Chapter 12

Blinking, Elizabeth took in the two expectant male countances that peered at her and realized, perhaps it was not her mother and Lady Catherine that would cause Mr. Darcy's courtship to be stressful.

"Well Lizzy?" her father began the inquiry with.

"I have agreed to a quiet courtship with Mr. Darcy," Elizabeth responded.

"Ah, so you would prefer for your mother and sisters to remain in ignorance of this event?" Mr. Bennet asked, amused.

"Aunt Catherine as well I imagine. She has been blathering on about a cradle engagement between Anne and Darcy for years," Viscount Millis said.

Elizabeth frowned and said thoughtfully, "I was unaware that Anne ever intended to marry. Anne and Lady Catherine seemed to believe that she never would. In fact, I recall Lady Catherine telling me once, that for Anne to marry would be impossible. "

"Hmmm," the viscount said thoughtfully. "Interesting."

"Well, I am not so sure that Lady Catherine not opposing the union, is an improvement over her being set against it," Mr. Bennet said dryly.

"True, her opposition would merely be vocal and she is to fond of Lizzy to be truly venemous. Her support though, if she wanted to see Darcy and Lizzy married, she would let nothing stop her from ensuring the courtship ended in the manner she deemed appropriate."

"If she would even allow them to go about it in there own time. She would be constantly trying to manage every aspect of it."

Viscount Millis shuddered and said, "What an unpleasant way to go about wooing, with Lady Catherine demanding an accounting and instructing you."

"Thank you," Elizabeth said dryly, "for confirming the picture in my head. Even though in my mind, she was instucting me on how a lady goes about being wooed."

"Well how did the young lad request his courtship? We had hoped Richard would guide him towards this side of the house so we could watch, but he didn't."

"Yes Lizzy, do amuse us with the story," her father said, his eyes twinkling.

"He ask, I responded in the positive, and here we are," Elizabeth said.

"Now Lizzy, we are all of us, aware of your talent for telling an amusing story, that won't do at all."

"But it is all I plan to say about it," Elizabeth said as she turned and left the room.

Viscount Millis turned toward his friend and said, "We shall have to pull the whole story out of William. Or at least induce Richard to share his observations.

...

The next day everyone in Meryton knew that Elizabeth's godfather was a viscount and that he was currently staying with the Bennets. His younger, eligable brother was rumored to be an oficer and staying at Netherfield. Every hostess hurried to arrange an entertainment to invite the Bennets and their distinguished guest, as well as the Netherfield party, that now boasted another single gentleman too. Lady Catherine's arrival had been largely unhearlded by the same gossip, since she was not a single gentleman, and therefore of less interest to Mrs. Bennet, but the servants' gossip that spoke of her, had finally reached the ears of the gentry. When the connections between Mr. Darcy, Viscount Millis, Col. Fitzwilliam and Lady Catherine were discovered, all of Meryton was agog to host them. Longbourn would be the first to have all the visiting personages assembled, in a small private dinner party. The discontented matrons grumbled that Mrs. Bennet was monopolizing all the single gentlemen since it was widely understood that Mr. Bingley would offer for Jane.

Anne, Mrs. Jenkinson and Lady Catherine had discussed strategy during the day. They determined that they had two goals, occupying Miss Bingley and ensuring Richard remaind as oblivious as possible to Darcy's attentions to Elizabeth. It was decided amongst them, that he, for the evening, would have to be sacrificed to Lydia and Kitty Bennet. Miss Bingley, Anne felt she could, with the unwitting help of the viscount, keep from Darcy.

Col. Fitzwilliam privately determined that he would ensure his Aunt Catherine was to distracted to notice Darcy's interest in Elizabeth. He wasn't sure what titled Lady his aunt had settled on as the wife for Darcy, but he was convinced that Darcy and Elizabeth were best suited to each other. His aunt might balk over Elizabeth's lack of title, given she enjoyed the distinction of rank, but her natural affection for Elizabeth, would quickly overcome her objections once the two were engaged. Considering how much his aunt liked advising and improving others, the obvious choice of who to distract her with was the Bennet in need of the most improvement, Lydia.

Miss Bingley planned on impressing Mr. Darcy's cousin the Viscount. She wished the engagement could be announced that night, but her brother was not expected back until Monday, traveling being out of the question on Sunday. His note had been mostly unreadable, but the part she had been able to make out, was that the engagement was offical and he would be back on Monday evening in time for dinner. Lady Catherine had suggested a dinner with some of the local gentry to make the announcement when he returned. The announcement she knew would run in the Times the same day as her brother's return, but knew the paper would not make it to Hetfordshire until the next day, meaning she would be able to see the envy on other's face when they first learned of her triumph. She hoped he would bring a copy of the paper back with him so she could admire her future printed and etched in stone. Pleased at the chance to lord her success over Elizabeth, she had agreed and penned invitations to the major families including the Lucases, Bennets, Gouldings, Longs and Fosters.. For tonight though she would become more familiar with the viscount and Anne. Lady Catherine had hinted at a marriage taking place within the family if things went according to plan while in Hetfordshire. She assumed, even though Lady Catherine was to discrete to mention names, that she refered to Anne and the Viscount.

Even though Mrs. Bennet would have liked to see her Lydia married to a potentially future Viscount and Earl, she contented herself with the knowledge that once Elizabeth was married to Col. Fitzwilliam she would likely throw Lydia into the paths of other titled gentlemen, maybe even a duke. "My daughter, her grace," Mrs. Bennet practiced saying. Mr. Darcy had been mildly more pleasant of late, Mary a rather morse individual herself might do for him or Mr. Collins. Which left Kitty. Kitty could have which ever was left, Mrs. Bennet concluded with satisfaction.

Lydia and Kitty had argued over who Col. Fitzwilliam liked best. Both were determined that they should have him. Kitty's claim was based on her superiority of age, while Lydia's claim was based on her general belief that everyone preffered her and she deserved better things then her sister. Both were positive that the dinner party would reveal the error of the other's thinking.

The two scholarly gentleman had their own plans for the evening. It had been agreed between them that they would find much sport and amusement among the company that night. Mr. Bennet filled his friend in on the general characters of the Netherfield party. Viscount Millis, thought that the most amusement might be had by attending to Miss Bingley.

Mr. Collins had been directed by Lady Catherine that he should further his friendship with Mr. Hurst and continue to make no overtures towards Miss Bingley until her brother returned to announce the engagement. Though he wished to attend his elegant bride that evening, he was pleased to get to enjoy the society of his future brother.

Elizabeth had dewlt in her own mind about the Mr. Darcy that had emerged since Lady Catherine's arrival. She had heard much about Cousin William from Anne and Richard, all of it good, as well as the praise spoken of the young man by his elders, Lady Catherine, Viscount Millis, the Earl of Matlock and his countess. She had formed, in her mind, a picture of an active, shy, reserved, duitful gentleman that was committed to his tennets and sister, with an entertaining, mischievous streak. As the years went by she had begun to hold up this unknown paragon of manly virtues as a standard to judge other gentlemen by. Since Lady Catherine and Anne's arrival she had begun to reevaluate her opinion of Darcy, she briefly wondered how she would have responded to his apologies had he not of been connected with and spoken well of by thise she considered dear friends. It was her her interpretation of his family's perceptions of him that had allowed her to feel comfortable accepting an offer of courtship from him. She wondered how he would preform when surrounded by Bennets.