Spirited Away: The Wait [ORIGINAL]

Cold Heart

The Wait: Cold Heart

     “Koushou, we need you to go check out the kitchens and inspect the ingredients with us.”

     “Koushou, we’re running low on herb supply. Who should we send to go?”

     “Hey! We need more help over here to carry the boxes of herbs!”

     “Shou, Noe-san is calling for you, she says she won’t take her medicine unless you sing a song.”

     The blonde was frazzled by all the commotion and uproar going on in the shelter and he had to help take charge in place of Haku who had refused to leave his room. And so he had been up all night desperately trying to sort out the various matters in the shelter.

     On one hand, he felt a new sense of respect for the dragon who had never once complained about how hard it was to actually manage the shelter, while on the other, he was getting extremely frustrated that Haku was leaving it all to him, bad state or not.

     “Alright, alright, guys!” He slammed the table in front of him, catching everyone’s attention in an instant.

     “Kimura, I’ll go with you to the kitchen in 5 minutes after I sing a song to Noe-san. Get the other werewolf and dog spirit helpers to assist you; you have better noses than I do.” The tall man in front of him nodded curtly and left, motioning to some of his other colleagues to go along.

     “Aira, send Fuwasaki, Hamano and Sanjou to help out. They’ve lived in the mountains before so they should know the best places to pick out herbs. In the meantime, you have to help monitor and regulate the supply of herbs. Notify me immediately when it gets too low and I’ll see what I can do. How long will you guys take to collect the herbs?”

     “I would estimate approximately 3 hours, minimum,” Sanjou answered with a grim look on her face, “that is, if we need to collect a barely sufficient supply.”

     “Okay, do your best. I appreciate it, guys. Thanks for your help.”

     “No problem, all the best to you; Haku isn’t here to take charge today.”

     “Thanks,” he muttered under his breath, grimacing. Then the group of four left, leaving him and Sakura. He stood up, stretched his neck and exhaled deeply. “Okay, where’s Noe-san? What kind of song does she want me to sing now?”

     Sakura’s smirk told him he was not going to like the choice. “Morbid poems again, I’m afraid.”

     “Oh boy, this is going to be a very long day. Kohaku is so going to get it from me when I get a hold of him.”

     She chuckled, “I doubt you’d be able to land a punch on him though.”

     He scowled at her. “I give in to him all the time, okay?”

     “Right.”

     “Really!”

     “Uh-huh.”

     “You don’t believe me?”

     “Sure, I do.” Her voice was dripping with sarcasm and he rolled his eyes as they reached Noe-san’s room. The elderly woman lying on her bed looked towards the door at the noise and her lips turned up into a smile, creating even more wrinkles on her face.

     “Well, if it isn’t Koushou! The medicine is absolutely horrible and… …”

Shou grimaced internally while keeping up his bright smile. A long day it was going to be, indeed.