“Lizzy, may I speak with you?” Richard asked as he entered his sister’s sitting room where her legs were curled under her as she read a book with Aggie snoring at her feet.
“You know I always have time for you, brother,” she replied as she marked her place and put the book on a side table.
“Do you remember when you beseeched me to resign from the army Lizzy?” he asked.
“How could I forget!” she cried.“I must apologise profusely, Richard; it was not my place…” Richard leaned forward and placed his finger on his sister’s lips to stop the verbal avalanche that he could see she was about to launch.
“First, let me say that you did overstep, Lizzy. If mother wanted to say something about my service, it was her place, not yours. You could have talked to me about your feelings and worries alone. Although my first reaction was to resent you and reject your words for talking to me about duty to family, given how duty has always been a driving force in my life, once I took the time to honestly think about your words, I concluded that I was staying in the army for the wrong reasons.” Elizabeth had looked at him questioningly.“When I decided to choose the army, it was for the right reasons; I felt a calling as I told Mother and Father at the time.
“After Father was murdered, there was a little voice telling me that it was time to take up my estate, but I stubbornly refused to acknowledge what I knew was the correct path for me. You are not the only stubborn one on the family, Sprite,” Richard grinned.“After you spoke to me, I could no longer pretend not to hear the voice.”
“You do not resent me for begging you to leave the Dragoons, Itch?” Elizabeth asked tremulously,“I sincerely apologise for overstepping and talking for others when it was not my place to do so. I allowed my worry to overrule my good sense.”
“Your apology is accepted without reservation, little sister; and no, I do not resent you at all. On my honour, unless it was a path thatIdecided that I wanted to take, wild horses would not have dragged me and forced me to do that which I refused to do. You actually did me a favour by making me listen to what I knew was right for me,” Richard told a relieved Elizabeth.
“Retta?” Elizabeth asked.
“Yes, Loretta. If I were still in the army, I would not have considered her or anyone else as my life’s partner; so in the end, it is the reason that I, in fact, want to thank you for waking me up out of the malaise that I had allowed myself to enter.” Richard hugged and kissed his sister on her cheek before scratching Aggie behind the ears and then departing his sister’s sitting room.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
The Bingleys and the Hursts arrived at Pemberley a day before the de Melvilles were expected. Martha Bingley had not accompanied her son, daughter, and their families as her mother was too frail for long-distance travel, and she did not want to leave her side for a few weeks, so she sent her apologies to her son.
Little Harry Hurst was almost two and a bundle of energy who seemed to like to run wherever he went and did so as soon as his nursemaid lowered him to the ground from the carriage. He was brought up short when he ran into Aggie, who looked at him with something akin to amusement as he fell onto his rear end after bouncing off the huge dog.
Will and Lizzy were just returning from a walk when they saw the little boy’s collision with Aggie but smiled widely as Harry sat on the ground and stared in wonder at the huge dog that was sniffing him, so fascinated that he even forgot to cry at his unceremonious fall.
“Darcy, Lady Elizabeth, you both look well,” Bingley intoned in his affable way as he saw the couple approaching the courtyard.
“Bingley, Mrs Bingley, Hurst, and Mrs Hurst, on behalf of my family, allow me to be the first to welcome all of you to Pemberley,” Will returned.“I trust your journey was not too hard?”
“It was a good trip, thank you Mr Darcy,” Louisa replied as she watched her son’s face being washed by Aggie as she licked him. Even more amusing was how tentative the nursemaid was, for she wanted to retrieve her charge but was not about to get too close to the enormous dog.
“Aggie, heel!” Elizabeth commanded. After one last lick of the giggling boy who seemed to be quite enamoured with Aggie, she trotted to her mistress and plopped herself down next to Elizabeth’s feet.
“Charles shared your letter, Mr Darcy, about how Aggie was the hero when that disgusting man tried to importune Lady Elizabeth,” Mandy Bingley stated.
“Please call me Lizzy; there is no need to stand on ceremony,” Elizabeth requested.
“Thank you, Lizzy; please call me Mandy,” She replied.“I have long loved your sister Jane as she often came to spend time with us.”
“I am truly gratefully to have my sister and am glad you, who needed her most, were able to have her close by.” Elizabeth again marvelled at her sister’s ability to soothe those whose hearts were hurting.
“As you can see, Aggie is a gentle giant until someone threatens my betrothed. Should we continue this discussion inside?” Darcy suggested.
After the arriving guests greeted their host and hostess, they were shown up to their chambers on one of the guest floors by Mrs Reynolds while the nursemaid with little Harry was directed to the guest nursery by a maid. Harry was not happy that his new‘fweind,’as he called Aggie, was not to accompany him but brightened when Elizabeth promised he would get to play with Aggie to his heart’s content later.
The Bingleys and Hursts returned to the drawing room after washing off the dust from the road and changing out of their travel attire. While they were up in their chambers, the Bennets arrived with Lady Elaine accompanying them. The ladies sat together as the men made for the billiard room, except Bennet, who headed straight to the library.
“How is my friend Martha?” Tammy asked Louisa.
“She is well, Mrs Bennet. She would have liked to be here to see Lizzy marry, but she will not leave Grandmama’s side,” Louisa explained.
“How does your grandmother Beckett do?” Tammy asked.
“She is as well as can be expected, but there was no question of her making such a journey as this one. She no longer travels, so Mama’s siblings all come to visit at Netherfield now. It has been many months since the last time that Grandmama made the trip to her beloved Yorkshire,” Louisa explained.
“I understand from Tammy that both you and Mrs Bingley have joined the Meryton Committee and have been active in the endeavours around the Hertfordshire area,” Lady Anne stated.
