Wanbli Zi had been sitting in front of his fire when the koskalaka
had approached. He watched with half an eye as the young warrior paced back and forth, moving closer and closer to the entrance of the ti ikceya. The word spread with some speed and soon, others were in front of their lodges, offering their silent support.
Kathleen watched with interest as her friend and stepan, Hca, stepped from the lodge.
The wikoskalaka
had a shy smile and she stood demurely just out of reach. Nupa’s pacing continued, inching closer with each pass. And then he pounced. A small scuffle ensued, though it didn’t appear that Hca was making any real attempt at freeing herself. And then it stopped and the warrior wrapped the large robe around the two of them and began speaking softly to her.
“Do not look at them now, Ketlin,” Anpo said, glancing away, herself.
Having gotten quite good at watching without watching, the blonde looked off to one side, seeing the couple out of the corner of her eye. “Do you know what he is telling her?” she asked.
“An old story. I do not know what it is. I think all wicasa decide which story to tell their winyan when the time comes.” Anpo peered down the length of her body and smiled. The baby was sleeping peacefully on her belly, a thumb planted firmly in his mouth.
Kathleen leaned back a little, using her left hand to support herself. The other idly brushed hair from her winuhca’s forehead. “What happens now? Do they join like we did?”
“Hiya. First he will visit a few more times, woo my cuwekala
in a manner fitting to a Lakota maiden. Then a price will be settled between Wanbli and Nupa’s family. When that is paid, a feast will be had and then they will join as we did.”
After considering this, the pale woman peered down at Anpo. “But you did not do this with me because I had been given to you, a slave?”
“Ohan, winuhcala. You were not a Lakota maiden. There were no family members to negotiate a price or have a feast.” She looked up and lost herself in dark blue pools. “I would have wooed you, Ketlin, had I been able. I would have let you see how much I love you.”
“I love you, too, Anpo,” was the soft reply. “Very, very much.”
And then they engaged in the same thing that a newly betrothed couple nearby were involved in. Lips met in a long kiss, tongues exploring familiar ground gently.
When the couple broke off, it was with two breathless sighs. Kathleen kept her eyes closed and leaned her forehead against her warrior’s. “I do so enjoy kissing you, winuhcala
.” Now if I could just figure out what to do next.... A flash of sensation, Anpo’s lips teasing her throat and shoulders, caused the blonde to shiver.
An impish grin crossed Anpo’s face. “Not as much as I enjoy kissing you, winuhcala.” Her heart fluttered at the thought of tasting her woman’s skin. I do not know how to proceed. “I will ask Inyan for his counsel in this matter.”
Teca chose this moment to shift his position, putting him precariously close to sliding off his inanup’s stomach.
The warrior caught the baby and eased him back into place.
“Let me take him,” Kathleen said, seeing the problem. “I will put him in his sleeping robes. He should sleep for the night.”
Anpo leaned her head forward to allow the blonde to rise. When Teca was removed, she felt a chill where he’d been lying. Now that she was unburdened, she sat up and stretched, reaching for her pipe and tobacco.
The pale woman, having put their cinksi
to bed, returned with a smile and scooped up their dirty bowls. “I will wash these now.”
Watching Kathleen walk away, the warrior considered the draw she felt from the swaying of her woman’s hips. Ohan. I will talk to Inyan about this. She pulled a glowing ember from the fire and lit her pipe, studiously ignoring her friend and sister seated at her father’s fire.
“That is an interesting question, wikoskalaka.” Inyan Ceye’s face was serious and his dark eyes scanned the horizon. He and Anpo were on their ponies, riding with the rest of their people towards the summer camp.
The warrior nodded in return. “I feel that there is more, wicahcala. I do not know how to explain it.”
“It is true that there is more with a wicasa and winyan
, Anpo. You know this as well as I.” The shaman looked closely at her. “Have you been with any of the koskalaka?”
Anpo shrugged. “Hiya
. I was never interested. I have never felt this way towards them, not even Nupa!” She pursed her lips in consternation. “If Ketlin or I were a wicasa, I would know how to proceed. But we are not.”
Seeing the shoulders slump in dejection, Inyan reached out to pat her arm. “When we reach summer camp, I will seek a vision on this matter, Anpo. Do not worry yourself.”
“I will try, wicahcala,” the warrior said, though she didn’t sound convinced.
“And how is Teca?” the shaman asked, purposely changing the subject.
Anpo’s face lit up. “He is growing fast, wicahcala! His teeth are coming in so he is not happy, but I gave him some rawhide to chew on and he likes that.”
“I have seen him in passing. Except for his coloring, he looks very much like his ina.”
“Ohan
!” the warrior agreed, warming to another of her favorite subjects. “I think so, too. Ketlin says he looks like me, though.”
Inyan smiled. “It is fitting that a child should look like both his parents.” His smile widened at the emphatic nod. “It is also fitting that a child should have such love from both his parents.”
Anpo colored slightly though she grinned in response.
Teca was enjoying the complete attention of his unci
as she shook a rattle at him. He laughed and rocked, his arms flailing in his excitement. Nearby, Ketlin and Hca served the evening meal to the three warriors at Wanbli Zi’s fire.
“Your cinksi grows strong, tanksi
,” Nupa commented, watching the proceedings. He accepted a piece of frybread from his betrothed with a smile.
As her friend wrapped boiled meat into his bread, Anpo grinned with pride. “Teca will be a fine warrior when he is a wicasa
.” Taking a bite of her food, she saw her ate
nod in agreement.
“He is much like you at that age, Anpo. Very alert and curious.”
“We will have strong children, too, Hca,” the young warrior said to his betrothed who blushed and smiled, casting a sidelong look at him. “Many strong cinksi
and beautiful cunksi
!”
Blowing on a piece of meat to cool it, Kathleen considered the young couple at the fire. She had heard the stories, the beliefs that Nupa and Anpo would eventually join. Popping the meat into her mouth, the blonde chewed in thought. Is Nupa wanting Hca because she looks so much like her sister? Dark blue eyes noted the strong resemblance between the siblings. It would make sense. She poured some of the broth into a bowl for Teca. Once the grease had been skimmed off the top, she would soak some bread in it for him to eat.
Gi smashed a berry between her fingers and brushed the pulp onto the baby’s tongue. With great pleasure, Teca gummed the treat. He shook his rattle, demanding more.
“Ah, you like berries,” the old woman said with a smile. Another bit of fruit found its way to the waiting child. “Teca has a liking for sweet things,” Gi announced to the others.
“Just as his inanup,” the blonde woman offered with a grin at her warrior.
Anpo reached with lightning speed and pulled her winuhca
into her arms. Falling backwards and tickling her unmercifully, she called, “Ohan, Ketlin! And you are the sweetest!”
While the pair roughhoused, Kathleen blushing furiously but tickling back for all she was worth, Gi shook her head and clucked. “Your parents are both crazy, takoja
.”
Teca decided to forego the berries as he watched his parents play. Gurgling happily, he began crawling t
owards them, his gait still unsteady, intent on joining the fun. He was intercepted by Hca, however, and showed his displeasure by trying to get down.
It was his voice that halted the tickle free-for-all. Both parents stopped to check on their cinksi, verifying that he was all right.
Kathleen held out her arms. “Give him to me, stepan
. He is probably hungry.” As expected, when the baby was in his ina’s arms, he began tugging on the front of her cuwignaka. The blonde bared one breast and helped her son begin to suckle.
Watching her winuhca
scoot closer to her meal and return to eating, Anpo sat up and dusted herself off. She picked up a meaty bone and began to chew on it. “The Sun Dance begins tomorrow. After it is done, I will hunt for more food.”
Wanbli Zi nodded solemnly. “That would be good, cunksi. The tatanka have been few this season. It has been too hot. I am afraid we will not have enough food for winter.”
“Do you think it will be that bad, wicahcala?” Nupa asked, his own face turning serious.
“It has been many, many winters since the last lean one. But it has happened before,” the elder said. “I fear it will happen again.”
“Nupa and I will go hunting after the dance,” Anpo announced, seeing her friend nod in response. “All that we can collect for our people will be needed.”
The thought of attending the Sun Dance chilled Kathleen. Memories of her warrior falling to her knees in the dust, blood pouring from her chest and back, still plagued her sleep. As the conversation washed over her, the blonde looked down to her son. Will you dance for the sun when you are older, Teca? Will you hurt yourself to show your thanks for a favor from the spirits? Will it be worth it?
Teca drowsed as he suckled, his eyelids drooping.
Despite her misgivings, the four days of the festival were good ones. Kathleen found that it was far more enjoyable this time around now that she knew the language better and her warrior was beside her. The dark woman spent their time at the celebrations, teaching her the many songs required by the spirits and trying to explain the reasonings behind their practices.
All children who had been born over the last year were gathered together at one point. Teca found himself surrounded by babies and he eyed them all with avid curiosity. When Inyan Ceye picked him up, the baby frowned a little but didn’t fuss. Not until the awl was pushed through his earlobe and a small piece of sinew inserted to keep it from growing back. And then he was placed in his inanup’s hands, tears of anger and pain coursing down his tiny face.
Anpo comforted her cinksi
, jostling him and distracting him with berries. As he snuffled and gummed the fruit, still cross, she said, “You will be a strong and proud warrior, Teca.”
“Like his inanup
,” Kathleen added softly. The blonde gently wiped the tears from the baby’s face.
Hearing his mother’s voice, Teca immediately demanded to be taken into her arms, leaning his body precariously out towards her. He cried and babbled in Kathleen’s arms while his inanup wrapped them both in her long arms and held them.
When Teca had cried himself out and was nursing in emotional exhaustion, Anpo led her woman towards the largest lodge in the camp. “It is time for the Sun Dance, winuhcala.”
With great reluctance, Kathleen followed.
Watching the Sun Dance itself still gave her shivers. The blonde wished that she were anywhere but in that huge ti
ikceya
watching those men mutilate themselves in the name of their wakan tanka. She was glad that Teca was asleep in her arms and not witnessing the carnage.
It was decidedly easier to watch than the first one. Her warrior was behind her, hands on her shoulders and whispering in her ear the belief behind many of their actions. But with the first cut on the first dancer, Kathleen shivered and dropped her eyes.
Feeling her woman stiffen, Anpo looked down. “Ketlin?”
The blonde head shook. “It is nothing, winuhcala
. I will speak of it later.”
Concerned, Anpo could only nod in agreement. “Ohan
, winuhcala.” And then a cheer from the gathered people gained her attention and her dark eyes returned to the dancing field.
Later that evening, as stars filled the night sky and the regular dancing continued on with the younger people at the council fire, the small family settled at their own. Teca was curled up on a robe beside the warrior, sleeping soundly. Smoking her pipe, Anpo watched her winuhca
sew a pair of small moccasins for their son.
“Why did you not watch the Sun Dance, Ketlin?” she finally asked.
Ah, here it comes. Kathleen braced herself, not looking at the dark woman before her. “I.... I do not think it is... needed. To hurt yourself for the spirits.”
Dark brows rose in surprise. “Not needed?”
The blonde head shook and she kept her eyes focused on the small pieces of leather before her. “Ohan, Anpo. Not needed.”
Frowning, Anpo puffed on her pipe in thought. Not needed. “If the spirits give me a gift, a favor, how else would I repay them?”
“I do not know, winuhcala.”
There was further silence as the warrior digested this strange idea and her woman fervently wished the discussion had never come up. The baby, sensing the tension from his ina
in his sleep, fussed a bit on the edge of wakefulness. He calmed after Anpo rubbed his belly with her fingers and soon he was slumbering once again.
“What do your people believe in, Ketlin? Do they believe in wakan tanka
?”
Kathleen chewed her upper lip. Well, now ye’ve gone and put yer foot in it, lass! Nothin’ like a bit of religious differences to complicate things! “My people believe in God, Anpo. He is very powerful and mysterious, like your wakan tanka. He knows everything and is in everything.”
“It is a man?” The dark woman shook her head at that. “How can your God be a man? How can he know everything and be everything if he is only of one sex?”
“I do not know, winuhcala
. But that is what my people believe in.” The blonde thought a moment. “He is not a man. He just... is.” A Bible verse came into her head. “He is the beginning and the end. He is in all things.”
Anpo tapped the bowl of her spent pipe into the fire. This is very confusing. “Is this God in me, then?”
“He is in all things, Anpo. Even you.”
Leaning forward and peering intently at her woman, the warrior asked, “Then why has he not spoken to me? Why has he never given me a vision?”
The blonde shrugged, discomfited with the conversation. “I do not know, winuhcala. He does not talk to everyone. He only speaks to those special wicasa who are shamans.”
Anpo sat back. “He only speaks to shamans? To special wicasa
? Not winyan?”
“There have been women He has spoken to. There was a woman once who led many warriors in a war party. Her name was Joan of Arc and it is said that she heard His voice.”
Always interested in other women warriors, Anpo leaned forward. “Really?” The warrior nodded in grudging respect. “She must have been very sacred. Did she win the war?”
“Ohan
, she did.”
“Your people must have been very proud of her.”
A miserable look crossed Kathleen’s face. “Hiya, Anpo. The people killed her a year later.”
“But... but, why? She was a shamaness and a warrior! The spirits - your God - had shown her much honor, helped her win the war!”
“Because most did not believe she heard God’s voice.”
Silence reigned around the fire once again as the warrior considered this. Kathleen diligently focused on the small moccasins, refusing to look at her winuhca.
Anpo’s low voice drifted across the fire. “Do your people ask favors of your God?”
“Ohan, we do.” Dark blue eyes peered up, caught by dark brown.
“And are thes
e favors granted?”
Kathleen shrugged slightly with one shoulder. “Sometimes. Only if He deems it so.”
The dark brow furrowed. “Then how do you repay your God for his help?”
How do we? the blonde thought. Her eyes drifted to the fire, trying to find an answer in the flames. Finally, she said, “I do not know, winuhcala
. We serve Him and pray to Him and be good for Him.”
Anpo nodded slowly. “When we ask the spirits for their aid, they give it to us. But, that is because we are willing to give back anything we can for their help. For very special reasons, a few do the Sun Dance to show their thanks to wakan tanka
.” There was a pause as the warrior mused, staring into the fire. “Perhaps your God does not answer your prayers because you do not show him thanks.”
Sighing, Kathleen responded, “Perhaps, Anpo. I do not know. It is not my place.”
“I love you, winuhcala. But I do not like your God.”
A ghost of a smile crossed the blonde’s lips. “I love you, also, winuhcala. Let us not talk of God or spirits any more.”
The warrior nodded. “No more talk of God or spirits.”
Very close by, the sound of flute music could be heard and Kathleen turned towards it. “That is not at the council fire. Who could it be?”
Thankful for the change of topic, Anpo smiled. “That is Nupa. He is wooing my cuwe.”
“He is?” By serenading her! How sweet!
“Ohan. She will go to him and they will talk long into the night together.” A smirk crossed the dark face. “Among other things.”
A blush tinted Kathleen’s fair skin. “And what ‘other things’ would there be, warrior?” she asked, setting the leather and rawhide to one side.
Reaching out a hand, Anpo pulled the woman and guided her to sit close. Wrapping long arms around her, she whispered, “Things like this.” And their lips met in a long kiss, their hearts reaching for one another in the evening light.
“Hau
, Anpo.”
The warrior looked up from the arrow she was painting to see the shaman moving closer. Setting the weapon down, she rose with a smile and waved him closer. “Han
Tiopa Ki Lakota Page 19