Can't believe I used 'round' and 'rotund' in the same sentence in the last chapter. whoops. maybe i'll go back and fix it eventually. also, I'm looking for someone to discuss the spirit world with and bounce ideas off of- just to talk about how to structure it, how it would look in comparison to our world, etc. :)

"I've moved further than I thought I could / But I miss you more than I thought I would"

-I Found, Amber Run

"Good morning, dear."

Chihiro spun around and involuntarily gasped. Zeniba was standing right behind her. "G-good morning," she stammered. The old woman was standing in the doorway to her office, which was illuminated in a soft gold sunlight pouring in from the windows behind her desk. She stepped aside with a wide smile and a wave of her hand, inviting Chihiro to step into the office.

She sat down in the velvet chair, while Zeniba walked over to a small table next to her desk. The older woman removed a teabag from a small teacup and gingerly lifted it to her lips. "Tea?" She asked before taking a sip, raising her eyebrows. Chihiro shook her head slowly, suddenly growing impatient with her formal generalities. Why couldn't she just get to the point already? They both knew why she was sitting there. She was so much different from her twin sister, Yubaba, who was constantly moving and snapping at people.

Seeming to sense Chihiro's impatience, Zeniba moved towards her own chair, all the while sipping her tea. "You look well-rested. Much better than last night," she commented as she sat down in the chair. Considering the fact that Chihiro had snuck out the previous night to visit her friend's party, it wasn't a totally inaccurate claim.

Chihiro smiled. "As a matter of fact, best sleep that I've had in ages."

"That's good to hear," the older woman replied with a smirk. "Now... let's get down to business. As I mentioned last night, the team of spirits that were sent to search for Haku were able to follow him consistently for the past two months. But every time they came close to cornering him, he seemed to disappear in thin air," she said with a hint of dismay in her voice. "They've been able to keep track of him up until three weeks ago. He's really outdone himself in terms of covering up his trail."

"If Haku wants to disappear," Chihiro said carefully, "Then I respect his decision. As much as I miss him, it'd be selfish of me to ask him to come back simply because of that. And I don't want to be used as bait if it means he'll end up getting hurt."

"I know you think that he'll feel betrayed by you," Zeniba said. "But like I said, I can vouch for and protect him and get him full amnesty until his responsibilities are fulfilled. But I cannot help him unless you help me find him. And once he understands that he isn't in danger, then he will forgive you."

Chihiro bit her lip and gazed out the window. "There's something strange about this whole situation. You're not telling me everything. I don't think I can do it."

Zeniba let out a long sigh while drumming her fingers on the desk. Finally, she said, "You're right in that I'm not revealing all the details about this situation. But you need to realize that this whole thing is much bigger than you. Haku has certain responsibilities to the Spirit World that he needs to own up to. And you don't need to know all of the details, because they involve things that you won't understand. The Spirit World operates differently than yours. And need I remind you that I am the only one that is able to safely transport you back to your own world?

Those last words were all it took for Chihiro to realize that Zeniba was not unlike Yubaba. Conniving, manipulative, and all the while charming, in order to get what she wanted. It was the reason she was able to play the bad cop, good cop card, and why she was able to run a successful bathhouse with workers that actually wanted to work for her. The only difference between her and her evil sister was that she was much nicer and diplomatic about her requests and operations. This fact only irritated and bothered Chihiro more. But what other choice did she have than to acquiesce to her proposal?

For the meantime, she was just going to have to play by Zenina's rules. She was probably the one who brought her into this universe again, and she was most likely the only one who was going to get her out of it.

"Just don't forget that I'm not only his last chance, but yours," Chihiro said cooly, an attempt to gain some leverage and remind the older one of her value. "And you must promise, absolutely promise, that Haku will not get hurt at any point."

Zeniba chuckled, which irritated Chihiro even more so than she was. She couldn't help but feel that the older woman wasn't taking her seriously. "I can't absolutely promise he won't get hurt. But what I can promise is that I will use every resource and pull every string I can to prevent it from happening."

Chihiro pondered these words for a moment, chewing on her lip thoughtfully. "Fine."

The older woman produced a pen and a piece of paper from a drawer behind her desk and presented both to Chihiro. "You sign, and I sign." This time, Chihiro read the document carefully. When she was finished, she looked up at Zeniba, who continued, "Once you sign this contract, you will officially become my employee. You cannot resign or quit your duties until you have accomplished your mission, or until I say it is fulfilled. You must adhere to my decisions and requests regarding this matter, and report information regarding this matter to me or authorized individuals."

"What about my own terms of agreement?" Chihiro asked. Zeniba raised her eyebrows slightly in response, then leaned forward.

"Simply add them to the back of the document, and I'll sign that page as well."

After Chihiro added her own terms and they both signed the contract, Zeniba reclaimed the contract and produced a copy for Chihiro. She folded the copy carefully and placed it in the waistband of her shorts, making a mental note to find someplace safe in the bathhouse to hide it.

"Oh, by the way, I've taken it upon myself to find a suitable traveling companion for you, considering it'd be irresponsible to send you off into the corners of the Spirit World by yourself. I've requested one of the members of the search squad, a very cunning and witty girl. She is very familiar with Haku's case. I think you two will get along quite well." She leaned backwards and began to fish for something from one of the drawers behind her desk.

"Well, what's her name?"

"My name's Eleni." Chihiro spun her head around and found herself gazing at a petite, tan woman with long, light blonde hair and brown eyes lined with black eyeliner. She was dressed in loose fitting white clothing and was bare footed. "You can call me Eli."

"Hi!" Chihiro replied in surprise. "Chihiro, and... I don't have any cool nicknames."

Zeniba sat back up, holding a thick, yellow envelope in her hand, and laughed. "Eleni, you came just in time. I need to brief you on your next location."

Eli sauntered into the room cooly and rested against Chihiro's chair. She emitted a formidable aura of confidence that Chihiro instantly found intimidating. "Hiro just told me that reports came in from last week that he was spotted in the mountains of Hijiri," she replied. "So we might want to start there."

Zeniba was busy opening the envelope and resting its contents on the desk. "Did it come from a trustworthy source?" she asked, looking up when Eleni was finished speaking. "I don't want us to lose time chasing some dead end or false information that Haku put out to slow us down," she added, a trace of warning in her voice that suggested this had possibly happened before.

Eli stepped forward and rested her hands on top of the desk, examining the documents. "Hiro is very careful," she responded curtly, almost defensively. Chihiro fleetingly wondered if there was some sort of relationship between Eli and Hiro that would make her defensive of his credibility.

Zeniba inhaled deeply and exhaled loudly and audibly through her nostrils. "Very well then. Make sure Chihiro has everything that she needs and head out as soon as you can." She slid a piece of paper with a map on it towards Eli. "Stick to the safe routes. And don't let my human get injured," she added, motioning her head towards Chihiro. A pang of fear suddenly hit her. That idea that she could get hurt hadn't occurred to her. And as quickly as the fear came, she felt a pang of regret and shame at having such a selfish thought. She tried to push the feelings away and re-focus on their conversation.

"Don't worry about it." Chihiro noticed that while Eli folded up the map and put it in her pocket without bothering to even glance at it. She looked at Chihiro, who looked a bit startled at the intensity of Eli's stare. "Follow me."

Eli took her to the room she had slept in the night before. She walked over to one of the wall cabinets, retrieved a black, rather heaving looking backpack, and nearly shoved it into Chihiro's arms. It was heavier than she expected, and she nearly lost her balance.

She plopped down onto the floor with the bag and began rummaging through its contents. A water bottle, food bars, plain underwear. An extra pair of clothing, a light sleeping bag, a flashlight. She was surprised at how much had fit into the bag, considering that it wasn't all that big. She heard footsteps, another cabinet opening, Eli clearing her throat, and next thing she knew, a pile of clothes were falling on her. "Try these on."

Chihiro gathered the clothing and clutched it to her chest. She glanced around the room sheepishly. "Can you.. um..."

Eli crossed her arms and gave her a blank look. "Are you kidding?"

Chihiro sighed and scooted herself around so that her back was facing Eli. She knew she was being a bit ridiculous, but... honestly, the whole situation itself was ridiculous. Two nights ago, she was sleeping in her own bed, and now she's standing in a bathhouse in some other universe, changing clothes in front of someone that she met less than half an hour ago, getting ready to go and hunt down some dragon boy.

She'd be damned if this girl had the nerve to laugh at her for trying to maintain some shred of dignity.

Luckily, she had worn her sports bra before leaving the house. She secretly wondered if her subconscious somehow anticipated this happening. When she finished changing, she stood up and turned to face Eli. "Ta-da," she said sarcastically. She was wearing a fitted light blue shirt, black running shorts, and black sneakers.

Eli ignored her sarcastic comment and nodded her head slightly, with a rather serious face of approval as she examined Chihiro's outfit. Did she have any shred of personality or sense of humor?

"Looks like it fits well," she finally said. "We're going to be walking and running a lot. And possibly climbing. Oh, and you'll probably end up sleeping in them as well," she added. "So I hope they're comfortable."

Chihiro nodded. "They fit fine." She squatted down and noticed the contract that she had tucked into the waistband of her shorts. She pushed a little further underneath her shorts. "You can head down if you want," she said, turning her head slightly over her shoulder. "I'll meet you in the lobby."

"Are you sure you won't get lost?" Chihiro looked back further this time and gave Eli a glare.

"I can find my way around perfectly well, thanks," she responded dryly.

Eli held her palms up and made a face. "No need to be hostile, princess," she retorted. She turned around and waved a hand over her shoulder. "I'll grab us something to eat. See you downstairs."

When she was sure that Eli had left, she picked up the contract and searched her backpack for a safe hiding place. She couldn't trust Eli just yet, or Zeniba to hold up her part of the contract. If she somehow were to lose her copy, she would never be able to forgive herself. She found a discreet pocket inside a small compartment, and she stuffed the contract inside it carefully. She picked up the rest of her clothes and stuffed them into her backpack.

When she was finished, she slung the backpack over her shoulder, stood up, and left the room to meet Eli downstairs.

"So, Zeniba mentioned that this is your second time being in the Spirit World," Eli said casually in between bites of her rice ball. They had already left the bathhouse and were approaching the next town after Juifen, which was larger than Chihiro had expected. The town had been pretty much deserted, except for the two of them. She noticed that the buildings around them began to look more modern, and signs looked brighter and newer. "Did you ever get to travel beyond her sister's bathhouse?"

Chihiro turned towards Eli in surprise. "You know who Yubaba is?"

Eli scoffed. "Who doesn't? Nearly everyone in her town and the surrounding towns have worked for her at some point." She turned slightly towards Chihiro. "She owns a lot of businesses in Tomi, where her bathhouse is. She owns a few businesses here too, but Zeniba is the one who basically runs this town."

This piqued Chihiro's interest. "And how far is Tomi from here?"

"From Jiufen? A 3 hour ride by train," Eli said. "We're going to take the train, but we have to get to the next town first. It has a train that will take us to a closer town near Haku's location."

Chihiro sighed. She was clueless when it came to the geography of her own country and getting around. Her friend Kari was the one who always knew what train to take and when the last train was running. What the heck did a map of this place look like? Did it just stretch on continuously? Did it eventually stop and connect to towns on the other side of the map, like on a globe?

"You seem troubled," Eli commented. Chihiro noticed her watching her out of the corner of her eye. She realized that her eyebrows were knitted together in concern and that she was biting her lip. She relaxed her face and glanced at Eli.

"I'm just thinking," she murmured slowly. "What exactly does the spirit world look like? Like, is it... round like earth? Or does it coexist on some parallel plane in relation to earth? I'm trying to imagine it and feel like I'm trying to climb up a brick wall."

"Good question," Eli replied. "I was wondering the same thing when I first came here. You'll have to ask Zeniba, so you won't get your answer for awhile, unfortunately. Or maybe Haku, if we ever find him. They're both much better at explaining things than I am."

Chihiro stopped in her tracks and stared at Eli. "What did you say?"

"Hmm?" Eli stopped as well and looked back at Chihiro. "Zeniba and Haku are better at explaining how the spirit world fits in relation to the human world. They explained it to me when I first came here. I actually got my first job with Zeniba."

"How did you know Haku?" Chihiro asked slowly.

The corner of Eli's mouth lifted as if to smirk. Did she think she was asking out of jealousy? "I'm a forest spirit," she said quietly. "My forest was near his river. When they were building the new apartments, they cleared my forest."

Chihiro didn't know how to respond. "So... you actually knew him... and you're still willing to hunt him down and turn him in so that he can be punished?"

Eli sighed loudly and closed her eyes. "Chihiro, we are not discussing this. I'm just doing my job. It's not our business to worry about."

"But it is, isn't it?" She shot back, a bit more loudly this time. She resumed walking and they walked in step together. "You're basically agreeing to let yourself be used as bait and you don't care what happens to your friend."

"But aren't you doing the same thing, too? I didn't know him until I actually came here," Eli responded evenly. "And even then, I met him by chance."

"Was it really by chance, Eli?" Chihiro asked softly. "I used to play in your forest and swim in his river. This isn't chance, Eli. There is something bigger going on, but it's not just between him and Zeniba and whoever else is involved. There's something bigger at play here too, between all of us."