A/N: Hey, guys! Thanks for reading and following! I hope you enjoy this next chapter - things start to get a little interesting.

CaitHawke4ever - Gene probably would've found a way to guide her if he could, but alas that was not one of his abilities. Sans being dead, of course. I'll let you in on a little secret about the hair pin(or rather, a little tidbit I couldn't fit into the plot), Yi is actually one of Mai's ancestors. That's one of the reasons she's so drawn to Mai (well, that and because she's a hardcore Lin-Mai shipper). The boys have no room to complain, as Lin is the only one able to help her at this time. So, yes, Lin is going to enjoy every moment he can.

Damaged Forest Spirit -

Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt.

Language Key:

Regular = Japanese

Bold Italic = Chinese

Bold = English

Chapter 5:

After an eventful couple of days, Lin cherished the quiet. The whir of his laptop fan and the hum of the room's heater mingled with Shibuya's soft breaths. Here, in the darkness, there was peace.

There were no Hara's or Matsuzaki's to glare at him. There were no invasive, albiet friendly, invitations from Takigawa to join him for a drink. There was no nosy co-worker. No mischievous twins. No young priest that happened to smile a little too much at a certain brunette.

It was just he and Mai in the quiet.

And of course his shiki were there, somewhere. They deserved to be, considering how much work they had to put in for this to happen. Lin knew he'd never would've convinced her on his own. Especially since she was so wary of him. But she did agree to let him help.

Today was their first session. She was supposed to try and project on command. Lin was pretty sure she passed, but he'd have to wait until she woke up to be entirely sure. That was one thing he disliked about this training, he couldn't keep an eye on her progress as it happened. He was stuck waiting until she could tell him.

He'd brushed up on his astral projection research for the first half hour. There wasn't too much on it, so that distraction had dwindled quickly. He couldn't even carry out his original mission while he waited. The whole thing was paused until the DNA test results came back. Though, he already knew what they were going to say. Mai Shibuya was Mai Taniyama, the half-sister of Eugene and Oliver Davis.

Her infectious positivity was similar to Gene's. Her stubbornness reminded him so much of Oliver's. She had the same excitement for learning as they did. She'd tackled life with a similar determination, despite (or maybe because) their unfortunate circumstances. Yes, he could see a family resemblance.

Now, he had to find some way of telling her. He figured Hara would've told her his true reason for being here, but it seemed the medium had kept her lips tight on the matter. It made him wonder what her intentions were. Was she really looking out for Mai? Or was she prolonging the inevitable departure out of jealousy? Lin never was good at understanding teenage girls.

Whatever the reason, Hara hadn't scared Mai away from him. Yet. He needed to break the news to her in a way that wouldn't having her running from him. It was this fear that had him procrastinating. He didn't want her to feel betrayed.

He felt like he was lying to her every time he called out to her. His heart clenched whenever he caught her staring at him, like she was trying to figure him out. He wanted nothing more than to tell her everything. But he was terrified he'd lose her.

Right now, he was content. She was still there, almost within reach. Any moment now, she'd wake up. She'd turn her bright eyes on him, eager to share whatever she'd learned. For a moment, she'd forget to be self-conscious around him. He'd get a glimpse of the real her. Hopefully she'd get more comfortable with him and she could be herself all the time. And, just maybe, he could be himself too.

Mai woke to the sound of a conversation. The voices were quiet, trying not to wake her. One of them sounded garbled, like it was filtered through a speaker. The words they spoke were English.

"Madoka's complaints have increased ever since you ignored her the other day," the garbled male voice sounded amused.

"I didn't ignore her," Lin nearly sounded irritated. Mai's curiosity piqued.

"That's not what she says," the other voice laughed. "She's threatened to hop on a plane and join you. Don't worry, though. Oliver talked her out of it. For now."

"Great," Lin huffed. Just who was this Madoka?

"We'll try to hold her back as long as we can," the other voice was still laughing. "Though I can't fault her too much for being impatient."

"At least you aren't calling me every day for a status report,"

"I know you'll tell us when you know something for sure," His laughter had subsided, but Mai could hear a smile in his voice. "There's no point in bothering you until then, anyways."

"It's useless to give an update for every new lead, since more often than not they've led me nowhere," frustration laced Lin's tone, making Mai wonder what exactly he was he was looking for. "It's taken me three months to get this far."

"Come on, Koujo. You have to admit that it hasn't been all bad," his friend's suffering didn't damper his mood. "How's Sleeping Beauty doing?"

Mai decided now would be a good time to stop eavesdropping. She was pretty sure she knew who he was talking about here. But she wasn't so sure she wanted to hear what he had to say about her. There was this knowing lilt to his voice that concerned her.

She made a show of yawning and blinking a few times. Taking her time, she sat up. Her eyes stared lazily at him, which wasn't too hard to do as she was still pretty groggy. He sat at the desk, his seat turned slightly to face her. He aimed a small smile at her.

"How are you feeling?" His grey eye filled with concern. Mai wasn't sure if he was worried about her health or how much she might've heard of his conversation.

"Tired," she mumbled honestly. She wasn't sure how long she and Yi had spent on the astral plane, but it certainly hadn't been a restful experience for her physical body.

Lin frowned, but nodded his head. She took his non-reaction to mean her condition probably wasn't too serious. But not necessarily good, either.

"Is she awake?" the other voice asked, bringing both occupants attention to the laptop. From her position on the bed, Mai could make out a silhouette moving on the screen.

"Yes, I'll have to call you back later," Lin reached out to hang up on the caller.

"Wait, can I talk to her?" the eager voice continued without waiting for a response. This time, he spoke Japanese. "You're Mai Shibuya, right? I'm Gene, the best friend of this recluse."

Mai had to fight back a smile as Lin scowled at his new description. Cautiously, she let out a loud, "Hello."

Lin motioned for her to come closer. Mai slid off the bed, accepting the invitation. She walked the short distance until she standing behind his chair. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the screen. What she saw almost had her take a step back.

There, smiling widely on the screen, was a young man. He looked to be around her age. His raven black hair was a familiar shade. The shape of his jaw, the turn of his lips, were all strikingly similar to his. She felt like she six years old again, staring up at her father's poster. But then, she looked at his eyes and she came back to reality.

Where her father's eyes had been the same shade as hers, this young man had eyes of cobalt blue. She'd never seen anything like it. And in them she could see a warmth, a kindness, that drew her in. She quickly found herself smiling back.

"Lin says you can astral project," Mai shot a glance at Lin, but his expression was blank. "That's pretty impressive."

"Uh, I guess," Mai shrugged. It was pretty cool when she was following Ayako around today. She'd messed with her a bit by moving her stuff when she wasn't looking. Mai wouldn't be surprised if Ayako mentioned being haunted by some spirit tomorrow.

But since the astral plane was currently the only outlet for her post-cognitive visions (that's what Lin called her scary accurate nightmares), she wasn't exactly thrilled. Then again, Lin had also said that there was always a possibility that other abilities would manifest to open her up to these visions. At least she didn't have to worry about seeing the past of everyone she came into physical contact with. Yet.

"It can be a scary experience, sometimes," Gene's eyes softened in understanding.

"Have you ever experienced it before?" His wording made it sound like he had.

"Not exactly and not directly," his brow furrowed as he tried to find the right words. "I've seen similar things through Oliver's eyes."

"Oliver?" Mai repeated the name with near perfect enunciation. As Lin's head jerked in surprise and Gene's grin widened, she silently thanked Yasu.

"Ou-" Gene started to say something, but stopped himself. He looked away from the camera before returning with a sheepish smile. "Yeah, my brother. My twin, to be exact."

"So, you guys have like twin telepathy?" Mai mused.

"Exactly!" came his enthusiastic response. "He also has visions like yours, but he's limited to only seeing them when he touches either a person or an object belonging to the person."

"Like every time he touches someone?" This poor guy was living out her fears.

"Not anymore. Koujo, here, taught him how to block them until he wants to use them. Though, occasionally his powers will flare up when the person he's reading has a strong emotion," Gene admitted. "For the most part, he avoids people anyways. But that has nothing to do with his abilities. Probably."

Lin snorted. If Mai hadn't been intrigued earlier, she definitely was after that reaction. This Oliver character seemed like an interesting person.

"We'll do lessons on blocking soon," Lin assured her, possibly taking her newly piqued curiosity to be about controlling her own power. "After we get a better idea of what you can do."

It did give her comfort. She'd been worried she'd never get a full night's sleep again. But if she learnt to block her powers, there was still hope. Hibernation, here I come.

"You're lucky to have found Koujo. He's the best teacher for that kind of stuff," Gene praised. Mai watched the tips of Lin's ears turn pink. Gene continued with a stage whisper. "He's also a pretty good maths tutor."

"I'll try to remember that," Mai giggled. In reality, she had no need for a tutor in any school subject, but she wasn't about to tell either of them that.

"We should actually get back to the lesson," Lin reminded her of the real reason she was back in his hotel room. "We don't have much time left before your meeting."

"Shoot. I almost forgot about Yasu," Mai glanced at the clock. She only had a half-hour left. Time flew when you were having an out of body experience.

"Alright, I'll get off here," Gene pouted. "I'll call you later. And Mai, it was nice talking to you."

It was easy to return his warm smile with one of her own. "It was nice talking to you, too."

And once she'd gotten over her initial freak out over him being a younger doppelganger of her father, it really was nice. He was easy to talk to. Like an old friend she hadn't seen in awhile. But like one who had no knowledge of her double life.

They said their farewells and Lin immediately got down to business. He asked her if she managed to project and how her experience went and other questions. Some time during the interrogation, Mai felt a foreign object in her pocket. Digging into it, she found a ball point pen. It was fancy, with a name monogrammed on the body. It was also Ayako's favorite.

"Oops," The words slipped out as she stared at it.

"Is something wrong?" Lin questioned. His hands hovered above his keyboard, waiting to see if her next words were worthy of being documented.

"Not exactly. I just kind of stole Ayako's pen," she admitted. "I was trying to find the perfect hiding place for it and I guess I forgot it in my pocket."

As she spoke, Lin's shoulders started to shake. He covered his mouth with the back of his hand, trying to rein in his amusement. Mai's mouth dropped in shock as she realized he was outright laughing at her. After her shock wore off, though, she giggling was alongside him.

"I'm sorry," Lin spoke after they calmed down. There was still a smile on his face. "Only you would use the astral plane to harass Matsuzaki and steal her pen in the process."

"Hey, I didn't mean to steal it!" she defended herself. "But I will admit it probably wasn't the smartest idea. I'm sure I'll get an earful tomorrow about the hotel being haunted."

She could already hear Ayako now, "This is clearly the work of a sitebound spirit. Someone must've done something to provoke it!" She shuddered the thought away.

"I think we're done for today," Lin finished with a few final strokes of his keys. "Next time, we're going to work on controlling your post-cognitive abilities."

"So, I'm going to try to have a vision on purpose?" Mai raised a brow at that.

Lin met her incredulous look with a serious expression. "Unfortunately, yes. Learning how it works and how to master it will help us when we need to block it."

Mai bit her lip and looked away. She didn't want to invite the nightmares in. She didn't like them when they were forced on her. But she supposed that, if it would help her in the long run, it could be worth it.

"Okay," she pouted, her eyes still trained on the generic curtains that hid the balcony from view.

"Ayumu has agreed to help. His past is the most non-violent," Lin's attempt at trying to comfort her had her heart doing strange things.

"Who's Ayumu?" Mai asked, trying to stuff down her unsolicited emotions.

"One of my shiki,"

As they spoke, the spirits came out from wherever they'd been hiding. All of them, excepting Yi, had given them space during their session. While most of them went to Lin, the blue one hovered in front of Mai.

"How do you do, Miss Mai?" the spirit buzzed. Unlike his co-spirits, he spoke in Japanese.

"You must be Ayumu," Mai smiled.

The orange spirit floated beside him and introduced herself, "Hello, miss. My name is Chen."

"And I'm Qing!" the green spirit flew over, bumping into the others. His excitement came off in waves.

Yi and Jun joined them in a calmer manner. Mai grinned brightly at the five of them. "I look forward to working with you all. Please take good care of me."

They rushed over to her, brushing up against her skin. Warm, fuzzy feelings coursed through her entire body. Her eyes closed, reveling in the feeling. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so safe, so calm. And she knew it wasn't just the spirits that had her feeling this way.

Opening her eyes, she found Lin staring back at her. The small smile, the one she'd been lucky enough to get accustomed to, graced his lips. She couldn't read the look in his eye, but her heart reacted anyways. The stupid thing sped up in her chest, making thought nearly impossible.

This man was supposed to help her block things. So, why was it that every time he came around, she started to let her guard down? He was quickly making his way into her heart. And he'd only made the mistake of being nice to her and helping her out. Was she just lonely?

But she'd always been lonely. This was different. Whatever she felt with him, it was unlike anything she'd felt with anyone else. It grew and grew with the time she spent by his side. He was like a beacon of light, calling her home. Drawing her closer.

"It's getting late, Mai," he warned, reluctance lacing his tone. But her name fell from his lips and that was all she heard echoing in her head. It was the first time he hadn't addressed her with her (fake) surname. And it felt like the first time he addressed the real her.

A little too slowly, his words did finally register. Another glance at the clock told her time was up. With a sigh, she started for the door. She turned around to give both Lin and his shiki one last smile. "Thank you for the lesson." ...and everything else.

Lin nodded, "See you, tomorrow."

"Tomorrow," Mai agreed, before stepping out into the empty hallway.

The warmth that held her in the room dissipated as she walked the hallway. Whatever spell he'd had her under still hadn't broke, but the distance did give her more leave to think. She knew she had to figure out how to control more than her budding powers. She also needed to gain control of her heart.

She couldn't have it trying to escape every time she thought of Lin. That conversation she'd overheard (eavesdropped on) was a necessary reminder. He didn't belong here. He had a home somewhere else. He had friends and a girl (friend?) waiting for him there. He probably missed them, having been stuck here for three months. And when he finished with whatever he was here for, he'd return.

And she'd still be here.

In a way, she kind of envied him. He had a place to return to, a place to call home. Although Mai had lived here for a few years (working at the same place, all the while), it never really felt like home. Sure, she had friends here - ones she loved strongly. But they all had homes and lives away from here. Even Ayako had another job lined up at her family's hospital. They could all leave at a moment's notice.

She'd always known this, deep down. So, why was it that this guy's departure was giving her heart palpitations? Why was he causing her to feel homesick for a place she'd yet to find? Why did she want so badly to find it with him?

She shook her head, causing Yi to buzz against her skin. The spirit sent a wave of curiosity over to Mai. But Mai just forced a smile. There was no point in dragging the spirit into her problems. Plus, Yi was likely to disagree with her plan to guard her heart. She seemed to encourage any situation that led to the opposite.

Mai had to wonder what the shiki's intentions were. They'd all but pushed her onto their master. And they were very concerned with her wellbeing. But why? It wasn't like she had anything remarkable about her. Except maybe the stupid abilities that started growing after they arrived.

Maybe that was why they were interested in her. It was the only thing she could think of. She probably wasn't even the first one they'd been like this towards. Though, that thought had her feeling a little sad.

She shoved all this down as the lobby came into view. And in it stood a friendly face. Yasuhara was leaning against the wall, with his hands in his pockets. His bespectacled grey eyes were hidden behind his bangs. His smirk turned into a grin when she arrived.

"Finally! I was starting to think I got stood up," Yasa teased.

"Sorry, I was distracted," Mai admitted sheepishly.

"What had you so distracted that you were late for a date with your bestest friend?" His eyes took on a mischievous glint as he opened the door.

Blood rushed to Mai's face as she ducked under his arm and outside. She hadn't told anyone about the training sessions with Lin. Heck, she hadn't even said anything about her newfound abilities. "Just, ya know...stuff."

He walked close, leaning down so no one on the street would overhear. "That stuff wouldn't have anything to do with a certain guest who's bed you crashed on would it?"

"Who told you?!" Mai shrieked, her face burning brighter than before. "It was Bou-san, wasn't it? The traitor."

"Don't blame him too much, sweetheart," he laughed. "He was merely worried about you. Poor thing was so out of sorts, he didn't even return my hug."

"I'm pretty sure he was fine, then," Mai mumbled.

Ignoring her, Yasu threw his arm around her shoulders. "I for one am proud of you. My little girl is all grown up."

She rolled her eyes at his fake tears and jabbed an elbow into his stomach, "Nothing happened."

"Ah, is that a sigh of disappointment, I hear?"

"I think your hearing's gone bad in your old age,"

"Really? Cause I think my hearing is in excellent health considering my age," Yasu quipped. "I don't think 104 ever looked so good."

Mai let out a laugh. "How's university life treating you, old man?"

"Me thinks the lady avoids-eth too much,"

"That's not a word - in any language,"

"It is in Yasunese,"

"Not a thing,"

"Now the lady protests too much,"

"Yasu!" Mai laughed, elbowing him again.

"Fine, fine! I'll play your little game," he conceded. "But don't think your time's not coming."

He did most of the talking as they made their way to their usual destination. He answered every question she had about his classes, his family, his social circle - all with an unusual ease. They paused when they reached the 24-HR convenience store that stood at the halfway mark between their respective abodes. Mai went one way to gather the snacks and Yasu went the other to prepare the ramen cups. Then, they met up again at one of the covered tables outside the store.

This had been their routine ever since he'd entered university. They usually met up once every couple of weeks to catch up over instant noodles. Although it wasn't the healthiest of meals, it was good for her soul. Yasuhara always had a positive and energetic look at life. He was a good influence on her - most days. Other days, he was attempting to talk her into seducing guests at the hotel.

"I think I have exhausted every single topic concerning me," Yasu said after slurping up the last of his noodles. His face morphed into an unusual look of seriousness. His all-seeing grey eyes pierced her, his glasses only magnifying the effect. "There's actually something I wanted to talk to you about."

Mai automatically straightened. His current demeanor was so unlike him. It scared her as much as it made her curious. "And what's that?"

He looked away for a moment. He swallowed, second guessing his decision. Then, he pinned her down with his gaze once again. Determination blazed in his eyes. "I know who you really are."

Mai froze. All the air in her lungs left. The blood drained from her face. Her heart stopped. Only to restart with a vengeance. She had to look away from his expecting expression until she could get her thoughts straight. Did he really know? What would he do with this information? Did it matter?

Taking a steadying breath, Mai returned his gaze cautiously. "H-how did - How did you find out?"

He scratched the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable. He knew he'd made her into this nervous wreck. "I noticed how unnerved you got when we were discussing Ikuto and then your outburst. It didn't feel like it was fueled by exhaustion. So, I did a little research. And I came across a video of you singing. The song sounded exactly like it did when you sang if for my birthday."

Of course he would notice. Despite his outward appearance, he was always observing and analyzing his surroundings. He picked up on things most people wouldn't. It was a trait that made him a great researcher. Which was awesome - unless the person he was looking into was you.

"Do you -" Mai stopped, her eyes burning. She begged the tears not to fall. "Are you mad?"

"Mad? Of course not!" he grinned at her. "Mai is still Mai. That doesn't change if you're a Taniyama or a Shibuya. Or Mrs. Last-name-of-the-guy-who's-bed-you-slept-in. You're still my best friend regardless."

Mai chunked a box of pocky at his head, but laughed all the while. "Good. And thank you."

"Now that's that out of the way, it's time to get serious," he opened the box up, offering her a portion of her ammo. "Did you really get stuck in closet with the Masako Hara?"

Mai groaned. The next few hours were her turn in the hot seat. She recalled the case and explained her connection with Masako. She broke down and told him about her abilities and how Lin agreed to train her. She didn't go into too much details about her visions or what they were about. But that was fine as he was more interested in teasing her about Lin's "training sessions" (his emphasis).

Mai left feeling lighter than she had in weeks. It was surprising, how much better she felt now that her secret was out. She had one less person to lie to. And he'd taken it rather well. Maybe she was just being paranoid by thinking everyone would hate her for it.

She skipped part of the way back to her apartment. Her mood was lifted so high, she almost missed it. The hair on her neck stood up. A chill ran down her spine. Every nerve in her body was on edge. Then, she heard it. The voice that haunted her nights.

"Hello, miss. Could you help me?" the voice purred, causing Mai's stomach to clench.

Mai kept walking, her pace a little faster than it had been before. The streets were still pretty full, despite the dark hour. She could pretend she didn't hear him. But everything in her told her it didn't work. His eyes were still on her, she could feel them. His pace was keeping up with hers.

Her apartment was only a couple block from here, but she didn't want to lead him there. She lived alone with minimal neighbors, most of whom were elderly. She didn't want to take the chance of him cornering her there. Her best bet was to go to the hotel, which was fortunately situated on this block.

She ducked into the lobby that she'd left the safety of only a few hours ago. He was still hot on her heals. Her eyes quickly scanned the lobby and the adjacent room for people she could trust. She came up short. Her breathing quickened with her pace as she weaved through the familiar halls. Her feet leading the way towards protection.

She kept going until she reached a room she instinctively knew was safe. She pulled out the key card that gave her access to every room in the hotel and unlocked the door. She rushed into the room. Throwing the door shut, she employed every locking system it had installed. The chain lock, the deadbolt, and of course the automatic locking mechanism were all secure. Then, she stood on her tiptoes to look out the peek hole.

There, in the middle of the hallway, he stood. His dark eyes looked darted around the hall, trying to figure out where she escaped to. His thin mouth was marred in a scowl. His hands were balled into fists at his side. Then, he stormed off.

"Vlad,"

As soon as he disappeared, Mai's knees gave out. Her mind replayed images of those girls. Of what he did. Of what he could've done to her. He saw her. He was after her. He almost had her. Mai covered her mouth as sobs shook her whole body. She didn't want to die like that. She didn't want her face plastered on the missing person posters.

She wanted to live.