Chihiro rushed past the school gates as the sun began to set in the sky. She had been held back by some art club members for a small celebration in the clubhouse and had refused to take no for an answer. Geez, I'm gonna miss my drama because of them! She thought with an annoyed expression as she ran up the street.
She had almost reached her street when she tripped over nothing. "Ow!" Chihiro muttered as she rubbed her scraped knees while she looked around for the cause of her fall. A dark, hazy figure started to rise from the ground. "Huh? Am I seeing things?" She wondered out loud as she squinted at the barely perceptible figure.
A sleepy and dreamlike feeling came over her and she started to slowly approach the figure. She came closer to it with each small step. "Chihiro!" A voice shouted behind her, breaking her from the strange lulling feeling that had controlled her for those few short moments.
Chihiro turned around and found Bakal rushing to her side with a worried look. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
She shook her head a little. "No, it's only a scraped knee, I'm fine, Harada-san. "
Bakal let out a sigh of relief and made a small grin. "That's good, but we should treat your knees right away. Quick, come inside," he led her to the gate of his house. Before she disappeared through the door, Chihiro took one last look at the street and the strange figure was no where to be seen.
She had not noticed Haku standing next to her, a solemn look in his eyes as he clenched his fists that were covered in dark slime.
Chihiro sat in the small living room, fingering the band aid that covered her scraped knee. Bakal walked in with some refreshments and placed the tray on the coffee table in front of her. "You're so clumsy, tripping like a little kid," he said as he sat in the comforter across from her.
"I could have sworn I tripped on something, though, I thought I saw-" Chihiro began to say but she quickly closed her mouth.
Bakal looked at her with a hopeful expression. "Saw what, Chihiro?" Is she able to see spirits, too?
Chihiro thought about it and then shook her head. "No, it's nothing. You probably wouldn't believe me anyway."
"We'll see about that. Spill it," he said, leaning forward in his seat in anticipation.
"I thought I saw...some sort of dark ghost, you know, like a dementor from Harry Potter," Chihiro finally said in a hushed voice. She was scared that she was going crazy, saying something like that. Bakal remained silent, waiting for her to go on. "It was very hazy; I could barely make it out. It could have been a trick of the light or something but...it came out of the ground. No, it floated out of the ground and I thought I heard this deep voice calling out to me. Something came over me and I went to approach it and then you appeared, Harada-san."
Chihiro glanced up at Bakal who was thinking silently. "Do you think I'm imagining things? Am I going mad?"
"No, of course not, Chihiro," Bakal smiled in reassurance. "It's strange...I saw it, too."
"You did?" Maybe she's not crazy after all, if even Bakal saw it.
"It's a spirit, Chihiro. You and I, we are beginning to see spirits."
"What?!" Chihiro coughed out the cookie she had just started eating. "Harada-san, I'm pretty sure there's no way that it was a spirit. Maybe I am going crazy after all."
"No no no, Chihiro, you got it all wrong. Can't you see? You're starting to remember, aren't you? That's why you're beginning to see spirits," Bakal said, urging her to believe him. "What about that dream you always talked about? Maybe it's not a dream?"
Dream? Haku glanced at Bakal with a confused look as he sat beside Chihiro without her noticing a thing.
Chihiro shook her head again in disbelief. "That place can't be real, no. Harada-san, there are no such thing as dragons or or an ono face mask guy."
"An ono face mask guy?" Bakal repeated, puzzled. He raised his brows at Haku and the boy just shrugged. "This is the first time you mentioned anything about an...ono face mask guy."
That's right, it was the first time she mentioned it. In fact, Chihiro can't remember any time she dreamt about the ono face mask guy until last night. Last night's dream was also the first time she actually heard her say anything, even if it was only one word.
Bakal observed her as Chihiro puzzled over her dream and its mysteriousness. "Did you happen...to dream about it again, Chihiro?" He finally asked. "Hasn't it been almost a year since you had that dream. Didn't you tell me that the last time, you could barely remember it at all if it weren't for your poems or paintings?"
Paintings! Chihiro flashed to the painting of the sea and she remembers she painted a masked but faceless black figure on the train platform. Her eyes widened as she realized that she had unknowingly remembered the ono face mask guy.
Haku observed Chihiro and hope sprouted within him. Maybe she will remember him, or even better, see him! Holding his breath, he reached out to touch her shoulder.
Chihiro felt a pressure on her arm and glanced at her side. She raised her brows to find another hazy figure sitting beside her. How long has it been there? I must be dreaming now, or maybe I am sick.
Bakal inhaled sharply as he watched her notice Haku beside her on the sofa. She must have the same ability as him. They both can see spirits!
Haku made a small smile as he realized that Chihiro can now see him, but at the same time, he was disappointed. He can tell that all she is another hazy spirit; the bright sparks that usually appeared in her eyes when she sees him is not there. She still doesn't remember him. Patience...soon, her memories will return and we can be together then. He just needed to give her a small push in the right direction.
Chihiro made a small worried look and directed her attention to Bakal. "Harada-san, please don't tell me that there is a 'spirit' sitting beside me."
Bakal smiled, nearly seeing the air quotes float above her head. "I can't because that would be lying and you know I don't lie. Just accept the fact that there are spirits, Chihiro."
"No, I can't. That's just a fairy tale!" Chihiro exclaimed. She jumped to her feet and bowed her head. "Thanks for treating my wounds and giving me refreshments, Harada-san. I'll go home now. I'll show myself out."
She left the living room and they can hear the front door slam shut as Chihiro ran for the refuge of her home down the street. Bakal gave Haku a sympathetic smile as the spirit stared at the floor. "I'm sorry that it didn't go as you would like, Haku. Chihiro is a stubborn girl, and I've met her parents. They drilled it hard into her head that there are no such thing as spirits."
"There is no need to apologize, Bakal," Haku murmured as he looked up at the human man. "I had a feeling that losing her memories for so long would make her belief in us waver. It's all my fault, if I had come to fulfill our promise earlier, then-"
Bakal placed a hand on his shoulders with a reassuring smile. "Don't beat yourself up about it. I know from my studies that the path between the human and spirit world is hard to find and it is difficult to get through. We'll just have to do our best to get her to remember."
Haku glanced up at Bakal in surprise. "We? You are going to help me?"
The man laughed and slapped Haku's shoulders playfully. "Of course! You're the first spirit I've ever seen and I would love more than anything for you to finally meet Chihiro. It's just the 'how'." Bakal looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully and rubbed his stubby chin.
"Maybe if she saw me, then..." Haku murmured.
"Huh? I thought the problem was that she couldn't see you?" Bakal said in confusion.
"In my human form, any normal human can see me," Haku started to explain and the young researcher began scribbling some notes on a small yellow pad of paper. "But when I put on a spiritual cloak, it generally prevents me from being seen by normal mortals. Only a human with the special ability of sight can see me, for example, you." Haku points at Bakal who nodded eagerly. "Of course, I can put on a more stronger cloak if I really want to stay hidden, but this weak cloak of mine was just a test to see if Chihiro had already remembered."
"Ahh, it's starting to make sense now," Bakal said once Haku finished. "So what you're saying, once Chihiro completely regains her memories of the spirit realm, her hidden ability to see spirits will awaken again?"
"Yes, that is one way to put it," the spirit replied with a small smile. "Although I am surprised that someone with mix blood like you would even have the ability to see me, even if I did take off my spiritual cloak."
Bakal made a sheepish smile. "You're not the only one, Haku. I didn't believe in spirits until today when I saw you! It was a stroke of luck, really. And I didn't think that my grandfather's blood would be strong enough to pass his abilities on to me."
Haku raised his brows. "You're grandfather?"
"Ahem, yes, my grandfather used to be a priest at this town's local shrine before he left the country. He told me that he was able to visit the spirit world once," Bakal added somewhat arrogantly.
"A priest that used to work at the local shrine?" Haku repeated. "Could he be..?"
"His name is Yamato Rei," Bakal said, unknowingly finishing Haku's sentence. Haku jumped up so suddenly he nearly knocked over the coffee table. "Whoa! Haku, did I day something wrong?" He asked worriedly as a serious expression clouded the spirit's face.
"The heir of mixed blood returns to redeem the lost clan. Together with a young girl and a dragon, the three reunites the two realms as all over, humans began gaining Sight. Dragons and humans will collided and failure to make peace brings the realms destruction as the demons rose with newfound power." Haku said in a husky voice, his emerald eyes clouded with mystery. He turns to face Bakal with newfound light. "You are the heir, Bakal. Fate brought me to you so we an fulfill the Heaven's prophecy."
"Huh..?" Bakal blinked and Haku began pacing the small room.
"Now it truly is imperative to awaken Chihiro before the dark forces arises now that you have already gained the Sight," the spirit muttered to himself, trying to think of a plan. He whirled around to face Bakal. "Bakal, what is the best way for me to get close to Chihiro without suspicion?"
Bakal scratched his head at the sudden question and thought for a few moments. "Well, you can go to school with her, but I don't see how you'll be able to do so-"
"That's it! We will go with your plan, Bakal," Haku decided. "Leave the complicated stuff to me, you will handle the normal human stuff about school."
"...okay..? Sure, whatever, anything to help, I guess," Bakal answered meekly, his mind trying to wrap around this new development. Prophecy? Lost clan? Gramps sure didn't mention anything about this when I was a kid. "Well, Haku, first off, a normal high school student..."
Chihiro laid on her bed staring up at the ceiling, unable to go to sleep. "What's with all those stupid hallucinations? There can't actually be spirits...or can there?" Not to her surprise, no one answered her question and she groaned. This is too much to handle for a normal high school girl. She shouldn't dwell on it too much. She's probably just sick.
With that thought in mind, Chihiro went into a deep slumber, and the dream recurred once more, this time, more clearer than the night before.
