Devi: Well, guys, since my last fanfic (The Murder of Minnie Aaren) Was a clusterf*ck, I have decided to write yet another Ghost Hunt fanfic! I'm hoping to make this fanfic neater and hopefully makes more sense! Enjoy and review! Oh, and thank you all to who have read my other Ghost Hunt fanfic and stuck with me to the end! :) I hope you guys enjoy! (This is set after Naru left for England)
(Normal POV)
Mai sighed as she leaned back against the couch. It had been two years since Naru and Lin had left for England, and Mai hadn't seen, nor heard, from them since. The picture that Naru had handed Mai as he left was framed in her office and Mai sighed as she looked at it again. Since Naru had left, Bou-san and Ayako had bought a small building near S.P.R. They had claimed just because Naru didn't want to continue the Ghost Adventures with the gang, didn't mean they had to stop. Mai smiled fondly when she recalled when Bou-san told her;
"Mai!" Said girl turned around as she saw Bou-san run up to her.
"Hey, Bou-san!" She waved at him. She was currently seated on a park bench near her apartment.
"I have a birthday surprise for you!" He was slightly out of breath, but a grin was plastered on his face.
"You didn't have to, Bou-san! I'm only turning 17! Not a big deal!" Mai was smiling at her adopted 'father'.
"Well, I did anyway!" He grabbed her wrist and dragged her down a path Mai was all to familiar with.
Mai felt her excitement drain just slightly when they passed S.P.R. She didn't want to look at it. It hurt way too much. But her curiosity was piqued when she saw Yasuhara, Ayako and John standing in front of a small building. It wasn't more than one hundred feet from where S.P.R. stood.
"G..guys?" She asked, a slight stutter in her voice. Everyone gave her a warm small and handed her a large pair of scissors.
A bow was wrapped around the little gate that surrounded the office's yard. She felt tears sting her eye lids, and a watery smile took place on her lips. She swallowed the lump in her throat, and cut the red ribbon. It fluttered to the ground and everyone clapped. People who passed by on the streets gave them weird stares, but they could care less.
"W-what's this all about?" Mai was still smiling her goofy, yet watery, smile; confusion was evident in her eyes, though.
Ayako wrapped her left arm around Bou-san's waist as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. They both smiled brightly at her and Bou-san started explaining; "Well, we know you're still pretty upset about Naru leaving," He held his hand up as she was about to interrupt him, "Don't interrupt me. We all know you're hurting, and it's the most obvious in your eyes and actions. But, Mai Taniyama, we know you love adventure and we know you love Ghost Hunting. So, we present to you; Taniyama Psychic Research, also known as T.P.R."
Mai giggled at the name, but happy tears freely flowed down her cheeks. She truly loved these people. She wiped her eyes and hugged the two people she recognized as her 'parents'. Yasu and John soon joined in on it, and they all laughed. Mai truly felt happy for the first time in a year since Naru left.
"Well!? What are you waiting for!? Go check out your new work place, lil girl!" Ayako shooed her inside and smiled as Yasuhara and John trailed after her.
"They grow up so fast," Bou-san wiped a fake tear away from his face with his free hand.
Ayako scoffed and swatted his chest lightly with her free hand; "Oh, please." She had a smirk playing at her lips, "If we had raised her, she would be even more of a firecracker, especially if she were your daughter."
Bou-san threw his head back and laughed, which in turn caused Ayako to let out a small giggle.
"Well, come on. Let's get in there before Yasuhara corrupts John." Bou-san said.
Ayako looked slightly confused; "Don't you mean Mai?"
"Naw, Mai's already been corrupted. John I still have hope for." Bou-san smirked, and Ayako laughed as they walked hand-in-hand inside the office building. It was a new start.
End of Flashback
Mai pulled at her messy pony tail, and gave up on trying to organize all the files in one day. They would at least take two more days to get sorted through. She heard Bou-san in the other room and smiled. He was talking to his baby boy, and trying to get the one year old to take a nap; it usually didn't happen until Aki, the child's name, wanted to nap. She laughed when she heard Bou-san get frustrated with his son, and carry him into her office.
Ayako was currently out with John on a possible case.
"Mai-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i~!" Bou-san dragged her name out, and Mai snickered at his desperateness.
"Yes, Bou-san?" She was giggling behind her hand as the 27 year old man looked distraught.
"I can't get Aki to fall asleep! Will you do it for me?" He sounded whiny and Mai found her opening.
"Sure, Bou-san!" Before he could hand Aki to her, though, she continued with; "But only if you finish my filing for this week." She had an evil smirk on her face as she stood up.
He groaned and debated it for a second before nodding and handing Aki off to her; "Aw, come here, Aki-chan~! I get to put you to nap-y-boo and your daddy gets to do my work~! Yes he does, yes he does!" Mai did a baby voice at the toddler and he giggled, pulling at the front of her hair.
Mai giggle at the young boy and bounced him on her hip as she walked into the adjacent room. The yellow walls were bright as the noon sun shone into the room and illuminating the baby blue blanket laying on the brown rug. She moved some of his toys away from where she was going to sit and laid the dark red haired toddler on the floor. He fussed slightly as she stood to get up.
She sighed, but laid down on her side next to him. His big, brown, eyes made her get a warm feeling in her chest, and she realized that's what most would call a motherly instinct. She put her head in her hand and laid one down on his stomach. She closed her eyes as the child started to snore lightly. His breath was soft and calming, and Mai felt a smile pulling at her lips. She loved this little boy with all her heart.
(With Ayako and John)
"So, Goro-san," Ayako fingered through the brown file sitting in her lap, "You want to hire us to go to the country and investigate your house with another team from out of state?"
The man sitting across from her and John nodded. He looked slightly pale, and sipped his tea; they were sitting in a local cafe.
"Yes, that is correct. The other team speaks Japanese very well, so I do not worry about communication between the two groups," He stated, "But I worry about your child's safety. You see, the house I wish for you to investigate is...horrid." The man visibly paled.
Ayako arched an eyebrow and John seemed intrigued. This man truly look terrified.
"Can you please elaborate?" John asked.
The man was quiet for a moment before telling them; "At first, it was nothing major. Just some slightly scraping noises in the walls, and some light footsteps every now and then. But," The man's hands started shaking, "After about a month, everything turned into Hell. The glass dolls that my mother had collected started..." he gulped, "moving...I awoke one night to find four of them laid out in a circle with posies laid about their heads and ashes in the middle."
Ayako was leaning forward slightly, intent on listening; John was the same.
The man seemed to be calming himself down, and continued; "At first, I had thought it was my daughter, Emi, but when I had asked her, she had told me she was at her aunt's house that night. I had completely forgotten. I even asked my wife, Hitomi, if she knew anything but she said no." Goro's voice was slightly trembling, "I brushed it off and convinced myself it was a prank, but one week later when we were eating dinner with my mother, we heard a loud sound. I had went to go and see what happened," The man gathered tears in his eyes, "But when I came back, my family was gone." The tears spilled over.
Ayako gasped and John's eyes widened considerably.
"Did you go the police?" Ayako was concerned beyond belief.
"Yes, but they said they couldn't find a single trace beyond where they were sitting. They still suspect me, but I swear, I had nothing to do with my family's disappearance!" He looked frantic now, and Ayako quickly calmed him down.
"I believe you." That seemed to ease him somewhat. John watched as Ayako talked to the man, "We'll take your case, and we will make sure to find your family, Goro-san. Don't you worry about me and my child or anyone else on this case; worry about yourself." She gave him a comforting pat on the shoulder.
She quickly signed her name on the paper saying she was taking the case and slid the folder back over the table. She stood and grabbed her jacket.
"Take care, Goro-san. I'll call you with the details later. Expect to pay for six airplane tickets and the house to be fully stocked."
The man nodded, and showed his gratitude by bowing as she and John walked out.
Once they were in Ayako's mini-van, John finally spoke; "That poor man. May God bless his soul." John murmured.
Ayako nodded and focused on the road. She was going to get to the bottom of this, and help the poor man. The only thing she was concerned about was the other team. It was going to be a difficult case.
Devi: Hey, guys! So, I'm actually pretty proud of this! And I think I'm going to post the second chapter soon! Like, real soon! Guys, I freaking love love LOVE horror stuff. I love Ghost's and Paranormal and all that. 3 Anyway! Review and let me know! Masako probably isn't going to be joining in on this case, btw! Anywho~! Review!