By the time they had camp set up last night, plus back tracked to find his
belongings and move them, it was very late.
Everyone else still seemed to be asleep, and he decided to make tea.
Besides, he was too excited, and relieved to sleep. He'd found Jondalar!
Last night had been the first night in a long time that he hadn't been
plagued by his nightmares concerning the son of his hearth.
Hearing someone awake in the tent behind him, he turned to see Ayla
struggling with Wynic. He hurried towards her.
"Ayla" he whispered, "let me help you."
She gave him a grateful smile as he took the baby from her and helped her to
stand.
"Thank you. Can you watch him a moment? I have to." She blushed and he
smiled in understanding.
"Of course. Do you need any help?" she blushed even harder and managed to
shake her head as she hobbled out of sight.
Dalanar looked at the tiny baby, barely visible with all the layers of fur
he was wrapped in. pulling back the fur enough to see his face, he fell
immediately in love. It had been quite a long time since he'd held a little
one. Wynic seemed perfect to him. He definitely had his mother's features.
He touched the light brown hair and watched as the baby squirmed as the cold
found his dreams. Covering him back up, Dalanar rocked him gently until Ayla
returned.
"He's beautiful Ayla." Dalanar commented as she beamed with mother's pride.
"I didn't have a chance to thank you, Dalanar." Ayla said shyly as she
looked up at him through hooded lashes.
He shook his head. "I'm just happy the wolf managed to find me! I had been
looking for the two of you a long time. I was just about ready to give up."
Ayla looked puzzled at the older man. "Why were you looking for us?"
Dalanar sighed. Why had he been looking for them? It wasn't as if he even
knew the answer himself. He tried his best to form an answer.
"When our camp made it to the summer meeting the year Jondalar returned, we
had heard many rumors, you know how people can be."
Ayla nodded in agreement. "At first no one believed them, but when Marthona
came to greet us, I knew from the look on her face it was true." He was
starting to feel the anger well in him again. "What right did they have to
cast you out? They hadn't even convened the whole Council of Mothers!" he
stood and started pacing, his breath steaming in the early morning air.
"Mostly everyone in the cave couldn't believe their decision. We had put in
our objection as a camp, but since we weren't zelandonii our objection didn'
t carry much clout. No one else had met the two of you, but some members of
the 14th cave said they saw you command evil by riding on the backs of the
horses."
Ayla looked down into the fire, vaguely aware when Jondalar, Ranec and
Madenia came out of the tent to join them. Jondalar put a comforting arm
around Ayla and she leaned into his warmth.
"I tried to explain to them that anyone could train and ride on a horse, as
long as you got one young enough." Ayla offered.
Jondalar shook his head as the others listened quietly. "They were just
looking for an excuse Ayla. Nothing you, or I would have said could have
changed their minds."
Dalanar sat down again beside Ranec. "We want you back."
Jondalar and Ayla both looked up at the man with shocked expressions as he
continued. "I didn't know where you had traveled to, and at first I thought
you may have gone back to the Mamutoi. When a runner from a zelandonii cave
came to bring some bad news, he told us he saw people traveling with horses
and a wolf. I knew it had to be you. When you didn't stop by the cave.."
Dalanar cleared his throat. Should he tell them about the dreams at night?
"Anyway, I wanted to find you. To tell you that we want you to stay at our
cave. Become Lanzadonii." Dalanar finished with a smile.
Ranec and Madenia looked at them expectantly. This certainly was great news!
Now, they had somewhere they could winter, and people who were willing to
have them.
"That's very generous of you Dalanar, but think of what would happen to your
cave if you took us in. There are those among the zelandonii who would
object. What if they decided to end trading?"
Dalanar shook his head. "Everyone's already discussed it. Besides, we have
the best flint and everyone knows it! We'll still have people to trade
with." He paused for a moment then added, "we've also established tentative
trade with someone else." He looked slyly at the couple. "I believe you know
their leader, Guban." He waited for the name to register and when it did,
both of them looked at each other with excitement.
Jondalar was more shocked than Ayla, who was smiling happily. Grateful that
the Clan was finally being seen as human.
"How?" Jondalar managed to ask. Seeing the confused look on both Ranec and
Madenia's faces, he explained.
"Guban is a Clan leader that we came across on our way home a few years ago.
It seems he too, had some problems with Charoli and his band." He saw
Madenia blanch and immediately regretted bringing up bad memories for her.
"It was by accident. We were out on a hunting trip, just a few of us to
scout for Musk-oxen. Echozar had seen some fresh tracks the day before. We'd
traveled mostly northwest and been out for three days when we came across
the heard. We were planning on how to hunt the large creatures when a
commotion started. We watched from the woods as a Clan attacked the animals.
Their spears were thicker than ours and they had to get a lot closer to the
animals, but they were just as effective. After the killing was over, we
were going to leave quietly but one of their members spotted us. I didn't
know what to expect, but Guban, came up to me and called my 'Dyondar.' It
wasn't hard to know he thought I was you."
Ayla listened enrapt to the tale. She was glad his leg had healed and
wondered if Yorga had given birth to the son she had wanted so much. "Though
he was hesitant, especially after he saw Echozar, we did start talking.
Echozar translated for us. Some of the other men in with him didn't want to
associate with us, but he said that you and he were kin. They didn't
question him after that. By the time we'd shared a fire that night we had
been on friendlier terms. I even traded some of my spearpoints for two
musk-oxen!" Dalanar beamed. He had had trouble believing everything Jondalar
and Ayla told them about the Clan, but seeing it for himself convinced him
that they were just as much children of the Mother as anyone.
"We met one more time before winter set in." he finished, and waited for a
reaction from his listeners.
Tholiza started to fuss from the tent and Ayla turned to go to her, but
Jondalar stopped her. "Let me get her." He beamed, then gave Ayla a quick
kiss before going into the tent.
Ranec looked at his departing back, stunned, and somewhat angry. What right
did he have to treat Ayla like that and now act as if nothing was wrong? As
if he hadn't turned away from her when she needed him? His fists clenched as
he busied himself by pouring a cup of tea.
Madenia also watched the exchange, and though she was glad that Ayla wasn't
hurting any longer, she was. Jondalar had made her feel sospecial. And
loved. Though she had only been with him that one time, she now knew what
Ayla had been talking about a long time ago. The Mother's gift was special!
More than anything, she wanted to be with Jondalar too, and hoped that
perhaps she could mate with them. Madenia frowned then. It was a woman's
hearth and there were women she knew who took two mates, but for a man to
have two women? Who's hearth would it be then? Her shoulders slumped as she
realized it probably wouldn't happen.
Getting back to their original topic, Ayla shook her head as tears
threatened to overflow. "Dalanar, thank you for your offer. It means a great
deal to us, all of us, that you would open your cave after everything that's
happened."
Jondalar came back with Tholiza, and took Wynic gently from Ayla as she
nursed her daughter.
"Now, are you ready to tell me why all of you are out here in the middle of
no where? Especially with little ones!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
glacier. Though they had decided to go around it to the north for the sake
of the children, they would still have to pass close by it. The area closest
was so raw, so new with life, that hardly anything grew. It would be easier
to navigate such a territory than it was the low lying brush and steep rocks
to the east.
For the most part, the group didn't talk during the day. Both Ayla and
Madenia would ride the horses, each taking a baby, while the men walked.
Since they now had a fifth person, it didn't do any good to ride double. The
mood was cheerful for the most part, though the anxiety of what they would
find when they returned loomed over them like a dark cloud.
It had been almost two weeks since Dalanar had found Ayla, and they had
settled into a fairly regular routine of doing things.
Jondalar, who was leading the way with Dalanar, stopped and signaled that
they would make camp here for the night. Ayla looked around the area. It
wasn't too bad compared to most of the terrain. There was an area of
undisturbed snow which they could use to melt for water, and a large
outcroping of rocks had shielded most of the harsh weather so the horses
didn't have to dig too far to reach the grass beneath. Ayla did worry about
them though. A few times she and the rest of them would chop through the ice
and snow to help the horses find food.
Though they looked thinner, they weren't suffering the effects too much.
Ayla did make a mental note to fix them a vitamin tea once the camp was set
up.
Stretching, she found it more tiring to ride on Whinney all day, that it was
to walk. Her ankle had healed but Jondalar was so over protective lately,
that she found it was easier to acquesise than to argue with him. The last
thing she wanted was for them to have another misuderstanding.
Ayla found a few flat rocks by the base of the outcrop and carried them over
to where the fire would be. The travelers had decided to use the outcrop
itself as part of their shelter. The rock face would serve as a back wall,
allowing them more room inside the tents.
They had went back to having different tents set up since their numbers had
grown. Dalanar had his own tent, so did Ranec and Madenia. Sometimes though,
the three of them would share one tent. Ayla and Jondalar had theirs set up
separate.
With all five of them working, it didn't take long for them to have camp set
up. They could see a little of the glacier off in the distance, but for the
most part, the low lying clouds and fog obscured it from view.
Ayla dug through her stores of food to start a meal for everyone. Ranec,
Jondalar and Dalanar had gone off hunting for fresh meat, and if they found
some it would be a welcome change. There didn't even seem to be any birds
around that Ayla could bring down with her sling. She shuddered as she
thought of the cold emptyness around her. Remembering the story Mamut had
told her about how the Great Earth Mother fought each winter and then how
she would 'break the back' so spring wound come, she found herself wishing
it would happen soon, and wondered what would happen if the Mother didn't
win?
Madenia added some more wood to the fire, wishing that she had some of the
burning stones. The ones they'd received when they'd left the Losandunai had
long been used. She looked around at Ayla and the children, then at the
surrounding area. She was so tired of traveling! If she had to be honest
with herself, part of her wished she'd never left with Ayla and Jondalar.
Yes, she'd been wanting to get away from the painful memories, and she
idolized Ayla so much she wanted to be with her and the man who brought
forth such mingled feelings from her. But now.she never expected things to
turn out the way they did.
Briefly, she wished that she'd never known what it was like to be touched by
Jondalar. It was almost physically painful to be treated so special, so
loveningly, then have it taken away. He was still friendly towards her, and
it seemed somewhat embarrassed. They had little to say to each other and
both ended up mostly avoiding conversations.
Ayla had brought out her thread puller and Madenia looked at her own
clothes. They did need to be mended. Her mother would have had a fit if she'
d known that she let herself become in such a state of disarray. Moving
towards Ayla, she settled beside her and started to mend a few seams of her
parka, without taking it off.
"I have an extra parka if you'd like to use it while you fix yours?" Ayla
offered.
"That's ok. There isn't much to do with this one. When I'm done, I'll need
to mend the other pants I have."
Ayla nodded and they worked in silence for awhile. Finally, Ayla spoke.
"Madenia, do you regret coming with us?"
The younger woman looked back at her startled. She wondered if Ayla really
was capable of reading her mind. Sighing, she looked down. "Not really.
Sometimes thoughI miss my family."
Ayla nodded thoughtfully as she studied the woman. She really was quite
pertty. She had dark raven hair which hung in soft curves down her back. Her
eyes were hazel in color and her face was olive in complexion. She'd have a
lot of attention from the men once they arrived at their destination, Ayla
was sure.
Something else was bothering her though. Something the woman had kept to
herself, and Ayla thought she knew what it was. She felt a pang of jealousy
when she thought about it, but mostly, she had just been hurt at the time.
"Do you regret sharing pleasures with Jondalar?" she finally asked.
Madenia turned ash white as she stared open mouthed at Ayla.
"H..how?" she managed to stammer.
It was Ayla's turn to look away, busying herself with her work. "I knew when
I looked at both of you when you came out of the tent." She quietly
admitted.
"Why didn't you ever say anything?"
Ayla frowned as she thought over her answer. "Jondalar's a grown man. It's
not my right to tell him who he can sleep with." At least that was part of
the reason, she thought.
Madenia didn't know what to say. She could see the hurt on Ayla's face and
felt horrible that she caused her pain. Knowing she was waiting for an
answer, Madenia searched her heart.
"I regret not being able to wake up beside him every morning. You were right
Ayla," she added, though what comfort it was she wasn't sure "Jondalar is
wonderful, and special. I wish." She stopped then, knowing it would do
neither of them good to hear it voiced. "I only hope I can find someone as
caring and loving as him myself.someday. The way he looks at you, anyone
can see that you're the one who's captured his heart."
Ayla thought over her words and knew she was right. "I'm sure you will. You
have a lot to offer any man."
Madenia nodded but didn't answer.
Jondalar watched Ayla get ready for bed. Both Tholiza and Wynic had been put
down, and Ayla was taking off her tunic. When she snuggled into the furs
beside him, he wrapped an arm around her, holding her close. He kissed her
forehead, then her eyelids, feeling her warm to him. His need answered in
return, and she gave herself to him willingly.
It was only after their passion was spent, and they were laying in each
others arms in half dozing, that Jondalar spoke.
"Madenia told me you spoke with her earlier." He felt Ayla's muscles tense
and knew this wasn't going to be easy. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."
Ayla shook her head as she propped herself up to look down at him. "You don'
t have to explain. You can choose whoever you want to share pleasures with
Jondalar. It's not as if we're mated. Even then the choice would still be
yours."
Her words cut like a knife through him, and he could plainly see the pain in
her eyes, though she tried to hide it. He pulled her to him and turned them
on their sides, buring his face in her neck as he held her tightly.
"I'm so sorry. I was just so hurt, I.I wanted you to feel the way I was
feeling. It wasn't right, and I'm sorry. I know that's no excuse."
Ayla tried to speak past the lump in her throat. Finally, she managed to ask
the one thing that had been on her mind. In barely a whisper, she spoke. "I
thought you didn't love me any longer. Did I do something that made you not
want to share pleasures with me?"
"No! not at all!" Jondalar sighed as he laid back into the furs. "I love you
Ayla, I've only ever wanted to have Zelandoni tie the knot for us and share
your hearth. It hurts me more than you'll ever know that I don't have
anything to offer you. My people have turned us away, and I have no status.
When Ishared pleasures with Madenia, I did it out of anger, and hurt."
They were both silent for awhile, then Ayla spoke. "You don't love her?"
"No."
"Jondalar, what you did was wrong." He hung his head as the humiliation of
what he did washed over him. "Madenia is in love with you. Or the idea of
finding someone like you for herself. I'm glad she was able to know what the
Mother's gift was like when she had someone who cared about her pleasure,
but you used her to get back at me. That wasn't fair to her."
"I know. I'm sorry! I've... defiled the Mother with my selfishness."
"I'm not the one you need to apologize to."
They both laid together in the dark quiet of the night, but sleep came for
neither of them.
Looking about, he was pleased at all of the herds he saw
off in the distance. The past two months they had had
plenty of trouble finding food, especially when they
were very close to the glacier, but now, now they had
their pick of the Mother's bounty.
Shifting the weight of the giant hamsters he'd killed
earlier, his eyes focused on his traveling companions.
Dalanar was walking beside Madenia, and they both seemed
to be deep in conversation as they talked about
Losandunai they both knew. The young woman was animated
as she spoke, her hands gesturing to accentuate her
words. She really was beautiful when she let herself
relax. It was as if she'd come to life after a long
death, like the Mother's plant world. She was like a
beautiful flower.
The horses followed the travelers at a lazy pace. There
really wasn't any reason for them to hurry now. After
all, the glacier was behind them, and they had the rest
of spring and early summer to reach the Lanzadoni. If
they didn't get there before the group left for the
summer meeting, they be traveling alone again.
Jondalar and Ayla walked side by side, each carrying a
child on their backs. They held hands as they walked,
and every once in awhile, Wolf would jump up and try to
get their attention to play. Jondalar would then throw a
large stick as far as he could, and the lupine would
chase after it, only to bring it back a few moments
later.
Things were good for them. Though they talked about what
they were to expect once they reached the summer
meeting, everyone was resolved to stand together, and
Dalanar had promised the support of his cave. Ranec was
still thinking over the offer he had extended to him,
about becoming Lazandonii also.
Ranec was still torn. He was Mamutoi, but would he ever
return home? He had been gone so long now, and though he
missed everyone, and would love to see them and tell
them he was alright, he didn't feel a strong urge to
return. He wasn't driven. To tell the truth, though he
had high status there, he didn't have much else. He
didn't have a woman he loved to mate with, to have
children of his spirit with
Looking at Ayla, he knew his heart still lay with her.
She even bore him a child of his spirit, of his flesh as
she believed, and he would wait to see what her decision
would be before making his. He couldn't do otherwise.
"Do you remember this place?" Jondalar asked Ayla with
excitement. She nodded and he stopped walking to give
her a deep kiss. Dalanar and Madenia kept going, and
smiled broadly as they passed the couple. Clearing his
throat, Dalanar spoke with humor in his voice. "We'll
never get there if the two of you keep that up!"
They pulled apart blushing, but when Jondalar watched
the two of the go on, he pressed Ayla to him again and
finished the kiss. Looking into her passion filled eyes,
he smiled.
"It won't be too long before we reach the Lazandonii.
This is the northern most part of their territory. I
went with Dalanar many times as a youth when he would
collect raw flint from his mine." That gave Jondalar an
idea and he called out to the older man.
Dalanar and Madenia stopped and soon Jondalar jogged up
to them. "I was just realizing that we're very close to
the flint mine, maybe a day or two. Why don't we stop
and gather some fresh stone? It will be good to trade
with when we get to the meeting."
Dalanar looked thoughtful. "Why not? I'm sure that
Kanalar has already made a trip since they'll be leaving
soon, but it could never hurt to have more."
"It's settled then!" Jondalar exclaimed then turned to
Ayla. "You'll love this place. The stone is so fresh you
can feel it. And it's the best quality of all the
Lazandonii."
Ayla smiled at his enthusiasm and jumped when she felt
wet slobber on her shoulder. She looked as best she
could to see Wynic trying to eat her shoulder. Laughing,
she pulled him around.
"Can we stop for awhile? Wynic's hungry and I'm sure
Tholiza would like to eat too."
Ranec, who had been bringing up the rear dropped the
hamsters. "Sounds good! I wouldn't mind going for a
swim."
Jondalar nodded, thinking it was a great idea, and
picked up the water bags. "Why don't you fill up the
water skins, and we'll get camp set you?"
"It's a deal!" Ranec smiled as he took the skins and
jogged out of view before anyone changed their minds.
Madenia helped Jondalar with Tholiza, then bounced the
baby as he unhitched the travois's. Dalanar and Jondalar
made little work of setting up while Madenia and Ayla
smiled in amusement. They didn't mind letting the 'men'
handle things for once.
Madenia skinned the groundhogs and set them to cooking
while Ayla gathered fresh roots and vegetables to go
with them. By the time she washed and peeled them, then
set them to cooking in a ground pit, they were both
ready for a bath.
By the time the sun was low on the horizon, the whole
group of travelers was swimming and playing in the
nearby water.
were in exceptionally good spirits and their pace increased considerably.
Their mood was infectious and soon everyone was laughing and telling jokes.
Ayla had filled in Ranec and Madenia about the Lanzadonii. Well, as much as
she could remember anyway. She wished they had spent more time with the
friendly people, though she had been uncomfortable around Joplaya.
She truly hoped the beautiful woman with the green eyes had finally let go
of the past and found happiness. Echozar was a good man and also deserved a
happy hearth.
The landscape slowly changed as the chalky hills loomed ahead. Ayla and
Madenia gave the horses a rest and walked, allowing them to find their own
footing.
"Look!" Jondalar called out excitedly. "There's the entrance to the mine!"
Dalanar laughed and shook his head as the son of his hearth ran ahead, Wolf
at his heels. He turned to the others.
"Not many people know where the mine is. That's what keeps the trade value
high on our flint. That and the expert workmanship" He added, prideful. "All
the Lanzadonii know but they're sworn to secrecy. Most haven't been here.
Lately it's only been myself, Echozar or Kanalar. Hochaman only came once
and Jerika hasn't been here in years." He smiled as his eyes took on a far
away look. "Before Joplaya was born, we used to comes up here on the
pretense of gathering flint, but I always thought of it as our own special
place."
When he noticed Ayla, Madenia, and Ranec smiling at him, he cleared his
throat and continued with a pink hue to his cheeks. "Anyway, since you've
been invited to join us," He stressed the word join in a friendly way, "and
since you're kin or close as kin with all the traveling you've done
together, I believe you can be trusted with the secret."
All three nodded in agreement with the sincerity of the moment. It was a
rare honor they were being granted and they knew it. They reached the mine
entrance and stared.
"That's the way in?" Ranec asked in disbelief. The opening was very tine. He
wondered how anyone would be able to fit in there until Dalanar, with
Jondalar's help, rolled a large boulder away.
"IT opens up on the inside and there's room for one or two people to stand
or lay down." Jondalar explained.
"There's actually two rooms." Dalanar added. "The first is almost empty of
flint but that's where we stay if the weather's bad. If it's nice, there's a
campsite right through those trees." he pointed as Jondalar dug through his
pack for a torch.
Wolf, who had been sniffing around the area, whined and paced around the
opening of the cave.
"Do you think there's an animal in there?" Ayla asked, concerned for
Jondalar's safety.
"He frowned as Dalanar squatted down by the entrance.
"Whew!" Dalanar stood and waved a hand across his face. "it smells like
something died in there!"
"Wouldn't be the first time." Jondalar laughed. "Do you remember the summer
I turned 15?"
"How could I Forget that?"
"What happened?" Madenia asked, curious.
Both men looked at each other, then Jondalar started. "It was only my second
time I've been to the mine. I was excited to be included on such an
important trip. No sooner had Dalanar moved the rock did I race in, wanting
to be the first to reach the raw stone."
Dalanar then picked up the thread as Jondalar took off his outer parka. They
had told this story many times together.
I" yelled for him to wait, but he had already shimmied through the opening.
The next thing I hear is a scream and went running in after him."
Dalanar started laughing so hard he had to wipe away tears at the memory
while Jondalar blushed. He still had a smile on his face though. "the next
thing I find is him, sitting in the middle of half rotting carcasses!"
"Apparently," Jodnalar clarified, "A fox had decided the cave was a perfect
place to make a home."
"It took the rest of the day to clean out the cave."
"Yeah, but you made me wait to bathe until nighttime!" Jondalar admonished.
Dalanar shrugged as he winked at Ayla. "I bet that was the last time you
went running into a cave, wasn't it?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jondalar lit his torch and held it in front of him as he crawled slowly into
the cave. His flint knife was clamped tightly between his teeth. Dalanar
went next with a tarp. It was decided that they should go in first to make
sure the cave was empty and take out the dead animal.
Ayla, Madenia and Ranec went to set up the camp since the horses couldn't
obviously fit in the cave. Besides, she didn't think the weather would turn
for the worse.
Ayla had scanned the area by the mine for tracks, but there were no fresh
ones. Deciding not to take chances, she sent Wolf in knowing his senses
would alert them to any dangers that could possible exist. He had reappeared
a few minutes later and trotted off to lay in the shade.
Ranec and Madenia were setting up the one tent, and when Madenia would go to
tine her side down, Ranec would yak it from her. When she turned to him,
he'd be 'innocently' tying his side off. Ranec was trying his best not to
smile, and waited until she bent to her task once again. Glancing at Ayla,
she shook her head and smiled as he yanked one more time hard. Madenia
turned to him, frustrated, and had picked her up over his shoulder spinning
her around as he laughed.
"Ahh! Oh you....Ranec, put me down!" she ordered, though she was also
laughing. Ayla couldn't help but think how the young woman was finally
starting to heal.
Ranec looked around for somewhere to put her, wishing there was a stream
close by. Going back over to the tent, he flopped her onto the hide and
collapsed beside her. Ayla knew that side of the dark carver. his charming
'comes to my furs' side.
They were all laughing so hard they didn't see a very pale Dalanar come back
into camp. Ayla was the first to notice him.
"Dalanar? What happened?" Her heart raced as she took in his pale
appearance. Her hand automatically reached for the red skinned otter pouch
she wore on her belt. "Is it Jondalar?"
"I'm fine." Jondalar answer as he came into view. Ayla let out a breath as
Jondalar wrapped an arm around her. His face held the same grim expression..
Ranec helped Madenia to stand and they waited to hear what had happened.
Dalanar spoke in a tight voice. "It's Kanalar. He's dead."
they gasped in shock at the news as their minds whirled with question. How?
Where?
"No!" Jondalar shook his head, his anger barely controlled. "He was
murdered!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
LOOK FOR THE CONTINUING SERIES IN: "THE HEARTH OF A DONII"
