After spending hours begging Mr. and Mrs. Davis to let them stop at the lake where they had found Eugene's body, there they were. Madoka, the Davis couple and the SPR team were somewhere between the forest that extended along the lake's border. Nobody talked for the longest time, deciding the best thing they could do was to remain silent and simply stare at the shiny water before them, swimming in their own thoughts and questions to solve. They dove so deep into their minds, recalling the past events and replaying in their minds how those would end, so they were unable to notice the missing member.
It was quite late in the afternoon; the sky had tones of orange and pink, surrounding a huge golden circle of golden light. The water of the lake even had some sunset colored sparkles splattered across the admiral color of the water in a reflection of the sky above. The serene breeze of the day was relaxing as it blew on their faces in small, weak blows of cold air. However, even with the comfortable weather, some people just could not stand the silence. One of them would be, obviously, Taniyama Mai.
"Beautiful, is it not?" She knew not what to say besides simply questioning the obvious. She just wanted this silence to stop; it was getting on her nerves.
"It is, Mai." Mai and Luella had talked for a while now; they were close enough to talk with each other without any formalities. They really enjoyed each other's company though, even if Mai begged, Luella wouldn't reveal any kind of personal information on Noll. "It is nostalgic as well."
"What does that mean?" Luella chuckled a bit, but it was evident she did not find the situation at all funny.
"There was a lake in the place we lived before moving to London. We lived there for, I believe, six years since we adopted the twins. The lake was very much similar to this one, just a bit smaller." She smiled, crossing her arms around herself as if to protect her body from some inexistent cold.
"I remember that lake." Martin murmured, loud enough to reach everyone's ears, as he put one arm around his wife. "Both Oliver and Gene loved that place. They spent a lot of time simply staring at it." He chuckled lightly, smiling once he heard his wife's voice again.
"But we both know they would be doing something else entirely, instead of just staring."
"True." It was Lin's turn to talk, a small smile appearing on his features. "Noll said it wasn't staring but analyzing." He gave a small laugh, but stopped once a thought crossed his mind. "Speaking of which... where is he?"
The once peaceful looks turned into worried ones when Lin spoke, thinking where the professor had gone to. No one knew, no one had even thought about it, no one had even noticed he was gone. They were too deep in their thoughts to notice one of them was walking away, alone, forgetting about his telephone, which had been left inside Lin's coat pocket. The lake was big, so the forest surrounding it would be even bigger. It would be tough to find him in such a vast space and not long before dark. There was no way they would find him quickly. Even as the Oliver Davis, he would be unable to find his way back soon, would he not? Damnit! Why did he have to leave?!
"We have to find him." Said Mai, showing nothing but determination in her eyes for the others to see. They thought back to when they had reached the place, and remembered Noll was standing on the far east, so he could only have gone through east, since at least somebody would have noticed had he gone through the opposite side. The team split into two groups: one would walk along the border and the other one would look through the larger parts of the forest. All of them had phones on them, so they could call if with news.
And so it started. Madoka, the Davises, Yasuhara and Masako went to look through the larger parts while Mai, Monk, Ayako, John and Lin were looking along the border. No more than a couple of hours later, the sun was setting and there was no sign of the young Davis. Nothing pointing out his existence. They had tried calling for him, but that would never work, certainly. The breeze was now but a weak wind blowing faster with time. It muffled their voices enough to prevent them for reaching more than thirty feet radius. There was no way he would hear them if he was still far.
Monk's telephone rang loudly two times before he could answer. "Did you find him?" He asked once the line connected, hoping to receive a positive response. Only to be left disappointed. "No." It was Yasuhara. "I called you because it's getting quite late and we won't be able to look for him at night." Monk frowned at that and replied, his voice a tone louder than before. "But I heard there'll be full moon to-day. We have light." He heard some whispers from the other side of the line before the student's voice spoke up once more. "Yes, we have light. But we also have to sleep, Monk." The monk sighed deeply and mumbled 'fine' ere hanging up. "Yasuhara said we should stop for the day."
"But then, are we going back?" John furrowed his brows at the older man, confusion lining his features.
"No, we won't! We must stay and sleep in here."
"Here? 'Here' where? On the floor?" Ayako shot a you-must-be-kidding-me look towards the monk, who couldn't help but shiver under her glare. "I'm not sleeping on the floor!"
"Yes you are." Said Lin, never once slowing down his steps. The woman kept complaining, but he listened no more. The only thing that mattered at the moment were the whereabouts of the teen he vowed to protect. He not only left him alone, but alone with his thoughts in a huge forest. He was incredibly happy to be far from the Davises, knowing Mr. Davis would not leave him be until they have found Noll.
"Lin-san, I'm gonna keep searching. Are you coming with me?" Mai tried to smile, but failed miserably. He minded not but nodded at the younger. He couldn't even imagine the Davises' faces at the moment. The man must be thinking of some punishment for his already.
The other three decided to stay – they would call if somebody found anything – and wait for the other that would meet them later. Mai and Lin kept wandering along the border, admiring the beautiful colors of the lake. Firstly, it had been blue, then it became a denim tone with fire and golden sparkles wandering about the surface, then it was illuminated by scarlet and tangerine tones of color from the setting sun. Now it was of a midnight blue with small dots of silver light dancing on the water. That lake was beautiful, it mattered not the time of the day.
Mai was thinking of that same thing, asking herself questions she would try to answer on her own, but would never be sure if the answer was right or wrong. She would have to ask Noll those same questions, see what he would answer, and then, only then, see if her answers were right or not. Just like in a test. Right... he was testing her. He made her ask herself the questions only he could answer, but he never gave them until she tried to answer them herself. She knew he was selfish, but that-! That is... too much! How could he possibly just leave her with those thoughts and unanswered questions, when he was the only one who had the answer? Damn that guy...
"Taniyama-san." Lin had placed his hand on her right shoulder, effectively slowing down her furious steps on the grass – poor thing had done nothing to deserve such a treatment. "I'll be staying here. If you wish not to be alone, you may walk back to this place. Just do not leave the lake's border." She nodded with a muttered 'okay' and moved away. His voice shot to her a few seconds after with "Please, call me if you find him."
With a silent confirmation, she stepped farther into the woods and left the Chinese man alone with his thoughts, some of those possibly similar to those of Mai's. Of course, Lin had known Noll for many a year, he surely knew him far better than she did, but she also knew: Oliver Davis let no one know all about him. Many questions would be on many minds and none of them would get an answer. Until now, that would be the case. However, that would change, and the change would start with to-day.
Perhaps more than a couple of hours she spent looking for the boy, many hours with no luck. Now that the rest of the team was resting, she had to observe carefully the forest as a whole, but never leaving the lake's border. Anyway, he would very much possibly be standing by the lake. Unnecessary it was to know him so well to know he would be standing by the lake, looking through it as if watching a movie playing out on the water. It was more than a necessity for him, and she understood that. He had to be next to the lake.
Mai halted her searching for a moment, deciding the best she could do was to rest for a few minutes. She sat down on the grass, leaning against the tree – her eyes would never leave the lake before her. The moonlight adopted tones of silver and shone brightly before her eyes, painting with its colors the wonderfully serene water of the lake. It was beautiful... gorgeous... magical. Yes, it looked like magic. Nothing else would fir the wondrous sight.
"This blue," said she "looks like the blue from his eyes." Mai breathed out a sigh, thinking of something else to say to herself. Her mouth was open when something else caught her attention. Another voice. She needed some time to focus on that voice to understand what was that it was saying.
Every night in my dreams
I see you, I feel you...
That is how I know you go on...
It was singing in a melancholic tone, never cracking. Would it be crying, she would never know, for it was firm, deep and beautiful. She stood up carefully, following the voice as it sang.
Far across the distance
And spaces between us
You have come to show you go on...
While getting nearer, the voice would get louder and better she could understand whom it was. Unbelievable, was it. Only until she, finally, reached the source of the music. His black overcoat would cover him completely, which moved slightly with the wind. His face so pale, illuminated by the moonlight, was resting with his chin on his right hand. The other arm was half hidden from sight, serving as a support for the rest of his weight. So dark was his hair as it flew with the wind blowing through him, his eyes shone silver beneath the moon. And his lips... his lips were moving as he sang.
Near, far
Wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more
You open the door
And you're here in my heart and
My heart will go on and on.
My heart will go on... "What a beautiful voice you have." Noll flinched, obviously startled by the female voice interrupting him. She noticed the sparkle of emotion ere he replaced it with none. "Please, keep going."
"What are you doing here? Were you not with the others?"
"We noticed you weren't there and decided to look for you. Everyone's worried, you know." She moved to pick her phone. "I'll call them."
"You can't." She frowned at him, but he had turned to the lake once again and dismissed her glare with a shrug. Three quick beeps from her cellphone alerted her to the device; an empty battery drawing appeared on the screen before it turned off. Excellent.
She sighed and turned to face the lake as well, positioning herself beside the older teen. "I didn't know you could sing."
"Gene was the only one who had ever heard me sing with me actually knowing of it. It could have stayed like that would you not have showed up." She smiled. If course, she could not help but smile at this. One thing he would only do before his brother, now he would do it before her as well. It was selfish, perhaps, to be happy with the thought of knowing something he would only share with his twin. She knew it was selfish, but that was how she had felt back then.
"You're a good singer."
"Disagree." She grimaced at that, but said nothing. There was nothing she could have spoken, and she knew him well enough to know that. Still, such a vague answer. Curiosity was one of her qualities and defaults, the meaning of the reply would have to be clear to her, would there be a special meaning at all.
"Naru..." said the girl, and she thought carefully of the words she would use. Maybe first things first, and from there, she would keep going. "Why did you disappear? We were worried."
"I believed you were enjoying the sight."
"We were! But it would be better if you were there with us. I mean, why did you come here alone? Don't you rather be with your friends?"
"Why?"
"Because-!" Somehow, she could find no answer to the question. How unfair. She wanted him to give the answer to her questions, not the other way around! How did he do that?
"You miss him?" She was startled by the new question, but soon realized the voice was hers. He said nothing, but something changed in his look. She took it a good sign. "Tell me, Naru. Do you miss him?"
"Mai. I understand it must be very difficult for you, but do try to think." She pouted, anger rising inside of her, but she composed herself soon enough, realizing just how idiotic the question was indeed. He sighed.
"He was the only one..." Said he.
"Naru... you're going back to the other side of the world, unknown is the time when you'll be back here. Please, tell me... everything." She fought hard to restraint the tears threatening to fall from her eyes, keeping her head low and focusing on the grass beneath her feet. Unaware was she of the flash of a sad smile gracing his features.
Love can touch us one time
And last for a lifetime
And never let go till we're gone.
He eyes shot back up to Noll, who was once again staring at the lake before them. His voice was wonderful singing such a beautiful song. Amazed was she by the act, wishing it would never end. Never.
Love was when I loved you
One true time I hold to
In my life we'll always go on.
The chorus would be next. It was one of her favorite songs, but she knew not the whole of the lyrics, so it would be better to stay quiet and appreciate.
It did not come.
Noll turned back and headed to the nearest tree, sitting down on the grass. Mai followed him silently and sat beside him. "You're not finishing it."
"When I feel like it."
"Talk then."
Her determined look met his and he realized what was that she wanted him to say. What a curious girl she was, did she not know 'curiosity killed the cat'? Now that she thought about it, she was more of a puppy one than a cat.
"This was one of his favorite songs. He watched the movie many times, forcing me to watch it with him. I memorized the lyrics because of how many times I had to year that song."
"Yeah, for you it's easy to memorize something in English. Really..."
"You have not heard the same song thousands of times." She chuckled at that, but got serious once more. She would get more answers now. Those stubborn questions would not remain unanswered.
"Keep going."
"What do you want to know?"
"I- everything! I just feel like I know nothing about you, when I say something I shouldn't, I don't know it, because you never tell me the truth!"
"Besides the 'Shibuya Kazuya' thing, I believe I have never lied to you."
"You didn't tell me the truth either!" She glared at him, blushing slightly with anger. "I don't want to have to ask you what I want to know... I want you to just tell me. You never say anything at all!"
"But what-"
"I don't know! I don't know, just-!" She stopped for a moment, thinking of the right words. "What do you think of your family? How it is to live like the Great Oliver Davis? Do you have a crush or something? You have friends, right? How are they? I know you're in college, and it's incredible that you're only seventeen and you're studying there! How it is like? You like it? Are you a good student? How it is to work like a psychic researcher in England? How it is to live in England? You like it there? Did you like being in Japan?-" She paused to catch her breath and took the chance to slow down, sighing once calmer and looking up at his eyes. He was... surprised perhaps. She was unsure. "That kind of questions."
Noll seemed to ponder this for a long while, asking the same questions to himself. Possibly, better would be to wait for Mai to speak again. "You never talk about yourself." Said she. "I just want to know you."
So he sighed deeply, turning his head to face the sky. Now that he looked at it, it was difficult to tell the difference between the lake and the sky for they were definitely each other's reflection. "My family... I know not what to say about it now." She understood him when he said it, so no complaints on this part. "Being Oliver Davis is quite stressful, I must admit. Work and work every day, many a hour per day. Avoiding the media is certainly the worst part. Sometimes it does feel like they are everywhere, watching your tiniest movement." He kept his monotone voice, but she could say he was enjoying the talk. "If I have a crush? That's none of your business."
She suppressed a laugh. "Your friends?"
"My best friend is an idiotic guy who used his father's money to be accepter in the same college as I. And there's a girl I met not long after I met him. She kind, smart and pretty, but stubborn as well. They call me every day, which proves they won't live without me, even though they are both two to three years older than me." Mai grinned widely at that, trying to picture Noll babysitting two older people. She laughed harder at the thought of him doing cute things with them. Once she calmed down, his glare was substituted by a simple sound of annoyance, and so he went on. "The college... I like the classes. And a professor. Nothing more."
"Why?"
"You don't have to know." She sighed, smiling contentedly once she heard him speaking again. "By the way, I am a brilliant student. One of the best students in the whole school, actually."
"I've always thought you'd be some kind of nerd." She joked.
He ignored her and just kept going so he could get it over with as fast as possible. "Being a psychic researcher in England is not easy at all. There's not many people who believe in the supernatural now-a-days. Unless I demon gets pissed off at them." She looked up and he met her chocolate orbs, but soon the looks parted from each other and so he went on. "England... it's cold."
"I heard about it!" She spoke again, clearly enjoying their moment. Such a peaceful talk with the most introverted guy she ever met. The feeling was amazing.
"It's freezing cold in the morning, cold in the afternoon, colder in the evening and freezing cold once more, at night."
"What about summer?"
"Mayhap the sun comes out of its confines... not so cold but comfortable, I believe." Mai turned to the sky, thinking of how it would be to go to London someday. She was not thinking of the weather thought, not even about monuments or places to go. Not about the people and not about the sights or the culture. She thought not of what anyone would think when faced the possibility of visiting a completely different country. She thought of being... able to be with him. "I like it there." She felt some sad feeling hitting her chest as he lastly spoke. "But I also like it here."
"Would you like to stay?" The words slipped through her mouth before she could stop them. He wouldn't mind it though, that if he noticed it at all. Something came to her mind so she could change the subject. "You didn't finish the song!"
"What?"
"Please, finish the song!" They changed looks and he thought of what he should do now that she asked him to sing. Too much. He never sang to anyone but his twin and she had now heard him sing, not once but twice. And now she was asking for him to finish the song. It felt like the words were weights being chained onto his back.
It hurt, and he could not know why.
Near, far
Wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more
You open the door
And you're here in my heart and
My heart will go on and on.
His eyes had closed themselves on their own, so he opened them again to glance at the girl beside him before letting them close once more.
You're here
There's nothing I fear
And I know that my heart will go on
We'll stay
Forever this way
You are safe in my heart and
My heart will go on and on.
Gorgeous.
He sighed lowly and turned to the side to face a sleeping Mai, leaning on his shoulder. She was snoring a little, her eyes closed and her chest moved up and down slowly. He smiled softly at the sight, now that nobody was there to see it, and spoke lowly, so that she would not awake. "You are safe in my heart and... my heart will go on and on."
He fell asleep.
Not all the questions were correctly answered. He told her not everything she would want. But the only reason he didn't tell her was because he knew not where to start. Anyways, no need to rush things. One day, they would know everything they needed to know.
One day...
-0o...o0-
It was early in the morning. Noll and Mai were sleeping peacefully, leaning on each other. Mai rested her head on his shoulder and Noll his on hers. The SPR team stood there, waiting for them to wake up on their own. None of that happened for two hours.
"Should we wake them up?" Asked Masako, who had been staring at Naru's sleeping form since they arrived.
"No..." Said Luella, smiling at the young couple. Quite sad was her tone of voice, but she did feel extremely happy at the sight of her youngest so peacefully resting. Losing his brother hand been a terrible shock for him. Seeing him so peaceful with another was comforting, at the very least. It warmed her spirit. "Let them stay like this for as long as they wish. It might not happen so soon." She smiled sadly at her son's face, noticing how beautiful he was... when he was smiling.
Hiya!
For those of you who are waiting for an update on This is real… I am working on it. Sorry, lame excuse, if 'tis an excuse at all, but it's true, alright. This one-shot had been written by me a long while ago and I really needed to take a look on it and finally edit it. It had been posted unedited on my account on Wattpad, but I've already uploaded this version there as well.
Ghost Hunt is one of my favorite animes and will always be so I need to write for it. I love the sequel I'm working on for this and the ideas I have for the others, and this one-shot is crucial for the rest of the story, so it had to be posted and now.
The deepest darkest secrets of Oliver Davis will be explored in the sequel, and far more in the others until I have ran out of ideas. Which won't happen very soon, I believe.
Barely any romance, I'm sorry, but lots of mystery, action and supernatural stuff, much like the original.
Now for This is real, I do need some time to decide what has to happen so I can reach the ending I want. It won't take much time, I believe, but I shall make no promises. Until then, please wait patiently. If I see it is too much time, I will try to upload some one-shots rather like this one in the way.
Now, for the disclaimer:
GHOST HUNT AND ITS CHARACTERS ARE NOT MINE! THEY BELONG TO FUYUMI ONO! I MAKE NO MONEY OUT OF THIS! THIS IS PURELY FOR ONE'S ENJOYMENT AND THAT IT ALL!
I hope you enjoyed this one-shot and I truly hope you're looking forward to the real deal because I am very proud of this work and I do hope you will enjoy it!
Please leave a review if you like.
Thank you for reading!