Summary: Follow Mary Bennet in her quest to discover her true self, as unlikely friendships are formed, tentative romances occur, and attempts of matchmaking (or insufferable meddling) run wild. Also featuring Kitty, and other lessener Austenian heroines. "Crossover" with Mansfield Park.
Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Jane Austen's genius. Only this plot is mine, along with a few original characters. I also shall borrow Shakespeare's quotes from time to time.
I guess I shall drop my own quest for a beta, since no one is interested by the position. So once again, excuse my mistakes!
I would like to thank all the readers of this story, and for their nice reviews: Requiem for a Sunburst, Rocksey, Miss Laura, ixi-shaz & June W!
Since it really isn't practical to do it on my profile, I have opened a forum to reply to your reviews, so from now on you will be able to read my answers- and to ask questions or make suggestions if you wish to- on it!
Then again, thanks to the readers for still following this story, and especially the reviewers. You really keep me going when I am afraid I may drop the story altogether. I post this chapter since I feel I really owe it to you for bearing with my awful updates (it results in my being late for the updates of my other stories, but for once TODQ will not be sacrificed).
Elizabeth repressed a heavy sigh and folded the latest letter her mother had sent her. As usual, Mrs Bennet had strongly urged her daughter to make a list of all the eligible bachelors in Town who might be interested in finding a young and pretty wife, regardless of her dowry, and this she had done in a manner that could be at best described as straightforward. Things were moving too slowly, how come Kitty had not found a suitor yet, was her mother's main concern.
Elizabeth's eyes rested on her young sister, who was chatting animatedly with Georgiana. Kitty was indeed a pretty girl, and Elizabeth knew that her heart was in the right place, but she feared her inexperience. Now that Lydia's bad influence was no more, Kitty was improving herself, showing self-restraint on a regular basis, but Georgiana's influence was not strong enough to make Kitty entirely confide in her. Elizabeth had viewed with satisfaction Kitty learning to be less selfish and more considerate towards others, but quickly she had realized that Kitty's generosity only applied to Georgiana, for who could not love her sweet sister-in-law?
Kitty was still lacking prudence and compassion, and for that Elizabeth worried about her prospects of matrimony. To flirt as Kitty did, with no afterthoughts, was likely to tarnish her reputation. Moreover, Elizabeth was grateful that Kitty's heart had not been stolen by any of the officers she was so keen on admiring, but when the time should come for her little sister to love sincerely, there was no guarantee that she would make the right choice. Elizabeth herself, despite her sound judgment, had been deceived by Wickham's charming, honest-like manners. Only the persistence of Darcy had gradually made her understand that he was the perfect match for her. She had been blessed with his love, but would her perky sister benefit from such lucky circumstances?
There was also the matter of Georgiana. Soon, she would have to overcome her shyness to meet eligible gentlemen. Elizabeth knew that her husband would make sure of frightening the men he deemed unfit for his beloved sister, but she was the one in whom Georgiana would be more likely to rely on. In spite of all her bravery, Elizabeth could not but feel a mite weak-hearted at the thought that she should be the one to provide two inexperienced and very vulnerable young women with motherly guidance on the matters of the heart, matters which were very perilous indeed.
At the same time, a discussion was taking a melodramatic turn:
"Sanders, I need your help."
"This is quite out of the question, Harding."
"But you are able to introduce me to the Darcys. Without introduction, I shall not be able to improve my acquaintance with her. I must know if this is just a passing whim, easily forgettable, or something else."
"No! I refuse to be your accomplice in this insane design! I am done with the young ladies of your acquaintance and their sufferings from heartache! Do you know that Rickman scowls at me whenever we meet, on the sole pretense that I am your friend?"
"Miss Darcy…" Harding began.
"…is a perfect and accomplished young lady, like this one you used to know intimately. Be careful with her. Her brother shall not be lenient if he ever learns what happened from Rickman."
"Rickman may try and fail to spoil my reputation, he is too proud to let anyone know of the story. I fear nothing from him. His innuendos cannot lead him far." Harding said confidently.
The Earl frowned:
"Some people will understand that your quarrel is a serious one. After all, you used to be best friends."
"Do you blame me for what I did?" Harding coldly asked.
The Earl shrugged:
"I still have my reservations about your behavior, but you did nothing wrong. Rickman has been a fool to take offence of your…"
"Let us not talk about this. I shall successfully avoid Rickman, and you shall help me to see Miss Darcy as soon as I can and as often as possible."
"Is that all?" the Earl asked ironically.
"For the moment, it is" Harding answered with a sly smile that had been too scarce lately, so his friend bit back his reply on the sweetest ladies on the outside who were the most poisonous on the inside. Something told him that Harding would not have appreciated.
At Lord Glowner's house, an often-rehashed debate was taking place.
"I know that we have already discussed it, but it is my duty, as a friend, to insist" poor John Harrison said. Despite his obvious uneasiness, he was determined to carry on.
"This is not in my habit to complain, but my position is very uncomfortable. I am friends with both of you" he nodded towards Lord Glowner and Mr Rickman, "but I am also friends with Hampstead and Harding. I know nothing about your dispute, but whatever happened, can surely be mended."
"It cannot" Peter Rickman said in a low voice. "Believe me, Harrison, when I say that any remains of friendship that might have existed between Harding and I are no more."
"I do not understand. A year ago, I left for two months, and all of us were the best friends of the world. When I came back, our group was divided in two! Harding and you, Rickman, used to be inseparable, and now Sanders has become his only confident! Besides, you are urging me to sever all ties with them, when I do not even know what happened in the first place!" he stopped, running out of oxygen.
Peter Rickman did not answer instantly. Then, quietly but with such repressed anger that Harrison startled:
"All I can tell you, John, is that Harding is the most hypocritical scoundrel of England, and were I free to do so, I would gladly expose him publicly as the man without honor that he is. Now, will you excuse me" and he left the room.
Harrison glanced at Lord Glowner who had remained silent:
"You do know what happened, don't you?" he said in an accusatory tone.
Lord Glowner did not deny it.
"He came to me in great distress and told me all. He made me swear secrecy. You are not in the confidence, Harrison, since only four people in the world know about it: Rickman, Harding, myself."
"And Sanders? Is the fourth who knows?"
"He never liked me, so when I sided with Rickman, he childishly decided to believe Harding's lies. No, I give him too much credit to have remained Harding's friend while knowing the truth all along." Lord Glowner said somberly.
"Then who…?" Harrison began, but Lord Glowner cut him off:
"A person whom I cannot mention, John. I know this is hard for you, but you must understand that there is one man, who we formerly called our friend, who betrayed one of us, and still manages to carry on the deception without shame."
"Harding…I cannot believe it! There must be a misunderstanding!" Harrison exclaimed.
"No misunderstanding, but a great deception, and a greater deceiver." Lord Glowner gravely corrected.
Mary had made up her mind. Susan Price had offered her friendship. After Miss Darcy, she had been the first to see beyond Mary's cold exterior, and not let her alone. Regardless of the bad experience of the day before, Mary did not want to give up so precious and so rare a friendship.
Once she had accomplished her menial tasks for the day, she put on a jacket and went to Mansfield Park.
She was more used to remaining indoors, but there was no way Susan could escape her duties for Lady Bertram, who was a nice but indolent woman. Lady Bertram believed herself lost without Susan's assistance, so the young girl had to stay by her aunt's side all day. Mary had to walk to Mansfield.
Dark clouds were forming in the sky. The atmosphere was suffocating and Mary walked faster, suddenly dreading a rainfall. Unfortunately, by the time she got to Mansfield, she was soaked to the bones. Humiliated, she avoided the eyes of the butler who had opened the door, though nothing in his demeanor indicated that he had noticed her pitiful state. Instead, he led her to a beautiful room where a nice fire was burning, and begged her to wait for Miss Price, who had been sent on an errand half an hour ago, while he was on his way to inform someone of her arrival. He fled before Mary could utter that there was no need to trouble anyone, and that she would gladly wait for Miss Price alone.
Sighing, she carefully put her hands over the flames, afraid that her soaked clothes might ruin the carpet. Her eyes took in the fine intricacies of the woolen carpet, the wooden bookshelves.
Wait! The wooden bookshelves?
She took a few steps backward, turning slowly on herself to have a better view of the circular library. She forgot the violence of the raindrops, which vanished into thin air to be replaced with a slight humming. The warmth of the fire had dried her hands, but her dress was still wet. However, Mary could not care less as she made a bee line towards the tantalizing shelves.
She delicately let her fingers linger on the titles. Not only was the library well furnished, but she could actually feel that the books had been read over and over, and loved, as strange as it might sound. She noticed that a whole corner was dedicated to the Bard's works, and a bright smile that she could not repress lit her face as she stumbled upon her favorite play. There were there copies of it, all in rare editions. Not a single speck of dust on these- someone, perhaps Sir Thomas Bertram, Lady's Bertram husband, must dote on them.
This was the moment Mary Bennet experienced love at first sight…with the library of Mansfield Park. She had already visited countless libraries of course, including her brother-in-laws', but none could compare with this little wonder, not even Mr. Darcy's well-organized bookshelves.
"Miss Bennet lost in raptures in front of the bookshelves, what a surprise!" the voice of Mr Bertram startled her.
She turned and there he was, standing with a grin. However, Mary was not to be teased:
"Mr Bertram", she said, curtsying in a very prim and proper manner.
He bowed with ease, reminding her of her awkwardness in public. Looking like a drowning rat was not helping either, she realized with a start.
The gentleman frowned:
"Do you want to die of hypothermia? Why did not you stay near the fire? Well, never mind " he added after a knowing glance at the bookshelves. "You need warm clothes- I shall ask Smith to do the necessary" he said.
"It is done, Sir" the butler answered, coming diligently with warm shawls and blankets.
"I do not want to cause any trouble" Mary protested, but the concern had already worn off Mr. Bertram's features as he gaily replied:
"Nonsense! Smith, bring a grog to Miss Bertram."
"Yes, Sir."
"I am not thirsty! I am absolutely fine! You ought not to go through such trouble for me" Mary exclaimed agitatedly.
Tom Bertram looked at the stubborn girl and repressed the urge to sigh. She was not making his task easy, but he would fulfill his duty as a host- another duty he used to neglect- no matter how much it cost him to "entertain" his visitor.
"Smith? Make it two grogs, thank you".
Well, he was quite sure that he was going to need one.
Lord Glowner and the Earl of Hampstead might dislike each other, but there was one matter on which they readily agreed.
One may not be coward, and still run away- with as much dignity as one could muster, of course- whenever Miss Bingley and Miss Owen were in view.
Slightly flushed from his close escape, Lord Glowner retrieved his gloves and fanned himself. Mr. Harrison, who had accompanied him and was not in such danger from these ladies, had run with him out of solidarity.
"There would be a way for you to definitely get rid of them" Harrison laughed.
"Which one?" Lord Glowner snapped, for he was in no mood for a joke.
"Enter the state of matrimony, and relinquish your title of "the second most eligible bachelor in Town" Harrison laughed good-naturedly.
"To get married! Heaven forbid!" Lord Glowner cried.
Mr. Harrison, who was admittedly a born gossiper, undertook to report what he had heard himself by the grapevine:
"They say that you might be interested in a young lady, after the ball we attended yesterday."
"This is what they always say", Lord Glowner snarled. "Rumours, rumours, John. Whenever they claim a perfect stranger might become Lady Glowner, they are disgruntled two days later. Who is the lucky lady I am supposed to marry this time?"
"This time, they might have guessed right."
"Since when do you believe that I may someday tie the knot?" Lord Glowner asked, amused.
"Since we met Miss Bennet."
"This gloomy, hideous lady who is inexplicably sister to Mrs Darcy and Mrs Bingley? I only met her once and this was good enough for me!" the lord cried. "Didn't you see the nerve of this child- what, with her not being twenty yet- who dared to criticize my driving and belittle me, then saying primly that I was being forgiven by her! I heard that she has returned to her country of Longbourne, and I say good riddance!" he said defiantly.
"Well, I was actually talking about the other remaining Miss Bennet, Miss Catherine, and no Miss Mary Bennet" Harrison replied, quite taken aback by the outburst of Lord Glowner. "However, Miss Mary Bennet seemed to have made quite an impression on you" he joked.
Lord Glowner reverted to his proud and indifferent composure:
"I only remember her as one of the most insufferable young lady I have ever met. Despite her subdued exterior, she is already quite the bitter and spiteful spinster she shall become in a few years."
"No, no, do not say such a thing. If this is to be, though I do not wish it to the poor lady, she deserves our pity" Harrison chided softly.
"No, John- I do pity the unfortunate gentlemen who shall cross her path. She does not look like a rose, but she certainly has its thorns" Lord Glowner replied with finality.
Blankets and shawls draped around her wet clothes, Mary had regretfully left the company of the books to sit on the sofa. Her strained silence was beginning to get on the nerves of Mr. Bertram who valiantly tried to strike up a conversation:
"So you do enjoy reading, Miss Bennet?" he asked pleasantly, stating the obvious.
"I most certainly do, Mr. Bertram. Your father owns a magnificent library" Mary replied quietly, not to be outdone.
"Yes, he does", Mr. Bertram nodded appreciatively. "The room itself is too large, though; one might use half of its width to create a billiard room."
Mary let out a gasp of horror which reminded Mr. Bertram of the reaction of his father when he had issued the blasphemous proposal.
"Why would anyone destroy such a wonderful place to have a billiard room?" she blurted out.
Her distress greatly amused Mr. Bertram. Being the teasing type, he was tempted to let her fret a few minutes more, but her frazzled appearance softened his heart and he decided not to torment the poor girl unnecessarily. He would get his revenge at their next game of whist, for though he intended to avoid her company as often as possible, he was not a man to scorn such a precious opponent.
"You may rest in peace, Miss Bennet. My father has so strongly objected to the transformation of this room that it is very unlikely that a billiard may be put in it any time soon. Unless the future Mrs. Bertram supports my scheme." he added with a rakish grin.
"Then my dearest wish is that either you marry a sensible lady, or you remain single for the rest of your days" Mary cried before she could help it.
Mr. Bertram's eyebrows rose at this outburst:
"Marrying a sensible lady? Presented with this, I must say that eternal celibacy is very tempting." he muttered to himself.
"Well, I shall mark your wishes, Miss Bennet. I must admit that I dearly love this room as well, so don't think too ill of me", he said aloud.
"Certainly, this is a very agreeable room. The wooden bookshelves are beautiful", Mary admitted.
"I was referring to the content of the bookshelves as well, Miss Bennet. I am not as illiterate as you seem to believe" Mr. Bertram joked, though a mite annoyed.
"This was not what I was implying, Mr. Bertram. I had only assumed that you were more interested in the usual pastimes of the other young men of your age: hunting, riding" she trailed off; unsure of the way she could end her sentence without hurting Mr. Bertram's pride.
She had put him in the same category as the other young gentlemen she had had the opportunity to meet, for she was keen on studying characters. For instance, she was quite sure that he had a bit of, say, William Lucas- Charlotte Collins' younger brother- in him. Young Mr. Lucas enjoyed good wine, hunting, and, would he have the means of it, gambling, as he had so often claimed to whoever was intent on listening.
Mr. Bertram replied briskly:
"I used to enjoy these pastimes, and I still do, but I am not averse to reading a good play once in a while, Miss Bennet."
"You do?" Mary asked, bemused.
Mr. Bertram livened up all of a sudden:
"Theater is my passion. The world is a stage" he quoted. "We all play the part that has been assigned to us, Miss Bennet, in front of a demanding audience. Theater is but the reflection of our lives- a distorted, exaggerated one, but there is more truth in the extreme characters it portrays than in our real selves."
"It seems that we do have something in common, after all" Mary mused aloud reluctantly.
"I beg to differ, Miss Bennet. You do know the old debate, don't you?" Mr. Bertram asked rhetorically.
"Are you referring to the "comedy versus tragedy" controversy, Mr. Bertram?" Mary answered.
"Indeed I am. But I will not do you the offence of asking you to which camp you belong, Miss Bennet. Like my sisters, you must have granted your preference to tragedy." he said confidently.
Everything in Miss Bennet's composed demeanor was screaming tragedy, so he had no merit for his guess, Tom Bertram thought.
It was Mary's turn to raise discretely one eyebrow.
"Well, it brings me relief to know that I am not the only one who may be blinded by prejudice" she said smugly.
Smugly? She must have unknowingly picked it from Mr. Bertram, Mary surprised herself.
"I would be mistaken then? No, no" he cried- "you cannot make me believe that your favor comedy over tragedy".
"Why not, Mr. Betram? I can enjoy tragedies, but comedies are instructive as well. Indeed, when one is interested in the study of characters, one is copiously provided with it in comedies."
"Oh, I see. So comedies exist for our instruction. What about entertainment, escapism?" he asked. "What about adventure, burlesque, profligacy? The first lesson that comedy teaches us is about enjoying life- laughing too" he added with a roguish smile. "If you dote on comedy so much, Miss Bennet, then why- if you do not mind my asking- why the heavy brow?" he concluded dramatically.
"I may not be expressing so overtly my happiness, but this does not mean I am miserable!" Mary exclaimed with a tinge of irritation.
"Of course, Miss Bennet. I never suggested that you were miserable; I was merely expressing my lingering doubts about your giving your preference to comedy over tragedy" Mr. Bertram smirked.
"Do you doubt my word, Mr. Bertram?"
"You did doubt mine when I assured you of my passion for theater."
"Well, when one proposes to turn this library into a billiard room, I cannot be blamed to doubt his love for books".
"Miss Bennet, this room is large enough to host both a library and a billiard room. Think of all the space wasted by these lines of empty bookshelves" he showed her the vacant shelves. "This place is no sanctuary, you know" he joked.
Mary's glower made him realize his mistake. How strange, the way he could feel her glaring daggers at him. Her grey eyes were very expressive, if you looked at them with attention, he pondered. But Tom Betram did not want to consider these very puzzling eyes, for they made him truly uneasy.
"I would say that these empty bookshelves are yours to fill. There is nothing more precious in the world that a family library, and this room you should leave as it is now." Mary asserted firmly.
Then, remembering that Mr. Bertram was her host, she said, confused:
"Well, pardon my bluntness. You are of course free to arrange this room to your liking…but it would be such a shame!" she could not help but heartily add.
"I shall keep it in mind" he answered.
"Miss Bennet, there you are!" Susan stormed into the room. "I was outdoors when it started to rain- I went to my sister's, and waited for the sky to clear to come back! I am so sorry I kept you waiting for me, and… but you are drenched in rainwater! Oh dear, I am so sorry" Miss Price rambled. "How, you are here, cousin?" she asked, having just noticed Tom's presence.
"Yes, cousin" he replied playfully, "I kept company to your guest. Now that you are here, I shall let you both enjoy what shall be an interesting conversation, I have no doubt".
"What did you talk about?" Susan asked.
"Miss Bennet advised me against my scheme of turning part of this library in a billiard room, and very skillfully too. This is certainly a topic Miss Bennet is interested in" he said.
Once he had left the room, Susan looked at Mary who was gaping slightly.
Very skillfully? Was he laughing at me, or did I really convince him a little? Then…
"Miss Price, would you agree to resume our History lessons? I have thought of a new way of teaching. If this does not work, then we shall definitely quit."
"You are not compelled to help me, Mar…Miss Bennet."
"I know. Just let me try again, please."
Miss Price hesitated, then gaily:
"All right! I was furious at me for quitting so easily! Let us try again, shall we?"
Tom Bertram had resumed his serious activities, mostly consisting of business matters. After one hour of suffering, he left his study and wandered through Mansfield Park. He wondered what pleasure his vivacious cousin could find in the company of Miss Bennet. Quite coincidentally, his footsteps led him to her cousins' room. There, he did not make his presence known. Instead, he resorted to eavesdropping.
And thus I clothe my naked villainy
With old odd ends stolen out of holy writ,
And seem a saint when most I play the devil.
He stifled a laugh as Miss Bennet tried to drop the level of her voice- and failed miserably. A baritone, not a soprano, was required to play the part of Richard III.
"Was he really this evil?" Susan inquired.
"This is what I like most in History: you never know. History is full of blanks ready to be filled- like the bookshelves of your cousin's library."
This comparison was really Bennet-like, Tom snickered.
"Do you mean that it is up to us to guess what happened?" Susan asked.
"To a certain extent, yes" Mary said prudently. "Some facts are established, so do not let your imagination run wild…too much" she added, seeing Susan's smile beginning to falter.
"When Fanny used to teach me, she told me about bravery, patriotism…she made it sound really adventurous too. But what about the plots, the conspiracies the play refers to?"
Susan saw Mary's eyes brighten:
"History is made by humans, and it is human's nature to make mistakes, may we learn from them. Yes, there are traitors, liars, but also loyal allies. History is unpredictable and much more eventful that history books make it appear."
"I did not know that things might be so…twisted! And in this play too! I always thought that classics were serious and boring" Susan exclaimed with delight.
"Trust me, these plays are full with twisted souls" Mary assured her. "Will you read this one with me? Then, if you wish, we might speak about it."
"Gladly!" Susan accepted.
Tom Bertram, a smile playing on his lips, remained a few minutes to listen to their reading. Susan's energy was very enjoyable, but she put more enthusiasm than talent in her reading. Miss Bennet's acting and reading skills were also terrible, but something in her tone let him think that with more training, she might actually have a flair for tragedy.
However, and he was adamant about it, she was not gifted for comedy. He broke this trail of thoughts as he remembered how dangerous his love for theater had turned out to be for his family, and he left.
"I hope we meet Lieutenant Price tonight. His cousin, Mrs. Yates, has invited him to stay with her husband and herself in London until he has to go on the sea again. He tells me so interesting stories about how life is in foreign countries! He is so young and he has seen so much already!" Kitty whispered in Georgiana's ear as they made their way to the ball.
"But he is to go away in a few weeks" Georgiana reminded her.
"I know" Kitty replied carelessly.
"Pardon my question, Kitty, but is it prudent?"
"What should be prudent?"
"Are you not afraid that you might form an attachment to him?" Georgiana asked hesitantly.
"We are only good friends, Georgiana! I have known other very nice young officers, but I have not fallen for any of them yet. They are good company, and we might flirt a little, but I am sure of my heart" Kitty said confidently.
"You are lucky, for I shall never be sure of mine" Georgiana whispered.
They halted as the Earl of Hampstead and Mr. Harding came to greet Darcy and Elizabeth. The Earl bowed and introduced his friend to the couple. Kitty did her best to repress a knowing smile as Mr. Harding presented his respects to Georgiana with the appearance of the most perfect indifference.
Then, she readily accepted the Earl's invitation for the first dance, noticing that Mr. Harding lost no time to make the same offer to Georgiana, but to everyone it looked as though he was doing it out of civility, so that Miss Darcy did not remain alone while Miss Bennet had found a partner.
The Earl was a good dancer for a man who claimed he did not enjoy this activity. Kitty's eyes sparkled laughingly as her partner, a fake smile plastered on his face, occasionally shot murderous glances at his friend.
Aware that they had an audience, Mr. Harding did his best to hide his interest in Miss Darcy.
Georgiana, very uneasy, kept glancing around them, even looking at the ceiling once.
"Are you looking for someone? " Mr. Harding asked out of the blue.
Surprised, she looked at him only for turning her head seconds afterwards, as their eyes had met, causing her to blush uncontrollably.
"No, I am not looking for anyone." she muttered.
"You were looking in so many directions that I thought you were searching for someone" Harding explained.
"Oh, I was not." Georgiana blushed again.
"Then, if you do not mind my asking, why were you admiring the walls and the ceiling? Though you do have good taste, I agree that the architect was very talented" Harding smiled encouragingly.
"I was not…" Georgiana began, embarrassed.
"Unless you were avoiding my humble person" Harding said in a serious tone.
"I was not…"
Sensing her discomfort, he added:
"Miss Darcy, I beg you to forgive me for my impertinent questions. I am not a man of sense, as my friend Hampstead could tell you".
"I was looking for inspiration!" Georgiana blurted out.
"Inspiration?" Harding repeated, confused. "Are you an artist, Miss Darcy?" he asked.
"I draw" Georgiana admitted.
"Really? How interesting" Mr. Harding commented with more warmth than the situation demanded.
Lord Glowner frowned as he watched the dancers. One pair made him particularly snarl. Lady Markinson, one of the biggest gossiper- and matchmaker- in London, chose this moment to ask him whether he was interested in dancing, and with whom.
"This, Lady Markinson, this you shall find out very soon" he answered.
Then, as the first dance ended, he came to Kitty and asked her for the next dance, barely acknowledging the Earl's presence.
"This dance was lovely, Miss Bennet" the Earl said forcefully before bowing and turning his back on Lord Glowner.
Kitty felt delighted that she had been distinguished by two noble gentlemen in a row. She spotted Miss Bingley's horrified expression, and then looked at Lord Glowner. Once again, she had to admit that though she had deemed Mr. Darcy to be the most handsome gentleman of her acquaintance, Lord Glowner too could pretend to this title. As she accepted his invitation, she purposefully conjured up a picture of Lieutenant Price's face in her mind.
The young man could not rival Lord Glowner in the looks department, but it was sad indeed that Lord Glowner lacked the spirit that animated William Price. It was also very distressing that Lieutenant Price had only this spirit and his uniform to recommend him. Why did he not have Lord Glowner's looks and wealth too? Kitty deeply resented the unfairness of the situation.
Mr. Harding had claimed the next dance and Georgiana had not the courage to refuse him. He asked her questions on her drawings, the tools she used, her favorite subjects. She answered that she enjoyed drawing landscapes and sometimes ball scenes, that she used pencils. Mr. Harding did not seem to notice her reserve and ended their dance on a whisper:
"I wish you luck in your quest for inspiration, but sometimes the answer does not lie in the ceiling, no matter how simple it is for us to look at it."
In spite of herself, Georgiana was left pondering over the enigmatic sentence all night.
"I do not understand how easily people are falling for his lies. How can such deceptions exist in reality?" Susan asked in the middle of the play.
Mary did not mind being interrupted. This was the first time she was interrupted by someone who actually wanted to speak with her, and not dismiss her intervention.
"Well" she pondered with her usual seriousness, "I think that some people are skilled at creating powerful illusions, but they are taking advantage of others' weaknesses. Honey words and flatteries are effective only when they fall in the ear of vain people. To be honest, few of us are gifted with enough discernment to judge of one's character without prejudice. Open manners, the appearance of honor, an untainted reputation and our own first impressions may make us think poorly of a good man and think highly of an undeserving one."
"At least we are warned" Susan said thoughtfully. "This reduces the likelihood of us making this kind of mistakes, doesn't it?"
"It may help" Mary conceded solemnly.
Author's Note:
-Well, I personally think that the pace of this story begins to quicken (eventually, are you saying), doesn't it? As usual, I'd love to know your opinion!
-coming soon: some announcements are made, acquaintances are improved and letters are exchanged again…Oh, and the matchmaking (or the interference) begins for some of our heroines…