"Because your being here distracts me, and when I am distracted, I can make mistakes. There are other dangers in these woods besides human ones, although the human ones are the most threatening."
"Well, all right. At least I have tonight," she whispered as she snuggled deeper into her own blanket and cuddled in close to him.
"But, before you go to sleep, come close to me so I can hug you. I have missed having you sleep by my side, even though I understand why it must be."
"Of course, I will come in close to you. I have missed you, too."
He smiled at her, and then, taking hold of her arm, he bent down slightly to press wet kisses up and down it before gifting her with a lover's deep and passionate kiss.
She sighed and he groaned; it was a sound she was coming to love.
He signed, "I want more."
"So do I," she returned.
"But, we dare do no more than kiss. And, even then, we must do this only a little. These woods can be a dangerous place. But, for tonight, I like your being here."
She sighed, snuggling in as close to him as humanly possible. And, as she closed her eyes, the image of this man's handsome profile was forever etched upon her soul. And, for a moment, if only a moment, she felt at peace.
****
Three days. For three days, Snake's war party had been forced to stay close to their camp in the northern Bears Paw Mountains, though they had moved their site to a less putrid-smelling location within the forest. Cold and practically naked, the warriors had at first worked over their clothing with what they had to hand from nature, but no amount of washing or working over their shirts, leggings, breechcloths or other clothing caused the awful scent to fade.
They all agreed there was only one action to take: they must hunt. They would have to track the elk, the deer or even the bear in order to attain new skins which they would use to make new and warmer clothing. But, even stalking after the game turned quickly into difficulty, since each one of the warriors had to accomplish the task practically naked. Otherwise, the skunk scent, which even now lingered on their clothing, would alert the animals to the danger of man...and skunk.
Still, to have to hunt so scantily dressed incurred the danger of freezing to death, and so they took to hunting in pairs and in shifts. Also, this particular task, commonly looked upon as invigorating and a test of a man's skills, became unpleasant and grueling work.
Yet, each man went about it with determination since, regardless of what else lay in their futures, they required warm clothing. Soon, however, they had accumulated enough meat to be used for roasting and drying, as well as plenty of skins so as to fashion shirts, leggings, breechcloths and new moccasins. Blankets to shield themselves from the cold and for use as saddles were another item of necessity.
All the joy of warring and the thrill of bringing home the spoils of war, however, evaporated within their tiny group. And, although Snake pretended not to hear their complaints, of one rumor in particular he needed to pay attention to in order to thwart it: the rumor they were now under a curse.
Whatever else Snake might have been, he was not a coward, not even in the face of the damage the skunks had done to them. He was also aggressive to a point where he often lost control, even going so far as to abuse others. Indeed, his terrible anger usually led him into bullying and threatening others, and it was often done without thought to consequences.
And so, on the third day following the skunk attack, he addressed the four remaining warriors and spat at them, saying, "We are not cursed. And, I will make an example of anyone who dares to say it again. One of us caused the skunks to find us and attack us. There was a reason for it, though I do not know it. It was not—is not—a curse. To think there is black magic attending to us is the same as speaking loudly of your own cowardice. No more are you to speak of this. Do you hear?"
Most of the others nodded.
"Miyo-nâpew,good," continued Snake. "Now, I will listen to what you have to say about this."
Runs-with-bulls was the first to sign his wish to speak, and he said, "I think the scalp we seek comes at too high a price. I also believe this is what the skunks were trying to tell us. Perhaps the one we wish to kill is a medicine man and has turned the skunks against us."
"Maskihkîwiyiniw!Medicine Man! He is only one man, and you are afraid of him when there are five of us against only the one? Are you a woman? Do you wish to run away like a woman and hide?" Snake looked carefully at each of his remaining warriors: Runs-with-bulls, Gives Plenty, Wolf Ears and his brother, Coyote. "When we return to our people, do you, Runs-with-bulls, wish me to tell others of your lack of bravery? Your lack of honor? Did we not each one pledge ourselves to this deed? Our plan is simple. We take his scalp, his two horses and his woman. We will share in the honor. In this way, we will return as heroes, not as the weaklings you would have us be."
Runs-with-bulls sat mute, his eyes centered downward.
Gives Plenty was the next to speak, and he said in a low voice, "There is no dishonor in seeking to quit a party when a man is convinced it is cursed."
"Cursed? I told each one of you not to speak this word again. I will punish the next one who says the word!"
Not one of them spoke back to Snake. He was too large in body, too muscular, too strong, and no one dared contradict him.
Snake then went on to say, "Do you tell me now about a dream you had where you saw death? As we all know, a warrior may turn back if he has dreamed there is death ahead of him. Did you, Gives Plenty, have such a dream?"
Neither Runs-with-bulls nor Gives Plenty offered a word about this, nor did they look at Snake; and their silence spoke for them.
"And you, Wolf Ears, my cousin. Do you have a protest you would like to voice? What is your opinion of our war party? Think you it is cursed?"
Wolf Ears shook his head, then signed, "No. Like you, I believe the skunks were given cause to attack us, though we do not know what it is. I think it wise to make new clothes, as you say, and to be back on the trail within a few days, if possible. In this way, we will get the scalp of the man and take his woman and his horses."
