Gay Pride and Prejudice (50 page)
Read Gay Pride and Prejudice Online
Authors: Kate Christie
Kitty, to her very material advantage, spent the chief of her time with her eldest sister. In society so superior to what she had generally known, her improvement was great. She was not of so ungovernable a temper as Lydia; and, removed from the influence of Lydia’s example, she became, by proper attention and management, less irritable, less ignorant, and less insipid. From the further disadvantage of Lydia’s society she was of course carefully kept, and though Mrs. Wickham frequently invited her to come and stay with her, with the promise of balls and young men, her father would never consent to her going.
Mary was the only daughter who remained at home; and she was necessarily drawn from the pursuit of accomplishments by Mrs. Bennet’s being quite unable to sit alone. Mary was obliged to mix more with the world, but she could still moralize over every morning visit; and as she was no longer mortified by comparisons between her sisters’ beauty and her own, it was suspected by her father that she submitted to the change without much reluctance.
As for Wickham and Lydia, their characters suffered no revolution from the marriage of her sisters. He bore with philosophy the conviction that Elizabeth must now become acquainted with whatever of his ingratitude and falsehood had before been unknown to her; and in spite of everything, was not wholly without hope that Darcy might yet be prevailed on to make his fortune. The congratulatory letter which Elizabeth received from Lydia on her marriage, explained to her that, by his wife at least, if not by himself, such a hope was cherished. The letter was to this effect:
“MY DEAR LIZZY,
“I wish you joy. If you love Mr. Darcy half as well as I do my dear Wickham, you must be very happy. It is a great comfort to have you so rich, and when you have nothing else to do, I hope you will think of us. I am sure Wickham would like a place at court very much, and I do not think we shall have quite money enough to live upon without some help. Any place would do, of about three or four hundred a year; but however, do not speak to Mr. Darcy about it, if you had rather not.
“Yours, etc.”
As it happened that Elizabeth had much rather not, she endeavoured in her answer to put an end to every entreaty and expectation of the kind. Such relief, however, as it was in her power to afford, by the practice of what might be called economy in her own private expenses, she frequently sent them. It had always been evident to her that such an income as theirs, under the direction of two persons so extravagant in their wants, and heedless of the future, must be very insufficient to their support; and whenever they changed their quarters, either Jane or herself were sure of being applied to for some little assistance towards discharging their bills. Their manner of living, even when the restoration of peace dismissed them to a home, was unsettled in the extreme. They were always moving from place to place in quest of a cheap situation, and always spending more than they ought. His affection for her soon sunk into indifference; hers lasted a little longer; and in spite of her youth and her manners, she retained all the claims to reputation which her marriage had given her.
Though Darcy could never receive Wickham at Pemberley, yet, for Elizabeth’s sake, he assisted him further in his profession. Lydia was occasionally a visitor there, when Darcy and Rémy were gone to enjoy themselves in London or Bath, though Lydia never stayed long due to Elizabeth’s reluctance to hide her relationship with Caroline; and with the Bingleys, Lydia and Wickham both frequently staid so long, that even Bingley’s good humour was overcome, and he proceeded so far as to talk of giving them a hint to be gone.
Mrs. Hurst was deeply mortified by Caroline’s decision to wed the penniless Rémy, and rightly suspicious of Darcy’s marriage to Elizabeth; but as she thought it advisable to regain the right of visiting at Pemberley, she dropt all her attempts at domination of her younger sister and apologised profusely for any past offence; professed more fondness than ever toward Darcy; and paid off every arrear of civility to Elizabeth.
Pemberley was now Georgiana’s home; and the affection of his sister for his wife and friends was exactly what Darcy had hoped to see. Georgiana had the highest opinion in the world of both Elizabeth and Caroline; though at first she often listened with an astonishment bordering on alarm at their lively, sportive manner of talking to her brother. He, who had always inspired in herself a respect which almost overcame her affection, she now saw the object of open pleasantry from the other inhabitants of the estate. Rémy treated her with kindness and warmth, and, a tutor in his former life, helped her with her studies. Overall it might be said that Georgiana’s mind received forms of knowledge which had never before fallen in her way.
Lady Catherine was extremely indignant on the marriage of her nephew; and as she gave way to all the genuine frankness of her character in her reply to the letter which announced its arrangement, she sent him language so very abusive, especially of Elizabeth, that for some time all intercourse was at an end. But at length, by Elizabeth’s persuasion and over Caroline’s objections, who had no interest in forgiving the “imperious old dragon,” Darcy was prevailed upon to overlook the offence and seek a reconciliation; and, after a little further resistance on the part of his aunt, her resentment gave way, either to her affection for him, or her curiosity to see how his wife conducted herself; and she condescended to wait on them at Pemberley, in spite of that pollution which its woods had received, not merely from the presence of such a mistress, but the prominent presence of Caroline and Rémy and the visits of Elizabeth’s relations.
With the Gardiners, the inhabitants of Pemberley were always on the most intimate terms. Darcy and Rémy genuinely enjoyed their company; and Caroline and Elizabeth were both ever sensible of the warmest gratitude towards the persons who, by bringing her into Derbyshire, had been the means of reuniting them.
END
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
K
ATE
C
HRISTIE WAS BORN
and raised in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She first became interested in gay and lesbian history while a student at Smith College in the early 1990s. After graduating with a degree in Women’s Studies, she went on eventually to earn a Master’s in English at Western Washington University. A long-time Jane Austen fan, she was fascinated and only a little bit nauseated by the release a few years ago of a variation on
P and P
featuring the living dead and ninja warriors. Soon after reading an article on the literary mashup phenomenon surrounding Austen and other classic authors and historic figures, Christie wondered, “If zombies and vampires, why not gays and lesbians?” Not that monsters and queers have anything in common, of course, other than a long history of being denigrated and feared by the general public—a reputation, Christie would argue, more deserved by the former group than the latter.
Currently, Christie lives near Seattle with her wife and daughter and their two dogs. While
Gay Pride and Prejudice
is her first work of literary mashup, she has had three previous novels published by Bella Books:
Solstice
,
Leaving L.A.
, and
Beautiful Game
. For book trailers, first chapters and more, visit
www.katejchristie.com
.
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