“Not that I would know,” Kitty mumbled.
“You do not mean—you cannot mean—?” Georgiana looked puzzled and a bit scandalised, as if she could not imagine never getting new garments.
But Elizabeth had never received new garments, other than occasional gifts from the Gardiners—not until she got the five-garment trousseau ordered for her wedding, wedding night, and bridal tour.
She hurried to explain to Georgiana, in a nice way: “You see, with five daughters, Jane as the oldest and, lately, Lydia as the tallest received the new gowns and other clothing, and then they passed their older clothes down to those who were younger or shorter than they. Does that make sense?”
Georgiana’s face looked as if it did not completely make sense, but she said softly, “Yes, it does.”
Lydia, however, did not wish to smooth things over; she, as always, would prefer to stir things up. She said, “Mama always said that Jane and I are the most beautiful in the family, and we are the only Bennets who had any chance to marry well, and that is whywegot to wear fresh, new, up-to-date clothing.”
It was truly not a shock to hear Lydia say such a thing—that was distressingly commonplace, in fact—but to hear her say it to someone from outside their close familywasunheard of. Georgiana looked positively stricken, her mouth open in astonished horror, but then?—
Lydia started laughing, and almost immediately everyone else did, too. At first Elizabeth was unsure if her sisters were thinking what she was thinking, but bold Lydia made it clear thatshe, at least was, as she squealed, “Oh, what a joke! Lizzy was to marry decidedly worse than Jane, but Mr Darcy is worth twice as much as Mr Bingley. And it is not as ifIwill be able to marry someone richer—I have heard that Mr Darcy is one of the richest men in England!”
“And also, Elizabeth is very, very beautiful,” Georgiana said.
The moment her mouth had opened to speak, everyone had hushed, knowing her soft voice would be difficult to hear over any other sounds. Her pronouncement on Elizabeth’s beautyrose out of the sudden hush. Kitty and Mary both nodded. Elizabeth said thank you and gave Georgiana a hug.
Jane said, “I am certain that Mr Darcy considers her the most beautiful of us all.”
Georgiana said, “I can tell: he thinks she is the most beautiful lady in theworld.”
Lydia moderated the volume of her voice as she said, “Mama thinks Jane and I are the most beautiful ladies in the entire county—so it is a pity that Mama is not a rich suitor I can marry.”
A few more giggles broke out. Elizabeth hastened back to her packing, and everyone folded and chatted about all manner of things.
By luncheon time,the Gardiners arrived from London. Elizabeth was surrounded by many hugs and even a few tears. She would still see the Gardiners, of course—perhaps even as often—but it felt different to have family half a day’s journey away rather than at least two full days’ journey away. In truth, Elizabeth knew, they would rarely if ever travel so swiftly between Pemberley and Hertfordshire or London—three or four days were generally carved out of schedules for such a carriage ride.
“My dear girl, we are so very happy for you. Your Mr Darcy is the very best of men!” Aunt Maddie murmured in her ear.
“I know that he is, Aunt,” Elizabeth murmured back, smiling. “Mr Darcy and a certain dear uncle of mine are the two best men I know.” Neither of them even glanced at Elizabeth’s beloved father. Elizabeth fully knew that he was wonderful in some ways, and she dearly loved him, but…well, his particularflaws were such that he could not compare to Fitzwilliam or Uncle Edward.
The Gardiner children piled onto her, and Uncle Edward laughingly warned them not to break the bride into pieces—at least not untilafterthe wedding—and Georgiana seemed struck by how noisy and full of laughter the extended family was. Elizabeth said to her cousins, “Do you remember the beautiful lady who used to help us build sandcastles, years ago, in Ramsgate?”
Susan Gardiner, who looked every inch a young lady now, at age just-turned-thirteen, turned with wide eyes. “You are Miss Darcy!! Oh, you are even more beautiful than when you gave me all those seashells, the day we met!”
Georgiana smiled and said, “Thank you so much for writing such a cheery letter back to me.”
“We have not written to each other for five years, have we? But now that you are family—well, tomorrow you will be—we should write again!”
“I would like that.”
Susan looked delighted, and Elizabeth whispered into her ear, “And when your family comes to Pemberley to visit, you will see Georgiana!”
“Oh, it is so wonderful!” Susan’s eyes were shining with tears.
“Those are happy tears, I suppose?” Elizabeth asked.
Susan nodded an emphatic yes.
There was very little to be done for the wedding, and yet Elizabeth’s mother managed to be quite frantic still, running about the house, speaking with every servant multiple times an hour, consulting her lists, and shaking her handkerchief as she expounded upon her nerves. Aunt Maddie joined Jane’s efforts to calm her, but Elizabeth was fairly sure her mother wished tofeel frantic, because it displayed to all that she had put a lot of work into the wedding breakfast.
Even though Elizabeth was quite delighted, spending the morning with her sisters and greeting the Gardiners at noon, she was shocked how much happier and—somehow—more stable, more steady she felt the moment her intended walked into Longbourn’s parlour. They greeted each other as if they had not seen each other for days, rather than hours, but she swiftly asked after his relations who had travelled that morning to Netherfield.
“Richard’s parents are resting and had a very agreeable journey,” he reported. “They are excited to meet you but wish to wait until tomorrow, because they need to have a meeting with the viscount and his wife. My cousin Thomas is Richard’s elder brother and the viscount. Thomas and Henrietta apparently had a rough transit from Matlock…and…a rough time in life, of late.” He bent his head down and whispered into Elizabeth’s ear. “They seem to be determined to dislike you and our marriage, but they came under orders from my Aunt Helen. I am sorry for the family drama, but rest assured that I rarely see Thomas, and we can see him even less going forward.”
“And your other aunt—the one you did not invite—we will see her only rarely as well?”
