2 Days after the Wedding:
There was very little else she could do. The rain had let up, and there was a bit of sun shining through the clouds. Perhaps it would stay dry enough for the roads to become safer. For now, the Mansfield party had suggested an outing outdoors. Every one of them was tired of each other's close company even if they were too polite to say so. Lady Bertram was attending, and of course, Fanny had to attend her. She could not escape this outing.
Julia, in a surprising indulgence of hostess thoughtfulness had ordered their lunch be prepared as a picnic. As they traveled through the back gardens and toward the stream that wound around the exterior of the woods at the back of the property, they came to realize that Julia's efforts were perhaps in vain. The ground was much too soft and wet to really enjoy a blanket spread. The outdoor tables and chairs were soaked, having not received enough of the weak sun to dry properly.
Fanny had trailed Lady Bertram this entire time, effectively evading the Londoners, in particular Mr. Crawford, who every so often would crane his neck, looking for an opportunity to fall behind. They were perfectly paired, however. Mr. Lucas lead Miss Croft behind Mr. Crawford who had Julia attached fastly to his arm, and Fanny accompanied Lady Bertram behind them all.
Fanny hoped that a wet picnic would persuade the party to return to the house, where she could hide better. Additionally, her shoes were too light for the soft ground and wet foliage.
"Nonsense," Miss Croft waved away Julia's concern. "We may very well have a picnic here. You underestimate a Londoner's instance on good weather."
Miss Croft expertly nudged Julia and Lady Bertram to order servants to clean the tables and chairs, as well as bringing out more furniture from the house.
While the preparations were being made and lunch was readied, someone suggested an extended walk about the grounds. Mansfield Park maintained beautiful grounds and gardens, obvious even in the grey rain-soaked day.
They followed the paths, and Fanny was surprised when Mr. Lucas accompanied Lady Bertram and herself. He was a handsome, charming young man and he asked questions, which Lady Bertram was more than willing to answer. In fact, he asked only two questions before she was speaking extensively.
The three lead the group. Through the bushes and flowers, they followed the winding paths. Fanny was infinitely grateful for Mr. Lucas, as she could walk in silence and enjoy the scenery. She did not often enjoy the outdoors, but the flowers were perked from the rains and their faces search for the sun. Their leaves were heavy with rain. The smell that omitted from them was rejuvenating and peaceful.
The lane narrowed with thicker trees and shrubs. Fanny was directly behind Mr. Lucas and Lady Bertram with no hope of rejoining them, unless the path opened again. She noted this when Miss Croft pushed past her, leading Julia.
"Do excuse me, dear Miss Price," Miss Croft said, taking Julia with her. Her chatter could be heard long after they were in front of her. Julia turned back at Fanny with a slight frown, but the allure of the full attention of Miss Croft was too much.
So concentrated she was on the strangeness of what had occured, she stumbled slightly on a blemish of the path. She regained her footing but there was a person beside her now.
"Mr. Crawford," She said almost in resignation.
His hand was on the small of her back, with the lightest of touches. It was enough, however, to completely burn her with mortification on the inside. She took a breath and faced the man standing over her.
He retreated his hand, but he held out his arm for her to take.
Fanny looked ahead to the quickly departing party in a sort of plea. Mr. Lucas and Lady Bertram were barely viable through the foliage, and Miss Croft and Julia were nowhere to be seen. They must have passed the others as well.
With the greatest reluctance, Fanny took Mr. Crawford's arm. He lead her gently, but that did not stop her heart from beating much to hard against her chest.
"You are upset with me, Miss Price," She whirled to look at him in surprise as she had not expected such straightforwardness. She blinked, surprised again, but this time at his proximity. His hair was even more curled with the humidity in the air, but instead of retracting form his looks, it made him appear wilder, of another species with a completely different set of rules.
His eyes were hazel, soft and non permanent, as if it could change to brown to blue at any moment. The structure of his face was perfect, as she had imagined a rich, handsome young man to look like. Yet, she knew him. She knew how he had treated her cousins, Maira and Julia. She had seen him in compromising positions with Maria. She knew what happened between herself and him too.
"I do not understand, Mr. Crawford," Fanny said, trying to answer without properly answering. "Have I done something to offend you?"
She winced. Wrong question.
"None at all, Miss Price," The smile on his face told her he was also thinking of the cup of tea the previous day. "I deserve every single thing you wish to inflict on me. However, I wish to speak on why I have offended you."
"There is no need," Fanny wished her bonnet was as long as Julia's or Miss Croft's to better hide her face. As it was, she could only face forward to avoid him.
"Please, Miss Price, allow me to beg your forgiveness-"
"It was an accident, nothing came of it," She spoke quickly. This was very dangerous territory.
"But something could…" He said in the most serious voice she had heard him use in the entirety of their brief and superficial acquaintance.
It was enough to stop Fanny in her inappropriately attired steps and look at him. His face was pulled with concern.
"Miss Price, there was someone with us," He said carefully. "The maid saw ..." he let the sentence die.
Fanny shook her head, "She has said nothing, she may not."
"But she may," Henry insisted. "I am concerned for your reputation Miss Price, I can survive a scandal, but you know women recieve the unproportional amount of blame in these … incidents."
"What do you suggest I do then, Mr. Crawford?" Her anger, the one that had been born yesterday was awakening. "Should I take us back in time and not stumble?"
"As marvelous as that adventure would be I fear you would have trouble obtaining a machine," He answered, just as quickly.
Fanny took another breath to relax. He was vexing to say the least. Had he been this concerned about Maria when they had been found in compromising positions? Had he been concerned for any other lady he surely engaged with before his stay at Mansfield Park?
Thinking like that only increased her irritation. There was nothing to be done. She had fallen, he tried to help, but they ended up in a ridiculous situation. Why did he have to bring it up? Could they just not forget it, as it seemed he had forgotten all his other "incidents."
"There is nothing to be done then, Mr. Crawford," Fanny wanted nothing more then escape this situation.
"There you are!" Julia's voice interrupted what Fanny was going to say. It was just as well, her emotions were running too high to properly say what she wanted to say.
Miss Croft stood further down the path, a strange look on her face, as her walking companion returned to recapture Mr. Crawford's arm. The path was still too narrow, and Fanny gratefully released his other arm.
She was so exhausted, she only stood at the same place as Julia lead Mr. Crawford away. Mr. Crawford turned to say something, but Miss Croft called from further up the path.
"Miss Price, are you not joining us?" Miss Croft asked.
"I…" Fanny looked back, there was a path that lead straight back to the house. "I have a sudden headache Miss Croft. Please accept my apologies I will retire for a few moments."
"Oh, Miss Price!" A look of genuine concern passed over Miss Croft's face. She pushed past Mr. Crawford and Julia to come beside Fanny. "You do look a bit unwell."
"Mr. Crawford," She waved for Mr. Crawford, and he was at her side in a moment. "Miss Price is unwell, could you walk her back to the house? I am worried for her."
"Yes, of course, Miss Croft," Before Julia or Fanny could protest, Henry had placed Fanny's hand in his arm and was leading her back down the path, the path they had come from.
Fanny sighed at the turn of events, her escape was close, however. Thankfully.
That morning, Henry Crawford had come to the conclusion that he would not speak to Miss Fanny Price again, as she clearly wished.
Yet, when she had so obviously avoided him, he found himself to be annoyed. Was it truly necessary for her to go through so much trouble to avoid him? Was he truly that despicable?
As they walked in a group, he could feel her eyes on him. She was watching him. He tried to catch a glimpse of her, but she would turn away. That coupled with the strange behavior of last night, he knew he needed to apologize at the very least.
It was very strange, by the time they reached where the ladies wanted to have some sort of godforsaken picnic, Henry was convinced. He needed to speak to Fanny.
She was an interesting character, one that he had not paid much attention to. Her behavior toward him was that of someone trying desperately to escape his attention, which, of course, brought her to his attention.
The party decided to take a stroll and Henry knew his friends were up to something. They seemed too gleeful, too purposeful. Jacob, miraculously left Miss Croft's side. To join Lady Bertram no less.
After a moment, Miss Croft had linked arms with Miss Bertram and they were off. This left Henry walking alone, trailing behind through trees in confusion. He remained confused until he spotted Miss Price, left behind as well.
He walked at her pace, allowing her to enjoy her stoll as she did. She would reach out once in a while to shake the droplets from the plants.
Miss Fanny Price was not a devastating beauty, but she had a quiet pleasantness around her. He had never seen her aggravated or angry other than slight exasperation with himself. It was reasonable, given what he had accidently done, but surprising nonetheless.
He was speeding up to her when she stumbled. He did not intervene this time, he did not think she would appreciate it.
Henry did not help her when she stumbled, but he did put out a hand to steady her. She looked at him with the funniest of looks; such as one gives to an unknown vegetable.
He attempted to apologize, but she insisted in interrupting him, just as Jacob Lucas would. She seemed to want to ignore the entire ordeal. Ignore it and ignore him.
"I am concerned for your reputation Miss Price, I can survive a scandal, but you know women recieve the unproportional amount of blame in these … incidents." He said ominously at her decree that nothing came of it.
He had her attention now. She was looking at him through rounded dark eyes. THey contrasted well with her light hair and skin. It was when he decided. He did not care to be ignored by this lady.
"What do you suggest I do then, Mr. Crawford?" Her anger, was completely surprising. "Should I take us back in time and not stumble?"
"As marvelous as that adventure would be I fear you would have trouble obtaining a machine," He did not know where that ridiculous comment came from.
Miss Price took a breath, he realized she was vexed. At him. Was he to blame?
"There is nothing to be done then, Mr. Crawford," She said quietly. Her words brought a certain amount of strange fear to him. That she was truly and irreversibly angry with him.
She was interrupted before she could speak more, he was unsure if he was relieved or annoyed at Julia's sudden appearance.
She continued on from where she had left off from before, but he was not paying much attention as he was trying to get a look at Miss Price. He did not like the way things had ended with them.
Miss Croft pushed past them to go to Miss Price. Good, she was an expert emotional reader, she could take care of Miss Price.
His relief was short lived when she called him. He was by her side in a moment, Julia abandoned
"Miss Price is unwell," Miss Croft informed him, concerned. "Could you walk her back to the house? I am worried for her."
"Yes, of course, Miss Croft," That explained her annoyance perhaps? Miss Price was unwell, it made him feel better to know that it was not he that caused her unfortunate disposition. How could it have been anyway? He was only trying to apologize. An incident that was not even entirely his fault at that.
The walk back to the house was a quiet one, she really did seem exhausted. It was a different quiet from the ugly ones that seemed to be a common theme between them. Not as unpleasant.
They were approaching the house and Henry combed his mind to find something that could help her, any words of encouragement. He remembered what he had seen the day before, what the incident had overshadowed.
"Miss Price," He interrupted the silence.
She made a little sound of acknowledgement.
"Time does not erase all pains," He said, he felt as if he were speaking to himself though. "It does not even ease sorrow. They lie. It only gives us the strength to ease it ourselves."
He did not see the pain cross Miss Price's face.
"You are right, Miss Price, there is nothing to be done."
