Legal Disclaimer: This is a fanfic. I own none of the characters, nor the setting. Don't sue me.

While You Were Gone

Chapter Three

If he were the type to bang his head on the wall repeatedly, he'd be doing it right now. In all the centuries he had been alive, he had never experienced as mortifying a moment as the one he had experienced very early this morning, before the sun had risen. He still wasn't sure what had overcome him. He had just...done it. Kissed her. And summarily been shoved away. He could tell she didn't mean to violently reject him. He understood. Hell, he knew better than she did that he needed to back off.

She had to remember on her own terms. She couldn't be influenced by him, by anyone. No one was certain how she'd made it back to the spirit realm. If you had stumbled in once, the spirit realm naturally diverted you until your time of death. But Chihiro wasn't dead. Haku could sense her life force, he knew she lived and breathed and ate as a living human. Not as a spirit. So how? Time would tell, and so would Chihiro's memories.

He stared out from his perch high up on the bath house, and frowned when he glanced down at the bridge and recognized a particular brown ponytail. She was up? He considered letting her be. No sense straining things further between them. A few minutes consideration had him transforming as he jumped off of the balcony, though. He changed again just before he landed, touching the wooden planks silently.

Chihiro didn't notice him right away. She looked very focused as she stared down at the train tracks below.

"Chihiro?"

She jumped, gasping and turning as though prepared to attack. She relaxed when she realized who it was, however.

"Haku. Do you want to get smacked in the face? I know I don't look all that intimidating, but it doesn't take much for me to go all crazy kung-fu style on you."

He couldn't help but laugh. "I am sorry, Chihiro. I'll remember that in the future."

"It's best you do," she said it so solemnly that even she cracked up. "I just came out here because I remembered something. About my first visit here. It's starting to come back faster, I think. I feel like I'm remembering snippets of conversation and moments in the bath house with increasing speed…"

"What did you remember this time?"

She twirled a strand of hair around one fingertip, motioning for Haku to walk with her. She started walking, leading the way from the bridge toward the pig pens and the large garden area that had, once upon a time, been where Haku had given her clothes and name back to her.

"I remembered you. Sort of. I know it's not everything. But I remembered when you gave me my clothes back. And the card with my name on it."

Haku blushed. A smile ghosted across his lips. "I remember that. After Rin and the others had made you think I didn't care. Because they only knew me as Master Haku."

She grinned. "A title that hasn't changed!" She elbowed him in the arm.

He rubbed the spot she'd elbowed and snorted. "I'm as surprised as you are. I thought Yubaba would demote me at best. Or kick me out of the bath house at worst. Not that it would have been that terrible. The spirit realm is vast. I would have found a new place."

"So why did you stay?"

He hesitated on answering. "It...had more to do with you than I care to admit."

Chihiro's eyebrows rose. "How so?"

"I wanted to wait until you returned to the spirit realm, is all."

A shy silence stretched between them as they both fell into their own thoughts. She managed to acknowledge his explanation with a small nod of understanding before she turned to gaze at the sky. It effectively let both of them compose themselves.

"You took really good care of me last time I was here. Especially considering how annoying I was."

He laughed. "You weren't that bad."

"I cried and freaked out about everything."

"Only for the first night. And you didn't cry and freak out over everything. Only a few things. Considering that you were confused, your parents had been turned into pigs, and the tiny creek had turned into a vast ocean of water, I'd say you held up remarkably well."

"I tried to shove you away when you fed me a berry. And when you told me to hold my breath while we crossed the bridge? Or! When you gave me directions to Kamajii and told me not to make a sound? I screamed the whole way down those stairs. I was such a brat."

Unable to contain it, he laughed again, dropping back to a seat on the grass. "I know. It's all right, though. You learned a lot. And besides...aside from the very beginning, you were quite strong."

"I broke down when Rin got me a shirt."

"Did you break down crying after that?"

"Uh…When you gave me my clothes and stuff."

"That was also understandable."

"It doesn't work when you give me a free pass for everything!" Chihiro laughed and turned to him, hands on her hips. She took a seat beside him, playfully bumping him with her shoulder.

"Your attempt to paint yourself as an annoying child was always destined to fail."

"Pfft. Please. I know how I was no matter what you say!"

Haku shook his head and glanced at her, only to catch her eye as she glanced at him. Instead of quickly looking away, they held one another's gaze. He searched her eyes for some hint that she understood things between them better, for some sign that more of their past relationship was returning to her. Admittedly, it wasn't a lot to jump from. They had been friends. He had saved her once when she was very young. But when she had helped him remember his name, and helped him return to himself, a bond had been forged. It was the type of spiritual bond that rarely occurred in a realm full of greedy and self-absorbed spirits. The bond had kept him in the bath house, waiting, hoping, that her spirit might one day return.

An uncomfortable awareness filled him, that if she wasn't dead in the mortal world, she would have the choice to return to it or stay when the time came. Haku had watched her leave once already. He didn't know if he could watch her leave again. Especially now that she was older. He knew he would have to, though, if that was her choice.

Chihiro nudging him with her elbow brought him back to the present. "Are you all right, Haku? You look kind of out of it."

He cleared his throat. "I'm fine. Sorry. Just remembered some business I have to attend to."

"Oh." She looked a little crestfallen, but she nodded, getting to her feet. "That's fair. I should be getting some rest, anyway. Long night tonight."

He smiled at her and got up as well, holding his arms open in a silent offer. She hugged him. "I will see you this evening."

"All right. See you later, Haku." Chihiro took a step back from him and he turned, walked away, and transformed into his other self, taking off before he could think better of it.

Chihiro watched him until he disappeared in the distance, and then she slowly turned and looked up at the bath house. A sigh eased across her lips, and she headed back. She wanted to talk to Rin, especially since Haku had such an odd reaction just now. His mood had changed so abruptly, and he had seemed so sad. She closed her eyes, remembering the look on his face. He acted like the guy who had a crush on her two years ago.

Right around the time that she thought he might work up the nerve to tell her he wanted to date her, he'd been informed that he and his parents were moving. He'd had a similarly sad look on his face when he'd explained his feelings to her.

She thought that over as she made her way back inside and settled down on her bedroll. The various bath house employees were snoozing contently around her, snoring and shifting, occasionally mumbling. She thought she would be too restless to sleep, but the moment her eyes closed, she drifted off.

She awoke to Rin prodding her in the side with her toe, holding two bowls of porridge. "Heeey. Wake up! Come on! We don't have a lot of time before we need to start working!"

Chihiro sat up and rubbed her eyes, her hair falling haphazardly around her face. Bedhead had given her a decidedly wild appearance.

"Finally. Jeez, Sen. You sleep like a rock. Here, got you breakfast. Just like old times."

Chihiro took the bowl and yawned. A quick glance around the room showed her that most everyone was awake, their bedrolls cleared away as they hustled off to get the bath house ready for another evening.

"Rin...why won't anyone just tell me everything that happened last time I was here?"

The other woman looked up, three spoonfuls of porridge already shoved into her mouth so that her cheeks bulged a little. She swallowed after a moment of consideration, took a deep breath, and looked down at her bowl. "I don't know for sure, really. I mean...That's not my area of expertise, Sen. I think...I think maybe Haku is just trying to make sure you remember everything correctly, with no outside interference or influence."

"But if they're my memories, surely I'll remember them correctly whether someone tries to mislead me or not."

"Maybe. The human world's form of coercion is a little less insidious than the spirit world's. People here...really powerful spirits, they can replace your memories if you let yourself believe. Yubaba probably could."

Chihiro grimaced at that. "So what's stopped her so far? I mean, really?"

"Friends, people who care. I'm sure Haku has played a big part in limiting her power over what you do and don't remember."

"I remembered almost all of my interactions with Yubaba really quickly, though. I know I beat her."

"Yeah, but Yubaba could make life hard for you in other ways. She could make you think old friends are enemies. Or make you think someone you loved was just a friend and someone who was just a friend had like...I dunno."

"Had rejected you."

"Yeah! Somethin' like that. I dunno why you're dwelling on it, though. Haku, Kamajii, and I...we're going to make sure that Yubaba doesn't interfere until you remember everything."

Chihiro smiled. "Thanks, Rin."

Rin grinned back at her and promptly resumed eating. She clearly believed the conversation was done.

"Rin?"

"Mmff?"

"Haku seemed really surprised to see me back in the spirit realm. Is it uncommon for people to come here more than once?"

"Mmf. Well. It'sh mor like…" Rin swallowed again and sighed. "It's more like, it's uncommon for living people to come to the spirit realm more than once. Normally if you make it here once when you're alive...and then leave...you're really lucky. Twice is pretty much unheard of, though there are some notable exceptions."

"So...Wait, am I supposed to be dead?"

"What?! No! No no no. Sen." Rin rolled her eyes as though Chihiro were the biggest dope in the world. "Of course you're not dead. You still have all that life energy and stuff. If you were dead, we'd know!"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure. I've been here for ages." Rin grinned at her, and Chihiro nodded, smiling after a moment.

"Okay. Thanks, Rin. I felt a little worried."

"No problem. And hey, just think...it means that clearly you're here for something super important. Even if we don't know it yet. You're going to be one of the greats. Some sort of spirit world hero who helps right the imbalance between mortal plane and spirit realm."

Chihiro rolled her eyes. "I don't think so, Rin. But thanks for the vote of confidence."

"I'm just saying. There's a reason you're here...and it isn't because you're dead."

Rin seemed so confident in that fact that Chihiro couldn't help but feel confident, too. Rin was a spirit, after all. She would know better. Chihiro scarfed down her food quickly, before it got too cold, and handed her bowl back to Rin while she rolled up her bedding and got changed into her work clothes. Another night, another strict set of opening procedures to follow. They cleaned the floors, and Rin and Chihiro were sent to the big tub...with the promise that they would have enough time to clean it really well before a customer was sent their way (unlike the last time).

Some of the other employees even helped where they could. An employee that Chihiro had never met before, named Jaken, helped to scrub and scrape a lot of the sludge off the tub with a special tool he had invented...apparently for just such a purpose.

Jaken looked, in some ways, similar to Rin. He had a similarly structured face, and his hair was the same color. His eyes were different. Where Rin's were a warm brown, his were golden. He was taller than Rin, who was still taller than Chihiro, and leanly muscled. Judging from the way Rin looked at him when he wasn't paying attention, Chihiro could guess that the new guy had quickly made an impression on her friend.

"See. If you scrape it this way, it cuts right down to the tub. Give a pull, and the sludge starts peeling off like a fruit peel! Here Rin, come and try it." Jaken motioned her down, and Rin glanced at Chihiro who gave her an encouraging nod. She slid down into the tub, and walked up to the handle of the glorified scraper. Jaken stood behind her and rested his hands on her arms, helping her get into the proper position while Chihiro looked on from above. A grin formed on her lips, and when Rin shot her a wide-eyed look she rolled onto her back and slid down the tub a couple of feet, hiding her laughter.

That, however, slid her right into Haku. She looked up at him, laughter still on her lips, but her smile faded at the serious look on his face. "Haku? What's wrong?"

He blinked, and the serious look disappeared as he smiled. "What? Oh. Nothing. I just came by to check in on you two. There's a very important spirit visiting tonight and Yubaba wanted to be sure the big tub would be cleaned to his liking."

Chihiro grinned. "See for yourself." She gestured over her shoulder, and Haku arched an eyebrow. He walked up the side of the tub and peeked over...and turned as red as Chihiro had ever seen him as he quickly came back down the side of the tub.

"Well. This may take longer than expected."

"Wait, what?!" Chihiro rolled onto her stomach and crawled up to the edge. When she peered over, she gasped, then grinned, at the sight of Rin and Jaken having a bit of a liplock. She pulled herself up to sit on the edge, her feet dangling down into the tub. "Well, well, well!" She said, making the entwined couple jump and break apart. "And here I thought you were getting some work done!"

Rin had turned red, but Jaken played it off with a grin and a shrug. "Well, there's always time for breaks, eh Sen?"

"Suuure. Just maybe not when we have a guest on the way."

"Fair. Fair. I'll back off...for now." He grinned and winked at Rin, kissing her one more time before he climbed out of the tub. "Just bring my scraper back to me after your shift, lovely lady."

Rin laughed, "Only if you promise not to act like some sort of cheesy dreamboat again."

"I can't make any promises, but I will try to keep myself in check."

Chihiro snorted and had to hide her laughter again as she glanced back at Haku, who shook his head and smiled.

"Haku wants to know how long the tub will take to prep, Rin."

"Not long, not with this thing. Give me fifteen minutes? You can go get a token from the foreman." Rin gave her a wicked smirk. "And get some alone time with Hakuuuu."

Chihiro took her turn to blush, and she got to her feet and turned to Haku without acknowledging the tease. "So what spirit is it? And what type of bath token should we get him?"

Haku cleared his throat, having heard Rin, and smiled once more. "Ah. It's an old ocean spirit, so I'd say something salty. Come on. We'll go talk to the foreman." He offered her his arm, and Chihiro took it after only a brief hesitation.

They walked in silence all the way to the foreman. After a bit of consideration, the foreman selected a token for them, and he gave it to Chihiro. "Enjoy. Hopefully it's strong enough. This spirit is very particular."

With that ominous thought in mind, Chihiro turned to Haku who gave a slight shrug. "He is very particular."

"Great. And I'm the one helping him? Why do I feel like this is a set up on Yubaba's part?" She huffed softly, and Haku laughed.

"It's not a set up. Yubaba knows you're a good employee. So does everyone else. They thought you and Rin were the best choice for this guest is all."

"Oh I'm sure Yubaba did." Chihiro glanced at Haku, giving him a "really?" kind of look. He shrugged.

"Believe what you will. I'm just saying, it's not a set up."

"Okay. Okay. But if something goes horribly wrong? I am just saying, it was probably a set up."

Haku didn't reply, and Chihiro fell into her own thoughts. She did seem to get a lot of old and powerful spirits. The woman last night...the river spirit from her first adventure here. She had the feeling that it was deliberate. Who put their newest employee on duty with a big, tough tub and a potentially difficult spirit? Yubaba had. And while the bath house workers didn't dislike her anymore, she had a feeling that their admiration for her wasn't that high. She pushed her free hand through the loose strands of hair that had escaped her ponytail, her thoughts drifting to the ocean spirit. She hoped that nothing went wrong. She couldn't afford for anything to go wrong. She didn't want her debts to Yubaba to increase.

When they reached the big tub, Haku released her arm and bowed to her before he departed for his regular duties, and Chihiro wandered up to the tub to see how Rin's work on the tub scum went. She was surprised at how clean it looked. Rin had scraped out the sludge and carried it away, and now she sat at the bottom of the tub, a scrub brush and bucket of soapy water beside her. "Seeeen. Can you take over? My arms are killing me!"

Chihiro laughed as she slid down, passing her the soap token. "I suppose I could do some scrubbing. It's only fair. That was a fast job on the sludge, though. Did Jaken's scraper help that much?" Chihiro smiled at Rin with a knowing look, and Rin smiled dreamily.

"Yeah. It did a great job."

Chihiro picked up the scrub brush and dunked it in the water. She started working on the tub's walls, amazed at how the remaining sludge came away so quickly. "So. Tell me about Jaken. He was missing from your updates about life in the bath house last night." A glance over her shoulder told her what she'd already hoped. Rin was blushing furiously.

"He's a weasel spirit. Like me. I haven't seen another weasel spirit in...oh...I don't know. Over a decade? Before you first came here. And that spirit was old and ugly and mean."

Chihiro snickered as she focused on scrubbing. She ignored the ache in her arms that had quickly started. Instead she moved around the tub, making sounds of encouragement as Rin spoke.

"But...he, umm...He's very similar to me. And he's cute. Also, he knows the part of the spirit realm I'm from. He's from the same area." A dreamy sigh escaped her as she flopped back, laying on the floor of the tub to stare up and up and up at the distant ceiling. "That was our first kiss. Employees aren't supposed to fraternize like that. I mean...we all still do...but I've never been seriously interested like I am now."

Chihiro shook her head and wiped the sweat off her forehead with her arm. Rin definitely had it bad. She finished scrubbing with a sigh and tossed the scrub brush in the bucket. "Let's get out of here and get the water going."

Rin sat up. "Sounds good to me." She got up, and both women climbed out of the tub. Chihiro passed Rin the bucket before she followed her up and out. "So hey...did you ever find out what happened with Haku and Kiyohime?" She asked it a little quietly, uncertainly.

Chihiro frowned. She walked over to the wall with the hidden panel, but stopped to admire the scene painted on it. "He wouldn't tell me anything except that Yubaba sent him to steal from her. Something important."

She hunted for the panel for a moment before she popped it open. The bath token hooked to the clip that hung there with ease, and she pulled, released, and watched it disappear before she shut the panel. When she turned around, Rin stood with her arms crossed, watching Chihiro and waiting for her to say something else.

"That's all I know, Rin. He won't tell me anything else."

"Tch. Typical. You're finally back and he still has to keep his secrets." Rin seemed on the verge of a rant.

"Sen, Rin, your guest is about to arrive."

Rin went rigid and quickly ran up the tub as the water spout descended from the wall. She pulled the rope to start the water flow, then glanced at Sen. "Do you want to greet him?"

"I guess." Chihiro took a deep breath and followed the foreman out to the main entrance. A large, inhuman creature with tentacles and four eyes approached. The skin was a mottled blue, the mouth a frightening, gaping maw. The spirit had dagger-like teeth. They looked as though they could skewer a person much bigger than Chihiro, and the thought made her swallow hard. It moved slowly, and from what Chihiro could see, didn't maneuver well on land. Why was an ocean spirit coming to a bath house? She supposed for the same reason that the river spirits came to the bath house. Then again...She didn't know if the one she had helped those years ago had ever returned.

The spirit reached the bridge and shuffled its way forward, staring at Chihiro and the foreman (and with a shock, Chihiro realized Yubaba was beside her as well). The old witch smiled her sickeningly sweet smile as she bowed to the spirit. Chihiro did the same.

"Welcome, welcome! Sen will lead you to your bath, sir. Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you." She glanced at Chihiro before she straightened, eyes narrowed menacingly. The look said it all. Chihiro could not mess this up.

The spirit bowed slightly to her and she inhaled deeply. "Welcome, sir. Please follow me!" She smiled and bowed again, leading the spirit back to the tub with a slow, steady pace. The spirit followed wordlessly, either because it couldn't talk or had no desire to. This spirit was remarkably different from the one the night before. When they reached the big tub, the spirit migrated to the tub and immediately sank into the water, a sound not unlike whale song escaping it as the water level went up high enough that some of it spilled over the sides.

Unlike the last time this had happened, the spirit's entrance to the tub did not result in disgusting sludge everywhere, and Chihiro felt relieved for that. She and Rin moved around the room, making sure their guest was comfortable and liked the water. They had to watch their step, the water on the floor making it somewhat slick. Rin was used to it. Chihiro less so.

Things seemed, overall, to be going well. The spirit settled in comfortably, tentacle-like limbs stretched out over the edge of the tub and trailing to the floor. Chihiro made note to keep a wide berth of the limbs. She didn't want to step on them, or anything like that. Part of her just didn't want the spirit to sweep her up and eat her. That would put something of a damper on her whole plan to pay Yubaba back and escape the bath house one day.

Rin had climbed up behind the spirit and was carefully massaging the tense looking parts of the spirit's body. The spirit sank a little lower into the water with a content sigh, and Chihiro managed a small smile. Maybe this wouldn't be as bad as she thought. She relaxed a bit, and walked carefully around the bath. She had planned to use warm stones as part of one of the bath house's massage services...but of course nothing ever seemed to go completely right.

The water that had splashed onto the floor that Chihiro had managed not to slip in finally managed to knock her off balance, and she gasped as she slipped, falling backward. The tentacle beneath her was soft, squishier than she'd expected, but also apparently quite sensitive. When she landed on the tentacle, the spirit unleashed a deep, painfully loud cry, a sound that seemed like a whale in distress. The tentacle knocked her off and threw her into the wall. Her body collided roughly with the wood, and she exhaled forcefully as her palms struck. "Oh crap."

The spirit rose from the tub with another wail, the tentacle cradled against its body. Rin looked up at the creature with wide eyes, her lips parted in surprise. She glanced at Chihiro, then back to the spirit. Before it could make its departure she ran around to the front, placating the creature with soothing words. Her hands were held up, begging forgiveness for her clumsy cohort.

At first it seemed like the placations might work. The spirit hesitated, blinking and peering down at Rin with all four eyes. Chihiro carefully made her way over to stand beside her, bowing and quickly asking forgiveness for her clumsiness.

That, apparently, was not the right thing to do. At the sight of her, the spirit went a little mad, tentacles flailing and crashing into the walls. Walls collapsed, and the occupants of other baths shrieked in surprise and fear. Chihiro saw the tentacle coming for her again, this time with the intent to grasp (or so she thought) rather than the intent to smack her aside. She braced herself, uncertain if she should run or if she would be all right staying put.

Someone's hand snaked around her wrist and yanked her backward a moment before the creature's tentacle reached her. She stumbled, and looked around to find Haku standing in front of her, blocking her from the spirit's view. The spirit angrily smashed another wall, and Haku spoke quickly, his voice calm, soothing.

"The girl meant no harm, great spirit. It was an accident. She apologizes profusely for any pain or insult she caused you, and Yubaba and I will see that a fitting punishment is bestowed upon her."

Silence stretched through the room, and it seemed as if the entire bath house held its breath. The spirit made another wailing sound, and it promptly smashed another dividing wall. The wailing continued, but Haku didn't seem bothered. He simply stared at the spirit.

"I presented you our terms. If you insist on destroying the bath house I will have to ask you to leave, however."

More wailing from the spirit, but it did begin to leave. Haku carefully maneuvered so that Chihiro was hidden from sight while the spirit began to depart.

"Rin, please see our guest to the door."

Rin looked at Haku like he was crazy, but she quickly rushed forward. She bowed, offering her apologies, and turned to lead the spirit away.

More silence filled the bath house, and Chihiro took a shaky breath. This was definitely a bigger mess up that letting NoFace into the bath house. She could just tell. Well, maybe not bigger, but it was definitely still up there. The silence stretched and stretched until Rin returned, looking shaky. "He's gone."

It was as though someone had unmuted a television. The bath house exploded in chatter. Haku turned to Chihiro, searching her face. "Yubaba is going to add all this to your debt," he said quietly.

"I know," she murmured, a dejected tone to her voice.

As if he had been introducing her, Yubaba appeared, descending through the air. She landed lightly beside Haku, and he took a step back.

"You stupid girl! We'll be lucky if that spirit ever comes back here! I had to give him a complimentary bath because of you. And he destroyed rooms! Look at this mess!" She made an annoyed sound as she glanced around. "This is being added to your debt, Sen!" Haku glanced at Chihiro as Yubaba turned to the assembled employees. "What are you idiots waiting for? Start cleaning this mess up immediately! I want this place in perfect condition before our next illustrious guest arrives! And make sure that we are giving complimentary baths to our dear guests in the neighboring rooms." She motioned to the guests standing beside the broken walls.

Yubaba turned and came back to Chihiro. "This place had better be spotless before Haku's little problem shows up."

Chihiro scrunched her nose. "Then why don't you do some of your magic. She could show up any time."

Yubaba scoffed. "And deprive you of an opportunity to learn more about hard work? I think not."

Chihiro inhaled, about to fire back, when a frog spirit came racing up to Yubaba. "Ma'am! Mistress! Mistress Yubaba! We have another problem!"

Yubaba ground her teeth and closed her eyes, pressing her left thumb and index finger against the bridge of her nose. "What is it?"

"There is a woman on the bridge."

"What about her?"

"She's demanding to see Haku."

A/N: This chapter was edited and re-uploaded on 3/28/14. No major changes were made. Edits simply addressed minor errors and redundancies.