Spirited Away Fan Fiction ❯ Courage of the spirit ❯ Family affairs ( Chapter 6 )

So on with this ever snowballing story, ITS ALIVE I'VE CREATED A MONSTER!

Family affairs

         &n bsp;  The rest of the week passed quietly, she attended lectures finished essays and generally got on with things. She was looking forward to her time away with Linca. Linca herself was in "plan" mode everything was listed and itemised even the average amount of petrol they would use. Glancing at a map Linca announced.

"Hey we are going to pass within 10 Km of your home"

"Oh yes?" said Chihiro dreading where this was going.

"Why don't we drop by for an hour or two and surprise them?"

"I don't think so Linca" Chihiro frowned

"Why not?" the blond asked

"Err…we don't see eye to eye." She mumbled

"So who does with their parents, come on you have not seen them since you changed subject. They are bound to be worried."

"They always worry," Chihiro said

"Well this is a chance to set their minds at rest isn't it? Maybe your mind too." Linca put her head on one side.

"Maybe your right" Chihiro nodded "In Fact I'm sure you are and if they get on my case I can show you the sites of my home town for an hour or so until they simmer down." She creased her brow "it may not be much fun for you though." Linca waved her hand.

"Rubbish anyone who had you can't be all bad." Chihiro laughed

"You're just making sure I don't change my mind. What are you my conscience or something? First you try to help me get a life and now you want me to make up with my parents. Are you my guardian spirit?" Chihiro laughed but Linca just gave a tight smile. She then shook herself and said

"Well I will see you at 9am sharp tomorrow. Don't be late I want you packed and ready, its going to take us long enough to get to your parents let alone Kyoto." Chihiro nodded.

"I'll be ready." Chihiro made to leave "Linca are you o.k. you seem a little distant."

"Yes, yes I'm fine now go" Linca waved her hand in dismissal. Chihiro went back to her dorm.

        &nbs p;   Chihiro was feeling a little car sick. The radio was blaring and the day was hot and humid. Linca glanced at her for a moment them concentrated on her driving again.

"You look a little green around the gills" she smirked

"I don't like long car journeys" Chihiro grimaced "I prefer to fly."

"And not in a plane" said the voice, she ignored it.

"Then why did you agree to come with me?" asked Linca

"because my only other option was Tokyo with Scott."

"Ah" said Linca "you know you could have gone with him. I wouldn't of minded."

"No, I couldn't" Replied Chihiro firmly "It would have given him the wrong idea and as I said I don't play games."

"You are a very honest person I'll give you that" said Linca

"Honest but hopeless" Chihiro replied

Linca laughed

"No you are just you and you should not apologise for that."

"Well that's a change in your attitude" said Chihiro.

"Not really, I always liked you for who you are, I just thought you needed help because you seemed unhappy and for a while it seemed to work." She squinted at the road signs.

"Now which road do I take?"

"First left, then second right, big blue house on the end."

            Ten minutes later they had arrived. They got out of the car but did not move away from it.

"Mums done more work on the garden" Chihiro said

"It's lovely" replied Linca Still neither moved.

"Well we had better go in" mumbled Chihiro.

"Yes" said Linca. Still they did not move. Finally Linca said

"Look chi we don't have to…"

"Chihiro!" Called a woman's voice. Chihiro looked up to the house to see her mother. Yoko was in her 40's slim and quite pretty. She still wore her hair short but her face had thinned a bit with age. She ran down the house steps and hugged her daughter.

          &n bsp; "Oh it's so nice to see you" then she pulled away and frowned. "Shouldn't you be at university?"

"Its mid semester Mum I have a week off." Yoko's face brightened

"Well this is a nice surprise your father is away for a few days. It will be nice to have some company until he gets back."

"We are only staying a few hours Mum" said Chihiro "Linca and I are driving to Kyoto."

"Oh" said her mother, she looked disappointed. Chihiro felt her stomach twist with guilt. Then, as if noticing the short blond standing next to Chihiro for the first time, Yoko frowned. Chihiro remembered her manners.

"Mum this is Linca she is on an engineering course at my university, she's from Russia.

          &nbs p; Yoko smiled and bowed

"HELLO" she almost shouted "IT…IS…AN…HOUNOUR…TO…HAVE…YOU…VIS IT…US."

"Mum" Chihiro hissed "Linca speaks fluent Japanese."

"Oh" said her mother "Well all the better, I hope I have not offended you Linca." Linca shook her head.

"Not at all, In fact I was admiring your garden…" Linca trailed off not knowing how to address Chihiro's mother.

"Yoko please Linca, we are all adults here, no need for formality."

"Yoko then" smiled Linca "it must be very acidic in this area how do you cope with that?"

"Well" said Yoko Turning to the house and gesturing for Linca to follow. "It's all to do with the planting, why fight what is there by adding lime when there are many plants that love this soil type."

            ; Chihiro listened to her mother chatter on and smiled. Trust Linca to choose her mothers favourite topic of conversation. As she walked towards the house she looked down the valley and into the small woodland at the bottom. She remembered walking that track every day for a month after she had come home. She had never found the entrance to the spirit world, the track had just ended in thick undergrowth. Immediately the magic words popped into her head. She mumbled them under her breath and went into the house.

        &nbs p;   Yoko made tea for the girls but also raided the pantry for all the goodies she could find. The conversation was a bit strained, it was as if her mother was terrified of saying anything that may offend her, this made her feel even more vulnerable and guilty. Sure she and her parents had had there problems but she still loved them both. They where only doing what they thought was right.

            ; Linca was an angel, charming and engaging. She really saved all those awkward moments until…

"How is your degree going dear? What was it you changed it to again?"

"World mythology Mum, you know that."

"And what skills will this course give you? What will you be at the end of it?" Asked Yoko gently.

"I don't know" shrugged Chihiro

"You have no ideas?"

"None at the moment." That was a lie Chihiro had thought about going into teaching but she wanted to see where her mother was going with this. Yoko put down her cup.

"My dear, changing your degree, it had nothing to do with your past problems did it?" Chihiro went cold.

"I don't think so" she said carefully, Yoko sighed.

"Your farther and I were worried you know…"

"You worry too much" interrupted her daughter "I'm fine"

"Yes but I thought maybe you were doing it to punish us in some way."

"Mum" protested Chihiro flushing red with embarrassment. What would Linca be thinking?"

"Well what else would it be?" her mother almost wailed. "Why would you deliberately change to a course that is beneath you abilities, and ruins you future job prospects, if you were not still blaming us for something?" Chihiro was speechless but then the nasty little voice said

"Are you sure she is being unreasonable in her assessment? Why did you change? Did you even think about it?" This voice was beging to bug her but Chihiro had to admit she had not thought about it, thinking too deeply would mean remembering too much. It had just seemed like a good idea at the time.

"I enjoy it Mum." Was all she managed. Linca took that moment to say

            "Times getting on" she turned to Chihiro "and you wanted to show me that trail in the woods remember?" Chihiro played along thanking every ancestor and spirit she could think of for Linca being there.

"Yes I did" she started to get up

"You'll come back before you leave?" her mother said all in a rush.

"Of course" muttered Chihiro, her mother came up to her and kissed her on the for head.

"Ok" she said "I'll put together a few things for your trip."

"Thanks Mum" Chihiro smiled

"Lovely to meet you Linca." Yoko bowed

"Lovely to meet you to Yoko" said Linca returning the bow. Chihiro and Linca left. In the garden Chihiro sighed.

"I'm sorry Linca, she worries." Linca gave a sad smile.

"Its ok Chi and think of it this way it would be different if they did not care." Chihiro nodded and then realised they were nearly at the end of the street.

"Oh" she exclaimed "where are we going?"

"To the wood at the bottom of the hill" explained Linca.

"I thought that was just a cover story" Chihiro was a little confused.

"It was, but your mother is watching us from the house."

"Ah" said Chihiro "I suppose that figures."

"Oh come on Chi it won't be that bad, you never know maybe it will be just like the woods in your story."

"That's what I'm afraid of" murmured Chihiro. There was a split second of complete silence and then Linca threw her head back and laughed. Chihiro watched her; she had a deep throaty laugh that made her blond tresses shimmer around her. It was not long before Chihiro was laughing too and soon the two were leaning on each other for support. The statement had not even been funny but it did not seem to matter.

          &nbs p; At the window of the blue house Chihiro's mother watched the girls walk down the hill in the afternoon sun. She saw them laughing with each other. She smiled and worried a little less.