I don't own The Patriot

A/N: Guest - Hello Guest, thank you for your reviews! Now marriage between Wilkins and Catherine is something that we may see in the near future...that is if he survives the Battle of Cowpens.

The next morning, Gabriel felt that he was back to the same routine ever since he had arrived back to Shanty Town. Getting up in the morning, helping the others hunt for food, and being there with his family. When he was back at camp with the other colonists, his day was always unpredictable. He would either be fighting along with the other soldiers in the front line of fire or sending dispatches. Those days however were ones where he felt he had a purpose and ensuring that he survived. Perhaps that was the goal for everyone that was fighting in this war. They wanted to serve their purpose as the people of South Carolina and ensure that America gained her freedom. As of now, he was grateful that he was close with his family, but he felt that being away from the war that he had fought in not only in front of the line but also with his father, there was nothing that he could do to go back to it and pick up where he left off. Even if his day had turned monotonous, he remembered of the letters that he had written back home those two years ago back when Thomas and Anne and her family were still alive. He had mentioned in those letters how much he envied Thomas and his siblings for not having to worry day by day whether they would be alive or dead the next. He remembered of the many love letters that he had sent Anne to the moment where they were married until death had done her part from him.

A shudder ran down his spine when he thought of that burning church. He couldn't imagine what those people of Pembroke had gone through...what Anne and her parents had gone through. He couldn't fathom the cruelty that a person had in order to execute such a horrific act. May he burn in hell for that Gabriel thought. How he wished he had been the one to kill Tavington. To plunge that dagger against his back and watch him suffer just like those people did, but he hadn't achieved it. His mind thought back to the moment where he was almost fatally wounded from the bayonet that almost killed him. As annoying as Anna was sometimes, he was glad that she had saved him from dying that day. He pushed any other ill memories away from his mind as he watched Anna walking alongside the shoreline, the water from the ocean lapping at her feet as she walked back and forth. He stood up from the rock that he was sitting on and walked up to join her.

"Good morning," Anna greeted him as the two walked alongside together. She appreciated the company that they shared with one another three nights ago, even if she had upset with him of the joke that he had pulled on her back at camp.

"Morning," Gabriel greeted her. "How long have you been awake?" he asked her. The moment that Gabriel had woken up, the community at Shanty Town had been outdoors going about their daily activities.

"Just enough to see the sunrise," Anna replied to him. "I had to check how Alice has been doing. Thank God she has someone to look after her, but I fear she hasn't been faring too well."

How long had it been since Alice had contracted that cold? All of the days had blended together in Gabriel's mind that he had lost track of time. "Is there anything that I can do?" he asked her, hoping that he could offer some assistance.

Anna shook her head at Gabriel. "All we can do is wait," she said. "The physician said as long as she rests and is kept warm. She has been resting for days now and there is no progress. Last I saw of her, she was deathly pale." Anna rubbed her arm with her hand as she felt the cold water at the bottom of her feet as they sunk into the wet sand as she walked. "He has been giving her food but from what he told me, she hasn't eaten like she should."

Gabriel heard the sigh that left her lips. It was an awful thing to have someone going through a health issue. When his mother had gotten sick, he remembered the days when his father would be awake all night looking after her, praying that God would save her soul. Gabriel had joined his father during those restless nights while he made sure that his siblings rested. The moment that his mother closed his eyes and her spirit left her body to join the Heavens, it had been a difficult time for all of them. Especially for his father until they had recuperated from her passing. Out of all his siblings, Susan had been the one traumatized by it all where she didn't speak to anyone. Even though Gabriel had gone through a similar situation like Anna had, he didn't know what he could say to her. Words didn't always make anything better. In silence, he held up his hand and placed it upon Anna's shoulder, giving it a squeeze of reassurance and hope.

Anna flinched at his touch but a smile formed upon her lips before muttering a 'thank you' to him. Come on Anna be strong she then thought to herself as she looked up in the distance and noticed a woman walking towards them. It was none other than Gabriel's aunt and she held a letter in her hands.

"Aunt Charlotte what is it?" Gabriel asked when they were in close distance with one another.

"It's a letter from your father," Charlotte explained as her eyes read through the contents of the letter that she received from a post rider. "He has been well but they have lost a number of colonists and militiamen. They are recruiting as much as they could until the seventeenth of this month."

"I can go," Gabriel said finding this as an opportunity that he could take and fight alongside with his father.

Anna resisted the urge to roll her eyes. If she recalled correctly, Gabriel and Benjamin had almost gotten into a fight that would probably end up in future history books than the war that they were fighting in. "I don't think Mr. Martin would allow that but Ms. Selton," she said as she turned her attention over to Charlotte before Gabriel had a chance to argue with her, which was something that Anna wasn't in the mood for, "what is happening on the seventeenth?"

Charlotte looked over the letter once more. A part of her was relieved that Benjamin was alright, but going into another battle against Cornwallis and his army bought another wave of fear and worry. "They are to fight with the British in Cowpens," the woman replied before looking up at the both of them.

"That's two days away," Gabriel said, "what if they don't have enough men?"

"What are you going to do?" Anna asked, "gather your own army and fight them yourself?"

I may just as well do so! Gabriel wanted to argue but he could see the uneasy look in his aunt's eyes. "Have you ever been into a battle Anna?" he asked her.

"No," Anna replied, "but-"

"Then you don't understand how it is for me," Gabriel interrupted her.

"Is that so?" Anna challenged him, "well I'll tell you something Gabriel Martin, I have seen enough blood and death when we were at camp! I would rather not have you lying on the ground somewhere bleeding to death like you did before!"

All of this bickering back and forth between them needed to cease. They never came to a solution through these arguments and the more they argued, the more angry they got with one another. "If you'll excuse me, I need to check on my sister." Anna didn't dare look at Gabriel or Charlotte as she walked away. She hadn't meant to erupt like that in front of Charlotte, but she was just as stubborn as Gabriel was.

Anna quickly walked over to the shed where Alice was being kept. She peeked inside and noticed the physician was there with her and it looked like Alice was sleeping. She looked very peaceful as she lied on the bed with the blanket that was tucked around her. She looked like she had drifted off into one of her dreams that she always shared with her and Catherine back home. Dreams that consisted of a green grass, rabbits, horses, and just pure child happiness. Anna raised her finger and tapped her fingernail against the window, catching the attention of the physician.

The physician looked up from the bed and noticed Anna by the window. He walked over to the door and held it open just a crack as Anna walked over to him. "How is she, doctor?" Anna asked him.

At this moment, the physician opened the door for her and allowed her to walk inside. Anna was surprised when he did this. Before, she wasn't allowed to go in but now, she took this as good news. With a little smile upon her lips, she knelt by Alice's bedside and ran her hand over the young girl's hair. "Alice," she whispered her sister's name, "how are you my little darling?"

No answer.

Anna gently chuckled, thinking that Alice was probably deep in one of her dreams that she liked. In a moment, she would open her eyes and tell her everything that she had dreamed about. "Come on, you need some fresh air after being kept here." She took a hold of Alice's hand and gave it a gentle tug, but the little girl's eyes didn't flutter open. "Alice," Anna said as she gently shook her sister's shoulder.

No response.

"Alice?" Anna said and shook her once more but there was no response coming from her. "Oh God no," Anna gasped, a hand flying to her mouth as she felt hot tears brimming into her eyes. "Alice, please wake up!" she yelled and prayed that her sister heard her and would wake up. "ALICE WAKE UP!"

That yell didn't sound like her voice. It sounded hysterical and loud enough that both Gabriel and Charlotte heard her. Both of them hurried over to the shed where they noticed Anna clutching onto the little girl. Gabriel immediately ran over to Anna and pulled her away from Alice as Charlotte feared the worst. The woman looked over to the physician who had his head bowed down. That answer was enough for Charlotte to realize that he had done all that he could to save the little girl, but in the end, whatever disease she had been fighting had won.

"No!" Anna struggled as she tried to free herself from Gabriel's grip, "leave me alone! Leave me with my sister!" But Gabriel was just too strong that Anna's attempts of escape were futile.

The physician walked over to Alice and pulled the blanket upward, covering her entire body. "Leave her alone! She's dreaming! She's not dead! She's going to wake up!" Anna screamed as she tried to reach forward towards her little sister once more but Gabriel pulled her away and out of the shed. "Alice!" Anna yelled for her sister but the physician shut the door so she couldn't witness anymore of her sister's corpse.

Weakness began to overtake her body and with one last attempt, Anna thrashed once more to free herself from Gabriel. However, her knees struggled to remain upright and she felt herself falling onto the sand with Gabriel's arms wrapped around her.

Gabriel was about to let go of her, but he didn't. He felt her heave as she sobbed into her hands.

"Why?" she breathlessly muttered to herself and viciously wiped her eyes from the tears, "why Alice? Why God, why?"

Gabriel tried his hardest to console her. Slowly, he held her up to her feet and she obeyed. "Come on," he whispered to her as he took her inside the shack that he, his aunt, and his other siblings slept in. Anna blindly followed him, not even knowing or caring where he was taking her. All she wanted now was to be with her little sister and wait for her to awaken from her dream. Or perhaps, maybe Anna had been living in a nightmare all along. She was going to wake up and she was going to be back home with her sisters. Their home would be the same as it was before and their church would be visible right out of the window of Catherine's bedroom.

Gabriel walked Anna over to one of the cots and gently placed her body there. The moment that Anna's head hit the pillow, she looked up at the ceiling and then closed her eyes as her tears continued to spill. She felt a blanket placed upon her body and Gabriel sat down beside her. Anna turned to her side and hid her face into one of the pillows, wishing that she could just get up from this horrible nightmare. However, she already knew the answer to that. This wasn't a dream, but a horrible reality that she was living in. The one place where she thought she and Alice were safe, Death was always around and Alice had been the unfortunate victim.

Gabriel watched as Anna's sobs subsided, but she continued to silently weep over her sister's death. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder once more and this time, she didn't flinch. Slowly, Anna bought up her own hand and rested it on his and held onto it with as much strength as she could muster...

...as if the remainder of her life depended on it.