AN: This is just an idea that's been running through my head for a while and I needed to get it ot of there before it drove me mad(er). Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Spirited Away.

Chihiro ran through the woods, gasping frantically for breath. She had an awful stitch in her side, and her feet were threatening to fall off. But she continued to run as shouts of "OGINO!" came from behind her. Getting closer.

She should have known the day would end badly, after all every day in which she dreamt of his promise ended bad. When she'd returned through the tunnel five years ago she'd found out that not only did her parents not remember anything, but three days had passed without them realising. That had raised some awkward questions and required some brilliant acting on her part. After all what was she supposed to say? We spent three days in the Spirit world? Even at the age of ten she realised no one would believe her.

She'd been avoided at school as some idiotic kid started a rumour that she was cursed and that the Spirits haunted her. He did not know how close he was to the truth. Chihiro had spent most of her day dreaming about all her friends in the other world, wondering if they missed her. Wondering if a certain dragon in particular missed her.

She'd worked it all out in her head. It would probably take Haku, or Kohaku now, a while to leave the bathhouse (who knew what tricks Yubaba had up her sleeves), and then he'd have to figure a way to enter the human world. Zeniba would help him if he thought to ask, Chihiro was sure of it. After all her 'Granny' had made the special hair bobble that she wore constantly. Through her musings though she'd worked out that it could take years before she saw him again, and she was willing to wait, as long as he eventually came.

Chihiro had hoped that when she moved up to high school things might be better, but they'd got worse. At first she was just ignored as normal, until they were given a very interesting writing assignment.

Write the first chapter to a story about the supernatural.

This had been the chance of a lifetime for Chihiro. She'd been dying to tell someone about her adventures for ages, and here was her chance to do so in a way where no one questioned her sanity. Her first chapter had been of a girl whose father had got the family lost and they'd wondered into the Spirit world. Chihiro had copied her actual experience, remembering the horror, confusion and the surprising security associated with being near Haku. She'd ended the chapter when she'd just got her name stolen. She'd never actually named the main character of the story. Chihiro couldn't bear to have someone who was not named Chihiro be the main character, but knew it wouldn't look right if she used her own name. So she'd left the girl anonymous until the end, where Yubaba had smiled evilly and told the girl that her name was now Sen.

EXCERPT FROM CHIHIRO'S STORY

The girl gasped as the piece of paper she'd just signed her name on flew out of her grasp into the witch's hand. The witch looked at it and an evil grin made its way onto her face. It sent shivers down the girl's spine and she wondered for a moment what she'd just done.

"My, my what a pretty name," Yubaba cackled gleefully as she held her hand over the contract. Kanji peeled off the paper and floated up to her hand and she clenched her fingers around them. "And it belongs to me now. From now on your name is Sen."

END OF EXCERPT

Her teacher had been thrilled with her story, reading it out to the class and she'd been given an award for it, unfortunately an award a girl named Tia had been supposed to get before Chihiro's story. Tia's dad was one of the main benefactors of the school and her friend Sakura's dad was another one. Along with the fact that the final member of the group, Mei, had a father who was a famous lawyer, did not help Chihiro. She was now subject to the three girls' wrath and no one was going to help her.

Yesterday they'd pushed her into a locker and she now had a lovely, painful bruise that covered her upper neck and lower back. Her ankles were also bruised due to the number of times the girls had tripped her up and her knees and elbows were almost constantly scraped.

Today they'd ambushed her as she came out of the library, pushing her to the ground and laughing as she cut her arm on a bit of broken glass on the ground. Desperate to get away Chihiro had made a dash for home but in her hurry had spilt the water in her water bottle all over Tia. There'd been a moment of stillness, where not even the girls blinked and then Chihiro ran for it.

This led her back to her current predicament. The girls were catching her up and she'd just landed herself right where she didn't want to be. The entrance to the Spirit world. The trio came into view, faces livid and they had that glint in their eyes that promised pain. Seeing no other choice she darted through the tunnel, running across fields, across the dry river bed and up the steps that led to the small town. She faltered when she came to the restaurants. They hadn't changed at all. That was when the three girls caught her up.

"Got you Ogino," Tia smirked as she grabbed Chihiro's hair.

"Tia," Mei breathed as she and Sakura looked around. "Look," she pointed at the stacks of food set up for the spirits.

"No, don't eat it," Chihiro blurted out without thinking, remembering the disastrous consequences of eating the food from last time.

"Oh shut it Ogino!" Tia exclaimed. "I'm starving after chasing you all the way here." Tossing her long black hair over her shoulder she shoved Chihiro away and went to fill a plate. Chihiro stumbled, tripping over a rock she fell, twisting her right foot at an odd angle she landed on it, feeling a sharp pain lance up and down her foot.

Getting gingerly to her feet she tried to put some weight on her right foot and had to stifle a cry of pain. She looked back at the girls who were stuffing their faces. It was too late to stop them, they'd sealed their fate now. She thought briefly of what she would say when the police found out that she'd been the last one to see the trio. She didn't like that thought at all. She'd be prime suspect. No, she had to get them back, she didn't even want them to turn into bacon.

Looking at up at the sun she saw she had about five minutes until it set. Limping as fast as she could, she ignored the pain. If she could just find Rin, Kamajii or Haku then she could figure out what to do next from there. Tia, Sakura and Mei ignored her, too busy stuffing their faces to notice Chihiro 

move away. Chihiro would have never thought that the girls could eat so much considering the constant diet they were on back at home.

Footsteps could be heard making their way towards her and she froze, looking like a child who'd been caught playing tea parties outside in the mud, dressed in her mother's best dress. A familiar voice could be heard complaining rather loudly. "Why exactly did you wake me up?"

Two people rounded the corner, not noticing Chihiro or the girls slightly behind her, still at the food stand. "I told you Rin, I sensed humans here, we need to get them out before they eat the food," said the boy who'd been haunting Chihiro's dreams for five years now. It was Haku.

Please review. I'll try and update soon, but exams are about to start so it may not be for a while.