A/N: Okay well this is chapter 3. Believe it or not, I was actually threatened. Cute0anime0addict told me that I had to update or else. Wow. That's a first for me. Thank you to everyone who is reading and following this story. And thank you also to everyone that has reviewed so far. They let me know that people like the story. And to that person that threatened to poison my cookies, I don't like cookies, so good luck with that idea. He, On with the story.
Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt. Do you think I would be writing fanfics if I did?
"Wow," was the word that almost every worker of SPR said as they took in the sight of the mansion before them. It was huge. No, huge didn't do it justice. Freaking huge. That's a better description.
The building itself looked to be at least two storeys high, with a large dome on the top, which must have added another storey to the house. It appeared to be made of glass though. The front of the building was littered with windows that were all perfectly clean. The stones and paint looked as fresh as the day they were placed there. And the surrounding gardens and land was clean and cut. All in all, the place didn't look a day old. It was as if the house, no mansion, was frozen in time. Almost like a picture.
And staring up at this wondrous house, was none other than the SPR team. After a three hour long drive, the group had finally climbed from their cars and Mai had even gone as far as to kiss the ground. Naru of course had just scolded the girl and, unlike the rest of his workers, didn't bother to marvel at the home. Neither did Lin. The Chinese man just went about unloading the necessary equipment from the van.
"Mai, I want you to help Lin take the equipment inside and assist in setting it up. Then you are to go around to every room and take temperature readings," the boss said.
"But what about the camera's?" the brunette asked, while grabbing a box from the ground.
"We won't set them up until we speak to the servants, Taniyama-san," Lin replied for the teenager. Mai's mouth just formed an 'O' as she followed the group to the front doors. A loud knock resonated as Naru flicked the "knocker" against the wood. Mai noticed how intricate the detail upon the door was until it opened to reveal Paolo.
"Ah welcome. This is my humble abode," he said ushering them all inside.
"Humble abode my butt," Ayako said, taking in the entrance room they were all standing in. Everyone agreed as they relished in the beauty of the room.
"Mr Keranzi, could you please show us to our base?" Lin asked the young man. He just nodded and headed for the nearby staircase.
Mai, Naru and the others followed Paolo up the extravagant staircase and into a burgundy hallway. A few marble busts were sitting on pedestals that the small group passed along the way. Everyone remained silent as Paolo unlocked a door and ushered them inside. The room contained a few tables and some chairs. A large couch was sitting in the corner also.
"This was my second study but I had it cleaned out for your use," he explained as Mai and Lin put down their boxes.
By the time Mai, Lin and the others had finished bringing in and setting up the equipment, their stomachs had begun grumbling.
"I will show you to your rooms and then have Kasumi make you some lunch," Paolo said. The group once again followed him out the door and along the same hallway. He passed a few more statues and paintings before stopping and opening another door.
"Is this the closest room to the base?" Lin asked. Their host just nodded.
"Yes. I guessed that you would want to be close to your equipment," he said.
"Lin, John, Takigawa and I will share this room," Naru said from the front of the group. They noticed that their suitcases had already been brought up.
'Funny. I didn't see anyone else here,' Mai thought. When she looked again she noticed that everyone had begun moving towards another room, just across the hall.
"And this will be the ladies room I presume?" Paolo mused as he opened the door for them. Naru just ignored him as he watched the girls walk in to inspect the room. Mai walked over to the large bed and frowned.
"Uh Mr Keranzi?" Mai asked the man. He just looked at her.
"Paolo please," he corrected her.
"Fine Paolo," Mai said. Naru didn't like the fact that she was being so friendly with him.
'Jealous are we?' a little voice bugged him.
'No I just don't want her telling him anything,' he replied.
'Sure,' it mocked.
"Um my suitcase isn't here," Mai finished. Everyone scanned the room and apart from Ayako and Masako's 10 cases, Mai's small brown one was absent.
"Hey she's right," Takigawa said.
"That can't be. I had everything brought up from your van. It must be here," Paolo replied.
"Well not to cast doubts on your statement, but it's not here," Mai bit back.
'That's better,' Naru thought, 'Anger from her is better for the case.'
'Noll, you're just jealous that she was getting friendly with that Paolo guy. The case has nothing to do with it.'
Naru just ignored his brother's voice as he re-focused on the pair.
"It's okay, Mai. I will try and find you something to wear while you and your friends have lunch," he apologised. With that everyone headed back downstairs and into the kitchen, where they found a large table covered with food.
"Bon appetit," Paolo said before leaving to find Mai some clothes. Everyone began to load up a plate full of food when a woman of about 45 came in. She was wearing a chef's outfit and had long black hair.
"You must be Kasumi," Mai said as the woman approached them. The older woman just smiled and nodded.
"Please eat all you want," she offered. Once everyone was seated with their food Mai began talking.
"So Kasumi, where is Mrs Keranzi?" The woman's face darkened for a moment before her face became sad.
"The only woman Master Keranzi ever loved enough to marry, is…no longer with us," she replied. Mai gasped before dropping her fork.
"Oh I'm so sorry. I just assumed that there was someone," she said hurriedly.
"It's okay, you didn't know," Kasumi said with a dejected smile, "Besides, he seems happier nowadays." Mai just nodded and returned to her meal. After lunch Mai had persuaded Kasumi to allow her to help clean up, especially after what she said. Ayako, Masako, John and Takigawa had headed to their rooms to clean up, which left Naru and Lin all alone in the base.
"Do you think it's the girlfriend?" Lin asked as he watched the young boss read his notebook. Naru just shook his head.
"Why would she take the maids?" he asked. Lin just shrugged.
"Maybe she's jealous?" he offered. Naru, as usual, knocked it back.
"Then why bring them back? A jealous female would do away with the competition. Take Masako for example, she would beat anyone if they got too close to me," Lin raised an eyebrow at his statement.
'Didn't Masako try and beat Mai with a broom while she was possessed on our last case?' he wondered. He shook off the idea just as the subject of his musings appeared in the doorway.
"Hey Naru," Mai said with a smile, "Do you want me to set up the camera's now?"
Naru just sighed.
"Didn't Lin already tell you that we cannot set anything up until we speak with the servants? Only you would be stupid enough to put a camera in the basement, when everything is happening in the attic," he said without looking up.
Mai sent a death glare at her boss as he, she concluded, ignored her. A knock from behind Mai halted her abruptly.
"Mai?" Paolo said while poking his head though the door. She turned to face him and missed the glare that Naru sent at the newcomer.
"Yes?" she said. He stepped through with his arms laden with clothes. They looked rather old and dusty.
"I found these in the attic. I hope they are okay. I couldn't find anything else," he said gesturing to the garments. Mai approached him and took the pile from him.
"Do you mind if I alter these?" she asked. Paolo just shook his head.
"Go ahead. They probably haven't been worn in years so feel free to do anything with them." Mai smiled brightly at him and swiftly walked through the door and into the nearby bathroom. Paolo stared after her for a few moments when Naru cleared his throat.
"We will speak to the servants now," he said simply. He didn't like the way this guy was looking at Mai. It was purely out of concern for the case. He really didn't need his assistant going missing every five minutes. Besides Lin's tea was horrible and there was no way in heaven or hell that he was going to endure that test.
Paolo left and fetched the five servants that had supposedly been taken by this thing.
Three of the women looked to be in their 20's whereas the other two looked to be in their teens.
"Please state your names and ages for my assistant," Naru said sitting across from the five.
"Nara Jensen, 27," a brunette began.
"Ami Windom, 19," another brunette.
"Melanie Crane, 23," and yet another brunette.
"Sarah Yaten, 19," and " Stephanie Morris, 20," were the final two replies from, yep you guessed it, the final two brunettes.
"What happened?" Naru said coldly. Each of the girls explained basically the same story.
They were new. Each had only been working here for about three days. That night they would go to bed and when they woke up the next morning, they went about their business as usual. However whenever they asked anyone they said it was the day after the day they thought it was. Each of the girls had lost a day. No matter whom they asked or tried to recall, none of them could find out where they were or what happened to them.
"Why keep working here?" Lin asked as he finished typing up their story.
"I need the money," one of them said. All the others agreed in some way or another. The men finally permitted the women to leave and as the final one's steps died down the hallway, Lin turned to Naru as the boss spoke.
"Did you notice anything odd about those women?" he asked his assistant. Lin thought over what they had said.
"No not really. Apart from their desire to stay there wasn't really anything that stood out. And they were all brunettes…" the tall man trailed off before launching himself from his chair and tearing out the door. He tried the handle of the bathroom but when he found it locked and heard some banging inside, the Chinese man wasted no time in breaking down the door.
"Taniyama-san?!" he said as he entered. Naru was close behind and the pair were greeted with an interesting sight.
Mai was standing there with wide eyes, wearing only her underwear and bra. She tried to cover herself with her arms as the two just stood there.
Both Lin and Naru couldn't help but let their eyes wander over her scantily clad figure before her shrill shriek caught their attention.
"What the hell are you two doing?!" she yelled louder than anyone could comprehend. Both men visibly paled and then a slight blush became evident on their cheeks. Takigawa, John, Ayako, Paolo and Masako came bounding into the room to see what was going on but each stopped as they noticed their friend's state of undress and the other two's embarrassment. Again, Takigawa, John and Paolo just stood there staring before Ayako leapt into action.
"What the hell is wrong with you lot?!" she yelled as she threw a robe around the 16 year olds shoulders, effectively covering her body.
"Uh…we…just…um," Lin stuttered as he averted his gaze from the fuming miko and blushing brunette. He finally regained his composure and began explaining.
"Naru and I spoke with the five women that had gone missing and we noticed that they were all brunette. Taniyama-san is brunette so we came to see if she was alright. When I tried the door and it was locked, I heard some banging sounds. I thought that Taniyama-san was in trouble and so I found a way in," he said.
"By breaking down the door?!" Mai yelled again. Lin, along with everyone else, visibly winced. That girl had a pair of lungs on her. Before anyone could respond, Ayako pushed Mai through the crowd and out of the bathroom, making sure she stayed covered. The redhead pushed the girl into their room and shut the door.
She returned to the bathroom and gathered up all the clothes.
"The least you could have done, was not stare at her," she said venomously, directing the comment to the boss and his assistant. She then stalked past them and back into the girl's room.
Everyone just stood there for a few moments before Paolo cleared his throat.
"Okay. Do you want me to send up the men that have seen the glowing orb Shibuya-san?" he said trying to break the silence. Naru nodded curtly before swiftly exiting the room and heading back to the base. Lin of course wasn't far behind. Both chose to avoid the subject of what they had just seen of Mai's…assets.
(A/N: This is one thing that would really make Naru suffer. He is 17 and a guy. Need I say more? But don't worry. I am not going down that track. Okay I've talked enough, back to the story.)
Again the servants stories were all basically the same. They were working in various parts of the house when they felt a shiver go down their spines. When they turned around there was a floating "ghost ball" passing right by them. One said that he was in the garden when it happened, another in the kitchen and the other two had seen it in the halls.
When Lin had finished typing up the stories he addressed the men.
"Thank you gentlemen. That is all," he said. Three of the men departed but when Naru looked up, the fourth was still there.
"Was there something else, Kamui?" he said in a slightly annoyed tone.
"I was the one who heard that name being called out," he said almost nervously. This sufficiently got Naru and Lin's attention. The seventeen-year-old nodded for the older man to continue.
"I was cleaning in Master Keranzi's library when I felt the air become really stuffy. I couldn't breathe and then I heard someone, a man I think, yell the name Isabella really loudly," he said.
"Well it would be difficult for someone to yell quietly now wouldn't it?" Naru said sarcastically. Kamui just huffed and stalked from the room.
"That went well," Lin commented. As Lin re-read all the information they had gathered Masako quietly entered the silent base.
"Hara-san, did you sense anything?" Naru asked the medium. She just shook her head.
"All I can feel is pain and longing. Whatever is here either doesn't want to be helped or can't be helped," she elaborated. Naru looked thoughtful for a moment but did not speak. The silence was broken however once Takigawa and John entered.
"Yeah, Ayako has locked herself and Mai in their room and she said that they wont be coming out until dinner," John said unaware of their audience.
"This is all my fault," Lin said sadly, "If I hadn't barged in ther-"
"You couldn't have known," Masako cut him off, "Mai should have responded when you knocked on the door." Nobody noticed as Naru quietly slipped from his chair and out of the now crowded base. Somehow his feet lead him directly to his assistant's room. He refrained from knocking when he heard their voices.
"It's alright Ayako. Lin and Naru didn't mean it," Mai said to the fuming miko. She just tossed her head and snorted.
"They shouldn't have stared at you like that!" she replied, "Especially not Takigawa!" Mai was taken back by her sudden statement.
"Why Ayako, are you by any chance jealous?" she asked slyly. The said miko just turned beet red and pushed Mai back onto the bed.
"Now go to sleep. We need all the help we can get on this case," she eluded the question. Mai just sighed and drifted off.
Naru just turned and walked away. He now had some nice little information about the monk and miko that he could use to his advantage.
A/N: There you go! That is chapter 3 of Memories of Old. Not a lot happened this time but I really just wanted to establish the case a little more. Forgive me for placing poor old Lin in a difficult situation but I just could not resist. I mean I picked on everyone else so why not Lin? Read and review people. Chapter 4 should be out by the end of the weekend. Bye.