Ablaze with possibility

Chapter 13: In your eyes lies the truth

Jet-black ink covered most of the sun-bleached parchment laying gently in Anne's lap-cursive shaped letters written higgledy-piggledy into what was meant to be the glossary for todays spelling-bee.

A burdensome stress filling the redheads whole essence, was what had kept her up the whole night, tricking Anne into betraying Marilla's one of the thousand rules she had-to not stay up after ten o'clock.

But how could Anne not have stayed up the whole night when there was an important competition to be held? There was no way that Anne would let Gilbert Blythe win this spelling-bee. It was out of the question.

Therefore, she would have to come up with a brilliant reason for why she looked to be in her "depths of despair" when she in fact, wasn't more than very, very tired. She did not want Marilla to find out about this, no matter how filthy it was to lie, this couldn't be uttered to a single soul-especially Gilbert.

For if Gilbert found out that Anne had practiced the glossary's while he was asleep, it would mean that if he won-her practice would've been to no use at all and Gilbert would seem superior compared to her, since he didn't even have to practice to claim the glory of winning.

When the gas lamp's light wasn't needed anymore and all the rooms of Green gables was enlightened by the sun's bright embrace, Anne decided it was time to get ready for school. Her brown dress was neatly folded on the chair by the window and she looked at it disapprovingly.

"Gracious heavenly father, forgive me for thinking such ungrateful thoughts, the redhead began, but a practical dress is nothing worthy of a spelling-bee winner! How I wished that Marilla could hear my prayers that I say to you so that I may receive a raven egg-blue dress with ever so grate puff sleeves and flounces! Not that it would be descent for school, oh no-but it's been a dream to me ever since living at the awful orphanage! Yours truly, Anne. Oh, I almost forgot!" She then added. "Amen."

She sighed as she changed out of her wrinkled night gown, to the brown dress and white stockings.

After have braided her auburn-red hair in the usual two braids and washed her tired face-it was time for breakfast. Anne dreaded it very much, worried that Marilla might notice the slightly dark circles under her eyes and her constant yawning. Would she figure out what Anne had been hiding from her then?

Anne took a deep breath before opening the door slowly, a creaking sound making her flinch. She hoped earnestly that Marilla wouldn't be in the kitchen, but as she made her way down the stairs-Marilla was standing by the stove, roasting bread and boiling eggs.

She looked up when she heard Anne's pattering steps.

"Good morning Anne," she said. "Oh my, you look tired! I hope you haven't stayed up too late? You know how I feel about that."

"Oh no, Of course not!" Anne burst out. "I just--I just dreamed the most horrible of dreams Marilla! A terrible white ghost with long, long raven-black hair climbed inside my window from my lovely cherry tree and then, it slowly walked forward to my bed. Suddenly, it grabbed my legs and dragged me over the floor--"

"Now then, that's enough. I don't want to hear more about it. Help me set the table while I roast the bread."

Anne could feel herself relax and walked over to the shelf stacked with porcelain.

After a passionate talk about the spelling-bee with Marilla, and her reminding Anne over and over again to eat her breakfast-she was ready to leave for school.

Her feet moved faster with every step she took, the stress building up inside of her.

"What if I won't win?" She thought in misery, "Oh god, WHAT IF I WILL LOSE AGAINST GILBERT! It can't happen, I just can't allow it to happen. I will spell the words right and win. Simple as that".