The Cherokee Indian was perplexed that one of the young women he encountered in Childersburg, had not shown any of the usual fear that people often resorted to when confronted or surprised by him. He wondered where the blue-eyed and blonde haired young woman had come from and he secretly began to hope that he somehow one day would get a chance to encounter her again. It was the first time Unaduti had come face to face with a person with blonde hair and blue eyes. She had not responded with fear, instead, she had been courteous towards him some would even call it kind. His skin still remembered the feeling of the young lady's skin on the palm of his fingers. The disguised Cherokee Indian coincidentally recieved word that his best friend would be staying in Alabama and if he was going to the state of Oklahoma he could also attempt to get inside the state of Alabama, but only if he wasn't wearing his usual traditional clothing attire. If he was searched he could not risk any soldier finding his Day Pass slip on his person...


"Dear brother,

I never imagined a US election would turn friends and even brothers into bitter enemies. As you still are my brother, in name only I feel it is my duty to convey to you that I intend to answer President Lincoln's call for volunteers. The state of Maine is expected to contribute with one regiment. You probably realize I cast my vote for Republicans candidate, I know both you and father are to the Constitutional Union. Do as you please if you want to inform Father, but please spare Mother's feelings.

Your brother,

Lieutenant Colonel Fitzwilliam


For several months now poor Ann de Bourgh had been battling a severe cough one that did not want to disappear no matter what home remedies or medicines that were prescribed. The thought of losing her only daughter and legitimate heir of her husband Mr. de Bourgh had lingered in Catherine's mind for several months. Her daughter had always been of fragile health as she had been born prematurely it had been a miracle that her daughter got to live as long as she had done. The first thing she would have to do next to prepare for the burial was to release her nephew Mr. Darcy from his prearranged engagement to insist on anything else would be cruel. Releasing Darcy from his engagement worried Catherine quite a lot since it meant that her nephew would be able to take any woman that he chooses to be his future wife. That simply was not possible for a relative of a de Bourgh, Fitzwilliam or Darcy. It was simply unacceptable for the British aristocratic families to remain married which meant without any legal heir, it was essential for a de Bourgh to marry, just as it was assumed that a Darcy heir would begin his search for a suitable wife even if it, unfortunately, had to be a woman that was no daughter of Fitzwilliam.


"I suppose it's a blessing in disguise that you women have yet to gain full suffrage which allows people like you to vote," declared Mr. Bennet without taking any notice of his wife.

"Darling Bennet, I am not the least interested in politics it's far too difficult for some stern with my gender to fully comprehend. As I presently cannot imagine any other way to annoy you, my dear I will patiently wait for that day to come. It's a great sorrow to me that none of our sons managed to survive to adulthood. If as few as only one would have survived I would have raised him to be a Southern Democrat," announced Mrs. Bennet and glanced at the door of she heard the sound of her daughter's voices getting nearer.

"Of that my dear, I have little doubt. "Chuckled Mr. Bennet.


Meanwhile back at Longbourn a father was preoccupied in a dialogue with his favorite daughter.

"What kind of an education do you have on your mind, dear Eliza?" asked Mr. Bennet concerned.

"Oh, it's not for me, it was for Jane's sake, everyone knows how you raised all five of us like the sons you unfortunately never had. Especially Jane and perhaps I. And everyone says Jane would make an excellent nurse. I dare you to find another woman with a more pure heart, more self-sacrificing, more caring and concerned for others wellbeing than Jane's. Our grandfather Gardiner wrote Jane a letter where he mentioned that he might be able to get her accepted to the Geneva Medical School in New York," continued Elizabeth enthusiastically.


At the same time as Mr. Bennet was openly concerned for his daughters' lives, and future. One of the Black slaves at Pemberley was battling his own struggles. That slave happened to be Mr. Darcy's personal manservant, whose purpose was to protect and cater to his Master's every need. It was rarely that the two of them was not seen together, but occassionally it happened.

George had learned his lesson, now he knew better than to force others into treating him as if he were their equal. As long as the state of Missouri still permitted slavery. George did not dare to attempt to start a future of his own. He would need Darcy's approval if he intended to seek to marry someone. If he married his wife would immediately gain the same social standing as him. He was not prepared to put a woman through that. Not again. He did not want to be that selfish. The only state that permitted legal marriage between black women and white men were currently the state of New York. There was not even a slight chance that his young Master would grant George his freedom for him to settle in the state of New York.

Four years ago, he was as happy as he could be he, George Darcy's personal slave received love and understanding from another human being, a woman at that. At first, he had been hesitant, did she love him enough to want a life and a future with him? What did he have to offer a privileged rich daughter that might make her consider his proposal? Even though the future for George and his secret sweetheart currently looked bleak he had still done the proper thing and proposed to her, knowing that their union was forbidden. She had accepted his marriage proposal with joy and for a couple of months, the odd couple shared a secret. Their engagement was their shared secret, for as long as the summer lasted. Of course, their engagement could never be publicly known to anyone else but the two of them. That meant that their engagement had not been a proper engagement since there had been no wedding band. But there had been a ring, not made out of solid gold - instead, the engagement ring was made from locks of George's raven locks. In absence of an engagement ring, George had received a shiny lock of his secret fiance's hair. He guarded it with his life and kept it in a keepsake bag with a string tied around his neck. When autumn arrived the young woman, George secret fiancé was nowhere to be found. He knew he had it coming, their love was not acceptable by society though he should not be surprised it ended like it did. He had been spared from witnessing the verbal slaughter and name-calling of the woman that he loved. He was certainly no stranger to the degrading word, he wished the woman he loved would be spared from the humiliation.


Miss Georgiana Darcy was a very attractive young woman of 20 years. She resembled her older brother, they both shared the same chestnut colored hair. While her brother's hair was dark brown, she had inherited dark blue captivating eyes. She was rather tall with her 5 feet and 5 inches. Her waist measurement was 18 inches exactly. She knew everyone expected her to marry her oldest cousin Fitzwilliam. For several generations, the De Bourgh's from Harrodsburg, Kentucky had married into the Darcy family from St. Louis, Missouri. She had no reason to object to marrying her first cousin Fitzwilliam. Everyone expected her to be the future Mrs. Fitzwilliams. She relied on her only brother for guidance and advice and she assumed her brother would have objected to her prearranged engagement if he saw a valid reason to so. She knew she would learn to love her fiancé over time, just like she assumed her mother once had grown to love her father.

She always treated George as an equal her kindness reminded George of another woman he once loved. It had started to become a habit, that Miss Darcy deliberately took extra servings of food which she saved and gave to George when Young Master was out of town.

Since George was a Black slave his main diet usually consisted of fresh apples, blueberries, and cherries during the summer season main staples were otherwise potatoes and different kinds of whitefish on rare occasions he could indulge in the dishes lady Georgiana sneaked to him, he particularly enjoyed the Spring vegetable soup with asparagus.

When his Master decided to summon the call for the Missouri regiment, George too agreed to follow close behind his young master. Now, he realized he lost track of his young Master. As George was walking barefoot something he preferred, he noticed a red-haired young girl in a pink dress George wondered what errand she had at the battlefield in Charleston, South Carolina, did she not now it was a battle scene?

Perplexed George stopped in his steps and gasped as the young girl suddenly were only inches away from him. "Excuse me, Miss, I do not believe this is the right place for you to be," he stuttered as he tried to avoid eye contact with the young unfamiliar girl.

Lydia's curiosity increased never before had she encountered a colored person. It amazed her that the man appeared to be no different than any other man the only exception was the color of his skin. The man's skin was dark and shiny as ebony, she wondered how it would feel to touch his skin.

"What makes you say that? I realize this is a battlefield and aren't a battlefield usually filled with soldiers," inquired Lydia. She glanced at the man and smiled as she instinctively placed her right hand's fingertips on the man's left cheek.

He was taken aback by the young girl's boldness. Never before had he been touched by another human being let alone someone of the opposite sex. He took a sidestep and almost lost his footing.

"Yes, there are blue-collar soldiers here - I think they are somewhere between 500 and as many as 6000. But I cant tell for sure." George eventually answered as he was out of breath. For some reason, his heartbeat had increased as the young girl boldly dared to touch his cheek. Had she not received a proper upbringing as she appeared to either not know of proper manners and ordinary etiquette? That girl was the opposite of his young Master's sister. Unlike her, Miss Georgiana Darcy would never even contemplate touching another human being unless it was a stranger (a stranger?)

, an immediate family member or a social occasion. He did not like this one bit, the situation that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere made him feel uncomfortable.

She struggled to conceal her laughter as she noticed how the colored man almost lost his footing. This day had certainly gotten much more interesting, without any sight of a young handsome soldier in a handsome uniform.

"Good, then I'm in the right place!", exclaimed Lydia and smiled in relieve revealing her one dimple. She crossed her arms as she waited for the man's reply.

He sighed and tried to think of an answer that would make the girl leave, leave the location of the masonry fort in Charleston and more importantly leave him alone. What was the answer that satisfies her? "Miss! Don't you know it's dangerous out here," protested George?

Lydia stamped her left foot impatiently on the ground. "I'll have you know that I don't care for cannons, gun barrels, or sabers as long as I get to see a handsome man in uniform," announced Lydia and giggled.

He drew a breath as it seemed like the young girl was not going to leave anytime soon.

"Don't ya' care if they are Confederacy or Union soldiers Miss?" asked George in amazement.

She looked straight at the young man. "Frankly, young man, at this point I don't. I understand you're neither Confederacy nor Union," Lydia said in a clear voice.

He wondered if the young girl's reason for being at Charleston battlefield was the truth or if it could be an excuse for the Union to sending spies to the battlefield in Carthage."No Miss, I'm not but my young Master is loyal to the Confederacy," mumbled George. "You wouldn't be one of them Union spies that Master warned me'bout?" asked George nervously.

The thought of her as a Union spy was hilarious to her. She smiled a bigger smile. "Me a spy, young man you flatter me if you mistake me for a spy? Do I honestly look like a Union spy to you?" asked Lydia and giggled.

He looked horrified as the young girl's laughter easily could reveal the Confederacy soldier's position. He hushed at her and looked over his shoulder. "No, no Miss you don't, I obviously don't know what a female spy would look like," whispered George with a finger over his closed mouth.

She wondered why the young man whispered and seemed to gesture that she lower her voice. She may be younger than the man in front of her but she was the daughter of an American gentleman while he obviously was below her so he had no reason to order her around. If anything she should be the one giving him orders not the other way around.

"That's what I thought," answered Lydia and smiled.


At the ball in Jane's honor, Jane was wearing an emerald green evening dress.

Elizabeth had finally agreed to another set of fancy bloomers this time in mustard yellow.

Mary found an evening dress in dark mauve, while Kitty adored her new cobalt blue day dress. Lydia had eventually settled for a bright pink day dress, yet since she still had not returned from South Carolina to Longbourn in time for Jane's farewell ball only four unmarried Bennet sisters were present at the ball. It was certainly not like Lydia to miss a rare occassion to dance with handsome young men in military uniforms. Even Kitty Lydia's constant confidante, and busom friend thought that was odd. She had assumed the two of them would laugh, and flirt as they would dance with the soldier's stationed near Longbourn. Perhaps she and Lydia would have found a new young man to place their caps on... It was a huge humiliation that her two youngest daughters never could settle for one man not only for Mrs. Bennet, but more importantly for the three older sisters.

It was supposed to be a happy occasion; even so, Mrs. Bennet appeared to cry her eyes out. That Mr. Bennet eventually agreed to allow the regiment of Michigan to attend his middle daughter's ball did not comfort Mrs. Bennet. Not when she knew her middle daughter would be wasting away two more years of her precious youth and beauty.

Captain Carter, asked for Jane's first dance she politely agreed. The next two dances she gave to Colonel Forster, while her fourth dance was offered to . Mr. Chamberlayne. Jane insisted on not dancing at more than the five first dances. Jane willingly gave her fifth dance to Lizzy, but only after the latter's many persuaded her to join her on the dancefloor and Jane did not have the heart to turn her younger sister down. The two sister laughed and giggled as they swirled during the dance Jane's laughter echoed in the room as she was the object of everyone's attention and affection.

"It's not fair, both Jane and Lizzy get to leave for Boston and Iowa." Complained Mary and tapped her shoes impatiently on the floor.

"Why they are, is beyond me, Mary please don't you get any ideas of your own, reprimanded Mrs. Bennet.