knocks on the door with Bash and Delphine, they all waited patiently as they could hear someone walking towards the door, it was Anne. Anne opens the door, welcoming them in. "Good afternoon Anne, and Marilla," says, with a soft smile on his face.
"Hello Gilbert, Bash, and Delphine, come in!" (Anne says. She shakes their hands one by one.) "Where's Irene?"
“I’m sorry, Anne, but Irene couldn’t make it today. She’s sick.” Bash replied.
"Oh no! What's wrong with her? Does she need any blankets or soup or cough drops or something?"
“She has a bad cold,” Delphine said, “so we brought her some blankets and cough drops.”
"And I'll bake her a cake tomorrow." Anne gave a quick hug to Delphine and Bash. "Maybe some chicken noodle soup too, just ask me and I'll do it."
Delphine smiled softly and hugged Anne back. “Thank you, Anne, that’s really sweet of you!”
"No problem." Anne smiles gently at her friends. "Do you have any requests?"
Bash, Delphine, and Gilbert all nodded their heads.
"Just tell me what you want."
Delphine, Bash, and Gilbert start listing off things they need for Christmas decorations.
"Got it, got it, got it, ok let's get to work then!" The four get to organizing and decorating the Christmas party together.
After spending all day doing Christmas decorations, they had finally finished. It looked so festive and pretty, everyone was so happy with how well everything turned out.
The snow begins to fall through the winter night sky. The fireplace crackles and pops beside them as they all enjoy each others company. "Merry Christmas!" Anne cheers over the fireplace.
Bash, Delphine, and Gilbert cheer with Anne, smiling brightly. They spend the rest of the evening telling stories, playing games, and enjoying each other’s company.
Eventually, the night grows late as the four friends head home, exhausted but joyful. "Goodnight!" Anne calls out to her friends as they leave. "Sleep tight!" Bash responds back before he leaves the farm. "Goodnight." Delphine waves before turning to leave too. Gilbert gives Anne a soft smile before saying goodbye too. "Merry Christmas!" he says cheerfully.
Everyone else heads home and Anne heads to bed after changing into her nightgown and brushing her teeth. She snuggles into bed with her book, reading until she falls asleep. It was going to be a wonderful Christmas morning.
Anne fell asleep to the scent of evergreen boughs in the air, the scent of pine being most familiar to her senses. "I wonder if the weather'll be nice enough to go ice-skating tomorrow!" She thought about excitedly before drifting off to sleep, visions of the skating pond on the Ashcroft plain danced in her head as she fell asleep.
The next morning, Anne woke up early and put on her first gray dress with white dots. She then went downstairs where she found Gilbert waiting for her in the kitchen. “I hope you had sweet dreams last night.” He said, smiling gently at Anne.
Anne giggled and began humming. "Someone's been training in secret!" She said quietly, before the song grew louder and more cheerful. " Someone's practicing fiddle tunes!" The song only grew louder still as Anne stood up and began dancing to the sound of the music in her mind, the tune filling the room until she did an accidental pirouette, tripping over the tea table.
“Whoops.” He chuckled as he helped Anne up from the floor, keeping a hand on her waist until she was back on her feet. “Are you alright?” He asked, concerned but still smiling kindly.
"Yes." She smiled, then began laughing to herself, going into her own world of imagination. "Now where were we?" She said playfully, trying to wake Gilbert from the thoughts in her mind. "Am I dreaming again?"
“I think it’s time to find out.” He smiled and took her hand, leading her towards the living room. “We’ll put on a Christmas pageant this year!”
"For real?! This better not be another dream! Or I might scream!" Anne said excitedly, following Gilbert into the living room. "Okay, okay! Did someone bring props? Or have the angel wings ready?"
Anne starts rummaging through boxes and trunks while Gilbert looks through the props list. Soon, they find all the things they need for the Christmas pageant and they start rehearsing. “I think we should start with the nativity scene.”
"Good idea. Mary, Joseph, Angel Gabriel... who's playing the sheep?" Anne asked, searching over the props. "Who wants to be the sheep?" she sang to herself, placing Mary's costume back into the trunk. "I could be the sheep!" She then imagined herself being the sheep. "Who wants to be the donkey?" She laughed at the idea of herself playing the donkey.
“I think I’ll play the donkey,” he said, chuckling softly. He then started picking out a suitable costume for himself. “What about you, Anne? Are you going to be in the nativity scene?”
"Ooh... I don't know..." Anne spoke in a distant tone, already getting into character. "Of course I will, I am Mary!" She announced with a smirk, prancing around in the living room as if she were already the mother of Christ. "Now Joseph..." She began to search around, trying to find a male costumer for Joseph. "Do you wanna be Joseph?" She spoke to Gilbert, testing him. "Maybe not..." She reconsidered, putting Joseph's costume back. It could be better to let him decide himself.
“Well, Anne, I don’t mind being Joseph, if you want me to.” He smiled and offered his hand to Anne, helping her into her costume. After they both changed, they continued rehearsing the Christmas pageant.
"Eh, too old!" Anne giggled after trying to squeeze into a child's costume, before letting Gilbert help her choose another costume. "Hmmm... Who's the narrator?" Anne paused for a moment, thinking deeply about the possibilities. She then shrugged. "You can be the narrator." Anne grinned and held up the costume for Mary. "If you're willing, of course. I wouldn't want my boyfriend to ruin the performance." She teased, jokingly.
Anne made him smile, which warmed his heart, especially when he realized he was willing to play Joseph alongside her. He happily agreed to be the narrator and helped Anne into her Mary costume. “So, should we continue practicing?” He asked, wanting to see Anne fulfill her role as Mary. “Let’s do it, shall we?” Anne replied with a twinkle in her eye, ready to take on the role of Mary. After they both got into character, they continued rehearsing the Christmas pageant.
Soon enough, the entire cast was ready to perform their parts in the Nativity pageant. It would be beautiful. The actors gathered together, smiling and adjusting their costumes before the big presentation. The school children all sat down in their seats, eyes gleaming with excitement. Mr. Cuthbertson introduced the Nativity play to the audience and handed the script to Gilbert to begin.
As the narrator, Gilbert begins to read the script aloud. His deep voice echoes throughout the church and captivates the attention of every single person there. The church hall is silent and hushed as Gilbert continues to narrate the story of Jesus’ birth. The audience listens intently to Gilbert, lost in the story of love, kindness, and miracles.
Soon, Anne goes on stage, playing Mary. As she holds the Baby doll Jesus and proclaimed His birth to the audience with emotions and enthusiasm, everyone watching felt touched to their very core. The audience watched with glowing eyes and smiles, some even tearing up. "Happy Christmas to you all..." Anne sang as she left the stage.
“Well done, Anne.” He complimented her as she walked off stage, giving her a gentle pat on the back. “You really nailed it.” Gilbert returned to the stage, finishing the narration of the Christmas story. The audience listened attentively and watched as he concluded the story with a smile on his face. After the play ended, the audience clapped, standing up and cheering. Gilbert, Bash, and Delphine all stood up and hugged Anne, congratulating her on her amazing job as Mary. Everyone praised Anne for her amazing performance.
Anne giggled and blushed, holding her chest and taking long breaths between each phrase. Her lungs weren't exactly ready for such a strenuous activity. "Thanks a lot. Um... Whew..." A tear rolled down her cheeks, mingling with her nose's discharged mucus. She walked to her seat, where she collapsed onto the chair from exhaustion.
Bash and Delphine help Anne into a more comfortable position on the chair. They give her some water and tissues to clean up, and help her catch her breath. Anne rests her head on Bash’s shoulder as Delphine fans her with a magazine, trying to cool her down. After a few minutes, Anne calms down and gets up to rejoin the party.