Chapter Nine: Her Secret

I would personally like to thank all of you for reading, and being so patient with my slowness. Please review, if you would be so kind. I would to know what you think, and what you'd like to see happen. Also, if I've seen or played, I'll take fanfic requests, and write stories for you guys, just to test my writing abilities!

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Mio jumped up from her sleep. Hold on! Hadn't she just been in that room with Saiyuuri? Mayu was there, too, soundly sleeping, but not Saiyuuri. She was sitting and looking around nervously.

"Saiyuuri?" Mio's voice was tired. Saiyuuri looked at her, trying to hide her current state of mind. She had decided to stay away from that area of the house. At least, she refused to go there by herself, or with an injured Mio.

"Oh, you're awake!" She got up and went over to Mio and Mayu, who was sleeping next to Mio. "That's good."

"What's going on?" Saiyuuri's face twisted a bit and she looked away.

"Nothing." She paused. "At least…nothing that I can really elaborate much on, anyway." She looked at her sorrowfully, and turned away from her. She grinned to herself, and looked up at the ceiling. "Heh, heh." Saiyuuri looked back and slowly changed into Sae. "I can't tell you anything here. You might want to wake up first, Yae."

"What?" Mayu looked at herself, and found that she was wearing Yae's clothes. She looked to a mirror, and found that….she was Yae? Why would she be dressed like this? And what had Saiyuuri meant by her being asleep? Suddenly, the horrible rope monster had returned, and began to crush her again.

"No, wait! MAYUUUUUUU! NOOOOOOOOO!" She woke up to water being thrown on her face. She coughed and sputtered water as she tried to make out who had done this. Rolling herself over and up, she started to look around.

"It's about time you woke up. Heh." Mayu was staring at her grinning. "You know, you should thank Saiyuuri, she didn't have to bring you out here."

"Huh?" Mayu looked really dazed and out of it. She looked at Saiyuuri, who seemed very sad.

"You fell through the floor, and Saiyuuri found you!"

"Um, you don't have to thank me," Saiyuuri laughed nervously. She looked around as if to find something that didn't seem to be there. Mayu hadn't noticed, but Mio had.

"Well, I think I'm gonna' turn in for the night, 'kay?" Mayu walked over to one of the bags and brought out a sleeping bag. She laid it on the floor, the lay down in it. When Mayu had fallen asleep, Mio slid over to the "sleeping" Saiyuuri.

"Hey, Saiyuuri…," she whispered. "Hey, I know you're awake!" Saiyuuri didn't move. Mio got annoyed, so she grabbed an old newpaper, rolled it up, and swacked Saiyuuri with it. She jumped up.

"WHAT?" She rubbed her butt. "That hurt!"

"Hey, I said 'wake up', very nicely, I might add!"

"Whaddya' want?"

"…Well…I know I was awake when I was in that room with you…"

"Oh…You remember that…" She looked away. "Can we talk about something else?"

"What happened? I know you opened that door and something happened. Tell me."

"I don't think you want to know. You wouldn't understand." She rolled back over into her sleeping bag and closed her eyes. Saiyuuri tried to go to sleep but found Mio's silence to be awkward. She slowly opened her eyes and found Mio staring at her, centimeters away from her face. Saiyuuri's face dropped and she jumped out of her bag. "What are you doing?"

"Tell me what you saw….and don't tell me, "I don't know anything about it"." She sat up and crossed her arms and closed her eyes. "Who knows?" She opened one eye. "I just might."

"Well…I saw something…." She shifted uneasily. "There were people in the room…that weren't quite….how should I put it?" She looked away. "Real…." She was silent once more.

"How were they not real?"

"I-I dunno'. They just….weren't….but I've seen them before. Not just here, but at home…and…all around me." She looked back at Mio. "But these are different! They don't want to leave. They're angry. I normally have kind spirits around me. Ones who seek release."

"Wait a minute!" Mio seemed surprised. "Spirits?"

"See, I told you it was bizar-," she was cut off.

"No, no." Mio motioned with her arms. "I believe you."

"Why? No one ever has before. They called me crazy."

"It's a gift. An unfortunate one, but a gift nonetheless." Mio looked over at Mayu, then paused a while. "So, tell me about these "spirits"."

"Well…I've seen many since we arrived. Strangely, one of them looks like the two of you, but I'm not sure who it is."

"Hold on." The color had drained from Mio's face. "What do you mean "looked like us"?"

"She looked a bit different, and I saw her in the mirror. That was in the room with the couch. She was floating, and dressed in a blood-stained kimono."

"Sae…"

"Who?" Mio shook her head and looked away. "We have to get out of here. "

"Huh?" I take it this isn't good. Mio started to shake Mayu, but the house seemed to groan.

"Yeah? What Mio?"

"Mayu, Mayu we have to get out of here! Sae!" Mayu seemed to have become more alert at the mention of that name.

"Sae! Here?" She scrambled to her feet and looked around.

"Saiyuuri said she saw a spirit that looked like us! We have to get out of here before she comes after us again!" Mio rushed to the door to leave. The door seemed to shut itself, and suddenly Sae appeared, with Yae.

"We've been waiting for you," they said in unison. The huge rope monster crawled from the hole by the staircase. The two twin ghosts seemed to be surprised. "Run!" They both urged them to leave the room. Saiyuuri, Mio, and Mayu ran to the room where the couch was. They ran through the hall with Yae, Sae, and the rope creature trailing quickly behind them. As they passed through different rooms, they shut the doors behind them, running and sliding across the floors. They fell against the walls catching their breath, huffing and wheezing. Mayu got up and moved toward a mirror, and picked it up. She looked at her reflection, but it was different. Her appearance was of her from behind. The reflection turned around and seemed to come from the mirror, slowly changing into the kimono sisters. Mayu dropped the mirror and the girl climbed out of the mirror, with another following suit. The first reached toward them, followed by the other.

"Wait!" They cried and stood up, looking at them. It was Yae and Sae again. "Don't leave!"