Well, here's chapter two. How many people guessed the reason. Ug, I hated writing that. Too sappy for me. Hopefully this chapter is better. The genre's I said this story is might even be true in this one. Please R/R

Summary: It's six years after Chihiro went to the spirit world and there's a new addition to her family. Chihiro still waits desperately for the time when she can go back to the spirit world, even when she's dealing with her little brother. Maybe he's just the person to lead her back there.

Disclaimer: I own Kouji!!! YAY!!! (huggles the little boy)

Miyazaki-sama: Ahem.

Me: Oh….um….I don't own Spirited Away or any of Miyazaki-sama's characters. Kouji's the only one now since I set those other characters free. (huggles Kouji again)

Six Years Later

"Kouji! Give me my brush! I'm gonna be late for school!"

Kouji made a raspberry at his older sister and ran down the stairs, brush in hand.

"Kouji!" Chihiro screamed, following him, her loose hair flying behind her. She caught up to him easily and grabbed him around his mid-section, holding him above the ground.

Kouji screamed and cried. "Lemme down! It's high, it's high!"

"Calm down, it's not high at all. Now give me my brush, you little brat!"

"Chihiro!" Chihiro looked up to see her mother standing by the kitchen doorway. She grumbled and set Kouji up right so that his feet were on the ground. He immediately stopped screaming.

"Don't blame me, Mom," Chihiro defended herself. "He took my brush again."

"Kouji, give her brush back now."

"But Mamma, the cats are outside again and they wanna be brushed."

"I told you last time to leave those cats alone. You're going to make them want to stay here."

"What's wrong with that?" Kouji asked innocently.

Yuuko didn't answer. "Both of you go back upstairs and finish getting ready for school. I have things to do after dropping you two off."

Chihiro snatched her brush out of Kouji's hands and trotted upstairs, saying the usual "It would just be easier if you got me a car."

"When you have a job we'll talk about it."

Chihiro rolled her eyes as she went into the bathroom, making sure that both doors were locked this time. As she brushed her shoulder blade length brown hair Chihiro thought of what a pain Kouji was. But as she tied the purple rubber band around her hair in her traditional horsetail her thoughts changed to ones of her friends in the spirit world. She could still remember them so well. Kamagi; Lynn; the giant baby, Bou; she even missed Yubaba to a point. But most of all she missed Haku. His picture was the one most vividly in her mind. It had been six and a half years since he had promised to see her again and he still hadn't come.

Chihiro wasn't aware she had started daydreaming until there was banging on Kouji's door.

"Chihiro! I'm gonna tell Mamma you're hogging the bathroom if you don't let me in!"

Chihiro grumbled and unlocked the door. There Kouji stood. He was dressed, but not very well. His blue shirt was inside out and his pockets were not tucked. One pant leg was rolled and the other one hung loose. His shoelaces trailed behind and under his feet. Chihiro laughed and shook her head.

"Arms up," she commanded. Kouji lifted his arms above his head and Chihiro pulled his shirt off. She replaced it once she had turned it the right way. Then she knelt down and started rolling the other pant leg of Kouji's too big pair of jeans that their mother swore would fit him soon. Lastly, she tied his shoes for him, double knotting them. Straitening up, Chihiro surveyed her young sibling. His pockets still hung out. "Tuck your pockets it."

"I can't. It hurts my hands."

"All you ever do is whine and complain," Chihiro remarked, rolling her eyes. She picked up a comb. "Use this to push them in. then use it to comb your hair. And next tome try making sure your pockets are in before you put your pants on."

Kouji nodded as he pushed his pockets in. He then attempted to comb his unruly brown hair. Chihiro didn't bother helping him, knowing it was useless. Instead she finished getting ready.

Ten minutes later Chihiro, Kouji and their mother were climbing into Yuuko's mini-van.

"Aw, Mom, come on. Why can't I get my own car?" Chihiro asked routinely, half way to the school.

"When you can make the car payments," Yuuko answered. "You already know that."

Chihiro slumped down in her seat. "Yeah, I know."

Kouji leaned forward and said, "Onee-san, when you get a car will you drive me places?"

"Think again, shorty."

"Mamma!"

"Quiet you two. And sit down, Kouji." Kouji plopped back into his seat and sulked.

In no time they were pulling into the K-12 school Chihiro had been going to since she was ten.

Kouji jumped out of the van, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. "Bye, Mamma!" he called, running off to meet his friends at the playground.

Chihiro was about to leave as well when Yuuko said, "Chihiro, can you walk Kouji home after school and watch him for a few hours?"

"But Mom, I was going to hand out with my friends after school," Chihiro lied. In truth she has been planning on looking around the forest areas for the tunnel that served as the spirit worlds entrance. She'd been looking for over six years and sill couldn't find it. "Why can't Dad?"

"Dad wont be home until tomorrow, remember? It's only for a few hours."

Chihiro sighed, exasperated. "Fine." She closed the van door and walked towards the school. She didn't have anyone to meet like Kouji did. After her best friend, Kerry moved back to America a month ago she has given up on making friends. She always lost them. But at least she could still e-mail Kerry. She wished she could say the same about her spirit friends.

The day went slowly. Chihiro spent the long periods drawing. Finally the last best rang. Chihiro put her drawings in her folder and left the room before the teacher could stop her and tell her once again how she needed to pay attention in class.

Chihiro sat outside Kouji's classroom. She had to wait twenty minutes for his class to end. Chihiro took the drawing she had been working on before last bell out again. It wasn't finished but the form of a Chinese style dragon could already be recognized. Chihiro was so busy with her picture she didn't notice the time go by and was surprised to the point of almost ruining her picture when the door opened and first graders rushed out.

"Chihiro! Chihiro! Guess what!" Kouji was jumping up and down. "I got half of my sandwich left! Can we stop in the woods before we go home and give the tuna to the kitties?"

Chihiro couldn't help smiling. "You know Mom doesn't want you around those cats."

"But they like me. Please?"

"Fine, but we can't stay long, and don't try to sneak one home again, promise?"

"I promise!"

Chihiro stood and she and her brother left the schoolyard.

"Can I see the picture you were drawing?" Kouji asked when they were across the street from the school.

"Let me see your hands."

Kouji put his hands out. "They're clean. I swear!" Chihiro handed him the picture after a close inspection. "Wow, a dragon! Can I color it and put it on my wall?"

"Don't you have enough of my pictures on your wall?"

Kouji shook his head vigorously.

Chihiro sighed. "We'll see. I might want to put it on my own wall."

Kouji frowned. "Can I at least hold it until we get home?"

"OK, but when we find the cats you have to put it safely in your folder, got it?"

"Got it!"

Chihiro asked Kouji about school as they neared the woods. There was an uneasiness in her stomach as they went beneath the trees that made her want to laugh. Why did she feel so giddy? Both Chihiro and Kouji were silent now.

"Onee-Chan," Kouji said eventually. "I feel funny. Maybe we can give the kitties some tuna tomorrow instead. Can we go home now?" He was hugging the drawing to his chest as if it were a comfort item.

"Y-yeah, let's go." Chihiro turned.

"I'm scared. Can I hold your hand?" Chihiro took her brother's hand without hesitation. She needed the comfort too. They started walking.

A shape walked out from behind a tree ahead of them and mewed softly.

"It's one of the kitties!" Kouji said. Letting go of Chihiro's hand he ran forward and leaned in front of the small, gray cat. The cat rubbed against his outstretched hand.

"Weird," Chihiro said, leaning down as well. "She didn't run away, even with you coming at her so fast."

"Told ya they liked me."

The cat began rubbing her whiskers on the edge of the drawing paper.

"Looky, she likes your drawing too!" At that moment the cat clamped the paper's edge in her mouth and pulled it from Kouji's arms, running deeper into the woods. Kouji was up and following her before Chihiro could stop him.

"Come back, kitty! That's Chihiro's drawing!"

"Kouji, wait, I'll draw you another one. Forget about it!" But Kouji was already in the woods. Chihiro sighed. "Mom's gonna kill me if he gets hurt or lost." She started running in the direction the six years old had gone, calling his name. She could still hear Kouji calling after the cat. She followed his voice when she lost his trail until, suddenly, the voice stopped. "Oh, no." Chihiro sped up, fearing the worst. "Kouji, where are you?!" she called frantically.

"Over here, Chihiro. Come on! You gotta see this!"

Chihiro ran toward his voice and into a heavy patch of trees. As soon as she broke through she stopped. She was in a clearing. Kouji was there too. But the interesting thing that made Chihiro's mouth drop and chills run through her body was the red building in the clearing. Chihiro had seen that same building so many times in her mind. And it was still exactly the same as when she had last looked back on it that one last time six years ago. Chihiro's eyes went down to look at the tunnel. The tunnel she had been looking for for years but never found.

"The kitty went in there," Kouji said pointing at the tunnel.

Chihiro was silent for a moment, taking it in. "I'm going through. Stay here Kouji." She walked to the tunnel.

"Chihiro, wait. I wanna go too."

"No, Kouji. It's dangerous."

"Aw, come on, please Onee-Chan? I'll be good."

A breeze moved Chihiro's hair. She saw Kouji's clothes being pulled toward the tunnel. He didn't seem to notice but just stared at her with dark, pleading eyes.

"Fine," Chihiro said.

"Yippee!"

"But stay close to me. Don't go running off, and don't touch anything." They started through the tunnel. They were halfway through when Kouji started to complain.

"Chihiro, it's dark."

"Really? I hadn't noticed. You're the one who wanted to come, you know."

"How much longer is it? My feet hurt."

"Hush up, Kouji. You're gonna hav'ta get used to walking."

"Nu-uh. Mamma said you're gonna drive me places."

"Think again."

"Aw, stop being so mean."

"Shhh, I think we're near the end."

"How do you know?"

"Tell ya later." Chihiro looked straight ahead. Her memory was going full swing. She could almost see her dad walking ahead of her, silhouetted in the light coming from the room beyond the tunnel.

"Wow," Kouji said as they entered the room. "Is this a church? Look at the windows!"

"I don't think it's a church, but the windows are pretty. I think it's some sort of station, or midpoint."

"Mew."

"Look! There she is!" Kouji said. The little gray cat sat in one of the many benches, cleaning her paw. Chihiro's drawing was lying next to her. The cat jumped from the bench and rubbed against Kouji's legs. The drawing, disturbed by the breeze the cat made, fluttered to the stone floor. Kouji picked it up. "I think she wanted us to follow her. You know, like that old American show about the dog."

"I think it's more like Alice in Wonderland, where the white rabbit led that girl down the hall."

"To be compared to such infuriating animals, really," a little, girlish voice said.

Well, there ya have it, chapter two. I actually don't have the next chapter written, so it may take a while, sorry. I'm also sorry most of this chapter is cliché, but I wanted to show the relationship between Chihiro and Kouji. It was hard considering I'm actually the younger sibling in my family (got an older brother) and I'm writing from the older sibling's POV…. I think I actually made it how I wish my relationship with my brother could be…. Anyways (bad grammar), I'll update as soon as I can. Happy New Year!!!

Oh, and here is an answer to my one review I got so far.

Kuramafangirl11: I'm so glad you like it so far. It would have been up a lot sooner but it all had to be typed. Plus, I'm grounded from the Internet for bad grades. But I'll still try to update as soon as possible.