Nanny Diaries 3 - Pride and Prejudice

Smooth Operator

"Hold your head high...and be proud of who, and what, you are, Daphne." Catriona Hughes instructed, taking my arm as we approached the church, as if she could read my mind, doing me the honour of walking by her side. She was right, of course. I was nervous, making my third attempt at maidenhood, and assuming that so many people would be talking about me. My part in Miss Danvers' dismissal was probably not public knowledge, but I felt as if people, some of them quite influential people, within the community, would think that my return to adulthood was premature, and perhaps unwise. Including my parents, I suspected, and I could see Mummy and Daddy standing in the usual gaggle of people, chatting to friends before going inside to take their seats. "You are remarkable...and unlike most of the rather small-minded people you fear might disapprove of you somehow, you are here through choice...and you are my honorary granddaughter...if I approve of you...and I most certainly do...no one will say anything to the contrary...no one will dare!"

I nodded, and smiled tensely around my pacifier, totally in awe of her. I had not known her for twenty-four hours at that stage, but her effect on my life, and my demeanour, had already been quite extraordinary. She was undoubtedly a terror if you found herself on her wrong side for any reason, which had already been proved by her treatment of Auntie Susannah and both of her sons over dinner, but she was being so nice to me, and to Mama. Obviously, Catriona had taken over the entire household, with the help of the inestimable Miss Knight, and she had given all of the grown-ups a piece of her mind, including her husband, but she clearly believed that Helen Hughes deserved her support, whilst I seemed to be her pet project. She was strict with me, and with Mama, but not unreasonably so, and she held herself to the same standards that she expected us to exceed, as evidenced by taking her own pacifier the evening before. It was simply amazing to be in her presence, and her words gave me some confidence, even when my mother approached us.

"Mrs Hughes...good morning to you...I am Elizabeth Scott, Daphne's mother." Mum said with a smile, politely introducing herself, and holding out her hand to shake.

"Good morning...Mrs Scott...I am so very pleased to meet you," Catriona replied, accepting mum's hand, and guiding me around to face her. It was a fine September morning but we were both wearing cloaks over our matins gowns, plus bonnets and gloves. Mum was wearing a nice enough gown, but nothing like ours. "You must be so proud of your daughter...I do think she is a credit to you...and to this special place...exactly the sort of girl we want to attract to both the church and the community...don't you think so?"

"Oh, yes...Barry and I are very...proud...of Daphne...but we thought it had been decided to leave her in the nursery for a few more weeks..."

"For what purpose? Daphne is obviously inexperienced, because she was raised outside of the doctrine, of course...but she will not gain that necessary experience in any nursery or at school." Catriona insisted, gripping my arm like a vice. "I am afraid that you have been rather ill-advised, Mrs Scott...which is not at all surprising to me, considering your own inexperience of our ways. As I told my son and his lovely wife, just last night, converts like Daphne are gifts from God...and we must all nurture their good intentions and help them embrace the doctrine out of love. She will learn so much more from spending a little time each day with me than she would learn at Deepdene...and her sisters need her to help them grow. My granddaughters are beautifully transformed, and a lot of that progress is down to the love and attentive care Daphne has lavished on them...initially as a nanny but most profoundly as their sister. Helen and I want Daphne to be at the very heart of our family...and I have decided to adopt her as my protégé so that I can help her help us. We hope you will be a regular visitor, so that you can see her blossom and give this community a blast of fresh air...God only knows that we need some new blood in this insular, small-minded village!"