Disclaimer: Spirited Away and all its characters belong to Hayao Miyazaki.

She hated him.

She hadn't realized how much until today.

The cruel words about her work, the deliberate dismissal of her opinion and even the blatant disregard for her life was nothing, nothing compared to this.

She stood still, watching from a distance as her parents were led from their pen to the slaughter house. A light wind fluttered over her, gently sending her soft brown hair flying about her blank face and causing goose bumps to rise on her tanned skin. It pulled and tugged at her clothing, urging her to run to the creatures that were once her parents, to fling herself at him and beg for their lives; but she resisted, knowing with gnawing certainty that there was nothing she could do.

Nothing she hadn't already done.

Distantly, she noticed that the frog leading them had torn the seam of his pants, making him walk with a slight waddle. His bulbous eyes and enormous smile as he joked with the people he passed made her nauseous.

She fingered her blue apron, twisting her hands in it as the only outward sign of her distress.

Cold green eyes watched her, his presence a stark reminder of why he had brought her here. Her brown eyes fogged and she turned her head away, silently listening to the almost –human screams of her dying parents. The sun warmed her trembling form and the cool grass hummed as she dug her bare feet deeper into it.

His voice, once soft and inviting, pulled her at attention harshly.

"Get back to work. Lin is expecting you in the big tub."

She nodded, thankful for small mercies. Being around him was the last thing she needed.

He stepped away, bursting into his dragon form, heedless of the sharp scales that cut her arms and cheeks. The air rumbled as he took flight, off to do Yubaaba's bidding.

Sen shuffled slowly through the gardens, barely feeling the flowers and leaves brushing past her. She made her dazed way over the bridge and through the back rooms, ignoring the squawking indignation of her fellow bath workers. Ghosting into the big bath's stall and quietly getting to work on a pile of reeds, the girl went unnoticed by Lin, who was angrily muttering to herself on the other side of the tub. There was a splash followed by swearing as the now dripping wet woman rounded the corner, yelping at the unexpected sight of Sen.

She clutched her heart in surprise.

"Whoa, Sen! When did you get here? You scared me!"

She peered down at her, the dampness of her clothing making a squelching sound as she stepped closer. Lin frowned, taken aback by the girl's grim appearance.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Sen shrugged, not looking up and continued shuffling with the reeds. Lin grabbed Sen's hands, softly pulling them away from the reed brush and letting it fall with a clatter on the dirty wooden floor. She ran her hands gently over the cuts on Sen's arms, causing her to wince, before taking in her glassy eyes and drawn features. Lin's expression softened and she placed a hand on Sen's forehead.

"You feel hot, Sen. Take the day off and get some sleep." Then she smiled, the brightness of it almost hiding the worry in her eyes.

"I've got everything covered here." She assured the quiet girl, lightly pushing her towards the hall.

Sen nodded, clearly not listening, and slowly made her way out into the busy bathhouse. Lin looked on; anxiety and sadness coloring her face as she watched the normally vibrant girl leave.

The excited sound of laughter and spirits talking followed her up the dim flight of stairs leading to the servant's quarters. She ran her hand along the wall, feeling the grooves in the worn wood as she steadily made her way up. She stopped on the balcony, taking in the blue expanse of the ocean and sky, before wheeling around and entering her shared bed room.

Sen walked across the spotless floor, pulling out and laying flat her bed roll, before flopping down on it with a sigh. She dragged the faded quilt around her shoulders, her movements far too controlled for a girl her age. She sat still for a moment, breathing in the fresh air from the open windows and listening to the muted noise of the occupants below her. Then hesitantly, she reached beneath her pillow and brought out her clothes; her possessions from another world.

Her hands smoothed the wrinkles from the carefully folded shirt, its pristine green and white stripes standing out sharply against the used cloth of her bedroll. Her pink shorts had seen more use, but the fabric was soft and so unlike the scratchy uniform she wore now. She slipped her fingers between them and pulled out a creased farewell card, the words bleeding a little from the moisture falling on it. It took her a moment to realize that the wet splotches on the card were from her own tears, running quickly down her face and dripping onto her hands.

Waving it in the air frantically in the hopes that it would dry, Sen barely noticed when her silent tears turned to loud sobs. She clutched the last reminder of her parents to her chest, pressing the card and clothes tightly against her trembling body. She let out her grief, bringing her face to her knees and rocking on the balls of her feet. Her cries echoed in the empty room until she had exhausted herself of tears.

Sen rubbed her blotchy face, then pulled out the slip of paper one last time and mouthed the name on it.

He hated her.

And it was all because of her name.

She wrapped the blanket around her tired and shuddering form, softly sliding the paper back into the folds of her shirt and placing the bundle beneath her pillow. When she fell asleep, she wished that her parents were still alive, that he didn't know her name, and that she hadn't been reminded of it.

AN: I've always had the impression that dragons were aloof creatures, known for their intelligence and cruelty. So I have had this question ever since I first saw Spirited Away: Why the heck is Haku helping this girl? What didn't make sense to me, especially given Haku's back ground, was that he would stick his neck out for a silly little human girl. I'm exploring what it might have been like if Haku was actually the bitter, selfish, young dragon that I envisioned him to be and Chihiro somehow got stuck in the spirit world.

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