Absence Makes The Heart Grow Fonder - Pride and Prejudice (Darcy)

[AdrianMarx]

I am still pretty hungover and I'm about to collapse in bed for three years (why do people drink it's not worth it oh my god) so goodnight and please excuse mistakes since I had this idea after waaaaay too many drinks.

---

Fitzwilliam Darcy woke that summer morning with a heaviness in his chest which he had come to live with over the past weeks. It was not unusual for his unrequited affections for Elizabeth to be uncontrollably strong directly after waking and he fully expected to gain some semblance of control before showing face at the breakfast table. The accompanying headache, however, was not so easily explained.

In the time it took him to dress, the headache did not shift and the weight of his breathing seemed only to have increased. He faltered; something he had caught himself doing very often as of late. This was most unlike him and was indeed extremely disconcerting. It took him but a moment to come to the decision to skip breakfast in favour of a ride through the grounds to clear his pounding head and he informed Georgiana of such when he met her on the stairs, ignoring her warnings not to go far as it looked like rain.

As she watched his back retreat in the direction of the stables, Georgiana sighed. Her brother truly was in love and it pained her to think that he might forever be without the Miss Elizabeth Bennet who brought him so much joy.

Her predictions were proven correct and the rain began not fifteen minutes after Darcy's departure. Unable to eat when she knew her brother had not, she paced anxiously by the door to await his return. He had not been quite himself that morning. For weeks, he had been melancholy - Georgiana had grown accustomed to his change in demeanor but she was no means pleased about it - but this morning he had been almost defeated and that concerned her more that what might become of him in this downpour.

When Darcy finally returned, he was thoroughly soaked through and his dark curls perpetually released bursts of icy water over his face. What concerned Georgiana most of all was the sodden handkerchief he held limply in his hand and, without a thought for her dress, she ran to her brother and engulfed him in a hug. The expected protest did not come. Instead, he patted her back apathetically, letting his cheek rest momentarily atop her head.

Georgiana made to press her palm against his forehead but he stopped her weakly and turned away, thrown forwards by the force of his sneezes.

"huh'HRUSHHhh! hh'HHRUSHHHhh! hh'RUSHHHHhHh!"

The sheer strength behind them, coupled with the fatigue, almost overbalanced him.

"God bless you," Georgiana murmured as she steadied him with a hand on his arm and gently laid the other across his hot forehead. She fretted. Darcy was prone to fevers and he'd pulled through more times than she was able to count but this knowledge did not quash the spark of fear which came to life inside her. Fretting would accomplish nothing,

With a seemingly nonchalant shake of her head, she slipped her hand into her brother's and guided him upstairs, enlisting the help of a servant along the way to bring a towel and fresh night things to Darcy's bedchamber as soon as they were available. It was only after Darcy paused to squash another double that she wished she had also asked for a fresh handkerchief. In the meantime, her own would do and she quickly exchanged the two once she had settled him in his chair, placing the soaked cloth aside.

She immediately set to work unbuttoning his tailcoat and the willingness with which he submitted himself to her care only fed the proverbial flame in the pit of her stomach. His waistcoat quickly followed along with his cravat but she got no further before he raised an arm to stop her as he had done by the door.

"huh'HHRISHHHhhuh! huH'HRRSHHHHhuh! hhuh'RHHUSHHHhhh! hh'HHSHHHH!"

Darcy blew his nose softly into the borrowed handkerchief, flashing Georgiana a tiny, sheepish smile. She returned the gesture and undid the button on his shirt, blessing him quietly. She sighed fondly and pushed aside his damp hair before taking his head in her hands and kissing his forehead.

"Whatever shall I do with you, Fitzwilliam?" She said with a shake of her head.

Before he could respond, a knock at the door announced the arrival of the servant with the things Georgiana had requested and she thanked him kindly as she accepted them. She laid the night clothes neatly on the bed and placed the towel in her brother's hands.

"Change into you dry clothes," she told him quietly. "I shan't be long."

With that, she left him to change.

There were times when Georgiana wondered how anyone could think the difference in age between her brother and herself might drive a wedge between them. If anything, it brought them closer. They never fought over petty things as Darcy had always been old enough to understand and explain their disputes in a way she would understand. While he was much like a father in many ways, he was still decidedly her elder brother and Georgiana felt she was very lucky to have someone who loved her like a daughter but treated her like a sister.

She was still lost in thought when she arrived at the kitchen where she asked the cook to prepare some tea and fetch some fresh handkerchiefs for her to take to her brother when she returned. It was then another thought came to her and she allowed herself a secret smile while she made her way back to her brother, via her own bedchambers.

The detour took longer then expected and she arrived at Darcy's door just as the cook was leaving. Georgiana knocked while she peered round the open door, satisfied to find her brother in bed.

"How are you feeling?" She asked, taking a seat on the edge of the bed and handing him a clean handkerchief.

"Much better, thank you," he replied hoarsely. How he had deteriorated so quickly with just one stint in the rain was a mystery to her and she could only deduce that he had been feeling ill before departing. If that were indeed the case, she felt it necessary to confront him.

She sighed and stood, drawing the curtains and lighting a candle which she knew would be kinder to his headache. While she worked, she asked, "You should not have gone out if you knew you were unwell."

When she placed the candle down on the table beside his bed, she saw his look of discomfort.

"I will admit I had my suspicions," he began. "But I felt the symptoms may have been attributed to an ailment not of the physical persuasion."

Georgiana offered a half-smile. "You would not by chance be referring to your affections for the renouned Miss Elizabeth Bennet, would you, Fitzwilliam?" She teased gently. He smiled.

"My affections-" he said, pausing as though struggling for the right words before beginning again. "I had thought the distance might have silenced the feelings which I harbour for her but I fear they have only grown."

"I have heard it said that absence makes the heart grow only fonder," she countered seriously and she could see his reply formulating but he was rudely interrupted by a sudden sneeze.

"huH'HHSHHHhmff!"

"God bless you," Georgiana said, averting her gaze while he wiped his pink nose.

He sniffled delicately and thanked her before continuing, "So it would seem."

"I should very much care to meet her one day," Georgiana mused. "From the way you have described her, I believe I would greatly enjoy her company."

While he pondered this in silence, she retrieved the towel from where it had been placed over the back of the chair and began to dry his hair so he might be able to sleep. As she did so, he sipped at his tea. She worked gently so as not to cause him pain, grabbing tufts of hair through the towel and squeezing the excess water out.

When she was finally finished, she bade him lie down and fetched the book which she had collected from her chambers. It was the same book Darcy had read to her countless times as a child at her request during times of illness. She did not think she read it so well as he did but knew he would appreciate the gesture regardless of the eloquence of its delivery. It had occurred to her only recently that her love for the story had stemmed mainly from her brother's enthusiasm for adventure when she had meditated on why she had enjoyed it less in Wickham's voice. Darcy, she knew, longed to be free to marry for love, to travel the world for pleasure, to enjoy life outwith the constraints which society used to suffocate him. He did not wish that for himself nor did he wish it for his sister and Georgiana had found that Gulliver's Travels had always brought out the spirit of adventure she was sure had graced her brother's dreams when he had been a little boy.

It did not surprise her, therefore, to see his faraway smile when she read, "My father had a small estate in Nottinghamshire; I was the third of five sons."

--

I just have this headcanon that Darcy loves Gulliver's Travels because it was all about adventure and he was confined to a life planned out for him. He was expected to honour the expectations of his family and marry for convenience rather than love and always think of how people see him. But, like all little boys, he wanted to be a brave adventurer and I like to think Gulliver's Travels provided him with the escape he needed and I just have a lot of Darcy feels okay.

[Fae]

excellent

[AngelEyes]

This is Fantastic! Confession. I skipped out on reading this book in school. I took part of my classes at the high school and part of them at the university, and so strange things got left out of my education in the juncture between because the two institution's curriculum didn't really correlate. Which is a shame in this case. It did however allow me to skip both chemistry and physics, which still baffles me. Anyway, you are inspiring me to close the shameful gap in my lexicon. LOL.

[aussieblokeintexas]

This is well done. Bravo!

[AdrianMarx]

excellent

thank you!

This is Fantastic! Confession. I skipped out on reading this book in school. I took part of my classes at the high school and part of them at the university, and so strange things got left out of my education in the juncture between because the two institution's curriculum didn't really correlate. Which is a shame in this case. It did however allow me to skip both chemistry and physics, which still baffles me. Anyway, you are inspiring me to close the shameful gap in my lexicon. LOL.

Omg thank you!! I was totally opposed to reading P&P at first because I thought it was going to be written in that old style of English that kind of makes you want to rip your eyeballs out but I'm so glad I did because I just adore it. I only did Physics. Chemistry was definitely not my strong suit. Ahh, yay! Glad to be of assistance

This is well done. Bravo!

Thank you

[tma]

I love you more and more and more each day

My absolute *favourite* literary man. (btw- Firth is my FAV and your sig. pic is HAWT!) and you just do a *brilliant* job writing the characters and just....

**melts into puddle**

[AdrianMarx]

I love you more and more and more each day

My absolute *favourite* literary man. (btw- Firth is my FAV and your sig. pic is HAWT!) and you just do a *brilliant* job writing the characters and just....

**melts into puddle**

well I love you too ^-^

ugh I know the feeling he's just sdjkhrfgf perfect (omg he's just gorgeous like wow) ahHH thank you omg!<3