Disclaimer: All characters (with the exception of Althea and her brother) are owned by the author of Anne of Green Gables and the showwriters of Anne with an E.
Anne sat wearily through the sermon, it being a rather boring one today. Diana and Gilbert sat on either side of her, and Gilbert had already tapped her a couple times when she came dangerously close to nodding off.
She noticed Althea and her brother sitting a few rows back across the aisle, and saw that Billy sat one row behind her. That was a recipe for upset, and Anne knew this. She only hoped that after church was over she'd be able to warn Althea of Billy's less than polite tendencies. While Anne thought Althea had been joking yesterday about fighting people, she didn't want to take any chances. She knew where that stuff got you.
After church had convened, Anne quickly alerted Diana of where she would be headed, and set off.
She arrived near Althea and greeted her. She saw Billy approaching, and was getting visibly nervous.
Althea and her brother hadn't really ever been to a real church service. Occasionally, they went to get handouts from the nuns or to confess or pray if they were having a particularly hard time. She had to admit she liked it, one of the few memories she had of her mother was going to church one Sunday back in Ireland. It was fuzzy and starting to wear away, but she still held onto it.
Sean on the other hand was trying not to fall asleep. With what he and his sister had been through in their young lives he had doubts about there even being a God. However, he wanted what was best for Althea and insisted that they start going every weekend not only to fit in, but so Althea had some sense of hope.
After the service was over Sean went and stood under a nice shady tree as Anne approached his sister, he didn't want to hover when his sister was making friends, he'd just watch over her from a distance.
Althea smiled as she saw Anne approaching, "Hey Anne, it's nice to see you again." She looked around at the people, "So does everyone in Avonlea attend church?" She was stunned at the number of people gathering outside the church to socialize.
Diana watched as Anne spoke with the new girl and turned to Gilbert, "Do you think she'll wear pants on the first day of school? Can you imagine?" She then studied the girl. She seemed to be open and kind enough towards Anne, perhaps they had found another kindred spirit, "She's awfully pretty too, I can't imagine anyone would mistake her for a boy even if she wore pants."
Gilbert looked back at her, an expression of both disappointment and understanding. He couldn't pretend that he wasn't thinking the same thing - a girl wearing pants to school? But then again, it was neither of their business. He felt a bit ashamed to be thinking of such a thing, after all, he was not a woman and therefore it was not his business how one should or should not dress. But it was odd and yet, it made him smile.
Meanwhile, Anne suggested that she and Althea go outside and explore a bit., "So you're the beautiful girl that's the talk of the town, huh?" He grinned at Anne hoping how welcoming he was being to her friend would emphasize how unwelcome Anne was herself. "I'm Billy Andrews, it's a pleasure to meet you." He stuck out his hand.
Althea looked between Anne and the blond boy who had sauntered over, there was clearly some sort of tension between the two, but nothing was said. She gave a small insincere smile and shook Billy's hand, "I'm Althea Conlon." She ignored his comment about her being beautiful, it was clear he was just trying to suck up, though she was unsure why.
Diana found a frown inching its way onto her face as she saw Billy come up to Anne and the new girl, "Perhaps we should rescue them? Anne looks so very uncomfortable, you know how Billy gets." She looked to Gilbert, both concern and anger apparent in her eyes.
Gilbert paused, thinking about this, but he shook his head. "Anne can handle it. I'm more worried about the new girl." Even he could tell that the smile that was on her face wasn't one of sincerity and he hadn't even yet met her.
Anne gave up being civil at that point, and dragged Althea along as she walked outside the church, not saying a word to Billy who just looked after them with a look of disgust. She was glad that Billy hadn't decided to follow them.
Althea looked at Anne with a raised eyebrow as they walked away, "So what's with the two of you? There was tension. Let me guess, he's a huge jerk?" She knew the type. They always thought they were the greatest thing since bread. She then noticed a girl and a boy about their age looking their way that seemed to be staring at them and Althea shifted slightly under their apparent gaze.
The girl with the perfectly placed, dark ringlet curls smiled and waved, and grabbed the boy's hand as she dragged him towards Anne. Diana grinned, "Anne, aren't you going to introduce us to your new friend?" She was beyond excited to meet the newcomer as Anne was one as well and they had become the best of bosom buddies.
Anne managed to get in a quick "something like that" before Diana and Gilbert came over with bright smiles to meet Althea. Anne quickly put on a smile, hoping to push the previous interaction away and focus on the positive. "This is Althea," Anne said, motioning to the girl beside her, and then turned around. "And Althea, this is Diana," She pointed to the curly haired girl, "And this is Gilbert. They're two of my closest friends."
Althea grinned and nodded at the two, "Nice to meet you both. Like Anne said, I'm Althea Conlon. I just moved here from New York and I'm sixteen. My brother is over there," she motioned to Sean sitting under a tree smoking, "His name is Sean and he is 22." Althea wasn't for certain. but she was pretty sure that the four of them were all close in age. She was hoping so since they would be able to sit at least near each other in school. She wasn't for certain how school worked exactly since she had been to a few different ones on and off.
Diana smiled her cheeks pink when she saw Althea's older brother, "Well I'm sure there are going to be plenty of women going to be dropping by welcome baskets to your house when they find out there's a new eligible bachelor in Avonlea." She then looked back to Althea and blurted out, "So do you really wear pants sometimes?!"
Althea laughed at the girls question, "Yeah I actually pretty much only wore pants in New York except for very rare occasions, but I think that is going to be a thing of the past here."
Anne nearly had to pinch Gilbert, since he hadn't stopped staring at Althea yet. Thankfully he came to his senses before she had to. He blushed any time Althea even looked at him, and Anne rolled her eyes.
Gilbert pulled himself together when Anne had to shake him out of his trance, he wasn't used to girls like this. Anne had been different and though she was absolutely fantastic and he loved her quirks even she hadn't had this confident air about her when she came. This girl intrigued him in different ways and of course the fact that she was another pretty redhead didn't hurt the matter.
Diana seemed fascinated with the prospect of a girl wearing pants, and Anne could hardly blame her, considering that Miss Stacy was the only woman they had ever seen dress so differently.
Anne had a thought then, and asked the other three if they'd like to go visit the clubhouse in the woods.
Althea hadn't noticed Gilbert blushing when she would glance at him, she just noticed that he would look at her a lot, but so did the whole town so she didn't put any stock into it. When Anne brought up a clubhouse she was intrigued by the prospect, "That sounds interesting, let me just go tell Sean." Althea ran off to go tell her brother where she would be headed and he nodded his head and allowed her to go.
Diana gleamed as Althea spoke of wearing trousers, she could never do it herself, but found it immensely fascinating. She looked over at Gilbert and then to Anne, " So Gilbert, are you going to be able to actually talk to the girl or are you now a mute?" She giggled linking arms with Anne as they began to walk towards Althea and the Clubhouse.
Gilbert's cheeks blushed a vibrant cherry red in response to Diana's comments, and he frowned, saying "You don't know what you're talking about." It was clear that he was faking, but Diana didn't press, simply shrugging and making it clear that she didn't believe a word he said.
Gilbert had remembered the clubhouse being destroyed, and so was surprised to see it completely rebuilt. Anne seemed like she knew, however, and so he assumed she rebuilt it at some point in the last few weeks since he'd gone to visit it. He knew who destroyed it, but hadn't said anything, since it seemed Anne did too.
Gilbert and Diana stood aside and spoke for a bit, while Anne and Althea explored the clubhouse.
Althea couldn't help but smile in awe of the tiny clubhouse in the woods, "Did you guys make this yourselves? This is absolutely amazing." She looked at the tiny trinkets hanging from the ceiling, the intricate drawing hung on the walls, the little stools made from logs and stumps. "Oh wow, these sculptures are beautiful."
"Nono," Anne replied, chuckling. "I found this a while back when Matthew and Marilla first adopted me." She winced a bit, knowing how certain people had less-than-favorable opinions of orphans. "The decorations came from a bunch of different places - Cole made the statues."
Althea looked at Anne, her eyes softening a bit knowing what it was like to be an orphan, "That's amazing that you found a family. My parents passed when I was really young and it's been Sean and me ever since." She then changed the subject focusing on the statues, "Ah, so is he the artist friend you were shopping for when I first met you?"
Diana was kicking around a small pebble waiting for Althea to look around with Anne before her and Gilbert joined in. She was growing bored of the situation and smiled, "So, Gilbert, what rumors have you heard about them? I heard that Sean got that scar from his face because he was in an Irish gang. Do you think that might be true? I have heard New York can be quite dangerous!"
Anne gave Althea a sympathetic look, but was secretly a bit jealous. She couldn't have wished for better parents now that she was with Matthew and Marilla, but the years before of being mistreated by guardians and torn away from friends were ones she did not look back on fondly. She didn't mention this though, knowing this could be nothing compared to having no parents at all. Pushing those thoughts away, though, she thought of Cole again. "Yes, that's him. Unfortunately he broke his wrist a while back, so he had to do a lot of sculpting to help heal it. Now that he's back to drawing though, I wanted to give him a gift." Her eyes darkened and her voice turned lower. "Billy pushed him off a ten-foot ladder."
Gilbert laughed as Diana spoke about rumors she heard. Diana, however kind and wonderful she was, did have some habits reflective of the background she came from. "All I've heard is that the two were orphaned," he said. "But Anne was too, and she's a delight, so I can't imagine that matters all that much." He sighed. "She is quite beautiful though."
Althea's face turned angry very quickly, "Well, now I see why you and Billy clearly had tension. I won't stand for bullying so if he tries anything he better watch out. I wasn't raised to be a proper lady, I was raised to survive. I grew up living with 50 or so boys in a crowded boarding house. He doesn't scare me." She then realized how crazy she must sound to a girl she just met and awkwardly laughed rubbing the back of her neck, "Sorry I get passionate about that. You gotta look out for each other."
Diana's eyes grew wide, " I knew it!" She then couldn't help but grin at Gilbert, "Gilbert Blythe I didn't think there would ever come a day after you and Anne deciding to just be friends when you were taken with someone here in Avonlea." She then nodded, "She is quite pretty, I just hope Josie Pye doesn't try and turn her against us."
"No, I agree." Anne replied, eyes filled with resentment. "I'd like to kick him off a ladder myself." She shook her head. "Ah, now here I go! Actually, would you like to go meet Cole?" She asked. She thought she wouldn't push about the boarding house, because she knew it was a touchy subject for her and didn't want to offend Althea in case it was to her as well. Maybe when they knew each other a bit better she would ask about it.
Immediately after asking her to meet Cole she had second thoughts. Even Diana was shocked with the nature of Aunt Josephine's relationship, and Diana was one of the most kindred spirits she knew. Of course, she had changed her mind later, but she didn't know what people in New York thought about those things. She hoped that Cole would be okay. It wasn't too obvious, but at the same time, Cole had never hidden any of the stereotypical behaviors he sometimes exhibited when it was only the three of them.
Gilbert frowned, realizing what he said. "N-no! That's not what I meant! I just mean she's pretty - like you or Anne! Nothing else!" His cheeks started to turn pink and he was tripping over his words, and he knew it. He normally had such a confident air and for some reason that had all gone by the wayside this Sunday.
Althea nodded with a smile, "That sounds great and I'd like to get to know Gilbert and Diana a bit more as well." Talking about the boarding house made her heart ache, she missed all the boys, every single one of them. That was the only home she ever really had. She knew Sean just wanted the best for her and that he worked hard for them to be able to start new in Avonlea. He never wanted them to have to skip meals again just to survive.
Diana couldn't help but giggle at Gilbert, he never at a loss for words and this girl had him stumbling. She nudged him gently when Althea and Anne walked out of the small clubhouse, "Isn't it magical in there Althea?"
Althea grinned, "Absolutely."
"Alright then! We should all go get Cole, and then we can explore Avonlea!"
Gilbert subtly moved from the back of the group to up next to Althea, which earned a snort from Diana which he promptly ignored.
"Hey," he said, a little too loudly, and his cheeks turned ever so slightly pink again while he reprimanded himself in his mind.
Meanwhile, Anne nudged Diana and asked "What's up with Gilbert?"
Althea was happy that somehow before the first day of school she was able to make friends. It made the idea of going to school a lot less scary being able to have people there that she knew. As they walked to Cole's Althea somehow ended up next to Gilbert, "So Gilbert, do you have any advice for school tomorrow? Who I should look out for, what should I make sure not to do?"
Diana waggled her eyebrows at Anne and whispered, "He thinks Althea is really pretty. I think he's a little taken with her if you ask me." Anne chuckled. "Really? I bet on two hours before she smacks her own slate over his head."
"Uhh," Gilbert started. "I-I mean, Avonlea is pretty traditional, so you might just want to stick with the girls if you don't want others to stare," he said. "And maybe stay away from Josie Pye, or at least stay on her good side." He scratched the back of his neck, something he often did when he was thinking hard, or nervous. "And if you do wear pants to school, you'll get some stares. Thankfully though, people are a bit more open-minded about things like that now that Miss Stacy is around. I guess that's about it." He felt a bit silly talking about how women should be traditional, since that wasn't really his opinion, but he figured it was worth mentioning because of the strong opinions of others, even other women.
Then Gilbert had a thought. "You know, Anne should tell you about the protest we had!" He said. "It was her idea - and it was truly amazing." He smiled at the memory.
Meanwhile Anne was giggling with Diana at the idea of Gilbert smitten.
Althea frowned slightly, " I guess I can do that. I have only ever had guy friends for the most part of my life so that will be an interesting change." She then thought about the pants, "Oh don't worry Sean told me I can't wear them in public anymore. He wants me to fit in here so I have to start acting more like a lady." She rolled her eyes just thinking about it.
She then realized he mentioned a protest, "Wait, a protest?" She turned to Anne and Diana, "What was the protest for?"
"Ah, the protest!" Anne replied. Her eyes lit up, and she smiled as she began to retell the events. "We'd recently started a newspaper club, and something happened to one of our members. I wrote a story about it, and published it without consulting the rest of the members." Anne's cheeks turned a bit pink at this. "Well the council was upset, to put it lightly, and demanded that if we wished to continue publishing the newspaper and providing the citizens with it, we needed to only write about certain topics, and that the club needed to fire me. I was entirely upset by the prospect, although I suppose the situation was my own fault, but thankfully Gilbert convinced the rest of the newspaper club that the council were the ones in the wrong. I am thoroughly convinced that without our group's open mindedness this would not have been possible. Well the newspaper club debated on their conditions as I was doing nothing besides sitting in self-pity and guilt, before I came up with an idea. I brought a bunch of boards to the school, which happened to be right at the conclusion of their meeting and we organized for the students to go to Green Gables and help to paint boards with a special message. We put the boards into a cart and met outside of the schoolhouse, where everyone joined us, and headed to town hall. In order to make our message have a greater impact, we waved around the white handkerchiefs we brought with us-" She pulled hers out of her pocket, "And called to anyone we met to follow us to town hall. We marched into the building completely unannounced and took over the stage, drawing the curtains closed and setting up behind it. Josie, who I thought wasn't coming, arrived at the last second, and helped me deliver the message. We opened the curtains, and behind it was every other member of the class with handkerchiefs tied around their mouths and holding up boards which collectively spelled out 'Freedom of Speech is a Human Right'. As one of the board members tried to pull down the boards, Miss Stacy took a photo of it. It was truly amazing." She smiled at the memory. "I keep the handkerchief with me for good luck." She pulled the cloth out of her pocket, showing it to Althea.
"After it happened, though, they burned down the schoolhouse and stole the printing press. We've only just finished rebuilding it. It was truly a nightmare trying to study inside the confines of two small rooms in one of our classmates' houses, as nice as that house might've been. "
Althea smiled at the passion Anne had when speaking about the topic, it reminded her of when the newsies went on strike. "You know I sold newspapers in New York. That's amazing though! Ridiculous that they burnt down the whole school house, but I'm excited to see it tomorrow when we go."
Diana loved when Anne spoke passionately about anything, and she could, "It was amazing. Anne is something of a revolution leader in Avonlea if you ask me. She is always helping make changes for the better whether the adults like it or not."
"Aww, thanks Diana," Anne replied, a smile spreading across her face.
"Cole's house is a train ride away, so it'll take a bit. I'll pay for you though, Althea, if you're still wanting to go." Gilbert checked his watch, frowning. "Actually, it might be better if we wait until next weekend. It's gotten a bit late." He then recalled that Althea didn't know why Cole wouldn't be going to school. "Anne can probably tell you about Cole later on." His smile faltered a bit, as Anne and Diana's did, but as quickly as it did it was back. "We can walk you back home if you know your address?"
Althea nodded, "Yes I believe that is it just past the long lane outside of the woods. It's not in the best shape, but we're fixing it up." She smiled proud to finally have an actual home. She didn't care that it wasn't in the best repair, they could fix that. She had a home with her brother and a place where they could build suitable lives for themselves.
Diana grinned at Anne, "I think she might be talking about that home near Lover's Lane. I had forgotten that was there. Someone hasn't lived there in years."
"Ah, I know the place!" Anne said. She recalled once going there when she'd first arrived at Avonlea, it being a very old and unkempt house. She'd found a sense of peace there, for reasons she did not know.
The last time Gilbert had been there, he screamed when he saw a mouse, ran outside of the building, knocking over several boards and boxes and didn't stop running until the house was out of sight, later claiming that he'd seen a ghost. Anne and Diana had never let him live that down.
Since then the old house had been fixed up a bit, given a fresh coat of paint in certain areas and cleaned out in others. It wasn't near finished, but was livable at least and had a lot of potential to become something beautiful.
"That's just this way," Anne said. She began walking to the right when Gilbert said, "Actually, I should really head home - nice to meet you Althea!" Before practically running the other way.
"He's scared of that house," Anne explained. "Last time he visited he nearly fainted!"
Althea laughed when Anne said Gilbert had nearly fainted last time he visited the house. It wasn't in the best shape, but it most definitely wasn't something scary in her opinion, "Well, I think it has potential if I say so myself."
Diana giggled and said, "Oh it wasn't the house that scared him it was a mouse. He just blames it on the ghost."
This made Althea laugh harder, "Well I will help you never let him live that down." She followed Anne and DIana to her new home. She was proud of the new pop of paint that her and her brother had given it. She had convinced him to let her paint the shutters and door a pale robin egg's blue. She was never allowed any girly things so she was beyond excited to have this small victory. It was a decent sized home with a porch spanning the front. All of the exterior had been painted a nice crisp light gray with the robin's egg as the accent color. There was still a lot to do on the inside, but the outside being finished was a good start.
"Alright then!" Anne said. "I suppose we should head off. Have fun settling in, and feel free to visit Green Gables if you need anything. It's just down the path for a while, obscured behind some trees." She smiled, then waved. "Goodbye Althea!"
A/N: Z: Hey everyone! Enjoy the chapter, stay safe!
