If the Spirit Moves You
By DrummondType2
I.
"So, Natsuki, Nao tells us you bought that haunted house on the top of Asura Hill," Mai sat across from Natsuki at the booth of their favorite restaurant, "Gonna do ghost tours or stuff like that?"
"C'mon, Mai, you know I don't believe in ghosts," Natsuki smirked, "I got the house for practically a song after I got the inheritance from my Dad, and it seems like it would be a nice, quiet place for me to do my writing."
"And if it turns out the place is haunted?" Mai asked, only half-smiling.
Natsuki shrugged, "I'll charge the ghost rent. Or maybe I can interview them for some of my work. Might be kinda nice to get the perspective on history from someone who lived it, right?"
"You sure you don't want us to keep you company? At least for the first night?" Mai suggested.
Natsuki gave a laughing snort, "I'm a big girl, Mai. I don't need you there to hold my hand."
Mai looked like she was going to pout. Natsuki sighed.
"I suppose we can call it a house-warming party," Natsuki relented, "You guys can bring the food. So, who all are you going to drag into this, anyway?"
"Well, I'm free. I know Mikoto can join us. I think Nao said something about work, tonight, but Midori is probably free. She can bring the beer. And I bet your old buddy Takeda…"
Natsuki turned an icy glare on Mai.
"…Will be too busy to attend," Mai said quickly.
Natsuki left some wadded bills on the table, "That should cover my share and the tip. See you later tonight. Unless of course, you're all too scared of ghosts to show up."
She made her way outside and found her motorcycle where she'd left it. The Ducati Dr. III wasn't the most modern or sleekest of bikes, but it delivered in the horsepower department, and that's all Natsuki really cared about. Function over form, she told herself. She strapped on her helmet, and took off heading up the road to Asura Hill.
The house was an old one. The Fujino Estate. But the Fujinos were gone. Once a leading family with power, both financial and political. And then, the eldest daughter of the family had never married, had no children, and hadn't adopted anyone to carry on the family line. She had passed in that house, over a decade ago. Others had tried to live in the house, and had all left after less than a month living there. They all made the same claim. That the Fujino house was haunted.
But haunted or not, it was a beautiful estate, and Natsuki had inherited a small fortune from her father after the cancer had claimed him. His mistress had tried to lay claim to the money, but Genichiro Kuga's will had been airtight, and Natsuki was the sole heir. He had sent her a letter from his deathbed, explaining that he was leaving it all to her in the hopes that it would atone for how he had left her mother, all those years ago.
Looking at the beautiful house that the money had purchased at a ridiculously low cost, Natsuki decided that whatever her father's sins, he'd still thought of her in the end.
She entered through the main gate and parked her motorcycle, then walked down the covered walkway to the front door of the main building.
In the golden light of the setting sun, long shadows were cast by and over the buildings of the estate, and Natsuki could see how it might have developed a reputation for being haunted. But, she reflected, she was either too stubborn or unimaginative to believe in ghosts. Instead of fear or doubt tugging at her heart, she felt a pang of regret and a whisper of sorrow. This place, she felt, was special somehow. Serene. Quiet.
She was startled from her reveries by the sound of a man's voice.
"Are you Miss Kuga?" He asked. He was a portly man with an Afro-styled hairdo, and small glasses on his round face. He looked at her with tired grey eyes.
"Yeah," she nodded, "And you must be Sakomizu, the caretaker."
He nodded, "I was about to head out. I don't live on the estate, you see. But I'm glad I was able to catch you. The electricity is on, and so you should be able to get all of your appliances working. The movers came and set up your things, already. The water is on, too, but the pipes haven't been used in years, so they may be a bit…slow. I'll go over the whole of the estate tomorrow and check them out one by one. If you find any tap that isn't working, mark it, and I'll call for the plumbers, first thing."
"Thanks," Natsuki nodded, "Anything I should know before you jet?"
"As far as equipment and such goes, that's it. But if you want my advice, Miss, you'll leave this place while you've still got your wits about you."
Natsuki scoffed, "I don't believe in ghosts, Mr. Sakomizu."
"That's fine," he shrugged, "You'll believe before it's all said and done. They all do."
And with that, Kaiji Sakomizu left the estate for the night.
"Cheerful guy," Natsuki muttered. She entered the house using the key the realtor had given her, and made her way through the house. Despite its size, it was laid out in a logical enough pattern, and so she found the bathrooms, bedrooms, living room, and kitchen all where she expected to.
Then there was a large room she assumed was a library or study. There were still row after row of books on the shelves. And on the far wall was a large painting of a woman with tawny locks, crimson eyes, and a bewitching, serene smile that would have put the Mona Lisa to shame. A gold plate under the painting identified it as "Shizuru Fujino by Akira Okuzaki".
"Wow," Natsuki looked up at the portrait, "You could afford to have your portrait done by Okuzaki herself?"
She stared up at the painting, and she could have sworn that the eyes were looking back at her, and that they were laughing with mild amusement.
Natsuki felt a blush rise to her cheeks, "Yeah, yeah, you were super-rich. You don't have to rub it in."
She turned to leave, only to see a hint of shadowy movement in the hallway just outside the room. She jumped out into the hall, but there was nothing.
"It's the stupid stories about this place," Natsuki sighed, "They're making me jumpy."
She turned to face the portrait again, "Well, listen, this may have been your house, once, but it's mine, now. I don't plan to do anything crazy with the place. I just thought it would be a nice quiet place to get some work done, so, let's not have any shenanigans."
She could have sworn that the smile on the portrait was larger, now.
Natsuki sighed, "And now I'm talking to imaginary dead people."
She made her way to the kitchen. It was fortunate, she reflected, that she had a sizable account, now, and that there was a housekeeper who did the cooking, because she couldn't see herself using this room particularly often. Her forays into the culinary arts involved instructions like, "Add water to fill line and microwave for three minutes on HIGH". In a pinch, she was able to dial out with her cell phone and order pizza, or any other takeout that could be delivered, preferably served with mayonnaise.
She found the master bedroom, and decided to rest for a bit while waiting for the others to arrive. The fresh linens on the bed had a delicate, inviting scent, and Natsuki permitted herself to fall backwards into the pillowy softness of the western-styled mattress, savoring the soft textures and mild fragrance.
Her eyelids felt heavy, and she decided that she would doze for a bit.
~~*~~
Natsuki woke with a start. There was a sensation on her lips, still tingling, as though someone had kissed her. Though, she reflected with a sour expression, she wasn't entirely sure what that actually felt like. She'd never been kissed, save for the kisses her mother gave her on her cheeks and forehead when she was much younger. She'd never gone dating, never kissed anyone, or been kissed by anyone.
She was attractive. She'd heard the girls in school wax jealous on that particular subject. But there wasn't anyone whom she found attractive. She'd been mildly stimulated by Mai's beau, Yuuichi Tate, but only mildly. And then she'd met his buddies, Masashi Takeda and Reito Kanzaki. Kanzaki hadn't seemed interested in her at all, which suited her fine, as something about him made her want to grit her teeth. But Takeda? Takeda was clearly smitten with her. Which was incredibly unfortunate, because she found no redeeming qualities in him. Her thoughts on Masashi Takeda were that she wouldn't have agreed to date him if he were the last man on Earth.
It wasn't so much that he was a bad guy, she reflected. But something about him just set her on edge.
She knew that her friend, Nao, found her attractive. But she felt nothing but friendship with Nao, and had let the redhead know as much as gently as possible.
"It's not that I don't think you're attractive, Nao," Natsuki had said, "I just…don't feel that way about you. Or anyone else, for that matter. I'm beginning to think I'm asexual."
"Girl can dream," Nao shrugged, "Still, I appreciate your honesty."
But now, Natsuki was almost certain this tingling sensation on her lips was the afterglow of a tender kiss. And what was more , it felt absolutely amazing. But she didn't know who did it, or when, or why. And more concerning, who was in her house who could have kissed her? Was she inventing phantasy lovers in her sleep?
"Heh," She sighed, "Maybe it was the ghost."
She heard the doorbell ring, and found Mai, Mikoto, Midori, and Nao all at the door.
"Turns out I was able to swap with a co-worker so I could join the festivities," Nao said with a grin, "So, this is Kuga's new haunted house."
"Yes, yes," Natsuki mock announced, "Phantoms and creeping things are in the foyer. Ghosts and goblins in the library. There's a kappa in the bathroom. And I'm fairly sure I saw a kase-obake in the kitchen."
"Neat," Mikoto said.
"She's teasing us, Mikoto," Mai chided her ward.
"I'll tell you what I'm not teasing about," Natsuki gestured, "This place is huge. And this is just the main building. Apparently, there's a dojo, a guest house, a shrine in the back, and a mausoleum for the late Fujino clan. Mai, maybe later you can help me take some offerings out there. Some of your cooking might lay these ghost rumors to rest once and for all."
"While yours would only provoke angry spirits to rise up against us," Nao grinned.
"Do I have to remind you of the cake you made for my birthday last year?" Natsuki quirked an eyebrow at her.
"Who needs to worry about food offerings when we've got sake?" Midori grinned, hefting up a bottle of spirits.
"Heh," Mai grinned at the word association when Natsuki mentioned it, "It's like a joke, right. You know, the stores that say 'fine wine and spirits'? So, here's your wine, and here's your spirits."
She pantomimed being a ghost.
Everyone groaned at the joke.
"Anyway, we'll do food and movies in the sitting room," Natsuki said, "You got the films, Nao?"
Nao pulled a stack of DVDs out of her bag, "Just what the doctor ordered for a housewarming in a haunted mansion."
She had copies of Ringu, Ju-on, and Dark Water.
"Perfect," Natsuki grinned.
They piled into the living room, and were serving plates of food, when there was a high pitched whistling of wind, and then a thunderclap, and the lights failed. The sound of rain like hoofbeats came from the roof.
"Storm must've tripped a breaker," Mai sighed.
"I don't know where the breaker box is," Natsuki shook her head, "So, we're just going to have to make due until the rain lets up. We'll proabaly all have to bunk in the master bedroom, tonight, to make sure no one gets lost."
"You could use this in your book," Mikoto suggested.
"I'm writing a crime-thriller, not a ghost story," Natsuki ruffled Mikoto's hair.
"Ghost stories are more fun," Mikoto sulked.
"Speaking of," Midori turned on her cellphone flashlight, illuminating her face, "Who's up for a round of ghost tales, since we can't watch the movies?"
Natsuki smirked at her, "Do you even know any ghost stories that aren't Hanako of the toilet or the one about the call coming from inside the house?"
"You think you can tell a better one, Miss Novelist?"
"Natsuki doesn't write scary, she writes twisty-turny mysteries that make your head hurt," Nao grinned.
"Is it my fault that you fall for every red herring I introduce into the story?" Natsuki shrugged.
"Anyway," Mai shivered in the darkness, "It's getting a bit cold in here. We should huddle. So, Natsuki, what can you tell us about this place?"
"Not much to tell," Natsuki said, "It's an old estate. The Fujino family owned it for nearly two-hundred years. And most of them died of old age. Except for the last member of the family. Shizuru Fujino died relatively young. Mid twenties, as I recall. She was single, no offspring, no living relatives."
"What'd she die of," Nao remarked, "Boredom?"
There was a flash of lightning, a rumble of thunder, and a collective scream, for in the brief moments where the room had been illuminated by the flash of lightning, they had all seen it, the silhouette of a woman hovering over the table, looking down at them. There was an impression of blood red eyes. And then she was gone.