Fault or Virtue: An Imaginative Retelling of Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice' (5 page)

“I had hoped this little sojourn in the countryside would have that outcome.”
“On the contrary, it seems to have worsened my mood. Too many tasks weigh
upon my mind and I cannot relax until I am free of them.”
And free of those lovely dark
eyes.
“Very well, but you promise to consider returning when you are finished?”
“I promise, though I do not think I will receive a genuine welcome if I decide to
return.”
“Whatever do you mean? Caroline’s ire will be relentless only if you stay away.”
“I am afraid that my conduct at the Meryton assembly made a distinctly negative
impression on the locals.”
“They do not know you as I do! I know how you hate balls, and company, and
large collections of people, dancing…” he paused, seeing that his friend’s face fell with
every new item listed. “But it is only a matter of time before they come to know that
about you and appreciate you as I do, as Caroline does.”
“I suppose I am rather unpleasant, am I not, Bingley?”
“Not at all Darcy, I am always grateful for your company, as is Caroline, as you
well know. I believe you are just more particular about who it is that surrounds you,
that’s all. I myself find amusement everywhere, but that is just not your way of operating.
I suppose you find that Meryton is not home to those you’d like to associate yourself
with.”
Darcy’s mood plummeted, the Bennets had been absolutely right, Meryton was
right to despise him, and now his greatest friend had openly seconded their opinion of his
conduct.
“How monstrous did I appear, Bingley? I hardly recall,” he nearly whispered.
“Monstrous, never. You were in a very foul mood, though, Darcy. You should
have stayed here and enjoyed the silence.”

Cooped up in a carriage with only Caroline Bingley for conversation was enough
to put anyone in a bad mood. Bingley had fallen into a peaceful slumber before they had
even left town, unsusceptible to the discussion. If Darcy had thought for a moment that
Miss Bingley had decided to give up chasing after him, the journey had proven otherwise.
A sojourn to the country would not be relaxing if Caroline Bingley were in pursuit, he
might as well have stayed in town at the mercy of the ton.

“I thought it would improve my mood, I suppose.” He thought back to his
decision to join Bingley in the country in the first place. He sought peace,
distraction…but perhaps he should have just remained at Pemberley. Surely if Georgiana
was as much improved as her letters indicated, he could have found solace with her.

Bingley guffawed in disbelief. “Oh Lord, Darcy. When would a country ball have
ever improved your mood? It is no matter, I’m sure you’ll be happier in London, as long
as you manage to stay out of everyone’s way. I am only very sad to see you go.”

Darcy began to dread his business in town. First, he had convinced himself that
the country would offer comfort. When that had failed, he decided that finding a new
companion for Georgiana would make him feel better. Now he was not so sure. How
could he ever find someone worthy of tending to his sister? A pair of fine brown eyes
appeared before him suddenly, an unwelcome yet soothing vision.
What would the
spirited Miss Elizabeth make of my sister? What would Georgiana make of her?
Surely
someone of Miss Elizabeth’s capacity and personality would support Georgiana through
this time, but he had never met anyone like her before. If such traits were rare in the
gentry, they must be unknown to the serving classes. These thoughts soured him
considerably.

Bingley broke through his contemplation.
“I’d say you’ve done quite a bit of hunting, Bingley. But I do not think my
presence here is largely welcome. You, on the other hand, have made myself a great
favorite of the neighborhood.”
Bingley blushed and waved Darcy’s comments away, “I would be grateful if you
considered it, Darcy.”

“There you are, Lizzy! Mama and Mr. Collins have been looking everywhere for
you,” said Jane when Elizabeth returned from her walk.
“Then we must hurry to our room before either sees us,” laughed Elizabeth,
taking her sister’s arm and leading her up the stairs. “I have had a rather lengthy walk this
morning, otherwise I would suggest we venture outside. You would not believe who I
met on my way this morning.”
“Who?” asked Jane, unable to guess.
“Mr. Darcy.” She raised one eyebrow conspiratorially.
“Is he not leaving after all?” Jane asked eagerly, pleased at the notion that his
extended stay would ensure that Bingley remained.
“No, I expect he has already quit the neighborhood. I met him as he was
stretching his legs before his departure.”
“Oh, that is a shame.”
“Jane, not even your unfailing kindness can extend to that man.”

“I had thought you two were getting along, Lizzy. He is very intelligent and I
thought you appreciated his company last night.”
“To a certain extent, I suppose. But in general, I found him intrusive, unmannerly
and capricious.”
“Intrusive?” Jane had always accused Elizabeth of reading too much into people’s
behavior, and so did not know how she could reach such a conclusion.
“I will not burden you with the insults he has laid against our family, but only this
morning he made it his business to inform me that Mr. Collins seeks to align himself with
our family by proposing to marry me!”
“Marry you?” Jane nearly shouted in surprise, “Why would he say such a thing?”
“I hope only to provoke me.”
“Perhaps he was concerned and only meant it as a warning, having observed that
you disliked him…” Jane started.
“Well I dislike Mr. Darcy nearly as much! He should never have broached such a
subject with me. How uncomfortable I was! But nearly everything he does or says makes
me uncomfortable.”
“I am sure he has managed his fair share of unwanted suitors and perceived that
Mr. Collins was behaving as such towards you. I cannot discern why he would make such
an accusation if it was meant to upset you.”
“We shall never know for sure, it seems. In the meantime, I am glad to be rid of
him and will be equally glad to be rid of Mr. Collins.”
“All the same, it does not sitt well with me to think ill of someone. If Mr. Darcy
does return I hope we have the opportunity to think better of him.”
“He is handsome and rich, Jane. Courteous would be too much to ask for. Mr.
Bingley is an anomaly to possess all three qualities.”
Jane couldn’t stifle her giggle. “I do hope he intends to stay in the neighborhood a
while longer.”

“Cousin, you seem extremely far away,” Richard said, catching Darcy staring
blankly out the window yet again.
“I’m sorry, Richard. I have much on my mind,” Darcy replied. It was true, Darcy
had never found himself to be so useless in a business matter. He was grateful Richard
was present for he had been most helpful in the interviews.
Still, Darcy felt horribly guilty for his inability to pay attention to such an
important task. Though he was certain that he and Miss Elizabeth could not get through
one topic of conversation without a misunderstanding that resulted in a dispute,
something about her confidence and spark made it impossible for him to consider anyone
else influencing his sister.
Georgiana needs confidence,
he thought.
Oh, how I would
rejoice in seeing her so unrepressed in her opinions that her eyes sparkled with the
intensity of her animation
. The pair of fine dark eyes surfaced once again.
“I wonder what you could have been thinking of, for as dark as many of your
thoughts obviously were, there seemed to be an equal number of happy ones. I was only

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let on by some occasional, almost imperceptible smiles, Darcy. What has gotten into you?
Is this Bingley’s influence? That man’s teeth are always showing.”

“Is a smile so rare for me?” Darcy’s serious expression made Richard laugh.
“They are quite few and far between, Darcy. You do not relax enough, you do not
drink enough, you do not enjoy enough women.” Darcy rolled his eyes. “I believe we
should postpone these interviews until you’ve enjoyed a full season of rest with your
friend. These are not necessary now, Georgiana is safe and happy at home and a
companion is not necessary for another couple of months. Bingley has had a good effect
on you, especially if you can manage a smile after spending time with his sister.”
“Bingley has extended an invitation for you to visit Netherfield, Richard. It would
be wonderful if you were to join me.”
Darcy did not hear Richard’s excuses, his mind had returned to the vision of fine
dark eyes, lit by passionate discussion and walking. As unnerved as these thoughts made
him, however, he decided that any return to Netherfield would mean distancing himself
from Elizabeth Bennet. But the more time he spent with the lady, he told himself, the
more he might be able to use his experience with her to influence Georgiana.

Elizabeth’s mind was far from dwelling on pleasant matters, for in past week she
had hardly had a moment away from her cousin who had taken it upon himself to shadow
her every move. She had never been more grateful to her friend, Charlotte, who
frequently stopped by to occupy him.

“He is not so bad as you described!” Charlotte admonished her one afternoon
when they were alone.
“No? How, pray tell, did I mislead you?” Elizabeth could not hide her surprise at
her friend’s statement. Not even Jane had been able to ignore Mr. Collins’ faults so surely
Charlotte could not be so blind to them.
“He is rather self-important, to be sure, but who would not be in his position?
From what I have heard, he has been given a very coveted living.”
“It is true, I am sure. It is the way in which he sermonizes it for all to hear that
fails to inspire esteem.” Elizabeth stopped short, seeing that Charlotte would remain
unconvinced. “Perhaps if we had met under different circumstances, instead of having
him as a guest for so long.”
“Yes,” Charlotte agreed wholeheartedly, “environment can skew an impression.”
Elizabeth considered this for a moment but concluded that it was not likely.

As much as she didn’t want to, Elizabeth also considered Darcy’s presumption
that Collins hoped his stay would promote a closer familial tie between them. Though she
had noticed a few appraising glances he threw Jane’s way and sometimes hers, she was
not inclined to see more in his attentions and compliments to her than what his character
had proven to be: a bumbling, groveling, and ridiculous way to interact with other
individuals. That is, until she became the object of his praise for singing one night at the
home of her Aunt Philips. She was aware of the level of her accomplishment at such a
talent, and therefore his feverous attentions could only indicate that Darcy had been right:
that Collins intended to court her. From that moment on, she made sure to remain polite,
but never open and engaging towards him. If he could not perceive her feelings, he was a
fool. The subject became even more bitter when she acknowledged Darcy had been right,

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but was comforted in the fact that he would never gain pleasure in knowing it. She must
only survive the remainder of Collins’ visit, she told herself. It could not possibly extend
much longer.

The morning that Darcy returned to Netherfield was the happiest of Caroline
Bingley’s life, for of course, he had done it all for her. In fact, she would have liked to
hope that Darcy had gone to town to apply for a marriage license, but alas, she knew that
some business regarding Georgiana had occupied him. Of course she was understanding
of such a matter, for they were soon to be sisters. A week, she decided, was a perfectly
sound amount of time to spend away at business, for returning in that amount of time
would not appear to be done so with a particular intention nor would it appear to have
been accomplished with any amount of desperation. Mr. Darcy was the perfect
gentleman.

She looked forward to supper almost as much as she had looked forward to their
trip to Pemberley months earlier. Jane Bennet had accepted an invitation to dine with
them, which meant that Caroline could speak with Darcy while her brother occupied their
guest.

Supper, however, did not go as she planned. Jane arrived on their doorstep
drenched and sneezing, having arrived on horseback in the pouring rain. She was
immediately taken into a guest room and pronounced to have a violent head cold.
Caroline, however, used the situation to appear to her best advantage as head of the
household in front of Mr. Darcy, and Jane was well taken care of and looked after.
Bingley was delighted that his sister had thrown herself so determinedly to care for their
friend, and his estimation of Jane Bennet grew even more. Darcy, however, was
perplexed that such a coincidence had landed the eldest Miss Bennet in Netherfield for a
number of days, alone. He could not, however, even manage to take his suspicions far
enough to think that it was somehow accomplished on purpose.

At home, Elizabeth knew quite well the circumstances of her sister’s health and
swore that she would be off to Netherfield first thing the next morning to first secure that
her sister was well, and then to see if it were possible to take her home. In her mind,
trespassing on Mr. Bingley’s kindness could not well recommend Jane.

When she arrived at Netherfield, Elizabeth was shown into the dining room where
she found herself welcomed by both Caroline Bingley and Mr. Darcy, whom she voiced
she was surprised to see.

Caroline began before the gentleman could form a response, which would have
taken quite some time as he was too occupied with studying the brightness of Elizabeth’s
eyes, the shining of her face, and the wildness of her hair to recall his manners.

“Yes, Miss Elizabeth, we did not expect Mr. Darcy back so soon. We had
certainly hoped that his business in town would not keep him for long,” Caroline cooed.
She threw a smile at Darcy but found his attention still on Miss Elizabeth, who had let
slip a small smile when Caroline had spoken of Darcy so fondly.