A Valentine's Day gift for matadorrfury! You requested 'any Ghibli movie AU', so I decided to try my best with Ponyo (it's one of my favorites) I hope that you enjoy this!
~oOo~
The Sun's Reflection
~oOo~
From a distance he can still see their home. It is the little wooden house with a vegetable garden, sitting on the lonely cliff by the sea.
The sight of it slowly fading away always stirs an aching, wistful emotion within him, etches a painful stitch in his heart. He redirects his gaze toward the horizon, where his entire life lies in every dip and curve of the ocean's waves. The feeling is so bittersweet. He closes his eyes and allows each rushing gust of wind to flow over him, refreshing in such a way that elevates the tension from both body and mind, as if it were a cleansing of his soul. He grips the ship's railing for support and the metal is smooth, cold within the palm of his hand. Though it is something that Levi has come to know very well as a sailor, a part of him silently resigns, and the images of an attractive copper-haired woman edges into the midst of his consciousness. A heavy sigh escapes him. When he opens his eyes and looks back the house is already gone.
The morning sunrise tinges the heavens in colors of yellow and rosy hues, like merging streaks of paint across a canvas. It brings back to him memories of a very similar sky from years gone by. The ghost of a kiss seems to tremble upon his brow. His first kiss. He remembers it as though it were yesterday.
Orphaned at an early age, Levi was forced to fend for himself, and he took refuge in the giant, beckoning expanse that is the sea. It is an impartial, nourishing force on this earth that will give bountiful of wealth to those who dare to reach into her waters. He learned what to do, watching numerous fishermen. His presence became so accustomed that a few opted to take him with them on their boats. Whatever he caught would be his to keep. It is a dirty business, though being so limited in resources he did not complain, and eventually grew to appreciate the men who worked to keep the land dwellers alive. As a young adult, he had handled every low-ranking position as a member of a crew that was available on the cargo ships that journeyed between continents, even managed to start earning money and saving, thinking one day he would go to school.
On such a morning with a particularly beautiful sunrise he was sitting on the docks, repairing a fisherman's nets all the while cursing under his breath. A disgusting amount of debris was entangled with it. Just as always. Sometimes he wonders how the logic works in the minds of the morons that live in this little seaside village; how exactly can they figure that abusing the source of their food is any way a good idea. Or maybe they just don't care. There were some fish and other small critters caught in the mess of rope and sticky grime, though not sufficient to meet the day's quota. Levi wordlessly cuts them free and flips them back into the water. He does not recall exactly when he realized that he was being watched; only suddenly a pair of hands appeared in the same proximity as his own. They were slender, distinctively feminine, though the skill that they portrayed handling all the knots and entanglements made it clear that this person was no stranger to such work. Then he lifts his sharp grey eyes, feeling very annoyed because he did not want the help.
He was nearly blinded because her smile easily rivaled the sun.
It unsettled him a bit, having her so near. There had not been many times Levi took notice of the women that occasionally came to the docks. Most were the wives of the elder sailors, wishing them off with prayers of good luck. But he had never seen this one before. He was sure that he hadn't. There's no way he could have overlooked her glowing skin. It was a healthy shade of peach, such a clear complexion that the locals did not have. For a moment, as she spoke in what he assumed was words of greeting he did not bother to hear, he was too transfixed on the image of her. The copper colored locks of her hair were chopped short, defining the shape of her face, making her look more mature, the high cheekbones and that smooth curve of her chin. The pleasant hazel of her eyes was bright and shining. There was something transfixing about this stranger, and Levi would be damned if he said it was love at first sight. The whole idea was ridiculous, he knew nothing about her, other than that she was gorgeous and talented with her hands.
Curiously, she accepted the unfriendly and withdrawn vibe that he emitted. The silence that settled upon them was not stifling or awkward. She was outgoing, the exact opposite of him. Wherever this stranger came from, their customs were different. Prior to that day Levi had never known anyone that said goodbye with a kiss.
He left her behind him after that, thinking that he would never see her again. Though later it would occur to him that maybe she was not so annoying after all.
As fate would have it, Levi ended up marrying that girl.
Today, he still leaves Petra behind, as much as his heart protests. He is the captain of his own ship with a crew of dedicated members that depend on him. Now, when he returns home late in the night after working overtime he is greeted by his young wife who wears such a ferocious (playful) glare that he feels himself shrinking a bit from sheer intimidation. He accepts the chastising with quiet dignity. There is nothing he can do. A part of Levi always belonged to the sea, at the will of the Goddess of Mercy. A part of him belongs to Petra, too.
She is his only anchor to the shore, the little warmth of sunshine that lingers on his lips.