The Transfer

by Malindorie

Mai Taniyama's transfer application to Cambridge University says she wants to study Parapsychology. Not on the application: a secret transfer that will bring Mai and Naru together and simultaneously tear them apart. Japan's SPR follows Naru to England...

31. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt. Manga 12 would be out in English.

Chapter 31 – Standing on the Edge of a Cliff

-0O0-

Mai froze completely, hands gripping her school bag and eyes riveted to the dashboard. "T-talk about what, Lin-san?" she asked as innocently as possible.

But Lin was not having any fake innocence-mongering right now. He needed to get Mai talking before they reached her apartment. "You know what," he replied inflexibly.

The teen psychic bit her lip. Maybe if she ascertained exactly what he was after, she could protect the Big Secret. How would a master of deflection like Naru get out of this? "I'm sorry, but you'll have to be more specific," she replied tartly, adopting the surly tone Naru used to shut down a conversation.

Lin almost smiled at Mai's sudden attitude change. How cagy of her. "I apologize," he said softly, hoping to throw her off balance. It worked – Mai whipped to face him, her surprised eyes scrutinizing him closely as if looking for signs of possession. Lin decided to strike while her armor was down. "I'll be more specific. We need to talk about the receptive nature of your powers... with regard to that unexplained addition to your qigong calisthenics."

Mai threw Lin a genuinely confused look. "What addition?"

The onmyouji kept his face carefully blank as he threw down his piece de resistance. "That interesting 'catching' maneuver that I'd never seen you do before."

The effect was immediate. "What?" Mai gasped, eyes wide and confused. "I really did my seedi– ah, something different yesterday?"

"If you like, I can point it out on the video tomorrow morning," Lin offered. He had told Noll and the professor that he'd forgotten to turn on the camera yesterday; in truth, the video was locked in his desk drawer.

Mai's eyes only bugged out more at the mention of video evidence. She'd forgotten that Martin had requested that all of her training be videotaped (he was very disappointed not to have a recording of Mai's PK attack on the lab wall). Oh no, what if Lin showed Naru the video?

A quick glance at Mai made Lin realize he'd pushed too hard. She looked like a cat caught in the corner of a room on fire. The onmyouji reminded himself not to get confrontational; Mai needed to see him as an ally. Gritting his teeth, Lin summoned up his best Madoka-in-supportive-mode impersonation. "I am your instructor," he said slowly. "If... you need to talk about..." Lin rolled his eyes; he was no good at this sort of thing. "I am your instructor," he repeated. "What I tell Martin – or anyone else – about our lessons... is subject to our mutual discretion."

He could feel Mai staring. "Lin-san..." she said faintly. "Are you saying you'll keep secrets for me?"

"Are you saying you have secrets to keep?" Lin asked soberly.

Mai studied her gloved hands as if she expected the right answer to be written on them somewhere. In a way, she supposed, it WAS written on them. The young psychic flexed her silk-covered fingers. She'd apparently made a mistake yesterday with her exercises (darn that Lin Senior), and now Lin knew way more than he should.

However... it might not be doomsday quite yet. Lin wouldn't offer to be her confidant if he were planning on selling her out to Naru. Lin wasn't much for lying; if he said he would keep her secret, he would.

And honestly, Mai needed some help. Gene wanted to keep the transfer a secret until Mai could use it to help Naru, which would prove that she and the transfer were necessary for Naru's safety. However, Mai was almost positive that her current experience level wouldn't be enough to partner with Naru. In order to ensure a successful demonstration, Mai would need more training.

After all, the only instruction she'd had in PK seeding had been provided (sporadically) by Gene. And though Gene was talented and knowledgeable, he was not a master or a qualified qigong instructor. Lin was both. She should tell him about the seeding training.

Decision made, Mai offered a silent apology to Gene. "You probably know already, don't you?" she asked Lin softly.

"If I did, I wouldn't be asking," Lin replied evenly. "But I do have a good idea. And I certainly know you've been hiding something."

Mai chuckled harshly. "Telling you is tantamount to telling Naru... or so I thought."

"Like I said, you are my student," Lin said carefully. "If there is something you need to discuss with me –"

"Lin-san," Mai said intensely, "You can't tell Naru."

Lin rolled his eyes. He wasn't going to tell Noll – which Mai would already know if she'd let him finish a sentence. "Taniyama-san..."

"No, really!" Mai's panic bubbled over – if she was really going to do this, she needed reassurance. "You saw how badly Naru freaked when he found out Gene was my spirit guide! And that wasn't half as big as –" Mai stopped, pressing her lips together before they loosed something she couldn't take back.

The onmyouji sighed grimly. "So it's bad, then."

Mai slumped back in her seat. "It's not bad. It's good," she insisted. "But... Naru would think it was bad."

Lin's mental vision of Mai falling to the floor unconscious swam before his eyes. "Noll has exceptional judgment," Lin muttered quietly, cautioning himself more than Mai.

His student scoffed. "You're not selling the 'confidant' proposal very well."

"You're not giving me a reason to," Lin returned.

"Fine," Mai grunted. She screwed up her face and pushed the first secret out. "GenetaughtmeaboutPKseeding."

It took Lin a moment to separate Mai's super-fast garble into comprehensible words. "Ah," he finally said. It was just as he (and Noll) suspected. "And he gave you some practical training?"

Finally, an answer as to how much Lin knew! Mai could work with this – she could talk to Lin about training without revealing the actual source of her powers!

Suddenly, her arms started burning. Mai realized she'd been unconsciously clenching her fingers over her crossed forearms – she must have gripped the scars too tightly. Mai grimaced in pain – though the hot tingling she felt now wasn't anywhere near the level of pain she'd experienced during the transfer...

Having parked the car, Lin turned to study his silent student. She'd never confirmed whether Gene had taught her those moves (though he couldn't imagine she'd learned them anywhere else). "Taniyama-san."

At the sound of her name, Mai snapped out of her haze. "Yes, Lin-san?" she chirped, trying to sound as normal as possible.

"We're here," he replied, gesturing toward the front of Mai's apartment building.

"Oh," Mai said stupidly. "Um, well, thanks for the ride, and I'll talk to you tom–"

"I'm going up with you," Lin cut across her. "We're not done."

"Yeah, I figured that," Mai murmured.

-0O0-

"Tea, Lin-san?" The teen psychic asked cordially. She threw her coat onto a nearby chair, and swept a mess of notes and Cambridge assignments off the coffee table.

Lin almost laughed at Mai's dogged hospitality. She'd been like that since the days of SPR Japan. No matter how curt or openly hostile Lin and Naru became, Mai was always ready with tea and a smile. Though some days, her offer was gritted through annoyed teeth... "Yes, thank you, Taniyama-san."

As Mai bustled off, Lin deposited himself onto the couch and stared unseeingly at the living room wall. Would he really go through with this?

Even if he and Mai could accomplish the nigh insurmountable feat of training under Noll's nose, it might all be for nothing. However promising the prospect, Lin reminded himself, the lack of biological or psychic connection between Noll and Mai remains an issue. Noll was (unfortunately) correct about that. Although the combination of receptivity and emotional linkage would probably enable Mai to absorb Noll's PK-ST better than most, it was virtually impossible that she would also be able to manipulate the energy like Gene could. Madoka may be ignoring that potential problem, but Lin (like Noll), had too much experience with PK and its peculiarities to be that optimistic.

But unlike Noll, Lin had hope that such a connection could be established in the future. Noll could argue instinct if he wanted to, but in Lin's opinion, there was more than enough evidence to infer a strong connection between Mai and Gene. Mai saw Gene regularly in dreams as her spirit guide, they had apparently practiced PK together, and most importantly, Mai repeatedly experienced Gene's death. Mai had even admitted that a strong spiritual syncing with Gene had caused the cyclic vision.

However, though psychic history with Gene increased the odds that Mai could connect with Noll, it was still only a possibility. If it turned out that Mai couldn't bond her abilities with Noll's... The onmyouji sighed heavily. There was nothing they could do about a lack of special psychic connection.

Lin pursed his lips. Technically... if were Gene still alive, there would be something they could do.

But that was far too dangerous, too potentially lethal, to seriously consider. Besides, if Gene were still alive, it wouldn't be necessary. Come to think of it, Gene had only even possessed the ability to conduct such a procedure for a few short days before he was... killed.

Even years later, the thought filled Lin with remorse. After all, he was the one who'd told Gene about the marks... and provided the name of a Japanese onmyouji capable of applying them. Though Gene had survived the marking process, and the hit-and-run had been days later, Lin couldn't help but feel guilty. Gene might never have gone to Japan if it weren't for Lin. He certainly wouldn't have gone alone – Gene had only insisted on flying solo because he knew that Luella and Noll would never approve of the marking idea. Lin's gut twisted.

On the other hand, if Gene had just waited another damn couple of months, Lin would have been free to accompany him. Gene was always so impulsive...

Just like the person holding a steaming cup of tea in front of his face. Lin accepted the cup from Mai with a nod of thanks.

Her easy smile was throwing him off again... could he really ask this of her? Despite his outward lack of warmth, Lin did actually care for Mai. He would feel awful if she wound up hurt (or worse). He already felt awful about Gene's death, and he'd only helped plan the trip to Japan. If Mai ended up in the hospital, it would be directly due to Lin's interference.

Mai watched Lin's internal struggle over the rim of her tea cup. Was he thinking about the best way to question her? Mai felt proud for a moment – apparently, her ability to keep secrets had improved to the point that Lin needed a strategy.

But it didn't matter. She was going to talk, anyway. "So... yeah," Mai began. "Gene taught me about PK seeding."

Lin raised an eyebrow. After all her escapism, Mai was initiating this conversation? "For what purpose?" he asked carefully.

Mai grasped the cup very hard. "Since my PK abilities are... very similar to Gene's, he thought that I could... take his place as Naru's PK partner."

Somehow, hearing Mai say it out loud made Lin feel guiltier. "The best way to prove to Noll that you can handle being his PK partner is to be as prepared as possible."

Mai raised unusually clear, hard eyes to her teacher. "I agree," she said firmly.

Lin stared right back, and made his decision. "I thought you might. In that case, I suggest we broaden the scope of your training – to include PK manipulation exercises."

Mai nodded.

"While your receptivity and current skills may enable you to catch, hold, and release Noll's PK-ST," Lin continued, "The real trick is to increase and manipulate it. Luckily, you can already manipulate your own PK-MT, which gives us a head start." Lin paused; Mai had a strange look on her face. "However," he continued slowly, "Manipulating your own energy is much easier than handling someone else's. Your body is already accustomed to the specific pulse and charge of its own energy."

Mai pressed her lips together. Technically, she manipulated someone else's PK all the time. "Right," she said tightly.

Lin frowned, confused by Mai's attitude. He'd expected her to be fighting for the chance to help Noll. "Taniyama-san, if you don't want to do this –"

"No!" Mai cried. "Of course I want to! I was just... thinking about something."

Something in her tone made Lin raise an eyebrow. "Thinking about what?"

Mai just stared out the window, absentmindedly rubbing her scars.

Lin's eyes followed the motion of Mai's hands down her gloved arms. "You'll have to attain the greatest level of control you can, as Noll's energy is much stronger – and more potentially damaging – than your own. Though you already have a surprising amount of control," he continued fairly (Mai blushed), "Gene worked on his for years. I don't think we'll have nearly that much time."

Mai looked up in horror. "Do you think Naru's going to use his powers soon?" she asked worriedly. "I know that there's been a lot of violence at the location for the next case. And things flying around... oh, nooo."

"Taniyama-san, calm down." Lin rolled his eyes. "That's not what I meant. Although I always watch Noll extra closely during cases with highly volatile spirits, I don't believe he'll be more apt to use his powers on this case than on another." Unless Mai managed to get herself in trouble again, of course. Then all bets were off. "What I meant was that I don't think we can keep Noll in the dark for very long."

Mai nodded sagely. "That's true. I'm almost surprised he doesn't know already."

Lin gave her a rare smile. "Madoka's no slouch at sleuthing, either," he noted.

The qigong student was surprised. "You're not going to tell Madoka?"

Her mentor sighed. "I'm not sure it would be wise. She doesn't exactly have a great track record with regard to this matter." At Mai's questioning look, Lin continued. "Noll, Madoka, and I had a conversation about your receptiveness the other day," he revealed. "It didn't go well, and that was mostly Madoka's fault."

Mai grimaced. "Madoka asked Naru to work with me, didn't she?"

"Yes," Lin answered, matching her subdued tone.

"And Naru said no." It wasn't a question; Mai could envision Naru's response to such a request quite clearly.

"To put it mildly."

Mai looked very sad. "Of course he doesn't want me as his partner." Like she'd told Gene countless times, Naru wouldn't accept a replacement so easily. "I'm not Gene."

Lin barely refrained from rolling his eyes. For someone so excellent at reading people – psychically and otherwise – Mai sure was thickheaded about Noll. "That's not it," he said firmly. "Noll does not like the odds. He won't risk injuring you with his PK."

Mai's eyes were deep wells. "Gene said something like that." Naru's twin had scoffed at her 'replacement' theory, repeatedly telling Mai she was way off base.

"Gene would know best." Lin attempted to stare the truth into Mai's head.

It must have worked – Mai smiled softly. "Well, he's not a robot, right?" she asked, twisting her hands in her skirt.

"No," Lin replied shortly.

An awkward silence hung in the air for a few moments. Mai broke the tension by getting up. "Would you like a refill?" A black-gloved hand whisked his empty cup off the table.

"Yes, thank you." Lin found himself staring at Mai's covered arms again... and a vision of Gene pulling up his sleeve and showing off his new tattoos swam before Lin's eyes. Hn. That would greatly improve Mai's control in a relatively short period of time.

But could Lin really suggest that Mai undergo the marking process, after what had happened to Gene in Japan? Mai would have to travel to Japan and visit the same person... Lin's mouth settled into a grim line. It wouldn't be like last time, he decided. If Mai decided to go the marking route, she would NOT go alone.

Which meant Lin would have to tell Madoka what he and Mai were up to - there was no way Lin could handle a week-long trip alone with Mai. He remembered those SPR car rides all too well.

Besides, sneaking three people off on a clandestine trip to Japan without alerting Noll was a task much more suited to Madoka. She was better at subterfuge.

Lin nodded to himself. "Taniyama-san." Mai turned back to face him. "If you want to improve your control quickly... there is another method we could try."

-0O0-

For the nth time in the last hour, Naru found his gaze resting on the hall doorway. Mai and Lin had vanished through that doorway together... Mai waving cheerfully, and Lin looking determined.

Determined to do what? Naru wondered silently. Determined to drive Mai home? Lin did that all the time. Determined to drive Mai home without having to speak to her? Naru smirked. For all Mai's whining about Naru's disallowance of 'fun' in the car, Lin was actually more militant about driving in silence.

"Noll?"

With that in mind, maybe Naru should ensure that Mai sat in the front on the way to case locations. Perhaps the combination of his and Lin's oppressive presences would keep Mai quieter. And maybe if Mai were quieter, then Yasuhara and Madoka would follow... never mind. Wishful thinking.

Mai should still sit next to him, though.

"Noll?"

And while on the topic of upcoming cases... it looked like Mai was going to have to come along to the Banderson house. Naru felt (irritatingly) guilty about dragging her off on a case right after the start of term, especially since this case was likely to take at least a week. But all the notes he'd read -

"Noll."

Martin's impatient-sounding voice snapped Naru out of his ruminations. "Yes, Father?"

"About the Banderson case..." Martin started.

Naru's lips twitched. "Yes, my thoughts exactly."

"Of course," Luella muttered. "My two idiot scientists, whose shared brains run on one track."

"I suppose I do have quite enough brains to share," Naru noted smugly.

Luella groaned.

"Noll, are you inferring that I lack the intellect to operate under my own capacity?" Martin asked amusedly.

"No, that's what Mother is inferring." Smirk.

"She was talking about you, too," Martin pointed out.

"Mother never specified which of us contributed the greater percentage of shared intelligence," Naru countered.

"So you're running with your mother's insulting idea that I'm a lack-wit," Martin affirmed. "And then compounding the offense by suggesting that I need to borrow intelligence from my son?"

"A cogent re-statement of the main points," Naru drawled, aping one of Martin's favorite professorial maxims.

Martin huffed jokingly. "Then tell me, my over-endowed son – would you recommend that I excuse Taniyama and Yasuhara from classes for the duration of the Banderson case?"

"Martin!" Luella cried. "They shouldn't skip school for SPR!"

"Talk to the brains of the operation," Martin said, gesturing to Naru.

Naru stared at Mai's empty chair. "While I'm aware that the timing is unfortunate," he admitted, "All of the preliminary information suggests that we need Mai on this case." He turned to face his adopted father. "Excuse Mai for a week, but Yasuhara needn't skip."

Martin nodded slowly. That was his take on the situation, as well – he'd just wondered how Noll would handle the situation. Noll would be running SPR in the future, after all. "I agree. Evidence suggests the presence of spirits, so Taniyama's skills as a medium will likely be required. And what with all the chairs flying about, you may need her PK deflection skills." Not wanting Noll to dwell on the functional uselessness of his own PK powers, Martin continued quickly. "Yasuhara can stay behind and keep good notes for Taniyama. Besides, Madoka's new assistant needs a trial run in the field – Gregory can fill in for Yasuhara."

Naru nodded slowly. Gregory seemed to be a no-nonsense person; such an attitude would be a welcome foil for Madoka. "That sounds reasonable."

"Indeed," Martin returned. "So it's settled, then."

"No, it isn't," Luella interjected. "You should not be dragging Mai out of school to hunt ghosts."

"Mai is in school for parapsychology," Naru pointed out. "If anything, this would be considered advanced fieldwork."

"She already has plenty of 'advanced fieldwork' under her belt," Luella replied acidly. "That sounds like special pleading to me, Noll."

Naru narrowed his eyes at the accusation that he was 'pleading' in any way. "Mai's chief contributions to parapsychology will likely be as a psychic in the field," he noted loftily. "Not to mention," he continued, "Mai would almost certainly rather go ghost hunting than sit in class while everyone else is ghost hunting."

Luella's eyes widened. Was her son actually considering and campaigning for someone else's happiness? She resisted the urge to check the window for burning chunks of falling sky. "I expect you're right," Luella conceded (careful not to show her inner glee at Noll's consideration for Mai's feelings). "Mai does enjoy ghost hunting."

"That she does," Martin agreed readily. He was impressed; Noll really couldn't have picked a better argument to neutralize his mother. "I'll inform Taniyama of the situation tomorrow after classes."

"Too bad Mai left early tonight," Luella drawled sarcastically. "She could have spent an extra few hours discussing the case file." Maybe she'd take Mai out this weekend; Martin and Noll were bad influences.

Martin laughed at Luella's words, but Naru frowned.

Mai had left early, hadn't she? She usually stayed until nine or ten... but then again, it was Thursday. Naru's eyes fell to Mai's empty chair again.

Thursday evening was slotted as a 'recovery night' in Mai's weekly calendar – after Wednesday's training and testing, and Thursday's long class schedule, Mai would generally collapse into her favorite chair in the Davis sitting room and nap the night away.

"Well, Lin said he had things to do tonight," Martin reasoned. "And he was Mai's ride."

That's right, Naru remembered. It was Lin who wanted to leave early. Not exactly surprising – Lin was an early riser, and since Madoka was out with a girlfriend tonight, the onmyouji took the opportunity to head home early. But Martin had just said... "What 'things' did Lin have to do?" Naru asked, Lin's very determined expression flashing in his mind.

"He didn't say," Martin replied offhandedly, not noticing Naru's tense posture.

Luella noticed it, though. "Maybe he's taking Mai out for coffee," she suggested slyly. "As a reward for impressing Lin Senior." She bit back a grin as Noll sat straight up in his chair and stared accusingly at the empty hallway door. "I guess you could call her... if you're worried about Lin's intentions."

Naru threw his mother a disparaging glare. "Don't be ridiculous."

Luella's eyes twinkled. "Sorry I misunderstood, Noll. You looked worried."

Naru scoffed, but was forced to acknowledge the obvious upset in his stomach. The feeling was... not dissimilar to worry.

As if on cue, a niggling voice in Naru's mind called for his attention, once again yelling something inconvenient that Naru really, really didn't want to hear.

After all... there was a very simple explanation as to why Naru would be worried about Mai going out for coffee with a guy. Even if it was just Lin. Especially if it was just Lin – there was no logical need to worry about Mai going out at night with a trusted, romantically attached friend.

Naru ground his teeth, forcing the irritatingly rational voice back into the depths of his mind. That couldn't be it, he told himself firmly. It couldn't be that. That would be extremely... inconvenient for him. (Naru refused to describe it any other way, even in his own head.)

Not to mention it would be extremely foolish of him, and Oliver Davis was not a foolish person.

But Oliver Davis was a scientist... and a scientist couldn't responsibly ignore the mounting evidence.

-0O0-

Mai met Lin's assessing gaze. "Another method?"

"It's... extreme," he cautioned. "And supposedly painful."

Mai gave a thin laugh. She doubted this new method was anywhere near as painful as the transfer. "I have a very high tolerance for pain," she replied enigmatically.

Good, Lin thought. Between the marking process and learning to absorb and throw Noll's PK, Mai would need a high tolerance for pain. "This method involves placing permanent markings on the skin, meant to draw and reinforce PK-MT down spiritual pathways," he informed her.

Mai's hand stopped halfway to her tea cup. Even her thoughts froze.

"The markings are drawn by an onmyouji and then tattooed into the skin, and finally 'activated' with a spell." Lin studied Mai's shocked face. "Gene underwent the process himself. He described it as... unpleasant, but he insisted that it greatly improved his control."

Mai knew she should say something. Instead, she only wound up staring down at her forearms...

Where the described marks already lay.

On the other side of the couch, Lin regarded Mai silently and wondered whether he'd been right to suggest the marks. The night after Gene's marking experience, Lin had suggested a video chat in order to check out the marks for himself. The obvious pain in Gene's eyes and the labored movements of his body were still crystal clear in Lin's memory. It would likely be just as painful for Mai.

The onmyouji also knew that Noll would be completely against such an agonizing procedure. But Mai was tough when she had to be. And she would need the best control possible if she wanted to be Noll's PK seeding partner.

Besides, Lin wasn't dragging Mai off to Japan and forcing her under the needle. He was only giving her options. In fact, Lin was surprised that Mai didn't already know about Gene's marks. Gene had taught Mai to control her PK-MT; it was strange that the topic had never come up. Mai even focused her PK through her forearms, just like Gene had...

Lin suddenly wondered whether Mai's scars would interfere with the drawing/marking process. His eyes fell to her gloves. She never took them off, did she? Mai even wore those gloves to sleep; Lin had noticed them as she shot up in bed upon awakening from her death dream.

The scars must really be something, Lin assumed, if they prompted such an obsessively fastidious deviation from Mai's normally free-spirited, skin-baring taste in clothes. She'd always worn short skirts to the office, and often sported completely work-inappropriate attire on cases. But even when a nightgown-clad Mai had torn into a kitchen full of grown men, her forearms were covered up securely.

Then again, it wasn't abnormal for Mai to conceal unhappy things. SPR had been a team for months before she'd told anyone she was an orphan. There was also her extremely unhelpful habit of 'forgetting' to tell SPR about case-specific astral dreaming.

As Mai continued to stare silently out the window (Lin was glad that she was giving this matter the serious deliberation it deserved), her nervous fingers traced curving paths down her gloved arms. Lin reckoned the scars must be large as well as disfiguring – those gloves covered the entire forearm area.

Not for the first time, Lin wondered how she'd gotten them. Mai had revealed she'd sustained the injuries during a case with TTMPI – but that was all they'd gotten out of her since that second night in England. "Mai?" Lin asked idly. "You focus your PK through your arms. Does that bother the scars at all?" If it did, the marking might not even work.

Lin did not expect this question to cause a freak-out. So as Mai whipped around to face him, eyes wide and mouth open, he raised a puzzled brow.

"Wha – um, well..." she stammered.

He had definitely hit a nerve. Why would that question bother her? As she struggled for words, Mai's hands clutched at her gloved arms. Which was apparently a bad idea – Lin saw her wince in pain before loosing her grip and rubbing her arms gently.

And suddenly, the memory of a different pale hand rubbing a black sleeve assaulted Lin's inner eye. During their video chat, Gene had massaged the marks underneath his shirt, bemoaning that the tattooed skin stung quite a bit... and joking that he'd have to wear long sleeves forever, as the marks were very noticeable and he didn't want to be mistaken for a hoodlum.

Lin stared hard into his tea, his brain finally piecing together the puzzle he'd been trying to solve for months.

Click. Mai's unwillingness to share anything about how she'd gotten the 'scars.'

Click. The black gloves which constantly covered the 'scars.'

Click. Mai's thorough dedication to training her powers, when at first she'd been almost afraid of them.

Click. The remarkable amount of control Mai had over her PK-MT, especially for someone so new to the discipline.

Click. Mai's knowledge that her receptivity could be useful to Noll.

Click. Her unforeseen training in PK seeding.

Click. Click. Click.

The truth hit Lin like a freight train. His eyes swiveled to Mai's arms and locked on the omnipresent gloves. "Mai," he said slowly, almost dazedly.

The teen psychic's head swung back to face the onmyouji. Had Lin just addressed her by her first name? Mai grinned triumphantly... and then processed the look in her teacher's eyes. His expression was somewhere between wonder and horror.

"Those scars..." Lin murmured, "Aren't scars at all, are they?"

Mai's mouth gaped open in horror.

"They're marks," Lin continued, still in shock.

Mai fought the urge to run... but underneath the unbroken mental scream of What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?, an unexpected thought crawled into Mai's head. Why not just come clean?

While the notion of confession still terrified her, Mai had many questions about what she and Gene had done. Wen-sifu, her first onmyouji master, had answered some of them while he was training her to participate in the transfer. Gene had answered some, as well. However, Mai was still unsure about a few things – such as why she had puckered scars for marks rather than the clean, black lines Gene had sported. She and Gene had some guesses – but Lin might know. He might also know whether a full emergency connection between herself and Naru was even possible without their practicing together.

"They're... complicated," Mai replied truthfully. Should I do it?

"Mai." This time Lin's tone was demanding. "They're marks."

"Are you asking me or telling me?" Mai asked, her nerves getting the best of her.

Lin glared. "Both."

Mai let out a hysterical giggle... and decided to go for broke. "Ironically enough, that's my answer – both."

The onmyouji raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry?"

"Both... they're both scars and marks," Mai said slowly.

Now Lin was confused. "What do you mean?"

Mai bit her lip. "They're both," she repeated softly, fiddling with the bow on one of her gloves.

"How can they be both?" Lin's eyes locked on the gloves.

"Like this," Mai replied, her hand tugging at the tight black fabric above her elbow. Closing her eyes (like a chicken), Mai pulled the protective covering from her arm.

Koujo Lin stared in horrified fascination. From wrist to elbow, Mai's arms were covered in livid, puckered scars. But the scars weren't at all random – they curved along her arms in very recognizable patterns. Patterns meant to direct and concentrate PK energy into useful qigong maneuvers.

"Marks," Lin breathed. "I wasn't sure how to get them done without arousing Noll's suspicions. I figured I'd have to sneak you off to Japan, somehow..."

Mai's smile was almost a grimace. "Well, Gene and I solved that problem for you," she said thinly. "It's already done."

Unable to help himself, Lin reached out and took Mai's wrist, running his fingers along the marks. He could feel the power humming beneath them. "The spell was performed correctly," he intoned. "So this is why your PK-MT is so well controlled. I had wondered, given the erratic nature of your other abilities."

Mai winced at the justifiable criticism. "Yeah, my astral walking sometimes has more control over me than I do over it." Though deliberate astral projection was Mai's most highly developed skill, she was still pulled into a lot of projections without her permission. She also really sucked at 'waking up' out of them.

In fact, Gene was annoyingly persistent about the 'waking up' issue lately. His sudden harping on the subject was strange; her spirit guide had never before expressed impatience over guiding Mai through her dreams. And Mai knew that Gene was happy to be of any real-world assistance... so if he was trying to make Mai more self-sufficient, it was likely because he expected not to be around much longer.

Mai wasn't sure whether to feel happy or sad at this possibility. She was also unsure about whether to go to Naru with her suspicions.

"But... I don't understand."

Her teacher's voice called Mai out of her troubled thoughts. "What was that, Lin-san?"

"I don't understand... why are they scars? The marks are supposed to be tattooed into the skin. I've never seen something like this before."

Mai's breath hitched, knowing that this was the moment to confess. But the truth stuck to her tongue, gluing her mouth shut.

Then Lin continued. "Did your skin have a reaction to the ink?"

Mai could have laughed. Lin had provided a perfect excuse, a believable way out of telling the whole truth... but something, maybe her instincts, rang in warning. She would be wasting the perfect opportunity – here was a learned person - a friend - who could help her and offer her guidance. A friend who had already expressed the desire to hide all this PK drama from Naru. And though Gene was an able adviser, she only saw him on cases - Mai needed a constant source of help and training if she wanted their crazy plan to work.

And though telling someone about the transfer was directly against Gene's orders, Mai was tired of keeping the whole mess to herself. Mai had never been comfortable with lying... and despite Gene's assurances that secrecy was the only way, she worried that lying to Naru about the transfer might end up causing as bad a fallout as would telling him.

Lin watched his student think through whatever heavy thoughts were on her mind. Whatever had caused the scarring, it obviously wasn't an allergic reaction to tattoo ink.

No, Lin thought, watching Mai unconsciously trace her gloved finger along an angrily red scar-mark. It was something else. And something significant, from the lengthy consideration Mai was giving her response. A frisson of dread wormed its way through Lin's gut. He didn't have Mai's instincts, but he had the distinct feeling that it would be something problematic.

The foreboding mood was not aided by Mai's taking a deep, preparatory breath and clenching her fists for fortitude. "Okay," she said finally. "I'll tell you, but you have to promise not to tell Naru. And... know that we only did it because we really thought it was necessary."

Oh yes, Lin groaned inwardly. This was going to be bad.

-0O0-

AN: I know, I know, but I had to cut it there! Otherwise, the chapter would have been way too long. Plus, I didn't want to just throw the explanation of the transfer onto the end of a chapter. I'm pretty sure most of the readers have guessed what it's all about, anyway, but I wanted to give the titular issue a more prominent place, lol.

Anyway, so Naru's getting a clue, Lin's getting the truth, Mai's getting an accomplice, and SPR is going on a case.

By the way, you guys are the best (and most patient) readers ever! Last chapter got the most reviews yet!

And last, but most awesomely - this story has inspired some fan art! I got a request from NarcolepticRooster to draw some of the scenes from the story. I'm really quite thrilled, and I'll keep you guys posted:)