Weeks passed. Though Haku and Kii met often to make love, they both had busy schedules and usually could not stay together as long as they had on the first night. At the end of each time together, Haku would give Kii three gold coins; it became a sort of joke between them. Kii would take the gold in mock seriousness and murmur, "I'll see you again, Master Haku."
Haku wondered about Kii when they were apart, formed questions in his mind that he resolved to ask when he saw him again, but each time he laid eyes on Kii, his conscious mind seemed to melt away, taking the questions with it, only to resurface when he was gone. At first, he could satisfy these gnawing mysteries with a lover's skewed logic: Kii loves me, and that's all that matters. But over time, the questions grew more pressing, the possible answers Haku imagined damning. Was Kii hiding something from him? The room with the garden—the gray kimono—where Kii was from and who he was—Haku had never asked these things, and now he felt as if he shouldn't. After all, Kii had never asked about Haku's missions, or the nightmares they had spawned, nor his real name, or where he was from. Haku's heart lingered between He doesn't want to pry and He doesn't care. But if Kii really wanted to know anything, he could ask one of the other staff members…
The staff.
Gossip spread like wildfire among the frogs and the slugs; if anyone knew something about Kii's past, they would. Or they could find out. Haku decided to find Lin, whom he'd managed to befriend after the incident with Chihiro. She was rather easy to locate: by herself scrubbing the Big Tub, her mutterings about lacking an assistant amplified by the tub's shape.
Haku stepped into the room, glanced around to make sure the other staff members were otherwise occupied, and whispered, "Lin!"
Lin poked her head out of the tub, her irritated expression vanishing when she recognized Haku. "Haku!" she cried out, then clamped her mouth shut when Haku put a finger to his lips. "Haven't seen you in a while," she whispered loudly. "What's the occasion?"
Haku leapt up onto the edge of the tub like a cat, startling Lin and causing her to fall backwards into the sludge at the bottom of the tub. Haku watched coolly as Lin picked herself up, scowling. Crouching down, Haku whispered, "What do you know about Kii, the musician?"
"That he's not a musician," Lin replied promptly in a more normal tone of voice. Haku looked around, but no one seemed to be listening. "Also that he seems to spend a lot of time on the ninth floor," she quirked an eyebrow, "where your rooms are."
Haku smiled slightly. "I figured you'd know that."
Lin shrugged. "The slugs are always hissing about it. You know how they are."
"Do you know anything else?" Haku prompted, but Lin shook her head.
"You know I'm not interested in that sort of… thing."
That stung. Haku sighed. "I know I owe you a few favors already, but could you see what you can find out about him? I want to know."
Lin huffed. "What's in it for me?"
"Roasted newt?" Haku began, but Lin shook her head. "Hm. Ah—fried salamander."
Lin dropped her defenses for a moment. "You know where to get one of those? I mean—" she cleared her throat. "It's a deal, then. Meet me back here tonight, and I'll tell you what I can. And don't forget that salamander."
