31. Roses Of Tomorrow (1/2)

chapter xxx

two weeks later, owen ford arrived at the glen's train station and had been greeted by his whole family. he changed in looks, he got more mature on the face and looked much more handsome than anyone had ever thought he would. to everyone's surprise he even got a bit more talkative, which was just the sign that he wasn't affected by the war all together in the bad way.

walt, lily and little julienne arrived the day after owen, and julia couldn't stop hugging her little namesake from that day on. julia couldn't believe that she could be in lily's position in a just few years time, having a little roly-poly baby in her own arms, and kissing it just as much as she liked to kiss little julienne.

walt also didn't change, even though he was walking with his wooden leg, he was still julia's loving, poetic and funny older

other whom she loved so much. on the evening walt and his family arrived at the house on the hill, julia, merry and walt spent the whole afternoon together, in rainbow valley talking over everything they missed out of each other's lives for the past six years of their lives.

cilia arrived earlier than planned, making another surprise-homecoming. julia met her little knoxie, who looked just like his proud father marshall, who was now a very well-known surgeon in charlottetown.

merry got a job in town as a manager of the rogers' farm, a position which troy was supposed to get if he would have lived. and therefore, merry and luna decided on getting married in october. and so the family of blythes, fords and merediths was happy again. they thought they would never be so happy, but they were, and they were all impatiently awaiting all the weddings which were supposed to happen one after the other that year. even cornelia was happy, and she didn't blame neither blythe nor julia for her

oken engagement. she found love somewhere else, with a boy called joshua shepstone, who was her neighbour whole her life, and waited for her as patiently as blythe waited for julia.

all was well, eventually.

on one warm morning, two weeks before julia's and blythe's wedding, julia woke up early and decided on going to rainbow valley, which was and always would be her favourite spot in the whole world. she left a note for her parents on the table in the kitchen, then she got into her old riding suite, put on her even older red scarf, and jumped on river's back who knew exactly where to go.

she galloped through the fields with her hair, although short, flowing in the air, and her

ight scarlet cheeks, straight into the rainbow valley which could never, no matter what would happen, could never change nor loose its magical spirit of the ghosts from the past and maybe even the ghosts of the future.

blythe ford was sitting under the white lady, looking at all the photographs he had ever got from his julia, which helped him greatly during the war, and during the most fearful situations he had been in. he enjoyed the peacefulness of this sacred place but wasn't at all disappointed when this peacefulness was

oken by...

"blythe!"

he lifted up his head under the photograph of julia receiving a royal red cross medal, and saw his bathsheba jumping off the back of her horse, looking even more dashing than she had ever did before. he stood up immediately and put her in his arms "what are you up to, julia o'mine?" he asked her with a raised

ow.

"oh, i suppose i could ask you the same question!" she said laughingly and blythe chuckled.

"well," he replied and the both of them sat down under the white lady "i felt that i just couldn't miss the sunrise in rainbow valley today." he smiled and looked at the pink sky in front of him.

"neither could i." she replied and put her hand into his "can you believe that it's just two weeks to go?" she whispered wonderingly.

blythe looked at her lovingly, his eyes gleaming "i wish it could be today." he whispered back.

"no," julia shook her head "-it's nice to wait, and still have time to dream before it will all become a reality." she grinned at him.

"you're quite right." he replied in the same tone "you know i still can't believe that you will be my wife." he squeezed her hand.

"i can't believe it either." she said and kissed his nose tenderly "but in what i can still hardly believe is that olive is already married to niall!" she exclaimed.

"you didn't tell me!" blythe said.

"because i got a letter just yesterday, silly!" she chuckled "they married a week ago, and they are now living together, just like olive always wanted, in the heart of kensington." she smiled dreamily.

"oh, that's splendid news." blythe grinned "but i have better news to tell you." he whispered mysteriously.

"oh, go on!" julia demanded with excitement in her voice.

"i wanted to tell you today anyway," he replied with a shadow of a smile on his lips "-i bought us a house." he said eventually.

julia's eyes widened immediately and she squeaked in joy, throwing her arms around blythe's neck who started laughing along with her "we have a house!" julia shouted, and then quietened remembering not to wake up the dryads hiding in the trees around her.

"yes, we do!" blythe kissed her "but it's not the end of the news." he said again.

"yes?" she asked him nervously.

"the st. gerard majella's house in white sands gave me a call just yesterday," he began with shining eyes "-and they told me that you can start your "midwifery adventure" in september, as they are in a desperate need of a new midwife." and he ended up being kissed by julia who by then lost her mind completely, being overwhelmed with happiness which was almost impossible for her to bear.

"i wanted to give you this." blythe said suddenly and took out the small pearl ring from the pocket of his jacket.

julia's eyes widened in surprise once again "the engagement ring?" she asked in disbelief.

"i should have given it to you earlier, but i couldn't decide on the kind of the ring. eventually my mother gave it to me, as it was the engagement ring father gave her, and which his father gave my grandmother too." he put the ring on julia's hand carefully "i hope you don't mind pearl instead of a diamond." he smiled at her.

"how could i, blythe? it's so perfect in every way. and it was worn by women in your family for generations." she looked at it closely, admiring it even more if she would be looking at the diamond ring "besides, i never liked diamonds. and pearls are so much more… likable." and they both chuckled again. and the two of them stayed together in each other's arms, watching the sunrise together in their rainbow valley, dreaming the dreams for the future which they would spend, after all, with each other.

later that day, grandmother rosemary and grandfather john invited jem and his family to a dinner. rose, john, little jackie and jake were already at the manse and so the family sat down by the table together, everyone being very thankful that they could all be together again. "how are you feeling, grandpa?" julia asked john meredith worriedly just after they all stopped admiring the cheesecake from rosemary's special recipe.

he sighed softly but smiled at his granddaughter "i'm still quite weak, but fine on the soul, dear julia." he said.

"don't worry, sweetie." jem said tenderly "i examined your grandpa and i assure you that he is really fine, just needs some rest from time to time."

julia grinned at her grandfather again, her heart more content than it was before "well i hope that you do get a rest from time to time." she winked at him knowingly and he winked back.