" Caroline, you must hurry!" Mrs. Bennet yelled up the steps as I grabbed an extra pair of dancing slippers. Although Miss Jane Austen never mentioned it in the book, ladies often wore their slippers through due to the poor material choice. Tucking them in my reticule, a darling emerald blue sack decorated with golden tassles dangling from the bottom, I grabbed my shawl that best matched the bottle green of my muslin gown. Mary held out my jonquil colored redingote, bonnet with a complimenting blossom ribbon band, and black walking gloves.
It amazed me at the thinness of the dresses and the incompatibility to english weather. Why women suffered horrible fashion choices I know not but I did know men used this to their advantage to heel their women. Even more astounding to me was the fact that a married woman had less rights than a single woman in this era.
I slid my arm into the offered sleeve and then bunched the shawl up so the redingote fit properly. The bonnet and gloves bundled me nicely in the chilly weather and hopefully there wasn't a breeze. " Lizzy, will Charlotte be attending?"
" Of course she will," Mrs. Bennet answered for Elizabeth whilst shooing everyone out of the door. " Though I know not why as she is plain and past the shelf age,"
Kitty frowned. " Charlotte is kind,"
" And plain as your day dresses," Lydia argued.
Sometimes I marveled at Lydia's cruel and rash reactions. She held a capacity to love yet the capacity to hate and insult rivaled even my worst enemy.
" Silence is appropriate now, Lydia," Elizabeth scolded, squeezing into the carriage. It was a tight fit for all of us, but our slim empire waisted clothing permitted the barest breathing space. Mr. Bennet decided to stay at home, willing to hear a second hand account of Mr. Bingley instead of attending the spectacle of his family embarrassing themselves.
The carriage jostled us as we traveled the roads ravaged and shaped by the weather and wear. I rested my arm on Kitty's shoulder and chose to allow Lydia to hold my other hand on her lap. I liked the Bennets, with the exception of the mother, and wished I had sisters growing up. I would miss them if and when I returned to my time. Mary, squeezed into the corner without complaint caught my smile and nodded. I wondered if any of them knew I wasn't really their cousin, and if they did, why did they act like I was their cousin? Who was I kidding, they didn't know about my true past any more than I knew about why the family estate was entailed away from the female line.
" Look. Mrs. Elsor is arrived and that is the Lucas's driver!" Mary exclaimed from her curtained window. " I do not see Mr. Brooks-"
" He does not have a curate," I reminded Mary. " Though he should out of practicality," The parson had too many responsibilities - conducting marriages, blessing babies, attending to births and deaths, among taking confessions and seeing that everyone was able to be fed and clothed and housed and properly employed. A commendable duty and poorly underpaid, the men in this position often were denied the proper respect given to the higher ranking in the church.
" And the church should pay them instead of the parson," Kitty said.
I nodded.
Mrs. Bennet hmphed. I really had no words for the manner Mrs. Bennet treated Mr. Brooks intended courtship and my acceptance of it. I assumed it had to do with 4,000 pounds outshining even the very handsome Jane.
" I want to speak to Sarah," I said to Kitty as Jane filed out of the carriage after Mary. " She said Mrs. Jones is expecting the babe any day,"
" A lucky Mr. Jones," Mary sighed at the idea of their apothecary actually growing his family. Everyone loved Mr. Jones and more than one common lady lamented the fact he was married. " If he is fortuitous, it will be a boy,"
" He is a very busy man, and I doubt that he would be displeased were it a girl," Men like Dr. Jones often spent their days traveling to families to tend to the ill before traveling back to his shop and home. I pitied the man for his lack of home base and his wife for not being able to spend more time with the man she married. Then again if she did not desire him any longer, his profession is the perfect divider.
" And well employed," Elizabeth added enviously. I sometimes believed that she desired the ability to support herself without disapproval from society.
All talk of normal Hertfordshire ceased when we entered the assembly hall. Everyone gathered in the large space defined by one wall separating with two arch ways on either side of the room. I'm certain they kept a kitchen in the back of the building and wanted to explore but found myself more enthralled by everything around me. With the announcement of our party, the Bennets peeled off to their separate acquaintances one by one.
Kitty and Lydia ran off toward the Harrington sisters conversing with the Morrison family while Elizabeth spotted Charlotte Lucas in a matter of ten minutes. Jane stayed with Mary and Mrs. Bennet to observe the general crowd and dancing. I discovered Sarah with her cousins Eudora and Susanna Lovell. Sarah's sisters currently resided with an uncle elsewhere for better marriage opportunities. Consequently Sarah spent most of the ballroom time with her cousins. While adjusting to the new acquaintances, I didn't even notice the appearance of Mr. Bingley and party.
Half the hall fell silent before resuming the dancing and heavy volume of many conversations. All the Bennets gradually moved toward each other, and I stayed with Sarah and her cousins. Mr. Bingley's first dance offer was to Charlotte Lucas, the surprised lady more than pleased as she took to the floor and Lady Lucas's hopes rose for a daughter that might be married. While dancing, Mr. Bingley learned of the Lucas's friendship with the Bennets, which lead him to ask Jane for her hand in the next set of dances.
" Mrs. Bennet, Miss Jane Bennet, Miss Eliza Bennet, Miss Mary Bennet, Miss Catherine Bennet, and Miss Lydia Bennet," Sir William Lucas made the introductions much to the delight of Mrs. Bennet. " Lastly Miss Banfield,"
We all curtsied. The withering stare of Mr. Darcy hardly affected my general excitement of being at a real regency ball, although it seemed to unsettle Elizabeth more than Jane Austen made apparent. Curiously her defiance at holding Mr. Darcy's evaluating gaze defied propriety in so public an arena.
" Might I have the honor of Miss Jane Bennet's hand in dance for the next two dances?" He asked of the leading lady while Darcy kept his head high and proud. His pride came off as arrogance to me, and I intended to determine for myself if he really had his head up you-know-where like the books described.
" I accept, sir," Jane answered calmly, barely a hint of a smile. She needed to open herself more if she expected the rest of Hertfordshire to know she was pleased with this offer.
Elizabeth clutched my arm as Mr. Bingley lead Jane off and Mr. Darcy wandered off around the hall some more. " He is handsome," She whispered, her mother already moving toward Mrs. Long and Mrs. Morrison to boast of this achievement.
I currently spotted Lydia dancing the amiable but not yet established Mr. Booth. A shame she'd end up with Wickham. " As is his friend," At the very least I owed it to the author to 'help' along the story.
" Who is not so fond of dancing," Mary declared. " And not a sight of Mr. Brooks."
I did not expect Mr. Brooks to attend. His hours were early and he needed to attend to his many duties, especially with a new baby Jones on the way!
" Lizzy, you should raise your spirits with Charlotte. She appears ready to tell you all about Mr. Bingley,"
Elizabeth glanced toward Charlotte who was speaking with her younger sister Maria. In the regency era, they pronounced the name as Ma-rye-ah instead of Ma-ree-ah. I always mixed up the spelling of the names but Maria Lucas was a charming sweet girl who would find someone to suit her bubbly personality. She reminded of a girl in my philosophy class in college, sweet and harmless.
" You do think of the best remedies," Elizabeth said before scampering off to her good friend.
I barely had time to appreciate setting the stage for Mr. Darcy's insult before Mary asked how the Longs and Lovells were. We talked an hour into the topic of suitors and economy when I glimpsed the Bingley sisters glancing occasionally in our direction. I boldly grabbed Mary's hand and encouraged an acquaintance with Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley. " Caroline, please," She pleaded in a soft whisper.
" They are only ladies, Mary,"
" All evening they have kept to themselves,"
They did humor the other guests, and drink much and laugh a lot they did! To their merriment was a touch of disdain for current company that I found interesting given that they were nouveau riche in a world where old money was still very much in charge.
" As have we to ourselves. You judge by the same actions we display?"
Her expression lowered. " But what do we say? What would Fordyce's suggest? Perhaps I could ask after their schooling or-"
" Remark upon their feathered hair pieces," I thought the hair pieces were ridiculous and the color of their gowns to be less flattering. Mrs. Hurst's morone colored gown and Miss Bingley's puce colored gown hurt to look at it compared to the softer colors in the hall. Furthermore, I did not want to discuss the superiority of one's education when my own was decidedly lower.
Mr. Booth bowed to Mary and I. " Would you care to dance?" He asked Mary.
Mary clutched my hand even tighter. I cruelly answered for her. " She would be most delighted, sir,"
Socially inept but socially respectable, Mary did not argue with me. She let herself be helped to her feet by the gentleman that danced with Lydia and Miss King. I leaned forward and observed the pair walk toward the dance floor to take their places, so caught up in my mechaninations that I didn't notice Miss Bingley acutely observing my every move. I should have paid more attention to her, as the pair did not dance at the first assembly upon their arrival, and Mr. Hurst gained himself a poor reputation because of his excessive drinking.
A half hour later, Mary took a seat with me while everyone rested their feet in between the dances. She glared at me while I simply smirked. " He is intending to go into the military like his uncle," She informed me stiffly.
" Oh? I wish him the safest of experiences," I expected the man to either die in the many conflicts that involved Napoleon Bonaparte or to survive and be afflicted with the symptoms of war time conditions on one's health. A soldier still held my fancy in high enough regard that I sincerely desired Mr. Booth the greatest of careers, and if he were fortunate enough, he could invest in a commission and become an officer.
" He wishes to call upon me tomorrow,"
" Even better,"
" I do not know what to say to a gentleman, Caroline," She wrung her hands and for a brief second I felt bad for her. " What if he does not care for my pianoforte or my devotional prayers and the many hours we spend visiting the tenants?"
I had yet to visit a tenant, but I was not a member of the Bennet family so it was not required of me to see to the well being of the farmer tenants. From what Lydia and Kitty said, it was depressing to see so many people live in a small home and to never have a servant to attend to their needs. Jane and Elizabeth sewed dolls for the girls and mended the clothing of the children, especially around the end of the annum.
I put my hand on her shoulder. " I believe you will impress him, and if he is not impressed, there are many a gentleman who would appreciate you as you are,"
She shushed me as Mr. Booth approached to claim her attentions for the second dance of the set. I removed myself to take a stroll through the hall for more punch and a light snack that was laid out in sprawling grandeur on a long table. I spotted Mr. Bingley and Jane exchanging replies as they hopped and skipped through the country dance displaying near perfect skill. Making myself comfortable by the punch bowl, I waved at Sarah, who waved back. Just as I swallowed the interesting drink, I 'felt' a prodding.
Glancing over my shoulder, I spotted Caroline Bingley advancing toward me or at least in my direction. Did I mention these people really needed to learn to drink something with less alcohol in it? I don't know how they didn't die of liver damage before their natural times.
" Miss Banfield," She purred.
" Miss Bingley,"
" We share a name, or so I was told," She pasted a fake smile on her semi-pretty face. " Caroline to Caroline, this ball is dreadfully dull,"
I thought the opposite, especially watching the many groups grow and shrink and the many ties being put on display like a trophy or warning. " It does lack the gentleman for all the ladies to dance, I agree," Poor Lizzy had to sit out 2 dances because of that, and right on cue it appeared as if Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy would be colliding in a matter of twenty minutes or less.
She lacked the blonde hair of her brother, instead a warm brunette that really needed to ease off the make up and trust in her natural beauty and that wonderfully plump dowry she was afforded by her father.
" Do tell me that Hertfordshire has more to offer," I want to hold her tongue in place until she stopped using that irritating 'charm'.
I leaned in at the touch of her fingers on my arm. The shawl didn't help much with the chilly weather and poor insulating of the building. " It has much more to offer, but do not take my word for it. I find that the experience is often worth more than a properly rendered story,"
" Louisa and I have heard so much of Netherfield Park,"
" I understand it is a grand building," And in all the movies, the home was grand. A mansion fit for a millionaire complete with drafty rooms and many chimneys that to build it today would cost over $600,000 at least! " But I have not seen the home myself,"
" You are only visiting," Caroline prodded. I doubted she was ignorant of my origins in this world and if she were, she would soon learn of my horrid past. Thank you, Mother Dearest, for trying to kill me. Not!
" For the moment, yes," I didn't know if I wanted to live in Hertfordshire and I knew I wanted to avoid London due to the number of health problems that plagued it. I also didn't trust any medical professional because their solutions were folk remedy based and often misguided or flat out wrong. " From where do you hail?"
She mentioned a city in the north that I'd have to glance at a map for geographical reference. It was when her brother escorted Jane back to Mrs. Bennet and presented himself to Miss King that I approved of the man. He carried himself with the same pride that Mr. Darcy carried himself, but the pride softened by Mr. Bingley's pleasant youthful personality made him easier to swallow.
" I see your brother has a love for dancing," I said. " Such a fondness for dancing will endear him to all the ladies of Hertfordshire,"
The purposefully dropped threat spurred Caroline's concern that one of the ladies of Hertfordshire would keep her brother away from London. I promptly excused myself to make myself familiar with the Morrisons before the night ended.