Princess Mononoke Fan Fiction ❯ Waking Up ❯ Playing House ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Waking Up II: Playing House
by tbossjenn

Ashitaka opened his eyes and saw that it was still very early. He then realized that he was alone in the bed. She's gone again, he thought. He and San had been together since the night she had come to him. She had finally accepted him, and the tenuous bond that had formed in the moment he had first seen her with the wolves soon deepened into a love that was much stronger. Ashitaka had no doubt of her feelings for him - he need only to look into her face and watch her movements. Her body conveyed her emotions in ways that were as beautiful as poetry or music. And then there was her voice: gruff at times but also soft and lovely - especially when she whispered things into his ear, her breath warm against his face.
But there was still something between them - something about San that he was unable to reach. He secretly feared this unknown thing. The door opened, and San slipped inside. Ashitaka watched her remove the headdress, then quietly spoke her name.
San said, "I didn't mean to wake you."
"Where did you go?"
Hesitating, she replied, "I went to see my brothers."
"This early in the morning?"
San's expression darkened, but she said nothing. Instead, she climbed into bed and snuggled against him, whispering, "Please don't ask me about this, Ashitaka. I'm happy being with you now, like this. Let's not ruin it." Tracing a finger along his jawline, she kissed him softly.
"All right, San." For now.
* * *
Yakkul greedily devoured his grain, causing Ashitaka to laugh and say, "Hold on, I haven't poured it all yet." He rubbed the elk's neck affectionately and asked, "Are you happy here, my friend? Do you ever miss home?" Yakkul, of course, gave no answer; but then a pair of arms snaked their way around Ashitaka's chest. He sighed and leaned back against his love. "Good morning, San."
"Morning! I've prepared some food; it's ready when you are."
Smiling, he turned to her and remarked, "Playing human, hmm?"
"Well, it just so happens that my lifemate is human, so I thought he'd probably expect such things," she replied, her eyes twinkling in merriment. "Since you don't seem to want your breakfast, I think I know some raccoons that would."
"In that case, I'll gladly join you." Suddenly, he felt San stiffen against him.
"I hear a horse coming ... it's carrying two riders."
"Someone from Iron Town, no doubt." Seeing that San's face had become a stony mask, he quickly added, "The people in the town are our friends; you should trust them."
"The humans are your friends, Ashitaka," she answered, walking towards the hut. "Go and see what they want."
"San, wait ..." he called after her. He was disappointed - he had hoped that she would have come to trust the humans by now. Then again, he couldn't honestly say that the people of Iron Town displayed any great trust in her. Both sides had suffered great losses in their war, and trust could not be easily won. The horse and its riders approached, and Ashitaka was pleased to see that they were Karouku and Toki.
"Ashitaka! Hello!" Toki laughed, waving. The young woman was carrying a package
"Hello, friends! What brings you here?" Ashitaka replied.
"Toki thought it was a good time to come see you; it's been awhile," Karouku said. "Of course, I certainly wouldn't dream of denying my little flower anything ..."
Toki glared at her husband and said, "What are you talking about? I practically had to drag you all the way up here! He's still whining about his arm, and it's been months since you saved him!"
Karouku flushed and answered sheepishly, "Well, it did take some convincing but now I'm glad I came!"
Toki merely rolled her eyes in exasperation, then turned to Ashitaka and asked, "So where's San?"
"She's in the hut, but I don't think ..." Before he could finish, Toki abruptly ran off towards the hut with her bundle. Ashitaka sighed and finished his sentence: "... she wants to be disturbed."
Karouku turned to him and said, "Toki has brought a few wedding presents for you and San, even though the two of you are not married. I told her it was foolish, but she wouldn't listen to me." Ashitaka could tell that Karouku wanted to ask him why they were not married, but he was not willing to give his friend an explanation. It had long been known in Iron Town that they lived together, and he wondered what the people must think of their conduct. Society did not deem it proper for a man and woman to behave as husband and wife until they were wed. In truth, he had never asked San for her hand because he did not know how she would react. A wedding was traditionally symbolic of the man taking possession of his wife, and Ashitaka was afraid that this was what San would think he had planned for her all along.
* * *
"Hello, San!"
San had been in the middle of sharpening her spear, and she looked up in surprise at the sudden intrusion. A woman stood in the doorway smiling at her, and San narrowed her eyes and asked, "What do you want?"
"Why, I've come to congratulate you, of course! Ashitaka's the finest looking man I've seen in a long time - you've made a very good catch."
"You're congratulating me over my choice of lifemate?"
Toki began rambling without pausing for breath: "Yes, it's something that women ... I guess you could say human women ... do for each other. Choosing men is very important. After all, you only get to do it once and you'd better make it good. Well, I guess sometimes more than once. I don't know what I was thinking when I married Karouku, but at the time it seemed like a great idea. I do love the big dope, though, and I'm happy. What about you?"
The woman ended her train of speech so abruptly that it took a few minutes for San to realize she had stopped talking. "What do you mean, um ... what was your name?"
"Oh, sorry! My name's Toki, I'm a friend of Ashitaka's. I just asked if the two of you are happy."
San's first instinct was to tell Toki to go back to her own kind, but found instead that she was beginning to like the flippant young woman. She said, "Yes, we are very happy together."
"I'm glad," Toki answered warmly, walking over to San. "I brought the two of you some practical things every married couple should have."
Startled, San replied, "But we're not married."
"I know you're not officially married, but I still think of you as husband and wife. Did I say something wrong?" San suddenly looked troubled.
"No, these gifts are wonderful, Toki. Thank you, we do need them. But I'm wondering - do I shame Ashitaka by being here? I know it is customary for your people to be married before being together."
"Has he asked you?"
"No, we've never discussed it. But he loves me - he does."
"Then that's all that really matters. I wouldn't worry about it, San." Toki put a comforting hand on San's shoulder, and the girl was suddenly glad to have a female to talk to, even if she was human.
"It's just that sometimes Ashitaka seems distant, and I think he expects something more of me. He also misses his people, but he doesn't talk about them too much, either."
"Then I would say it's about time the two of you start talking. Ashitaka seems to be the silent type, and that's fine for most of the time but not when he's with you. Remember that."

Karouku and Toki stayed for supper, then rode back to Iron Town before nightfall. San had noticed with amusement that Karouku was very nervous around her, which wasn't surprising given the numerous times she and the wolf tribe had attacked the ox drivers. Observing him closely, she agreed with Toki that he was a "big dope", but then again he was nice and very considerate towards his wife. Interesting, San thought, Humans can be pleasant when they're not destroying everything in sight. She also thought that husbands could care a great deal for their wives. When the couple left, San embraced Toki and waved at the pair as they rode away.
Ashitaka put his arms around her and said, "Thank you for giving them a chance, love. It means so much for you to accept my friends."
"I like Toki. Karouku, too. They're very nice."
"Yes, they are; and so are a lot of humans if you'll give them a chance."
"Maybe," San replied, hoping that Ashitaka wouldn't press her any further. To her relief, he did not. Instead, the two of them sat and watch the sunset give way to stars. He pointed to certain stars and told her stories about them - stories he had learned from the wisewoman in his village. The legends were beautiful, and San was glad to hear the delight in Ashitaka's voice as he named off various gods and goddesses and their heroic exploits and love affairs. He rarely spoke of his people anymore, and when he did it usually made him sad. A wolf cried in the night, and San had to fight the urge to go join him. Soon, my brother, soon. Finally, it was too cold to stay out in the night air so they went into the hut and snuggled together in the bed. San thought of what Toki had said about talking openly with Ashitaka, but at the moment they were so content in just being with each other that she couldn't ruin the moment with an emotional confrontation. They spoke of preparing for the impending winter, and then Ashitaka told her a joke he had heard from Karouku earlier that day. They laughed, and San had yet another reason for liking the clumsy human. Then she and Ashitaka stopped talking and concentrated on something else for awhile.
Later that night as Ashitaka slept, San crept quietly out of bed and got dressed. Her brothers would be waiting for her, and she had to hurry. Grabbing her headdress and spear, she did not notice Ashitaka watching as she slipped out the door.
* * *
"Okay now, watch carefully. This is how a master does it," Ashitaka said in mock seriousness. He quickly looked over to San, who was obviously suppressing a laugh. "This is important San, pay attention!" San abruptly sat up straight and put on a look of pure innocence. "All right, hold your chopsticks like this, pick up the bowl in your other hand, dip your chopsticks into the bowl, grab a piece of meat ... see how I'm doing it? Now you try."
San picked up her chopsticks, and Ashitaka quickly adjusted her grip. Examining the chopsticks, San said, "How can you hold onto these things, Ashitaka?"
"Practice."
"Well, I don't see the point. I can eat perfectly well with just my hands."
"Please, just try it."
San wrestled with the meat for a few minutes until she was finally able to catch a piece between the sticks. Her hand trembled as she raised it to her mouth, but before she could take a bite she lost her grip and the meat plopped back into the bowl. Sighing in exasperation, she dropped the chopsticks and popped some meat into her mouth using her fingers.
"How do you expect me to civilize you if you won't cooperate, Princess Mononoke?"
Nestling into his lap, San grinned wickedly and replied, "Admit it, you love me being uncivilized." She plucked a piece of meat out of the bowl and fed it to him.
Sucking the remaining juice off her fingers, Ashitaka said, "Well, when you put it that way ..." The heavy knock on the door startled them both, causing San to drop her bowl. Ashitaka looked at her and asked, "You didn't hear a rider coming?"
"I was too busy concentrating on my chopstick technique, love."
"I'd better see who it is." Ashitaka found a very agitated Gonza standing on his doorstep.
"Lady Eboshi requests that both of you come and see her at once."
"What is this all about, Gonza?" Ashitaka asked, but then San stood up and glared at their visitor.
"What right does that woman have to order us around?" she demanded.
Gonza eyed her warily, and Ashitaka noticed that the warrior kept his hand close to his sword. Of all the people in Iron Town, Eboshi had to send the one who still held the bitterest grudge towards San. "My lady is not ordering you, wolf girl, she is asking," Gonza replied, visibly struggling to keep his temper in check. "Something urgent has come up, something that you two should know about. It concerns your precious forest."
"What is it?" she asked.
"The Emporer has declared war on Iron Town."


to be continued