Slow Burn

by DreamWvr73

A new neighbor forces Daniel to deal with the demons in his past. Will he find the strength to face and fight them, or will they destroy both him, and his future with Min? Written by Dreamwvr73 and TwoTrails4860

January in Georgia was full of moisture . . . heavy rain showers, low, grey skies that were full of drizzle, and the dawns rose with fog so thick it seemed almost palatable. This morning was no different than the others.

A heavy fog covered the ground in a white shroud, and the tall, broad shouldered youth who rode his buckskin mustang through it couldn't tell where the fog ended and the drizzle began. Moisture beaded on the horse's bright coat, and in the young man's thick blond hair. A few birds warbled in the bare trees, but other than that a heavy silence blanketed the morning much like the fog.

Daniel guided his horse down close to the creek that ran through his woman's property and let the sturdy little mustang lower his head to drink. He inhaled the slightly dank air deeply, treasuring the silence. It was almost a secret thing, riding Swift this early in the day with nothing but the birds and the sound of the wind for company.

The creek was low this time of year, little more than a thin stream of water cutting its way through spongy patches of saturated mud. Daniel surveyed the property across the creek as he let his horse drink, taking in the empty two story house and abandoned barn. Perhaps Min and I can buy that land, Daniel thought as he brought Swift's head up and turned his dripping muzzle back towards the house, where Daniel knew breakfast would be waiting. He cantered up the rise and towards the barn, and Swift quickened his pace as he sensed warmth and food.

After seeing to it that Swift was properly cooled and fed, Daniel walked into the warm, cozy kitchen of the home that he shared with Min Duke. He had lived here with her ever since a freak storm had somehow transported him and Swift from his life in a Cheyenne village in the year 1860. He had fallen in love with her from the moment he'd seen her, but his past as a half-breed slave, something to be owned and abused, made him hesitant about their relationship. To her credit, Min seemed to sense this and never pushed him. She was gentle, and treated him with warmth and respect. Now, as he saw her standing at the stove preparing his meal, he felt a rush of love for her. He came up behind her, and touched her hair gently. "Good morning, love."

Min was setting a kettle filled with fresh water on the burner. She looked over her shoulder at Daniel, a large smile on her face.

"Good morning love." She turned around, hugging him around the neck, feeling the dampness of the morning on the tan buckskin shirt her wore. Min was just starting breakfast and had a surprise for Daniel. She sighed, closing her eyes as she held him tightly to her. "How was your ride?"

"Peaceful. I like it here, Min." Daniel sat down at the table and added some sugar to his cup as he waited for the teakettle to boil. He smiled a little as he remembered how he'd thought the kettle's whistle was big medicine when he'd first arrived there. "I have noticed how the land on the other side of the creek is empty, Min."

Min gave him a kiss on the cheek. "It's been empty for a long time." She went back to the stove and began unwrapping something. "You are hungry, right?" She glanced over her shoulder at him.

"Aee, yes. My stomach is empty." He agreed as the kettle began to whistle. He got up, poured the hot water into his mug, and sat down at the table again, stirring the tea briskly. "Do you know if the land is for sale, love? Perhaps we can buy it."

The gas stove was turned on and the small round patties of buffalo meat were gently laid in the bottom of the skillet. "I don't know love, that land might be too expensive for us to afford. My job with Cooter is important and it does pay well but it may not be enough."

The heavenly aroma of the cooking meat began to waft in the air.

Min went over to the fridge and took out a pink carton of eggs. She smiled to herself; she couldn't wait to see the look on Daniel's face when he got to eat the buffalo. "Do you wish me to try and find out? I may be wrong about the price." She set the eggs down and picked up her spatula, flipping the patties over.

"It looks like a fine piece of land." Daniel replied, and suddenly his nostrils flared. "Love . . . this may sound strange, but that meat smells like buffalo." He turned his head and craned his neck to look at the meat on the stove, but the patties looked like ordinary hamburger. Tasty enough when spiced, but lacking the flavor and juiciness of buffalo.

"Oh does it? Hmm, must be the brand." She couldn't help but put her hand over her mouth, trying not to laugh. "Have you heard of the new exhibit in the Atlanta museum love? Nev called and told me about it while you were out riding. He said it might be something worth checking out."

"Ex-exhibit?" Daniel stumbled over the strange word. Although he spoke English quite well, there were still some sounds that gave him trouble, and the idioms and slang that Min's brother Bo used always left him mystified. "What is that, Min?"

Min cracked two eggs into the skillet and added salt and pepper to them. "An exhibit is when a museum has a special section dedicated to one thing. In this case it's the Indian artifacts from a big dig that took place in Atlanta and some of the surrounding areas." She flipped the eggs over carefully, picking up Daniel's plate. "Apparently they found a lot of neat stuff from the Cherokee and the Cheyenne tribes."

The sausage was put on the plate along with the two eggs. 

"I've got a treat for you love." Min grinned as she set the plate down in front of Daniel. "Tada! Buffalo sausage!"

Daniel exclaimed loudly in Cheyenne. "Buffalo! Where did you get it, Min?" He asked, and it was all he could do to remember to use his silverware and not grab the meat with his hands, as he did when he'd lived with his father's people. He sliced a patty in half, speared it with his fork and tore off a section with his strong white teeth. The juices flooded his mouth, and he closed his eyes in bliss.

The young woman couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Mr. Rhuebottom got a shipment in of buffalo. He had steaks, roasts, chops and sausage. There was about 20 pounds of it so I bought all of it." She once more stood in front of the stove and started making herself something to eat.

"It's delicious, Min!" Daniel devoured the sausage, then remembered what Min had told him before she'd handed him his plate. "This . . . exhibit . . . it contains things that people have dug up from the ground?"

Min sat down across from Daniel, picking up her fork. "Right, remains of villages from back in your time and sometimes even older." She picked up a biscuit from the basket in the center of the table and cut it open. "I know where the museum is, do you want to go?"

Daniel sighed heavily. "There is very little about life in a Cheyenne village that I wish to remember, love, but if you would like to see these things, I will come with you." He tore open a biscuit and mopped up the yolks of his eggs with it, knowing that it made Min frown when he used his fingers.

"I think it could be interesting and we have to make sure they got it right." Min wiped her mouth with a napkin. "Maybe we can go after breakfast."

"If you wish." Daniel nodded, sipping his tea. He glanced out the window to see that the fog was lifting, and that the sun was trying to break through the thick shafts of gray and white clouds that blanketed the sky. He was relieved that the skies gave no indication that it would storm. He glanced up at Min, who could apparently see that thought in his eyes. She reached over and patted his hand.

"It's going to be all right love, I promise." Min gave his hand a reassuring squeeze, knowing that thoughts of village life were swirling in his mind.

The Atlanta Native American Historical Museum was located on the far west side of the city. A rich garden of beautiful flowers and the surrounding woods made up the land the museum sat on. The building itself was a dull grey, with an A frame front that contained 4 thick, tall pillars that stretched high into the sky. The rest of the building resembled an old Civil War mansion that had been restored.

The couple was inside the building, holding hands as they wandered around trying to find the Indian Exhibit. Min was in a pink ribbed knit shirt and black jeans; her hair was braided down her back and was tied off with a bead fastener that Daniel had made for her.

"Are you sure this is a public place, love? It looks like a house in some places." Daniel frowned as he tucked a stray strand of hair that had escaped his braid behind his ear. He wore cream-colored breeches and a fringed doeskin shirt that was lightly beaded around the cross-ties in front. Calf high winter moccasins covered his feet.

"I'm sure Daniel, it's a public place." She looked around at all the glass cases and spotted a sign that read PLAINS INDIAN EXHIBIT with a bright red arrow. "Aha! It's this way love." She gave a tug on his hand as she headed in the direction the sign pointed to.

As Min went into the room where the exhibit was being shown, Daniel paused to brush off an errant pebble that had gotten stuck to the bottom of his moccasin. As he straightened up and headed into the room, a shiver of unease ran through him. Things he had seen used by his father's people everyday were in glassed-in boxes as though they were priceless treasures. Pottery, flint knives, arrowheads and other weapons were all encased in glass as people exclaimed over them and took photos. Daniel swallowed hard, his eyes wide as he took three long steps towards Min. He skirted a collection of arrowheads, nearly overbalanced, then grunted as he ran directly into someone who was coming around the other side of the display, totally absorbed in its contents.

Daniel, being larger and heavier, only stumbled back a step. The other man, however, was unceremoniously bowled over onto his backside. He landed next to the display with a heavy thud, and blinked up at Daniel curiously.

"Excuse me, I'm sorry." MacGyver stood up, brushing off the back of his blue jeans. He was dressed in a blue long sleeve shirt and swallowed hard as his eyes kept moving up the man he had slammed into. "I wasn't watching where I was going. Are you okay?" His dark eyes widened in surprised at the tall man dressed in buckskins that stood at least three inches over his head.

"Yes, I am fine. Forgive me, I did not see you." He looked down at the man who would be considered tall among whites. He had dark blond hair and an open, friendly face. "I knocked you down, are you hurt?" He asked as Min came up beside him.

"Just my pride." Mac smiled as he stretched out his hand. "My name is MacGyver." The tall man seemed friendly and his tone of voice was gentle, this was a surprise to Mac considering the other man's size and demeanor.                                                                            

Min looked at the outstretched hand and back to Daniel. She was wondering if he would shake the offered hand or not.

Daniel knew he would embarrass Min if he didn't shake the man's hand in the white man's custom, so he took the hand and gave it a single token squeeze. "I am called Daniel Painted Horse. This is my . . . " Daniel glanced at Min, and the tips of his ears suddenly reddened.

"This is Min." He finished lamely, wanting to be anywhere else but where he was.

"Min Duke." She stretched out her hand to Mac and he shook it

"Nice to meet you." MacGyver turned around and waved at someone. A tall young woman in a blue business suit and long bright red hair walked over. She had big dark eyes, a button nose and a warm smile. "Min Duke, Daniel Painted Horse, this is Gillian, my wife."

Gillian stretched out her hand and shook Min's first. She glanced at the tall blond man beside her and her eyes widened. "Shayenna?"

Daniel blinked at the word, spoken in the Cheyenne language, and he looked down at the woman. "Aee, yes. My father was Cheyenne." The words came hard, as they always did when he admitted his half-breed heritage. The woman smiled at him, though, and he took a deep breath. "O'ane Shayenna?"

Gillian blushed, her cheeks turning red. "Some, but not much." She shook his hand gently. "I know more Cherokee than I know Cheyenne."

"I know nothing of the Cherokee language. They are our enemies." Daniel said, only realizing his gaffe when Gillian frowned at him curiously. Daniel blushed, and looked elsewhere. Min saw the way he hunched his shoulders and knew that he was trying, rather uselessly, she reflected . . . to make himself small. She took his hand and squeezed it reassuringly. "We came to see the exhibit."

Gillian's frown disappeared, her face brightened. "That's good, the more people come to see it the better." She turned to stand beside them, pointing at several display cases. "These were items we found here in Atlanta, and some places in Tennessee and Hazzard. My team and I did several digs and that's when the Phoenix Foundation decided to leave the items here and set up this exhibit."

Mac nodded, putting his arm around his wife. "This is a really beautiful area; we're looking for a place to stay while we're here for this assignment."

Min smiled. "Really? Well you know, it's funny but the place next door to us has been empty for quite some time, why don't I look into it for you, and see about the cost? The rent can't be very expensive, it's an old house and it needs a little work." She laughed a little as she realized what she'd said. "Not that it would fall down around your head, mind you. It really is a cozy old place."

MacGyver's dark eyes widened as he and Gillian glanced at one another. "That'd be great, I don't mind fixing things. I sort of have a talent for it." He saw the expression on Daniel's face and cleared his throat. "If you don't mind having us for neighbors... that is."

"Of course not!" Min smiled, then it faded slightly as she glanced up at Daniel. He looked pale and drawn, and his dark blue eyes were brewing with such hidden emotion that they had gone nearly black. She squeezed his hand. "I'll look into it for you. Just leave me a number where I can reach you." As Gillian MacGyver fumbled in her purse for a pen and a scrap of paper, Min took Daniel aside and shook him a little. "Daniel? What's wrong with you?" She asked in a tone that was half-scolding, half concern.

Daniel shook his head. "I do not want any . . . what did you call them? Nay-boors!" He gave her his best Cheyenne scowl.

Min creased her brow. "Why not? They seem nice enough."

Gillian wrote down her phone number and handed it to Min. "We're in a hotel right now but this is my husband's cell phone number. He always has it with him so call it when you find out how much it'll cost us to rent it."

"I sure will! Nice to meet you." Min smiled, and then that smile vanished as if someone had flipped a switch inside her when Gillian turned her back. "They're perfectly nice people, Daniel, and there's no reason for you to be acting this way!" She hissed, not wanting to raise her voice.

Daniel stepped closer to her until he towered over her like an angry grizzly, and spoke through his teeth. "Hova'hane, no! I do not want them so close to our land! I forbid it!"

Min glanced behind her shoulder, seeing the couple walk away. She turned back, her eyes narrowing as she started speaking to Daniel in Cheyenne. "You forbid it?" She shook her head. "I don't understand why you're acting this way but I was taught by my late uncle to be kind and helpful wherever and whenever I can be. Why are you so upset they want to live behind us?"

Daniel's stomach clenched painfully. "I . . . I want that land!" He said in a low, clipped voice, realizing too late that he'd revealed more than he'd meant to, even to the woman he shared most everything with. Now he must cover up those things at any cost, even if it meant lying to her. "If they settle there, we will never have the chance to own it!"

Min pulled back a little, studying him through a sideways glance. "No...there's something else you're keeping from me." There was something just below the surface of Daniel's skin that was calling out to her. But whether or not he would speak of it, she didn't know.

Daniel's big fists clenched. "I keep nothing from you!" He said hotly, his medium-fair skin darkening with a blush of anger. "I simply do not want whi-" He closed his eyes briefly, "Anyone living that close to our land!" He shook his head. "It grows crowded in here and I can stay no longer!" He wheeled around and stalked out of the room before Min could question him further.

Min walked on eggshells the rest of the day as Daniel's mood grew more and more black as the day wore on. He said nothing on the drive home from Atlanta, and when they arrived at the farmhouse he went out to the barn and spent the rest of the day with Swift.

When night fell, he vanished down the hallway like a golden-haired wraith and burrowed under his pile of sleeping furs without another word to her. Now she stood in the bedroom doorway regarding his sleeping form as his body twitched and squirmed periodically. Entering the bedroom quietly, she went over and sat beside him.

"Love..." She reached out and touched his hair gently, feeling him jump as she stroked his hair. "Are you awake?" She swallowed hard, hoping he was. The idea of them going to bed angry at each other didn't set well with her.

"No . . . please . . . " Daniel whimpered in Cheyenne, his voice high and pleading, so unlike his usual voice that it made Min start as if she'd been pinched. She stroked his hair again, and Daniel's struggles increased. He finally came awake with a small cry of what sounded like pain, and blinked up at Min. She saw a kind of naked terror in his eyes before he saw it was she, and the usual Cheyenne mask of stoicism dropped over them again. "What is it?" He snapped, clutching the furs close to his naked chest.

Min pulled her hand back; the tone of his voice was almost harsh. She swallowed hard, shaking her head. "Never mind, I got my answer." She stood up and walked around to her side of the bed and began taking off her clothes.

Daniel hung his head, ashamed of himself. "Min . . . " He began softly, wanting to tell her, knowing she would understand, yet terrified that she wouldn't. "Forgive me . . . I was dreaming. What did you want, love?" He stood up and went to her, reaching out to touch her hair.

Min closed her eyes, feeling him standing behind her. She took off her shirt, dropping it as she turned around to face him. She wanted so much to answer his question truthfully. You Daniel, I want you... She thought to herself but didn't say it. "I didn't want anger to be between us before we went to sleep."

"I understand." Daniel said softly. "It was not you I was angry at, Min. It was . . . . " He shook his head helplessly. "It is something that is hard to explain."

"You could try." She took a step forward, wrapping her arms around him as their bodies touched. Min sighed; the heat of Daniel's skin was intoxicating.

"I could, and I would fail." Daniel replied, tracing his fingers lightly up and down her back. Just being near her was making his pulse quicken. "It is not something I can speak of easily, Min." He closed his eyes, seeing gold and silver pieces falling into a greedy brown hand. He shuddered and held her closer. "It may be something I cannot speak of at all."

Min pulled back, looking up into his face. "You can trust me Daniel... you do know that don't you?" Both her hands came up to touch his face; she tilted his head down and brushed her mouth against his in a brief kiss.

Daniel nodded. "I know, Min." He glanced down at the bed, which they had yet to share. Daniel knew it distressed her, him not lying with her as a man did with a woman, but he could no more bed her than he could go back to being a slave. He loved her, and she was the soul of his medicine bag, but still he could not tell her what was in his heart. "Just believe me, love, when I tell you that I have good reason to dislike having that white man move in so close to me."

Min looked into his face, she shook her head. "But none that you can tell me." She let go of his neck and walked around the bed, opening her closet and taking her pajamas out.

"It is not something I can speak of at all, Min. Not to you, not to anyone. So please, do not be angry with me!" His tone was almost pleading.

She slammed her closet doors closed and turned around. "And how am I supposed to take that Daniel?" She sat down on her bed and wiped her hand down her face. "I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. In order to do that we can't have secrets between us."

"What we speak of is not a secret!" Daniel denied, his fists clenching. "It is something so shameful and . . . and . . . " For a moment Daniel's English vocabulary failed him, and he signed. It was bad! Bad, and unnatural!

"What are you so afraid of? Do you think I'll stop loving you?" She reached out and took ahold of his shoulders. "Listen to me... there is nothing you can say this night or any other that will make me stop loving you." She let go of him and turned her back while she slipped off her bra and put on her pajama. The bed was peeled back and Min climbed into it, staring up at the ceiling.

"You say that now, not knowing what I may tell you." Daniel replied quietly, and pulled on his breeches. He could hear rain pattering against the roof.

Min sat up, her dark eyes focused on the Cheyenne. "Well we'll never know, will we? And even if it's something terrible, it won't change how I feel."

"Nor will it change how I feel, Min." Daniel paused in the doorway, the light from the hall silhouetting his tall, broad form. "I will tell you this, my woman . . . if that white man moves in, one of us will be dead by the next phase of the moon." He turned and was gone, and a moment later the kitchen door slammed. The sound of it was very loud in the silence of the big farmhouse.

Daniel didn't return until nearly dawn, and Min pretended to be asleep when he came into the room and curled up in his furs. He rose again an hour later, and Min knew he was headed out to the barn to feed his horses. She lay there, unable to go back to sleep, and finally gave it up as a bad job around seven a.m.

She shrugged on her robe, and went into the kitchen to start breakfast. Food was the last thing on her mind, with her stomach tied in miserable knots, but the routine was comforting and took her mind off the awful discussion from the night before.

Min was pulling a carton of eggs from the fridge when there was a knock at the door. She glanced up, and her heart leapt when she saw the lean athletic form standing on her porch. She flung the door open, her eyes wide, and the young Indian standing there gave her a devastating grin. "Hey, pretty." He laughed, the cold winter wind ruffling his long, jet black hair.

"Oh my God Nev!" She hugged him around the neck, feeling his strength as he wrapped his arms around her. Min pulled back, a smile on her face. "Why didn't you tell me when you called that you were back in town?"

"Jackie thought I should surprise you." He smiled, and rubbed his slender, copper-colored hands together. "Damn it's cold! Not as cold as Quebec, where I just got back from, but cold enough." He looked around the porch, smiling. "Where's tall blond and ugly?" He asked with a laugh.

Min looked around and her face blushed. "Oh! I'm sorry, please, come in." She stepped back, letting him step inside the house. "Can I offer you some tea?" She closed the door behind him, pretending not to have heard his other question.

"Coffee, if you have any. Thanks." Nev shrugged out of his brown leather coat and slung it over a chair as he shook moisture from his hair. "Georgia is the only place I know where you could drown just going out to your mailbox." He jested, and sat down.

"So . . . where's Daniel? No, let me guess! You couldn't afford to feed him anymore, and sold him to the Native American Museum as a living, breathing artifact!"

Min couldn't hide her frown as she poured Nevada a cup of instant coffee and set it down on the table in front of him. "He's out in the barn." She turned on the burner and resumed her breakfast duty. "Would you like some breakfast? I've got some buffalo sausage patties."

"I'm so hungry I could eat a cow patty." Nevada admitted, and sipped his coffee.

"Sorry I'm fresh out of manure, all I've got is some buffalo sausage, eggs and toast." Min pulled a white butcher paper bundle of buffalo sausage out of the fridge and unwrapped it.

"Sounds great. Pilamaya." Nevada thanked Min in Lakota and pulled a pack of Marlboros from his jeans pocket. He lit one with his silver-plated Zippo lighter, and exhaled a cloud of smoke with a contended sigh. "I couldn't wait to get back here . . . it was all I thought of the whole time I was in Canada." His tone, of course, told Min that Jackie Broadway was all he'd thought of.

"Here as in Hazzard? Or here as in someone that lives here." She turned away from the skillet, a knowing glance in her eyes. "Just admit it Nev, its Jackie you couldn't wait to see, not Hazzard."

He gave her a shrewd smile. "I've made a living out of never admitting anything, Min . . . . but it sure was good to see her." Nev looked up at his friend. "Is everything okay, Min? You look a little, uh . . well, pissed." He said with a half-nervous chuckle.

The young woman sighed, shaking her head as she flipped the sausage over. She set the spatula aside and turned the fire on low; she sat down in the chair next to Nev. "I am upset Nev...Daniel and I aren't so good today. He and I had a fight last night and I didn't get one wink of sleep."

"Oh." Nev nodded and crushed out his cigarette in the metal ashtray Min had set out for him. "Well, Daniel himself has told me he's not the easiest person in the world to get close to." Nev shrugged. "What did you fight about?"

Min leaned back in her chair. "We went to the museum like you suggested and while we were there we met a couple. They're from out of town and I suggested that they rent out the house that's behind us. Daniel freaked out and said that he didn't want the white man moving so close to us. He won't tell me why he feels this way and when I tried to we got into the fight and he stormed out."

Nev nodded again. "I see." He cleared his throat nervously. "Do you think it maybe has to do with, uh . . . his past?" The young Lakota colored visibly.

"I know it does but he refuses to tell me. He said it's terrible." She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table. "I don't care what it is Nev, I'll still love him no matter what but he doesn't seem to believe that."

Nevada made a noise that was somewhere between a grunt and a growl, a noise that Min had come to associate solely with Indians. It could be a response to many different things at different times, and this time she interpreted it as a sound of mild agreement. "That sounds like Daniel." The Lakota lifted his ebony eyes to hers. "On the other hand, what if it's something so awful that it does make a difference?"

Min raised her hands and let them fall in exasperation. "Are you and Daniel both deaf or what? What part of 'nothing he can say will make me stop loving him' is unclear or difficult to understand?" The dark haired woman's temper was blazing now as she got up from the chair so fast it fell over. She went back to the stove and flipped over the patties.

Nev was unfazed by her show of temper. He lit another cigarette, and then sipped his coffee. "That may be, Min, but I also think you're afraid of what he might say if you do push him to it. You know how bad it was with Little Horse . . . or do you? Has he told you everything?"

"He hasn't told me everything." She took the sausage out of the skillet and set them down on a plate with a paper towel on top of it. She cracked six eggs in the skillet and seasoned them. The pepper was set down and she turned around to face the Lakota, her eyes narrowing. "I love him Nev; I don't care if he butchered a busload of orphans."

Nevada sighed. "Have I ever told you that the Lakota as a whole are easily offended? The Crow are uninhibited; the Ute people are quick to anger . . . but The Cheyenne? Their whole lives and existence as a people is based on pride. Knowing what you do about Daniel's past, do you think it was easy on what little pride he has to even discuss his past with you? And if there's something else that's worse than what happened with Little Horse, and I can't even imagine what could be . . . maybe it is impossible for him to talk about, because he's afraid he'll destroy what pride he has left."

Min leaned against the counter, crossing her arms over her chest. "And what about my pride or my feelings?" She bit her lip, looking away from Nev. "Do you know what it's been like for me to be so in love with him and not be able to show him?" Her eyes grew wet and she casually wiped her cheek. "To lie there night after night and wonder to myself what it'd be like to be have him in that bed beside me?"

"I can imagine loving someone like Daniel isn't easy, Min." The young Lakota got up from the table. "But if you want him as badly as you say, then it would be worth the effort." He kissed her cheek. "And in the end, if he still won't talk . . . " Nev tapped a finger against his right temple. "Thanks for breakfast, and tell Daniel I said hi." Nev shrugged on his coat and walked out the door as quickly as he had come. 

Daniel came into the kitchen a half hour later, looking blue and defeated. The anger of the previous night seemed to have drained out of him somewhere along the line, and his shoulders slumped as he washed his hands at the sink before sitting down at the table.

Min set a plate down in front of him and two pieces of toast. She walked around and sat across from him, digging into her breakfast with her fork. She lifted her eyes to gaze at the man across from her. Her mouth opened to say something but then closed.

Daniel shook his head a little. "How I must hurt you, Min." He said softly in Cheyenne.

"I hurt you too." Min picked up her cup and sipped her tea. "But I still meant what I said." She had a bite of her eggs, wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"I understand." He replied softly, lifting his dark blue eyes to hers. "I also meant what I said, and I cannot be responsible for the death of that white man!" He curled his hand so tightly around his coffee mug that Min thought it might shatter under the pressure. "However, know this." He took a deep breath. "You are my woman, and I love you with all my heart. If you ask me to let the white man and his wife live on the land across the creek, know that I cannot refuse you."

Min reached out to touch his hand. "Daniel why are you so...against this man and his wife living so close to us?"

"Ask!" Daniel said as his face drained of color and turned the color of fresh milk. "Ask and I cannot refuse! It is the only way I can allow it!"

"Daniel, I want you to let MacGyver and his wife rent the house behind us." Min knew it was a moot point, the only way she would know his secret was if he volunteered to tell her. All other attempts to find out for herself were getting her nowhere.

Daniel's hand tightened around the coffee mug again. "Then it will be so." He said quietly, and looked up at her. "I could no more refuse you anything than I could sprout wings and fly, love." He covered her hand with his.

Min nodded. "I know." She went back to her breakfast, her hand still enveloped with his.

MacGyver sighed, watching as the group of four men finished bringing in the last of the boxes. There wasn't that much stuff, but it was enough to keep him and his wife busy for at least the next few hours. He was dressed in a raggedy white t-shirt, and a pair of equally holey jeans. He sighed as he walked around the house. The little farmhouse was old; built sometime in the twenties; it had hardwood floors that echoed as he made his way down the hall.

"Well there's no houses like this in LA, that's for sure."

Gillian came out from the master bedroom, her long hair put in a pony tail that hung down her back. She had on a pair of jean shorts and a pink tank top, watching her husband thump his fist against the walls.

"Well, there are houses this old, but you can bet they don't come with a barn and a creek in the backyard!" She smiled and came up behind her husband, touching his back gently. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." He sighed, his hands going on his hips as he leaned against the wall.

His wife walked over to him and stood in front of him. She touched his chin and lifted it. "Hey…no need to make that face. You know why we had to leave LA for a while and this temporary assignment to the museum in Atlanta will give us a chance to see some really pretty country in an area we've never been too."

"It is nice out here." He admitted, glancing out the window. He could see the creek Min had spoken of, and he smiled a little as he saw the outline of several horses on the property across the water. "Looks like Daniel raises horses."

Gillian sighed. "We'll go look at them later, right now there are some boxes in our bedroom with your name on them." She narrowed her eyes playfully as she grabbed him by the t-shirt and pulled him towards her, their noses touching. "We unpack first, okay?"

"You're the boss." He laughed, and allowed her to playfully drag him into the bedroom.

"Can I get that in writing?" She said as she gave her husband a kiss before letting go of his shirt.

"Sorry, no. I never give people the kind of proof that might hold up in court." He laughed, and opened one of the boxes. He began to pull out stacks of folded clothes, some books, other odds and ends.

The creek was visible from this window as well, and Mac saw more horses across the creek. One of them was a gorgeous palomino with bright splashes of white decorating her shiny coat. Her creamy mane and tail seemed to glow with a silvery light in the lifting fog.

"Wow, look at that." He said it low, watching the horse move around. He set his armload of stuff down on the bed and walked over to the window and put his hands against the frame. He hadn't been around horses since he was a little kid but he loved them.

"Pretty." His wife nodded, and frowned curiously. "Weird, there's no fence on either side! How does he keep them on his property, I wonder?" She shrugged a little. "Come on, let's get this done. I don't want to be unpacking all day."

Min walked up the narrow brick path that led to the farmhouse's front door, a covered pan in one hand. She rang the bell, trying not to scowl at the thought of Daniel, who had flat out refused to come with her to welcome Mac and Gillian.

The white front door opened and Gillian smiled, seeing the dark haired woman in the jeans and pink turtleneck. "Hi Min, come on in." She stepped aside, letting her step into the house.

"Thanks." Min smiled, and handed Gillian the covered pan. "It's banana bread, from my uncle's old recipe. My brother Bo and cousin Luke says he always made the best in the county. I hope I've done him proud." She laughed, then sobered as Mac appeared in the doorway, glancing over Min's shoulder. She colored visibly. "Uh . . . Daniel sends his apologies. He wanted to come welcome you too, but he had some work to do with his horses that just couldn't wait." She explained.

Mac nodded. "Oh I understand, we saw the horses, there's a lot of them." He gave Min a smile. "Well, back to unpacking, excuse me." He went back down the hall towards the master bedroom.

Gillian glanced at Min. "Why don't we go into the kitchen and try your bread?"

Min nodded. "Sure, if you can take a break from unpacking."

Gillian grinned. "Well I can leave Mac to do that." She leaned close to her friend. "Just don't tell him I said that." She took her by the arm and they walked from the living room into the kitchen.

It was old fashioned, with wood and glass cabinets much like the kitchen of the Duke farmhouse. A dark round wooden table sat in the center and Gillian pulled out a chair. "Please, have a seat. Do you want coffee or tea?"

"Tea would be nice, thanks Gillian. Is it okay if I call you that?" She asked as she sat down. The farmhouse was going to be cozy when it was finished, she thought.

"Sure, Mrs. MacGyver just sounds so formal. Gillian or Gill is just fine." Gillian took the silver tea pot off the stove and filled it with water. She set it on the white stove and turned it on, the flame igniting with a slight puff. "Let me get a knife for your bread." There were a few boxes on the floor and she crouched down and rummaged through them, pulling out some newspaper bundles. "Aha here we go."

"So what do you think of Hazzard so far?" Min asked, accepting the knife from Gillian and unwrapping the bread.

"It's nice, beautiful." Gillian pulled out the chair across from Min's and sat down. "Especially this property. Do you know we looked at every small town between here and Atlanta trying to find a nice house we could settle into to? We didn't even see this place the first time we checked out Hazzard."

"I've lived here for about four years now. I came here after my mother died and I found out I had a half brother. He and my cousin own the garage in town. My uncle used to own the house that Daniel and I live in now. He passed away a little over a year ago."

"I'm sorry." Gillian got up and took two cups out of the box, unwrapping them and giving them a quick washing. "Mac and I don't have any family, they're all gone." She set the cups down near the stove and sat back down. "All he and I have each other and a few good friends."

"I have another cousin who lives in Los Angeles with her husband, who was born here too. You have to meet my brother and cousin, they're real sweet." Min said, hoping that Gillian wouldn't ask too much about Daniel or his family.

"I'm looking forward to it." The tea pot went off and Gillian got up. She turned off the burner and poured the hot water into the cups, adding a tea bag to each one. Her back was turned towards Min. "I know you're hoping I won't ask too many questions about Daniel."

"What?" Min asked a little too loudly, her knee banging the underside of the table as she started in surprise. "No, I mean . . . ." She shook her head a little. "Why would I be hoping that?"

Gillian turned around, shrugging. "Oh... just a feeling." She handed her a cup of tea and sat back down.

"Daniel didn't mean to be so abrupt at the museum, Gillian. He's just . . . well, shy." She finished with a shrug, seeing Gillian's doubtful glance.

"He didn't seem so shy Min, he seemed angry and I think that Mac and I moving here has something to do with it."

"He's very wary of new people, Gillian. I know it came off as rudeness and I'm sorry! I'm sure he'd say the same thing if you asked him. He's had . . . " Min searched for the right word, then sighed. " . . . Problems in the past. With people. He sometimes gets treated badly because of his mixed blood, and it's made him cautious of people."

Gillian nodded, her head dropping slightly. "I know what it's like to have mixed blood Min. My father was Scottish and my mother was full blooded Cherokee."

"Then you know how people can be, Gillian. And it's worse for Daniel. The things he's been through . . . " She shook her head. "I wish I could explain."

"I know." She reached out and touched Min's hand, gazing at her. "You don't have to explain, I think I understand."

Min gasped lightly as she felt a brief surge of power at the other woman's touch. She looked into Gillian's brown eyes, and sensed the almost electric feel of abilities much like her own. Perhaps they were not as powerful, but still, they were there. Min smiled tentatively. "I'm sure you do."

The feeling was mutual and a smile came to Gillian's face as she got a small dose of Min's abilities. "All we want to do is find some peace and quiet for a while. That's part of the reason we left LA."

"Well, you came to the right place. It's very peaceful here. Daniel and I are very happy living at my uncle's farmhouse, and he's planning on maybe starting a ranching business." Min said, and suddenly the hair rose on the back of her neck.

"Are you okay?" Gillian creased her brow, seeing the look that passed across the young woman's face.

"Yeah I'm fine . . . " Min got up from the table. "Gillian, are you sure Mac is still in the bedroom unpacking?"

"Uhhh I think so, but I'll go check." Gillian got up, disappearing from the kitchen. She returned a minute later. "No, he's not there." Her hands went to her hips. "I wonder where he went."

"I don't know, but something tells me we better find him quick." Min said, and went out the door before Gillian could say anything more.

Mac stood on the bank of the creek that separated their property from that of the Duke farm, his hand outstretched over the sluggish waters. The brightly colored mare he'd admired earlier stood on the other side, her ears pricked forward, her head high as Mac spoke to her softly. He'd come out the back door of the farmhouse and down to the creek only minutes before, unable to resist the lure of the mare's bright coat, or her nearness.

"I'm not going to hurt you, it's okay." A smile lit up his face as he reached out towards her. The horse was palomino paint with a flaxen mane and tail. "Such a pretty baby, come here."

The mare whickered high in her throat, her large dark eyes focused on Mac's outstretched hand. Her delicate hooves danced on the grassy bank of the creek, and Mac looked down. The creek was nearly dry here, and his hands almost itched with the desire to touch the horse's bright coat. He glanced around, took two light jumps over the spongy surface of the creek bed, and stepped easily onto the other side. The mare whinnied in a pleasant greeting, and nosed Mac's chest with her muzzle. She made whuffling sounds against him, apparently searching for treats.

Mac laughed, reaching into his pocket. "Okay okay, here." He pulled out an apple and held it in the palm of his hand. "That's the first time I've ever been frisked by a horse."

The mare took the apple from his hand and ate it with a juicy crunch, a content expression in her eyes. Mac smiled and patted her neck. She was sleek and well groomed, obvious results of Daniel's loving hand. The little mare was the only horse visible at the moment, but Mac had seen others from his bedroom window, and they had looked just as well cared for.

"You!"  The shout was unexpected and filled with such menace that it made Mac yelp in fear. He whirled around, making the mare snort and back away. It was then that he saw Daniel striding towards him, carrying what looked like a bow and arrows. His face was twisted with anger, and he approached until he was nearly nose to nose with the smaller white man. "You!" He snarled again. "That is my horse that you touch!"

MacGyver swallowed hard, staring into a pair of volcanic blue eyes. "Hi Daniel...I was just uh..." He swallowed hard. "I was just giving her an apple." Daniel looked angry enough to chew him up and spit him out.

"I did not give you permission to come onto my land, or to feed my horse!" He turned to the mare and gave her a light slap on the rump, sending her up the rise behind them. "Emane! Go!" He said softly, and then turned back to Mac. His hand tightened around the shaft of his bow until his knuckles turned white. The bow was knocked, and he ached to use it on this puny, trespassing white-eye.

"Daniel I'm sorry, I know I'm trespassing but all I wanted to do was get a closer look at her, that's all." A smile came to his face. "She's the most beautiful horse I've ever seen."

"I know you and your kind!" Daniel snarled. "Looking turns to desire, and desire turns to thievery!" His whole body was trembling now. "Whatever you desire, you take! Land, horses . . . other things." Daniel's expression changed for a moment from fury to pain, and he gave Mac a rough shove that nearly sent him into the dry creek bed. "Leave my land before we are both sorry." He turned and walked away, the fringe on his breeches fluttering.

Mac caught himself and stood up, shaking his head. "I'm not going to steal your horse." He said to himself as he crossed back over to the other side and headed back to the house.

Min and Gillian, who had been heading down to the creek to look for Mac, had seen the whole episode and ran towards him. Gillian reached him first. "Mac, are you all right?" She asked, touching his face.

"Yeah." He looked at Min, his look apologetic. "I'm sorry Min I didn't mean any harm all I wanted to do was look at her."

"I'm the one who's sorry, Mac." She shrugged helplessly. "Excuse me." She stepped across the creek and jogged up the rise in pursuit of her angry boyfriend. She saw him approaching the corral below, and ran to catch up. She grabbed his elbow, and despite the differences in size, spun him around.

"He meant no harm and you know it!" Min was breathing a little hard as she stared into his face.

"Do I?" Daniel shot back in Cheyenne, too angry to speak the words in English. "He said he only wanted to look, but I know how they are! They can never simply look! They have to touch, as well! Touch and take and sometimes destroy!"

Min shook her head. "Mac's not going to steal her Daniel. If he wants a horse he'll buy one! He doesn't need to take yours!"

"It is not a matter of need. He will probably steal her from me just for sport, and then sell her to some abusive white man or to the meat pens!" Daniel shouted.

The reason for Daniel's anger was clear and the young woman simply looked at the man she loved. "Daniel, not all white men are like the ones back in your time. I don't believe Mac would do anything to your horse just to spite you."

Daniel's dark blue eyes widened, and the irises themselves seemed to grow. It was like watching a thunderhead expand just before it released a torrent of lightning and rain. "You know nothing about the white men who live in the time of my father! Nothing!" He swung around and stalked off towards the barn, and Min saw that he was trembling.

Daniel turned to face her, and what Min saw in his eyes was enough to make her back up a step. It was as if someone had stripped away Daniel's adulthood, and left the boy he had been standing in front of her. His lips trembled, and he bit them hard enough to taste blood.

"How can I make you understand something that I do not understand myself?" He asked in a quivering voice, then ran a hand through his long hair.

Min swallowed hard, taking a step forward she reached up and smoothed her hand down his cheek. "Then we can both try and understand it together." Her voice had taken on a much softer, gentler tone.

Daniel squeezed his eyes shut as the memory-sound of gold coins clinking together rang in his ears. "I do not know why he did it. Was it not enough that he had me for himself?" He whispered, more to himself than to Min.

Her heart started beating hard within her chest. "Why who Daniel? Why who did it?"

Daniel looked down at her, startled, as if he'd forgotten she was there. Then he looked away, but not before Min saw such an expression of shame and agony on his face that it made her heart hurt. "Little Horse. The one who owned me after . . . . " The young breed swallowed hard. "After I failed at my vision quest."

"You spoke of Little Horse before..." She swallowed hard, her throat feeling dry and tight. "What did he do?"

"He used to call me his pale whore." Daniel said in a near-whisper, and he reached up to tug on the end of his long braid as he spoke, a sign of indecisiveness and insecurity that Min had come to recognize. He looked at the ground as he spoke.

Min touched two fingers to his chin and lifted it to see into his eyes. "What did he do involving white men that has you so upset and suspicious of Mac?"

A small sound escaped Daniel's throat as he remembered the smells of strong coffee, stale tobacco and rancid sweat . . . smells he had come to instantly associate with any white man. "Min, I thank Maiyun every morning that I have the courage to give you my heart . . . but no matter how much I ask Him, I have never had the courage to give any white man my trust since I left my father's camp. I tolerate your brother and cousin because they are of your blood." He said softly as she opened her mouth to protest, and he shook his head. "Little Horse taught me a hard lesson about trusting white men, one I am likely to never forget." He sighed heavily. "I will tolerate the light-haired man living near us because you asked it of me, but beyond that I can do no more. I am sorry, my heart, but I can neither trust him or be his friend."

Min sighed heavily, rubbing her hand across her face. "And you're not even going to give him a chance for reasons that you still won't share with me." She shook her head as she turned and started to walk away.

Daniel grabbed her elbow with such force that it pulled her backwards a little. "Do not walk away from me!" He snapped.

Min lifted her head, staring into his bewildered eyes. "Is there more you wish to say to me?"

His eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Do not mock me, woman, I am in no mood for it." He said, then took a deep, calming breath. "Min, there are things about my past that I cannot share with you. I know that it affects our relationship, but you spoke a moment ago of trust." He slid his hand from her elbow to her hand and took it gently. "Please, trust me when I say that I want very badly to speak of these things, but I am simply not able to. I do not keep them from you because I choose to." He looked pleadingly into her eyes. "Please, love. Believe me."

Min nodded, blinking away tears that were welling in her eyes. It was just another painful reminder that there were many things still left between them and for a brief moment she wondered if there always would be. "I believe you." She gave his hand a squeeze, hanging her head so Daniel couldn't see her sadness. "I'm going back to the house."

Daniel nodded and let her go, then turned and walked into the barn. The stalls were deserted at this time of day, for the horses were out grazing. Daniel sat down on the heavy wooden box that he used to store blankets and put his head in his hands as the memories attacked him full force.

A home fire that burned with only coals . . . . the smell of sage as Little Horse's hands rubbed it all over his naked body, his unbound hair glowing in the dim light.

"I have found another way for you to serve me, my sweet boy." Little Horse's voice whispered in his ear, and the strong brown hands were a dark contrast to his own light skin as the Cheyenne pushed him back on a bed of furs. The tipi's privacy flap snapped back, and suddenly the smell of sage was overpowered by the stronger, more aggressive smells of coffee and tobacco. Daniel looked up at his tribal brother as gold coins clinked together and flashed in the firelights glow as it changed hands . . . .

"No!" Daniel cried aloud in the empty barn, and hugged himself like a frightened child. The tears came fast and without warning, and this time he didn't fight them.

Gillian had a big smile on her face and was laughing to herself as she opened the back door and walked into the kitchen. The young woman had on black leggings and a pink turtleneck as she walked over to the table and dropped her armload of bags onto them. She had gone shopping with Min and the two women had gone to lunch.

She rummaged through the bags, pulling out some clothes and shoes she had found in Atlanta. Her attention shifted when her husband came into the kitchen. Everything was set down as she walked around the table and hugged him.

"Hi, have fun while I was gone?"

"Not really." Mac sighed, scratching his head distractedly.

Gillian raised an eyebrow, seeing the none too happy expression on his face. "You didn't? Why not?"

"I've just been wondering what I could do to make Daniel see that I'm not the enemy." He said. "You and Min get along great, and it bothers me that Daniel thinks of me as some dangerous white man whose out to steal him blind."

Her hands came up to touch his face, lifting his hanging head. "I wish I knew, I know that it upsets you."  She stroked his cheeks. "Why don't you go and talk to him?"

"Because he's already threatened to take my scalp if I so much as step foot on his land again, that's why!" Mac exclaimed, glancing out the window at Daniel's property.

"He can't hurt you if you knock on the door." Gillian's face brightened and she snapped her fingers. "And I know just the way for you to do it too." She went over to the pantry and opened it, taking out a zip lock bag full of what looked like chocolate squares. "I promised Min some of my homemade candy." She handed him the bag. "Here, that will give you an excuse to talk to Daniel."

Mac looked at the bag with skeptical eyes. "Oh sure. 'Here, Daniel, here's something for you to snack on in case you don't fill up on my liver." He said, and sighed as Gillian tapped her foot at him.

"Mac..." She put her hands on her hips, raising an eyebrow at him. "I doubt the last thing he's going to want to do is eat your liver. If anything he'll take your scalp." He widened his eyes giving her a sideways glance.

"That doesn't fill me with confidence, Gill." He scolded her softly, then sighed again. "All right, I'll go." He kissed her and headed towards the door. "I just hope my insurance is paid up."

Gillian shook her head as she watched her husband walked out the white screen door.

Daniel swung the axe hard, splitting the chunk of birch neatly in two. Both halves fell off the chopping block, and Daniel set up another. The afternoon had come off warm after a morning rain, and Daniel's bare chest gleamed with sweat as he raised the axe again and split the log, feeling the vibrations clean up both arms. He smiled in satisfaction, envisioning the heads of his enemies being chopped instead of the birch chunks stacked up next to him.

I wish they could see me now . . . I am no longer that skinny, frightened boy! If they were here now I would take this axe and-

"Err . . . Daniel?" The hesitant voice behind him made Daniel swing around, the axe gripped tightly in both hands like a weapon. His white neighbor stood there, his face pale. He wore jeans and a blue t-shirt, and a distinctly apprehensive expression on his face.

MacGyver smiled, swallowing hard. He silently wondered if he was the next thing to be put on that block and split in two. "Hi...Chopping wood huh?"

Daniel's lip curled in a sarcastic sneer. "You white men miss nothing, do you." He looked into Mac's brown eyes, and something deep in the pit of his stomach quivered uneasily. His hands tightened around the axe handle.

"No and apparently neither do you." He looked around at the neatly split logs that lay scattered at his feet. He cleared his throat. "I uh...came to see how you were."

Daniel set up another log and cleaved it so hard that the two halves went flying in separate directions. "And how should I be?" He buried the axe into the chopping block with a hard flick of his wrist before he obeyed his Cheyenne blood and used it to split the white man in half.

Mac watched him, feeling the overwhelming urge to run. "Well I haven't really seen you since... we first moved in." He remembered the bag and stretched out his arm. "Gillian sent this for Min."

Daniel's nostrils flared like those of a horse scenting oats. His eyes lit up suddenly, and Mac thought he saw the ghost of a smile touch them before that stoic mask dropped back into place. "Is that chocolate?" He asked.

"Yeah...homemade." Mac smiled as he opened the bag and took two squares out of it. "Gillian makes it by the bundle." He stretched out his hand, the squares resting in his palm. "Try one."

Daniel stared at the candy for a long time, wondering exactly what the white man wanted in return for this offering. That thought made him back up a step. "You said they were for Min. She is in the kitchen. You may go knock on the door and see if she answers."

MacGyver pulled his hand back. "Well they're for both of you. Sure you don't want to try one?" He picked up one of them and popped it into his mouth. "They're really good."

Daniel looked Mac up and down, his heart beating hard. He saw the offer of friendship the white man was making, but was simply unable to respond to it. Instead, he remembered another white man with dark blond hair and clever brown eyes, a man who had taken a piece of his innocence after promising him his freedom, then had left him with nothing but pain and misery. He could not make that mistake twice. A spasm of panic gripped him, and he shook his head. "No." He said, ashamed of the sudden tremble in his voice.

"Okay, no problem." Mac ate the other square; it had started to melt in his hand. "I'll just go give this to Min then." He turned his back to Daniel, a small frown on his face as he walked up the back steps and knocked on the door.

"Hi, Mac!" Min smiled as she opened the door for him. "C'mon in."

Mac glanced down at Daniel and nodded as he stepped into through the open door. "Hi Min, how are you doing?"

"Fine, I'm just making some jerky for Daniel." Min went over to the dehydrating machine she'd bought a few weeks earlier and showed the controls to Mac. "It's actually pretty neat; you can also dry fruits and stuff, not just meat."

He tried to listen to her, giving the young woman a nod. "Yeah they're pretty handy." Mac looked away from her and wiped his hand down his face.

Min touched his hand. "What's wrong, Mac? You look like you accidentally kicked a puppy or something."

Mac sighed, shaking his head. "I tried to make friends with Daniel and I didn't get far."

Min nodded a little. "Just between you and me, Mac . . . I don't think Daniel wants to be friends with anyone right now, including me." She sighed. "Something's bothering him. Something awful, and he won't tell me what it is."

"He won't tell you? That's surprising." He showed her the bag. "Gill sent this candy for you."

"Oh, she didn't have to do that!" Min smiled, then glanced around. She picked up a Ziploc bag and filled it with jerky. "Here . . . Daniel always says that a gift shouldn't be accepted without giving something in return." She sighed heavily, the smile vanishing from her pretty face. "I'd give anything to know what's bothering him."

"You're not the only one." Mac sighed, shaking his head. "You know I've had a few people in my life that didn't like me but at least I knew the reasons why." He gave her a smile as he picked up the bag of jerky. "Thanks for the jerky Min see you later." He raised his hand to her and left.

"Bye, Mac." She sighed and turned back to the dehydrator. A moment later the back door slammed and Daniel came down the hall and into the kitchen. "Is the white man gone?" He asked.

Min closed her eyes briefly. "He has a name Daniel." She checked on the time left on the dehydrator, the next batch of jerky was almost done.

"So he does." Daniel replied with a hard edge to his voice, and picked up a handful of jerky. He stuffed some into his parafleche for later, and tore into a large piece with his strong white teeth.

"If you're going to hate him, at least use his name." She picked up the bag of chocolate and walked over to the fridge, slipping it inside. There was a frown on her face that she tried to hide from him.

"He is nothing to me, but even if he were, two men must exchange names before they claim to be friends." His lip curled in angry defiance of his wife's words. "I will never call him friend."

Min slammed the fridge closed and whipped around. "Well I do call him a friend."

"That is for you decide, my woman." Daniel snapped back, and took two steps towards her. At this close distance he towered over her, and his glare was more withering than that of an angry grizzly. "But do not try and put it on me when he betrays that friendship."

Min swallowed hard staring up into Daniel's angry face, his blue eyes were smoldering but she refused to back down. "I'm sorry to disappoint you Daniel, but I don't think he's going to betray our friendship. Despite what you think Mac is nice and so is his wife."

"You are a fool, woman!" Daniel growled, his eyes growing dark with fury. "He will betray you! He hides his deceit behind a kind smile and a handful of chocolates! He will take what he wants from you, and leave you in a hurting place! It would be easier to trust a rattlesnake not to strike!"

Min's eyes filled with tears that rolled down her cheek, she wiped them away with the heel of her hand. "You know, maybe I am a fool. In more than one way." She pushed past him and left the kitchen heading for her room.

Daniel watched her go, then closed his eyes in grief and regret. I might as well have stabbed her in the heart. He thought, and his fists clenched. The sudden need to go cleanse himself overwhelmed him, and he slammed out the front door as if the Wendigo was on his tail. He ran down to the creek, stripped off his breeches, and dove into the clear waters of a deep pocket of water near a bend in the creek's path. He ducked his head again and again, then scooped up handfuls of sand from the creek's bottom. He scrubbed his skin with it until it glowed, then squeezed his eyes shut as another memory washed over him without warning . . .

He was bathing in the river when Biggs' voice reached him from shore. "Hey, Breed . . . how about I come in there and wash your back?"

Daniel, then sixteen winters old, tried to cover his skinny body with his bare arms as he sunk into the water to hide himself. "Leave me alone." He heard his younger self say in a trembling voice, then he was struggling to escape the white man's hands as he plunged into the water and his fingers slipped under it's surface to grab at his secret places.

"No . . . no!" Daniel cried, and Biggs' whiskey-soaked breath washed over him as the white man whispered in his ear.

"I can give you your freedom; pretty breed… if you give me something in return. That's your custom . . . "

Daniel groaned hoarsely as he came back to himself, standing waist-deep in the waters of the creek, his clenched fists jammed against his eyes as if to will the memory away by physical force. "Go away." He groaned in Cheyenne, then stumbled to the grassy bank. He climbed out of the water and slumped down into the grass, curling up into a fetal position.

Mac was in the dilapidated barn looking around, deciding what he was going to do about Daniel. He had tried several times to be friends with the Cheyenne but all attempts had failed. Gillian got along great with Min, the two women seemed to grow closer all the time and Mac wished it could be way with Daniel. He sighed, shaking his head as he walked out of the stuffy barn that smelled like rotten hay and headed towards the creek.

What he saw there widened his eyes... It was Daniel, he was naked lying on the grass all scrunched up into a ball. He laid motionless by the water's edge and a pang of concern sent a rush through his system. Mac swallowed hard as he took a few cautious steps towards him, hopping across the low water of the creek that separated the two properties.

"Daniel?" Mac crouched down beside him, touching his shoulder gently.

Daniel's body jerked in its light doze at the feel of a hand on his shoulder and he groaned softly, protesting before he even came out of the sleep he hadn't even been aware he'd fallen into. A man's voice was calling his name, and in his dreamlike state, Daniel began to push himself up onto his knees in an automatic display of obedience.

Mac looked into Daniel's bleary face, seeing the fog of sleepiness in his eyes. "Daniel are you okay?" He touched his shoulder again.

The sound of his neighbor's voice, so out of place in his dreams, jerked Daniel into reality. He looked up to see Mac leaning over him, his hand resting on his shoulder. Daniel stared back up at him, his eyes wide, then realized in one stomach-churning moment that not only was this white man touching him, but that he was still nude from his bath in the creek earlier.

Mac saw the look on Daniel's face and he put his hands up. "It's okay; just take it easy I'm not going to hurt you."

Daniel's face went so pale that even the skin around his lips turned as white as a fish's underbelly. He scrambled backwards on his knees, stumbled, went down on his belly, got up again. Finally he managed to get to his feet, and backed away from Mac as his neighbor rose as well.

"Daniel, wait-" Mac began, but it was too late. Daniel turned and fled upstream, seemingly unmindful of his nudity.

MacGyver watched him leave and shook his head, realizing that his touch was what made the Cheyenne so upset. His first thought was to simply go home but no, not this time. This time he was going to settle things with Daniel once and for all. He ran after him, the water splashing onto his boots and jeans as he followed the Cheyenne.

Daniel's lungs burned as he ran and ran . . . he ran not only from the white man who pursued him for who knew what evil purpose, but from his own memories as well. He didn't remember falling asleep by the creek, but it was more than obvious by the look that had been in Mac's eyes when he'd awoken that the white man now knew why he'd been unable to gain his trust. In his half-dreaming state, Daniel had been preparing to submit to what his mind had perceived as one of the many white men who'd come nightly to Little Horse's tipi. The thought threatened to overwhelm him, and he ran blindly into the swamp area that sat in a stagnant, messy tract of land at the head of the creek. The creek itself turned into a silty, swampy mess here, and Daniel stumbled over tussocks here and there as the ground turned squishy.

"Daniel!" Mac was a little winded as he followed the stream to its end, the terrain and foliage turning heavy and dense as it became swamp land. A group of trees was right in front of him, forming a frame around what looked like a pond. The water's surface looked like creamy peanut butter mixed with sand. He swallowed hard, running his fingers through his hair looking for any sign of Daniel.

"Go away, white man!" A voice called from nearby, and Mac turned in time to see Daniel duck down a path that wound uphill and onto a steep embankment. The tall Cheyenne climbed the path with little difficulty despite his nudity, and Mac had to crane his neck after a few moments to keep sight of him. "Come on Daniel, let's talk!" Mac called to him, but Daniel only kept climbing.

Small rocks and gravel began to bounce down the embankment to land in the silty pond below, and Mac's heart leapt with fear. He opened his mouth to shout a warning, but it came too late. One of Daniel's feet slipped on the narrow path and suddenly he was rushing down the embankment in a helpless tumble. He went head over heels, bounced, then his body flipped over a moss-covered fallen log at the head of the pond. It only served to give his forward motion more momentum, and he landed in the brownish water with a muted splat.

He floated there for a moment, groaning and hurt, and Mac ran to the water's edge.

"Daniel!" Mac saw the Cheyenne and perched on the edge of the rocks, stretching out his hand. "Daniel take my hand! I'll pull you out."

Daniel blinked up at the white man's hand, and suddenly felt himself sinking. He remembered then Min's warning about the brownish stuff that looked like water but wasn't, and how if you stepped into it, you would sink like a stone. Like most Cheyenne, Daniel was a poor swimmer and the death they feared most was one by water. Panic overtook him and he began to struggle, but that only served to make him sink faster. I am a dead man . . . He thought as he again looked at Mac's outstretched hand. It was only several feet away, but it may have well been a hundred, or a thousand. The brown silt had already weighed Daniel down, and all he could do was struggle in one place.

He's not going to trust me...The thought flashed in MacGyver's head as he watched the blond man sink further into the nasty water. Another thought occurred to him and he swallowed hard.

"This isn't a good way for a Cheyenne to die Daniel!"

Of course it is not, you fool! Daniel thought to himself, but then another thought came to him. Perhaps this death, a death filled with fear and bad medicine, was Maiyun's way of punishing him. He was, after all, a half-breed who had done a terrible, filthy thing to try and gain his freedom from one of His full-blooded children. Perhaps, Daniel thought, this was the way it was supposed to be. It made so much sense to the young breed's exhausted mind that he simply stopped struggling. His eyes went blank, his limbs stilled, and he continued to sink.

"Oh no..." MacGyver straightened up and looked around, seeing that Daniel had fazed out, preparing for his death. He raised his head, seeing thick heavy vines that hung from the trees. He reached out and grabbed a few of them, pulling on them as hard as he could. They seemed sturdy and he tied one around his waist pulling it through his belt loops, the other end he looped around the trunk of the ancient looking tree.

Mac stood on the rocks that lined the water and sighed, taking a deep breath as he jumped feet first into it.

Daniel slipped under the brown silty surface of the quicksand without a sound, feeling nothing but relief at the thought that he would be dead in a few moments. He imagined the white man standing on the edge of the pond, watching him sink, perhaps laughing as he did so, smiling for sure. Whites, he knew, often took pleasure in watching other people suffer. This was his final thought before the air in his lungs ran out, and total blackness overtook him. Just as he slipped into that blackness, however, he felt a sharp tug at his braid.

There was a strange roaring sound in his ears, an urgent kind of roaring that was impossible to ignore. A strong arm slipped around his waist, the contact cutting through the blackness. The thought occurred to him that he was able to breathe, and he did so. It produced a terrible rattling noise, and his body began to struggle to clear itself of several quarts of quicksand as that strange roaring noise continued. The noise's quality suddenly changed, and became muffled words . . . "niel . . . an ooo eer me . . . "

Daniel groaned and coughed up more silt, then he turned his head from side to side as fingers poked rudely into his ears. The roaring noise ceased all at once, and he winced as a voice yelled in his ears at full volume.

"Daniel? Can you hear me?"

No response. Daniel's head lolled like a rag doll's against Mac's shoulders, and the other man feared it was too late. He used the vines attached to his belt to pull them both to shore, and lay Daniel down on the spongy but stable ground. The young Cheyenne seemed lifeless, and Mac started to clear silt from his face and hair. "Daniel? Daniel! Damn it, answer me!"

It was the white man, yelling at him to speak. His exhaustion was so complete that speaking was an impossibility at the moment, but he did manage to summon the strength to at least open his eyes so that the wasichu would quit shouting. His vision was slightly blurred, but he could see well enough to observe that the one called Mac was leaning over him, his face dirty with brown muck.

"That's it, open your eyes." Mac sighed in relief as he wiped the thick gritty silt from his face, shaking it off his hands. "God this stuff is nasty!" He could feel it in his hair and all over him, his t-shirt and jeans coated with the peanut butter-like substance as he helped Daniel sit up. "Are you okay?"

I was supposed to die . . . Daniel thought as he felt the man's hands on him, supporting him. The first suspicions that this puny, chattering white man might not be the great white devil crossed Daniel's mind and he was too exhausted to argue. He only sat there, breathing in quick, shallow pants. After a moment there was enough oxygen getting to his head to make him take notice of his surroundings, which he did. He and the white man were sitting on the banks of that stagnant pond, and he was covered in silt. No . . . not just him, they were both covered in the stuff! Daniel blinked and looked closer at the white man. There was a length of vine looped through his belt, and the other end of that vine was attached to a nearby tree. The two things came together, and the conclusion made Daniel's eyes go round. He sat up all the way, and stared with disbelief into the white man's eyes.

"What?" Mac looked around, creasing his brow. "What are you staring at? Is something big and ugly going to have us for lunch?"

"You . . . . you came in after me." Daniel said in a near-whisper.

"No. I jumped in." He wrung out his t-shirt and ran his hands down it. "This isn't how I pictured my day."

Daniel shook his head as if he hadn't heard right. "Jumped . . . . why? Why did you do that?" He asked, his dark blue eyes still wide with disbelief.

"Because you were sinking." Mac stood up and unbuckled his jeans, pulling the soaked denim down and kicking off his shoes. He had a pair of blue cotton short underneath. He crossed his arms over his chest and pulled his t-shirt over his head, he had on a light blue tank top. "Ah that's better." He wiped his face with his t-shirt.

"What are you doing?" Daniel asked loudly, and began to scramble away. I was right all along, he's just like the others, and now it starts . .

Mac's dark eyes widened, seeing the panic suddenly flash across Daniel's face. "Just changing...that's all. I don't want to have to go home covered in that stuff."

Daniel suddenly became painfully aware that the brown muck was all he was wearing, and he tried to cover himself with his hands. His thoughts were a confused whirl, and he scowled at the white man. "I do not understand!" He snapped softly, covering his confusion with anger. "You jumped in after me simply because you did not want to watch me sink?"

"No." Mac sat down, tucking his legs under him. "Because I didn't want to see you die."

Daniel blinked at him. "Why?"

"Why not? You deserve to live as much as the next guy."

Daniel stared at the white man in disbelief as the words echoed over and over in his mind. Never in his nineteen winters had anyone ever said that to him. That he was a mistake, yes. That he should not be allowed to exist, yes . . . many times . . . but never that he deserved to live. Hearing it said aloud made Daniel almost want to believe it. He looked up at the white man, who gave him an easy grin, and in that moment Daniel saw who he really was. He wasn't Mitchell Biggs, or any other of the countless, nameless white men who had paraded through Little Horse's tipi in a march of perversion. He was simply a good-natured, talkative white man who only wanted one thing from Daniel . . . friendship. This knowledge, and the memory of how Daniel had been treating him suddenly made his body flush with an embarrassed heat. He opened his mouth, tried to explain, but couldn't. There were no words. Instead, he stumbled to his feet and ran back in the direction of the farmhouse.

Mac sighed. "Well MacGyver you're batting a thousand today aren't you?" He said to himself as he got up and headed for home to a nice hot shower and Gillian.

Min sat in the darkened bedroom that she shared with Daniel, looking out the window into the sunny afternoon that belied her miserable mood. Daniel had vanished three hours earlier, and she was afraid he was gone for good this time, chased by a past he couldn't escape.

"Oh, Daniel . . . I'm so sorry." She sighed into the silence of the room, then gasped aloud when his tall, lean frame filled the bedroom doorway. Her eyes widened. He seemed to be covered in filth. She shook her head in disbelief, and he crossed the room in silence. As Min watched, stunned, he went to his knees and put his head in her lap like a small child. She touched his head gently, and he began to sob.

"Daniel...what is it? What happened to you?" She gazed down at the sobbing man in her lap and her touch extended to his back, brushing off the drying silt that was all over his skin. "Please Daniel, talk to me." Her own eyes began to fill with tears, he had never been like this before and she found it a little frightening.

"Min. Min please, forgive me. Forgive me! I have shut you out because I have been frightened of my own memories . . . I am so sorry, love. Please . . . " He buried his face in her lap, clutching at her shirt in wordless pleading.

"It's all right Daniel; I know your past haunts you." She rocked him slowly, trying to soothe him as best she could with her gentle words and touch. "Please tell me what happened, why are you so dirty and naked?"

Daniel ground out the story between sobs, and then exhausted hitches of breath as they tapered off. Then he wiped his tear streaked face with both hands, and looked up at Min. "Just say you forgive me, love. Please. I know that perhaps I do not deserve it, but I ask it anyway."

Min touched his chin, lifting it and wiping a smudge from it as she shook her head. Her hands roamed up both of his cheeks.

"Daniel of course I forgive you." A small smile lit up her face. "I love you, and nothing is ever going to change that."

Daniel sighed and closed his eyes tightly. "Thank you, love." He rose to his full height, and touched her hair gently. "I am going to use the shower, but when I return, there are things I must tell you. They are not pleasant things. Are you prepared to hear them?" He asked softly.

Min gave him a nod, her heart slamming hard within her chest. "Yes I am." She folded her denim-clad legs under her and tugged at the neck of the pink t-shirt she wore. "I'll be waiting for you."

Daniel took a long, hot shower, ridding himself of the last of the dried silt. He combed his waist-length blond hair until it was dry and shone like a new gold coin. Leaving it unbound, he slid a finely beaded clout up around his thighs, and tied the strings. After rubbing himself with fresh sage, he returned to the bedroom where Min was waiting. It seemed to Daniel that she hadn't moved since he's left, and he sat beside her. "What am I about to tell you is a deeply shameful thing, Min. When I finish telling you, I will allow you to ask any questions you might have, but after that, you must promise me that you will never speak of it again. Do you agree?"

Min nodded slowly, her eyes couldn't help but roam over every inch of Daniel. He looked so tall and proud, his hair shining in the overhead light. Her heart was beating so hard that she thought it would burst. "I promise."

"Ipewa." He nodded, and took a deep breath. "You already know about Little Horse, and about how I was nothing more than his slave after I failed my vision quest and my father's people turned their backs on me. It was after that, in my sixteenth winter that a white miner named Mitchell Biggs came to live in our camp. He became fast friends with Little Horse, and introduced him to many white habits. He taught my tribal brother how to chew tobacco, to drink whiskey . . . and how to make himself very, very wealthy at the expense of others." He took Min's hand. "You see, love . . . Biggs shared Little Horse's unusual tastes, and once they became friends, he would . . . share me with Biggs for a few gold coins or a fine new pony." Daniel ground the words out as if they were made of glass, his eyes dark with pain and shame.

Min swallowed hard, her mouth feeling as if it were filled with sand. "He used you to get things? Like a hooker?"

"I do not know what 'hooker' means . . . but I think so, yes. Little Horse began to call me his 'Pale Whore.' Then one night, when they were very drunk . . . " Daniel closed his eyes and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down quickly.

"I am sorry, sweet one . . . this is very hard to speak of, but it is also the reason that I distrust the white man that now lives next to us."

Min nodded, understanding for the first time why Daniel had gotten so upset back at the museum when she mentioned Mac moving next door. "I don't blame you for being mistrustful. I know you don't like him Daniel but Mac isn't like Biggs. I honestly don't think he would harm you."

"There is more I must tell you." Daniel said to her, and took another deep breath. "Biggs told Little Horse that they could make much money if he let other white man come to camp. He said that he knew of many men who traveled without a woman to spend their pleasures on, and that I would please any lonely miner he knew of." Daniel swallowed hard. "After that night, many white men began to come to Little Horse's tipi. Gold coins and ponies began to change hands, and I was the thing they were paying for. Little Horse and Biggs forced me to lie on my belly or . . . or . . . use my mouth on those men, and they made a fortune off of me! It went on for many phases of the moon, and then one night after their customers had come and I was allowed to go bathe, Biggs came to me by the river. I tried to get away from him, but I cannot swim very well. He held me in his arms and told me that he could free me . . . if I gave him something in return as is Cheyenne custom."

Min bit her lip, trying to stop the tears that puddled in her eyes and rolled freely down her face. She tugged on Daniel's wrist, pulling him into her arms. She held him tightly against her chest, squeezing her eyes shut. "He wanted you right?"

Daniel nodded a little, almost able to smell Biggs' whiskey soaked breath. "He had taken me before, but all those times I fought him to the point where he usually had to bind my hands and feet. What he wanted was my permission. He wanted me to beg him for it, then . . . lie with him as a willing partner." He sighed heavily, and bit his lower lip hard enough to taste blood. "He promised me my freedom, love . . . he swore that if I did this thing, he would give me a horse and supplies, then get Little Horse so drunk that he would pass out, and I could escape." He hesitated, and looked up at Min almost pleadingly. "You must understand how it was, love . . . Little Horse beat me almost daily, as well as taking me to his furs. I would have done almost anything, I suppose, to taste the freedom that Biggs offered me that night."

Min let go of him and pulled back, wiping her face. She saw the answer to her next question in his pained blue eyes. "He lied to you didn't he? You were willing for him and he didn't keep his word did he?"

Daniel's fists clenched almost of their own accord. "I went to him the next night, down by the river. I went to his furs willingly, did everything he asked." The big Cheyenne closed his eyes as he remembered Biggs whispering in his ear, telling him to beg and to speak words that made Daniel's face burn with shame. "He even had the bag of supplies he'd promised, and told me that he'd take me to the pony herd and give me a horse to ride when we were finished. But he lied. When he'd taken what he wanted from me, he held me down, tied my hands and feet, and took me to Little Horse and told him he'd caught me trying to escape. Little Horse rewarded him handsomely for catching his half-breed runaway . . . and I was punished so severely that by the time he was done with me, I prayed for Maiyun to let me die."

The young woman closed her eyes, not even wanting to imagine what Little Horse had done to him. She shook her head wiping her hands down her face as she exhaled through them. "I don't even think I want to know."

Daniel squeezed her hand. "I will only say that Little Horse was the only man I ever knew that could wield his lance like a weapon." He said, then sighed deeply. "I looked guilty, of course. After all, Biggs had the bag of supplies and a roll of furs with him as proof that I was going to run away." Daniel shook his head, then looked up at her. "Biggs was a tall man with dark blond hair and brown eyes. He offered me friendship and freedom, then put me in such a hurting place with Little Horse that I nearly bled to death afterwards. My father's good friend, Crying Woman, healed me." Daniel took Min's other hand. "And that is why I hated the white man that calls himself Mac, love! Whenever I looked at him, all I could see was Biggs."

"I know that he probably does look like Biggs love but what's important is that he isn't. He's a nice guy, I mean if he wasn't he wouldn't have helped you out of the swamp."

"I know." Daniel hung his head. "I have wronged him because I could not face my own past, and I am deeply ashamed because of it." His long fingers began to caress Min's hands gently. "I am also ashamed that I have been afraid to share pleasures with you because of this thing." He swallowed hard. "I am afraid, love, because all I have ever known is pain. All those men that paid Little Horse and Biggs, themselves."

Min nodded, her fingers beginning to caress his gently. "I know all that you have ever known when it comes to pleasures is pain but it's not painful." Her face heated in a blush suddenly and she turned away briefly.

"I have never known pleasures, but in my heart I do know that if you share them with someone you love how could it possibly be painful?"

Daniel turned his face away. "Little Horse used to tell me he loved me."

She touched his chin and turned his face back towards her. "I'm sure he did, but you didn't love him back Daniel and that makes all the difference in the world." Her hand stroked down his cheek.

"I want to lie with you, love." He said in a near whisper, his eyes suddenly locking with hers. "I want to feel something besides pain and humiliation . . . I want to feel the love you say you have for me, and give you mine in return."

Min's eyes widened a little and her heart sped up in her chest as she swallowed hard. "You do? Right now?"

A warm smile spread over Daniel's handsome face. "Yes. It is time I faced my fears, and this is the best place to start, I think."

The young woman's hands were shaking as they went to both sides of his face, her thumbs stroking them. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm scared to death too." She ran her hands up his cheeks and into his hair, gently tilting his head back. She got up on her knees and moved closer to him, leaning forward she brushed her lips against his throat gently.

A low moan escaped Daniel's lips and his arms slid around her, pulling her close to him. Fear mixed with physical pleasure, which was how it had always been with Little Horse and his clients. Shame threatened to turn his passion to ashes, and he forced it back. It is not the same! He told himself, and began to caress her back with his hands.

Min kissed up all the way up to his face before starting down each side of his neck. His skin was soft and smooth and his natural oil blended with the sage made a wonderful scent that turned her knees to water. She wanted to lose herself in the smell and taste of his skin as her hands slid down his chest slowly.

Daniel trembled at her touch, trembling that had little to do with his fear. Her touch made his bare skin ripple, and he held her tighter.

Min stopped what she was doing long enough to pull her t-shirt over her head. She reached around her waist and took one of Daniel's hands and kissed it, laying it gently on her breast. His long fingers completely covered the lacy white material of her bra. "Touch me Daniel, it's all right."

His fingers closed gently over her breast, and he pulled away when he felt the nipple harden against his palm and heard Min's gasp, thinking he'd hurt her. "I'm sorry, I did not mean to-" He began, but she quieted him with a kiss, and put his hand back where it had been. He touched her gently again, then pulled at the material a bit. "Take it off." He whispered, his voice hoarse with desire. "Take it off, so I can touch your skin." 

Min reached behind her, unhooking the bra. She hesitated for a second knowing that Daniel had seen her in under clothes before but never naked. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly as the bra slid down her arms, revealing her chest. She swallowed hard, her body quivering.

Daniel touched her bare skin cautiously, his eyes full of almost childlike wonderment. After a moment, he dipped his head and his lips found her nipples. He tasted them gently with his tongue, then raised his head to smile at her. "Sku-ya, sweet."

Daniel's attention resulted in a flush that formed two red areas on the young woman's cheeks. Her eyes were wide with longing and a tiny hint of fear as she bent her head and did the same to him, her tongue tracing over his chest gently.

"Uh!" Daniel started in surprise as he felt her lips close over one of the nipples on his chest, then he thought of something that made him chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Min tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear as she lifted her head to look at him.

He chuckled again. "Cheyenne men have very little body hair, as you can see. I was only thinking that I hope you do not prefer it, because . . . " He gestured to his chest, which boasted only a thin line of almost invisible blond hair between his nipples. "I have seen that white men are very hairy. I have even seen some with hair on their backs, like those apes we saw at the Atlanta zoo!"

Min shook her head, laughing. "A little hair is okay but when its more than monkey then there's definitely a problem." She wrapped her arms around his neck touching her nose to his. "But even if you were hairy like a beast, I would still love you and make love to you." She closed her eyes, brushing her lips against his slowly.

Bright flashes of wanting went off somewhere deep in Daniel's body, mixed with dark clouds of fright. "Love . . . I am afraid." He whispered, but kissed her just the same. "I am afraid of loving you, and letting you love me."

"So am I." She touched her forehead to his. "I'm very scared Daniel but I want you. I want to be with you, I want to give you something I can never give to another man." She quickly climbed down from the bed and took off her jeans, climbing back on the bed once more to face him.

Daniel swallowed hard. "Does it bother you . . . . that I have been . . . . " He forced the word out with some difficulty. "Used?"

"Used?" Min's brow creased as she pulled back to look at him. "Daniel...you're a virgin too, just in a different way than I am."

His dark blue eyes seemed to lighten as he smiled. "That is a good way to think of it, love. It is true that I have never lain with a woman." I can only hope it is less painful than laying with a man, He thought, and took a deep breath. Following his natural instincts, he slid his big hands down Min's body and cupped both breasts gently again.

Min closed her eyes tilting her head back, a soft sigh coming out of her mouth as she did so. Her hands touched Daniel's gently taking a hold of his wrists. "Your touch is so gentle love."

"I want to please you." He whispered, and slid his right hand down further. It traveled down the length of her hip, over her leg, then hesitated unsurely before coming to rest just below her inner thigh. Daniel looked up, his eyes dark with fervor. Still, they sought her permission to continue.

Min swallowed hard, lying back on the bed. Her gaze still focused on Daniel and she gave him a little nod. "You will please me love, I know you will. I want you to touch me."

A shiver ran through Daniel's body at her words, and he nodded a little. "I will try, love." He said softly, and looked down at her.

Min trembled, seeing where Daniel's eyes stared. She sat up running her hands down Daniel's chest to his clout and began to untie it carefully. "I wish to see you love."

His blood surged, and Daniel hissed in a sharp breath as he felt himself go instantly rigid as her fingers brushed at his hips. A whimper escaped him, and he watched her as if hypnotized.

Min loosened the ties at his hips and carefully peeled the deerskin down, revealing the area below his belly button. She could see the start of his glory trail, the fine hair golden in the light. With trembling hands, she moved the clout down further and her eyes widened when she saw what lay beneath it.

The look of wonderment on Min's face at his revealed nakedness made Daniel's cheeks heat with a blush. "Is . . . is it all right, Min?" He asked softly.

"All right?" Min cleared her throat looking away, her face now as crimson as Daniel's. She turned back, a smile coming to her mouth. "It's just that...I've seen... and..." She covered her eyes with her hands. "I've never seen one so...big."

Daniel glanced down at himself. He'd known from comments made by Little Horse and by the men he'd been rented out to that he was larger than average, but still, Min's comment made him nervous. "Is it? What if I hurt you?" He asked.

"I don't think you'd hurt me Daniel." Min smiled again, her hand reaching out to touch the thick manhood gently, marveling at how velvety it felt. She swallowed hard, raising her head and leaning towards him to capture his lips with hers.

Kissing was still a new experience for Daniel, since few Indians practiced it, but he found he enjoyed the sensation more and more as time went on. He returned the kiss with not much finesse, but with enough enthusiasm to make up for the lack. As he kissed her, his right hand dipped into the valley between Min's thighs. He heard her gasp, and broke their kiss to look into her eyes.

"Is it all right?" He asked. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No Daniel it's just that..." Her face turned a slight shade of pink. "I wasn't expecting it." She swallowed hard again, looking directly in his face. "But I trust you Daniel, completely." She put her hand over his and let his fingers touch the waistband of her blue flowered panties.

Daniel gave her a small smile, and tugged gently on the material. Min lifted her hips, and the panties came off with a small whisper of cotton. Daniel then looked down at the first nude female form he'd ever seen in his life, and found himself highly aroused. Something primitive and ancient welled up inside of him, and he leaned into her until she was nearly on her back with him leaning over her. A part of him was ready for the pain he knew would most likely accompany this act, for he expected no less. To him, it would be worth it. "Oh love." He whispered, and reached out to stroke her hair. "How beautiful you are."

Min smiled, staring up into the most gorgeous blue eyes she had ever seen. They were a brilliant blue, sparkling like sapphires as they gazed at her. She touched his face gently, running her hand up his cheek. "And you are handsome Daniel, probably the most handsome man I've ever seen." Her heart sped up in her chest as she closed her eyes and hugged him around the neck, her fingers playing with his thick blond hair.

Daniel chuckled a little. "The women in my father's camp always said that mold ran when Maiyun made me. I was too tall, too pale, and had eyes like a white man. Even if I had not failed my vision quest and was permitted to marry, my father would have had to pay some maiden's father very handsomely in order to find me a bride." He laughed again, then ducked his head to rain soft, gentle kisses on Min's neck and ears.

Min closed her eyes, every brushing of his lips causing goose bumps to break out all over her. Her fingers curled in his hair briefly before sliding down his back to touch his behind, she gave it a gentle squeeze. "You're making me crazy Daniel."

Daniel stiffened briefly as her hand squeezed his flesh back there, and he reminded himself firmly that this was not Little Horse's tipi. The man had no doubt been dust for many many seasons, and this was only the woman he loved, nothing more. So he forced himself to relax, and let his instincts guide him.

Min was squirming under him slightly, so he slid down a bit and began to lick and nibble at her breasts again while his right hand slid back between her thighs. He felt that she was getting ready, but knew it would take much pleasure before her virginal body could take a man of his size.

Daniel's attention on her chest sent a shudder of warm heady pleasure rolling down her spine. She bit back a moan giving his behind a more forceful squeeze. "Feels good Love."

He glowed with pleasure at her praise, and it gave him courage. He left her breasts and began to lick his way down to her navel. He paused there . . . then slid even lower. Min's loud gasp of pleasure reached his ears, and he reached up to toy with her nipples as his head rocked slowly between her legs.

"Oh God..." Min whimpered, her hand reaching down to grab his hair. Her hips came a little off the bed as his tongue stirred a pleasure that started in her belly, making her breathing ragged.

Daniel kept at her for several more minutes, then he himself could hold off no longer. He sat up and rose over her, his eyes dark with adoration as he looked down at her. "I will go slowly." He said softly as he touched her hair. "If I should hurt you, tell me, and I will stop. All right?"

Min nodded, her cheeks flushed with excitement as she swallowed hard. "I know you wouldn't hurt me on purpose Daniel, I trust you with all my heart." She craned her neck and gave him a tiny kiss. 

Steeling himself, Daniel gently lowered himself onto Min's prone form and shifted himself until he found the place which would allow them to unite. He looked down at his woman to see her smiling up at him in a dreamy, thoughtful way, her dark eyes full of love and devotion. With a trembling sigh, Daniel thrust his hips forward gently and entered her.

Min squeezed her eyes shut briefly, a slight whimper coming out of her but she refused to let the discomfort get in the way. She wrapped her arms around Daniel's shoulders tightly.

"I love you Daniel, I'll belong only to you."

"I vow the same, love." Daniel whispered to her, his flesh filling her little by little. "I will love only you for the rest of my days . . . and beyond." He reached the yielding barrier that was Min's virginity, and lowered his head to kiss her as he broke through it with one swift stroke. She cried out against his lips, and he waited until her body relaxed against his again before starting a gentle rhythmic stroking. He himself was close to orgasm . . . and the pain he knew would come with it. Perhaps it will be different with Min, he thought. Perhaps all I will feel is pleasure. He knew it was a lot to hope for, but he continued on anyway.

Min lifted her legs, encircling Daniel's hips as he moved within her. The pain was long gone and replaced by a slow building pleasure that made her grab the flesh of his back, her nails lightly grazing it.

"You feel so good, more wonderful than I dreamed you would." Warm tears rolled down her face as she smiled up at him, raising her head to kiss his neck and collarbone.

Daniel could only nod, not wanting to voice his own fears to her. A woman wanted someone strong and sure of themselves, and Daniel wanted to start being that man for Min. He'd known long ago that he wanted her for a wife . . . he just hoped that she would feel the same way when he asked her, because he knew now that he couldn't live without her.

"Nemehotatse, Min . . . I love you." He whispered into her ear. She responded, and Daniel felt that subtle shift in his body that meant his climax was inevitable. It all but blew him to pieces less than two seconds later, engulfing him, setting him ablaze. He threw his head back and cried out, every muscle in his body trembling, his eyes wide and amazed. It went on and on, and somewhere during that time he heard Min cry out as well. Finally it was fading, leaving his body in one low, mellow throb. He fell over onto his side and lay there, breathing hard.

Min opened her eyes; her breathing and her pulse were finally back to normal. She looked and saw Daniel beside her; a smile came to her face as she curled up beside him, her arm across his waist.

"Oh God Daniel that was amazing." She planted a few kisses on his shoulder, nuzzling it.

There was no response, and Min sat up a little. "Daniel? Are you all-" She looked down at him to find him staring up at her with a mixed expression of wonder and puzzlement on his handsome face.

"Love, what is it?" She asked, and stroked his cheek.

Daniel opened his mouth to answer her . . . . and burst into tears.

Min laid down on top of him, hugging him around his neck. "What is it? What's wrong?" She buried her head against his shoulder stroking his hair, not sure what to do.

Daniel's body trembled as if all of his nerves had turned into electrical wires, and he wrapped his arms around Min as he cried for reasons not even he understood. After a few moments he pulled away from her and wiped his eyes.

"Forgive me . . . " He said, and gave her a trembly smile. "I weep because I felt nothing but joy at our union, love. It . . . it was not what I expected." He explained.

Min smiled, running her fingers down his cheek. "There's nothing to forgive love." She closed her eyes and kissed him, touching her forehead to his. "It was worth waiting for." Her face turned red as she pulled back to look at him. "Perhaps it would be something we could do again."

Daniel laughed through his tears at her words. "Yes, of course, if you wish!"

The blush calmed down in her face as her smile faded. "What were you expecting Daniel?"

His laughter tapered off and he sobered at her question. "I . . . " He ran a hand through his hair. "I was with many men during my slave-time, Min. Being taken to the furs was a very familiar experience for me, and . . . it was a painful one too. Little Horse said he loved me, yet he caused me pain as well. I . . . I thought that it was a part of the pleasures." He sighed deeply. "I expected to feel pain . . . because I have never spent pleasures before without it."

Min shook her head, hugging him around the waist. "Now you know the truth Daniel. When two people love each other there is no pain, only pleasure." She leaned her head against his chest and kissed it a few times.

"Ipewa, I am glad for it." He sighed, and kissed the top of her head.

As Min began to drop off to sleep a few minutes later, Daniel slipped out of the bed and kissed her lips gently. "Sleep, sweet one . . . there is something I must do." He whispered to her, and left the bedroom quietly.

MacGyver stepped out of the bathroom, a blue towel wrapped around his waist. He had another one in his hand, using it to dry off his hair. He saw his wife sitting on the bed, her legs tucked under her. She had a small smile on her face, patiently waiting for an explanation.

Mac sighed, setting the towel aside.

"Hey." He went over to his oak dresser and opened the drawers, pulling clothes out of them.

"So, are you going to tell me where you've been and why you came home covered with slime, or am I going to read about it in the Hazzard Gazette Societies Page?" Gillian asked, her tone light and slightly teasing.

The drawers closed with a slight thud as he turned around, raising an eyebrow. "I doubt what happened to me is newsworthy Gill." He took off his towel, slipping on a pair of blue boxers and black shorts over them.

Gillian frowned a little. "Well . . . what did happen? You came home looking like you went swimming in a swamp!"

"I did go swimming in the swamp, thanks to our neighbor." Mac pulled a white t-shirt over his head and sat down beside his wife. "Daniel ran away from me and I went after him. He fell into some quicksand but wouldn't let me pull him out so I went diving in after him." He sighed, running his fingers through his hair.

"You what?" Gillian nearly cried, her eyes going round. "Mac, are you crazy? You both could've been killed!"

"So what was I supposed to do? I tried to reach him but he wouldn't take my hand! He just kept looking at me like I was some monster from under his bed!"

Gillian nodded a little. "Min's told me that Daniel has some troubles concerning his past. She didn't go into details, but I get the feeling that a lot of how he feels about you has to do with what he's been through." She smiled and touched his hand. "You saved his life, Mac. I'm proud of you."

MacGyver gave his wife's hand a squeeze. "Yeah well, whether he hates me or not I couldn't let him die." He looked away from her. "I just wish we could be friends."

"What happened after you pulled him out?" Gillian asked. "Did he say anything to you?"

"He didn't realize I had jumped in and he was pretty surprised. He wanted to know why so I told him and he got up and took off."

Gillian sighed and shook her head. "Maybe Min can talk to him. After all, you saved his life, he can't just ig-" Gillian broke off as the doorbell chimed. "I'll get it." She said, and walked down the hall to the front room. When she opened the door, her eyes widened in surprise as she found Daniel standing there, dressed in only a pair of fringed breeches and a pair of dark brown beaded moccasins. His long blond hair was flowing free almost to his waist, and he cleared his throat nervously.

"Greetings." He said in a soft voice that belied his size, and glanced over her shoulder. "I . . . I would speak with your husband, please."

Gillian nodded, stepping aside to let him come in. "Sure, come in." She closed the door behind her and pointed down the hall. "He's in our bedroom; it's the last door on the left."

"Hahoo." Daniel thanked her in Cheyenne, and walked down the hall to where she'd pointed. Daniel glanced through the half open door, and saw the white man sitting on a bed, rubbing his face with his hands as if he were exhausted or confused. Daniel knew it was probably both, and that he was the cause for both states of affairs. Steeling himself, Daniel stepped into the room and approached the man quietly. "Greetings, wasichu." He said softly. "We must speak, you and I."

Mac's hands slid down his face as his head whipped towards the door. "Daniel?" His dark eyes were wide as he shifted on the bed to face him. "What are you doing here?"

"As I said, we must speak. But not here." Daniel turned back towards the door. "Nennase, come." He left the room and walked down the hall, hoping the white man would follow.

"You're not going back out to the swamp are you?" Mac got off the bed and quickly ran his brush through his hair as he slipped on a pair of house shoes, following Daniel outside.

"No, wasichu. That is not my intention." Daniel walked down the slope of Mac's property, where he crossed the creek by the way of several stepping stones planted in the shallow water. They were on Daniel's property now, and several of his horses grazed in the fading twilight. Daniel glanced at them fondly, then spoke without facing his neighbor. "It seems that I owe you a great debt." He said softly.

"Not really, no. Neighbors do things for each other." Mac walked around him, facing the tall Cheyenne. "So do friends."

"Indeed." Daniel sighed, and looked away. "There are things I feel that I must tell you now, but those things will not be easy to say." He began to climb the grassy slope that crested at a small hill, and overlooked the Duke farm. As he walked, Mac was amazed to note that several horses were following Daniel like faithful dogs. As he caught up with the tall breed, Daniel folded his legs up under him easily and sat down on the ground. "Sit, please." He said to Mac, still not meeting his eyes.

"Okay." MacGyver sat down across from him, drawing his legs up and holding them. He had a lot of questions but decided to keep his mouth shut and let his shy neighbor do the talking.

"I came from a place very far from here, wasichu." Daniel sighed, looking down at the home he now shared with Min. "Before I came here, I . . . I was not like other men. I had no boyhood, and my brave years, as we call them, were one long nightmare that I cannot seem to awaken from. I am trying, though, and I think with Min's help I can put them behind me." He paused, and closed his eyes briefly. "It is because of those things that I have been treating you badly."

Mac was taken aback by his statement, his eyebrows raising. "Oh...well... I'm sorry you've had such a rough time."

A ghost of a smile touched Daniel's full lips. "You are kind to say that after the way I have acted. You must understand, though . . . my experiences with white men have not been good ones." Daniel took a deep breath, gathering his courage. "Especially one white man in particular. A man named Mitchell Biggs. You resemble him greatly, and . . . " Daniel's hands trembled ever so slightly. "He betrayed me to a fellow Cheyenne that saw me as his property. I suppose I was." He said softly, and continued. "I sold my soul to this man in exchange for my freedom, and he betrayed me." Daniel finally turned his dark blue eyes up to Mac's brown ones, and Mac could see the silent plea in them. Do not make me explain further!

Mac nodded slowly licking his lips, swallowing hard. "So seeing me or having me around kind of reminded you of this Biggs?" He nodded, clearing his throat. "Well yeah I can see how that might make you less than thrilled having me live next door."

"Perhaps that is so, but . . . it reminded me more of my own shame and humiliation. When a man remembers the things that happened to him when he was a boy, those feelings usually turn into anger. I struck out at you because the men who put me in such a hurting place are gone. I judged you without a second thought . . . and I am sorry for it." Daniel said softly. "I see now that you have a good heart. And courage, too, something you do not often see in a white man." He said with a touch of good humor.

Mac couldn't help but smile at that statement. "Thanks, but what I did wasn't out of courage Daniel. It was the right thing to do even if you were my enemy."

"You were never my enemy. I let my memories talk me into thinking that you were. I have wronged you, wasichu, and I must make amends for it." Daniel got to his feet. "Wait here." He walked off into the fading twilight, leaving Mac there with a puzzled frown on his face. The tall breed was gone for several minutes, then he returned leading a horse on a length of rope. Mac recognized the horse as being the mare Daniel had accused him of trying to steal. Her bright coat gleamed in the near-dark, and Daniel patted her neck gently before handing Mac the lead rope. "A gift." He said firmly, looking Mac in the eye. "I know how you admire her. Now she is yours."

Mac's mouth dropped open as he took the rope. "Daniel I can't...I mean... She's..." He shook his head, his exasperated breath coming out his mouth as he looked at the mare, still completely stunned that Daniel wanted to give her to him.

Daniel held up his right hand, palm out, and then held up one long index finger a gesture that left no doubt to it's meaning. "She is yours. I have said it, and it is so." A small smile curved the tall man's lips, suddenly making him seem much less intimidating. "You offered me friendship before . . . does that offer still stand?"

Mac reached out and patted the mare on the nose, shaking his head. "God she's beautiful."

The horse nudged his hand with her nose and he laughed.

"Spunky little thing aren't you?" He heard Daniel's question and blushed. "Sorry I didn't mean to ignore you." A smile broke out on his face. "And the answer to your question is yes."

"Ipewa." Daniel said softly, and held out his hand the way Min had taught him. "Should we shake on it then, wasichu?"

"Yeah, there's just one little thing." He held out his hand. "Try Mac, white man sounds so...generic."

Daniel gripped his hand. "Mac." He nodded, and tapped his own chest with his other hand. My father's people would call me Kahameeigwishiello, which is my Cheyenne name. Min and her family call me Daniel. You may also call me Daniel if you wish." He said with another small smile. A blush heated his cheeks suddenly, and he looked Mac in the eye. "I must ask you something now, Mac. What you said in the swamp, about my deserving to live . . . did you mean those words?"

MacGyver shook his hand and then released it. "Yeah I did mean it. I've seen a lot of things terrible things in this world Daniel and one thing it's taught me is that all life is precious, no matter what."

Daniel thought briefly of Little Horse and Biggs, then nodded a little. "No one had ever said that to me before." He admitted. "I have spent so much of my life being told I was worthless that I suppose I believed it." He gave Mac a quick grin, like heat lightning on the horizon. "Thank you for your efforts to make me see otherwise."

"I've come to notice that the people that tell you are worthless are only trying to make themselves look better." Mac patted Daniel on the back. "Maybe its time you asked yourself if the ones that told you stuff like that were so great."

Daniel blinked as though that thought had never occurred to him. "That is a good way of looking at things." He agreed, and looked down at the house he shared with Min. The porch light was on, and the windows glowed with a warm light. "My woman is a good cook." He ventured unsurely, "and I have yet to eat this evening. Perhaps you will come and share a meal with me?"

Mac smiled, nodding his head. "I'd like that, but what about Bright Skye here?" He patted her neck, his fingers gliding down her parti-colored mane.

"Is that what you would call her?" Daniel asked, interested. "It is a good name. Leave her here, Mac, she will be fine with the other mares until we finish our meal. Come, I will ask Min to make us buffalo steaks." He said as they started down the hill towards the house.

"You heard him Skye, go play with the other horses." Mac patted her on the side as she trotted off. He walked beside Daniel towards the farmhouse. "Buffalo huh, can't say I've ever had any."

"Then you have not lived!" Daniel exclaimed as they climbed the porch of the house. As Daniel held the door open for Mac and let the white man cross the threshold into his home, he felt something loosen in his chest, as if a boulder that had been sitting on his heart had suddenly been rolled aside.

Min was waiting for them in the kitchen, and she smiled at Daniel as if she knew what had transpired outside. He smiled back, feeling his love for her. I am going to marry you, woman. He thought to himself.

Daniel walked up to Min, encircling her waist in a gentle embrace as he watched his new friend sit down at the kitchen table. The Cheyenne felt the warmth of his woman's body, and visualized a door closing inside his head. Behind that door was Little Horse, Mitchell Biggs, and their parade of white men. Perhaps I can never close that door completely, but maybe this man has made it so it only opens from the outside.  It was a nice thought that brought a small smile to Daniel's face, for the first time in what seemed like ages he felt a kind of peace start to settle around his heart.