Painfully cold concrete greeted the woman as she felt her consciousness walking, a groan escaping her lips as she struggled to push herself up from the ground. She rubbed at her head as a headache began forming, looking around the abandoned building. She knew where she was, but how or why she couldn't even begin to guess.
She struggled to get up and stumble out of the cold building, welcoming the little warmth of the sun streaming through the tree leaves. She only took a few steps when shouting rang out; a flurry of men gathering around her. A familiar face pushed through the chaos and hugged her so tightly she thought she might stop breathing.
Sudden pain from her side caused her to cry out, causing the people around her to panic and rush her to the hospital. The doctor was shocked at the wound and how professionally it had been bandaged, even more so when Chihiro expressed she had no idea how she had gotten the wound nor how it had been treated.
It took another couple of weeks to heal, being doted on by her father wasn't all that bad. He was more distraught than she was when the wound left behind an impressive and ugly scar. She thought she would be more distressed as she stared at it in the mirror, but for some reason, she felt calm. At ease.
It was a couple of months before she was allowed to return to work. The fact that her memories weren't making a return concerned the doctor, but like the scar, she found it not bothering her. For some reason, whenever she tried to remember, she felt warmth, smelled flowers, and heard the rush of a river. It all made her feel calm instead of worried.
More months passed, life was getting back to normal. She picked up her paintbrush again, gently painting her favourite dragon. Lin and Aogaeru were the second and third most common in her paintings. The fox with the bright eyes, the frog with a stubborn expression. For some reason, she felt her connection with the two had grown. Not as much as her connection with Haku, of course.
Her father would comment on how alive the dragon looked, how the eyes looked so sharp and the fur looked so soft. Chihiro found herself dragging her hand against the paintings, unconsciously wishing it was real. Something in her ached when she closed her eyes and pictured Haku. It was one of the few times she wished her memory would return, just so the ache would stop.
Almost a year after the incident she was doing her usual morning routine, browsing social media while her coffee was boiling. She yawned and leaned against the counter, stretching out her stiff muscles. A ring of the doorbell startled her straight. She frowned a little for a moment, "Who is that so early in the morning?"
She couldn't help but peek through the peephole. No one was there. She rolled her eyes, ding-dong-ditchers, huh? She returned to her coffee, pouring it into her favourite mug. Another ding. She grumbled and got ready to yell at some dumb kids.
She swung the door open, opening her mouth to yell, but something caught the corner of her eye. A small box tied with emerald lace sat on the welcome mat. Chihiro hesitated before bending down to pick up the box, slowly heading back inside. She put it on the counter and stared at it for a long moment before opening it.
She gasped softly at the beautiful emerald, gently wrapped in a silver chain. She gently picked it up before quickly dropping it, an unbearably hot overcoming her heart and a headache forming in her head. She clutched at her head and dropped to the ground, gasping in shock at the sensations.
She closed her eyes as tightly as she could as the painful headache grew. She wanted to cry out but found she couldn't. The heat spread throughout her torso, and then…
Her eyes snapped open as images filled her head like she had just had a vivid dream. She struggled for breath as the images continued, finally stopping on the scene of a flower field and a man in the distance.
Her mouth unconsciously formed the word, "Haku." Her heart stopped for a moment and she shot upwards. Chihiro sprinted to the door and ripped it open, stepping outside and looking around frantically.
She found herself dropping to her knees again, tears flowing down her cheeks. A man with dark green hair approached her, leaning down and pulling her into a tight embrace, gently whispering, "I'm sorry I made you wait so long."
Her heart felt like it was about to burst but she couldn't help but laugh, hearing her father stomp down the stairs, her opening the door so harshly must have caused quite the noise. She eventually managed to calm herself long enough to respond, "You should be sorry, idiot."
The man joined in on the laughter, the two ignoring Chihiro's father's expression of confusion. Right now all they cared about was being together, and how they would be from now on.
The end. Not going to lie I teared up. Is it bad to tear up at your own story? Eh, probably not. Haha. I'm going to miss this honestly, I love this version so much. Even though it took me a long time to write, I was excited every time I did. I actually rewrote the epilogue 3 times because I couldn't get the feeling right, I think I did this time. And hey, maybe, I'll rewrite it again in a few years. I plan on only getting better, after all. I hope you all enjoyed this (especially you, Luin-Fanel. How much I appreciated your comment on every chapter is impossible to express in words, it truly encouraged me when I was feeling down and frustrated.) Thank you all again, and here, have a song I listened to while writing this! /watch?v=MEvHaapBIno - Chihiro by Yoste
Also, if you're interested, I'm going to try to update my Ghost Hunt fics and possibly post a third brand new one.