"Which of these pigs are your parents?" Yubaba asked, her voice slow and ambitious. Chihiro's mouth went dry. She only had one shot at this. Although she's known her parents all her life, a child can't possibly compare to the wit of an experienced spirit. She glanced at Haku, who gave her an encouraging nod. Wiping her sweaty palms on the sides of her shorts, she looked as hard as she could at the two rows of pigs in hopes that there would be some kind of sign that would give away the right answer.
Nothing happened. Chihiro panicked for a moment. Why is nothing speaking out to me?
But then it came to her. The sign was just that! It was all a trick. "Is there a mistake here?" she asked, "None of them are my parents."
Yubaba looked her right in the eye, towering over her as if she was going to swallow her whole. "Are you sure about that?" she inquired. One word would determine her and her parents' fate. She didn't dare answer. The world spun sickeningly She could hear the pounding of her heart in her ears, the chatter of the spirits was quiet but cacophonous. A tiny part of her wished that time would just stop here so that she wouldn't have to make this decision. But that wouldn't be happening any time soon.
"Well?" Yubaba prompted.
"I think that's enough," a voice rang out from behind them. Clear. Strong. Authoritative. The contract in Yubaba's hand exploded. Chihiro's head whipped back to see a young woman in her early twenties with dark brown hair. She had a solid build and her azure eyes held an air of power.
"Korra!" Chihiro exclaimed and ran to embrace her older sister figure as relief flooded her being. Their parents had been friends for years before she was born and she's always looked up to Korra as a hero. She's never been so happy to see someone familiar before.
"Avatar Korra," Yubaba addressed her cordially, although she inwardly cursed at the avatar's untimely appearance.
"The human and spirit worlds may be connected now, but that doesn't mean that you get to go around brainwashing little girls," Korra chastised, unamused. The worlds have been united for a few years now, but there was still tension between the humans and the spirits, which will probably last until the end of time. Generally, they were all okay, but spirits like Yubaba liked throwing things out of balance for their own gain. Avatar? More like babysitter, telling humans to stop this, spirits to drop that. Korra mentally rolled her eyes.
"I'm taking Chihiro back to the human world," Korra announced. It was not in any way a request for permission. Yubaba's face contorted inelegantly and was about to say something in return when Korra refocused her gaze. "Gotta problem with that?" she challenged, raising her eyebrows.
The old spirit woman sighed in defeat, "No". Chihiro felt a rush of pride at her idol's authority. Korra turned around and led her away, but before crossing the bridge she turned back around to make an obnoxious gesture with her fingers. "I got my eye on you," she warned. She mentally made a note to keep tabs on Yubaba and the bath house.
As they left, Korra noticed that Chihiro was holding hands with a spirit but decided not to question it.
When they approached the dry river bend, Chihiro pulled away and faced her spirit friend. "What are going to do now Kohaku?" she asked.
"I'm going to go back there and have a talk with Yubaba. I'm going to quit being her apprentice," he replied with a determined look in his eye, causing girl's face to light up.
"Then you can come with us to the human world!" If she had a friend by her side, then moving to a new place won't be so bad after all. And they can be together forever.
"I'm afraid not. This is as far as I can go. My river's gone, so if I go to the human world I'll start fading away," the spirit boy explained apologetically. A spirit with no purpose and no home to be tethered to would forget himself and cease to exist in the human world. He could feel the bitterness of regret in the back of his throat when Chihiro's face fell.
"But what are you going to do here?"
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I got my name back thanks to you. I'll figure out where to go," Kohaku reassured. Deep down though, he had absolutely no idea what would happen afterward. He's never done anything without his river or Yubaba before. For the first time in years the spirit felt a tinge of nervousness for the future.
Chihiro looked up at Korra hopefully, praying that she could find a way to help her friend. The Avatar's expression was thoughtful. "I guess I could arrange something," she said, obviously still thinking it over as she spoke, "but it's going to have to take some time." Because even the Avatar struggles with finding solutions. Korra hoped that Chihiro wouldn't be able to tell she was winging all of this.
"That won't be necessary," a gentle voice cut in. For the second time that day Chihiro turned back to see a woman floating in the air in an ethereal white dress with hair as white as snow. Both Korra and Haku bowed respectfully; Chihiro hastily copied their gesture. "Yue," Korra greeted. Her posture was formal but her voice was friendly.
The spirit landed gracefully on the ground and bowed back in return. "It's good to see you Avatar Korra. I'm here to offer the Kohaku River an apprenticeship under Tui and La," she explained, "he has shown great bravery and kindness and has proven his worth to work under them." Everyone's eyes fell on the mentioned river spirit, who looked surprised himself. It wasn't every day that the Moon and Ocean would take in a random spirit. Haku got down on one knee before Yue and bowed his head, "It would me my honor to accept," he said.
Yue proceeded to place a hand on his hand. There was a flash of soft white light that dissipated into the air. Nothing seemed to have changed physically, but Chihiro knew that her friend has finally found a place in his world now.
As he stood up, she asked hopefully, "Will I ever see you again?"
"Of course," he replied. And he meant it too, he would make sure to find her again no matter what it takes as long as she'll wait for him.
"Promise?"
"Promise."
"It is time we part ways now," Yue announced, although she seemed a bit reluctant to interrupt their moment, "take care Avatar Korra." The moon spirit floated back into the air and Kohaku followed in dragon form. "I'll see you again," Korra said, waving at their receding forms.
Chihiro could feel the prickling of tears in her eyes as she watched them fly away, her vocal cords refused to cooperate. She would never forget the sight of the enchanting white lady in the air circled by the majestic dragon, and she would never forget the adventure she had in the spirit world. Before they disappeared, she forced her voice to work. "Goodbye Kohaku, I'll always remember you!" she shouted, waving her arms wildly in the air in hopes that somehow he would hear her. I'll think of you every day, she added mentally. And then they were gone.
A strong hand clapped her on the shoulder, pulling her back into reality. "Alright then kiddo, let's get you home before your parents freak."
Chihiro suddenly remembered her parents in the midst of all the chaos. "My parents! Are they okay?"
"Just fine," Korra reassured, "they're on the other side of the river, and their memory's been wiped."
"Oh," Chihiro replied quietly with a sigh of relief. She reached for the Avatar's hand, "Let's go then."
They walked in silence for a while until Korra decided to ask if she had a preference for river spirits.
OoOoOoOo
Every night after her adventure, Chihiro gazes up at the moon before going to bed, dreaming of a reunion with the boy who helped her through the Spirit World. And on nights when the world is bathed in the soft light of the full moon, she can almost make out the silhouette of a dragon in the sky.
Not meant to be too much of a serious fic here. I just wanted to throw the idea out. Should I write a second chapter about their actual reunion?
This takes place years after Harmonic Convergence, and after the end of the Korra series, where humans can cross into the spirit world freely. Of course, most people don't really know the ins and outs of it all, but it would a take a very long time to everyone to get used to this change. Also, as Yue gave her life force back to Tui, they're part of one being according to my interpretation. However, Yue can be seen in the spirit world as a separate identity, the representative of the moon? Bah! Spirits aren't supposed to make sense to humans anyway! It's too difficult to explain.
Reviews for the desperate?