Many Horses 5

Authors note - These particular stories are not written to the best of my ability. I unfortunately write them just a little too fast. I still enjoy writing them though.

Let's continue.....

Kills Many shivered at the cold morning air. It was getting too close to winter and if he did not turn back and rejoin the Cheyenne now he would be caught out in the cold. Having to give up was what killed him because he wasn't naive enough to think that Many Horses would be left alone, she was a young woman at the age where many married and gave birth to children. He would just have to steal her back when the snows thawed and the ground once again became solid. Certainly even by then she would have no intention of staying with the Crow, her home was with the Cheyenne.

Many Horses stepped outside the lodge and pulled a buffalo robe around her. She didn't care what anyone thought or what they might do when they saw her away from the lodge, one horse among the herd was calling and he was familiar. Fortunatley the herd had been moved from across the creek to a pasture behind all of the lodges and it was still early in the morning. All she had to do was pull the robe up so it covered half her head, that way she wouldn't so easily be seen. Eagle Cries, as usual, was not far behind but did not try to stop her just watched to see what she would do.
As she drew nearer a black horse with a patch of white above his eyes emerged causing her to run as fast as her legs would carry her. This was her horse and he had been left among the Cheyenne when Walks Far took her. She didn't even have to question how he had come to be here it was enough just to see him, to feel his breath on her hands and have him bump his muzzle against her face like he always used to. He was not a young horse but had been gifted to her by Kills Many when he'd presented horses to her father. Taking no heed she climbed upon his back and turned to Eagle Cries.
"Where is your horse? I want to ride" she asked knowing perfectly well that he would not understand her, she was learning the Crow language but slowly.
"we are not riding anywhere, you will run again" he answered her, but in Cheyenne this time. All she could do was stare at him before forming a coherent sentence "you understand me?"
"Walks Far taught me, there was no choice"
"where would I go in this cold?" She asked "I would become lost and caught out when the snows begin"
Giving in Eagle Cries found his own horse, a brown mustang and swiftly mounted turning in her direction. How he managed out here with just a shirt and leggings against the chilly morning air, she didn't know.
"go" he said motioning for her to take the lead. He was tired of watching this woman and could have refused now although the fact that Walks Far was hunting and tracking all the time still left him with a sense of responsibility. It would not be so much longer before Many Horses became fat with child anyway and in the spring it would be harder for her to leave. Eagle Cries would insist on taking over his older brother's duties soon so that he could stay closer to her.
The bumping and jarring of the horse caused a sudden nausea in the pit of Many Horses stomach forcing her to stop the horse and jump down. Slightly alarmed she spit out the last of it and turned back to Wild, her horse again mounting but saying nothing to Eagle Cries. She was used to riding and not once had it ever affected her stomach.
Faced with the prospect of returning to the lodge for the rest of the day with little to do she continued riding, this was her freedom for the day and she wasn't wasting it.

Walks Far returned to the lodge finding it empty. He had seen Blue Raven only moments ago and knew Many Horses was not with her.
A reassuring hand was placed upon his forearm as he stood there in front of the lodge "she is riding with your brother, you knew it would not be very long before she found the horse"
He took his mother's hand squeezing it slightly. She was a strong woman who had always been able to keep peace among her family and relatives.
"it is time that you let your brother take care of us" she suggested "Many Horses will need looking after"
Walks Far said nothing, just continued looking out among the throng of other lodges surrounding them.
"she will never take the place of your first but you care for her, more than you thought you would"
Walks Far smiled but just slightly, were anyone other than his mother to suggest such a thing he would deny it before giving them a tongue lashing.
"she is a good woman" his mother spoke before finally leaving to finish what she had to do.
While Walks Far had never intended to let Many Horses go he hadn't considered much beyond taking her captive and giving her a child. His motive was revenge from the start and what he had done to her was not fair, she was an unwilling part of it all, merely a tool. He couldn't say that was true now though because she had reached a part of him that had been closed for a long time.