Paths of the Heart

Chapter 6-

Anything to forget...

Disclaimer- If you've read everything before this I think you probably already know what I am going to say, but just in case you don't I'll say it again. ME NO OWN Spirited Away. If I did I would not be setting here front of an odd&ends computer typing this out, now would I?

All the nightmares. Back. And worse than before, something that before she would have thought impossible. Only Tanner kept her sane. Only in his company did she find a moment of rest, a time when her every waking and sleeping thought was not filled with unmentionable shadows and horrors. She shuddered at the thought, and then pushed them from her mind, not wanting them to ruin what time she could find without them.

He looked over at her, eyes filled with sympathy. It was the work of a second to switch the arm bearing the picnic basket, and the now free limb traveled around her shoulders, offering what comfort it could. Chihiro smiled at him, thanking the fates that had sent her such a friend, one that was willing to look beyond the horror that the monsters hounding her was creating.

The whole afternoon, everything from his playing hooky to the two of them taking a lunch and going for a hike, had been his idea. Though he credited it to her desperate plea the last time that he had seen her. The one where she had claimed that was willing to do anything to forget the darkness and shadows that haunted her. So he had stolen her, arriving that morning not long after her parents had both left for work and coaxing her out of her room with the promise of food and friendship, and the even more tempting offer of relief.

Tanner was experiencing a wave of relief himself. The state that he had found Chihiro in during his last visit had made him wonder at the sanity of her parents. He knew that he if he had been acting the way that she was, he would have found himself in an insane asylum or some mental hospital long before he reached this point.

Every time he saw her she had slipped a little farther, was a little more lost in the delirium that was slowly becoming reality in her mind. Now she talked to the walls, and flinched at shadows that only she could see, winced at sounds audible only to her own ears., and jerked away from the touch of something that existed only in her head. It also took longer for her to throw off those shadows and reactions, just a few more seconds, every time. It had taken almost a full two minutes the last time, and even then he had wondered just how far off she had managed to chase her ghosts.

Because her last words and thoughts when they had parted had been of far darker things than he had ever wanted to contemplate. She had spoken of her desperation to escape the merciless nightmares hunting her, and the means that she was willing to risk or take to accomplish that goal. Everything from drugs and alcohol to...he shuddered...suicide.

It was the mention of that word, or actually not even the word itself, just the questions about which method that he had thought would be fastest, the most merciful, the one that would allow her to escape the quickest, that convinced him that he had to do something. If he had been considering those thoughts he probably would have gone and put himself willingly in a padded room until they ceased. But then, the way that Chihiro talked, these thoughts would not cease long enough for her to even consider other things. She needed help, and she needed it bad. And as far as he could see, he was the only one prepared to give her what she needed.

Which meant that he needed to stop thinking about those things, and help her, just like he had planned. Though it was a rather long walk, the spot that he had chosen for their escape was beautiful, and well worth the trip required to get there, provided that Chihiro had the energy to reach it. He glanced over, trying to gauge just how she was doing. Having to carry her back, or worse, having to call someone to come and get then and get the both of them caught, were not very attractive options. Especially since he would get caught playing hooky... without thinking he cringed.

Chihiro felt his muscles tense, and pulled away, sure that the action was the result of being in direct contact with her. Had he finally decided that she was too much trouble? Or had he realized what she was, or that she might end up hurting him? It wouldn't surprise her that he had finally woken up... and found all her fears displaced by the next smile he offered her followed quickly by an apology.

"Sorry, just a bit of a muscle cramp. How are you doing?"

She thought about it. Honestly... "It feels great to be outside." she confessed. "I don't know how long its been since I dared to venture outside of my room, much less the house itself. It's so nice just to be outside for a while..."

She trailed off as she looked around, finally sparing time to look at the scenery instead if following his lead blindly. They had walked down a twisting path from the edge of town. Almost overgrown, it lead into the undeveloped woodlands. At some point in time she remembered hearing that someone had tried to develop them, but a multitude of problems ranging from poor ground to an inexplicable number of accidents and mishaps had halted the project, and no one had ever picked it back up. The smile that had appeared vanished, as she recalled other legends about this particular wood. It was haunted, some said, and it was the sprits themselves that had interfered with the attempt to invade their territory.

But then Chihiro shook her head. Tanner had said that he was taking her to place that he had visited many times himself, and he had never claimed to see or encounter anything of the sort. He probably didn't even know about the tales surrounding this place, having only lived there less than a year. And anyway, she trusted him, and she was here to forget about all of that stuff. Determined to enjoy her self, she gathered her thoughts and her courage, and smiled at him again as the plunged into the shady wood.

Sigh... next chapter. Be thankful that I'm getting this one up so fast. I actually have some time to write for a change. It's sort of a miracle.