Author's Notes

Hah! This chapter is right on target as far as time goes. One month from the last time I posted and three more pages. I really love the end of this chapter. (At this point I know most of you are very scared)

Since some of you seemed rather confused with the end of the last chapter, I thought I'd clarify.

Tomoe is Chihiro's best friend as of Chapter Two when Chihiro goes to her new school for the first time. Two years after that (chapter Three) Chihiro tells Tomoe about going to the Spirit world. Now, when Chihiro gets to the spirit world again she meets Ai, who is a carbon copy of Tomoe except for her hair color. Ai is the daughter of the spirit that loaned Yubaba money and that's why she's at the bathhouse. Well, that and she's annoying Kohaku. In chapter 7 Tomoe is standing near the tunnel opening making threats to someone on the other side. Last chapter, we saw that she was in the spirit world and meeting with Light. I hope this clears stuff up.

Reviewer responses:

Mitsuko Maxwell- Yes, more of the teen thing in this chapter. I'm glad you like Light and her guardians. I always worry about using them too much 'cause of the OC thing, but they're so much fun to write. Chibis...yeah, I think of them like that sometimes too. And I know what you mean about the drawing thing. I can't draw at all, but my friend can and she's agree to do title art for this fic for me. Once it's done (possibly even after the fic) I'm going to get my cousin to put it up on my website. No, I have no clue how to do it myself...

Storm-Maker- Whenever I get withdrawl symtoms I go back and read a story from the beginning...it doesn't always help...I'm slaving away as much as I can..I'm really scared that you are gonna be mad at me after this chapter...

Cute Anime Kitty - Torturing people is fun..err...thinking of ways to torture people, or better yet characters is fun. Thanks for reviewing!

Claire - thanks. I hope I answered your questions above. Chihiro and Kohaku get together now? But I have so much fun stuff planned for them... (my friend stephanie says that my idea of 'fun' for characters translates to 'torture' for normal people.)

Kennan- Isn't the movie incredible? I wish it had been longer...

Kerei Kitsune - Updating as fast as possible...I promise

The Clueless- You're right, I'm not saying anything about Tomoe and Ai yet. Great imagination, me? Thanks!

Smoke Angel - Thanks so much! Yes, as annoying as her parents are, they are so much fun to mess with. And what could possibly make it more difficult for Kohaku to get together with Chihiro then her parents looking over her shoulder all the time?

Rachel - You have the same name as my little sister! Thanks for your review!

LadyMoon3 - Yes, you will find, if you don't already know, that I adore Light and the council. I love the idea that the entire universe is been ruled by a ten year old girl with four overprotective brothers who cannot stop fighting with each other. As for Tomoe..my lips are sealed.








Chapter 9: Shields that Hide

The deep sapphire cloak of the sky was quiet for its protector and his passenger that flew across it, their other companions having long since fallen asleep. The pale gold moon a silent witness to their voyage home.

Chihiro lay silently, looking out on the ocean below. She wasn't at all tired after having slept in that morning. She would most likely be awake for another few hours yet. Neither her nor Kohaku had spoken much since leaving Zeniba's. He had come for her around sunset, and Zeniba had forced him inside and set food before him and kept him prisoner until he finished all of it, oblivious to his pleas of not being hungry or not requiring food in the first place. After their earlier discussion Chihiro was surprised at the way the sorceress fussed over the dragon spirit. But Kohaku didn't seem to figure it anything out of the ordinary.

Chihiro hated it. She could not figure out why everyone was treating Kohaku differently. And she hated feeling like she was suddenly a million miles behind him. He was there with her, but he wasn't. He was the warrior for the council, but he was her best friend as well.

Through her annoyance something soft brushed against her mind.

'Chihiro?'

Kohaku!

"Yeah?" She had no clue if he could hear her over the wind that blew past them, but she didn't have the slightest idea how to communicate with him mentally either. So she compromised and leaned closer to speak nearer to his ear.

'Tomorrow...would you like to go on a picnic?'

Yes! Yes! Of course she would! She almost screamed, but didn't.

"With you?" Perhaps the question was redundant but she had rather figured that she would be spending the day with him at Zeniba's and that hadn't exactly happened the way she figured it. So now she wanted to make sure that whatever she agreed to would involve spending time with him, or else she might as well just stay at the bathhouse, she would see more of him there.

'Yes, with me.' Why had he taken so long to say those words?

"Yes! Yes, of course. I'd love to."

'Alright then. Tomorrow afternoon.'

"Yes...and Kohaku? ....thank you."

'You're welcome, Chihiro..."

***

There was darkness everywhere. Not the warm darkness that you could trust to guard you while you slept, or even the frightening darkness that hid whatever evil lurked in its shadows, but the vast freezing darkness that just didn't care if you were afraid or not, if you were happy or sad, if you were alive or dead...

Something was slowly devouring him. Slowly eating away at his flesh, tearing away at him, and at the same time, he was still all there. Wherever "there" was. He didn't know how long he drifted here, lost, alone in agony and contentment until everything broke.

Broke. Like he was in a glass mirror that had just been shattered. The pieces of the darkness fell to the ground, and he could see the sky full with pale moon, but no stars.

"You still dream about this?"

Kohaku was standing back in the Lily garden of the Palace of the Moon. Light was sitting on her tree swing, just like she had been hours before, her head cocked to the side, looking at him.

His hand brushed against the crystalline katana strapped to his side and he could once again hear it singing. He took a deep breath and relaxed.

"I haven't had it for a long time, but yes, sometimes I still do."

"You shouldn't." She swung herself back in forth. Her skin soaked in the moonbeams, and while the sky of the spirit world had no stars, they were still reflected in her childlike eyes.

Kohaku opened his mouth to speak but hesitated. "Who am I to question the celestial child?"

He purposely looked at the ground as he spoke. Light rose softly and walked over to him. While she came only to her mid-chest her presence made her seem much taller.

"You are everyone Kohaku. I would never tell you how to live."

"But I don't live!"

Light closed her eyes. "I understand that you're upset. I know that dream disturbs you greatly."

Kohaku folded his arms across his chest. "Not everyone gets to feel death and survive."

Light looked physically pained by his statement. "Do you wish you hadn't remembered?"

Kohaku looked away. "Sometimes. I was naive to ever want to remember."

There was a moment of silence that hung in the air like a stone, waiting to crush them both.

"You're not going to offer to make me forget?"

"Why should I? We bother know that you won't accept. You can't stand not knowing, or not trying. You don't live well with regret Kohaku, no one does."

"Stop saying that."

"What?"

"Live."

"Kohaku...you would do better to just tell them."

"Who?"

"Everyone."

"Why?"

"Because then they could stop worrying about you, and maybe you could tell them what's really going on once in a while. You talk to me sometimes, but you never tell me much. You'd feel better if you told them. You'd at least be under less stress."

An awkward silence passed before Kohaku turned and bowed low on one knee.

"I apologize Light-sama. I should not be speaking to you in such a manner. Please excuse my behavior."

Light took a few deep breaths. She was either trying to stop herself from crying or screaming.

"This is exactly what I mean Kohaku. Every time you feel like you're risking something of yourself you draw back and apologize, playing up your own inferiority. You can't keep doing this Kohaku. You have to let someone, anyone know you."

"That's what this is about isn't it? You want me to tell Chihiro."

"....yes..."

"You cannot order me to inflict such a burden on her. By your leave, Light-sama, may I return to dreaming?"

Light bit her lip, but nodded and this time the darkness Kohaku fell into was the soft, rich darkness of the summer night.

***

Chihiro awoke the next morning in the best mood she'd been in for days. For one, no one had to wake her up that morning. There was no back-braking work to be done. If she was lucky she wouldn't find out, hear, or otherwise come into knowledge of something else about Kohaku that he himself didn't know. As an added bonus she probably wouldn't have to deal with her parents all day, or a certain someone who looked at her like she was a speck of dirt on her silken slipper.

Knowing all of this, Chihiro was also fairly sure that her day was just about to sour.

"Chihiro!"

And here it came...

"Mom, I told you before, you have to call me 'Sen' Got it? 'Sen.'"

Her mother ignored her and instead seized her roughly by the upper arm and pulled her back into the room she had just exited.

"Mom, what-?" She started to ask even as she was pushed into the corner of the room, away from the other girls who were still rolling up their sleeping mats.

"What on earth are you thinking?" She hissed.

Chihiro was at a loss; she had no idea what her mother could possibly referring to . But she was standing there, tapping her foot, expecting an answer.

"I was thinking that I'd go downstairs and find Lin?"

"You know very well that's not what I'm talking about." Her mother's tone turned dangerous. "I mean, what do you think you're doing going out with that...that boy? How could you ever think that your father and I would approve of this?"

Chihiro's expression got caught somewhere in between anger, embarrassment, and confusion. She knew she shouldn't have told Lin about going out with Kohaku today!

"Mom, it's not a date! They don't do that kind of thing here!"

"You're going somewhere with him aren't you?"

"Well...yes, but-"

"And it will be just the two of you?"

"Yes but-"

"What else would you call that sort of thing then Chihiro? I can't believe you would go behind our backs like this! Chihiro the people here...they're not...well they're not normal. Now I don't know yet what's wrong with this boy but you can bet there's something and-"

"Mom." Chihiro interrupted. "There is nothing wrong with Kohaku." She was trying to keep her temper, but her words still shook, betraying the underlying promise of fury.

"Well, you know I don't mean it that way Chihiro. It's just that everyone here has something odd about them. He may not have told you yet but they're all the same. He could be dangerous dear. You know we're just tying to watch out for you."

"Dangerous? Of course Kohaku's dangerous. He's the spirit of the lost Kohaku river, he can turn into a dragon at will and he's the warrior for the council, which makes him one of the most dangerous spirits in the entire universe. Which is also why I'll be perfectly safe with him."

Chihiro's mother's mouth went up and down a couple of times as her brain tried to process the new information.

"Just wait until you're father hears about this.... Chihiro, you're not going with him. I forbid it."

Chihiro looked up at her mother, mouth set in a firm line.

"I'm sorry mother but I'm afraid that you don't have that power over me anymore."

She sidestepped the older women and left, leaving her slack-jawed mother to stare blankly after her.

***

"Are you sure you want to wear that?"

Chihiro glanced down at her school uniform and then back at Lin.

"Should I wear the bathhouse uniform instead?"

Lin sighed and hung her head. "No no no. Honestly, haven't you ever gone out with a boy before?"

Chihiro blushed slightly and mumbled under her breath. "No, but I sincerely doubt that you have either."

"What was that?"

"Nothing Lin!"

Lin turned to one of the other girls that had swarmed around them the moment Lin had started talking about clothing.

"You should wear this!" She held out a beautiful silk lavender kimono with a darker violet obi.

Chihiro blushed a shade deeper. "Lin, we're just going on a picnic."

"We know, that's why we picked out one of the simpler ones." Another girl spoke up.

Chihiro touched the garment hesitantly.

"Take it!" Lin shoved into her arms. "Besides, it'll be fun to see dragon boy flustered."

If Chihiro wasn't blushing before she certainly was now.

"It's not a date! Kohaku's just my friend! I've got other friends back home like Joe who are guys and he hangs out with Tomoe and I all...the...time..."

She had trailed off, remembering Joe's offer before she had left and deciding that might not be the best example to use.

Lin sighed. "He's gonna be coming to get you any minute. Just put it on and don't argue. We got your parents away didn't we? You owe us!"

The others made collective mumblings of agreement and Chihiro wrinkled her nose, but complied nevertheless.

...after all...it was a very nice kimono....

***

"So...you're taking the girl out?"

Kohaku clenched his jaw, sincerely regretting telling Kawa-kami where he was going and why he was picking up a picnic basket from the kitchens.

"....yes....though I don't really see how it's any of your business..."

"My business? After all I've done for you!? Why I plucked you from the mud in the darkest hour of the stormy night-"

Behind the river god's back, his student was mouthing much the same words. "-I took your raw, underdeveloped talent and apathetic attitude to mold you into what you are today and then-"

Choosing that moment to turn around, Kawa-kami 'hmphed' as he found his student was no longer there.

***

Awkward silence. A little more awkward silence. Then, for a change of pace, some awkward silence.

Chihiro shifted back and forth, trying to get comfortable and nibbling on her food. It was all very delicious. Apparently the kitchens could put out decent food, if asked by the right people.

Kohaku been true to his word and come to get her that afternoon and in true girlish fashion Lin and the others had hid in the corners and snickered as Chihiro blushed when Kohaku complimented the kimono she was wearing.

He had then taken her to a beautiful picnic spot, served her her food, and form there on out they had sat in awkward silence.

Chihiro wondered whether Kohaku was feeling as nervous as she was, and whether he too had received so much verbal abuse over speculation about their outing, but didn't want to ask, just in case he hadn't. One part of her was scrambling for something, anything to say. The other part of her wanted to hit the aforementioned part for acting that way around her best friend. "So how do you like working for the council?"

'Yes!' she cheered herself silently for finding something to say.

"It's...interesting. It takes up a lot of time, and it's not exactly a ...clean... job..."

"Do you regret taking it then?"

Kohaku shook his head. "No. I've never regretted taking it. Light and her guardians are just like my siblings. As hard as things get sometimes, I wouldn't give it up for anything."

Chihiro smiled. She couldn't help it. Kohaku had family. Kohaku the lost river spirit who she'd worried about for the past five years had family.

"So what do you do exactly as warrior for the council or whatever..."

Kohaku smiled lightly, the patient smile of one dealing with others much younger or much more naive.

"My official duty is to maintain order, protect, and enforce the word of Light. But all I've really done since my wandering year is fight the separatists."

"The separatists?"

"They're...well, they're spirits, elemental spirits that want to...split the spirit world. They don't think that human souls should be allowed passage here anymore."

"O-oh..." Chihiro looked down at the ground. She knew that spirits weren't very partial to humans. But to hate even departed human spirits?

It shouldn't have been such a huge surprise. Chihiro wasn't stupid. She knew what humans were doing to the earth, and supposedly, to the spirits of the earth.

Pollution. Population expansion. Industrialization.

People were slowly destroying the spirits during their lifetimes. Now the spirits were trying to take their revenge the only way they could. It was fair, wasn't it? Humans were hurting the spirits, sometimes killing the spirits. Humans almost killed Kohaku. Humans made him a lost spirit...

"Chihiro?" Kohaku gently pulled up her chin and forced her to look at him. Tears were running down her face.

"Don't cry. We've got them beat right now." He wiped the tears from her cheeks. "We're not going to let them win. I'm not going to let them win. Ever."

Chihiro just cried harder as she hugged him. It just wasn't fair that he could care that much about those who had done so much wrong to him. It wasn't fair that he could forgive them all and she couldn't, even if they were her own kind.

He pulled away slightly to look her in the eye. "Come on. Settle down and tell me what you've been doing the past five years. Or would you rather I try and force food down your throat again?"

Chihiro allowed herself to giggle, remembering the last time he had comforted her while she shed tears over her parents.

"Well," she settled back, trying to go back to being happy so as not to ruin the entire afternoon from there on out.

"At home, my best friend's name is Tomoe. She can be kind of a klutz, but she's very nice. I told her about coming here and she believed me. She's the only one I ever told. She helps me with my homework a lot. We're in the same class. We have been for five years. We usually walk to school together. Her and me and my neighbor Joe-"

Kohaku cocked an eyebrow, all too aware of her abrupt stop. Chihiro looked sheepish.

"Joe's my next door neighbor. He...well...he asked me out the afternoon I came back actually. But I turned him down. I mean, he's been my friend for so long it would have just been weird."

Kohaku nodded in understanding and Chihiro opened her mouth to tell him about Tomoe's constant fights with Sumi, but was interrupted.

"Kohaku!"

He turned immediately and stood to meet the four lights slowly turning into boys roughly two years older than Kohaku.

"What's going on?" He asked them when they had completely descended. The one with blue hair opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted when the grey-haired one moved over to Chihiro.

"Hello! You must be Chihiro! Kohaku's told us so much about you!"

"Kaz..." Kohaku and the other three warned simultaneously.

"Yes, I'm Kaz. The blue guy's Akiro, the tall one's Gaven, and the other one with the orange hair is Zepher. We are the elemental guardians of Light. We-"

He no doubt would have continued on had the newly introduced Akiro not hit him over the head.

"That's enough. We're all very happy to meet Chihiro. But need I remind you we have slightly bigger problems to worry about?" Akiro hissed.

"You didn't have to hit me on the head! I think I'm getting a permanent bump there!"

"Well maybe if you would just keep your big mouth shut instead of shooting it off-"

While they squabbled Kohaku exchanged a look with the other two and nodded.

"Chihiro." She turned to Kohaku, the only one who seemed even remotely sane in the moment.

"I'm sorry, but I have to leave now. I've sent for Kawa-kami to take you back to the bathhouse and I'll leave a shield up to protect you. Please understand..."

Chihiro forced a smile. "Don't worry. It's not a big deal. You'll be okay, right?"

He smiled for her. "I'll be fine. I promise."

She nodded and the group of five boys took to the sky, leaving her alone with a nice view and a picnic basket until Kawa-kami came for her.

***

"So..." Kaz started.

"Don't even start." Kohaku snapped. Literally.

"Touchy touchy. I take it things didn't go so well then?"

"Kaz, knock it off. Messing with Kohaku is a bad idea normally. Do you really want to try your luck with pissed off dragon Kohaku?" Zepher asked.

"Is anyone going to tell me what's going on?"

The aforementioned annoyed Kohaku seem to like sulking because he wasn't showing any signs of stopping.

"Oh sure you're all nice and sweet for your girlfriend but the minute we take you away..."

"Kaz..."

"Okay...okay...sheesh..."

Akiro turned to Kohaku. "Someone set up a barrier. A very large barrier."

"You called me because some greedy idiot is worried about his gold?"

"Hey, we're not giving orders, just following them. Light felt something weird and told us to get you."

Everyone quieted after that. Whenever Light felt something wrong, something usually was wrong. And Kohaku knew, since Light had set up his little excursion in the first place, that she wouldn't have called upon him unless something was really wrong.

"There!"

Zepher needn't have pointed it out. The sickly pink transparent energy bauble was huge covering an equally large expanse of the ground, burnt as it was.

"Well, this is stereotypical." Kaz mumbled as they landed and reverted back to have access to their weapons.

"Welcome. You're a bit late. I honestly expected you sooner."

They turned to see a boy, roughly Kohaku's height, with sandy hair and reddish brown eyes sitting cross-legged atop a cracked boulder, encased in black robes. He smiled.

"With all the time you wasted getting here I'm sure my friends are already almost to the palace to visit your litter sister.'

The four elemental guardians perked up and drew their weapons slowly.

The boy chuckled a little and snapped his fingers. The energies of barrier they were encased in slowly began swirling, changing the color from pink to orange. The air suddenly became very settled.

"What did you.."

Gaven trailed off. They all looked down at themselves and realized what was happening. The air was stale because it had just been sucked dry of all the magical energy that usually drifted through it. Equally dry was their skin, for their own magic was now sealed inside them as well.

Don't you find it fascinating? It's a magic barrier. A trick I've been perfecting. My friends do it better than me though. I'm sure that your darling little sister will really enjoy seeing it.

"He's bluffing." Akiro snarled.

"We can't take that risk. If he's telling the truth…" Zepher argued.

"She's not much good without her magic. But there's no way he can seal her…is there?" Kaz questioned.

"He sealed us…maybe…" Gaven mused.

"Go." Kohaku ordered them, not taking his eyes off his opponent. "Your job is to protect Light. I know you have to put that before everything else. If you can't sense her, go. I can take care of him on my own. Or don't you trust me?"

"Kohaku…"

The boy smiled deviously. "Tick-tock gentlemen, Tick-Tock."

"Go!"

"Be careful.." Zepher whispered as he and the others left the barrier.

The magic deprived air was silent. Kohaku and the strange boy stared at each other, neither yet arming himself, but neither letting their guard down either.

"I'm so happy it's just you and me now. You know I've wanted to meet you for quite some time Kohaku. And here you are. Honestly, I'm rather fascinated by your little brush with death, and even more intrigued by the power you wield because of it. Tell me how you survived and maybe we can spare the messy bits."

Kohaku smiled back, amused, "I wish I knew."

"A pity."

"Your friends aren't' anywhere near the palace or Light are they? If they even exist that is."

"Oh they exist, but you're right. They're nowhere near that sweet little child. But you're not going to try and call the guardians back, are you? No, I'm quite certain you won't. Because I'm a threat to this world and that's your job isn't it? To take care of me. Still trying to prove yourself after all this time are you?"

"You like to hear yourself talk, don't you?"

The boy smiled maniacally. "Oh I like you Kohaku. Nothing you do is ever quite good enough is it? You're never quite good enough. Isn't that they way it goes? They tell you you're good but if you really were they wouldn't need to say it would they?"

"I'm getting tired of listening to your ramblings."

"Of course, of course. Just tell me one more thing, won't you? Don't you ever get upset?"

"About what?"

"The human filth of course! They're clogging up our world, our last haven, and eating up our magic. Stealing it from us with every breath they breathe. They should be punished you know. Then again….maybe you don't. I'd forgotten about your little pet."

Kohaku glared at him, reaching for the crystalline katana, its glow only slightly dulled with the lack of magic being fed to it.

"I can see we're not going to agree on this."

He sighed and dropped down from his rock. "Well, before we get on with it I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Djavel."

Kohaku drew his katana. "Since you already know my name and I doubt that you want to break form and tell me who all of your accomplices are and where I can find them, I guess we should begin."

"I guess we should."

***

"Chihiro, what's wrong?"

"I-I don't know Lin. I'm just kind of worried about Kohaku."

"Don't be. Dragon boy's never come back with anything more severe then a bruise before. He's too good to get hurt much worse. Or too hard headed…"

"I know….It's just a feeling. Still….I hope he's alright…"

***

'Breathe." Kohaku ordered himself as he kneeled on the ground, careful to keep his eyes on his opponent who had taken an identical stance. Djavel stood, and Kohaku mirrored the action.

RunDodgeTurnStrikeBlockPushAway and then go again.

Too fast. Too fast Toofast ToofastToofast. No time to move no time to think.

DodgeBlockSwingSpinStrikeCRACK

Djavel smirked as he threw his broken sword aside.

"Well, this is interesting. I didn't expect you to do nearly this well without your magic. But no matter. I'm afraid I'll have to be leaving soon so we'll just have to end this."

A snap, something too quick for Kohaku's exhausted mind to register and the crystalline katana was wrenched from his grip. It landed blade first in the dirt halfway between him and his opponent.

"It's called the soul whip. It….well I've already been talking too much as it is. I've been boring you haven't I? I certainly don't want to do that."

They were locked. Kohaku knew that he had two choices. Stay where he was and get hit, or move, try and grab his katana and risk getting hit.

He moved; Djavel struck. The first strike missed.

Closer…Closer..Closer Closer CloserCloser. Almost…

His hand was inches from the hilt when the second strike fell upon him, bring with it a crashing wave of pain. Pain was nothing new. What was different was the nausea that surged through him. But it passed as quickly as it had come.

He gripped the hilt of the crystalline katana and pulled. Anger was coursing through him. Djavel moved to strike again and his beloved soul whip fell to the ground in seven different pieces. He hissed and disappeared without a word.

Kohaku sighed.

"Is he gone?" A small voice asked.

He turned to see a mirror image of himself, on the ground hugging his knees and looking up at him, scared and pathetic.

He closed his eyes and in his rage uttered several choice words that shall not be repeated in this story.

A/N

Oh boy...please review and don't kill me....