((Yay, guess what, dear readers~? Today is the 1st anniversary of Letters of Two Spirits! Pop the bubbly and soda, Lin-san!
Lin: Aye-aye, Captain~! : D *pops open some champagne and a few bottles of soda*
Anyways, I just want to celebrate by giving all of my reviewers a celebratory HUG~! *Hugs the reviewers* Plus, Yubaba and Zeniba might sneak into the next few chapters, so keep an eye out~. THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR REVIEWING AND STAYING FAITHFUL TO THIS STORY SO FAR~! *Glomps the reviewers* And now, faithful readers, favoriters, and reviewers…..Everyone: On with the story~!
PS: I may not be good with fight scenes. Bear with me….
EDIT: Sorry I couldn't post on our 1st anniversary, guys. I was caught up…))
Chihiro's POV
Once we were through the tunnel, I felt an astounding mix of nostalgia and fear smack with the force of ten tidal waves. All of those memories of speeding through the shops after my parents were turned to pigs; the sight of the train rolling under the bath-house bridge; my first sight of Haku and how he let me slip into the bath-house of the gods; the memory of Lin helping me as a maid; the first time I saw Kamaji the boiler-man, the Susuwatari, Yubaba and her son Boh, all of those memories seemed to flow back into my mind as if I had just stepped foot—well, snuck into—the bath-house…
"Sen-chan! Snap out of it!" My mother whispered hoarsely to me while shaking me by the shoulders, snapping me out of my trance. "S-Sorry, mom….I spaced out for a bit…." I said meekly, blushing a bit in embarrassment as my mother led me over to Lin, who was cradling a still sleeping Moshido in her arms and Reikokujou, the Duke of Cats, his white-tipped pale blond tail swishing back and forth anxiously, as he was now standing on his hind legs wearing dapper foreign clothes (think of Sebastian's butler outfit but a bit simpler). "Reikokujou-sama, why—" I asked timidly as he cut me short, "Chihiro, when a visiting spirit arrives here in disguise, its true form is revealed once the pass through the tunnel from their realm to this one. This just happens to be my true form. Like it~?" He asked with a chuckle, doing a small turn, showing off the white-tipped pale blond ear that held his small gray hat in place, his foreign black coat along with a gray vest as well as black pants, and, oddly enough, no shoes. "Yes—" I was cut off by Lin, who said in a low whisper, "Knock it off, you two! We're getting closer to the bath-house; stay away from it as best as possible and follow me and Haku." She quietly commanded as we herded ourselves into a group and slunk around the bath-house, into the familiar maze of exotic flowers, the squeals of pigs and workers giving orders being heard in the distance of the evening. "K-Kohaku….This place, i-it's…" I left off my own statement, letting the memory of how Kohaku helped me remember my name seeps through.
I know, Chihiro; it's where I helped you remember your name. And I remember how you helped me remember mine…
I wonder how we could get through without being caught…
Don't worry, Sen; I already have a plan in mind…
Alright, let's hope it works…
Kohaku's POV
My scheme followed through perfectly; as Reikokujou pretended to be a (rather lost-looking) guest looking for relaxation, the rest of us, including myself, ran as fast as we could for the train tracks without being seen…luckily, Kamaji gave me train tickets before I made my escape into the human world. "Hey, what about Reiko?" asked Lin. "Once he leaves, I'll send up a signal that only he'll see so he know where we are. Are you that worried about him, Lin~?" I asked jokingly as Lin staved off a blush and a stammer and defended, still trying to keep her tough front, "Well, yeah; who else can I crack at besides you and Sen, huh?" I inwardly smirked; Silly Lin. I am a river dragon spirit; I can see right through her~. I thought as I asked Sen's mother, "What time is it? Reikokujou-san is taking too long." "Well, i-it's almost 8 o' clock, Kohaku." She answered, a bit fearful of what would happen if Reiko didn't come soon. However, in the distance, I spotted a pair of white-tipped, pale blond cat ears and sent up a seemingly noticeable signal of cherry blossom petals. Reiko soon appeared, panting a bit from the run to us, and said as he took off his coat and folded it, "Alright, I'm here. What now?" "We head towards the—oh, Kami, not now!" I growled, my eyes now glowing a deep green as they pointed skyward; Yubaba sent one of her henchman after us! We were caught!
As I ushered everyone else off towards the tracks, I morphed into my dragon form, ready to defend my loved ones against another, larger, dragon, greener than verdant emerald, which was sent after us by the bath crone. "So, I see you're Yubaba's brand new servant-boy. It's such a pleasure meeting you, for once." I hissed, my mouth opening to shoot off a ball of flame towards the attacker, who barely dodged it and growled in reply, "Watch your tongue, treacherous knave; unlike you, I honor, serve, and respect Yubaba-sama wholeheartedly and would never betray her. I know you; you had nothing before Yubaba-sama and still have nothing now!" He finished as he dodged my attack before coming in close to smack me backward with a wide sweep of his tail; luckily, I intercepted by chomping down on it—the taste was terrible, if I may add—and tried swiping a claw at him. Direct hit! It blinded him just long enough for me to summon a ball of energy in my jaws and aim for his face, injuring him and blinding him permanently. As he miserably flew away toward the bath-house in shame, I was met with a cheer of "Way to nail him, squirt!" from (no surprise) Lin, a cry of joy from Sen's mother and Moshido, who was now awake, a surprisingly calm "Well done~. I couldn't have done better myself! Bravo!" from the Duke of Cats himself, but Chihiro simply walked to me, shaking a bit, and kissed my pink nose without any hesitation…and flicked me between the eyes! What's going on?
"Kono baka ryuu (You stupid dragon)! You could've been killed if you didn't bite him! Are you crazy? I could've lost you…" Her sentence was cut short by a sniffle and a few hot tears. I remedied this by coiling around her as I sighed calmly, "I would've died protecting you all, Chihiro. If I did die, at least I would know that you, along with everyone else, were safe. But, thankfully, I'm still alive. I'm here, aren't I? Please don't cry, dear~." I crooned as I wrapped myself around her, the tears ceasing their flow as Chihiro soon became curled in the center of my coils, smiling but still sniffling a bit. "Just remember that I love you, Chihiro." I said sweetly, low enough for only us to hear. "I-I love you too, Kohaku-kun…" She said softly as she pressed her lips where she once flicked me. "Sorry for flicking you…" She said sheepishly as she announced with a gasp, "T-The train's coming!"
I turned to see the train tugging along the tracks, the crystal clear blue waters parting as if they were a crowd of peasants parting to make way for a king or queen. I managed to revert into my humanoid form just in time for the train to stop, cradling Chihiro in my arms.
Lin's POV
I can't believe this is happening to me. ME. I, of all lucky spirits in this or any other realm, for that matter, get to go on this legend of a train. I've always dreamt of this for years, and now, I'm finally riding the train off to who knows where—ah, yes. Swamp Bottom, where Zeniba lives. From what I've heard back at the bath-house, she's exactly like Yubaba. Or so I've heard. Unfortunately, knowing Yubaba, she'll probably send more of her cronies after us; I've got a feeling that the one Haku beat off might just be a 'hello, welcome back' present.
As the conductor, a shadow of a man, counted the number of passengers and the tickets. All were present and accounted for. As we took our seats, I overheard Haku and Chihiro, sitting not too far from me: "Chihiro, do you remember which stop Swamp Bottom is?" "I know! I-It's the sixth stop! Whoa, after all this time, I still remember…odd…" When the train halted to a stop and the five of us stepped off the train, after trekking through a forest, I spotted a lighted lantern…hopping towards us? "Hey, it's here, just like before~!" Chihiro pointed out cheerily before the lighted lantern stopped in front of Sen and bowed, who bowed back. "I brought friends~." She said as she introduced the lantern to us, one by one, as we bowed in return; the lantern led us toward a cozy looking cottage with candlelight shining through the windows.
"Well, Chihiro, we'll get to see Zeniba-baachan and No-Face again. I have a feeling they missed you almost as much as I did~." Haku whispered before pecking Sen's cheek lovingly. "I missed them so much~…." She giggled, being the first to race to the door and knock at least three times, only to have the door open to reveal a black blob wearing a Noh theater mask as a face. Wait, so this is the No-Face the lovebirds were talking about! As the No-Face welcomed the two in, it spotted the rest of us and gestured to come inside. However, an elderly woman also appeared at the door….and she was the spitting image of Yubaba! "Sen, Kohaku, it's so good to see you again! Oh, please, do come in and make yourselves at home~." "Thank you, Zeniba!" Haku and Chihiro chimed in at once as they ushered us inside the cozy-looking humble abode—whoa! This woman is definitely NOT Yubaba!
As we sat down to the large but simple table that seemed to be filled with meats, cheeses, cakes, sweets, vegetables…all of which smelled delicious. Unfortunately for the food (and fortunately for my stomach), I haven't eaten since we left the human world, which was…aw, forget it! I can't even remember! Time to eat now! Itadakimasu (Thank you for the food), were my thoughts and intentions as I reached out for what looked to be a fairly sized cinnamon roll…only to have my hand slapped away by the Yubaba look-alike. "Ow! Yubaba-sama, what did I do? I was hungry!" I whined as I rubbed my hurt hand, which was given a small, light red mark on the center of the back of it. "Speak first, eat after. And I'm not my sister; that's preposterous! My sister and I are complete opposites; have you seen her office? Completely gaudy! Also, my name is Zeniba, young lady!" She said as she scolded me. Well, she certainly seems nicer than Yubaba… "Now, tell me what happened to all of you?" She asked politely as the No-Face gave us each a plate of thick sponge cake and took a wide-awake, curious eyed, not crying Moshido into another room. After Kohaku and Sen's mom told Zeniba what went down, she looked as if she was smacked by her nephew, Boh. "You did a smart thing, coming to me, you know; I know a bit more magics and a handful more of tricks up my sleeve than my sister. I can hide you in a place where not even Yubaba can look. But, you may stay here while you still can, dears." She said calmly while going to set out three futons in a nearby room.
Chihiro's POV
After everyone had gone to bed, I found myself not able to sleep…one of the reasons being Haku and I having to share the same futon. Isn't that just my luck, huh? As I crawled out of my side of the futon, I felt Haku stir and mumble in his sleep, "Don't…leave…" As much as I wanted to stay, I needed answers to a few questions I had in mind. I exited the door quietly (and successfully) and slipped into the hall, a nearby candle as my only source of light. Gotta find Granny Zeniba….oh man, No-Face is coming! I thought frantically as I searched for a hiding spot…but failed. "Ahhh…ahh...uhhhh? (Sen, what are you doing up this late?)" No-Face sighed as he spotted me. "Oh…I was thirsty, that's all. I'm fine~." I fibbed easily, the first thought popping into my head spewing out of my mouth. "Ahh….ahh …ahh…. (Okay then. I hope you get some sleep. Good night.)" No-Face breathed as he glided into the kitchen and returned with a small cup of cold water, placed it in my hands, patted my head and went into what seemed to be his room. Okay, that was WAY too close…now, where to find Granny Zeniba…? I thought while traversing what seemed to be an awfully long hallway, determined to find the nicer version of Yubaba.
((Want to know what happens next~? Then review! That's right, folks…it's…a…CLIFFIE~!))