Premise: What if Elizabeth and the Gardiners actually did go to Matlock? This "what if" stems from the 2005 movie and a broad P&P fanfiction presumption that the Earl of Matlock is Darcy's uncle. Though he went to the Lambton Inn, Darcy didn't ask the family to dine at Pemberley with his sister. He rather wanted Elizabeth to meet his Matlock relations, hoping that the Gardiners and Elizabeth would wish to tour Matlock house. This is going to be a happyfic.

"Er... tomorrow we go to Matlock."

"Tomorrow?!"

"Elizabeth, my dear, what do you say to touring the Matlock house today?" Mr. Gardiner asked his niece as their carriage approached the end of the turnoff for the property. Normally, he would have assumed she wanted to go, but after how confused she had been the day before when Mr. Darcy appeared at Pemberley, he didn't want to make the same assumption twice. "I've heard it has a very nice position around a lake," Mr. Gardiner commented, his mind ever wandering to fish and fishing. "Besides, I've never toured an Earl's home."

Elizabeth sorely wanted a diversion from Mr. Darcy and Pemberley, two things that had stayed in her thoughts all of the previous evening and so far that day. She had barely been able to sleep the night before either. She nodded quickly, hoping that the Matlock house, Bradbourne Hall, the country home of the Earl of Matlock, would be sufficiently grand enough to force Pemberley from her mind.

And so the carriage rolled down the drive to the Hall through landscapes very similar to Pemberley in style and the overall splendor. Elizabeth liked the grounds very much and thought very highly of the style of the Matlocks, though somehow thought the various gardens and trees not quite as beautiful as the ones from the previous day.

Coming upon the house itself, they found it situated on the side of a hill overlooking a long lake. The house was situated so that the face of the house on the approach had one fewer stories than the face that viewed the lake. The house was a lovely brownstone with many tall windows and a grand entrance with a wide arching portico situated in the middle. Their driver stopped them under the portico and the Gardiners were surprised to find a quaint looking man and woman standing outside of the door, three footmen behind them. The woman was well dressed, though she was quite clearly not the lady of the house, as she stood next to equally well dressed, but not flashy, gentleman. They did not appear unhappy to see unannounced visitors, as had happened at one of the great houses the Gardiners and Lizzy stopped at a few days previous. "Good afternoon!" Mr. Gardiner greeted them with a smile. "My name is Edward Gardiner. This is my wife Mrs. Madeline Gardiner and our niece Miss Elizabeth Bennet. We wish to enquire if the house is open to tour today?"

"Good day to you as well, sir," the woman said with a bright smile and a curtsy. She seemed as welcoming as Mrs. Reynolds had been. "My name is Mrs. Rochester, and I am the head housekeeper for the Matlocks. This is my husband, Mr. Rochester, Lord Matlock's steward. It is a pleasure to meet you; you are expected, please do come in and follow me." The three footmen, impeccably dressed in matching red and gold livery, stepped outside to assist the gentleman and two ladies out of the carriage, placing a small box next to the door for them to step down upon.

Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner shared a significant and surprised look with one another before glancing at their niece, who had gone pale and looked relatively faint. They thought Elizabeth must have another, far more surprising, Derbyshire connection, but it was clear from her reaction that she did not claim an acquaintance with anyone in that house. Finding it would be incredibly rude to leave now and frankly quite intrigued, Mr. Gardiner stepped out of the carriage and allowed the footmen to help his wife and niece. Elizabeth looked quite shaken, though she was comporting herself well as she stepped down. She took her Uncle's arm that was left unoccupied by his wife, an odd gesture as she normally chose to walk alone. He took it as a sign of how nervous she actually was.

Elizabeth had met the Lady Catherine de Bourgh with indifference, and she had known that the woman was Mr. Darcy's Aunt. Lady Catherine was titled, yes, but she and everyone in her employ were so haughty and ridiculous that Elizabeth had been able to laugh at their absurdity without feeling intimidated. After yesterday's coincidental and awkward meeting with Mr. Darcy and seeing his delicate sister play the pianoforte (the same song she herself had played at Rosings!), Elizabeth had not yet been able to come to terms with her emotions.

The three followed the Rochesters towards the back of the grand entryway. Though they had meant to tour the home, at the surprise of their presence being anticipated, all three of them found it rather trying to look at anything around them other than what was straight ahead. How were they expected there?

They went down a winding set of marble stairs that brought them into what had to be a ballroom (Elizabeth found out later it was the smaller, better furnished of the two in the house). There were many fine paintings, framed mirrors and tapestries hanging on the walls and the floor shone in the early afternoon sunlight. Through the large windows that made up most of the wall at the far end, the glistening lake could be seen. Elizabeth found this view wonderful and thought how grand it would be to attend a ball in that room with her Aunt and Uncle, the greatest aspect of the room facing out over the lake at sunset. Thinking of such, she blanched at remembering, had she chosen it, she could have been the Matlock's nearest neighbor. She then thought of how marriage to Mr. Darcy would have actually precluded her inviting her Aunt and Uncle, and this saved her from feeling something very like regret.

The Rochesters veered towards one of the back doors, and another set of footmen opened them outwards, admitting the Rochesters, Gardiners and Elizabeth onto a wide brick-paved veranda that overlooked the lake. Slightly blinded by being outside in the sun again, Elizabeth blinked for a few moments to acclimate to the light. The Rochesters apparently anticipated this, waiting obligingly before moving forwards again. They walked to the edge of the veranda then down another flight of steps to a lower deck to where a number of people were seated around small tables playing cards, chatting quietly or reading. Mr. Rochester announced them and the gathered people stood up to greet them. Upon hearing Elizabeth's name, two voices called simultaneously: "Miss Elizabeth!"

Mrs. Gardiner squeezed her husband's arm, a gesture that Mr. Gardiner transmitted to his niece. Elizabeth recognized the man's voice that had said her name, shadowed by a younger lady's voice that she did not know. Looking around, she found Colonel Fitzwilliam grinning at her. That explained things! She knew he was the son of an Earl, but had not known he was the son of this Earl. Miss Georgiana Darcy was standing next to him and was grinning even wider than her cousin. Not surprisingly, Elizabeth spied Mr. Darcy standing not far from his sister, a small smile on his face as well.

Elizabeth felt slightly ambushed, but she also felt her courage rising at seeing Mr. Darcy's kind face smiling at her in addition to that of his cousin and sister. "Mr. Gardiner, Mrs. Gardiner and Miss Bennet," Darcy said, stepping forward with a bow. As the only one of the family who knew all three of the guests, he was able to make the introduction. He gestured to each of the now standing and smiling people in turn. "Let me present my uncle Andrew the Earl of Matlock, my Aunt the Lady Penelope, my cousin Viscount Branden and his wife Lady Sophie, my cousin Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam and my sister Miss Georgiana Darcy."

The three newcomers bowed and curtsied as appropriate for meeting an Earl, and Mr. Gardiner expressed their honor and gratitude in an eloquent manner. He was well aware of the great distinction it was for a Londoner and his wife whose living was in trade to meet members of the peerage as guests in their own country home. Proud of her uncle's speech, Elizabeth was very glad to have at least some members of her family that she did not need to be ashamed of.

"Welcome to Bradbourne Hall," the Earl replied with a bow and a smile. He normally did not meet tradesmen, but immediately found this one to be not disagreeable. "Please, make yourselves to home here." He now looked specifically at Elizabeth, and his eyes were not unkind. "My nephew and son speak very highly of you," here his look became quite mischievous and he glanced at Darcy, "especially my nephew."

This is far less polished than my other P&P stories, and for that I apologize. If I don't hit the "publish" button, I'll keep editing it and my presentation for this week really won't get done. I want to continue this for one or two more chapters but won't for some time yet, as it is quite similar to my other fic, One More Day and really, I can't juggle three stories at a time. Do please let me know what you think!