"Chihiro, we're almost there."
She was loaded in the back seat with several boxes and bags filled with her family's necessities. She held a bouquet of pink flowers close to her along with a small card written out to her from a class mate before she moved. She let out a sigh and looked up into the trees looking at being shaken by the wing. The gentleness if the leaves falling down from the tree tops being carried across the sky by the wind; landing peacefully in the river floating calmly as it drifted away our of her vision. She held the flowers close to her flowers close to her crushing them a bit. She looked down at them trying to fix the flowers she had crushed, her mother did tell not to smother them.
She looked beyond the trees the trees to find a young male about 14, her age, with black hair and soft brown eyes. He smiled and waved at her. She couldn't help but smile back at his kindness. She assumed that he was aware of a new family moving onto his street, maybe he was a neighbor of hers. She turned her attention to the front of the car which had stopped.
"Honey? I think we're lost..." her mother said nudging him in the shoulder.
"No we're not." he said pointing to a small house located on top of a hill, "There it is there, on top of the hill. The blue one right there." He started the car and driving forward. The road began to grow bumpy and narrow. Chihiro held on for dear life feeling like the car was going to tip over or crash. The road finally started to flatten out and they were on a grass road. They had parked out front of the house just taking in the scenery and the veiw that they would get each day from the house.
It didn't take them long to relocate the boxes and bags from the car to their new house. It took them about fifteen to twenty minutes to unpack everything. Her mother looked around and at the back yard and signalled her father over. Soon after; Chihiro found her parents about to take a walk on a small dirt path. She stayed behind them since she was such a slow walker but she took that to her advantage. She took that time to feel the cool wind press against her face. As she walked she saw small shrines under trees. She had always admired the spirits. They always enchanted her making her mind work in so many different ways. It always amazed her that the spirits could take the forms of humans. She walked past an opening to see a large stone statue which had a large grim look on it's face which looked familiar to her.
They had made it to a small narrow tunnel in which her parents had already entered. She saw something mounted in front of it. 'A statue' she thought to herself, ' just like the one from before...' she examined it for a bit until running off into the tunnel. There was a strange feeling she got when she entered, an erie breeze swept across her cheeks as she felt the presence of someone watching her. She continuously would look back behind her but no one was to be found. As she made to the end the breezed got calmer more sooth as she started calming down. There before her were fields of the greenest grass she had ever seen. It felt like velvet against her bare legs. Again she felt the urge to look behind her but again, nothing, nothing but rumbling.
"Honey.. Do you hear that?" her mother asked her father.
"It's a train!" Chihiro exclaimed looking around for tracks.
"We must be near a station." her mother said.
"Come on, let's go check it out." her father said continuing to walk into the tall grass.
There more stone statues were to be found but they were different than the other two. They looked more peaceful than the others did. There old abandoned buildings still stood tall. Stone exterior was starting to rust and grow old. She soon found a small dirt path leading up to what seemed to be a town on a small hill. She stood there as her parents took the lead again. She still felt as if someone was watching her. Again the wind struck almost carrying her off of her feet as she took off running to catch up to her parents. She could have sworn that the building was moaning.
Her mother was too busy speaking to her father about picnics and her father found a slow moving river that was aligned by rocks. She quaintly hopped cross them the tips of her raggedy yellow sneakers occasionally touching the water.
"Hey, do you smell that?" her father announced taking a few steps up the old steps to the stone path, " maybe it's still in business. Come on!" her father yelled as her parents took off. She slowly made her way up the stairs then took off to run with them trying her best not to lose them. There were buildings of so many different colours. An array of pinks, blues, greens and all others. They looked run down their paint peeling, but on the inside they looked like they were taken care of regularly. Strange thing was, was that there wasn't a sign of anyone there.
Her father kept running until her came to a two way path. Left or Right. He stood in the middle of the intersection smelling his way. He pointed to the left, grunted, and took off running once again. They came to an array of restaurants which she found strange. She kept walking along with her parents until her father stopped looking at all the fresh food that had been made. Her parents eyes widened.
"Hello?" Her mother called out, " Well I suppose that we can leave the bill here for when they get back."
Chihiro had a bad feeling about it. It made her stomach turn each time her one of her parents picked up a food item and ate it. A shiver ran down her spine, " I don;t think we should be eating that..." she mumbled.
"Relax, it's just food, come and eat Chihiro." her father said as he downed the food on his plate down his throat like there was no tomorrow.
She looked at them un-easy, her toes curled up as she walked away prepared to explore the rest of the town. She felt disgusted watching and listening to her parents eating, they were like pigs. They didn't stop for anything, they just kept at it eating and eating! Snorting and chewing loudly she had never seen her parents like that. She walked up the sun dried red stone path that lead up to stairs, which directed her to another shrine, larger than the other she's seen. She looked up at it for a moment when something else caught her eye.
It was a much larger building that looked well taken care of, it was a bath house. She walked up the path which lead to a wide wooden bridge with red painted railings. The wind raddled the window pains. Everything about this building looked like people were working there all the time, but again; no one was to be found or at least suspected. A small water fall came down from the rocks attached to it. As the water his the source steam arose from it. It both looked and sounded so... relaxing.
She stood at the start of the bridge taking in the sight as she started to move forward with the intention to go into the bath house. Before that she looked under the bridge where she saw the train coming out of a tunnel and through the next. She smiled in delight happy to see that she had found the train. The roof top was red and the body yellow, under each window there was an orange panel which made the train stand out. She ran to the other side to see if she could get a better look. She stood on the railings looking over. She again felt a presence she looked to her left to find a boy about her age, he looked familiar to her but she couldn't put a finger on it. He gasped as she looked at him and he took steps towards her before she could say anything she was stopped.
"You shouldn't be here." he said clenching his fists continuing to walk towards her, "Get out of here now!" he de anded raising his voice at her. His face looked at her in fear, but where did she know him from. She tried examining him just a bit longer but she knew she couldn't. She knew she had to get her parents out of there and to leave while they still had the chance, "It's almost night! Leave before it gets dark!"
"What?" she asked confused. e pointed back to where she had come from.
The boy looked around them at the buildings as the lights began to light up, " their lighting the lamps... Leave now! I can hold them off for only a bit!" he yelled again. HE turned back to her and ran pushing her in front of him, " Get out of here and get across the river by night fall!" he yelled again turning his back to her he blew from his fingers a white dust as she began to run. She kept running not looking she knew that they would get in trouble. She ran down the path passing the shrine and down the steps. She watched as the lights around her light up. She looked around seeing shadows arise from the streets. She didn't know what was happening, she looked frantically for the restaurant her parents were in. She finally came to it. Most of the food was gone. She went off to the side of it where she remembered seeing her parents eating. In there place were two pigs eating everything in their path.
She let out a scream, "Mom! Dad!" she yelled, they ignored her. At this point she was too frightened to move but the sight of the shadows made her. She kept running, the shadows were every where. Up rising from the streets, appearing in the restaurants. She kept running tears welling up in her eyes as she tried dodging the path of the shadows. At moments she would find herself running through one. She yelped almost running into one her third time. she continued running down the stairs and along the path in which they had came from. She ran down another set of steps in which her and her family had came from when they had crossed the river.
Note caring if she got wet her intention was to just get across it. As she ran through she found the water getting deeper with no ricks or end to guide her. She looked beyond the water, "Wha-.. An ocean!" she yelped running back out of it and falling onto the steps scared for her life. Being overwhelmed she let tears escape her eyes landing down into her knees which were pressed up against her chest, "I'm dreaming... I'm dreaming..." she whispered to herself looking back up at the water finding a small boat coming up onto the shore. She looked down at herself, startled at the sight that she was disappearing into thin air. She held her arm over her eyes seeing right through it.
The boat docked letting down a wooden platform, she couldn't help but gaze at it, the colours were illuminating. The doors on the ship opened as she saw dozens of masks floating in thin air. She was shaking as they masks mad it onto the platform, they had suddenly had bodies appear! She backed away in fear her eyes still full of tears. She ran behind a building to a patch of grass and trembled scarcely.
He came up the hill running after her looking around for where she went. There he could see her disappearing sitting on the hill side with her face in her knees. he slowly walked up to her, sitting beside her. He placed each of his hands on her shoulders and looked over her with concern. She could feel his touch it was so warm and kind. She slowly moved her head up to look at him. It was the boy from the bridge that she had seen before. He left of a soft smile. She knew that smile.
"You.. You're the boy that waved at me... Aren't you?" she asked.
He ignored her question and looked her dead in the eyes. His gaze warming, even if it was meant to be threatening, she couldn't take it that way, " Don't be afraid. I just want to help." he said reaching into his pocket pulling out a small red berry, "Eat this. It will help you to not disappear." he said. Chihiro took the berry and placed it in her mouth chewing slowly then swallowing. She looked down at her self to realise that she had changed. She could no longer see through herself.
She leaned over and gave him a hug, " Thank you..." she whispered.
A feeling he had never had before rushed across his cheeks as he pushed her away after a moment of her hugging him. He stood up, "Now, come with me." he said pulling her up grabbing her hand. It was warm. Welcoming. He heard something flying over head and pushed her against the wall leaning against her. Chihiro held her breath still shaking as he looked up at the sky to see what seemed to be a crow with the head of an old woman.
"That bird is looking for you, we've got to get you out of here." he said trying to pull her along with him.
"I can't.. I-..I'm stuck!" she struggled to move her feet from he ground.
"Calm down and take a deep breath." he said, and she listened as he bent down placing a hand on her foot, "In the name of the wind and water with in us, unbind her." he said again pulling her along with him. They ran so fast together, it felt as if they were flying. He grasped her hand tightly and moved swiftly through the crowds. They ran down an alley way about to run into an old shack as he moved his hand across his body and the door was pushed open. He took her inside taking her down a flight of stairs; passing through what seemed to be a meat locker. There were enormous fish laying on the floor, some hanging from the ceiling that had already been slaughtered, other had knives going through them. Soon they mad their way into yet another storage room, but it was a freezer. There hung carcass' of the slaughtered animals frozen until they were blue. After she found them running through a room of pigs. Dozens and Dozens of plump pigs jammed together. She kept hoping to herself that her parents weren't in there. She looked at each one of them eating their grain, some looking up and watching her running with him.
They made their way out of the barn and to that bath house. Two frogs stood at the beginning of the bridge only saying "Welcome, Welcome," to the people, or spirits that crossed it.
"You have to hold your breath while we cross the bridge, understand?" he said looking over with her, " I can't risk them seeing you." She nodded listening to his command, "I'll tell you when. Even the tiniest breath will break the spell then; everyone will see you." he finished. She held onto his arm tightly. Again the feeling went across his cheeks, he couldn't define it or let alone know how to control it. He didn't even know what this feeling was, it made his cheeks tingle. he clenched his cheeks trying to make it go away, "Just calm down, it'll be okay." he paused, "Now.." as he walked past the two frogs, "I'm back from my mission." he said and that was all as he made his way over the bridge, "We're almost there..." he whispered to her.
"Welcome back Master Haku." one said.
She could fee herself starting to get dizzy from lack of oxygen. Even though she had taken a deep breath when he had said she still felt light headed. She placed a hand over her mouth. They were almost there, she could see it only a few steps. Until a smaller frog came up and hopped in his face startling her making her gasp.
"Damn it.." he thought as the others around them yelled 'Human!' They flew. She was lifted off the ground and only inches above it as he avoided the people around them. He took her behind a secret door leading to a garden as he hid her in it.
"I'm sorry i-" she tried but was interrupted.
"It's okay." he said looking at her with a warm smile, "and yes, Chihiro, I am the same boy that you saw in the car."
"How.. How do you know my name?" she asked.
"I knew you when you were very little." he replied, " but you have to do as I say. You can not stay here. They'll find you, I'll create a distraction while you escape." He said.
She grabbed onto his shirt, "No please, don't leave me here!"
"You'll be okay," he said removing her hands, " When everything settles down you are to go out that gate and down the stairs. There; you will find the boiler room, you will ask Kamajii for a job. No matter how many times he says no you insist it until you can get one do you understand?" he said. She swallowed and nodded, for once the fourteen year old was scared of the spirits she had always admired, "You'll be okay," he said running off out into the commotion.
Thank you all for reading! I am absolutely in love with the works of Hayai Miyazaki. If you like it please review it would mean so much to get some feed back!
Becca.