Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt. Manga would be ongoing.

Chapter 19 – Changing the Game

-0O0-

Mai felt it slam into her the moment she walked through the door. "Anger," she stated clearly. "Anger and… something else. Hold on, I'll try to get a better read on it." She closed her eyes and stretched out with her senses.

"Sadness, maybe?" Madoka guessed as she walked through the dimly-lit front hall. It looked like a sad house to her.

"No... not really," Mai replied softly, concentrating harder. She felt two distinct energies – one clearly furious, the other... excited? That didn't bode well, she thought grimly. Any ghost that was excited to see a bunch of strangers in the house tended to provide a very active haunting. Worse still, she couldn't identify a locus for either energy. "I can't find the ghosts," Mai told the group. "I can feel their emotions, though. The anger, especially, is… pressing on my consciousness. It's… hot anger, if that makes any sense."

"A ghost with a temper," Madoka supplied.

"More likely to react to our presence, perhaps," Lin guessed. "And easy to provoke – we should expect more unplanned attacks than methodical ones."

"Yet the new owners keep falling down the front stairs," Naru noted, remembering yesterday's video conference with the couple. "That is a methodical attack." He would rather have interviewed the clients in person, but they were hiding out in York until the house was deemed safe.

"I don't think methodical is the right word to describe these guys," Mai contested, eyes still closed. "The energies keep… changing. One minute the angry one is stronger, the next minute the excited one takes over."

"Excited?" Yasuhara reiterated quizzically. "Excited, like happy? Maybe that's where the laughing comes in?"

"I – I'm not sure," Mai admitted. "I can't tell, the levels keep… winging up and down." She bit her lip. "I mean, I know I'm not the best medium, but if I can't sense a spirit properly, it's either hiding or weak. To feel such strong emotions and not be able to find the spirits they belong to is… weird."

"Maybe they're hollow spirits?" Yasuhara suggested. "You always have issues with finding those."

"No," Mai answered decisively, opening her eyes and scanning the front hall. "I have trouble with hollow spirits because their own feelings are weak. But I can practically taste the emotions in this house. I just can't find the spirits that go with them."

"Try getting closer to the site of the incidents." Madoka pointed to a half-restored great stairway.

Mai nodded and stepped gingerly toward the staircase. She could tell it would be beautiful once finished, but right now it was pretty dirty. Some of the stairs were warped, the wood of the railing was worn down, and Mai could see someone tumbling down the steps. "No!" she yelled, taking off towards the terrified-looking young man. She reached the foot of the stairs in seconds, but...

There was nobody there.

The staircase – and the floor beneath it – was empty and still. Mai stopped short and looked over every step. Nothing.

Quick footsteps sounded behind her and Mai's peripheral vision caught Naru skidding to a halt. "What did you see?" he asked.

"A man falling down the stairs," she replied readily, still examining the area with practiced eyes. "There's nothing there now, but… I didn't even feel it coming. I don't think it was a full-on vision – I usually pass out for those. And I couldn't sense the ghosts, either. I… I'm not sure what that was." She turned to face Naru as she spoke, trepidation in her voice and gaze.

The steadiness of Naru's intense regard eased Mai's nerves right off - if he wasn't worried, it was probably alright. She grinned as a familiar look of interest crossed his face. It's puzzle-solving time!

And it definitely was – the yellowing streams of sunlight slanting through the windows told Mai that SPR only had about an hour of good light left. "We should start setting up the cameras," she told Naru matter-of-factly.

He only raised an eyebrow, sapphire eyes faintly amused.

Damn, he looked good, Mai thought involuntarily. Naru was only more attractive close up. She could feel a blush trickling up her face and abruptly broke eye contact. Race-walking back to the group, Mai avoided everyone's eyes and grabbed a camera. "I say we split into two groups," she continued in a no-nonsense voice, nudging Yasuhara. "Yasu and I will set up the cameras and everybody else can work on the base. And nobody goes near those stairs alone," she finished firmly. Mai pushed her smirking best friend into the nearest room and handed him a tripod to set up.

"Smooth, Mai-chan," Yasu whispered teasingly. "Instead of turning into a fluttery mess, you went all commanding and firm – Big Boss must be rubbing off on you."

Belatedly, the teen psychic realized that she'd gone into Lead Investigator Mode and ordered her superiors around. Mai popped her head back into the front hall and gave her new boss a contrite look. "Sorry, Madoka-san, didn't mean to get... you know."

"You're looking for 'commanding and firm,'" Yasuhara supplied loudly, pushing his glasses up his nose.

Madoka just grinned. "We've got more bosses than assistants on this team, don't we?"

She was right, of course – out of the five current team members, three had 'lead investigator' on their resumes. Mai shrugged dismissively. "Yeah, maybe… but I think you and Naru are more suited for the job than I am. Like I said, I'm in charge of TTMPI by default." Mai smiled at Madoka. "So, Boss, what do you think we should do?"

The master ghost hunter didn't miss a beat. "We should split into two groups. You and Yasu set up cameras and we'll start moving supplies into the base. And nobody goes near the stairs alone."

Mai flushed at the repetition of her own earlier orders. "O-of course."

Madoka smiled encouragingly. She often found Mai's humility refreshing – especially in a group which included Naru, Yasuhara, and yes, herself. But Mai needed to understand that she was just as capable a leader. "Good. Now let's get to work."

-0O0-

As he hefted a computer monitor out of the van, Naru mentally replayed the events of the last few minutes. Watching Mai behave like a lead investigator was still strange for him. But... it didn't quite feel wrong, either. As much as it rankled to admit, Mai obviously knew what she was doing.

She didn't have as much experience as Madoka or himself, but was quite devoted to learning the craft. He was actually impressed with the amount of material she'd chewed through this summer. Not to mention, Mai's powers gave her a special deductive edge. From what he'd heard, Mai's myriad abilities had greatly contributed to the success of TTMPI. Smirking slightly, Naru wondered what TTMPI cases were actually like. He tried to imagine what Japan's SPR would have been like without Lin or himself...

The visions he came up with were terrifying. Naru made a mental note to ask Mai more about it at a later date.

-0O0-

Mai was relieved to retreat to the hotel. It had been a long day, and she was beat - fifteen cameras set up, followed by thermometer readings and microphone checks.

And despite her best efforts, Mai simply couldn't find the ghosts. It was maddening. She could feel anger, pain, and excitement as strongly as if the emotions were her own – but she couldn't locate any spirits.

Eventually, Madoka suggested that the spirits might be those of recently deceased people, which could explain the lack of a cohesive presence. Since it often took time for a ghost to fully 'coagulate' (as Martin had once described it), it was possible that these spirits hadn't quite mastered the ability to manifest.

Lin tentatively agreed, citing the research – the house had been abandoned before their restoration-happy clients bought it, and there were reports that teenagers periodically broke in to party inside. "Perhaps something unfortunate happened to a couple of them," Lin had said meaningfully. He had obviously been referring to the fate of the teen who'd wandered off in Urado's mansion.

So Yasuhara had offered to head down to the local library. Tomorrow, he'd look through accounts of all disappearances in the area between the departure of the last owners and the arrival of the new ones.

Naru had declared it the most likely explanation (as of yet).

Mai had nodded along with everyone else, but privately thought otherwise. There was something vaguely… ancient about the emotions in the house. Well, maybe not ancient, but certainly not recent, either. She wasn't quite sure how to describe it. She wasn't quite sure of anything on this case. Mai resolved to talk it over with Gene tonight – she knew he was waiting for her, in the realm of lingering spirits.

After three years of psychic dreaming, Mai could tell that at least some of her sleepiness was caused by Gene pulling on her consciousness. He wanted to talk to her. Well, she wanted to talk to him, too, and not just about the case – Naru's gaze was looking less observational and more suspicious by the day. If he was on to them, she and Gene needed a new plan immediately.

But I'll be hooked up to electrodes for the duration of the case, Mai remembered with a groan. After getting over the initial fear of SPR seeing something in her regular dreams, Mai had realized that her psychic dreams were just as problematic. She did, after all, secretly meet with Gene in dreams. He usually showed up at least once during a case (even if it was only to chat).

Madoka had assured Mai that the electrodes couldn't identify people (or sneaky spirits) in her dreams, but a wary Naru would definitely pick up on anything fishy. Mai bit her lip – they might have to sacrifice something to keep the Big Secret a secret...

Staring hard at the nightshirt and pajama pants she'd pulled from her suitcase, an idea popped into Mai's head. Maybe… I should go to sleep right now. In her clothes, so it would look like an accident. Then Mai could talk to Gene before the electrodes were transmitting her thoughts and dreams to SPR!

Plan hatched, Mai tossed her pajamas back into the suitcase and started to close it – before realizing that she should probably re-pack the rest of her stuff, too. Then it would look like she'd been too tired to do anything but fall onto the bed. Mai quickly collected her cell phone charger and brush from the dresser, and a book from the bedside table. She threw everything into the suitcase and yanked the zipper shut. Then she lay down on the bed (tucking her arms under the pillow just in case someone got any funny ideas about the scars).

The bed isn't the comfiest, Mai noted with a groan – she'd apparently been spoiled by Ayako and Luella. She rolled over a couple of times before finding a decent soft spot to snuggle into. Mai closed her eyes, breathed rhythmically, and allowed the pull on her mind to yank her into unconsciousness.

-0O0-

"Mai-chan?" came a voice somewhere above her. The teen opened her eyes to a familiar scene. A backdrop of blackness with no visible solid ground. White lights all around her, edging upwards as if caught in the flow of a slow river. She was back in the realm of lingering spirits.

Then a shadow blocked out a chunk of the dream-space. Gene offered her a hand, and Mai took it. As he pulled her upright, the world swam around her - she was dizzy, as usual. Mai blinked until Naru's deceased twin came into sharper focus.

Then she got right down to business. "Gene, I think we've got a problem," Mai told him seriously. "I think Naru's suspicious. And now they want to measure my brainwaves with electrodes to get data on my psychic dreaming. What if my coming here to meet you shows up in the scan?"

Gene gave her a knowing look. "It will, Mai-chan – but not in the way you fear. Your being here requires the use of a different psychic power than the electrodes are testing for. To come here, you use astral projection."

"Right," Mai said, confused. She knew she was projecting right now. "What does that matter?"

"You aren't in your body right now," Gene explained. "The machine reading your brainwaves wouldn't be getting anything besides your normal sleep rhythms. You aren't really there right now, you see."

"Oh!" Mai understood. The electrodes couldn't pick up on Mai's thoughts if her thoughts were outside her body.

"However," Gene cautioned, "The almost complete lack of activity will be a result in itself. There is no way that Naru and the others won't realize the significance. They know that astral projection is one of your powers."

"Well, I don't have the electrodes on right now," Mai reminded him. "Just in case they could tell I was visiting with you, I fell asleep before bedtime on purpose. I figured we could hash out a strategy now."

Gene grinned proudly. "Good thinking, Mai-chan," he asserted. "But we might not need to worry about it for a bit. I don't think I'll need to contact you about this case again – the haunting is pretty straightforward. He was obviously crazy, likely manic in life – and it only worsened after death."

Mai frowned. Was Gene talking about the angry ghost or the excited ghost?

"The tricky part will be the exorcism," Gene continued. "I'm honestly not sure what you should do on that front."

Mai frowned more deeply. For all of her abilities, she was relatively un-versed in exorcism methodology. Mai usually only directly participated in jourei exorcisms, and relied on the much more experienced Bou-san and John to decide what was necessary. If they were stumped, she'd ask her spirit guide. Gene had been a capable exorcist in life, and his current bird's eye view from the spirit world usually gave him an edge with exorcism planning.

But now he was stumped. "Well, that's bad," Mai said finally. "How am I going to figure it out on my own? You know I'm not the best with exorcisms."

"Well, Mai-chan, you might not need me," Gene reminded her patiently. "You're working with Noll now – also Lin and Madoka, yes?" Mai nodded. "So you should be fine. They're all very good with exorcisms, especially Lin. I'm sure you guys will figure something out." He smiled as Mai sighed in relief. "Besides, if you do need to contact me again, I'm sure you can make it seem like a normal part of the case."

"I can?" Mai looked doubtful.

"Yes. It's not like you only astral project to visit me, after all. Remember that time you went to Sakauchi's room? That wasn't a vision – you really went there. And when you saved the spirits of those children from the bus crash, you abandoned your body to talk with them."

Mai pursed her lips. "But Naru –"

"Noll already knows you astral project without my intervention," Gene cut in. "You gave Masako-san that key, remember? So it would be normal for you to project – especially as you're not actually staying on the haunted property."

"Yeah, you're right." Mai grinned, suddenly feeling less urgency. She didn't need to figure out the entire case this instant. She could talk to Gene without worrying… maybe. Mai knew better than to think Naru wouldn't be suspicious anyway.

Which reminded her. "Gene," Mai said sharply, "I think that Naru is on to us. I'm not exactly sure what he's thinking, but…" She glanced up at the person who could be exactly sure what Naru was thinking.

Gene nodded glumly. "You're right, Mai-chan – he definitely is. I caught him thinking about it in the mirror. Noll didn't know I was there, and I couldn't get specifics… but he was thinking about us. And he was pissed. But," Gene held up a hand to calm the seconds-from-freaking-out Mai, "I didn't notice anything about the transfer. No scars, no connection, nothing like that. Just you and I together. So I think it's much more likely that he suspects that you can still see me."

"Well, he's right," Mai noted grimly. "As usual."

"Hmm, Noll is almost superhumanly quick on the draw," Gene mused. "I used to wonder if Noll unconsciously uses his clairvoyance to facilitate his numerous and swift intellectual leaps…" He drifted off, eyes far away. Then he felt small disturbances in the realm of lingering spirits, and returned to point. There were other auras close to Mai's now. "Right, so we'll need a plan to keep him from –"

"Gene, I don't think we can hold Naru off for much longer," Mai interrupted, her intuition ringing in her head. "I would never want to tell him… but he's way too smart to fool forever. He's going to figure it out."

"But Mai-chan…"

"No, Gene, I really think we're going to have to concede something here," Mai insisted. "Come on, he's your twin brother – do you really think we can string Naru along until… whenever?" She gave her spirit guide a significant look.

Gene held Mai's gaze, his eyes mutinous… and then slumped in defeat. "No, I don't. Sooner or later, Noll will get enough evidence to prove he's right." He sighed, frustration marring his features. "Noll is unfortunately almost as single-minded an idiot scientist as ever." Case in point, Gene thought, Noll observes Mai's behavior closely enough to be suspicious of her dreams, but still has no idea that Mai is in love with him. Which, to Gene, was completely obvious. He sighed again. Noll was determined not to pay attention to certain things.

However… Gene had said 'almost as single-minded' for a reason. Along with the suspicion, Gene sensed emotional upheaval in his brother's soul – upheaval centered on Mai. The ghostly twin grinned as he met Mai's questioning gaze. If anyone can get through the defensive barriers surrounding Noll's heart, it's Mai, Gene thought with satisfaction.

"So unless you've got a better plan," Mai said, wondering at Gene's sudden attitude change, "I think we should let him figure it out. It would throw him off the scent."

"The scent?" As Gene spoke, a wave of distortion rocked the odd landscape. But instead of feeling alarmed, he grinned broadly. The wave carried a very familiar psychic signature. "Hurry and explain, Mai-chan. Someone's trying to reach you."

Mai looked around, confused. "One of the ghosts?" Usually, the only entities which could access the dream-space were spirits and other astral walkers. Another wave rippled through the white lights around them.

"No, I'm pretty sure it's Noll," Gene replied, a little thrilled. This was evidence that the transfer was a complete success! Although partial proof was right in front of him (beneath Mai's ever-present gloves), the other major aspect of the transfer was less physically apparent. As there hadn't yet been a real-life test, Gene could only hope that the psychic connection between Mai and Noll was flourishing as it should be. These disturbances in the ghost world gave Gene the proof he'd been waiting for.

"It's Naru?" Mai gasped. She whipped around, searching the light-dotted blackness as if Naru were suddenly going to appear before them.

"He can't get here, Mai-chan," Gene told her calmly. "He's not an astral walker. But since he's connected to you now, he can apparently access you even when you're not in your body." He smiled triumphantly.

"Oh," Mai said. So that was why her scars were burning – Naru was trying to reach her.

"Quickly, Mai-chan – your plan," Gene pressed.

"Right. I think we should just let Naru figure out that we can still talk. He's going to figure it out, anyway – and that might work to our advantage. He'll be so caught up in this," Mai gestured to the dream-space around them, "That he won't realize we're hiding something else!"

Gene raised an impressed eyebrow. "How unexpectedly sneaky of you, Mai-chan."

"Well, I am best friends with Yasu," Mai pointed out. "And he is the master of sneaky. I actually got the idea from something he pulled at school last year. Yasu managed to trick a professor into giving him a pass on missed homework and bonus points on the next assignment."

"While obviously a masterful example of misdirection, I don't think Noll will give you bonus points for your efforts." Gene chuckled. "But your idea might work. And I can't think of anything better, so… have at it. It's worth keeping the transfer a secret." The world abruptly warped again – and this time, a very familiar voice rolled through the realm.

"Mai!"

It felt like Naru's voice was reverberating through Mai's soul. She could feel him pulling on her, as well. It was startling, but kind of… exciting. "I think I have to wake up," she whispered. As she said this, a faint glow appeared under her gloves. Mai exchanged a glance with an obviously enthusiastic Gene.

"Yes, the link works!" Gene hissed happily. "Now, get out of here before that glow reaches your physical scars." As he glanced back up at Mai's face, he realized his words were unnecessary; she was already fading.

Which was new… usually, Mai had trouble getting back to her body and required his assistance. But apparently, linking with Noll could help her make it back without Gene's help.

At this thought, Gene swallowed a sense of loss – he was Mai's spirit guide, after all. But, he reminded himself, this was what the transfer was for. Noll and Mai were meant to work together now. They would need to be ready for when he couldn't help them anymore.

So Eugene Davis took a deep breath, and waved to Mai as she disappeared.

-0O0-

Lin and Naru hauled the electroencephalogram equipment up the hotel stairs. Madoka followed behind them, looking over the data that Martin recorded earlier in the day. The head of SPR had helpfully included the brain scans of several other subjects (including Martin himself), against which Madoka could measure Mai's data.

"I wonder if this is the best case for an EEG test," Madoka mused aloud. "I mean, we're not even sleeping at the haunted site. Chances are, Mai-chan won't have any significant psychic visions – such occurrences are usually based on proximity to spirits, no?"

Oliver made a huffing noise which could have been a derisive snort. It could also have been an indication that he was getting tired.

"You should start an exercise regimen, Noll," Madoka suggested with mock seriousness. "Ladies aren't impressed by weaklings." She was rewarded with a frigid blue glare.

"As if I would care," Naru hissed. "It would be more productive for you to start an exercise regimen… since you're apparently too feeble to help carry equipment anymore."

Madoka restrained herself from whacking Noll in the head with the files. Momentary revenge was not worth causing him to drop the equipment. "Of course I can still carry the equipment, you impertinent little berk. I just want to look these scans over before we plug Mai-chan in. And since someone was hogging them in the van, I have no choice but to do it now."

"You seemed perfectly fine chattering inanely about swimming and dance clubs with Mai and Yasuhara," Naru replied cuttingly.

Madoka grinned secretly. They'd barely mentioned dance clubs. But naturally that was what stuck with Noll, since it involved Mai and 'eligible guys' in the same thought. He was so easy to read sometimes, the master ghost hunter thought. If only Mai could see it. "Well, like I said – you were hogging the files. I had to do something on the ride."

"And I suppose quietly reading something else – like case research, for example – would have been too cliché an endeavor."

Madoka groaned. "Noll – shut it already. You do realize you're technically smart-mouthing your boss?"

Naru gritted his teeth, but couldn't openly deny it.

The boss sighed again. "You know, Noll, you're exceptionally edgy this evening. Not that you're not high-strung all the time, but... is there something bothering you?" Madoka's tone turned gentle.

Her former student's face changed for only a moment – but it was long enough for Madoka. She exchanged a quick glance with Lin as they trucked down the hallway.

Ignoring his now-silent companions, Naru's hands gripped the edges of the EEG machine tightly. He was very interested in the results of this scan, despite the lack of proximal ghosts. In fact, Naru was glad they weren't on haunted property… because any psychic dreaming Mai experienced would probably be caused by Gene. And that was what Naru really wanted data on.

He'd spent the entire van ride staring at brain scans, memorizing what 'normal' versus 'psychic nightmare' looked like. Then he'd tried to imagine what a 'regular psychic dream in which Mai meets Gene' would look like on scan paper. Perhaps the waves from her temporal lobe would suddenly increase in frequency – indicating that Mai was talking to someone in her sleep. Perhaps she would show activity in the hippocampus of her brain – which would suggest usage of psychic powers, but not point to any specific ability.

As a dedicated researcher, Naru would thoroughly analyze any results. But as Gene's concerned twin and Mai's… friend, Naru wanted this test to provide some particular answers.

Ergo, Naru's disappointment was evident on his face when they entered the room and took in the already-sleeping form of Mai Taniyama. Naru heaved an irritated sigh. Normally, he would just order Lin to roll her over and continue the experiment as planned. But there was no way that Madoka would let them. Martin had drilled 'willing experimentees only' into her head from day one.

"Oh, well," she said from behind him. "I guess the experiment will have to wait until tomorrow."

Naru decided it was worth the fight. "Not necessarily," he replied slowly, trying to keep his tone as normal as possible. "We could attach the electrodes anyway."

"Excuse me, Noll?" Madoka asked angrily. "Willing experimentees only."

She even used his father's exact words. Naru rolled his eyes and turned to face his mentor. "Mai is a willing experimentee. She already agreed to this test. I don't see why her current lack of consciousness matters."

"Someday when you get a girlfriend, Noll, you'll understand why conscious consent matters," Madoka drawled nastily. "Until then, leave the morally tenuous decisions to me. No testing tonight."

Naru twitched at the girlfriend dig (mostly because Lin seemed to find it funny enough to choke on air), and sighed with annoyance at Madoka's directive. "How unexpectedly reticent of you," he baited. "Scientific innovation often requires such measures. For example, most of the human anatomical structure was discovered through 'unconscious consent.'"

Madoka smacked her former student with a file full of brain scans. "Are you serious, Noll? Accidental discovery of organ placement while under anesthesia is not the same thing as deliberate experimentation on sleeping people!"

"I was actually speaking of Leonardo da Vinci's experiments on graveyard cadavers," Noll replied, his calm voice belying his inner upset. He was not going to see any results tonight.

"Graveyard cadavers…" Madoka repeated faintly. "Noll, 'conscious consent' does not really apply to dead people."

"An interesting statement for a ghost hunter," Naru mused, now purposefully venting his frustration onto his uncooperative teacher. "We should know better than anyone that consciousness does not end with death." Naru's eyes went back to Mai. She was clearly out – no sign of movement whatsoever. Was she speaking with his still-capable-of-conscious-thought twin right now?

Suddenly, the EEG machine was ripped from his grasp. Madoka pulled it right out of Mai's room and down the hall.

"Yasu!" Naru heard her hiss. "You keep an eye on this tonight, you hear? Don't let Noll anywhere near it. He's in a strange mood tonight and might try to take advantage of Mai-chan."

Yasuhara (on monitoring duty for the night) whispered something back that made Madoka giggle. "No, unfortunately," she replied laughingly. "That would be a different story."

Naru narrowed his eyes, unsure of what was being suggested, but positive it was denigrating. Lin's second cough-laugh in five minutes only reinforced this conclusion. Irritated with the lot of them, Naru moved further into Mai's room.

He narrowly avoided her unopened suitcase on the floor… she'd evidently fallen asleep before unpacking anything. Naru's eyes moved briefly over the form on the bed. Her current position supported his hypothesis – Mai was still in her day clothes and on top of the covers. Naru rolled his eyes again. Mai's sleep habits bordered on the narcoleptic.

Then again… he knew that abrupt fits of sleepiness often preceded Mai's psychic visions. If she'd fallen asleep suddenly... perhaps she was seeing something now. Naru almost asked Lin to go and distract Madoka long enough for him to hook up the EEG. If they were still in Japan, he'd have done it. But he wasn't the boss anymore, and Lin had an annoying personal allegiance to Madoka. It wouldn't work.

Naru gritted his teeth and frustratedly cast his eyes elsewhere. They locked on a toothbrush and mouthwash… and a sudden doubt sparked in his mind. As silently as possible, Naru swept into the small hotel bathroom.

Sure enough, there was a sparkly pink toothbrush on the sink. It could conceivably be Madoka's – she was abnormally fond of pink. But this toothbrush had some Japanese brand emblazoned on it (Naru still had trouble with kanji). And the mouthwash was from Japan, too. It was highly unlikely that Madoka used Japanese toiletries; she'd lived in England for so long that she actually preferred English tea to Japanese. These things had to be Mai's.

Now, it was possible that Mai had a separate bag for toiletries that she'd managed to unpack before falling asleep. Luella had one. But Naru didn't see another bag, nor did he see any foreign shampoo in the tub. Mai would have unloaded the whole bag at once, right? Then again, 'Mai' and 'sense' were sometimes mutually exclusive...

The doubt growing in his mind, Naru slipped back into the main room and hovered over Mai's suitcase. It was pulled closed – but there was a handle sticking out. A brush handle, he deduced. And it hadn't been sticking out when they'd unloaded the luggage earlier. Naru reached out to touch the brush… and then a movement along his periphery called his attention to the doorway.

Lin was studying him intensely. "Noll, what exactly are you doing?" he asked, a slight hint of confusion edging his normal monotone.

"Testing a hypothesis," Naru replied in his 'you're-an-idiot' voice. "Obviously."

"Obviously," Lin repeated, trying to summon Madoka back over with telepathy he knew he didn't possess. Noll really was in a strange mood tonight.

Turning his back to the onmyouji, Naru palmed the brush handle and called upon his psychometry. He felt... sleepiness... then a bit of panic... and finally, a sudden sense of resolve. He saw a hand he recognized as Mai's throw some clothes and this very hairbrush back into an open suitcase...

Oliver Davis turned back to Mai's bed, his eyes blazing with understanding. She had started to unpack, panicked, deliberately re-packed (but forgot some toiletries) and had then fallen asleep on the bed.

He gripped the handle hard. Mai tried to make it look like she'd fallen asleep by accident. She must have sensed an oncoming vision and wanted to avoid its becoming record via the EEG. Naru could think of only one reason for such measures. She figured her dream would be about something – or someone – she didn't want revealed.

"Noll," a stern voice called. Madoka was standing right above him. He hadn't even heard her enter the room.

"I said no testing tonight. That includes spying on people using psychometry. What is on you tonight?"

Naru didn't answer. Not only was Gene still a tender subject for everyone in the room, but Madoka's tendency to snitch rendered Naru extremely reluctant to share. Madoka was Martin's informant on all things paranormal and Luella's informant on all things personal. And Naru did not want this situation getting back to his adopted parents. He hadn't even told the grieving Mrs. Davis that he could still see Gene in mirrors. And neither of his parents had any idea that Mai had ever been able to contact Gene.

And though Madoka and Lin had supposedly kept silent on those issues, Naru didn't trust them with his current suspicions. For one, Gene's ability to psychically connect with Mai would be news too big to ignore. There was no way Martin wouldn't hear about it. And then they'd all wind up in trouble.

And two, Naru did not want Martin or Luella – Luella especially – to mentally tie Mai to the deceased Gene. Mai's happy personality and inarguably female sensibilities brought Luella Davis a noticeable amount of happiness. Luella was obviously thrilled to have Mai around, and Naru did not want that contentment diminished by a surprise association with the deeply-missed Gene.

Shaking his head to dispel the emotional thoughts, Naru concentrated on the hairbrush. He felt... an overwhelming sleepiness. Obviously, Mai was sleeping. Naru shook himself slightly. If he synced too closely, he might fall asleep as well. There was also a sense of purpose... like he/Mai wanted to go somewhere... and then Naru smacked up against a great black wall. Or more accurately, a wall of nothing.

He felt nothing.

Like Mai was gone.

Naru's eyes snapped open and he flew to Mai's side. There was only one reason his visions ever broke off so suddenly... He shook her violently. "Mai!" he called urgently. "Mai, wake up!" Naru grasped her shoulders and watched in mute horror as her head lolled back. His hand slid back automatically, catching and cradling Mai's lifeless head as his eyes searched her face for any flicker of movement.

Madoka and Lin were suddenly beside him. "Noll, what is it? What's wrong?" they asked at once.

"She won't wake. I can't sense anything from her. Nothing," Naru hissed frantically. Surely they understood the implications.

Madoka certainly did. Her hand snaked up Mai's neck and pressed down to check for a heartbeat. Naru's eyes riveted to the point of contact... and a sliver of hope snaked through him. He thought he saw Mai's skin pulsing underneath Madoka's fingers.

Naru's own fingers were clenched on Mai's shoulder and in her hair. Going against his usual principles, Naru initialized his psychometry via contact with a living person and psychically searched Mai for signs of life. He mentally threw himself against the black wall... and felt a brief spark in the nothing. "Mai!" he called again.

"Noll!" Madoka yelled from somewhere far away. "Her pulse is regular. She's okay!" Naru pulled out of the vision and looked up at his mentor's face for confirmation.

"And she's breathing," Lin informed them, sounding relieved.

Naru glanced downward, calmer now, and realized Lin was right. Mai was clearly (albeit shallowly) breathing. How could I have missed that?

He must have spoken aloud, because Madoka answered. "Well, you were shaking her and freaking out, so it's not surprising that you didn't notice. Especially with all the freaking out."

"Yes, you've mentioned that," Naru noted icily, groping blindly for his normal detachment.

"Seeing as it's so unusual…"

"Madoka," Naru and Lin warned simultaneously. Naru did not want to talk about his brief departure from sanity. Lin didn't think it was the time for teasing.

The master ghost hunter took the hint and changed the subject. "The question is, though – why won't she wake?"

All three SPR employees stared down at the stubbornly unconscious Mai.

"Because she's not really here," a new voice explained calmly.

Yasuhara's lips twitched as the heads of Naru, Lin and Madoka all swiveled to face him, like dogs on point. He had heard yelling and came running… to see everyone crowded around an unconscious Mai, Big Boss included. Yasuhara was going to have a lot of fun telling Mai about this tomorrow. He would be sure to dwell on Naru's relieved expression... and on the way he was holding Mai in his arms. He still hadn't let go.

"I'm sorry?" Lin finally asked for clarification (as his more verbose compatriots had seemingly lost their voices).

Yasuhara grinned. "She's fine, she's just astral projecting. Not exactly shocking, seeing as we're not on haunted premises. You see, Mai-chan dreams on almost every case – and if the ghosts aren't close by, she goes to them."

Across the room, Oliver Davis was internally berating himself. Astral projection. Of course Mai wouldn't wake. It explained her complete lack of physical responsiveness and the worrying psychic emptiness transmitted to Naru through his powers. He closed his eyes in relief he would never admit verbally. Mai wasn't dead, she was just... "Astral projecting," Naru finished aloud, slowly depositing Mai's unconscious body back onto the bed. He speared Yasuhara with a penetrating glare. "Do you think Mai consciously called upon her projection abilities?"

"What do you mean, Big Boss?" Yasuhara asked, confused. "You know that Mai-chan's best developed skill is astral projection. She does it all the time." Naru was rather intense tonight, Yasu noticed. Was it worry?

"Yes… but I was unaware that Mai does not always initiate the projection," Naru persisted, a knowing gleam in his eyes.

Yasuhara's expression became guarded. He pushed his glasses further up his nose and answered carefully. "Mai-chan is excellent at initiating an astral projection, and very good with roaming around once inside a vision. But her abilities can be influenced by spirits. She is a medium, after all." There, Yasu thought, that sounded confirmatory and not incriminating.

"Can you think of any reason that Mai would be panicked or… secretive about an astral projection?" Naru asked, summoning the detached-but-demanding voice he used for client interviews. He stared Yasuhara down.

Danger, danger! Yasuhara fought to keep his face controlled as his mind raced. Had Naru figured it out? Ugh, he told Mai they wouldn't be able to keep Gene-san a secret forever! Then Yasu remembered he had to say something. "Maybe she thought you'd be upset if she just went and talked to the ghosts? You do get annoyed when she does dangerous things without checking with you first. So she's secretly talking to the ghosts."

"I sincerely doubt that to be the case," Naru countered coolly. "Earlier today, Mai couldn't even positively identify the presence of ghosts. I can't imagine she suddenly developed a strong enough rapport with either – supposed – apparition to find them while off-property."

Yasuhara couldn't argue with that. How were they going to get out of this one?

"Ugh, somebody get Naru some tea," Mai slurred into the bedclothes. "He sounds reaaally twitchy."

Dark blue eyes immediately swung to the slowly stirring girl on the bed.

"Hmm," Yasuhara murmured in relief. "Impeccable timing, Mai-chan."

-0O0-

AN: Originally this case was going to be really short. But then I got reviews about how happy you guys are that they're on a case, so this chapter had to get re-written. So that's why it took an extra week, lol.

Also, since we're talking about Mai-as-lead-investigator again, I wanted to make sure I mentioned that I got the inspiration for that from TPR, by DemonHairedandBlueEyed. The story is very different, obviously, but I really liked that Mai was in charge.