(A/N: Hi, all! This is my first fanfic story, so please review and let me know what I can improve on! This story features "Princess Mononoke", my favorite Miyazaki film. The film was great, but I was VERY disappointed that San and Ashitaka didn't end up together!
Since this is the first chapter, I'm simply introducing some new characters and tying my story with the movie. There is no conflict yet, but stay tuned for some intense action. Enjoy!)
Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to "Princess Mononoke".
Princess Mononoke: The Twist of Fate
Chapter 1: Prologue
San ran through the forest in a frenzy, ignoring the branches that scratched her body. She was running somewhere, although she was not sure where. Her feet seemed to be leading her senselessly. Suddenly, she picked up the strong scent of death and fear off to the distance. The sound of steel and explosions reverberated from the trees.
"San!" a voice cried. Alarmed, San quickly looked to her right. Only the darkness of the forest met her sight, and San thought she had misheard the cry. Then, it came again, more powerful and more desperate: "San! Help me!"
San's heart stopped as she recognized the voice. "Ashitaka!" She yelled, running towards his voice. She gripped her knife in her fist tightly as she jumped over the dead bodies strewn on the ground. No, she thought, Ashitaka cannot be here. She desperately prayed to her mother Moro that Ashitaka will be alive when she found him.
"San…" a voice trailed off nearby. Although San was heavily breathing, her heart felt numb at the weak sound of the voice. Ashitaka had never sounded like this before; he was the warrior, the prince of the Emishi tribe! She quickly turned her head around to see Ashitaka among the bodies, his stomach plastered with blood.
"Ashitaka!" Was all she was able to say as she knelt down beside him. Ashitaka slowly located San with his eyes and smiled.
"You…came," He said incredulously. "I was shot. The power from the demon scar is the only thing keeping me alive—so far." Looking over San's face, Ashitaka lifted his hand in an attempt to touch her face. "San…you're…beautiful. As always."
San saw tears brim her eyes as she saw Ashitaka wince under the pain of speaking. "No!" She shrieked as his eyes began closing. "Ashitaka, I love you!" She hugged the dying boy tight in her arms as she spoke.
Ashitaka's eyes widened. "San!..." He exclaimed, as he turned his head slightly to look at her. His eyes were warm and strong, but San could feel the life draining out of his body. "I…"
Ashitaka struggled to say something, but no sound came from his mouth. Then, Ashitaka slowly closed his eyes. Soon after, his chest stopped its motion.
San could no longer hold back her tears. As she sobbed over the dead warrior, she beat the ground in her mourning fury, her mind overcome with counfusing thoughts. "Stupid Ashitaka!" she wailed, as her conscious began fading from her. "You promised you'd be safe…"
A kodoma walked over to Ashitaka and touched his hand, bowing its head in sorrow. Then it looked at San and clicked its head, as if it wanted to tell her something. Immediately, San's vision started to cloud over with darkness, engulfing her mind and body with a black paste.
As she struggled to clear her eyes, an old woman's voice suddenly penetrated San's mind, powerfully ringing inside her head. "You cannot alter your fate," the voice began. "However-you can rise to meet it if you choose."
The sun beat down on San's eyelids, jolting her awake. Her wolf brothers were watching her from the mouth of the cave, as she struggled to remember what happened. "Ashitaka!" She suddenly cried out, and looked around her.
"What's wrong, sister?" Tiju, the younger wolf, asked her as she searched around the stone cave. "Are you looking for food?"
"She obviously misses the boy, Tiju," Mure, the older brother, sneered. "San, it is not yet noon. Can you not tell by the sun?" He pointed at the sky.
San looked at them distractedly as her eyes cleared from sleep. She looked around herself once more, and rose from her mattress. "Sorry brothers," she said, as she closed her eyes and opened them again. "I have had a terrible nightmare, it seems." She walked over to the edge of the cave, looking at the sun. "Did I really sleep this much?"
Mure narrowed his eyes at San, looking at her sideways. "What nightmare?" he asked. San shook her head, deciding that she would rather not talk about such a bad dream. At this, Mure seemed more concerned than ever. "Sister, wolves almost never dream. And when we do, it's usually associated with the near future."
San's heart dropped once more. "Is it possible…that I had a human dream?" San did not dream much, but she did know that she dreamt a bit more than her brothers due to her human body.
"I do not know," Mure said sadly. "But it would be best to tell us what it was, so we could prepare for it. If it is a human dream, we have no need to worry. But if the dream comes from the forest, then we may be in grave danger."
San's thought immediately went to the woman's words at the end of her dream. She was a wolf reared by Moro; would the forest have gifted her with a warning? Was it trying to tell her something? Or was her dream simply a human nightmare? Was it a combination of the two, like she was the combination of a human's body and a wolf's soul?
Tiju rubbed his head against her while she pondered. "Come, sister, we must hunt before the human warrior comes to visit us. By then, you will be too busy with him to care about us."
San snapped back to reality. "Oh Tiju," she said playfully, trying to smile. "You know that's not true! I love you much more than I love any human, Tiju. I am a wolf, not a human." Deep inside, a part of her wondered if she had spoken the truth. She decided to push it aside for later.
Mure continued to glare at San. When San glared back with an equally fierce face, Mure quickly turned away and sighed. "You win," he said. "Still, we should go quickly. Ashitaka only visits once every two weeks, and our sister would not like to miss the opportunity of seeing him."
San's darkened face brightened up at the thought of meeting Ashitaka. "Right! Let's go!'
"Wake up, Ashitaka! Get your lazy head off of that pillow!" Toki shouted, barging into Ashitaka's room. Ashitaka groaned as Toki shook him violently. "We've got plenty of work to do!"
"Okay, Toki, just give me a moment," Ashitaka replied, getting up on his elbows. He could hear the loud din of the construction outside. Remembering that Iron Town was very near its completion, Ashitaka quickly jumped up from his bed and accepted the bowl of rice Toki offered him. "Thank you," he said, as Toki smiled and left. After dressing and eating quickly, Ashitaka burst out the door and surveyed the town with pride.
Iron Town looked magnificent—better than it had ever been. The countless iron-molding sites had been transformed into town squares, where various businesses sold goods. Outside, the desolate plains had been transformed into peaceful farms using the water from the lake. The town was surrounded by three thick walls, which was in turn surrounded by a moat created from the lake. Eboshi wanted to make sure that if people like Asano ever tried to attack again, they would face a peaceful yet powerful Iron Town.
A fume of smoke wafted up into the sky, making a single line of black smoke that spread all the way up to the clouds. Ashitaka had agreed with Eboshi that iron was necessary for defense and production, as it provided many advantages with the development of Iron Town. It had been hard to convince San to let Eboshi extract iron from the forest, but Ashitaka had promised her that the forest would stay safe. Eboshi would only use the iron when Iron Town desperately needed it.
"Ashitaka!" a voice suddenly cried, catching Ashitaka off guard and pulling him from his thoughts. A little girl, dressed in a flamboyant pink dress, ran over to him and hugged his knees as she tried to tackle him down. Laughing lightly, Ashitaka lowered himself and warmly hugged the girl.
"How did our little Sophie sleep last night?" He asked, lifting the girl up easily. Sophie yelped in glee, quickly clambering on to Ashitaka's neck.
"A horse does not ask so many questions!" She said, pointing forward with her fingers. "Get going, you lazy steed!"
"Yes, ma'am," Ashitaka said officiously, as he walked toward the bakery. Sophie's eyes widened as she realized where he was going.
"No! No! Turn around! A disaster is coming our wa—"
"Sophie! What do you think you're doing?" A young lady, dressed in a simple orange robe, said through the bakery window. She quickly locked the cashier and burst outside, hands on her hips.
"It's my sister! Run from that witch!" Sophie yelled, pulling on Ashitaka's hair. Wincing in pain, Ashitaka carefully lowered Sophie to the ground, tickling her to get her hands off from pulling his hair out.
"My apologies, Melanie," Ashitaka said, smiling. "I thought Sophie could have a little fun."
Melanie blushed as she shook her head violently. "No, no, I didn't mean that!" she exclaimed as she fidgeted with her clothes. Her face continued to get redder as she saw Ashitaka smiling at her.
"It's all right," he said, as Sophie, seeing that her sister's attention had been averted, ran away. "How did you sleep?"
Melanie continued to look at Ashitaka, twirling her hair. Ashitaka cleared his throat.
"Oh! I'm sorry! Did you say something?" She asked, her gaze returning to the floor. As Ashitaka opened his mouth to ask again, a voice cried out from the distance.
"Hey, Ashitaka! Stop flirting with Melanie and help us down here!" Toki cried. Ashitaka blushed. He hoped people didn't think he was flirting—he loved San too much to look at any other girl amorously.
Ashitaka quickly ran over to the site of construction. He was needed more than ever, since his demonic strength made him one of the best builders in town. Ashitaka had been surprised when he first found out that his strength had remained when the curse was healed. The Forest Spirit had blessed him. When he reached the workers, Toki welcomed him with a smile and a hammer.
By noon, Ashitaka had latched his sword beside him and had put on his travelling cloak. Calling Yakul with a simple whistle, he headed toward the gates slowly, taking care not to run over anything in construction. When he had neared the gate, he heard a voice calling his name.
"Ashitaka!" Melanie shouted. "Where are you going!" She was running towards him. Ashitaka stopped Yakul and waved his hand at her. "I'm going to see San!" He yelled back. "I'll be back to help later, okay?" He pushed Yakul forward and rode out of the gates as the guards pulled the drawbridge down the moat.
At his answer, Melanie stopped and leaned against a wall, panting heavily. She looked at Ashitaka with sadness and jealousy. "Stupid Ashitaka," she said quietly, as she watched him get further and further away. "Be back soon."
(A/N: As I said, there weren't much action in this chapter...but you get the gist of what has happened since the ending of the movie. Ashitaka visits San every two weeks, and Iron Town is nearing its completion as a better town-all seems perfect until San receives a nightmare that could be a warning. And who is this Melanie, who has apparently taken interest to Ashitaka? I know you want me to give the "happily ever after" soon but that won't be happening until the characters overcome some special challenges. Stay tuned to find out! Reviews are greatly appreciated!)