Love and Divide

A re-telling of

'Pride and Prejudice'

The point of view of Charles Bingley.

From the original novel by

Jane Austen

Chapter One - Meeting Darcy

I had always been fortunate. Or at least I thought I was until I met Darcy.

My Father was a tradesman who had made a substantial fortune and was well respected by many of the 'ton'. My sisters, Caroline and Louisa were respected in the first circle and greatly admired. I was left to run a household in a very sudden and vexing way. The death of my father, only five years after my Mother had passed, plunged me into the 'ton' with hardly any guidance. The summer after his passing, I decided to attend University at Cambridge, as the sudden amount of money I had just gained possession of was so very vast that it enabled me to go as soon as I was able with three servants. My sisters lived in more comfort than I had ever hoped for them and as they mixed with the 'ton', they began to dine with many wealthy and very charming men and women. One of these men was a Mr Hurst, lately acquired a vast some of money from his Father's death, and was fairly good looking.

I did not imagine that my sister Louisa had ever seen him as a prospective marriage partner, but I knew she was thinking of making an attachment. I had always wanted to fall in love with the person before I married them, and naturally assumed that my sisters would want to the same. However, I found this was not the case when Mr Hurst approached me for the hand of Louisa. At that moment I felt like a fool, as I had not noticed an attachment between the two. When I called for Louisa she openly declared that they did not love each other, but both felt marriage to be a good thing for them both. I would have been less surprised at her choice if Mr Hurst had been a handsome man.

He was fairly round in the face and stomach for his age, which I assumed from experience to be roughly nine and twenty, for after we had dined and had retired to play cards, he would soon fall asleep and drink excessively and he let slip all sorts of things I would have much rather not been told. Indeed, it seemed the only things I could praise him for was being a fan of whisky and being fairly wealthy. I found I might be able to tolerate him, but felt he was by no means a desirable person for anyone marry or indeed be much associated with at all. When I called Louisa to my study for the second time to tell her my opinion of the fellow, she demanded that she be married and would not, it seemed, be persuaded to see reason. I soon found how much the 'ton' had changed my sisters; they would place themselves so high above others forgetting how they had become so wealthy.

I left London a few weeks after Louisa's wedding, to go to Cambridge. I must admit, if I had never gone, my life would be completely different now. To open the year of studies, a dinner was held in the great dining hall at the centre of the University. By the time I had washed and changed into a clean set of clothes, I was a few minutes late. As I entered the dining hall I found that I had no problem in finding my seat. The other gentlemen starting in the same year as myself had just been shown to their seats. I could see my place clearly. I was placed between two men of similar age to myself that were dressed very finely. They seemed to know each other already, seeming very easy in conversation. As I took my place, I smiled apprehensively at the gentleman to my right. He smiled back, and as he did so, a glint appeared in his eyes. A man dressed in formal robes called for our attention from one end of the long table.

I glanced at some of the men around the table. Most of them looked very confident in situation and I had no doubt were very much involved in the first circle. I recognised the son of Lord Pembrooke who was dressed very finely and who had left for Cambridge with as much ceremony as possible. The man on my left noted the sigh I let out with a slight smirk. He finally spoke;

'George Pembrooke is the most desirable bachelor this season, so my sister tells me. I fear I may have almost been pushed off the list with the number of airs he gives himself.' He chuckled and the man on my right raised his eyebrows in surprise.

'Darcy?' He exclaimed. 'You are making some sort of conversation? To a stranger? Are you unwell?' The gentleman named Darcy answered only with a glare which it seemed was reserved only for the gentleman on my right. He rolled his eyes and addressed me:-

'I see from your name place card that you are Mr Charles Bingley. My name is Mr Fitzwilliam, the youngest son of Lord and Lady Matlock. This is my cousin, Mr Fitzwilliam Darcy, commonly referred to as William by close acquaintances.'

I raised my eyebrows slightly and turned to face Mr Darcy who looked kindly at me.

'Mr Darcy of Pemberley in Derbyshire? I am very pleased to make your acquaintance Sir.'

Both Darcy and Fitzwilliam had very large fortunes and both were very handsome. Darcy came across as more severe I thought, being less easy with strangers than his cousin. I would have been happy to see Caroline married to either of them, but I remembered with slight discomfort that I hardly knew her anymore. No indeed I decided, I would not want my sister to marry either of these fine gentlemen, they had qualities being amiable and very charming, that until recently I had found that my sisters no longer possessed any of the for mentioned desirable qualities key of interesting and enjoyable conversation. Throughout dinner, Mr Darcy and I got on very well and Fitzwilliam (whom I liked very much) enjoyed teasing Darcy by bringing up some particularly memorable events that he and Darcy had partaken in as young boys.

We parted after dinner, promising to meet the following the following day. Whilst walking back to my chambers, I replayed the events of the day in my head. Darcy was tall, dark and handsome, but somewhat reserved and could often appear unfriendly, which puzzled me greatly. Fitzwilliam was very similar to Darcy, but had none of his cousins reserved nature.

I woke up and had the maid send a message to my sisters informing them that I had arrived safely. I gathered my books and took my ink and stationary, not knowing what to expect. As I made my way along the corridor I almost collided with another gentleman who appeared lost in thought. I knew exactly who it was and I saw recognition dawn on his face.

'Darcy!' I exclaimed, 'I thought your rooms were on the other side of the college!'

He smiled and was about to reply when he was interrupted.

'Bingley! We have found you.' Fitzwilliam exclaimed. I raised my eyebrows.

'You were looking for me Sir?' I asked, feeling honoured. Darcy spoke before his cousin could say anything and be interrupted for a second time.

'Fitzwilliam and I were looking for you Bingley. We thought you might want to find our first lecture.'

A mischievous glint appeared in Fitzwilliam's eye.

'Darcy had no wish to arrive late after we had breakfasted. He would not want to arrive late, especially on his own.' He chuckled, Darcy shooting him a glare.