Teonna Rainwater is a major character in 1923 Part 1 and 2 of A Yellowstone Origin Story. She is a young girl from the Broken Rock Reservation stolen from her family like other Native American children and placed in an abusive Catholic boarding school.
Biography[]
She is first seen in a classroom at the North Dakota school being ruthlessly quizzed by Sister Mary on the contents of soap. Teonna attacks Sister Mary after she repeatedly hits her with a ruler. They are both taken to Father Renaud's office where he reprimands the both of them, Sister Mary on her excessive cruelty and Teonna on her attack. After a lesson in bathing, Sister Mary warns her that it is in both their best interests to not find themselves in his office again. Teonna is made to mop up the blood from her scars on the floor late into the night. Later in the night, she talks to her cousin Baapuxti about healing her wounds and if they'll live long enough to survive the school.
Outside, the girls are taught how to sweep dust. After Baapuxti accidentally brushes dust off of the front porch, she is slapped by Sister Mary. Teonna witnesses this and sweeps her dust off the front porch too. When Sister Mary approaches, Teonna warningly grips her broom, prompting Sister Mary to back off. The girls are seen being taught how to wash and dry clothes.
At lunch, the girls are served maggot-infested food, to which Teonna refuses to eat, speaking in her Crow native tongue. Sister Mary hears this and slaps Teonna, who violently retaliates before being held down by all the nuns. As punishment, Father Renaud has her taken to spend the night in the hotbox outside. When the morning comes, she is taken from the hotbox and is taken with fever. She is sexually assaulted by Sister Alice while being washed in the tub, only to be interrupted by Sister Mary, who dismisses Sister Alice and taunts Teonna and tells her that she is her salvation and can save her from her godlessness. She pulls out a ruler and beats her in the tub, and warns her from ever harming her again.
While being taught how to harvest berries, Baapuxti complains about the thorns. Sister Alice reprimands her for her complaints, then whips her. Teonna comes to her defense and hits Sister Alice with her bucket, but is knocked out with a shovel by Sister Mary. Teonna awakens in the basement tied to a chair and surrounded by the nuns, who remark that she has been taken by the devil. She is ruthlessly beaten by Sister Mary with her ruler to the point where it breaks. Teonna admits defeat and allows herself to be saved by the nuns, who then cut her hair, bathe her in water, and wash her back with steel wool.
Later that night, Teonna collects soot from her bed frame and marks her face. She asks Baapuxti to come with her, but she refuses, afraid that they will both be found. Teonna tells Baapuxti that she is making war and leaves. Teonna fills her pillowcase with Bibles, goes into Sister Mary's room, and bludgeons her within an inch of her life. She stuffs Sister Mary's mouth with a cloth, choking her and derides her in Crow. Teonna mocks her for her violence and burns her face with a ruler, before grabbing a pair of scissors and stabbing Sister Alice in her sleep.
Teonna has escaped on foot into the Badlands. As she rests through the night, she encounters a wolf that tries to attack her. She climbs on top of a butte and rests there, while the wolf waits below. When she awakes, the butte is surrounded by a herd of sheep and a Native man appears on horseback. He introduces himself as Hank Plenty Clouds, and reveals he knows Teonna's father, Runs His Horse. She asks him to help her escape, and they both ride off into the prairie.
While on the run with Hank, Teonna is made to disguise herself by wearing his son, Pete's, clothes and choose a male name. They burn her school clothes, and she asks to burn the Bible too. Hank recounts the stories of being in prison and hearing the Bible read to him by priests, making him afraid of the power of the Christian God. Teonna resorts to burying the Bible instead, to which he agrees.
While drinking from a stream, she is approached by Brother Cillian and Brother Romero, who interrogate her. She pretends to be a sheep herder boy, but the brothers are suspicious. She flees when Cillian recognizes her feminine face, and he tackles her. Her rips her shirt open, exposing her breasts, confirming she is the missing girl. She sticks her finger into his eye, blinding him. He prepares to kill her in retaliation, when he is shot in the back by Hank. He also kills Romero. Hank carries Teonna to his horse, but is fatally shot by Cillian. As he reloads the gun, Teonna grabs a rock and bludgeons him to death with it.
Sleeping in the shelter, she is recovered by her father and Pete, who have also ceremonially wrapped Hank's body. Later that night, Runs His Horse plans on fleeing further south to the Washita River, where they may be able to hide amongst Comanches. Pete begins taking a liking to Teonna, but Runs His Horse warns them from falling in love, that they must stay vigilant. Much to her father's chagrin, Teonna disregards this warning, and she and Pete begin to kindle a romance. She cries in Pete's arms as she comes to terms with her trauma.
The three are last seen riding off into Wyoming, while unbeknownst to them, Father Renaud and the Marshalls plan on taking the train down to meet them there. Pete is later killed by Kent who is in turn murdered by Renaud. At night, Renaud attacks Teonna and her father's camp, killing Runs His Horse. However, he runs out of bullets and Teonna manages to overpower him, stab Renaud several times, and finish him off with her father's pistol.
Shortly thereafter, Teonna is arrested by Marshall Fossett, but not before she reveals what happened to her. At trial, the only witnesses to the murders at the school in North Dakota are the dead priest and Marshall whose deaths Teonna is not charged with. Kent and Renaud's deaths are listed as being unrelated and Fossett agrees to testify on her behalf about the specifics of their deaths. With no witnesses or evidence, the murder charges against Teonna are dropped. With Teonna having nowhere to go to, Two Spears gives her a horse and a gun and suggests that she go to California to find a new start where there are more Mexicans and Native Americans than whites as well as fruit on the trees and game in the hills to hunt. Two Spears reassures Teonna that she was right to fight back, but Teonna regrets it as it has cost her everything.