Written Rivers
A Home Amongst Rivers
Chapter 13: Conflict and Reflect
Chihiro's return was not going at all as he thought it would. He never had a clear image of how it would happen but how it was currently unfolding was most definitely not anything he would have imagined. Her encounter with the powerful spirit that night was yet another undesirable addition to his unplanned plan.
Haku had been in the middle of his new duties as owner of the Bathhouse, looking over ledgers and old files that had been surprisingly well kept by the old witch, when Ame skipped into his office with his red umbrella announcing Chihiro and Rumi had been doing well for their first night as staff. Ame even stated how Chihiro had stood up for herself against some bullying yuna, whom Ame had promptly attended to himself after Chihiro had handled it herself.
If there was one thing Haku could count on the young amefurikozō spirit was that he could hold his own when asserting his authority. He had no idea where he got it, but Ame could be stern and assertive when he needed and was never afraid to put his foot down in front of the staff when Haku or Rin were not present. Maybe it was the little thunder clouds that appeared above his head when he was angry, by which Ame practically wore his heart on his sleeve… or above his head… Either way, Haku could trust him to the task of handling the staff as his assistant and apprentice. However, he would have to do something about the yuna, Yubaba had given them a little too much freedom in the past.
After Ame made his announcement and started picking a random book off the bookcase Haku kept for him in the corner of the office, Haku felt an odd presence in the air. The idea of a powerful spirit returning to the Bathhouse so soon after its fall did not feel right. This was the same presence of the spirit that visited last time Chihiro had come. The river spirit that came in the form of a stink spirit. Could it be the same spirit? No… this spirit was different.
"Ame." Haku turned toward the young spirit. "Did you see any unusual guests downstairs before you came here?"
Ame looked up calculatedly from his book and hummed softly. "Hm… Not really. There was an old man with a cane. From what I got when I walked by, he did seem more powerful that all the other spirits we've been seeing lately."
Haku's eyes glanced at an untouched stack of envelopes on his simple wooden desk and leaned back in his chair apprehensively. He was not fond of the ideas of who the spirit was that were lofting through his head. He knew they would start showing up around the Bathhouse sooner or later, but he did not think it would be so soon.
While in his thoughts, there was a spike in alertness in the spirit's power and he bolted up out of his chair, rushed past Ame, and down several floors to the bathing floor. When he met the bathing floor, he stormed through the stalls till he found the smaller one he had been looking for with a very confused and frightened Chihiro sitting next to the tub with a generous pile of gold beside her. Her eyes had met his and flicked back to the space in front of her, her expression furthering into a gawk as if a ghost had disappeared in front of her.
"Chihiro…" Haku stressed.
"Haku… I…" She did not seem to understand what she had just encountered. The spirit she had just met was someone you did not want on your bad side.
Haku strode over to her and knelt to where she was, looking her over to see if the spirit had used magic of any kind on her. "Chihiro, what happened?"
He tried to meet her eyes but Chihiro shook her head. "Who was that?"
He grimaced. "A powerful spirit. Very powerful. You seem to have a talent for attracting them."
Chihiro's brows knit together. "He… He said that I had to find my path and be someone's anchor in a decision they have to make. Do you know what he's talking about?"
Haku resisted the urge to lose face and exposed that he knew anything. He shook his head. "It is something you need not worry about. It would be best to visit and consult with Zeniba-"
"Will you stop saying that it's not something for me to worry about!" Chihiro interrupted. "He spoke to me about it! It was practically a prophecy. Obviously I'm part of whatever is going on-"
"And I pray it does not come to that!" Haku hissed. "You leave in six days. You will not tempt fate to make you a part of whatever is boiling in the Spirit World."
"But Haku-"
"End of discussion." He stated, standing up, he was not going to have this debate right now. "You can go on break for now. Thank you for all you have done so far."
Haku had left the stall and returned to his office where he let out a low growl. He did not like where any of this was going. He knew exactly who had visited Chihiro and he almost knew exactly what the old spirit was possibly asking of her. But why her?
He ran his hand over his face. He prayed this would all pass and that they would give up on him, realizing that no matter how many times he was asked that he would give the same answer of "no." But he felt that that would remain an unanswered prayer. No, he would get an answer, just not the one he wanted. He walked down the hall that led to his main office and found Ame sitting cross-legged next to the bookcase, engrossed in a book. So much so, he did not seem to notice Haku walk in.
"What are you studying this time, Ame?"
The young spirit shot his head up so fast that he grabbed the back of his neck in pain. "Oowww. Shishou…" Ame grumbled and then beamed a smile. "Ah! I'm reading a book about storm spells, never know when they'll come in handy."
Haku chuckled and walked around to look over Ame's shoulder to see the book. That was another thing he could always count on the young spirit for. No matter how cross or what his mood was, Ame could always find away to put a smile on his face, even if he was not aware he was doing it.
"Thank you for looking out for the girls, Ame."
"Anything for Shishou!" Ame grinned.
A knock at the door distracted the two and Haku went to answer the door. In the hall stood a man with shaggy brown hair and green eyes, Makoto. He wore a simple, traditional black jinbei outfit with black pants and traditional zori. From his tense stance and guarded look in his eye, Haku could tell that Makoto was still shaken from the conversation they had had earlier during the day after Haku had talked with Chihiro. The okami had explained everything that had happened during their trip to the Spirit World and even further back to update him on what had happened since their last update, which had been far too long ago. Haku had always tried to make some sort of effort to keep in touch with the wolf but throughout the years since he sent him off, he was occupied by one thing or another. Makoto had been given his assignment, and Haku had trusted him to know what to do even if he was not able to get contact.
However, Haku had to talk with the wolf demigod about his responsibilities as her protector. As her protector, he was supposed to keep her away not bring her to the Spirit World. But Chihiro had been right about one thing, how long would it have taken to bring her here when he did go to get her and what would they have done when she got there? He whole-heartedly believed that she was not meant to be in the Spirit World, but he wished for her to be near. He wanted to be near his friend, a bond that he held very precious, more so than any other friendship in the past. To a human no less. He was coming to realized that if he wanted her to stay in the Human World, he was going to have to start pushing her away.
Haku sighed inwardly. "Makoto."
"Kohaku-Sama. I have made preparations to go to Zeniba-San's cottage tomorrow. Is there anything that you would like to be done or taken with us?"
The dragon studied Makoto. "Chihiro mentioned taking Boh with them, you have the proper amount of tickets for the train?"
Makoto's eyes glinted, as if saying 'you doubt me?' But the shine quickly faded. "Of course, Master."
Haku nodded. "Then the four of you depart in the afternoon, you should be at Swamp Bottom by tomorrow morning."
"Of course." Makoto bowed his head. "Is there anything else you need me to do?"
Haku sat at his desk and stared at a blue, glass orb on his desk that swirled like a river inside. "None at the moment, Makoto." He looked back at the okami. "Just make sure she stays out of trouble, that is all I ask."
Makoto grimaced as if silently conveying how difficult that task actually was. Haku understood the sentiment, Chihiro seemed to have a bad habit of finding trouble. "If there is nothing else, I will go finish making preparations and give Chihiro-San and Rumi-San notice of our departure."
"Thank you, you may go."
Chihiro was a bit taken aback when she woke up to the face of her dog looming over her. She sighed and scratched him behind the ear. She looked around and almost forgot where she was. All around her were sleeping yuna and other staff from the Bathhouse, beside her Rumi continued to sleep and mumbled under her breath.
She looked back to Makoto and sat up. "Hey, boy. What's up?" She yawned, scratching his head subconsciously.
"We will be leaving to Zeniba-San's cottage this afternoon. I wanted to be sure you were ready?" Makoto replied, nuzzling her hand.
She hummed in response. "Hm? Oh, right. Yes. What time is it?"
"Late morning. Around ten o'clock."
"Hm… I guess we should start waking up then." She chuckled and started poking at Rumi's side. "Hey, hey, Rumi. Wake up."
Rumi grumbled in her sleep and swatted at Chihiro's hand unconsciously. "Stop it…" She protested.
"But we gotta get ready to leave." Chihiro herself was still a bit groggy. It had been a long and stressful night. After the old spirit paid her a visit and Haku's shut down, the night really didn't improve much. She had to snap at a few more staff members and put them in their place. She had found Rumi at one point holding her own until a staff member pushed her over the edge, causing Yuuka to take over and give the staff member an earful with a promise for the worst possible job in the Bathhouse. Needless to say, no one bothered Rumi after that. However, regardless of all the downs of her night, she found a good handful of still loyal staff members who did their best and supported her throughout the night.
Rumi rolled over to look at her, glaring bloody murder at her with her mahogany eyes. "After everything you put me through last night, I can't believe you have the audacity to try and wake me up."
Chihiro laughed nervously. "Heh. C'mon sleeping beauty."
"Will you two be quiet…" A yuna complained next to them as she rolled over.
After the girls put away their futons, changed into their comfortable, modern clothes, and gathered their things, Makoto lead them down to the kitchen area where they had a late brunch and prepared their meals for the journey. She found the chefs to be nice, since they remembered her from her first visit, as they helped them prepare different meals that they could eat during their trip. After they finished in the kitchen, they made their way to the top floor to get Boh. On their way up, they weren't bothered by any other staff, and got to see the quiet side of the Bathhouse. Since the staff worked late, they often slept till early afternoon before getting up to socialize and tend to their duties around the Bathhouse. The only staff that were really up at this time were the kitchen staff.
When the girls reached Boh's room at the top floor, they found Boh playing with a rain cloud on the large balcony area outside the office. When he spotted them, he grinned and bounded towards them.
"Sen! Sen! Look, look! It's my own cloud!"
Confused, Chihiro smiled. "I see. How did you get your own cloud?"
"Ame brought it to me!" Boh said excitedly.
Chihiro and Rumi looked around the balcony and saw Ame sitting on the balcony railing, kicking his legs and waving. "Hello." He smiled.
"How did you get a cloud?" Rumi asked before Chihiro could open her mouth.
Ame grinned and jumped down from the railing. "Easy! I just tell it to do it and it does it."
The girls exchanged looks. Rumi shrugged. "He just tells it to do it and it does it." She repeated.
"Yup! Watch!" Ame twirled around and pointed his red umbrella toward a passing cloud in the sky. Suddenly, a small gust of wind caused a piece of the cloud to branch off and fly down to them. Soon it merged with the small cloud that Boh was playing with earlier and formed a large cotton ball in the sky above them.
"Wow." Chihiro said in awe. She poked it and her hand passed through, leaving her hand with a cold damp feeling, like walking through fog. "That's amazing, Ame. How are you able to do it?"
Ame shrugged. "I just can. Shishou says it's an ability I have because I'm an amefurikozō."
Rumi snapped her finger. "I remember that one. You're like a weather spirit, you can control the rain."
Ame grinned. "Yeah. Something like that." He then promptly made their little mini cloud rain over the balcony, avoiding getting the occupants wet. "So. Shishou said that you'll be taking Boh with you Zeniba-San's?" He inquired.
"Shishou? Oh, you mean Haku?" Chihiro asked, receiving a nod. "Yeah, we're taking him to be with his aunt. It's better that way, since there are many who can always take care of him here."
Ame grimaced a smile. "I've been hanging out with Boh since Shishou found me. It'll be a bit lonely without him, but I'd feel better knowing that he was in good hands that loved him." He turned to Boh and stretched out his arms to welcome a hug. "I'll miss you, big guy."
Boh smiled sadly. "I'll miss you too, Ame-Nii." The boys embraced and said their goodbyes.
Ame turned to the girls. "As much as I'd like to see you off, Shishou has asked me to go on an errand and I have to go. I'll see you guys when you come back! Gambatte!" With that, the boy stepped up onto the railing, opened his umbrella and waved before jumping off the balcony. The girls raced to the railing and looked down to see Ame floating harmlessly to the ground before a cloud caught him and whisked him away with the wind.
Chihiro let out a sigh of relief. "I have a feeling that boy is gonna be the end of me one day."
Rumi nodded in agreement. "Let's go find Haku before we leave. Let him know we're leaving and see if there's anything we need before we go."
Hesitantly, the Ogino agreed and the four of them headed to the lower levels where Haku's office was. Makoto followed along quietly, Boh walking beside him looking like he was resisting the urge to grab his tail. Haku's office was near the lower levels where he could have close contact with the staff while his bedroom was somewhere in the higher floors. Rumi seemed to take over their little tour down to the office as if she knew the Bathhouse like the back of her hand. Chihiro decided to chalk it up with Yuuka telling her the way or taking over. When they came to the office, Rumi knocked on the door and the door opened by itself, inviting them in and she led them in. There was a short hall of doors that led into a larger open space, colored with shades of green and blue and decorated with shelves of books. Along the window wall was a centered fireplace with floor to ceiling windows that had shoji doors that led to a small patio. The room was subtle in the coloring and furnishing, a simple couch near the fireplace and simple seating and desk, leaving the room with a rather calm, traditional feel that the rest of the Bathhouse had. The owner of the room sat at his desk attentively, writing on a paper before turning to the guests of his room.
"I take it that you are prepared to leave?" Haku asked, resting his head on his hand that leant against the armrest of his chair.
Rumi bowed. "We thought it would be appropriate to come and visit before we left." She rose, and her eyes were a deep purple.
Haku considered Yuuka and gave a scoffing sound in the back of his throat that was barely audible, causing Chihiro to raise an eyebrow. "Well, everything has been arranged that you will all take the train to Swamp Bottom and be there by early tomorrow. You will return the following day with Makoto."
"I see…" Chihiro said curtly, avoiding any eye contact with the dragon.
"Well then…" Yuuka said, attempting to break whatever tension was in the room. "I guess now is no better time to leave. Heh." She chuckled nervously. "Makoto and I will make sure that the girls remain safe and give our regards to Zeniba-San for you."
Haku held his gaze on Chihiro, causing her to fist her hands and make her avoidance more obvious. "Thank you, Yuuka. Rin is waiting for you at the dock. I look forward to seeing you all again." His gaze shifted to Boh. "Especially you, Boh. You are a precious part of the Bathhouse. You are welcome to visit whenever you want." He smiled at the child kindly.
Boh beamed with a smile. "Thank you, Haku-Nii!"
Chihiro watched the exchange carefully. She could tell that Haku had made an effort to connect with the child over the years and Boh trusted him for it. Before he could return the gaze, she looked away. She couldn't look him in the eye.
"Well… I guess we should leave then." She said, accidently meeting his gaze, where she met a glimpse of hurt in his eyes before the emotion disappeared.
"Yes. I pray for a safe journey to Zeniba's…" He smiled.
The five of them bowed to each other and the four travelers left the office to the Bathhouse exit. They followed walked through the side gate and down to Kamaji's boiler room where Chihiro and Rumi poked their head in briefly to say their goodbyes. They met Rin at the base of the stairs where she had two tarai-bune boats waiting, a yuna waiting in one of the boats.
"Nice weather for boat ride, dontcha think." She grinned.
Chihiro laughed. "You bet. Let's go!"
A/N:
I'm sorry for all the mystery, there are some things that take time to develop. We'll have to wait to see what is pestering our friends.
I was also having trouble with this chapter and it went through a lot of revisions. But here it is! I'm trying to go for every Friday.
When Haku rushed down to Chihiro on the bathing floor, I was tempted to just write: "Nope. Nope. Nopenopenopenope. NOPE." XD XD XD
Okami means "wolf god" by the way. Although he is not 100% god, I will be using the term to describe Makoto.
tarai-bune is the boat that Rin uses at the end of the movie to get Chihiro to the train tracks. It's also known as a "tub-turned boat".
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, RSBCS, Sofrick16, Spirited-PKMN Ranger, Luin-fanel and Picklesisadeadcat!
God bless! KawaChou
