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Chapter 6 Hello & Goodbye
"Hello, Master Kohaku. We meet again. Remember me, I am-"
The dragon growled and snapped at No-Face.
Chihiro remained frozen as she stared at the white dragon. It was worse than she thought. He was massive, powerful, strangely beautiful, and he was pissed off. The fact that the top tower room did not have a lock or any bars keeping him imprisoned in here, let Chihiro know that there was something off in the story Lin had told her. Something important. Whether it had been on purpose or not, she would determine that after she met up with the sable spirit, assuming that this dragon didn't kill her first.
The dragon roared again and his impossibly long, sinuous body, circled around the edges of the tower room. Scales and dust scattered making it harder for Chihiro to see.
"Do not be mad! Master Kohaku, I brought Sen to you! Here she is! Sen. Look, it's Sen!"
No-Face jumped behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. She almost expected him to push her in front of the dragon so that the dragon could get a better look at her. But instead No-Face, brought his head closer to hers and spoke to the dragon.
"Look how much she has grown! But yet, she is still the same; same pure heart. Look, look, it's Sen, she has come back to us!"
Chihiro had no idea what was going on. No-Face was acting strange; only Lin called her Sen.
The dragon stopped his snarly circling and brought his head right in front of Chihiro's. Chihiro forgot to breath. Green eyes glowed and for a second they seemed to soften, but then his snarly bite directed at her made Chihiro realise that she must have imagined the softness.
No-Face threw her to the ground and at first, she thought it had been for her protection, to avoid the dragon's bite as he flew around above them... but when she got up, she realized that there was something wrong with No-Face. No-Face was on the ground grabbing at his throat and appeared to be choking.
Chihiro moved to try to help him.
At the same time the dragon flew by her and placed his body in between her and No-Face.
Chihiro didn't understand what was going on, but she knew she had to help No-Face. Chihiro tried to jump over the dragon's long enormous anaconda like body, but it was too hard for her to gain footing to jump over his moving body; she kept falling down and the dragon was able to maneuver her body farther away from her comrade.
"Would you cut that out!" Chihiro finally yelled out in exasperation.
The dragon froze and turned to really look at her for the first time, Chihiro huffed, took the opening in his pause, climbed over him, and almost reached No-Face who had now lying completely on the floor gasping for breath.
The dragon was not having any of that and coiled his tail around her legs and dragged her back to him. Chihiro fell hard on the ground and was very thankful that she had been able to use her hands to protect her face from the fall. Once the dragon felt that she was close enough to him, still separated from No-Face, he released her. Chihiro picked herself up and glared at the dragon who was not upset at all by her anger radiating towards him. She had no idea what was driving his actions, but at least this time he was no longer growling or snarling at her.
No-Face made a pitiful sound, stopping Chihiro from her fruitless dragon glaring. Looking back to him, she watch with horror. He was dying!
No-Face opened his mouth one more time and a bright light emerged. Chihiro had to look away to avoid being blinded. She felt cool skin slide across her face also protecting her eyes from the blast. When the blast was over Chihiro shook off the dragon's tail so she could see what was going on. When she looked back, she was the tall fox spirit splayed out in a wet bilous gunk on the floor and No-Face was back to his normal size, looking sheepish, back on his knees.
No one had died.
Not really knowing what to expect, Chihiro couldn't help feeling safe in the dragon's coils. As strange as that sounded.
"Commander Kohaku, sir!" the fox spirit jumped up and saluted the dragon. The fox was doing his best to ignore clumps of bile sliding down his right arm as he held his salute.
The dragon turned away from the fox and moved away from Chihiro. His leaving hurt her in a way she couldn't comprehend. The dragon moved up into the darkness of the rafters above. She could barely make him out.
"I am sorry that you have been bothered, sir! I will remove the...guests immediately!"
Chihiro realized that while she had been staring at the dragon the whole time the fox spirit had been speaking. With a shock she felt strong hands placed on her shoulders. Her flinch caused the dragon to turn again and roar at the fox guard.
The dragon was back on the floor curling around her. He raised himself up glaring down at the fox with his sharp teeth fully exposed.
Shocked by his commander's actions. The fox decided to take a different tactic.
"Don't worry commander, I promise you, as a soldier under your command, nothing will happen to her." The fox spirit, kept his hands on Chihiro and bent down and whispered in her ear. "It is best that you come away with me now. He his very difficult to predict. I promise, you will be safe."
Chihiro felt herself nod. The guard took that as permission. With strong arms, the fox was able to pull Chihiro out of the white dragon's coils with a quick fluid motion….that or the dragon released her himself. Not knowing what to do. Chihiro allowed herself to be escorted from the tower room. A glance over her shoulder let her know that No-Face was following. A longer glance revealed the dragon's green eyes on her. Then he jerked his head away and disappeared into the darkness above.
They stepped over the busted doorway. On the other side, the fox spirit made a motion with his hands and the door was fixed behind them.
"Shit! I cannot believe we made it out of their with our lives!" sighed the Fox spirit as he dramatically collapsed on the first two stairs leading back down.
Chihiro exchanged a glance with No-Face. He just shrugged at her, but she could tell that he was still feeling embarrassed by his previous actions. Not knowing if the fox spirit had just become an allie or he was still her enemy, Chihiro left him to his antics. Right now he wasn't trying to kill.
Chihiro focused on No-Face. Gently, she placed a hand on his side. "Are you ok? You scared me back there."
No-Face nodded and patted her hand with one of his inky black ones.
Satisfied that No-Face was back to normal...well, as normal as she knew him to be, she turned to face the fox.
The fox guard had gathered himself up was standing before her and once again he was the guard she had barely survived a battle with. But his eyes instead of being vicious, held more curiosity.
"I am going to ask again little one, what are you?"
Chihiro didn't know how to respond.
"Well, regardless, we need to get out of here. I am not sure how long that bespelled door will last, but Commander Kohaku is still powerful and unstable. I have no idea what he would happen if he decides that he wants to keep you-"
"Wait." Chihiro interrupted as she broke free from the fox's hold. How could she have forgotten! "I need to ask him something!"
"What, pray tell human, is so important that you will risk your life again?"
Chihiro ignored him but moved back to the door. The knob once again turned easily in her hand. Not giving herself a chance to chicken out, Chihiro reentered the top tower room.
She thought she might have heard the fox mutter "Your funeral" but she ignored it.
Alone in the room with the dragon, Chihiro felt her bravado fall away. She had no idea what she was supposed to say, only that he was her only chance to save Aki.
"Hello." Her voice cracked.
Swallowing hard, she tried again. "Hello? White dragon?"
Rustling came off to her left. Chihiro faced the noise, but still couldn't see. "I've come to ask for a favor." Is that how you did it?
"I need your help! If you help me I can offer you…." Chihiro trailed off… what the hell could she offer a dragon? Autographed of her books? She needed to stop now and start over. What she was saying was ridiculous.
"My undying gratitude.." is what emerged from her lips. Was the dragon laughing at her?
"Wait! Let me try again!" Chihiro panted in desperation as she clumsily dodged his tail that he had swiped at her head. The fox didn't lie, it was nearly impossible to predict the dragon's mood swings. "I need your help! I am desperate. I have no one else to turn to..." Chihiro felt her voice crack as tears threatened to fall. Stop crying girl! She mentally berated herself. Dragons don't like tears! She told herself.
A reflection of light on scales captured Chihiro's attention. Breath on her neck, let her now that she had fallen for the redirection. Slowly she turned and looked up at the dragon. She refused to cower before him. After staring into each other's eyes, the dragon made a decision; he found her wanting and was turning to leave.
Chihiro could feel his rejection.
On some level she had been expecting it. But the reality hurt more than she could imagine. She felt herself crumble. She was losing hope of ever seeing Aki again.
No!
He couldn't do that to her! She needed him damnit! How dare he treat her this way! He hadn't even done her the courtesy of hearing her out. He wasn't getting off that easily. He was her only hope of saving Aki!
The fox spirit was once again at her side bowing and mumbling platitudes to the dragon.. Damn he could move fast. It was only when the fox gave her a startled look that she had realized that she had spoken her thoughts out loud. No reason to hold back now. With reckless abandon she broke free from the fox and charged at the dragon. "How dare you reject me like that! You haven't even listened to my request! All you are is a pouting reptile hiding away in tower! Who needs you anyways! You pathetic -"
The dragon stilled…Chihiro gulped... had she gone too far by pointing and shaking her finger at him?
The fox spirit took that opportunity to hit Chihiro on the back of her head knocking her unconscious. The dragon gave a low growl as the fox swept her into his arms. He gave a quick bow to his commander, and carried her out of the tower before Kohaku decided to kill her himself. Once safe halfway down the tower, the fox looked down on the human woman gathered in his arms. What was exactly was going on here? He had never seen Kohaku act that way before. With a sigh he continued carrying her down the stairs. This day was turning out to be a long one.
Chihiro was floating. She also knew she was dreaming. But everything to the colors and her ability to feel cool water flowing around her told her that she could be awake. But no. This was a dream.
Swimming through the water but without needing to refresh her lungs for air gave Chihiro the ability to dive deeper. Deeper and deeper she went.
As she swam she felt emotions in the water. They were not hers. And they didn't mean to make themselves known to her. Almost as if the water was embarrassed it expelled her onto the shore.
Coughing up water that was not really on her lungs, Chihiro stayed on her hands and knees while she regained her breath. This was a really realistic dream.
Chihiro looked up and saw that she was not alone. A boy, a couple years older than Aki, stood on the same shore just a couple feet away.
He was angry. His tense shoulders fisted hands. Lips pressed into a thin line.
"Why are you here. Who said you could be here." He wasn't asking questions.
Chihiro ignored him but stood up and looked around her. They appeared to be in a cave of some sort. But the water was luminous lighting the cave in soft blue light. The cave reminder her of a beach cave she had been to once in Thailand, but for the life of her she couldn't remember the name…. and the rock was softer here in this dreamscape than it had been in Thailand….
"You shouldn't be here." The boy did not like being ignored. He was used to commanding attention; her actions were making him even more angry.
"You've said that to me before.." Chihiro replied without looking at him. "The first time we met." she added while still looking over the cave.
"Who says that we have met before?"
"Sorry, I honestly don't know where that came from. But, I'm in dream with you, so obviously we have met before, otherwise, why would you be here in my dream?"
"Maybe it's my dream that you have invaded. Have you thought about that?" was his snarky reply.
Chihiro rolled her eyes and refused to be baited.
"I don't remember you being so mean before." Chihiro smiled as she looked at him again before turning away and looking across the water. They were not in a cave as she had originally thought, but a cove. Moonlight glittered down on them showing wide expanses of gently flowing water. She did not notice his surprised look on his face.
"The first time I saw you, I trusted you, though I didn't have a reason to do so. Every other time I would run into you, after our initial meeting, you were either so incredibly rude and cold, or impossibly sweet and kind. It was enough to give a girl whiplash."
"What are you talking about?"
"I don't know Haku, what am I talking about? Are you going to continue to pretend to have forgotten me?" Brown eyes met green straight on.
Chihiro did not wait for him to respond but instead she walked past him to return to the water. Her patience for dealing with short tempered jerks was at an all time low. Especially this one. She didn't care that he was still a child and she was an adult and should be the more responsible one. She was frustrated with him for some reason that she couldn't exactly remember... Regardless she felt that she was justified in being as short tempered and prickly as felt like with him. He deserved it! Though again...she couldn't exactly remember why...
Back at the water's edge Chihiro hesitated. Before placing her bare feet back in, she paused on the shore. The water was in turmoil, it didn't know how to respond to her. It didn't trust her.
Chihiro could respect that. She wasn't sure if she was someone to be trusted either.
She dropped to her knees before the water. Ever since almost drowning as a child she was very respectful of water.
"Hey Haku," she she almost whispered, almost as an afterthought to her old friend. "Were you really okay after I left?"
She didn't wait for him to respond. She didn't expect him to. Instead she began speaking to the water. It felt right.
"Thank you for bringing me here safely. I don't really understand what is going on and I am probably doing everything wrong... I am trying my best here…. But I really don't know what I am doing. I could really use some help, but more than that, I could really use a friend. I don't suppose we could be friends?" Chihiro brought her fingertips to just above the water and she waited. She didn't know what to expect but she knew better than forcing it. The water swirled under her fingertips….she almost saw it reach up and touch her….but it didn't. It fell to the bottom and the water became just water.
Chihiro sighed in frustration. She must have done something wrong. Story of her life. This time when she looked back at Haku, she really looked at him. He was the same 12 year old boy that she had befriended as a child. His silky hair cut at the sharp angle at his chin had a hint of mossy green. His light golden green eyes were otherworldly beautiful, with their slight upwards slant. Was he always this good looking? No wonder why her younger self had a crush on him. To be honest, if he had aged, she would probably find him to be an incredibly attractive man... Chihiro stopped her daydreaming when she noticed his expression.
Yep. He was still extremely pissed at her.
She couldn't help the smile that found itself on her face from seeing his expression. She didn't understand why, but his anger at her made the water's rejection easier. This was a strange dream.
Chihiro turned away from him and sat down by the water's edge. Since the water now was just water she decided to face its wrath by placing her toes back in it. An unexpected feeling of deep calm penetrated her. She had not been expecting that.
"You know, you did promise that we would meet again." Chihiro started while wiggling her toes in the water. "I know you probably meant that we would meet sometime after I had died...and I don't think I am dead yet.. But can't we still be friends? We were friends once..." Chihiro trailed off again. She was embarrassed by how pathetic she was sounding.
Unexpectedly, Haku came and sat down besides her. He made sure not to touch her, but he was close enough that Chihiro could feel his body heat.
"A lot has happened Chihiro, I'm not the same person you once knew." His voice spoke of darkness and hurt.
Chihiro sighed. Wasn't that true of everyone?
"I have changed too." She held up her hand to stop him from interrupting. "But right now, I am just really glad to have gotten to see you again. This is nice...whatever this is." She held his eyes and smiled.
His eyes were still mistrustful….but finally he nodded at her. Chihiro wasn't sure what exactly they had agreed to, but her smiled became larger. Whatever it was, for right now, it would be enough. Together they both looked out over the water. This time instead of just wiggling her toes, Chihiro embolden, began to splash her legs in the water. Yes. she knew she was acting childish but right now she didn't care.
Haku said nothing as they both sat in companionable silence. Hours might have passed. Both made sure not to touch the other.
Chihiro felt the dreamscape shift and once again she had fallen in the water. This time she was reaching for her pink shoe and instead felt dragon horns.