In this episode, Hetty has her knickers in a twist because Olivia's been spending a lot of time with Jasper, having him take pictures to go with her newspaper articles. One day while the two are out on the road, they get caught in the rain and shelter in a nearby barn. They are found there by the barn's owner, Mr. Armstrong, who is none too pleased. Armstrong has turned into a bitter recluse after the death of his wife, pulling his son Teddy out of school and seldom leaving his farm. He orders Jasper and Olivia off of his property and then storms off. Teddy has overheard the confrontation and feels badly, so he introduces himself and offers to share his blueberry tart- which his father baked- with them. He tells them that his father isn't really mean; he's just sad because he misses Teddy's mum. As Teddy stands there with his dog, a smear of blueberry on his cheek, Olivia and Jasper are struck by how picturesque he looks and Jasper quickly sets up his camera, taking a photograph of the scene. It's after Olivia returns from this outing that Hetty starts making rude comments again about Jasper, causing Olivia to lose her temper. Meanwhile, the Kings are preparing to hold a dance in their barn. The night of, a still-miffed Olivia is trying to ignore Hetty and is hoping that Jasper will ask her to dance. His crippling shyness in social situations however makes this unlikely. Frankly, it's a miracle- and a testament to how much he likes Olivia- that he even showed up. Sarah and Felix meet up with Teddy, who has sneaked out of the house to see his school friends. As they are talking outside the barn, a well dressed man pulls up in a carriage. He offers to pay five cents to have his horse taken care of and Teddy volunteers, walking the horse to cool him and then watering him when the man goes into the dance. It turns out that this is Edwin Clark; he and Olivia were beaus as teenagers but Hetty chased him off because at the time he had few prospects and she didn't think he was good enough for Olivia. He moved away, married, and became a successful businessman. He's back in Avonlea for a short time, now a wealthy widower. He sweeps a shocked Olivia into a dance just as Jasper had screwed up his courage to the point of asking her. Hetty looks on with approval, her opinion of Edwin changed by the "wealthy widower" part of his description. Clark asks Olivia if he can see the following day and Olivia, confused and flustered, agrees. Mission accomplished, Clark leaves the barn and goes to his carriage where Teddy is waiting, with Felix keeping him company. Teddy tells Clark that he took good care of his horse and politely asks for his nickel but Edwin denies having promised any payment and drives off. Over the next few days, it becomes obvious that Edwin Clark is making a play for Olivia. He keeps sending flowers, and is squiring her about the town and countryside. Hetty is gleeful at the prospect of Olivia marrying her wealthy suitor and no longer having Jasper Dale- who has retreated to his farm- underfoot. Olivia can't help but be flattered by the attention and has a lingering fondness for Edwin from their youthful romance. She confesses to Sarah however, that she really wants Jasper but is afraid that he's a confirmed bachelor who will never ask her to marry him. Sarah of course wants Aunt Olivia to marry Jasper, and the children all know what a chintzy jerk Clark really is. She and Felix decide to visit Peg Bowen, the "witch" of Avonlea, and ask her for help. She impishly gives them a mysterious potion and tells them that, if Olivia drinks it, she will become betrothed to the next man she sees. The credulous children believe her. Felix taste-tests the potion and then glances at Sarah; realization strikes and the two gaze at each other in horror. Despite the hideous prospect that they might be engaged, Sarah and Felix are determined to bring Olivia and Jasper together, so Sarah sends Felix to somehow get Jasper to Rose Cottage while she heads directly there to get Olivia to drink the potion. To her dismay, she finds Olivia getting ready to go to dinner with Edwin. She manages to convince Olivia that she needs a cool drink and gets her to take a few sips of the potion. Meanwhile, Felix has gone to Jasper's place and lied to him, saying that Olivia has been taken gravely ill. Jasper immediately hitches up his wagon and races off towards Rose Cottage with Felix in tow but at the narrow bridge almost has a collision with Edwin Clark, also headed to Rose Cottage to pick Olivia up. He snaps at Jasper for driving so fast, but Jasper manages to stammer that Olivia is terribly ill, which Edwin says is nonsense- he saw her just a short time before. They all rush to Rose Cottage where Felix runs ahead to warn Sarah that the jig is up, only to come face to face with Olivia... he now finds himself in the uncomfortable position of thinking he's betrothed to both his cousin and his aunt. (To Be Continued...)
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