The Courtship
After some discussion, that may or may not have included a certain amount of kissing, they decided to inform the colonel and Charlotte, then return Elizabeth to Gracechurch Street while Darcy informed the others.
He enquired whether he should travel to Meryton to request Mr Bennet’s consent before treating the engagement as a settled matter, and she answered succinctly—after laughing immoderately for some minutes.
Eventually, she said he might well assume her father’s blessing; and if he wanted to mitigate the teasing, he should merely describe the Pemberley library in some detail, or simply inform Mrs Bennet of the engagement and allow her to apprise her husband.
With a few last embraces, she departed with Maria the following morning, as neither party believed they could preserve the secret for more than one evening, and Darcy had not the slightest wish for her to experience the dubious pleasure of Lady Catherine’s reaction.
She enquired of Charlotte carefully whether the whole affair might affect them at the parsonage, and she replied with almost a straight face, “It might be terrible. We might never be invited to Rosings again.”
Mrs Collins then explained that Lady Catherine had scarcely any authority that they did not grant, since they held a living that could not be rescinded by anybody short of their bishop; and she even thought it might be a useful time to wean her husband from his patroness’ influence.
Returning to town, she was quite surprised to discover that Jane had another suitor.
She was also shocked to learn that her intended had resolved the conundrum of how to remedy his interference with Jane’s attachment—he asked her and did as she requested.
Jane had received the report of his interference with some distress before the gentleman even departed for Hunsford, and in fact, about the time that Mr Wickham met his fate in debtor’s prison.
After some reflection, Jane said she hoped for a more resolute man, so Darcy obliged her by directing a half-dozen to her attention with the assistance of the Gardiners. She found one she liked very much but was by no means ready to pledge herself to any engagement after less than a month.
Elizabeth was still exceedingly angry at her mother’s reaction to her rejection of Mr Collins, so she allowed her a fortnight to arrange any kind of wedding breakfast she pleased, while Mrs Gardiner and Jane attended to her trousseau, and her intended procured a common licence.
Thus it was that by the first of June, she signed the name of Bennet one last time and departed for Derbyshire.
We may assume that her next Special Delivery arrived at least nine months later (more or less).
~~ Finis ~~