D/N: Thank you all for your patience! w And a special thank you to all of my reviewers! A special thank you to blackXheart and Wolf of the Blue Moon for all of their comments! And Morgaine Queen of Fairies for getting the first one.

Ideas are welcome, but I don't mind if you can't think of anything.

Well, onward! 3

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Twin points of steel lanced down to grab onto her shoulders, gripping in tight. The breath caught in Chihiro's throat, tears springing unbidden to her eyes with the terrible force of her fear. Before she could drag herself from the grip of this new being, she found her entire body frozen stiff, only her eyes free to move as they pleased, flickering around what part of the cave she could see, hoping for any indication of what might be waiting in the shadows to rip her heart from her and to devour it; to make her a permanent member of this world forever. Chihiro focused on her mouth, desperately trying to open it and let loose a sound, any sound. Maybe there was something here that would help her get away.

A breath of warm, moist air brushed past her ear. The fine hairs on the back of her neck stood on end as she tried to squirm away, wanting to scream and vomit at the same time, but both unavailable to her. Following the breath came a voice, one that surprised her, "Sen. Calm down." It was craggly like the speaker was talking through a mouth full of rocks, but it had the gentle underlying feeling of a breeze. Suddenly, the hostile enviroment around her changed; the iron of the lamp, which looked so cold and forboding, now seemed like a welcoming avatar of hope and survivial for her. Around her, the cave a shelter from everything outside that might spell an evil end to her. When her mind relaxed, so did her body; muscles came loose and adrenline that pumped her heart to an almost insane rate now faded back, "Granny. . . "

"Oh, Sen, dear Sen. Let me get a good look at you, girl." Zeniiba turned Chihiro around slowly, her large blue eyes filled with unshed tears. What used to be a wealthy-looking and healthy old woman she had known before now stood someone slightly younger, her blue dress a layer of patched together rags worn beyond much recognition. Before Chihiro could say anything, Zeniiba had her engulfed in her arms, pulled tight against a body that's seen too many lean times; bones and flesh were all she could feel.

Chihiro, unable to take it any longer, let loose a torrent of tears upon the older woman's shoulder, "Granny! Oh, Granny! I've missed you so much. . . ." The rest of her words were swallowed in hitching sobs.

They stood in a welcoming embrace for a little while more before Zeniiba suddenly pulled away, face drawn and wary. "We must go from this place, Sen. There are wyrms here that guard the tunnels; they are for neither side, as long as they can keep their home safe. I don't want to be caught out when they come by on patrol."

"B-but. . . what are the wyrms?"

Already, Zeniiba was dragging Chihiro along beside her, down a confusing twisting and turning path. Before them quickly hopped the lamp, the squeal of metal on metal gone now; it had been properly oiled since her last visit. "No time to talk now; don't you hear that?"

Chihiro tugged on the arm that Zeniiba had grabbed; already it was growing numb from being jerked constantly around. Then she heard it, above the sound of both of them running; it was the deep rumbling of something very large fast approaching, and it sounded like it was going in the same direction that they were. Not thinking about what it might be, only knowing it sounded large, she sped up to a sprint; she didn't want to be caught by whatever chased them.

Zeniiba pulled to the side suddenly, taking the young girl with her, the lamp already in before them. She pressed a thin, bony finger to wrinkled lips and whispered, "Let's go; don't look back at it. It'll sense your eyes on it."

Following Zeniiba's instructions, she followed the old sorceress deeper into what she realized was more of a crack in the wall than any tunnel. Perhaps widened by the witch's magic so that only human-like creatures could pass through. Behind her came the rumble and snarl of something large and nasty; the entire tunnel below her feet jumped and quaked as the beastie passed by quickly. Loose shale from the top of the crack showered down on the three of them, loudly banging off of the metal of the lamp. After a moment, the sound and rumbling quickly faded as the beast moved on. Zeniiba gestured to her, "We're almost there."

It wasn't long before both were suddenly enveloped with a soft golden light and then they were in a bright, glistening cave. Planted in the walls seemed to be a strange fungus, glowing with every color imaginable; the gold was simply the rows of yellow fungus growing all around the mouth of the tunnel. The lamp hopped before them, going to stand in one of the darker corners, the flame in the candle dimming slightly. Chihiro stared around her, slack-jawed that such a thing still existed in this 'new' world. She looked back at Zeniiba, "What is this place?"
"It is known as the Den of Vitality. Before the Children came here, this was a secret and hidden place. It still is, from all the wrong people, but they're searching for it." She sighed, "There isn't any other here that I have been able to find to trust the secret to.

"But you, I know what you need." Zeniiba pulled Chihiro away from the door, "Rest here for an hour or two before you go back to the surface world; we will talk, trade stories and the like, but you'll need to rest." She steered the girl away.

D/N: Short post to get everyone interested again.

Read and review, please:3 All forms of critisisms are welcomed. Except for anything along the lines of 'u suk'. I've already made clear that, so there's no need to be a repeater. 3