I do not own Spirited Away.

Chihiro awoke with light streaming onto her face. She groaned and struggled to sit up as she silently cursed the window she had somehow always failed to notice. Her head and side ached, although she remembered everything it still all felt like a dream. Talking came through the door from the main room causing Chihiro to sit up further. She couldn't dawdle. Every minute she waited was another minute both she and Haku could die if he was telling the truth this time. Even then, how was she expected to stand up again a snake god and a powerful witch? She was just a human, for fucks sake!

She sighed, now wasn't the time. Not at all. Chihiro quickly stood, flinching at the pain in her side. She rushed to the door and slammed it open, the chatting spirits quickly going quiet and she walked towards them, "We've waited too long. Much too long. We need to go, as soon as possible."

Lin stood up so fast the chair she had been sitting on fell backward. Zeniba sighed and put the cup of tea she had been holding down, "You can't go out like that. You need to be more prepared."

Chihiro looked down and gasped at how she was essentially half-naked, a simple tank top and pajama shorts covering her. She let out a startled yelp and rushed back into the room. Zeniba let out a laugh before standing, Lin struggling and nearly failing to stop from laughing as she also followed Chihiro into the back room. Aoegaeru and No-Face simply exchanged confused looks, at least, assuming No-Face was confused. He probably was.

Zeniba and Lin didn't comment on how horrible Chihiro's side looked, they didn't need to. It looked like she only had a matter of days. The two women helped the younger woman get dressed properly. Zeniba then handed Chihiro a new emerald and she held it close, closing her eyes. As she concentrated, all she could see was white. A little more… Aha! She could feel the white. It was soft and cold. Snow.

Chihiro opened her eyes again, looking to Zeniba, "All I could see and feel was snow."

Zeniba frowned for a moment before brightening up, "The mountains. Go back to the train and continue to ride it north, you can't miss them. They are covered in feet of snow year-round."

Lin made a disgusted face, "It's going to be so cold! Why couldn't they have picked somewhere, y'know, tropical?"

Chihiro laughed, shaking her head slightly, "They could have, having an evil lair on a mountain is pretty Cliché." Zeniba and Lin both looked confused, so Chihiro quickly spoke again to change the topic, "Anyway… If you hate it that much, maybe you should stay?"

Lin shakes her head, "No way, but Aoegaeru probably should. I'm not sure freezing weather would be very good on a frog, spirit or not."

Chihiro opened her mouth to agree but Aoegaeru was faster, hopping up onto Lin's head, causing Lin to scream a little, "No way you're leaving without me!"

Zeniba chuckled, "It will be much safer if you all go together." She paused, handing Chihiro the other four emeralds, "Here."

Chihiro hesitated before taking them, "Are you sure?"

Zeniba nodded, turning away and heading to the kitchen, "You're going to need them more than me."

Chihiro smiled softly, "Thank you, Granny." Zeniba went a bit pink out of joy as she began packing food she had already prepared beforehand. Soup, bread, easy to carry yet would easily last them a while. Chihiro feels a pang in her chest as she helps Lin pack up other supplies and they both get dressed to stand against the mountain cold.

No-Face seemed to be avoiding them, Chihiro could guess why. They had only just reunited and she was leaving again. She paused to hug No-Face, who eagerly made sounds of joy and returned the hug, "I'll be back, promise."

No-Face continued making his happy noises as she returned to Lin and Aoegaeru at the door. Lin frowned a little, "Are you sure we have to go right now? You don't want to rest more?"

Chihiro shook her head, "No, we don't have time to rest."

Lin sighed and nodded, grabbing the last bag, now stuffed with food. Aogaeru hopped onto Lin's shoulder and they exited the hut. Chihiro hesitated a little before turning to Zeniba and hugging her, "I made a promise to No-Face, and you're included in that promise. I'll be back and healed before you know it. With Haku."

Zeniba grinned and pushed the woman away, "As if I had any doubt. Now go, you're to miss the earliest train if you wait too long."

Chihiro nodded and quickly followed Lin, waving back at Zeniba and No-Face, as he had approached the door to say goodbye at Zeniba's side.

True to Zeniba's word, the train stopped as they approached the end of the swamp path. They quickly boarded the train, piling the bags on the seat beside them. Lin noted how empty the train was compared to before, maybe they had just happened to get in a different passenger car, one not used by other spirits.

Aogaeru had noticed the strange quietness but shrugged it off, burying himself in a small blanket they had brought for him. Chihiro quickly zoned out once the train jolted and started moving again. She got lost in her thoughts as she watched the passing terrain.

Even if she remembered now, even if her heart ached for Haku, was this really the destiny she needed to follow. Well, it wasn't like she had a choice at this point, it was more like… Did she even want to remember? She wasn't sure. All she wanted at that moment, truly, was to return to when life was perfect. Before her mother had died. Hell, before she had moved and found an entrance to the spirit world. She wanted to drink her mother's hot cocoa on a cold day, maybe even Christmas. She wanted to go out and play with her friends, roll around in the snow, and build snowmen. In the summer, they would hike and collect flowers, then lay in the sun for hours, watching the clouds. Back when she was innocent.

Now, she was in this massive dream-like spirit world, lives including her own relying on her to save them. And god's like Hisashi. Hisashi may have been the first she noticed, but what if this continued to be a problem? What if her friends now or her dad got hurt? If they could attack her even with her memory gone, she wouldn't be able to tell.

Chihiro was well aware that at the end of all this, Haku would erase her memory again. Promises meant nothing to him, how she felt about him meant nothing. By knowingly breaking them, she had now been put in this fucking bullshit situation. Even as her heart continued to ache and her mind raced, she wasn't sure if she could forgive him. She couldn't help but start to question everything. Was her mother's accident really an accident? What if someone like Hisashi had caused it, knowing she was the mother of Chihiro?

Maybe, by the end of this, she did want to forget. She did want to at least return to as normal as she could. Forget the spirit world and Haku exists. Forget about the pain in her side. Was her father doing alright right now? How much time had passed in the human world? Had it been moments or weeks?

The faster they got to the mountains and Chihiro freed Haku, the faster she could find out. The faster she could wake up.

Shorter chapter this time. Disappointing after the long wait, I know. I'm already working on the next chapters, and I think this will be coming to a close soon.

So I guess I owe ya'll some explanation, at least to those who are interested/curious. Basically, this has been a holiday season appropriate to the feeling 2020 has brought. I got sick, my dog ate a ton of chocolate, I got sick again (not Covid. I have very poor health but it had nothing to do with Covid-19), contemplating the point of what life is. Y'know, totally normal stuff for this abomination that is 2020. Oh, and World of Warcraft: Shadowlands released so that's been consuming every waking moment for the past couple of weeks lmao.

I was hoping to finish this in time for Christmas, but I don't think that'll happen. I'm definitely going to continue to aim for that, and if not finish this, then get a couple or even a few more chapters out anyway. I hope everyone has been having a better start to the holidays than I have. Happy Holidays!