I originally was going to do Emily next but a few people wanted Shira and that was the next muse, I had in my mind.
Shira Huntzburger had just finished spraying her outfit with Chanal Number 5. She grimaced she must have used the entire bottle. However, she had spent the entire half an hour smoking a pack of camels. She could not face her 3'0 clock appointment smelling like an ashtray. She took one last look at her self in the mirror and smiled that her hair and make up were completely flawless. Shira then smiled with her teeth, she was grateful that the glob of toothpaste and mouth wash had worked and was glad that not a hint of cigarette breath or tar stains. Shira then got out of her bathroom and went to get a big black velvet box out of her room. Shira sadly examined the contents, for they would be the last time she would be able to look at them. They would soon belong to someone else.
Shira slowly descended down the grand stair case. On her way down she called to her personal maid. "Rosa, get the tea and a newspaper in the grand living room…"
"Yes Mrs. Huntzburger…" The maid quickly replied. Shira did not quickly fire maids the way Emily Gilmore did, but they would often receive a severe scolding if they didn't reply or commit their tasks fast enough for Shira. Shira did not like being harsh with the help at first but all the society wives she knew were and it was in proper for her to go against the grain. Especially she was not an ordinary society wife but a Huntzburger and Huntzburger was not just a fancy last name it was royalty.
Shria was glad to see the tea pitcher and the cups were elegantly set on a tray by the time she had reached the giant white couch in the living room. She smiled that Rosa had neatly divided the newspaper into the sections she read, style, wedding announcements, and society pages. In spite of being married to a giant journalist family Shira was never one to follow the headline news or feature stories.
Shira was smiled that she had something to keep herself busy before the person, she hated most came to visit. Shira hated Rory Gilmore with a passion for many different reasons. She hated that Rory was her own person and she couldn't mold her to be into her own little mini me, like she had always imagined doing with the girl Logan would marry. Shira hated that Rory had the nerve to reject her baby boy the first time so publicly. She hated that Rory was popular with all the ladies in high society without even trying when it took those very same ladies five years to accept her. Shira hated that Rory was an automatic DAR member, the only organization Shira was not allowed to join because she did not have any ancestors who had fought in the American Revolution. It wasn't fair her mother had her out of wedlock her parents did not marry until the girl was in college and word was it they divorced. However, Rory's name was pristine in High Society, she was known as a nice well mannered girl. Unlike, Shira was maligned by gossip that she was a gold digger, who bought herself in.
God, she always thought when she had a daughter in law, she would like her. Not be like her own mother-in-law, who hated her. Shira spend her whole marriage until her mother-in-law trying to please Laura by being the perfect wife but that only caused her mother-in-law to hate her even more. Laura Huntzburger considered Shira to be a insipid fool, who only married Mitchum for his money. How ever that was not true, Shira loved Mitchum because he was handsome and charming. He treated her like the only woman in the room. He showed her a different world than her small Alabama town. However, after her marriage to Mitchum, Shira was forced to change. She needed to fit in she was never one to go against the crowd. She saw all the woman around her shop for extravagant things she did so to; she saw the woman throw functions she did so too. She saw woman turn a blind eye when their husbands cheat so she did so too. Shira had also grown to love money, which was one of the reasons she stayed with her unfaithful husband. She could not live in a world without it's comforts.
Shira hated that she could love her daughter-in-law and was destined to loathe her the way Laura loathed her.
The worst thing about hating Rory Gilmore was that she had no one to vent her hate.
Mitchum adored her and attributed Rory to bringing Logan back to the East coast. He believed Rory gave Logan an edge in being successful on his own, and he felt Rory had given him and Logan a better relationship. The two of them were not best friends, but they were not constantly fighting anymore. Shira was grateful that Logan was coming to dinner more, but she still wished it wasn't cause of Rory.
Elias was still not a fan of Rory but Shira and Elias did not really get along either. He disapproved of her from the moment she married Mitchum. Therefore, private conversations between Elias and Shira never took place.
All the ladies in her circles adored Rory. No matter how many times Shira tried to bring slander in her name. At first she tried to bring up the fact that Rory wanted to work. " You know Emily says she is always busy writing articles, can you imagine how busy that is….
She could then remember the lady refuting. "Well, that's a good field. Plus I read some off her articles their really good…"
She then tried to badmouth her wretched mother. "You know her mother left high society at 16 and runs an Inn…"
The ladies would not take disgust at the news, they then said that the Inn had a good Zagat rating and some had a splendid time staying at the Inn. Emily might not have been proud of all her daughter's choices but she had made sure to keep her daughter's reputation in tact. Shira could not keep speaking against Rory it would be against Emily Gilmore and Shira did not have a leg to stand on against her.
Shira then remembered the awful confrontation, when Emily had told her all the things she hated about herself. Emily could kick her out of every organization she was involved in or worse publicly announce Shira's dirty laundry. Shira might be a Huntzburger but Emily was the Queen blue blood.
Shira heart sank, when she heard the door rang. She hated that she was going to see the person she hated most and was going to do the thing she detested most. She sat upright so Rory would just think she was casually drinking tea and reading the paper. She did not want Rory to think that her visit would affect her in any way.
She hated that Rory was talking to Rosa in a friendly way. Didn't the girl know that a future Huntzburger wife doesn't converse with the help, unless to give them orders.
When Rory finally had come in to the living room. She smiled and greeted Shira with a hello.
Shira put on her society smile that she had mastered through the years. "Rory how nice to see you, would you like some tea or would you prefer Rosa to make you some coffee…" Shira said in her best hostess voice
"Tea with lemon would be fine..." Rory politely replied. Shira could tell that Rory wanted to get the visit over with as well.
After Shira had handed the china cup to Rory, she had said. " I saw your engagement picture in the paper. You and Logan looked good…"
Rory smiled. "Thank you Shira. I am a little embarrassed that grandma had to get the biggest picture."
Shira genuinely smiled for the first time since Rory arrived. Maybe she could subtly talk Rory out of marrying Logan. "Well that's the trouble with marrying one of New England's finest family there is always attention. You know there were times, when I had married some one ordinary. Maybe you should consider that alternative." Shira took a sip of her tea.
Rory furiously set her tea down. "Shira do not even think of it. I know that there are some draw backs to marrying Logan, but I love him and he is the best boyfriend I ever had. There is nothing you say that can stop him, so please do not waste your time on talking me out of it. "
Shira had noticed that Rory's tone was harsh that Shira sadly realized that any plan to break Rory and Logan apart was futile. She knew that if she continued Rory could tell Emily about it and Shira could not live with the consequences. Therefore, she had to play nice. "Well, I did not mean anything Dear. "
"I am sure you didn't Shira…" Rory replied in a tone that had sarcasm.
"Well, I did not ask you hear to argue. I was wondering what jewelry you were wearing to the wedding." Shira quickly said to get to the topic at hand.
"None yet, I just decided what dress I'm going to wear. Grandma is having her seamstress altering it. So I decided to wait until then…"
Well, I suppose that is a wise decision. However, my mother-in law insisted in her will that the next wife that the male heir marries in the family gets to have the antique pearl necklace and matching earings…" Shira was about to cry, she remembered when Laura had given her the jewelry on her wedding day it was the only good memory she had of the woman. Shira felt with the jewelry she was going to be somebody and now she was going to have to give them to Rory. She kept her emotions as stoic as she could. "I was given to them on my wedding day and now it's your turn…" She reluctantly gave Rory the box.
Rory looked at the box, for a long period of time. "Shira these are the most beautiful set of pearls, I have ever seen thank you…" For a brief moment Shira was touched, Rory had said what she had when she received those pearls so many years ago.
"Well I was only following standard procedure."
" I understand, but I know it wasn't easy for you." Another thing Shira hated about Rory Gilmore so perceptive.
"There just old pearls, I have plenty of others. " Shira stated to finalize the conversation. Rory and Shira quickly proceeded to talk about their wedding plans before the visit came to a end.
At the end Shira had to admit it wasn't the worst visit. However, then she though of how she would never wear those two pieces of jewelry and started to cry. She hated Rory Gilmore from taking them away from her.
This was a fun chapter. I wasn't going to change Shira but I thought of digging a little deeper and you know maybe she is the way she is because of her society. Plus try to understand why she did not like Rory.
