Author's note:
Just a shoutout to to mah readers who dropped me a review so early in the life of this story xDD
Guest, Jeanne, and SayWhatYouWill
Thanks for the reviews, peeps! ANd super duper sorry for the late update, school started, and well, life has gotten much much busier for me. I have a couple other stories and scripts to type up so I've been juggling them around. Hopefully the next update wouldn't take too long but don't count on it! I still need to update my other fanfic XD
Thankies for reading and enjoy this chapter! Can't wait for the next next chapter because that's when the action begins! (I hope)
Haku stood in front of the bridge that arched over the railroad tracks. Beside him Yubaba fiddled with the sash that wrapped around Boh's waist and made sure her little boy looked presentable. The rest of the bathhouse workers stood a farther way's back near the entrance, all buzzing with excitement for the dragon family's arrival. According to the letter Haku received a few months back, the dragon entourage will arrive from the sky in carriages that were pulled by large winged horses. So they all waited as the last rays of sun peeked from the horizon, staring at the twilight sky expectantly. A smell of salty sea air was carried to them by a soft breeze and Haku immediately knew that they were near. "Light the lamps!" He called out to the workers and they scrambled to turn on the lanterns that hung from the ornate roof that covered the bathhouse entrance. A brilliant array of glowing colors erupted from the lanterns just as the sun disappeared from the horizon. The yuna released a few floating lanterns into the air and the balls of light floated up to the dark night sky, revealing a few specks of color from the east that gradually grew bigger as it neared the bathhouse.
"They're here! You know the drill!" Yubaba barked to the workers and they all waited for the pegasi-drawn carriages to land on the other side of the bridge. Before the first dragon could even open their door, the frog workers lit a match and set it on a wire, the small spark flickering its way across the bridge on the rails, lighting up even more lanterns and sea-shell shaped torches. The now lit bridge warmly invited the dragon entourage to come out, and they could hear the guests murmur in approval at the wondrous sight. The lights from the lamps caused the banner of water to shimmer in an array of colors, and when Haku gave the signal, one last light was lit, directly shining through the banner to make a miniature rainbow that stretched all the way across the bridge. It was the dragon equivalent of a red carpet.
Toyotama-hime nodded with a smile as she stepped out of her carriage, a large white structure made of crystal and ice as well as coral to add some color that made the white shine out brilliantly. Ryujin stood beside his daughter with a satisfied look on his elegant face, stroking his beard as he observed the well-planned welcome his grandson has made. "Your son did good for a beginner," he said to Toyotama-hime who laughed in amusement.
"Only as a beginner?" As if to prove her point, Haku gestured with his hand and an explosion of light lit the night sky with ever changing colors and moving images. Haku and Yubaba had worked together for the light show, using their powers to launch spell-bound balls of crystals into the sky and create colorful moving pictures. It was similar to a human's fireworks except that no smoke or pollution came from the lights since it was mainly magic and crystal that were used. Different material, same brilliance. Toyotama-hime made a large smile at her father as the whole dragon entourage admired the light show; this was the first any spirit has ever seen since Haku had gotten the idea from his time in the mortal world. "Well, my lord?"
Ryujin chuckled. "I suppose Kohaku is a rather brilliant-minded spirit with creativity such as this. I am sure we will enjoy our stay here immensely."
On the other side of the bridge, Haku had a quick conversation with Yubaba. "It appears that they are impressed with our display," he told her with a victorious look.
"Indeed, you've outdone yourself, Haku," the old witch cackled as every spirit watched the light show. A few more minutes passed and Yubaba spoke again. "You should go greet our guests before the light show ends."
Haku nodded and began to make his way across the bridge with all regal glory. He chose to wear his best clothes that day, a tunic of fine blue silk and gold embroidery with a long, white coat with blue trims over it. He wore long, silk pants that brushed along the wood of the bridge as he glided across. On his feet were white socks of the finest fabric and black silk shoes. He wore a simple golden ring with an emerald; it was a symbol of authority and showed he was of the royal family of the Dragon Palace. He made his way across the bridge slowly, calculating the best stride that would show he had power enough to make them wait but not to seem rude. With fairly sized steps and a nice slow pace, he reached his family in the perfect amount of time.
Haku bowed respectfully and greeted his family. "Welcome to Aburaya, my lord Ryujin and royal family. I am Nigihayami Kohaku nushi, one of the bosses of this bathhouse."
"Thank you for the wonderful welcome, Kohaku," Ryujin said formally. Then, with a soft chuckle, he added, "It was such a splendid welcome that we were not able to announce ourselves in all formality."
Haku's ears pinked a bit, having forgotten that visiting royalty would have a fanfare and announce themselves when coming to a place. "Forgive me for forgetting my formalities, my lord." He bowed deeply and his mother laughed.
"It was a brilliant first welcome, Kohaku," Toyotama-hime assured with a smile. "Well, will you escort us over the bridge?"
"Of course, your Highness," he said with another bow before leading them over the bridge.
Haku walked slightly ahead of his mother and grandfather, with his siblings a little behind them. The rest of the dragons' entourage walked in three long columns in uniformed precision behind the royal family. Once across the bridge, Yubaba stepped up to them with a deep curtsy, Boh bowing as well, in greeting. "Welcome to Aburaya valued customers. We are pleased to house the royal family of the Dragon Palace," the old witch said formally. "I am Yubaba, the owner of the bathhouse and this is my son, Boh."
"We are pleased to stay at such a lovely place," Ryujin said in return.
"We will escort you to the main banquet room to dine unless your royalness would like a private room?" Yubaba said hospitably as she began to lead the way into the bathhouse.
"I am more than pleased to dine with my people, thank you," the dragon king replied.
"When will we be shown our rooms? I would like for my belongings to be unloaded from the carriages soon," Toyotama-hime asked.
"I will have some workers bring your luggage into your rooms once the banquet has started, your royalness," Yubaba said just as she gestured for Chihiyaku to approach them. The frog approached them uncertainly, bowing as he reached them. "Chihiyaku, make sure the royal family's luggage has been brought to their rooms soon."
"Oh, and please do send the pegasi into the stables and have someone attend to their needs," Yachiru piped up from beside Yanagi, the twins standing behind Haku and their mother.
"Of course. Chihiyaku, you've got that?" The old witch barked at the frog.
"Yes Yubaba, we will get right on it." Chihiyaku hopped away to the workers that hid in the hallways.
Once the frog had disappeared from their sight, Haku turned around to face his family with a small smile. "Shall we dine?"
There was a loud buzz as the many servants and members of the dragon entourage chatted among themselves as they sat at long, low tables that were covered with dishes, trays, and huge bowls of food of every kind and glasses and jugs of sake, wine, tea and various other drinks for them to indulge in. The banquet hall they currently dined in took the entire dining floor, with the walls temporarily removed to allow enough space for such a large number of guests. A group of the bathhouse's more skilled workers played soft music in one corner of the floor, and other workers bustled between the tables attending to their guests' needs like refilling glasses, replenishing dishes, cleaning up messes, and anything else they could ask for. The room was lighted with soft-glowing seashells that was imported from a faraway ocean town. The lighting gave a nice atmosphere that welcome the guests and reminded them of home.
While the dragon entourage dined in the long tables, the royal family along with the two bathhouse owners sat on a raised makeshift platform slightly apart from the rest. Haku was seated between his twin brother and sister while Yubaba and Boh sat beside Toyotoma-hime at the other end of the table. Haku took a sip from his glass of tea before turning to his brother. "Yanagi, why is Ichirou and Kimiko not here?" he asked his older brother.
Yanagi closed his deep-blue eye before replying. "Some business came up before we left the Palace. Ichirou insisted on taking care of the matter for our lord Ryujin as the Crown Prince."
"Mother told Onee-sama to stay as well to make sure Onii-sama would come as soon as the problem was settled," Yachiru added before popping a blood-red cherry in her mouth. She chewed for a few moments before speaking up again. "The Guardian of the South is being fussy again."
"Oh," was all Haku said, understanding immediately. The Guardian of the South was the Red Bird, also known as the phoenix (more specifically, the Suzaku). In the south among the clouds, the royal family of the phoenix lived in a palace that rested on a mountain high enough to reach the heavens. The head of the family is the famed Red Bird, Akane. The dragon family's mortal enemy as well as lord Ryujin's wife. Let's just say it is a very difficult love-hate relationship between the two. Haku cleared his throat before speaking again. "When will they join us then?"
"It should only take a few days before Ichirou calms the Red Bird," Yanagi replied. He took a bite of a strange dish that sizzled and bubbled from a heated stone. "But I must say that you know how to plan a banquet, Kohaku."
"Nothing but the best for my valued guests and family," Haku smiled.
His brother laughed and patted his back. "I can just feel that our stay here will be extremely worthwhile."
A few hours later, the feasting and drinking finally slowed to a stop as the guests patted their full tummies. The workers hurried to clear the tables of the many empty plates and dishes while everyone stretched their arms, began nodding off, or talked to one another. Yubaba had already excused herself to put Boh to bed saying he can't stay up too late. Toyotama-hime stifled a yawn with her dainty hands and called for Haku. "Kohaku, I think it's best to show us our rooms now. It appears everyone is ready to retire to bed."
"Good thinking, Toyotoma! Let us rest while our bellies are still full!" The lord Ryujin bellowed in his loud voice, getting up to his feet and leaning on his scepter. Haku quickly rose and the yuna rushed to lead the way to everyone's rooms. Most of the entourage were to stay in the first two guest levels while those higher in rank and status stayed in the third floor. The dragon family had an entire floor for themselves, just before Haku's floor.
After showing his family their rooms, Haku turned for the elevator to go to his own quarters just as Yachiru came in a pale blue nightgown. "Kohaku, are you not sleeping with us?"
"Ah, Yachiru, " he said, stopping to face his sister. "I have my own personal quarters to stay in."
"Oh, okay. Well, good night, little brother," she smiled, waving before returning to her room.
Haku rode the elevator up and when it opened, was welcomed by the emptiness of his own room. His feet led him to his bedroom as he yawned loudly, tired after a long night. It was only a few more hours before dawn, yet he was already exhausted. It really was going to be a busy month with his family staying at the bathhouse. Haku groggily felt for the wall in his dark room, too tired to turn on the lights. He slowly reached his bed and fell face first into his large, fluffy pillows. Before long he was already deep asleep.
When Haku awoke, it was already late in the afternoon, a couple hours before the sun would set. The afternoon sun shone brightly in the sky and forced him to close his eyes while they adjusted. Once he was used to the brightness, Haku rose from his bed and took a nice bath with soothing herbal essence. He was feeling a bit nauseous after all the food he ate the night before and a warm bath was the solution to any problem of his. He sat in the rippling water and closed his eyes as he enjoyed the relaxing aroma that came with the bath. "It will be another long day today," he murmured to himself. He could feel his muscles losing tension the longer he sat in the bath but after a while, he began to feel light-headed and decided it was time to face the day.
Haku stretched his arms over his shoulders as he stepped out of his bedroom into the main hall of his quarters when he realized all was still silent. Everyone else must still be asleep, he thought to himself as he went down the elevator. He reached the main floor of the bathhouse where the baths were located and made a final check to make sure all the commodities were there and that each bath was clean. He had just reached the big tub when he noticed a figure scrubbing away in it. "Lin? You're awake early."
"Oh, morning, dragon," Lin said as she paused from her work, leaning against the long-handled bristled brush she was using to scrub the last of the muck on the big tub. "I couldn't sleep any longer so I thought I should make sure that the big tub was clean."
"Huh, maybe I should give you a raise," Haku smiled as the weasel-spirit climbed out of the tub.
"Yeah? You should. Wait, a nice vacation would be better. Give me a train ticket and I'd do the most exhausting job you could find," she grinned.
"I just might take you on that offer," the river-spirit said in amusement. "What did you think of yesterday?"
"Yesterday? Yeah, it was pretty successful. I haven't been that busy since the time No-Face came and wrecked the place," Lin said as she began packing up her cleaning supplies. "Well, I gotta get going. See you later, Haku."
"Bye, Lin." Haku watched her leave the bath before returning upstairs once more where he finds his brother, Yanagi, already dressed in his most casual robes and sipping tea as he walked around Haku's office. "Yanagi?"
"Kohaku, hope you don't mind. I thought I should know where my brother lives," Yanagi chuckled as he set down his cup of tea on Haku's desk. "It's pretty cramped in your office but the rest of the floor is quite spacious. I noticed you only use this room, your bedroom, and the private bath."
"Less room to clean," Haku explained as he closed the door. "Is everyone else awake just yet?"
"No. They'll wake on their on time, this is vacation for us, we're not here in official business. Oh? What's this?" Yanagi gestured at the small fountain Haku kept in the corner of the office. "If my memory serves correctly, you brought the same object to the palace when you last visited."
"Ah, yes. It's a very important gift to me from one of my friends."
"It seems magical. Does it do anything?" his brother asked curiously as he picked up the fountain.
Haku felt a twinge as his brother touched his fountain. "It allows me to see a friend of mine."
"Oh? Is that it?"
"Yanagi! You should have woken me up if you were going to explore Kohaku's quarters!" Yachiru said as she burst into the small office. She raised her eyebrows at the fountain in her brother's hands. "Oh? What's that for?"
"It's so Kohaku can see a friend of his," Yanagi explained and Yachiru squealed.
"I would love to see! Kohaku, may we?" she asked, giving Haku the puppy dog eyes.
Haku thought about it for a moment and shrugged. He was reluctant on allowing anyone in his family know about Chihiro but since this is one his more trusted siblings, he thought it wouldn't hurt. "Of course." He waved a hand and the water began running and the image of Chihiro's empty room appeared before their eyes.
"Kohaku's friend is an empty bedroom?" Yachiru said with a confused look.
"No, this just means my friend is not there at the moment," Haku explained just as Chihiro walked into her room.
"A human girl!"
"This must be the same human who came to the Spirit World a few years ago! I'm right, aren't I, Kohaku?" Yanagi exclaimed as they leaned close to the image of Chihiro.
"Not outraged?" Haku asked as he watched his older siblings be fascinated by the human girl.
"Not at all. Just simply curious as to how she survived without any changes," his brother said as Chihiro sat on her bed with a dazed look.
"I'm not an expert in emotions, but it looks like your friend is troubled, Kohaku," Yachiru pointed out.
"What?" Haku leaned in closer, too, and immediately noticed the lack of energy in Chihiro's person. The girl was staring out the window with her mind elsewhere, and was it just him, or were her eyes red? Haku's forehead creased as he tried to figure out what's wrong with his dear friend. Why is Chihiro like that? I wish I could find out, but she's not asleep so I can't enter her dreams. Also-
"Kohaku must be very fond of the human," Yanagi noted as he observed his younger brother carefully.
"Well, she seems like a very admirable person to survive the Spirit World," Yachiru said in support of Chihiro. "But yes, Kohaku is incredibly worried about her."
"I'm not sure how the lord Ryujin would act when he finds out that his grandson is fond of humans but I'm almost certain that it would be disastrous if it does happen," Yanagi said. He placed a hand on Haku's shoulder to snap him out of his daze. "Kohaku. I hope you haven't been making any contact with this human."
"You don't need to worry, Yubaba already made me swear not to go to the human world. I haven't made any contact with Chihiro at all these past few years," Haku said, mentally adding: Except for the dreams, there has been no physical contact.
"That's good. We don't mind you worrying about your friend but keep this hidden from Ichirou and grandfather," his older brother wisely advised. "We have no idea how they'll react with your connection to a human."
"Of course. Thank you for your concern."
"I suggest you don't use that fountain while we're still here, Kohaku," Yachiru said with a worried look in her eyes. "We can't risk anyone finding out. And you aren't the most secure person when it comes to your quarters."
"Agreed. I'll put the fountain away for now and not use it in the duration of your stay," Haku agreed, waving a hand over the fountain again to stop the flowing water and making the image of Chihiro to disappear. He took it in his arms and walked out the office with his two siblings following his heel. They walked down the hall and into a locked room. "This is the only other room I've used in this entire floor. It's where I keep most of my more important and secret possessions," he explained as he gazed at the door. Muttering a chant underneath his breath, the door slid open to reveal a dark room. Yanagi and Yachiru could barely make out the outlines of what's inside. "I will only take a moment," Haku said as he entered the room while sliding the door closed behind him. The two siblings stood outside the room waiting and after a minute, the door opened again and Haku came out with no fountain inside. "Thank you for waiting."
"Don't look to lonely, Kohaku, it's only for a month and then you can watch your human all you want," Yachiru assured him, taking his hands in hers with an earnest look.
Haku's face turned a light pink as he shook his head. "You've mistaken, Yachiru."
His sister giggled at her brother's embarrassment. "Well, let's go downstairs. I'm sure mother would be waking soon."
"Yes, and I wouldn't mind one of those legendary baths now," Yanagi murmured in agreement and their younger brother nodded.
"Of course. I'll show you to the bath." The three left Haku's floor and descended downstairs as the rest of the bathhouse began to awaken.