I may change the title sometime later if I can think of something that's better. The current one was pretty much a "in-the-works" title that I never really intended on using.

Hidden by the shadows of hundreds of trees, Ashitaka crept through the forest as he scanned the area for any signs of game: tracks, broken twigs, patches of fur, and anything else that would point him to an animal. His bow had been restrung just before he and San left to go hunting. She was above, maneuvering through the trees branch by branch. Like an acrobat, she leapt, spun, and twirled past the sticks and twigs that scratched her skin. Ashitaka was carrying her spear below, as she needed both of her hands to be free to jump through the trees. If she needed it, she would signal for him to toss it up to her.

This was the first time San had gone hunting without her brothers. Because of their supernatural senses, they were often able to smell their prey several miles ahead, easily spot small animals which were hiding, and hear the most bare hint of movement on the forest floor. San's senses far exceeded those of any human, but they were still nowhere as keen as her brothers'. It made the hunt more difficult, but that did not bother her very much. She was sure that her brothers would be back by the time she and Ashitaka had found a single animal. The two brothers were currently on the other side of the forest. Ashitaka and San were close to a river while her brothers were in a more barren part of the mountain. While there was more wildlife where Ashitaka and San were hunting in, the two brothers were in an area which contained animals that couldn't be found in the forest.

"Can you see anything from up there?" Ashitaka called to San.

"Nothing," San replied, "Perhaps we should move closer to the river."

Ashitaka nodded at the suggestion and headed east. The river was fast moving, only ever ceasing to flow when the winter caused it to freeze. It was teeming with fish that occasionally sprang up from the water. Ashitaka once fired an arrow at one of these fishes while he was patrolling the forest, though he had missed his shot. Tall reeds grew next to dark willow trees, whose roots gathered water from the flowing river. Ashitaka remembered this river particularly because it was the same one where he had first laid his eyes upon San.

"I can't find anything up here," San said as she dropped down to Ashitaka's side, "The animals must still be in hibernation."

"Do they ever awaken during the winter?" Ashitaka asked, "How are they able to sleep for so long?"

"They wake on occasion, but I have no idea how they are able to sleep without food or water. Perhaps they store food in their dens."

A brief rustling across the river silenced both Ashitaka and San. Ashitaka notched an arrow while San lifted her spear to throw it. From behind the trees and bushes, a large deer with bronze colored skin wandered towards the river. Ashitaka was quick to let his arrow fly, striking the beast in the side. San chucked her spear for good measure, hitting it in the neck. The beast collapsed without a single grunt, splashing mud on its coat as it hit the ground.

To cross the torrent of the stream, Ashitaka and San jumped from rock to rock, their arms outstretched to the side to maintain balance. When they reached the carcass of the deer, they realized that they had not yet planned out something important: how they were going to get this five hundred pound beast across the river. Dragging it wouldn't work, and they both knew that neither was strong enough to be able to carry it and jump. Simply lifting it off the ground was nearly impossible. San removed her spear from the animal as she and Ashitaka began to think of ideas.

"We can't just let this go to waste," Ashitaka said as he glanced at the river, hopeful for inspiration, "Perhaps there's a way we can get it to float across."

San nodded, recalling when several oxes' corpses floated through the river after her mother assaulted the humans bringing rice to their home. The rocks the two had been hopping on were too far spaced to walk across, but the distance between them was easy to clear with a good jump. Without warning, she jumped onto the closest rock, then the next. The rock was no more than four feet wide, slippery with rough edges and a slightly flat top. "Perhaps if you bring the deer to the rivers edge and pull it into the water, I can use my spear to grab its antlers and pull it here. After that, you can jump to that rock over there-" San pointed at the next rock leading to the other side of the river, "-and I'll push it to you."

"Then you'll jump to the rock past that one and we repeat the process?" Ashitaka asked as he began to catch on to her plan.

"Right!"

Ashitaka nodded and dragged the deer towards the bank of the river. He positioned it so that when he was on top of the rock, the carcass would be behind him and flow towards where he was standing. He slung the body into the water and quickly hopped onto the rock closest to him. The amount of water on the rock made it slippery, making it hard for Ashitaka to keep his balance. Despite this, he managed to remain standing and grabbed the deer's antlers. He guided the body towards San, who used her spear to hook the antlers and pull the carcass closer.

One part of this plan that the two had not developed was how Ashitaka was supposed to get to the rock past San. Ashitaka voiced this concern to her, to which San cursed under her breath. Although there was enough room for Ashitaka to jump on to the rock she was standing on, it would be difficult to maintain his balance and he ran the risk of knocking them both into the river. The current was too strong for him to swim; the snow melting in the lower parts of the mountain had caused this. In the end, Ashitaka took a deep breath and jumped.

As slick as the rock was, it was rough enough for Ashitaka to get a proper grip and keep himself from falling into the water. San moved towards the edge of the rock to give Ashitaka some room to make his jump to the next. He cleared the gap with relative ease. San let out a breath of relief and passed over her spear. Ashitaka grabbed the wooden shaft and pulled it towards him, dragging the deer carcass along.

The two repeated this process until San was on dry land and handed back her spear. Ashitaka joined her side and the two pulled the deer out of the river. Knowing well that they couldn't carry the whole body back to the den, San and Ashitaka used their respective blades to cut the meat, storing it in the saddle bags carried by Yakul. Ashitaka also kept the deer's pelt, intending to fashion a cape or similar article of clothing to help keep warm in the winter. If San's suspicions were to be correct and the snow would return tomorrow, he did not want to be clothed in his normal attire.

"I was beginning to think we wouldn't find anything," Ashitaka said as he tied one of the saddlebags closed, "This was definitely worth our time."

"We probably could have found something more quickly if you would have masked your scent," San scolded, referring to how Ashitaka refused to rub his skin with mud or blood, seeing as to how there were no leaves available, "I know you aren't used to this sort of life, but it is far different from how humans live."

Ashitaka nodded, knowing that San was right. Life in Irontown was not easy, but it was sure to be much harder in the forest. In the forest, there was no house to protect him from the elements; the closest thing would be the den. Food wasn't available in a store five minutes away; he and San would have to hunt and find it on their own. Then there was the possibility of being attacked by a wild animal. San's brothers were the closest thing to a wild predator Ashitaka had encountered in the forest. Still, he had heard of other beasts which roamed in other parts of the nation: tigers, leopards, and bears were only a few. There were also other creatures he had heard of but never believed existed, such as dragons and various sea monsters.

"We should light the fire outside the cave," San suggested as they were walking back to the den, "If we make it inside, we're going to be coughing and shielding our eyes from the smoke."

"That shouldn't be a problem," Ashitaka said.

The two continued on in relative silence. Normally, the forest would be filled with the sounds of birds chirping, animals scampering through bushes, and the occasional rattle of the kodama. All of these sounds vanished in the winter. Ashitaka thought it was strange for the first few days he patrolled the forest in the snow. He had asked San about it one night and she explained why it was so quiet and why there were so few animals.

San had expected her brothers to have returned by the time she and Ashitaka had reached the den. They were always quick to take down their prey. It came as a surprise to her when she and Ashitaka came back to find that the cave was empty and neither of her brothers were around.

"They must not be having much luck," Ashitaka said, "Do the animals living on that side of the mountain sleep for the winter?"

"I think they do, but I'm not entirely sure," San replied, "They'll be back soon."

The two used whatever dry wood they could to make a fire. Surrounded by a ring of stones, the flames grew slowly yet steadily. As the two prepared to cook the venison, Ashitaka asked San what her brothers thought of him.

"They trust you, which is incredible," She replied, "I don't think they've ever trusted another human before."

"What did they say when you asked if I could live with you?" Ashitaka asked, "You said that it took you a while to convince them."

"It wasn't because they were angry at you, but humans in general. They were put on ships and had to suffer to escape the cages which held them. Then they spent several weeks trying to get home, attacked by those who mistook them for wild beasts. During all of this, they were worried that the humans had done something to me."

"Were they angry that I didn't tell them where you were?"

"Oh, when they came back? I think they were until I explained everything that had happened while they were gone. They had as many questions as I did when we finally got home. When they asked why I was in your house with an injured leg, I told them about how you and some of the other humans helped me. On the day that I asked if you could live with us, they were hesitant. They were finally convinced after I told them more about how you helped." After a brief pause, San added, "I can't say if they like you or not. I assume they do, though."

Okami and Urufu returned to the den with a serow in each of their mouths. The blood of the mountain goats dripped on to the ground as the brothers sat close to the fire that Ashitaka and San had prepared.

"I was wondering when you two would be back," San remarked, "I though you would have been here sooner."

"Yes, well, we had some difficulty finding any prey higher up in the mountain," Okami replied, "Fortunately, these two goats had recently marked their territory."

Urufu dropped the bleeding goat and began to rip its flesh from its bones, swallowing the meat without much chewing. "These two were wandering together when we found them," He said, "It took us no effort to catch them."

The four continued to eat the meat of their respective kills while Yakul lay asleep close by. As they were eating, Ashitaka spotted a lone kodama spying on them from a high branch. Ashitaka smiled up at the spirit, causing it to rattle its head.

"I haven't seen one of those guys in a while," Ashitaka said, "Do they disappear during the winter?"
"Most of them do," San answered, "Since they're tree spirits, their numbers drop when the trees wither during the winter season. When spring arrives, you'll be seeing hundreds of them."

After the four had finished eating, San asked her brothers if there was anything they would like to do. To her surprise, the two said that they were feeling tired.

"But you two woke up only a few hours ago," San said, "How are you already tired?"

"I guess we're just having an off-day," Urufu replied, "Forgive me, San, but we can play or do something else tomorrow."

"I agree," Okami said, "I can't explain it, but I'm not feeling very lively today."

"That's probably because you tried to headbutt your way out of those cages we were in."

"It worked and you know it."