Chapter 10: A Long Forgotten History

Hey guys! Got the next chapter done for ya! I can't believe it's already 10 chapters! Thank you all SOOOOOOOO much for your support and patience and reviews! Please keep them coming! This is the first chapter with my new OC. Let me know what you think! I have one regents left to take and the summer is all mine to write for!

**Disclaimer: I only own the plot line of this fanfic. All the characters, names, and original plot are owned by Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki.

**Baka ryu-stupid dragon

I knelt down next to the limp girl. I couldn't help, but feel her wings. They were real and the feathers felt so soft in my fingers. She reminded me of when I saved Haku somehow not too long ago.

"Haku, we need to help her ple-" he cut me off.

"We can't Chihiro it's too late. There's nothing you can do. You know she must have somehow done her duty." Angry tears burned my eyes and I forced myself to look into Haku's cool and calm eyes.

"If it was me you would have tried to do something. You know you would." I pleaded with him. The unconscious girl pulled my sleeves and I met her soft, blank stare. Her eyes were a cool blue-ish gray and I felt lost and mesmerized in her eyes. Then, an ice cold hand reached out touching my forehead and I fell into an abyss of memories, but not of my own.

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I was walking in a deserted plain. It was scorched all the way to the bitter ground. The ashen rain fell against my pale skin leaving gray streaks. The sky was a blood-red tinged with black clouds and I cowered under them. My reddish brown hair drooped with the weight of it. Every step I took sapped my strength. There was not a living thing in site. Everything was black and a burnt smell hung in the air. My nose stung from it's strength. I fell against the broken earth breathing in the black dust. I coughed violently and closed my eyes. Don't leave me, a voice said. The world around me blurred and I woke up in a dark, green land resembling a swamp. My mother's swamp, I realized.

"Mother?" I called out. "Is someone there?" A beautiful woman stepped out of the darkness glowing an eerie pale blue. Her eyes were exactly the same shade as mine and her long dark brown hair hung limply against her back. She called out to me.

"Asahi, why did you leave your land? You must become a guardian spirit, or your soul will be lost forever." My mother was in despair that much I knew. Wait, she's not my real mother. "You're such a young spirit you wouldn't understand. Go now I can't tell you anymore. Return to your home and save it then become a guardian spirit to repent." The woman blurred with the rising mists and I woke up back on the charred land.

Every step I took, now brought the ground to life. I sprinted across my homeland spreading green life everywhere. Grass burst from the ground under my bare feet. I dashed across the lakes and rivers purifying them from the tainted rain. My hair swayed behind me and I laughed with glee. I floated in the lake with my hair splayed out. The sun set leaving an indigo trail across the now pale clouds. I stood up to leave when a sudden sharp pain in my back aroused me. The sky plummeted into darkness when I realized what was happening. I saved my home and now I would be a guardian spirit. This home was not mine no more. The edges of my vision blurred red and the pain only intensified. I felt like I was being burned. I screamed in agony as the wings marking a guardian ripped through my back. The cream feathers roughly tinted with the darkness of my blood.

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I woke up gasping only to meet a white colored fabric. I tried to push it away, but it was hard. Haku grabbed my hand and that was when I found myself curled in his arms. My mouth formed a silent "o" of surprise and I fell out of his arms hitting my head on the wooden floor. I sat up immediately rubbing my head blushing as red as a tomato on steroids.

Haku chuckled, "Are you okay? Or am I not comfortable enough for you?" I didn't answer I was too embarrassed. A weak tinkling filled the air. I turned to find the source be the winged girl, the guardian spirit sitting up quite visibly against the wall.

"You...you...a...Asahi-san? Did you give me the-?" it sounded like a really stupid question once I said it aloud and I shut my mouth before I did anything more embarassing.

"Good thing you saw it so now you can tell my story." Her voice was hoarse and cracked. Her eyes were a piercing icy gray. "It's not like I have much time left anyway.." she trailed off. "My duty is almost fulfilled. Then I can rest in peace." Her mouth curved up into a weak smile.

"What exactly is your duty? Is it something that can be shared?" I asked adding the last question out of respect.

"To make you happy." What?

"Um I'm not a spirit." I was absolutely dumbfounded. Why would a spirit watch over me? I'm no one special to this world at least.

"You don't have to be one in order to be guarded. All you have to do is have a strong connection with this world, which you do by the looks of it. And your happiness is not guaranteed. There is no happiness without sadness mixed in, but my duty is just a simple task. It's to start a series of events leading to your happiness." She nodded over to Haku. He looked at me for a sparse moment and turned away. I did the same before he realized the blush I felt burn through my cheeks. There's that connection again. Why does it keep popping up?

"Well…uh…what would you like to do now?" I hesitantly asked. It was at that moment that I realized I didn't know what to do to help Asahi in any way.

"I want to go to Zeniba-san's if you don't mind." She smiled at me when she saw the recognition of the name. I smiled back not knowing why, but it just felt like I needed to. My heart swelled with the memories of my last visit there.

Asahi stood up and looked at me. I was in awe as she spread out her beautiful wings. "I don't have these wings for nothing. Let's fly there!" Her blue-gray eyes sparkled with delight and for the first time, I felt that maybe, if I had the chance, I could become friends with her. She dashed to the elevator and pulled the lever. I thought she wasn't feeling too good. "See you in the sky!"

I hurriedly waited for the next elevator when Haku pulled me into a hallway by Yubaba's office that I've never seen before. It led straight to a tiny balcony. Haku jumped onto the railing and pulled me up with him. We were so high up and I got nervous. He hugged me close and I leaned into him. Before I knew what was going on, we fell off the balcony. I was too scared to scream and only when Haku became a dragon did I release my breath.

"You baka ryu." I muttered. Haku replied with a half purr-half laugh and I smiled.

Hope you liked it!

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Btw I hope you noticed that I tried to make this chapter a little longer!