Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt.
Burnt Desires: Part 2
Day 2. 7:03AM.
The next morning found Mai arriving sluggishly late for work, having slept through her alarm for the second time that week. Now here she was, forcing her tired legs into a run as the building came into view. Her hair stuck to her face as she hurriedly climbed the nimble steps leading to the SPR, hearing her shoes thump with every step. She rushed inside and blurted an apology she knew her two co-workers could hear, taking the chance to catch her breath before shrugging off her winter coat and slinging it over the coat rack. Naru was bound to be angry, not that she could complain. If she was in his shoes, she'd be angry too.
Her heart pounded at the very thought of his face looming over her, counting off the numerous times she had been late for her job. "Ugh, no thanks," She shook her head, shaking off a shiver as she sighed. "I need some tea." She found herself saying, wondering when she had starting liking the stuff. I blame Naru.
Mai shuffled into the main room, brushing back her hair as a yawn broke out on her face. But she bumped into something.
"You're late."
Mai stumbled back, flailing her arms behind her at his sudden appearance. "N-Naru!" She yelped, rubbing her abused nose –a casualty from their collision. "You need to stop doing that," She put some distance between them, shaking her finger at him. "I thought you were a ghost!" Her cheeks burned red at her exclamation, feeling his pointed gaze on her face. Feeling her cheeks grow even hotter at her ridiculous remark, Mai bowed her head and gestured towards the kitchen, spouting a flurry of words about making some tea before making her escape with a stumbling run, feeling his stare on her all the way.
As soon as she crossed the threshold into the kitchen Mai released a line of curses, pulling in a tight breath. She hadn't even noticed him on her way in, and had mistaken him for a ghost. Again. Whether it was due to the lack of cases recently, she didn't know, wondering perhaps if her skills were getting rusty. Pushing away her thoughts Mai went about her usual routine, filling the kettle to the brim with water and lighting the stove, waiting patiently for it to boil while she prepared the three cups, adding in the sugar, milk and tea bags.
Mai poured the boiling water into the cups and stirred each one before grabbing the tea tray from beside the microwave and placing them on top, carefully carrying them out towards the main room and setting them down on the table. Grabbing a cup for herself, Mai sat down on the couch as her mind began to unwind through the peace and quiet. She cradled the cup in her lap, winding her hands around the sides and feeling the warmth envelope her fingers. She had had a dreamless sleep the night after, relieved that the dream filled with fire and crazy laughter hadn't resurfaced. Speaking of the dream, I completely forgot to write t down. She just hoped Naru could wait a bit longer.
Her ears perked up at the sound of a door opening, followed by the gentle footfalls of her boss' shoes as he neared her person. Mai cracked open an eye, watching as he settled himself down on the couch opposite.
"You didn't call," He said after a moment, nodding at the steaming tea resting on the table.
Mai frowned, blinking a few times as she processed his words. "Oh, sorry about that. I didn't think to..." She broke off into a yawn, sending him an apologetic look after she had finished.
Naru nodded in return, reaching for his tea. "I got Lin to trace the call last night," He uttered, blowing away the rising steam from his cup. Mai unconsciously tightened her grip around her cup, ignorant to the blistering heat radiating through her palms. "He found the house it came from, and it appears we have a new case," He took a sip of his tea, eying her over the rim of his cup.
"A case?" She blurted, almost spilling her drink at his sudden statement. W-We have a case? She couldn't believe her ears. It had been so long since the last case that Mai had a hard time believing his words, surprised at the outcome of the suspicious phone call. "How so?"
Lin appeared at her question with a file in hand as he picked up the remaining cup from the table, handing her the file. "After retracing the call I did some research on the building. Turns out the house is empty. It burnt down sometime last year," He took a sip of his drink, swapping a look with Naru. Mai froze, recalling the smell of the fire as it clouded her senses, hearing the ring of Lin's voice in the background. "The fire crew couldn't save the people trapped inside due to them living in such a remote area," He took a breath. "By the time they arrived, the inhabitants had already passed on and the house was almost burnt down to its wooden frame. The surrounding area caught fire, desecrating the field nearby and burning down parts of the forest enclosing the home."
Mai's senses rushed back to her in a blast, reminding her of the numbing heat running along the palms of her hands. She lurched back in shock, releasing her grip on the cup with a gasp. Lin looked up at her muffled noise, trailing his eyes over her reddened hands with a concerned look.
"Mai," Naru called, catching on to Lin's worry. "Put the cup on the tray."
Mai looked up at him with fear so evident in her eyes, cradling her tingling hands in her lap. She looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Her hands trembled and she caught her breath, shakily placing the cup on the tray as she tried to dispel her dream of the fire. Was it really such a coincidence?
"What's wrong." He asked, feeling the worry creep up on him. "Is the case similar to the dream you had?"
Mai swallowed the lump in her throat, giving him a rough nod. "Y-Yes..." She averted her gaze to the ground. "There was also a fire."
Lin looked up, trailing his eyes over Mai's distant look before asking, "If there's no one living there, then who called us?"
Naru took another sip of his tea before placing the cup down next to Mai's with a silent thud, glancing thoughtfully at her for a moment. His gaze flickered before he made up his mind, slipping the van's keys from his coat pocket and swinging them around his finger with a passing look. "Let's go find out."
Day 2. 9:15AM.
The drive there was surprisingly quiet. Mai hadn't uttered a single word since their departure, only stopping to grab her coat and notebook on the way out. Naru glanced at her reflection in the rear-view mirror, wondering how long her forced silence would last. Her expression had changed during Lin's run over of the case, igniting something deep inside her. Noll knew her latest dream was to blame. It was bound to hold some relevance for this case if it also revolved around a fire.
He narrowed his stare in the mirror at the thought. Mai still hadn't written down her dream. How convenient. He thought solemnly, resisting his oncoming glare. At least she remembered to bring her notebook with her.
Mai released a sigh from the back, unconsciously fiddling with her seatbelt as she stretched the revolving material around her fingers, staring vividly at the passing scenery with a pout marring her face. She was still thinking about the dream.
Naru grunted at her look, receiving an odd look from Lin. He sighed. "Just take a nap, Mai," He muttered before focusing back on the roadmap sitting in his lap.
Mai blinked awake at the sound of her name, feeling the seatbelt slip from her grasp. She cleared her throat, peering through startled eyes at her boss as he ran his fingers along an imaginary line on the map in front of him, whispering something to himself at her look. A nap doesn't sound too bad. She thought, but suddenly remembered the dream. It keeps coming back in waves, She hummed mentally, feeling the uncomfortable heat stick to her back. No, she didn't want to sleep. Not until she made the link between her dream and the case.
Trying to throw her mind elsewhere Mai folded her arms with a brisk pull, feeling her hands tense at every bump the van hit on the road. She tried to focus her gaze out the window, forcing herself to watch the other vehicles pass and overtake with bursts of speed, leaving trails of thin smoke as they moved. Smoke. It reminds me of the fire –No Mai, stop it! She ground her teeth, forcing back a whimper.
The assistant closed her eyes, resting her back against the seat as she felt the belt constrict around her. She took a calming breath, focusing on one thing until her heart steadied back into a gentle rhythm, ridding her off the feelings of scorching heat and smoke. She opened her eyes once she was calm, refocusing on the scenery beyond the window.
The road had long faded out of view as the van continued down a gritty path, venturing slowly down a deserted country road as the wheels hit across the uneven terrain, jolting Mai back and forth with every bump. They were the only ones on the road, leaving the other motorists back on the main motorways a few hours ago. Mai didn't think much of it at first, knowing these types of roads were usually quiet. And she didn't think nothing more until they skirted off the road a few miles on at Naru's interjection, pointing at a barely visible path running through a dense forest. It looked more like a hikers trail.
"Naru, are you sure this is the right way?" Mai asked as the approaching forest came into view, making her wonder whether it was a dead end.
"No need to panic," Lin reassured her as he pulled the van into a U-turn, pressing down on the gas pedal to fight across the grassy terrain. "Naru's never wrong."
You got that right. She grumbled sarcastically, watching the trees cave in as they entered the woods.
The van sped forward through the overcasting shadows of the trees, leaving dim spots inside the back as they moved. What first appeared as a hikers trail soon turned into a scene from a horror film, leaving Mai to stare nervously out the window, fixing her eyes on the haunting trees; and the further they ventured in, the more worse it got. The trees bent downwards and shielded out the light, leaving an aluminous glow around the tops. The branches were bare and twisted outwards in uncanny ways, stained in an unearthly black. The forests undergrowth was also a pure black in colour, having been denied their needed nutrients from the parched and scorched ground beneath.
It looked dead, like it had been burnt from a forest fire.
Mai waited with baited breath, and it felt like hours had passed before they finally reached the edge of the woods, allowing her to release her held breath at the sight of the warming sun. She heard Lin's quiet sigh, finding herself looking in the rear-view mirror at the spooked Chinese assistant. She watched his hands untighten from the steering wheel, and he shook off the haunting vibes of the overbearing woods, whereas Naru seemed unaffected.
The van swerved swiftly down the proceeding path until an old-styled Victorian house came into view over the horizon, sitting solitary in the lush field. The ground here appeared untouched by the black dirt covering the forest behind. Mai was apprehensive. It didn't sit right in her stomach.
And despite her quiet whines, they pulled up out front, with Naru and Lin exiting the van first to check out the surroundings. Mai stayed put, not wanting to venture out any time soon. The house out front was an old Victorian-styled building, having been renovated to copy the modern-styled roofs of the houses back in the cities. A splash of white paint covered the front wall, leaving mere speckles across the wooden window panes and glass. Mai was desperately hoping it wasn't the same house the fire took place in, but the creeping heat of the fire made itself known, throwing her desperation out the window.
Taking a deep breath Mai opened the passenger door with an agonisingly slow creak, poking her head out for a quick whiff. It smelt of smoke; the type you'd get from burning wood. She moved her leg through the narrow gap between the van and the door, edging it towards the ground and risking a suspicious glance at the house.
She forced her body out with it –despite the nervous chill climbing up her back, scanning the edge of the forest for any moving black shapes hidden amongst the brush before rushing over to Naru. With a quick glance at the house Mai tugged on the sleeve of his black jacket, grabbing his attention.
"I thought you said the house burnt down?" Her voice came out sharper than she had intended.
Naru nodded. "I did."
Posting Date: 31st October 2014
Symm: Happy Halloween, is anyone doing anything good? I'm spending the night at my friend's to have a Horror Move fest. We're going to carve pumpkins which is something I've never done before. Have a nice night!
Thanks for the reviews liqur and RosetheWoldgirl!
Thanks for the follow Animeloverdj!