"Miss Bennet?" came a familiar voice.
"Colonel! I wasn't expecting you."
"Was there someone you were expecting?"
"I suppose not," she responded, coloring slightly. She never knew which days she would see Mr. Darcy, so it was true she could not expect him.
"Is something troubling you?"
"Chess."
"You play?"
"I do."
"Is it correspondence that you're considering now?" he asked in a skeptical tone.
"That would be most improper," she laughed. "No, I only play over the board. Though, a...new variation of the strategy game has been introduced to me, and I find I am unsure of the rules?"
"Oh these chess variations boggle my mind. I cannot stand hand brain, and bug house* is just deplorable!"
"I have never heard of such things! I would be fascinated to learn," she tried to contain her laughter, but the games sounded simply absurd.
"Perhaps Darcy will teach you. If I am called on I may assist, but I will dread every moment of it."
"Oh, I can't have that. If Mr. Darcy is willing to teach me I will have to table my amusement to his leisure… Though, I suppose you are leaving Saturday. Two days does not seem sufficient to learn something so in depth."
"Then perhaps you can teach me your variation instead?"
"Well, it is not played on the board."
"Ah. So you are contemplating why people choose to do what they do?"
"In a way. I… Well, this is a most peculiar and slightly embarrassing tale."
"I will not press you, but if you wish for confidence my lips shall be sealed."
"You will think me rude and indecorous."
"Well, I know of your impermanence, though I would not call you rude, and we are all indecorous when the occasion calls for it. Remember you are speaking to someone who has seen war, Miss Bennet."
"I am sorry. I would not presume to fathom that which you have been through."
"Nonsense. I only wish to ease your mind; Lady Catherine's home is quite the battleground and I find it difficult to navigate unscathed." She snorted in a most unladylike manner at his jest. "There is little you can say that could abuse my ears."
"Do you know how I came to know your cousin?"
"As he tells it, you were only introduced here at Rosings, despite having lived under the same roof for a week back in Hertfordshire."
"Yes, that is correct. So, he told you of our game?"
"And this is the 'chess' you refer to?"
"Yes. I thought...I thought an introduction was checkmate...but he told me I was in check. I am quite confused and I cannot move the pieces across the board if I do not know what goal I am aiming for."
"Well...you assumed he would declare checkmate by cornering you into an introduction. How would you have defined checkmate if you had won?"
"If he had said my name. We were quite familiar with one another by the time he left Hertfordshire. I had thought for him to break the bounds of 'proper introductions' and simply give in to acting as if we had been known to one another all along; which he nearly did a total of one time, but caught himself. It is quite ironic that I did just that when I first saw him at Rosings."
The colonel laughed heartily at her introspection and scowl. "So, the game you were playing is complete?"
"Yes. He said that was the opening and middle game, and we were now in the end game, but I find I do not know the rules." She felt like a petulant child, but curse it all, she wanted to understand the man! The colonel laughed at her again as the parsonage came into view.
"I wish you luck in your games, Miss Bennet. And I suggest determining what outcome you would wish for in checkmate, to assist you in moving forward."
She took her leave and considered his words.
.
Both Bug House and Hand Brain are actual four player chess variations! Lots of fun! Bug House will drive you insane and Hand Brain will make you want to murder your partner. I have no idea if they existed in the early 1800s, but for the sake of fun they can exist here.
.
"I thought your party may enjoy an escort to Rosings today? I missed my usual walk and needed a reason to leave the house for some exercise."
"We love providing you with such excuses, Mr. Darcy. Though, we are very much likely to be late, as Eliza's gloves have gone missing and we are waiting on her."
"Nonsense, Mrs. Collins. You and your family venture over and I will await Miss Bennet. I can escape my aunt's wrath brought on by tardiness in just two day's time, you however do not have such luxury."
"I thank you," she smiled at him, interrupting her husband's monologue. Mr. Collins and Maria exited first and she cleared her throat to gain Mr. Darcy's attention. When he looked at her standing in the doorway she dropped a pair of gloves, winked and took her leave. She could hear his laughter as she walked away from the closed door.
.
"Mr. Darcy?! What are you doing here?"
"I believe my help was enlisted in finding your gloves."
"You tease! I shall curse the colonel for teaching you such behavior."
"You needn't travel farther than the mirror to send your curses, dear Elizabeth."
She froze. 'Dear Elizabeth.' A flood of warmth spread from sternum up her neck and down to her toes.
Had she misheard him? She had been having such fantasies as to hear him say her name in such an intimate manner. Surely he said 'miss' and her mind simply wanted to hear 'dear.'
He cleared his throat and she finally brought her eyes back to him. He was flushed with an awkward sheepish posture.
"Elizabeth?" he tried again in a very soft voice. She melted at her name and numbly walked over to him. "I-I was hoping to find a moment alone with you, and it would seem your friend has had my heart and intentions read and expected me." She felt him press her gloves into her hand, but her eyes did not leave his. His hands were bare, as hers were, and she remembered the days after she and Jane left Netherfield when she could not help but recall the feel of his rough skin against hers. Her memory was not half as good as his hands holding hers tentatively now. "The last fortnight has been utter bliss for the sole reason of your presence and acquaintance. I am a selfish man. I want nothing more than to know you everyday; to see your smile brighten the room; to hear your laughter lighten the air; to watch the amusement in your eyes as you tease prince and pauper alike. I require your presence to breathe life into my existence and selfishly beg you to enter into such a circumstance. Will you end my suffering and consent to be my wife?"
She couldn't breath. It was too much. She had squashed all hope that he could hold affection for her, as she did not want to ruin what friendship they had created.
But this!
She took a breath to steady herself.
Then another.
He squeezed her hands.
"If you are unsure, I understand. Perhaps a courtship? We had an...interesting start, after all."
"No."
"No?" Panic overtook his face for a moment before he swallowed and released her hands to step away. "I...I see."
"No! Not- I mean-" she let out a strangled sound and wrung her gloves in her hands. "What I mean is: No, I am not unsure. No, I do not require a courtship. But if you will allow me to answer your first question, the answer will not be no, for it would make me very happy to be your wife." She tried to smile at him, but her nerves were so frayed she was entirely unsure what the expression on her face actually was, besides decidedly red.
"You…" In the span of another breath he practically leapt forward to seize her about the waist and twirl her around. She laughed at his display and allowed him to pull her close in an intimate hug. His breath was in her hair when she heard him whisper, "Checkmate."