Well here it is, the long awaited finale of the England trip! I hope no one is disappointed with this ending. Enjoy!
15-England Part 5
The drive to the property felt like an eternity, as Lin drove the group in silence. At least Mai was able to identify the odd feeling she woke up with. I guess my intuition was trying to warn me about this, she thought as they pulled up to the property.
She had a small nagging thought that maybe Evangeline was faking this. That she simply hid so that Naru would have to go looking for her. But she swallowed the thought when she remembered the case where Masako was taken by Urado. If there was the slightest chance that the spirits had chosen her as their next victim, Mai couldn't allow pettiness to determine life or death.
Once they reached Base, they found Martin reviewing the tapes, cursing under his breath as he did. "I told her to not come here alone," he muttered, adding something about how the girl's father was going to him. "It looks like she arrived around seven and then around seven thirty she left Base. I came in a little after eight so she's been missing ninety minutes at least."
"Did you find out where she went after she left Base?" Mai offered. "If we have a general direction of where she could have gone then we have a basic idea of where to look."
Martin shook his head. "After I searched the house for her I started checking the cameras. The most I could find was here going out back toward the forest and then the camera went to snow. We have an entire forest to search."
Mai's stomach felt like lead after what Martin said. There's no way she could have only erased the footage of one camera and snuck back out to hide, Mai realized as she bit her lip. She's really missing and could very well be dead by now-
Evangeline is alive.
And there it was. Her intuition as most would call it. Over the years, Mai had learned to fully trust this instinct, if it was telling her that Evangeline was alive, then she was going to believe it.
"Let's split up," Madoka suggested. "Martin, you'll stay here and keep an eye on things in case she does come back." No one looked hopeful of that thought. "Lin and I will take the left side of the lake, you two can take the right side. She has a head start, but hopefully we can get somewhere in finding her before it gets dark."
Unfortunately, luck was not on their side. Naru made sure Mai was close to him as they searched the forest. By the tension she could see in his jaw muscle, she knew he was worried. And if he was anything like the man she fell in love with, he most likely felt somewhat responsible. So she looked up at him as she laced her fingers with his and said, "We're going to find her, Naru."
It took him a moment to realize she spoke in Japanese, but he looked at her with an almost amused look in his eyes. "Your intuition?"
She smirked and shook her head. "No, my determination."
They continued to search until the sun started going down, then they decided to regroup in Base and come up with a plan. "We have plenty of flashlights, I'm willing to search all night if we have to," Madoka said as they munched on sandwiches Luella had packed for them.
"We need an actual plan," Naru retorted, crossing his arms. Mai almost rolled her eyes.
"Well, it's too soon to file a missing person's report, right?" Mai answered, putting her sandwich down. Lin nodded in confirmation. "So our only option is to continue blindly searching the forest."
Martin turned to his son, holding out a small pocketbook. "Oliver, can you see if she's still alive?" he asked. Naru reached over and held the bag, closing his eyes.
Mai watched as a wave of relief passed over her boyfriend, not that anyone else noticed the change of emotion. "She's alive, for now."
"Wait a minute!" Mai exclaimed as an idea came to her. She smacked her forehead for not thinking of this sooner. "I know how to find her!"
"Out with it, Mai!" Madoka exclaimed.
"I can project-"
"No." Naru's voice was stern and cold. It sent a shiver down everyone's spine, but only cause Mai to scowl.
"As in astral projection?" Martin clarified, his chin in his hand. Mai nodded, ignoring her boyfriend's glares.
"Yes, most of my visions occur on the astral plane. I managed to find a friend of ours when a spirit attacked her," Mai explained, shooting a look to her boyfriend. "Normally, one of my guides pulls me into the plane, but I have been able to get there on my own-"
"And it nearly killed you," Naru interrupted, the look in his eyes was hard. "Or have you forgotten?"
"And you using your PK has nearly killed you," Mai spat back, her heart racing. "Or have you forgotten?"
"I at least know my limits, we have no idea where that line is drawn with you."
"Well, no time like the present to try it out, right?" She smirked and his eyes narrowed.
"The problem last time was," Lin interrupted from his seat, finally deciding to referee, "when she went to the astral plane while still conscious even with a life line, she started to lose consciousness because she was there too long."
"As long as you keep me grounded and I have one of my guides, I'll be just fine," Mai argued, looking at Naru.
"Are you sure you can find her this way?" Martin asked, Mai nodded.
"It's our best shot," she said, turning back to Naru she spoke in Japanese. "I don't know her well and honestly, I wasn't a fan of hers when I arrived. But I'm not going to let her die because I didn't try hard enough!"
Naru closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He reached over and took Mai's hand. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Mai nodded. "Fine, but the moment I feel you slip I'm pulling you back."
"Fine." Mai agreed and took a deep breath before closing her eyes. Please, help me find her.
When Mai opened her eyes she was no longer in Base surrounded by the team. She could still feel the pressure of Naru's hand, but knew she was no longer next to him. "Mai, where are you now?" she heard his voice say, but it sounded so far away, like an echo.
Mai surveyed the area around her. "I'm in the forest," she answered, but knew it most likely came out as a whisper.
"Do you see Evangeline?" Mai shook her head, knowing her physical action was much slower.
"No, but I know I'm no far from her." She blinked her eyes and saw a familiar face. "I see Gene."
"Does he want you to follow him?" She nodded. "Follow him, Mai. Quickly."
Mai ran after the spirit as he faded and Mai was brought to a large rock formation that was far away from the lake. She found an opening of a cave in the rocks and went in, feeling the grip of her boyfriend's hand fade. "Naru?"
"Did you find her?" He was getting further away. I don't have much time.
"Cave." Was all she could make her physical body say. She had to hurry when she saw Gene's glowing body point her down toward the cave.
Despite the darkness, Mai could see the texture of the cave walls. And while Naru's voice was fading she could hear something else. "Eve? Eve?" Mai called following the sound of the crying. She blinked and she was no longer wandering the cave, but looking at an upset blonde. "Eve? Are you hurt?"
"I must be dreaming if you're being nice to me. There's no way you could have found me," the blonde sobbed as she wiped her tears with her sleeves.
"Mai? Mai? Answer me!" Naru was impatient as ever. And worried.
"Found Eve." She knew her whisper would be faint and Naru would pull her back any moment, but she had to tell the crying girl something. "Eve, everything's going to be okay, we're going to find you."
"I'm already dead, there's not hope for me." Mai resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she put her hand in her pocket.
"Give me your hand," she ordered, placing the small object in the British girl's palm. "I'm going to tell you what I told someone else who was in your position. This key was to the house that I lived in with my parents before they died, I carry it as my good luck charm-"
"Can't be much luck if they're-" But the girl looked from the key to the Japanese girl's face and stopped herself as a tear fell. "I'm sorry. That was-"
"We'll discuss that later," Mai said, shaking her head as she felt a tug on her arm. "You're alive, and I'm giving you this key as your piece of reality to hold onto. I want it back so you can be sure that we will find you."
"Mai?" Evangeline's eyes filled with more tears as she looked up at the girl who was so kind to her in this moment. "Mai, I'm so-"
She never finished. The pull on Mai's wrist was too strong.
Mai's eyes snapped open as a whoosh of air filled her lungs. She had slumped back in her seat on the couch, Naru's arm was around her shoulders to keep her from falling over. She took a few deep breaths as everyone stared at her. "She's alive, there's a cave deep in the forest on the right side of the lake," Mai blurted as she jumped up only to fall back into Naru's arms.
"Are you sure?" Madoka asked, placing a hand on the girl's forehead.
Mai reached into her pocket and groped for her key. It was gone. "She has my charm. I couldn't have given it to her if she were dead," she answered, shaking Madoka's hand off of her. She slowly stood up. "Let's go!"
"You heard her," Naru said with a smirk as he followed her out, never once breaking the connection of their hands.
Loaded with flashlights, some rope, and fully charged phones, all five of them set off into the woods. With Mai leading the way, they found the cave after about an hour and a half of hiking. "No wonder no search teams went in here," Madoka remarked aloud. "Just looking at it, you can barely tell this is even a cave."
"Which way, Mai?" Martin asked, pointing his light down the cave. Mai closed her eyes and visualized where she went in her vision.
"Straight down, but be careful, there's a hole in the ground and that's where Eve is. It's where they all went," Mai explained as they walked down the narrow passage. "Eve! Where are you!"
Soon the whole group joined in calling for the blonde. "Over here! Help! I'm stuck!" Mai's light hovered over a dark spot in the cave floor and he rush over to peer over the hole.
"Eve! Are you hurt?" Mai called, pointing her light away from the girl's face so to not blind her.
"No, I just can't get out of here," the blonde replied as Lin came up to the edge and let down the rope he was carrying. Naru gently guided Mai away from the hole, but not before she caught a glimpse of the decaying bodies below. Luckily it seemed that it was too dark for Evangeline to have noticed as she was only complaining about the dark and how horrendous it smelled.
Mai couldn't blame her for hating the smell, she herself had to be led out of the cave before she could vomit her sandwich from earlier. She took some deep breaths of fresh air as she slid down against the rock wall to the ground, where Naru joined her. The projection still had taken a lot out of her. But when Naru wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to his side, she felt proud of what she was able to do.
"You did good, Mai," Naru said as he kissed her forehead. He's proud too, I'm glad.
Later that night, the police had been called and had taken the statements of the group as to how they discovered the bodies. Afterwards, the group went back to the Davis Mansion and were enjoying some hot tea in the living room. "Where're Martin and Noll?" Luella asked as she handed out the cups of tea.
"In Martin's study," Madoka replied, accepting her cup. "I think they're finishing up a few details."
"I'll go bring them their tea, Lord knows how long they'll take," Luella said with a roll of her eyes. Meanwhile, Mai had taken her seat on the windowsill, which gave her a rather nice view of the moon.
She had barely touched her tea, since her stomach was still flipping after seeing the bodies at the bottom of the hole. At least the families will now have closure, she thought with a sigh.
"Mai?"
She jumped at the sound of her name, only to turn around to see the voice belonged to the blonde they had been looking for earlier. "You startled me, Eve, what's up?" Mai asked.
"May I?" the other girl answered, gesturing to the empty space on the windowsill. Mai nodded and scooted over so she could sit down. She rifled through her pocket and pulled out a key. "I wanted to give this back to you."
"Thank you," Mai smiled, accepting the key and placing it in her pocket. The blonde scrunched up her face and sighed as she slouched.
"I'm sorry, Mai," she said, resting her head against the glass. "I'm so sorry I was such a bitch to you and you still went out of your way to find me." Mai opened her mouth to say something, but the blonde shot her a look. "And don't you dare say 'it was no big deal' Madoka told me what happened when you suggested projecting your spirit to find me." Mai closed her mouth. "Thank you, for doing that. And for standing up to Noll to find me."
Mai actually managed to smile. "You're welcome, Eve."
And the two sat in silence for a minute, both looking up at the night sky. Until Evangeline finally looked at the girl next to her with sad eyes. "You really love him, don't you?" Mai didn't even have to hesitate as she smiled.
"Yes, I do," she said, looking back with sympathetic eyes. "You do too, don't you?" Eve nodded. "I'm sorry, Eve."
The blonde gave her the most confused look. "What the bloody hell are you sorry for?" Mai couldn't help but giggle.
"I'm sorry you had the misfortune to fall for that narcissist too," she laughed. It even got the blonde to laugh. "I'm also sorry I never gave you a chance."
"I'm the one who should be sorry." Evangeline rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "I let my inner green monster get the better of me and tried to come between you two. And you still went out of your way to save me. I can't compete with you, I'm not that good of a person."
"Well, why don't we stop trying to compete?" Mai suggested with a shrug. "I'm here for another week and a half, think it's possible to start fresh?"
"I'd like that," Evangeline admitted with a smile. "It's probably time I moved on from Noll, with how dedicated he is to the branch in Japan, I could never move there."
Mai simply laughed and shook her head. "If it makes you feel better, I don't think I would be able to move out here. My whole life is back in Japan."
"Noll's family and life is here," the blonde commented absently and let out a breath with a shrug. "Gene was always the more adventurous one between them. He would've been the one to move across the globe and start a new life." She looked at the brunette for a moment and smiled. "I'm glad Gene was able to inspire Noll to give it a shot. It seems to be working out for him."
Across the room, with a smile on her face Madoka nudged her husband. "Well, I'm glad things seem to be working out for them."
"I take it you'll be filling in Ayako and Kiko tonight?" Lin said with a smirk.
"I have to, I don't think Mai's going to call them." She looked at her husband reading his face. "Don't give me that look, I wasn't expecting Eve to say such things to her a couple days ago. I honestly thought she would back off when Noll only showed Mai interest."
Lin smirked and sipped his tea again. "What do you think Luella and Martin are going to say?"
"Well, they're probably just going over the final report of the case-"
"That's not why they're all taking so long."
Madoka's eyes widened as she playfully smacked his arm. "You're not saying-"
"I didn't say anything."
"Why did he tell you first!"
In Martin's study, he sat at his desk while his son was leaning against the window. Luella had just walked in and brought them tea. "Mother, stay for a moment," Naru said, as the woman decided to take a seat in one of the plush chairs in front of the desk.
"If you're wondering what I think of her," Luella said with a smirk on her face. "I think she's wonderful. And I see what Madoka meant, I see a little bit of Gene in her, but she's definitely different from him."
Naru nodded and turned to his father. "Well, she certainly exceeded any expectation I could come up with," he said with a shrug. "She also has very strong psychic abilities and it seems you two sync very well with each other, so I'm not sure what exactly you're looking for from me. It's not like you've ever needed to go out of your way for my approval. What's this about?"
And Luella's smirk turned into a grin as she started to realize what exactly her son was trying to tell her. "Out with it, Noll!"
At that, he smirked. "I think I'm going to marry her."
And then backtrack about 10 chapters and we have exactly how Naru proposed lol. This is a short chapter and far less detailed than what I'm used to doing for my Dangerous Souls fic, but I really only expected this to be about 3 chapters and I didn't want to have to make a whole other fic for it. Anyway, I'll have another update for this fic by the end of the week (pretty much because I already have it almost finished lol) I'm going to have Dangerous Souls updated this week too (I hope) Next week there will be no updates since I'll be visiting family for Easter break and won't really have much time to write.
Anyway I hope you all enjoyed and please let me know what you think! As for Mai and Eve becoming friends? I think they're at least on friendly terms now. I don't think we're going to see her reappear again tbh. But at least she's not going to try to steal Naru away right? Maybe Gene paid her a visit? What are your thoughts?