Chapter Text
Jane smiled at her husband. Wrinkles lined his face, those happy lines of all the years he'd spent laughing. By now, he'd gone so gray that it was easier to say he had streaks of white. He was old now, but age did nothing to improve his memory or impulsiveness. He complained that age made him forgetful, but everyone knew that he had started that way.
He smiled back at her, squeezing the arm around her shoulder. They were sitting on a bench in the gardens, watching the sun set. They were so old now that doing more would be dangerous. At least that was what they were told.
They still rode. They still wandered the countryside, and they still traveled. They had been to the Alps just last year with the Darcys. Charles had to walk with a cane, on account of a riding accident back in their fifties, but by the joy on his face, you would never guess the pain it sometimes caused him. But Jane could see and was quick to offer assistance before it ever grew too terrible.
Their son Emmett was in charge now, only asking his father or his Uncle William an occasional quandary. She had learned to love the little boy, now a man. By the time he was sitting up, she loved him as dearly as any other mother. Though they had to employ a wet nurse because Jane suffered a deep darkness of her mind whenever she went to feed her children. Charles didn't allow her to even try after Emmett, and she was grateful.
They had another boy, Oliver, and a daughter, Adele. They got better with noticing when she was with child. True, it was mostly because Oliver made her vomit the first three months of pregnancy, and it was a hard symptom to miss. Adele was easier, more like her brother Emmett, but less kicking.
Charles was correct though, they had been outnumbered and tired. She did fall asleep occasionally, and had to say "listen to your father" without really knowing what their father had said.
They became mischievous children, always up to silly childhood antics, and trying to convince one parent that the other had allowed them. They were generally pleasant though. The staff loved them and their family adored them. Adele was very nearly spoiled like Lydia had been, but Charles became quick to discipline her, even though it caused them both tears. She cried to everyone, and he cried to Jane in secret.
He saved his daughter though. She straightened out to be a beautiful young lady who thought less of herself and more of others. In fact, thought less of herself and less of others and was constantly reading natural science periodicals.
Oliver… she loved him dearly, but... well, he was like his father. Energetic, impulsive, and forgetful. One would have thought staying still would kill him. He could never simply walk into a room. He exploded with noise and laughter that never seemed checked.
Emmett was shy and quiet. He got her dark thoughts, and she wept for her boy's struggles. She tried desperately to help him to grow up without them, giving him praise and giving him opportunities to fail to see that it wasn't so bad as he thought. But he retained the anxieties anyway. He was driven and got the praise of neighbors, of school, of family, but Jane only felt sorry for it because she knew he only did it because he was terrified to fail. She felt sometimes that she had failed him.
Lizzy and William had six children. Charles and Jane both winced at the thought. Four of theirs were happy enough, but two got Williams depression. Jane and William wrote back and forth, trying to figure out how to rid their children of the problems they struggled so hard with. They found a few short term assistance, but nothing promising.
Thankfully, in the end, the children turned out fine, though Jane and William had wanted to save them some heart ache.
All the Bingley children had married. Emmett stayed with Sherwood, with them. His vivacious wife, Arabelle, was a force of nature. Her fiery red hair gave a warning to whoever would try to cross her. In a pinch, the girl was vicious, but generally she was excited to be where she was. She and Emmett shared a deep love for horses and continued her and Charles' business.
Oliver was a captain of a trading vessel. He sailed all over the world with his wife. Frankly, Jane was very nervous for him growing up, that he would never calm down. And he didn't, he just found a place that needed a wild man. His wife, Athena, was tanned, black haired and black eyed. She grew up sailing the Mediterranean and was calm and cool as a breeze. Nothing could shake her from an inner stillness, except when Oliver crashed into her life like a firework.
Adele was married to a count, an eccentric count. Thomas would fly kites in thunderstorms and travel to France to ride the hot air balloons. Adele was tricky and clever, always finding ways to push a little farther, just to see what would happen. This served them both well when figuring out experiments. They were constantly reading and experimenting. They hardly left their manor unless it was to go experiment somewhere else. Jane wondered sometimes if Lydia could have become that clever, had her parents cared enough to correct her.
Jane leaned her head on Charles shoulder, withered over the years, but dearer now then it had been. He kissed the top of her head and sighed in contentment.
He seemed always happy to be where he was. He was her dearest friend. She thanked God he had ever lent Netherfield. Her life went from 'good enough' to 'joy filled.' Sure, they had fights, but there was enough love between fights to make up for them. It was like looking back over a field of roses. It may have hurt occasionally at the time, but she didn't see the thorns now. Just a beloved expanse of a beautiful life together.
"I love you," she said, an oft repeated phrase, but one she meant each time. She felt his shoulder move in a chuckle.
"And I love you," he said, kissing the top of her head again, "you're so damn precious."
Jane smiled and felt the familiar swell of love for him.