Intended

With only the fading twilight and emerging stars lighting their way, darkness fell upon them just before the couple arrived at the settlement. The moment Sala and Jakal breached its borders, chaos erupted.

As people ran about the Camp proclaiming their return, others streamed from dwellings and the Gathering Place, rushing forward and crowding around them. Virtually the entire Clan chattered at once. Because no one could hear their own words, they spoke ever louder until the air filled with a cacophony of voices.

"Thank the Spirits; the Light-Eyed One has returned!"

"Sala, what happened?"

"Jakal, we have been so worried!"

"Have you been healed by the Spirits, Sala?"

"I knew you would come back to us, Light-Eye; you carry great luck!"

"Where have the two of you been?"

"We appealed to the Spirits many times to bring you safely home!"

The clamoring mass surrounding them pressed ever closer. Those nearest the front stretched out their arms, one on top of the other, all of them trying to reach the wayward pair, most especially the Light-Eyed One.

Sala reached an anxious hand to the man beside her, needing the security of his touch, and found his moist from apprehension as well. She knew, they both knew, their reappearance would cause an uproar, but neither had been quite prepared for an almost frenzied reaction.

A loud, shrill whistle sliced through the air, silencing the shouting throng. Everyone turned toward the source of the piercing noise and saw Mifir standing straight and tall in front of the entrance to the Gathering Place with his mate, Keta, Leader of the Wolf Clan.

The tall, slender woman with long, curly hair streaked with gray raised her hands. Holding them out palms facing the crowd she then lowered them, calling for quiet.

"Jakal and Sala, as you can undoubtedly see for yourselves, our people are relieved you have returned to us safely. You were parted from us for a great many days and some were beginning to lose hope. I am pleased the Great Spirits guided your way home. I wish to meet with you to discuss your journey. Please join me in my dwelling as quickly as possible."

Addressing the others, she announced, "My people, I understand you seek answers. However, please keep in mind our lost friends have only just arrived from what I am sure was a very long journey. For the sake of our tired Brother and Sister, give them a respite this night to rest and recover from their travels."

Glancing back repeatedly at Sala and Jakal, the crowd reluctantly dispersed, whispering excitedly amongst themselves about the couple's sudden return.

Keta walked alone toward her dwelling, deep in thought. The woman had noticed the matching pendants of her Camp's wayward members almost immediately after they entered the common area. It was the main reason, out of many, that she summoned them to meet with her without delay. If any of the others had made the same observation, she was certain it would not be long before gossip and discord swept the settlement. They have much to explain, she thought with consternation.

~*~*~

Though their Leader's welcome sounded benign to the casual observer, the couple knew better than to keep Keta waiting. She was a rational woman, not given to strong outbursts of emotion; nonetheless, they recognized her clear agitation. Without stopping at either of their dwellings to drop off their packs, Sala and Jakal headed directly for the Clan Leader's residence.

They arrived at the structure to find the leather hide covering the entrance tied back, signaling to them to come in freely.

"Jakal, please untie the flap now," Keta directed. "We will need privacy for our discussion."

The woman looked at them soberly as they sat around the hearth. "I see you wear identical pendants." She said no more; they knew what she wanted to know.

Sala felt her palms sweating, her mouth growing dry. As she began to tremble from nervousness, Jakal noticed her state and took the lead. "Yes, Clan Leader. Sala and I are now mates," he confirmed, trying with some difficulty to hold Keta's penetrating gaze.

"I am not sure how this can be, Jakal. Sala has been named the Spiritwalker's Intended. But then, you knew that. Both of you. Where did the ceremony take place?"

Again Jakal responded. "Fox Clan, Keta."

"And they were aware that Sala was intended for another when their Spiritwalker agreed to join you?"

"Not exactly."

"What does that mean, Jakal? Either they knew or they did not know. Which is it?"

"They did not know...that particular detail prior to the ceremony."

"And after?"

"The Spiritwalker figured it out on her own, and we told her the truth."

The Clan Leader turned to the woman who had been silent from the moment they arrived. "Sala, would you like to explain this? Why did you join with another when you already had other obligations?"

Sala tried to take a calming breath but instead it sounded uneven and irregular. "I, I wished to share my hearth with Jakal, Keta. I did not wish to be the Spiritwalker's mate. It was the only way Jakal and I could be together."

"Is this why you left us, Sala? Because you did not wish to be the Spiritwalker's mate?"

She nodded.

"I was not aware that you and the Light-Eye felt so strongly about each other," Keta went on. "From what I have observed, you interacted little. How did you manage to hide your relationship so well that even I would not notice?"

Jakal recognized it was a rhetorical question; she already knew they had no relationship before they left the camp.

"Clan Leader," he interjected, "it is true that Sala and I did not know each other before in the way we do now. But you should also know that we truly wanted to be mates; during our time together love befell us and we did not wish to be parted."

"Sala, you and Jakal have put me in a difficult position. Never have I known of another incident at our Camp where an Intended fled to get out of her or his obligation, and I have

never

known of an incident among all our people where the Intended went so far as to mate another to escape her duty.

"When you left it caused a great deal of unrest for our Clan, and embarrassment for our spiritual leader. When he returns from his meditations, he will be very angry to learn of your deception. I can appreciate your feelings for each other, but you put your own wishes and desires above the good of our people. You both knew from the beginning that Sala was meant for another; why did you pursue that which was not yours to pursue?"

The young woman was beginning to grow angry. Forcing herself to keep her voice steady, she responded, "Keta, among our people a woman may pursue and be with whomever she chooses. If I had been the Intended of someone other than a spiritual leader I still would have the right to pursue the company of any other. Only Spiritwalkers have the power to take that right away from another. How can the loss of a person's freedom be for the good of our people?

"Yes, I, we put our wishes and desires ahead of the Spiritwalker's, and of the expectations of our people. But we do not believe we have done anything wrong. We think it is the custom itself that is wrong, that no one should have the power to take an unwilling mate."

"Sala, you make an interesting argument, one I am sure would encourage strong debate among the spiritual caste. But it is not your place, nor yours, Light-Eyed One, to decide which of our people's practices are moral and worth following and which are not. If everyone acted as you have there would be chaos. We have rules and customs for important reasons, and they help bind us together as a single People."

Jakal jumped in. "If no one ever questions or takes action against something they truly believe to be wrong, how can anything ever change? You say it is not our place to make such decisions. With respect, Keta, I disagree. It is our duty, both to ourselves and our people, to try to change that which we feel is unjust. I do not believe standing up for our convictions encourages chaos; if anything, it makes us more active participants in our people's shared destiny."

The Clan Leader sat in silence for a time. The young couple made compelling points, she had to admit, but she was also dubious; no matter their rationale, their behavior was propelled by emotion, not reason. She needed more time to ruminate on the matter.

"Very well, Jakal and Sala. It is clear to me you both feel very strongly about the rightness of your actions. I suspect we will soon learn whether your assumptions prove accurate. In the meantime, it would be in the best interest of all for the three of us to discuss this privately with the Spiritwalker as soon as he emerges from the Ceremonial Hut. Our people will be greatly confused by what you have done, and we will need his guidance if we are to address this...situation responsibly.

"I am afraid I must ask you to remove your bonding pendants until the Spiritwalker's return. It would be...highly inappropriate for the entire Clan to learn of your actions before him."

"Why?" Sala retorted, her tone sharp. The thought of doing anything to help save face for the shaman offended her. "We did nothing wrong; if we do as you ask it is the same as telling the others there is shame in the bond we share. Besides, we walked into the Camp wearing our pendants; they already know we are now mates."

Keta raised an eyebrow at the young woman's impudence but chose to ignore it. Instead she replied, "Perhaps others did see you wearing the symbol of your joining when you arrived. However, we all witnessed the furor your return incited. I think it likely in all the excitement few noticed anything but your presence.

"Whether or not your joining was appropriate is not the issue here; you are now mates, and nothing can be done to change that. I am not asking you to pretend your joining did not happen.

"You say it is your duty, for the good of our people, to defend that which you believe and to challenge that which you believe is wrong. Do you not also have a duty to consider the effect a revelation of this magnitude would have on your people without proper preparation? Do you hold our ways in such contempt that you would risk putting this settlement into a tumult to make your point? Do you not believe the others deserve to learn the truth in a way that respects the beliefs and traditions of your Clan?"

Before Sala could answer, Jakal explained, "We mean no disrespect, Keta. Please understand it is love for our people which brought us back to the Camp in the first place. We just wish to be clear that there is a limit to what we are willing to do to spare others discomfort from difficult truths." The couple exchanged a look of silent communication. Taking his mate's hand and squeezing it encouragingly, he continued. "When will the Spiritwalker emerge from his meditations?"

"I am not certain, but most likely within a day or two."

He looked at Sala again and she nodded. "We agree to your request, Clan Leader, until we meet with the Spiritwalker. Beyond that time, we will not hide what we have done."

~*~*~

The mates left their meeting with Keta, bonding pendants tucked carefully in their packs. They picked up some fresh clothing and other items from Sala's dwelling before heading for Jakal's residence.

The others tried to honor their Leader's call to give the couple a chance to rest; however, she could not stop them from observing the two and doing what they could to be noticed, hoping to be engaged in conversation. To their disappointment, the pair merely nodded and smiled as they passed.

Along the way, they stopped at the dwelling of Belak and his mate, Yaja. Jakal grasped two lengths of bone, strung on a long leather thong, which hung at one end of the hide covering the entrance. Striking the bones together announced another's arrival; if the residents did not wish to be disturbed, the objects were pulled inside and tucked away.

Hearing the crack of the bones, they heard Yaja calling for them to enter.

Though her mate had advised her of their return prior to their arrival, the woman nonetheless found herself surprised to be face to face with them again after so long a time.

"Jakal. Sala," she greeted in her soft, low-pitched voice, cradling the baby suckling at her breast. "It is good to see you again on this day. I am relieved to see you are safe."

The couple returned her greeting. Gesturing for them to sit in front of the hearth, Yaja poured them cups of a flavorful tea and the three sat in silence for a moment, unsure where to begin.

"My mate will be returning soon," she informed them, breaking the lull, "though I understand it is I to whom you wish to speak."

Looking into their host's sober eyes, they nodded.

"Belak had mentioned you are now joined but I do not see the symbol of your sacred bond," she commented.

"Our Clan Leader has requested that we refrain from displaying them until the Spiritwalker has been informed first and we have agreed," Jakal explained.

"I..." Yaja began hesitantly, "I did not realize you were familiar with each other in this way."

"We were not," Sala confirmed, "but that is also one part of our long story."

"Yaja, Keta has revealed to us that the Spiritwalker communes with the Spirits in the Ceremonial Hut at this time," Jakal stated. "Knowing this, we feel it important to speak with you and our other friends on this night. However, since it is yet early, many of the others are moving about the Camp. At this time, we wish to be discreet about our actions. If it is acceptable to you, we would ask a favor."

"Of course, please speak."

"If you could inform the others -- Belak, Essa, Ritol and Nefa -- to meet us in my dwelling late this night, after the rest of our people have retired to their furs, we could share our story with all of you without drawing attention. As you know, currently it is not possible for Sala and me to go unnoticed."

The woman nodded, shifting her now-sleeping child to her shoulder. "I will do as you ask. You can expect us soon after the Camp grows quiet."

"We will pull in the bones so that others do not disturb us; however, when you yourselves come just enter my dwelling without announcing your arrival."

~*~*~

When Sala and Jakal reached his residence, he gestured to his mate to wait a moment before entering. Groping around in the dark, he lit the moss wick of a stone lamp fueled by animal fat. Inviting her in, he carried the lamp about the structure, lighting still more lamps as the room became illuminated with a muted glow. He briefly left the dwelling, returning with wood for the hearth, and soon a blazing fire heated the cool air of the living space.

His home, like all those in their Camp, consisted of two rooms. The larger of the two was dedicated for living and cooking and the smaller space contained the sleeping area. Floors were generally covered with woven grass mats to keep their feet warm and dry.

Cushions were provided for people to sit upon; made of animal pelts fashioned into a pouch stitched on three sides, the open end allowed for dried grass or animal hair to be stuffed inside and was folded over. In the smaller room, a raised earthen platform covered with layers of furs provided a cozy place for sleeping.

It was not unusual for two families, or an extended family, to share the same dwelling as this provided both a sense of community as well as an opportunity to live in a larger structure. Sala and Jakal alike lived in their dwellings alone. In the woman's case, it was passed down to her by her mother's mother, with whom she lived until the time of her death. The Light-Eyed One had his own residence due to his status as well as a desire for some semblance of privacy.

Another commonality they shared was that neither had close family members who lived at their Camp. In both cases their mothers left just before, or after, they passed into adulthood.

When Sala's mother joined with her second mate, she and the young woman's brother moved to Red Deer Clan's Camp. Jakal's mother, too, had met someone from another Camp and now was a member of Horse Clan. And, like Sala, the Tracker had a brother; Jesin left to join Owl Clan almost as soon as he reached manhood. Though he did not say so, Jakal knew he moved away because he did not wish to spend his entire life completely overshadowed by his younger sibling.

Each saw their families once a year at the All-Camp Gathering, and tried to make additional treks as the seasons and their duties at home permitted; sometimes Sala's brother Nitam visited to spend time with his older sister. However, the distances involved and the time it took to travel them made their trips infrequent by necessity.

Jakal's mother's first mate died of a wintertime illness when the Light-Eye was not yet a man; the second individual with whom she bonded had been similarly widowed. Kitad, Sala's mother's original mate, remained a member of Wolf Clan; now joined with another, many children lived at their hearth. As she lived with him up until the point when her mother broke the bond, Sala and he were quite fond of each other. However, his duties providing for so many limited the time they spent together.

Despite these experiences, among others, which led to a similar sense of isolation for them both, it was strange they had not known each other well even though they lived in the same Camp. But then, it was even stranger for them to come together in the way they did.

The couple talked as they stripped off their soiled travel clothing in the sleeping area, preparing to change into clean garments before their friends arrived. Sala turned around to comment on something her mate had said, only to discover his manhood full in his need. Shifting her glance from his eyes to his organ and back again, her lips upturned into a sly smile and she slunk over to his naked masculine body.

Pressing her soft curves into his hard form the woman rubbed her erect nipples against his skin, taking pleasure in his quaking body's weakness for her. As she lowered her mouth to the rippling muscles of his chest, Sala explored the bumpy texture of his constricted nipples with her tongue. Jakal groaned and placed his hand over the back of her head, stroking her hair, wordlessly encouraging her to continue.

Gently mouthing his upper body with fleshy lips, the woman soon added her tongue to her exploration, tasting the saltiness of his skin combined with the heady scent of his personal musk.

"By the Spirits," she murmured to herself as she glided her hands to his powerful buttocks, "how does such perfection exist in a single man?"

Kissing a line from the center of his chest down to his abdomen, Sala kneeled before her mate and drew his jutting organ between her lips. Jakal moaned as he felt the wet warmth of her mouth, and closed his eyes when she concentrated her efforts on the sensitive tip of his member. The fervid attention she always paid to his manhood made him burn with arousal.

As someone who derived much of his pleasure from bestowing it upon others, never had he coupled with a woman who seemed to enjoy returning that gift as much as she. He had not realized how much more fulfilling pleasures of the body could be when shared with an equally matched partner.

A powerful shudder rocked through him when she worked a slender finger inside his tight rear opening while the tip of her flexible tongue stimulated the membrane where the foreskin attached to his shaft. Just as he became certain she had taken him beyond the point where he could yet pull back from the edge, she withdrew and stood up, wrapping her arms around his neck.

His muscles still quivering, he whispered, "You know my body so well, my beautiful woman," before kissing her deeply, eagerly shoving his tongue into her mouth.