Maja nuzzled her arm as if to say, I am here and I will protect youfrom harm. She whispered to the large silver wolf, “They are bad, my friend, and I fear the threat they will bring to our people. We must pray and hope for peace. If the council had sent tivas to speak with the three Crow bands, they would listen. But it is good they did not send Little Weasel and Night Walker, who seek only adventure and glory. They crave to show their cunning and courage, Maja, but in the wrong way. If war is to come, my friend, Atah will guide us through those dark suns. We will fight together as one.”
Kionee lifted her club. A skilled weapons-maker, she had fashioned it from a willow rod while still green and wet enough to be bent and stretched over the head of a stone and attached with wet rawhide, which shrank and tightened as it dried. She wondered if she would use it as a weapon one day soon.
She fingered a hunting lance, which was longer and thinner than a war lance for battle. Hers was a head taller than her height, whereas a war lance was its owner’s height plus the tip. She had no doubt she could pierce a foe with the blade, but would she be compelled to take lives with it?
Kionee’s gaze drifted over a pile of arrows she had made, some this very day and some during the long winter, as each required long labor on shafts, tips, and fletchings. She had gathered the lengths of willow before winter while the sap was down, peeled and dried them, and secured them in bundles until she made them into weapons. Most were sized to the span she required for accurate firing, and painted with her ownership markings for joint hunts. Others were longer and unmarked for trading, as twenty good arrows were worth a horse or twenty superior hides. A good bow brought two horses or forty superior hides or other trade goods.
Of course, she mused, Little Weasel would nevertrade with her for weapons, though he was not as talented as she was. She wished her cousin could make weapons, hunt, and fight as she did so he would not be jealous of her superiority. I know that is why you wish me to throw away my tiva vow and join to Night Walker after the buffalo hunt. I see, his hunger growing larger. I have felt his presence in hiding when I bathe; he has seen my face and body and knows I am a woman. But I will not be a woman for Night Walker. If a man is my destiny, it is Stalk — No, Kionee, do not let him fill your thoughts.
Nine days passed as the Hanueva men and tivas readied weapons and practiced fighting skills afoot and on horseback to prepare themselves for a conflict that most prayed would never come. The weather went back and forth between warm spring days and cool nights to chilly days and nights with light to heavy snow as Mother Nature resisted a seasonal change. Everyone noticed that the six men sent to the three Crow camps did not return or send messages of success or failure, so worry increased and training intensified.
Kionee spent another two days in the Haukau during her menses, a visit which made her more restless and dissatisfied with her sacrificial rank. She tried in vain to keep thoughts of Stalking Wolf from her mind, and finally accepted the reality that was not possible, but she pined in silence even with Regim. She hunted with others as usual, but now all remained on alert. She knew Night Walker did everything he could to prevent her from being one of those chosen for scouting parties; twice he reasoned with her about her family’s need for a hunter more than a protector. Yet, Kionee decided he was only safeguarding her for himself.
She watched the romance between Runs Fast and her sister grow warmer and bolder, and it brought envy toKionee’s mind and sadness to her heart. He would accompany Blue Bird when the girl went to fetch water and wood and to gather spring plants for cooking, but always with people around to avoid shame. The couple would stay in sight each time they talked at the edge of the forest or rode
Kionee lifted her club. A skilled weapons-maker, she had fashioned it from a willow rod while still green and wet enough to be bent and stretched over the head of a stone and attached with wet rawhide, which shrank and tightened as it dried. She wondered if she would use it as a weapon one day soon.
She fingered a hunting lance, which was longer and thinner than a war lance for battle. Hers was a head taller than her height, whereas a war lance was its owner’s height plus the tip. She had no doubt she could pierce a foe with the blade, but would she be compelled to take lives with it?
Kionee’s gaze drifted over a pile of arrows she had made, some this very day and some during the long winter, as each required long labor on shafts, tips, and fletchings. She had gathered the lengths of willow before winter while the sap was down, peeled and dried them, and secured them in bundles until she made them into weapons. Most were sized to the span she required for accurate firing, and painted with her ownership markings for joint hunts. Others were longer and unmarked for trading, as twenty good arrows were worth a horse or twenty superior hides. A good bow brought two horses or forty superior hides or other trade goods.
Of course, she mused, Little Weasel would nevertrade with her for weapons, though he was not as talented as she was. She wished her cousin could make weapons, hunt, and fight as she did so he would not be jealous of her superiority. I know that is why you wish me to throw away my tiva vow and join to Night Walker after the buffalo hunt. I see, his hunger growing larger. I have felt his presence in hiding when I bathe; he has seen my face and body and knows I am a woman. But I will not be a woman for Night Walker. If a man is my destiny, it is Stalk — No, Kionee, do not let him fill your thoughts.
Nine days passed as the Hanueva men and tivas readied weapons and practiced fighting skills afoot and on horseback to prepare themselves for a conflict that most prayed would never come. The weather went back and forth between warm spring days and cool nights to chilly days and nights with light to heavy snow as Mother Nature resisted a seasonal change. Everyone noticed that the six men sent to the three Crow camps did not return or send messages of success or failure, so worry increased and training intensified.
Kionee spent another two days in the Haukau during her menses, a visit which made her more restless and dissatisfied with her sacrificial rank. She tried in vain to keep thoughts of Stalking Wolf from her mind, and finally accepted the reality that was not possible, but she pined in silence even with Regim. She hunted with others as usual, but now all remained on alert. She knew Night Walker did everything he could to prevent her from being one of those chosen for scouting parties; twice he reasoned with her about her family’s need for a hunter more than a protector. Yet, Kionee decided he was only safeguarding her for himself.
She watched the romance between Runs Fast and her sister grow warmer and bolder, and it brought envy toKionee’s mind and sadness to her heart. He would accompany Blue Bird when the girl went to fetch water and wood and to gather spring plants for cooking, but always with people around to avoid shame. The couple would stay in sight each time they talked at the edge of the forest or rode
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