The night was young, moonlight brightly shining through Chihiro's room. She struggled to breathe as Lin tightened the green datejime around her waist.
"You really want to wear that nagajuban underneath it?" she mumbled, tying the back into a perfect ribbon. The girl nodded, staring at her bandaged arm. In case of emergencies, she needed to wear something more flexible to move around.
Chihiro could barely stand with her geta on, stumbling around noisily. "I'm not done with you missy," the weasel spirit grumbled, pulling her back into the chair. Taking out a box of makeup, the woman approached the hesitating Chihiro.
"W-Wait, Lin," she smiled weakly. "You-You're going to put that on yourself, right?" The woman snickered. "W-Wait… Wait! Lin!"
Haku stopped, wondering who had shouted. Continuing his walk to Chihiro's room, he reminisced of how they had reunited. Just as he was about to bring the katana down, her hood fell, revealing to be the human girl. He shivered at the thought of hurting the one he cherished.
Clenching his fists tighter, he finally reached her room. Opening the door, he looked up to find Chihiro fully dressed. He froze, goose bumps crawling up his skin. Swallowing slowly, he stared at the beautiful girl. She wore a green yukata, decorated with white and grey petals.
Her rosy cheeks illuminated under the moonlight, green eye shadow sparkling above her brown eyes. Her lips were cotton candy pink, shining like her chestnut hair. The black katana hung over her shoulder. "H-Haku!" she nervously exclaimed, prepared to cower behind Lin.
The spirit pushed her forward, causing her to stumble towards him. He caught her, feeling her soft skin. Chihiro blushed, glaring at the smiling Lin. "Go ahead," she insisted. "I'll catch up later."
Blinking, Haku led Chihiro out of the room and into the elevator. Coincidentally, Ryuu also headed towards the elevator. Turning around at the sound of their footsteps, his ruby red eyes shined as soon as he caught the sight of Chihiro. "Chihiro, you look amazing!" he exclaimed.
The grip Chihiro had on Haku's sleeve tightened. Without meeting his eyes, she grumbled, "Yeah, thanks." The elevator door opened, allowing the three to enter. "What were you doing here, Ryuu?" Haku questioned.
Chihiro stared at the two spirits, imagining a dark aura repelling each other. "Just delivering some papers to Zeniba," Ryuu replied, his voice also darkening with a cautious tone. Noticing the girl look at the two boys, the dragon spirit smiled.
Swiftly, he snatched her by the wrist, pulling her to him. "And what are you doing with my girl?" Haku's sea green eyes widened, giving a warning to Ryuu. The two spirits were battling each other. Lifting her chin up, she stared surprisingly into the eyes of the wind dragon. Just as they got inches closer, Haku made it just in time to pull her away. As soon as the doors opened to the first floor, the river spirit dragged her away from the amused spirit.
Recognizing how Haku became defensive, Chihiro smiled. Looking at her, he could only sigh in relief. "Let's go outside," he insisted, finally releasing her hand. However, the girl rushed over, nervously clutching his sleeve. As she shyly looked around, he could only chuckle.
Patting her head, he once again held her hand. "Why didn't you say so?" he murmured. They finally left the bathhouse, finding themselves n a bright, cheery festival. They roamed around, laughing as they played games, and tasted exotic foods.
As they passed a jewelery section, Chihiro's eyes glowed, admiring the shiny jewels. Catching her staring at the simple ocean blue ring, he called, "I'll take this." Alarmed, Chihiro shook her head, protesting, "No, no, it's alright-"
"It's fine," Haku smiled. "My gift of apology." Taking it after he paid the spirit, he took her right hand. A red ribbon was in the way. Chihiro quickly took it off, stuffing it into her pocket. "Sorry," she mumbled, remembering Ryuu's vow. "So, what do you mean by apology?"
As he slipped it on her ring finger, he answered, "It's been years since I told you we'd meet." Chihiro glanced up at him. "We're here now. That's all that matters. Right?"
Haku did not reply. Staring at the girl for a moment, he mumbled, "You do look beautiful tonight." Happiness spread over Chihiro's face. Standing closer to him caused her to freeze.
As he began to approach her, she slowly closed her eyes. Feeling his cheek press against hers, she tightened her grip on his sleeve. But before they had the chance, a scream arose from the crowd. Panicking, the spirits began to run back into the bathhouse and other places for shelter.
Cautious, Haku and Chihro turned to where the spirits were running from. "What's going on?" Haku demanded as one spirit passed by. "It's here!" it yelled. "The Dark Fear!" Alarmed, Chihiro drew her katana.
Ryuu and a few other brave spirits stood by to guard the bridge. "Be careful," the wind dragon warned Chihiro. With a smirk, Chihiro looked sraight forward. "You should too, Kaida."
Hearing a roar echo through the air, the spirits behind them became startled. After a moment, Aogaeru stuttered, "It seems like it was just a false alar-"
A dark figure appeared, flying directly through Haku and the others. Instead of backing away, the girl attempted to cut the fierce experiment. "Chihiro!" Haku yelled, trying to see if she was wounded.
The Dark Fear dragged her along with it for a few feet, digging into the ground. Finally pulling her sword out of the spirit, falling over the side of the bridge. Quickly, Haku flew to her, grabbing her arm just as she was about to be out of reach.
"I'm fine," Chihiro assured as he brought her back up. Prepared, Chihiro took her kimono off, tying the green datejime in her hair to protect the hair band Zeniba and the others had made for her.
The rain soon made it harder for them to see, drenching Chihiro's white nagajuban. "Ouch!" a spirit screamed. Examining the mysterious goo on its foot, Ryuu identified, "It's from the Dark Fear. If you touch it, it burns like acid. Get inside."
With a bow, the spirit limped across the bridge. However, the Dark Fear made it in time to fly by and grab the startled spirit. A gooey lump was hanging off the side of the dragon's neck, where Chihiro' had pierced him.
It finally fell onto the bridge, creating a thumping noise. Cautiously stepping towards it, the rain soon washed away the poison. Something was left from the remains. Something breathing. Something whimpering. Someone.
The unknown spirit glanced up, staring into the eyes of Chihiro. It's eyes widened, stumbling to stand. "S-Sis!" it suddenly cried, rushing towards her.