This is a slightly longer chapter than I've been posting, to make up for not posting for a few days. I'm hoping that -all- off the chapters will be a little longer from here on out and I now have a general idea of where this is headed. Thank you so much to those that have reviewed, favorited, and followed the story so far! Your interest is appreciated more that I can express. Much love to you all! *hugs all around*
Chapter 10
"Yubaba's destroying the place!" Rin had managed to escape down to the boiler room and was filling Kamaji in on the chaos that was taking place upstairs, "We've got to do something! There's no way to get in touch with Haku and the magic he left me with isn't powerful enough to take her down!"
"He should never have left in the first place," the old man growled, "What was that boy thinking? He should have known something like this would happen. At the very least, he should have chained the witch up before he went on his little vacation. Vacation? Pah! Must be nice! I haven't had a vacation in a millennium!"
"Kamaji! Focus, please! We've got a vengeful sorceress on our hands! What are we going to do about this?!"
"You're in charge, you figure it out! I'm too old to be fighting battles anymore," the old man turned back around, disregarding the woman, "Hey... where are all the bath tokens?"
Rin huffed, "There are no bath tokens, you old prune! The customers are running for their lives, up there! I suggest you get down off that high horse of yours and help us out of this mess, or you won't have a job to go back to!"
"Oh, fine..." he grumbled, slinking down from his post, "Well, what are you waiting for, girl, get a leg out!"
They tore out of the boiler room and up the staggering staircase. Even from outside, they could hear the thunderous ruckus of breaking furniture and spirits screaming in terror. So many of them were trying to escape at once that the doorways were flooded and no one could manage to squeeze their way out.
"Trapped like the vermin you are!" Yubaba cackled ferociously.
Heat filled the hallway, as Rin and Kamaji entered the room. A blast of flame shot from Yubaba's palms, igniting the walls and nipping at the robes of the employees, still fighting to break through the throng.
"She's going to burn the place to the ground!" Rin shouted, franticly, "What are we going to do?!"
"Haku's office!" Kamaji remembered suddenly, "There's a looking glass that the boy uses to communicate with Zeniba! Maybe she can do something."
"And Boh! I can't believe I didn't think of that earlier! If we can get Boh down here, he can at least distract her for a while. Let's go!"
They made a mad dash towards the elevator. When they reached the top floor, they saw a sleepy Boh stumbling down the hallway, rubbing his eyes and yawning.
"What's all the noise about?" the big baby mumbled when he saw them.
"It's your mom, Boh! She's lost her mind! We need you to go down there and talk some sense into her," the young woman pleaded, "She's making a mess of the place and scaring off our customers! If you don't do something, she'll ruin us. Please, kid!"
"Why's mama being mean?" the boy questioned, clearly not grasping the urgency of the situation.
"She's mad that Haku is running the bathhouse now and she has to scrub the baths," Rin explained, "But somehow, she got her magic back and she's using it to try and destroy us."
"Well, that's not very nice," Boh squinted, "I'll go talk to her, you wait here where it's safe."
The oversized baby tromped off towards the elevator. Rin and Kamaji breathed sighs of relief.
"Now, where's that looking glass?" the young woman scanned the room around her.
"Over here," Kamaji pointed, "He keeps it hung behind the desk. That's it!"
Rin rushed over to it and yanked it from the wall, "Alright, so, how do we turn this thing on?"
Kamaji shrugged, "Never seen him start the thing, you'll have to figure it out yourself."
The girl rolled her eyes and huffed, shaking the mirror, she tried forcefully, "Hey, Zeniba! Earth to Zeniba! If you're there, come in!"
They both stared impatiently at the reflective surface before them... but nothing happened.
Rin let out a whine, but tried again, "How about this... Mirror, mirror, in my hands, let me talk to the old woman in Swamp Bottom... land?"
"Nice try," Kamaji said sarcastically, narrowing his eyes at her.
"Give me a break, I'm new to all the magic stuff," her eyes widened with realization, "Hey... how 'bout this?"
She gathered her energy and concentrated. Splaying her hand over the surface, she breathed in, the suspense prickling her skin. A wave rippled along the glass, and in a second, the reflective surface was transformed into a window, peering into the room of a quaint cottage. A familiar woman sat at a table sipping tea and conversing with a tall, shadowy figure.
"Yes!" Rin exclaimed, "Zeniba! Zeniba, it's Rin! We need your help!"
The old woman straightened with surprise and turned in their direction, "Rin? Who? Oh, Haku's little friend. Well, hello there, dear! So nice to see you. How can I be of service?"
"Yubaba broke free of Haku's binding spell. Somehow she got to him, and he must be hurt. That's the only way something like this could have happened. She's destroying the bathhouse and if we don't do something soon, she'll kill us! You've got to come as quick as you can. You may be the only one who can stop her!"
"Take a breath, girl! I'm on my way," with a snap of Zeniba's fingers, the connection was broken and the pair were left staring at their own, panic-laden faces.
"Do you think she'll make it in time?" Rin asked.
"We can only hope," the boiler man shook his head doubtfully, "Let's go see if that baby is making any progress."
"Mama, you're not being very nice at all," Boh pouted at the old woman.
"Sweetie, I'm just trying to get back what is rightfully mine," Yubaba's words were saccharine and forced, "I tried to play nice but scrubbing bath tubs isn't very fun. Do you really want your poor old mother to be slaving on her hands and knees for the rest of her life?"
The baby thought for a minute, "No... I don't guess so."
"Well, this is the only way that I can stop that from happening, do you understand?"
"But, I like all the people here, and I like Rin and the silly spider-man," he was still considering her words, "Do you really have to hurt them? I don't want Mister Haku to come back and find all of his friends dead. He probably won't be very happy about that, mama... then he might hurt you."
"Mister Haku isn't coming back, sweetie," Yubaba said through gritted teeth, "He abandoned the bathhouse, never to be heard from again."
"That doesn't sound right..." Boh rubbed his chin, conflicted.
"It's not true, Boh!" Rin shouted, tearing out of the elevator, towards them, "Haku went to find a way to bring Sen back! You remember Sen, don't you?"
"Of course!" the boy cried, happily, "Sen is my best friend ever! If she comes back, do you think she'll want to play with me?"
"I'm sure she'll play with you as much as she can, if Haku is able to bring her back. But we think he might be hurt," the young woman tried hard to retain her composure.
"Oh, no..." Boh turned his attention from Rin, back to the witch, "You don't have anything to do with that, do you, mama?"
"Of course not, sweetie," Yubaba grinned, "Haku is on vacation for a little while, that's all."
"I thought you said he abandoned us?" the child gave a confused look.
"Haku put a binding spell on your mother, that only wears off if he's seriously injured," Rin explained, "Don't let her lie to you, Boh! Haku would have to be close to death for her to be doing the kind of magic she is! Somehow, she found out what he was planning and he's out there somewhere, probably dying or already dead! And she wants the rest of us dead too!"
"Well, there's one of us you won't hurt, right mama?" the baby started towards Yubaba.
"What... what are you doing, sweetie?" her eyes widened in alarm.
"You've been a bad girl, mama. I'm going to take you to your room!" he scooped her up and tossed her over his shoulder, carrying her towards the elevator.
"This isn't over! I'll be back for the lot of you!" the old crone cried, defeated for now.
"Hello, Nigihayami Kohaku Nushi," the ominous voice rang in Haku's ears, "I am Sukuna-Biko-Na."
The river spirit willed himself to speak, but instead of words, it came only as a thought, "I know of you. You are a powerful deity, aren't you?"
"Depends on who you ask," the foreboding tone dissipated into a twinkling giggle, "I am, indeed. I was called forth by my brothers to heal you."
"Fujin and Raijin? They are your brothers?"
"As we all are brothers and sisters of the earth and spirit world," the god took a deep, relaxed breath, "See, my brother..."
It was not a request, but a command, and suddenly, Haku could open his eyes. He was soaking in a hot spring, which was surrounded by a never ending white void. It was only he, the stones, and water. Across from him, on the other side of the spring, another body broke through the surface. The man was much smaller than Haku, and he greeted him with a wide, silly grin.
"Where are we?" Haku asked, his words filled with worr, "Am... am I dead?"
The dwarf's smile widened, "Not yet, but you are close. Just, relax, breath, and drink this."
He held out a hand and a cup appeared, filled with a cloudy white liquid.
"Sake?" the dragon spirit questioned, "I... don't think I should be drinking. I have things I need to do. Please, if you could just heal me, so I can be on my way... I've got no time to lose."
"Do you trust me, boy?" the deity cocked his head.
Haku hesitated, "Well... yes."
"Good," he raised his arm to toast and another glass of sake appeared in his outstretched hand, "Time doesn't move the same here. Just do as I said... relax, breath, drink, and tell me what's got you in such a rush."
Taking the proffered cup, the young man slumped back onto the stones, struggling to decide where to begin, "I... A dear friend of mine is in trouble, and I must save her before it's too late."
"Hmm," the god raised his eyebrow, skeptically, "Is she really in trouble?"
Haku was taken aback by his intuition, "Well... not exactly. She's just... very sad. I need to see her... and I think she wants to see me."
"Ahh, I see," the old man smiled warmly, "It's love."
"Wha- no, it's not like that," the spirit shook his head, "We're good friends, I've known her since she was very young. I saved her from my river and ever since then, I feel like a part of her is still inside me."
"You saved her from your river, you say? Is she a human?" he seemed surprised by this revelation, but Haku only nodded, "Well... that is different."
"I know, it's entirely unorthodox, but what am I to do? She hates her life in that world, and I hate my life without her in this world. With her being there, it feels as if I have an empty place in my soul. I've waited ten years for a reason to bring her back. I finally have the opportunity, and now I go and get myself killed before I'm even halfway there."
"Why wait so long, if you've both been so miserable?"
"She came to the bathhouse quite frequently, but since the door to the spirit world only seems to open at random, she was never able to come through... but she would stay and talk to me for hours, not even realizing I was there with her," Haku rubbed his forehead, pained by the memories, "She would laugh, and rant, and cry, and scream. I saw every face of her that you could imagine. And I only loved her more for it. She had no friends, she hated every detail of her life... except her parents. She loved her parents more than anything. Then... last week, when she came... she told me they had died. And that she was never coming back there again. She thought she was going crazy, spending so much of her time waiting around for me, not even sure if I was real... so now..."
"You have to find a way to force the door open, and bring her here to this world, where you'll both finally live in happiness," the deity finished for him.
"Right," he drained his sake in one gulp.
"She may not be very happy with you, when you do finally get her here, you realize that?"
"I know... but I'm willing to risk it," Haku nodded definitely.
"Hm, interesting," the god snapped his fingers and Haku's cup refilled itself, "Have another. And tell me, what do you intend to do about your feelings once she is here. After all, what kind of future is there for the union of a human and a spirit?"
"I... haven't thought about it very much," he sipped from his cup and pondered it for a moment, "Honestly, it doesn't matter to me how many years Chihiro lives... I want to be there for her, by her side, for however many more may be left. I'm not sure how I'll live with myself once she's gone, but a matter of days with her would be substantially better than a million eternities without her."
"You warm my heart, brother!" the god cried, joyously, "Fujin and Raijin were right about you, indeed! Now, finish off your sake and be gone with you!"
"What? But..."
"Drink it, boy!"
Haku gulped the last of the liquid down quickly, and in the blink of an eye, the place before him began to fade away.