Full Summary:
Sachi Thompson was killed by a shark nearly one year ago. Snow Bird and the other Cheyenne were killed at Washita around the same time Sachi died. Their spirits have merged on one place, now home to both of their families. What happens when Sachi's brother starts seeing her around town? What happens when the Aurora Borealis appears over the meadow? Will the reason the spirits of these loved ones finally be revealed? And when these loved ones died, where did their spirits end up?
An Attack:
Pennsylvania Beach Resort: Sachi:
I was in the ocean with my brother and sisters. We were laughing, just having a good time on the beach. It had been the first time we had been to the beach since the passing of our parents, nearly three months ago. They had been killed when the earth shook under our feet one morning. Many people had been killed that day, and we had become orphans that day as well. But somehow we still survived, one day at a time. My name was Sachi, the meaning meant simply: Bear*. My mother had a knack for naming her children after animals. My brother's name is John, not named after an animal because our father named him. My sisters' names are Posetha: Cat, Sisilia: Buffalo, Árusa: Horse and Bo'nai: Mouse.
It was a hot day, during the last month of school. I would be graduating this year and heading into hopefully college. John was one year younger than me, but we understood what we had to do for our family to survive. This was to be our last month in Pennsylvania. We were heading west to Colorado Springs, where we would start over. We had nearly everything packed up and ready for the journey, and our house would be sold soon so we needed to be ready to leave immediately. The money was going to help us with the journey. We were going to be taking the train nearly the whole way and I knew our folks would be proud of us.
I saw Bo move towards the beach as my other sisters did the same. They liked the water, but I was the one that always loved to swim. It was as if I had been born in the water, as if I were a real life mermaid. But being a mermaid didn't help me that day. John looked towards our sisters as they moved to the beach. It was only a second that he looked away. And when the whistle was blown by the lifeguard to get out of the water, John's head whipped around so fast he felt his neck crack. I was farther out then he was, near where the ocean bottom dropped away into the deep sea. John felt something brush his leg and then he screamed my name as I went under.
I fought to get back to the surface, kicked at whatever had dragged me under. I could hear someone screaming my name; hear the sound of water rushing into my ears. I opened my eyes as I was let go for a minute and what I saw made me rush to the surface. I screamed the second my head broke the water's surface. I kept screaming as the shark came around for a second strike. My scream ended as I was drug under the water again. I kicked and hit the shark with my fists and feet. It let go again. I popped back above the water. This time, as I screamed I saw a boat rushing to help me. John was somehow by my side and when the shark came around for a third strike, John slammed a knife into its gills. The shark took off but didn't get far.
John pulled me to the shore, the boat stayed in the water looking for the shark. The shark was found minutes after John and I got to the shore. It was dead but it had done what it had wanted. It had eaten before it died. John covered my body with a towel given to him by a beachgoer. He looked at his younger sisters who were sitting on their towels, twenty steps from where I now lay. He looked back down at me. He saw me gasp for air and knew that I was going to die. The doctors were unable to get to be fast enough. I gasped one more time before the air left my lungs.
Sachi was dead, but what was to become of her spirit?
Washita: Snow Bird:
They fell into our camp before the sun rose. We never had a chance to fight back. Most of us were still sleeping. Those that were able to run didn't get far. Black Kettle and his wife were by the river, getting water for that morning's breakfast. We were told we would be safe if we headed south to Fort Cobb. I guess we were wrong to once again trust the white man and his words.
I heard horses approaching at a quick speed. I was losing my breath to live fast and I wanted to see my husband before I died. I needed to see him, to tell him that I would be alright. I could hear them searching for any living among the people. I didn't even realize that Sully was standing over me until he called for Cloud Dancing and Dr. Mike. Relief spread over me as I knew my husband had come. I told them what happened, told them we were unable to fight back. I told Cloud Dancing that I loved him and then my breath left me. I was not alone when I died.
I thought I would journey with the rest of my people to the final resting place in the sky, but we were wrong again. We didn't go to the sky like we thought. Our spirits stayed on the mother earth. We watched as Cloud Dancing, Sully & Dr. Mike prepared our burial sites. Cloud Dancing went a different way while Sully & Dr. Mike took the only living survivor of that horrible day back to Colorado Springs with them. I later learned his name was Live In Hopes, something Black Kettle had last said to both Sully & Dr. Mike. I would miss my husband and friends dearly, but I knew that our being on mother earth still meant something.
Though our friends and loved ones could not see us, we could see them. No Harm came over and stood next to me and I took his hand. He asked what would happen to our spirits since we did not go to the final resting place in the sky. I told him that I did not know. Shortly after he asked that question and our friends had departed the area where we were killed, the animals of the surrounding area came out into the opening. One animal in particular seemed different than the rest. It was a bear.
The bear walked up to where we were standing and stepped back a few paces before the real transformation began. The bear turned into a white child of about fourteen moons. She stood in front of us but did not seem to see our color or the fact that we were not white. She smiled, a pretty smile I noticed before No Harm pointed at the scar around her chest, something I had overlooked. The girl had what looked like a very big fish bite on her chest. She came to us. Smiled at myself and my people. She bent down to No Harm and extended her hand as if to say it was okay for him to take it. He looked at me but I was still so amazed at the fact that this bear had been a human spirit.
What were we to do now?
Vocabulary:
*Sachi: Bear [Not true, but I liked the name so it is true in this story]
Posetha: Cat [Shawnee Tribes]
Árusa: Horse [Pawnee Tribes]
Sisilia: Buffalo [Lenape-Delaware Tribes]
Bo'nai: Mouse [Shoshoni Tribes]
A
