Pride and Prejudice After the Wedding

Chapter III

Truly shocked and bewildered upon recieving a letter from Lady Catherine de Bourgh, of all people, who had not bothered to even attend her own beloved nephew's wedding, send his new wife a letter, was beyond any virtous theory I could sketch in my mind and childishly, chose to ignore the letter for a brief period of time. I chose to take refuge in the library and read a thrilling novel. However, despite it's amusing plot and character's, I found myself unable to concentrate and surrendered myself to opening the letter Lady Catherine so greatly condescended, to send.

Dear Miss Elizabeth Bennet

It must occur to you the peculiar manner of me condescending to send a letter to the creature who used sinful arts of allurment and seduction upon my nephew whom was already engaged to my own daughter, do not think me forgiving of such trecherous acts! However, I write in regards to a manner of the present that must be addressed as Darcy's aunt. How perposterous and false your position as mistress of Pemberly may be, it is still important for me to see Pemberly have an heir. I am very modest and have not an ounce of pride, God himself would be able to detect no such sin from myself! I have been informed that your sister, Jane Bingley, who herself has been so advantagously married, is indeed pregnant with an heir to Bingley's fortune and estate of Battlewood Park, however you and your sister, who were married at the very same time, I hear no such news regarding you. So heed this warning, you have managed to disgrace the name of Pemberly already, do not disgrace and tarnish it further by not providing an heir! I am not used to such frank words as these, but now I must use them! If you are not doing the act of a wife enough to induce my nephew to produce an heir, then you will not only doom Pemberly to die, you also will doom Darcy-- the one you claim to love, to a reputation of scandal and incompetence! I know my nephew to be an honourable, intelligent man, full of talent and promise, but if others realize he was induced to forget it due to a peasants art of seduction and allurment into a match that would ruin him, people would view him a fool, and a sinful man who only wanted a bride for fornication without the intentions of bearing children in the name of God! Vexxing this news was to hear, that your sister who despite being no match worth an aqautince of Darcy's, at least had the sense to procure children and you had not, only confirms my ill opinion of you being a head strong and obstant girl not worthy of being mistress of Pemberly! However, I will allow you the chance to remedy a portion of the damage already done. It is only somebody as virtous as me who can beg God to be proven wrong. I expect you to keep this letter from my nephew as due to the spell you casted upon him, his judgement has been comprimised and he may jeoprodize his relationship with his own family, and a most important ally to maintain with the British Court. I wish your family and you no well regards or wishes, merely you seek out God in the act you were placed on this Earth to do and provide a male heir.

Lady Catherine de Bourgh

What a prideful, persumptious, cruel, old witch! First she insults my legitimacy as mistress to Pemberly my addressing the letter to 'Miss Bennet', then she attacks my intentions, my character, my family, my love for my husband, only stopping to compliment herself for her ever so accomplished virtue, and claim I am worthless just because I have not fallen pregnant yet or produced an heir, when only married for seven months! How wicked, holding me to standards no woman, even her, can follow then attacking me so abomdiablly, without the courage to come to Pemberly to say it herself! Furthermore she asks me to lie to Darcy, and blackmails me to keep the secret by threatening trouble in the court--in the 'name of honour' as if deceit is not a sin! As if the snake did not lie to Eve! Yes what a truly humble and honourable woman, indeed! So vexxed I toss the letter into the drawer of the writing desk, and slam it shut and walk away. As if she has the right to request something of me, let alone something that is indeed none of her business at all! My marriage is mine and my husband's business and nobody else's!