01:55

willowmae – I am aware that Avonlea was far from the Glen, and I did mention a few times that Jem and Faith drove or had to drive for a few hours before nearing Avonlea. As for the signs, I'm guessing they were used, but this is a made-up story, so there will be some inaccuracies. I'll try my best to avoid them. Hope this clears that up! :]

It was nearly midnight before they were back in the Glen. By the time they'd reached the manse, it was midnight. Faith had fallen asleep on Jem's shoulder nearly half an hour before they'd neared Glen St. Mary, lured by the early summer sounds and wrapped snugly in her mother's shawl.

The manse was dark except for a single light in the entryway window as they drove up.

"Faith?" Jem whispered as he slowed the horse gently until it stopped. He loosened his arm that was wrapped around her and gently pulled her upright. "Sweetheart, wake up. We're home."

She blinked sleepily and yawned. "Mmm, I must've fallen asleep. What time is it?"

"About midnight."

"Oh no," she laughed. "I said we'd be home by ten."

"Well, I said that…but you're home now…am I forgiven?"

She smiled. "I was never angry. Today has been one of the best days of my life, how could I be mad at that?"

"You go get some sleep, Miss Meredith," he said.

"Alright…good night, Jem. Thank you for a wonderful day."

"One of many to come."

He helped her down and waited until she was inside, then drove off towards home.

There was one light on in the hall when she stepped inside and she was grateful. Tiptoeing up to her room, she relived the best parts of the day over and over again.

As she lit her lamp, she noticed a piece of paper on her pillow. Curious, she retrieved and read it.

Faith—

I'm sorry I missed your surprise arrival…but it looked like everyone did. It's swell that you're home—I've really missed you. You'd better be up early, because we've a lot of catching up to do.

Carl

So Carl had come home while she was with Jem! She smiled at the thought of her little brother in the next room. She was tempted to go and see him, but she knew it was late and that he'd be asleep. Setting the paper on her nightstand, she slipped into her nightgown and crawled under her covers and was asleep before her head hit the pillow.

The morning's early light woke her up earlier than usual. Outside, it was sunny and humid with various sweet scents hanging heavily in the air. It was pleasant and comforting.

Carl Meredith had come home the night before from visiting friends over-harbor and was as anxious to see his sister as Faith was to see her brother, and both spent the morning catching up with each other, as well as the whole family.

By eleven o'clock, the entire Meredith family still had not gotten dressed nor had a proper breakfast. Rosemary Meredith finally paused the conversations when the clock chimed eleven thirty.

As Faith and Rosemary whipped up a quick lunch, they chatted about the trip to Avonlea. Rosemary was well aware what Jem was going to suggest to Faith—she and Ellen had wanted to offer the house as soon as they heard Faith and Jem intended to marry, but the war had postponed that—and now that they were both home for good, the sisters couldn't wait to see the house become a home once more.

"…And then," Faith continued, pulling Rosemary from her thoughts, "he told me that you and Aunt Ellen wanted to give us the Hill House after we married." She turned towards her stepmother and her eyes glowed. "Are you sure, Mother Rose? That you want to give that place up? That you don't want to sell it? It would be worth a lot and—"

"Faith, dear—"

"...I mean, we wouldn't be able to get married—let alone move into the house—for a good year, at least, probably more—and it'll just stand there unoccupied—"

"Faith, listen to m—"

"And I hate to see it standing there empty when you could sell it and make some money, and then it wouldn't be empty and lonely for another two years, and—"

"Faith!" Rosemary exclaimed with a laugh, taking the girl's hands in her own. "Would you stop babbling for a second?" She continued before Faith could say or do anything. "It has hurt Ellen and I so to see that house stand empty for as long as it has. Despite how enormously happy and blessed we both were when we left, leaving that house empty was always difficult. We couldn't bring ourselves to sell it though…it would be even harder to see someone else living there—someone other than family. We planned to just wait until you or Jerry—as you were the oldest—got married, then we'd offer you the house. You and Jem were engaged first—though Nan and Jerry weren't that far behind—and you've always loved that house so much. It seemed right to give it to you. We talked to Jerry about it, and he and Nan both immediately agreed that you and Jem should have it. We want you both to have it, Faith. Your aunt and I couldn't be happier to see you and Jem live there, raise a family there, bring the house to life again."

"Then you're absolutely sure…?" murmured Faith.

"Positive!" she said. "As a matter of fact, we could even go and walk through it today…I'm sure Ellen wouldn't mind," she mused. "She and Norman won't be home for another week…yes, we should go see it. I haven't been inside in awhile." She looked Faith in the eye. "You realize it will need some fixing and cleaning up, right? It shouldn't be too bad. Norman has worked hard to keep it up."

"Cleaning never hurt anyone," Faith smiled. "And that way, it'll feel more like a home when it's done because we worked to make it warm and cozy and comfortable."

"That's the spirit." Rosemary kissed her cheek. "And we'll all help…oh! This is so exciting!" She clasped her hands to her chest. "For so long we worried and feared that you young people would never get to experience these lovely days, and when the boys went off, I made myself forget those dreams—temporarily, you see. I knew it wasn't guaranteed the boys would come back, but I wanted to always live in the hope that they would."

"Of course," Faith agreed, listening intently.

"And now that it's all over, everything's happening so quickly, but I wouldn't have it any other way," she sighed.

Faith wrapped her arms around her stepmother. "Thank you. From both of us…I know Jem will thank you again when he sees you, but this is thank you from me, for so much, Mother Rose. I know you know this, but I love you so much. You're my mother in so many beautiful ways, you've made us all so happy—Father especially—and I can't imagine life without you."

"Faith…" Rosemary couldn't finish. It took her a moment to regain her composure and her voice. "Oh, you dear girl. You're going to have me crying in a moment. But thank you for those precious words. And now, I have to thank you, because when I married your father, I not only gained a wonderful husband and friend, but I became mother to four—now five—beautiful, lively, caring children who have made life so full and interesting and wonderful with each new day that God blesses us with."

The lovely words both of them had spoken and meant wholeheartedly floated around in the recesses of their minds as they finished preparing the food. Faith replayed the words over and over again as she worked.

After lunch, Rosemary called over to Ingleside and proposed that the two families walk over to the Hill House and tour it, then go to the manse for a nice dinner, an exchange for the meal they'd had at Ingleside the night Faith returned. Anne praised the idea, and by one-thirty, both families, minus Susan, who was suffering from a migraine, had gathered at the manse to walk over. Even Jerry came, as his illness was finally beginning to loosen its grip on him, and both Gilbert and Jem agreed the beautiful spring day, fresh air and sunshine would do him good.

As they walked, they naturally broke off into couples: Jem with Faith and Nan with Jerry walked up front, laughing together while Gilbert and Anne with Rosemary and Rev. Meredith discussed various matters in the middle. Carl, Rilla, Di, Una, and Bruce brought up the rear, chattering merrily in the sunshine.

The warm weather and the sunshine was invigorating, and they were climbing up the path that led to the house before long. The house was a large, square, two story building with a large attic. It had a wonderful view of the houses and the winding red roads that connected them.

They gathered on the large, wrap-around porch as Rosemary opened unlocked the door. It was cool and shady and dim as they stepped inside the front hall. It looked lonely and forlorn, though the rooms were spacious with many windows. Jem took Faith's hand and the two of them began to walk around the first floor.

Downstairs was the entry hall with two doors, one to the right and one going to the left, with a large staircase leading to the second floor.

The right door led right into the parlor, a large, airy room with windows on every wall. Faith couldn't wait to sit in the pleasant room and read as snow or rain fell lazily down. A door in the back in the back of the parlor led into the living room, another comfortably-sized room. A nice, sizeable kitchen was in the very back with a pantry. Off of the pantry, there was a small, unidentified room that would most likely serve as a laundry room when the weather turned cold. The kitchen, which led right into the dining room, which was on the other side of the left door in the foyer.

As the two of them finished walking around the first floor, the laughter and excited chatter of their family bouncing off of the walls, Faith squeezed Jem's hand.

"It's so nice and large, Jem!" she very nearly squealed. "And all of these beautiful windows to let the sunlight in! To think that it's going to be ours to furnish, live and raise a family in!"

"It's a little surreal," he grinned down at her. "I haven't been in here in a long time, and now that it's all coming back to me, it feels like everything's happening so fast." He looked around the light-filled dining room and shook his head. "What a gracious and kind offer your aunt and mother made us. The house feels like it was made for us."

"Shall we go tour the upstairs, Mr. Blythe?"

"We shall." He held out his arm, and with an exaggerated smile and twirl of her skirt, Faith took it, and together they climbed the front staircase.

The second floor darker than the first, and dustier. The stairs led right into a long hallway, with three rooms on either side of the hall, and one door in the very back.

"So many rooms…" Faith murmured. "What on earth are we going to do with them?"

"Well," Jem mused as they made their way in and out of the rooms on the left side, "one room could be a study, one or two could be guest rooms…and one room could be a sewing room for you, if you'd like."

"Oh, yes, for all of the hours I enjoy spending on making clothes and pricking myself." Faith rolled her eyes at the suggestion.

"I was teasing you," he responded with a laugh. "I know you're not one for staying cooped up in a small room hunched over fabric."

"Someday I'll try and work past that," she said.

As they reached the end of the rooms on the left side, they came to the door at the very end. Faith opened it, and inside was the largest room yet. It was clearly a master bedroom—or rooms. Faith saw two doors that led somewhere else. One, she discovered, led to a water closet that would be in need of repair before it could be used, and the other door led to a large walk-in closet.

Her favorite part was not the size or the water closet right in the room, but the pair of glass doors that opened right onto their own balcony that overlooked the woods that surrounded the back of the house. Jem joined her outside, the golden sunshine a welcome change from the cool, shady indoors.

"This part is my favorite," Faith said dreamily. "It's beautiful…and it's, I don't know…"

"A nice finishing touch?" Jem suggested.

"Yes! That's it." She turned from the view and surveyed the space. "We could put two chairs out here, a table…it'd be a lovely place to read or just be quiet and think and dream, wouldn't it?"

"It would…we could even build a partial roof or something like that so we could sit out in the rain…and keep the sun off," he added, wincing at the bright rays.

"That would be nice," she agreed.

Behind them, the glass doors opened again, and Rosemary and Anne stepped out.

"Goodness," Rosemary exclaimed, swiftly putting her hand up to block the light, "that sun is vibrant today."

"It sure is, especially after being inside for so long," Anne said, smiling at the young couple. "Well, I see you've found my favorite part of this home."

"Mine as well," sighed Rosemary. "It was hard to leave behind. This was Mama and Father's room, you see. Ellen and I spent many a summer afternoon playing on this balcony."

"It's a lovely master bedroom," Anne said. "The water closest could use a little fixing up, but otherwise it's so big, and that closet! It's enormous! Faith, I daresay you will not have enough clothes to fit in there."

"It's very true," Faith laughed. "My closet is barely half full now, even with all of my wardrobe. My things in that new closet will look pitifully small in numbers." She paused, then smiled. "We should just share the house with Nan and Jerry. There's plenty of room."

"That's true," Jem said. "Goodness knows Nan would need a closet of that size to fit her entire wardrobe in."

"I heard that," Nan's voice called from inside, and a moment later, the brown-haired, brown-eyed Blythe twin joined the four of them outside, Jerry on her heels. "Mother, Father wanted to show you something, and Bruce is asking for you, Mrs. Meredith," she announced and the two mothers went back inside chattering before Nan spoke again. "Faith, you and I should just take this house. Jem doesn't deserve a closet like that anyway. He and Jerry can have the attic." She thwacked her older brother's arm.

"What did I ever do to deserve such harsh treatment?" demanded Jerry.

"You haven't done anything—yet." Nan's eyes flashed with love and humor at her tall, dark fiancé. He kissed her in response.

"Now, now, you two," Faith chided with a laugh. She shook her head. Jem cleared his throat, and when Nan and Jerry finally parted, he raised his eyebrow at him. "I suppose you and I are in a bit of a fix, aren't we?"

"What do you mean?" Jerry asked, looking honestly confused.

"Well, typically, I'd go confront any man who was after my sister like that…but, as I am in the exact same situation as you, that would be rather pointless of me, now wouldn't it?"

Jerry saw the connection and laughed. "I guess so. It is a funny thing, isn't it? How it ended up between the four of us?"

"I've thought of that a lot," said Nan. "I think it is wonderful, though."

Faith nodded. "Do you realize our children will be double cousins, since Jerry and I are brother and sister, and Jem and Nan are?"

"I never thought of that," said Jem. "That's the most peculiar thing. In a good way, of course."

"Of course." Nan smiled up at her red-haired brother. He held out his arm to her. "Shall we go see what everyone else is up to before this sun blinds us?"

Faith linked arms with her brother, as did Nan, and they headed back for the cool darkness of the house.

Downstairs, the four elder Blythes and Merediths were gathered in the kitchen, inspecting what changes would need to take place and how much it would cost. Rilla, Di and Una were sitting in the parlor, and Carl was in the dining room with Bruce. When the four of them came to the kitchen, Rev. Meredith stood up from a cabinet he and Dr. Blythe had been checking.
"Well, I can see the future master and mistress of this home have finished their tour," Rev. Meredith said, his eyes twinkling at his blushing daughter, and for a moment all attention was focused on the young, happy couple.

"The house is looking better than I thought," Rosemary said. "Norman has worked hard. I'll have to thank him again when he and Ellen return."

"I'd say a three weeks would be enough time to whip this place into shape," said Gilbert. "If we all chip in, especially."

"How much would you estimate the costs would be?" asked Faith.

"Oh, not much more than a hundred or so…and that would include paint, repairs, and basic furniture, as well as other necessities."

Faith's eyebrows shot up. "Gilbert and I will cover all those expenses, Faith, dear," Anne said reassuringly.

Both Faith and Rosemary opened their mouths to object, but Anne held up a hand. "Please, before you both tell me how it's too much, let me just say Rosemary, that you and John are giving them a house, and Gilbert and I need to help somehow, and this is it. As for you, Faith, you're family—or very nearly so. I don't want any objections."

Rosemary spoke first. "Well, then…thank you. I think we should all head down to the manse for a nice early supper and finish these plans. How does that sound?"

The vote was unanimous to Rosemary's suggestion, and once again, the two families were soon strolling under the sun.

Thank you everyone for your lovely reviews! They mean so much to me. I'm so sorry it has taken me so long to update, and I'm sorry this chapter wasn't very good. With the busyness of the holidays, lots of projects for school, writer's block, going on vacation, my birthday, and then getting sick for a week, it's been very difficult for me to write new chapters, so again, I apologize, and there will be new chapters up soon to make up for it.

I'm not able to message everyone, so to update, I'll post a review or I'll write an update on my homepage. Please check there every so often, or message me. I'm going to try very hard to incorporate some Nan and Jerry into this story. After Jem and Faith, Nan and Jerry are my favorite couple, and I've gotten requests for them to be prominent in this story. I want to let everyone know that I am working hard to add them. They'll be "secondary" to Jem and Faith, but they will be in the story. Suggestions are very helpful if you have some ideas. Thank you for all of your reviews once again…they're always welcome. ;]