I'm sorry this is so short and choppy and just overall not good to me. However, I wanted to get another chapter out before I started back at school and didn't leave you all with that cliff hanger. On that note it's my birthday! :D So it fits to update a story for one of my favorite animes! Anyway, as always, please Read and Review!

"Can't…sense him?" she repeated slowly, breaking the heavy silence that pressed down on them for the past ten minutes. Mai continued to stare at him in shock. She had never known Naru to be unable to contact Gene. She had thought perhaps the reason Gene hadn't been in her vision was because she had not, technically, been in the dream world. She hadn't entertained the idea it was because he couldn't reach her.

"He isn't there." Naru confirmed. Mai swallowed as she noticed the deadened look in his eyes. She had only seen him that way once before and the memory caused her heart to clench tightly in her chest. They continued to stand in silence before Mai finally spoke again as she knew Naru wouldn't say anything.

"I could see if I can contact him. Maybe…maybe there's just something blocking him from you…or maybe you're tired…you've been traveling all day." Mai suggested. She met Naru's eyes as she nodded enthusiastically. He blinked at her before opening his mouth to reply. She could only hope the comment wouldn't be as snarky as the expression on his face was leading her to believe it would be.

"RUN!" Mai blinked at the voice. She recognized it as Gene's voice only to gasp as Naru reached out and pulled her to him. She jumped as she heard a loud crash with the lights in the room going out. She had her ear against Naru's chest and could hear his heartbeat. She swallowed as the sound slowly calmed her even though there was still the tingling on her skin that told her they weren't alone.

"Mai, I need you to move very slowly with me." he told her. Mai could tell from his voice and the way he tensed up that there was something he could see that she couldn't. She swallowed before nodding as she found her voice was lodged in her throat.

Mai followed his steps as he walked backwards towards the door. She could feel her heart beating up in her throat as she suddenly got the feeling they weren't going to be able to leave as easily as Naru had probably hoped. She tightened her grip on him causing him to stop moving. She slowly moved away from him, ignoring the way he hissed her name, and turned to look at what was behind her. She felt all of the breath left her body in one gasp.

There was a huge hole in the floor of her room where they had been standing only a few moments ago. There was fog coming out of the floor and she could see the silhouette of a person through it. She swallowed as the fog slowly dissipated and she felt her heart drop down to her feet at the hateful gaze and sinister smile on the apparition's face. Mai realized with a start that could hear the sound of dripping water once again.

"Yurei…" she heard Naru breath out. She watched stunned as the apparition's mouth opened. She knew what was coming and closed her eyes as she waited for the scream to pierce her eardrums. She was surprised when it never came.

"What are you waiting for?! GO!" her eyes widened as it was Gene's voice echoed through the room. She cried out as she felt Naru grab her arm to attempt to drag her out of the room. She fought him as the only thing going through her mind was to find out if Gene was alright.

"Gene! Are you okay? What's going on?!" she cried as she fought Naru. She couldn't see the older boy but she knew he was there. She could sense him but the feeling was faint. It felt almost as though he was fighting something. She just didn't know what was happening which scared her deeply.

"I'm fine! You idiot scientist, get her out of here!" Mai gasped as Naru tugged on her arm hard, digging his fingers in her upper arm. She was sure she would have a bruise in the shape of his fingers as he finally managed to pull her out in the hallway. She blinked as the door to the room she had been sharing with Masako slammed shut. She attempted to pull away from Naru but his hand tightened around her arm again.

"Do not go back in there." he ordered. She blinked at the tone of his voice. She looked at him only to blink at the look in his eyes. They were no long anguished at the fact he hadn't been able to contact Gene but dead. She found herself unable to look away from his eyes as he stared at the door. She slowly reached out to place a gentle hand on his arm. She knew he was lost in his thoughts when he didn't flinch away from her touch. They continued to stand there in silence until Mai heard loud footsteps approaching. She turned towards the sound and watched as Lin and Takigawa appeared.

"We heard a loud crash from the hot spring! Are you two alright?!" Takigawa exclaimed when he saw them in the hallway. Mai sent a look at Naru and saw he was still not moving. She quickly filled the two men in what had happened. She watched as Lin's eyes went wide before he quickly moved to the door. Mai opened her mouth to protest but was cut off as he threw the door open.

She blinked as she caught sight of the destruction the apparition had caused. There was the hole in the floor and Mai noticed there was a matching hole in the ceiling. She swallowed as she noticed the walls were also damaged. She felt her heart beating up in her throat as she wondered if Gene was alright.

"It looks like a bomb went off!" Takigawa cried. Mai started to feel woozy and had to lean against the wall opposite the door. She slowly slid to the ground as she continued to stare.

"What….about Gene?" she finally whispered as Lin and Takigawa surveyed the damage done by the ghost. She met the Chinese man's eyes as he turned to look at her. She waited for him to say something to assure her that Gene was going to be alright.

"He's there." her eyes shot to Naru as he finally spoke. She met his eyes as he turned to her. She was relieved to see some of the life had returned to his eyes. The sight made her heart return to its normal rhythm. She blinked only for her hands to raise to her cheeks when she felt tears escaped her eyes. She hadn't even realized they were forming.

"You can sense him?" Lin asked. Naru nodded as he continued to stare at Mai. He wasn't sure how to feel about the fact she was crying in relief over his twin. He was relieved as well that Gene seemed to be alright, if not a little exhausted. He mentally shook away the reasoning his mind was giving him over being bothered by her tears. He was not going to acknowledge them.

"Yes. He's exhausted…that idiot has done something stupid." he whispered. Mai blinked before shaking her head.

"What did he do?" she asked. Naru met her gaze before letting out a breath. Mai watched as his shoulders slumped for a moment then straightened. She swallowed as she waited for him to explain what had happened. She had a feeling she knew what he was going to tell her.

"He blocked the yurei and prevented her from hurting or killing us." Naru told her. Mai swallowed before allowing her head to drop. She had wondered if it was something like that. She sighed before biting back her tears. She knew she needed to stop crying because he was alright. Naru wouldn't lie to her about something like that.

"Okay. I guess the next question is why that yurei wanted to kill us." Mai said after sitting in silence. Naru crossed his arms with a sigh before shaking his head. She told her heart to calm down when she realized he didn't have an answer. Naru always had an answer.

"A yurei is a spirit bent on revenge. It is possible she is targeting the team because we are here to help the family. We are trying to stop her from getting her revenge and she, obviously, does not like it." Takigawa said as he turned away from the destroyed room. Mai noticed Lin was still studying the room. She wondered what he was looking for but knew better than to ask. He would tell them when he was ready. "At any rate…are you two uninjured? I'd be surprised considering the damage."

"Gene warned us in time." Mai whispered. She swallowed before climbing to her feet while ignoring the hand Takigawa held out for her. The shock of what had just happened was beginning to seep into her bones and it scared her. It scared her at how close they come to dying as well as Gene almost disappearing for good. She knew what it had taken out of him to warn them in time so they would not get hurt.

"Mai, where are you going?" Takigawa asked as she began to walk away from them. She paused before letting out a breath as she shook her head.

"I'm going to get some fresh air to clear my head. I'll be in the gardens if anyone needs me." she whispered before quickly disappearing down the hallway. She made her way into the garden as quickly as possible while thankful she didn't run into anyone else. She sank to her knees as she breathed slowly. She realized, now that she was out in the gardens, that she had felt claustrophobic in the hallway.

'Get yourself together, Mai! Gene is just tired, he is fine! Naru wouldn't lie about something like that. So, calm down! It's going to be okay…if we can just find out what is going on. That is what we need to focus on.' Mai told herself. She took one more breath before climbing to her feet. She looked around the garden as she felt a strong calming effect settle over her. She nodded to herself before turning back to the entrance of the Ryokan. She had finally regained control of her emotions again.

'I'm okay, Mai.' she blinked at the voice before smiling. She slowly walked towards the entrance before freezing as she felt as though someone was staring her down. She slowly turned as she looked for where the stare was coming from.

Mai bit back a gasp as she once again saw a ghostly apparition in the shadows. She studied it for a moment before furrowing her brow as she realized this was not the same figure she had been seeing for the past few days. This figure was different and seemed to have a softer glow around it. Mai's eyes widened as one of the figure's hands raised and pointed at the room that held the secret entrance to the hot springs.

"Please, help me….help me!" Mai's eyes widened at the voice before gasping as the figure disappeared in black mist. She swallowed as she wondered who the figure was before jumping out of her skin as another voice spoke from behind her.

"Mother?!" Mai turned to see Miwako standing behind her pale as a sheet. "That…was mother's voice!"

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