Page 18 of A Rational Man (Pride and Prejudice Variation)

I n no time at all, word spread throughout Netherfield that Mr. Darcy was no man of business; he was, in fact, a great landowner and should have been treated with the utmost respect from the moment of his arrival.

It was with deep sighs of relief that the Netherfield servants learnt that he was in no way upset with the way he had been treated.

Mrs. Nichols curtsied almost to the ground whenever she saw him, until he finally had to reassure her that he had been deliberating masquerading as a man of business, and she had aided him greatly by going along with this masquerade.

She then proceeded to enquire most eagerly as to his particular preferences with respect to his meals, and was assured that he preferred the simple foods he had been served, rather than rich sauces and many courses. “Though,” he added, “Miss Bingley will insist upon the reverse.”

Mr. Darcy happily escaped the ministrations of Franklin, who had not ceased his shudders of horror since his arrival, in order to walk to Longbourn, where he hoped to find surcease from the fuss now being made of him. In this, however, he was to be disappointed.

“Oh, Mr. Darcy! How very nice to see you again!” Mrs. Bennet fluttered her handkerchief at the tall, perfectly attired gentleman in her parlour.

Mr. Darcy’s heart fell at this confirmation that the news had evidently made its way to Longbourn already. But manners, engrained in him almost from infancy, had him immediately bowing to the woman, assuring her of his very great pleasure in being there.

“The girls are all here to greet you,” she assured him, and stepped aside so that he might admire the Bennet daughters, arrayed in unaccustomed finery. Mrs. Bennet had evidently insisted on them showing themselves to their best advantage.

Elizabeth stood and said, “Mama, please let poor Mr. Darcy alone. He knows us already, and he does not require an excess of attention.”

“Why, I was just welcoming –“

“Good morning, Darcy,” a deeper voice said.

“Bennet,” he replied, rather curtly.

“The jig is up, I fear,” Mr. Bennet said, laughter in his voice.

“Why, you knew who he really was, Mr. Bennet?” Mrs. Bennet’s voice rose in indignation.

“I did, yes.”

“And not a word to your wife! Shame on you, Mr. Bennet!”

“Mrs. Bennet, the fault is entirely mine,” Mr. Darcy’s voice silenced the room.

“My valet was unable to travel with me for family reasons, and so I came to Netherfield alone, with clothing that I could manage by myself. Graham at once took me for a man of business or an attorney, and I found myself in no hurry to correct him.”

“But why?” Mrs. Bennet’s voice was plaintive.

“To save himself from scenes such as the one he just endured,” Elizabeth said, impatiently. “All this fuss and bother! No one could blame you, Mr. Darcy, and I for one will not treat you any differently than before.”

“Thank you, Miss Elizabeth. It is, truly, a good deal of fuss and bother.”

“Though I must admit that I have known who you were for some time now,” she added, eyes dancing.

“But how?” Mr. Darcy was astonished.

“You recall my uncle, Mr. Gardiner? He was here when you and I first met.”

“I do recall, Miss Elizabeth.” He did not add that he would never forget the first time he had seen her.

“He thought your name sounded familiar, and consulted with his wife upon returning home. My Aunt Gardiner, as it happens, was born and raised in Lambton.”

“So she recognised my name immediately.”

“Exactly, and she lost no time in sending me a letter to tell me who my new neighbour really was.”

“Then I must thank you for not making any fuss and bother about it, Miss Elizabeth.”

“You are quite welcome; I can imagine that being wealthy and important is a great trial.”

“You are teasing me,” he realised.

“I am, yes,” she laughed at him.

“Lizzy,” Mrs. Bennet began. “Mr. Darcy is not to be teased!”

“Whyever not?” Mr. Darcy found himself asking. “I find it everything delightful.”

“Then I shall be happy to supply a good deal more of it,” Elizabeth told him. “Honestly, though, Mr. Darcy, I rather think you owe us all an apology,” she went on.

“Lizzy!” Mrs. Bennet was horrified.

“No, truly; he came here under false pretenses; no one is to blame if he feels mistreated in any way.”

He assured her at once that he felt he had been very well treated, and had nothing to complain of. Then a thought occurred to him. “Is this more teasing?”

“It might be,” she admitted, her eyes twinkling.

Mr. Darcy thought he had never seen eyes truly twinkle until this moment.

“Is it true that Mr. Bingley arrives in just two days?” Jane changed the subject.

“It is, yes. He will be accompanied by his elder sister and her husband, the Hursts, as well as his younger sister, Miss Bingley.”

“What can you tell us about them?” Mrs. Bennet asked him.

He hesitated. What could he say that would be both polite and truthful?

Elizabeth seemed to hear his thoughts, for she said, “We would just as soon know the worst, Mr. Darcy. Knowledge is power, or so Francis Bacon tells us, but it is also protection.”

“Mr. Bingley is a very amiable gentleman of large fortune,” he began. “He is very sociable, which seems to lead him to fall into and out of love rather easily.”

“Oh, dear,” Mrs. Bennet said at once, her face falling.

“Mrs. Bennet, I fear that I have made him sound like a scoundrel just now, but truly he is not. He simply pays a young lady a good deal of attention until circumstances change and he is no longer in her circle. Rather than seek her out, he simply finds another young lady to attend. To the best of my knowledge, he has broken no hearts and no promises.”

“Then he is not a bad person,” Jane said.

“Not at all; I suspect you and he will enjoy one another’s company, Miss Bennet.”

“And what of the sisters?” Lydia demanded.

Mr. Darcy took a deep breath and expelled it rather more forcefully than he had intended.

“Oh, like that, is it?” Elizabeth chuckled.

She is so perceptive, Mr. Darcy thought, all but lost in admiration. He managed to say, “I fear it is. The youngest, Miss Bingley, is a most – well, a most decided person.”

“Decided? That is an unusual adjective to apply to a young lady,” Mary observed.

“But it is accurate. She has decided that she is a very important person; she has decided that the fact that her father was in trade is no reason she should not belong to the first circles; she has decided that her fashion sense is superior to anyone’s; she has decided that I am to be –“ Utterly shocked at what he had been about to reveal, he stopped himself before finishing the sentence. He was simply not himself in Miss Elizabeth’s presence.

“That you are to be her husband,” Elizabeth finished for him.

“I have spoken too hastily; I apologise for my bad manners.”

“No, no,” Elizabeth said. “We would find all this out soon enough on our own; it is better that we are forewarned and thus forearmed. And the older sister?”

“Mrs. Hurst follows and supports the younger sister in all ways.”

“Mr. Bingley makes no effort to control his youngest sister?” Mary asked.

“His efforts are generally unsuccessful,” Mr. Darcy said.

“Is she of age?” Kitty asked.

“She is.”

“Why does he not just pack her off with her likely substantial dowry, and enjoy some peace in his home?” she went on.

“She has twenty thousand pounds,” Mr. Darcy said. “She could afford to maintain her own household, of course, but living alone does not send the best message to the society she hopes to join.”

“Twenty thousand pounds!” Lydia marveled. “And here we are with four thousand pounds between the five of us!”

Her speech confirmed Mr. Darcy’s suspicion that Mr. Bennet had not done a good deal to secure his daughters’ futures.

After a brief silence, Mrs. Bennet asked, “Will you take tea with us, Mr. Darcy?”

“I shall be happy to, Mrs. Bennet.” He would like to sit across from Miss Elizabeth for a while longer. He enjoyed his tea and tarts, glancing only occasionally in her direction before escaping into Bennet’s study.

The moment he left the room, Mrs. Bennet said, “Mr. Darcy is clearly quite taken with Lizzy!”

Elizabeth replied at once. “He is destined for a highly placed young lady in the ton , Mama.”

“Is he?” her mother mused. “Well, we shall see.”