A/N: Just something I thought of at the last minute. Just this year, I learned what the Pilgrims had to endure before setting their course for America. In this short story, I will have every character in my stories as Pilgrims! Will have Christianity, as the Pilgrims were Christians, but it will be mostly history and fact. The made-up characters are the Andersens and the Louds. The characters have been altered to fit the 16th Century. Enjoy!
June 1620...
Riley Andersen was only twelve when King George III reigned. Her family was very poor and she didn't have anything of value. The Andersens also believed against the Church of England, as they weren't allowed to have Bibles to read out of and if they were caught with them, they would be imprisoned, even the child. Therefore, the ministers were able to tell them lies and twist verses around to fit their needs.
This particular night was the night that they would be finally caught...
"You see, Jesus said to love your enemy, bless those that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you," Riley's grandmother explained.
"Could I bring that to my school to read?" Riley asked innocently.
"No!" her grandmother replied, almost instantly. "What if you got caught with it? They would surely imprison you!"
"THEY'RE HERE!" Riley's close friend, William Bradford, called out.
"Halt! In the name of the King!" the British soldiers ordered.
William barely had time to step through the door before one of the Brittish soldiers tossed him down and placed one foot on his back so that he couldn't escape.
"We've got ya now, you bloody separatists!" one of them exclaimed, pointing his rifle at them.
William turned his head to face the soldier on top of him, and said, "Have a heart! We just want to worship God freely!"
"You can worship Him in the church!" the soldier mocked.
The soldiers proceeded to arrest them and there they sit in the cell of a prison, where they did not belong. Riley could not stop sobbing, regardless of Jill, her mother, attempting to comfort her.
"It is alright, child," William said in faith. "God will see us through."
They dwelt a month in prison.
July 1620...
God did indeed see them through as, on this day, the guards came and opened their cell.
"On ya go, lads," the guard said. "King George wants a word with ya."
They followed the soldiers to the King's throne room to find King George III himself sitting on the throne.
"You have been causing trouble with me, within my walls," he said.
"We only want to worship God freely, your majesty," William explained.
"SHUT IT!" King George yelled as he stood. "I have decided to be merciful to you. Get out of my kingdom and never return. Your friends are waiting at my ships, the Mayflower and the Speedwell."
After a while of William and the Andersens frozen in shock, King George spoke again.
"GO! Before I change my mind," he ordered while sitting back down on his throne. "Go away and stay away! I say to you, good riddance!"
They hurriedly left the throne room and arrived at the port of Plymouth.
"Riley!" Lincoln Loud, her friend, exclaimed while hugging her.
"Lincoln!" Riley exclaimed, hugging him back.
Suddenly, Lincoln felt a fist impact the back of his head.
"Oh, h-hello, Ronnie Anne," Lincoln greeted, hugging her.
"How did you all manage?" Rita asked.
"We dwelt in prison, as you know," Bill, Riley's father, explained while adjusting his hat. "We had a conference with the King and he ordered us here."
He looked around the port, which was crowded with over 200 people, some were friends and relatives, some were immigrants to America.
"You're here," Lynn Sr. said. "Give God praise for that alone."
"We mustn't linger here long," William Bradford intercepted, motioning to the soldiers. "I figure that it would be wise to leave immediately.
"Let's leave, then," Bill said, taking his daughter's hand and leading her to the Mayflower.
One hundred two people crowded onto the Mayflower, leaving the rest to board the Speedwell. Most went with the Pilgrims looking for riches or adventure. These people were called "strangers" by the Pilgrims, for they were not going to worship God, they were going for their own pleasure.
Not long after they departed, terrible storms arose over the Pilgrims and the Strangers. The storms caused waves to rise up, towering over the ships. The waves beat against the hulls of the two ships. It came to a point where the Speedwell had to return to England.
"Eat it, Riley," Jill said softly, holding Riley's daily rations out in front of her.
"I don't want to!" Riley argued. "It was crawling with worms!"
"It is all we have, Riley," Jill explained.
"Worms aren't so bad!" Lana Loud exclaimed after she removed her bonnet.
"LADS! GET OUT HERE!" one of the Pilgrims who was watching for land called out.
Everyone rushed out to see what the matter was. They looked up and saw the Pilgrim in the crows nest.
"What is the matter?!" William asked, trying to shout over the storm.
"IT'S THE SPEEDWELL!" the watcher exclaimed. "SHE'S STOPPED!"
William hurried to the stern to see the Speedwell floating in the distance.
"Men!" he called. "Grab a rope and a hook! Bring her in!"
After they had pulled the Speedwell in, the captain of that vessel shouted to them.
"WE MUSTN'T VENTURE ONWARDS!" he yelled over the sound of thunder and crashing waves. "WE MUST TURN BACK!"
"WE SHALL VENTURE TOWARDS AMERICA! SEND THE OTHER PILGRIMS OVER TO OUR VESSEL!" William suggested.
The captain of the Speedwell obliged and sent the pilgrims from his ship to the Mayflower. Onward, the Mayflower went as the Speedwell returned to England.
November 6th, 1620.
Life on the sea had been miserable and most have lost hope of ever reaching America. That is until they heard the praiseworthy words that they had begged God for.
"LAND HO!" the watchman called out in a rejoicing tone of voice.
William Bradford rose from his desk and paused from writing his book in the middle of a sentence, Bill led his wife and daughter out to see, and the Louds rushed to join the other Pilgrims.
"PRAISE THE LORD!" one cried.
"THANK GOD!" another shouted.
"HALLELUJAH!" was, no doubt, shouted by all.
All of the Pilgrims rejoiced at the sight of the mountains and the beach in the distance. Riley hugged her boyfriend, Jordan, then continued to hug everyone she saw as she was excited to set foot on the shores of America.
They docked at what they named Plymouth, in honor of the port in England where they set sail toward America.
They had explored for many days, up and down the coast. They had established a town there. They were grateful that they have finally arrived in America, but they knew that winter was not far away.
Come winter, some froze to death, most died from illness, including Riley's mother, Jill.
There she lay, upon a bed, awaiting death.
"Mother," Riley sobbed as she held her mother's hand.
"Do not...worry...Riley," Jill said as soft as ever. "I shall see you again..."
With that last sentence, she breathed her last breath. Riley, sobbing harder now, clung to her mother. Her friends, the Louds, just looked at the scenario.
The year of death has passed, with Riley changed forever. Her father couldn't handle living without Jill, his wife, so he hung himself with leftover rope from the construction of the village.
The Louds were forever changed as well, as their friend did not play anymore, nor leave her house. She was offered shelter with the Louds and William Bradford, but she rejected them.
Nothing was the same until a native from a tribe close to Plymouth Plantation, where the Pilgrims resided, arrived in the settlement. All were afraid of him and the Pilgrim guards readied their rifles. For this event, Riley was drawn out of her house for the first time in a year and the Louds crowded around the Indian. Bradford, once again, arose from his desk and paused his writing to see the Indian.
William tried to communicate with him using hand gestures, and speaking slowly, "I. AM. WILLIAM. BRADFORD. WE. COME. IN. PEACE."
"Your voice does not require hands and slowness, Mr. Bradford," the Indian said with a smile in plain English. "Welcome, Englishmen. I am Samoset. We do not mean harm either. I will bring a friend who speaks your language well."
The Indian left and soon returned with another of the Indian tribe.
"Hello, Englishmen," he greeted. "I am Squanto. I spent years as a slave in your land. When I returned, all of my people were dead."
Squanto paused after that last sentence as he remembered the day he returned. Riley jumped at that last word and her eyes started to water in tears. Luna, Lincoln, and the rest of the Louds comforted her.
"I will show your women where to find fruits and berries, your men where to hunt for wild deer, turkeys, and possum, and your children how to make the soil rich so that you can grow good corn," Squanto informed.
First, he led the children, including the Louds and Riley, to the river bank to plant corn. He dipped his hand in the river and caught a fish. After, he started to dig in the soil and lay the fish in the hole. Lana, Lola, and even Riley began to laugh at him, causing Squanto to look up.
"Look! Squanto's trying to grow fish!" Lana said through her laughs.
"No, children," Squanto said as he began to plant the next fish in the hole next to the original. "The fish will feed the earth and make it alive so that you will grow good corn."
Squanto then began to plant the corn in the holes with the fish. In a matter of weeks, the corn was grown.
After, he began to teach the men where to hunt. Lynn Sr. went with him, but William stayed in Plymouth Plantation to continue to write his book.
"Samoset," Squanto said to the Indian that came with him. "Summon King Massasoit to teach the Englishmen where to hunt."
Samoset left to the tribal village to bring their king, named Massasoit.
Days later, the Indian returned with King Massasoit, who had brought ninety braves with him to the Plantation.
Riley froze, as she had no one to cling to. Seeing this, Lincoln wrapped his arm around her to comfort her.
Massasoit spoke in a language that they couldn't quite understand. Therefore, William looked at Squanto to translate.
"He says that he will teach your men where, in these forests, there is life so that you can hunt and eat," Squanto translated.
Massasoit then turned to the ninety braves and spoke in his tongue. The Braves left with half of the Pilgrim men, including Lynn Sr.
"Watch these natives," one of the hunters said to Lynn Sr. "I do not trust them."
"I do not trust them either, but I also do not want last year to repeat itself!" Lynn Sr. replied. "These natives may be our only hope, beside of God."
All of a sudden, five turkeys ran out in front of them, flapping their wings. Lynn Sr. had one of them in his sights when one of the young Braves stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder. The Pilgrims observed as the Indians crawled up to the turkeys on dirt level without attracting their attention. As they got as close as they possibly could, they made their native war cry as they shot at them with their bows and arrows. Some had spears. Some of the Braves saw possums to the right of them and shot at them, killing all of the possums that were seen. After, they started back to the Plantation with the turkeys and possums.
On their way back, they encountered deer. Again, they crawled to them at dirt level and shot them, killing them all. The Pilgrims stood astonished at what they had seen.
Back at the Plantation, Riley sat on the steps of William Bradford's office, staring at Squanto.
"I see you have questions," he observed. "Ask them."
"Have you ever lost your mother and father?" she asked.
Squanto took a deep breath, then answered, "Yes. When I returned from your land, all of my people were dead. Including my mother and father."
Riley's eyes began to water, and she said with a quivering voice, "I lost my mother and father as well."
After she had said that, she hugged Squato, not thinking about the fact that she was hugging a complete stranger. With much hesitation, Squanto hugged her back. All Riley needed was someone who felt what she felt, who knew the pain that she was feeling. All she needed was an earthly man who shared her experiences.
They hugged for a while when they heard Indian war cries from the distance. Massasoit heard them and went to great them at the center of town. Soon, the ninety Braves and the Pilgrim hunters that went with them entered the town with five turkeys, seven possums, and two deer. The Pilgrims were celebrating and praising God for the meal that they're about to eat, as they haven't had a meal like this one in years.
Massasoit spoke something to the Braves and they all formed a circle and danced around it in the tradition of their ancestors.
After that, William, overjoyed at the blessings that God had given them, arose from his desk and stepped out of his office to find everyone celebrating.
"We shall gather together to thank the One who brought us here!" he announced. "We shall have a feast of thanksgiving!"
November 23rd, 1621...
The women were tasked with picking apples, berries, and other fruit. The Indian women made something to hold the fruit, shaped like a horn. The men, both Pilgrim and Indian, brought the turkeys, deer, and possum for stew and the children, both Indian and Pilgrim, picked the corn for the dinner.
At last, the table was set at the center of Plymouth. The fruit horns were placed at the center of the table, with the ears of corn attached to them. The cooked turkey, deer, and possum stew was scattered abroad the table.
Finally, everything was ready. Everyone was called to the table. The mothers called the children to the table while Riley's adopted mother, Rita Loud, called her to dinner. Riley has forgotten her sorrow. She was finally happy, something that she hasn't been for a year. She had a new family, new friends, and her life was filled with happiness again.
"I would like to welcome everyone to dinner this evening," William Bradford said as he stood. "Now, let us give thanks to the One who has blessed us throughout the years."
Everyone held hands and bowed their heads. The Indians, who didn't have any idea what to do, copied the Pilgrims.
"Dear Lord, we thank thee gathering us together. We thank thee for thy mercy upon us, for coming unto us and comforting us in these hardships that we have faced. Lord, we ask thee to bless the food that thy hand has prepared. We thank thee for our new friends, the Indians, that thou hast sent us to aid us. We loveth thee and praiseth thy Holy Name! Amen."
Then, they sat and ate in thanksgiving to God for bringing them to this point.
Later, William Bradford published his book, entitled "History of Plymouth Plantation," which will continue to be read to this day.
Present...
"What happened to Squanto?" Riley asked.
"He was a friend to the Pilgrims until he died," Lincoln explained.
"Okay, dude, who gonna carve the turkey?" Luna asked impatiently.
"I am," Lynn Sr. answered.
He pinned the turkey with a fork and started cutting. The kids already knew what was going to happen.
He started to pull on the fork, but it wouldn't budge.
"Oh no! DUCK!" Luna warned.
"Duck? I don't see a duck," Leni said.
Lynn Sr. pulled the fork again and it slingshotted to the ceiling and stuck in it with the turkey hanging off of it.
"I think I should carve the turkey," Lincoln said as Lynn Sr. hid under the table.
"I'll have the drumstick!" Bill said as Jill, his wife, smacked his arm jokingly.
Bill and Riley both laughed and smiled at each other.
Thanksgiving will forever be a day to thank the Lord and what He has done for us. The sacrifice of the Pilgrims and the generosity of the Indians will never be forgotten forever until Jesus Christ comes back.
The End
A/N: Happy Late Thanksgiving, Colleagues! I'm sorry that this wasn't published yesterday. I had it completed, but then I tried to save it and this site required me to sign in. I came back and half of this short story deleted itself! Anyway, thank you all for reading! Favorite, follow, and review if you want to! Until next time, Colleagues!