WOW IT'S BEEN SO LONG SINCE I WROTE. BUT THE NEXT CHAPTER IS FINALLY HERE AND MAY I SAY 'HAPPY NEW YEAR! 2010!!' PLEASE READ AND REVEIW AND FOR THE RECORD, I DONT OWN SPIRITED AWAY.

CHAPTER TWO

Nine years had passed since that day, that day when Haku had to say goodbye to his love. Nine long years. Kohaku left Yubaba's influence and servitude almost seven years ago from today, Yubaba had most definitely not been pleased to loose not only her human hostage but also her best worker, him. But he had done his best and soon he was free. Free with his name.

The very first thing he had done was to find his river, as Chihiro had said; it was covered almost entirely in concrete and apartments. But his presence there had woken up the surrounding area. The river had been so glad to receive its spirit once again. A river without its spirit is like a person without its soul. They become just an empty shell, and the river became plain water, with no soul. But it came back to life the second he touched down on its grassy banks,

Kohaku had wanted more than anything to find her, Chihiro. But she had gone through so much to give him back his name that he wanted to show her the river at its peak. Also, he'd been waiting so many years to return here, always longing for it but never knowing why, that it became almost an instinct to return here. Kohaku didn't question his love for Chihiro; it was still as strong as ever. In fact, he felt like he loved her even more than before.

Almost every night he dreamed of her, of holding her in his arms and being with her, he wanted to see her so badly. To see her soft brown eyes and chestnut hair that reminded him of autumn. Her face, he wanted to laugh at her innocence and feel her devotion, devotion he had not thought he could ever receive. While in the bath house he hadn't really been able to simply be with her. Back then it had been too dangerous to reveal his feelings, since Yubaba kept such a close eye on her. But their feelings had grown and grown despite it all and the result was their confession that night so many years ago. He loved her then just as he loves her now and he had loved her when he left. He could only hope that she would forgive him for making her wait, even for a little longer.

Well...he hadn't known.

The river upon arriving that day had sprung back to life, and in doing so, suddenly, the air became moist and all the apartments grew moss in all the walls. The rooms became cold and drafty and eventually, three months later, the public health department closed down the apartments and the mayor of the town for publicity's sake rebuilt the river and restored the area to normal.

Everything was on track, Haku continued to give his strength to the river until the day where he was able to come and go as he pleased without the river loosing energy. At that moment, he went to search for Chihiro.

But he couldn't find her!

He looked everywhere he could think of, for four years he kept on looking for her. He searched the towns around his river, but when she wasn't there it occurred that she may have moved to a town by the spirit gate. He looked there, and a native told him of a house that had been inhabited by a family with a little ten year old girl. When he reached the house, Chihiro's last name was definitely on the door. But she wasn't in there! A neighbour told him that she and her family had moved away again!

Day after day he searched again and again to no avail. For so many long years. Every time he arrived to a new place to realize she wasn't there, his heart fell even more. Until one day, he just couldn't take the disappointment. His heart had wanted to continue, heck his soul had wanted to go on looking for her, as long as it took, till she was in his arms again. But he just couldn't do it. So he lived for his river, he stayed by it closely and every now and again he visited the bath house.

His heart broke that day, it continued to break everyday and he became a person who looked cheerful on the outside but inside was nothing more but a hollow shell, never at peace. But he never forgot her. And all the time even after he had chosen to give up, he never felt love for anyone other than her. He still loved her, after so long.

Some other spirits may ridicule him for being so in love with a simple human, but he didn't care. He loved her, and he already knew a long time ago that he would love no other. Also, deeply in his heart, he knew that someday they would meet again. One day, he would find her. Or perhaps, in some strange way, she'd find him again.

(Nine years after the day Chihiro said goodbye to Kohaku)

It was such a hot day, the sun belt down onto the roads, burning up the pavements, making it almost impossible for anyone to actually go anywhere. Animals were sitting where they were unmoving. Birds weren't singing and ALL people were either at home or at the mall with its AC.

So who would actually go outside in this heat? A small child ambles along the road in a straight line. Her shoulders squared and her face neutral against the blazing sun. Her shoes were broken through and had the strangest marks along the edges, as if the seams had been sniped away by scissors. Her socks were devastated too, giant holes missing, too big and too precise to be an accident.

She held both items of footwear in her tiny hands as she walked home from school, barefoot. Even though the heated pavement was burning the soles of her feet painfully, not a wince crossed her little face. Her hair was tied up in a barrette, as part of the school uniform. Her high-school miniskirt and white school skirt also part of the uniform, her blazer in her little brown shoulder bag. She walked without a faltering step.

She looked to be about five, a small child, in a high-school uniform, walking home barefoot, with burned feet, was five years old. She didn't notice anything around her, only the next step as she kept walking steadily.

Suddenly she entered a bushel of trees; the cool shade was like water in the middle of a desert for her as she stood there for a moment, just taking in the wonderful comfort. Suddenly she froze 'water?' she thought, the sound of trickling water, far off...no, not far off, close by! And water meant relief for her poor feet. The girl knew her mother wouldn't mind if she were a little late, but she would be worried about her feet later. At least this way they wouldn't be as bad as they would have been with water.

She the girl began toward the sound of water. Most normal humans wouldn't be able to hear something as quiet as the trickling of water of a smooth river. But the girl possessed and remarkable almost animal-like sense of hearing, she could even hear a pen drop nine houses down and also she could always tell when it was going to rain and such if she so wished to. And now she was using her amazing hearing to locate the river.

A few minutes later, there it was. This huge, glorious river. Oh the sound of trickling water, how it calmed her. She'd always loved being near rivers, all her life she had loved this. She felt her happiest when by the river, especially the ones in the thick woodlands, like her namesake.

She approached it, the waves were soft and the water looked so inviting she just wanted to plunge in, but she had promised her mother not to get her uniform dirty. So she placed her shoes and socks down by a tree and took a step towards the river.

Suddenly a voice called out from behind her, it was cold, steady and devoid of too much emotion. "What are you doing here" she turned, and her eyes met a pair of eyes. The girl possessed the most remarkable set of green eyes, green as the forests, and the same green as the stranger.

He had longish, dead straight hair brown hair that in this light looked midnight black, it reached just beyond his shoulders. His face was stern and held wisdom and youth, in fact, he looked just about her mother's age. He wore strange cloths, a little like the people in her school history textbook wore. A white haori and a blue Hakama, the undershirt was blue also, and it faintly reminded her of clothes worn in a bathhouse.

The man's face was so handsome, and so familiar. The girl was a suspicious person a lot of the time; well she had to be to survive. But for some reason, the sight of this person filled her with warmth and happiness. She felt like she could trust him. She smiled. He looked down at her burned red and blistered feet "your feet" he said "what happened to them"

The little five year old child smiled sweetly and answered clearly and maturely "My school is very far away, but I like to walk to and from there. But my shoes and socks broke on the way and so I ended up having to walk here barefoot" the man looked surprised for one moment, most everyone did. It wasn't everyday that a five year old speak so maturely, like a teenager or adult almost. But unlike everyone else, his surprise disappeared in a wink as he said "It is warm out today, and you walked on the stone path with your feet, and burned them?"

The girl nodded "Hai"

"And now you wish to sooth them in the river, that is all?" he asked, not taking his eyes off her feet. She didn't take her eyes of him, although she was sure that her feet looked very burned and disgusting "Hai" she answered.

He looked up at her again with those wonderful green eyes; the eyes that made her feel so calm. He watched her face for any signs of deception, there was none. And even if she were deceiving him, he wouldn't be able to tell, the girl was a master at hiding her expressions behind a smile. Eventually he nodded to the river "Be careful, don't fall in"

She nodded back to him "I know, thank-you, I won't" she said as she sat down by the river's edge. Slowly, slowly she began to ease her foot into the icy cold water. It hurt too much to do it slowly, so instead the girl took in a deep breath and plunged both feet into the water. The coolness against her fiery feet was more painful then anything, they stung like she were walking on hot coals or needles. But very soon as she painfully wiggled her toes, the water became more bearable and in a few more minutes, she allowed herself to sigh from the relief as the cool water soothed her pained feet. "That feels so nice" she murmured.

"Are you feet feeling any better" the man said bending over slightly to get a better look. If he were any other person, then the girl would most likely have jumped or at least shirked. But for some reason, having him near to her felt totally natural. "No not yet, but the pain is residing. Thank-you for asking" she smiled.

She dipped her feet in and sighed as the current caressed her feet like a blanket of silk. Then she opened her eyes when she felt like someone was watching her. The man was, his intense green eyes hadn't left her form.

"Nani" she asks.

"Oh, nothing" he says

She sighed again "kyaaa, my feet felt like they were going t burn off, they feel so much better" he raised his eyebrow in question "you looked so calm?"

She smiled "I've found that screaming and crying about something gets a person nowhere. Remaining calm usually bears you a solution" he nodded, a faint trace of a smile on his handsome features "a wise deduction for one so young"

She nodded and turned her head from his. Neither he nor she was aware of the sad look in her eyes "I know" she said "people tell me that all the time." She sat in silence for a while. At first he did not say anything but then suddenly he approached the river beside her and sat down. They sat there, not saying anything, but enjoying the others company. The girl felt so peaceful, the only time she ever felt this calm was when she was in her mother's arms. Suddenly she raised her head "Ne" she said with a small smile "what's your name?"

The man looked down at her with a strange expression, like he was carefully choosing his answer before finally answering "Haku" Haku? The girl had a feeling that it was not his real name, but he was sparing her of the truth for some reason. That reason was none of her business so she did not say anything about it.

"And you?" he asks "your name?" should she tell him of her name? She had only just met this man; her mother had always said to never tell strangers her name. But this man did not seem like a stranger, he didn't feel like a stranger. So she answered "Morigawa" he smiles "Morigawa? That is quite a long name isn't it?" she smiled back at him "yes it is, but I like it. If it's too long for you, then you can call me Mori-chan"

"Morigawa" he repeated "it means 'Forest rivers' right?" she nodded "that's right. My mommy names me this because she says my eyes remind her of a lush forest. And because she loves rivers"

"Rivers?" he asked.

She nods again "yes, my mother loves rivers. She says they bring back both fond and painful memories. When I was little she used to tell me stories of river spirits and other things" he looked curious "stories? What kind?" she tapped her lips with her little finger and said cutely "secret"

Morigawa liked his man; she liked the way he talked to her. Because she was so smart, when ever people talked to her they would either use such big words that she didn't yet understand and would then look at her disappointedly.

Or they would use baby words because they still didn't believe she could be so smart and mature. But this man was different, he didn't look at her like she was one of the world's wonders, he looked at her like she was a normal person. He spoke to her normally. This was all she had ever wanted.

Kohaku looked down at the strange girl. She was dressed in what looked like a human high-school uniform, but she looked nothing more the five. She spoke with such pronunciation and words beyond her age, like she was an adult. Her form and expression was that of a young woman rather than a child. He watched her; even her movements were graceful and calm. Not bubbly and hyper like any normal five year old.

The traditional skirt and white shirt looked to have been taken from a smaller uniform and the blazer hanging on her bag looked a little too big for her. The only thing that seemed to fit her was the little barrette hat on her head, but it only seemed that way because she had swept all her hair up into it and hidden it out of sight to keep the sun from plastering it to her neck with sweat. Coloured green it matched her amazingly bright green eyes and complimented her ivory white skin.

Kohaku didn't know why he had felt compelled to sit beside the girl, or why the sight of her dishevelled feet made him uneasy when he had seen worse wounds before. Also, there was soothing ease. Ever since Chihiro left his side, he'd always felt restless and uneasy and sad. He found it difficult to sleep because his dreams were so filled with her and it had all gotten worse ever since he had discovered his inability to find her once again.

But now, for some reason this child's very presence...calmed him. He felt calmer and more peaceful then he had ever felt in a long time. She smiled and he felt happy, he hadn't felt this tranquil since he had first met Chihiro. As the river trickled down with a soft noise, he felt at peace. What was it about this child that made it different? Her name, Morigawa. Why had he felt happy at the thought of her name?

She kicked gently in the water with a happy smile. She looked so innocent, so sweet, so childlike. He couldn't believe that someone likr her could speak so intelligently. But then again, it was none of his business.

Then she stood and brushed herself off "ok then Haku-san" she said "I guess I'll be going now. Okaa-chan will be worried about me" Kohaku nodded as she looked down "Ano...perhaps...maybe..." she looked up "I can maybe come back here again and see you?" she asked with a hopeful look in her eyes. He usually hated people coming here, humans in this time and area had no respect for nature. He didn't want them ruining his river again, the only reason they left it alone was because of a rumour that it was haunted. One person had seen him in his dragon form and suddenly everyone was too afraid to approach. But she wasn't, and he didn't sense any ill will from her.

"Yes" he said with a smile "and will you be here if I come?" she asked "if you come, and I am here, I will show myself. If I'm not here then I won't" he answered simply. She grinned "ok, sayonara Haku-san" and then she turned and left, shoes in hand and once again barefoot. She left behind a peace, a quiet he hadn't felt in a long time. She was truly an interesting child.

"I'm home!" Morigawa cried out as she entered through the door to the house. Because her mother was still only nineteen and she was still in school, they both lived with her mother's parents. Morigawa liked her Obaa-san, but she didn't really care for her Ojii-san. He always treated her like an idiot; he didn't like her one bit for being the child that had almost ruined her mother's life.

But Morigawa didn't care about them, nor did she care about all the bullies at school who hated her. As long as her mother still loved her, it didn't matter. As long as her mother loved her, she didn't have to worry.

"Mori-chan?" a voice called out from within the house. Morigawa's hear soared, mama was home today! "Okaa-chan!" she squealed, all traces of the mature five year old was gone and replaced with the little girl she was, a little girl who only her mother could see. Since she would only become this for her mother.

"Okaa-chan!" she called as she ran through the house. "I'm here" a woman called as she stepped out of a room. She smiled at her beautiful daughter, but taking one look at the child's feet, her smile became a gasp of horror "Mori-chan, your feet!" Morigawa looked down and wiggled her toes. It was still painful, but most of the original pain had subsided from soaking it in the river. "My shoes broke" she said, she didn't want her mother to worry "like heck they broke" she cried as she took her child's hand and led her to the sofa. She stood to take the first aid kit from the cupboard.

She took out from the kit some bandages and a special cream to help with the burns and began to cream the girl's feet. "I hate you going to that school, but they won't let you into a normal school. They say you're too smart for it. So a high school is something we have to bear with" she looked up "but you should still be thankful, you're really blessed to be so smart, I wish I was as smart as you. Then I could finish school quick too and be home more often with you" she began to put the bandages on. Morigawa smiled, she really loved her mama. She leaned forward and hugged her, burying her face in her mama's long shoulder length hair, her mother really did smell nice. "Its ok mama, I understand" the woman smiled. As she pulled back and continued to bandage her feet "I know you understand" she sniped off the remaining bandage and put them away.

"Hey, take off your hat, your hair is probably covered in sweat" she said as she pulled away at the barrette. Little ringlets of chocolate brown hair began to fall and bunch around the girl's shoulders. The same chocolate hue as her mother.

Then the door slammed, Obaa-san was home. She called out for the woman "Chihiro, Chihiro where are you?" the woman stood and replied "I'm here, I'm here"

I KNOW IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME BUT HERE'S THE NEWEST CHAPTER, I HOPE YOU LIKE IT its ANERYEAR PRESENT FOR 2010.

IM PLANNING FOR HAKU AND CHIHIRO TO BE REUNITED IN EITHRT CHAPTER SIX, FIVE OR SEVEN. ONE OF THE THREE. AND THERE ARE SOME REALLY COOL SUPRISES PLANNED OUT FOR THIS. SO PLEASE REVEIW, MORE THEN TWO REVEIWS IF AT ALL POSSIBLE, IT WOULD BE NICE IF I COULD HAVE LIKE THREE OR FOUR OR MABEY EVEN FIVE. WHO KNOWS? ILL HAVE TO SEE WHEN THEY COME IN, SO PLEASE REVEIW IF YOUR READ THIS, JUST GIVE ME YOUR OPINION.

SO READ AND REVEIW PLEASE!