SUPERCUT; gilbert blythe ✔

026.

"Oh, Marilla, you little know how utterly wretched I am!"

Even in her current state, she can recognise the distress in Anne's voice.

"I am the unhappiest girl in Prince Edward Island."

A pang of guilt hits her instantly, her first thought being that she must be the reason behind the girl's crying. She deserves to go to hell for hurting someone like Anne, of that much she is sure.

"Well, if I'd decided worthwhile to dye my hair, I'd have dyed it a decent colour at least."

What?

"But I didn't mean to dye it green! It applied the dye as the directions said. I used up a whole bottle, and..."

Marilla's words and Anne's response stop Marianne in her tracks, right in the doorway of the redhead girl's room. With wide eyes, she takes in both figures seated on the bed. What she sees first is Marilla's worried face, and then she notices Anne's hair.

Anne's green coloured hair.

The question "What happened?" slips out of her mouth before Marianne has the chance to remind herself to be sympathetic.

"It was like I'd been bewitched. When I saw myself with raven hair, I didn't want anything more than to look like myself again! I looked like a demon possessed. I tried and I tried to wash it off, but it wouldn't come out. I... I thought maybe laundry bluing would... would strip it off!"

"Well, that explains it."

"I can never, never live this down. People her pretty well forgotten my other mistakes, but they'll never forget this!"

And then Marianne finds herself kneeling in front of a chair, Anne's hand in hers while sounds of scissors in use echo I'm the room. Her goal concerning the apology is all forgotten now that she has the younger girl's tears to worry about. Even if her previous anger with Anne had been right, Marianne's heart would still break upon hearing her worry about people thinking her not respectable and Josie Pye teasing her.

(Although she must admit, she would probably understand why one could find the situation a little funny, seeing as Anne has been very dramatic about the whole thing. It actually reminds her of the time when the redhead girl was convinced she was dying the first time she had gotten her monthly cycle.)

Yet Marianne knows she cannot allow herself even a small smile. It would probably be best to just let Anne live it through the way she sees fit, considering the fact she wouldn't listen to any reasonable consolation.

Maybe it's because Marianne know that or because she still feels guilty for her behaviour towards the younger girl last evening. But the moment both her and Marilla leave Anne asleep in her bed and close the door behind them, Marianne grabs her aunt's hand, the scissors still held in her fingers.

"Actually, Marilla, I have something to ask of you."

🌼

It's far to early in the morning for Marianne to truly realise the weight of her decision. She doesn't really pay much attention to her reflection in the mirror as she dresses herself, and Anne is far to lost in her own despair to notice anything until they reach school and Marianne takes off her bonnet.

"I'm a monstrosity, Diana. In fact, you bes forget me now and- What happened to your hair?"

Marianne's hand instinctively goes up to her forehead, brushing a few strands of loose hair out of her eyes. Her hair is only little longer than Anne's, more evenly cut, but she still feels conscious of the fact that it is no longer going down past her shoulders. And it's beginning to dawn on her now what she's done, especially considering the fact that they are about to face the other pupils.

Marianne may not care much about Josie Pye's or Billy Andrews' opinion, but it doesn't make her fear of hearing it any smaller.

"I'm not foolish enough to think that it'll fix the situation," she says now, trying to seem much more confident than she truly feels. Her hair is already gone, she can as well not waste the sacrifice and make Anne believe it doesn't bother her that much. "But I thought you may feel less terrible if you are not alone. So, I asked Marilla to cut it."

"You seem so calm, but you had such beautiful hair. My was hideous even before I dyed in that awful green, but yours is such a waste..."

Marianne smiles. "It will grow back in no time, you'll see. And we can all agree now that red is the perfect colour fo you, I think."

Anne doesn't seem convinced (and, truth to be told, Marianne isn't either). But than she takes her own hat off. The look on her face, so full of fear of being cast away by Diana, who's yet to see her short hair, is heartbreaking. When the Barry girl unties one of her own ribbons to give it to Anne, repeating the same words Marianne has just said, the oldest of the three feels the sudden urge to hug her.

"Not nearly soon enough."

The next thing she knows, Anne's hand slips into her own as they both make their way into the classroom. Squeezing her fingers, Marianne tries her best to ignore all the faces turning to look at them, but it doesn't really work that well. Apparently, it's either seeing others react with disbelief or imagining it, and she doesn't know which of these options is actually worse.

And then it doesn't really matter anymore which option is worse. None of it matters, because at the front of the classroom boys make space for someone to come through.

And it's just her luck that this someone is Gilbert Blythe.