Chapter 4: Connecting

Mai searched her pant pockets for her house keys. After the visit to the cemetery they still had an hour left before the DNA test result would be available, so Mai had invited Lin over for tea. She found the little bunch of keys and inserted the right one into the keyhole and unlocked it. Before going in she paused slightly. " It's kind of small and messy so please excuse me."

Lin nodded and followed her in. They slipped off their shoes as Mai said the traditional 'Tadaima', while Lin looked around the room. It was a traditional single person room, slightly larger than normal. There was a narrow hallway leading from the main door to the main room, with a kitchenette to one side. The room was spacious and neatly kept with a single bed to one side along with a bedside table and box TV on the other accompanied by a bookshelf. There was a window facing the doorway with a large closet next to it and next to the doorway was the bathroom. There were a few books open on the low table in the centre of the room, along with some lose sheets of paper, otherwise the room was tidy; Mai clearly didn't know what the word messy meant.

Mai quickly closed the books and cleared the table. She then took off her jacket and hung it on a stand by the bathroom door. When she turned to her guest she found he was not in the room. Going towards the main door, she found him staring at the pictures hung on the wall facing the kitchenette. "That's my favourite one." Mai pointed to the current picture Lin was looking at; it was of her parents on their wedding day.

"She looks happy." Lin commented, his finger tracing over his sister's face. Mai nodded.

Lin then looked at Mai's father and then at Mai. "You look like your father."

"Mmhmm," Mai said as she leant against the wall, "So much so that my mom used to call me 'Daddy's girl' all the time."

Lin's gaze shifted back to the picture and then to her again. " You are like your mother as well. You are brave, like her, strong, like her, helpful, like her, caring, like her and selfless, like her. You are as beautiful as your mother, Mai."

Mai's eyes widened at the compliment and she blushed; she had never been complimented as such. She rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment and was going to say 'thank you' when Lin resumed speaking. "Of course, you have her clumsiness as well along with her stubbornness."

Mai's eyes snapped to Lin to find him staring at her with his usual, stern expression but then she saw it; the unfamiliar glint of amusement in his eyes and she burst out laughing. He chuckled quietly and inwardly sighed in relief that she had been able to tell that he had been teasing her. He could not comprehend it, but for some reason he had always found it difficult to maintain his cold exterior around her. He had had to keep an extra check on himself that he not smile at her when she said thank you or laugh when she argued with Naru or had fun with the team. She had begun to break his walls towards the end of his last stay in Japan and over the last year she had demolished them completely. The only difference was that she herself didn't know that she had done so. He had felt troubled at this initially but when she was oblivious to this fact, he had relaxed; no one had to know that she had cured his hatred. But now, he wanted her to know who he was, so that she trust him, and it was strange; he himself had only begun to realise this new goal and he already felt so close to her, so connected. He realised that he'd be lying if he said that he had never been protective of the girl, as a friend of course. It was as if the newfound bond between them was not only linking them by their blood but connecting them to themselves as well. He hadn't joked with anyone, apart from a select few friends via email and Naru, in a very long time.

Mai noticed Lin's unfocused gaze and took her time to compare him to Rinne. When Lin snapped out of his thoughts Mai was smiling triumphantly. "Your nose looks like Okaa-san's."

Lin raised an amused eyebrow and looked at the picture. "Yes, it seems it does."

Mai giggled lightly before turning to the kitchenette and started preparing tea." Please have a seat. The tea will be ready in a bit". Lin watched her for a moment before going into the room and sitting down at the table. Mai rummaged in her cupboards and found a pack of biscuits to serve while the water boiled. When the tea was ready she set the cups down on a tray and brought it, and the snacks, over to Lin.

They drank the tea in silence before Mai asked, "How big is your place Lin-san?"

Lin finished chewing his biscuit before he replied, "It's a two bedroom apartment so I believe it will be big enough for the both of us."

"Are you sure about this Lin-san? I mean I know we are related and everything but won't I be invading your personal space and stuff?"

" I wouldn't have asked you if I wasn't sure, Mai." He paused as if considering something. " I would like to apologise, I have been using your first name without permission all day today."

Mai's eyes widened at this. "Oh, yeah, finally. Everyone else uses my first name, you're the only one who doesn't- no, didn't. It used to feel really... stuffy being called by my family name and, not to mention, my surname is really long as well. So don't apologise... " It dawned on her that she didn't have to be so formal anymore. "Can I call you just Lin or umm..."

Lin noted her hesitation. "Asking won't hurt you."

"Can I call you uncle or something similar?

Lin considered this. " I wouldn't mind shūshu, it's Chinese for uncle."

Mai positively beamed. "Well then shūshu, please take care of me!"Lin smiled. He could feel her excitement and happiness just by looking at her and it made him happy.

Mai suddenly remembered something and got up from the ground. She made her way to her bed and reached for her pillow when she was overwhelmed by an immense sadness and her surroundings changed; she had been pulled into another memory. Lin noticed her stillness and approached her quietly. He sat on the bed and guided her into sitting next to him. When that didn't stop the trance, he tried shaking her like he had last time. When Mai didn't wake up but started crying silently, he knew that this particular vision was the one that affected her the most and it wasn't hard to guess that it was the last memory she had of her mother. So he held her hand and waited for it to pass; he would be there when she woke up.

She was staring at the pale face of her mother, who was breathing slowly, as if that simple act was costing her all her strength.

"Mama?"

Rinne's tired eyes opened to see her only daughter staring at her with tearful eyes. She lifted a pale hand up and cupped her cheek. "Don't cry baby girl or you'll make mama cry too. Mama is so, so sorry because she won't be there for you anymore. Can you please forgive mama." Mai could see the tears run down her mom's thin, exhausted face; she had hung on to life with all her strength until there was nothing left.

Mai's tears fell freely but she held her sobs in. "Shhh... Don't speak, you need to rest. Save your energy and get better. Okay, mom? Get better and come home... but if you can't then," Mai held on the her mother's hand with both of her own, " Say hi to papa for me and don't worry about me. I'm a strong girl, I will look after myself , alright? So just relax and ...smile." The last of that sentence cost her all her courage and strength to not break down.

"Take care of yourself okay? Don't ever lie; it's not good for you and always believe in yourself. You are very special Mai, and I am proud of...you..."

Her mother's voice began to fade and Mai drastically squeezed her mom's hand. " Mama?... Mama? No, not yet, you can't go yet!" Her voice was rising in panic as Rinne's breathing stopped and her eyes closed. She didn't dare leave her mother's hand until a nurse pulled her away and the doctor's began reviving Rinne. The tears wouldn't stop; the pain in her chest wouldn't go away; her heart wouldn't stop hurting and it all grew until she finally broke down and let her grief consume her.

Mai snapped out of the memory to find herself caged in between strong arms. The scent of pinewood overwhelmed her and she couldn't understand where she was. Then from somewhere above her a voice spoke. "Shh... Mai I am right here with you."

It all came back to her and once again the tears came, renewed in their strength and all she could do was hold on to her shūshu and let the emotional torrent pass. So many years she had relived that scene and cried herself to exhaustion but now surrounded by his warmth, she felt consoled and comforted. He patted her back and held her tight; an unspoken promise of his continuous support from that day onwards.

"She asked me to forgive her for l-leaving me behind. She asked me to...always...b-believe in myself. " Mai sobbed as Lin shushed her gently.

"She'd be so proud of you, Mai." He said gently as he himself tried not to think what the last moments of his sister had been like. It took a while before Mai truly calmed down after which she sat quietly leaning against side, with him holding her with an arm around her shoulders.

"Sorry," Mai began, her voice croaky due to the crying," the last of the visions are... very painful."

Lin shook his head. " It's okay, just know that from now you can come to me whenever you are upset, even it is the smallest of things. I don't want you to go through it alone."

Mai muttered a thanks before closing her eyes and clearing her mind; a lot had happened that day and she could now feel the waves of exhaustion coming on. Suddenly, she remembered why she had come to the bed and after pulling away from Lin slightly, she slipped her hand under the pillow and pulled out an old, green notebook. "This is mama's diary. I wanted to show it to you but...yeah."

Lin carefully took the notebook and opened it. He felt a pang at seeing his sister's familiar handwriting. He then realised that some of the writing was in Chinese. "Mai, you can read Chinese?"

"A little bit but only the words in the diary. Otherwise my knowledge of Chinese is limited to a few words; mama would mostly speak in Japanese."

Lin nodded and was about read the first page when his cell phone rang. He gave the diary to Mai and attended the call. " Lin Koujo speaking." He listened to whoever it was on the other side and nodded before thanking them and cutting the call. He then turned to Mai. "They have our result ready. We can go and get them."

Author's note: I don't own Ghost Hunt

Thank you all for your reviews

I hope you like the fourth chapter. I felt it was more of a filler than an actual chapter.

Anyways, some good news for you, the fifth chapter is exceptionally long so and there were loads of moments where I found myself grinning or chuckling to myself as I wrote it so, look forward to it people.

Bad news however, I will be travelling for 15 days approx. and so will not be able to update. Please bear with me people. I do not intend to give up on this story for I have been planning it for a REALLY long time however, as I will be preparing for exams and stuff, I won't update as frequently. I shall try for I know the feeling of hoping that your favourite fanfic get updated.

Thank you for your support.