The Brothers stayed cloistered for hours as the resettlement team led by the resourceful Red Arrows began to introduce the newcomers to their host families. Their possessions were meager, mostly what clothes and personal items they carried on their backs or dragged behind a horse, loaded on a travois. Rabbit had stocked pottery and baskets at his workshop, ready to outfit the teepees for each family as they were erected over the next few days.
Family was a loose word. Many were without husbands, killed defending their village. Some men had lost all of their entire families, slaughtered in a single afternoon's frenzy of bloodshed. Red Arrows strived to locate relatives in the camp to take in the bereaved, pairing cousins and Aunties and Uncles with those who had familial connections. It might ease the suffering in some small way.
The Chiefs finally emerged together and began to check on each individual, making sure they were settling in and comfortable. Soaring Hawk was a personal and hands-on leader, and his soothing way eased many fears and doubts from the start. Cloud Chief was quiet, but his steely resolve and fearless example had earned his people's undying loyalty. None would have survived without him as they trekked across a hostile and unforgiving land. The young Chieftain bought devotion with his own sterling example. These two would be formidable as they led together.
Rabbit watched at a distance as the newest Chief assessed the camp. The young leader's eyes missed little and he seemed to relax somewhat as he wandered by his brother through the settlement. The pair turned heads wherever they went. Women and men watched them in awe and respect as they made their way past. Elegant yet dangerous at the same time, they exuded a heady mix of power and charisma that affected all around them. Then Rabbit sensed those golden-brown eyes on him, and he looked across the camp. Cloud Chief was watching him in turn, and he immediately ducked away, breaking the brief contact. His heart was thundering again, and once more he laid his hand over the traitorous organ, trying to calm his racing pulse. This day would not morph into evening fast enough.
The feast began as the first shadows started to lengthen, The Chiefs and leaders took their seats at the main table, and then the rest of the tribe gathered around the newly lit fire. Heaps of food were placed on each table and the people ate until they could eat no more. Chatter was sporadic at first until people became more comfortable with one another, then conversation, mixed with laughter, took over, breaking through any awkward tension. By the time they retired to dress for the evening's festivities, people had become at ease with one another.
Rabbit rushed to his teepee and washed his face and hands then carefully removed his best dress from a large basket against the wall. Made to fit his every curve and angle, tanned and pounded into the softest white buckskin, fringed with delicate and extremely thin fringes, he had spent over a year beading the most delicate and realistic flowers and birds, dragonflies and butterflies across the pale leather. A matching pair of moccasins clad his feet, and the long fringe reached his ankles. They swung seductively as he walked, and the white dress announced his chaste condition, reflecting the subtle shades of the gathering twilight. He braided his hair in two, long, thick plaits over each shoulder and switched the ties to white as well. He was beautiful and he knew it.
He stayed behind, secluded, as all the maidens were, waiting for their grand entrance after the men entered the area around the campfire, The drummers began, two or three at first then intensifying as more gathered and joined in. The high-pitched singing started and soon reached the sky, filling the night air with sadness, joy, and welcome. The men began to dance, whirling and stomping, the thudding feet powerful and quick. Rabbit watched carefully and left his teepee as the other maidens began to flock and admire the men as they strutted like male birds, showing of their strength and virility. Prominent among them were the two single Chiefs, the best and most effortless dancers. feathers woven in their gleaming hair, rattles shaking in their hands, bells chiming from thier ankles.. Whipping their bodies around and around, muscles gleaming in the firelight, feet fast and furious as they circled and contorted, quicker with the ever-increasing drumbeat. Then abruptly it ended, and the men nonchalantly strode over to take seats. The flute players soon gathered, and among them was Rabbit. He took the center position, directly in front of Cloud Chief and placed the flute gently against his smiling lips, and just as he sounded his first note, he slowly raised his large black eyes and stared into the golden-brown ones across from him. The spark between them was no longer a private one. The entire gathering felt it and fell silent. The tune was one of longing and desire, a proclamation of intention and permission. An invitation to courtship, if the other party so desired. Cloud Chief's eyes smoldered as he saw the slender fingers tease each note from the hollowed wooden instrument, the lips as they caressed the mouthpiece, and he burned as he watched the man in front of him. When the song was finished, Rabbit demurely lowered his eyes and took his place with the maidens. They donned delicate shawls, trimmed with long fringes, and began to sway to the flutes and drums, bright dragonflies flitting in front of the men, swooping and spinning as they flew elegantly past the admiring looks of the single males. Yet Rabbit did not move far from Cloud Chief's vision, reveling in the hungry gaze that never left his dancing form.
Many connections were made that night. None, however, were as noteworthy as that single flare between the Two-Spirit named Rabbit and the freshly awakened Cloud Chief. It became an instant legend.
Rabbit walked quietly and quickly away. He was light-headed and amazed at how brazen he felt. It was the first time that he had displayed with the maidens. In fact, it was the first time he had ever felt the need. His audacity had shocked even himself, and he required a moment to settle down and regain his composure, so he found a dark place, slightly away from the light of the campfire and torches.
Without warning, he felt a strong hand grasp his elbow and he was propelled around to face Cloud Chief. His eyes had time to widen before the handsome face came close. Then closer, still. Suddenly, lips covered his and took possession of him, a fiercely imprinted answer to the question posed when he played his song. The kiss was long, sustained, and his lips parted slightly, allowing the tongue its insistent way into his mouth, his slender arms entwining around the strong neck and hanging on as his knees grew weak with desire. Then it stopped, and he opened his eyes, suddenly silver in the moonlight. He saw the eyes before him change to a light, almost clear gold, and he realized he was looking into an ancient soul and one he had known for a very long time.
