Chapter 4 Friendship on another scale
Mimisaki Raidon was completely at ease, and all Mai could do was stare.
Bou-san, Naru, and Lin-san were not impressed, and Hisana the demon was still latched onto Mai's wrist. The man in front of her was comfortable in an atmosphere so cold it would have had a polar bear shivering.
Mai looked down at the table he face facing, still seated in the cafeteria's chair. This was such a normal atmosphere; how did someone like him fit in it so easily? He set everyone else at edge. The table might have separated them, but that distance still didn't feel like enough.
Just who was he, anyway? Ayami never detailed much in relation to him, but Mai had a feeling he'd only come to seek her out because of the other girl. His manner was languid and calm, but even Mai could sense his slight affection whenever he referred to Ayami.
Raidon, at the moment, was ever so amused. "I came back to see just how much damage my precious belle did to my ancestral home. She always likes to leave me a little trouble whenever she visits, but when I noted that the roof was still on the manor, I realised that she must have found something else to toy with instead."
Mimisaki Raidon turned towards Mai slowly, his eyes still holding that cool, empty amusement that she'd seen all morning.
"When Touya mentioned that Ayami had found her cousin, everything fit into piece so nicely, I was surprised that I didn't think of it myself." He turned towards Naru now. "Another blue-blooded psychic of the Caecilius Clan. That should be quite impressive, right, professor?"
Lin-san froze and his grip on her shoulder slackened slightly. Mai's eyes snapped to the back in front of her. Naru was a professor? Wasn't he just a little too young for that, or was Raidon just being sarcastic?
Naru seemed to have had enough, and Mai could hear it in his tone.
"Why don't you take your company where it's actually welcomed? You've been rude since the moment you came to see us. It's not enlightening."
Raidon seemed even more amused. "Really? Hisana, return."
Hisana-chan's smile brightened and she let go of Mai's wrist immediately. The tiny girl darted back to Raidon's side and Mai's fingers were numb. Hisana had been holding onto her wrist for that long.
"What do you want?" Bou-san demanded.
The boy he addressed the question to shrugged. "Many things, really. World domination, my stock prices to go up, several more Picasso pieces for my collection. At the moment, however, I wish to satisfy my curiosity, and your little secretary there would do just what I need her to."
"Stay away from Mai, or you'll be sorry," Bou-san growled.
Raidon's eyes widened mockingly. "Be still my beating heart." Mai just stared at him and then saw as his blue eyes suddenly flickered. He smirked, turning away from Bou-san, who seemed to have been rendered speechless.
"Where are my manners; I have yet to introduce myself properly," Raidon said. He set his left arm across his chest, his palm pressing against what had to be his heart. He bowed his head slightly, though his eyes did not respectfully turn towards the floor; instead his orbs turned towards the rest of them. The gesture was gallant, and his movements were impeccable. It might have been more impressive if he'd stood up, but it seemed as though the boy couldn't be bothered to do that. "My name is Mimisaki Raidon. I am Patriarch of the House of Alexandria." His smile was mocking now almost as he nodded once more. "And I am a leader of one of the Five."
Bou-san moved forward, his face holding an expression that Mai saw only when he fought spirits. The monk wasn't impressed, but as Raidon turned towards him, Mai could tell that he didn't see the older man as much of a threat.
There are two more clans out there, but because they circulate with people who are darker than dark, we tend not to mention them when we need someone to go hand out awards…
So he was from one of the other families that Ayami had mentioned. The Caecilius Clan, the Miharu Family, the Ramirez Family, and now, the House of Alexandria. There was only one left that Mai had yet to know of, but if they were anything like Raidon, Mai wouldn't mind skipping out on that one too much.
"The House of Alexandria ended during the Burning Times," Bou-san said sharply. "They died out over a three hundred years ago. Everyone knows it."
"Would you like me to summon a demon here now to prove that my words are true?" the boy drawled. "Don't underestimate me," Raidom smiled. "You underestimated Ayami, and I assure you, I am not quite as soft as my sweet belle." Lin-san's grip on her shoulder tensed and she could tell that he knew Raidon was not joking. "Or you could always ask your little psychic over there if I am lying. She has latent sensitivity, doesn't she?"
He had to be referring to Mai, and Mai knew for a fact that he was telling the truth. He was a leader of one of the Five, just like Ayami. Mai hoped that he didn't have the intention to harm.
"Are you the reason why we're here on this case?" Naru questioned. His voice was light, almost emotionless.
"Contrary to popular opinion, I am not responsible for the phenomenon occurring here at this moment. I prefer my encounters up close and personal, if not with a little more brain stimulation. No, this – this is something that definitely does not interest one such as myself." Raidon shrugged. "Speaking of which, I do seem to have lost interest in all this now. Do tell Ayami that I paid you a visit. It's so comforting when it's she that seeks me out instead of having it play in vice versa." His last words were directed at Mai.
Mai didn't even nod back; she just continued to stare at him and Raidon stood up. He bowed at her in a rather Old World manner, his gestures tugging at something in Mai's memory. It had been him in that dream too; the one that Mai had seen with Ayami and the one that Naru had been dismissed. But he had looked entirely different. Had that been his true face then?
"It has been pleasant meeting you, Mai," he concluded. "Allow me to give you one parting gift before you I leave. Take it as a reward for being such a good sport."
Mai had no idea what he was saying, but then he suddenly vanished from where he was standing. Her eyes widened in horror and he appeared right next to her an instant later.
Now, Mai was completely surrounded: Naru was in front of her, Lin-san was behind her, and Mimisaki Raidon had literally appeared on her right.
The others seemed to have literally frozen in their positions and Mai turned over, horrified as she saw Raidon lean in closer. His eyes faded from blue to violet as he reached forward and touched her right shoulder. Mai hissed in pain as his touch burned right through her jacket, embedding something into her skin. Her eyes watered before she absently saw Naru turning around and jerking Raidon's arm away from her.
Mai gasped, almost collapsing, and Naru caught onto her swiftly. She quickly turned her eyes towards the other boy and saw how easily he smiled, despite what he'd just done – whatever he'd just done.
And just like that, Mimisaki Raidon vanished.
Literally.
Day 4, 4AM
Stay away from Mimisaki Raidon.
I will deal with him; I assure you on that one. He won't approach you like that again. And when he does approach you, seek out Shibuya Kazuya immediately. Only he could match Raidon. Ask Takigawa to set up a charm for you to carry around; that should ward off his bloody demon. I'll send you a charm too to keep the damn thing away.
I took a look at the mark embedded on your shoulder though; you don't need to worry about it. It's a symbol for protection; it'll help you ward off evil spirits. I would keep that tattoo to myself though; it's quite powerful, seeing as it was granted by him. If the star had been upside down, then you'd need to worry, because that's the symbol that's normally used for summoning demons, etc., but in this case, I think his judgement might have been a little flawed and he drew it in the wrong way. I really cannot see him being kind enough to project the image properly. The bastard.
Remember. Stay away from Raidon.
- Ayami
So the tattoo was safe.
Mai let out a sigh of relief. Raidon and Ayami's friendship certainly could be measured on another scale. It certainly wasn't Ayami's fault that the other was so strange though. Mai couldn't help but note Raidon's peculiar affection for Ayami, in contrast for her avid dislike for him.
She, of course, knew better than to comment on it.
Mai quickly typed in a response, careful to type as soundlessly as possible; Masako was still asleep, after all. She cast her gaze leftwards, her eyes suddenly caught on the mirror by the wardrobe.
In it, her reflection stared back at her, pale and tired. Mai stared at her image in the mirror and reluctantly pulled back the sleeve of her shirt. The orange of her top peeled away from her skin and instead of the pale flesh that Mai normally saw there, a strange star had dominated the majority of her top right shoulder. It was actually a burn, if one looked closer, but from this distance, Mai could see it as an inked project. It was a rather peculiar star, shaped differently to those that Mai had seen, but as Ayami had said that it was safe, Mai didn't worry as much over it now.
"Mai?"
Masako's voice was sleepy, still, and Mai hastily covered up the mark. Lin-san and Bou-san's reactions had been slow, so they didn't know about the mark, and something about the look on Naru's face told Mai that she probably shouldn't be telling anyone, including him, about the mark. Naru had looked incredibly peeved about being bested and Mai had been a coward, so she'd resorted to the avoidance tendency immediately.
Mai just wanted to keep quiet about being part of the Caecilius Clan. It already felt strange enough because Bou-san, Lin-san and Naru knew about it. She didn't want the rest of SPR knowing about it also. Mai wasn't even sure why she wanted to keep it quiet. Apart of her thought that maybe – just maybe – she was slightly ashamed of being a blue-blooded psychic.
And she wasn't even sure why.
Masako sleepily walked over to Mai, rubbing her eyes. "Why are you up? What time is it?"
Mai smiled. She consulted the time on her laptop before turning back to the celebrity medium. "It's about 4.30AM in the morning. Did I wake you up?"
Masako shook her head and sat down on Mai's bed next to her. "No, you didn't. I woke up on my own. You haven't been sleeping well since our first night here." Mai blinked, surprised by the other girl's observation. "Are you alright?"
Mai nodded quickly, not wanting to worry her. "I'm fine. I was just typing an email to Ayami."
Masako didn't seem convinced. "Well, just don't wander off on your own. You have a habit of doing that, and after the latest person went missing, I don't think it'd be safe for us either, since it wasn't just a student this time."
Missing?
"What are you talking about?" Mai asked, frowning now. She'd almost forgotten about the case.
Masako blinked, evidently surprised. "Didn't Naru tell you? I thought that was why he'd gone to find you and Setsuna-san. Someone else has gone missing. It was the janitor this time. One of the students saw him wander off early yesterday during work. The police were contacted, and they were searching the area while you were talking with Setsuna-san."
It mustn't have been a very big search party, Mai frowned, if she hadn't noticed. Or maybe she'd been too occupied with Mimisaki Raidon to notice anything else.
"Hopefully, they'll find him soon. Apparently Shiba-san has parents to take care for still, so it would be horrible if anything were to happen to him."
Shiba-san? Mai's frown deepened. She remembered him. He was the same janitor that had been talking to Hiroma sensei yesterday.
If she slept now, would she dream of Shiba-san too? Mai shivered. It felt selfish, but part of her couldn't stand the thought of any more nightmares. Then again, it wasn't as though she could fall asleep, even if she wanted to. Insomnia had been a case for Mai since the first night on duty. Mai was only surprised that she hadn't fallen asleep yet.
"You and Domjouji-san seem close," Masako said suddenly.
Mai blinked "Are we?"
"Yes, you are. You warm up to people easily, but with Domjouji-san in particular, you seem remarkably close to her. All of us, including Naru, wonder how that is possible."
Mai was startled by her friend's words. So all of SPR wondered of her relationship with Ayami? Mai knew that she wasn't as dependable on them anymore, now that she had her cousin, but she hadn't thought that they'd notice too. "We don't have any other relatives, so it's nice to look out for one another."
Masako nodded once. "Just be careful around her. Domjouji-san isn't the type the type to help someone for nothing, but she's definitely the type to take as though it's her due to receive."
"I don't think Ayami would do that."
"Don't be so sure. Blue-blooded psychics live in a world completely different to our own," Masako said quietly. "They're something we look at from afar. Sometimes, you want to be part of them too, but really, we can't even begin to comprehend how their world works."
Mai didn't know what to say. Masako seemed pensive all of a sudden, and Mai had a feeling that the girl had been thinking of this for awhile. She seemed to be speaking from experience, and she sounded almost sad. And envious.
Who knew that Hara Masako would be jealous of anyone? For the longest time, Mai had always seen her as the typical celebrity; famed, fortuned and sometimes, even untouchable. The only time the other girl was overly respondent to anything was when Naru was involved.
Mai reached forward and touched her hand gently. "Are you jealous of Ayami?"
Masako didn't answer, though her eyes did dart to Mai's face again. "You're blue-blooded too, aren't you?" Masako asked softly.
Mai's eyes flashed in alarm. Perhaps Masako did pay more attention to Mai than she suspected. Mai nodded slowly and told the celebrity medium what she had yet to tell the others. "Ayami says that my mother is her blood-aunt."
Masako's smile was faint and she took her and back from Mai. "Which makes you apart of the Caecilius Clan. Of course you would be," she murmured, just lightly to herself. The other girl nodded at Mai once more and then walked back to her bed. Mai watched as Masako tucked herself into bed, now saying no more.
Masako hardly ever took the initiative to seek her out, and Mai could count on her ten fingers how many times in the past two years the other girl had bothered to come to her like this. Was something bothering her?
Mai shook her head quickly, now trying to brush off the thoughts.
Every day, something strange had happened.
Mai only hoped that tonight, she would manage a night of deep sleep.
09.09.2008: This was over 1000 words shorter than the previous chapter, but still 2700 words.
Many thanks to: Gabryell-P, lurkmoar, Moons-chan, Dreamers MRAF, Aoi Faith, canadianvoilet (LOL I would say that Ayami was seriously unimpressed by Raidon's actions. You don't actually get to find out what she did, but I'm not quite sure why she bothered. No matter what she does, he just laughs it off, really. Raidon's presence is explained in this chapter, though I do think he really just came to piss Ayami off), ONIX-21, miss koneko, Kay (LOL 'kun' can sometimes be used for lower status woman. It's normally used by males towards younger females, but because this lady is a teacher, and a senior one at that, I figured I'd make her a little more masculine. I'm glad you liked the last chapter though! I'm almost finished this story. So, so happy.), SimplyChristine, killbethy, and Ayjah.