"Human, you must be mistaken. You know nothing of the Spirit World," Yubaba disagreed, approaching the hostile Chihiro. "I must erase your memory-" She slapped the witch's hand away. "Even the real Yubaba knew my name," she growled. Instinctively, she reached for her katana, but remembered how it was taken away. "I wouldn't remember any human like you, you brat!" Yubaba hissed. She began to raise her hand until the door suddenly opened. Turning around, Yubaba arrived in the form of a bird, taking her cloak off in exhaustion. The tiny bird that was following her from behind closed the door and landed by the fireplace. Turning around, the witch stared at the two who had quarreled.
Raising an eyebrow, she snapped, "Who are you two? How did you get in here?" The fake Yubaba stepped up, revealing her face into the moonlight. "What are you chattering about, you old spirit? I'm Yubaba! The owner of this bathhouse-"
"Be quiet!" Yubaba retorted. Peeking into a room, she looked back. "You almost woke up the baby!" The fake Yubaba sighed. "What are you talking about? Leave my office-" Before she could finish her sentence, Yubaba cast a spell on her with a flick of her finger. The fake owner transformed into a bird, obediently flying into the cage beside Yubaba. Closing the cage door, she recognized someone was still standing. "You have ten seconds to tell me who you are, unless you want to be burned to ashes." Quietly, Chihiro limped into the area of the bright light Yubaba had just turned on. For a moment, the two stared at each other.
The bathhouse owner's brown eyes widened, her jaw nearly dropping at the sight of the human. "Sen?" she exclaimed. Frowning, she replied, "It's Chihiro." Yubaba stood up, walking around her to examine her. "You've changed, Sen," she commented. "It's Chihiro," the teenager repeated, her patience wearing away. "Whatever," Yubaba rolled her eyes. Sitting back down, she snapped her fingers. All of the lights flickered on, the room floating around to clean itself up. "It's been six years, huh?" the witch noticed. Chihiro could do nothing but nod.
As she examined her paperwork, she froze, placing it back down and looking at Chihiro once again. "How did you get here?" she questioned. "You finally notice," Chihiro growled. "Your friends decided to tie me up and bring me to that fake spirit!" Yubaba sighed. "I knew visiting the other village was a waste of my time," the owner mumbled. "Tell your little frog to give me back my katana!" Chihiro demanded. Silence finally took its turn. The fire cracked and flickered, the rustling of blankets and pillows in the next room only heard. Yubaba blinked. "Why are you in such a hurry Sen-"
"It's Chihiro!" she yelled. "I'm Chihiro, not Sen. Do you understand? Now, I want my katana back so I can bring my brother back from that dragon spirit before it can hurt him anymore-" The witch slammed her hand down to the desk. "What dragon spirit are you talking about?" she asked. Her big eyes were shining in fear, waiting for Chihiro to reply. "The only thing I could see was a long black body and red eyes-"
She was cut off when the witch took her by the shoulders, exclaiming, "Yes, it's that one!" Chihiro had to push her away, feeling the sharp pain from her wounds. Noticing the wound staining her hands, Yubaba's eyes darkened. "Did the dark spirit hurt you?" When did she ever worry about me? Chihiro thought, curious as to why the witch wondered. "Yeah…" the human said. Shaking her head, Yubaba walked back to her desk. "Oh, this isn't good…" she muttered to herself, loud enough for Chihiro to hear. "What?" she demanded. "What's not good?" Realizing the girl had heard, she hesitated. Waving her hand at the thought, Yubaba said, "Never mind about that, let's get you some medicine." Although the subject had passed, the witch's words were stuck in Chihiro's head. "Come, let's find your katana," the bathhouse owner sighed, pressing the button for the elevator. They walked in, descending into the misty, warm building below.
As usual, the bathhouse was filled with relaxed spirits, diving into the water and enjoying their food. Remembering Lin, she tried to spot the lady in pink, and realized every woman was dressed in pink. I guess I'll have to find her later, Chihiro thought, the elevator thudding to a stop. As the two walked past the spirit guests and workers, the spirits gave the human a curious look. "Who's that?" a spirit whispered. "Somehow, she smells familiar…" another murmured. They stared at Chihiro while they walked towards Chichiyaku. The spirit continued to talk to a guest until Yubaba cleared her throat. "Chichiyaku," she greeted. Startled, the spirit bowed. "Forgive me, I didn't notice you waiting!" he let out a small chuckle, hiding his embarrassment.
"Hm?" He glanced at Chihiro, who ignored the looks that many spirits gave her. "Who's this?" Chichiyaku asked. "Never mind that," Yubaba snapped. "Your spirits have taken her weapon. Can they return it?" Scratching his head, he thought for a moment. "I'll see to it, ma'am," he nodded. Stiffening, he sniffed the air, and then towards Chihiro. "You…" he realized. "You're a human!" Many of the workers gasped, especially the women. They held their sleeves to their noses, hoping the human stench would not get to them. "Quiet, you fools!" the owner snapped. "Although it has been six years, you don't even know the human that saved you from No-Face?"
Shock rippled through the crowd. "C-Chihiro!" Chichiyaku exclaimed. "It's been so long!" Feet pounded against the wooden floor, heading straight towards the crowd that surrounded Chihiro. Pushing her way through, a spirit panted, "Did someone say Chihiro?" Chihiro turned to her direction. Her eyes lit up in happiness, finally reuniting with her friend. She hasn't aged a bit, Chihiro thought. "Lin!" she smiled. Lin ran towards her and hugged as tight as she could, jumping in excitement. Chihiro wanted to hug her back, but winced at the pressure to her wounds. "Oops, sorry!" Lin squeaked, then examined her wounds. "We've got to get you treated!" she demanded. "Yubaba, where-"
Instead of replying, the witch motioned the two away. "Bring the katana to my office," she told Chichiyaku before leaving to the elevator. Following, Lin released Chihiro from her strong grip. "What's this about, Yubaba?" she questioned. "How did she get here, what happened to her?" The witch did not reply. Looking at her with concerned eyes, she started, "You know about the Dark Fear, correct?" Lin's face suddenly darkened, as if reminiscing of the so called 'Dark Fear'. Looking at both of them, the teenager asked, "What's the Dark Fear?" Both of them did not reply. They continued to stare at each other, silently communicating. "I'm afraid," Yubaba sighed. "You do not have much time, Sen."
