The Patriot Page #2

INT. MARION'S HOUSE - NIGHT

Marion, holding a candle, does a father's bedtime check.

The CAMERA FOLLOWS him as he makes his rounds into:

THE KITCHEN. Everything is clean and put away in its

proper place.

THE MAIN HALLWAY. Marion checks that the doors are closed

and bolted. He heads up the stairs.

INT. BOYS' BEDROOM - NIGHT

Marion enters, finding William asleep on the floor and

Nathan and Samuel in bed. He lifts William into bed,

takes a slingshot from Nathan's hand, tucks in Samuel and

walks out.

INT. GIRLS' BEDROOM - NIGHT

Marion steps to the doorway, finding Margaret and Susan at

the window, looking up at the night sky.

MARGARET:

... now count five finger lengths up

from the front two stars of the Big

Dipper, and that's the North Star,

that's her.

Susan gazes up at the North Star. The girls notice Marion

and climb into bed. He puts a chair against Susan's bed

and kisses her. He pulls a blanket up around Margaret,

who whispers:

MARGARET:

It helps her to know Mother's there.

Marion nods with a thin smile, kisses Margaret and walks

out.

INT. MARION'S STUDY - NIGHT

Squadrons of lead soldiers stand ready for battle as

Thomas, lying on the floor, deploys his men. Gabriel

reads the new pamphlets and broadsides. Marion walks in

and pours a drink. Gabriel hands several of the pamphlets

to his father.

GABRIEL:

The New York and Rhode Island

assemblies have been dissolved...

MARION:

The middle colonies?

GABRIEL:

Rioting both sides of the bay, in

Chestertown they burned the Customs

House and tar-and-feathered the

Customs Agent. He died of burns.

In Wilmington they killed a Royal

Magistrate and two Redcoats.

MARION:

Anything about the convention in

Philadelphia?

GABRIEL:

Poor Richard says they'll make a

Declaration of Independence by July.

Marion shakes his head and sits down, carefully extracting

a delicate pair of reading glasses from a wooden box. He

begins reading.

GABRIEL:

Scott Higgins joined the militia.

Marion hears but doesn't respond. Thomas looks up from

his lead soldiers.

GABRIEL:

He's seventeen. A year younger than

I.

Gabriel and Thomas wait for a reaction. There is none.

Gabriel goes back to reading and Thomas resumes playing

with his toy soldiers. Marion's eyes drift from the page

to Gabriel.

EXT. SWAMP ROAD - DAY

The Marion family, in two tightly-packed carriages, drives

on a beautiful road, cut through the swamps. The canopy

of swamp maples and weeping willows forms a tunnel of

green, mottled by sunlight.

EXT. BENNINGTON OVERLOOK - DAY

The two carriages pass a view of their entire valley.

Scattered farms with a patchwork of cultivated fields

surrounding the town of Bennington.

EXT. SANTEE ROAD - DAY

Passing through rolling farmland, the Marions head toward

the coast. They pass a large contingent of South Carolina

Militia, drilling in a field. The children, particularly

Gabriel, watch avidly.

EXT. CHARLESTON - DAY

A big, bustling city. Marion and Gabriel negotiate the

carriages through the busy streets. The children watch,

wide-eyed, seeing taverns, a public gallows, drunkards,

street entertainers, well-dressed ladies attended by their

maids, food venders, a man with a trained bear.

EXT. CHARLOTTE'S HOUSE - CHARLESTON - DAY

Grand. Four stories. Marion and his children pull up.

CHARLOTTE MOTTE hurries out. She's in her mid-thirties,

beautiful, with a deep sadness that she keeps hidden as

best she can.

The children leap from the carriages and swarm around her,

embracing her, smothering her with kisses.

THE CHILDREN:

Aunt Charlotte! Aunt Charlotte!

CHARLOTTE:

Welcome! Welcome! Margaret,

William, look at you...!

(to Marion)

They're huge. What have you been

feeding them?

MARION:

They're from good stock on their

mother's side.

CHARLOTTE:

Thank you.

Charlotte hustles the children toward the door.

CHARLOTTE:

Come, come, inside, wait until you

see what I have...

THE CHILDREN:

(simultaneous)

Presents! For me? What do you

have?

CHARLOTTE:

Inside, inside...

Charlotte sweeps past Marion who smiles and follows her

into the house.

INT. PARLOR - CHARLOTTE'S HOUSE - DAY

Marion watches as Charlotte finishes handing out presents.

Susan plays with a new doll. William has half-a-dozen new

spinning tops, skimming around the floor. Margaret holds

a new dress up to herself. Samuel, Nathan and Thomas tear

into packages holding platoons of lead soldiers. Gabriel

looks through a new book.

Charlotte sees Marion watching her, rises and joins him at

the doorway.

MARION:

You look well, Charlotte.

CHARLOTTE:

As do you.

Suddenly Thomas and Samuel race through the doorway,

forcing Marion and Charlotte together, their bodies close.

They step back and exchange warm but uneasy smiles.

The moment is broken by the SOUND OF CHILDREN. Marion and

Charlotte gratefully turn their attention back to them.

EXT. CHARLESTON SQUARE - NIGHT

Down the block from the Motte house. A yelling crowd of

Sons of Liberty is massed around a Liberty Tree from which

hang dozens of glowing lanterns. Most of the men in the

crowd are drunk. Vendors sell rum, ale, food and banners

emblazoned with a coiled snake and the legend, "Don't

Tread On Me." Scores of on-lookers, including respectable

people, as well as street urchins, whores and drunkards,

watch the proceedings.

Several Sons of Liberty string up effigies of King George

III and Governor Wilmington. They light the effigies on

fire. As they begin to blaze, the crowd cheers.

EXT. CHARLOTTE'S BALCONY - NIGHT

Marion's children, except Gabriel, stand on the balcony

watching the mob. Marion steps out onto the balcony.

MARION:

Inside, all of you...

The children turn to Marion with stricken expressions.

Marion relents.

MARION:

Very well.

The children turn back to the mob. Marion joins them.

THOMAS:

Look! There's Gabriel!

They see Gabriel making his way through the crowd. He

sees them and waves, then enters the house.

A moment later Charlotte steps out onto the balcony and

sees:

IN THE SQUARE, a pair of drunk Sons of Liberty, pull down

one of the smoldering effigies, cut off its head, then

start hacking at it's groin with a sword.

Appalled, Charlotte shoots a glare at Marion and snaps at

the children.

CHARLOTTE:

Children, inside! All of you!

Right now.

The children start to protest, but a glance at Charlotte's

resolute expression makes them think better of it. They

file into the house. Charlotte shoots a glare at Marion

and shoos the children inside. Gabriel steps out and

joins them.

MARION:

What news?

GABRIEL:

The British army is barricaded in

Boston. Harry Lee, is here from

Virginia, recruiting for a

Continental Army.

MARION:

Is that why the Assembly was

convened?

GABRIEL:

Yes. He seeks a levy of troops and

money.

MARION:

And the Governor?

GABRIEL:

He vowed that if the Assembly votes

a single shilling to Lee, he'll

dissolve the body.

MARION:

Which would force our delegates in

Philadelphia to vote for

independence.

CHARLOTTE:

And send us to war alongside

Massachusetts.

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