"Namid, must you marry Makwa? Why not marry someone here? I'm going to miss you so much!"
Namid dabbed her eyes. "I love him, Neebin. I love you too, of course. You're like a sister. But I can't imagine a life without Makwa. Plus it will solidify our alliance with his clan. It's a perfect match."
Neebin nodded. "I'm happy for you. But I'm going to feel so alone."
Namid bowed her head. "If only you had been blessed with finding your soulmate early, like I have. It will be hard to leave everyone I love, and yet I count the hours until my life with Makwa will begin."
The two girls looked up as an elderly yet fit man entered. "Hello Grandfather," they both said at the same time.
Grandfather smiled. "Hello, young ones. You both look sad today, even though this is a time of celebration. I have a special present for each of you. They will ease your pain."
Namid stood and hugged him. "I'm happy and sad at the same time. What could possibly ease the sad part?"
Grandfather reached into a small leather pouch, and pulled out two identical dreamcatchers. He handed one to each of the girls.
Namid studied the intricate design. "This is beautiful, Grandfather. Are the two girls walking by the river Neebin and I?"
Grandfather nodded. "Yes, and it will allow you two to visit, when you sleep. Just be careful, anything that happens in this particular dream world is very real. I don't think there is much of a problem, though. I've connected these to a very safe and beautiful area."
Neebin held hers close to her chest. "I love it, and I'm so happy that I will be able to visit Namid!"
After the ceremony, Neebin and Namid took the time to say goodbye in private.
"You'll visit me tonight? And tell me all about your first day as a wife?" Neebin asked, her eyes shining.
Namid blushed. "No! Give me some time, maybe until the next full moon? I probably wouldn't be talking to you during that time even if I had married in the clan."
Neebin giggled. "Relax, I was joking!"
Namid shoved her friend, hard enough that she sent her sprawling. Then she flopped down next to her, and both girls erupted in laughter.
Makwa walked over, and smiled. "I'm glad you are happy, Namid. To ensure that your smile never dies, we will visit your clan often."
Namid rose, and hugged Makwa. "Thank you, Love. I hope your smile will be with me always too."
Ten days later, Namid hung her new dreamcatcher. "I hope Neebin has hers up too," she yawned.
She opened her eyes, and found herself in a sunlit forest. A river murmured nearby. "It can't be daylight already," thought Namid.
"Is anyone here? Namid?" called a familiar voice.
She followed the sound, and found Neebin standing in a beautiful meadow, with a single oak in the middle.
Namid smiled, and ran towards her friend. Soon the girls were hugging and laughing.
"I thought you'd never visit. I've been coming here every night, Namid. I know you said to give you time, but I hoped you'd change your mind."
Namid shook her head. "We've been busy traveling. I'm not sure if this will make me tired during the day or not. And Makwa was always with me. Would the dreamcatcher bring him too?"
Neebin nodded. "It hasn't made me tired. But I don't know if you can bring others along. I wouldn't have minded if you brought Makwa, though. Where is he now?"
Namid smiled. "He's hunting. We're going to stop here, as long as the animals stay."
Neebin looked at the paradise that surrounded them. "Is it nice there?"
Namid walked towards the oak. "It's almost as nice as this meadow."
Neebin frowned. "How can it be this nice?"
Namid twirled her long, straight hair. "I think it's because I'm with Makwa."
Soon the two girls were walking by the river, talking quietly. "What else is around here, Neebin? Are there any animals? Grandfather said this is a real place."
Neebin pointed towards the small rapids. "Once I saw a doe over there. But when she saw me, she disappeared like a ghost."
Namid stared at the spot. "Maybe some animals come here when they dream? I wonder if they know they're dreaming!"
The two girls climbed a hill, and watched a black bear with two cubs. The little family slowly vanished one at a time, almost like a mist.
"Let's make a campfire," suggested Namid.
Soon they were enjoying the smell of woodsmoke. "I wonder if we can eat the plants here?" asked Neebin.
Namid moved away from the fire, and breathed in the fresh air. "Everything is real, so yes. I see a blueberry patch over there."
The girls picked and ate blueberries until their stomachs felt overly full. When they finished, they took a nap by the fire.
Namid stretched, and felt a soft fur pelt. She opened her eyes. "Oh my, it's morning. I'm back in the waking world. And I'm still really full."
Makwa walked in, with two rabbits slung over his shoulder. Namid smiled, but Makwa didn't smile back.
She frowned. "What's wrong?"
He set the rabbits by the tent flap. "I came upon a clan who are supposed to be our allies, but in the past we clashed often. I was welcomed, and one of the children was showing me around until the chief could greet me. As we walked by one of the tents, I heard a man say the name of your clan. I stopped, and asked the child to run and get me some water. Then I listened carefully."
Namid's eyes widened. "What did you hear?"
He sat, and took both of her hands in his. "There were two men in the tent. One was laughing. He said he couldn't wait to hear about the carnage. The other said that the raiding party will hit your clan tomorrow night, and should be back here before the next full moon. Then they will hit my clan."
She shook her head. "I have to tell Neebin! She will warn everyone."
Makwa hugged Namid. "Have you even tried the dreamcatcher yet? I could run, and try to warn them. I don't know if I can make it, but I'm willing to try."
She sobbed in his arms, then composed herself. "No, you don't have to go. I tried it last night, because you weren't here to keep me company. I missed Neebin badly, so I visited her in the dream world."
He nodded. "Also tell her I will talk to the council, tonight. I will suggest that my clan will join yours as soon as possible. We will unite, and travel together. They will think hard about attacking us if we are one instead of two."
Namid wiped her eyes. "Thank you."
That night, Namid struggled to get to sleep. Then suddenly she was in the sunlit forest again.
"Neebin! Neebin! Are you here? I need to talk to you," she almost screamed.
Neebin sprinted towards her, sliding to a halt right before knocking her down. "What's wrong? We had so much fun last night."
Namid quickly told her what Makwa had overheard. Then she hugged Neebin. "Please be careful! I can't lose you."
Neebin squared her shoulders, her jaw set. "I'll be fine, and so will everyone else. We're going to be ready for them..."
The two girls visited for the rest of the night, talking while exploring more of the mysteries of the dream world.
Neebin hugged Namid before they stretched out on the soft grass in the meadow. "I'll talk to you after they attack and are defeated. I can't wait to see you again in the waking world!"
The next day, Makwa, Namid, and the entire clan traveled as fast as possible. When they stopped, he took her in his arms. "I'm sorry we won't get there in time to help. But once we do arrive, we will stay."
She snuggled in deeper. "I know they'll be fine. You should have heard Neebin, she sounded like a warrior when I talked to her!
Knowing she was unlikely to see Neebin, she still entered the dream world just in case. It was a long, lonely night. "I guess we can't bring other people along," she thought sadly, thinking of Makwa sleeping soundly next to her.
The next day brought more hard travel. Despite her fatigue, Namid had trouble finding sleep that night. When she did, the forest was empty.
"Neebin! Are you here? Are you okay?" she shouted to the empty forest.
She sat on a rock, and cried. Then she climbed the hill, and shouted her anguish.
After what seemed like an eternity, she heard a distant shout.
"Neebin?!?!" she called back.
With much shouting, the two girls found each other. After a happy reunion, Neebin sat on the soft grass. "We are all fine, but once they realized that we were ready, they took off. I really wanted to teach them a lesson!"
Namid giggled. "We'll both teach them, together!"
Cover image made using Bing AI Image Generator