A/N: So I discovered that during the British Mandate there was a ship called 'Patria' and from that I came up with the idea of this story, I will be taking a lot of creative license with this story to better suit the story I want to tell, but there are parts that will be historically accurate, please read and review!
"And that should be the last one," Tony Courfeyrac grunted as he and Alex Enjolras placed a bunk bed into the bottom of the ship they were volunteering on, it was to be transporting Jewish refugees out of France and into Palestine. "It's really crowded in here and we haven't even gotten anyone on board," Tony wiped his hand across his forehead, they had been moving supplies and preparing the ship all day.
"They have to get out of here, we can't let them keep living like this, and they just got out of those camps too," Alex shook his head angrily, "I wish we could give them more comfort."
Tony put his hand Alex's shoulder, "Alright, so what we are doing might not be much but we are helping them, now let's get out of here and back on deck." Together they ascended the stairs from the bottom of the ship and up onto the deck where they saw more of their fellow volunteers. Luc Combeferre and Laurent Joly who were to be medics on board and their nurse a young girl with light brown hair by the name of Cosette.
"We have plenty of Penicillin," Luc nodded as he was going over the supply list, "bandages and the like-"
Alex and Tony kept walking and they found two other men like themselves conversing, one was a rather skinny young man, the other was rather muscular and tall. "You two volunteers as well?" Tony approached them first, the two men looked up and offered friendly smiles.
"Yes we are," the more muscular man replied, "I'm Christophe Bahorel, but please if you would just call me Chris."
"I'm Jehan, Jehan Prouvaire," the other man held out his hand in greeting.
"Alex Enjolras," Alex shook Jehan's hand.
"Antoine, well actually Tony Courfeyrac," Tony smiled.
"Good to meet you before we set sail, I feel it will simply become too hectic," Chris replied, "all those refugees... And this ship really isn't even mean to carry more than a thousand." He glanced around the deck and at the makeshift harbor and pier that they were docked in.
"They should be arriving within a few hours," Jehan spoke up, "we better make sure that there aren't any more last details that need to be taken care of, have any of you seen Asher about?"
Asher was a man who had been born in Palestine on a kibbutz, he was helping with this particular mission because a member of the Palmach the elite branch of the their fledgling defenses.
Alex and Tony shook their heads, "He's bound to be around here somewhere," Alex replied, "perhaps if we split up we'll find him? He sometimes tends to be in the most unusual of places."
With that the four men parted in their own ways to continue their work to make sure that this was all going to run smoothly, if not for them but for the sake of the refugees who were coming in search of a new home land in the arid country of Palestine.
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In one of the trucks carrying refugees to the port to the ship bound for Palestine sat a young girl of 17 and her two siblings, her younger sister and brother. Her sister had lain her head on her shoulder and was dozing peacefully which she hadn't been able to do in a long while, her younger brother nervously clutched at her hand to the point that it almost hurt.
"Gav please loosen your grip," She pleaded with the twelve year old.
"But 'Ponine, what if they come and take us back there?" The boy looked at her with fear marring his young face.
"Gavroche," Éponine placed her hand on her younger brother's cheek, "I need you to believe me when I say this, they aren't coming back, do you know how far we have come?" Someone else on the truck hushed her and so she was forced to lower her voice, "we've walked so many meters, we went on a train, this truck and we are leaving Europe."
"Leaving? But why?" Gavroche asked.
"We can't stay and you know that," Éponine sighed, as much as she loved her home country she knew that they needed to flee, it wasn't safe for Jews like her and her siblings, they had to get out and they had found an escape and they were going to take it. Frankly despite all her learning and education Éponine wasn't even sure she could correctly identify Palestine on a map and yet that was exactly where they were headed. "Think of it as a book," she smiled at her younger brother weakly, "it's a new chapter in our lives... Now lay your head down and get some rest."
Gavroche sighed but complied with his sister and lay his head in her lap, within minutes the young boy was fast asleep as they bounced along the road.
Éponine, unlike her siblings, could not sleep, she had too many thoughts in her head that were going off all at once, she had to admit that like Gavroche she was afraid, but she couldn't let him see that. Too much had happened in her young life for her to come out unscathed, her entire family had been taken from their home to Drancy an internment camp, that was a breeze compared to what followed. Months later they were taken out of France and to Poland to Auschwitz, she had been separated from her father and brother and thought that they would take Gav away, to kill him. Her only reassurance was that occasionally through the fence she would see her father closely followed by her brother. Then one day her father was gone, but amazingly Gavroche was still there, a few months later their mother came down with the most awful cough and the soldiers had taken her away too. When she saw the smoke rising from the chimney that day she cried to the point that a guard beat her with the back of his gun and threatened to shoot her. Then came the walking, they walked so far, so many died... But Éponine, Gavroche and Azelma survived, along with two other boys that they knew, one who had since gone missing. Eventually the British came and freed them, but where could they go? Éponine was terrified to go back to France and so she walked from town to town until she found other refugees planning to flee to Palestine.
"'Ponine, are you alright?" A voice in the dark whispered to her from nearby, it was Marius Pontmercy, a boy who had been in Auschwitz with them and survived the march, and who Éponine had fallen in love with.
"I'm fine, why wouldn't I be?" Éponine asked sniffing slightly.
"You're crying," Marius replied.
"Oh," Éponine blushed and using the sleeve of her coat she wiped away the tears that had been falling down her face.
At that moment the truck had gone around a sharp bend and Éponine slid on the bench she was sitting on and her sister woke up, "Are we there yet 'Ponine?" Azelma Thenardier asked.
Azelma was only a year younger than Éponine but was always much too shy to go out on her own, or at least that was what it was before the war had broken out and changed everyone.
"Not yet 'Zelma," Éponine shook her head as she gently played with Azelma's auburn waves, "but soon-" Just then the truck came to a stop and the engine was turned off, others on the truck who had fallen asleep were waking up and people carrying lanterns came to the back of the truck and opened the latch and let them out. In the dim light Éponine could see the man who helped her down was blonde haired and blue eyed and very handsome, slowly her eyes adjusted to the light and she could see hundreds of refugees like herself. They were being directed in the direction of a harbor and she could see that there was a large ship, but it didn't look nearly large enough for all the people who were present, how was this going to work? She didn't have much time to think as there were many people pushing and shoving from many directions as they were being directed towards the ship. Slowly the boarding process began and each person was directed to a bunk where they were to remain.
"Éponine?"
Éponine turned to see a boy her age with dirty blonde hair and green eyes, "Andre is that really you?"
"Eponine!" The boy exclaimed and ran to her to embrace her, "I thought you had died! I didn't know where you and Marius went!"
"Could you please save your reunions once you have boarded the ship? We have a tight schedule," It was the handsome blonde man again.
Éponine looked at her feet and at her raggedy shoes that were slowly falling apart, on the plus side at least she had shoes now. Andre put his arm on her shoulder as he joined their group and the boarded together, they were given their bunks and they were all near each other and she was right it was a tight fit. About fifteen minutes later a few members of the crew came down to their deck in order to issue instructions to them.
"As you all know we are to be departing tonight," A man named Asher who had dark skin and unruly hair spoke, "and we have a number of rules to be enforced in order to maintain a safe passage to Palestine."
All the refugees clung to Asher's every word, some did not understand and so other crew members would repeat his directions in their native tongue.
"You must receive permission from me or a crew member before you go on to the uppermost deck, even if you need the bathroom or a drink of water," Asher explained, "we have two medics and a nurse on board if you need anything at all..." Asher paused for a moment, "ehh... That should be all, if you need anything don't be afraid to ask."
With that Asher and the crew left leaving the refugees to their own devices, Éponine settled into her bunk, she might as well make it comfortable this was to be a long voyage. But as she sorted through her belongings and happily removed the shoes from her feet her thoughts were still on that blonde man. Throughout all of Asher's speech she had been listening to him but her gaze was focused elsewhere, specifically the handsome volunteer, except she had noticed that the one standing next to him with the messy brown hair had caught her staring at him and smiled at her. Sighing Éponine shook her head and lay her head upon the thin pillow and wrapped herself in the blanket that was provided.
In their cabin Tony was sitting on Alex's bunk and was teasing him, "That little brown haired girl was eying you," he smiled, "and I have to admit she is rather cute."
"Tony, please don't tell me you are ogling the passengers," Alex sighed.
"What? All I said was that she's pretty, since when does that qualify as ogling?" Tony asked defensively.
Alex huffed, "Just stop."
"What?" Tony raised his eyebrows.
Alex glared at him, "These passengers are refugees, I highly doubt they will take to well to your flirting."
Tony rolled his eyes, "Well that doesn't mean we can't be friendly with them, it's not like we are on some pedestal above them."
"I know that," Alex looked at him.
"They could use a friend or two, you should try it," Tony got up from the bunk, he then reached into his case and fumbled around for a minute.
Alex sighed and leaned back on his bed, this was going to be a long and hard journey, not just for him but for everyone on board.