Page 1 of Attempted Compromises
Prologue
Longbourn, 1797
The nursery was filled with the sounds of laughter and mischief as little Elizabeth Bennet darted around the room, her hair flying in every direction. Her nurse, Mrs. McGinty, sighed in exasperation, clutching a tiny toothbrush and attempting, yet again, to call the lively six-year-old to order.
"Miss Elizabeth! You must come here at once!" Mrs. McGinty ordered, trying to hide her exhaustion behind a stern tone. Elizabeth only giggled, racing around the table as Mrs. McGinty tried in vain to catch her.
"No, I don’t want it! It tastes awful!” Elizabeth cried, her small face twisted in defiance. She held her hands over her mouth, shaking her head wildly as she continued to evade the nurse’s grasp.
Mrs. McGinty tried to reason with her, switching to a gentler tone. “But teeth must be cleaned every night, my dear. Otherwise, they’ll get all sorts of nasties inside them, and then you’ll have a dreadful ache.”
“No, they won’t!” Elizabeth replied, her voice muffled from behind her hands. “My teeth are strong as anything, and they don’t need to be cleaned!”
Mrs. McGinty closed her eyes and sighed, finally sitting down in defeat as Elizabeth darted into the corner with triumphant glee. “You are the most stubborn child I’ve ever known, Miss Elizabeth Bennet,” she muttered under her breath.
Two nights later, the house was quiet under a blanket of midnight darkness. All was still, save for the muffled sounds of sobbing coming from the little bed in the nursery.
Elizabeth whimpered as she clutched her aching jaw, tears streaming down her face. She buried her head in the pillow, but the pain only grew sharper, piercing her with every throb. Her mother’s gentle snores were coming from down the hall, and after what felt like an eternity, Elizabeth gave up on being brave and started wailing as loudly as her little lungs would allow.
Moments later, Mrs. Bennet rushed into the room, her nightcap askew and her face marked with sleep. She lit a candle and leaned over her daughter’s bed, frowning in a mixture of irritation and worry.
“Good heavens, child! What on earth is the matter?” she exclaimed, touching Elizabeth’s tear-streaked cheek.
“It hurts, Mama,” Elizabeth sobbed, pointing to the swollen side of her jaw. “It hurts so, so badly!”
“Oh, dear.” Mrs. Bennet sighed, her patience wearing thin. “I knew this would happen if you kept on refusing to let Nurse clean your teeth! Very well, I shall send for the apothecary.”
Within the hour, the apothecary, Mr. Jones, arrived, his face lined with both wisdom and weariness. Mr. Bennet— disturbed from his heavy slumber— ushered him into the nursery, where Elizabeth lay curled up next to her mother, still crying and clutching her cheek.
“Ah, Miss Elizabeth,” Mr. Jones said kindly, setting his bag on the table. “Let’s have a look at this troublesome tooth, shall we?”
Elizabeth, now exhausted and miserable, opened her mouth just enough for Mr. Jones to peer inside. He held the candle close and examined her little teeth with a practiced eye. After a moment, he nodded gravely and stepped back.
“Just as I thought,” he announced. “It’s a rotten tooth, caused by a lack of proper cleaning.” He glanced over at Mrs. McGinty, who stood with her head bowed, wringing her hands.
Mrs. Bennet sighed heavily, crossing her arms. “I warned her of this very thing,” she said, glancing at Mrs. McGinty. “How could you let it get to this point?”
Mrs. McGinty looked up, her face flushed. “Begging your pardon, ma’am, but Miss Elizabeth is… well, she’s a handful. She runs wild, and no amount of coaxing or reasoning can make her do what she doesn’t want to.”
Mr. Jones raised a hand, silencing the exchange. “It’s lucky this isn’t a permanent tooth, so we can pull it without much trouble.However,” he said, turning to Elizabeth, “it will hurt quite a bit, as it’s deep in the back and not loose at all.”
Elizabeth’s eyes widened in fear, and she whimpered, clutching her mother’s hand. Mrs. Bennet sighed and stroked her daughter’s hair.
“Mr. Jones, do you have something to ease her pain?” Mrs. Bennet asked. “Surely there’s something to make it more bearable.”
Mr. Jones nodded. “Laudanum, madam. It should help her relax enough to fall asleep, and then I can remove the tooth.”
He prepared a cup of weak tea and added a drop of laudanum, handing it to Mrs. Bennet. “Now, Miss Elizabeth,” he said, turning his attention to the little girl, “I want you to drink half of this. It’ll help you feel very sleepy.”
Elizabeth obediently took the cup, sipping the bitter mixture with a grimace. “It tastes terrible,” she mumbled, her face twisted in displeasure.
“Yes, yes,” her mother said, smoothing Elizabeth’s hair. “Just drink up, and soon you won’t feel the ache at all.”
After Elizabeth finished half the cup, they waited, watching as she lay back against her pillows. But as fifteen minutes passed, it was clear that the laudanum had done nothing to lull her into slumber. Instead, Elizabeth continued to squirm in discomfort, her eyes still wide open.
Mr. Jones frowned, glancing at his pocket watch. “That should have been more than enough to ease her into sleep,” hemurmured, shaking his head. “Well, best not to take chances. Miss Elizabeth, drink the rest of it, and then try to close your eyes.”
Obediently, Elizabeth drank the rest of the tea, pulling a face at the bitter taste. Another fifteen minutes passed, yet she was still wide awake, wriggling on the bed and clutching her cheek as she whimpered in pain.
