Written Rivers
A Home Amongst Rivers
Chapter 19: A Name by Any Other
Haku knew that he would be having a very strong love-hate relationship with records for as long as he ran the Bathhouse. But right now, it was his savior. Since Chihiro had left, he had been getting nothing but grief from the staff. Chihiro had done more than help get the Bathhouse under control, she also got them attached to her. Her first visit had left an impact on the staff, but her second had just reinforced it by being an actual role model for behavior and the staff being a family.
So, now he dealt with the repercussions of her love and care for the Bathhouse. All they did now was complain about him sending her back. It was not like he had a choice now or could do anything about her being gone. And even if he wanted her to return, he had to wait until the next solstice or equinox. He just could not win with these spirits. Now, he found himself in the depths of the Bathhouse on the hunt for something he had been looking for since day one: names.
Ever since he took on the title of owner of the Bathhouse and had a free moment, he was searching for the true names of all the staff who were employed at the Bathhouse. Yubaba had stolen so many names, Haku was determined to return them all, even if it meant losing most of the staff.
So far, Haku had discovered a lot about the Bathhouse. In his searching he came across some old documents about the Bathhouse and found that it was more than a place of employment, it was used as a place of punishment, almost a prison. Apparently, there were employees there that had committed serious crimes and were sent to the Bathhouse to atone for their actions. However, overtime they had become a permanent staffing at the Bathhouse and forgot from where they came from, a side effect to their new identities, something authorities seemingly took advantage of. As a result, Haku found an extensive list of criminals alone soon after.
Haku was not quite sure how he felt about being practically the warden of a prison. It definitively was not what he was expecting when he was thrown into the position.
Criminals were not the only names he found the deeper he looked. He also found the names of powerful creatures that wanted to forget their lives and start over, not even saving a character in their name in their new identity.
Haku stood in the file storage and gripped the papers in his hands. So many names… So many lost spirits… He did not even know whether to call them lost or not. Many had chosen this unbeknownst to their future fate. If they were truly lost, they would have ended up in the depths of the Bathhouse basement, a space he was not looking forward to exploring.
Pinching the bridge of his nose, he dropped the hand full of papers to his side and walked back into the office space that was formerly Yubaba's. He had cleaned it and returned it to its former state, as if the old witch had never left. He should have technically been using it as his own space, but it was far to gaudy for his taste and he rather liked his office in the lower levels of the Bathhouse. Although, the noise levels left much to be desired on his sensitive ears, he rather be close to the employees than be away and absent from the hustle of business. He also did not want to put himself in the position of making his title of owner a permanent one.
He ran his hand across the desk and sat in the seat behind it. He looked around the room and grimaced. Yes, far too gaudy. His eyes turned back to the list of names when he heard a rasp on the doors outside the office.
"Come in." He called, not looking up from the list.
The door creaked open and Haku could see Makoto walk in from the corner of his eye. "Master."
"Good afternoon, Makoto." Haku lowered the papers. "Can I help you?"
Makoto glanced around the room before settling on the dragon. "No, I just came to check in on you."
He nodded. Since he found Makoto, the okami went out of his way to make sure he was never to overwhelmed with anything. The only reason he had not been there to stifle Haku's space was because he sent him to watch Chihiro, to which Haku was grateful. He honestly could not trust anyone else with the task. However, between the stern Makoto and the energetic Ame, Haku found it hard to breath sometimes. He enjoyed their company though, it left life unpredictable.
"Thank you, Makoto, but I am fine."
"Even though she is gone?" Makoto replied, brows lifted.
Haku gave him an annoyed glare, but relaxed. Makoto had some sort of sixth sense that made it so he could sense when something was emotionally off. Maybe it was just his canine nature, but it was a bittersweet habit he had.
"Regardless of what the staff says, Chihiro and I had made an agreement that she would only stay for a week. Even if I wanted her to stay longer, a deal is a deal, and it just is not safe here."
Makoto looked unconvinced. "I have been in the Human World for the last six years, I can leave you rest assured that there is just as much danger there as there is here. Danger just comes in different forms there.
Haku gave him a sideways glance and sighed. "You are not wrong… But there is nothing we can do for now, as long as she is safe."
Haku could see Makoto's lips twitch into a smile for a brief second before a bow slightly. "I will be returning to her side the moment the tunnel opens upon the new moon."
"Thank you." He replied absently. He was still distracted by the lists. Makoto seemed to sense that and did not move from where he stood, as if anticipating Haku to continue on to what was bothering him. He seemed to have no choice. "There is a list of names that I found."
"Names?" Makoto seemed a bit taken aback, but not overwhelmingly.
"Yes, a list of names of every employee here at the Bathhouse right now." Haku extended the list out to the okami. "There are combinations of innocents and prisoners within the lists, even powerful spirits that wanted nothing to do with their past."
"There are prisoners here?"
"Sentenced here for eternal banishment. Those who sentenced them here must have known that under Yubaba's care they would forget their past and work under the guise of public service. What do you even do with these names? I know from experience that many of these employees want their names back or do not even realize they have forgotten it… Who do you choose to give names to? And how am I supposed to accept new names of prisoners in the future? I am not a warden." Haku leaned back in his seat, exasperated.
Makoto examined the list. "Give them the option…"
Haku's brows knit together.
"Give them the option to accept their name and leave. The prisoners will not have much of a choice and the powerful spirits would want to know, however, all those who stumbled upon the Bathhouse and were tricked into staying, should have a right to know. We may lose employees but at least they will be here willingly."
Haku looked Makoto in the eyes. "There you are again, always being not wrong." He chuckled.
"I do my best, Master." He handed the lists back to Haku.
Haku looked over the lists again, it was not the complete list. There were more of course in the file room, but those were not all of them either. "There are more somewhere. Not all the names are here…"
"I hope none too important."
Haku glanced up at Makoto. "Every name is important, Makoto." He turned and glanced outside. "Every name."
After going through all the names and categorizing them, Haku began starting the return of names to the employees, giving them the option to return to their homes or staying at the Bathhouse with their names in tact this time, giving them freedom to do their will. Many stayed because the Bathhouse was all they knew, and some left when they found out that they had forgotten families and went out in search of what might remain of them. The prisoners were given the choice to know their names but were not allowed to leave, many opted to stay and leave their names unknown, for they had grown accustomed to the lifestyle of the Bathhouse and did not want to turn back. At the end of it, the still had over seventy-five percent of the staff left.
Then, there was the list of names they had yet to find. Haku assumed they were spirits that either were too powerful, wanted nothing to do with their names, or prisoners of extreme. Unfortunately, Rin, Ame, and a few others were among them. Upon knowledge that their names would not be found for now, Rin and Ame show to be rather upset. But, in Rin fashion, she hides it behind her "it doesn't matter, I know who I am" attitude. Haku promised to be on the search, regardless of how those with lost names felt.
The return from the Spirit World left Chihiro with visions of spirits everywhere. If she had no context or knowledge, she may have thought herself crazy and gone insane.
Apparently, when one left the Spirit World, they were able to see the unseen spirits of the Human World. Yuuka had explained that when a human has spent an extended time in the Spirit World, it leaves them with the ability to see spirits who had hidden themselves in the Human World, night or day. Regardless of ōmagatoki, there were still spirits that lived amongst humans in the Human World, usually under the guise of ghosts and other such supernatural titles.
So, for the first week back, Chihiro saw spirits everywhere. Yuuka also mentioned that she'd probably see a lot more since Makoto wasn't by her side. Apparently even when Chihiro was away from the house, Makoto would leave and keep tabs on her, never truly leaving her side. While she found it endearing, he truly was a stalker.
While she could handle the sights of spirits now, she had to wonder how she handled it as a child… Now that she thought about it, she really didn't remember that time and the more she pressed her mind for information, the foggier it got. All the memories she found clear started in middle school, when Rumi returned. She hadn't approached her friend with the idea since they returned, since she had to prepare for her family's memorial ceremony. It was hard to believe it had all happened only a month ago. It had felt like much longer.
That evening, Chihiro was waiting outside the tunnel to the Spirit World. It would be the new moon that night and Makoto was supposed to come through the tunnel. The tunnel was made up of beige color bricks, with a wide passage way, and moss and vinery growing all around it, the stone guardian facing the tunnel. This was the true tunnel of the Human World, according to Yuuka. This was the tunnels true form, the red brick was an illusion of the human eye, just like the spirits that live in both the Human and Spirit World, the tunnel existed in both and had two different faces. To humans, it was an abandoned theme park, but to those that saw beneath the illusion, it was a tunnel to the Spirit World. So, whenever she saw the beige brick of the tunnel, she knew that she would enter the old abandoned theme park. And that, was every time since her return.
Now if she were to be honest, she found the theme park creepier than anything she had seen from the Spirit World. There were abandoned shops similar to the ones outside the Bathhouse, but these ones had a darker, more ominous feel to them and overgrown grass and vinery surrounding them. There were old broken-down rides litter across the land that made up the park, rusted and broken beyond repair. There was a derailed train that would have gone over what was left of a river similar to the one in the Spirit World, in the same general vicinity too. What was left of the river looked murky and rather polluted, it always reminded her of the river spirit that she'd helped at the Bathhouse. When she first visited the abandoned park, she…
Her face contorted in confusion. What did happen originally? Some of her memories felt like itches that didn't stop itching, and they were starting to annoy her. For instance, why could she remember visiting the park and being creeped out by it, but not what else happened during that period of her life between ten and fourteen? They were just foggy memories that she suddenly found thought to be important but couldn't place. Why were they like that?
The wind suddenly seemed to pull Chihiro towards the tunnel, beckoning her to enter. It wouldn't have been the first time the tunnel had pulled her in and each time before she was met with the abandoned theme park. But this time, it was different. Her eyes were still sensitive the Spirit World and the tunnel bricks seemed to flicker red in her eyes and the voices of the wind whispered warnings of approaching spirits, the whistling of wind in the branches and birds and clicking sounds echoing around her. She stared into the tunnel and saw no change. She looked to the sky and dusk was approaching, the new moon rising high in the sky.
She felt another gust and her eyes fell back to the tunnel where she watched a large figure appear in the middle of the tunnel. As the figure drew closer she made out a large, brown patched wolf with bright green-blue eyes that seemed to glow in the darkness of the tunnel. It was Makoto.
Chihiro grinned and tightened her jacket around herself as she stood by the guardian statue. Once Makoto cleared the entrance of the tunnel she dashed toward him and hugged him around the neck.
"Makoto! I missed you!" She buried her face in his fur as she felt him nuzzle her hair and back.
"Likewise, Chihiro-San." He hummed deep in his chest.
Chihiro released his neck and peered into his deep ocean like eyes. Her best friend was back. She gave him a toothy grin. "Welcome back."
"Thank you. However, you did not have to escort me. I would have preferred you stayed in Osaka…" His eyes glared into the forest area surrounding them, most likely at the spirits that did occupy the land around the tunnel. "This area is far too concentrated with Spirit World influence…"
Chihiro glanced around then to the tunnel, which was the red of the clock tower inside the Spirit World. "Does the tunnel only officially work during times like these? Equinoxes, solstices, and moon phases?"
Makoto followed her gaze to the tunnel. "In a way, yes. It is easier to leave the Spirit World than it is to enter, especially for a human. Spirits can pass during ōmagatoki; however, it is limited and not many can stay. Humans can really leave at any time; however, they need approval from powerful spirits within to cross the boundaries. Entering the Spirit World is a matter of crossing at the right time."
"I see…" Letting the matter go for now, she pulled her backpack from her back and pulled out a leash and a pair of men's sneakers. "So. How do you want to go home?"
Makoto deadpanned her and shifted to his human form, taking the sneakers from her hands, earning a chuckled from Chihiro.
As the two walked to the bus station, Chihiro caught Makoto up with everything that happened since her return to the Human World. She told him about how they had to explain to her parents that Makoto had mysterious gotten a bad splinter during their journey into the forest and that was why he wasn't with them when they visited the Ogino household and instead at the vet. He had grunted at the idea and grumbled it wouldn't have happened. She carried on talking about how her book research had been going and how she had been on a few job interviews for libraries, journals, and museums. They had all went well, it was just a matter of the waiting game now.
Makoto listened with interest as she went on. It was just like back when she knew him only as a dog, but now he could respond in earnest. When she thought about, she'd spoiled him with a lot of unnecessary information over the years, it was rather embarrassing.
When they reached the bus stop, Chihiro turned to Makoto. "Makoto?"
"Hm?" His eyes looked down to her, deep with curiosity and what could be wisdom. Something she needed right now.
"I've been thinking about my first visit to the Spirit World lately…" She paused for a moment, thinking of the words to say. "And there's a gap in my memory that I don't quite understand… It's like there are memories there, but their fogged over and no matter how much I try to remember, they just get foggier. I don't know if that makes sense or not… Umm…"
Makoto looked down the street to see the bus approaching. He let out a heavy sigh. "I think it is time you have a serious talk with Yuuka about why she came to be by your side." He looked her in the eye and concern filled his eyes. "Let us talk about this when we get to Osaka."
Chihiro swallowed a knot in her throat. More secrets… "Okay."
They climbed on the bus and headed home to Osaka.
"Kohaku."
"Why are you here? If it is for what I think, do not say it." Haku replied in an exasperated tone. The voice echoed from across the room in his study where a cold gust flew in from a now open window.
"Whether you like it or not, young friend, it's going to happen." The voice was deep and animated, but Haku could hear the sound of old wisdom behind it.
Haku continued to ignore his presence and look at his papers. "They cannot force me. I have far too much on my plate as is."
The man behind him sighed from where he stood at one of Haku's book shelves. "Kohaku, the prophecy says that someone will have to take up the role soon, you're the only one that I can think of that fits the prophecy."
The dragon spirit gritted his teeth. "Well it is not. I do not care what the prophecy says, there are plenty others out there just as capable for the role. I still have to care for my river and figure out how to keep this Bathhouse running."
The man scoffed. "Since when did you start caring for such trivial things? The old Kohaku I knew wouldn't have. A lot has happened during your short time here, hasn't there?"
Haku placed his quill down and stared into the glass ball on his desk. "Yes. Quite a lot."
"Well." The man said with curt excitement, snapping a book shut. "As much as I would like to stay and chat about good old times and about the girl that recently visited your domain." Haku stiffened slightly at the mention but made no other acknowledgement to the spirit. "I must go and take care of my own chores. So much to do, so little time."
Haku sighed and turned over the back of the chair. "You are immortal, you have all the time in the world." But by the time he turned around, the spirit was gone, the echo of laughter and ocean waves left behind him. "Senile old man."
A/N:
"A name by any other would be just as sweet." Everyone is getting their names back and Haku is met with new issues. And who is the mysterious spirit that visited Haku? Can he be trusted? What does he speak of to the dragon of the Bathhouse? Will the typhoons cause more trouble than usual?
Oh, you think I know? Why would I? I'm just the author! …wait…
Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! And for those that do review, I thank you a bunches!
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God bless! KawaChou
