Promise of a River
Chapter 2: The Battle of Haku and Hormones
By: LadyRainStarDragon
Yubaba had been surprised to learn I knew my real name. She herself had even forgotten what the whole thing was, and she had my contract. It just went to show me that she didn't look at it very often, just kept it hidden so I couldn't get away. She kept it hidden quite well, I'd looked.
I remember what she had said when I told her what she could do with the old thing. Ah, the look of shock on her face was just so sweet. For about two seconds, that is.
Then it struck me that I still had no idea how to get back to the physical world, especially since my body had been, well, buried. That's really a morbid thought, even for a river god.
"Just what brought this on Haku? Are you annoyed that you lost your little pet?"
"What makes you think that she is my pet?"
"Oh, only the way you barged in demanding that I let her and her parents go, then how you ran to the border with her. Holding hands no less!"
I couldn't believe it, she was laughing! 'What's so funny about holding hands? Wait. Holding hands.' A half-heard rhyme sung once by children came floating through my head.
'. . . Touch hands, touch hands, exchange the bands. Touch lips, touch lips, give the kiss. . .'
Oh. Ewwww. Why would she think I would do something like that? I'm too young for that, aren't I?
"Anyway, as it stands there's no way you could get to her right now. You have no physical vessel to tie you to that world. And Chihiro doesn't count since you didn't make her your vessel. The best you could do would to be her guardian, and since you know so little right now, you wouldn't do very well."
'Why did she have to be right?'
"Besides, just because you know your name doesn't make our contract void. You have nine years left Kohaku. If you really want to be her guardian though, we could modify this so that your training will include those aspects as well."
Even though only a short time ago Yubaba had tried to kill me, I would seize this chance. I had now made two promises to Chihiro, and I was going to keep them.
Look at me now. Four years have passed since that time where my Chihiro had come and gone. Four years without her soft hands and changing eyes, only felt and seen in dreams.
"Ah. Ah. Ah. There. Yes!"
And three years of hearing Lin screaming whenever her boyfriend came to visit her. As a guest, he always had his own room, to which she would often be called to give him 'special services'. There was just something off about having to pay an old witch to 'relate' or mutually massage with your girlfriend. What was that anyway?
"Ahhh!"
There was also something off about being to only entity in the whole bath house that couldn't sleep through it. It was no problem when out on a mission, or being sent to a special combat training, but shouldn't I be allowed just a little sleep when I was here?
When the screams stopped, I pulled my head back out of the water. At least it had muffled the sounds a little bit. At the physical age of 16, it did things to me I didn't think appropriate, and just made me miss her more.
'Chihiro.'
It had been quiet for long enough, so I headed back inside the building, to my room. Maybe if I pulled the blanket over my head, it would be enough to let me get a little more sleep. It didn't take me long to get there, and even less time to get comfortable, as tired as I was. With all the mostly back-to-back missions (most of them curiously death-defying) I was able to sleep. And I could be with her again.
It didn't take me long to fall asleep. I also didn't get to stay in that state for long.
'Kohaku. Get up here.'
Just my luck. Yubaba sounded as cranky as I felt. I wasted no time in getting there, I didn't want to get stuck on pig pen duty on top of anything else.
"Can't you find some way to keep Lin from making so much noise?"
Blearily, I tried to form my answer as politely as possible. Unfortunately, my capacity for politeness at this time was just about that of a porcupine attempting to be soft.
"What do you want me to do? Put a muzzle on her? You could always tell him no."
Yubaba plopped back down in her chair and began bashing her head on the desk. Several times, I was quite certain I saw a large dent form, but it always popped back out like a spring. Seeing her do that was actually rather scary, as it also would have been if she decided to tap dance.
"Call it hormone control. If you still want to become Chihiro's guardian, you'll need the practice. I'm sure she's probably already in the throes of raging hormones. You need to be prepared."
It was a mission I particularly hated. Her boyfriend was a kitsune. Lin's boyfriend had already taught her bunches of tricks and illusions, which she found great delight in practicing on me. She had fixated on leaving little 'Sen's all over the place for me to come across, one even in my room one time.
I could expect some embarrassing retribution for this. After Yubaba dismissed me, I went back to my nice little nest of blue and white blankets. The colors reminded me of a section of rapids Chihiro had been particularly interested in as a child. Frowning slightly, I fell back in and curled up, eager to get back to my dream.
Then moaning filled the bath house again. I burrowed under my precious nest, leaving only my eyes peering out in the manner of a snake as I clamped my ears. It did nothing, I could still hear her.
'I don't even want to think about what they are doing. I just want some sleep.'
I got up once more, a weary soldier preparing for one last battle. As I stormed down the halls towards the room, I felt someone press what felt to be some sort of harness into my hand. Looking down, I got a glimpse of green, blue, and yellow. It seemed I and Yubaba were not the only sleepless ones after all.
Realizing it was the muzzle spoken of earlier, I colored a bit realizing the possible uses of the device. I really have to not talk when I'm too tired to think.
At last, I was at the dreaded door, and made my presence known. By that I mean that I tossed in the muzzle without looking.
"Lin, Yubaba requests that you wear this. Your cries are going to wake Bou."
"OOOO! Tell Yubaba thank you for the suggestion! I shall have to come again soon!"
'Pervert.'
Peace finally reigned in the bath house once more. Happily, I fell asleep on my nest, not even bothering to curl up this time.
I was into a favorite dream of mine. Chihiro and I were together again, sitting beside a spring, the sakura blossoms falling down all around us. We were holding hands and talking, discussing what had happened in our lives, finally getting our promised reunion. After a while, I realized that Chihiro had gone strangely quiet. Curious, I turned to look at her.
In my dream, she had aged quite nicely. I wouldn't be able to tell how old she was, just that she was rather, uh, developed. What I struggled to grasp though, was that the only thing she wore that was registering, was a muzzle.
I had to get out of here. Lin was finally driving me crazy.
'Just five more years Kohaku. You can do it.'
Having caught up on chronicling his thoughts and experiences since the last time he had made entries into the book of his memories, the young dragon rolled up the scroll. Shaking his head, he returned it to it's hiding place. His life was actually quite messed up when he read back over it, but he never wanted to forget again. There was too much of a danger there.
Smiling, with eyes far away in the realm of thought, he gazed out the window while the wind teased out his hair. Kneeling beside it, he allowed his forehead to kiss the glass, and finally found the rest he had so desperately sought.
