The wind was strong today. I think Ryuu's upset.

The boy scrambled to the speechless Chihiro, who caught him just before he fell. Looking up, his eyes watered with tears. "Sis," he croaked, crying into her neck.

"A... Akira…" she stuttered. Slowly, she laid a hand on his back, feeling the gentle heartbeat of a human. "Akira," her lip trembled. Embracing him tightly, the two siblings finally reunited.

Footsteps approached from behind, a warm hand touching her drenched shoulder. "Now's not the time to celebrate. The Dark Fear is coming back." Nodding, Chihiro pulled Akira away.

"Bring him in and call Lin. Tell her he's my brother," the girl informed a spirit. Taking the frightened boy away, Chihiro stood up, feeling an unusual stinging in her hand. Glancing at her palm, the Dark Fear's wound had stained Chihiro's skin.

If it touches you, it will burn like acid, Haku had once warned. "Then… it really does mean…" she murmured. Hearing another roar, it caused her to snap. Swiftly turning around, she swung her katana into the rain.

"What are you hitting? There's nothing there-" Ryuu stopped when finding the figure of a large dragon. But instead of creating red fire, the color had unusually changed. Black fire stunned the dragon, its shriek echoing through the village.

Haku stared at her in surprise, wondering what had activated her dark power. Just as the spirits were about to cheer in victory, the girl started to cringe. "Chihiro, what's wrong?" Ryuu demanded.

The girl softly made a low growling sound, her teeth suddenly sharpening. What's going on? she thought, trying to control her power. As the river spirit took a step closer, she raised her hand to stop him.

"D-Don't!" she gasped, gripping her stomach. "The Dark Fear's blood must've touched her," Haku growled. "Well, what does that mean, river spirit?" the wind spirit hissed.

Haku did not reply. Instead, he could only helplessly watch as Chihiro slowly transformed into the Dark Fear's puppet. Before she could hurt any of her friends, she ran off, preparing to jump off of the bridge.

"Get… Get everyone inside. I'll… I'll stall the Dark Fear-" Haku grabbed Chihiro's wrist before she jumped. Fear grew deep in the dragon's eyes, afraid that the girl would have her life in danger.

"I'm going with you," he determined. Just as she was about to protest, he silenced her with a look. The look he had made just as she was about to leave those years ago. Sadness. "Haku…" she murmured.

Haku glanced at Ryuu, slightly nodding to him as he was about to leap down into the water. As soon as they did, Haku held her in his arms, praying the both of them would make it out alive. Ryuu stared after them, watching as they passed through the fog.

"You better take care of her," the wind dragon whispered. As the two teenagers descended to the bottom, Haku lifted her head. The makeup was completely washed away, her eyes deep in exhaustion. However, her grip on him was tight and strong.

If one of us doesn't make it out alive… Haku thought as he pulled her close to his face. He landed on his feet, crushing the gravel under his shoes. Releasing Chihiro, he recognized her pale face. Speechless, she snapped back after hearing the Dark Fear's snarls.

Racing towards the sound, they finally caught sight of a dark shadow appearing in the fog. Bending the sea around them, Haku braced himself for an attack.

The dark spirit crashed through, water splashing harder than the rain. Raising her katana, Chihiro threw another force of black fire. This time, the large wave pushed it down, crashing into the water.

Balanced on the surface, Haku and Chihiro could only wait to see what happened next. Looking around, Chihiro's hands trembled. She was beginning to crouch, darting around like a wild spirit. What startled her more was the snarl that was heard from her mouth.

Unusual but helpful, it was heard just as the Dark Fear splashed out from the water. A dark orb was formed from its mouth, growing larger and larger. Its sharp eyes glared down at Chihiro, preparing to launch its own attack.

Noticing how the Dark Fear was staring at the girl, Haku immediately ran after her. As the dragon flung the powerful orb, Chihiro could only freeze where she was, frightfully looking at the incoming attack.

Cloth suddenly blocked her vision, arms pushing her into the water. Recognizing the blue cloth to be Haku's she tried to scream at him to move away. They already dove into the sea, water entering her mouth.

However, the blast still hit them, pushing them farther into the abyss. Feeling the painful blow even though they were in the water, Chihiro could feel her head pounding. Trying to save as much air as possible, her vision began to blur. Before the darkness could take over, she could only watch as bubbles floated up and Haku also falling into unconsciousness.

Chihiro POV

I was prepared to meet my fate. Just as I was about to leap down, he caught me. I didn't want to bring him with me, but I couldn't say no. He was already in despair, watching me slowly change into the Dark Fear.

If he was in any kind of danger, I'd have to sacrifice my life o keep him safe. Just as we were in the air, Haku suddenly murmured something to me. I couldn't hear much of it because of the whistling air, but I saw his lips moving.

Knowing what he had just told me, I could only stare at him. I… I really didn't expect this to be the time. Sure, I knew something bad was going to happen when fighting against the dark spirit, but…

He was so serious and… afraid. Haku… Haku really does care about me. Sure, I don't get to see him a lot, but I've been thinking about him everyday, every minute, every moment.

His hand touched the back of my head, wrapping my soaking hair around his fingers. He began to push me forward, right towards him. This was it. This was it. I'm glad we finally got through with our feelings. If… If… If we- or one of us didn't make it out alive, I'm glad we shared that kiss.

We hit the ground, his arms carrying me. He released me, allowing me to stand up. Although I wish he hadn't, because my legs just felt so weak, and frail. I wanted to say something to him before we left, but it seemed like now wasn't the right time.

Ignoring the pain that echoed through my body, I followed after Haku and the roars of the dark spirit. But… When we were hit by that dark power, I just couldn't see anything but water dragging me down. Reaching out, I tried to gather all of my strength.

Noticing green hair float somewhere above me, I immediately thought of Haku. Coughing out seawater, I just wanted to say those words back to him.

The words he had told me as we fell.

The words we were clueless about those years ago.

The words I will never forget.

The ones I will never give up on.

Three words.

I love you.