Chapter One:
"It's been quite a long time."

•~~~<•>~~~•

I sat quietly on the train, my brown eyes scanning the green terrain as it raced by. I tried not to feel too out of place because of the quiet obvious differences between here and Brooklyn.

However, my thoughts were interrupted by the previously vacant seat across from mine, being abruptly occupied by a sudden flash of orange.

"Are you a princess?"

I was taken aback by the sudden arrival of the young red headed girl and her odd form of greeting.

"I beg your pardon?" I asked with my eyebrows raised in confusion.

"Are you a princess?" She asked again, before explaining herself. "You most certainly look like one! You have this glow of natural beauty, as well as the kindest eyes I think that I'll ever see in my life!"

"Why, thank you." I told the younger girl with a polite smile, still in shock of the redhead's enthusiasm. "And what might your name be?"

"Oh, please call me Cordelia! I do adore that name! It just sounds so gloriously regal and magnificent!" She exclaimed joyously with a bright grin on her freckled face.

"And your real name, dear child?" I asked with a laugh and a warm smile, a single brow raised in amusement.

"Anne Shirley." The young girl replied with a dramatic sigh. "Spelled with an 'e', if you may be so kind."

"Well, Miss Anne Shirley, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." I stated with an endearing smile. "My name is Virginia Blythe."

"Miss Virginia, may I be so bold, as to say that you have the most wonderful name I've ever heard! Much better than 'Anne' or even Cordelia!" Anne exclaimed histrionically, propping her head up with her chin in her hand.

"Well, I ,myself, am very jealous of your red hair. I wish that I could pull off such a gorgeous color as well as you do, Anne." I told the enthusiastic girl with a kind smile.

"My hair?! Why would anyone ever be jealous of my hair?! It's anything but gorgeous, Miss Virginia!" The redhead stated in shock, gesturing towards her braided hair.

"On the contrary, dear Annie! Back in Brooklyn, there was hundreds of beautiful Irish immigrant women who had your same shade of hair." I explained to the awestruck girl with a wide smile on my face. "You should feel proud of your appearance, Annie! Just as those Irish woman are!"

"Do you really believe that, Miss Virginia?" Anne asked me with wide blue eyes.

"Absolutely, my dear child!" I assured her with a smile, as the train came to a stop. "Well, it seems like we've arrived!"

The two of us made our way out of the train, bags in hand as we stepped onto the platform of the train station. I immediately spotted a familiar mop of curly dark brown hair amongst the bustling crowd and a wide grin grew on my face.

"Well, dearest Annie, it seems as though our paths must temporarily part." I told the younger girl with a small smile. "My cousin is here to greet me."

"Will we ever meet again, Miss Virginia?" The small redhead asked, sadness shining in her blue eyes.

"I have a feeling that this won't be the last time our paths cross, dear Annie." I admitted with a warm smile, before opening my arms up for a hug. "Until we meet again, Anne Shirley."

"Until we meet again, Virginia Blythe." The young girl said sadly, after accepting my hug.

Without another word, we separated from the hug and I made my way towards where I'd seen my cousin. Brown eyes once again scanning the platform, I eventually found Gilbert doing the exact same thing as me.

"Gilbert!" I exclaimed, gaining the attention of my cousin (and quite a few other people on the platform).

"Cousin Ginny!" He cheered with a wide grin, as we both quickly made our way towards each other.

"It's wonderful to see you, Gil!" I admitted as the younger Blythe tackled me in a hug. "My goodness, you've grown so much!"

"It's great to see you too, Gin." He chuckled as I released the hug to get a better look at my favorite cousin.

"Gracious, what are they feeding you? The last time I saw you, you were just passed my shoulders!" I gushed teasingly, ruffling the younger boy's hair.

"That was three years ago, Gin! I was eleven!" He laughed, giving me a playful glare as he fixed his hair.

"But still!" I told my cousin with a laugh as he took one of my bags and started to lead me towards the wagon. "You're as tall as me now!"

"You have no idea how excited Father and I have been for your arrival." The younger brunette stated as we climbed into the wagon and started to drive off towards Avonlea. "Despite the state of the situation, that is."

"Well, despite the poor situation at hand, I'm excited to be back." I told Gilbert as we continued to drive down the dirt road.

•~~~<•>~~~•

"Virginia Theodora Blythe, as I live and breathe!" The voice of my uncle greeted us as Gilbert and I entered the familiar house.

"Hello, uncle!" I cheered with a warm smile as I embraced the older man, who sat at the kitchen table. "And what on earth do you think you're doing out of bed? Gil told me that you were ill."

"I'm fine, Ginny! That boy of mine worries too much and so do you." He told me, waving it off like it was nothing.

"With good reason, I'd say!" Gilbert said to his father, earning a nod of agreement for me.

"Come on, let's get you back into bed, Uncle." I stated as Gil and I helped him to his room.

"You two are too good for me." My uncle huffed as I placed the blanket on top of him.

"Well, you're right about that." I joked with a small smile. "Now, rest. We can talk more tomorrow."

"Alright, but you have to tell me all about that fancy boarding school tomorrow." He chuckled, already drifting off a little.

"Deal." I stated with a laugh as Gilbert and I made our way out of the room. "Goodnight, Uncle."

"Goodnight, Ginny." He muttered, beginning to fall asleep. "And welcome home."