Written Rivers
A Home Amongst Rivers
Chapter 7: Foggy Memories
Chihiro's scream echoed across valley, the man that held her in his arms winced and placed her down.
"Who the hell are you?!" Chihiro backed into the wall of earth behind her. "Why the hell are you here?! Have you been stalking me?"
He looked confused and honestly hurt. "Pardon? No." He sighed, crossing his arms. "Well, there is no point in hiding it now. Yuuka!" He called out to the cliff edge above them where Rumi still was. Chihiro hadn't fallen far, just about eight feet, but it definitely didn't feel like eight feet.
Rumi peeked over the edge and grimaced. "I'm coming."
"Yuuka?" Chihiro asked, uncertain.
The man raised an eyebrow at her, his lips pierced in a tight line, as if trying to assess how she was taking all this. He was wearing the same outfit he was wearing the day he helped her: loose black pants, a simple black t-shirt and no shoes. His eyes were a piercing green-blue that she recognized.
"Makoto…" She said under her breath. She looked around and then looked back up at the man. The man's hair was the shaggy brown and highlighted with tints of grey, the same as Makoto's fur. "No…" She breathed, eyes wide.
Rumi jumped down from a large boulder and sauntered over. "How is she taking it?" She asked cautiously, looking around the man at Chihiro, who was starting to put two and two together.
"How is this possible?" She covered her mouth. This wasn't possible. It wasn't. It didn't make sense. "But none of that was real…" She gawked, her words going in and out of her thoughts and mouth.
"Chihiro…" Rumi raised her hands. "Let us explain."
Chihiro looked at Rumi. "You're not Rumi-Chan. Who are you?"
"You're right, I'm not, but Rumi is still here. I'm Yuuka." She said slowly, letting her words sink in.
"Oh, because that explains everything." Chihiro's voice dripped in sarcasm, resisting to roll her eyes. "What was all that back there? Ōmagatoki? Sacred grounds? Not enough time? What is going on? And why do I have the feeling my dog is my human stalker!?" Her questions came out frantically before she pointed at the man.
The man sighed and shifted uncomfortably, ignoring the stalker comment. He cracked the knuckles in his hands just by flexing them and started to kneel. Before Chihiro's eyes, the man began to shift and grow long light and deep brown fur with patches of grey, the color of his hair, all over his body as he shifted into the Shikoku dog she had had since middle school.
Her knees buckled underneath her and she fell to the ground. "Makoto…" She gasped.
Makoto bowed his head. "I am deeply sorry, Chihiro-San. This is not how he wanted you to find out."
"Who… and what are you?" Chihiro asked, her gaze split between the two as she looked back and forth.
Makoto let out a heavy sigh, then straightened. "I am Makoto, a descendant of the wolf goddess, Moro." His deep voice sounded like a rumbled growl from deep in his chest and was filled with pride as he spoke the words.
"I am Yuuka." Chihiro's eyes shifted to her friend Rumi. "I am a yosuzume spirit. And we were sent to protect you by Kohaku-San."
"I was sent, you tagged along." Makoto corrected with a growl, rolling his eyes.
"Ko…haku?" Chihiro's eye began to water. Memories of a boy at a river holding her hand and letting it go fluttered before her eyes. "A river… A promise…"
The bickering stopped between her two… friends for a moment. "Chihiro?" Rumi – no, Yuuka looked over at her with concerned dark purple eyes.
As tears went down her cheeks, Chihiro let out a wry laugh. "So, it's true… all of it?" She covered her eyes with the heels of her palms as she let out ragged, nervous laughs. "This whole time I wasn't going crazy… I wasn't delusional. I wasn't part of some 'cray-cray' club!"
Yuuka felt a pang of guilt in her from Chihiro's reference to her host. "We're sorry we had to keep this from you…"
Chihiro shook her head, rubbing her temples as her head began to ache. Memories of the river god and a large bathhouse began to fill her mind. The memories were never gone, they were just hidden behind a wall of lies she'd given herself. As they began to surface, they returned in fragments, in fact it felt like her brain was still searching for huge puzzle pieces and it was causing her to question everything. She looked up at the two spirits in front of her. Was everything a lie?
"Why didn't you tell me?" She murmured, tears tracing rivers through the dirt that had smudged onto her cheeks. "How long have you known? No. You've known, when did you…?" She couldn't seem to form a complete thought, there were too many questions.
"Since we arrived…" Yuuka answered quietly, scrapping the ground, finding the small pebble next to her foot very interesting.
"What?"
"Chihiro-San, Kohaku-Sama sent us not long after your departure from the Spirit World eleven years ago… He wanted to protect you…" Makoto attempted to explain but Chihiro just shook her head incredulously.
"You guys knew this whole time." She looked up and her brown eyes flickered with anger. "I told you two everything. You guys knew how much this all weighed on me. You knew how many times my hopes shattered for those first couple years after I left, and you did nothing! You knew how hurt I was! You knew how much I was fighting! You played along as if it didn't exist!" Her angry gaze shifted to Yuuka. "And you! I don't even know what happened to my friend. Maybe you're the reason she came back and all, but you still stood by and listened and lied!"
Yuuka winced, the pang stronger this time and her eyes flashed mahogany for a moment, Rumi taking over momentarily. "Chi-Chan…" The voice was small and pained.
Chihiro got to her feet. "How could you two- three- whatever, lie to me like that? I trusted you with everything... How could you betray me like that?!" Hot tears snaked down her cheeks as she clenched her jaw and fists.
"Chihiro-San. You have to understand-" Makoto started but was cut off.
"No!" Chihiro yelled and ran.
"Chihiro!?" Yuuka cried out in shock. "Wait! It's dangerous out there!"
Chihiro ignored her and ran through the forest toward the direction of the river. The river no longer the size of an over glorified creek but a smaller river that fit the size appropriate for the large bridge that she would cross. For years she thought she was crazy. For years she went on lying to herself that all of it never happened. For years she waited and was left with no answers. And the whole time, the whole damn time, it was right in front of her. The answers were literally right in front of her.
She somehow managed to outrun the shocked Shikoku and ran across the bridge, hearing Yuuka and Makoto call after her. She ran to the center of the village; its buildings were giving off a soft glow, the lights still on in many of them. She decided to knock on one of the doors and ask to stay. When the door opened, a black shadowy character answered the door and Chihiro stumbled back. Suddenly she started to notice other shadowy figures sprinkling the village. No. No, no, no, no, no. This wasn't happening, was she already in the Spirit World?
Chihiro looked to her left at the entrance of the village where Rumi and Makoto were trying to catch up with her. Suddenly grateful for those four years of track team in high school, she dashed to the north end of the village, finding open fields for farming. Even with her backpack, she sprinted across the fields, going as far and fast as her tired limbs would carry her. She didn't care, her emotions and adrenaline were driving her forward.
She just ran. She didn't know how far, she just ran until she couldn't anymore. Her legs aching and straining as her muscles fought her to stop. All she could hear was her blood pumping in her ears, her sight was tunneled and her eyes only registered obstacles to get around. When she finally stopped, she bent over and clasped her knees, closing her eyes and gasping for air. She couldn't remember the last time she ran like that. After a minute she took the time to take in her surroundings. Running haphazardly through the Spirit World was probably not the wisest of choices she'd ever made but she had to get away. She had to clear her mind. But maybe she could have honestly handled that a bit differently in hindsight, she was acting like her child self when she first entered the Spirit World.
Still breathing heavily, Chihiro stood straight and looked around and her breath caught in her throat. Around her was a heavy fog. As far as she knew, she was back in the forest, but she could barely make out silhouettes of trees and their branches. She turned around to look from whence she came but the white fog was everywhere and far too thick to see through. She bit her lip nervously and clutched the straps of her backpack, regret officially setting in.
Chihiro twisted around when she heard a branch snap behind her. "Makoto?" She called out, anxiously. He was always there, now that she thought about it. He was always a name call away and he'd be there. He was the most loyal friend she ever had, and she just ran from him. But anger still flared in her. He had tricked her all these years.
"Makoto? Oh gods no. Try again." A voice called back in amusement from the fog. The female voice was abrasive but kind. She knew that voice.
"Rin?" Chihiro choked back a sob. Tears filled her eyes as she watched her old friend walk out of mist. She looked just the same: lean and tall dressed in her Bathhouse uniform, her long brown hair pulled back loosely down her back and her playful eyes dancing with mischievous amusement as always. She remembered her. She let out a strained noise from the back of her throat and went up to her friend to embrace her. "Rin..."
"Hey there, kiddo." Rin smiled, petting her hair. "You don't need to get all emotional."
Chihiro felt like a child again, crying and feeling helpless. "But I missed you. I missed all of you. I didn't want to forget you guys!" She cried into Rin's shoulder. Things were starting to make sense. Warm memories were starting to fill her mind, the Bathhouse, the other spirits, Yubaba, Zeniba, little Boh… well little really didn't describe him but still. Her cloudy memories were starting to clear.
"I know, kiddo." Rin hummed, rubbing Chihiro's back. She pushed her back. "Now, I know I'm one of the most important spirits you know, but I can't be the only one you really wanted to see right now." She smirked.
Chihiro tilted her head before her eyes widened in realization. She suddenly heard footsteps behind her and she stiffened. She steadied her breath and turned around to find a green haired man behind her, dressed in a light blue tunic, his sharp emerald eyes watching her as he approached. She took a hesitant breath. "Haku…"
"Chihiro." He gave a small smile. "How have you been?"
The tears continued down her cheeks as she we went up to hug him. She'd missed her friend. He had done so much for her back then and she remembered not wanting to let go of his hand on the day of her return. Saying goodbye had become hard ever since. She made few friends after because she didn't want to go through the loss of a friend again. Rumi and Makoto were her only real friends and even that was questionable now. She didn't know who she could trust anymore.
"It is all going to be fine, Chihiro. Just do not forget." Haku smiled, returning her embrace.
"God, I missed you all, Haku." She let out a wry laugh. "I even missed Yubaba, and that says something."
She felt Haku's chest rumble as he chuckled and pulled away. When she opened her eyes, she tensed. Something wasn't right. Haku's image shimmered. She heard another noise behind her and slowly turned to find Yubaba racing toward her in a rather grotesque state. Yubaba was in her blue dress but it was tattered, and her eyes held a demonic, psychotic look and her wrinkled skin seemed to have burns and boils all over, fire spewing from her mouth. The sight caused Chihiro to let out a high-pitched scream and she shielded herself as the demonic Yubaba came charging at her with killer intent.
Just when Chihiro thought it was all over, she heard a loud, commanding bark that echoed through the forest. Suddenly, all the fog blew away like a huge wind swept through the forest. When she looked up, Chihiro saw Makoto standing at her side, growling maliciously at something in front of them. She glanced over nervously, fearing that Yubaba would still be there, but instead, a fox stood across the small clearing from them. The fox had a faint glow and from what she noticed, was slightly transparent and had a ghostly appearance, as if not all there.
"Be gone, kitsune! You are not welcome here!" Makoto snarled.
The kitsune hissed. "This is my domain. If a human decides to wander into it, I can do as I want!"
Makoto arched his back in anger. "Go!" He growled. "In the name of Moro, I command that you leave this instant! I care not about your domain, but you will leave this human alone."
The kitsune's tailed puffed up agitatedly and snapped, "do as you please in the name of your goddess. Just stay out of my forest, or next time her body will be mine!" She turned and ran into the forest.
Chihiro suddenly let go of a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. What was all of that?
"That was a kitsune. She intended to possess you and use you as her host to do as she pleased." Makoto explained, as if he'd read her mind.
She hesitated. "I saw things…" She suddenly realized that Rin and Haku were just illusions… they weren't really there…
Makoto looked up at her with sympathy. "They have the ability to cast illusions. She was trying to trick you into staying."
Chihiro blinked and wiped away her tears. She looked at the ground. "I'm sorry I ran…"
The Shikoku didn't reply for a moment. "Just do not do it again. Kohaku-Sama might just have my head." He grimaced.
Chihiro gave a small smile. "Over course." She scratched his ears. "Let's go find Rumi… Yuuka… umm…" She knit her brows together. That was going to take some getting used to.
Makoto chuckled. "We will explain everything to you shortly, Chihiro-San." He then moved around and sat facing her. "Until then, I will give you a ride back to Rumi-San and Yuuka. Yuuka could not keep up in Rumi-San's body. She does not have your stamina."
The Ogino quirked a brow. "How will you give me a ride?"
The Shikoku's lips curled into a smile. "Just like how I can shift into a human, this form is just a rouse. This is not my true form."
Before she could question, Makoto's form shifted from a small Shikoku mix to a larger more wolf like form. His fur the same shades of brown, grey and whites, but he stood at almost five feet now, big enough to be ridden on his back. His Shikoku features still reflected in his face and his tail still had a bit of a curl to it, but his build was much more wolf like. Chihiro stumbled back and marveled at her dog.
"You really are part spirit."
"God." He corrected. "I am part god. I am a descendant of the wolf goddess, Moro, a wise and powerful god who ruled over the wolves generations ago. Her descendants are to be respected. Now come now, we must return."
Chihiro nodded and hoisted herself onto Makoto's back, having some difficulty at first. Soon, she was straddling his back and Makoto took off back toward the village, where Rumi and Yuuka waited.
A/N: Hey guys! So, I was wandering, coming from the perspective of knowing about everything behind the scenes and why characters are behaving certain ways, how are you interpreting or liking the characters thus far? Before you knew they were spirits, some of you guys noted about their odd behaviors and I wanted to hear your opinions about them now? I don't know, I guess I wanted to know how the surprise outlook was going since I know what's going on.
Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! And for those that do review, I thank you a bunches!
Thank you for the reviews from: Amidstsnow, Firetail Finch, Prismae and Picklesisadeadcat!
Ya'll probably have a bunch of questions, but questions will be answered soon!
God bless! KawaChou
