Opening her eyes, she felt herself in someplace new. Chihiro looked at her surroundings; the swaying grass, the shining sun. The wind brushed against her cheeks, causing a slight shiver.

She was back.

This was the same dream, but something felt different. All the other times she had dreamt of this scene, she had always been looking at herself as a bystander, like someone watching a movie. Right now was the first time in 6 years she had actually been able to relive it, first person. It no longer felt like she was just reliving a memory. She was there; just her and—

Haku.

She looked to her left and saw him. The light breeze made his hair sway as he stared at the field ahead of them. Now that Chihiro was there as a 16 year old instead of an 10 year old, she recognized something in Haku's face that she hadn't noticed all those years ago; a sad glint to his sparkling green eyes, one of loneliness. After so many lonely years, she knew this look well. Convincing herself it was just a distortion in her dream, she tried to refocus on the task at hand.

But she was still so shocked that he was standing there, beside her. Chihiro wanted nothing more than to hug him and feel his warmth again. Just as she was tempted to do this, Haku turned to face her. The look in his eyes was gone; replaced with a distant, faraway look and a sad smile.

Chihiro knew exactly what the next thing out of his mouth would be.

"Now run, and don't look back." He said, looking as supportive as he could.

This is it, I can do this, she thought.

Chihiro took a step forward, then another. Her feet carried her all the way to the middle of the field, as she had done many times before.

Come on, Chihiro.

That's when it happened. She turned around and looked back.

Chihiro felt as if some lock had opened up inside of her that she never knew was there. She felt free to move about, as she wanted, instead of just reliving the memory.

All those times she had pictured looking back, she never knew what she would find. Would Haku be standing there with a smile? Would he wave to her and send her on her way? Or would he just be gone?

She didn't expect what she saw, not at all.

All signs of his sad smile had been wiped away. His hand was still slightly outstretched from where she had held it just moments before, as if holding onto the moment for just a little while longer. But his eyes were the saddest of all. Those brilliant jade orbs had lost their luster, and had dulled to a dark stormy ocean green, as if reflecting his inner emotions. His smile was now set into a subtle frown.

Somehow, Chihiro's body knew what would happen next. She ran. She ran for dear life, all the way back to where he stood. What happened next felt as natural to her as breathing. She grabbed Haku and held him close; as someone would grab a handful of sand, not wanting the grains to slip from her protective embrace.

Chihiro had imagined this happening many times before, but this time was different. She felt the rough texture of his apron, and felt his warmth underneath. She had longed for these sensations for so long, and it hurt so badly, knowing that this Haku was only a projection.

Even so, she exposed her feelings as though she were talking to the real one. She stifled a sob as she spoke, muffled into his apron.

"Haku…. I don't want to go…. I never wanted to go…"

Before ever hearing his response, everything faded to black.

Opening her eyes to her bedroom, her eyes immediately went to the stuffed green dragon sitting beside her on the bed. She had gotten that dragon as a gift from her father for her 11th birthday. Believing it was a sign that Haku would come back for her soon, she set it on her bed so she could look at it every night until he finally returned. She carried that tradition on for 6 years, almost like a nightly prayer.

The one thing that she hated about the dragon was the color. Although it was green, it was the most annoying shade of lime green she had ever seen. It didn't at all capture the darkness and beauty of Haku in his dragon form; in fact, it was almost insulting. She loathed that sad replacement for Haku, for it made her miss him even more.

Chihiro sat in her bed for what seemed like hours, just staring at that pathetic toy. She thought about her dream, about finally hugging Haku. Startled, she eventually felt real tears slipping down her cheeks.

And that was when it all fell apart.

Thinking of Haku and that dream, she felt more alone at that moment than she had ever been in the past 6 years. Soon more tears and later sobbing fell upon her. Clutching her dragon to her chest, she tried her hardest to replicate the warmth she felt hugging Haku, but to no avail.

Chihiro missed the Spirit World, and she missed it badly.She missed having an older sister like Rin, a grandpa like Kamaji, and a granny like Zeniba. She missed feeling as though she was loved. But more than anything, she missed having a friend as supportive and caring as Haku.

She always hated digging up the past, because all it did was reopen old wounds. But, this was necessary. Why had she left?

Millions of thoughts whirled through her mind in a whirlwind. Eventually she thought about her parents.

Growing up, her father got relocated for his job so often that she was never sure where her real home was. At school, she would sit alone, always reading stories of fantasy and adventure in a land far away from her own. She'd then come home with marks on her report card, telling her she always had her "head in the clouds". Her parents would always scold her, but they knew they couldn't do anything about it. They knew they did this to their daughter, by making her abandon so many lives before.

But Chihiro never saw it that way; she was quite content being alone. At night, she would stare at the moon from her window, always dreaming of somewhere else. She imagined princes falling for her, long flowing dresses, magic and monsters alike; and she was happy. Sadly, her parents weren't. She was so caught up in her fantasies that her grade marks soon turned to C's and D's.

But after meeting Kamaji, Rin, Yubaba, Zeniba, and especially Haku, everything changed. She discovered what true happiness was. She felt as though she belonged somewhere, and that she didn't need to be alone or change herself to make others happy. More than anything, she discovered what it felt like to love. Chihiro loved every last frog and bathhouse worker she met in that world. That uneasy feeling she felt when Haku told her to run and not look back; she finally understood it. Her heart was pounding because she knew that the minute she got back to the human world, she would be alone again, and away from those she truly loved.

Haku promised to see her again, but how long had he expected her to wait? This promise was no longer enough for Chihiro, not after her dream. As she sat there crying, a small voice in Chihiro's head spoke up.

I know what I need to do now, Chihiro concluded.

I need to go back.