Darcy heard this conversation and gladly agreed to go somewhere, anywhere, as long as it was peaceful! He managed to extract Bingley from the clutch of the women and the men all went into the office where Mr. Bennet poured more shots of brandy. "Gentlemen, I welcome both of you into our family. I hope that you know what you are getting yourselves into. Colonel, I have a feeling that your turn will be coming up quite soon; if not one of my other daughters, then another lucky lady. If my Lizzy says that you will make someone a fine husband, I believe her."
Richard was jealous of Darcy, but he knew that he had to maintain peace in his family, so he managed to congratulate him again. Then he said the same to Bingley. He asked Mr. Bennet, "How long do you think the noise will last?"

"Knowing my family, it will end today…hopefully. Now we can expect to hear of nothing but wedding gowns and lace for days without end. With two weddings to plan, my wife will go distracted. I might ask for a very large favour and suggest that you have a double wedding to reduce my headaches by half."

Darcy looked at Bingley, who nodded his acceptance. "Mr. Bennet, that is a great idea. I just hope our intendeds agree. I would also like to be married quite soon as I have waited long enough. Bingley, what do you plan, or should I just ask Miss Bennet what you really want?"

The others were surprised to hear Darcy actually teasing his friend. Bingley's ears turned red at this witticism and retorted, "Darcy, you had better learn to make your wife happy and at least let her think that she always gets her way. My father always said that 'A happy wife is a happy life.' He made my mother happy and he was always smiling, so it must be true. I certainly want a happy life, so I will do whatever I can to make Jane happy."
Mr. Bennet chuckled, "Bingley, both you and Jane are so easy-going that I cannot imagine any disputes arising between you. Now Darcy, I hope you know that my Lizzy is not quite the same as her sister. I foresee a relationship that will be not as serene as Bingley's, but you are both intelligent enough to be reasonable. Remember that making up after an argument can be quite worth the initial tempest."

The gentlemen hid out in the office until they heard the noise abate, likely as the ladies sipped their sherry. Then they braved the likely storm that they expected would renew when they made their appearance. When they went back into the drawing room, Darcy went to Elizabeth and Bingley to Jane.

Elizabeth said to her intended, "Mr. Darcy, I hope you do not mind, but Jane and I thought that a double wedding would be what we should plan."
"My dear, that is a great idea. I am glad that you thought of it." He smirked at the other gentlemen when he said that.

"We also thought that we do not want a long engagement; just long enough to prepare everything. We could have the first banns read this Sunday and marry in a month."

"What another great idea! I like the way your mind works. I wish I had thought of that." His inner laughter could not be hidden from her.

"Mr. Darcy, you are being very agreeable. I hope that you will always be like this."

"How could I ever be anything else when your ideas are so sensible?"

They all stayed for dinner, which proved to be the merriest that they had ever experienced. Only the Colonel was a bit overwhelmed by all the attention he received from Mrs. Bennet and especially from Lydia. Later, Darcy teased him when he said, "Richard, I hope you realize that if you had not been wearing your red coat, you would have been ignored? Perhaps you should stay in the army until you have captured a wife. Without your uniform, you may never find a lady who will accept you if have to rely on only your natural charm and handsome appearance!"

Richard grimaced when he heard that, but decided that he had to accept this teasing as he wanted to maintain peace with his cousin.

The banns were read that Sunday for the two couples, making Mrs. Bennet crow to everyone who would listen how fortunate her daughters were to win the hearts of two such worthy and wealthy gentlemen. Then Darcy and Bingley had to go to London to arrange for their solicitors to prepare their marriage settlements. Richard went back to his headquarters to complete his final duties and arrange for the sale of his commission.

The next few weeks seemed to fly by and, before they knew it, their wedding day was upon them. This was all they could have dreamt; the brides were beautiful and the grooms knew that they were worthy of winning the love of such fine ladies. As a special favour for the ladies, Richard wore his red coat for the last time, making all the ladies in the audience swoon at his gallant appearance. He was very popular at the wedding breakfast with all the young ladies, and some of the not-so-young.

Darcy and his bride left as soon as they could get away to spend their first night at Darcy House in London. What can we say about this night? It was all that either of them could have imagined, and much more as they were both very passionate people who had found their soul mates and were not hesitant to show their love to each other in an unrestrained manner.

As for Bingley and his bride, the natural reticence of each of them resulted in a first night that was not quite so energetic or their joinings as frequent, but with their desires to make their partner happy, they both ended up quite contented. With regular practice, they soon came to believe they were the happiest couple on earth.

With such vigorous applications of marital bliss, it should not be surprising to hear that both couples had children within a year of their marriages. Now knowing how this was brought about, they each went on to have large broods who made both families very happy.

The most unhappy note was suffered by the Bingleys when they learned that Netherfield was just too close to Longbourn for their peace and quiet. Almost daily visits from Mrs. Bennet proved to be too much for their marital tranquility, so they gave up the lease and found a small estate in Derbyshire within an easy distance of Pemberley. This resulted in many large and noisy gatherings when all their children were old enough to find their voices and running feet. However, no one complained, except good-naturedly. Finally, Pemberley's halls came alive again after so many years.

The Countess did not forget her promise to Elizabeth and had her presented not long after her marriage. She also sponsored her in her first season, even though she was so happily married. Elizabeth's popularity showed her husband how jealous he could be, but he held it in check as he knew that she would be going home with him. She made sure to be extra loving after these occasions so her husband would not even think of restricting her attendance at the next popular event. She was so successful at showing her love for him that he even looked forward to escorting her to anywhere that she might attract young gentlemen to her. He learned just to smile and think of the pleasures to come when they went home.

As for Georgiana, the Countess arranged for her presentation to Her Majesty and sponsored her to many of the best entertainments when she came out. In her second season, she fell in love with a titled gentleman who passed Darcy's stringent investigations. They married and lived a happy life together.

Richard also proved to be popular, even without his red coat. The fact that his father did give him a small but profitable estate added to his natural charm for the ladies. Being the son of an Earl, even a second son, did not detract from this attractiveness. Being introduced as The Honourable Richard Fitzwilliam rather than Colonel did not seem to lessen his appeal. In his first season he met a debutante with a generous dowry that enhanced her lure for him. He wooed her and he won her, even though he made the mistake of comparing her to someone else with fine eyes who was still in his mind. Fortunately, he found that the debutante was close enough to his ideal that he did not reject her out of hand. They ended up in a contented marriage and lived happily together. In time, he thought less and less of this other Siren and immersed himself only in his wife.

Mary, Kitty, and Lydia eventually all found husbands, although none of them was as successful as their oldest sisters in landing such riches. They lived reasonably happy lives, although Lydia never did overcome her tendency to be flighty and somewhat silly. They all settled in and around Meryton, so they had relatively few contacts with their sisters who were settled so far away to the north.

Mr. Bennet lived a good long life, perhaps as he never exerted himself, surviving for another twenty years. As his wife outlived him by only a year, she was not much of a burden on any of her daughters. Darcy and Bingley both contributed to her living costs so she did not have to think about going to live with either of these families. Whether or not she died from complications of her nerves is not for me to say.

When Mr. Bennet died, Collins took over the estate and ran it just as might be expected—virtually into bankruptcy due to his incompetence at whatever he touched. Only Charlotte, his ever-suffering wife, kept it producing anything by her success in convincing the tenants to stay on their properties. Fortunately, Collins died not too many years after inheriting the property and Charlotte was able to bring it back to some level of profitability before her son took it over.

And so ends this tale of bravery, misunderstandings, and love.

THE END

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I hope you enjoyed my little story. I am currently writing another one, albeit slowly. I should be able to write this next one more quickly as my state has been placed under a 'stay in place' order. However, I seem to find plenty to do in my house and yard.

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