Anne had been on a train back to the orphanage when she first heard of True Cross Academy and Exorcists. Mrs. Hammond had instructed
her to go straight to the orphanage; however, Anne was desperate to avoid the retched place.
She overheard two strange men with long black coats and a pin Anne rather liked, who were discussing a daemon they just killed and the
son of Satan. At the mention of the name Satan, she touched her red braid. She had once been tolled that the devil had cursed her red
hair, and that because of it, she was an evil, unwanted child. Then, they had snipped a piece of her hair off and threw it in the fire.
Anne was sure she had seen a face when as it burned in the fire.
"Confront Satan." One of the men in the black coats said.
It was in that moment that Anne decided she wanted to learn why. Now what she wanted to learn from that word were a great many
things, but she figured this was a good place to try her luck. She followed the men, who went into a truck. It was a closed back, so she
threw her old carpet bag into the back and climbed in.
It was a long drive, but when Anne got there, she was amazed at the structure. She got out and looked up, holding her hat so it wouldn't
fall off.
"This has to be the most beautiful castle I have ever seen," she thought.
She would have lingered there longer, but it was getting dark.
Just then she saw a blond girl passing her. The girls stopped and blinked, she had never seen theis redhead before.
"Hi" the girl said.
"Hi" Anne said feeling shy all of a sudden.
"I can't stay long but my name's Shimi" The girl said.
"I'm Anne with an e" Anne answered back.
The girl, Shimie, was just about to respond but ran off waving goodbye when a boy called her name. Anne then went inside, noticing the
big windows and moving steps.
She followed the signs to the headmaster's office. She had a million butterflies in her stomach, and hoped very much, that this
headmaster was a nice person. She'd even take someone who was like old Mrs. Thomas, rough on the outside, but a good heart on the
inside. She then knocked,
"Come in," she heard a man's voice call.
She gulped and entered the office. The man sitting behind the desk had his feet up and seemed to be playing with a sort of device in his
hand. Anne loved the smell of the fresh flowers and she longed to touch the big white hat.
When the man looked up and put his feet down, she noticed his purple hair and goatee.
"Well, well," he said, getting up and walking over to her. "Who do we have here?"
"My name is Anne Shirley, Anne with an e," she said, shaking his hand. "I have come -" She said, but stopped.
Now that she was here, seeing this beautiful building and office, she felt like she was in the depths of despair. She knew she could never
stay here.
"Go on," the man said gently.
"I have come to become an exorcist." She finished quite firmly.
"An exorcist?" the man said, his eyebrows rising slightly.
"Where are your parents?" he asked.
"Dead." Anne said, seeing his shocked look.
"My parents died when I was quite young."
"Oh," he said sympathetically. "Do you have any relatives?"
"No, I was taken in and raised by Mrs. Thomas. She was kind and eventually had three children of her own who I helped raise and tutor.
When her husband died, she and her three children went to her mother-in-law's and sent me to a founding home. It was quite awful,"
She said.
"Did you run away from there?" the man asked.
"No, they eventually shut down when a kind woman, named Miss Kate, came and saw their awful behavior. Instead of going to another
founding home, I ran away right back to Mrs. Thomas's. I stayed there for nine months until Old Mrs. Thomas's mill burnt down, and then
the post mistress, Ms. Nellie, took me to Mrs. Hammonds'. I stayed there for about a year and took care of her children. She had twins
three times in a row, can you believe that? Anyway, I was late getting Mr. Hammond's lunch to him and he died of a heart attack. I guess
I would too, if I had to wait a long time for my lunch. I was on my way to an orphanage, but, well, I came here instead."
"It's not the Mr. Hammond who owned the mill in Sunny Brook, is it?" he asked,
When Anne shook her head yes the man exclaimed, "Oh you poor thing! You must be starving." And with that, he snapped his fingers
and right before her eyes, a table of food appeared.