Austen Fairytales: Sanditon

Niece (Thumbelina)

The passing of the youngest Brereton scion and his wife was a sore trial for their daughter, since it meant Clara must leave their rented rooms nearly at the same time as her parents. The abrupt, solitary trip to her uncle's house was made bearable by warm weather and good roads.

The conclusion of this odyssey was as much an exchange of feelings as location. The family's initial solicitude eventually gave way to other distractions as the seasons passed, and without being unkind, they were all given to think more of their own concerns than consider her's.

Lady Denham's arrival gave Clara some much needed employment. It was no difficult thing for her to sit quietly with this rich aunt or listen to her concerns, and though done without a thought of putting herself forward, resulted in a favourable outcome all the same.

"Whatever can you be thinking by such a notion?" Lady Denham exclaimed on hearing Mr. Brereton observe that Clara might obtain a respectable position some day. "I have already decided to take her to live with me."

Sandy Amber (Toads and Diamonds)

Lady Denham did not care that her niece and nephew might think her an incontinent relic. Truly, she had not cared much for her second husband's family; she viewed these heirs as a responsibility, and toiled for their welfare in spite rather than because of any fellow feeling.

"I am certainly glad to have Miss Clara with me now," she told Mrs. Parker as they sat together in the open sun upon the Terrace, pointedly ignoring references to kin by marriage while commending this flesh and blood relation. "We understand each other very well. But I think we are too occupied this afternoon to accept your invitation; you do not want tea, do you Clara?"

Whatever other thoughts that lady might entertain, she wisely answered, "No, Lady Denham."

Charity Hopeth All Things (Six Swans)

"You must mind better," Charlotte Heywood chided her fidgeting sisters as she dressed them for bed before the fireplace. "I will not be here to help you next week."

"Where are you going?" the baby, not quite four, asked, drawing sighs of exasperation from children advanced to the ripe old ages of six and seven. All were nevertheless still gangly as sparrows, causing their much older sister to smile fondly.

"A place called Sanditon, near the shore. Our guests the Parkers are taking me to visit. And since I anticipate bringing you each something back, do not expect me too soon. Who knows what I may find?"

They had none of them ever been away from home before; still, Charlotte tucked her nervous anticipation away. She would be sensible while also open to whatever this journey brought. And always, the love of her family would be waiting upon her return.

Thursday's Child has Far to Go (Little Red Riding Hood)

While her brothers kicked at the sand and frolicked in the waves, Mary twirled her new parasol and followed Miss Heywood's more modest example on their walk. Or she meant to. But she stopped once to pick up a pretty shell—one she had never seen before—then a shiny stone and a gull's feather. Soon she had to hold her full apron up by one hand to contain it all.

"Come, I will carry some as well," Miss Heywood kindly offered on their return, and Mary was saved having to leave anything behind on the long journey back uphill. She determined to be just as polite as the lady fast becoming her ideal.

It was a difficult vow to keep when, startled by Sir Edward Denham's halloo at the house gate, Mary dropped and broke one of her treasures, and especially when he laughed at her tears.

Duty as Its Own Reward (Princess and the Pea)

"And please, sir, if we might trouble you for a bit of assistance," Sam asked the hotel master respectfully as they concluded their business. "One of the ladies took ill the last leg of the journey."

Mr. Woodcock did not bother asking Sam why neither he nor Mister Arthur were capable of getting a frail lady out of a carriage, for which the servant was grateful. Instead, the man offered a sympathetic smile and fond shake of the head before following Sam back into the yard.

"Ah, Miss Diana, a pleasure to once again see you in these parts," Mr. Woodcock greeted his new guests genially as he helped them out. "And Miss Parker, how do you do? No, no trouble, I understand how travel may tear a lady's health to pieces. I reckon you must all be ready for a good long nap."

But the ladies, after having their ill health acknowledged, leapt to the business at hand without a sign of distress. "No, no, I have not slept at all, will not, how can anyone with so much to do?" Miss Parker exclaimed over directing the servants, caring for her brother, and nearly unloading the baggage herself. As usual, the holistic influence of their arrival had worked another miraculous recovery.

Bid (Rumpelstiltskin)

"Do you wish for more toast?"

"No, thank you." Miss Haywood was not looking at him, in that sly way of hers, but Arthur Parker was cheered that she had once more accepted him as a companion for tea.

"If you will give me your cup, I will be glad to refill it."

"Thank you, I am just finishing."

He strove to think of what either of his brothers might do in the circumstance. But he was distracted by the wheel of cheese laid out, and what luck! It appeared Miss Haywood was similarly preoccupied.

It was very easy to secure even more time by her side, as he cut slices and courted her smiles.

Gluttony (Snow White)

Mrs. Parker, through the associations brought on by her marriage, had become quite the adept at understanding illnesses. She knew her husband could not comfortably walk so long as his family fretted over his healing foot; therefore, she took it on herself to introduce their guest to Lady Denham.

Miss Heywood appeared as ignorant of general ailments as Mrs. Parker had been at her age, to judge by her reactions to Sandition House. Setting the example as much for this girl as her own daughter, the latter woman patiently bore with their host's distress, sitting properly erect and attentive, now and then covering an awkward moment with a soft inquiry. When Miss Brereton abruptly burst into the room, Mrs. Parker took leave to ask "if she ought not take some refreshment, she looked so flushed."

Lady Denham seized on the suggestion, ordering what should have been done for her newer guests only to preserve the more established, but this tardiness in no way diminished her generosity. Even little Mary was too preoccupied by the mound of fruit to fidget. All was easy until Lady Denham remarked over a preserve, "You will have to show me the path you walk some day or other Miss Clara: how a healthy young thing like yourself can take such a prodigious long time traversing so short a distance, getting red in the face along a shady path, is quite the mystery."

Miss Brereton relapsed quicker than Mrs. Parker could concoct a remedy, coughing and turning crimson as the apple which strangled her reply.

Neat Equipage (Puss in Boots)

On their father's death, the Parker brothers each received a different legacy.

The eldest took house, income, and the mantle of Sanditon's guardian. All awards were used to benefit the place and (to do Tom justice) the people he loved, like his long-suffering wife. Arthur as youngest received the least albeit more than most men dreamed of, including two sisters able to indulge their and (to be fair) his morbid whims by this independence.

Unencumbered by employment, want, or much responsibility, Sidney became the carefree gentleman. He acquired horses where his brethren did tenants or physicians. Leg shackles, or even a flirtation, were farthest from his mind when visiting home.

Nonetheless, he needed a change after meeting the family's guest. "Perhaps a different neck tie, think this knot's too tight."

Time would tell whether even his smart valet's genius would find the correct one during that long summer spent in Miss Charlotte Heywood's company.