4:55 am
Ding dong
Ding dong
5am
Ding dong
Naru was becoming inpatient, He told Mai that they'd be here to pick her up at five and still she hasn't answered the door or turned on a light. Lin was in the van pretending not to notice he's Bosses frustration. Typical Mai he thought. Naru walked around the house, the glass sliding doors were locked and he couldn't see Mai. He went around to the other side and found Mai's bedroom window it was an inch open and the curtains were closed. He knocked on the glass until a sleepy Mai pulled the curtains back and rubbing her eyes. Naru put his watch up to the glass and she leaned forward to see what it was. Her eye got big and she rushed to find some clothes to wear.
"AHHH! Sorry Naru I'll be right out"
She had almost pulled her shirt off before she remembered that Naru was still at the window and the curtains were open. Naru walked back to the front door and waited for it to open. Mai slammed the window shut and pulled the curtains together with a huff. Naru hadn't expected Mai to be so out of it that she would almost get undressed in front of him. He could hear her running around moving thing and finely the door opened. She had her gym bag with her and a coat. She could tell Naru was annoyed. He opend the door to the back seat for her and closed it once she was inside. He then went around the car to the passenger seat and got in.
Lin started driving, it was going to be a 4 hour drive.
"Good morning Lin"
"Good morning"
She knew she should have set her alarm clock but was too lazy to. At least she could sleep more in the van.
"Oh if either of you gets hungry I have snacks in my bag and some drinks"
Thanks they both said. Mai looked out the window at the passing building, then there were trees. Her eyes got heavy and she laid down on the seat. Naru glanced back at her and then went on with reviewing what little information they had gathered about the resort. Mai started having one of her dreams again, she was sitting by a lake. Someone was behind her. It was a tall man with dark hair talking to her. She sat there happy but someone had pushed her in to the lake. She was yelling at the same man she had been talked to. He jumped in and forced her head under water. She started to thrash about trying to break free of his grip. Her head was above water but quickly shoved back down. She was drowning. She could feel the man's fingers dig into her shoulders as he held her down. Mai had started kicking and swinging her arms around.
"Lin pull over now"
He stop on the side of the road. Naru gets out of the car and opens Mai's door. Her breathing keeps stopping abruptly. He pulls her from the car and puts her on the grass trying to wake her up. She can feel her mouth fill with water.
"MAI MAI WAKE UP. YOU HAVE TO WAKE UP"
Mai's eyes pop open. She could see the sky but she started screaming and swinging her arms hitting naru in the chest. He grabs her wrist and holds them until she realizes it's him. She rolls to her side and gets up and takes a few steps before falling to her knees gasping for air. Lin looks on as Mai slows got her breathing to normal. He had seen Naru go through this many times before. She looked around her not knowing where she was. Naru went over to her with his hand out. She took it and pulled herself to her feet. She was shaking and her eyes were still wide with fear.
"Are you alright now?"
Mai nodded as he helped her into the back seat. He sat with her and shut the door. Lin got back in the car and started driving again. Mai had her knees pressed to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. This was the second time she had experienced someone's murder. She was quiet for a while just rocking back and forth. There was still an hour to go. Once she was calm enough she put her feet down and told Naru what she had seen. He wrote everything down in his notebook.
Day1
Naru was already out of the van and Lin opening the back of the van to unload the equipment. Mai got out and went with Naru to the main entrance to meet their client.
"Hello everyone, thank you for coming so soon. I have your two rooms set up so I'll take you to them now"
They made their way to their room which had a small living room, large bedroom area that had enough space to accommodate about 6 people. There was an adjoining room for their base to be set up in. Miss Morimoto walked them to each area that her customers had experienced activity in. Lin was in the base setting up the shelves and monitors. Naru made a list of each room they'd need to place a camera in. Mai went to the hallway leading to the hot spring where guest had seen an apparition of a women walking and set up a camera and a mic. Naru was taking the temperature readings.
"We're good with the view" said Lin
It was 11 and Mai was in the kitchen area making sandwiches. Naru walked in holding his empty tea cup. He placed it next to Mai and sat down at the table.
"Another cup Naru?"Mai said as she finished placing the sandwiches on some plates.
"Yeah" Naru said as he was watching her heat the kettle.
She pulled another cup from the shelf and she places a plate in front of Naru along with his cup of tea. She walked back to the counter and picked up the other plate and tea and walked to base. Naru could hear her tap on the door until Lin opened it. She came back into the living room and picked up her sandwich and a napkin before taking a seat.
"So I'm guessing we're all sleeping in the same room this time right Naru?'
"Yeah, does that make you uncomfortable?"
"Uh no, it's just I didn't know if I'd be in a room by myself since I'm the only girl. I don't like being alone when we're on cases, anything can happen"
There was a knock on the door. It slid open it was a man who introduced himself as Jen. He worked around the spring. He just wanted to say hi. However Mai got a strange feeling from him. She didn't know why but there was something wrong. Naru could tell something was going on by how Mai was looking. It was that same look of an approaching danger.
"What is it?"
"I'm not sure it's just his aura had this dark feeling to me"
It was about 4pm Naru and Mai left the base to go take a look around the hot spring. They checked all the rooms on the first floor. There was nothing unusual there so they went up the stairs to the Second floor. There was only two large rooms for storage. They then went back down stairs and walked around the hot spring. It was very warm and had a nice smell. Mai looked over her shoulder, she felt as if someone was watching her. She shrugged it off and then they walked the grounds to see if there was anything that could explain why so many people were nearly drowned. Mai felt compelled to go pasted the tree line.
"Mai where are you going?"
Mai didn't answer but took off running.
"Wait Mai!"
Naru chased after her but lost her after he pasted the tree line. He looked around the area trying to find her. He had spent thirty minutes looking with no sign of her. It was late afternoon and the sky was orange. The sun would set soon and he had to find her before it got too dark. He walked about a mile and a half north of the hot spring and the trees started to thin. He could see water over the next hill.
"Mai!"
He could see someone sitting on the ground inches from the water. It was Mai, she was sitting smiling at the water running her fingers over the surface flicking off the dampness.
"What's wrong, why did you come all the way out here by yourself"
She looked up at him and smiled then gave a giggle.
"We always meet here. Remember the picnic we had that one summer"
"Who are you?" he said
Mai stood up and walked over to him, and put her head against his chest and putting her arm around him. She was possessed by someone. From what he could tell she spook like a more mature women and she had him mistaken for someone else. He decided to play along for a while to see what information he could find out about the spirt.
"You're always so handsome. Will you please sit with me?" she said
She held his hand and she brought him to where she had been sitting before. He sat beside her and started asking her why she was out here so late and by herself. She told him she had been waiting for him to finish with work to come see her. He asked where she live. She told him in the next village, why he didn't just see her at her home. She rested her head on his shoulder and held his arm close to her. She said she wasn't allowed to talk to boys and that her father would be angry if he had known she was seeing him.
"Why am I so tired now?"
She was darning Mai's energy to stay in her body. Mai fell limp and he held her.
"Mai? Mai?
She hadn't woken up. It was dark now the stars were out. He lifted her on to his back. He headed back in the direction he had first came. He walked slowly so he wouldn't fall. The bushes were dense and it was quiet. It would take forty minutes to get back to base and Lin would be worried. He was half back when he felt Mai's had clench his coat.
"Are you awake?"
"mmmmmm. What happened?" she said
"You got possessed again dummy. You ran off into the wood and made me chase you. Are you feeling alright?"
"Yeah, I remember standing near the tree line. Uh should I get off?"
"Its fine you got pretty burned out being a host so just rest for now. I can manage"
Lin was walking around outside looking at the ground for foot prints when Naru came out form the bushes.
"Where have you two been this whole time?"
"Taking a walk" Naru said
"Naru!" shouted Lin
Naru didn't want to explain things now. He walked to the bedroom and put Mai on one of the beds on the floor. He then covered her up and walked in to the base and reviewed the findings. There was a voice in the hallway where Mai had left the mic. It said "I'll meet you soon" It was the voice of the women who possessed Mai. Somehow she was connected to the spring.
"Monk and John called earlier they said they'd be here at 8 tomorrow morning" Lin said as he walked into the living room
"Okay, Lin wake me up in a few hours and I'll switch with you"
"Alright get some rest"
Naru walked in to the bedroom he took off his coat. Mai was sitting on her bed waiting for him.
"So what happened?"
Naru walked to the bed closest to the window and laid down. He told her what happened at the lake and she started blushing nervously. He also told her that they did pick up a voice on tape and that Monk and John would be here tomorrow. Mai laid back down and turned over on her side and fell asleep again. She had a dream she was in the room by herself but there was also someone else she couldn't see.
"Gene? Is that you?"
She walked over to the window. She didn't realize she had pull Naru into one of her dreams. Naru didn't say anything. He wondered why he would be having a dream about Mai. Six months ago he had listened to Mai express her feeling about him, but were those feeling for him or Gene?
"Naru?" she said surprised
"Have you been able to bring people in to your dreams before?" I asked somewhat surprised at how her powers had grown.
"No this is the first time it's ever happened" She said blushing
"That's very interesting, I'll have to do some research in it" He said as he stared at her
The location changed and they were by the lake again. Mai was sitting near the water again and Naru was walking towards her. She was smiling at him but something was wrong. He started arguing with her and shoved her into the lake.
"What are you doing Jun!" she yelled
Naru jumped into the water and shoved her down into the water. She was thrashing around. Mai got back up and was trying to get away from Naru but he grabbed her again, this time by the shoulders and used his body weight to keeper under. Naru tried to stop himself but he had no control of his body. He watched as Mai screamed underwater and punched him trying to break free. Her movements started to slow and he could see her head jerk back as she was taking in water. Her body went limp. He pulled her from the water and swam with her back to shore. He carried her around the lake and into the woods. He started digging and buried her near a tall oak tree. He then walked away. They were back at the hot spring again. Mai was visibly shaken from what had happened. Naru had had similar dreams but never was he an assailant committing a murder. He had just attacked and killed Mai in a dream and he couldn't stop himself. The hot spring looked as it did when they had arrived. Naru was standing by the trees watching Mai in the hot spring with a towel on her head. He wasn't alive in this one but a spirit inside someone else's body. He was hidding behind a large wooden wall but wen't in to the water when Mai had turned to rest her head on the side of the bath. He slowly walked up behind her and grabbed ahold of her hair as he put his hand over her mouth. He pulled her farther into the bath where it was deeper than he shoved her head in. He was face to face with Mai this time, no more splashing water obscuring the view. He could see everything. Her eyes were wide and she was screaming. He didn't want to see this. He didn't want to be the one to hurt her. He knew if he could see Mai as the victim she must surely see him as the killer.
"Naru!"
He could hear her as bobbles came from her mouth.
"NOOOOOOOOO!" he screamed
It went dark for a while and he could hear Mai crying. He walked towards the sound. Mai was sitting on the floor, Light eliminating around her. He knelt down It front of her. She looked up at him. He put his hand on her shoulder and scooping her into his embrace with the other.
"I'm sorry" he said softly into her ear.
"I'll be okay" she said
"Mai you should wake up now"
Everything went dark again.
