She Who Dances

She was born to Ashta and D'beck.

A wriggling, screaming things that kept the camp awake for nights.   She was a beutiful child.  
Chubby with a swath of dark hair and even from birth she moved a lot and smiled.   Her parents were
greatful for her- they were older and their only son had died in battle with the People from the North 
some Summers before.

It was noticed as a child that she was noisy and once out of the wassut basket she always was movong.  
Rolling and crawling.    As she reached her third winter she was now walking-running and screaming.  
chasing the dogs and other children, underfoot of the women as they did their daily works in camp.

She smiled and laughed a lot as well.   Constant giggling that was both amusing and annoying.

Then came the council meeting among the three tribes.   The white eyes had spread from one sea to the other.  
They had built villages of wooden lodges.   They had great beasts that ran on metal rails and blew smoke-
these beasts carried them and their people faster than even our best horses could run and for greater distances.

The white eyes had also fought many wars against the nations.   They had won most.  
Tribes from the Eastern coasts were all but gone.   Many to the North and to the West were decimated.  
The Cherokee had been forced to leave their home lands-walking for weeks and months, many did not make it.

The Bison were gone like trees in a raging fire.  Slaughtered. Their bodies left to rot, the meat going to waste.

To our East the Apache tribes still fought led by Goyathlay, the one the white eyes now called 'Geronimo'.

They were losing.

Our tribes were small.  We had fought wars in the past but famine and the neccesity of small
groups had kept us limited.   We were meeting to decide if we should parlay with the sojers of the white eyes..

The tribes came together-it was festive.  Smoke rose from many fires as the women laughed and talked. 
The children played, food cooked and the men drank Koset-
a beverage made from berries chewed by the women then fermented.

The women chanted and the drums echoed through the ravines as the tribe chiefs met. There were arguements,
yelling and shouting. Anger among the Nations-some wanting to fight and others to speak for peace.

Then something happened-one of the elders began laughing.   His eyes were turned to a corner of the lodge.  
Another chief looked and he too began laughing.   Soon they were all laughing and pointing-the girl,
not even noticing the others was dancing to the drums.   She had a big grin on her face.  Her hair was tied up
in the ceremonial curls on each side of her head.   Her deerskin dress was painted and there with her
eyes closed arms waving, she danced.  It was her fourth Summer.

Because of her and the other children, with our limited capacity to fight, the council decided to
attempt a treaty with the white eyes.

Our party rode out one morning in the early Spring, returned by the Summer and had news.  
The whites were agreeable.   they had given two mules with a load of blankets and beads and some
metal pots for us to cook in.

O'lasheka. The One Who Dances, was given one of the blankets as a gift from the council-
it was thought her dancing had made the decision and it was felt to be the right one.

O'lashekka danced-she was marvelled and enjoyed by many and loved by them as well.

A few weeks after the trading and agreements she became ill.   She was too hot and
developed a rash-little blisters that popped and ran with blood.   They formed in her mouth and on her body.  

Then she died.