Chances Come, Ney Mitch [snow like ashes series TXT] 📗

sense, at first. Yet, very soon, my happiness gave way to a slight nerve of inner disquiet. I was a little vexed at the connection that Kitty was achieving with Mr. Darcy so soon after entering his home.

With the others, they were perhaps in different states.

Colonel Fitzwilliam was most amused.

Aunt and Uncle Gardiner were out of their depth as to seeing how Kitty was conversing with Mr. Darcy.

I could never fully know what Jane was thinking. She just stood there, docile.

“Yes,” Mr. Darcy answered Kitty’s question, “I did. Very much actually.”

“Enough that you invited my sisters here, and then me,” Kitty continued. “I never would have foreseen that kind offer. I do not mean to offend, but it is so kind a gesture, that I never would have foreseen anyone doing such a thing for us. Our father has passed away, you see, so we are always surprised to see kindness.”

“I know the pains of losing one’s parent and protection from the world.”

“Yes! That is precisely it! I feel as if we are spinning around, and we do not know where to go. Do you ever feel so very lost? That was how we felt when our lives changed so much.”

“Yes, I felt the same way.”

“See?” I interjected, feeling pained for not being a part of the conversation. “We were never alone after all, Kitty.”

Kitty looked around the room.

“I love this room,” she voiced, randomly. “I like it tremendously.”

“Then we shall leave you to it.”

“I shall stay with Kitty for a while,” Jane said, “to offer her advice on how we shall be here and to tell her about the ball.”

“Oh,” Colonel Fitzwilliam said, surprised. “Well, yes, of course.” He had not expected Jane to leave his side for the duration.

“I feel torn,” I admitted, “for I wish to remain with Kitty as well, but I refuse to allow the men to be taken from the company of the three of us. I can see that they did not wish for all three Bennet sisters to be away from them this afternoon. Or am I overstepping propriety by recognizing that?”

Mr. Darcy opened his mouth, but Jane answered before him.

“Not at all,” she assured me. “My sisters only speak the truth about things, because they know that we are in the presence of people who admire sincerity. Mr. Darcy and the Colonel are generous. They do not deserve us all to abandon them. I shall give Kitty company for a quarter of an hour, then let her rest. I shall be down shortly. Lizzy, may you make your personality large enough to fill in the space that is our absence?”

“I shall do my best to play the part admirably,” I answered, and then I stood by the men as we left the room.

“You must forgive Kitty, Mr. Darcy and Colonel,” Uncle Gardiner added. “She is just so wholly unspoiled, that she has never developed a greater acquaintance with the ways of the world.”

It was true.

“Ah, yes,” Colonel Fitzwilliam said, “that tainting thing—a greater acquaintance with the ways of the world. It is a vital thing, and yet it also has a hard time in crushing the human spirit.”

“I was in such a way myself, once,” Mr. Darcy said. “And I do not envy her when the true harshness of reality breaks through the door and takes away her innocence.”

“She seems to be a sweet girl, from what I have seen,” Colonel Fitzwilliam complimented her. “She is just artless, which is refreshing.”

“She does have goodness to her nature,” I added, supporting Kitty. “She just was not always allowed to be given the best examples to follow.”

“But now that she is amongst her older sisters,” Aunt Gardiner continued, “she shall want for nothing. Lizzy and Jane shall watch over her.”

“I do not doubt it,” Colonel Fitzwilliam continued, “for you both appear to be devoted sisters. I admire the way that your eldest sister is tending to her now. It shows Miss Bennet’s sweetness and good nature.”

“Now that our father has passed away,” I summed up, “we feel the weight of there being no head in our family. Yet, with Jane, she feels it more acutely. I think that the loss of him affected us in two different ways. With me, it led to me always looking to the future and deciding our next step and where we ought to go. With Jane, it has led to her rising even more to her role as the eldest sister in the family. She wishes to protect us more, which is always delightful. Especially since it has done so much for her nature.”

“What do you mean?”

“I cannot help but believe that it has enhanced her desire for human attachment, for connecting to others and wishing to display it more often.”

“I too have noted the marked difference in her,” Mr. Darcy gathered, as we all sat down in the parlor and tea was brought to us. “When I had first met her, at the assembly room, I noticed her serene and gentle manner straightaway. However, that same serenity led to her having a delicacy to everything she did, to the point of it feeling hidden. Yet, now, all seems to be changed. She seems to be more open in her manner.”

“Whatever is the source that brought out the change,” Colonel Fitzwilliam continued, “I am glad of it. Life is short; one should not spend the entirety of it and not ever display one’s feelings. And she has discovered the beautiful delicate balance of showing sentiment without exposing herself too much very well. It is a rare talent to find. Yet, she has.”

We all gave each other a look. Colonel Fitzwilliam’s praise of Jane did not go unnoticed by any of us. We all felt his affection for her, in that moment more than ever. However, the silence between us all was so apparent that even the Colonel realized it.

Remembering himself, he straightened up his waistcoat.

“Forgive me,” he apologized, “perhaps I am talking too much.”

“Not at all, Richard,”