Pride And Prejudice, The Sequel

Chapter 13

Elizabeth paused her pen at that point, the hairs at the back of her neck stood up in alarm. She sensed a presence behind her, someone was standing very still behind her, still and close, close enough to read the contents of her letter. She held her pen tighter and assumed a defensive posture, slowly, she turned around to face the intruder, and her pen clattered to the floor when she saw who it was.

"I am dying for you to finish that sentence Lizzy dearest, tell me what you would do if I were awake," he said with a smile.

It took Elizabeth a while to reassure herself that she was not dreaming, that he was awake and talking and smiling at her. She embraced him with all the strength she could master, and her returned her embrace with the little strength he had left in him before he collapsed on the bed.

She ordered a very light but energizing meal brought to him, and she fed him from her own hand. He remembered very little concerned his ordeal with Wickham except that he had struggled to stay awake the whole time because he could never bear the thought of dying without her by his side.

Throughout the day, she kept him to herself, not letting anyone else know that he was awake.He asked about her, what had happened in his absence, she told him all except one thing, one thing that he needed to see for himself and not just be told.

The next few days saw him recover a great deal of his strength,  he was able to walk around the house and even go to the stables. By the end of the week, Elizabeth decided he was strong enough to handle anything.

"I have a gift for you, "Elizabeth started the conversation that evening after dinner.

"You need not give me a gift, if you want to ask me if we could adopt Ella and Anne, by answer is yes, they are lovely children, and with you as their mother, they will grow into very fine girls."

Elizabeth beamed at him in joy,  appreciating the lengths he was going through to love the children of the man he hated, "It is not that,even though I was going to ask for that eventually. Mrs Tompkins, please bring him in," Elizabeth called out to the housekeeper whom she had instructed to wait outside the room with the child.

Elizabeth took Fil from the housekeeper and thanked her very much before she turned to Darcy, who was sitting on the bed with a very confused look and handed him the bundle of silk and fine clothing.

The look of confusion on his face slowly dissolved as his eyes registered first shock,  then surprise and finally pure undiluted joy as he held his son for the first time. Elizabeth sat beside him and helped him admire their fine son.

"He has your eyes," he whispered as he held out a finger to Fil who grabbed it with an intense ferocity, "and your temper."

Elizabeth nodded, "But everything else seems to be yours. "

He held the baby closer to his chest and smiled, "Oh Lizzy! You keep on making me the happiest man on earth every day. What could I ever do to repay you? "

Elizabeth smiled, "Well, you could start by purchasing a few gowns, then jewellery, about a hundred pieces a month would do. "

She had meant it as a joke, but to her horror, he nodded his head seriously, "You got it. "

"No,I did not mean... " Elizabeth began to protest.

"Sh," he said rocking his son in his arms, "with this as a gift to me, you will never need to apologize for anything. "

"Do you not want to know what I named him?" Elizabeth asked.

"I care not whether you named him baboon or scarecrow, I only care that he is my son."

"Really? What if I tell you his name is Catherine after your aunt? "

He raised up his face in alarm, "It is not though,is it? "he asked in panic.

Elizabeth laughed out loudly at him, "You see? You do care what he is named. "

"Alright, I care a little bit, as long as it is not a name reserved for the female species, I am fine. But I am dying to know, what did you call him?"

"His name is Fil," Elizabeth answered.

He smiled again, a wide smile that reminded Elizabeth of all the reasons she loved him, " I thought you hated the name?"

"I do hate the name. You must admit that Filtzwillam is a ridiculous first name."

"Now you will be forced to call him the name you refuse to call me. "

"Darcy suits you better, just like Fil suits him," Elizabeth said softy.

"And Elizabeth suits you best, for it is a name given to queens,  and you are my queen," he said, his voice equally soft.

They looked at each other for a long moment,and then they looked at their son, and in that instant, Elizabeth knew that if he had died, she would have followed him within the year, for they were like one soul in different bodies, and their son was now the link that kept those pieces together.

          The end.