Secret of the Princess
Chapter 3
San's eyes narrowed as they prepared the dead deer for carrying back to her home. Ashitaka was cutting the meat up for carrying. Nearby, San's wolf brothers were sharing a portion of the meat between them. Soon, the deer carcass was ready to be carried. Ashitaka and San shouldered the pole and began the long trek home. Ashitaka filled her in on exactly what had happened at Iron Town.
"A samurai warlord named Asano besieged Iron Town just before the disaster happened. As the Great Forest Spirit searched for his head, Asano's men retreated and weren't heard from again, at least until now."
San shifted the pole from one shoulder to another.
"Why do you suppose he's come back now? Surely his defeat didn't sting that much did it?"
Ashitaka shrugged.
"Maybe it did, maybe it didn't. But we should be careful anyway. Oh, and one more thing. We'd best keep this out of Yakkuru's sight."
San smiled a bit.
"Not a bad idea."
It was late at night when finally they got home. Both San and Ashitaka were exhausted, and put the meat in a side-cave that was permanently cold. They then washed off the bloodstains from themselves and stumbled into the cave, totally exhausted. Ashitaka lay down on his bed, but before he could quite drift off, San lay down beside him, obviously wanting his company for the night. Ashitaka smiled and put an arm around her, falling asleep as he hugged his feral, forest princess to him. Outside, the two wolves finished their food and joined them.
The next morning, Ashitaka was the first to wake. It was already past sunrise, but it hadn't been day for long. He sighed as he looked at San. Today he would be going back to Iron Town. Although she would willingly go as far as the slope leading down to the town, she refused to go any further. Ashitaka stretched, and went to saddle Yakkuru. The two wolves were fast asleep, stirring only slightly as Ashitaka petted them. San began to move in her sleep, and when she discovered Ashitaka wasn't there, awoke instantly. She looked around, slightly panicky. She didn't want to miss his departure, and began to search for him. She saw him outside and gave a sad, resigned smile as he looked at her.
"Off already? You know I wanted to come with you."
Ashitaka paused as he arranged the saddlebags.
"You're coming with me to our usual spot?"
San nodded, feeling the backs of her eyes dampen. She knew she could always see him any time she wanted. If she went to a certain cliff over Iron Town and howled like a wolf four times, he'd get the message and come visit her the next day. But ever since he came into her life, she got lonesome without him. At first, it was just a nagging irritant that she could get rid of easily, but these days, it was like there was a small hole in her that no amount of food or anything could fill. Only Ashitaka could sate that pain in her heart. She ran up to him suddenly and hugged him.
"You take care in that town now won't you Ashitaka?"
Ashitaka was taken by surprise, but returned her embrace anyway.
"Of course I will San. I'll be back when you see the crescent moon. I'll bring you some things as well, maybe a few eggs. I took some of that samurai equipment, and I'm going to sell it. Now smile for me San."
San smiled at him and walked with him to their meeting spot. A circlet of green saplings marked where they waited for one another. Ashitaka rubbed her hair as he prepared to leave.
"Until next time, my princess."
San sighed as he rode down to the human town. Already she missed him. She tried to put her emotions behind her, and decided to go eat something. Their hunting foray had proven quite useful in terms of food. She'd still be eating venison in a week's time. Her brother's tended to go through anything quite fast, even though they hunted for themselves. On the way back, she failed to notice the footprints that had been left in the dirt. Suddenly, several things happened all at once. A cry went up, and San saw her brothers give chase to a batch of humans. As she ran forward, she tripped over a carefully laid rope and was snared in a net. Her steel dagger went flying out of her grip, and she was hoisted up into the trees. She writhed to get loose, but to no avail. After a few minutes, she was lowered down. The last thing she saw was a man walk up to her, and then darkness exploded inside her skull.
Ashitaka returned to Iron Town to find another battle was being waged between the samurai and the villagers. Although they had no rifles, the samurai were lasting well. Ashitaka encouraged Yakkuru to stampede through the samurai and gain access to the fortress. Within minutes he was inside the town, and joined a friend of his, Koroku, in sniping at the attackers. It wasn't too long before the samurai attack group had lost a third of its strength. Iron Town's superior weaponry was clearly paying off. A second group of snipers came up to relieve the first, and Ashitaka finally got to return to his home. He set Yakkuru loose in the paddock built especially for him, and sat down in his bedroom. All he could think about was San. Had he been wrong to leave her? He soon shrugged that thought off. San had been living without human companionship for years, and she wasn't the type to cry simply because Ashitaka wouldn't be there for a week or two. In the end he simply fell asleep on his bed.
Chapter 3
San's eyes narrowed as they prepared the dead deer for carrying back to her home. Ashitaka was cutting the meat up for carrying. Nearby, San's wolf brothers were sharing a portion of the meat between them. Soon, the deer carcass was ready to be carried. Ashitaka and San shouldered the pole and began the long trek home. Ashitaka filled her in on exactly what had happened at Iron Town.
"A samurai warlord named Asano besieged Iron Town just before the disaster happened. As the Great Forest Spirit searched for his head, Asano's men retreated and weren't heard from again, at least until now."
San shifted the pole from one shoulder to another.
"Why do you suppose he's come back now? Surely his defeat didn't sting that much did it?"
Ashitaka shrugged.
"Maybe it did, maybe it didn't. But we should be careful anyway. Oh, and one more thing. We'd best keep this out of Yakkuru's sight."
San smiled a bit.
"Not a bad idea."
It was late at night when finally they got home. Both San and Ashitaka were exhausted, and put the meat in a side-cave that was permanently cold. They then washed off the bloodstains from themselves and stumbled into the cave, totally exhausted. Ashitaka lay down on his bed, but before he could quite drift off, San lay down beside him, obviously wanting his company for the night. Ashitaka smiled and put an arm around her, falling asleep as he hugged his feral, forest princess to him. Outside, the two wolves finished their food and joined them.
The next morning, Ashitaka was the first to wake. It was already past sunrise, but it hadn't been day for long. He sighed as he looked at San. Today he would be going back to Iron Town. Although she would willingly go as far as the slope leading down to the town, she refused to go any further. Ashitaka stretched, and went to saddle Yakkuru. The two wolves were fast asleep, stirring only slightly as Ashitaka petted them. San began to move in her sleep, and when she discovered Ashitaka wasn't there, awoke instantly. She looked around, slightly panicky. She didn't want to miss his departure, and began to search for him. She saw him outside and gave a sad, resigned smile as he looked at her.
"Off already? You know I wanted to come with you."
Ashitaka paused as he arranged the saddlebags.
"You're coming with me to our usual spot?"
San nodded, feeling the backs of her eyes dampen. She knew she could always see him any time she wanted. If she went to a certain cliff over Iron Town and howled like a wolf four times, he'd get the message and come visit her the next day. But ever since he came into her life, she got lonesome without him. At first, it was just a nagging irritant that she could get rid of easily, but these days, it was like there was a small hole in her that no amount of food or anything could fill. Only Ashitaka could sate that pain in her heart. She ran up to him suddenly and hugged him.
"You take care in that town now won't you Ashitaka?"
Ashitaka was taken by surprise, but returned her embrace anyway.
"Of course I will San. I'll be back when you see the crescent moon. I'll bring you some things as well, maybe a few eggs. I took some of that samurai equipment, and I'm going to sell it. Now smile for me San."
San smiled at him and walked with him to their meeting spot. A circlet of green saplings marked where they waited for one another. Ashitaka rubbed her hair as he prepared to leave.
"Until next time, my princess."
San sighed as he rode down to the human town. Already she missed him. She tried to put her emotions behind her, and decided to go eat something. Their hunting foray had proven quite useful in terms of food. She'd still be eating venison in a week's time. Her brother's tended to go through anything quite fast, even though they hunted for themselves. On the way back, she failed to notice the footprints that had been left in the dirt. Suddenly, several things happened all at once. A cry went up, and San saw her brothers give chase to a batch of humans. As she ran forward, she tripped over a carefully laid rope and was snared in a net. Her steel dagger went flying out of her grip, and she was hoisted up into the trees. She writhed to get loose, but to no avail. After a few minutes, she was lowered down. The last thing she saw was a man walk up to her, and then darkness exploded inside her skull.
Ashitaka returned to Iron Town to find another battle was being waged between the samurai and the villagers. Although they had no rifles, the samurai were lasting well. Ashitaka encouraged Yakkuru to stampede through the samurai and gain access to the fortress. Within minutes he was inside the town, and joined a friend of his, Koroku, in sniping at the attackers. It wasn't too long before the samurai attack group had lost a third of its strength. Iron Town's superior weaponry was clearly paying off. A second group of snipers came up to relieve the first, and Ashitaka finally got to return to his home. He set Yakkuru loose in the paddock built especially for him, and sat down in his bedroom. All he could think about was San. Had he been wrong to leave her? He soon shrugged that thought off. San had been living without human companionship for years, and she wasn't the type to cry simply because Ashitaka wouldn't be there for a week or two. In the end he simply fell asleep on his bed.