'You're odd, you know? I like you anyway… But, damn, you're weird.'


"Hurry up!" Toki yelled. Her voice traveled through the misty air, and reached him only after a moment of delay, probably sounding much softer than it was originally intended.

Ashitaka wiped his forehead. "Coming! Give me a moment!"

Toki's face appeared behind a mossy rock. Rather half of her face. "You know, you may be gorgeous, but you're still pretty slow without your – whadoyacallit? – curse of… what did you say yesterday? Fear and hatred? Or was that hatred and pain?"

Ashitaka sighed. Toki just wasn't one for poetic language…

"Oh c'mon, I'm only joking… Stop moping around like a half-dead chicken!" She stood up, revealing herself fully. "Are you a man or a crying baby?"

Ashitaka grinned. He didn't really take offense to Toki's…comments. "A more proper question would be 'are you a woman or a baby?'"

"I'd say you're both!"

"Then I'd say you're neither."

Toki harrumphed, effectively putting her fists on her hips, and rolling her eyes. "Did you find much?" She asked.

"Nah…" He gestured at a pile of wood. "Not much at all."

"Gimme that."

He passed the wood to her. "Did you?"

"Uh-uh." She swiveled her head in the direction of her pile, tied up in a makeshift net of head wraps, and other oddities. "There's hardly anything left that could still be used for firewood…" She picked out a mossy twig. "See? Even dead stuff's green. I don't know what that oaf's thinking."

"Call him Gonza."

"Why? He's just as much Gonza as he's an oaf."

"It isn't very…becoming." He noticed a snigger escape from her mouth. "Neither is it funny."

She tilted her head to look at him. "You're odd, you know? I like you anyway… But, damn, you're weird."

Ashitaka decided that restraining himself from comment would be the best option at the moment.

"Well, anyways, Gonza doesn't know much about firewood, or else he'd realize that green wood doesn't burn." Toki said, swiping her hand at a buzzing fly.

"It's better than nothing. We're through with this area. Let's give this, and then come back, alright?" Ashitaka asked.

She nodded in response. "That's fine by me. Not like we've got anything else to do."

They walked side by side, neither saying a word. Ashitaka felt the softness of the atmosphere around him –it seemed to settle down on his shoulders. The forest floor was a patchwork of spots of sun, shadows, and leaves. He trained his eyes on it, and soon lost himself in the vivid pattern of green and brown, light and dark.

"You know, it's sort of nice here, with this forest." Toki said, readjusting the 'bag' on her shoulder.

Ashitaka smiled. Oh, how precious little she had seen of the forest. What they were walking through right now was hardly the beginning…

She noticed his grin. "No, really! It doesn't match for the town life –doesn't give us a roof over our heads. But it's so...mystical. I almost wish we could live in both."

Ashitaka climbed over a root. "Here," He said, offering her a hand.

Toki rolled her eyes again. "Thank you very much, my lord." She snickered. "You gotta give Kohroku lessons." She stepped over the root. "But when it rains, we still get wet, and when it's cold, we still shiver. I'd choose living in a house any day. If I could, I mean. But –just imagine!– the wolf girl–"

"San." He interrupted.

"Huh?"

"San, her name. Her name is San."

She gave him quizzical look. "San…" She harrumphed once more. "It's such a simple name! I would've thought the gods would be more creative when it came to naming the Mononoke Hime… I once knew a girl named San… But, to think, she's actually lived her entire life in the forest! She's never –not once!– been in a house, or –hey! KOHROKU!"

They had reached a small clearing: this was where the villagers had made a sort of camp. Kohroku, who was there, kneeling down beside a stack of wood, looked up at his wife's voice. "Oh! Toki, Ashitaka…hello…"

Toki wasted no time in formalities. "What are you doing?!" Within seconds, she was already by her husband, a thunderous expression on her face.

"Ah!" Kohroku jerked to the side in order to evade his wife, and the motion knocked down the sticks he had so carefully been setting up.

"Well?"

"I'm building a bonfire! …Well, was…"

"Ugh, you dope!"

"Hey, YOU pushed me!"

Toki lowered her head to look at the tumble of wood below at her feet. "Argh, you were doing it all wrong!"

Kohroku got up, rubbing his backside. "How can you tell? It's all knocked over!"

"I saw you building it!"

"Then why did you ask me what I was doing?"

Toki ignored his question, deeming it pointless, and not at all favorable to answer, an instead asked another. "What did you put on top? The kindling?"

Ashitaka could see Kohroku hesitate, trying to guess the right answer, before he said, somewhat meekly, "Yes…"

"And you're supposed to have survival skills! You put on the bottom, you pot-bellied ass!"

Kohroku looked down at his left foot, and Ashitaka could see his lips move in a silent swear. Finally, he sighed. "Yes, my little flower."

"Oh, there he goes again with all of his flowers and rainbows and hearts!"

"What's so bad about flowers?" Ashitaka asked, nearing the two.

"They're…they're so feminine! And he," Toki pointed at Kohroku, 'is a MAN! Although he does not see to realize the fact!"

"But he isn't the flower –you are."

"Keep your puny nose outta my affairs, Ashitaka!"

Kohroku grinned at Ashitaka apologetically. "He was just trying to help a friend, my flower. Not everyone is as accustomed to you as I am."

Toki wheeled on him "You–!"

" –Loving husband?" Kohroku said, in an all too-hopeful tone.

" –Imbecile!"

"Ashitaka!"

Ashitaka turned at the sound of a new voice. Hurrying toward him was…Hatano, if he recalled correctly, a woman from the bellows whom he recognized by her green tunic.

"You called?" Ha asked, stepping away from the still quarreling Toki and Kohroku. "What is it?"

"My Lady…She has requested to see you…"

Ashitaka had heard word of how Eboshi had called for him, but he kept away, for she was surrounded by a collection of women who wouldn't let a man come near. The swarmed around her in various numbers: bees protecting their Queen Bee.

Yet now it seemed as if the queen had taken charge again, and her word was once more to be followed. Well, so be it, he thought. He had no fear before her: he only hoped that she had seen the error of her ways. Toki had recounted their side of the story with great detail; she had vigorously proclaimed that the Lady Eboshi had asked for him with an expression of shame…that she had spoken of redemption, and of peace with the forest.

That sounded disconcertingly promising. He was almost afraid it was too easy…too good to be true.

Almost.

He'd see now. He would just have to be on guard.

"Right now?" Ashitaka asked, letting the wood slide out of his arms.

"Yes –she said that she'd see you within the hour." Hatano replied, still breathless from the run. Her eyes darted to the side, keeping off of his face. She seemed almost…afraid. He gave a sigh at the thought. But that was only to be expected: his cursed arm was not yet forgotten, and it caused many of the people to eye him warily. "If –Iƒ that's alright with you, of course."

Ashitaka smiled at her. Perhaps he could show her: there really was nothing to fear. "Of course I'll come –right now. Just show me the way, alright?"

Hatano nodded, her eyes passing over him for a brief second. She turned, quickly, and set off with a brisk pace that he would have mistaken for cheery, had he seen it from afar. Calling a brief 'bye' to Toki over his shoulder, he followed her with a broad stride.

"So…" Ashitaka paused. Of what could he talk? He wanted to prove himself as a friend –not an enemy, at the very least. He remembered a time, long ago, when he had found a young stray calf wandering around the Emishi fields. The calf had been hesitant to trust him; it had brayed and neighed, and run through the crops. But as soon as he, then just a boy, had started to call for it, gently, instead of shouting, the calf had slowed. His voice had calmed it, and it was soon added to the growing number of cattle raised in their village. Perhaps the same would work with this girl, Ashitaka thought. Quickly deciding, he asked, "You –you used to work the bellows?"

"Yes."

"You're named Hatano, right?"

"Yes."

"It's a beautiful name. I've never met anyone called 'Hatano' before."

She looked up at him. "Really?"

"Never in my life."

She turned her head back to stare straight ahead. "It isn't at all rare."

"Then I must be ignorant." Ashitaka said, turning after her. "What does it mean?"

She shrugged. "I don't know… But it was ever so common in my hometown! It's a wonder you've never heard of it," Her eyes were now trained on his face. They were the most gentle, warm shade of brown, he noticed. Like liquid wood. "You must be from faraway lands." Hatano continued. "Where are you from?"

Ashitaka sucked in a mouthful of air. "I –I'm…actually..." His brain spun furiously, trying to find an excuse. "…Actually," He paused. "I'm from, er, another island."

Hatano stopped, staring at him with wide eyes. "You're what?"

The vague form of an idea came to his mind. "I'm not even from this country. Or from this continent."

"You're not from Japan? But…but–"

"I used to live on the sun before I came here. But it was too hot, so I decided I'd try to move."

She stared at him for a few seconds, lips moving silently, before bursting into high-pitched laughter. Relieved, Ashitaka joined her, glancing behind them to see who was there to witness the odd spectacle.

"You're funny, you know?" Hatano said, breathlessly, before collapsing into another fit of giggles. "The sun! Ah…I'm holding you up aren't I? Go, go! It's just to the right, not far away… Oh, from the sun!"

Ashitaka left her there, laughing without breath, and, as she had told him, turning right, came to a couple of closely grown trees. He could hear the buzz of female voices coming from behind the branches.

He bent down, and stepped inside the small, green canopy. The effect was immediate.

"It's Ashitaka!"

"Move aside, Kiyoko!"

"Ow! That's my foot, damn it!"

"Oh, but just look at him…"

"Isn't he– Hey!"

"Where's his shirt?"

"Don't know about you, but I hope he's lost it for good!"

Ashitaka took a calming breath. "Hello girls," He began, but only to be cut off by a shrill cry:

"M'lady! Ashitaka has come!"

Instantly, the women parted. Bustling right and left, they scurried to the side, making way for him, as if he was the Emperor himself. As they dispersed, his eyes caught Eboshi, nearby in the shade, conversing with two women, one of whom he recognized. She glanced up, and quickly beckoned her Lady's gaze to him. Eboshi turned her head and–

"Ah. Ashitaka."

Her voice was quiet, yet it cut through the noise as sharply as a steel knife. All other sounds stopped, and the air stilled, as everyone held their breath. "Konnichiwa."

Ashitaka caught a brief gulp of air, and answered, perhaps too quickly, "Konnichiwa."

Eboshi raised her single hand, and, with a flick of her wrist, dismissed their riotous company. Within a few moments, the small clearing was empty, apart for him, Eboshi, and the woman at her right side.

Forcing himself not to hurry, he came forward with slow, hopefully dignified steps. Standing before Eboshi, he tilted his head slightly, and then straightened.

He hadn't prepared himself for a confrontation as such, so he knew not what to expect.

He was met with a small, but earnest smile.

Somehow, even though he hadn't anticipated anything, the expression surprised him.

Her face –an unpainted plate of porcelain– was pulled into a determined stance, but the upturned lips supported it, rather than making it passive.

Still, something about her made her look perceptibly tired, worn out…ah, the whiteness of it all perhaps. The effect of the pale skin was immensely different than he remembered. In the town's flickering torchlights it had given a stunning impression: burning white against the shadows. Now, surrounded by peaceful green, it seemed oddly discolored. Blanched.

She trained her eyes on him, steadily taking in his own face, as he observed hers. For a brief second, everything was utterly motionless, before the moment was broken by a gust of wind.

Her arm lifted again as if to smooth away a few black hairs, but she paused, and let it drop back to her side. "Your curse… it's gone." Not a question, but a simple, solid statement. With a slightly repressed tone, she continued, "Toki told me, but I wanted to see for my own. Come here, Ashitaka. Please."

Ashitaka stepped closer. He felt dark eyes rake over his body as if they were backscratchers. The penetrating look, sharp and shrewd, scrutinized every detail, and all of a sudden, the fact that he had no shirt on made his face grow hot. At last, Eboshi leaned back, seemingly satisfied with her examination. "How?" She asked, a note of wonder in her voice. "I've heard so many times that I no longer know which versions are adequate. Do forgive me for prying, but I would like to hear once more. There is no teller so precise as the hero, after all."

The hero. He had never thought of it that way.

Himself as a hero, the life in which he lived –a mere child's tale. A story.

No, that couldn't be it. The words felt wrong on his tongue. It seemed to him mocking –as if Eboshi was laughing at his pains and calling them petty fairytales, while she herself was the one who caused each and every one of them.

But he no longer blamed her –he had promised himself that he wouldn't.

He forced himself to breathe in a calming mouthful of air –soothingly clean and sweet– and stepped away from her probing gaze, back into the safety of the forest green. "How my curse was lifted?"

She nodded.

"After we returned the head," He glanced at her unmoving stature to see if there was any response. There was none. "After we returned it, both San, and I…well, I don't know about San, but to me it seemed as if we…" He paused, remembering. The feeling had been indescribable, but was already lost in thin memories. He remembered a stunning golden light…and a strong pull… how his hand had slipped around San's waist and –

"Yes?" Eboshi's voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "And?"

"A-and… And when I woke up, in the grass, the curse was gone. The Forest Spirit healed it."

One eyebrow rose ever so slightly. "Ah, so it is like I heard. Yes, he healed the townspeople as well… Even my lepers were cured."

Ashitaka couldn't stop his eyes from wandering to her right shoulder, still wrapped in his familiar blue shirt.

Clearly, not everyone was forgiven.

Eboshi caught the direction of his gaze. "Moro's mark remains."

"I– "

"Don't waste your breath, Ashitaka. It's far too precious." Eboshi glanced down onto her right side, almost fondly. "This is my punishment."

She stared at it for a few moments. "I've been a fool, Ashitaka. My own words caught me– I've lost the game I thought myself so adept at playing."

His mind searched furiously for a suitable reply, but he found none.

"You saved my life." She continued, closing her eyes, and leaning against the dead tree. "I've long since stopped trying to find sense behind your actions and–" She stopped abruptly, and gave a weary sigh. Her eyes fastened onto his face again. "Thank you."

Ashitaka didn't answer with words –no, words were too blunt, too heavy to make a response. But he gave into that small fleeting feeling of hope that was beating against his chest, begging to rise. He let his lips tug into a smile –not a wide one – and let himself believe, for now at least, that the truth wasn't too good to be true.

Maybe, just maybe, this would really work.


He didn't know, after the following hour, if his hope should be elevated, or utterly crushed.

Torn between those two decisions, he felt completely numb.

Eboshi had presented all of their various problems with exact accuracy, frankness, and brutality, sparing him none of the details, nor smoothing down any sharp edges.

Well, that just went to show that she regarded him seriously. Or so he hoped.

First he had extracted a promise from her: first he secured her willfulness to sign a peace treaty with the forest. She had given in readily. He still heard it ringing in his ears: "I will make amends Ashitaka, I promise you. The forest –I'll leave it be. Gods know, I've trifled with the wrong thing. Tell your wolf princess that she and her Gods have backed me up against the wall. Tell her I'm frightened of her, no doubt that will please her. I wouldn't step into her precious forest if she herself would beg me to. It's a force greater than my own… I'll accept that."

The bellows, sleeping under a layer of green would stay dormant, and the smoke wouldn't cloud the air any more. The trees would have their right to grow, and to live: no longer would they be used as fuel for the fires, burning in the heart of the forge.

That was one problem solved. But, as Ashitaka noticed, one solution created ten more problems, whose solutions in turn begged for ten others. This was no exception.

The number of inconveniences was startling, to say the least. Their present situation, on it's own, was a complete mess: There was no money to found rebuilding, no supplies for trading: nothing. Their best hope was to rely on alliances, though they had no way to contact them: Eboshi had rejected the idea of sending one of the townspeople while in this state. The shortest trip was one that took at least three days, and to survive that without sufficient traveling supplies would be only by dumb luck: a source that she refused to depend on. "I've killed a God only but four days ago!" She had proclaimed, laughing. "Asking for luck from the Gods –it would offending, and outrageous!"

What should they do, should Asano come back with his samurai troops? Surrender. "There is no other option, Ashitaka." At his scowl she had smiled slightly, though the smile was cold, and grim. "I don't like it any more than you do, but there is no other choice." She was right, he thought, sighing. They had no army, no weaponry: their supply of bullets was exhausted.

Bullets –yet another problem. The argument about bullets had been profound and considerably lengthy, but in the end Ashitaka was forced to admit that guns were too useful to be rid of. They wouldn't stand a chance against samurai warlords without the power of bullets. He would have to keep a wary eye: they still would remain as defense, not in any means to be used against others in an attack. At least not when the forest was in question.

But how to attain them?

With no iron works, with no iron, bullets were a faraway fantasy: unreachable. Impossible.

To Ashitaka, at that brief moment, everything had seemed impossible. Judging by Eboshi's slumped posture, she too, had lost her mind in the endless whirlwind of difficulties and their unmatched solutions.

"We'll find a way." He had told her, catching her tired gaze.

He hadn't stayed for long: only long enough to assess the situation, and offer that one makeshift solution. The medic at Eboshi's side had shooed him away after less than an hour, claiming her precious Lady needed rest. Bowing, he had left the two of them alone, his own mind whirring with the possibilities.

It was hard. Devastatingly hard, but he was willing to go through and through with it. He knew it wasn't hopeless: promise shined through the difficulty of the situation. They would win against the odds; he knew they would.

They would find a way. Somehow.