Convergence - Chapter 6

By turning nonetheless; I don't own the rights to Spirited Away.

Afternoon shadows raced across the buildings as Chihiro looked down at the train tracks. Neon signs flickered on, reminding her of the time that she and her friends had made the journey to Swamp Bottom so she could return the golden seal to Zeniba. She wished her friends were here with her now because their care and support would really make a difference.

Chihiro walked the roof top as the last bit of natural light faded from the sky. Searching for a way to escape, she noted a short, boxy object, about a meter in width and a little more in length, near the goblin. At first she thought it might be part of the building's ventilation system, but then she spotted the hinges.

It had to be a hatch, possibly covering some stairs or a ladder, which would let her inside the building. She chided herself for not noticing it sooner because she had been in such a rush to put plenty of distance between her and the goblin. As she walked towards the hatch, she kept her eyes on her kidnapper. For the moment, he stood there watching her, arms crossed in a casual manner. Her fingers curled around the recessed handle of the hatch. The metal hatch was heavier than she thought it would be and it refused to budge more than a centimeter or two as Chihiro pulled up on it until her hands hurt. When she paused to rub her tired hands, she realized that she was beginning to vanish. She had hoped that her previous time in the spirit world would somehow make her immune to it, but that obviously wasn't the way things worked.

Closing her eyes, she made an effort to stay calm. The goblin might have some food but she certainly didn't trust him. It bugged her that she should have to ask him for anything, and besides that, the sadistic creep would probably make her beg for it. She opened her eyes, bravely meeting his dark gaze, because her survival was more important than her pride. Her parents would be worried sick about her by now and she planned to do everything in her ability to get back to them.

"I need some food from this world."

"What can you offer in return?"

Chihiro worked at keeping her expression neutral. It obviously pleased the goblin when she got upset. "I'll trade my camera for a bite of food."

He shook his head. "I need some information." He held up a small, orange colored candy for her to see. "Tell me what Haku said to you before you returned to the human world. Did he say that he loved you? Were any promises made?"

Chihiro shivered when he mentioned promises. Why would he want to know what they said to each other? She doubted that she could think up a convincing lie on such short notice. Maybe if she just left out some of the details, she could avoid telling him anything important. "No, he didn't say that he loved me and he didn't kiss me. It wasn't like that." She held out her hand for the candy even though she wasn't sure if she would be able to hold it.

"You're hiding something. Hurry up - you don't have much time before you completely disappear." He moved closer to her, holding the candy near her face.

Chihiro attempted to grab the candy but her hand passed right through his. There was no other way but to tell the truth.

"We promised to meet again someday."

He shoved the candy in her mouth almost before she had finished speaking. Chihiro puckered her lips. She thought about spitting out the candy because it was extremely sour and it burned her tongue.

The goblin stood up straight as he brushed back his hair with his fingers. "Young love. How naïve can you get?" He flicked some lint off his shirt and slacks before sitting down on the hatch. "By the way, my name is Karasu."

Chihiro wondered why he even bothered to introduce himself since it wasn't like she wanted to be friends with him. She rubbed her lips with the back of her hand because they tingled unpleasantly. The candy left a horrible aftertaste in her mouth as it dissolved.

"Look at what your hairband did to me," said the goblin as he held up his right hand to show her the ugly red welt on his palm. "Ruined my best pair of gloves also."

Chihiro shrugged her shoulders and looked away. "I didn't tell you to touch it." He deserved worse than that, she thought, though she was surprised that the hairband had reacted so strongly to the goblin's touch. Her girlfriends had touched the hairband and even borrowed it on several occasions, yet it had never hurt any of them. Granny had said that it would protect her, yet in the end, the hairband hadn't been enough to shield her from a determined effort to drag her into the spirit world. Perhaps the hairband was the reason that she hadn't remembered this place, instead of some spell as the goblin had insinuated.

"I won't forget, Chihiro. I'll make sure that your friends suffer all the more for this."

She showed him her back, refusing to listen to him threaten her friends, and returned to her task. As she walked the perimeter of the roof, she hoped to find an exterior ladder that would let her climb down to the ground. After awhile, her stomach gurgled and cramped unexpectedly. Chihiro leaned forward slightly and rubbed her abdomen in hopes of soothing it. She wondered if the sour candy was making her sick or if it was because she'd only had a slice of toast to eat since morning.

Ignoring the cramps as best she could, she continued to hunt for anything that would aid her escape. Unfortunately, there were no ladders or a fire escape, and by now she was even considering the insane possibility of climbing down the outside of a skinny drainpipe. If she could simply get to the train tracks then she could walk to Swamp Bottom, but the goblin had not moved away from the hatch. She also kept her eyes open for any sturdy bits of lumber or pieces of scrap iron that she could use as a weapon to protect herself.

Chihiro yawned as achill spread through her limbs. Her body suddenly felt very heavy and weak. The city skyline was blurring and tilting as she struggled to keep her balance and she blinked her eyes in an attempt to clear her sight. Deciding to sit down before she fell down, she pulled her legs to her chest. Despite the fact that she was still wearing her jacket, she found that she could not shake off the sensation of being buried in ice.

Boom! Chihiro hunched her shoulders at the unexpected gong-like sound that echoed around her. She glanced at the goblin to see what was going on. Karasu had opened the hatch door and he was now walking towards her. This was not good. Chihiro tried to regain her feet so she could move away from him, but she ended up falling on her face instead. Her thoughts were sluggish and she felt only a dull pain from her nose and mouth where they pressed against the roof. Nevertheless, she knew she had made a bad bargain with the goblin. She groaned when he touched her back. He rolled her over, moving closer as he stared into her eyes. She pushed at him with her hands although there was no strength left in her arms. "I can smell your fear and I like it." Karasu picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder. Her arms and legs dangled uselessly. She tried to protest, but she couldn't even make her mouth work now. As he patted her on the butt, he said, "Good night, silly pullet."

Chihiro closed her eyes.

TBC