30th November

Elizabeth's first meeting with Lady Catherine was shortly before dinner that evening.

After she had dressed for dinner and was making her way to the drawing room, she found Mr Darcy waiting for her at the top of the stairs.

She smiled and took his arm. 'This is not the first time you have escorted me down to dinner.'

'I think this may be the first time you smiled at me like that, though.' He placed his free hand over the one tucked into his elbow and gave it a slight squeeze.

She frowned. 'Like what?'

'Like you were pleased to see me.'

The creases on her brow flattened, and the smile returned. 'Well, that may be because I am. Very pleased.'

She was about to step forward when he stopped her. 'I feel I must warn you about something before we go down.'

She nodded and waited.

'My aunt arrived earlier today. It seems the letter I sent her, explaining why Mr Collins would not be returning - at least not yet - was unsuccessful in alleviating her concerns. She came here to discover exactly what was going on.'

'Ah.' Elizabeth waited a moment, her brow once more furrowed, before adding, 'And what did you tell her?'

'She needed to know the truth, Elizabeth. Nothing less would have done. After Fitzwilliam and I had explained the whole, she insisted on seeing Mr Collins. From his demeanour when he entered the room, I suspect he thought she would take his side, but once she had finished with him, he was grovelling on his knees.'

Her frown did not lift. 'I do worry that yet another person now knows our shame. Was it wise to tell another?'

'She will not speak of it, at least not directly. She plans to go to the Archbishop, my Godfather, on her return to town, to see about having Mr Collins removed from the living she has in her gift. She will have to speak of his actions, but she will do so anonymously, where possible. It will not go any further than him. He is a man of God. He will condemn the guilty and protect the innocent.' He smoothed her forehead with his thumb. 'Do try not to worry, my dear.'

A rumbling sound caused his own forehead to crumple and Elizabeth to laugh. 'My apologies, sir. I am exceedingly hungry this evening.'

'Let us join the others, then. I would not have you starve away to nothing.'

Laughing together they descended the stairs, and entered the drawing room, drawing attention from more than one of the other members of the party, gathered there awaiting dinner.

Elizabeth was introduced to a thoughtful Lady Catherine, and then joined Miss and Mr Bingley. Miss Bingley was studiously trying to ignore the rearrangement of her furnishings, left as Lady Catherine had positioned them and with the great lady herself settled on her throne.

Miss Bingley briefly left to check that the table settings were suitably arranged for her new guest's status, then returned to converse with Elizabeth and her brother, while awaiting the call for dinner.

Lady Catherine, unusually, did nothing more than watch the other members of their party, while occasionally issuing comments to her nephews. She seemed especially interested in the two unmarried ladies in the room, Miss Bingley and Miss Bennet, but her full attention eventually settled on the latter of the two.

Miss Bingley had taken some pains to seat their party of eight appropriately, despite the uneven numbers of ladies and gentlemen. Lady Catherine and Mr Hurst were on either side of her brother, and Mr Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam were seated as ranking gentlemen on either side of herself. Elizabeth and the doctor were in the middle of the table.

Elizabeth, seated between Mr Hurst and Mr Darcy, was perfectly happy with her position, even though Lady Catherine took control of the conversation of the entire table; her loud, sometimes strident, voice making other conversation impossible. Still she would likely have managed her meal perfectly well, given Mr Hurst's usual concentration on his plate to the exclusion of his neighbours, had not the entirety of Lady Catherine's conversation been directed her way.

The soup had just been served; it smelled delicious and Elizabeth's stomach growled again. She took a bread roll from the dish proffered by Mr Darcy, and then Lady Catherine turned to her and spoke.

'Miss Bennet, I understood from Mr Collins that your parents have five daughters. Are you the eldest?'

'Second eldest, ma'am. My sister, Jane, is the eldest.'

'Ah, yes. The young lady betrothed to Mr Bingley. I suppose, with your elder sister's coming marriage, you are now considered out.'

'I have been out for several years now, ma'am.'

Lady Catherine looked surprised. 'A younger daughter out before the older is married. Are any of your other sisters out?'

Elizabeth hesitated for a moment, remembering that Kitty - and therefore by default Lydia - had been reduced to the schoolroom by her father. 'Just Mary. My two youngest sisters are still in the schoolroom.'

'Your younger sisters must be very young.'

'Kitty is seven and ten, and Lydia is two years younger.'

A few more questions and answers were given before Lady Catherine paused to deal with her soup. Elizabeth took the opportunity to sup some mouthfuls of her own rapidly cooling soup, break and butter her roll, and had just placed a piece of broken bread in her mouth, when Lady Catherine asked her yet another question.

'Do you play the pianoforte, Miss Bennet?'

Elizabeth chewed and swallowed quickly. 'A little, and very ill.'

'You should take the time to practise more. I do hope you will play for us later. Do your other sisters play?'

'Only one of them does.'

'Hmm. Did your governess not teach you all to play?'

'We never had a governess.'

'Never had a governess?' Lady Catherine exclaimed.

'Not at all. We had masters when we wanted them but no governess. However, my father is hoping to find a suitable companion to take charge of my two youngest sisters, and it is likely I will find the time to take some lessons from her.'

'I see. Well, it just so happens that I may be able to help your father locate a suitable person. Can I assume he would want one quickly?'

'I believe so, although it is likely they would not want to arrive before the illness here has passed.'

Lady Catherine waved the comment off as irrelevant. 'She can always be vaccinated before arrival. I will discuss the matter with your father and make some enquiries when I return to London. I have already situated several suitable persons. Indeed, I suggested a Miss Pope to Lady Metcalf, and she said to me only the other day, "Lady Catherine, you have given me a treasure."'

Elizabeth was unsure what to say to this piece of officiousness, so contented herself with a polite, 'I thank you,' and reapplied herself to her soup.

She had just taken another mouthful, when Mr Darcy leaned in and said, 'I do apologise for my aunt. She sometimes does not know when to cease with her interrogation.'

She sputtered over her soup, while trying not to laugh, which drew Lady Catherine's attention to her once more.

'Darcy, what are you speaking of? I must have my share of the conversation!'

Elizabeth dabbed at her mouth with her napkin, and gave Mr Darcy a reproachful look, before answering. 'I do apologise, ma'am. I accidentally inhaled a crumb. Your nephew was simply concerned for my wellbeing.'

As she spoke, Mr Darcy handed her a glass of water, from which she sipped.

Lady Catherine recalled attention to herself, thankfully this time focusing her attention on the doctor.

After asking about his practise and his family, she mentioned the current emergency and the patients in his care here.

He was eager to discuss the situation. 'Of course, we cannot officially say the epidemic is over until some weeks after the last case has been confirmed.'

'And how long has it been since the last case?'

'Mrs Bennet was the last to fall ill, but I have my suspicions there is another yet to come. However, as we know where Mr Collins' infection stems from, I am not really counting him as a part of the epidemic. Mr Collins has this evening started with a fever and other symptoms which suggest he is about to succumb. Two or three more days will be needed to confirm or repudiate my suspicions.'

'I see,' said Lady Catherine, looking at her nephews with a grim smile. 'It is as we suspected, then.'

Elizabeth smiled inwardly. It was no more than he deserved.