A/N: I don't own Ghost Hunt… I wish I owned Naru!!! Oh and beyond a mention of official temple names I do not nor have not used a traditional Bangai in my story. It is one I have made up, if it resembles an actual bangai that I have a really good imagination!
Dead Hope
Chapter One
It was early Saturday Morning. A thick misty fog covered the city and very few travelers had yet to leave their warm beds on a day that was meant for sleeping in. Of course if you were a workaholic like some people (read Lin and Naru), you might already be in the office, sipping warm tea and discussing possible locations to vacation by a lake and search for the body of your dead twin.
Of course if you were in bed at home and/or sipping tea in your office you might have missed the rather strange sight of a young girl walking down the sidewalk in what looked decidedly like her pajamas. (Which thankfully due to the cold spring weather were fleece and not skin bearing at all.) The few early birds who did pass her by thought fleetingly of someone sleep walking. Then in true city dweller fashion decided it wasn't their problem and left her to her meanderings. Thankfully for anyone who had a conscious the fog swallowed her up rather quickly and they could convince themselves that they hadn't really seen someone sleepwalking, just someone who was having a hard time waking up…
Perhaps if they had looked closer they might have realized that she walked with purpose. Faster and faster as she approached the building that subconsciously represented home and more importantly a safe place. Mai in her sleep enthralled mind was trying to get to Naru. Her dream had some how turned from a happy little romance into race against death. She saw not roads, cars and people… but plants, and a foot worn path bracketed on each side. One side the deep of a forest and the other side the steep-nausea inducing Cliffside off of a mountain; the forest was silent with fog and behind her was the eerie sound of footsteps. She ran faster. Sprinting not only in her dream but in real life.
So it was with great surprise to the men sitting on the couches discussing death that the door to their office was suddenly flung open to admit Mai. She of course dashed across the room to promptly jump onto Naru's lap, where she huddled, clutching his shirt, and said "Don't let him hurt me!" They exchanged startled and worried glances, and stared at Mai who now safe and sound had slumped and laid sprawled across Naru's lap, obviously still asleep.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A loud echoing-pounding noise on the door ensued startling the men again. Mai whimpered. Naru nodded at Lin, who got up to inspect and looking fierce enough to take on an armed bear. However when he opened the door there was only heavy thick swirls of fog.
I woke up in a place that was different from where I had fallen sleep. I could feel the leather of the couch, and the smell of cologne and tea. I blinked up at the ceiling. Why am I at work? I sat up letting the blanket drop of my shoulders to blink blearily at the office. Pain bit at me from my feet and I moved the blanket away to inspect the bottoms of my feet. Bruised and scratched bloody. If I had to guess I would say I walked here bare-foot!! The sounds I made must have alerted the rest of the occupants because both Naru and Lin came out of their offices. Looking at my feet Lin promptly turned and went into the kitchen. He came out with a medical kit while Naru sat down on the couch opposite from me. Both were very serious and I wondered what had happened.
Lin took one of my feet and started to clean the cuts. Naru watched and then spoke.
"Why are you here Mai?" I stared at him dumbfounded. He was asking me that? I shook my head in confusion. "I don't know. I was hoping you could tell me!"
"I see, perhaps a better question would be, what were you dreaming of last night?"
I thought about answering flippantly but then decided to take this serious. I closed my eyes and concentrated. Strangely it was when Lin pressed hard on one particularly deep cut that I kind of remembered.
"I was running along a Cliffside. There was fog, something was chasing me." I shivered and then looked at him. "If it had caught me…" I trailed off, I don't know what it would have done but it wouldn't have been nice.
"We are going to clean up your feet and then Lin is going to take you home. Please remember you start work at 1 this afternoon." I nodded. Naru left for his office and soon after Lin finished wrapping my feet, I hobbled after him to the van.
I began work dressed at least in clothes that at least were meant to be seen by public; jeans and a sweater. The bandages on my feet made it hard to wear foot wear and I had resorted to in house moccasins. But they were fake-fur lined and at least warm and soft to my poor abused feet.
Promptly at two in the afternoon we had our first customer. Right away I knew that she was a waste of time. But I am in charge of customer service and so I got the tea and biscuits out. Once the client was settled I went for Naru and Lin. The lady spent about fifteen minutes detailing why she thought her house was haunted. It was about fourteen minutes more than we needed to listen to her. I was impressed that Naru had held out as long as he had before he finally snapped and told her to get an exterminator to get rid of mice!
The three o'clock and four o'clock appointments were very similar. Wash, rinse and repeat. However fifteen minutes to closing time at five, a different sort wandered into our office. I stared at him before I managed to get up and hobble over to him. I bowed in greeting and went to get Naru and Lin before the tea. I knew that this one was important. This one was an old monk.
I knocked on Naru's door. "Yes?" I could hear the irritation from the day coloring his voice. "Naru, I need you come out here. We have an unexpected client that I think you need to listen to." Naru heaved a sigh and then came to the door. Interest colored his eyes when he took in the old monk waiting patiently and he nodded at me. I knocked on Lin's door and he took looked more interested when he came out. I went to get tea.
It was no surprise to me that when I came out with tea and more substantial sandwiches that Naru and Lin were still talking to the monk. I set the tray down and everyone took a moment to take a sandwich and a cup of green tea. I grabbed a pen and notepad. I liked to take notes/impressions of the client for myself then to read Lin's case details.
After the monk refreshed himself he continued his narrative.
"I am here on behalf of temple number 26 of the 88 temples, Kongochoji of the Kochi Prefecture. Recently there have been more and more o-henro-san (pilgrams) who have been walking. This is a wonderful sign to us monks because even though we try not to judge those to take the buses, the pilgrimage is more spiritual if you actually walk with Kobo Daishi in the manner the he himself did… It is not unusual for these pilgrims to visit some of the unofficial temples called, bangai. This is where our problem lies. The distance from ourselves to the next temple 27 is far enough that some henro decide to visit the bangai. Normally we encourage our henro to see and visit as many temples as possible. But the trail to the bangai has become cursed and some of the henro who travel it in the early morning mist do not make it to the bangai."
A fog filled trail flashed before me and I muttered to myself, pausing in my notes. "mist on a foot-worn trail, the sound of footsteps behind you…"
I came to myself and realized that Naru was staring at me rather intensely sheepishly I shook my head at him. I hadn't meant to interrupt.
He turned back to the Monk. "We will take the case."
MUST READ BACK GROUND NOTES TO UNDERSTAND!!
Author Note: In order to understand the back ground of this story I am including the short and sweet version from Wickepedia. (not always a great source of information but in this case spot on!)
The Shikoku Pilgrimage (四国遍路, Shikoku Henro?) or Shikoku Junrei (四国巡礼?) is a pilgrimage of 88 temples on the island of Shikoku, Japan. It is believed all 88 temples were visited by the famous Buddhist monk Kūkai, founder of the Shingon school, who was born in Zentsūji, Shikoku in 774. However, Kūkai only mentions visiting two of them in his own extant writings.
In addition to the 88 "official" temples of the pilgrimage, there are over 200 bangai — temples not considered part of the official 88. To complete the pilgrimage, it is not necessary to visit the temples in order; in some cases it is even considered lucky to travel in reverse order. The pilgrimage is traditionally completed on foot, but modern pilgrims use cars, taxis, buses, bicycles, or motorcycles. The walking course is approximately 1,200km long and can take anywhere from 30 to 60 days to complete. "Henro" (遍路?) is the Japanese word for pilgrim, and the inhabitants of Shikoku call the pilgrims o-henro-san (お遍路さん?), the "o" (お?) being a beautifier and the "san" (さん?) a title similar to "Mr.". they can be spotted in the temples and roadsides of Shikoku clad in a white jacket emblazoned with the characters Dōgyō Ninin (同行二人), meaning "two traveling together" — the other traveler being the spirit of Kobo Daishi. . Many pilgrims begin and complete the journey by visiting Mount Kōya in Wakayama Prefecture, which was settled by Kūkai and remains the headquarters of the Shingon sect of Buddhism. The 21km walking trail up to Koya-san still exists, but most pilgrims use the train.
Completing the course the traditional way on foot is a serious undertaking that demands several weeks. Good physical fitness and stamina is required to endure the stress of constant walking up and down the hills of Shikoku, in the burning sun and the pouring rain. Many pilgrims choose to dress up in traditional attire:
hakui — the white coat of a pilgrim
wagesa — scarf worn around the neck, usually purple, to indicate that you are on a religious pilgrimage
sugegasa — conical straw hat
kongōtsue — walking stick, and the one indispensable sign that identifies you as a pilgrim
In addition, most pilgrims carry a book called nōkyōchō, which is stamped by each temple you visit. All of these items can be purchased at Mount Koya or at Ryozenji, the first temple.
It should be noted that many pilgrims who begin the pilgrimage on foot do not finish it. It is a common to hear of people giving up in Kochi, traditionally known as "devil's land" because of its hot temperature, intense rain, and infrequent contact with civilization. (This means you must either camp, sleep in a rest stop or precisely time your journey to only hit towns and be willing to pay up for a hotel room.)
Last note: I am going to address the issue of Mai's torn soul. BUT I am not going to make her super woman. It will be subtle. Naru has extreme power over inanimate objects and moving objects. But not living objects. This was clearly stated in the school case that was before Yashura's.