" I'm bored." Anne exclaimed as her and Gilbert studied one Saturday afternoon as they were studying. She propped her head up with hand and looked at him. " wanna do something fun?" she asked him.

He looked up and into her eyes. " what are you thinking?" he smiled and a wink.

She giggled at him " no not like that! Gil!" She paused in thought " what would you think if we wrote uncle Abe predictions ourselves... or rather embellished it?"

He grinned a little, " we need to make sure no one guesses it's us who wrote it, or we'll have half of Avonlea backs up."

Anne grinned "I think between us we could pseudo Charlie between us don't you?"

Gilbert chuckled " alright my queen Anne, as you wish. Maybe we could throw an insult at me to throw off the scent," he said putting his books away.

" Oh that's a good idea." Anne exclaimed so much Gilbert looked at her a bit hurt. " no no dear Gilbert I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that." She laughed.

A cheeky grin came over his face, " come on then. Let's do it."

"Rumor has it that there will be a wedding in our village ere the daisies are in bloom. A new and highly respected citizen will lead to the hymeneal altar one of our most popular ladies.

"Uncle Abe, our well-known weather prophet, predicts a violent storm of thunder and lightning for the evening of the twenty-third of May, beginning at seven o'clock sharp. The area of the storm will extend over the greater part of the Province. People traveling that evening will do well to take umbrellas and mackintoshes with them."

"Uncle Abe really has predicted a storm for sometime this spring," said Gilbert, "but do you suppose Mr. Harrison really does go to see Isabella Andrews?"

"No," said Anne, laughing, "I'm sure he only goes to play checkers with Mr. Harrison Andrews, but Mrs. Lynde says she knows Isabella Andrews must be going to get married, she's in such good spirits this spring."

Poor old Uncle Abe felt rather indignant over the notes. He suspected that "Observer" was making fun of him. He angrily denied having assigned any particular date for his storm but nobody believed him.

23rd May came and Gilbert looked in utter amazement as a perfectly cloudless hot day turned so fast he couldn't even get his pupils home. The storm was like nothing he had ever seen! When he eventually had a calm class he was surrounded by the children he closed his eyes for a moment and saw not his class sitting around him but a brood of children some looked just like him with his brown hair some looked just like... his eyes opened with tears almost in them. Anne, some of those children had Anne's red hair, one a little girl was the spiting double of Anne. He managed to waver off the air destruct feeling quiet quickly, he had become accustomed to ridding that feeling fast. Whenever he imagined his future, she was still there.

He said a silent prayer that Anne might be safe in such a storm and made a promise to himself he would go and make sure they were safe first thing when he returned to Avonlea for the weekend.

Gilbert arrived at Green Gables in the afternoon and found Marilla and Anne busily engaged in nailing strips of oilcloth over the broken windows.

"Goodness only knows when we'll get glass for them," said Marilla. "Mr. Barry went over to Carmody this afternoon but not a pane could he get for love or money. Lawson and Blair were cleaned out by the Carmody people by ten o'clock. Was the storm bad at White Sands, Gilbert?"

"I should say so. I was caught in the school with all the children and I thought some of them would go mad with fright. Three of them fainted, and two girls took hysterics, and Tommy Blewett did nothing but shriek at the top of his voice the whole time."

"I only squealed once," said Davy proudly. "My garden was all smashed flat," he continued mournfully, "but so was Dora's," he added in a tone which indicated that there was yet balm in Gilead.

" fancy joining me for a walk Anne? We could get in some emergency supplies and assess how much damage it's caused in Avonlea, see if AVIS can help in anyway." He asked her.

" Oh what a kind idea Gil, just like you to think of others. Can I go Marilla? I can stay and help more here?"

"Davy can help me Anne don't you worry."

"I'll help when we come back too." Gilbert offered.

" I'll be back before sundown." Anne said as she grabbed her coat. They started on their walk. " nothing damaged at Blythe farm then?" Anne asked him concerned.

" no not really, it's one of the advantages of practically living in the woods the trees protect you from the alignments, unlike green gables at the top of a hill with not much around it to protect it. Other than trees falling on the house we were in no immediate danger." He said quite casually, "I was concerned for you Anne I wondered if you would be like me and have no warning of the storm or if you would have time to reach home before it started."

"only just." Anne admitted. "I barely made it onto the veranda before the ice pellets pounded down. I've never seen anything like it."

" me neither, I'm glad you're safe all the same." Gilbert said swiftly putting his arm around her back for a few seconds before dropping his hand again.

"Oh, have you heard the news? Mr. Levi Boulter's old house was struck and burned to the ground. It seems to me that I'm dreadfully wicked to feel glad over THAT, when so much damage has been done. Mr. Boulter says he believes the A.V.I.S. magicked up that storm on purpose."

"Well, one thing is certain," said Gilbert, laughing, "'Observer' has made Uncle Abe's reputation as a weather prophet. 'Uncle Abe's storm' will go down in local history. It is a most extraordinary coincidence that it should have come on the very day we selected. I actually have a half guilty feeling, as if I really had 'magicked' it up. We may as well rejoice over the old house being removed, for there's not much to rejoice over where our young trees are concerned. Not ten of them have escaped."

"Ah, well, we'll just have to plant them over again next spring," said Anne philosophically. "That is one good thing about this world . . . there are always sure to be more springs."

" yes that's true." He smiled, Anne was as lovely as ever. It would have taken him a long time to appreciate there would be another spring coming soon, trust Anne to think of it.

Dear Gilbert,

I have some exciting news! I feel so much joy I wish I could tell you in person for i would love to see your face when I told you but it is Monday now and I feel you have the right to know before even Diana must be told, and you know me I can never keep a secret of my own for THAT long! So I must take comfort this will reach you by Wednesday so I can safely tell Diana on Thursday.

Now I have you wondering what it must be! Well Marilla approached me late last night asking if I still had wishes to go to Redmond. Of course my answer is yes, I have been happy these two years staying home making sure she is well taking care of the twins and teaching. Marilla said she always felt guilty I should put my plans on hold for her and Gilbert she has hatched a plan. She has asked Mrs Lynde to live in green gables so that Mrs Lynde might assist where needs be! Mrs Lynde accepted this morning, it'll mean Marilla will no longer NEED me to stay! Gilbert, WE can go to Redmond together, just as we always planned!

Gilbert we can expand our minds together just as we always wanted! We can compare notes, conquest ignorance and conspire as we always did to take over the world! Gilbert we've been given the moon! Tell me we won't board far from each other so we can savour every moment of this we can together! Gilbert! Oh tell me you are as excited to hear this as me!

By the time you see me on Friday evening I would have handed in my resignation to the board!

Oh Gilbert isn't it just wonderful?!

I can't wait to see you, please come Friday night! I want to celebrate!

With warm regards and much anticipation,

Anne

"Anne!" he called down the field that Friday evening! He was so excited he barely bid his mother "hello" before he broke into a sprint towards Green Gables.

"Gil!" she called back running up the field to meet him.

They threw their arms around each other as they breathlessly met, Gilbert lifting her gently off the ground.

"Oh Gil! Gil! Are you pleased?" she asked him catching her breath.

" pleased!?" he reflected. " words can't describe how I feel, I'm elated!" he hugged her again

"Oh Gil I'm so glad!" she said as they turned in the field heading down to green gables his arm quite unnoticed to both of them remained around Anne's shoulders "I was so worried after I sent the letter you might resent me coming after all we've been through." She told him.

" of course not, hey come on..." He forgot himself for a moment and kissed into her hair, she felt a familiar fluttering in her stomach as he did ' what was that feeling again?' She wondered, but soon patted the feeling away "...I could never resent you anything." He told her quietly. " you should have seen me all day Wednesday I went around with such a grin on my face, I wouldn't be alone, I'd have you with me!" he admitted.

" I'm so glad we can be glad together!" Anne said happily.

His arm dropped by his side as they approached green gables.

" Gilbert!" Marilla smiled as he came in. "I take it Anne told you?" Marilla commented.

" Anne wrote a letter earlier this week I knew on Wednesday, I couldn't wait to come back." He admitted happily.

" how about some current wine for us all?" Marilla said going into the pantry.

"What are you thinking of, Anne?" asked Gilbert, coming down the walk. He had left his horse and buggy out at the road.

"Of Miss Lavendar and Mr. Irving," answered Anne dreamily. "Isn't it beautiful to think how everything has turned out . . . how they have come together again after all the years of separation and misunderstanding?"

"Yes, it's beautiful," said Gilbert, looking steadily down into Anne's uplifted face, "but wouldn't it have been more beautiful still, Anne, if there had been NO separation or misunderstanding . . . if they had come hand in hand all the way through life, with no memories behind them but those which belonged to each other?"

Anne's heart fluttered again and her eyes faulted under Gilbert's gaze. Those words held meaning. Only Anne and Gilbert understood. Gilbert noticed the flush of her cheeks.

Could she be feeling something? He wondered, it was now past two years since they had broken up with the exception of that one day last summer it hasn't been revisited. He wondered if all the emotions she once had for him had been exhausted in those few hours before sundown over a year ago. What was keeping them apart? Why? He never understood and she was never forthcoming with the answer either. Gilbert had other friends who were girls and none of them were like this! The past year had been easier in a lot of ways then the previous year, they had started sharing some of their intimacies again. Like they were best friends again, and that was good, that was okay. There was less awkwardness about his life at White sands, Anne had started to show interest in it and now they would go to Redmond together. Her letter... it had been full of 'we' and not 'I', he never meant for it to give him hope but it had, it gave him so much hope, that maybe one day they could be again. But today, wisely he said nothing more.