Spirit Wolf wanted to surprise Eagle Wolf with a new home when he returned, instead of waiting for Eagle Wolf to rebuild. Now Spirit Wolf was basking in the newness of the huge buckskin tepee. He would enjoy being his people’s chief while he could, for he had no doubt that Eagle Wolf would get well and soon return to reclaim the title. Spirit Wolf was dressed in clothes made from deerskin, a fringed shirt, leggings, and heavily beaded moccasins, his shiny black hair drawn back into a long braid down his back. He sat on the floor of the new tepee on a rich, thick mat of bear fur. The glow from the lodge fire in the center of the tepee was a little too warm on this autumn day, but he was enjoying this moment alone, savoring the feel of power. As he gazed at the flames rolling slowly over the logs in the firepit, he could not help imagining all sorts of benefits that would come with being temporary chief. He could even envision something that his brother talked against…warring with whites.
