A/N

I am afraid this Authors Note has become as big as the chapter itself! I have tried to give my point of view regarding Mrs B... those of you who are not interested can straight away jump to Ch 10 ๐Ÿ˜Š

Firstly, no one can argue that Mr and Mrs B were the most negligent parents around. But please remember the story -variation "A little Magic" started on 27th Nov 1811. Before that the P&P events and the characters are more or less like Austen described them. I say "more or less" because I made only two small changes in the past events โ€“ 1)Mary's interest in Collins and 2) Mr B's illness. Also, while all the characters have similar personalities โ€“ they are more moderate or perhaps less extreme? Frankly, If Mrs B and Collins were as repulsively vulgar and stupid as in the original, then the only variation I can come up with my limited ability is to make them board a ship to a far-off land from where no one returns and while I am at it, I will also send Mr B and Lydia along ๐Ÿ˜Š

Also, I consider Mr B much more responsible for their sad situation than Mrs B

A Cambridge educated, intelligent man who comes from generations of landed gentry does not know that he has to make provisions for/save dowries for his 5 daughters? And cannot save a single penny in 2 DECADES? Two words that come to my mind โ€“ ridiculous and unbelievable. (Georgiana, Bingley sisters all have dowries... just not the Bennet girls) And frankly it has nothing to do with the entail โ€“ even if he had an heir or the entail was not there โ€“ Longbourn would have gone to the heir โ€“ still leaves 5/4 daughters to provide for. What makes it still more criminal is that he had his brother-in-law to guide him regarding investments etc and still he did -NOTHING.

Contrast this with a semi-literate, foolish woman who has not seen much prosperity โ€“ does not know the ways of the gentry โ€“ on top of that women in regency England were hardly supposed to involve themselves in the finances โ€“ how much is she to be blamed for her spendthrift attitude/ inherent vulgarity and how much her husband who could not care less ? Austen does not tell explicitly how much Mr B tried to guide her โ€“ but if his contempt and indolence are pointers then โ€“ not much. So yes, I am more sympathetic to her than her husband and yes, I believe her fears were very genuine given the time period and its norms.

And many of you wrote back that she was worrying about prostituting herself โ€“ I am sorry if it came out as so self-centered but I had tried to show her fears for her young and beautiful daughters โ€“ not herself. The last thing I want to convey (again it would be controversial) but we are talking about England 1811 (Not earth 2022) in those times children of gentry (both men/women) were expected to marry advantageously and as such Mrs B was not committing any atrocity/torture on Elizabeth... especially in her limited understanding. She was not expecting anything from Elizabeth she herself had not done โ€“ Marry advantageously :) In the original story she was so stupid that she considered Collins to be "Quite a clever, useful sort of man" ... So... I will rest my case here... if you do not agree... well, that's your right! Once again thank you very much for all the varied feedback - it was definitely very interesting and educative and I loved reading it (even if I don't agree to some of it ๐Ÿ˜Š) Please do keep writing!

Thank you, Lisa for your kind help ๐Ÿ˜Š

A Little Magic Chapter 10

The next morning when Elizabeth woke up, she was still restless as her mother's words kept coming back to her. However, once Mary came to her chamber wearing the yellow gown, the pleasure and excited anticipation in her sister's face lightened her mood a little. By the time she had finished dressing Mary's hair - complete with the yellow flowers - she too had started feeling as excited as her sister, especially to observe Mr Collins' reaction to the change.

"If I were you, Mary, I would definitely ask Mama for a yellow gown for my birthday." Elizabeth smiled as she gave one final pat to Mary's hair and stood back to observe the result of her ministrations. 'The difference a bright gown and a becoming hairstyle can make to a lady's person is nothing short of amazing,' Elizabeth mused wonderingly.

"I do think you are right," Mary replied with a pleased smile, as she observed herself in the mirror. Then she turned to glance at her sister. "Lizzy?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you," Mary said quietly. The words were simple - almost prosaic, but the emotions behind them were very sincere.

Elizabeth gave a delighted smile in response and bent down to drop a careful kiss on Mary's beautifully coiffed hair. "You are most welcome, my dear," she said and then moved away to pick up her shawl and reticule from the bed. "Shall we go downstairs ? I think the gentlemen from Netherfield are already here."

Mary nodded, and the sisters made their way downstairs to their mother's morning room.

~~~ยง~~~

Elizabeth entered the morning room behind Mary, and her gaze immediately sought Mr Collins for his reaction to the Mary's transformation. She found him blinking at her sister with a vaguely surprised expression - almost as if he was trying to put a name to the person in front of him.

"You are looking very nice, Cousin Mary," he finally said with a wide smile.

In the last se'nnight Mr Collins had offered quite a few compliments to Elizabeth, some of them quite extravagant and manifestly untrue. Compared to them the one he had now presented to Mary could be considered disappointingly mild. However, to Elizabeth it was one of the most sincere compliments he had offered in her hearing. Mary also appeared to think so if the expression on her faintly flushed and smiling face was any indication. Feeling pleased with how things seemed be progressing between Mr Collins and Mary, she looked away from them.

Intent on sharing her pleasure on the apparent success of all their efforts, her eyes searched for Mr Darcy. It was much later that she realized that he was the first person she had sought to share her joy with when ordinarily it would have been Jane. Mr Darcy was observing Mr Collins exchange greetings with Mary with a satisfied smile on his face. Almost as if he could feel her gaze on him, he suddenly turned his head to glance at her. His smile immediately broadened and he teasingly raised a brow at her. Refusing to rise to the bait, Elizabeth smiled back - quiet willing to acknowledge that he had been correct in his estimations yesterday. Perhaps it was the result of the benevolence she now felt towards him, but as she continued to gaze at his smiling face โ€“ the disconcertingly handsome visage made her heartbeat go up a notch or... two. 'At least the disconcerting dimple is missing in action,' she thought. Alas, too soon. His smile broadened some more and the dimple peeped. 'Really, it is almost as if he knows I find it... unsettling... and deliberately keeps doing this,' she thought a little wildly and quickly glanced away from him. Had she continued to observe him she would have seen his eyes widen slightly as he hurriedly looked down at the teacup in his hand.

Elizabeth looked around and busied herself in observing her family's varied reactions to Mary's make over. Jane and Mr Bingley were busy chatting - as usual - and most probably had not paid attention to anyone else including Mary. Kitty was staring at Mary and Mr Collins with a mixture of surprise and pleasure. Lydia was observing them with her brows raised, and Elizabeth sighed at the amused smirk on her face. 'I will have to keep a watch on her. Mary has taken but a fledging step towards giving some importance to her appearance, I cannot have Lydia ruining everything with her teasing,' she mused as her gaze finally came to rest on her mother. As she had expected Mama appeared to be extremely pleased with happenings and was spending her time alternatingly observing the two couples with a decided preference for Mary and Mr Collins. 'This must be the only time Mama's interest in Jane is coming second to her fascination with Mary... and her beau,' Elizabeth thought in some amusement. She decided to go and sit near her mother and discover whether her efforts on Mary's behalf had met with Mama's approval.

Mrs Bennet turned to look at Elizabeth as she slipped next to her on the settee and her cheerful expression immediately turned wary. Perhaps she too was recollecting Elizabeth's resentment from last night. "And how do you rate my skills, Mama?" Elizabeth asked playfully after a quick glance at Mary. Mrs Bennet observed her smiling face for a long moment, then visibly relaxed. "Oh, you have done wonders, Lizzy. But then, that is why I approached you yesterday - you are the only one of my daughters whose mettle rises with every attempt to challenge it." She patted Elizabeth's hand and smiled. Coming from her mother it was high praise indeed and although she tried hard to not be too much affected by it... deep down it did make her happy.

She had wanted to let her mother know that finally she did understand her fears and... her compulsions but without bringing up the disturbing revelations of yesterday. Now, as she shared a smile with her mother, Elizabeth felt strangely light as she believed it was one of those very rare moments when she and Mama had been in complete accord. She had not been able to give words to her feelings - still Mama appeared to have understood.

Before they could talk any further, Mrs Hill came up to her mistress and informed her that the picnic baskets and other necessities had been placed in the carriage. Mrs Bennet communicated the same to the room at large, and suddenly everyone was eager to start their journey.

"I hope you all enjoy yourselves, Lizzy."

"I am sure we will," Elizabeth replied as she got up from her seat. "Mama... where is Papa? Is he still not well?" she asked suddenly. She had been deeply hurt by her father's lack of support and his avoidance of her for the last two days. Mama's confessions coming on top of that had further increased her dissatisfaction. However, his continued absence disturbed her. Especially now when the tricky situation had mostly been resolved to everyone's satisfaction. 'Is he truly so unwell?' A frisson of unease passed through her at the thought. She had been sure that he was using his health as an excuse to not make a decision.

"He has been feeling fatigued for some days, Lizzy but is much better today and might even come down later in the day. He was very relieved when I told him about Mr Collins' change of heart." Mrs Bennet replied. Just for a moment Elizabeth's mouth twisted in a cynical smile. 'And why wouldn't he be? Now that someone else had taken the trouble to ensure that he need not take stand...' she thought as her gaze involuntarily swiveled towards Mr Darcy, but he, Mr Bingley and Jane had already gone out of the room. Elizabeth shook her head in an attempt to dispel her negative thoughts. 'Now that everything seemed to be happening for the best, let me not think about such things and spoil my day.'

"I will see you soon, Mama," she said as she also made her way towards the door.

~~~ยง~~~

As Darcy stood waiting with the others for their carriages to be brought out to the portico, he deliberately looked down at his Hessians - and mused on the trials and tribulations his recently acquired power had brought him. Yesterday, when the men had segregated for the post dinner drinks, he had nearly suffered a crick in his neck, trying not to look at Bingley. 'Really, how can Bingley keep rhapsodizing over Miss Bennet so... so incessantly. It is... it is not seemly,' he thought, feeling aggravated, conveniently forgetting that whenever he was alone with his thoughts, they too veered towards Miss Elizabeth more often than not. 'Unfortunately, an overfed Hurst lustily downing his port is hardly someone you would like to observe either.' It was getting truly difficult to know where to keep his gaze in the company. In the past two days he had received so much information he had absolutely no business knowing. This morning itself he had discovered that the maid Polly was also in love with the footman Matthew but both believed the other to be indifferent. 'What a pair of nincompoops! And what am I supposed to do with this information... Am I to play matchmaker for those two also?' he pondered in irritation. Another problem he was facing was that whenever Miss Elizabeth was near, he was unable to rein in his emotions. Although he did not think it possible that anyone could ever discover his secret, but really, he needed to be more vigilant around her. He could not keep giving her the impression that he could hear her thoughts as he had done just now. 'Only... it makes me so glad that my smile affects her so... and it is not as if I deliberately set out to do anything... it... it just happens.' His lips once again stretched into an involuntary smile, just as the lady in question and the carriages came to stand near him.

He had ordered his carriage to be brought to Longbourn as Bingley's was being used to by the Hursts and Miss Bingley for their journey to the castle. As he turned to walk towards his carriage, he saw Bingley assist Miss Bennet into it and paused immediately. 'Oh... no... with Miss Bennet sitting next to him, Bingley's thoughts are going to be excruciating. How can I avoid travelling with them without giving offence?' he pondered glumly when Mr Collins made things easy for him but only after mortifying him in the process.

"You and your revered aunt both maintain magnificent equipages, my dear Mr Darcy. Please give me leave to tell you that your carriage appears as strong, stately, and handsome as your very esteemed self," Mr Collins turned to beam up at him.

Darcy turned a ruddy shade of red as he heard a couple of muffled giggles. He looked around to find the remaining four Bennet sisters regarding him with varying degrees of amusement. Ignoring them stoically, he used Mr Collins' embarrassing raptures to his advantage. "If you really find the carriage so much to your tastes, Mr Collins, then allow me to offer it to you for the travels today," Darcy said as he politely offered his hand to Miss Mary to assist her inside the carriage. Then even as Mr Collins showed signs of breaking into voluble protestations of gratitude, he interrupted the parson ruthlessly with a terse reminder of the need to make haste.

"In all fairness, my dear sir, you must also allow me to tell you - that was very neatly done."

Darcy turned in his head towards the soft, teasing voice to find Miss Elizabeth standing nearby and smiling up at him โ€“ her eyes full of amusement. "Who could have imagined that Mr Darcy could be so sly in his dealings. I feel certain that sitting next to Mr Bingley and Jane, Mr Collins and Mary would also be inspired towards greater felicity."

Darcy's irritation with Collins left as quickly as it had descended on him. Although Miss Elizabeth was ascribing him with greater cunning than he possessed, he was happy to have earned her approbation - even if for the wrong reasons. "I am glad that you think so, Miss Elizabeth," he replied with a wry smile.

He motioned to her to precede him towards the Bennets' carriage. By this time a footman had already assisted the youngest two sisters inside the carriage and he performed the service for Miss Elizabeth. As he climbed inside the carriage after her and his gaze swept over the youngest two Bennets, he felt a moment of misgiving, 'I do hope I have not leapt into the fire from the frying pan,' he thought uneasily, but took heart as he settled beside Miss Elizabeth and met her smiling eyes.

~~~ยง~~~

After savouring the last bite of a delicious meat pie, Darcy sat back against a tree trunk near him and closed his eyes on a sigh. Their surroundings were serene and the delicacies supplied by the Netherfield and the Longbourn kitchens had been sumptuous and satisfying. 'Only if the company was equally so.' he thought as he recollected Miss Bingley's disgruntled face of moments ago.

He had been wary of her accompanying them today and witnessing how open Bingley - and now even Miss Bennet - were being in their attentions to each other. Bingley's intentions were now apparent to anybody with half a brain, and however unreasonably Miss Bingley reacted to being thwarted, there was absolutely nothing wrong with her understanding. Yesterday he had tried to warn Bingley, but he had reacted in his usual, carefree manner. Then Darcy had hoped that Miss Bingley would consider it beneath her to accompany the much-reviled Bennets. Again, to no avail - and here they all were. And as he had feared, the dark clouds of discontent, and dislike had been steadily descending on Miss Bingley's sharp brows ever since their arrival to this place.

"We are going to explore the ruins. Who would like to come along?" Darcy opened his eyes to see Bingley and Miss Bennet standing together. Bingley was looking around - waiting for an answer to his query. "If I am lucky no one would be interested in exploring that broken pile."

Darcy's eyes widened in surprise at his friend's roguish thoughts. From some of Bingley's earlier musings Darcy knew that his intentions were honourable. 'But he and Miss Bennet are not even courting officially... should I act as a chaperon... just to ensure that Bingley stays the gentleman?' he pondered uncomfortably, not really keen to play gooseberry. Fortunately, Miss Mary and Mr Collins ensured that there was no need for it.

"I would like to," Miss Mary replied, but instead of Bingley she glanced questioningly at Mr Collins. "Oh, I hope he agrees."

From what Darcy had observed, Mr Collins had enjoyed one slice of cold ham too many and had most probably been hoping to sit back and enjoy a siesta. However, he heroically roused himself to agree with Miss Mary. "Mr Darcy advised me to court Cousin Mary as she deserves โ€“ I suppose he would expect me to take the trouble to walk through these broken remains with her," Mr Collins mused, and with an inaudible sigh he stood up. "And so would I." He replied and smiled at his cousin as he did so. "Oh, Mary does looks quite happy with my decision... And... she has such a beautiful smile. How very strange... that after all this time I should suddenly start seeing it so regularly." Mr Collins' perfunctory smile acquired a new genuineness as he offered his hand to Mary to help her rise.

'It is good to see Collins make a sincere effort to earn Miss Mary's approbation,' Darcy mused as he looked around at the others in their party for their reactions to Bingley's query. The Hursts appeared totally disinclined to make a move, as did Miss Lydia. Although, with her it was discontent and boredom dictating her actions - or rather inaction - than a bout of lethargy. Miss Catherine had already made her way to a boulder some distance away and even as he watched, she sat down on it and opened her sketch book. That left Miss Elizabeth and Miss Bingley. He did not need to look at Miss Elizabeth or even hear her thoughts to know that although she would be eager to explore their beautiful surroundings, she would much rather leave her sisters alone to their beaus. Right enough, she chose to stay mum.

Finally, Darcy turned to look at Miss Bingley. "... Louisa has become as useless as her glutton of a husband! Instead of accompanying Charles she is wasting her time here. Can't she realize how close Charles is to propose marriage to that insipid Jane! And I was so deceived in that cunning woman. She pretended to be so reserved and genteel โ€“ and just see her now - making sheep's eyes at Charles without any shame..."

By now Darcy should have been inured to it, but Miss Bingley's shameless hypocrisy once again amazed him. 'Perhaps I am being too hard on her... after all she cannot observe her own eyes when she is talking to me,' he thought with a contemptuous twist of his lips as he turned to wave Bingley to go ahead with his proposed walk.

"I will stay here, Charles, as I am feeling a little fatigued." Darcy glanced at Miss Bingley in surprise when she spoke up immediately after his signal to Bingley. And the reason behind her decision to not go and protect her brother from the predatory Miss Bennet became clear immediately. "I am sorry Charles but I really cannot leave Mr Darcy alone with that scheming miss. Really... the whole family is nothing but a band of fortune hunters! And the stupid man still continues to be enamoured of those so-called beautiful eyes... Heavens! Men are such lustful fools..."

Darcy would never have believed that he could grow to dislike someone with such intensity in so short a time... but he really hated Miss Bingley at that moment.

~~~ยง~~~

A Little Magic

Copyright ยฉ 2022 by S. Neha

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