The shrine maidens had made short work of packing supplies for Suzume and the Dragon’s journey to the palace. Unfortunately, this journey would be taken on foot and because of that, Suzume had spent much time grumbling. When her father had abandoned her at the shrine, she had at least had the dignity to have arrived by palanquin. The journey down the mountainside was tedious and not worth mentioning, in Suzume’s opinion. The Dragon insisted that she carry a small pack of supplies which bore down on her back like sack of bricks. Numerous breaks were taken to let Suzume rest. It was no wonder it had taken them three days to get down the mountain, when her journey up had taken half a day.

Her limbs ached in a way they had never done before. She perspired in excess and her head itched from not being washed. She had begun to dawdle behind the Dragon as they once more found flat land and open countryside. Rice paddies stretched out in each direction. The late noon sun reflected off the water and the glare got in Suzume’s eyes. She shielded her eyes from the glare with her fore arm and scowled at green shoots struggling to break through the murky water and reach towards the sky.  

 “By the way, what’s your name?” The Dragon turned to look at her from a few feet ahead.

 She stopped and squinted at him. That’s it, She thought, I cannot walk another step! She was hot in the layers of her robe. Her feet hurt from these inferior bamboo sandals the high priestess had given her and the straw hat and veil kept slipping forward. Her arms were tired from adjusting it and carrying this infernal pack. A fly had also gotten under her veil and was buzzing near her face.

They had been on the road for three days now and it just occurred to him to ask her name? She forced down a string of curses that were on the tip of her tongue, not only were they not appropriate for a lady of her stature but she didn’t need another reason to insight the mercurial dragon’s wrath.

“Suzume,” she ground out and took the opportunity to try and adjust the sandal on her foot. She missed her platforms and her palanquin. Small blisters were forming beneath her dusty socks and the fine thread was being worn away from the over use.

“Soo-zoo-may,” he rolled her name around on his tongue and she regretted the sound of his coming from his lips. He repeated her names several more times only to further infuriate her, she suspected.

The High Priestess had insisted that she did not insight the dragon’s wrath unnecessarily, it was crucial that they arrive at the White Palace. I would fry him now and walk the rest of the way if it meant I could return home, she thought.  If I knew how she amended. Despite her reassurances to the Head Priestess ---and her own display at the shrine-- she was still unsure of how to use her newfound powers despite halfhearted attempts at practicing them before collapsing into sleep each night.

The Dragon laughed suddenly and she nearly toppled over from fright.

“What is so funny about my name?” She asked with hands crossed over her chest once she had regained her balance.

He was bent over taking large belly laughs and did not respond right away. When he did it was in stalling. “Your...name... means...sparrow!” As he said this he laughed harder and clutched at his side.

Suzume frowned and considered throwing her straw sandal at him, The Head Priestess’ warnings be damned.

“Why would a sparrow be so funny?” She asked again. She took a deep breath and tried to keep her own temper in check.

“It’s not the sparrow that’s funny. It’s you! A loud mouth arrogant woman! You’re nothing like a sparrow.” He pointed at her as he said this and Suzume colored and turned away to hide her embarrassment.

She sat down on a nearby felled tree removed both her sandals and pelted them at the dragon. He dodged them both and continued to laugh uproariously. I don’t care what he thinks. He’s just a lying fool.

“Then what is your name, oh Great God of the Mountain,” she said scathingly.

He stopped laughing and stared straight at her, and storm clouds seemed to gather behind his eyes. Suzume shrank back. What’s gotten into him? The slightest thing upsets him.

“I do not have a name, but I was once called Kaito,” his voice echoed through the valley rippling along the rice paddies. She stared him in the eyes, and refused to be cowed. He measured her, staring her up and down before turning to walk away without another word. Probably something to do with that woman again, she thought and fought the urge to roll her eyes.

She was perplexed by his reaction, but pleased; her short temper and violence towards the false god had not summoned his wrath, not yet at least. Nothing worse than a man scorned! Suzume thought. They probably had a spat and she took it too far and he won’t move on. She sighed. And now I am cleaning up the mess.

 She scanned the area for her sandals and found them floating in a rice paddy nearby. She cursed aloud this time and went to find something in which to fish them out.

Down the road Kaito called out: “you shouldn’t wear socks with those, you’ll get blisters!”

“Thanks a lot,” she muttered as she hoisted a sopping wet straw sandal out of the water with a twig.

As she was pulling the sandal out something else came out of the water with it. A green webbed hand was holding onto the sandal as well.

Suzume screamed and dropped the stick and fumbled backwards falling onto her rear. The sandal landed in the water with a small splash. The hand was followed by an indented head, almost as if the creature had a dish in its skull. It emerged from the water’s surface and blinked large black eyes at her. Suzume screamed again and the creature opened its beak and squawked at her.

Suzume, over her initial fear, grabbed the stick and twacked the thing with it.

“Get out of here! You strange thing!” She shooed it.

The creature flailed and splashed about, trampling a few fledgling rice plants.

“What’s all this commotion?” Kaito asked coming over to Suzume who was activity hitting the creature now.

“This toad thing attacked me!” She said pointing an accusing finger at the creature, who had sunk down in the water. Only his black eyes and indented head were above the water’s surface.

“This?” Kaito pointed to the creature. He knelt beside the rice paddy. The creature sunk beneath the surface leaving a ripple in its place. Kaito reached in after it and pulled out the squirming creature which continued to wale a high pitched shriek. It was a pale green all over with a turtle shell and webbed hands and feet. “Stop your noise, insect. I am your lord returned after many centuries sleep.”

The creature flailed and beat at Kaito’s arm with its webbed hands. He sighed. “Use your words. I know you speak the common tongue.”

The creature looked at him blinking its large black eyes. “You no eat me?” It asked with a trembling squeaky voice.

“No, I will not eat you.” Kaito said with a smirk. “If you behave and answer my questions.”

The creature nodded its head furiously and it was a wonder the water in the indent on its head did not spill out onto the ground.

“What is it?” Suzume asked as she wrinkled her nose.

“This?” Kaito said as he dangled the creature in front of Suzume. “This is a water spirit. A little insect that lives in bodies of water and has a bad habit of drowning unsuspecting idiots, don’t you?” He shook the Water Spirit who nodded its head in eager agreement as if blindly agreeing to Kaito’s insults.

“Are you saying I’m an idiot?” Suzume asked with an arched brow.

“No, you just did.” He smirked and then turned his attention back to the Water Spirit. “Now tell me, whose been ruling this region in my absence?”

“Many come. Many go. Humans multiply. Big ones disappear but for one,” The Water Spirit looked back and forth and would not answer Kaito’s question directly.

“Answer me straight, you little water beetle! Who is it the monkey clan? The ogres? No wait, they’re both too stupid to even put on pants, it wouldn’t have been either of them. “

“This region is ruled by Governor—“ Suzume interjected but was quickly cut off.

“Not your paltry human ‘rulers’, one of one hundred thousand, the earth’s first children, an immortal. We owned this land before your gods even thought to craft you for their amusement and now look how you’ve spread across this land like a disease. I would never have let humans destroy these lands like this.” He motioned to the rice patties surrounding them. He shook the Water Spirit again. “Who is the remaining ‘big one’ then?” he growled.

The Water Spirit shrunk into itself making a compact little ball. “He has many names. Many faces. No one knows for sure.”

Kaito sighed. “I’ll let you leave this time but if you try to drown something of mine again, I’ll use your shell as my soup bowl!”

He dropped the water spirit. It landed on its turtle shell and rolled over before scurrying into the water.  The last they heard was a splash. All that marked his escape was a small ripple on the surface of the water. Suzume watched the water spirit leave and then looked back to the Dragon.

“What does he mean, ‘big one?’” She asked.

He crossed his arms over his chest as he scanned the horizon. His eyes were narrowed looking in the distance. Suzume shaded her gaze behind her hate to try and spot what he was looking at but saw nothing.

“What are you looking at?” She asked impatiently.

 After a few minutes of silence he answered her. “There are different levels of immortal. They range anywhere from beings like me down to insects like that thing. The higher level immortals rule over the smaller ones and keep them from devouring each other. If there were another being like me in this area I would feel his spiritual pressure or at least a trace if he were disguising himself.”

“Well, do you sense anything?” She asked with a hand on her hip.

“No,” he replied.

“Well, isn’t that a good thing?” She asked.

“It is as if there really isn’t another first level immortal here, but it’s possible he’s powerful enough that he does not even leave a trace. That would make him as powerful as me.”

Kaito strode away. Suzume snatched her sandal off the ground and shoved her foot into it. It squished unpleasantly as she walked but there was no time to complain or she would be left behind.

“Where are you going?” She demanded.

“An old friend of mine is nearby. I think it’s time we paid him a little visit and found out about this ‘big one’.” He smiled at her over his shoulder.

Suzume sighed. Somehow she did not think this encounter would bode well for her. Maybe if she was lucky Kaito would meet this big one and they would somehow kill one another and take care of her problem for her. She could only hope.  

 A/N: 

The adjoining image is of a Water Spirit or Kappa. In Japanese mythology, a Kappa lived in rivers and lakes and drowned people who they came across. The dish in its head is for water and according to the stories if it ever dries out they will die. Kappa's are probably one of the more popular Japanese mythological creatures you still see them referenced in popular Japanese culture today. Before anyone asks, The Priestess and the Dragon has heavy Japanese influence but is not necessarily set in feudal Japan but something model very closely to it.