Page 39 of The Happiness of a Most Beloved Sister (Pride and Prejudice Variation)

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

J ane’s day had begun well enough, despite the smarting set-down she had endured the evening before, but by mid-morning she wished she had remained abed.

The trouble began with the arrival of the Netherfield gentlemen.

Mr Darcy, whom she did not deign to acknowledge, took himself off to speak to Mr Bennet almost immediately, and Elizabeth’s telltale effervescence told Jane what it must be about.

He has proposed after all. I suppose I should not be surprised that Lizzy accepted him in spite of her previous vow to remain unmarried; ten thousand a year would tempt any young lady.

If she was bitter over this outcome, she could hardly be blamed.

After all, not only had Elizabeth somehow managed to elevate herself higher than her elder sister in society, she had also risen in the family ranking.

As soon as Mr Darcy had reappeared and Mr Bennet had announced the engagement, Mrs Bennet had squealed loudly enough to make any disinterested listener assume they were slaughtering pigs in the parlour.

From there, Lizzy was all her mother could talk about—how grand she would be, how rich, how well connected.

Jane’s triumph in securing Mr Bingley was all but forgotten in the shadow of Elizabeth’s coup. Sickening.

Jane had endured more than an hour’s worth of impromptu celebration before Elizabeth had taken Mr Darcy elsewhere, no doubt to save him from the effusions of their mother. Good riddance.

Her peace was to be short-lived, unfortunately.

Almost the moment Elizabeth and Mr Darcy were gone, Mr Bingley had turned to Jane and insisted upon having a word.

That word took the form of a harsh condemnation of her behaviour, both on the night previous and in the weeks leading up to it, which had enraged his friend.

“What about me?” she had hissed in return. “Is it not your first duty to avenge my honour? Instead, you are defending Mr Darcy and the shocking way he spoke to me.”

“If you think I am going against Darcy, you are as absurd as your mother.” Jane had not yet recovered from the sting of this insult when Bingley continued, yet more severely, “Darcy is not the sort of connexion we can afford to throw away over some petty squabble. We require his assistance in society if we are ever to make something of ourselves. If nothing else, we would be fools to make him our enemy. Do you realise what that would mean?”

She wanted to send Mr Darcy to the devil, but she bit her tongue. Mr Bingley was not wrong about his friend’s prominence, nor their reliance on it. She could not be so churlish as to destroy so lofty a connexion—what was the point of being the sister of Mrs Darcy if they could not benefit from it?

“You are right, of course,” Jane said, much as it pained her. “I shall make amends with Elizabeth. ”

“And post-haste,” said Bingley, his fury diminishing with her acquiescence.

Truly, it did not suit him to be so strict.

“More than that, you ought to show her some additional support. Make it clear that you are overjoyed at her engagement and hope to regain your previous intimacy. You have not seen Pemberley yet, but I promise you it is well worth a bit of grovelling.”

“As an olive branch, I might suggest we share our wedding date with them. That would demonstrate my remorse and willingness to let bygones be bygones.”

“Splendid! I knew you would think of something.”

She patted his hand as she reassured him, “Worry not, I know my sister well. A few pretty words of apology and she will forgive me any imagined trespass. I daresay we shall be spending the summer at Pemberley, if not Christmas as well.”

Elizabeth watched Darcy walk away with weariness in her soul.

She had not wished to speak with Jane, not at all, but knew there was no avoiding the conversation forever.

It was best to get it over with so that she could get back to enjoying Darcy’s lovemaking, preferably in a suitably clandestine spot where they could remain unbothered by pesky sisters.

Turning to Jane, she began, “Well, we are alone. What did you wish to say?”

Jane pressed a hand delicately over her heart. “Is that any way to speak to your beloved sister?”

“I suppose not, but then that is no longer what you are. It seems I have been misled by you for years, so you likely never were, in truth.”

“I am sorry you feel that way.”

Elizabeth crossed her arms and waited. If Jane wished to place the blame for her own deceptions elsewhere, she would return to Darcy immediately. There was no reason she should stay and be further abused.

At length, Jane was the one to dissolve their stalemate. With a world-weary sigh, she said, “I wanted to apologise to you.”

“For last night? The past six months? Our entire lives?”

Jane’s lips pursed into a moue. “All of it, I suppose. I do not wish for us to be at odds with one another.”

“Then I suppose you ought to begin by issuing me a real apology.”

“You are being unreasonable, Lizzy.”

“Am I?” Elizabeth countered hotly. “I have come to learn over the past months that you are not at all what I thought you were. I had thought you were virtuous, perfect, that you actually cared about me, only to discover that none of that is true. To the contrary, you are two-faced and malicious.”

“That is a bit much, do you not think?”

Elizabeth scoffed. “Hardly! I did not see it before, but I do now with vivid clarity. You have only ever treated me with affection when I was bowing to your every whim. The instant I mis-stepped, any ‘love’ you supposedly had for me melted away like snow in the springtime. You have refused to forgive me these many months together for an insignificant faux pas —why should I grant you absolution for a lifetime’s worth of dissimulation and selfishness? ”

“Because I am your sister!”

Elizabeth was stunned by the incredulity of Jane’s rejoinder.

It seemed as if she genuinely believed herself deserving of forgiveness simply because they were tied by blood.

Never had it occurred to Jane prior to this date that she ought to have extended this same mercy to Elizabeth.

No, her resentment had been reasonable then, in her conceited estimation.

Just as she swelled up with the intent to point out Jane’s hypocrisy, it drained out of her.

Elizabeth could not deny that she remained indignant with her sister, but there was no profit in prolonging their dispute.

If she did not let go of her grievances, she would only become as embittered and hateful as Jane.

For her own sake, if no one else’s, Elizabeth would forgive.

That was not to say that she would go back to allowing Jane to treat her ill—oh no, far from it. Instead, Elizabeth would maintain a careful distance, both emotional and physical, from her sister with the sole intention of preserving her peace. Jane could not hurt her again if she disallowed it.

“Very well, I suppose there is little benefit to being at variance with you. This is meant to be a happy time for both of us, and I would not see it sullied by discord.”

A small smile lit upon Jane’s lips, and calculation sparked in her gaze. Elizabeth had not noted it before, but she looked remarkably like Mrs Bennet in pursuit of husbands for her girls when she made that expression. “Wonderful. I am glad we can be friends again.”

Although she personally believed that they could never be what they once were to one another, Elizabeth did not object to Jane’s conclusion. She merely extended her hand to shake and left it at that.

With their bond, such as it was, reforged, Jane proposed a further gesture of goodwill. “What would you say to being married together? I have already spoken to Mr Bingley about it, and he is in agreement.”

Elizabeth was immediately repulsed by the idea but replied, “We shall see,” in the hopes of not dissolving their reconciliation too quickly.

“I am sure Mr Darcy will agree if you hint to him that it would please you. Men are easy to persuade with the right inducements.”

Privately, she knew she could never ask such a thing of Darcy, even if she were amenable—which she decidedly was not. She made a wordless sound that could either be taken as agreement or dissent and allowed Jane to believe what she would.

Taking Elizabeth’s arm, Jane began leading her back towards the garden where the gentlemen awaited them.

“Mr Bingley intends to purchase an estate soon, you know. Perhaps we shall find one within easy distance of Pemberley so that we might visit often. It would be delightful to raise our children together.”

Elizabeth allowed Jane to prattle on without deigning to reply. Her attention was fixed on Darcy up ahead where he stood amidst the roses, watching their approach with uncertainty. She smiled at him and was relieved to see his stance loosen. How did I get so lucky as to be loved by a man like him?