Tiopa Ki Lakota (18 page)

Kathleen finished off her meal.
I suppose 'tis just as well Anpo got the breakfast. I don't know where anything is here....
The waterskin was light as she drank from it.
Ye still need ta get started, lass. The sooner ye fit in, the sooner ye'll feel better.
And she knew that keeping Anpo and her family pleased would mean she'd be able to stay.

When her woman rose, Anpo looked up in curiosity.
What is she going to do?
The blonde waved the waterskin at her and spoke in her musical language. Dark eyes furrowed and the warrior shook her head. Kathleen spoke again, this time gesturing in the direction of the river. "You will go get water?"

Again the woman spoke. "If yer sayin' I'll get some more water, then yes," Kathleen answered, slightly amused. "I swear, I've
got
ta learn yer language, lass."

Anpo considered the woman's demeanor and decided she was right. She did a quick mental scan of the area, deciding it would be safe for Kathleen to go to the river without harm.
I do not know how much she knows, how well she can take care of herself.
With a nod of permission, she waved the blonde towards the direction of the river.

Smiling and feeling strangely bold and comfortable, Kathleen paused only long enough to caress her warrior's shoulder before moving away from the fire. Her heart was light, lighter than it had been in some time, as she walked.
Calm down, lass! These folks'll never understand if ye start skippin'!
The thought brought a giggle to her lips.

The blonde reached the embankment and scrambled down it, stopping at the area she and the other women had bathed in the day before. She took a few moments to splash her arms and face, freshening up before moving a bit further upstream and filling the waterskin. The water was crisp and cool on her skin.

Nearby, a few others had the same idea. Most of them were older children who had decided to have a morning swim.
Ah, not a chance of that! The water's a mite too chilly, and that's a fact!
Kathleen thought with a shake of her head. Once the skin was full, the blonde inhaled deeply and sat on a large rock to watch the children cavorting around.

Alone, Kathleen was able to think on her new situation. She felt so much lighter today than yesterday. It was strange and it worried her mind, though not necessarily in a bad way.
P'rhaps 'tis because of Anpo
, she considered.
She's a woman and not likely ta want me in that way. There's no....
and here she frowned as she tried to come up with the right word.
There's no pressure. No need fer me ta submit like there was with the other men and Adam.

It also helps that Hca and Gi are so kind.
Her scowl faded as her mouth quirked a bit.
Hca is so nice and gentle! I think she's about my age, too.
Kathleen pursed her lips in thought.
Maybe that's why I like her so. She's of an age with me.

Some of the women had begun drifting towards the river and the blonde caught sight of the pair she'd been living with prior to Anpo. The boy and girl had accompanied them and splashed joyfully in the water while their mother and grandmother cleaned up and filled waterskins. Very recent memories of her time with them invaded her pleasant thoughts. Feelings of depression, fear and uncertainty whisked about her mind and she stomped them down with a purpose.
Now! None o' that, lass! Yer in a better place this mornin'. Make the best of it!

With that, Kathleen set her jaw with determination and rose to her feet. "Well, lass. Time to get a move on." And she clambered back up the embankment and headed for the tent that held Anpo and her future.

The others of the household had awakened by the time of her arrival. The blonde received a welcome smile from her new friend, Hca Wanahca, which she returned brightly, handing the waterskin to her.

"Thank you, Ketlin," the dark woman said. She gestured her new stepan closer. "Come. You and I will help
ina

prepare the morning meal for
ate
."

Soon, Kathleen found herself seated near her warrior, a bowl in her lap. She was mixing together dried meat, berries and a measure of animal fat.
wansi

, she thought to herself.
This is called wansi.
Hca was mixing a dough with cornmeal and her mother, Gi, was using a hot rock to cook it on.

There was an older man at the fire. Anpo's father. He was tall, like his daughter, and carried himself with pride. He wore only a breechclout and moccasins, though there was a choker of what appeared to be animal teeth around his neck. There were old scars on his shoulders and chest, and Kathleen wondered idly where he'd received them. They look too well placed to be simple injuries. His voice was deep as he spoke with Anpo, studiously ignoring the white woman at his fire.

"You have done well for yourself,
cunksi

," Wanbli Zi said. "When you were born, Inyan had a vision of you. You have gone farther than his vision. I am very proud."

Anpo's skin darkened but she kept her father's gaze. "Thank you,
ate
. It was your patience and teaching that aided me."

He nodded, accepting her compliment. His woman handed him a piece of frybread, still hot from the rock. With a practiced hand, he scooped some leftover roasted meat into it and rolled it up. "Now that you have a woman, what will you do?"

"I do not know. I have no dowry of my own as I had not planned to be joined." The young warrior accepted some frybread from her
ina
, using some of the berries that Kathleen was stirring into the
wansi
mixture. She munched thoughtfully. "Ketlin will have to begin working on a
ti

ikceya

from the skins I bring her. She will be a buried woman until her lodge is complete."

Waniyetu Gi spoke up. "There is no need,
cunksi
." There was a secretive smile that she shared with her elder daughter. "Your
cuwe
and I have been working on your dowry from the skins you have brought me."

Anpo stared at her mother blankly, her food half chewed.

"
Mitankala

!" her sister spoke up with a laugh. "You cannot live in
ina's
lodge forever!"

Blushing, the younger daughter chewed and swallowed her mouthful. "I.... I did not think to, but..." and she shrugged with a vague sense of confusion.

Gi continued on despite the interruption from her children. "I will give your dowry to Ketlin since she is to be your woman. It will be
her ti ikceya
." She finished another piece of bread which she handed to her man. "Her skins from the last hunt will finish it. She will have her own lodge by the time we reach summer camp." The older woman looked up from her task to smile at her youngest daughter. "Close your mouth,
cunksi

, before I think to throw your food into it."

The young warrior's mouth snapped shut and she sputtered in happiness and surprise. "
Thank
you,
ina
!
Thank
you,
cuwekala

!"

A piece of frybread was handed to her. "You are welcome,
cunksi
. Now eat with no worries."

Wanbli Zi, who had been silent through the conversation, finally spoke up. "You will have to teach your woman manners,
cunksi

," he hinted, nodding in the white woman's general direction. "Before we reach summer camp."

Puzzled, Anpo turned to see her woman staring rudely at her father as she worked.

Kathleen had finished the mixture and was forming it into long rolls which were then placed onto a nearby skin. Her blue eyes followed the conversation, from one to another as the people around her spoke, trying to puzzle out the sounds by the facial expressions. But they always returned to the man.
Ye know, I can see a bit o' Anpo in him
, she mused as she worked. She heard her name spoken and looked to Gi.
Well, Kath, they're definitely talkin' about ye. Doesn't look too bad, though, and that's a fact.
And then the blonde looked back to the man as he spoke again.

With a suddenness that was frightening, Anpo blocked her view. Two fingers were pointed closely towards her eyes and then cut to the left in a sharp gesture. "
Hiya
! Do
not
look at
ate
, Ketlin!"

The blonde woman's heart seized up and she flinched backwards, raising her arms in a defensive posture. The easy comfort of the morning evaporated as Kathleen flashed back to the vicious beatings of a few weeks earlier.
I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry!

As her woman cowered before her, Anpo's brow furrowed in confusion.
Does she think I will hurt her? Hit her?
A feeling of guilt came over the warrior.
Does Ketlin know that I am destined to hurt her?
Wordlessly, she looked to her mother, a myriad of emotions crossing her tanned face - puzzlement, fear, irritation and the ever-present shame of her future actions.

"Go slowly with Ketlin,
cunksi
," Waniyetu Gi said softly. "She has been hurt so badly."

"She believes I will hurt her," Anpo stated, dropping her gaze. "And my vision says this is true."

"
Hiya
,
cunksi
. I have seen this before in women who have been hurt by their men. Ketlin does not see
you
. She sees the man who hurt her. She is only afraid of his actions being repeated."

The young warrior knelt down by the blonde. Kathleen appeared to be trying to disappear into the ground and wasn't looking at anyone. Anpo reached up to touch her woman's temple but the motion was seen out of the corner of one blue eye and Kathleen tightened up and shrank away further. "But, how do I teach her? She cannot understand my words and I cannot understand hers." Frustration filled Anpo's heart.

Hca, who had been watching with heartfelt eyes, spoke up. "Use our sign language,
mitankala
. She does not understand the words, but the signs make the meanings clearer." Her sister's haunting eyes looked at her and she nodded. "I used signs yesterday and Ketlin was able to understand what she could see."

Anpo's dark eyes returned to her woman.

The pounding of her heart had lessened, but Kathleen still awaited a beating. For what, she didn't know. The blonde just knew that the warrior was displeased with her, something about looking at the man. The tension in her body increased as the blows did not come, and Kathleen began to murmur under her breath. "I'm sorry. I won't do it again. I swear it."
Maybe ye won't get a beatin', lass
, she dared to hope. Over and around her the women spoke. And then Anpo was settling down to sit in front of her, speaking to her. The warm voice was not angry. Instead, it soothed her jangling nerves as it continued.

"Ketlin. Look at me,
winuhca

. You are safe here. I will not hurt you."

Hca stepped forward with slow movements and took the bowl of
wansi
and the skin that Kathleen had been using. She smiled at her
mitan
and returned to the other side of the fire. The rest of Anpo's family quietly discussed their day, ignoring the proceedings so close by.

The young warrior scooted closer and reached out a calming hand. Resting it on a trembling shoulder, Anpo caressed with a smoothing motion. "Look at me,
winuhca
."

Kathleen shivered at the touch. The words spoken to her sounded vaguely familiar and she distracted herself by worrying them, looking for the memory.
Last night, in the tent. When I thought she was a man and wouldn't look at her.
A flash of memory, two fingers pointed at her eyes and then at Anpo's own.
Look at me! Anpo's tellin' me ta look at her!

Dark blue eyes, glassy with unshed tears, flickered to the warrior seated before her. As Kathleen's eyes met Anpo's, the world seemed to drain away, carrying her fears with it.
Will it always be this way?
she mused with a vague sense of wonder.
Her eyes, will they always distract me so?

Anpo smiled at her woman, trying to convey a sense of safety and ease. It seemed to work, as the blonde's face relaxed its fearfulness. The warrior kept one hand on Kathleen's shoulder, not wanting to lose contact. With her other, she used the two fingers pointing into dark blue eyes to accent her language. "Ketlin, look at me," and the fingers pointed at her own eyes.

"Look at me," Kathleen repeated, her brow furrowing in concentration. Her shivering eased as the warrior's smile brightened.

"
Ohan

, Ketlin! Look at me. It is good to look at me." Using the same finger to eye motion, Anpo pointed at her sister. "Look at Hca. It is good. She is your
stepan

and a woman."

Again, the blonde repeated the words.
Lookin' at Hca is alright, then. Why?
She listened and watched intently as her warrior used the same speech and sign to point at the older woman.
And Gi is safe too.

Anpo's face became serious and she shook her head. "Do not look at Wanbli, Ketlin," she said, using the same motion of her hand pointed at her father. "He is your
tunkasi

. You must not speak to him or look at him."

Kathleen frowned as she puzzled this bit of information out.
I am not ta look at... Wanbli? His name is Wanbli and I'm not ta look at him.
Her dark blue eyes flickered to the two other women at the fire, seeing the man out of the corner of her eye as he ate.
But why? Because he's a man? That doesn't sound right. I looked at the other man all the time and the women didn't get mad....
The blonde brought her attention back to the woman in front of her. "I don't understand
why
I'm not ta look at Wanbli, but I won't. I swear it."