A/N: WOW IT'S BEEN AWHILE, RIGHT?! My life has been insane, and everything is crazy, and I've got a new job and I've been traveling for work and I have a dog now and...well anyway, this story has never left my mind, even with everything else going on. I always intended to come back and finish it, and, well, here I am! I know last time I said chapter 33 would be out a week later but... hopefully you'll accept it even though it's more than 2 years late? o_o

Chapter Thirty-Three

Another shift. Masako's head throbbed with pain, as if her skull were breaking apart beneath her skin. Her legs felt shockingly weak, as if they were built of nothing more than matchsticks. She could still feel Naru's hand wrapped around hers, but it was hard to find, and when she found it, the sensation felt more disturbing than anything else. His hand was warm, and it felt like her hand was locked around an electrical wire, with constant volts of electricity passing back and forth between them. Her heart pounded, feeling too big for her they were back in her memories, on the set for an episode of her new show. She cringed internally, recognizing the surroundings, and dreading the coming scene.

"Alright, Miss Hara, I'm gonna need you to go into that shed back there, the viewers'll love it, they love creepy shit like that."

Masako, who was only about 14, looked back at the dark, decaying shed. In the doorway stood a wild-haired man with blood dripping down his face, his head exploded open at the top where he had shot his own brain out. "Yesss, come in little girlie, come meet the other girlies. They were just like you…" The dead man hissed, licking his decaying lips.

Masako's parents weren't on the set that day. They often weren't, preferring instead to entrust her to the producers, insisting that they had Masako's best interests at heart. Now, one of those producers, a woman in her 30's, wrapped a thin arm around Masako's shoulders. "You want your show to stay on the air, don't you? Ratings can slip so easily…" Her voice was too smooth, like oil slipping through water. The woman guided Masako towards the shed, ignoring the feeble protests. "Come on, what are you so scared of? Ghosts? We all know ghosts can't hurt you. Scare you, maybe. But we all need a good scare every once in awhile, right?" The tone of the woman's voice made it clear that she didn't believe in ghosts, didn't believe in Masako.

"B-but ma'am, I can't…I can't go in…"

"Nonsense. Off you go!"

The woman gave Masako a small, almost playful shove, though her long fingernails dug into Masako's back even through her thick kimono. Ahead, the dead man smiled, his cracked and rotten teeth poking out from behind his torn lips.

She'd been forced to go into the shed, forced to be on camera, trying not to scream as the dead man wrapped his hands around her neck. They'd left her in there, face turning pale and blue-tinged, trying to get the perfect shot. She'd been nearly unconscious when they finally pulled her out. And even as they were giving her hot tea and murmuring comforting words, no one referred to her by her first name. It was always Miss Hara, the name she used on the show. No one said they were sorry, or called her by her name, called her Masako. None of them could see the man in the shed, therefore he wasn't a real threat. To them, even to her own parents at times, she was nothing but a talented actress.

Masako could feel the fear bubbling below the surface as she walked towards the shed, could feel the anger and heavy nausea as she walked towards the dead man's open arms, but the scene changed quickly, rescuing her before she was forced to fully relive it. Still, even as the scene dissolved and swirled around her, she could feel Naru's hand tighten around her own, suddenly a comforting anchor, a necessary reminder that what they were seeing was part of the past.

Flashes passed her, quick scenes stolen from both her memories and Naru's, images of TV crews, research sessions, of two lonely kids trying to navigate a world that felt both too big and too little for them.

The memories came crashing to a halt. The double vision returned. Naru was standing alone in a bedroom, a room too dusty and too sloppily decorated to be his. He stood in front of a closet, his arm stretched forward as he took hold of a black shirt, preparing to pull it off of the hanger.

No…

Masako's vision shifted again, her eyes suddenly heavy and pained.

She was both in Gene's body and outside of it, watching him walk across a dark bridge in the middle of the night. She knew it was happening in the past, but still every part of her was screaming for Gene to stop, to turn back, to stay alive.

Headlights appeared in the distance.

Please…I don't want to see this…

I don't want to either. We don't have a choice, Naru's voice echoed in her head again, though she still couldn't see him. She wished desperately that Naru was with her, so she wouldn't feel so alone, so she wouldn't have to watch this horror by herself in the dark.

…I wish that too, Naru said, his voice hesitant but earnest. It'll be over soon. He spoke quietly, pain evident in his voice already.

In the memory, Gene stopped on the bridge and gazed down at the water as the headlights grew closer. He paid no attention, and stepped back, stumbling slightly into the road, his foot caught on a small rock.

It happened fast. The red paint was illuminated by the headlights as they closed in, and suddenly Masako could feel her body, Gene's body, flying up into the air, bones crunching against each other, bone shards punching holds in organs. It was an explosion of excruciating pain, followed by silence. The part of Masako that had been with Naru in Gene's body snuffed out, leaving her feeling isolated. In front of her, Gene's body lay crumpled on the ground, eyes open wide.

She knew Gene had died instantly, or close enough. She felt the way his body spun upon impact, his head smashing against the guard rail as he fell. At least he didn't suffer, she thought, but even in her head it sounded like a desperate hope. Sure, he died instantly, but how long does an instant last when your body is tossed up in the air, bones snapped and skull about to be shattered against the impersonal metal of a highway guard rail?

Now Masako was piggy-backing on Naru's vision, his psychometry. Their connection to Gene was severed by his death, but that didn't stop Naru's vision. Masako felt like she was floating; Gene's crumpled figure lay just below her, his limbs stuck out at awful angles, his eyes unblinking, staring straight ahead. The red car had stopped, and a frantic woman emerged, every part of her shaking with fear at what she'd done.

Masako knew wat was coming, but still had a hard time believing it. Why hide the body? Why deny closure for the family? But, as the woman wrapped Gene's body in a blanket and, sobbing, threw him in the trunk of her car, Masako saw the way the woman weaved back and forth, saw her bloodshot eyes and heard the hiccups.

She's drunk, she thought, the idea coming to her on a wave of disbelief and pure fury. She hit and murdered someone, all because she was drunk, and was never punished for it. The rage burned hot in Masako's chest.

Sometimes that's just how things work, Naru said, sounding oddly resigned.

But…but she murdered someone.

Yes. I'm sure it haunts her every day. We can give her no worse punishment than that. Besides, he said, sounding grim, I was never able to see her face.

Masako focused back on the scene, and saw it was true. The woman's face was always obscured, blurred somehow. So that's just…that's just it?

Not quite.

The scene changed, and now Masako could see the woman at an auto repair shop, talking to one of the mechanics quietly in the corner. She was clearly distraught, and the man clearly knew her. A friend? A lover? Masako found herself wondering. Naru made no response.

The pair made their way out back, where they could talk more privately. The woman had the grace to cry as she told the story, and Masako saw the man's eyes widen, thought she read the word "shit" on his lips, but the memory was soundless, leaving them to stand and wonder in silence.

How are we seeing this? Masako asked cautiously as the man and woman continued their conversation.

Naru said nothing at first, but Masako could feel him produce the mental equivalent of a shrug. I'm not sure, not 100%, but…it's something to do with my brother. Masako had never heard him refer to Gene as his brother before. The word sent a knife of grief through her, her heart contracting painfully. Naru continued, Our powers were always amplified by each other, even when we weren't consciously doing it. When I used psychometry to see him, I wasn't limited by the distance the way I was with others. And he…his connection to the spirit world was so much stronger if I was near him. He could call up the ghosts of those long dead, no matter where they died or how. When I was with him, he could even…even talk to our parents, even though we barely remembered them. Naru paused, and Masako thought she could feel Naru's silent anguish at those memories. So, when he died, I can only guess that the connection would be reversed, and he'd be able to reach the world of the living easily. I think he left me a sort of message, a clue for me to come find him and help him.

And you did, Masako said. She wished she could wrap him in her arms, stop the pain. It felt bizarre to be so close to someone, to be literally in their head, yet be unable to hold them or comfort them.

Not soon enough. Either way, he's still dead.

The scene shifted in front of them again, and now the woman and her friend were near the lake where Naru would eventually find his brother's body. The two got into a canoe, the rug-wrapped body slumped between them as they rowed to the center of the lake. They hauled him up over the side with little ceremony, though the woman appeared to be shaking and the man looked pale and feverish, as though he were going to be sick any moment.

When Gene's body hit the water, the scene swirled and faded, and Masako suddenly found herself back in Naru's bedroom, his hand clamped tightly around Gene's shirt. Masako could feel all of his emotions, his rage, his grief, all of it amplified to painful levels. Around him, the room began to shake, dust falling off the long-disused furniture in waves. The lamps rattled, and the bedframe shook against the wall, sounding like a jackhammer. Everything in the room began to levitate, first just the lighter objects and then heavier and heavier items, until everything was floating, then flying. The room became a hurricane, and Gene's belongings rushed around the room, crashing into each other, splintering and shattering.

The door flew open, and Masako saw Naru's mother standing in the doorway, her mouth hung open in shock. "Oliver! Oliver, stop! You'll hurt yourself!" She screamed, stepping towards her adopted son, her hand stretched out as if to grab him.

She was flung backwards, her arm cracking against the wall as she hurtled through the doorframe. Naru hadn't looked at her, hadn't even heard her, his senses too overwhelmed by grief.

The door slammed shut behind her, but even though Masako couldn't see her any longer, she knew Naru's mother had been knocked out by the impact. There was more pounding on the door, but Naru still heard nothing as the scene in the room grew even more chaotic. His eyes were distant, haunted, unable to see or comprehend anything around him. Outside, Lin's voice called, "Oliver, you have to stop! Stop before you go too far!"

At the sound of his friend's voice, Naru finally came back into himself. The furniture came crashing down, the lamps shattering and the headboard of the bead cracking. Naru collapsed to his knees before slumping over sideways, tears leaking from his eyes as he passed out, his body and mind both far past their limits.

The scene faded to black with a crushing sense of finality. From the darkness, Naru spoke, his voice no longer in Masako's thoughts, though it still sounded disembodied, as if he spoke from all around her. "My mother had a severe concussion and a broken arm. I was in a coma for something like a week. When I finally woke up, I had to tell my parents… tell them what I had seen." His words were numb, monotone. "Lin and I left as soon as I woke, off to Japan to find Gene. I couldn't stay, not with Gene's body at the bottom of a lake somewhere, and not with the way my mother flinched when I came into the room…I cancelled all my speaking arrangements, my classes, my trips abroad to study psychic phenomenon. Lin said…Lin said I nearly died, and forbid me to use my powers, on orders from my father. He said he'd already lost one son, and he refused to lose another."

Masako had no idea what to say. Lights flickered around them, other memories that moved too fast for them to see. It felt like the eye of the storm, with power swirling around them like a riptide, ready to catch them and drag them under.

"We might die, Masako. Both of us. If you want to back out, you can. If you go further, if you come into this with me, I can't guarantee your safety." It was clear from his tone of voice that the thought tormented him.

"If I leave, you'll die, Masako said sharply. Naru said nothing, but his silence was agreement enough. "No, Naru. I said I would help, I refuse to go back on my word, refuse to allow you to die just because I can't keep a promise. Do you take me for a coward?"

She felt him smile, though his mood was still grim, resigned, and hopeless. "Alright. But this next part will…hurt. All of this was just our minds, our souls connecting, syncing up. Now we need to start absorbing power, and your body isn't used to carrying this kind of energy. Gene always said it felt like stretching a muscle he didn't know he had, stretching it and tearing it apart."

Masako swallowed. The vortex around her grew stronger, everything crackling with energy. "I'm ready," she said.

"Are you?" he said, almost amused, although there was something dark in his tone.

"We don't have time to debate this. I wouldn't be here if I couldn't handle this."

She heard Naru sigh. "Alright," he said quietly, sadly. "For what it's worth, I'm…I'm sorry for this. For the pain. If I were stronger, I wouldn't need…well, it's too late for that now, isn't it."

Naru stepped out of the darkness next to her, suddenly materializing as he slipped his hand into hers. She was dimly aware that in the real world, their hands were still locked together, but it felt like another life, a dream. "No matter what, you can't let go of my hand. If you do, the power will have nowhere to go, no way out, and will consume you."

She nodded, squeezing his hand without realizing it as she closed her eyes. He squeezed back, hesitant, but firm.

"Alright then, Masako. Into the beast's mouth we go."

A/N: I wrote this ages ago, but I still stand by this ship. Naru/Masako 4 ever. Sorry y'all, it's been years and I'll still die on this hill. ALSO SORRY I WAITED 2 YEARS AND STILL DON'T HAVE AN UPDATE ABOUT MAI/MONK. I AM A DISASTER. It's coming. Just...idk. Be patient. Like you've been patient for the last 2 years. And I'll do my best to...not...suck -_-

THANK YOU FOR READING, WOW IT'S WEIRD TO BE BACK.