Fan Fiction / Spirited Away Fan Fiction ❯ Spirited Hearts ❯ The Spirit World ( Chapter 1 )

Spirited Hearts

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Spirited Away. I am only using these ideas for my story.

~ Blah ~ =Thoughts

Chapter 1: The Spirit World

14-year old Kairi Ogino sighed as she lifted her head out of the bouquet of cherry blossoms her friend had given her. On the top of the bouquet, was a note that read:

To Kairi,

Hope you have a good time at your new house. I'll miss you lots.

Your Friend,

Selphie

"Why do we have to move anyway?" she whined. "I liked it better at my old house." Her mother, Aeris Ogino, looked at her. (AN: Yes, I know she was called Aerith in the game, but I really like the name Aeris much better.)

"Now honey, we've been over this a hundred times. Your father got a new job, and we have to move closer to It." she said.

"Oh look, Kairi," said her father Leon Ogino. "There's your new school. Doesn't it look neat?" Kairi just sat up and stuck out her tongue. She then lay back on the seat, only to leap up.

"Mom, mom! My flowers are dying!" She moaned.

"I told you not to smother them like that," her mother told her. "We'll put them in a vase of water when we get to our new house."

"Great. I finally get a bouquet, and it's a goodbye present." She complained, slumping back in her seat.

"Your father got you a rose for your birthday last year, remember?" her mother said.

"Yeah, just one. One hardly counts as a bouquet." she replied. She sat back and stared out the window. Then, the car suddenly lurched to a halt. Kairi's father leaned out the window. A stone path that led into a wooded grove replaced the road.

"Did I take a wrong turn?" he asked.

"Dear, you always get us lost!" said her mother.

"'Look," said Kairi's father, pointing. "There's our house! See? It's the blue one to the left. This road must lead to it."

He started the car, and drove up the path. Kairi glanced out the window. She saw several small stone buildings on the ground. "What are those things?" she asked. Her mother looked out her window.

"Those are shrines. People say that little spirits live there." she replied. Kairi turned to look back out the window. She blinked. She swore she saw a small figure move in the buildings. But when she blinked, it was gone.

~ Maybe it was nothing, ~ she thought. As the car rolled along, they noticed the road became very bumpy. Kairi was jostled around in her seat. She looked out the window just as they passed a statue that was sitting between the trees. Suddenly, the car stopped with a screech. Kairi got up and peered out her window. They had stopped in front of a large red wall that had a huge doorway in the middle. In front of the car was a small statue, like the one Kairi had seen in the woods, except half of it was covered in moss. Her dad opened the door and climbed out.

"Dear, don't get out of the car," Kairi's mother said. But her father ignored her, as he inspected the gateway.

"I wonder where this leads," he said. Kairi's mom got out and walked over to him.

"We can't just go exploring," she said. "What about the movers?"

"They can wait, and besides, they have a key." he replied. Then the two of them started walking into the tunnel.

"Kairi, are you coming?" her mom called over her shoulder.

"No! I'm not!" she shouted.

"Fine, you can just stay with the car. We'll be back in a few minutes." Kairi just stood there for a moment, then climbed out of the car and ran after them.

"Wait for me!" she shouted.

When she got into the tunnel, she latched on to her mother.

"Don't grab my arm so hard, you'll make me trip," her mother whispered.

Their walk took them into a large room that had benches in several places. Sunlight streamed out of a multicolored window and cast a red, blue, green, and yellow reflection next to a water fountain.

"What is this place?" asked Kairi.

"I think it's a train station," said her father. "Listen!" Sure enough, they could hear the sound of a train rumbling past. The trio continued walking, until they came out to a huge green field that had statues scattered here and there.

"I knew it," said Kairi's father. "Look!" they all turned to see a clock tower. "This place is an abandoned amusement park." Her father continued. They made lots of these in the early 1900's, but then the market went bad, so they stopped building them." Then, he and Kairi's mother started walking across the field.

"Where are you going?!" she yelled. "You said we were only going to look for a few minutes!" she yelled.

"Come on! Where's your sense of adventure!" called her father.

"I think I left it at our old house!" she yelled sarcastically. "Come on, let's go!" but her parents didn't listen. "Wait for me!" she yelled. As they walked, they saw a group of buildings on top of a hill. In front of it, were a group of rocks with a trickle of water in the middle.

"Looks like they were planning to put a river here," said Kairi's father. He sniffed the air. "Do you smell that? Maybe they're still open."

"Come on Kairi!" called her mother.

"Coming!" shouted Kairi, as she struggled to climb across. The three of them walked through the brightly colored buildings, which seemed well kept.

"That's strange, they're all restaurants," muttered Kairi.

"Hey! Over here! I think I found it!" called her father. Kairi and her mother ran over to the spot. They found him in front of a booth, stocked high with food.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" her father called. "Hmm, no one's here. Oh well." he took a plate and went over to a stack of food. Kairi's mother sat down and took some food.

"What are you doing?! We could get in trouble!" Kairi shouted.

"Don't worry, you've got Daddy here, " said her father, loading up several plates. "I have money, credit cards, checks, we can just pay them when they get back."

"Mm! Kairi! You've got to try this!" exclaimed her mother.

"No! Let's go!" shouted Kairi, but her parents ignored her. Kairi gave up, and decided to explore the amusement park. She soon came across a large bridge. At the end of it, was a tall red building with pagoda-style rooftops. In front of a tall smokestack, which poured out a stream of smoke that trickled like a black snake past a large flag that fluttered in the wind.

~A bathhouse? ~ She wondered. Suddenly, a train whistle caught her attention. Kairi walked to one side of the bridge and watched the train run past. Suddenly, she felt someone was nearby. She looked up and saw a boy about her age with spiky brown hair and blue eyes. He wore a white shirt and blue shorts. The two of them stared at each other, before the boy spoke up.

"You shouldn't be here, " the boy said. He pushed her across the bridge. "Hurry, before it gets dark. You have to get to get to the other side of the river. I'll distract them so they won't go after you." and with that, he turned and ran back to the building. Kairi ran a short distance, then stopped and muttered,

"What's the matter with him?" She then ran over to where her parents were. The area was a mess, but she didn't notice that.

"Mom! Dad! Stop eating! We've gotta get out of here!" she shouted, but her parents didn't seem to hear her. "Are you listening?! Come on!!!" her father looked up at her, and she was shocked to realize her father, as well as her mother, had turned into a pig! Suddenly, a figure leaned out of the shadows and struck the pig that had once been her father. The creature squealed and fell over.

Kairi screamed and ran away. As she tore through the streets, she noticed dark shapes moving here and there. But no one seemed to see her. Kairi ran to the edge of the amusement park, and ended up plunging into a large body of water that went up to her waist. ~ Water?! ~ She thought in surprise. Quickly, she ran back to the shore. Kairi peered at the lights from the other side of the huge river that glinted off the water. "I'm dreaming! I'm dreaming!" she shouted, bashing her head with her fists. She crouched on the ground muttering, "Come on, come on! Wake up!" Suddenly, she looked up at her hands, only to find that they were clear! "AH! I'm see-through!" Kairi exclaimed, rubbing her hands furiously. Then, she noticed a large ferry move across the water towards the shore. As it docked, several odd figures stepped out. Some resembled giant ducks, while others looked like masked figures in red robes. Kairi ran away in fright. A few minutes later, the boy found her crouched beside a wall.

"Don't be afraid," he said, and reached into his pocket and pulled out a red pill. "Here, eat this," he told her. But Kairi was hesitant, remembering what happened to her parents. "Don't worry, you won't turn into a pig," he said, as if reading her thoughts. I put a spell over it." Yet Kairi flailed about, until she realized her arms were sticking through the boy, who didn't seem frightened. "Here," he said, inserting the pill into her mouth, "Now chew and swallow." Kairi obliged. "There now," he said. "That wasn't so bad, now wasn't? And look!" he put his hand against hers, and it didn't go through.

Suddenly, her leaned over her. "Get down," he whispered. The boy looked up to see a huge black crow fly overhead. When it left, the boy whispered to her, "It's not safe here. If Maleficent finds you, she'll turn you into an animal, and you'll never be able to rescue your parents. Kairi blinked, wondering how he knew of her parent's plight.

Maleficent?" she asked.

"She's the witch who rules the bathhouse," the boy explained. He looked around. "It's not safe here," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her, but she stayed put.

"My legs are stuck! I can't get up!" Kairi whined. The boy leaned down and whispered,

"By the wind and water within me, release her. Now get up," he said. Kari obliged, and found she could stand. Without another word, the boy grabbed her hand and ran off. They dashed down a set of steps, through a meat locker, and into a pigpen full of pigs. Kairi briefly wondered if her parents were here, before she was pulled out of it. They stopped at the bridge that led to the bathhouse. Up ahead, she could hear the chatter of creatures talking, and the sounds off strange-looking ladies greeting the visitors.

"Now," the boy instructed her, "I cast a spell so no one will see you. So don't breath or the spell will break." Kairi did so, and they began to cross the bridge. She found it increasingly hard to keep her breath held. Soon, they were almost at the end of the bridge. But before she could get there, a black creature in a helmet with a tattoo shaped like a heart with an `X' on it ran up, shouting,

"Master Kama! You're back!" Kairi was so surprised she let out her breath. The shadow creature stopped, and exclaimed, "What? A Human? ! ?" Immediately, the bridge was alive with panic. The boy held up his hand, and the creature hovered there, motionless. Then, with amazing speed, he took off, and opened a door in a wall across the other side. The shadow creature hung in the air for a moment, then fell to the ground with a thump. Later, Kairi and the boy sat behind some bushes, listening to the panicked shouts of the creatures.

"I didn't hold my breath all the way," Kairi wailed.

"No, you did good," the boy reassured her. "Now, here's what I want you to do." He put his hand on her head, and began to speak. "After I go in, head to the back side of the bathhouse and go down the steps. Go through the boiler room, and talk to Cloud the boiler man. Ask him for a job, and NO matter what, don't let him turn you away. If you get a job here, then not even Maleficent will be able to touch you. Got that?" Kairi blinked, since she had seen it all in her head.

"I- I think so," she said.

"Good." as the boy, turning to leave. "And good luck, Kairi." Kairi blinked again.

"How'd you know my name?" she asked.

"I've known you ever since you were a little girl." the boy replied. "Oh, and by the way, my name's Kama." the boy walked up to the door and opened it.

"Master Kama!" exclaimed a voice. "Maleficent wants to see you!"

"Yeah, yeah it's about my mission, right?" the boy took off his sandals and took them inside. Kairi hid behind the bushes for a minute before gathering her courage and heading towards the direction of the boiler room.

~ End Chapter ~

So? What did you think? Like it? Hate it? Well, don't forget to review and tell me!

(Oh and I think Kama is Japanese for "Heaven," though it may also mean sky, since there more than one series of Japanese terms)