ENCHANTED - GILBERT BLYTHE

one

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Isabella woke up to the sound of her brother, Silas, yelling her name from downstairs, a sound that always made her heart race with excitement for the day ahead. She quickly jumped out of her bed, feeling eager for the new adventures that awaited her. As she parted the curtains of her window, she couldn't help but admire the beauty of the changing autumn leaves on the trees outside, from their vibrant greens to the warm shades of orange and brown that signaled the approaching winter.

After rummaging through her closet for a few minutes, Isabella finally settled on a beautiful purple dress. She paired it with her usual white overdress, white tights, and a purple hair ribbon that matched her dress. As she sat down in front of her vanity mirror, she took a moment to admire her reflection, allowing herself a small smile of satisfaction.

She then unraveled her hair curlers and picked up her hairbrush and began to style her hair into a half-up half-down hairstyle, securing it with the purple hair ribbon. Finally, she stood up from her seat and smiled at herself in the mirror before exiting the room.

Isabella made her way downstairs, where she found her older brother putting her little sister's hat on her head. Silas and Alice both let out a sigh of relief upon seeing Isabella, as they had to wait for quite a long time for her to finish getting ready for the day.

"Finally, we thought we'd have to leave you!" Silas exclaimed, tossing her an apple.

"What took you so long, Isa?" Her little sister, Alice, asked her. A confused tone laced her voice as she handed Isabella her basket.

Isabella chuckled at their comments as she took the basket from her little sister and thanked her. Their Mother's voice called out from the kitchen, telling them to hurry up so they wouldn't be late for school.

Silas handed Isabella her coat, and she put it on, securing her hat on her head. As Alice opened the door, Silas gave Isabella her book strap, which she grabbed carefully. Alice, eager to join her older siblings, quickly put on her coat, and they all stepped out onto the porch.

"We're off now, Mother!" Isabella yelled back, feeling a sense of excitement building up inside her.

As they walked towards school, the three siblings exchanged stories about their previous day, and Isabella felt grateful for the love and companionship of her family.

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Upon arriving at the school, the three siblings made their way to the front room and put down their belongings. Isabella was surprised to see Diana standing next to a red-headed girl beside her sister, and she couldn't help but smile when the girl's gaze met hers. Alice and Isabella then proceeded to join the group of girls in the classroom.

The girls formed a neat horizontal line as Diana and the red-headed girl approached them. Isabella's smiled, and the girl returned the gesture.

"This is Jane Andrews, Alice Clarke, Josie Pye, Ruby Gillis, Tillie Boulter, and Isabella Clarke," Diana said to the taller girl, Isabella waved at her. "Everybody, this is Anne!"

"Hello, Anne," Jane said.

"Welcome!" Isabella smiled.

"Hello!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Hi!" Alice smiled.

"Nice to meet you," Tillie said.

"It is a scrumptious pleasure to make your acquaintances. And I shall do my utmost to prove myself worthy of your friendship.,"

"Uh, Anne loves to read, and she knows ever so many big words!" Diana interrupted Anne's sentences.

"Does she use them in every sentence?" Josie said as she chuckled, Alice furrowing her eyebrows at the girl's comment.

"I like to read too!" Tillie said, smiling at Anne. Isabella slowly turned her head towards Tillie who was on her left, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion.

"No, you don't..." Ruby said, looking at Tillie.

"...No, I don't."

"I saw you at the church picnic. I'm sorry, I should've said hello," Jane said, looking at Anne.

"There were an awful lot of people there," Anne said, smiling at Jane.

"Mother wouldn't let me." Jane interrupted Anne, her smile fading away quickly.

"Why do they make you wear that old lady dress?" Josie said, looking the girl up and down.

"It's just nice to have something new," Anne said, Isabella nodding in agreement.

"If you're an orphan, I suppose. I wouldn't be caught dead in it." She said, chuckling.

"Josie." Isabella whispered, flicking Josie's hand lightly.

"Anne isn't an orphan anymore, she's been adopted," Diana stood up for Anne."

"I'm still an orphan, Diana. I'll always be an orphan." Anne said, smiling sadly as she looked at her friend.

"I'd hate to be an orphan..." Tillie said, in a voice that stated sympathy.

"I feel really sorry for you, Anne," Ruby said, smiling at the girl.

"Ruff, ruff!" Billy imitated a dog, approaching Anne.

"You're ridiculous," Anne sighed.

"Hey, look, it's a talking dog! Can you fetch, too?" Billy pointed at the girl. Sometimes, Isabella wanted to stuff a slice of bread into Billy's mouth to shut him up.

"Billy, leave her be," Jane remarked.

"Sit! Stay... Roll over!" Billy said. Gosh, could he be more annoying?

"Don't mind my brother. He's ridiculous!" Jane said, loud enough for Billy and his friends to hear.

"Ruff!"

"Never let the boys know when they've upset you," Jane said, rolling her eyes.

"Never let them know when you like them, either," Ruby continued.

"School... is a lot to contend with," Anne stated.

"I heavily agree," Isabella spoke.

"Have you ever been to a real school, or did they just send you to a special orphan school?" Josie commented, earning a look from Isabella.

"Come on, Anne, let's finish the tour. Bring your milk. I'll show you the stream outside." Diana said, getting Anne away from Josie and the girls.

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Isabella found herself sitting beside Ruby in class, behind Anne. She had realized how beautiful the girl's red hair is. She could not help but think about how effortlessly beautiful the girl was, with her radiant smile and her captivating energy.

"Moody, Stand and deliver," Mr. Phillips said, his loud voice pulling Isabella away from her thoughts. "Spell 'dreadful',"

Moody's hands spelled 'Dredful', Isabella shaking her head as she looked down at her table.

"Like your handwriting."

"Moody, it has an A in it, right after the E, but the A is silent," Anne said. Isabella pursed her lips as she looked up again.

"Yes, the A is silent. As should you be," Mr. Phillips stated. "You're the, um, orphan, yes?"

"My name is Anne Shirley-Cuthbert. And please be sure to spell Anne with an E." She stood up. Isabella tried to get Anne's attention and tell her to sit down, but she couldn't quite hear what she said.

"Did I call on you?" The teacher spoke.

"But you just asked me a question-"

"Did I call on you?" He repeated.

"...No,"

"Then sit down."

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HIII! This was a fun little chapter to write hehe. I'll be updating this in a bit!

- Liz ♡