I want to apologize for the wait. You guys have been patiently waiting for this chapter and I really do appreciate that. Life has been a bit hectic between my new job and one of guinea pigs getting really sick (hopefully today we discovered what may be wrong with him but sadly he can't be with his friend, poor piggy!). Between the exhaustion and the worrying, I couldn't figure out how I wanted this chapter to play out. Hopefully, you won't have to wait as long for the next chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters just the OCs and the plot.

Mai rushed out of the room before Naru or anyone else could stall her any further. Turning back towards the kitchen, she headed for the small half-bath that Luella had pointed out earlier that was just steps away. The door was slightly ajar, revealing the small darkened room. Mai swiftly pushed the door open, allowing herself to slip into the small room, before quickly closing the door behind.

There is no going back now.

The thought flashed through her mind. She knew once she left this room there was going to be quite a bit that she was going to have to explain. But for now, Mai pushed the thought away. She needed to focus. Twisting around, she pressed her back against the smooth wood of the door and then slowly she allowed her body to drift down to the floor. There was no need for any light, she wasn't going to be here long anyway. Besides in it's own ironic way, Mai found that the darkness helped her. Taking a deep breath, she pushed away every thought and every feeling, completely emptying her mind. All the tension in her body releasing slowly as she slumped against the wood. There was a kind of peace every time she did this, like everything just disappeared. Masako once asked her what it felt like going to the spiritual plane. Mai didn't even have to think about it because the only answer she could give was that it felt like she was falling asleep.

Mai could feel it as she relaxed against the door, her eyes sliding shut. The edge of unconsciousness, the pull on her mind to drift to the other side. In this moment for most people, they would drift to a deep place within their own mind but it for Mai, it would take her to place that was both mysterious and dangerous. A place that if one wasn't careful they could become as lost as the souls that wandered it. Mai, without any fear, let the pull take her away. Deeper and deeper she went and only a single thought ever rang out.

Gene.

The next time she opened her eyes she no longer on the physical plane. The vast darkness of the world around her spread across her view. Only a faint outline of the Davises' home existed here. Mai didn't need to search here, the map had already began to form in her head. Her sixth sense, the invisible sense that could erupt a feeling so strongly within her gut, was within it's own realm. Here it was her most dominate sense. Spreading out from her, whispering in her mind, telling her all of the secrets of this world. However, there was only one secret that interested her in this moment. Mai didn't need to look to see what she was after. She could feel the white energy that laid just behind, standing in the area that she had just left.

Mai lifted herself to her feet. There was no need to rush, she had all the time in the world. She exited the space as if it was still the half-bath, as if the walls weren't see through, and passed through the open archway. Her thoughts drifted to what she might say, what she needed to say. So much had changed in a single moment. A figment of her imagination, of a crush, became a man, a dead man. Secrets unfolded so quickly there had been very little time to process and with an instant she had been abandoned. All of the information, all of her feelings; Mai had to process it all by herself.

Mai could see him clearly now. Even though his back was to her, he was just as she remembered. The same fifteen year old boy that had haunted her dreams all those years ago now stood before her. Each step she took brought her closer to the young man who would never age again and for that reason, every step was slow and hesitant. She wanted to see him but there was a part of her that fought fiercely to wait. But eventually the distance would close, and she would have to face the music.

Mai stepped into the archway of the small reading room but she dared not enter into the space.

Gene was waiting for her with the soft smile she remembered so clearly. His hands hanging relaxed at his side. Neither one spoke. Mai could see the patience in his clear blue eyes. He was going to wait for her to speak first no matter how long it took. They had all the time in the world but still Mai wouldn't enter the space. Anger. Hurt. Confusion. Sadness. All of these feelings swirled inside her like a storm and the longer she looked, the longer she remained silent the more painful the storm became. And finally it became to much. The question slipped out without a single hesitation.

"Why didn't you tell me?" It was the question that had laid at the heart of the storm.

Gene's eyes widen. "That wasn't exactly the question I was expecting." He replied. Mai knew the question he had been expecting to hear but it could wait until later. She held her firm gaze and rebuked. "But it is the question I want answered."

There was something about the vast plane that brought a sense of stillness. Nothing really moved. There was no air for wind or objects to feel, and the plane changed with perspective. Sometimes it was just darkness or sometimes a single moment of time replaying over and over. It could show you the physical plane as it is now or take you back to a hundred years earlier. For Mai, it was a little different every time she visited and for this particular moment it reflected the situation quite well. Isolating and lonely.

"Seven years." Mai wanted emphasize how long she had waited for an answer to him. "Seven years of wondering why you didn't just tell me who you were. Wondering why you lied to me." Guilt flashed across his face. He knew it had been wrong, Mai could see it in his face. "I know." Gene hesitated, gathering his thoughts together. "But it was for the best if you didn't know."

"That wasn't for you to decide."

"Maybe, maybe not. I just-I assumed that with everything else, springing that I was Naru's dead twin brother may not be a good idea. Especially since he was trying to hide his identity. Besides…" He chuckled to himself. "Psychic powers tend to be handful all on their own, especially when you first start out." Gene gave her a knowing smile.

The memory of her first dream flashed through her mind. "That's dirty, Gene and it's the easy way out." Mai shook her head, failing to force the smile on her face away. Staying angry at him seemed pointless and futile. It just wasn't in her nature. "So why didn't you move on and why reach out now? You could have done it sooner."

"Well to answer the first question, I can't" Gene replied.

"What do you mean you can't?"

"I mean just that. I quite literally can't move now, at least not without Naru." His answer wasn't making any sense and it must have been evident by her face because he explained further. "I didn't understand at first either but at some point it hit me. Naru and I are identical twins. You could say that we are two halves of a whole, which apparently that means I can't move on without him. I have tried, for his sake, but it is as if everything is closed off. The way I see it I am to remain here until Naru finally joins me."

There was a kind of sadness that overcame her. The urge to suddenly wrap her arms him and apologize for anything and everything seemed so strong. Mai hated the idea of him being stuck her waiting for his other half. It wasn't fair.

"Don't Mai." His words broke through her thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Don't feel bad, please. It's okay really. I may be stuck here but at least I get to see my younger brother become a father. And if he ever gets around to it, maybe even a husband. However, I do feel bad for the woman who ends up marrying him."

"Gene!" Mai cried out half chuckling. She expected him to retort but instead he ended up chuckling himself. "Anyway, as for the second question, I couldn't do that either Mai. After they found me and returned my body to England, the connection we had shared had somehow been lost. At first I thought Naru would have eventually returned to Japan, so I waited. But when I realized that he wasn't planning too, I did try to find you again but there was nothing. I couldn't find you, that is until you came to England."

Mai pondered what he had said. It made sense. And, it is own way gave her some comfort. Gene didn't just abandoned her. He did want to see her again, he just couldn't do it before. "If distance is really the issue, then it would explain the vagueness of the dream. Speaking of which, I was happier not having those." She added. Gene smirked. "Sorry but I needed you to come back."

"Why?"

"I can't tell you."

Shock settled in first. She at first wasn't sure she heard him correctly. Yet the look on his face said that she did. What she felt next was a highly toxic mixture of confusion and disbelief with just a touch of anger. That answer, no matter how Mai looked at it, wasn't good enough. He may be dead but that doesn't excuse the fact that she had to travel back thousands of miles at the Davises' expense. Or that her little psychic secret was now exposed. Not that I did a good job of hiding it at the end anyway. But nevertheless, Mai wasn't going to take it. "What do you mean you can't tell me?!" Mai fired back.

"I can't Mai, at least not yet. It is to soon." Gene held his ground.

"Gene." Mai warned.

"That's not going to work Mai. I'm already dead, so I literally have nothing to lose." He was completely amused by her tactics. "And the idiot scientist doesn't know anything either so it looks like you are just going to have to be patient." She couldn't believe this was happening. Mai groaned. He was just like Naru when it came to reading her. And now he was going to keep her waiting just like his brother. But in the midst of all of it, a thought suddenly and she thought back to something he had said. "Idiot scientist?"

Gene gave her a confused look before suddenly realizing what she was asking. "Naru. It's my nickname for him." Mai shrugged. "I like it. It suits him." She then gave Gene a longing look. "You will tell me soon right?" She hated being kept in the dark. After all the times Naru had done it too her, sometimes almost giving her a heart attack, Mai had developed almost an aversion to it. However, for now, Mai would put up with it. She was going to give him that much.

"I will."

"Good. So…what now?" Mai asked. Gene smirked.

"Now it's your turn." His eyebrow raised just a little. "Astral projecting on command? That's new." Mai grimaced at the question but she wasn't going to hide anything. For all she knew, he could probably tell a whole a lot more being a psychic genius but somehow she felt the need to test out how much he knew. "My abilities may have grown just a little." It wasn't a lie.

"A little Mai? Really?" The disapproving look on his face only confirmed her suspicion.

"Okay a lot." She chuckled. "I don't like telling people. They usually get worried."

"With good reason Mai. Psychic abilities can be dangerous. You could get hurt."

Too late. She didn't have the courage to say the words out loud. She knew all too well how dangerous it could be but she didn't have the heart to tell him. Or anyone for that matter. Mai saw what the worry and fear did to her friends every time she used her powers. They had been thru enough because of her and she didn't want to put any of that on him. "I have been careful." She tried to offer him that much and it was true. She did try to be as careful as she could but her answer did little to comfort him. He gave her a suspicious look. "I promise." She quickly inserted before changing the topic. "Speaking of powers Gene, did you really have to do that? I got sick because of your little trick."

Gene head cocked to the side. His gaze intently looking at her. "What are you taking about?"

"At the restaurant Gene. You were talking to me…" She replied cautiously. Upon seeing him again, Mai had just assumed that the voice had been him.

"Mai, I didn't do that."

"But-" Fear began to creep underneath her skin. "Then who?" The words almost came out as a whisper. Her thoughts began to race thru all the options. "Mai?!" The fear in his voice was as clear as day and it only seemed to make her fear seem more real. "Damn it not again." She muttered to herself. There was only one explanation and she really wished she was wrong.

"How long have you been able to hear voices Mai?" He asked, the urgency in his voice alarmed her.

"Uhh, I didn't until just recently." She groaned. Her powers had extended again. Neither Masako nor Monk were going to be happy when they found out.

"Have your powers been expanding this entire time?"

"Expanding, changing, I can hardly keep track these days." Mai replied and almost instantly regretted it. She could feel the fear and worry radiating off his soul. "Mai, this isn't good. Psychic powers shouldn't be doing that."

"I know, I know. Monk and Masako remind me all the time but it is happening."

Gene thought for a moment, his eyes casted down onto the ground. Mai watched him puzzle over her situation. This is why I don't tell people. She reminded herself. Then suddenly Gene glanced back up to her. "You need to tell Naru." His statement stunned her for a moment. Then, quickly recovering she replied. "No."

"Why?"

"Because he isn't always going to be there to save me." Gene's eyes widen just a fraction but he remained silent. "Gene, I can't rely on him anymore. We have very different lives in two very different countries. He isn't always going to be there." Mai spoke from her heart. If there was one thing that these past seven years have taught her, it was exactly that.

"Mai, he can hel-" Gene tried to reason with her but this time it was her turn to stand her ground. "No Gene." She wasn't going to let him finish. "He can't help. Even with his vast wealth of knowledge, he can't help me. Not many people can." She hated to admit it but it was true. There are very few people truly capable of helping her and one of them was standing before her. However, no matter how alone she felt, she knew she needed to do this alone.

"Then at least tell Lin." Mai gave him a questioning look. She wondered why he would suddenly bring the onmyouji into it. "You did promise Mai." He added

Of course he heard.

"Fine. I'll tell him. Happy?" Mai bite back playfully. Gene smiled once again, nodding. "Yes."

"Hmph. Speaking of them, I should probably get back before one of them decides to start worrying." Mai didn't want to think about the future interrogation she was going to receive. "Will you show me the dream again?" She asked him. The least she could do was provide them with some better answers than with what she arrived with. He nodded. "But not here. I won't risk drawing in any unwanted entities."

"I'll let them know." Mai turned away from him. She knew it was time to go back and her feet acted without command. "See you in my dreams Gene." Mai called back and like that she left, following her path back to where she had first arrived. Stepping into the small outline of a room, Mai took her place against what would have been the door. Closing her eyes, she followed the same routine as before. She allowed her body to relax, emptying her mind and eventually following the pull back to her body, and before she knew it she had returned to the dark little room.