Hello everyone, here is the second chapter of Properly Humbled :) I was really astounded by the number of reviews on the first chapter, I never expected to get half as many! I'm really grateful for your input and I'm sorry about some of the embarrassing mistakes (a.k.a Jane Bingley, definitely a Freudian slip there). I'm really glad you gave the story a chance and I hope you like the second chapter :)
Thanks to the anonymous reviewers Trini (thank you for agreeing!), Guest1 (thanks, I will!), Queenofthetower (thank you for your enthusiastic response! I'm glad you're intrigued, I hope you'll continue being hooked :) ), Shailja Sharma (thank you, I'm glad you like the premise, I'm extremely embarrassed by that typo, I proofread several times, but I didn't catch it. hopefully it won't happen again), Kent (that is true, she did reject him twice, but his character had already been established by the neighbourhood by that point and the second time, she rejected him in very close company, i.e. Bingley, Mr. Hurst and sisters. In my version, he comes off as sympathetic because it happened right at the Assembly, before he had time to reveal his character. At least that's my way of thinking, but thank you for your thoughts, it could be argued that it could have gone both ways), Guest2 (thank you, I'm glad you think so!), Lazy lurker (thank you for making an exception and I'm really happy you like it!), Guest3 (I'm glad you like the twist and thanks for the encouragement!), Guest4 (thanks!), Guest5.
Please enjoy and let me know your thoughts :)
- 2 -
There was only talk of ruin in the Bennet household for the rest of the week. After any Assembly, The Lucases would have been convened with, but now Mrs. Bennet did not dare to invite Lady Lucas and her daughters to tea, for fear that they would confirm her greatest fears.
Mr. Bennet put up with her intermittent outbursts as well as he could.
"And then you know the other girls won't stand a chance! If the eldest is spoken ill of, and the second eldest is the one who started it all, well, Mr. Bennet, we shall find ourselves poor and dying of old age with all five daughters at our bedside!"
"I should have thought it is preferable to die surrounded by family."
"Oh, you don't understand my suffering!"
"On the contrary, my dear, I am just as appalled as you that any daughter of mine should speak about a gentleman in such terms without my consent. Lizzy should have at least given me the chance to say yes."
Mrs. Bennet would storm out of the drawing room when she she realized she was not being taken seriously. She would go on crying to Jane or Mrs. Hill about her misfortune.
Jane lent a sympathetic ear, but was mostly distracted by thoughts of Mr. Bingley. She was sure the rumours had already been dispelled and she told her mother as much. But Mrs. Bennet was unconsoled. The family had never been involved in any sort of neighbourhood scandal and now their reputation stood to be tarnished.
Lizzy, on the other hand, found solace with her father.
"I'm quite finished with this ridiculous affair, Papa. If Mr. Bingley or Mr. Darcy are foolish enough to listen to such gossip then I should be glad we shall have no more of their acquaintance."
Mr. Bennet smiled. "I am glad I have a reason not to visit Mr. Bingley anymore. But how shall Jane fare without her admirer?"
"If he has enough sense, he will keep admiring her despite rumours."
"But what young gentleman of fine fortune and impressionable nature has enough sense?"
Lizzy found herself feeling very uneasy at the thought of causing Jane pain.
"I do hope our first impression of him was right."
"And if it wasn't, Lizzy?"
"Then I suppose we lose nothing by not ingratiating ourselves with him."
Her mother, however, would not hear her staunch protests. She badgered her day and night about her "injurious remarks".
"Need I remind you, Mamma, they weren't my remarks?"
"I don't care if you aren't at fault, Lizzy, you will apologize to Mr. Darcy on the first occasion!"
But Elizabeth's pride could never fathom such a thing.
"Why should I confirm the gossip by taking the blame? It would only make matters worse!"
"Well, you will rise above it because your sister needs you to," Mrs. Bennet replied, giving no room for argument.
"Don't worry, Lizzy," Jane would say when they were alone in bed, "Mr. Bingley is a man of so superior and amiable a character that he will not be persuaded to think ill of me or you. And since Mr. Darcy is his friend we may be at ease, for Mr. Bingley would not choose to be in the company of someone beneath him."
Elizabeth was not convinced. Mr. Darcy had seemed quite angry with her at the Assembly, almost as if he believed the gossip.
She was torn now between salvaging her own pride and relinquishing it for Jane's sake.
This went on for quite some time until news was sent that Sir William Lucas was holding a large gathering on Monday evening and the Bennets were invited. This did little to alleviate Mrs. Bennet's anxiety, because she imagined the Lucases were inviting them out of pity, but it made her more determined to have Elizabeth repent and redeem herself in front of the neighbourhood.
"I was hoping to see you sooner rather than later, Lizzy. Longbourn has been quiet these days."
"Yes, too quiet, Charlotte. I have missed your voice of reason."
"Not to worry, I don't intend to leave you one moment alone."
Charlotte Lucas' affectionate greeting made Elizabeth feel less troubled about the evening's ordeal. She stood with her friend apart from the rest of the guests and surveyed the crowd with some degree of concern. She could feel their eyes on her. Their glances betrayed curiosity and excitement. They were waiting to see what she would do.
Mr. Bingley and his party had already arrived and, though it did not surprise her that the two sisters and Mr. Darcy should exhibit the same condescending attitude, it saddened her a little that Mr. Bingley stood awkwardly by their side and greeted those around him more deferentially than he had at the previous Assembly.
"Do you think Mr. Bingley was persuaded by his friends not to pay Jane any more attentions?" Elizabeth asked, staring in his direction.
"I am of opinion he is standing with them out of politeness, but I am sure he would like nothing better than to speak with your sister."
Elizabeth looked at Mr. Darcy next. He was holding himself very upright and important, as if he was doing the world a service by being there. She had to admit he made an imposing figure. She had almost made up her mind to speak with him if Mr. Bingley continued in this manner. She had promised her mother she would try, at least, but she still hoped there would be no occasion for it.
Her sister, Mary, began playing and singing at the pianoforte presently and everyone was obliged to listen, despite the performance not being very good.
Elizabeth felt embarrassed by the display, but she also pitied her sister, because Mary was genuinely keen on playing.
She did not have a very patient audience that evening since the militia regiment had quartered into town recently and were making the neighbourhood rounds. The young men led by Colonel Forster were in want of excitement and would have rather danced to music than listened to it. The young ladies were naturally of the same opinion. They had cornered the pianoforte and were making demands.
Elizabeth guessed that Mary would be pressed to play something "jollier" and, knowing how volatile Mary could be when interrupted, she parted from Charlotte with the promise of a speedy return, and went to her sister.
Halfway there, however, she was interceded by Sir William.
"Oh, Miss Bennet, let the young people have their fun, I say. If your younger sisters and the officers wish to dance, we should let them. We are in good society, after all."
He took her by the hand and led her away.
"I suppose you are right, Sir," Elizabeth conceded reluctantly.
"After all, dancing is one of the more refined amusements of polished society," Sir William added genially.
"I would say it's also democratic, since any society can equally enjoy it," she replied tongue-in-cheek.
"Well, you would not be opposed to the idea of dancing yourself, would you?"
"No, I certainly would not, but presently I find myself more engaged in conversation."
It was at that moment that Mr. Darcy found himself walking in their vicinity, and Sir William quickly took this opportunity to arrest his attention. He had been asked by Mrs. Bennet to reconcile the two parties and he believed he was in a position to do so.
"Well, if it is conversation you want, then you should look no further than Mr. Darcy himself, who is more inclined to it than the officers, I should say."
Mr. Darcy stopped mid-step and looked over his shoulder. He could not very well ignore the master of the house and keep walking.
Stiffly, he turned towards Sir William and Miss Bennet. She looked completely mortified to be in his presence, which pleased him a little.
"Mr. Darcy, let me persuade you to join us for a moment, for I see you are a man of conversation and Miss Eliza Bennet is one of the best young minds in this room. Surely, Miss Eliza, you would be partial to such a refined partner, eh?"
Darcy felt the sting of the appeal and, acting more insulted than he really was, he replied in clipped voice, "Indeed, Sir, I haven't the least inclination to engage this young lady in conversation. Please do not suppose that I moved this way to seek company."
He felt it was a just answer to such an unpropitious invitation, but to his great surprise, Miss Bennet coloured a little and, smiling nervously said, "I would be happy to converse with Mr. Darcy."
Darcy felt momentarily stunted. "I thank you, but I cannot inconvenience you."
"Inconvenience?" Sir William echoed surprised. "Why, Mr. Darcy, I believe Miss Eliza is anything but inconvenienced. I am sure she is more than delighted to speak to you."
"Miss Bennet is very kind," Darcy replied satirically and bowed. "I beg you would excuse me."
He did not linger to witness her reaction, but he believed he had snubbed her in a manner that would make her see the error of her ways. He was not about to forget the rumours she had spread on his account. He was only a little bothered by the soft expression of her face which betrayed a more sensitive character than he had imagined.
Nevertheless, he walked on, believing the whole matter to be finally settled.
Lizzy could not bear to stand with Sir William for another moment. After the awful encounter with Mr. Darcy she wanted nothing more than the ground to swallow her. She had hoped the gentleman would not be so prejudiced against her, but she had been wrong.
She had been cordial and pleasant, and, thinking of her sister's unease and her mother's reproach, had even benevolently offered to engage him in conversation. She had believed she might appease him this way, but Mr. Darcy was obviously not to be appeased.
Now she felt quite ridiculous for offering. He was resolved to think ill of her and she was resolved not to try again.
Although he had seemed startled by her kindness and his expression had softened momentarily, she quickly saw that his contempt overcame both. She did not believe there was anything else to be done.
Her only comfort was seeing that Mr. Bingley had broken from his party and was now speaking with Jane and Charlotte in a corner of the room.
Elizabeth did not have time to dwell on them, for she was soon addressed by a group of officers, who, unlike others present at Sir William's, had no idea of the recent conflict between her and Mr. Darcy and spoke with her freely and without irony.
She was gay and sociable with them and replied to their eager questions with as much amiability as possible, but she was aware that a new wave of rumours was travelling the room, this time about how Mr. Darcy had snubbed her.
"And rightfully so! A young lady must know her place," she imagined a stiff matron telling her daughters.
After some time, Charlotte joined her and the officers.
"I was finally able to leave them alone," she told Lizzy, referring to Jane and Bingley, who were now comfortably sitting on a sofa, talking animatedly.
"How did you manage to bring them together?"
"How did you know it was me?"
"I know you well, Charlotte. You are a great contriver when you mean to."
Charlotte laughed. "Very well, I shall tell you. I went to Mr. Bingley and asked him to give me a faithful portrait of the rooms at Netherfield Park, for I told him I had been trying to convince Jane their beauty was unparalleled, and before I knew it, he offered to tell her himself."
"If he believed such a transparent tale, then he must have wanted an excuse to speak with her."
"Indeed, and I was the excuse. You would not believe how daftly they behaved. They made me stand there for over half an hour despite the fact that they had nothing to say to me," Charlotte went on amused.
"It's a good sign, then, for people only forget their manners when they are enjoying themselves too much," Lizzy opined.
"Oh, but here I promised I would not leave you a moment alone, and you've already had to face Darcy all by yourself!"
"Oh, don't remind me, Charlotte," Lizzy laughed. "It was quite terrible."
"I take it, then, that the gentleman is not inclined to believe in your innocence."
"No, he is determined to misunderstand me."
"Well, I suppose you will have to content yourself with being misunderstood," Charlotte teased.
Lizzy smiled. "It is a daily occurrence."
Darcy could not say whether he approved or disapproved of Bingley's behaviour. He could not find anything at fault with the eldest Miss Bennet, but surveying her family and especially her second eldest sister, he could not imagine the association being in any way propitious.
Still, he thought it quite innocent for his friend to divert himself for an evening.
Miss Bingley, however, was a little cross.
"Of course I don't blame her for her relations, she cannot help that, but Jane Bennet should know her place and not encourage my brother's folly. I am of a charitable nature, as a rule, but I do not stand for such a display of friendship between them when her sister has insulted you, Mr. Darcy."
"I thank you, Madam, but I do not feel betrayed, if that is your concern. Bingley is free to like her. One sister should not pay the price for the other."
"Very honourable of you, Mr. Darcy."
Miss Bingley sighed in her bored fashion and looked about the room for new entertainment.
"I see Miss Eliza and her friend are looking at you. They seem to be doing a lot of that. Is that girl still hoping to catch your attention, or do you think she is talking about you again?"
Darcy looked in their direction. "If she is, she is no longer spreading rumours."
"How do you know, Sir?"
"I have wounded her pride enough for her to give up such schemes."
"Wounded her pride, you say?" Miss Bingley echoed, smirking.
"Yes, for I believe it was pride that made her claim she rejected me at the Assembly."
"Do explain."
"Young women of modest breeding and income who have lived in the countryside all their life are prone to such evils. They are believed to be the most accomplished and handsome by their small neighbourhood - of course, for lack of better standards - and therefore, they grow vain and cannot fathom anyone not admiring them or lavishing praises for their mediocre talents. Miss Bennet must have noticed how quickly Bingley favoured Jane and how little thought I paid her. She was injured in her pride by my lack of interest and she sought to get it another way."
Miss Bingley clapped her hands in admiration. "You are a true study of character, Sir. I believe you see the vices of everyone around you with great alacrity."
"Yes, the more I see of the world, the more am I dissatisfied with it," he replied. He glanced at Miss Bennet and Miss Lucas and felt the sentence was judicious.
"I believe I can guess your thoughts," Charlotte whispered in her ear as they both sat watching the officers dance in pairs with their sisters. Lizzy was looking in Mr. Darcy and Miss Bingley's direction.
"I should imagine not," Lizzy replied with some mischief in her voice.
"You are thinking how insupportable it would be to spend many evenings in the company of Mr. Bingley's friends for the sake of your sister."
Jane was still speaking with Mr. Bingley and though an officer or two had tried in the course of the evening to put in a word, they had left feeling quite dejected.
Lizzy shook her head. "I cannot deny your supposition, Charlotte, but I was thinking of something more agreeable."
"Oh?"
"I've been meditating on the irony that a man of such intransigent nature should be bestowed with such fine eyes."
"Careful, Lizzy. He is married and he already thinks you are a schemer."
"Oh, Charlotte, don't worry," Lizzy laughed, "his eyes do not persuade me to think better of him. He was blind enough to listen to those false rumours. No, I believe he has lost my good opinion, if there ever was any."