A/N: I do NOT own the film nor any of the characters in the film, Harriet. I'm just a viewer of the film, Harriet and I just made this fanfiction story because I found the character dynamic between Harriet and Gideon Brodess unique and interesting.
It had been ten years since Harriet Tubman and all of her family plus thousands of other slaves had escaped from Maryland. It had been two years since the death of Eliza Brodess. The loss of her slaves and her ruined social stature in town drove her to sickness and then to an early death.
As Gideon Brodess sat on the porch of the Brodess home, a million thoughts were running through Gideon's mind, one series of thoughts had been running through his mind more so than usual - the last time he had saw Harriet - Minty, as he knew her.
"God don't mean people to own people, Gideon!" Harriet told Gideon on that cold, winter day in the middle of the rural woods.
Those words, God did those words seemed to echo in his brain every single day, for the last, past ten years, and he couldn't understand why. However, the more he thought on them, the more it seemed to ache his heart, ache his mind. Even the fact that on that day, she could've killed him, right then, right there, but she didn't. Despite all he did to her and to her family, she spared him.
The more Gideon thought on this, the more a certain emotion engulfed him, one that he had never felt before. As his mind began to trace back to when he and Minty were both kids, how he would secretly run off and play with her, but then regret it later because he always believed as his mama and daddy had brainwashed him to believe - that slaves were nothing more than pigs - no matter how much you played with them or favorited them. However, secretly, deep down, Gideon always favorited Minty, deep down, he didn't really think of her as some pig, no, she was his childhood friend, he just would never, ever let himself acknowledge it due to the deep brainwashing of his mama and daddy.
The more he thought on this, the more guilt engulfed him - emotional guilt. It became so strong that he eventually felt tears sting the back of his eyes. Goddamn it, this wasn't like him. Was he actually tearing up and feeling remorse for everything that had occurred between him, Minty and Minty's family? It sure felt felt like he was. As Lilith, one of his slaves walked out from the inside of the house with a glass of ice tea in her hand, Gideon wiped his now streaming tears away.
"Mas'er, here's your tea." Lilith said as she placed the tea on a table beside him.
Gideon nodded at her briefly. Lilith turned to walk back in the house.
"Thank you, Lilith." He replied in a slightly shaky voice. "Lilith, wait." Gideon added.
"Yes, mas'er?" Lilith replied.
Gideon glanced up at her and then stood from his seat and turned towards her.
"You can take the rest of the day off," he said, "go home, rest. Okay?"
Lilith stared at him, confused before nodding with nervousness.
"Thank you, mas'ser." She replied.
"Gideon," he said. "You can just - call me Gideon from now on. I'm not - your master, you just - work for me, okay?"
Lilith nervously and briefly smiled and nodded.
"Okay, Gideon, have a good evening." Lilith replied before walking off the porch.
"Have a good evening." He responded back in a low tone.
As Gideon was once again alone on the porch with his thoughts, he closed his eyes and wondered what Minty would have thought of his actions just then. Would she be surprised that he showed such compassion towards a slave? Would she think he might have been beginning to turn over a new leaf? Those thoughts, however, were quickly replaced with the once again feeling of guilt, guilt that was almost suffocating him within its fold. As Gideon opened his eyes that were clouded with tears, a strong compelling feeling engulfed him, a feeling he couldn't ignore not a moment more. Quickly, he picked up his ice tea, spun on his heels and walked inside the house.
As the Friday sun was setting in Auburn, New York, Harriet soaked in watching it set. She soaked in the fresh air of freedom, freedom that she had come to enjoy in her ten years since being free from being a Brodess slave. As she felt her eyes get heavy with sleepiness, her mother, Rit walked from out of Harriet's home and onto the porch.
"Harriet, come on honey, dinner is ready - finally, your daddy so tired, you would've thought he cooked an entire Thanksgiving dinner." Rit said with a laugh.
Harriet looked up at Rit and smirked as she got up from her porch rocking chair.
"Aww mama, I told daddy I could've cooked." Harriet said as she followed Rit into the house.
"Yeah but today being your birthday and all, he wanted to do this for you. It's his gift to you." Rit replied as Harriet hugged her close.
As Harriet sat the table in her dining room, Rit, Robert, Henry, Junyah and William stood around her as Ben walked out of the kitchen with a brown, rose designed birthday cake with birthday candles on it. As Harriet covered her mouth and smiled in surprise, her family sang happy birthday to her, which was then proceeded by her blowing out the candles on her cake.
Later that night, while Harriet slept, that's when her vision came, in a dream:
Gideon Brodess, tossing and turning during his sleep in bed, having a very vivid nightmare. After a few seconds, Gideon shoots up in bed and -
Harriet shot up in bed with a loud gasp, her forehead slightly glistened, confusion written all over her face. Gideon Brodess, she hadn't thought of Gideon in years, so why now? Why was he entering into her dreams now?
Gideon shot up in bed with a loud gasp, his eyes clouded with tears, out of breath and with his forehead heavily perspired. He had it once again, the same nightmare he had been having for numerous months. The nightmare of slaves, slaves being beaten, raped, tortured and murdered, including the whipping of Minty by his own father's hand. He even had an added dream of the memory of himself standing just feet away from Minty on a bridge years ago - right before Minty leaped away to freedom, he remembered how he talked to her as if he had been talking to a horse, an animal, someone who was less than a human being. During his remembrance of this, he could feel his mind engulf with guilt and remorse for his behavior during that moment. God, why was all this running through his mind, entering his dreams? Why? Why?
As Gideon closed his eyes shut with a frown, he could still hear the loud screams and cries from the beaten, raped and tortured slaves in his nightmare. The screams and cries were so deafening that it caused him to break into light sobs. Damn it, this shouldn't be getting to him, why was it getting to him? As Gideon wiped streaming tears away, he glanced down at his right hand, the one that became wounded by a gun held by Minty. His hand had longed healed in the years since his final confrontation with Minty, but just the mere sight of his hand brought back the memory of his final time seeing her, it echoed her words to him on that day.
"God don't mean people to own people, Gideon!" Minty told him on that cold, winter's day.
Staring at his once wounded hand and hearing Minty's words in his ears, once more brought tears to his eyes. He still remembered seeing her ride away out of those woods, he still remembered the instant understanding that he received in that moment from her final words on that white horse. As he closed his eyes once more, he shook his head a bit, trying to shake off the whirlwind of guilty emotions that were flowing through him at that moment, but he couldn't. The time that had passed wouldn't let him.
As Saturday morning came in, Harriet walked into the kitchen with a yawn. She stretched and secretly thanked God for another day, another blessed day that he had allowed her to be alive. It had become a habit for her to go out onto her front porch each morning and take in a big whiff of fresh morning air, air that reminded her daily of who she was and how far she had come from bondage to freedom. So as she walked out onto her front porch, she smiled at seeing the slow, rising sun. As she closed her eyes and inhaled, she once again thanked God for being alive, alive and free.
As Gideon perused through different antiques on a shelf inside Ole' John's Antiques, he sighed with annoyance. He wasn't finding anything useful, anything that caught his eye - until he laid eyes on a square, beautiful, blue and golden flower designed, porcelain vase. As he picked it up and examined it from top to bottom, he knew it was perfect.
It was two in the evening as Harriet sat at the table with Ben, Rit, Junyah and Henry, drinking coffee and listening to Ben tell one of his many old stories from his time of first courting Rit.
"So then I told her, I said you lucky I'm looking at you, because there's a whole bunch of other women who would just love to have someone like me," Ben said with a laugh that was shared with Junyah and Henry.
"Old man, please," Rit said with a smile, "you wish it had went down that way. You were the lucky one, I was a catch back then and I still am."
"What you mean, I was the lucky one, woman?" Ben barked back with a laugh from Harriet.
"Oh mama, daddy, please don't you two start again." Harriet said with another laugh.
As Ben and Rit playfully went back and forth into their discussion, a knock came at the door.
"Ooh, that's probably Robert or William, I'll get it." Harriet said while standing up from her seat, after finishing her coffee.
As Harriet opened the door, a look of instant shock filled her face. Standing in front of her was Gideon, Gideon Brodess. Gideon Brodess from her past of ten years ago.
"Gideon Brodess?" Harriet said with a disbelief filled in her voice.
"Mint - I mean, Harriet," Gideon said with a brief smirk. "Hi."
Immediately Harriet's face turned to one of seriousness and slight coldness, the same coldness she had on that last day of her confrontation with him.
"What are you doing here, Gideon? What do you want?" Harriet snapped.
Instantly, Gideon's smile vanished and he looked down with guilt.
"Harriet, I came here because I've been constantly thinking about you, about everything that happened ten years ago," Gideon said in a low tone, not looking her in the eye. "I've tried getting it out of my head but I - I can't. It's guilt and -"
Gideon stopped and looked up and away with tearful eyes, trying his best to keep his composure.
"It's just - guilt and so I came here to apologize." Gideon said in a slightly breaking voice.
"Apologize." Harriet repeated with coldness.
"Look," Gideon said as he looked up at her with tears streaming, "I know you have every right not to. You earned that right years ago, but you told me that God doesn't mean people to own people and Harriet, that has stayed with me ever since that day. It's something I think about every night when I go to bed and every morning when I wake up. The thought of how you could've killed me that day but you didn't. It took me ten, long years to realize you were right and I was wrong, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Harriet. I wish I could take back every wrong thing I did and everything my mama and daddy did to you and your family, but I can't. Everyday I wish I could erase what my family and I did, I swear I do but the least I can do now is tell you how sorry I am and Minty - Harriet, I swear I'm sorry and I'm asking you to please forgive me."
Harriet stared at him as more tears clouded his eyes. All her life, God had given her gifts and in the last ten years, he gave her more gifts than she had when she was a slave, one of those gifts was being able to decipher a lie from the truth.
"I believe you," Harriet replied in a low voice.
Gideon smirked briefly and looked away as he wiped away his tears.
"Well, in ten years you still look the same," Gideon said with a brief smile, "only better, happier now that you're free."
Harriet smiled and nodded.
"I am happier, Gideon." Harriet replied. "So - how's things been for you in ten years?"
"I'm - still the same," Gideon replied, "only different. I'm not who I was ten years ago. I owe that to you, Harriet."
Gideon looked down at the gift bag in his hand and frowned briefly.
"Um, your birthday was yesterday," Gideon said, "I'm a day late but - here."
As Harriet took the bag from him, she was flabbergasted. She couldn't believe the young man who slapped her hard across the face years ago was the same man standing in front of her asking her for forgiveness. As she opened the bag, she pulled out the porcelain vase and smiled.
"It's beautiful," Harriet replied.
"I remembered how you love pottery and pretty things like that, so - happy birthday, Harriet." Gideon replied.
"Thank you, Gideon." Harriet replied with a brief smile.
"You're welcome." Gideon responded back with a smile. "Well, I have to get going back now but I needed to come see you and to tell you what's been on my mind for years now. Take care, Harriet."
As Gideon turned and walked away, Harriet blinked back light tears.
"Gideon, wait." Harriet said as she walked after him.
As she stepped in front of him, she saw his eyes clouded with tears too, tears of remaining guilt. In that moment, she hugged him. It was a hug that took him aback at first but as he hugged her back warmly, he found himself breaking down emotionally, feeling the weight of guilt leave him with her display of forgiveness.
"Thank you," Gideon whispered in between tears.
She nodded as she pulled away from him and wiped her streaming tears away.
"You take care, and if you ever make your way back this way again..." Harriet said with a tearful voice before her voice trailed off.
"You bet," Gideon said with a faint smirk before waving and then walking away.
As Harriet watched him get back on his horse and ride off, she smiled as she felt a ten year chapter of her life ending - finally, but ending on a happy note, a healing, forgiving note that would stay with her for many more years to come.
~ The End ~