A/N: For all those who forgot what happened in the last chapter and can't be bothered to reread it (I don't mind; I forgot what happened and I'm the author!) then here is a little recap:
Mai sprained her ankle and is now on crutches.
Bou-san is chained up because he is possessed by a violent spirit.
Natsuki is being a bitch (no change there).
And Hiyato is unconscious (Natsuki's dad).
I think that's everything… now, on to the chapter.
The various SPR members stared down at the sobbing Natsuki, who had her father's head resting on her lap. They stood frozen for a second, before the sound of running footsteps snapped them out of it. Mai looked round as a maid appeared at one of the many doorways leading off of the large hallway.
"I thought I heard a scream," she puffed, before following the gazes of those on the stairs. She covered her mouth with her hand.
"Akamatsu-sama! What happened? Natsuki-san, are you okay?" Natsuki nodded, and Mai raised an eyebrow at the lack of teenage retort.
"Akamatsu-san, we need to know what happened to your father," came the monotone of Naru's voice. "Mai, tea."
"Ne, Naru, I already made some." Naru's eyes narrowed fractionally.
"Fine. Then we will go straight to base."
"What about Bou-san?" asked Yasuhara. Naru struggled to hold in an exasperated sigh.
"Akamatsu-san, is there anywhere where we can interview you?"
She sniffled, and then nodded. "Y-yes. We can go into the library if you would like."
"Matsuzaki-san, call an ambulance and then wait with…" he glanced at the maid.
"H-hana. Satake Hana."
"Wait with Satake-san for the ambulance, and go with them whilst they take Akamatsu-san to the hospital."
"Hai. Is there a telephone?" she asked Satake, who jumped, nodded, and scurried off, Ayako following her.
"Mai, Lin, you're with me. Yasuhara-san and John, go check on Takigawa-san, and then prepare for an exorcism." They nodded, and left the room, too.
"Akamatsu-san, where is this library?"
"F-follow me." She led them down the stairs and through one of the doors into a maze of corridors that Mai soon gave up on hoping to follow. Eventually they came to a heavy oak door that Natsuki opened softly. Mai's eyes were huge as she took in the large room, filled to the brim with books. There were a few armchairs in the centre of the room in front of a large, carved fireplace. Mai hobbled over to the seats when a searing pain surged through her forehead, making her stumble. Naru looked over at her, but Mai just smiled and sat down, trying to ignore the pain.
"Akamatsu-san, what happened?" Natsuki lifted her head up from her hands. Her face was still pale, but she was no longer crying. She opened her mouth and started talking quietly in a low clear tone.
"I was coming back from the kitchen after getting some juice. My father called me into the drawing room; he wanted to talk to me. I ignored him and went upstairs, and he followed me. Then there was a sudden rush of cold air. It almost knocked me over, but I was on the landing at that point and I grabbed onto the railing. But then I heard a thud from behind me and I turned around, and Dad was lying at the bottom of the stairs. I screamed, and then you guys turned up."
Mai frowned as she tried to follow all of this, rubbing her forehead with her hand. Yasuhara glanced over at her questioningly, but Mai shook her head.
"Akamatsu-san, has anything like this happened before?" Natsuki opened her mouth, closed it again, before opening it once more.
"Y… yes. My mother, she… she fell down those same stairs. But she was ill and weak at the time; we just assumed that she fell due to her illness."
"What was her illness?" Natsuki shook her head.
"I'm afraid I don't know, I was never told. All I know was that she was very ill and very weak."
Naru pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. There was a slightly awkward silence in the room, broken only by the faint scratching of Lin's pen on paper. Just as Mai wondered whether she needed to check that Naru hadn't turned to stone, his eyes flew open and the hand removed itself from his face.
"Yasuhara-san, gather all the people who work here. I need to question them. Again." Yasuhara stood up and slipped out of the room.
"Akamatsu-san, do you know where your family's health records are?" She nodded. "I need them." She, too, left the room, and Naru stood up.
"Lin, when Akamatsu-san returns, you and Mai go through the records. Find out when this… illness first occurred, and anything else about it. Then go through the other health records, search for similar symptoms."
"Hai."
"Ne, Naru, where are you going?" Mai asked.
"To find John. I need to interview the ghost."
"I'll come with you." Lin had stood up and was returning the glare that Naru was giving him.
"… Fine." Mai watched them start to leave, but then jumped up as well. Both men turned to her, questioning looks on their faces.
"There is no way that I'm staying here on my own. Have you looked at my past record regarding ghosts?"
Naru stalked out of the room, leaving Mai to hobble victoriously after him. Oh, she loved being right when it came to him.
*o*o*o*
When they got to the room, Mai sat down as near to the door as possible. John was standing near her, and Lin had immediately gravitated to his laptop, leaving Naru to stand in front of Bou-san, looking down at the long-haired monk.
"Who are you?" Bou-san's facial features shifted into a superior expression as he voiced the question, staring unwaveringly at Naru.
"My name is Kazuya Shibuya. Who are you?"
"I am Hatoyama Mami, of the Hatoyama family who owns all of the land around here. What is your business in my house?"
"Hatoyama-san, can you tell me what happened to you?"
"INSOLENT CHILD! You will answer my question! And how dare you lower me to your lowly status."
"Very well, Hatoyama-sama. My team and I are investigators." Bou-san sniffed, and sat back imperiously.
"Very well. Now that you have answered my question, I shall answer yours. My family owned all of the land around here - my grandfather was a very important man to the emperor. I was the only child, and naturally when my parents died, I inherited the estate, servants along with it. However, not even all the money in the world can buy eternal health and as I became older, I became very ill and died."
"How did you die?"
Bou-san gave Naru a look that plainly read 'idiot'. "I was sick. I just mentioned that, were you not listening?"
"I was asking for specific details."
"Enough talking. I have answered your question, and now I will take my leave." There was a rush of wind, and Bou-san slumped forward in his chair, the ropes preventing him from completely falling to the floor. He sat up and opened his eyes, blinking them rapidly and groaning groggily.
"W-what happened?"
"You were possessed," said Naru, already moving away from the man. John hurried over and untied the monk, who rubbed his wrists appreciatively.
"Lin? Did you get all of that?"
"Yes."
"Good. Bring your laptop - we may as well question the maids. Yasuhara-san can help Mai go through the records. Takigawa-san, John, take temperature readings and check the tapes." There were nods around the room and the various inhabitants dispersed to their various jobs. Mai grabbed her crutches and made her way slowly over to the large table in the middle of the base. There was a knock at the door and Natsuki entered, carrying the health records of the family.
"Taniyama-san?"
"Just call me Mai."
"Okay. Here are the records that your boss asked for."
"Thanks. Could you put them on the table, please? As you can see, I can't really move very well at the moment." Natsuki nodded and dumped the files on the table. Mai pulled the top one towards her, and after a while noticed that Natsuki was still standing there, shifting her weight from each foot awkwardly.
"Um… yes?" Mai cringed at how that sentence sounded like Naru, but with an added 'um'.
"Er… can I… can I help? It's just that I never found out what my mother died of, and I want to know. Plus, if you needed anything else, I would be able to find it for you."
"Sure! Yasuhara should be here soon as well to help, but the more people the quicker the work gets done," Mai said. When Natsuki let out a slight breath in relief, she felt a pang for the girl, because Mai had at least known what her mother had died of.
There was a sudden pang of pain in her forehead, and Mai dropped the pen she was using to make notes with to clutch said forehead. Natsuki looked up at the gasp Mai had made, concern evident on her face.
"Are you… are you okay?"
"Sure, I'm fine. Just a little tired." At that moment, the ground seemed to be rushing towards her, and Mai fell to the floor with a thud, completely unconscious.
Heheheh… hello. I'm sorry. That's all I can say. And this: TAKE THAT, WRITER'S BLOCK!
I have many excuses as to why this chapter took months to write/update. Here are my favourites:
Lent. All I'm saying… (I gave up posting, if you must know).
Homework. Exams. I am so beyond overworked at the moment, the line for being overworked is far, far in the distance. You have to squint to see it.
Family. Our family is super crazy and stressed at the moment.
As mentioned above, stress. So much so I've been waking up (naturally) before 6 am every day for the past three weeks… add school onto that, and the things mentioned in 2, then you get a very tired me.
Naruto fanfiction. I have spent my free time in indulging in various plot bunnies of mine and reading other people's stories. I have about 20 new stories (okay, so exaggerating a little there) most of which won't be posted. Ever.
Writer's block. Of the worst kind; I had no ideas and little interest in this story for ages. Eventually I sat down and rattled out this…
Stupid adverts on youtube, wasting my time by making me click on the skip ad button… okay, so that's not a real reason.
So yeah… sorry. And the next chapter (or any chapter on any story tbh) won't be for at least another month as I have exams in three week's time, and I really have to revise. Three of them are really important… but after that, I'm all free to write! ^^
Please Review… if anyone was kind enough to not give up on me…
Hodgeheg