1st Author's Note: My sister suggested that I write one of these stories as though San is telling it to someone (probably Ashitaka). If you would like me to do this, just say so in a review. Also, do all Miyazaki fans know about the new movie Tales from Earthsea? It's directed by Hayao Miyazaki's son Goro Miyazaki, and from the commercials I've seen, it looks really good. I'm planning to go see it and recommend that all other fans do the same.
For a moment she thought her demand would go unanswered. Then, slowly, a creature emerged. Beady eyes peered at her from a narrow, gray-and-black face. Coarse, slate-colored fur bristled warily. The animal's striped tail swished slowly back and forth.
"Toruko," San said, relaxing slightly. Toruko reared briefly onto his hind legs, examining her. He dropped back onto all fours, his head roughly level with her waist.
"Greetings, daughter of Moro," he said, his voice a raspy purr. "Forgive me for being nosy, but I must ask: what are you doing with that human? Surely you do not intend to abandon the forest and your family for a human life?"
"Of course not," she snapped.
"Then you will not object to my taking care of the human?" he asked, edging closer. "I could use some fresh meat." San stepped in front of the woman.
"She's mine. You'll have to hunt somewhere else."
"You seemed in no hurry to kill it," Toruko remarked slyly. "May I ask what you intend to do with it?" How could she answer without appearing a traitor?
"That's wolf business," she said shortly.
"Is it? I believe that a human in the forest, even a wounded one, is the business of every animal."
"I'm taking her out of the forest," San retorted.
"But you are not killing it," countered Toruko. "Why not? They have killed countless wolves."
"The Nightwalker told me not to kill her." Toruko gave a chittering, yipping laugh.
"Wolf girl?" said the human in a frightened whisper. "What's going on?"
"The Nightwalker told you not to kill a human?" Toruko chuckled. "You will need a better story than that, San." He strode forward confidently. San stood her ground.
"A tanuki may not defy on order from a wolf," she reminded him. "We are older, stronger gods."
"That would be true," he agreed. "If you were a wolf. To me, it looks as though Moro has finally been proven wrong about her human daughter. It looks as though you have chosen to flee to the human town." Rage flared into life within San, so suddenly and powerfully she could taste it- a harsh, metallic flavor, like blood.
"You have insulted my mother and the honor of the wolf tribe," she said. Her voice was strangely calm, like a thin layer of rock covering a river of molten lava.
"I challenge you to a fight, Toruko. If you win, you may kill the human. If I win, you take back what you said about me and my family and allow us to go to the human town."
"I do not want to fight you, San," said Toruko softly. "You are only a pup." San threw a quick glance at the human.
"We're going to fight," she explained. "Don't interfere."
"You can't fight that animal!" protested the human.
"Watch me." Without warning, she turned and leapt at Toruko. He twisted away a second too late. She slammed into him, wrapped her arms around his throat, and sank her teeth into the loose skin on his neck. He writhed and snarled, trying to shake her off. When that failed, he dropped to the ground and rolled. San's head struck a rock, and the resulting explosion of pain forced her to let go. For a few agonizing seconds she lay there, battling dizziness and nausea.
I can't quit. I have to keep fighting.
She stood and lunged at Toruko again. He slashed her leg, leaving thin, bloody lines. She jumped back and circled warily. Toruko did the same, his ears pressed flat against his skull and his fangs bared in warning. He crouched, as though about to leap. San recognized this trick; her brothers had often used it on her. Instead of ducking, she charged.
Toruko tried to dodge, but she seized one of his hind legs and yanked him down. Blood trickled into her eye from the cut on her head. She lifted her hand reflexively to wipe it away, and Toruko tore free of her grasp. Before he could attack again, she flung herself on top of him and bit down into his ear. He yelped and tried to roll again. This time she held on, grabbing his muzzle to prevent him from biting her. She pushed against him, using all of her strength to force him to the ground.
Releasing her grip on his ear, she snarled "Submit! I am stronger, Toruko." He made a final, halfhearted slash at her, his sides heaving. Then Toruko twisted to reveal the pale fur on his stomach, a gesture of surrender. San let go and took a few steps away from him.
"Take back what you said about me and my family," she ordered. Toruko stood slowly.
"I apologize," he said. "Moro did the right thing when she adopted you. You are a true wolf." He looked at her, almost admiringly. "Only a wolf could have fought like that." Without another word, he turned and vanished into the forest. Gingerly, she touched the scrape on her head. Her hand came away red with blood.
"Ow," she said, the pain finally cutting through her adrenaline rush. The human limped forward anxiously.
"You're hurt," she said. San would have liked to tell her that she was stating the obvious, but she didn't know how to say it in human words.
"I'm fine," she said, checking the scratches on her leg. They seemed fairly shallow.
"What was that thing you fought?" the human asked.
"A tanuki. He wanted to kill you, so I had to fight him." The tanukis were a dying race, she remembered. Her mother said that they had once been larger than fully grown humans, although never as big as wolves. Many were now born small and mute, animals instead of animal gods. Toruko was the largest one left.
"I'm sorry," said the human. "If it wasn't for me, you'd never have gotten hurt." That was perfectly true, so San decided not to say anything. The sky had lightened to a pale purple color, and she suddenly realized how tired she was. Still, they had nearly reached the human town. She could rest afterwards.
"Come on," she said. "We're almost there." Hesitantly, the human put her arm over San's shoulders again.
"Are you sure you're all right?" she asked. San did not bother to reply. She just started walking.
Outside the gate of the town, she paused. The rising sun made everything seem faded, all the colors washed out. The wooden wall appeared painted in shades of gray and silver; the dirt path looked white, rather than pale brown. She could never think of the human town as being good or welcoming, not with the stench of smoke and molten metal hanging over it, but that morning the sight filled her with relief.
"That's Irontown?" the human asked, as though such a thing was too good to be possible. San nodded tiredly. The energy spike from fighting Toruko had completely worn off by now.
"You'll have to go the rest of the way alone," she said. "I can't go near the human town." The human gave her a puzzled look.
"I'm a wolf. They'd kill me as soon as I got within range," she explained.
"But you're only a child," protested the woman.
"I'm still a wolf, and they know it." The human looked longingly towards the gate, before returning her gaze to San. She hesitated, as though there was something she wanted to say.
"What?" San asked.
"It's just … I never thanked you for saving my life." San tilted her head to one side in a gesture she had learned from foxes. There was another unknown human word.
"I don't know all of your human language. What is 'thanked'?" she said curiously.
"It's a way of showing that you're grateful to someone. When a person helps you, you say 'arigato' to show that you appreciate what they did."
Arigato. Thank you. San felt a sudden rush of shame.
"It was my fault you got hurt at the cliff," she said. It had been her idea.
"But you came back to save me. And you protected me from the tanuki," the woman pointed out. Before San could think up a response for this, the human added "There's one more thing. You know the necklace and earrings you took from me?" San had almost forgotten about them.
"You want those back?" she asked. "I can leave them near the human town tomorrow."
"No, it's not that," said the human quickly. "I meant that I wanted you to keep them, as a thank you for saving me." Once again, San realized that she had no idea how to say what she felt in human words.
"Is there a word humans use when someone says 'thank you' to them?" she asked at last. The human nodded.
"Do itashimashte." You're welcome.
"Do itashimashte," San repeated, fumbling a little with the unfamiliar phrase. The human smiled, reminding her briefly of the Nightwalker's smile.
"Goodbye, Princess Mononoke," she said.
"Goodbye," San answered. She watched the human limp slowly towards the iron-making town, knowing that they would probably never see each other again. Exhaustion crept back, wrapping itself around her. She ignored it, looking on as the human neared the vast gate.
It was foolish, of course, to feel any sort of attachment to someone she had known for less than a day.
A guard called out, ordering the woman to halt. They spoke, but an ill-timed wind carried their words away from San.
She never once complained or asked me to slow down. Broken bones hurt, but she dealt with it and kept going. I didn't know humans could be like that.
The gate heaved open. The human entered. It creaked shut.
I never even asked her name.
San turned away from the human town, back towards the forest. She only walked a short way in before stopping and curling up under some bushes. She felt tired, far too tired to complete the journey back to the cave. A few hours of rest, that was all she needed. She could think up a story to explain her absence later. Of course, she would have to explain her injuries too… Warm, comforting sleep embraced her. She sighed, releasing her worries for the moment.
I'll think about it later.
The first thing San felt when she woke was sunlight. Keeping her eyes closed, she tried to puzzle this out. Mother never let her sleep past dawn, and this felt like full, late afternoon sunlight. But wait a moment- she hadn't gone to sleep in the den. She had fallen asleep in the forest after the human- she jerked awake and sat up, blinking confusedly.
"She's awake!" Komo announced. San stared around, gradually growing more disoriented. She was on the ledge outside the cave, with both her brothers sitting beside her. Questions rushed through her mind. Unable to decide on which to ask first, she settled with "What…?"
"The Deer God and Toruko brought you back," began Sambro. Komo nipped his tail.
"I wanna tell it!" he said petulantly.
"Fine," grumbled Sambro. "Go ahead." Komo's plumy tail waved happily.
"We woke up and saw that you were gone," he said. "Mother went out to look for you and told me and Sambro to wait here. Then the Deer God appeared and convinced her to wait. He left and we waited for a while, and then he showed up again with Toruko, who was carrying you. Toruko said you'd gotten into a fight with some of the tanukis who had lost the ability to speak. He said they were attacking an injured fox and he helped you fight them off, but one of them knocked you down and you hit your head on a rock. That's why he carried you back."
Did the Deer God convince Toruko to help me? Or did Toruko decide to carry me back before he spoke with the Deer God?
"And the Deer God left those," Sambro added, gesturing. Next to San lay the necklace of fangs and the silver earrings.
I hid those when we got back yesterday. How did he know where to look?
"Mother's out right now making sure none of the tanukis trespassed on our territory," Komo said, answering what would have been her next question. She picked up the necklace and, after admiring it for a moment, put it on. Then she held up the earrings and gave them a thorough examination.
"How do you put these things on?" she asked.
"Mother said humans poke holes in their ears with a needle, then put the hooks through the holes," Sambro explained.
"Humans are weird," said Komo. He paused, before saying innocently, "You know, we could do it for you." San looked at him, automatically suspicious at his tone of voice.
"Do what for me?"
"Pierce your ears for you, so you can wear those earrings." Seeing her expression, he added quickly "It wouldn't hurt much. We'd bite down so quick and careful you'd hardly feel it." She glanced at Sambro, usually the more trustworthy of her brothers. He nodded in agreement with Komo's words.
"We'll be careful. Really," he said. Perhaps because she was still tired, San decided to believe him.
"All right," she agreed, still with some reluctance. As her brothers took up positions on either side of her, she thought back to her encounter with the human.
Maybe they're not all evil after all. That one certainly wasn't a killer like the others I've heard about. They must be more like animals: some good and some bad.
"Ready?" Sambro asked.
"Ready," she answered.
I forgive you, human, for what your kind has done. I can't forgive the others… but you are no longer my enemy.
Sambro and Komo bit down.
"Ow!" she yelled. They leapt away as she whirled to face them.
"You said I'd barely feel it! You call that careful?" she demanded.
"His idea!" Sambro yelped, and fled. San growled as she tackled Komo. She could forgive some humans, perhaps. Her brothers were a different matter.
2nd Author's Note: Tanukis are a species of wild dog found in some parts of Asia. Westerners usually call them badgers, raccoons, or raccoon dogs. There are several scenes in Princess Mononoke where you see animals that look like raccoons; those are tanukis. According to Japanese folklore, they are tricksters and shapeshifters. Since the ones in the movie seem to be normal animals, I decided to assume that the tanuki gods went extinct before the movie takes place. And if San seems too forgiving of humans here, that's going to change in the next chapter.