Chapter 1: The Gift

Summary: Elizabeth receives a gift from her parents that will take her back to America and allow her to experience everything a well-to-do young lady should.

"Lizzie, Lizzie!" a small girl cried, as she tore through the dormitory's common room toward an older girl who sat near the fire reading a book.

"Hush, Anna! Have they taught you nothing here the past year? We use quiet voices when we are inside. I won't be around much longer to remind you that," Elizabeth Westbury said to the younger girl. Though her voice was stern, she had a smile on her face. Though Anna was just finishing her first year at the Hampton Finishing School, she sometimes had difficulty remembering how to act like a proper young lady. Elizabeth, on the other hand, was sixteen years old and had just completed her final year at the school. She knew she would soon be leaving to go back to America, where her parents lived.

Anna scrunched her nose at Elizabeth. "I'm sorry, Lizzie. But Headmistress Collingsworth is looking for you. She said something about a letter for you."

At these words, Elizabeth's eyes lit up. She had been waiting for a letter from her parents and she couldn't wait to hear from them.

"Would you like to walk with me, Anna? To find Headmistress?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yes!" Anna replied happily, and the two left the common room to find their headmistress.

They had barely walked out of the door when Elizabeth saw a rather tall, stout woman approaching them. She had a broad smile across her face and was indeed holding what looked to be a letter.

"Miss Westbury," Headmistress Collingsworth said. "I believe it's from your parents."

Elizabeth took the letter and ripped it open, a large smile on her face.

Dearest Elizabeth,

We write to you with the deepest and most sincere pride for you. You have become a lovely young lady and are proud of you in so many ways. In honor of your completion of finishing school, we have purchased you a first-class ticket back to America on the Titanic, which we trust you have heard about. You need not fret about traveling alone; we have found you a gentleman companion to accompany you on your journey. His name is Brently Carrington, whose father is a very close acquaintance with your own. Upon your return we will celebrate with your cotillion. We have arranged for you to meet Brently on the sixth of April. He will be arriving at the Hampton School at noon precisely. Enclosed in this letter is your ticket, along with a good deal of money (to buy yourself some new dresses). Your ticket will tell you everything you need to know about your boarding time and accommodations. You and Mr. Carrington will leave London on the ninth for Southampton and spend the night at the South Western Hotel. Give your father's name for your room. We cannot express how proud of you we are, and cannot wait until you are home finally.

With all our love,

Mother and Father

Sure enough, a ticket was still inside the envelope. Elizabeth took it out and read across the top White Star Line, and below that, Titanic, First Class. She would be sailing home on the Titanic. The grandest ship ever built. Talk had been flying around London about this ship since at least December, even before then. Everyone knew of Titanic, and she would be going home on her.

"Elizabeth, you look faint," Headmistress Collingsworth said, tilting her head to the side.

"I—I'm fine. I'm going home!" Elizabeth said, her voice distant. "On the Titanic!"

Headmistress Collingsworth beamed even more widely at her. "That's wonderful, Elizabeth! What else did the letter say?"

"Well," Elizabeth started, feeling a little dizzy from surprise, "I'll be accompanied by a gentleman companion; the son of a friend of my father's. He's here in London, I take it, and I'll be meeting with him on Saturday, the sixth. I'll have to go into town to be fitted for new dresses, tomorrow I think. I can't believe it, this is so wonderful!"

Headmistress Collingsworth hugged Elizabeth tightly, and then Elizabeth made her way back to the common room. Her head was spinning. She was going home on the Titanic. She would be sailing first class. It wasn't that she wasn't accustomed to sailing first class; in fact, she had never sailed on anything but, but this time she would be alone, a real lady, a real woman.

Elizabeth came from a very wealthy family. She spent her childhood in Boston, in a very large house with very large grounds. When she was eight years old, her parents sent her to the Hampton Finishing School for Girls, the school her mother had attended. It was the most prestigious in London, maybe even in the world. So for the past eight years she had spent her life learning both manners and arithmetic with other well-to-do girls.

Now that Elizabeth had finished school, she would go back to America where she had a cotillion (and probably a future husband) waiting for her at home. She was very excited for her cotillion. She had attended quite a few in the past few years, for girls who had left school and lived here in London. She couldn't wait to be introduced to Boston as a woman.

Elizabeth was, however, rather nervous about finding a husband. She knew that she was expected to find some possible matches at her cotillion, and this frightened her a bit. How was she supposed to find someone to spend the rest of her life with in one night? That was, unless her parents had found someone already, which was also a very big possibility. Part of being a social elite meant that her parents had connections everywhere, and the chances that they already had a young man lined up for her when she arrived home were quite big.

The morning after Elizabeth received her letter, she awoke with a start. She had much to do that day. She would need to go into town to get new dresses tailored for her journey, and that was bound to take all afternoon. She got out of bed and left her dormitory quietly, for many of the other girls were still sleeping. She bathed and dressed in a long, pale blue silk dress. When she looked in the mirror, she saw a girl with long, golden blonde hair and pale skin looking back at her. She twisted her hair into an elegant coil in the back of her head and secured it with several decorative pins.

Elizabeth left the dormitory and proceeded to the common room, which was somewhat filled with girls. Almost immediately after she entered the room, many of them looked to her and the questions flowed.

"We heard you're to go back to America on the Titanic!"

"And be accompanied by a gentleman!"

"Is it true?"

Elizabeth smiled. "It is! I'm going into London today for new dresses."

"And when will you meet your companion?" another girl asked.

"He's to arrive here in three days, on Saturday. Then we leave for Southampton on the ninth, and board the ship on the tenth."

"This is so exciting!"

"I know," Elizabeth said. "I still can't believe it!"

Elizabeth left the common room and proceeded to the main entrance of the school. There, she met Headmistress Collingsworth.

"I'm going into town for my dresses," Elizabeth explained.

"Do be careful," the headmistress said, and Elizabeth went on her way.

Elizabeth knew her way around London well and knew the shops even better. She knew exactly where to go for the most beautiful dresses and gowns, and she did just that. By the end of her trip, she had purchased eight new ensembles, all to be ready by the seventh of April. Being fitted for her dresses just made Elizabeth even more excited for her coming voyage.

On her way home, Elizabeth passed a child on the street. The poor child was dressed in rags and looked to be starving. Elizabeth gave the child a few pence and directed him to buy himself a good meal. After the encounter, Elizabeth felt very good. If there was anything she prided herself upon, it was her lack of self-importance. Her parents might scoff at those less fortunate than they, but Elizabeth felt that everyone was the same, whether they held a first class ticket or a third class.

The next few days seemed to fly by. Before she knew it, it was already Saturday, the day she would be meeting her companion, Brently. Elizabeth dressed in a simple but elegant green frock and waited rather impatiently for his arrival. When she finally heard the bell ring at the front door, she ran downstairs before Headmistress Collingsworth could even call her. When she got down to the first floor, a tall gentleman was standing by the door waiting for her.

"Brently Carrington, I presume," Elizabeth asked, approaching the man and smiling. He did not return the smile, instead nodding slightly and holding out his hand. She shook it tentatively.

Brently was tall and had dark brown hair, with striking blue eyes. He was very handsome, and this made Elizabeth even more taken aback.

"I'll be escorting you to lunch," Brently said curtly, and reached for the door, where a cab was already waiting for them on the street.

The cab ride was very awkward and Elizabeth wasn't sure she liked Brently very much. He seemed rather cold and distant, and was, it seemed, the epitome of snobbery. His self-righteousness practically leaked from his body, and Elizabeth could tell that he thought himself a very important man who obviously had much more important things to do than accompany a girl to lunch.

When the cab arrived at the hotel they were dining at, Brently got out of the cab first and opened the door for Elizabeth. Despite his arrogance, he was gentlemanly in manner. He took her arm as they walked to the hotel and led her through the doors as the doormen opened them for the two. He didn't say anything more, though, until they were already seated.

"You are sixteen, correct?" he asked, as they sipped tea and waited for their croissants.

"I am," Elizabeth said, her own shield of iciness being bared.

"You have quite the face for a woman so young," he said. This caught Elizabeth off guard. She didn't know whether to be offended or take it as a compliment, so she decided to ignore the comment.

"And you?" Elizabeth asked him. "What is your age?"

"Nineteen," Brently responded, and again, Elizabeth was surprised. He acted much older than his age.

"And what brings you to England?" Elizabeth continued the conversation.

"I've just finished my first year at Oxford," Brently said, and Elizabeth nodded. She knew he meant Oxford University.

"I see." Elizabeth paused, trying to think of something else to say so as to get rid of the awkward silences that circled them like vultures. "I'm aware that our fathers are acquaintances."

"They are. Your father is a great man in my household. My father looks up to him immensely," Brently replied.

"What is it that your father does?" Elizabeth asked.

"He is a banker, the head of the Bank of Boston, the position I hope to hold one day," he said proudly.

Brently's arrogance irked Elizabeth. Once their food had arrived, they sat in even more silence. The cab back to the school was also quiet. Brently, acting the gentleman, accompanied Elizabeth to the door and dutifully kissed her hand before he departed.

"It was an honor," he said, with a haughty smile.

"Indeed," Elizabeth returned, smiling curtly.

"In three days time, then," Brently said, and left the doorstep for the cab.

As Elizabeth turned to go back inside, she grimaced. She didn't know if she would be able to stand voyaging with this man. She wasn't going to let his pride ruin her journey.

A/N: Please review and let me know what you thought! I love hearing from you!