She spent all day dreading tomorrow, which made her rather dull and stupid company. This would have been unpleasant, but not tragic, had not Mr. Johns been at home and inclined to be sociable with the ladies that morning. He tried several times to engage her in conversation, or a game, only to find her uninteresting enough that he moved on to a new target sooner than Kitty could shake herself out of her mood. The effect this had on her was, of course, to make her bemoan her fate all the more, and darken her mood another shade. By the time she was to meet Miss Darcy in the courtyard to depart on their errand, she was convinced that nothing about the day could bring her any happiness.
Miss Darcy met her with the blanket neatly folded and tucked under one arm and a heavy basket on the other. She greeted Kitty with a happy smile. "I am so glad you were able to come," she said. "You will love Mrs. Brown, I am sure of it. And, I have a surprise for you!" She gesture to the drive, where a farmer was pulling a wagon around. "Mr. Drury has agreed to take us part of the way, which will spare your ankle. I am sure you will be in no danger of re-injuring yourself now."
Kitty thanked her with as much happiness as she could pretend to feel, and accepted Mr. Drury's help in climbing into the wagon. They set off as soon as Kitty and Miss Darcy were well-settled among the blankets and hay that were spread out for them. Miss Darcy kept up a lively conversation with the farmer, who was bursting with pride over the imminent birth of his first child. His wife had only told him that morning and he was sure that no man could be prouder or happier. Miss Darcy was delighted for him and was already discussing names and futures for the child. Kitty ignored them. She had no real interest in the child; babies were pleasant enough in their place, but this one's place would not be anywhere near her life.
The loveliness of the day was rather ruined for her by the prospect of their errand. Kitty could not help thinking of how tedious it was sure to be, and how much she would rather be doing nearly anything else. The wagon jolted her about dreadfully, and made her ankle throb. She wished she could have found a way to decline Miss Darcy's invitation, and she wondered again at her father for insisting that she go along. What did he think she was going to get out of it, anyway?
Kitty had not really been paying any attention to the direction they were going or how long they had been out, and she was actually surprised when they pulled up in front of a neat, if shabby, little house where Mr. Brown (she presumed) was out in the yard, splitting firewood. Miss Darcy leapt down from the cart and, leaving the basket at the gate, ran to greet him.
"Mr. Brown! How are you this morning?" she asked as he set aside his axe. Mr. Drury came around to help Kitty out, and she made it back to the ground without doing further injury to herself.
"Well enough, Miss Darcy, well enough. Mother hasn't made it out of bed yet this morning but she's awake, and I am sure she'd be glad to see you. Do you mind seeing yourself in?"
"Of course not." Miss Darcy turned back to Kitty with a smile. "This is Miss Bennet. She has decided to come along with me today."
She greeted Mr. Brown politely, if distantly, and followed Miss Darcy into the house, blinking in the sudden darkness. As her eyes adjusted, she looked around and saw that the interior of the little cottage was a good match for the exterior: neat, but a little shabby and worn. Miss Darcy seemed to see nothing of any of it, except for the old woman lying in the bed.
Miss Darcy went straight to her, and held out the blanket with a smile. "Mrs. Brown! I am so glad to see you looking better. Look what we have brought for you!" She unfolded it so that she could see the whole thing.
Mrs. Brown reached toward it and ran her finger along the edges, her eyes filling with tears. "Miss Darcy!" she breathed. "You certainly did not have to do something like this for me!"
"Nonsense," Miss Darcy said cheerfully. "You needed something warmer than this old rag." She gestured to the thin blanket spread out over the bed. "And I had help making it. Mrs. Brown, this is my friend, Miss Catherine Bennet, and she helped me make the blanket for you. Should you like to try it out?" Kitty blushed. She had not helped make it so much as she had sat nearby while Miss Darcy did all the work. What prompted her to lie about it like that?
Without waiting for an answer, Miss Darcy spread the blanket over the old lady, and gestured Kitty over to help her. Awkwardly, Kitty stumbled over and tugged it down to the corner of the bed. Mrs. Brown was thrilled. "Oh, girls—you lovely, wonderful girls! I am warmer already. Miss Darcy spoils me, you see, Miss Bennet."
Kitty glanced at Miss Darcy. "Yes, I see."
Mrs. Brown patted either side of the bed. "Come and sit with me a spell, if you have the time, and we'll have a good chat. Do you mind getting up some coffee, Miss Darcy?"
"Not at all," she said. "Let me run out and tell Mr. Drury that we are well settled and send him on his way."
"Of course, my dear. Give him my love."
Miss Darcy fairly skipped out of the door, and Kitty was left standing awkwardly at the end of the bed. Mrs. Brown patted it again. "Come and sit, and get off your poor foot, dear," she said. "I see you limping on it a bit. What happened to you?"
Kitty never had any trouble talking about herself, and explained what had happened to her ankle, and what frustrations it had caused her. She kept having to cut herself off because she was sure that Mrs. Brown wouldn't understand her situation at all. But she couldn't help remarking on the ball, and how upset she was that she wouldn't be able to dance with Mr. Johns.
Mrs. Brown showed no consciousness that there was anything wrong with what Kitty had said; she was all sympathy. "I certainly know the trials of a poorly-timed malady. When I was a girl I was sick with the mumps, and couldn't go to a party I particularly wished to go to, because I was sweet on a young man who would certainly be there. I was crushed and convinced I'd never have another chance to speak to him. But I saw him again the week after I was recovered, and we found ourselves married within the year. Take heart, my dear—the world may conspire against you, but if two people are determined to be together, there ain't nothing in the wide world that will keep them apart."
Kitty did not, in fact, find that to be especially heartening, but she murmured her thanks with half a smile. The mumps indeed!
Miss Darcy returned and made the coffee, and they sat and chatted for an entire half-hour. Kitty was astonished at how much Miss Darcy enjoyed herself. They laughed themselves silly over the stories Mrs. Brown told, and even Kitty had to smile at some of them.
But it was a relief when it was time for them to leave. Kitty took her leave of Mrs. Brown with more cheer than she had yet felt, and was more than ready to leave.
When they got out in the sun, however, Miss Darcy hefted her basket again and said, "We have another stop to make, if you feel you can manage it. There is a family down the way here with three children, all sick, and now their father is sick as well. I've some food here to bring them, and if I can help them out for a little while it might help them get well faster." She smiled at Kitty, who had to keep herself from scowling back. But she agreed to go, since Miss Darcy had brought the basket this far already. Besides, it was that much longer before she would have to face the triumph of Miss Pratt, and as much as she was looking forward to the end of this errand, she was rather dreading that.
They went into the house to find it in complete disarray—nothing like the neat, tidy cottage they had just left—and a woman standing at the stove, crying.
Miss Darcy sprang into action without a second thought. She handed the basket to Kitty, who took it reflexively, and hurried to the poor woman's side. "Oh, Mrs. Stephens, you poor thing! I heard about your family this morning, and I have brought you a nice, hearty dinner to keep you well tonight. Miss Bennet and I are here to help. What can we do for you?"
This was enough to bring Mrs. Stephens back to herself a little bit. "Oh, Miss Darcy... thank you... I do not know how we shall manage…"
"One day at a time, the way you always do," Miss Darcy said with a friendly smile. "Come, now, shall we get these things unpacked? I asked cook to send you whatever she thought you might need, so I am sure we'll find some good things in that basket."
Kitty took her cue and brought the basket to the big table by the fire, and began to pull things out of it. Fresh vegetables, three loaves of bread, and a large tureen of cold soup were duly removed and arranged on the table, and she and Miss Darcy arranged them to keep until dinner.
"There," she said, "this will keep you fed for a little while, I think, and in the meantime you can keep up with everything else a bit better. What needs to be done, and how can we help?"
Mrs. Stephens had dried her eyes this time, though she had not stopped expressing her gratitude. She had a list of things she did not know how she was going to manage to do alone, and between the three of them, they were able to get a good portion of it done, though Kitty was precious little help, and only partially because of her ankle.
Miss Darcy loaded up her basket with mending to be done and promised to bring it back in the next day or two, or send it back with someone. She did not imagine she could do it all herself, but with Miss Bennet and Miss Pratt helping, she was sure she could manage it. Kitty protested internally at this further incursion on her time, but agreed to help. Confronted with Mrs. Stephens's tear-stained face, she could hardly do otherwise. One had to have some heart.
She watched Miss Darcy in some astonishment as she took control of the situation and worked hard. This was a side of her that Kitty had not seen before, nor ever expected to see in anyone, and it was strangely compelling to watch.
Miss Darcy was arranging for a young man from Pemberley to come and help with some of the more laborious tasks that afternoon, and Kitty listened in with mild interest. A new thought struck her. Would she have the responsibility to do this for her husband's tenants, someday? She wondered whether those tenants might be Mr. Johns'. The possibility made her heart glow.
As they walked back to Pemberley, it dawned on Kitty that Miss Darcy was strangely silent. Kitty could see no reason for it; as far as she could tell, Miss Darcy had actively enjoyed her morning, and was pleased to have been of help. What could she have to be so cold about? Just because Kitty had not been as helpful as she had? But her ankle was still recovering, and besides, she hadn't wanted to come in the first place!
Even she couldn't be entirely comfortable with her reasoning. She sighed. "Miss Darcy, I need to apologize. I am sure I was not as helpful as I should have been this morning."
Miss Darcy looked back at her, eyebrows raised, and it was a few moments before she answered. "Thank you, Miss Bennet, for the help you did offer. I know I was not the only one who appreciated it." Her lips lifted a little bit, and Kitty understood the matter to be dismissed. They returned to the house in silence, but it seemed to Kitty that neither one of them was entirely satisfied with how their day had gone.
Miss Darcy, eager to get started on their mending right away, had it sent to her sitting room to be ready for them when they had changed from their work clothes. Kitty agreed to meet her there, but with every intention of finding Miss Pratt and enlisting her help in getting out of the work. There was only so much a person could take in one day, and she had work of her own that she would rather do.
On her way to the sitting room, Kitty met Mr. Johns in the hall. She was delighted, and greeted him happily.
"Back from your travels already, I see! And now where are you headed so eagerly?" he asked with a little smile at the corner of his mouth.
Kitty told him, and explained about her morning visits, trying to keep her tone neutral. To her surprise, Mr. Johns laughed at her. "So you enjoyed slumming it, I see! Well, some girls do like a bit of that, I own. I never could account for it."
That stung. She hadn't enjoyed it, but he had no right to make fun of her for it, even if she had. "I did not say that I enjoyed it. But, I think it a very noble thing to help those who need our aid," she said, and wondered how she had managed to sound so much like Mary.
"I am sure it is, but I never did understand the purpose behind going out yourself, when it does about the same to send a servant with some money, or whatever they need."
Kitty had no response to this and was not clever enough to think of something quickly. Mr. Johns laughed at her again and left her standing in the hallway, rather confused. She hadn't enjoyed it, not really… but it had not been as bad as she'd expected. And Mrs. Brown and Mrs. Stephens were both so grateful for their help. That had to count for something, did it not?
Perhaps she could talk it over with Miss Darcy, and that might help her decide what to do. Of course, Miss Darcy would encourage her to keep going, especially since she had that basket of mending to finish… but perhaps Mr. Johns' argument would make her re-think the matter?
Well, she went on to the sitting room and determined that she would not think more on it until she had talked it over with Miss Darcy and possibly Miss Pratt, anyway.
"You do not look as refreshed from your walk as you were when we parted," Miss Darcy said when Kitty entered the room. "Has the thought of all this work truly stolen your joy?"
Kitty shrugged. "Not exactly, but I met Mr. Johns on my way here."
"That is not the sort of thing that would normally make you so upset."
"He does not exactly approve of the way we spent our morning."
Miss Darcy looked surprised. "Does he not? Well, that is a loss. But do not let his opinion of the activity stop you, Kitty. I know that my brother greatly approves, and Elizabeth has gone with me many times. There are plenty here who do approve."
"But he said that sending a servant with some money would do as well, and I suppose he is right, for a servant could do more useful work than I can, hobbling around like I was." Kitty sighed and fairly flopped into her chair. She halfheartedly flipped through the mending in the basket and tried to find something that was easy enough to tackle in her present state of mind.
Miss Darcy, who had already selected her piece and was searching for a patch and some thread, set it aside for a moment and took Kitty's hands in hers, meeting and holding her gaze. "He is wrong, Miss Bennet. First, our servants have their own responsibilities, and we depend upon them to keep Pemberley running smoothly so that we can go out and do these things ourselves. Second, there is something that is lost if we do not go ourselves, a personal connection that I would not give up for anything. Do not let Mr. Johns deter you from this course. I saw how much you enjoyed it as we were coming back, and I know that feeling. No man is worth giving that up; that is the reward of true Christian charity and it is a gift from God. Do not let Mr. Johns or anyone else rob you of it." She sat back and shook her head sadly. "No gentleman worth your esteem would ask it of you."
Kitty did not answer, but inwardly she seethed. What exactly was "worth her esteem" anyway? Mr. Johns was a gentleman, and very attentive to her. She liked talking to him and she was certain that he sought her out more than any of the others, so he must like her. What else was there?
Miss Pratt finally joined them late that morning, and Miss Darcy soon left to practice her music.
Kitty, unwilling to wait for the awkward interview which was sure to come, decided to take control of the conversation before it started. "I actually enjoyed myself this morning. It is a pity you did not come; Mrs. Brown was a very interesting person and I liked her very much. I think you would have liked her too, if you had come."
"Do you?" The smile that lifted her lips was not entirely genuine. "Well, in that case, I am sorry I did not, but I believe you derived more pleasure from it than I would have. I cannot abide such visits." She picked through the basket at Kitty's feet and made a face. "And I suppose this belongs to her?"
"In fact, it belongs to a neighboring family," Kitty said mildly. "I liked them, too."
Miss Pratt did not choose to respond to that, and picked up a piece of work over which she had been toiling for some days. "Did you happen to see Mr. Johns today? I had heard that he was about the house."
"I did, yes," Kitty said, and could not help blushing.
Miss Pratt noticed it and pounced upon it. "Why, Miss Bennet, what is this stain upon those lovely cheeks? What reason have you to blush for Mr. Johns?"
"None whatsoever." Kitty focused very hard on the shirt sleeve she was patching.
"But you wish you had?" she pressed in a knowing tone.
Kitty made no answer.
"You know, we had decided, a few weeks ago, that if he was going to fall in love with any of us, it must be you. Perhaps we should make that our project for the rest of the week. What do you think?"
"I… think…" What did she think, exactly? She liked him a great deal, and was very much prepared to be fallen in love with. But she was not entirely certain that she wanted any help, or at least not of the sort that Miss Pratt would provide.
"I think I would like very much to know him better," she said at last.
"Well, then." Miss Pratt looked triumphant and she abandoned her work in favor of the conversation. "I believe that you and I will need a plan, if we are to bring this about." She leaned forward. "Now. Mr. Johns is not here every day, so it is very important that, on the days when he is here, we take full advantage of his presence. We need to put you in the best possible light every time we see him. You should be glowing; you should be lively; you should be the most engaging creature in any room he walks into. But you must not appear to be following him, or desperate in any way; he must feel as though he should win you. Converse with others as much as you do with him; if your conversation is more sparkling when you talk to him than when you are with any other, he will notice. We should have him walk with you as often as we can. Perhaps I shall propose that we all walk out and explore the grounds, now that you are well enough to join a walking party. When you are outside, you can be more intimate."
Kitty put her work aside and leaned in as well. This was a plan she could follow, and the prize was so worth working for! In that moment, she was absolutely certain that she would not return to Longbourn until she was married—or at the very least, engaged. "What about in the evenings? You will have to deflect him toward me."
"I think if you try to send Colonel Fitzwilliam to me, and I try to send Mr. Johns to you, the four of us will end up in company together more often than not, and that cannot fail to be agreeable to us all."
"Do you know how long it will be until Edgepark is ready to be lived in?"
"No, but that is the sort of question you ought to be asking Mr. Johns, anyway. In fact, if you can get him to take you there to see the place, that would be best. See if you can get him to envision you as its mistress while you're there. You should be very glad to keep yourself entirely to him." She smiled and lowered her voice. "If you should happen to find yourself in a less-than-respectable situation with him, do not remark on it; let things happen as they will. I am not saying to compromise yourself with him, of course! But do not be too eager to maintain perfect propriety with him."
Kitty had the most unfortunate impression of Lydia at that moment, and it almost gave her a start. "I do not know how wise that would be," she said slowly. She did not know how much she should tell Miss Pratt, but she was quite sure that if her father found out that she had been offered such advice, he would have been furious, and probably refuse to let her continue their acquaintance.
"I told you, not enough to compromise you! Just enough to show him that your affection for him is stronger than your awareness of your surroundings. If it is done quite innocently, there is nothing the matter with it." She sat back with an air of great satisfaction. "Trust me, Miss Bennet; I have seen this work before, and I am sure it will work for you. We shall both be engaged before the summer is out!"
Kitty could not help being enchanted by that possibility and she strove to overcome her misgivings; when Miss Pratt asked her to "please call me Amy; all my dearest friends do, and we cannot go through this exciting time in our lives without becoming dearest friends" Kitty was only too happy to reciprocate. After all, Kitty and Amy were a team, united in the common goal of matrimony.