darcy asked trying to sound as indifferent and casual as possible.

Georgiana could not find words to break the news to her brother, but she did not need to. The look on her face was enough to tell the man the unpleasant truth:

"I should have known" Darcy said quietly after seeing Georgiana's expression. "She has no wish to see me."

"Oh no!" Georgiana cried, finding her voice again. "She has left and it is all my fault, because I made her wait for so long. She was already gone when I returned. If she had been there I am sure she would have had no objection to seeing you."

Darcy only shook his head.

"Do not blame yourself, dearest", he then said with a sound of bitterness in his voice. "She would not have left had she not wanted to avoid me. I am sure the only reason Miss Bennet left is that she heard that I was awake, and did not want to run the risk of seeing me. It was foolish of me to hope for anything else."

"But I am sure that-"Georgiana began, but was interrupted by her brother.

"Please, don't trouble yourself on this matter, you have already had enough to worry about. Just leave me alone for a moment."

"If you wish" Georgiana sighed miserably "But if there is anything at all I can do for you..."

"Thank you, George, but there's nothing you can do to help me right now" Darcy replied quietly "Solitude is the only thing I need."

"Very well, I will leave you for now, but I will come back to see you later, and I'm hoping to bring the doctor here too as soon as he is available." Georgiana said resignedly "You are still unwell, and like it or not, I am still worried about you."

"I know, and I appreciate it." Darcy sighed "I just need some time for myself now."

Georgiana only nodded to this and, with one more worried look at her brother, she left, shaking her head. Once out of the room, Georgiana sighed in desperation. For a moment she even contemplated on going right after Elizabeth to make sure that their friendship was not permanently damaged and that she would return some other day to finish her visit. This idea however Georgiana soon had to abandon, because not only was it too daring a thing for her to do, but also because she suddenly realised, and had to admit herself, that she was not feeling at all well.

Georgiana took in a deep breath and tried to push the unpleasant feeling inside of her aside. She realised she would have to go the kitchen to inform the cooks and servants that there would be no visitors attending the dinner after all, and therefore there was no need for any special menu. However, Georgiana could only make half of the way towards the kitchens before she suddenly felt the ground under her feet disappear while everything around her went black.

She thought she could hear a voice or two as if they were coming from a great distance, but little by little they too seemed to disappear, and soon she was totally unconscious, surrounded by darkness.

Chapter 16

Posted on Sunday, 12 January 2003

"Georgiana!" cried Colonel Fitzwilliam as he rushed towards his cousin.

There was no answer.

"Miss Darcy!" tried Elizabeth as she too hurried over to the girl. "Georgiana!"

But Georgiana remained unconscious.

Colonel Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth had found their young hostess just in time to see her lose balance and faint. But they had come too late to stop her from falling and hitting the floor with a thump that made both of the viewers flinch. For a second both Elizabeth and the Colonel stood petrified, then they both hurried over to Georgiana to see what had befallen her.

"Someone has to call the doctor!" Elizabeth voiced the thought that had already crossed also Fitzwilliam's mind.

"Yes!" The Colonel breathed, trying to bring life to his young cousin by rubbing her hands, and as the first servant came around the corner to see what had happened, he stopped the maid and gave orders to send for the doctor immediately.

"What is wrong with Miss Georgiana?" asked the servant in horror as she saw her mistress lying on the floor.

"I wish I knew", sighed the Colonel. "But you must hurry now. Send Thomas to fetch the doctor and tell the good housekeeper, Mrs. Stanley, that she is needed in Miss Georgiana's rooms immediately. I shall carry my cousin there myself."

"At once, sir!" The girl hurried off after a quick curtsey.

Colonel Fitzwilliam then gently lifted Georgiana off the floor and carried her through the house with Elizabeth leading the way and opening doors before him until they finally reached Georgiana's own bedchamber. There the Colonel put the girl down on her bed as gently as he could before falling on a nearby chair. He seemed to be at loss as to what to do next.

"Can we do nothing but wait for the doctor now?" he asked, looking at Elizabeth hopelessly.

"We should probably get some water and a wet cloth to be put on her forehead." Elizabeth said, touching Georgiana's face as she spoke. She frowned: "Strange."

The Colonel looked at Elizabeth, now puzzled: "What is strange?"

"I thought it looked like Miss Darcy might have caught her brother's illness, but she does not feel feverish at all. Her forehead is quite cool."

"That is good news then, is it not? But what is wrong with her then?" The Colonel was uncertain of whether he should feel relieved that Georgiana had no fever or even more worried, because there now did not seem to be any apparent reason for his cousin's sudden lose of consciousness.

Elizabeth knew not how to answer. She didn't wish to raise the Colonel's hopes too much before the doctor had seen Georgiana, but she had no wish to make him more uncomfortable either. Elizabeth was, however, saved from the trouble of making a reply as the housekeeper, having heard the news of Miss Georgiana's illness, rushed in at the very moment.

"Poor Miss Georgiana!" cried the good lady upon her entrance, making it impossible for Elizabeth to utter a word even if she had been able to tell the Colonel the nature of Georgiana's illness. "First the master and now dear Miss Darcy!" Mrs. Stanley went on, "What will become of us if we lose them both?"

"Please, madam" said the Colonel, suddenly being reminded of the incapacity of this particular housekeeper to attend the sick. How he now wished that they were at Pemberley where Mrs. Reynolds would know exactly what to do. "I don't think that-"

"Somebody ought to see to it that water will be brought to Miss Darcy." Elizabeth hastened to help the Colonel. "And someone should also go to wait for the doctor so that he can be brought here immediately when he arrives."

The Colonel looked at Elizabeth gratefully, then he turned to the housekeeper to give her the orders and to assure her that this was indeed the best way she could be of help at the moment. And so Mrs. Stanley left, still weeping about the sad fate of her master and dear Miss Georgiana on her way out.

It was not long after this, although the wait seemed long enough for the Colonel to start pacing about the room impatiently, than the doctor arrived. With a deepest look of concern his eyes wandered from the unconscious Georgiana to Colonel Fitzwilliam, who had stopped pacing the moment the doctor had entered.

"Doctor White!" exclaimed the Colonel "I was beginning to fear you would be too busy to come!"

"I came as quickly as I could." Replied the doctor "I was indeed shocked to hear the news about Miss. Darcy." He moved towards Georgiana's bed and looked at the patient with a frown. "What happened?"

"I wish I knew", sighed the Colonel. "Miss Bennet and I were in the search of Miss Darcy and we found her only in time to see her fall. If anything alarming took place already before that, I cannot tell."

"Miss Bennet?" The doctor repeated, and it was only now that he noticed Elizabeth standing in one shadowy corner of the room. He wondered where he had heard that name before.

Elizabeth stepped forward as she heard her name spoken, and the Colonel hastened to make the introduction:

"Doctor White, may I introduce you Miss Elizabeth Bennet, a friend of both Mr. And Miss Darcy" he explained, motioning towards Elizabeth, while the lady in question, before giving a polite curtsy, slightly shook her head at this too optimistic view of her relationship to Mr. Darcy. "Miss Bennet", continued the Colonel without noticing the movement of Elizabeth's head. "This is doctor White. He has served the family well for many years now."

"It's a pleasure to meet you doctor White" said Elizabeth "But, please, don't let me keep you any longer. I believe Miss Georgiana is in more need of your attention right now."

"It is a pleasure indeed, Miss Bennet! And you are absolutely right too." exclaimed the doctor, happy to find this new acquaintance in possession of more common sense than the Caroline Bingley he had been introduced to only a few days before. "If you excuse me, I will examine Miss Darcy immediately."

Nothing more was said as the doctor then turned his full attention to his patient; he was trying her pulse, looking into her eyes, listening to her breathing and trying to determine her temperature. Finally he turned away from the bed to face Elizabeth and the Colonel, who had both been watching his work from a distance in silence.

"Well?" inquired the Colonel

"I believe I have good news," replied the doctor "Miss Darcy has not caught the fever."

Both Elizabeth and the Colonel sighed in relief.

"But", continued the doctor. "I'm afraid Miss Darcy is suffering from much stress and exhaustion, and she needs to stay in bed and rest for at least two days, preferably a week. She will probably sleep now until tomorrow morning, but even if she wakes up then feeling somewhat refreshed, I suggest that she would not be allowed to leave her room for a while, at least not for a long time. And she definitely should not do anything exhausting in a while."

"I understand", said Colonel Fitzwilliam. He was relieved, but not altogether comfortable. "I wish I could keep her company myself throughout her recovery, but I am not sure how much longer I can stay away from my regiment. I fear there will be no-one left in the house but the servants to take care of my both cousins."

"How soon are you planning to leave?" asked doctor.

"I had thought to go tomorrow, but now it seems impossible. I cannot leave Georgiana alone in the house. She would not stay in bed but would insist on being allowed to tend to her brother...Yet, my regiment needs me and I am not sure if I can prolong my visit." The Colonel started pacing around the room again, trying to think of some conclusion. Then he suddenly stopped and turned to look at Elizabeth.

"Miss Bennet?" He began, but then shook his head. "No, I cannot ask it of you. You are Miss Darcy's guest, I do not wish to trouble you..."

"What do you mean, Sir?" Elizabeth asked, misinterpreting his words. "Please, if I am intruding, I beg you to say so. I can leave at once if that is your wish."

"Oh no, Miss Bennet, you have quite mistaken my meaning" The Colonel cried. "I was actually thinking how fortunate it would be if you could stay here to keep Georgiana company. But I cannot ask it of you. I understand you have come to London to enjoy yourself, not to attend the sick."

Elizabeth hesitated. She wanted nothing more than to stay in the house and she would be more than pleased to help Georgiana during her recovery, but the thought of Mr. Darcy lying in his bed only a few corridors away was most disturbing, especially if he was now awake and making a recovery. He might start asking the servants about how things were in the house and he would then inevitably find out about her presence as well. Yet, this was perhaps the only favour he could do to the family to which she and her entire family were so much in debt...

"Miss Bennet?" said the Colonel inquiringly after a long silence. "Please tell me I have not frightened you. Indeed I am not asking you to stay here against your will."

Elizabeth realised she would have to say something and so she made a quick conclusion. She would stay to attend to Georgiana and try her best to stay out of the way of Mr. Darcy. It was out of question that she would leave her new friend all alone in the great house. If Mr. Darcy would soon recover well enough to keep company to his sister then she would leave immediately and return to Hertfordshire and never meet anyone of the name Darcy again. But before that, Georgiana needed her.

"I was merely pondering your words, Sir." Elizabeth finally replied. "And I have decided to write to my aunt and uncle to inform them that I will be staying here for a day or two. Perhaps my aunt can come to visit tomorrow as she too has made the acquaintance of Miss Darcy."

The Colonel's countenance brightened. "Miss Bennet, I cannot even begin to tell you how grateful I am!", he exclaimed, grabbing her hand and placing a quick kiss on it. Then he recollected himself and turned to the doctor. "I wish to thank you as well, Sir."

"Not at all, I am only doing my job, and it isn't done yet." replied Doctor White with a smile. "I believe I should check the other patient as well, now that I am here."

"Indeed, I had almost forgotten about Darcy." sighed the Colonel. "If you do not mind", he continued, turning to Elizabeth. "I will now go to see my other cousin. Georgiana needs rest now and I feel there is little anyone can do for her before she wakes up. I am afraid I will have to go out in business after seeing Darcy and I would gladly deliver your letter to your aunt and uncle if you can finish it by then. "

Elizabeth nodded and promised that she would write the letter immediately. So, as the Colonel and the doctor exited the room, she sat down and took the quill and the piece of paper that could be found from Georgiana's desk. The letter was short and informative and Elizabeth was soon finished with it. While waiting for the Colonel to return she had plenty of time to start thinking of what she had committed herself to:

Her mind soon wandered back to the dark room she had visited only a while ago. She thought about Mr. Darcy and once again wondered what his reaction would be if he knew about her presence. She longed to meet him and talk to him, yet she feared it all the same. Elizabeth was just trying to determine whether she could better bear cold civility or open anger from Mr. Darcy as Colonel Fitzwilliam unexpectedly returned. She had not noticed the passing of the time.

Elizabeth looked up and saw a smile playing on the Colonel's lips.

"There you are, Miss Bennet", he said with a continuous smile. "I trust you have finished your letter."

"I have" replied Elizabeth, standing up and holding out the letter to the Colonel. There was a short silence as Fitzwilliam took the letter and put it in his pocket. Then he spoke again:

"As you know, I was seeing my cousin just now."

Elizabeth nodded.

"I was very pleased to see him finally awake and fully conscious", Colonel Fitzwilliam continued. "The doctor agreed with me that Darcy seems to be making a good recovery. Even the fever is almost gone now."

"I am very glad to hear it." Elizabeth replied whole heartedly, for she was indeed relieved.

"I had to tell him of course about Georgiana." The Colonel continued after noticing that Elizabeth was not going to say anything more. "I did not wish to trouble him too much, so I did not mention that she passed out, I only told him that Georgiana is tired and the doctor recommended that she stay in bed for a while. Dare I ask you to stick to this same story when you meet Darcy?"

"Of course I will if that is your wish." Elizabeth replied, blushing slightly at the thought of meeting the man in question. "But I find it very unlikely that I should be meeting Mr. Darcy at all as he is still confined to his rooms, is he not?"

"Indeed he is, at least for now. But, you see, I had to tell him that you are going to stay here to keep company to Georgiana and Darcy expressed his wish to meet you."

Elizabeth felt all the colour suddenly leaving her face. This was not what she had expected. Why would Mr. Darcy want to meet her? Did he want to tell her personally that her presence in the house was not requested or could it be that he, after everything, would still...But no, Elizabeth did not allow her imagination to go any further. After all, it had failed her before.

"I -I am not sure if that would be altogether appropriate..." Elizabeth managed to say, although a voice inside of her head was nagging that it hadn't seemed too inappropriate only a couple of hours earlier to visit the room.

"The doctor said he might allow Mr. Darcy to sit for a while in the parlour tomorrow, if his recovery goes on as he is hoping it will, and perhaps Georgiana could sit up for a while as well. In fact, I was thinking we might all have a cup of tea together before I will have to leave the town. Surely that would not be inappropriate."

"I had no idea Mr. Darcy was recovering so quickly. I must confess I was expecting him to stay in bed for a week at least. I understood he was very ill indeed only a day or two before."

"He was" Colonel Fitzwilliam replied gravely. "We were all worried, but he is a strong and generally healthy man, and the doctor seems convinced that now that the fever finally seems to be defeated his recovery will be quick." The Colonel then paused and after a while he bowed with a smile. "Now, Miss Bennet, if you will excuse me. I have this letter to deliver and some other business to attend to. But before I go, allow me to once again express my gratitude to you. When I leave tomorrow, I know my cousin (the Colonel nodded towards Georgiana, who was sleeping peacefully in her bed) will be in good hands, thanks to you, Miss Bennet."

Elizabeth could only nod and mutter some polite words in return. She didn't feel like she was deserving of all the praise.

Colonel Fitzwilliam then left and Elizabeth took a seat beside Georgiana's bed. She scarcely knew what to think of Darcy's wish to meet her and she had no idea how she could behave in her normal manner the next day if Mr. Darcy would indeed be capable of joining them for tea.

Chapter 17

Posted on Tuesday, 13 May 2003

The next morning found Darcy in considerably good spirits and health. After finding out about the possibility of meeting Elizabeth the next day he had resolved to do whatever he could to be in good enough a shape to be able to leave his rooms when the time would came. He had even forced himself to eat a good dinner, despite the fact that his appetite was almost non-existent.

Once fully awake, Darcy slowly began to pull himself to sit up. Perhaps the solid food had had its effects, since the action now felt a good deal easier than it had the day before. Now he only needed to get up on his feet. Darcy took a deep breath and then made an effort to stand up. The first attempt failed as he fell back on the bed, but Darcy was not ready to give up so easily, not now that so much was at stake. Gritting his teeth, he made another attempt, this time with better success. He was feeling dizzy and his legs were shaking, but he was standing on them nevertheless.

After a while Darcy ventured to take a few steps forward, then a couple of steps more, and a few more, until he finally reached a chair at the other end of the room. He heaved a huge sigh as he sat down on the chair and then buried his face in his hands, feeling hopeless. How could he face Elizabeth if taking only a few steps was so hard? He had barely moved, yet he already was sweaty.

At that moment, before Darcy could fall any deeper into his self pity, there was a knock on the door and he could see Colonel Fitzwilliam entering, followed by Doctor White. They both stopped abruptly as they noticed that the bed was empty and that Mr. Darcy himself was sitting on a chair several feet away from it.

"Darcy!", cried the Colonel. "What are you doing out of your bed?"

"Good morning to you too, cousin." Darcy retorted dryly and then, turning to the doctor, continued more politely: "Good morning Doctor White."

"Good morning, Mr. Darcy", replied the doctor, bowing. "I'm most delighted to find you feeling so much better today."

"Thank you, sir, I..."

"But Darcy, are you sure you are feeling well enough to get up already?" interjected the Colonel, who still seemed to have problems believing his own eyes.

"I seem to remember that you suggested it yourself only yesterday." Darcy replied. "I thought you mention something about tea with Miss Ben...with Georgiana and her guest."

Colonel Fitzwilliam smiled. He had clearly underestimated the healing power of a certain lady, even if she had not yet even approached the patient.

"I believe I did", he admitted. "But I thought you would wait for someone to come and support you. Don't forget you have been bound to a bed for a long time."

Darcy frowned.

"You thought I would walk supported, like an invalid, in front of Miss ... all the servants? I could just as well go in a wheel chair!", he cried. Then he paused, calming down. "Forgive me, Richard," he continued after taking a breath. "I know you mean well, I'm just a little worried about ... getting up again and being in front of everybody."

"There is no need to apologise, cousin." The Colonel said, grinning. "I am only happy to see you getting back to your old cranky self again."

"How is Georgiana?" Darcy asked, ignoring the Colonel's remark. "You told me yesterday she was very tired."

"She will be fine" interjected the doctor. "She has been worried about you and exhausted herself, but seeing you on your feet again will certainly make her better in no time. Besides, she is in good hands now. We left her to have breakfast with Miss Bennet."

"And..." Darcy hesitated. "How is ... Miss Bennet? I hope she is not over-extending herself?"

"Oh no, not at all." Doctor White assured his patient. "She is as healthy a lady as I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. Indeed, if more people were like her I daresay I would soon be out of business."

"And she is getting very well along with Georgiana", cut in the Colonel. "Upon my word, I have never seen Georgiana behaving so freely with anyone else. They both seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves when we left them only minutes ago."

Darcy took in this piece of news with much satisfaction. He had always hoped to be able to bring about a friendship between Elizabeth and his sister as he was certain of the good influence Miss Bennet could have on Georgiana. Besides, this way he could keep Elizabeth at least a part of his life, even if she would never be entirely his. The fact that all this now seemed to be happening even without his assistance, filled Darcy's mind with content.

Therefore he smiled as he replied: "I am very happy to hear it ... happy for Georgiana, that is" he added when he noticed the look on his cousin's face. "It is good for her to have a friend close to her own age."

"Indeed I agree with you, Darcy" the Colonel only said, exchanging a knowing look with Doctor White. "So, what do you say, cousin?", he then continued. "Will you get dressed and try taking a stroll around the house?"

"Certainly, Richard, if you are ready to accompany me." Darcy replied, getting up and feeling the dizziness return. "Um..." he hesitated. ""Perhaps, we could take a couple of rounds just around the room at first."

The Colonel readily agreed and so the servant was called to bring Mr. Darcy his clothes and, as the doctor insisted, a good, healthy breakfast to help him gain back his former strength.

In the meanwhile, Elizabeth and Georgiana were finishing their breakfast in Georgiana's private chamber. Miss Darcy was sitting on her bed, for the doctor had not yet given her the permission to get up, and Elizabeth had taken a seat near the bed so that she could keep Georgiana company. A small table had been brought in for them to enjoy their breakfast there.

"I am so happy, Elizabeth, that you decided to stay here with us" Georgiana said, pushing aside her empty plate. "I was so afraid you were going to leave and never come back again."

Elizabeth blushed slightly as she remembered how she had tried to flee the house the day before.

"I am sorry I gave you that impression." She said, shaking her head. "I should have realised how much you were going through and tried to comfort you instead of adding to the trouble."

"Oh no!" Georgiana insisted. "You were not causing any trouble. I had never been happier than when you accepted my invitation to come to visit me. I was so delighted to have you as my guest!"

"You are too good, Georgiana." Elizabeth only said. "I have done little to deserve you good opinion."

"For me it would be enough to know that you have my brother's high regard." Georgiana replied earnestly, causing Elizabeth to blush and look away. "And the little time I have had to bestow my own opinion, nothing has spoken against what William has said about you. You truly are the sweetest, most agreeable person I have ever met."

Elizabeth's blush only deepened as she heard the words of praise that she felt were so undeserved.

"Has your brother really said that of me?" she asked, starting to pick on her food again, as if she was more interested in the fried egg that was on her plate than what Mr. Darcy had said about her.

"Among other things, yes" Georgiana replied, pretending she had not noticed Elizabeth's discomfort. "He speaks of you like he has never spoken of any other lady before."

That was surely before he heard of Lydia eloping with Mr. Wickham, Elizabeth told herself, trying to calm down, but her heart wasn't as easily set to rest as was her brain. She found herself hoping against any reason that at least some of Darcy's feelings for her would have lasted through the shameful affair of Lydia and Wickham and that even if he no longer wished to marry her, he might still think she could be worthy enough to keep company to his sister. That way she could at least remain a part of his life, even if they would never be together.

"Your brother is very kind." Elizabeth finally forced herself to reply, when Georgiana was clearly expecting her to say something.

"Indeed he is" Georgiana agreed. Then she looked down and continued quietly: "I have never been so relieved I my life than I was yesterday when I heard of the progress he had made in his recovery."

"I can easily believe that" Elizabeth replied, placing her hand on Georgiana's shoulder. "I know how very fond you are of your brother."

This eventually lead the conversation to the suggestion Colonel Fitzwilliam had made to Elizabeth the day before - he had repeated it this morning to both of the ladies - about all of them having tea together that afternoon. Georgiana was absolutely delighted of the idea, while Elizabeth was unable to decide whether she more feared or was looking forward to the occasion.

"Do you think my brother will be well enough to join us?" Georgiana asked anxiously. "I so wanted to go to see him again this morning, but the doctor will not let me."

" I am sure he is fine." Elizabeth assured the girl, setting her own hopes and fears aside. "Someone would already have informed us if there had been a turn to the worse again. You do remember how optimistic the doctor was yesterday?"

"I know, but I have been so worried for so long that I no longer take anything for granted."

Elizabeth felt sympathetic for her young friend. She remembered well how she herself had felt when she had learnt of Mr. Darcy's illness. She could only assume that Georgiana's suffering had been even worse, as it was her beloved brother, her closest living relative, that had taken ill.

"Everything will get better now." Elizabeth soothed her. "I am sure of it."

"I know" Georgiana replied, pressing Elizabeth's hand gratefully. "I know. Everything has been so much better now that you have arrived."

They continued their conversation for a while longer, both beginning to feel increasing admiration and affection for the other as they talked. Georgiana had never believed she could ever find such a dear friend as she now had found in Miss Bennet and Elizabeth was delighted of all the sweetness and intelligence she could see were hidden beneath Georgiana's exterior shyness. Their conversation only came to a halt when the entrance of a servant girl interrupted them.

The maid curtsied as she entered, then she approached the ladies:

"I bring a message from the doctor." The girl spoke. "He has to go to see another patient, but he said Miss Georgiana should take some rest now if she wishes to get up in the afternoon. Those were his words."

"Thank you Patsy" Georgiana replied, smiling kindly at the girl. "I will do as he says."

The maid curtsied. Then she proceeded to gather the remains of the breakfast onto a large tray before hurrying off with her load.

As soon as the girl was gone, Georgiana turned to Elizabeth again.

"Perhaps I should follow the doctor's orders", she said, sounding apologetic. "I hate to even think of leaving you all by yourself in this great house, but I would so much wish to be able to join you all for the tea then later."

"Of course you must take you rest!" Elizabeth insisted, smiling reassuringly at her young hostess. "I am here to take care of you, not the other way around. If the doctor says you must sleep, then you will sleep, and I will see to it myself."

"But what will you do while I am asleep?"

"With your permission, I will go and find myself a book from the library."

"Of course." Georgiana agreed enthusiastically. "And the servants will show you around the house if you wish. There is so much you still haven't seen."

"Thank you, but I will be quite satisfied to spend the morning in peace and quiet." Elizabeth laughed. "I'm sure you will want to show me everything yourself as soon as you are feeling better."

Georgiana blushed. "You are right, of course", she admitted. "But I would not have your pleasure delayed just on my account. If I am not well enough to give you the tour, then someone else must."

"I am in no hurry." Elizabeth replied smilingly as she stood up. "Now, I absolutely insist that you stop worrying about me and start concentrating on yourself. Sleep well. I will be in my room, if you need anything." The servants had prepared Elizabeth her own room near Miss Darcy's chambers as soon as her staying had been confirmed.

"Thank you, Elizabeth" Georgiana said quietly before lying down on her bed.

Elizabeth stood by the door for while, watching Georgiana fall into sleep. Then she quietly exited the room and set out to find the library again.

It took Elizabeth longer than she had expected to find her way through the house, but eventually she sighed in relief as the rooms were beginning to look more familiar again. Finally she entered the passage where she had found Mr. Darcy's room the day before and she knew that the library was nearby. Elizabeth noted, with relief, that the door to the master's bedroom was now closed and the master himself was most likely sleeping soundly inside of the room. Undoubtedly the doctor would have given Mr. Darcy the same directions as he had given to Miss Darcy, and so they would now both be resting in their respective rooms.

At long last Elizabeth arrived to the door she knew to be the one leading to the library. She quietly pushed it open and entered the vast room, but before she could reach the shelves she realized that she was not alone in the room. Holding her breath, Elizabeth looked around and she immediately spotted a dark figure sitting on a large armchair, staring out of the window. The man turned around as he became aware of her presence.

For a while the two of them stared at each other, then Elizabeth became the first to find her voice:

"M - Mr. Darcy!" she stammered in shock. Elizabeth wished she could just grab the nearest book and run away, but instead, she found herself unable to move.

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