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Chapter 171

The Native Americans


Leah


Three casseroles of Lasagna appeared on the table, between the salad and a baguette, after we showed Akai and Nanuk the grounds.

One each for the wolf siblings alone, the third for the rest of the people. No one would get up hungry from the table and it was delicious on top of that.

I hugged Esmé afterwards.

Nanuk and Akai said goodbye to our vampires after dinner.

Jake and I took her up to the fence, that Akai managed from this side a second try.

Nanuk embraced me in human form.

Why did that just feel so good?

"See you tomorrow, Leah," he looked me in the eyes again before he turned away from me, phased, jumped onto the rock and then continued elegantly over the high fence.

I really should ask Emmett how Jazz and he brought these huge rocks here. Why did I think of that now?

Quickly we ran back and got dressed.

After all, we still had something planned.

Everyone was already sitting in the cinema room waiting for us.

Well. Everyone who would watch with us. Mom and Dad weren't there, and neither were Esmé and Carlisle. The latter were babysitting my baby brother. More specifically, Esmé would babysit, while Ced still refused to get too close to Carlisle. Ced was really resentful.

Marcus was leaning against the back side of one of the comfortable couches, seemingly discussing movie choices with Becky and Jasper.

Becky wanted something funny.

I didn't care about anything as long as I was in Marcus' arms, into which I immediately ran.

I sighed.

Now I felt better. Now that Nanuk was gone, now that I knew Kate hadn't made a scene for him after our meeting on Wednesday, that they hadn't had a quarrel, it was easier for me to know what I really wanted. And I held on tightly to what I wanted.

"You'll crush me, my little wildcat!" stammered Marcus.

I bit my lower lip and loosened my arms. I looked at him apologetically, but he only smiled.

"Ice cream?", Rose nudged me with a winning grin.

Ben & Jerrys Topped Chocolate Caramel Cookie Dough.

That's how the movie night began. With only one spoon per pair.

Anything else would have been too much washing up.

Three movies we watched. One romantic, one comedy and one action movie.

I couldn't tell with any of the three what it would have been about in detail now. The chocolate ice cream on my boyfriend's caramel-lips demanded my entire attention at times.

But I also dwelled a lot on my thoughts.

Whether Marcus had nothing to say about that afternoon. He had been quite polite to Nanuk. Really friendly, even. Not a word had Marcus said about my not giving him the attention and affection he would have received on any other visit. He just smiled contentedly and let me have my way. I thought that was incredibly kind and understanding of him, even though there was no way I would have expected it that way. But I also thought about Nanuk himself. Whether he also spent a relaxed evening with Kate without thinking about me. How the interaction between the two of them would be after Nanuk and I were somehow connected. Whether Kate could also be as tolerant as Marcus or whether only I was so lucky to be blessed with such a partner at my side.

I felt so comfortable, snuggled so close to Marcus, that I slept through the finale.


I slept not only the whole night through, but also really well, but woke up quite early. Too early to wake up Marcus. So I gave him a light kiss on the cheek and got up.

After a little detour through my bathroom, I went into the kitchen.

Dad was already busy and visibly in a good mood.

"Good morning, Little one," he crooned, twirling me - hugging me - around the kitchen.

"My God, you are in a good mood," I complained, but his mood was contagious.

"Not your day today?" he asked cautiously.

"Don't know yet. Too early to judge," I said, but smiled when I already found a cup in front of me.

In any case after the coffee I felt so good that I made breakfast with him. I also snacked extensively, whereby he wanted to hit me every time on the fingers, but I was faster.

While we were waiting for the croissants and sitting there relaxing, Dad told me that Marcus had carried me to bed tonight.

The whole more than 1500 yards!

In shock, I choked and coughed.

"All the way?", I dug deeper again.

"Yeah, all the way," Dad confirmed. "Becky fell asleep, too, and Jake took her, of course."

"So it was a competition again!", I stated matter-of-factly.

"That's what I thought, but Marcus' thoughts were going in a different direction ... He didn't want to let you go. You snuggled up to him so much, he didn't want to miss that."

I looked at my now empty cup and shifted it from one hand to the other.

I had not wanted to let go of him last night either. Had been glad to finally know again where I belonged.

"Does this have something to do with Nanuk?" so I asked.

"I can't answer that for you with certainty."

Great. What was the point of having a mind-reading dad if he couldn't answer even the smallest question?!

"It's not like this question is that little!" Dad defended himself. "There's a lot going on inside Marcus right now, as well as inside you. None of the three of you ... I guess I should include Kate, who I'm sure will feel the same way, are really comfortable in your skin right now. It's an uncomfortable situation for all involved, but you must not forget that this situation is quite unique. Take your time, how it will develop and how you all can deal with it most easily ... Marcus tries to help you while he says as little as possible to Nanuk. A supernatural power thinks that Nanuk is just right for you, even though you and Nanuk have decided not to see it that way and not to follow this power. In this respect, of course, he is jealous of him. Who wouldn't be in his stead? But he knows that no one is served by being enraged in any way about the current situation."

Words I could only agree with. It was no use getting upset about it. It had just happened. Now we just had to learn to deal with our decision as well. And I would start by kicking my boyfriend out of bed. In the meantime, it was no longer quite so early and we all in addition were supposed to meet, which is why there wasn't time for extended wakeup kisses, but a certain minimum was indispensable!

Jake and I also let our wolf lap stay and soon gathered together at the breakfast table so we would at least have enough time for that.

Breakfast was, after all, the most important meal of the day.

Quickly it crystallized in the good-humored chat that we were quite curious about what was about to be offered to us.

The Native Americans ... in traditional ways of life.

Each of us had different ideas.

Jake pondered what that looked like with the food there.

An important question!

Marcus pictured the elders smoking a peace pipe, casually sitting around a fire.

Becky speculated about the clothes, whether they were cheap costumes.

Dad saw himself tied to a torture stake around which the young warriors danced haughtily.

Mom wondered if the Native Americans also slept there, and if so, in what kind of dwellings.

I, on the other hand, knew Nanuk's narrative. I saw before my mind's eye therefore children who were taught to handle bows and arrows or to fish. Women who cooked over open fireplaces and sewed leather clothing. Men, who provided the food and pursued various crafts.

We would see who of us would be right.

Beyond that, I was really looking forward to this day.

Basically because of Nanuk, but only because I would experience him with his Kate. When I had Marcus and Nanuk around me, chaos reigned in me. I then no longer knew what I should really do or not do. If Nanuk and I had not been imprinted on each other, I had no doubt that a real and deep friendship would develop between us. Maybe one like the one between Mom and David that had nothing to do with romance or eroticism. Nanuk was simply an interesting and likeable young man. It was probably very difficult not to like him somehow. But fate had planned it differently, which I was simply overwhelmed with. I didn't want to hurt Nanuk or Marcus in any way if I treated either of them preferentially or neglectfully. I didn't want to offend either of them, but I did want to give them both due attention. I was walking a very fine ridge between the two of them. I hoped to be able to widen this ridge, to make it safer, when I met Nanuk today in his familiar surroundings and Marcus was there.

Dad had been lucky in the end. The weather was just bad enough for him.

At breakfast, here and there a ray of sunlight had still strayed onto the ground, but it continued to close in with high-hanging clouds. Surely today again isolated snowflakes would fall.


Dad, Mom and Ced went in the Jaguar. We younger ones went in Jake's car. Since we didn't really know what to expect and how long we would be there, the normal people among us had put on their thermal underwear from skiing. In the long run, it would get quite cold for them outside.

The diaper bag for Ced was also packed, of course, in which a bottle of blood was hidden. An opaque bottle and only for emergencies. Ced had been given an extra two bottles this morning and had been told not to show his thoughts to anyone. He had nodded quite seriously. And giggled afterwards.

On the way, Nanuk sent me the coordinates on my cell phone.

According to him, they were always happy to have visitors, but did not want to have real tourists there. In this respect, the area was quite hidden and was also not signposted.

We drove deep into the woods, and I was wondering if we were lost until there was a building standing in an area in the middle of the woods. About twenty cars were parked on the square in front of it and a few people were bustling about quite busily.

I guess I should say Native Americans were bustling about.

I spotted a little group of young people casually standing around on the porch of the building.

Akai was there, holding a pretty girl in his arms. A blonde, but the Native American features were still clear. And I saw Nanuk. With Kate. The fingers on one of his hands intertwined with both of hers above her head, the other was under her open coat under her T-shirt at her side, which had ridden up a bit, and he was pressing her against the wall of the house.

With a passionate all-consuming kiss that made my own lips glow. Despite the distance. Despite the fact that I wasn't the one. But I hadn't forgotten how it felt. How could I forget our kiss!

Jake had seen the group as well and pointed in their direction for Becky while he looked for a parking spot.

Meanwhile, I looked at the hands that lay between me and Marcus, holding on tightly, and lifted my gaze to the black eyes that meant the world to me. Softly and encouragingly they smiled towards me.

"I love you!", I said and covered his lips with mine. It was a fact that I loved Marcus more than anything and I felt an urgent need to tell it to him again so clearly. No idea why.

We got out and we all slowly approached the group.

Besides the brothers and their girlfriends, there were two boys and a girl about our age, but they didn't know what to do with us. They did not pay any attention to us, except that they nodded at us in greeting.

Akai didn't notice us until we reached the steps to the porch. Nanuk and Kate were still kissing, but were now interrupted by a rough punch from Akai in Nanuk's back.

"What?" asked Nanuk annoyed and turned to his brother. As he did so, his gaze lingered on me. "Leah," he murmured.

As if caught, I smiled a little.

He immediately disengaged from Kate and ran his fingers over his mouth in embarrassment, as if to wipe away the evidence.

For a small moment we looked at each other, as if this second counted only for the two of us, until we both smiled.

Marcus had put an arm loosely around my shoulders, which Nanuk immediately emulated us with Kate. Everyone was introduced and hands were shaken. Akai's girlfriend Phoebe, and the three strangers to us - Yoki, Finn, and Mato, all Native Americans as well - were friends of the brothers, somewhere between us in age, who had been meeting here on the grounds from childhood onwards.

"... The parents of the twins. Bella and Edward ... And hold your tongue because Edward is our age. It's nobody's business but theirs!", Nanuk clarified in conclusion.

Jake asked about Tom, but he had finally become an uncle yesterday and was in Portland with his parents.

Akai said with a grin that Tom would be heartbroken not to get to know me better on today's occasion.

I rolled my eyes and thanked the Lord in Heaven in all due detail for this providence, even though I didn't really believe in Him.

"Didn't you say something about traditional dress and such?" Mom inquired, but everything looked pretty normal up here in front.

If you disregarded the above-average number of Native Americans.

"Oh yes! ... We were just waiting for you here. Then come on in!", Nanuk grinned, and we entered the big house. He led us to the left through a high passageway. "So, gentlemen to the right, ladies to the left, please," he pointed to two doors.

Indecisively, rather cautiously, we therefore entered the room. Mom, Becky, Kate, Akai's girlfriend Phoebe, the other girl named Yoki and me.

Ced was, according to prevailing opinion, a man and therefore next door.

"Well, let's see if we can find something suitable for you," Phoebe said elatedly, heading straight for the long clothes rail that ran the entire width of the opposite side of the room.

The most diverse clothes hung on it. Mainly suede was to be seen, but also coarsely woven fabric and furs. But very few feathers. If, then it was only small dark feathers, but not large, magnificent ones, which I would have expected from the 'War Bonnets' of the Native American chiefs based on movies.

The three girls visibly enjoyed finding something suitable for us and told diligently by doing so.

The 'locals' had their own clothes, which were kept in the closets on one side. On the clothes rail were mostly discarded pieces that were kept for guests.

It didn't escape me that Kate wanted to put me in thick unbecoming clothes the most. She defended her choice with my height. I was not convinced that this was the real reason.

In the end, Mom was wearing comfortable pants and a long-sleeved top made of suede. Over that, some kind of poncho, where I couldn't tell what the material was. She was allowed to keep her shoes on. Becky wore a skirt of leather, over that a colorful woven top with a thick fur collar, and under that some kind of leggings with leather boots. And I had on a suede dress. Since it was winter, I also wore leather leggings underneath and matching leather shoes. The clothes were richly decorated with many leather straps, woven beads, embroidery, feathers, stones, and small fur applications, but still not overloaded.

Phoebe, Yoki, and Kate were dressed similarly.

"Cell phones and watches are allowed, nothing else!", Yoki gave us to understand, while we placed our belongings in lockers.

We looked at ourselves again in the mirror.

So, I would consider us to be real Native Americans ... Oh, yeah. Becky and I really were.

When we left the room, I had to laugh at first.

Dad. As a Native American!

He wore dark leather pants and a kind of skirt over them. On closer inspection, it was probably more of a generous loincloth, which was probably worn without the pants in the summer. The top was wide cut and made of leather, similar to all of us adorned with embroidery, ribbons, fringe and so on. The moccasins on his feet completed the picture.

"Your son is grounded!" he came right up to Mom.

It was unmistakable that he was kind of pissed. Or wanted to look that way.

"Plus cell phone and Becky bans for the rest of his life! No allowance, to bed without dinner, and I'm taking his car away too!" he announced while I was still gasping for air from laughter.

"What did he do wrong? Accidentally start World War III?" asked Mom, who was also visibly suppressing her chuckles.

"I took a picture of him and sent it to Emmett," Jake grinned in the background.

Only now did my gaze pass over the others.

The men were all dressed in the same style as Dad already was. The biggest differences were only in the brightness of the leather. Jake didn't look dressed up at all in his outfit, but rather real. So did Akai and the other two guys.

Marcus wasn't really a Native American, but those unusual clothes looked pretty good on him. He reached out a hand for me, which I let him pull me into his arms after he spun me around myself once.

"You look ... stunning!" he stated with a smile and kissed me.

Behind us, Mom had just cancelled out all of Jake's punishments. Dad would have known what he was getting into with us. He would just have to live with the consequences.

Ced also sat dressed up on the floor, also wearing a small suede ensemble that appeared to be very well lined on the inside, the fringe of which he played with.

I briefly unknotted his fingers.

In the corner of my eye, I saw a door open next to us. I forgot to breathe for a moment as I turned my head toward him.

Nanuk.

His gaze also rested on me as I lethargically leaned up from Ced. Similar clothes to the other men, but all very dark, almost black. It accentuated his eyes. His top was tighter than Dad's, for example, but the collar more generous. The pronounced musculature on his upper body was hard to miss. Around his neck he wore a tight-fitting wide chain of little bone tubes. Bracelets adorned his wrist. Around his hips was an ornate belt, from the side of which hung a handsome pouch. In his chin-length black hair dangled sideways three feathers.

He looked like ... a Native American. A proud Native American. An apparition from a very real dream. A dream that was within reach.

"Nanuk."

"Leah."

I blinked a few times and turned to Marcus, who immediately put an arm around me.

"What was that now?", I heard Yoki ask in a whisper, but she received no answer.

"Why are you the only one wearing feathers here?" inquired Jake.

Nanuk smiled snootily while he already had Kate on his hand.

"Feathers ... have to be earned with us!" clarified Nanuk. Then he looked to Akai. "Where's yours?"

Akai grabbed at his hair, cursed briefly, and once again stormed through the door into the men's locker room.

I chuckled.

"Ta Daaa ...!" he reappeared with us shortly after.

With one feather hanging in his hair.

Ready clad, we strode through the building. Apparently we would leave it again in the back.

In the process, Akai told us a few more important things: "Some of the things of the modern age are not dispensed with here either. Here through the door you go to the toilets. There is also a first aid room, which is equipped with the most necessary things, as well as a changing room for the little crumb. If, contrary to expectations, you get cold, there are also blankets on the shelves here that you can help yourself to."

The brothers stood in front of a door and chuckled as we reached the back of the house.

"Ready?" asked Akai, as if a fast-paced roller coaster ride awaited behind it.

Then they opened the double door ...

Wow ... There were Native Americans. Quite a lot of Native Americans. If two seconds ago I felt quite overdressed, it was now the opposite.

Right behind the house was a real Native American camp.

I didn't even know where to look first.

The camp was about the size of a football field. Wigwams stood there, in front of which very busy people sat and did all sorts of things. There was cooking or baking in ancient ovens, gutting fish, skinning rabbits. Jewelry was being made, baskets were being weaved, clothes were being woven, leather was being tanned, handicrafts were being carved ... And at the very back I saw a huge tent. So big that it must have once belonged to a circus.

"So ...," Nanuk began after a moment when we were all simply speechless.

One had given us a moment to cope with this sensory overload before the Native Americans now started to move.

Nanuk explained, pointing towards what he was saying something about, "If you're hungry ..." he gave Jake and me a meaningful look, "... there's something to eat in pretty much every other tent ... Out here, it's all by the old tried and true tradition. Both in terms of hunting, but also the preparation. Only according to today's hygienic standards, of course. If none of that appeals to you: Over there, the tent right next to the house. There you can also find normal food. That of the palefaces, but also cakes and such, which doesn't quite fit into the time out here."

"Where did all this come from? It must cost a fortune to maintain it all like this," Becky wanted to know.

"All this is not that expensive here," Yoki explained. "You don't need money here at the compound. Everyone works here for the community, not for themselves. And everyone looks at living here as a pastime, not a duty. Everyone who comes here regularly does their part to keep this village the way it is."

"There's always something to do around here," one of the boys continued. "A fence that needs mending or a wigwam that needs to be rebuilt. The animals we have here need to be taken care of ..."

He pointed in a direction on the other side of the building, and I recognized sheep and goats there.

"... In the process, everyone pitches in equally, no matter where something needs to be done. The material for it supplies us the nature. As our ancestors had it also only at the disposal."

"It sounds like you're all pretty ... nature-loving people," Jake commented cautiously.

"That's deceptive," Akai laughed.

"The life here has absolutely nothing to do with our real life," Nanuk added. "At home, we drive cars or motorcycles, gamble on the PC or Play Station, go out at night or sit in front of the TV, go to work or school. Just like everyone else. But for as long as we can remember, we've spent plenty of time here. As kids, we just found it exciting to live like this. To be able to do more or less what we wanted here. Here, none of us had any rules that we had to follow at home. Clean up your room, go to bed at eight o'clock, clear the table or something. There's none of that here."

"It's hard to implement without a bed or a room or a table," the other boy interfered.

We reached the large tent that apparently marked the far end of the camp.

A large bonfire flickered in high flames in the center, with a few people standing around it in small groups.

Finn, Mato, Phoebe, and Yoki left us for the time being when they were called by others.

Nanuk waved to the other side of the tent. They saw him and a group of adults came towards us.

I actually had to look twice to recognize his family. In the magnificent American Indian robes, I almost didn't recognize them.

Nanuk's parents and grandparents and an older woman unknown to me. But all of them seemed to be in the best of moods. His grandfather Amarok looked really quite … enormous. As if one had to be in awe and respect of him. Even when he laughed. He was wearing basically the same clothes as the other men. Leather pants, loincloth, boot-like moccasins, and a top. Over that, however, was a magnificent breastplate. The many little bone tubes were elaborately threaded with colorful stone beads on leather straps and carefully knotted several times. In the middle, a wide leather band was woven upright, into which some kind of pattern had been burned. At the upper end were still thin strings attached to which long white feathers and teeth of animals dangled above the chest.

That part looked damn old. Accordingly, it was certainly valuable. Amarok also had plenty of feathers on his head. If one had Nanuk's statement in the back of one's mind that one had to earn these, these were impressively many feathers. But his father Chaske also had some hanging in his hair, as did his wife Susan. Shanti, Nanuk's grandmother, I somehow found ... I couldn't think of a word. Confident, yet she seemed modest. A woman who complied with her husband with devotion. As long as he didn't do anything stupid! I had no doubt that she knew very well how to assert herself.

The brothers embraced them in greeting.

"Welcome to us!" spoke Amarok with dignity, spreading his arms to refer the 'us' to the entire camp. "Our clothes really do look great on all of you!"

"We thank you very much for the invitation!" replied Dad kindly and they shook hands. "This is my Bella and our son together, Ced," Dad introduced.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Bella!" said Amarok devotedly.

Mom returned the nice greeting and refused to use the 'Ms.' for the time being.

"We've already heard about the little one, haven't we? I must admit that I was not aware that there can be offspring among the ..." he looked around briefly and spoke a little more quietly, "... blood drinkers."

"We didn't know that a few weeks ago either," Dad admitted.

Amarok looked at him in surprise.

They whispered that maybe they should talk about it a little more undisturbed, if he was interested.

Amarok nodded.

"Our twins you already know, but Marcus and Becky you don't yet," Dad introduced the two, who were now shaking hands with the Native Americans in turn.

In the process, the elderly lady was also introduced to us.

Nova, Amarok's sister. This one and Shanti were immediately enthusiastic about my little brother.

The round of introductions ended in a little general chit-chat. How old Ced was - who was already in Shanti's arms - whether we had found the way well, that although everyone here in the village knew the old legends, but only those standing here now knew that they were true.

"We hope you will stay with us for some time and not leave right away, don't we?" asked Shanti to the large group, making a welcoming hand gesture further inside the large tent.

Mom and Dad followed the adults at a leisurely pace.

"I must confess, I was very curious about you, Bella. What woman manages to tame one of our enemies!", Amarok began to chatter.

We younger ones stayed behind.

I don't know, but Akai and Nanuk didn't give the impression that they wanted to follow the others.

"Nanuk," Chaske called his son to him. "They're mostly your guests, so you worry about them not feeling lost here. Not like that girl the other day who sat there quiet as a mouse all day while you were out with Finn and Mato!" he reprimanded his son.

A girl the other day? Hadn't he been together with Kate for ages?

"The other day? Dad! ... I was twelve!" Nanuk objected. Amused indignant.

"Has it been that long? ... Time just goes by way too fast with you ... And now you want to get married already! ... But I'll tell you one thing, you're not getting married if you haven't cleaned up your room first!" his dad determined, chuckling and twirling through the hair of his son before he caught up with the other parents again.

"Breakfast?" asked Nanuk with a smile to the youthful round.

"Didn't you before we left?", Kate didn't understand.

"Wolves!" muttered Becky and Marcus on the other hand, shaking their heads.

They also rolled their eyes in the process. Chuckling, by the way.

"YES ...!", however, Akai, Jake, and I made unmistakably clear.

Between various snacks, some of which were really interesting and really tasty, the brothers showed us around the camp.

Phoebe had also rejoined us at some point and jumped right into Akai's arms.

Everyone seemed to know Nanuk and Akai, and they were treated with a little more respect than one might have expected given their young age.

It was worth seeing how all sorts of things were done here in the time-honored way. An old woman was weaving cloth on a frame at least twice her age. Spicy dumplings came out of an oven that was rigged together out of clay. In a tent one could have one's hair done in a typical Native American way. Every hairstyle was different.

Becky was brave enough and let herself be restyled. In her long hair, colorful ribbons, wooden beads, and small feathers were braided into isolated braids and tied with leather straps. Looked totally ingenious.

"Have you been paying good attention, too, so you can do her hair again?" Jake asked me quite seriously, who was unmistakably liking his star.

He hardly dared to touch her so that nothing would bust, but her lips were far enough away from her hair, and he dealt with them extensively.

"Um ... nope ...?"

"We should have videoed it so Rosie would know the score," Marcus said. "I'm sure it would also look very good on you," he stated, turning to me.

He was sitting on a kind of tree stump, and I was standing between his legs.

A little dejectedly I looked at him.

I would like such a hairstyle pretty well, too, but my hair was much too short for that. It was the first time I really regretted it.

"But I like your short hair," Marcus said, stroking his fingers through it. "It's as brash as you are!" he concluded, and I kissed him softly on his lips, which I immediately released.

The time so far has been very relaxed as far as my inner chaos is concerned.

To four couples we roamed calmly through the camp. Holding hands, one arm wrapped around the other, kissing again and again.

Two couples were a bit more permissive in this regard, which I really had to admit.

Jake and Becky and Akai and Phoebe.

It was so that I held back with Marcus. Just as Nanuk did with Kate. Consciously, but I'm sure a lot of it unconsciously. I didn't know how much I wanted to see that Kate and Nanuk were lovers. They were happy together, that was enough for me. I also didn't know how it would go over with Nanuk if I treated Marcus how I usually did. I didn't want to hurt Nanuk by acting like I didn't care about him. Because he wasn't. Still, I loved my boyfriend and I wanted to show that. Both of them. What was that about the chaos and that it had relaxed?!

We moved on through the many wigwams.

There was really not one tent here where it would be boring.

A man was carving wooden ornaments like those found everywhere here. On the clothes, in the hairstyles, on drums, on hunting instruments like tomahawks and bows and arrows. His wife dyed the finished pieces in iron pots hanging over a little fire. Dye that the married couple obtained one tent over from various plants. In another tent, a man and his wife fabricated bags of various sizes. Heavy leather bags, but also small cloth or leather pouches.

One of these caught my attention. It was made of light thin leather and a pretty embroidery of dark threads adorned the one side.

Nanuk was attentive. Without having touched it, he took this one and the one Becky was just admiring. He exchanged a glance with the woman sitting in the tent entrance and she just nodded benevolently smiling while she was teaching a girl how to get such decorations on the leather with a 'needle' made of boar bristles.

"Thank you, Anush!" said Nanuk with an implied bow.

He handed the one to Becky.

"We can't just take them without paying anything for it!" she only meant.

I nodded vigorously as he handed me the other one.

"Yes, you can. Otherwise you'll offend Anush!", Nanuk smiled, however.

"That's right!" the latter said firmly thereupon.

Nanuk and Akai expertly attached the pouches to us.

"Now at least you can pack your cell phones and not destroy your true-to-original pretty appearance with them!", Anush still noted with a kind smile, and we thanked the lady emphatically.

We continued walking and made a stopover at the washrooms.

When I came out of the building, I dawdled on purpose. I pretended that I was still clumsily adjusting my boots.

Kate and Nanuk were already ready and standing off to the side on the three steps to the porch. Kate stood one stair step above Nanuk, who had his hands at her waist. They were talking together, and I was trying not to listen.

I did not succeed particularly well.

"... the looks you give each other, however random and brief, are pretty fierce," Kate was saying, but sounding quite gentle as she did so.

Only conditionally accusatory.

"I'm sorry if I'm hurting you with this, Kate, but there's nothing I can do about it. The power that connects us is just very ... engaging."

"I know. And I get why you invited them, too, but I don't necessarily have to like it!"

"Is it so bad that they're here?"

"Yes and no. Basically, no. They're all really nice. Jake and Becky are really cute together. Like Akai and Phoebe. Marcus seems pretty nice to me, too."

"Only with Leah do you have a problem," Nanuk stated from Kate's words.

"Yeah ... But I believe that's only because I know what connects you."

"But Leah and I are fighting together against what unites us."

"Do you at least have the feeling that this day would help you in the way that you were aiming for?"

"Yes," Nanuk nodded. "I can only speak for myself, not for Leah, but I'm more relaxed now that I've gotten to know Marcus a little. It was hard for me to size him up. What kind of person he might be. I was afraid he wouldn't stay nearly as calm as I've seen him so far. But now I see that Leah and Marcus are a wonderful couple. It puts my mind at ease. I know now what Leah is fighting for."

"And do you remember it too?" asked Kate with a smirk, which Nanuk answered with a tender and long kiss.

"I love you, Kate!" he whispered after that I could hardly understand.

I still pretended to be very busy while standing in the doorway to the house.

Mentally, I agreed with Nanuk's words. Yes, it was easier for me, too. Because I saw him and Kate being familiar with each other. Just as a couple in love should. We both knew what we were fighting for, and I hoped that we would continue to succeed. That we would just be good friends. Even though Kate was quite right in her judgment as far as our fleeting glances were concerned. We watched each other. Tried to make the other feel our presence without pressuring us or putting our partners in a bad mood. Even though I was pleased that Kate and Nanuk obviously had a very loving and well-going relationship, the exchange of affection caused me a certain amount of discomfort. Nanuk, however, seemed to feel the same way. We had both been very reserved with our loved ones so far. This kiss that just took place behind my back - literally - was the first since we arrived here this morning. But I just couldn't watch them doing it.

I was lost in my thoughts when something pulled at my pant leg and there was a giggle in the air.

Ced.

"Where did you come from?", I asked the little man, looking around while I was already lifting him up in my arms.

Mom and Dad had apparently also been in the house and came to me.

"Hey, Mom! ... What heroic deed have you done?", I asked in amazement when I saw a feather dangling in her hair.

"I tamed a predator," she bragged proudly, turning to Dad. "The most dangerous predator in the world!" she smiled at him, who rewarded her answer with a tender kiss.

My parents. As always, head over heels in love.

Little by little, my companions began to arrive again. Kate and Nanuk also joined us while we chatted briefly about how interesting everything was here and what we had done and seen so far.

Mom not only wore the feather in her hair, but now had a necklace on. Nice. Dad, on the other hand, had a pocket attached to his waistband, whereupon Becky and I showed off ours. Dad had even been hunting in the woods with the Native Americans.

'Did it taste good?', I chuckled in my mind.

He twisted his mouth.

Must not have been a little appetizer left for him when they had hunted rabbits and birds of prey.

Dad, as he proudly reported, had caught a duck that was already sizzling over some fire.

That made me hungry again. I was after cake, but Jake and Becky were after these dumplings with apples inside.

So we prepared to split up.

"Marcus," Dad stopped us for a moment. He stepped closer to him. "Kate feels the same way as you, but she doesn't know how to address you," Dad intimated to him in a whisper.

Marcus nodded.

I knew he wanted to talk to Kate about the situation. How she was doing with the fact that Nanuk and I imprinted on each other. Maybe they could help each other somehow.

So Marcus mustered up his courage, which he didn't usually have to seek out in the first place, and asked Kate if they wanted to go for a walk together.

She nodded ... downright thankful.

Marcus pressed a kiss to my lips before he started to move off comfortably with Kate.


Then Nanuk and I were suddenly alone after someone sent Akai to his parents and he took his girlfriend.

"Oh well ...", I sighed.

"Oh well ...", Nanuk did the same.

I looked awkwardly at the ground while he seemed to be looking around, searching for a way out of this oppressive discomfort. And he made a find in the process.

"Cake?" he asked.

I nodded.

Since I had almost forgotten that I had been hungry again.

He took my hand and pulled me toward the tent he had named at the beginning. The one where there was the food of the palefaces.

My stomach growled enthusiastically when we reached it. Now that was a selection of cakes!

Nanuk pressed a plate with a piece of cake into my hand before I could decide. A chocolate cake with jam and a layer of a cream pudding mass, in which wild berries were lovingly embedded.

"Wow ...!", I stated with my mouth quite full. How that tasted!

"My ma baked that one ...", Nanuk began to tell, while we both ate.

I praised her talent for it.

"... My mother is actually a cook and had her own restaurant in the past. She even almost got a star. When she was pregnant with me, she sold the place to her manager at the time because she didn't want to and couldn't stand in the kitchen all evening anymore and on top of that deal with the groceries and such during the day. They are still friends today and Ma tries to drive there once a week to check the menu ... When I was born, she opened a café at Sebago Lake, where she then specialized in baking cakes and was able to take me and later Akai, too."

"What's the name of the cake?", I asked when I had finished the second piece.

Nanuk smirked.

"You just snacked on me!" he stated.

I suddenly felt a little warm.

Nanuk. Snacking.

"Huh ...?", I still got articulated.

"The cake is called Nanuk. Ma's creation, of which I once ate one almost all by myself. I felt sick afterwards. I was, I think, five or so ... There stands Akai, too," he pointed to another cake plate.

Doubtingly, I raised an eyebrow.

He took a fork, poked it once through the cake so that it picked up a bit of each layer, and held it out offering it to me.

Tensely, I stepped toward him and placed a hand against his arm so that I would maintain some control over the fork. He stood close in front of me, and our eyes locked together as a hand of his moved to my waist. Slowly I slid my mouth over the pie and only slowly did he withdraw the fork. He took the empty cutlery into his mouth again himself, to lick off the cream that had stuck.

This moment lasted for ages.

As if we were doing something completely different than just eating cake.

"You taste better!", I muttered.

He smiled gently.

"You still have some cream ..." he breathed towards me, with which I also sucked in his sweet breath.

I didn't move as he ran his thumb over my lips.

How my lips were suddenly on fire!

He licked the cream from his thumb without taking his eyes off me.

"How you taste first," he whispered as if dazed.

The hand at my waist tightened a bit, mine slid from his arm to his torso. His pulled me gently against him, mine clawed into his upper part.

We approached. Slowly. Savoring the moment. Condemning ourselves for it in our thoughts, but the voices were so quiet that they were lost under our loudly beating hearts.

"Nanuk," someone called him from behind us, even before our lips touched.

We looked at each other for a fleeting moment.

Disappointed, but also thankful.

He turned to the voice, and I took a deep breath.

I tried to control my racing heart and held on to a chair.

It could never come to this again, I reminded myself. Never again!

"Leah," he called out after a moment.

Nodding, he pointed outside, and I followed him.

We saw Kate and Marcus on the other side of the camp, sitting on a beam, drinking something out of pewter cups and seeming to be in the middle of a pronounced conversation. Their faces quickly changed between serious, surprised and even fascinated and smiling.

They were obviously not finished with each other, so Nanuk continued to lead me through the village.

His hands were in his pants pockets, my arms folded tightly in front of my stomach. We also hardly looked at each other. We sensed the danger between us and did not give it any new nourishment.

I was talking animatedly with a young woman who was knotting belts together from leather straps.

Beautiful. A clever knotting that incorporated embroidered fabric strips, wooden beads, and small dark feathers.

When she was done, she put it around my waist faster than I could make an appeal.

Nanuk also wordlessly attached my new pouch to it.

"You can't do that!", I wanted to contradict.

"Sure I can! What should I do with more of them!", determines the woman.

A young man joined us with a basket, looked at my waist and smiled.

"Very pretty piece. An artist must have made it!" he said seriously, and I nodded affirmatively. Then he kissed the artist.

Okay, that was the praise for the work of his girlfriend, not a rebuke for me that I had got the decorative part just like that. They were all in cahoots here!

"I hope you're not mad, but I have something else for you," Nanuk said, while the other two could barely contain themselves.

A little grumpily I looked towards him.

I had already received so much and really did not necessarily feel comfortable with it. I saw myself as a thief of the pretty things.

He pulled out a necklace.

Braided leather straps from which dangled a drop-shaped stone.

"It's a goldstone. A particularly dark one, even ... It's exactly the shade of your beautiful eyes when the stars are reflected in them," he said softly.

He put the chain around my neck with gentle fingers. It was quite tight, but not too tight around my neck. He adjusted the stone a little, which lay just in the hollow below my throat.

"Thank you, Nanuk!", I said and hugged him.

His arms were as tight around me as mine were around him.

Only now I noticed that today was the first time that we hugged each other properly. And that I had needed exactly that.

I sighed as I felt a relief inside me and enjoyed it with my eyes closed.

"That feels so good," he murmured softly right by my ear.

"Say, Nanuk. How's Kate doing?" asked the talented girl meanwhile, after we seemed unable to detach ourselves from each other.

But now we did.

Conscious of guilt.

"Drinking coffee with Leah's boyfriend right now," he looked at me as if he wanted to remind both of us.

We strolled on.

Again at a proper distance from each other.

Along the way, I saw Mom and Dad who were watching basket weaving. Akai and Phoebe who were helping an older couple carry things. Jake and Becky who were standing around a goat enclosure drinking fresh goat milk. Shanti and Susan, who were sitting in a wigwam sewing clothes. Chaske and Amarok, who were sitting under the huge tent with other men, smoking pipes and apparently carving a torture stake.

"I can't just keep all this. Outside this compound, I would have to pay a lot of money for it. Real handicrafts and then so beautiful!", I made my displeasure known, but Nanuk smiled.

"It's like Yoki said in the beginning. Money doesn't matter on this compound. It's a give and take among everyone who's here."

"But then what happens to all the beautiful things that are made everywhere here? I mean, at some point you'll all be supplied with everything here," I asked.

"They are sold to the palefaces ... You're right, of course. We make so many things here that more than meet our own needs. Yet we continue to do so. For one thing ... whatever we do here, we enjoy doing it. It is our pleasure. Both the manufacturing of these or those items, and that we do it in a traditional way. We want to preserve the processes and they will be passed on to the next generations ... But we are not playing with honest cards here as you might think at first glance," Nanuk smirked.

I looked at him questioningly.

"We try to be as honest as the present time allows. But, for example, long hunting trips or extensive farming, as our ancestors once did to ensure the survival of the village in winter, we could not and are not allowed to do at all. Edward went hunting with the other men, for which, by the way, he may feel very honored, but what else but rabbits, deer or wild boar is hardly possible nowadays. Especially not in the masses that we would need here. It is also always done in consultation with the local forestry administration, which tells us what we can and cannot shoot. There are various hunting seasons, but also the extinction of species to consider. Therefore, most of the food is bought, but also many other things. This, in turn, is financed by the sale of our handmade things," he explained.

"Okay," I said. What else was I supposed to say?

"Hey, Nanuk," someone called out.

A middle-aged man held out a pouch to Nanuk.

"I have something for your darling!" he murmured conspiratorially.

Nanuk thanked, chuckling.

"Your darling?", I dug deeper.

The family of the wigwam had obviously devoted themselves to the preparation of fruits and vegetables, which sizzled in various variations over a small fire. The mushroom wrapped in a strange-looking breading had been delicious, which the child belonging to them had given me.

"Come, I'll introduce you to her," Nanuk said, and we left the hustle and bustle of the Native American village.

He led me between the tents and a narrow patch of woods, and I found myself in a horse paddock.

On the right side of the gate there was a lot going on. Children romped around some horses that were probably hoping to be fed there. Adults were also standing by. A woman was grooming one of the animals extensively. A girl sat very deftly on another and trotted along. All of them had reins around their heads, but no saddle.

Nanuk whistled melodically and one of the horses seemed to respond to him, moving away from the group and coming straight towards us.

A beautiful Palomino, as I even happened to know. I had no idea about horses, but that the light browns with blond tails were called Palomino, I had seen somewhere once in a report.

Nanuk climbed through the fence and greeted the neighing big, pretty lady.

I sat down on the fence and watched the loving reception with a smile.

"Leah. This is Sitara. My darling," he introduced me politely and led her a little in my direction.

"Hello," I said chuckling as she lightly bumped against my belly in greeting.

"She likes you," he grinned at me and sat down next to me on the fence.

Nanuk reached into the pouch and pulled out a carrot, which Sitara ate with relish.

"And why is she your darling?", I asked, holding out an apple from the pouch to her.

"She once saved my life and I saved hers," Nanuk began to tell. "She was not yet a year old and I had just turned twelve. I was going to swim at Black Lake with some boys, but I got there as the last one. Why, I don't even remember. The others were already far out in the water. I jumped into the lake, swam a few meters and something touched my leg. Must have been seaweed or something. In any case, I was so scared that I got a cramp in my leg. I could barely stay afloat and went under a few times. Sitara came into the water and on her I pulled myself to the shore ... But when I was lying in the grass, she could not get out. The steep bank at this point kept breaking away under her hooves as she tried to get out again. She panicked ... as I had before ... making it even more impossible. I jumped back into the water, even though I still had pain in my leg, calmed her down, and swam with her to another spot where she came out on her own ... I got my first feather for that," he recounted.

"And the others? What did you get them for?"

"I didn't really deserve the second one. It was three or four years ago. Some younger kids got lost in the woods. I just happened to find them with my dad without us searching for them. We didn't even know any kids were missing. One of the kids had fallen and skinned his knee. That one ended up sitting on my shoulders when we got back to the village," he admitted, but laughed delightfully.

"And the third?"

"I've only had them since Christmas. Since we destroyed a blood drinker. Akai and Tom got some for that, too, though no one here was told what we got them for. The chief decides all by himself who is worthy of a feather."

"Then I would already have ...", I counted briefly: Samantha, the lonely wanderer at the lake, the four from the South, the couple of Marcus and Jules, the couple that Jazz and Alice had brought, "... have ten feathers!", I stated.

"The day's not over yet!" he winked at me and jumped off the fence.

True, but unfortunately the day was no longer long. Four o'clock in the afternoon was already over.

All of a sudden Nanuk pulled himself onto the horse's back rather briskly.

"You can ride?", I asked, perplexed.

"Am I Native American?" he asked back mischievously and at least as snootily, holding out a hand to me, which I looked at indecisively.

Surely he wasn't going to drag me up there too?!

"Trust me," he followed up meaningfully, and I couldn't help but do just that as Sitara seemed to nod in agreement as well.

So I sat sideways in front of him.

In order to get one of my legs on the other side of the horse's back, my dress was too much in the way.

I crossed my legs so they wouldn't be too much in the way of Sitara or Nanuk. I didn't know where to put my hands.

"You can hold onto her mane," Nanuk noted my indecision. "Or on me," he whispered afterwards.

I decided to use one hand for the mane while I just put the other in my lap.

At walking pace Sitara led us in front to the people, someone opened a gate for us, and we were already trotting slowly through the wilderness.

I do not know whether I should have actually been afraid. So in the open wilderness, on the back of a rather large animal. But I felt quite safe, with a warm arm around my back.

Maybe instead of fear I should have just had a guilty conscience because I left the compound with Nanuk without telling anyone about it. Besides, we were alone. What would Kate and Marcus have to say about it? But those voices inside me were too distracted by the forest that silently scurried past us. A proverb ran through my mind: All happiness on this earth is on the back of horses. It seemed very true to me just then.

We rode up a hill, at the top of which Nanuk stopped.

The snow-powdered forest stretched almost endlessly below us. To the right below us, I recognized a long lake. The Black Lake, as Nanuk said. And right in front of us the sunset could be seen. Under the clouds it shone fire-red and was about to be swallowed up by the horizon.

"The view is wonderf ...", I wanted to say, and I turned to Nanuk.

The sight of him left me speechless!

The red rays of the sun made his red Native American skin literally shimmer. The huge celestial body stood instead of his pupils in his eyes. His gaze was directed consumingly at me. His lips slightly parted. His arm continued to be around my back, spreading comforting warmth inside me. With my fingertips I combed a few strands that had fallen into his forehead and stroked the feathers in his hair, which glowed reddish in the dusk. I couldn't help but let my fingers continue to run over his flawless face, when I already felt his fingers tenderly in my face.

"It's unbelievable how beautiful you are," he murmured absentmindedly.

I put a hand on his chest.

Our hearts beat in harmonic unison. Completely calm.

Our heads fell gently with closed eyes at the forehead against each other. We remained like that for a long moment.

A tear gathered in my eyes.

I could not say why. Perhaps because it hurt me not to be allowed to say the words back to him? Maybe because exactly this situation overtaxed me? Or because I liked it too much? Maybe because I could no longer look Marcus in the eyes right now?

"You mustn't say that," I managed to say after a few seconds, although it was only a whisper.

"Why not, when it's the truth! Absolute honesty, Leah! That's what we agreed?" he asked grumpily, lifting his head irritably again.

He saw the tear that just stole out of my eye, and he watched it very wistfully. Just a moment until his lips gently stopped the tear.

"Please don't cry, Leah. I can't see you unhappy!" he demanded in a whisper, tortured, without having really left my cheek with his mouth.

I felt every movement of his soothing lips on my skin. Like little sparks, they struck me. Sparks that I usually felt with another man.

"We should go back," I muttered at that thought. Before I lost myself. Before I forgot why I was fighting Nanuk.

Without a word, he took the reins again and rode back.

Arriving at the fenced paddock, I immediately jumped off the animal's back to escape this dangerous proximity.

I closed my eyes for a moment and took a very deep breath before walking purposefully toward the gate when something poked me in the back.

Sitara.

She neighed once.

"I told you she likes you," Nanuk intimated to me in a whisper, who stood a few yards behind me.

The few yards which I had already put behind me.

I smiled.

I stroked Sitara along the neck with firm pressure.

"Thank you, Sitara," I said as I did so. "For the much too beautiful short ride," I whispered further.

She nodded, neighing.

"Hey, Nanuk. Your grandfather was looking for you," a man called from the stable.

Nanuk looked at his wrist.

I involuntarily did the same to him.

5:06 p.m.

"Damn it!" he cursed, taking my hand and running off.

The camp seemed strangely empty, but I had found the solution to this very quickly.

Pretty much the whole village had gathered under the huge tent around the big bonfire. One had let down the side parts of the former circus tent to a large extent, so that the inside was filled with cozy warmth.

When we got there, everyone was looking at us, so that I felt quite uncomfortable.

Immediately our hands let go, as if we had done something forbidden, which was now witnessed by everyone present.

I looked around, saw my family, and hurried to get to them behind the people. They were all sitting on rugs on the floor and looking toward me.

Dad worried, Mom relieved, Jake skeptical, Becky questioning, Ced giggling. Marcus ... well. I couldn't come up with a clear term for that. There was so much reflected in his face. Understanding and trust, but also disappointment.

I sat down silently in front of him. His arms fell around me.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly over my shoulder.

I nodded and turned my head a little so I could feel his lips against my cheek.

It was tingling underneath, which calmed me down quite a bit and let me really snuggle up to Marcus.

Nanuk had also sought a way to his family that attracted as little attention as possible. He exchanged a few words with them, especially with Kate, who seemed to be quite unbalanced, not to call it directly angry now.

Amarok apparently took a place intended for him, which was on a little pedestal. A kind of leather cushion lay there ready for him and Shanti. A hand movement from him and something seemed to begin.

The general murmuring stopped, and it was quiet in the tent.

Even Ced seemed to realize something was about to happen and was very still on Jake's lap where he had the best view.

Suddenly I heard drums. They emitted different sounds, so that with a lot of imagination a melody could be heard. Men and women in splendid, very ornate costumes approached the fire, surrounded it and danced jumping around it.

Apparently there was something like a fixed step/hop sequence, but I didn't recognize it. They also seemed to sing in a strange language that I didn't understand.

I asked Dad what they were singing about.

After all, he had known what the names of Nanuk's family meant. But Dad didn't know the Algonquin language. He was just learning it, as I took note rolling my eyes. He only knew the meaning of the names because he and Mom had browsed countless websites of names when they were looking for one for our little sibling. But I was still very impressed.

I glanced at Nanuk, hoping that would somehow help me understand what I was experiencing here.

Our gazes met.

Since he immediately chuckled in amusement when he saw me, it was clear to me that I probably looked pretty dumbfounded.

The dance around the fire lasted only a few minutes. Then Amarok rose and the reverent silence was immediately restored.

"My name is Amarok, and I am the tribal chief of the Pequawket Native Americans!" he proudly declared.

Approving enthusiasm rushed through the audience until Amarok raised his hands and asked for silence again.

"But the years do not pass me by without a trace either. This is the seventy-third winter I have experienced. There have been hard winters, but also beautiful winters that I can look back on and just as many summers. For fifty-five years I have been responsible for our traditions and for all those who belong to us ... but I am getting tired. It is time for me to step down and make space for the younger ones," he said, sounding truly exhausted with the last words.

My gaze went to Nanuk.

Now it was me who chuckled in amusement. He looked shocked. That Amarok actually vacated his place as chief, as their legends demanded after Nanuk's transformation and imprinting, had probably been forgotten to tell him.

After he recovered, he apparently began to discuss animatedly with his parents and Shanti.

People in the tent began to whisper.

The opinions differed. Some did not think it was right for Amarok to retire and saw the whole thing as similar to a monarchy. He should therefore hold the position until his demise. Other voices thought it only fair that he should live out his twilight years, which were to be quite long, without the burden of responsibility. On the other hand, it was agreed that it was no longer of particular importance nowadays. Amarok was honored, but a real leader was no longer needed. But it was part of the tradition that this Native American tribe had a tribal chief, so they definitely wanted to have one in the future.

I also heard the speculations who Amarok would appoint as his successor. To the left of us, people were more than convinced of Chaske, to the right they suspected Nanuk.

Amarok continued.

"According to our traditions, it is my duty to choose a successor. Someone who will carry on my bloodline. Someone who is familiar with our customs and traditions. Someone whom you all know and who has been with us for so long ... Someone who will remain with you long after my passing ... My grandson. Nanuk."

With that, the lively discussion in the Latham family ended abruptly and Nanuk had clearly lost this. He looked - still shocked - at his grandfather. His parents in front of him stood up and rhythmic soft drumbeats could be heard shortly afterwards.

Susan and Chaske pulled their oldest son up from the floor, who was clearly a bit out of sorts. They led him to Amarok, stopped behind Nanuk and each put a hand on his shoulder.

Nanuk just stood there, with his eyes wide open, staring at his grandfather.

But the latter just smiled, as did Nanuk's parents.

The drumbeats became faster, and a strange singsong joined in. Many people in the tent participated by this. Shanti stepped up to the four people standing near the fire. She kissed her husband's hands, whereupon he knelt down. Shanti placed her hands on his shoulders, mindfully took off Amarok's ornate breastplate, and indicated a bow with her head. The drums became even faster and the chanting more incantatory. Shanti turned around and Nanuk was now kneeling down, who continued to have his parents' hands on his shoulders. Shanti carefully slipped the loop of the breastplate over Nanuk's head, so as not to damage the armor or Nanuk's feathers in his hair and adjusted it so that it hung straight on Nanuk's chest. Satisfied with her work, she gave her grandson a kiss on the forehead. She extended a hand to her husband, who then stood up again and together they paced behind the new chief.

The drumming became even faster, almost frantic, and I wondered how they did it. The singsong also seemed to be approaching a high point.

Nanuk was still kneeling, looking as if absent-mindedly into the flames of the fire right in front of him.

He probably couldn't quite grasp what was happening to him. But the flames had a similar effect to the red sun setting earlier. It seemed to bring out the beauty of this young muscular man in all his facets. I could not take my eyes off him.

Just when I thought that the drums would snap at any moment, just like the vocal cords of some people, Nanuk stood up with a jerk and everything was suddenly quiet as a mouse again.

"Nanuk. Eighth of his blood. Chief of the Pequawket tribe," Amarok said loudly and clearly, followed by general applause.

Instead of doing anything lofty or graceful now, as perhaps befitted his position now, Nanuk's hands clapped against his face.

According to the motto: May this nightmare now please be over!


Thank you for reading!