Chapter Seven – Epilogue

I settled into my favorite chair to read my letters, rubbing my hand over the swell of my belly as I did. I have hopes of a son this time, although with no entail to worry about, Charles would be just as happy with another daughter to dote upon. He is such an affectionate father towards Rosemary and Beth, I have no worries about this little one.

Fortune has granted me a perfect marriage. I know I originally married Charles for security and an escape from my family home, but I quickly grew to love him. Yes, he is malleable and not very bright, but I consider those traits among his good points. He is also a caring husband and I rarely have to manipulate him into anything now because he is so eager to please me he usually gives me what I want before I have to ask. I make certain to show him my appreciation, one of the things I learned by the negative example Mama gave. Had she shown Papa more appreciation and less complaints, he might have been less likely tease and belittle her. I want to keep Charles's affections focused on me, so I have given him good reason to stay faithful. As a result, our home is happy one.

I decided to open Mary's letter first. Despite the physical distance between us, she and I have become closer since our marriages. We commiserated with each other over our confinements. She was fortunate enough to provide an heir and a spare, so Longbourn is secure even if her husband passes before Papa. She told me it was unlikely she would have any other children, but volunteered no further details. I have chosen not to ask. How she manages her husband is her own business. She made good use of the herbal recipe she had copied out and I think she found much more of interest when I sent her a copy of the book I had pulled it from, which I purchased as a gift for her when Charles and I were in London on our wedding trip. (I purchased a copy for myself as well, it had several good hints for healing childhood ailments.) We only discuss the matter obliquely, so I have not asked if she has found a way to administer it to Lady Catherine at any time.

The grand lady was furious when her nephew married Lizzy. She ranted and raved for days. She also threatened to get rid of Mr. Collins when she learned Mary was the sister of "that scheming hussy," as she called Lizzy. No one ever told her she was angry at the wrong sister, because only I knew for sure. Mary said she had to remind Lady Catherine a few times that a living was granted for life. Only the bishop could dismiss her husband and that was unlikely unless he committed a crime. When Lady Catherine persisted, Mary also mentioned her uncle was a successful attorney. In the end, she had to ask that Darcy write to his aunt to reiterate her points, which he gladly did. That eventually stopped the threats, but from what Mary says, it did not stop the complaints. She spends little time in Lady Catherine's company, so she generally does not let what the old woman says bother her. She has even trained her husband to care for his noble patroness's opinion much less and her own much more.

I enjoyed reading her news about the latest antics of my nephews, William and Edward. I hope to meet them some time, but with the increased distance since we moved to the estate Charles purchased for us in York and the difficulty of traveling with young children, I knew it might be a few years yet.

Kitty's letter discussed the small doings of her life. The year previous, she married a gentleman of moderate means who was an acquaintance of Darcy from school (Even Lizzy calls her husband Darcy; he hates his given name). He may have arranged the marriage. I do not know for sure. At any rate, Kitty appears happy with the match. She has a good situation and I know Uncle Gardiner probably negotiated a secure settlement for her. Charles and Darcy both set up accounts with him shortly after the weddings to provide dowries for Kitty and Lydia and give Uncle Gardiner a reason to be at the table when a settlement was drawn up for each of my younger sisters.

As I had feared, Lydia tried to expose the family to ruin, although it was more stupidity than actual intent. Wickham had not had the chance to do the job. Darcy paid a visit to the militia camp the day after the weddings and gave his one-time friend the choice between rotting in debtor's prison and taking a sea voyage to the Antipodes. Not surprisingly, he took the option that gave him more room to maneuver. He also tried to implicate me in Lizzy's compromise, but everyone to whom he told the tale just laughed at him. I was a little surprised he tried to play that card. He must have known Darcy well enough to realize that for Wickham to accuse me was the best way of bringing Darcy to trust me implicitly. After I learned the full truth of his earlier dealings and the amount of his debt, I think he was fortunate Darcy even gave him a choice of fate. He was less fortunate in the choice of ship to take him away. It was lost at sea with all hands, meaning Wickham was gone for good when Lydia had her brush with notoriety.

My foolish sister convinced Colonel Forster's wife to invite her as a guest when the unit spent the summer at Brighton. A large number of other units were there as well. Charles and I were visiting Pemberley at the time, so there was no one with sense or influence enough to prevent a situation clearly destined for disaster. Papa simply let her go.

When Kitty's letter arrived at Pemberley essentially complaining that Lydia was off having fun without her, Lizzy, Darcy and I all saw the danger at once. Darcy headed for Brighton the next morning, requesting the assistance of his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam, on the way. Without the consideration of keeping visiting privileges in the households of Meryton, the men of Colonel Forster's unit saw no reason to refrain from accepting whatever Lydia chose to offer. By the time Darcy and his cousin arrived she had spread her favors rather freely, although it was not common enough knowledge to make its way back to the gossips of Meryton yet. Had Lydia been a little more specific in the letters she wrote to Kitty describing the fun she was having there would have been no keeping it quiet.

Darcy used his place as Lydia's brother by marriage to take her from the camp on the pretext of a visit to her sister. Lydia did not go willingly, but Darcy can be very forceful. With the help of Colonel Fitzwilliam they found a junior officer to marry her at the cost of a commission for a higher rank. Lydia did not improve her behavior, but she had the respectability that came from being a married woman, so our family standing did not suffer. I rarely heard from Lydia unless she needed money and I sent money even less often. I would support her if she were in poverty, but she is like Mama and frequently overspends her budget on fripperies. She asks for money to avoid telling her husband what she has done. I do not think he is actually fooled by her. Darcy and the Colonel picked a smart man, although marriage to Lydia was quite a price to pay for his commission and a connection to our families.

I saved Lizzy's letter for last. She usually has much to say on the beauties of Pemberley and her activities in the household. I will agree it is a lovely estate. In addition, Lizzy has been as fortunate in her husband as I. Darcy truly loves her and after their discussion the day of the wedding they quickly worked out their differences. They have lived happily together, mostly at Pemberley, for the last five years. So far they have only one daughter to bless their family, but Lizzy has hopes the child she is currently expecting will be a son. Like me, though, she knows her husband will not mind either way. There is no entail on Pemberley.

Caroline has not been so lucky. She got caught in her own compromise only a month after my wedding, although it was not one managed by me. A fortune-hunting man of the Ton managed to catch her alone on a balcony and cause enough of a scandal she had to marry him or face ruin. I will admit to giving Charles a few hints to help the situation along quickly. To ease his worry about his sister, I also suggested he have Uncle Gardiner help him with the settlement. They made certain Caroline would never be penniless, but her husband still has control of most of her dowry. He has an estate at least, one about the same size as Longbourn, but it is subject to an entail and one of these days Caroline must produce a son or facing losing her home when her husband dies. The cousin currently set to inherit sounds similar in nature to Mary's husband's father. He is unlikely to be kind to Caroline, especially with her attitude and manners.

We do not have much contact with Caroline or the Hursts, who moved back to Mr. Hurst's family home as soon as I could convince Charles it was not right for them to live off of his income forever. That got them out of my hair about the same time as Caroline. I do not think either of his sisters are very happy. I tried to hint to Caroline when she married that she could either whine about her bad fortune or do something to turn it to good. I think she likes to whine. That is her choice, and I leave her to it.

For myself, I plan to continue to have a happy home. There is always some way to fix the problems we face. I will do what it takes to keep my family safe and well-cared for. That is my choice and I will let no one stop me.

AN: Big thanks to Contrari Mari, who I have found out was the source of the comment that prompted this story. I have truly enjoyed playing with the ideas and may pick bits of the theme later. You never can tell with me.

A Matter of Manipulation and Smoky Dreams have both prompted some very strong reactions, much to my surprise. It has been interesting reading the comments that have come in and how passionate many people feel on one side or another as the stories and characters have unfolded. It is also interesting to see how much people read into even the smallest of details, as well as the powerful preconceived notions many have about the characters (both a benefit and a hazard of fan fiction, even when a story is clearly far from canon at the outset). It helps me see how to craft future stories as well as making me think about the ones in progress.

Thank you all for your comments and thank you as well to the many people who read without commenting. I hope you were entertained whether you agreed with how the story played out or not. I look forward to posting more stories soon. :oD