"… and Mrs Pearce?" came the tired, muffled voice of Higgins from the other side of the bedroom door, "Try to break it to the girl gently, won't you?" With both hands occupied by the breakfast tray, Mrs Pearce was in no position to open the door to respond to him. Mr Jeeves the butler passed and gave her a knowing glance. She raised her eyebrows dubiously with a slight shrug. It was an unconventional request on all accounts, but then Higgins was not a conventional sort of man. Upon his return he had seemed out of sorts, and she had seen him in better states at that time in the morning. As for Eliza, she spoke barely a word, and she looked deathly pale. Mrs Pearce suspected that the excitement of the day had taken its toll on the girl, but she knew how thoughtless Professor Higgins could be, and it took so little to bruise Eliza's pride. She wished he would make a more personal gesture; the girl had such sentimental ideas, and she feared that the entire experience would be quite a disappointment, if not an outrage.

Mrs Pearce nudged the tray against the door. "Your tea, Eliza. May I come in?"

"Yes. Good morning, Mrs Pearce." Mrs Pearce set the tray down on the bedside dresser. Eliza yawned noisily. "Ugh… I have such a frightful headache. It must've been the port." She sat up.

"Was Professor Higgins unpleasant to you yesterday evening?" asked Mrs Pearce sternly.

"He was, yes… he acted everso strangely. But I think it had something to do with Freddie. He was making advances, and I suppose –" as Eliza took the handle of the teacup in her fingers, something metal clinked against the saucer. She looked down and her eyes widened. A confounded look came across her face.

"Professor Higgins requested that I deliver this to you. I tried to insist that he present it to you himself, but as you say, he has been acting in a terribly peculiar manner ever since he arrived." As Eliza beheld the diamond ring the corners of her mouth slowly rose into a smile that she seemed to be unsuccessfully struggling to conceal in the manner of one who tries, fruitlessly, not to laugh at a bad joke.

"No Mrs Pearce, there's no need… I understand now." Eliza examined the ring closely, then with a shrug and a chortle, slipped it onto the middle finger of her left hand, pulled back the bedcovers and got out of bed with a stretch to start the new day.