#GHW2017

[ghosthunthq]

By Any Other Name (4/4)

For: The 2017 Ghost Hunt Exchange

By: @tiffotcf

Rating T (for thirst ;) and possibly tears)

Chapter 4-Tiffany Blue

Mai once again found herself pacing on Naru’s street.

She wasn’t sure how long she had been out here but she knew that the sun hadn’t been kissing the edge of the skyline when she had started. The shadows grew with the knot in her stomach.

Finishing a lap she reached for the bell, but before she could depress the button Madoka threw the door open.

“Oh thank god, if I had to watch you much longer I was going to go out there drag you into the house. But Lin told me to be patient.”

“I’m sorry,” Mai said.

“No apology needed, I’m just glad you were able to decide to come in. So, do, come in that is.”

Mai stepped through and she could feel her self-doubt try to pull her backward and into the street.

“Good Evening Mai,” Lin told her from the living room. His suit, a light grey with a near white lavender shirt, was looking especially crisp. He was holding a thin plum colored tie in one hand.

Mai felt her panic rising. Why was he dressed so nice? Had Madoka been—

Madoka approached him, her dress the same shade of plum as the tie she held her hand out to receive. Mai’s first thought was that it was stunning. The one shoulder design made it appear as if the smooth fabric had been poured down her, sculpting itself around her before meeting with the satin sash at her waist and moving to flow in waves that just grazed the floor. The slit in the side adding a touch of scandal to the otherwise timeless look.

Mai deflated.

“You didn’t say I had to dress up, dress up,” she grumbled, pulling at her top and skirt which had been one of her favorites but now paled in comparison to the efforts of the rest of the room.

“I left you a message yesterday.”

“You said, I can’t wait to see you tomorrow. It’s going to be fun, I promise. Oh, and we are feeling fancy so wear something nice. Something nice, Madoka. This,” she pulled at her shirt, “is nice. That is an evening gown. I don’t have anything that nice.”

“Oh,” Madoka said, dismissing Mai’s concern with a small wave. “It’s fine. You are right, you look lovely. You don’t have to be all dressed up. This is just me going overboard. Besides, aren’t you here for much more important matters this evening?”

Mai’s stomach sank. The clothing debacle seemed like a more interesting subject to stay on. Maybe she could argue it enough to get to go home, claiming she could change, or even just excusing herself from the meal now that they all knew she lacked the proper attire.

“Come on, if we’re lucky we can crash Noll while he is still getting ready in his room.” Madoka grinned at Mai.

“Madoka.” Lin’s voice was flat.

“I’m kidding,” Madoka took Mai’s hand to lead her upstairs, “But he does take forever for these sorts of occasions. So fussy.”

Mai couldn’t bring herself to respond. She had to focus on keeping her feet moving forward or she knew she would turn around and run back out the door.

She felt slightly dizzy as they passed the second floor. What was she going to say? She had run through the upcoming scenario over a hundred times in her head, with all manner of outcomes. But now that they were climbing the stairs every piece of conversation she had imagined slipped farther from her mind.

When her feet hit the third floor she clenched her fists, she had decided to do this. If she hadn't then she wouldn’t be here. So, no more moping, or whining. She was going to go in there she was going to find out once and for all if she had a shot with Naru. This was the end of it.

Madoka held the door open to the patio.

Things were going to change either—

Mai swallowed.

She was in a black dress again; long sleeved this time, but with a dip in the back that went for ages and made Mai’s fingers burn. It flared at the hips, inky smoothness rustling in the breeze as the golden sunlight burned through stripes of lace that banded the lower half of the skirt.  She was resting against the rail, one heeled foot bobbing lightly in the air.

“Mai is here,” Madoka said and Mai nearly jumped out of her skin.

The heel fell to the ground, skirt swaying, and the brim of that wide hat moved back as she turned towards them.

Mai bit down on her lip, compelled onto the patio by red lips and icy blue eyes.

Her mouth fell open, breath caught, feet faltering.

“Careful,” Madoka said catching her elbow with a grin, “try to pay attention to the step Mai.”

“Na—”, Mai’s voice was so light she couldn’t even hear it.

“I told you it wasn’t so bad,” Madoka whispered in her ear, as she led her forward.

Mai wasn’t sure she could agree. Her head was hazy and her deep but rapid breathing only spurred her heart on faster. Madoka brought her closer, Mai’s feet hurrying to keep up with the pull.  

“Naru.” Mai pushed out.

He stared at her, his stone face a reflection of one she had seen a hundred times save for the claret hue that graced his lips. She had only seen a pale reflection of that color once before.

“I’ll leave you to it,” Madoka said slipping away from Mai’s elbow and back into the house.

Naru held her with his flat gaze, his black-gloved hands wrapped around the book they held.  

Mai stared, remembering to blink only when the light of the setting sun spilled between a building and into her eyes.

“Madoka says you are feeling better.”  

Mai blinked again.

“Better than what?” she asked.

“Then when you were upset on Monday.”

Naru moved to place his book on the rail and leaned against it, his gaze sliding back to their surroundings. The setting sun blazing around his profile.

“She explained the misunderstanding which had caused your discomfort.”

“Oh,” Mai said.

“I believe that should be cleared up for you now.” He turned his eyes in her direction.

“Yes.”

Naru turned his head to look at her more directly. With a jerk, Mai moved her attention to the skyline her hands gripping tightly to the top of the rail.

“I’m assuming you have questions.”

Mai could feel his gaze on her.

She shrugged and if fell away.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means, you are right, I do see the misunderstanding now. And I’m sorry if I caused you any trouble.” Mai flexed and unflexed her hands on the rail, her feet shifting in place.

“I meant about this.”

“Your dress? It’s lovely.”

“You’re lying.”

“Naru,” Mai took a breath her eyes squinting against the shafts of light sliding between the buildings. “I didn’t know your real name, that you had an identical twin brother, or that you were a world famous researcher with psychokinetic powers for a year and a half.  Do you really think that the fact that you like to wear dresses would be too much for me? It’s totally fine, no big deal.”

She sent a quick glance in his direction before staring at the street below.

“If it’s no big deal then why won’t you look at me?”

Mai shuffled her feet. Mumbling something under her breath. Naru took a step back.

“This was a mistake,” Naru turned and started for the door. “I think you should go home—”

Mai’s head swiveled towards him, her eyes glassy.

“It’s because, if I start looking at you, I won’t be able to stop!”

Naru paused in his retreat.

“Because,” Mai said advancing on him fists clenched at her side, “look at you!”

Naru’s mask cracked, his features beginning to crumble.

“You were beautiful before, but now...”

His eyes narrowed.

“Now, you’re gorgeous,” she pulled her eyes to meet his. “And when I look at you…”

Naru seemed frozen, the low light finally finding purchase past the wide brim of that hat and spilling across his face.

Mai brought her hand up, fingers stretching towards him.

“All I want is to touch you,” she closed the fingers before they could reach his face, “but I know I can’t, and it hurts.”  

She brought the hand to rest on her own chest, holding it in place with the other.

“I’m sorry. I know it’s selfish and I’m sure this was hard for you. I can’t imagine what it must be like and it means a lot that you would be willing to share this with me. But please, don’t ask me to look at you. Not right away. I can get over it, I’ve done it before. I just need a moment.”

“Mai…” Naru’s eyes flicked over her face brows drawn in confusion.

Mai chewed on her lip, tears trickling unhindered down her cheeks as she looked away.

“Why did you have to be her, too? It’s bad enough I never had a shot with you, but now you had to take—”

His gloved hand came to rest against her neck, a silk soft thumb running along her jawline. Her whole body shuddered and leaned into the contact, a small sigh escaping her lips.

Naru blanched but kept his hold on her face.

Mai couldn’t move, didn’t want to, she felt like her whole heart might explode if she even tried.  The city was distant, drowned out, beneath the rush of blood in her ears.  The growing twilight taking on a foggy quality that made everything dim and immaterial. Everything except for bright blue eyes and soft red lips. Those were almost painful in their clarity.

“You were sincere.” He told her, the hint of a question still in his tone.

“Of course,” she replied, breathless, “I was sincere, why would I lie about being attra—”

Mai’s breath caught, her head tilting back and eyes sliding shut with a moan as his thumb ran down the front of her throat. She was enjoying this too much, he was probably very disturbed by the extremity of her reactions. But she didn’t want to stop them, it was real, if only for this moment.

His hand stilled then lifted from her neck. She pushed her eyes back open to meet his surprisingly studious gaze.

“This result,” he searched her eyes, “was unexpected.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. Embarrassment with her out of control desires beginning to flare from her cheeks.

“It is unexpected, not unwelcome,” he said with a smirk that short-circuited her heart.

“Wha—what?” Mai tried to wrap her head around what she had just heard.

“Come on,” Naru took hold of her hand and started for the door.

Mai’s blush grew as Naru brought her down the hall, threw open the door to his room and then shut it again as soon as she was past the threshold. What were they doing? Were they doing what she thought they were doing?

She was on the verge of hyperventilating when he looked back at her.

“Naru, I,” she had so much fumbling around in her brain at the moment and none of it even remotely coherent.

He gestured to the bed and she felt her whole body lock up. What was happening?

“Mai?”

“Naru, I can’t…”

“But you haven’t even looked at it yet.”

Mai gaped.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“The dress, you have to at least look at it before you turn it down.”

Slowly, like granite sliding across an uneven floor, Mai turned to look at the bed.

Laid out, in stark contrast to the dark grey duvet, was a light turquoise sleeveless dress. Its delicate lace overlay the same color as the satin beneath. And there sitting in the center was a small box of the same color.

“This is…” She held the box gently in her fingers, fresh tears pooling at the edges of her eyes and blurring the looping script of the company name printed on the box. But she didn’t need to read it. She had imagined getting a box just like this ever since she was six.

After finishing her first ever viewing of Breakfast at Tiffany’s Mai’s mother had led her back to her bedroom and pulled out the light blue box. She had taken the time to point out and explain the then illegible inscription of the company’s logo on the top. Mai could still feel the smoothness of the white ribbon that had been delicately folded with it.

Mai’s father had not been able to afford anything more than a simple silver bracelet from the prestigious company. But to her mother and by proxy Mai, that piece wasn’t just jewelry, it was a part of a glamorous, impossible world brought to life. And the box that housed it was treated with the reverence it deserved.

“Are you going to open it? Even if you don’t want the dress you should—” Naru stopped as he got close enough to notice the tears running down her face.

“Would you please do it?” She held out the box.

He took her shaking hand in his gloved one and gently loosened the white ribbon. Freed from its duty he pushed the box back.

“It’s your gift.”

Mai tugged the lid off the box and pulled a dark glossy sheet of paper from its contents.

A small reward for good taste. —A

Mai smirked, a short laugh bursting its way out.

She glanced at Naru and his own lips curved in response, glossy and distracting.

“I guess that’s another name I have to add to the list for you,” she teased.

He rolled his eyes, “I suppose I should get used to hearing it.”

“Actually,” she smiled up at him, “I’ll stick with Naru. That is, if you don’t mind.”

He looked at her, an unreadable expression on his face.

“That which we call a rose,” he told her.

“What does that mean?”

“It means, I am content with any name, so long as you are the one calling it.”

Mai blushed and turned back to the box in her hand. Inside her eyes fell on the curved silver and diamond pendent necklace. It was simple and elegant and everything she had imagined a Tiffany & Co. box to contain.

Naru tugged at the fingers of his glove sliding the smooth material from one hand and then the other. Plucking the necklace from its container he draped the thin metal across her neck and set to work on the clasp.

“Thank you.” She whispered taking his uncovered hand once he had finished.

“Thank you.” He told her, his eyes holding her locked in place once more.

She took advantage of the moment and ran her thumb across the back of his hand before letting him go.

“Naru, you were right. I, I do have so many questions. I hope you don’t mind.”

“I know.” He tucked her hair behind her ear.

“I’ve spent so much time with you and I know so little about you.”

“And I hope you are interested in spending much more time, knowing far too much,” he smirked again and Mai decided that this new Naru was decidedly bad for her heart.

“Now, get dressed, we don’t want to be late for dinner.”

Mai sat down on the bed. Legs more than grateful to no longer have to hold her up.

Naru stepped in front of the full-length mirror; smoothing down his still flawless dress, hands stilling as he pulled back on his gloves, his near perfect posture straightening just a hint more.

Mai watched him, her breath catching when she realized just how wrong she had been all those times she had called him a narcissist. She had seen him look at himself in the mirror any number of times.

But she had never see him look back, and smile.

His eyes caught her’s in the mirror and the smile widened.

She had so many questions, but they could wait.

Because, right now, she had the only answer that mattered.

Thank you so much for reading. This story really means a lot to me on a personal level. I hope you enjoyed it.

Because of my obsession with it I also ended up making an alternative cover/aesthetics board. So here is that too.

[sukarreto-chan]

Thanks for writing such wonderful ficc, it was just beautiful.

 @tiffotcf

by: Sukary

[ghosthunthq]

Created for @roseandradio (Radio) by @vzyfny. Slide 2 of 2.

Inspired by RaisedonRadio’s story ‘Cactus’ to work on the theme and prompt friendship and family. I love the thought of Naru finding a home for himself in SPR, surrounded by family and friends, and people who finally might be able to understand him.

[ghosthunthq]

The Notebook

Who it is For: @dreams-of-kalopsia

Who it is By: @myseryluvscompany

What the prompt was, if you have one: No prompt, just some humor

Any additional notes: I have no idea if this hit the humor mark. It started much funnier and then got weirdly serious. 

She’d never really thought about it before, however now that it had crossed her mind, Mai couldn’t seem to stop thinking about it. Naru and those blasted black notebooks of his. It had never bothered her before; she’d been oblivious to them and the number of times Naru had made comments about her not understanding their contents had made her sort of gloss over them in general. She wasn’t going to invite opportunities for Naru to poke fun at her intelligence. Well anymore than she already did.

But now? Now she couldn’t get it off her mind. When she’d taken him his tea the day before, he had [i]deliberately [/i]shied the book away from her and Mai had noticed. Due to stacks of files on the usually pristine desk, she’d been forced to skirt the piece of furniture to put the cup within Naru’s reaching distance. She wouldn’t have even noticed if he hadn’t glanced at her first. Lately she’d developed a bit of a sixth sense regarding when Naru’s eyes were on her. Mai figured it was her self-preservation instincts because anytime Naru paid attention to her, it couldn’t be good.

So when he’d looked at her, and then shifted in his chair so the book was conspicuously closer to his chest than it had been a moment before, Mai had noticed. And she hadn’t been able to un-notice since that. She’d eyed him up for a few moments before she’d left the office, her mind already running through ideas. Okay so Mai couldn’t actually recall a time when she’d gotten a look inside one of those notebooks now that she thought about it. Previously it had been a disinterest, taking Naru’s word for granted that there was nothing in them she needed to know, but now Mai wasn’t so certain. Could he be intentionally hiding them from her?

Mai had pondered that possibility all night and lost a bit of sleep over it, but she’d dismissed her own thoughts. Now it was returning with a vengeance. There really only was one way to find out the truth, though Mai was not keen on it. She’d simply have to either steal a look in one when Naru wasn’t around, or misappropriate one for the same purpose. It couldn’t be that difficult right?

Apparently it could. For all that her boss had an affinity for disappearing during their cases and going heavens knew where, when they were in the office, Naru’s behind was glued to his chair. He didn’t even go to the bathroom and this was not something Mai had ever thought would be something she would come to know about her employer. That or Yasuhara had gotten in there when she hadn’t been looking and actually glued Naru to his chair. She wouldn’t put it past him.

As she delivered her usual round of tea for him, Mai discounted that theory though as Naru was standing and perusing his bookshelf; the selfsame one that held a couple of those notebooks she was after. Mai tried not to let her eyes wander over the shelves as she carried the tray of refreshments over to Naru’s desk. As she lifted the cup and saucer from the tray though, Mai almost dropped it when she realized one of the notebooks was sitting on the edge of her boss’ desk, half hidden under another book with a title she couldn’t read thanks to being a little too advanced for her limited knowledge of English. Suddenly Mai felt like all her Christmases had come at once.

Glancing at Naru, lest his stupid sixth sense have alerted him to her incredible luck, Mai continued as she was. She shifted the tray when she deposited the tea, and the small plate of biscuits that accompanied it, and when she collected it into her arms, the notebook was pressed firmly between the broad tray and her chest. “Enjoy your tea Naru,” she said as she walked out of the office, striving to keep her pace from showing her excitement but, as Mai closed the door behind herself, she let out a sigh of relief. Not wasting a moment, she dashed into the kitchen and put the tray aside before swiping the notebook. Mai took a moment to glance around the screen and ensure that Naru hadn’t already noticed the missing book, before she cracked it open.

What she found was certainly not what she’d been expecting.

The rows and rows of kanji reminded her of the workbooks they’d been given in school when learning English; words repeated and to be copied so that students would learn how to write them. Was Naru trying to learn kanji? She recalled him saying to Lin that he was pretty hopeless with the written characters, but she thought at the time that he just hadn’t wanted to do it. As Mai read the words, the attempts at stringing symbols together to form sentences, she actually felt… sorry for Naru. She struggled with English herself, even now, and she knew the difficulty of learning a new language. Given that Naru was a genius, though she wouldn’t confirm that out loud, it had to sting that he was struggling.

She closed the book when it became apparent just what it was and Mai suddenly felt guilty that she’d pried.

“Hey Mai, what you reading?” Yasuhara’s voice rang out from beside her and Mai jumped; barely managing to keep a hold of the notebook as she did. When she glanced at Yasu, he had a smirk on his face, at least Mai thought it was a smirk, and she wondered if he knew what was in Naru’s notebooks or had just seen it over her shoulder.

“Uh it’s nothing,” she replied, shifting the book behind her back to protect it from Yasuhara. Now that she knew what was in them, she didn’t want anyone making fun of Naru for it. Yasu wouldn’t mean any harm but she knew what Naru was like and if they wounded his pride in any way… well they’d spend the next year paying for it. And she felt guilty enough that she knew, let alone being the reason everyone else knew as well.

Yasu seemed to eye her up for a moment, contemplating something, before he shrugged and headed for the fridge, intent on getting himself a drink. Mai thought she was in the clear and went to step out of the kitchen when his voice reached her. “I’d make sure you put that back where you found it. Naru does have an eye for detail after all.” Mai glanced back but Yasu hadn’t even turned to look at her and she wondered if he truly was omniscient or if he just wanted them all to think that. Whatever the reason, he did have a point and Mai didn’t want Naru to know that she was aware of his difficulties. Still that didn’t stop her from wanting to help him somehow.

Mai was still contemplating this as she tucked the book into her desk drawer, because even she wasn’t stupid enough to leave it somewhere Naru might see it, and any hope she’d had of continuing her work went completely out the window as it seemed her mind was locked in that drawer as well. More than once as the day progressed, Yasu startled her out of her thoughts until finally, the day was done and Mai knew it was time to go home. She would have waited Lin and Naru out in order to return the book but she knew her chances of that were about as high as winning the lottery, so she slipped it into her bag, along with one of the files she was still writing up, and bid the men a good night.

The moment she got inside her apartment, Mai put her bag on the table and headed for the closet. Her mother had never thrown anything away, and while Mai had learned that hoarding tendencies weren’t good when one lived in as small a place as she did, she hadn’t thrown everything away. Box after box she tore into them, rifling through until she confirmed they didn’t hold the treasure she sought before moving onto the next. Eventually Mai was surrounded by opened boxes and covered in a film of dust as thick as makeup. She really did need to think about cleaning that out more often. The final box sat before her, and Mai opened it with less gusto as she had the others, certain her quarry must be within. It was the law of the universe that anything was in the last place one looked so, logically, this was the one. Ten minutes, and a healthy dose of nostalgia later, Mai looked at the book she held with an accomplished grin on her face. She couldn’t help flicking through it, noting the name written twice on the inside cover and running her fingers over it with a soft smile. The first was elegant, straightforward and clear to read; the writing of an adult. The second was less so, shaky and slanted and Mai remembered when her mother had stepped her through it as if it were yesterday.

Satisfied with her find, Mai tucked the book into her bag, before removing the black notebook. As she ate her dinner, she looked through it, recognizing many of the kanji inside until she reached a page that made her pause. She’d know those ones anywhere; she wrote them often enough. It was her name, over and over again. The next page was filled with Lin’s name. The next with Yasuhara’s. One after another they were all there in vary states of accomplishment. Something about looking at those pages, at seeing that they mattered enough to Naru for him to learn how to write their names, made Mai close the book softly. It felt like a betrayal of his privacy to know those things; that he thought they mattered in some way, that despite his struggles he still learned how to write their names. Suddenly feeling uncomfortable by how much she had pried, Mai exchanged the notebook for the file and went about finishing the work she couldn’t focus on that day until it was time for bed. Still that feeling wouldn’t leave her and she tossed and turned long into the night until finally exhaustion claimed her.

When Naru arrived at work the following day, he knew he was going to be late. He’d had an appointment that couldn’t be avoided so he had sent Lin ahead while he dealt with it. As he entered the office, he could hear Mai tinkering in the kitchen, no doubt preparing tea for him, and Yasuhara was on the phone with what sounded like a prospective client. Depositing his coat, Naru headed for his office. It didn’t take long to spot the oddity; the thing that didn’t belong in his usually meticulous work space and he frowned as he approached the old, worn book as though it might grow teeth and bite him at any moment. It looked well worn, the spine creased and cracked from being opened and left open one too many times, and he couldn’t help pausing as he saw the lettering across the front. Learning Kanji. Immediately, he glanced to the bookshelf where his workbooks were collected; minus the one he’d noticed go walk about yesterday. Clearly someone knew what was in them. Naru paused as he considered the implications. He’d noticed the book missing yesterday, but with no concrete proof, he couldn’t just demand it back from one of his assistants. Not without drawing attention to them even further.

Taking a slightly steadying breath, he opened the cover to see one of the few sets of kanji he could recognize without checking now. ‘Mai Taniyama’ was written in two hands on the inside and Naru actually felt himself relax. Part of him had known if Yasuhara had been the culprit, it was going to cost him in some way. And he doubted the younger male would have thought to give him an obviously well used textbook on the subject. The evidence all pointed to Mai, but it was a relief to know that was the case. A moment later, the girl in question entered his office with a knock, carrying a tray with a single cup on it. She paused, obviously catching sight of him holding open the book she’d left, and Naru watched on with a small amount of fascination. Would she run? Or would she face the fact that he so obviously knew it was her? Eventually she straightened and continued forward. So she had decided to face him. Neither of them spoke as she put the cup down on the desk he stood behind, and she reached out to place the missing notebook alongside it.

Despite the fact she’d technically stolen from him, Naru didn’t feel like berating Mai, even if his pride stung a little that she knew he practiced. This time, she didn’t wait for a thank you like she usually did, clearly she didn’t want to linger any more than necessary, but just as she went to pass through the open doorway, Naru couldn’t hold it back any longer.

“Thank you Mai.”

Whether it was for the tea, or the book he put to the side of his desk, or the fact she didn’t expose this flaw he saw in himself, Mai would never know, but she nodded without turning around, and continued on her way, closing the door behind her.

[ghosthunthq]

Created for @roseandradio (Radio) by @vzyfny. Slide 1 of 2.

Inspired by RaisedonRadio’s story ‘Cactus’ to work on the theme and prompt friendship and family. I love the thought of Naru finding a home for himself in SPR, surrounded by family and friends, and people who finally might be able to understand him.

[ghosthunthq]

For: @rmnitb

From: @books-tea-ghosts

[ghosthunthq]

Frozen Whiskers

For: @misskiku

By: @theroyalprussianarmy

I hope you like this, Misskiku! It was great fun to write!

The weather outside the office was about as cold as what Mai imagined Antarctica to be. Snow fell heavily in the streets, leading to a buildup of white slush and ice as it melted and refroze while people walked on top of it. Black ice remained dangerous on the side of the roads, cars going slow in the hopes of not hitting it. People walked with more caution than normal, even the busy business men who spoke on their phones far too loudly to be polite. As Mai hurried to work, schoolbag tossed over her shoulder and coat pulled tight, she only hoped the snow wouldn’t make her late. The trains had been running slow with the amount of people trying to pack in- more than usual, due to the cold, and more than one had been stalled. She had no money to try and call any taxi, and she didn’t want to risk Ayako or Monk driving in this weather. At least her clothes were warm and practical.

Office in sight, Mai hurried her strides only to pause as she passed an alley. People walked on past her, and a couple walked into her without apologizing, but she stayed still for a moment. Had she not just heard… Yes! There it was again! Turning into the alley, Mai glanced around. Hopefully this was not some terrible situation where she was about to get mugged and kidnapped and then… No, best not to go down that road. Pulling her shoulders back, Mai stepped forward further, following the noise. Pitiful and quiet, the sound had almost died by the time Mai approached the appropriate spot. She frowned as she looked around, trying to place it. Once more it sounded and she looked down and-

Yes, there it was! Scooping it up, Mai brought the small bundle of fur into her chest. She could feel how cold it was, shivering near violently against her chest. Pulling her jacket over the small thing she hurried out of the alley and towards the office. The warm office would be far better for the small creature than trying to gather warmth from her chest was. The walk through the snow was nearly heart stopping for Mai- several times she thought that the small beast against her chest had passed away on her mission to get to the office. Yet each time it picked up just as she was about to worry. By the time she had reached the office her hair was soaked with snow and slush, flakes still stuck to strands and her eyelashes. Without any warning beyond experience, the words “Mai, you’re late. Tea!” sounded from the nearly closed door as she tossed her schoolbag onto the couch. Apart from the sound of Lin typing in the other room, it was silent. Mai snorted.

“Yes sir, on the way!” She retorted, keeping the bundle of fur pressed close against her. Glancing at the clock on the wall (six hours left) Mai pulled the critter closer and headed into the kitchen, sliding her phone out of her pocket with one hand. She sent a text asking Monk to pick up two pet bowls, a can of wet food, and a blanket along with a wand toy just for the next few hours. A series of question marks was what she got in return, but Mai didn’t answer. Between trying to juggle her current jacket-passenger and make tea her hands were full. Knowing that she’d need both hands to carry the tray into Naru’s office, Mai tucked her jacket up inside of itself, providing a cushion for the critter that was, thankfully, no longer shaking against her. Humming as she worked, Mai set up the tray that she used to take the tea into Naru. Spoon, sugar cubes, plate for the cup, cup, requests for investigations she’d taken yesterday… Once everything was ready she carefully picked up the tray and headed for the office.

Knowing by now that Mai was not coordinated enough to open the door with her hands full, Naru left the door open just enough for Mai to stick her foot in and pull it open. She did so, her tongue sticking out the side of her mouth as she kept the tray balanced so that the tea didn’t splash out of the cup. Although he acted irritated, Mai had a hunch that Naru found it amusing her balance was abysmal enough that even opening a door with her foot caused a loss of balance able to send her shaking and nearly spilling his tea, even with two hands balancing the tray. The way he stopped what he was doing and watched without offering any help every time strongly suggested her hunch was correct.

“Here you go, Naru!” Mai said chipperly as she brought the tea in. “Tea in your favorite way; hot, made by me, and with a stack of potential cases for you to go through.” A twitch of Naru’s cheek hinted at a smile, but a twitch of his eyebrows hinted at annoyance.

“Will you ever let that go?” He asked with a sigh despite knowing the answer already.

“Nope!” Was the much-too-enthusiastic response. Not long after his return from England, Naru had let it slip nobody had made his tea quite as well as Mai had and so he had refused to have any made by anyone other than himself. Since hearing that, Mai found various ways to incorporate it into a conversation between them at least once a day. It normally resulted in a mixture of irritation and amusement from Naru, and on a few memorable occasions when he had been in a particularly good mood, a smile. “So, did you hear about Ayako? Probably not, that’s my job, isn’t it? And not one I get paid for, either… Well, she called me last night, demanding I go shopping with her because my wardrobe is apparently abysmal, but apparently she met this guy and he…”

While Mai was setting the tray on Naru’s desk, prattling away about the news of their team, she failed to notice his sharp eyes examining her. As she made to walk out the door she was stopped by the sound of her name.

“Mai,” Naru said, and she turned curiously, “Are you okay?”

“Of course I am, why?” Mari asked in confusion. Naru picked up a sugar cube, sticking it close to his mouth instead of in his tea. He had a surprising sweet tooth for the things and Mai had discovered a few with his tea generally served to improve his mood no matter what.

“The way you set the tray down- normally you bend over, but you just bent your knees instead.” He answered her with raised eyebrows, and Mai focused on not glancing into her jacket. “Not to mention you are also still wearing your jacket in the office, which you hardly ever do unless you’re sick once you’ve arrived, even if I’ve requested tea. You’re also rather agreeable and talking more than you normally do when you bring me tea. When you talk this much, you generally are trying to distract me.”

Mai stared at Naru as he narrowed his eyebrows suspiciously, reaching for the tea cup. The fact that he knew her so well combined with the fact that he suspected – correctly – that she was hiding something had Mai trying to think fast to explain it away.

“No, I- I’m fine.” From the way his eyes narrowed just a bit further, he hadn’t bought it. “Really, Naru. I’m just a little extra cold- it’s snowing out there, and the trains were delayed so I was out longer than normal. I had thought you’d want to know what’s going on with our team, as well, which is why I was talking. Of course, is that bothers you I can stop.” Mai said sweetly, earning a snort from her boss. She glowered at him for a moment- she could hear the ‘No you couldn’t,’ without him needing to speak, and from the look he was giving her, he knew exactly what was going through her mind. “I hate you.” Mai snapped, turning and stomping out of the room and slamming the door behind her. There might have been some laughter from her boss, but the door effectively shut it out. Huffing and crossing her arms, Mai turned her head towards Lin’s office. After a moment of thought, she crept towards it.

“Lin?” She asked, knocking on the door before she stuck her head in. The Chinese man made no movement to show he heard her, but Mai had no doubt he had. “Do you still have that blanket in here- the one I left just in case I got caught in a downpour again without an umbrella?” At the question, Lin turned to look at her. Though his face remained mostly blank there was a curious tilt to his mouth. He reached over to one particularly deep drawer and opened it, pulling out the aforementioned towel. A hideous thing, it was once a bright pink with a floral pattern, though it was now faded. Mai’s face lit up as she saw it. “Awesome, thank you!”

“What do you need it for?” Lin asked curiously as she walked over quickly to get it. Towel in hand, Mai glanced over her shoulder.

“Don’t tell Naru?” She asked quietly, looking back to the other SPR employee. Lin nodded and Mai grinned mischievously, unzipping her jacket slightly and poking the creature out so that the too-large ears and eyes were revealed. It let out a pathetic noise, quiet but still louder than it had been in the alley. Lin’s eyes widened and he lifted a hand to his mouth, chuckling as he looked up at Mai. “It’s a surprise! Don’t tell him!” She said again, bringing the towel up.

“I won’t tell him. Are you sure he’s going to like it?” Lin asked, turning back to his computer.

“Not at all, but I’m sure it’ll be like me and grow on him!” Mai replied with a wide grin. She earned another chuckle in response and felt accomplished. “Thank you, Lin!” She repeated before retreating from the office, mostly closing his door once more. In the front room, Mai put the towel on the table and then unzipped her jacket. From inside of it, she grasped the little grey form and brought it out. The kitten mewled unhappily, clearly seeing the removal from its warm, dark shelter unacceptable. “Sorry, little one. It’s just for a little bit.” Mai whispered, setting it on the towel and wrapping it up into a burrito. Until Monk arrived with the food, it was just going to have to try and stay warm. The kitten snuggled into the towel, closing its eyes and purring softly. Mai grinned and pulled her homework out of her schoolbag- the office was as clean as it was going to be for now, and there were no clients scheduled to come in today. Walk in clients were always a possibility, of course, but on a day such as today, Mai highly doubted they would come in.

It was less than half an hour after her text that Monk arrived, a pet store bag in his hand and Ayako trailing after him talking about the guy she had been talking with the night before.

“So, where is it?” Monk asked as he set the bag down beside Mai. Raising a finger to her lips, Mai pointed at the burrito-cat on the table, snoozing. The man knelt down, picking up the towel-wrapped creature and grinned. “Naru is going to love this. Have you named it yet?” Monk asked, poking the kitten’s forehead with his finger softly before petting it. The young creature grumbled about it, opening its eyes to glare at Monk with bright blue eyes.

“Are you kidding me? I’ve just been trying to keep it warm- I don’t even know what gender it is.” Mai replied, digging through the bag. “Keep an eye on it, I’m going to put water in this bowl so it has something to drink.” She stood up with the bowl and headed into the kitchen. When she returned just a few moments later after rinsing it out and filling it, the kitten was being held up to Ayako’s chest while she stared at Monk who was staring at the canned food critically. Setting the water down on the floor, Ayako set the kitten in front of it. Immediately the kitten went to the water bowl, lapping it up while Monk finally opened the can and put it in the other bowl, setting it beside the kitchen.

“It’s a boy,” Ayako said to Mai as Monk put the food down. “I’d say almost six months old. I did some googling on our way here- he’s not got molars yet, but it looks like they’re coming in.”

“Oh. I probably should have done that. I just- when I found him he was so… Frozen. I didn’t even think of-“

“Letting him go?” Monk broke in with an expression that contained a smirk as well as wiggling eyebrows. Both Mai and Ayako made faces at him.

“I was so intent on getting him warm,” Mai repeated with a groan, grinning a little at Monk, “that I didn’t even think to look at what gender he was or how old he was.”

“That makes sense, I suppose. So, did you think of any names for him?” Ayako asked, and Mai shook her head.

“Naru wanted tea as soon as he heard me come in, and I’m pretty sure he suspects there’s something here that shouldn’t be.” Mai replied, shrugging. “I don’t know what we should call him, though- I feel like calling him ‘ghost’ is in bad taste, especially considering we hunt ghosts.”

“Could always call him Ge-” Monk began, only to be cut off by Mai’s words as well as a disapproving grunt from Ayako.

“I’m not calling him Gene. Best case scenario, it upsets Naru somehow. Worst case scenario, Gene actually finds a way to inhabit that kitten’s body, and I’m not dealing with that.” Mai declared, denying the name vehemently. Monk sighed and shrugged.

“Might need to wait and see how he grows up, then. There’s no rush to name him, after all.” Monk reasoned. Mai nodded and looked as the kitten sniffed at the wet food before digging in.

“I’m going to need to get a few things for him… Litterbox, more food, toys…” She murmured, glancing at the still-shut office door. Ayako hummed.

“You shouldn’t have any trouble with that, especially now that you…” The older woman raised her eyebrows and smirked at Mai, leaning forward until the younger woman’s face turned red.

“Stop that!” Mai demanded, “I have homework, stop bothering me about that!” Despite her words, she reached for the toy wand inside the shopping bag instead, causing Monk to laugh.

“You know, if you don’t pay attention to your courses, you’re going to fail college, and then what will you be?” He teased as Mai tried to ignore him in favor of playing with the kitten.

“…Working here full time instead of part time.” Mai finally responded despondently, hunching over with an irritated look on her face. It was clear she was not pleased about being reminded she had to work even harder in college than she had in high school. It had been easy enough in high school- her school had been very lenient with her orphan status, as well as her work. College was less so- it was more demanding, and less forgiving. Much like Naru, in some aspects. Yet Mai thought she would prefer dealing with Naru to going to college, even on his worst days. With a sigh of defeat she handed the toy over to Ayako, watching the kitten chase after it, and got out her homework.

The next half-hour passed with Monk and Ayako playing with the kitten while Mai scowled and cursed her homework, slowly working through it. The older pair helped her where they could but even her homework was a bit much for them. Mai had almost finished her homework when the phone rang. Eager for a chance to avoid her homework, she hopped up and hurried to it, picking the phone up. It was a potential client, asking for a consultation time. The conversation lasted for a few minutes while Mai took down what they could tell her and explaining that her boss would look it over and decide their course of action. She thanked the person for calling before glancing at the clock- four hours and forty five minutes before she could go home. Sighing, she returned to the table.

Eventually, Monk and Ayako had to leave. Mai thanked them for their help, stuffing her homework into her schoolbag once they were gone. She cleaned the bowl that had had food in it, glancing in the pet store bag to see there were more cans of food inside of it. Biting her lip, Mai stared at the currently-sleeping kitten while trying to figure out how to tell Naru of their little… visitor. He would almost definitely be upset with her for bringing a cat into the office without asking, but really, what would he have told her? Leave it out in the cold to die? Not even Naru was that heartless. He could be rude and off-putting to people, for sure, but animals? No, Mai refused to believe that. Not even Naru would do that. Still, she tried to think of the best way to introduce the cat to her boss.

As the day slowly passed Mai took several more phone calls, cleaned up the office a bit, straightened the jackets in the closet, folded the towel up and returned it to Lin’s room, played with the kitten, and took Naru tea several more times though she was careful to do it ‘normally’. The kitten, for the most part, remained quiet and still. He skulked on the back of the couch, slinked into the kitchen, scrambled up onto the bookshelf where he stared down at Lin walking through and Mai doing her chores. Mai smiled at him before going to ask Naru if he wanted her to grab food for him while she was getting a late lunch. It was then, close to the end of the day, that Mai made her mistake. Instead of shutting the door as she had been every other time, knowing Naru like his privacy, she left it open after teasing him about getting some fresh air, and left the building.

It was only when she returned, hot food from the restaurant next door in a bag in her hand, that not informing Naru came back to bite her. Calling out that she had returned to her boss, Mai frowned when she heard no response from him. No response from Naru was quiet uncommon, especially after he had asked her to get food for him. Curious, Mai headed for his office. The silence of the office was more foreboding than it normally was, somehow. As she poked her head through the door Mai felt as though she should have simply walked back out, or not walked towards the office at all. Perhaps she should have dropped the food off with Lin and eaten hers on her own.

When she walked into Naru’s office she was met by a pair of extremely unamused dark blue eyes. For a moment, Mai was confused as to why Naru was giving her such a look. When she looked on his desk, she gulped. The little grey cat had his paws on the desk, his lower half disappearing behind the wood- presumably resting on Naru’s lap. Upon seeing her, the adorable little traitor let out a sound that was between a purr and a meow before hopping onto the desk, running across it, and then wrapping itself around Mai’s ankles. Both of the other sets of eyes in the room followed it before meeting.

“Mai,” Naru began calmly, “why is there a cat in the office?”

“Kitten, actually. He’s a kitten. I’d assume someone brought him here, honestly. Last I checked, kittens couldn’t open office doors. Neither can cats, as far as I know, actually.” Mai said smartly, walking forward to deposit the food on the counter to try and seem as though she wasn’t nervous.

“Funny.” Naru told her though the expression on his face suggested the opposite. “And who brought it in here? Lin didn’t, it couldn’t have come in with a client because there haven’t been any today. I highly doubt it was the monk and the miko; though it is possible, they would have taken it with them. Which leaves you.”

Mai sighed and knelt down to pick the cat up, pressing it against her chest in a way similar to a mother holding her child. “I found him on my way to work today.”

“It’s been here all day?” Naru asked, eyeing the cat. Mai couldn’t tell if he was upset or surprised.

“Yes, he has. As I was saying, I found him on my way to work today. I passed an alley and heard him inside. I walked in, and picked him up. He was practically frozen, Naru, I couldn’t leave him there!” Mai exclaimed, clutching at the kitten. “He would have frozen to death, and I couldn’t just let him die. So I picked him up, and stuck him in my jacket, and brought him here. I was going to take him home after work. I am going to take him home after work.” She told her boss, voice firm. He stared at her blankly, gaze falling to the kitten after a moment. The silence sat for a moment, stretching longer. Mai hated it- Naru was the king of long, awkward silences that made her feel guilty because she did something that wasn’t necessarily wrong but yes, she should have told him.

“I’m sorry, Naru, I should have told you about the kitten. I didn’t want to distract you from work or anything, and I didn’t think he was important enough that you should need to worry about him. He’s honestly been practically silent- like a ghost. He just climbs on stuff and stays there, watching. I didn’t tell you, and I should have, if only so that you knew to be aware of a cat in the office.” She caved after a long moment, petting the kitten’s head. He purred, bumping the top of his head against the bottom of her chin. She grinned down, giggling, and then lifted her hand as he used his paws to climb up and onto her shoulder. “I’ll take him home and he’ll never have to come back, I just couldn’t kick him out or leave early, and I got my homework done, even. He hasn’t been a distraction at all, or-”

“Mai. Stop talking.” Naru interrupted, rolling his eyes though there was the hint of a smile on his face. “I wasn’t going to tell you to get rid of it. Him.” Her boss sighed, pushing his chair back and standing. “I understand why you brought him here, but you should have told me. What if he had been injured, hm? Had made a mess? Have you even seen him… Defecate at all?” Her boss asked, and Mai flushed before clearing her throat.

“He may have, ahem. Defecated in the plant down the hall at one point… Or two… The one belonging to that, you know… Gentleman with the… Mustache. And the glasses. Who complained that one time about our office being more space than we needed, and that our business was a scam.” Mai coughed, and by the way Naru’s mouth was twitching it seemed he was trying to decide between being annoyed or amused. Eventually the latter won and he snorted, leaning against his desk and shaking his head.

“How do you manage to…” He murmured, lifting a hand to his face as he mumbled the rest of the sentence into it. It was quiet for a moment before Naru looked at her again. “Okay. All right. Mai, you can’t just-”

Before he could finish the statement, the cat let out a loud, long, high-pitched baby’s meow. Mai looked at the cat on the shoulder, who was staring straight at Naru. Behind her, the silvery tail was slowly moving. When Naru opened his mouth to speak again, the kitten narrowed his eyes and let out a sound that was very similar to a chirping noise. The kitten and the man seemed to have a sort of a face-off for a moment before Naru looked at Mai once again.

“Please Naru? Let me keep him? He won’t have to come to the office again, I promise.” Mai said quietly, giving her boss her best doe-eyes. Between the combined weight of Mai’s large brown eyes, and the cat’s blue ones, Naru sighed again.

“All right. Fine. You can keep it.” He said, grimacing a little. “But don’t do this again, Mai. If you see a cat on the street, just… Don’t bring it to the office.” Naru glanced at the cat. “Take it to an animal shelter. Or something. But not your place of work.”

“I won’t next time, Naru! If there is a next time, I promise.” Mai cheered, picking the cat up off her shoulder. She pressed a kiss to its nose before turning it and present it to Naru. The two faced off for a moment before the cat lifted a paw to Naru’s cheek, leaning forward to lick his nose. Mai grinned widely. “Look, you even have his approval!” Though Naru appeared disgruntled at the declaration, Mai ignored his expression in favor of pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“You’re ridiculous.” Naru stated. “Come on. Let’s go get your cat proper food and bedding and get it home. You’d better let Lin know we’re leaving early today because of your cat.”

“Of course, of course. Here, hold onto him, I have to go make sure all my stuff is packed. I already know yours is- and you’re leaving it here. I know you.” Mai shoved the kitten into Naru’s arms, skipping out of the office feeling much lighter than she had in the morning. The threat of this confrontation had been looming all day, and it had turned out much better than she could have hoped. “Lin,” She called out, “We’re leaving early! We’ll see you tomorrow!”

Naru stared at the cat in his arms, unsure what to make of it as his girlfriend abruptly left the room. The kitten stared back, unblinking. “You,” He said after a moment, “had best take good care of her.” Naru spoke quietly to the cat, rubbing the top of his head slowly with one finger. “She lets herself get swallowed by her heart. Of course, that is something to be loved about her, but she has a tendency to let it get out of hand. Like you today.” The young man’s face twisted into annoyance before he sighed and walked towards the door to exit the room. “But, you’ll take keep her safe just as well as I would, won’t you? You are not so ordinary of a cat…”

Moments later, the small family left the office to better prepare for the sudden arrival of the newest member while Lin texted Madoka of the development, laughing openly about how weak Naru could be when it came to Mai and wide-eyed cute things.

♦♦♦♦ 

They wound up calling the cat Haunt, at Naru’s suggestion after watching how the cat preferred to take the highest points in a room to stare down, ‘haunting’ them. Mai decided to get a halter and a leash, and Haunt surprisingly took well to it. Perhaps because of his age they managed to train him to walk on the leash, sit, and stay. He returned to the office after a few months, Mai no longer able to take his wails as they left and Naru no longer able to take the guilty looks he received from his girlfriend. Thankfully, Haunt was well-received by both clients and the rest of the team. Fluffy and tolerant, he helped calm those who came in to report cases and as for help.

It was during an emergency case where they’d had to leave immediately, Haunt included, that he really earned his keep. Upon the approach of an angry ghost Haunt let out something similar to a war cry, alerting the team what was on its way. He became an alarm as well as a barricade during the case, swatting at the ghost when it got too close- especially at one point when it got too close to Mai and no one was able to help without endangering her further. He became a complete staple to the team after, taking his job as a protector of Mai seriously. When ghosts got too close to the girl he attacked them with an irritated air, as though he was being inconvenienced- which Mai claimed he got from Naru.

Monk, when Mai and Naru were not around, still called the cat Gene.

[ghosthunthq]

Created for: @aspire-8

Made by: @joyfulpocketninja

A continuation of the Yasu/Monk photoshoot idea. I firmly believe Yasu can do anything he sets his mind too, just maybe not singing? Don’t think he’ll join Monk and his group anytime soon.

[ghosthunthq]

Don't Ask - 4

For: @theroyalprussianarmy  

By: @evil-dragon-is-evil  

Check out the first three chapters here ( Naru | Mai | Shinji )

Lin is a scary driver, and Naru is a bundle of emotional avoidance.

Lin

Lin was getting sick of Noll’s emotional constipation. He and Mai had been avoiding each other, acting depressed, and otherwise being as annoying as angsty teenagers could be. Someone needed to get Noll’s head out of his ass, and, as his guardian, that job fell to Lin.

He had walked out of his own office once he heard Mai and her boyfriend leave, only to find Takigawa, Matsuzaki, and Yasuhara sitting in the waiting area. He was all for ignoring them as he looked over the completed paperwork on Mai’s desk, but then Yasuhara said, “Lin, you’re the closest to the big boss. Surely you know what he said to Tokiwa-san just now. What’s been eating him.”

“Why?” he asked.

“This is getting ridiculous,” Matsukazi sniffed. “If he’s going to let Mai get away that easily, he deserves it.”

Takigawa was silent for a long while, staring out the window. “I know Mai’s trying to get over Naru, but she’s been acting oddly the past few weeks, too. I don’t like seeing her so down.”

“Maybe you could talk to the big boss,” Yasuhara suggested, “try to figure out what’s going on between them.”

Somehow, he’d ended up telling them that he would try. Though talking to Noll was sometimes harder than talking to a brick wall. But this seemed to reassure the three, who were then quick to leave.

But then, as the time approached to close, Lin had to walk into Noll’s office to find the boy sweeping the remains of a shattered teacup into the garbage. He looked paler than usual, and Lin noticed a few books on the floor that were usually situated on the shelves. Great. Just great. But he didn’t say anything, watching Noll put the broom away, and following him out of the office.

When the two of them got in the car, however, he couldn’t hold it any longer. “There were some concerns about what you said to Mai’s boyfriend.”

“It’s nothing to worry about,” Noll said.

“And I suppose the way you and Mai have both been sulking isn’t, either?”

“I have not been sulking.”

“Oh, really? Then how would you care to explain your recent behavior? You two haven’t been speaking to each other unless it’s necessary. We both know you hate making your own tea, yet you’re doing it. Why? Did you two have a disagreement?”

“I fail to see how my relationship with my assistant is any concern of yours.”

This was one of the many times Lin was tempted to slap some sense into his young charge. Instead, he gritted his teeth and started the car. “I’m not one of the irregulars, Noll. You can’t fool me that easily. Mai’s a good person. You care about her. Why can’t you just tell her that?”

“There’s nothing to tell.”

“We can all see how much she means to you. Everyone except Mai, herself. Do you really want this boyfriend of hers to take her away from you?”

“She’s free to do whatever she wants. I will not interfere.”

“So you’re admitting it, then?”

“Admitting what?”

“Don’t play dumb. It’s very unbecoming of you.”

“What I choose to do with my personal life is no concern of yours.”

“Of course not,” Lin said, the sarcasm heavy. “I’m just the one who has to sit back and watch as you tear yourself apart over a girl. How could that concern me?”

“Precisely, though I’m not tearing myself apart over anything.”

“Which explains the mess in your office after Tokiwa-san left.” Lin swerved around a driver who was going too slow. “Noll, you can’t keep avoiding everything you don’t want to deal with. That’s not how it works.”

“Focus on the road, Lin,” Noll said as Lin took a corner a bit fast, causing the tires to squeal. “I’d rather not be killed by a car, as well.”

“Don’t change the subject.”

“I was merely attempting to think of my parents. Don’t you tell me I should do that more often? That was a red light, by the way.”

“You’re avoiding it again.”

“Avoiding what?”

“You’ve been acting oddly toward Mai since we got back.”

“The police are heavy in this area. You should really slow down.”

“Damn it, Oliver!” Lin only pressed harder on the accelerator, the car zooming past others who were adamantly sticking to the speed limit. “Even I know that Mai’s in love with you. But apparently, I’m the only one who knows you love her, even if you won’t admit it. Whatever game you’re playing, I’d rather not have to check you into the hospital again. Either talk to me, or I’m calling your parents.”

There was a long silence, and Lin was pretty sure Noll wasn’t going to say anything. And then, “She isn’t.”

It took him a moment to realize what Noll meant. She isn’t, as in, she isn’t in love with me. Oh, how adorable. “Oh, really? You obviously haven’t seen how she looks at you.”

“That’s because I look like Gene.”

Lin turned to stare at the boy. Noll had told him about Gene being Mai’s spirit guide. But going that far was ridiculous. “Gene’s dead.”

“I am aware. Keep your eyes on the road.”

Lin turned his eyes back just in time to avoid running onto the sidewalk. Rather smoothly, if he did say so, himself. He’d been helping this idiot stabilize his emotions enough to prevent poltergeists for years, now. Emotions weren’t Lin’s strong point either, but Noll was bottling everything up. “So you think Mai’s just after him, and therefore, you’re not going to ever tell her anything?” he summarized as he pulled into the parking structure for their apartment building.

“There is nothing between us and there never will be, even if I wished it to be otherwise.” Noll said.

This was going to be difficult.

[ghosthunthq]

By Any Other Name (¼)

I didn’t have an assignee this year so this for all of you. It’s themes are more personally motivated for me so I hope it still turns out to be something you all enjoy as well,

By: @tiffotcf

Chapter 1-Moving Day

Mai wasn’t sure what she was doing here.

Well, Madoka had asked her to come help with buying things for Naru and Lin’s new apartment. So, the ‘what’ of her doing here was obvious. But now, standing in front of the stylish modern three story townhome, Mai couldn’t for the life of her remember why she had thought this would be a good idea.

It wasn’t like she didn’t have better things to do with her Saturday, she had homework of course, she could have taken up Michiru’s offer of studying at the park near her place. It wasn’t too far away, maybe she could turn around.

She wasn’t running away. It was just that moving always ended up more difficult than it should be. And this move had so far proved no different.

Since Lin and Naru had spent all their time in Japan living out of hotels, moving meant less packing of boxes and more shopping. Disinterested at best, both Lin and Naru were fine with Madoka sharing this burden and Madoka, upon arrival yesterday morning, had recruited Mai to be her furnishing assistant.

Yesterday evening had the four of them at a furniture shop, picking out necessities for the new home. But what sounded like a simple trip had devolved into an unquestionable disaster.

Chaos had begun with Madoka’s own excited indecision leading them from piece to piece. Naru and Lin quickly lost interest as she pulled them around the store until Lin finally suggested that they split up to divide the work. This was followed by the embarrassment of Madoka sending Mai to help Naru pick a bed. Something that Naru pointed out as ridiculous as he was not a child and could select his own furniture. But, it wasn’t up for discussion and she had sent them off together. Which lead to the assumptive associate whose questions and ‘helpful’ suggestions on selection left no confusion as to the fact that he thought they were together.

Mai wanted to go home and sleep for a thousand years after that night. Never to have to think about Naru’s bedroom furniture or the quality craftsmanship of it again.

But, Mai supposed, if Madoka could fly all the way from England to help them get settled in then she could help too, so here she was.

Walking up the narrow street she took note of the similar structures which were going up in the some of the surrounding lots. Mai tried to imagine what the rent must be like on a place like this so close to Ebisu and then decided not to think about it, lest it make her dizzy.

She knocked, her heart jumping when Naru opened the door a moment later.

What was wrong with her? It was his house of course he would open the door.

But then, maybe, that was the problem. She was at Naru’s house.

“Mai.” Naru said.

Apparently forgetting how to greet others, Mai just stood on the stoop. Her hands clasped tight at her side.

“Mai, you found us!” Madoka said slipping past Naru. “Ready to go?”

“Yes.”

“Noll,” Madoka turned back to the house, “don’t forget the furniture is supposed to come around eleven. And I don’t want to hear that you were reading instead of helping Lin when I get back.”

Naru replied by closing the front door.

Madoka turned to Mai with a shrug and a smile.

“I hope you are excited about kitchenware, because that is going to be the rest of our day,” Madoka said, taking Mai’s hand and whisking her back down the street.

“Sure, sounds fun.”

Shopping without Naru and Lin was, unsurprisingly, much simpler. Madoka still took forever to decide which tableware set pattern she liked best and even interrogated the employee regarding the merits of the different cookware. But there was no disinterested brooding or domestic misunderstandings so Mai considered the day a rousing success in comparison to their previous attempt at home furnishing.

When Madoka had gently bragged of her boyfriend’s culinary skills and her need for quality kitchen products to the checkout attendant Mai finally got the answer to the question she had been too afraid to ask for months now.

“I didn’t realize Lin was interested in cooking.” Mai said as they sat on the train on their way back to the apartment. “Or that you were…together.”

Madoka laughed.

“Oh, you heard that, huh? Don’t mention it to him. OK?”

“Oh, uh, ” Mai was confused, “Are you—?”

“Taking advantage of a mutual attraction? As often as I can, believe you me.” Madoka boasted crossing her arms and leaning back in her seat with a self-satisfied grin.

“Madoka!” Mai’s face went scarlet.

“Oh, I forgot, you are kinda young.” Madoka blanched. “That was probably inappropriate.”

“I’m not that young.” Mai grumbled.

“It’s just the boyfriend thing, he gets all flustered about it. Though, he is really cute when he is flustered.”

Mai waited, unsure as to what she was supposed to say.

“Things aren’t as cut and dry as they could be,” Madoka explained, “I mean we do live thousands of miles apart.”

“Couldn’t you move to Japan?” Mai offered.

“Well, we both have our work.”

“But you can work here, with us. You already have.”

“And I loved it, but my research is really in England. And it’s not just the space. I mean he has a lot of responsibilities, he has to watch over Noll.”

“I can see how that is very taxing.” Mai agreed with a laugh. “But if you were here, couldn’t you help him with everything?”

“Sure, I suppose.”

“I think working with your spouse would be so fun, you get to see them every day.”

Madoka exploded with laughter, eyes from around the car turning in their direction.

“Oh Mai, that is so sweet. But, no. People need their space, believe me. Seeing someone all day at work and then again at home. I will pass. And wait a minute, who said anything about getting married? That’s not going to happen.”

“Oh, come on, you can’t say that.” Mai teased.

“No,” the smile faded from Madoka’s face, “I can.”

“Madoka?” Mai asked, concern replacing her amusement.

Madoka took a deep breath, a smaller version of her smile coming back to her lips.

“But, I like what we have and he sure doesn’t seem to be complaining.” Madoka said with a wink that brought the color back to Mai’s cheeks. “So why don’t we just enjoy what we got, you know?  Life isn’t a set of check boxes waiting to be ticked off. You gotta live it the way that makes you happy. Besides labels are just a sticky mess that can really gum up that whole process.”

“Sure.” Mai said, confused but unwilling to have Madoka think her too young to talk to again.

They sat in silence for a while, then Madoka asked how classes were going and the conversation started back up flowing smoothly for the rest of the ride. They stopped at the convenience store on their way back from station as since the kitchen tools they bought wouldn’t be delivered until tomorrow.

“We’re back, and we brought food.” Madoka announced as she opened the front door.

“Welcome back.” Lin said from the living room.

Mai followed Madoka into the small kitchen to drop of her bags of food.

“Yes! That looks so good!” Madoka said surveying the newly placed furniture . “The sectional is a perfect fit, what did I tell you?  I’m a genius.”

From the kitchen doorway Mai could see Madoka grin up at Lin as she approached him.

“It works well in the space.” He agreed.

Her grin widened, her fingertip resting on his chest.

“And you wanted a sofa and loveseat.” She fake pouted, Lin’s hand came up to wrap around Madoka’s the other lightly grasping her chin.

Mai could feel her ears heating up, maybe she should go?

“I stand corrected.” He replied looking at her, their faces extremely close.

“Not for long,” she teased.

“They make a room for that you know.” Naru said walking into the room reading.

“Oh sweetie, they made all the rooms for that.”

“Gross, and you talk about me needing manners.” He grumbled as he passed them, still reading. “You said something about food?”

“Oh yeah,” Madoka grinned. “I left you something in the kitchen.”

Mai scrambled further back into the kitchen. Her face on fire. It was bad enough she felt like she had just been snooping. Now, Naru was coming.

She needed to hide, maybe she could fit in a cabinet? Or in the pantry?

Mai let out a small scream when she was nearly knocked over from behind.

Catching her balance, Mai turned to see a confused Naru looking at her over the top of his book.

“Mai?”

From the other room, she could head Madoka’s failed attempts at restraining her laughter.

“What are you doing here?” Naru asked.

“Oh, I was just, uh, dropping these off,” she gestured to the bags of food, “but that’s done so I’m gonna go now.”

Mai looked at the floor, hoping to making her glowing face less obvious as she walked from the room.

“Mai, where are you going?” Madoka asked as Mai made her way back to the front door. “I thought you were staying for dinner.”

“I have some studying I have to do,” Mai said, slipping her shoes back on, “I should get going.”

“Oh no, Mai, stay.”

Mai turned back to face them, but she couldn’t think of how to defer.

“Maybe she doesn’t want to be tortured by your public displays of debauchery.” Naru said.

“That reminds me,” Madoka said. “What help did you give today while Mai and I were out working hard to get things for your home?”

“I fail to see any correlation between those statements.”

“So, that means you didn’t help.”

Mai found herself distracted by how casually they interacted outside the office. She had never imagined Naru being capable of existing in such a domestic situation.

“I will take your silence as an admission of guilt.” Madoka told him. “Put that tray back where you found it you haven’t earned food.”

Mai gapped as Naru, Naru, rolled his eyes.

“I helped.” he said, an indignant hand on his hip.

Madoka raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

“He did.” Lin offered. “He took care of his room—”

“That doesn’t really count—”

“And he organized and set up the whole study.” Lin finished before Madoka could finish her complaint.

Mai was dumbfounded. She wondered if she should be embarrassed again. The whole scene was so personal, so normal. They were like a family and Mai couldn’t stop the small ache of jealously that rippled across her chest.

“Mai, are you sure you can’t stay?” Madoka asked her.

The domestic haze cleared as the group’s attention turned back to her, reminding Mai  why she had been beating a hasty retreat to the front door.

“I should really head home.  Thank you for having me.”

“Well at least take something with you. Noll, would you grab something for Mai?”

“No, that’s—” Mai gave up as Naru had already started back towards the kitchen.

Madoka came over to give Mai a hug goodbye.

“Thank you for all of your help today, Mai. We’ll have to have you over again for a real dinner once everything comes in.”

Naru arrived with one of the plastic bags and held it out.

“Noll, why don’t you walk Mai to the station.”

“Oh no! You don’t—“ Mai sighed as Naru walked past her to the shoe rack.

Why did she even try? No one seemed to win against Madoka. Even Naru seemed resigned to the instructions she gave.

“You don’t have to come,” Mai told him when they were outside and Madoka had shut the door.

“She is watching from the window. Just start walking.”

They headed down the street. Mai could feel the silence trickling between them, it left the hair on her arms raised and she had to clench her fists to keep from scratching at them.

“Your house is nice,” Mai said.

Naru kept walking.

“How does your room look?”

He looked at her from the corner of his eye.

“I didn’t get to see it,” she explained.

“Were you, expecting to?” he asked turning to look at her.

Mai’s eyes went wide, her cheeks burning.

“No!”

“Then, why are you asking?”

“I wasn’t!”

Naru tilted his head questioningly at her then turned back to the space ahead of them.  They passed under the direct glow of a street light and Mai thought she saw a curve on the edge of his lip.

They fell back into the dimness of the space between lights and Mai smiled. She wasn’t sure why, but the more she thought about the smile the wider it got.

Mai could see the station ahead of them now. Her smiled dimmed. Naru was going to go any moment now. She should say something, drag it out. She hadn’t realized how nice it had been walking and now it was almost over.

“I hope you like the dishes we picked.”

“I’m sure they will do.”

Mai had a thought.

“Do you cook too or just Lin?”

“How did you know Lin liked to cook?”

“Madoka told me, well actually she told the salesman that her boyfriend was a good cook. I put the rest of it together myself.”

“I’m sure it was very hard to reason out, they are so subtle.”

“Well not around you apparently.” Mai grumbled. “But I wasn’t sure until she said something.”

Mai looked up at him.

“Naru?”

He looked over at her.

“Why can’t she call him her boyfriend?” The question had been eating at her, but she couldn’t bring it back up to Madoka. Naru was a  long shot at getting additional information, but he was the only other person she could ask.

“They obviously like each other. I mean, she said they… got along really well.”

“Too well.” Naru grimaced.

“Do you think she is ok? That she is happy?”

“Did she say she was happy?”

“Yes,” Mai realized, “at least she did until I mentioned them getting married. I hope I didn’t upset her.”

They reached the station, Mai stepping them to the side. She shifted the plastic bag of food in her hands trying to think of the best way to say goodbye and thank you. Naru was watching the people flow past them, he probably was ready to get back home to his quiet and his books.

“Lin can’t marry her.”

“What?” Mai asked surprised.

“I heard Martin and Luella talk about it once. His family wouldn’t approve.”

“Why?”

Naru looked down at her.

Mai gasped.

“Because she’s Japanese?”

His blank stare confirmed her question.

“But that’s…”

“It’s stupid.”

“Yeah it is,” Mai agreed, fiddling with the bag again. “I guess, it really is complicated.”

“It’s not complicated, it’s tyrannical.”

“But Naru, —“

“Why should it be ok to be told you couldn’t have something you really wanted, not because it would hurt anyone, but simply because someone else didn’t approve of your having it?”

Mai blinked, she had never heard Naru sound so intense, even when he spoke about their work.

“Naru?”

“You have studying to do, you should try to catch the next train. I’ll see you at the office Monday.”  He said taking his leave and weaving his way through the crowd.

Mai watched as he left, following the back of his head until she lost him to the waves of humanity that passed between them. Too late, she realized that she hadn’t said her own farewells.

[ghosthunthq]

By Any Other Name (2/4)

For: The 2017 Ghost Hunt Exchange

So might be good to mention the rating with this chapter.

Rated: T (for thirst ;) )

By: @tiffotcf

Chapter 2- Audrey

This week was one for the history books. She had had her doubts in the past but it finally looked like Naru was starting to warm up to her. Not only had their walk to the station not been a total failure. But the subsequent ‘thank you’ dinner that Madoka had Naru invite her over for on Thursday was one of the most fun evenings she had had in a long time.

Lin really was a good cook and even Naru ended up occasionally joining in the conversation throughout the meal. There had been a only one slight hiccup afterward, when Naru had given her a tour of the house.

The ‘tour’, had primarily consisted of her following him as he strolled silently though the home.

The first floor was the kitchen, dining area, and living room that she had seen on her first visit. The second held the study, a bathroom, and Lin’s bedroom. A large patio took up more than a quarter of the third floor and the bathroom took up another sizable chunk with its soaking tub and standing shower. Potential rent figures started to swirl in Mai’s brain again and she was worried she would need to sit down. Or have a soak in that tub.

She had started to follow Naru back down the stairs when she realized they hadn’t opened the third door on this floor.

“What’s that?” Mai had asked.

“My room, but you weren’t interested in seeing that.”

“Oh no I—”

“So, you did want to see my room?”

Mai’s cheeks colored.

“No,” she snapped.

“Well then, we should probably head back down. Madoka will no doubt want to force us into some sort of dessert.”

He started moving down the stairs again and she took the opportunity to let out a silent scream and smacked herself on the forehead.

He turned back to look at her.

“I’ll make some tea then.” She said with a smile.

She had been kicking herself ever since. Not because she had hoped for something to happen if they had decided to go in the room, but because she kept getting so flustered around him again lately that she was only making every chance they had to talk even more awkward. And, if she was honest, because of the what if. Her brain kept spitting out impossible scenarios that it claimed could have played out had she not wasted the opportunity.

She told it to stop but instead the daydreams kept getting more involved and farfetched. While she was not so secretly enjoying them she was now less than a day away from an English test that was not going to pass itself and she really needed her brain to start focusing.

She had spent the night studying at Michiru’s and she knew that if she went home she was just going to fall asleep. So instead she found a coffee shop where she could get some much needed caffeine and a few more hours of studying in before she succumbed to the sweet call of her mattress.

She had been working for about a half hour and could finally feel the effects of the coffee kicking in when the door chimed. Mai normally didn’t pay any attention to the door, but this time she could feel the shift in the air, a stilling to the chatter of the room.

Looking up, she forgot to hold back her gasp.

She was straight out of an old Hollywood movie. The type of film where style meant elegance and beauty was something that glowed around someone like a haze. Audrey Hepburn, that was who she reminded Mai of.

The woman was in a black knee length sleeveless dress that flared slightly at the hips to produce a figure Mai hadn’t thought possible without body altering accessories. Her glossy black heels clicked delicately but with purpose as she made her way across the concrete to the counter and ordered. A black gloved hand holding up a card to pay for her request.

Mai strained to hear, but even in the silence that had fallen over the shop she was too far away to hear her voice. Mai imagined it to be something soft, but low. Something that beckoned in any who listened at their own risk.

Her face was mostly obscured by a wide brimmed black hat, but Mai could see bright red lips against pale skin. Those lips parted briefly, a hint of a smile curling up at their edges.

Mai could see the barista staring, not that she could blame him, she could hardly move and she was back here, hidden in the corner. She couldn’t imagine being so close, being addressed. Her heart sped up, the anxiety of the thought enough to stagger her breaths.

The woman leaned towards him, that wide brimmed hat tilting and moving forward to fill more of the space between them. One heeled foot lifted to hover at an angle above the floor.

The barista jumped and set to work, the request finally registering in his brain.

The woman in black stood, posture perfect as she waited on her purchase, her hat still leaving anything more than red lips and a long pale neck a mystery that begged to solved. Mai chewed her lip, wondering if the pale skin of her exposed shoulder and upper arm felt as smooth as it looked, was it cool to the touch or would it radiate heat like running your hand over a hot bath.

Her fingers twitched, almost feeling the softness of the long silk opera gloves. Which would be smoother the silk or her skin?

Mai heard a small whimper. Wait, had that been her?

Her eyes went wide and her face burned at a thousand degrees.

“What,” she hissed to herself, smacking her cheeks lightly, “stop it.”

What was she thinking? She didn’t know this woman, she hadn’t even seen her face. And here she was having afternoon fantasies about her.

The woman’s head tilted higher, almost imperceptibly so, but Mai could feel that her gaze was now traveling the room.

Mai brought her eyes back to her notebook, a lump forming in the dryness of her throat. What if she had just seen that? What if she noticed her now?

Never in her life had she been more conscious of her appearance. Her finger brushed hair and slept-in tee shirt. No amount of knowledge gained at last night’s study session was worth the risk of coming into contact with radiance in such a state.

She could feel the gaze pass, the weight of it sliding like a brick of ice from her shoulders.

Risking a glance, Mai saw the barista hold up the woman’s drink, the paper cup visibly shaking as he set it on the counter.

She collected the beverage and with a small incline of that over large hat she turned to leave.

Light gossip returned to the space as the door chimed shut behind her. And Mai looked back to her notes, unsure as to which class these were even for.  

She tried to study for another half an hour or so, but her mind was wandering even worse now. Deciding that perhaps a change of venue would help, Mai decided to pack up her things and go.

Two blocks over, Mai was struck with her next struggle for the day.

Cookies!

Fresh baked!

Get them while they’re hot!

She stared at the sign, her stomach letting out a small rumble as she remembered that she hadn’t eaten anything since the convenience store sushi at Michiru’s last night.

Well, and her coffee at the shop, but coffee didn’t really count as food. Plus, she had ended up letting almost half of that go cold and threw it out.

But did that really justify buying a dozen cookies just for herself?

The easy answer was, of course it did.

But, she knew better. She was already exhausted from being up all night studying, the coffee wasn’t really helping long term, and she didn’t feel like she had a handle on her vocab list. So, a sugar coma was probably not the best of ideas.

Although, she was near Naru and Lin’s, and Madoka had said she could stop by anytime. And if she brought them cookies then maybe they would invite her in to eat with them. She smiled.

She did need to buy them a thank you gift for having her over for dinner the other night. And, she had been studying so hard, she deserved a break.

Her mind made up, Mai headed into the bakery.

Bribes in hand and confidence inflated Mai headed back out into the afternoon and on her way to Naru’s.

She almost missed her turn as she ran through possible scenarios for the hand off. The most likely option was that he was not even home, but that one was no fun. So, she quickly shuffled it away. If they were all there, Madoka would invite her in they could have a quick chat. Madoka would force Naru to come out and interact with them and maybe she could make it through one non-work conversation with him where she didn’t stick her foot in her mouth.

Maybe she could ask Naru to help her with her English. Mai’s smiled widened at the thought. She had worked on it enough at the office that she had hoped he would offer. But the only time he had made any mention of it at all was to tell her that if she wanted to study she should go to a library. But maybe this new, non-office, Naru would be more amenable to the idea. And if studying meant she had to take the time to visit him out of the office that was a sacrifice she was willing to make.

She pictured sitting on his patio working, she would ask him a question and he would lean in to look at her work. Their hands would bump into one another, then their eyes would meet, their fingers entwining, faces moving closer together…

“Whoa,” Mai made a quick side step to avoid the sign in front of her and grabbed at her searing cheeks, the streets were too busy for more daydreaming.

She looked for something else to focus on, she was only a few blocks away and if she couldn’t get her head cleared up she would be a mess trying to actually talk to Naru.

She took a slow deep breath in, and then even slower allowed herself to deflate. Again, breathe in, and out. Deep breath in—

A large black hat moved into the people traffic in the distance ahead of her on the street. Mai felt the air catch in her throat, a cough springing up and stopping her.

Once the small fit was contained, Mai craned her neck to look down the street. It was further away but she could still see it. There were a handful of bodies between them but Mai knew that it had to be the same woman.

Part of her wanted to follow her, did she live near here? She had to be wealthy, her clothes already spoke to that and so it was no surprise to think that she might live in an up and coming trendy neighborhood like Daikanyama. Perhaps, if she came around to visit Naru she would bump into her.

She rolled her eyes at her own stupidity. What would they talk about if they were to meet?

The hat turned onto a side street, and Mai’s mind pounced. Had she just turned on Naru’s street? She had to have imagined it. What were the odds? Mai picked up her own pace, but then forced herself to slow down. If she was around the next corner the last thing Mai needed to do was sprint into the street behind her. She forced herself to wait just a moment more, pretending to be reading the sign ahead of her.

She rounded the corner, watching her own feet for a few steps until she had gathered the conviction to pull her eyes up the length road.

Mai sighed. She didn’t see her. On reflex Mai looked back to the street she had just turned from. She must have misjudged when the woman had turned.

Passing a parked car she froze, quickly backed up and found herself crouching next to the car peeking around it.

She had been wrong. The woman was here and more importantly, she had just stopped at Naru’s door.

Mai’s curiosity skyrocketed. Who was this woman and why would she be visiting Naru or Lin? Mai waited for her to reach for the bell. Would there be recognition when they opened the door? With the directness that the woman had walked here Mai felt there would have to be, this did not seem to be her first visit.

Mai’s mouth fell open as the woman pulled a key from her small hand bag and unlocked the door, stepping in without even a moment’s hesitation.

“What?” Mai said to herself.

Her brain wanted to explode. She leaned back against the car. Her legs feeling a bit unsteady. A key. The woman had a key. She had just walked right in.

Mai searched for some sort of explanation. There was no way she was any sort of house help. The landlord perhaps? But even the landlord would knock before coming in. Mai looked up and down the street, maybe she had gotten the house mixed up. That was a thing that could happen, right? But she knew she had it right. Half of the lots on this street were still under construction and those older homes which still stood were of a different enough make that there was no mistaking them for this property.

Could she be from a shop? Some sort of fancy high end boutique place that catered to their clients by coming to them? No, that was ridiculous she had a key. You don’t give shop keeps keys to your house no matter how swanky they were. Mai felt at least ninety percent confident about that.

Mai’s eyes went wide.

What if she was meeting someone for something more risqué?

Mai’s mind immediately went to Madoka. Lin couldn’t be…? No, impossible, and even if he did have other interests, why would he have her come around while Madoka was in town?

Mai stood, eyes narrowed and limbs straight. She didn’t want to assume the worst, but she had to check.

She took three strong strides towards the house and turned on her heel. Shuffling back down the street.

It really was none of her business, she reminded herself. What was she going to do, bang on the door and demand to know who that woman was? She would look crazy.

Mai reached the bottom of the street, but she couldn’t bring herself to go any further. She thought about Madoka, how she had smiled and laughed when she had finally gotten to open up to Mai about she and Lin. Mai couldn’t bear the thought of not checking to make sure all was right. Madoka would no doubt do the same for her. And besides there was probably a perfectly reasonable explanation for the woman being there that she just couldn’t see right now.

With a deep breath of determination Mai started back up the street. She hesitated for a moment more, her hand hovering at the door, but then she rang the bell.

Time crawled as she felt the high-low of the bell ring in the air. She was afraid to move, what if they didn’t come to the door? What if they did? What would she say? She had the cookies so that was a starter. But how would she jump from cookies to a mysterious woman. What if she answered? She had walked in as if it was her own home, maybe she would even be bold enough to answer the door.

Mai could feel her breath getting stiffer in her lungs. How long had she been waiting? Had it been enough time for someone to get the door? Had it been over long? Was it obvious that she was waiting around with a purpose? Should she ring it again? No, that would be too urgent. It could put them on edge. She was already on edge.

They weren’t coming. It had to have been enough time now. Maybe the woman was alone? Maybe she had the good sense not to open the door?

They weren’t coming. What should she tell Madoka? Should she say anything? She had no real evidence of any wrongdoings. But, what if she said nothing and she should have? She would be complicit in Madoka’s unhappiness.

“Mai?”

Mai looked up. Naru’s head and shoulder visible in the crack of the door.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“I brought—”

The words vanished, wiped clean by the light red tinge that she noticed on his lips.

She had made a mistake.

Naru’s eyes narrowed, he moved, opening the door a bit wider to peer at her.

The top buttons of his shirt were undone and from the awkward way his collar sat those that were done up were mismatched. She looked away when she caught sight of a second smear of color on the edge of his chin.

It wasn’t Lin.

Her chest hurt, her eyes hurt, her arms…her everything hurt. She needed to go home, to sleep.

“Mai?”

“I brought cookies,” she forced herself to look at his eyes wishing desperately that she could zoom in her vision and keep herself from looking anywhere else. Noticing, anything else. “For Lin and Madoka, as a thank you.”

“They aren’t here right now.”

Of course they weren’t there, Mai could feel the heat beginning to tingle across her, its burn blending with the ache that had settled everywhere.

“Well, I’m sorry to interrupt. Here.” She held up the box watching his eyes, looking—hoping—for an admission of his actions. If he could just give her that final proof then maybe she could just be angry and it would be enough to consume the ache.

“I was just reading.”

The ache spread, her throat and fists clenching against it. She blinked against the prickling. She wanted to see it, the lie, reflected in his eyes. But everything had gone cloudy and it hurt too much to hold her eyes open.

She felt the box move from her fingers and she let it go. Safe handover of its contents no longer of any concern.

“Mai, are you—”

“Sorry, I just got something in my” —heart. She scrubbed at her eyes. Pushing away the stinging with brute force of fingers and will.

“I should go.” She added when she had finished with her face. “I have to…”

“Study.” He finished for her.

“Yes,” her voice cracked on the word. She had to leave now or she was going to fall apart on Naru’s front step.

“Thank you, for the cookies.”

A tear fell. How dare he start thanking her, not now.

Mai gave some sort of grunt or possibly a squeak as she turned away. She walked as fast as she could, her vision severely diminished as hot tears burned at her eyes before searing down her face. She knew she had made it halfway down the street when she bumped into a recognizable car shaped blur.

“Keep going,” she told herself between clenched teeth, the world beginning to take shape once more. “Just walk.”

She made it two blocks.

[ghosthunthq]

Never Say Die

For: @evil-dragon-is-evil

By: Raisedonradio [ @roseandradio]

Original prompt: Well, basically, ‘Things with Naru’.  ^^

Summary: He had been a fool to let go of her hand. [End of the Forgotten Children case through Oliver’s eyes] WC: 2056

Oliver’s clothes had yet to dry from the thorough soaking they had received earlier. The storm had brought in a crisp breeze. The break from the heat should have been welcome, but the abandoned school had a chill that penetrated far deeper.

Mai had just finished calling out the names of their missing companions, and she now kneeled close to him, mixed emotions flitting across her face. Horror that they had been forgotten so easily. Relief that the nefarious spirits couldn’t truly take her memories away from her.

He dragged his hand through his damp hair. He had been trained better than this. He knew better than to be drawn into such trickery. They had eight people missing in a location that’s main goal was to not release anyone alive.

“Yuuki Kirishima,” Oliver said.

Mai looked up at him. “Who?”

“Didn’t you see the photocopy of the newspaper? He’s the teacher who died.”

“What about him?”

“He is the culprit of these series of events,” Oliver said. “He’s the one pulling the strings. Do you think children could use such underhanded methods? A diversion is created to make us vanish one by one. If we get suspicious, they confuse us by making us believe the children were with us in the first place. Kirishima-san must be behind the scenes.”

“Kirishima-sensei – then he must be in one of the classrooms downstairs?”

“It’s dangerous to assume,” Oliver said. But it really wasn’t, was it? It was her intuition speaking, and it coincided with his own inclinations. “But I think he is most likely on the first floor. If we want to catch him, he would probably be in the classroom or the faculty lounge.”

“But…how are we going to exorcise him?” she asked.

“It’s going to be either you or me.”

Mai burst out, “You can’t do it!”

Oliver paused at the vehemence in her voice. “Then do you want to try?”

“Do you think I could do it?”

“Not exorcise, no,” Oliver said dryly, causing her to hang her head. “But I think you can convince him.”

“Huh?”

“Convince Kirishima-san. I don’t have the ability to communication with spirits. But there’s a possibility you can.”

“Do…do you think I could do it?” she said, seeming to be unaware she had already asked that question.

“Yes, if you use the same spirit you have when you yell at me.”

Mai clasped her hands together, mulling it over as she attempted to work some warmth into her fingers. But it didn’t take her long to respond.

“Okay. I’ll do it.”

Oliver nodded. “Then let’s go to the first floor. I’ll put you in an altered state of mind, like what mediums are in when they bring in a spirit.”

“Oh,” she murmured. “Okay.”

 “Let’s go,” he said. Oliver took her hand. He could feel the tension in her fingers, as if she was afraid to hold on too tightly. He may have just come out of the hospital, but he would not tolerate being treated as if he was fragile.

He said, “Don’t let go,” as he dragged her up from the floor.

“Oh, wait!” she said. She offered him something in her opposite hand. He could barely see it in the dim light. Without releasing her other hand, he took from her the pointed weapon that Takigawa carried around.

She continued, “This is Monk’s tokkosho. He said it was for you when he threw it.”

“Is that so?” he said softly.

“What?” she asked.

“Nothing,” he said. “It just seems I’ve underestimated Takigawa-san.” He held the tokkosho firmly in his hand. It was a challenge. It said that Takigawa believed Oliver was fully capable of wielding it if he chose to. It said that Takigawa didn’t believe in the mask of Kazuya Shibuya anymore.

“Let’s go,” he said again.

They went down the short flight of stairs, hand in hand. The building was absolutely silent. Oliver couldn’t even hear the rain anymore. Perhaps it had stopped. The only sounds were the ones they created. Their footfalls echoed in the ears almost painfully. Oliver could hear Mai’s breathing, deep inhale in, slow exhale.

Oliver ducked through the small doorway first. He reached up to balance himself against the shoe cabinet that Lin had placed across the doorway as a spirit barrier. The cabinet started to weave and creak. It toppled towards him, and landed against the wall and created a triangle-shaped space. It left the small doorway partially blocked.

 “Naru! Are you all right?” Mai’s voice was muffled, and she sought his hand which he had released by accident. Her fingers brushed his, and without looking back, he took her hand firmly.

“I’m fine,” he said, pulling her forward. She followed easily.

They continued at a good pace down the next flight of stairs.

“Wait, wait a moment,” Mai said quietly.

 “What is it?” he said automatically, until the strangeness of her voice kicked in. Her voice was quiet because it was far away. It almost sounded like she was still by the small doorway.

His stride broke. He turned as he looked down. The hand that grasped his was skeletal, leather-like skin stretched tight against oddly-shaped bones, nails long and ragged.

Oliver recoiled and yanked his hand away. He could feel the scrapes across his skin from where the nails bit down to attempt to prevent his release. His foot slipped, and he fell down the last few stairs. He twisted and landed on a wrist and hip. It felt like small splinters had embedded themselves into his hand from the wood floor, but he stood up without taking the time to assess his injuries.

“Mai!” he called as he looked up the stairs. A small girl stood from the height he had fallen from. An overly large grin was on her face. Her hands, he had to notice, were completely normal. He didn’t know if it was brighter on the first floor, or if she produced her own light.

“Who are you calling for, onii-san?” the girl said. Her voice reminded him of clinking glass.

“Where is she?” Oliver said.

“Who?” She skipped down the stairs and took his hand before he could pull away. She twirled on his fingers. “Who is she?”

Yes, who was she? Who was he looking for again?

“Come back to class onii-san,” she said. “Sensei doesn’t want us to stay away too long.”

She tugged at his hand, and he followed mechanically. She opened the door to one of the classrooms, letting Oliver go as she rushed in.

“I found him sensei!” she said, then turned around suddenly. Oliver almost collided with her.

She asked, “What’s your name, onii-san?”

“Oliver.”

She frowned, trying the foreign name on her tongue.

Kirishima appeared behind her. He pulled the little girl to him, as if he was concerned for her safety.

“No,” Kirishima said, panic rising in his voice. “How did you get in here again? Be gone!”

Oliver stood there as a wave of surprise, which seemed to be tinged by disgust, washed over him from the unwelcome greeting.

Kirishima curled his lip and whispered, “You’re already dead.”

The little girl seemed to shrink back, just as Oliver had done to her earlier.

“He’s dead?” she asked.

“Well, no,” Kirishima said. “I meant he’s just too old. Go along, join your classmates.”

She looked up at Oliver, an infinite sadness clouding her face for a moment.

She walked away.

Kirishima turned on Oliver again. He was young, probably Takigawa’s or at the most Lin’s age. Anger distorted his features.

“Dead!” he hissed. “Go away. Leave us be!”

Oliver found it within himself to smile slightly. “You must have me mistaken with someone else, sensei. I’m not dead yet.”

Kirishima reached out to shove him, and Oliver stepped back –

– and found himself on the threshold of the schoolroom, the door already shut in his face.

After a moment of hesitation, Oliver opened the door. The air was stagnant. The room was empty of life, the desks in little rows, forever waiting to be used again. He stepped in. His footsteps echoed, a cold and empty sound. It reminded him of being on the stairs with Mai earlier. This time, he was walking alone.

He wondered if the others had seen similar scenes. It was likely, with the so-called ‘kids’ leaving a Welcome Ayako-chan display on the wall for her. He could see his group again, in his mind’s eye, the people he was currently failing by allowing himself to be caught up in illusions.

Oliver left the classroom, shutting the door again. He would have to do the exorcism himself. He didn’t know where Mai was, and what state she was in. How could he be such a fool and let go of her hand? He had fallen for the spirits’ tricks, the same ones he had warned her not to be caught up in.

His body ached from his fall down the stairs. Oliver knew he would need to gather some energy before he could do anything, so he sat down in the hallway, opposite of the classroom so he had a good view if anyone or anything decided to come out. He leaned against the wall and stretched out his legs, crossing his arms. He could feel the fabric of his shirt was still damp. It was such an odd thing to notice that he shook his head and closed his eyes, if it was in laughter or desperation, he wasn’t sure.

It would be a shame to die here, when his true goal was so close to being completed. It just couldn’t be helped, could it? If he succeeded in besting Kirishima, his companions – if they were still alive – would not be able to get him to a city quick enough, not in this already weakened physical state.

Then trust her.

Oliver jerked, opening his eyes.

Trust her for once. Mai said she could do it, didn’t she? Didn’t you believe her?

Did he?

Oliver pictured her face, the seriousness that had risen to her eyes when she said she would do it; remembered the strength in her hand when she had grasped his.

Yes. She could do this. Maybe just as well as Eugene. She deserved the chance.

There was no way to tell the time passing from his position, but he was certain night had fallen some time ago. He felt the desire to go find a broken window and draw in some fresh air. He ignored the temptation. It was easier to stay where he was for the time being.

He jumped when the door to the classroom flew open. He waited warily, ready to leap up if necessary. Nothing emerged, and then he felt it. The fog at the edges of his mind cleared. He had not realized what a stupor he had been operating in until the haze was suddenly gone.

The place was cleansed.

He heaved a breath.

“Can you stand?”

Oliver looked up at Lin’s voice.

“Yes.” Oliver said.

“Did you do it?”

Oliver shook his head, then took the hand that was offered him and stood up. He could hear voices, the real, live voices of his group. He shook off any of Lin’s additional offers of help and walked to the front door.

The outside was bathed in the cool silver of moonlight. Mai stood in the field. The glow of a spirit cleansing seemed to cling to her. She smiled at him.

He turned away.

Someone said, “It looks like it wasn’t Shibuya-san either, since you’re still standing.” Oliver wasn’t sure if it had been Takigawa or Yasuhara who had spoken, so he just shrugged in agreement. He couldn’t tell if the group was just messing with Mai, or if they really were so dense to not know she had done the cleansing.

Then he saw Takigawa caress Mai’s head, and the other quiet congratulations she received from the group as they all headed towards the cars. Even Lin gave her a small smile.

It would have been easy to just walk past her. But he remembered how often Eugene had liked verbal confirmation of the end of a hard case.

So he said, “Good job,” as he passed her.

Mai stopped in her tracks. He could feel her eyes on his back as he walked away.

[ghosthunthq]

a day in the life of yasuhara osamu, SPR's self-proclaimed daddy

written for: @roseandradio (Coriana) written by: @rmnitb (meepyonnee) notes: i am. So Very Sorry that this is the exact opposite of what you requested, Coriana. i meant to give you this (monstrously long) au oneshot i’ve been planning forever but… i hope you like this one anyway? (i’m crying inside, can you tell)

*heyyy listen to Oikawa’s Theme from the Haikyuu OST while reading this btw

**fair warning before you start– yas yas Yasu

Bang goes the front door as it slams open, a weak chime accompanying it. Then enters SPR’s resident troublemaker, as everyone else has dubbed him–or famed young detective, as he likes to call himself–not that any of the office’s occupants realizes who it was anyway. Arms full with a stack of boxes, the college student’s (ridiculously handsome) face was buried underneath the heavy bulk.

“Hi kiddies! The great Yasuhara has come to rescue you all!” he exclaims, voice muffled slightly. Then, he turns down his voice and whispers, “I heard from Bousan and–is it really true? Has the day finally come? Have any of you actually confirmed it?”

John, his tender soul, is the first (the only one, actually) who stands up from his seat and comes forward to take half of the boxes in Yasuhara’s arms. Yasuhara gives him a bright, sincere for once, smile. This one is his favorite son.

“What took you so long?” Takigawa asks without looking away from his phone, too distracted to fully acknowledge Yasuhara’s great presence. But Yasuhara lets it slide. He knows what game Takigawa’s playing, and he understands how Pacman deserves undivided attention.

“What’s with all the pizza, Yasu?” asks Ayako from her perch, all cozy in that seat of hers. Yasuhara will have to give her a scolding later, but truthfully, a daughter as menacing as Ayako (and who’s technically older than him) will be hard to reproach. “You probably shmoozed off that innocent cashier at Domino’s again, huh? What’s his name? I forgot.”

“Takeshi,” Masako supplies nonchalantly, inspecting her nails. “We’re neighbors. He keeps asking me for your number, by the way. Tell him to quit it or I’ll have about seven ghosts haunt him tonight.”

Yasuhara grins, a dangerous glint appearing in his eyes. He saunters in and sits on the ottoman, setting down the pizza boxes on the coffee table. “Oh … Is that jealousy I hear, Masako dearest?” She thinks she’s being discreet about it, but it’s obvious she’s pining for that Takeshi boy. Since February, a little birdie, who’s not very good at keeping secrets (Mai), told him (and everyone else).

“Shut the f–”

“AHHH!”

“John, what the h–”

“AAAAHHHHH!”

“John’s right, children! No swearing in Mommy and Daddy’s house!” Yasuhara intervenes, before John’s yelling goes up a notch–he’s done it before and he can do it again. We can’t have Mommy go on a rampage on a special day like this. “But keep it down a bit, huh John? We have to keep this secret,” whispers Yasuhara, pointing to the pizza.

“Why though?” The lilting voice comes from behind him, and Yasuhara jumps in surprise. With his line of work in the ghost hunting business, you’d think he won’t get scared easy, right? Wrong.

“Dammit Mai, I told you not to sneak up on Daddy like that!” Here’s another child who’s going to get a scolding.

Mai scowls. “Why the hell–” Ayako leans forward to cover John’s mouth– “do you keep calling yourself that?!”

“It was a special condition Mommy agreed to when I made my first donation as JSPR’s patron,” he explained–for the eighteenth time (yes, he’s been keeping count). He doesn’t understand why they keep forgetting. “Besides, I know you all like it.” He waggles his eyebrows.

“NO WE DON’T!” Everyone exclaims in unison. Though Yasuhara notices how John stutters.

He rolls his eyes and brushes them off. He can read minds–he knows they like it. He turns back to the boxes and arranges them on the table, making sure to set the Capricciosa–Mommy’s fave–in the middle. “Be a dear and call Lin for me, Mai. We’ve got some preparing to do before Mommy wakes up,” he says, then as he realizes something he tilts his head slightly to one side. “He is asleep, right?

"He’s gonna kill you if he hears you call him that,” Mai warns, trying to sound menacing, though her shoulders shake at the effort to keep her laughter at bay. “And yeah. Fell asleep right away when I slipped him chamomile instead of the usual darjeeling.”

“Good job, my daughter. With that, you’re now my second favorite child.”

“I’ve always been you’re second favorite!” Mai reminds from across the room, already on her way to fetch Lin.

Ayako clucks her tongue, the sound bringing Yasuhara’s attention back to the remaining three seated here at the reception area. “I still don’t know what all this is for this time,” she says. “This is like, what, the third time you’re celebrating something this month? And I bet it’s gonna be as stupid as dedicating a party to Masako’s uncle’s frog’s first birthday two months ago.”

“Oh I’m sure you’re just upset you didn’t get to meet Froggo the frog that day, Ayako,” Yasuhara sympathizes. He’s never met Froggo either. “And we’re celebrating a much grander event this time.”

“What is it?” John asks patiently, albeit hints of curiosity seeps through his tone.

“Mommy got–”

“Naru got a haircut,” a deadpan voice interjects. It was Lin.

“Ahh! You stole my thunder!” Yasuhara pouts.

Lin only sighs in return, sitting down beside Masako. Yasuhara notices it’s the farthest seat away from him.

“A haircut. Are you kidding me?” Ayako asks, throwing her hands up in exasperation.

“A trim, really,” Lin says, but it goes through one ear and out the other with Yasu.

“Well Bousan sounded excited about it so I thought it was a cause for celebration,” Yasuhara snickers.

“I sent you a text. How did you manage to pull out ‘excited’ from that?” Takigawa snorts, trying to sound detached. Yasuhara knows better–those shifting eyes say it all.

“Well enough chit-chat, kiddies,” Yasuhara says, raising both hands to clap once. “We’ve got lots and lots of preparation before we wake mommy up for his surprise celebration!”

Mai groans. “Am I gonna be the gopher again?” she asks no one in particular, already knowing the answer to her own question. The silence that follows confirms her supicions. “Okay. Fine. What am I supposed to do.”

“First,” Yasuhara brings up one finger slowly–for suspense. “Turn off the lights.”

Mai sighs heavily, as if the action would take a great deal out of her energy. She does it nonetheless. As darkness envelops them, a hush falls upon the room.

“Now what?”

“Wake Mommy up.”

Everyone gasps–including Lin.

“You know what happened when it was Bousan’s turn last week! Anything but that Daddy!” Mai pleads.

“Alas, the task falls unto you, child. John took the fall for you last time, remember?”

From the other side of the room, John very audibly chokes.

“B-bousan,” Mai utters weakly. “It was your idea to give him chamomile. Please. You do the honors.”

“Goodbye, everyone,” Takigawa says, the sound of him standing audible from across the table. “See you all next Monday. Tell me all the details of Mai’s murde–GAH!” An ungraceful yelp accompanied by the loud thud of Takigawa’s fall–music to Yasuhara’s ears. Mai must’ve tripped him on his way to the front door.

Masako’s soft giggle was the start of it all. Then Lin follows, and now everyone’s doubled over laughing, trying and failing to catch their breath.

“I’VE SAID IT TIME AND AGAIN–” the CEO’s door slams open. “THIS IS NOT A CAFÈ!”

“Oops,” Ayako whispers. “Now you’ve done it,” she blames, as if she isn’t the one who cackled the loudest just a second ago.

“Psst, Mai,” Yasuhara hissed. “Let there be light!”

Yasuhara hears footsteps approaching them slowly as Mai scampers towards the light switch. One small accident later–it was inevitable that she’d trip on something on the way–the lights come on, temporarily blinding everyone in the room.

“Surprise~!” Yasuhara croons, arms open to welcome the celebrant, signature shit-eating grin already in place.

Mommy Naru, with crumpled clothes and bags under his eyes, glares hard and cold at all the occupants of the room. But it isn’t as intimidating as the usual. Although it masks his new haircut–which is the very thing they’re celebrating right now by the way–everyone thought his bedhead made him adorable.

“This is not a damn cafè,” Naru repeated, the nearly unnoticable pout on his lips making him look more petulant than intimidating. “There’s one downstairs?? Why do you people insist on loitering here?”

“The ambiance downstairs just doesn’t sit well with me.” John shrugs.

“Yeah, and the curtains are abysmal. They make me want to throw up,” says Ayako.

“There’s one spirit that keeps bothering me there,” Masako adds.

Before Naru could interrupt, Mai chirps in. “The barista keeps hitting on me, so I can’t really hang out downstairs.”

That seems to have shut him up.

Naru closes his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. He sighs deeply, just he always does when he scolds them for being noisy. “Just keep it down. I’m trying to work–because this is an office and that’s what people do here,” he says, though it lacks the usual bite to his usual condescending tone.

“Yup. Office is for work,” Takigawa says with his eyes locked on Naru’s bedhead, hiding a smirk behind a hand. John turns around to camouflage his mirth.

“Come now, Mo-Boss,” Yasuhara snickers, catching himself before he makes the mistake. It wouldn’t do well to sour Mommy’s mood further. “Today’s celebration is dedicated to you! We can’t have the guest of honor leave right away!”

Naru ignored him.

“We have Pizza Capriccioso~”

Naru halts in the midst of turning his doorknob. He then slowly closes the door and heads straight back here at the reception area. He sits at his usual seat at the head of the table, crossing his leg and delicately placing his hands on his knee. He does this all while maintaining a stolid expression, plus his bedhead.

“… Where is it?”

Using his lips, Yasuhara points to the pizza box in the middle. Mai takes the initiative to open it, and the pizza’s mouthwatering scent instantly permeates the air around them. About three stomachs grumble right then and there.

But, as everyone reaches for a slice simultaneously, Naru suddenly stands up and walks away. Just ups and leaves. He doesn’t even retreat back to his cave. No, he goes straight out the front door.

“Um. What the hell?”

“Ah,” Mai says, pointing to the pizza. “Yasu, was this Capriccioso customized?”

“Yeah, I told Takeshi to remove the olives. Why?”

-:-:-:-:-

“Mommy noooooo! Please come back! I made a horrible mistake!!”

—————————————

[ghosthunthq]

The hard life of Eugene Davis- 1

Written for: @beejinki, aka Bee 

Written by: @frenchcirce

This present is for the lovely Bee, who is a hardcore Gene fan! As you can easily guess thanks to the title, this story is a collection of Gene-centric vignettes, depicting specific moments of his (hard) life. As per requested, mostly fluff, friendship and romance, so this will most likely stray from the canon path at some point.

1- Birth

“Twins,” a red-faced Jeffery muttered angrily. “Twins! You had to make twins, uh?”

Kazuko stayed silent as she knew it was better not to argue with her husband when he was this tempered. She felt too tired to do so anyway; too exhausted to even bother wiping the tears still wetting her face as she just laid, motionless, on the hospital bed.

Giving birth had been a nightmare. After hours of pain and suffering, she had finally delivered. But before she could even rejoice about the healthy wailing of her child she had gone into labour again. The second time hurt less, but she was drained and it felt all the more unbearable. It had left her crying— from exhaustion, relief or shock, she couldn’t decide.

Jeffery paced the room in large strides when a nurse, smiling obviously, came back with the two infants. The woman in scrubs didn’t know about their situation and the difficulties they would probably have, providing for twins. Jeffery didn’t get paid that much. One child he could probably support, but two…

The nurse presented the children to Kazuko who found herself opening her arms instinctively. She looked at the tiny infants and couldn’t help but marvel at their similarity. Two identical boys with a mop of dark disheveled hair. The second born was sleeping, while the firstborn had its huge black eyes opened as he, looked at her with a somewhat serious expression. No, not the firstborn, thought Kazuko. According to tradition, a child who pushed their sibling aside in order to be born first was not worthy of being called the elder brother. This one would be reported as the younger.

Jeffery’s gruff voice interrupted her thoughts. His complexion was back to normal, but he was still sporting a sour expression. Kazuko prayed he would be in a better mood when she was to come home. He could be really violent during his rageful bouts.

“Names?” he inquired in Japanese, looking at the babies with apparent dismay.

Kazuko shook her head timidly. She hadn’t been prepared for twins.

Her husband sighed in exasperation and said something to the nurse. Kazuko just watched as she couldn’t understand what was being said.

When the nurse finally left, Jeffery deigned to explain what they had been talking about.

“I gave them American names,” he grunted. “Oliver,” he said pointing at the wide awake baby, “And Eugene.”

Kazuko nodded in approval despite her confusion. Now wasn’t the time to anger her husband any further. But she would have to think about Japanese names later, because she was incapable of pronouncing the western-sounding ones without struggle.

“Yu-Ji-nnn,” she tried nonetheless.

As on cue, baby Eugene started to wail.

[ghosthunthq]

Created for: @aspire-8

Made by: @joyfulpocketninja

(Apologies that this case is late, it took awhile to sneak into the photoshoot.) Sadly I can not be your hero an create a Yasu/Monk fic. Instead I give you first the fruits of Yasu’s labor as he helps Monk’s band with some official photos. He later joins in on the photo fun. Maybe SPR could start their own magazine or blog.

[ghosthunthq]

Call of the Moor (Part 1/2)

For: @vzyfny

By: @csakuras

Prompt: Friendship, Adventure, Supernatural.  Theme: roadtrip, hitchhiking, autumn.

In the autumn following Noll’s 13th birthday, Martin proposed a road trip.  The trip in itself wasn’t an unusual suggestion; the family had taken many such trips, mainly to paranormal hotspots, in the years since the twins had been adopted.  What struck him as unusual was the timing— their past trips had all been during the summer holidays— and the fact that this time, Lin had been invited.

On one hand, he could almost understand the reasoning.  Noll’s Qigong training had taken priority during the summer, so they had forgone the usual family road trip.  Rescheduling it to their half-term break wasn’t unimaginable.  On the other hand, bringing Lin along, while Luella got some rare time to herself at home, seemed to defy the very concept of a ‘family’ road trip.  The whole thing struck him as suspicious.  But as he could not refuse anyway, Noll decided not to speak up about it.

And that was how he found himself in the backseat of a car, Gene sitting beside him, Lin in the front passenger seat, with Martin driving.  Their destination was Dartmoor National Park, in Devon.  Martin had rented a car just for the occasion, a particularly tiny one, in order to “navigate the narrow country roads.”  And while this wasn’t a problem for the twins, and it was a tight but manageable fit for Martin, Lin looked as if he had been crammed into a sardine can.  The top of his head was flat against the ceiling, and he was forced into a slouch.  His knees were also nearly up to his chin, due to the lack of leg room.

Gene found this all very hilarious and made sure to mention it at least twice an hour, which also prompted Martin into apologizing for the umpteenth time.  Lin weathered the ordeal with polite grace and stoicism, but Noll could sense the discomfort coming off him in waves.  He was torn between pitying the man, and annoyance at how big of a deal Gene had to make of it.  It’s not like it was that funny.  (It was just a little funny.)

They had been on the road for roughly five hours now, not including rest stops, and were finally within the park.  Rolling green fields gave way to rust brown moor, rocky tors dotting the wild, desolate landscape.  Hills stretched on to the horizon, where they met overcast sky.

Martin soon stopped the car and led them on a short hike, where he made the twins and Lin climb up on a tor so he could take their picture.  Once again, Noll had to question why Lin was there, a question the man seemed to be asking himself as he stood awkwardly with them on the rocky outcrop.

Afterwards, they returned to the car, and before long were winding through claustrophobic, maze-like country roads flanked on either side by tall hedgerows.  At times these roads grew so narrow, the hedges brushed right along the sides of the car, branches scraping and snapping as they squeezed through.  It seemed Martin had been right to rent such a small car.

Noll sighed.  Martin had promised that the first village they came to, they would stop to have some tea.  This was the only thing he had to look forward to.  He had already finished reading his book on Dartmoor legends, and so now was forced to actually listen to the conversation in the car.

“You think we’ll see some Dartmoor ponies, Martin?”

“I’m sure we’ll find them roaming around soon enough.”

Inevitably, the bulk of it was between Gene and Martin.  Lin tended to only respond when spoken to.

“So, Lin, studies going well?” Martin asked, in a blatant attempt at involving the man in conversation.

“Yes, thank you.  I should be earning my degree in spring.”

“Splendid!  Will you be looking for employment soon, then?  Or I suppose a talented young man like you would already have something lined up, I imagine?”

“Not yet.  Though I will always have my family’s business to fall back on, it would not be ideal.  I am hoping to find something in the technical field.”

“You don’t say?  Given your background, I wouldn’t have guessed!”

“I…have a passion for computers.”

“Did you hear that, Noll?” Martin called.  “Won’t you have a need for technical experts in the new lab?”

“We’ll have a Mechanic Team,” Noll nodded.  “I don’t think they’ve begun hiring yet.”

“Well, there you go, then!  That’s one possibility.  And I’d be happy to write a recommendation.”

“Thank you, Professor.”  Lin paused.  “…I’m sorry, what is this ‘new lab’?”

“Oh, haven’t we mentioned it yet?  SPR is creating a specialized research institute right in Cambridge, due to open next year I believe.  Noll’s worked tirelessly to secure funding for it,” Martin chuckled.

“We have a generous donor,” Noll muttered.

“Yeah, but you went all out, didn’t you, Noll?” Gene teased.  “Broke out the magic tricks and everything.  You should’ve seen it, Lin!  My brother, trying to be social.”

“That…is difficult to imagine.”

“You should come to the next party!  I bet the patrons would love to meet you!”

“Oh, no…I couldn’t possibly…”

By now they had escaped the hedgerows, and drove down a road with trees on one side, and a low stone wall separating them from the moor on the other.  Treetops flashed by, a swirl of gold, scarlet, and copper.

Then without warning, a dense fog descended, obscuring their way.  Martin slowed the car.

“Whoa, this is spooky!  I feel like anything could jump out at us now!” Gene chirped, as if such a thing would be desirable.

“A spectral dog, perhaps?” Martin suggested, with equal enthusiasm.

“Yeah, a hellhound!  Like from The Hound of the Baskervilles!”

“Or perhaps even a headless horseman!”

“Ooh, a dullahan?  Noll, we’ve got some Irish in us!  Maybe it’ll think we’re cousins!”

“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Hey, I know!  It’s almost Halloween, and this is the perfect atmosphere!  We could trade scary stories!”

Lin let out a small sigh.  Noll couldn’t help but agree.

“You first, Noll!” Gene grinned.

There was no point in arguing.  “Once there was a boy named Eugene.  He spoke too much, and so a witch put a spell on him, causing his mouth to sew itself shut.  He spent the rest of his life mute.  The end.”

“Is that really the best you could come up with?”

“I included a witch.  I thought you would appreciate that.”

Both adults chuckled.

Gene pouted.  But before long, the mischievous grin was back.  “Okay, now it’s my turn.  I’ll tell a story that’ll even get you spooked, Noll.  After all, it is a true story~”

He knew at once that nothing good could come of this.  And sure enough, Gene launched into a familiar tale, one from long ago…

———

It must have been when he was four or five, back when they were living in Boston.  While their mother used to answer the door when they were very young (or, more frequently, ignored the door bell entirely), once the boys had grown tall enough to open the door themselves, that task had automatically fallen to Gene.

That night, however, Gene happened to be stuck on the toilet.  When the door bell rang, Mother called drunkenly from the kitchen.

“Eugene, answer the door!”

“Mama, I can’t!” Gene called from the bathroom.  “I’m pooping!”

The bell rang again.

“Answer the door!”

“I can’t!”

It rang again.

“Eugene!”

“Mama!”

At the time, Noll had been sitting in the living room, gazing at a newspaper Nuptadi had given them the other day.  He couldn’t read any of it, of course, but he liked to look at the pictures and imagine what the words said.  But all this racket thoroughly disrupted his concentration, and annoyed, he got up to answer the door himself for the first time.

It couldn’t be that difficult, after all.  He just had to open the door and check who was ringing.  It would probably just be Nuptadi anyway.

But Nuptadi was not who greeted him at the front door.  As soon as he pulled it open, a chorus of voices rang out.

“Trick or treat!”

Noll’s eyes bugged out at the sight before him.  Three large, orange heads planted on bodies clad in black leotards.  Their faces grinning horribly down at him.  They must have been only teenagers, visiting the house out of a misguided idea that its shabby appearance was intentionally done to look spooky.  But to a young Noll, they appeared to be giants.

“Oh my gosh, look how cute!” one of them squealed upon seeing him.

“Awww!”

“Watch out, kid!”  One of them, a male, made a clawing motion with his hands.  “If you don’t give us candy, we might just eat ya!” he growled.

“Don’t say that!”  Another one elbowed him in the side.  “You’re scaring him!”

Noll just stared, frozen in place.  What did these creatures want?  Candy?  What?

One of them crouched down.  The grinning orange face loomed closer.  “Hey, where are your parents, little guy?”

Mother chose that moment to call from the kitchen.  “Eugene, who’s at the door?”

“I’m not at the door, Mama!  I’m on the toilet!”

“Oliver, who’s there?”

Noll seemed to have lost his voice.  What could he say to describe what he was seeing?  How could he possibly find the words?

“…I don’t know these people,” he finally said, and slammed the door on their big pumpkin faces.

———

Noll shuddered at the memory.  Gene, on the other hand, burst out laughing.  “Our parents never told us about Halloween, so Noll was totally convinced they were actual pumpkin people!  Can you imagine…!”

Noll glared at him.  This wasn’t funny at all.

Fortunately, Martin only chuckled lightly.  Lin gave a weak smile.

“Okay, Lin!  Your turn!” Gene said, rounding on him.  “You’ve gotta have some interesting stories, right?”

“I…”

But Lin was spared the humiliation.  Just then, the car gave a massive jolt.  Martin hit the brakes.  Fortunately, since they weren’t driving fast to begin with, they came to a stop without issue.

“Is everyone all right?” Martin asked.

They all mumbled in reply,

“What was that?” Gene asked.

Martin sighed.  “I’ll go and take a look.  Boys, stay inside.”

He opened the driver’s side door and got out of the car.

“What if it’s the Hairy Hands?” Gene said.  “You know, that legend about a pair of spectral hands that appear and take hold of the steering wheel?”

“Gene, if such a thing had appeared, wouldn’t you have noticed?”

“Hmm, good point.”

“Besides, that legend has already been debunked.”

Martin opened the door again and peered in.

“Bad news.  It appears we’ve hit a nasty pothole, and have a flat tire.”

Noll sighed.  He wouldn’t be having tea for a while now.

“Lin, would you come help me with this please?  Boys, I’m afraid you’ll have to get out as well.”

They all exited the car.  Lin examined the tire with Martin, then they went to open the trunk.

Noll decided to just stay out of the way, and sat on the low stone wall with Gene.  After a few minutes, he glanced at his twin, who had gone suspiciously quiet.  Gene stared out at the misty moor; something had evidently caught his attention, but when Noll looked, he could see nothing.

This wasn’t exactly unusual for him, so Noll chose to ignore it.  He began flipping through his book again.

Minutes later, as Martin and Lin got the jack into place and began working on removing the flat tire, another car approached from the opposite direction.  The road here wasn’t as narrow as it had been earlier, but it would still be difficult to squeeze past.  The other car slowed to a stop in front of them and the driver leaned out the window, presumably to ask what the problem was.  As Noll watched, Martin and Lin went over to explain.

Suddenly, Gene got to his feet.

“Gene?”

Without even a look back, Gene climbed over the stone wall and went marching off into the moor.

Noll stared.  What was that idiot thinking?

“Martin,” he called.  “Gene just ran off.”

But Martin did not seem to notice, too busy talking to the other driver.  Meanwhile, Gene faded into the mist.

Noll clicked his tongue.  Usually he wouldn’t bother, but knowing Gene, he might just go sink into a peat bog and disappear, not even leaving a body behind for dissection.

“Stupid medium.”  He gave chase.

———

In the end, the other driver had no choice but to turn back, as their car could not be moved aside just yet.  Lin returned to replacing the tire with Martin.  

“I do apologize for the trouble, Lin,” Martin said.  “This trip hasn’t turned out quite as I’d hoped.”

Lin shook his head.  “It’s fine, sir.”  Actually, he was glad to be outside, stretching his limbs after hours of being trapped inside that cramped car.  And he did not mind the mechanic work.  He would rather be doing this than forced into strained conversation with the twins.

As if reading his mind, Martin asked, “By the way, how have you and Noll been getting on, if I might ask?”

“He has shown remarkable improvement.  Oliver is an excellent student.”

“Yes, but on a personal level?”

Lin pursed his lips.  “It has been…courteous.”

In truth, though Lin had been training Oliver for several months now, their relationship was still stiff and cold.  For one, Lin was not good with children.  And it certainly did not help that Oliver was socially awkward as well.  The two of them seemed to have decided unanimously that their interactions would not go beyond the Student-Teacher relationship.

Which made this trip all the more awkward.  Martin had clearly invited him along hoping it would be a bonding experience for them, but they had barely spoken a word to each other the whole time.  At this rate, he saw no hope of things improving.

Not to mention, the fact that the boys were Japanese still bothered him.  He knew that was unfair.  They had as much to do with those atrocities as he did.  But he could not help the aversion.

He did feel sorry for them, though.  If he weren’t already sympathetic to Oliver’s plight, learning of their history alone would have been enough to get him to agree to teaching him.

“…I must admit, it still surprises me,” Lin said quietly, thinking back to the conversation in the car.  “How lightly those two take their past.  Eugene in particular.”  Though the story itself had been amusing, Lin could not bring himself to laugh, considering the context.

“Indeed, though that goes for Noll too,” Martin nodded.  “The first time we introduced them to relatives, Noll told them of his mother’s death to break the ice.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I believe that was the only way he knew how to garner sympathy.”  Martin smiled sadly.  “Unlike Gene, he has a very difficult time making friends.”

“I see.”  So that explained it.  Normally one wouldn’t push their son to become friends with a man twice their age, but it seemed Martin was desperate.

“Speaking of which…”  Martin stood, stretched, and peered over to the opposite side of the car.  “How are you boys holding up?”

But they were gone.

Lin looked around.  The twins were nowhere in sight.

Martin just sighed wearily.  “I suppose I ought to have expected this.”

“Does this happen often?” Lin asked.

“Those boys have a propensity for wandering off on their own.  Sometimes I wonder if they simply forget that they are wanted.”

The two of them called the twins’ names.  But they heard no answer.

“Now where could they have gotten to…” Martin murmured, his gaze turning to the moor.

“Perhaps they’ve gotten lost.  Especially in this fog, it would be very easy to lose one’s way…”

How long had they been gone?  There was no telling how far they might be now.

Martin heaved a heavy sigh.  “Well, I’m sure they’ll turn up eventually.  Those boys are smart and gifted, they will surely manage…”  But he did not take his eyes off the moor.

When Lin remained silent, the older man attempted a chuckle.  “It’s a good thing my wife isn’t here.  She would be worried out of her mind.”

This was getting painful.  “I will go look for them,” Lin finally said.

Martin looked at him in surprise.  “Are you sure?  It wouldn’t do for you to become lost as well.”

“I will be fine, Professor.  I have my own methods.”

“I should go, they are my responsibility…”

“No, one of us should stay with the car.  And I believe I have a better chance at finding them.  I promise I will bring them back safe.”

Martin stared at him for a moment longer, then nodded.  “Very well.  I place them in your trust.”

He nodded back.  He didn’t know exactly what he had done to earn so much trust from the man, but he knew he had to honor it.

Lin looked out over the foggy moor.  He put his fingers to his lips and whistled.