A/N: I'm am so, so sorry about the lateness of this chapter! Really, I can't apologize enough. Anyways, I'll just get to the chapter as fast as possible.

Disclaimer: The entire English cast for the DVD coming out in the fall would already be revealed if I owned Ghost Hunt. Now because that hasn't happened yet, put two and two together.

Chapter 7: Lectures and Long Days

When Naru said 'go clean the library,' she was just expecting a small room with a few bookcases and maybe a couple of chandeliers and lamps. Nothing big, nothing special. Like anyone actually ever made their libraries fancy. But as Mai soon found out, Naru's library was much more… extensive. Meaning that she was going to be stuck in this giant, auditorium-like room for the next two weeks cleaning everything.

When she entered, her jaw unhinged and hit the floor. Wincing, she ran her fingers along the third row of the first bookcase. Dust caked her hand a musky grey. As she looked back over her shoulder, she could see the tracks of her fingers along the rows of books. Did the man come in here at all in the past five years? Mai groaned weakly, but got to work.

The main bookcases were placed side by side on the walls, their dark wood shining under the light of two large, gold chandeliers. Both were placed on opposing corners of the high ceiling. Eight other bookcases stood in two columns of four in the center of the room, all stacked with books equally as grimy as the first bookcase. Mai then noticed a few more than several lamps dotted all around the room. One stood in each of the four corners of the library, decorated identical to the chandeliers above. A few were placed around the bookcases in the center of the room and one last lamp rested where a small sitting place had been set up with two plush, deep red chairs and a matching sofa.

She began by shoving all of the books from the very top shelf to the floor, each book landing with a dull thud. Mai pulled a soft rag from her pile of supplies she had dragged with her from the kitchen and began to wipe down the now-empty shelf. Even after one brush of the rag, the shelves were no longer brownish-grey. At least ten shades darker, the wood was highly polished and absolutely gorgeous. How could someone let such expensive things - even something as simple as a bookcase - go to such waste by just leaving them to collect dust?

Was there nothing in this manor that didn't cost over ten times what she had now? Oh, she could answer that question herself. The life of the rich and arrogant - lonely, maybe for Naru, but it couldn't be a bad one. Of course, she would never know what it was like. She could only admire from afar.

So much for dreaming, because no matter how hard she wished, it wouldn't come true. She had to get back to work. Back to her life being dirt-poor (that description hit a little too close to home), penniless, and completely hopeless.

After the first four dirt-covered bookcases, twenty shelves, over two-hundred forty books, and too many grey rags to count, Mai had noticed an odd pattern in the books. Ghosts were the main topic in every single yellow-paged book. Ghosts, spirits, phantoms, exorcisms - everything related somehow to the world of the dead. Mai giggled, fingering one particularly thick book called The Grand Almanac of Psychic Investigation. This wasn't for real, right? No one could possibly believe this stuff.

Ghosts didn't exist. The stories were interesting, frightening, and fun to tell, but that was all they were - stories. Unable to keep herself away, she kneeled and picked up another book: The Origins of Ghost Hunting. Ghost hunting, huh? What could possibly interest Naru so much to have all of these books just on ghosts? Maybe this place was haunted. Mai laughed at that instantly. No way. But there must have been a reason for all of these books… Maybe if she read one, she would find out…

"It's not real," she whispered to herself at a last attempt to keep herself from not believing. "It's only for fun." With that, she stood and made her way to one of the chairs across the room. Mai nestled herself comfortably in the chair and opened to page one.

Really, what made ghosts so interesting…?

Lin came out of the library, looking slightly incredulous. "She's already asleep."

Three other shocked faces stared back at him. Lin's message was not what they had been expecting. Suddenly, there was a short outbreak of laughter. All heads turned to the teapot. Madoka grinned and said, "Well, this was much easier than I thought it was going to be. Bou-san, I guess you know what to do. John, you can just stay with Lin and I'll… finish it. Just like we said."

Again, that smile in her voice stood out boldly. None of the others were too sure how much they could trust this plan they had thrown together, but it was their only hope for now. The chandelier nodded once bounded off down the hall while both John and Lin stood at either side of the door's entrance.

"I'll be back when they're in there together! It'll be back to normal in no time, trust me…!" Madoka's voice faded out down the hallway and both John and Lin gave a collective sigh.

"Sometimes I really do think Madoka's a little too positive for her - our - own good," Lin muttered once they knew she was out of earshot. John nodded slowly in silent agreement.

"She just misses it, that's all. We all miss actually being able to walk down a hallway in less than a minute or being able to reach something on the third shelf or see above something. I'm sure Masako-san and Yasuhara-san are tired of being stuck in that room together, no less, and now we can't even move around freely because Mai-san is here. We're all trapped, and Madoka's just trying to find the one easy way out of it. Before…" John trailed off shakily, erasing the second option from his head.

No. They couldn't think like that. Everything would be normal soon enough. Rushing a happily ever after on one unsuspecting orphan who thought her only job here was to pay off her father's debt and a hopeless, arrogant narcissist was not something any of them had been expecting to pull off. But Madoka had jumped right to it and they had all been inclined (more like threatened and forced, as it was Madoka) to help her out. Ayako, Yasuhara, and Masako were so lucky right now. None of them had to stakeout in front of the library and wait for their impatient boss.

"How long has it been since… then? That day? I've lost track," Lin smoothly changed the subject in the midst of the awkward silence. John waited for a long moment, doing the math in his head.

"Three years and ten months this Friday. It seems longer, though, doesn't it?" John replied with a sad grin. They didn't like to remember the nightmare when they didn't have to. Even for Lin, the shock had come unexpectedly and no apologies had been exchanged ever since. The two of them shifted uncomfortably in their place, looking down the hallways for any sign of movement and an escape from this disliked topic.

"Where is Shibuya-san? He should be here already. It doesn't take this long to get across one floor," the teacup wondered out loud, bouncing forward a few feet and then back anxiously. Lin peered into the library again, making sure that the young servant was still asleep. The book she had attempted to start reading was covering her face, her hands crossed over her thin stomach, and her legs outstretched and crossed at the ankle. Lin had half a heart to go in there and wake her up himself before Naru got to her. But no. They had agreed to this plan and they had to go through with it, even if it meant pushing Naru's temper past its breaking point. They only had a few chances before everything was wasted.

Lin suggested after a brief pause, "He might be gazing at her in the mirror." It wasn't very possible, seeing as Naru was probably working or just thinking. He seemed to do that more than ever these days. Maybe the fact that Mai had been invited (well, ordered) and now was here had gotten under his skin and into his head faster than they had expected.

"But she's asleep. He'd be down here already if he was."

"He might be gazing at himself in the mirror." This was the most plausible answer and the one thing John could not protest. But disproving their theories, Naru came rushing up the hallway seconds later, fury evident. John and Lin both turned and busied themselves instantly, but watched Naru storm into the library from the corners of their eyes, slamming the door behind him. Takigawa came forward moments later, smirking in victory. Their plan was in action.

"Madoka!" Lin called brusquely, waiting for the teapot to come speeding down the hallway after Naru. "We're ready for you."

"Mai. Mai."

Mai shifted slightly, crinkling her nose, and waved away the person calling her. No one was going to wake her up right now. She had been trying to dream about Naru again. It was probably the only time she was going to see his kind side, so it was worth a try. There was a sharp angry sigh and someone yanked the book from its position over her face.

"Get up!"

Mai rolled over on her side, eyes clenched shut and moaned incoherently. She wanted to get away from the angry voice. Or the angry voice needed to get away from her before she made it. The book smacked her sharply on the top of the head and she flipped over right away, ready to avenge her ruined sleep. What she saw reminded her of where she was and what she was doing.

"Naru!" she yelped, leaping up instantly. He stared her down with a lethal gaze as she hastily gathered herself off the couch. Looking her up and down, his wake-up greeting wasn't particularly pleasant. But Naru himself had never been pleasant whatsoever to her in the past two days, so it was expected.

"Are you finally awake, Sleeping Beauty?" he shot at her cynically, turning away and sticking his nose up in the air when saying the last word. Mai scowled, clasped her hands together, and avoided his penetrating glare. With her head down, she searched desperately for her cleaning supplies before Naru could jump deeper into insulting her. But Naru had other ideas.

As in lectures. "I do not believe napping on the job and reading my books count as sufficiently paying off your debt. The last time I checked, that was not what I said you were going to be doing here, was it?"

Biting the inside of her lip so hard so that she would not explode, Mai could only shake her head back and forth bluntly. Under the impression he had only intimidated Mai, a self-satisfied grimace (it could not be classified as a smirk or a smile) came over his pale face.

"Good. You can understand something as simple as that. And I thought you weren't going to be able to do anything." Mai held back another retort. He only wanted her to respond, he only wanted her to get annoyed. Naru continued when he saw no emotions flicker across her eyes. "But as extra payment for sleeping when you were supposed to be on the job, you will clean those windows." Naru pointed over her head and behind her, to where dark red curtains hung three meters high and over ten meters wide.

Behind all that curtain space were solid glass windows. Very tall solid glass windows that probably hadn't been used in years. Mai let out her breath wearily, slouching unhappily, but said nothing as she went to pick up her cleaning equipment and finish her other work that she was supposed to have done who knows how long ago. She still had over fifteen bookcases to go and she couldn't let Naru lecture her again on slacking off. Once was enough.

"And when you're finished with that, I want tea." Her back stiffened and she nodded once to show she understood that as well. Just another day working for the devil narcissist himself. Wasn't it good to be her? The sarcasm sliced through her thoughts and made her stomp a little too harshly, breathe a little too loudly, and made her throw the next set of bookcases to the ground with such force that even Naru jumped and turned around to stare. She didn't pay any mind, however, as the rants in her head became more and more pronounced and vicious.

It wasn't until she heard the last, slightly desperate, brutal shake of the door handle, a sharp kick, and Naru's heavy footsteps on the wood floor did she realize something was out of place. Turning slowly, she saw Naru gracefully (as if he didn't do anything clumsy) fall onto the couch she had just been sleeping on, pull the almanac from the ground, and begin to read.

He felt her perplexed gaze upon his head and gave an irate, brisk response - one that Mai had not been expecting.

"The door is locked."

Even that took a few seconds to register in her mind. But when it did, a surprised little helpless squeak emitted from her mouth. She dropped everything she was holding and rushed to try and open the door. What Naru had said was true. They were trapped inside.

Reality hit her even harder. She was trapped in a room with Naru. Alone. Together. For who knew how long. A mix of horror, sheer torture, and for some odd reason, glee overcame her. She could barely stand staying in a room with him for over a minute, how could she possibly survive for any longer? So Mai did the only thing that came to mind.

"Get me out of here!" she screamed, pounding and kicking the door like some child throwing a tantrum. Hopefully one of the servants would hear her and come to try and help at least. Naru, without even looking up from his book, read her mind like it was printed on the very piece of paper he was reading.

"They won't unlock the door, just to warn you."

Mai swiveled around and whimpered, "How do you know? How can you possibly be so calm in a-?"

"You do realize my servants were the ones who locked the door in the first place, don't you?"

This information felt like a fist to the stomach as all the wind was sucked out of her. This could not possibly be true. There was no motive, no reason to confine her in a room with the nastiest person she had ever had the displeasure to meet. And yet the slightest bit of her remained hopeful. "Why? Why would they do something like that? Just for fun?" she gasped, sounding near hysterics. The small flicker of life in Naru's normally opaque eyes made her jump slightly as he stared her down for what seemed like the tenth time that day. The spark was gone just as fast as it came.

"I don't know."

Mai was too deep in panic to realize this was an outright lie. She pulled away from the door reluctantly and scanned the room for an escape of some kind. Her own brown eyes twinkled excitedly when they passed over the windows. But Naru just as easily read her mind and crushed her spirits.

"If you break any of these windows, I will add three more years to your service. Per window."

Mai shot back just as nastily, absolutely fed up, "Oh, like I'm not already here for life."

This was going to be a long day.

A/N: I would probably hate getting trapped in a room with a grumpy Naru. That would suck. Anyway, I'm also hinting a little more at what everyone's motives are. Is anyone catching on?

Please review!