Past Eternity

'Once you've met someone, you don't really forget them. It just takes a while for your memories to return.' A series of one-shots on what happens after Chihiro's departure. Dedicated to Hayao Miyasaki, my favorite film creator of all time.

One thousand, four hundred and sixty-two

Will we meet again sometime? Sure we will. Promise? Promise.

Spring, the season of renewal and life. The birds are chirping joyously, and the flowers are blooming, coloring the earth with their soft petals. In the middle of a forest, a rare patch of untamed wilderness surrounded by technology, is an old tunnel. Despite its appearance, the tunnel serves as a portal to a new world, one untouched by the greed of humans. Beyond that tunnel is the Spirit World, one that is and will continue to be separate from the Human World. Only one person in all of history has ever entered that world and came back with her memory intact.

That girl now stands in front of that magical entrance once more. She slips the backpack that she is carrying off her slender shoulders and lays it on the petal-covered ground. With long slender fingers, she unzips it and extracts a pen along with a piece of colorful square paper. With ease, she flips her long ponytail out of her way and begins to write on the white side of the paper.

Dear Dragon,

Spring has come again, and everywhere I go, the ground is covered with pretty pink cherry blossom petals. I have only a couple of months left until I graduate out of high school. Time flies by, doesn't it? I think I told you this already, but last month I got accepted into Keio University's science program; isn't this great? When I graduate from college, I'm going to help create new ways for humans and nature to coexist together peacefully. I guess my time in the Spirit World really opened my eyes to what humans do to the environment. Remember that river spirit that I helped on my first day of work? Now that I have the time to think about what happened, I'm sad that humanity is the reason that such a majestic and free spirit was chained. What if you were trapped instead? I could never wish this on anyone else, especially not you. Therefore, I'll try my best to redeem humanity and change their ways.

Always waiting,

Chihiro

After concluding her letter, she places her pen back inside her bag and begins to fold the piece of paper. Matching corner to corner, the girl folds the paper in half, opens it, folds it in half the other direction, then diagonally, pops it into a square, and continues folding until at last, a pretty origami crane rests on her pale palm. She takes the delicate paper creation and lays it on the head of the small stone statue that stands in front of the tunnel. With her task done, she grabs the shoulder strap of her backpack and turns around. Slowly, she walks out of the forest.

Ever since that fateful day as a child many years ago, Chihiro Ogino has been visiting the portal daily. Each and every day, she does the same thing; every time, the crane that she makes the previous day would be gone. And so, she continues to wait for him, day after day, week after week, year after year.

Cranes, she decides, are long since thought to carry messages to the spirits of departed loved once. Since they can cross over the border of the living and the dead, it makes sense that they can cross the border between humans and spirits.

A thousand cranes grant a wish. Every one thousand cranes that she makes, for him or for herself, she would close her eyes and wish. Each time she wishes, it is always the same wish. And each time, the hope in her heart would die out, and she would smile. Not the smile that she once had on her face, but one that is hollow, meaningless, and mocking. Still, she would come back the next day, and the day after that and continue her daily ritual.

Slowly, time passes by, a never-ending and flowing river. The petals on the ground disappears, and the cicadas return once more.

The wind rustles through the trees as the leaves dance in the air to welcome her once more. Today is her graduation day. From today on, she will no longer be able to make her daily trip to the tunnel. Chihiro stops at the entrance of the forest and looks up at the pale blue sky.

'Eight years. Eight years since the day I met him. I'm all grown up now. I'll miss this place.' She smiles sadly and begins her walk into the woods for the last time.

Midway through, she halts, shocked. There is another figure standing at the tunnel. The figure is dressed in white and dark emerald hair contrasts against the pure color.

'No, it can't be.' With numb hands, she drops her backpack and begins to sprint. Her heart hammers in her chest with painful hope, and her brain races a mile a minute.

'Haku…' Panting, she stops in front of the figure. The person turns around, and grass green eyes meet her own brown ones. He is no longer the child that he was eight years ago, just like she is not the timid little girl from before. The first thing she notices is that he has grown taller. Before, they were both equal in height; now he is a full head taller than her own height of 5' 4". His hair has also grown longer, kept back with a hair tie. For what seems like an eternity, she stares at him in wonder, and he calmly returns her gaze, a million unspoken emotions flickering through his eyes.

Finally, he breaks the silence.

"I'm back; I kept my promise." He smiles. It was the same kind smile that haunts her dreams; how she has longed for this moment to come. Chihiro blinks in wonder and pinches herself on the arm.

'This isn't a dream…' She could feel tears pooling in her eyes, blurring her vision. Her mouth curves into a smile all by its own, a true smile of pure joy. Without hesitation, she flings herself at him, burying her face in his shirt. She inhales his scent of nature and water, and begins to sob tears of happiness, murmuring his name.

Haku does nothing other than hold her tightly, comforting her by his mere presence. When Chihiro finally calms down, they head toward the entrance of the forest together. As they walk, Chihiro rapidly fires question after question in an effort to catch up. Still smiling, Haku patiently answers her questions one by one.

"Oh, by the way" Haku says "I got your cranes, every one thousand, four hundred and sixty-two of them."

The End