Edmund, William, and Fanny did, in their different ways, look and speak as much grateful pleasure in the promised ball as Sir Thomas could desire. Edmund’s feelings were for the other two. His father had never committed a kindness more to his satisfaction.

Lady Bertram was perfectly quiescent and contented, and had no objections to make, short of mumbling about cat, crocodile, and baboon figurines for background display. Sir Thomas insisted it would give her no trouble (and, by Heaven, no figurines necessary); and she assured him “that she was not at all afraid of the trouble; indeed, she could not imagine there would be any, and that fruits of the Nile as statuary would be lovely.”

Mrs. Norris was ready with her suggestions as to the rooms to be used, but found it all prearranged; and the day was settled too. Sir Thomas had been quite amusing himself with organizing the business. He read out-loud his list of the families to be invited, from whom he calculated to collect young people enough to form twelve or fourteen couple: and could detail the considerations which had induced him to fix on the 22nd as the most eligible day. William was required to be at Portsmouth on the 24th; the 22nd would therefore be the last day of his visit. Mrs. Norris was obliged to be satisfied with having been on the point of proposing the 22nd herself.

The ball was now a settled thing. Invitations were sent with despatch, and many a young lady went to bed that night with her head full of happy cares as well as Fanny. To her the cares were sometimes almost beyond the happiness. For, young and inexperienced, with small means of choice and no confidence in her own taste, the “how she should be dressed” was a point of painful solicitude. The solitary ornament in her possession, a very pretty amber cross which William had brought her from Sicily, was the greatest distress of all. She had nothing but a bit of ribbon to fasten it to. Would it be appropriate, considering all the rich ornaments the other young ladies would appear in? And yet not to wear it! William had wanted to buy her a gold chain too, but the purchase had been beyond his means, and therefore not to wear the cross might be mortifying him.

In addition, Fanny felt that the wearing of any cross would be a prudent thing, what with so many unnatural or cursed presences liable to attend the Mansfield Park assembly. These were anxious considerations; enough to sober her spirits even under the prospect of a ball given principally for her gratification.

The preparations meanwhile went on, and Lady Bertram continued to sit on her sofa sorting clay tablets, or attending to Lord Eastwind, without any inconvenience.