Chapter 7
As the Netherfield party arrived at Longbourn, it seemed that absolutely everyone was acting out of character.
Mrs. Bennet was so in awe of her soon to be son-in-law that she was positively demure. Mr. Bennet was attentive to their guests and asked after their affairs in London. He was pleased to find out that Mr. Bingley had brought a marriage settlement with him and they decided to meet tomorrow to peruse said document.
Jane was smiling a real, genuine smile. Charles was nervous and what his visage was trying to rend could be anybody's guess.
Mr. Darcy also had a genuine smile on his face, but only when Miss Elizabeth was in his sights, which was as often as he could make such happen. Miss Elizabeth seemed distracted and had trouble following conversations, well, unless Mr. Darcy was talking to her, which he did many times more often than was his usual want.
Miss Bingley was quiet. Above all else, she did not want to be sent to their aunt and if that meant she must say absolutely nothing, well, then, that is what she would do.
A pleasant meal was had by all. Well, at least by most, but no one seemed to care if Miss Bingley was having a pleasant meal or not. Jane and Lizzy had asked their mother to be allowed to arrange the seating at the table. They posited that it was time that Jane learned the finer points of being a hostess. As you made your way around the table you would find Mr. Bennet at the head, with Mr. Bingley and Lydia on either side of him. Next to Bingley was Jane, then Mr. Darcy, then Elizabeth next to her mother. On the other side of the table, next to Mrs. Bennet was Mary, then Miss Bingley, with Kitty next to Lydia.
Thus, when Mr. Darcy found that he had ended up seated between Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth he could have sworn he did not remember wishing upon a star lately, but well, here he was. Since Charles was seated on Jane's other side, Mr. Darcy had the entire meal to speak almost exclusively with Miss Elizabeth. Lucky star indeed.
As Miss Bingley was seated between Mary and Kitty and could not decide who she was the least interested in talking to, she mostly remained quiet and let Kitty carry the conversation, only adding enough about fashions in London to not be considered too rude.
Generally the talk around the table centered on the upcoming wedding. A date had not yet been set and when asked why the couple demurred. "We will discuss it soon and let you know as soon as we have decided." Jane finally told her mother firmly.
"Well, you know it will take at least three months to plan a proper wedding breakfast, so do not delay. So many details to see to. Maybe next summer would be best." Mrs. Bennet sounded like she would go on and on.
"Mother." Jane repeated firmly. "We will let you know when we have made a decision. That is final." The topic was finally dropped in favor of discussing what type of cake Mr. Bingley favored and what color dress he would prefer for his bride. The separation of the sexes could not come fast enough for any of the gentlemen present.
At last the groups separated and the men were released to the bookroom for cigars and brandy. As Charles wanted to get to know his soon to be father-in-law better, Darcy was free to peruse the titles in the bookroom. When the conversation between them faltered, Mr. Bennet piped up "You know I think Lizzy has read nearly every book in this room." Mr. Darcy was taken aback. He was seeing what would pass for a well educated gentleman's syllabus. Mr. Bennet continued. "Yes, even those in Greek and Latin. Her pronunciation is atrocious, but she understands Plato and Socrates well enough. Her French is not bad but German is beyond her and her Italian is a poor second. Any man she chooses better have either a very good library or a very liberal account at Hatchard's Book Sellers."
Darcy was puzzled. Had he been too forward in his attentions towards Elizabeth? Um, Miss Elizabeth that is. Why would Mr. Bennet take the trouble to inform him about her education? But he was happy with what he had heard. Good library indeed. The library at his London home was impressive, but could not hold a candle to the Pemberley library. He figured if he could get Elizabeth to say "yes", he could always bribe Mr. Bennet with access to either library.
Had he just made up his mind that he would offer for Elizabeth's hand? He guessed that was exactly what he had just decided. Now for the hard part, how to make her agree. It might be tricky. He thought he was out of her brown books, but how could he be sure? This was uncharted territory for him. He had spent the past ten years trying to avoid being trapped into marriage, he did not have the slightest idea how to go about actually persuading a woman into matrimony. Maybe if he had Bingley hit him he could recreate that successful proposal. No, not likely. He needed a better plan. A foolproof plan. He had no idea where to start.