The Becoming of Wentworth - Part One

This the first part of a story I began after having read Persuasion. Obviously it's not completely factual, but Jane Austen's sister, Cassandra, did hint to a relative that Jane met a young man when she stayed by the Devonshire coastline...

Cassandra Austen walked along the seafront in Devonshire. It was a welcome break to be in a place of fresh air and cooling breezes, away from the bustling streets of Bath, which at times could be claustrophobic. To watch the waves crash against the shore was a beauty not often to be witnessed.
        She saw her younger sister further along the beach, sitting on the sand, looking far out to sea. Cassandra was delighted to see her so much at ease, so carefree, compared to the sister she so often saw at Bath. So frequently did her younger sister look pained to be so trapped. She knew she longed to live in the country again, and to have the freedom of long walks in the fresh air. But their father's choosing to move to Bath had put a stop to such delights and brought a heavy weight of disappointment upon her sister's shoulders.
        The Devonshire coastline, not far from Lyme, was the closest thing Cassandra and her sister had to the countryside they loved so well. The two sisters had been brought to the coast with family acquaintances in the early months of their being in Bath. Since their first visit they had come many a time for a single day, to break up the monotonous life.
        Many walks had the sisters made together at the seafront, sharing their miseries of living in Bath. Cassandra saw the dull eye and ageing beauty of her sister. How different from the once blooming countenance she had had in her youthful years. And how sad was she to see it gone from her.
        Cassandra's sister stood up from where she had been sitting. She began to tread her way through the sand. Her expression showed that she was quite wrapped up in thought. "Jane," Cassandra spoke as her sister neared her. "Are you quite alright?"
        "Yes, indeed I am Cassandra." A smile broke out on Jane's face. "I really am quite fine."
        "You are quite glad to be away from Bath, I see."
        "Yes even for a short time it is a breath of fresh air. To watch the sea and its beautiful waves crashing against those rocks."
        Cassandra took her sister's arm and walked along the shore with her. Jane began to speak once more. "I suppose we are to return shortly. We cannot be spared by mother and father too long."
        "Yes another hour and we should leave. We shall be back here in the summer and then you shall have your freedom again for several weeks."
        Without watching her footing, Cassandra tripped over a small piece of rock which jutted out of the sand. Jane bent down to assist her standing up, but before even she had realised, a gentleman who had been walking nearby was at Cassandra's side, asking her if she were quite alright and helping her to stand. Cassandra saw Jane stand back and cast her eye upon the gentleman.
        He turned to leave, but Cassandra asked him to wait, if he would please, and asked him for his name. "James Ashworth," he said. Cassandra spoke for her and her sister. "I am Miss. Austen and this is my younger sister, Miss. Jane Austen." The gentleman smiled at Jane and looked with a gentle eye towards, suggesting to Cassandra that he found her somewhat attractive.
        Cassandra asked if he would take a little walk with them before they returned to their inn. The gentleman walked alongside Cassandra and her sister and informed them a little of his reasons for staying in Devonshire, as they asked him many questions. Or rather, as Cassandra felt, she asked many questions, whilst Jane listened carefully to his answers.
        The gentleman, Cassandra found, was indeed not a gentleman but a naval captain, staying by the coast during his leave. He had a friend, whom he had met during his years in the navy, who had a house on the coast. This friend, another captain, had been injured, which prevented him from going abroad for some time. Captain Ashworth was staying with him and his wife, before going away to the East Indies in the next month.
        For the first time, in the captain's company, Jane spoke. She enquired as to how long he should be gone away and whether he would take his leave in the Devonshire county again. He believed he would return to this area, but he could not tell how long he would be away.
        Cassandra said that she and Jane must return to their inn, for they would shortly be returning to their mother and father in Bath. Captain Ashworth expressed his disappointment at not having the possibility of seeing, 'Miss. Austen and her sister' again, and that he hoped, one day in the future, their paths might cross. This he said with a fleeting glance at Jane and although Jane may not have been aware, Cassandra registered a slight partiality of his to her younger sister.
        They parted, and Cassandra saw that Jane, just for a moment, turned to watch Captain Ashworth walk away. And when they travelled back to Bath, Cassandra detected a gentle smile and fresh countenance that she had not seen in her sister for, what she felt, was too long a time.
 

Reviews

[Shadkim]

Wow! This is a good start. I'm interested to see what will happen.