I'm alive! I want to say I'm so sorry for the wait but I have several updates at the end. Enjoy the chapter!
Post Case 9-Uncertainty
April Thursday 4:30 P.M.
"Mai actually has a weekday off from work? That hasn't happened since finals, I think!" Michiru exclaimed as she, Keiko, Mai, and Taiki were walking home from school.
"Tell me about it, if it's not a case, it's endless secretarial duties along with errands. I'm surprised he hasn't asked me to pick up dry cleaning yet," Mai laughed, stretching her arms over her head. "Though I really can't complain, he's given me the last two weekends off. And considering the last place we investigated was a tea greenhouse, we have plenty of tea to last him, so I haven't had to run out for more. I've really only been doing follow-ups on-"
Gggrrrrggllup.
Three heads turned to the tallest of the bunch. Reddened cheeks and lips pressed tightly together, the boy glanced in the other direction. The girls shared a look before Taiki couldn't take the silence anymore. "Okay fine! I'm starving! Lunch feels like it was forever ago."
"I could go for some ramen," Keiko said with a roll of her eyes and a nudge to her boyfriend. "There's a new place that opened around the corner. I heard they have a glass window in front of the noodle master and you can watch him make the noodles!"
"Noodles are the one thing you become an otaku like Michi about," Mai laughed, quickening her pace, knowing she was starting a war.
"Huh! Who are you calling otaku!" Michiru and Keiko exclaimed, making Taiki laugh.
"Better run, Mai!" Taiki called as the high schooler broke into a run.
"Last one there pays!" Mai called behind her.
"You're on!" the other two girls shouted leaving the boy behind.
"How do I always end up on the losing side?" Taiki groaned as he sprinted to catch up.
Once again our favorite medium had most of her bobbed hair tied into a bun towards the top of her head. She wore a plain lavender dress completely disguised her appearance which satisfied her greatly as she was no longer Hara Masako today.
What was her name exactly? You may wonder, as she made her way down Tokyo's streets. Well, to be honest, she hadn't decided yet. She was hoping she wouldn't have to give a name but she knew the likelihood of her being able to try out a class without that key piece of information was very slim. She would just have to cross that bridge when she got to it.
The arts studio she arrived at offered a multitude of different classes. The first floor offered painting and drawing, the second offered pottery, the third offered photography, the fifth offered vocal and orchestra training, but it was the fourth floor the young medium was after. She walked off the elevator with her bag in hand looking for Studio C, Ballet.
The room was long and open with ballet barres lining the wall under the windows. Across from the windows and barres was floor to ceiling mirrors. It was a young adult beginner class the ages of the students ran from fifteen to twenty, making her feel a little better that there were girls her age trying to learn from scratch. The students were dressed in their pink tights and black leotards and pink ballet slippers. Many of them were warming up at the barre or stretching on the floor.
A woman in her mid thirties approached the teenager. Her black hair was tied in a neat little bun at the nape of her neck and wore a similar outfit to her students, only adding a light pink wrap skirt at her waist. She had kind eyes as she met her potential new student. "You must be our observer for the day. You may have a seat in that chair over in the corner. If you have any questions you can ask my assistant, Yota," the instructor turned to her class. "Alright ladies, let's begin with some barre exercises."
Masako took her seat in the corner facing the windows and watched as the dancers seemed to enter a trance as the classical music filled the room. First through fifth positions, pliés, tondus, rond de jambes, they each were in time with the music and allowed their bodies to stretch to the melodies. "Beautiful, isn't it?"
The voice startled the girl from her trance as she snapped her head to her right to see a young man sitting in a chair next to her. Where he came from and where he got the chair would forever remain a mystery. Blinking to give her a chance to gather her thoughts, Masako replied, "Yes, I used to attend ballet performances with my parents when I was younger."
"So you decided to give it a try yourself?" It was then that Masako noticed his attire. He wore black tights and a white leotard along with black ballet slippers. He must have been the assistant instructor.
"Not today, I only came to observe," she answered turning away. "I might even join the beginner class with small children."
"A lot of these girls have been here since fall of last year, that's the only reason why they appear to have been here longer," he said then smirked. "And you definitely want to dance. I bet you have a leotard on under that dress."
The medium's head snapped back at him. "How would you-"
He merely pointed down at her legs. "You have pink tights on, you didn't come to just watch, and you want to see if you can do it."
Masako took to staring at her lap. She knew he was right, she wanted to try something new and she loved the music in Swan Lake. She even imagined herself playing Odette in her daydreams.
"I tell you what," the boy said, crossing his arms. "In the closet behind us are some spare slippers. Since you haven't tried to do this before I'll teach you the basics at the barre while the class goes across the floor."
Here was the moment of truth. Was she going to actually do something that The Hara Masako never got a chance to do, or was she going to let this slip by continue to be Japan's doll-like medium?
With a breath, she stood up and entered the closet in search of slippers. She came out with a worn out pair on her feet and had taken off her dress revealing her black leotard she had worn underneath. The boy was at the end of the barre and gave her a grin as she approached. "Well, you look the part of a ballerina now, ready to begin?"
"I hope I am," she answered, looking away and trying to keep her blush at bay. After years of wearing her kimono she felt practically naked in her ballet attire. Nothing to hide behind, no swooshing sound to announce her presence. She wasn't sure if she liked it.
"Before we begin, let's introduce ourselves," he said, giving a bow. "My name is Yota and I look forward to teaching you. And you are?"
Masako did her best at a graceful curtsy but was sure she failed. "I look forward to learning from you," she answered, making the decision on telling the truth of her name.
"Great, but what's your name?" Yota said with a laugh.
"Satoko," the medium blurted surprising herself. "Nakahara Satoko."
"Alright then, Satoko-san, we're going to start in first position with one arm on the barre…"
"You mean that cute charm bracelet with the little ghost charm you got for Christmas?" Keiko asked as she blew on her noodles. The four of them found a table in the back of the noodle shop. Taiki lost the race so he had his wallet on the table at the ready.
"The one that your boss's boss got you?" Michiru asked with a mouthful of chashu.
"I wouldn't call Madoka Naru's boss," Mai commented, taking a bite out of the soft-boiled egg. "If anything, his parents I guess would be his bosses. Madoka was his teacher."
"Either way, she does have some authority over Naru," Taiki added.
"We're getting off topic," Michiru said earning a look from the boy across from her.
"You're the one who insisted on calling her Naru's boss."
"Anyway, in answer to your question, Mai," Keiko interrupted ceasing the almost argument. "No, I haven't seen it since…I guess it would have been January."
"It's okay, I haven't thought about it since then either. It wasn't until I was using the mug Naru gave me for Christmas that I remembered I hadn't worn it in a while," Mai said with a sigh, grabbing a mouthful of noodles.
"I'm sure it just got misplaced, didn't you say your neighbor moved all of your stuff back in February?" Taiki asked, earning an elbow in the ribs. "Ow!"
"Do you really have to mention Shouta? Come one, Taiki," Keiko muttered so he could hear it.
"I didn't mention him, you did," he groaned.
"Yeah, but he was the whole reason Mai's neighbor moved all of her things into her place so trick him into thinking she moved away," Michiru said glaring at the boy. "By association, you mentioned him."
"Guys, calm down, Taiki might be right," Mai said shaking her head. "There is a chance it might still be at Tsubame's somewhere. I'll ask her tomorrow when we go running."
"There you are, you Old Hag," a familiar voice teased as Ayako was walking home from her shift.
"If it isn't the dirty Old Monk," she said, unable to keep the smirk off her face. A pang clenched her chest. She hadn't seem him since their shared night together, and she had been so busy since she never had the chance to return his calls.
"I thought you were ignoring me," Monk said with a grin as he scratched his head.
"Someone like you won't allow themselves to be ignored," the priestess answered, gathering the courage for her next statement as her apartment entrance came into view. "Would you like some coffee?"
Monk agreed and it was as Ayako was setting up all of the fixings that she was wondering if maybe she had made a mistake. Should she have let him back into her apartment?
Once the coffee was made, she sat at her kitchen table across from him passing him his mug. "We should probably talk about that night, don't you think?" Monk said as he added the creamer and sugar to his coffee.
"There isn't much to talk about," she answered stirring her cup. "We went out, got drunk, and woke up in the same bed the next morning. The end."
The sharpness of her reply caught the monk off guard. He took note of how she kept her stare at her mug, they way one hand gripped the handle. He knew there was more to this than she was letting on.
"I'm sorry if you thought there was something more to it, but I think we can both agree it was a mistake. It's not something we can pursue-"
"If this is about the boxes in your living room, you can stop," he said, putting the pieces together. "I meant what I said that night, drunk or sober, I really do think you are amazing, and I don't regret that night. I actually wish we had done it sooner. Moving isn't going to erase that night."
"The timing isn't right, and I know you know it," she snapped. "How self-absorbed do you have to be to think you're the reason I'm moving?"
"So you are moving, and you want me to say goodbye and have that be the end of it?" Monk raised a brow. "What about SPR? Are you still going to go on cases or are you ditching them too?"
"I'm not ditching anyone-"
"Then why are you so set on telling me to get lost?"
"It's none of your business, I invited you in for coffee, not to rationalize a mistake we both made."
"What's really going on, Ayako? Something's been bothering you for a while, you were so distracted at the greenhouse last week."
Maybe she should be honest. Her grip on her mug loosened slightly. "I was just promoted to Nurse Supervisor," she finally admitted.
"Really? That's great!" Monk said, his grin stretching from ear to ear. Seeing his reaction only confirmed Ayako's theory that spending the night together was a mistake. He was too good for her.
"It's at a hospital in Ashikaga," she said, finally taking a sip of her coffee. The look on his face when she put her mug down confirmed that he was starting to understand.
"When is your last day at your current hospital?" he asked, taking a sip himself.
"Today, I took the next few days off to pack my things. I move into a temporary apartment next week until I can find a more permanent residence." A dark look crossed her face as she rested her head in her hand.
"So that's what's been bugging you," he said letting out a breath. "It's starting to make sense. And I can't really blame you. Taking on a promotion and moving to a new city at your age can be a very scary thing- hey!"
Ayako finally held a somewhat genuine smile as she held another sugar cube in her hand. Monk saw the original on the floor after it had hit him square in the forehead. "Sorry, it slipped."
But Monk could only chuckle as he sat back. "There's the self-proclaimed priestess I know and love."
"Twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty!" Hands covered the young face as she counted. Her bright yellow t-shirt rode up, exposing her stomach from her position, hanging upside down on the jungle gym. She shifted her pinky to peak through the opening in her hands as she grinned behind them. "Ready or not! Here I come!"
The girl let her arms fall above her head and swung her body backward, forward, and backward one more time before uncurling her legs from the bar she held onto and landing in a crouch on the ground. She tightened her black hair in her ponytail as she went to retrieve her glasses.
"Why did Hamako insist on counting upside down?" John asked, leaning forward against the tree branch.
"I taught her, that's why," Yasuhara answered as he brought up what appeared to be a wooden guard rail. It appeared that the playground of the church was about to gain a new form of entertainment. A tree house. "If you have glasses you have to take them off too. Hanging upside down disorients you, on top of closing your eyes, it makes it harder to determine where the hider went by their footsteps."
The priest looked up in thought. "Interesting, I never thought of that." He held up the wooden railing as the college student maneuvered the ladder so he would be able to screw it in from underneath. "Were hide and seek games this intense when you were a kid?"
"I was the youngest in my house, so when I brother and sister and I would play I was usually the first one found." Yasuhara paused as he used the power drill. "But it wasn't because I didn't have good hiding places, it was because they would listen to my footsteps and figure out which direction I went. I came up with the idea of hanging upside down to even the playing field."
"Found you!" They could hear Hamako shout from the other side of the playground. Squeals of laughter erupted as the boy emerged from the shrub in front of the church's wall.
"And then you taught it to Hamako," John deduced, as they finished screwing down the first guardrail. Yasuhara climbed back down the ladder to grab the next piece.
"Yup, and she'll be the one to teach my future nieces and nephews, and maybe even my own kids."
"And these kids here will probably continue the trend," the priest said with a smile as he looked back at the children. "It's amazing the things that we are able to pass on. I don't have any nieces or nephews yet, so luckily I'm not missing out on this sort of thing living up here."
"Would you go back to Australia if your siblings started having children?" The college student brought up the next piece of the railing.
"I'll make more of an attempt to visit, that's for sure." The blond raised his voice over the sound of the drill. "But I very much like living here, though I'm not sure how much longer I will be working with Father Tojo."
"Is he retiring?" Yasuhara asked climbing back down for the next piece.
"Oh, no. The type of program I'm involved with can reassign me every three years. Father Tojo's parish was the first one I've worked in since becoming a priest, so it'll make sense if I'm sent to another diocese."
"Do they give you much notice?"
John looked up in thought. "I'm not sure to be honest, I was given a little bit of notice when I came here, but that was because I needed to get certain visas. Since I'm considered a permanent resident of Japan, I'm not sure if they'll give me more than a week's notice if they decide to send me to another prefecture."
It was Yasuhara's turn to give a look of thought. He wasn't sure he liked the idea that SPR may split up one day, but he knew that it would happen. He just didn't think it would be this soon. He set up the third railing and used the drill to secure it. One it was finished he looked up and saw the priest's kind eyes.
"Don't worry about it, I'm here for another year or so. And longer if it's decided that I'll do another term with this parish."
"Good, who else am I going to go to karaoke bars with?" Yasuhara grinned as they continued to work on the treehouse.
Friday 7:45 A.M.
"A charm bracelet?" Tsubame repeated as she took a bite of her eggs. "I think I remember you showing it to me. There was a running shoe and a little ghost on it right?"
"Yeah, that's the one," Mai replied, sipping her miso. "You don't happen to remember seeing it when you hid my stuff so Shouta would think I moved, do you?"
The woman picked at her vegetables in thought. "I don't think I saw it, but this was also a couple of months ago. I was planning on some spring cleaning this weekend, so I'll keep an eye out."
"Thanks, can you see the clock? I left my phone in my bag," the girl asked, dabbing her mouth with a napkin.
"Yeah, it's ten of, when do you need to leave for homeroom?"
"Now," Mai replied sheepishly as she set her chopsticks down and began to gather her dishware.
"I'll take care of that, you go to school."
"You sure?"
Tsubame sipped her tea and waved her hand. "Go, a few extra dishes aren't going to kill me. I'll see you later."
"Okay, thanks for breakfast!" Mai said as she raced out the door.
"You look chipper," Yasuhara said as they drove.
Great, this vision again, Mai thought as she tried in vain to figure out her surroundings. She knew Yasuhara was next to her, driving, and was pretty confident that the girl in the back seat was Masako. Are you going to show me anything useful? Wait a minute, wasn't I in class?
This will be fun to explain, she though with a sweatdrop as the scene played. Her own voice tangled with another's as she spoke aloud. Everything was the same, there wasn't much of a difference. She was getting sick of this. There had to be a reason she kept seeing this vision. Jin had made it seem like a warning.
But the question remained, was this the future? Or are they all just playing a part for a future case?
Mai never got her answer as she watched Yasuhara's face drain of color and whipped her own head to see a sedan speeding full throttle.
"Help me! Please! Someone! Anyone!"
That voice, Mai wondered as the scene changed. She found herself floating once again in that purple glow.Who is that?
"Ah! Please! Please, no more! Can anyone hear me!"
I can hear you, but I don't know where you are.
"No! No! Please stop!"
The voice broke down in to sobs, but there was nothing Mai could do.
I'm coming! I'll help you! Just hold on a little longer!
Mai?
Mai?
"Mai? Wake up!" Michiru's pencil jabbed the brunette's side, forcing the girl to open her eyes.
"Huh?" Mai blinked as she rubbed her side.
"Taniyama-san, thank you for joining us," her sensei said from the chalkboard. "I do hope I am not boring you."
"Uh, I'm sorry, Sensei. I didn't sleep too well last night," she fibbed. I actually slept great last night, so why did I have to fall asleep now? Better yet who was I dreaming about?
"It's a big year for you and everyone else. Do take better care of yourself, you can't afford to burn yourself out this early on into your third year." With that, the sensei went back to the lesson.
Mai let out a breath and let a sweatdrop fall in relief. Something brushed against her forearm, catching her attention to the note that had been passed to her. With a quick side glane toward Taiki who must have passed the note, Mai opened it.
Heads up, pretty sure Kei and Michi are gonna interrogate you.
Mai rolled her eyes and felt another sweatdrop appear. Of course those two are gonna interrogate me-
Suddenly she was no longer in her classroom. She was in her friend's car again, but things were different. It was snowing.
"Well, she was more upset about me interrogating Satoshi," Yasuhara explained, making a turn. "Apparently, he has a secret girlfriend and kept blushing when I asked him about it."
"What did Sakurako do?"
"She told me to leave her brother alone and that it wasn't nice of me to ask about his girlfriend like that. They are apparently very much in love and this 'intewogaling' wasn't good and how would I like to be questioned about liking her sister-"
"Ha! So the five year old called you out on it too!" Mai laughed.
"She's six now, and she won't let you forget it. And call it what you will, but luckily Kiko was helping her mom with something."
"To save yourself the embarrassment."
"Eh, not really, considering I then had Satoshi trying to beat me up, attempting to play protective younger brother," the college boy shrugged.
"And Kiko helped get her brother off of you while you laid sprawled out on the floor."
"No, she took one look at the situation, raised her eyebrow, and walked right out." They came to a red light. "She then told Sakurako to make sure Satoshi didn't kill me."
"Wow, she has a lot of faith in you," Mai was laughing again. But remembered that fear that filled the pit of her stomach. Just the same as when she was on the train and asleep while researching, and even just a few moments before.
No.
The light turned green and Yasuhara started to drive the car forward.
No. It can't be.
"Well, I'm sure that-" he stopped as pure terror filled his face.
A sedan raced for them as Mai turned her head.
"Yasuhara!"
Back in the classroom, Mai's lungs screamed for air. Her knuckles were white and numb from holding her pen over her notebook. Her eyes hurt just to blink. It took everything in her to let out her breath slowly and normally, she couldn't interrupt the lecture again.
And judging by the students around her, including her friends, no one had noticed she went into a flashback.
I knew I saw that sedan before, she thought frantically to herself. But all the way back then? That had to be before we investigated the theater. God, I was still dating Shouta. Did I ignore a serious warning?
But there was no time to dwell on it now. She would have to wait to talk to Hozumi about it. Perhaps calling him on her way to the office would be best. She might be able to wait a couple of hours, but she definitely wouldn't be able to wait until Sunday.
It had been a mundane and slow Friday, the young manager noticed, judging by the lack of claims walking through the door and calling in. Despite the surge of cases the past year had given him, he managed to get caught up on their case files, and evidence reports. Thanks to his younger assistant, they had even gotten caught up on follow-up calls and equipment maintenance. Now when the young manager was all caught up on work like this, he usually preferred to get a head start on whatever his next task would be.
However, it was too late in the day to really get a start on investigating lakes further away from Tokyo. Not when he knew his part-time assistant would be arriving in just a couple of hours for her shift. She would be suspicious if he suddenly closed the office and told her to take the day off. It was bad enough how much of his true past he managed to reveal to her with recent cases.
So he decided to take the early afternoon to run a couple of errands and even make a stop at the greenhouse to pick up some tea. He had Lin watching the office and he could use the exercise.
What he didn't seem to notice was a woman sipping tea at a café across the street from the SPR office. She blended in perfectly with the early afternoon lunch crowd, what with her pantsuit, kitten heels, big sunglasses and her black hair tied in a neat bun at the back of her head. She looked as though she was simply taking a moment of peace as she sipped her tea, but she had far more important things on her mind that no one would know.
She left a tip on the table and discreetly began to follow the young manager. "Oh, Shibuya Kazuya, I will find out just who you are," she hummed to herself as she kept her distance.
"Hozumi desu-"
"I know where I saw that vision before!" Mai blurted, never giving Hozumi a chance for a proper greeting as she walked briskly down the street.
"Hello, Mai, glad to see you are doing well. I am doing just fine myself."Her friend's sarcasm caused the girl to sweatdrop.
"Sorry, but I couldn't contain myself any longer," Mai sighed as she stopped at an intersection waiting for the crosswalk light.
"I'm only teasing, Mai,"Hozumi laughed. "So you figured out why the vision was familiar?"
"It was none of the dialog from my dream but it was the car heading straight for Yasuhara's. Hozumi, I saw that back in January."
"You didn't mention this during our sessions back then. Did you not think it was a vision?"
"I thought I was hallucinating because of the lack of sleep. After scaring the crap out of Yasuhara I blinked and realized we were still stopped at a red light." The light changed and Mai followed the crowd as a horrible feeling filled the pit of her stomach. "What does it mean, Hozumi?"
"You're not going to like this," Hozumi began and Mai felt her heart sink. She knew exactly what he was going to say. "But I'm not sure. It could be a warning, it could be a premonition, it could be a prophecy, and it could not even be about you at all."
"Wait, I thought premonition and prophecy were the same thing," Mai countered.
"Not quite, both have to do with the future, however a prophecy is set in stone and will happen exactly how it is meant to happen," Hozumi explained. "A premonition, is a future event but doesn't necessarily come in a vision, sometimes they can simply be a feeling. When a premonition makes itself known as a vision, details can be changed or it can be totally avoided."
"And we won't know until things are already set in motion," Mai sighed. This was really starting to stress her out. "Hey, I didn't by any chance leave a bracelet at your office did I?"
"Well that was random,"Hozumi chuckled, but answered again before Mai could give a response. "But no, I would've noticed if a bracelet was left after one of our sessions, and when I checked our little lost and found box yesterday, I don't recall seeing a bracelet in there."
"Thanks anyway. I can't remember the last time I wore it, I figured I'd ask if I left it at your office. Or maybe when we went to see Izumi."
"I'll ask her if she has anything in her lost and found at work,"Hozumi offered as Mai came up to her office building in Shibuya. "As far as your vision, try not to worry about it too much. Stressing over it is only going to make it more confusing and probably end in the worst case scenario."
"Somehow that isn't reassuring," Mai groaned, slouching.
"I know, but try to put it out of your mind for a bit. When you have some free time try meditating."
"Meditating? I thought I wasn't supposed to think about it."
"No, meditate as in clear your mind, focus on your breathing and relaxing your body. It can be helpful to bring out details you might not have noticed before."
"So basically meditate to coax the same vision out?"
"Precisely. Each time you've had this vision you were taken by surprise and end up worrying over your friend's safety. If you use meditation to coax it out, you mind is much more calm and rational, so you might be able to see where exactly you are in the car. What intersection the accident will occur. Maybe you even manage to see the date on your phone or if you have something in your lap."
"And let me guess, use that journal you gave me?"
"If it'll help you collect your thoughts, then definitely. I have to go, an appointment just walked in but keep me posted on what you find out."
"Will do, I have to start my shift anyway. See you later, Hozumi." Mai hung up her phone as she made her way up the stairs to SPR.
She was just about to grasp the doorknob when it turned on it's own. "Thank you again for your discretion on this matter-" the person on the other side was saying as he came to a halt in the doorway. "Good to see you again, Mai."
"O-Officer Atsuchi?"
Thank you guys again for your continued support and interest in my story. It's hard to believe that it's been almost ten years since I got the guts to post it. The past year has not been an easy one for a multitude of reasons. I know I had mentioned planning to publish for real on kindle and while I still do plan to do that, the story I'm working on still needs more fleshing out. Once I have anything confirmed on that I will be sure to let you guys know.
Also, I was going to wait until the 100th chapter to announce this but I cannot wait any longer! Some of you have asked about putting this on different sites to bring more attention to it and I've been holding off because I really didn't think it was that good. However, I'm happy to announce that I will be uploading Dangerous Souls to both Archive of Our Own and Wattpad! I will be editing the chapters a little more deeply prior to upload, however no matter how cringey my writing was when I was sixteen I will keep it as is. It will be more grammatical editing the story will not change. I will upload full arcs at a time until all three sites are caught up and I plan to have Fanfiction be the first with the newest chapters.
Anyway please let me know your thoughts and if you have accounts on those sites feel free to follow me Kikifan21. Also let me know what tags I should use, there's a lot more options than what FF gives you lol.
Thank you again everyone! Chapter 100 will be posted on November 13 on Dangerous Souls' 10th Anniversary!
Post Case 10-Choices- When Atsuchi brings a potential case, Naru gives Mai an odd offer. Change finally feels real as Ayako packs her things.