Hello again all! This month marks one full year since I started writing this story (I can hardly believe it.) One full year of getting to be a official part of an amazing fandom with so many wonderful and supportive fans. Thank you to everyone who has ever read/reviewed/responded to my PM"s/answered my forum post and just generally showed support or appreciation for this story. I really couldn't have done it without all of you. It took me so long to work up the courage to register on this site and talk myself into posting the very first chapter of this story. I can still remember shaking after hitting post that first time but it turned out to be one of the best decisions I've made in writing (and I'll be honest, one of the best decisions I've made in keeping my sanity this past year)! So if there's anyone out there who wants to write or participate officially in this fandom, I want to encourage you to do it too. It's wonderful here on the "registered" side.
In this chapter, as I mentioned at the end of my last chapter, I primarily focus on Margaret and Juliet's adjustment to living together in the Mohican cabin and I also brought up some of the lingering grief with Uncas and Alice. As a public service announcement, there will be a punishment later on in the chapter that might seem harsh to some but it is a traditional Lenape/Mohican form of discipline with children (it actually appears that it was common among many different Eastern Woodlands tribes). Please enjoy the chapter! As always, notes and translations are at the bottom.
Song Listing for this Chapter:
Start Again by Red
Chapter 29-Adjustments
Margaret bent down to water one of the dirt mounds that had corn, beans and squash growing out of it. Her arms ached from carrying the heavy bucket of water but since it hadn't rained in a while, they had to water the garden themselves. All of the adults-Wachesa Nathaniel, Kaheteta Cora and Machom Chingachgook-had helped haul the water from the stream but they had told her and Juliet that it was their job to water each of the mounds containing the corn, beans and squash or the Three Sisters as the Mohicans called them in the garden. Kaheteta Cora was watering another part of the garden that contained the other vegetables they were growing while the men had gone off to bring back firewood.
As she moved down the row of mounds that she was watering, Margaret noticed how high the corn had gotten at home since she had come to stay with the Mohicans. She wondered how high the corn was at home now and how Mama and Papa were doing. Tears came to her eyes. It had only been a few weeks but it felt like she had been gone for years.
Trying to distract herself, she remembered the reason that they planted the Three Sisters in mounds together. Machom Chingachgook had told her and Juliet all about it when she had asked why after noticing how different the corn looked planted in mounds instead of a field. "They help each other grow as sisters should, as a family should," he'd explained. "The corn's stalk creates a place where the bean vines can cling to and grow while the squash's leaves grow out at the base to keep down the weeds." Margaret had liked the story; she had always liked hearing Machom Chingachgook's stories whenever he, Wachesa Nathaniel and Wachesa Uncas had visited the farm. Another lump welled up in her throat when she thought about Wachesa Uncas. When he and his family had come and visited them last spring, she hadn't thought it was the last time she would ever see him. She could still remember how excited she had been when he had tossed her in the air after she had ran across the field to meet him and how his whole face had lit up with his smile.
Margaret desperately tried to think of something else. All of the Mohicans had been kind and welcoming to her, especially Wachesa Nathaniel and Kaheteta Cora. On her very first night at the cabin, Machom Chingachgook had taken Juliet to the wigwam with him and left her alone in the cabin with them. Wachesa Nathaniel had sat her on his lap and told her that he and Kaheteta Cora loved her very much and considered her a part of their family. "As long as you are here, we will treat you no differently than we do Juliet." He'd said and Kaheteta Cora agreed. All the grown-ups had tried to make her feel a part of the family. Machom Chingachgook would often sit her and Juliet on his knees in the evening and either tell them a Mohican story or read from one of the books in the cabin. Wachesa Nathaniel worked with them on learning to track through the forest around the cabin and showed them how to swim in the creek. Kaheteta Cora kept them busy working with her in the garden, cooking or giving them sewing lessons. Sometimes it was enough the Margaret wouldn't think about Mama and Papa and their farm. But other times, it wasn't and she didn't know what to do.
" The water bucket is empty, nlunkohses." Margaret jumped at the sound of Wachesa Nathaniel's voice. He smiled down at her with an armful of firewood. "There's another full one over there," he said and shifted the firewood to one arm so he could point to it. Margaret nodded, feeling ashamed that she hadn't noticed her water bucket was empty. Wachesa Nathaniel slipped a finger under her chin. "It's all right, Margaret. There's another water bucket over there. Come on." He put the wood down so he could haul her up with one arm and carry her over to it. Margaret giggled as he tickled her belly. Juliet frowned at her and Wachesa Nathaniel before Kaheteta Cora called her over to her. Juliet hadn't been excited to play with her for several days now. Every time Margaret wanted to play outside or play dolls, Juliet hadn't wanted to until one of the grown-ups made her. 'Why doesn't she like me anymore?' Margaret wondered and worried about it along with her worries for Mama and Papa. 'What if I never see them again?' Her deepest fear came up too. 'Did I make Mama and Papa sick?'
"See? Now you have clothes of your own that are like ours." Cora smiled the next day as she helped Margaret tie the woven red sash around her waist to cinch in her yellow calico blouse. Margaret nodded with a shy smile but looked pleased, fingering the fringe on her deerskin leggings. Cora sat back on her heels and began to put her sewing supplies away. She had finally finished sewing Margaret a set of her own Mohican clothes. The morning after they had arrived at the cabin, she and Juliet had changed into their everyday clothes in the Mohican style. Margaret had looked a bit shy and out of place when she had seen them and Cora knew immediately that it was partly because she wasn't dressed the same way as them. Chingachgook had noticed as well since before she could say anything, he had suggested to Juliet that she offer one of her spare sets of clothes to Margaret. Juliet had looked a little reluctant but she had given Margaret a smile when she gave them to her and helped show her how to put them on. On their way home from the Lee's farm, Nathaniel and her had talked together with Chingachgook and all of them were in agreement that they would consider Margaret as another member of the family in every way. But they had also agreed that they would need to make sure as much as possible that both Margaret and Juliet felt equally loved and valued. Having another child in her family would be a new experience for Margaret and even though Juliet had had her older brother James, it wasn't the same as having another girl in the family.
Cora remembered when Alice was born, when she was nearly six years old. She had been excited when Papa had come into the nursery and told her that she had a baby sister. But with both her parents fussing over and doting on Alice it hadn't taken long for her to feel that she wasn't as special or as loved anymore. But both her parents had noticed. Cora still remembered when Papa had brought her into Mama's bedchamber one afternoon and they had had their own tea party, just the three of them. Tears pricked her eyes as she remembered. Papa had not been a perfect father, but no father was and she had always known he had loved her. It was memories like that one that made her regret their final argument at the fort. What she wouldn't give to be able to tell him that she loved him one last time.
Looking over to where Juliet stood in the doorway with some kindling, she saw that she was pouting a bit at Margaret who was telling her excitedly about her new clothes. Cora inwardly sighed. Juliet had become a bit sullen and withdrawn with Margaret over the last week or so. When she had seen Cora working on the clothes for Margaret, she had demanded to know why she wasn't getting new clothes too. Cora had explained that Margaret didn't have any Mohican clothes of her own, but her daughter didn't seem satisfied with that answer. Nathaniel had also mentioned that Juliet whined a lot of the time when he was focused primarily on helping Margaret learn a new skill. It seemed that jealousy had taken root in their daughter and judging by Margaret's crestfallen expression at that moment, she knew that Margaret was being hurt by it. 'We need to handle this now before it gets worse.' Cora thought.
That night, Nathaniel watched with mixed feelings as Chingachgook led Margaret out to the wigwam to spend some time with him while they spoke with Juliet. Margaret looked nervous as Chingachgook squeezed her hand and said something reassuring to her that Nathaniel couldn't hear. Something was bothering Margaret but he hadn't had the chance to find out what it was. 'Nooch will find out what it is.' He thought to himself. He had always had a way of getting to the bottom of whatever was bothering him or Uncas when they were growing up. Thinking of Uncas brought another stab of pain to his heart as it had often in the last few weeks. It was never completely without pain that he was able to think about Uncas but lately the pain had gotten worse. It was likely that they were approaching a full year since his death and the time that their lives had changed forever.
"Why does Margaret get to go with Machom Chingachgook?!" Juliet demanded from behind him. Turning around to look at his daughter, Nathaniel saw that she was stamping her foot at him angrily. Bristling, Nathaniel knelt down to her level. This wasn't the first time Juliet had whined to him about Margaret getting something she didn't get too. "Watch how you speak to your elders. Your mother and I need to talk with you alone and that is why your grandfather has taken Margaret with him." His tone was firm which usually worked with Juliet but this time, the defiant look on her face grew instead. Glancing up at Cora, he saw that she had noticed it too.
"Juliet," she said as she led both of them over to the table where they all sat down together, Nathaniel and her taking the bench across from Juliet. "You haven't been very kind to Margaret lately. You haven't been welcoming to her and you know that it's important that we make her feel a part of our family here." Juliet felt a small stab of guilt inside as she knew her mother was right. Both Nooch Nathaniel and Nkek Cora had talked with her before they had left the Lee farm about making Margaret feel welcome while she stayed with them. They had explained that she would be like a sister to her as well as a cousin while she stayed with them and Juliet had been excited about that at first. Having someone to play with all the time again would be fun. But when they had gotten home, Juliet had had to share her clothes, her toys and her family. It had never felt that way with Mama, Papa and James either. It wasn't fair.
"But she gets everything!" Juliet protested. "I have to share everything and she isn't even one of our people." Margaret wasn't adopted like she and Nkek Cora had been into the Mohican people. She wasn't really family even if she was Wachesa Uncas's goddaughter. Nooch Nathaniel and Nkek Cora looked sternly at her. "You were not part of our family or the Mohican people either, nichan, before we adopted you." Nooch Nathaniel said firmly. He got up and came around the table to her, gripping her face in both his hands. "Do not dishonor either of your families by denying them, Juliet Nipalawena Cameron Poe." Juliet felt a bit ashamed when she saw the stern yet loving expression on Nooch Nathaniel's face but a bigger part of her didn't care. Since she was adopted, he wasn't really her father like Papa had been and Nkek Cora was not her real mother either. Suddenly, she felt really angry at Nooch Nathaniel for trying to tell her what to do. "You're not my real father and I don't have to do what you say!" she yelled at him, trying to knock his hands away but it didn't work. As soon as the words were out, Juliet felt bad but only a little bad. Nooch Nathaniel's eyes looked angry and sad all at once. Cora had come over to the two of them and knelt beside them.
"Juliet." She looked firmly at her daughter, trying to push back the hurt that she felt. "We are your parents now. Your father and I are not trying to take the place of your Papa and Mama and you know it. You need to apologize to your father and I now." "No." Juliet's voice was flat but firm. "We will see about that." Nathaniel said firmly. All of a sudden, he picked Juliet up and carried her out the door. "Stay here, Cora. I need to teach our daughter a lesson." Juliet gulped a bit in his tight grip. Nathaniel forced himself to ignore it. He knew he couldn't give in to her. Pausing to grab a water bucket, he mentally readied himself to do what his own father had done many times to both Uncas and him when they were young. Disrespect and backtalk could not be tolerated.
"Come away from the door, Margaret." Chingachgook told her gently. He had left the hide flap open a bit to allow the last bit of the daylight into the wigwam but now he closed it after Margaret moved away. Hawkeye had just come out of the cabin with a disgruntled Juliet in his arms and had headed towards the creek. "Where's Wachesa Nathaniel and Juliet going, Machom Chinachgook?" Margaret asked him. "To the creek." He answered. "Why?" "That is between the two of them." He said, careful to keep his tone gentle but clear that it was the end of the conversation. Margaret sighed and looked uncertain. It was a look that Chingachgook had seen on her face multiple times since she had arrived at the cabin. He had already talked with her about Juliet being jealous of her and explained that it didn't mean that she didn't like her but that it was an adjustment for her having her be at the cabin with them. But he knew that there was something else going on with his surrogate granddaughter.
"Is there something troubling you, little one?" he asked her gently. Margaret ducked her head but he slipped a finger under her chin and lifted it. "You can tell me." He reassured her. "It's not good to keep things inside forever." Margaret felt a tear run down her cheek which was quickly swiped away by Machom Chinachgook. The pain from her worries and guilt about her parents hurt so bad inside. But what if she had made them sick? What would the Mohicans think about that? "Let it out, little one." Machom Chinachgook's voice was soothing and all of a sudden the pain in Margaret's chest burst like a bubble.
"I think that I made Mama and Papa sick and it's all my fault!" As soon as the words were out, Margaret's whole body began to shake with sobs. Strong, warm arms wrapped themselves around her body and pulled her onto a cozy lap. "Let it all out, naughees. Every last bit of it." Chingachgook rocked her back and forth, his heart aching for her. He wasn't surprised by this revelation from Margaret, largely, he thought, because he had wondered something similar when Uncas and Alice had died and he knew Nathaniel and Cora had felt the same way. What if they had gotten to the cliffs sooner, what if they had been able to hold on just a little bit longer, what if…the questions and guilt swirled around inside and mixed with the grief. Despite the grudging realization that they had done the best that they could have done, it was not easy to accept that.
"Margaret, little one." He gently pulled her back so that he could look at her once her sobs had slowed to sniffles. "You did not make your parents sick. Why do you think that?" "Because I wanted to live with you. I told Juliet at the wedding that I wished I could live with you too. But she only gets to because her family died. I don't want Mama and Papa to die!" Margaret started crying again and he pulled her back into his chest, making soothing noises. "I know you don't." He said softly. "I know." As the sobs once again faded and Margaret grew calmer, he pulled her back again and looked into her eyes. "You did not make your parents sick because you wanted to come and live with us, Margaret. You didn't know what it meant for Juliet. You must believe that this isn't your fault, naughees." Margaret nodded and her face flooded with relief. She threw her arms around him again and he hugged her tight. "This was not your fault." Looking down at the top of her head, an idea came to him that would help solidify Margaret's place within their extended family and honor Uncas's memory as well.
"You have brought shame upon me. And upon both your families. And upon your ancestors, Mohican and English alike, you have brought shame." Nathaniel tossed the last bucket of water on Juliet, water streaming from her body. As the water dripped down her face, he noticed that tears were coming from her eyes as well. Setting down the bucket, he knelt down in front of her. "Whenever you say something disrespectful to any of your elders, you disrespect your family and all who came before you. We did not take anything from you in adopting you as part of our family, as a daughter of the Mohican people. But you are our daughter now in every sense of the word and I am your father just as Cora is your mother. You do not talk back to us."
Juliet nodded as Nooch Nathaniel spoke, feeling water dripping everywhere when she did. He had splashed her several times with the water bucket, warning her not to move. It hadn't been that many times, but it was enough that she was soaked to the skin. She felt ashamed. She hadn't really meant to hurt or talk back to Nooch Nathaniel or Nkek Cora. She had just been so jealous of the attention that Margaret was getting. Feeling her father's hands cupping her face again, she looked up into his eyes and saw that while they still stern they were also warm. "We love you very much, nichan. Having Margaret here with us now does not change our love for you. You are still our Nipalawena, "we stood her up" and you will always be that. But remember how scared and afraid you were when we found you and brought you with us? What helped you during that time?" Juliet thought back for a moment. "That you made me feel safe and wanted." She said, remembering how she had never wondered if the Mohicans or Cora or Alice had wanted her with them or wouldn't do everything they could to keep her safe. Nooch Nathaniel nodded at her. "Ahitka. That's what we need to do with Margaret too. Remember that your heart grows the more you give out of it." Juliet nodded, sniffling a bit as he looked at her expectantly. "I'm sorry, Nooch Nathaniel. I shouldn't have talked back to you or Nkek Cora." Opening his arms, Nathaniel gathered his daughter against his chest and kissed her wet hair. "You are forgiven, ntan'tis. But you need to apologize to your mother as well. And I think we should get you into some dry clothes." Standing up with one of Juliet's hands in his, he picked up the empty water bucket and headed back to the cabin. Cora saw them coming from the doorway and met them halfway in the clearing, immediately accepting their daughter's apology. Chingachgook and Margaret emerged from the wigwam and Juliet looked over at them, before looking up at her parents. "Go to her, ntan'tis. But then you need to change into dry clothes before you go play." Nathaniel encouraged her and smiled as Juliet's usual beaming smile returned and she skipped over to Margaret. Peace, however long or brief it would last, had returned to their family.
Wachesa: Uncle (Mohican)
Kaheteta: Aunt (Delaware)
Machom: Grandfather (Mohican)
Nlunkohses: my niece (Delaware)
Nooch: Father (Mohican)
Nkek: Mother (Mohican)
Naughees: my grandchild (Mohican)
Ntant'tis: my little daughter (Delaware)
Nichan: my daughter, my child (Delaware)
Ahitka: Yes (Delaware)
Thank you to MohawkWoman for suggesting that I add more of the translations!
Juliet has had her first taste in this story of the "green-eyed monster" and hopefully she's learned her lesson (for now). When planing out this chapter, I realized that up until now she's been a pretty good little girl and there hasn't been a time yet seen where Nathaniel and Cora have really had to discipline her so I thought that I needed to include this for two main reasons. One being that even the best behaved kids have their "bratty" moments and the second being that it became clear to me as I outlined this story arc that Juliet was going to have some jealousy issues with Margaret. Even though she had a brother in her birth family, it's not the same as having a "sister" the same age as her who is now getting lots of attention from her parents and she's having to share. I also thought that it was important that Juliet challenge them a bit on their parental authority since they haven't had to "clamp down" on her in the story until now. The "splashing water" punishment that Nathaniel gives her is a traditional punishment that was used by Eastern Woodlands tribes to discipline children (corporal punishment was not generally used at all is my understanding) and when he tells Juliet afterwards about having brought shame on her family and ancestors that was also part of the punishment.
The moment between Chingachgook and Margaret in the wigwam was surprising to me because I had originally planned to have Nathaniel and Cora handle Margaret's false guilt about her parents being sick. But in the end it just flowed naturally between her and Chingachgook and I think it personally made for a much more "powerful" emotional impact than if I had had Nathaniel and Cora speak to her. We will find out what his idea was for Margaret in the very next chapter! Stay tuned.
