Jane and Bingley are coming to stay, and they are bringing with them Caroline and Louisa. Mr and Mrs Bennet will also be coming with Mary and Kitty, and Lydia will be one of their party. I have reluctantly agreed to welcome her, but on condition that Wickham does not come with her. I will not have him at Pemberley, now or ever. Elizabeth understands. She has no wish to see him, and we both know it would be mortifying for Georgiana.
The two people we will not see are Mr and Mrs Collins. Charlotte is in an interesting condition and cannot travel. Elizabeth has reminded me to look for a living for Mr Collins, something better than the one he has at present.
‘A larger house for Charlotte,’ said Elizabeth,‘and one with plenty to keep Mr Collins occupied. If there is something for him to do outside the house, perhaps some alms-houses to run, so much the better. And make sure the house has two pleasant rooms, so that Charlotte can have one as well as her husband.’
‘Very well, but I will not have them within an hour’s drive of Pemberley. I like Charlotte well enough, but not even your friendship with her can reconcile me to her husband.’
In this, Elizabeth and I are as one.
Saturday 13th December
Our guests will all be arriving on Monday. One more has been added to their number. Colonel Fitzwilliam will be coming with Lady Catherine and Anne.
Monday 15th December
At last, they are here. Bingley and Jane were the first to arrive, bringing with them Caroline and Louisa.
‘Mrs Darcy,’ said Caroline, with an excess of civility. ‘How pleased I am to see you again.’ She smiled as though she and Elizabeth had always been the best of friends, then turned to me. ‘Mr Darcy, how well you look,’ she said. ‘And Georgiana. How you have grown! It must be this Derbyshire air. It is so invigorating.’
Louisa was less vocal but greeted us pleasantly. Mr Hurst merely grunted before retiring to the billiard room. Caroline and Louisa went upstairs, led there by Georgiana, and Elizabeth and I were free to talk to Jane and Bingley.
‘So Lydia is coming?’ asked Bingley, as we all sat down in the drawing-room.
‘Yes, she is, though not her husband,’ said Elizabeth. ‘You do not think it wrong of me not to invite him?’ she asked Jane.
‘Dear Lizzy, of course not. It is not as though he and Lydia have nowhere else to go. They have been to stay with us twice already. It is cheaper for them to stay with us than to live on their own. They gave up one set of lodgings before coming to us, so that they would not have to pay any rent, and then they took another set when they returned.’
‘How very distressing,’ said Elizabeth.
‘Not to Lydia. She is the same as ever, exuberant and high spirited. She thrives on the change.’
‘The next time they come, I think I will have the servants say we are not at home!’ said Bingley.
‘We are too convenient at Netherfield, that is the trouble,’ said Jane. ‘They visit Longbourn, and then they come to us when they have outstayed their welcome there. And it is not only Lydia who visits us. It seems that every day my mother finds some reason to call. We are thinking of taking a house elsewhere.’
‘Poor Jane! You must come and live in Derbyshire,’ said Elizabeth.
‘There are some very fine properties hereabouts,’ I said.
‘I think we might,’ said Bingley.
A coach drawing up outside alerted us to the fact that Lady Catherine had arrived. She descended with all state and entered the house. A few minutes later she swept into the drawing-room without waiting to be announced.
She looked round with a jaundiced eye.
‘The furniture has not been replaced, I see,’ she said, without greeting either myself or Elizabeth. ‘I thought you would have put my sister’s furniture in the attic and replaced it with something of inferior workmanship.’
‘Your ladyship cannot think I would wish to spoil my own home,’ said Elizabeth.
‘Your home. Hah!’ said my aunt.
Elizabeth cast me a satirical glance, but making a determined effort she welcomed Lady Catherine, Anne and Colonel Fitzwilliam.
‘We meet again,’ he said.
‘We do.’
‘And in happy circumstances. Darcy is a lucky man,’ he told her.
‘Darcy is no such thing,’ said my aunt. ‘He should have married Anne.’
Anne cast her eyes to the floor.
‘You had a good journey, I hope?’ Elizabeth asked her.
Anne raised her eyes a little but did not reply. I was struck by the difference in her demeanour from the last time I had seen her, and I thought of what my cousin had said, that she had much more spirit away from her mother.
‘Anne’s health is precarious. She never travels well,’ said my aunt.
‘But the journey was good,’ said Colonel Fitzwilliam. ‘Lady Catherine’s coach is comfortable, and the roads were not too bad.’
‘Let me show you to your rooms,’ said Elizabeth.
‘That is the housekeeper’s job,’ said Lady Catherine disdainfully.
‘Then I will ask Mrs Reynolds to show you the way,’ said Elizabeth. She turned to Anne. ‘Allow me to show you to your room,’ she said. ‘It is the room you always have. I asked Mrs Reynolds which one was yours.’
Anne cast a worried glance at her mother, but allowed Elizabeth to lead her upstairs. Jane went with them, whilst my aunt had to wait for Mrs Reynolds.
Colonel Fitzwilliam laughed. ‘Elizabeth is afraid of no one,’ he said, when Mrs Reynolds had taken Lady Catherine upstairs.
‘Of course not,’ said Bingley. ‘She married Darcy! Though I think he is not quite so awful as he used to be. Marriage suits him.’
‘It suits both of you. Perhaps I ought finally to take the step myself,’ said the Colonel.
Elizabeth rejoined us, and soon the other ladies found their way to the drawing-room. My aunt and Anne already knew Caroline and Louisa, and once the four of them had exchanged greetings, my aunt began to speak, only to break off as she heard another carriage arrive.
‘Who is this?’ she asked, glancing out of the window.
‘My aunt and uncle!’ cried Elizabeth, jumping up.
‘The uncle who is an attorney, or the uncle who lives in Cheapside?’ asked Lady Catherine contemptuously.
Elizabeth did not reply, but went forward to greet her guests as soon as they entered the room.
‘Elizabeth! How well you look,’ said Mrs Gardiner.
She was dressed fashionably, and had an air of style about her.
‘Positively blooming,’ added Mr Gardiner.
I saw that Elizabeth was pleased by the look of surprise on Caroline’s face. We exchanged glances, and our thoughts went back to the first time I had met the Gardiners, when I, too, had been pleasantly surprised.
There followed the usual conversation about the roads, and then talk of the Gardiner’s carriage led on to Elizabeth saying: ‘I have the phaeton and pair all ready for you, just as you requested. As soon as you feel like travelling again, we will take it round the park.’
‘A phaeton and pair? What is this? An equipage for an outing? I must have my share of the pleasure. I like a ride round the park of all things. I would have learned to drive if Sir Lewis had taught me, and I would have excelled at it,’ said Lady Catherine. ‘Sir Lewis told me so himself. You must let me know when you mean to go. I will come with you, and so will Anne.’
‘But there are only two seats,’ Elizabeth pointed out.
‘Then Anne and I will take the carriage.’
‘I am persuaded your ladyship will not like the expedition,’ said Elizabeth. ‘We will not only be going down by the river, we will also be going through the woods.’
‘What does that signify?’ demanded Lady Catherine. ‘The woods are my greatest pleasure. When my sister was alive, we drove there often.’
‘But, as your ladyship informed me at our last meeting, my presence has polluted them,’ said Elizabeth archly.
My aun
t could think of no reply. I have never known her to be lost for words, and it was a welcome experience. She was not to be bested, however, and after a minute she overcame her astonishment and said: ‘Your mother and sisters are coming, I understand?’
‘Yes, they are.’
‘All of them?’
‘Yes, all of them.’
‘What, even the one who ran off with the son of Darcy’s steward?’
‘Yes. Even Lydia,’ said Elizabeth gravely, but with a smile in her eye.
‘I hear your mother received her at Longbourn, after her scandalous behaviour. It cannot be true, of course. The report must be false. No mother could endorse such infamy on the part of her daughter. She would immediately cast her off and leave her to suffer the consequences of her behaviour.’
In her estimation of Mrs Bennet’s character she was entirely wrong. Mrs Bennet arrived soon after her brother and his wife, and not only did she endorse Lydia’s behaviour, she gloried in it.
‘Lady Catherine, how good it is to see you again,’ she said as she made her curtsy. ‘It seems like only yesterday you were visiting us at Longbourn, bringing us word of Charlotte on your way through the village. If you had told me then what I know now, I should not have believed you. My Lizzy, to marry Mr Darcy! Of course, it is not to be wondered at. She has always been a very good sort of girl, quite her father’s favourite, and though Jane has more beauty, Lizzy has more wit, though of course I should not call her Lizzy any more, I should call her Mrs Darcy. Mrs Darcy! How well it sounds. And to think, she is the mistress of Pemberley! I knew she could not be so lively for nothing. Pemberley is a very fine house. I had no idea it would be quite so fine. Lucas Lodge is nothing to it, and it is even better than the great house at Stoke. As for Purvis Lodge, it has the most dreadful attics, but Lizzy – Mrs Darcy – assures me that the attics at Pemberley are quite the best she has ever seen.’
‘I am sure she will give you a tour of them, if you ask her nicely,’ said Mr Bennet dryly, as he stepped forward and kissed Elizabeth. ‘How are you, Lizzy? You look well.’
‘I am well, Papa.’
‘Darcy is treating you well?’
‘Yes, he is.’
‘Good. Then I do not have to challenge him to a duel.’
‘I hope you will go fishing with me instead, sir,’ I said.
‘I will be glad to do so.’
‘And you, too, are included in the invitation, of course,’ I said to Mr Gardiner.
‘It will give me great pleasure.’
‘What do you think of my bonnet, Lizzy?’ asked Lydia, coming forward. ‘Is it not delightful? I got it yesterday.’
‘I thought you needed to economize,’ said Elizabeth.
‘I did,’ said Lydia. ‘There were three bonnets I liked in the shop, and I bought only the one.’
‘From all I have read, the practising of economy does not come naturally to females,’ said Mary. ‘They must study it diligently if they are not to let their expenditure exceed their income.’
‘Well said, Mary. Very well put,’ said Mrs Bennet. She turned to Colonel Fitzwilliam. ‘Such an accomplished girl. She reads I do not know how many books. She will make some lucky soldier an excellent wife.’
For the first time in my life, I saw my cousin nonplussed. He was not required to reply, however, for whilst Lydia went over to the mirror and began to admire herself, Mrs Bennet resumed her conversation.
‘When you drove away from us after your visit to Longbourn, Lady Catherine, I had no more idea of our being related than I had of the cat going to see the queen, but now we are family.’
‘Indeed we are not,’ said my aunt indignantly.
‘But yes! Your nephew is married to my daughter. That makes us cousins of a sort. My cousin, Lady Catherine! How envious Lady Lucas was when I told her, for she is not a real lady of course, she was only made a lady when Sir William was given a knighthood, on account of an address he made to the king. She was plain Mrs Lucas before that, and her husband was in trade in Meryton. He gave it up when he was made Sir William, but birth shows.’
‘It does indeed,’ remarked Lady Catherine pointedly. ‘And this is the girl who ran off with the steward’s son?’ she demanded, turning to Kitty.
‘No, I am not,’ said Kitty, blushing.
‘This is my second youngest, Kitty,’ said Mrs Bennet. ‘Such a good girl! Such manners! And in the way to becoming a beauty. She will turn heads before she is much older, mark my words. Not that she has not already done so. Captain Denny was very taken with her, and there were one or two other officers who singled Kitty out, though she is so young, but – ’
‘It cannot be you,’ said Lady Catherine, cutting across Mrs Bennet and turning to Lydia. ‘You are a child.’
Lydia did not turn round but, having removed her bonnet, fluffed her curls in front of the mirror.
‘La! What nonsense you do speak!’ she declared. ‘I have been married these four months. My dear Wickham and I were married in September. I am quite the matron.’ She turned round and faced Lady Catherine. ‘I am so pleased to meet you,’ she said, extending her hand as though she was a duchess and my aunt a farmer’s wife. ‘My dear Wickham’s told me all about you.’
‘Has he indeed,’ said Lady Catherine awfully, ignoring her hand.
Lydia dropped it, unabashed, and turned to Colonel Fitzwilliam, going towards him with hand outstretched.
‘La! An officer. It does my heart good to see a red coat. It reminds me of my dear Wickham.’
‘I always liked a man in a red coat,’ said Mrs Bennet to Lady Catherine. ‘Lydia takes after me.’
‘Unfortunately for those of us who like rational conversation,’ said Mr Bennet. ‘Darcy, do you have a billiard room here?’
‘I do, sir. Allow me to show it to you. Gentlemen?’
And so saying, I rescued them from the ladies.
‘My wife is a constant source of amusement to me,’ said Mr Bennet as we left the room, ‘and Lydia even more so. I had great hopes of Mary, but she has become less silly now that she goes out more, and doesn’t suffer in comparison with her sisters, though her outburst today gives me hope that her silliness has not entirely disappeared. Kitty, too, looks set to disappoint me. She has become so rational a creature now that she spends two days out of every three at Netherfield that I fear she will grow up to be a sensible young lady after all.’
I am still not easy with Mr Bennet’s way of speaking of his daughters, but as his levity helped to shape Elizabeth’s playful character, I suppose I cannot complain.
Tuesday 16th December
Elizabeth took her aunt through the grounds in the phaeton and pair today as promised, and the two of them returned with bright eyes and a healthy glow on their cheeks.
‘And do you like Pemberley as much as the last time you visited?’ I asked her.
‘Far better,’ she replied. ‘Then, it was simply a fine house. Now it is Elizabeth’s home.’
‘It must be an enjoyable way of seeing the grounds,’ said Anne.
There was a trace of wistfulness in her voice. Elizabeth heard it, and said, ‘You must take a drive with me this afternoon.’
I blessed her for it. Anne has little pleasure in her life, I believe.
They set out after lunch, and though their trip was shorter than the previous one, they returned in lively mood.
‘I think I have misjudged Anne,’ said Elizabeth later. ‘I, who used to pride myself on my ability to judge people on first impressions, seem to have done nothing but mistake people this year. I made a grievous mistake with you, and I believe I have made a mistake with Anne, too. I took her to be sickly and cross, and I thought – ’
She stopped abruptly.
‘Yes, what did you think?’ I asked.
‘I thought that the pair of you deserved each other,’ she said mischievously.
‘It is a pity I did not know this sooner, or I could have obliged you by marrying her,’ I teased her.
I n
ever knew what it was to tease or be teased before I met Elizabeth, but I am learning.
‘She is not nearly as sickly or cross as I supposed. In fact, the farther we went from the house, the more lively she became.’
‘She used to be very much more lively when we were children, until the winter when she had a bad cold, and a cough settled on her chest. My aunt took her away from the seminary and said she was not well enough to go back.’
‘Ah. So she was alone at Rosings with Lady Catherine from then on?’
‘She had her companion.’
‘It would be a brave companion who would stand up to Lady Catherine.’
I agreed.
‘What did you talk of to Anne?’
‘To begin with, we talked of the park. She has fond memories of it from childhood visits, and she pointed out the spot at which she lost her doll, and the spot at which Colonel Fitzwilliam found it – though he was not a colonel then. But he seems to have been a nice boy. It could not have been pleasant for him to have had a little girl trailing after him, yet he seems to have shown her a great deal of kindness.’
‘He was always fond of Anne.’
‘And then we talked of books. She has read a great deal, and we enjoyed a lively debate. I think she is better away from her mother. I will ask my Aunt Gardiner to take her out in the phaeton tomorrow. Between the two of us, we should be able to separate her from Lady Catherine for most of her stay.’
Thursday 18th December
The house party is proving to be surprisingly enjoyable. Mrs Bennet is content with walking the length and breadth of Pemberley, memorizing its finery so that she can confound her neighbours with accounts of its splendours on her return to Longbourn. Lydia spends her time flirting with the gardeners. It is useless to try and stop her, and at least it keeps her out of doors. Mr Bennet sits in the library most of the time, venturing out only for our fishing trips. Lady Catherine has taken to instructing Kitty and Mary on the correct behaviour for young ladies, and Kitty is so in awe of my aunt that she sits and listens to her with flattering attention for hours together. Mary, too, sits and listens, interposing her own profound thoughts from her reading. Caroline and Louisa occupy themselves with fashion journals, whilst Mr Hurst sleeps for most of the time.
Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice Sequel Bundle: 3 Reader Favorites Page 99