boooooOOoOOOo it's almost Samhain ^▽^


Friday, October 31

"You're late."

Mai stood panting in front of the set of identical boys.

"I'm sorry," she managed to breathe out, "alarm didn't go off." Naru crossed his arms in front of him. Gene patted her back and maneuvered her over to the bench to sit and steady herself. Lin hopped out of the car they had been standing next to.

"Oh, hi, Lin," she greeted in a polite tone. Lin nodded in response.

"Hara-san and Brown-san will be here shortly," Naru picked up a book from the bench and began to skim through it. Mai huffed, finding it unfair she was called out for being late while there were others even later than she.

"Wait… Masako's coming?"

"Well, she is a pretty well acclaimed medium in our field," Gene rubbed the back of his neck. Mai tilted her head to the side and looked at him confused.

"Medium?"

"For your sake, in simplest terms a medium is someone who can communicate with spirits," Naru wrote something in his book, then closed it with a snap.

"Thanks so much for dumbing it down," she grumbled and crossed her arms with a huff.

"You're welcome," he checked his watch, crossed his arms, and looked out to the road.

"I can't believe you convinced Naru to let you come," Gene whispered to her.

"Me neither, it's all kind of a blur now," she shrugged.

Soon after, Masako made her way over to the group and was shortly followed by John. Introductions were made, and Naru wasted no time in getting straight to work.

"Hara-san, I would like you to walk the trail a bit to try and sense where the spirit may be residing. Gene, you will ask those currently here if they have heard or seen anything about this matter. Then Brown-san will attempt to purify it. Lin, you'll stay here," He spoke in a cool tone.

"What about me?" Mai pointed to herself and tilted her head to the side.

"Sit and be quiet," Naru motioned to the bench beside him. Mai's fit of anger at her role was cut short by Masako's interruption.

"You'll join me, right?" She walked over to him and stood directly in front of him. She made a motion as if she were going to grab his sleeve cuff.

"If you require it," he looked down at her, no emotion was held in his eyes. Masako made a small gasp and fell onto him, grabbing at his shirt.

"This spirit… is so strong," she breathed out. Naru seemed rigid. Mai's face was one of complete shock. Gene let out a strained laugh.

"What a little faker…. I wish I knew it was that easy!"

Naru and Masako made their way down the trail, Mai stood in her mixed state of shock, anger, with a dash of jealousy. She huffed and took a seat on the bench, resting her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands.

"Stupid jerk," she kicked at the gravel on the ground.

"If you want, Mai, you can come along with me," Gene extended a hand to her with a smile. She was pulled from her anger and was glad to be doing something to help the others. She accepted his hand and they walked to the main park together.

Gene and Mai had split up to cover as much ground as they could. Most of the people they talked to had no idea what the two were talking about, or gave them strange looks. Except for one little girl.

Mai sat on a swing next to the little girl who called herself Aiko, who was about 10 years old.

"You know this little girl?" Mai asked as she swung in small motions.

"Mhmm, Akemi is her name. She never changes from that white dress, she must really like it. And she's always in the woods near the pond away from everyone else. She says she doesn't want to play with anyone else," the girl gave a lot more information than Mai was anticipating.

"By the pond? Do you know which way the pond is from here?" Mai asked Aiko with a sweet smile. Aiko extended her arm and pointed directly in front of them. Mai nodded and continued swinging.

"Did she tell you why she was by the pond?" She lightly kicked the gravel below her as she swung.

"She said she was waiting for someone to find her."

"But you found her, didn't you?"

"Someone special, she said," Mai nodded despite not fully understanding the meaning.

"Thank you, Aiko. You've been a great help. Akemi is lucky to have a great friend like you," Mai stood and walked over to the girl, then bent over and smiled at her.

The small girl smiled back. The girl was then called back by her mother.

Mai turned and walked away from the girl. Her next objective was to find Gene. She walked around for a little bit but there was no luck to be had. Her curiosity kept drawing her in the direction Aiko pointed to earlier. But this time, she knew better to not run off on her own or else she would get an earful from the not so kind twin again.

Upon returning to their original location, Mai found Gene sitting on the bench with John. Lin stood not too far away from the two with a cellphone in his hand.

"Oh, Gene. I was looking for you," Mai made her way over to the two on the bench.

"Did you find something?" Gene stood up.

"Maybe? Depends on how you define something," Mai shrugged, "Do you think you guys could go to the pond with me? I don't want to go alone."

"The pond? Where did you hear about that?" Gene asked.

"That girl told me it was that way," Mai pointed behind her, back to the swings where Aiko and her mother were.

"You're going off directional information given to you by a ten-year-old?" Gene furrowed his brows slightly as he looked at her.

"You really look like your brother when you do that," Mai couldn't help but laugh.

"We are identical twins, you know," Gene smiled.

Mai, John, and Gene walked down the path back towards the swings. Mai clasped her hands behind her back and looked up at the sky as she walked.

"Is this what normally happens when you guys do this kinda stuff? Naru just bosses everyone around, and everyone just does what he says?" She kicked the stones as she walked.

"Ah, sorta. When you put it like that it sounds bad. But Naru knows what he's doing, most of the time, anyways. Normally, we stay in a house or wherever we are called to investigate, but seeing as there's no house here that isn't really possible," Gene explain. Mai formed an 'oh' with her mouth.

"Does it ever last more than one day?"

"Most of the time we are there for three days to a week."

"That's a long time."

"Goes by faster than you'd think."

"I think that's Naru and Masako over there," John pointed down the path.

As they neared the swings, Naru and Masako appeared not too far away from the pair and were heading towards them.

"I told you to stay on the bench," Naru greeted ever so warmly.

"You can't expect me to sit and do nothing!" Mai whined and mumbled something about fairness. Masako suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"I can feel her... the spirit is that way," Masako pointed to her right, "she's so sad," she covered her mouth with her kimono.

"That's where we were going," John looked down at Mai who was still brooding at his side.

"Mai said there's a pond over there." Gene mentioning her name pulled her from her quick fit of anger.

"Oh, yeah. I found this sweet little girl, oh what was her name? I should remember this, why can't I remember? Wait, did I ever even ask?"

"Mai, get to the point," Naru snapped.

"Geez, well she was apparently been friends with Akemi for a while now," Mai rocked back and forth on her feet.

"Akemi?" Naru questioned.

"That's the name of the spirit, or at least she name she gave the spirit," Mai explained.

"I guess there's nowhere else to go but the pond," John spoke with a smile.

The group traveled off the path, led by John, who was shortly followed by Naru. Leaves and twigs crunched under their footsteps, the sound of adults and children had tapered off long ago. Now there was them and the wind. The foliage grew thicker and thicker the longer they traveled, making it difficult to advance at some points.

Masako scoffed, "There's nothing here. This is why you don't trust directions from 10 year olds."

"Hey! You said you felt something this way too, so where did that go, huh?" Mai's face turned red.

"I also got a feeling you were not to be trusted with these sorts of things, maybe I should have vocalized that earlier as well," she covered her mouth and kept her head high. Suddenly, through the trees Mai could see something glistening.

"Seems like we've finally made it," Gene reached his arms up above his head and stretched. Mai stuck her tongue out in an 'I told you so' manner at Masako.

A decently sized body of water stretched out before them. It looked not terribly deep, at max being 20 feet.

"I would have never guessed this to be, well, here," John said as he took a closer step towards the water.

"Hara-san, do you sense anything?" Naru turned to face the medium whose sleeve was covering their mouth. Her face blanched. She nodded, "She's coming closer."

A cold shiver ran down Mai's spine, and she shook at the sensation. Gene smirked, "Getting the chills already?" he mused. Mai let out an anxious laugh.

Suddenly, a scream rang out. Everyone froze in their spots and turned to the source. Not very far away stood a girl clothed in a tater white dress. Mai made an attempt to move but it was if her feet had grown into the ground. She looked over and Gene, slight alarm was written on his face. Naru, however, looked as calm and collected as he always did.

"You can't run anymore," the girl spoke in a soft, raspy voice. It was a voice that sounded as though it hadn't spoken in years. Akemi turned slowly in her spot, her eye was bleeding as it was last time. A twang of heart-ache rang from Mai's chest.

"You hurt me last time," she pointed over at Gene with a menacing glare. The girl then switched her attention and looked directly at Mai. She moved slowly over to the brunette, extending her arm slowly. Mai clenched eyes shut and prepared herself for whatever was about to happen. She approached closer, and closer, and then…

Mai felt a small tug of the sleeve of her sweater. She peaked open her eyes slowly and saw the girl pulling at it. The blood that fell from her eye had now turned to tears.

"Why do people run when they see someone in trouble?" The tears kept falling. Mai found herself now able to move, she squatted down to meet eye level with the spirit. For some reason, she felt calm.

"Mai," Naru let out a caution signal, which she ignored.

"Who ran away, Akemi?" Mai asked the girl in a soft voice. The girl turned while still holding her sleeve and began to walk near the water pulling Mai with her.

"Mai!" Naru yelled out again, more force in his voice this time. He made a move to chase after her, but he was stopped by Gene.

"Let this one play out, Noll," he held his brothers shoulder. Naru shot him a glare and clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white. He stayed put, trusting in his twin's intuition.

Akemi tugged her off far from the group to a shallow part of the lake that was crowded with fallen branches, leaves, and various amounts of other debris.

"He saw and he ran. Everyone runs, except you," Akemi cried.

"I won't run," Mai smiled lightly to her. Akemi pointed towards a high pile of debris.

"That's where they hid me. He saw where I was, but he never came to help. I waited for him."

"Who?"

"Tomoe," She whispered as if telling a secret.

Aiko's word's flooded abruptly into Mai's mind, "She's waiting for someone special..."

"I'm sorry, Akemi, but Tomoe isn't here anymore," Mai honestly had no idea where the person was who she was talking about, but she had nothing else to say, "But these people are," she motioned to the group they had just moved away from.

"They can help you to be happy," she hoped whatever she was saying was the right thing to say.

"Help?" The girl looked up at her hopefully. Mai nodded with a smile.

"It's time for you to move on now, Akemi," Mai turned around to see John standing there.

"Oh, John," Mai was slightly surprised by his sudden appearance.

"I won't run away, I'm here to help," he moved closer with a smile. Akemi backed hesitantly away.

"John can help you, don't be afraid," Mai reassured the child who stood near her side.

"You will be happy when you walk into the light," John lifted his hand and touched the girl's forehead, "Tomoe might even be waiting for you there."

"Tomoe," the girl whispered and began to glow a light gold.

"Thank you for not running, Mai," the girl looked at her with a teary smile before disappearing in a shimmery glow. Mai dropped to the ground with a sigh. All the pressure that once resided on her chest now disappeared along with the girl. She sat facing the large pile of sticks and debris. The sound of steps approached closer and closer.

Mai turned around and saw the rest of the group making their way over.

"What happened?" Gene asked as he got down next to Mai.

"The spirit is gone now," Masako covered her mouth. Naru looked over at John and nodded.

"In there," Mai pointed at the debris in the lake.

"What?" Gene asked.

"Akemi is in there," tears welled at the corners of her eyes. Suddenly, black dots began to fill her vision, and her view of Naru tilted as she fell onto her side. Darkness consumed her vision.

"Mai!"


Mai held her pulsing head and sat up. She noticed she was still by the lake, but the trees had all their leaves on them and the air was warm.

"What am I doing here?"

She looked around and saw Akemi wading into the shallow portion of the water. A man Mai could not identify walked out from behind the trees and into the clearing near the lake. A bad feeling filled her gut.

"Who are you?" Akemi asked sweetly. The man smiled and replied but Mai couldn't hear anything he said. A low-pitched buzzing filled her ears. The older man walked closer and closer to the water's edge where Akemi stood.

"No!" Mai went to stand up and run to Akemi but a hand on each of her shoulders held her back. She turned her head to look at what was holding her.

A boy of her own age stood behind her. Not too much taller than she, he also had brown hair and eyes that slightly resembled her own. A small smile played on his lips.

"Who…" Mai started to say as she stared at the boy.

"We can do introductions later, promise. But now it's very important to watch," he motioned towards the scene playing out between the two.

Once the man was in arms range of Akemi, he grabbed her and submerged her under the water. Akemi thrashed under his grasps and gasped for air at every opportunity. Mai covered her mouth with her hand and watched in honor, unable to do nothing. From the corner of her eye, Mai saw a small boy peeking out through the tree's also watching in horror. Akemi seemed to notice this too.

"T-Tomoe! Help!" Akemi cried out to the boy behind the trees. Tomoe gulped and stood as still as a statue. The man's attention turned over to the boy with a smirk. He decided he was done with Akemi now, and it was time to move on to the next victim. He picked Akemi up by her throat and slammed her body against a rock near. He then dropped her into the water, and left her to die. Her eye was bleeding and purple marks were left where the man held her. Mai watched as she turned her head over to the side and whispered, "Tomoe," before breathing her last.

"Please, stop this," Mai whispered as tears flowed from her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Mai," the boy's fingers dug slightly into her shoulders, "It's not over yet."

The scene shifted. Mai watched as Tomoe dashed through the trees frantically, constantly looking behind him in between calling for help. The boy then tripped over a root that was sticking up from the ground. A dark shadow loomed over him. The man from before stood over Tomoe and laughed, seemingly pleased. He reached down the grab the boy, and Mai turned her head to the side and closed her eyes.

"I can't watch," she cried. The brunette boy embraced Mai into his arms and gently rubbed her back. The sound of Tomoe's screams gathered in her ears and progressively loudened until they abruptly ended with no warning.

Mai opened her eyes and watched as the man grabbed Tomoe's lifeless body and carried him to the pond where Akemi floated face down in the water, red seeped into the water around her. He buried Tomoe by a tree, and weighed down Akemi's body until it sank to the bottom on the pond. The vision began to blur.

"All this time, Akemi thought that Tomoe had just left her," Mai wiped her tears that continued to fall.

"But now you can right the wrong," the boy still had his hand gently patting her back.

"Who are you?" It just dawned on Mai she had no recollection of seeing this boy ever before. He just smiled at her.

"Can you at least tell me your name?" She could feel herself being pulled out of her dream.

"Kazuo," he spoke just in time for Mai to hear before she woke up.


Mai shot up from where she had been laying. Her breaths were rapid as she attempted to assess what she had just seen. A black jacket had been placed on top of her, but was now slightly falling off due to her eratic movement.

"Mai," Gene sat at her side, a worried look plagued his face.

"Gene! You wouldn't believe it! Akemi had it wrong this whole time! Tomoe… h-he was-," Mai spoke a mile per minute.

"Woah, woah. Slow down. You don't want to get yourself sick," Gene looked concerned for the girl beside him on the bench. Mai took in a deep breath. She reached inside of the jacket pocket that rested on her legs and extracted a piece of caramel candy from it.

"So it's Naru's…"

She popped the candy into her mouth before she began her story. She explained how she saw Akemi's fate, but then also Tomoe's. Gene insisted Mai stay put, however, Mai did not listen to this. She walked with Gene over to Naru where she explained what she had to Gene. He seemed to ponder this for a second, and then called for Lin.

"Grab a shovel."

The sun was now setting, the sky was a wonderful orange color. Mai stood with Naru as they watched Lin and Gene rummage through the pile of sticks and debris, while John shoveled in front of the tree where Mai had said.

Exactly according to her dream, both bodies were found.

"What a great headline..." Naru muttered as he watched.

"Group of teens dig up missing children's bodies deep in park woods," Gene finished his thought. Lin had pulled out his cell, ready to call the police. Mai was led away from the scene by Naru, who took her back to the parking lot where they originally had met.

"You're free to go home now," he stood next to the van Lin had emerged from earlier.

"Oh… alright," Mai clasped her hands behind her back and bit the inside of her lip.

"Ahh, thank you for letting me come today," Mai bowed slightly before turning around and making her way out of the park.

"You were a help today."

Mai turned around, unsure if she just heard what she really had. Naru walked back towards the lake with a steady pace. The wind blew his hair and jacket slightly to the side. The air seemed almost soft for a second, and Mai suddenly became increasingly aware of the energy around her. She grumbled something about how it was unfair he just walks away after saying something, turned back around, and headed down the street.

Police cars sped down the road alongside Mai, she turned her head and watched them go towards the park. When she turned her head back, she could have sworn she saw the image of Akemi smiling and glowing in a second story window. After shaking her head, it was gone.

Saturday, November 1

Today was all Saint's Day. The day when the dead are given alms and prayers according to the Catholic faith. Mai, despite not being catholic, said a small prayer for Akemi's fate. She hoped her and Tomeo were somewhere happy together.

Something in her told her she needed fresh air. Mai decided a walk would be a good idea this particular morning. She made her way along the sidewalk, walking aimlessly. She had no particular destination. Rounding the corner, she stopped at the gates of the cemetery. A funeral procession was in progress, two identical caskets were being carried side by side. Those gathered had a look of relief and ease more than sadness. Somehow, Mai just knew these two caskets to be Akemi and Tomoe.

She stood in the gates and watched from afar as they lowered the caskets into the ground. A large tear dropped from her eye and onto her cheek, where it rolled down and eventually landed on the pavement.

Later in the evening, Mai was at her usual post in the café, behind the counter and chatting with the regulars. No John or Takiyota today. Mai was thankful for the relatively quiet Saturday, events of the last day played on repeat in her head. A mixture of fear, hopefulness, and intrigue all combined together into one big mush.

The door chimed.

"Welcome to- oh, Naru," Mai was slightly shocked to see him, but she wasn't complaining. He sat in his normal spot at the counter, he had an envelope in his hand.

"Earl grey?" A nod response.

"I don't know why I even ask anymore," she inwardly smiled.

The hot cup steamed in her hand and she carefully placed in onto the counter and slid it across to him. In an almost mirroring action, he slid the envelope across to her. She tilted her head.

"What is this? I told you that you don't have to pay for your tea."

"It's not for the tea."

Mai curiously picked it up and cleanly ripped it open with one of her nails. She pulled out a well-paying check made out to her from 'SPR.' She gave him a confused look.

"It's for your help yesterday. However, if you don't want it I can take it back-"

"I don't really understand... but thank you," Mai said with a wide grin. A moment of silence passed between the two.

"What's SPR?" she tilted her head and she moved her finger over the letters.

"SPR is my -" Naru was cut off by Monk yelling from the kitchen.

"Mai! Can you come in here for a second?" Mai set the envelope down on the counter.

"I'll only be a moment," she said with a smile and walked into the kitchen.

When she came back, he was gone. The only proof of his presence was the empty tea cup on the counter and the ripped open enveloped with a check.


First of all, I'd like to apologize for how god awful this one is. I had no idea's as to what I should have the whole back story and everything. I promise that when I write cases in the future they will be more developed and not terrible. It was also difficult to think of a new spirit guide for Mai, but I think you guy's will be happy with the direction I've chosen to take with it (when you figure out who it is ;)) .

Also, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed my last chapter! It was so extremely heart warming to receive so many from one chapter.

Anyways, thanks for reading!

Have a wonderful (and safe) Halloween/Samhain!