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Darcy, I must warn you. My sister is quite changed from her illness, Bingley tells him.
He finds her seated on a couch in the drawing room, a blanket covering her legs, and a writing desk on her lap.
Mr. Darcy is here to see you, Caroline. Her brother announces. Are you willing to receive him?
Of course, she replies as she sets down her writing quill.
Good day, Mr. Darcy. She greets him when he enters the room.
He bows and returns the greeting and asks after her health.
She gestures for him to be seated, as she opens the sloped writing box and puts away her draft.
I am fully returned to health, and yet after having been recumbent for the past two weeks, I’ve lost much strength.
What does your physician say? Darcy asks.
I let him go. The mercury pills and bleedings did me more harm than good, Caroline admits.
Darcy gives her a puzzled look.
Do you remember Parson Collins from the ball at Netherfield? She asks.
Yes, he answers curtly, remembering the still painful rejection to his botched proposal at Hunsford.
It turns out that he has a cousin - who was a ship’s doctor - and now dispenses herbal remedies in the ton. He gave me a tea of Peruvian bark, and that elixir aided my recovery. I am much obliged to him.
I am glad to hear that your illness is past, he says stiffly.
How goes Pemberley? She asks.
Well. Very well indeed. I find that estate management is a lot like turning a flywheel. It takes a lot of effort at first to get it moving, but once in motion, it takes very little energy to keep it turning, Darcy expounds.
That is good to hear, sir.
(Silence)
Mr. Darcy, would you be willing to assist me in taking a turn about the room? She asks him abruptly. My new doctor wants me active a little more each day, and I am restless, sitting so long.
I would be glad to, he replies.
Please take this desk, and set it over yonder, while I get my feet under me.
He takes the offered lap desk with ink wells and moves it to where she's directed him.
When he returns, she offers him her hand and he uses his other to grip under her elbow, and helps stand her upright. He's shocked by how frail she has become.
That is actually the hardest part for me, getting up, she admits. They slowly make a circuit of the room.
Were you by chance writing a letter to my sister? Darcy inquires.
I was not, but rather to Miss Jane Bennett.
I see, Darcy says in a questioning tone that implies the opposite.
My brother and I intend to return to Netherfield when I have gathered sufficient strength. I hope to make amends, Mr. Darcy. I behaved abominably towards her, and hope that she, in her goodness, will forgive me.
What have you told your brother? Darcy asks.
Just that she had called on me here in town, and I concealed her presence from him.
What was his reaction? Darcy asks.
He forgave me, she replies simply.
(Silence)
The Caroline Bingley you knew died on her sickbed, Mr. Darcy. My convalescence gave me a chance to examine my life, and I prayed and resolved that I would live differently if God restored my health.
That is a wholesome sentiment, Darcy comments.
When I was sick, I thought I would never get well. Now that I am well, I think at times that I will never regain my former strength. She sighs.
(Silence)
If I am granted a further reprieve by my Creator, I shall be an excellent walker. I used to despise Miss Eliza Bennett for walking about the countryside, but now I find that I envy her that freedom, and would that I could emulate her.
(Silence)
Do you know the difference between a vow and an oath, Mr. Darcy?
Both are synonyms for a promise made to God, he replies.
Not exactly. A vow is an affirmation to do something. An oath is a negation not to do something.
(Silence)
She suddenly puts her hand to her mouth. I may have that backwards, she admits. I'm trying to improve my mind by reading. But it is of no consequence, as I have made neither, she praters on.
(Silence)
I dare say you have found me in the past to be a petty, pretentious social climber. I do not wish to be that person anymore. Please give me leave to change, sir.
(Silence)
And yet once again, I’ve monopolized the conversation, she says with a dry chuckle. I have a tendency to do that, Mr. Darcy. Thank you for walking with me. I am ready to rest again.
He helps her sit back down on the couch.
A glass of water would be most appreciated, she tells him, and if you would please call my brother to my aid.
He leaves the room, but soon returns with her brother and a glass of water. He watches as Bingley helps her put her legs back up on the couch, and then drapes a blanket over them.
Thank you, Charles, she says softly.
I'll leave you to your visitor, he tells her, and she gazes after him with affection, as he leaves the room.
Darcy hands her the glass of water. She takes a sip and then thanks him, and holds it in her hand.
Uncomfortable and wanting to leave, but feeling as though he should not until she has finished her water - Darcy sits back down.
I am returned from visiting my aunt, Lady Catherine, at Rosings Park. He admits, trying to make conversation.
Did you happen to go church there? She asks.
I did.
(Silence)
Parson Collins has married very well, he pronounces.
Did you find him much changed? She asks, with a look of amusement on her pale and drawn face.
I did not; rather it is Mrs. Collins that impressed me. She sees everything, and yet holds her peace, or perhaps speaks only to her particular friend, Miss Elizabeth Bennett, who was staying with them at the parsonage. He winces inwardly at bringing her up.
Ah, Miss Eliza Bennett, Caroline notes and looks away.
I was quite jealous of her before my illness, but that was then, as I now accept what I cannot change.
And what is that? What can you not change? Darcy asks.
Your feelings for her, of course. I accept them, just as I accept my brother’s love for her sister Jane.
I wish you well in your suit, Mr. Darcy, she adds, then she finishes drinking the glass of water and hands it to him.
He stands and moves to take it from her but doesn’t leave.
When your brother told me that you were much changed, I did not believe him at the time, he admits.
Your opinion of me is now fixed, she replies, so I must look elsewhere. She sighs. You are still the best man of my acquaintance, Mr. Darcy. So it was both natural and just for me to wish to be your wife. How I went about that, by denigrating others and by flattering your sister - was wrong. Please give me leave to change, sir, and it is my hope that we may become good friends in time.
He bows and takes his leave of her.
***
Miss Bingley, I have a confession to make. Darcy tells her the next day as they take a turn about the room.
I proposed to Miss Elizabeth at Hunsford and she rejected me.
Caroline is silent.
He goes on to relay the entire conversation in detail.
She said that I could not have made her the proposal of my hand in any way that would tempt her, that I was the last man on earth that she would ever consider marrying.
Caroline considers this as they walk along.
Do you need her to love you? She eventually asks.
I beg your pardon, he protests.
Mr. Darcy, while I am certain that she would eventually come to love you as she becomes better acquainted with your sterling character, do you find it necessary for her to be in love with you when she says her vows?
He ponders this.
While I do not want to marry her unwilling, I would be content for our affections to be unequal at the start of our marriage, he admits, but it is less than one hopes for, Miss Bingley.
If you wanted a docile compliant wife, you could have married me, Caroline teases.
They both laugh.
Mr. Darcy, perhaps I could impose upon you to hand deliver my letter to her sister Jane, and inform her that my brother and I are returning to Netherfield. It would give you a pretext to see if her sister's feelings have changed.
I would do so gladly, Miss Bingley.
Now please tell me about your cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam. Perhaps he will be willing to overlook my modest charms for my large fortune.
Your charms are not modest, Miss Bingley, he replies after too long a pause.
They both chuckle at his attempt at gallantry.
Enlist her sister to your cause, Mr. Darcy. Jane Bennett is a sweet, sensible girl.
***
Mr. Darcy arrives at Longbourne unannounced and is invited into the parlor.
Mrs. Bennett, I have been charged with delivering a correspondence from Miss Bingley to your eldest daughter.
How is she, sir? Jane asks.
She is slowly recovering from a most debilitating illness, an Asiatic flu, I'm told.
I will keep her in my prayers, Jane says softly.
Mr. Darcy stares at her with a look of undisguised admiration.
Miss Bennett, I find myself overcome by your goodness.
Jane blushes and looks down, while Elizabeth stares daggers at him.
Mrs. Bennett, might I have a moment alone with your daughter please?
Of course, Mr. Darcy, sir.
What are you doing? Elizabeth hisses, but her mother hustles her out of the room.
***
He’s getting down on his knees, Lydia whispers excitedly, as she peeks through the keyhole. Let me see, Let me see, Kitty begs.
She’s blinking away tears and nodding, Lydia continues, ignoring her elder sister. He’s offering her his handkerchief.
He’s getting up and coming this way.
***
Mrs. Bennett rushes past him to congratulate her eldest and sing her praises. Did I not always say that you could not have been so handsome for nothing?
***
Elizabeth stands in front of the door to her father’s study, waiting for him. Her eyes blazing. Her fists clenched. What do you think you are doing? Toying with dear Jane?
Miss Elizabeth, your sister is an angel… Elizabeth cuts him off in mid-sentence.
She does not love you, Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth hisses. She loves Mr. Bingley.
And yet he did not offer for her, Mr. Darcy comments.
Because you and his sisters dissuaded him, Elizabeth counters.
Miss Elizabeth, even God cannot change the past. I must right the wrong I have done her.
What of your friend, Mr. Bingley? Elizabeth snarls.
Are you going to remove out of my way, Miss Elizabeth? Propriety demands that I speak to your father.
Lizzy turns around and opens the door and barges inside the library ahead of him.
Father, I have something to tell you. She says in a voice quavering with emotion, as Mr. Darcy closes the door behind them after entering.
When I was visiting Charlotte at Hunsford, Mr. Darcy proposed to me and I rejected him. Now to get his revenge on me, he has proposed to dear sweet Jane, and she has accepted him.
She bursts into tears.
Mr. Bennett gets up from his chair and takes his favorite daughter in his arms as she sobs uncontrollably.
He holds her and looks over at Darcy.
Sir, I have done no such thing. I only asked for a moment alone with your eldest daughter to apologize for my role in separating her from my close friend, Mr. Bingley – who nearly challenged me to a duel when he learned that I had concealed her presence in London from him. Please allow me to take this opportunity to inform you that he intends to return to Netherfield shortly and make amends.
Why are you here? Her father asks in a stern tone.
Miss Bingley, who has undergone a lengthy illness, requested that I hand deliver a letter to her friend, your eldest daughter.
Lizzy sniffles and blushes with mortification. She turns around with her head bowed, unable to face him.
Why are you here - in my study? Mr. Bennett repeats impatiently.
Miss Elizabeth, my thoughts and feelings are unchanged. I offer you my hand and my heart. Please consent to be my wife.
***
Afterwards, he rides back to London and takes pains to introduce his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam, to Caroline Bingley.
Her recumbent form is displayed to its best advantage at their first meeting, her hair resplendent, and her smile genuine.
I am shockingly weak, Colonel, she tells him. When I recover, I promise to be an excellent walker.
***
True to her word, she walks down the aisle with him, hand in hand, several months later.