Note: as some of you might realise, there are gaps in the narrative of this story. I recently got a comment asking me whether Haku is really sleeping with these girls or whether it's just a massage. It's completely up to your interpretation and what you think of Haku's character & what you think his circumstances demands from him. As you can tell by now, Haku is a morally ambiguous character - just as he was in the Spirited Away film (one hell of a masterpiece). In view of that, I'm trying to continue in the same vein.
I try not to be too clear about certain details because I believe that a reader's imagination is just as important as the written narrative. If everything was explicitly explained, there wouldn't be much room left for your imagination, would it?
Chapter 11: The Perfect Host
Tonight's shift was unusually busy. Orders for dessert came in one after another and the kitchen was running out of clean plates. As the kitchen's newest staff, Chihiro didn't have much say and before she knew it, she was allocated the busiest post for the night: the dishwasher.
"No matter how fast I move, these dishes keep piling up!" Chihiro exclaimed as a new stack of dirty dishes plonked onto the counter.
"Here, let me give you hand," Rin rolled up her sleeves and stepped in to help. "You're not the only one who hates social nights. A party upstairs means hell for everyone downstairs," Rin rolled her eyes. Chihiro turned to smile at Rin who was trying to get into her apron. Although she had only known Rin for a few weeks, she felt a comforting sense of familiarity with her supervisor; Rin was like the sister she never had.
"Thanks for helping, Rin. But you're my supervisor, this really isn't-"
"Oh, shut it!" Rin cut Chihiro short and quickly started doing the dishes.
"If you think this is bad, it's going to get worse during the matsuri in a few weeks," Rin scoffed. "you'll need all the help you can get, I assure you."
"You mean even more spirits are visiting?" Chihiro's brows shot up at the thought of tackling a mountain of dishes.
"You bet! It's supposed to be the winter festival. Merchants and highborn spirits like to drop by and build relations and get to meet new faces. But we all know what that means," Rin turned to look at Chihiro, hands on her hips. "Ladies from all parts of the spirit world will visit and try to win Haku's heart."
Memories of her encounter with Haku at the river flooded into Chihiro's mind. His hands felt cool against her cheeks and his face just inches away from her. She felt her face turn warm and she snapped out of that thought immediately. The audacity to think Master Haku would be remotely attracted to a lowly servant like her!
"D-do you think Master Haku would choose any of these ladies?"
"Uh-uh," Rin shook her head. "He can be stupid at times but I'm sure he's got better taste in that department."
"You mean Lady Hisae?" Chihiro asked without missing a beat.
"Wha-? Oh, shut it Chihiro. I've told you before to never say that," Rin splashed soapy dishwater at Chihiro.
"Hey!" Chihiro cried as she unsuccessfully ducked away. "She's beautiful, why not?"
"I don't know!" Run turned away, feeling flustered. Chihiro said nothing and went back to doing the dishes with more than a few questions on her mind.
"Oh, speaking of that lizard," Run broke the silence, "remember the last time I told you he wanted to meet you sometime? Do you think you can visit his quarters after your shift tonight?"
"Oh. Uh, okay," Chihiro answered tentatively.
"Don't worry, silly! it's going to be fine. It's just a chat." Rin flashed a smile at Chihiro and gave her a thumbs up.
Hisae threw her head back, downing a shot of sake while she watched the languid movements of the elegant dancer. The spirit was a hired dancer, a swallow spirit from the South. She moved with an easy grace; the long sleeves of her indigo kimono flittered and fanned as she moved to a bitter-sweet song that welcomed the winter and paid homage to falling leaves.
It was one of those social nights at the bathhouse. Honoured guests from different parts of the lands have gathered here for a short stay and Haku had invited selected guests to enjoy a night of sake and entertainment. The Aburaya was known for their range of cleansing herbal baths but soaking in a luxurious onsen was not why these guests were here. Each had their own agenda, and Haku knew; he knew how to keep these guests happy.
Downing another shot, Hisae cast a sidelong glance at Haku, who was sitting beside her. Tonight, he was dressed in an ebony silk haori and a pair of sea-green hakama that matched the colour of his eyes. The temperatures were cold outside, but the room was warm and Haku's thin clothes brought out his broad shoulders and lean, muscular build.
"I do hope you're enjoying yourself," Haku flashed a disarming smile, flirting lightly with the coral spirit two seats away from him. These social gatherings at the bathhouse always brought out a side of Haku that Hisae didn't necessarily like. But this was part of his duties as head of the Aburaya and she knew that.
Cigar in one hand and a glass of sake in another, Haku was drinking and laughing with his guests, just as the master of a bathhouse should. Number two. Hisae was discreetly keeping count of the number of cigars Haku had smoked. She never told him this but she could always tell how he was truly feeling from the number of cigars he had had despite his convincing act. If anything, Haku was an excellent host, always attentive and always had a natural charm. He was all at once inviting and enigmatic, witty and earnest. It's not hard to see why the ladies in their company were enchanted by this handsome dragon of the East. Especially the fish from the south…
Kaeda was clinging to Haku's arm, leaning her head on his shoulder. Hisae didn't miss the way she tittered away, giggling at one of his droll remarks. It's no secret that Kaeda had been batting eyes at Haku, finding ways to become the lady of the largest bathhouse in the spirit world.
"Oh Kohaku, your selection of sake has been irresistible tonight," Kaeda leaned into him, "are you sure you're not finding ways to make me drunk?"
Haku inhaled his cigar deeply before turning over to Kaeda, "Lady Kaeda, you know I'd never force anyone to do anything they don't want to," he soothed.
Averting her eyes, Hisae internally cringed at Kaeda's tasteless banter with Haku. In front of the other honoured guests! She found it hard to believe the fish spirit was high born. Turning to her left, Hisae tried to start a conversation with the lobster spirit seated next to her but soon found that he was too drunk to speak. She looked about the room and took in the scene before her with a shaky breath. The swallow spirit continued to move with remarkable grace but was largely ignored by the guests. Merchants and other highborn spirits were in their midst, bantering and laughing among themselves.
She was tired. Is this what being highborn is all about? Just then, her thoughts were interrupted by a gruff voice.
"Fantastic! What a beautiful performance!" The salamander spirit, a merchant from the South loudly exclaimed with a bottle of sake in hand. His eyes were wide like marbles, never leaving the dancer.
"It's my pleasure, sir," the dancer lowered her eyes and bowed lowly.
Struggling to his feet, the merchant clumsily walked towards the dancer in his drunken state. "Give me more, won't you?" He slurred with a lascivious smile. A look of panic fleeted across the swallow's face and she cast a quick nervous glance at Haku. She was not a yuna but as a hired dancer, she was still at the mercy of her employer for the night. Sensing that the salamander spirit was moving steadily towards her, she took a few steps back in panic. The music had stopped playing.
"A toast!" Haku called out suddenly and all eyes were on him. "A toast to the richest merchant of our lands," he raised his cup of sake and motioned towards the salamander. At that, all the spirits in the room took up their glasses and waited for the salamander spirit to accept their salutations. Sensing that he was the focus of attention, the salamander spirit received the toast in gratitude and moved about the room accepting well wishes. Taking advantage of the commotion, Haku nodded at the dancer and signalled her to leave quietly. The frightened swallow spirit bowed lowly and quickly left, narrowly escaping the lecherous salamander.
Lowering her eyes, Hisae smiled to herself, relieved that a messy situation had been avoided. It was a precarious situation but Hisae felt happy for the swallow, somehow. She didn't always agree with Haku's decisions but she knew he kept to his morals. A different bathhouse master might not have done the same to save a hired dancer.
"You must be Lady Hisae, the willow tree of the East," a voice behind Hisae spoke lowly, "I've heard all about your beauty and I must say, the praises don't do you justice."
Hisae turned around slowly and found herself facing a deer spirit. He had a tall, strong build, tanned skin and white spots on both sides of his high cheek bones. Even in his humanoid form, his prominent antlers stuck out his head of chestnut brown hair.
"You're far too kind," Hisae smiled warmly at her new acquaintance.
"My name is Haruto, but some call me Haru," the deer spirit introduced himself. "Truly, Lady Hisae, I wasn't joking about your beauty. It's a pity the master of the bathhouse doesn't have better taste." The two turned to look at Haku who was chatting with a few ladies at the far corner of the room.
"Well, Master Kohaku and I are dear friends. It would be weird if he started making eyes at me," Hisae laughed lightly. It was nice chatting with a gentleman after witnessing the scene with the salamander. The two spoke for a while and Hisae learned that it was Haruto's first visit to the bathhouse. He was here to negotiate new trading terms. She had to admit the deer spirit was courteous and a refreshing character in this frivolous company. With a glass of sake in hand, she smiled and laughed at the right moments as they chatted.
Soon, Hisae emptied her glass and excused herself to get a new fill of sake. Moving across the room, she stole a glance at Haku who was still sober after downing countless shots of sake. Number three. It was Haku's third cigar and Hisae knew that that meant Haku was fringing on feeling completely stressed out. He played the perfect host but Hisae knew he was drained, exhausted from putting up a front. Most of all, he was lonely. In a room full of spirits, perhaps she was the only one on his side. She was his only companion and her heart went out to him.
"You know, Lady Kaeda's right," Kenta's voice was within Hisae's earshot. "You have a fantastic selection of sake," he moved towards Haku with a bottle in hand.
Raising his brows at Kenta, Haku replied, "I'm glad you're enjoying your night, your highness."
"Your yunas on the other hand… well, they're alright," a smile tugged at the corner of Kenta's lips before he added, "you do have a wonderful new staff, that I must say… she's lovely."
A look of bewilderment flitted across Haku's usually calm demeanour. Standing quite close to the two, Hisae knew exactly who Kenta was referring to. Chihiro.
"She's a little clumsy, maybe. But I much prefer if she serves me the next time I'm here. I'm sure you can see to that, Master Kohaku?" Kenta's small smile spread to a wide grin. Haku stiffened and felt a pang of fear shoot through his spine. For the first time tonight, he was lost for words. Does he know? No, her scent is masked. He shouldn't be able to detect her… did something else happen? An internal war waged within Haku and every fibre of his being was on edge. Just as Haku opened his mouth to reply, a weight fell upon him from behind and he stumbled forward, nearly knocking into Kenta.
"Oh, dear! Kohaku!" Kaeda, in her drunken state, quite literally threw herself on Haku, spilling half a bottle of sake on his garments.
"Kohaku, are you alright?" Hisae rushed over towards Haku, peeling Kaeda off him.
"I - I'm fine, Lady Hisae. Thank you," Haku managed, trying to regain his composure. Catching on to the commotion, the servants quickly went forward and Hisae helped them usher a giggling Kaeda back to her room.
"What a mess. And she calls herself a lady," Kenta shot a disapproving look at Kaeda's direction.
"Sorry about that, your highness," Haku finally found his voice again.
"Oh, no no no, we all know you're not at fault," Kenta replied sincerely. He didn't like Haku's guts but he couldn't deny Haku had been a perfect host all evening. If it wasn't because of the spirit world's politics, he truly believed the both of them could have been great friends.
"Listen, Master Kohaku," Kenta started, after a short pause, I'm leaving the bathhouse in right after the matsuri. Let's go out for fly before then."
Go out for a fly? Haku didn't quite know what to make of this. After their unpleasant discussion and the prince's cryptic comment about Chihiro, he didn't think meeting Kenta alone was a good idea. Haku flew often and dragons were strong flyers but the winds still belonged to Kenta, a wind spirit from the North. Haku pulled out another cigar and lit it slowly to buy himself some time.
Sensing some uneasiness from Haku, Kenta thought it better to clarify himself, "we only ever talk about politics. You've hosted me perfectly on countless occasions and I thought it would be nice to get to know each other in a different light."
Haku took a long drag of his cigar and exhaled deeply before he replied tentatively, "well, sure." He was caught off guard by Kenta's strangely amicable invitation. With that, Kenta wished Haku good night, bowed lowly, and left the company of the mostly drunk guests. Haku's perplexed gaze followed Kenta as he slipped out of the room. What exactly does he want?
"What's the matter, Kohaku?" Haku felt a hand placed softly on his shoulder. Turning around swiftly, Haku half expected to find himself faced with one of the flirtatious ladies. Instead, he found himself face to face with Hisae, the only person he trusted in this room. Her brows were slightly furrowed, her expression full of concern. Haku looked upon her familiar face and a sense of relief washed over him.
"He wanted to go out for a fly. Said he wanted to be friends or something and I agreed." Despite the nagging sense that something was up, Haku smiled widely at Hisae. Finally, he could speak frankly for a change.
Hisae opened her mouth to respond but Haku's brows shot up and he looked as though he had just remembered something. "What is it now?" She questioned.
"It's late, I think I may have to leave," Haku surveyed the room and found that most of his guests were drunk anyway. "I'll ask a servant to clean up. If anyone asks, can you tell them I've retired?" He whispered in Hisae's ear.
"Of course, Kohaku," Hisae nodded, blushing slightly at their proximity. Haku had rarely left these gatherings early unless he had something important to attend to. It's Chihiro, I suppose? Hisae knew all about Chihiro and the history she shared with Haku but she had never expected to meet the human girl in her lifetime.
In all the spirit world, I'm the willow tree that rests closest to your heart, aren't I? Yes. Yes, I am. She truly believed so. If a look of concern was on Hisae's face, Haku didn't see it. In an instant, he had left her side and was now speaking to one of his attendants.
Number four. Hisae smiled sadly at the dragon as he disappeared into the crowd, cigar in hand.