My week has been nuts, I nearly forgot to post this. Also, I'm not going to post at all the rest of the month of November. I've decided to do NaNoWriMo, and will be focusing on that.

I'll post again the first Friday of December. This is your heads up.

Once more, disclaimer: I own nothing that is not my own.

Enjoy!

"Come, you should rest. We can talk later."

He turned away, guiding her.

She half turned, remembering her fallen bag, but it was not there.

Shaking her head, she allowed herself to be led into the magnificent bathhouse.

The halls were empty, and the place quiet as they moved through the establishment.

The smell of sweet wax helped solidify some of the murkier memories.

She could remember being in the same lift with Haku, but they were both much smaller, and she had the distinct feeling that he had been mad at her.

She glanced at him now, trying to decipher what he was feeling, but his face was as passive as could be.

They stopped at a dark hall, and Sen peered down at all the closed shoji screens that lined the walls.

A gentle tug on her shoulder pulled her back in time for the lift to move upward.

"Almost there." He murmured.

They were silent again.

She didn't know if she should thank him for all that he had done for her thus far, if she should ask for a job, or if she should warn him that she pissed off this Ame man who seemed to have so much control over him.

"Haku..." He cut her off, guiding her out of the lift and down an empty hall.

"Not now. Sleep first, then we can talk." His voice was muted, like her head was submerged in water. He stopped at a familiar door, one she had see countless times in her dreams.

His office was just as she had last seen, although it felt like ages since she'd last been here.

She walked on unsteady feet into the room, taking in each detail.

She had an ominous feeling that she wouldn't see this room for long, that this place, and this man, would slip through her fingers like water.

Everything she came to care about, came to find comfort in, it all went away at some point.

She stared out the opened shoji screens at the setting sun, bathed in it's strong rays.

The heat was almost uncomfortable.

She idly watched Haku open the door to his bedroom, gesturing inwards.

"You're belongings are here."

With more ease than she expected, she retreated from the sunlight, and slipped past the male into his room.

She found no trepidation upon seeing the bed linens folded down, or seeing a fresh set of clothes neatly stacked by her shoddy bag.

"Do you remember where the wash room is?" He was quiet, almost shy. But that couldn't be!

She started to shake her head no, but then stopped.

She did remember.

"Sorry, yes." She felt her eyes prick, a tell-tale sign of tears, and she huffed in exasperation, rubbing her face.

"Sorry, I'm just... I can't... This is..." She couldn't form the words to express herself.

A gentle hand cupped the side of her face, and she looked up to eyes that had to be just as confused as hers.

"Be calm. You are not the only one who is struggling. You will feel better after some sleep." He turned away from her, and she caught his wrist.

"And you? When will you feel better?" She asked. She had not meant to voice the words running through her head. She had not meant to grab him, to ask him such a personal question.

She dropped his arm quickly.

He smiled, patted her on the head once more, and closed the door on the room.

She woke to blankets she was not familiar with. They were heavy and silky, a dark grey with copious amounts of matching pillows. The bed was massive and she struggled to throw the blankets back, instead crawling out, kicking her limbs one way then the other to escape.

The floors were cool under foot as she passed into the sitting room, admiring the pre-dawn sky visible from the wide open screens. It was crisp in the rooms and she wrapped her arms around herself to stave off the chill.

A few steps closer to the balcony revealed that there was a light dusting of white coating most every surface.

Snow.

A chill not from the cold slid down her spine.

Was she dreaming again?

She'd never dreamt of waking up before. It was always her just opening her eyes, being where she was, no more or less.

His presence permeated the room.

Was it his magic?

Or that he was very much a predator?

Maybe both?

Turning slowly, taking in every detail of the room she thought she had memorized, she knew she'd find him seated behind the dark wood desk in his office.

Everything was clearer, more crisp and in attention. It was as if she had been viewing through smoke, the images in her head of this place a foggy excuse for memory.

He was indeed behind his desk, but he was different than she expected him to look. His dark hair was pulled back out of his face, sleeves rolled to his elbows, and he was toying with a cup of what looked to be tea if the steam was to go by.

"You're real!" She gasped, dropping to her bottom suddenly. He looked at her then, as if he'd been waiting for her to acknowledge him before he dared look. His face was passive, but she thought she could see amusement in his eyes.

"I maintain that I have always been real." He drawled, leaning back into his chair. She looked around wildly, pressing her hands to the polished floor, smelling the same sweet wax she'd smelled the night prior on the lower floors.

"I'm actually here!" She exclaimed, pressing her hands to her face, overcome with emotion.

Suddenly, she sat up, shuffled forward on her knees.

"My name!" Her gaze found his and she briefly wondered at his still passive features. "My name is Sen!"

He nodded once, but said nothing as she struggled with memories, trying to sort through the strongest of them.

She wandered from bedroom to sitting room, from office to balcony, back and fourth, like a ghost. Her mind was overwhelmed with information, working to re-sort itself with her past life. There were still large gapes between memories, but she'd been able to piece most of it together.

Haku had given her space, and encouraged her to eat, that it would ground her and give her strength. After their brief conversation before the sun rose, she'd only been able to ask him a few questions when a memory proved too confusing. He had answered most everything, despite being rather vague a few times. She could forgive him if he did not know.

And she was surprised by the force of affection she felt for the man.

He was a friend, one that had saved her at one point.

She didn't know what he'd done, or why she'd needed saving, but it seemed to be a habit of his, saving her.

And she'd saved him.

She could remember them flying, the wind whipping through her hair, eyes tearing, and then she was staring into his face, brighter than she'd ever seen it before, eyes shining. She'd returned something to him, something dire, something he needed.

After some carefully thought out questions that he answered easily, she was surprised to find she'd returned his name.

Was that why he felt so obligated to do the same for her? Was he tied to her because he shared the same fate as her?

In between meals and wanderings, she slept, waking dazed each time, unbelieving that she was truly where she was.

More than once, she'd asked about Nise, or Yubaba, or Rin, but Haku had told her she needed time to sort herself out first before anyone would come knocking.

After a few days of this, she was becoming rather antsy. Each time she laid her head down, closed her eyes, she expected to wake up in the Inn, Master Kōsen leaning over her, his unbearable heat pressing down all over.

Maybe she was fading? Was this what it felt like? Being consumed in memories. She ought to have faded already, Phu and the Smoke Man had said as much. Her contract at the Ni~Tsu no nokori teishi had been burned in the fire, that was why she couldn't remember the name Master Kōsen had given her unless someone told her.

Phu had never asked, he hadn't wanted to know her name. The Smoke Man hadn't either, she was just Phu's charge to him.

But Haku, she had told him, she had told him the name she was called at the Inn. He had told her then that it wasn't her true name, had reminded her that she was missing her name.

Now, she had it back, Haku had returned it to her.

Sen.

Her name was Sen.

You're name is Sen. Answer me Sen!

What's your name?

It's...oh...it's Sen...

A niggling deep in her belly stirred, like she wasn't seeing something right in front of her eyes, but the feeling passed.

Maybe if she asked Haku, he would tell her what name Master Kōsen had given her.

Looking about the room, she found it devoid of life besides her.

Haku had left to do, whatever, hours ago. He had said to wait for him here, that he would return in time for dinner.

With a sigh, she settled down. It was still some hours until then.

Get up.

She found her feet, not realizing she was moving until her hand rested on the knob of the door.

"I'm supposed to stay here..." She said aloud, but her muscles were moving without her control, and the door opened easily.

Peeking around the corner, she wasn't that surprised to find the hall deserted. There were lamps lit, but the shadows crept around the corners.

She peered the other way, the hall shrouded in complete darkness.

Definitely not going that way.

She stepped away from the door, taking carefully quiet steps as she headed for the elevator. Maybe she could just meet Haku on the lower floors. He couldn't be too mad about that. She could say she was merely looking for him, to answer a question...

The lame embarrassment curled in her stomach. Did she need an excuse to see him? She wasn't sure what they were to one another. Friends? Strangers? Enemies?

He had been politely distant the past few days, relinquishing his room to her. Where he slept was a mystery to her. She found herself questioning whether he slept at all, but shook that off as silliness. Everything and everyone needed sleep.

She came upon the lift, but couldn't force herself to enter. Instead, she turned, continuing down the way she headed.

Abruptly, the wooden floors turned to stone, icy to her feet. The walls turned ornate, and...bright...? She couldn't think of a better word to describe the riot of colors and textures. She came upon a set of doors with a gold knocker embedded in the center that looked like a face.

After glancing around surreptitiously, finding no one, and swallowing to steel her nerves, she grasped the knocker lightly, and gave it one good hard 'thump'.

She jumped back when the eyes rolled, fearing she'd broken it.

Aren't you even going to knock?

She blinked, the memory slipping through her mind. She waited for the knocker face to speak, but it merely rolled it's eyes again, and the door swung open.

"Come in." A voice called, echoing along the garish walls. "I haven't got all day."

Swallowing thickly, and fisting her hands in her shirt, she took a tentative step forward.

She'd been here before, had been through these overly lavish halls. But she'd been pulled, or she thought she'd been pulled through.

She knew who waited for her at the end, the witch, Yubaba.

Despite knowing what she knew, despite the memories that had returned with the acquisition of her name, she was still taken aback by the witch.

She had enough mind to offer a bow, despite not understanding why her body moved automatically. The witch regarded her from behind a table, a jewel glass pinched in her large fingers, a bright red stone resting before her.

"I always said a few years of servitude was good for the soul. Teaches respect, manners." The witch was studying her up and down, her interest in her jewels lost for the moment.

She knew it was only temporary.

If she could remember one thing about Yubaba, it was her greed. But perhaps she'd changed in the years since... since when?

Her memory was still foggy around the edges, and some memories did not connect to others. It was like trying to put together a puzzle without all the pieces, just empty space where there should have been an image.

"Well, he's kept you secreted away long enough, it's about time you got out." The witch drawled, drawing a long cigarette from a case.

"Who, Haku?" Her lips felt numb as she spoke. The woman took a long drag on the cigarette, allowing the smoke to stream out her nostrils.

There was no way to stop herself from jumping when the woman cackled.

"I can hardly believe it is you, it has been a long few years, perhaps the dragon will stop moping now that he knows where you are." The large woman gave another cackle and toyed with her jewel glass.

"I suppose you'll be wanting a job, though I can't imagine why I should take you back..."

She started, staring at the woman in confusion.

"I worked... for you...?"

The end. Haha. Just joking, but seriously, not posting again until December. Let me know if any of your are doing NaNo, you can add me there! Thank you for reading, don't forget to review!