Many thanks to my admin friend of the Facebook page, William Albert Andrew (el príncipe de la colina), for sending me this picture. ❤ ❤
Interestingly, only Candy and Prince on the Hill are shown here. If I’m not mistaken, the manga wasn’t officially finished until early 1979. I don’t mind repeating myself that Candy Candy is a story of how Candy found the handsome teenager who had appeared to her at her first heartbreak in life 😂 and how he had fallen in love with her. 💖💓
You see? I have written three posts (Terry’s brief letter to Candy) to explain why Terry was no longer part of Candy’s life after her trip to New York in Candy Candy Final Story (CCFS). Candy had never ever mentioned his brief letter (that he hadn’t changed) anywhere else as though it hadn’t existed. Even when she talked about Terry, it was up until the moment of their breakup at the stairs in the hospital or that encounter in Rockstown. Everything beyond that was from tabloids or newspapers. Even in her present, when mentioning Susanna’s death, Candy didn’t give a single personal comment about Terry either.
Anyway, Chapter 1 of CCFS begins when Annie was being adopted by her new parents. When the story unfolds, it’s undeniable that Candy fell in love with Anthony mainly because of his striking resemblance to that Scottish guy dressed in kilt. Archie and Stear were both kind to Candy, but she chose Anthony without thinking twice. 😉
The funny thing is that when Candy met Albert by the waterfall around that time, she was scared by his rough appearance. Yet, her fear and doubts didn’t last long, and they had become good friends. Not only that, she insisted of taking care of him years later when he had lost all his memory.
In the manga, by then, Candy and her friends (Archie and Stear) realized that Albert was in fact an attractive young man with blond hair. However, Candy had no romantic feelings then and truly regarded Albert as her big brother.
Yet, things had undoubtedly changed over time even though Candy seemed to be in denial when she was writing a letter to Archie who studied in Massachusetts. She said she still couldn’t accept Albert and Granduncle William as the same person because she couldn’t forget his pirate image (her first impression of him). 😛
However, come to think of it, that rescue by the waterfall had taken place so long ago, and they had lived together for likely more than two years. Spending all this time with the charming young man hadn’t erased that horrifying pirate image in her mind? 😅😋
That sounds implausible, don’t you think? 😉
Therefore, I believe it was Candy’s lame excuse of her reluctance of treating Albert and Granduncle William as the same man. To her, one was her respectable benefactor, but the other one was a long-term friend whom she could tease and show her real emotions (i.e. anger). I suppose she didn’t want to give up her special friendship with Albert despite their legal relationship.
Even then, I have reasons to believe that, deep down, Candy was totally aware that Albert was handsome and gorgeous-looking. Why? The moment he asked her for the return of his badge, she had absolutely no hesitance of accepting him as the adult version of her Prince on the Hill. Shocked? Yes, but no doubt nor disbelief. 😍 The only question she raised was whether she was prettier when she smiled. 😆 In other words, Albert was no pirate; he still looked like a prince to her. ❤💓
What a huge contrast to the moment of discovering that he was Granduncle William, the supposedly old and feeble man! 😅😋
What’s more, both she and Albert regarded his request of his badge as an important confession. It was a significant step that Albert undertook, which was something he could have kept a secret forever. In addition, not only Candy wasn’t a bit embarrassed at the discovery of Albert’s yet another identity, but she readily showed her feelings for him when he had to leave with George against his wish. If Candy had no romantic feelings, this could well be her opportunity to escape or hide from Albert, but on the contrary, she followed him all the way to the car. My gut feeling is that this might be the first time she worked up her courage to follow him all the way to the car. To show that she missed her prince already and wanted to stay with him until the last second. Don’t you think this is like seeing a loved one off at the airport nowadays? That she has to go all the way to the gate until her love has to enter the gate to catch the plane? 🛩
Besides, not wanting him to have any misunderstandings whatsoever, she immediately wrote a letter to him while reeling from her shock.
Why? Because both Albert and Candy knew who Prince on the Hill was… Candy’s first love. I bet they had both sensed their mutual love for each other by then. In fact, when you read Candy’s mental letter to Anthony, the last letter in CCFS epilogue, you can tell she was already head over heels for Albert. She told Anthony many things about Albert, even details of his Uncle’s appearance as though Anthony didn’t know about his own features. Candy later wrote in this letter that Anthony knew everything, so why did she say so much?
Because she was deeply in love and couldn’t help it. ❤ ❤ ❤
Another solid proof is Candy’s letter to Vincent Brown, which I have discussed in several posts already. Candy mentioned that she had more chances lately to stare at Rosemary’s portraits to take her time to talk to Rosemary. Candy realized that there were many of those portraits in more than one mansion. Why? I bet Rosemary was very beautiful, and her parents must have adored her. You see, for a long time she had been the only child, until the birth of her little brother, the heir. Hence, the portraits could be at different stages throughout her life, possibly from a little girl to a married woman.
Then Candy wrote the following (CCFS Vol. 2, pp. 251-252):
そのたびに、あまりにもアンソニーと似ていらっしゃることに胸を打たれます。
そして、弟のウィリアム・アルバート大おじさまとも。
とても仲のよい姉弟だったと聞きました。
Below is my attempt to translate the above:
Every time, I’m struck/touched/moved by her extraordinary resemblance to Anthony.
So, very much like her little brother, Granduncle William Albert, as well.
I heard the siblings had been really close and friendly to each other.
Note that Candy said she was touched “every single time”, and she used present tense. That is, this still happened to her now. This essentially reminds me of the phrase “tear/tug at your heartstrings”, which means that if something or someone tugs at your heartstrings, they make you feel strong love, affection or sympathy. If Candy had merely regarded Albert as her guardian, would she have had such a strong reaction? Maybe it’s possible for the first time, but every single time? 😉
Moreover, the adjective used to describe Albert’s relationship to his sister can have various meanings, including buddy buddy, thick as thieves, intimate (sharing secrets), etc. The more I think about this, the more I believe it was no other than Albert himself who had related all these to Candy. 😉
More importantly, it was Candy’s open acknowledgement that Albert had attractive features just like his late sister. Other than Albert, Vincent must have missed her the most and remembered her beauty by heart. So, where was Mr. Pirate? 😁
Think about this, if Candy wasn’t officially engaged/married to Albert, don’t you think it’s awkward, if not inappropriate, for Candy to talk about a man’s looks to another man? 🙄
As a side note, Candy “talked” to Rosemary and Vincent in formal tone from time to time, whereas she didn’t use the same tone when mentioning Albert (even though she addressed him as Granduncle William Albert).
Anyhow, I don’t think Candy talked to Rosemary because of Anthony. 😛 My guess is that Albert might be on a long business trip? 😉 So Candy replied to Vincent on his behalf? Candy must have missed Albert so much that she wandered around the mansions and chose to talk to Rosemary, who had been very close to Albert and also looked so much like him.
I’ll conclude in Part 6. Thank you for reading. 🙂