Jest Chapter 7, a pride and prejudice fanfic

~~J~~

Revelations 1890

After their return to the parsonage, Charlotte was busy with household duties, and ensuring that her husband remembered which parishioners he had promised to visit.

Elizabeth used this time to sit in Charlotte's small parlour to consider her conversation with Mr Darcy. She was amazed that in less than a day, she had gone from hating the man, to agreeing to let him call on her.

Charlotte had been correct in so many ways. By insisting that they ignore propriety and speak honestly, Elizabeth had been able to discover that many of her opinions about Mr Darcy had been faulty.

Yes, he was proud and arrogant, but that was only part of his character, and there was a certain amount of justification. Now that she was thinking about him without being blinded by her hurt feelings, she recognised that the arrogance he had displayed must be a defensive mechanism.

If most of the women he knew were like Miss Bingley, chasing him for his wealth and position, it was no wonder that he tried to keep everyone at arm's length. And what better way to do this, than by appearing dismissive of everyone. Elizabeth felt certain that if Mr Darcy had been in the least agreeable to that lady, she would have expected a proposal to be imminent. Even being disagreeable had not appeared to deter her.

Elizabeth wondered how she might have acted towards a gentleman who was intelligent, agreeable and incredibly handsome, if she had not been hurt by his initial insult. Might she have been just as flirtatious, not to say fawning? She hoped not, but she suspected that she could have fallen head over heels in love with him.

In that situation, Mr Darcy would have been perfectly justified in believing her to be eager for his proposal.

She suddenly started to chuckle at the irony of the situation.

If she had been flirtatious and fawning, Mr Darcy would probably have seen her as just another fortune-hunter, and beaten a hasty retreat. Instead, her abrasiveness, caused by his insult, had roused his interest, but rendered here immune to him.

~~J~~

Charlotte joined Elizabeth while she was still laughing. 'I am pleased that you are in such high spirits. Especially after your conversation with Mr Darcy.'

'I was just thinking that if Mr Darcy had not insulted me, he would never have fallen in love with me,' Elizabeth replied with an impish smile, wondering if her friend would come to the same conclusion.

Charlotte stared at her friend wondering if the shocks of the last day had addled her brain, until Elizabeth took pity on her and explained her reasoning. At that point, Charlotte too started to laugh. 'It seems that Mr Darcy was hoist with his own petard.'

'It certainly blew up in his face last night,' Elizabeth agreed, joining her friend in laughter. That laughter proved to be the catharsis Elizabeth needed after dealing with the stress of the past day, and she gave herself up to it wholeheartedly.

When Elizabeth calmed down, Charlotte asked, 'how do you now feel about Mr Darcy?'

Elizabeth sighed and lowered her eyes. 'I feel confused. For months I believed the worst of him, and now I find that I was wrong in my perception. While my head tells me that he is a good and honourable man, I cannot immediately overcome the hatred I have cherished for so long.'

She shook her head and huffed as she raised her eyes to her friend. 'I have agreed that I would allow Mr Darcy to call on me when I get back to London. Perhaps if I get to know him better, and given time, my feelings might change. But that will not happen overnight. He might run out of patience before I am ready.'

Charlotte smiled and patted Elizabeth's hands, which she was wringing without being aware of it. 'Mr Darcy seemed most determined to win your good opinion. I do not believe he will run out of patience any time soon.'

'Or he may change his mind by the time I get to London, two weeks hence, because he realised that his proposal was a momentary mental aberration.'

Charlotte grinned. 'I doubt that he will make it that easy for you, my dear Eliza.'

~~J~~

On his way back to Rosings, Darcy encountered his cousin pacing in the garden. 'How did it go?' Richard asked impatiently. 'Although judging by your expression, I would say that Miss Bennet is more reasonable than you deserve.'

'Miss Bennet is prepared to give me a second chance, to get to know me. She agreed that I could call on her when she returns to London.'

'Why not remain and spend time with her now?'

'I thought that you were the strategist. How do you think Aunt Catherine would react if I courted a lady other than Anne under her nose?'

'Badly, I would say. I can see your point, there is no good reason to take such a chance. I presume that means that we will return to Town tomorrow?'

'Yes. Although, since I am planning to make it clear to our aunt that I have no intention to marry Anne, she might throw us out today.'

'But you have told her so before.'

'True, but this time I intend to make her listen.'

'I hope you will not take it amiss if I go along to support you?'

'Not at all, although I know that you are only interested in the entertainment which we will provide.'

'What is wrong with killing to birds with one stone?'

~~J~~

Although he did not get a chance to speak to Lady Catherine during the day, true to his intentions, Darcy confronted his aunt after dinner, when the lady again pushed for him to marry her daughter.

'Darcy, I am losing my patience with you. You have procrastinated long enough; it is time to do your duty and marry Anne. Neither of you is getting any younger. Anne is already five and twenty, and if you drag your feet any longer, she will be a spinster.'

Darcy, who had scowled as his aunt began her usual tirade, suddenly broke into a wide smile, as something she said caught his attention. 'Five and twenty, you said?' When Lady Catherine imperiously agreed that he had heard her correctly, Darcy's grin got even wider, even though that had seemed impossible.

'In that case, she will be a very wealthy spinster.'

Lady Catherine wavered between being perplexed and angry. 'Of course she is wealthy. She has an exceedingly generous dowry.'

'Indeed, she has, Aunt. Rosings is an excellent dowry for a man who is interested in such things. But that man is not me, since I will never marry Anne.'

'Do not speak such nonsense, Darcy. Of course you must marry Anne. It was your mother's dearest wish. Ever since you were born, you were intended for each other. I have been patient long enough, and now must insist that you do your duty to the Fitzwilliam name and marry Anne.'

'No, Aunt, you are mistaken on several counts. I remember quite clearly that my mother urged me to marry for love and never supported your demands that I should marry your daughter. Furthermore, I am the head of the Darcy family, and do not owe any duty to the Fitzwilliam name. Therefore, I repeat, I shall never marry Anne. We are completely and utterly unsuited for each other.'

'Obstinate, headstrong boy. I am ashamed of you. I am determined to carry my purpose, and I will not be dissuaded from it. I demand that you submit to my wishes. I am not in the habit of brooking disappointment'

'That will make your situation at present more pitiable; but it will have no effect on me.' Darcy shrugged, apparently carelessly. He was determined not to show the slightest weakness to his overbearing aunt.

While Lady Catherine and Darcy were arguing, Anne, who had been prepared to sit listening listlessly to a repetition of the same demands her mother made of Darcy on every visit, had become alert. Before the argument could deteriorate further, she asked, 'what did you mean, Darcy? I know Richard likes to joke, but I have not known you to jest about something like this. How can Rosings be my dowry? I distinctly remember mother telling me that I would inherit Rosings after her death, since my father had set up his will to leave her in charge in her lifetime. Only at her death, will I inherit.'

'I am quite serious. I remember my father telling me that you are to inherit Rosings when you reach the age of five and twenty, or upon the occasion of your marriage. Whichever came first.' Darcy answered his cousin's question distractedly. What was the matter lately, that everyone thought he was joking?

'Of what do you speak, Nephew? Have you lost your senses? Rosings is mine.' Lady Catherine blustered.

Darcy looked to Colonel Fitzwilliam for confirmation. Richard grinned has he recalled the same fact which Darcy had picked up on. 'No, Aunt. Since you so conveniently reminded us of Anne's age, I have to agree with Darcy. You do not own Rosings. Since her last birthday, Anne has become the legal Mistress of Rosings.'

'I am the Mistress of Rosings,' declared Lady Catherine, attempting to sound convincing.

Richard shook his head and took on a mockingly sad look. 'Tsk, tsk, tsk, Aunt Catherine. I hope it is your memory which is faulty, rather than your veracity. I distinctly remember father and Uncle George telling us, that Uncle Lewis made Anne his heir, once she reached her majority of five and twenty.' The occasion had been when George Darcy had complained about Lady Catherine's profligate spending on ostentatious furniture, and hoped that there would be any inheritance left for Anne.

Lady Catherine turned puce and huffed. 'There is nothing wrong with my memory. Anne is too ill and weak to manage Rosings.'

'I am weak because I had nothing to stimulate me. All I had to look forward to was a lifetime of mind-numbing boredom, while you kept me prisoner. And you tried to keep my inheritance from me? Were you trying to foist me off on Darcy, so that he would take me to Pemberley, while you continued to control MY estate?' Anne too was flushed, but in her case, it was due to anger.

'Not so fast, Missy…' Lady Catherine tried to stem her daughter's anger.

'Be quiet, Mother,' Anne interrupted, before turning to her cousins. 'Do you have proof of your claim?'

'I would expect a copy of the will to be amongst your father's papers. If you cannot find it, we can send for our solicitor to bring a copy of the will,' Darcy explained. 'But I am convinced that your mother would know where to find a copy.'

'I know no such thing,' cried the lady.

'Very well, Aunt Catherine. I shall send for Mr Thompson in the morning.'

Richard turned to Darcy. 'It looks like we will be staying a while longer, after all.' He grinned mischievously. 'I suppose we could use the time to get some healthy exercise before breakfast, by going for walks.'

Darcy was undecided if that was a benefit or a potential problem.

~~J~~

Colonel Fitzwilliam was, quite literally, in the dark. He was sitting in a large comfortable chair in his uncle's study, beside the fireplace, where the fire was reduced to a few smouldering embers.

He was sipping some of the excellent brandy which his uncle had bought years ago, when it was still possible to get supplies legally. With the advent of the war with France, such luxuries were not difficult to obtain, since they had to be smuggled into the country.

The house was quiet, as everyone else had gone to bed at least an hour ago. The silence was disturbed when the door opened and a woman entered carrying a candle to light her way. While the light did not penetrate the shadow of the chair, where Richard was sitting, he could easily see his aunt.

Lady Catherine moved to a bookcase, and after setting down her candle, she removed several books to reveal a panel, which opened at her touch. She extracted some papers, which she examined in the light of her candle. Finding the ones she wanted, she set them down and returned the rest to their hiding place.

When she turned back to retrieve her candle and the papers, she let out an unladylike squawk, finding herself confronted by her nephew holding the papers she had retrieved.

Colonel Fitzwilliam was very light on his feet, an ability honed on the continent during several covert missions, had taken the opportunity of her distraction, to come up behind her and secured the papers.

'How dare you sneak up behind me,' she blustered as soon as she recovered from her initial fright, and held out her hand. 'Give me those papers,' she demanded.

Instead of complying, the Colonel examined the papers, and then commented with a smile, 'thank you, Aunt. You just saved us the expense of an express, and Mr Thompson the bother of travel. Anne and Darcy will be happy to see Uncle Lewis' will first thing in the morning.'

When Lady Catherine tried to protest, Richard suggested, 'although I would be quite happy to wake them up now, if you prefer?'

'That will not be necessary,' Lady Catherine replied in a huff. Since it was obvious to her that her nephew would not return the papers, she picked up the candle and stalked out of the room in high dudgeon.

Richard smiled happily and carefully made his way to the door in the dark. Once in the corridor, where a few lights were kept burning during the night, he easily walked up the stairs to Darcy's room.

~~J~~