"What of the grizzly?" Red Feather asked, nodding toward the bear.
Wind Dancer disclosed the exciting story to the amazed man, who kept glancing at the massive creature with lethal claws.
"Dewdrops is a worthy companion for you on the visionquest. Our people will chant her large coup for saving your life."
"As they will chant yours and Zitkala's for slaying our enemies before they could scout our camp. We will skin the bear and take its meat home to those in need. I will summon Dewdrops to see her friend. Call Zitkala to join us. I have not met her," he reminded Red Feather, "and wish to do so."
"You will like and respect her, mitakola, as I do."
Wind Dancer wondered if there was a special gleam in his friend's eyes when Red Feather looked at the Brule woman and an unfamiliar tone in his voice when he spoke of her. Later, he would ask about that. "Why is she called, `Bird,' and was not given a color or more name?"
"Her mother told her she received that name in a dream during the birth process; Zitkala told me this in our camp when we talked much. She slept in your tepee, for I gave her permission. She wears Dewdrops's dress, for her garments-those of a man-were soaked by the storm before we returned to camp. I hope that does not displease you."
"It does not, for she is our ally and friend and helped save our people."
"That is true, mitakola. She is-"
"Zitkala!" Chumani shouted from the cave's mouth as she was leaving it. Her heart leapt with joy to see Zitkala again so soon, but her mind quickly filled with curiosity and concern about her friend's presence there.
Zitkala joined Chumani at the foot of the incline and they embraced.
"Is there trouble in our camp?" Chumani asked immediately, then realized Zitkala had lacked the time to go home and return. She also grasped that Zitkala was wearing her garment and hairpiece, was clad as a female. She looked at her husband and his best friend as the men joined them. "Why do you two come here?" she asked.
Red Feather repeated the news he had just shared with Wind Dancer, causing Chumani's gaze to enlarge with amazement. "They all walk the Ghost Trail, so they can not return to their camp to reveal our secrets. We fought well together; is that not true, Zitkala?"
"It is true, for Wiyaka Lute is a warrior of great skill and courage."
Chumani was astonished to see her friend's gaze lower for a short time and her cheeks glow with warmth. Zitkala was not normally a person of shyness; and ordinarily she would have kept on her male garments even if drenched or soiled. Chumani also perceived Red Feath er's elated expression and tone of voice, which implied great interest in her best friend.
"In our camp, few men are better hunters or warriors than Zitkala," Chumani remarked. "It is good she was placed in the path of our enemies. I have not seen Wiyaka Lute in battle, but Zitkala always speaks the truth and knows when one has great prowess. I am glad you fought beside her."
"It was almost night when we finished our battle; the storm was upon us; and no moon rode in the sky," Red Feather explained. "Zitkala stayed in your tepee until morning and we came to be sure you were alive and unharmed."
Chumani smiled at Red Feather. "We are blessed to have two good friends who love and protect us," she said. "Is that not so, mihigna?"
"That is so, mitawin. After we return to our camp, Zitkala, will you stay with us until the next sun rises so our people can honor you?"
Zitkala was delighted she could remain near Red Feather for another day so she could study his strange effect upon her. "I thank you, Waci Tate, but I must not intrude on a newly joined couple."
"I would ask you to stay in my parents' tepee," Red Feather injected, "but you are a woman and not of our family circle. It is not our custom."
"She will sleep in our tepee; it is only for one night when many loom before us for privacy. Is that not true, mitawin?" Although he hated to sacrifice even one night with Chumani, he knew how much she would enjoy a visit with her friend, and Zitkala deserved to be honored.
"It is true, mihigna, "she concurred, pleased by his words.
"It will be so. We will prepare the grizzly while you speak alone."
"Waci Tate told me how you battled the bear and slew him," Red Feather said. "It took great courage to challenge a forest warrior."
"I fought him, but he was slain by Wakinyan at the Great Spirit's command. The Thunderbird Spirit sent a lightning arrow into his heart before he could slay me."
"Wakantanka rescued you to ride on the visionquest with my friend after you saved his life. It is a good sign, Dewdrops, big medicine."
Chumani smiled and thanked Red Feather before she and Zitkala went to sit on a flat-topped boulder, out of the men's hearing range. She coaxed her friend to tell her the details of the perilous adventure with Red Feather. Chumani listened and observed closely as Zitkala gave a detailed report of their tracking episode and ensuing clash. She noticed how her best friend kept stealing sideways glances at the man in her colorful story, how her gaze and cheeks would glow for a while, and how she almost stumbled over her words during those brief distractions.
"He is a great warrior, Dewdrops, and his courage and skills are as large as the sacred mountain. I ate with his family and we talked until it was late. I slept in your tepee and I borrowed your garment, for mine was soaked from the rain. I could not return home after our battle and he would not allow me to camp in the forest alone and during the storm."
Chumani covered her mouth with a hand as she laughed softly. She could not resist jesting in a near whisper, "What do you mean by, `he would not allow' you to do something? I have never known Zitkala to follow the orders of anyone but her parents, chief, council, and the Creator."
"You tease me unfairly, Dewdrops, as I did with you in the forest at our reunion. I cannot put it into words, for I do not grasp it myself, but I am amazed and confused by Red Feather's effect on me. It is strange, unlike me to be ensnared by a man. It is frightening to have such potent feelings. And it is foolish, for he would never desire a manwoman."
"If such is true, Zitkala, why does he look at you with such desire in his gaze and why does his voice grow soft and warm when he speaks to you or about you? I do not believe I am misguided when I say, you tug at his heart and mind."
Zitkala stared at Chumani, afraid to accept those stirring words. "How can that be? I am a hunter-warrior, not a real woman. We are strangers."
"Are those not the same questions I asked you about Wind Dancer? You could not answer them for me, and I cannot answer them for you. Love and desire are great mysteries which perhaps only the Great Spirit and Mother Earth understand. For certain, they are hard to resist or conquer."
"Even if he did desire me, we could not join. My parents have no son or other daughter to be their protector and provider; they need me."
"Your father is young and strong enough to do his own hunting and fighting for many circles of the seasons to come. When that is no longer true, your parents can move into your tepee in our camp. Do you not see, Zitkala, the Great Spirit has given you acceptance by and a place of honor with the Red Shields? He has opened the tepee flap for you to enter our band. Perhaps He crossed your path with Red Feather's as He crossed mine with Wind Dancer's. Would it not be wonderful to live side by side again? To do chores together? To speak and visit on every sun?"
"We ride this new trail too fast, Dewdrops. We have me joined to Red Feather and our future suns planned before he even moves toward me."
"If you do not slyly reveal your feelings to him, he may be too wary to approach you; and another female could ensnare him while you hang back," Chumani warned.
"What if he does not want me as a woman, only as a friend?"
"What if he does want you and you elude him out of fear of rejection? Look upon it as a challenge: if you do not risk losing your heart, there is no chance of winning such a struggle and prize. That is what I did on the past moon and found glorious victory. You must like, respect, trust, and desire Red Feather before love fills you
r heart for him. I did not have such feelings for Dull Star, but they flow as a powerful river within me for Wind Dancer. That is why we came here, to bond with each other, and we did so. I have never known such great love and desire for a man. Wastemna saw us in the forest and told Wind Dancer I had betrayed him with another man; we quarreled, and I left camp to calm myself and think. He realized I spoke the truth and came after me to settle our problems, and we did so."
"After we rode from the Red Shield camp, Red Feather told me you two had come here to be alone," Zitkala said. "When I reached their camp on the last sun, Wastemna was with Red Feather. She told him I was the man who had met with Dewdrops in the forest and was your secret lover. She said I should be captured so we could be punished together. Though I was wearing men's garments and my hair was braided, he knew I was a female. He scolded her and sent her to her tepee for causing trouble. Perhaps that is another reason why he wanted us to find you this sun, to show me to your husband to prove Wastemna lied or was mistaken and you spoke the truth."
"He is a good friend to us, Zitkala, and would be a good husband for you. I have seen young women in our camp approach him with the hope of winning him, but he has never looked at or behaved with them as he does with you. If you feel love and desire growing for him, do not evade his chase. Be cunning and encourage his pursuit."
"I will think upon your words, my friend, for to obey them carries a great risk and much sacrifice. I must make sure he is worth them."
"I believe he is, Zitkala, and I would not speak falsely to you, for I love you and want you to be happy. I would not send you down a wrong trail. You would like living in the Red Shield camp; they are good people. And, it would put you nearby to help us with the sacred quest," Chumani tempted.
"You are clever and greedy, my friend, for you know my heart well. You know my strengths and weaknesses and my secrets."
"As you know mine, Zitkala."
As Wind Dancer and Red Feather skinned the grizzly and prepared the meat for transport on a makeshift travois, they talked of many of the same things which engrossed the two women. It was obvious to Wind Dancer that his best friend was enchanted by Chumani's best friend, which pleased him.
As he stole a glance at the object of his desire, Red Feather warmed and murmured, "She is a special woman, is she not?"
Wind Dancer grinned and said, "Yes, my wife is that and more."
"Dewdrops is also special, but I speak of Zitkala. The tepee and family of her mate would be safe when he was out of camp on raids and hunts. Her skills and courage are large and she could do all things for a man. She is not beautiful, but she is good to look upon and tempts a hunger in me. Is it foolish to desire a female of another tribe, a near stranger?"
Wind Dancer chuckled. "You ask that of a man who did the same thing? When my eyes first touched upon Dewdrops, I knew I must have her. She entered my heart as swiftly and powerfully as an arrow, but she did not slay me; she returned me to life with her magic. Our bond is strong and complete, my friend, as it was meant to be. Perhaps it is the same between you and Zitkala."
"What if she does not feel the way I do?"
"That same worry and fear filled me until the last moon. There is but one way to learn the truth, and that is to seek it no matter where it lies."
"What if that `truth' is bad and cuts into my heart and spirit? She lives and rides as a hunter-warrior. Perhaps she does not wish to mate."
"Perhaps that was true until she met you, my friend, but no longer. Did you not see how she looks at you? Hear how she speaks to you? How she steals glances in your direction?"
"Do not tease me, mitakola, for this matter is grave to me."
"I do not tease or misguide you; we are best friends, like brothers. After we return to camp, I will find a place and time to speak privately with Dewdrops. I will learn if Zitkala is open to your interest in her."
"Thank you, my friend."
"Do not move slow like the turtle, my friend, for soon she must leave our camp and we must begin the sacred quest. Dewdrops told me clever ways to distract the Crow from our camp, tricks we must use to keep them busy in this season. We will speak of them in the meeting lodge this sun."
The two men loaded the travois which was attached to Chumani's horse, as she would ride with her husband.
As their work was being completed, Wind Dancer realized how eager he was to reach home because he had another important task to perform, no matter how much trouble it caused.
The Red Shields were awed and elated by the detailed account of how Chumani battled a grizzly while Wind Dancer was blinded by dirt in his eyes and how Wakinyan struck down that threat with a lightning bolt. As they murmured about how blessed and honored the two visionquest companions were, many gathered around them to look at or touch the long and sharp claws of the slain creature. Afterward the couple presented them to his mother, along with the bear skin, as gifts of love. Yet, only Wind Dancer, Chumani, Hanmani, Winona, Zitkala, and Red Feather knew the motive behind the gesture: gratitude for her encouraging words to her son before his departure. The meat was passed out to women whose husbands had died from cholera, as some had not yet taken another mate. People praised Chumani for saving the life of their future chief and the Great Spirit's path to glorious victory. The Story Catchers said they would paint that story on the tribal history hide so all would remember her great deed.
Zitkala and Red Feather also were praised and honored with the gifts of coup feathers for their brave and daring deed against the enemy scouting party. That stirring tale was repeated again, as most had been confined in their tepees last night when the two warriors returned.
The men were told to get their work finished quickly so they could meet with the council before dusk, where Chumani's ideas for provoking trouble between the Crow and Whites would be revealed and discussed.
While Chumani and Zitkala gathered wood and fetched water before preparing the next meal, Wind Dancer sought out Wastemna to speak with her, wanting to get the offensive task behind him. Near her tepee, he pulled her aside and warned, "Do not speak bad words about Dewdrops again or I will summon the other women to prove you speak the truth or speak falsely about her defiance and lack of skills. Say nothing of what you told me about her meeting in the forest with a man, for it was a female, her friend. Do not attempt to cause more trouble, Wastemna, for it will not be good for you."
Wind Dancer took his wife for a lengthy walk in the cool and lovely forest following the council meeting, which she was allowed to attend and speak in as the vision-woman. "Did it make you happy when Grandfather said the Great Spirit put those clever thoughts inside your head?" he asked and watched Chumani smile and nod, her gaze radiant with pride and joy. "Grandfather says the Creator speaks to us in ways other than in dreams and visions, and He spoke to you in whispers only you could hear. When the Crow garments are ready for us to use, we will begin our victory quest."
She leaned against a tree. "I did not tell Zitkala of our plan, for I must speak with her alone about it. She must learn she will face great peril if she agrees with it, and that she must remain in our camp to ride with us."
"It is a cunning trick on those at the trading post, but I fear for your safety. I would rather lose my heart than lose the one who fills it with joy „
Chumani's body warmed as her husband gazed into her eyes and caressed her cheek, and she heard the concern in his voice. "I will be fine, mihigna, for the Great Spirit will guide and protect me in our enemy's presence. He knew this sun would rise and that is why He prepared me with learning the Crow and White tongues. I will fool them and not be in danger."
"I hope Zitkala will stay and go with you. Red Feather says she is a great warrior, and two together will ease my fears." Wind Dancer winced inside as that dreaded number two leapt into his head and from his mouth. To distract himself from his apprehension, he asked, "Do you think Zitkala would stand under the Talking-Blanket with Red Feather, and ride double-back with him, and listen when he plays the fl
ute?"
Chumani nodded. "But he must not move too swiftly, for such feelings in her heart confuse and frighten her. She has never been close to a man and did not expect to meet one who wished to do such things for her. Is Red Feather's interest good and large?"
"As good and large as mine were for you. I will tell Red Feather he can begin his journey toward her, but to ride slow and easy."
Chumani laughed and jested, "You did not ride slow and easy; you galloped into my camp and laid claim to me. I was forced to join to you."
"It was not a bad or hard command to honor and follow, was it?"
"At first, yes; but now it is different; it is good and easy."
"As good as your mouth tastes? As easy as it is to desire you?"
As he asked his first question, he nibbled upon her lips. As he asked his second one, his mouth drifted across her cheek and brushed over her ear. After many kisses, with each waxing deeper and swifter, one of his hands found and fondled a breast through her garment and the other slipped beneath it to stroke her inner thigh. Wind Dancer wondered if he should continue to tantalize her, to seek a few moments of blissful rapture in her arms. It was late evening and most of his people were busy with chores and families, so no one should disturb them if they hurried, though he craved a leisurely encounter.
Chumani was having those same daring thoughts and intoxicating desires. She loved him and wanted him urgently, so she cast restraint to the wind and let her emotions dance away with him to seek pleasure and release. As he pressed her to the large pine tree, she did not mind and hardly noticed the rough bark which nipped at her back and crackled against her hair as she looked upward so his lips could journey down her neck. As she did so, she sighted Cetan perched on a limb above them and knew the hawk would sound a shrill warning if an intruder approached. She relaxed as much as those blissful sensations would allow and surrendered fully to his possession.
Lakota Winds (Zebra Historical Romance) Page 15