A Country Divided : Through Blood United

Important Person: Joshua Chamberlain

The sun pierced its merciless rays into my eyes, obstructing my vision. I squinted in defense and rose up once I was out of the tent, and the sun was barely above the horizon. Perfect. I took one last glance at my friends, who were sleeping soundly in the comforting warmth of their blankets. After heaving a long, heavily sigh, I turned away and made my way toward the town of Gettysburg.

As I slowly walked through the many blades of fresh grass that licked my ankles, I tried my best to cover my soldier backpack with my hair. The backpack that I received for enlisting in the army was all I had, and I didn't want anyone to question me why a girl like me would have a soldier's backpack. I failed in covering my backpack since my hair was way too short. In fact, each golden strand of dry, straight hair barely passed my shoulders.

In the corner of my eye, I barely noticed the orange fire that was crackling about twenty or so meters to my left. I subtly turned my head toward the fire, and the flames calmly licked the sky.

Colonel Joshua Chamberlain calmly sat on a log in front of the fire, its orange glow illuminating his strong face. Through the near-complete darkness, I could easily see that Colonel Chamberlain was obviously thinking about something. His eyebrows were furrowed, his frown lines etched forever on his face, and he was hunched over in thought.

Once Chamberlain noticed that I was looking at him outside my tent, he turned his gaze toward mine and angled his head in a confused fashion.

"Hey, you," he called out toward me, his hands cupped to his mouth. "Come over here, you must be cold."

I sighed a heavy sigh of relief knowing that Colonel Chamberlain thought that I was a stranger. With nervousness swelling in my body, I couldn't do anything else but obey the Colonel. I shuffled over to him in my fluffy dress and plopped down next to the Colonel. He smiled thoughtfully and stared into the fire, his eyes taking on an orange glow.

"You know," he began shyly. I always knew that Chamberlain was the shy type, but whenever he had a job to do, such as bark an order for the Union army, it's like his shyness completely disappears. Chamberlain rested his hand on his chin in thought. "I know you from somewhere."

Chamberlain squinted and studied my features, making me feel a bit uneasy. "I just feel like I know 'ya from somewhere, you just look so familiar."

"Sorry, sir, but I don't know what you're talking about," I lied. I obviously knew that I was the person that looked familiar to him since Vange and Evangeline are the same person. "You must have the wrong person."

My face flushed to a bright red in embarrassment, and I kept the soldier backpack tightly on my back so Chamberlain wouldn't see.

Colonel Chamberlain shook his head doubtfully and returned his gaze off of the fire and back to me. "No, no. You just look like the boy who disobeyed my orders and ran away from the infantry's lines to help his friend fire a cannon."

I sat still, my eyes wide. I didn't want Chamberlain to find out that I was a girl. I didn't even know what the punishments were for disguising as a boy to be in the army, and I preferred to have it stay that way.

Chamberlain and I exchanged long, awkward stares before I finally came to the conclusion that this man was trustworthy enough. He was shy after all,; why would he go to town and shout that I joined the army?

I swallowed my courage and finally spoke. "That boy you're talking about is sitting right in front of 'ya."

Colonel Chamberlain couldn't comprehend my response and sat still, his eyes wide and his mouth agape in shock. His eyes then darted about my features, and I could sense that he was finally putting the pieces together.