Welcome to my story! As of 6-20-16, I am in the midst of revision of my writing so far, so this story is not abandoned. Please R&R, and enjoy!

Chapter 1

When Mr. Thomas Bennet was left with his father's estate at the age of twenty-three, it was in varied states of disrepair. Somedays, while looking at his father's ledgers, he just wanted to throw them out the window and forget about them.

Unfortunately, he remembered how his future offspring would suffer at his own hands if he neglected his duties. Besides, the servants were getting tiered of fetching scattered papers out of the rose garden.

A few years after inheriting, marrying and having no more hope of a son, Mr. Bennet knew the responsibility rested on his shoulders to save the family, so after hours of weighing ideas in his mind, he decided to persuade his friends to ask if they would consider entering their sons into marriage contracts with his daughters.

The eldest, Jane, was the proud age of only eight years old, and the youngest, only a few months. His favorite was the second eldest, Lizzy. Lizzy, who was only two years younger than Jane, at six, had already shown signs of uncommon intelligence. She was her father's daughter, and he had high hopes for her in life.

This is not to say that Mr. Bennet had no plans for earning his daughters dowries, however, he had much work to be done with his estate, and expected the money to run thin by being spread across everything from dowries, dresses, and carriages to servants, upkeep of the estate, and investments.

Mr. Bennet did not want his daughters to be left at the mercy of an entail, or at the mercy of worthless young men only looking for dowery money. Speaking of which, his daughters had almost no dowries. Only a meager two hundred fifty pounds each, which he had to scrap together.

No, he was going to find some wealthy young men of trustworthy fathers to which his girls would be united, so, as his wife kept saying, they would not be thrown out in the hedgerows after he met his creator.

Lord Perryton entered The Star Tavern with the purpose of meeting his University friend, Mr. Bennet. He had no idea what the reason was, for Bennet hated London, and only came when absolutely necessary.

He spotted him nursing a glass of brandy, "Bennet! It's wonderful to see you!"

Mr. Bennet smiled. "Hello, My Friend!" Lord Perryton sat down next to Mr. Bennet. They were both in their late-thirties, with growing grey splotches near their temples from the stress of early responsibility.

"It's a rare occurrence to see you in town! I hope it's not on account of something bad?"

Mr. Bennet sighed, "It depends how you look at it, Perryton. You see, the estate my father left me is literally in shambles. It will take me years to restore it, let alone earn a good profit from it and increase my five daughter's dowries. If we live very frugally, I can expect at least to increase all their dowries to seven thousand pounds."

Lord Perryton nodded and gestured to a bar maid to bring him some ale. "Bennet", he said, "I know you are a hard worker, and I think if given enough time, you can raise your estate to at lease five thousand a year with enough dedication."

Mr. Bennet leaned back in his seat in contemplation. How would he broach the topic to his friend? After pausing a minute to brush an imaginary bit of dust off his sleeve, he cautiously tested the waters. "Arranged marriages seem to be falling out of fashion lately."

His friend looked at him strangely. "That's a funny thing to say, Bennet! But I suppose I can agree. It's a sorry thing, too. I think it worked out rather well with Henriette and I." His eyes unfocused for a minute. "Even Robert is promised to Beaumont's daughter. Twas he who suggested the idea, and I finally agreed after some thought. You know how hard it is to be hunted in society as an heir. Now, he can fully enjoy his early life with a sure future."

The bar maid returned with his ale, and he distractedly handed her a generous amount of extra change.

Bennet recognized his chance, and nonchalantly glanced down to brush an imaginary speck of dust off his sleeve. "I've been thinking about securing my own daughter's futures."

Lord Perryton was not a stupid man, and instantly recognized his friend's game. Raising his eyebrow, he said, "You mean you would like to enter my son into a contract with one of your daughters?"

His companion grinned sheepishly back. "Your time in the House has made you sharper, old man! Yes, I do suppose that's what I'm getting at. I do fully intend to raise a full dowry for the daughter of your choosing, but with the matter of the entail, I cannot in good conscience not plan for their futures.

Lord Perryton thought for some long minutes. His younger son, Arthur was not promised to anyone. As the second son, he could not inherit the estate, and would either have to earn his living or marry an heiress. Bennet himself had said he hoped to build his daughter's dowries up, and Perryton believed him. In matters he thought worth it, Bennet would work very hard. In the end, he agreed. There was not much to lose, and marriage contracts greatly reduced the chances of one of his sons making a scandalous match that would taint the family name for generations.

"My friend, as long as you can raise up 15,000 pounds for a dowry, I agree."

Mr. Bennet was not surprised by the high amount. Without much of a dowry, the marriage of a marquess's son to an untitled gentleman's daughter could be interpreted as scandalous. He would have to speak with his brother Gardiner to look at his investments, as well as evaluate his farming techniques to squeeze out extra money from his land. But, as always, there were details to work out. Which one of his daughters would he choose, and what if the arrangement didn't work out? He wanted his daughters to have secure futures, but he did not want them to be terribly unhappy in them.

"Thank you, Perryton. You won't regret this. Now, I have five daughters, which one will be the best match, you think? Though still young, they already have established personalities."

"Well, I think that I would prefer the most intelligent for my son, though not too serious or boring. Kind, loving, and hard working."

The other man had just described his Lizzy. He sighed and looked another direction. Though the thought pleased him of his favorite daughter being saved from the hedgerows, he mourned the thought of losing her. Realizing his scruples with the match were horribly selfish, he forced himself to suggest her name.

"My second daughter sounds like just the person. You've met her before, albeit in the cradle."

With a quick nod, Lord Perryton consented and stood up. "Well then, we might as well get the papers drawn up. I'm sure your wife will be happy with the arrangement."

Mr. Bennet stood as well, and as they walked outside, he instructed his friend to keep it quiet until the girls grew older. Fanny would throw a fit, he knew, but he wanted his girls to live a normal childhood for a time.

Mr. Bennet and Lord Perryton had decided, in the event that their children were terribly incompatible, that five thousand pounds could be given to break the contract. Both men were content with the situation, and afterwards ate dinner at White's to catch up with some old friends, but Mr. Bennet's reason for coming to town was not complete. He still had four daughters to find husbands for.

The next day he called on more of his close friends from school, and had a few more successful meetings.

The first man he had called on was Mr. James Bingley. He had met Mr. Bingley at one of his brother Gardiner's business dinners and had since grown a sincere friendship. Bingley advised him in business matters, and in turn, he advised Bingley on matters of raising his young son to be a landed gentleman.

Mr. Bennet was not bothered by the fact that the family was in trade, as it was the elder Mr. Bingley's favorite wish that his son purchase an estate.

Both men had agreed on little Jane as little Charles Bingley's match, provided she have a dowry of ten thousand pounds by the time she was seventeen. As they were concluding their business, the young, rosy-cheeked boy barged into his father's study. When Mr. Bennet saw him, he was convinced that he had chosen the correct daughter to become his wife. With her sweet, serene personality, and his happy manners, they would be the perfect match.

His next meeting was with Mr. Jacobson, a lower class gentleman with three sons whose personality, his old friend soon discovered, had drastically changed since his days in university. Mr. Jacobson dismissed Mr. Bennet's proposition with a wave of his hand and assured him that his sons could do better than the daughters of a country gentleman.

Thus, Mr. Bennet left unfulfilled from that particular visit, but had success on the next two.

Mr. Stapleton, a gentleman of Kent, agreed to marry his son to little Catharine, or Kitty, for a thirteen thousand pound dowry, and Lord Wycliffe, after much convincing, agreed on Lydia for fifteen thousand pounds and an assurance that ten thousand pounds could break the contract.

Unfortunately, Mr. Bennet had no other close contacts to go to for Mary. He only hoped that perhaps her connections and future dowry would earn her a match, and, he consoled himself, if she was not married by the time he was deceased, she was sure to be welcomed with open arms into her other family member's establishments.

At least there would be a plan for almost all of his daughters in case he died before they were married. He did not trust Mrs. Bennet to make happy matches herself.

That night after he exhaustedly collapsed in his bed in a reputable London inn, he remarked in amazement out loud how lucky he was to have such good friends. Most had agreed very quickly to his lofty propositions.