Page 23 of Aunt Felicity

M iss Caroline Bingley could not hide her displeasure when she intercepted the return reply from Miss Bennet. How dare the country mushroom refuse her summons?

She had convinced her sister to issue the invitation, for the ostensive reason that she and Louisa could come to know the woman in whom their brother was showing a high level of interest. The truth was that Caroline was desperate to discover as much negative information to be used in her campaign to discredit the Bennets in general and Miss Eliza and her fine eyes in particular.

She had been hunting Mr Darcy from the instant she had heard about Charles’s friendship with the heir to Pemberley, even before she had met the man. She had been so angry with her brother that for the first many years of their friendship he had not gratified her and effected an introduction as she had instructed. It had taken her insisting that she accompany him to Pemberley to finally meet the man she intended to marry.

Admittedly, that first, and frustratingly only, visit to the vast estate which exuded wealth and status, had been far too brief. For some reason the Darcy men had not appreciated her gracing them with her company.

Since then she had attempted to gain entry to Darcy House on several occasions and never succeeded. At least she had met Miss Darcy when she followed her into a modiste’s shop. The meeting had been very brief as Caroline had been asked to leave the store because she had had no appointment. Any attempts to be in Miss Darcy’s company had been rebuffed since then.

She would not allow some country hoyden to steal her prize from her. It is why Miss Bennet’s refusal galled her so very much. There was no point having Louisa send another note demanding Miss Bennet attend them as her sister would not acquiesce. It had been difficult enough to convince Louisa to issue the first invitation.

As far as Caroline could see, there was only one option left to her, and that was to compromise Mr Darcy and force the issue. Surprisingly there had been no answer from his aunt. She had been convinced that the letter she wrote, would have at the very least, caused sufficient worry to warrant a reply, if not a visit to the area to set everything to rights.

Miss Bingley pushed the letter and the aunt’s lack of reply from her head. She had a compromise to plan.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

On being ushered into the drawing room by her husband and the introductions to their relatives made, Fanny was too much in awe to say very much. She was unnerved by how much her sister-in-law looked like her late mother-in-law, and that Lizzy looked like a younger version of her aunt.

One thing she realised was that she could no longer denigrate Lizzy’s looks. By doing so she would be insulting a countess, so it would be better to hold her peace on that subject. She was not sanguine with the fact that Lady Matlock had interfered with her plans for Jane to ride to Netherfield Park, that was until she realised that as the nieces of an earl and countess her daughters could do much better than the son of a tradesman.

Could she match Jane with her nephew, the one who would one day inherit Longbourn? He was a second son, but the son of an earl, and although not as handsome as his Darcy cousin, was still a good looking man. In her mind it was a great pity that her nephew, the Viscount, how well that sounded, was already married.

She looked at Mr Darcy; she could see how much his son resembled him in that the son had received his handsome looks from the father. She had wondered if the father was as disagreeable as the son, but he was much more amiable.

Her sister-in-law’s daughter looked like her mother in the face but had her father’s hair and eye colour. From what Fanny could tell, Miss Darcy was rather shy. What intrigued Fanny was the fact at sixteen Miss Darcy was still in, and her newly discovered niece, Lady Bethanne, had only come out at eighteen.

When she had been fearful of a Collins inheriting Longbourn after her husband went to his eternal reward, she had felt that there was no choice but to push her girls out at fifteen as the only way to guarantee their future was to see them well-disposed in marriage. That was no longer the case and from what she had heard so far, she was almost sure that the Fitzwilliams would not allow any of them to live in penury after Mr Bennet was called home.

It was the reason she had not begun to protest as soon as her husband had told her that their two youngest were back in. Fanny believed that the Countess and Viscountess would sponsor the girls to have a proper coming out in London, and make their curtsies before the Queen.

“Mama, Papa said that both Lyddie and I are back in. Surely you will not accept that,” Kitty said in sotto voce near her mother’s ear.

“You are only seventeen so you have one more year until you will come out. I agree with your father that you and Lydia are back in,” Fanny responded without lowering her voice. The shock on Kitty’s countenance was to be expected, but the look of bewilderment on her three eldest daughter’s faces was priceless. “In fact, I will go see Lydia in the nursery, and let her know how things will be going forward.”

Bennet had been prepared for his wife to complain vociferously, but not for her to calmly agree with him. Perhaps there was a chance they would be able to correct Lydia before she ruined herself and her sisters.

“Fanny, may I join you when you speak to your youngest?” Felicity requested. Fanny nodded. “Before we go up to the nursery, would you and Thomas consider permitting Reggie and me to send Kitty and Lydia to school? If you agree, I would suggest they are sent to separate ones.”

This was a much better solution than having to live with Lydia’s constant caterwauling once she realised her mother would not support her. The advantage Bennet felt was there would be peace and quiet in the home once the two were at school. An added bonus was the fact that his rather ignorant daughters would be educated and learn some accomplishments, which he knew that at that moment they lacked. He looked at Fanny who nodded her agreement.

“We agree, but you must allow us to pay towards the costs of educating them,” Bennet insisted.

Kitty was outraged. Not only was she back in, but now she would be sent away as well. She was about to voice her opinion on the matter when her newly discovered aunt beckoned her to herself.

“This will be a good thing for you, Kitty,” Felicity asserted. “Tell me, child, do you have any interests you would have liked to pursue, but you did not because Lydia did not want to do so? You are what, a little more than two years older than Lydia?” Kitty nodded it was so. “It is time for you to discover who you are when the sun is not blocked out by Lydia’s shadow.”

“I love to draw and sketch, but have never done anything because Lydia said it was boring and a waste of time,” Kitty revealed.

“In that case, we will find you a school which emphasises art. It will be a good thing for you to learn without any reference to Lydia’s opinions. We will bring you out at eighteen and prepare you to be presented to Her Majesty,” Felicity proposed.

Suddenly the idea of going to school became a positive and no longer abhorrent to Kitty. “It sounds like it will be a good adventure,” Kitty responded shyly.

“Felicity, are you ready for us to go see Lydia?” Fanny enquired.

After nodding, Felicity stood and accompanied Fanny out of the drawing room, leaving those within to get to know one another better. Felicity put her hand on Fanny’s arm before they began to climb the stairs. “I must tell you that I slapped Lydia’s cheek. She was being very crass and disrespectful. She will most certainly fling that accusation at my door,” she related.

Her first instinct was to berate her sister-in-law, her rank be damned, but then Fanny calmed herself. “Why did you feel it was needed?”

Felicity explained what had occurred after Fanny had fainted. “I prefer not to strike anyone, but I felt that in this case there was no choice given the tirade she was getting ready to launch.”

While she did not like the idea of her favourite being hit, Fanny could see the necessity in this case. “I suppose given my indisposition you had to act.”

The two made their way up the stairs to the schoolroom door where a footman stood sentinel. He unlocked the door and the sisters entered the nursery. They found Lydia about to attempt to climb out of the window. The footman, who was standing in the doorway, moved to pull Lydia back into the room.

“Unhand me, you bloody bastard !” Lydia screamed as she kicked at the footman’s shins.

“Lydia Bennet!” Fanny stepped forward and slapped her daughter hard.

For some moments Lydia was silent as she processed the shock of her second slap of the day. This time the slap came from her mother, who until now had always given her anything she wanted. “Mama, why?” Lydia forced tears to fall. That had always worked on her mother before.

“Why? Where did you learn to speak like an uncouth man? And what were you doing trying to climb out of the window? We are on the second floor; you would have more likely than not fallen to your death!” Fanny returned angrily. “I should never have indulged you and allowed you out at fourteen. You have the body of a woman but evidently, the mind of a child.”

What was happening? Not only did her mother ignore her tears, she was unmoved by her plight, and like the woman next to her, she had slapped Lydia. She saw her mother’s lips moving but could not believe that the words were coming from her. Mama was saying she was back in! How could that be?

“I am not back in!” Lydia stamped her foot. “You will not stop me having fun! I refuse…” Whatever she was about to say died on Lydia’s lips. Her mother had pulled her arm back and was preparing to deliver another slap. Lydia shied back and closed her mouth.

“Better,” Fanny stated as she lowered her hand. She was glad that the threat of another slap had been enough to force Lydia to recede. It was at that moment she understood how she had erred in the way she had spoiled Lydia. “I made a mistake in allowing you out at fourteen, but that does not mean I need to continue on that wrong path. Not only are you back in, until at the very least eighteen, but like Kitty, you will go to school.”

“Then Kitty and I will run away,” Lydia screeched as she stamped her foot again.

“You will be greatly disappointed when you see that Kitty will no longer follow you. Besides, you will not be at the same schools. As you have threatened to run away, I will be recommending a school for wayward girls to your parents,” Felicity interjected.

Lydia was about to tell this so-called aunt what she thought of her, when she remembered what had occurred last time she had been forthright with the lady. She decided that in order to get what she wanted; she needed to sow some discord between her mother and the woman. “Mama, this woman was ordering Hill around like she is the mistress of Longbourn. She claims she is Papa’s sister and a countess. I know that he has no sisters.”

“Yes, he does,” Fanny shot back. “Are you blind that you cannot see how similar your aunt looks to the portrait of your late Grandmama Beth? You well know that Lizzy looks just like my late mother-in-law, so she looks like a younger version of your Aunt Felicity. She is very much a countess. Her husband is an earl, and he is in the drawing room along with several of your cousins.”

“My Reggie and I will be assisting your parents in finding an appropriate school for you,” Felicity added.

“And until then you will be in the nursery as you have proved your inability to behave among your family,” Fanny announced. “It seems we will need more footmen to make sure Lydia remains in the schoolroom.”

“We can help you with that, we have a few small footmen with us,” Felicity told her.

Without another word her mother and aunt left the room. Lydia was still in shock. Was up down and down up? While she was thinking how she would show them and climb down, Mr Hill entered with the man who repaired things on the estate. That man proceeded to make sure the windows could no longer open. She would have to find a different egress from the nursery.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

It did not take the newly met cousins much time at all to feel very close to one another, that is, except for Lydia who was pouting and locked in the nursery. No one said it, but without the youngest Bennet’s presence, things were much more peaceful and conducive to quiet discussions.

Even before the two matriarchs returned from seeing Lydia, Mary, Bethie, and Anna had discovered their mutual love of music and that they all played the pianoforte. When Mary led her two cousins to the parlour which contained the instrument, Kitty had requested that she join them, which they had allowed without hesitation. While Mary shared music with Bethie and Anna, Kitty had a common love of drawing and painting with her two new cousins.

While the three patriarchs spoke, Jane and Elizabeth were speaking with Andrew, Marie, and Richard. “And William thinks he knows how to read others’ feelings,” Richard shook his head. “Jane, we have only just met, and I can tell that you do not show your emotions on your face and that you behave as any proper young lady should.”

“You are correct. I have been called serene and reticent.” Jane confirmed. “Why do you say that, and what does it have to do with Cousin William?”

“The letter he wrote to me has been mentioned,” Richard reminded his cousins. Jane and Lizzy both nodded. “According to him…” he related William’s opinion, and what he intended to advise Bingley regarding Jane.

“And who does he think he is to decide how Mr Bingley seeks his happiness?” Elizabeth exploded. She was willing to live with the slight the younger Mr Darcy had given her, but under no circumstances would she allow him or anyone else to hurt her tender-hearted sister.

“William is at his core a good man, but after being hunted like a prize stag by the huntresses of the Ton and those of Miss Bingley’s ilk since he entered society, he has a rather jaded outlook when it comes to romance,” Marie revealed.

“That may be so, but that does not give him the right to decide what Jane feels or what Mr Bingley may or may not do regarding his future with Jane,” Elizabeth insisted.

“You are not wrong, Lizzy,” Andrew agreed. “However, what does it say about Mr Bingley and the strength of his attachment to Jane, if he allows William or that shrew of a sister of his to convince him to give her up? No matter what one advises, is it not up to Mr Bingley to decide what to do?”

“My father’s estate is similar in size to Longbourn, so like your father, he is a country squire. When Andrew and I first began to court, William told my Andy that I was too socially inferior to be his wife,” Marie explained. “Andy informed William in no uncertain terms that his counsel on the matter was neither requested nor needed, and for his cousin to worry about his own business. William’s advice did nothing to sway Andy from his courtship with me. And now we have been married for more than four years and have been blessed with Kathy and Anthony. William and I are good friends today.”

“They are correct, Lizzy. If Mr Bingley was swayed by the opinions of others and convinced to give me up, and at some point came back to me, I would not agree to marry him,” Jane stated. “I would not want to be married to a man who is capricious and cannot stand up to his friends and sisters in my defence.”

Elizabeth had to own, if only to herself, that her anger at her new cousin was driven by her hurt feelings over his insult at the assembly. “I would not be sanguine with the interference, but you all are correct. If the advice was followed, it would be the fault of the taker, not the giver.” She decided to use some humour. “The receiver, of course, would be blameless if the giver chained him up in his dungeon.” She looked at Richard. “Will you tell us of your service in the army?”

Always willing to tell a story, Richard obliged his newly met cousins with a sanitised version of his service to King and Country ending with his injury and having to resign and sell out.

“As sorry as I am you were wounded,” Jane stated with feeling, “I am sure your family was not unhappy when they learnt you would not be going into battle again. If a son of mine were an officer and posted to an area of combat, I know I would not sleep well until he had come back to us hale and healthy.”

“Why the army and not the church or the law?” Elizabeth asked.

“Ever since I was a young lad, I knew I would be an officer. Do you know that Father was training to be a barrister before he met Mother? He would have preferred I go into the law, or even the church, but they decided they would never force one of their children to act against his or her inclinations,” Richard replied.

“Given that their parents tried to force each of them into marriages they found abhorrent, I can understand why they would not force you to choose another career,” Elizabeth mused.

Not long after, the younger girls returned to the drawing room, chattering away like friends who had known one another the whole of their lives.

After a very enjoyable family dinner, subsequent to which it was universally agreed that Cook outdid herself, it was decided that the Fitzwilliams, Bennets, and Darcys would visit Netherfield Park at eleven in the morning on the morrow.