Xixekonohotse

Xixekonohotse

Originating in Ao Lai culture, Xixekonohotse is said to be the spirit of water. She is also considered by several scholars to be the spirit of the water bodies, though there is debate about this. Xixekonohotse is said to have an older twin sister, A'mechukohontsu, two nephews and a niece, E-hige-a-mesu, Ka-i-gemasu, and Ka-i-jemasu respectively. Like her sister, she is believed to be native to Nippon, but unlike her sister, it is virtually impossible to find an Ao Liese person who believes she has a male form or is not female to begin with. She is almost universally believed to be female; while about 8-9% of Ao Liese say A'mechukohontsu has a male form, less than 1% say the same about Xixekonohotse. Her name translates into "miserable water creature."

Xixekonohotse is said to have been born during a sudden typhoon that extinguished an uncontrollable blaze, according to some Nippon traditionalists. The antithesis of her older and often far more powerful sister, she was always desperately trying to keep her sister in check, if not partially cleaning up her messes. She would not allow her evil sister to have dominion over Ao Lai or any other part of the Earth. The two were (and are) constantly at odds. Being of greater power, A'mechukohontsu was not usually deterred by Xixekonohotse's repeated attempts to stop her cruelty or salacious ventures. However, she often delighted in seeing her sister's struggles, and she delighted even more in torturing her for her deeds, whether her attempts irritated her or not. This cycle wore the water spirit to something rather beyond a nervous wreck. Xixekonohotse was only once believed to have had the upper hand but at the expense of the Ao Lai people. During an especially erratic summer in the nation of Ao Lai, A'mechukohontsu's blazing heat fried the land in record temperatures. Xixekonohotse had had enough. Mad with wrath, she blasted the Yangtse River into an unforgiving flood that sped farther than its seasonal flooding would ever usually allow. The flood killed thousands that lived by its edge and many more away from it; it also never went down again and become the modern-day Yangtse Sea. A'mechukohontsu, now enraged, severely punished her younger twin, and Xixekonohotse never rose up against her again. It is said that the event resulted in the meek and silent madness of the water spirit that she still carries today.

Despite her madness, the water spirit is believed to have frequent times of calm. When at peace, Xixekonohotse is thought to have her true beauty show through. Her voice, described as sweet and lilting, is said to be audible in the soft bubbling of a stream or the knowing rush of the ocean. In reference to her mind, she is said to be knowledgeable and wise, having historic tales and myths alike from distant lands to tell. She also knows the names of all the fish in the sea and how many there are. She even knows who fishes where, and she's even said to have favorite fishermen to whom she awards extra fish. Many, mostly fishermen and tourists, have claimed to see her waving to them from the waves or more. Western tourists, especially, have mentioned "sightings" of Xixekonohotse, some referring to her as an "Ao Liese mermaid."

Almost unanimously believed to have one female form, the most common depiction of the water spirit is the most widely accepted, though there are multiple interpretations of this same form, i.e. different kimono styles and patterns or slightly different hairstyles. In some Ao Lai Mainland depictions, though, she appear in the traditional costume on occasion. The most famous version is a thin woman with deep blue skin, black hair that reflects blue, black lips, and a kimono that holds cool hues. She is a yi’e’non, or one of “those without vision or direction.” Because of this, she is portrayed to have no pupils or irises. Instead, she has large, blank white eyes; Xixekonohotse is most often shown to have a nervous, panicked, or guardedly fearful expression on her face coupled with fearful or shy body language. Like her sister, the water spirit is usually shown to walk about barefoot, though she, unlike her twin, appears to wear more than one layer. She appears to be in her early or mid 20s.

Xixekonohotse has an excitable and nervous personality, according to Nippon scholars. She lives in constant fear of her sister and is said to have a habit of skulking around Otherworld anywhere her twin is not. A'mechukohontsu leaves things in disarray, and she forces Xixekonohotse to clean up after her or else leaves it for the periodic cleaning rounds of Shureiko, the spirit of working. The water spirit hates cleaning but hates filth even more, spawning a love-hate relationship with tidying up behind her twin. When she isn't working, she is trying to find someone to talk to as she has a terrible fear of being alone. Scholars sometimes say the water spirit has more of a desire to find someone to talk "at" than talk "to," and she continuously shadows the Mighty Huang Mu as he is very quiet. But he is also fairly grumpy, and he usually either sends her away after a time or leaves her without a word. Xixekonohotse is widely believed to have a soft and loving side. She gladly watches after her nephews and niece, and she is also said to care for the child spirit of grass and trees, Hyohimeiji. In many fictional books based on fire and water spirits' family and friends, Xixekonohotse is very frequently portrayed as needy.

The water spirit is a resident of Otherworld. She lives in the clouds with her twin, her nephews and niece, and her housemate, Kintonkegatse, the spirit of clouds and storms.

-Taken from Strange Ao Lai Rules/Traditions-