HI! So I had a cool story idea pop into my head, so why not? Don't expect too much from this story, because I'm not too good at this whole writing thing, but I do it anyway. Also, finals are coming up soon, so it may take a while for chapters to be added since I'll be too busy having a mental breakdown.
DISCLAIMER: Ghost Hunt does not belong to me, because if it did, Mai and Naru would totally be a thing by now, who are we kidding.
Enjoy this intro thingy!
Mai clutched her stomach, laughing until she couldn't breathe.
"Remember," Mai gasped between fits of giggles, "when Ayako screamed about a rat?"
The whole team laughed at the memory as Ayako stood, ready to defend herself. "Excuse me," she said, a little red in the face from embarrassment, "it was the biggest rat I've ever seen! They do NOT come that big!"
"Yeah, well, a priestess who works with the Earth around her can't handle one of its creations, I see!" Monk proceeded to do an imitation of Ayako's reaction of the sight of the rat. "Kyaaaa!" he squealed in a girly voice. "Save me!"
The SPR gang sat in the waiting room at the office, reminiscing about their previous case. Constant laughter flitted throughout the office, as others brought up hilarious moments of experiences the gang members had during the case. The ghost had turned out to be a prankster, a child at the age of ten who made the childish fears of the members come true.
They soon got to discussing Monk's (as Ayako had brought it up for revenge) and Yasu was reassuring Monk that he would protect him, making Monk stare at him with a blank look on his face. He had become used to Yasu's 'flirting' and just ignored it now.
Their favorite narcissist opened the door of his office and cleared his throat. With a hint of annoyance in his voice, he announced something to the group. "I would appreciate it if you did not use my office as a false comedy show." He checked his watch. "In fact, I have an appointment with a client in about five minutes, so it would be gracious of you if you did not interrupt."
He left as quickly as he came, leaving the group silent.
"As narcissistic as always," Mai commented, once he was out of ear shot.
A mumble of agreement passed through the flock of people. Mai suddenly piped up. "Ah! How about some tea?"
"Yes, please," Ayako responded. "I need something warm, December's as cold as always…"
Mai nodded, then jumped. "It's December! I totally forgot!"
Masako spoke up with her mouth hidden behind her sleeve. "I guess you really are stupid after all," she insulted, a gleam in her eyes.
Mai gave a pointed glance back. "I've been so busy with paperwork that I didn't notice. But," she continued, "Christmas is coming!"
John gave a small gasp of realization. "Ah, Christmas! It seems I had forgotten as well!"
Mai gave a wide smile. "I should buy a tree for the office-!"
Bou-san grimaced. "Again? Are you sure, Mai, because our little Naru wasn't too happy about that last year."
Her face fell. "Oh, I guess so…"
The monk, on seeing that crushed expression, attacked Mai with a hug, his eyes filled with sparkles and pity. "But if you want to bring one in again, I support you! I won't let that jerk ruin everything!"
Mai giggled and had to wriggle out from the monk's grasp. "Hm, I'll take you up on that. Who wants a dreary office for Christmas?"
Mai left to the kitchen to make tea, humming to herself 'Jingle Bells' as the Christmas spirit had seemed to possess her (A/N: LOL I'M SO FUNNY jk I have no life, carry on). The kettle had just begun to whistle as there was a knock on the door, signaling that Naru's client had arrived.
"Ah, crap!" she heard Bou-san shout-whisper. "Scatter!"
And like that, they were all fleeing the scene like criminals, hiding themselves in other parts of the office.
"Coming~!" Mai sang, and raced to the door.
She opened the door and was greeted by a nice looking, older man, in his early fifties or so, and a young boy, around the age of ten. "Welcome to SPR, come in and have a seat!" She allowed them inside as they pardoned their intrusion.
"Nar-erm, Shibuya-san!" Mai called. She reddened in the slightest for almost calling her boss 'Naru' in front of their clients.
The dark-haired teenager emerged from his office, walking over to the couches where the two were seated. As he sat down, Mai came over and said to the guests, "I have some tea nearly ready, if you would like some."
The older man nodded and the boy gave a weak smile. "Thank you very much," the assumed father said, his eyes giving a kind look.
Mai went to prepare the cups, not bothering to ask Naru, for she knew he drank tea as often as he breathed. She tried to keep the noise of the dishes as minimal as possible so she could overhear the conversation.
"I am the head of this office, Shibuya Kazuya. What seems to need attention?" Naru said calmly.
The father smiled. "You are so young, like they say." He gave a sigh. It was amazing how smart and advanced the youth were becoming. "Hello, thank you for listening to me. My name is Yamada Hiroshi, and this is my youngest son, Yamada Takashi." He cleared his throat. "Lately, there has been a number of…incidents in my home, especially concerning this boy."
Naru nodded. "Please describe your experiences."
"When it first started, I heard some faint rapping noises in Takashi's room one night. I brushed it off as the tree outside his window, but a few days later they sounded like distinct knocks, one at a time, as if someone were knocking on his window. But nobody would be there."
"I also recall a time where Takashi had yelled for me. There was writing on the walls that said, 'Are you lonely?' over and over again. I wanted to think that it was my older son pulling a prank on him, but he was out with a friend all day…"
Mai came over with a platter of tea cups. She set one down in front of Naru, Hiroshi, and Takashi. She sat down herself to listen more intently to the interview, when she noticed that Takashi looked a bit pale. "Drink some of that green tea," Mai said gently. "It'll calm you down a bit."
He did nothing; he just continued to stare at his hands in his lap.
"I'm sorry," Hiroshi apologized for him. "He doesn't talk much, he's been traumatized especially by recent events."
"Such as?" Naru inquired, not seeming to sense the mood. Mai rolled her eyes.
"Well…" he glanced at son worriedly, before proceeding. "M-"
The boy abruptly stood up. "Where's the bathroom?" he asked in a hurried, half-whisper.
Naru assessed the boy's expression before calling Lin over. "Lin, show him to the bathroom."
When the two left, Hiroshi gave a deep sigh. "About three and a half months ago, my wife, and his mother, Yamada Yukino, died in a car accident."
Mai gasped, but Naru's eyes narrowed. "Is this about the same time these incidents started?"
"The major ones concerning Takashi, I guess so. There were just little things that had to do with the whole family since even before the car crash, and it started when we got our new dog five months ago."
"Has your house been abnormally cold during that time period?"
"Now that you mention it, yes, it has. My sons were complaining about it, so I checked the heater but it wasn't broken. It's set to a certain temperature but in the house, it's always colder."
Naru closed his eyes, making a few mental notes. Mai gave Naru an anxious glance, worried that he might reject it since it wasn't too much to go on. He opened his deep blue eyes. "Very well." He said after a few short moments. "We will take your case, we should be at your home at six o' clock tomorrow. We will need a base room to set our equipment."
Hiroshi stood up. "Thank you kindly," he said. "Takashi's had enough on his plate already."
Takashi came back from the bathroom, and the two shortly left afterward.
Mai smiled. The man looked so relieved with Naru's acceptance. Maybe Naru did have a heart after all.
The crew came out of their hiding places. Ayako gave a grin. "I overheard everything. Sounds like we have a case on our hands, don't we?"
"And an interesting one at that," Bou-san added.
Naru stood with his arms crossed, and his eyes closed for a second. "Although, this will interfere with the other office work…"
He made way to his office after he made that remark. Mai felt anger rising in her throat. He doesn't have a heart at all, like she originally thought. He simply did it because he needed the money.
"You stupid narcissist!"
Tsk, tsk, Naru will be Naru. Anyway, hope you liked that intro thing. I'm trying to keep the characters as original as in the actual anime and manga and stuff. But who knows.
ok, bye! Have a nice day wherever you may be ^_^
with sprinkles and watermelons,
Inksomnia
