Spirited away 2

4. Return to the Spirit world

"Mom, Dad, Souta and I are going to go camping for a week or two." Chihiro had just finished packing and was just telling her parents her plans. The couple had agreed last night that they would leave the morning after today so they could have time to pack and Chihiro could tell her parent the news.
"That's nice." her father replied distractedly while looking at the news. " Look! Our sports team won!"
"That's nice dear. When are you guys leaving?" her mother questioned.
"Tomorrow, mom. We just decided last night."
"So soon! You guys have to come back for soon. We have so much more things to discuss about the wedding!"
The women smiled painfully. Yea... I'm still deciding on that...
The following morning was nice but a bit chilly. Autumn leaves were swirling in the crisp air as the pair walked into the forest, towards the Spirit Gate.
"I'm not sure how different the time is between the worlds." Souta told Chihiro. "We can't stay too long or people will start looking for us."
Chihiro didn't reply to the comment because they had arrived at the Spirit Gate. It looked the same as it did years ago except for looking more ancient and having more moss. Her heart began pounding. Here she was again, fifteen years later at the very place she had vowed to forget. Then something stuck her. Years ago, before she had made the promise to herself, she had tried to pass through but failed. So how are they going to go to the other side?
"Souta how is this going to work? I tried walking to the Spirit World years ago but I couldn't get through. How are we going to do this?"
"We spirits have a built in sense about when the Gates separating the worlds are thin. This can happen when there are lots of spirits gathered near the gate or when there is a festival/holiday coming up. In our case, the Takayama Matsuri Autumn Festival is our ticket in. It is also easier for spirits to cross back and forth between the worlds."
After taking a moment to collect herself, Chihiro turned to Souta. "Let's go."
The couple walked side by side past the stone statue and into the tunnel. And just like before, the wind was pulling them in. Soon,they arrived at a room full of benches. They kept on walking till they arrived outside. Just like years ago, there was green grass swaying in the slight breeze. They climbed up the rocks and went in the town. Nothing had changed. Like before, it looked like a ghost town but Chihiro now knew that wasn't the case. Once the sun set, spirits will be out. Souta gave Chihiro something to eat so she wouldn't disappear and the two went to the train and boarded. "Souta, where are we going exactly?"
" My childhood home. I've already told my family that we are coming so they'll be waiting for us."
" It's pretty far, isn't it? When will we get there?"
"At dusk."
Then a thought struck Chihiro "Souta," she said cautiously. Slowly she continued her question. "Does your family know that I'm human?"