Nanook dragged out the fish from the sea before furtively glancing around him to make sure that no one had seen. He knew he wasn’t allowed to be fishing from this river. His tribe, Tsatsaotine, had made a pact with the Chipewyan that this was the property of the Chipewyan and not the Tsatsaotine. Quickly, he slipped the large bass behind him, just as he saw a Chipewyan man approaching.
“Edlanet'e,” the man spoke in a deep voice, his powerful muscles rippling beneath his skin. “I am Soaring Eagle.”
Nanook nodded. “And I Quiet Wolf.” He did not use his secret name, Nanook, because it was sacred and to be used only when needed, or it would be worn out.
Soaring Eagle nodded. “Good. Are you of the Tsatsaotine?” Nanook nodded. Soaring Eagle then raised his hand in a gesture of respect, then let Nanook go. Nanook then hurried home, opening the door to his small hut.
“Yellow Bird! Edlanet’e!” he greeted his wife. He did not use her secret name, either, and that was Winona. “How’s everything coming along?” She smiled.
“Great,” she answered. “I can feel the baby kicking around inside of me.” Winona was pregnant, and the baby was to be expected very soon.
Nanook smiled back. “I have brought back your fish.”
Winona stared. “Where did you get it from? Oh, Quiet Wolf, you shouldn’t have. It has been too much trouble for you to go all the way north because of the pact with the Chipewyan.”
Nanook shook his head. “It’s alright. Eat to the fullest.” After cooking and skinning the fish, Winona and Nanook sat down at the table to eat.
A few days later, Winona gave birth to a bright-eyed, lovely girl. “We shall name her Tupaarnaq,” Nanook announced with pride. They would have to wait until they could see her personality for her to receive her spirit name and animal. “Let the blessings of the Great Spirit be upon her!” the Tsatsaotine exclaimed together. They loved it when any new baby was born.
Suddenly, there was a loud rumbling coming from the edge of the village. Nanook turned his head to find Chipewyan warriors approaching. Their chief spoke. “We have been informed by our medicine man that someone stole a fish from the river.” Nanook turned pale. “We have come for redemption.”
The Chipewyan let out a chilling war cry, then, as the chief retreated, they attacked the Tsatsaotine village. Nanook screamed, “Winona! Bring the baby and come!” But it was too late. Nanook had to run with the tide of the stampeding Tsatsaotine to escape. He could only hope that Winona and the baby had enough time to get away from the invaders.
Meanwhile, Winona and the baby were trapped. Winona desperately thought, maybe I can hide before the Chipewyan arrive. She grabbed the sleeping baby from her cot and ducked under a table. However, it was too late. It was Soaring Eagle who swung the door open, killed Winona, and took the baby outside to his tribe. “We should take this baby and raise it,” he told them. “I would feel too bad killing it.” His tribe nodded. And it was thus that the Chipewyan took the baby.
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Soaring Eagle, whose secret name was Tenskwatawa, and his wife, Sissinguaq, stood in their hut, admiring the beautiful baby they had captured from the Tsataotine. “We need to name her,” Sissinguaq told Tenskwatawa. “I would like to name her Nizhoni and take her in as my own.” Tenskwatawa nodded in approval.
Soon, Nizhoni became a bright-eyed, energetic toddler. Tenskwatawa and Sissinguaq gave her the name Bird of Fire, because she was small and slight, like a bird, and her long black hair resembled that of a bird, and because she had a fire in her eyes and was so determined.
“Bird of Fire!” Sissinguaq would call, and the little girl would come running to her. Little did Nizhoni know that she was one of the Tsataotine, one of the Chipewyan’s most hated enemy. Tenskwatawa and Sissinguaq had decided not to tell her and let her find out for herself when she was older.
