Page 32
“And there is one final point.”
Claire looked at the door and lowered her voice.
“Your friends in London. How would your mother react if she knew?”
Elizabeth held her head in her hands. She had thought leaving Gracechurch Street after four years would have been the most difficult thing, but it was clear she was wrong.
Was returning to Longbourn a mistake?
Chapter 8
“Let us head out for a walk.”
“Are you going to ask permission from your mother?”
Elizabeth shook her head. Instead Robert mentioned to Hill that Miss Elizabeth was going out for a walk before accompanying her and his wife. Once they were out of the grounds of the Manor and onto the estate Elizabeth paused.
“Thank you Claire for lowering your voice when talking about my society friends. I do not want either of you to mention them inside the house. Before I left Longbourn Lydia was already a sneak and had been caught trying to listen at doors. And given the number of times Mrs. Bennet was ‘conveniently close’ to the study door when I left after meeting with my father, it appears to be an inherited family trait.”
Both Robert and Claire acknowledged the request.
“Right, tell me your thoughts about the Assembly please.”
Claire indicated that her husband should go first.
“It was as I would expect of a small country Assembly. Everyone knew everyone else, with the exception of the one obvious party, and they were friendly to both of us. They were interested in us of course, but given it was because you were home, there was little fuss. We were unknowns so we not immediately accepted but at the same time we were not distrusted.”
He paused for a moment.
“The best way to describe it is that we are strangers but the locals are prepared to accept us. Slowly.”
This last made all three laugh.
“Claire?”
“It was no different for me. I had a lot of questions about what you were like now. Most did not come across aggressively, it appeared more as curiosity about you. This was the first time anyone had seen you in four years, so it was natural.”
Typical country behaviour, Elizabeth was not perturbed by these revelations.
“Let us talk about the obvious exception, the party from Netherfield Park. Shall we dissect them one at a time?”
With nods of acceptance she started.
“Let us deal with the two easy ones first, the Hursts. The husband appeared like a Hogarth or Gillray caricature brought to life. He did not dance with his wife, did not converse with anyone, beyond the bare minimum of replying to questions, before sitting close to the refreshment table and trying to drink it dry. Like I said, a caricature. The wife reminded me of Kitty, a follower. She was the echo to her sister’s speeches. Is she as bad as her sister? I am not sure, she is irrelevant.”
Claire turned to her husband to stifle her smile. Miss Elizabeth was just warming up.
“Who next? The brother or the sister?”
“They both lead in different ways to Mr. Darcy, so it does not matter. The brother?”
“My first impression of him was that he was an amiable, cheerful even, person. But on reflection I do not know if that is because he was beside his sister and his friend. Standing between the two of them anyone would look cheerful in comparison. The other aspect of his character I could discern was that he made an effort. He greeted everyone, he did not think himself above his company, unlike the other four members of his party, and danced every dance. Rather than some kind of grotesque caricature he acted like a gentleman.”
“You have told us about the incident with your sister. Is any fault attached to him?”
Elizabeth considered this.
“He did badger his friend, and everyone else in the room could tell that Mr. Darcy was in a foul mood. So yes, I suppose he does share some of the blame.”
