Summary: All Chihiro wanted was a nice nineteenth birthday, now mixed up in wizards, witches, missing bath tokens, and did some one say dragon mating season? Next time she's sticking to dinner and a movie.
It was two days before Chihiro's nineteenth birthday that she noticed that something was off. She had not been able to place her finger on it during the day, then on her way home from work. With the sun hovering just above the horizon that Chihiro first felt the cold fingertips of a shiver down her back. Pulling the break hand Chihiro skidded to a stop on the curb of the road. Brows pinched together Chihiro glanced behind her, biting the inside of her cheek she surveyed the empty street behind her.
"Odd," she mumbled to herself before starting her journey home.
Sweat rolled down her skin as she rolled the pedals of her bike up the last steep hill that would lead to the row of houses with her tiny blue home at the very end. Inwardly groaning Chihiro huffed and puffed as her bike slowly made its upward climb. Nearly every day Chihiro made this trip home, each time she cursed her parents for choosing the last house on the highest street in the small country community they lived in.
Once reaching leveled ground again Chihiro paused and took deep gulps of air as she rested her forehead against the handle bars of her pink bike. The young teen was wiping sweat from her forehead when she felt an oh-so-familiar shiver down her back. She glanced behind her again and shuddered as her dark gray eyes swept the empty street behind her.
The teen gave a nervous laugh and rubbed the back of her sweaty neck. "Your going crazy Chihiro." Kicking off the ground she pedaled her way back, in a fast pace, home. Occasionally glancing over shoulder as she closed the distance to her destination. But not even the paranoia that Chihiro had been feeling all day would stop her from her traditional stop and stare. Every evening the young woman would stop, her back straight and stare down the hill to the forest below, and the hidden turn off the trees covered.
A small smile would creep upon her face as she would think of what lay hidden behind those trees. A place long forgotten by many, and feared by others. To Chihiro it was a place that held a missing piece of her. Nearly nine years ago she had been swept into the magical world. Nine years ago she left a piece of her behind that she never had been able to recover. Nine years ago she was changed forever.
When her family had escaped the world of the spirits, Chihiro had been the only one to remember the whole ordeal. Not that the ten year old wanted her parents to remember being pigs. No she, at that young age, just wanted her parents to believe her when she had retold the story of their missing month. Of course Mr. And Mrs. Ogino had laughed at their daughters creative and imaginative mind. Though they were greatly disturbed by the time laps. They had decided in the end that their calendar had been set back a month and that it was simply that. They were unwilling to believe, and simply ignored anything else.
Chihiro never did bring up the story ever again, she had been deeply hurt by her parents when they teased and pocked fun at the young girls who's 'imaginations got the better of her' as her father liked to say.
Though as time moved on Chihiro started to notice a change in her parents. One glaring fact was that neither never touched pork, ever again. Another was that it became apparent that her parents had taboo the subject of the missing month, and the very mention of spirits had both twitching. And while Chihiro had noticed a change in them they noticed a difference in her. Young, whining, lazy daughter of Ogino had been replaced with a hard working, never complaining, sweet natured ten year old. One who was constantly helping around the house and doing exceptional in school. The change had been so sudden that it left both her parents scratching their heads at their daughter.
And in little less then a month after the move, the Ogino family had another great surprise that had changed them all.
Putting the kickstand up Chihiro swung her backpack off her shoulders and headed into the house. "I'm home!" she called. Dropping her bag on the floor by the entry way the brunette stretched her arms and yawned. Enjoying the cool air-conditioning of the house Chihiro fell back on the couch with her legs dangling off the end.
No sooner that she had fell into the soft cushions of the couch that Chihiro heard the running foots steps on the stairs followed by the yell of her name. Tensing up for impact, the exhausted teen groaned when a weight fell upon her abdominal. Not even cracking her eyes open Chihiro sighed. "Yes?"
A giggle sounded above her followed by a young voice that sound to sweet for someone to be fooled by. "Mama wants you to help me with my homework tonight.."
Dark gray eyes opened a crack to look at the brown eyes of Chihiro's younger sister. "Miyukie," Chihiro groaned shifting her sisters weight that lay upon her empty stomach. "could you not ask mom or dad for help once?"
Miyukie's brow knitted together and her bottom lip jutted out. "No." she pouted and crossed her arms.
Chihiro resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the eight year old. She pondered a moment wondering if there was anyway she could wiggle out of this. Though knowing her mother, Chihiro already knew what answer she would be if she breathed a word to her mother about it. Sighing Chihiro gestured with her hand, letting her sister know that she could go get her stuff. Squealing little Miyukie ran off to her room.
Groaning Chihiro shuffled to the kitchen to grab some food while she helped her younger sibling. Rummaging threw the cupboard she glanced over at the couch as Miyukie bounced on it waiting for her.
Miyukie was born just after Chihiro's eleventh birthday. Eleven years of being dotted on, a single child, gone. Things had changed, once being appraised by her parents everyday, turned into the neglected child eating dinner in a barely lit room with a burnt meal she had cooked for herself. Chihiro didn't hate her parents for the new treat meant, no she understood their exhaustion from have to deal with a colic baby day in and day out. Even she was kept up from the constant crying. And she loved her new sister with every beat of her heart. It was just times like this moment Chihiro missed the days of being the only child.
Munching on a stale piece of bread Chihiro looked over the piece of paper Miyukie had handed her. Seeing the cheesy finger prints on the paper made Chihiro smile. It told her one that Miyukie had at least tried to do it by herself first and two she was the one to eat the last of her Cheetos.
At first after Miyukie was born, Chihiro felt….scorned. Her own life had been flipped upside down. Instead of coming home from school everyday and being welcomed with a hug and a kiss, she came home to her father catching some sleep on the couch and her mother hunched over the table doing bills that had yet to be paid. And then a cry would sound somewhere deep in the babies room, a place where Chihiro did not venture often unless asked to. There were periods of time where her parents forgot she even existed, literally. She was left at school more often then not that she just started to take the bus home, which didn't stop anywhere near her home.
A month had passed after Miyukie's birth and eleven year old Chihiro loathed the very existence of the little sibling her parents had put into the world. She was even tempted to take Miyukie to the spirit world and leave her there just to be rid of the annoying burden. But not even Chihiro had ventured further then the edge of the forest for something had kept her rooted there. Plus her parents would not be happy to have the youngest family member turned into a piglet, no matter how happy the thought made young Chihiro happy. And then it happened, Yuko Ogino holding the bane of Chihiro's existenc looked over at the phone as it begun to ring.
"Chihiro?" Yuko called
Chihiro popped up immediately from the table, excited to finally be getting some well deserved attention she had merrily skipped to her mothers side. She shot baby Miyukie a seething glance before beaming up at her mother. "yes!"
And before she knew it, the pink bundle had been thrusted into Chihiro's unwilling arms. Shocked at the moment Chihiro did not get to voice her protest before her mother had the phone cradled against her ear and was walking away from her daughters. Chihiro's armed tightened subconsciously, instinct telling her to cradle the small human close to her chest so she would not drop her.
Clenching her jaw Chihiro glared down at the smooth face of the baby. Never before had Chihiro held her little sister except for once, after she was born. After that Chihiro had realized what an annoyance it was to have a younger sister and simply avoided her. Letting out an irritated sigh Chihiro frowned down at the baby before smirking. With the thought of just making her cry her mother would return and retrieve the young child. Chihiro shifted the child in her arms about to jostle her, just a little, so she would let out her signature high pitch squeal before letting out a wail. But just as she moved her arms the baby's little lids lifted revealing a pair of dark blue eyes that Chihiro had not seen before. They say it takes a couple of months for a babies eye color to become permanent. But as Chihiro stared at her reflection in the large dark eyes of her baby sister, she felt something stir deep within. Then Miyukie smiled up at her big sister showing all her pink gums, and Chihiro felt the stirring snap and that hole that she had ever since she left the spirit world filled. Not all of it, but a small portion, Chihiro felt a little bit more whole.
Ever since then Miyukie was hardly ever seen without her big sister hovering over her. The little girl followed her every where she went. She adored her big sister, telling any willing person how much she loved her and how one day she would grow up to be just like her. Even her first word had been Chihiro's name, a butchered version of it, but Chihiro's name non the less.
Yawning Chihiro rubbed her eye and glanced over at Miyukie's hunched form as she scribbled down the math equations solution. Leaning against the back of her chair, Chihiro glanced out the window to see that they sky was void of all the suns rays and was replaced with a sparkling lights of the stars and the half moon light.
Chihiro's mind retreated from Miyukie's homework and switched to the prickly sensation that she felt at the back of her neck, like all the hairs on the back of her neck were standing up. All day she had the feeling that something was off. During the course of the day she thought she heard someone call her name, only when she inquired her coworkers who had called for her, all shook their heads. Or she would turn around thinking she saw someone in her peripheral but there would be no one.
"Chihiro?" Miyukie waved her hand in front of Chihiro's face pulling her from her thoughts of her strange day.
"Ah," Chihiro blinked and looked over a Miyukie as she sat back. "Sorry what?"
Miyukie huffed and crossed her arms. " I said will you tell me the story tonight?"
Chihiro's lips twitched as she laughed. "I told you it yesterday." Chihiro could tell immediately that Miyukie was embarrassed about her request when her rosy cheeks darkened.
Miyukie looked down at her hands folded on her lap. "I like it." She whispered.
Chuckling Chihiro rubbed her sisters brown locks playfully and stood, "I guess I will see you after my bath." Immediately Miyukie looked up and beamed.
Stretching Chihiro headed for her bathroom that she shared with Miyukie on the second floor. On the way up the stair Chihiro's cell phone started to vibrate. Pulling the blue cellular device out of her pocket Chihiro glanced at the callers ID before answering.
"Hello Azul." Chihiro chirped into the phones receiver. She raised her brow as her friends irritated tone drifted out of the speaker.
"Chihiro!" Azul was known for her dramatic actions and her obsession of knowing others business before they themselves knew it. But mostly she was known her obsessive talking.
"Yes?" Amusement was clear in Chihiro's voice, but she suspected that Azul did not detect it since she went right into a rant, other wise she would give Chihiro the 'Don't take that tone I'm serouise right now!'
"You wont believe who I saw today! Actually you probably will, but that's not the point. The point is on my way home I met someone unexpected and unwelcome too." Chuckling at Azul's rambling Chihiro locked the bathroom door and headed towards the tub.
"Zukie!" Azul screeched the name over the phone, making Chihiro wince as she turned the tub knobs. She winced again as the image of a bleached dyed blonde popped in her mind. "Oh she was just walking down the street, fluttering her fake eyelashes at any man who looked her way, even the old ones!"'
Chihiro sighed, Zukie Tsukiko had it out for Chihiro since day one of school. It really wasn't Chihro's fault the girl had it in for her, really. The teacher had asked Zukie to describe photosynthesis and the vascular system plants had. She got the first part right, and the second part well that's where Chihiro came in. poor, innocent, new Chihiro was just minding her own business when the teacher turned and looked at her.
"Well Ms. Tuskiko, since you can't give a proper answer perhaps Ms. Ogino can." He pushed his glasses further up his rather large nose that might have put Yubaba's own to shame, if she was human.
Hearing her name Chihro stood and gave a reputable answer that had made Zukie's poor 'photosynthesis is plant food,' answer look like a piece of dirt that not even a homeless person would sleep on, but most of all it had made Zukie look like an idiot. Zukie had turn and glared at Chihiro after she sat down, and if looks could kill, Chihiro would be cold in the grave ten times over. It was after that that Chihiro was forever on her shit list. And it was after that Chihiro also met Azul, who congratulated her on her 'impeccable' performance, and they had been friends since.
"And?" Chihiro promoted Azul as she continued on about Zukie's man obsession.
A cough filtered across the phones speaker as Azul caught her self in mid rant. "Ah right," she sounded sheepish. "Anyway I over heard her talking on the phone, it sounds like little Suckie has big plans for us tomorrow." The nickname was one Azul came up with for Zukie's obsession with male's certain anatomy.
Cradling the small blue cell phone between her shoulder and ear, Chihiro stared to unzip her pants as she asked. "And what are these plans?"
"Not sure," Azul mumbled on the other side. There was a pause of silence before Azul stated "I can hear the water running, Chi." Before Chihiro could reply Azule started talking again. "Anyway, I should get going, moms looking out the window at me again. Oh and before I forget Zukie mentioned something about her grandfather coming back to see the old theme park."
Much to Chihiros chagrin she didn't get to ask Azul what she meant before she hung up on her with a swift, 'bye! Mom I'm coming.' Looking down at the phone she placed it atop her other cloths while she slide into the tubs warm water that lapped her skin and soothed the muscles beneath it. Chihiro closed her eyes and sighed and she sunk deeper into the water, feeling a peace like she did every time she took the time to soak. In a way she felt closer to Yubaba's bathhouse whenever she took a bath. This time however Chihiro didn't reach a peaceful state of mind like she usually did, instead her mind ran over the days events lingering on the strange sensation that someone had been following her then flipped to Zukie Tuskiko grandfather.
The Tuskiko family were the riches family in the area, and Zukie's grandfather owned the old theme, which means one day Zukie was going to inherit it, which just made Chihiro cringe at the very thought. Not that Zukie didn't have enough leverage over Chihiro's head already, so when Zukie brought up the park to her cohorts Chihiro hid her cringe as her squeaking voiced talked about the future mall she would set up there after she tore down the parks buildings.
Sighing Chihiro slipped beneath the bath water, blocking out all the stress of the day and listened to her heart beat that echoed in the warmed water. The sound wrapped itself around her body luring her deeper into its tale of life.
Its was latter in the evening that Chihiro's exhaustion finally set in. a bone deep tiredness that made her sink to her bed, not bothering putting on pants or closing the window the blew in hot night air instead of cool air like it was intended to. Sigh continently Chihiro almost fell into an exhausted sleep, when the door to her room opened revealing Miyukie who wore her matching pink pajamas. She wrinkled her nose at her big sisters attire but said nothing as she climbed in bed. Nestling her head against Chihiro's stomach her big brown eyes stared guilelessly up at Chihiro.
Yawning Chihiro pondered a moment before asking Miyukie a question. "Where do you want me to begin?"
With a grin she rubbed her face into Chihiro's silk night shirt. "The beginning."
With another yawned Chihiro started her story in a tired voice that was thick with sleepiness. "I was in the back seat, and dad was driving to the dreary new town we live in now, depressed from the fact that I was moving to a new town and leaving my old friends back home I….." And just like that once a week Chihiro told her the story of how she had stumbled into the spirit world, became a slave, saved her parents but most of all how she met Haku.
And with his name upon her lips and a smile across her face Chihiro soon drifted into the land of dreams joining her sister who had fallen asleep sprawled across Chihiro with her mouth open and small snores emerging from her mouth.