A:N/ Hey everybody!!! This is a tale that a wrote when I was in year 8 (so it was 2010) in History about the Apache Tribe. I felt like posting it up here :)
So sorry if it is a bit underdeveloped because I wrote this 2 years ago. But, I hope you enjoy it!!
Once Upon A Daydream- The Apache Tribe and the Clever Fox
Long, long ago, animals and nature talked amongst themselves. The cleverest of them all was the Fox. The fox was very intelligent and extremely cunning. However, the fox wanted to explore the noble art of flying. With this quest in mind, he had gone into the forest to where Bora the Eagle was living. Bora was a horrible animal and he was as cunning as the fox but he was evil and malicious.
“What are you here for, you foolish fox!” said Bora the Eagle.
“I have come here to learn how to soar up into the heavens by flying like you,” replied the fox.
Bora hesitated. The fox was anxious and curious to see what was going in the cunning eagle’s mind.
“I will teach you how to fly like me; however, you will have to complete a mission for me. Near the top of the mountains, you will find the Jicarilla in the Apache Tribe. The chief of this tribe is named Corrin, and he has the most powerful and spiritual shield in the universe. I would like you to steal this magical shield... therefore I..., I mean, we could possess the power of the world!” replied the eagle. The fox had agreed to this plot, as he was desperate to learn how to fly.
The next day, the fox travelled well to find the Apache tribe, until he found the camp. The view looked amazing. The sky had a sunset on the horizon, the smoke coming out of the tepee’s, wikiups and the hogans, fathers teaching their sons how to fish and mothers cooking with their daughters.
The fox needed to get back to his plan. He went to the chief’s tepee (which was larger than the other tepee’s and was centred in the middle of the tribe). He prowled near the tepee as quietly as possible. He was just near the opening of the tepee when he saw it.
A beautiful and lustrous shield with feathers was in the corner of the tepee, guarded by the chief. Suddenly, the chief received an important message from a villager (that lived a few tepees’ away) saying that there is a Red Fox somewhere in the village. The chief immediately removed himself from his home and reported this information to the rest of the villagers.
Now was the Fox’s chance to sneak-in and obtain the lustrous shield. As he wandered into the corner, he collected the shield carefully and ran off. However, a young child spotted the fox and ran to the chief.
The chief then chased the fox until he had finally caught him and tied him up.
“What is your business hear fox? Why have you come here to steal our shield?” asked the chief.
“Bora the Eagle wanted me to retrieve the shield so he could teach me how to fly. Please do not kill me.” pleaded the fox.
The chief decided to spare his life due to his importance to the spirits; however, the chief told the fox that he had to be punished for what he attempted to do. The chief therefore told the fox he had to help them with their daily jobs. The fox agreed to this deal.
The day after, the fox returned to the village, feeling excited about learning the tribes daily lifestyle. The first job that the fox had to complete was to obtain food for them.
So the fox went down to the lake with one of the strong male villager.
“Okay fox, here is what you have to do; to catch a fish at the lake, we have to throw a spear towards a moving fish. Can you do that, fox?” said the strong villager.
“I think so. I could just throw the spear with my mouth,” replied the fox.
The fox collected the spear from the man and waited patiently for a fish to be noticed in the lake. Suddenly, a large fish was in sight, the fox reacted and threw the spear; he had struck the fish.
“I am impressed! No four legged animal could attack a fish with a spear in their first go!” said the villager, while taking the dead fish out of the lake. The man said that it was the same method to hunt down a buffalo.
The next job the fox had to do was to help the women cook the fish. Traditionally, the women cooked them over the fire. Afterwards, the women showed the fox how to make ordinary clothes.
They made their clothing from deer hide where they soaked the hide in water then stretched and rubbed it to make it soft. The men mainly wore breech cloths and moccasins in warm weather. The women wore skirts in the warm weather.
It was night now. The villagers had all gathered around a large, raging fire and started chanting to the spirits of the gods. The chief said to the fox that they chant a spiritual farewell to the gods every night before they go to sleep. The chief held up the beautiful shield with feathers and started chanting. The villagers followed his lead.
However, the chief had not noticed an eagle flying high above. It was Bora. Bora then swooped across the chief and took the shield that was held up to the heavens. “Ha! I knew I would get this powerful shield even if my life depended on it. You will never catch me!” said Bora in an evil tone.
Before Bora could fly away, the chief picked up a spear that was lying around on the floor and threw into Bora’s heart.
The eagle dropped the shield and fell onto the floor. He was dead. So was, his evil intentions to take the shield which protects the spirit of the Apache tribe.
The End
