51: "Do your parents know?"
"They're the ones who told me." Izaya is staring at the wall, cupping his chin in his hand and not looking at any of them. "The hospital contacted them first, then they called me, and I met up with Mairu here."
The girl in question hasn't moved in over twenty minutes, sitting in the corner with her knees pulled into her chest and her face buried in them. Mai faintly notices her long braid looks rather messy, full of little feather tufts that have escaped the otherwise immaculate rope. Her throat tightens, and she thinks of Gene and the horrible fate he met, the headlights from the car, the brief moment of panic, and then the impact. Shizuo's standing awkwardly by the door, looking out the window. She can tell he doesn't know what to do. To her everlasting relief, he doesn't turn his anger to Izaya, either because she's here or he realizes that it's pointless. He's right, though, she considers. Unless this was random (which she doubts), this has to be connected to the info broker's business.
But who would stab a girl in broad daylight? Mai frowns, then nearly jumps out of her seat in revelation. Izaya jumps, startled. Shizuo turns to look at her. "Hold on! When exactly did this happen?"
"While they were on their way to school." The info broker answers after a couple beats. "Around seven-thirty this morning."
Something doesn't add up. Mai frowns and brings her hand to her mouth, making the same brooding face she's seen Naru do over and over again. I woke up at six, so I must've had my dream before this happened, and last I checked, I'm not precognitive. Plus, my dream took place at night. She remembers the darkness, the moon, the shadows on the killer's face. "Is Kururi going to be okay?"
"Would I be sitting here if I knew that?"
Shizuo growls low in his throat but says nothing. Mai rises to her feet and makes her way to the corner. Taking a breath, she kneels before the younger twin. Mairu flinches and raises her head when their hands touch. She waits until the girl's looking directly at her, unnaturally somber, brown eyes meeting her otherworldly, cinnamon ones. Her voice is low and unbelievably gentle, the same lulling tone she uses in cleansings. "I know it's hard, but I need you to tell me exactly what happened, including any details you may have left out of telling the police. Do you think you can do that?"
Something like a spark flickers in Mairu's mournful face. "Will it help you find who did this to Kururi?"
"Definitely."
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Author's Notes:
Ghost Hunt is owned by Fuyumi Ono and Shiho Inada.
Durarara! is owned by Ryohgo Narita, Suzuhito Yasuda, and Akiyo Satorigi.
