Chapter Text
“Mr. Mclain, you will not believe me when I tell you this, but Netherfield is lit at last,” cried Mrs. Mclain as she entered her husband’s study. Mr. Mclain, an older gentleman with a thick beard and intelligent eyes, was currently engaged in reading a book and did not bother to look up as his wife made his way into his study.
“What good news. And who is our new neighbor?” He asked with little enthusiasm. Luckily for him, his wife was enthusiastic for the both of them.
“Oh Mr. Mclain, it is most wonderful. A Mr. Shirogane. He is a young man of large fortune who moved here from the North of England. Mrs. Long says he makes four to five thousand a year,” Mrs. Mclain exclaimed, barely taking time to breathe properly as she related her news.
“What a joy for him, but I do not see how this was cause for prying my attention away from my reading.”
“Oh Mr. Mclain, why do you tease me so? You must go and visit him and invite him for dinner.”
“What for? I am sure the rest of our neighbors are already planning to crowd his luxurious home and make him feel welcome. Why should I burden him so?” Mr. Mclain was never keen on making an appearance and despised crowded places.
“Mr. Mclain!” cried Mrs. Mclain again. “You must make an acquaintance of such a remarkable young man so that we may introduce him to our children. He is sure to fall in love and marry one of them. Allura is of course the most deserving of such a proposal, but I would not mind seeing Lydia at Netherfield.”
“If it was a question of most deserving, I would bestow that upon our second child. Lance is just as deserving as Allura and would make great use of the Netherfield Estate Library,” Mr. Mclain mused as he returned his attention to his book. His wife continued to discuss the idea of one of their children married off to this mysterious Mr. Shirogane and the wealth and security it would give to whichever of her children he deemed to choose.
“But you will make the acquaintance, won’t you my dear,” Mrs. Mclain pressed after she imagined all scenarios she could of a marriage.
“Yes my dear.”
“And do it before the ball next week. We must have a strong acquaintance so he should dance with one or all of our children.” Mr. Mclain nodded though he did not fully hear his wife. Satisfied, Mrs. Mclain continued, “I’m off to tell them of the good news and make sure they prepare thoroughly for a ball such an important guest.”
And off she went.
The Mclain family was truly a large and loving family. Mr. and Mrs. had been married for some time, though much of the affection that they held for each other had faded significantly from their initial match. Mr. Mclain was very fond of reading and witty humor that often flew over the head of his wife. Mrs. Mclain was constantly concerned with the future of her children and the goings on of their country neighborhood. The Longbourn Estate, where the family lived, was quite large and had housed the old couple for nearly three decades. In those three decades, they had been blessed with five children.
The oldest child, Allura, was a beauty unlike any other in the county. Her temper was very calm and she found it hard to find fault in any person who has not shown it to her directly. Mrs. Mclain often bragged of her beauty and countenance to the other ladies of the area and, though Allura was nearing twenty three, mourned the fact that she was still unmarried.
Lance was the second of five. Though he was the only boy to be born into the family, severe sickness in his childhood led to the certainty that he would not be permitted to inherit Longbourn Estate once his father passed. Instead it would be passed onto the entail, a subject which angered Mrs. Mclain beyond any other. However, Lance never fretted over this. He was perfectly content to live his life free of the burden that would have come with inheriting the family estate. Lance was also the favorite child of his father, because their wit and intelligence matched so often that Mr. Mclain wished the day that Lance would marry and leave him never to come.
Mary was the third and middle child. She was quiet and quite plain compared to her older siblings, but beautiful nonetheless. Mary preferred moral reflection and intense reading to any other activity, unless that activity was piano.
Catherine, or Kitty as she was more often referred to, was the fourth. She and the youngest, Lydia, were inseparable. Their similar good humored spirits had them making many trips into the town of Meryton, where they flirted with officers and shopped for whatever caught their eye. Lydia was far more of a free spirit than Kitty and was easily recommended to the officers by her countenance, much to the shagrin of Lance who believed she flirted too freely. Unfortunately for the brother, Lydia and Kitty’s trips and flirtations increased when the militia was stationed in Meryton.
But for the past few days, Lydia and Kitty were far too focused on the upcoming ball to be flirting too heavily. They were determined to spice up their dresses with as many tricks they could, even asking their older siblings to assist and supply knowledge on the latest fashions and possible improvements.
The news of Mr. Shirogane’s arrival from their mother had them even more excited for the upcoming ball.
“Is he handsome?” cried Lydia. Lance knew it did not matter if he was, the only thing Lydia really required was attention from a potential lover, not wealth or good looks.
“A young man of his situation ought to be, otherwise he would be very ill fit for such a life,” Lance joked as he flipped absently through his book. Allura gave him a small smile from over her needlework, but Lydia acted as if Lance had not spoken.
“I bet he is. Everything I heard about him has given me enough reason to believe it,” Lydia said confidently to Kitty, who was always an anxious listener of her younger sister.
“But we’ve only just heard about him. How can you be so positive,” Allura asked kindly. She was always very good with speaking to Lydia, even when she made the silliest remarks as these.
“Women’s intuition. I will not answer any more questions on the matter, I just know it to be true.”
Lance wanted to point out that she had started the topic and often begged her siblings to ask her questions so she could supply her own answers and opinion. Lance knew she was the most self-centered of his siblings, but seeing it before him nearly every day made him grieve for her unseen behavior in public.
“Well, I am not worried about him being handsome. I have good information from Mrs. Long, who greeted him at Netherfield on his first coming, that he is very handsome indeed,” Mrs. Mclain smiled cheerfully. “ I will do my best to ensure that he takes time to dance with each of my children so that he can see the best of all of you. And, if we are lucky, we might hope to see a marriage come out of it.”
“Mother, you plan so far ahead it makes me wonder if you actually see what is happening in the present,” Lance mused.
“Hush, child. You mock me now, but once we arrive at the ball you will know, as well as the rest of us, the true handsomeness of Mr. Shirogane. And then you will wish he was yours.”
A few days after Mrs. Mclain’s insistence he visit Mr. Shirogane, Mr. Mclain made the visit. He found the young man very smart and amiable, and his good breeding and manners were clearly evident in every sentence he spoke. Upon his return to Longbourn, his wife and children accosted him in the entrance hall trying to pry any information or description of Mr. Shirogane as they could. But Mr. Mclain, immune to their questions and demands, kept his mouth shut and insisted they would not be disappointed when they met at the ball.
“So he is coming, how wonderful,” Mrs. Mclain cheered as she ushered her children farther into the drawing room.
“Of course my dear. He has also been kind enough to inform me that he will be bringing a party of his own. Some friends from London if I remember correctly.”
“What kind of friends?” demanded Lydia. “A tribe of London dandies perhaps. Or maybe more available young men to sweep us off our feet and out of the county.”
“Do not speak of being swept out of the county or my nerves will overtake me!” cried Mrs. Mclain.
“I thought you wanted us all married quickly,” Mary said from a seat in the corner. “Otherwise we would not all have been presented.”
“Yes my dear, my nerves do not tremble for that, rather that my children should be so far away from me once they are married. I could not bear being so separated from my children.”
Lance and his father shared a look clearly stating to each other that they knew Mrs. Mclain would have no control over this, especially if they were to marry someone of importance like she planned for them to.
“But is it certain he is bringing a party?” asked Kitty concerned. “What if he is bringing ladies down with him? Won’t that make it harder for us to meet and dance with him if he is already occupied?”
“Do not worry about that, Kitty. Mr. Shirogane is sure to dance with all of you if your mother has anything to say about it,” Mr. Mclain stated simply as he took his leave from the room and excitement that he had brought into the house.
The day of the ball finally arrived after nearly two weeks of Lance suffering his younger sisters’ amusements and worries over what the night could possibly bring. In those two weeks, neither Lance nor his mother nor his siblings saw a thing of Mr. Shirogane. He had left early in the week back to London, where Lance figured he was gathering his party for the ball. Despite never seeing the man, the Mclain children talked of him often.
“They say he is handsome,” Lance remarked dully to his closest friend, a girl nearly his age if not a few years younger but miles ahead in intelligence who he affectionately called Pidge, though the rest of the neighborhood insisted on calling her Katie. Pidge was the second of the Holt family, the neighbors closest in distance and friendship to the Mclain’s. Lance had found Pidge as the companion he needed when his family was too much, and, outside of Allura, was the person he could talk with completely unreservedly.
“I couldn’t care less if he was handsome or not. I will only dance with him if there is no other choice so I do not upset myself in the physical activity nor any other young ladies who wished for his partnership more than I,” Pidge stated firmly.
“Would you be more inclined to dance with him if you found out he had a similar disposition as yours?” Lance asked with a smirk.
“And what disposition would that be?”
“Oh my dear Pidge, if I have to explain the joke and my friendly slight against both yours and Mr. Shirogane’s character, I will be very disappointed. I thought you were the smartest person of my acquaintance,” Lance delighted in the angrily playful glare Pidge threw his way and rolled on his back so he looked up at the sky. Pidge smirked as she tore up grass and dropped it on his face. “Do you think about that sort of stuff, Pidge?”
“Oh to be a mind reader. Pray, tell me what sort of useless stuff I should be thinking about,” Pidge mocked. Lance responded by throwing grass at her face in revenge for earlier and the comment she just made.
“About marriage and falling in love. Do you think it's possible for such character’s as ours?”
“No. I would rather not marry at all. It was never something that interested me,” Pidge stated, but continued as Lance’s brow furrowed. “But if I were to marry, I hope that my spouse could be more of a friend than of a lover. I think companionship is the only thing I value more than knowledge.”
Lance laughed at his friend’s values, pleased with the answer she gave. He knew he was probably more romantic than his friend, being older and more prone to daydreaming of finding love than he would like to admit to anyone.
“I would never trade any marriage over our companionship, my dearest friend,” Lance smiled widely at Pidge. “But if the right man were to cross my path, please do not blame me for leaving you for the wonders of marriage.”
“Well I hope that you would at least invite me to visit you and your man,” Pidge mocked again.
“I would have to see. He is very cautious about allowing ruffians into his house,” Lance stated dramatically.
The two carried on with this line of joking for the rest of their morning spent together, happy to indulge in their fantasy rather than their upcoming responsibilities they would be expected to fulfill at that night’s ball. Lance would be accepted to dance the whole night with the available bachelors by his mother even though he would prefer spending the evening with Pidge. Pidge, he knew, would probably be held captive by her older brother the whole night who had returned to Meryton for that night for the very purpose of attending the ball. While Lance got along well with Pidge’s older brother, Matt, he always felt like he was intruding on their close sibling bond whenever the three were together. Lance knew the feeling of such a close bond. He felt it with Allura. Lance knew that he would do anything to ensure her happiness and she would try her best to ensure his. Such was the life of older siblings.
At lunch Pidge and Lance separated, promising to speak again once at the ball since they would be spending the whole afternoon and evening preparing, and helping prepare others in Lance’s case, for the occasion.
When it did come time to get ready, Lance found that he was assisting far more than he normally would with his sisters’ outfits and hair. Although the family was well off enough to be able to keep servants to help, Lance always felt a bit guilty that they had to deal with all five of them and would help where he could.
After about an hour of trying to assist Allura in fixing her long silver hair into an elegant shape, he was pushed away by her and told he would miss the whole party if he waited any longer to get dressed. Allura was right in pushing him away, as Lance took extra time in getting ready for the evening to ensure he looked as pretty as, if not more than, his sisters.
When the hour arrived for them to depart, Mr. Mclain wished them all a good time from the door as they climbed into the carriage. He had chosen not to attend, claiming the big crowd at the ball was quite unfavorable to him and sent his family along knowing Lance and Allura would do good to keep the rest of the in check.
The whole ride into Meryton was spent on Kitty and Lydia expressing loudly their excitement with Mrs. Mclain nodding eagerly at the prospect of so many fine gentlemen for them to dance with.
In just under an hour, they arrived at the ball, which was already crowded with attendees and their carriages. The family climbed out of the carriage a little aways from the building as getting any closer would be a struggle. Kitty and Lydia ran off as soon as their feet hit the ground, far too eager to greet the young men of Meryton whom they knew to be attending the ball that night, leaving Allura and Lance to ensure their mother made it out of the carriage and assisted her in locating her friend, Lady Holt. Mary followed closely behind the three, looking a bit unsure of the crowd inside. Upon finding the Lady, Lance was also able to easily locate his friend Pidge, who engaged in a lively conversation with her older brother.
“By the look of your conversation, I feel that you have forgotten you are in a hall full of people,” Lance said with a laugh as he approached the two Holts. They all greeted each other with rapturous joy, it having been hours since Lance and Pidge had talked and months since Lance and Matt had.
“Still single? Maybe we can find someone for you tonight. I hear a very fortunate man is going to be attending the ball this evening. Our mother has been very excited to get little Katie here introduced to him,” Matt said with a clearly joking air.
“With all your time in town, I thought that you would at least be married, Matt. Are all the best partners to be found in the country?” Lance asked with equal amusement.
“I am offended, my dear sir,” Matt said dramatically as he shielded his heart with his hand. “It will take a very special someone to capture my heart.”
“A special someone? Do you see him?” Mrs. Holt butted into their conversation looking around wildly.
“No mother, who are you talking about? Who am I to see?” Matt asked, taken about suddenly by the appearance of his mother.
“Mr. Shirogane, of course! Do not trick me with your flippant speech again. I swear, you have gotten more wild with being in town,” Mrs. Holt said tersely.
“Mother, you are too wound up about this gentleman’s appearance. Is he not here yet?”
“No! He is not. Who are my children to dance with if he is to not appear soon?” Mrs. Mclain exclaimed to the group as she followed her friend. “My nerves are on edge at him not being here.”
“Please calm down, Mama. I’m sure he will be here soon,” Allura said calmingly. Her easy smile seemed to put both the older women at ease for a moment before the sudden opening of the large doors had them turning quickly to see who entered so late.
A group of people emerged from the doors, three men and two women. Their appearance caused a slight pause in the noise from the crowd. All eyes turned to stare at the strangers for a second. The silence might have been a second too long for Lance to be comfortable, but it was quickly gone as an explosion of sound came from the party guests.
“Who are they?” asked Mrs. Mclain, a little skittishness and hopefulness mingling in her voice and expression.
“That is Mr. Takashi Shirogane,” a voice explained. It was Mrs. Long, who had weaved her way through the crowd to join their party. “He is the tall, handsome one in the middle. To his left are his sisters, Caroline Shirogane and Luisa Hurst. The gentleman next to her is her husband, Mr. Hurst. And the man on his right is Mr. Keith Kogane.”
“What? Who is that?” cried Mrs. Mclain. “He is quite handsome indeed. Almost more than Mr. Shirogane!”
“Mr. Kogane is the estate holder of Pemberley in Derbyshire. He brings it at least ten thousand pounds a year. He is quite wealthy and quite handsome, from the looks of him,” supplied Mrs. Long.
Lance listened to Mrs. Long’s further description and knowledge of the party before him, but observed them rather than her. First, he took in Mr. Shirogane. He was quite tall, with very broad shoulders and dark hair. He was incredibly handsome and smiled kindly at everyone who came up to greet him. Mr. Mclain was right, Lance was not disappointed. With a quick look over to Allura, he could tell his sister was not disappointed either.
His sisters were also quite handsome, though they both had expressions that made them look extremely conceited in Lance’s eyes. They were easily the most well dressed women in the whole assembly and their body language and barely concealed looks of displeasure made their handsomeness dwindle in Lance’s eyes.
Mr. Hurst was a round man as broad as Mr. Shirogane, but lacked the muscles of the former. Lance could not tell if the look on his face spoke of boredom or of lack of intelligence in the man, but was sure both were present in Mr. Hurst.
Finally, Lance turned his gaze to the last gentleman. Mr. Kogane stood as far back in his party as he could, being sure to make no eye contact too long with anyone in the assembly. Lance thought he looked handsome enough as his dark hair and sculpted features made him easy to look at. What troubled Lance was his expression. Mr. Kogane wore a look that displayed how uncomfortable he was. Lance thought this was weird for a man of his rank to be uncomfortable with being around people.
“He is quite handsome is he not?” Mrs. Long asked the group.
“Yes he is,” Allura said quietly. Her eyes had not yet left Mr. Shirogane’s face and looked as if they would never look at anything else again. When Mr. Shirogane turned his head to look around the room, his eyes met with Allura’s for a brief moment before she turned her head away, blushing. Lance, Katie, and Matt all laughed heartily at Allura’s reaction. It was not like her to be this shy, but Lance knew she must be struck with a strong fancy for the gentleman upon first sight.
“Come on, gather your sisters,” Mrs. Mclain said to Lance quickly. “We must introduce ourselves before too much of the night is lost.”
Quickly spotting his two youngest siblings, Lance grabbed them along with Mary who was trying to slink off into an isolated corner of the dance hall and dragged them back to their mother. Together, the six Mclains fought their way through the crowd and waited for the family ahead of them to finish introductions.
Next to Lance, Allura was positively shaking. Lance assumed it was excitement at meeting the gentleman who had caught her eye so quickly, but in case it was fear rather than excitement, he grabbed her hand and gave it a quick squeeze. She smiled over at him at the gesture.
“Keep me grounded, brother. I am afraid I might not be completely myself upon introduction. He is far more handsome than I imagined,” Allura whispered into Lance’s ear as they waited. Lance let out a tinkling laugh at the thought of Allura being so indisposed.
“Sister, I cannot guarantee such a grounding presence. I am far too excited to see you quite insensible in front of the gentleman and his friends. Perhaps then you will share a resemblance to our mother besides silver hair,” he whispered back to Allura. Her playfully affronted look was more than enough to show him that his teasing worked in calming his sister, and they continued this banter until it was their turn to greet the newcomers.
However, the two oldest Mclain children had already drawn the attention of not just Mr. Shirogane, but Mr. Kogane as well. The former was so captivated by the beauty and smile of the woman and the equal beauty of the man next to her, he had to ask a repeat of the question just asked of him by his new acquaintance. The latter, who was not stuck in such a conversation, was able to examine the pair further. He decided that the two were rather silly based on their whispered exchange and quiet laughter. If they could not say what they were whispering aloud, Mr. Kogane knew it was of no real importance or competence. He could admit however, that the pair were quite handsome and the smile of the man was so bright that Mr. Kogane had to draw his eyes away from him with some difficulty.
Miss Shirogane had also noticed the pair of siblings, but only because she was following the gaze of Mr. Kogane. Upon seeing the attractiveness of the pair and observing how Mr. Kogane stared at them, she frowned.
Finally, it was time for the Mclain family to approach the gentleman.
“Mr. Shirogane, how nice it is to finally meet you. My husband, Mr. Mclain, is so sorry that he is unable to greet you himself tonight for he felt it was better for him to remain at home. Large crowds you know,” Mrs. Mclain said quickly as she stepped into talking distance of Mr. Shirogane. “Might I introduce my children. Miss Allura, Mr. Lance, Miss Mary, Miss Kitty, and Miss Lydia Mclain. In that order of birth, of course.”
Each child smiled and inclined their head towards Mr. Shirogane when their name was mentioned. He nodded in turn, but his head kept turning back towards Allura whenever opportunity allowed.
“It is very good to meet you all. I had the most pleasant conversation with Mr. Mclain last week and am very excited to meet his family. Let me introduce you to my party. This is my sister, Caroline Shirogane and Luisa Hurst along with her husband. And this is my dearest friend, Keith Kogane,” Shiro said, pointing out each person as he introduced them. The high and mighty, as Lance chose to refer to them in his head, inclined their heads slightly but acted very disinterested in making their acquaintances, though they were civil enough in their attitudes during the rest of their conversation.
“Are you enjoying Netherfield, Mr. Shirogane? I hear the library there is quite extraordinary,” Lance asked when he felt a lull in the conversation. He wanted to allow as much time for Mr. Shirogane and Allura to interact, as it seemed that neither of them could focus on anything but each other during the conversation. Allura’s cheeks were quite red at the attention and Mr. Shirogane’s smile was quite bigger than it was earlier.
“What? Oh yes, the library. I hear it’s quite good, but I have not had the chance to explore it thoroughly. I have spent much of my time on the grounds, as I believe I prefer the outdoors to anything,” Mr. Shirogane answered sincerely. “And you, Miss Mclain. Do you prefer reading inside or activities outside?”
“Oh activities outside to be sure,” Allura said with a smile. Lance smiled too because his plan was working very well despite his mother and younger sisters butting in at almost every opportunity.
“Miss Mclain, I hope I am not being too forward when I ask for your company in the next dance. That is, if you are not presently engaged,” Mr. Shirogane asked shyly with a quick glance towards the mother.
“Oh, I am not engaged and gladly accept your offer to dance!” Allura replied, her eyes bright and her smile so wide Lance was sure it would hurt if she held it much longer.
“What of you, Mr. Kogane? Do you like dancing?” Mrs. Mclain asked the gentleman who had been standing in silence for most of the conversation. He seemed shocked at first to be addressed but was quick to recover.
“No, I do not dance if I am not acquainted with my partner,” he answered stiffly.
“And no one can ever be introduced at a ball,” Lance responded quickly but with a smile on his face so Mr. Kogane knew he did not mean it as an insult. However, Mr. Kogane did not respond. Instead, he gave a small smile that looked as though it pained him to give.
“Well, I apologize for my son’s inability to speak civilly, so I will leave you to the next party who wishes to introduce themselves. Goodbye for now,” Mrs. Mclain said quickly, giving a bow and pushing her children away quickly.
Lance frowned at two things. The first was that his mother thought what he said was more embarrassing than the countless times she made an offhand comment to the gentleman and his friends. Had Mr. Mclain been there, he was sure he would point that out but decided to stay quiet for Allura’s happiness at being asked to dance. The second was Mr. Kogane’s response, which had led Lance to confirm his suspicion. That man was far too proud for his liking. No matter how handsome he was, Lance would not be fooled into falling for a man who’s pride was the most important thing to him.
Despite such an ending to their first conversation, Mr. Shirogane still took the time to seek out Allura and remind her of their dance when the next song was about to start. Allura smiled so cheerfully and followed him into the crowd where the dance was being set up. Lance took Allura’s departure to find Pidge. She was stationed near a wall with Matt, who was talking at such a rapid pace it was impossible for Lance to read his lips.
“Would you like to dance, my fair Pidge? The next song is about to start up and I am eager to get some of this energy out.” Lance exclaimed as he approached the siblings.
“Absolutely not. My tiny body will get lost in this crowd and I do not want to die from drowning in a sea of happy people,” Pidge replied dramatically. Lance expected this response as he has only gotten Pidge to dance with him a handful of times.
“Then Matt, please join me on the dance floor so we can show Pidge what she is missing.”
“I’m not sure, Lancey. Usually my opposite looks good in a dress,” Matt said with fake thoughtfulness.
“I would put on a dress right now if not every one was already occupied by a fair lady,” Lance responded with fake sincerity. “But since no such dress is available, I hope you can make due with my shabby appearance.”
Pidge and Matt laughed at Lance’s statement for a bit before Matt finally agreed to join Lance for the dance. Lance knew he would since Matt enjoyed dancing as much as he enjoyed talking. If they were not such close friends, and if Lance did not know Matt better, he would seriously consider him to be a decent suitor for himself. However, since he did know Matt, he comforted himself in knowing they were very good friends.
Lance took the side of the floor with the traditionally feminine elements, the side he took when he was with Matt because Matt only knew the masculine side’s movements. It wasn’t his fault, Matt was just never able to focus on learning both parts when he already knew one. Either way, when the music started and the dance began, the two friends had fun and talked joyfully for the half hour they had together in the dance. And it comforted Lance a bit to see that he was not the only man on the feminine side of the dance.
For Mr. Kogane, watching Lance dance occupied him for most of the thirty minute dance. Miss Shirogane figured out what was occupying his attention and joined him to watch the dancers.
“He is quite handsome, though I do say I can’t believe that he is considered a beauty along with his sisters. Perhaps they were talked up too much by our local informant,” She said coldly as she watched. This, of course, was a lie. She found the siblings, especially the two oldest, exceedingly handsome and found them threatening. The attention that Mr. Kogane was giving the young Mr. Mclain was making her angry and jealous.
“I do not understand your reasoning. They are very attractive, though their personality might leave something to wish for,” Mr. Kogane replied with very little emotion. This seemed to ease Miss Shirogane a little and consented to stand quietly next to him for the rest of the dance as they observed the path cut by Lance and Matt on the floor.
Their attention to Lance and Matt eventually was noticed by both men, who were giggling and speculating about why they looked at them so intensely.
“Perhaps Miss Shirogane is in love with me. I am so devilishly handsome that she can’t possibly be looking at you with me here,” Matt mused.
“I wish she would not look at me in that way. We would make a most unsuitable match. But the way Mr. Kogane is staring is making my skin crawl. Perhaps there is something wrong in my appearance to make him stare so intently with such a negative expression,” Lance smiled as Matt roared with laughter. But he really did feel uncomfortable with Mr. Kogane’s pointed looks and was very happy for the end of the dance when it came. He and Matt escaped quickly out of the crowd and back towards Pidge’s isolated table.
It wasn’t long, however, until Matt departed to find another dancing partner, as Lance still felt the lingerings of Mr. Kogane’s stare to be much inclined to return to the dance floor. Pidge and Lance talked animatedly, as they always do when they have too much energy, about the possible reasoning for Mr. Kogane and Miss Shirogane to be staring at him so intently.
Matt was gone for maybe ten minutes when the source of their conversation came quickly out of the crowd followed by Mr. Shirogane. It seemed as though he had not noticed Lance and Pidge yet, who had stopped their conversation and sat quietly as Mr. Shirogane began to talk with excitement to his friend.
“Keith, why are you being so down? Come, dance a bit and enjoy the evening,” Mr. Shirogane cheered.
“Shiro. No, I’ve already stated my disinterest to dance tonight. Besides, you are dancing with the handsomest person here so there is no point in trying to outdo you with a better looking partener,” Mr. Kogane replied bitterly.
“Oh please, you saw her siblings. Her sisters are very pretty and you could say her brother is as exceedingly beautiful as Miss Mclain. And quite agreeable,” Mr. Shirogane finished with a quick nod at Lance’s table, where he and Pidge had been pretending they could not hear the conversation.
“I do not pretend to understand you, friend,” Mr. Kogane replied with a frown. “I will admit that they are all pretty and beautiful as you had said, but clearly not beautiful enough to tempt my hand nor the hand of anyone for more than one dance. I must insist against it.”
With that, the two gentlemen returned into the crowd of people. Mr. Shirogane returned to Lance’s sister, who smiled brightly as he led her back into the dance. Mr. Kogane returned to the table where Miss Shirogane and the Hursts were located and where no one else of the assembly dared to occupy with the absence of the amiable Mr. Shirogane to counteract his friends’ displeasures.
Pidge turned to look at Lance upon the departure of the gentlemen, ready to console her friend if necessary. To her shock, Lance was smiling and began to laugh. It was amusing to him that Mr. Kogane should think Lance was the undesirable dance partner in this situation as Mr. Kogane was the one who everyone had begun to avoid once his character was fully known to the assembly. Lance also laughed at his luck, for if he were to dance with the gentleman he knew it would be a most miserable occasion to himself and Mr. Kogane. Lance relayed this all to Pidge with a smile.
“Well it was never in your character to let rejection weigh you down,” Pidge replied in relief. “I do pity Mr. Kogane, however, for I believe he has lost the best dance partner he shall ever meet.”
“Does that mean you’ll dance with me tonight, since you are complimenting me so heavily,” Lance asked with a mocking bat of his long lashes.
“We’ll see. First, you must go find a handsome young man to dance with so that Mr. Kogane may be jealous and envious he ever spoke such harshness about my friend,” Pidge had a fiery look in her eyes that told Lance she would not easily forget Mr. Kogane’s words as Lance was to brush them off. Lance was more than ready to agree to her scheme and left her to find such a dancing partner as she suggested as soon as she gave him her permission.
And so the evening ball went, with Lance dancing every dance with either a handsome man or one of the Holt siblings. He found that Kitty and Lydia were much inclined to do the same, grabbing on to any dance partner that would have them and only stopping to rest when they felt too hot or when not enough attention was being given to them by their partner. Allura, who had danced with Mr. Shirogane once already, was delighted when the gentleman asked her to dance another dance by the end of the night. Her mother was even more elated as Allura was the only lady the whole evening to be asked to dance a second time by Mr. Shirogane. Mary even danced a dance, but found more joy in her book that she had thought smartly to bring.
Again, the only people who did not seem delighted in the events of the ball was the party from London. Mr. Kogane frowned each time he saw the young Mr. Mclain with a new dance partner, for although the assembly was short on eligible men, Mr. Mclain seemed the only person who was never without a partner. Miss Shirogane was also displeased with the evening's events. Although her brother had convinced Mr. Kogane to dance once with her, his attitude the whole time was sour and she often found his gaze wandering to where she assumed Mr. Mclain was dancing. She knew her friend too well and mocked him lightly on his distractedness the whole evening, throwing in remarks about the younger gentleman to Mr. Kogane in hopes to turn his attention onto her.
When it was finally time for the Longbourn party to depart, it was done so with equal relief and sadness by the whole group. Everyone could admit to having such a fun time and talked with such animated voices as they walked into their home, Mr. Mclain swore he knew the whole detail of the dance before Mrs. Mclain could relate any details of the night claiming that their voices carried so far and loud that the whole county must have heard their raptures of the evening.
It was soon that the whole family made ready for bed. As much as the night had excited them, it had also worn them out. In the bedroom of the two oldest children, however, the night carried on as they discussed all that had happened to them once they parted ways. Allura talked happily of her dances with Mr. Shirogane, and was surprised by the remarks made by his friend at the expense of her dearest brother.
“But surely he could not have meant it as such! You said yourself how busy you were with willing partners. Maybe he was just speaking harshly because Mr. Shirogane was pushing him to partake in an activity he was uncomfortable with,” Allura reasoned thoughtfully.
“Allura, no one is truly evil or improper in your eyes. If only my disposition was like yours, then I think I would be unable to see the wrong in anybody as I see in them now.”
“Do not wish such a thing! If you had my disposition, such words from a gentleman like Mr. Kogane might have cut me so deep in the moment that I would have been unable to dance at all.”
“Then let us be lucky that it was you who Mr. Shirogane danced the most with. He is very handsome indeed.”
“Oh yes. And very proper and well mannered. The very essence of good breeding, I would dare say. As every young man ought to be.”
“And rich, as every young man ought to be,” Lance replied wittily.
“I do not care about riches, brother. The fact that he is would not sway my feelings one way or the other. He was quite amiable and gentle, never interrupting or leaving me to myself when he could help it. I was very pleased with his behavior tonight.”
“I am pleased that you are pleased. Hopefully this night will only be remembered for the pleasantries and not the slight so horribly cast upon myself.”
“You recovered well enough and I wish you would not joke so much about that unhappiness. It makes me sad to think someone could say such words,” Allura said with every ounce of kindness and sisterly love in her body. Lance couldn’t help but smile at his sister. He knew that he should have no reason to fret or worry about anything as long as she was here to comfort him, even when such comforting words were not necessary for Lance to be at ease.
They carried their conversation on for a few more minutes before falling asleep, the cheerful events of the evening being the background to their dreamy thoughts as the siblings fell into sleep.