Update ch 23
Elizabeth woke up to the pattering of rain on her window. She looked out at the dark skies and pulled her shawl around her more tightly. At least, she liked to pretend it was her shawl. The fabric was so soft, almost as soft as a kitten's fur. When her new wardrobe arrived, she planned to return most of the dresses she had borrowed, even though many of them had been fitted for her. It did not seem right to take Miss de Bourgh's clothing. The fabric was soft and high quality, and she would miss it.
She watched the rain for some time before her stomach began to rumble. As if on cue, her maid entered to see if she was up, and promised that a breakfast tray would be brought up soon.
Turning back to the window, she thought over the previous day. She had risen with the dawn with the intention of sneaking out of the house. When she had reached the first floor, Mr. Darcy had called her over to show her a door that was rarely used, stating that the butler had orders not to allow anyone in or out. "There is no reason for us to remain indoors on such a lovely day. Walk with me. This way so that we can be spared my aunt's ill humor as much as possible."
Elizabeth rolled her eyes at the absurdity of Lady Catherine and the need for such subterfuge but had followed Mr. Darcy out the side door she had used previously. They talked for about an hour on their walk. The conversation seemed endless. Shared experiences, favorite books, new inventions, thoughts on the war in France or the conditions in America. Elizabeth appreciated that he had listened attentively and valued her opinions, even if they did not coincide with his own. Clearly, he was more experienced and had received a better education, but he was not overly proud or haughty when he explained his reasoning. Many she grew up with used to end their conversations by simply saying she was female and could not understand. Mr. Darcy was clearly different from any man she had known before.
She felt the loss of time when he looked up to see light flashing in his window again. "Oh, my, I see my valet is signaling us with a light in the window. I was so engrossed in our conversation, I hardly noticed how long we have been walking. It is time to return to the house before we create more talk." When they snuck back in the side door, a servant chuckling above them on the stairs alerted them to the fact they had been seen, but neither remarked on it.
Lady Catherine had served tea at her normal time, but in the formal ball room with enough space between each chair to ensure there could be no chance an illness could spread. Elizabeth struggled not to laugh, and she was thankful when Lady Catherine asked her to perform for them. Mr. Darcy once again sat beside her to turn the pages. Lady Catherine had attempted to prevent that as well, but he insisted it was necessary, and Lady Catherine knew to drop the subject for his stubbornness matched her own. Relishing in his victory, he used the close quarters to often brush against Elizabeth's sleeves as he turned the pages to songs she almost had memorized.
After dinner, the rain put most of the party to bed early, so Elizabeth sat up and read aloud in the library for as long as she could. Anne was indeed healthy and bored, so Elizabeth put as much zeal as possible into her reading and stopped often to interject her witty repartee which had Anne chuckling hard enough to cause a few coughing fits. "A fine payment for such merriment," Anne declared.
Briefly, Elizabeth wondered how she would spend her morning. With the rain, she could not go for a walk, and she expected Anne would need to sleep in after their late-night discussion. When the maid returned with a small repast, Elizabeth decided to eat quickly and move to the music room to practice on the pianoforte. There had been a few pieces she had never learned before, and they did not seem too difficult. She hoped the challenge would be diverting. For a brief moment, she wondered how the others would react. She was able to convince herself that she was not only wondering about Mr. Darcy's reaction.
The restlessness of her legs would have to wait until the lanes were dry again. Her current dresses were too fancy even to consider returning to the house with mud on her hem. She would not resort to walking the halls as Miss Bingley had done at Netherfield. She laughed as she remembered Miss Bingley bringing attention to herself by suggesting a turn about the room. Then she remembered Mr. Darcy's response that he would enjoy the view from where he sat. Her smile vanished. Had he admired her then? She had truly been oblivious if this were the case.
As she picked up the hot chocolate served with her breakfast, she thought over her interactions with Mr. Darcy in Hertfordshire. He had observed her often, and now that she thought of it, he really did not appear displeased as she had previously determined. Perhaps he had admired her even then. He had spoken to her a few times, and while she had never thought much of their conversations and debates, perhaps he had enjoyed them. Then again, there was the one time they sat together in the library at Netherfield without any conversation for at least half an hour. If he had admired her, it seemed it had been against his will.
This solidified her reasoning that his will was stronger than his admiration. He would not allow himself to be trapped into marrying, and he would resent her if she attempted to force him.
When she finished eating, Elizabeth moved to the music room and played for a couple of hours before she was interrupted by Charlotte and Maria coming to watch her while they completed their sewing. Eager for a pause, Elizabeth moved to sit with them instead of performing. She even offered to help Charlotte with her sewing. Maria sewed poorly as she described her dreams and expectations for the ball. Charlotte and Elizabeth listened and attempted to calm Maria's nerves.
While they were sewing, the gentlemen joined their party. Mr. Darcy claimed the seat beside Elizabeth while the colonel sat beside Maria. Maria whined under her breath, "I have not danced for over a month," and then nearly stabbed her finger as she realized that the colonel might have heard her complaining. Elizabeth managed to conceal her laughter, knowing Maria would grow even more distressed.
The colonel was calm for a full five minutes, just long enough for Maria to calm her nerves, before he announced that he felt like dancing. Maria nearly threw her sewing into the basket, requiring Charlotte to ensure the needle had not been lost while the gentlemen moved the furniture so they could dance.
"There is no enjoyment like dancing, and a few hops, skips, and jumps are required if we are to remain indoors." The colonel laughed at his own humor, which was necessary as no one else thought he was funny. "Mrs. Collins, can you play?" He asked while taking her hand to escort her to the pianoforte.
"Alas, I have never learned. My family had not been able to hire a music master to teach us enough to be able to play music fit for a dance. Eliza has always been the performer of our group. Well, her and her sister, Mary."
Elizabeth blushed as she said, "Well, that is as good an opening as any. I shall play for us. At least there will be a proper proportion of ladies to gentlemen." With a smirk, she took her seat and began a quick melody before anyone could think to respond. The gentlemen looked at each other as though their favorite toy had been stolen before Mr. Darcy shrugged his shoulders and offered his hand to Miss Lucas for the dance. If he could not dance with Elizabeth, he could at least show her that his manners could be cordial to her friends.
Maria blushed profusely as she stood across from Mr. Darcy. Charlotte stood up with Colonel Fitzwilliam, eager to enjoy the pastime. They danced through four sets before Elizabeth declared her fingers too tired. Mr. Darcy was at her side immediately to lead her to a sofa where she could rest. He had hoped to dance with Elizabeth, but he had resigned himself to dancing with her friends. He had enjoyed the time more than he thought he would have. Maria and Mrs. Collins were pleasant and unpretentious, very unlike most women of his acquaintance.
The colonel, on the other hand, was miserable. His entire plan had depended on Mr. Darcy dancing with Elizabeth. His misery at not getting them together was visible on his face, until an idea came to him, brightening his complexion considerably. "Mrs. Jenkinson!" he shouted as he leapt up and almost ran from the room. The others stared at the open door for a minute before shrugging and returning to a more intimate conversation.
Maria dominated the conversation, as she exclaimed eagerly all her anticipation for the ball, and Elizabeth indulged Maria's excitement. With Mrs. Collins' polite responses, and Mr. Darcy's promise to dance with each of them during the ball, Elizabeth was beginning to think this ball would be exciting, even if she did not know anyone beyond the assembled party.
They were interrupted by Colonel Fitzwilliam and Mrs. Jenkinson's entrance. Mrs. Jenkinson was nearly dragged by the colonel to the piano, blushing profusely. After a few calming breaths, she began to play.
"See, Miss Bennet shall have her chance to dance as well." the colonel cheered.
Maria jumped to her feet, excited to dance again before she realized there were not enough gentlemen in the room for everyone to have a partner. She sat back down again, mortified that she would insist on being invited to dance before the other ladies. Mr. Darcy then hid his chuckle well as he very politely asked Miss Lucas for a dance.
She was too mortified to speak during the dance. As it was, she barely managed to make eye contact with Mr. Darcy, but this was for the best, as Mr. Darcy only had eyes for Elizabeth. She danced with light steps and high energy, laughing as the colonel deliberately stepped wrong.
"You must learn to avoid a bumbling partner!" The colonel stated, laughing whenever Elizabeth had to hop to avoid him.
When the song ended, Elizabeth clapped appreciatively with the others. She grew thoughtful as Mrs. Jenkinson began to play a new song. After a few moments, she asked, "Will there be a waltz at the ball?"
Maria's eyes widened as she took her seat, breathless at the thought of dancing a waltz. "That would be too scandalous, would it not?"
Mr. Darcy shrugged. His cousin replied, "Not so scandalous as you might think. While the waltz is not accepted at St. James, there are quite a few dandies who have taken to the dance. Mr. Warden is as much of a dandy as they come, so it is likely he will convince his mother to play one for the supper set."
"Mr. Warden?" Elizabeth enquired, remembering the last time she had heard the name.
"Lady Metcalf's second son. It is likely his doing that there is a ball in the first place. He never could get enough dancing during the season, even though he went to every ball, which amounted to at least one per week." Mr. Darcy shuddered as he thought of so many dances.
Elizabeth laughed at his response and replied, "Perhaps once per week is a bit much, however, I shall have to experience such an occurrence for myself in order to make a sound judgement." Suddenly nervous that she would dance with Mr. Darcy in such an intimate dance, she blushed and looked away, laughing more to hide her discomfort.
The music had already been playing for a few minutes, so Mr. Darcy stepped forward to ask Elizabeth to be his partner. He only realized when he touched her hand that he had forgotten to put on gloves. He had not noticed while dancing with Mrs. Collins or Miss Lucas, but the heat emanating from the touch of Elizabeth's hand sent his heart racing. Only his good breeding kept him from making a fool of himself.
Elizabeth's nervous laugh died as she was swept into his embrace. His scent was overpowering as she attempted to appear unmoved. Unconsciously, she licked her lips as she gazed into Mr. Darcy's penetrating gaze.
"Have you practiced the waltz before?" Mr. Darcy asked.
Elizabeth nodded, unsure of her voice. She had danced with Jane a few times. Mrs. Bennet had hired a dance master the year before, and she had insisted the waltz be among their lessons, just in case the waltz came through Meryton.
Mr. Darcy began the steps at half the pace of the music. The steps were quite complicated, and neither was at their best. Mr. Darcy's thoughts were full of the fact that Elizabeth Bennet was in his arms, and he could sense her quickening heartbeat keep in time with his. Elizabeth could only stare into his gaze as he spun her around.
The song was nearly over when Colonel Fitzwilliam, who danced with Mrs. Collins, barreled into Elizabeth as he missed some steps. It was unclear whether the missed steps were an accident, but Mr. Darcy held Elizabeth close to ensure she did not fall while they righted themselves, and the blush on Elizabeth's face indicated she was entirely too aware of how Mr. Darcy's body felt entwined with hers.
With only a few movements left in the song, the rest of the dance ended without incident. At the conclusion, Mr. Darcy bowed to his partner before insisting he had some correspondence to deal with, immediately fleeing from the room.
The colonel laughed merrily, glad to have discomposed his cousin so well. Mrs. Jenkinson announced her fingers needed a rest, and the others soon dispersed for the rest of the morning. Elizabeth sat in her room quietly for half an hour as she thought about how good Mr. Darcy had felt pressed up against her and, for the first time, wondered what it might be like to marry him.
AN: Thanks for reading!