I was a little bit drunk while walking through the early evening light. I had spent most of the afternoon at a local bar, eating dinner and having one too many glasses of sake. Stumbling my way home, I noticed a group of men up ahead of me laughing loudly. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that it was a group of co-workers that I didn't particularly like. Some of them liked to hit on me, but the leader of the small group was the absolute worst. He pushed the boundaries on sexual harassment and there were a few times that I almost reported him, but in the end, didn't.
Ducking into the woods next to me, I started down the dirt path. Praying that I escaped their notice as I headed down. There was no doubt that they had been drinking as well and I did not want to find out what happened to them when they got drunk. Briskly walking along the path, I stared straight ahead of me. Careful, quiet steps carried me further down the path until I could just barely make out the main road.
"I've got to take a leak. Wait up for me."
I froze for just a moment before starting to sprint as carefully as I could down the dirt path. I wasn't sure who had spoken, but it wasn't going to be good if anyone caught me in the woods or if the entire group's attention was brought to me. I could hear the group murmuring about something, but didn't stop in my attempt to get away from them. I stumbled at one point and caught myself on a tree before continuing. The path was beginning to fade and the woods seemed like they were swallowing me up.
I could no longer hear the group behind me, but I didn't dare turn around and go back up the path for fear that they would linger there and catch me on my return. Instead, I pushed forward through the woods, walking for a few more minutes until I was finally deposited onto another dirt path. This one was large enough to fit a sedan comfortably without hitting the woods bordering either side of it. Looking to the right, I could see a large building looming ahead of me and my curiosity got the better of me.
Slowly, I moved towards the building. It looked ancient with its large walls and looming tower. The tunnel ahead of me was dark, no lights on the inside. I paused at the opening of the tunnel and peered into the darkness. Something was making me feel a little uneasy and I couldn't tell if it was because of being tipsy or the near encounter with my perverted co-workers. Just then, a slight breeze kicked up and it almost seemed as if it was pulling me into the tunnel. Against my better judgement and the small voice in the back of my head saying this was a bad idea, I stepped into the tunnel.
The tunnel was long and dark, but that didn't bother me. I had never really been afraid of anything growing up which had gotten me into a lot of trouble as a kid. That fearlessness had followed me into adulthood, luckily commonsense had been thrown into the mix and I didn't get into as much trouble nowadays. I exited the tunnel and was presented with a specular rolling field of grass and what almost appeared to be a small town further up on the hill. There was still plenty of sunlight left and I was curious. My curiosity combined with my fearlessness is what carried my feet forward and towards the small town. I wanted to investigate and see what the town was and what it was doing here randomly in the woods. I had never heard of a town being there and surely if it contained a bar, my friend and I would have found out about it. Miki, my best friend, had a talent for finding random, awesome bars and there was no doubt in my mind that she would have found this town eventually.
I went across a bed of stones that were probably supposed to hold a river and up a set of stairs. I was finally starting to enter town and the first thing that struck me about it was that it mostly was food stalls. All the small shops clustered together were some type of food stall and in the distance, I could see that one had its kitchen fired up. I walked towards it and ducked under the small curtain to see inside. The counter to the stall was packed with plates that were piled high with food and it all looked delicious. Not only did it look delicious, but it smelled divine and I swallowed hard. The small voice was back and every hair on my body stood at attention. Despite my stomach protesting loudly, begging for the food, I didn't touch it. Something about the stall and the fact that the cooks were nowhere in sight, made me feel uneasy.
Leaving the food stall area, I headed forward. There was a large intersection ahead and I could go in any direction. To the left and ahead seemed to be more food stalls, although it looked like there was a possibility of small novelty shops mixed in for once. To the right was a beautiful red bridge that led to a splendid Bathhouse. Drawn to the bridge, I went right and within a few strides was standing on the bridge. I took a moment to take in the Bathhouse. It was large. No, it was more than that. It was ginormous and grand. It was like I had travelled back in time and was standing in the middle of old Japan. The walls were made of sliding glass that made up the walkways for most of the building. Everything about it screamed elegance and I was curious as to what the inside looked like. At that moment, the sound of a train caught my attention and I rushed to the side of the bridge to watch it pass underneath me.
I had always been fascinated with trains, but I had never really been on one before. My grandmother, to whom I was named after, used to talk of trains and the spirits quite fondly. Once when my grandmother was visiting, she had told me about a time that she had taken a train to see a witch and save her first true love from an evil spell that had been place on him. I had just nodded and kept quiet. My grandmother was quite old at that point and I chalked it up to the simple fact that she was getting older and her mind was starting to slip. But my grandmother had always loved the sound of trains. I starred at the train fondly, thinking of my grandmother when I felt a presence behind me.
Spinning around, I turned and saw a man standing on the bridge just a few feet behind me. For a few moments, we just quietly regarded each other and I was taken aback by how stunningly handsome he was. He had jet black hair, jade green eyes, and he appeared to be in great shape. His hair was currently pulled back into a man-bun and for some reason, I wondered what it would look like down. His clothes were like that of old Japan. A white tunic shirt and blue tunic pants held tightly on with a purple sash. My attention was once again brought up to his eyes. They were staring at me with such an intensity that it took my breath away. The man took a hesitant step forward and I drew back slightly, my hips hitting the railing behind me which I was gripping hard.
"Chihiro?" The man asked, still inching forward little by little.
"How do you know my name?" I asked, staying where I was.
"Chihiro, don't be like that. Surely you remember me." The man said, sounding a little hurt.
"I've never met you before in my life." I said, confused.
"But I saved you from drowning in my river when you were just a child. Don't you remember that? And when you were about ten years old. You were here, with me…" The man trailed off as I looked more and more confused.
"I think you've got me confused with my grandmother. The woman I'm named after. She almost drowned when she was a child as she was trying to get her shoe back, but she said the river saved her." I said.
The man looked like he had been slapped hard in the face.
"Your grandmother? How old are you?" He asked, almost as if he couldn't believe the words.
"Yeah. Everyone says that I look just like her. And I'm 23-years-old if you must know." I explained, still confused and a little uncomfortable at this point.
I watched the man absorb this fact, like it was unbelievable to him that I was standing before him and not the woman that he expected me to be.
"Is your grandmother still alive?" He asked suddenly.
"Sadly, no. She passed away about two years ago." I replied.
The man stumbled back for a moment and looked like the news of her death was something that shook him to his core. Feeling far more uncomfortable than I had originally felt, I started to inch my way back towards the food stalls. I could see behind the man that the sun was getting dangerously close to setting and if I wanted to get home at a reasonable time, now was the time to get going. Suddenly at the other end of the bridge, the lanterns in front of the Bathhouse were beginning to be lit and my attention was drawn to it. At the same time, the man snapped out of his trance and glared first at the lanterns and then at myself. I sucked in a breath, not liking those intense eyes on me and angry at the same time.
"You shouldn't be here. Leave before it's too late. I'll distract them." He said, stepping forward and pushing me away from the railing and back towards the food stalls.
He didn't have to say that twice, I took off running and didn't look back. My long braid thumped against my back, almost painfully as I ran, but I didn't stop. The man had frightened me and now my panic was beginning to increase as night steadily fell. Shapes began to appear as I ran through the streets. Dark, black shadowy figures that would suddenly appear where they hadn't been before. I panted, but I didn't stop. If I stopped, everything would hit me all at once and I didn't want to think about what was happening around me.
I ran past all the food stalls and was back at the stairs. I hurled herself down them, not noticing the water that was leaking out of the frog statue's mouth that was perched at the top of the stairs. I threw myself into water and went under with the force of my weight. I backed up and raced back up the stairs, not understanding how suddenly an entire lake stretched across the horizon. On the other side of the lake was a town that was lit up and very beautiful if I had taken the time to look at it, but all I saw was a foreign town and I was just barely able to make out the shape of the tower from the tunnel I had come through.
Not waiting around to see what happened, I ran back and took a left turn, trying to get away from all the lights and the scary figures that were before me. I ran and ran until I found a dark corner behind a shop that was secluded from the road. Sinking down onto my knees, I curled up and began to cry. What had just happened? Where was I? Who was that man that had seemed to know my grandmother so well? How was I going to get home? My mind and body went numb from being cold. I was drenched from the river and it didn't help that there was a slight breeze. I wasn't sure how long I stayed like that, but I was out of tears by the time a gentle hand touched my back.
I jumped and saw that it was the man from the bridge. What did he want with me now?
"No!" I said feebly, pulling away from him slightly.
"Shhh, it's okay. I'm here to help you. Here, you need to eat this." He said.
He held up a berry and was bringing it towards my mouth. I struggled against him and then thrust out my arms in an attempt to push him away. Instead of my arms making contact with him, they simply passed right through him. That's when I noticed that my body was transparent. A small choking noise made its way out of my mouth and I had to take another deep breath to keep myself from crying. The man waited patiently for a moment before bringing the berry back up to my lips.
"Eat this. It will make you better." He said, pushing it between my lips and keeping his finger there just in case I decided to spit it out.
I looked at him for a moment and then chewed the berry. It was sweet and the delicious juices flowed down my throat and made my mouth water. I swallowed it and the man smiled.
"You're better now. See for yourself." He said, holding out his hand.
Tentatively, I stretched out my hand and brushed my fingertips against it. This time, they didn't go through him. He locked his fingers with mine for a second and then tried to pull me up, but my legs didn't want to move for a moment. He bent down and I brushed him off.
"Just give me a second." I said.
I was still trying to wrap my mind around everything that had happened. Slowly and stiffly, I stood up and a shiver went through my body. I was cold still, but I was more concerned with finding out what had happened than with getting warm for the time being.
"We never properly introduced ourselves. Hello, my name is Chihiro. It's nice to meet you." I said, holding out my hand for the man to shake.
"My full name is Nigihayami Kohaku Nushi, but you can call me Haku." He said, shaking my hand.
I finally had a name to go along with the face. He seemed like he wanted to hold onto my hand, but he let it go and I dropped it to my side. He must have been close to my grandmother. There was no other explanation to why he would act like that to a perfect stranger.
"You can call me Hiro if it helps." I suggested, trying to find a way to bring him back to the present.
The man nodded and then looked up at the sky. I glanced up as well, trying to see if he was looking at something or just using it to get himself together. I waited until he had collected himself and then he turned his piercing gaze back to me. I sucked in a breath, but didn't say anything. Maybe he had to get used to the fact that I was the spitting image of my grandmother, although she had kept her hair shorter than I did and I had some pale freckles sprinkled across the bridge of my nose. But besides that, I had her brown hair, grey eyes, and slim figure. Even my grandmother had pointed out how similar we were.
"Haku, where am I? What is this place?" I asked finally.
"Well Hiro, this is the Spirit World." Haku said.