With a splash, Akari dunked her face into the river, gulping down mouthfuls of cool water like breaths of fresh air. Ah, I'm still really thirsty, she thought, yanking her head back out and wiping her mouth dry– she wiped until all her soaked scales had gone down and vanished.

A looming darkness moved behind Akari, causing her to jump and look. When she focused, however, she saw nothing but her own shadow. She wanted to swim right now, more than anything– but she still felt as if another stranger would appear and see her exposed. Afraid to make a noise, she leaned forward and stared nervously into the water.

The sky and the river were a murky night blue, and the buttery moon, on its way to fullness, showcased brightly on the river with a streaming tail of white light. Reminding her of a tale she had once been told, its memory dropped a sad pain in Akari's chest.

'Long ago,' her mother had once told her– years ago when Akari was a little girl; 'there were monkeys who saw the moon's reflection on a pond. One monkey, leaning forward from a tree branch, touched the water only to see the reflection wriggle and fade. He blamed his luck for not being able to capture the moon and so left to never try again.'

That was how the first part of her mom's tale went. The first monkey tried to touch the moon and grew disheartened when he failed. Even if Akari disliked the whole story, she favored this part the most.

'The next monkey to see the moon's reflection fell into a deep panic. Fearing that the admirable moon was drowning– he hung from the branch and tried to save it. The branch broke, however, and the monkey fell into the water. Even as he was drowning, he never gave up trying to reach the moon– he kept grabbing at the shining water which slipped through his little monkey fingers.'

It was not fair! Akari had cried for that monkey. That's why her mother waited until she was much older before telling her the final part. Yes, she didn't tell Akari the last part of the story until that final night at Mineral Town– when they had parted from each other at the Kappa Lake.

That was the night when the woman– to escape her illness– had joined her kappa husband in the lake forever... And that was the night when Akari was sent out into the world alone.

On that night, which seemed an eternity ago to Akari, her mom had stepped into the glowing, rippling water– and had stopped. 'Finally, a monkey chief saw the moon on the water,' the woman had said all of a sudden; 'He was panicked, just like the last monkey– however– he was also an arrogant fool. He believed that the world would end if he allowed the great moon to drown before him.' When she spoke, it was with a sense of detachment and maternal distance.

It took Akari awhile to even remember what her mom was talking about, but memories of the monkey tale soon came rushing back to her beneath the dark sky.

The woman had slipped further into the water– up to her waist– and her long blonde hair had fanned out and drifted around her. A darker blue seeped into her denim overalls and the glowing water began to hum. She was now entering the kappa's realm, and without giving her daughter a proper and sensible goodbye.

When Akari tried to reach out for an embrace from her mother– the woman smacked away her hands and continued the story instead:

'The lower tree branch had perished with the last monkey, so the chief had one last option... to hang down from a higher branch. His tail alone wasn't long enough so he called his monkey clan. They all joined tails– hanging down over the water like a great monkey chain... But all their weight on that one branch made it snap and break. Shrieking, the monkeys fell into the water and drowned... Answer yourself only, and wonder, Akari... which monkey did you like the best?'

Disturbed by her mother's odd behavior, Akari had forced herself to think quickly. She disliked the last monkey– a terrible leader. In her mind, she liked the first monkey– just because he survived. In her heart, however, she loved the second monkey.

The second monkey was passionate and tried his best.

'But they were all just stupid monkeys,' Akari's mother had scoffed, almost as if she could read the girl's thoughts. 'If they had only looked up, they would've seen that the moon was safe and sound in the sky... from them. Love is... a lot like that... as you'll soon realize... It's an important lesson. That's why... you must leave this place and find true love. Don't come back until you do, or I'll never speak to you again.'

In an instant, the woman was gone– swallowed up by the gurgling water. After that, though, Akari's father– the kappa– appeared to hug his daughter and briefly bid her farewell (and to give her bottles to fill with water so she could survive her journey to Waffle Island).

But that remained the last real communication that Akari ever had with her mother... A weird butt monkey story.

Akari pulled from her memories and settled back into reality. Mineral Town was far away now and she'd probably never see her mother or father again. "It's fine," she insisted, pulling her knees close and mumbling into them. "I have a house and land. I could live this way forever." Her mother's demand to 'find true love,' combined with the strange monkey story, was only making her sloshy little head even more confused.

Everything that had happened to Akari ever since she came to Waffle Island (all the places she had seen and the people she had met) made her heart race whenever she thought about them. 'True love makes your heart race, but it also makes it calm.' That was also something her mother had once told her.

"Grr!" Akari rocketed to her feet. "You always said WEIRD things, mama," she yelled across the river. "No wonder I'm so weird!" Even if her mother wasn't here, she still liked blaming her.

"Eep?" a falsetto voice echoed from across the burbling water. It sounded confused, perhaps even intimidated.

"Huh?" Akari looked. On the distant bank she saw a short figure with two furry arms and legs. "A monkey?" she said, shocked.

"Ee-ee-ee–" the monkey whooped and cried, slinging its arms around before falling into the river with a tumultuous "SPLASH."

"Nooo–" Akari cried in horror, holding onto her trembling face. "Come back, little monkey! Don't drown!" Quickly checking her surroundings, she dove into the water– kicking her feet forcefully as her boots became heavy and filled with water.

Is it true? Akari wondered in alarm. Do monkeys really drown? Why can't they swim? Didn't they like bathing in hot springs during the winter? She always heard that they did.

Monkeys made no sense.

(I remember you,) the monkey's falsetto voice rung in her ears. (You're the one who claimed me!)

Huh? Akari thought. It's speaking to me?

(Well, yeah,) he answered. (Get it? Well?)

...Huh? Had she missed him make a quick joke? He had only just spoken to her! And why was he able to speak to her underwater, of all impossible things? Actually, neither of them had really spoken a word yet, but the question remained.

(Silly girl. I'm a spirit, kinda like you. I was once a mountain spirit, but I underwent a career change awhile back 'cause of an accident...)

So it can hear my thoughts? Akari wondered, straining her stinging eyes to try and see him. She saw shining slivers moving in the water– but they were just fish.

(Yes. Right now, you're thinking, 'so it can hear my thoughts.' Right? Also, I'm a 'he' not an 'it.' Don't get any weird ideas, though. You can't marry me like your mom married that kappa!)

He knows about that? Akari thought, remembering all the times she spent reminiscing about her troubles by the water. Had this spirit eavesdropped on her during those times? Just who are you? she demanded, incensed.

(Ee-ee-ee! Who am I?) he taunted. (Here's a riddle: I like to hide and run around, warming myself before jumping out. I'm all over the island, I make cold hot, but I sit and stay in just one spot.)

Er, Akari pondered this riddle seriously, floating backwards in the current. The monkey spirit's description immediately reminded her of the warmth of daytime after the coldness of night. Are you the sunshine? she asked.

(Stupid!) he rebuked, much to Akari's anger. (Humans have no wit! Stupid! Meet me beyond the falls when you're tired, dumb girl! That's your one and only hint!)

At that, Akari saw the long-armed monkey swimming before her, swirling in a vortex before vanishing in a burst of bubbles– her anger temporarily dissolved along with them.

That night, Akari barely slept. Something hot that likes to hide... she thought. But what does the cold have to do with it? He didn't give me very many details to go by... Grr, I'm not a dumb girl, he's just a stupid monkey! When Akari woke up that morning, she was bleary eyed and drowsy. What the heck DID that riddle mean?

"Hm! I won't worry about it," Akari said, stomping out her front door and checking on her potato plant. It had grown crisp fleshy leaves and was looking quite impressive– despite being the ONLY one. Upon closer inspection, she found a potato popping out of the ground beneath it– which she pulled and tucked into her rucksack. For a moment, she actually felt accomplished.

"No. This is no time to be proud," Akari said, smacking her face. "I need more seeds... I can't be a real farmer with only ONE plant." At this thought, she felt very embarrassed. Her mother used to grow about a hundred crops at one time; twirling her watering can way up high, its mystrile metal would gleam like the sun and seemingly summon a rainfall to drench their large field.

Akari, standing between the tall crops, used to face the sky and try to taste the droplets. In those days, she would only ever sit and watch her mother work– she was just too weak. As her mother once put it, 'Just pulling honey from the tree makes you faint.'

"Why... why am I so weak?" Akari said in contemplation, feeling great angst that came out from NOWHERE. Finishing her chore of smashing rocks and re-hoeing the dirt in preparation for more seeds– and also weeding around it– she took off down the road, significantly robbed of energy. It was ridiculous! She could barely keep her drained head upright.

Along the way, Akari managed to perk herself up with some thoughts of Owen and the stolen memory of his face. He had been extremely kind to her– kinder than any guy she had ever met– and he had even called her cute. She just wasn't used to such things. The thought made her face burn red with anxiousness. She wanted to see him again!

Owen– who was very tall and muscular– made Akari feel different. When she was next to him, she absorbed his shining aura and felt her femininity measurably increase. "It must be because... when a small object is next to a larger object... the small object will look even smaller," she considered, cupping her hands together. "The same thing works with people..." Not liking these selfish thoughts, she stopped and shook them away– along with about an ounce of water. It splashed right out from her head without her even knowing!

What am I thinking? Do I like Owen for such frivolous reasons? Akari wondered, depressing herself once again. Without even knowing it, she had walked into Waffle Town. This was a mistake, as she hadn't gathered anything for Jin yet.

This is no good! Akari panicked. Maybe I can trick him with a fake... Quickly hopping a fence and assaulting a roadside tree, she plucked a leaf from it. Staring at the leaf– cheerfully at first, and then with a slowly forming frown– she cried out in pain and threw it aside. It was inherently wrong to trick somebody after making a deal with them. Not that she could do any tricks with a leaf; she was half kappa, not half tanuki!

Glancing out at the beach, Akari's hopes bloomed when she suddenly saw it: a green, heart-shaped plant was sticking up from the cobblers between the sand and the road's edge. Without seeing anything else, or anyone else, she ran for it– never noticing the familiar wide-brimmed hat peeking on the horizon.

Thanks again for reading (and reviewing)!

Folklore stuff:

Tanuki- Japanese raccoon dog... things... who play tricks on people with transformation magic.

The monkey story- different variations of an old parable called Enkou Sokugetsu. What the heck was her mom trying to say about it? Crazy lady!