Page 66 of Great Uncle Henry (Pride & Prejudice Vagary)

Aunt Hildebrand did not tolerate such behaviour.

With the first thing Caroline had broken, her aunt had put her over her knee and paddled her like a little child.

When Caroline complained about her treatment through her tears, her aunt had told her that if Caroline wanted to behave as a child, she would be treated as such.

It was the first and last time Miss Bingley had unleashed a tantrum at her aunt’s house.

There was a reason that Aunt Hildebrand was someone Caroline refused to cross.

The woman never said anything she did not mean.

The only woman’s name Caroline recognised was Miss Lucas. She remembered the knight with that name who had called on Charles at Netherfield Park.

How she wished she had never heard that estate’s name.

Before they went there, her dreams of Mr Darcy marrying her were still alive.

Now he was marrying some Elizabeth Bennet, and worse, his aunt and uncle who had refused to know her had given their unreserved approval.

Not only that, the chit’s sister was to marry Viscount Hilldale, another member of the Fitzwilliam family she had not met .

Life just was not fair!

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

At the end of October, the five couples plus many chaperones descended on London to shop for trousseaus. The engaged ladies resided at the newly named Bennet House while the men were spread between their own London houses.

Jane, Elizabeth, and Charlotte all toured their respective betrothed’s house. Hilldale House was on Portman Square, Darcy House was on Grosvenor Square, and de Bourgh House was on Berkeley Square. As Richard and Roger did not have their own houses, they were hosted at Matlock House.

Fanny Bennet and Madeline Gardiner accompanied Jane to Andrew’s house one afternoon, and the next afternoon they accompanied Lizzy to William’s house. As much as she would have done in the past, not one word about the grandeur and cost of the furnishings in the houses crossed Fanny’s lips.

Lady Lucas and Maria accompanied Charlotte when she toured Albert’s home. It needed some minor redecorating, but thankfully Lady Catherine had never applied her brand of décor to that house.

Lady Matlock accepted several invitations to various of her friends’ homes and one night they all attended a play at the Drury Lane.

It was done for members of the Ton to see the approval of the ladies rather than just reading about it in the papers.

The night at the theatre saw the party spread between the Darcy and Fitzwilliam boxes, both very large and next to each other.

Those in the audience were left with no doubt that the affection between the Earl and Countess of Matlock and the ladies joining their family was very real. Watching each lady with her respective man demonstrated that they were all love matches.

By the tenth day of November, the foray into Town had accomplished all of their aims. On their return to Hertfordshire, Maddie and the children, except for Eddy who was at Eton with Felix, travelled back with the rest of the family and friends. Gardiner would arrive a few days before the ball.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Henry had noticed from what he could hear of late that it was becoming harder and harder for Fee to move around.

Not that it was easy for him any longer, even without the issue of his sight.

At least, he had his faithful valet, Rouse, to assist him when one of his great-nephews or great-nieces was not on hand.

He was worried about Fee, they had celebrated her nine and seventieth birthday shortly after everyone returned from London and based on a conversation between her and her son, Henry knew that his sister thought that her time on the mortal coil was nearing its end.

After hearing what Fee told his nephew, he hoped that she was wrong, but if she was not, at the very least, his prayer was that she would not be called home to God before witnessing the marriage of two of her grandchildren.

He could not but smile when he thought of the upcoming weddings which would move the connection between himself, the Fitzwilliams, and Darcys from friendship to family.

Of one thing he was sure, if the late Robert Darcy would have met Lizzy, he would have heartily approved of her for his son.

Unlike the insane Lady Catherine in her home on the island of Jersey, Robert would not have cared about how wealthy Lizzy was to be one day.

The only thing his late friend would have cared about was the love which flowed in rivers between Lizzy and William.

That led Henry to consider his lifelong bachelor status.

If he had met a woman who had inspired him to offer for her, and he had not made an offer, it would have been something he might have regretted.

However, he never met such a lady, so there was no industry in regretting that which he never had to lose .

If his wealth was only measured in family and good friends, then Henry knew he was a very wealthy man regardless of his fortune.

As he looked back on his life, he had no true regrets.

It had not been his choice that his late father had not cared about his daughter or second son.

If things had not been that way, Henry knew he would not have travelled to India and found his fortune.

Even though he had no children of his own, Lizzy was the closest thing he had ever had to his own daughter. From the first time she was able to express it, her love had been constant and unconditional.

His one regret, which he knew was beyond his control, was that he had never been able to convince Thomas to change his ways.

Additionally, there was a time when he had thought both Fanny and Lydia were beyond redemption.

Henry was very grateful he had been so wrong about the two of them, but nothing he had said, or did, reached Thomas.

His Bennet nephew had wrapped himself in a cocoon of his self-indulgence and selfishness and right up until the assembly he had not cared for the wellbeing of others, especially not his family.

Although Henry doubted it, he held out a sliver of hope Thomas would finally see the error of his ways.

Henry was not one for self-pity. Yes, his sight had been taken from him, but that notwithstanding, he had had a long and adventurous life.

As he sat in his private sitting room, the strains of music could be heard from the ballroom. He knew the youngsters would all have a capital time. In a few minutes, he was sure that Rouse would be in to assist him with his ablutions and prepare him for bed.

When Henry did pass on, his valet would never need to work again. A man as faithful as Rouse deserved no less. The same was true for Mrs Bellamy, he had made sure she would be well taken care of .

The thought of four days hence when he walked Lizzy up the aisle, or more accurately, he would hold her arm while she guided him, warmed his heart.

Gardiner would walk with Jane, and Phillips would walk with Mary.

Yes, Lizzy was his daughter in all ways other than his not being her birthfather, so it was fitting he would be the one to give her to William.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Lydia arrived home the day after the ball. On seeing her and her reformed behaviour, there was no doubt she had changed greatly and all for the better. She demanded nothing and was grateful for anything she received.

One of the first things she did was to apologise in person to all of those she had injured in the past. When she learnt that Kitty, Anna, and she would be the maids of honour for Jane, Lizzy, and Mary respectively, Lydia was beyond pleased and never once made anything about herself.

When given the option to remain at home and not return to school, Lydia chose to go back to the school for at least another six months. When everything she had not been told in the letters regarding Mr Bennet was shared, Lydia repeated her joy that she would never see him again.

The night before the weddings, Fanny deferred to Maddie to talk to her three daughters who would marry on the morrow.

She had remained with them, but she had explained that her experience was shaded by being married to Mr Bennet.

There had been no love or affection between her and Thomas Bennet, but Maddie had always enjoyed a love match just like her three daughters would have.

Hence, she would listen, and not speak, as she did not want to impart erroneous information.

The next morning all five brides, the ones at Netherfield Park, Longbourn, and Lucas Lodge, followed their respective mothers’ advice and ate before bathing and dressing.

St Alfred’s Church in Meryton had never seen so many brides marry in a single ceremony. Mr Pierce the rector of St Hugh’s Church in the Longbourn village was on hand to assist. At the practice the previous evening, it had been decided the ladies would enter in descending age order.

The morning of the wedding, Charlotte on Sir William’s arm led off with Maria following them.

They were followed by Jane on Uncle Edward’s arm and Kitty behind them.

Next was Elli on Taylor’s arm, Lola as her maid of honour followed them.

Second to last was Elizabeth on Uncle Henry’s arm with Anna following behind them with a bridal bouquet.

Last, and certainly not least was Mary on Uncle Frank’s arm with a very proud Lydia behind them.

Strangely enough, the ceremony went off without a problem of any sort, regardless of five couples being married.

Henry sat next to Fee as they drank in the sounds, and in Felicity’s case, the sights of the large wedding.

The two squeezed one another’s hands when Mr and Mrs de Bourgh, Lord and Lady Hilldale, Mr and Mrs Fitzwilliam, Mr and Mrs Darcy, and Mr and Mrs Taylor were introduced to the full and cheering congregation.

The wedding breakfast was being held in Netherfield Park’s ballroom.

Henry and his sister were assisted into the Taylor carriage for the ride to Netherfield Park. Before Henry and Debby joined them, Felicity turned to her brother. “Without you, Henry, none of this would have happened today. You have done much good in the world.”

“I have tried to do so, Fee. I have tried,” Henry replied.

Debby and Henry Taylor boarded the conveyance, and the latter knocked the ceiling with his knuckles. They were off for a massive celebration.

‘ God has been very good to me, to all of my beloved family, ’ Henry thought.