Chapter Ten – Surveillance

John sighed as he looked out of the window, the lights of the school shining through the darkness. The Chairman had been quite considerate. Due to John's beliefs he had requested a room of his own, so that he could use it for his prayers. There was no Chapel that he had seen, something rare for a boarding school. He was wearing a black turtleneck and trousers, a gold crucifix glittering on his chest. His Bible was held loosely in his hand as he returned to his desk.

The school was strange with its two separate dorms. It was something he'd never seen before, and if he didn't know better…But they would never think of it. He decided dismissively as he eyed the suitcase in the corner of the room. Hearing the details of the case he'd brought his old uniform just in case. But coexisting together? Impossible!

Heading for the case he opened it, though he had checked everything before he left home. The case was old, solid leather with two catches and a handle for carrying. Laying it on the desk he riffled through it, taking out the old items and running his eyes over them almost reminiscently, though there were few happy memories to be found. Just the opposite in fact.

He lifted the thick leather belt. It felt heavier than he remembered, though he hadn't worn it since becoming an exorcist. There were eight delicate silver daggers, shaped more like crosses than knives, hanging securely from the belt. He still remembered the weight in his hand as he took a closer look at one of the delicate blades. The next thing he found was his fingerless leather gloves with a delicate silver cross stitched to the back of each knuckle. Next were his van-braces, thick black leather with a few patched holes showing where he'd almost been injured. The long trench coat was light in his hands as he pulled it out, the leather battered by the weather and duties he'd once performed.

Those were the things he'd thought he might need, but what he wanted right now was in a small compartment at the very bottom. Unzipping it he reached inside, his eyes dark as he pulled out a white handkerchief with JB woven into the corner in delicate golden embroidery. Tucked inside was a delicate golden chain with a small crucifix and two gold bands, one slightly larger than the other. Hello…It's been a long time…

John turned the rings over in his palm, looking into the small compartment at the photograph hidden there, not daring to pull it out for a closer look. After a few more moments of holding the chain, its weight weighing heavily on his mind, he returned it to the compartment and buried it beneath the rest of his old belongings. Where it belongs…

"John?" Ayako's muffled voice called as she knocked on his door. The exorcist slammed the case shut with a dull thud and put it beside the desk as the door opened with a loud creak. He turned to the attractive redhead with a warm smile as she hovered in the doorway.

"Ayako, what can I do for you?" He asked in his usual Australian accent and southern dialect as he pushed the case further down the side of his desk. "And Monk-san too." He added as Monk-san entered with his usual carefree smile, not waiting for an invitation as he crossed the room and threw himself onto the bed.

"We thought it might be time to talk. Don't worry, no one saw us come up." The monk added as he crossed his legs, Ayako closing the door behind her as she entered the room and headed for the desk, sitting on the straight backed chair somewhat uncomfortably. John sat beside Monk-san with an agreeing nod. "Lin still has nothing, and I haven't seen Mai or Naru lately…All we know is that there's something powerful lurking in the grounds somewhere. It's made no move, but that could change at any time." The older man said, his frustration showing through is voice, and John could understand. It was never nice to feel hunted.

"It's either afraid or waiting for something." John agreed, his skin prickling in anticipation. It had been a long time since he'd felt it. The adrenaline that came with the wait.

"But for what?" Ayako chipped in, her dark eyes filled with worry as she thought about what sort of force could get Lin worried. The Chinese man was the strongest of all of them, aside from Naru, but the boy couldn't use his powers without serious damage to his health.

"That's what I don't get! We already know that those kids give off some strange vibes, but whatever this force is it isn't afraid of them…It seems more concerned by us. Apparently it hasn't gone near the school or Sun Dorm, not yet at least." Monk-san replied, his usually mischievous eyes filled with dark thoughts as he concentrated on the matter at hand. Maybe Masako will be able to tell us more…"Where is Masako anyway? She was supposed to be here a couple days ago." He added curiously.

"She called the other day. She's been held up by a client and could be a few more days." Ayako replied, agreeing with Monk-san. They really needed Masako if they were going to figure out what was going on. It's typical that Masako would get caught up when we really need her! Hopefully my powers will come in handy here if we need them…The older woman thought as she looked at the forest that circled the grounds.

"I guess we'll need to rely on Mai for any medium work…" John said simply, unsure how much use Mai would be. She wasn't really a medium. She had powers, strong powers, but until she learned to harness them she couldn't do much. Her dreams were useful, but she hadn't had any that he knew of, and she could act as a medium, but that didn't seem necessary yet.

"She's not ready yet, not really…We can't put that pressure on her." Monk-san added protectively, openly saying what no one else would. Saying it aloud seemed to be undermining all the things that Mai did for them. "I'll go see Lin again soon…For now I guess all we can do is wait." The older man added, John and Ayako nodding their reluctant agreement.


"Did you manage?" Naru asked as he closed the door behind him, Mai sitting on her bed waiting, the empty box on the floor beside her. She nodded simply as he dropped his notebook on her table so that she could catch up with the work she'd missed. "Where did you put them?" He asked as he took the seat at her desk, half turning the chair so that he could look across at her.

"A lot of places. I thought you'd want some downstairs, so I did the living room, the library and the entrance hall, and this strange little room I found…Here, these pills were everywhere! In boxes and bottles…It's like a huge pharmacy storage room or something. I'm surprised the maids didn't catch me!" She added as she took a small packet of pills from the bed beside her and handed them to Naru. The packet looked like any standard pack of pills, a foil cover over a plastic tray, though there were no maker's marks on the foil. Strange…

"I'll have Lin take a look at these. Where else?" He asked as he pocketed the pills and looked at Mai expectantly. The honey haired girl looked thoughtful as her eyes raised slightly towards the ornate wooden ceiling. Naru traced the small frown on her brow with his eyes as she thought, something he often noticed.

"Just their bedrooms, though Kaname's room was locked." She replied, reaching for her phone and scrolling through the pictures. Naru looked slightly disappointed by the news, but as long as they had the others he wasn't worried. Even though Kaname was obviously the ringleader there was nothing they could learn from him that they couldn't learn from anyone else. "There's something else…Look at these pictures." Mai ordered as she handed her phone to Naru and let him scroll through them, not entirely sure what he was supposed to be looking at.

There was one of Aido, Kain, Shiki and Rima, one of a portrait of Ruka wearing an almost Victorian styled dress, one of Seiren and two older looking people whom he assumed were her parents on the deck of a steam ship and a few others that he skimmed through. He was unsure what he was supposed to be looking at.

"Those weren't the only ones I found, but there's something really wrong about this place! All of those pictures were dated way back! Nineteen fourteen, seventeen twenty, sixteen fifty nine, eighteen ninety one, and all of them seem authentic…Either these people really resemble their relatives or…" Mai trailed off warily. Naru was tempted to dismiss her findings due to their impossible conclusions. He had to agree, grudgingly, that the photos were quite convincing, and there was no reason for the students to plant things like this. Not in their own private spaces.

"I'll look into it…I'll keep your phone and upload the images to my laptop for a closer look." He added, Mai nodding in response as he tucked the phone away with the pills in his pocket. He'd look at them as soon as he got back, but he wouldn't be able to pass his findings or suspicions on to Lin until later that night. The gates would be locked soon.

"Mai? May I come in?" Ichijou's voice called gently, Naru swiftly getting to his feet and grabbing the empty box before heading to the door, nodding to Ichijou as he passed. "I didn't interrupt again, did I?" The blonde boy asked as he hovered awkwardly in the doorway worriedly, Mai flashing him a warm smile as she got off the bed.

"No! He was just coming to check on me." She replied simply as Ichijou stepped inside the shut the door with his usual charming smile, clearly relieved at the news.

"As was I." He replied warmly as he appraised her appearance, satisfied that there were no lingering signs of illness hanging about her. She had slight bags beneath her eyes, but he knew she hadn't been sleeping well, so that was to be expected. Her skin was slightly paler than usual, but that was no surprise since she'd been spending her time awake at night and inside by day.

"I'm fine! I just felt a little sick earlier." She assured, the blonde nodding his agreement.

"I'm not surprised! You don't eat enough!" He scolded playfully, though he was a fine one to talk. He was as thin as a rake.

"I've never even seen you eat!" Mai retorted, scaring herself with her sudden observation. Not a single bite…None of them! How could I not have seen that before? She wondered, though there were no official eating times. Food was just brought up to the rooms. Ichijou had ordered breakfast, or should I say dinner, with her once, but while she'd eaten he hadn't touched his plate. How did I not see that? Mai felt her chest clamp like a vice at the realisation, her intuition screaming that she wasn't overreacting.

"I'm not really an eater…" Ichijou excused sheepishly, noticing Mai's preoccupied state warily. Whatever she was thinking didn't bode well. "Well…since you're awake would you like to come to the living room? I'm going to read for a bit." He added kindly as he held up his backpack, hoping that he could distract her somehow.

"Actually…I think I might try to catch up on some sleep." Mai replied apologetically, her sudden rejection getting to him somehow. Seeing his slightly downcast expression Mai quickly put a hand on his arm. "I'm really tired is all…I might try to find you later if I wake up." She assured, seeing him out with a smile before closing the door and leaning back on it with a sigh.


"Ugh! What a day!" Aido sighed tiredly as he entered their room, Kain nodding from where he was already sitting at his desk, his sharp eyes looking at his cousin almost meaningfully as Aido tossed his backpack on the floor and tugged his jacket off. He tossed it over the back of his chair, pausing as he noticed his picture. I didn't leave it there…

"Do you feel like watching something?" Kain asked meaningfully as he got to his feet, his cousin turning to him with a confused raise of his eyebrow. The taller boy gave a slight nod to the corner of the room. "I want to watch something." He decided, Aido following his gaze to the dark corner above the wardrobe, catching sight of something hidden there. Clever…

"I think I might just catch some sleep, I'm exhausted!" Aido replied as he put his picture face down on the desk with a yawn, his taller cousin nodding in response as he opened his laptop and slotted a DVD inside. "Keep it down, will you?" The younger cousin added as he pulled his shirt and trousers off before climbing the ladder to the top bunk and snuggling beneath the covers, suddenly not feeling so tired.

Do you think they're onto us?Aido asked silently as he closed his eyes, wide awake as he lay still waiting for Kain's answer. The quiet babble of the laptop was the only sound in the room. He heard Kain's chair squeak slightly as he sat back, his eyes likely glued to the small screen.

Not yet, but they soon will be…He replied matter-of-factly, Aido's eyes opening to stare at the wall indifferently. It made no difference to him if they found out.

When they do we'll just have to take care of them…Kaname's too kind hearted, especially now he has Yuuki as a conscience. He replied, partly annoyed by the brunette's sway over her older brother, though since she was a pureblood it was to be expected. She'd been born to be his bride.

If he makes no move then we must. Our secret cannot be allowed to spread to normal humans. Kain stated in agreement, though he knew Ruka wouldn't be happy with him. She respected and loved Kaname so much that she would walk through fire if he asked. She wouldn't agree with them taking matters into their own hands without permission.

I'm glad you agree…I hate it when we're at odds. Aido confessed, his cousin smiling silently. They had only fought seriously once as boys, the rest of the time they'd been like devoted brothers. They bickered occasionally, at least as much as one could bicker with Kain, but the rest of the time they'd been inseparable.

As do I. Kain replied assuringly, the pair falling silently into their own troubled thoughts.