Ajijaak was moving through the brush, checking his rabbit traps when he heard a familiar step in the woods. He looked up and saw a flash of dark hair and swift legs flying in the direction of the Great Sea. Miinan. Clutching the two dead rabbits that swung from the twine on his shoulder, Ajijaak ran after her. He tried to be as quiet as possible he was not sure she would want his company. Ahead, through the trees the waters of the Great Sea glistened. Miinan reached the shore, ran to her favorite spot, raised her arms to the sky called out, “Giizhig-ikwe!”

Why would she want the sky woman? Ajijaak stopped where he was and waited. The bodies of the rabbits had dripped blood on his legs and feet. He had been holding them too tightly when he ran.

Miinan sunk down to her knees and began to weep. The sound of her crying went through Ajijaak. Without a thought for his own safety he went to her side, and laid one hand on her shoulder. She sprung away from him in surprise. Her blue-black eyes met his. They were wet with tears. He traced an invisible tear down his own face to ask her why she was crying.

She shook her head. “You should not be here Ajijaak, I should not be here. I have broken a promise of obedience. Ziibi is right, I can only do you harm. I am thankful for your friendship Ajijaak, but I should not have done what I did last night. I do not know what it was.” She paused and wiped her eyes. “No, I do know what it was, I was afraid of my destiny and I wanted you to make me feel better. You always make me feel safe and cared for, but my father is Mide and he has spoken against you. I must follow what he says, I must trust that he would not choose badly for me.”

Unable to express the complex feelings that tumbled around inside of him, Ajijaak shook his head furiously.

“No, do not be angry or foolish. I am sorry. I should not have encouraged you last night. I should not have hugged you.”

All the anger and frustration in Ajijaak sputtered out of him in the only sounds he could make. Guttural and unintelligible, he was usually very careful not to make a single sound, but now, he had betrayed himself. Miinan stared at him. He saw in her eyes, pity and realization. She understood in that instant why her father would not let her be with Ajijaak.

If he could have cursed he would have. If he could have swallowed the ugly sounds his mouth had just made he would have, but he could not.

Miinan knocked his hand off her shoulder and stood. “I must get back, if mother finds me missing I will be punished.” She did not say more. She ran past him. On her dress were flecks of blood. Ajijaak glanced at the rabbits on his shoulder. The blood must have come from them.

*

As soon as her father had stepped into the canoe, Ziibi’s mother left to go sulk. She did not like for her man to be gone. Father was leaving to spend his time alone to gather his strength. As he paddled away he gave Ziibi a nod. She waved her hand in response and watched him until his canoe disappeared. Though he had passed from her sight, Ziibi remained where she was listening to the soft voice of the river. She wished she could go with her father. Someday if she was accepted into the Midewiwin she would travel alone to spend time with the Great Mystery, to gain strength in the presence of this Being. Would it be scary, or peaceful? She sensed it might be both.

Overhead, the sky turned bloody. Ziibi had a strange feeling in her gut. The spirits were restless. A power was approaching, a strong power. She looked up from her basket of pinecones and saw her sister running. Ziibi dropped her basket and headed after her sister. She ran behind the village and was making her way to the path where the graves were. Why would she be going in that direction?

As Ziibi chased after her sister, she became aware of a strangeness in the air. The earth seemed to tremble beneath her feet. What was happening? What was Miinan doing? She called out, “Miinan stop.”

Immediately she did just that and turned to face her sister.

“Where are you going?”

Dazed Miinan looked around her as if she did not know where she was. Ziibi went to her side. The air around her sister was potent. She could smell blood. She sniffed the air.

“What are you doing?” Miinan asked.

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“I smell blood.”

“Ajijaak must have gotten some of his rabbit’s blood on me.”

Anger flared in Ziibi. “You were with Ajijaak again. How can you be so mean to him?”

“He followed me, I could not help it.”

“You mean you made sure he followed you.”

Miinan blushed, but said, “No, this time I did not do that. I feel so confused and scared. I just needed to look into the full face of Giizhig-ikwe. I promise I did not want Ajijaak to follow me.”

Ziibi knew her sister did not lie, but something else was troubling her. The smell, the smell was not rabbit blood, but it was blood. She stepped closer and sniffed. The odor was coming from Miinan. “You smell funny.”

Miinan bit her lip. Her eyes opened wide. She thrust her hand up her dress. When she brought her fingers out, there was blood on them. Her eyes met her sister’s. There was panic in them. Ziibi looked at her in amazement, did she not know what was wrong with her? Miinan stood mutely before her, her eyes filled with questions she did not utter. She dropped the hem of her dress and held her arms out stiffly on either side of her. She must not touch herself or another.

Miinan’s words about Ajijaak’s rabbits rattled inside Ziibi’s head. “Did you touch Ajijaak?”

Her sister’s face became dark. “No, but he touched me.”

This was bad. A woman’s first flow held powerful magic. It brought the power to bring life, but it also held the power to cause death. Noko had told them about a young man who had touched a girl during her first flow and he had died. Ajijaak must not die!

“Oh no, Ziibi, what have I done?”

Ziibi did not answer her. There had to be someway for her to counteract her sister’s stupidity. Ajijaak must not die. It was said if a young woman walked barefoot through the grass during her flow, the grass would die beneath her feet. The power flowed through a young woman’s skin.

“Did Ajijaak touch your skin?”

“I do not remember.” She frowned and thought hard. “No, I do not think he did.”

Ziibi said, “I pray not. If Father were here I would ask him.”

“No, you would not.”

This was selfishness, a selfishness she did not know her sister possessed. Ziibi said, “You are more worried about being in trouble, than you are about Ajijaak’s health? Ajijaak would not put such a small value on you.”

Nonplused by her words Miinan said, “Please, I am almost sure his skin did not touch mine.”

Ziibi said, “You must go into the hut, before you cause any more mischief.”

“Oh, Ziibi, I am afraid. I do not want to be there alone.”

Ziibi who had no fear of aloneness asked, “If you are not alone how can your visions come to you?”

Miinan did not say more.The girls walked home in silence. Miinan kept her arms rigid at her sides. As they entered the village others saw her. They all knew by her posture what was happening. Ziibi saw Ajijaak. His eyes burned with a strange light as he watched Miinan. A terrible sinking feeling lodged itself in Ziibi’s stomach. Something bad had already begun.

In side the house Noko squatted by the fire. Two rabbits roasted on the spit. She turned her eyes to her granddaughters. She noted the rigidity of Miinan and asked, “Has the time come?”

Miinan nodded.

Noko rose from the fire. She asked, “Do you have your bundle ready?”

Again Miinan nodded.

“Get it.”

Miinan went to the pallet she shared with Ziibi. From a basket she lifted a bundle. It held all she would need for her time of seclusion. Ziibi noticed her sister’s hands were shaking. She was very afraid. She had never realized how great her sister’s fear of being alone was. Could this be the reason, she always made sure Ajijaak followed her?

Noko told Ziibi, “Tend to the rabbits and do not let them burn. Your mother does not like ashes for supper.”

“Yes, Noko.” Ziibi crouched by the fire and began to turn the spit. The rabbit flesh sizzled over the fire.

Near the door flap was a basket full of dried leaves. Noko picked it up and said, “I have been saving these for you. Come.”

Silently Miinan followed her grandmother. There were fresh tears in her eyes. She ducked beneath the door flap and went out side.

As soon as she could no longer hear Noko’s step, Ziibi ran to the door flap and peeled it back just enough to look through. She did not know what was in the bundle Miinan carried, but it must be very heavy by the way she carried it. Ahead of Miinan, Noko scattered leaves. Leaves would protect the earth from the powers unleashed by a woman’s first flow. What was it like to feel that kind of power? Ziibi thought about how strangely Miinan had been acting the past few days. What ever the power was it seemed to confuse the mind.

The smell of burning flesh filled the house. Aggravated Ziibi quickly returned to the spit. The rabbit was only a little burned. Her mother came inside. Her mother sniffed the air and looked a Ziibi. “Burning our supper again. It will be hard for your father to find a man for you, if you keep burning food. Everyone in the village can smell it, and they will tell the young men.”

Ziibi jutted out her chin. “There are two rabbits and I like mine well done.”

“Then you can have the burned part.” Her mother looked around the small house. “Where is Noko?”

“She has taken Miinan to the hut.”

“The hut.” Her mother’s eyes filled with strange light. “It is good. She will be a woman before her young man comes.”