Summary

The story resumes in 1927. Marian is wandering around Missoula one day when a plane flies into town. She goes to meet the pilots, Felix Brayfogle and his wife, Trixie. Marian is fascinated by the plane, and Trixie takes her on a flight. The experience reinforces her desire to “to leave Missoula as soon as she [gets] big enough” (92). Marian also begins to experience sexual attraction, specifically towards Felix. After the Brayfogles leave, Marian decides she wants to direct her efforts to becoming a pilot but believes being a girl will make this difficult. She cuts her hair to look like a boy and has her friend, Caleb, help clean it up. He asks her for a kiss in return.

There is then a tangential legend narrated in the present tense about a Native American named Sitting-in-the-Water-Grizzly. The myth describes how she...