Ok, so I finally got around to editing and posting my Ghost Hunt story, though I'm not entirely happy with the summary. However, this summary is the fifth rewrite and I eventually decided to just accept it as it is. Keep in mind that this story is self-beta'd, so there may be some mistakes that I missed, though hopefully not a lot. The idea for this story came to me while I was reading The Transfer by Malindorie, though mine is not nearly as well written:)

This story will have ten chapters, each around 2500-3000 words, except for the last chapter, which is the longest of the lot. The story will mainly focus on the mystery of the case, though there will be elements of romance in it.

Disclaimer: Right, I abhor disclaimers, as I see them as useless, since if I had owned Ghost Hunt, I certainly wouldn't be posting this on fanfiction. However, for the sake of the site, I do not in any way own Ghost Hunt or make any money with this fic. This disclaimer is also valid for all my other chapters, since I won't be posting it again.

And so, enjoy!

Chapter 1

Mai huffed as she waited for the kettle to finish boiling, her foot tapping the floor in irritation as she flung her hair over her shoulder.

Honestly, she wasn't even that late.

In fact, her watch told her she had arrived right on time, but did her boss care? No, he just pointed out in that infuriating monotone that she was two minutes late and tea didn't make itself.

Preparing the cup, she poured in the hot water and waited for the tea to steep, still muttering beneath her breath. Adding two sugars, she placed the cup on a saucer and walked out, handing it to her boss who was sitting innocently on the couch in the waiting area of SPR.

"Thank, Mai-chan!" Mai couldn't help the smile that flitted over her face, before she frowned again, reminded of her earlier irritation. Placing her hands on her hips, she stared irately at the young man on the couch before her.

"Yasuhara, please don't imitate Naru again. It doesn't suit you."

"Aw, is Mai-chan missing the Big Boss? I was just trying to stand in for him. After all, with how you're pining after him, I would've thought you would love to experience a bit of the old routine!" Mai could feel her face heating up at her best friend's teasing.

She, however, took several deep breaths and walked to her desk, though not before shooting a death glare at the chuckling man.

It had been some time since Naru left, in fact, Mai had finished High School and with the brilliance of Spring around her, it was finally time to face what she wanted to do after school. In the almost two years since Naru left, Mai had continued working at SPR, for Naru hadn't closed the branch.

Apparently, Japan was a hotspot for supernatural activity and he still intended to come back, after he had finished his business overseas. To the surprise of all who knew him, he had left Yasuhara in charge of the office.

According to the narcissist, Yasuhara was the only one he believed would be able to type up accurate reports for him and with the help of the usual ghost hunting team, it did not matter that the boy himself had no psychic powers to speak off.

Though everyone had been a bit hesitant to have the prankster-loving graduate as their boss for all apparent purposes, they had been reassured to find out that he would keep up a regular correspondence with Naru, to insure any case they took was approved.

Their minds was further eased when Madoka burst into office one day and declared she had come to make sure they haven't all been possessed in the absence of Naru. Though the hyper pinkette wasn't there constantly, she did accompany them on the more difficult cases.

Mai, of course, had instantly been offered a job as an investigator, thanks to her latent ESP and other skills. Although she still wanted to go to college, she had been uncertain what exactly she wanted to study and whether she would even be able to afford it and had so accepted the full-time job offer for the next year while she thought about her future.

After Naru had left, she had been so confused and hurt and hadn't known what she would do now. It was one of the happiest moments in her life when she heard SPR would stay open, though she did have mixed feelings about going on cases without Naru.

Still, she had resolved that in order to dodge Naru's comments about her being useless or only good for tea on cases, she had to refine her abilities some. It wasn't as if she could control them entirely, as she hadn't really had an instructor, but she could protect herself better and she shared her dreams since she learned how important they could be.

Sighing, she filed the last of the post in the relevant piles and looked around the empty office, as Yasuhara had already left for his own office.

She had to admit that she still wasn't used to the office without Naru and Yasuhara teasing her by acting like their absent boss caused a slight pain in her chest, though she would never say that to him, as she knew he was actually quite worried about her and didn't want him to feel guilty.

Usually, her best friend's antics wouldn't bother her so much, as she was quite used to his teasing ways, but she had woken from quite a pleasant dream this morning that put her in a horrible mood, as she knew it wasn't likely that it would ever happen.

It wasn't as if Naru had feelings for her like she had for him.

The ringing of the phone interrupted her thoughts and she startled, jerking her knee into the desk. Cursing in pain, she picked up the phone and tried to sound as pleasant as possible while pain radiated from her leg.

"Shibuya Psychic Research, go-"

"Is this the agency that deals with ghosts and supernatural?" Mai gritted her teeth at the stupid question, but didn't snap as she wanted to, since the man on the other side seemed quite harried.

"Yes sir, that is correct. How can we help you?"

"I'm in Shibuya right now, would it be possible for me to drop in by the office in about fifteen minutes?"

Mai confirmed that it would be fine and before she even had time to request a name, the dial tone sounded, letting her know the man had already ended the call.

Huffing once again, she put the phone down and stomped to Yasuhara's office, all the way muttering about how today wasn't her day and how people were so rude. She knocked and opened the door without waiting for a response, something she never would have done had it not been her best friend sitting behind it.

"Yasu, we have a customer coming to the office in about fifteen minutes. He sounded worried and didn't leave a name, though his voice sounded like it belonged to a middle aged man."

"Thanks Mai. If you would be so kind as to prepare some tea for our guest, if he was as upset as you think, maybe it would calm him down some." Mai nodded and left the stand-in boss to prepare for the man's arrival while she tidied up her desk some, before going to the kitchen to prepare some tea once again.

Just as she placed the tray with the teapot, cups and sugar on the small coffee table in the living room, the bell rang.

Looking up, a man in his forties with balding salt and pepper hair entered, his dark eyes showing his exhaustion and slight fear. He was dressed in faded jeans and a smart shirt, while his shoes looked old but well taken care of. She could see crows eyes around his eyes and laugh wrinkles. Straightening, she bowed slightly, brightly greeting the man.

"Good morning, my name is Taniyama Mai and this is my boss, Yasuhara Osamu." The man's eyes zeroed in on her and Yasuhara, who had just left his office at the sound of the bell, and he bowed shortly.

"Yaomoto Jun. I apologise for my abrupt call, but when I saw your name I the newspaper, I knew I had to come as soon as possible."

"Of course, don't worry about it. Please sit down and we'll listen to what you have to say." Yaomoto-san seemed relieved as he sat down and gratefully accepted Mai's offer for tea. After he had taken a sip and some tension left his shoulders, Yasuhara sat forwards, his laptop already in front of him.

"So, what seems to be the problem?" The nineteen year old asked. The man lowered his cup and the lines on his face seemed to deepen.

"Well, recently, there have been strange happenings around a certain piece of property my family owns. This property has been in the family for generations and never before did we have any trouble with it. About two months ago, we wanted to start tearing down the current house on the property, as it was starting to fall into disrepair and while it is still liveable, it won't be more than two years before it would be dangerous to live there. However, as soon as the construction crews started to work there, unexplainable things started happening."

Yasuhara glanced up at the man's pause and, seeming to understand the man's hesitance, smiled reassuringly.

"I know it may seem strange to talk about the supernatural, but please don't worry. It's our job to hear and investigate things like this." Mai nodded brightly at her boss's words and Yaomoto-san seemed slightly reassured, so he carried on.

"Well, it started with little things that could still be explained as the negligence of the workers, such as plans for the dismantling of the house being displaced and tools becoming lost. However, the workers swore it wasn't their doing and as my friend is their boss and vouched for their integrity, I believed them. I thought it could have been some of the children of the village, but had no proof. But I put it out of my mind, as it wasn't so serious.

"Then, one day, one of the workers had an accident. He fell down the stairs and though he wasn't seriously injured, he claimed that someone pushed him. Yet he was the only worker near the house at that stage. As he was fine to work again the next day, having only acquired a couple of bruises, we dismissed it as an accident.

"Yet there was another incident, where another worker had nearly been run over when the bulldozer's brake had somehow been released, despite that no one was operating it or near it. Even if the break had not been working properly, that type of machine is not meant to move that easily on its own, even if it was on a slight incline."

Mai was horrified at how close one of the people there had come to dying, but so far, nothing the man said indicated that it was more than negligence and vandalism. Their client continued speaking, and Mai turned her attention back to him.

"This, while worrying, was not enough for me to stop the project, though I did suspend it for a few days while a full inquiry and check on the machinery was run. After we started again, it seemed that all would go well. However, about a week after we started, things started happening again. One person was injured grievously when a beam fell on him, despite that part of the house not really having been touched yet, due to the setbacks we had, and was admitted to the hospital for a few days. There would also be words carved into the walls of the house, seeing as it's primarily built out of wood."

"What would these words say?" Light glinted off Yasuhara's glasses as he watched the man with a keen eye.

"It would say stuff like 'Leave!' or 'Beware!', though I had thought it more vandalism. Even with the added security, each morning we returned to the house, there would be more words gouged in the wood. The most terrifying thing is that there would be evidence of dried blood, as if whoever had done it had used their own hands to gouge out the words…"

Mai stifled a gasp, thinking about how painful it would be to do that and how desperate this ghost or person would have to be to use their own fingers in such an act.

Or how insane the ghost would have to be.

It reminded her of a case they had taken at an old house, where words would be gouged on the walls in a similar manner. It had turned out to be the ghost of the previous owner's son who had mental problems and was locked in the house.

"Though this was all quite worrying, I had not yet thought to contact someone for supernatural assistance, until the last two weeks. Two weeks ago, I got three separate reports of workers sighting a strange woman around the house and property. She would be dressed in the garb of a miko and would just look at them. Right before they would lose sight of her, she would appear to say something, though they couldn't hear her.

"Then, last week, something finally happened that convinced me I had to seek help.

"My daughter and her friends were playing around the property one day, even though I had warned her not to play there, because it was dangerous. She told me they had a dare of who would go into the haunted house, as they call it, and so she entered it. She still refuses to tell me what happened, but when she came back out…"

The man's voice broke off, his breath seeming to hitch and Mai could see the tears brimming in his eyes.

"Yaomoto-san, it's alright if you can't speak immediately. Take your time." Mai murmured as she smiled gently, pouring the distraught man another cup of tea, which he downed in one go.

Taking a deep breath, he tried to talk again, but seemingly couldn't find the words.

Finally, he just reached into the pocket of his shirt and pulled out three photos. Handing the photos to Yasuhara, Yaomoto-san spoke again and Mai leaned over to get a look at the photos.

What she saw had her gasping as she lifted a hand to her mouth, tears filling her eyes.

"This was on my daughter's body when she came out of the house, crying. I don't know how she got it, as she's six years old and certainly wouldn't do it to herself and that day was a day the workers had off from work, so no one else was there. I was walking around the property, trying to see if there was anything else out of place when I heard her crying and her friends' screaming."

Mai's eyes roved over the photos, her mind in a state of disbelief that someone would do this to a child.

The first photo showed a small girl with dark brown hair baring her back to the camera. Down the middle of her back, the kanji '去る' meaning to 'leave, depart, go away!' was scrawled in red. It looked as if it was written in blood, since the liquid was drying and flaking away.

The next photo was a close up of the girl from the front and showed her covering her modesty while still allowing the viewers to see the next set of kanji markings, which was placed right over her heart. These ones said 'Stay away!' and the writer seemed more agitated.

However, it was the last photo that tore at Mai's heart. It was a close up of the girl's neck and was gruesome to say the least.

All around her neck, like a demented tattooed choker, the words 'I am still here' was repeatedly slashed, like someone had taken a thin blade and lightly carved it into the girl's skin, not enough to cause her to die because her windpipe was damaged, but deep enough that one could see the slight raising of the flesh and Mai knew that if the girl hadn't been found almost immediately, she would have bled out and died.

Yasuhara's face was grim as he studied the photos and Mai suddenly understood why it was so painful for the man to talk about.

"I see. This does warrant extreme concern indeed. If I may ask, where do you live?" The man looked up and Mai could see the hopeful glint in his eyes.

"I live in a small village at the base of Mt. Fuji, called Oshino Hakkai." Mai smiled in excitement as she heard where the case would be if they accepted it, though she was sure Naru would approve it. She had never before been to Mt. Fuji, even though it was only about an hour and a half's drive from Shibuya and she would be excited to see the great volcano.

"Alright. If you would give Mai here your details, we will be there to investigate tomorrow. If I may ask, how far did you get with the demolition of the house?"

"Not very far, since we had all of these set-backs and inquiries. I would say about half of the house has been demolished, but it is fairly big, being modelled after the shinden-zukuri style of the Heian Period, though since it was rebuilt and remodelled twice after the eruptions of Mt. Fuji, it does have modern touches."

"So would it be possible for me and my team to reside in the house itself for the duration of the investigation? And you also mentioned modern touches, does this include electrical outlets and the like?"

"I don't see why not, though I can't be responsible for what may happen. A large part of the house is still structurally sound, however, if we're really dealing with a ghost, I don't know why you would want to sleep in the same residence as it. However, to answer your question, it would be possible and there are rooms that have electrical outlets yes."

Yasuhara grinned as he stood, snapping his laptop shut. "Excellent! If you could prepare three rooms for us, one preferably with a lot of electrical outlets, then we will see you tomorrow."

After getting Yaomoto-san's confirmation, contact details and address, they bid him farewell and Mai turned to her best friend.

She couldn't understand her friend's actions, usually he told the client they would let him know in a few hours if they could accept the case, as they had to consult with Naru.

"Yasu, why did you accept the case without Naru's approval? He's going to be so mad!"

"Oh, my dear Mai, you wound me! Do you not trust my judgement? The kids of these days, they have no faith in their elders! Why, in my days-"

"Yasu!" Mai folded her arms, showing her boss she had no patience for his spiel today and the man grinned, pushing his glasses further up his nose.

"Well, dear Mai-chan, I did in fact ask the Big Boss, as we were interviewing Yaomoto-san and he seemed very interested in this case. So interested in fact, that he's getting the old gang back for it."

"But Yasu, we've been working with the 'old gang' this entire time."

"Minus two." Mai paused at Yasuhara's smug voice and her brow furrowed. Minus two…? Did he mean-

"That's correct! Naru is coming back to Japan!"

Mai didn't know if her heart was beating rapidly in elation… or in dread.

Soooo? What did you think? I know the first chapter seemed kind of slow, especially as it only handles the part where they receive the case, but I promise the next chapter will be the case itself and not just an explanation of it.

Please review, it motivates me to post faster hehe;)