America: 50☆Stars (Vol. 2)

Episode 31: Rebecca - The Peace of Pocahontas

Warning: This episode features a "romance" between a seventeen-year-old woman and a man in their late twenties. They rarely interact in the story; there's no kissing or sexual imagery whatsoever. Still, I want to state this fact because this kind of relationship is understandably creepy to modern audiences.

As a reminder, this story is my interpretation of the following events which are mired with mystery and speculation. No doubt, this story will oppose some opinions. I have no problem rewriting the story to make it more 'accurate' or more aligned with either the written history or oral history. The fact remains this story is a work of fiction that can never serve as a true account of what happened. Anyway, continue reading the final part of the Pocahontas Trilogy.

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Once upon a time, a war was fought between the English colonists of the Virginia Colony and the Algonquin Indians of the Powhatan Confederacy. Atrocities were committed. Casualties were inflicted. Neither side wanted to cease the conflict on the terms of the other. It seemed peace would never come.

But then in March 1613, there was a gamechanger.

When word of this reached Virginia's ears, she was quick to demand she see this gamechanger. To her dismay, she wasn't allowed to set foot on the ship. Captain Samuel Argall didn't trust her, concerned she would ruin everything. Virginia pleaded she wouldn't cause mischief. She only wanted to see and talk to her, even for a brief moment. She kept asking him every day. But the next thing she knew, it was summer. Captain Argall and his ship were nowhere to be found in Jamestown.

Devastated was an understatement. Virginia had plenty of time to either convince the captain or sneak onto his ship. For all she knew, this was the only chance she had to see her, and she wasted it. She thought she would never see her again until one faithful day.

Upriver from Jamestown, there was a small settlement surrounded by woods called Henricus. Despite the war, the village flourished thanks to the cultivation of a small green plant with pinkish blooms called tobacco. Since last year, Virginia wanted to learn all she could about the cash crop, hearing it had the potential to provide financial stability for her future. Thus, she traveled to Henricus in time for the tobacco harvest.

She stopped by Varina Farms, hoping to see the man who first cultivated the plant for her benefit. Much to her surprise, he wasn't home to tend to the harvest. He was at church, according to the neighbors. She considered waiting for his return until she grew bored after standing around for five minutes. A detour around the town didn't seem so bad after reconsideration. And so, Virginia went on a search for the largest building in town.

When she found the church, she confronted a young man dressed in black and white robes standing in front of its doors. "Hello, sir. Are you the minister of the church?" she politely asked.

He bowed his head. "Yes. I am Reverend Alexander Whitaker. What brings you here, miss?"

"I heard Mr. Rolfe was here. Is he here?"

"Oh, yes. Mr. Rolfe is with Rebecca. You wish to see him?"

"Yes, please."

"Then, I'll take you to him."

Upon the opening of the doors to the church, Virginia was introduced to a large meeting hall. There were two rows of wooden pews, one on each side of the room. In the middle of some pews, there were wooden pillars that supported the church's tall and heavy roof. While glancing at the beams, Virginia noticed there were large iron rings holding candles hanging from the ceiling. There was daylight pouring into the room from the open windows. Therefore, the candles weren't lit at the moment. Virginia continued to look at them above her head while following the reverend down the aisle.