Native Outlaw

Chapter XV

When I woke up, Chavez was no longer there. I was in the hogan alone, and I could tell that it was still light outside because the hogan was a soft yellow from the light shining through from the outside. The furs were soft against my skin as I lied there.  How embarrassing. I promised myself I would never cry, and to think that it happened in front of a chief and a man of whom I think I may be having feelings for!? Granted, the chief is my...uncle and that makes it okay...right? And Chavez is my friend...either way I am beyond embarrassed. I feel my face, under my eyes. Surprisingly my eyes do not feel puffy. I wonder how long I have been asleep. I roll over to my side to see a nice woven red and black dress with big designs on the top and bottom. There is a black and red woven belt like thing that goes with it that repeats the same design. Then I see a note beside the clothing. 

Jane, Chief Eagle Man has decided to post pone the celebration to tonight. He had his daughter give up one of her dresses to welcome you. Put this on, and come outside. The chief says you have a lot of catching up to do. 

                                                       -Chavez  

I get up out of the furs and feel my feet touch the ground beneath me. I spread the dress out on the furs to take a good look at it. It is very pretty, and a warm feeling rises at the kind thought. I take off Chavez's clothes and fold them nicely in a stack. I realize that I probably need to bathe; we have been traveling for a while now and have not stopped to do so. I remember when I was outside earlier, I saw a small body of water for bathing. Probably only reserved for the Chief. But he wouldn't mind right? I peak out of the hogan and look around. The closest hogan would not be able to see me if I grabbed the dress and went to bathe real fast, right? I smell myself and realize that I don't have a choice. I walk back, grab the dress and find that there is a pair of moccasins that go with the dress. I grab them too. I peek out of the hogan, covering my naked body with the dress and shoes. No one is around, so I dart for the pool of water, drop the clothes be the bank, and jump in causing a loud splash. When I surface, my breath catches as I stare into the eyes of a woman. I gasp. I swear I did not see her when I was jumping in! She giggles at me as she runs her fingers through her dark wet hair. 

" Yá'át'ééh." She greets me, still giggling.  She can't be any older than I am, our skin almost the exact shade of brown. She smiles at me as we are shoulder deep in the water. 

"Yá'át'ééh." I reply with a smile. "Are you the Chief's daughter?" I ask. She still smiles but shakes her head in confusion. I sigh, I wish I knew more of the language. I point to the Chief's hogan and then make a cradle of my arms suggesting his baby, and then point to her. She seems to understand this time because she laughs and nods her head. 

Then she gestures between me and her and says, "dił." I recognize the word for 'blood'. I nod my head to show her I understand. She would be my fathers first cousin and my second cousin in white terms, but she is the same age as me I am assuming. 

" díkwíí ninááhai kʼad?" I struggle slightly in asking how old she is, she smiles at my effort. 

" tsostsʼidtsʼáadah. " She replys. I shake my head to tell her that I don't understand. She holds up all ten fingers then to be funny she tries to hold up her feet too to represent more numbers. When she does so, she falls all the way into the water. I squeal as she splashes me with the cool water. When she comes back up I am falling out laughing, her face is priceless. We laugh together for a few minutes and even after we stop we think about it again and start laughing all over. After a few minutes, we settle down. 

"Seven.." She tries forming the words in English, the pronunciation is a little off but I understand what she is saying. 

"Oh! Seventeen!" I exclaim. She nods her head chuckling. Then she gestures to me.