Title: Like Texas in 1880

Author: Dylan Shelby

Disclaimer: I don't own them.

Rating: PG for now, could become NC-17, just depends on what you want.

Summary: In the Reconstruction of the Civil War, a Yankee officer, a Southern Bell and her husband's mistress will all meet. It not only is a time for the reconstruction of a country, but the reconstruction of life and love. – Historical Alternate Universe

Author's Notes: I have taken them back to my favorite time period, well shortly after it. I have wanted to do this idea for a while now and ever since I read Prufrock's Love's story of Mulder and Scully set in this time, I decided to do one for these characters. Most of this is historically accurate so if you have any questions please write me or post in a review. I will be happy to discuss anything in this story. I hope you all enjoy. Also, Mr. Personality and I will be coming out with a story soon of the Lizzie McGuire characters set in 13th Century England. Oh and this takes place in 1865, not 1880. "Just Like Texas in 1880" is actually a great song, featuring one of my all time favorite singers Pat Green. I live in Texas, Texas pride, you understand, right?

Dedication: To my little sis Misi, aka Mr. Personality. I love her bunches and she is not only a great sister but a great friend too, except of course when she is in a bad mood!

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"Creativity is sparked by the need for something to do when there's already something to do." --The Warfarine Dealer's motto

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Savannah, Georgia; May 1865

Captain Gordon was tired, hot, hungry, thirsty, and a little out of it. He had already mistaken three trees for people. He needed to find somewhere to stop and soon before he gave out. He walked further looking over the destruction the war had brought. He knew the south was beautiful, his father had taken him to Atlanta a few times when he was younger. He had cried when he saw the destruction that Sherman had brought to the south in his fiery quest. He looked up ahead and saw what was once a very beautiful southern home, now in deep need of repair. It looked abandon and for now it could at least protect him for the hot southern sun.

As he got closer to the house he noticed a couple of cows. Well that was good at least he would have something to drink when he needed it. He was going to go and take a look to see if the cow was a dairy cow when the next thing he heard was a woman's voice, "Why are you trying to milk my bull?" He looked in the direction of the voice and then heard the woman call something out, but by that time he was too gone to understand.

The next time Captain Gordon woke up he felt much better, something cool was on his forehead and he felt nice and toasty in his bed. He opened his eyes and saw a woman standing over him, he was about to say something when she went out and called for someone. It was then that he saw another woman, a very beautiful woman walk in.

"Captain David Gordon I presume?" she asked. Her blonde hair was in a bun on the top of her head and she was wearing a black dress. "How did you know that?" he asked. "I saw a letter in your pants pocket addressed to a Kate Sanders signed Captain David Gordon, I took a guess." She smirked. Gordon assessed the situation and decided to sit up but found it a little difficult, and that was when the woman helped him up. "You could have just asked." She said. He glared at her for a moment. "So can ask what your name is?" he asked. She smiled, "You may. My name is Elizabeth McGuire Craft." "So you're married?" "Widowed." She replied. His expression softened when she said that. "Then you must really not like me."

It was then that she took pity on him, "I am fine Captain Gordon. He died a year ago and since then many things have happened. I wish the war had never taken place, but it has and I am fine with it." "So who was the woman with you?" She gave him a half smile that did not display happiness. "Miranda Sanchez Craft" "Your sister-in-law?' he asked. "No, Captain Gordon, my husband's other wife." She answered. "Other wife?" She sighed, it was obvious she didn't want to go through this, but she did, "Ever hear of New Orleans?" A light went off in his head, but he didn't really know how to ask. She took pity on him though, "Listen, you still need to rest, you were in pretty bad shape yesterday, when you get to feeling better we can swap life stories then." With that she walked out of the room and shut the door behind her.

When he woke up again someone was opening the heavy drapes letting sunshine in. "Good morning Captain Gordon. If you are up for breakfast you are more than welcome to join Miranda and myself, or you can always try to milk my bull again." She smirked. He gave her a half smile, "Call me Gordon, Mrs. Craft." She looked at him, "All right Gordon, please call me Elizabeth." She turned to leave, but thought better of it; "If you wish to change I have laid some clothes for you on the chair over there that are more appropriate for a Georgian summer than your uniform. If you wish to bathe we have a very nice secluded creek out back." She told him and then left.

Once the door shut David Gordon got up and walked over to the small sitting area where the chair was and took a look at the clothes. Mr. Craft must have had expensive tastes because the pants were of good quality as was the shirt. Unless Elizabeth actually sewed, which he doubted, this was store bought. Not something an average farmer could do. Still, it was a nice gesture and she had been very kind to him so far. He decided to go and take a bath in the creek, before he put on the freshly washed clothes. As soon as he picked the clothes up he noticed a towel and a bar of soap, something very scarce for people now that the war was over.

Once bathed and changed into something much cooler he went through the back door into the kitchen. Instantly the smell of biscuits and bacon hit him full force and he realized how hungry he really was. Mrs. Sanchez-Craft was placing the food on the plates and setting it out onto the small table that was placed in the kitchen. She looked up when the door shut, "Good morning Captain Gordon, how are you doing this morning?" she asked, finishing up her tasks. "I'm fine, thank you for looking out for me." He said. "You should thank Elizabeth, she brought you in and cared for you most of the time." He looked slightly uncomfortable and really was, "Captain Gordon, please have a seat, as soon as Liz is done she will be in here." She said gesturing to the chair on the far left. "Thank-you and please I give you leave to call me, Gordon." She smiled at him, "Then please Gordon, call me Miranda."

The food was delicious and soon the trio had finished and Gordon helped the women with the dishes. "So what do you all do?" he asked. "Well we take care of this farm as best as we can. Miranda will be taking over soon though, for I am going back to Charleston to be with my family and her cousin is coming to live with her." This sparked Gordon's interest, but he wasn't going to be impolite and ask exactly what the situation was. "Gordon, I have to go to town and get some flour and things, would you please accompany me?" Elizabeth asked. He looked at her and then at Miranda who was wiping off the table. "Of course.

They walked out the house ready to go and Elizabeth was half way down the path when she noticed that the Captain wasn't with her, "Gordon is there something wrong?" she called out to him. "Where are the horses?" It was then Elizabeth laughed at him, "Captain Gordon if you want horses you will have to find some wandering along and claim them as your own. Mine were taken long ago. Frankly I'm surprised my cow and bull haven't been taken yet." She turned back around and started walking the path once again. He quickly caught up to her. "So how far is town?" "Oh about a mile and a half. It will take us most of the day. So why don't you tell me about your life story."

"Where to start?" he pondered out loud, "How about with Kate Sanders." She suggested. "Ah yes, Kate Sanders, the bell of the ball so to speak. We were engaged at the beginning of the war, but about two years ago I get a letter saying she married the Senator's son, I haven't been home to see what really happened." "Not even for the parade in Washington?" she asked. "No, I couldn't bring myself to go, it was just too much to quickly. I've been scared to go home. Everything is different now, I feel different and I'm not sure how I am suppose to cope with that." She nodded her head in understanding; "I don't know what to do either. As soon as Miranda's cousin gets here I am going back to Charleston, but I don't know how to face all those people again." He grinned at her, "So what is your story?"

"My story is a long one. I was what I think I heard was a Southern Bell, my father was a merchant, and he died near the very beginning of the war, right after Ft. Sumter. Anyway, Ethan Craft, was the mayor's son and every girl wanted him, but he only had eyes for me, or at least that is what I thought. We married on January 22, 1862, three months after my father died. He moved me to his Savannah house during the war where I was when I found out he died. Then two weeks later, I get to meet Miranda. She was his contracted mistress. She was in what we call placage. A white gentleman would leave her everything for their children in the event of his death, while keeping her in a beautiful home in New Orleans. Not once thinking he might actually die. As far as mistresses go he had great taste. We've had six months to really get to know one another." Gordon was silent; he couldn't imagine how she could handle it all.

As they made it in to town, the serious conversations had been halted and all was left was small banter. They actually found they could be friends to each other. He didn't know how he could possibly be friends with her so quickly, but it just took a day. "Hello Liz." A woman walking out of the store said, "Hello Mrs. Pettycomb, how is your son doing?" she asked. "He is much better thank-you. Well good-bye." Mrs. Pettycomb said and hastily made her way out. Elizabeth turned to Gordon, "I am practically an outcast here, since I am allowing my husband's mistress to stay with me and apparently I now have a new gentlemen. I really do need to be leaving this city. It hasn't been anything but heartache."

She had looked so sad as they entered the general store. Still he didn't say anything. They picked up a five-pound bag of flour and a couple of other things and went to the front. "Good after noon Mr. Baker" she said. "Good afternoon Liz, and who is your new friend?" the man wasn't subtle. "This is Captain David Gordon, found him on the side of the road one day and thought I could use a man so I picked him up." She said flatly. She looked to be mad and Gordon didn't blame her. "Humph!" Mr. Baker let out and tallied up the expenses. "Seventy-five cents." Elizabeth went to get the change but Gordon stopped her. "Here." David said handing the man the change. Mr. Baker looked at him for a second, but took it. Gordon picked up the sack and Elizabeth carried the rest of it.

As they stepped outside they both noticed the clouds that had come up and knew that a storm would soon be upon them. They made haste and Elizabeth led the way. They didn't make it back to the house in time, half way there when the skies opened and flooded them. God was on their side though because it was just a southern storm and therefore the lightening did nothing but strain across the sky, never striking the earth itself. However, when they got to the house there was a very nice black leather coach sitting outside the front door. "Who is that?" Gordon asked. "My guess? Probably Miranda's cousin, which means that I am going to have to be leaving very quickly." She said and walked towards the back door and into the kitchen.

Sure enough she was right, a very finely dressed gentleman sat at the kitchen table with Miranda next to him. "Elizabeth!" Miranda cried when she came in, "Liz, this is my cousin, Brandon." The man stood up, he bowed at her and then picked her hand up, "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mrs. Craft." She smiled at him, "Thank you Mr. Birmingham, but please call me Elizabeth." She turned to see Gordon setting the sack down, "Mr. Birmingham this is Captain David Gordon." The two men shook hands, but that was it. "Well, why don't Gordon and myself go and change out of these wet clothes and then I will finish helping Miranda with dinner." Liz said and then walked out of the doors.

Dinner was somewhat silent and Elizabeth had left it early while Miranda and Brandon volunteered to do dishes. Gordon found her out on the porch staring at the land before her. "Are you all right?" "I'm fine Captain Gordon." "Gordon please." he said. She looked up at him as he sat down near her on the steps. "Why don't you use your first name?" she asked. "I'm named after my father, everyone called him David. My maid's daughter use to call me Gordo because she couldn't say Gordon." He laughed at the memory and then looked back to see Elizabeth's reaction. "Gordo? Hmm, I think I like that better than Gordon, can I call you Gordo?" "Please do Elizabeth. Although if you get to call me Gordo I think I am entitled to my own nickname. How about Liz?" She shook her head, "No, we're friends now, why don't you call me Lizzie, the only one to ever do that was my mother." Gordo nodded, "Okay, I'm Gordo and your Lizzie. Now what?"

She didn't say anything for a while. His question made her remember why she came out here in the first place. Everything she had was going to Miranda and now she had just found a nice friend and she was going to have to leave him too. She didn't want to go back to Charleston. She did want to see her mother, but she had no use for the society that she had been forced to with her marriage to Ethan. She had lied to Gordo, she hadn't been a "southern bell" she had been slightly below that so when Ethan asked her to marry him she felt just like Cinderella. She really should have known.

"Are you ready to go back to Charleston?" he finally asked. "No. I want to see my mother, but I would really like to move somewhere far from here and start a new life, unfortunately that is not going to happen. "Why not?" he asked. "Because, I am not married and it is very hard for women to make it on their own. I can here, but that is only because of my husband's reputation. I am sick of being known as Mrs. Ethan Craft. I just want to start over again." "So why don't you?" Her eyes snapped up, "Did you not just hear what I had to say?" she demanded. "I mean, why don't you marry me? We are friends and can stay so, you can move with me up to New York." She looked at him for a moment, "Marry you?" she asked. "Well I can't exactly take you back and just say you are my friend. Then your own reputation will be soured. Besides, we are friends are we not? Surely we can make a go of it." She looked deep into his eyes. "Can I take tonight to think about it?" she asked. "Take all the time you need." He said and that was the last they spoke as they stared out onto the Georgian planes with their own thoughts.