A Different Current of the River
Fandom: Spirited Away
Alternate Universe Story
Chapter 1: The First Blood
Summary: What if the Kohaku river was never filled in, only rerouted? Chihiro never had to move away. The kami Nigihayami Kohakunushi never was trapped in the Spirit World at Aburaya, and was easily healed after the splitting events in 'Underwater Savior'. Yet, destiny will always have its way.
Obviously, an Alternate Universe fiction.
The humans had long since ceased to be his playthings. He had begun to care for them when they first moved to the banks of his river, migrating ever northward to live their life in peace. Back then, when humans were a novel thing, they had been his playthings, his pets. As time passed, he knew them intimately, and they became friends. He grieved when they passed on at the end of their short lives as their souls often left him to continue on their appointed journeys, though some did eventually return in a new form. Still, he was happy to see them grow and reproduce.
One line in particular had long held his interest. The Ogino family had long served as priests to him. It was they who usually relayed his advice to the community, although they had fallen into disuse by the populace through the generations. However, they remained loyal to him, passing down the traditions through the succeeding generations, each tradition gaining a new layer of meaning like the rings of a tree. In reward for their kind and loving thoughts, he had taken care of them, providing for them in small and large ways as the need arose. A few would fall away from him, but always there had been at least one who continued to speak to him.
However, even with his careful ministrations, war and illness could and did claim many of them. Through the twisting of fate, now there were only three of the line left to him, and one woman who had married in. Only half of this small number still believed in his existence, and one day the number would fall to one. There still were others in the community who believed in him, others who went to his priest's home to entreat his advice as he now only showed himself to his chosen two. Yet, the decline of his chosen family still bothered him. He was unsure of what else he could do though. Fertility was sometimes a tricky thing with humans.
He had watched his Little Pearl grow oh so slowly. She was his most prized treasure, and he brooded over her very often while she was unaware of him, admiring how light trickled down her body, or her innocent smiles that she gifted others with. The river had watched as Chihiro and Lily had played together by his side, his own laughter at their childish antics covered with the burbling of his liquid body.
The time had come that she no longer needed his company as much as she once did, although she often still came to look for him for the sake of his companionship. Gracefully he had withdrawn himself from her, wishing to see that she led a life among her own kind. It pleased him greatly that she wished to include him in her life, and yet it vexed him just as much. She needed to devote her time to study and rest, and as the years passed, her need to concentrate on her duties grew ever more. And so, gently would he always remind her to mind her studies and her rest every time that they visited.
She was an excellent student. He knew this because she told him every night as she was falling asleep what her grades were, her sleepy whispers audible to him as his presence escorted her to the realm of sleep. Koji always happily trumpeted his grandchild's accomplishments to him as well, usually accompanied by large offerings of rice, sake, and other things good for feasting on. She was growing to be a very lovely woman, her intelligence shining through those ever changing orbs that he could get lost in as he tried to decipher her mysteries.
Not all was always smooth though. Sometimes, she had trouble. It liked to follow after her, hungrily licking its chops and waiting to ensnare such a lovely, bright, and pure soul. First, there had been the greed demon when she was young. He had been lucky, and instead of the river being buried as had the original plan gone, environmentalists had successfully lobbied for a re-rout instead. That had given him the time he needed to save both river and child, even if he didn't understand how he had managed to survive what should have been a fatal blow after several days of savage battle against the dog. Then there were the normal childhood illnesses, which with his help she had coasted easily through. Bullies had also tried to accost her from time to time, but those he had easily dealt with. He was a god after all, and it was an easy task to give out a few good threats in their dreams.
There were also monsters that had been attracted to his protectorate by her purity. Despite the fact that even a simple stick thrown by a pure soul could be their downfall, the beasts were always fascinated by a pure soul. She never noticed them in their disguises though, happily moving through her life of study, helping her grandfather, doing chores around her own home, and play. He had lost count of how many he had slain to keep her safe, leaving her unaware of the menaces that lurked just outside her garden, hiding behind trees as she wandered the woods, or the few who had possess some of the teachers at her school. What bothered him most though, was that the occurrences would only increase with time, as her womanhood was ripening fruitfully. When she finally became ripe, the Lost Ones would begin to hound her as well.
His little one had begun to blossom, her buds steadily opening to swell into the mounds that would one day feed her young. She was also grown much taller, and stood up to his shoulder now. Her hair, fine as silk, flowed freely behind her most of the time, chestnut waves to captivate the eye. She was the very image of the proud Ainu beauties who had been her grandmothers of the past. Every year, several times at that, he had gifted her with a new kimono to her size, much to her parent's puzzlement. Never had her unbelieving parents understood from whence the strange bundles came.
Smiling softly to himself, the young river spirit slowly paced his banks as his wooden staff beat out a gliding march along with his feet. The very waters clothed him, pulled together in such a way as to seem like an elegant formal kimono to the human eye. His white rapids and majestic waterfalls roared over his torso and down his arms. The placid blues of his calmer regions gently rippled down his legs. The amethyst obi at his waist flashed and winked like the crystals that he sometimes pulled from the fields where he had hidden them long ago, which he often hid around his treasure's home to her delight and her mother's befuddlement. Green and gold waves crashed around his hems, the mark of who he was as the midnight waters trickled down his back from his noble head. Two orbs of jade or emerald peered out at the majestic beauty around him, lonely and piercing at the same time.
Those whirling deeps fell upon a silent figure further down the river, listlessly sitting on a small boulder and absently clutching her abdomen. Her white cotton T-shirt clung tastefully to her developing body, tucked into the waist of a modest pair of miko-red shorts. Once Yuukio, the child's mother, had finally allowed her freedom to choose her own clothing, the western outfits were much more tasteful even if they were not as he would have preferred to see her dressed. The woman-child seemed to be in a rather strange mood today, and she did not even noticed his neared presence. Normally when he came this close, she would leap up like one of his fish and run to him, nearly knocking him over in her joyful exuberance. Every now and then, a pained look would cross her face, fading away again into a listless and dull attempt at her normal visage. He determined that he would find out what was wrong.
Flowing ever gracefully towards the little human, he studied her again. So much had changed from the last time she had visited him. It had only been a few days, but already she seemed taller and more filled out. Soon, those same boys who had once tried to bully her would be making advances towards her. He would have to teach her how to recognize such things and defend herself, the only other option was near permanent possession until it was beaten into their hormone-driven heads that she was off limits until they had proven themselves worthy. None of the males of the area were up to the standard that he would have her measure them to. He had seen into their thoughts, and there was no way that any child that he guarded would have any of them and their dirty minds for a mate.
Kohakunushi had now reached her side, and still she did not notice him. Now, her eyes were shut as she tried to ignore whatever was bothering her. As he sat himself down beside her, the winds shifted their direction, and what had formerly been driven away before him now filled his nose. The scent of ripening cherries was barely tinted with his own scent that marked her as one of his protected. He reveled in that first layer, loving how pure her scent was before moving into the deeper layers. Rich blood came to him, announcing her womanhood to him as loudly as if someone had stuck his head inside a Taiko drum and beaten upon it mercilessly. It was not repugnant to him though, as it bore her scent. Many other nature spirits would cover their noses and leave in disgust though if they had been near.
Her flow was a few years later than he expected, but at least it had finally come. This lengthy delay was no doubt only caused by how active she was, as she was very involved in her school's kendo league, and the swim team as well as going on regular trips to clean sections of his river that had begun to become sullied by humans a little faster than he could keep up. He had been beginning to worry that maybe she would be infertile, and the last of her line. Akio, her father, had already been struck with impotence for daring to try burying his river. As much as Kohakunushi wanted to see more little Ogino children running around the neighborhood and getting into mischief, he still wanted an apology from his former friend.
But back to more important matters.
The rich reek of her blood told him stories of the state of her body in the grand scheme of the ever moving cycle of life and death. Only two weeks ago she had released her very first egg from her ovaries, and at this age she had not yet coupled. This was good, as her body was still developing on its own, there was no need to add the extra burden of another soul. However, there were still those who would seek to experiment with his little Virgin. It was good that her mother had told her of these things already, but there still would be the pain as her inner chamber renewed itself for another practice run.
"It seems that you are a woman now, Chihiro."
Two hazy grey eyes snapped open and looked at him in surprise. This first cycle must be very painful if she had still been unaware of his presence after he had pulled the poor balled up young woman into a comforting embrace.
"I guess so. I think I liked being a kid better though."
An amused river spirit let out a rippling laugh, the vibrations of his chest soothing the tensed up girl in his arms as she laid a heavy head on his shoulder. He could remember a time when her first cycle would have been cause for a great celebration in any village by his banks. The happy family would have invited everyone, and even people from neighboring villages to show her off and attract a mate. All the kami of the area and beyond would have been invited to partake in the celebration following the last of her blood, and even he would have sung and danced among his peers of Heaven and Earth in merriment at such good fortune. Chihiro didn't seem to be too thrilled with the great milestone though, not by a long shot.
"But now you are a step closer to when you will finally leave your childhood nest and set out on the adventure of raising your own family."
"That's not funny or comforting today, no offense. I already know what happens to make babies, and nobody is getting near there with anything."
It was strange to him to hear such things coming from her, but there were no impure innuendoes hidden or obvious, only great distaste of the idea of anyone doing such things with her. However, he knew that her statement came from the unaccustomed pain, and as she grew she would feel otherwise about children, even if he wasn't ready to let her go. No other had held such a dear place in his heart, and it pained him to hear how worn down she was already as her body shed what was no longer serving her. He hoped that she would not be one of the women who was tortured every moon, that it would instead come and go gently.
"You sound like you could use some relief. What have you tried?"
"Advil, hot soaks, hot pads, exercise . . . which I really wouldn't recommend since it made it worse. Coach was wrong."
That was a bit too much information for the poor water dragon, but since he had some experience in healing maybe he could be of some help. There were dark rings under her eyes, a clear sign to him that not only was she needing to have more iron rich food right now, but that the 'Advil' was too potent for her body. He could have his cringe and shiver later. Instead, he produced from one of his hidden pockets some rice dumplings that had been filled with fish and wrapped in rich and nourishing river-grass. As he did so, he concentrated on her pain lessening to a more manageable level.
"Here. Eat this, it will help."
His Chihiro had learned long ago to do as he suggested. After all, since he was so much older and wiser than her, by years unimaginable to her, he knew far more than she. Whenever he gave her food, he always seemed to be putting some kind of spell on it, for one reason or another. It was another peculiarity in his relationship with this human.
"Thank you Haku. It was delicious."
He couldn't help but chuckle at the childish compliment. It was amusing how much she preferred his fare to her own mother's. Then again, he didn't care too much for WacDonald's, or those meals in a box that Yuuko seemed to be fascinated with. Instinctively, he lowered his forehead to her own, touching their noses together as well to exhale delicately into her own nostrils. It was a tender gesture among his kind, common among family and close friends. The magic had already begun to work, he could feel her knotted muscles slowly uncoiling, could hear the beat of her heart return to an unstressed level. Soon, she would be getting sleepy, and he thought it best that she go into her home on her own instead of being carried in by a 'strange' and much older male. After all, he did not want her parents getting the wrong idea.
Of course, he could always use his dragon shape, carry his prize in on his back, and give Akio a good wake up call. No, that wouldn't work, he would just head for the nearest psychiatrist and get a prescription for one of those medicines that messed up one's chemical balance in order to fight 'hallucinations.'.
"You are very welcome. Now, run along home before you fall asleep."
"Ok. I'll see you soon."
With that, the maiden gave him a parting hug and peck on the cheek before she scurried home. Confused at the sudden mood change even though he knew those would be normal for a long time now, he put a hand to where she had kissed him in her innocent childishness, blushing slightly. Chihiro was the only female to have ever done that to him, his dragon mother showing her affection in other ways than brushing of the lips to flesh. He was going to have to tell her soon to stop that, since she was 14 springs now. She really shouldn't be kissing any males right now, even with such familial affection. If she kept doing it and she got too much older, then even such a calm and restrained one as he may begin to push boundaries farther than was proper. He too was male after all.
Of course, there was the fact that she possessed the type of soul that he had been searching for in a mate. She was still too young by modern society's standards though, even if his own mother had hatched him when she was but the human equivalent of 11. He could wait and see what developed though, it would have to be her own choice.
A rustling in a bush drew his attention behind him, causing the suspicious river dragon to investigate. As he drew near the shivering shrubbery, he instantly knew who it was by the repeated and frantic shushing.
"You two can come out now, the show is over."
A masculine mass of dark color swaggered out of the bush, grinning at the river dragon. The silks of his formal garb were the deep blues and blacks common to underground water sources, made of the very essence of the sacred spring that the figure both was and attended to. Two stones of tiger's eye reflected the daytime light, sparkling in his eternally bubbling amusement. The rich and fertile earth was his short and immaculately unruly hair, and his lightly tanned hide reflected his now quite common visits to this surface world. Draped around the neck of the visitor, a glittering green length writhed guiltily as a sparkling pair of black eyes avoided emerald spears thrown at the pair.
"She's of age now, ne? You need to be more careful. If you keep letting her touch you, the females will be likely to think that you are actually willing to take a mate."
Kohakunushi crossed his arms and continued his optical assault on his best friend for the remark. What business was it of anyone if he was or was not looking for a mate? For now, he was quite content to remain single, to roam his banks and watch the little children that once he could have freely played with without causing a stir. He already had what little companionable contact with other entities that he needed.
"By our rules, yes. By their rules no. I have no need of a mate right now, Ten. She is still my child until she is old enough to wed."
The little snake regarded the river dragon closely from her refuge around the spring lord's neck. Actually, she wasn't so little really as very slender for a snake of her size. Around six feet long, she was as long as Ten or Kohakunushi if they were to lay out at full length in human guise.
"Are you sure that she is more to you than just your young miko? Big brother, your parents seem convinced that one day she will be yours in every sense. Who knows why, your mother only mutters about some prophecy."
Something deep within his heart stirred at his adoptive sister's statement. A dark and often unlooked at part of himself, it was the embodiment of the few things about himself that he feared. Passion was one of them, a fierce emotion that he had seen cause wars, commit crimes, and make needless sacrifices. As quickly as it opened an eye to check it's surroundings, it settled back into slumber, biding his time for the correct moment. Despite what his dominant aspect thought, he did possess a degree of patience.
"The River of Time will flow as it will. I hope that satisfies the two of you meddlers. I suppose that you know what I will be doing tonight then."
Ten rolled his eyes, crossing his own arms before pinning his slightly younger friend with his gaze.
"Of course. And we will join you. Her blood smells nice, much better than the women who hold various degrees of bitterness within themselves."
Later that night, after all in the Ogino household had fallen asleep, the stately Nigihayami Kohakunushi slipped into Chihiro's home. After him slithered a small and shadowy serpentine form that had watched over the child since she was very young, the grassy scales of Maiden Snake giving off a glint now and then as they caught and reflected the light of the few nightlights throughout the house. A final form crept in, shutting the door quietly, his dark and flowing robes making the spring spirit seem as but yet another shadow cast against the wall.
Quietly, so as not to wake the human occupants until the sleeping spell set gently in, the three danced through the house, whirling and weaving their magic together. Scales flashed as the little snake wound her way around objects and flying limbs. Surface water and welling water flapped their light and dark sleeves, their silks rustling like wind through bamboo. The spirits of the river, the wood and garden, and the wellspring allowed their voices to rise and fall in joyous song as they celebrated for the child in the old way. None of the three cared about the smell of blood that was filling the home, to them she was family. They accepted her blood as their own.
Steadily, they got louder and louder as they wove through every room singing, yet the occupants slept on, ensnared in the spell of rest and regeneration that they had woven at the first. All throughout they left spiritual treasures for the maiden to come across as the time came to be right. In her room however, they heaped material wealth. New silk kimono in blazing crimson and vibrant river blue each with a co-ordinating set of accouterments were placed in neat piles on her desk, one for every year past when they had expected her courses to begin. She received several bags of gold and many of white rice, things that spirits prized. Finally, before the spirits withdrew, the river lord slipped onto the right hand of his young charge a delicate silver ring beset with a perfect white pearl.
The whirling and weaving came to an abrupt end as the virgin began to stir in her sleep, responding to the touch of her friend. All three froze in place, waiting for her to hopefully fall back into slumber. Several heartbeats came and passed, each seeming like a vast earth age to the startled spirits. At last though, she rolled over and went back to sleep deeply, dreaming whatever dreams a secretly training miko does. Perhaps she dreamt that her mother finally accepted the child's interest in the old things, or maybe she dreamed of her dream job as an environmental consultant at the Good Fortune Construction Company where her father worked.
Relieved smiles broke the faces of the three closely bound spirits, highly embarrassed that the spell had not affected her as strongly as they thought it had. They were still young as their kinds went, although most humans would consider them ancient beyond comprehensive reckoning. Kohakunushi found himself fighting an odd urge to place a light kiss on the sleeping woman-child, ultimately discarding it as ludicrous. The trio slowly and quietly withdrew from the room, going down the hall sedately in a tiny procession of state, down the stairs, and from there out the door into the night beyond.
To be continued . . .
By the way, 'Courting' has been edited and re-ordered chronologically. There are more ideas to come for that, so don't worry.
I just wanted to try an alternate universe out.