Anne and Gilbert: A Love Story
Author's Note: The characters of Anne and Gilbert belong to the brilliant L.M. Montgomery. The plot started out as an idea to adapt and Ron and Hermione story called Not as a Last Resort by Arabella on Sugar Quill, but as time went on I pretty much changed everything, so essentially the plot is mine. Enjoy!
Anne Shirley pushed her chair back from the table, rubbing her eyes and stifling a yawn. She had been studying in the library at Redmond for her upcoming finals for hours. Her friends had left an hour before, firmly declaring that they needed a break. Anne opted to stay and study longer, wanting to perform as well as possible on her exams.
Anne blushed as she heard her stomach grumble. Glancing at the clock that was hanging on the wall nearby, she soon knew why she was so hungry. It was after seven o'clock already and she hadn't eaten anything since she ate dinner at seven hours or so before.
"I'm beginning to see why people tell me I work too hard," Anne thought. "I might as well stop for tonight. I've got tomorrow night to study, too."
Anne gathered up her books, after pausing to say a quick goodnight to the librarian, she made her way out of the library. When she got to the heavy oak door leading outside, she wrenched it open and her job dropped. She couldn't see anything! White snow was swirling everywhere, making it impossible to see anything even a foot in front of her.
Gilbert Blythe had been working with Professor Douglas, his biology professor, after classes had ended on a research project for extra credit. He didn't need the extra marks, because his marks had stayed very high all year, but the biology project would help him gain experience for when he started his medical training in the fall. He'd been working every night for the past two weeks to get it finished and, tonight, it was finally done, and he was exhausted but relieved.
He was also starving. It took him longer to finish that night than he'd expected and he hadn't yet had supper. And he still had to study for finals this evening before he went to sleep. He sighed. Not only did he have school to worry about, but there was also the matter of one Miss Anne Shirley. She had refused his proposal in the spring and ever since then he'd been a shell of his former self, going through the motions, trying to occupy himself with school to keep his mind off of her. It was at times like this, however, the rest periods between projects, school, and homework, when his mind drifted back to that painful day.
Gilbert shook his head. He had to get back home and eat. He packed up his books, handed his research papers to Douglas, and headed out of the classroom, making his way to the front entrance. When he opened the door, he couldn't believe his eyes.
"Oh my goodness," he breathed. Outside he saw white...nothing else. The vast amount of snow falling and blowing around shielded everything from his view. He stopped to contemplate what to do next.