Cobra- Hello everyone! Lightning can't join us right now, so I'll do the disclaimer.

Lightning- When I get out of here, you are so dead! *Hanging by a vine that had gotten tangled around her feet while she tried to strangle Cobra. She had then tripped over a cliff, and was now dangling off the side.*

Cobra- Heheh, I'll be on Mars by then…

Disclaimer: I do not own Spirited Away or any of it's assets.

…

Chapter 10- Losing Hope

Haku took Chihiro back to the human world. According to him, the person she was supposed to meet was a spirit. But he still lived in the human world. They'd taken the detour to the bathhouse to double check that he wasn't there.

Chihiro watched the forests, towns, rivers and lakes sail by. Flying was a lot faster than she'd thought it would be. It wasn't long before she was lulled to sleep by the wind.

Haku could feel that, so he tried to make her comfortable. He succeeded.

Chihiro was being shaken. Huh? Did I sleep through my alarm clock? She wondered wearily.

"Chihiro! We're here!" Haku called.

Haku? What are you doing? And what do you mean, 'we're here'? Chihiro wondered, opening her eyes. He smiled at her. Oh, yeah. I feel asleep on his back. She realized.

"Sorry." She quickly apologized.

Haku shook his head. "Come on." He said, helping her up.

Chihiro looked around. They were by a large, winding river. She stared. There was a weird spirit floating over it. The spirit had a dragon like body with a shrunken, skull of a face instead of a dragon's head. Realizing that this was a river spirit, she bowed. Who is he? And where are we? She wondered.

"Welcome." The spirit said in an old, deep voice. Chihiro couldn't help but think of how much the voice sounded like it belonged to a mummy.

"Chihiro, this is who I wanted you to meet. You helped him once, when you were at the bathhouse. Do you remember?" Haku asked.

Chihiro felt heat rushing to her face. He'd gone through all this, and she still didn't remember anything. Sadly, she shook her head. "Let's talk. You may remember something then." Haku suggested.

Before they left, the river spirit gave Chihiro medicine. Looking at it as they flew away, she felt a memory tug. It didn't last long enough for her to really notice it, though.

"Are you taking me home now?" Chihiro asked Haku.

No, not yet. Haku answered. But soon enough. I have one more thing to show you.

Chihiro was thrilled. It was late and she was tired, but she was flying! What could be better than that? She hoped that the journey wouldn't end anytime soon.

Chihiro was amazed. "It's… the Kohaku River!" She exclaimed in amazement as Haku walked up to her. He smiled, glad that she was so happy seeing this place again. "But I thought they filled in this river. And built condos over it!"

Haku smiled. "They did. But when that proved to be too expensive, they stopped the project. It took them a while, but they finally got everything back to normal again."

Chihiro grinned, turning back to the river. It glittered like thousands of gemstones in the light as it caught the moonlight. She and Haku stood there in silence. Both were enjoying the other's company and the beautiful view. A gentle breeze was blowing.

Finally, to break the spell, Haku sighed. "Come on, Chihiro.' He said quietly, placing his hands on her shoulders. She looked at him. "We need to get you home."