~~~MAI~~~
"Ohayō gozaimasu~!" Mai opened the door to the office, her hair unkempt and breathing coming out in pants.
"You're late." Mai lifted her head and sheepishly smiled at Naru, scratching the back of her unkempt brown hair.
"Hehe... I slept in.... Gomen..." Mai wryly continued her nervous laughs and avoided Naru's glares, her eyes brightening as she saw her Akemi-sempai walking out of the kitchen with Oliver tugging her gently but at the sight of Mai, the golden labrador retriever barked a greeting and the high-schooler immediately kneeled down and petted Oliver.
"Ohayō Oribā!" Mai happily greeted, her pure Japanese tongue pronounced the dog's name poorly but Oliver didn't seem to mind and licked Mai's hand.
"I thought I heard Mai come in, Ohayō Mai~" Akemi greeted with cheer, her wild waved-silvery locks was finally subdued to a high ponytail, making it reach in the middle of her back now.
Mai stood straight, "Ohayō Akemi-sempai!"
'Sempai, reminds me of the conservative ladies I watch on television...' Mai, smiled but couldn't help but envy how pretty her sempai looked despite her whole outfit being simple. 'I wonder when I would get a stature like hers...'
Akemi's outfit consisted of a white buttoned up blouse with the sleeves folded to her elbows and buttons hidden by a thin black ribbon tied under her collar loosely, the blouse is neatly and comfortably tucked under the army green high waisted skirt that fitted Mai's sempai waist perfectly— complementing Akemi's petite figure and flowed easily down, stopping just below her knees and Mai was positive that her 1-inched black strap shoes is expensive despite the simplicity.
"Akemi-sempai, how can I be like you?" Akemi felt her eyes widened at the compliment, it tugged her heartstrings to hear such a genuine compliment and unconsciously let out an elegant smile that only enhanced her brightness even more, Mai felt like she was gonna go blind from how bright her sempai is.
"Mai, you should never try to be like someone else," Akemi pinched Mai's nose lightly. "-you have your own preference of style... You should follow it."
Mai smiled and nodded at the encouragement, 'Just now... Did Akemi-sempai looked a bit...sad?' Mai stared at Akemi in question but all she saw was her sempai's angelic smile. 'Nah! It might just be my imagination!'
"If you two are once again planning on idly chatting then it's best if both of you get left behind," Naru spoke up, tucking his dark notebook under his arms and went outside as the three of them heard the Lin call for them by honking the van.
"Hai~ hai~ don't be such a stick in the mud, Naru! It's a beautiful morning today~" Mai paused, her eyes following her sempai in shock as the heiress clasped her porcelain hands behind her and followed just a step behind Naru, plastering a wide smile cross her face-- it was cheery that Akemi's eyes closed at the size of it.
"If you have the energy to joke around, I suggest you use it at work instead." Naru countered back as he opened the door, stepping aside to let Oliver get out first but of course the dog won't leave without his owner and so it came out as if Naru opened the door for Akemi instead.
"Roger~!" Akemi grinned, saluting at Naru who didn't bother to respond anymore. "Mai are you coming?" Akemi glanced at the still Mai, snapping Mai out of her thoughts.
"Eh? Uh- Of course!"
"Wow! this is a big house!" was the first thing Mai said as she stepped out of the van, Mai gaped at the beautiful structured house, her brown eyes lit in excitement and awe. 'I can't believe that a house this big could be haunted! such a waste!'
"Mai could you help me with Oliver, please?" Akemi called out from the back of the van and Mai turned to face them with a wide smile.
"Haiii~!" 'Akemi-sempai sure is cheery today~ I hope it lasts!'
~~~AKEMI~~~
Noriko opened the door and greeted the teenagers with a meek but relieved smile. Akemi returned it with grace, "Umm... I hope bringing a dog won't be any problem, would it?" Akemi genuinely wondered, she already asked this the first time when Morishita Noriko came by the office three days ago to inform them about the strange events on her house and so Akemi alerted her ahead of time that Akemi might bring a dog.
"It is fine," Noriko assured one more time and at that Akemi let out a relieved smile, petting Oliver by his golden head before Noriko lead them inside.
Mai didn't notice as she stared at the interior of the house in awe but as Akemi stepped foot inside the house, she froze— just a tiny second of hesitation before continuing her journey, the polite smile on her lips lessened to a more tensed one.
'Was that...?' Akemi narrowed her eyes and started moving them to inspect the interior.
"Did you see something?" Naru asked, Akemi turning her gaze away from the interior of the house and to a stoic Naru, who seemed to take note of Akemi's distraction.
Akemi shook her head at Naru and just as she was about to open her mouth to speak— they were already at their destination, by the living room and Noriko spoke up. The conversation Akemi and Naru were about to take, now forgotten or just set aside, for now.
"I'm so sorry to drag you all out this way, this is Kana, my sister-in-law and my 8-year old niece, Ayami." Noriko introduced, gesturing to a dark haired woman that seemed to carry a make believe authority and a small child, with similar colored hair as Noriko and wide innocent eyes that showed just how curious she was. Akemi let her smile twitch a bit as the girl stepped closer to Oliver in curiosity. "-My brother is overseas on business and we're the only one living in the house right now... so I'm concerned."
"Strange things has been happening lately... All of the sudden our furniture will start shaking or we'll hear someone banging on the wall when there's nobody in the room or doors will open and close by themselves... It's just been very creepy"
'It is creepy' Mai grimaced, still remembering the feeling when Poltergeist happened in the Old School building, 'but that was different! It was caused by land subsidence... This! This might really be caused by something else...'
"Who's in charge of your company?" Kana, turns to Naru seeing as there was only three of them and one of them was busy letting Ayami pet Oliver, "...You are?"
"My name is Kazuya Shibuya. I'm the president"
"Well that's okay," Kana coughed, a bit perturbed at the idea of letting a teen investigate their house. "Do you really think there could be a spirit that is causing all these disturbances?"
"Rest assured," Akemi spoke up, smiling at the adults but one couldn't help but notice how forced it came out to be. "-That is our job to find out." Akemi nodded at them, and somehow the residents of the house find themselves believing this, especially Ayami.
After a while, Noriko continued to explain to Mai the events around the house that they commonly experience after an intriguing need to know the details and this all happened at the same Naru and Lin went ahead to pack, the two kept their silence as they worked.
Akemi was about to finally help out after making sure Oliver has his own part on the base and was doing okay at such an unknown eerie place but a tug at her skirt made her look down at Ayami— who continued to hold her doll, the sight of it somehow made Akemi feel unease.
"Hai?" Akemi tilted her head, 'somehow... She reminds me of my nieces and nephews~' Akemi then saw the memory of children around the house, laughing and playing out action shows that they don't even understand yet.
"...You're really pretty..." Ayami shyly conveyed and Akemi let a genuine smile reach her lips at the compliment, she leaned down and patted the girl on the head.
"You're really pretty too! One of the most beautiful people I have ever behold!~"
"Really?" Ayami brightened, and Akemi nodded.
"Your name is Ayami? Can I call you Ayami-chan?" Ayami nodded, and Akemi smiled but something in her eyes held something else beside cheeriness. "-Well my name is Akemi and this is my bestfriend, Oliver~ How about we play after I help packing our stuff in? Would you like that?" Ayami's bright smile disappeared before Akemi could even finish her suggestion, Akemi noticed how Ayami's hold on her doll tightened and she felt her lips tug.
"Ayami! You shouldn't bother others when they are working..." Kana showed up out of nowhere and knelt beside Ayami, holding the girl by her shoulder. Kana's situation made it look like a scolding but Akemi could tell that this woman genuinely feels for the child.
After a while, Ayami was forced to apologize but Akemi quickly dismissed it and let the little girl have fun and Akemi made sure to wave at Ayami as she left with her mother.
"Finally working, I see." Naru commented when Akemi stepped out of the house with Oliver guiding her way and help take few of the equipment from the back of the van.
"Well, I noticed how slow you all have gotten and decided to help~ can't letting the Shibuya Psychic Research name be ruined, right?" Akemi smiled, her eyes glowing with tease as she felt the fresh breeze of the outside-- Akemi sent Naru a teasing glint before calmly tucking her tail and going back to the house as immediately as possible. 'Mission Accomplished~!'
But in the midst of the hallway, Akemi once again froze. Her expression passive but eyes alert and controlled as she stared at one of the empty hallways of the house, 'Hm? I could have sworn I heard a child...'
~~~MAI~~~
"What is the equipment status in each room?" Naru asked as he and Lin both observed the tons of monitors by the base. Mai just stood behind the scenes, watching the two work but she couldn't help but notice how her sempai seemed to continue fiddling with her ears as if something was bothering it. 'Is sempai okay?'
"Monitor connections are normal." hearing Lin's voice snapped Mai out of her thoughts. "Each room is operating normally."
"I wonder if it couldn't be a poltergeist..." Mai spoke up, her idea making Lin and Akemi turn to glance at her in question. "-going by what Noriko-san said..."
"Oh! You're starting to sound like a grown-up there, part-timer." a voice by the door spoke up, making everybody in the room turn and see Bou-san and Ayako.
"Bou-san!" Mai called out, Akemi greeting the new comers more calmly and politely. "Yo!"
"Overdoing things as usual, I see... With this mountain of equipment." Ayako teased, before marching up to the monitors in confidence. "Let me see for a second..." Ayako leaned in the monitors, before standing up straight with a look of knowing.
"I'd say this is the work of an earth spirit or something," Ayako claimed but Mai crossed her arms and shared her point of view.
"I think it's the work of humans." Mai declared,
"My! Listen to you!" Ayako teased, and Mai sent them a grin of confidence, wagging a finger at them.
"Now, now, just listen! Humans are the culprits in half of all poltergeisting, right?" Mai nodded to her own rhetorical question. "-and many of them are cases of women under stress and if you're looking for any likely women in this house, it'd be someone who can't get along with their sister-in-law..."
"Mai... Are suggesting Noriko-san?" Akemi sweat dropped, 'I have to say... Mai gives a good point but I don't think Noriko-san has the ability to do it and from what she could tell, the relationship of the family seemed tight— just a bit parted from the events of the house...eh?'
Akemi saw something move by the door, and let out a sigh, feeling a bit saddened. 'Ara~ my ears are ringing again...'
"Excuse me for a bit..." Akemi silently spoke up, holding a hand to her ear as the other hand nudged Oliver for both of them to go out, unaware of the slight glance Naru sent her way.
"Indeed. Kana-san does seem a bit grating, huh?" Ayako nodded, seeing Mai's point and was starting to believe it and Mai felt a boost of confidence at this and gloated but of course, it all crashed down by a few words from Naru, who kept his attention on the monitors as well as Lin.
"Amateurish, shallow thinking, definitely how a beginner would think." Naru crossed his arms, feeling the attention go to him. "-In cases of poltergeisting where a human is the culprit, it's usually a young teen— an adolescent. Morishita-san is 20 years old, too grown-up to be called an adolescent."
"But—" Mai went to retaliate but was cut off,
"True, there are cases of spiritually sensitive women, I will conduct an experiment regarding that tonight."
'W-why you...! Excuse me for having such a shallow thinking!' feeling irritated, Mai let her shoulders slump and left the room.
"Man! Why did I fall in with a guy like him in the first place?" Mai muttered to herself, letting her hand mess up her hair in frustration.
"Ara~? Mai, is that you?" Akemi tilted her head to the side, confused by how frustrated Mai seemed to be.
"A-ah! Akemi-sempai.... Did you see all that?" Mai felt her cheeks warmed up, 'how embarrassing! Did sempai saw my confession just now?! Ie ie... i didn't really specified that it was Naru! So she wouldn't be able to—'
"No... I didn't see anything at all," Akemi worriedly frowned. "-Why? Did something happen back in the base?" Mai immediately waved her hands and shook her head, letting herself sigh in relief, 'Thank goodness, she didn't see!'
"Mai?"
"Eh? I mean yeah! I mean no! Nothing happened at the base, Naru and the others are still investigating..." Akemi nodded at that, letting a small smile grace her lips and Oliver gladly dragged her closer to Mai.
"Ah! Mai-chan, Akemi-chan, perfect timing. It's time for Ayami's snack. Care to tag along?" Noriko walked up to them coincidentally by the stairs, she stared at the two with a smile.
Mai brightened at Noriko's words and Akemi politely nodded, "If it isn't too much trouble..." and so Noriko gladly walked them up the stairs, holding a tray of snacks. In the midst of their way Noriko mentioned about Ayami's biological mother and how Kana is the second wife of her brother, that fact stunned Mai while Akemi perfectly covered her reaction and both apologized after as their condolences.
"Oh don't worry about it..." Noriko smiled before knocking at one of the doors, "Ayami? Snack time. Mai-chan and Akemi-chan is here, too." on cue, Mai and Akemi leaned out and waved at the cute girl.
"Yaho~!" Mai and Akemi greeted, Mai brightened at the cute little girl as she lifted her wide innocent eyes at the people by the door and carried her doll before walking towards them with a friendly smile,
'How cute!' Mai gushed, bending down to match Ayami's height as Ayami walked towards them. "Hello!" Ayami greeted, lifting her doll's hand as if it should be the one to shake.
Without hesitation, Mai shook the hand and returned the greeting, Ayami then turned to Akemi, her eyes brightening just a bit.
"G-Gokigenyō!" Akemi smiled at the need for the girl to be lady-like, Akemi gladly bowed and teasingly winked at the little girl before glancing at the doll with a smile. "Gokigenyō~ and what is your name?"
Ayami delightfully answered, "Minnie!"
Akemi smiled and shook Minnie's hand, "Gokigenyō Minnie~ where you reading with Ayami earlier?" as if she had triggered something, Ayami froze and pulled Minnie away from them— Akemi calmly observing Ayami's reaction.
"What's wrong?" Akemi and Noriko leaned down to check up on Ayami but the little girl just turned her back on them.
"Don't you wanna eat?" Mai tried to convince the poor girl but Ayami shook her head and declined the offer.
'What came over her so suddenly?' Mai thought to herself as she stared at Ayami's back while Akemi just stared at the girl in concern, 'I see...'
"Please focus on the light," Naru said as he turned on the same lamp he used back at the Old building case, using this technique to determine whether the culprit behind the poltergeisting was human or not.
Akemi and Mai stood by the doors and when Akemi felt how nervous Ayami seemed, she let Oliver walk up to the little girl for comfort.
"Please match your breathing to the light," Naru continued, his eyes focused on observing the residents of the house, who were slowly getting drowsy. "-slowly now..."
'They say that in the case of people doing it they unconsciously use some kind of supernatural ability. So when a suggestion is planted into the subconscious, they unknowingly do it.' Mai hoped that it was the case, and when Mai was starting to get drowsy as well Akemi put it upon herself and nudged the teenager.
"Tonight, a vase will move. A small, glass vase. It will be on the table tonight in this room..." Naru continued to suggest, his voice coming off as an echo to the residents but they all snapped out of it as Akemi switched on the lights,
"Very good. Please spend the rest of the evening as you like," Naru placed his gaze on Noriko. "-Morishita-san, could I have the key to this room?"
Kana stood up, still a bit drowsy. "Y-yes..." but she faltered for a bit as she and her family stared at the vase Naru was holding.
'The suggestion worked, the eyes of everyone stuck on the vase is proof of that...' Mai thought to herself.
"Now we have to wait..." Akemi clasped her hands in front of her as Mai draw a circle around the glass vase.