Here's chapter 1. Now, we find out what has happened to Mai since Naru left. Thanks to those of you who've stuck around.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Ghost Hunt… or Falling Apart (that belongs to Papa Roach)

Chapter 1- Falling Apart

I'll follow you out of the dark…I tried my way but I keep falling apart!
I'll follow you, with all of my heart.
I'm tired of my ways 'cause I keep falling and falling apart

Papa Roach- Falling Apart

Mai sighed as she walked back home. It had taken her months to find a new job after… after he left. She frowned as the dull ache entered her chest again. She knew that she shouldn't… she should be over it. Over him.

But, she wasn't. she knew it… Kuroda knew it… everyone who knew her (and had stuck around) knew it. She shook her head as she entered the tiny, one room apartment. She put the teapot on, and went about making tea and instant ramen for herself, deep in thought.

In her time (six months) of being homeless, she had grown quite a bit, in a way that no one, including her friends at school (who had distanced themselves as well) had thought she would. However, it had more been out of a necessity to keep herself safe, alive, and, (possibly the most important of all to her), innocent.

It had also been to repay those who had saved her first.

You see, dear reader, after the disbanding of SPR, things had gone south for Taniyama Mai. In more ways than one. Not long after he had left back to his home with his brother's body, the train wreck that was her life just kept going. Monk and his band made it big, and though the man who acted as a brother/father to her tried to keep in touch, his own letters had panned and died down.

Masako, who Mai had become oddly friends with had to leave as well, for filming. Mai, who had not wanted to be put in the limelight with the other medium, had opted out, though Masako had asked her to be her partner. Ayako had fallen into familial issues that she could not opt out of (though the Miko tried desperately to), and could barely even contact Mai to say hi.

Yasuhara had gone. Studying abroad, he had told her, and she had taken it to mean what he had hidden from her. He had gone to England as well, to study at Cambridge University. She only had had contact with one person from then on: John.

He had all but dragged her to his small apartment upon hearing that she had been kicked out of her apartment, and had told her rather sternly (which was odd in itself, as the young exorcist was never cross) that she was always welcome to the small guest room.

She had come there every night, but had made herself scarce later, knowing that she could not impose upon John.

One night, as she was walking home from a job interview (that she had known had been a bust), she was attacked.

There had been three of them, and within their leering gazes as their leader undressed her with his eyes (and tried to with his hands), she had seen her fate, which had not been anything that she'd wanted to see.

She had been, for the first time in a long time, scared. She had screamed, as loud as she could. Their leader had backhanded her, but she had not let up, she started struggling, desperate to get away from them. They had laughed.

Until someone came out of the shadows- well, not one, but six. She had recognized one of the faces that surrounded them. Kuroda… she blinked as a rock flew out of nowhere, hitting the man who had been holding her down, touching her, in the temple. He slumped to the side, falling unconscious. She had let out a sob of relief….

And that was when she found her third family.

Her sisters. She had joined a gang, and she was honestly okay with that. The eldest was nineteen- about Yasuhara's age, she thought, as the older girl helped her limp herself to John's apartment (she hadn't been raped, but she had been hurt), and had introduced herself as Nakamori Anna. Who she had later learned had been abandoned by her father, and as a result, her mother was an alcoholic.

The next two had been twins, Masumoto Izumi and Emiko who had run away from an abusive household, followed by Akimaya Lani- who had wanted nothing to do with the father she lived with as he drove her mother away by cheating on her with everything in a skirt. Fujiwara Tohru was the latest (Besides Mai) addition to the group. She didn't speak much, and Mai didn't expect her to.

Three months passed in a fashion, the others trained her to fight, as Emiko and Izumi worked at a dojo, which she had excelled in, surprisingly enough. The seven of them (though not actually recognizing themselves as a gang, so to speak) kept the peace around Shibuya. The rival gangs who tried to cause trouble were dealt with. Quickly and pitilessly.

Mai had become a force to be reckoned with. Both in physical aspects and intelligence. She would never admit it… but every time she would try to slack off, she would hear his voice…. Mocking her again. She was at the top of her class by the time she was done with her second year, and had excelled even more, pushing herself in a way that she never had.

She found herself in a position that she'd never expected… skipping a grade. That had never been in the cards for her… then again, there were many things that she had not thought about like that… her Astral projecting, for one… or any of her psychic abilities, actually.

Or, her sisters of sorts having such abilities as well. Though that was not as important as it didn't change anything, Mai thought, shaking her head as she walked to the usual meeting point. She and Kuroda walked in silence, as both were usually studying as they did so.

Mai felt the odd prick of awareness between her shoulder blades, and turned. Her muscles tensed, as her gut screamed a warning. Kuroda whipped herself around as well, tensing as Mai had. Both waited.

They came out of the ally by a small ramen shop that Mai and Kuroda sometimes went to after school. Sneers marred their faces… one of which was….

Extraordinarily like his. She knew that it was not. The eyes were wrong, instead of blue, they were dark grey. His skin was two shades too dark. The leer that he had did not fit that aristocratic face of his. She frowned. scowling as he spoke.

"Two pretty ladies such as yourselves shouldn't be out at this time of night…" his smirk widened as the other one laughed. "Something might happen."

Mai rolled her eyes. "We can take care of ourselves." She responded, as she prepared herself for an attack.

And attack they did. She and Kuroda fought one on one with the two, though Mai knew that she could not actually beat him if she fought fair. She was too small, at too much of a disadvantage. But, she could win, and it wouldn't be pretty.

She went directly for his body's weaknesses, striking the pressure points that she knew would take him out, using two hands as he used one, and used her surroundings to her advantage. Of course, he had gotten his fair share of punches in, Mai felt as if she'd been hit by a truck, and Kuroda was limping.

"So much for job searching today…" the darker haired high schooler grumbled. Mai snorted. "no kidding…" she muttered darkly. She spotted the bookstore/café first and turned to Kuroda. "Fancy a coffee or something?"

"That'd be nice… but..."

"I still have about 60,000 yen." The brunette muttered. "I didn't spend my paychecks as fast as I could earn them." She dragged the equally beaten girl into the café. She wanted a new damn book anyway. She winced as she had to use her injured hand to open the door.

The woman at the desk looked up and gaped. "Oh, kami- sama, what happened to you two? Kyou! Get down here, and bring the first aid kit!" she yelled, running up the stairs. Mai blinked, and Kuroda's jaw was a bit slack, as the woman hurried from around the counter, and sat them both in chairs in the café half of the small store.

Blinking owlishly, Mai took in her surroundings. The place was beautiful. Western style décor covered the place, and a warm looking fireplace crackled merrily, which was great for mid- October. The woman returned, dragging a man behind her. Mai grinned as she saw their wedding rings glinting in the light. "Andy, what the hell is going on here?" he growled. "I was…." He caught sight of the two by then. The first aid kit he carried didn't seem odd to him now.

He frowned as he examined them. The first of the two was also the taller of the two, jet black hair that she obviously kept in braids (which had long since fallen out), pale skin, and deep brown eyes. She seemed to be favoring her right leg- possibly her ankle, he thought, and was holding her bleeding cheek.

The other girl was shorter, and, despite the injuries she had, seemed oddly serene. Her hair was russet brown- the red seemed to be glazed, showing up under the light. Her eyes were cinnamon brown. She was holding her left wrist.

"You were attacked." He stated it as he and his wife bent over to take care of them. The shorter girl shrugged.

"You could say that…." she grumbled.

"Why were you two wandering around?" he growled. Kuroda blinked. "We were kind of job hunting on the way to meet friends." She replied.

Andy was taken aback. She sat back and looked at the girls. "You're looking for jobs?" she asked, her whiskey colored eyes warmed as she smiled. Kyou groaned.

He loved his wife. He truly did, and had since she had first run into him on the glass walk over the Grand Canyon, where he'd met her as he'd taken a trip to America, and then ended up meeting her in Japan (after she'd followed him back). She did, however, have a habit of taking in strays. They had three cats and a dog to prove it.

Though they could use the help….

And he sighed, letting Kuroki Andrea do as she wished. As he always ended up doing.

"We could use some help in the store. It'd be part time… but…"

"We'll take it." Mai snatched up the offer. Kuroda nodded, and the woman beamed, shoving her titan red hair out of her face. "Great, you can start tomorrow. For now, just rest, and tell us about yourselves.

And that was how Mai got her second job.

It was funny, Mai thought as she hung up the phone, how things worked themselves out- in the strangest possible ways, she might add. She frowned as she looked at the phone, tapping her fingers on the table where it stood, thinking.

She was used to ghosts and demons and, hell, even pissed-off gods… what she hadn't known about was the… way things seemingly worked on the other side… because Gene had been brought back to life. She didn't know the full story (she wasn't sure that she wanted to know the full story). From what John had told her, though, he'd been given another chance.

From what she'd heard from Yasu, the fact that Gene's body had not been… decayed (Mai held back a gag) or otherwise disturbed in any way (which had surprised the older student, and had apparently astonished… him), had been the first step in his… second chance. As had helping her with her visions of the past.

Nevertheless, Gene was back… and that fact alone was nailed into her head when the older medium had called her. To thank her for taking care of his idiot scientist brother, and asked her to give him another chance. She had hung up.

Mai hadn't cried so much since he had left.

Andy and Kyou- who were her next-door neighbors and landlords (and like another set of parents toward her) heard her sobs and came over to comfort her.

That was the second time that some other powers of hers made themselves known. Because she caused a poltergeist. She only knew that it was her because there were no other teenagers- girls or boys- in her apartment complex. The thought terrified her. She put it out of her mind.

She wanted nothing to tie her to SPR, to tie her past back to him. It's too bad, really, that life doesn't work that way, because soon after that, she found that she also had PK-LT to add to her growing talents, after she and the others got into yet another nasty fight, which led to her making her opponent beat the crap out of his friend (who was trying to injure Kuroda).

So, the days went for Mai. She started to research. Why, after all these years, had she suddenly developed PK-ST and LT? As far as she knew (which was what he'd told her, she had been a latent psychic as well as a perfect medium (though that didn't start developing until later). She'd always had abnormally good instincts- her SPR family had pointed that out many a time. She was an empath, able to sense another's emotions, be it human or animal.

She hadn't known about the animal part until she'd come across a bunny that had been run over and was dying. That had given her nightmares for a month, complete with vomiting, as she had accidentally made a mental link to the animal, and she knew how it had died… or, rather, how it had felt to get run over.

Much like the Uredo case, she had been subject to being in the bunny's place.

Like her other powers, she shoved this aside completely, and forgot about them. Or, rather, she tried to… unlike her other abilities, however, it would not be ignored. She used them subconsciously.

Now, dear reader, we will travel to the present day, where Taniyama Mai's story has just started to unfold…

December 17- 20:00

They sat in the park, as per usual for the girls after work. They waited, as they always had, for those who would try to cause trouble on their turf. Oddly put, to be sure, as they were not a gang at all. They were, however, rather capable fighters, who did not appreciate having to deal with gang related crimes in their neighborhood.

Shibuya was off limits. It was a safe zone, a no-man's-land of sorts. Switzerland.

Though many of the surrounding area's gangs liked to try and push their luck. Taniyama Mai, who had been waiting just sighed and nodded to the girl beside her. Anna snorted as she stood, a look of contempt on her rather arresting face, as the shadows around the park light seemed to bulge out, revealing a group of about nine.

Their leader smirked, a light sneer on his face as he took in the group of six. He and his boys outnumbered them, something that he'd been aiming for since the first time he had picked a fight with them… and lost.

Mai snorted at the memory, but faded into the shadows herself, knowing that she had to wait for the perfect moment to strike.

"Finally found you…" the boss sneered. Anna's pale eyebrow shot up, feigning surprise. "Oh? And you are?" She asked.

He snarled. "I am Fujirou Kurosaki, bitch. It's time for you to pay!"

"Fujirou… Fujirou… I'm sorry, I can't seem to remember you…. Where did we last meet?" She smirked as she contemplated him, finger on her chin as though thinking.

He let out an enraged scream, and launched himself at her.

Mai would have been worried if it weren't for the fact that Anna knew full well how to take care of herself…. And did so quite beautifully, as she sidestepped lazily, missing her adversary's tackle by a centimeter.

She was not ruffled in the slightest. Mai smirked, as the rest of the group yelled and started towards the two. She, of course, took the second in command (it was only fair, after all, as she, herself was the second in command). She smirked as she stepped out in front of him.

"We should let them alone," she purred, examining her nails delicately. She smirked up at him through her lashes. "They seem to have some catching up to do." He snarled even as he lashed out at her with his fist. She dodged, her own fist slamming into his diaphragm, winding him completely. He fell over, clutching his stomach, and Mai dispatched the next man with a windmill kick, completing it with an elbow to the windpipe when he grabbed her arm, and used his arm to throw him over her shoulder. He choked as he went down, with his back hitting the pavement.

She wasn't worried. He would survive. She looked around, noting that most of the fights were over, one had even been hit over the head with a board, curtesy of Kuroda's PK. Mai cracked a grin at that beautiful usage of her psychic abilities.

She almost wished that she had used hers. It was almost a pity that she was pretending that they didn't exist.

Anna yawned as she looked down at the so-called leader of the whole group, smirking. "Well, have you learned your lesson better this time?"

All that could be heard was a feeble groan. Mai snorted. "That was mean, Anna. Insult to Injury…"

"True, but he attacked us first. We kicked his ass to kingdom come last week… and I get sick of fighting the same people over and over. It's really not fair to the rest of us."

Again, Mai laughed… though this laugh was… dark. Deprecating and dead. Her eyes reflected the numbness that had taken her over at her train of thought on that word. She looked at Anna, who noticed the look and sighed. "Fair is only in Fairy tales. It doesn't exist." She said quietly.

And Anna supposed it was true, after all. If life were fair, her father wouldn't have left… her mother wouldn't have started drinking.

And sweet little Mai certainly wouldn't be an orphan on the streets. But, Anna had to digress… because at least they had each other. They had a family that cared.

XXXXX Line-Break XXXXX

Cambridge, England- Cambridge University, Society of Parapsychology Research

Eugene yawned as he lazed about, leaning back in his chair, waiting for his brother to lose his temper as he let his fourth paper plane that day fly. He smirked as Oliver glared over at him. "Don't you have anything to do…?" the telekinetic growled.n b

Eugene laughed. The one thing that he could count on was Oliver's nasty temper. Though his brother had opened to him more, becoming more comfortable around him since he'd been brought back to life (something that he was rather thankful for, Oliver had never been all that comfortable around his twin before).

As it was now, Oliver was typing up the events of Eugene's… paranormal travels.

"Noll, If I did, I would be doing it, not sitting here, throwing paper planes at you." He smirked when Oliver growled.

"Now, now, what's got Big Boss so angry this time?" drawled yet another voice. Eugene laughed outright at his brother's newest plight- a new colleague of theirs by the name of Yasuhara Osama…. All the way from Japan, studying Parapsychology with them after transferring out of his local university.

For Eugene, it was nice to have a partner in crime, though it wasn't the one he'd been counting on. Oliver had screwed that one up for himself, Eugene reminded himself, though he felt his own ire spark, and his own indigo eyes narrow a fraction.

Oliver could feel it, though. As he always had, and his face jerked up to his brothers from looking at his black notebook. Eugene quickly wiped his face and mind of all negative emotion. Yasuhara, who was used to such exchanges between the brothers ignored it completely.

"So… does your… err… benefactor have another job for us?" he asked Eugene.

"Nope. He's already got someone who takes care of the demonic problems, so I'm kind of just backup for him and his team… though some funky stuff's been going on since that guy kind of turned out to be half-demon himself… I still don't get how that happened, completely. Something about suppressed genes?" he frowned, and cast a glance at his brother. "Noll probably would have understood."

Yasuhara nodded sagely. "Yes… because Naru knows all…" he drawled. Oliver growled. "I'm sure that I told you to never call me that again, Yasuhara-san…" he snarled. Eugene snorted.

"Yeah, Yasuhara-san, because the only one allowed to call him that is in Japan..." he drawled, deliberately poking into his brother's sore spot…

Oh, he knew all about Mai's confession to his idiot brother, as well as Oliver's…. Not answer, he though… no… it was more of an evasion. That was a good word for what Oliver had done. The barb had the desired effect, however, when Oliver let out a low hiss. "Gene…"

Eugene's face was a mask of innocence as he went on.

"Hell, she probably has a boyfriend now…." He purred, eyes sliding over to his brother, who had started glaring. Eugene smirked as he felt his desk tremble under him. His teacup rattled as did his brothers. The books in the shelves seemed to be shivering, as well. He continued on.

"Maybe she's engaged. Pretty girl like that…."

"Eugene!" Oliver barked. "Knock it off."

"Oh, come off it, Naru." He suggested, grinning at his brother as Yasuhara started to whistle as he turned right back around and walked out.

"I wasn't here…" he muttered, passing by Lin as the tall man made his way toward the ruckus that the twins were making.

XXXXX Line-Break XXXXX

Shibuya- Tokyo, Japan- three days later

Mai yawned as she walked home from work…. And another fight. Part of her wondered when she'd ever be done. Exhaustion was foremost in her mind. "Guess it's true, what they say, Kuroda," she muttered to her friend. "There isn't any rest for the wicked."

"I hardly think that you qualify for that, Mai." The darker haired girl drawled. "Because if you're wicked, then what does that make the rest of us?"

"What do you mean, Kuroda?"

"You're about as evil as that exorcist friend of yours." Kuroda snorted. "And he's got to be one of the sweetest, kindest, most patient and understanding souls that I have ever met. Besides you." Mai gave a sideways glance at the other girl, and smirked.

"I think someone has a cru~ush," she said in an annoying sing-song voice. To which Kuroda blushed. "I- I do not." She defended, glaring.

Mai laughed.

They came to the point where Kuroda usually turned left to get to her own house, but she stopped. "Do you think you can help me with the English homework?" she asked her friend. "I know its late… but I didn't do it, and you're better than me with this." She said. Mai grinned and nodded. "Sure." She replied.

The smile disappeared from Mai's face, however, when they rounded the corner. There was a man at her door. She stiffened, a low growl escaping from her throat as she went on defense. That was her space.

Kuroda sighed. It wasn't the first time Mai had done something like this. Since her instincts were a bit more animalistic (Kuroda snorted at the thought), she tended to like her own space (or, at least, that had been the case since last year, after… SPR). Though, that wasn't the only difference, Kuroda had noted.

Mai had gotten a bit more territorial, sure, but had also become a bit more… feral would be a good word to describe it. She was ridiculously protective over them- much like a mother wolf with her pups. That had been something that the girls teased her about, but they all adored it.

The man was wearing a suit, and looked rather proper. He was also rather tall (taller than the average Japanese man, Kuroda noted), and ridiculously handsome, as well. His black hair was parted on the side, not quite covering his right eye, eyes that Kuroda could see were an odd shade of green- grey. Kuroda's eyebrow shot up from behind her glasses, and she cocked her head to the side. Was this guy from child services or something? She wondered.

Another question popped into her head of its own volition, and it was one that Kuroda did not want to look too much into- how old is he? He couldn't be more than 20, right?

"Taniyama Mai," he spoke as Mai walked to the door, right in front of him. "Yes," She answered tersely, frown still marring her face.

"I am Shuruki Takeshi. I have something to discuss with you… it is a matter of great importance."

Mai hesitated. "Of course, come in." she said, holding the door open for him and Kuroda. "Can I get you some tea?"

"I'm afraid that we do not have the time for that, Taniyama- san." The man said. Mai's eyebrow shot up now, and she cocked her head to the side. She cast a sidelong glance at Kuroda and then back to the man- Shuruki- san, Kuroda corrected in her mind.

"Alright, then, Shuruki-san. What can I do for you?" she asked.

"I was sent to find you by my employer, Momohara Megumi," he began. Kuroda cut him off then, the name striking a chord in her memory. "Momohara? Isn't that the family that got really wealthy during the Meiji era… something about melting down swords to use them for something else…?"

"Yes. That would be the one. The Momoharas dabble in quite a bit more than that, though… I couldn't name all of what they do…"

"So, why would Momohara-san be looking for me?" Mai asked softly, and though her instincts told her to run, she did not.

"She sent me to find you because you are her granddaughter."

There was no sound from either girl. Mai blinked owlishly, confusion on her face. "There has to be a mistake, Shuruki-san. My mother told me that both sets of my grandparents were dead."

"Momohara Matsuri was disowned by Momohara-san." Shuruki-san replied. "It is quite possible that your mother told you that her parents were dead because of that. She also changed her name after leaving home, taking your great-grandmother's maiden name."

"I am so confused right now…" Kuroda muttered.

"And she just sent you to find me?" Mai asked quietly, "After all this time?"

Shuruki was silent for a few minutes before he spoke slowly. "She sent my predecessor to look for your family after she heard of your birth, then me, after he retired. Both of us had orders to watch, but not interfere, and report to her."

"And after my mother died…?" Mai's voice was calm, oddly so, Kuroda thought, for the fury that had started to invade the other girl's veins, which made the room a bit warmer than it had been. "Mai," she muttered, "You're projecting…"

Mai ignored her, still focused on the man in front of her. Shuruki sighed. "Even then. Neither of us agreed with it. Especially after your mother's death."

Mai shook her head, trying to rid herself of the anger. "Why now, then?" she asked.

Shuruki winced. "Your grandmother is dying. She's in the hospital. She sent me to find you, because, as the last… Momohara, you are the sole successor."

"Oh, and she asked to see me? After all this time? She wants to see me when she's on her death bed?!"

'Ah, there it is,' Kuroda thought, as the table that they sat at trembled. Shuruki-san winced on her behalf. "You don't have to tell me that, Taniyama-san. I understand. Where I in your shoes, I would be beyond pissed off as well." He said it quietly. "We can't change the past, however. If you would come with me, we will go to the hospital to see your grandmother."

Mai stood. "Fine. I'll go." She snapped.

Shuruki-san sighed, looking rather relieved. "Thank you, Taniyama-san." He said it quietly. Mai nodded, but said nothing.

It took 45 minutes to get to the hospital where Shuruki-san had told them that Mai's grandmother was at. It was a silent drive, for the most part, though Kuroda wanted desperately to talk to the young man that seemed to serve as Mai's grandmother's butler, she felt that it could be done later.

Mai didn't know what to think… so, she didn't think at all, letting the odd buzzing noise in her head (that had started when she'd seen Shuruki-san at her door) take over, keeping her mind blissfully blank, and her emotions completely numbed for the taxi ride there.

Neither Kuroda, nor Shuruki-san tried to talk to her, for which she was grateful. The hospital itself seemed oddly familiar- though Mai knew that she'd never been there- the hospital she usually visited was on the north end of Shibuya, and this was at the East end.

The butler (Mai couldn't help but grin to herself at the thought) led them up to the front desk, where the receptionist asked them who they were there to see. "Momohara Megumi. Room 27."

The woman blinked, taken aback. "And… are any of you related to Momohara-san?"

At this, Mai stepped forward. "I'm her granddaughter." She replied. The receptionist nodded and let them pass. Upon entering the room, Mai's eyes fell on the bed.

She was small- Mai was surprised at just how small she was, especially when one considered just how powerful the woman was supposed to be, how many businesses she had stock in.

This influential woman was sick, waiting for death in a hospital bed. Mai was staggered at the brutally blunt effects of mortality. Her body was shrunk from the illness that had consumed her, and her skin seemed to have a green tint to her already ashen complexion

The woman's eyes had opened upon their enterance, and though she was cripplingly weak and sore, she still sat up, an air of authority surrounded her.

Her eyes, which were the same color of cinnamon brown as Mai's, were sharp and shrewd. Her hair was white, thick, and long, tied back in a loose ponytail that reminded her of Ayako when she'd do her cleansings. The silky looking strands belied her state of health.

Momohara Megumi was as alert as ever, though, as she cast the young man in her employ a cool look. "You have brought my granddaughter to me?" Her voice was cracking, but that did nothing to conceal the sharp tone. It did not sound like a question. Mai's eyebrow shot up.

"He did." Mai spoke, "I'm Taniyama Mai." She sounded defiant- even to her own ears. Megumi chuckled. As did the other man in the room. Mai had not noticed him upon walking in, not until he laughed. He looked quite a bit older, grey had appeared at his temples thrown into sharp relief against the black of the rest of his hair, and he wore, Mai noticed, a business suit.

Lawyer. Her instincts told her. Megumi sighed. "My time runs short… I should not have waited so long."

"No…" Mai drawled, ire in her tone. "Maybe you should've tried to contact my mother after my father died." Megumi sighed, but Mai did not stop, the thick cynicism in her tone made Kuroda flinch. "Or even," she hissed, "after your daughter's death."

The lawyer blinked. "Young lady, your grandmother-"

"Was in perfect health when my other died. And yet, I was told that my grandparents were dead. She did not try and contact me at all, leading me to believe that I had no family. Who does that to their grandchild? To their Child?"

The man opened his mouth again, but Megumi's hand shot out, stopping him from speaking, and turned to Mai. A self- deprecating smile took over the older woman's face. "I suppose I should tell you that your mother's marriage was the reason that I disowned her in the first place. I did not want her marrying someone like us let alone a foreigner like us. I knew that any child that they had would have far more trouble as an adult than even I had."

"What does that even mean? And really? You abandoned us over that?!" Mai yelled, indignation growing.

Megumi sighed. "I am not saying that it was right. I am not making excuses. I will tell you that I immediately regretted my decision…" She smiled again. "You were so small… and already so gifted from what I was told." She sighed. "But, I was old, and stubborn. I did not apologize or ask your mother to come back. When your mother died, I could not seek you out, though that was out of fear."

Mai frowned, Megumi waited. Finally, her granddaughter spoke. "I understand." She smiled wryly. "I suppose that I may have gotten the same stubborn streak…"

The older woman seemed to relax. She let out a sigh and a slight smile took over her face. She paused before speaking once more. "Your mother and father took my mother's maiden name after they married." She said. "your father was a foreigner- as I mentioned before- from Ireland. His surname was Sullivan- I believe."

"Wait, so my name should be Sullivan Mai?"

Megumi roared with laughter at the surprise in Mai's voice. "Yes." She said. Kuroda snorted. "Lovely…" she snickered. Even Shuruki-san cracked a smirk at the though.

Megumi let her laughter die to chuckles before speaking once more. "Moving on," she sighed, looking at the lawyer, "I need you to sign these papers, Mai. It will name you sole heiress to all that I own.

"But…"

"You are my granddaughter. I am dying. I cannot hand all that I won over to anyone else." She said as the man took out a stack of papers. "you only have to sign it once. The papers just go over what you will be inheriting."

Mai nodded and looked at the papers, and Shuruki-san handed her a pen. She signed the papers and handed them back to the lawyer. "It's done." She said softly. Megumi chuckled.

"As am I." she murmured. She closed her eyes and sighed. "Ah, time for me to rest…" she cracked her eye open one more time, looking at her granddaughter. "You're so beautiful now, my dear. So strong… stronger and more powerful than you know…. Don't ever change…" she chuckled again. "Your father's family is alive as well… though I do not know why he did not speak to them."

One more pause and then she chuckled again. "Your abilities are only just beginning to show… Takeshi will help you with them when the time comes."

Mai nodded.

Megumi fell asleep, a small smile on her face, and Mai saw her grandmother's soul as it split from her body, changing from an elderly, small, and warn woman to a young woman of about twenty. Her hair was dark, like Mai's mother's had been.

In fact, the only thing that differed between Megumi and her late daughter was that Megumi looked younger than that.

She winked at Mai and was gone. Floating towards the light.

Mai giggled, wiping tears out of her eyes. Kuroda grinned. The girl always did that when she saw a spirit departing peacefully.

Neither noticed the doctors trying to resuscitate her until the last of the golden and white light disappeared. When it did, Mai looked around. She went up to her grandmother's doctor, and coughed to get her attention. When the woman looked at her she shook her head. "She's gone." She said it simply. The doctor blinked and looked at Mai. She nodded and turned to stop the others.

When the room was cleared out, she turned back to the remaining men. Kuroda stepped out, knowing that her friend wanted to take care of this herself. Mai spoke. "I…suppose that I should ask if there was a specific place that my grandmother wanted her ashes?"

"By your mother and father, Taniyama- san." Mai nodded. "Alright." She replied. "S-should I arrange that, then…?"

"I will, Taniyama-san." Shuruki-san said it softly.

"Mai… please… call me Mai." She muttered. "I mean… I don't like being called so formally- especially since we'll be living in the same house…"

"Mai-San then." Shuruki-san said it calmly. Mai sighed and shrugged. That would probably be the best that she got for now…

"Are you taking me home, then?" she asked, looking up at him.

The young man smirked as he shook his head. "I'm taking you to your apartment to get your possessions tomorrow, Mai-San. I'm taking you to your grandmother's house- your new house- tonight."

Kuroda gaped, and Mai looked over at her, pleadingly. "Come with us…?" She asked. "We still need to work on your English homework…"

Kuroda nodded wordlessly as her friend sighed in relief. They'd have to tell the others soon…. Mai looked at Shuruki-san and sucked in a breath. "Okay, then, Shuruki- San, take us to the house…"

He chuckled as he opened the door of the hospital room. "After you, Mai-San."

"Could we drop the 'san', please. Just Mai."

XXXXX- LINE BREAK -XXXXX

Cambridge, England- Davis Estate

The hallway made his footsteps all the louder, which, on a normal day, would not have bothered Oliver in the slightest…. If not for the fact that he had a raging headache that had been brought on by a combination of research, idiots that he had to deal with while trying to research…

And, of course, the nasty one that had been brought on by Eugene, who was insistently taking shots at him over Mai. Yasuhara hadn't been much help, either, which Oliver was starting to get rather annoyed at.

Eugene's favorite potshot seemed to be how Oliver had handled Mai's confession.

"It's funny," he'd quipped, "How you asked her if it was yourself or me, and then decided to run away from Japan… without waiting for her answer…"

To which Oliver would always reply: "I already knew her answer, Gene."

This was usually followed by an undignified snort from the elder twin. Of course, Oliver studiously ignored him, continuing to write, and hoping that Eugene would leave him alone.

Oliver walked into his family's library and grabbed the book he'd been reading for research off the shelf and sat in one of the many chairs. His temper took a dark turn. How was it his fault that he had shown Mai the truth of the matter- that she'd fallen in love with Eugene, thinking that it was him?

XXXXX- LINE BREAK -XXXXX

Mai felt a mix of amazement and horror as they approached the driveway of her… 'house'.

Which wasn't a house at all, the girl thought wildly. It was a mansion. A gigantic, western style mansion with more rooms than any apartment complex she'd ever seen. It was bordering on a castle with how ridiculously huge it was.

Momohara Megumi must have used her clairvoyance for business to get a house this size (though, in retrospect, she could just have been very business savvy). Mai wouldn't have put it past her. If Shuruki-san had noticed her complete and utter horrified awe, he said nothing as he led Mai and Kuroda to the house.

Both girls were gaping as they entered the entrance hall, as if she were a tourist visiting one of the many castles and halls in Europe. To her, her new home was just as grand…. And just as terrifying.

"Ho. Ly. Shit." Kuroda whispered beside her. Shuruki-san coughed at Kuroda's language, and Mai turned just in time to see the other girl's flush.

"Sorry…" she muttered, embarrassed by her own crass language. Mai shrugged. "If you're going to apologize for every time you curse, I don't think that it'll mean very much…" she said idly, almost as if she was in a trance. Shuruki-san chuckled, making Kuroda blush harder.

"I… just …. I didn't think that it'd be so big," the darker haired girl muttered. Mai laughed.

"Yeah… or filled with priceless vases and art… it's like a museum…"

"Pretty sure those are Irish lace doilies under those Ming- Dynasty vases…." Kuroda muttered, and Mai couldn't help but wince. This was something that… he would be accustomed to, she was sure… but Mai was born and raised in a middle- income house, and until her mother died, stayed there. Then, she was an orphan, with a low income (as she'd had to work).

She wouldn't be used to this for a long time, if ever. "It's… a lot to take in, I know," Shuruki-san drawled as if reading her mind, resulting in making Mai jump. "But, eventually, you'll get used to it. Mai snorted.

"Somehow, I doubt that, Shuruki-san." She muttered. The man chuckled.

"Takeshi! You're back!" Another female voice sounded. Mai blinked, and Kuroda winced as a middle-aged woman rushed down the stairs. Her crow- black hair was tied in a low ponytail, and her dark eyes sparkled a she saw the two girls in the hall.

"Oh, I see you found her…" she grinned

"I never lost her." Shuruki-san muttered.

The woman turned to the girls. "I'm Shuruki Sakurako, the housekeeper." She grinned. "And Takeshi's aunt."

At that, Mai gaped, "You don't look like it…" Sakurako laughed. "Thank you, Mai- I can call you that, right?"

"I'd prefer it, actually." Mai said, the beginnings of a smile started on her face. Sakurako reminded her of Madoka, vivacious and spunky.

She did not notice Kuroda's soft sigh of relief as the woman grinned and hugged Mai. "You're as pretty as I thought, with your grandmother's eyes…" she murmured.

"Sakurako… I think you're strangling her… Maybe you should let her go…" Shuruki-san drawled.

So, I've decided (Since I'm really lazy) that I'm only going to put the line break that's on FF between the beginning notes and ending notes. As always, Read and Review. I love hearing what you guys think. Also, in this, John is not a priest. He is an exorcist, but he didn't become a priest. Priests can't have romantic entanglements…. And this story's gonna be full of them.

AOP