𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐄 | 𝙽𝙾 𝙵𝙰𝙲𝙴 𝚇 𝚁𝙴𝙰𝙳𝙴𝚁 |

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 𝟸 : ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʟɪᴇs ᴀʜᴇᴀᴅ

Chihiro (POV)

I never thought I would encounter this place again. It's been so long since I had seen this red tunnel. I remember what me and my parents had discovered inside this wretched gate. I had mix feelings of fear yet a hint of somewhat relief to seeing it again. I can't explain it thoroughly due to my blurred memory of someone so dear to me ordering to never look back at this place. Which I then got stunned by a melancholic remembrance. I also got petrified when my sister went inside the tunnel and decided to check it out due to her annoying curiousity. I had no choice but to follow her. Unfortunately my anxiety got the best of me and I wasn't feeling okay.

"Oi, sis... Are you alright?" (Y/N), my little sister asked seeing my worrisome state.

"I-I'm...fine.." I said unfortunately with an unconvicing tone.

"This place seems to be oddly familiar to you.... judging from- your stunned expression..." She said with such confirmation.

"Tsk. Why must this girl be so persistent?" I silently said in my mind.

"Why are you even so frantic on worrying about me?" I had blutered out my thoughts.

"You're just acting out of character today....while I just wanted to look or possibly explore this area." (Y/N) again said with such irritating passion.

"But-It's not safe here..." I try convincing her.

"Oh...How on earth would you know?" She said on her bold yet sassy tone.

"I needed to tell her something.... But if I even try to tell her the truth she might not even believe me..." I thought as I was about to give up on persuading her to stop.

"Fine... But don't blame me for whatever happens after this." I reverted back to my old casual self.

"Now you're just exaggerating this dilemma." She's underestamating this.

𝐘/𝐧 𝐩𝐨𝐯

I barely manage to talk to her any futher. I maybe curious to what's outside this tunnel but I am no naive delinquent that does things recklessly. Unlike my sister here acting so suspicious. I do sense she's hiding something or was trying to get me away from learning what she seems to have already known and I'm here to discover it.

As we go futher the area, I noticed outside the tunnel that we have come across a lush grassy plain. It was a beautiful to me remaining to walk foward with my sister by my side. But I didn't noticed till I was sensing that we had got further away from the tunnel to the point of no turning back.

"Didn't I have to go somewhere...?" I tried to quietly talking myself out from this gorgeous yet bewildered place.

"Oh...ye college damn-have to do my responsibility." I murmured in my own annoyance.

"But what's wrong with having an adventure along the way." I felt the thrill of being an adventerous individual.

As me and my sister passed through the grassy plain. We had reach an area of somewhat a abandoned place. It seems to be a town. It all then got spooky when the place was uninhabited. But to our surprise we were starting to smell an alluring aroma of fresh.....steamed-dumplings?

I tried to follow the aroma but as I was about to my sister grab my shoulder from behind and told me to stop. But my curiousity got the best of me and rushed over there to see a buffet of food piled over. It was very mouthwatering just by looking at it. To the sight of seeing a whole stack of crispy chicken wings first covered in a seem delectable dressing. Then the unravelling appearance of a whole bowl of pork chops next to it. To seeing a delicious pile of beef sautéed in a rich yet savory sauce. As the list of food goes on.

The food is very tempting. But I'm not stupid to not even wander why this is appearing before me and my sister in a off grid place. I looked around the area to see if anyone is close by. I told my sister to stay close by me for it's safe for us to stick together. As we were heading to the kitchen since the food was all fresh and hot from such preparation. We were expecting to atleast meet a few of this town's residents. As I was about to open the kitchen door. The sun was about to go down then as this was going to become a very long and stingy night we could had conprehend.

"Hello...?" I try to greet someone as I opened the kitchen door. But I got petrified to witnessing how a terrifying shadow was one cooking behind the closed doors.

I was in vegetative state for a moment there. But was thankfully disrupted by my older sister, Chihiro as she yanked me out there. To us running for our lives. As I had thought in my situation back there of being the cat that was almost killed by it's own curiousity. My sister and I continue to run as she was holding on to me on prioritizing to speed myself up. It appears that we are heading towards a public bath house. But my sister decided to take a different route instead of the main entrance.

"Ok! She's obviously familiar with this place... I have to ask her immediately." I wanted answers to my questions since she has to reveal what's happening around here.

Gladly we had finally stopped in order to catch our breathes. We had also sighed of relief for being safe from the time being. She then go ahead and asked me if I was ok.

"Phew~ We're safe from here... (Y/N) are you okay sis?" Chihiro asked her just to be sure.

"Sigh, Yeah...I-am.." as I said from exhuastion.

"You better tell me... What's happening around here...... So I can know in what predicament we'll be facing ahead of us." I continue the conversation by telling her that I have the right to know.

"Aren't you more concern going to college?" My sister tried to lay down the thick atmosphere between us which is a bad time being her humorous self.

"Please... That is the last thing I would worry about in this situation of ours." I was proving her my point.

"Alright! You do deserve to know, since this isn't particularly a fully safe place." She then felt to confess what she know about this place.

"This is the exact place I used to tell you as stories when you were little." She then suddenly looked away while saying it.

"Like-no-shit." Is the only thing I could say from her statement.

"Now, that I think about it all makes sense to this place being literally existing right before me. I know my sister can be obnoxious but last thing she ever was that she is an individual who is capable of lying which she never was. So as I remember in my sister's story about this place we need the help of a certain witch." I thankfully now know what we must do in order to go back from where we came from.

"Ok! You call the shots! On what we should do but I get the final say if it's worth to unravel....even though this is the spirit world, we must still remain resilient." I told her with a stern stone.

"Fine... As you must.. I do agree I can get oblivious with what's happening when I first came here. Atleast I have someone close to me to correct my each step." Sister said with such maturity.

"Alright, so what do we have to do first?" I asked for this current mission me and my sister had to accomplish.

"First, We must go inside the Bath House and ask for assistance of Yubaba... even though she is one wicked witch. She can't harm us since I am acquainted with her child Bôh." She said such a satisfying declaration.

"Impressive... who knew you got some strong connections, older sister~" I stated she's great when she decided to become resourceful especially in this situation.

"What a great compliment to have received from you, yourself... younger sister~" Older sister said with satisfaction.

As She and I both decided to go straight to the main entrance. A shocking revealance had occured of the spirits around us was clearing a path for us. Stating my sister is well respected here that they were treating us with such respect. To me having to prepare myself on what's about to happen next as the doors of the bath house was about to open.