InuYasha Fan Fiction / Ghost Hunt Fan Fiction ❯ Balm For A Broken Soul ❯ Episode 2: Evil Spirits All Over?! Part Two ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Balm for a Broken Soul

 

By: Ryu Katanna

 

Beta:

 

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

 

A/N: A lot of the dialogue will be familiar as the first several chapters do follow the anime and manga. There are more parts that are original to the story, but I’ve done this to stay close to the original while also telling Kagome’s side of the story. There will be more deviations we get farther in.

 

Episode 2: Evil Spirits All Over?! Part Two

 

Two hours later and Kagome stood with Kazuya, Mai, Houshou, and John as Ayako put on a performance using incantations. She used the word performance genuinely. What Ayako was doing wasn’t an exorcism. The incantations were used in cleansing, and not exorcism. There was intent in her speech, but no power in her voice. Her movements were methodical and practiced, but there was no energy in the flow of movement.

 

“They’re just Shinto incantations, but I’m starting to wonder if she can even pull this off.” Kagome could hear Houshou explain to Mai.

 

“I’ve never seen anyone perform a Shinto exorcism before. Let’s watch.” Kazuya said, and Kagome couldn’t help but say something.

 

“What she’s doing isn’t a true exorcism. Take it as little more than a demonstration of what it should be.”

 

They looked at her for a brief moment before turning back to watching Ayako. At least now Kagome was seeing where the woman was lacking, and it didn’t please her at all. The first thing you learned in training as a Miko was the power of intent, and directing the flow of energy. Ayako had either been poorly trained, not paid attention to her mentor or had little real training, to begin with.

 

“She’s finally done.” Houshou muttered as they turned away to go back into the base.

 

That’s when it happened. Everyone turned back in surprise when the windows to the front door shattered. Kagome rushed over with Houshou and John right next to her. Ayako had crouched and covered her head in time to avoid getting cut, but the two men with her weren’t so lucky. Houshou jumped right into action with getting the principal standing. Seeing that his injuries were not threatening Kagome turned to the one John was next to.

 

It was times like this she was glad she had gotten her certification as a medic. Goodness knows she couldn’t use her healing on them. They wouldn’t understand.

 

123

 

They had seen the ambulance off with the principal in tow. When Kagome, John, Houshou, Mai, and Kazuya arrived it was to hear Kuroda yelling once again that there were spirits in the building. Kagome rubbed her temple at the sound of the girls' voice. Her insistence that there were spirits here was getting rather annoying. Kagome nor Masako had found any sign that there was anything.

 

“Maybe it was a coincidence.” John said as they walked through the door and Kagome sat herself down in a chair.

 

“Or there’s something here. Something too strong for Ayako to drive away.” Houshou replied in thought, and Kagome scowled as she looked at him.

 

“If that were the case there would be more conclusive readings on the equipment.” Kazuya said, and Kagome knew she had to say something.

 

“I have already told you. Ayako’s exorcism didn’t work for two reasons. The first being that she is undertrained, and that was not a true exorcism. The other is that there were no spirits here, to begin with. Houshou. You asked me here to help you. I am doing that so start listening.” Kagome said as she leveled a look at her cousin.

 

Kuroda looked like she was about to say something when Mai spoke up as she looked at the monitors.

 

“Hey! That room didn’t have a chair in the middle of it yesterday, did it?”

 

“That’s one of the classrooms on the second floor.” Kazuya said as he seen which camera it was.

 

“Mmm-hm. I set the camera up in there yesterday just like you told me to. I swear. It wasn’t there.” Mai said as Kagome came up to see what it was they were all looking at.

 

“Houshou. Have you seen anyone go inside that classroom?” Kazuya asked as he looked at the monk.

 

“No.”

 

“Me neither.” John affirmed, and Kazuya paused in thought before rewinding the video.

 

“Was that a ghost?” Mei was asking as Kagome headed out the door.

 

She only needed to see the chair moving to know she had to look into it. There were no spirits here. She was certain of it. What she wanted to know was what, then, had caused the chair to move?

 

Kagome walked up the stairs and down the hall to the room that the others were probably still watching. Entering, her gaze went straight to the chair. Raising a hand she brushed the wood with her own energy as she searched for any ki other than those that she knew. There was none.

 

Her palm came down the touch the wood. There was no heat. Everything they had seen would point to a poltergeist, but as many signs as there were, other key signs were missing. Objects manipulated by a poltergeist should be warm to the touch, but the wood was cool. The was no energy residue.

 

Whatever was going on, there was nothing here. That was now a certainty in her mind. Kagome looked up at the sound of soft, shuffling footsteps. It didn’t take long before she wasn’t the only one in the room. She nodded in greeting as she was joined by Masako. The girl shuffled through the room, and Kagome stood as she seen her aura vibrating.

 

“There’s nothing here.” Kagome said, and the girl turned to her.

 

“I know.” She said simply.

 

“This is a waste of time. There is no spiritual residue.” Kagome said loud enough to be picked up over the microphone.

 

Kagome turned away to leave the room, but froze at the sound of creaking and breaking wood.  The sudden crack of breaking wood had her turning to see Masako as she was starting to fall. The girl’s scream resounded in her ears as her feet took off at a run. Kagome reached to grab her, but it was too late as she was already falling the floor down to the ground. Her body hit the grass with a hard thud.

 

“Masako! Masako!” Kagome called to her from the hole in the wall but didn’t receive a response.

 

Looking left and right, Kagome soon sees that there is a tree just outside one of the windows of the next room. Lurching to her feet she tore out of the room, and into the one next to it. Throwing the window open she put her foot on the sill before jumping out onto a branch. From there it was easy to quickly make her way down. All the time in the past had left her to keep up the fit physique she had gained over her travels. Her feet hit the ground, and she rushed over to Masako.

 

“Masako? Come on, wake up.” Masako stirred at the sound of Kagome’s voice, and she had to stop the teen from trying to move.

 

“No, don’t move. You fell from the second floor. I’m going to check and see if I can help.” Kagome soothed her as she took her hand gently in one of her own.

 

Through their contact, Kagome let her ki seep through Masako. Travelling up her arm, through her chest, to her neck, down her to her hips, her legs, and to her feet. She would be bruised all over, but surprisingly she had no broken bones. There was some internal bleeding in her side that Kagome healed just enough so that it wouldn’t be life-threatening, but that was all she could do. There was no doubt in her mind that the others had called an ambulance. How would they explain Masao falling out of the second story wall, and having no injuries at all? Soon, she heard the running footsteps of the others, and so pulled back her ki. Brown eyes connected with deep blue when they opened.

 

“Kagome? How did you get down here so fast?” Houshou asked a bit startled.

 

The last they had known they had seen her through the camera on the second floor.

 

“The tree. Did you call the ambulance?” Kagome asked and looked at John when he nodded.

 

Ayako did her own check on Masako, and Kagome could tell from how she didn’t try to move her that she knew enough that she might be more hurt than they could see. Kazuya’s gaze was heavy, and Kagome could tell that he was trying to figure her out.

 

“The tree? You jumped out of the window?! Are you crazy?!” Houshou shouted and Kagome looked up at him with a huff.

 

“It would have taken too long the other way.” They all just looked at her like she was, in fact, crazy.

 

123

 

“The portion of the eastern wall that had been demolished was boarded up with weak plywood and was by no means structurally sound. She must have leaned on it causing it to break underneath her weight. Ms. Hara herself said it was an accident.” Kazuya said after the group had gathered back in the base.

 

“We can’t deny it anymore. There is obviously a force here.” Ayako said as if it was not a fact that had been confirmed.

 

“Oh, are you referring to the one you failed to exercise?” Houshou shot back at her, and Ayako made a noise of contempt as she turned away.

 

“We’re playing with fire. An unsuccessfully exorcised spirit is like a wounded bear.”

 

“So what happen to Masako was Ayako’s fault.” Mai said as she tried to put the pieces together.

 

“Oh, please.” Ayako said disdainfully, and Kagome did defend the woman.

 

A bit.

 

“There was never a spirit here, to begin with, and so nothing she could have exorcised even had she done it properly.” Kagome said as she examined the blackboard that had been cracked.

 

“I have yet to see you doing anything, little girl.” Ayako sneered at her, and Kagome turned to look at everyone as they looked at her for her defense.

 

“I have done nothing because there is nothing here. There is no spiritual residue in this building. No spiritual residue means no spirit. Any properly trained priestess can spread out their own ki to detect it. That you still insist that this is a genuine haunting tells me everything I need to know about the level of training you have completed.” Kagome said before taking a seat next to Kazuya and rewinding the video as she had seen him do so that she could review it herself.

 

“Listen. From what I saw in the video it was just an accident.” Kazuya said as he shifted to give Kagome a little room.

 

He kept an eye on her, but when it seemed she wouldn’t break anything, he looked at Mai as she vented.

 

“But accidents keep happening here. That’s why they say this place is haunted!” The girl said as if that was all the proof that was needed.

 

“That may be true, but there simply not enough readings on the equipment to prove it…” Kazuya went on to list all the inconsistencies, and it was then a thought hit Kagome.

 

This teen had the mind of a scientist, and not a spiritualist. She reviewed the video once more as they argued facts. Masako had leaned on the plywood. Kagome hadn’t noticed, but the girl was close to the wall when she had turned to leave. The sounds of the wood had made Masako back into the wall. The plywood was weak, and so had broken with the weight. It was once she had confirmed this that she turned to see Kazuya making his way out of the room.

 

Knowing that she had already said her piece she decided it was time to call it a day. This case looked like it would be drug out by her cousin and the others. They just refused to think that it could be anything other than a spirit. So while they continued their debate she followed the path Kazuya had to find him outside near the van he had been sitting in when she met him earlier that day.

 

“It’s a little odd, isn’t it?” He asked when she started to walk past him to leave.

 

The sun was starting to set, and she still had to make her way home. Kagome looked at Kazuya to see him watching her. His eyes had the same look that they had earlier when he and the others had come up to her and Masako.

 

“Even after falling from the second floor, Ms. Hara had only bruises and stiffness. No broken bones, or bleeding.” He said, and Kagome paused before a small smile slid across her lips.

 

“She was lucky. For someone who looks so delicate, she sure is sturdy.” The excuse slipped from her easily as she kept her slow walk.

 

“What I find even more curious is even being on the second floor you made it to her faster than the rest of us.” That made Kagome stop and really look at him.

 

“Your point?”

 

“There is more to you than you let on.” He said, and Kagome just knew she was right.

 

He had been trying to figure her out. Just as much as she had been trying to do the same with him. The sight of his aura was one of the more curious things she had seen since the well closed. At the same time, it was also very alarming.

 

“I simply enjoy my privacy. I will be back tomorrow. I expect that someone with your analytical mind will have this figured out by then. Good day, Kazuya Shibuya.” She gave him a more genuine smile before walking away.

 

She had a few scrolls to look over when she got home.

 

123

 

It was afternoon by the time Kagome was able to make it back to the old school house. She had been up most of the night and into early morning reading through old scrolls kept at the shrine. It took her a while, but she did find one scroll that told her what she needed to know. It was not good news, and she was determined to keep the worst from happening.

 

The rest of the morning had been spent putting the other scrolls away, and tending to her shrine duties. Luckily there hadn’t been much she’d had to do as Souta shared the responsibilities. He was in high school now and had started to take on more at the shrine when he wasn’t playing on the soccer team.

 

“You’ve solved it then.” Kagome said as she entered the base to see Kazuya packing away his equipment.

 

“I have.” He answered as he unhooked several wires.

 

“Just listen! I’m not making this up!” Kuroda was at it again, and Kagome sighed as she tried to ignore her while she moved to help the teen pack up.

 

It would seem that she had walked into the middle of something. The others stood off to the side and just watched as the two of them packed up. If they weren’t going to help then that was fine by her. She chose to ignore Kuroda’s continued rant. Kazuya had solved the case to whatever it was that was going on, and that was all she needed to know. It wasn’t spiritual, and so therefore not her field. As long as they knew the cause then she could always ask later.

 

“Oh, well, I guess my dream’s over now.” Mai said softly, and this drew both Kazuya and Kagome’s attention to the teen.

 

“I mean here we are in an old building that’s so creepy you’d just assume it was haunted. Not to mention all the ghost stories I’ve heard about it. It’s kind of… romantic in a way. Now I don’t like the idea of people dying here, but the ghost stories really gave this place a sense of mystery and fun.”

 

“Maybe so.” Kazuya said, and Kagome almost smiled at Mai’s romanticism.

 

The sound of cracking glass drew their attention away from the girl. Looking over, Kagome could hear Kuroda scream as she ducked as the glass panes broke and shattered inward over her. The shards rained down just as the doors started slamming back and forth on their own.

 

“What’s going on?” Kuroda whimpered, and Kagome turned to see Houshou as he spoke.

 

“Well, it’s more than just the place sinking.”

 

“Knocking sounds. That’s another one of Tisane’s criteria!” John said as Kagome took a deep breath to calm herself as she tried to think.

 

“Well? Naru?” Mai asked, and it seemed to bring the other teen out of whatever thoughts he was having.

 

“We need to get out of here. Now!” Houshou yelled, and Kagome agreed with him as she moved over to Kuroda.

 

“This is it. Everybody out! Go, Mai!”

 

“But what about the doors?” Mai yelled back while Kagome hauled Kuroda to her feet and pushed her toward the others.

 

“Leave that to me!” Houshou picked up a chair and made a path.

 

“Over here. This way!”

 

“Go!” Kagome shouted, and pushed both Kuroda and Mai toward her cousin.

 

When they made it to the hall she let the others go in front of her. While they ran for the outside Kagome turned to look back at the doors as they continued to slam. They stopped when the small group had made it out, and that made Kagome pause. Looking up and down the hall she could see that the room they had been using for a base was the only one affected. Spreading out her awareness she still felt no spiritual energy. She did feel something else though, and she felt her brow rise at the revelation.

 

“Kagome! Get out of there!” Houshou’s voice echoed back through the hall, and so Kagome turned and made her way to where they had gathered outside.

 

“It’s stopped.” She told them as she looked at them.

 

“We thought you were right with us. Are you alright?” John asked her, and she nodded as she seen Ayako bandaging Kuroda’s hand and Houshou yelling at Kazuya.

 

“Houshou, enough!” Kagome grasped his arm and gave it a light squeeze to stop him.

 

“That sound wasn’t just the creaking of an old building. Something was definitely banging on the walls.” Ayako snapped as she shot a nasty look at Kagome.

 

“That means we’ve already witnessed four of the nine criteria that were laid out by Tisane.” John’s tone was calm as he also looked at Kazuya.

 

Kagome chose not to listen to them as they volleyed back and forth. No, her focus was on Kazuya. His broken aura flickered around him sporadically. He was angry, and the almost accusatory tones of the others were not helping. The golden color that she had noticed just under the surface pushed outward as if trying to escape his grasp. He kept control, but only just.

 

Kagome’s attention turned to his injury as Mai mentioned it. He’d called it a scratch, but a scratch wouldn’t bleed like that. She looked at Mai when he turned to walk away.

 

“Look after the others, Mai. Make sure my cousin doesn’t do anything stupid. I will look after Kazuya.” Mai went to respond, but by then Kagome was already walking off the way the teen had gone.

 

123

It didn’t take Kagome long to catch up with Kazuya as she increased her pace. She could still see blood dripping steadily from his clenched fist. She bit her tongue at the sight. He had brushed off Mai’s concern, but she wouldn’t allow him to do that with her. So she said something to catch his attention.

 

“You know a person's aura can tell you a lot about them. What they’re feeling, the kind of person they are, and what abilities they may have. When those abilities are strong enough.” Kagome’s tone was soft, and she stopped just next to him when he paused to look at her.

 

“What?” His eyes were piercing when he looked at her, and it was then she knew.

 

She knew something he would rather have been kept secret.

 

“You heard me. Don’t worry. I won’t tell. Here. A secret for a secret.” She said as her hands glowed pink, and she gently took his injured hand.

 

She noticed him flinch a bit at the skin contact, but when he didn’t pull away she continued. Using her healing ki Kazuya starred in fascination as the slice in his skin glowed pink before the tissues started mending back together. Once it was healed she pulled away. Blue eyes studied the mended skin before looking up at her. She just smiled softly back as she tucked a long ebony strand behind her ear.

 

“How did you do that?” He asked her before cleaning away the blood with a piece of tissue he pulled out of his pocket.

 

“There is more than one type of Miko.” She answered simply as she shuffled the strap of her bag higher onto her shoulder.

 

“You said something along those lines to Ms. Matsuzaki yesterday… How well can you heal a person?” He asked as he seemed to have thought of something.

 

“As long as they are not dead I can heal them. I didn’t do all I could have for Masako yesterday. It would have been odd for her to have no injuries after falling from that height. There were too many witnesses.” Kagome explained as she confirmed his suspicions from the day before that she had done something.

 

“Would you come with me to meet someone?” Kazuya asked after a moment, and Kagome looked at him questioningly.

 

“Why?” There was some suspicion in her voice.

 

She had met many people in the past. A lot of them had wanted to use her. It had left her wary of people as she had gotten older. She kept the extent of what she could do very close. Kagome refused to lose her freedom.

 

“My assistant was injured at the beginning of this case. His leg is broken.” Kagome thought about it before the weight in her bag reminded her that she would have to trust him first if she was to have any chance of helping him.

 

“Is he trustworthy? I… don’t like for many people to know what I can do.” She explained and received a look that told her he understood.

 

“He wouldn’t tell anyone if you don’t want them to know.” Kagome nodded at this answer.

 

She would go with him.

 

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Here’s chapter two! I’m on a bit of a roll with this, but it is taking some time to type things out. Next chapter may be out tomorrow or the day after. It all depends on when my husband has time to read it. Next chapter still follows the anime, but you will start to see part of the twist I have planned.

 

~Ryu

 

Edited: 02/13/2018