A Constant Love: A Pride & Prejudice Continuation, page 47
The gentlemen were not long over their port – in less than half-an-hour, Elizabeth, Darcy, Georgiana and Captain Stanton would need to take up their places in the receiving line as the other guests began to arrive. Yet Colonel Fitzwilliam and Captain Stanton were not among them as they returned to the drawing room, and Darcy stopped beside Georgiana to tell her, “Edward and your fiancé have gone to my study. They wished to have a private conversation, but they will return in time for the receiving line.”
“Was Edward serious about giving his consent to my marriage?”
“I believe your fiancé was more serious about requesting consent than the other way around,” Darcy said. “Although I do think Edward wished to speak with him; they have hardly had a chance to be acquainted. You need not fear for your wedding date, though – none of us will brook any sort of delay, whether caused by Wickham or otherwise.”
“Brother, what do you feel, about his death?”
“I know the proper thing to say would be sadness, but what I feel is relief, primarily, both for Lydia, and for you.”
“He no longer had an effect on me, even before I learned of his death,” Georgiana said. “I hope you did not worry of his sharing the storey with my fiancé. I told Captain Stanton everything, the day he proposed. I could not bear to have such a secret between us.”
Her brother inhaled sharply, but said nothing, and Georgiana knew he must be thinking of what a risk she had taken.
“We played together as children, he and Colonel Fitzwilliam and I,” he said. “I never could stop wondering where he went wrong. He had an excellent father, and far better expectations than most men of his station, and yet he threw them all away.”
“He was not so different from Stephen Mallory,” Georgiana said. “The only difference was Stephen Mallory had more fortune to dissipate.”
“How do I prevent my own child from taking such a path?”
“You will raise him or her the same way you raised me, but you must remember it is not all under your control,” Georgiana said, thinking of Mr. Wickham, raised by their own father after his father’s death, and Captain Stanton, who had left home to be raised by others when he was so very young. By all rights, Captain Stanton should have been the one to turn out wild.
“Niece! Nephew! What are you speaking of?” Lady Catherine asked them, from across the room. “If it is the wedding, I wish to have my share in the conversation. We still have not covered all of the details, and I do not expect Mrs. Darcy – ”
“Mrs. Darcy will have everything arranged to perfection, as she has this ball,” Darcy said loudly, scowling at Lady Catherine, and leaving Georgiana with a reluctant look.
Everything was arranged to perfection, Georgiana thought as she looked down the drive with its torches blazing. This was the Pemberley of old, a Pemberley that had hardly existed during her lifetime, and she only faintly remembered, but something felt very right about it, as though the estate had been reawakened to its purpose. Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam looked every bit their part at the front of the line; Elizabeth seemed far more at ease there, although Georgiana might merely have been more attuned to her brother’s discomfort, knowing that she felt much the same way he looked, regarding the crowds they would be required to greet.
Even so, with the assurance of Edward’s safety, Georgiana found herself looking forward to the ball far more than she had earlier in the day. Indeed, the only thing missing was Captain Stanton, who took up his place beside her in the receiving line just as the first carriage pulled up. There followed a most intense half-hour, as the guests filed past all of them and must be continually introduced to Captain Stanton, and then give their best wishes for the wedding. There were gentlemen who wished to speak about the Polonais, and ladies who remembered Georgiana as a little girl, going about the estate with her mother, and could not believe she was all grown up and about to marry, and they all wished to speak of these topics at length.
Georgiana was already quite tired when they finally entered Pemberley’s vast ballroom, but felt her spirits lift at the prospect of dancing, and even more at the prospect of her first partner. For she and Captain Stanton were to lead off the dance; he was unsure how long it would be before the lingering soreness in his leg and arm became bothersome, but he felt confident in being able to make it through the first set, at least.
“Now you must tell me if the pain is too much and we must step out,” Georgiana told him as they made their way to the front of the ballroom, and bowed.
“We are leading, my dearest. If we step out, they will all follow, and that will be the end of the dance.”
Georgiana giggled at the thought of it. “You are sure, then, that this will not be too much?”
“I shall be fine,” he said. “But let us not choose a reel, if you please.”
They bowed to the room, and began. Georgiana watched him carefully, but saw no sign of stiffness, and eventually relaxed, allowing herself to enjoy the dance.
“So did Colonel Fitzwilliam give his consent?” she asked, when they had settled into the figures.
“He did, almost immediately.”
“You were gone for a while, though,” Georgiana said, before they separated.
When they had circled and come back together, he said, “Waterloo was a most horrific battle, Georgiana, and in addition to his more visible loss, Colonel Fitzwilliam also lost many of his comrades-in-arms.”
“But he seems just as he ever was.”
“He does not wish to worry his family.”
“But he would speak of it to you? He is barely acquainted with you.”
“We have both known battle. Life in the army and the navy may be quite different, on the face of it, but there is not so much difference in the fighting, and the loss.”
“Will you promise me something, then?”
“What do you wish me to promise?”
“That you will never hold back for fear of worrying me.”
“I will promise you that,” he said, clasping her hand tightly before they separated again.
As the dance continued, Georgiana gained a better idea of who the other couples were. There were, of course, the married couples, although with Elizabeth choosing not to dance this evening, Darcy had obliged Lady Catherine. Lord Anglesey and Lady Tonbridge had danced together, Kitty Bennet and Captain Campbell, and Mrs. Bennet and Charles Bingley. Mr. Bennet had no interest in dancing, and Jane and Anne had retired with Lydia following dinner; Jane would begin her confinement immediately after the wedding, unless her health required her to do so before. Georgiana saw Mary Bennet last, dancing well down the floor with David Stanton, and looking quite a lot happier to be at a ball than Georgiana had ever seen her.
It seemed Captain Stanton had made the same observation, for he said, “Miss Bennet and my brother have been spending quite a lot of time together, and now they dance the first set.”
“I think it could be a good match. Do you?”
“I do, now that I see them together. He has not written me of any ladies since he came out of mourning. Perhaps he is finally ready, and Miss Bennet is the only lady of my acquaintance who might engage him in the sort of conversation about theology he enjoys.”
Georgiana had promised the second set to her brother, and he came over to claim her hand soon enough. They danced quietly; she did not wish to broach their conversation of earlier, for it seemed far too heavy a topic for a ballroom, and then he was handing her over to Lord Brandon.
+++
Elizabeth approached Lady Ellen as Lord Brandon was leading Georgiana to the floor, and Darcy had gone over to where Colonel Fitzwilliam and Captain Stanton were sitting.
“Aunt Ellen, these last few weeks must have been exhausting for you,” Elizabeth said. “It will likely be a late night – please do not feel as though you need to stay through the whole of it.”
“Oh, I believe I shall stay through the whole of it,” Lady Ellen said. “There is nothing I needed quite so much right now as a fine English ball, after seeing the results of so much savagery.”
“I cannot even fathom the things you must have seen.”
“I was surprised at how quickly I became desensitised to it all. It is not as though I have not known death, but this was at a scale you cannot comprehend without seeing it,” Lady Ellen said. “Constant streams of carts filled with the injured, and many of them so far gone I do not see how they could have survived. And as we got closer to the front, the smell, oh – ”
Here Lady Ellen reached into her reticule and pulled out her smelling salts, taking a strong whiff of them, which disturbed Elizabeth quite thoroughly, for Lady Ellen was not the sort of woman to usually have need of salts.
“At least you found him,” Elizabeth said. “I cannot tell you how worried we were, and how happy we are at his return.”
“Yes, I cannot bear the thought of what it would have been, to return without him,” Lady Ellen said. “I feel so badly for your poor sister, that she had to do so.”
“I cannot thank you enough, for your care for her. I know she can be – difficult, sometimes.”
“She was not difficult at all,” Lady Ellen said. “She had no more or less fortitude than I, in such a terrible situation, and she had a far more difficult outcome to deal with.”
+++
Georgiana danced every set before supper, for no gentleman of close acquaintance would see her sit out a dance. It was such a contrast to the Prince Regent’s ball, to dance with her cousin Andrew, Lord Anglesey, Captain Campbell, David Stanton, and Mr. Clark, all men she knew and trusted, and to be within Pemberley’s vast but comfortable ballroom.
She would have been fully happy on the evening, but for two things. The first was that Captain Stanton sat out most of the dances, although he had danced a set with Kitty when he noticed she was without a partner. The second was that Edward did not dance at all, and spent much of his time sitting in the far corner of the ballroom, often talking with Captain Stanton, or Darcy. There were sights that cheered her, however. Georgiana had never seen Mary Bennet dance more than three sets at a ball, and yet she had continued dancing right through the supper set, which she danced with David Stanton. And there was Lady Ellen, who danced several sets and looked impossibly elegant, considering how exhausted she must have been.
They were now well past the supper set, and Georgiana stood beside Elizabeth and her brother during a break in the dancing. Georgiana admired Elizabeth, who had not danced, but had been a most active hostess, considering her condition. Now, however, she looked quite tired, and indeed the hour was growing late.
“I believe we will make this the last set,” Elizabeth said.
“I had been hoping the last three sets would be the last set,” Darcy said.
“This is Pemberley’s first ball in a great many years, Darcy. You know we cannot leave them thinking it was underdone.”
“Very true. No one could complain of such a thing now.”
“Will you help me go around and let everyone know this is the last dance, and it is to be a waltz?”
“A waltz? Elizabeth, you forget we are not in town.”
“The waltz must make its way to the country someday, Darcy. It may as well be now,” Elizabeth said, turning to Georgiana and giving her a little wink.
It was for her! Georgiana tried to keep from smiling openly. Of course Elizabeth had remembered that embarrassing night; of course she had remembered that Georgiana and Captain Stanton had never finished this dance.
“You will scandalise the county,” Darcy said, although his countenance showed he was not entirely serious.
“Most of these families spend time in town. They will hardly consider it a scandal. Now, will you help me make it known?” Elizabeth said, then, turning to Georgiana. “You had better go find your partner.”
Georgiana looked about the room to find Captain Stanton, and saw he was still in the corner, speaking with Edward. She approached them shyly, not wishing to interrupt, but they both noticed her right away.
“Miss Darcy, there you are,” Captain Stanton said. “How have your dances been?”
“Very pleasant,” Georgiana said, suddenly unsure of what to say, for she very much wanted to dance, but did not wish him to feel he had to, if he was not well enough for it.
“Is it time for the waltz, then?” Captain Stanton asked.
“It is. How did you – ”
“Your sister filled me in on her plans earlier. I have been sitting out more dances than I might have otherwise, to ensure I would be ready for this one.”
“She had this planned all along, then.”
“I cannot say how long she had it planned,” Captain Stanton said. “But I know she apprised me of it after the first set.”
He offered her his arm, and they were about to make their way to the floor, when Kitty Bennet came up to them, looking quite resolute.
“Why yes, Colonel Fitzwilliam, I will dance the waltz with you.”
“I did not – I cannot – ” he sputtered, quite taken aback.
“Come, a young, healthy man like yourself cannot spend an entire ball without dancing,” Kitty said, holding out her hand. “And you know I am an engaged woman, so you need not fear me.”
“Miss Bennet, I will assume you have noticed that I only have one arm, now.”
“You still have two legs. We will manage,” Kitty said firmly, still holding out her hand. Finally, Edward extended his, and they followed Georgiana and Captain Stanton to the floor.
“She may have done him more good there than an entire evening’s worth of talking,” Captain Stanton murmured to Georgiana, when they had distanced themselves a bit from the other couples.
“Do not discount your own help,” Georgiana said. “But yes, although I dearly wish Captain Ramsey could have been here, I think perhaps he was not meant to be, because Kitty was meant to – well, be Kitty.”
They both laughed, but Georgiana began to feel that the attention of much of the ballroom was focused on her, and glanced around to see that it was so.
“They look to us to lead,” she whispered, feeling her face grow warm at the attention.
“Well, then, lead we must,” he said, placing his right hand upon her shoulder, and taking up her hand with his left hand, to ready them for the Marche.
When the music began, they progressed around the ballroom, and it was impossible not to sense how many in that space watched them. It was a bit of a relief when they transitioned to the Pirouette. Georgiana arched her arm over her head, to join her hand in his, and there was no pain this time, only a little thrill deep inside her at the closeness, as his hand pressed against the small of her back. Georgiana gazed into his eyes, as the dance required and she would have wished to do anyway, and blushed at the thought that in three days they would be man and wife, and even closer than this.
She was quite pleasantly surprised to find he was very good at this dance; it required good timing and rhythm, something they each had earned through years of musical experience, and something which was not lost among those who were not dancing, for the couple was much commented on.
They wound their way down the ballroom, and Georgiana gazed at her fiancé with all the joyfulness she felt, all the chaos and news from earlier in the day quite forgotten, and she found his countenance mirrored every bit of happiness and tenderness that she felt. They did not speak, but they danced just as two people who were very much in love should dance.
+++
Elizabeth stood at the edge of the empty ballroom, the candelabra in her hand barely lighting what had been so brilliant an hour ago. It was two in the morning, and yet she could not bring herself to retire.
She fingered the pendant of her newest necklace, and thought back to the waltz, and how although a part of her had longed to dance, she had also enjoyed standing beside her husband, watching a progression of couples that quite delighted her. There were, of course, Georgiana and Captain Stanton, her primary purpose for including the dance. But there had also been Kitty and Colonel Fitzwilliam, who had been required to change positions to accommodate for Colonel Fitzwilliam’s arm, and so appeared to the opposite of all the other couples in the ballroom, but otherwise managed quite nicely. There were Lord and Lady Brandon, who had waltzed as those who were veterans of many a season, although Lady Ellen could not help but look over at her younger son occasionally with a look of deep contentment on her face. And there were Mary Bennet and David Stanton, who would not waltz, but stood at the edge of the ballroom, deep in conversation.
“There you are,” said the giver of the necklace, stepping up close behind her and wrapping his arms around her so that he could rest his hands on the slight little bump of her stomach. “Surveying the scene of your latest triumph?”
“I would hardly call it a triumph.”
“I shall. It will be the talk of Derbyshire for some time.”
“Well certainly, given we scandalised the county.” Elizabeth teased, in saying this – in truth, although they did not make up her fondest memories of the ball, she had felt a certain happiness on the evening in seeing all of the local families enjoying themselves so, particularly those who had gathered around her aunt Gardiner in order to reminisce. And rather more of them than she had expected had taken up their place in the waltz – it had helped that many of the older couples had already been lured off to the saloon, for the tea and final little kickshaws served there.
“I will own that they do not seem to have been very scandalised,” he said. “And even if they were, it would have been worth it, if just for Georgiana’s countenance.”
“It is so wonderful to see her so happy – and they are not even married yet.”
“Indeed, and I know the event will be complete for her now, with both Edward and I there to give her away,” he said. “And what of you – are you happy?”
Elizabeth had an easy answer to this question, and it was not only caused by seeing Colonel Fitzwilliam returned to them. She had spent so much time at the beginning of her marriage sacrificing herself for her sisters, and she still felt it was worthwhile – even Mary had her chance, now – but now it was time to turn to her own happiness, and her own family, and she looked forward to the events that were to come with a great deal of joyful anticipation.
