Turnabout Chapter 5, a pride and prejudice fanfic

Thanks, I love your comments.

Dear Guest. What do you think the governess could achieve by punishing Elizabeth for not practicing?

She might practice but come to hate music. She could end up playing like Mary in cannon – bashing away at the keys without feeling – which no one wants to listen to.

Or she could refuse to play in public – possibly ruining her chances of marriage because women were expected to provide entertainment in the evening – no TV.

Or she could get married and then refuse to play because she hates it. In which case her husband would have the right to beat her for disobeying.

Personally, I think it is better for her to play with feeling even if technically she is only adequate.

~~DGH~~

Can it get worse?

The four eldest Bennet ladies were getting ready for the monthly assembly being held in Meryton.

The sisters all looked forward to the event. Even though they had given up on finding husbands in their small community the girls enjoyed dancing and socialising with their neighbours.

'I wonder what Mr Bingley's friend is like,' wondered Jane as she and her sisters came down the stairs.

'I have heard that he is a gentleman with a very large estate in Derbyshire,' supplied Mrs Bennet who was waiting in the foyer for her daughters.

'And how do you know that?' asked Elizabeth.

'Mrs Hill mentioned that Mrs Nicholls heard Miss Bingley remark on it.'

'Is it not convenient that our housekeeper happens to be related to the Netherfield housekeeper.' Lizzy gave her mother an impertinent grin.

Mrs Bennet replied with a bland smile, 'It is certainly most convenient. But hurry up now. We do not want to be late.'

~~DGH~~

The first set had just finished when there was a stir at the entrance to the assembly hall. The party from Netherfield had arrived at last.

Sir William Lucas, the self-appointed master of ceremonies due to the fact that he was the only titled gentleman in the area, bustled up to greet the newcomers.

Elizabeth, who had joined her good friend Charlotte Lucas watched with fond amusement until she caught sight of Mr Bingley's friend. She had never before seen such a handsome man and the sight quite took her breath away.

After a moment of drinking in the view, she tore her eyes away and asked Charlotte, 'What do you know of Mr Bingley's friend?'

'Apart from the fact that he is tall, dark, and handsome, only that his name is Mr Darcy and what everyone else in town knows. He owns a large estate in Derbyshire and has come to teach Mr Bingley how to manage an estate. And by the look of it, Miss Bingley seems quite determined to stake her claim,' she added with a derisive smile.

Charlotte's comment drew Elizabeth's attention back to the gentleman and for the first time she noticed Caroline Bingley clinging proprietarily to the gentleman's arm. Lizzy was chagrined that she had not noticed the lady when she first looked in their direction since she was usually more observant than this.

Now that her attention was engaged, Elizabeth also noticed the tight smile on Miss Bingley's countenance and the desperate way in which she clutched the gentleman's arm.

Mr Darcy's body language was interesting. His posture was exceedingly stiff and not completely upright as he seemed to be leaning away from Miss Bingley. His features betrayed a pinched look beneath a veneer of hauteur.

Elizabeth hid her glee when she said, 'Mr Darcy does not seem to be enamoured with his company.' She had come to quite dislike the arrogant Miss Bingley and found it amusing that even her brother's friend seemed to feel the same way.

Charlotte suggested with a smile, 'Perhaps he will use the excuse of dancing with the local ladies to get away from his hostess.'

~~DGH~~

The local ladies were disappointed as Mr Darcy did not follow Charlotte's suggestion.

He politely danced one set with his hostess and another set with Mrs Hurst. After he delivered that lady back to her husband, he beat a hasty retreat before Miss Bingley could latch onto him again.

For the rest of the evening, he stalked the edges of the room where he used his exceptional height not only to spot and avoid clutching females, but also to watch Bingley and his interactions with a particular lady.

Darcy was concerned for his friend when he saw the look of relief on Miss Bennet's countenance when his friend turned away in search of his next dance partner.

He thought of the words Miss Bingley had said to him during a few moments when Bingley was out of earshot. 'I am certain that Miss Bennet has no special feeling for my brother, but her mother would never allow her to refuse Charles if he were stupid enough to offer for the chit.'

He did not know if the second part of the statement was accurate, but he felt certain of the veracity of the first part. No woman who had any feelings for a man would look relieved at his departure.

~~DGH~~

While Elizabeth did not have an opportunity to be introduced to Mr Darcy, she could not help but be aware of him during the evening even while dancing.

Although she found his haughty demeanour disappointing, there was a certain stoic quality about it which made her curious. She excused it to herself as an aspect of her delight in sketching characters since he was completely unfamiliar to her. And of course it was pure chance that when she it was her turn to sit out a set to give all the ladies a chance to dance, she happened to pick a chair where she could observe the gentleman.

Halfway through the set Mr Darcy changed positions and Elizabeth wondered if he had been drawn to her since he stopped but a few feet away from where she sat.

As soon as the musicians finished the current melody, Bingley came to his friend and urged him to dance, going so far as to offer an introduction to Elizabeth who was sitting just behind him.

Elizabeth saw Darcy's shoulders stiffen before he turned around and looked her in the eye. Turning back to Bingley he coldly stated, 'She is tolerable I suppose but not handsome enough to tempt me, and I am in no mood to give consequence to ladies who have been slighted by other men. I suggest you return to your partner and enjoy her smiles.'

Bingley blushed at his friend's words and hastened away while Darcy sighed in relief. Not only had Bingley stopped pestering him but he had quashed any expectations the local inhabitants might have had about him.

~~DGH~~

Elizabeth had been amused when Bingley pestered his friend who obviously did not wish to dance, which she thought hardly surprising as she had found out that he had only arrived during the afternoon.

But then he looked at her and uttered such a terrible insult.

The fury she felt seemed quite out of proportion to the insult. After all everyone compared her beauty to her sister's and Jane was invariably considered the more beautiful of the two. She was used to it. Therefore, a comment like that should not affect her, she had heard it often enough. And yet, she was in a killing rage.

How dare that arrogant, biggety, contemptuous, disdainful, egotistic, galling, haughty, insolent, lordly, over-bearing, monocratic, presumptuous, rude, smug, toplofty, uppity, vainglorious… she ran out of letters and her temper had not cooled in the slightest.

While she could not take him to task for his words, after all since they had not been introduced it would be improper for her to speak to him, there was a way for her to let him know that he had behaved in a most ungentlemanlike manner.

She rose and smoothed her skits and took a deep breath.

Once she achieved a modicum of control she walked over to Mr Darcy and stopped about a yard in front of him before she turned to face him.

For a moment, almost too quick to see, a range of emotions flickered across Darcy's face before a stony mask settled upon his countenance.

Elizabeth slowly surveyed the gentleman from the top of the dark curls on his head to his elegantly shod feet before she raised her flashing eyes back up to meet his gaze. Her left eyebrow rose, and her lip curled in disgust. She noticed a quick indrawn breath and for a moment wondered if he was going to apologise. But the moment passed, and she held his gaze a second longer before she turned her back on him and stalked away with her head held high.

Elizabeth had hoped for an elegant glide, but her control was insufficient. She noticed a few people looking at her, giving her a smile and a nod. She felt warmed by the unvoiced support of her neighbours.

~~DGH~~

Whispers started immediately afterwards, and disgusted looks were directed not only at Darcy but Bingley as well. It was fortunate for Bingley's peace of mind that he remained oblivious to the change in atmosphere.

For the rest of the evening, even men who did not normally dance, vied for an opportunity to partner Elizabeth.

~~DGH~~

Immediately after breakfast the next morning, when he had found out about the events of the previous evening, Mr Bennet quietly left the house to visit Mr Phillips.

'Phillips, I know that I am considered to be an indifferent father, and while that is true, I will not tolerate some jumped up prig to insult my girls.'

'So, what would you like to do? I have to warn you, duelling is against the law.'

'Oh no. I have no wish to kill him. I would rather wound him in a way that will hurt much more… In his pride.' A grin of malicious amusement spread over his features.

'So, what do you have in mind?'

'I know you have been cagey about keeping the identity of the owner of Netherfield secret, but can you get in touch with him and see if he would cancel the lease?'

A slow smile spread over Phillips' face. 'You do know how to hurt a man,' he chuckled. 'Hurt him in his pride indeed. I bet neither Darcy nor even Bingley have ever been thrown out from any place before.' He shook his head. 'When I first heard about that insult, I was torn whether that man was blind or a fool. Everyone can see that Lizzy is uncommonly pretty. Not as classically beautiful as Jane, but just a beautiful in her own way. If he did not want to dance he could have just said so. There was no need to hurt the girl.'

'Well, he hurt my Lizzy, now I want to hurt him. I also thought that until you can get that lease cancelled, we could get everyone to give them the cut. Let them find out the hard way who has the consequence around here.' Bennet grinned wolfishly. 'So, even if you cannot get the lease cancelled, we can make it so uncomfortable for them around here, that they will leave on their own account.'

'If that is what you want to do, we have to bring out the big guns.' Phillips grinned at Bennet's puzzled expression. 'Martha too was incensed about what that man said, and she has the ear of all the ladies in town.'

~~DGH~~

Since it was the morning after the assembly, several ladies congregated at Longbourn to discuss the event, as was their habit.

The main topic of conversation was of course the party from Netherfield.

'Mr Bingley cut quite a dash, dancing every dance,' said Lady Lucas. 'I must confess that I was surprised when he only danced once with Jane, the same as all the other ladies.'

Jane blushed as she answered, 'In truth, he did ask me for a second set but I pointed out to him that since there are such few gentlemen in our neighbourhood, ladies not only each sit out a set to give others a chance to dance should they wish, for the same reason it would not do to dance more than once with the same partner.'

'That was most considerate of you,' Charlotte complimented her friend.

'I do not deserve praise for this. It was mama who suggested this stratagem.'

'Well, you would not have had to employ this excuse if his friend had done his duty to the ladies and danced. But no, that man is too full of himself. Insulting Elizabeth the way he did. Not handsome enough indeed,' huffed Charlotte.

'Charlotte it is good of you to say so, but as I told Mr Bennet this morning, I also must tell you not put it into Lizzy's head to be vexed by his ill-treatment, for he is such a disagreeable man that it would be quite a misfortune to be liked by him. But I can guess how it was; everybody says that he is eat up with pride. Another time, Lizzy, I would not dance with him, if I were you.'

'I have no intention of dancing with Mr Darcy,' confirmed Elizabeth.

At that point in their conversation, Mr Phillips arrived, and it was not long before Mr Bennet's plan was discussed.

Everyone cut their visit short to spread the word as fast and far as possible.

Mrs Bennet surprised herself by feeling extremely pleased with her husband. Perhaps there was hope for him yet.

~~DGH~~