Chapter 3
Questions
One day, Haku decided to take some time off and visit Zeniba. Now that the trains were running both ways again, it was no longer the ordeal it used to be to get to Numanosoko and back. Kaonashi met Haku at the door and motioned him in. Zeniba was already preparing snacks--as if she knew he was going to come that day. The three of them sat at the table.
"So, Haku, I see you're a frog. What's your name now?"
"Yubaba says my name is Tsugi, but I'm not forgetting my true name."
"That's good. Why did she choose that name?"
"I think it's a shortened form of Jiro. I think she likes me and sees me as her second son."
"You want to return to the world of the humans--don't you."
"Yes..."
"...And you don't know how to do that and reunite with Chihiro."
"You know about..."
"Of course. It doesn't take an old sorceress like me to see the bond you two had developed. Your problem, of course, is the fact that only your spirits are intertwined. When you enter this world from the other, your spirit and your conscious thoughts switch places. When you return, the process is reversed."
Haku sighed. "That much I have figured out. I know Chihiro has forgotten about me. I know if I go back, I shall assume some physical countenance with no conscious memory of her. Can you
help?"
"I can't tell you the answer outright, as I am bound by a code. You will have to figure the details yourself. I can tell you this: The answer is in this room."
Haku looked over at the silent Kaonashi sipping his tea and...
"Is the answer that simple? Zeniba, thank you!"
"You're welcome," she relied. She had intended to make the clue simple, but she was impressed how quickly Haku caught on. "I don't know his name, but he's about Chihiro's age. He arrived with his parents about one year before she did, as I recall. You know what you'll need to do."
Haku needed to do dry runs by himself. He needed to practice keeping his memory fresh as he ventured deeper and deeper each day into the Yu-ya train station. It took quite a bit of concentration, but each day he was able to get closer to the exit into the human world without forgetting anything--at least he so thought. Finally, he reached the portal--and it took him only seven or eight days to work himself up to that point. From the portal, he saw the world as he thought he remembered it going in all those years ago. He remembered the blocking stone, the footpath, and the faded green stone warehouse. Right after the thicket, he recalled, he'd be at a clearing where he could see the Tama River below and the distant tall buildings of a great city where the sun rises. "Yes, it's right where I came in," thought Haku, "I wonder if Se... ...Chihiro lives anywhere nearby." He knew what would happen if he took one step out of the portal at that time. He would "revert" to being a frog with the intelligence and consciousness of a frog--with the trapped and helpless spirit of a river within. He knew he needed to revert to human shape with a consciousness he could influence.
Yubaba and Zeniba were the only two denizens of the two worlds at the ends of the tunnel who were fully aware of both sides--and they were bound to silence. Haku still had plenty to learn before committing himself to a venture on the other side. Once beyond the portal, there was little or no chance of correcting any mistakes, so he needed to do things right the very first time. Except for the details he had yet to work out, his plan was fairly simple. First, he would conclude his part of the contract with Yubaba. Then, he would arrange to have Yubaba reduce his size as the contract stipulated he could obtain, fulfilling her part of the contract. He would then arrange to have Kaonashi somehow consume him, giving the faceless one Haku's spirit, and that spirit would be able to guide Kaonashi to the portal. From there, the previous consciousness of the boy who entered the tunnel would reappear. "As the boy had little or no independent spirit," Haku thought again, "I would be able to act as his guide, helping him seek out Sen."
There were issues--disturbing issues--facing Haku as he tried to gather the details. Would Kaonashi have aged physically after six years? Would he have matured or grown more educated? Are humans attracted to other humans based on appearance rather than spirit? The biggest issue of all still eluded him completely: why is there a continuous stream of new arrivals from the human side? Wouldn't they be missed? Are humans that insensitive? If I were the human chief, I would close the portal permanently--yet somebody new comes in almost every month. He would occasionally ask Yubaba or Zeniba questions relating to those issues, hoping for a clue but, other than appearing amused at his questions, they both kept silent...
Questions
One day, Haku decided to take some time off and visit Zeniba. Now that the trains were running both ways again, it was no longer the ordeal it used to be to get to Numanosoko and back. Kaonashi met Haku at the door and motioned him in. Zeniba was already preparing snacks--as if she knew he was going to come that day. The three of them sat at the table.
"So, Haku, I see you're a frog. What's your name now?"
"Yubaba says my name is Tsugi, but I'm not forgetting my true name."
"That's good. Why did she choose that name?"
"I think it's a shortened form of Jiro. I think she likes me and sees me as her second son."
"You want to return to the world of the humans--don't you."
"Yes..."
"...And you don't know how to do that and reunite with Chihiro."
"You know about..."
"Of course. It doesn't take an old sorceress like me to see the bond you two had developed. Your problem, of course, is the fact that only your spirits are intertwined. When you enter this world from the other, your spirit and your conscious thoughts switch places. When you return, the process is reversed."
Haku sighed. "That much I have figured out. I know Chihiro has forgotten about me. I know if I go back, I shall assume some physical countenance with no conscious memory of her. Can you
help?"
"I can't tell you the answer outright, as I am bound by a code. You will have to figure the details yourself. I can tell you this: The answer is in this room."
Haku looked over at the silent Kaonashi sipping his tea and...
"Is the answer that simple? Zeniba, thank you!"
"You're welcome," she relied. She had intended to make the clue simple, but she was impressed how quickly Haku caught on. "I don't know his name, but he's about Chihiro's age. He arrived with his parents about one year before she did, as I recall. You know what you'll need to do."
Haku needed to do dry runs by himself. He needed to practice keeping his memory fresh as he ventured deeper and deeper each day into the Yu-ya train station. It took quite a bit of concentration, but each day he was able to get closer to the exit into the human world without forgetting anything--at least he so thought. Finally, he reached the portal--and it took him only seven or eight days to work himself up to that point. From the portal, he saw the world as he thought he remembered it going in all those years ago. He remembered the blocking stone, the footpath, and the faded green stone warehouse. Right after the thicket, he recalled, he'd be at a clearing where he could see the Tama River below and the distant tall buildings of a great city where the sun rises. "Yes, it's right where I came in," thought Haku, "I wonder if Se... ...Chihiro lives anywhere nearby." He knew what would happen if he took one step out of the portal at that time. He would "revert" to being a frog with the intelligence and consciousness of a frog--with the trapped and helpless spirit of a river within. He knew he needed to revert to human shape with a consciousness he could influence.
Yubaba and Zeniba were the only two denizens of the two worlds at the ends of the tunnel who were fully aware of both sides--and they were bound to silence. Haku still had plenty to learn before committing himself to a venture on the other side. Once beyond the portal, there was little or no chance of correcting any mistakes, so he needed to do things right the very first time. Except for the details he had yet to work out, his plan was fairly simple. First, he would conclude his part of the contract with Yubaba. Then, he would arrange to have Yubaba reduce his size as the contract stipulated he could obtain, fulfilling her part of the contract. He would then arrange to have Kaonashi somehow consume him, giving the faceless one Haku's spirit, and that spirit would be able to guide Kaonashi to the portal. From there, the previous consciousness of the boy who entered the tunnel would reappear. "As the boy had little or no independent spirit," Haku thought again, "I would be able to act as his guide, helping him seek out Sen."
There were issues--disturbing issues--facing Haku as he tried to gather the details. Would Kaonashi have aged physically after six years? Would he have matured or grown more educated? Are humans attracted to other humans based on appearance rather than spirit? The biggest issue of all still eluded him completely: why is there a continuous stream of new arrivals from the human side? Wouldn't they be missed? Are humans that insensitive? If I were the human chief, I would close the portal permanently--yet somebody new comes in almost every month. He would occasionally ask Yubaba or Zeniba questions relating to those issues, hoping for a clue but, other than appearing amused at his questions, they both kept silent...