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The sun was high in the sky and the wind was calm, meekly carrying the scent of sage in the air when Stands Strong and Czanna set out upon the trail back to camp. As the sun shone down its warmth upon them, Czanna couldn't remember a time when she had ever felt as happy as she did now. And, although she and Stands Strong weren't riding the same horse—as they had done on the previous evening—in some ways, it was almost as good as it might have been had she been sitting so closely to him. Because custom, as well as safety, demanded she ride behind Stands Strong, she was presented with the handsome image of Stands Strong as he rode out ahead of her.

Tall in his seat, his shoulders were broad, his back straight, showing off his weapons of many arrows as well as his bow, all of which were stored in what he called the skin of the áámmóniisí, the otter. He had strapped his rifle over one of his shoulders, and upon his other shoulder he carried his shield. She had seen his shield hung from one of the posts in the war lodge the previous evening, but she hadn't thought too much about it, her attention at the time on other matters.

Because his breechcloth was moving up and down as well as swinging with the wind as he rode his pony, she could see the wide band of this clothing upon his waist. On this belt and upon his right side, he had hung a knife, encased in a beautifully beaded sheath. And, on the left side of his belt was a tomahawk with a stone head at one end of it, which looked to be a large stone, chiseled until it had formed a sharp point. The weapon was decorated with beadwork on its handle, as well as feathers attached to it that fluttered with his movements.

His long loose hair fell down his back over his quiver and reached almost to his waist. But, what Czanna was finding so fascinating about him at this present moment was the manner by which his leggings and breechcloth accentuated the upper part of his thighs and the outline of his buttocks, since his leggings and his breechcloth were only hung together by rawhide strings.

Why she was only now noticing these little nuances of his figure and clothing was probably due to his habit of wearing his long shirt almost continually, and since it hung down to about his mid-thigh, it completely covered this area of his body. But, not so now.

His shirt was now placed within a bag she had seen him tie to his pony, thus leaving his upper chest bare, and she was thus presented with a good view of the extent of his handsome figure. It brought back, indeed, many delightful memories of the previous night.

However, she was only allowed a moment to reflect upon their time together because, looking ahead, she could see they were quickly coming in close to Sacagawea Springs. A wave of disappointment swept over her; she wished very much to keep this man near to her for a few more days.

But, it was not to be.

Earlier in the day and before they had set out upon the trail, he had told her about their families joining the main Pikuni tribe who were on their way to trade at Fort Benton. He had said, "The entirety of my tribe is only a half-day's ride from the springs."

"How do you know this?" she had asked.

He had gone on to explain, saying only, "The scout told it to me this morning."

"There was a scout here? This morning?"

He had grinned at her. "Did you not see him on the hill, there to the north of us?" He had pointed toward the place. "He saw us when we came out from the woods, and, gaining my attention, he waved his blanket so I would know the location of our people. He charged me with the duty to relay this message to our families so we all might join them by evening."

Czanna had stared at him with what must have been amazement, as well as a little doubt. "He said all that—and with only a blanket?"

"Of course. Did you not see me answer him by holding up my arm and waving to him?"

"No," she had answered, "I did not."

He had grinned at her. "It will be my pleasure, I think, to instruct you on many of our customs, including…" He had left the rest unsaid as he had leered at her, scanning her form from the top of her head to the very bottom of her feet.

She had giggled, his suggestion unspoken, but understood. She had responded back to him, however, saying, "I wish we could have a little more time with each other before we have to join the others."

"I, too, wish this. But, even though we have only recently become united, I have a duty to report what I have observed to my family. But, do not fear. There will be time enough to again come to know one another intimately…and soon. I will ensure it."

She had smiled then and had nodded. "Do you promise?"

"I do," he had responded at once. "Now, I will tell you before we return to our family what you might expect. Perhaps it will help a little to ease you into this life you might, at first, find strange."

"I would, indeed, like this very much."

He had squeezed her hand then and had kissed her deeply with a kiss that would have to substitute for additional lovemaking, though it made her ache for more.

And then, with a long hug, they had started out upon their journey back to the springs.

****

A warm wind from the west pushed strands of hair into her face. Reaching up, Czanna brushed the dark wisps away and looked forward as, enchanted, she looked on with awe at the brilliant colors set out before her: blue sky with green-dotted brown and gray bluffs, green prairie stretching out in all directions, the blue-green pool of Sacagawea Springs and the vivid and rainbow colors of the painted tepees surrounding it. Combined, it did help to take her attention off so short a honeymoon.

She looked carefully at each lodge, noticing they all had positioned their entrances to face east. Why? Was it a custom? Or perhaps a necessity, since the west winds in this land could be strong? She would have to ask Stands Strong about it.

But, for now, she was captivated by their beauty. Indeed, these lodges appeared to decorate instead of mar the landscape around them, appearing to not only be in harmony with and a part of God's natural environment, but more.

Looking outward at them, she sighed. Over to the east was a lodge painted with circles of orange and blue, a little distance away was another tepee painted with both blue and white triangles at its bottom edge, another displayed the image of a buffalo painted upon the lodge's white hide. A few more of the conical tepees were decorated in colors of red and white stripes, another with blue circles on the bottom edge of the tepee, and one was painted completely in a light blue.

Taking a deep breath, Czanna felt her spirits relax…at least a little. Obviously, she was worried, wondering how her new relatives might greet her after having run away with Stands Strong last evening. Would they condemn her? Or would they welcome her?

And, although she fretted over it, the beauty of their camp gave her to believe these people might be naturally tolerant. She hoped they would be.

Why hadn't she thought to ask Stands Strong about what his people's attitudes might be toward her? But, would he have answered her without more teasing?

Perhaps it was best she hadn't asked.

However, her nervousness returned forthwith when, riding in closer toward the camp, she saw some of the older boys sitting around the camp in front of the lodges. What would they think of her? Had a few of them seen her and Stands Strong within the pony herd last night?

At the thought, even more questions came to mind: did American Indian women experience the same kind of passion she had known the previous night? And, even if they did, would they have acted as she had, utterly surrendering to her husband?

However, when both she and Stands Strong rode slowly back into camp, no one looked at them oddly nor even expectantly. Indeed, no one appeared to notice them at all. Were these people simply being polite, or was it an everyday occurrence for a woman to run away to marry the man she loved?

Well, perhaps it little mattered. What had happened, and was happening even now between herself and Stands Strong, was not an everyday occurrence. It was love, it was passion, it was all this, but more. Both of them had a great deal to learn about the other, especially since he was marrying a woman from outside his tribe and she was allying herself into a society she had no knowledge of. In truth, she was leaving all she had ever known to become this man's woman.

Surely, this was not an everyday occurrence. Still, she had to admit it felt good to not be gawked at or looked at sternly or even excitedly.

Soon she and Stands Strong dismounted, and, taking hold of each pony's buckskin reins, they led their animals back into the pony herd, and, whisking away the blankets from their mounts' backs, which had served as saddles, they left their precious animal friends within the herd, there to enjoy a meal of the abundant prairie grass. But, before they stepped farther into the encampment, Stands Strong reached out to take her hand, then squeezed it.

He said, "I see you are worried. Do not be. All will be well. There are, within my family, three other white women who have experienced what I think might be the cause of your distress. These women, too, had doubts about becoming a part of a tribe they had no knowledge of and could little understand. I will take you to my almost-mother who will help you. She will love you. You also have two aunties within the tribe who have gone through much the same. They, too, will be of great aid to you."

Czanna nodded, then said, "Yes. Good. But, how did you know I was worried?"

He grinned at her and winked. "We are as one now."

"Yes, true. Still…"

"Come," he said. "There is little to fear."

She nodded once more, then took a deep breath to calm herself as they paced farther into camp. But, looking around, she was even more confused because only a few moments ago all had been quiet and peaceful.

But, now the entire camp was in disarray with everyone in motion; the women and young girls were busily engaged in taking the encampment down. Indeed, there was activity everywhere as, one by one, the rawhide skins of the lodges were taken down and folded, then the lodge poles disassembled and set aside, although some of these were being strapped into place by ropes upon a waiting pony. Even the dogs were being loaded with bags full of each family's possessions.

Czanna turned to Stands Strong and asked, "What is happening here? Where is everybody going? And, so quickly?"

"We are moving camp. As I mentioned earlier, we will join the rest of my people who are going to Fort Benton for trade. You will come, too. You can either drive your wagon or allow one of the older boys to do it for you while you take your place with my almost-mother and almost-aunties."

"But…but how did they know to take down the camp? Didn't you say you were charged with asking them to break camp to join the main procession? I thought when we returned here you would calmly tell the others what the scout had said, and then little by little we would make the journey to join the others."

"I have already told them what the scout related to me. And, the way we break camp might appear to be sudden, but for my people, it is leisurely done," he replied.

"I see…I think. But, we have only now returned to camp. How did you tell them the message so quickly?"

His smile at her was tolerant. "Do you remember," he said, "my telling you our marriage site was not far from my relative's encampment?"

"Well, yes, but I have no memory of seeing you on a hill and waving a blanket, which I am assuming is what you did."

He grinned. "And yet, I did so. I did tell them, and you are right. I did this by using my blanket."

"But…I did not see you do it. And, I have been with you most every moment."

"áa, again you are right. It was when you had returned briefly to the war lodge, having forgotten your comb, when I sent the message."

"Oh. Yes, that's right. And, are we, too, required to go with them and find the entire troop of your people?"

"áa. But, not required. We could remain here if we choose."

"We could?"

He nodded.

"Then, I think we should stay here. After all, we must be considerate of Mr. Henrik's condition, as well as his daughter, Liliann. Truly, I had thought we would stay here—you, me and my brother and sister, as well as Liliann and your friend. It was my understanding your people would go on, but we would remain here, still doing all we can to save Mr. Henrik's life. After all, we cannot simply leave Mr. Henrik alone, with only his daughter to hold his hand."

Again he grinned at her before saying, "And, so we should be required to stay here, if what you say were true. But, did you not see the happiness of your friends when we first entered camp?"

"Ah, no. What happiness?"

Stands Strong pointed toward the pool, then replied, "Our medicine men have been praying and using their own individual medicine to help your Mr. Henrik. When we came back into camp, did you not see your father's man is now awake? He was even sitting up. Niitá'p, so much better is he, any weakness he had will be gone within a few weeks. He lives."

"Oh my." Czanna gulped. "He lives. And, here I thought he might… Oh, this is a happy day. A happy day, indeed!"

Looking up, she smiled at Stands Strong. But, he merely nodded and turned away, motioning to her to follow.

However, after a moment, he turned back toward her and said, "I will have to teach you how to look and see what is there to be seen. It will be my honor to do so. Come, now. I will take you to my almost-mother."

And so, she followed him, hoping what Stands Strong said about being welcomed into his family were true. Still, she worried…