Chapter 29

As Gilbert led Anne up the laneway to the Blythe farm, he began to laugh at the look of dread that had appeared on her face, and the slowing of her steps.

"Anne, I'm telling you it's fine. What's the worst that could happen?"

Anne scowled at him, pulling the dark woollen scarf around her throat a little tighter. "Well, since you ask, they could throw me from the house, and tell me I am not worthy of you, they could forbid you to see me; or even disinherit you, casting you into the world alone, or worst of all the shock and horror could put your parents into an early grave and you would resent me for all time."

By this point, Gilbert was wiping tears of laughter from his eyes and laughed even harder at Anne who stood on the pathway with folded arms and a furious glare.

"This is not funny, Gilbert!"

He put his arms around her then, trying to sober up. "Sweetheart, I sometimes forget how vivid your imagination is. I can promise you that none of that will happen."

"And what if it does?" she said stubbornly.

Gilbert sighed. "Anne, it's simple- you make me happy, that makes them happy. I swear to you they are. Five minutes with them and you will see that, and you will know that sooner if we get there sooner."

Her brow was still lowered, however it softened when Gilbert kissed her. "Don't you ever feel afraid?" she asked wistfully.

He rested his curly head against hers. "Come on, you know I do, Anne-girl. Marilla, Mrs Lynde and the twins are your family, and I still had to run past that gauntlet. I didn't have any guarantees that they would welcome me, either. But as for my parents, there's only one way to end this, and that is to just get it over with. So keep walking, or I'm carrying you there." he said firmly, with a little twinkle in his eye.

Anne drew herself up, her eyes narrowed. "I doubt that you would get me to agree to that, Mr Blythe."

His grin was huge, as he took her hand in his. "I'm not concerned. I've got some tricks up my sleeve. Anne-" he stated, his voice serious now. "Please trust me?"

After a moment she sighed and began to walk again, her hand tucked warmly under his arm.

Gilbert strode along thoughtfully until a little smile began to blossom, that eventually Anne noticed.

She looked at him suspiciously. "What's so amusing?"

He shrugged, the smile getting bigger. "I was just thinking about getting thrown from the house. I was imagining what we would do."

Anne flushed with embarrassment. "And?"

He pulled her hand up to kiss it. "I'd run away with you right now, and we'd be married by nightfall." He said, his eyes twinkling. "You have to admit; the idea has merit." Anne laughed, her other hand coming to stroke the arm that held hers securely. His sigh was theatrical. "But since my parents will love you, I suppose we'll have to stick with the original plan of college and career first."


Cora Blythe had been checking the door every five minutes all afternoon, at last managing to drive her patient husband into giving a mild rebuke.

"Cora, if you keep hovering like that, you'll scare the girl away. It's Anne. We know her, we saw her grow up. She's been here a thousand times."

"Not like this," Cora said wide-eyed. "Not as our prospective daughter-in-law, as the mother of our possible grandchildren-" she said, her brown eyes huge. "Oh John, think of the dear little grandchildren!"

John laughed. "Steady on now, Gilbert hasn't proposed yet."

Cora rolled her eyes. "But he will. Oh, goodness, I think I can hear them coming."

When Gilbert opened the front door, he grinned at the sight of his mother hovering nervously in the entryway. He tugged on Anne's hand to pull her through the doorway, and Cora struggled to hold back tears at the sight of the two of them together again. Anne barely had a glimpse of anything else before Cora had enveloped her slight frame in her arms, holding the girl to her as if the last few years had not happened.

After a moment, Gilbert stepped awkwardly around the pair of them, to go and stand near his father, who had a slight smile on his face.

When a few minutes went by with little movement, Gilbert raised one eyebrow at his father. "Should I do anything about that?" he muttered, gesturing at the two women. John chuckled.

"They're fine. Let them get on with it. Do me a favour Gil, help me over to the sofa."

In the hallway, Cora pulled away from Anne at last, chuckling as Anne wiped a little tear from her face. Her own eyes were wet, and her handkerchief came out as well.

"It's so wonderful to have you here again, dear," she said quietly, tucking a red curl behind Anne's ear. "We all missed you."

"Mrs Blythe, I'm so sorry-" she began shakily.

Cora's voice was gentle. "No, it's I who should be sorry. I should never have reacted to you that way. This was between you and Gilbert, and you sorted it out just fine together."

Anne gave a rather choked laugh, and Cora smiled as well. "With a little help from Providence, perhaps. We all need it at times." Her brown eyes twinkled in a manner much like her son's would. "Remind me to tell you just how Gilbert's father and I got together. There was no smooth road then either."

Anne smiled, and Cora reached out to touch her cheek lightly. "You've grown up so much even since your teaching days, dear. Marilla must be so pleased to have you back at home for a time."

Anne chuckled as they moved farther into the cosy sitting room to join Gilbert and his father.

"I think she is, however Davy and Dora and Mrs Lynde keep life busy enough- and Dora is a wonderful help to her."

Cora smiled. "She's a sweet little thing. She was so helpful at the last church social that was organised."

Over supper Anne began to relax, the initial awkwardness done away by the comfortable talk she remembered from years ago. John appeared to be recovering from his accident well, and she watched Gilbert assist his father with very little fuss. She smiled when he adjusted the sling, knowing she was seeing the doctor he would one day become.

Soon after the meal, Gilbert helped his father to his room to sleep, after he claimed with a mischievous grin that young love was exhausting to witness. Cora shook her head at his cheek, and Anne stood to help her take the dishes for the table with a little smile.

"Dear, you know that Gilbert will tease you all of the days of his life. Blythe men don't appear to grow out of it." she said wryly.

Anne laughed. "I think would suit me rather well, actually. I'm afraid I saw far too much misery while I was growing up."

Cora watched her carefully. "Did that make it harder to figure all of this out?"

Anne stopped in shock, having not expected this question from Gilbert's mother.

"I suppose it must have." she answered slowly. "I never saw any happy marriages. And of course, Marilla couldn't have told me any differently." She moved over to the bench with some glasses and saw Cora studying her. Anne let out a big breath. She rarely talked about this with anyone who wasn't Gilbert, and it was a little frightening even now. "I've had to take several psychology courses at Redmond." Cora nodded, wondering how it was relevant.

"One of the lecturers said that the way that a child is raised affects them throughout their lives. I listened to that with some interest, since no one else I know can claim the upbringing I can." she looked at Cora frankly. "It never seemed to make a difference after I came to Green Gables- outwardly, at least. But I have wondered if that was why I ran from Gilbert's and my own feelings for so long. I didn't know that a relationship between a husband and wife included friendship as well as love. I only ever saw couples who were abusive or violent." She looked at Cora, wanting to remove the look of sadness from Cora's face. "I suppose I was a little behind others my age in that respect. But I found a home when I came here. And Marilla and Matthew loved me so much, that it undid some of what I went through." Anne smiled. "The rest of the work was done by Diana- and by your son. I do know that my parents loved each other very much, and they loved me too- I suppose something of that must have protected me until I could come here."

Cora's hand on hers was warm. "Dear, I know it did. They would have adored you, and they would be so proud now. You made Matthew and Marilla so proud and happy. You don't want to know how alone they were until you came, however I remember it well. And you need to know that we're proud of you too."

There were tears in both brown and grey eyes, and Cora pulled Anne into her arms again.

"Is this what I can expect from now on?" Gilbert said standing in the doorway, amused.

Anne pulled away embarrassed, and Cora narrowed her eyes at her son. "Yes. And if I hear any wisecracking about it, I'll see that you don't sit down for a month, no matter how grown up you think you are. Now, take Anne into the sitting room and entertain her while I prepare some tea for us all."

A short time later, Gilbert and Anne sat in front of the fireplace. Her head was on his shoulder, and he stroked her hair with gentle fingers.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

Anne turned to look at him, surprised. "Of course. Why?"

He looked into the fire thoughtfully. "Well, I wondered if you felt you needed to explain things to mother- and every time I leave the room, someone gets teary."

"Maybe that's just because you left the room." Anne teased, and he squeezed her shoulder.

"Undoubtedly. But I don't want you rehashing old pain, or things that we promised to put behind us."

Anne looked at him. "So you didn't talk to Marilla about any of this?" she asked evenly. His look was telling, and Anne sighed. "This is necessary right now, Gil. We're rebuilding relationships with each other's families, and we need to do that. Your mother isn't making me talk, I want to. She needs to know me to trust me with you."

Gilbert moved to kiss her gently, thrilling at the way her hands came up to hold him. He pulled away then, his heart beginning to pound. Maybe doing it here wasn't the worst idea- and it was getting harder and harder to keep silent when all he wanted to do was-

It was at that moment that Cora came in with a tray set with three cups, and Gilbert smiled in spite of himself. Patience, he thought. Surely he could be patient just a little longer. He settled down to talk with his mother and Anne, relishing the touch of her hand within his, and the look in her eyes that told him she wanted him as he wanted her.


Two days later, Gilbert and Anne walked up the pathway to Diana and Fred's house, both rugged up warmly in the brisk winter air, and her hand firmly in his.

"Are you sure we shouldn't have come earlier in the week?" Gilbert asked.

"Quite sure. Di wasn't feeling so well yesterday, she sent me a note to say that today would be better to come for lunch. Oh, and we're also invited to come for tea on Christmas Eve."

Gilbert shook his head. "Events, tea, parties…" he mock-grumbled. "Just when is a boy able to get some time alone with you?"

Anne laughed, slipping her arms around his waist at the little gate to the Wright house. "You told me we had to get all these first visits out of the way! And we were certainly alone last night in the parlour. You made quite good use of your time then." she teased.

He pretended to be mollified. "It's a skill."

The door to the little house opened then, and Diana came to stand in the doorway, in time to see her dear friend in the arms of Gilbert Blythe, a sight she had been sure she would never see in this life. She stood there paralysed, and when Anne turned to see her she darted from Gilbert to run to her.

She met her with a big hug and pulled back to see Diana burst into tears.

"Why, Di darling, what is it?" Anne asked, bewildered.

Diana gestured futilely, as Gilbert came up the steps, with a tentative smile.

"It's you two!" she sobbed. "I mean, I always hoped it would happen, but I never expected to see it, and now you're here and you're happy, and I'm so happy for you-" at this point, Diana became completely incoherent, and Anne and Gilbert looked at each other in consternation. Much to their relief, Fred arrived at the door then, a sheepish smile on his face, to draw his wife and their guests inside.

"Come on Di, I thought you said you had it all out of your system?" he said patiently, and handed her a handkerchief. "Sorry, it's been happening a lot lately."

"I did. It was just unexpected." she said wiping her eyes, before putting yet another hanky in her pocket, and beaming at Anne. "Oh, goodness. Come and help me with the dinner things, Anne. Fred, didn't you want to get Gilbert to help you in the barn with something?"

Di concealed her tears admirably, watching the quick kiss on the cheek that Gilbert gave Anne, and the contented sigh she gave as he left the room after her husband. There was a second of silence before the girls grabbed each other's hands, squealing loudly as only best friends could.

"You love Gilbert!" Di squealed.

"And you're pregnant!" Anne cried back.

The two girls hugged again laughing, until Anne pulled away with a grin. "I wrote you weeks ago Di, you should be used to the news by now!"

Di tweaked her nose. "Yes, but it's a whole other thing to see it, dearest. Promise me it's really happening?" she implored. "I've never seen either of you look this happy."

Anne's sigh was huge. "It's real. It's wonderfully, beautifully perfect. And we have you to thank for the speed with which we arrived at an understanding." Anne said cheekily. "It may have taken a little longer without your letter, dearest."

Diana handed Anne some napkins, her smile huge. "I'm so glad, I was worried that you might never speak to me again," She teased. "You never appreciated that question before."

Anne laughed. "Well, I do have a very happily married best friend to observe now, maybe that helped! And now with a baby on the way…" she said, with a happy sigh. "What's it like, Di?" she asked eagerly.

Diana's eyes were huge, and she grabbed Anne's hands in hers. "Oh Anne, it's so weird! I keep crying all the time, and then I can't remember why, I keep wanting to eat canned peaches in the middle of the night and so I do, much to Fred's surprise; they tell me I will start to feel the baby soon, and I find myself wondering how I will know it's actually the baby; and then these!" Diana gestured to her chest, making Anne laugh hysterically. "I swear they are bigger than they were this time last week, if I keep going like this I'll fall over when I stand up!"

The two girls laughed giddily, and even harder when Fred's earnest face poked around the corner, followed by Gilbert.

"Di, I thought I heard you crying." Fred said awkwardly, while Gilbert raised an eyebrow at the two red-faced women.

"No, we're fine," Diana said, still giggling. "Run along, lunch will be ready soon." She turned back to Anne and pulled her into another hug. "Oh, it's so wonderful to have you here!"


Outside, Gilbert helped Fred to move the cattle between the pens Fred had been repairing in the warm shed.

"You know I'm not dressed for this, right?" Gilbert joked. His jacket was hanging on a hook with Fred's, a little too close to the hungry cows in his opinion.

"City boy."

Gilbert shoved his old school friend playfully. "Steady on, I was born not a mile from here."

Fred laughed. "Yeah, but I bet you hardly remember how to do your chores now."

"Hey, I've been playing the farmer for a fortnight now, remember." Gilbert said, heaving a sack of feed against the wall. "Dad won't be up for it for a few weeks, at least."

Fred straightened up, looking at Gilbert seriously. "I know. My father spoke to yours about letting us help him finish the barn roof, we didn't want him getting back up there for a time yet. My brother will help."

Gilbert slapped Fred on the shoulder, moved by his thoughtfulness. "Thanks."

"So, you and Anne."

Gilbert grinned. "Yeah."

Fred straightened up. "So when are you proposing?"

Gilbert's eyebrows rose. "You're the first to assume I haven't already done it." he commented.

Fred chuckled. "If you had Di would still be screaming. So I'm assuming you're waiting for something. Can you hand me that rope from over there?"

"I'm waiting to get some time on our own." he replied good-naturedly. "Social doings take up a fair bit of time whenever we come home."

"You didn't make much time for that for the last couple of years."

Gilbert sighed. "I know. I'm sorry I wasn't around."

"You missed quite a bit." Fred said, non-judgementally. "I was afraid you wouldn't even come back for the wedding."

There was a short silence. "I nearly didn't. I'm sorry."

Fred gave him a nudge, with a grin. "Look, you came. And it sounds like it was a good thing you did."

"I'll say."

Fred chuckled, and Gilbert looked at him suspiciously. "Did Diana tell you something?"

Fred laughed outright then. "Come on, Di couldn't keep that from me if she tried! I thought she was going to pull my arm out of its socket."

Gilbert rubbed his face sheepishly. "It really was unintentional. A godsend, but unintentional." He watched Fred fork some hay into the pens and continued thoughtfully. "I'm asking her soon."

"How soon?"

Gilbert grinned, as one of the farm dogs came up to lick his hand. "Next couple of days." He crouched down to greet the dog properly, and his face sobered. "You know I'm planning on medical school next year?"

Fred nodded, and it was his turn to watch Gilbert.

"How long's that?" he asked.

"Three years."

Fred whistled. "That's a long engagement, Gil."

"Same as yours."

"That's why I'm saying it." Fred said adamantly.

Gilbert sat down on the nearest bale of hay, soon joined by his friend.

"Still, you survived. Surely we can too." he said slowly.

That made Fred laugh. "Yeah, we did. And of course you will. But I'd be lying if I said it was easy." He kicked his feet out in front of him, thinking. "Three years is a long time. You change- and she changes- and you have to stay on the same page throughout that time, or a marriage won't work." He gave a wry smile. "And when she wants you as much as you want her- well, let's just say you'd better have some self-control up your sleeve."

Gilbert's eyebrows flew up, as he stared at his friend. "Really?"

Fred's ears were red by now, and he smiled sheepishly. "Really. We had some near misses."

Gilbert laughed now, feeling his own cheeks begin to flush. "I see."

"You just have to know why you're waiting. Three years does eventually pass, and at least you'll be busy."

"You're not wrong about that." Gilbert muttered.

Fred looked out the barn doors to his little white house, and grinned. "Look, it's worth it, I promise. There'll be days where it seems to take forever, but it passes. And when you think about a lifetime together, it's not so bad."

He stood up then and grabbed his coat. "Come on, I can see Di waving us down. And guess what? One day it will be your house we're going to. You'd better come back to live in Avonlea, though. It'll cost us both a fortune in travel to keep the girls together, otherwise."

Gilbert laughed then as well. The picture of a home of his own, with a beautiful red-headed wife and children who looked just like her- now that was worth working for.

As he crossed the threshold of the Wright farmhouse, his eyes found Anne in an apron, pulling something from the oven. He crossed to her side, and she straightened up, placing the warm pies on the bench.

Anne smiled at his closeness, not seeing the way both Fred and Diana had stopped to watch the two of them. "What is it?" she asked, softly.

His hand reached for her waist, and he bent to kiss her. "Nothing. Just daydreaming." Gilbert said, his eyes twinkling. "You've no idea how fun it can be."

Diana's amused voice came from the table, where she and Fred were waiting for the couple to finish. "Honestly, you two; you know you can't carry on this way in front of others. Come and sit down, I need you to tell me everything that happened between the two of you since you left here in September! And I will know if you leave anything out!"

Anne crossed to the table with the pies and an innocent smile that made Gilbert laugh. "Diana, you know some things are meant to remain private."

"Not amongst kindred spirits, they aren't." Diana retorted. "Now, Mr Blythe, Miss Shirley start talking!"