The soiree at the home of Sir William and Lady Lucas was a fairly typical gathering of its type, although fraught with undercurrents Darcy was still attempting to fully understand. Even as he did his best to draw no unwanted attention, he kept his eyes open and carefully watched events unfold.

All the waters appeared to swirl around the obvious reef that was Mrs. Bennet and the more hidden rocks that were Sir William and his wife. The Bennets arrived just after the party from Netherfield and Darcy found his first clues to the situation as he watched their entrance.

Mrs. Bennet looked almost defiant as she entered the house, herding the three younger daughters along briskly while ignoring Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth. Those two women followed behind her with an obvious sense of reluctance. Darcy wondered why they took no pleasure in a gathering with their nearest neighbors.

Part of his question was answered as he watched the families at the receiving line. Sir William and Lady Lucas offered Mrs. Bennet and the younger three women a greeting so brief it was insulting. The insult was made even more obvious when they followed with loud and enthusiastic greetings for Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth. Darcy could see the discomfort this caused those ladies and the glare that Mrs. Bennet turned on both of them. More disturbing was the look of triumph that briefly appeared on Sir William's face as the entire party moved inside.

Miss Lucas and Miss Maria were more courteous to Mrs. Bennet and more friendly in their greetings to Miss Mary and Miss Catherine, at least. Their brother behaved just like his father except that he did not even bother to hide his smirk while he deliberately ignored Mrs. Bennet and offered an extravagant bow to the older Bennet daughters. Darcy did not like Mrs. Bennet, but after watching that display, he felt pity for her and a strong sense of disgust at the way their hosts had deliberately humiliated her as the price of admission to their party.

He excluded Miss Lucas and her younger sister, Miss Maria, from his censure when they greeted Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth with genuine pleasure but no fawning or fanfare at all. Those women were not playing a game, they were greeting friends. In return, the Bennet sisters responded with equal pleasure and friendliness.

As more people arrived, Darcy noticed that the other local guests behaved similarly to Sir William when faced with the various members of the Bennet family, although without the deliberate cruelty Darcy had seen in their host. Most were reluctant to even greet Mrs. Bennet. Those that did were both distant and brief. Miss Lydia was ignored as much as it was possible to ignore someone so brash and loud. She greeted everyone enthusiastically, whether they responded or not, smiling and giggling as she did. From her manner, she seemed not to have the least idea that everyone looked on her like something smelly they had just unexpectedly stepped in.

Miss Mary and Miss Catherine were greeted with more courtesy and less disdain in general. The older guests still kept their distance, but some of the young women were willing to speak with them and seemed on friendly terms. As he had noted at the assembly, Miss Mary behaved with modesty. Her behavior was appropriate for a gentlewoman of her status. Miss Catherine was a little louder and had a tendency to giggle. Even then, she was not nearly as poorly behaved as Miss Lydia and could probably be taught proper behavior if someone would just take her in hand and give her the encouragement.

It was the two oldest sisters who were truly appreciated by the company. Their presence brought smiles to people's eyes as well as their lips as they were welcomed to any conversation they cared to join. Following the example of Sir William and Lady Lucas, though, a few of the guests chose to make their greetings in a way intended to contrast with their lack of acknowledgment for Mrs. Bennet. The message was clear; people only tolerated the older woman's presence so they could have the company of Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth. As he watched, Darcy realized he had often seen members of the Ton react the same way towards Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst when Bingley's company was what they truly desired.

What interested him was how, as quickly as they could politely do so, Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth used the growing crowd to hide from those who were most overtly friendly to them, their hosts in particular. When the militia officers arrived from their new encampment near the village a little later, the young women courteously accepted introductions to the men before slipping away into the crowd again. However, he also noticed how they very carefully avoided being where Sir William could do the office. Their behavior appeared to frustrate their host, who had noticed it as well. Darcy already had experience with how very much Sir William enjoyed making introductions, so it must have been done to annoy him.

As more people arrived, the guests dispersed around the public rooms to talk in small clumps while they enjoyed the punch. It seemed the only company Mrs. Bennet could keep for any length of time was that of her sister, Mrs. Phillips. They stood in one corner of the room, heads together, obviously complaining about the people around them. Darcy noticed Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst, in almost a mirror image of the other two, making rude comments about the company in their own solitary corner. The similarities between the two sets of women were striking. He might have to point them out to Bingley later.

After the Bennets arrived, his friend had his hands full. Miss Lydia flirted boldly with Bingley at first, doing her best to prevent him from enjoying a quiet conversation with any of his new neighbors as she demanded his attention. As he had done at the assembly, he alternated between responding with mildly cutting or extremely dismissive comments and simply pretending to ignore the girl. The interactions provided much amusement to those around him. Darcy was extremely glad he was not Miss Lydia's target. His temper could not have stood such a strain.

Eventually, the brash girl was distracted by the bright red uniforms of the officers. She wandered off to boldly flirt with them instead, receiving much more encouragement from her new targets. She still tried to draw Bingley's attention any time he was near but he had ceased to be her main interest.

As the little groups formed and reformed around the room, Miss Mary and Miss Catherine conversed with Miss Maria and a few other young women of roughly the same age. He could see Miss Catherine's gaze was repeatedly drawn towards the officers, something like a moth towards a flame. She looked like she wished to go over and flirt as outrageously as her younger sister but did not have the reckless self-confidence to do so. To her credit, she remained safely in the company of Miss Mary and Miss Maria no matter how often her eyes wandered.

Of most interest to Darcy was the way Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth slipped around the rooms using the same pattern of movement he frequently employed, although they were more social about it. Moving individually, each would appear for a time on the edge of a conversation. The young woman would listen for a while, might say a few words and then would drift away to another group, keeping a low profile as much as possible. Both of them pointedly avoided coming anywhere near Mrs. Bennet or Sir William. Darcy was surprised and saddened when it became clear they were also avoiding Bingley and himself, just as they had at the Assembly.

Miss Elizabeth's game of cat and mouse ended abruptly when Lady Lucas opened the pianoforte. Sir William smirked as he loudly requested Miss Elizabeth favor them all with a selection. The young woman could not politely decline what was essentially a command from her hosts. She stepped forward with a courteous smile, although Darcy's careful observation of her expressions enabled him to see the brief look of annoyance she directed at Sir William.

As she took a seat on the bench, Darcy moved to a spot where he could listen with ease while watching the face of the performer. Miss Elizabeth's reluctance to play was not due to a lack of skill. She did not have the technical excellence of Darcy's own sister, who practiced under the direction of a talented music master. All the same, she played competently and with an expressiveness that covered any technical flaws while making the playing sound more skilled than it was. More importantly, she chose a piece that suited and complimented her level of skill. Darcy had heard too many young women attempt to impress with selections that were far beyond their capacity and offered up less than impressive results.

That was certainly the case for Miss Mary, who took her sister's place at the instrument when Miss Elizabeth stood up, also encouraged by Sir William. She began a complex work that was unsuited to both the occasion and her stiff and abrupt style of play. It was actually a relief when Miss Lydia rushed up.

"Enough of this boring music. Play something we can dance to, Mary!" she demanded loudly.

Sir William latched onto the idea at once. He motioned to the servants to move the furniture and roll up the carpet on one side of the room while he asked Miss Mary if she would comply with Miss Lydia's request as a favor to him. Others in the room added their voices to request dance music. With a sigh, the young woman agreed.

Miss Lydia bounced over to a group of the men in red coats and dragged one of the junior officers onto the newly-cleared dance floor, snagging another to partner Miss Catherine on the way. A couple of the other officers claimed partners among the available young women, although not with Miss Bennet or Miss Elizabeth. Miss Mary launched into a popular dance tune, which she played with far more skill than her previous selection.

Darcy shifted positions again, moving to where he could watch Miss Elizabeth converse quietly with Miss Lucas. He stayed far enough back that she would not feel the need to move in order to avoid him. As he stood and watched the play of expressions on her face, Sir William surprised him by approaching with a comment about what a perfect amusement dancing was for young people.

"It is the mark of every polished society," the man pompously declared.

Darcy swallowed a retort that every savage could dance. Not wanting to enter into a debate with the man, he merely commented politely, "Quite so."

With that brief comment, Darcy turned his attention to the impromptu dance floor. Miss Lydia was proving that any savage could dance as her behavior became more and more wild. Her flirting had also become completely uninhibited and everyone nearby, aside from the amused soldiers, was watching with disgust. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Miss Elizabeth looking at her youngest sister with alarm. She excused herself from Miss Lucas before heading towards the dance floor, likely to shake some sense into Miss Lydia. Still at Darcy's side, Sir William was commenting on something or other he had seen at a dance while attending the court at St. James. When Miss Elizabeth, intent on her sister's display of poor behavior, passed too closely to the men, Sir William stopped her abruptly with a hand to her arm.

"Mr. Darcy, may I suggest this young lady as a most lovely and desirable dance partner," Sir William said, with a peculiar gleam of triumph in his eyes.

It took Miss Elizabeth a second to make sense of the comment. She glared at Sir William briefly before saying, "Please do not suppose I came this way to beg for a partner. I am not inclined to dance."

"Oh, but Miss Elizabeth, you cannot deny Mr. Darcy the chance to enjoy a turn," Sir William insisted.

Darcy hoped he might relieve the situation by making the actual invitation. "It would be my great pleasure if you would do me the honor of a dance," he said. He realized that was the wrong response when her eyes flicked towards the corner where Mrs. Bennet stood.

Meanwhile, Sir William was trying to cajole her to respond in a manner that reminded him of Bingley at the assembly. "Yes, Miss Elizabeth. Now that he has made the offer, you certainly cannot refuse. You must accept and give this kind man the pleasure of your company for a set."

She glared at Sir William again before offering Darcy a deep curtsy and responding with what sounded like genuine regret, "I am truly sorry I cannot accept your kind offer, Mr. Darcy."

Sir William started to protest yet again, obviously determined she would dance, but Darcy cut him off. He replied, "I understand, Miss Elizabeth, and honor your response. While I will continue to hope for the pleasure of a dance with you at another time, I will not press you now."

She looked at him with gratitude before turning another icy look on Sir William. Then, she quickly walked away, continuing on her errand to convince Miss Lydia to calm herself somewhat.

"I am surprised at her discourtesy," Sir William said with a huff. "She is normally not so impolite."

"She was not the one being discourteous, Sir William," Darcy said stiffly. "In fact, her response was exceptionally polite in the circumstances. You, on the other hand, stopped her rather rudely and then tried to use the conventions of polite behavior to force her into a dance for which you knew in advance she was disinclined. Not content with her first refusal, you persisted, using me as an agent and excuse to further your own ends, while knowing full well you were increasing her discomfort in a most ungentlemanly fashion. I have watched you behave similarly more than once this evening. Your behavior bears all the hallmarks of a bully, sir. The only thing more distasteful than a bully is a man who enjoys bullying women. After this display, I believe the evening has completely lost whatever charm it may have had and will now excuse myself."

With a bow so shallow it was clearly an insult, Darcy turned away from his host. As he did, he noticed Miss Lucas was staring at her father with a mixture of the same disgust Darcy had expressed for the man combined with distress that brought tears to her eyes. He assumed she was concerned for her friend. Catching her gaze, Darcy offered her a polite bow before turning away entirely.

Next to the dancers, he could see that Miss Elizabeth was having no luck with her quiet admonishments to Miss Lydia. Miss Bennet came over to join her in softly requesting the foolish chit to behave properly. Their requests only seemed to push the girl to greater foolishness. Darcy smiled to himself. He knew Mrs. Bennet already considered him a disagreeable man. He might as well make the most of it and perhaps provide a small service to Miss Elizabeth as he did so.

Walking directly over to the corner where Mrs. Bennet stood with her sister, he came to a stop in front of them. "Mrs. Bennet," he said quietly. "I have seen how your neighbors treat you with what may be entirely undeserved contempt. However, the unpleasant way they have greeted you with today will be nothing to the shame they heap upon your head if you do not curb the senseless hoyden that is your youngest daughter. Her completely immodest behavior calls the respectability of your entire family into question. If she has not already, she will bring shame and ruin on your family and make it certain that no man will marry her or any of her sisters. The child should not even be out of the nursery, let alone out in company such as this. I offer this as a warning for you, without any ill will. If Miss Lydia continues as she is, those officers or their fellows will take advantage and the only place left for her will be a street corner or a brothel."

Without waiting for a response, he walked away from the two shocked women. It was time to get Bingley to gather the rest of their party so they could leave.