Hello everyone!
One guest pointed out that they thought Darcy had wanted to include insults from his canon proposal into his apology and thus, he had apparently not changed. But change does usually not happen overnight. He would not have been this mean. But some arrogant bits? He still loves honesty and he has not had much time to practice being kind yet. In canon, he had several weeks or even month for reflection and practice.
Other than that, I have litte to say but my heartfelt thanks to each and everyone who commented, followed and favoured. Enjoy the story!
Bingley paused, raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "Miss Elizabeth would have ripped Darcy apart. And we would have had to pick up the pieces now." He clucked his tongue contemplatively. "No indeed. I prefer this outcome." In silent camaraderie, Bingley and the Colonel raised their glasses to each other."
When her brother, Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam went to visit Longbourn again the next day, Caroline became uneasy. Given Mr Darcy's sudden love for the Bennets, she had grudgingly given up on ever keeping her brother from Miss Bennet. She could only hope he would grow bored on his own.
Mr Darcy's insistence on accompanying her brother even when the Colonel decided to stay back, now that had her truly worried. A feeling of dread was slowly worming its way into her stomach and coiling there. Suddenly, she was glad she had not eaten much.
Thus, Caroline decided to join them the next day. Once the door had closed behind the two men as they left for their call, she turned to Colonel Fitzwilliam who was eating the last of his beans with obvious enjoyment. She hesitated. Even he seemed more jovial than usual, eyes glinting and an anticipatory grin on his face.
"Colonel," she addressed him and he looked up from his toast. "May I ask you something?"
Colonel Fitzwilliam, toast dripping with beans in one hand and a fork of bacon in the other, gestured for her to continue. Caroline's eyes followed the toast. He was lucky no beans had dripped on her carpet. If Charles had made such an ill-mannered display, she would have given him an earful. Then the toast made another sweep and she noticed the Colonel grinning at her openly.
She narrowed her eyes briefly but then caught herself. Focusing on the matter at hand again, she took a deep breath. "Mr Darcy was very critical of the Bennets until recently and I cannot make head or tails of his recent change of mind. What is your impression of the Bennets?"
At that, the Colonel took another bite and put the last bit of his toast down, pushing his plate away. Somehow he managed to both chew and grin at her at the same time. He certainly took great amusement in annoying her, Caroline thought with aggravation. Then Colonel Fitzwilliam swallowed, patted his mouth with his napkin leisurely, and finally, after an eternity, answered. "I find them a warm, entertaining bunch. They are fine company and I would love to introduce Miss Darcy to them at some point. She could use a little of their boisterousness." He stood. "Now, please excuse me. I'll go into Meryton to visit the Milita's Colonel. I recently found out we have a mutual acquaintance and wanted to introduce myself."
After the Colonel left, Caroline stayed seated for a long while, lost in thought.
The next day at Longbourn, Mrs Bennet was delighted when Miss Bingley was announced along with the gentlemen. Certainly, her presence meant that she finally supported her brother's unofficial courtship with Jane. Oh, how wonderful!
Mrs Bennet observed the room carefully. Mr Bingley had settled next to Jane as usual. Mr Darcy had joined Lizzy - she still did not quite know what to think about that. Thomas would surely come down soon to debate with those two, as had become his habit during the last few days.
Colonel Fitzwilliam had apparently found a liking to the rapt audience presented by her youngest two. He did not seem to single out any one among them, however, so Mrs Bennet was almost sure there was no further interest there. Pity. He and her Lydia would have made the most gregarious pair! Maybe he would be tempted by a temper more to the opposite, though? She could certainly try to promote Mary to him sometime soon, if Mr Collins did not get his act together.
That man had not taken it well when Mrs Bennet had told him that her eldest was spoken for and her second eldest was entirely unsuited to the position of a parson's wife. She had tried to direct him to Mary, but for some reason that oafish man had started to spend his days at Lucas Lodge instead of pursuing her daughter. Mrs Bennet was very much put out. Why nobody ever listened to her!
Mrs Bennet was also a little miffed at Lizzy. If she had at least considered Mr Collins, certainly this could have been avoided! However, when it became clear that Mr Collins was looking for a wive among his cousins, her second eldest had taken Mrs Bennet to the side immediately and told her that she would rather marry the butcher than Mr Collins. Although surely Lizzy was jesting, Mrs Bennet did not put it past her most stubborn daughter to follow through with her threat, if only to vex her poor mother.
Seeing how Mr Darcy had started to seek out her daughter's company, however, maybe it was for the best. Mrs Bennet certainly would not push Lizzy on the matter, lest that girl got it in her mind to exclude Mr Darcy next in her matrimonial threats!
Those, however, were thoughts for another day. Today, she felt quite satisfied with the arrangement of everyone present.
Only Miss Bingley puzzled Mrs Bennet. She had expected the young lady to choose a seat close to Mr Darcy. Instead, Miss Bingley had settled next to Mary at a table a little more to the side. Maybe she felt left out, now that they had all become such friends? Mrs Bennet would have to make sure that Miss Bingley was included and did not feel as though her previous reticence would be held against her. As things stood, the lady was practically family!
Thus, Mrs Bennet sat herself next to Caroline and asked her about her time at Netherfield.
Lizzy was surprised at herself when she found herself looking forward to Mr Darcy's company. At first, he had been terribly uncomfortable and stiff.
When Mrs Bennet started to smother him in attention, Mr Bennet had taken pity on him and had invited him into his study for a game of chess. Lizzy had joined them soon after, in order to escape her mother herself. Listening to the gentlemen's conversation about their respective experiences and common acquaintances at Cambridge, she had found herself admiring Mr Darcy quiet intellect.
Over the next few days, the gentleman started to relax, ably aided by his cousin. It turned out Mr Darcy had a dry wit that Lizzy appreciated very much and she enjoyed their discussions. It was quite a novel experience that a gentleman other than her father would willingly engage her in debate and, on top of that, consider her opinions seriously.
He still could be an arrogant sod at times, making Lizzy's temper pique. By now, however, he often caught himself and apologized directly or explained himself better. She really had to give him credit for making the effort. Also, it helped that he seemed genuinely embarrassed at his own words sometimes. Whether she actually liked him or not, she could not say. But he was certainly interesting both in character and conversation.
Thus, when Miss Bingley was announced together with the gentlemen, Lizzy felt an odd sense of disappointment settling in her stomach. Then, Mr Darcy joined her directly and Miss Bingley sat elsewhere. Lizzy was pleasantly surprised, even a little giddy, if she was being honest with herself. Better not to think upon the matter too much however.
Instead, when her father came down and joined them, Lizzy threw herself headfirst into discussion of the latest publication of Jeremy Bentham whose work, they had discovered yesterday, all three of them followed. Bentham's radical yet often compelling ideas certainly served to keep herself focused.
Caroline largely ignored Mrs Bennet's prattle in favour of watching Mr Darcy. The older lady did not seem to mind however, and Caroline was quite content letting her talk and listening with half an ear, making noncommittal noises now and then.
The young woman had never seen the gentleman this animated. At first, she had tried to follow their discussion across the room but had soon given up. Now she just wondered at this new side to him, while a feeling of hollowness spread through her body. Curiously detached, she thought that while she considered herself quite clever, she could not possibly hope to engage Mr Darcy's attention in this manner herself. She could only hope that his interest was intellectual only. She held onto this thought desperately.
Then, a sentence from Mrs Bennet caught Caroline's attention. "By the by, Miss Bingley, did your brother tell you about my offer to accompany you to visit Netherfield's tenant wives? There are always things they are uncomfortable taking to to the men, so my girls and I usually make sure to do the rounds at Longbourn now and then, particularly in the colder months. I am at least acquainted with most of Netherfield's tenants and they certainly know me, so I am sure my presence would help them talk more freely."
Since half of Caroline's mind was still occupied with Mr Darcy, the catty comment she would usually have made reflexively was slow in coming. When Mrs Bennet's words and their implication settled in her mind, she caught the words on the tip of her tongue.
Caroline paused, wondering if she really wanted to go down this road. Then again, she knew well enough that she had never before acted as mistress of an estate and, in truth, knew very little about the practical aspects of that role. And here was Mrs Bennet, who had filled this role for decades and was as simple and open as anyone could be. A tiny little bit of excitement reared in Caroline's mind. She felt quite confident that she could interrogate Mrs Bennet unobtrusively, such that the older woman could not possibly notice and use her lack of knowledge against her.
Suddenly feeling quite energetic, Caroline turned to Mrs Bennet and engaged her attentively.
Over at the other side of the room, the discussion between the two intellectually inclined Bennets and Mr Darcy had grown increasingly silly, fuelled mostly by Mr Bennet's quips. At a particularly clever retort of her own, that Lizzy felt rather proud of, Mr Darcy suddenly broke out in an open, unreserved laugh.
Surprised, every thought of self-congratulation fled her mind. Lizzy just stared, wide eyed and amazed. He really was the most handsome man when he laughed.
When he noticed the room had fallen silent around him, Mr Darcy flushed, embarrassed, and Lizzy could practically see him pulling back into his shell. Well, they could not have that! She gave him a glowing smile in return and jumped right back into the debate with the most outrageous claim she could think of.
Across the room, Caroline thought she might cry.
Then, she noticed Mrs Bennet looking at her in concern. Caroline quickly pulled herself together, locking the tremble, that was spreading through her with force, firmly inside. She could not stand to be subject of pity, least of all from a Bennet.
Still, she was thankful when Mrs Bennet quickly escorted her to a small sitting room next door, at her request, ostensibly to refresh herself. As soon as the door had closed behind the matron, Caroline broke down. The tremble that she had locked in so bravely before now broke free and her entire body started shaking. She could not kid herself anymore. Mr Darcy would never offer for her.
When Mrs Bennet returned to Miss Bingley soon after with a cup of tea, she found her a picture of misery, with her knees dran up to her chest and eyes red already. Her heart went out to the young woman. Quietly she set the tea next to Miss Bingley and simply sat with her, patting her hand.