Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction using characters created by L.M. Montgomery and Moira Walley-Beckett. I do not claim any ownership over them and offer my writing to the world as a homage of appreciation to their creations as well as an outlet of imagination to imagine an infinity of alternate storylines. This is just one of them!
Author's Note: Hope you enjoy this interlude as I wind down this story. Only three more chapters and one more interlude (between 18 and 19) to go! Watch for Part 18 to be published soon. Thanks as always for your patience, feedback, favorites, and follows!
Interlude 3 (in between Parts 17 and 18)
The sky looked more gray than blue. There was a strong breeze blowing and Anne was glad she had put on an extra scarf to stay warm. The sky seemed to echo how she felt: quite desolate and bereft of joy. But as she approached the farm, a yellow kite sailed above the trees, and the sight made her feel instantly better. She rubbed her eyes just in case it was just her imagination conjuring images into being. But no, it was still there, it was real. It dipped up and down in a gradual ascent upward.
As Anne came closer to the house, she saw that Gilbert was near the barn, chopping firewood. It looked like there was already a large pile but he looked determined to add a lot more to it.
"Gilbert!" She waved over to him. "Hello!"
Gilbert looked up at the sound of his name as if he was awoken from a trance. Then he turned toward her and blinked in surprise. "Oh! Hello, Anne!"
Anne held up the basket she was holding. "Marilla made a lot of extra food, so we just wanted to bring some of it to you and Bash." The truth was that Marilla had cooked up a storm, worrying that Bash and Gilbert were not eating enough.
Gilbert put the axe down, wiped his brow, and approached Anne. "Thank you so much! It's so kind of you all to think of us."
"Of course! It's the very least we could do. And if you need anything else, don't hesitate to ask us."
Gilbert looked at her and smiled, crinkling his eyes in an endearing way. Anne always admired his kind eyes, even when long ago she had been determined not to be friendly to him. That seemed like such an age ago, now that they had become closer friends.
"Would you like to come in for some tea? Bash took a walk with Delly, but he'll be back soon. Please?" asked Gilbert shyly. It was impossible to refuse his kind eyes, so Anne said yes.
"Pardon the mess, we've been so busy…" As they walked through the door and into the kitchen, she saw dirty dishes piled near the sink and some of Delly's toys strewn across the kitchen table.
"I see we aren't the only ones bringing you sustenance." She saw other baskets of food and drink on a side table and the floor.
"Oh. Yes. Everyone's been so kind and generous. Wait, Anne, you don't have to—"
Anne had already helped clear the table and was about to start helping clean the dishes. "Let me help, Gilbert. It's all right. You go ahead and boil the water for tea."
He shrugged, as he could see that he wouldn't be able to refuse her kindness without a fight. "Thank you so much, but I feel like a terrible host letting you clean up after us."
"Don't feel terrible. I'm just a friend helping you out in a moment of need. So let me help."
Moments later, Anne sat down at the kitchen table as Gilbert poured the hot water into a teapot where he had already measured out some tea. He also put some cookies from one of the baskets onto a plate and set it down.
"I thought I saw a yellow kite up in the sky earlier." Gilbert held out the plate of cookies and Anne took one. "Oh, thank you."
"That was Bash and Delly. He made that kite for Mary, the fabric reminded her of sunshine." He sighed wistfully as he took a bite of a cookie.
"It still doesn't seem real that she's no longer with us. How many times has Mary poured us tea and offered us cookies at this table? I feel as if at any moment, she'll walk right into this kitchen."
Gilbert looked at Anne and nodded. "I feel the same every day, Anne. And I think Bash and Delly do too. I know that sometimes when she cries, she's just missing her."
Anne nodded, wiping tears from her eyes. "Yes, I miss her, we all miss her."
Anne's eyes locked with Gilbert's. "Mary wants us to be strong. Strong for her, strong for Bash, and strong for Delly. She wrote Delly a letter, you know."
"Yes, she told me. She said you had given her the idea."
Anne smiled slightly as she wiped her cheeks. "I told her that I wished I had known my parents. I'm grateful I know their names and where they came from, but I know nothing of who they were. So I told her that Delly would appreciate getting to know her mother with her own words. I also told her we'd help Delly remember her too. With our stories and memories. You see, Mary lives on in our hearts and memories always."
"Oh Anne, you've endured so much loss and survived."
"And so have you. Losing both parents is a misfortune we share in common."
"I'm so worried for Bash. I know he is being strong for Delly but—" Gilbert's voice broke as tears ran down his face.
Anne leapt up and embraced him. She felt Gilbert's strong arms encircle her, and immediately felt safe and supported. It felt good, and she waited for him to let go of her, so she could let go of him. But he continued holding her tightly so she did the same.
"I'm sorry," Gilbert mumbled out after a moment.
"Don't be! The important thing is that you are here for them, and we will all help each other through this."
Gilbert pulled away slightly to face Anne, but he didn't let her go. She looked up into his tired face, and was surprised to see him slowly smile. His eyes were wet with tears, but they seemed to glow in that moment; she'd never seen him look that way before. "Anne, I—"
Right at that moment, the kitchen door flew open, and Bash entered, holding Delly in one arm. "Blythe, did you see our kite? Today was the perfect day to fly her, right, Delly?"
Anne and Gilbert quickly stepped apart and faced Bash and Delly. "Hello Bash!"
"Anne!" Bash smiled at her and then looked at Gilbert. "Wait, did we interrupt something…"
Anne's eyes flew open and she suddenly realized she was not at the Blythe farmstead anymore but in her own bed at Green Gables. She sighed. That was the latest she could remember. She found herself going back to that memory several times, and couldn't find a way forward beyond Bash coming into the kitchen.
But every time, she felt as if she saw something more in her memory that she hadn't noted before. She wondered about the look on Gilbert's face and what he would have said to her if Bash hadn't just walked in. Then she realized that she knew exactly what she saw in his eyes. She blushed to herself and was grateful no one could see. Then it occurred to her that such a moment might have happened during those lost months.
And if it did, would Gilbert ever bring it up again?