I don't own Princess Mononoke or any of the characters. I only own this story and the characters not in the movie.

Ashitaka road on the back of his red elk, Yakul. The six year old Emishi prince was pretending to patrol his lands and search for invaders.

The queen of the Emishi and her three year old daughter, Kaya, spotted Ashitaka riding on the hill. The queen called her son to come down and join them on their walk. Ashitaka road down the hill and joined his mother and sister on their walk.

"So what were you doing on the hill Ashitaka?" asked the queen.

Ashitaka looked at his mother with a big grin on his face.

"I was pretending to patrol the village in case of anyone attacked." answered Ashitaka.

A look of horror and shock flashed over the Emishi queen's face. If her son was pretending to fight off intruders that didn't exist, then how long it would it have been until he fought for real? The thought made the queen nervous.

Ashitaka picked up on his mother's sudden show of worry. The Emishi prince looked at his mother.

"Is something wrong mommy? You seam sad? Did something happen to daddy or Kaya? Is the village in danger? Are we going to have to fight against the Emperor?" wondered Ashitaka.

The Emishi queen put on a fake smile and looked at her son.

"Nothing is wrong Ashitaka. I was just thinking. Sorry if I worried you sweetie." said the queen.

"Alright mommy. If you say so. Want to see how fast Yakul and I can run?" asked Ashitaka.

The queen nodded her head. Ashitaka smiled and gripped the rains a little tighter. He gentle kicked Yakul in the ribs and the red elk began to run.

"Come on Yakul. Let's see how fast we can go." whispered Ashitaka.

Yakul ran as fast as he could go in the village. The Emishi queen watched as her son happily laughed as he rode his red elk.

"He doesn't even know he will be cursed. How can one so innocent bear the weight of such a hard destiny? It is just not fair. Ashitaka why did you have to be born to such a horrid destiny?" thought the queen.

The queen had to hold back tears as her son came into view. No matter what happened in his future, Ashitaka would always have the love and support of his family.

Comment if you like the story.