Flashback – Redmond University, Kingsport, Nova Scotia and Avonlea, Prince Edward Island, Freshman and Sophomore Year

"It's a shame that Gilbert Blythe weren't rich. I would marry him. But, alas, I can't. I must marry a rich man."

Philippa Gordon looked up from the mirror on her makeup compact to see if she had managed to get a rise out of Anne.

Anne said, "Oh, indeed, Phil? You positive that he would marry you?"

Phil laughed. "You don't want Gilbert, but you don't want to see him with anyone else!"

Anne said, "I don't have the time or energy to think about Gilbert. I have a scholarship to win!"

Anne was gunning for the Thorburn Scholarship in English. Winning it would be the only way that she would be able to afford returning to Redmond for Sophomore Year. Anne knew that other people were also gunning for it. Like Claire Hallette. Anne and Claire both were star English pupils in the freshman class at Redmond University. Both had written essays that impressed Professor Hamilton so much that he read excerpts to the rest of the class. Anne thought Claire to be rather a mean person. Anne made it a point to be extra polite to the teachers and the other students in part to differentiate herself from Claire. Anne hoped that this would give her an advantage over Claire regarding the Thorburn.

And as to Gilbert – even if Gilbert wanted to court anybody, he wouldn't court Philippa Gordon.

For all that Phil Gordon "slummed it" with the likes of Anne and Gilbert, Phil wasn't one of them. Phil didn't understand Anne and Gilbert's hustle. Phil didn't have to patch together an education from the meager scraps of family savings, random scholarships, and hard-won teaching gigs. Anne and Gilbert had competed for the same opportunities – the same scholarships, the same jobs. Anne and Gilbert lived with the knowledge that one minor disaster would set back all their plans. Phil had never lived with the fear, the hunger, that Anne and Gilbert lived with.

Near the semester's end, Anne learned that she won the Thorburn. Gilbert also won the scholarship that he coveted. Anne returned to Avonlea, secure and happy that she was the Thorburn victor. She – the friendless, family-less, penniless, uneducated orphan girl who came to give with the Cuthberts all those years ago, was gifted enough to win a scholarship for a second year at Redmond.

Anne hurried to the Barry farm. Anne and Diana hugged and chattered away. Several stories into the visit, Anne told Diana about how she had beaten out the malicious Claire Hallette to win the Thorburn Scholarship.

Wait – did Diana just roll her eyes? Did Anne just imagine that?

"That's – nice, Anne." Diana said.

That was all? Why was Diana not more excited for Anne?

Anne brushed this doubt aside. Diana was Anne's bosom friend. The one who had her back in everything ever since she first came to Green Gables. The only one except for Marilla (who tried to hide it) and Matthew who had been truly proud of Anne for all her academic successes.

"How are things with Fred?" Anne asked Diana.

Diana chatted of her courtship with Fred and their tentative wedding plans. Fred's father planned to give Fred most of the Wright farm. They would first live in a little cottage that the Wrights already owned, but later Fred would build her a bigger house.

Anne said, "Is that what you and Fred talk about when you're alone?"

Diana said, "Well, that's not the ONLY thing that we talk about. And when we're alone, we don't just talk."

Diana laughed nervously and confessed that the week before, Mrs. Barry had been in Charlottetown to visit an ill family member. Mr. Barry was busy on the lower field involving a planting issue that the hired man had run into. Minnie May was helping a friend with the stitching on a dress. Diana had found herself alone when Fred had "stopped by" to "see how she was doing."

At some point, Fred had brushed his hand against Diana's clothed nipple. Diana smiled and laughed. She put his hand back on her chest. Diana didn't know what happened, but then Fred's hand had ended up Diana's skirts and onto the waistband of her drawers.

Diana said, "Fred, we can't do this in my mother's parlor!"

Diana and Fred went out to the Barry's barn. They burrowed down in the hay together until Diana heard her father's wagon. Diana and Fred had a tense few minutes until Mr. Barry finally passed the barn for the fields on the other side.

Diana blushed as she ended her story. "Yeah, so, we don't just talk about the farm!"

Through that next week, Anne caught up with the Avonlea folk. Mrs. Lynde told her "not to get too big for her britches" now that she was a college woman. Mrs. Harmon Andrews boasted of Billy's housekeeping with his new bride, Nettie, and concluded with, "Of course, any woman would be lucky to have him for a husband. Any woman who would even think of turning him down needs to get off her high horse," giving Anne the evil eye. Anne had turned down Billy's sort-of marriage proposal several weeks earlier. Mrs. Boulter asked Anne when she was going to give up the university nonsense and find a husband.

And, of course, Ruby Gillis was dying. Everyone seemed to know this except Ruby. Anne visited Ruby with Diana. They chatted for several hours about all the fun that they all had in the past. Anne had them laughing hard until Ruby's hard coughing started. Mrs. Gillis told Anne and Diana that it was time for them to leave Ruby to rest.

On the way home from the Gillis', Anne said, "Diana, have a great idea for a short story."

Anne explained to Diana her premise for the story that she titled "Averil's Atonement."

Anne said, "Canadian Woman published a story written by a Redmond junior, Margaret Burton. So, I have a pretty good shot at getting this printed in Canadian Woman. After all, I won the Thorburn and she didn't. I'm going to send it off to someplace bigger first. More prestigious."

Diana said, "Can I name one of the characters, Anne?"

Anne said, "Uh, I kind of already named all of them."

Diana said, "Please, Anne?"

Anne said, "Well, okay. Yeah. Sure. You can name the farm hand."

Diana said, "I have the perfect name, Anne! Raymond Fitsobourne."

Anne said, "You're kidding, right, Diana? Please tell me you're kidding. What kind of name is that?"

Diana said, "What? What's wrong with Raymond Fitsobourne?"

Anne said, "It's – it's not good, Diana. It's pretty terrible."

Diana's face fell.

Anne said, "Tell you what. Let's name the farm hand Robert Ray. We'll call him Bobby for short."

Diana said, "Yeah, sure, Anne. Whatever you say."

The big prestigious publisher where Anne first sent Averil's Atonement rejected it. So did Canadian Woman.

Ruby got sicker and sicker. She died at the end of the summer.

A few days after Ruby's funeral, Anne received that infamous envelope in the mail telling her that she had won the grand prize in writing contest held by Rollings Reliable Baking Powder Company.

Diana had said, "I entered Averil's Atonement into the contest in secret, Anne. I wanted to surprise you if you won! I changed up the plot so that Averil baked a cake with Rolling's Baking Powder! Oh, Anne, I'm so excited. The story's going to be printed all over the place!"

The cash award was FIVE TIMES what she would have made from getting a story printed in Canadian Woman.

Anne blinked back tears. Diana mustn't see her cry. Would Rollings print her story everywhere? Everyone on Avonlea would see it. Everyone at Redmond would see it! Professor Hamilton would see it. Claire Hallette would see it. Margaret Burton would see it.

Anne thanked Diana for all of Diana's work in securing this major writing honor for Anne.

For the next week, though, Anne found herself mocking everything that Anne said. Truth be told, Anne and Diana were both on edge. Maybe it was the shock and the grief of watching Ruby die young. Maybe it was the change of the seasons. Or, let's be real, maybe both young women were at that time in their womanly cycles when they were just both extra sensitive.

Diana made her unfortunate slip-up where she revealed that she thought that "Venetian blinds" were called "Phoenician blinds." Anne laughed at her. "Phoenician blinds, indeed!"

And then Diana spilled the beans and stuff that had really been grinding her gears for a while now.

"Just cut it out, Anne! Just cut it out! We both know that you're smarter than me. You don't have to throw it in my face all the time! I'm so sick of it. So sick of hearing about Anne winning the spelling bee, and Anne going off to Queen's, and Anne winning a scholarship at Queen's, and Anne going to Redmond, and Anne winning yet another scholarship."

"Diana – "

"I can't do anything that you think is right. You didn't even like the name that I gave you for your story."

Anne said, "I'm sorry, Diana. I'm sorry. It's getting late. See you tomorrow?"

Later that evening, Gilbert came over to congratulate Anne for her win in the baking powder contest. He saw it in the newspaper that day.

Gilbert said, "I'm so proud of you, Anne."

Anne said, "Sure."

Then Anne explained to Gilbert how Diana had "surprised" her by entering the contest for Gilbert.

"It's so stupid, Gilbert. I feel like such an idiot. I'm going to be the big joke at Redmond! Everyone will think that I'm a fool!"

Gilbert said, "No. No they won't. You know what everyone at Redmond will think? They'll think, "Hey, there's a girl that doesn't have a trust fund so she went and won herself some cash in a writing contest. What a smart girl to do that." They'll think that you aren't independently wealthy. That you hustle so that you can stay at Redmond. Just like a lot of them. That's what the people at Redmond'll think."

Anne thanked Gilbert. She didn't tell him about Diana's outburst at her.

Anne and Diana made up, of course. You don't give up on your bosom friend just because one day, the two of you said things to each other that you now regret. Anne apologized for her unkind words. Diana apologized for her own unkind words. The two cried and hugged each other.

When the summer ended, Diana drove Anne to the train station and waved her off.

A few months later, Diana's Aunt Josephine Barry passed away and left Anne a generous sum of money. Aunt Josephine is one of the true heros to Anne's story. You see, the Thorburn Scholarship funded Anne's Sophomore year at Redmond. However, no similar scholarship existed that could potentially fund Anne's Junior year. Ain't funding for higher education a bonkers thing here in North America! Anyway, the only reason that Anne was able to return to Redmond for her junior year was because of Aunt Josephine's unexpected generosity to Anne.

The Barry family had once again come through for Anne.

Years later, after they were both married with several children, Diana reminded Anne of all this.