The Three of Us

139. Matthew Points the Way

After an explosive breakfast, the morning passed uneventfully. Marilla was housekeeping, Matthew was out with Jerry working, and Anne stayed upstairs sulking, until at last she was forced downstairs by Walter, who needed to eat.

She carried him downstairs, him fussing because he wanted to test out the stairs and Anne would not allow him to.

Anne, feeling angry, still, but moreso just awkward after her fight with Marilla, entered into the kitchen with apprehension. Marilla was down in the cellar, and Anne breathed a sigh of relief. She quickly grabbed some leftovers from the pantry and heated them up on the stove.

"Hold on, Walter," she murmured as she held him on her hip. "Food's almost ready."

Walter had just finished eating and Anne was cleaning him up and wiping the table when Marilla came upstairs.

The two made eye contact for a split second and then broke it. Anne said under her breath, "I hope you don't mind me using the stove to feed my child when you weren't here to hover. But as you can see, I did not burn down the house."

Marilla, who had felt ready to calm down and make things right between them, was now stirred to bitterness herself- and was about to respond bitterly, when she stopped herself and took a breath. She told herself to be the adult in the situation, and she said calmly, "You have used the stove plenty of times without me hovering." That was all she said.

Unfortunately for Anne, Walter wanted Marilla and began pulling toward her, crying and calling Mar-mar as he had recently taken to calling her, and so Anne was forced to give in a little- she came over to Marilla and let Walter go to her.

Marilla held the baby a moment, cherishing him, while Anne stood there still annoyed with her. Marilla said, "It's a nice day out. Why don't you take him out to play." She set him down. He wobbled a moment and grabbed onto Anne's legs.

Marilla took a whisk from the cupboard, and the bar of soap from the sink, and handing them both to Anne, she said, "Get a pail and take him to the pump. He'll have fun."

Anne didn't respond, but she took the things from Marilla and pulled Walter along to the front door. She took him outside and to the pump. Walter liked watching the water pour into the pail but he did not know what was going to come next, or why mama had a bar of soap and a funny looking thing from the kitchen.

"Now, see here, Walter- watch what mama is going to do," She lathered the soap until the water in the pail was soapy. Then she dipped the whisk in. When she took it out, she waved it around. Bubbles floated above Walter's head. He laughed, surprised and delighted, and waved his arms in an attempt to catch them.

"Come on," Anne said later, when Walter had lost interest in chasing bubbles. "Let's go visit mama's friend, the Kind Tree." She walked there with Walter toddling along beside her.

She used to climb the tree, but she couldn't do that anymore now, with Walter left alone underneath. So instead she picked him up and pointed high up into the branches. "See all the way up there? Mama used to climb so high. When you get big you can climb, too. You can see everything from up there. You'll love it."

"Up!" Walter said, waving his arms. "Up, up!"

"No, not today," she told him. "Someday."