“Well, I did not bring her into our lands. She washed up on the river bank. Surely, you understand that I could not leave her there. That would have been wrong.”
“She is a pale face!” one of the elders thundered.
“But first, she is a human,” Running Wolf replied quietly. “She is a human and my duty to her as a fellow human was to save her and the child she is carrying. She is not in our lands but rather, she rests at the outskirts. She also is not causing any problem to us. So what then is the problem?”
“The problem is that you brought a pale face onto our territory, Running Wolf. You might be the head warrior of the village but that gives you no right to do this, no right whatsoever!”
“I understand your anger, Elder Kahona, but I do hope you understand, the young woman was drenched, hurt and caught in the cold. I certainly could not push her back into the river. She poses no threat to the village so I see no wrong in the action I carried out. I hope you will come to understand as well,”Running Wolf bowed his head in respect.
The fuming elder opened his mouth to speak again when the Chief raised his hand, signifying that he wanted order, “That is enough. Running Wolf, you have never acted without reason and you have always put the welfare of our people at the forefront. Just as always, I will trust you this time. This pale face can be under your protection for however long as you see fit. However, she should have no contact with our people.”
“Thank you, Chief.”
“Now, when will you be going on your vision quest?” The Chief eyed him.
“Soon, my Chief. I will go on my vision quest soon. You have no worries there. I shall leave on my vision quest as soon as I know it is the right time to go.”
“And the right time to leave could be in two years, right?” Elder Kahona hissed. He turned to the Chief, “You have provided him the option of keeping that pale face in the village forever. I do not like that.”
“The decision is not yours to make, Kahona,” the Chief said calmly. “I trust Running Wolf as he has never failed us. If he says this woman is not dangerous, why don’t we take his word for it? After all, he has never failed us before.”
“There can be a first time for everything. Running Wolf does not know everything.”
“I understand that, and it is for that reason this pale face is not allowed into the village and is restricted to just the outskirts. Now, if we are all in agreement, we can pull this to meeting to a close.”
Running Wolf bowed in greeting and headed out of the camp. He ran a hand through his hair and headed up the path that led out of the village.
“Running Wolf!” a voice called to him.
Running Wolf sighed as he turned around. He alreadyknew who the caller was and frankly, he did not want to stay behind to talk. He had more important things to do. A woman in a long deerskin dress approached him just then. She was Atola, the daughter of Elder Kahona who had been at Running Wolf’s throat all through the meeting.
“I am glad to see you here. You don’t come into the village anymore. We barely see you ever since you moved out.” she said with a sly smile.
“I am in a hurry right now. So, if you could go straight to the point,” Running Wolf said quickly.
“Oh,” she was visibly taken aback. She cleared her throat and said, “I heard that there is a pale face living in your supply shack. Is that true? Who is she to you?”
“Someone I saved and offered help when she needed it. Is there anything else you would like to know? Although I am sure your father will fill you in on all the happens of the meeting.”
Atola’s mouth fell open and she gaped. It was only for a second, then, she said, “You certainly are in a bad mood than usual. What? The meeting did not go the way you wanted. Well, you cannot blame the elders for being against your dangerous act, Running Wolf. I mean, you brought a pale face into our lands. You surely did not think that we would be happy, did you?”
Running Wolf shook his head as he turned around. He continued up the path he had been headed on, ignoring her calls. Running Wolf sighed as he roamed through the fields. His vision quest, he had to go. He knew that. Still, he could not bring himself to leave her behind. She was all alone.
Who would help her with the wood? The fruits? Who would protect her? Sure, he was always helping her from the shadows but he did not mind that. She had someone on her sideand that was what mattered to him. She was a pale face, and she was pregnant. That was a fact he could not ignore no matter how hard he tried, and he really had tried.
Out of routine, Running Wolf found himself staring at the shack. She was seated by the stream which ran through the front of the shack. Every now and then, he saw her seated there, just staring. He could only wonder the heavy thoughts that were running through her head. How could he possibly leave her behind? She did not even speak! How could she ever call for help? Running Wolf shook his head. He had to be here for her for whenever she needed him, even if she did not ask.
She turned in his direction just then and Running Wolf quickly jumped out of view. He peeked and saw that she was still staring in his direction. Her gaze was like fire, like always, those eyes felt as if they were looking straight into his soul. Swallowing hard, Running Wolf approached her. He could not understand why he was feeling nervous.
He was Running Wolf, head warrior of the Northern Choctaw Tribe. He had no reason to feel nervous. He stopped in front of her. She tilted her head as she looked up at him. Her red curls laid over her shoulder and her eyelids fluttered as she stared closely at him.
“Uh… I’m coming from a meeting with the Chief and the elders of the village,” Running Wolf blurted out. He figured he needed to have a reason for being at her house. He certainly could not say it was because he wanted to check on her. After all, he had said he would keep his distance. Him watching her from afar was not keeping his distance.
She looked at him anxiously, waiting for what more he had to say and probably the meeting’s conclusion.
“Oh, so after lots of talk, it was settled that you can stay here for the meantime, just like I told you. But, on no account should you go into the main village. Do you understand? Inother words, you can stay for the time being and of course, you will leave when I say it is time, and like I told you when you first started staying here, after your childbirth, you will have to leave.”
She nodded and he watched her force a smile. She ran a hand through her large curls. Her second hand touched her stomach and she smiled affectionately. Running Wolf felt like the life was knocked out of him seeing her smile. It was the first real smile he had seen from her and if he thought she was beautiful before, she was absolutely stunning now.
