He tried to find words to thank his grandfather
“Keep it, Grandfather,” he said slowly, “until I earn the right to have it.”
“Nonsense.” Great Bear spoke sharply. “Even Sioux warriors make mistakes. The bow is yours. Tomorrow we shall have a lesson in its use.”
“Thank you, Grandfather.” Little Bear smiled happily. Then he understood the meaning of Grandfather’s words. “Tomorrow we shall have a lesson? Aren’t we going with the hunting party?”
“No.” Great Bear shook his head. “The Great Spirit warned me I should stay in camp. You and I and the two old ones will stay while the others hunt.”
The next morning Little Bear was up early. He carried his new bow as he went to watch the hunting party leave camp. By the time the hunters had ridden out of sight, Little Bear was feeling less disappointed. Grandfather was going to give him lessons in the use of the bow. That would be almost as good as the excitement of a buffalo hunt.
“First you and I will scout to the river to see if any Pawnees are near,” Great Bear told him.
Grandfather took two arrows from his quiver and handed them to Little Bear. As he followed his grandfather out of camp, Little Bear felt he was almost a warrior. As soon as they were out of camp, Great Bear moved as carefully as he could. At each step he made sure he didn’t tread on a stick that might snap under his foot. Little Bear followed carefully behind him, stepping in Grandfather’s tracks. Instead of following the most direct route to the river, Great Bear took advantage of all cover.
When they were near the river, Great Bear got to his hands and knees and then stretched out on his stomach. Little Bear needed no signal to follow his example. They inched forward until they were near the river’s bank. Here they lay silently watching the opposite bank for any sign of their enemies. A big ant crawled across Little Bear’s shoulders, but he made no move to brush it off. Slowly the sun climbed high in the sky, and yet Great Bear continued to watch. Finally he began to edge back from the river bank. They crawled back many paces before Great Bear got to his feet.
“The Pawnees must have moved upstream,” he decided.