Aw, you're all so sweet! Six reviews buys you this - original ending! I was gonna end it where you see the little asterisk (*), but then I turned into a sap, so it continued and turned into this. Hope you like! And, because I'm so nice, I'm going to continue with my original hostage-release limits. I get one review for this chapter, you all get the alternate ending. Three, and the pre-story is released too. So, please? *puppy dog eyes*

For this chapter, you can thank the following people; GilShalos, Tbonechick2011 (please can I keep the cookie?), Ms Bat (OMG! I love your fics!), Ariana Taniyama, Ru55el (as ever ;) ) and Dementra (first reviewer, so extra thanks to you). These are the super-nice people who bought freedom for this poor hostage chapter.

Disclaimer: I OWN IT! I OWN IT ALL! MWAHAHAHA! Except that I don't, and that's all one big lie.

Naru walked slowly into Mai's room, taking in everyone's expressions. Takigawa was once again crumpled in a chair with Ayako's arm around him. Both had tear tracks on their cheeks. John had reappeared and was standing in the corner of the room, eyes glued to the figure in the bed. Even Masako had put in an appearance, standing silently beside John and looking at the floor. Lin was the only composed one in the room, and Naru knew that was a ruse from the stiff way the man held his arms at his sides.

The doctor stood beside Mai's bed, eyeing Naru sadly.

"I'm sorry," he said, actually sounding it "but she's not going to wake up."

Naru nodded once, cutting off the explanation. Ayako had already told him all this. Lin put one hand on the boy's shoulder, squeezing gently. All eyes were on him. Why was it his decision? Because nobody else would make it. It took him two tries before he could speak.

"Do it."

The doctor nodded and began turning off the life-support systems. Ayako, Monk and John lapsed back into tears, and Masako's shoulders shook in a way that made everyone suspect she was holding in her feelings. She may not have been best friends with Mai, but she didn't hate her, and the atmosphere in the room would have made a total stranger weep.

Lin let go as Naru moved forward, taking Mai's hand in his as the beeping machines were switched off one by one. Her chest stilled, and the breathing tube was removed. The doctor apologised once more, and left the room to fill out the necessary forms. Naru paid no attention. He leaned forward and moved a few errant strands of hair from Mai's eyes, then replaced his fingertips with his lips as he gently brushed a kiss across her forehead.

I know you don't love me; that would be silly. But you like me.

That was why she looked so happy when she was talking to him just before the ambulance arrived. I was right, she had said. Naru felt a tiny smile creep across his lips.

"Of course I like you, dummy," he muttered, too quietly for anyone else to hear. Then he stood and walked out the room without looking back.*

Three weeks passed. The police had questioned everyone who'd been in the building several times, but gathered nothing useful. Everyone had unanimously agreed that, as much as Takigawa may be blaming himself, Mai did not, and would have hated it if he went to prison for this. So, they altered their stories. As far as the police were concerned, everyone had been investigating a disturbance near the lobby when the walkway collapsed. It wasn't until the dust cleared that anyone realised Mai was missing, so Naru went to look, and found her leaning against the wall. In the chaos, the knife handle had been touched by so many people that fingerprints were all but impossible to determine, and even if the monk was suspected, he had four alibis and was distraught enough to make them overlook it.

SPR had accepted no new cases since Mai's death. Ayako, John and Takigawa had avoided the office altogether, and Masako had only come once to express her sympathies to Naru and Lin. She had left a sunflower on Mai's desk, citing that it had reminded her of the assistant, and hadn't bothered to hide the single tear that trailed down her cheek. Naru suspected that her real reason for visiting was to see if she could sense the other girl's spirit, and he gathered from her expression that no such thing had happened. Mai was really gone.

Truth be told, Naru was unsure why he kept returning to the office. Habit, he supposed. There was no more filing to be done, he left the answer-phone on constantly, ridding himself of the need to turn down clients in person, and looking at Mai's empty desk just made his chest ache. Lin had once mentioned clearing it, but at the look on Naru's face he quickly changed the topic and never brought it up again. The only thing that was removed from the desk was the letter, which Naru had concealed in his office. He would often find himself rereading it, as though the words would somehow have changed; he could probably cite it word for word if he wanted to.

As far as he was aware, nobody else knew about the letter, and he had no intention of telling them. It was for his eyes only; a part of his assistant that remained. The part that did, despite his masks and lies, know him, and loved him anyway.

Lin had long left the office on the day it happened. Naru was once again reaching for the letter in his desk drawer (he was considering getting it laminated, as the repeated handling was beginning to wrinkle it) when a giggle broke the silence. He looked up sharply; there shouldn't be anyone else here. His eyes narrowed as they swept the room. His office door was ajar. He was certain that, not only had it been shut since his arrival hours earlier, but that he had locked it as well. Leaving the letter concealed, he stood and walked slowly to the door, fingering his mobile just in case he needed to call Lin.

The giggle sounded again, and this time he recognised it for what, or rather, who it was. His eyes widened and he pulled the door open rapidly. Mai stood in front of him, in the short skirt and white top she had been wearing on her last day. There was no hole in her side, no blood on her torso, and she was smiling at him. Beaming. He didn't bother trying to compose himself.

"Mai?" he whispered, eliciting another giggle.

"Who else?" she mimicked, smirking. He blinked owlishly.

"But... what?"

Her hand muffled the laugh that was bubbling from her lips.

"You stutter? Wow, Gene was right. You're cute when you're shocked."

That snapped him out of his daze.

"I'm not 'cute', Mai," he said, tone back to normal. She rolled her eyes.

"Suuuure you're not."

When did she learn sarcasm? Gene probably taught her, it seemed like something he'd do. Naru shook his head.

"Is that where you've been? With Gene?"

She nodded and hopped to hover in a seated position over the back of the sofa, swinging her legs. He tried not to look at her feet as they passed through the material.

"He was supposed to have moved on," he said, frowning. Mai shrugged.

"He's stubborn, like you. Said to tell you that he can't manifest anymore, but he's watching you anyway. He also called you an idiot scientist several times, and then told me to do this."

Not bothering to return to the floor, she floated over to Naru's side and pecked him on the cheek. To his utter shock, he felt warmth where she touched him. Perhaps it was that the room was cold, so she felt warm by comparison?

She moved back, looking him in the eye.

"You found my letter."

He nodded. She smiled again, happiness lighting up her face.

"Good. See, I'm not an idiot." She stuck her tongue out at him. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Gene had probably told her to do that too.

"Yes, you are. Why didn't you say it was your name you heard in the vision?"

Mai heard the subtext. Why did you run off and get yourself killed? She had no good answer. Why did she do anything she did? Because her gut told her it was the right thing to do. If she hadn't gone off with Takigawa and Ayako, then maybe she'd still be alive, but maybe somebody else wouldn't be. Her gut told her to go, so she did. She hadn't really thought much about it.

She ignored his question and hovered closer, brave enough now to do something she'd dreamed about while alive, but never had the guts to actually try. She touched her lips to his, just briefly. Even with her being incorporeal, she felt a slight tingle all over at the contact. She didn't stay connected long enough for Naru to either respond or move away (could he have responded? Was it possible to kiss a ghost?), instead moving back herself and smiling sadly at him. He understood what the expression meant.

"You're not coming back."

"I can't. It's taking all mine and Gene's energy to maintain this trip."

Naru nodded slowly.

"Tell my idiot brother to take care of you."

"Tell Monk to stop feeling guilty. He could write me a song, if he really wants to make it up? I never had a song written about me."

She slowly faded from sight. The room warmed up again, but Naru didn't move. A small smile graced his lips.

"I'll see you again," he whispered. He could have sworn he felt ghostly lips brush his cheek, and heard Mai's faint voice as she whispered in his ear.

Love you.

I had to do it. Because I'm a sap. I'm also a review whore, with very little shame about the fact. You want Mai to live, press the little button that frees the alternate ending!