Chapter 7

"Im the guy who says stuff like that"

"Oh?"

Chichiro walked towards the stove senseing a mesmerizing smell of food as his stomache growled. Eggs where being flipped by the rather short old woman, she smiled at Chichiro.

"Eggs, sounds good granny."

"Who said they were for you?"

Chichiro sat back down on the couch taking off his top shirt, leaving only his under-shirt revealing a strange mark on his right arm.

"Well seeing how you couldn't possible finish all those eggs..."

The short old woman while cooking quickly glanced at his right arm. Chichiro then noticing the mark went red in the face, emberassed. He immediately covered it by throwing on his over shirt.

"That's something strange you've got on your arm."

Could she know...

"I was bit...by a dog...anyway when's the food going to be ready?"

The old lady sighed.

"Oh so in-polite, you don't know my name, nor who I am in fact nothing about me."

"I know your cooking food."

The lady then sighed again, putting some scrambled eggs onto a plate. Chichiro got up and walked towards the table, yawning and stretching out. He

grabbed the plate and put it in front of his mouth, sliding the whole serving into his mouth. Chichiro then swallowed, smiling.

"Never have I seen anything like that."

"Heh...I always get that."

The old lady then walked towards the door, putting on some sandals after finsihing her eggs. Chichiro followed barefoot heading outside. The lady began making her way into the forest picking up a watering tool. Chichiro kept on following until they stopped at a small river bank not far from the house. Chichiro sat down near the river bank dipping his feet into the water as the old lady walked by the bank watering the plants.

"It could be said im at war."

"Hmm?"

"Im fighting Tokyo's industry from taking the last bit of green from this part of the city, but..."

"But?"

Chichiro kicked his feet up and down in the water as a frog hopped out onto his lap ribbiting. Chichiro, scared jumped up as the frog fell down. The lady burst into laughing as she watered the last group of plants.

"It's just a frog, your too easily scared. If I ribitted and painted myself green would you be scared of me? Haha"

"Hey...no picking fun."

Chichiro then sat back down, his feet in the river. The old lady then began to walk back onto the forest trail dropping her watering tool, until Chichiro interrupted her.

"You know don't you...about my disease.."

The woman stopped, looking back. She stood quietly for a bit then responded.

"You know, I do try to help you people in my war. The ones who suffer from the pain other then there own. Taking the worlds pain will help you, although im not inflicted I still feel the same as you will."

"Pain of others...is that what this is?"

The lady began walking again through the forest back to the cottage. Chichiro after a while stood up. He looked down into the river, staring at his reflection. He then kicked a rock into the pond watching the ripples spread.

"Eh, I just don't understand."

Chichiro began walking back to the house as the sky began to become gray. He entered through the back again, nobody home. Chichiro took a sigh of relief as he fell onto the coutch, pulling up his coat from the floor. He went through the pockets pulling out numerous documents.

"Day 156- Record 1"

We are only a week away from the test subject's expected birth, we only hope for the best. The organization is preparing for final analizations and our work will finally show. Project Tokyo will finally move on to Seission 2 starting after subjects Birth."

Subject?!

Chichiro ripped the paper in half throwing it onto the floor.

"Father...in H.E.L.K.? Was I...abondoned purposely?"

Chichiro raised his hands placing them on his head, yelling as loud as he could.

"Was I...a Project?!"

Chichiro's eyes then blacked out, he had fainted onto the floor.

"I can't stay any longer, I guess this is farewell for all of us isn't it."

Chichiro stood outside an apartment building, it was late at night, together with him was Yana and her father Nemor. Yana was moving out of Japan, to France. Chichiro was to move out to the states, and Nemor was staying in Tokyo continueing his research. The three were giving there last farewells all together. The stars shined down on the clear night with the three as a taxi cab pulled up. Chichiro who was overwhelmed with bags tossed them in the back of the taxi. Yana hugged her father one last time and entered the taxi following Chichiro. The taxi cab drove away as Yana waved to her father one last time, that night as they drove away Chichiro claimed that the Hotel glowed green.

All of a sudden a cell phone rang in the distance. Chichiro woke up, a huge lump on his head, his cell phone still ringing. Chichiro rubbed the bump on his head searching his coat pocket for the phone, he pulled it out.

"Alright, alright shutup already."

Chichiro flipped open the phone putting it to his ear.

"Hola"

"I've got a job for you."

"Freddy?"

"That's my name."

Chichiro stopped rubbing his bump and laughed.

"Haha, I knew you could get out of any situation. I just remembered something, I think I dreamt of you just now, how we met that is. I think driving taxi's does suit you."

"Oh so you dream of me at night, Chichy?"

"Eh shutup, so Freddy I need some names again..."

"Hah, you and your names. Have some patience kid, get your butt over here and do the job."

"Yeah...right on it..."

"Don't lose your pubes over it buddy."

Chichiro closed the phone laughing, it was pitch black in the room and with the cellphone backlight off, even darker. He noticed the door was open. Chichiro then got up walking slowly out the door. He then took the same trail, untill the river bank. The old lady stood right by the bank looking across the river, Chichiro approached her then stood quietly.

"You can only see light through darkness, you can only see darkness through light."

She said quietly,

"Do you believe in that?"

"Relatively"

Replied Chichiro as he turned around, he then glanced back.

"Heading away?"

Chichiro stood replying quickly.

"Yeah I wanted to thank you, for the food back then...and introducing me to Nemor."

The old lady stood quietly looking out onto the river , Chichiro slowly walked away.

"Darkness through light, light through darkness...only that boy can determine the fate of this oasis, he's his son after all."