Maria Lucas accompanies Elizabeth to Hunsford and now leaves Kent carrying Lady Catherine's exhaustive instructions about travelling and packing.
Maria Lucas is a younger daughter of the Lucas family who has accompanied Elizabeth Bennet on the visit to her newly married sister Charlotte Lucas at Hunsford. At Rosings she has been an awed, comparatively quiet member of the party, receiving Lady Catherine's notices and directives with much more seriousness than Elizabeth does.
As the visit ends, Maria travels back toward London with Elizabeth, who will join the Gardiners before returning to Longbourn. Lady Catherine's detailed concern over the young women's escort, route, horses, and packing has impressed Maria enough that she repacks her trunk after their final Rosings dinner. Her character is not otherwise developed, but she is a present witness to the social grandeur and absurdity of the Kent visit.
The text gives no description of her age, face, hair, complexion, build, or clothing. She is one of the younger Lucas daughters.
She is Elizabeth's younger travelling companion and a receptive contrast to Elizabeth's independent response to Lady Catherine.