yay another chapter done. by the way i changed my pen name just because i felt it more reflected the things i write about.
disclaimer: all i own is the computer i use to write this stuff with...
"I'm not very happy with where this is all heading." Mai commented.
"I'm not either, but it's the only place that makes sense." Naru replied.
They looked at the scrap piece of paper they'd been jotting ideas down on it that pertained to the latest clue. It led them to a very unsettling answer.
"I really don't think that's right. There's absolutely no way it could be right." Mai protested. She was shifting in her seat, knowing what she said was a complete lie. The two of them had been working at the clue for nearly a half hour and this was the only answer to it that actually made sense.
"Just because I'm a man doesn't mean that I like it any more than you do Mai." Naru told her.
Truth be told he doubted anyone would be looking forward to going underground in New York City. He'd heard rumors that abandoned subway tunnels were turned into communities for homeless people. Though it would seem more like a refugee camp than a homeless community. Up until a few minutes ago they'd had absolutely nothing to go on. Then Naru had a sudden realization (with a little help from Gene) and realized the riddle was pertaining to the pretty much tragic excuse for a subway system the city possessed.
"And what about the bell tolls part" Mai asked looking over at him.
"Most likely under the clock at grand central station." Naru replied.
"And when you say under, you mean deep under?" Mai asked in response.
"Yes."
Mai sighed, "I've always heard rumors of mole people living in the subway."
"All rumors start with fact." Naru commented. "It's just a matter of how twisted it gets as it's passed from person to person."
He leaned back on the loveseat they'd been sitting on and put his hands behind his head in thought. When they'd entered the apartment Naru had taken off his jacket, now he was only in his black button down and Mai found her eyes drawn to his abdominal region. The shirt was loose enough not to cut the blood circulation there, but tight enough so it didn't fall off him and left little of his abs to the imagination.
'Geez, what else does he have hidden?' Mai wondered. Realizing where her thoughts were headed her cheeks became cherry red and she buried her head in her arms.
Naru looked over at her, "Mai, what are you doing?" he asked her.
Mai merely mumbled and buried her face deeper. Naru frowned.
"Are you alright?" he asked. With no response he pulled on Mai's arm.
"Mai if something's wrong you need to tell me." Mai was trying to keep herself away from Naru while still keeping her face covered.
"Mai." Naru said in a warning tone, he tugged a little harder. Mai still struggled. And the two began to fight in what would seem like a playful manner before Mai lost her balance and fell off the couch, taking Naru with her.
The way they fell would have someone wondering if they were a couple or not. Mai was on her back, arms by her side with Naru hovering over her in that famous 'awkward' pose. In other words he was over her with his hands bracing his weight on either side of Mai's head, while his knees were bracing his weight on either side of Mai's hips; his eyes were boring directly into hers.
"Naru, get off of me." Mai yelled as she tried to move his weight off her. When he didn't budge she blushed and got mad. "Naru!"
"What would you do if someone had you pinned like this?" Naru asked her as he continued to stare at her.
"W-What?" Mai asked as her cheeks continued to get redder, "Do you realize how uncomfortable this is for me and yet you insist on asking pointless questions?"
"I want to know if you know how to defend yourself." Naru said as he freed his hands one by one and grabbed her wrists, forcing them above her head.
"I can take care of myself Naru." Mai told him.
"Obviously, yet you're in this position. Why is that?" he asked.
"Because you won't get off me." Mai replied.
Sighing, Naru got up. "The way you said it, I don't have very much faith in you." He told her. "Looks like I'll have to keep a constant eye on you."
"I told you I can take care of myself Naru." Mai shot him a withering look and turned away from him. "I don't need you to babysit me."
"Oh really?" Naru's voice came from behind her.
"Yes really." Mai snapped not turning around.
Big mistake, within moments Naru had his arms wrapped around her; pinning her own to her sides.
"Naru, this isn't funny." Mai said as she wriggled and struggled against him. "Let me go."
"Not until you make me." He informed her.
"But I don't want to hurt you." Mai protested.
"Then show me." Naru leaned closer to her ear, "Show me what you'd do slowly and gently." Mai felt shivers run down her spine, and her skin start to break out in goose-bumps.
"O-Okay." Naru had to fight down a self-satisfied smirk as Mai's brain started to short-circuit.
Mai shifted slightly. "Well let me think, first I'd try and kick you in the shins or at your ankles. Then I'd go at your kidney. After that I'd try to loosen your grip on my going limp or trying to pinch you."
"Then what?" Naru asked.
"I'd probably take a page out of a woman's fighting technique book." Mai explained.
"Meaning what exactly?"
"Solar plexus, instep, nose, groin." Mai told him as he let her go.
"Sounds effective." Naru commented, "But might I suggest running as your best option?"
"Whatever." Mai scoffed.
Naru noticed she didn't immediately face him as she spoke. "And might I add, most men will try to keep you away from the lower half of their bodies unless they're trying to rape you. So don't rely on that as a never-fail hit spot." He said matter-of-factly.
Mai turned to him, "One of my old roommates called it the ultimate move." She said with a smile.
"But at least now I'm more convinced that you know how to protect yourself in the case that we get separated." Naru told her.
"In this city? Every girl should know how." Mai replied. "Now come on, just because I don't like creepy subways doesn't mean I'm going to avoid them."
"I would have dragged you down there if you refused anyways." Naru told her as he handed her the repacked bag.
"Come on." Naru ordered.
"Another minute." Mai protested.
"Mai." Naru urged.
"Watch that tone." Mai shot back.
"Mai, this is a service walkway. Even if the trains down here were still running you'd be perfectly fine." Naru explained.
"Shut it." Mai told him before continuing her pacing on the platform above him. Unladylike it might have been, but Naru would be dammed if it wasn't cute.
"Mai, nothing's going to happen to you." Naru tried again.
"Famous last words Naru, famous last words." Mai resumed pacing.
Naru crossed his arms and fought the urge to roll his eyes at how ridiculous she was acting.
"Oh, so my brother likes feisty women." Gene commented.
"Not helping Gene." Naru informed him.
"Wasn't trying to." Gene shot back in a singsong voice.
Naru decided to tune out his currently annoying brother and began to mutter something in Italian. Normally when he was frustrated and in America he'd start muttering in Japanese, but since Japanese was Mai's first language it wasn't the best idea.
"What did you say?" Mai asked him from above.
"Absolutely nothing." Naru lied.
"Yeah right." Mai scoffed, "You were insulting me."
"I was not." Not a lie, but not the whole truth either.
Mai started pacing again. Naru was just about ready to go back up there and get her when Mai stopped and took a deep breath.
"Alright, I'm ready now." She told him.
"finally." Naru replied ignoring the glare Mai sent him.
Mai walked over to the edge, looked down, and backed up slightly.
"Um, little help here?" she asked him.
Naru suppressed a sigh, crossed the tracks to below the platform, and held out his hand. "Grab on," he told her, "I've got you."
Mai took his hand and did something that was a cross between a jump and a slide as she made her way down. Unfortunately, she stumbled after her feet hit the ground and would have gone flying forward if Naru hadn't been there. Mai was leaning heavily on Naru while his arms had automatically wrapped around her waist.
"Are you alright?" he asked as he made no move to help steady her.
"I'm fine." Mai answered and noted that Naru's arms didn't budge from their current position, keeping her in place. She looked up from where her face had been forcefully buried in his chest. "You're enjoying this aren't you?" she asked him.
Naru's arms dropped as Mai uprighted herself with an embarrassed blush. She looked over at Naru, who was staring at her oddly. "What?"
"Nothing." Naru answered quickly, "But I'm assuming your nickname isn't grace."
"Why you!" Naru dodged a punch as Mai fumed. "I have some issues with vertigo; you have a problem with that?"
"Mai that isn't vertigo. It's probably less than five feet." Naru informed her.
"Thank you mister know-it-all." Mai said sarcastically.
"You're welcome." Naru said stoically.
He then turned to the walkway, keeping Mai under watch through the corner of his eye. Naru was pretty sure it wasn't vertigo but the fear of being underground as well as the creepiness of the tunnel they were in that had Mai a bit off. Though she was always a bit off, it was just more than normal. But the fear of a place like this was a perfectly rational one and if Naru had a mind to do it, he could admit to sharing it. However, he was much better at controlling his emotions than most people and so always seemed calm and collected no matter what the situation was. When they reached the walkway Naru gave a hand to help her up before climbing up by himself. Before they'd left, Mai revealed herself to be somewhat of a hacker, when they'd done a search of the city records though Naru'd been assured it was public information. They'd found that there was an abandoned tunnel that ran under grand central station. However, it was a hike from where they could access it quickly; one Mai was not looking forward to by any means at all.
"Alright, which way do we go now?" Mai asked him once they were steady on the walkway.
Naru looked at the GPS on his phone, "It says to go this way." He pointed to his right.
"You absolutely sure we'll be able to keep the signal in the tunnel?" Mai asked him.
"I believe so." Naru answered.
"Well, I think we should transfer it to my PDA" Mai told him. "I have a better chance of keeping a signal down here than you do."
"And why is that?" Naru asked. He had the latest Iphone and if that couldn't keep a signal down here he doubted Mai's PDA could.
"One of the perks of being the heiress to an electronics company is knowing and having access to all things that run on electricity." Mai told him. "In other words, besides this particular PDA having a very long battery life and very amazing reception abilities; it's also hooked up to a privately owned satellite." Mai blushed slightly as she said the last part and before Naru could even think of a way to protest Mai had already punched in the coordinates and handed Naru the device.
"Impressive." Naru commented while he looked the device over.
"Thank you." Mai replied.
"I was referring to the device." Naru informed her.
"Why you… whatever you narcissistic jerk." Mai told him. "Anyways, are you sure this isn't an active sub line?"
"positive." He answered quickly.
"so we don't have to worry about being run over or electrocution?"
"We'll be safe from those things at the very least." Naru answered.
"And what about the homeless people?" Mai asked him.
"Just stay in front of me and close by me. Don't confront them and don't give out money. Keep your bag out in front of you." Naru advised letting Mai step in front of him.
"The homeless here in America are really different from the ones back home." Mai commented. "I'm still not used to how people here treat them."
"Agreed." Naru replied. "I've lived here for six years, I've only ever been to Japan for work, yet the people there and in England are treated better than here. But for now we should focus on the task ahead." He made a sweep of the space in front of them with the flashlight they'd taken from Mai's apartment.
"Hey Naru, what about rats?" Mai asked out of the blue.
"Rats?" he questioned, slightly off kilter with Mai's train of thought. (Unintended railway pun since they're in an abandoned subway tunnel)
"Like the ones you call an exterminator to get rid of?" Mai asked in hopes he'd recognize them.
"Those we will have to watch out for." He admitted and felt Mai tense up. Almost as if it was automatic, Mai moved closer and one of her hands clutched at his shirt.
"Are you scared Mai?" Naru asked her, "I didn't think you'd be scared of something like them considering the situation we're in."
Mai could practically feel the smirk he was trying to suppress, but resisted the urge and calmly answered. "I won't faint or scream and freak out at the sight of them but I'd prefer not to interact with wild ones."
"And by wild you mean?"
"The ones that live in the pet shops are pretty cute, but I heard that the ones that live in the city are mean and I'm not in the mood to be bit by a rat today."
"Then pray tell, what would you rather be bit by." Okay, not the best time to be asking about something like that but Naru couldn't resist. She'd set herself up for that one.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" was Mai's response. She was getting better at giving vague answers to keep anything she wanted private to stay there.
"Well, at any rate if you want to avoid them I suggest you avoid looking at the tracks." Naru answered her first question.
"Not funny Naru." Mai told him.
"Wasn't trying to be Mai." Naru replied. He was serious about not looking at the tracks though.
A few minutes passed in silence as the two continued to make their way. Then Mai gave a little squeak and nearly latched onto Naru's arm. Naru suppressed a sigh, already knowing what the problem was going to be, but he asked anyway.
"What's the matter Mai?" he asked as she let go.
"I looked at the tracks." Mai admitted.
"Didn't I just tell you not to do that?" Naru asked.
"Yeah, but I didn't think you were actually serious." Mai replied.
"Very well, let's keep going." Naru told her.
Mai let him get two steps ahead of her before moving as well.
"Jeez, I know this will make me sound like a snob, but this place smalls awful." Mai broke the silence moments later. Naru was sure that if he put the flashlight beam on her he'd see her crinkling her nose in disgust. The picture in his head was cute.
"At a time like this Noll?" Gene asked him, "How strong is your drive for this girl?"
"I'm pretty sure you have the lecherous thoughts about her, not me Gene." Naru replied.
"That might be true. But the difference between me and you is that I'm dead, you're not. So even if I did have those kinds of thoughts about her, which I'll tell you right now I don't, I can't touch her. So it doesn't matter." Gene replied.
Naru decided to turn his attention back to Mai. "You won't be a snob if you say that Mai." He told her. "In this one instance you're absolutely right. It smells completely wretched down here."
"Naru?"
"What?"
"I think we're being followed."
The words set off a warning bell. Naru's first instinct was to turn around and face the threat Mai sensed, mostly because he wasn't sure how capable Mai was at defending herself. He reached behind him and pulled her closer. Naru kept them moving while he considered his options. He couldn't really do anything while he was unsure of Mai's defensive training. Now he could hear the footsteps that put Mai at unease. Whoever it was wasn't trying to hide themselves, so Naru doubted it was the hunter from earlier.
"Mai?" Naru said in a low voice.
"Yes?" Mai replied in an equally low sounding voice albeit more feminine and a little higher than Naru could manage.
"Back at the hotel, you said you trusted me right?" he asked her as quickly as he could while keeping all emotion, especially worry, out of his voice.
"Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?" she asked in a hurried whisper.
She felt, rather than heard Naru's response as he pulled her face to his chest then firmly wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He made a quick movement and Mai didn't even register what was going on until she was back on the ground, though a bit unsteady on her feet.
Turns out, Naru had pulled her close so he could enough of a grip on her to swing her over the tracks and put himself in between her and the possible threat. Mai looked over her shoulder to see Naru with the pistol out and the flashlight trained on whoever was behind them.
"Not another step." He warned. He wasn't yelling, but his voice echoed off the walls anyway.
Mai saw two people freeze in the flash of light. She also saw the light reflect of the knives they carried quite casually. The light was a bit of help but with it only shining on the two people there could be more hiding in the darkness that had come to be their element. Mai heard scuffling footsteps coming her way and on instinct kicked out her foot. It caught a man in the gut and he went down with a groan, the knife he carried making a clatter nearby. Mai reached out and groped for the knife. She found it, but it was awkward to hold so she doubted she could do much good with it.
"You okay?" she heard Naru ask from behind her.
"I think I'm good." She replied.
"What are you two? Cops?" they heard one of the "locals" ask.
"Yes, we're with the police force." Naru replied calmly. "However, we're only here for some help. More along the lines of information."
"What the hell's goin' on here?" a new voice asked. Mai shut her eyes as a new light shined in her face.
"Lydia," the second man Naru was facing called out, "these two say they're cops."
"Who's in trouble now?" the voice asked exasperatedly. A healthy sized Latin-American woman came into view. She had some sort of accent indicating she was from the Bronx, or some area of the like.
"Don't know." The man replied.
"As I said before, we're not here for anyone. We just want some information." Naru told her.
"Then why in hell's name are ya here?" Lydia asked. She heard a groan from the man Mai had kicked down. "Dammit Nicky. Ya been drinkin' again haven't ya?"
Mai looked at the woman as she examined the man on the ground with her flashlight. Mai saw a glint and noticed a sizable crucifix round her neck.
"I'm sorry" Mai apologized, "I didn't think I'd kicked him that hard."
"Sweet pea, ya couldda breathed on 'em an' he'd 've gone over just as hard." Lydia replied. She stood up and looked past Mai and Naru. "Was that what you two was down here fer? Lookin' fer Nicky?"
"Yeah, but instead a Nicky we found these two." The man indicated Mai and Naru; who still hadn't lowered his gun from the two. Lydia looked at Mai.
"Tell yer partner to put the gun away. These two don't want no more trouble than the rest of 'em." She informed her.
"You hear that partner?" Mai asked him. "You can put the gun away now."
"And who's your friend Mai?" Naru asked in response.
"Um, Lydia?" Mai offered.
"Sister Lydia Moesia." Lydia introduced herself. "And honestly, ya can put the gun away. These two won't hurt 'cha."
Mai felt Naru's arms lower but from the tenseness of his body Mai knew he'd be ready at a moment's notice.
"Yo, Ronnie, Alex, can ya get Nicky here back home?" Lydia asked.
The two nodded. And to Mai's mixture of horror and disgust they jumped into the tracks and scrambled up the other side before picking up the unconscious Nicky and carting him off.
"You two got any ID on ya?" Lydia asked when the men were out of sight. Naru handed Mai the flashlight and pulled out his ID.
"I'm not exactly what you'd call a police officer." Naru explained when he saw Lydia's eyes widen at the badge.
"I'd have to agree with that." She replied as she handed the badge back to him. "Can't say there's ever been an FBI agent down here mister Shibuya." She turned toward Mai. "And what about you sweet pea?"
"That's a bit of a story." Naru stepped in. "one that we unfortunately don't have a lot of time for. But I can tell you that she's important to the case I'm working right now and because there were no safe houses available at the moment, I'm here as her body guard for witness protection."
"Ah," Lydia said in understanding. "Well as long as ya ain't gonna make trouble then ya ain't gonna have it." She told them. "Unfortunately we've 'ad alotta idiots commin' down here lately tryin' ta get people in stupid shit like drug rings and crap like that."
"I must say that for a nun you certainly have a way with words." Naru observed. "I have a friend who's a father in a parish and the nuns there don't speak nearly as, eloquently, as you do."
"Meh." Lydia shrugged.
"What are you doing down here anyways?" Mai asked. "Honestly this is the last place I'd ever expect to see a nun."
"Doin' God's will." Lydia answered. "Just makin' sure everyone has a little somethin' in their stomachs every now and then."
"Wow." Mai said in awe.
"Ain't the greatest job in the world but someone's gotta do it." Lydia said. "So what's the reason fer you two bein' here?"
"This is where the next clue said to come." Mai answered without thinking.
"Clue?" Lydia raised an eyebrow.
"It's complicated." Naru said while placing a hand over Mai's mouth.
"I ain't gonna press ya on it." Lydia said.
"Well we've been trying to access a certain point via GPS and we have reason to believe it's in the center of the community." Naru explained while trying to keep Mai from biting his hand.
"Hmm…" Lydia voiced with a skeptical tone present.
"It might not seem like it, but it's the truth." Mai told her once she'd effectively gotten rid of Naru's hand on her face.
"Not sayin' I don't believe ya." Lydia told them. "I was just thinkin' that it might be best to keep everyone in the community outta the loop. Don't want any more trouble for 'em then they already got."
"If possible we'd like to keep anyone who doesn't need to be involved uninvolved with this." Naru assured the nun. "That includes you."
"Alright then." Lydia said after a moment of deliberation. "Let's go see if what yer lookin' fer is down here."
"This feels so weird." Mai whispered to Naru as they followed Lydia down the tunnels.
"Just stay calm." Naru whispered back.
By now they'd come to a crossroads where dozens of tracks met and dozens of crudely constructed houses were settled. Many of the inhabitants that had been out in the open were now "safely" hidden inside their makeshift houses when Mai and Naru passed. Those who didn't just watched without moving.
"You come down here every day?" Mai asked.
"I try." Lydia answered. "Now where do ya think what ya need is?" she asked.
"My phone isn't getting a signal anymore." Naru informed Mai. "What about your PDA?"
"Let me check." Mai pulled out the device. "I can't get an active map, but I'll get a crazy signal when we're near it." She replied.
"Fancy piece of equipment ya got there." Lydia observed. Mai flushed.
"It was a gift from my parents." Mai said quickly. Lydia just looked at Mai expectantly.
"Don't 'cha think you should be leadin' the way then?" Lydia asked when it was clear that Mai was not going to come up with the answer on her own.
"Oh, right." Mai replied sheepishly. She pointed the handheld device in a few directions before getting the one so desired. They walked in that direction for a minute or two before stopping.
"This is it." Mai said biting her bottom lip, "But there's nothing here."
"And you're sure that this is the right place?" Naru asked.
"The GPS doesn't seem to be malfunctioning so I would say so." Mai looked back at him. "Naru, what do we do now?"
"What exactly are you two lookin' fer?" Lydia asked as she stood behind the two.
Mai shook her head but didn't look up from the screen. "I have no idea."
"So what's the deal with these two Lydia?" a new, yet familiar voice asked. Mai looked up to see the two men from before in the community with them.
"Nothin' special." Lydia answered. "Ya got Nicky all tucked in safe?"
"Safe as he can get without bein' put in a straitjacket." The one Mai thought was Alex answered seriously.
"Oh wait!" Mai's sudden outburst caught the attention of everyone. She dug in one of her pockets and pulled out the knife from earlier. "Here, you should give this back to your friend." Naru gave her a skeptical look while the rest of them just gave her weird ones.
"You picked this up for Nicky?" Ronnie asked.
"Was it wrong to do?" Mai asked suddenly self-conscious. The knife was taken out of her hands and the two men looked at her.
"Hate to break in on this heartwarming moment." Naru said not sounding like it at all. Like he ever sounded like he felt anything in the first place. "But we still have no idea as to what to do."
"What's the problem?" Alex asked.
"These two came down here lookin' fer somethn'. But they ain't got no clue what." Lydia surmised.
"Sounds stupid to me." Ronnie laughed.
Naru simply plucked the PDA out of Mai's grasp and studied it himself.
"We could possibly have been mistaken." Naru admitted.
"But this is the only thing that makes any sense." Mai argued.
"Hmm… I'm not totally convinced about Grand Central Station." Naru mumbled.
"But it was your idea." Mai moaned.
"Think about the choice of words Mai." Naru tried to reason with her. (Wow that's a first) "The clue says 'bell tolls' but it could have just as easily been stated at 'clock chimes'. Why word it that way?" he asked.
"Wait, you're looking for a bell?" Alex interrupted.
"I suppose," Naru said, "you have one?"
Lydia grinned. "Why didn't ya say so in the first place? Right this way."
"I'm going to head for New York." Lin deadpanned.
"Sure, and I'm going to win the lottery without buying a ticket." Madoka mused from behind her paperwork.
"I'm serious Madoka. There's something wrong with Noll and it's my job to know what."
"Lin, I know that part of your job involves being a bodyguard for Noll. But come on. The kid is twenty-one years old now. He doesn't need to be under constant supervision." Madoka told him. "Besides, maybe this whole thing will do him some good. It's about time a girl caught his eye. Do you know how long Luella's been bugging me about Noll finally settling down and giving her some grandkids?"
"I didn't come here for a lecture from you I came for a favor." Lin informed her.
"Look Lin, even if you managed to get to New York how are you gonna find him without revealing his identity? Go around and ask people if they've seen him?" Madoka gave Lin her full attention. "but if you need a favor I'll see what I can do."
"Perfect, meet me at the Hamilton for lunch and I'll discuss the rest with you then." Lin said as he got up to leave.
"Bit of a haul for a half hour lunch break Lin." Madoka frowned.
"I'll buy." Lin offered hopefully.
Madoka's face instantly brightened. "okay, what time?"
"Twelve good for you?"
"I suppose."
"Try and be there as soon as you can."
"And what are you going to do in the meantime?" Madoka asked as Lin walked out the door.
"A bit of research." He said stopping at the doorframe. "Meet you later."
Madoka couldn't keep the worried look off her normally cheerful features.
"So it was referring to an actual bell." Naru said a little slowly to process.
"If you say so." Ronnie answered. "This thing showed up here a few weeks back."
"Showed up?" Mai asked.
"Yeah."
"People show up draggin' all sorts a things down here. No one really pays any attention to it."
"I could have sworn it was a metaphor." Mai replied.
She took a tentative step forward, she kept walking until she was directly beneath the bell and pointed the light upward into it.
"Naru!" Mai practically squealed. "there's something here!"
Naru briskly walked to her and looked up. Sure enough there was something in that bell that clearly didn't belong.
"Huh." Alex grunted as he cocked his head to the side. "Never noticed that up there before."
"Probly 'cause we never thought to look." Ronnie added.
Naru wasn't paying attention as he was looking for a way to get up to the bell.
"Maybe we could try knocking it down?" Mai thought out loud.
Naru simply handed her his black trench coat in response before taking a look at the houses and debating which one was sturdy enough to hold his weight.
"Naru what are you doing?" Mai asked as he quickly tested the sturdiness of the house.
"Hey! Break one of those things and you're gonna get it. I don't care if you are a cop!"
"Ronnie! Don't say such things!" Lydia scolded him.
"What?"
"Naru you better not be doing what I think you are." Mai warned as she caught on to what Naru was attempting to do.
Naru didn't respond as he found a suitable house and hoisted himself up on it.
"Naru! You're not a gorilla in a zoo that can do these things without danger! Get back on the ground!" Mai yelled after him.
Naru was now scaling the wall thanks to various metal attached to it that provided as footholds. And as soon as he got a hold on the overhead pipes that ran along the ceiling he was crawling along them too. Mai was once again impressed by him, as he made his way hand over hand to where the bell hung.
"If you get hurt I'm not going to feel bad for you." Mai yelled at him as he came back to above where everyone was standing.
"And I thought you said you didn't care. But I don't need any pity." Naru called down as he reached the bell.
Mai shook her head. "And you call me the idiot? That's a laugh compared to what you're doing right now!"
"You two sure have an interesting relationship." Lydia commented as she and the other two men watched the exchange. "Are ya datin' or somethin'?"
Mai flushed bright red and whipped her head around to look at the nun. "He wishes!" she said indignantly.
"No I don't." Naru called down from above as he started jiggling the object stuck in the bell. When it was finally loose he called down to Mai. "Mai catch!" and dropped the object.
"What!" Mai squeaked as the object fell down. After a few minutes of fumbling she had it steady in her hands.
"Nice to see you can catch and object of such fragility." Naru said.
Mai expected him to crawl back and get down like a normal person but she forgot that Naru was not normal. Instead he dropped to the ground and landed like a cat. He took his coat back from Mai and put it back on.
"Show off." Mai grumbled under her breath.
"It looks the same as the last one." Naru commented as he pulled another hitogata out of the box.
"That's what all the fuss's about?" Lydia asked as she got a closer look at the object.
"It would appear so." Naru replied.
A shrill cry broke through the air. And a girl with gray hair pulled in two messy braids and a set of cracked glasses stumbled in. She wore a tattered school uniform that didn't seem to be from America. The girl started speaking rapidly in a language that Mai was sure was Japanese, but she couldn't be completely sure with how fast she was speaking.
"She okay?" Mai asked.
"Seems to be. She showed up a few weeks back, but no one understands her. She speaks a little English but it's so broken no one can understand that either. We think she's from one of the illegal harem houses here in New York." Lydia explained.
Mai's face contorted, it was disgusting that things like that even existed in the first place, let alone in America.
"Yeah, but she's been getting better at not being afraid of her own shadow." Ronnie continued. "Something must have really got her if she's like this."
Naru walked over and started talking to the girl in the same language. Since he was talking slowly, Mai could make out some of the words but not others. She realized that it was a miv of Japanese and some other language. The girl was speaking very rapidly and more than once Naru had had to gesture with his hands to slow down.
"Excuse me." Lydia broke in to the conversation. "Can you tell her I want to help her get out of here?"
Naru nodded and told the girl. She shook her head. He tried again making the sign of the cross over his body. The girl looked uncertain but nodded her head and stood up with him.
"she says her name is Kurado. And that there's someone of great danger here in the tunnels." Naru explained.
"Kurado huh?" Alex asked. "And all this time we've been calling her Little Jap."
"How stupid." Naru remarked. "Stay here while I take a look at who this person of 'great danger' is."
"Like hell I will." Mai spat before running off after him.
She caught up with him when he stopped to peer around one of the makeshift houses. Mai was surpised he didn't hear her coming behind him the entire time.
"I told you to stay." Naru practically hissed when he finally saw her.
"And I'm telling you now that I am not a dog." She hissed back.
Naru looked around the corner and saw something that made his blood run cold. He swore under his breath and started backing Mai away before going in front of her, grabbing her by the wrist, and breaking out into a full out run.
"Is there another way out of here?" Naru asked as he came running back to Lydia, dragging Mai along with him.
"Somethin' wrong?" Lydia asked.
"Hopefully not." Naru replied. "The dangerous man isn't looking for Kurado, he's looking for us," he gestured to Mai and himself. "But it would be in the best interest for everyone if he didn't find us."
Alex stepped forward. "Come on, I'll show ya another way out."
"Wait Naru." Mai tugged at his sleeve. "Remember what happened the last time we left a place just after finding a clue?"
Naru sighed. "She's right. Is there anywhere we can hide out until it's safe."
"We'll stick ya in with Nicky." Ronnie offered. "Not like he'll notice bein' passed out an' all."
"Thank you." Mai said sincerely as they led the way to one of the houses.
"Yeah, yeah. If ya keep yer mouths shut we won't have any trouble." Alex grumbled.
"Shut yer yap Alex!" Ronnie scolded.
They arrived at one of the houses and the blanket door was pushed aside to let Mai and Naru in. everything seemed fine until shouts were heard from where they'd just come from.
"I'm gonna go check on Lydia." Alex said bolting out of the house.
"Naru, who did you see?" Mai asked.
"One of the former teachers from that high school I told you about." Naru replied. "He was one of the ones that made the teacher who was hexing the school go off the deep end. But now he works for her."
"What are you two talking about?" Ronnie asked.
"Something I'd love to hear more about when we have the time for it." Mai replied. "Unfortunately now isn't the time for telling stories."
"You should check the site Mai." Naru ordered.
"Nothing yet, it's redirecting." Mai replied pulling out the device. After a few minutes she spoke again. "You were right. The address is for Grand Central, but I have no idea what these other numbers mean."
"We should leave now then." Naru responded and turned to Ronnie. "Is there a quick way out of here?"
Ronnie nodded and led them to a service ladder. "Here, this should take ya right up."
"Should?" Naru asked skeptically.
"I don't generally go this way but it's what I'm told." Ronnie replied.
"Thank you so much." Mai said turning around and giving Ronnie a hug.
"y-you're welcome." The older man replied returning it.
"You head up first." Naru told her.
Mai turned and said one last goodbye before turning and starting the ascent. Naru let her get a good few feet ahead of him before starting his own journey. A tug on his coat stopped him at the fifth rung.
"stay safe." He told Naru seriously. "and take extra special care of her. She's somethin' else."
Naru looked up at Mai for a moment. "I think you may be right."
"Naru!" a hurried whisper came from up above. "hurry up!"
"coming." Naru called up climbing and leaving Ronnie and the underground world behind.
Naru reached Mai; who was fumbling with the service doorway. She jiggled the handle.
"Uggh. It's stuck!" Mai grunted.
"Do you need help?" Naru asked.
"Sure." Mai replied.
"Alright. Try to stay focused on opening the door." Naru told her as he began to move.
Mai thought he would stop once he was directly below her. She was so wrong. Naru kept climbing and spread his arms and legs as he did so in order to climb until his face was against Mai's lower back and his arms were on either side of her waist.
"There. Now you can use both hands to try and open the door." She heard Naru's voice muffled against her body. The worst part was the vibrations traveled down her spine and made it hard to focus on the task at hand.
Faster than she thought possible Mai had the door open and was through it not really caring what was on the other side. Naru followed up shortly after.
"What's wrong Mai?" Naru asked. she was breathing heavily and holding her hand to her chest.
She looked up, and her face was bright red. "Oh nothing, I'm absolutely fine."
The truth was that she was anything but fine and right now she was trying to keep her mind from wandering to indecent things. It helped when she remembered that Naru was a complete and utter narcissist. One that would sooner kiss a picture of himself than kiss a girl.
Naru watched the girl's actions thoroughly amused. He knew exactly why she was the way she was. The same thing usually happened when he got in any closer than two feet with any other girl. in fact, he was surprised she hadn't completely melted yet.
Now they took a good look at their surroundings. They seemed to be out of the subway and in an alley.
"I'm gonna guess we're somewhere near Grand Central Station." Mai said when her pulse had calmed.
"Yes, let's head there now." Naru said taking her by the hand and walking her in the direction of the station.
"You really know your stuff don't you?" Mai asked as Naru seemed to know exactly where to go.
"I've always had a photographic memory." Naru replied. "so it's easy to scan a map and apply it to real life."
"Oh."
"By the way. I figured that you would be capable to figure this out on your own but I'll say it anyway. You cannot tell anyone that I'm Oliver Davis. The world thinks he's dead and I want it to stay that way."
"Why?" Mai asked.
"It gives me more freedom to do as I wish without being pestered." Naru replied.
"I see where you're coming from." Mai told him. "don't worry, it's under lock and key." She stopped for a second. Causing Naru to almost pull her off the ground.
"Lock and key…" Mai mused. "Wait a second! I know where to go!"
i hope you like it cause it's almost 20 msword documents. also i'm always inspired when i get a ton of good reviews, make me write faster. also i need the name of the teacher who got hurt in after school hexer if anyone can remember it rather than make me search for it.