Sen had driven home in a daze. She couldn't help but keep turning that name over and over in her mind.

Kohaku. Kohaku. Kohaku.

Something about that name made her heart ache and her eyes well with tears. Frustrated, Sen angrily wiped the moisture from her dark brown eyes and set her mouth in a deep frown. Why did she know that name? Why did it make her sad to hear it spoken? All of these vaguely familiar things tugging at the edges of her mind were really starting to get on her nerves. Not to mention that the big holes in her childhood memories were starting to concern her as well.

For what seemed like the millionth time, she sighed, slumping down in her seat and resting her forehead against the steering wheel. Why did she have to dredge up all these things from her past now? She was only a year away from graduating… although she wasn't terribly thrilled about it. Come to think of it, she wasn't terribly thrilled about anything anymore. For so long, her life seemed to be completely black and white without any splashes of color. Sen certainly wasn't depressed, but there was definitely something missing. The only things that really brought her contentment anymore was drawing the strange creatures that she saw in her dreams: a black figure with a noh-mask for a face, an extremely old woman with a large bird-like nose and countless wrinkles, an average-looking brunette woman in her late twenties, a boy with turquoise hair…

She drew countless pictures of the boy with blue-green hair.

And she was sick of it.

Sen glanced at the clock gleaming in her dashboard. It was only 6:00 and it wouldn't get dark until at least 9 or 9:30 since it was the beginning of summer. If she left now, she could get to the place where the Kohaku River used to be and have some time to look around before the sun went down. Maybe then she would finally find some answers. She eagerly started her car and googled the directions to her destination; she wanted to leave before she too much about this trip, because she knew without a doubt that she would change her mind if she did.

Stomping on the gas pedal, Sen weaved in and out of traffic, relying solely on her phone's navigation and praying it was accurate. The whole drive, her mind and heart were racing frantically. Would she find anything at this place? What exactly was she looking for? What did she expect to happen? Despite not having any answers to her own questions, she kept driving, determined to get something out of this endeavor.

"Destination on the left in 500 feet," her phone chimed robotically, snapping her out of her thoughts.

Sen felt her heart hammer painfully inside her chest; this was it, the moment she had long anticipated. She turned into the small apartment complex but as she drove further into the property, found herself a bit surprised. The place was completely ordinary, with only three small, two story buildings paneled in a plain beige with blue trim. Large Momiji and Matsu trees immediately surrounded the buildings like a wall of greenery, giving the place an overall calmness. She parked in an empty space as far from the actual buildings as she could and then clutched her steering wheel tightly, taking deep breaths to keep herself from slipping into a panic attack.

"I shouldn't feel like this," she chided herself. "I don't even remember this place."

After a few more deep breaths, Sen finally mustered the courage to get out of her car. For a long time, all she did was look around. It was hard to believe that the concrete she was standing on was once a large river that affected her life so deeply. She knelt down and touched her fingers to the warm pavement; it was a silly gesture, but she felt compelled to be closer to the water she hoped was flowing beneath the concrete.

Suddenly, the wind whipped around her violently, causing her hair to thrash around her face in all directions. She thought it was odd because the wind had been calm all day, but she decided to ignore it; it was probably just her overactive imagination at work again. Once the wind died down, Sen could hear the faint sounds of rushing water in the distance. Unable to stop herself, she started running towards it. Only seconds after pushing through the brush that was at the base of the Momiji and Matsu trees, she found herself at the bank of a very small stream that was narrow enough to be crossed by foot.

This was all that was left of the great Kohaku River.

Sen sat on the bank next to the stream and stared at it for a long time. When the sun penetrated the tops of the trees and glinted off the surface of the water, it looked almost turquoise… just like the water in her dreams. Still feeling compelled by something she didn't understand, Sen slipped off her sandals and submerged her feet in the warm, shallow water.

...

The frog spirit observed from the shadowy brush across the stream from her; watching, waiting. When she first approached the water, she was clearly hesitant and something about her face was wrong. That's why at first he wasn't even sure this was the right girl. But the very moment her skin touched the water it was like her entire demeanor changed; her face lit up and she let out a huge sigh of relief. She even immersed her hands in the water and splashed some on her bare legs. When she smiled at the stream, he knew.

Sen.

It had been 13 years and she'd certainly aged, something spirits were seldom familiar with. That was why it took him so long to find her and properly identify her; she was no longer the scrawny child that had accidentally stumbled upon their world one day with her parents. She was taller now, still scrawny but built with a little more muscle tone, and her dark mahogany ponytail was now to the middle of her back. He may not have known it was her if it weren't for her uncannily similar outfit to the one she had worn 13 years ago. She sat on the bank in small pink shorts and a white and green striped t-shirt. Even her sandals were yellow, exactly as her shoes had been the day she arrived.

Aogaeru had come to this place often over the last 13 years, waiting for the day when Sen would undoubtedly return. After all, the memory spell wouldn't last forever and sooner or later she would start to get curious about the pieces she began to remember. Luckily for him, that day had finally come.

The frog smoothed his blue jinbei shirt and tightened the sash keeping the shirt closed. Sen clearly hadn't remembered everything yet, which was all the better for him. If he could just find a way to somehow lure her back to the Spirit Gate before it closed again, he would become a very rich spirit indeed. Sure, Sen would probably never be allowed to leave but that wasn't his problem. The only thing in his sights was the large bag of gold pieces that had been dangled in front of him 13 years ago. That, and the fact that he would most likely be skinned if he failed to bring her back.

As the sun began to set, Sen started to look around as though she knew she should leave. This was his chance. She began to reach for her bright yellow sandals when Aogaeru hopped from his hiding place onto the bank directly across from Sen. She looked up, her facial expression conveying that she was confused as to why a frog was wearing a shirt. The frog spirit stood up, surveying her for a moment before his nasally voice addressed her.

"Hello, Sen. It's been a long time."

And she fainted.