Hello everyone. I started this a while ago. I will finish it. Thanks for sticking with it.
Anyway. I really liked the other story I started working on. Please, if you have the time or if you just feel like it, check it out. Thank you for opening this story, and excuse my slow updates. But summer has begun (Fer me). So it shouldn't take as long to get chapters out. NOW! Enough of my rambling. Lets get started!
Disclaimer: In chapter 1
4-
Masako watched as Mai slept on the bed in her room from a chair by the window. Nobody had expected things to go like they did. There were too many things that had happened, one after another.
Mai had it rough. Masako watched the brunette sleep for a while longer, feeling like an older sister. Although she was tired. The PJs she was wearing were the ones that Mai had given her not so long ago. She gave Mai a faint smile as she left the room and went elsewhere to sleep. Mai needed some space right now as well.
Asleep, Mai was having a dream. She remembered the Inn they had spent a while at so long ago. There were some memories of herself and that obnoxious person in black. Why would he have been there too? She saw herself jumping off the roof, cringing, although noticing the person in black running to grab her hand, only barely missing grabbing it.
Then she saw the lake she remembered bring at. More accurately, she watched herself outside by the pond asleep. She could see the person in black standing by the house holding a small something that was black and blue. Also, him carrying her (Still asleep) back to the house.
She turned away from the memories. Why would she have memories of someone she didn't know? If the memories had been from a long time ago... maybe then.. well... But no! These were recent! Was it her own mind inserting him in? Because thats not the way it happened. He was NOT there.
Someone appeared. The memories were blocked out, and yet someone was suddenly standing there by her. It was the person in black.
"Mai..."
"Not my dreams too. I can't stand to see you! What is my problem? A figment of my imagination... you don't exist. I don't know you so back off!" She said, fully realizing that it was a dream. To get rid of it she need only wake up.
He shook his head. Mai noted the tone that this version of the person used was much softer. "No.. Mai try to remember..." The memories came back. From longer before. Even if she didn't remember him being there all along, suddenly he was.
There was the time she was telling ghost stories with her friends, and he interrupted.
There was the time he asked her where to send the money she earned and offered her a job, apparently forgetting that in fact she still owed him after breaking the camera.
There was the time she fell into a well and he grabbed her hand, then when she fell further in, he calmed her down inside.
There was the time he protected her from a falling roof.
There was the time he smiled. Really.
There was the time he calmed her down after she had the dream where she was killed.
There was the time...
Mai's true memories flooded to her. She was about to call Naru's name to the dream in front of her only feel as though lightning ran through her.
The memories drained as if through a hole in her being.
"I guess I didn't really think it would be that easy..."
And Mai woke up only remembering having dream about the person in black whom she found so annoying.
"Why would I..." Mai stared at her hands, unable to understand why she would dream something like that. "He's such an idiot, but I'm even worse right now."
"What just happened?" Naru asked, furious and confused.
Lin and Yasuhara remained silent. Naru looked at the door through which Mai and Masako had left. Everyone already knew.
Yasuhara, who was currently in possession of the article, placed it on Naru's desk, and walked out, leaving someone more responsible in charge or explaining it.
Naru moved to his desk and picked up the article. A very quick scan told him enough. "When did..." Naru started, but Lin cut him off.
"Matsuzaki-san knew for quite a period of time. I found out about it shortly after we received the message from the two 'kidnappers'."
Matsuzaki-san knew for quite a period of time. "And Mai..."
Lin cut Naru off again. "Is unaware."
Yasuhara left Naru's office and promptly headed to his house, where he pulled out his laptop. First, he checked his e-mail from something from Madoka. There was nothing, so he then proceeded to start to research whatever he could.
About 20 minutes later, a little sound came through the speakers, and a message popped up, saying he had received an e-mail. Clicking it revealed Madoka to be the sender.
The e-mail requested more information, and set a meeting time for tomorrow. It also asked if Mai was okay.
Yasuhara replied that he wasn't sure who or what she would remember tomorrow.
About a minute after he sent that the meeting time had changed to 6 hours from then, the amount of time it would take her to get Naru's office. She said she would get in contact with Lin.
After replying, saying he'd be there, he returned to researching.
2 hours later, he had come up with very little more than Ayako. He turned up one more case, and a supposed fool proof way of protecting ones self from the curse.
But that would have only worked months ago.
When Mai woke up, she wasn't sure of exactly where she was. It wasn't home. But now that she thought about it, where was her home? It seemed to be a faded memory. Standing up, she opened the door, and wandered around the hallway.
She found her way to an empty sitting room, and sat down. But she only sat for a few minutes before moving along, deciding to find a kitchen. Without to much wasted time, she found one. It too was deserted, so she set about making something to eat. But she paused to think about her situation. She knew she had always been alone at home... was this her home? She didn't think she was rich.
The mansion was certainly not hers. She remembered the person in black from yesterday, and sincerely hoped it didn't belong to him.
Then what happened yesterday came back. She had just woken up, and there was 3 guys, one of them the person in black. There was also a girl in formal clothing. That was.. her friend... this was her friends house... what was her name?
Mai shrugged, and looked for something to eat, when her friend came around the corner, looking a bit panicked.
"Mai! Are you okay? I was worried when your bed was empty!" Mai looked. She knew it was her friend. She knew the name... what was her name?
"Oh... yeah.. well I guess I was a bit fidgety." Mai laughed.
Her friend looked very relieved. "Thats good. I was worried you may not have recognized me." Mai's smile disappeared.
"Well... I can't remember your name, but I remember you taking me away from that annoying person in black." Mai confessed.
Her friend looked a bit upset now. "Oh. Well then. My name is Masako, can you remember that?"
Mai nodded. "Masako! Yeah, I'll do my best." Mai smiled.
"Now. You don't need to make yourself something to eat, I can get something made for you. What do you want?" Masako asked.
Mai paused. "I don't know."
Masako nodded, and they walked out of the kitchen, passing by a maid. Masako relayed something very fast to the maid, who turned into the kitchen behind them. "Mai, would you be okay staying here for a while? I have to go out, but I don't think your in any condition to go to work today."
Mai nodded, then felt puzzled. "Work... Where do I work? I don't remember working somewhere."
Masako looked at the girl. If she really didn't remember SPR, maybe it was a lot worse than they thought. Which meant that the final symptom may have been fast approaching. In that case, wouldn't it be better to have her close to the only people that really counted as family?
Masako decided. Mai would spend as much time as she could with the members of SPR. If everything was hopeless, Masako didn't want the time she could be enjoying to be spent cooped up in an unfamiliar place.
Madoka and Lin sent Naru out, and Yasuhara arrived to find an organized sort of mess. Files carefully sorted were spread everywhere, in distinct piles. Madoka was pouring over a bunch of sheets. Lin was typing on his laptop, looking no different from usual. Yasuhara, who had his own laptop, set it down.
"What can I do?" He asked.
Madoka produced a list of libraries with addresses, stapled to a small pack of sheets. "I've got these files covered. Please search these locations. The top 4 are those that I believe you may be able to find records of patients at the hospitals which the last reported cases existed. The 4th has hospital records from another hospital which I found something that you may be able to go on. That's stapled to it. The rest have large, rare, or very old paranormal sections. I'm counting on..." She hadn't lifted her eyes from the page. Her voice trailed off as she scribbled a note down, and continued reading.
Yasuhara nodded grabbing his laptop, and left again. He noticed that there were numbers next to the libraries. A scribbled note stated that that was the order he should visit them in, to get to most of them in the shortest period of time. Comparing it with what he knew of the areas he was visiting, he would be moving in a circular sort of pattern, first close, then farther away, then coming back close.
"Lets get started then, shall we?" he said to no one in particular and set off. It wasn't until reached the first library, which had a big closed sign on the door, that he realized that it was 6 in the morning, and he was hungry. The library opened at 9, so Yasuhara sent Lin a message telling him what had happened.
At around 10, Ayako and Takigawa entered the SPR office, greeted by the same organized mess as Yasuhara had seen.
"Is there anything we can do?" Ayako asked, Madoka was about to answer, when the phone rang.
"Get that." Madoka said, not taking her eyes off of her sheets.
Ayako complied, picking up the phone. It was Masako. "Masako? ... oh no... that's... Can you just... Madoka seems to have taken charge. I'll run it by her." at this, Ayako covered the receiver. "Madoka. Masako says that she doesn't even remember having a job here, and she thinks that time may be really limited. So she's asking us to keep Mai near us."
Madoka looked up from her sheets for the first time since she picked them up. "She..." After a pause. "Yes I agree. We'll see who and what she remembers, yes thats what should happen."
Ayako nodded, and removed her hand from the receiver. "Okay. Yeah... She did? Oh.. right well I guess we'll see you soon."
Takigawa had spent this time simply staring at the room. "Where's Naru?"
Madoka answered. "I sent him away for sleep when I got here this morning, at quarter to 6. Knowing him, he'll be back soon."
Since that was his cue to enter, Naru walked in. He glared for a moment, seeing only a mess. But once he could see the organization, he merely walked past, and closed himself up in his office.
Madoka didn't register his existence. Ayako called after him. "Masako is bringing Mai along right now. They should be here in half an hour. From the sounds of it, she remembers yesterday, but not much before then."
There was no response, but Naru heard.
Ayako repeated her initial query. "Is there anything we can do?"
Madoka pointed to a stack. "Look for anything of relevance." Takigawa and Ayako settled down with the stack together, looking over the pages.
About 10 minutes later, Naru came out of his office, made tea (only for himself) for the first time in a long while, and sat down in front of a particularly ominously tall pile of paper. He picked up a few sheets and started reading himself. All of this without saying a word, or making much sound. Ayako and Takigawa didn't even notice.
Lin received an e-mail from Yasuhara saying he was finished with the third location, and he had found a few things.
"So what is this place?" Mai asked Masako as they ascended the stairs to the SPR office. Masako pointed at the door. "Psychic Research? What does that mean?"
"Well, they study ghosts, and spirits. They also get rid of them. That is called Ghost Hunting." Masako said, opening the door.
Mai peeked in to see a bunch of people sitting around studying. "They must have a test coming up soon. Is that why they're studying?"
Madoka looked up. Does she really remember nothing?
Mai walked in, and although she saw the person in black, she didn't bother to say anything. His eyes flicked up for a moment, and he saw that she didn't care to speak to him.
Ayako looked over at her. Is it that bad already? Why didn't I tell everyone earlier? "Mai! How are you?"
Mai looked a bit taken aback. "Umm... I'm okay.. who are you?"
Ayako remembered what Masako had said on the phone.
"I don't think she remembers anything at all. She has no family other than SPR. So I think that she shouldn't spend her time here at my house. It would be best to keep her close anyway. We can keep an eye on her if nothing else."
"She has no family other than SPR."
That line had hit her hard. If Mai was really going to... she wouldn't even have anyone, let alone a family, by her side if she were kept up in some alternate location.
So when Ayako said the next thing she said, she was very sure of herself. She wasn't even lying. "You really don't remember me?"
Mai sadly shook her head.
Ayako stood up. And everyone in the room probably sensed what she was going to say.
And after she said it, no one contradicted it, because it was true. And If Mai's days were numbered, she could spend them with her family.
"I'm your mother."