Chapter VII

March came swiftly although it dragged unmercifully. The spring was slowly becoming visible with the green surface of grass being the winner between the battle against the snow, and the birdsong could be heard in the air although not quite clearly just yet. It was a month when Buckingham Palace was hit by a German bomb, as well as Portsmouth, Plymouth and Bristol were and it was also when the first British troops arrived in Greece. It was when Gilly and Marshall couldn't send as many letters to their families as they used to, they were simply too busy with flying in aeroplanes protecting their country, making their families almost sick with worry but also pride over them.

When one certain letter from Gilly came in which he stated that he's fine and "all busy, and hungry most of the time because we don't have enough time to eat anything!", Hester and her family could breathe in a more comfortable way than usually during that month. On that day of peacefulness Hester was alone in the House of Dreams, reading a book on the porch in front of her house wearing a thick jumper her grandma Leslie did for her and with a blanket spread across her knees.

Rilla was invited by Faith to help her prepare a birthday cake for Anne who was to be celebrating her seventy-sixth birthday just a day afterwards (something in which nobody, not even Anne herself, could believe for she didn't either look or felt like a seventy-six year old madam). Ken however was asked by Jem and Jerry to go and try to fix Shirley's car which broke a few days earlier and that particular Saturday was the earliest when "the men" could go and help him.

So Hester had the whole house to herself and because she thought it would be nice for all its ghosts to meet up inside, she went outside with another one of her books in her lap, reading it with a soft smile upon her face which signalled that she just posted two letters to both of her brothers whom she knew were safe for now at least. Her face was rested, pale as usual, and her black as the night's sky hair was put into a messy ponytail. But even though her hair looked disorganised, her blanket a bit frayed and the winter shoes she wore were worn out, she looked so calm and pretty that one could think she was in fact a true angel.

The angelic atmosphere was distrubed by the sound of the bicycle and its driver coming up the front of the House of Dreams. Hester looked up from her book and although her brows raised in surprise, her smiled widened at the sight of the blonde-haired girl "Hello there, Vance!" she said merrily to her friend and offered her a seat next to her which Vance readily took "Are you alright? We are all supposed to meet up at Ingleside in three hours time." she looked more worriedly at Vance's flushed face, Vance whose face was never really flushed.

Vance looked down as if she was embarrassed but then looked into Hester's eyes again "I know, I know, but you see," she started in a shaky voice "-I came to talk to you."

"What's wrong?" Hester put her book aside and took her friend's hands in her own, looking deeply into her green eyes "Did something happen to Marshall?" her eyes got even more worried then.

Vance's face turned very pale all of a sudden and she looked back into Hester's eyes "No! No, nothing happened to him, no." she said quickly, catching her breath "It's just that there's something I want you to know about but I don't really want anyone else to know." she explained and the colour came back to her cheeks.

"Alright, what is it then, dear?" Hester asked her kindly, squeezing her hands reassuringly.

Vance breathed in heavily and breathed out in a similar manner, her eyes looking at Hester's shoes "I just hope you won't get mad…" she said but Hester stopped her.

"Mad? Vance you can never make me mad, you know that." she assured her by giving her a smile, the one in which Vance trusted with her life.

Vance smiled back and decided to look into her friend's eyes finally "What I want you to know is that I think… that… maybe… I think…" she breathed in again "-I think I'm in love with your brother." she said eventually.

Hester's eyes widened in surprise but she didn't seem alarmed at all "Gilly?" she asked although as soon as Hester said her oldest brother's name she knew that that wasn't the brother Vance was talking about.

"No, no." Vance shook her head, her nerves slowly vanishing "I'm talking about Selwyn." when she said his name her cheeks flushed with red all over again.

Hester grinned at her calmly and made her to look at her again by putting her friend's hands nearer to her "Are you sure, Vance? And how, and when?" she asked with pure interest in her hazel eyes.

Vance smiled in her own sweet way "We have been writing to each other you see." she said "Since the day he was sent to that training camp. But I think I loved him a long time before that." she said gently and Hester wasn't surprised by her simple answer, she knew that Vance was feeling embarrassed and very timid because of her sensistive soul but she could also see that Vance really wanted to talk about that situation of hers.

"Oh, Vance…" Hester said with true joy in her shining eyes "Really? You really do love my brother?" she encouraged her to talk more.

"I know I'm too young to really know, I know that Hester," Vance said suddenly with her tone more serious "-I turned seventeen a month ago and I know it's too soon for me to know, mother said that to me too, but..." her lips then turned into a delightful smile "I just know, you know?" she blushed again, realising for how long she was speaking.

Hester squeezed Vance's hands again and her smile was getting brighter too "I wish I knew that feeling." Hester's eyes seemed to turn melancholy for a second but returned to their joyful side again soon after "Vance, I trust your word that you love Selwyn and I think that the two of you are so perfect for each other." she said.

"Really?" Vance said with a disbelieving voice of hers "Of course I never told him how I feel, I can't. I don't know how he feels although I can only imagine that he doesn't even think about this kind of thing at all and I'm glad in a way, you know… But then…" her lip trembled "-what will I do if I will never tell him and he will…"

Hester put Vance into a warm hug "He won't, Vance." she told her firmly, and to herself too "I know he won't. I can feel it as much as I can feel the wind blowing on our faces right now." she looked into Vance's green eyes again and smiled into them "And I'll tell you this, I am very happy that that's how you feel about Selwyn and also that you will let your correspondence to continue without mentioning the word 'love'. Because as much as I know that Selwyn might love you too even now, he wouldn't be able to bear that thought out there at the front, and I think that you know that too." her smile weakened a bit.

Vance nodded in agreement "I know that he's not ready for things like this, especially when he's at the front." she said and then put her head against Hester's shoulder "But I can't help imagining all the what ifs…" she closed her eyes and her face turned dreamy, her expression very similar to Selwyn's own whilst he was writing poetry under the White Lady in the old Rainbow Valley.

Hester smiled at Vance and she closed her eyes as well, her own pale face turning dreamy as the sun shone bright upon both of their faces "And don't stop imagining, Vance." Hester whispered to her friend "I won't.".

17th April 1941

Dearest Hester,

I am fine, of course I am, my sweet sister, if not for my own sake then for yours and our parents'. But truly I am. I am now used to all my daily routines and believe it or not I am getting more and more accustomed to the whole idea of war, even though I don't want to be but it is the will of some higher voice, God's most probably.

I've seen many things already, I've done many things already too, all of those about which I won't speak to you. Maybe one day I will in a very far off future but not today, not in this or any other letter I will ever send to you so do stop asking me about all of those things to describe to you. Even though my soul is changed forever now (I can't help it and nobody here can either), I still "have faith" like our good old Uncle Walter told our Mother to have. I will have it because I mean to survive this war, this hell, and come back home to Canada, to you as well my dearest.

You have no idea how thankful I am for Walt and John to be here with me. It is truly such a wonderful thing that we are in these dreaded trenches together and that we can talk almost whenever we want and always take care of one another. That is why I'm telling you for the millionth time, my dear and only sister, do not worry about either one of us, we are all well.

Answering your question, yes I have written a few poems since we've arrived at the front. I tried to make them as happy as I could while being where I am and doing what I do. I will send them along with this letter to you, these are your copies to keep, dear Hester. I hope that they will give you as much hope as they give me.

Also answering your other question, yes, I do write to Vance and I am glad that she's happy about our friendship because I am too. Both of you girls give me the greatest gift a soldier fighting at the front can get, a smile on my face. Whenever I read your or Vance's letters telling me all about the news and happenings in your school-lives, I smile and feel as if I was there, in Glen, with you two and that I am in fact laughing along with you too.

I am glad that you are keeping so strong yourself with two of your brothers facing the war. You truly are one of the strongest and hopeful people I know in this world, Hester. This includes many others but you and I know that you weren't half as strong when we were parting, as you are now. I am so very proud of you, Gil and I are, I want you to always remember that.

You say that Aunt Gertrude's oldest son, Jim, enlisted too? It is just like you to also add Jim to this long list of yours filled with people for whom you pray every night. I am glad you do pray for us though, this thought that someone does keeps me sane and more hopeful, you know.

I will try to look out for Jim then. I do know how he looks like, I have this strange yet very wonderful gift of remembering a person's face for eternity with only given an hour or so just talking to them. So I can only hope that I will see him and if I will, I will give him an honest and true hug and we shall talk till dawn, like Walt and John and myself do when we can't sleep.

Yes, Mum wrote to me earlier and told me as well, like you said in your last letter, that our cousin Jims isn't interested in enlisting at all. Good for him, I say! And of course Mum is more than relieved because of that. At least one of her "sons" isn't called by the Piper to fight with him.

I am more than happy to hear about your music and I do hope that I will hear the composition you're working on now one day. The title is so beautiful, "Hope and Our Rainbow Valley" and it says everything and this everything means that I can already hear it, my own vision of it waltzing in front of my eyes, or should I say ears? It is beautiful, I'm positive about it,l and don't you dare doubt it, dearest.

See, I have to go now. We are all about to eat our "dinner" which would never, not in billions of years, be comparable to the dinner Mum makes every single day in our old House of Dreams.

I wish you and our family a beautiful day and once again Hester, do not worry about me or my soul, we're both as fine as we can be, I promise you.

I'll write to you as soon as I'll be able to.

Send all the hugs and kisses to all the people we both love (that includes you).

Always your own brother,

(Second Lieutenant) Selwyn Ford

29th April 1941

Dearest sis,

I'll quickly start off by saying that I am fine. Both Marshall and I are, so don't you fret about us one bit, alright there, Hes? You are a true darling to pray for our safety and the thought that you do makes me smile with pride over how strong and wonderful human being my own sister is!

We're flying and flying.. Yesterday I was in a plane for about eight hours in total, and this is quite tiring so to be honest, apart from some bruises I got, I'm simply just tired and hungry all the time (don't tell Mother, alright? Or otherwise she'll be sending me all the unnecessary food!). But really, dear sister, I am fine in both spirits and body.

Now, what in the world is going on in Jo's mind? I always knew there was definitely something of a strange and queer personality in her but by God, I think she has lost her mind entirely. You needn't tell me what she has done because she wrote me herself, a telegram by all means. She married Hawk? I still ask myself this question, both me and Marshall to be honest with you. And she didn't tell anybody that she was even thinking about getting married to this man who nobody apparently in our family knows about at all!

Yes, Hes, I am angry at her. Not even because she didn't say anything about her intentions (although showing up for Easter break at Uncle Jerry's and Auntie Nan's with a gold band on her finger is quite a way of telling someone of their latest elopement) to anybody but I'm especially angry at her because of Marshall. She was a sweetheart of his and he was hers for two years before Marshall proposed to her. I still rememebr how excited and scared he was to do that and I also remember how heartbroken he was when she laughed in his face. Jo has known this Hawk-person for I don't know, a few months maybe? That just proves that she's either crazy, unreasonable or insensitive, or the three combined together, that's what.

I was very grateful that she at least apologised to Marshall for her rejection and that she started to write to him again, as a friend she always has been for both him and me. Yes, I do like Jo, she still is my friend, although… I don't know if she is anymore, Hes. If I was to be married, I would definitely write to her to inform her about my engagement, that's for sure.

I do understand that that was not a planned wedding, she did say in her letter that she married Hawk on the day when he was heading off to the front himself but still… Maybe then I shouldn't feel so angry now should I, Hes? You wrote that in a way you saw the reason for her marrying so suddenly and you're probably right, you've got a kind soul and I will always listen to what it tells you, out of all the people I listen to (which is not so many as you know yourself).

Well no, I'm not that angry at her. I'm not angry she married without saying anything because as you said, she had a reason. I'm angry because she refused Marshall who loved her fiercely and I knew she loved him too, and now she married a man whom I don't think she quite knows. She said to our family that she does know him and loves him? Well, I know Jo well enough to not be so eager to believe her all at once, or at least to believe her fully on that. So take my advice to not trust everything Josephine Meredith says or should I say, Josephine Reed now?

Well, I shall be waiting for her letter telling me all about her "glorious and so incredibly romantic wedding".

No, Hes, Marshall isn't downhearted by Jo's marriage. He did get over her and the loss of her, it has been almost a year and a half after he proposed to her and she refused him so no, he's quite alright with her decision. I know that you don't know Marshall, but I'm telling you even though you know him only as a really annoying boy (he would hate me if he knew I called him a boy at the age of twenty one!) who teased you all the time, he is actually a very kind man and he is strong, both emotionally and physically. Besides, he has me to talk to and he knows that well. So go ahead and tell Vance and Cornelia that their brother is keeping fine and good and that he is just as surprised as they all are when it comes to Jo's news, but he's not sad or even angry (which did surprise me because he has his temper, the old rascal).

Anyway, I have to go now, and if you can read through all of this terribly messy writing of mine (I am in a hurry like always) then reply to my letter with your own sweet letter, the kind you always write to me.

Send our Mama a big kiss and give Dads a nudge at the side and a huge smile from me alright, Hes?

I love you, my dearest sister. Keep your head up, always be happy and smile for so long that your face will start to hurt!

I will speak to you soon then, alright?

Your brother,

Wing Commander Gilbert Ford