Disclaim, Disclaim, Disclaim.

All credits go to Hayao Miyazaki

Departure

Racing hand in hand, garbed in pastel gowns of yellow and rose, hair flew in the breeze, as the girls ran ever closer to the tunnel beyond. They could just glimpse the entrance. Vines, creepers and fallen leaves quieted their steps. The freezing cold stone gave way to nature's carpet, urging Chihiro to run faster. She spotted a small mound guarding the entrance, moss coated stone. It was a statue; probably like the one from earlier, her mind supplied. "Chihiro," Mei gasped, "Chihiro slow down!" Chihiro wasn't listening, her long legs pushed into the ground harder, propelling her forward. Without warning her whole body jerked backward and she had to scramble to stay upright. Mei had stopped in her tracks. Bewildered, Chihiro recognized that she and Mei were still holding hands. Mei was gripping her fingers so hard, their knuckles were white. Chihiro blanched, how had she forgotten she was running with Mei? Chihiro looked down in concern as Mei bent over double, gasping for breath. Chihiro wasn't showing any outward signs of discomfort, but she did notice something strange. Stinging ears, dry burning throat; maybe she had over exerted herself too. The wind burned cheeks and nose didn't disagree. Her eyes were watering too. Lifting a shaking hand, she looked at the blood red fingertips; thumb and digits rubbed against each other, trying to massage warmth back into themselves or at least stimulate her blood flow.

At the mechanical click of a shutter, Chihiro turned to see Arata a little over 100 feet from them. He was crouched with his camera. The lens looked to be far longer than it had earlier in the day. Mei caught Chihiro's attention once more as she dropped into a squat, and greedily sucked air into her lungs. Chihiro was standing over her now, and Mei's little fingers were still clinging to Chihiro's longer ones. She was so small Chihiro realized. When standing, Mei only just reached Chihiro's shoulders. Chihiro reasoned that that had to make her around 5 feet in height, which wasn't all that short, but she was petite as well. Chihiro readjusted Mei's flower garland. It had gone askew during their frantic race and was in danger of slipping off her cherubic curls. Mei looked up then, she seemed to have recovered and was smiling in thanks.

"Don't move!" Arata cried. Both girls stiffened at the sound and then slowly relaxed their postures. Arata moved forward a few steps and then slid to the left a couple feet, angling up the shot. He looked at the girls with a critical eye and then peering through his lens he found the height at which brought the most character before fiddling with the knobs and shutter speeds to assure himself of the most precise image. Rays streamed through the filter of leaves painting the pair in soft reds, oranges and gold. It was a striking contrast amidst the new darkness of the wood. He snapped a couple of pictures and then he stilled as he heard a rustling above. A blast of wind was coming, it tore through the trees and he tensed. Studying his subjects with bated breath; he waited. Then it struck him, "turn your gazes this way, to the camera." Both girls shifted their faces marginally until they were staring into the lens. From the way he was kneeling proposal –style on the floor, Chihiro appeared to be looking down her nose at him. Mei was at his eyelevel, peering at him from behind a veil of hair. Arata snapped a picture, but did not leave his position, so the girls waited. Chihiro looked like a spirit: beautiful, untouchable, and from the way she appeared to be staring him down though half-lidded eyes, vengeful. Mei looked like her charge. She seemed to embody the wearied soul of a flower; her spine was curved into a graceful crescent, and she rested a cheek on her tulle-covered knees.

Then he felt it: a whisper, a kiss of wind, a promise of the upcoming gale. He braced himself. One knee pressed into the stone ground, Arata steadied his camera on his raised knee, and he planted his foot firmly. He had one chance. It hit, attempting to topple him over. The wind found him be immobile, and in its impatience flowed around him; the way water would a stone. Before even bothering to blink he snapped a series of shots. The airstream whipped around the pair, snatching weaker leaves from branched fingers. The girls looked like a force of nature, their gowns and hair lifted in layers making them appear weightless. The glowing light rendered them with a transparent vibrancy that was unsettling and dreamlike. The leaves clawed at their hair, but the girls held their ground. Arata must have taken at least 40 pictures in the 6 second time span. As suddenly as it had come, the wind died off. Leaves drifted lazily to the ground and Arata lowered his camera. He straightened eager to see his reward on the display panel. Chrissie came up behind him, and peered around his shoulder while he flipped through the shots. He felt more than heard her gasp. Arata looked up at the girls still rooted in place and he gave them a cheesy thumbs up. "That was perfection!" Both girls beamed in response and Chihiro hauled Mei back up to her feet.

The tunnel was farther than they had originally thought. The sun was going lower in the sky so Chrissie and Mei decided to head back to the car to bring back flashlights and coats. Arata, meanwhile, directed Chihiro to dance around and enjoy herself amongst the trees. At first she felt self-conscious and didn't know what to do. Arata never took the camera from his face though so she pretended he wasn't even there. Hmm, what would Mei do? Instantly she began spinning around in slow circles. Then she skipped to tunnel and she had to place a hand on her crown to keep it attached. Hearing the shutter and clicks of the camera spurred her on. She must be doing something right. Chihiro wasn't paying as much attention as she should have however, because she tripped over a root, stubbing her toe and falling to the floor in the process. "Owww," Chihiro groaned. She had fallen hard. Her knees, and forearms would definitely be bruised tomorrow. Arata had been right behind her, looking through the eyepiece, when he saw her sail to the floor. Miraculously he had managed to get a picture of her in midair and it looked as though she was flying, but of course that wasn't of any importance at the moment he thought, rushing forward.

"Chihiro?! Hey you ok?" She rolled onto her back, arms splayed overhead, she looked like a ballerina, and suddenly the photographer took over and he forgot about his model's wellbeing. "Freeze!" He was already snapping pictures, but she was not in the mood.

"Arata! I just had my butt kicked by the friggen ground! Don't you think that takes a little precedence here," Chihiro groused. She tried to move into a sitting position, but the impossible dress had somehow managed to wrap her like a mummy. A big hand was shoved into her face, and Chihiro looked up in surprise. Arata had a sheepish smirk glued to his lips.

"It's not going to bite; not by itself anyway." Arata purred. Chihiro snorted, but she was stuck, so she didn't see many other options, and gruffly took his hand. Arata leaned back to pull her up, but she still couldn't get her legs out from under her. "Geez, Newbie, you're always such a pain in my ass." Arata tittered. He dropped her hand to instead grab her by the waist. Then he preceded to lift her into the air. Shocked, Chihiro's hands gripped Arata's shoulders, and she couldn't stop the blush that bloomed into her cheeks.

"Eep, put me down you asshat!" She flailed her legs wildly, causing Arata to struggle against her sudden shifts in weight. He set her down, and Chihiro quickly twisted out of his grip. Immediately, she noticed how her big toe began to throb painfully and she lifted the dress to get a better look. She had ripped her toenail and her foot was caked with blood and dirt over the injured digit. "Ah, shit," she hissed and she sat back down; careful to hike up the skirt to her knees first, so she wouldn't get stuck again.

"Ooh that looks nasty," Arata stated, crouching down beside her. Chihiro glared. "Hey, don't blame me. You should have been watching where you stepped in the first place."

"Meh meh meh, watch where you step, foohey," She stuck her tongue out. She knew she was being childish, but it really, really, REALLY, fucking hurt! Chihiro hissed as Arata picked up her foot. "Ah watch it!"

"Relax newbie, you are in excellent hands." To this Chihiro crossed her arms and glowered. Arata chuckled at the malice in her stare. "What? I used to volunteer at a hospital when I was young and ambitious. I can administer first aid, easy." He then gently propped her foot in his lap. Reaching in his pocket, he pulled out a sky blue handkerchief and surprisingly enough a pocket sized first aid kit. He shrugged his backpack off and pulled out a water bottle and a utility knife. Chihiro watched, fascinated, as he twiddled the utility knife until a small set of scissors extended. He cut the handkerchief into halves and then cut those again, until he had four long strips. He wet a strip with a bit of water, and then looked up at her, "this is going to hurt Newbie. But I gotta clean you off before I can assess the damage." Chihiro gulped and nodded. Arata grabbed Chihiro's foot in one hand.

"No wait!" Chihiro cried. She laid back and squeezed her eyes shut, "Ok go." Arata again took up her foot and, with more gentleness than Chihiro thought he possessed, he began to clean the blood and mud off her wound. It didn't hurt yet, well not more than it did already anyway, so that had to be a good sign. "OWW!"

"Keep still," Arata barked. He had just barely touched her toe, when she ripped her foot from his grasp. "What good does it do you to fight huh? Dumbass." He tried to hide the fact that she had scared him. Picking up a clean strip of cloth, he wet it a bit more than the last. "Ok, I'm about to clean it, so don't you dare move." He said levelly. Chihiro still had her eyes squeezed shut and she took a shuddering breath before shoving a knuckle between her teeth. "Ready?"

"Mhmm," Chihiro, sucked in a breath. She felt him moving slowly, and steadily. With a whimper, she bit into her knuckles to the point of almost breaking the skin. Tears trailed from the edges of her eyes, down her cheeks, to her ears. Chihiro heard something rip, and a crackling noise. Then she felt him wrapping up her foot and she dared to sit back up for a better look.

"Well, you can't be positive without an X-ray, but I'm pretty sure you just stubbed it real bad, and tore your nail up a bit. It didn't feel like anything was broken, and you don't have any extra swelling so that's a good sign. I put an ointment and a bandage over the nail to help it heal. You'll be fine."

"What's the handkerchief for?" Chihiro sniffed.

"That will just cushion it a bit, and keep dirt out, since Somebody was smart enough to leave her shoes in the car." Poor thing he thought. Her makeup had run, giving her green tinged raccoon eyes and she had dirt on her cheek. He wanted so badly to take a picture. People literally made models cry on purpose for shots like this.

Chihiro heaved a sigh, and then ran a wrist under her nose, "thank you."

"Don't mention it," Arata grinned. He dug into his other pocket and handed Chihiro a different, uncut, handkerchief.

"Geez, where do you get all these," Chihiro laughed; gratefully accepting the bright pink square cloth to wipe her eyes and nose.

"When I was a kid I was convinced I was going to be in the circus so I bought a bunch of young magician kits. Now I have a lifetime supply of colorful hankies." Chihiro laughed then. She held the now slightly damp handkerchief out to him. Arata, made a face, "Naw, you keep it."He sighed, "Alright, let's get you up. We may as well head back to the car; it's a long way off."

"But what about the tunnel?" Chihiro motioned behind her, "it's right there!"

"Yeah but look at you. You're hurt,-"

"Just my toe!"

"I wasn't finished. You're hurt, you dirtied your dress, and your hair and makeup is all messed up."

"That will just make it more authentic and artistic," Chihiro countered. "Come on, we came all this way risking life and limb," she gestured dramatically at her foot, "and it's right fricking there!" She didn't know why she had such a strong desire to go there, but Chihiro had always been stubborn. And once she got something in her mind, she held on until she followed it through. By the way Arata pouted, and looked at the tunnel entrance; now not five yards from them, she knew, she had already won.

"Fine, Newbie but if Chris asks, this was your idea. Got it?"

"Quick, help me up and, let's go!" she crowed. Arata rolled his eyes, and putting a hand on his hip, he extended the other out before her. Chihiro gritted her teeth and tried to hide her grimace as she pulled herself back up. In truth she hurt all over, and her body was screaming to give up and go home. Steeling her back and walking on her heel, she hobbled to the arched doorway. At the entrance she stopped and looked back. Arata was shoving everything back in his bag. The smiling stone guardian seemed to taunt her, daring her to pluck up the courage to enter alone. A gentle wind pressed her forward. Oh well, Arata was right behind her, she'd be fine.

Arata watched Chihiro disappear into the tunnel entrance, and for a second he was going to run after her. But then he noticed the girls in the distance heading his way and decided to meet them halfway. The sun would set in a few minutes anyway and he didn't want them getting separated. They were all going to end up in the tunnel one way or another, Chihiro would be fine on her own for a little while.

The tunnel was smooth and unadorned. She used the rock wall to help her forward and a strange bubble of excitement began to rise within her. Her footsteps were gradually growing into an echo. The tunnel gave way to a giant room. Stone pillars with light fixtures held sentry to what must have once been a great hall. Her throbbing foot all but forgotten, Chihiro marveled at her surroundings. Small circular windows adorned to walls providing a soft glow of painted light, in blues, pinks and yellows. She continued forward, there was another archway directly opposite her. Light streamed through it, it must be an exit. Chihiro shuffled forward, wishing she could go faster. The sun was starting to set, that was evident in the now orange tinged sunrays. She continued on in earnest, if Arata missed it then, oh well. The exit gave way to a vast meadow. "Wow," she breathed. There was grass as far as the eye could see and the hills here were dotted with many more of those strange statues. She looked up at the pink tinged sky and saw a path leading up the hill. "This place would be great for a picnic," Chihiro mused. Then that strange feeling came again. She had forgotten something.

Brushing the thought away, Chihiro trudged up the path. She saw a bunch of stone steps and frog statues sitting across what looked like a dried up riverbed. There were large boulders dotting through it and if she was uninjured, she would have been make it across easily. Deciding to take a different approach she lowered herself into the creek bed. Being careful of loose pebbles she picked her way across. She looked up. The sun was setting faster than she had anticipated; she was going to miss it. Moving quicker she realized she was going to have to climb over at least a couple boulders, they were so close together, there was no other way to get around. Once she had gotten back down, she realized she had made it across. Well almost. She was attempting to clamber over the ledge of the riverbed and get back on level ground when the sky suddenly changed from orange-red to purple. Instantaneously the ground began to rumble and Chihiro lost her hold. A roar, like the rush of a waterfall, made Chihiro's stomach leap into her throat; then looking down in surprise, Chihiro saw water rise over her feet. It was to her ankles when she realized that it wasn't that the creek must not have been as dry as she had first thought, but that it was refilling. She looked up, just as a wall of water headed straight for her.

Screaming Chihiro raised her arms protectively above her head. Root-like vines wrapped around her wrist and pulled. She was launched out of the path of the incoming river and into the arms of some bulbous white thing. Eyes wide with fear, Chihiro screamed once more. What could only be a human sized radish looked back at her in alarm. But radishes weren't human sized! And they sure as hell didn't have eyes! She ripped herself out of the freakish vegetable's grasp. Screw this, I'll swim back across, she thought. But when she turned around, there was nothing but water stretched out before her. Like a great black sea. "I'm dreaming," she chanted. "I must have knocked myself out when I fell! That is the only logical explanation!"

"Well, Chihiro, you've finally decided to grace us with a visit. It certainly has been a long time." At the mention of her name, Chihiro froze.

Author's Note:

Ahh, I'm sorry, I had to leave you with a cliffhanger!

Who is it that has greeted our fair Chihiro? Did the Radish Spirit suddenly learn to speak? What about the photo-shoot?

Don't worry the next chapter will be up soon.

Please review/ favourite if you so choose.

Thanks for reading!

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