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They had left London at an ungodly hour this morning, and even worse, Messrs Fitzwilliam and Darcy were travelling in their own conveyance but only leaving on the morrow.

As much as Miss Bingley wanted to rail against her brother that they were not all travelling together, she held her peace, telling herself she needed to keep her plans for her future in mind at all times.

They travelled through some backwater town, and the carriage turned.

She was positive there was no one of fashion in the area, and all of the country mushrooms they would find here were far below her notice.

She hoped that Charles did not become enamoured of some lowborn nothing.

Caroline’s musings were interrupted when, less than ten minutes later, they passed gate posts.

Soon after that, the house and park came into view.

Neither held a candle to Pemberley’s magnificent mansion and the enormous park, which she had only seen once, but again Caroline bit her tongue. She hated that her brother had grown a backbone. As she had learnt to her chagrin, there was no changing that now.

The coach stopped, and once the footman opened the door, Bingley stepped out and turned to hand his sister out.

“Welcome to Netherfield Park, Caroline,” Bingley drawled.

Miss Bingley put on her best fake smile and allowed her brother to offer her his arm and walk her towards the house.

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

“Is it strange to be residing at Longbourn for the first time for you and Mary after all of these years?” Jane asked while her sisters’ maids unpacked for them and the cadre of nursemaids had taken the three children to the nursery.

The three eldest sisters were in the family sitting room. Cathy and Lydia were out calling on some of the tenants.

“Not at all,” Elizabeth asserted. “Since Aunt Hattie and Uncle Frank moved here with Cathy and Lyddie, I have not associated this house with either our late birth-mother or Mr Bennet. We will make our own memories here. I will remember it as a place I spent time in with my three adorable children and my beloved sisters.”

When she included Jane as one of her loved sisters, Elizabeth found it was not hyperbole. This version of Jane, considerate, humble, affable, and educated, was a version of her older sister that Elizabeth had no difficulty loving.

“Are you looking forward to seeing Mr Bingley again, Jane?” Mary enquired.

“He is everything a gentleman should be, and he was very pleasant at your ball, though we hardly know one another. I only danced with him once there and once or twice at other balls we attended,” Jane stated. “I will not object to seeing him again,” she continued with a smile.

“It does not hurt that he is handsome and wealthy as well,” Elizabeth teased.

She turned to her next younger sister. “And you, Mary, a certain gentleman you are being courted by will be at Netherfield Park as well. By the by, Archy and I do not think it will be too long before he asks you that all-important question.” Elizabeth turned back to her older sister.

“Jane, how do you feel about Betsy being engaged to my cousin, Mr Collins?”

“I will miss seeing her daily, certainly, but I am very happy for her. If any of us deserve happiness in this life, it is Betsy,” Jane said firmly and sincerely.

If there was anything which demonstrated the change in Jane, it was how her friend’s happiness was more important to her than her own.

Two months ago, William Collins had proposed to Betsy, and she had accepted without delay.

She had been flabbergasted that the Duke had dowered her.

Her fiancé would have taken her even if she came without one.

Elizabeth remembered how Jane had been the first to wish her friend all the felicity in the world.

Her sister had been very understanding when Betsy had asked to remain at Falconwood so that she could be close to her betrothed.

The wedding would be a few days before Christmas, in fact, the Friday before the day to celebrate the virgin birth which bore the Son of God.

“You still intend to travel to Falconwood a fortnight before the wedding, do you not?” Elizabeth verified.

“I do,” Jane confirmed.

“The rest of us will arrive the Friday before the wedding,” Elizabeth reminded her sister. “Archy does not think he will be back before the end of January, so he will not be present to give Betsy away.”

“She never expected him to do that, but she is very grateful Archy wanted to walk her up the aisle.” Jane looked off into the distance wistfully.

“I will still see Betsy whenever we are resident at Falconwood. She and your cousin are deeply in love, so I know she will have a good and felicitous marriage.”

“Lizzy, you will attend the assembly on Friday, even though Archy is not here, will you not?” Mary queried.

“Yes, I promised my beloved I would not sit home and pine for him until he returns to me. Besides, it will be interesting to see if Miss Bingley recognises me as the woman she insulted before her exile from Town.” Elizabeth smiled.

“I am sure everyone will comply and call me Mrs Winston. We will then see how she behaves when she believes I am one of the locals. Richard and William will make sure her brother does not mention my rank to her. They both agree it will be a true test of her supposed reformation. I do not need her to toady up to me if she knows I am a duchess.”

“I hope for her sake that Miss Bingley behaves,” Jane said.

“Will the Gardiners arrive before the assembly?” Mary asked to change the subject. She suspected Archy had already bestowed his permission for her to become engaged to Richard, so having her other two guardians close by when Richard finally asked the question was preferable.

“If Peter is better, then yes, they will arrive at Purvis Lodge before Friday,” Elizabeth revealed. “I am praying they will be here because it will mean Peter is over the influenza. I thank God it was not a severe case of the sickness.”

There was a knock on the sitting room door.

When bade to enter, Mrs Hill did so and bobbed a curtsy to the ladies.

“Oh, Your Grace, your children are…” The housekeeper stopped when she saw Her Grace’s arched eyebrow; she remembered what she and all of the servants had been told.

“My apologies. Your children are delightful, Mrs Winston ,” Mrs Hill corrected.

“Thank you, Mrs Hill, I cannot but agree with you as I am rather partial to them myself,” Elizabeth responded. “Has your husband found places for all of the additional footmen and guards to sleep?”

“He has. When His…Mr Winston had Longbourn enlarged, he had a good number of rooms for male servants built above the new barn.”

It reminded Elizabeth that Archy had purchased all the land the first Mr Collins had gambled away and deeded it back to Longbourn, adding five more tenant farms. He had had the manor house enlarged significantly, as well as the stables, barns, etc.

When Mary received the estate as part of her dowry, it would be worth much more than it was the day Mr Bennet had irrevocably signed away his parental rights.

Mary had not spoken to Lizzy and Archy yet, but as soon as Richard proposed, she intended to request they make Cathy or Lydia the one to receive Longbourn. Richard had a large, thriving estate, so he had no need for another. If and when they had a second son, they would cross that bridge then.

When Cathy and Lydia returned from assisting the tenants, the former was very excited, as the upcoming assembly would be her first foray into local society. The latter was not at all envious she was not out locally yet.

The only thing Lydia was sad about was that she would only see Anna over Christmastide at Falconwood.