STOP! Hear me out before you continue on with the fanfiction!
Do I have your attention? Good.
So, I feel like I should explain how this fic goes. Basically, it follows tightly with the MCU with Ghost Hunt tie ins. There will be a switch between ghost hunting, and Marvel stuff. Though, there is one arc that is solely just MCU based, but I promise you'll enjoy it! The first arc that we're in is the Continuation Arc, it starts almost a whole year after the events of Avengers and the end of Ghost Hunt. (2019 edit, lol, past me, more like a couple of months, if even.) With the original Ghost Hunt events leading through 2011 -corresponding with Iron Man 2, Thor, and the Incredible Hulk- and through 2012, ending a month or so after the Avengers.
If you're looking for a fanfiction filled with Romance, I'm sorry to disappoint. While there will be some romance later on in the story, there's nothing big happening in the first few arcs. And what does happen will all be a slow buildup. And the ships are still undetermined.
The flashbacks to the original Ghost Hunt episodes won't follow every episode, it will mainly be highlighted bits where Mai's background as an MCU character changes the cannon.
Also, there will be some small tie ins from other animes, but it will be base like a Stan Lee cameo, little, itty bitty, tiny roles. And I won't tie in any Marvel character that we haven't seen in the MCU yet, (except sandman, but sony has rights to him) because I have no idea what could or could not be cannon, especially with the FOX and Disney trying to work out their latest bargain.
That being said, thank you so much for reading, and enjoy this chapter.
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As soon as Heinrich and his wife left, Naru turned to Lin, "Lin, call Madoka and Luella, ask if they gave word of our business to anyone from America," Lin nodded. "Mai, get in contact with the others and ask them if their schedule is clear, Yasu included. And after that, I require more tea."
Mai deflated at the last bit, but did as was told.
At some point, Mai realized that they were running low on supplies, towards the end of her shift, she told Naru that she going on a supply run before they left. Naru simply nodded, "Bring the receipt back so that you can be compensated."
This left the girl shocked, but, she decided not to comment and left quickly.
Soon, Mai was in the shopping center with a cart full of tea, a new traveling tea set, case files, and some more power cords. Separated from all the office supplies were various packs of ammo and a high powered taser that Mai just couldn't resist. As Mai was contemplating the decision to check out or go look in the Motor section, someone had approached her.
The man leaned over her cart with a smug smile as he looked Mai up and down, and then into her cart.
"Hey there doll," He greeted with what he must have thought was a charming smile. "What's a sweet thing like you doing packing all this heat?" The man purred, leaning more over the cart and into Mai's personal space.
Mai stared blankly at him, then pushed the man away from her cart and continued on her way.
"H-hey? Come on baby, don't be like that," The man called as he ran after her. He reached out to grab Mai's shoulder.
Mai stopped, turned around and caught the man's hand just as it was about to make contact, she squeezed the hand tightly, feeling the satisfying crunch of the man's bones, before leaving him there to wither in pain.
Perhaps she should just go on to check out.
⦽The Real Side of Mai Taniyama⦽
"So, an American contact," Mai stated, not even bothering to look at the monitor as she sharpened some of her knives, "I'm guessing that was you."
"It was actually Agent Klein," Fury answered, "It's been a year, we need to see how they handle a S.H.I.E.L.D. level operative."
"So it's not a haunting?" Mai asked.
"Not according to your research no. There was never any kind of suspicious activity to happen in that building until recently. No events that would trigger a haunting, at least, none that we can identify." Nick informed her.
"So you testing my kids now, Uncle Nicky?" Mai teased.
"Essentially, if it turns out to be a normal haunting, then we'll see how they operate on foreign soil, if not, we'll see how well they can handle something outside of their pay grade."
"Am I going in alone?"
"I'm sending in a little back up."
⦽The Real Side of Mai Taniyama⦽
"How many of you can speak English?" Naru asked the next morning.
The whole team arrived at the SPR building early, with their suitcases at hand and a tired look on their face.
Ayako tilted her head to the side, "I'm very fluent, some of my studies as a doctor involved going to a few American programs."
"And I go on world tours all the time!" Monk claimed, "I don't know every language of the places I go to, obviously, but I've toured enough in English speaking countries, you know? So I felt the need to learn the language."
Masako calmly held nodded her head, "I'm much the same, I have an occult following here, and as well in countries likes the United States and England."
Naru nodded and looked over to Yasu and Mai, "And you two?"
Yasuhara gave a smile, "I started taking English lessons when I was twelve, I'm pretty well versed with the language."
Mai gave a shrug, "I'm fluent."
Monk gave a crooked grin, "So everyone here can speak English? Cool!"
The others murmured in agreement, while Naru narrowed his eyes at Mai, "English and German? Impressive, I wouldn't have thought that your limited cognitive abilities could support such a task."
"Whoa, what? Who can speak German and English?" Monk asked.
"When our client came in, he struggled to speak Japanese, Taniyama-san stepped in and conversed with him in German to make him comfortable," Lin answered from his place on the couch, not looking up from his laptop as he did so.
Mai sheepishly scratched the back of her neck, "Well yeah, my dad did a lot of international work, but there were some countries that he worked in frequently. I kinda had to learn a few languages from a very young age. If only to make living there easier."
"So you haven't lived in Japan you're whole life?" John asked, "Well now that I think about it, that makes sense."
Mai just shrugged.
A snapping sound drew everyone's attention, Naru was sitting up straighter, his head down and eyes closed in annoyance, "We're getting off topic. I want to give you all a quick rundown off the case and where we're going before we leave soon."
"What? Naru, can't it wait till we get there? We're all pretty tired," Mai complained.
"I don't pay you to whine Mai, tea."
Mai stomped off, all the while muttering about how he doesn't pay her to be his tea-slave as well.
"We'll be heading to New York, the building that the Heinrich's own is currently under the suspicion of being haunted. Thanks to Mai's translation, we know some of the occurrences that are happening there. Dr. Heinrich Schäfer and his wife Juliana recently moved to America, their new home was nice at first, but soon odd occurrences started to happen in their home. Frigid temperatures, moving objects, and strange noises. I'm guessing there aren't as many experienced paranormal researchers in the U.S., seeing as no one they've been to has been able to solve this case."
Monk nodded, "I have to agree, it sounds like a standard haunting. A poltergeist at least"
Ayako leaned forward, "If that's the case, then why are you taking this case, Naru? It's not really something you go for."
"Mrs. Schäfer said she got our information from an American contact, I checked in with Madoka and Martin," Naru pinched the bridge of his nose, "There is no one person in BSPR that knows the Schäfer's, I want to find out who's been recommending us, and how they know about us. Starting with knowing everything about our clients," he turned to Yasu, "That's where you come in, Yasuhara. I want you to find any and every bit of information about the two, and help Lin on researching the building."
Yasu nodded.
Mai entered with a tray of tea, being sure to give everyone theirs first before handing Naru his own cup. Her reward for her efforts to piss him off was a scowl.
"Is that everything we need to know?" Masako asked.
Naru nodded, "It is, we'll be leaving for the airport ten minutes from now."
⦽The Real Side of Mai Taniyama⦽
The flight over wasn't all that exciting and the SPR group was restless upon coming up to their hotel. The crew didn't even register how luxurious their accommodations we're until they split off between the girls and boys rooms. Mai looked around and let out a low whistle, while it was a standard hotel suite, it was quite spacious, and filled with very expensive articles and furniture. Masako and Mai were sharing a room, while Ayako got the master bedroom all to herself, not that either girl cared. They rather give Ayako what she wants than listen to her complain.
The next morning, the crew stood in front of the location of their haunting. It was a vacant apartment building, some of the windows boarded up, and weathering brick standing out against the pristine section of the street. It stood on the corner of the avenue, a rickety old guardian that simply looked tainted with bad memories.
"You would think that such high paying clients could afford a better place," Monk exclaimed as he set eyes on the place.
"They can," Yasu told him, slinging an arm over the monk's shoulder, ignoring how the older man squirmed, "The goal is to fix this place up, and open it as a new apartment complex. They certainly have the funds to do the project, and to hire a staff to run it."
"A pretty humble activity for a world-renowned bio and geoengineer," Mai muttered to herself.
Monk shrugged and went to open the door, but he immediately yanked his hand back once he made contact with the handle.
"Whoa," Monk said, staring at the door. The normally grand entrance was steadily being taken over by vegetation, growing at an unnatural pace.
"Is there another way to get in?" Ayako asked.
"Maybe, but it's likely that the other entrances are just as covered," John sighed.
Mai stepped up and studied the door closer, the familiar feel of magic, much like her own, but still somehow different. The vines tried to cling to Mai, who was forced to step back at the sheer speed it lashed out with. The magic reaching out to her, trying to pull her into… something.
Mai looked down and saw her fingertips start to turn blue, fighting the urge to curse she forced the color to change back.
"Well, how the hell are we supposed to-"
"Mai!" a voice called out.
Mai, startled out of her thoughts, turned around. Quickly spotting a very familiar blonde and tearing off in a dead sprint, jumping into his open arms.
"Steve!" Mai giggled as the young man twirled her around before setting her on the ground.
"God, I haven't seen you in a while," Steve said with a smile. "It's good to see you haven't changed much."
"Who are you?" Naru asked, interrupting the warm moment.
Mai scowled, "Naru, don't be rude!"
"He's interrupting our investigation, and distracting you from our task," He told her before directing a glare over at Steve, "You're obstructing an ongoing investigation. If you have no business here, leave. Mai can contact you on her own time."
Steve smiled charmingly, causing Naru's glare to intensify while Ayako and Masako blushed, "Actually," Steve said, "This is my case too." He walked over to Naru and held his hand out, "Hi, I'm Steven Roster, CSI."
Naru glanced at the hand briefly before looking Steve, no, Roster, in the eyes. "I'm Shibuya Kazuya, owner of Shibuya Psychic Research, and this is my team." He gestured over to the team and let them introduce themselves.
Monk was first to emerge, "Nice to meet you, man." He winced at the strength of the handshake, "Name's Hōshō Takigawa, friends call me Monk."
"Nice to meet you, Monk," Steve responded.
"I'm Ayako Matsuzaki," Ayako said in a sultry tone that made poor Steve blush, "You can call me Ayako though."
"Oy, old bat, don't make the handsome man uncomfortable," Monk taunted.
"What did you call me, you apostate monk!" Ayako shouted, swinging her bag at Monk's head.
"Dammit, woman! Will you stop swinging that at me?!" Monk yelled from his sprawled position on the ground.
"Ignore them," Masako said, stepping forward, "I am Masako Hara, it's a pleasure to meet you."
"Y-you as well." Steve stuttered, looking away from the arguing pair of employees.
"Hello mate, I'm John Brown," John greeted, a kind smile on his face.
Steve rose an eyebrow, "A fellow English speaker?"
"John's a priest from Australia," Mai told him.
"Koujo Lin," Lin said with a nod.
"And I'm Osamu Yasuhara! People call me Yasu!" Yasu surged forward with such energy that Steve staggered back a bit. "Hey, how do you know our lovely little Mai?"
"He's an old friend of my dad's," Mai explained, a sad smile on her face.
"Oh," Yasu said.
Mai waved him off, "Don't worry about it. Steve is a good family friend."
"With introductions out of the way," Naru said, ending the conversation, and stopping Monk and Ayako's skirmish that had continued in the background. "Maybe now we can figure out how to get inside."
Steve immediately dropped his friendly face, brows furrowed, "What seems to be the problem?"
"All the doors are blocked by thick foliage," Lin answered, inclining his head to the front entrance.
Steve walked over to inspect the door. After a second he let out a low whistle, "How do you suppose that happened?"
"We have no idea," Monk shrugged, "We've never seen anything like this before."
"Well, we won't get anything done waiting out here," Steve sighed, grabbing a handful of the vines.
"Whoa, wait a second, you don't honestly think you can just rip all that-" Monk was cut off by Steve ripping out a chunk of the plants.
"No way," Yasu whispered.
Roughly two minutes later, Steve had torn throw several feet of vines and created a wide enough entrance to get SPR and their equipment through.
"Wow, this place is, wow," Mai gasped, looking around.
The foyer was an old school kind of grand. With a high ceiling, a modest chandelier, and towering windows. Sunlight barely filtered through the windows, what, with them being covered by boarded planks and twisting vines.
Nature had taken back what was hers, plants of all types encompassed the entrance hall. There were patches of grass breaking through the ground, flowers and vines climbed the walls. And moss covered the furniture.
"They sure let this place go," Ayako commented, "How long do you think it took for this to build up?"
"Five weeks," Naru answered.
"What! No way!" Ayako yelled.
"We're in the center of New York, this shouldn't have been possible," Naru continued, "It seems that our clients forgot to mention one other strange occurrence happening here."
"Can a ghost even do this?" Yasu asked.
"That's what we're here to find out." Naru sighed.
"Um… Mai, do you mind, uh?" Steve stammered, his eyes darting between the whole SPR group.
Mai giggled, "We were just talking about how this kind of plant growth couldn't have happened naturally."
Steve nodded in understanding, "I agree. Something here is definitely off."
"If you don't mind me asking, Mr. Rogers, why is the CSI investigating this?" John asked.
"It landed in our field of investigation due to the strange incident reports we've been receiving." Steve answered easily, "And please, call me Steve."
"Incident reports?" Naru questioned.
Steve nodded again, crossing his arms across his chest as he leaned back on one of the plant covered sofas, "Yeah, a few weeks ago, the police started getting strange calls. Workers complaining about how there was something going on in this building. Shortly after, the police would get more emergency calls, workers have been sent to hospitals with unexplained injuries. They claim that they've all fallen off of a ladder, or scaffolding, but, their injuries tell another story. Broken bones, the skin bruised, as if someone wrapped a rope tightly around them. Congested lungs, filled with an alarming amount of pollen. And symptoms that can only be associated with hyperthermia.
What's more, is that the owners, the Schäfer's had also suffered. Linda Schäfer had a sprained ankle, and Heinrich Schäfer acquired a concussion."
The SPR team looked on stunned.
"I assume they haven't told you this," Steve asked.
"Not at all," Naru stated.
"Well," Mai sighed, "This just got interesting."
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
~FILE: ROOTS~
Ghost Hunt
File 1: Evil Spirits all over? Part 1
Mai's shoulder hurt.
Not to say that the rest of her body doesn't hurt, but her right shoulder was especially pained. For all the abilities that Mai possess, invulnerability is not one of them. And though Mai has a high pain tolerance, a shotgun blast to the shoulder still stings like a bitch.
"Come on Mai!" Michiru called, hurriedly grabbing Mai's arm and dragging her along. Mai let out a barely audible hiss as she felt her wound tear.
"Well I don't have much of a choice now, do I?" Mai questioned as she followed after Michiru, with their friend Keiko right behind them.
"So we're meeting in the AV room after school right?" Keiko asked.
"Definitely! Oh, if only some cute boys would come as well!" Michiru sighed.
Mai rolled her eyes, she was positive that most of the guys at their school were either focused on classwork, or sports, so the idea of coming to a ghost story telling club was probably the least appealing thing they've ever come across. "Well, I hope you're ready girls! Cause I've got a really scary one for you guys tonight!"
Both Michiru and Keiko paled.
"Oh, no…."
⦽The Real Side of Mai Taniyama⦽
"...So then, they say that the girl brought a policeman back to the public restroom. Then, shortly after she went inside, like the policeman told her to, she heard the creepy voice once again!"
"Do you want me to cover you with a red coat?"
"Without realizing it… Y-yes… the girl answered. And then…" Mai screamed, shocking the girls in front of her, "The policeman hurriedly opened the door, and the girl was dripping with blood, almost as though she were covered in a red cape!"
"Eww!" Keiko gasped.
"Mai, don't use that scary voice," Michiru begged.
Mai just smiled happily, though there was a haunted glint in her eyes. The story was really just a fictional version of one of her more recent missions. The thought of it had Mai rubbing her shoulder again.
"You're up last, Michiru." Mai said.
Michiru sighed, "Okay, mine's about the old schoolhouse."
Mai tilted her head, the footsteps that she heard earlier had halted, and were now making their way towards the classroom.
"The old one?" Keiko asked, "You mean that half-collapsed wooden one?"
Michiru solemnly nodded, "It didn't collapse… Construction work on it was stopped. Because of a curse. There have been a lot of people that have died in that old schoolhouse, including a teacher, who committed suicide. So, when they were going to build the new school, I heard that they were working to knock it down, but then… The building almost completely collapsed on the workers! So, the work was suspended. Last year, they started again, to rebuild the gymnasium, but then, a truck went out of control and crashed out onto the field where they were having class, and a student died."
Both Mai and Keiko flinched back, only Keiko's was more out of sincerity. In the back of Mai's mind, she couldn't help drawing all the logical conclusions that could explain the strange occurrences. All of which checked out.
"What's more," Michiru continued, "and I heard this from one of the upperclassmen, but one night, as she was passing by the old school… She swore she saw some sort of appreciation in the window."
Mai did as Keiko did and swung her body back full force, all the while listening to the sound of someone else entering the room.
Michiru flicked off her switch. "Ready?" She asked, the game was an old one that the girls have been playing for a while. After each girl told their own ghost story, they would switch off their light, and then they would each count off at the end. Supposedly, there is supposed to be an extra person at the end. The extra person is meant to be a spirit.
"One," Michiru stated calmly.
"Two," Keiko breathed.
Mai muttered out, "Three," under her breath.
And then…
"Four," A cold and slightly bemused voice called out.
Keiko and Michiru instinctively flinched, while Mai looked up and directly at the source of the sound. She heard a sharp intake of breath from the intruder, before her thoughts were derailed by the other two girls screaming, with Keiko clinging to Mai's neck.
"No!"
"It's here!"
Mai giggled at them as the lights flicked on. When she saw the boy standing by the doorway, since he was obviously no older than she, Mai fell into full blown laughter as she clumsily detangled Keiko from her person.
"W-was that you just now?" Michiru asked, her eyes still glancing around the room nervously.
The boy removed his hand from the incriminating position of being over the light switch, and let it rest down by his side, "Was I out of line?" he questioned, his head tilting just the smallest bit.
Michiru and Keiko collapsed against there chairs in relief, leaving Mai to collect herself from the ground, small little giggles still escaping from the slight girl.
"Oh god, I was so scared, I could hardly move!" Keiko sighed.
"My apologies, it's very late and the room was dark, I didn't think anyone was still here," the boy started explaining as he walked forward, "but then I heard voices, and couldn't help myself."
The girls, minus Mai, seemed to perk up as they took in the boy's entire appearance, a slight blush taking over.
"N-not at all! That's okay!" Keiko stuttered out, before turning to glare at Mai, "Besides, it seems like you didn't manage to slip past someone's radar."
Mai shrugged, "I didn't care if we got caught, and your reaction was hilarious," she defends herself with a teasing grin that did nothing to help her case.
Keiko rolled her eyes before both she and Michiru rushed over to the boy. "So, what year are you?" She asked.
"I'll turn seventeen this year," the boy replied in kind.
Mai's brow furrowed over that. It was a strange reply, to answer with his age, why not just say he was a second year? And to top it off, the longer Mai listened, the easier to tell that the boy isn't native to Japan, or at least, hasn't been in Japan for a long time. She could just barely hear the European lit in his accent, not enough for the average person to pick up on, but enough for someone who has been training under the Black Widow for years now.
"We were telling ghost stories," Michiru told the boy.
"I see. Would you mind terribly if I joined?" The boy, damn Mai needs to find his name so she can stop referring to him as boy, asked with a fake smile.
Keiko looked excited, "Huh? Senpai, you like ghost stories too?"
"Sure," the boy nodded, causing the two girls to laugh.
Mai, who had been lingering in the background, approached the trio.
"Um, could you tell us what your name is?" Michiru asked sheepishly. Mai immediately tuned in, needing some form of information on the guy.
"Shibuya, Shibuya Kazuya."
Fake name? Mai thought, tilting her head as she studied the boy. Oh, this just got interesting.
"Hm, Shibuya-san," Mai spoke, drawing the attention and ending the ceaseless babbling of her two friends, Mai leaned forward with a slightly inquisitive look on her face, "what is your business here?"
"There's something I needed to take care of," Shibuya answered as he walked around the classroom.
Mai gave a knowing smile as she tilted her head to the side, "Then, shouldn't you get to it?"
Michiru and Keiko quickly followed the boy, "We can help, if you need it!" Michiru practically squealed.
"No, thank you." Shibuya rejected the girls, "Instead, would you let me join in the next time you tell ghost stories?"
Mai smirked in her head, Not so subtle, but I'll give you points. Now, what information can you gain from ghost stories?
"Of course!" Keiko accepted the request brightly.
"How about tomorrow, after school?" Michiru offered.
Mai sighed and shook her head. It seems that they'll have some company tomorrow.
⦽The Real Side of Mai Taniyama⦽
The next day, Mai was walking back to school fully armed with information, and the determination to get close with "Kazuya Shibuya," or, more accurately, Oliver Davis. A well known and famous parapsychology researcher that had attended and graduated from University early. He wrote his own novel on the subject and began to work under his adoptive father, Martin Davis. He has a twin as well, who is just as genius, Eugene Davis.
Mai never personally known Eugene, but from what she read, he seemed interesting. He was actually apart of the SPE (S.H.I.E.L.D. Paranormal Enforcement) initiative before he went MIA. Now that she thinks about it… She should contact Fury and ask if she can follow that trail as well.
Suddenly, Mai felt a shift in the atmosphere. Dazed, she blinked and looked to the side to see the old school building sitting in all its crooked glory. "If I didn't know any better, with the way it looks now, those stories sure do ring true, don't they?" Mai asked no one in particular, studying the building. She sent out her senses to see if she could find the reason for her disturbance of peace, she paused when she felt a… camera?
"Right, he's an investigator," Mai muttered to herself, coming up closer to the building and peering in through the doors windows. Shrugging, Mai walked in to investigate herself. She figured, if the camera caught her, she'd only look like a curious student.
Pretty wicked equipment, but, with such a rich family, I guess you could afford something this expensive, Mai thought as she knelt next to the camera, touching the side to get a better view of the model.
"Who's there!" Someone yelled, at once shocking Mai into flinching back. Damnit, Mai cursed, and this is why you always pay attention to your surroundings, idiot, you're better than that!
Waving off her slight embarrassment, Mai slipped back into the role of a nervous teen, "I'm sorry, I was just, um…"
Then the shoe rack began to fall.
"Shit!" Mai yelled, quickly getting up and then dodging clear out of the way of the case. She almost didn't register the gasp of surprise- which soon turned into pain -from behind her. Once the dust settled, she looked behind her to see a man, most likely in his mid to late twenties, sprawled on the ground.
"Sir, can you hear me?" Mai asked while she checked his pulse, the man in question groaned, barely responding to the question. Mai cursed under her breath and began to help the man up.
"What happened?" A familiar voice called.
Before Mai could answer, Oliver rushed over and knelt down next to the man, "Lin, what happened?" he asked as, presumingly, Koujo Lin pushed himself up. "You're a bit cut up."
"Yeah," Lin grunted.
"I'm sorry, he startled me and-" Mai began but was cut off.
"Never mind the explanations. Are there any doctors around here?" Oliver asked.
Mai nodded, she got up to help Lin while she explained, "Yeah, there's one not too far from here-" again, she was cut off when Lin slapped her hand away.
"No thank you. I do not need your help," he told her, "You've done enough."
Mai glared at him, "Excuse me? You're the one that not only startled me, but got himself injured. Not every person you come across is a damsel in distress, I was well out of the way of that shoe rack, and you were nowhere near it when it began to fall!"
Ignoring the two shocked men, she went to his other side and helped to support him, "Besides, I only told you that the hospital is near here. You don't know how far, or how to get there. Suck it up, stuff your pride, and let's go."
Oliver tilted his head as they began to walk, "You're that girl that I met yesterday, what's your name?"
Mai didn't even look over, "Taniyama Mai."
"Are you sure you want to join us, Taniyama-san?" Oliver asked, "The school chimes sounded just moments ago."
Mai gave a nervous chuckle, "I'll just explain the situation, it's not like I'm behind in classes anyway."
After that the walk descended into awkward silence.
When the trio arrived at the hospital, they were immediately rushed to by a nurse.
"Mai! What happened this time?" She asked.
"A man playing hero," Mai simply answered, helping Lin sit down and ignoring his scathing look.
⦽The Real Side of Mai Taniyama⦽
"I've got to go," Mai told them, packing up to leave from school.
"Eh, you're going home, Mai?" Michiru asked, "What about our meet up with Shibuya-san?"
Mai huffed, blowing a piece of hair out of her face, "That's what I came to tell you. I don't really care guys," she told them. Besides, with an injured bodyguard, I doubt he'll be out and about.
"No way! I don't believe you!" Keiko yelled, "This is a chance to tell ghost stories together with a cute guy!"
"Ghost stories you say?" an annoyed voice asked, Mai and the others looked over to see Kuroda, a girl who personally got on Mai's nerves, approach them. "Is that what you've been doing every day? No wonder I've been having headaches. I am very spiritually sensitive. When spirits amass together, I get severe headaches."
Mai resisted rolling her eyes, "You can't be saying that it's our fault," she deadpanned.
"Of course it is!" Kuroda exclaimed, "When you tell ghost stories, low-level spirits come together. Then, that summons stronger spirits, and it's bad news when that happens."
"Then we would have more incidents that we normally do, now wouldn't we?" Mai asked her, "Get real, ghost stories aren't summoning, to do something like that, even with 'low-level' spirits, you need intent on doing so."
"Like you would know anything!" Kuroda growled, stepping forward, "Those stories summon spirits, and spirits attract more spirits. That's why you can't entertain yourselves by telling ghost stories."
"You there," Someone interrupted, the girls turned to see Oliver- Kazuya, standing in the doorway. "If you are spiritually sensitive, then do you sense anything from the old school house?"
Mai grimaced as her friends swooned, "Ah, it's Shibuya-senpai!"
"Are you the one who put these girls up to telling ghost stories?" Kuroda asked, ignoring Mai's snort at the accusation.
"You didn't answer my question," Kazuya countered, tilted his head to the side, "Maybe you're not spiritually sensitive after all."
"For your information, there are numerous spirits of those that died in the war gathered in the old school house." Kuroda said, instantly on the defensive, "In fact, I'm positive that the school was used as a hospital. For the soldiers that got hurt in the war."
"Careful Kuroda," Mai said in a sing-song voice, "Your local historian is in the same room as you."
Kuroda stuttered to a stop and was about to set off on Mai, but was interrupted by Kazuya.
"I did not know that there was a hospital here during the war," he stated while crossing his arms, "I had heard that the school had been here before the war. Perhaps it was a medical school then?"
"Wrong on both accounts," Mai muttered under her breath.
"I don't know!" Kuroda huffed, "But I did see them! Someone who isn't spiritually sensitive like you could never understand that!"
"Shibuya-senpai?" Keiko stepped in, a nervous look on her face, "Can we call it off for today?"
Michiru nodded, "I'm not up for ghost stories either."
"No? Well, another time maybe," Kazuya said as she turned to leave. He paused and turned back, "Taniyama-san… Might I have a moment?"
Mai pouted a bit, she was hoping to go home. She sighed, "Yeah, I guess."
The two of them exited the class and walked in silence for a few minutes.
"Um, how's your friend from earlier?" Mai asked.
Kazuya nodded. "Yes, about him. He's sprained his left leg. He won't be able to stand for a while."
Mai scratched the back of her head, "Sprains suck. I'm super sorry about that."
Kazuya said nothing.
Mai shrugged and decided to do a little snooping, "So Shibuya-san, what's the deal between you two?"
Kazuya just said, "Assistant."
"Oh," Mai paused, expecting to hear Koujo Lin's actual occupation rather than that, "So you're his assistant?" Mai asked, figuring that the two of them are undercover for… something.
"The opposite," he stopped and turned around, "He's the assistant, and I'm the boss."
Mai couldn't help her jolt of surprise. That's their cover? When you two came up with your cover story, you had amazingly failed, Mai remarked smartly in her head.
Ignoring her shock, he continued, "Now my assistant is out of commission, I think you have an obligation here."
"Like hell, that wasn't my fault," Mai growled, pissed.
"The camera is broken too," Kazuya pressed on.
"Isn't that insured?"
"He was trying to stop you from touching the camera, now I'm down an assistant."
Mai had enough, "That's his fault for playing hero," Mai snapped. She sighed at the hard look he gave her, "Fine, how much was the camera."
"Probably more than you have," He told her.
Mai sighed again. Yeah, well, even as an agent, she probably can't afford whatever Richie-Rich bought. "You mean, um…" How many zeros could it be?
"You couldn't reimburse me," Kazuya said, proving her prediction correct.
"I shouldn't have to," Mai reminded him.
"Which means, there is only one course that you can take."
"Legally I could walk away."
"You'll work as my substitute assistant."
Mai quickly cut off her argument, a bit of shock on her face. "Y-your what?" Mai stifled a giggle, but it did nothing to hide her shaking shoulders and the mirth in her eyes. "If you needed help Shibuya-san, you could've asked.
"I suppose so," Kazuya shrugged.
Mai nodded, "So, what is your work?" How well are you at remaining undercover.
"Ghost hunting," he told her, in English.
Answer: Not at all.
On the outside, Mai simply tilted her head questioningly, her eyebrow rising a way that said 'come again?'
"The correct translation would be 'Ghost Exterminator,' I suppose," Kazuya explained offhandedly, "I'm from Shibuya Psychic Research, we were hired by the principal to investigate the old schoolhouse."
Keeping with her cover, Mai gave a confused look, furrowing her eyebrows, "Saikiku Risachi?"
"Is that a question?" Kazuya asked, before walking away.
Yes, you ass, Mai thought. Anyone who doesn't actually understand English wouldn't have understood you speaking in fucking English!
"'Psychic' means 'spiritual'. 'Research' means 'investigation.' In other words, Shibuya Psychic Research is a spiritual phenomenon investigative bureau." Kazuya stopped walking and looked back at her. "And I am its manager."
Very inconspicuous.
⦽The Real Side of Mai Taniyama⦽
oSo yeah, I took time to go back and edit this, I'm half awake though, so I don't know how much I actually fixed. (2019, nothing at all. Jeez)
And yes, Steven Roster is Steve Rogers, it's stated that he began working as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent after Avengers, so, here you go.