The dance left his body. While he had followed the steps he felt caught up in a power greater than himself, a power infinitely good and wise. He had danced alone and yet he had not been alone. In fact he had not been alone since the night he danced the song of the wolves. He did not understand it and was wise enough not to try. He stood very still, only his chest rose and fell as he took air into his body. Behind him was Miinan. He knew it, felt it, but he would not turn to her. He had released her the night the wolves had sang, and he would not go backwards. Slowly the Midewiwin were filing into the lodge. One small figure was with them. Ziibi? Of course. She was Midewiwin, why had he not realized this before? Was she afraid? He would be afraid, afraid of the power that might be bestowed or the rejection that might come instead. Ziibi’s small back was very straight and her neck stiff. Her eyes focused forward. Her hair was combed into smooth braids. He thought he saw her tremble, but he knew she would not cry. She was very small but very brave. The lodge’s door flap closed.

Behind him, the people began to talk and break up into groups.He had no desire to listen to the fluent voices of others while his own thoughts could only be conveyed in signs. Signs did not give him enough words, only when he danced did he feel the ability to fully communicate what his heart wanted to say. Tonight in the wolf dance he had spoken, as he had never been able to speak before. He glanced across the crowd, careful to avoid the sight of Miinan. He saw his mother standing beside Zhede. They were together much these days. It meant something, he knew, but he did not want to think about that. Silently, he moved away from the people and slipped into the shadows of the forest. The sounds of evening were soft as the day creatures settled in for sleep and the night creatures awoke.

His feet carried him toward the Great Sea while his mind raced from one thought to another. Just before he reached the water he saw her. A magnificent she wolf bathed in evening’s fire. She glowed. Slowly she turned toward him. Their eyes met. Her amber gaze was steady, firm and without fear. He stopped where he was and waited to see what she would do. She turned away from him and ran along the rocky shore. Her movement did not display fear or invite company. How fluidly she moved. Her steps were steps Ajijaak subconsciously mimicked. In the distance she stopped and she howled. He recognized the voice. She was the one who had howled to the big male wolf he had seen the other evening. They were the ones who had given him the dance.

For a long while he wandered the shoreline dodging waves. Music was in the water. Beneath the surface the Snake King slept. Ajiiaak recalled Ziibi’s bold declaration that she could defeat the Snake King. Silly child. Or was she? He had to admit there was something very different about her, a knowing, a seeing, that he had never witnessed in anyone else. He thought of another declaration she had made to him, about her love for him. Silly child. When she was older she would see that being tied to a broken vessel was not an honor but a curse. Until the night the wolves sang to him, he had believed he was as other men, now he could admit he was not, he might never take a wife, he might never have children. He did not want children that did not belong to Miinan, and Miinan would never belong to him. He picked up a fist of small stones and tossed them into the water. They clattered like heavy rain. Tiny rings of water rippled through the waves. A slim dark body rose to the surface. It lifted its head. It was a snake. Not the Snake King, just a common water snake, but it might be one of the Snake King’s scouts. He turned away from the Great Sea and headed back toward home. The sun had set and the path was dark. Ahead was the Midewiwin lodge.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

The door flap opened allowing a thin slice of light to shoot through the night. In this shaft of light Ziibi appeared. Her figure was very still. She did not seem to be breathing. Had things gone badly? Compassion and curiosity propelled him toward her, but before he could reach her, she launched herself into the night. Her swift sure feet carried her up the trail and toward her home. Had she been accepted or rejected, or was that something that had yet to be decided? As he passed the lodge, he heard the sound of low voices, the words were indistinguishable, in fact they were foreign. He had never heard this language before. Was this one more of the Midewiwin’s secrets? A holy hush seemed to hover around the structure. A power that quelled his curiosity sent him running toward his own home, slightly afraid. What was this thing that would soon claim Ziibi? He knew enough of the supernatural to give him a healthy respect, but he did not know how to utilize the power, nor did he want to. He thought of Ziibi and her bright eyes and her uncanny intuitions. She saw and knew far more than her scant years on earth had taught her. The life ahead of her would be hard, but some how he felt deep inside she would be equal to what life brought her.

When he reached his house, he quietly slipped through the door flap. Seated by the small central fire was Zhede. He looked up at Ajijaak and smiled. Ajijaak did not return his smile. He looked to his mother who was seated beside Zhede. Never had his mother invited a man to sit by their fire. His mother’s eyes were steady. They spoke to him words she would not say aloud. Why had she not told him that at last she had chosen her new mate? She should have told him. He knew she was still young enough to have more children, other sons. The thought of this tore through him, he had been his mother’s one child, what would it be like to share her? Then he thought of his half prayer, half hope that his mother would accept Zhede so he could leave the village. He had wished this and it had swiftly come. His other wishes were denied. Why was this one accepted so swiftly?

His questions were stilled by his mother’s gaze. There was something in her eyes that was not about him, but about the man beside her and about herself. Did his mother have the same sort of longings he had? Did she want a full life with another? Yes, she did. Her expression told him so. Ajijaak turned from his mother to Zhede. He nodded his ascent. There was nothing else he could do. He saw his mother’s body visibly relax. Her face broke out in the light of joy. Ajijaak did his best to meet her joy, but it hurt him deeply. What would it be like to no longer be the man of the family?

The sound of his noko’s snores drifted from her bed. He went to his blankets beside her and rolled himself in his blanket. Sleep did not come. The soft whispered of his mother kept him awake. After awhile heard his mother and Zhede come together across the room. When his own father had left he had been too small to hear or remember the sounds a man and a woman made when they shared their bodies. He started to get up and make them stop, but the grip of his noko’s hand upon his wrist stilled him. In a low voice she said, “Let it be. You hear the sounds of life rushing into life. One day you will know the burden and the joy of such things. Now, peace, be still, let your mother be. It is time she recalls her womanhood and forgets the barren past.”

Though he lay back down sleep refused to meet him. He covered his ears with his hands. It was not his mother and Zhede he heard. It was Maang and Miinan that his imagination conjured and it was painful. He could not bear the thought of them and yet some how he must, or must he? Now he would not be the man of any house, now his mother and his noko would not have to depend solely on his provision. While the loss of his status was tinged with bitterness, it was also tinged with relief. Tomorrow he would talk to his mother. Tomorrow, he would plan to go his own way.He would not stay to see Miinan partnered to Maang. He had borne much in his life, but he would not bear that. There were other villages. Suddenly, a new life now stretched before him. A strange joy mixed with sorrow rose within him. He would have the freedom now to dream his dream, and find his destiny. No longer would he be hindered by his love for Miinan. What would his future hold?