July 15th, 1777 Sanc Manor, Virginia

Déjà vu.

July 15th, 1777 Sanc Manor, Virginia

Miss Relena Peacecraft had just arrived on the grounds of the Sanc Manor, returning from Philadelphia, when she heard a scream-a quite familiar sound. Relena's carriage came to a halt and she was assisted out by the driver whom she had met and hired during her last stay in Philadelphia, Pagan. The black and white feathers of the pink capeline hat she wore blew in the wind with her hair.

"Thank you, Pagan. Please, make yourself at home."

Relena's eyes squinted as another desperate, torturous scream was heard through the premises. Relena began to walk toward the noise.

"Miss Relena, where are you going?" Pagan asked.

"I have something to take care of, don't mind me Pagan."

The elderly servant nodded to her and went inside, he could not help but feeling out of place, he was probably the only paid servant at this place full of slaves.

Relena walked to the source of the noise and saw one of the field hands, a boy named Kenneth, tied and hug up. Relena saw the whip come down upon his bloody back and heard him cry in agony. She looked on in sympathy, Kenneth was only fifteen years old, and he was not one of her brother's slaves, Kenneth was her slave, and she felt absolutely awful. This torture was being carried out in her name. Perhaps there was a way she could help.

"Mister Kane, what is going on here?" She asked with a calm, yet fiery serenity.

The chief overseer of the Sanc Manor answered her in a hard voice, coiling the whip.

"This here nigger of yours attempted to run away. I think he was trying to run to join the British."(1) He raised his voice as he spoke to the disheveled slave whose back had become a sheet of crimson. "I TOLD YOU THAT THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS TO NIGGERS WHO RUN AWAY!" The overseer yelled and whipped the slave again, he screamed in agony and Relena winced.

"Mister Kane, I think you've made your point. Enough already." She stated with authority.

The overseer turned toward her with a tense-filled stare, but then relented. "Yes, Miss Peacecraft. Cut him down!" He ordered to one of the junior overseers. Kenneth was released from his tied up position as a heap on the floor, the dogs who had tracked him down were growling, eager to sink their teeth into his bloody flesh.

"You can leave now, Mister Kane." Relena stated with authority without looking at him.

"Yes, Miss Peacecraft." He obeyed. "Get back to work!" He yelled at the gathered slaves and overseers. "You're too soft on these niggers…" He spat and walked away.

"Thank you Miss Peacecraft!" Kenneth's mother, Bessy said as she leaned over her son. The father, Billy, was a slave on another plantation.

Relena eyed the two slaves in sympathy. "Take the day off." She said sadly. "Fix him up."

"You are a very kind woman, Miss Peacecraft." Bessy said as she helped her son up and went toward their dingy shack.

The overseer Kane rode up to her on his horse. "Miss Peacecraft, you have mail." He handed her an envelope. "This just came in. It's from a Major Heero Yuy."

Relena's face lit up upon hearing his name. She turned the envelope in her hand several times before she was interrupted by Kane.

"Why are you so kind to those niggers? He was trying to escape and he may have enlisted in the British army to free himself! We can't let the British get more soldiers than they already have!"

Relena sighed. "No, we can't. But perhaps we should address the question of why we make these people run away in the first place? Shouldn't the answer be obvious?"

"Miss Peacecraft, why do you sympathize with these sub-humans?"

"Because, in order to truly 'make the world over again' (2) we must throw off all of the oppressive shackles that the old order brought to this continent. That includes the legalized injustice toward these poor people."

Kane said nothing, could say nothing, and rode off in silence. Relena never did like Adam Kane. If she had her way he would have been out of a job for his cruelty, as he took pleasure in whipping slaves. Unfortunately, he was in her brother's employ, and Milliardo trusted him with keeping order on the manor, especially now in his absence. She could not blame her brother. Fears of slave revolts were always high, especially now with many of the men off fighting the British. She could not say that she herself was not afraid. Revolting slaves could easily kill her, and quite frankly she could not blame them, as she knew their feelings-wasn't she a supporter of a similar movement for the rights of Americans?

Relena walked inside, and after exchanging greetings with Lucrezia, went to her bedroom and opened the latest letter that Heero had sent her.

Relena,

I was glad to receive your letter of the first. No, life in our camp has not changed much. We still await Howe's next move. I admit that I am concerned about Burgoyne in the north (3), but General Washington is confident in the Continental Army's northern troops.

I am more than relieved that I was able to see you in Philadelphia in May. What better way was there to use my free weekend off from the army?

Relena remembered their last encounter in Philadelphia; it brought a smile to her face. She had seen her brother for the first time in God knows how long the day before; and when she heard that Heero would be coming the next day her spirits lifted even higher. In fact, the hat she was wearing was a gift from Heero. She took her hat off and smiled. Relena knew, and knew that Heero knew, that he was beginning to court her. Relena blushed at the thought; finally she had a suitor that she liked- a man of integrity and honor. The fact that they were devoted to the same cause she foresaw would only strengthen their bond.

I hope your passage back to Virginia was a safe one, and I greatly look forward to the next time we see one another. Seeing you floods me with warmth and is the best way for a soldier like myself to escape his ugly work, though it may be necessary.

Yours, Heero.

Relena smiled and placed the letter carefully on her desk. It was just like Heero, short and to the point. She ran down to get lunch upon hearing her sister-in-law. She would be sure to write a response later.

August 25th, 1777 Continental Army Headquarters

Heero Yuy was sitting outside his tent with Trowa and Wufei, going over upcoming drills for the company. Suddenly, a rider approached on a cream white horse.

It was Lieutenant Colonel Milliardo Peacecraft.

And he looked very angry.

He got off of his horse and walked up to Heero, who was calmly sitting down.

"All right Yuy, what's this I hear about you writing my sister?!"

Heero dismissed Trowa and Wufei and got up to face him. He was surprised that Lieutenant Colonel Peacecraft did not refer to him by his rank. However, Heero knew that this moment would eventually come.

"So I'm writing her, why do you care?" Heero stated in monotone as he casually leaned against the tent.

"Because she's my sister, and I wasn't ever told of this! I never gave her my approval!"

"She's a big girl, if she needed your approval she would have asked for it." Heero stated in the same calm monotone.

Milliardo seethed. "Yuy! Do you understand that I've had to chase off many unwanted suitors of hers? How do I know you're not just another scumbag after her?!"

That got Heero a little more emotional. "I am a man of honor, haven't you not seen that by now?!"

"I don't care what you are! Don't try anything!"

"I'll do what I please." Heero narrowed his eyes.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" A man on horseback rode up to both of them.

Heero and Milliardo's eyes both constricted as they jumped to attention.

General George Washington was glaring at the both of them. "Now, whatever it is you two are doing, stop immediately. I don't care what's on your minds. Howe's forces have landed at the Chesapeake Bay and they are heading toward Philadelphia. We're moving out now. Get back to your men; I need the two of you at attention." Washington then glared once again and rode off.

Heero smirked. "Howe's a fool."

Milliardo eyed him questioningly.

"Howe wanted the glory of capturing Philadelphia. He could have moved north and joined up with Burgoyne, and then they could have controlled the Hudson River. That would have cut New England off from the rest of the colonies.(4)"

Milliardo put his hand on his chin, as if in thought. "…You're right. We need to capitalize on his mistake." He mounted Tallgeese. "I'm watching you, Yuy." He warned and rode off.

Heero said nothing and went to rally his men.

September 11th, 1777, Brandywine Creek, Pennsylvania

The day started with fog. Ironically, what had saved the Continental Army the year prior may have been its undoing in the defense of Philadelphia. The Continental forces had done surprisingly well since the battle's inception.

"The battle continues to go well on the main front." Wufei reported to Heero, who was right next to him.

"Hn." Heero nodded, keeping his best of the situation. The Gundam Dragoons were assigned by General Washington to act as a screening force for General Sullivan's division. They were occupying the heights on the Continental Army's right flank. Suddenly, the sound of the earth shaking was heard. Heero took out his telescopic sight from Zero's saddle and peered through it.

He saw the British approaching from the woods on the right. They began their attack on General Stpehen and Stirling's lines. Trowa rode up to them then.

"Obviously, you just saw. General Sullivan has spotted a group of Hessians trying to outflank Stirling's troops. We're going in along with some infantry to stop them so we can get ready for a counter attack on the British."

"What about Washington?" Wufei asked as Heero galloped off to rally all of the dragoons.

"Still waiting, I don't think he knows yet."

Wufei scowled as he went off to make sure the sergeants had their squads in order.

Around fifteen minutes later, the Gundam Dragoons were firing over the heads of infantry approaching the Hessian lines. They formed one large firing line on high ground mounted upon their horses, careful not to hit their own men

The Hessians and Continental infantry began exchanging volleys. Blow for blow it was the same, a few Hessians fell, and a few Americans fell. Suddenly, a Hessian officer in the back toppled off his horse- a direct headshot.

Heero turned to his right and saw Duo grinning. To his own surprise, Heero slightly smiled back. It was only for a moment as Heero's eyes hardened again- he had an idea to break the stalemate between the two small forces. Certain that most of his men were reloading by now, Heero rallied the dragoons.

"Dragoons! We're going to break this stalemate! Initiate a pistol charge, we'll wheel around and attack the Hessian's right flank. We'll use the trees to cover our approach. Move! Now!" Heero spurred Zero forward, immediately followed by Duo and the others who were closest to him.

"C'mon let's go!" Wufei motioned with his hand as he led Altron to a full-blown gallop.

The Gundams rode fast, hugging the nearby woods. The Hessians were still preoccupied with fighting the Continental infantry that stubbornly would not break, and Heero was surprised that the Hessians had not initiated a bayonet charge that would probably have gotten the job done.

Heero took out his first pistol and charged the final way toward the Hessian line, Duo was the first behind him and the other men of his company quickly followed suit.

The Hessians turned a surprised eye toward the rapidly oncoming horses. Heero shot his first pistol- a direct center mass hit. Heero's second pistol shot hit his target's leg, the Hessian fell down to the ground, unable to fight.

Trowa fired a total of four pistol shots, the first one was a headshot while the second missed, the third and fourth hit his enemies center of mass.

Wufei fired his second pistol as he noticed Heero drawing his saber and racing forward into the Hessian line. Wufei quickly sped up to join his side and the Dragoons quickly flooded into the Hessian line after him.

The Hessians were taken by such surprise that they did not have time to get into the proper anti-cavalry formation.(5) Heero swatted and struck with his saber, a nasty cut across the chest here, a stab there. The blade quickly ran red with blood. Zero also did his part from under Heero, kicking the enemy if they got too close, sending the poor infantry flying several feet and hitting the ground with a thud- most of these men got trampled by the horses of the other dragoons.

Trowa brought his saber down hard across the face of an enemy soldier. The men around him were striking in a similar fashion with such ferocity that the enemy did not have time to fight back.

Duo saw out of the corner of his eye that the Continental infantry were charging at the Hessians now. He grinned.

The Hessians finally began to retreat. The dragoons chased after them and cut as many down as possible. Heero's arm began to ache from the repeated use of his sword. Zero's usually white coat was now splattered with blood. He finally raised his saber, signaling the dragoons to halt their charge as Zero stood up on two legs, Heero masterfully staying within the saddle.

The Gundam Dragoons cheered wildly.

"That was a brilliant tactic, Major Yuy sir!" Duo cheered. Several other men shouted the same.

"Listen up men!" Heero admonished. "We need to save the celebration for later, this battle is far from over. We still have to go and help the main force reinforce Generals Stephen and Stirling against the redcoats. C'mon, now!" He placed his saber back in its sheath and gently spurred Zero forward, Trowa quickly came up to Heero's side on Heavyarms, the two conversing over what the dragoons should do for the next phase. Heero signaled the Continental infantry that had been sent to follow him back to the main force.

Treize rode in the back of his regiment, concentrating hard on the task at hand. Washington had heard firing toward the right flank of the Continental Army, and had ordered General Greene, under whom Treize fought to relieve it. Treize grimaced; it was certainly another brilliant move on the part of the British- shades of the Battle of Brooklyn. It was another flanking move- and possibly another loss of a city. Treize was amazed at how fast they in Greene's division were marching- they must have marched four miles in under an hour.(6)

"Treize!" He heard Milliardo call from a good distance away. "I think we've reached the battle!"

Treize peered through his telescopic sight and saw flashes of cannon and muskets. Soon, Treize found men retreating from the battlefield, many running right next to his horse. Wondering what was going on, Treize also did his best to keep his own men in formation, as the sight of a retreating troop of soldiers could and often did make the rest of the army follow suit. Treize soon noticed a man on horseback with a mop of brown hair in a navy uniform.

"Major Yuy!" Treize motioned with his hand for him to stop as he rode up to him.

Heero stopped, as well as the column of dragoons following behind him. "I see Washington has finally been put on notice." He stated in monotone.

"We've suffered from bad information with this battle, as should be known by now. What's going on?"

"The British attacked General Stephen and Stirling's men; we're stationed with General Sullivan. We were successful in holding off a Hessian force trying to outflank them, then we attempted to reinforce Stirling against the British, as you can see, it didn't work out. You're too late, the battle is lost."

At that point General Greene rode up to the two of them. Treize and Heero instantly saluted.

"Colonel Khushrenada, we'll have to just cover this retreat. I'm sending you along with Colonel Weedon to cover the road outside the town of Dilworth; it should give us enough time to retreat. Major Yuy, I implore you to join Colonel Khushrenada."

"I'm with General Sullivan sir; your orders do not apply at this point in time."

"It's better than retreating, isn't it Major? Don't worry, I'll make sure no disciplinary action gets to you, now quick, Colonel, you must go now!"

Treize and Heero both saluted as the general rode off.

"So, will you be joining us, Major Yuy?"

"Hn." Heero nodded. He rode off to give Trowa the new orders and then rode back to Treize. "Ready when you are, let's move."

"Major, I hear you've been writing Relena." Treize said as they began their trek toward the battle point. "Listen, I've known Relena a long time and…"

"And?" Heero asked somewhat angrily.

Treize did not miss his tone. "Forget it; we don't have time to talk about this right now. I'll just say that she's my best friend's sister, so I do keep an eye out for her."

"You have nothing to be concerned about."

"I'll hold you to that promise, Major." Treize said with as much respect as he could muster. Lieutenant Colonel Milliardo Peacecraft approached them. "Treize, the men on the left are ready. What's Yuy doing here?" He asked suspiciously.

"He's helping us out, we're gonna need his horses, so I don't want to hear a thing." Treize said firmly. "We don't have time for a pissing contest over Relena, so save it for later."

Milliardo just grunted and rode off to his position in the regiment. Heero wondered how long it would take for Milliardo to not be suspicious of him.

"I can't blame him for not being suspicious." Trowa said as Heero broke away from Treize to rejoin his own men. "I was suspicious of Daniel when he was making moves on my sister."

"Hn."

Trowa did not need to speak anymore to know that his friend wanted to get back to the task at hand, and quickly rode off to take order around the middle of the Gundams' line.

Treize's line was stationed on the road, with artillery overlooking a nearby hill. The Gundam Dragoons were dismounted at the moment and standing guard by the artillery, the elevated position would give them the best shooting capability.

Duo was rattled out of his thoughts as the roar of the artillery seemed to split the air around him. As soon as the redcoats appeared the cannon opened up. It amazed Duo how the redcoats could see their comrades literally be blasted to bits by the twelve-pound solid shot, and yet still march slowly ahead to engage in combat with the enemy line.

"Hold the line men!" Treize shouted below, as the British were getting closer.

"Stand firm!" Milliardo shouted on the other side of the regimental lines.

"Dragoons, fire at will!" Heero shouted once he knew the redcoats were in range of their rifles.

"Fire at will!" Trowa repeated.

Heero fired his left rifle, then his right; one round hit an approaching redcoat center mass and the other was a miss as a result of the nearby artillery startling him. Heero grunted and began to reload both rifles. Wufei was by Heero's side, his shot went barreling into the leg of an enemy redcoat around 250 yards away, and then Wufei began the muzzle-loading process. Wufei heard Heero fire one of his two shots as he was just beginning to ram the ball down the barrel of his Kentucky Rifle. Silently, he wished that there were more Buster Rifles for the rest of the company, that thing sure did have a fast load time.

Trowa fired two quick shots with his Kentucky Rifles, and then put one away for the duration of the battle, instead only focusing on reloading one. The Brown Bess Musket was also leaning draped over Heavyarms' saddle, as it would be pointless to fire it at the range they were at.

Duo in the meantime was picking his targets in a more careful manner, aiming to take out the chain of command to cause confusion among the redcoats. His latest target was what appeared to be a sergeant marshalling frontline troops as they continued to advance toward the Continental infantry. Duo was careful not to twitch as the cannon continued to thunder. Duo watched through his predatory eyes as a cannon ball rolled along the ground, dragging a column of limbs behind it. But his target was not hit. A click of the trigger. Now he was. Duo watched him slump to his knees and fall face-first into the dirt.

Then the redcoats stopped and readied their stance.

"Fire!" Treize ordered to his men. The blue-coated Continentals opened up. The flash of fire and smoke resulted in redcoats all along the opposing line falling down, others stepping up in their place.

Treize could hear the British accents shouting from across the field. Then the British opened fire.

Treize watched his men fall as the smell of gunpowder in the air became stronger and stronger.

"Stand your ground!" Milliardo called out on the other side of the line as he could see that the Continentals were beginning to waver. "Stand firm men, stand firm!"

Treize's eyes widened as he saw the British getting their artillery placed, it was now late in the day and he had heard of Washington's retreat from Chad's Ford, where the bulk of the army (and himself) were originally stationed. It was then that Treize signaled for the retreat.

Heero rode up to him. "We can try to take out the gunners if you want."

"No, we're in an impossible position now, we need to retreat, and get those guns out now, the army has lost a lot already.(7) We'll rejoin Washington in the town of Chester not far from here, we've already covered the retreat, as night is coming, the British will stop their attack, now hurry up and get your men out."

Heero nodded.

"How many did you lose today, Major?" Treize asked as Heero was about to ride off.

"Five."

Treize nodded solemnly. "I'll have to do a casualty count of my own later on. Thanks for covering us."

"Hn." He rode back to the hill to rally his men and cover the retreat of the artillery.

After some days of maneuvering, the British marched into Philadelphia unopposed on September 26th, 1777, with the Continental Congress abandoning the city. The city of Independence and the American capital; was now in the hands of the enemy.

Déjà vu.

October 9th, 1777, Sanc Manor, Virginia

Relena received her mail. Her uncle had come over and given her the worst news in the world: Philadelphia had fallen to the British. Her eyes widened when she saw that Heero had written her a letter.

Relena,

I write to you to give you most unfortunate news, Philadelphia has fallen. We fought as best we could at Brandywine Creek, but the British were able to outflank us. I lost five men that day.

I think you'll be interested to note that at the latter half of the battle I fought alongside your brother and Treize, as you should probably imagine, your brother is still uneasy with me.

I cannot help but feel that I have failed you. When we met in January I promised you that I would not let you down, but despite my best efforts the British have still captured our capital. I hope that our fortunes will soon take a turn for the better.

I also hope that there will soon be a break in the fighting. I hope to see you when that happens.

Yours, Heero.

Relena folded the letter up while deep in thought.

"Relena, what's the matter?" Her uncle Thomas asked her.

"I'm going to Philadelphia." She said with steely determination.

"What?! Relena! You can't go to Philadelphia now!" Thomas shouted.

"Milliardo, Treize, and Heero are doing their parts; it's up to me to do mine. I don't know exactly what I'll be doing, but I have to do something. Sitting around here won't help the cause at all."

Thomas sighed, once his nieces' mind was made up, there was about a snowballs' chance in hell of changing it. "I'm not going to try and stop you, but please do be careful."

Relena smiled at her uncle's understanding.

The next morning Pagan was waiting for Relena to enter her carriage. Relena stepped toward the carriage when she was interrupted by an unwanted visitor.

"Relena." He greeted with a kiss of her hand.

"Mr. Greer." Relena pulled her hand away as fast and politely as she could from the very much unwanted James Greer. Out of all of her suitors, James Greer was the most unwanted as well as the most reviled. He was the most arrogant man she knew, one who had a cruel streak. In addition to that, Relena could tell that he had a Machiavellian-like mind- a rather dangerous combination.

"Where are you going, Relena?"

"For a ride." She lied as she stepped into her carriage.

"Not even so much as a hello?" He asked with a rather pompous tone of voice.

Relena did not answer as her carriage got started and sped away from the manor.

James only smirked. He saw Relena as a challenge. She could run away from him all she wanted, but she could not get away forever. She would be his, whether she resisted or not.

He'd make sure of it.

1. Throughout the war, thousands of slaves attempted to join the British, who promised them freedom. At the end of the war, most of these slaves were returned.

2. A quote from Thomas Paine's Common Sense, which advocated American independence.

3. Burgoyne moved to take the Hudson river, this campaign concluded with the decisive Battle of Saratoga.

4. Had Howe joined Burgoyne in upstate New York, it is highly likely the British would have captured the Hudson River, effectively splitting America in two. Benjamin Franklin said in France that 'Instead of Howe taking Philadelphia, Philadelphia has taken Howe.'

5. These would be squares of infantry pointing bayonets upward at the horses, who would stop in their tracks or be impaled. It was somewhat similar to the Ancient Greek Phalanx. This formation was terribly vulnerable to artillery.

6. Greene marched four miles in forty two minutes.

7. Most of Sullivan's guns were lost to the British.