Whilst Darcy had been engaged with the Comte, Elizabeth and Georgiana were noticed first by a group of older, comfortably plump, and exquisitely dressed gentlewomen who commanded the sofa. This group were far more welcoming of two handsome English ladies than the carefully posed mademoiselles, standing in exclusive arrangements about the edges of the room, their postures of studied indifference conveyed through the languid movement of their fans, and eyeing the Darcy ladies with thinly-veiled disapproval. Guiding Mrs. and Miss Darcy onto the largest sofa and motioning a footman for refreshment, the older ladies wasted no time in establishing the two ladies’ identities and their histories. Shewing the best breeding of the group, the ranking lady rose and introduced herself as the dowager Comtesse d’Estrouville. She was a woman about the age of Elizabeth’s father, and wore a simple cap of exquisite Brussels lace, a plain gown of dark lavender silk, and an impossibly delicate Kashimir shawl of an identical colour. She was yet a very fine woman, exceedingly handsome, and her features were rendered even more so by her warm, easy smile.

Upon learning that Georgiana was unmarried, the ladies fell into raptures, and any with sons were soon gesturing at the young men in the mirrored corners of the room to hasten thither to pay their compliments to Miss Darcy. Georgiana found herself in the midst of a sea of gallants, each eager to ascertain her tastes in reading, walking, music, and dancing, with many hints from their mothers, all of whom seemed to possess a remarkable ability for accurately attending two, or even three, conversations at once. Elizabeth noticed that Georgiana’s blushes were progressively deeper shades of rose.

Georgiana was beginning to feel that she had quite enough of this particular exercise for one evening, and was saved from further exposure by Mr. Darcy’s arrival to claim the ladies and perform the promised introductions. Elizabeth gracefully did the honours of presenting her husband to M. la Comtesse and her friends, and—at the same time—adroitly pulled Georgiana close between herself and Mr. Darcy; Georgiana’s removal from the circle of gentlemen had the immediate effect of returning all of the young men to their previous occupation in the corners with the looking-glasses, whilst giving Georgiana a few moments’ respite to regain her breath and her composure. This relative peace lasted only some few minutes when the Comte reappeared to claim an introduction to Mrs. and Miss Darcy, following the conclusion of which he then begged leave of his mother to introduce Mr. Darcy and the ladies.