Sorry I haven't updated in a while, been super busy and finally found the time to type this all up. Thank you all so much for your reviews and comments. Well, enjoy
A/N regular print is text while Italics are the characters thoughts.
Chihiro:
Blinding lights flashed rhythmically against a starch white background. The hospital bed wheels rolled and bounce upon hitting speed bumps in the hallway. Her side throbbed from the pain but it paled in comparison to the pain sharp in her heart. Chihiro could only stare up at the ceiling as doctors rushed to stop the blood and fix her up. She was rushed into an operation room where the bullet still imbedded within her would be removed. An oxygen mask was placed over her mouth and as the sedative gas began to take affect all she saw before the blackness consumed her was Haku's face.
Haku:
Blackness filled the night outside Haku's window. It was her; he had seen her, Chihiro. What had happened? How had it happened? At this point he didn't care. All he could focus on was the memory. She was beautiful, obliviously years older. He had tried to age with her but it was hard to be sure how long it had truly been. The childhood Chihiro had been scared and a bit of a complainer. But this Chihiro was strong, intense, and well deadly. Did he like the change? Ya he did. He could feel that on the inside she was the same Chihiro he had fallen in love with, she had just grown into a woman. Now, this tougher side might actually allow him to open up to her and show her not only Haku the man but Haku the dragon. Okay, at this point that was a bit of a long shot but if anything it made Haku's longing burn brighter. He had waited so long to see her, not exactly what he had intended but his wish had essentially come true. Now he wanted to talk to her, discover who shed become and how her life had been. But above all he wanted to touch her, to kiss her, and caress her.
The last thing he had seen of her was Chihiro being carried away wounded and weak by a stranger. Haku let out a growl at the thought of another man being that close to his Chihiro. Okay technically not MY Chihiro…yet he thought.
On top of that she'd been weak when she disappeared from view. Was she okay? Did she need help? Haku was struck with an overwhelming desire to protect her. Haku had missed her over the years but actually seeing her had unlocked a wave of intense emotion Haku had never felt before.
Rin:
Sen! It was Sen! Oh, she didn't work here anymore, she got her name back. Rin needed to practice using her real name. It was Chihiro! Rins best friend was coming back! It wasn't clear how or when but Rin knew Chihiro would return. Then, Haku would be happy again, RIn would be happy again, and the whole bathhouse would be better. Rin sighed, finally she thought. She squealed to herself in private excitement and barely managed not to jump up in down. Couldn't let people see that, it would ruin her hard core reputation.
Chihiro:
Usually when people are knocked unconscious they sees stars and pretty shapes and then wake up, but Chihiro dreamed and everything was painfully detailed. She stood on a grassy river bed twirling in the sunlight that filtered through a nearby tree. The tree branches were in bloom and petals blew off in the wind like a light rain. The river itself wasn't too wide, maybe nine or ten feet across. The water flowed with strength but no rapids were found. It wasn't a perfect baby blue or a dark muddy blue but a tinted aqua, just like Haku's mane. This was it, Haku's river. It had been covered over mostly in the pursuit of modernization but Chihiro had often visited the small trickles that could be found. Those trickles were but a shadow of his former glory. This place was amazing. Chihiro felt so at peace, so at home that she twirled and danced in the petal rain. She collapsed against the trees trunk and closed her eyes. Her hand drifted toward the stream and her fingers flexed in the water. She began to fall asleep when she heard her alarm clock trying to wake her up. "Five more minutes" she moaned. But the ping would not cease.
Eventually her eyelids slid open but instead of the beautiful scenery she lay in a hospital bed under itchy covers with her heart beat ringing from the monitor next to her ear. Chihiro rolled her head to get a better look at her room. Absolutely no decoration. She noticed her mother sitting in the corner however.
"Mom?" She squeaked not having used her voice in a while. Chihiro's mother stirred in her seat and eventually opened her eyes.
"Chihiro!" The relief was plain in her voice. "OH my god, I got the phone call and they said you got hurt and then I freaked out and your father managed to get me here and when we arrived you were in the operating room and then they said you were heavily sedated so you wouldn't be awake for a while. They finally told us that you were going to be okay but I wasn't going to believe anything until you woke up and…" She was babbling badly. She had really been worried.
"Mom, mom I'm still here. I'm okay."
"No, you are not bloody okay! Damn it you were shot! How did it even happen?" Chihiro knew she'd have to come up with a lie to cover up the horrific truth. They couldn't know. It would ruin them with their worry and guilt and who knows what ells. But the drugs still had a hold on her and she couldn't think clearly.
"Can we talk about that part later? I'm still sleepy from the drugs."
"Sure sure" She answered. "How do you feel?"
"Soar, tired, soar. Hahaha" It was only a half hearted joke. Even as she tried to lighten the mood she felt the force of the situation hit her. Suddenly tears gathered in her eyes.
"Oh honey" He mother crooned and leaned forward to hug Chihiro. It was all too much, just too much. The tears spilled over and soon Chihiro was crying. She had trained, she was tough, she was toned but under it all, on the inside, she was still just Chihiro. She hadn't changed that much, only formed an image and duty to help defend herself from the depression of losing the spirit world and having to readjust. She still got scared. She still got lonely. She still had so much to discover. Chihiro was a girl and like most girls she wanted some support. Without Haku there was one other guy she could rely on.
"Where's dad?" She continued.
"In the cafeteria getting something to eat. We are taking shifts. You've been out for eight hours"
"Really? Oh wow. Well when can I go home?" She reached for a tissue from beside the bed and calmed herself down.
"Chihiro" Her mom scolded. "When they say you are well enough alright?"
"Fine." All she wanted to do was go home. Well, that or go back to sleep and dream about Haku again. She didn't want antibiotics she wanted his arms around her. She had seen him! When Mat carried her to safety he had just the strength to curl up towards his body warmth and as she opened her eyes one last time there he was, shocked just as much as she was. Was that a good thing? Had he forgotten about her? Did he care at all? He had promised and it had been years. Seven years in fact. He looked older maybe 20ish himself. His hair was the same almost black coloring with green highlights that shone when the light hit them. It was longer, reaching past his shoulders and half way down his back. Normally that would be just weird to on him Chihiro had to admit it was sexy. His eyes were the same piercing Jade. Chihiro felt the tears returning so she turned her head into the pillow and motioned that she was falling back to sleep so her mom left her alone. Oh Haku she thought and se let her mind take over.
Haku:
Haku couldn't be consumed by the emotional storm raging inside him so he sat down at his desk and attacked the huge pile of papers before him. Many hours into this grueling task Haku felt a presence. His magic alerted him to a change in the electrical field of his office but he couldn't tell anything ells but that. He rose from his seat and moved toward where the energy seemed to be coming from which was very close to a lounge chair against the back wall. Suddenly a cloud seemed to appear over the chair. Within the next minute the cloud shifted and condensed and was finally replaced by a fully formed Chihiro.
"Chihiro" Haku whispered his hand reaching out toward her.
She heard his call and her eyes snapped open."Haku?"
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