Wellllll hello there guys, it's me again. The big meanie that takes a 2 year break between uploading chapters... sorry about that! :3 Although, I think I'm a better writer now, so to prove it, here is my next chapter! Enjoy! (:

(I may jump perspectives, but I will notify you when it's going to happen)

(Lakota's perspective.)

I have no memory of how long we stood basking in each other's company. Connor's gaze brought an enjoyable heat to my skin as if I were bathing in the sunlight back home. It was familiar and comforting.

"CONNOR!" The Old Man's harsh voice startled me as if waking me from a dream, breaking my eye contact with Connor and making me stare at the door through which his voice had came. As my eyes wandered back to Connor, I saw a look of anger return to his face. It upset me to see his beautiful features creased in such a way. I stepped closer to him and placed my hands on his face, stroking my thumbs over his dark skin in attempt to smooth the creases out. His eyebrows raised at my actions in a questioning look and a smile tugged at my lips as he created more lines in his skin; however, Connor's curious expression was not one to upset me.
"Connor, where are you, boy?!" The Old Man shouted again. Fearing he had fallen over or was in need of help, I let my hands fall to Connor's chest and gave him a small push towards the door.
Connor seemed surprised by my attempt to push him away and exhaled quickly in what was the closest thing to a laugh I will probably ever hear him make.
"You've lost your touch, old friend. It seems that as I have been training in combat, you've stuck to hunting and can no longer push me around." Connor said as he chuckled slightly with a childish glint in his eye. He leaned closer to my face.
"How does that make you feel, mighty huntress?"
My throat grew tight as I spoke my response,
"It makes me feel-"
"Well, Connor I know who not to call on when my legs give out beneath me, or if someone chooses to rob a defenceless old man such as myself. I should count myself lucky I were not in dire need of your help." The Old Man stated as he hobbled dangerously on his stick through the doorway I could have sworn by The Great Spirit was closed not a second ago.

Connor and the Old Man argued for quite some time over business matters or something of the sort. I decided it was time to venture out for more food to collect and gathered my hunting equipment and the leather pieces needed for riding Spear. Over the months, Connor had brought back numerous skins of animals from places far from the Homestead. The hide was tougher and was useful in creating more pouches to store meat in when returning from hunting and so Spear's saddle had gained in size and was a lot harder for me to place upon my stallion's back alone. As I struggled to reach Spear's back with the heavy leather, I suddenly felt the saddle grow lighter and be pulled out of my hands all together. Startled, I stepped back and collided into a warm, hard surface. Looking over my shoulder I met eyes with Connor, a smile playing in his eyes.
"Thank you." I almost whispered, he grunted in response.
"I haven't hunted with you for quite some time, would you mind if I joined you?"
I nodded my head in response as I secured the saddle to Spear's back. Pulling myself up onto the saddle, Connor placed himself in the saddle just behind me.
"Connor, there are other horses..."
"I know, but we used to ride like this as children. I have fond memories that I felt like reliving."
I smiled as I remembered the first time he had ridden a horse with me. His little arms and legs so tense and grasping onto me as tight as possible.
Clicking my tongue I sent Spear forward to my usual hunting grounds.

(Connor's perspective.)

As children, riding a horse together was innocent and fun. Yet, as Lakota and I journeyed to her hunting grounds I could not figure where to put my hands to steady myself. As children, I had wrapped myself around her body, our balance helping each other stay atop the horse. But as I placed my hands on her waist now, I realised how different we were. My large and rough hands seemed to smother her small waist. Making it hard to distract myself from the way her hips swayed with the movements of the horse below. Wrapping my arms around her brought her petite body so close to me it didn't feel appropriate to do so in sight of anyone. Leaping down from the horse I decided to take to the trees away from my distracting thoughts and the cause of these thoughts, Lakota.

(Lakota's Perspective.)

Connor's presence behind me was usually something I only experienced when it came time to sleep. This presence gave off an entirely different aura, the aura of a mated pair. I was at war with myself as to whether I should coax Spear into a faster gait as that required Connor keep his balance and to do so he would grip onto me, which was something I wanted yet did not feel entirely comfortable with. He constantly shifted his position behind me, his hands settled on my waist and his warm breath did not blow on my neck as softly as it did before, as though he had been hit in the stomach and forced the air out of him all at once. He removed his hands and jumped down from Spear, I missed his warmth as soon as he had left and I watched him walk in front of me and off the path.
"I will take to the trees and meet you at the hunting grounds." He told me, in a voice I had not heard him use before. It sounded strained as though he was not well.
I nodded and spurred Spear into a faster gait, determined to reach the hunting grounds before Connor. Only seeing a shadow out of the corner of my eye as Connor took to the trees using methods I had shown him when we were children.

A small clearing through the trees grew closer as I slowed Spear and dismounted to hitch his reins to a nearby tree. Taking my bow and bait from the saddle I geared up and moved through the trees to the familiar hunting ground. Connor had not yet arrived but I could hear his footsteps and knew he was not far behind.
"Oh, mighty Assassin! It seems you are no match for the ferocious Huntress; for I am faster, stronger and above all things, quieter." As I listened to Connor's footsteps I withdrew an arrow and straightened my position, pulling back on the drawstring in the direction the footsteps came from, however I did not meet Connor's familiar face as I turned around, but the face of a white man.
Widening my stance and pulling tighter on the arrow, my position moved from a friendly joke to a position that showed I was ready to fight.

The white man raised his hands, claiming he meant no harm yet my eyes flicked over his belt; heavy with long knives and pouches full of things that meant harm.

"That's a nice horse you've got. Did you steal it?" I didn't fully understand the words that came from the foul man's mouth. Only a few words came through, such as horse and steal. I snarled at him, hoping to scare him away without having to injure him. Taking a step away from him as he approached me slowly, I never once relaxed my arm.

"What's a savage like you, doing in a place like this?" The white man continued to approach me and slowly I felt my back hit a tree and I let my guard down slightly to turn and see what I had backed into, it was enough for the white man to quickly grab me and restrain me between his body and the tree.

"You're a long way from home, savage. Shall I show you what happens when your people don't know your place?" He pushed my bow away and to the ground. His hands moved to the belt I wore to keep my knives in and removed each one quickly, disarming me effectively. I tried to kick and punch and scream but my throat snapped shut as his hand clamped around my neck and his other slapped my cheek. With his hands at my head I managed to grab my last knife from my belt and drive it into his stomach and drag upwards like gutting a fish. The man dropped his hands from my face and stared blankly into my eyes.

"Savage." I called him as he fell to the ground, revealing Connor standing behind him with an arrow pulled tightly in his bow ready to kill the man just before I had done so. He quickly dropped his bow and ran to me, holding me close as I cried at the first time I had killed a being other than animal.

I wailed like the day my Mother died, I screamed to the spirits to forgive me for my actions. I did not feel Connor carry me to my horse and ride us home until I woke up in our bed, with my back nestled against his front, Connor's steady breathing relaxing me and making it slightly easier to forget the events of today. I slipped out from underneath Connor's arm and as I looked down to where his hand had rested on my stomach I noticed my clothes were stained with the white man's blood. Beginning to feel sick, I grabbed some soap and a brush and wandered down to a spot in the lake I knew got the most sun at this time of the afternoon. I stripped off the soiled clothes and upon looking at my skin; I noticed I too was covered in blood.

I stepped into the lake and bathed in the late afternoon sun, a once relaxing activity now had a more sinister feel as I scrubbed the blood off of my skin and my clothes. I did not realise how long I had been scrubbing at my skin but it still felt far from clean. As I felt a hand wrap over mine and stop my vigorous motion I realised my skin was clean but raw and sore to the touch. The sun was low in the sky, proving to me I had been here for a rather long time. I turned around and was met with Connor staring at me with sadness in his eyes that brought me to tears again. He pulled me against him, his clothes rough against my bare skin as he had walked into the lake fully clothed. Picking me up and cradling me against his large chest he set me down on a linen sheet he had brought from the house. He knew I couldn't wear those clothes again. Wrapping the sheets around me he scooped me up again and carried me back to the Old Man's home.

Connor had given me his old clothes from when we arrived at the mansion. They were large on me but as he had taken over hunting duties since then, I only walked around the mansion or sat with Spear in the stables.

After a while, new people began to move into the Homestead. Each had their own profession and before long a woman capable of making me clothes arrived and soon I had my own robes similar to Connor's. With the freedom to move, I had taken up riding again with Connor close by in the trees at all times. The Old Man and Connor taught me new white man words everyday and after a time I could hold conversation with them both in the new tongue.

One day, after coming home from riding, Connor jumped down from a tree and we walked to the mansion together. Old Man came out to greet us and spoke with a wary tone.

"Lakota, soon Connor will have a mission that will take him away for some time. You can stay here and will have to hunt alone or you go with Connor, however, I feel you should begin to be trained should any man try to hurt you again either way." I nodded and a small amount of fear settled in my stomach.

"Very well, we shall start tomorrow."