From Karuk Folklore
A girl was walking up to Ipputtate, going to gather wood. As she travelled, she carried fire in her pack. Then she saw somebody down river coming in from upslope direction. As the man drew near, he stopped and looked at her, his quiver held up high.
“What are you packing fire for?” he asked.
“I am cold,” she replied.
“What, the quail is already hollering, and nobody is carrying fire, nobody will fell cold!” He laughed. “I am going up to Amekyaram. They are already catching salmon at Amekyaram.”
He laughed once more at her fire, then he went on upriver. The women also went upslope, on her way to get wood. She walked upslope a little way, then looked up at the sky.
“It’s going to rain,” she thought. “It is clouded over. Oh, I wish it would rain; oh, I wish it would snow.”
She began gathering wood, chipping it off dry fir bark with a wedge. Yet, soon it began to snow, a dry snow, a large snowfall. The girl made a fire where she was gathering wood. She thought, “Just a little more, then I will go downslope.” Yet, all she could think about was the man. In anger she thought, “Why did he laugh at me? “ He’d said, ‘I will be passing through here this evening on my way back. I should come near sundown.”
“He is about to come back,” she thought. Then she put the load of wood on her back. As she walked along, the snow came up to her ankles. She carried the fire with her in a bowl basket as she went back downslope. Then she heard a noise behind her.
The man hollered, “Stop, I want to talk with you!”
She stopped and turned to face him.
“Do something good and make a fire for me,” he said. “I am cold.”
The woman laughed. “The quail is hollering; nobody ever feels cold. Nobody feels cold. You are not cold; I think you are telling a story.”
“Make a fire for me.” he begged. “I am carrying a head-cut of salmon. Make me a fire and I will give you it.”
No!” she replied.
He tried again. “I have here a pair of hair bands with woodpecker scalps.”
No!” she replied once more.
“Well then, I will give you my quiver, and all that is inside of it.”
“No!”
“I will give you my fishery, Ickecatcip.”
“No!”
“I am carrying a flint knife. I will give you it.”
“No!”
“I will give you my armor.”
“No!”
“Then let me marry you, and you can make a slave out of me.”
“Very well. I will make you a fire.”
She made the man a fire which he used to warm himself thoroughly. Then they went home to Xavnamnihite, to the woman’s house. She had him for her slave and they would both live at her house. As they went along she was happy. She laughed until they reached her home. That is what the Xavnamnihitc woman did.
Source:
Karuk Indian Myths, John P. Harrington, 1932
Kotharian Lightning 