Tiopa Ki Lakota Read Free Page B

early afternoon, the hides had been staked out and meat was cut into strips to dry in the sun. The atmosphere was one of happiness and excitement, as the camp prepared to feast that evening.
    There was a creek nearby that the warriors cleaned themselves in while the shaman, Inyan Ceye, was off seeking a vision. Cinksi ran off after the pack of boys as they scampered off to reenact the hunt as they had heard it. The women and girls had already cleaned themselves of the butchering and were beginning to roast meat or tan the hides of the buffalo.
    "Nupa!" the girl called. "You were right! My father did kill a bull and a cow!"
    This brought the attention of the other boys. They all considered what their fathers and brothers had told them of the hunt, comparing it to what Nupa had seen in his vision the night before. Eerily, the eldest boy was correct in all of his accounts.
    "You should be a shaman," a boy said, his dark eyes wide. The others agreed with him.
    Nupa shook his head in scorn. "No. I do not wish to be a shaman. It was just one dream. Nothing more."
    "Maybe we should start our own society from your vision," Cinksi suggested.
    Around her, the boys gave their heartfelt approval to the idea.
    "We could create a ritual and a song," one added.
    Another boy spoke up, fingering the feathers on his spear, "And a special dance."
    As the pack bowed their heads together, ideas filling the air around them, a thunder could be heard in the distance. It took a few moments for any of them to notice, until Nupa suddenly sat upright and said, "Wait! Listen!"
    The thunder grew louder and the reverberations in the ground under their behinds signaled something moving closer. Most of the pack stood and peered around, searching for the source.
    It was still light out, the end of summer allowing for the long daylight yet. The warriors of the camp had noticed the approaching riders, as well, and were up and ready for whatever came their way.
    In the distance, a group could be seen approaching on their ponies. As they came closer, their appearance became one of the Lakota band under the chief, Zintkala T'e Zito
    . They came from the south, but circled around the established camp until they reached the eastern entrance. There they rode into the cleared area, a group of seven warriors, none of them looking particularly happy.
    As the party had entered through the proper entrance of the camp and the two bands were not at war, most of the warriors relaxed a bit. But their weapons were still kept close at hand. The pack of younger boys and Cinksi came pelting back into the clearing to watch the proceedings.
    The obvious leader of the party glared down from his pony.
    Their own chief, Wagmiza Wagna
    , approached with a welcoming smile on his face. "Please! Come to our feast this night! The great wakan tanka
    has blessed this camp with great bounty and we would enjoy it with the brave warriors of Zintkala T'e Zito!"
    " Hoh
    !" the new arrival spat. "Your people have chased away the tatanka
    that we were preparing to hunt. We will not eat the meat offered from thieves!" His pony pranced around in response to the rider's agitation.
    Wagmiza Wagna sobered at the insult, his face becoming stone. He cast warning looks at the younger warriors of his camp who bristled in response. "No man owns tatanka . The meat cannot have been stolen from you and yours. Had we known you were in the area, we would have offered to hunt with you."
    "That is not acceptable! We will return to our people and seek a vision of war." And with that pronouncement, the leader whirled his pony around and raced out of the camp, his party of warriors following, whooping and hollering.
    Cinksi watched the old chief sadly shake his head. A peek at her father and she could see a face comprised of worry and anger. " Ate ?" she asked, reaching up to tug on the end of his shirt.
    Wanbli Zi looked down at his daughter, the expression faded to one of love. "Yes, Cinksi?" He placed a large hand