He says, after Reginald and the servants left, he saw Lord Manwaring arrive and enter the house. Lady Manwaring is suspicious and demands a footman tell her what he saw at the house. She insists her husband is with Lady Susan, but Reginald claims he has just left her, and she is "completely alone" for even the servants have been dismissed. She emerges with Mr Johnson, who says he cannot help her, and in desperation she snatches the letter Mrs Johnson holds, recognising the handwriting. Reginald arrives with a letter from Lady Susan to Mrs Johnson and overhears Lady Manwaring crying. Lady Manwaring appeals to her guardian, Mr Johnson, to confront them. Then, Lady Susan's relationship with Lord Manwaring is exposed when Lady Manwaring discovers the lovers are meeting in private, under cover of her friend Mrs Johnson. When both Lady Susan and Reginald are in London, she seeks to delay their marriage saying society does not yet approve of them (presumably because she is much older). However, Lady Susan wins him over, then plots to punish him for his disloyalty. He is surprised and tackles Lady Susan and then decides to leave. For example, upon arrival at Churchill, he explains that he struggled to find the estate as he had been looking for "church hill", a church and/or a hill.įrederica confides in Reginald that she does not want to marry Sir James because he is "silly", but she fears her mother's determination to marry her off.
Frederica arrives at Churchill followed by Sir James Martin, who is both very wealthy and foolish. Lady Susan's daughter, Frederica, who has been attending a boarding school her mother cannot afford, runs away and is expelled. Reginald says their relationship is not romantic, however, he and Lady Susan soon reach a romantic understanding. When Reginald's father, Sir Reginald DeCourcy, learns of this, he warns Reginald against marrying Lady Susan lest the family name be sullied. Under the influence of the amiable but dull Charles, Reginald agrees to keep an open mind, and soon finds himself enchanted with Lady Susan. Lady Susan frankly discusses her plans during visits to her trusted friend, the American Mrs Johnson.Ĭatherine and her younger brother, Reginald DeCourcy, are aware of Lady Susan's reputation as a determined and accomplished flirt. Cross head to Churchill, the country home of her brother-in-law, Charles Vernon and his wife, Catherine Vernon (née DeCourcy). After being turned out of the Manwaring estate due to her dalliance with the married Lord Manwaring, she and her unpaid companion Mrs. It's easy, though, for me to subconsciously create expectations of that person that result from me paying too close attention to their superficial qualities, so much so that I become attached to the person that they appear to be, not the character in their hearts.In the 1790s, the recently widowed and relatively young Lady Susan Vernon seeks a wealthy match for her only daughter, Frederica, and a wealthy husband for herself, to renew the state of her fortunes. Someone can appear to me to be a really amazing person, and I might automatically feel connected to them. Superficiality, though, becomes an obstacle in any sort of friendship, and it can happen a number of different ways. The result is a thing of beauty a person can discover another soul that they relate to, they understand, they trust, and that they are attached to, in a way, which forms such a true bond, that there really is nothing to separate it. When two people are really, truly "in love," it results from that same sort of subconscious understanding and trust formed between them that results in an unbreakable bond. Love in the sense of a love that binds two people together as "lovers," if you will, is not that different. that can result in a number of awful things happening to the people involved, as false trust results in expectations, broken promises, basic things that divide people. Sometimes friendships can form that don't have that foundational love, and it creates a sort of false trust between people. But many time, you may not identify the connection as "love." When I meet someone and I find that I get along with them really, really well, and we become friends, what's actually happening is a type of trust and subliminal understanding between us that forms the bonds of real love, love that is unconditional, a love that doesn't have to be romance, but a love that is simply a genuine, real connection between two people. Personally, I think love is a prerequisite for a real friendship.