Chapter 4 here. Elizabeth left Jane in her sickbed to go downstairs to dine with Mr. Bingley, his sisters and Mr. Darcy. Enjoy!

Grace

"Miss Eliza," Caroline Bingley said, pursing her lips when Elizabeth entered the dining room. "You do that dress justice. I find I am too entirely small for it. But it suits your figure well. You should keep it."

Elizabeth smiled uncomfortably. "Oh, I could not. You are already too kind."

Darcy glanced up as Elizabeth entered the room. Indeed, Caroline was not wrong. Where Miss Bingley's figure was slight and small, Elizabeth's was womanish and curvy. He had never seen that dress look quite so comely. He looked away quickly, annoyed by his schoolboyish reaction to her.

The footman pulled out their chairs and had barely sat before Bingley spoke.

"Miss Bennet, how is our invalid today?"

"She is well, although still a bit tired, thank you. She says you are a very conscientious nurse, Mr. Bingley."

Charles Bingley's cheeks turned up into a silly grin. Darcy's face practically hurt looking at him. He rolled his eyes. He needed to remind his friend to practice greater restraint.

"Are you up for a ride tomorrow, Bingley? Perhaps shooting? We need to get you into the fresh air and give Miss Bennet some space to heal." And some distraction, Darcy thought but did not say.

Bingley chewed and swallowed his bite. "Yes, that would be fine, Darcy. So long as Miss Bennet's condition does not deteriorate."

"You should go out and enjoy Netherfield. I can stay inside and care for her. You have already been far too kind," Elizabeth said.

"Yes, a ride would be pleasant," Caroline mused. "We could ride into the little town square and see what the fuss is all about." She turned to Mrs. Hurst. "What do you say, Louisa?"

Darcy said nothing. He had hoped to only engage Bingley tomorrow, the women would only slow them down, but there was little he could do about that.

"Tell us, Miss Eliza, are there particular shops you recommend?" She laughed a tinkling laugh and turned to Mrs. Hurst. "Although I suppose the shops can have nothing on those in London."

Darcy watched Miss Bennet take in Caroline's comment, her cheeks reddening in a pretty way. She said nothing, but her chin rose admirably. He could tell she felt the full force of the insult. "That is hardly fair. You cannot expect Meryton's small shopettes to rival London's," he said and reached for his claret glass.

Miss Bennet met his gaze for a moment, her eyes grateful before she looked down. Her gaze unsettled him as he swallowed claret. Elizabeth Bennet did not miss any of Caroline's backhanded comments toward herself and her town. Yet she remained civil. A woman of singular character, he had to admit. Darcy might have liked to converse with her about other issues had he met her socially in London. And had she not had her family of social ninnies. But they were here, and her family existed. A shame, he reminded himself, but no reason to pursue it further.

"Are you a great fan of Aristotle, Mr. Bingley?" Elizabeth asked.

"I? Not at all. I have no head for the classics, I'm afraid."

"I was admiring Jane's sickbed reading."

"Ah," he laughed. "Those were Darcy's choices. Your sister asked me to pick out some books for her to read, and I asked Darcy as he is a great reader."

Elizabeth nodded. "I'm afraid philosophy is not Jane's first love. However, I have long enjoyed discussing philosophy with my father."

"Oh, do you?" Caroline Bingley said, again with her tart tone.

"Yes, although I appreciate Aristotle, I am drawn more to Epicurus."

"Epicurus?" Darcy echoed her. He did not know many women who could speak knowledgeably about philosophy.

Carline Bingley rolled her eyes. "Do not get him started discussing philosophy, for he will never be quiet. That is far too boring for dinner conversation." Mrs. Hurst broke into more laughter.

Darcy did not take his gaze from Elizabeth. "What is it you admire about Epicurus?"

Elizabeth's shoulders lifted. "It reminds me of my father. He used to read the classics, and in order to spend more time with him, I realized he'd pay more attention to me if I read and could discuss his books."

"What admirable intellect," Caroline Bingley said, a mocking note to her voice. "What other secret talents do you have, Eliza Bennet?"

"None at all. I simply wanted to please my father." She said. "And occasionally escape my sisters."

"Completely understandable," Caroline said lowly, sipping her claret, her lips curling into a knowing smile.

Darcy did not wish for Caroline to turn her attention to Elizabeth as he knew how cutting she could be regarding the Bennet family.

"I enjoy the stoics myself," he said abruptly and Elizabeth turned back to him, her lips slightly parted. "Particularly Seneca."

Elizabeth's smile deepened and he noticed a small dimple form on her right cheek. Despite himself, he found it utterly charming. "The stoics seek to control their reactions, correct?" Elizabeth said."I confess find that difficult."

"It is not that they do not react, but rather they choose what they react to," Darcy said, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Caroline following their conversation. "And they only react to what they can control."

"My dear, do not concern yourself with Darcy's rantings. He has been like this since university, always frightfully interested in the obtuse," Bingley said in between bits of meat.

"But what of terrible things you cannot control? Surely you do not advocate ignoring injustices?" Elizabeth said after a moment.

"Not at all. But there is a system of laws and mores for those," Darcy said easily.

Elizabeth's lips quirked upward. "And you believe that justice prevails in every case? Always?"

Darcy felt off-center by her question. "Er, I suspect it does most of the time."

"What of human error? Are we not imperfect beings? Surely you have heard of cases of injustices."

Bingley chuckled and gestured to his friend, "She has you there, Darcy."

Darcy's smile tightened. "Well, I suppose the beauty of philosophy is that it can be debated ad nauseam."

"But should it be?" Caroline said crisply. "It is so very dull."

Darcy bowed his head obligingly. "Sorry to bore you all."

Elizabeth shook her head. "I do not find philosophy boring, only at times frustrating."

Now she was criticizing the great philosophers? He nearly laughed. "How do you mean?"

"It is full of men debating things as though they are not real cases–real lives, real pain in real lives. I confess to finding it, well…indulgent. These great men spend time–often years–debating whether it is wrong to steal food to feed someone starving. If they applied that spirit to growing and distributing food, no one would have to go hungry."

Despite himself, Darcy felt his lips tug upward. "Philosophy is not an exercise to end hunger. It is the principle of the debate that matters."

Elizabeth shrugged impatiently, something which Darcy found both charming and maddening. "To what purpose?"

"To find the truth," he said as though it were obvious.

"Perhaps the truth is that hungry children should be fed regardless of why they are hungry. Maybe if they spent more time helping the needy instead of performing intellectual exercises, they might comprehend that."

Darcy's smile widened. He disagreed, of course, but he could admit that she did have a point. An adorable one.

"Ho–Darcy has been bested by our female guest in philosophy," Bingley said, clearly pleased. Darcy felt his nose prickle with annoyance, but he decided to let it go. Bingley was so in love with Miss Bennet's sister, that he could not see reason even if it were staring him in the face.

"Miss Bennet, you make an impassioned speech. I commend you for it." Darcy said and reached for a fig from a plate nearby.

Elizabeth looked pointedly at him. "Is that declaration meant to make me feel better?"

Darcy was taken aback by her tartness."I did not mean to offend you…"

"No, I'm sure you did not." Elizabeth closed her book down and stood quickly. "I'll check on Jane before I retire to bed. Good night, all."

Before Darcy could speak again, Miss Bennet had left the room. He turned to Bingley in astonishment. "Why am I the villain here?"

Bingley smiled and shook his head. "I do not know, but I do like Miss Bennet's spirit."

Caroline's lips pursed again. "She is a very opinionated girl. It is a shame that passion was not turned toward something more feminine. It's a very masculine trait."

Darcy chewed his fig and said nothing. He certainly did not find Miss Bennet masculine in any way. To his surprise, he rather liked her spirit.