My Pearl

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I own nothing. None of the characters.

Summary: It was a cold Sunday. He was losing his pearl.

The grand house of Pemberley was in silence. No children ran through its corridors. The house was closed to visitors. The house's mistress was dying. She was not the young woman she used to be. She was in her late 50s. It was too soon, according to her husband. She had only caught a cold. His strong Lizzy had been brought to her bed by a small cold.

It was a cold Sunday. He was losing his pearl. She was asleep in their marriage bed. She looked so frail. His strong and beautiful Lizzy looked so frail and ill. From the moment she was taken to her bed, he had not left her side. Her remaining sisters were sent for. Jane and Kitty were the only ones alive. Both Mary and Lydia died in childbirth many years ago. Jane was looking gaunt and ill. Seeing her sister ill was making her ill. The two eldest Bennet sisters were inseparable. Bingley had to buy an estate nearby because the two sisters could not be separated for too long.

He watched her shallow breaths in the dim light. Dawn was approaching. She would be awake soon. Dawn was her favourite time of day. She would be up before the sun and out walking. She stopped her daily morning walks during her 50th year. She would walk through the house instead. The one time she went outside, she got ill and now, here they were. He was losing his wife. His Lizzy. His pearl.

She shifted in her sleep. "Good morning, my love." Her bright eyes focusing on him. "Have you even slept?"

Mr Darcy shook his head. "No. I could not."

"It's dawn." She smiled weakly. "I love a new day." She tried to reach over but she had hardly any strength to lift her hand. He lifted her hand and placed it on top of his. "Thank you."

"You should rest. Save your strength." He moved closer. He had been sitting on the same chair since she had been taken ill.

"No. You need to." She smiled but the smile fell when she started coughing. He helped her to sit up as she coughed violently. Once she was finished, he gently lay her back down. He noticed her breathing had become swallow and she wheezed. "Oh! I wish this blasted cough would go."

"Me too." Her husband tried to smile as he sat on the bed next to her.

She looked sad. She knew she was dying. "Where are the children? The grandchildren?"

He lifted her hand and kissed it. "They're all asleep. You know them. They could all sleep until noon."

Elizabeth chuckled. "They are like their father." Her chest rose and fell slowly. "It's nearly time."

"No." He shook his head and brought her hand back to his lips. "Stay."

She gave another cough and gave his hand a very light squeeze. "You know I cannot. This is where my story ends." Her voice a whisper. She was slipping fast. "As the dawn is born, I leave this world."

"Lizzy..."

"No." She shook her head slightly. "It's Sunday. What did I tell you on our wedding day?"

He laughed. He shouldn't have laughed but he did. "I am sorry, my pearl." He bent down and kissed her knuckles. "My pearl."

"My Mr Darcy." She whispered softly. A slight smile on her lips. "Tell the children that I love them."

"I will."

"It is such a shame. I could not see the grandchildren grow up." Her speech coming out in short breaths. "They will be truly magnificent."

"Just like their grandmother."

She laughed softly. "Thank you for everything, my love." Her eyes focused on him. The brightness slowly slipping from them. She was leaving him. "I love you."

"My pearl. I love you. I always will." He kissed her hand and looked up at her. The light gone from her eyes. She was gone. He reached up and closed her eyes. He let out a loud sob and cried against his lost wife. It was too soon. His wife was gone. "My pearl." It was a Sunday when the beloved Mrs Darcy parted from the world.

The End