one | 01.
THE YELLOW DRESS.
"ELODIE Bennet! Come here at once!" The Bennet household was filled with a buzz of electricity on a rather lackadaisical spring afternoon, a day where the rabbits dashed through the brush, and the birds chirped in the shrubbery where they built their nests. Something was different about that afternoon, something in the buzz of air that overtook the home in a great wave.
Elodie Bennet, sprawled along her freshly washed linens, flicked her golden-blonde hair away from her eyes and turned her head in the direction of her mother's urgent tone, which seemed to be coming from the parlor downstairs.
Her fingers puttered slightly with the worn pages of the book she had been indulging herself with, deliberating whether to pretend she didn't hear Mrs. Bennett or to go easily like she perpetually would. But with that urgency strewn so cleanly through her call, Elodie knew she shouldn't mess around with her mother this time.
A maid scurried past her as she went down the hall, quick as lightning with quite an overwhelmed look upon her wrinkled face, a bundle of clothing piled upon her strong arms.
The Bennet house was quaint and homely, with nice paintings and antiques that had been graciously passed down through the generations by their ancestors. None of them were worth much though, just things to fill in the blank spaces of their home.
Elodie made her way into the parlor, a curious glint forming in her eye when she came upon her other five sisters: Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia. Each seemed to be brimming with excitement as they sat upon the couch.
"What have I missed?" Elodie mused as she sat beside Mary, the rather boorish and dull Bennet daughter who enjoyed nothing more than keeping to her pianoforte and ignoring the outside world.
Although Mary was rather aloof, she was fond of her older sister who was the one who taught her how to play the piano and so she offered a small smile when she heard her enter the room, which the older girl reciprocated. Lydia, the youngest of the two Bennet's— and a great handful— jumped in her seat and smiled cheerfully.
Her brown curls were a mess around her pale temples but in a sort of endearing way that only a young girl could manage to pull off. "Only the most thrilling thing to happen to us all year! Oh, you must tell her, Jane, for I am too out of breath!"
Elodie looked to Jane, hoping she could provide some much-needed clarification.
Jane Bennet, the eldest and most beautiful of the six, giggled into the palm of her hand and gestured for her sister to sit beside her, Elodie obliging. "Mamma has just shared with us that a Mr. Bingley will be occupying Netherfield."
Elodie nodded her head with a pursed bottom lip, clearly picturing the infamously large estate. Although she had never seen it in person, many stories were told of its lush, green grasses and gardens. Not to mention the library was supposed to be one of the largest in the area.
Lydia scoffed and moved to squish in next to the two, grabbing Elodie's arm tightly and looking up at her with owl-like eyes. "He makes £5,000 a year! That'd be enough to buy me all the pretty ribbons and bonnets I want!"
Kitty nodded her head eagerly. "Not to mention, he is single." The four squealed together, Elodie laughing at the sight of them. They were so excited to meet this stranger, especially if one of them could have a chance at being his wife.
"Well let us hope he is to come to the assembly ball tomorrow night." Elodie replied with a quirk of her blonde brow. As if her words had triggered something within her siblings, they all collectively, and very slowly, panned their gaze to their father, who was comfortably tucked away in the corner of the room, his arms upon his belly as he watched his children bemusedly.
His blue and weathered eyes lifted at the silence that overtook the room. Elodie could just barely make out a look of mischief. The girls held their breath as Mr. Bennet chuckled. "I believe he will."
At his words of confirmation, the girls sprang up and cheered, pulling at each other in excitement. Mary groaned and pushed away from her sisters, heading upstairs to her room.
Mrs. Bennet cried out in relief. "Well if I am to capture this Mr. Bingley's attention, I require that wonderful yellow muslin of yours, my dear Jane." Jane nodded her head and Elodie wrapped her in a tight hug.
Finally, she would be able to wear that dress!
_________
THE assembly ball the next night—which was held by Sir William and Lady Lucas in Meryton, and which Elodie would've thought to be quite average— was actually alight with enthusiasm, a jovial melody playing and people dancing avidly in the middle of the ballroom.
No doubt the gleeful nature of the room that night was because of the expected arrival of a certain wealthy man.
The Bennet's filed out of their best carriage and stepped into the building, splitting from each other almost instantly; Lydia and Kitty heading towards the ballroom to wait for the next dance, Mary following Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, and Elodie, Jane, and Elizabeth immediately wandering off to find Charlotte Lucas.
Charlotte Lucas, a kind-hearted and loyal woman nearing her thirties, had been their good friend for many years despite being much older than them. "There you all are! I was beginning to think you wouldn't show!" She said as she tucked a strand of mousy-brown hair behind her ear.
Elodie, with a quick roll of her eyes, plopped down on the bench next to her, her sisters following suit. "You know we can't keep Lydia and mamma away from a ball. And if Lydia wishes to go, so does Kitty." Elizabeth and Jane nodded their heads in agreement.
"She always follows Lydia around."
"You know," Elizabeth began as a man passed by, eyeing Jane with a red tint to his cheeks, "If every man in the room does not end the evening hopelessly in love with you, then I'm no judge of beauty."
Elodie laughed as their eldest sister hung her head in embarrassment. "Or men." She jested, scrunching her nose up playfully at Lizzie. Jane lifted her head again and scanned the crowd, glancing at the men's faces. "One of these days, you two will find someone that catches your eye, and then you'll have to watch your tongues!"
Elodie and Elizabeth looked at each other before bursting out into laughter and shaking their heads. "I think you indulge yourself in fantasies of the most unlikely kind, dearest sister." Elodie remarked through the noise, though her gaze began to scrutinize the faces of the young men that resided in the room.
Nobody seemed to stand out to her all that much for she had already been introduced to many men here previously. There would be no man in a dark coat and dark, curly hair to sweep her off her feet tonight.
Inwardly, she felt a slight bout of dissatisfaction but she let her brilliant smile linger on her face a few seconds more.
Before long, the musicians had ceased in their playing and the dancers parted from their partners. The three Bennet sisters as well as Charlotte Lucas stood up in confusion and followed where everyone else was looking to see two finely dressed men and one equally dressed woman standing by the door.
The jewels upon her thin neck and gloved fingers seemed to glitter beautifully under the lamplight, a stark reminder of the woman's great fortune.
The once lively and boisterous atmosphere became hesitant but curious, Elodie let a rack of shivers take over her spine at their sheer superiority that they readily displayed. "So which one is our Mr. Bingley?" She asked Charlotte, looking at the gentlemen that seemed to glow amongst the rest.
"Well he's on the right, and on the left is his sister." Elodie agreed that Mr. Bingley was quite handsome, his light eyes and russet hair a beautiful contrast to his alabaster skin, but anyone would be that handsome if they made £5,000 a year.
Even if he dawned warts and wrinkles, Elodie would think there'd still be a line of women waiting for a chance to speak with him.
His sister was no less handsome, her soft waves spilling over her shoulders and her curled bangs framed her petite face nicely. "And the person with the quizzical brow?" Elizabeth asked, Elodie also curious to know who he was.
The man was far different from the other two, a more aloof and serious air looming over his figure and his noble features as well as a dashing face made him the black sheep within his party as he tugged awkwardly on his midnight blue coat. "That," Charlotte replied pointedly, catching her friend's eye, "Is his closest friend, Mr. Darcy."
Elodie found that she couldn't take her eyes off of him as the five made their way through the crowd, the bunch of partygoers separating like the Red Sea. "He's horribly tall. A few more inches and he'll break through the ceiling."
"He looks miserable, poor soul." Lizzie and Charlotte snickered at the joke and Elodie noticed that Jane was still very fixated on Mr. Bingley.
"Miserable he may be but poor, he most certainly is not. £10,000 a year and he owns half of Derbyshire." Elodie's eyes almost bulged out of her head when Charlotte revealed his income. What a fortune! He was far more well-off than Mr. Bingley. And to own half of Derbyshire as well! All laughter from the four ceased as the group walked by them, Elodie dipping into a curtsy and peering up to sneak another glance at Mr. Darcy.
To her surprise, he was also watching her but quickly turned away once they had made eye contact, his fingers balling into an awkward fist at his side.
"Did you just see that?" Charlotte shouted over the crowd as the music began to pick up again. Elodie touched her heated cheeks shyly and nudged her friend in the shoulder. "He looked directly at you! He stared into your very soul! It is only a matter of time before your mother makes wedding plans!"
Elodie shook her head as Elizabeth made sure that Jane smiled at Mr. Bingley, in hopes that she would capture his attention first. "Come on girls, let us introduce ourselves to Mr. Bingley and his friends!" Mrs. Bennet, having rushed over to them as soon as she possibly could, heaved Jane by her hand and started to steer them over to Mr. Bingley and his company.
"Oh, heavens." Elodie mumbled nervously as she looked above her, her hand clasping around Charlotte's to force the poor girl away with them as well. Sir William, Charlotte's father, smiled as his gaze laid upon his daughter, though it did not meet his eyes. It was known amongst the Bennet's and anyone with a passion for gossip that Charlotte Lucas was seen as a burden by her mother and father because she was twenty-seven and still unmarried. They were afraid she would end up a spinster.
"Mr. Bingley, you know my daughter Charlotte." Charlotte pressed her lips into a thin line and curtsied stiffly, her eyes keeping to the ground submissively. Mrs. Bennet almost snarled like a stray dog at the amount of attention she was getting as opposed to her precious Jane.
"This is Mrs. Bennet, Miss Jane Bennet, Miss Elizabeth Bennet, Miss Mary Bennet, and Miss Elodie Bennet." Elodie always thought that her mother had one too many children (however much she loved all her sisters) and hearing how long their introductions were had given her a rather strong headache.
"I have two others, but they're dancing." Elodie followed her mother's index finger and indeed Kitty and Lydia were prancing about with each other and laughing loudly as they dipped underneath a pair of arms.
"I am delighted to make your acquaintance." Mr. Bingley said in a rather friendly manner. In fact, everything about him seemed friendly and consistent to Elodie, much unlike his friend and sister beside him who stared brazenly.
Sir William glanced at the man before he redirected his attention to Mr. Darcy. "And may I introduce Mr. Darcy of Pemberley in Derbyshire." Elodie gave a small curtsy and pushed back a loose, golden curl that had slipped from her bun. Elizabeth exchanged an inconspicuous glance with her when Mr. Darcy gave nothing but a tight nod of his head to acknowledge their presence.
Nothing more was said afterward and the air was left stale. If not for the music that played in the background, Elodie feared she would doze off and let out a snore.
"Well," Mrs. Bennet said as the end of the song came to a close and the crowd began to clap, grabbing Mary and Mr. Bennet by the arms, "We shall speak later, surely!" She tossed a pointed and rather obvious look in Jane's direction, the poor woman hiding behind Lizzie with a grimace.
Charlotte also left the conversation as she trailed behind her father, speaking in a hushed tone with him.
To avoid another awkward moment, Elodie decided to engage in small talk. Nothing could go wrong with that. Surely men of such stature could hold a pleasant conversation.
END OF CHAPTER I.
a.n.
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