Disclaimer – "Default Chapter" saids it all ^^*

*as usual, characters' thoughts in BOLD XD*

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~*~ The Day the Dream Ended ~*~

Chapter 10 – Return

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"Why do you wish to return?"

Haku opened his eyes slowly at the sound of the voice.  Blinking rapidly, he jumped up in surprise at the misty scenery around him. 

Mi…mist?  He thought to himself wildly, looking around himself.  Where…where am I?  Wasn't I just in the humans' world? 

Pausing in his frantic looking, Haku realized that he was alone. Kodama!  Where did he go?  The last thing I remember was standing with him before the barrier…if I was with him and he's not here…then how in the world did I get here? 

Before he could ask any more questions or even attempt to search for an answer, however, a voice came back out of the nothingness to question him once again.

"Why do you wish to return to a place on the brink of destruction?  Why do you wish to go back to a place which had enslaved you and offered you nothing in return?  Does a simple promise—a childhood memory—really hold enough power to draw you toward your own destruction?  Are you ready to truly forgive all who had used you in your abandoned past?"

For an unseen voice, you sure ask a lot of questions.  Haku thought to himself wryly before thinking about what he was asked.  Reassuming his frantic surveillance of his surroundings, Haku discovered that he still could not see the source of the voice anywhere…just endless lands of mist.  Sighing, he decided to return to the easier task at hand and go along with the voice…for now.  However, the questions themselves puzzled him…as did the familiarity of the voice.

Thinking about what the unseen voice was asking him, Haku frowned in thought, unsure of how to answer a question he had never even considered before. 

A place which offered me nothing…a place which used me… 

Memories of the almost-forgotten past came back to haunt him: memories of his homeland—his river—being filled in to make way for "civilization" and lost to him for all eternity; memories of the grief and sadness he had felt, seeing this…feeling this.  Memories of being lost, having nowhere to return to, no place to call home…and memories of arriving at the entrance of the great bathhouse Aburaya—of initially being rejected by the greedy workers there because he had no money to offer them, then eventually not only accepted, but feared by them, as he became the bathhouse mistress and witch's disciple and secret servant.   

Memories of anger, of hatred…

…of loneliness.

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"You and I are both aware that you cannot run forever, my little pet." The being which bore Haku's form cooed to the girl before him tauntingly.  They were on the rooftop of the floating glass castle; below them stretched leagues of water as far as the eye could see, the once green and fertile Majou no Sekai covered by the dark and agitated waters. 

Chihiro felt her feet backing away from her captor, until she contacted something hard and solid with her retreating back.  Grimly, she winced, thinking: He was right—I just ran out of running room.  Taking a deep, staggered breath, the girl prepared herself to face this being, and whatever he—it?—was about to throw at her.  A thought crossed her mind again briefly, earlier ignored out of fear of breaking her running momentum.  Still trying to recover from her long run, Chihiro decided to speak for her curiosity—at least she'll be able to learn more about the creature before he kills her!

"What do you want from me?" the girl panted, out of breath.  "What's the point of rescuing me, then toying with me?  There is nothing I can give you, otherwise you would've forced it from me already!  Am I right?  Tell me why you won't just kill me and have it over with!"

The being stared at her, motionless—his great black wings had stopped its flapping, setting its master gently on the glass roof-top; his normally sky blue eyes seemed surprised, almost as if stung by her question.  Chihiro frowned as her rigid stance slowly relaxed and her anger slipped away, the girl too deep in thought and too perplexed to notice.  Her captor's earlier smirk was replaced by a look of bafflement, as if he too, wondered the same thing she was asking him—but could offer neither her or himself any answers.  They just stood there, strides away from one another, staring.  After a moment longer of frowning, Chihiro was surprised to find that she was no longer afraid of him.  Instead, what she found in replacement of her earlier fear was…concern…concern for this being, who so resembled her Haku.  Looking, for the first time, into the depths of those paling blue eyes, the girl found herself looking not at this black-haired stranger who looked like the boy whom she had come to seek, but at the boy himself.  The…feeling…radiating from both the 'Hakus'—right down to the tingling sense of confusion, the almost shy hesitation and the hint of warmth that she felt from him…them…when she first met Haku all those years ago—was so uncanny that the girl could not help but wonder at the similarities.

It was with a start that the girl realized she had somehow begun to think of her gentle Haku and this violent, malicious being who had taken Haku's form as one and the same person.  Shaking her head as if to clear up her thoughts, she spoke again, as much to search for an answer as to disturb herself from falling into her idle thoughts.

"Just…who are you?" she asked him, softly but loud enough for the both of them to hear.  The black-haired 'Haku' closed his eyes, as if to block out his pain.  Even as she watched him—him who was not Haku, she was surprised to have to remind herself—she felt as if something was gripping her heart…something painful that made her heart long to go to the creature before her, to comfort him. 

She began to walk toward him, unafraid and concerned only for him.

"STOP!" he suddenly screamed, halting the surprised girl in her tracks.  His eyes were wavering from a demonic red to the bright blue of his magic.  "Don't come any closer to me!  What did you do to me?  What kind of…of witch are you?!"

Taking a step back involuntarily, Chihiro watched in horror as the being's great black wings seemed to flare into life, flapping madly.  Suddenly, they flashed brightly once—and disappeared.  As the sudden harsh light disappeared, the girl uncovered her eyes and saw the now wingless sorcerer clutching his head in intense pain, as if battling demons within his very soul.  She took a deep breath and bit her lower lip—and continued her walk toward him.

"I said STAY AWAY!" he screamed again, this time throwing blue fire—the fire of magic—at her even as lighting of the same color flashed outside, dangerously close to where they were. 

This time, Chihiro didn't falter in her steps even as the blue colored magic-fire came rushing towards her, closing the distance between them fast.

Call me crazy.  The girl thought grimly as she continued in her steps, sure and firm.  I really don't know why I'm doing this…why I'm not stopping even though you intend to do me harm.  But…somehow…  Something's telling me that I shouldn't be afraid of you…that there's no need to fear you—you who are so alike with my Haku—because I know that he would never hurt me.

Chihiro looked toward creature clutching his head on the ground, smiling at the being who could've been Haku himself as he looked at her with widened eyes, surprise written clearly across his face.   

She straight ahead, only to meet the bright blue lights radiating from the magic fire…

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Haku blinked, feeling his anger and long-forgotten hatred begin to awaken and rise up within him once again, blinding the dragon to everything he learned to hold dear to his heart—until his mind saw and was caught in the image of a girl. 

Time seemed to freeze for the young dragon as he stared at the image of the girl, so life-like and ever so close to him, as if he could reach out and touch her.  It was the same girl he had met seven years ago, only the difference of time during which they had been separated was evident in the girl's form.  Physically more mature and more graceful than he ever remembered her to be, the river spirit noted that physical growth was not the only difference in her.  A tender smile graced her features; caught in the spell of her smile, Haku looked into her eyes…those soft, gentle honey-brown eyes which once held confusion and doubt now looked back at him tenderly, full of confidence, holding in them kindness and understanding one so young would not be expected to be capable of.  Drawn towards his beloved, even though she was but an image of his own mind, the dragon could not resist but move closer to her…to reach out and hold her in his arms.  Somehow, for some strange, indescribable reason, he felt himself unable to look away from her…unable to look away from her eyes—eyes which shone which a deep, untouchable emotion… 

Eyes which shone with her love for him. 

Stopping just before her, afraid to hold her out of fear of the possibility of her vanishing right before him, Haku smiled, feeling all his building anger and hatred disappear into thin air even quicker than they had appeared.  Closing his eyes, his heart and mind came to a resolution at once.  

I want to return there…  he thought in answer to his unseen questioner.  I want to return there, because she is there.

Because it doesn't matter what happened in the past, nor does it matter who we were in the past.  The people we were…the way we had been…she was able to look past that.      

I want to return there…so I can be with her.

Because I know…I know I'm willing to do anything for her…to be with her…to see her, one more time.

And because I…

Smiling ever so gently as the young dragon finally came to a conclusion to his feelings for the girl whom he constantly thought of since their meeting all those years ago, Haku felt his heartbeat quicken and the air around him heat up as he finally admitted his emotions for her.

Because I'm in love with her.

The whiteness of the mists flashed a bright pink around him, just once.  All Haku saw was the image of his beloved girl, smiling and holding her arms out to him.

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Man, I luv Haku chappies…:D  It's kinda funny…I find them (both Haku and Chihiro chappies, actually…no wonder I wrote this one so quickly!) so much easier to write than chappies with other characters in it. *shrugs* I have no idea why…I guess that's just the way it works wiv me n' my strange writing, eh? ^^

Anyhow…sorry for this rather short chappie~!  (well…at least in comparison to the last chappie ^^)  But with grad and everything at the moment… XP  (- how I feel at da moment~!!)  I had to write a new chappie…but time wunt lemme write it any longer n.n  Gomen ne~!!  Demo…was it alrite enough to last a week, or until the next update??

Now the real action starts~!   But…*clamping a hand over my own mouth* Ya just gotta wait for da next chappie XD  So with everything that's happing…well, happening (!) this week…I'm thanking you guys here in advance for your patience~!!

Well…ya know the routine ^^  Crits n' comments…the more I get, the faster I write…if only cuz I'd put myself on the guilt trip and write till my eyes are closing on their own…  I mean, how can I not, when you wonderful ppl out there are actually *sobs* reading my ficcy~!!   Until my next update then :P

~Aqua Sunshine ^^*