Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt. Manga 12 would be out...
Chapter 22 – Answers
-0O0-
High-pitched, raucous laughter rang through the house. It had been going on ever since Mai had spoken Georgie's name aloud at the foot of the stairs.
Even though it had to be the twentieth time in an hour, Mai still jumped every time. She hated not being able to see the ghosts. Not to mention, she felt as if the excitable ghost was laughing at her. After three days and several major paranormal occurrences, Mai still couldn't even get an ID on the spirits.
As they finished packing up for the night (to the tune of ghostly sniggers), Madoka heaved an antsy sigh. "Maybe we should start talking about an exorcism," she suggested, throwing a biographical article about the Reeds onto the base table.
"But how are we going to exorcise spirits we can't even identify?" Yasuhara pointed out. "I'm all for trying whatever you want, but I think we should have more of a handle on the ghosts first."
"It's my fault," Mai said morosely. "I'm not a very good medium."
"Nonsense," Madoka replied tersely. "You are a good medium. You just need more training. Even the best mediums have problems with spirits, Mai-chan."
"Maybe," Mai mumbled doubtfully, thinking of Gene. He was a perfect medium – and he'd said this case was pretty easy. Sure, maybe for him, Mai growled internally.
"There is an obvious answer here, Mai-chan," Yasuhara said, prodding her chair with his foot.
She only raised an annoyed eyebrow.
Yasu's mouth twitched at the very Naru-like gesture. "You need to talk to a more experienced medium. And it's not like we don't know one."
Mai sucked in a shocked breath. Why was Yasuhara talking about Gene? And in front of everyone. That was not the Reveal Plan!
Her best friend did not understand Mai's horrified expression. "I'm sure Masako-chan will forgive us for bothering her. She's bound to be bored, anyway – her show is on break and there's no case this week."
Duh, he meant Masako! Mai barely kept from smacking herself in the head. "Yeah, you're right, Yasu. I don't know why I was freaking out." Mai pulled out her cell phone. She grinned a bit as she pressed the number '8' – who would have thought Masako would be on her speed dial?
Then again... who would have thought she'd ever have Naru's cell phone number? So far, Mai had managed to resist the urge to scroll through her contacts and stare at Naru's contact information. After all, it would be embarrassing if someone saw – she'd wait until she got back to her hotel room. Madoka was on monitor duty tonight, so Mai would be alone in their room. She could giggle and kick her feet in glee all she wanted to. No doubt she'd have the number memorized by tomorrow...
The phone clicked. "Hello?" Masako's soft voice asked in Japanese. "Mai-chan?"
"Hey, Masako-chan!" Mai answered, smiling brightly. "I hope I didn't call at a bad time."
"No, you didn't. I couldn't sleep."
"Oh, right, it's late there," Mai remembered. "I'm sorry!"
"It's fine, Mai-chan, I told you I couldn't sleep," Masako repeated, a hint of annoyance in her voice. Mai grinned again – Masako was still Masako.
"I'm on a case," Mai explained. "And I can't figure out the ghosts."
"Then I hope I can help," Masako replied properly. "You say there are multiple ghosts? Can you see them, Mai-chan?"
"Not really," Mai admitted. "I saw someone falling down the stairs on the first day - no scream, no vision, and he disappeared when he hit bottom. The only other time I saw anything was when one of the ghosts attacked me."
"Are you alright?" her friend asked solicitously.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit cut up. I got knocked down the stairs again." Mai rolled her eyes, studying her finger splint dispassionately. "What is it with ghosts and stairs, anyway?"
"You know as well as I do that it has to do with a stairway's position as a 'doorway' between floors," Masako chided. "Spirits inside a house can be trapped within a certain space – and if it is bound to a specific floor of the house, the stairway is usually the furthest it can go. Not to mention that new 'prey' has to enter the ghost's domain via the stairs. Naturally, ghosts would gather at such a spot." Masako paused. "And you need to be more careful, Mai-chan," she noted in a slightly condescending tone (which Mai knew meant that Masako was more concerned than irritated).
"I know, I know. I'm really okay," Mai assured her. "But don't tell Ayako."
Naru caught Lin's eye and raised an eyebrow. It sounded like Masako Hara asked Mai if she was okay twice. Mai had said they were better friends, but Naru had wondered if Mai was just thinking positive.
On the phone, Masako heaved a sigh. "Fine – although I'm sure she'll find out somehow. Anyway, what other information can you give me about the ghosts?"
"Well, there are two of them..." Mai started.
"How can you be sure, since you can't see them?"
"Well, I can feel them," Mai replied. "One is really pissed, and the other is... well, we've been calling it 'excitable.'"
"Hmm... and which one is the dominant spirit?"
"Umm... I'm not sure," Mai hedged. "The angry one attacked me."
"That would lead me to consider it the dominant spirit," Masako noted. "Is there any evidence to suggest otherwise?"
"Umm..." There was Mr. Reed, obviously. Mai pursed her lips - what was his first name again?
"Mai-chan, are the others there?" Masako asked, sounding amused.
"Yeah, they're all here." And hanging on her every word, it looked like.
"Why don't you put me on speakerphone? That way, we can share information more completely."
"Oh!" Mai pressed the button. "That's a good idea."
"Of course it is, Mai-chan," Masako replied with a trace of haughtiness. Mai giggled.
"Hi, Masako-chan!" Yasuhara called. "Did we wake you from a lovely dream?"
"Hello, Yasuhara-kun," Masako's answered flatly. Mai tried not to giggle again – Yasuhara's buoyant inappropriateness really annoyed Masako sometimes. "And no, I wasn't sleeping."
"Ohhh, are you on a date?"
"Yasuhara-kun, you are incorrigible," Masako drawled. "And no, I'm not. I had dinner with my parents tonight."
So that was why she couldn't sleep, Mai reckoned. Masako's relationship with her parents was a little... strained. Masako loved them, but sometimes she felt like her parents saw her as a show dog instead of a girl. "How'd that go?" Mai asked sympathetically.
"As it always does," she said airily. "But that's not why we're having this conversation. So, how can you be sure there are two spirits if you can't see them? Sensing two presences does not negate the possibility that there are others present."
"That's true," Madoka agreed. "And hello, Hara-san."
"Hello, Mori-san," Masako said genially. "And also Lin-san and Naru-san, yes?"
"Yes," Naru said shortly, eager to get to the point. "Good evening, Hara-san. You believe there are more ghosts?"
"Not necessarily," Masako clarified. "I was just saying that Mai-chan cannot be positive about the number of spirits simply because she feels like there are two."
"I really don't think there are more than two," Mai argued, studying the monitors thoughtfully.
"You misunderstand, Mai-chan," Masako said impatiently. "I'm just telling you not to assume there are two spirits based on incomplete information."
"Oh," Mai muttered, coloring. "You're right."
"Have you had any dreams?" the medium asked her.
"Yeah, one. I'm pretty sure that the excitable ghost is a young man who disappeared a long time ago. I saw him in a vision, fighting with his father."
"Did he die in the vision?"
"No," Mai told her. "But he was at the top of the stairs. Same place he was when he pushed me down them. Oh, and he yelled something right before he attacked me – he said, 'This is what they did to me.'"
"And then he pushed you? And you're sure it was the young man?"
"Yes and yes. The attack happened first, and I recognized him in the dream later."
"Well, it sounds like he was pushed down the stairs himself – and that's probably how he died."
Mai nodded at Masako's words. The person she'd seen falling down the stairs on the first day could have been Georgie.
"You said 'what they did to me,' though," Masako continued. "I thought you said he was only fighting with the father."
"Oh, the mother was in the dream, too," Mai corrected. "But she was defending Georgie. There was a doctor, as well, but I don't think he had anything to do with Georgie's death."
"Is this your instinct talking?" Naru asked quietly.
Mai paused. "Yes," she replied. "Doctor Stone had nothing to do with it."
"But what about the mother?" Lin asked.
Mai bit her lip. "That one I'm not sure on," she conceded. "I mean, I can't imagine who else would have been in the house when Georgie was killed. There wasn't anyone else around in the dream, and I didn't see any servants. Plus, Mr. Reed wanted to keep Georgie a secret, right? So I don't think there would be many people allowed inside."
"Why would Reed-san – the father, I'm assuming – want to keep his son a secret?" Masako asked. "Was he illegitimate?"
"No, but he was crazy," Mai replied.
"Crazy how?" Naru asked suddenly.
"What do you mean?" Mai was confused.
"'Crazy' is a blanket term for several different mental issues," her former boss explained. "Did this Doctor Stone have a more narrow diagnosis?"
"Well... he said something about Georgie being a danger to himself and the community," Mai remembered, thinking back. "And I told you that he switched from scared to really pissed in a heartbeat."
"Bipolar?" Masako suggested. "Or maybe... what's the word?"
Gene's voice rang in Mai's head. "He was obviously crazy, likely manic in life – and it only worsened after death," the teen psychic intoned in a soft voice.
Naru regarded Mai with interest. The way she'd said that... it was like someone else was speaking through her. "Mai," he called sharply.
She snapped out of it. "What, Naru?"
"I think you were just possessed," Masako informed her. "You certainly sounded like you were."
"No," Mai replied slowly. "I was just remembering something..."
"Mai-chan, did you say 'manic' just then?" Madoka asked, eyes lit with what Mai could only hope was an idea.
Mai nodded. "Um... I heard Georgie described that way." She pretended not to notice Naru's eyes narrow.
"That was the word I was looking for," Masako affirmed.
"What does it mean?" Mai asked.
"To have very intense emotions – whether they be happiness, anger, sadness..." Madoka rattled off. "And from your description, Georgie certainly sounds manic – and bipolar. Those two mental conditions often go together."
As if to punctuate this statement, Mai felt anger surge all around her for a moment... followed closely by a wave of fear.
"Bipolar..." Naru repeated, eyes staring out into space. Then suddenly, his eyes widened. "Bipolar," he repeated again. His gaze locked onto Mai. "We've been talking about the presences as if they exist concurrently, but on the first day of the case, you said that the two energies kept switching."
"They did – they still do. One minute the angry one is dominant, then the excitable one takes over." Mai wordlessly willed Naru to elaborate.
He did. "Someone who is bipolar switches from one emotion to another very quickly – and completely," Naru stressed. "And someone manic has very strong emotions."
Both of those descriptions applied to Georgie Reed... but hadn't Mai already said all this?
"I'm not sure I follow," Masako confessed, unknowingly sharing Mai's silent call for more information.
"You said it yourself, Hara-san. How do we know that there are two ghosts? We don't." Naru tossed his notebook onto the table. "We're having trouble identifying which spirit is Georgie because he exhibits emotions that both the 'angry ghost' and the 'excitable ghost' possess. But we've only seen one ghost – and he is the ghost of a manic, bipolar person. There aren't two ghosts – there is only one."
Mai closed her eyes in dismay. The reason that Georgie felt like he could be both ghosts was because he was both ghosts. "I am such an idiot," she groaned.
"No, you needed more information," Madoka corrected.
"And advice from a better medium," Mai argued.
"Mai-chan, have some confidence in yourself," Masako reproached her. "I have several years of experience on you. Not to mention that my medium abilities are my primary skill – whereas yours are astral projection and instinctual ESP. Both of which are usually highly helpful on cases."
Mai blushed and bit her lip. Compliments from Masako were rare. "Thanks, Masako-chan. For your help and the pep talk."
"It's nothing, Mai-chan. Although... if you wanted to repay me somehow, you could try and convince Ayako-san that gold is not the prettiest choice for bridesmaid attire."
Mai giggled. "I'm on it. I guess this means that Ayako has decided she's going Western with the clothing. Is there any color you want me to push for?"
"A nice dark pink would be agreeable with my complexion. You would look better in light pink, Mai-chan, but it's a summer wedding. Honestly, any color is all right – so long as it's not gold or silver. Formal dresses should not be shiny."
"Yeah, I know what you mean." Mai tried to envision the elegant, kimono-wearing Masako in a shiny, gold-colored dress. An entertaining thought, but definitely not wedding-material.
"So do you agree, Mai?" Naru cut in impatiently. He had just made a case-breaking deduction, and she was talking about bridesmaid dresses.
The teen psychic heard the annoyance in Naru's tone and re-focused immediately. Closing her eyes, Mai stretched her senses to feel out as much of the house as possible. For a brief moment, she could feel the anger – like a bright, burning flame – rip through her. Then it disappeared... and a wave of unbalanced excitement replaced it. Not concurrent, but switching. Like Georgie on the stairs. Mai's eyes snapped open. "Yes, Naru," she answered firmly. "I'm sure you're right. I don't know why I didn't think of that myself."
"Live and learn, Mai-chan," Madoka said bracingly. "Thank you so much, Hara-san. We'll let you go before dawn breaks over there."
Masako made an amused noise. "Very well, Mori-san. And Mai-chan, I'll talk to you later in the week. Bou-san's thinking about taking that school case."
The primary lead investigator of TTMPI sighed. "I knew he would. He's a sucker for haunted schools."
"More like a sucker for pretty jailbait that begs him for help," Yasuhara corrected slyly.
"Our potential client is a girl," Masako admitted thoughtfully.
"Let me guess," Mai groaned. "Big eyes all teary, shaky hands fisted in the material of a too-short skirt?"
"Yes, naturally. Hmm, no wonder Ayako-san looked so annoyed." Masako giggled softly.
"You do realize that you just described yourself, right, Mai-chan?" Yasuhara grinned. "Pretty jailbait who wears short skirts, and goes teary-eyed with worry over the fate of ill-used ghosts..."
"Shut it, Yasu," Mai hissed.
"Am I wrong?"
"I'm hanging up before this argument begins in earnest," Masako stated wearily. "Ayako-san and Bou-san are quite enough to deal with. Good night, everyone."
-0O0-
An uptick in Georgie's mood swings had led Mai to usher her friends out of the house. Lin drove everyone back to the hotel - stopping on the way to pick up some food. By the time the group finished dinner in their secondary base, Madoka was well into case-solving mode.
"So, we've got one ghost. One crazy, violent ghost who was probably shoved down the stairs by his father... and since he 'disappeared without a trace,' was likely buried in the garden," she summarized. "Shall we focus on searching for the body, or developing an exorcism strategy?"
"Exorcism strategy," Mai said immediately. Gene had mentioned performing an exorcism.
Across the table, an alarm went off in Naru's head. Mai usually stayed pretty quiet during this phase of the case. And she sounded so sure... for someone who didn't know how many ghosts were present until a couple of hours ago. "What makes you so certain?" he asked, eyes narrowed and suspicious.
"I, um, feel like that's the right thing to do," Mai answered evasively. And she did feel like it was the right thing to do. She just had a little help with figuring it out.
"Do you now?" Naru asked silkily.
Mai could hear something brewing beneath the veneer of placidity with which Naru coated his questions. She could also feel him staring at the side of her face as she studied her teacup (she couldn't look straight at him without giving herself away). But she wasn't enacting the Reveal Plan in front of everyone. "Yes, Naru," she hissed. "They're called instincts. You're the one who told me I had them."
"I remember," he said, still sounding extremely calm. Then his tone sharpened. "I also remember that you promised Madoka you would start telling us everything."
Mai's fingers twitched, the metal of her splint glinting in the artificial lights. She did not want to do this in front of everyone. Besides... even though she and Gene had agreed to let Naru in on their continued meetings, Mai still felt a rush of panic every time she imagined actually telling him. Naru was definitely going to be pissed. He was already pissed.
Then Madoka unknowingly gave her an out. "Mai-chan? Do you have some more case information to share?"
Oliver Davis almost lost his temper. He had Mai right where he wanted her, and Madoka had to go and misunderstand! He didn't care about case information right now. Annoyed, Naru looked away from Mai... just in time to see Yasuhara throw her a nervous look. And if Yasuhara actually looked nervous…
Then he must be right. Mai could see Gene.
And Yasuhara knew about it – which for some reason made Naru angrier.
"Ah... not really," Mai told Madoka honestly. "I think we should plan an exorcism, but I already said that." She shrugged. "I don't know what kind of exorcism to go with... that's not really my strong point."
"Well, that's alright, Mai-chan. Solving cases is usually a group effort," Madoka reassured her brightly - before addressing the owner of the Blue Laser Beams of Doom across the table. "Noll. Pack it in, will you?" Madoka wasn't sure what her former student was thinking, but scaring Mai was not going to make her open up. Unsurprisingly, Noll ignored her. SPR's lead investigator threw an exasperated glance at Lin.
Who also ignored her - in favor of sorting through the conversation-inside-another-conversation that was obviously happening.
Meanwhile, Naru continued staring at the side of Mai's face - silently willing her to crack.
"Aaaanyway," Yasuhara began, blithely speaking over the tension bouncing around the table. "Mai-chan is obviously in favor of an exorcism, which to her usually means jourei. Which naturally begs the question – do we know enough about the ghost that we can appeal to him effectively?"
Mai was half-listening to Yasu, and half-watching Naru out of the corner of her eye. She knew he was still glaring at her – out of reflex, Mai looked down to make sure her gloves were on and covering everything. Long moments later, Mai realized she should probably answer Yasu's question. "I... I don't know. I haven't seen how Georgie died yet – and that's usually important."
"And you're sure the ghost is Georgie?" Lin asked slowly, still trying to puzzle out what was going on. "Both major emotions that you feel in the house tie back to him?"
"Yes," Mai replied quickly. "They do. Both the anger and the excitability tie back to how Georgie acted in the vision... ugh, I'm an idiot. Why didn't I realize it was only one spirit?" For that matter, why hadn't Gene told her? There was no way he hadn't known there was only one ghost. She'd asked whether the manic ghost was Georgie...
Wait... had she asked? She and Gene had gotten sidetracked by the drama and given the case short shrift. Mai thought back... 'He was obviously crazy, likely manic in life – and it only worsened after death.' That's what Gene had said. He was crazy...
And Mai almost slapped herself in the forehead upon realizing her mistake. "He was crazy and manic," Mai groaned. "Not they were crazy and manic. He never said 'they' at all. I should have known it was one ghost from the beginning! I just wasn't paying attention."
"Okay," Madoka cut into Mai's monologue, sensing that she was going back down a self-deprecating path. "I think that's it for the night. We're obviously all tired – and most of us are irritable." She threw Naru a glare. "We'll discuss exorcism options in the morning. Yasu, help me set up base." Maybe she could get some information out of him. "Everyone else – bed. Now," she finished firmly.
Everyone present knew that tone meant business. Yasuhara immediately started setting up for the midnight shift. Mai went about placing empty teacups on a tray for the maids. Lin grabbed his notes before holding the door open for his colleagues.
Naru, however, showed no sign of heading for bed. He just continued to watch Mai as she nervously scuttled around the room. Madoka made to reprimand him, but Naru beat her to speech.
"Paying attention to whom, Mai?" Naru asked.
Mai jumped a little at the sudden question. "Huh?"
"You just said that you weren't paying attention to someone. That he never said there were two ghosts." He paused, watching Mai's tight face carefully. "Who is this he, Mai?"
Mai froze, eyes flying wide. Naru opened his mouth, fully intent on pressing his advantage...
"Obviously someone in her vision about Georgie, Big Boss," Yasuhara cut in, trying to stop the Big Bad Drama that was seconds from happening.
"Noll, stop hounding Mai-chan," Madoka added frustratedly.
Naru leveled a frigid glare at his mentor. "Perhaps I am merely attempting to gain a more complete picture of the situation than you are willing to ask for," he hissed angrily. He was done with interference. "I don't know why you're objecting – the boss should be as in the know as possible. You're being quite negligent, Madoka... and Mai's being a fool."
Her former boss' caustic tone set Mai off, his words kindling her panic into anger. "Okay, Naru," she interjected heatedly. "If you're going all 'idiot scientist' on us, then tell me... exactly which scientific method says that 'hounding' your colleagues produces better results?"
Across the room, Yasuhara closed his eyes in defeat. When Mai was angry, she sometimes disclosed information that she didn't intend to. It was one of the reasons that Naru deliberately set her off so often. And his time, his baiting worked – Mai was so caught up in the struggle between anxiety, annoyance, and her concealment-efforts, that she didn't even notice her slip of the tongue.
Unfortunately, Big Boss totally did.
Idiot scientist, she'd said. Naru's eyes flashed and he was on Mai in an instant. "What was that you just said?" he asked, his voice soft and dangerous.
Mai misinterpreted the question. "What's the matter, Narcissist? A little fuzzy on the social graces section of interviewing test subjects?" Her eyes cleared and her back straightened - Mai was more comfortable arguing with Naru than with tiptoeing around him. "Isn't that one of the basics of being the boss? You shouldn't be going after Madoka-san if you're not up to snuff yourself."
"Your patronizing tone is unwarranted, given that a great amount of your knowledge of scientific methods and 'being the boss' comes from your experiences with me," Naru fired back. "And I was not referring to your question concerning the application of the niceties to my interpersonal relationships."
"Then what were you referring to?" Mai asked, ignoring Yasu's frantic head-shaking.
"I wanted you to repeat that nickname you called me by," Naru specified through his teeth.
"Naru the Narcissist? Fine. Naru, you are a humongous Narcissist!"
"No, Mai. Not your nickname for me. You just used someone else's nickname for me – a name that you shouldn't know." Naru's eyes glittered.
Mai just stared uncomprehendingly, confused by the odd satisfaction she heard in his arctic tone.
"But," Naru continued, anger creeping into his tone as he decided to go for broke, "Since I'm almost sure that you and Gene have been lying like rugs for months, I suppose your calling me an idiot scientist is perfectly explicable."
Mai finally processed Naru's meaning... and paled. She had called him an idiot scientist, hadn't she? And as far as Naru knew, Mai shouldn't have been aware of Gene's nicknames for him. She had never met Gene as 'Gene' until after Naru left Japan. "Shimatta," she mumbled under her breath.
So there it was. Secret #1 was hanging in the air between them.
There was utter silence in the base. Mai looked away, as if that could shield her from the turbulent mess that was Naru's aura. She didn't even want to look at anyone right now. Mai hadn't wanted the others to know...
Still in the doorway, Madoka had accidentally stopped breathing. Her shocked eyes went immediately to Lin – who regarded Mai unblinkingly, and looked decidedly less shocked than Madoka felt. She gave herself a moment to inhale, before she turned her troubled gaze on Yasuhara. He was also looking at Mai - but his eyes were full of knowledge and empathy. It was true, then. Madoka tried to speak, but couldn't quite manage it.
For which Mai was grateful – this wasn't a discussion for everyone. She needed to talk to Naru first, alone... and there was only one way to make that happen. She closed her eyes for a moment, summoning her fortitude... and walked right out of the secondary base.
-0O0-
Taniyama Mai knew it looked like she was running away. But as she race-walked to her hotel room, Mai was sure that Naru would follow her. And by the time everybody else recovered, she and Naru would have the privacy of a locked door.
Which was probably worse, Mai noted as she handled her keycard with shaky fingers. A moment later she gritted her teeth, reminding herself sternly that this was her idea. Telling Naru this one thing was worth keeping the transfer a secret.
"Mai."
Even though she could feel him coming, she still jumped. Without turning around, Mai responded in what she hoped was a normal voice. "Naru, I –"
"Do not insult your own intelligence by pretending everything is fine," he snapped.
Surprised, Mai whipped around to face Naru. But her denial died on her tongue as she met the gaze of the man she loved.
Naru's eyes were dark with several barely-leashed emotions, most noticeably fury. Mai's eyes skated away from his face – only to see that Naru's whole body looked tight all over. Like he was holding himself back from something. Probably from yelling at me, Mai reckoned. Reaching out with her senses, she was bowled over by the chaos rollicking around in Naru's aura. She concentrated a bit harder - and the chaos separated into waves of anger, determination... and pain.
And suddenly, Mai felt awful. It was half her fault that Naru was in this condition.
"Come on," Mai said softly. "We can talk in my room." She slid her keycard into the slot and pushed open the heavy door. Knowing he was right behind her, Mai walked over to the window and stared out into the darkness.
Her interrogator wasted no time. "Tell me the truth, Mai," Naru demanded harshly. "Can you see Gene?"
Mai's voice dried up - she hadn't heard him get so angry since the days of SPR Japan. And this subject had to be dearer to him than any of those had been. Why did I think this was a good idea again?
"Mai." This time, Naru's fierceness was undercut by sorrow.
Right, that's why. "Yes," she whispered. "I can."
She felt the tension in Naru's aura break, but he didn't speak for several seconds. "Why didn't you tell me?" he finally asked, his cool voice a few degrees chillier than normal.
"I..." What was she going to say? Should she tell him –
"The truth, Mai. Stop playing games with me. You already know why you kept it from me, so you shouldn't need time to figure it out."
Mai smiled despite the situation. That was Naru, alright – going straight in for the kill. And totally right, of course. She took a deep breath. "Because he asked me not to," she replied honestly.
"Who's 'he,' Mai?" Naru rasped. If she had a relationship (of whatever kind) with his twin, she should be able to manage his name.
Despite his unforgiving mood, Naru's gut twisted painfully as Mai turned around, eyes swimming with tears and body taut with nerves. "Because Gene asked me not to," she clarified softly.
His former assistant blinked slowly, and a shimmery tear slipped down her cheek. Mai wiped it away with a black-gloved hand, and Naru lost the threads of his rage. The whole scene reminded him of the other two times they'd spoken about Gene – both of which were depressing as well as illuminating. This was painful for her, too, he reminded himself. Naru took a moment to regain his vaunted composure before speaking in a more measured voice. "Why would he do that, do you think?"
Mai looked up in surprise at Naru's suddenly more civil tone, and immediately became locked in the deep waters of his eyes. It was like they had some gravitational pull that she'd been unaware of until meeting his gaze. They just stared at one another for a whole minute before Mai remembered that he'd (rather calmly) asked her a question. "He – I mean Gene," she corrected quickly. "Gene thinks you're worried about his not crossing over."
Naru's eyes sparked. "Of course I am," he told her feelingly, before realizing that he was talking out loud. He almost never shared his troubles with others this way. But, as usual, something about Mai disarms me. Naru noticed that Mai looked as shocked as he felt at his admission. But instead of shutting down emotionally, he elected to keep this conversation going – since Mai was actually telling him things. So Naru continued (more guardedly). "Gene should not remain a ghost. As you – and Gene – well know, the longer he stays, the more likely his spirit will warp into something... undesirable." Naru forced several visions of such undesirable spirits away, trying not to imagine his brother as one of them.
If anyone asked Mai later why she'd done it, she'd tell them the nerves had made her temporarily crazy. But Mai couldn't not cross the small gulf between herself and Naru, and once there, latch onto Naru's arm. She just had to do it. She'd hardly ever seen Naru look so... vulnerable before. And she knew he was telling her something important, something he was very worried over. Mai was also suddenly and perhaps irrationally mad at Gene for being so stubborn.
And of course she had to touch Naru with her right hand – her ungloved hand. Mai gritted her teeth as tingling warmth shot up her arm, her own aura reacting to the nearness of the person to whom she was bound, spiritually and emotionally. Mai willed her scar-marks not to glow and give them away, though – if Naru was this upset over her ability to contact Gene, she didn't even want to think about how bad his reaction to other secrets would be.
By the time Mai was sure her powers were under control, Naru had shifted slightly under her hand. Mai looked up to find him wearing a look of total confusion. Duh, Naru didn't really do touching – her gesture probably didn't comfort him the way she'd meant it to. "Sorry," Mai said quickly, almost ripping herself away.
She twirled to face the hotel room window again. Beyond a couple of buildings, Mai could see the edge of the sea. The dark water glistened in the light of the moon, and Mai took a deep, relaxing breath. Something about the water always soothed her. Bou-san claimed it was the training she'd gotten under her first onmyouji master. Ayako said it was because the dark blue of deep water reminded Mai of Naru's eyes. Mai figured they were both right. "I haven't stayed this close to water since the Yoshimi case," she said softly, desperate to say something and cut down on her embarrassment (as well as distract herself from the tingling of her aura).
It didn't work, as Naru chose that moment to approach the window himself. The entire right side of her body buzzed with electricity as Naru came up behind her. Mai could only hope that he didn't know, somehow. The link between them positively thrummed with energy... but then again, he'd never noticed it before. Mai wondered whether Naru would be able to feel the connection once the transfer was truly 'complete.'
"Yes, you have," Naru argued in a quiet voice.
Mai turned to face him, eyebrow up.
"My parents' estate includes a lake," he reminded her. "You can see it from the window of the guest room you stayed in."
Mai grinned. "I meant the ocean," she said, a giddy laugh escaping her throat.
"Then you should have said so," Naru replied, his usual patronizing tone making its re-entrance. He noted that Mai seemed more normal – indeed, she rolled her eyes and scoffed at his 'bad behavior.' It was arguably safe to resume questioning. "How exactly does Gene tie his visits with you into my desire that he cross over?" Naru asked, staring determinedly out the window and not at the newly re-frozen Mai.
She sighed – she should have known it wasn't over. "He says you'll think that he's in greater danger of 'going negative' if he continues to stick around and act as my spirit guide."
"Spirit guide?" Naru asked in slight disbelief. Didn't she mean 'boyfriend?' "My brother considers himself your spirit guide?"
Mai frowned – why did that seem to affect Naru so badly? "Yes... he's always said so."
"Always," Naru repeated. "So you mean to say that Gene's appearances did not resume recently?"
His voice sounded worryingly closed-off all of a sudden. "N-no," Mai stammered, feeling wrong-footed but not sure how to find her step. "I mean, there was a break in his appearances after you... left, but a few months later, I saw him during a case I did with Bou-san."
Naru's lips thinned. That would mean that Mai and Gene had been meeting for almost two years now. And the ease with which Mai spoke of Gene's interference in her life led Naru to believe that they met often. Although, he thought fairly, both Mai and Gene were open, friendly people. It would actually be stranger if they weren't comfortable with each other by now. Yet the twisting in Naru's chest did not abate. "And you didn't think his reappearance qualified as my concern?" he asked, quiet menace in his tone.
"What was I supposed to do?" Mai responded to the danger she could feel in Naru's aura by getting rather upset herself. "Call you using the phone number you wouldn't give me?"
"You could have called Madoka," Naru argued. "I'm sure you must have had a spare minute at some point during the last two years."
So it was back to angry? Fine by her. Mai had a couple of bones to pick about this subject anyway. "What about the year before that, when I worked for you? I'm sure that you had a spare minute to explain that 'Kazuya Shibuya' was secret-code-language for 'Dr. Oliver Davis!'"
"I had to keep my identity a secret because..." Naru began.
"Yeah, I know," Mai bit out. "Don't worry, Gene explained it to me!" She had the satisfaction of seeing the normally unassailable Naru flinch. He actually seemed to have to search for something to say - and then his eyes narrowed to slits.
"I'm gratified that discussing me was a priority during your time together, Mai. If only you'd thought to return the favor and discussed Gene with me." Naru was treading a thin line between righteous indignation and childish jabs.
"It's not like you didn't know he was still around!" Mai shot back. "You see Gene in mirrors. You just saw him last week!"
Whatever Naru had been about to say next promptly flew out of his brain. "How do you know about that?" he asked, slightly shocked.
"He told me!" Mai yelled. "Obviously."
"Of course he did, because the two of you have been colluding to make sure the spirit guiding continues without interference from me!" Naru couldn't quite understand the hurt spearing his insides. Others of his acquaintance – Luella and Madoka, for example – were constantly coming up with covert plans that he wasn't privy to. Why was this so much more painful?
Mai seemed just as confused as he did. She gaped at him, hurt and sorrow swimming in her soulful eyes. Then she closed them and turned away. "I'm sorry," she said, deep emotion in her voice.
Following the line of Mai's profile in the still-dark room, Naru unwillingly found his fury abating. Her obvious emotional response to his reaction undercut his anger at her collusive and deceitful behavior.
Especially since 'deceitful' didn't really fit into Mai's list of sins. For all of his suspicions, Naru had never actually asked Mai if she could still see Gene. It was possible that a direct query could have brought this to a head long ago (although Naru doubted it). A better word was concealing – Mai hadn't been lying so much as leaving things out – concealing Gene's lingering presence in her life.
'Collusive' was definitely the right word, though. Mai and Gene had undoubtedly – by Mai's own admission – colluded to keep Naru from knowing about their continued interactions. However, Mai was quite obviously not the mastermind behind this scheme.
No, that honor belonged to his twin – who was aware that Naru was worried about him, who pretended not to hear Naru's questions, and who had asked Mai to keep his secrets for him. And while Naru had only been in contact with Mai for the last couple of months, Gene had kept quiet on this very important subject for almost two years. Naru remembered whole cases going by without hearing from his medium brother – and Gene's subsequent explanations that he was too tired to appear. With newly-opened eyes, Naru wondered whether Gene was 'tired' from a furtive trip to Mai's dreams.
Gene Davis was making an appearance in Naru's mirror tonight, even if Naru had to stand in front of it all night yelling his twin's name.
"Naru?" Mai asked, as if from far away. "I'm... sorry I didn't tell you sooner." She was obviously misinterpreting his visible anger with Gene for anger with her. Before Naru could correct her, she continued. "It's just... I owe Gene. He's helped me on cases for years, he's helped me save TTMPI, and he's trained me up quite a bit. And whatever it is he's waiting around for – and no, he won't tell me what – he's serious about it. I couldn't just screw that and tell you after he begged me not to."
This bout of information rather overloaded Naru's circuits, and he took a moment to process each piece of data.
One – Mai was very grateful to Gene. This was to be expected, as Mai was a very caring person - so Naru wasn't exactly sure why this assertion stung him the way it did. Then, as he considered Mai's examples of Gene's helpfulness, the stinging became explicable. It was the same annoying sense of regret that Naru felt whenever he heard about stupid accidents that Mai got herself into after he'd left.
Gene was there to help Mai when he, the great Oliver Davis, wasn't.
Although he did have important reasons for remaining in England, there was nothing which forced Naru to sever all contact with his acquaintances in Japan. He could have overcome his pride (and his surprisingly deep regret) to keep in touch with Ma – with everyone.
Gene had helped Mai on cases that Naru could have assisted with (even by phone from the English SPR office). Naru could have helped Mai 'save' TTMPI... pressing his lips together, Naru almost refused to think about what the dangers of 'saving' TTMPI entailed. After all, the injuries Mai had sustained on this case were pretty extensive – yet she acted like it was nothing. That attitude came with experience, as Naru well knew.
As for Gene's training Mai... that one really rankled, because that had nothing to do with Naru's absence post-Japan. Naru should have started Mai's training himself, before the SPR office in Japan had closed. It was obvious even then that Mai had significant psychic gifts.
To be fair, Naru had been obsessed with finding Gene's body – almost to the point of refusing interesting cases if he felt they interfered with his larger purpose. But he could have instituted some training sessions for her. At the very least, it would have given Lin something to do besides watch me like a hawk, he thought dryly. Naru had to leave Madoka in charge of closing SPR Japan in order to accompany his grieving parents back to England... but when Madoka had returned to London, Naru just buried his questions and regrets. Now he regretted it all over again.
A slight movement in his eye-line brought Naru back to the world outside his head. Mai was now standing before him, biting her lip and scratching at her splinted finger. She was obviously waiting for a response to her apology. Naru briefly considered forcing her to wait – after all, he'd waited over a month for confirmation of his hypothesis. However, Naru's guilt over Gene's having done what Naru considered his responsibility stayed his anger. "I... understand your reasoning, Mai. But the fate of Gene's spirit is... of utmost importance to me. I need to know as much as possible in order to facilitate his crossing over."
Mai swallowed what felt like a rock in her throat. "I – I know, Naru. I'm worried about him, too." That must have been the wrong thing to say, because Naru froze again. She hurried to say something else. "I really don't know why he's still here. He won't tell me, either." Mai heaved a sigh of relief as Naru unfroze and looked pensively out the window.
Naru's mind was working furiously. So Gene wouldn't tell Mai, just like he evaded Naru's own veiled questions on the subject. Perhaps Gene thought that Mai would cave and tell his unhappy twin (considering the current discussion, such a fear would be well-founded). Perhaps Gene thought the jourei-enthusiast would try to help him move on once she knew his 'unfinished business.' Either way, Naru was simultaneously frustrated and satisfied; frustrated not to have gained any further insight from Mai, and satisfied that Gene was not sharing that much more information with Mai than with his own twin.
This last thought gave Naru an idea. The sick feeling in his chest was probably caused by childish jealousy over Gene's being more open with Mai than with him. Gene had always been the person closest to Naru; it had always been himself and Gene against the world. In some ways, it still was. Perhaps the thought of losing some of that closeness to another person was causing Naru's troublingly emotional reaction. Gene's relationship with Mai directly excluded Naru from the equation. As if to support his theory, the sick feeling rose within him again.
Ignoring it, Naru spoke. "Do you think you'll see him again on this case?"
"No," Mai replied, shaking her head. "Gene didn't think this case would require two visits. He thought it was pretty easy." She rolled her eyes.
He may change his mind about another visit once I'm through with him, Naru thought darkly. He almost told Mai that Gene might appeal to her for succor – but Naru found himself annoyed at the thought, and instead chose to ask about the case. "Easy?"
"Yes, and he all but told me there was only one ghost. Ugh!" Mai was still furious with herself. "He did say that he had no idea what to do about an exorcism, and that I should rely on you, Madoka, and Lin for that."
"How magnanimous of him," Naru replied, sarcasm lining his words.
Mai fought a smile. Naru sounded back to normal... and strangely enough, it almost felt normal to talk with him about Gene. "So I guess we're on our own," she offered blithely.
Naru was surprised to see Mai's eyes twinkling, and to hear a smile in her voice. "I suppose," he replied slowly, not quite understanding her sudden mood change. He didn't understand the annoying warmth in his own chest, either. "Go to bed, Mai," he ordered suddenly. It was time to escape. "We'll discuss the exorcism in the morning."
"Yes, Boss!" Mai called after him, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. That could have gone worse.
Naru couldn't help but smirk at her as he closed the door. I suppose that could have gone worse.
-0O0-
AN: Okay, folks, here's your next chapter! I hope you guys like it, because I am going to be super-tired for work tomorrow:P So, Naru knows some things now... silly Mai, thinking that it will keep him from wondering about anything else she might be hiding;)