Arahsa: It's my first oneshot ever!

Chihiro: Yes, yes. Fabulous.

Arahsa: What's your problem?

Chihiro: I'm hardly in this story!

Arahsa: Don't worry, you're the star of my next story: Daring Remembrance.

Chihiro: Whatever.

Arahsa: Okay, um, I don't own Spirited Away! Let's start this story!

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"Will I ever see you again?" Chihiro asked me.

"Of course."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

She didn't look too convinced. I couldn't blame her, I had my own doubts. But none the less, I told the one love of my life to go. Go and never look back until she had passed the tunnel. A lot of people might ask why I had done such a thing. I wasn't afraid of her seeing me cry, I was sure she had already seen some of the tears in my eyes as we said our final goodbyes. I wasn't afraid of bursting into flames either. My heart already burned with a thousand different flames of love for her. What was I afraid of? I was afraid that if she looked back, she would make a decision she would later regret. She had seemed so sad to have to leave all of us behind. I was regretting her having this whole adventure. Sure, I probably would've died if it wasn't for her. Rin's heart never would have been softened as much as it was. Boh would have stayed a spoiled little runt (although he still was, just not as much). No Face would have never found a home. And Chihiro never would've learnt the lessons she needed to become a better person.

But none of that mattered. What mattered was that Chihiro had met all of these amazing spirits. Spirits she would never be able to see again. She had made so many ties, and she really looked as though she didn't want to leave. That was my fear. That she would come back. Of course, I would be happy because she would be with me. But only a little happy. Because I knew, she could never truely be happy here, either. She would miss her parents too much. She had gone so far to rescue them, and yet, it might all be thrown away if she looked back. If she looked back, two things had an equal possibility of happening. She could come back, and miss her parents. Or, she could leave through the tunnel, anyway, and miss all of us.

I stood at the stairs and watched her leave. I saw her turn her head a little bit as though she was going to look back. I prayed to myself for the first time in a long time that she wouldn't complete that turn. Luckily, she heeded my words and turned back around to her parents. The figures of her and her parents receded into the red building and I waited until I could no longer sense the presence of her family. Then I turned around and walked to the bath house. I silently thanked Chihiro in my mind. If it wasn't for her, what was about to happen could never happen.

Today was the day I took back my freedom.

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Chihiro: Alright everyone, thank you for reading this extremely short story!

Arahsa: And be sure to stay tuned for my next story: Daring Remembrance! It'll be a Spirited Away story!