Anne with an E The Next Chapter

Fire

Anne was always the first to detect when something was off with Diana, but usually, Diana would brush things off and pretend that she had it handled. It was obvious that she did not have it handled today.

"What happened. Has your mother banished you?" Anne asked.

"No, I'm afraid I've banished myself"

"You ran away?" Ruby asked.

Diana nodded and accepted an embrace from Ruby who had stood up to greet her too. "Oh Ruby, I'm so sorry I was so hard on your yesterday, I don't think we live in a fair world at all and I hate that you are being forced to make such a horrid decision. We are just human after all! What is it to others how we live our lives. Let's just forget it all and you do what you feel is right!"

Ruby smiled sweetly and held Diana's weeping face in her hands "Now Diana, we both know we don't have that option . That's what you were saying to me yesterday because you wanted to protect me from the harsh reality of it all. Is that how you are feeling today. That life is harsh?"

Diana nodded and looked down at her feet.

"Well I want to tell you that sometimes things work out just the right way".

Diana looked up at Ruby who was pulling her now to the big dinning table to join Moody and Gilbert.

"Diana... Moody and I are going away."

"WHAT ?" Diana asked.

"I've been offered a Minister's position for a small community in Quebec and I will be away for 2 years. The Pastor's just signed the papers. I leave in 2 weeks and Ruby is coming with me?" Moody explained.

"But how?" Diana asked.

"Moody asked me to marry him this morning and I accepted!"

"Ohhh, oh my goodness" Diana stood and held her friend in the warmest of embraces. To think that Ruby was facing her darkest days just yesterday and today she had a marriage proposal.

"But what about?" she didn't want to say it out loud.

"We'll be very far away, and without anyone seeing us, no one will have any clue about a baby until we want to tell them about a baby". Moody said looking very clever and wise. He reached over & held Ruby's hand "By the time we return to Avonlea, he or she will be 2 years old and at that age, no one really knows anything about your birth date. It will just be our baby and people will be happy for us" Moody finished. 

"This is the best news ever" Diana said and looked to Anne and Gilbert who were already in on it.

"Only the 6 of us will ever know the real story and we trust that it would never be repeated. I don't want my baby growing up without me or without a father and this is the best scenario. Having Moody as a father will be a gift.  Living with this secret will be difficult but I have to believe in my heart that it is the right thing to do" Ruby said.

Anne agreed "you can't believe how relieved I am to hear this. I was so worried about what might come of that little baby and thinking of you in that facility really scared me".

"So when's the big day?" Gilbert asked.

"We haven't really discussed that but we are due back to Ruby's house for dinner tonight so I'm sure we'll have it sorted by tonight" Moody replied.

Diana breathed out with relief and squeezed Ruby's hand.

"Now do you want to tell us what's happened with you. Where is Jerry?" Anne asked her

Diana  went on to tell them the whole story. About how Jerry had secured this amazing house for them and that it seemed to be the key to allow them a future together. How she'd impulsively decided to go tell her parents everything, how they'd reacted. She shared how hopeful she was with her father's support in seeing the house. What Jerry had done with his family to make it beautiful. She told them how her mother had turned it all around and how she'd hurt Jerry. How she'd invited James to come to town to collect her once and for all.