Written Rivers

Book 2: A Tie Amongst Rivers

Chapter 17: The Return Home

Yuuka flew high in the sky and began her circled descent onto the Bathhouse. It had been a while since she had been back to the Bathhouse but she had learned a lot during her time with her aunt. The number of spells and potions she learned for different ailments and occasions were amazing and made her wish she hadn't put it off for so long.

She spent a lot of her days with Kaonashi, tending to the gardens and making trips to the market when her aunt needed something she couldn't grow herself, or at least preferred not to. Kaonashi was always kind to her and taught her things she never would have learned on her own. He had an especially green thumb and a good eye for valuables in the marketplace.

Boh had also matured quite a bit since she started her stay at Zeniba's. He was starting to look more like a five or six-year-old in proportions and behaving more appropriately for his age. Boh had actually learned a majority of the kanji and was now able to read higher-level books, including some of their aunt's spellbooks. Which, honestly, was more trouble than it was worth because he was now trying different spells around the cottage and not the friendly kind. The other night, Boh decided it would be a good idea to prank her by placing a spell on the hot water in the shower, nearly burning her before she shifted to her bird form. Then he placed a wind spell on her while she was tending to the garden, causing her kimono to fly up and over her head. He certainly was his mother's son.

In a way, Yuuka was grateful to get away from the cottage, if only to get away from the mischievous grade-schooler that now took residence in her home. She also missed her friends. She hadn't really seen them since Haku was sick and any visits she made since then were for quick deliveries. She missed the days of just hanging out with her friends to hang out. She especially missed her days with Rumi, the closest thing she would ever have to a sister.

Yuuka circled down to the Bathhouse and landed at the end of the bridge where Rumi stood waiting. Yuuka landed on the bare feet of her human form and bounced into Rumi's welcoming arms.

"Rumi!" She exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Rumi's neck.

Rumi embraced her and pet her hair, laughing. "Hi Yuuka, I'm glad to see you're well."

Yuuka rocked back onto her heels and grinned. "Are you ready to go back to the Human World?"

The older girl bated her breath slightly then nodded. "Yup. Everything is packed and ready to go."

Yuuka tilted her head. "Everything alright?"

"Yup," Rumi said, patting her head with a smile before turning towards the Bathhouse.

"Should I be concerned?" Yuuka said, coming around to see Rumi's face.

A mischievous expression went over Rumi's face before she smiled once again. "No. But you'll see soon."

"Haaah?"

Rumi laughed and led the way into the Bathhouse, changing the subject with small talk. Inside, they met up with Chihiro who welcomed Yuuka with a big hug and words of excitement for the journey ahead. Chihiro seemed a bit more confident now and walked with her head held a little higher, same with Rumi. Yuuka could only aspire to be like them, she had a long way to go.

"Yuuka-Neesan!"

A little head of dirty blonde ran into her arms and knocked her over.

"Yuuka!" Rumi exclaimed, with a look of worry.

"Ameeeeee-Kun." Yuuka groaned, trying to get the weight of the boy off her.

"It's been so long, Yuuka-Chan!" Ame grinned, sitting up so Yuuka could get up. "I was hoping you would be coming through again."

"Of course I would! You can't keep me away from this place forever." She replied with a smug look.

Ame simply laughed and took her by the hand and started walking down the hall with the girls again. It felt like home as they chatted about things she'd missed while she was away. How Haku and Chihiro had gone to the river, how Makoto and Rumi were an official item and how the gate had recently opened, and all the little things in between. It really had been a while. But she had a feeling there was a small secret still looming around that they were trying to keep from Yuuka, but she wasn't going to push for it.

"Yuuka."

Yuuka stopped swinging her arm between her and Ame and looked up to find Haku coming around the corner from his office. "Hi, Haku. What's up?"

"Welcome back, I'm glad to see you are well. I wanted to talk with you before you all left to the Human World, come see me later."

Yuuka nodded, "sure thing."

Yuuka, Chihiro, Rumi, Ame, and Makoto all met for lunch in the mess hall and just chatted, catching up and telling stories of what had happened since the last time Yuuka was around. Even Rin came down and sat to talk for a bit before leaving to go take care of some Bathhouse responsibilities. Something about the atmosphere of being around her friends laughing and chatting gave Yuuka a sense of ease that she had forgotten about. She didn't want it to go.

After having lunch with everyone and talking, Yuuka excused herself to go and talk with Haku in his office. It wasn't until she started making the walk to the office that her palms started to get sweaty. This would be her first time back in the Human World with everyone since being separated from Rumi and all the truth being spilled. Zeniba had sent her on a couple of errands in the Human World but this was different. She knew that she'd been forgiven and that she was now on good terms with everyone once again, but that small bit of anxiety that clung to her mind like a barbed hook still needed to be freed.

Yuuka quickly found herself outside the office. She looked down at her sweaty palms and took a few deep breaths. What if Haku asked her not to go because he didn't trust her?

After steeling her nerves, she raised her hand to rasp it against the door with a few hollow thuds.

"Come in, Yuuka," Haku said from the other side.

Yuuka slowly opened the door and walked inside to find Haku at his usual spot at his desk, leaning over piles of scrolls and an assortment of small bags filled with different herbs for the baths. Yuuka had to hold her breath a little from the intense combination of smells, she could only imagine how Haku's stronger dragon nose was fairing.

She stood not too far from the desk and waited for Haku to finish writing something down on a scroll before he put down his fountain pen to look at her. His expression was neutral and he didn't seem angry or hint at any disdain for her. Why would he? He'd conversed with her many times over the last few months in regards to different herbs and errands Zeniba had sent her on. She shouldn't have even needed a reason to be as nervous as she was. She even considered him to be a sort of close friend. Why was she so nervous?

"Yuuka."

At her name, she realized that she was looking at the floor and looked up at Haku's empathetic expression, almost paternal in nature as he took a deep breath, queuing her to do the same. Slowly her nerves melted a little as she breathed with him.

"Thank you…" Yuuka said, whipping her hands on her yukata.

Haku nodded, shifting in his chair to sit more comfortably. "I called you here to talk to you about you going to the Human World with Chihiro and Rumi. I wanted to ask-"

"I'll be sure not to cause any trouble this time! I swear!" Yuuka interrupted, breath bated as the anxiety built up again in her mind.

Haku frowned with concern. "Yuuka, I didn't call you here to reprimand you, I called you to ask if you will be alright going back?"

"What?" She squeaked on the verge of tears from the stress.

"Yuuka," Haku said, warm with empathy. "I know you still let what happened to weigh on your heart and it's time to let it go. I'm sure you know that Chihiro and Rumi already have and I wouldn't have asked you to go with them to the Human World if I didn't trust you with the responsibility of going with them. You've proven yourself exceptionally over the past few months, I ask that you don't dwell on the past any more than the rest of us. We all trust you."

Yuuka took a deep breath and nodded, her mind slowly coming down from its race around the Bathhouse.

"So I'll ask you again, Yuuka, are you going to be alright going back with Chihiro and Rumi?"

She nodded again. "Yes, yes I will. I'll do my best and won't let you down."

Haku smiled, but it was sad. "All I ask is that you do your best and be yourself. It's not your job to impress anyone."

"Oh," Yuuka replied. "I think I can do that…"

Haku stood, reached down, and patted her head. "I know you can. You are strong and wise beyond your years." He guided her to the door. "If you ever need anything you know you can come to me."

"Yes, Haku." Yuuka smiled with a sniffle.

"I do trust that you will be there for the girls though. Now go make sure you're packed and ready to go."

Yuuka turned in the door and saluted. "Yes sir."

Haku chuckled and watched her as she went down the hall towards the upper floors.

Yuuka returned to the Human World bound party and retrieved the few things she would need for the trip. As they all met in the main lobby, double-checking they had everything, Yuuka approached Rumi timidly and took a breath.

She bit her lip. "We don't have to do this Rumi…"

Rumi placed her hand on Yuuka's shoulder and smiled warmly. "Yuuka, it's alright. I trust you and love you. Besides, I have something to tell you. You're bound to find out soon."

Yuuka cocked her head. "Find out what?"

Rumi glanced over at her mate, Makoto, and smiled. "Let's just say, it won't be just Makoto and me for long."

Yuuka blinked and took a moment to process the new information. "I'm sorry… what?"

"Yuuka…" Rumi smiled, her eyes with a glow that she'd never seen before. "Makoto and I are going to be having a baby?"

Yuuka noticed a tension in Rumi's shoulders that seemed to ease as she let her into this private moment. Rumi was…

"Are you serious?" Yuuka asked, looking between the two.

Rumi nodded.

"I… I'm so… I'm so happy for you!" Yuuka finally exclaimed. "How long have you known?"

"Ummm." Rumi turned to Makoto, quizzically. "Almost a month now?"

"About," Makoto affirmed.

"This is amazing." Yuuka gasped, running her fingers through her hair. "Amazing."

Rumi chuckled and wrapped her arms around her. "And I want you to be their big sister."

Yuuka stiffened. "What? Can I really be that?"

"Of course. I wouldn't ask for anyone else." Rumi squeezed gently. "I trust you."

Yuuka felt her eyes water slightly and hid her face in Rumi's shirt. "Okay." She muffled into the shirt.

Rumi chuckled again. "Now, let's merge so you can go to the Human World with us."

Yuuka leaned away and nodded. "Alright, you ready?"

Rumi took in a breath and nodded. "Let's do it."

Yuuka reached up and touched the older girl's face and looked her in the eyes and they both started to glow a faint purple. Rumi's surface thoughts began to flood into her mind as she began to shift into a shadow, particles swirling around until they washed over Rumi and she vanished into thin air.

Now, from what Yuuka knew, every yosuzume spirit experienced possession differently. Some saw a train station, some a forest, others boxes. Yuuka saw a long hall of doors, every door leading to a different memory or part of Rumi's mind. Some doors were locked, others were labeled, some were left slightly ajar from frequent reference. There were a few doors that Yuuka had kept locked for a long time until she was forced out of Rumi's mind, swinging the doors that had been kept closed for so long wide open for Rumi to see. She would have handled that much differently in hindsight…

Yuuka roamed through the hall of Rumi's mind until she found the corner she once claimed for almost ten years. But as she made her way, she heard a voice that wasn't there the last time she was there. It echoed from a space further down the hall, almost like it was echoing beyond the walls that held the doors in place. Before she went to her corner, she wandered around, looking for the voice.

"... are you…" The voice was barely audible.

"Hello?" Yuuka called out to the voice.

"Yuuka are you alright?" Rumi's voice echoed in the hall.

"Yeah, I'm fine. How about you?"

"All good, I think we can head out now." Rumi's voice sounded like it was smiling, but the feelings that lied beneath the surface were still tender and nervous. At first, Yuuka thought she was anxious that she was cohabitating in her mind again, but then she realized that it was the baby that caused her anxiety still.

"...hope she likes us..."

"... she has to, right?"

"...she been saaaad…"

"... makes me saaad…"

"... make her happy… together…"

The voices were starting to become more clear. They weren't so much as words, but feelings that Yuuka could somehow understand. She couldn't exactly tell where they came from but she had an assumption of where they came from. And judging how Rumi never responded to them, told her that she couldn't hear them. She wouldn't pry further and for now, would keep her thoughts and all other thoughts in their "rooms." She didn't want to be intrusive on Rumi's thoughts, or any others for that matter. For now, she would sit back and observe the world through Rumi's eyes.

Yuuka watched as Rumi and everyone else walked to the old weathered Train Station. Once they stood inside, in front of the tunnels, Rumi sucked in her breath. Sudden anxiety began to bubble up inside her as she thought of what might happen to the baby when she walked through the tunnel.

"... saaaad… she saaad again…"

"... fine… will be fine…"

The small voices almost sounded like they were trying to comfort Rumi.

"Remember, just don't look back. You will all be fine." Makoto's voice cut through the anxiety, as he took Rumi's hand. "I'm here."

The anxiety and even the voices settled at the sound of his voice, cool and even, balm to a wound. Yuuka noticed the effect Makoto had on Rumi early on when the three of them just met. When Yuuka didn't know how to help her, Makoto's meer presence was able to calm Rumi and get her through her anxiety episodes, especially when she couldn't unsee the horrors that accompanied seeing the spirits that occupied the Human World. It was no wonder they ended up together after the bond they formed over the years.

"Don't forget," Haku said, from his place next to Chihiro, holding her hand in a tender yet firm grip, as if he was restraining himself from telling her not to go. "Be back by the Summer Solstice. That's about a little over a week from now. I pray that you all be safe and that your parents are excepting of everything that has happened."

"I think they'll be fine. It may jar them a bit," Chihiro replied, "but I have a feeling they'll respond better than we think."

Something about her tone didn't really convince either Yuuka or Rumi of her beliefs. There was an edge in her tone that seemed to say that she was more trying to convince herself rather than the people around her.

"I wish you the best then." Haku pressed his lips against Chihiro's hair and then looked over at the others. "Watch yourselves and enjoy your time together in the Human World. It may be a while until you go back again."

Everyone nodded and said goodbye to the dragon before turning to the tunnels. Chihiro sucked in a breath and stepped in first, retreating down the tunnel towards the light of the Human World. Makoto took Rumi's hand and they stepped into the tunnel together, moving forward without looking back.

"... so exciting…"

"... where we go…?"

"Shhhh, you'll like this place," Yuuka whispered to the voices. "Just watch."

On the other side of the tunnel, they met the bright lights that streamed through the branches of the forest beyond. Rumi took in a deep breath and looked around. It was like nothing had changed. The little statue still sat in front of them, staring intently with its empty eyes and the forest still sang with the sound of the birds and spirits that resided there. Chihiro was waiting for them at the base of the path that led out of the forest.

"You guys ready?"

"Well aren't you in a rush," Rumi said sarcastically.

"Heh." Chihiro chuckled nervously. "You could say that."

"You'll be fine," Makoto said, shifting to his Shikoku dog form. "I just your parents will be understanding."

Chihiro nodded with a small gulp and started up the path. It wasn't long before the little blue house on the hill was in view. Instead of taking the long way around, which Chihiro began insisting they take as the house became more in view, they started straight up the hill that the house sat on. Suddenly, it was Makoto leading the way up the hill with Rumi close behind and Chihiro beginning to slowly fall behind.

"Chihiro, come on-" Rumi stopped as she turned to find an almost shell-shocked Chihiro, regretting the tone she almost started in. "Chi-Chan?"

"What if…" She whispered. "What if they don't believe me? What if they send me in and I have no choice in not going back to the Spirit World? What if what happened in middle school happened again?"

"Chi-Chan…" Rumi said gently. "First off, middle school will never happen again because you are different now. None of what is happening now is like what happened back then. Who you are, what you are, where you are in life are all different. You advocate for the spirits in a way no one else has or ever will. They can't take you in and they won't. You're too precious to them."

Chihiro took a deep breath and nodded. "You're right… Let's go them."

When they got to the front door of the Ogino household, Chihiro hesitantly rasped her fist again the white-painted, wooden door. Chihiro perked when she heard footsteps and voices inside.

"Coming!" Echoed the voice of Yuko from behind the door. The doorknob turned and the door slowly opened as Yuko said something to what was assumed to be Akio somewhere in the room behind her. "Hi, how can I-" Her eyes fell on the group in front of her until they saw Chihiro. She stood there in shock like she'd seen a ghost. "Chi… Chihiro… Ru-Rumi…"

"What?" A gruff voice from behind the doors said.

"Hi, Oka-San," Chihiro said sheepishly with a small wave.

All at once, Yuko's eye brimmed with tears and she let out a sob as she brought her arms around her daughter, Chihiro's eyes just as tear filled as she embraced her mother. Akio came into view not long after and ran his hand over his face as he took in what was in front of him.

"I can't believe it…"

Chihiro looked up and went into a full-on sob as she let go of her mother and fell into her father's arms.

"Oto-San!"

The three of them embraced and just cried. To what end? Who knew. They were just together again and that's all that matter in that moment. It was the moments that followed that got… intense.

"Where have you been?!" Yuko exclaimed, taking Chihiro by the shoulders and holding her at arm's length to observe her under scrutinous eyes. "Are you hurt?"

"Oka-San, I'm fine. Honestly, I'm more than fine." Chihiro said, putting her hands over her mother's hands that were holding her face to check for facial injuries. "In fact, I think this is the best I've felt in many years."

Yuko stared at her for a moment until Akio started going off about how worried they were about her and how they had police looking for her and how her work had called when she didn't show up and how confused he was when Makoto showed up in his garage without them. He even pointed out the new grays that graced both his and her mother's head. Yuko decided to guide them all to the living room where they all sat.

"I'm sorry that I worried you. I would have returned sooner if I had the choice." Chihiro said, touching her father's arm to calm him.

"What do you me?" Yuko asked. "Where have you been? You told us you were going out of the country and then you never came back. We even called the airport and there were no flights under your name or Rumi-Chan's for the past four years. Where were you?"

Yuuka could see the stress on Yuko's face, the lines and dark bags that now graced her face from not knowing where her daughter was. The last time they saw her, she was so full of life, but those few months that had gone by had done a number on her mentally, emotionally, and physically. She even looked like she'd lost weight.

"Oka-San… I'm sorry I lied. If I'd known I would get stuck where I was, I would have found a way to tell you or even just tell you where I was in the first place." Chihiro paused, looking as though she didn't know how to say what she wanted to. "I… I didn't know if you'd believe me… I didn't know… if history would repeat itself…"

Something in the way Akio and Yuko exchanged looks when Chihiro wasn't looking gave the slight impression that they may have known what she was talking about.

Yuko reached out and held Chihiro's hand. "Chihiro, dear, what don't you think we'd believe? You know you can tell us anything."

Chihiro grimaced at those words, letting go of her mother's hand and leaning back slightly. Makoto sat up from his place on the floor and placed his head on her lap, where she subconsciously started to pet him. "I…" She took a deep breath. "I was in the Spirit World."

The thick silence that followed was suffocating as Akio and Yuko both visibly stiffened at the mention of the Spirit World. The air grew stale and everyone awkwardly stood shifting where they sat. Rumi started to fidget with the end of her braided hair as her mind seemed to race through all the possible outcomes of the situation before them and even going as far as a way of escape if things really went south. The fact that Rumi hadn't said anything yet said a lot about how tense the conversation was.

Akio was the first to finally speak. "I knew this would happen."

"Anata," Yuko warned.

"No!" He stood. "We should have known! After she started asking about her old notebooks and started writing her book-"

"Which we are proud of." Yuko interceded.

"-Yes, but we should have seen it as a sign. We should have known that she would start bringing all this up again!"

"Akio."

Akio stopped to look at his wife's stern face and seemed to realize that he had chosen the wrong way of expressing his frustration. "I'm sorry…" He grumbled, sitting beside his wife once more.

"Chihiro, dear, how are we to believe what you are saying?" Yuko said, choosing her words very carefully. "You went to therapy when you were younger for these kinds of thoughts."

"What's stopping us from taking you back now?" Akio said, receiving a glare and a swat on the leg from his wife.

Chihiro took a shaky breath. "Nothing. Honestly, nothing is stopping you and I don't blame you if you have your doubts. I didn't believe it either. But as soon as I realized how real it all was, how every lie I ever believed was wrong, I came around. That's why I wrote that book. The Spirit World is real, things that happened when I was younger, are real."

"I'm going to need more than that, Chihiro." Akio sighed after a long pause.

A huff came from the Shikoku and Makoto sat up straight and looked Akio dead in the eye, causing the man to flinch slightly. Before their eyes, Makoto shifted from his small domestic house dog form to his human form: black attire, shaggy brown hair and all. Yuko seemed to sink into the couch in shock and Akio gaped at the man that stood in front of him.

"How about this for proof?" Makoto said, quirking an eyebrow.

Yuuka felt Rumi internally blush and look him up and down. Really?

"I feel you could have handled that a bit better." Rumi finally spoke.

Yuko turned to Rumi as if she had just remembered she was there. "You… you can confirm all this?"

Rumi nodded. "Chihiro speaks the truth. We've been trapped in the Spirit World for the last few months. We didn't plan to stay that long, but one thing led to another and we got stuck over there. You know that Chihiro would never lie to you about such a thing."

Yuko glanced between Chihiro and Makoto. "So… You're Makoto?"

The man in question nodded.

"The same Makoto as the dog we adopted all those years ago?"

"Yes, sir," Makoto replied. "I'm actually part wolf god and a descen- and have been by your daughter's side, protecting her, since I came into your home. I apologize for any form of deception you may feel, I tell you, it was not intentional."

Akio's face was a shade of red and a vein was becoming visible above his brow. Rumi's stress levels spiked ever so slightly at the thought of Akio killing Makoto over the things he may be thinking Makoto did under his roof.

"Akio-San! I can assure you, that was all he did. I would know." Rumi said, standing up without thinking.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Akio said with grit teeth, not looking away from the Okami.

Rumi hesitated, suddenly realizing she was the center of attention. "Because… umm… he's my… my husband… and I trust him."

Makoto broke his gaze to look at Rumi as if it were the first time he had heard her admit it out loud. "Rumi…" He breathed.

"Rumi-Chan?" Yuko gasped. "When...?"

"While we were in the Spirit World, I've had plenty of time to think and Makoto was one of the things I had the most time to think about…" Rumi was looking at her hands and fiddling when she thought of something else. "Oh! And there are others." She nudged Chihiro. "Show them."

Chihiro blinked at her and gasped. "Oh!" She dug into her pocket and pulled out her phone. "We have pictures." She opened the gallery on her phone and handed it to her parents. "They're all real. All the myths, all the tales, everything I put in my book, it's all real."

Yuko and Akio swiped through the pictures and their faces went through a series of different expressions as they looked. Every once in and while they would turn the phone towards Chihiro and ask who or what they were looking at. There was one photo that they stopped on and stared at for a while.

"Chihiro-Chan," Yuko asked as if something about it looked familiar. "Who is this?"

She turned the phone to Chihiro, who took it in her hands to see what her parents were pandering over so intently. She looked at her phone and smiled sweetly, almost cradling her phone. "This... this is Haku." She turned her phone towards her parents again and it showed a photo of Haku looking at the camera. He looked like he was caught off guard and in one of his confused, half-smile expressions he only made in front of Chihiro.

Akio seemed to look past the photo and towards Chihiro's bashful expression. Yuko seemed to do the same. Somehow, they seemed to be suddenly sold on the whole "spirit world story" that they had denied in front of Chihiro for years.

"This is all real, isn't it?" Akio asked, incredulously.

A light shone in his daughter's eyes. "Yeah, Oto-San, it is."

Yuko reached out and touched her husband's forearm, biting her lip. "This whole time… you weren't lying? You weren't imagining it?"

Chihiro shook her head. "No, Oka-San. It was all real. They've always been real and very present."

Yuko nodded ever so slightly as if she wasn't surprised. "Chihiro… There's something I have to tell you, that is, show you." She stood and went into another room, Akio staring sadly after her.

"Oto-San…" Chihiro started, "what is she talking about?"

Akio sighed. "Before you and Rumi disappeared, something…" He paused as if struggling for words. "Something happened and suddenly certain memories became very clear to us."

Yuuka had a sudden moment of realization. Her illusion… She didn't just have a hold on Rumi and Chihiro but also a lot of people who were involved with the two of them. Especially Akio and Yuko. How could she have forgotten that they would be affected by the illusion breaking too?

"We didn't know how to tell you and we didn't want to worry you since you never approached us about it. You seemed happy now and had come so far from what our memories said." Akio continued as Yuko came out with a box. "We convinced ourselves that it was just a shared nightmare…"

"Chihiro-Chan, dear, you remember how I picked up painting when you graduated high school?" Her mother asked.

"Yes. You've made some beautiful pieces ever since." Chihiro smiled warmly.

Yuko smiled back. "That's very sweet of you dear." She then cleared her throat. "Well, these are the paintings I started after the dreams- no, memories resurfaced."

She slowly pulled out some beautiful landscape and still life paintings, ones Chihiro remembered seeing throughout her college days. But then, slowly she saw a progression of darker theme paintings the more Yuko pulled out paintings. Suddenly there were paintings of dark skies and scary creatures. She even recognized a painting that seemed to be depicting the warring brothers back during typhoon season. Chihiro's eyes shot up to her mother. She saw them.

"Oka-San… You…"

"I didn't understand at first. How could I let my baby go through all of that alone and then I started actually seeing those creatures after my memories changed. We should have told you that you weren't alone, but your father insisted that we didn't indulge in the thoughts or creatures, lest you start bringing it up again." Yuko's eyes weld with tears.

Akio placed his hand on his wife's hand. "We got worried that maybe something was up when you started asking for your old notebooks in your room and started writing your book. Once we remembered what your childhood looked like, we didn't know if we should stop you or not…" He closed his eyes and breathed, his wrinkled forehead creasing into a frown. "We're sorry we kept this all from you, we should have come to you sooner." He bowed his head. "Obviously we were wrong."

Chihiro gaped. They knew. They had known this whole time but they thought they needed to hold back from her. Her mind seemed to race, trying to figure out what to say next. She worried her lip and fumbled with her hands.

"I…" She wiped her face. "I used to be so scared…" She started where she knew she could. "I never knew what was real… I tried to tell you before…"

Yuko stood and went up to Chihiro, placing her hands on her upper arms. "Chihiro-Chan, we're so sorry. And after you disappeared, we thought that maybe we pushed you away or we didn't talk to you enough about all that happened. Baby, I'm so sorry." Yuuko moved her hands to cup her daughter's face. "Baby... I…"

"It was my fault…" Rumi's voice said, suddenly.

Yuko and Akio looked at her with the most perplexed look.

"Rumi-Chan, how could it be your fault, dear?" Yuko asked reaching out to her as she dried her own eyes with a handkerchief.

"I'm not Rumi though." Purple eyes gazed over at the confused Ogino parents.

"What do you mean?" Akio asked, clearly not convinced.

"I'm a yosuzume spirit named Yuuka, and I have been cohabitating in Rumi's body while I'm in the Human World. I'm the reason why everyone's memories are so stirred up."

Akio opened his mouth then closed it again. It honestly looked like he couldn't tell what to believe anymore.

Yuuka continued. "I promise… I did it to protect everyone. Things… things just got out of hand and out of control and it led to everyone getting their memories back very abruptly and without explanation and-and…" Yuuka took a deep breath and bowed. "I'm sorry."

There was silence for a moment and Yuuka kept her head bowed in sheer fright of what would await her if she raised her head. They should yell at her, curse at her. It's what she deserved after all she'd done. Even after talking with Haku, she couldn't help but feel this way. Her aunt, Rumi, and Chihiro may have been ready to "forgive" her but what about the rest of them? What about herself? They hardly knew her the way they did and she had ruined their lives with her choices.

Yuuka suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her shoulders and embrace her. Everything in her suddenly melted as she realized Yuko was giving her a hug. It was a mother's hug and it felt like every worry, every moment of bad times just melted away and she felt peace. She sank into Yuko's embrace and started to sob.

"I can't say I completely understand what is going on. This is all still very new to me." Yuko said in a hushed voice, rubbing her back. "But my dear, from what I can see so far from this brief moment with you, you had no ill intent behind your actions. I can tell that you love our Chihiro-Chan and Rumi-Chan and that none of this was done to hurt them or any of us."

Something in Yuuka came out in a rugged release of air from her lungs. Like the weight of everything in her life just left her body. She wrapped her arms around Yuko's torso and just buried her face in the crook of her shoulder. This was all she wanted. All she wanted was this moment of unrelenting and unconditional love and forgiveness. The love of a mother, the love of a family she never had of her own.

A/N:

Y'all are really trying to make me cry with some of your reviews. -" You guys are so supportive and patient, I'm so grateful for you guys. T^T So I want to say thank you for your patience and I'm hoping to at least get one chapter out a month as I get back into the swing of things (apologies for any mistakes ^^;). But I seriously love all of you! 3

After a long hiatus, I'm back and writing again! (as soon as I got my grove, I couldn't stop lol) So after some self-reflecting and a couple of counsel visits, I'm back! Turns out my untreated ADHD was one of the root causes of all the madness. (Always take care of your mental health!) I'm feeling a lot better now and want to thank you all for all the encouraging comments that you left me. It made me feel a lot better and made me want to get back to writing as soon as I could. So my deepest thanks for all the love and support!

So, I feel as though I've neglected Yuuka a bit, but she's also a very interesting perspective to write in, especially for a whole chapter... And who knew what Chihiro's parents were struggling with their memories too!?

Question: If I did a special art stream with you guys on discord or twitch, would you guys be interested in watching? It'd be kind of like a "meet and greet" slash "Q&A" and I'd really like to meet you guys! I plan to draw official covers for the books (the ones I have now were stolen off the internet a long time ago), so there'd also be a special sneak peek at Book 3's name and cover. So let me know and I'll set it up! If you're interested, the discord link is in my profile.

Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! And for those that do review, I thank you a bunches!

Thank you for the reviews from: picklesisadeadcat, RSBCS, Rosettaxfantasy, Kra, Turniptree, Sypherpol, chimera-writes, lackadaises, coolchick87, CluelessPaige, AlexAngel14, MorbidVisionary, Bubbi1996, animegirl549, Sickle C, Luin-fanel, turtle3334, Serena Gemini, brendajreyes13, Kira Phoenix, and Ai Star.
God bless! KawaChou