Hello, my dear readers! Thank you for keeping up with this story, favouriting and reviewing it ^.^ Also, if you find any grammar mistakes, please message me, I'll gladly fix them!
Now back to the case!
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Around ten in the morning they called Yasuhara and asked him to bring over breakfast and tea, since the kitchen was off limits. Mai had tried to make tea only to run out screaming when a large black hand attempted to grab her through the hole in the window.
Their young not-really-assistant came in surprisingly quickly because apparently Matsui-san picked him up. They were both carrying large containers with pancakes and the taller man had a huge thermos in this hands.
When Mai went to the makeshift tent to wake up Lin-san and Yukiko-san she nearly fell over upon opening the curtains. They were pressed together so closely – her head on his chest, his arms around her waist, legs tangled together – poor student turned tomato red all too quickly. His eyes opened a slit at the light.
"Lin-san, breakfast." Mai whispered quickly before closing the curtain and nearly running away.
He came out first, and in a minute the still drowsy doctor followed suit. Monk just grinned and Matsui-san lifted a brow at Yukiko only to be swatted on the head.
"You should have woken me up earlier to make breakfast!" she seemingly felt guilty for her lack of courtesy, but Naru soon explained it would have been impossible to use the kitchen.
"We need to finish this today." He added "This spirit is slowly taking over the house and I'm not willing to give up more territory. Your ritual has to work."
"It will. I ordered the herbs online, maybe you two could pick the package up on the way?" she glanced at Yasuhara and Matsui hopefully.
"Sure…we'll stop by if the police won't arrest us." He smiled at her wickedly.
"It will be fine, Kamishiro-sensei, just give us the address." Yasu added politely earning an exasperated huff from the older man.
"I've been thinking about the plan for this ritual. You said we need a barrier, to lure the spirit into it and keep him there, yes?"
"Exactly. Maybe Matsuzaki-san's charms could do that? They worked well so far…"
"They could, but a Shinto barrier needs physical borders, like rope for example, so it might be uncomfortable to lure the spirit into it. Lin, can you raise a barrier without physical boundaries?"
"I can, easily." The man answered curtly. The plate of pancakes was balancing on his knee dangerously and Mai decided she had never seen him so domestic.
"Good, then we'll use your barrier. Another issue – what if the spirit doesn't want to leave even after the ritual? You said you will remove the curse on it, make the spirit fully human again, but that doesn't guarantee he'll be willing to move on. For that I think we might use Matsuzaki-san's exorcism. Even without suitable trees around her exorcism should be enough to send one harmless spirit over. Lin, when you have the barrier up, can you use your shiki?"
"For self defense – yes, but I will not be able to use them to attack or defend anyone else."
"Then, Takigawa-san, you will be on guard duty. After that, all that's left will be to deal with the person, who performed this spell – most likely your aunt Runa. Matsui-san, I'm afraid we'll need your help with tracking her. Could you use your connections in police office to find her?"
"It could work, if we search for credit card use by number, but the bank won't release that kind of information without an order…CCTV might be quicker." He answered thoughtfully, rolling various possibilities around in his head.
"Hey, isn't that the responsibility of military, not police?" Monk asked scratching the back of his head and trying to remember.
"It is. It's the job of special units in the military."
"Then it's out of options…" old rocker sighed mournfully.
"Is it, Matsui-san?" Naru asked with a strange glint in his eye.
"Not exactly. But those connections are old - they might or might not work…"
"Huh?" Mai's eyes went wide.
"Say what?" Monk was nearly beating Mai in the level of dumbfound reaction.
"Thought so." Naru smirked, clearly self assured "That slogan 'To serve and protect' is not police's, it belongs to the military, correct?"
Matsui just laughed out loud, unable to keep surprise off his face. "That was a very sharp observation, I didn't expect anyone to pick up on that. You are one smart young man, Shibuya-san." Schooling his expression into the usual light amusement he continued "Yes, it indeed belongs to the military and I was part of that institution until five years ago. Then I was honorably discharged."
"At the age of what, twenty six?" Monk asked incredulously.
"Twenty five, actually. I was shot in the right leg, just above my knee, and therefore unfit for service."
"Oh, sorry, man…"
"Not at all. But like I said, some of my kids, the ones I trained, might still work there, but I don't know their level of clearance."
"We'll keep it as backup plan for now." Naru decided, ending the speculations quickly. "Before that will be necessary, we need to get the heart out and make this ritual work."
His black notebook hit the table with a loud slap and all members of SPR instantly perked their ears up for orders.
"Mai, call Matsuzaki-san and ask her to come over in the afternoon. Takigawa, go and pick up the herbs Kamishiro-sensei ordered, we'll start preparations as soon as possible. Matsui-san, Yasuhara – your main job is to get the heart out of the body. Go to the hospital and try to get it, call us whatever the outcome might be."
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Tokyo medical university hospital was a large white building, layered like a cake. Not the tallest building around, but impressive enough for Osamu. They just arrived and were still getting ready to go in.
"I will do the talking at the front desk, the girls there like me, so they should let us in."
"Alright. Do they know that there is little hope for them?" Yasu asked half jokingly.
"I'm not sure, but they don't seem to mind it either way." Loud and easy laughter filled the car. Recently Yasu got used to this new addition to the current working team and the jittery feeling was replaced by peculiar but pleasant sense of comfort. Slamming the car doors shut they walked to the building.
"Good morning, Asuka-chan!" Matsui-san greeted with a friendly smile. The man was a darn good actor when he wanted to be.
"Ah, Matsui-san! It's been a while...Are you not on vacation? Ootori-san is coming every day now..." The cheery girl with dark brown hair seemed to much prefer Matsui-san over his replacement.
"I am, I am. Actually we were about to go somewhere fun, but I forgot something important in my desk, and only noticed now…some tickets. So we came to maybe try and pick them up…would you mind letting us in for a bit? I promise to warn Ootori-san when I come in."
"Oh, sure, go on. I don't particularly mind even if you don't tell him…"
"Thanks, Asuka-chan! Oh, and can my sister's boyfriend maybe come in with me, he sort of wanted to see my workplace."
"Ah…why not, just don't be long! And it's not my business, but why would anyone want to see a place like that?" she seemed perplexed by the request.
"I…uh…it's kind of embarrassing, but I sort of like ghost shows and things…so visiting an autopsy room sounded really cool…I'm sorry for the trouble." Yasu quickly solved the issue by pretending to be embarrassed by his hobby and bowing deeply.
"Ahhaha…well, go ahead, but I don't think you'll find any ghosts there!" she laughed cheerfully and gave them her own pass card.
The lift brought them down to the basement swiftly and the only thing awaiting was a long, well lit corridor. It seemed nice enough, but the lack of windows made it a bit claustrophobic.
"It's at the very back, the door on the right. Keep that shy schoolboy act a little longer and we'll be fine." Tsuyoshi spoke in a very businesslike manner - clear and to the point.
"What do you mean an act…Matsui-san you're horrible…" Yasu whined, mock-offended. The older man didn't even turn, but Yasu could clearly see a smirk on his face.
The morgue was hidden behind a heavy metal double door. When they walked in, there seemed to be no one in the office.
"Is anyone here? Ootori-san?" the forensic asked loud enough to be sure if anyone was there. It would be ideal if it was empty. A middle aged man with bolding black hair and small rectangular glasses poked his nose out of the next room.
"Matsui, what the hell do you think you are doing here? And for god's sake don't bring your underage boyfriends to work!" the man's nasal voice made Yasu cringe internally. Not only was he rude, but the lack of at least professionalism was staggering.
"Ootori-san, please don't make a scene." Matsui-san spoke calmly, like one would speak to a petulant child "He's my sister's boyfriend. We only came in for something I left in my desk. I promised to take these two to an amusement park, and left the tickets here…"
"Don't be so stupid next time. I really don't feel like waiting for you to find it, my lunch started ten minutes ago. So go, look for your damn tickets and bring the keys to the cafeteria later." The ratty man spat, taking his work clothes off and grabbing his bag. "And don't do anything filthy in my autopsy room."
"Of course." Was the only answer Matsui-san gave him, before the coroner walked through the door.
"What a nasty fellow…" Yasuhara commented, unable to hide his distaste under a childish smile any longer.
"Indeed. Actually his prejudice cost me my job at the police office, but that's another story. Thankfully, he's gone, so your job changes. I'll go to the freezer, and you watch the door."
"Got it." The student positioned himself in between the open door of a freezing room. For a short moment he dared to turn his head away from the entrance to peek inside – it was a large room with a whole wall filled with small metal doors. Some had a numbers on them. Watching Matsui-san with medical gloves on, working swiftly made Yasu's heart beat faster. It was surprisingly exciting to play spies.
Tsuyoshi was in a hurry; with the latex gloves on he quickly searched for the right door, pulling the corpse number out of his memory. The body was still there, so he swiftly opened the metal door and dragged the slab out, digging into the main cavity as soon as the body was on full view. Lifting the ribcage up, he pushed his hand into the chest cavity and groped around. Without sight, finding something was hard, but the fact half organs were missing made it easier. Taking a quick look back, he saw the young man keeping watch diligently and surprisingly calmly. Soon he felt something wrapped in plant leafs in his hand and dragged it out.
"Done here." He said curtly pushing the body back into the freezer. "The heart we should leave here, so I'll use one of the other slabs."
Choosing an unoccupied door he put the heart in, but before he closed the door , Yasu whistled quietly.
"Well, are you two done?" came the familiar nasal voice and a second after it, the main door opened. Ootori came in and saw the freezing room open. It was enough to warrant a fit.
"What the hell are you two doing there? It's only for personnel, Matsui, have you lost your mind? "
Tsuyoshi barely had the time to close the freezer door, waiting for the old man to barge in, but Yasu stopped him in his tracks.
"Ootori-san" he said, grabbing the man by the shoulders for a second to stop him and then instantly bowing "I's entirely my fault…I pestered Matsui-san into letting me take a peek inside. He said it's off limits but I just wanted to look…I'm very sorry to cause trouble, Ootori-san."
Tsuyoshi stepped out as soon as he could, not to let the older man see where he stood before.
"Told you it was a bad idea, kiddo…" he said remorsefully, scratching the back of his head.
"I know, I know, I'm sorry, Matsui-san." Yasu answered still in a deep bow.
"And you still let him?" Ootori screeched glaring daggers at Tsuyoshi.
"I didn't even let him walk in – just opened it up and let him look inside. Please, Ootori-san, don't make this into trouble…I know well enough you don't like me, but it's not only me, who's going to suffer if you raise alarm. That young man is a good kid and a good student at Todai, he's too curious for his own good, that's true…but I really don't think it reason enough to stain his record…" Tsuyoshi was being as polite and diplomatic as he could. If this went wrong, they might be in trouble.
"I'm terribly sorry again, I truly just wanted to see the whole technology and procedure, but nobody allows non medical students to do that, so I just took this chance and didn't think of the trouble my curiosity might cause…" Yasu finally raised his head up, fiddling with his hands nervously and keeping his eyes downcast. Hopefully he looked guilty enough.
"Well. Scientific curiosity is never a bad thing, but don't push it too far, young man, next time you might end up in a bad situation. And I would advise to change the company you keep. This fag won't do you much good." The coroner relented. He seemingly just wanted to bite Matsui-san as much as possible.
"I understand." Yasuhara bowed politely. "We already have the tickets, so we'll take our leave and not bother you any longer."
With a short "Thank you." From Matsui-san they both fled the room and nearly ran to the lift. Tsuyoshi said his goodbyes to the receptionist quickly and in less than two minutes they were back in the car.
"That was a close call…" Osamu sighed in relief. His body felt boneless and light with the aftereffects of adrenaline. Heart still beating wildly he took a look at the driver's seat. Matsui was breathing a bit irregularly too, his eyes closed, smiling from ear to ear. For a moment Yasu sat there transfixed, unable to look away.
"Damn right. You did well, kid. Thanks for backing me up." He huffed out.
"No problem." Yasu grinned brightly. "Now can we get out of here?"
"Sure. Call your boss and tell him the job is done. And since we were such good children today, we'll get ice cream on our way back!" now the older man seemed just giddy.
"Wha…no, no ice cream, I don't want to see anything frozen for the rest of the week…" the student said laughing loudly.
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Back at the small house Lin was gathering the few tools needed for raising the barrier. Monk has recently returned with the herbs so Yukiko took the chance to prepare for the burning ritual. She needed a metal bowl to burn and smudge the herbs in, but kitchen was off limits…
"Lin-san?" she asked carefully, not really willing to disturb the man but equally wanting his company "Are you very busy?"
"I'm nearly done, so no. Do you need some help Yukiko-sensei?"
"I need a bowl for the herbs, but they are all in the kitchen, and I don't want to go there alone…so maybe you could come with me? It won't take long, I promise!" she smiled at the Chinese man hopefully and in an unusual streak of luck, got a smile in return.
"Of course, let's go. It should be safer during the light hours, but still, I'm glad you didn't decide to be overly brave, as per habit, and go alone." He never lost the tiny smile, even when Yukiko reached out to take his hand hesitantly. He seemed a bit surprised, but didn't pull away. She led them both to the kitchen, luxuriating in the feeling of his palm wrapped around hers. Slowly but steadily the doctor started to realize she is falling in love with this quiet man and the many mysteries he hides in his kind heart and often distant eyes. Remembering her prior misfortunes in love, she lowered her hopes, but still vowed to enjoy this short moment of closeness as much as she could.
Half burrowed into a cabinet she heard Naru talking on the phone, and that was the signal they have been waiting for. Soon the show will start.
"Ready?" Lin asked, reaching his hand out to help her up and looking into those spellbinding amber eyes.
"As ready as I will ever be. I'll be alright as long as you stand by me." She spoke quietly and forced herself to pull away, but he caught her wrist.
"I will. Yukiko, you'll do fine." The smile he got for his courage was dazzling. It almost made the Onmyoji's heart stop.
When Yasuhara and the doctor's assistant came back to the base it was afternoon already. Ayako only arrived half an hour later – weary and bleary eyed after her shift at the hospital. Despite that, she seemed battle-ready.
"Since we are all here, shall we start? Kamishiro-san, are you ready?" Naru asked all business like. He already made peace with the idea, that the client in this case might do part of the work in performing exorcisms. It was unusual situation, but if her ritual works…this could have further potential.
"Ready when you are." The coroner spoke calmly, determination shining in her eyes.
"Takigawa-san?"
"I'm good to go, boss."
"Matsuzaki-san?"
"Ready."
"Lin?"
"I'm ready anytime."
"Then let's start. I assume you will prefer open space again, Kamishiro-san?"
"Yes, outside would be best. Maybe the same place as the last time?"
Nobody answered directly, but the whole group moved out into the back yard in silence.
"Lin, start when you are ready." Naru spoke up, stepping aside to let his assistant choose the space he wants to work in.
The Onmyouji kneeled on an even patch of grass and lit a small candle. Laying an inkwell and a brush beside himself he picked up the ritual sword, moving it slowly over the flame of the candle, as if tempering the blade. One side slid over the flickering flame, then another. When the steel was purified he took the brush, dipped it into ink and wrote something directly onto the metal of the blade. Surprisingly, the ink didn't run off, quickly dried by the warmth of the steel. Rising elegantly he stepped forward holding the blade in both hands and started to glide the tip of the blade along the grass, plowing the ground just slightly to create a small line. Walking like that he created a circle about two meters in radius and finished it by lifting the weapon and embedding it deep into the ground.
Just like that, kneeling like the knights of old - with one knee on the ground and both hands on the hilt of his weapon - he remained unmoving.
"The barrier is set." Even the Chinese man's voice sounded lower, deeper, both dangerous and tempting. A shiver ran up Yukiko's spine and she stepped forward holding a bowl in one hand and her drum in the other.
Setting the bowl of herbs beside Lin-san's candle she walked into the circle and instantly felt the invisible barrier as she stepped over it. Now was the time to tempt the spirit.
Young Volva kneeled in the middle of the circle and soon the first beats of her drum echoed in afternoon silence. Unlike last time, the rhythm was not soothing or hypnotic – it vibrated eerily in the emptiness of the lawn, seemingly dragging out every shadow, drawing darkness in. When her voice finally rang out, Mai started to shiver unstoppably and so did Ayako.
Their friendly doctor was gone, the woman in the circle seemed dangerous, her features sharp, her voice deep and haunting. It was as if she was whispering to the shadows, beckoning them closer. Naru pulled Mai to his side to keep the girl from trembling.
Gangi í tokuni (Walking in the mist)
Eina í djúpu kvirruni (Alone in the deep silence)
Síggi ongar varðar (I can´t see any cairns)
Burtur allir garðar (Gone are all the houses)
Rópi men ongin svarar (I call out but no one answers)
Even Lin's eyes grew wide for a second, but his stance didn't waver. Determinately he gripped the hilt harder and watched the woman in front of him with both shock and fascination. Now he understood why Volvas were both valued and feared for hundreds of years.
Inn ímillum gloppini (In between the gaps)
Í mjørkaklæddu náttini (In the mist-clad night)
Hómi eg skuggar (I sense shadows)
Tykist sum okkurt rørir seg har (Seems as though something is moving there)
Rópi men ongin svarar mær (I call out but no one answers me)
As her voice grew louder it changed tone and became guttural, she sounded almost like a man possessed. Surprisingly the woman didn't seem to be in trance this time – golden eyes followed the shadows keenly, sharp and focused.
Slowly darkness started to draw near the circle, sliding over the grass and along with it came the familiar growling. The cursed spirit stepped out of the bushes and slowly staggered towards the sound of Yukiko's voice.
Vinur, vinur sært tú meg (Friend, friend can you see me)
Gangi her í tokuni (Walking here in the mist)
Hevur tú reikað líkasum eg (Have you wandered as i have)
Í deyðadjúpu kvirruni (In the silence deep as death)
As the half-man stepped over the bounds of the circle, Yukiko hit her drum hard one last time and quickly stepped back out into safety. The shadowy figure slowly followed only to be pushed back by Lin-san's barrier.
Without wasting any more time she grabbed the candle and set the herbs in her bowl aflame, then blew it out quickly to create smoke. With the grayish blue smoke rising and wafting around her she walked the full circle of the barrier. Instantly the spirit inside started to trash about, unable to escape.
Setting her bowl down beside her feet she picked up the staff, that laid in the grass forgotten up until now. Hitting it on the ground once she started to sing again, just this song had no words - it was just a wavering sound like a siren's call. And without a doubt, as if summoned, one after another glowing spirits of women stepped out of thin air to form a circle around the barrier. Each held a staff, just like Yukiko's. Slowly they started to walk in circle chanting something illegible very quietly, but it seemingly was enough to make the cursed spirit hit against the barrier, here and there, trying to get away.
Every time he came close to the edge of Lin's barrier one of the women would reach her hand into it and grab a piece of the darkness surrounding the spirit, ripping it off. Yasu covered his mouth shocked and Mai started to cry shaking her head in horror. It looked like they were ripping a piece of his skin with every touch. Howls of the half-man got louder.
Oliver himself was a bit shocked at the violence of the ritual, so he didn't want Mai to see it. He pulled the tiny frame of the brunette into his chest, making her turn away.
"Don't look, Mai. It's alright, don't look." He whispered into her ear. The little assistant just buried her face into his shirt and sobbed, holding on to him for dear life.
For all the people watching the horrid ritual seemed endless, but in reality, only couple of minutes was enough for the darkness to be ripped away from the poor soul. Soon gentle golden light started to peek through the darkness and with every strip ripped away, it only shone brighter. In the end, no darkness was left, and in the circle stood a gleaming soul of a middle aged man. He seemed disoriented. But now, instead of ripping his skin away, every Volva in the circle, including Yukiko, reached her hand out to caress him, soothing the terrified soul, speaking to it gently.
"Mai, look now." Oliver whispered. His poor assistant hesitantly turned to watch the soul gleam bright gold in the circle. The dead man seemed calm and just a bit lost. The women were fading one by one, until only Yukiko remained standing by the edge of the barrier.
But the man didn't go into the light himself.
"Sir, do you know you are dead?" Naru asked in an even voice.
"No…no. Am I?" spoke Yukiko, clearly she was working as the man's voice for now.
"You are. Do you know how you died?"
"I…I met this woman at a bar. She was beautiful, crawled all over me. We drank a bit too much together, so I just vaguely remember going somewhere with her…And that's it."
"Was the woman, per chance, foreign?"
"Oh yeah…tall and busty…and blonde." Poor pervert seemed to drool at the memory alone.
"I see. As you are dead sir, you cannot stay here. Would you like to move on?" Naru had little patience with fools, so the man was getting on his nerves quickly.
"I don't know where to go…" the lost, almost childlike look was in his eyes again.
"We can help you with that. Matsuzaki-san."
The miko stepped forward and without delay began her ritual. Just as Naru planned, even without the help of tree spirits, she was able to send the man over. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The main horror was over.
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That's it for this chapter ^.^
Author's notes:
Todai - short for the University of Tokyo. Considered the most prestigious place to study in Japan.
The song I used in this chapter belongs to the Faroese singer, mentioned before - Eivør. It's an astonishing piece of music, so if you want to hear it, just copy "Eivør - Í Tokuni" into youtube. Official music video is just haunting. Also, this song was in Faroese, not Icelandic once again. I appologise to all native speakers for the confusion.
