ELEVEN
Longbourn
Elizabeth
Mr. Collins arrived at precisely five minutes before two o'clock. The punctuality surprised no one. Indeed, Kitty and Lydia had made a wager that he would arrive at least a minute later than his letter had promised, and both were disappointed.
His satisfaction in his own punctuality was evident from the moment he stepped down from the hired carriage. He straightened his coat and turned towards Longbourn with a smile so carefully arranged that it appeared to have been prepared in advance.
He was tall, broad-shouldered, and somewhere in his middle twenties. Elizabeth noted these facts and moved on immediately to the more pressing observation that he had not ceased speaking since his feet touched the ground.
Mr. Bennet performed the introductions. Mr. Collins bowed to each lady in turn.
When he reached Jane, he paused a fraction longer than propriety strictly required and spoke of the pleasure of the acquaintance with particular emphasis.
He lingered again when introduced to Elizabeth, displaying much the same degree of attention.
Elizabeth returned his greeting with composure and resolved to think nothing of it.
They went inside.
An hour later she had entirely revised that resolution.
In the space of sixty minutes, Mr. Collins had expressed opinions upon the entrance hall, the drawing room, the prospect from the east window, the arrangement of the furniture, the selection of books upon the side table, the proper conduct of a parish, the relative merits of a country living compared to a town one, and the importance of humility in a clergyman, a subject upon which he discoursed at considerable length and with no apparent sense of irony.
What struck Elizabeth most was that scarcely an opinion seemed entirely his own.
Every observation eventually circled back to Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
What Lady Catherine preferred. What Lady Catherine recommended.
What Lady Catherine had once remarked upon a similar subject.
It was as though the lady's judgement informed every conclusion he reached.
Elizabeth could not recall disliking a man's opinions so thoroughly or so quickly.
Lydia and Kitty spent much of the time exchanging faces whenever Mr. Collins launched into another speech, though he appeared entirely unaware of their efforts.
Even Mary, upon whom the family occasionally cast speculative glances, remembering her unfortunate defence of clergymen at breakfast several days before, did not seem especially impressed by him.
Elizabeth was still arriving at this conclusion when the sound of horses upon the drive reached her.
Relief, she hoped.
She was at the window before she had quite decided to move and was immensely gratified to discover that Mr. Darcy and Georgiana had kept their promise to call at Longbourn.
The new visitors were shortly shown in by Hill. Mrs. Bennet rose at once to receive them. Georgiana was welcomed warmly and with genuine pleasure. Mr. Darcy received a degree of civility that Elizabeth thought had improved considerably since his first appearance at Longbourn.
Mr. Bennet welcomed Georgiana with equal warmth. Elizabeth was delighted by it, for she had spoken of their friendship to him since returning from Netherfield.
After the usual greetings had been exchanged, and with Mr. Collins visibly disconcerted that the attention of the room had shifted from him scarcely an hour after his arrival, Mr. Bennet turned towards his guest.
"Mr. Collins, allow me to present Mr. Darcy of Pemberley and Miss Darcy."
For a moment Mr. Collins merely stared.
Then understanding dawned.
"Darcy?" he repeated. "Mr. Darcy of Pemberley?"
"Yes," Darcy replied.
Mr. Collins's eyes widened visibly.
"Good heavens." He bowed at once. "Then you are Lady Catherine de Bourgh's nephew."
"I am."
The effect upon Mr. Collins was immediate and profound.
Elizabeth watched it happen.
It was rather like observing a man discover that he had accidentally seated himself beside a prince.
"How often I have heard your names, sir, and yours, ma'am." Elizabeth had never expected anyone to address Georgiana as ma'am, but apparently Mr. Collins did. "Your honoured aunt is pleased to speak of you both whenever I am privileged enough to enjoy her confidence."
Darcy smiled politely while Georgiana merely blinked and took the seat beside Elizabeth.
"I confess I am surprised to meet you in Hertfordshire at all, sir," Mr. Collins continued, his pleasure still very evident.
"Those of us within Lady Catherine's circle who have not yet enjoyed the honour of your acquaintance had rather expected that your marriage to Miss de Bourgh would provide our first opportunity of meeting you.
Indeed, her ladyship has frequently spoken of the union—"
Elizabeth felt her heart do something she had not given it permission to do.
Across the room, Darcy's eyes flickered towards her before returning immediately to Mr. Collins.
"My marriage to my cousin?" Darcy grimaced. "You must be mistaken, sir."
Mr. Collins blinked.
"No, sir. Her ladyship has often spoken of the future union of the two great families."
"Miss de Bourgh and I have no understanding whatsoever," Darcy interrupted, more firmly this time.
"Nor have we ever had one. Whatever Lady Catherine may have communicated to her acquaintances upon the subject, she did so without either my knowledge or my consent.
I should be obliged if you would make that distinction clear upon your return to Hunsford. "
Mr. Collins looked as though the foundations of his world had shifted beneath his feet.
He opened his mouth to reply, but Mr. Bennet raised a finger.
"In my considerable experience of men, Mr. Collins," he said, with every appearance of genuine fascination, "a gentleman is generally the first person to know when he is engaged.
I would not rely too heavily upon Lady Catherine's certainty in the matter.
She and Mr. Darcy appear to be operating from rather different information. "
Lydia giggled aloud, earning a pointed look from Mrs. Bennet. It did not, however, prevent the smiles that appeared upon the faces of Jane, Kitty, or even Mr. Darcy himself.
At this, Mr. Collins closed his mouth.
He looked, for the first time since his arrival, as though he had genuinely run out of things to say.
Elizabeth felt a curious sense of relief settle over her at the clarification. For reasons she preferred not to consider, she found herself glad that Mr. Darcy was not engaged to Miss de Bourgh.
Chastising herself for feeling anything at all on the subject, Elizabeth resumed her conversation with Georgiana and soon offered to show her the house.
She left Mr. Darcy in company with her father and Mr. Collins in company with the remainder of the household, though her cousin seemed considerably less inclined to speak than he had been an hour before.
? ? ?
Elizabeth returned from showing Georgiana around the house to hear her father insisting that Mr. Darcy and his sister remain for dinner.
The cook had made sufficient preparation for Mr. Collins's arrival that two additional mouths presented no inconvenience, and Mr. Bennet, who was making very little effort to conceal his preference for Darcy’s company than Mr. Collin’s, appeared disinclined to let him depart before extracting further entertainment from the afternoon.
Darcy, after observing that he and Georgiana had not intended to stay so long, accepted out of respect for Mr. Bennet's invitation.
While the cook prepared the table, Darcy leaned towards Elizabeth, who had resumed her seat.
"I wondered," he said, "whether you might show me Longbourn's gardens as well. I confess myself curious to see whether they compare favourably with Netherfield's. Bingley speaks so highly of your father's gardens that I find myself eager to judge them for myself."
Elizabeth looked at him. Georgiana had entered into conversation with Lydia and Kitty, so she agreed.
The gardens at Longbourn were modest and November-bare, but they possessed the considerable advantage of being outdoors and therefore free of Mr. Collins.
Darcy fell into step beside Elizabeth on her left as they emerged through the side door, and she led him along the path between the kitchen garden and the hedgerow without any particular destination in mind.
"I must apologise," Elizabeth said after a time, "for Mr. Collins."
Darcy smiled. "There is no need. I know men like him."
"There is every need," Elizabeth insisted. "I do not believe he considers his words before speaking them."
"Mr. Collins," Darcy said, his expression hardening slightly, "is not mistaken in what he said.
My aunt has long entertained the notion of my marrying Anne.
She has spoken of it as settled for as long as I can remember.
" He paused, as though recollecting something.
"She claims it was an arrangement approved by my mother.
That they discussed it together and came to an understanding before my mother's death. "
Elizabeth glanced at him.
"I was very close to my mother," Darcy continued.
"I know every conversation of consequence she had during her last years.
She never said any such thing to me, and I do not believe she said it to Lady Catherine either.
" His voice remained even, though something lay beneath it.
"The fact that my aunt invokes my mother's memory in support of a claim that was never made is one of the reasons I am so firmly opposed to the idea.
Aside from that, Anne herself harbours no such wishes.
We correspond often, and she is as disinclined to the match as I am. "
Elizabeth was silent for a moment.
Then, carefully, she asked, "Do you generally find family expectations difficult to bear? Or only those that have been invented?"
He looked at her. "Only those that have been invented. A genuine expectation, sincerely held, is another matter entirely."
"I ask," Elizabeth said, "because I know something of family expectation myself." She paused. "I do not know whether you are acquainted with the circumstances of my father's estate."
"I am not," Darcy replied, his tone immediately attentive.
"It is entailed. My father has five daughters and no son, which means that upon his death Longbourn must pass to the nearest male heir." She glanced back towards the house. "Which is Mr. Collins, now that his father is deceased."
Darcy was quiet for a moment.
"I was not aware of that."
"Most people in Meryton are, though they may not yet know Mr. Collins, as we ourselves only met him today.
" Elizabeth smiled faintly. "Mr. Collins has come to Longbourn with what he considers a very generous solution.
He intends to offer for one of us. In his mind, it is a means of making amends for the injustice the entail may occasion. "
Darcy stopped walking altogether.
Elizabeth looked at him. There was something in his expression she had not seen before, not quite displeasure and not quite alarm, but somewhere between the two, and directed, she thought, rather specifically at the situation she had just described.
"Forgive me," he said after a moment. "I do not mean to be forward. But I hope very much that you are not the lady upon whom he settles."
Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "Why do you say so, sir?"
"From what my cousin Anne has written of him, and from what little I have observed this afternoon," he said, "your cousin is not a man who would appreciate your wit or intelligence. He would not know what to do with either."
Elizabeth considered this.
"I have no intention of marrying a man I do not love," she said. "Or one I do not respect. Or one who does not love and respect me in return." She gazed ahead for a moment. "Mr. Collins is none of those things."
"No." Darcy said bluntly "He is not."
They resumed walking and continued in silence for a time, passing what remained of the flower beds and the last stubborn vines of the kitchen garden.
"For what it is worth," Darcy said suddenly, "I respect you a great deal, Miss Elizabeth. And I admire you." He said it simply, without ceremony, looking straight ahead. "More than I have found adequate opportunity to say."
Elizabeth felt warmth rise to her cheeks.
She did not answer immediately. She did not know what answer to give.
For several moments she watched the path before them.
"Thank you, sir." She said softly. "And if I have earned your respect, then I am very glad of it. For there are few opinions I value more than yours. And I confess that your devotion to your sister has done much to increase that esteem."
Darcy looked at her with an expression of such warmth that Elizabeth found herself obliged to turn her attention to the path before them. Neither spoke for several moments, but the silence was not uncomfortable.
They were already making their way back towards the house when the door opened and Jane appeared, smiling, to inform them that dinner was served.