- Finally Attean returns, but Matt is troubled to see that Saknis is with him. And they both look really serious.
- But Matt notices something else too: Attean found his manitou. He has man hair now, shaved except for a topknot, rather than hanging down to his shoulders.
- Attean also has his own rifle. Sweet.
- Then Saknis starts to speak, and he's super serious—he tells Matt that with winter coming on, the Indians will be heading north. All of them.
- He reminds Matt that his father hasn't returned (oh, really?), but Matt doesn't want to admit that maybe he won't be coming back.
- Saknis invites Matt to come with them. He tells Matt that they will teach him to hunt like the Indians, and says that he and Attean can be brothers.
- Matt is flabbergasted. For a second, he feels like he just won the jackpot, but then reality starts to settle in.
- Matt knows he can't go, and he explains to Saknis that he needs to stay and protect the cabin, just like his father asked him to.
- Saknis reminds him that his father might not come, but Matt insists that he will—or at least, that he'd let him know if he weren't coming.
- Saknis thinks about this, but still invites Matt to join them. He even tells him he'd be glad to have him as a grandson.
- Matt can hardly talk because of the goose egg that pops into his throat. But he can't leave.
- Attean and Saknis leave silently.
- For a second, Matt almost runs after them; he can't help but wonder if he's crazy for refusing their offer.
- He thinks of all the stories he's heard of white people who lived with Indians and didn't want to return to the white world, and feels like he understands them now.
- He also realizes that just as Attean is bound to his culture, Matt is bound to his—he'd never totally fit in in the Indian world because he'd know his family still lived in the white world.
- Then he gets to thinking about Attean. He's bummed that Attean didn't even say good-bye, and wonders what is going on in his friend's head.