Pride and Prejudice doesn't belong to me.

Thanks Miriam1 for all your help.

Enjoy.

Some of the Occasions

Fitzwilliam Darcy entered the ballroom behind his friend, Charles Bingley, and the rest of their party and looked around in dismay. He hated public gatherings, especially those that involved dancing. But Bingley wouldn't hear of his refusal to attend the ball, and when Caroline Bingley had also said that she would stay at Netherfield with him if he insisted on passing up on the ball, Darcy had quickly changed his mind. It would be better to go and be miserable in public than spend the evening alone with Caroline Bingley.

Darcy looked at his friend; Bingley seemed so at home and what was incomprehensible to Darcy was that he also was happy, shaking hands with whomever chanced by and talking and smiling at them all. Darcy could never understand how his friend managed to be so charitable all the time.

"Let me introduce you to Mrs. Bennet and her daughters." Sir William Lucas, who had decided to be their host, took them to meet yet another family.

"Mrs. Bennet," Sir William said, "allow me to introduce you to Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy." That lady curtseyed while the men bowed in greeting. She smiled at them and said, "Allow me to introduce my daughters, Jane, Elizabeth," she pointed them out, they were standing next to her, "Mary who's sitting over there, and Kitty and Lydia are dancing."

Bingley smiled at the woman, as he was really interested in meeting her daughters. Darcy hadn't looked past the two eldest but he could honestly see nothing remarkable about them. So much for village gossip which had it that they were some of the finest looking women in Hertford.

"Do you like to dance?" Mrs. Bennet asked Bingley.

"There's nothing I like better than a country ball," Bingley replied. Darcy agreed with his friend's words. Bingley did like to dance. "And if your eldest daughter is not otherwise engaged, I would like to dance the next with her."

Jane Bennet agreed to dance with Bingley and when she smiled, Darcy thought that maybe he had been too hasty in his estimation of the Misses Bennet, as Jane Bennet was quite beautiful.

"And you, Mr. Darcy, do you like to dance?" Mrs. Bennet asked him, clearly intent on seeing all her daughters dancing.

"No, I only dance on rare occasions," he told her.

"Then let this be one of the occasions," Mrs. Bennet told him. "For I wager you'll not find livelier company or more attractive companions."

Darcy wanted to refuse, in fact he was about to walk away without another word, when he caught Elizabeth Bennet's eye. She was smiling and there was a twinkle in her eyes; she was looking at him like she knew that he wanted to run.

"I would be delighted to dance the next with you Miss Bennet," Darcy addressed Elizabeth. She accepted and they made their way to the dance floor.

As they stood at the sides waiting for the next song, Darcy turned and said to Elizabeth, "I wonder Miss Bennet, if you would mind very much if we sat the next song out as well."

"Are you saying that you don't want to dance with me?" Elizabeth asked him.

"As I informed your mother," Darcy replied, "I rarely dance, and it's not because I greatly dislike the activity, which indeed I do."

"I see," Elizabeth interrupted him, "you don't know how to dance."

"I assure you that I do." Darcy was offended.

"Then you don't want to be seen dancing with me," Elizabeth teased him, she couldn't help the smile that was fighting to get out.

"I assure you, my dearest Miss Bennet," Darcy replied, "it is you I am trying to spare the embarrassment."

"Embarrassment, my kind sir?"

"Embarrassment," Darcy agreed. "I believe when dancing, ladies are generally considered the better partners and I wouldn't want your fellow countrymen to say that you can't dance."

"Everyone here knows how well I dance," Elizabeth assured him. "It is your skills that are in doubt."

"Then let us put them to the test, shall we?" He offered her his arm and they took their places.

As they danced, Darcy thought to himself that he couldn't remember having such a lively conversation with a woman, and that he had really been wrong about the charms of the Bennet girls; the rumours hadn't been wrong, the girls, especially the two eldest were very beautiful, and Miss Elizabeth was one he wouldn't mind spending an evening with.

000

"There, it wasn't so bad now, was it?" Bingley asked him.

"No," Darcy agreed. It had been very good but he wouldn't tell his friend that.

Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst signaled them over to join them at the other side of the room. Darcy would have preferred to stay where he was, but he really couldn't refuse.

"I never thought I'd live to see the day Mr. Darcy stood up with a young woman at a country ball," Caroline said as soon as they joined them.

"I guess you have no choice but to believe it then," Darcy replied.

"So what is your opinion of the Misses Bennet now?" Caroline continued. She was furious and trying unsuccessfully to hide it. "Are the rumours to be believed?"

"The eldest Miss Bennet is very beautiful," Bingley said.

"And Miss Elizabeth?" Caroline insisted. "What of her?"

Darcy knew that he shouldn't let her rile him, that he would say things that he would regret. "She's tolerable, I suppose," he heard himself say. He really should have kept his mouth shut.

"But you're too good to tempted by the likes of her, aren't you?" Caroline said.

Darcy didn't know what made him look up, but he did and saw Elizabeth and Mrs. Bennet standing nearby; from their expressions – Mrs. Bennet was looking at him in shock – he knew that they had heard the whole exchange.

000

Elizabeth couldn't believe that Mr. Darcy had called her 'tolerable'. How dare he call her tolerable? She had thought him a bit proud and off-standish when she'd first seen him; their conversation and dance had sort of changed her mind – she had been surprised to find that she'd enjoyed herself – and now she knew that she'd been right. He was just rude and arrogant.

"What a proud, arrogant man," Mrs. Bennet said.

"Maybe he's not so handsome after all," Elizabeth said.

"No indeed," Mrs. Bennet agreed. "And next time Elizabeth, I shouldn't dance with him if he asked you."

"Have no fear, ma'am," Elizabeth replied. "I shall never dance with him again."

000

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