Christmas might have only just taken place for the viewers, but as Little House on the Prairie’s penultimate episode rolls around, spring has officially begun on the prairie with yet another time jump.
Episode 7 opens with Charles taking in the beauty around him as he writes to his father to update the pair on all that has changed since the family moved out West. The land office is set to open soon, and they’re hoping to have their rights to the land settled, too. He asks for his father’s forgiveness for all that happened in the past and lets him know they’re happy in their new home.
Just as Charles finishes his letter, Laura calls him outside as a group of Osage men come walking through. We learn that the chiefs are gathering to sign the treaty; once it’s signed, then they move to Indian territory. Laura asks if this means all of them will be moving, even Good Eagle but Charles dodges the question.
Over at the Mitchells’, Good Eagle is getting ready for her birthday, which she’ll be spending with Laura. As Good Eagle races out to meet with Laura, White Sun assures William that the chiefs trust him because they know him, but it’s clear he’s anxious.
The Ingalls arrive in town, and Laura sets off with Good Eagle to begin the festivities for Good Eagle’s birthday, which starts with mailing a letter. Charles is whisked away next as he’s invited to join Eli at the meeting of the chiefs.
Caroline and Mary head off for the welcome luncheon and quickly find that things are not quite ready for the luncheon at all. It seems Jemma assured Margaret that she would provide everything, but there is nothing there: No tables, chairs, cups, or plates. Caroline quickly jumps into action and begins working to get things in order.
Over at the post office, Laura arrives to drop off her letter and asks the mailman if he’s gotten any letters for Good Eagle because it’s her birthday. Inside the letter is a treasure map from the Count of Monte Cristo, who has hidden his treasure in Independence. The first treasure is marked to be at the Judson Hotel, and the girls quickly race out to their first stop.
Charles begins to question the truth behind the land deal
Charles and Eli arrive at the gathering of chiefs; here they run into John, who wanted to show his respect, as he hates to see good people lose so much. He quickly informs Charles that the deal is not what Eli has been making out and introduces them to Agent Gibson, who helped arrange for the deal. Charles tells him about the “Free land in the West” flyers, which drew him out to the town, and it seems something is off with the coldness in Mr. Gibson’s tone.
Lacey and Emily show up with reinforcements as Caroline sends Mary off with Carrie to join Caleb at the General Store. As Mary enters the store, she finds Caleb at the counter struggling to help Russell Kind, who is far from kind in his treatment of Caleb. Mary steps in to help and sends him on his way. As she goes to mark Russell’s purchase in the ledger, she looks at her family’s tab and finds they have a deep line of credit.
George arrives at the luncheon, and Lacey quickly picks up on the romantic tension between them as Emily admits they’ve been enjoying each other’s company. Lacey asks if they’re going to marry; Emily notes that they haven’t really talked about the future much. She feels she’s been clear about her feelings, but Lacey reminds her of the importance of speaking your heart and not taking things to chance as she steps away to grab some water.
Laura and Good Eagle’s birthday adventure brings a moment of joy
The birthday scavenger hunt takes Laura and Good Eagle to the hotel where Good Eagle finds the next clue as well as a pair of peppermint sticks.
As they sit to enjoy their treats, Laura asks Good Eagle if she wants to move away, as Good Eagle notes they could stay, but the rest of their family would have to go. Laura recalls how she felt like she was pulled in half when they moved here and were without their family, and now she can’t imagine going back; however, she also can’t imagine this place without Good Eagle. Not wanting to bring the mood down on her birthday, they set off for the next stop on the map: the alley.
Tensions rise as the Osage treaty negotiations take a turn
Back at the gathering of the Osage chiefs, Charles asks about the chief he saw riding in for the meeting, and John informs him that is Joseph Pawnee-no-pashe, also known as Governor Joe. He took the title as he wanted the Indian agents to think he was reasonable, and he’s also said to be the smartest man in the lodge.
The meeting begins as Agent Gibson begins to read through the agreement set to be signed into place. Per Agent Gibson, the act will authorize the removal of the Tribe of the Great and Little Osage from Kansas to a new and permanent home in Indian Territory. The lands will be purchased for $1.25 per acre, with the money being promised to be used to secure individual allotments for all Osage in lands formerly held by the Cherokee. Little Puma quickly voices his frustrations as Governor Joe requests the meeting proceed.
With Caroline’s help, the welcome luncheon comes together quite nicely. As Margaret thanks her for all she did to save the luncheon, she apologizes for not standing up alongside Caroline for Emily. As the new Reverend arrives, Jemma tries to take credit for throwing it together, but Margaret quickly interjects that it was Caroline who saved the day. Much to Jemma’s displeasure, the Reverend invites Caroline to join him in getting a plate.
Elsewhere, Laura and Good Eagle’s treasure brings them to the alley, where Good Eagle finds her next clue. Good Eagle is excited to see what candies are in the pouch, but instead finds an array of vibrant pebbles Laura began collecting after having taken notice of how Good Eagle always looks for them at the river.
Sensing some disappointment in her friend’s reaction, Laura suggests they continue on to the next spot, as Good Eagle suggests they make another stop along their way first.
Back at the General Store, Caleb can sense something has upset Mary and she asks him how long her parents have been in debt. He assures her that Emily knows that they’re good for it once the family’s crop goes to market as he begs Mary not to let Emily know he let her see the ledger. Mary asks about the debt as he notes that everyone is in debt.
Mary tells him how her Pa told her everything was fine, even when she asked. She’s not upset about them being in debt but at her father for lying to her. Caleb reminds her that her parents took on debt to survive and keep their family together because they love Mary and want to protect her. He wishes he had a family like that, to which she reminds him he has Emily, and he remarks that he also has her. The space between the pair begins to close, and just as they’re about to kiss, Emily walks in with a plate for them both from the luncheon.
As we return to the meeting of the chiefs, Governor Joe is called upon to sign the act, but he cannot bring himself to do so. He proclaims that this is the land where our fathers died, where they are buried, and one day they will face them again. They will ask them a simple question: what future did we leave to our children? He remarks that when he faces his father this will be the answer, as he then drops the feather and walks away from the table.
Trouble brews in town as fear begins to spread
In town, the Reverend sits with Caroline and mentions that Jemma seemed to have left out some information and recognizes Caroline’s leadership qualities. He asks her about her vision for the town, and she tells him a vision for a place where all have a place, and the conversation shifts to education and her past as a teacher. He suggests that she uses the school to teach the children. The meal is interrupted, though, when Adam arrives and informs the group that the meeting with the chiefs had descended into chaos after one chief walked away and refused to sign the act.
We return to the meeting where Charles asks William what will happen next, and he explains that he’ll try to put things back together from here. Eli requests to be taken to the chief and threatens to bring in the army to take care of things. Eli tries to get Charles on his side, pointing out his future is on the line, but Charles makes it clear this is the Osage’s future, and they get to decide what is best for them.
Things at the luncheon quickly begin to escalate as fear gets the better of men in attendance with talks of guns and ammunition rising. Jemma encourages the Reverend to speak to the group to end talks of a fight.
The Reverend thanks the men and women for their welcome. As he addresses the crowd, he speaks to the fear of unstable foundations rising among those, which clouds goodwill. He knows there is uncertainty, and he encourages the crowd to face it with the virtue of restraint. Russell and the men have none of it, though, as they tell him to leave the preaching for his sermons and walk away.
After leaving the meeting, John recalls how after William’s daughter passed, he would sit with him in silence and just stare up at the stars. He admits if he were the Osage, he would never want to give up this land.
Laura and Good Eagle’s detour takes them to a tree which is adorned with all of the beautiful pebbles Good Eagle has collected. She tells Laura about her late sister and how she passed in the summer, and that fall none of the trees near their house bore any fruit. That’s when she noticed this particular tree, which had an abundance of persimmons, which were her sister’s favorite, and she knew it was a sign from Julia that she’d always be with her. Good Eagle pulls out the pouch of stones Laura gifted her, and the pair place them among those on the ground together.
Governor Joe makes a powerful stand
Elsewhere, William sits down with Governor Joe and tries to get him to sign the deal out of fear of what it could mean for them. William asks him what he can do to help him get everything he needs from the deal. Governor Joe quips he doesn’t even know what that is, and William presses him for an answer to which Governor Joe remarks it’s their dignity.
William goes to Agent Gibson to let him know that in order for the deal to be finalized, their leaders need two amendments. First, the Osage must be permitted to hunt the buffalo beyond their territory, and the new land will not be allotted individually; it will be held by the Osage community as a tribe.
Rather than agreeing to the amendments, Agent Gibson dismisses William and notes that negotiations are over. William notes that treaty after treaty after treaty has shrunk their land and numbers, but not their pride. The Osage must stay together for their children’s future, to which Agent Gibson tries to allege he doesn’t have the authority to make the changes—but William is not buying it.
The treaty is finalized but at a cost
Back in town, we learn that Russell has moved his little grievance circle to the hotel and Caroline is set on trying to put a stop to this, even as Jemma calls her a fool for thinking the men will listen to a woman. Undeterred, Caroline enters the hotel with Mary and Lacey as she hears Russell speak of his plan to ride into the Osage land and attack the village.
Caroline speaks up to remind him there are children in the village and families, to which he presses back that they must do something for the sake of their own families. As another man interjects that they need to show the Osage they won’t be pushed around, Caroline reminds them that they all share the same common wants in trying to make a good life just like Russell. She admits she was wrong when she first arrived, and if they drag this town into a war, the blood will be on their hands.
Just as Russell orders those with him to grab their guns and head out with him, George enters the hotel to inform everyone that the deal is done: they signed. The government agreed to their terms, and the Osage are selling their land.
Back in town, Laura and Good Eagle reach their final stop on the treasure map. Inside the final package, Good Eagle finds a birthday wish from Laura expressing her hope to be best friends forever, but Laura dismisses the idea, now feeling guilty as Good Eagle already had one in her sister. However, Good Eagle embraces her as she notes she could definitely use another.
As the girls celebrate, White Sun arrives and informs them the treaty was signed. She’s not sure what happens next, but change is coming. After Laura expresses disappointment in wishing no one had to leave, White Sun tells her about the Osage’s origins from the Wa-zha-she ancestors who came to Earth from the stars. There was always more to see and learn, and they were always moving, and that’s why they tell stories, as stories remind them moving and changing brings them closer to understanding the Great Mystery.
At the meeting, the crowd has dispersed, and William and Charles sit in the room together. Charles admits that he thought everyone was getting what they wanted from the deal because he could only think of his own family, and he’s sorry he didn’t see this wasn’t the case sooner.
Little Puma approaches William and Charles and angrily confronts him before leaving. William explains that he said, “I hope you're listening tomorrow. At dawn, you will hear our people’s song of mourning. We will be praying to Wah’Kon-Tah to take pity on us. Leaving this land means we leave our ancestors, our history, and a part of ourselves behind.”
After William leaves, Charles approaches Eli and confronts him, having put two and two together that it was the railroad that distributed the false flyers and used them to force the Osage out. Eli makes it clear the company has a vision for their future, and they’re part of that vision; he should be grateful.
As night falls, George drops in to join Emily for supper and finds she’s set quite a spread for them. She admits that she wanted supper to be special tonight as they sit, and she points out how they’ve been doing this for a while and they can’t go on like this forever. She takes his hand and tells him she'd like to be a part of the life he’s living now and the life he’ll be living in the future if he'll have her.
George admits he hasn’t been completely honest with her: he’s still married, technically. The news understandably leaves Emily shocked as she sends George away and finally allows herself the chance to process the heartbreak after he leaves.
When the morning comes, Laura awakens to the sounds of the Osage song and walks outside to join her Pa, the episode ending with the pair standing solemnly knowing what the song means.
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