Chapter 7
Yubaba snapped her finger in front of her face and with the tiny flame it emitted, she lit the end of her cigarette. She breathed in deeply as the fire caught to the end of the slender stick. At least Haku hadn't taken that convenient, if slightly underwhelming, piece of magic from her. She leaned against a support beam, staring pensively out at the calm waters. That traitorous river spirit had cost her so much these past few years, most importantly, her pride.
Hope he's enjoying his little vacation, she thought with disdain, he has no idea the tricks he's in for.
Unbeknownst to Haku, the old witch had figured out his little ruse. Sure, she had told him the correct way to Fate's whereabouts, but she had neglected to inform him of the peril he would encounter along the way. Not to mention, the devious devices that Fate, no doubt, had up his sleeve. Her own run-in with the powerful spirit had almost cost her her life, so many years ago.
"Yubaba!" a familiar voice shouted from the doorway behind her, "It's not your break time yet. Would you get back in here? The customers will be here any minute, we need all hands on deck."
Yubaba rolled her eyes and threw her cigarette down, smashing it into the boards with her shoe, "Yea, I'm coming..."
"And what have I told you about putting those things out on the deck? You're leaving so many burn marks this place is starting to look like a dalmatian," Rin crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes threateningly.
"I'll turn you into a dalmatian if you don't watch your tone with me," the witch grumbled under her breath.
"Excuse me?" the slender bath house manager challenged.
"Oh, nothing! Just leave me be will you? I'm a frail old woman, I deserve a little more respect around here," Yubaba attempted to play the pity card.
"Ha! Like the way you respected all your employees by stealing their essences? Unlikely, but you can keep trying," Rin scoffed, bemused.
The crone spun on her heels to face the girl, malice igniting in her eyes, "You listen to me, you little rat! I built this bathhouse! It would never even be standing here if it weren't for me, let alone the thriving business that it is! You know, the business that puts gold in your pocket and food in your belly!? You were no one before I swept you up and gave you a job!"
"And I was no one again when you tried to zombify all of us!" Rin returned, matching her vehemence.
"I did what I had to do to keep things running smoothly. You were all getting out of hand! With a place this busy and the number of employees I had to keep under my thumb, what choice did I have?" she was growing red in the face with anger, "If I hadn't have kept you all docile, you would have run my business into the ground, the way you carried on after that measly runt left. Like you owned the place! The nerve of the lot of you!"
The young woman snorted, "Seems like Haku is doing a fine job of it. Maybe if you hadn't tried to keep him 'under your thumb', he could have taught you a thing or two and you'd still be running the place instead of scrubbing up spirit scum."
"Why I ought to-" Yubaba lunged towards Rin, grabbing at her frock, but she was frozen in her tracks by a jolt of magic, "Wha-! How? Where did you learn that?!"
"Haku taught me a few things so that I could keep the peace while he's away," Rin smirked and floated the old woman backwards until she was several feet safely away.
The witch seethed, but her labored breaths quickly turned to deep, menacing cackles as a thought dawned on her, "That'll be the last thing Haku ever teaches you! Ah ha ha ha haaa!"
The girl's eyes bulged in alarm, "What are you talking about, you old coot?"
"Oh, hee hee, no time to explain, my dear," the woman turned and made her way into the building, "I've got baths to scrub!"
"Wait! You get back here!" Rin demanded and took off after the woman, hoping to pry some answers out of her.
Chihiro groaned and rolled over, burying her face in her pillow. She hadn't been able to sleep much at all since she had received Haku's letter, the previous night. When she did manage to catch a few minutes of nap, she was swept up into strange dreams, some old, some new, but always revolving around the spirit world and the river spirit.
"Might as well get up," she said to the crow, who was curled up on the other pillow still sound asleep, "I guess it's just me then."
She peered at her clock, which read precisely 5:26AM. That called for her coffee, this morning, to be strong and black: her fuel to face the day. She was on the verge of losing her job, as it was, but in the week since she'd lost her parents, her exhaustion levels had risen to maximum frequency. Her boss was less than sympathetic, but it would appease him to know that she actually had over four hours this morning to assure that she wouldn't show up late today.
She showed up late, anyway, disheveled and clumsy, as usual. She had drank too much coffee, again, which gave her the shakes and made her hyper-focused on the most menial of tasks. She spent a full twenty minutes just brushing her teeth, and trying to comb and style her hair was a whole other monster in and of itself. When she finally, and quite literally, stumbled into the fabric store, the time on the clock read 10:31AM and the expression on the manager's face read "dead meat".
"I- I'm so sorry, sir! I lost my keys and my wallet and I couldn't go anywhere without them!" she spat out in a panic, "Please, you have to understand!"
"That's the third time this week that you've lost those, girl! Do you take me for some kind of fool?" the manager growled.
"Of course not! It's just that things have been so rough, I'm not myself at all lately," she didn't want or need to beg to keep her job, not if Haku came through for her in a few days, but she hated to disappoint anyone.
"I don't think you've been 'yourself' since the moment you started working here!" he bellowed, "This is your very last chance, young lady. Pull this mess one more time, and you're out for good, you hear me?"
"Yes, sir! Thank you, sir," she bowed deeply.
"Off with you, I need you to count inventory today and run the numbers!" he shooed her off, "and make sure you check and double check this time! You're walking a thin line, no room for error anymore."
"Yes, sir!" she repeated, and disappeared behind the stockroom door.
Once she was hidden from sight, she breathed a sigh of relief. Something about authority figures made her feel deathly insecure. She wondered if it had anything to do with Yubaba being her first real boss. The way that woman could rant and rave would send even the strongest person cowering into a hole. Granted, she had finally stood up to Yubaba in the end, but that had partially been because Haku was by her side. His protective nature towards her had given her the strength and courage she had need to fight and win. Without him there, she was reverted to a sniveling mess, and she cursed herself for it.
She started on her task, shaking the nerves off as best as she could manage. She didn't particularly like the responsibility of inventory duty, but she loved being in the storage room surrounded by the rows of gorgeous fabric bolts. She would often take a moment to just walk around the room, running her hands along the cloth, soaking in the various textures and colors. They had just received a new shipment, so Chihiro grabbed a box cutter and began tearing into the boxes.
When she got to the third box, and lifted the lid, her breath caught in her throat. Laying there, in the middle of the bolts, was the most beautiful fabric she'd ever seen, beckoning to her like some kind of woven, silken sign. It was obviously fabric that was meant for a silk kimono, for the texture was heavy and rich, but it was the color and pattern that had caught her eye. Small, willowy white dragons swam in a sea of dark teal green, frolicking among billowy clouds. She pulled the spool from the box and hugged it tightly to her chest.
"I miss you," she whispered, breathlessly.
She sat there for a few moments, nuzzling her cheek to the fabric, but was interrupted by the manager barging in to check on her progress.
"Chihiro! What on earth are you doing?"
"Uh, nothing sir. I, I - I was just... uh... admiring the new arrivals. I'm almost done, I swear," she explained.
"You've been in here for over an hour, girl. You're not almost done, you are done. Get your stuff together and go home. You're fired," he pointed towards the door for emphasis.
"But... but..." Chihio felt her bottom lip quiver, but instead of giving in to her emotions, she hardened her expression, "Fine! But please, sir, tell me how much for this bolt of fabric. I want to buy it before I leave."
"That tacky looking stuff? Take it. Consider it a parting gift," he waved her off, "Just get out of here. You're holding up business."
"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," she bowed to him and quickly gathered her belonging, running at full speed out of the shop.
As she was leaving, the owner's wife watched with wide eyes as she noticed what the girl was clutching as she exited, "Wait! Where are you going with that?!"
"Oh, let her go, Mina. It's just some ugly satin stuff. Looked cheep so I let her take it. She's out of our hair for good now, she may as well get something out of it too," he shrugged.
"That was pure silk, you idiot! You just cost us a few hundred dollars!" she rewarded him with a swift smack to the back of the head.
