Convergence – Chapter 1
By turning nonetheless; I don't own the rights to Spirited Away
Yubaba watched Chihiro and Haku leave. When they were out of her line of sight, she took Bou's hand and said, "Let's go inside. You can tell mama all about your trip to Aunt Zeniba's shack." Her cruel comment went unnoticed by Bou, only causing her to be more rankled. She didn't really want to hear about what he'd been up to, but she worried that he might refuse to enter the bath house unless he had something interesting to do.
Bou watched the far end of the bridge for a moment before turning to look at her. "We had such a fun time. I miss Sen already," he said, as he wiped away a tear.
Yubaba rolled her eyes. The girl was gone, yet she was still going to be a nuisance.
Yubaba searched the crowd that was milling around her because she needed to find the foreman. She finally spotted him talking and laughing with some of the bath women. He flinched when he noticed Yubaba glaring at him and he quickly made his way over to her.
"Get all these idiots back to their quarters," she whispered. "I'll be in my office. Don't disturb me for the rest of the day."
The foreman nodded and immediately started pushing employees towards the entrance. "Get inside," he shouted. "It's time for everyone to go inside." Some of the workers grumbled about the party being over too soon.
Yubaba took Bou to her office. She wanted to forget about this morning, but there was still work to be done. She signed papers and made entries in the ledger as she listened to her son prattle on about his adventures.
Unfortunately, it became increasingly difficult to concentrate on her paper work. Her hands trembled when she realized how close Bou had come to dying. He had been pushed into the pit with Haku and Chihiro. And to top that off, he had almost been swallowed by the monster because she hadn't realized that he was the mouse on Chihiro's shoulder.
She shoved aside her guilty feelings and immediately blamed Zeniba for everything. The thought of her sister transforming Bou into a nasty, little mouse made her furious. That had been a truly disgusting thing to do to her baby. Suddenly Bou said something that brought her back to his story.
"What did you say, Sweetie?"
Bou sighed and let his shoulders slump. "I knew you weren't listening." He took a deep breath and started up again. "While I was with Auntie, I helped make a pretty hairband for Sen. Do you remember me saying that?"
Yubaba nodded her head. "There was something you said just after that."
Bou looked up at the ceiling as if he were in deep thought. Finally he clapped his hands together. "Oh, yes - so, Haku arrived at Auntie's to take us back here. We were way up in the sky. Sen was talking to Haku, and then Sen remembered the name of Haku's river. We started falling, and they were crying and holding hands. I thought we were all going to hit the water."
Yubaba closed her eyes, gritted her teeth and managed not to curse out loud in front of Bou. She wondered why she was being burdened with so much bad luck. This morning she'd had to free a worker and two fat pigs, and now she would lose her apprentice.
Bou yawned. "I'm going to bed. Come on Yu-bird, let's get some rest."
Yubaba stared at the little black bird on her son's shoulder. "That's Yu-bird?"
"I told you that earlier, Mama. You need to pay attention better."
She paused, flustered by her son's remark. She fluttered her hands in frustration. "Get him to change back already. I have work for him to do."
The little black bird shook his head and tried to hide behind Bou's ear which made Bou laugh and shiver.
"Stop it. That tickles." He picked up the bird and held him in his cupped hands. "He doesn't want to. And besides, I like him just the way he is." Bou yawned again and walked to the door of his bedroom. "Good night, Mama." He passed through the curtain before she could say anything else.
After nearly gagging on her own suppressed anger, she managed to say good night with forced cheerfulness. She picked up a cigarette and lit it. She needed a plan. There had to be something she could do to turn this day around.
She tried to figure out how Chihiro knew the name of Haku's river. How did Chihiro meet him before she arrived here? Bou might have more information on that. She'd ask him tomorrow. However it happen, she felt certain that Haku must have recognized the girl.
Yubaba cackled and lit another cigarette as the smoke formed a thick, swirling cloud about her. Now that she had some time to consider the events of the last few days, she knew exactly how to deal with that stupid dragon.
Several minutes later, Haku entered Yubaba's office. She watched him as he walked up to her desk. He appeared as confident as usual.
She blew a large puff of smoke at his face. "What do you want, Haku?"
"I'm here to end my apprenticeship."
She feigned surprise. "Won't you reconsider? I have a very important mission that I need you to take care of. I'll even teach you the spells that you've been eager to learn."
"No, I want nothing more to do with your missions or your magic."
"Well, you know the rules. There's just one last test and I'll keep it really easy for you since I know you must be so sad after saying goodbye to Chihiro." Just as she expected, there was no reaction from Haku. Yubaba snuffed out her cigarette before continuing on with the test. "Truthfully answer this question." She held up his contract. "Did you help Chihiro enter the bath house?"
Haku did not answer immediately. He stared at her, eyes narrowed, as if waiting for more of the question to be revealed. He looked at the contract.
"Yes."
The contract exploded. As pieces of it fluttered down on the desk and carpet, Haku turned and headed for the door.
"Get back here, you fool!" she shouted. "You owe me something -- a small fortune to be exact."
Haku faced her again. "What do you mean? I didn't incur any debt while I was under contract to you." Now he sounded like he was ready to fight.
Yubaba stood up and leaned across her desk. Her nose was like a huge, accusing finger pointed at Haku's face. "You let Chihiro in, and she let the monster in. That makes you responsible for her actions. Therefore, you owe me for the damage and all the food that was wasted."
Haku was silent for several minutes before answering her. "I'll pay off the debt, but I'm not going to be your apprentice again."
She chuckled. "That's fine. You can work with the frogs. I think a thousand nights should cover everything." She realized that the job would be easy for him, but it was the chance to humiliate him that pleased her the most. "And no using magic to complete your work."
"I won't sign another contract," he said.
She waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "This is a promise to pay off a debt, not a work contract. You don't need to sign it. Hold out your left hand." She waited for him to comply before poking her index finger in his direction. Haku looked at his left hand, and at the blood that was now oozing up from the tip of his thumb.
"Just put a big drop of your blood on this document as part of your promise." She floated the paper over to him. She watched Haku's eyes as he read over the paper. It was obvious that he was looking for a way to wriggle out of this, yet she was confident he wouldn't find one. Soon enough, a red dot of blood stained the white paper. Once that was done, Haku reached into his top and brought out a small cloth that he pressed on his thumb to stop the bleeding.
Yubaba gloated over her victory. "You're a common worker now - so dress like one." She made a sweeping motion for the document to return to her and it landed obediently on the desk.
Haku checked his thumb prior to putting away the cloth. His apprenticeship outfit glowed as he passed his hands across his chest. Within seconds he was wearing the uniform of a bath house laborer.
"Now get out of my office," said Yubaba, "and make sure you tell the foreman about our agreement."
As soon as Haku left, Yubaba picked up the paper and put it in a hidden safe. She needed to watch him carefully. She had found a way to keep him here, but she couldn't control him. And now that he remembered his true name, he would only get stronger. So the next, and highly important step, was to find a way to force him to do what she wanted him to do.
Her former apprentices had all died before they could become even half as strong as Haku. She had used each apprentice against Zeniba; nevertheless her sister was still alive. The dragon was the only one to survive a confrontation with Zeniba, and according to Bou, Haku had only survived because of Chihiro. That scrawny brat had received a medicine dumpling from the river god, and she had used it to save Haku. Yubaba would have confiscated the gift if she hadn't been so distracted. She was certain that her sister was using the power of the golden seal to oppose her in subtle ways.
Already her crafty brain was formulating a plan that would allow her to get her way. If she couldn't hurt Zeniba directly, then perhaps she could find a roundabout way of getting her revenge. She looked at the many books up on the shelves. Maybe something in there would give her an idea. What other malicious things could a sorceress do to humans besides turning them into pigs or lumps of coal?