Mr Darcy looked like he had just received the very first thrashing of his life, which may have been true. He had likely made the common error of confusing kindness with weakness, and I hoped he would simply agree without requiring any further proof.
Lizzy stared at him like she had never seen a gentleman before, but her thoughts were beyond my ability to speculate. I had always assumed she disliked the man, or at the very least distrusted him. We both tended to keep our innermost thoughts to ourselves and did not even share them with each other. Coupled with her description of the last day in the library, and that they had finally danced together after four requests, I was not entirely certain she disliked the man at all. Of course, whether she liked him or not, it seemed likely the best she could hope for was distant friendship akin to what Miss Bingley had, so I doubted she had a tendre for him. Despite our father’s oft-stated opinion, neither of us were ‘silly and ignorant.’
It seemed the three of us stared back and forth for a half-hour, but Mr Darcy finally broke the silence.
“I hope you will give me a moment or two to reflect on your words, but would you mind clarifying a few points?” he asked in perhaps the most humble and respectful tone imaginable.
I glanced to Elizabeth, who seemed taken aback but answered, “Certainly.”
“I will admit that I am in… agreement… about the rest of your family, and I will take your word that there cannot be two opinions on that point.”
Elizabeth gave a little huff of laughter at how he had turned the tables on us to thrash us with our own words. She even seemed amused, which was… interesting.
The man cringed as if expecting disagreement, but when we simply nodded, he continued.
“I am however, befuddled by your assertion that I dislike the two of you particularly. Where did you get that idea, if I might be so bold as to inquire?”
Lizzy and I had hoped we could get away without the disclosure but did not realistically expect to succeed. She replied for me.
“Your own words, sir,” she said, then lowered her voice in a parody of the Derbyshire gentleman. “She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me; I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men.”
Mr Darcy looked like she had taken an axe to his shin, and Elizabeth continued as if she just wanted to get it over with.
“She a beauty! I should as soon call her mother a wit… It must very materially lessen their chance of marrying men of any consideration in the world.”
She finished looking sheepish, and finally said, “I heard the first myself and it took an act of iron will to refrain from sinking your reputation straightaway. As to the others, pray do not go hunting for servants to chastise. It is not generally known, butJane and I do have friends in service, and while they do not gossip, they were certainly offended enough to give me fair warning—butonlyme.”
I was almost as stunned as Mr Darcy about the last two revelations, since Elizabeth had not even shared them with me. I assumed Molly Hatcher probably whispered in her ear when we were at Netherfield, but that was speculation. I was surprised Lizzy had not taken particular offense to the latter comments, but she is nothing if not resilient.
Up to that point, we stood between some sofas, paradoxically in about the same place Lizzy had a conversation during the last day of our stay, but Mr Darcy collapsed back into a chair and ran his hand through his hair several times in great agitation. His valet would most likely panic, but dishevelling himself actually made him look more handsome, and I suspected Lizzy might agree. While he was far more Lizzy’s type than mine, even I had to admit he was a handsome man who could please when he wanted to.
Lizzy and I sat down so we would not loom over him, and he reacted far differently than I expected. I had anticipated more haughty insolence, and his obvious consternation was disconcerting.
He finally looked between us and groaned, “I must be the stupidest man in England!”
We both stared in confusion, caught entirely unprepared.
Lizzy finally fell back on impertinence as usual. “I believe our cousin has that privilege. He actually thinks I will marry him. You are second-stupidest at worst, and possibly even third.”
That seemed to startle him even more, and Lizzy very briefly explained Mr Collins’s situation. Why she went so far off the beaten path was a mystery, but I eventually decided she was simply distracting him from his surprise momentarily. Mr Collins and Lizzy were not really any of his concern after all.
He finally looked at both of us, and said, “I believe that was the second-most shameful statement of my life. I was in quite a foul humour that first month and I took it out on the handsomest lady I have ever seen. I apologise profusely, Miss Elizabeth. What I said was unkind, ungentlemanly, and most certainly untrue. When I reveal the incident to my sister, I suspect she will turn me over her knee.”
The incongruity of the last statement sent both Lizzy and I into a fit of giggles, which made his countenance lighten up a bit. I suspect neither of us gave much credence to his assertion that she now qualified as the handsomest lady he had ever seen. It was a nice thing to say, and whilst it would not entirely redeem him, sincere compliments never hurt anything. If nothing else, Lizzy would appreciate the novelty after a lifetime of criticism.
Elizabeth was never one to hold a grudge, which is convenient since nobody would survive a week with our mother if they did.
“All is forgiven and forgotten, Mr Darcy.”
“I think not, though I appreciate the reprieve,” he said softly. “I will remember it for some time and hope to earn your forgiveness, regardless of how long it takes.”
“As I said, you already have it. You earned some grace at Netherfield by the simple fact you were willing to talk to a spinster as if she were not an idiot. Not many men of your station do that, with my father being one of the few exceptions. It is admittedly a very low standard, but it must suffice, as I cannot change even our local society, let alone the world.”
That made him look even more contrite, but he said, “I doubt very much you are a spinster.”
She shrugged, as if it were not worth the trouble to argue.
He still looked perplexed, and I wondered if he had put the argument aside to take up another day. However, Lizzy’sspinster status, or lack thereof, was not the topic at hand, so he moved his attention back to me.
