Once all her young nephews and niece demanded her attention to regale her with their achievements since their last visit, she could not mind the absence of Jane’s fiancé… and his mother.
~T~
Over the course of the evening the sisters related their experiences in London.
Mrs Bennet was focused on Jane because of her fiancé while Mr Bennet wanted to hear from Elizabeth about her interactions with Darcy.
‘You did well, teaching him not to underestimate people just because he did not grow up with them,’ Bennet applauded his favourite daughter.
‘I think that you would enjoy his company, papa. He is intelligent and a bibliophile like you. I have been reliably informed that the library at Pemberley is exceedingly large, and the content is the work of generations.’
‘A bibliophile, hmm? I suppose he cannot be so bad after all. And you say that you are courting? Very well, I shall consider his suit favourably.’
Both parents nearly forgot their middle daughter, until Mrs Gardiner pointed out, ‘Bennet, you should be prepared to receive a young man tomorrow, asking for your permission to marry your daughter.’
‘But Lizzy said that she and Darcy are only courting.’
‘Wrong man and wrong daughter,’ laughed Gardiner. ‘Mary is engaged to the Honourable Richard Fitzwilliam, the second son of the Earl of Matlock.’
‘Mary, why did you not tell us?’ Mrs Bennet exclaimed shrilly before she calmed the level of her outburst. ‘You sly thing. I know that you wrote about him, but you never let on that he was interested in you.’
‘I did not know that he loved me until we became engaged,’ Mary prevaricated.
‘I shall become quite distracted. Two daughters to be married and both their intendeds are the sons of noblemen. You must have a double wedding. It shall be the social event of Meryton for years to come.’ Mrs Bennet became ever more enthusiastic. ‘When shall you be married?’
‘We have not fixed a date yet, as we do not yet have papa’s permission to marry,’ Mary said, uncertain whether she wanted to share her special day or not.
Jane noticed Mary’s discomfort and suggested, ‘Lord James and I discussed marrying just after Christmas. That way I can spend a last Christmas with you all, and Aunt and Uncle Gardiner can attend the wedding. I really want them to be there as they were instrumental in my meeting Lord James.’
‘Lord James and Lady Jane, how well that sounds,’ Mrs Bennet said dreamily, missing the fact that Christmas was but three weeks away.
‘I am afraid that since I am not the daughter of an Earl or Duke, I will not be known as Lady Jane. When I marry the proper formal address for me will be Lady James.’
As Mrs Bennet was confused by this concept, her daughters spent the next ten minutes explaining the ins and outs of addressing nobility.
~T~
Despite Elizabeth’s exhaustion, she found it difficult to sleep.
She was glad to be back at home again, in her own room, in her own bed. While she had thoroughly enjoyed the grand accommodation in town, Longbourn was home. It was familiar and it was comfortable.
She felt that she could catch her breath again after the eventful months she had spent in town.
And yet… nothing was quite the same. Jane was engaged to be married and so was Mary, and she had changed as well.
The main reason was Mr Darcy. For the first time in her life, she had been treated as an intellectual equal by a man. It was a heady feeling indeed.
Yes, her father had not only allowed her to express her opinions, but he had challenged her to do so. But he was still her father and her teacher, whom she would always see as her superior.
With Mr Darcy she had laboured under no such constraints.
In the early part of their acquaintance, she had been deliberately abrasive as a way to punish Darcy for his insult and arrogant attitude. Yet he never seemed to mind. On the contrary, he seemed to revel in her willingness to challenge him at every turn.
That, more than anything had changed her attitude towards him and had caused her to forgive him as quickly as she did.
Elizabeth could overlook many faults in a man who allowed her to be herself. She did not have to hide her intelligence and education. He did not require her to be meek and mild. He seemed to enjoy that she was anything but insipid.
True, she could act the perfect lady in public, since the society in which she lived had certain expectations of ladies, misguided though they were. But in private no such constraints were upon her. She could be completely herself.
