Chapter One

Ten long minutes passed before the curious brunette broke the silence with the stranger to her right. He had stolen her attention almost immediately as he walked along the edge of the lake, his strides slow and powerful. His dark hair was long enough to touch the mid of his back and he was dressed in the finest of robes, something she found to be unusual in modern day Japan. When he had sat beside her, she instinctively held her breath and though she didn't know why, it seemed like her life depended on it. Finally the quietness was too much to bare, for even the rustling of the trees above and the gentle coos of the loon couldn't distract her from the beautiful human being that had sat beside her on the bench. "The robes are beautiful," Chihiro Ogino said with a welcoming grin. "Are you coming from a ceremony?" Her smile soon began to fade as it became apparent that the stranger wasn't interested in her failed attempt at small talk, for he didn't budge or even merely look in her direction. The air was thick and painfully uncomfortable. Deciding not to endure the awkwardness any further, the young woman slung the strap of her purse over her shoulder and stood to leave. However, that decision came to a sudden halt when the stranger clung to the end sleeve of her shirt and tugged her to sit back down. She was just about to blurt out a "hey, watch it!" before she turned to see him gazing up at her with brilliant green eyes, wide with what seemed to be panic and distress. The moment their eyes met, the man quickly let go of her shirt and cleared his throat uncomfortably, sitting up straight and sitting with his back straight to the bench. "I apologize," he said. A calmness washed over them, as if magic, as a gentle smile appeared on his face. It was comforting and somehow felt familiar. "I just wasn't sure what to say- it's been so long." He cut himself short and quickly followed up with, "Please, sit."

The conversation stretched from the bench, along the edge of the lake, and eventually to a small restaurant downtown where the strangers smiled across each other with a shared plate of ramen and dumplings between them. "This entire time and you haven't asked for my name yet. I'm Chihiro," the girl said before popping a full dumpling into her mouth. She chewed it awkwardly, clearly it was too big for her mouth to fully chew, yet continued on trying instead of spitting it into the napkin on her lap. The man simply smiled in return, his eyes warm and inviting. Something within him wanted to say I know but he instead said, "I'm Haku." Chihiro immediately swallowed and looked up at him, her brown locks bouncing off of her shoulders, and looked at him skeptically. The wheels were churning in her head and she couldn't seem to understand why. "I was named after a river in my hometown," he said nonchalantly, "It was called the Kohaku River." His eyes were dead set on hers, as if he were searching for something within her, but she only said, "I used to go there as a kid. I think it's apartments now."

Neither of them wanted the night to end, though neither of them would ever admit that to the other. Haku insisted on walking her home, which Chihiro naively agreed to, and the walk home seemed to the last forever. A distinct moment was when she had reached for his hand, which he quickly shoved down into the pockets of his robes. Ouch, she thought to herself. But she didn't blame him; he was the most beautiful man she had ever seen and it was silly to think he would be interested in her, at least in that way. It was shocking that he had even offered to bring her home. The embarrassment only grew as they walked through her neighborhood and drew closer to the apartments. The streets were littered was glass, broken shards of alcohol bottles, and cigarettes. Shouting could always be heard from the windows as well as painful stares from the men whenever she walked by. Tonight was the first time in a long time she hadn't been cat called, as if Haku was her protector from all the neighborhood perverts. "It's strange to see a precious girl in such a scummy environment." Shocked by the comment, Chihiro quickly opened her mouth to retaliate but suddenly found herself lost in the words 'precious girl.' She hadn't felt butterflies in her stomach for years. "Most people with fancy apartments only have them off of their parents' money," she finally said, "I earned my home. Speaking of-" They stopped in front of one of the buildings and clutched her purse in both fists. She watched as the man's eyes scanned the building and then fell upon hers. Haku grinned to himself when he noticed that she was blushing and clearly waiting for something more. "Goodnight. Sen."

"Sen?" Chihiro said aloud. Anger bubbled over her being as she watched the man walk away underneath the orange street lights, and caused her to walk after him. "A precious girl whose name you can't even remember?" She said. Her voice was whining and pathetic, something she was often criticized for years before but thought she had left behind, but she couldn't help but feel the hurt wash over her. She had only known Haku for a night but somehow, him calling her the wrong name was simply infuriating. He didn't turn around when he heard her angry footsteps but slowed down, eventually coming to a full stop to allow her to catch up with him. Both of them were caught off guard when Chihiro had reached him and grabbed his hand; her voice raised and ready to continue on the badgering but suddenly she stopped. There was a squeeze on her hand and suddenly everything she had ever forgotten came flooding back. Chihiro, what a pretty name!... You work for me now. Sen. Images of the bath house flashed in her mind so vividly that she began to question if she were there again or in the streets in front of her home. You don't remember your name?... No, but for some reason I remember yours. His smile was so innocent. I remember now, I was the spirit of the Kohaku River?... A river spirit?" A river spirit. Haku. Her mind was spinning and totally overwhelmed, absorbed by the memories she desperately had tried to cling to but had vanished with every step through the tunnel. She could feel the thoughts of Haku falling apart but he told her to go on, told her that her parents were waiting for her on the other side. Her eyes swelled with memories in the form of tears, spilling down her cheeks. Haku caressed her cheek with one hand and stroked his long fingertips down the other side, tracing her tears with trembling hands. "Haku," she cried. "I had nearly forgotten. Oh, Haku."