Spirit of the Lake

by Paty Jager

  She raised the hem of her dress, displaying the slight bulge of her belly. Crazy One chanted to the Creator for good health to the child and mother, tying the wide strip around Dove’s bulge.

  From now on the band of buckskin would be another reminder of the life growing inside her.

  She dropped her skirt, and a male voice called out to enter.

  Dove stared at Crazy One.

  The older woman smiled and drew the blanket covering back.

  One Who Flies, an elder on the council, stepped into their dwelling. His watery gaze found her standing by the fire.

  “Your family has held much respect for many seasons.”

  She nodded, unsure why he spoke to her.

  “Because of this respect your actions have been brushed aside—”

  “You mean I have been brushed aside.” Unheard of to talk disrespectfully to an elder and one of his stature, she still could not hold back the flaring anger.

  The pity in his fading eyes dropped her heart to her toes.

  “Because of this respect for your family, you are to come with me to our chief’s dwelling.” He nodded to Crazy One and disappeared through the opening.

  She peered at Crazy One. “They cannot know I had anything to do with the drawing.” What would they say when she told them of Wewukiye and stealing the drawing from Evil Eyes? She could not lie. To do so would only have them believe she did not tell the truth about Evil Eyes and the attack.

  “Do you tell the truth?” Crazy One nodded. Her graying braids slid up and down the front of her beaded blanket dress.

  “I will. But I fear it will not help their feelings toward me.”

  Dove wished with all her heart, Wewukiye could stand next to her as she told the leaders how the drawing arrived in their camp.

  She exited the security of Crazy One’s cozy dwelling and walked, her head held high, across the village to Chief Joseph’s lodge. How did they come to know she brought the drawing?

  Untruths did not slide from her tongue like honey. She would tell the truth and suffer the consequences. One Who Flies entered the Chief’s lodge. She stopped, swallowed the lump of fear in her throat, closed her eyes, and asked the Creator to help her say the right thing.

  Pú-timt wax lepít

  (12)

  Wewukiye moved through the forest in elk form sensing Dove’s unease. Crazy One also entered his thoughts. Something had happened.

  He raised his muzzle to the weakening sun. Soon the snow would fall and the Lake Nimiipuu would move to their encampment near the warm river. He bugled to Sa-qan.

  His hooves stomped the ground, matching his restless body and thoughts. Dove needed him. The sensations of fear and apprehension swirled in his belly, leaving him helpless.

  Air ruffled the hair on his back and the creak of a branch drew his attention.

  “What puts distress in your voice, brother?” Sa-qan leaned down from her perch, her beady yellow gaze locking onto his.

  “I believe Dove is in trouble. I wish to help her. It would mean revealing my man form to the Lake Nimiipuu.”

  Sa-qan drew back as though he struck her. “You know the Creator disapproves of such notions.”

  “Dove and Crazy One call to me. There is trouble brewing. I am the only one who can help Dove.”

  “Why must it be you who helps this woman?” She leaned down closer, her eyes searching.

  “I fear it has to do with the day you helped us leave the so-yá-po’s dwelling.”

  She straightened, walked the limb to the tree trunk and back. Her shiny white head shook, and her feathers ruffed up, then settled. “What, dear brother, gives you reason to believe the woman’s trouble is due to the visit to the so-yá-po’s lodge?”

  Wewukiye dug the toe of his hoof into the dirt avoiding his sister’s eyes. “We went there for proof against the so-yá-po.”

  “And?”

  “We took a drawing of the Lake Nimiipuu country the so-yá-po had drawn.” He peered into her eyes. She had to understand.

  Sa-qan had helped them escape the White man’s lodge, but she did not know he took one of the man’s possessions with him.

  “You what?” She pointed a wing at him. “You are a spirit. You help keep peace and tranquility between the Nimiipuu, the land, and the animals. You do not start bloodshed.” She paced the length of the limb again. “You will not bring us to more disfavor with the Creator. You will not be like our father.”

  Wewukiye’s back hair bristled. “I am not our father! I have done nothing cowardly or deceitful. It is the so-yá-po. The Lake Nimiipuu must learn of this man’s deceit.”

  “You cannot go around stealing from the so-yá-po. He will seek revenge on the Lake Nimiipuu for your actions. You must do everything in your power to avoid a confrontation.” She spread her wings. “I must speak with the Creator on this.” She sprang off the limb and into the air, flying away.

  Dove’s distress filled his thoughts. He set out for the village. He did not know how he would explain his presence, but he must take the wrath from Dove.

  «»«»«»

  Dove sucked in air when Frog exited the lodge. By the surprise in his eyes she knew he had been sent to find her, thinking she had run from the summons. He motioned her forward. She swallowed, but her dry mouth did little to help slide the knot of fear down her throat.

  She entered the dwelling, keeping her eyes downcast so as not to upset them further.

  “Do you know of this drawing?” Chief Joseph asked, his voice weary.

  She raised her gaze enough to see the drawing she and Wewukiye took from Evil Eyes. Her stomach clenched, and she nearly doubled over from the pain of regret. Should her actions start a war with the so-yá-po she doubted they would let her remain among the band.

  “I have seen the drawing.” Her voice cracked. Now was not the time to become weak. She reprimanded herself and dug deep within to find strength and bravery in front of the council.

  Commotion outside the lodge caught the attention of the elders. Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains motioned to the warrior standing near the door, and he ducked out the opening.

  Her heart pounded in her chest and echoed in her ears. The minor delay gave her time to think about her words carefully.

  The flap of the lodge flopped open.

  Her gaze flew to the entrance.

  Her heart stopped.

  Wewukiye stepped through the opening. His golden hair shone like sunlight. His blue eyes scanned the interior before settling on her. He did not smile, but his presence wrapped around her as solid as the mountain.

  The councilmen mumbled and many faces wrinkled in uncertainty.

  “Who are you?” Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains stepped forward.

  “I am Wewukiye of the Upper Nimiipuu.”

  His deep confident words hailed her confidence. She remained with her eyes downcast maintaining their custom. Her back straightened, and her strength ebbed.

  “You are Nimiipuu?” Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains walked closer.

  “Yes. You know the legend of the Nimiipuu with sun colored hair? I am of that band.” Wewukiye wanted to capture Dove’s hand and instill his calm and strength upon her, but to be so forward in front of the council would not help their cause.

  Voices murmured around them.

  “We had another with hair the color of yours many seasons back. He was Crazy One’s father,” an elder said, peering at him through narrowed eyes.

  He heard Dove’s intake of breath. What was she thinking? He had to let thoughts of her go if he wished to speak clearly.

  “Himiin, he was of my band. He married a maiden called Wren.” Wewukiye swept a gaze around the men seated in a circle.

  “Why have you come to our village? It is a long journey from your home.” Chief Joseph stared at him.

  “While visiting with Crazy One, I met Dove.” He offered her what he hoped revealed a not too friendly smile. The relief in her eyes gazing at him for a brief momen
t stunned him. Had she thought he would tell the council of her attempt to end her life?

  “What has meeting this maiden to do with you arriving as we are questioning her?” Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains was known for his quick thinking.

  “Crazy One told me of the drawing you found and that you questioned Dove. I found the drawing and showed it to Dove. I could see it represents the earth that has been Lake Nimiipuu hunting grounds. It was my idea to have someone in the village find it.” He crossed his arms, showing his firm stand. Untruths did not flow from his tongue. He found the drawing. Where and how—would not be so easy.

  “Why did you or Dove not bring it to us?” Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains glanced at Dove then swung his dark accusing gaze back to Wewukiye.

  “I know you have lost faith in Dove.” He felt her gaze upon him. “Had she brought this to you, would you have believed her or treated her as you are now?” He kept his gaze level with Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountain before slowly including Chief Joseph in his question.

  The chief and his two sons sighed.

  “It is not a matter of faith lost.” Chief Joseph tapped his finger into the palm of his other hand. “The White man’s paper we did not sign gives them the right to live on our hunting grounds. If we live in peace with them we do not have to leave the bones of our fathers.” Chief Joseph stared pointedly at Dove. “We cannot risk losing our earth by accusing one White man without proof.”

  Dove raised her head. The glare she shot Chief Joseph made Wewukiye grimace. He was helpless to stop the words he saw forming on her lips.

  “When the child growing inside me appears, you will see Evil Eyes violated me. And then you will have to whip him as you would a Nimiipuu who took a woman without her consent.” Dove pivoted and stalked out of the lodge.

  Wewukiye watched the faces of the men. Their brows furrowed in disbelief, whether from her accusation or her disrespect, he did not know.

  Chief Joseph held up the drawing. “Where did you find this?”

  “In the valley two ridges toward the setting sun.”

  The chief motioned for him to sit. Wewukiye moved closer to the council and sat cross-legged with the council fire between himself and the others in the lodge.

  “What took you there?” Chief Joseph asked.

  “Hunting.” They did not need to know it was not animals.

  Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains cleared his throat. Wewukiye watched the man his equal in size. If only they knew he’d watched each man, young and old, seated at this council come into the world or join this band. He had watched over this band since the time of their father’s fathers and beyond.

  “How is it you have been among our band and this is the first we’ve met?” Disapproval rang in Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains’s voice.

  Wewukiye wanted to groan. He’d feared this question most by showing himself. But Dove did not deserve to take punishment for a deed of his doing.

  “I have camped on the mountain, only visiting with Crazy One who introduced me to Dove.” He glanced at each man seated. “I am on a quest for the Creator.”

  The men murmured and shot glances to the Shaman sitting to the right of Chief Joseph.

  The old man studied him with narrowed eyes before lifting his hands in the air and chanting. The words combined a mixture of the lower and upper dialect. Did the man come from the upper Nimiipuu or simply wished to test him?

  Wewukiye nodded to the man, letting him know he understood. The Shaman stopped chanting and lowered his arms.

  He stared at Wewukiye. “You are to remain with us through the heel-lul.”

  Wewukiye shook his head. “I must remain alone.” To move into the village he would live in the lodge of the unmarried men and older boys. He had to have time to be in elk form. It was how he moved about the area quickly and kept an eye on the inhabitants’ activities.

  The Shaman nodded his head. “You may camp as you wish, but you must travel with us to the Imnaha. It is the wish of the Creator.”

  The Creator’s wish? Did this Shaman really speak with the Creator? Only Sa-qan spoke with the Creator. Whether the Creator or the Shaman granted it, he would be with Dove until the child was born. He did not break promises. His chest squeezed with loneliness thinking of never seeing the woman or her child after her people realized she told the truth.

  “Why did you bring us this drawing?” Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains broke into his thoughts.

  “I recognized the lines to be around the home of your people. From my travels these marks”—he stretched out to grasp the drawing and pointed to two lines crossing—“are dwellings of the White men.”

  “How do you know this?” Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains peered at him.

  “I have traveled this land many times.” He shrugged. “I am a wanderer.”

  “But we have not seen you before.” The chief’s son crossed his arms. All eyes narrowed on him.

  “Because I did not wish to be seen.”

  “Yet you show yourself now, when the maiden Dove is to be questioned.” Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains stared through narrowed suspicious eyes.

  Wewukiye did not flinch or look away from the man’s formidable stare. “I do not wish others to be unjustly punished for my deeds.”

  Chief Joseph cleared his throat drawing everyone’s attention. “You speak of our valley with much knowledge. Was the drawing you found near a so-yá-po’s dwelling?”

  “Yes.” Wewukiye hoped the Creator understood the reason for his half-truths.

  The chief glanced at Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains and nodded to his younger son, Frog. Their silent communication revealed to Wewukiye they knew which White man lived two ridges from the lake.

  “Did you see the so-yá-po who just left here?” Frog asked.

  Wewukiye did not see the man, but he assumed they meant Evil Eyes. Every essence of him wanted to say yes, but he must tell the truth. “I did not see a so-yá-po leave the village.”

  “Have you seen the White man who lives in the dwelling?” Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains joined the conversation.

  “Yes. He has hair the color of dead grass and eyes of different colors.” He stared straight at Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains. “I watched him lift another so-yá-po by the neck, cutting off his air, and drop him on the ground like a stick.” Wewukiye glanced at Chief Joseph, Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains, and Frog, before he scanned the men ringing the fire. “That so-yá-po is full of rage and does not care that he hurts others.”

  Frog grunted and stood. He paced behind his father and brother. Chief Joseph’s shoulders sagged a bit, and Thunder Traveling to Distant Mountains continued to watch him.

  “You may go.” The chief waved his arm toward the opening of the buffalo hide structure.

  Wewukiye stood. He made eye contact with each man and left the lodge.

  He stood in front of the lodge scanning the area in search of Dove or Crazy One. Men, women, and children stared back. His appearance would cause talk, but he would enter their village again to save Dove from being questioned. He was the one who took the drawing from the White man’s dwelling, and he should be the one to suffer the consequences, not her.

  The drawings on a hide-covered dwelling revealed Crazy One’s tipi. The shaman’s comment still stunned him. He knew the man held powers, but did he actually talk to the Creator? He would ask Sa-qan. If she spoke to him again. Once she discovered he had revealed himself to the Lake Nimiipuu he knew he would get a stinging lecture.

  He stopped in front of Crazy One’s dwelling.

  “May I enter?” he asked loud enough for the inhabitants to hear, but not the surrounding curious onlookers.

  The flap moved and Crazy One smiled at him. He ducked into the small tipi. His heart stalled once his gaze lit on Dove’s pale, worried face.

  He knelt beside her, taking her cold hand in his. “All is well. I told them it was I who found
the drawing, and my idea to leave it for them to find.”

  “They believed you?” Her voice shook with disbelief.

  Her cold hand and trembling lips spun regret in his gut like a tidal pool. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her. The slight bulge of her belly pushed against him. “Yes they believed me. They now doubt Evil Eyes.” He spoke into her hair. Her head tucked protectively under his chin. Her curves, a perfect fit in his arms, surpassed all his dreams.

  She pushed against his chest, and he released her. Her cheeks grew darker, her eyes remained downcast. “Do they now believe me?”

  The one thing he wished to give her he could not. Her proof would have to come with the child growing in her.

  “They did not say. But they questioned my knowing you.” He took her hand, encouraged by their recent embrace. “The Shaman said the Creator wishes me to stay with the band until heel-lul.”

  Her eyes widened and shone like stars in the darkest night. A smile slowly tipped her small mouth. “You would travel with us, stay in the village, and be near when I give birth?”

  “No.”

  Pú-timt wax mita-t

  (13)

  His one uttered word punctured Dove’s body like a knife jab. Fear and hurt spun a hard knot in her chest. He’d promised to help her. She stared into his beautiful blue eyes, trying to understand his refusal.

  She tugged on the hand he still held.

  He didn’t let go. His solemn eyes peered deep into her hers. “I will travel with the band and be with you until the coming of the child.” He shook his head. “I cannot live in the lodge of the unmarried men.”

  Was that a glimmer of fear in his eyes? Why would he fear living with the other men?

  “Where will you live? They will not allow you to stay with Crazy One and me.” Unless they married. Her body heated at the thought. Was that his plan? He knew her fear and would not push his attentions. Having him always at her side she would never be fearful or alone.