With Rin in her bed and Linca watching over her, there was really only one person available to talk to at that time of night. Chihiro entered the boiler room and immediately started perspiring in the dry heat. It was Bee-la's night off so Kamaji was working alone. The arachnid-like ancient spirit always wore round dark glasses and had a full and bushy moustache that framed his kindly wrinkled face. He was grinding away at some sort of herbal concoction and mumbling to himself.

"Sen!" he called as she entered, "grab a pestle and mortar and give an old spirit a hand." Chihiro grinned, sat next to Kamaji's workstation and started making a worm salt mix.

"So," said the spirit, "why are you down here?"

"I came to see you, is that so strange?"

"Yes," replied the spirit. "In the last two weeks, I've seen you twice." Chihiro felt her cheeks heat a little with shame.

"I've been very busy, I'm sorry Kamaji," she muttered, not looking at the spirit.

"So I've heard, Haku especially, keeps you on your toes." Chihiro looked horrified but bit her lip and just took the spirits teasing on the chin. "It's alright, my dear," chuckled the spirit, "I understand you're in love, I won't hold it against you." He stretched out his long arms and patted her head while at the same time adding more herbs to his mixture. "But Rin has been complaining loudly about the amount of time you spend with him."

"I know," mumbled Chihiro. "At first I thought she was just jealous, but after yesterday I think she feels like she has to protect me from him. Something in her past is making her act like this." Kamaji nodded.

"She is not the only one who complains though." Chihiro frowned and then sighed.

"I wish everyone would just leave me alone."

"All the interest getting a bit much?" asked the old spirit.

"Far too much! Half the staff think he's going to leave me any day now, the other half think the whole relationship is abhorrent. Everyone seems to have an opinion; even the Lady is getting involved." Kamaji chuckled dryly.

"That's the problem with being an instrument of fate; your life is not your own Sen, not really."

"So I'm discovering," said Chihiro sorrowfully.

"Are you happy here?" asked the spirit.

"Yes," she replied immediately.

"Then I'm sure you'll survive whatever your future holds. It's quite obvious you are both deeply in love. Such a thing has its own power." Chihiro continued grinding the salts. She chatted about other, more pleasant things, also mentioning her planned trip with Haku.

"That will be nice, some privacy for you both at last. No one gets into his domain without his say so, even the Gods." Chihiro smiled slowly.

"That will be nice," she whispered. She played with the soot balls while they were on one of their breaks. Soon her hands were covered with coal dust and ash.

"Yuck," she said, looking at the grime. "You lot need a bath."

The soot balls backed away from her. Dozens of eyes stared at her in fear. "Then again, I guess you would melt away in the water." She put her hand down to them again and apologised.

"Sorry, I sometimes forget that you really are just soot." This seemed to mollify the little creatures and they approached her again and soon her hand was black. The small door into the boiler room rattled back and Linca's shining ash blond head poked through it.

"Chi!" she cried and wriggled into the sweltering room. Linca's bluish skin was flushed to almost navy, she was out of breath.

"What's wrong?" asked Chihiro, standing up.

"Haku has been tearing his place apart looking for you. Tac'tals don't work at close range you know, he only knows you are near. It's made him foul-tempered I can tell you; I should be watching Rin not helping him hunt for you. I had to wake up Meeka to take my place. Why in the world are you hiding down here?" Linca ranted.

"A visit from a certain Goddess prompted me to leave," replied Chihiro mildly; she had forgotten her promise to Haku to meet him when he returned.

"I don't want to listen to your reasons, get your behind to his rooms pronto, then I can get back to nursing our sister. I'm not your personal assistant Chihiro; kindly remind your lizard about that when you see him."

Linca was angry; Chihiro put it down to tiredness and an overdose of Haku. He really needed to work on his people skills.

"Ok," sighed Chihiro, "I'm coming." She said her goodbyes to Kamaji and followed the indignant spirit to the elevators.

She reached the door to Haku's quarters and paused.

"What?" asked Linca, seeing the indecision on her sister's face.

"I think maybe I should go in alone. I have something to tell Haku and it's kind of private." To her great surprise and relief, Linca just nodded.

"Okay, I'll see you later, but don't take any nonsense from him." Chihiro smiled warmly at her sister.

"He can hear you through that door Linca."

"I don't care if he does!" The diminutive spirit grinned and disappeared down the dark hallway.

Chihiro knocked timidly on the door. She had no idea how she was going to deal with a frustrated dragon high on her pheromones. The last thing she expected was what happened next. Haku opened to door and smiled at her, his face friendly but impassive.

"Ah, Chihiro, at last. Please come in." Chihiro was thrown completely off balance.

"Why so formal?" she wondered. "Is he annoyed with me?" She had at least expected a kiss from him, but he did not make any move to touch her as he led her into his office. She then discovered the reason for his increased decorum. Sitting at his desk was a small, slim woman, with short, brown hair, a delicate face and some very familiar brown eyes. It took Chihiro a moment to recognise those eyes as an exact match of her own.

"Mum?" she whispered weakly.

Yuuko Ogino stood. She could hardly believe that the young woman before her was the pale, thin, dead-eyed girl she had last seen in a hospital ward. Chihiro's hair was longer, she wore it down and it spilled down her back in glossy chestnut tresses. Her face was fuller and had a healthy glow. Her figure was fuller too, as if she had been eating well instead of picking at her food as she always had. Somehow, in coming to this strange place, her daughter had become a woman.

Yuuko Ogino's eyes turned to the strange young man standing next to her daughter; a man whom she had first seen as a terrifying dragon. After the shock had worn off, she found the strangely handsome man/Dragon to be perfectly charming. She had expected peculiarity and oddity in this place, but had not expected it to wear so human a guise. It had turned out that the dragon not only knew her daughter, but lived in the same place she did. Yuuko saw his large jade eyes flit from her to her daughter and she was forced to reassess the situation entirely. Perhaps in this strange creature, she had found the reason her daughter had stared at the stars out of her bedroom window night after night. There was a definite softening of the Dragon's countenance when he had looked at Chihiro. She recalled her daughter's first letter.

"There is someone I'd like you to meet."

Looking at him more critically now, Yuuko could easily see what attracted her daughter. Dark hair, tall, lithe and those wonderfully expressive eyes, any young woman with a pulse would find him attractive. It seemed her daughter was no exception. The man thing bowed to her.

"I take my leave," he said and quietly exited the room.

Chihiro just gawked at her mother, a lump formed in her throat that seemed to want to choke her. Eventually, she found her voice.

"I can't believe you are here," she whispered hoarsely.

"I can't either," replied her mother unsteadily, "I keep thinking I'm going to wake up at any moment." She smiled, "you look wonderful; this place seems to agree with you." Yuuko looked around the room and felt a wave of guilt and remorse wash over her. "Chihiro, I am so sorry," she whispered. "I had no idea, how could I?"

"It's okay Mum, I do understand I just wish..."

"That we had not intervened?" interrupted her mother, "that even if we could not accept what you told us, that we had just left you to your beliefs and not tried to convince you it was a delusion?" Chihiro nodded, her lip trembling slightly.

"I thought at first it was all our fault. We raised you with no religion; we did not want to impose antiquated ideas on you. When you started talking about spirits I thought that perhaps you were just rebelling against us. But it soon became clear that you believed in them totally, that did not seem quite normal for a girl like you. I could not even put it down to religious zeal; you spoke about them as if they were real people and I could detect no reverence for them in what you said." Yuuko Ogino took a step towards her motionless daughter. "If your Grandmother had been alive she would have understood. She was a very devote and sensible woman. She would have warned us not to interfere with what we did not understand." Tears came to Yuuko's eyes.

"She would have stopped us from hurting you, prevented us ruining your childhood and driving you away from us." Chihiro found her own face was wet with tears. "Oh my daughter," whispered Yuuko. "Can you ever forgive us?" Chihiro wanted to, she desperately wanted to, but something was missing.

"Where is Dad?" she croaked; her throat was very tight making her voice rasp. Her mother shook her head and looked at the floor.

"He could not come."

"You mean he did not believe so would not try," Chihiro sighed. "Even after my letters, he cannot trust my word." Yuuko nodded.

"He is a very practical man, as you know. He does not have a spiritual bone in his body; if he can see it and touch it then he will believe. The paradox is that unless he believes in the possibility he will never see it."

Yuuko sighed and made an effort at wiping her face, but new tears simply replaced the old. Chihiro looked at her mother; she seemed to have aged in the last few months, there were worry lines on her forehead and crows feet in the corners of her eyes. Chihiro knew that it had been her that had put them there.

"Does he know you are here?" asked Chihiro concerned her mother had just run off.

"I said I was going to try and find you, follow the instructions you had given us. He told me I was being foolish." Her mother gave a bitter smile. "I told him I'd phone him when I found you, if I did not I'd be back by tomorrow at some point." She held up an expensive looking mobile phone. Its screen flickered and it beeped unhappily to itself. "However, I appear to be out of range. Your father will have to wait until I return."

Chihiro took hold of the phone, which now seemed to be spewing random letters across the screen. It felt strange in her hand, almost alien. She could not remember the last time she had handled something with a microchip in it. She started to laugh at the distressed phone, eventually, she was laughing so hard she got a stitch. Yuuko looked confused but was soon soothed when her daughter threw her arms around her. Chihiro's laughter turned to deep shuddering sobs. Yuuko held her daughter close to her, rocking her back and forth like she had done when she was a child.

"It's alright," she whispered. "I've done you a great wrong, ignorance is no excuse." She held Chihiro's face in her small delicate hands. "From now on you have my unwavering trust. I'm proud of the woman you have become and nothing will ever come between us again." Chihiro cried all the harder and was wrapped again in the haven that only a mothers embrace could provide.

Half an hour later, the cat-like wood spirit, Meeka, had brought them some tea, and ever the practical spirit she also provided a pile of hankies. Yuuko could not help gawking at the creature. Chihiro had to admit Meeka was an impressive sight to someone from her world. Ginger furred, with pointed ears on top of her head, almond-shaped yellow feline eyes and a velvety button nose. Her mother repressed a squeak of surprise as the spirit turned to leave, displaying her bushy tail that protruded from her white robes of servitude.

Chihiro spent the next hour explaining her adventures to her mother. She told her all about Zeniba and her two new sisters. She left out her involvement with Haku however, believing her mother was not quite ready to hear about that yet. Yuuko told Chihiro about how she came to the spirit world. She had seen Chihiro's third letter actually slip itself under the front door. That had convinced her that she had to at least try to find Chihiro. She had searched the woods for hours. Eventually, it was getting dark and in desperation, she had shouted into the woods that she wanted to see her daughter Chihiro who was in the spirit world.

"I don't think I really believed in the possibility until that point, but by saying it out loud I grew more sure of what I was trying to do. The next thing I knew I nearly tripped over an ugly little statue."

Chihiro chuckled.

"That happens quite often." Her mother eyed her suspiciously but continued.

"I walked through that tunnel; it was pitch-black on the other side, then suddenly lights started coming on around me and shadowy things started oozing from the shadows and buildings sort of appeared from the gloom. Where that dried river was, a huge lake appeared." Her mother paused and then said shamefully, "I was terrified, so I hid in an alleyway. I huddled there for a while, thinking that I was quite insane, when this huge dragon flies overhead. I could hardly believe my eyes, but the thing landed in the lane not six feet from me. I wanted to run, but for some reason I couldn't, my legs would not move!" Chihiro smiled, remembering that she had twice been on the receiving end of such a holding spells; Haku seemed to have a gift for them. For casting them, as well as removing them.

"Well, the thing put it's head on one side as if considering whether I was food or not. Then it sort of shrank into the shape of a man. I nearly fainted! It asked me why I was there and said that if I knew what was good for me I would turn around and go back the way I came. Well, I managed to stammer that I was looking for my daughter Chihiro. He suddenly became the most charming young man I have ever met, though he did insist that I ate something immediately. He then told me that I would have to see him later or I would get sick? Is that true?" Chihiro nodded.

"Yes, it is. Without his magic, you will suffer an illness called the sallow-hale. It's not nice and can kill you." Chihiro's mother swallowed nervously.

"Well, you know more of this world than I do, I will trust your judgement in this." Yuuko took a mouthful of tea and decided to broach the subject of the young man with vivid green eyes and a sinful smile. "So, this dragon..?"

"His name is Haku Mum, and technically he is a river God." Yuuko paled but continued.

"Well, he seems like a nice young God."

"He is over 17000 years old Mum," corrected Chihiro with a smile, Yuuko took a large swallow of tea to steady her fraying nerves.

"Is he anyone special to you?" Yuuko tried to phrase the question as casually as possible.

"Yes," replied Chihiro, "very special."

"You're... err... you are involved with him?" Yuuko was not quite sure how to describe the liaison. The word "Boyfriend," did not seem to fit the dragon.

"Yes," sighed Chihiro, "very involved and before you ask I'm not his lover." "Well not yet," she thought, "I would be if the Lady had had her way and you had not arrived when you did." She still felt angry she had yet again been manipulated but a rather large part of her wished her mother had stepped over the border an hour later than she had.

"Make that two hours," she giggled to herself inwardly.

"And he was the one you told me about?" continued her mother, "the one who helped you when you were a child? He looked after you when we were..." She stumbled over the words.

"When you were pigs, Mum. Yes, he helped me and in doing so helped you." Chihiro's mother shook her head.

"Well, at least one thing makes sense now."

"What?" asked Chihiro.

"Why myself and your Father went right off the taste of pork." Chihiro chuckled.

"Is he good to you?" asked her mother suddenly.

"Yes, very. He has a bit of a temper on occasion, but so do I. Most of the time he is sweet natured and generous." Her mother still seemed uncomfortable. "What is it Mum?" asked Chihiro.

"He's not human, is he?" her mother said flatly.

"How did you guess?" Chihiro laughed, "Did the scales give him away?"

"Well... err ... what I mean is... not being human... Is he human like all over?" Chihiro threw back her head and laughed; trust her mother to worry about something like that!

"I don't know," she replied. "But it's going to be fun finding out."

Haku had knocked politely at the door an hour later and administered the cure for the sallow-hale to Yuuko, much to her amazement. He also gave her a warning.

"You cannot stay here long, only a few days I'm afraid. In theory, a human should not exist in this world. My magic can only protect you for so long, it takes magic significantly stronger than my own to adapt a human to this world and the changes that are made are permanent." Yuuko turned to Chihiro.

"You have had this done?" Chihiro nodded.

"That is why I can't visit you; I'm part of this world now."

Haku made a small noise drawing Chihiro's attention to him. He looked at her slightly awkwardly.

"Well... that is not completely true." She stared at him.

"You mean there is a way back for me?"

"Yes," he replied quietly, "but it's not easy. I could protect you from the effects of being in the human world, for a limited time. It would take a massive amount of power, but I could do it."

"And there is a small ceremony she would have to go through first." he thought

"Haku, you get tired just sending those letters to the human world. How much energy would you need to protect me?" He shrugged.

"I only said I could do it, I have no idea what condition I'd be in afterwards though." Chihiro gave him a withering look.

"That's not really an option Haku. Is there any other way apart from you nearly killing yourself?"

"Not really," he said with a smile creeping over his face. "Not that I'm unhappy about that!" Chihiro groaned inwardly, he really had no decorum. What a thing to say before her Mother! Yuuko was smiling too however, she was pleased her daughter was so happy and had such an attentive partner; even if he wasn't human. Chihiro was glaring at the outspoken dragon but Yuuko decided to save him from her daughter's considerable wrath.

"There is no need to hide the truth from me Chihiro; of course Haku is happy you are in his world to stay." She smiled up at the handsome immortal and received a surprised smile in return. "As for me not being able to stay here long; I am just glad to have the chance to visit. I'll have to leave tomorrow anyway; your father will be worried about me." Meeka took that moment to knock at the door.

"Come in," called Haku, which she did.

"Your Mother's rooms are prepared, mistress," she said with quiet modesty.

"Wonderful," sighed Yuuko. "I'm exhausted." She turned to Chihiro. "I'm sorry but this is a lot to take in at once, I could really do with a rest." Chihiro smiled, she was tired herself.

"Of course, go get some rest, it's very late." Yuuko stood and hugged her daughter and bowed to Haku.

"Lead on, Meeka, is it?" The wood spirit nodded and bowed. "If you would be so kind as to show me the way?" said Yuuko, sensing the little creature thrived on formality. Meeka padded silently away to the door with Yuuko trailing after her.

Chihiro sighed blowing her fringe off her face. "I can hardly believe she is here." Haku smiled lazily.

"I told you the letters would be worth it."

"You were right," she agreed, "but I still can't believe it." His smile broadened, and he smoothed back her hair from her face with a gentle touch.

"Forget about it for the moment," he murmured and slipped his arms around her. "Now where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?"

He moved to kiss her but she wiggled from his embrace and took a few steps back from him. Annoyance crossed his face for a moment. Chihiro held up her hands in a gesture of placation.

"Don't give me that look; you can't have your own way all the time. I have something to tell you and I prefer to do it without you holding me, it's easier to concentrate." He frowned but stood still to listen to her. "Do you remember how I acted earlier?"

"Vividly!" he chuckled, his face lighting up with pleasure, "I was pleasantly surprised I must admit."

"But it isn't the way I normally behave, is it?" she pressed, hoping he would get the point without her having to spell it out.

"No," he said slowly, "but I did not really question that at the time." He seemed to be thinking hard. Chihiro saw that she was going to have to help him out.

"Well that's just it, it was not normal for me. I was influenced."

"I did not think you had drunk that much," he mumbled. Chihiro rolled her eyes, for an intelligent being he really could be dense sometimes.

"It was the Lady's doing, she came to me after you had gone." Chihiro felt herself smirk; it was actually quite funny in a way. "She practically begged me to sleep with you when you returned and then confessed that she had interfered with my hormones."

Haku's green eyes widened with understanding and then narrowed in saurian anger.

"How dare she!" he hissed. Chihiro shrugged.

"Don't worry about it; I'm getting quite used to being a pawn in a game I don't know the rules of."

"No one should touch you with my mark on you!" he growled. Chihiro tried to keep her face straight. She understood that this was a knock to his pride as well as an insult to her.

"Don't take it personally Haku," she said gently. "It's all to do with this mysterious prophecy."

"Prophecy be damned! No one should even think of interfering with you!" he roared.

"She is more powerful than any other spirit Haku. If anyone can get past your defences, she can."

He marched over to the windows and glared out at the plain, folding his arms across his chest. Chihiro could tell that he was livid, but doing his best to master it. The swollen moon was setting, backlighting the mountains to the west, bathing them with liquid silver light.

"I'm sick of all the attention," he mumbled, "it seems we spend more time justifying ourselves to others than we spend with each other."

Chihiro winced; she was gratified he felt the same about the constant gossip and interest in them, but she did not want him to brood on the subject either. She walked over to him and slipped an arm around his middle.

"You knew it would be like this, Haku." He nodded, his teal coloured hair falling forward to hide his eyes, giving him a forlorn and lost look that made Chihiro hold him all the tighter. "You don't regret falling in love with me do you?" she asked tentatively. He turned towards her sharply, fixing his fey green eyes on her.

"Never," he hissed, his voice full of emotion. Chihiro grinned pleased with his reaction.

"Well then, why let the gossips get to you?" He caught her lips with his in a brief but passionate kiss. She giggled girlishly, blushing a little. That kiss definitely had echoes of the way he had kissed her while she was high on her own hormones.

"In light of all that has happened, I take it you will not be spending the night here," he said, ruefully.

"I don't think so," she said with a smile. "Especially after kissing me like that, I would not trust you to remain in full retention of your faculties." She laughed. "Now that is not a bad thing but I would have to slap you to make you see sense, and that would really ruin my evening." She looked out of the window at the darkening landscape, the moon was nearly set. "Or morning, I have no idea what time it is."

"You don't trust me?" he said, all mock hurt.

"Not an inch, as far as I'm concerned," she snorted. "I know I'm irresistible to you."

"You said you liked it when I misbehaved," he murmured, his voice turning soft and enticing. Chihiro flushed scarlet.

"Please don't tease me," she whispered.

"Sorry," he mumbled, "I can't help it." Then he stood straighter and said, "Are you still going to come with me to my river?"

"Of course," she replied, "I was looking forward to it." Relief flitted across his countenance for a moment then he smiled warmly.

"Well, if you are not going to spend the night at least have an early breakfast with me." He made a strange but graceful gesture in the air and the door to his dining room creaked open. Inside Chihiro could see a table piled high with sumptuous leftovers from the kitchen. The cooks did not appreciate their food disappearing in this manner; they had to constantly re-arrange menus around Haku's "thefts". They never complained to him though, they were too frightened. Chihiro raised an eyebrow.

"Not only are you showing off, but you are spoiling me rotten," she commented.

"And I have a right to do both if I choose to," he countered. He rested a hand on the small of her back and guided her into the room ahead of him.

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