Hanging Haunted: Chapter 11
-
Madoka frowned as she was awoken by the shifting of covers. Soft footsteps drifted from the room and into the hallway, and even though the pink-haired girl was barely conscious, she was pretty sure the cause of said noise.
Mai.
Sitting up slowly, she rubbed her eyes, pinching her cheeks to help wake herself up. What kind of strange ordeal was that girl getting herself into this time?
Starting out on all fours, Madoka managed to make her way into the hall (standing), looking for signs of her suspicious friend as she wrapped her arms around herself for comfort and warmth. Not only was the place super creepy at night with all of its squeaky doors and shifting floorboards, but it was so cold that anyone would think they were in the presence of a spirit.
And to make matters worse, the door leading towards outside was left wide open (nice way to point out your tracks, Mai, but then again it's not like she was expecting someone to be following her). Why couldn't she wander somewhere in the house where the ground was dry and mosquitoes didn't attack your bare skin every other minute?
On the very tips of her toes, Madoka snuck slowly out of the back door, making sure not to generate any noise that may alert Lin. He was very sensitive, that guy. He always knew when something was wrong.
After successfully sneaking out of the house, she creeped, back against the wall, until she reached the corner of the building. Mai stood at the side of the house, rigid in the night air, her face scrunched with a look of horror and defeat. Her eyes were glued to the ground and she was staring at something painfully sickening.
A body, maybe?
Madoka wrenched back, her heart pounding hard against her chest. She watched as Mai leaned down slowly, opening a small wooden door, a quivering hand held over her nose and mouth.
The bomb shelter! No way, how could they have possibly forgotten about it? That's where they had apparently forgotten to look. Madoka would have to remember to properly scold Lin and Bou-san when she got back.
She had it all figured out. That's where Naru was staying and where he hid that little boy Tetsuya's friend Sayuri (they gave her all the details).
Mai suddenly staggered back, astounded. She probably realized it as well. Tears ran down her cheeks, which seemed quite pale and pasty due to the full moon right above head. A moan escaped her lips, obviously surprising the both of them, and before Madoka could tell what was happening, Mai took a nose-dive into the bushes, emptying the contents in her stomach.
After a while of recovery, Mai bravely covered her nose once more, swinging the door to the bomb shelter open with an air of confidence surrounding her.
Madoka waited, but Mai's body remained stationary. She apparently wasn't ready to go in. She was examining.
Since when did Mai take time to think about stuff? Then again, she'd have to be pretty stupid to fall into a trap like this. No one in their right mind would enter that place. What if Naru was in the bushes, ready to lock her inside or something?
Suddenly, Mai saw something; something dreadful. Her eyes widened dramatically, and now her whole body was trembling as if she ware in the arctic.
Sure enough, just before she was about to make her move and reveal herself, Naru arrived in Madoka's peripheral vision, sneaking up from behind Mai. He stopped once he was a foot away from her. 'Dammit…'
"Ah, so you've finally noticed how no one bothered to look in the bomb shelter?"
His challenging voice surprised Mai, who whirled around with a shriek, nearly stumbling back into the bomb shelter. "Naru, you…"
Madoka couldn't help but clench her fists, ignoring the sting of her sharp finger nails. Who could be so strong as to possess Naru and actually stay in his body for so long? Sure, he had been possessed by a god before, but that was a GOD. This was a normal human being, a psychotic serial murder/rapist, but nonetheless human.
How in the world…? Now she knew why Lin was so stumped over this case.
"You sure do take your time, don't you…? I've been waiting," he said as he stepped forwards.
Madoka jumped from her hiding spot behind the house, a gardening shovel shaking in her hand. "Don't touch her, Naru! If you do, I'll…I'll hit you upside the head with this trowel and then tell your parents that you attempted to rape your assistant!"
"Madoka, what are you…? What are you doing? He's possessed, go get Lin!" Mai exclaimed with worry for her friend who seemed to be shaking in her boots. What if Naru tried something?
She looked up at said man, examining his face scrunched with anger. He glared at the pink-haired woman in her pajamas, clearly unable to recognize her.
"No, Mai!" Madoka said, raising the shovel higher.
"Who are you?" Naru inquired, his eyes narrowing further. He wrapped his arm around Mai's waist before she could escape.
"Stay away from her–!" Madoka stepped forwards, only to be suddenly pushed back. Before she knew it, she was standing behind Lin's protective frame, his tall shadow shielding her from the full moon. He gripped the flashlight in his hand almost painfully, shining it at the two in front of them.
Mai looked away from Lin's accusing gaze, embarrassed with how her boss's hand ran almost soothingly across her stomach, and even more so how she couldn't push him away. Literally. Mai's hands tugged at his arm, her nails digging into his skin, nearly breaking it (he'd bitch at her for that later), but the girl still couldn't break free. Was this the extent of his strength? Was normal, non-possessed Naru this strong?
"Madoka–" Lin started, his voice laced with a strange emotion Mai didn't recognize him ever using.
"I know, full report later."
"~Mai," Naru pouted, leaning down to smell her hair, "Why'd you have to invite your stupid friends?"
Mai pushed on his chest as hard as she could. She frowned, glaring over towards the two who stood, completely immobile. "What are you just standing there for?"
A chuckle emanated from his throat, tickling her soft skin. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and her eyes widened considerably. She turned away from him with a shiver.
"Any suggestions?" Madoka asked sarcastically from behind a protective Lin.
"We could try to coax Naru out of him…but then again, he can't really do anything now that we're here," the tall Chinese man said, then regretting his words.
Naru's eyebrows rose competitively. A smirk slowly spread across his face as he turned back to his victim. "Just watch me," he challenged as his hand found its way to the back of Mai's head, pulling his brunette assistant in for a kiss (poor girl didn't even have time to breathe).
Running his fingers through her hair, he leaned into her, his other hand finding its way up her shirt.
With her eyes shut tight in fear that she might cry, Mai pulled away as quick as possible, wiping her mouth to rid her lips of access spit. She looked away, embarrassed and scared, but somehow the kiss they had just shared seemed different from others.
Madoka blushed, her eyes widening. It was so strange seeing Naru so intimate with someone, even if he was possessed…
Naru looked at Mai with an exhausted expression, his eyes suddenly alive again. He gripped his forehead as if he were in pain, stumbling forwards as he did so, and rested his head on Mai's shoulder. His hot breath warmed her skin.
"N–Naru? Naru, are you oka–?!" She fell back, unable to hold up his weight, her boss lying on top of her, unconscious.
Lin and Madoka ran up to them and helped Naru to stand, supporting him with a shoulder each, and dragging him inside towards the base with Mai following. Madoka gently prodded Tetsuya awake, telling him that he could go sleep in his own room (which he did with pleasure). They dropped Naru onto the couch, removing his shoes and undoing the first few buttons of his shirt.
Lin pulled up a chair and sat with his arms crossed, motioning to the other seats spread out around the coffee table. "Sit and tell me what was going through your minds when you two decided to go outside alone, with nothing but a gardening shovel for protection," he said, all seriousness in his voice. His eyebrows raised condescendingly much like Naru might have done if he were in the same situation.
Mai sat and stared at her lap, embarrassed by his gaze. "I had a dream that made me realize Naru was hiding in the bomb shelter so I went to check and…but I didn't go with Madoka. She must've come out after me…"
Madoka spoke up proudly, "I woke up right after she left the room. I knew Mai was going to get into trouble, so I followed her. And when I saw Naru, I grabbed the trowel from the ground and–"
"What the hell were you two thinking?!" Lin's voice rose a level neither Mai nor Madoka had ever heard. Man, was he pissed. Madoka whimpered in a childish manner causing Mai to do the same. Anything that could make her cower was worthy of fear.
Sighing, the onmyoji stood, grabbing his cell phone from the table. "I have some calls to make. Wake up John-san and Takigawa-san. I want them to supervise Naru."
And with those words, he left the room, the door slamming behind him loudly.
Madoka and Mai glanced at each other, their faces screwed with a look of panic. "I think we made him a little mad…?" the pink-haired girl started, her voice shaking.
"Yeah," Mai said, nodding along. "A–Anyway, you heard Lin. We should wake them up."
-
Bou-san sighed, rubbing his temples to rid himself of the awful headache from all of the accumulated stress. "Mai, I…I can't believe you. After everything that's happened…I just…What were you thinking? Walking outside, alone, knowing that you are being targeted by a…a serial rapist possessing your boss…"
"No use crying over spilt milk," Mai shrugged.
Bou-san's mouth was left agape at her careless response.
Mai rolled her eyes. "The important thing is that we found him, right? And now that that's over, our next trip is back to the attic. I think the spirit of our so called 'serial rapist' is residing inside that painting. You know, the one of…Aki Takamori."
"Yeah, well if Naru were conscious right now, the only place other than this room that you'd be going is to the bathroom," Bou-san said, leaning back in his chair.
"So what? I'm so tired of being looked down on!" Mai jumped up, clearly outraged. John awoke, shooting up from his chair, half asleep and clearly surprised by her outburst.
"The only reason you haven't been killed yet is because Lin has impeccably good timing," the monk countered, avoiding her point.
Looking back and forth in between the two, Madoka sighed. Everyone was currently in the dumps, so what could she do? Lin was still busy dealing with the police and detectives who were removing Sayuri's decayed body from the bomb shelter, Fujisaki had returned, and even Sayuri's sobbing parent's had shown up.
There was really nothing for them to do…
Their attention was now focused on Naru, who let a soft moan escape his barely parted lips. His eyes opened slowly.
Mai's heart stopped momentarily as her boss's azure orbs met her own, suddenly leaping into her throat at the sincerity in his eyes. Before she realized what she was doing, Mai had reached for his hand, holding it tightly.
"You're finally awake."
The crowd behind them sat for a moment, holding their breath. Even John was now fully awake, his eyes widening by the second.
"Mai," Naru started slowly, his scratchy voice making her feel more comforted than she had ever been during the entire case. Just for a second his hand enclosed hers, squeezing it in a calming way.
He sat up, rubbing his head. "How long have I been out?"
"An hour maybe…?" Bou-san said, still stunned.
"Listen, Naru…Can I ask you a question?" Mai inquired shyly, grabbing onto his sleeve. Six eyebrows were raised. To think, Mai had been so fiery just moments ago, and now she was acting so timid.
"Where's Lin?"
Madoka nearly screamed at the increased amount of her former student's audacity. To completely ignore his assistant, who had been trying so hard to return him to normal? What had gotten into him all of the sudden? Well, then again, he might not know that. What if he didn't remember anything?
Then it came to the devious pink-haired woman.
He did remember…and that's why he was so bent on avoiding Mai. Deep down he must be flushed crimson with the thought of his cute little assistant! But why did he insist on being so cold? Didn't he know how worried they (especially Mai, for that matter) had been?
The tension in the air was so thick, that not even a knife could cut through.
"Okay, everybody leave. I need to have a talk with Naru," Madoka demanded, shooing everyone out of the room. Mai seemed the most reluctant to leave. "It'll be quick. I just need to have a speedy mentor to student chat."
The girl nodded, lingering a while in the threshold before Bou-san pulled her along, closing the door behind them.
"They're dealing with the body?" Naru inquired, his eyes cast downwards.
"Yes, but more importantly…" Madoka turned on her heel, her hands glued to her hips in quite a severe manner (Naru found it hard to take her serious while she was still clad in her ducky pajamas, though). "I know what you're doing, and you're not doing a very good job of it."
"Doing a very good job of wha–?"
"Don't play innocent!" she exclaimed. Naru's brow furrowed with frustration as she interrupted him. "I know you can remember everything that happened. I also know you feel guilty and you regret what you've done, but ignoring Mai is not the way to deal with your aggravation. You can't avoid her forever."
Naru's paused.
Madoka was right. He couldn't just avoid Mai for the rest of his life.
"Now I suggest you go and apologize to Mai, and to everyone else, for that matter!"
"Get out," Naru demanded bluntly, glaring.
Sighing, Madoka left the room and closed the door behind her, leaning back against it.
"Maybe I pushed a little too far?"
-
With tea in one hand and Tylenol clenched tightly in the other, Mai nudged the door to the base open, a recently awoken Ayako and Masako following shortly behind her. "Here Lin," she said softly, handing him the medicine, "I'm so sorry for getting you sick!"
"Don't beat yourself up over it, Mai. We knew at least one of us would get sick," Bou-san reassured, just happy it wasn't him. He had a concert at a really popular club coming up, and he just wouldn't be able to live with himself if he let the band down.
Ayako rolled her tired eyes as she plopped in between the monk and John. "Yeah, right…But you know, I thought the most likely candidate would be Naru. I wonder why Lin's the one that's sick. Do you think they swapped spit as well…?"
Mai's eyeballs nearly popped from their sockets due to the increased blood suddenly rushing to her head. Looking up from his laptop, the Chinese man sighed (he'd never get his work done). "Ayako!" Mai whispered harshly, hoping Naru wasn't paying attention to them. What if he thought they were together or something?!
"You're right. If anyone, I'd guess Naru," Masako nodded, rubbing a weary eye.
Naru twitched, his ears involuntarily perking up to the conversation about his two assistants. What possibly could have happened while he was gone? And 'swapping spit'? What a crude way to put it. Besides, Mai would never kiss anyone other than him. She liked him, right?
And Lin would never dare…!
Naru closed his strained eyes, preventing them from reading the same sentence for the fifth time. Just imagining what he would have to go through if Lin hadn't printed him out a summary of what had happened during the case so far made his head throb.
So far in the report, Mai had barely escaped being molested by him multiple times. Just the thought of himself on top of her, his hands traveling across her milk skin…And he had gotten so close before he had passed out earlier on.
No!
He could and should not be thinking of his assistant in such a manner. What would his parents say? Besides, he was in Japan for a reason and he wouldn't let her distract him.
"By the way," Ayako started, cocking her head in a questioning manner, "I thought you two said you checked the bomb shelter when you went looking for Naru?"
Bou-san slapped his cheek lightly as her suddenly realized. "Yeah, we did. But I don't remember finding anything. It was dusty, abandoned."
"Then he must've left it somewhere else before bringing it to the bomb shelter. Maybe he thought we'd find the body?" Mai inquired.
Ayako's eyes widened. She looked over towards Mai, slapping her leg in an 'I'm so proud of you' way. The brunette looked at her strangely, rubbing the spot she had hit. "You know, Mai," she started, "You're getting smarter and smarter every day."
"You may be right about that Matsuzaki-san." Everyone looked over to Naru, who now stood up with the report he was reading in his hands, a scowl spread wide across his face.
With clenched teeth, Mai said, "And yet you say that with a frown on your face."
"I know where he kept the body before possessing me. But before that…John, Takigawa. I need you two to get ready for exorcisms," Naru said, glancing up from his file. His eyes narrowed as the two only paused from drinking their tea with absent-minded looks on their faces.
"Now?" he suggested sarcastically.
-
Mai watched nervously as Naru inspected the wall from which the picture of Aki Takamori had fallen when they first decided on an exorcism in the attic. Bou-san and John helped their boss push a huge box out of the way.
What on earth were they doing?
Her mental question was soon answered as Naru knocked on the wall three times, a hallow sound echoing throughout the attic. He felt around for a chip in the wood he could use to pull the small door open. Mai was surprised to see just a shallow room, nearly big enough to fit a grown man. A body would definitely be able to fit in there. It even smelled like the horrid odor coming from the bomb shelter, except somewhat less unpleasant. And to top it all off, there were traces of dried blood smeared across the small walls.
Mai refrained herself from hiding behind Naru.
He closed it slowly, turning back around towards the team. Bou-san's mouth hung open. "Wha–Aren't you going to tell the investigation team about this?"
"I think it would be safer to finish our exorcisms first and foremost. Who's going to start?" Without taking into consideration Bou-san's words, he stepped back, leaning against the creaky wall. "Start when you're ready."
(Ayako, Madoka, and Lin had opted not to be a part and to watch from the cameras in the base.)
"Are you sure they'll be alright, Naru?" she whispered, looking up at her boss with doubt. She was worried for the two. What if they got hurt? He raised an eyebrow at her worry.
"Why wouldn't they be?" he inquired. Bou-san and John were strong. He at least knew a few things about each of the after knowing them for so long. Folding his arms, he looked over towards his anxious assistant.
"Well, I mean…even a god can barely possess you. If this spirit can do that, then don't you think it might be dangerous for them? It was hard enough last time when you were possessed."
"I think Mai may be right," Masako started, "The presence of Takamori burns with more hatred than you know. He has manifested into something else, but not as powerful as the god in our previous case."
Naru sighed. Of course they would doubt him after he was possessed so easily. How could he let his guard down? He knew there was a risk, but he thought…No, it doesn't matter what he thought. The fact of the matter was that he let his team down.
"They'll be fine. I'll make sure of it."
Mai bit her lip in contemplation. "If you say so."
Mai glanced at her water-proof watch, taking a moment to decipher what time it read: 9:32 PM.
Hopefully these exorcisms would go well and this case would be over and done with by the time morning came. Mai didn't want to waste another moment in this place where so many bad memories remained. She could feel the sensation of hatred all around the home.
And so it was decided.
John would go first.
-
Sorry for being so late. School work has been all I can think about lately. I'm sorry for not giving you guys a heads up or anything, but I might not be able to update as much as I used to. I'm getting projects out the yin-yang.
I hoped I haven't ruined your dreams of Naru raping Mai. Believe me, it'll happen one day. Hopefully soon.
Anyway, thanks for reading!
:D
