Written Rivers

A Home Amongst Rivers

Chapter 14: Ma

The ride to Swamp Bottom was just as uneventful as the last. Chihiro and Rumi seemed to have a silent agreement to remain quiet throughout the ride. Occasionally Boh would get a bit antsy, but he did well to remain occupied throughout the trip. Makoto laid quietly in his Shikoku form at their feet, his eyes observing the passengers that occupied the train.

As the day drew on, the train chugged down the tracks, tracing water around them as they glided by. Chihiro watched as at each platform, the ghostly beings walked on and off the train, lugging big suitcases with them as they sought out their destinations. Signs and lights streamed passed, blending together as they watched, the occasional island of homes in the middle of the water. The sky dawned a pink hue as night drew closer, birds fluttering through the sky and off into the distance, fish floating beneath the clear, darkening water that rippled beside them. At some point a light rain fell overhead and Chihiro got the idea that Ame was watching over them from afar.

The calmness left Chihiro to her thoughts, something Rumi used to always warn her about in the Human World. Said girl was now leaning against her shoulder, beginning to dose off into sleep. How much did her friend know? How much did she not know? Chihiro's mind wandered to the… prophecy? Yeah, that's what she was going to call it: the prophecy.

You must find your path and follow it without falter. Your friend will have to make a decision soon and you will have to be their anchor. You must convince your friend of their duty.

Your friend… But which friend? Haku? Rumi? Makoto? Maybe none of them, maybe the spirit was an old senile man who had gone off the deep end. But by the way Haku reacted… She clenched her fists and took a deep breath, closing her eyes to calm herself. She focused on the soft pattering sound of the rain on the windows, calming herself. She always loved the sound of the rain, it was like a constant heart beat that calmed her rushing mind, slowing it to a pace of clarity and stillness.

She let out a deep breath. And pulled the hair tie out of her ponytail, letting her hair cascade down her shoulders and back. She studied the small purple hair tie in her hand, the one that Zeniba had given her oh so long ago. It was the only proof that she ever had that the Spirit World had existed. Even when she denied it all, she held onto it, as if holding on to that small hope that it was all real, that she would one day return. That and it was a very high-quality hair tie, never broke once. But it was honestly her only anchor to the Spirit World.

Chihiro looked out the window again. What was going on in this world that caused Haku to stress out so much? And how did she play a part in it? No matter what Haku said or prayed, the old spirit had given her a task and she didn't seem to have a choice but be a part of whatever was going on.

"You must find your path, Ogino Chihiro."

Whatever the old spirit was trying to imply, Chihiro already knew that she was looking for something, she had been for years now. She thought it was her return to the Spirit World at first but now that she was there, she wasn't so sure. She felt no real fulfillment in the accomplishment of her return or seeing Haku again. In fact, she still held a lot of resentment toward the dragon and she wasn't sure when she'd be able to overcome it.

She let out another breath as the train pulled up to the fourth stop. She looked to Makoto resting at her feet as his eyes followed each new passenger suspiciously. "Hey Makoto."

His head leaned toward her, but his eyes still followed the passengers. "Hn?" He hummed in reply.

"I'm going to rest for a bit, make sure we make it to the sixth stop and wake us when we get there." She leaned her head onto Rumi's, who'd made a pillow out of the crook of Chihiro's neck.

Once the doors were closed and the train was moving, Makoto gave her his full attention and met her eyes. "Certainly, Chihiro-San."

"Thanks, Makoto…" Chihiro let out a small yawn, closed her eyes and drifted into sleep.

The sound that Chihiro awoke to next was that of train wheels squeaking and Makoto nudging her leg. "We are here, Chihiro-San."

Chihiro blinked away the sleep in her eyes and looked out the window to find a swamp of trees with branches and vines hanging low from their trunks. The rain had stopped, and the night sky held little lights of stars and scattered clouds. It was pretty late in the night but not quite yet morning, sunlight not yet hitting the horizon.

"Yeah! We're here!" Boh bounced in his seat, causing Rumi to wake up with a start.

"Who? What? Where?" Rumi blinked in a panic, looking around. Forever the morning person.

"Swamp Bottom." Chihiro answered, standing to grab her bag from the rack above her, pulling down Rumi's and the others while she was at it.

Rumi took her bag and looked out the window. "Wow. Does she really live here? It's sort of… ah, gloomy?"

Makoto lead them off the train and they were all hit with the cool humid air of the swamp, causing the girls to tighten their jackets around themselves and for Boh to huddle closer to Chihiro.

"I don't know why she'd choose to live out here, but the cottage she lives in is nice. You forget all about the swamp part." Chihiro attempted to sound cheerful in the brisk night.

"Right…" Rumi mused, seemingly unconvinced.

When the four were huddled on the road and the train had pulled away, a lamp post with a gloved hand for a boot hopped toward them. It bowed to them and the group reciprocated the bow.

As they rose, Chihiro chuckled. "Looks like Obaa-San is expecting us." She smiled and led the following of the lamp post.

They walked the dirt path to the cottage, frogs croaking around them and nocturnal birds chirping in the trees. Soon, the road started to open up to a ranch-style gated garden, where it led up to a cottage home and the lamp jumped up to hang from its post on the gate. The smell of fresh wet soil filled the air, as smoke billowed from the chimney up to the moon lit sky above. The four travelers walked through the gate to approach the home and were met with an opening door.

"Don't let the cold air in now! Come in! Come in!" An old kindly voice called from inside.

Chihiro's pace hurried through the door, excitement bubbling in her. "Obaa-San!" She grinned, her eyes falling almost immediately onto the old witch in the kitchen.

Zeniba turned toward them and smiled warmly. "My, Chihiro! Look how you've grown!" She took in Chihiro and gave her a hug.

"Oh, Obaa-San, I've missed you." Chihiro nuzzled into the embrace, feeling like a child again. She stepped out of the hug and saw a shadow figure out of the corner of her eye. "Kaonashi! I see you're still here, are you keeping out of trouble?"

The shadow spirit smiled, and his head bobbed up and down a few times. "Ah, ah!"

Chihiro laughed and gestured toward her friends. "Oh right! Obaa-San, this is my best friend Rumi, and Makoto. We also have Yuuka in... ah…" She wasn't sure how to explain that one, but the witch had probably heard stranger things.

Zeniba chuckled good-heartedly. "It is very nice to meet you Rumi and it is nice to see you again, Makoto. And Yuuka, I have missed you deeply, why don't you visit more often?"

Chihiro scrunched her eyebrows together in confusion and looked to Rumi, who looked equally as confused. "I beg your pardon?" Rumi said, raising a brow.

"She hasn't told you?" Zeniba asked, empathetically.

"No?" Chihiro said hesitantly. Secrets were coming to be unsurprising to her these days, especially in the Spirit World. It was really starting to become bothersome.

"I'm her niece…" The sound of Rumi's voice filled a silent void that Chihiro didn't recognize. She looked at Rumi and her eyes were purple and filled with a sadness she'd never seen in them.

"Her niece?" The Ogino asked pensively. "But… I thought Yubaba only had Boh?"

Zeniba's eyes followed Yuuka sympathetically, the yosuzume trying to avoid eye contact with everyone. "Did you think Yubaba is my only sibling?"

"Ummm… Yes?" Chihiro said.

The old witch chortled. "Come. Let us discuss this over tea and cookies." As if on cue, a timer went off by the stove and the witch went to retrieve whatever was in the oven.

Everyone situated themselves around the table as Zeniba pulled out fresh cookies and started doting on Boh about how much she missed him and that she already had a room prepared for him. Makoto had shifted to his human form and found his seat by Chihiro, remaining his silent, observant self. Kaonashi helped serve tea to everyone, excited to have guests and see old friends again. The table was quiet aside from Zeniba's doting. After everyone received their tea and treats, Zeniba took Boh to his room and tucked him in, since he hadn't got much sleep on the train.

At Zeniba's return, she smiled and picked up where they had left off earlier. "Yubaba and I are twins, yes, but we're not the only siblings in our family. We also have an older brother, known by the name of Sojobo."

"Sojobo?" Chihiro gawked. "Like the Sojobo?"

Zeniba smiled. "The one and only. He is a tengu hermit that lives up in the mountains. We never see him, actually, we haven't seen him in centuries, not since he trained that young samurai, what was his name, Minamoto no Yoshitsune?"

"He's not just any tengu hermit…" Yuuka said, still avoiding eye contact. "He's the king of all tengu. He's the most powerful daitengu of all. He's not to be messed with…" She was visibly tense, as if she knew first hand.

The old witch nodded. "You are right there. Yuuka here is his daughter from before he officially became a daitengu."

"According to some teachings, I shouldn't exist…" Yuuka grumbled. This was very out of character for the yosuzume spirit, Chihiro wasn't sure how to respond.

"You were born out of wedlock?" Chihiro inquired.

Yuuka scoffed, her nose wrinkling. "Yeah… something like that." She turned to Zeniba. "Thank you, Oba-San, for having me after so long. I've been… busy…"

Zeniba nodded. "Of course, I understand. Just don't be a stranger anymore from now on."

The girl grimaced with a nod and retreated, her eyes fading back to mahogany and a tear slipping past her eye. Rumi sat for a moment, seemingly shocked, like she'd seen a ghost or heard a very sad story. Tears continued to slip down her cheeks.

"Rumi-Chan?" Chihiro reached out to touch her arm only for it to flinch away.

Rumi stood. "I'm sorry… I… I need a moment…" She looked to Zeniba. "Is… is there a room I can go to… to unpack my things?"

"Of course, dear, take the first room on the left in the hallway."

"Thank you." Rumi took her bag and left down the hallway, disappearing into the room directed.

After a moment of silence, Makoto rose and followed Rumi into the room, leaving Chihiro with Zeniba and Kaonashi. Chihiro turned back to the table and sipped at her tea. What had just happened? There were too many questions starting to spiral in her head and not enough words would be able to flow from her mouth. So, she started simple… if it could be called that…

"So, the great Sojobo is your older brother?"

Zeniba chuckled. "Yes. He wasn't always a great and powerful daitengu though. Before he died he was just our brother."

"Wait, he died?" Chihiro asked.

"Yes, his name was once Noboru, he once was a kind spirit, but he fell under bad influences and pride and anger overtook him. He died because of his own actions and self-righteousness. That's when my sister and I became witches. We were poor and had nothing but each other with our brother gone and our gifts in medicinal practices. With only our witchcraft in our pocket, we created medicines and spells for those in need. Yubaba decided to use our medicine and herbal knowledge to start a small bathhouse together, however it didn't start well and was rather unpopular. I always told her it would take time and patience to get a following, but Yubaba was impatience and desperate to get out of the situation we were in."

"You two, used to run the Bathhouse together?"

"Yes." Zeniba paused and let out a sigh. "But she chose to take a path I couldn't follow, and it is now catching up to her."

"What do you mean? You mean how she has been on the fritz lately and how the Bathhouse crashed?"

Zeniba nodded solemnly, stirring a spoon in her tea. "Ever since the Bathhouse, she's been under the influence of powerful magic. A hinnagami, a doll that she made centuries ago that granted any wish. However, it is extremely powerful and dangerous magic for the creator. If one does not continue to make wishes, it would consume and haunt its creator even after death. I warned her not to involve herself in such magic, but she went with it anyway and soon the Bathhouse and her life was flourishing. I couldn't bare to see her throw herself into such magic. She banned me from the Bathhouse and started to make a name for the Bathhouse, using the doll to gain guests and staff. It was a depressing thing to watch."

"Wow…" Chihiro empathize. "She must have been desperate…"

"Yes, but we must all pay the price for using magic." Zeniba smiled sadly.

The girl hesitated for a moment. "Have you paid a price?"

Zeniba stopped mid-sip in drinking her tea. "Yes… Even I have meddled in dark magic and paid the price. And that is why I raised Yuuka."

"You raised… Yuuka?" Chihiro stopped and realized the implication. She put her hand to her stomach. "I'm sorry…"

Zeniba waved her off. "No worries child. I've come to terms and I got to raise my niece to the spirit she is today. My brother refused to care for her, so I took her in."

"How did Noboru become a tengu?"

"Oh, he was incarnated into a tengu because of the life he lived. We haven't seen much of him over the centuries since he came back. But we have heard the stories of what he has done."

"Hm." Chihiro hummed in agreement. She decided to change the subject. "Obaa-San. I have questions about the Spirit World."

"I'm sure you do, dear." Zeniba chuckled. "But why don't we wait until morning. You should get your rest, it was a long journey here."

Chihiro grimaced but agreed. "Alright. G'night, Obaa-San."

"Good night, Chihiro."

A/N:

I was actually listening to rain sounds to get me in the mood of the train scene. I love the rain, we don't get enough of it where I live. The sound, the smell. Rain is amazing.

Out of curiosity, how often is it confusing to tell the difference between Yuuka and Rumi? I know they have similar personalities (though Yuuka tends to be more headstrong) so it'd be a little difficult now and then, but I wanted to hear from you? Is there a way I can make the distinguish clearer or do you think it is fine as is?

Ma (間) is a Japanese word which can be roughly translated as "gap", "space", "pause" or "the space between two structural parts." This could be the negative space in a painting or the train scene in the movie that left a calm and silence that let you imagine what was going on in the scene with Chihiro and friends after everything that happened in the Bathhouse previously. It's literally my new favorite word.

Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! And for those that do review, I thank you a bunches!

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God bless! KawaChou