Dreamkeeper

I will tell you as it was told to me...

as told by the elders to my grandfather.

When a young person was seeking his way,

looking for answers to guide him along the Good Red Road of Life,

the elders took him up to the mountain

and put him up for four days and four nights.

No food, no water.

Just his buffalo robe and the canunpa, the sacred pipe

and his self.

Be quiet!

This was called the hanbieceya:

to seek for a vision,

a dream to show him the way.

Is your name No Ears?

I am Eagle Boy.

Who speaks to me?

The Spirits?

There are other mountains you could have picked. Why here?

All night long we have to hear you singing, crying,

talking to yourself. What are you, crazy?

- I come seeking a vision. - "I come seeking a vision".

You are not worthy of a vision, Eagle Boy.

You will not give up this quest. You are a warrior.

- What happened, Grandpa? - Did he get eaten?

- Did he get eaten? - Eagle Boy!

- I don't remember now. - Grandpa!

It was told to me so long, long ago by my Grandpa.

Who heard it from Black Elk. Who heard it from his great-grandpa.

Who heard it from the storytelling stone himself.

Bear Butte must've eaten him. I know it.

Well, he knew he had to go through many tests to find his vision.

So he began to sing, to call on the helping spirits.

And then...

You better get my money, boy.

I will tell you what happened another day.

Sometimes the stories come, sometimes they go.

Just like that one over there.

- What happened to you? - Nothing.

Looks like something. Something to do with that Mae Little Wounded?

Mom!

You know, if you want to win her heart,

you give her the end of the bread.

- Give her the end of a loaf of bread? - Old Lakota woman secret.

She'll think I'm psycho. Can I borrow some cash?

Yeah, there's a million dollars in casino money underneath my dresser.

- Just leave me a few thousand. - Whatever.

What's this? Fight?

- I fell off a horse. - You never been on a horse

to fall off of a horse.

- Listen. I need to talk to you, Shane. - Why?

It's about Grandpa. He's getting old.

He's been talking about, you know, taking the journey.

He's been talking about taking that journey for a long time.

He's almost eighty-seven.

He told Eddy Two Bulls he was a hundred and two.

He told this white lady looking for an Indian name that he was 49.

I'll be home later.

I know Grandpa, Shane. This is going to be his last Powwow.

He wants to go to New Mexico to the All Nations.

- Why? - He's a storyteller.

One of the last old ones. People need him.

Can't he just send an email? He's too old to go six hundred miles.

But you're old enough to drive.

- Why me? - Because he don't want no one else.

He wants you, Shane.

He wants you to get him to the Powwow.

- I can't. - Can't?

- I got things to do. - Like what?

Summer on the rez. What are you going to do, get in trouble?

Volunteer work, community service.

Help my mother pick chokecherries. Anything but that.

Get me to the Powwow.

I'll give you my best pony, 1966 V-8 Special.

It's name is Many Miles With No Muffler. But it runs fine.

I can't keep this, Shane.

Why not?

Yeah, I guess you got a point. Why not?

Damn, Mae, I have to ask you something.

What do you want to ask me?

I want to ask you, you know...

if I could have that back.

I pawned a boom box up in Scenic to get that.

I owe Victor's Bloods money for some smoke.

They were gonna kill me. So I took the boom box up to pawn.

And that's when I seen it, the ring...

I'll give it back at the end of the summer.

Is that you, Chasing Horse? What did I tell you about coming around?

What's going on, Shane?

- Victor wants his maza-ska. - Look, you'll get your money.

- You're damn right... - The boom box weren't mine neither.

I need to pawn the ring back, just for a few days.

- I thought Indian Giver's just a myth. - It is.

Then I'll keep it till you talk to the Old Man about going out with me.

- What's going on out there? - Shane, where's the box, Bro?

First you owe Victor money, now you took his tunes!

- I told you I'd get it. - Tomorrow.

Or you got to deal with the Vice Lord.

You owe the Dog Soldiers money. Or they'll find you in the Badlands.

You're making your grandfather happy, Shane.

He said when I get him there, this truck is mine.

How much you think I'll get for it over in Rapid?

You gotta be kidding me.

He's bringing his horse?

It's for the giveaway ceremony.

Three Moons is his last pony.

He wants to give him away at the Powwow.

He tried to give away that horse before.

No one will take it.

Hey, come on.

It's gonna be fun.

It's gonna be the Trail of Tears.

That's what it's gonna be.

It's what your father would have wanted.

Hoka hey!

Let's ride.

Come back, Shane.

Please.

It is a fine pony.

- What? - It is a fine pony.

How many miles to Albuquerque?

- Many. - Many...

"My heroes have always killed cowboys."

I see. That's your war shirt?

Man wears that shirt... does that make him an Indian?

- I am an Indian. - You're an angry Indian.

I don't trust any Skin who ain't angry.

Right. The white man stole all our land.

So for the rest of your life

you'll wake up every morning and blame all your troubles on Custer...

and not even try to make a life.

- What are you doing? - I forgot something.

What did you forget?

- How far it is till Albuquerque. - We made a trade for a1966 pony.

You can keep your 1966 pony, Grandpa.

I really don't need this right now, okay?

I've got problems, man.

Ah, you're pitiful. The Spirits told Eagle Boy...

I don't need stories, Grandpa.

Eagle Boy could do nothing but hang on for his young life.

See?

I am a strong-hearted warrior

worthy of a vision.

Two more nights. Stay strong.

You will receive your vision. You will return to camp

with wisdom and power.

Help me!

Help me!

How do you like that, Spirits?

Do you see how powerful I am? Now, give me a vision!

So, what happened?

- What? - To Eagle Boy. What happened?

The Thunderbird made a great storm. Lightning came out of his eyes.

Eagle Boy tried will all his might

to meet the trials of his hambleceya.

Could he, or could he not?

You're the storyteller, man.

I will tell you tomorrow. If I'm still in this world.

- You can't leave me hanging! - I'm the storyteller, man.

I can do what I want. New Mexico is that way, isn't it?

You will learn what happened to Eagle Boy when we get there.

And I tell it as it was told to me.

Let's ride!

- Who the hell's chasing us? - Just some guys, Grandpa.

They must be after Three Moons, my war horse.

No, they're after my ass.

They're better off with my horse.

Turn here.

- That's not a turn! - Turn!

You found yourself in some trouble.

Maybe.

Tell an old man who's been around a while.

- Uh, it's nothin'. - Nothing?

Some stuff with the girl.

It's like that, you know.

Ah, a girl...

...and trouble.

They often go together well, sometimes perfectly.

I owe the guy some money.

I once pawned a boom box, a music box, to get the cash.

And then I seen this ring Mae Little Wounded liked.

We forgot about the money, we forgot the boom box wasn't mine.

You got yourself in a big mess.

Couldn't think about that girl without fallin' almost sick...

...without doin' crazy things.

I think we lost 'em.

So in love with that young girl, he thought he would die.

But her father would bait him in his daughter's camp.

Blue Bird Woman, she was so beautiful.

Thank you.

See, in the old days

it was not so easy to win a girl.

Hey, Blue Bird Woman. Here he comes again.

High Horse from Spotted Tail's band.

There were many trials a man had to go through.

It was not two days ago, High Horse

that you came to my camp with a fine pony.

Now you come with two.

I am going to die.

And I wish for you to have these excellent ponies.

Why are you going to die?