Trivial

Settling the Argument

Penelope and Agatha made their way out of the kitchen to a swarm of Bridgertons gathering about a coffee table, continuing a version of Colin and Eloise's heated argument. Penelope rolled her eyes and sat next to Colin, pouring herself tea. It wasn't lemonade, but it would have to do.

"I am certain that I know my wife better than you, El. After all, we do share a bed."

"Colin!" Violet and Penelope shouted in unison, shooting equally terrifying looks of disapproval, albeit Penelope's face a little redder.

"While I find that disgusting, I am sure it is no match for the years-long sisterly bond I share with Pen. I am certain I know her better than you," Eloise bit back.

Felicity butt in, "Ahem, I am her actual sister, her favorite at that."

"Felicity!" Penelope shot her a softer, disapproving look.

"You're not denying it," Felicity smirked. Penelope went silent, avoidantly sipping her tea. "Pen and I share blood. I believe that earns me the right to know her best."

"Oh please, our children will one day share her blood as well. Marriage is the most intimate form of connection with a person." Colin squeezed Penelope's hand, emitting a mixed reaction of ews and awes. She and Colin had not yet discussed the possibility of children in their future, and he was blurting it to the entire party. Well, not the whole party, but still. Colin noticed the blush in her cheeks and leaned over to plant a passionate kiss on her lips to prove his point which emitted the same mixed reactions from before.

Agatha sat beside Anthony and Kate, who had been quietly observing the conversation with similar looks of amusement. Agatha whispered to them to fill her in on the topic. "It seems my dear siblings and Felicity are in a rather entertaining debate about who knows Penelope best."

"I believe I may have a chance in that debate." Agatha bragged.

"How so?" Anthony and Kate mused in unison. They seemed to do everything in unison since their coming together, like Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum.

"I have watched Penelope grow up from a child and blossom from a sweet wallflower into the beautiful rose she is today. As her mentor and friend, I know dear Penelope as well as any of my children." Agatha smiled curtly at Penelope, which warmed her heart. When Penelope needed them, Agatha and Violet acted as her second mothers. And when Portia was acting particularly cruel, her first mothers too, though she'd never admit it.

"Though I think an argument over Penny of all people is trivial, I am her mother. Carrying her for nine months helped me learn her better than anyone," Portia scoffed.

"My wife is anything but trivial," Colin barked at his mother-in-law. He despised the way she and her eldest daughters treated Penelope, but besides that, the two of them never seemed to get along.

Eloise perked up. "Now hold on, a trivia may just be the way to settle this debate."

"What can you mean?" Francesca asked, staring up from her phone for a moment, only slightly intrigued.

"A Penelope Trivia! It's the perfect way to settle this argument!" Felicity exclaimed, rising from her seat. "We write a list of questions about Penelope, and whoever gets the most correct wins!"

"That would be me," A cocky grin spread across Colin's face.

"Awfully full of yourself for someone who didn't even know his wife was Lady Whistledown," Eloise mumbled.

"No one did!" Colin cried defensively.

"I did," Agatha laughed heartily, thumping her cane on the ground. "As I know everything about dear Pen. I am sure to win."

Penelope shifted uncomfortably in her seat, finally objecting to this ridiculous game. "Do I not get a say in any of this?"

"Of course, you will be the judge!" Hyacinth declared, handing out pieces of paper and pencils. "How many of you want to play?" Everyone in the room eagerly raised their hands, excluding the eldest Featherington sisters and their mother, who stared with their mouths open.

"I suppose if we are making bets, it could make this game more interesting."

"Mum!" Penelope was shocked by her mother's response, considering their family's grim gambling history. "Have you learned nothing from Dad's death?"

"Relax, Penny. Let your mother earn some easy money for Felicity's wedding."

"We'll see about that, Portia," Violet smirked, proving how similar she could be to her children, which shocked Penelope even more.

"Very well. Let us all bet...twenty pounds each. Those stakes can't be too high for any of us." Colin pulled a bill out of his wallet and placed it at the center of the coffee table while the others quickly followed suit.

"This is ridiculous! Frannie, even you? Your brothers and sisters have dragged you into this madness?" Penelope grew concerned and even more uncomfortable as Francesca nodded happily. Penelope sighed and leaned back into her seat, giving up.

"Have faith in me, love. I'm going to win." Colin planted another passionate kiss on his wife's lips. "Relax a little. Today is your day."

"What are you whispering to her? Are you cheating, Colin?!" Gregory pointed accusingly, and Penelope couldn't help but laugh.

"I don't need to cheat to win. As I said, a husband knows his wife best."

"Said the loser." Kate and Anthony teased in unison.

"You know I love you, Kathani, but you are going down."

"Once again, you underestimate your wife." Kate playfully shoved her husband as he held his hand to his chest, pretending to be offended.

Felicity ordered Phillipa and Prudence, "Since you two choose not to play, you will write the questions. You can do that, can't you?"

"Of course, we can. How dare you question your big sisters," Prudence said.

"Yeah, we'll write your stupid trivia questions," Phillipa echoed. Felicity stuck her tongue out at her sisters.

"Make sure to do a mix of easy and hard. We'll make the questions more difficult as we go. Whoever lasts the longest gets the pot." Eloise listed the rules carefully for everyone.

"Okay, first question. This one should be easy. Penelope, close your eyes. What color are Pen's eyes?" Everyone scoffed and quickly scribbled on their pieces of paper. Each wrote a version of the word blue, some specifying the particular shade. Colin wrote the words 'the color of heaven (blue),' making Penelope blush profusely.

After the third round, Penelope was warming up to the game and began to enjoy herself. She even found herself laughing along when someone answered incorrectly. Portia was out after the second question, which was about Penelope's favorite color. Portia answered yellow, when in fact, that was her daughter's least favorite color after being forced to wear it at parties her entire childhood. Colin wrote, 'green, the color of my eyes.' He wasn't wrong.