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Happiest Place
PT 3 / 3
For @katia-dreamer - here's the last instalment of your secret Santa gift! I hope you've enjoyed it and it brought a little light to your day. Have a wonderful day!
We eat our way around the mock globe of Epcot, tasting everything we can fit in our bellies from the Holiday Feast and then relaxing under the hot sun as Diana, Bash and Mary test out all of the virtual reality rides that are available to them. By the time evening rolls around on our fourth day in the parks I find myself content, the growing camaraderie I feel with Gilbert and the Lacroixâs something I hadnât expected from this trip. I know Diana feels it too - her friendship with Mary having bolstered over the sweet Dellie she dotes on like her own kin.Â
By the time the weekend arrives, I'm ready to take a break and relish the idea of a vacation for a few hours by the pool. Itâs not hard to convince the others and we order in take-out and eat and drink in the hot sun.Â
âDid you want to go check out one of the resorts and get dinner with me tonight?â Gilbert asks as we walk back together from the lobby, our hands full of food from the cafeteria.Â
âThat would be cool. Iâm assuming Bash wants to go to Sebastianâs at the Caribbean resort?âÂ
âOh, I mean, maybe he does. But I was thinking just, um. The two of us, if you wanted,â he adds hastily as I stop and look up towards him. My mouth hangs open as he slows and turns to look at me, his smile hesitant.Â
âLike - one on one?â I sputter, disbelief in my voice. Was he asking me on a date? In Disneyworld of all places?Â
âWell, kinda yeah. Just the two of us. I thought maybe - Itâs okay if not, I just - âÂ
âNo. I mean. Yes. I mean - thatâs not clear at all. Yes. Iâll go to dinner with you,â I blurt and feel my cheeks heat, my feet starting to carry me forward with a clipped pace as we near the pool.Â
The afternoon rushes by and when I tell Diana about the dinner back in our room she nearly collapses from excitement on my behalf.Â
âOh, Anne! If my Jerry were to have met me in Disneyworld I think we would already be married! This is so romantic! You absolutely must choose somewhere amazing - Iâm going to start looking now!â She squeals and drops onto the bed.Â
Two hours later and Iâm brushing my hair frantically back from my face, trying to contain it as I ready for a night out. Diana has taken to assuring me - repeatedly - that she is dying for a night where she doesnât have to do anything, her feet already propped up as she reclines in her bed.Â
âHave fun. Make good choices,â she bids as I open the door to Gilbertâs knock. He looks fresh and bright, his eyes sparkling in the low light of the evening as he bids goodnight to Diana.Â
âWhere are we going?â I ask as we head past the pool and towards the lobby. Where I expect to head towards the buses, we instead veer towards the front entrance where Gilbert steers me into an Uber.Â
âItâs a surprise,â he says as the driver leaves the round-about. We drive for almost ten minutes before turning into the Wilderness Resort, the treeline becoming dense as we head by campsites decorated with lights and beyond little cabins adorned with bows and puffs of smoke rising from the chimneys.Â
Pulling up outside of a brightly lit restaurant thatâs designed like a frontier-style western eatery dropped in a snow globe, I glance at Gilbert as he smiles wider and pulls open the door. Inside the waiter takes our names and settles us onto a bench with 20 other guests wearing their holiday best, all seats facing towards a stage with bright red curtains fluttering in the breeze.Â
âWhat is this place?â I ask over the crowdâs noise, my senses trying to take in every detail, every delicious smell and sight.Â
âWell what do we have here Otis?â A voice calls out around us before thereâs a crash and a puff of smoke from the stage.Â
âItâs dinner and a show. A Hoop-de-doo Musical Review,â he adds and I canât help the laugh that escapes me, the idea so preposterous and yet so amazingly delightful that I couldnât even have thought it up myself.Â
The show is spectacular and the food delicious, my spirit running high as we finish our third drink and start heading out for the rest of the evening. To say the night was magical was an understatement. It had been amazing. Gilbert had been the perfect gentleman, funny and kind, smart and generous. Though Iâd offered to go dutch, he wouldnât hear of it, sneaking off to the till and paying before the check could even be brought to our table.Â
When it was time to head home we crawl off of the benches with our bellies full, our cheeks red from the liquor and the laughter that had kept us occupied for hours.Â
âWhat a show,â I sigh as we walk along the dirt road, heading in some direction that Iâm not sure which. Not that it matters. I donât want tonight to end.Â
âIt was pretty good. Iâd hoped for something decent but that so much more then just time well spent. Good food, good entertainment, exceptional companyâŚâ He trails off and I spare a look towards him, enjoying the view of his profile in the moonlight. âWhat do you say we take the boat across to Magic Kingdom? We could probably catch the fireworks from the ferry, if weâre lucky...âÂ
I donât hesitate to follow him across the road and down the pathways towards the water, willing to follow him anywhere he was ready to lead me. I couldnât help but think about how quickly I was falling, how easy it all seemed to be in his presence and the way we fell into sync with one another once I gave him a chance to not be the bane of my existence.Â
Gilbert Blythe had snuck up on me and now that he was here I didnât want to let him go. Maybe it was the ease of life here, or the magic of everything surrounding us, but when we step onto the ferry and lean over the front rail to watch the castle light up in the distance I canât help but lean into his side and relish the feel of him next to me. When the first firework cracks across the sky I turn to him and catch his gaze already on me, his fingers lifting up to brush the loose hair back from my face.Â
He leans in first, hesitating a breath away from my lips, before I exhale and tug him towards me for a kiss that nearly knocks us overboard.Â
--------
All of us spend the last few days together, revisiting our favourite places and getting as many Fastpasses as we can manage in the few hours we have left in the parks. Itâs easy to be with Diana and the Lacroixâs, even easier to be with Gilbert whose light demeanor and quick-wittedness make the days seem brighter than they do at home.Â
On our last night in the park itâs simple to get lost in the magic of everything, our minds spinning as we eat as much as we can and ride all of the rides just to feel the glow of happiness seep into our bones.Â
âAre you ready for the fireworks?â Diana asks as we spill off of Space Mountain for the last time.Â
âMore than ready! Though the fireworks also mean itâs time to go home and Iâm markedly not ready for that!â I answer and spin my friend around as we walk up the ramps. It was our last ride with just the two of us, our plans to meet up with Gil and company meaning these were the final moments we could soak in this trip together. âDid I tell you yet how happy I was that you came up with this idea, dearest Di?âÂ
âOnly a few times,â she replies, slowing to link our arms together. âDid I mention how excited I am for you after this week? I know itâs not why you came here but itâs a lovely turn of events, wouldnât you say?â Her words make me pause, the realization that going home also meant leaving the cocoon of Gilbert too.Â
We hadnât really talked about any of this. How could we have? It was only a blur of a week with so much to do and so much excitement and wonder and beauty there was no way I could have thought about returning to reality. But weâd have to, tomorrow, and I didnât want to.Â
âOh, Di⌠Itâs been such a bittersweet week. Iâve just met him only to say goodbye already. It was such a thrilling time and yet itâs over so soon!â I exclaim as she leads me towards the main entryway.Â
âWell, yes, goodbyes will be had, but surely they donât mean forever? You can keep in touch!âÂ
âI know, but it wonât be the same,â I lament as she sighs and pulls me closer.Â
âNothing back home is ever the same as Disney, darling. Thatâs why they call it the happiest place on earth - because the real world canât hold you back here. But what they donât talk about is that you can take the memories with you and create a new piece of happiness for yourself back home made just from them. Even if it doesnât work out, you still have the memories you made and thatâs what counts.âÂ
âWhen did you grow so wise?âÂ
âRight about the time you came into my life, I presume. Made all the difference,â she adds as we slowly come upon the group. I pull her in for a tight hug, holding my best friend close as I try to remember this moment in my mind.Â
âHow was space?â Gilbert asks as I lean against the railing and into his side. His arm comes around my hips and I pull his hand tighter, not wanting him to let go.Â
âIt was fine but Iâm happier here just like this,â I admit and look up at him with a cheshire grin.Â
âMe too. Hey - I was thinking, since you like writing and all, why donât we try being pen pals when we get home? Would you be interested in trying that?â He questions just above a whisper, his breath tickling the side of my ear.Â
âThat sounds like an excellent idea, Gil,â I murmur and shift closer to him so his arm crosses my chest.Â
Bound against him, I look up at the sky as the first burst of light shines overhead, the castle's Christmas lights flickering and shifting to display a story of hope, friendship, happiness and love. It seems fitting to end the week here, with new friends and new dreams. A nearly missed flight had lead to this moment and I couldnât have timed it better. Magic had been spun around us all and whatever came next was bound to be another great adventure that we could face together.Â
#awae secret santa#anne x gilbert#anne of green gables#anne with an e#kindredspiritssecretsanta#kindred spirits secret santa#awae#@katia dreamer#@royalcordelia
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AN: Itâs been a long time shirbert fans... anybody still up for some fake-dating shenanigans?Â
It was raining by the time Diana arrivedâthe sort of rainfall Anne might have basked in and even written a poem or two about if sheâd had a mind for it. Instead, with Gilbertâs short visit still fresh in her mind, it only exacerbated her horrible mood.
Once out the door (slammed behind her, much to Marillaâs great woe), Anne threw her denim jacket overhead to avoid the inevitable ruination of the pretty outfit sheâd decided on that day. The walk to the back door of her friendâs car was all it took to dampen her hair and muddy up her beloved white hightops. She didnât even want to begin to imagine what the state of her hair might be once dry again. The half hour sheâd spent on taming the wild red lockes surely going down the drain with every squelching step she took. She shuddered to picture the disobedient strands frizzing and curling annoyingly around her shoulders.
âAnne!â was the first thing she heard when she opened the car door, her hands cold and clammy from grasping the freezing handle. Â
It was Diana who had exclaimed it, smiling brightly from her spot in the driverâs seat. At its most brilliant sight, Anneâs sour mood nearly melted away - she did so love Dianaâs smiles. So for a fleeting moment it was as if it were summer again and they were having one of their lovely days of sloth, with the sun vibrant on their skin as they lay in the fields behind Dianaâs house watching the clouds slowly drift across the sky. No school to worry about or boys to try and decipher.
Then thunder rumbled and she was brought back to the present. Sitting wetly in the backseat of Dianaâs car next to Jane and catching the very last few syllables of words mumbled from the front.
The brunette beside Anne reached across the gap in the seats to pinch Ruby, who squeaked indignantly.
âWe brought coffee,â Diana went on, pulling out onto the road. The higher octave of her voice gave way to the obviousâshe was being purposely breezy. Acting as if Anne hadnât just opened the door and interrupted a conversation in which they had most definitely been talking about her. âI had them put an extra shot in yours because I know thatâs the way you like it. Ruby? The coffee?â
Ruby rolled her eyes as she passed the drink to Anne. But she didnât turn back around when it was in the red-headâs grasp, instead hovering there with an oddly expectant look on her face. A look, Anne realized, that was present on the other girlâs faces as well. Even Diana, big brown eyes wide like a doeâs in the rearview mirror.
âWhat?â she asked, pausing with her mouth halfway to the straw of her coffee and glancing around awkwardly.
When the only response was the low and torrid voice of Harry Styles drifting through the stereo and a raise of Janeâs eyebrows, Anneâs lips thinned in realization. The very word she had interrupted when sheâd opened the door hadnât been a word at all. It had been a name. Gilbertâs name.
Anne flopped her head back onto the cushioned seat, âOh god,â she bemoaned. Could she not escape it for five minutes? Not even amongst her most beloved kindred spirits?
But there was nowhere to hide. Not with the three sets of eyes watching her so curiously. Waiting for her to give an explanation that she surely did not have. She was beginning to grow tired of Avonleaâs uncanny ability to spread gossip like wildfire.
âWatch the road,â Anne snapped at her best friend, Â âor youâll kill us all.â
Diana gasped and averted her gaze, focusing instead on navigating the road through the pelting rain.
âYou canât deny it happened,â Jane said matter-of-factly. âItâs all over everything.â Then she whipped out her phone, pulling up twitter as a way to prove her point.
âDonât believe everything you read.â Anne snapped at her.
âSo youâre saying itâs just a made up rumor?â asked Ruby, almost hopefullyâbecause while Anne had despised Gilbert since the time sheâd first laid eyes on him, Ruby had simply adored him. While Anne would spend every single valuable and precious minute of her English classes poking holes in Gilbertâs foolish arguments, Ruby was sitting not two seats away, mooning. It was exasperating.
âIâm just saying,â Anne folded her arms defensively across her chest, âthere was a lot more to it than that.â
âSo it happened?!â Ruby exclaimed, with such force she knocked her binder into Dianaâs lap and almost spilled both of their drinks.
âRuby!â
âWell Iâm sorry butâthis isâyou canât just act like this isnât a big deal, Anne! Heâs Gilbert! â
âIâm well aware of who he is.â
âYou hate him!â
Anne bit the inside of her cheek. Of course she hated him. Of course. But itâs not as if she could tell the truth: that she had used Gilbert as a mere line of defense against dearest Dianaâs cousinâher very own flesh and blood. Though how that was possible was beyond Anne considering he was so insufferably annoying, whereas Diana was so sweet and kind and considerate. She never would have pushed anyone the way that Roy had Anne. She never would have refused to take ânoâ for an answer, never would have imposed so thoroughly on Anneâs personal space that she felt as if suddenly all of the oxygen in the world had run out except what was left in her lungs.
Hell, even Gilbert had taken Anneâs ânoâ at face value. He had nodded and left, much to her great relief. And how terrible a concept to consider: Marilla inviting him to stay for breakfast! What would she have done then?
âAnne,â Jane poked her cheek. âYouâve got some serious explaining to do.â
Like hell she did. Maybe the decision to kiss Gilbert had been rash, but she wouldnât have done it had she not felt as though sheâd been forced into a corner. And while she did hate Gilbertâs guts, the mere aspect of her kissing him shouldnât have been ground breaking news. Heâd been there. Sheâd used him as a shield. That was it.
Even if the memory of his lips moving fervently against her own had haunted her dreams all night, it was nobody else's business. After all, heâd technically been her first real kiss. And even if she did think him an insufferable pompous ass, she wasnât entirely incapable of admitting that he was a rather good-looking boy. She wasnât blind for chrissake.
But even so, she had absolutely no intention of that little tidbit of information ever leaving the confines of her own mind. Nobody needed to know that she found Gilbert Blythe attractive. Or that she may have very mildly delighted in the fact that heâd been so quick to kiss her back. Or��or that sheâd felt a bit of a thrill when sheâd seen him again that very morning; a thrill that may or may not have caused her to even entertain the plan that heâd so eloquently presented to her.
The severity of the realization jolted her. Rose her blood levels to an alarming height. Had she just admitted to anticipating Gilbertâs presence?
âI donât have to explain myself to any of you!â Anne exploded. Though she couldnât tell if her anger was directed at her friends, at herself, or at the mere prospect of having anything but ill feelings toward her long time rival. Â âWhat I do with my life is nobodyâs business but my own! I donât intrude on your private lives like this.â
Ruby shrunk back, but Jane wasnât deterred. Everyone knew Anne had a terrible temper sometimes. When she yelled it was usually because she felt like sheâd been backed into a corner and couldnât see an escape besides pushing everyone else away.
âSorry, Anne, but Iâm your friend. Friends talk about this stuff. They donât keep secrets.â
âItâs not a secret.â Anne grumbled. But she knew it was a weak argument. That her friend was right and that she had absolutely no excuse as to why she should keep the truth from them.
Because youâre actually considering Gilbertâs offer, a vexing voice said in her head, Â And telling them you only did it as a way to escape Royal would ruin it. The voice only annoyed her more despite its truth.
Anne took a sip of her coffee with far more enthusiasm than necessary. Any excuse to avoid talking on the subject further. Avoid meeting the tense stares of her friends.
âI donât see why it would be such a big deal that you kissed him anyway. Half of our grade has been expecting you two to jump each otherâs bones for years.â Jane shrugged nonchalantly.
Anne felt the large gulp lodge in her throat as she choked out a cough, âWhat?â Â
Ruby craned her neck around to face her, baby blue eyes wide and vulnerable. Diana released a quiet titter of laughter but didnât take her eyes off the road.
Traitor.
Jane rolled her eyes exasperatedly, briefly meeting the hurt look of their sensitive friend, Â âOh give up, Ruby. Heâs known you his whole life and hasnât made an attempt at you,â When Ruby faced the front again, lower lip jutted out in a pout, her dark gaze swiveled back to Anneâs, â You , however, caught his attention from the moment you arrived.â
Anne flared her nostrils indignantly, âNot true.â
The girl next to her threw her hands up in frustration, âIt is too!â
âIs not.â
âWhat are we, five?â Jane quipped. And then her face turned smug, âBesides, you guys did end up kissing, didnât you?â
Jesus, it was a good thing theyâd barely missed seeing Gilbert at green gables. Anne hated to think how insufferable her friends might have been had they known heâd stopped by that morning.
She let out a dramatic huff, placing her coffee in the cupholder between them and then crossing her arms to her chest. âDo you just believe everything that Josie Pye posts?â
Jane opened her mouth to retort, but before she could, Ruby turned around in her seat again, âWe donât have to. Youâve been evasive enough to answer the question on if you kissed him or not for us.â She said with an adorable scrunch to her eyebrows. It was obvious she was stung but didnât want to be left out of the conversation.
A loud clap of thunder sounded outside of the car, mirroring Anneâs emotions perfectly. Oh, how she wished she were a storm cloud sometimes. Floating above it all, no care in the world. No expectations except for that of releasing their torrential rage on unsuspecting passers-by. Perhaps if that were her, she wouldnât have gotten herself in such a messy situation.
She watched as the windshield wipers slapped at the front window, avoiding looking her friends in their eyes. âHow far are we from the school?â she grumbled. Though it was certainly going to be a tough task in itâs own, it would be better than sitting under the excruciating scrutiny of the three girls she was trapped in the small car with.
Diana cleared her throat. âJust another block,â she said.
âIf you want me to make sure Josie stays off your back today, I need to have the details.â Jane stated simply.
Anne ground her teeth at the annoying tenacity of her friend. Â âThere arenât any.â
âThere arenât any? â
âThatâs what I said.â
âHow could there possibly not beââ
âJane!â Anne snapped, teeth gnashing out like that of a caged dogâs, âJust drop it!â
There was a stunned silence for a moment as Jane snapped her mouth shut. No other sound but the constant pattering of the rain against the windows and the quiet hum of the radio. In the rearview mirror, Diana exchanged a sympathetic look with Anne.
âFine,â Jane said finally, a cool resolve in her brown eyes, âBut just because you hate Gilbert doesnât mean everyone else does. If I canât get the answer from you, Iâll just ask him.â
Anne stiffenedâevery muscle in her body pulling taut as she fought the urge to strike out with her constant weapon of choice: words.
Gilbert wouldnât sell her out⌠would he? Not when he himself was riding on the possibility of a public relationship saving face.
God, would pretending to date him actually work? Could they even do it? Could she do it? Certainly heâd do something to piss her off. Something that would cause her to lash out and make it obvious that they were not, and would never actually be, in a relationship.
The thoughts tormented her as Diana pulled the car into the student parking lot. As she parked in her normal spot near the entrance. As she turned off the engine and they were swallowed by the sound of the falling rain. How fitting to see that Mother Nature bore such a pitiful moodâgray clouds swirling in the sky the very same way Anneâs feelings were swirling in her head.
As her friends giggled amongst themselvesâalready having moved on to the next subject of interest and opening their car doorsâshe took a shaking deep breath. Steeling herself against whatever the day might throw at her and clambering out of the car into sheets of cold rain. Â
+++
When the lunch bell rang, releasing students from their third period classes, Anneâs relief was as palpable as a cool wave crashing against a hot sandy shore. She gathered her things hastilyâstuffing them into her bag and barely zipping it back up before hurrying from her calculus class and out into the crowded hallway.
She had very little want of being left in the classroom with a certain tall, dark, and tousled boy. And since that was how things normally wentâsince Anne and Gilbert were usually the last two left in the classroom, quickly scrawling the last of their work out on the worksheets before themâher rush to leave the confines of the classroom wasnât without warrant.
Not for the first time since being acquainted with Gilbert Blythe, Anne cursed the fact that they shared a fair amount of classes. (Or unfair if youâd asked her.) But this day⌠This day had taken her dislike to an entirely different level.
Or maybe dislike wasnât the correct word for the churning she felt in her stomach every time sheâd caught a glimpse of his disheveled dark curls across the room. Maybe awkwardness was the proper noun with which to describe the tension she felt pulled taut between them. If she could even assume it was a reciprocated tension in the first place, that is. She certainly felt itâchoking the air around her like a thick and unwanted layer of dust. But⌠Gilbert hadnât necessarily shown any discomfort at the sight of her. Heâd backed off on making his usual snide comments or witty remarks, yes, but she wasnât positive that it was because he was playing an angle or if he genuinely thought it better to leave her alone. Â
Nevertheless, it made Anneâs gut twist uncomfortably. And because the whole school seemed to already know what had transpired the previous afternoon, she loathed to even look in his direction let alone exchange their usual haughty comments. She had, in not so many words, been avoiding him for the entirety of the school dayâducking out of shared classes with all the speed of a bulleting train and keeping her line of vision pinned straight ahead even when she felt his warm honey gaze settle on the side of her face.
This, of course, did not escape the notice of her ever so nosy classmates. In fact, the fervent silence between the two known rivals after such an unexpected public display of affection had only caused an even deeper upset among her peers. Anne liked to think she had learned to never underestimate the might of a small townâs grape vine, but she certainly hadnât expected such⌠such backlash from one simple spontaneous moment in time.
To walk through the hallways of her familiar high school and notice the boisterous noise of groups dwindle around her felt much like her early days in Avonleaâexcept this time, instead of having smacked the townâs golden boy with a heavy textbook, sheâd kissed him. And apparently that warranted an even more uproarious reaction.
Anne pushed through the crowd of students and scrambled to her lockerâhead down in an attempt to ignore the whispers around her. Sheâd thought that, after three and a half years, she had moved past the days of being an outcast; past the days of being a subject of interest on nearly every one of her classmateâs tongues.
Apparently sheâd been wrong. All this time theyâd only been hiding in the shadows, waiting for the precise moment she did anything out of the ordinary, so that they could pounce.
As she exchanged binders and textbooks with what had been stacked neatly in her locker, she was so thoroughly enveloped in her own vortex of thoughts that she hadnât noticed the tall and skinny figure approach her.
âAnne,â the figure said. And despite the familiar trill of the voice, she startled, nearly slamming her fingers in the locker as sheâd closed it.
âDammit, Cole,â she hissed, but there was a smile beneath it.
She turned to her friend, a feeling of ease settling on her shoulders as it always had around Cole Mackenzie. He was leaning against the lockers with his hands wrung loosely around the straps of his backpack and his familiar blue eyes were warm with affection. After a moment, Anne realized there was a dark smudge just under his right eyeâmore than likely a result of wiping at his face after working with charcoal or graphite. A quick glance at his smeared hands confirmed just as much.
âYouâve got art on your face,â she said, gesturing at her own as a way to show him.
He released a breathy laugh before using the sleeve of his shirt to wipe it off. âSorry I wasnât able to get here sooner, I got caught up in class.â
Anne snorted despite herself. âSure you did,â she said. âKeep acting like you werenât flirting with that new exchange student.â She twisted her mouth into a feigned look of utter despair, âYou left me to the wolves.â
Cole laughed as she schooled her features back to their normal, friendly state and swung her bag around her shoulder. She entwined her hand with his as they made their way in the direction of the cafeteria.
He fixed her with a faux imperious look. âI was only showing Gabriel the precise way of shading. Charcoal is a difficult medium to work with.â
âDonât tell me,â Anne lowered her voice, acting as though what she was about to say was an absolute scandal, âYou stood behind him and guided his hand with your own, heart pounding against his back as he leaned into you.â She caught at her chest with her free hand, âOh, how romantic! â she squealed, much louder than sheâd meant to. A few students looked in their direction.
An exasperated laugh burst from her friendâs lips and he squeezed her hand lightly. âNot so loud, Anne.â
She shrugged. âPeople are gay, Cole. They can get over it.â
Cole wasnât necessarily closeted. It was a pretty well-known fact within their friend group that he was very much homosexualâyou have one conversation with him and he just couldnât hold back his flamboyancyâ but the world was still filled with small-minded bigots. And in a small town like the one they lived in, it was easier just to keep the knowledge of his sexual preference to a minimum.
âI suppose this means our vow to marry one another is broken,â she continued forlornly. It was a joking promise theyâd made to one another when they were fifteen and certain theyâd be deemed outcasts foreverâno one but each other to lean on.
Of course, sheâd had Diana. Beautiful Diana. But there were many things Anne experienced that her beloved best friend just couldnât understand. Diana was popular, beautiful, a glittering star among the backdrop of the night skyâsomething with which Anne found little to no relatability being the scrawny ostracized girl that she was. But Coleâs friendship allowed a quiet solace; a person who knew what it was like to feel unwanted and unpopular.
Cole snorted. âYou broke it first,â he said, âWhat do Gilbert Blytheâs lips feel like?â
Anne nearly tripped over her own two feet, having briefly forgotten the mess sheâd gotten herself into. She snapped her head to look at the tall boy beside her and fixed him with a desperate glare. The look on his face was nonchalant, but she knew he was dying with curiosity.
âWhyâd you have to bring that up?â she said, unable to help the whiny tone that had weaved itself into her words.
Cole clucked his tongue. âYou left me on read last night. You deserve it.â
âI think Iâve gotten punishment enough,â she replied, a frown twisting at her lips. âItâs all anybody can talk about when they see me.â
He looked at her. âAnne. You kissed Gilbert Blythe . â
âYes, I know what I did.â
âGilbert. Blythe.â
Anne unlatched her hand from Coleâs and threw her arms up exasperatedly. âCan people stop saying his name as if I donât know who he is!?â
They turned down a slightly less crowded hallway, taking a shortcut theyâd found halfway through their freshman year. âCan you stop brushing it off like itâs no big deal?â
âIt isnât a big deal.â Anne grumbled.
He ignored her. âHowâd it happen anyway?â
There was a tearing feeling in her stomachâindecision on if she should tell him the truth of the matter or not. The small part of her brain that was hung on Gilbertâs earlier suggestion rioted at her to choose not.
It won. âIt justâhappened. Okay?â
Cole screwed his nose up. âWhat does that even mean? â he said. âWhat, did you just randomly see him and say âfuck it, Iâmma give into the three years of overwhelming sexual tensionâ and decide to eat his face off?â
Anne blanched at him, stopping dead walk in the middle of the hallway. âSexual tension?â she sputtered. âHave you been talking to Jane?â
Cole released a light laugh at the expression on her face. âNo, but Iâm not surprised she feels the same way. Everybody does.â
âI hate it here.â Anne said sadly, mouth turning down at one corner. What a piteous thing to confuse hatred with sexual desire. Because certainlyâ certainly âCole and Jane were wrong. There was absolutely no sexual tension between her and Gilbert Blythe. None whatsoever. And she was positive in the fact that there never would be.
âDrama queen.â
âHow observant of you,â Anne replied, beginning to make her way down the hallway again. âItâs as if weâre friends. Almost like you know me.â
Her blonde companion snorted, but followed after her.
âApparently not,â he continued vexingly. âNot if youâre sucking face with Gilbert frickinâ Blythe.â
âCole, I love you, I really do. But if you donât shut up right this very moment, I will not hesitate to murder you.â
âAnneââ
âIâm serious,â she said, âI live on a farmâlots of sharp tools at my disposal, Mackenzie. Donât push me.â
He laughedâa short and exasperated release of breath. âHas anybody ever told you youâre kinda scary when you want to be?â
She glanced over to where he was matching her stride beside her, smiling crookedly and impishly.
Coleâs mouth turned down at the corners. âPlease donât flash me your murder eyes. It gives me the creeps.â
Reaching across the space between them with her arm, she patted his shoulder lightly. âGood.â
They lapsed into casual conversation then, walking quickly the rest of the way to the cafeteria and occasionally bumping each otherâs shoulders teasingly. She really did appreciate Cole, she decided. Well, sheâd always appreciated himâbut unlike the rest of her companions, he never pushed her to talk about the things he knew she was most uncomfortable with. Teased her relentlessly maybeâokay, certainly âbut he always, always, knew when enough was enough.
As they passed through the metal-doored threshold of Avonlea Highâs sorry excuse for a cafeteria, (even their library was larger than the sparsely decorated areaâhardly even eight long tables adorning the length of the walls and smaller rounded ones few and far between) Anne startled at the absolute terror she was faced with.
Being such a small school, the majority of the senior class was pushed into the same lunch schedule. Meaning all the kids sheâd grown with for the past few yearsâall the classmates that knew most definitely about Anneâs adamant hatred towards one Gilbert Blytheâpaused fractionally when they noticed her fiery mane out of the corners of their eyes.
Anneâs heart rate kicked up, stomach twisting painfully as the cafeteria quieted ever so slightly and heads swiveled to gawk at her.
She felt Coleâs hand squeeze hers. âChrist,â he mumbled beside her. âThey really donât have any lives do they.â
She snorted, eased slightly by his encouraging and easy-going presence. âOur school doesnât even have a total of five-hundred students. This is probably the most exciting thing thatâs happened since you showed sophomore year and Billie Andrews made it his mission to torment you.â
Her friend winced. âDonât remind me.â
âShit, sorrââ
âAnne!â
The breath that had frozen in Anneâs chest upon realizing the upset sheâd caused when first entering the cafeteria thawed the rest of the way at the familiar cadence of Dianaâs voice. She could see her friendâs veil of dark hair, her infectious smile big and bright as she stood from their usual table tucked in the far corner of the room. The rest of her friends, still sitting, waved to her gregariously.
Friends, Anne reminded herself. Those are your friends and not even the disastrous evening before and whatever trouble Gilbert Blythe insights next can take them away from you.
She felt a warm smile tug at her lips as she moved toward the familiar corner, pulling Cole behind her as she went. But as she got closer, doubt crept into her mind. She saw the nervous glances Tillie, Jane and Ruby exchanged with one anotherâhowever miniscule they might have tried to make them seem. The scrunch of Dianaâs nose, bringing her hand down from her enthusiastic wave and rubbing at a non-existent itch. Anne recognized it immediately as her bosom friendâs nervous tick.
Her steps slowed as she approached the table, nearly causing Cole to stumble into her from where heâd been following behind. Josie Pyeâshe was sitting straight backed, arms folded across her chest and an accusing glare flashing in her blue eyes.
Oh no.
Now thisâ this was the part sheâd forgotten all about. Josephine Pye and her ridiculous aversion to amiable conversation. Her insufferable adamance on making Anneâs existence appear as a show for all the school to see. Josie fancied herself a puppet master, tugging at the strings on Anneâs back from the very first moment theyâd met. And though a tedious friendship had developed between the two over the last few years, some things just never changed.
âHey,â Anne squeaked out, instantly noticing how guilty she already sounded. She winced, sat stiffly on the stool across from her friends.
Cole rolled his eyes and plopped down beside her, shoved his bookbag towards the end of the table and folded his artist hands in front of him as he leveled Josie with a shockingly protective gaze.
âThere will be absolutely no mentions of a certain happening with a certain someone taking place at a certain time yesterday afternoon, got it?â His voice left no room for discussion.
Diana nodded eagerly, reaching across the table and giving Anne a sympathetic squeeze of the hand. Jane pursed her lips, obviously wanting to say something, anything, about the unfinished conversation the girls had all had in the car that morningâbut seemed to think better of it. Tillie and Ruby, always the more soft spoken of the group, simply sat quietly, glancing between Cole and Josie, the latter of which had narrowed her eyes in an obvious challenge.
The blonde grenade snapped her eyes to Anne instead. âI think thatââ
âNo.â Anne said icily, surprising herself. Sheâd never been one to overtly challenge Josie. But after dealing with Royal Gardner and Gilbert Blythe and every single pair of eyes that had followed and judged and questioned her all morning, sheâd had enough.
She cleared her throat, âNo,â she tried again, less hostile this time. âWe will not be discussing the kiss because itâs my business and I owe absolutely nobody an explanation.â
âPeriodt,â chimed Cole, snapping his fingers. Diana giggled, attempting to smother it with her hand but failing rather obviously.
Tillieâs eyes had turned wide as saucers. âSo itâs true? You and Gilbert kissed?â
âOf course itâs true, I saw it with my own two eyes.â Josie snapped, âAnd obviouslyââ
âJosie, Anne literally just said we werenât discussing it.â Diana huffed. It was the most annoyed Anne had ever seen her act with Josieâit made her want to tackle her best friend in a hug. âPlease just drop the subject, okay? If she wants to explain herself then she will.â
âMust I repeat myself?â Cole raised an eyebrow at the blonde dragon across from him who was just barely containing the angry smoke Anne was sure to pore from her nostrils.
âPlease,â replied Jane, amused.
âPeriodt!â And he gave another flamboyant snap of his fingers.
Josie rolled her eyes imperiously. âYou guys are dumb,â she said to the snickering gaggle of girls beside her, then she faced Anne again. âLook, Iâm not one to really care all that much about your romantic lifeââ
Cole opened his mouth to protest but without even glancing his way, Josie cut herself off and snapped, âShut it, Mackenzie.â
He raised his hands in the universal sign of defeat.
âBut as your friend,â loosely Anne had to bite back from commenting as Josie continued, âI worry about what this means for your⌠reputation.â
âOh, for the love of god, Josephine Pye. Weâre in high school, not running for the frickinâ electoral college. I promise you, me kissing somebody is not that deep.â
Did any of them have lives?
A throat cleared beside herâColeâs. âI mean,â he said quietly, âit kind of is when youâve vowed to hate said kissee for the rest of your days. âSo long as you bring air into your lungsâ I believe were your exact words.â
Anne snapped her head over to her traitorous friend, one whoâd not moments ago was just defending her.
âWhose side are you on?â
âThe gays,â he said solemnly. And then, upon seeing Anneâs unamused look, âJoking, jokingâI mean, not joking obviously, but⌠Look, Anne. As overdramatic as Josie is beingââ said girl harrumphed impertinently, ââEverybody and their mother knows how much you hate Gilbert. Iâll fight tooth and nail for you, girl, but this whole situation is questionable in the least.â
âI just want you to know,â began Anne, âHow much I hate all of you right now, nevermind Gilbert.â
âHey!â Tillie protested, âI havenât done a single thing besides ask if the rumor was true in the first place.â
âTillie Boulter with-holding.â
Jane opened her mouth, âIââ
âYouâre on thin fuckinâ ice, Jane Andrews.â
Anne was so incredibly and entirely tired of this entire situation. So much for not talking about it⌠God, she should just out and admit the reasoning already. Clear the air, make sure that everybody knew it was a farce. A ploy to get Roy Gardner to finally leave her alone.
Who was she kidding anyway? Even entertaining the idea that Gilbert had planted in her head earlier that morning was absolute insanity. Them? Dating? Imagine the uproar then. If her classmates were so nosy as to be absolutely entranced by the fact that they simply kissed, imagine if they announced they were dating .
Oh dearest Snow Queen, she asked of her longest comfort, What would you do?
She set her jaw then, determining it was time to come clean. âListen, guys. Gilbert and I didnât actuallyââ
âAnne?â
She froze. Didnât blink. Didnât take a single breath for what felt like a solid thirty seconds. Her friends all startled to look behind her, Cole craning his neck to meet the gaze of probably the absolute last person Anne wanted to see right then.
âRoy!â Diana chirped with false cheer. Her eyes flit between Anne and the monstrous cad that stood behind her, betraying the panic she felt on behalf of her best friend. âI thought you had B lunch?â
Anne refused to turn around, still frozen as she watched, horrified, as all her friends looked at each other confused and curious.
âWell, I did. But the adviser decided to switch some of my classes around. She thought it would be best if I stayed with the rest of the senior class even if British academia didnât quite meet up with AmericanâAnne, are you trying to hide?â
She was, she totally, full-heartedly was. Sheâd sunk into herself, almost as if she were trying to allow the lunch table to swallow her whole.
âAnne, sit up ,â Josie hissed at her. Was sheâgod, was she batting her eyelashes at the boy behind her? The boy in which Anne could very clearly feel inching closer to her with every second she didnât acknowledge him?
She took a deep breath, turned around in her seat finally for fear that he might reach out and touch her, place his disgustingly delicate and nimble hand on her shoulder. âRoy,â she said, not meeting his eyes. âHi.â
âHullo.â Roy replied, probably smiling in a way he thought was enormously charming. âYour dress is quite beautiful. Almost as beautiful as the one wearing it, I might say. Almost .â
Oh, for the love of all that is good andâ He was insufferable. Anger, white hot and immediate bubbled in her blood.
âWhat do you want?â She said, rather bluntly. Cole elbowed her in the arm, shot her a confused look. Iâll explain later, she hoped her face portrayed to him.
Diana, ever the mediator, cleared her throat. âRoyal. These are my friends. Tillie, Ruby, Jane, Josie, and Cole.â Cole watched him hesitantly, the girls all exchanged giddy glances. âOf course, you already know Anne.â
âHow could I ever forget.â
Anne had to resist the urge to feign a gag.
âAnyways. Guys, this is my cousin Royal.â
âRoy. Call me Roy,â he said. But he didnât even glance at them, his eyes were trained solely on Anneâs. And Anne rather wanted to punch him in his obnoxiously pert nose.
âItâs nice to meet you, Royââ Ruby had begun, but the miscreant cut her off, paying sweet Ruby no attention.
âAnne, I was hoping we might talk?â
Anne clenched her jaw, fought to keep from squeezing her eyes closed in exasperation at the sheer audacity Roy had to even ask that of her.
Right. This was why sheâd entertained Gilbertâs plan. This was why she had desperately kissed him. Because Royal Gardner had no boundaries and despite being related to her best and closest friend, every moment spent in his presence was a moment she knew sheâd never get back.
âTalk,â she said stiffly. She stood up, grabbed a confused Coleâs hand and yanked him up beside her. âBut make it fast because Cole and I still havenât had a chance to get in the lunch line.â
âI am⌠so confused.â Anne heard one of the girls say behind her. Diana shushed her.
âPrivately? Perhaps?â
She was seriously going to punch this boy in the face. Like, actually. Right there in front of everybody.
âPrivately?â Anne snapped coldly, her fury like fire in her veins. She stepped around him, cornered him to the table, making sure her back was to the rest of the cafeteria. Too many rumors were already circulating around her. If she caused a scene, lord knew sheâd never come back from it. âAre you joking?â
She saw Cole step back from the corner of her eye, scuttle to the other side of the cafeteria table with the girls. All their eyes were wide and unsure of what to make of the situation.
âAnne, thereâs no need for such hostility. I was just trying toââ
âDeliberately make her uncomfortable?â a new voice chimed in from behind her. There was an unrecognizable hardness to it, incongruous to all of the other times she had heard it before. Across from her, her friends' eyes widened impossibly, gazes landing on the new addition to the already intolerable conversation.
Anne could feel as all the eyes in the cafeteria turned toward them, a sure spectacle to behold.
She watched as Royâs jaw hardened, eyes trained behind her with a new intensity as he tracked the movements of Gilbert Blythe lazily sidling up beside Anne.
âI donât believe weâve had the pleasure of properly meeting,â Gilbert said as he threw an arm around Anneâs shoulders. She had to fight to keep from stiffening up, knew what he was doing, knew exactly what game he was playing at as he pulled her closer to his side and tucked her neatly beneath his arm. And while her blood boiled at his intrusion, at the audacity he had to come running in like he thought he was  some god-awful knight-in-shining-armor, at the way her friendsâ expressions all changed immediatelyâall smirking and knowing and not nearly as surprised as she thought theyâd beâthe smallest part of her was relieved.
Relieved.
Like sheâd still been gunning for that stupid, ludicrous plan that Gilbert had blabbered on about that very morning to actually work. Which in itself was most positively and unmitigatedly not going to happen in a millionâ
âRight. Is this him then?â The accusation in Royâs voice broke Anne from her spiraling thoughts, solidifying the situation she was in. There, in front of all of her friends and essentially the entire senior class, she was facing off with one of the most impudent males sheâd ever had the displeasure of meeting.
And, lord above, Gilbert Blythe of all people was the only person with the ability to make Roy leave her alone.
âJust a few months.â His words pinged around in her mind, âWe get Royal and Winnie off our backs. And then we never have to deal with each other outside of class again .â
She scowled, resisting the urge to fidget beneath Gilbertâs arm. The heat radiating from his body where their sides were pressed flush together was rather difficult to ignore. She felt as though she could feel it fuse with her blood, travel through her veins and warm her cheeks, her toes, clog up her lungs.
âIs this who?â Anne replied, her scowl deepening.
âThe boyfriend. The reason I canât pursue you⌠or so you say.â
A choking sound came from her group of friends, though she absolutely refused to look in their direction. She was positive that the fire she felt across her cheeks no longer had anything to do with Gilbertâs body heat.
Roy raised a single brow when she opened her mouth, snapped it back shut immediatelyâa fish floundering on dry land. Gilbertâs arm tightened around her shoulder, probably meant to be comforting, reassuring, but it only made her want to elbow him in the side. The mortification leaching any and all relief sheâd previously felt by his presence.
âIâuh,â she stuttered. Oh god, ohgodohgodohgodohgod. How in the hell had she gotten herself into this situation?
âMy god, he broke her,â she heard Cole whisper.
âAnne? You did tell me you had one, right?â Royâs eyebrow was still raised, the brazen confidence leaking from every pore. She hated him, she decided. Hated him more than the curly haired boy whose arm was wrapped around her and whose current silence felt like a ticking time bomb.
âI did,â she replied, and to her utmost horror it came out weakly.
âAs much as I love being talked about as if Iâm not standing right here,â Gilbert interjected, and Anne wasnât sure if heâd noticed it but his thumb had started rubbing tiny comforting circles where it rested on her upper arm, âAnne doesnât owe you an explanation. As a matter of fact, she doesnât owe you a damn thing. So whether she has a boyfriend or notâwhether Iâm that boyfriend or notâis none of your business.â
Woah.
Wait a minute, not woah , what the hell? Had he really said that? Had it really made her heart rate kick up in her chest at the way heâd not only defended her but her right to make her own choices without explanation?
Royal blinked, opened his mouth, closed it. But Gilbert ignored him, turned his head to face Anne. The expression on his face said Itâs up to you , the small curve at the corner of his mouth added, Carrots.
She closed her eyes, counted one, two, before opening them back up and meeting Royâs gaze.
God help her.
âYeah, Roy,â she said, swallowed thickly, âGilbert is my boyfriend."
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Bless this post. I'm itching to read the time fic but I gotta keep my head in my own WIP right now! I am DYING though to read it!
Okay... i donât know who that other anon is but I TOTALLY agree with them. That time travel fic is jus wholesome and i canât compliment you enough for it. I never really read WIPs bc I have no selfcontrol and get anxious bla bla bla and made this exception and NO REGRETS. Everytime you update you make my day a bit happier. So thank you!
when i tell you I got this notification in the middle of class and had to bite back a major smile. thank you so much, anon! ⼠WIPs are hard to get into because theyâre such a commitment in time and emotional energy, but they have the best pay off. If you need more:
 @remylebub has one that is nearing completion and @lollercakesff has a bunch of really good ones that are already done. (Both are on ao3!)
Purples_Slippers_18 on ao3 also has some really impressive stories. Many of them focus on friendship and theyâre so wholesome.
On fanfiction.net Catiegirl is endall of wonderful multichapter stories. They read like novels.Â
Anyways, it truly means a lot that you took the time to read my story and send me such kind words! âĽ
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Hey! Can you guys recommend any modern shirtbert fan fictions? I have read so many set in the early 20th century and, while I love them so much, I would really like to see something more contemporain. Thanks! I'm already loving this blog so much!
OH MY GOD CONTEMPORARY! THATS THE WORD! NOT CONTEMPORAIN! I'VE ONLY LIVED IN QUEBEC FOR 4 YEARS AND IM ALREADY LOSING MY ENGLISH PLEASE FORGIVE ME!Â
//Â Â
hello! sorry that we didnât get to this before now! there are a couple that i can recommend!Â
remylebaeâs Imagining Something Worthwhile (our very own mod beef) is a wonderful story! itâs one of the longest in the fandom and i love it a lot! any list of modern au for anne would be incomplete without ISW! Anne is a teacher trying to make it, and she falls in love (spoiler alert) with medical student Gilbert. Itâs a sweet and funny read written by a great person :) Iâll give it its own post in the next couple days.Â
another fic is one weâve already posted about, and itâs not strictly modern au-- half of the story is, and the other half isnât. @royalcordeliaâs Time Turns to Amber is one of my favorite stories in the fandom! Anne (from the 1900s) switches places with Ann (from 2019). Highly recommended. Here is our post about it, if youâre looking for tags and trigger warnings and such.Â
lollercakes on ao3 is particularly skilled at write modern au shirbert fics!Â
thereâs a couple more in our modern au tag as well!
thanks for your ask and for your patience!
#awae#anne with an e#ask#modern au#shirbert#main: anne/gilbert#anne shirley cuthbert#gilbert blythe#royalcordelia#remylebub
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A piece I did based on a scene from @royalcordeliaâs gorgeous fic Time Turns to Amber! If you havenât read it yet, get to it!!!! Itâs amazing!!! And so is everything else Tessa writes!!!!! Time Turns to Amber! By @royalcordelia! On Ao3!!! Gogogogogo!!!
(Iâll link the fic later bc Iâm currently w/o a computer and donât know how to do anything on tumblr mobile akjshsha)
#follow my ig? đ¤ˇđťââď¸#shirbert#awae#anne with an e#anne shirley#gilbert blythe#royalcordelia#fan art
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Corrin: Can you ask Leo if he likes me?
Jakob: He's your husband...?
Corrin: Yeah but can you still ask him?
#leo x corrin#leorrin#leokamu#kamuleo#leo fire emblem#corrin fire emblem#jakob fire emblem#fire emblem fates#incorrect fire emblem quotes#incorrect fire emblem fates#incorrect leokamu#source: royalcordelia
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happy holidays @lollercakesff !!! I wrote you a fic! I hope you enjoy it ~ and have a wonderful holiday season!Â
I am posting the fic here, as well as on ao3, as itâs a little long (~10k).Â
charity (who is helping who?)Â
Summary:Â AU in which Anne is a little more poor but just as vivacious while Gilbert is a lot more wealthy and a little more cowardly.Â
Based somewhat loosely on the book Daddy Long Legs, written in 1912 by Jean Webster. Thereâs a movie with Fred Astaire and a wonderful musical based on the book. I always thought that Jerusha, the main character, was very reminiscent of Anne. The title comes from the song âCharityâ from the musical.Â
PART I.
13 July 1899
Dear Ms. Shirley-Cuthbert,Â
I am pleased to inform you that you have been selected to receive a full scholarship to the University of Toronto. This scholarship allows deserving young men and women invested in the arts to attend college in pursuit of strengthening their craft. You were selected on the basis of your imaginative and enjoyable writing, which the University hopes that you will pursue once on campus.Â
The scholarship will cover your tuition and board for the four years it will take you to earn your Bachelor of Arts, provided to you from a very generous benefactor. There is also a small account in your name that will provide for your books. The funds in this account are stable and will not be replenished, so you are advised to spend very wisely. All additional details about your award are on the attached page.
In order to keep your scholarship, you will write your benefactor letters, at least once per month throughout your tenure at the University of Toronto, informing him of your progress, both academic and creative. Your benefactor will remain anonymous, and you may only address him as âMr. Smith.â The address is provided below. You may use your book account to purchase postage, if necessary.Â
Congratulations once again. We at the University of Toronto will see you come fall.Â
Alastair PendletonÂ
Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships
University of Toronto
1 September 1901
To my magnificent benefactor,Â
I am sorry but I cannot address you as âMr. Smithâ, not when you have changed my life for the better in such a profound way. I can hardly believe that scarcely two months ago I was lamenting my future stuck on the farm and now I am here at the University of Toronto, ready to learn all there is to know in the world! And I have you to thank.Â
Please donât think that Iâm an ungrateful child. I truly appreciate everything that everyone has done for me. Until six years ago I lived the sorrowful life of the unwanted child that I was. You see, Mr. Smith, my parents died when I was only three months old. Does knowing Iâm an orphan make you think less of me? I hope it doesnât. I imagine a man as generous and kind as you wouldnât care. Otherwise, you wouldnât be giving charity to poor girls such as I.Â
Anyway, I lived in an orphanage, among other places, until I was thirteen and the most wonderful people in the world adopted me! Their names are Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert and they are brother and sister. I lived with them on a farm on Prince Edward Island. Have you ever been to Prince Edward Island, Mr. Smith? If you havenât, you must go. I am quite certain it is the most breathtaking beautiful and splendid place on the planet.Â
I was told when I spoke to Mr. Pendleton in person that you donât need to know anything about my life beyond my schooling and my writing. But since I will likely be mentioning Matthew and Marilla quite frequently, I thought that I would tell you who they were.Â
Will you be reading these letters? On the long train ride to Toronto, I thought long and hard about what I would do if I were a mysterious, filthy rich old man giving heaps of money to farm girls who couldnât otherwise afford college. After a while I just gave up because I am not any of those things and could simply not put myself in your shoes. Marilla always berates me for my vanity, which leads me to think that I could not remain anonymous for very long. My opinion doesnât matter, of course, but I do hope you read my letters. I intend to pour every speck of gratitude towards you that I possess onto these pages.
What is there left to talk about? Classes donât start until tomorrow. I know that you wanted to know about my academics, but there isnât any to talk about yet. I wanted to draft my first letter to you before homework became too overwhelming. Would you like to hear about my friends? My friendships certainly count as personal, but since I will mention them in the future as well, I will introduce them now.Â
My best friend and roommate is Diana Barry. Oh, how to describe Diana! She is the most dearest girl in the world. I met her when I had just arrived in Avonlea and immediately recognized her as a kindred spirit. Sharing a room with Diana is a dream come true! Her parents are rigid and close-minded. Perhaps I shouldnât have written that because they are also very rich and seem to know every other rich person in North America. I donât mean to be harsh but Iâve seen them make her cry enough times that I think I am entitled to my opinion of them.Â
Ruby Gillis is my second best friend. Sheâs also from Avonlea. Sheâs a wonderfully nice girl, maybe too nice for her own good. Ruby lacks imagination, perhaps, but sometimes an imagination as big as mine, I have found, can be a burden, as when you can imagine a beautiful future it sometimes leaves the present looking grayer than ever.Â
Who else is there to mention? Jane Andrews is the only other girl from home who also got in to U of T (University of Toronto, as Iâm sure you know â writing it like that gives me such a thrill!) but I doubt Iâll be seeing her much, as sheâs taken residence with her aunt and uncle in town. Iâve also met some new girls and weâve become fast friends. Their names are Priscilla Grant, Stella Maynard, and Philippa Gordon. As I have just come to know them, I canât tell you much except I can already tell they are kindred spirits. Itâs just something you feel. I feel that we are kindred spirits, too, Mr. Smith.Â
I apologize if this letter has gone on too long, or if itâs not the type of letter you wanted me to send you. The letters that come from my desk usually go to someone I know very well, like my friend Cole or Dianaâs Aunt Josephine.Â
Oh, those are two others Iâm sure to mention a lot â Cole is an artist and is the kindest, most gentle soul I have ever come across. Aunt Josephine is a rich old lady who is a sort of parent to Cole. Perhaps you know her, though when I asked Aunt Jo if she was acquainted with an old rich man who sends orphan girls to college to be writers, she said she knew of none.Â
All that is to say that I donât know who you are or what sort of person you are but I vow with all of the strength in my heart to do my very best to write these letters well.Â
Until next month!
Your eternally grateful friend,Â
Anne Shirley-Cuthbert
P.S.: I know you insist on remaining anonymous, but if I were to receive some sort of occasional acknowledgement that you are getting my letters, that would be more than welcome. I only thought Iâd let you know.Â
FROM THE DESK OF ANNE SHIRLEY-CUTHBERT
21 April 1902
To my beloved benefactor,Â
 I have not been able to stop smiling all week! Priscilla tells me I look crazed, with this Cheshire grin stretching across my face but I simply canât contain myself and itâs all because of you! I donât know how you found out that it was my birthday last week but your gift came just in time. My handwriting has never looked more beautiful than it does underneath the words âFROM THE DESK OF ANNE SHIRLEY-CUTHBERT.â Just seeing it on my table sends a thrill down my spine knowing you so thoughtfully ordered this for me yourself. How I wish you would have sent some sort of personal note with it. I know you have never answered my questions before, no matter how many I have asked. I am sorry to tell you that youâll just have to deal with it as I canât help but want to know you. Can you really blame me?Â
Classes are going much the same as in my last letter. I retook my geometry test and did much better, I am happy to report, due to Philâs untiring help with studying. I even started to draft some short stories that I have been thinking about, though I find it difficult to put aside the time to write them as my studies keep me more than busy.Â
Here, Mr. Smith, is where I get more personal so if you still feel obliged to ignore ramblings about my social life skip to the end of the letter now.Â
As you know my birthday was last Thursday. Priscilla, Stella, Phil, Ruby, and Diana decided to surprise me and take me out for dinner! They escorted me to the most charming and expensive restaurant within five miles of our boarding house. At first I felt overwhelming unprepared and underdressed for such a formal occasion, sure that I stuck out like a sore thumb around all of the elegant ladies and gentlemen dining nearby. But soon the waiter brought out course after course of wonderful, delicious food and we were having such a pleasurable time that any insecurity slipped my mind completely. For a moment it seemed that nothing at all could tarnish such an impeccable moment!
But of course as soon as this thought entered my mind Gilbert Blythe showed up to ruin the dinner. As I have not yet mentioned Gilbert to you (that I remember, at least) here is all you need to know about him: he did something terribly humiliating to me when we first met in school at age thirteen and I have never forgiven him for it since. If he had left it at that we would be on better terms now but soon after he left Avonlea and on the few occasions weâve seen each other since he has made a routine of offending me similarly. So as you can see why his presence at my special birthday dinner was less than welcome.Â
Perhaps, had I not known what kind of person Gilbert is, it would have offended me less when he sent a bottle of wine over to our table and offered to pay for my meal. But no doubt he only intended to flaunt his wealth before us like some peacock parading its feathers! He likely thought we would struggle to afford our meal. I have no aversion to certain types of charity, Mr. Smith, as you know, but his assumptions, and that inappropriate bottle of wine, nearly had me storming out of the restaurant in a rage. Diana and Ruby calmed me down and we politely but sternly declined his offer to the waiter. I didnât see Gilbertâs reaction but I wish I had seen the smugness drop from his face.Â
It was a thoroughly exhausting affair. Emotionally, of course.Â
22 April 1901
Iâm sorry for the interruption. I heard Diana call for me and it sounded quite urgentâ a bouquet of flowers, it turns out, had arrived at the front door and were addressed to me. Thinking they were a belated birthday gift I readily accepted them. Imagine my surprise when the note inside revealed they were from Gilbert Blythe himself! I wanted to scream from the nerve of him and throw the flowers out but they were still quite beautiful so Ruby convinced me to keep them. The note on the inside wished me a happy birthday and apologized for his impertinence on my birthday. It almost made me regret writing those harsh things about him above. Almost.Â
Anyway, Mr. Smith, this is where my personal ramblings end if you donât care to read them. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you that I spoke to one of the instructors here about my stories and she said they sounded promising and recommended that I submit one to the University literary journal! I might get published before the end of the term, if all goes well! If you care to read my work, Iâve attached the first four pages of a recent story to this letter.Â
Yours,Â
19 year-old Anne Shirley-Cuthbert, soon-to-be published author
FROM THE DESK OF ANNE SHIRLEY-CUTHBERT
5 February 1902
To my dear but frustratingly mysterious benefactor,Â
Can you believe itâs been a year and a half since I found out that you had selected me for the scholarship? I canât. Since this letter will likely be incredibly short (examinations are upon us and will start soon, so I have little time to write) I wanted to start this letter by offering my undying thanks to you. So here it is: thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! And Iâm so horribly mortified that I wrote to you in the manner that I did in my January letter. At the time I felt horribly unsympathetic to the wealthy and took out my frustrations on you. I wish every wealthy person were as kind as you. I suppose I really donât know how kind you are but something tells me you are wonderfully nice.Â
Classes here are going well. Iâve said it before but I love being a sophomore! I finally feel like I truly belong at the University of Toronto. As much as I love Avonleaâ have you visited yet? â Iâm equally glad to be exploring the world on my own. As stressful as exams are, I love being at school. Even though Iâve been to only a few places in my life living in a city as large as Toronto makes each new day an adventure. I could explore this city for years and still find new nooks and crannies.Â
Since time is running short, here are several quick updates:Â
Ruby is still considering dropping out. Diana and I desperately try everyday to convince her not to, but our pleas seem to have done nothing to change her mind. It will be sad but not totally unsurprising to see her leave.Â
Ever since Aunt Josephine intervened with Dianaâs parents, she has more confidently pursued her music. If youâre ever interested in hearing beautiful songs played on the piano then she plays a concert once a month. You could come and I wouldnât even know you were there! It would be worth it, I promise.Â
Stella, Phil, and Priscilla are doing fine as well! Priscilla gets herself into trouble for pulling pranks on our new house matron, but scoldings never seem to bother her. Beautiful Philippa frustratingly has no shortage of suitors willing to do anything for her. Itâs maddening in a funny sort of way to watch them trip over themselves to impress her as she pays them barely any notice at all.Â
What else? I have started to write for the newspaper! Just as I did in school. I will put in the envelope my very first story. Itâs only a little book review but seeing my name in print gives me the same thrill as it did last spring when my story was published. I hope this time my writing will be met with less harsh criticism.Â
Well, thatâs all I can think of to say today. Iâll try to send a longer letter next week if I can.Â
Faithfully,Â
Anne Shirley-Cuthbert
P.S. I forgot to askâ if it isnât too much trouble could you send me more stationery? Iâm almost out of the paper that you sent me for my birthday.Â
FROM THE DESK OF ANNE SHIRLEY-CUTHBERT
10 May 1903
My deeply appreciated benefactor,Â
I deeply apologize for the time it took me to write you this letter. I'm also sorry for how many of my letters start out with an apology. I realize it's been more than a month since I sent my last correspondence. Can it be called correspondence if you never write back? You've sent me gifts, which I cherish with all of my soul, but never once have you sent me a single word back. After three years you'd think I would just resign myself to the fact that all you'll ever be to me is a mystery shrouded in enigma, albeit one I'm relentlessly grateful for. But if you know anything about me by now, Mr. Smith, as you should if you've read any of my letters, is that I am as stubborn as a mule. Every person I've ever worked for or belonged to has said as much.Â
As I wrote that above paragraph I've realized that some of my words to you could be considered rude. Would you mind terribly if I apologized again? It's just that this week has been one of the worst I have ever experienced. May I tell you about it? I suppose one of the good things about never hearing back from you is that you will never tell me I can't.Â
As I write this it's Friday, and the dreadfulness started Monday. What makes everything seem worse is that the weekend was so wonderful. Ruby came for a visit, sporting gifts for all of us from her and Moody's recent visit to America. Seeing her glowing face (I think she may be expecting but if she is, I doubt she knows herself) and hearing about how happy she and her new husband are softened the blow of her departure from school last year and everyone had a delightful time. Then she boarded the train back to the Maritimes Monday morning and everything seemed to put on a shade of gray.Â
For the rest of the day both me and Diana were terribly irritable in our sadness to see her go. Our crossness culminated that night when Diana and I had a horrible argument. I can barely recall how it startedâ I think that I made some offhand comment disparaging Gilbert and she jumped to his rescue, and everything devolved from there. We were shouting horrible things at each other that should never be said out loud, things we didn't truly mean but hurt regardless. We haven't spoken since and though I know we are both regretful I don't know how to approach her and I think she feels the same. Our friendship isn't over, at least, but I yearn for normalcy. Concentrating in class has proved near impossible, even in the classes Diana and I don't share, because I'm so distracted by my guilt and shame.Â
To make matters worse, yesterday I checked my mail at the post office and what would be there but not one, but TWO rejection letters from literary magazines. I was reading them up in a secluded tree behind the library, thinking I was alone. The first was firm but polite in their rejection. We regret to inform you that we will not be accepting your work at this time, but please submit more work in the future. The kind of dismissal that comes with an impermanent sting. The next, however, was clearly more personal. The letter described my writing as infantile, superfluous, and shallowâ I starting crying on the spot. In my twenty-one years of life, I've been on the receiving end of much harsh criticism, coming from my peers, my teachers, even those I considered my friends. I often turned to writing as a way of comfort and solace in those moments. The thought that I wasn't even good at my one talent was too much to bear. So in my privacy I sobbed harder than I had in years.Â
But apparently my spot in the tree was not as concealed as I originally thought. Just as I was about to collect myself and climb down, I heard a man clear his throat and call up to me, "Miss, are you alright?"
I looked down and almost fell off the branch as I realized who it was. "Gilbert?" I exclaimed.Â
He looked surprised to see me, a wonder since that day I wore a bright yellow dress and my hair is as red as ever. "What are you doing up there?" he asked me, knitting his eyebrows together in that infuriating way he always does. "Have you been... crying?"
I shook my head but I'm sure it did nothing to hide my frazzled state.Â
"Do you need help coming down from there?"
"No," I said but he offered me a hand anyway and I accepted it.Â
As I brushed the leaves and bark from my skirt he asked me, "Would you like a cup of tea?"
My meltdown had caused me to miss lunch so I accepted. At the tea house, he as always volunteered to pay for everything which I found frustrating but I've gotten more used to Gilbert over the years.
We talked idly for a while. I asked him about his classes. He's a medical student, did I tell you that? Not in medical school yet, but in a pre-medical program. With all of his money, I don't know why he needs a career but I suppose you have to do something to fill your days. Anyway, I knew this term he's had a number of terribly strenuous courses and I was curious how he was handling them. Everything was going well, he said but didn't appear that interested in talking about himself.Â
"Do you want to talk about why you were so upset earlier?" he asked me suddenly. "I would understand if you don't, of course, but perhaps if you told someone you'd... feel better."
I sighed and pulled the letters from my pocket, handing them over to him. He scanned them quickly, raising his eyebrows.Â
"Wow," he said once he finished reading. "How could they be so..."
"Blunt?"Â
"Wrong," he finished. "These people clearly know nothing. "
I was a bit nonplussed at his reaction. "I should have worked harder on the stories, instead of rushing to send them in. I'm more angry at myself than at those who rejected me."
Gilbert shook his head. "Your work is far from shallow, Anne. If you wrote it, then I'm sure it was amazing." He scoffed at the letter.Â
âI didnât know you had read any of my writing,â I said.Â
âI read your articles in the newspaper,â he was quick to reply.Â
âOh. Well, I wouldnât judge my writing on those little book reviews in the newspaper.â
âNoâ I meant the newspaper back home. In Avonlea. Bash would send them to me here, and I always loved what you wrote. Everything you wrote carried so much meaning. That stuck with me.â
"Well, thank you, Gilbert," was all I really could say. I felt a strange burst of affection towards him at that moment and it struck me that we are truly friends. Close friends, as close as I am to Priscilla, Phil, and Stella.Â
Gilbert has changed these last few years, too. It's the strangest thing. When I first met him and he was a boy of fifteen, he was much like every other boy I met back thenâ confident, rowdy, foolhardy. Then his father died and on the rare occasion he came back to Avonlea, he seemed to have retreated into himself. We blamed it on the grief and all of the money he came into with his father's inheritance (and, reportedly, that of a wealthy aunt). But recently traces of the old Gilbert, the one who defended me from Billy Andrews and called me Carrots, have resurfaced. I don't know really how I feel about all that. I just know that I was incredibly thankful to have him as a friend yesterday in the tea house.Â
Anyways, I know that all of that might have been too personal. I'll stop myself now as I hear Diana coming up the stairs and writing this letter has motivated me to mend things with her. Iâll write more to you in a few days with updates on my courses and all of that (everything is well, donât worry) but I simply wanted to tell someone.Â
Thankful as always,Â
Anne Shirley-Cuthbert
P.S. Itâs Saturday now and Diana and I are on good terms again. I showed her the letters and she too thought they were preposterous. Diana has read the stories I sent in and liked them a lot. Because of her confidence and my talk with Gilbert on Thursday Iâve decided to send you one of my stories. I know you at least like my writing so perhaps someone will enjoy them.Â
PART II.
âIt still doesnât feel real,â Anne told Diana as they walked, arm-in-arm, through the front doors of the lecture hall. âCan you believe that it was three years ago that we first walked into this building for our first class?â
âWe were terrified, if I recall,â said Diana. âLook at us nowâ tall, beautiful, intimidating senior girls!â She struck a pose, silly and exaggerated and the two dissolved into giggles.Â
They found seats, two right next to each other near the front of the room. Twenty minutes early as they liked to be to every class on the first day, only a few other students had yet arrived.Â
âI remember being frightened of the older girls when I was a freshman,â Anne said, pulling out her notebook and pen and placing them squarely on the table in front of her. âNow that I am one, I donât know what there was to be frightened of. I scarcely feel older than I did back then.â
âDo you think that there will be many lower-years in this class?â asked Diana.Â
âI donât know. If this course was offered my first term here, I would have stopped at nothing to take it.â Anne breathed out dreamily. âTo think weâll be studying only contemporary women writersâ this is exactly the kind of course I envisioned taking when I first thought about going to college.âÂ
âItâs too bad that the others couldnât fit this into their timetables.â
Anne sighed. âSuch is the busy life of a senior. Everyone says that weâll have loads and loads more coursework this term but I think that Iâll hardly notice if the extra work is something I enjoy. Donât you agree?â
Diana nodded firmly, and the room started to fill up with other students, mostly girls but a few boys showed up as well. Their instructor, the soft spoken but kind Professor Abbott, arrived five minutes prior to the classâs scheduled start time. He walked through the front door, trailed by none other than Gilbert Blythe, and the two seemed to be engaged in conversation. As they approached the chalkboard and instructorâs desk, Gilbert thanked the man and they shook hands before Gilbert left him.Â
âHello Anne, hello Diana,â Gilbert said, standing in front of their table. âMay I sit next to you?â
One of the only free seats in the room was right next to Anne, so she nodded, then asked, âYouâre in this class?âÂ
Gilbert sat down. âIâm here, arenât I?â
Diana gently elbowed Anne for her rudeness. âWeâll be glad to see you at least twice a week now,â Diana said. âLast term we could barely catch a glimpse of you once a month.â
He chuckled. âYes, the medical faculty keeps us quite busy. If this is how rigorous pre-medical program is, I canât even begin to imagine the real thing.â
âYouâll get used to it, Iâm sure,â Diana said.Â
âI have no choice,â replied Gilbert, sardonic but Anne could tell he was in a good mood.Â
Up front, Prof. Abbott ordered a red-faced sophomore boy to hand out papers with the reading list. He had prepared one paper for every three students, so Anne, Diana, and Gilbert shared a paper.
âOh no!â Anne exclaimed as she read one title on the list.Â
âWhat happened?â asked Diana.Â
âI forgot to bring a book with me from home. This one hereâ Elizabeth and Her German Gardenâ I read it last summer and meant to bring my copy from home so I didnât have to purchase another. But now I realize that I forgot to pack it, and weâre reading it next week.â
âDonât despair, Anne, you can borrow mine when Iâm done reading the assigned sections,â offered Diana.Â
Gilbert cleared his throat. âActually, I happen to have an extra copy, if you wanted it, Anne.â
Anne perked up. âReally? Thank you, Gilbert!â
After class ended, Gilbert and Anne said goodbye to Diana and started the walk to Gilbertâs nearby apartment. Gilbert leading Anne, they reached his street only a few minutes later, as Gilbert lived only a street or two away from the main campus of the University of Toronto. The houses that lined the road embodied wealth and luxury. Though she had never been there, Anne knew that Gilbert lived in a small but ridiculously comfortable apartment at the top of one of these red bricked buildings.Â
She had never been on his street, either, but still the nameâ Sherbourne Streetâ felt familiar. As the two ascending the stairs of Gilbertâs building, Anne realized why: somewhere on the street, among its seven miles of fancy house after fancy house, live Anneâs mysterious benefactor.Â
Anne laughed out loud.Â
Gilbert turned around and threw up an inquisitive eyebrow. âIs something funny?â
âOh, nothing,â said Anne. âItâs only that the world of the rich is so remarkably tiny, donât you agree?â
âI suppose so,â answered Gilbert. âWhy do you say that?â
They reached the top step and Gilbert pulled out his key to open his door.Â
Anne told him, âIâve realized that you live on the same street as someone I know.â
Gilbert paused, his key only halfway in the lock. âOh? Who?â
âWell, Iâve never met him. This might sound strange, but heâsâ are you going to open the door or not, Gilbert?â
âOh. Sorry.â Gilbert let them in. âYou were saying?â
âHeâs an old rich man whoâs been paying for my education. Iâve never seen him in person, you see, but Iâve written him letters for the last three years so I feel like I know him quite well.â
Anne followed Gilbert through his apartment, which was quite larger than it appeared on the outside, until they ended up in a large library room with a fireplace and massive chairs with vast, soft-looking cushions. It was exactly the kind of library Anne yearned to possess herself, where she could sit with a warm cup of tea on a cold winterâs day.Â
âThe book is over here,â Gilbert said, pointing to a shelf and directing her there. âSo⌠your⌠old man has written you back often, then?â
âWell, not exactly. But I believe that you donât have to know a person to know them.â
âThat doesnât make much sense at all, Anne.â
She pouted. âNever mind then. Maybe it isnât meant to be understood by anyone else but me.â
He laughed, then, a soft chuckle that surprised Anne in its clarity. He pulled a book off the shelf. âHere it is,â he said, handing over his copy of Elizabeth and Her German Garden.Â
As Anne took it graciously, she couldnât help but notice that he didnât have another copy on the shelf but decided not to mention it.Â
~
The rest of the course was as enjoyable as Anne and Diana had hoped. Tuesday morning before class often brought Anne, Diana, and Gilbert together to a nearby tea house to eat lunch and discuss the week's readings. Anne looked forward to their meeting more than almost anything else. Gilbert seemed to appreciate the literature as much as Anne and Diana, even though the books were by women. He was able to offer both a male and medical opinion, the latter of which being particularly valued in their discussion of The Yellow Wallpaper. Both Anne and Diana thought his enjoyment curious, but their instructor was also a man after all. It wasn't so strange, and to have a man appreciating the words of a woman rather than the other way around was empowering to Anne as a writer herself.Â
Anne had never seen Gilbert so relaxed as he was during their Tuesday morning book discussions. Usually, in most other occasions when their paths crossed, Gilbert always seemed to be in such a rush, stressed out about business, or class, or some other small thing. Anne had always felt sad for him because of this, but to see him truly at ease painted him in a different light in her mind. His presence became something welcome, more soothing than it had ever been. She had realized they were good friends less than a year ago, and she wondered if Gilbert's father had never died, if business had never kept him away from Avonlea, they would be as good of friends today.Â
The term flew quicker than Anne had anticipated, as it was want to do, and soon Christmas was over and exam season was upon them. Anne barely caught sight any of her friends for those two weeks, as everyone boarded themselves in their rooms to study and write essays. The only person Anne saw with any sort of regularity was Diana, which only happened because the two shared a room.Â
The Monday of the second exam week, Anne and Diana decided to take a much-deserved break, going for a stroll in a nearby park to clear their minds.Â
"Have you seen Gilbert lately?" Anne asked Diana.Â
"No," said Diana. "I imagine he is incredibly busy with his own exams. Studying for our exams is hard enough. Can you even imagine what his must be like?"
Anne shuddered. "I would rather not. While I find the human body and all its functions endlessly fascinating, I've caught a glimpse of his more complicated textbooks. I won't be joining the pre-medical program any time soon."
"At the very least, we'll see him at the exam for women's literature," said Diana.Â
But when the day came, Gilbert did not show up. Diana and Anne showed up their usual twenty minutes early, expecting to see their friend, but he was nowhere to be seen.Â
As the minutes to the exam's start passed, Anne became nervous for her friend. She rose from her chair and said to Professor Abbott, who was seconds away from starting the test, "Excuse me, sir, but shouldn't we wait until Gilbert is here?"
Professor Abbott fixed her with an odd look. "Mr. Blythe won't be sitting the exam."
Had something happened? Had Gilbert dropped the course last-minute? That couldn't be right. He had attended every class.Â
Anne badly wanted to ask why, worried about her friend, but Professor Abbott gave her no room to do so, starting to read the instructions for their timed essay. She wrote a fine essay, though it took her longer than it would have had she not been so distracted by the empty spot next to her. When the exam finished, Anne wasted not a second to ask her instructor what he had meant.Â
"Mr. Blythe was only auditing the course," was his answer. "Therefore, he did not have to take the exam. I thought you knew that, him being your beau."Â
Heat rushed to her face. A younger Anne might have argued that Gilbert was not her beau in the least, but today she thanked him and left with Diana.Â
On their walk home, Anne clung to Diana's arm and asked, "It seems very strange that Gilbert would audit a course."Â
"It's not so strange," replied Diana. "Gilbert has always been interested in literature, and likely wanted an excuse to read more without having another exam to prepare for."
"Why do you think he didn't tell us?" asked Anne.Â
Diana peered at her, a curious glint in her eyes. "I have a suspicion."Â
When Diana didn't elaborate immediately, Anne stopped them in the middle of the walkway. A disgruntled set of girls behind them rolled their eyes to wind around them.Â
"What is it?"
With a small grin, Diana answered, "I think Gilbert took the class because of you."
"Me?!" Anne said incredulously. "Why would Gilbert do that?"
"You really don't know?"Â
"Know what? What is there to know?"
"Never mind," Diana said slyly, pulling them back into motion.Â
"Diana, quit messing with my head and tell me."Â
Diana laughed. "Are you saying that you really don't see the way he looks at you? He obviously loves you."
Anne didn't say anything, trying to wrap her mind around Diana's words.Â
Sighing, Diana continued, "If you don't believe me, just ask him yourself."
Anne huffed, confused at her irritation. "I think I will."
It took a few days to pin down Gilbert, as his exams kept him busy and occupied at the few moments he was usually reliably free. But finally Anne managed to catch him at their favorite tea house, reading a newspaper and sipping a cup of coffee, and sat down without invitation.Â
Gilbert looked surprised to see her there. "Anne, hello." He folded his newspaper and set it down in front of him. "Not that you're unwelcome, but what are you doing here?"
"Stella said she saw you here," Anne said.
"Oh," said Gilbert. "Well, do you want something? On me, of course."
"No. Actually, I have a question. An important question. Well, maybe it's not so important, but it could be. Depending on your answer."
"Anneâ just... ask the question."
Gilbert looked a little nervous himself, shifting in his chair.Â
Anne took a breath. "Right. Sorry. I was only wondering... why did you take the Women Authors course?"
"Oh." He was quiet for a moment and Anne studied his face. "Well, I wanted to educate myself, I suppose, about literature written by women. I felt I didn't know much about the subject."
Unsatisfied, Anne shot back, "You decided to take an extra class for no reason in your last year of the pre-medical program?"
"I wanted to read something other than dry medical books. I'm sorry... did you want another answer?"
Anne sighed and stood up, more dejected than she thought she'd be. "No. I was just being silly. I'm sorry for bothering you, Gilbert. I should go."
"You don't have to."
"No, I should. I have a letter to write."
~
FROM THE DESK OF ANNE SHIRLEY-CUTHBERT
1 May 1904Â
Dear Mr. Smith,Â
It felt right to address you in a more formal manner today because we have formal matters to discuss. As I graduate in three weeks, I imagine that this will be my last letter to you for some time. Donât worry, I intend to tell you as soon as something big happens with my writing. Youâll be the first to know, before Marilla or Matthew or even Diana. I could never forget that you are the reason I was able to go to school and reach my full potential. Because of you, Iâm not stuck at Green Gables, shoveling hay alongside Jerry or teaching at the small Avonlea school house and never seeing the world for the rest of my life.Â
Youâve already given me so much, Mr. Smith, and it doesnât feel right to ask for more but I canât help it. It would feel even less right to graduate without you in the audience, watching me.Â
Say youâll come, wonât you? I know you wish to remain anonymous. Your decision to hide your identity has been my constant turmoil for the last four years and I donât think I could bear to go out into the world without putting a face and a name to the man who has changed my life completely.Â
Please donât be afraid that youâll disappoint me. Is it presumptuous to tell you that? For all I know, you donât care about me one bit and havenât read a single one of my many, many letters. But if you have, and if you have found any meaning in them at all, please tell me youâll come. I already love you with all my heart.Â
If you are brave enough to come, I have included in this envelope the invitation. Matthew and Marilla regrettably canât make it so if you come, youâll be the only one there specifically for me. If you arenât, then Iâll try to forgive you. Iâm not sure Iâll be able to, but Iâll really, really try.Â
Hoping to see you soon,Â
Anne Shirley-Cuthbert
~
âPerhaps heâs running late.â
Anne slumped against the stage wall. âThereâs no use. He isn't coming."Â
Diana pulled back an inch of the stage's curtain once more. She must have seen the same empty seat as before, as she said, "I'm very sorry, Anne."
"What are you two up to?"Â
Anne and Diana turned to see Gilbert, dressed in the same black and white graduation robes as them.Â
"We're trying to see if Anne's benefactor has shown up," Diana informed him.
Gilbert adopted a pained expression, a crease forming between his eyebrows. "No luck so far, then?"
"The ceremony starts in five minutes," said Anne miserably. "He isn't coming. I don't know why I expected any different. I've written him for four years with barely any response. I'm a fool for thinking today would be any different."
Diana crouched next to her, placing a reassuring hand on her back. "You're not a fool, Anne."
"Perhaps he got called away on urgent business," said Gilbert, with a tone perhaps meant to be reassuring but that came out with a slight irritation. "You never know."
"He's a coward," Anne declared, crossing her arms. "He never cared about me at all."
"You can't possibly know that," Gilbert said.Â
"Yes, I can. I can just feel it."
Gilbert infuriatingly pointed out, "Just last month you could feel that he was a kindred spirit."
"Would you stop taking his side?"Â
"I'm not taking his side," Gilbert insisted. "But perhaps your day wouldn't be ruined if you tried to consider things from his perspectiveâ"Â
"I'm glad to graduate. Then I can finally wash my hands of rich men trying to control my life!"
Gilbert was quiet for a moment. "Is that all you think of me? Just another rich man controlling your life?"
Anne huffed but before she could respond, the professor organizing students called for graduates with B last names.Â
Diana stood up next to Anne. "We should probably go line up, Gilbert."Â
As they walked away, Diana turned around to shake her head at the other girl, sympathetic but disapproving, a look Anne had been on the receiving end of many times over their nine years of friendship.Â
Anne tried to compose herself after that, tried to still enjoy the moment she had anticipated for all her life. But as she walked across the stage, she couldn't stop her eyes from stinging or her heart from aching.Â
~
After the ceremony, the University arranged for a banquet of sorts for the recent graduates and their families. When picturing the moment in her head in the weeks prior, Anne had imagined her and her benefactor, who showed up perfectly on time for her graduation and had instantly turned into a grandfather of sorts, walking arm and arm through the crowd so she could introduce him to all of the people she had mentioned in her letters over the years. But in the face of the actual thing without any new friend or grandfather figure, Anne wished to skip the ordeal altogether.Â
Still, she had watched the graduations of other students older than her with jealousy for three years, anticipating her own shining moment. So Anne changed out of her robes, put on the new dress Marilla sent her as an apology for not being able to attend, a beautiful, soft blue thing, and resolved to enjoy herself. If she had to avoid Gilbert, then so be it.Â
Anne, Diana, and Diana's family sat at a large table under the largest white tent that Anne had ever seen. The sunset cast a pink and orange glow about everything and the faintest chill of evening air had begun to take hold, bringing a divine atmosphere to the banquet. Anne had almost started to relax when Gilbert approached their table. He had something in his hand which he seemed insistent on hiding behind his back. Â
He first greeted the Barrys, who always loved Gilbert Blythe, and then turned to Anne. "I was wondering if we could talk."Â
Anne swallowed and nodded. Gilbert led her to a bench under a tree, away from the crowds of people.Â
"Look, Gilbert, if this is about earlier today, before the ceremony..." Anne was quick to say, "I'm sorry. Really, I am. I had a horrible moment and ruined the day for you, too."
Gilbert shook his head. "I was trying to comfort you, but I only made things worse. And truly I am sorry that you were disappointed so sorely today."
"You aren't to blame," Anne told him. "It's Mr. Smith that I'm the most angry with."
"Right." He cleared his throat. "Well, I didn't bring you here to apologize. I mean not just to apologize. I meanâ these are for you."
He held out a bouquet of flowers, beautiful pink camellias, which Anne only now noticed were the object he hid behind his back.Â
"Oh, Gilbert, these are beautiful," she told him, eagerly taking the bouquet from his hands. "This is the most lovely apology I've ever received."
Gilbert looked down, a small smile forming on his mouth. "It's not just an apology. It's also a thank you." Then he looked at her, the smile growing to fullness. "You don't know how... valuable your companionship has been these last four years."
Heat rushed to Anne's cheeks as she thought of her reprehensible behavior towards Gilbert the first few years of her time at the University of Toronto. "Even after how horribly I treated you freshman and sophomore year?"
"I probably deserved that," Gilbert said, laughing. "After I left Avonlea, I barely spent any time with people my own age who didn't own at least three homes. I'm afraid I often forgot to act around normal people."
"Still, I could have been a little less harsh."Â
"Perhaps that's true."
"So I'm a normal person, then?"
"You're anything but, Anne Shirley-Cuthbert."Â
They were quiet for a moment. The wind rustled the leaves of the tree above them as the final few rays of sun sunk below the horizon.Â
Suddenly, Anne had to ask a question with an urgency that surprised her. "Gilbert," she said. "This isn't a goodbye, is it?"
He looked at her in surprise. "No. Never."Â
"Oh. Good," Anne said, relieved.Â
Gilbert looked like he was about to say something, but at that moment a little girl with light brown skin and curly black hair ran up to him. She couldn't have been more than four. He laughed, picking the little girl up.
"Who is this?" asked Anne, not thinking about how disappointed she felt in that moment.Â
"This is Delly, my friend's daughter," Gilbert said. He stood up and sighed. "I should probably get her back to her family."
Anne stood up as well. "Yes, probably."Â
He walked a few steps away before turning around. Again, he looked like he wanted to say something. Instead, he picked up Anne's hand with his free one and kissed it. "I'm really proud of you, Anne."
Her heart beating loudly in her ears prevented her from making any response, and she was only able to watch him walk away, back to the crowds of people, as she tried to reckon with her own feelings.Â
~
A | S | C
1 June, 1904
To my forgiven benefactor,Â
I know I said that the last letter would be the last letter. I had thought that because I had imagined the last week would go a lot differently than it has.Â
If you had come to my graduation, there would have been no reason to continue sending letters in this manner. As I intend to stay in Toronto for the foreseeable future, I had pictured us having tea once a week and discussing books and my writing and the weather or any number of other things. But, as we both know, you did not attend. Before it happened, I had thought that I could never forgive your absence. I know I said that I would try but I was already certain that I wouldn't be able to forgive you. But I have surprised even myself.Â
I have realized that I don't know you at all, Mr. Smith, and have made my peace with this. I didn't come to this conclusion easily, that much is certain. I haven't the faintest idea why you never wanted to write back to me, or why you didn't come to my graduation. Perhaps you were busy. Perhaps you have not read a single letter I've sent. Perhaps you were as scared to meet me as I was to meet you. Whatever the reason, I'm afraid I have lost sight of everything you've given me. If our relationship, however one-sided it is, ends with scorn, then every time I think about University and all of the opportunities it has afforded me I would have to think about my anger. A younger Anne would have been content to live that life, but I certainly am not. So there you are, Mr. Smith. This young, foolish girl forgives you.Â
I've only now realized how valuable writing these letters has been for my personal development. You are my closest confidant. You know things about me that even Diana doesn't know, which is saying a lot. Had you responded, then I doubt that I would have been as honest as I was. If you'll allow me to be honest one more time, I have quite the dilemma. You see, these letters have allowed me to sort through confusing feelings and I feel more confused right now than I had ever been.Â
You see, Mr. Smith, I think I am in love. I wish you could help me. I could use some wisdom right now. As much as I have longed to be in love my whole life, I never thought to think about what it would actually be like.Â
When I'm with him, time doesn't exist anymore. And then he leaves, I'm aware of how quickly time passes by and I want to sob. I want to share everything there is. I want him to be there in the morning when I make porridge and I want to be there with him when he's doing the most boring business possible. Every time I read a good book, or think a funny thought, I wish he was next to me so I can tell him about it. At night I hate the moonlight because it's beautiful and he isn't here to see it with me. Do you understand what I mean? I really, really hope that you do. I think anyone who has ever been in love would understand.Â
Here is my problem and the source of my anguish: the man I am in love with is Gilbert Blythe. This may come as a shock to you, since I have frequently spoken ill of him in my letters. For this very reason, I am afraid I preemptively damaged my relationship with him permanently. We have since become close friends, but how could he forget how horrid I was to him, enough to love me back? I'm sure he'll also want to be with a distinguished woman from wealth, like that beautiful Winifred Rose I spotted him walking arm-in-arm with last February. I will forever be the red headed orphan girl who slapped him with a slate when I was thirteen.Â
I know you won't respond, but I still have to ask you. What do you think I should do? If you could just read this letter and think your answer really, really hard then I am certain I will feel better.Â
I will miss writing these letters and I will miss you, Mr. Smith. I will continue to think of you every day of my life.Â
Sending you all the love in my heart,Â
Anne Shirley-Cuthbert
P.S. In this envelope I have included my final transcripts as well as a check for $100. The check is not for much compared to all that you've given me but it's a start and I intend to pay you back every penny that you have spent on me. I received a small sum of money for a short story that will be published soon, and it's a start.Â
P.P.S. Did you notice my new stationery? I bought it myself also with the money from the advance.Â
A | S | C
6 June 1904
Dear Mr. Smith,Â
YES! I will be thereâ Saturday at noon. I canât believe that I am finally going to meet you. It doesnât feel real.Â
Love, love, love,Â
Anne
~
Once Anne arrived at the address told to her by Mr. Smith, she recognized the building as the tea place she, Diana, and Gilbert went to nearly twice a week during the Fall term. Had her and her benefactor ever been there at the same time? Had they ever crossed paths before, said hello to each other on the street without knowing each others' identity? For the first time in nearly four years, how close they lived to each other truly struck Anne. She knew he lived in Toronto, even knew what street he lived on thanks to the return address on the stationery he sent her every birthday. But they knew about the same businesses, ate at the same places!Â
All that time being so close and yet he still never made an effort to visit. Anne wondered if she would come to regret her choice to meet Mr. Smith here today. But she was too curious and had come so far. So she pushed her shoulders back in resolve and entered the tea house with as much confidence as she could muster.Â
A waiter in a nice blue jacket greeted her immediately.Â
"I'm here to meet with Mr. Smith," she told him.
Comprehension bloomed on the waiter's face. "You must be Ms. Shirley, then. Follow me."
He escorted her past large rooms with tables full of people eating lunch, past the kitchen door, past the restrooms, to a private tea room with a large window facing the park across the street. A large table sat in front of the window, meant to accommodate a large party of people. A single figure stood in the window, a silhouette in the face of the bright sunlight that streamed inside. This was it. She would finally meet her benefactor. Anne's heart stopped as the man slowly turned around. Only, when he did, he wasn't Mr. Smith. He wasn't even an old man.Â
He was Gilbert Blythe.Â
"Gilbert?" Anne cried. "What are you doing here?Â
"Hello, Anne." He swallowed visibly.Â
"You must leave now. I'm meeting someone very important and undoubtedly he'll be here soon, so if you couldâ"
"I know," Gilbert said.Â
"If you know, then you know why you must leave," Anne told him, irritation setting him. She approached him to try and push him towards the door. "How you could possibly know is another thing. Did Diana tell you? I told her not to tell anyone."
"No, Anneâ" He paused, firm in his footing and grabbed her gently by the shoulders. "I know why you're here because you're here to see me. I sent you that letter."
"Did you impersonate Mr. Smith?"Â
"No, what I'm trying to tell you is..." he dropped his hands from her shoulders and moved one to scratch at the back of his head. "I couldn't impersonate Mr. Smith. Because he's me."
Well. Anne wasn't expecting that. She stopped in her tracks, mouth agape.Â
"Please, say something," Gilbert begged, a tremor to his voice.Â
"You?" was all that she could get out.Â
"You're Mr. Smith."Â
Blood rushed to Anne's face and she felt her heart and breath speed up dangerously. She grasped the back of a chair, tightly clutching the wood.Â
Gilbert pulled out another chair. "Perhaps you should sit down."Â
She did take a seat, but it wasn't the one he offered. "You're my mysterious, anonymous benefactor."
He gave a feeble laugh. "One in the same."Â
"I don't understand. How can you be Mr. Smith? You're not even old."
Sitting next to her, Gilbert said, "I never understood why you always wrote about my old age. I certainly never said that."Â
"Rich men who give orphan girls enormous scholarships are old. That just makes sense," Anne told him, nearing hysteria. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "They aren't pre-medical students I hit with a slate when I was thirteen!"Â
"I owe you an explanation. That's why Iâ"
Anne's hands flew to her mouth in shock. "My goodness, the letters! Every horrible thing in the world about you I wrote in those letters!"
"You said a lot of things to me in person, too," Gilbert pointed out dryly.
"That's different! I didn't know I was insulting my benefactor to his face!" If it were possible, Anne felt her face growing even warmer. She surely looked like a tomato, with her face red enough to match her hair. "And you read my letters?"
"Every single one. They were the best part of my month."
"Every single one?" Anne echoed. "I suppose there's no hope that you skipped the last one, then?"
"I meant every one."Â
She buried her face into the table. "If Mr. Smith had been my matron from the orphanage, it would have been easier to take."
He patted her back awkwardly. "Well, I'm not so bad, am I?"
Anne wanted to scream, taking a deep breath to avoid doing so. "Could you just promise to forget about the last letter and never mention it ever again?"
"I'm afraid I could never do that, Anne."Â
"And why not?"
"Well, Iâ I just couldn't."Â
"Why would you do this, Gilbert? I can't wrap my mind around it. I just don't understand."
Leaning back in his chair, Gilbert paused a moment before saying, "You wouldn't have let me pay for your education any other way."
"You still should have asked."
"Maybe so," Gilbert said. "But come on, Anne, I've known how stubborn you are since we were kids. I had the bruises to prove it. And when I heard that you had been accepted into the U of T but couldn't go because of money, well, I had to help."
"But why me?" Anne asked him.Â
"You deserved it. And, well, maybe I was selfish."
"Selfish?"
He took a deep breath. "Maybe because I knew I was also going to Toronto. And maybe I wanted you there, too."
Anne didn't know at all how to respond to that. Her mind raced, replaying every moment they shared over the last few years. How her benefactor happened to know her birthday, when Gilbert had bumped into her at her own birthday party. How her benefactor didn't come to her graduation, when Gilbert was graduating himself. They even lived on the same street. Of course Gilbert was her benefactor. It made sense.Â
"Why did you agree to meet now? Why not before?"
Gilbert exhaled loudly. "You don't know how many times I almost told you, or how many letters I started to draft but threw away before I could. I didn't know if I should be Mr. Smith telling you I'm Gilbert, or if I should be Gilbert telling you I'm Mr. Smith."
"Mr. Smith doesn't exist," she said.Â
That made Gilbert go quiet. "I suppose he's not," he said finally. "Are you terribly mad at me?"
Anne sighed. "You lied to me and betrayed my trust for four years. I don't know how I could ever forget that."
"And yet?"
"And yet..." Anne was surprised to feel a smile forming and at last she laughed. "It's you, it's really you."
Hope or something like it bloomed on Gilbert's face. He grabbed her hand.
Anne told him, "You never answered my question."
Gilbert took a shaky breath. "Because," he said, "When I read your last letter, I realized you needed to know everything before I did this."
"Did what?" she asked, but she knew he was already leaning in.Â
Gilbert kissed Anne, and while Anne had imagined her first kiss much more chaste, she put all of the emotions she felt into it. When they pulled back, Gilbert had a goofy grin adoring his mouth that she was sure matched her own.Â
"Anne," he said urgently. "I love you."
"I'd tell you the same," she said, "but something tells me you already know."
~
YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITEDÂ
TO THE WEDDING OFÂ
ANNE SHIRLEY-CUTHBERT
and
GILBERT BLYTHE
Saturday, October 4, 1904
3 oâclock in the afternoon
At the St. Andrewâs Church
Toronto, Ontario
Reception to follow.
 / fin
#annesecretsanta#kindredspiritssecretsanta#kindred spirits secret santa#lollercakesff#anne with an e#awae#shirbert#royalcordelia#tessa im tagging ur other blog in case something gets fucked up lol#i hope you enjoy this lollercakes!#i love ur fic a lot :)
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I LIVE!!! I just spend the last 2 hours doing nothing but writing and my GOD I feel alive!!
also @royalcordelia I may have flooded your WWI Anne with an E fic with several long comments, transcribing the headcanon I dreamed up for it today. Sorry not sorry ;P
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hi @tippy152! Iâm so sorry I was late, but hereâs your secret santa present for the AWAE gift exchange! I had SOO MUCH FUN making this and I hope you love this too! I created this moodboards based on the main *ish* characters! (Also, none of the photos belong to me! All the photo credits go to their respective owners. ) I hope you had a great christmas. Happy NEW YEAR!!!
P.S. Thank you so much @royalcordelia for organizing this event! I hope you have a marvelous new year too!
#anne secret santa#awae#anne with an e#shirbert#derry#anne of green gables#ruby gillis#jerry baynard#gilbert blythe#diana barry#HAPPY NEW YEAR
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The Scientist
Merry Christmas to @rootedbutfl0wing! Sorry itâs a couple of days late, but I really hope you do enjoy it! Hope your Christmas was wonderful, and it was a lot of fun getting to know you a little bit :) And thank you @kindredspiritssecretsanta (@royalcordelia) for once again hosting this wonderful event! Once again, cannot wait till next year x
Read it on AO3 / fanfiction.net
2019 Fic
2018 Fic
Summary:Â Based on The Scientist by Coldplay, which I thought kind of fitted Anne and Gilbert a lot (have a listen if youâve never heard it before! Itâs a beautiful song). Major moments of their relationship from Gilbertâs point of view, along with missing scenes and an AU ending, definitely enemies to friends to lovers. Hope you enjoy!
Come up to meet you; Tell you Iâm sorry; You donât know how lovely you are
 Red. He saw it, red hair. Never was there another colour like it. Gilbert slowly turned in his seat to see a scraggly, freckled girl seated next to Diana Barry. Who was this girl? The sun glinted steadily through the window onto that hair that had drawn his eye in the first place. Why itâs as red as carrots, he thought, continuing to do nothing but stare at the girl who he had never seen in his life. She glanced his way, to which he winked at her, smiling smugly that sheâd looked.
After a muttered word to Diana, the girl gazed out the window and, at least what Gilbert began to believe, blatantly ignored him. Feeling the need to see those grey-green eyes look his way once more, he began to rack his brain for ideas. CarrotsâŚ
âCarrots,â he hissed softly while tugging gently on the red hair heâd already grown so fond of, âCarrots.â
She whirled around in horror, her eyes flashing a delicious shade of green. âHow dare you!â she screamed, and the next Gilbert knew was sheâd gone and smashed something over his head. Was that a slate? Either way he found himself apologising profusely to Mr. Phillips whoâd rushed to the scene.
Ann Shirley has a very bad temper. Ann Shirley must learn to control her temper. * Was written on the board, and the girl grimly marched to the board placing an âeâ at the end of each Ann. Anne Shirley. What a beautiful name for a beautiful girl. Anne stood seething under that sign for the rest of the afternoon, glaring every now and then at the boy who started it all.
At the end of the day Gilbert waited behind for Anne to leave after her lecture from Mr. Phillips. Intercepting her at the door, he glanced into her eyes, âI'm awfully sorry I made fun of your hair, Anne," he whispered contritely. "Honest I am. Don't be mad for keeps, now." *
The lovely girl with the golden, red hair snubbed her nose, and marched away with Diana at her side. Despite this, he grinned dumbly. Sheâs simply lovely, he thought his eyes following her down the road as she made her way towards what he assumed to be her home.
 I had to find you; Tell you I need you; Tell you I set you apart
 With the mayflowers in hand, Gilbert set off towards Pattyâs Place, smiling sweetly at what could come of this particular visit. He found Anne in the orchard her head buried in a book, and he smiled slightly at her usual Anne-ness.
Handing her the Mayflowers, he carefully told her of his plans for the summer: staying in Kingsport to work at the Daily News Office. Gilbert watched as her face fell, hoping this was as good of time as any to ask her the question he had yearning in the back of his mind ever since that fateful day he called her carrots. She quickly composed herself however, and before she could make any more excuse to leave to pick violets, he said, âThings can't go on like this any longer. Anne, I love you. You know I do. I - I can't tell you how much. Will you promise me that someday you'll be my wife?â **
Anne quickly turned away shaking her head. Gilâs face fell immediately. Perhaps he was deceiving himself all along. Had she really never loved him? What about at Echo Lodge? Surely there was something in her eyes then. She begged for his forgiveness, and he gently, in person and heart, let go of her hand.
âThere isn't anything to forgive. There have been times when I thought you did care. I've deceived myself, that's all. Goodbye, Anne.â ** And as he walked away that day, malice entered his heart. He must never think of Anne Shirley again.
 Tell me your secrets; And ask me your questions; Oh, letâs go back to the start
 Gilbert sat, his work sprawled across his desk as he ran his hands carefully through his curls. Biting his lip, he thought carefully about what was bothering him so. It has been a year, a year to the dot. His eyes glistened with tears once more as he remembered the terrified look on Anneâs face as he told her of his love for her. Oh, how he regretted it now. Shaking his head, he recalled their beautiful friendship, dwelling on the secrets that she had lovingly entrusted him with.
âGil,â Anne said, a little melancholic after a particularly deep conversation between the two of them, âCould I tell you something? Something Iâve never told anyone else?â
He looked at her curiously, âNot even to Marilla or Diana?â At the shake of her head, he swallowed carefully, âYou know you can tell me anything.â
âWell, I never really thought of it till now. Do you really think anyone could love me? I mean romantically? Iâm afraid that Iâve not grown up surrounded by love that I donât know what Iâm looking for. Marilla and Diana, they think me foolish with my fantastic ideals of love. But when I was about 5 or 6, I was living with a family whoâd hired me as a work hand â to look after the children, you see. I remember their eldest son was much older than their youngest children. He was about 15 or 16. He wrote poetry and was melancholic. He was the only one in that household that ever paid any attention to me and snuck me food when no one was looking. I didnât love him romantically of course, I was only 6, but I feel thatâs where this all sprouted from in the end. Donât you think itâs strange that these memories come back to us so many years later?â
Gilbert had stopped their walking a while back. He looked deep into her eyes and whispered, âAnneâŚâ
Anne cleared her throat at the intimacy in his voice, and Gilbert immediately thought himself an idiot for letting such intimacy come about in this private moment, âUm, I should⌠go. Iâll see you later Gilbert.â
Thinking back to this moment now, just a few weeks before they went to Redmond, he knew how idiotic it was to ask for her hand. He wasnât the brooding hero she had longed for her whole life â he was plain old Gilbert Blythe, ex-best friend of the most remarkable woman to walk the earth. Yes, she wasâŚ
 Nobody said it was easy; Itâs such a shame for us to part; Nobody said it was easy; No one ever said it would be this hard; Oh, take me back to the start
 Gilbert saw the radiant girl â no, woman â waltz into the newly decorated hall on the arm of Royal Gardner. Her figure was dressed in an apple green with a low scooped neckline, and her ruddy tresses were laced with small snowdrops. Sheâs simply beyond beautiful tonight, and you canât have her. He sighed, lacing his fingers with his ruddy curls, and pacing near the wide window that showed the snow covered land. His best friend â ex-best friend, he scoffed â was on the arm of another man and if the whispering around him was true, she would continue to be on his arm forever.
He felt a gentle tap on his shoulder, and he swung around to see Christine Stuart with a small smile gracing her lips. âGilbert, are you ready for our dance? The band is set up now.â In the short while of pacing, the room had come to life. Women and men dressed to the nines, chatter erupting and creating an atmosphere of warmth. He nodded and grabbed her hand, placing it in the crook of his arm as they meandered to the dance floor.
They twirled and swayed slowly to the tune that was being softly played. Violins, piano, and flutes all filling his head with sweet song. Not as sweet as Anne, the thought rudely interrupted. He shook his head, gracing a glance at the couple dancing not two feet away from him and his partner. And I guess that is the man who will sit and read her Tennyson by firelight. Yes, but you would do that for her tooâŚ
âGilbert, is everything alright?â He quickly looked up and then down, realising that he had stopped their slow dance and there were people hurrying to avoid crashing into them. âYouâre awfully pale. Did you want to sit down for a spell, or perhaps get some air?â
âUm, yes please. I just need to be alone for a little while. Will you be alright? Iâll be back by the next dance.â Christine opened her mouth, but Gilbert had already started walking away continuing his pedantic running of fingers through his hair. Oh, why did you ask her to marry you anyway. You ruined everything; she could still be on your arm as a friend â best friend â not on the arm of that Royal guy. He gasped in the cold air and his hardened heart frosted over as the rivers seeped from his eyes.
 I was just guessing at numbers and figures; Pulling your puzzles apart; Questions of science, science, and progress; Do not speak as loud as my heart
 Every day Gilbert placed one foot in front of the other to pull himself out of bed, through the door and into the gates of Redmond to face his studies, and it was paying off. Another year without Anne; another year of topping every class. It was the easiest distraction from the rushing thoughts and escorting Christine around to various social gatherings. Pouring into schoolwork was always something he had enjoyed, but especially now when it was the only thing in his life that he could fully control. Especially when flashes of red hair and green eyes invaded his dreams every night. Especially when he couldnât have her.
 Tell me you love me; Come back and haunt me; Oh, and I rush to the start; Running in circles, chasing our tails; Coming back as we are
 It hadnât been so long ago that they were walking through Hester Grayâs garden â she was picking flowers and he was desperately trying to see more in their friendship. Days often turned to dusk while they were together. And oh, they could talk, or rather Anne could. In every memory he had of her, there were glimpses of moments that he had misconstrued as love. Fleeting touches â of course they were by accident â meaningful glances â Miss Lavenderâs wedding, I think she did love me then, perhaps for a moment.
Anne was still very much on the arm of Royal Gardner at every social gathering, while Christine Stuart was on his own arm. The distractions of schoolwork and being up for the Cooper prevented Gilbert from taking in much of the gossip that surrounded the couples. In the back of his mind, he knew what they were saying. Gilbert to wed Christine and Royal to wed Anne. He knew the gossip around his love life was not true, Christine was engaged to another man and he didnât think of her in that way. But Anne⌠All of those rumours could very well be true. Where would that leave him?
âGilbert!â No⌠it couldnât be her. âGil!â And just like that her red hair was staring him in the face.
âAnne?â
âYes, of course. Gilbert, I just wanted to congratulate you. It seems we are both on the honours list, Iâve just come from the deanâs office. Here,â she shoved a piece of paper into his hands, âsee for yourself. Itâs all so exciting!â
And in that moment Gilbert allowed himself back to those friendship days of Loverâs Lane, the Dryadâs Bubble, the Lake of Shining Waters, and imagined what it would be like to be with her in those places now. She continued to chatter but stopped when he suddenly gathered her into his arms. âThank you, Carrots.â And he walked away, leaving her mouth wide open and a few tears gathered on her eyelashes.
 Nobody said it was easy; Oh, itâs such a shame for us to part; Nobody said it was easy; No one ever said it would be so hard; Iâm going back to the start
 That moment of the honours list sustained him for some time. She was radiant at convocation in her dress with his flowers. His promise to her all those years ago. If we make it to graduation Iâm sending you a bunch of Lilies of the Valley. The Cooperâs Prize was his and Anne had made the honourâs list for English. Well, of course. In the times that he has known her she has been the storyteller, and so honours in English was never a negotiable thing.
The dance began and through the crowd he could see her. She was once again in a shroud of pale green taffeta, his flowers laced through her hair. Everything slowed as they made eye contact with one another. He stumbled towards her, dropping Christine from his arm. As if in a daze, he made his way through the ballroom. But then he saw the haze of her eyes, and the shock in her face as she turned towards the entry of the room. She began to run out into the cool of the early summer night.
In that moment Gilbert knew exactly what he was doing, and yet his knees never stopped knocking, his hands never left his curls. He was going after her. And this time nothing was going to stop him. In the craze of the ballroom, he flung himself around dancing couples and out the door. In the moonlight he saw the pale skin of her throat accentuated by the curls let loose down her back.
âAnne!â She stopped her dazed walk but did not turn to face him. He quickly caught up to her and placed both hands on her cold shoulders. âAnne-girl, whatâs wrong?â
âYou did it again.â She murmured, which he barely caught through the howling wind.
âWhat?â
âYou call me Anne-girl, you send me gifts, flowers, you never break your promises. And yet you look at me in the same way you always have, even after I broke your heart. Gil? How can you still look at me that way? Iâve never deserved it Gil⌠Iâve neverâŚâ It broke his heart more to have this precious girl crying in his arms over unspoken words, glances, and touches. But he did speak his heart over two years ago in that orchard. Could it be that sheâs changed her mind? âAnd now, youâre going to marry Christine and itâs all my fault that I never understood⌠I never understoodâŚâ
âAnne-girl,â he said in reverence, âis that what this is about?â She pulled her head off his chest to look into his kind, hazel eyes, and he reached up to wipe away her tears. âIâm not engaged to marry Christine. Itâs all silly rumours, oneâs which I never paid much attention to anyway. You see⌠I have a dream. I persist in dreaming it, although it has often seemed to me that it could never come true. I dream of a home with a hearth-fire in it , a cat and dog, the footsteps of friends â and you!â ***
And there was once again that moment in which Anne looked at him like he thought he must look at her and he knew there was no separating them again.
 *Anne of Green Gables Chapter XV
**Anne of the Island Chapter XX
***Anne of the Island Chapter XLI
#annesecretsanta#anne of green gables#aogg#anne with an e#anne shirley#gilbert blythe#anne fanfiction#shirbert fanfiction
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so who do yâall think are the most prominent blogs in the awae fandom?
#i usually think of jacksjustright shirbertshitposts elderofavonlea royalcordelia gilbert-blyth#shir-bert dearestgil....#????#i feel like i may be on the list too but....#awae#text
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Um...yes? Your time-travel-ish fic is constantly on my mind because i just need to know what happens next
I just wanted to come on here and say @royalcordelia is a god tier author
Thatâs all, have good day
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Weâre starting strong with our fic recommendations!Â
Time Turns to Amber by Lil_Redhead (@royalcordelia)
The line between universes is blurred when Anne Shirley of Green Gables suddenly switches lives with Ann Cuthbert, a university student living in the contemporary world.
Suddenly Anne must learn how to navigate the modern world, one which contains a boyfriend, a part time job, and another year of university. Meanwhile, Ann struggles to tackle corsets, farming, and a world without electricity. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad, but most people can't tell the difference between the redhead they know and the girl who replaced her. Anne (and Ann) have to learn to live as the other and try to find a way back to their own homes.
Relationships: Anne Shirley-Cuthbert/Gilbert Blythe, background Diana Barry/Jerry Baynard
Characters: Anne Shirley-Cuthbert, Gilbert Blythe, Diana Barry, Jerry Baynard, Matthew Cuthbert, Marilla Cuthbert, Sebastian âBashâ Lacroix, Mary Lacroix
This fic will appeal to fans of modern!Anne and historical!Anne alike. Lil_Redhead clearly put a lot of thought into the historical research and how relationships would be different between the two times. Canât recommend enough!Â
#awae#anne with an e#rated: t#awae fic#fanfiction#royalcordelia#shirbert#no warnings#time travel#historic fic#modern au#anne shirley cuthbert#gilbert blythe#diana barry#jerry baynard#matthew cuthbert#marilla cuthbert#sebastian bash lacroix#mary lacroix#20k-50k#incomplete#mod carp
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Anne With an E [Dirty Dancing AU]
â âMe? Iâm scared of everything. Iâm scared of what I saw, Iâm scared of what I did, of who I am, and most of all Iâm scared of walking out of this room and never feeling the rest of my whole life the way I feel when Iâm with you.â â Dirty Dancing (1987)
@royalcordelia
#anne with an e#shirbert#awae#shirbert au#anne shirley#gilbert blythe#anne of green gables#aogg#royalcordelia#tessa
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AOGG/AWAE Secret Santa 2020
Can you believe itâs almost the Holiday season again? đâď¸ That means itâs time for our annual fandom wide event: Kindred Spirit Secret Santa! If youâve done this before or this is your first time, all the information youâll need is right below!Â
What is it?
The Secret Santa exchange is a nice way to meet other people in the fandom, spread the holiday spirit, and share all our lovely creations with everyone.Â
How does it work?
Once you sign up, youâll receive an ask/message with the name of the person youâll be making a gift for. During November and December, send the person anonymous asks to get to know them and find out what theyâd like for Christmas! Then, during the week of 12/25 (the 20rd through the 26th), youâll reveal your identity and post their present. For examples, feel free to peruse the blog and see last yearâs presents.
How do I sign up?
Between 11/14/20 and 12/10/20, fill out this google form. Iâll take care of the rest. Sign ups will end December 12th, but if you still want to participate, feel free to contact me to see if thatâs possible! We can probably work something out!
Can I participate with my sideblog?
Absolutely, please just indicate that in your google form.
What sorts of things can I give my giftee?
Photo edits/manips
Gifsets
Fanfiction Â
Headcanons
A playlist
Reviews of their own work
Fan art
Video edits
Anything you can think of, really! Just be sure to ask them their preferences for ships, etc.
Can I make more than one gift?
Yes, of course! However, donât feel obligated to. Whatever you make should come from the heart, but it should also not be a burden on you.
What happens if I need to drop out early?
Life happens, espeically during 2020! However, Iâd ask that you please contact me ASAP! I want to make sure that your giftee gets taken care of and has something coming for them on Christmas. Iâd rather you admit that you forgot, than be completely unaware that someone didnât get a present.Â
Other rules
If youâre joining with us from Twitter, youâll need to make a tumblr account so you can receive anonymous messages. However, you can still post your present on any platform you choose (and in fact, you should!)
Donât tell the person that youâre their santa! That ruins the fun!
All gifts you make should be posted to your own blog and include the tag #AnneSecretSanta (Because KindredSpiritsSecretSanta is kinda long)! That way Iâll be able to reblog them.
Make sure you tag your giftee in the post as well. It also doesnât hurt to send it to them.
Please make sure your askbox is open to anoymous messages before signing up. (đ
đ
đ
<- extra Santaâs for emphasis!!)
If you change your username, please let me know!
Under most circumstances, please do not tag your ask messages with the main tags (Anne of Green Gables, awae, Shirbert, etc). The exception would be unless they are directly relevant. We donât want to flood the tags.
Please contact me (Iâm Tessa! You can get ahold of me on this blog or @royalcordeliaâ) with any further questions you may have!Â
#anne with an e#anne of green gables#awae#shirbert#annesecretsanta#this was a lot of fun last year!#i've done some messing around to fix some of the kinks#so this year should be even better!!
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ik people are making end of the year stuff, but let's also celebrate the beginning of a new decade! so here's me jumping on the follow forever bandwagon to thank all those people who made my extremely moody 2019 a bit brighter, and to whom i hope only good things happen in the year to come.
mutuals | favourites
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@absolutebearings @agentsofleafs @agentxthirteen @airbender-dacyon @akapeterbparker @alloverthegaf @amadeuscho @anncshirley @anne-cuthbert @anne-in-avonlea @annesoftheisland @anneshirleycuffbert @annessnowqueen @anthon-e @anthony-edward-stark-is-my-hero @anthonydarling @anthonystqrk @anxieteandbiscuits @arachnaboy @armoredavengers @armoredsoftie @ashes0909 @avengersandco @avonleagirl @beatcopjake @benslie @bigbrotherlouis @bitony @black-widows @blvnk-art @bookwyrms @brielrsons @briesexuals @buckyrhodey @cammiegoodes @capsicleandmetalman @captainstarkreportingforduty @carolthor @cath-avery @captainpoe @capxtony @carrotsofavonlea @chashmishh @chevrolangels @christmasdowney @colins-farrells @cptniron @crazyassmurdererwall @crispsevans @dadmando @dadsolo @daeneryssansa @danylives @daresdevil @delmars @desitonystark @dingonato @downey-junior @downeylove @downeyverse @drugismybaby @dwight-schrutes @dynjarren @eldritch-crone @enchanted-keys @elsaclack @epicnhanha @expelliarmus @festiveferret @fiinnpoeâ @film-bro @fosterthor @frivoloussuits @futurist @generalantiope @generalfinnpoe @geraltcavills @gilbert-to-my-anne @gilbertblyythes @gin-loves-harry @ginnxweasley @goddamnmikeross @goldinavonlea @hargreefes @harry-lloyds @heart-of-gold-titanium-alloy @hello-shellhead @hellogarbagetime @hellvocadoÂ
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@i-am-irondad @i-heart-scully @i-love-tony-stark-3000 @in-a-cave-with @inakindofdaydream @ink-splotch @irondadofficial @itismarvelicious @itsallavengers @itstheallmother @itstonystarkbitch @iwantcupcakes @jakeperallta @jarvis-is-my-copilot @jasonrtodd @jess-b-thot @jo-stormborn @jonathancarnahan @just-a-man-in-a-can @jxhn-mulaney @kayvsworld @kelslk @kiillmonger @kingbrunnhilde @knightinironarmor @kolinar @kylloben @lao-pendragon @leaton451 @legitconman @lgbtonystarks @liltonystark @ljcovensky @lovelyiknow @lovelyirony @lovelytonys @lronhusbands @luke-skywalker @machi-kun @madadlorian @maddenmarvels @maryjanes @mandalorianns @mcflybi @mettacore @musicalluna @mysticsrose @naferty @nasafic @natashalieromanova @natasharxmanov @natashasstark @nellie--crain @nochillsteve @nomadicbeard @notrustliar @ohstardustgirl @one-piece-of-harry @onemuseleft @organasrey @oscaarisaacs @pepperonys @peppperpotts @percyyoulittleshit @perishperalta @peter-stank @poefinn @potts-peppers @presidentrhodes @prince-stark @protect-anthony-edward-stark @raspberrycordialaddict @realitybanana @realsashafierce @revoluutions @reyskywclkerâ @rhodeyâ @ripley-starkâ @riverlander974â @riversbarkleysâ @robertdowneyjjrâ @robertdowneysâ @robertpattisonsâ @royalcordeliaâÂ
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@sabrecmc @sal-si-puedes @samwilsonns @scoop-of-shirbert @scullysthumbtacks @shell-heads @shewhowillrise @shir-bert @shvistark @silly-nargles @sineala @sirsapling @sixavengers @sketiana @snapslikethis@smolpotts @soapieturner @solovalker @sour--strawberries @spiderrpcrker @spidey-art @spideychelle @squeeful @stark-tony @stark-unlimited @starked @starketony @starkexpo @starkcinematicuniverse @starkravinghazelnuts @starkshipper @starksrhodes @starkstruckus @statusquoergo @stevebitchrogers @steveplustony  @stonystarkcinematicuniverse @stydixa @superhusbands4ever @tattooedsiren @teamironmanforeverâ @teamlronmanâ @theappleppielifestyleâ @thejilyshipâ @themandclorianâ @thereysistanceâ @thoragnaroksâ @thylaaâ @tincanmansâ @toney-starksâ @toni-colletteâ @tony-stark-deserves-betterâ @tony-stark-has-a-heartâ @tony-starks-heartâ @tonyandpepperstarkâ @tonynstarkâ @tonysbubblebuttâ @tonysnebulaâ @tonyspepperâ @tonysnorkâ @tonysstressballâ @tonystankstanâ @tonystark @tonystark-saved-marvelâ @tonystarkdefensesquadmemberâ @tonystarkirondadâ @tonystarkssnipplesâ @tonystarkstanâ @tonysuitsâ @trans-tonyâ @tsuki-chibiâ @turnerflowersâ @underoosstarkâ @unofficialmarvelâ @viudanegraaaâ @van-dyneâ @wespersâ @whamiltoonâ @willelbyersâ @wilmakinsâ @wingheadshellheadâ @winston-wilsonâ @winterwldowâ @yourtwomomsâÂ
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