Ch. 2
The next morning Kitty awoke with a sense of excitement and newfound purpose. Not only would she be learning the pianoforte (something she had desperately wanted but never pursued due to Lydia), but she would also get to play dress up with Mary! In the months since three of her sisters had married, Kitty had truly missed the companionship and noise that came with having four sisters. Perhaps now she would befriend Mary, no matter that her older sister was a boring bluestocking. She could get over that as long as she had companionship. She smiled to herself as she opened her wardrobe to pull out a light pink dress.
After getting dressed, she flounced to Mary's room where she knocked excitedly on the door. After a moment of waiting, the door was flung open by Mary, who looked rather annoyed at her early morning visit. Her sister sighed, "Let us get this over with." And she moved out of the way so that Kitty could have entrance to the room. She giggled at that, unable to contain her mirth and excitement.
"So what is it that you wish for me to wear?" asked Mary as she sat down on the edge of her bed.
"Well as you know both Lizzie and Jane left some of their older gowns when they left to go live with their husbands. For the past few months I've been trying to change them a bit to make them more fashionable. You know, a little lace here, new embroidery there." Kitty stopped herself before she could begin to truly ramble, but she could not stop the grin on her face from widening as thoughts of fashion danced through her head. "Anyways, one of Lizzie's old dresses is a lovely olive green that would look so nice with your dark coloring. Do not worry, it is one of her more conservative dresses, although the neckline does not reach one's neck. Here, I shall go fetch it! It is easier to see it than it is to describe it!"
Kitty rushed from the room, heart racing. Mary actually hadn't looked disgusted at her suggestions! Once more she couldn't keep the grin from her face as she rifled through the pile of dresses that she had been working on. She found the dress she had wanted to show to Mary so badly, and hurried back to her sister's room.
When she presented the dress to Mary, she did not look impressed. Kitty felt her chest deflate and her face flood with a pink blush. She almost said, 'It's pretty! You just wouldn't know pretty if it bit you on the nose!' but she stopped herself. That was something Lydia would have said, and Kitty didn't want to hurt Mary's feelings. "I'm sorry, this was a bad idea," she muttered quietly, averting her eyes as they filled with traitorous tears.
She heard Mary huff, "Come now Kitty, just because I don't squeal with excitement doesn't mean I don't like it. Help me get dressed."
A few minutes later, Mary was fully dressed and looking in the mirror with a peculiar look on her face. "I knew you would look nice in that color!" triumphed Kitty, crossing her arms over her chest with satisfaction. "Now let me do your hair, I have a white ribbon that would look so pretty with that dress." Kitty would have called in their maid Sarah to help with Mary's hair, but Mary would never have accepted that, no matter how much Kitty begged. Without letting Mary confirm or deny her plans, Kitty plopped her sister down onto the chair in front of the vanity (how ironic Kitty found it that her sister had a vanity in her room!)
Mary protested initially when Kitty pulled her hair a little too hard. "Kitty! That hurts, let me just put my hair into a bun. It will be far easier that way." Rolling her eyes, Kitty shook her head.
"After this you will teach me how to play the pianoforte until lunch time, let me enjoy an hour of playing dress up!" It wasn't until she had spoken that she realized how childish she had sounded. Her sister gave her an affronted look, and so she amended her words. "I'm sorry Mary, that was petulant of me. I just want you to understand that you aren't ugly. And the best way to do that is to dress up!"
"Well that's a shallow way of looking at things." Sniffed Mary, raising a brow. Kitty tilted her head to the side slightly.
"I guess you are right, but since you can learn how to dress nicely, I can learn to be less shallow, yes?" At that comment, Mary let out a slight chuckle, smiling genuinely for a moment.
"There!" She finished doing Mary's hair and stepped back to observe her handiwork.
Although nobody would ever call Mary a great beauty like Jane or even a 'gem of the county' like Lizzie, she was prettier than she was when she dressed in her ugly dark colors. Kitty watched as Mary self-consciously touched a loose strand of hair. "Well I don't see what difference this makes!" she said after a few moments of quiet. "Mother will always call me the plain one, and father will call me silly for indulging in my appearance."
Kitty found that couldn't keep from wrinkling her nose as she stared at Mary. On some level she had truly understood how her family's comments towards Mary had affected her self-esteem. Yet she had always thought that Mary was above caring about her appearance, and that she did not mind the things their mama said to her. Kitty was only used to calming Lydia's tantrums and had no experience with helping someone who actually had problems. But she would try, even if her idea was a childish one.
"What's the most beautiful flower in the world?" she asked suddenly.
Mary looked at her, bewildered. "What nonsense is this? We have work to do, you will not learn how to play the pianoforte if you do not give me time to instruct you."
"Please Mary? I promise this won't take more than a few moments." Kitty knew she was begging, but Mary never said anything about not begging to her. Her lips stuck out in a pout and she clasped her hands together earnestly.
"Fine," sighed Mary, "roses. They are the obvious choice."
"But what is your favorite flower?"
"I like lavender the best. It smells nice and it is easy to care for, not to mention that the color is more subdued while still being pleasing."
"And I like poppies the best. They're bright and pretty." Smiling encouragingly, Kitty put a hand on her hip as she leaned forwards.
"Now that we've established our favorite flowers, may we go play?" Asked Mary, giving Kitty a look of annoyance, but there was a slight glimmer of intrigue hidden in her dark eyes.
"One moment! I'm getting to my point!" Kitty clapped her hands together excitedly. "Jane is a rose; she is the prettiest out of all of us by far, everyone knows it. If you asked anyone who the most beautiful girl in the family is, they would say Jane. But you are lavender; you may not be the prettiest flower in the garden, but someone will love you the best. Someone will think you are loveliest. Lovelier than Jane even!"
Mary did not reply, she just furrowed her brow slightly. "Let us go play now." Kitty sighed loudly in annoyance, but she followed after Mary nonetheless.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
A full two weeks passed following a set schedule. Kitty would dress Mary in the early morning, Mary would aid Kitty on the pianoforte until luncheon, after which Kitty would show Mary basic reels, then they would have dinner, and as the night settled Mary would choose a book for Kitty to read to better her education. Meanwhile Mary would settle in with any book that wasn't Fordyce's Sermons.
Although it was a rather good distraction more often than not, there were times that both Kitty and Mary wished to kill one another.
Every other day they fought horribly, Kitty shrieking and stomping, and Mary throwing barbed insults. Kitty would call Mary a 'boring bluestocking' or an 'uppity goose' (which amused their father to no end), and Mary would reply by calling her an 'idiotic child' or a 'silly little strumpet.' In the end it usually resulted in either of their parents reprimanding them for the noise.
They nearly gave up altogether after one nasty argument where Kitty threw her sewing basket and Mary slapped the back of Kitty's head as she tried to run from the room. But after six hours of avoiding each other, both of the Bennet girls had to admit that they actually missed the company of the other. Their time together- despite it only being on its second week- had quickly become the most pleasant experience since their household had shrunk so exponentially.
Kitty had apologized to Mary first, although she had been frowning the entire time. Mary had apologized to Kitty only moments later, but she could barely contain her glee. For once she had not been the one forced to apologize! Another week passed, and still they never stopped with their lessons, no matter how badly they argued. It seemed that both were determined to hold up their side of the bargain. Neither wanted to be the first to give in or give up. Even as they both discovered their own failings.
There were many days spent with Mary instructing Kitty on the simplest scales and keys. Kitty's fingers ached even when she was not practicing, and she eventually formed a newfound appreciation for Mary's constant playing. But after failing at the scales for what might have been the fiftieth time in that single week alone, Kitty jumped up from the stool angrily. "I cannot do it Mary! I am horrid! I'll never learn how to play like you or Lizzie or any of the fine ladies! We have been at this for seventeen days and I cannot even remember the keys!" she stomped her foot and crossed her arms. Her sister stood slowly and put a hand on either of Kitty's shoulders.
"You are behaving like a child, or worse, Lydia. Come now, let's try it one more time." Kitty nodded slowly and sat back down. Trying it once more turned into another hour of instruction and practice, but it ended with Kitty finally getting a few of the scales and reading a single line of simple music. The kind used by children in the nursery, but Kitty did not mind how simplistic the music was. She was too excited at the prospect that she was learning!
When they finished their practice, the sun was setting and supper was being set out. They had been unable to practice earlier in the day due to a visit to Netherfield to see Jane. So they had been practicing since they got back home. Kitty looked at her hands and let out a cough, "Thank you Mary… for not getting angry when I yelled."
Nodding, Mary replied with, "Just make sure it does not happen again. Tomorrow we shall practice again. I promise you that by the end of summertime you shall know at least three songs that are passable for a dinner party with the Lucases. Then I won't be the only one forced to play."
Kitty kept herself from pointing out that Mary loved playing in front of people (even though she only played somber music that served to depress the entire party). And the two readied for dinner.
They barely had sat down when their mama began to speak. "Why on earth have you been playing so poorly these past two weeks Mary? I know you seldom play anything other than funeral marches but it seems as if you've forgotten to play completely! I cannot stand that droning noise for much longer!" Kitty felt mortified tears spring to her eyes, but when she looked up and saw Mary shake her head slightly, Kitty tried to calm herself.
She had a side of a deal to uphold after all. "She has been teaching me to play recently, mama. I was the one playing so… poorly." Answered Kitty weakly.
"Why on earth do you wish to learn the pianoforte? You would do better to practice your dancing so that you might catch a husband at an assembly." Kitty frowned and replied in a tight voice.
"Mama, I've been teaching Mary how to dance in exchange for lessons on the pianoforte. If I danced anymore I believe my feet would fall off!" She tried to smile and found that she could not.
"How singular!" commented their papa drolly.
"Oh Kitty! Do not waste your time teaching Mary to dance, she rarely even socializes during assemblies." Mrs. Bennet sipped her soup and gave a searching look towards Mary before speaking once more. "And Mary! I have been shocked to see you in anything other than your somber dresses of brown and gray. They look quite nice on you, but I believe they looked better on Jane and Lizzie."
Grinding her teeth, Kitty watched Mary's crestfallen face. "I believe Mary looks lovely today," Kitty said loudly.
"Indeed, she looks quite nice. Tell me Mary, have you given up your books for looks?" quipped their papa from the head of the table.
"I am not feeling that hungry, if I may be excused." Mary stood and walked from the room quickly, face drawn and pale.
Kitty wanted to scream and cry and cause a scene. It was no more than her parents deserved! Insulting Mary like so! But she realized with shame that she also insulted Mary when she was Lydia's lapdog. It was partially her own fault for Mary's lack of confidence. She stood as well, forgetting her manners and following after Mary.
As she left she heard her mama say, "I had no idea that Mary and Kitty were friends!"
Out in the garden, Mary was sitting on a bench with her knees drawn up to her chin. Kitty watched her for a moment before approaching. "May I sit, Mary?" she asked, trying to speak softly. Wordlessly, Mary nodded.
"Mama and papa were being so rude! Do not listen to them Mary. They're mean." Kitty prattled, not really thinking about what she was saying. "I mean, I was cruel too, and so was Lyddie and sometimes Lizzie on accident… never Jane. Jane was always too nice to be mean, but-" she trailed off when she saw how Mary was looking at her.
"Thank you Kitty," Mary dropped her knees from her chin. "It means a lot to me that you are apologizing for saying those things. It shows maturity. You're finally growing up."
"No," argued Kitty, "I should have apologized years ago. I should have told Lyddie to stop and I shouldn't have laughed whenever mama insulted you. I should not have called you ugly when I was twelve and you scolded me for stealing sweets from the kitchen. It seems that I have quite a lot to apologize for."
Mary laughed a bit, nodding. "But at least you are apologizing. You know, Fordyce says that-" she stopped, shaking her head, "I shall not quote Fordyce. I made a promise, you know. I know we have had our differences, Kitty, and I know that we both have said things that we wish we could take back. But you are my sister, and I care for you deeply. We have nothing in common, but I want you to know that I am glad you are my sister, and if you want, I would like to be your friend as well as your sister."
Kitty grinned, letting out a giggle as she threw her arms around Mary, who still stiffened at the contact. "I would love that! And tomorrow after you help me with the piano, I want to teach you how to dance one of my favorite reels! Not any of those boring ones I've been teaching you." Mary let a smile slip through, and she agreed.
They sat in the twilight, Kitty prattling and Mary quietly putting in comments or pausing Kitty to remind her not to gossip. It wasn't until their mama called them in that they entered the house to prepare for bed.
"Goodnight Mary!" called Kitty with a giggle as she closed her door.
"Goodnight Kitty," Mary calmly replied, unable to keep a smile from forming on their own face.
Neither felt as lonely that night, even as they slept in separate rooms.
A/N: Anyone expecting this story to explore how "the combined efforts of Jane and Elizabeth led to Kitty becoming less insipid and less whiny because of their fancy society blah blah blah" or "Mary was happy her sisters were gone because she was jealous all along and now she was glad to be given all the attention of her mother" will be sorely mistaken. This is about Kitty and Mary helping each other become better and more interesting people, not about how they are problems that their family needs to fix.
Also I know I made them become friends rather quickly, but if Bingley and Jane can fall 'madly' in love within two months then Kitty and Mary (SISTERS) can become friends in less than a month.