Mai and Masako had just ventured back in time from their scan of the bottom floor to find Naru and the gang putting up the last of the equipment. They looked at each other with hidden grins, glad to have been gone enough long to not partake in that activity. They had already gotten a scare from it during the last case when one of the support beams broke and it started leaning toward them. Monk had described them as two chickens running around without their heads; they were out of the room and out of the building like two Olympians.
"Nice of you two return" Naru said, proving he was frustrated but the two had learned to ignore him and chuckled. John perked up once he saw Masako was back and asked her how the scan had gone, which she discloses to everyone so she wouldn't have to repeat.
"I don't feel a presence. Whatever it is out there, it's being muffled by something. It is here, just not strong enough for me to know its being" She said and everyone stood around, thinking deeply.
"Are you sure? I don't really feel anything at all" Monk said with a frown, "I walked in and didn't feel anything strange about the place, maybe this woman is just paranoid." He said and shrugged, everyone seemed to agree with him. There didn't seem to be anything here, but for the time being they had to check everything out, make sure there wasn't some of settling was causing this. They started by putting up cameras around the first five rooms while Lin and Naru looked at the stairs, once everyone came back Naru reported that they were too damaged to climb and if needed they would have to get into the upper floors from outside. Of course that meant only the guys would go up there, and they would to have to carry up the equipment with them. Time passed and everyone was finally settled in, they even found a couch in one of the rooms and moved it into the office, peeling off the plastic layer they found it looking rather new and the three youngster of the group played on them before digging around for change in the corners of it. Yashura was the most lucky, finding 500 yen, having searched through the lining of the old couch.
"No fair, only a criminal mastermind would look there" Mai complained, her and Masko yawning from all their play. Yashura shrugged with a smug look and he too joined them on the couch. They tried playing card games with John but her and Yashura didn't know how to play and the games were so confusing.
"So I scream go fish?" She asked
"No you just say go fish, you scream Uno" Masako said with a snort, and after a while the four of them got bored and started talking about their favorite snack foods. That of course got them all hungry and just then Mai remembered she had some food in her bag, she had learned her lesson from a couple of cases before when they had been trapped in a home during a blizzard and all there was to eat was instant ramen. She then offered up the idea and once the others got excited about it she got up and decided to tell the others so they wouldn't go looking for her.
"I'm going to go out and get my suitcase guys; it has some snacks in it." Mai said as she headed out the door, Naru looked up for a second as if judging whether to let her go but nodded. The door wasn't too far away; surly she couldn't get into any trouble by then. Heading out she went for the door but then right as she went to open it she heard knocking below her feet and she stopped, shock covering her features. Someone was knocking below her and she looked down at the wooden planks. The knocking stopped and moved a little down the hall, as if enticing her. Mai knew the best option would be to go outside and call for Naru. Whatever this spirit was, it had decided to pick on her first. Yet, she didn't follow the plan in her mind and she slowly followed it, the knocking going down the boards till it stopped at the stairs and she stopped, looking up. Now some common sense was kicking in, she should not go up the stairs, and turning around she started to head back. Something grabbed her leg. She let out a shriek as the boards below her feet broke and she was pulled down, her hands clawing at the boards around her, trying to find something to grip. The hand was gone now, as well as the tapping. She couldn't help though letting out a sob as she heard footsteps running toward her, Naru in front with a frantic look. He crouched down quickly, and directed Lin to grab her under her armpits; he did so, pulling her from the hole. She couldn't contain her shaking body as she was handed to Naru who held her close to him and ordered the others. Miko had to get the medical kit; Masako was going to go again around the home with John and Monk, while Lin was to review the footage.
"What were you thinking?" He hissed, holding her against his chest. She couldn't exactly think of what to respond as she just shook her head, trying to form a response.
"K-knocking" She managed out before she once again was letting out coughs from her tears. Ayako was back by now and with Naru's help escorted Mai back to the front office where she sat down on the couch. Her legs were scrapped from where Lin had pulled her up but she was otherwise unharmed, and her adrenaline was slowly decreasing, giving her the ability to think clearly now.
"Are you calm now?" Naru asked, seeming to have lost some of anger now that he saw that she was ok. He almost seemed to have steam rolling off him before and she nodding slowly, poking at her band aids on her legs. "What did you see Mai?" He asked, trying to be gentle with the girl. He had learned that yelling at her didn't get either of them anywhere, just more shouting and a crying girl, which he didn't exactly want at the moment.
"I was about to leave to get my suitcase when there was this knocking right below them. I knew I shouldn't follow it, but I don't know," She trailed off, thinking, "I kinda felt like something bad would happen if I didn't. So I followed them to the stairs and then I realized that going up the stairs was a bad idea and stopped. Then she grabbed me and pulled me" Mai mumbled, running her hands up and down the band aids.
"She?" He asked, an intent look and Mai looked up startled.
"Oh. I guess, I didn't really think about it. I guess it is a woman" she said, not exactly sure where she gotten the idea that this ghost was a female but for some reason it fit perfectly.
"I think you were possessed Mai" The young man, standing up and looking over at the screen where Lin was running the footage. It showed Mai slowly turning and walked down the hall, a small muffled knocking noise was being picked up through the static. Once she got to the stairs though she seemed as if she had just woken from a dream and turned to leave before the boards broke. Lin seemed to be searching for what had pulled her under, but as he went back and forth there was no evidence of something below her. "For the time being we'll treat this like an accident, I don't want to say it's a ghost just yet, we need to sit back and get more evidence." She nodded before slowly getting up and looked over at the doorway nervously.
"Can you walk with me to get my suitcase?" She said, showing obvious discomfort and walking around alone at the moment.
"Of course" He said, and with that he walked her out, pausing to listen for the knocks but it seemed the ghost had settled for the time being and Mai retrieved her suitcase and snacks without any trouble. Everyone slowly returned to base without anything new to share. Neither John nor Monk felt anything and Masako still felt that something was here, once they saw Mai's snacks though they all quickly feasted, eating up the cookies and crackers.
"Yasuhura I want you to look up the background of this building, more recent though. In the past five years" Naru said after they had all eaten their fill.
"I thought you said that woman gave you all the information we needed Naru?" Mai asked as she packed the food back into her suitcase for a later date.
"She gave me past records but when I asked for anything recent she said she didn't have those documents. It was suspicious" He said, head in hand and looking into the distances as if he was trying to come up for some strange reason to why the woman had decided to not give him that information. Mai knew this look; he was already trying to piece together the puzzle of this case without it even starting.
"Let's get to the hotel and go to bed first," Mai said gently, trying to get Naru to not get too ahead and become stressed, of course a yawn followed without her ability to stop it. The others agreed and the boys checked to make sure they had turned off all the lights while the three of them waited outside.
"I hope this ghost isn't going to target woman, it's really annoying when that happens" Ayako complained and the other two girls giggled, making her question them and go on a rant about how young people didn't show any respect anymore which made them laugh even harder. Once the tears from their laughter were gone Mai finally found the strength to speak.
"I don't think she is targeting woman, I don't think she was mad at me at all. I kinda felt like she was frustrated" Mai said thoughtfully and the other two looked at her with surprise. She wasn't sure why she felt this way, she just knew this spirit wasn't bad, not yet anyways, she wanted Mai to do something, and she would have followed her orders if Naru's talk about the stairs hadn't been going off in her brain. Even when possessed he was there, it was a bit sad.
"She?" Ayako asked and Mai shrugged her shoulders, unable to explain herself. Soon enough the boys came out and she hoped into the car with Lin and Naru, the three of them turning the heat on high. It wasn't snowing anymore but while they were inside it had defiantly multiplied somehow.
"Naru, what if snowflakes reproduced?" She asked sleepily, dozing off. Mai could have swore she heard him chuckle.
The next thing she knew she was in a bedroom, laying under a thick comforter. At first she panicked till she saw Masko asleep in the next bed over and Ayako in the next, someone must have brought her after she felt asleep in the van. Probably Monk, he liked carrying her like a baby, she had often complained he just needed to get his own child and carry it around but he seemed to just enjoy carrying her instead. She raised her fingers in front of her face, examining them then put them back under the blanket as the cold air got to them. She turned toward the window to see that snow was falling again, and she watched them fall for a while before she found herself falling back asleep, and turning away from the snow she hide into her covers, ready for the new day to come.
Hello my fellow humans! I know I said I would post around once a week but you guys just make me so happy I just couldn't stay away!
I would like to welcome aboard three new follows, you guys are so cool. I wish I had powers that let me hug people through the screen.
I would.
Seriously.
Welcome Ariana Taniyama, Cooper101, and Kitai-chan9. I hope you'll all be here for the entire ride. ^^
Also thank you to for the reviews, I am so happy to receive guys, you don't even know. So many feels.
Thank you Ariana for you two lovely reviews in a row, you really made me feel like I was leading this story in the right direction with your enthusiasm about my plot ideas. It makes me feel so special, thank you. ^^
Thank you Deadlyrose123 for yours too! The shooting was actually something I made up the spot, with Mai living in bad neighborhood the area probably had a lot of 'gang fights'. This one happened close to her complex which made her need to move some she wouldn't get caught up in it. Responsible Mai to the rescue!
Musical Teardrops. I love you. Thank you for reviewing both chapter with so much thought put into it and I'm glad you feel the same way about getting reviews. I'm glad I'm not alone.
ShinigamiinPeru thank you so much for your comments, you were my second review ever and it makes me feel all special and warm inside when you look forward to the climax as much as I do. :3
Please continue to support me as I work on this story. ^^