Ghost Hunt Fan Fiction ❯ No More Words ❯ Invitation ( Chapter 1 )

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If you read it, I won't need to put a description here, k? >> I promise you, you won't be TOO disappointed.

Anime/Manga: Ghost Hunt Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Mystery / Horror / Comedy / Adventure / Supernatural / Romance | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 09.22.2007 | Pages: 4 | Words: 2.6K | Visits: 1.0K | Status: Work In Progress

"Mai, te-." Kazuya Shibuya glanced up as his assistant placed a porcelain tea

cup on his desk, and hurried off without a word. He managed to catch the dazed look

she had on her face before she walked out the door and to her desk, where she usually

did all her filing. He allowed himself to wonder for a moment what might be wrong with

her before telling himself that it was none of his business and going about with his

reading. He allowed his mind to wander as he read, thinking about everything that had

happened in the previous months.

He'd gained an assistant by chance, and had chosen to have her stick around,

though not because she was a good little worker drone, which she wasn't. She had the

ability to bring out the best in people, without even realizing it, and she was a fast

learner. SPR now had an entire team of people dedicated to ghost hunting, and that

had also happened by chance. Something that he could never quite figure out, though,

is when exactly Mai and the rest stopped being his employees and became his friends.

That particular mystery had no solution.

He took a sip from his Black Currant tea and looked up briefly as Mai entered

the room again, this time a bit more alert and much more composed, he noted. They

stared at each other for a few seconds, Naru clearly growing impatient, before she

spoke.

"My great-aunt just called."

Any normal person would've sputtered in their tea had they heard this, since

everyone knew that Mai had no family whatsoever. Naru, however, was clearly no

normal person, and so he merely arched an eyebrow and put down his cup.

"How did she know where to contact you?" he asked.

"She called the orphanage and they told her the school I was attending. She

spoke with Kirei-sensei who told them where I worked." she replied, and then was quiet

for a few moments. Naru really didn't feel like playing 20 questions today, so he got

right to the point.

"And the reason that you saw fit to inform me of this is…?"

At this, Mai muttered something inaudible, but at Naru's sharp impatient

gaze, she repeated it at a more normal voice level.

"She wants me to come spend two weeks with her and her daughter at Chiba. She

asked me to come live with her."

And today was off to a terrific start.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Well, you know what this means, Mai." said Houshou Takigawa, whom Mai had

affectionately nicknamed "Bou-san" (Mr. Monk), a few hours later. She had just told

everyone the news, and even Lin looked decently put off to hear that Mai might be

leaving them. "We're going to have to come and stay with you and make sure that this

family isn't psycho."

Mai could've laughed, this was just so...Bou-san-like. Always looking out for the

little people. "It's really okay, Bou-san, I'm sure they're very nice people. She sounded

like a nice lady on the phone, and her daughter is my age. Besides, I haven't given her an

answer yet, so I might not be moving after all." she replied with a smile,

though honestly wishing that she could find a polite way to turn down her great-aunt's

offer. The woman, though she claimed she was family, was practically a stranger, and

besides, SPR had become her family over the past few months. Ayako, the self-

proclaimed shinto miko wagged her finger at Mai.

"You know, for once, Bou-san had a good idea. We SHOULD go see whether

these people are capable enough to handle our Mai." she agreed, causing Mai to twitch.

"Capable enough?"

John Brown, the Australian priest, agreed as well, and even Masako nodded,

slightly pleased that her rival for Naru's affections might be leaving, though also

disappointed for the same reason. She and the girl had developed a strange love-hate

relationship, and though they claimed that they never got along, they still looked out for

each other when times got rough. Mai had even gone so far as to put herself in danger to

save her once, something that the teenage psychic would never forget. Lin turned back to

his keyboard, wondering how Naru was taking the news of Mai's departure. He was fully

aware that a bond had developed between the two teenagers, though Naru would

probably never admit it to himself, much less anyone else.

"I've told you people that this place is not a coffee shop. Either find something

useful to do, or get out." came Naru's irritated voice as he stepped out of his office and

took a look around at "the usual suspects", as Mai sometimes referred to the group.

"Ah, Naru-chan, just the man we needed to see." said the monk. "Will you be

coming with us to stay with Mai and make sure that she'll be safe and sound in her new

home?" he asked, ruffling the girl's hair affectionately. Mai had to admit that while they

were reluctant to see her leave, they still wished her the best and wanted to make sure that

she was well cared-for. This gesture of kindness nearly made her tear up, and she looked

down as she blinked. These people really were her family.

"There's work to do, I don't have time for that." Naru replied with annoyance,

though annoyed at what, he couldn't very well say. "I'm sure you can all handle it." he

turned to walk back into his office, and Mai bit her lip, slightly pissed. 'Jerk, even down

to the last moment.' she silently berated him. Then again, she should've seen it coming. It

wasn't really like Naru to take a few days off just to do something that didn't involve

ghost hunting. Still...it would've been nice.

"She might be leaving forever, and you're not even going to go and say good-

bye?" said Ayako, thoroughly angered. Could this man be any more thick-headed? Naru

turned around for a moment to look at Mai, and even an idiot could've caught the look of

hope she was giving him. He sighed, figuring that if anything, he owed her this much.

Besides, he could still conduct research from anywhere, that was the beauty of wireless

internet.

"Fine." he replied, and walked into his office, shutting the door behind him. Hard

as she try, Mai couldn't keep a small grin from making its way to her face. Maybe not a

complete jerk.