Okay, I haven't exactly gotten around to writing any stories yet that I want to post, partially because I'm trying to make dolls of some of my characters. So far I only have Almea, Tiro and Aineko, as Yume Dolls. They're from one of my longer stories, so I think I'll make the rest of them later, when I get the story closer to done.


Angel Feather's Quest

I was less than surprised when I was told that I was not really a Metis. I'd known for a long time that I was different. My skin was pale, my hair was the color of the wheat fields and I had a strong bond with the missionaries. They just seemed so familiar. Quite a few of the men in the village treated me like the earth beneath their feet. Especially the one I lived with, Swift Lion. I swear to the spirits that every time I saw his face he would give me this look of burning hatred. At least now I know why. I knew he hated me, and rather than look at that hateful man, I stayed with Sweetwater most of the day. She made pottery while I made clothing. Of course, since I think on my own, so I sometimes make clothing of my own design, although I know better. But when Swift Lion found out, I swear he wanted to hit me. The hatred and expression was there in his eyes when he said "Angel Feather". He told me that I was wasting buffalo hides, and told me never to do it again. Then he asked if I understood. Of course I understood, I'm not slow of mind. But of course, I didn't really obey. Genesis, one of the girls that stretches hides, always thought it was funny and that my clothes were interesting. Of course, I was the one who ended up wearing the clothes that I designed, and the elders loved them, they thought they were creative.
I looked back on the sleeping village and wiped a tear from my dark eyes. I would miss the Metis, but I had to know the truth. I had to know who my real parents were. A cool breeze rushed past me, chilling me to the bone. I clutched my red buffalo skin jacket close to me and walked away. I had made that jacket myself, dying it with berry juice.
I walked for days on end, passing through 3 cities. Most of the civilians treated me as an equal, like a close friend. Some offered me shelter for the night. I hesitated, but they seemed so kind and my feet were so sore that I accepted. I would leave the next morning, leaving a short thank you note and a beadwork animal I had made. I usually left while they were still asleep. Some civilians are so lazy, sleeping in past the sunrise. I know it wasn't wise to accept shelter from strangers, but it was better than sleeping in the street. I asked many of the civilians about a necklace that I have, and that I have had since I can remember. I didn't have much luck, but some made inquiries and came up with limited information. One child was silly enough to tell me that the pendant was a painted animal tooth of some sort, as if I didn't know. It was a painted ocelot tooth, to be exact. It somewhat resembled a pepper. Those red ones that are so spicy they make you feel like drinking the entire ocean. Jalapeņo peppers, the civilians call them. I'd never tasted one, but they were used as jokes by the Metis children. They would dare someone to take a bite, and the poor child who did would run around the village screaming that his mouth was on fire. If I were ever dared to bite a pepper so spicy, I wouldn't. I would rather do the dance of a thousand chickens before the metis council before taking a bite of that pepper.
At one point in my journey, a man who owned a shop recognized the necklace as his granddaughter's. I was full of hope. He gave me the address of his daughter and her husband, and informed me that he had lost touch with his daughter. She had stopped writing to him. I promised I would find out why and set off to find them. I did find them eventually, and I was so excited, I'm surprised that I did not jump out of my boots! They were my real parents! They showed me some strange papers with pictures on them instead of words. Photographs, they called them. They also showed me the toys I used to play with. Then they told me I should rest, after being on my feet for several weeks. And I did rest, but only for an hour or so. I felt refreshed, but little did I know I was in for a bigger surprise than just finding my parents. I remember it well. They told me my real name, Sharla. It sounded so beautiful. They called me Sharla, rather than my Metis name, Angel Feather. I didn't mind. At one point, the man who was my father, Jacob, and my mother, Madeline, asked to talk to me.
"Sharla, we need to talk." my father sighed.
"Of course. What is it you want to talk about?" I asked, not knowing the surprise awaiting.
"Well, I'm quite sure you're wondering how you came to be with the Metis..." my mother said. It was then I noticed that neither were smiling.
"Yes, I am." I replied, still smiling.
"Well," Madeline began. "You see, when your father and I... well, when you were born..."
"My dear woman, spit it out!" Jacob yelled at her. It was so loud I jumped.
"I can't, it's too hard!" Madeline cried.
"Fine, I'll tell her! We left you out there with a buffalo herd because we didn't want you! I hate children!" Jacob shouted at me.
My smile faded. I was hurt. "Is this the truth?" I said slowly.
"Sure is! We didn't want you, and we still don't!"
"But.. I was taught that children were a blessing..."
"Well, it's wrong. Children are a curse! They cry all night, and you never get any sleep!"
"But that's just how they are."
"It doesn't matter, Sharla, the fact remains that we hate children!"
I could feel the anger burning inside me. My hands clenched into fists, and I trembled with anger.
"We hate you, and we left you out there to die because you're a stupid kid!"
That did it. My anger took over me and I gave him a swift punch across the face. Madeline screamed and tried to slap me, but I kicked her away and ran out. I didn't bother to retrieve my things, I just ran away. I ran back to the nearest city, and only then did I stop. Madeline's father was waiting there for me. "Did you find them?"
I didn't answer. I ran away, and dropped a piece of paper behind me. It was a page I'd torn from Madeline's diary, saying how much she disliked her father. I wiped tears from my eyes as I ran, but my vision was still blurred and I soon ran into someone. I was knocked to the ground, and when I looked up, I saw a familiar face. It was Andrew, a young boy that also lived with the Metis. He was sent to study their culture. I'd become quite fond of Andrew, as he was the only other person in the village who spoke fluent english. The others struggled to find the words.
"Andrew? What are you doing here?" I asked in disbelief.
"I came to find you." he smiled, helping me up.
"Why?"
"I don't know. I... guess I just wanted to see you again. Did you find your parents?"
I couldn't take it any longer. I leaned onto his shoulder and cried.
"Angel Feather? What's wrong?" he asked.
"They hate me!" I sobbed. "They left me to die because they hate me!"
"Aww, Angie..."
I cried and soon felt his arms around me. He gently rubbed my back and told me it was alright. When I stopped crying, I looked at his face. He had his normal expression, a gentle smile. "Do you feel better?" he asked. I said yes with my hands.
"It's alright, Angie. Those people don't know what a wonderful daughter they have."
"Why do you call me that?"
"What, Angie?"
"Yes."
"Well, it's shorter than saying Angel, which is shorter than saying Angel Feather."
"Oh, I see."
"Is that even your name? Angel Feather?"
"No. My birth name is Sharla."
"Oh. Well, which do you prefer?"
"I think I prefer Sharla."
"Okay. To me, you will always be Angel Feather."
"Why do you say that?"
"You remind me of an angel."
I smiled. I hugged him and nearly fell over. I had been so upset I didn't realize how much my feet hurt. Andrew caught me and stood me up. "Sore feet?" he laughed.
I nodded a little and almost screamed in surprise when he picked me up. "I'll carry you." he smiled. I was confused, but I didn't say anything. I fell asleep with my head on his shoulder before we left the city. When he woke me up, we were hiding in the bushes. Before us, a large herd of buffalo were stampeding, being chased by horses. I smiled when I saw Arrow, Swift Lion's horse. There was something tied to her tail. It took me a few minutes, but I finally figured out that it was a pouch that I had made when I first learned to mend clothing. I had given it to Swift Lion for some unknown reason, and it had stayed where I left it. He never even looked at it. Now it was tied to his horse's tail, like he appreciated the gift I had given him. My moment of happiness was interrupted when I heard Andrew cry out "Angel, look out!" I looked to see a wild buffalo charging towards me. I screamed and closed my eyes, but I never felt the buffalo hit me. When I opened my eyes, Andrew was standing in front of me, blocking me from the bull's path. I was about to stand up, but I saw Andrew suddenly fall as the raging buffalo ran him over. He screamed in pain as it stepped on his arms, but the buffalo kept running towards me. It was about to hit me when a spear hit it's head. It screeched and fell to the ground. There was a red feather on the spear, and I recognized it as Swift Lion's. But there was something different. There was also a gleaming white feather tied next to it. I saw Swift Lion riding towards me on Arrow. The buffalo hunt was over, they had all they needed, and one extra. Swift Lion's bold face looked at me as Arrow snorted and stopped. I was ready for him to say something mean, but instead of that hateful expression, his expression was almost as gentle as Andrew's normally was.
"Are you alright, Angel Feather?" he asked.
I stood up, then opened my mouth to say yes, but it came out "Andrew..."
Swift Lion hopped off his horse and picked Andrew up off the ground. He hung him on his stomach on the back of Arrow. Andrew had passed out from the pain. Swift Lion took the pouch from Arrow's tail and walked over to me. "Did you discover your parents?" he said in our language.
I looked to the ground. "Yes." I could feel the tears running down my cheeks, and I tried to hide my face from him. He lifted my head with his hand and studied my face. I sniffled and continued to cry.
"I attempted to protect you from them, Angel Feather. I did not want you to know about them."
I sniffled. "You did not do as planned."
"I know I can not change you, Angel Feather. I can not make your decisions, but I can help you decide well." He held the pouch up to my face. "Do you remember this, Angel Feather?"
"Yes."
"Look inside."
I was puzzled, but took the pouch from him and opened it. Inside was a bracelet made of colored strings. There were a few beads here and there. I knew exactly what it was. A friendship bracelet. I looked up at him. He put his hand in the pouch and took the bracelet out.
"I may not be your true father," he began. "but I will always be your friend."
I smiled. He took my hand and tied the bracelet around my wrist.
"There. Now if you ever leave again, we both have an object to remember each other with."
I smiled a little more, exposing some of my teeth. Before I knew it, my arms were around his waist and I was hugging him. And to my surprise, he hugged back. When I moved away from him, he mounted his horse and extended his hand to help me up. I took his hand and hopped up behind him, next to Andrew.
"Be sure he does not fall."
I nodded and put my hand on Andrew's back. "Will he be alright?"
"I am quite sure he will. I do not think that he was hurt too badly."
I looked at Andrew and felt somewhat scared. He had risked his life to save mine, and I hadn't said anything. I hadn't thanked him. Arrow turned and we rode off to the village. It wasn't very far, but the ride seemed long. When we got there, some of the healers in the village took Andrew and put him in the medicine hut. They didn't say anything. Everyone in the village was working, and I jumped when I heard a familiar voice.
"Angel Feather, you're back!" came the voice of Fox Tail, Swift Lion's wife. She hugged me as soon as she reached me, and I almost fell over. I could barely breathe!
"Fox Tail, control yourself. Angel Feather has been through much strife."
"Oh. You found your true parents." she said, releasing me of her grip. "Are you alright?"
"Yes. I am just relieved to be back where I know I belong." I said with a sort of smile.
Fox Tail smiled too. She hugged me again and played with my short hair. I kept it cut shorter than most of the boys in my village, as it got in my way making clothing. I can remember actually sewing a jacket with my hair instead of the thread. I felt so silly when I realized it. "Angel Feather, my Angel Feather..." she said happily. I smiled and looked up at Swift Lion. To my surprise, he was smiling too.
After a few hours, the excitement of me being back was over, and everyone went back to work. Andrew was fine, but his arm was broken. He was lucky to have only one arm broken and a large bruise on his chest. Unfortunately I found out about the bruise the hard way, by hitting it. After a few days I'd forgotten all about Jacob and Madeline, and went back to being a Metis. Andrew left the Metis when he turned 25 years old, but he left a married man. We were married in the exact place where he saved me from the raging buffalo some years ago.