Latest Work

Amano Tsukiko's Fatal Frame Videos

2006-12-25T17:55:00.000-08:00

Someone uploaded both "Chou" and "Koe" on Youtube, and so I thought I'd include them here for us to enjoy while I diligently labor on finishing up the third book in my Zero Shot trilogy. Enjoy!

"Chou" by Amano Tsukiko

This song was the end theme featured in Fatal Frame II: "Crimson Butterfly" (Zero II: "akaichou" in Japan)

"Koe" by Amano Tsukiko

This song was the end them song featured in Fatal Frame III: "The Tormented" (Zero III: "shisei no koe" in Japan)

A Hot New Fatal Frame Video!

2006-03-29T07:50:00.000-08:00

Okay, so it's not the third book in the Zero Shot Trilogy, but thanks to YouTube, I'm able to share with you all another one of my Fatal Frame projects. As always, I'd like feedback, so I can know what you people think.

Enjoy!
Scott

Fatal Frame: Fountain of Blood - Book Two of The Zero Shot Trilogy

2006-03-07T06:22:00.000-08:00

Written by Scott D. McGraw

Well, here it is, after a lot of sleepless nights and weekend writing, the second book in the series. Please be sure to let me know what you think. Enjoy!

Chapter One

“Oh my Lord, don’t you just look like an angel?” Caroline O’Brien beamed at her soon to be daughter-in-law, as she stood there in her wedding gown while getting the hem worked on.

Yuki’s eyes found hers in the mirror and smiled widely. “Thank you, Mama. I still feel so nervous about everything.”

Mrs. O’Brien came over and stood beside her, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. “All brides do, dear. It’s all part of the process.”

“How’s Papa?” The Japanese bride-to-be asked politely.

“Oh, Tom is well. He’s downstairs with the other men, I imagine. Talking about fishing, hunting, football, and whatever else it is that they always talk about.” She replied with a wink.

Yuki faced the mirror and absently watched the seamstress fidget with the edge of her long wedding gown for a moment and chuckled. “I’m really happy. Both of you have been so good to me. I wasn’t sure how Kyle’s parents would feel about him marrying a Japanese woman, but you’ve both been just wonderful.”

Caroline O’Brien sighed. “What are you talking about, Yuki? You were all our son could talk of from the day he met you. We didn’t have a choice but to love you long before we even got the chance to ever meet you. It’s us that have to thank you for taking him off of our hands, you know.”

Yuki reached up and placed a hand over the older woman’s and nodded. “Thank you, Mama. I know I’ve been kind of weird lately, it’s just that, well...you know...I want to be sure I let the people around me know how I really feel about them, because you...”

The pretty Asian woman’s almond shaped eyes began to tear up, which brought Caroline in even closer as she hugged the woman tightly. “I know, dear. It’s all right. I understand. I know it’s not been easy for either of you dealing with Ronnie’s and Azusa’s deaths, but chin up. You’re going to want to honor them with good memories, not tears.”

Yuki nodded, as she wiped away some of the moisture from her face. “I know, you’re right. I’ll do my best.”

“That’s all we can ever do.”

“Thank you.” Yuki sighed. “Ah, you didn’t see Kyle downstairs anywhere did you? He said he was going to take me over to the mall to look at some bedroom furniture later today.”

Mrs. O’Brien nodded. “When Tom and I came in the church he was busy talking to Father Wilkerson at the time. I expect that he’s done now and waiting for you. But tell me, does this mean you both are now considering getting a place here in Tacoma, after all? I thought his job required you both to still live in Osaka.

Yuki carefully slid out of the wedding gown with the help of the seamstress and pulled on her tee-shirt to go with the jeans that she was already wearing, drawing another comment from the other. “I hope you don’t plan to wear Old Navy casual wear under your dress on your wedding day.”

The Japanese woman laughed. “No Mama, silk stockings and heels, I promise. As far as living here goes though, neither of us have really decided yet. The firm Kyle works for requires us to travel back and forth from Japan and America so much that we end up spending about an equal amount of time in both places. Mr. Hasagawa had even told Kyle that if he preferred to live here in America, he would arrange it so that it would be possible.”

“I see. What do you think?”

“Well,” Yuki began, “I can see benefits either way. On one hand, all of you are over here, whereas I no longer have much in the way of family back home, so I can see how being close to everyone is a good thing.”

“And on the other?”

“On the other, Kyle really loves Japan. For him, its still a real unique experience to live there. I feel the same about living here, and really love America. But just as long as we’re together, it doesn’t really matter to me, so I'll let him choose.”

The older woman smiled and nodded. “Well whatever you both decide, Tom and I’ll support your decision. But just remember, it’ll be hard to be a good grandma with an ocean between us.”

“Ah, kids!” The young woman’s eyes went wide in mock shock. “Didn’t Kyle and I tell you? We’re not having them. We’ve decided to have a lot of pets instead.”

“Oh, you be quiet.” She swatted Yuki on the shoulder. “C’mon, let’s go see what that son of mine is up to.”

“I’m telling you Dad, I really think the ‘hawks have a chance of going all the way this year.” The younger O’Brien argued with his dad as Father Wilkerson eagerly nodded his agreement.

“I think the boy’s right, Tom.” The balding clergyman stated. “They’ve been surprising us a lot lately, and their record is the best it’s ever been. I can see them going all the way, with the Lord’s help, of course.”

Old Tom O’Brien wasn’t so easily convinced and had always been a fairly stubborn man, especially when it came to football. “I don’t know, Father. Seattle’s got a good team and all, I can’t deny it. But the Super Bowl? I just don’t know. Seems too unbelievable to me.”

Kyle slammed a fist into an open palm. “That’s because you haven’t really been watching them, Dad. They really are a good team this year. Things are really clicking for them. I really think they’re gonna go all the way.”

“Well...” The older O’Brien gave in a little. “That’s true. I guess I got pretty much put off with them after old Steve Largent retired. Now there was one hell of a wide receiver.” He quickly turned the priest’s way. “Oh, pardon, Father.”

The priest waved the colorful comment away. “Quite all right. And you’re right. Steve Largent was a real class act, both on and off of the field. It’s a shame he never got to wear a Super Bowl ring for all his talent, though.”

“Yeah, him and Dave Krieg, Zorn too, were-”

“Just as I thought.” Caroline O’Brien interrupted her husband’s reverie. “I knew you’d all be talking about football or something equally just as unimportant. There’s a wedding in less than a week, and all you men do is talk sports.”

“Relax, dear.” Tom sighed, knowing his wife was just teasing. “It’s all well under control. The Father here was just telling Kyle and I about the schedule for Saturday a few minutes before you two came along.”

“Hey, baby.” Kyle wrapped an arm around Yuki’s slim waist and drew her into a kiss. “You done here for today?”

The beautiful Japanese woman nodded. “Yep. Remember your promise?”

“The Tacoma Mall, right? Ready when you are.”

“Oh, I’ve got you so well trained.” She punched his shoulder playfully as she looked into his deep blue eyes.

Tom stepped between them. “Run son, while you still can. I’m telling you it all goes down hill once you say ‘I do’ and put the ring on her finger.”

“Is that so?” Caroline punched his shoulder much harder than Yuki had Kyle’s.

“See what I mean, son? Nothing but abuse.” He winked.

“Well, it can’t be too bad, Papa. You and Mama have been married for over thirty years.”

“That’s just a bad rumor I’ve not been able to stop.”

“Careful Dad. I think Mom’s gonna blow a gasket if you keep it up.”

Caroline looked her son’s way. “Blown gaskets will be the least of his misery if he keeps that mouth of his running.”

The older O’Brien placed an arm around his stiff wife and forced her in close. “Ah, everyone knows I’m playin’. I love my little ‘Peach Cobbler’ more than words can say.”

“Peach Cobbler?” Father Wilkerson arched an eyebrow.

“Don’t ask Father.” Kyle held up his hands. “It’s a dumb story best saved for their Golden Anniversary celebration, which thankfully is still nearly twenty years away. C’mon, Yuki, we’d better make a break for it.”

“But, I want to hear about it.” She protested. “I think it’s cute. You don’t call me anything but Yuki. How come you don’t have a pet name for me?”

Kyle dragged her away by her arm. “Okay, ‘Muffin’, I’ll tell you in the car.”

The three older people laughed as the young Japanese woman was pulled away, stating loudly that she didn’t like the name ‘Muffin’.

An hour later they were both at a small bedroom store at the local mall looking at some of the possible furniture they might get if they did end up letting go of their apartment over in Osaka and moved back to the United States for good. The young man ran a hand over his short blond haircut as he considered the current piece before them. “Well, what about this one?”

Yuki inclined her head while biting at her lower lip and looked somewhat apprehensive. “I like the color, but I’m not sure about the style. This seems too...oh, I don’t know.”

The young man sighed, working hard to maintain a patient tone. “Of the eight we’ve looked at so far, how does it compare?”

Yuki knelt and pulled out one of the drawers, then closed it, testing the quality. “Definitely the best, but still not quite right.”

“Uh, man.” Kyle sighed again. “You keep looking. I’m going to go look at video games.”

The young woman grabbed his shirt sleeve faster than he’d thought possible. “Oh no you don’t, Mr. O’Brien. You’re stuck here with me, like it or not. Now what about this one?” She didn’t bother to look his way, but simply pulled him to the next piece of bedroom furniture.

“Looks good to me.” He whimpered. “As long as I can put my clothes in and take them out again, I’m happy.”

She cast him a wry look. “That’s why God made women. You men have no sense of taste for these things and need our strong guidance, you know?”

“You’ve been in America too long.” He responded dryly.

“Shut up.” She then looked over at a pretty vanity with a large mirror attached to it. “Oh, this is cute!”

“If you say so.”

This time the young woman turned and faced him. She was about to scold him, then sighed with a smile. “Well, you have been a good boy for a lot longer than I’d expected. Okay, I guess you can take a break. Go look at your video games for a little while then come back. I’ll do the thinking for us both on this little project.”

Kyle quickly kissed her on the cheek and told her goodbye before she could get another word out, happily running off towards the game store.

“Men.” She rolled her eyes as she stared at herself in the big mirror. She was absently brushing a few strands of stray hair aside when she saw something briefly appear behind her reflection that made her jump. She quickly turned around, but there was nothing there.

She closed her eyes and steadied herself, then looked around once more. There was no one around except her and a sales person several feet away talking with another customer. I’ve got to stop being so jumpy. This is ridiculous. She admonished herself for the uneasy feelings she’d been experiencing with growing intensity over the last several months, believing them all to be stress related.

It wasn’t as if the ghost of Kasumi Nagoya would just show up in a mall on the other side of the Pacific Ocean just to say 'hi', after all. Yuki didn’t know why the child’s spirit had been appearing in her mind as of lately, and just wrote it off as being nerves about the upcoming wedding.

These days she did her best to not think about the events over a year and a half ago and rarely discussed them with Kyle. They’d both agreed to bury that nightmare in the past and do their best not to look back. Even though she knew she could confide in him if she needed to, she simply didn’t want to drag him into her senseless anxieties and cause the bad memories to fill his mind once more. Since they all revolved around the wedding, once it happened and life returned to a normal pace, she fully expected the odd feelings to go away on their own.

That’s what she told herself, but still she found herself dwelling on the image she thought she saw, and the look of pain and anguish on the small child’s face. More reason to believe her mind was playing tricks on her, she concluded. The last time she saw the little spirit, she’d been quite happy and at peace with her newly serene mother, Taeko. She had no reason to think anything had changed for them and tried to force the disturbing thoughts away.

She spent another twenty minutes or so looking absently at the things about her, no longer really into it when Kyle returned and handed her a soft pretzel.

“There wasn’t anything I liked, so I got us something to snack on. You find anything you really like?” He asked with a mouthful of the soft baked dough.

Yuki shook her head, staying silent.

“You okay?” Kyle noticed that her demeanor seemed subdued and her enthusiasm gone. “Hey, I’m sorry. I know I should have stayed with you. I-”

She took his hand in hers. “No, it’s okay, really. I was just thinking about something else.”

“You sure?” He asked with suspicion. “You’re gonna make me pay later, I know it.”

“Hmmm.” She forced herself to smile. “Maybe I should punish you after all.”

He held up the items he bought from the food court. “Hey, I did buy you a pretzel and Coke. At least take that into consideration before you hurt me too badly.”

She snatched the Coke from him. “This was yours and you know it, but I’m gonna take it anyway, now that you’ve said that.”

He smiled sheepishly. “Can we share?”

“No.”

“Just a sip?” He pleaded as they walked out of the store.

“I said no.” She tried to be firm. He then grabbed her waist, causing her to giggle loudly and nearly drop the food. “Okay fine, you big baby! Just...let...me...go.”

“Oh, that’s right. I forgot you’re ticklish, aren’t you?” He refused to let her go just quite yet.

She started to turn red and squirmed endlessly while making all sorts of squealing noises. “Stop Kyle! You...jerk!”

He then stopped and looked around to see a few people looking their way with serious
expressions. “Okay, okay.”

She pulled free from him and spun around, with her hand up ready to slap him. She was considering doing just that, but the playful look on his face and the boyish smile got to her. Just as it somehow always managed to do in times like these.

“One of these days, I’m really going to slap you. You can be so embarrassing at times.” She admonished as she struggled to catch her breath and wiped the tears from her face. “You can’t help it though, can you? God, you’re such a kid.”

Kyle’s smile broadened as he inched his way into her. “But you love me so much it drives you crazy, doesn’t it?”

The young Japanese woman stared at him with a look of awe. Slowly, a smile filled her face and she kissed him on the mouth. It was true. She loved Kyle O’Brien so deeply, mere words couldn’t express what was in her heart. She gazed longingly at his well built and toned body with broad shoulders, the thick arms that made her feel safe from any and every dark thing when held by them and conceded. “Lucky for you I do, you big jerk.”

The two then headed back home to his parents house where they were staying until after the wedding and spent the rest of the day watching television and relaxing. Later that night they flopped on his bed and stared at the ceiling of his old room they’d been using while away from their apartment in Japan. There were still a bunch of things in there just as he’d left them more than five years ago when he’d moved out to go to college, and Yuki was absently looking some of them over.

“You liked anime a lot, didn’t you?” Yuki said with an odd tone as she stared at an old Dragonball Z poster. “Ookii otaku datta ne.” She then called him in Japanese to herself.

He sat up. “Hey, I was no dork. I mean, yeah, I liked anime. Still do. But I wasn’t like those guys who go to Akihabara all the time and buy figurines of ten year old girls in swim suits, you know.”

“Yeah, sure. I bet if I open your closet, I’ll find a bunch of pornographic comics lying in shoe boxes along with other weird stuff.”

“Go ahead and look.” He challenged.

“No, that’s okay. I’m sure it’s there, so I don’t have to see it. Just admit to me you’re a big dork and I’ll leave you alone.”

“No way.” He said as he rolled over and pinned her beneath him, making her giggle again.

“Hey, we’re in your parents house, remember?”

“They won’t be back until later, Muffin. So there’s no one here to rescue you.”

The Japanese woman giggled some more. “Who said I needed or wanted to be rescued?”

Later that night after spending some intimate time together, Kyle awakened to the soft murmuring sounds Yuki was making beside him and quietly listened for a few minutes. She seemed to be having some kind of nightmare, but he couldn’t make out any of words that she was saying. He then gently rubbed her arm while softly calling her name. “Yuki? Yuki, wake up.”

The young woman slowly opened her eyes and looked at him.

“You were talking in your sleep. It sounded like you were having a nightmare or something.” He whispered.

“Was I?” She yawned. “I don’t remember if I was of not. I’m okay now, so go back to sleep. Sorry I woke you.”

Kyle watched as she turned over and put her back to him, then laid back down and closed his eyes. Yuki however still had hers open and was now fully awake, thinking on the still fresh and vivid images of her bad dream. Why the hell she had to dream about House Ogami of all things really bothered her. Once the wedding was over, she reminded herself, all things would return to normal.

On impulse, she turned back over and called Kyle’s name softly, now that she was awake.

He stirred and popped his eyes open. “What’s wrong, Muffin?”

Despite her inner turmoil she laughed for a brief moment. “I keep telling you not to call me that.” A moment later she became distant again.

“What’s wrong?” He repeated, seeing that she was clearly not okay.

She looked nervously around for a moment, then inhaled sharply. “Kyle, I know we agreed to not bring up some things about the past, but I’ve been thinking about something, and I need to hear your thoughts on it.”

Of course he immediately knew what she meant and sank back into the pillows. After a moment, he responded in quiet tones. “What’s on your mind?”

“Well.” She hesitated a bit. “It’s about Ronnie and Azusa.”

“What about them?”

She nestled her head in close to his. “Where are they?”

The question caught him totally off guard and he fumbled with it for a moment before answering. “What do you mean?”

“Just that. Where are they, Kyle? In heaven, or some place good like that, right?” The young woman’s voice was tight and strained.

Kyle pulled her in close to him. “I suppose so. I was raised to believe in God, and do. I think our experiences have proven the spirit world to be more real than most could ever really imagine. I’m not really certain of some things, but I believe God’s taking care of them now.” He stroked her long hair gently. “What’s making you think about this kind of thing right now?”

Yuki laid her head on his chest and tried to articulate her thoughts as best she could. “Well, I’ve had a lot of time, we both have actually, to think about everything that happened back then and I’ve been thinking about something.”

“Go on.”

“Well, under any other set of circumstances, I could think like you do, but because of the way they died, I’m just not so sure.” She paused awkwardly for a moment then found the words and continued. “At the time when we’d all crashed, House Ogami and the property all around it were under a curse, right?”

Kyle stopped stroking her hair as he considered her question. “Yeah, that’s right. What are you getting at?”

“Well, I was thinking that because of that, wouldn’t that mean that because we lost them during that time that they’d have become a part of the curse and may now be bound to the estate, just as the rest who have fallen there have been?”

He kept silent as she looked up into his eyes in the darkened room, barely seeing his face in the moonlight as it poured through his window.

“I mean, if neither Ayukawa-san or Ogami-sama could-”

“I don’t know.” He cut her off quietly, now feeling a bit uncertain of himself. “I guess I never really let myself think about it or consider that possibility. Do you think that they may be trapped there as well?”

Yuki shrugged beneath the warm blanket, indicating her own uncertainty.

The young man inhaled and exhaled slowly several times as he turned the possibility over and over in his mind. “My God, what if it’s true? Why had I never thought about this? What if we left them there all this time, and-”

This time Yuki cut him off gently with a hand to his mouth. “Hey, it’s not our fault, even if that is the case, which we still don’t know. How could we know, Kyle? How can we really know anything? And even if we did know, just what were we supposed to do about it, anyway?”

“You trying to convince me of something?” He asked in strained tones.

She shook her head. “Trying to convince me.”

“I guess we were so quick to put those events behind us we never stopped to consider some things.” He said thoughtfully.

“I don’t know what to think, other than I’ve just had them on my mind so much lately, especially because of the wedding.” She said.

“I know, me too. He was supposed to have been my best man, and Azusa your bridesmaid.”

After several long moments of each being caught up in their silent thoughts, Kyle finally spoke again. “Look, the truth is, we were lucky to have escaped from that place with our lives as it is. Or maybe God helped us, I don’t know. We can’t expect to ever have all the answers on this, and I think we’ll end up just torturing ourselves with all these ‘what ifs’. I think whatever fate the both of them have shared is in God’s hands, not ours.”

Yuki remained silent for a while then nodded faintly. “You’re right. I just wish I knew more about this kind of thing. I mean, why is it you and I are able to sense and feel things most other people can’t? Why were we given this ability to begin with?”

He sighed. “Muffin, your guess is as good as mine.”

He suddenly felt an elbow in his ribs that made him cry out.

“You’d better stop calling me that or I’ll have to do something mean to you. Who calls people ‘Muffin’ anyway, except old people in the yacht club?”

“No, that’s more like ‘Muffie’.” He suggested. “I definitely think you’re ‘muffin’ material. Besides you’re the one who started all this.”

“Oh shut up.” She nestled in close and closed her eyes.

Chapter Two

The rest of the week passed by without incident and then suddenly the big day was upon them. The wedding wasn’t a huge one, but had many of Kyle’s family present, as well as some childhood friends and several of his parents friends as well. Kyle had no brothers, but sisters were a plenty, two older and two younger with him dead in the middle. His oldest sister, Caitlin, a fiery red-head of twenty-nine, spotted her little brother several minutes before the ceremony and came over to speak with him.

“Well, my dorky little brother actually managed to do it.” She teased. “I’m really happy for you both. Yuki’s such a nice girl. You did good, kid.”

Kyle breathed hard. “Thanks, sis. I appreciate that.”

She smiled and took out a handkerchief and quickly blotted his forehead with it. “My God, you look nervous as hell. Don’t worry, I don’t think she’ll chicken out.”

He smiled awkwardly. “I’m not worried about that. Just plain nervous in general, I guess.”

“Well calm yourself. You’re starting to sweat.” She continued to dab at his face. “I’m kind of surprised that she has no family here, though. I thought the Japanese were really big on family and that kind of thing.”

Kyle looked out into the crowded church and nodded. “Yeah, well, she does have some family, but they’re sort of estranged. Her parents both died a few years back, and she has a sister over in Hokkaido somewhere.” He became solemn as he continued. “Azusa Umino was her best friend and closest thing to family she ever really had, I think.”

Caitlin nodded once. “Yeah. I’m sorry that I never had the chance to meet her. Your friend Ron I met once. He seemed like a real nice guy.”

“Thanks. He was. But hey, I don’t wanna think about them right now.” He placed a hand on her shoulder. “By the way, thanks for filling in as her bridesmaid, that means a lot to both of us. Same goes for Shelly, Kim and Jen. You all look really great today.”

The eldest daughter of the O’Brien family smirked. “Well, that’s a twist. I don’t think you’ve ever told me or our sisters that kind of thing before.”

He laughed. “Well, it’s true. You guys are the best. Today I’ll make sure you all know it, then tomorrow we can go back to normal.”

“You’re still a dork though.” She kissed him lightly on the cheek. “I better get back to the rest. The ceremony is about to start, so don’t even think about running away, you nerd.”

He waved his hand. “I won’t, don’t worry. I’ve paid good money for the tux and won’t
waste it.”

A moment later Kyle’s father came up behind him and slapped his back. “I heard Cate saying something about you running away. You know the Seahawks are going up against Washington today. We can still make it to the sports bar if we hurry.”

Kyle started to say something, but Tom O’Brien cut him off with a smile. “Only joking, son. Even football takes a back seat to today.”

“I know.” Kyle returned the smile, finally starting to relax a bit. “Damn, this monkey suit is uncomfortable.”

“Tell, me about it.” The elder O’Brien agreed as he pulled at the black bow tie with a finger. “This thing’s gonna choke me to death. But, you’re the one who wanted his old man as his best man.”

Kyle looked his father in the eyes. “Yeah, thanks for taking care of that for me. Besides, you really are the best guy I know.”

“Ah, don’t get all soft on me, boy.” He chuckled. “And as if that weren’t enough, I got to give away your bride too.” Tom put his arm around his son loosely. “Truth be told, boy, I’m really proud of you today. You’ve become a man I’m proud to call son. I think you did really good with Yuki. She’s a doll.”

Kyle returned his father’s embrace. “Thanks, Dad. You’re the best. But Cate was right, we’re about to start, so we better go find our places. You still got the ring, right?”

Tom O’Brien fumbled in his pocket for a second and feigned a surprised look. “I think I left it in the can.”

“Dad.” Kyle shook his head as they both laughed and walked away.

“Yuki, you look gorgeous!” Jennifer O’Brien, Kyle’s sixteen year old sister beamed at her as they all waited in the bridal room.

“Domo arigatou, Sakura-chan. The young Japanese bride-to-be smiled and bowed, thanking and calling Jennifer by her chosen Japanese name. “I couldn’t have done all of this without your help.”

The youngest O’Brien returned the bow and replied. “Dou itashimashite.” Meaning ‘don’t mention it.’

The younger girl, like Kyle was eager to learn the Japanese language and practiced with Yuki every opportunity she had. The rest of Kyle’s sisters were all grown and lived away from home either with their own husbands or were still in college, so she never really got to know them as well as Jennifer.

The other two sisters, Shelly and Kim watched the pair with smiles. “You really are beautiful Yuki.” Shelly spoke, drawing the other woman’s eyes to her own. “Kyle’s a lucky guy.”

“So he better treat you good, or we’ll have to beat him up like we did when was a kid.” Kim, the second youngest and quite tom-boyish girl stated with a broad smile.

Yuki laughed. “Thanks. Don’t worry, your brother really is a sweet guy and very good to me.”

The pair looked at each other and Kim started to tease her a bit. “Yeah, but he likes to wear dresses. We used to catch him all the time sneaking into our rooms and trying stuff on when he thought we weren’t around .”

“Really?” Yuki looked surprised.

“You two be quiet.” Jennifer admonished. “Don’t listen to them, they’re full of it.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m joking.” Kim laughed.

Yuki shrugged her shoulders. “Oh. Well I think he’d look sort of cute in a girl’s sailor style school uniform. I think I still have mine back from high school, and I might be able to squeeze him into it.” This caused them all to laugh loudly. Yuki was still laughing when she turned to face the mirror in order to adjust her veil and jumped visibly.

Shelly ran forward, thinking she was about to fall. “Yuki, you okay? What’s wrong?”

The Japanese woman continued to stare into the full length mirror as the image of a torn and haunted Kasumi Nagoya stared back at her with a silent look that seemed to beg for help in her hollow eyes. The image lasted for several long seconds then gradually faded.

“Yuki!”

The woman snapped out of her thoughts to the voices of three concerned women beside her. They were all looking at her and exchanging worried glances.

“You okay? Do you feel sick or something?” Shelly asked her as she firmly held on to her arm.

“Sit her down. Jenny, get her some water.” Kim turned to the youngest girl who nodded and started to run off.

Yuki quickly called out after her. “No, no, I’m fine. I’m okay.”

“What happened?” Jennifer asked as she moved back toward her, still looking very concerned.

Yuki exhaled slowly and wished she could answer that question herself, but instead tried to give a reassuring answer to her bridesmaids. “I’m not sure. I think it was just nerves, that’s all. I felt a little shock and got a little dizzy, but I’m okay now, really.”

The three looked her over a bit more, then reluctantly moved away.

“If you say so.” Kim stated.

Yuki’s eyes drifted back over to the mirror, but saw nothing but her own reflection and those of the other women within. Something was happening that she could no longer write off as being her own mind playing tricks on her. Kasumi Nagoya was there, there was no doubt in her mind. She was still trying to figure out what was happening when Caitlin suddenly entered the room.

“Ready, Sis?” She called to Yuki. “They’re starting now.”

Yuki looked over at her and forced a calm smile. “I’m ready.”

The old Catholic cathedral suddenly became alive with the sounds of pipe organ music as “Here comes the Bride” filled the place and immediately drew all eyes towards the back of the long hall. With her arm in his, Yuki Tachibana and Tom O’Brien walked slowly down the aisle toward a waiting groom, followed by her four bridesmaids all dressed in light pink gowns. All that is, except the beautiful bride who wore an extravagant long white gown with yards of flowing material trailing behind her.

Yuki was nothing short of a stunning bride with a near perfect figure that made the whole event seem like a fairy tale. She looked radiant as she smiled beneath the thin veil that covered her face and betrayed none of the distracting feelings that still lingered in her mind from the odd event only minutes before. She soon found herself standing beside the man she was about to marry and blushed as he hid none of his awe for her beauty.

“My God, you look incredible!” He whispered, unable to restrain himself bringing a hushing sound from Father Wilkerson.

“Yeah, ain’t she the juiciest apple in the bucket.” Tom O’Brien whispered back, drawing another warning glare from the balding priest.

“Will you two be quiet?” He admonished. “We’re before God now. You’ll have time for fruit related anecdotes later. But for the record Kyle, she’s a real gem among gems.” He winked, causing the blushing bride to turn even more red. “Ahem, now let’s begin.”

“Dearly beloved, esteemed family friends, we are gathered on this most joyful occasion to bear witness to the joining of two of God’s precious children in holy matrimony...”

The pair could barely hear the old priest as they looked into each others eyes, lost in the feelings of love and excitement each one of them held for the other. They’d gone through so much together in the few short years they’d known each other, most of which was good and pleasurable, but not all of it. Neither could really believe the day they’d often dreamt of was finally upon them.

Yuki looked like an angel in Kyle’s eyes and couldn’t envision any other woman he’d rather spend the rest of his life with. She was his soul mate, through and through. Even though she beamed radiantly back at him with love and joy filling her beautiful almond shaped eyes, he noticed the smallest of unsettled looks within them as well. Something had unnerved her, he could sense, and would have to ask about it later.

When a certain part of the ceremony finally came and Father Wilkerson asked those gathered if any held objections to their union, and when no one had, the old priest smiled and nodded. “Then by the powers invested in me by God, and the State of Washington, I now pronounce you both husband and wife.” He paused for a moment and gazed upon them both. “You may now kiss the bride.”

Together, the couple lifted her veil and locked eyes. A moment later, Kyle drew Mrs. O’Brien into a long and passionate kiss, bringing a loud round of applause from all those gathered. Yuki began to cry and held onto him for several long seconds, burying her face into his strong chest and held him tightly. Kyle returned her embrace and whispered “I love you”, softly into her ear.

“I love you, too.” She mouthed back in the barest of whispers, feeling like she never ever wanted to let him go. He looked so manly at that moment, in his sharp black tuxedo and rugged smelling cologne. But more than just the way he appeared today had stirred her heart deeply. He was also the proven prince of her dreams who’d literally slew a dragon to protect her. Not with a sword, but a camera of all things. He’d given all of himself to her and for her, and now she was able to do the same for him by becoming his bride.

No matter what, she would follow him and stand beside him. After another moment, she slowly pulled away and wiped at her face with a handkerchief. Father Wilkerson then raised both of his hands and placed them gently on the couple’s shoulders and spoke loudly with pride to all those gathered. “It is my pleasure to present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Kyle Robert O’Brien.” The applause grew in intensity and the young couple embraced and kissed once more.

The reception soon followed the wonderful event and both Kyle and Yuki spent time shaking hands and thanking those in attendance. About an hour later, Tom O’Brien passed by, sans the restrictive bow-tie and whispered in Kyle’s ear. “Guess you were right son. The ‘hawks just took the Redskins 20-10, final score.”

Kyle shook his head and laughed. “That’s awesome, Dad. Today’s got it all, huh?”

“You bet, son.” The elder O’Brien patted him on the shoulder. “Isn’t it about time you took that bride of yours away and got to honeymoonin’? You got a flight to catch here pretty soon, you know?”

Kyle looked at his watch. “Yeah, I guess so. I appreciate you and Mom taking us to the airport. That and everything else. You guys have been really great.”

“No sweat. You just make sure you take damn good care of her, and get used to saying ‘yes, dear’ a lot, and you’ll do all right.”

“I’ll remember that, Dad.” The young man pulled his own bow-tie loose and cast a look over at his bride as she was talking to some guests and thanking them for coming. “The flight to Tokyo’s gonna be a long one. I just wish we could skip it and magically appear at the Ryokan where we’re staying.”

“The rio-what?” He asked.

“Oh, sorry. The hotel. A ryokan is a traditional Japanese style hotel with hotsprings and stuff. It’s really cool. You and Mom would love it.”

“Yeah, well I take your word for it, son. How about another ten minutes?”

Kyle nodded. “Sure. I’ll go get Yuki and we’ll say a final goodbye.”

After a few minutes of departing words and final thanks, accompanied by hugs and kisses, the new O’Brien couple and elder one set off to Sea-Tac International Airport and bid their final good-byes.

With tears and smiles, the four split in two as Tom and Caroline watched their son and new daughter-in-law head through the security checkpoint. “Well, honey, guess that’s it.” Tom remarked, a bit misty eyed.

His wife turned to him and chuckled. “What’s this, the rough and tough Tom O’Brien shedding tears? How sweet.”

He looked back at her without apology. “Yeah, guess I’m a little choked up. My only boy really became a man today. I’m proud of him.”

“Me too, dear.” She said as she pulled him in and looped an arm in his. “C’mon, let’s go home.”

The two sat next to each other in the first-class section of the plane as it taxied down the runway, feeling much more comfortable now in their casual clothes. Kyle now wore a simple pair of jeans with a tee-shirt, while Yuki wore a short pink dress with heels. Kyle had a hard time keeping his eyes off her nylon covered knees as she crossed her legs seductively in the seat next to him.

“Why did you wear such an alluring outfit? You’re driving me crazy.” The young man whispered in her ear as they shared the row alone.

“Because I wanted to tease you terribly the whole way back and make you really burn for me by the time we got there.”

“You’re off to a good start. Ronnie was right. You are evil.” He turned away from her, feeling sexually frustrated.

“Pardon?” She inquired.

Kyle huffed and faced her once more. “Well, that last day we were all together and were all sitting in the onsen, he told me he thought you were evil.”

“He did? Why?” She asked innocently.

“Because you were looking particularly hot that day in your bikini and told me that later that night you’d wear it out of the shower for me and let me do whatever I wanted with you afterwards.” Kyle answered, recalling the event in detail.

“I said that? I don’t remember.” She replied, while popping a stick of chewing gum into her mouth. “He must have heard me or something.”

“Right on the money, Muffin.” Kyle stated dryly. “The sad thing is you never made good on that promise.”

She smiled and blew in his ear. “I can’t help it that I’m such a tease when it comes to you. But do not fear, I will more than make up for it when we get settled in at our romantic getaway.”

Kyle O’Brien did not doubt it for a second as the young woman re-crossed her shapely legs and looked out the plane’s small window. Deciding to try and take his mind off of her physically, he changed the subject.

“Hey, I wanna ask you something.”

She nodded. “Okay, what’s on your mind?”

He took her hand in his, but kept a serious look in his eye. “Well, it’s probably nothing, but earlier when we were at the alter, I thought I saw an odd look in your eye. I couldn’t ask you at the time if anything was wrong, but now I can and wanted to if something was bothering you.”

She didn’t expect this from him, and so didn’t have time to put up a front. “Ah...well...it was nothing really.”

He knew her far better than anyone and could tell when she was lying. He gently squeezed her hand even tighter. “Yuki. Don’t lie to me. Something upset you, I can tell. Share it with me, please.”

She felt really on the spot and wished he wouldn’t corner her like this, but when she saw the concern in his eyes she felt herself melt like ice cream under the sun and couldn’t stay quiet about it. “You really know how to drag stuff out of me, don’t you?”

Kyle inclined his head, thinking he heard an edge in her voice that made him think he might have pushed her too hard. “Well, I guess if you say you’re fine, I won’t push you, it’s just that-”

She leaned into him and kissed him with a pop on his lips. “It’s okay. I’ll tell you. I just didn’t want to bring this kind of stuff up on our honeymoon and spoil the mood.”

He flicked her forehead gently with his finger and smiled. “It’s a very long flight, we’ve got time for the ‘mood’ later. What’s bothering you, honey?”

“Well. I know this is going to sound really strange, and I don’t want you to think I’m losing my mind, but...”

“But?”

She inhaled nervously and spoke slowly. “I’ve been having some really bad dreams off and on for the last several months, and more and more frequently as we got closer to the wedding.”

“Bad dreams?” He inquired gently. “About what in particular?”

She placed her other hand over his. “I think you know.”

He nodded once. “Yeah, I guess I do. I often have dreams about it too. I think it’s only natural that we would though.”

“I agree.” She said. “But...mine are always about the same thing, and never seem to make sense. Not only that, but...” She paused and looked deep into his eyes, assessing him. “I’ve also been...seeing things lately.”

“Seeing things?” He questioned, suddenly feeling his pulse begin to quicken. “Seeing things like what?”

“You’ll think I’m crazy. I mean there’s no way I could actually be seeing her for real. I’m certain it’s just anxiety over the wedding and-”

Kyle lifted a hand and placed it over her mouth gently, his eyes reflecting a look of sudden concern. “When you say her, are you talking about...Nagoya-chan?”

Yuki’s eyes went wide with shock as she stared back into her husband’s and saw the look of discomfort in his. “How did you-”

Again he cut her off, and his voice took on a strange tone to it. “When you saw her, how did she look to you?”

The Japanese woman stared at him for several seconds before answering. “She looked pained. Ragged. Afraid.”

Kyle looked away from her and sank back into the seat, staring blankly out in front of him.

“Kyle?” She whispered. “Kyle, you’re scaring me. What’s going on? How did you know about Nagoya-chan?”

Kyle O’Brien closed his eyes and whispered weakly. “Because I’ve been seeing her too, in mirrors and things.”

Yuki was astonished. “What? Why didn’t you tell me?”

Kyle looked her way again. “Probably for the same reasons you didn’t want to tell me. I didn’t want to worry you, and thought it was just nerves about the wedding and stuff, like you said.”

The young Asian nodded slowly and sank back into her chair as the plane’s jets began to push them forward and up into the overcast sky above Seattle. “Then I’m not crazy or losing my mind.”

She felt the hand squeeze hers again. “No, Muffin, you’re not.”

“Then what does this mean, Kyle?” She gave him a worried and fearful look.

“I don’t know. But it seems that we’re still somehow connected to that estate and the spirits within. Other than that, I’m at a total loss.”

“This is really weird and spooky.” She added, sinking back into her seat while holding his hand.

Kyle agreed. “You’re telling me.

Chapter Three

After a long and restless flight, the young couple disembarked from the plane and quietly headed off to get their baggage. For several seconds neither spoke, apparently still lost in their own thoughts, but then suddenly Yuki stopped in mid-stride, causing her new husband to bump into her from behind.

She spun about and faced him, letting out a sigh. “Okay, you know what?”

Kyle looked down into her smiling face and waited for her to continue.

“This is our honeymoon, and I’m not about to let anything distract us or pull us down. I have absolutely no idea what any of the things we’ve been seeing and dreaming about mean, but we are entitled to our lives, and I say we move on with them. These are all just pointless by-products of our own anxieties, right? Let’s just forget about it all and just concentrate in indulging ourselves in each other. That should take care of whatever our problems are, right?”

The young man slowly returned her smile. “Right. You’re right. So we’ve been seeing ‘dead people’ lately. Not so unusual for us, I suppose.”

Yuki laughed a little, catching his indirect reference to one of Hollywood’s more famous ghost movies to come out a few years ago. Getting off the plane, stretching and joking around did quite a bit to break the morbid tension both had felt after discovering the odd coincidence concerning Kasumi Nagoya’s strange appearances over the last few months.

The blond man then added, “Well, we can really think about it later, but for now this is our time and no one or nothing is going to get in the way of that. If something strange is going on at that old place, it’s not our concern.”

The sexy Nihonjin woman tilted her head and lifted an eyebrow. “Why do I get the feeling that you’re thinking of something you shouldn’t be? You’re not honestly thinking we’d ever go back there to find out are you?”

The man shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. Not if we can help it, but you never know.”

Yuki dropped her smile and became serious with just a trace of fear in her eye. “Now look, Kyle. Promise me that no matter what, you’ll never go near that creepy old place ever again. We had our share. If something is going on there, it’s best that we stay as far away as possible.”

The other noted the tension beginning to build again and placed an arm around her. “Okay, okay. Let’s not talk about it or worry about it." He let his hand drift down the back of her short pink dress and rest on her butt. “We’ve got plans that don’t involve deranged Shinto priests or murdered house servants.”

Her smile returned as she whispered in his ear. “You are so bad.”

The young newlyweds spent several days together resting, relaxing and everything else newly married couples do, while tucked away at a beautiful little onsen in the Tokyo area. Neither spoke of anything having to do with the ghost-child, though each of them still dreamt of her often enough. After more than a week of paradise together just doing whatever came to their minds, both started to feel a bit restless, and so Yuki suggested that they return to their apartment in Osaka and check on things. It had been more than a month and a half since she and Kyle had been there, and they both wanted to see how things were.

The next day they found themselves at their place having taken a quiet train ride and Yuki noted the mailbox to be nearly breaking at the seams. “Damn, I asked Kobayashi-san to hold our mail until the tenth.”

“Looks like she goofed. Half is probably bills and the other, junk anyway.” The other observed, not really concerned. “We’ll have to ask ‘kanrinin’ about it later.” He used the Japanese title for landlord.

“Yeah, no sense worrying about it.” She unlocked the mailbox and placed all the mail in a bag.

The pair slowly wandered up the flight of stairs to the second floor where their apartment was, and Yuki quickly brushed past him, putting her key in the lock and pulling the door open.

“Hey, I think I was supposed to carry you over the threshold or something like that.” The young man remarked loudly.

Yuki tossed the bag on the table, noting the place looked exactly as they’d left it back in early December. “Oh, sorry!” She then ran and jumped into his arms, nearly knocking them both to the ground.

“Whoa, Muffin! You trying to kill us?” He gasped in surprise as he fell back against the closed door with her in his arms.

Yuki pushed her face into his so that their eyes were less than an inch apart. “You saying I’m fat?”

Kyle gasped a bit and pretended to almost drop her. “Not at all, my little Cheesecake.”

“So now I’m a high calorie pastry. All these food names are starting to give me a complex.” She pouted.

Kyle kissed her softly. “Only because you’re as sweet as a cheesecake. I love you, you know?”

“Yeah, right. You’re the cheesecake.” She looked away from him sheepishly and danced around her words. “But if I do start to get fat, you’d better tell me. ‘Muffin’ and ‘Cheesecake’ I can put up with I guess, but if you start calling me ‘Poundcake’ or something like that, I’ll cry. Then I’ll get mad and hurt you. Then I’ll cry some more.”

“Stop worrying. You’re as perfectly shaped as the day I met you. But even if you did turn into a poundcake, you’d be my poundcake.”

Yuki wasn’t quite sure what he was trying to say, but nodded slowly anyway. “Okay. but just to be sure, I’m not eating anymore chocolate covered peanuts after today.”

“Then I’ll have twice as much.” He laughed as she vowed to stop eating her favorite sinful food. “Well, the place looks just as we’d left it. No robbers seem to have found out that we were gone for so long. That’s good.”

Yuki looked around. “Okay, put me down. I have to go.”

“Sure.”

Yuki kept talking to him as she picked up one of the small bags she’d brought in with her and went into the bedroom and tossed it on their bed. Kyle followed her in and flopped on it, letting out a big yawn. “Man, I’d forgotten how good this bed feels. That one in my old room back at my Mom and Dad’s place really took its toll on my back, you know?”

When Yuki stepped into the adjoining bathroom and didn’t comment, he continued. “Oh, yeah, this feels good. I tell you, the bed you own makes or-” Kyle stopped himself as his young bride stepped back in the room looking extremely pale. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

She pointed into the bathroom as she quietly sat next to him on the bed with her eyes fixed on the bathroom door. Slowly, Kyle stood up and walked towards the small room and opened the door. The large mirror above the sink had thousands of small cracks all over it, along with something written in what appeared to be fresh blood.

The word ‘Ogami’ was written in bright red kana. He suddenly felt very weak in the knees and slowly backed out and fell onto the bed beside a visibly shaken Yuki.

“It seems we can’t really escape this nightmare entirely, after all.” She whispered with an odd tone.

Kyle now looked as pale as she. “Guess not.”

A few hours later, they still found themselves at their apartment, though they had moved into the living room and sat together on pillows in front of a small table as they shared some tea. They’d been arguing about just what it is they thought they should do, and after a lot of tears and heated words, they both resigned to the fact that this little problem was not going to go away on its own, and they had to do something. They had to go back. Back to the place where they’d lost their two best friends and nearly each other.

Back to House Ogami.

They now sat closely together and stared at a small box sealed tightly with tape laying on the table, neither of them really wanting to open it. It had been sealed and placed in the back of their closet for a little more than a year now, and both had prayed they’d never ever have to see it, much less ever need it again.

“We have to do this, don’t we?” The now calm woman stated more than asked, as she wiped away the last of her tears and rested her head upon her husband’s shoulder.

Kyle O’Brien reluctantly nodded. “I think we do. I doesn’t seem like we’re being given a much of a choice.”

“I know.” She shuddered visibly. After a long exhaling breath, she closed her eyes and gave permission to give in to their fate. “Do it.”

Kyle glanced her way, nodded once more and used a small knife to unseal the box. He carefully opened it and began to empty it. On the table he placed before them a spiral notebook marked ‘Investigation of House Ogami’ by T. Watanabe, and a smaller and very old diary.

“This diary belonged to Nagoya-chan. Between these two collections of writing, I’m hoping we can maybe get a bit more knowledgeable about what we might be walking into.”

Yuki remained deathly silent, with her eyes never leaving the box itself. Kyle knew the source of her anxiety and shared it. He slowly tilted the box and let the final object it contained slide out before them on to the table, as if it were a poisonous snake.

“Shaeiki.” Yuki swallowed hard, as they looked upon the arcane artifact known as the Camera Obscura. “I never wanted to see that damn thing ever again.”

Kyle nodded. “I know. Me either.”

Together they sat in silence for a long time, simply staring at the half-century old camera before Kyle finally picked it up in one swift motion and stood. “Well, what’s done is done.”

It felt strange in his hands and he almost expected to be caught up in another odd vision, as he once had been when using the camera, but now felt nothing. Yuki must have had some expectation as well, as she carefully watched his facial expressions.

“What do you feel?” She asked him.

Kyle shook his head. “Nothing. It’s as if it were just any other camera.” He held it out to her but she shook her head, refusing to touch it just yet.

He lowered his arm, understanding her apprehension. He then looked at it closely and made an observation. “One problem, though. Two actually.”

“What?” The woman asked. “What is it?”

Kyle looked at her. “Well, according to the film window, there’s only one shot left on the roll. So, unless the local camera store sells ghost-whacking film, the camera may be useless anyway.”

Yuki sighed, not quite ready to be humorous. “I doubt it. So what do we do now?”

“Well, I’ve actually been thinking about this somewhat. I think the first thing we need to do is find out more about this ‘T. Watanabe’ guy, who died there back in 1968. I remember reading that he was from Tokyo, and was married to someone whose uncle was someone named Junichiro Asou, or something like that. Those are our first clues. If we can locate his wife, that is if she’s still alive, or someone who knew him, they might be able to recognize this thing and give us some help. We’ll also have to see about fixing this crack on the lens, somehow, which is the second problem we have.”

“Kunihiko Asou.” The young woman remarked a minute later as she flipped through the pages of Watanabe’s research notebook. “His name was Dr. Kunihiko Asou.”

Kyle nodded. “Well there we go. Let’s run these names through Google and see what turns up. We may get lucky.”

Yuki forced a smile. “Okay.” She sighed heavily and stood up. “You know I love a good puzzle, so I’ll treat it like one and try to have fun with it. I just hope we don’t get any more bloody invitations. That’s just about more than my heart can take.”

“Yours and mine both.” He agreed, thankful the blood had faded sometime after they’d first seen it, leaving only a broken mirror as evidence that it had really happened.

Together, they sacrificed the next few days of their honeymoon and spent their time browsing the web on a variety of topics, everything from ‘Spirit Photography’ to inventors and the occult. Slowly, and after a lot of sleepless nights, Yuki stumbled onto a reprint of an old American photography magazine article written by a Thomas Feldman back in May of 1967 that actually detailed an interview between himself and the late Mr. Watanabe. She could barely contain herself as she shook Kyle awake.

“Kyle, wake up. I think I’ve found something.”

“Huh?” He yawned, forcing himself to sit up and look at the brightly glowing monitor. “Photography and the Occult?” He read the title of the old article before him.

Yuki nodded. “Yeah, it’s old, but it was written by a guy who actually met and interviewed our Mr. Watanabe, as well as mentioning his wife, a Mariko Asou, whom he’d married. It seems that she was the niece of Dr. Kunihiko Asou. He actually talks a bit about the camera here as well.” She paused. “Hey, Kyle, look at this.”

She scrolled down to a picture accompanying the article and Kyle’s breath caught in his throat. It was a picture of the Camera Obscura. “I’ll be damned. There it is, bold as brass. Looks a lot shinier too.”

She cast a wry look at him. “Who cares about that? Look, this is great. Now we know Watanabe’s wife’s name. This puts us one step closer. We may even be able to contact this Mr. Feldman to see if he remembers anything else that might help us. Something he didn’t include in the article.”

“It’s been more than thirty-seven years, but anything is possible. Great job, Muffin.” He yawned again.

“Back to ‘Muffin’ again, huh? Nevermind. You go back to sleep and I’ll keep searching for more information that might help us.” She started to move the mouse when Kyle pushed the monitor’s power button. “Hey! Kyle, I need to-”

“Get some sleep.” He cut her off gently. “C’mon, you’ve been at this for five hours straight and are exhausted. That’s enough for now. You’ve made great progress, so it’s time to take a break.”

“But...” She started to protest, but then felt her eyes begin to get heavy. “I guess you’re right. I am a little tired.”

He smiled and pulled her down under the covers of their bed and began to rub her back. She was sleeping soundly in less than a minute.

“More than a little.” He laughed and shut off the bedside light.

The next morning they were up by eight and on the web running searches for a Mariko and a ‘T. Watanabe’ through some of the online services that help you find people, as well as phoning as many ‘Watanabe Mariko’ listings as they could in the Tokyo phone directories, which was a lot. The surname ‘Watanabe’ was like ‘Smith’ or ‘Jones’ in the American phone listings, which made things quite a bit tougher for them.

After a long and frustrating day of not having much luck, they both collapsed and fell on the cushions in their living room feeling very tired.

“This sucks.” Kyle remarked in irritation. “I sure wish we had more than the first letter of this guy’s name. And with a name like Watanabe, of all things. It’s like trying to find a needle in a haystack.”

Yuki laid next to him with her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail and sighed. “I think that would actually be easier to find. At least we’d know there was a needle to be found in there somewhere. We have no idea if this Mariko is still living in the Tokyo area, or even alive at all for that matter. It’s been nearly four decades. That’s a hell of a long time.”

Kyle slammed his fist in frustration on the floor next to him. “Well unless something turns up we’ve got no options. I won’t set foot anywhere near that old place without a working camera.” He sighed heavily once more. “Any luck at all with any of the phone calls?”

Yuki shook her head. “I must have talked to twenty or so Mariko Watanabes, half of which were around our age and thought I was weird. The other half just wished me luck for my search.” She then rolled her eyes. “And there was this one woman who sounded about the right age who was a real crab. I think I got maybe twenty or thirty seconds into the reason that I was calling her before she yelled at me and hung up the phone.”

“Sorry.” He sympathized. “But you did better than me. I poured over those dumb search engines so much my eyes feel like they’ve swollen up like golf balls.”

“Poor baby.” She cooed. “Want me to make us some tea?”

“Sure.” He replied without enthusiasm.

Just then the phone rang and when Kyle made no move to get it Yuki called to him. “Honey, get that, will you?”

The young man didn’t really want to get up off of the soft cushions but did so anyway and looked at the caller ID. It read, ‘Watanabe M.’. Feeling a sudden rush of excitement, he picked the phone up and answered in Japanese, “Moshi moshi, O’Brien desu kedo.”

There was an odd silence for a moment, then a quiet elderly female voice spoke. “Hello, this is Mariko Watanabe. I spoke briefly to a woman earlier today named Yuki. Is this the right number?”

Kyle quickly assured her it was. “Yuki! Come quick!”

The young woman poked her head around the corner. “Hey, if it’s the apartment manager, tell her-”

“It’s Mariko Watanabe. Or a Mariko Watanabe, anyway. She’s asking for you!”

Yuki quickly set the tea pot down and rushed to get the phone and introduced herself. Kyle watched her intently as she stood motionless and listened to her speak in low, subdued tones. Three minutes later, she gently hung up the phone and faced him with a calm look.

“Well, was that her or not?” He nearly came apart when she remained silent.

She then broke into a broad smile. “We’ve found our needle.”

The next day the pair left for Tokyo via the Tokaido Shinkansen, a super fast bullet train that would take about two and a half hours to get them there. From there they’d take a taxi to the old woman’s home in Nerima. Kyle silently skimmed over the directions Yuki had penned from her second conversation with the elderly Mrs. Watanabe earlier that day and was lost in thought.

“I still can’t believe it.” He finally spoke, drawing her eyes from the window as she looked at the dreary overcast weather.

“Can’t believe what?” She asked absently.

“That we were actually able to find her like we did. Just when I thought it was nearly impossible, boom, you’re getting her address.”

She yawned. “I know, we got real lucky. Who’d have thought she’d still be around after all this time? What I can’t believe is how damn cold and nasty the weather is right now. I nearly froze my butt off back there at the train station.”

Kyle smirked. “You’re from Hokkaido, right? I’d have thought cold weather was nothing you weren’t used to. Even Tacoma is pretty rotten right now. Nothing but rain back there from what Dad told me the other day.”

“You called him?”

He shook his head. “No, he called me. The Seahawks won the game against the Panthers and are now going to be in the Super Bowl. Neither one of us can really believe it, though. I think I’ve totally sparked his interest in pro football, again.” He smiled broadly.

Yuki tilted her head a little. “Well, I don’t know much about it, but you both seem pretty happy, so I am too. When is the Super Bowl?”

“On February 5th.” He answered. “Still another week away.”

“Oh, maybe we should go see it when we get back.” She suggested sincerely.

The young man chuckled. “Don’t I wish we could. That game’s pretty locked up. There’s no way we could get tickets for that, not without knowing the right person and having to spend some insane amount of money to get them.”

The pretty Asian lowered her head and smiled faintly, thinking about something. “Kyle, you know money is not a problem. If I’d known this was really important to you, I would have-”

The young man placed a hand over hers. “Thanks. I know you would, but I know how you feel about all of that, and didn’t even want to go there. It’s no big deal, really.”

Kyle was referring to her substantial inheritance money she had been using sparingly to support her medical schooling in Seattle. Except for that and their wedding, they’d agreed to support themselves on Kyle’s wages alone for the time being. This hadn’t been out of pride, but out of some bitter feelings Yuki held towards her elder sister, Natsumi. When their parents died, leaving just them, they’d made Yuki the sole beneficiary of their estate in Hokkaido, even though she was the younger sister.

Natsumi had fallen from their grace long ago for some really selfish and immoral choices in her life that had damaged their relationship. Yuki, on the other hand had been the model daughter and deemed the more appropriate heir to their estate. Neither of them had known this of course, until one day when their parent’s limousine had been struck by a large truck that ran a stop light, killing both of the elder Tachibanas instantly. In the sad days that followed, their lawyer had come and made their wishes known.

Natsumi had been insanely furious because of the unexpected news and now hates Yuki passionately, even though she offered to give her sister just about anything she wanted. To Yuki’s profound sorrow, her sister had rejected her, bitterly. As a result, Yuki had wished to put all of it as far behind her as possible, and had decided to go to school in America to take her mind off of things. Two years later, she met Kyle O’Brien. She had shared with him her bitterness over the whole ordeal and wanted as little to do with the money her parents had left her for all the pain it had caused her. She vowed to him that she would use it as little as possible and make her own way in life.

She’d promised all this long before she ever dreamed of marrying him, and now held a slightly more relaxed view on it. She’d never spend it on herself, but would eagerly do so on others. Seeing it caused her pain, however, Kyle never pushed the issue with her, also eager to stand on his own two feet. Even so, they’d conceded that their wedding was different. As it was typically the bride’s parents to pay for it anyway, they saw it as her parents giving them both one final gift.

“Kyle...” She looked at the train’s floor, feeling a bit sad and selfish. She felt like she should have realized that something like this Super Bowl would have been a really big thing, and had blown the chance to do something wonderful for him.

The young man sitting next to her recognized the look on her face and accurately guessed what was on her mind. “Hey, it really is all right. You worry too much about stuff. Besides, until just the other day, there was no way to even know Seattle would be going to the Super Bowl anyway. Everyone is surprised, so please cheer up, or you will make me depressed.”

“Honestly?” She looked back at him.

“Honestly.” He stated matter-of-factly. “But if we do get all this business concluded before the game, let’s go somewhere really fun where we can watch it. Is that a deal?”

Yuki smiled in relief. “It’s a deal. But I wonder where in Japan they’d be showing it.”

Kyle shook his head. “Who knows, but someplace has to be.”

“How about we fly back out to Seattle and we can get Mama and Papa to go somewhere with us?” She suggested eagerly.

Kyle beamed. “Now you’re talkin’.”

The two relaxed a bit as their thoughts began to drift again. Kyle then asked her how much longer it was to Tokyo.

Yuki sipped her tea from a thermos and set it in her lap, looking at her watch. “We should be there in about another hour. I wonder what Watanabe-san will be like.”

“Tell me what she said to you again.” He asked. “Last night, I mean.”

The young woman leaned back and recalled the pretty much one way conversation and began to speak. “Well, she started off by apologizing for yelling at me earlier. She said my inquiries about her late husband and Dr. Asou had really upset her at first, and caught her off guard. She then said that after she had some time to calm down she would like to know why we were so interested in him and if we knew anything about what had happened to him all those years ago.”

“I then suggested that we meet, and told her that we did know some things she might want to know. That was then she agreed to see us and invited us to come out and see her today.”

Kyle nodded thoughtfully. “Then we’ll have to tell her gently about how he died. I’m not sure what she knows about House Ogami, but she must know something since they were a team, like us. Hopefully something that can help us.”

“Like us.” She smiled. “And most importantly help us with that as well.” She remarked, her eyes drifting down to the back pack at Kyle’s feet that held the Camera Obscura and the other things he’d taken away from the old decrepit estate.

“Yeah. Hopefully we can give her some closure to the mystery of his demise. I guess it must have been torture for her to have never known what really had happened to him all this time.” He said sympathetically.

Yuki took another long sip from her hot tea and handed it to him. “Well, we’ll find out in another hour or so, won’t we?”

“Guess so.” He replied as he took a sip of the Oolong tea and swallowed hard. “I just hope we’re not in for more than we can handle.”

The other sighed. “Too late to think about that now.”

Yuki slowly turned away and resumed her silent watch through the window as the trees streaked past. Kyle too stared once more at the set of directions Yuki’d given him, wishing to study them a bit more.

Only time would tell just what they were truly in for.

Chapter Four

Kyle and Yuki O’Brien later found themselves at a small gate in front of an older house built perhaps sixty or so years ago and looked absently at the little home, checking the address on the front against the one on the slip of paper Kyle held.

“This is it.” He confirmed. Yuki turned and paid the taxi driver what they owed for their trip from the train station and bid him farewell. They watched the cab slowly pull away and leave them alone in the bitter cold air of Nerima.

“Maybe we should have confirmed that she was home first before we sent him off.” Kyle suddenly worried.

Yuki was about to comment when they heard the front door creak open and an old woman of about eighty or so poked her head out into the cold air and stared at them.

“Watanabe Mariko-san deshou ka?” Kyle asked her if she was Mrs. Watanabe with some awkwardness.

The old woman continued to stare at them both, then bowed slightly. “I am Watanabe Mariko, yes.”

The pair bowed to her and introduced themselves. “I’m Tachi-” Yuki paused, turning a little red, and started over. “I’m O’Brien Yuki, and this is my husband, O’Brien Kyle. We’re very pleased to meet you, and thank you for your invitation to come out and see you today on such short notice.”

The old woman gave no reply, but nodded once. She then moved back in the house, leaving the door open slightly.

“I guess that’s our invitation to go in.” Kyle whispered softly.

“Guess so.”

The pair gently opened the small gate that led into the small yard and walked several steps until they stood before the open door. Yuki poked her head in curiously and called out. “Watanabe-san?”

From a room farther back she heard the old woman call to her in irritation. “Well don’t just stand there letting out all the damn heat, come in already!”

The two came in quickly, closed the door and removed their shoes. Both looked around for guest slippers, but there were none, so stockings would have to do.

“She seems to not have many guests these days.” Kyle muttered, continuing to express himself in Japanese.

“No, she doesn’t.” Came a reply from a young woman of about twenty who suddenly appeared before them, blocking the living room. “Please forgive my great-grandmother if she seems a bit eccentric. Ever since my great-grandfather had passed away, she’s been something of a recluse. I’m really surprised to hear that she has actually invited guests over. It’s been a few years. You must have said something really interesting and important for her to ask you to come all this way .”

The young pair bowed again and again introduced themselves.

The other woman smiled faintly. “I’m sorry, let me introduce myself. I’m Mariko’s great-grand-daughter, Hinata Kozue. Sorry if I seem suspicious, I don’t mean to be cold or rude.” She smiled weakly. “My parents live farther north and together we all look after her quite often. She’s not been well as of late, so I’ve been staying here with her for the last year while going to school in Tokyo.”

“Oh, I see.” Kyle replied. “Don’t worry, we understand your concerns about your grandmother. We’re strangers just coming from out of the blue, after all. We’re just here just to ask Watanabe-san about a few things we need some help with, that’s all.”

“Is it about my great-grandfather, Tarou?” She ventured.

They both nodded, each making note of the man's first name. “And their old research.” Yuki added.

“I see.” Kozue nodded. “Very well. But please remember my grandmother is very old now, and may not remember some of the things you ask about, so please speak slowly and be patient with her. I never knew my great-grandfather, as I was born many, many years after he’d disappeared, so I won’t be much help, I’m afraid.”

Yuki bowed once more. “That’s all right. Whatever help both you and she can provide will be very much appreciated.”

Kozue smiled and nodded, then led them into the main living area where the old woman was now sitting in a comfortable looking chair by a warm hearth, watching the small fire burn brightly.

“Grandmother, your guests are here.” The younger woman informed. When Mariko declined to turn and respond, Kozue smiled and bowed awkwardly. “I’m sorry. She’s just being strange, so don’t be offended. Please, sit down while I make us all some tea.”

The pair nodded gratefully and quietly knelt on the floor a few feet from Mariko Watanabe as the other left them for the kitchen. Neither spoke and waited intently on the elderly woman. Finally, with a deep breath, she turned and faced them.

“I don’t wish to appear rude, but its very difficult for me to talk about my late husband, Tarou, even after all the time that has passed. I have very mixed feelings about meeting you both today. So please understand, it’s nothing personal.”

Kyle bowed. “We understand, Watanabe-san. Thank you for seeing us despite your concerns, and for inviting us to your wonderful home. Your great-grandchild, Hinata-san, was quite gracious to us both.”

The old woman looked him over with aged eyes as if appraising him. “You speak our language well for a foreigner. How interesting. She looked at Yuki. “You told me by phone that you know something of my husband and the way he seemed to have vanished. Is that true?”

Yuki smiled warmly. “We do know something about that, yes.” The young woman looked down nervously. “We also need your help to well...solve a mystery of sorts.”

“A mystery?” The old woman arched an eyebrow. “What sort of a mystery?”

Kyle glanced over at Yuki and nodded. “Well, what we have to tell you is directly related to your husband’s disappearance and is pretty complicated and disturbing. I don’t want to bring up painful memories, and wouldn’t do so if we absolutely didn’t have to have your help.”

Mariko Watanabe looked at them both apprehensively and sighed. “I see. Very well, what is it you’ve come to tell me and ask me about?”

“Well, it all has to do with your and your husband’s old research and life’s work.” Kyle began slowly, just as Kozue returned with four cups of hot green tea.

“Our old research?” She inquired in quiet tones.

“Yes. About your dedication to proving the spirit world to be real.”

Kozue’s eyes widened a bit, but said nothing.

“What of it, young man? Don’t tell me you two are some reporters looking for a story of some kind. If so, I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you both to leave.”

Yuki quickly shook her head. “Not at all. Far from it, actually.”

“I see. Go on then.” The old woman said, taking a cup from Kozue.

Kyle inhaled and looked her dead in the eyes. “Are you familiar at all with a place called House Ogami?”

Mariko paused as she was lifting the cup to her mouth then slowly set the cup back down on the table, staring at it for several long seconds before answering.

“That cursed old place was the last thing he’d talked to me about before leaving for Osaka, all that time ago.” She began slowly. “He’d seemed quite excited about some supernatural events and happenings over there that have been talked about over the years by the local people. Why is it you ask me of this?”

Kyle explained. “Well, my wife and I have been there, not more than a year and half ago, and have a pretty odd tale to tell you. But I’ll get to that in more detail here in a moment. While we were there, I happened to come across a journal of sorts written by your husband. I believe they were his final words, and thought you should see them.” He then reached in his pack and pulled free an old spiral notebook and handed it to her.

The old woman placed her reading glasses on and began to examine it. “Investigation of House Ogami by T. Watanabe”. She flipped it open and glanced at a few pages. “Oh...” Her breath caught in her throat. “It really is his handwriting.”

Yuki bowed slightly. “Watanabe-san, please read it all, but be warned. It is not at all pleasant.”

The old woman nodded once and smiled. “I’ll be all right no matter what it says. Just to read something in his writing once more and maybe find some answers to long asked questions is something I’ve always yearned for. Please, enjoy the tea my grandchild has made.” She then turned once more to the notebook and read slowly.

For several long minutes everyone watched in silence as she turned page after page, her face betraying nothing of what she might be feeling. When more than half an hour passed, she finally closed the notebook and set it down before them on the small table next to a full cup of tea that had grown cold. Both Yuki and Kyle had noticed an unusual look upon Kozue’s face the whole time Mariko read and wondered what the younger woman was thinking.

A few moments later, Mariko turned to them with a haunted look in her eye. “His last entry leaves his story unfinished. I assume you know the rest, somehow?”

“We do.” Kyle confirmed gently.

“Then tell me what you know, young man. Tell me everything.” She spoke in an urgent whisper.

“Very well.” He replied. “As I’d mentioned, a year and a half ago while my wife and I were traveling along an old road outside Osaka with some friends, we had a most unusual encounter with something very...otherworldly. This is really where it all begins for us, so I’ll start from there.”

Slowly and carefully, he told Mariko Watanabe and Kozue Hinata the rest of their dark tale, leaving out none of the details of their odd encounters with the ghosts of House Ogami and the curse they’d all existed under.

Kozue had become very still and quiet as Kyle spoke at length, not interrupting even once. Yuki was sure the young hostess wasn’t believing any of it and now possibly saw them as a couple of weirdoes, and was now likely trying to figure out a way to get them both out of her house.

Finally, after quite some time, he ended the account of their ill-fated ordeal at the old estate and looked to the old woman for her thoughts.

“Is this all really true, young man?” She glanced back at the fire.

Kyle nodded. “It is.”

“It is.” Yuki echoed and bowed deeply. “We’re telling you the truth and desperately need your help.”

Mariko shifted her gaze to the young woman before her, hearing a sadness and pain in her voice she could not deny. “Very well. I think believe you. But from your story, O’Brien-san, it seemed that things had somehow managed to turn out all right for you both in the end and were able to move on in life. What has changed?”

Kyle nodded and inhaled deeply. “Well, without knowing this about the other, both of us have been haunted by the image of the young spirit we told you about, but thought it nothing more than stress and pre-wedding anxieties. Only recently did we learn from each other that we’d both been having the same dreams and visual disturbances. We both have been shown that for some reason our business with House Ogami is incomplete and must return. But to do what, we still have no idea.”

“I see.” Mariko nodded slowly, deep in thought. “That is because you both have the same gift that my husband and I once shared.”

Yuki’s eyes went wide. “You have a ‘sixth sense’?”

The elderly woman laughed. “You could call it that, yes. We both did.”

“Grandmother...” Kozue started to interrupt.

Mariko reached over and laid a hand over hers. “Child, please trust me and don’t be concerned.”

The younger woman nodded reluctantly, but kept quiet. It seemed to Yuki as though she wished to say something, but through some unspoken understanding with Mariko, did not.

“Now, just what is it that you two hope that I can help you with?” The old woman turned back to them.

Kyle carefully reached in his pack and pulled free a small rectangular object and pressed a button. With a snap, the bellows of the more than half-century old camera extended to full and locked into place as he gently laid it on the table before her.

Mariko Watanabe gasped audibly and leaned back into her chair as she stared at the old machine, with its Chinese zodiac engraved shutter and lens. She’d not seen it in more than three and a half decades and never thought she would ever do so again.

“The Camera Obscura.” She mouthed in a whisper.

Kozue’s eyes widened suddenly and then looked to be both very unnerved and excited at the same time. Has she seen this before? Kyle wondered to himself, thinking that the look in the other’s eye was not only one of interest, but also one of recognition.

The old woman then shook her head and brought her hands together before her face as she looked upon it as though it were a wild animal set loose in her house. “I never thought I’d ever see that thing ever again.”

“So you’re familiar with it?” Yuki questioned carefully.

“Familiar?” Mariko echoed with surprise. “Child, I built it.”

The sudden revelation stunned everyone into silence for several long moments. Finally a moment later Kyle came to himself. “You built it?”

The old woman smiled ruefully. “Don’t act so surprised. Tarou and I were a team, remember? Not unlike yourselves, we both shared the same bond of heightened spiritual awareness I can feel coming from you both, even now.”

“That’s right. Your uncle is Asou Kunihiko.” Yuki remembered.

The elderly woman cast a glance her way. “Great-uncle, actually. I’d inherited both his genetic disposition for the spiritual, as well as his passion for using science to prove it. Tarou was the same, and so when we’d first met we knew our lives were destined to be together.”

Kyle looked over at the beautiful Japanese woman sitting next to him with her almond shaped eyes and soft lips, thinking their story sounded a lot like Watanabe’s. Somehow he’d known that Yuki Tachibana would be the woman he’d spend the rest of his life with the very day he’d met her back in that college library. Only he hoped that their time together would out last that of the Watanabe’s.

Yuki looked over at him and must have been having similar thoughts as she looked longingly into his deep blue eyes and placed a hand on his thigh.

Mariko smiled sadly. “You two remind me of us when we were much, much younger.” She then turned her eyes back to the camera. “I now know that you were both being honest with me. There’s no other way you could have that if you weren’t telling the truth.”

“Which brings us ultimately as to why we need your help if we are to return to House Ogami and face whatever waits for us there.” Kyle stated matter-of-factly. “If you look carefully at the lens, you will see that its been cracked.”

The old woman leaned forward and inspected the old camera with her bifocals. “Indeed.”

“This is one of two problems we have.” He continued. “Before this camera had been damaged in an encounter Yuki had with that deranged Shinto priest we told you about, it had somehow served as a powerful weapon and was able to ward off and even destroy some of the dark spirits we’d both faced, as well as reveal hidden things to us through visions and images. But after it got damaged it seemed to work reliably only about half of the time.”

“Not the sort of situation we want to go into again if at all possible.” Yuki added. “We’re hoping you could let us know if it can be fixed somehow.”

“And the other problem is-” Kyle started to state.

“Film.” Mariko finished for him. “You need proper film.”

The young man nodded. “Yes, that’s right. We’d assumed it wasn’t anything we could find in Akihabara.”

The old woman shook her head. “No, its not. Although the film size itself is still readily available, I believe. It takes 120 medium format, but will only work the way you need it to if its been properly treated with a certain chemical my great-uncle, Asou-sensei had created. Otherwise, all you’d get would be faint, blurry images at best, which is what most get when trying to photograph the dead.”

“Can you help us?” Yuki tilted her head.

Mariko inhaled deeply and sighed, closing her eyes.

“Watanabe-san?” Kyle questioned after a moment.

The other opened her eyes slowly as though wrestling with something and looked at both of them solemnly. “I’m afraid for you. I’m not sure just what it is that you are both being called back into, and that scares an old woman like me.”

“Scares a young woman like me.” Yuki looked away and spoke under her breath.

Mariko continued to stare at the Camera Obscura for another long moment then gave her reply. “I’ll help you as best I can, for whatever good it will do.”

She then pulled free a small key from one of her pockets and handed it to Kyle.

“This key opens the door at the end of the hallway. I’ll have Kozue-chan show you. It leads down to the cellar which has all the research my husband and I had compiled over the years, as well as all the notes from Asou-sensei we’d discovered shortly after his death. In addition, there are several other things we’d worked on together over the years that you may find useful.” She looked him sternly in the eyes. “I’m giving it all to you. Everything there is.”

For some reason Kozue looked unnerved, but kept quiet.

The pair exchanged glances then bowed deeply as one and thanked her.

“You’d mentioned some kind of chemical.” Yuki inquired further. “What can you tell us of it? Is there any left?”

The older woman nodded. “There should be. I’ve not gone down there for many years, and have kept that room sealed for most of all that time. However, I’m not sure of the condition of anything down there at all. If there is any solution left, it is nearly four decades old and likely not any good anymore.”

“I disagree.” Yuki stated confidently. “If it’s been sealed well, I’m sure it will be fine.”

“How can you be so confident?” Kozue broke her silence and asked the young woman.

Yuki smiled. “Simple. The chemically treated film in that camera has been sitting in it for just as long, and subjected to who knows what kind of conditions over the decades. Yet when Kyle and I used it only a year and a half ago, its power was still strong. I can only imagine what results new film that’s been freshly treated would yield us.”

The old woman smiled appraisingly. “Your reasoning is sound, child. I only hope it turns out to be correct.”

“Okay, so the film might not be a problem. That leaves just one left.” Kyle stated.

Mariko cast a glance his way as she sipped at her luke-warm tea. “Maybe not. Again, you may find some other things down in the cellar that can help you.”

“There’s a way to fix the lens?” He asked intently.

“No. It’s ruined and will never work as it once had. I was thinking more of a replacement.” She replied. “Again, I built that particular model based on blue-prints Asou-sensei had left behind. It is only but one of several models Tarou and I had worked on together. You should find all sorts of odd parts down there. But again, I’m not sure of the condition of anything. I never intended to open the door to that storage room ever again.”

Mariko then smiled faintly and slowly reached for the camera, having built up a bit of courage. As her fragile old hands settled upon it, she suddenly jerked back, pulling it with her as her eyes went blank and stared off at nothing in particular.

Kozue leapt up and began to panic. “Grandmother!”

When the old woman did not respond right away but began to breath heavy as though having a heart attack, Kozue ran to the phone to call an ambulance. She was just about to dial when Yuki was beside her, gently shaking her head.

“She’ll be all right in a moment.” The young woman assured.

“What are you talking about?” She moved away, frantically. “How can you be sure?”

Kyle watched the old woman closely as her breaths gradually became more and more relaxed and finally begin to stir.

“See?” Yuki gently took the phone from her. “She’s fine now. Please come back in the room.”

Kozue Hinata looked skeptically at her grandmother and noted that she did seem to be coming back to herself, so she slowly walked back with Yuki and knelt beside her, still looking quite worried. “Grandmother? Are you all right?”

The old woman looked her in the eyes feeling somewhat disoriented, then closed them. “I...am fine. I...”

“What did the camera show you?” Kyle asked softly, drawing a scared look from the woman’s great-grand-daughter.

Mariko kept her eyes closed and shook her head. Several seconds later, when her breathing finally returned to normal, she opened them and stared back at him, again seeming to have been wrestling with something. “Only that your business there is truly unfinished, as you have told me. I’ll not say anything more than that.” She then looked very tired and unnerved. “If you two will excuse me, I’m going to have my grandchild put me to bed to rest.”

“Of course.” Yuki said as she assisted Kozue to gently help her up and handed her the cane resting against her chair.

As the old woman began to walk off, she paused and turned to them. “I’m very afraid for you both, but I understand what you must do, or must try to do. Kozue?” She turned to the face the young woman. “Let them take anything they wish from that room. I mean that. They need my help, and I intend to give it to them. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Grandmother. I understand. I promise.” She then bowed to the young couple and escorted the elderly woman to her room.

“One final thing, you two.” Mariko called back without turning. “Whatever you do for yourselves at that old mansion, you do for me as well. I lost the love of my life to it, and the only thing I want more than seeing Tarou avenged is for you two to come back together alive. Do that, and it will be the greatest thing you could accomplish. I want to see you both when you return. Promise me you will come see me when all is concluded.”

“We will.” Kyle promised for them both vehemently. “I promise you...and you.” He looked into Yuki’s dark brown eyes. “We will both make it just fine.’

The young woman smiled faintly, trying hard to put her faith in that.

As promised, Kozue Hinata allowed them access into the old cellar seemingly not opened for decades and gave them free reign to look around and gather whatever they wanted to take home with them. More than an hour later, they came up with several boxes full of papers, chemicals and odd camera parts, as well as some other interesting things they weren’t too sure of.

Figuring to sort it all out back at their apartment, they made no judgments over anything but simply took everything. Miraculously, Mariko Watanabe had done an expert job in sealing the majority of everything related to her former life’s work, and nothing appeared damaged or ruined in the least.

After cleaning up a bit and taping some of the boxes up better, the young couple called for their return taxi and thanked Kozue for all her patience and help. Both felt that the young woman wished to discuss something with them, but had reluctantly decided against it for some reason. But since they couldn’t be sure, they just simply thanked her and left the young woman in peace to tend to Mariko.

After a long and even colder taxi and train ride back home, they both made it to their apartment sometime after dark and hauled several boxes inside, lining them up neatly in the living room against the walls.

“That’s the last of ‘em.” Kyle said as he finally closed the door behind him. “Any messages while we were out?”

Yuki glanced over at the phone’s caller ID and shook her head.

“I meant on the bathroom mirror.”

Yuki cast a sharp look his way. “That’s not funny. You go check if you want. I’m scared to go in there now.”

“I’m sure its fine. Besides, it wasn’t real blood. At least I don’t think it was, anyway. All of it faded moments after we’d read it.” He tried to reassure the nervous young woman as best he could, but could see he wasn’t making much progress. “Okay, I’ll go look.”

The young man headed into their bathroom and returned a moment later. “Just the fractured mirror. No blood. No writing.”

Yuki still felt nervous despite his assurances. “It’s just that its been eerily quiet these last couple days. Ever since we’d come home to find that, there’s been no signs of Kasumi anywhere.”

Kyle shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe she somehow knows we’d received her message and knows we’re coming.”

Yuki sat down on a pillow stared at all the cardboard boxes. “Yeah, maybe. Or maybe something else has happened that we don’t know about. Maybe she can’t send any more messages, even if she wanted to.” She buried her face in her hands. “Oh, Kyle, are we really going about this right? Is all this really necessary? That old woman’s words has shaken what little confidence I’d had. The look in her eyes after touching the camera scared me badly.”

The young man sat beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “I don’t know, Muffin. I don’t know about anything. I think we’re making the right choices, though. My gut instinct tells me there’s something we must do. Besides...”

“Besides what?” She asked, not bothering to resist her pet name any longer.

“That little girl saved my life more than once back then, and I remember promising her that if I ever had the chance to return the favor that I would.” He became somewhat distant. “She needs us, Yuki. I can feel it. Somehow, she needs us badly.”

The woman beside him leaned into him deeply, letting his body heat warm her and listened to his heart beat as she rested her head on his chest, remembering the way Kasumi had selflessly sacrificed herself to Tsumano just so she could run away while back in that ravine.

She also remembered her painful screams acutely, as that foul spirit had torn into her repeatedly and felt suddenly very guilty. “Okay, I’ll trust you and will do my best to believe in that. I owe her a lot as well, so if she needs our help, I won’t turn my back on her either. Just remember your promise you made to Watanabe-san that we’d both make it back.”

“Don’t worry, Muffin. That’s one promise I intend to keep at all costs.” He assured her with a tight hug.

That very night, many, many miles away, an old woman tossed and turned in bed and could not find sleep no matter how hard she tried. The dark vision of what her own creation had shown her kept replaying itself wickedly and relentlessly over and over in her head.

Those poor young children...She labored, praying the Camera Obscura was simply wrong. It just had to be. But no matter how hard she tried to reassure herself, she could not get over the facts of what she had seen. One of them was going to die.

And horribly.

Chapter Five

Yuki woke early the next morning to strange sounds coming from their living room and instinctively reached her hand back to wake Kyle but found him gone. Feeling a bit unsettled, she called his name softly and the sounds suddenly stopped. A moment later, to her relief, the young man poked his head in through the door and looked at her.

“Sorry, did I wake you?” He asked apologetically.

She exhaled sharply and threw the covers off, revealing herself in a thin pair of silk pajamas that did nothing to hide her well toned and shapely body. “Kyle, what are you doing?”

He grinned widely. “Come and see.”

The young woman slipped her feet into a pair of fuzzy slippers and came out to see that their living room had been transformed into a photo lab of some sort, with all their regular things stacked in the corner. “Wow. You’ve been busy.”

He took a sip from his coffee and offered her some. “Yeah. I couldn’t sleep anymore, so I wanted to get a head start on sorting all this stuff out. I didn’t mean to wake you, though.”

She waved a hand as she walked towards him and received the offered cup. “That’s okay. It’s not too early.” She glanced at her watch, noting it to be a little after six o’clock.

“You should really look at some of these odd things I’ve found. I’m not sure what a lot of them do just yet, but first, check this out...”

He picked up the Camera Obscura and held it before her face and popped the bellows open. With a snap, they rushed out at her and locked into place a mere inch from her nose, causing her to jump back in surprise.

“Kyle, I’m not fully awake yet. Don’t do things like that.”

“Just look and tell me what’s different.” He ignored her protest.

She rubbed her eyes and stared at the camera without blinking for a few seconds. She then smiled. “Hey, you’ve replaced the lens!”

“Yep.” He beamed proudly. “Just as Mrs. Watanabe said, there were all kinds of extra parts in here for the camera. Mostly lenses, odd adapters and that kind of thing. I was hoping for another complete camera so we could both have one, but no luck. Although if we had time, I’m certain I could build one based on the designs here.”

“Really?” Yuki looked genuinely interested.

“I believe so.” He guessed. “It seems that the camera body itself is nothing special, so pretty much any one could be used. What makes the camera work is the lens and the uniquely treated film, just like what was said in that old article we’d read. I’m sure I could adapt these other lenses to fit on another camera just like this if we had one. It seems that this particular one is called a Foldex 20, made back in the early 1950’s by some company called Pho-Tak. I went on eBay while you were asleep and found a few selling for quite cheap.”

“You have been busy.” She remarked as she added some milk to her coffee and gently stirred it.

“Well, I wanted to go about this the right way and really get to know as much as I possibly could about the things we’ll be relying on. If we had more time, I’d buy one of those other camera bodies and see what I could do, but we can’t wait for that.” His eyes then lit up. “Besides, I think I’ve found something else that might be just as useful for us to use. That is...if it works.”

“Found what?” She asked as she knelt before their small table that had blue-prints scattered all over and looked at them curiously.

“This.” He sat a small object on the plans in front of her.

“What is it?” She asked as she examined what looked to be a small lantern of sorts.

“Press the red button on the side of it.” He smiled.

“Is something going to pop out and scare me again? You’d better not-”

He shook his head. “No, nothing like that. Trust me.”

She looked at him suspiciously, then reluctantly pressed it. A bright blue light began to pulse slowly and brightly like a strobe light, bathing everything in a watery glow.

“Ah.” She looked all around her, a wondrous smile spreading across her face. “It’s like when we go to the aquarium.” She giggled a bit.

Kyle kept smiling. “Now flip the little lever next to it all the way to the other side.”

She reached down and did so. The soft light then changed to a dark red that pulsed much faster and bathed the room in an eerie blood-like substance. She quickly hit the power button and turned it off. “Oh, I don’t like that.”

Kyle sat next to her and nodded. “Well, according to the notes I found with it, neither will the ghosts.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well from what I read, it seems that if we use that on the first setting, it will act as a lure and actually attract spiritual forces.”

“Why would we want to do that?’ Yuki shuddered, wondering if their playing around might have stirred something unnecessarily.

“Well we might not want to, but the Watanabe’s were seeking these things out to prove their existence, so I can understand why they made it. I think the idea was to set it up and let it run while one of them stayed back with the camera and waited, much like a hunter would by hanging some meat up while waiting for a bear to come sniffing around.”

“What about that scary red light?”

He picked the small lantern up and wiped off some dust with his thumb. “That seems to have the opposite effect and actually repel spirits. Or so the notes say.”

Yuki sat up straight. “Now that I can see as being useful. Okay, I’ll hang on to it. But what about this middle setting?” She pointed to the lever’s center position she’d passed over when moving it from one extreme to the other.

Kyle slid it to the center and turned the lantern on. A simple, but bright light filled the room.

“What does that do?” Yuki looked at it closely and took it from him.

He chuckled. “It helps us to see in the dark.”

“Oh.”

“It runs off of four size 'D' batteries, which I borrowed from a couple other regular flashlights we have, so we’ll need to stock up on more. I’m not sure how long that can go before running down and don’t really care to find out without a fresh set on hand. Which reminds me...”

She looked at him curiously as he handed her a small paper. “What’s this?”

“A shopping list. Feel like running some errands today while I work some more on this stuff here?”

She shrugged. “I guess so. What do we have here...batteries...high power LED flashlights...first-aid kits...water bottles...snack food...film-”

“Yeah, you’ll probably have to go to a camera store to get the film. I found out that 120 film is still available but only as a vintage stock for photography enthusiasts. Since everything’s pretty much gone digital, 35mm is about the only kind regular stores will still stock these days.”

Yuki smiled and shook her head. “It’s almost like we’re preparing for a war.”

“We might very well be.” Kyle looked down uncomfortably. “Anyway, I figure if we each make a pack with some stitch necessities, like food, water and first aid stuff, it might come in handy. House Ogami had none of those things last time we were there, and I’m sure it won’t now either. We were both pretty hungry by the time the emergency response team found us on the highway.”

“That’s very true.” She agreed, then stopped and laughed. “What’s this?”

He read over her shoulder. “It’s an old song. I thought it would be a good way to rally our spirits and ease our minds a bit. You can see your part, so let’s try it.” Before she could respond he started to sing.

“If there’s something strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call?”

She gave him a deadpan look and said nothing.

“C’mon, Muffin! This really is to help us keep a sense of humor and keep things light.” He slapped her knee. “Now let’s try it once more.”

“If there’s something strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call?”

“Ghostbusters.” She said quietly.

He hit the next line. “If it’s something weird and it don’t look good, who you gonna call?”

“Ghostbusters!” She said with a bit more enthusiasm, laughing somewhat. “This is stupid.”

He ignored her and kept going. “I ain’t afraid of no ghost! C’mon, Yuki.”

“I ain’t afraid of no ghost.” She repeated, trying hard not to laugh as he watched her intently.

“See, doesn’t that make things a bit less intense?”

“Yeah, I’m sure if the camera fails all we’ll have to do is sing to Tsumano or whatever it is waiting for us with our bad lyrics. I only wish we were really like those guys with big ghost guns and things like that. All we’ve got is a lousy camera and a fancy disco light.”

“Well, that’s not all. Like I said, I’ve found some odd adapters for the camera I’m not too sure of yet. They must serve some purpose though. I was going through those plans here on the table hoping to find out what they might do when you woke up.” He then laughed a bit as a comical thought struck him. “You know, our singing wouldn’t have any kind of effect on the ghosts, but Azusa’s might have. If she were here with us and had a portable karaoke machine, we’d be unstoppable. We probably wouldn’t even need the camera.”

Yuki tried her absolute best not to laugh, but ended up failing miserably. After a minute of genuine amusement and laughing together, Yuki slowly quieted down and Kyle noticed some tears streaming down her face. He said nothing, but pulled her deep into his arms where she rested her head on his chest.

A year and a half was not such a long time to shelve a lifetime’s worth of memories.

By noon, Yuki had returned with all the items on the shopping list and sat them down in the entryway. While she’d been gone, Kyle had totally organized everything and had set up a darkroom of sorts in their bathroom, red light and all.

“I’m no expert in film photography, but I did take a class back in high school and know some basics.” He remarked as she came into their bedroom and observed him stringing a line across the bathroom tied to the shower head and a light fixture.

“Wow, our apartment is really changing.” She sat down on the toilet seat and then watched him place some wooden clips all along it to hold the photos.

“Just for now.” He smiled. “I’m glad you’re back. I was just about to do something I wanted you to help me with.”

“Like what?" She asked.

“Oh, wait. Did you have any trouble finding the film?”

Yuki shook her head. “Nope. I got several rolls of it, both color and black and white. I wasn’t sure which kind we’d need so I got lots of both.”

“Cool.” He nodded. “I’m not sure either, so that’s why I’m going to open up the camera up and remove the old film. I’d never thought about it before, but when we first got to use it, a good part of the roll had already been used, right?”

Yuki recalled as best she could. “Yeah, that’s right.”

“Well, I was thinking that if we could develop all of the roll, we might find out some additional things about Watanabe and what he saw all those years ago.”

Yuki became a little uneasy, not sure she wanted to see what might be on that film, but agreed anyway. “Okay. That makes sense.”

The young man went and got the new film and a fresh bottle of developer he had Yuki also buy and sat it on the sink. “Yeah, this should work. Well, I’m just about done in here, so we can get to work in a bit.”

“I can’t wait.” Her voice betrayed some of her feelings.

“Hey.” He looked at her. “It’s going to be all right. Don’t worry.”

“Who’s worried?” She gave him a fake smile.

Doing his best to recall the details of film processing he’d barely paid attention to in an old high school elective class, Kyle O’Brien and his wife worked slowly and carefully in the small bathroom under the eerie crimson light. One by one, they removed the wet photo paper and clipped them to the line above their heads until they were all processed.

Surprisingly to each of them, they’d done a fairly decent job, as more than twenty images began to take clear form one by one. Yuki avoided looking at some of them too closely, not really wishing to remember some of the things she’d seen back then. And they were there, all right. Several shots from both her and Kyle’s time of using the camera had perfectly captured the angst and fear reflected in many of the spirits lifeless eyes, forever immortalized on film.

They’d both paused on one in particular that brought a sad smile to both of their faces. Together they stared at the oddly serene image of Shiori Ayukawa, as she almost seemed to have posed for Tarou Watanabe all those years ago. She must not have known of the camera’s exorcismal powers at the time, as she seemed completely at peace.

“She was really pretty, wasn’t she?” Yuki asked thoughtfully.

Kyle nodded. “She was. I really hope she’s doing okay. I’d hate to think that things might have gone sour for her, or even that Noburo Ogami. He was a calculating one, and I’m still not really sure of the odd sincerity he’d showed us towards the end. I still can’t get over the fact that he’d asked, no, demanded, that I destroy her with the camera, or else he would have to hurt both you and Nagoya-chan. I still don’t trust him, and really hope he’s not at the heart of the trouble there now.”

Yuki sighed. “I don’t know what to think. But as cruel as he’d become, maybe he did have some right to be bitter and vengeful towards her. She did kill him on their wedding night, after all.”

“So he never got the chance to...” Kyle smiled. “I’d be pissed too.”

“Is that all you ever think about?” The young woman leaned into him and smiled up at him. “You are so bad.”

“Yeah, but so are you, so don’t even act like it’s just me.” He squeezed her tight.

She pulled away from him. “Hey, we don’t have time to play now. What else have we got here?”

The two carefully poured over the rest of the photos as they became viewable, ignoring the ones they had taken, focusing only on the older ones done by the late Mr. Watanabe. There were several other photos of various spirits doing nothing in particular, other than simply floating in frame. Finally however, as they examined the rest of his shots, the last few turned up some ghastly and violent images that showed a host of spirits converging upon him. suddenly Tsumano Ogami came into them, with his wicked looking snake-head staff, taking an offensive and violent stance.

Neither Kyle nor Yuki wished to look upon them, or him, but forced themselves to anyway, hoping to see something of benefit. Kyle found other similar pictures both he and his wife had taken and lined them all up together to compare. For several minutes the pair scrutinized them, but in the end saw nothing that might betray anything useful.

“Just a bunch of horrible memories caught on film, nothing more.” The Japanese woman remarked coldly. “Let’s toss them. All except this one...” She held the picture of Shiori carefully in her hands. “Her I don’t want to forget.”

The young man nodded his consent and pulled the newly developed photos down and tossed them all in the garbage can. “Well, it was worth a shot. At least we got some experience at this. And that.” He took the photo of Shiori from her. “She was something special, that’s for sure. “Hopefully if we run into her again she can let us know what the hell is going on.”

Yuki slowly opened the door, letting the regular light fill the room. “I hate to say it, but I think we are as ready as we’re ever going to be.”

“Yeah, I just have to prepare the film according to the notes Mariko gave us. It looks simple enough to do, so I’ll get to work on that here in a minute. Why don’t you get some rest? I can take care of the film prepping by myself.”

“Okay.” She walked towards their bed then turned around and faced him. “This was the ‘fun’ part. Now that it’s over, reality sets in, doesn’t it? We’re really going back there, aren’t we?”

“Tomorrow.” He confirmed in a somber tone.

Yuki sat down slowly on the bed, her eyes becoming a little distant. “I guess it can’t be helped.”

“Guess not.” He agreed. “Scared?”

She cast him a look that begged, ‘why even ask’.

He looked away. “Me too.”

Neither one of them wished to dwell on the million dark possibilities that going back there might bring, but could neither fully exorcise them from their thoughts either. Whether she was of flesh and bone or spirit and wind, Kasumi Nagoya was a friend, as was Shiori Ayukawa. Friends don’t abandon friends, no matter what. If they were in pain and needed them, then they would go and do what they could for them. This was the heart of both of Kyle and Yuki that beat as one. Both the female spirits had risked much to protect them when they were in need, and they could not ignore them now.

Their last night together in their little apartment was spent doing nothing more than relaxing and enjoying each other. They went to sleep in each others arms and both somehow managed to have a peaceful rest, sleeping through the night undisturbed.

Morning came quickly enough and they both washed up and dressed. Kyle was up first and ready, making them both some coffee when Yuki stepped out into the living room and posed for him.

“Ta-da.” She said with a slow spin, letting him view her from all angles.

“Lara Croft move over!” Kyle applauded her new outfit similar to the one he was wearing. Together they both looked like they’d stepped out of a military surplus store, wearing olive drab tee-shirts with canvas pants and jungle boots.

“Well, I feel like Lara Croft in this getup. I just hope I can move like her when the time comes.” The young Japanese woman replied as she smoothed out the front of her pants. “These are really comfortable though. I may start wearing them regularly.”

“Fine by me. You look really hot.” Her husband replied. “I’ve always liked them. I practically lived in them throughout college.”

“I remember. You were wearing a pair of these pants when you first met me. I wasn’t sure if you were going to throw a grenade at me to ask me out.” She giggled.

“Well, anyway, you look cute, and I figure these are a bit more practical than regular street clothes.” He commented as he passed Yuki her favorite coffee mug.

She took a sip and set it down on the table. “We all set?”

“Yeah, I got us all packed up earlier. I had kind of a hard time working with the film rolls last night, though. Mostly with the film paper itself. I had to re-number all of it at certain intervals to countdown in reverse, so that we can know how many shots are left. Normally the numbering system climbs up to like twelve or twenty-four, but this way is better, I think.”

She agreed. “Better to know what’s left than try to remember how many are on the roll to begin with.”

“Right. I’m really learning a lot about these old style medium format cameras. It’s actually been kind of fun. I may take it up as a hobby when all is said and done.”

“Well, we do own all this equipment now, so why not? We might as well use it for something other than ghost busting.”

He laughed and looked at their packs waiting by the door. “Ghost busting, that’s the ‘spirit’. You ready?”

She sighed heavily. “As I’ll ever be. I just hope we know what we’re doing.”

“No point in second guessing ourselves, or we will psyche ourselves out.” He looked at his watch. “We’d better hit the road.”

With a final word, she drained the last of her coffee and picked up her pack. “We don’t want to keep our friends waiting.”

Chapter Six

Surprisingly, their apartment was not all that far from where they’d driven off the ravine eighteen months ago and had actually driven that quiet old highway many times since then to get from one town to the other. Many times, they’d passed the very spot where they’d been forced off of the road, but never once sensed or saw anything supernatural that would have betrayed something odd happening at the old Ogami place buried many miles within the thick forest beyond. Even now, they felt nothing as they slowed their new Corolla, similar to the one they’d lost back then.

“This is the spot, I think.” Kyle commented as they slowly rounded a small curve, feeling a bit sad as he couldn’t help but think of both Ron and Azusa.

Yuki nodded in silence, her face a tight mask.

“You okay?” He asked quietly as he brought the car to a stop in a small clearing just off the road a few hundred feet past the ravine and away from the main road.

“I’m fine.” She smiled coldly. “I just want us to do what we need to and be out of here.”

“Yeah, I hear you. We should be able to hike down into the ravine from here no problem and get to that clearing. From there we can find our way back to the old Ogami place.”

“It’s for sale, you know?” She commented.

“What is?” The young man asked in confusion.

She turned to him. “House Ogami.”

He looked surprised. “It is? How do you know?”

“When doing research on the net to find out about Watanabe-san I came across a few links regarding the old place.” She stared out of her window toward the general direction of where the mansion lay. “Nothing there of course about it being haunted, just that for years the land has been abandoned with only a few buyers over the years. Seems developers had been interested in it at one time or another but in the end it always ended back on the market for some reason.”

“Yeah, some reason.” Kyle echoed, having a few solid guesses as to why.

“Though not talked about openly, it seems that even the local business community just wants to leave the place alone.” She added.

“You thinking we should buy it?” Kyle questioned her, not sure why she was telling him all this.

She spun her head towards him. “Hell no! I’m just letting you know what I found out. Please, the idea of living in that old creepy place is insane. I don’t even want to see it, much less buy it.” She shuddered.

“Okay, relax, Muffin.” He chuckled. “For a second I just thought you were losing it.”

“Not a chance.” She stated boldly.

He glanced at his watch. “Eight o’clock. We’d better get a move on.”

He shut their car off and they both climbed out into the cold air which made them both shiver despite the heavy canvas and Thinsulate fatigue jackets they both now wore.

“Why couldn’t she have needed our help in July?” Yuki complained as her breath made a smoke-like puff in front of her.

Kyle smiled, but didn’t comment on that. “C’mon. This way.”

He led her to a small opening in the brush and together they slowly made their descent into the old ravine and after a while found themselves at its base, looking around carefully as they tried to get their bearings.

“It really looks different than I remember.” Yuki noted.

“Looks pretty much the same to me.” Kyle said. “Besides, when we were here last it was at the end of Summer and the trees still had leaves on them, so that’s probably why it seems different.” He then paused briefly as his eyes confirmed something. “Look there...”

She looked in the direction of where he was pointing and saw an upturned wheel raised in the air. “My car. They left it here?”

“Guess so.” He shrugged. “Hauling it out of here was probably more effort and trouble than they thought worth. It’s not like anyone would care. At least it confirms we’re in the right place.”

“I guess so.” She conceded. “Kyle, let’s not look at it. It’s really painful for me to see.”

“Sure.”

Once Kyle got a good feel of where they should be heading, they moved out and began their walk in the damp and cold forest toward the old shrine somewhere ahead of them. For over an hour they walked quietly, not saying much to each other and mostly just concentrating on not slipping on the wet ground below them. Finally, the Myojin Torii came into view, looking as dilapidated as ever.

“Wow, your sense of direction is a lot better than mine.” Yuki admitted. “I’d have gotten us both lost a few times already.”

“Not really. I’m just going by feeling, mostly.” He said casually.

She looked at him oddly. “Can you feel House Ogami? I can’t feel anything.”

He inhaled and considered her question. “Well, not really feel it, I guess. I just have more of a gut instinct telling me its this way. I can’t really feel anything otherworldly, which surprises me. Last time we were here, this place was teeming with all sorts of spiritual forces. But now, I feel nothing. It’s weird.”

“Maybe that’s a blessing in disguise.” She observed. “Maybe things aren’t as bad here as what we’re believing. Things may even be a lot less dangerous now than they were back then.”

“I hope you’re right. We’ll find out more when we get closer and actually in the mansion itself.”

She nodded. “Yeah, in the mansion...”

Together they passed under the weather worn and abandoned Myojin Torii, the ancient wooden gate erected by Shinto priests some time in the far past to mark the boundary between the physical world and the spiritual and noticed no changes in the air about them as they did so.

“I kind of expected to feel something by now.” Yuki commented as they passed under and left the old marker behind them.

“Yeah, me too. This all seems strange that neither of us feel anything unusual.” He confirmed.

Quietly they moved forward and nearly and soon found themselves passing the wrecked shrine where Shiori Ayukawa had first asked Yuki for her help. They’d expected to both sense something, but instead were greeted with nothing that indicated anything was amiss. That in itself was unsettling.

Neither spoke the rest of the way until about an hour later when they found themselves standing on the old bridge that passed over an icy stream and staring at the cold and dark house before them. At last, they’d finally come to House Ogami, and neither moved for a long time but instead just simply stared at it with mixed feelings.

Yuki placed a hand on the cold wood railing of the bridge and recalled the night she and Shiori had stood upon it and had first heard of the woman’s troubles. It all seemed so long ago, like in a different life or something. She felt there was no one here now except for Kyle and herself, and wondered if the gentle spirit still dwelled anywhere within the house itself.

“Perhaps Shiori and Noburo have found a way to leave this world after all and are now no longer here.” Yuki hoped so, thinking they, or she at least, deserved a better fate than being forced to walk the earth forever.

Kyle nodded and moved past her and quietly moved up onto the porch of the mansion and stood before the door. He then pulled free an object from the inside of his coat pocket and looked over to Yuki who watched him closely. “Well, this is it. Should we knock or just go on in?”

“Better knock.” She replied as he pressed a button and extended the Camera Obscura’s bellows to full.

With a nod, he turned toward the old wooden door and rapped on it loudly.

As expected, there was no reply from within.

“Nobody home. Guess we can leave.” He backed up a step.

“Yeah, right.” She said, now beside him. “That thing picking up anything?”

Kyle held up the camera and shook his head. “Not a thing. It’s completely quiet. It’s as if this were any other house.”

“Yeah, but we know better, don’t we?” She moved forward and gently placed a hand on the door handle and pushed it open with a loud creak. She casually poked her head inside, noting it to be very dark, which was no surprise. With a bit of hesitation they both switched on their flashlights and stepped inside.

The foyer looked as it had the last time they’d seen it, with a thick layer of dust covering everything and a damp mildew smell filling their nostrils sharply.

“Tadaima.” Yuki breathed quietly, meaning ‘we’re home’.

Kyle panned the bright flashlight over a bunch of rotting room dividers and moved forward a bit. “Well, no point in beating around the bush.” He then switched to Japanese and began to call out loudly. “Ayukawa-san? Ogami-sama? Anyone home?”

The silence that greeted them was eerie. If they were still bound to the old place he was certain they’d come greet them if at all possible.

Yuki worked up her nerves and joined him. “It’s Tachibana Yuki and O’Brien Kyle. Nagoya-chan, we’ve come as you asked. Are you here?”

The pair waited in the eerie silence for several long moments without sensing or feeling anything whatsoever. With a nod, Kyle began to move forward and led Yuki through the musty halls and down the long passages, noting all of the side candles and lamps that had once burned brightly were now unlit.

“It seems as though not even the ghosts of this place dwell here any longer. Kyle, something has definitely happened since we were here last. I can feel that, if nothing else.”

Again he nodded in silence and quietly moved forward until they came to a closed door. “This should lead us down another hall and then one to our left that will take us downstairs and eventually to that old garden, if I remember right. If Nagoya-chan would be anywhere, my guess is that there would be the place.”

Yuki agreed. “It’s definitely the first place we should look.” She held her hand forward. “After you.”

Kyle smiled weakly. “Thanks.”

With a careful push, they found the door opened easily and began to move forward very slowly. Through the darkened halls they advanced carefully, not feeling anything whatsoever. When they finally came to the old staircase where Yuki had first come face to face with the insane ghost of Taeko Nagoya, she hesitated to move further, thinking the ghost might suddenly appear before them once again.

“Something wrong? He looked at her, suddenly worried that something was happening. She shook her head and nodded for him to continue forward, looping her arm protectively in his. Together they descended the creaky stairs until they had at last reached the bottom unchallenged.

Finally, they came upon the entrance to the old garden and found the door slightly ajar with a cold wind blowing strongly though the crack and whistling eerily in the hall about them. Cautiously, Kyle pushed the door open and peered inside. Since the garden was open, with no roof to block the sun, they turned off their flashlights and walked inside, pausing just as the old stone fountain came into view.

From the back of his senses, Kyle felt the faintest tickles of something supernatural coming from that direction. “The fountain.” He whispered.

Yuki looked at him nervously. “I can’t feel anything. You sure?”

He nodded once. “Yeah. It’s real faint, but it’s there.”

Yuki’s eyes glanced around the large circular garden but saw nothing except a bunch of barren trees, and little else.

“Well, this is what we came here for. I guess we’d better go see what lies ahead.” She suggested with a firm tone.

“You wait here while I go see.” Kyle told her, feeling uneasy about the way things were going. Though the spiritual forces were very faint, he felt as if something were somehow preventing him from feeling them in full. Not even the Camera Obscura was picking up on anything, and that was unnerving to him.

She nodded once, and he began to carefully approach the old stone work. Dry leaves crunched loudly beneath his feet as he recalled that this was the first place he’d come across the terrifying spirit of Tsumano Ogami. He then looked over at the spot where the insane Shinto priest had first appeared, half expecting him to be there waiting for him.

To his relief, the dark priest wasn’t there and he saw nothing except for a few leaves blowing in the wind. With a slow breath, he began to move forward once more towards the garden’s center and stopped just short of the huge stone basin.

This was the place where Kasumi Nagoya had been brutally murdered by Tsumano more than a century ago. Kyle shuddered as he recalled the vivid image that the Camera Obscura had once shown him of the dark priest forcing her small head under the clear waters that had once filled the basin.

Though he could feel nothing strongly as he once had, he pointed the camera towards the leaf filled basin and panned around it, expecting the reticle to glow blue, but strangely, the camera remained silent. The sudden thought then occurred to him that he may have unknowingly ruined it while replacing the lens and suddenly felt dangerously exposed.

Yuki must have seen his sudden change in demeanor and called out to him. “Kyle, what’s wrong?”

He turned back her way and then slowly shook his head. No point in thinking such irrational thoughts and playing mind games with himself. “It’s nothing. I’m all right.”

He carefully traced the fountain’s perimeter, feeling the odd presence dancing just on the periphery of his ‘sixth sense’. “Something is here, though. I can definitely feel it, but it’s really subdued. It seems to be coming from somewhere inside the fountain itself.” He called back to Yuki as he turned around, surprised to find her only a few feet from him. Her eyes were now focused on the center as well.

“I can feel it now, but just barely. Kyle, what does this mean?” She asked in worried tones.

“I don’t know.” He shook his head. “This is really weird.”

Yuki looked around and wrapped her arms around herself, feeling the chill wind nip at her face. “Well it seems that Nagoya-chan isn’t here, after all. Maybe we should look for her elsewhere.”

He looked around absently. “Okay. Where should we try?”

She thought for a few seconds. “How about where you’d first found her diary?”

“Her bedroom?” He rubbed at his nose with the back of his hand. “Good idea.” He looked around some more and located the doorway that he had first come through, back when he’d initially followed the young ghost from where he had first woken up in the manor.

“It’s this way.” He motioned for his wife to follow.

They quietly crossed the garden and left the strange presence behind until they came to the closed door. As with the others so far, it was unlocked and opened easily, leading back further into the darkened mansion. Again, they pulled out their flashlights, switched them on and disappeared inside.

The pair had no trouble finding the old room that had once belonged to Kasumi Nagoya, and again were surprised to feel absolutely nothing that might betray the young spirit’s presence anywhere within the area. Both now felt at a complete loss, and after a couple minutes of investigating the room and finding nothing unusual or out of place, they stepped back into the hall and slid the thin paper and wood door shut.

“This is really getting more and more bizarre.” Kyle said. “I mean, I know that we are supposed to be here. Everything that has happened to us over the last several months, the dreams, the sightings, the bloody writing and lastly the old woman’s own confirmation, all say that we have an unfinished destiny here. But just what in the hell is it that we’re supposed to do now that we've come?”

Yuki had no answer and absently stared at the big white circle of light her flashlight produced on the old wooden flooring, as she tried to think if they might have somehow missed something obvious. Finally she turned to him and spoke.

“Kyle, what if something really bad has happened to her, and she can’t contact us? What if whatever it was that was responsible knows we’re here now and lies in wait for us as well?”

“A trap?” He questioned.

“If we are being led into one, then it’s certainly only a matter of time before we spring it.” She began to think carefully. “All the more reason we need to not let our guard down. Like you said, we were definitely called here. It, whatever ‘it’ is, must know that and may we watching us even now.”

“No more Sci-Fi channel for you.” Kyle laughed nervously. “But if that’s true, then we’d better think about where it would seem most likely for this trap to be sprung. Any ideas?”

Yuki concentrated for a moment and then nodded. “Well, there’s so much of this manor that I never got to see the last time we were here, so it’s hard to say for sure, but I think the alter room where you and Noburo had defeated Tsumano is a possibility. I didn’t see too much of the underground level that it connected to, but I know it was pretty vast down there. Maybe it’s somewhere below there where we need to go.”

“How about this...” Kyle looked about. “Let’s be methodical about it all and start at the top of the manor, search everywhere and make our way down. In this way we’ll leave nothing unchecked.”

“Okay, that sounds reasonable.” She agreed. She then pulled out a blank notebook and a pencil. “I can create a map as we go and make some basic notations of whatever we find in each area, so when we take a break we can review things in better detail.”

Kyle smiled. “You’re taking this ghost busting thing pretty seriously now.”

Yuki returned the smile. “Of course. Our lives may depend on it.”

Kyle nodded. “I know. Okay, let’s make our way back to the garden and take the spiral staircase all the way to the top and go from there.”

“After you.” She winked.

“You keep saying that.” He remarked without enthusiasm.

The two quickly retraced their way back to where the hall connected to the garden’s entryway and suddenly Kyle brought them up short with a hand.

“Kyle?” Yuki questioned.

“Shhh.” He quieted her. “You hear that?”

The young woman strained her ears and then nodded. “It sounds like running water.”

“Coming from the garden.” He then began to feel some spiritual force gradually grow stronger and come from that direction. He looked at her questioningly.

“Even I can feel that. Something’s happening.” She took a defensive position behind him. “I hate to say it, but I think the trap may be sprung.”

“All right.” He sighed while trying to sound bold. “I guess this is why we came.” Kyle checked the camera and made sure it was ready. “Come on.”

Slowly, he led her the rest of the way and found the door to the garden closed.

“We didn’t close this, did we?” He asked, nervously.

Yuki squeezed his arm. “No.”

“Didn’t think so.” He carefully reached down and opened the door and stepped inside. Almost immediately he felt something splatter around his feet as he did so.

Blood.

Blood was now gushing from the fountain by the bucket full and overflowing everywhere. Kyle froze for a moment in shock and then quickly tried to step back to keep Yuki from following, but then suddenly an overpowering force slammed him from behind and sent him to his hands and knees in the crimson flow.

In near panic, he flipped himself around and nearly knocked Yuki off of her feet as she too was struggling to stand. Behind them he saw nothing, but noted the door was shut once more. He quickly grabbed the camera and brushed past Yuki to get it open, but found that it was held fast by a strong force. Then all at once, he felt his otherworldly senses explode within his head and felt a dark power emanating all about them.

He turned and helped Yuki to stand as she wiped bright red blood away from her panic stricken face while looking about frantically. His eyes finally centered on the fountain once more as he saw sudden movement from within the basin’s depths. Yuki’s eyes found their way there as well, and they both watched in horror as a lone figure slowly rose from within and stood motionless in the shower of blood that rained upon her. Slowly, she climbed out of the pool of blood and faced them with a cold smile, as long, blood soaked hair streaked across her face and stuck to it.

It was Shiori Ayukawa.

Kyle and Yuki stared at her in horror and confusion for several seconds, not knowing what to think or say. Finally, Yuki called out in a shaky voice. “Ayukawa-san?”

The other continued to stare at them, but said nothing. Kyle then began to recover from his confusion as well and felt the Camera Obscura pulsing madly in his right hand. Suddenly, along with the mansion, the old camera had come alive once more and now begged for his attention. He carefully raised it her way and the reticle burned an intense crimson red, brighter than the blood they all stood in.

“Something’s terribly wrong.” He whispered the obvious. “This isn’t Shiori. It can’t be...”

The bloody ghost centered her eyes on Kyle as he spied her through the Camera Obscura’s view finder and her smile broadened. “Would you really hurt me, O’Brien-sama, after all we’ve been through together?”

Kyle hesitated as she spoke, his finger just exerting the slightest pressure on the camera’s shutter release. “Ayukawa-san?” He questioned with great apprehension.

The spirit nodded slowly. “I’m happy you remember me. You’ve came back. Why did you come back?” She slowly began to advance on them.

Kyle yelled at her. “Stop! Don’t come any closer. Something is not right here!”

The crimson spirit slowed and then became motionless, now turning her eyes upon Yuki who looked almost as though she were going to faint. “Tachibana-san, have you come to help me once more?”

Yuki looked at Kyle, not sure how to answer the changed and dangerous looking spirit. With courage, she stepped away from Kyle and tried to move a bit closer to her, but he quickly reached a hand out and grabbed her wrist. Yuki didn’t resist and swallowed hard. “Of course, Ayukawa-san. If you need us, we are here. We are friends, right?”

Shiori’s smile slowly dropped and her hollow eyes became somewhat distant. “Friends?”

“Yuki, don’t get any closer to her!” Kyle began to pull her back with his free hand.

Shiori’s smile returned and she nodded. “Yes, we are the best of friends, aren’t we?”

Just then, the pressure of the blood flow from the fountain increased dramatically and the bloody spirit grabbed her head, as if in pain.

“Ayukawa-san!” Yuki broke free from Kyle’s grip and rushed to her impulsively. “What’s wrong? What is happening here? Please tell us!”

Kyle felt sick, but held his ground, not sure what he should do as he watched the pair with baited breath, not once letting the blood covered spirit out of frame as the reticle continued to burn intensely.

In response, Shiori’s arms shot up and wrapped Yuki in a tight embrace. Yuki suddenly felt an icy coldness steal the breath from her lungs and gasped loudly. Then in one fluid motion, Shiori pulled Yuki into the fountain with her and looked at Kyle darkly. “You should not have ever come back!”

Before the young man could say anything or use the camera, a huge wave of blood erupted from the basin and hit him hard, knocking him backwards. As he struggled to rise, he saw both the women descend into the depths of the basin and disappear. He quickly found his footing in the crimson flow and splashed his way to the fountain’s edge as the shower of blood suddenly stopped and the basin began to rapidly drain.

He quickly climbed in and splashed around as it whirlpooled at his booted feet and disappeared, leaving him standing in a pile of wet leaves. He dropped to the ground in panic and began to push aside the debris but only found the stone bottom wherever he touched. A moment later, he sat up in surprise as all of it evaporated without a trace, leaving everything completely dry. Even his clothes were now clean.

Kyle O’Brien sat motionless in the cold basin as the minutes went by feeling completely numb inside. He had absolutely no idea what the hell had just happened to them and had absolutely no idea what to do. Yuki had been taken from him in the blink of an eye. He couldn’t believe it. The nightmare was repeating itself, and he simply could not believe any of it.

Chapter Seven

Kyle stepped out of the fountain with awkwardness and fell down into one of the many wooden benches that ran along the basin’s perimeter while staring at the ground. How could this have happened? What was I thinking by bringing her here? He labored over the pointless questions.

“I’m an idiot.” He quietly said to himself as tears ran down his face. “Shiori, what has happened to you?” He asked himself. For several long moments he sat with his face buried within his hands when he could suddenly feel the cold winter wind cut through his clothing with all its bitterness. Reluctantly, he stood and looked around, wondering what he should do, or where he should go next. In less than a heart beat his whole life just changed, perhaps forever if he didn’t act quickly.

“Noburo!” He cried out the young lord’s name several times, hoping it was just some new game being played by the dark spirit and that he would come and make things clear as he’d done before.

The seconds slipped by with the only noise being that of the wind and his own breathing. In despair, Kyle began to walk toward the base of the large winding staircase and started to ascend. Having nothing else to go on, he decided to go with his and Yuki’s original plan for now. They’d come here together to rescue Kasumi, but now that all seemed secondary as he once again roamed the halls of House Ogami in search of his most precious treasure, his wife, with nothing more than a camera. Some things never changed, it seemed to him.

In a daze, he climbed the steps until he’d reached the floor he’d explored before, back when the small ghost child had led him away from the crazed Tsumano. The stairwell ended at the base of a long walkway that curved along the inside perimeter of the garden itself and looked back towards the fountain.

From this perspective, the stone fountain looked oddly small. He hadn’t realized just how vast the old manor was until now and was surprised at its sheer size. More than ever, he felt insignificant in the face of it all and struggled hard against his despair and loneliness.

He couldn’t live without Yuki O’Brien. He just couldn’t.

Then suddenly, anger welled up within him as he forced his other emotions in check. Yuki wasn’t dead yet as far as he knew, and he was not about to give up on her without a fight. Why Shiori Ayukawa had turned against them and was now their enemy, he had no idea. But if answers were to be found, then he would find them, and all alone if need be.

With a calming breath, he looked around and spotted the farthest door from him and moved towards it with purpose, passing the one he’d followed Kasumi through the year before, and kicked it in with such a force that it came flying off of its hinges and crashed loudly on the floor. As with the rest of the place he’d seen so far, it was dark inside, so he turned on his flashlight and looked around.

The room appeared to be a small library, as it was filled with several rows of shelving and lined with hundreds of dusty books. He paid little attention to them though as he walked in and took stock of the rest of the room. In the center was a long rectangular table covered in dust with a few books and documents spread out over them, as though someone were examining them at some point. He glanced at them but noted nothing of import and kept moving. As he neared the back of the room, he then noted a fire pit full of blackened coal and a set of heavy wood doors on the far wall.

Not seeing any reason to stay, he made for those doors and pushed them open wide. Again, he was greeted by another darkened hallway beyond and stepped out into it without pause.

Left or right? He asked himself as he cast the flashlight’s beam down both directions briefly. As he was considering his choice, he thought he'd heard a small sound from the right and quickly passed his light down the hall in that direction but saw nothing.

Maybe it was nothing, but maybe not... Without debate, he sprinted off down that way and soon found himself at another closed door. He looked down at the handle in irritation as it was one of those insipid puzzle lock types.

He exhaled sharply and knelt before it, examining the five fist-sized wheels.

“I’ve got a better idea...” He said to himself as stood back up, took a few paces back and ran forward, slamming a boot into the lock hard. He thought her heard a snap, but when he checked, the door still held firm. He kicked it once more, but still it held. He was about to kick it a third time when the door opened on its own with a creak.

As he looked at it in amazement, his ‘sixth sense’ began to alert him that something was ahead of him in the room. He carefully moved in with camera in one hand and his flashlight in the other. He slowly panned the light all across the small room, which was similar in size to the old armory he and Kasumi had once hidden themselves in and was filled with many stacked wooden boxes of all sorts of sizes. Then from somewhere in the back he could hear some faint crying.

He quietly raised the Camera Obscura and moved forward, weaving around the stacks of boxes until he saw the source of the weeping. To his profound shock, it was Kasumi Nagoya, curled up in a ball behind a large trunk with her eyes tightly closed. She looked ragged and torn, with her short hair a filthy mess and her kimono bloody and torn.

Kyle quickly lowered the camera and knelt beside her. “Nagoya-chan?” He called softly in Japanese as the Camera Obscura pulsed in his hand. When she didn’t respond, he tried again a bit louder. “Nagoya-chan? It’s me, Kyle. Kyle O’Brien.”

This time the small spirit stiffened and cast a wild look his way, but did not appear to recognize him. Her eyes went wide with fear and she cried loudly and backed herself up into a corner and breathed heavily.

“Nagoya-chan, please...don’t you recognize me?” Kyle pleaded with her.

Just then, Kyle felt a stronger presence from behind him and turned just in time as it spoke. “No, O’Brien, she cannot hear you. Her mind is all but gone.”

Kyle fell backwards as he stared into the hawk-like eyes of the house’s youngest lord, surprised by his sudden appearance.

“Noburo!” He cried in shock.

The other gave him a curt nod as he leaned on his broken staff, regarding him coolly.

Kyle looked at the other carefully, trying to sense if any of dark insanity that had radiated from Shiori had also consumed him as well. Although the young lord looked just as terrible as the young child behind him, with clothes torn and dirty, he didn’t seem to have the same dark look in his eyes that his wife’s had. He even appeared to be injured and leaning on his staff for support for some reason.

“Noburo, what has happened here?” Kyle questioned with wide eyes.

The other ignored the question and posed one of his own. “Why have you returned here?”

Kyle’s eyes drifted back to the huddling and broken spirit behind him. “Because she has called to us.”

“Called you?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, to both Yuki and I.” He answered carefully.

“How is that?” The other spirit asked in quiet tones.

Kyle rubbed his face and told him. “By sending us both dreams and messages written in blood as well as appearing to us at different times over the last several months.”

The feral looking spirit smiled thinly. “You are a fool, O’Brien, as was your woman.”

“What?”

“Look at this pathetic child!” He raised his voice sharply. “Do you honestly believe she has the power to do anything other than hide herself from the terror that now fills this place? Oh, you have been summoned, true enough, but not by this girl!”

Kyle looked at him in fear and confusion, still not sure of his intentions. “Then by who?”

Noburo’s smile faded and he cast his gaze downward. “By my father, of course. And like a fool you have answered his call and have fallen right into his hands.”

“Your father?” Kyle questioned, ignoring the insult as he shook his head slowly. “That’s impossible. We destroyed him! You were there and saw everything!”

Noburo slammed his staff hard on the ground in anger. “Oh, what we did that day was only free the dark butterfly from its cocoon and nothing more! You have no idea what has happened since you and your precious little Tachibana left us that day. We now face a nightmare far darker than the one we’d already lived through, thanks to you.”

Kyle felt the blood drain from his head and slumped against a box. “What do you mean?”

The other regarded him for a long uncomfortable moment. “Very well, I’ll explain it to you as best as I can understand it myself.”

Kyle nodded once. “Go on.”

Noburo sighed. “On the day you both left us, and for many more to follow, House Ogami had enjoyed the refreshing days of Summer and was free from the dark power that my father had imprisoned us all with, true enough. But that had all turned out to be merely an illusion. During that time, my mind wandered endlessly to understand why Shiori, I and the rest of the spirits here had not been completely freed when we’d overcome my father, as we had all expected.”

“As it has turned out, our victory over him was merely a temporary one. During that quiet respite he was slowly gathering his dark energies one small piece at a time until he was once again complete and able to take form once more.”

“He re-formed?” Kyle felt the knot in his stomach grow as he listened with his eyes settling on the floor before him and became only peripherally aware of Kasumi’s continued soft crying behind him. “My God, how was that possible?”

The other snorted derisively. “How am I to know? It seems that I had foolishly overestimated you and the power of the ‘shaeiki’, and now we face the hell I’d always managed to keep at bay until then.”

“You can’t seriously blame me for that, can you?” The young man looked up at him. “Noburo, neither of us had any idea of what to expect and did what we felt we had to do.”

The ragged spirit looked away. “It no longer matters, O’Brien.”

“Noburo, I’m truly sorry.”

The other turned upon him once more. “Spare me your sympathies. I am not-”

“He’s taken Yuki.” Kyle cut him off softly, suddenly.

Noburo paused and nodded once. “I know. I saw from above.”

“You what?” Kyle looked incredulous. “Why didn’t you say something or help-”

The other slammed his staff on the ground. “Because I’m not able to!” He yelled. When he saw Kyle looking at him with wide eyes, he closed his own and continued calmly. “Because I’m not able to. I am far too exhausted and can barely think straight these days. When I first laid eyes upon you as I felt my father’s power stir once again unexpectedly, I thought you both nothing more than an illusion, or some trick to lure me and some of the others out. I know now that not to be the case.”

Kyle still felt confused. “What is happening here?”

“O’Brien, I am now the hunted. As are you, and all who helped to defeat my father before. My wife was the first to fall and now he goes after me. Your return here is most unexpected and unfortunate.”

Kyle shook his head in dismay while thinking about his and Noburo’s final encounter with Tsumano. “I just don’t understand how the camera could have failed to work.”

“As I’ve said, it’s power was overestimated. It seems that it was not able to destroy, but merely drain for a time. Even I hadn’t realized this in time, although the signs were clearly there.”

“Signs?”

“Yes.” The spirit said. “Consider this child’s mother. Was she not the first to fall before you and the ‘shaeiki’? Yet she had not been destroyed as first believed and was yet seen to be wandering the estate later and had eventually found her way back to her daughter for a time.”

Kyle thought about it. “Both Yuki and I had assumed that her return with Nagoya-chan in the garden that time was because of the curse being lifted and hadn’t given it further thought. It seems we were all wrong about some things.”

“Indeed. Care to hear the rest of my dark tale?” Noburo offered coldly.

“Tell me.”

“Again, my father after a time had managed to take form once again and I’d immediately sensed his return and rushed to my family’s altar room to see what had taken place.”

“He was there?” Kyle asked quickly, focusing once more on the other’s words.

Noburo smiled coldly. “Oh, yes, he was there, O’Brien. But for some reason he chose not to engage me in battle right then and there as expected, but instead rushed past me and fled to the central garden. Of course I gave chase and was surprised to find him standing on top of the fountain itself. In that moment, he’d raised his staff and brought down a terrible flash of crimson lightning that hit him in full. When my eyes cleared, he was no longer there as he had been, but instead, the fountain was pouring forth blood continuously.”

The young man vividly recalled the terrifying bloody shower only a short time ago and shuddered. “What happened then? And Ayukawa-san, what has happened to her?”

“Ah, this is the best part, O’Brien.” He stared at him hard. “You see, my father’s essence had been transformed from the solitary figure that was either here or there, but never in two places at once, into something far more dark and fluid.”

The young man noted the other’s emphasis on the word ‘fluid’ and felt his pulse quicken.

Noburo sighed. “My father became the very blood you saw and pours his madness into every spirit that he is able to overcome with it, slowly turning us all upon each other.”

“He became blood?” Kyle was astounded, still trying to visualize the odd change. “How is that possible?”

Noburo looked away. “Even I cannot answer that. Blood is considered impure and has nothing to do with Shinto beliefs. What source he now truly draws his power from is beyond my ability to understand.”

Kyle shook his head as he tried to digest the others words. “What of your wife?” He then asked the ragged spirit once more.

The other’s cold smile returned. “Consumed by his madness, I’m afraid. Drowned one too many times in the blood.”

“Drowned?”

“Yes, drowned. Every night from dusk until dawn the fountain sprays forth the blood of my father and releases those already overcome to hunt down those yet to fall. Once caught, they are pulled into the fountain’s depths and upon rising from them they are one step closer to becoming lost. If this happens one too many times, that soul becomes a mindless creature fully under the control of Lord Tsumano Ogami. This is not unlike before, but only now he is not limited to his singular presence as in the past. This time, he is able to turn spirit upon spirit and hunt through many pairs of eyes.”

“And this has happened to Ayukawa-san?” Kyle asked quietly.

The other nodded. “To all of us at one time or another. For her it has been one too many times and now is nothing more than an avatar for him to dwell within. Perhaps he does this for the reason of using her as a more tangible means at striking at me for what I helped do to him.” Noburo cast a look at Kasumi and shook his head. “The child behind you is nearly consumed as well and does nothing more than wait for the inevitable.”

Kyle cast a look Kasumi’s way, but she was turned away from him, curled up once more in the fetal position. He looked back at the young lord with a look of suspicion, suddenly wondering if the shade before him was being entirely honest. Noburo Ogami had been far from the most trustworthy of souls he’d encountered before and regarded him with accusation. “You seem to be fairing better, Noburo. Why is that?”

“Faring better?” The other scoffed. “Look at me, O’Brien! Do I look like I’m fairing anything close to well? Only my mind and own power have sustained me this far, but make no mistake, it is only a matter of time before I too am overcome with the madness of this place. At this point, I almost welcome it, as it will finally mean an end.”

“I can’t believe this...” Kyle paced a bit as adrenaline continued to pulse through him.

Noburo wore a thin smile. “Believe it, O’Brien, and know that you have walked into a dark trap laid before you by my father. You will find now that he has revealed himself to you in full, leaving the mansion itself will be quite impossible.”

“I’m trapped inside here?” The young man froze and looked him in the eye.

“That is correct.” The other confirmed darkly.

Kyle looked around absently in silence, stunned at the scope of his dilemma while trying to ignore the continuing sobs of the small spirit behind him.

“Kasumi, please stop crying. Please stop.” He pleaded gently, turning towards her again.

Noburo scoffed once more. “As I told you, she is beyond words or comfort. Her mind is gone now.”

Kyle ignored him and continued to speak in gentle tones. “Kasumi. Is it okay if I call you Kasumi? Kasumi, please stop crying.”

The young torn spirit rolled away from him and looked at him blankly through tearful eyes. Slowly, Kyle inched his way closer to her and called her name over and over again. Finally, some small amount of recognition filled her eyes, and to both Noburo’s and his complete surprise, the small ghost was suddenly in his arms and holding onto him tightly.

Kyle returned the embrace, noting the young girl had absolutely no body heat whatsoever and felt something like static electricity. She seemed solid enough though, as he held her and stroked her hair gently, assuring her things were going to be fine. He found it odd that this same spirit who’d once become quite angry when touched before was now clinging to him with all her strength.

A few moments later, Kyle looked up find the silent Noburo still watching them with an impassive stare. “Surely there has to be something we can do. C’mon, man. With your mind and my camera, we ought to be able to come up with something.”

The young lord sighed audibly and closed his eyes. “I hold little faith for anything we might try, as we have used your ‘shaeiki’ once before and it wasn’t sufficient then. How it could possibly be so now eludes me.”

Kyle smiled coldly. “Well, let’s just say I’ve made some improvements and discovered some things along the way that may make this little camera a whole lot more powerful than before.”

Noburo arched an eyebrow in mild interest. “Really. Well that is yet to be seen, Kyle O’Brien. But fear not, you will have your chance to use it when the time comes. I pray for your sake that you are right.”

Kyle quickly turned his thoughts back to Yuki, not wanting to waste any more time. “I need to ask you, where has my wife been taken? After Ayukawa-san pulled her down into the fountain, I checked it out, but found no obvious way to follow after them.”

Noburo stared blankly at him for a moment then closed his eyes and slowly shook his head, feeling a small sense of pity stir within him. “O’Brien-san, you must face this harsh reality. Tachibana-san is dead and her soul now belongs to my father.”

Chapter Eight

Kozue Hinata sat in her room at her great-grandmother’s place and was deep in thought, absently pulling at the end of her long ponytail. She wished she could have said more to the American and his wife about her own feelings on the matter of her great-grandfather when they'd come the other day.

Why did I promise Grandmother to stay of this? She admonished herself with regret.

Mariko had warned Kozue before their arrival that she had sensed that they too may possess something of a ‘sixth sense’ and she was to avoid physical contact with both at all costs. She had said that she had felt something odd when first speaking with Yuki Tachibana that had stirred her spirit and had made her uneasy.

Reluctantly, Kozue had agreed.

Following the couple’s departure, the old woman had been in a very somber mood and upon Kozue’s insistence, finally made it clear to her that one of them was going to die a most horrible death somewhere on that old estate. When she had heard that, she became very frightened and angry with her for not sharing such a thing with them.

“You cannot change fate, child.” The old woman had told her darkly. She then tried to explain that by telling them such a thing that it most likely would have only made things worse or may have forced them to not go at all, something destiny had already established, and thus possibly bringing about an even worse situation that went beyond them.

Kozue hadn’t believed a bit of it and remained quite angry with her elder. Who is to say the hands of fate could not be moved? Or that the vision the Camera Obscura had shown her was entirely correct or understood properly? The young woman felt her great-grandmother, as much as she loved her and respected her spiritual powers, had sent them on a doomed journey to the old Ogami estate, and now somehow felt responsible for their lives.

The question she then put to herself over and over, was just what to do about it. Deep within her, she felt the answer was obvious: she needed to go to them as soon as possible, before it was too late and warn them of what her grandmother had seen.

That, and to give them something that she should have to begin with.

She looked over to a small side drawer of her desk and sighed heavily.

She now felt that she had erred greatly and had acted out of selfishness on the day the O’Brien’s had come and now felt a strong dose of guilt. What was held within that drawer was not so much her heritage as was the very blood that ran through her own body. For the intense spiritual powers that flowed through the old woman, Mariko Watanabe, also flowed through the youngest member of her family, and last in the Asou line.

And now, she faced a difficult decision as to how to go about rectifying that mistake in judgment before it was too late and one of the O’Brien’s did die as was envisioned. For if one of them did fall in that dark place, known as House Ogami, it would most certainly be her fault for not acting in time. And as much as her grandmother would protest, she had to go see them before it was too late. It was right then that she decided that she would leave early the next day and go warn them.

She’d already tried calling, several times, only to be connected with their voice mail and had a bad feeling that even now her efforts may be too late. If only Grandmother had been up front with them, with me, to begin with...

Kozue looked over at her desk onc more, then fell back onto her bed and closed her eyes, praying that she would not be too late.

Kyle continued to stare at Noburo for several moments with a dumfounded look, then finally fell against the back wall of the small storage room and slid of the ground. He felt like a mule had just kicked him in the stomach, and was completely unable to really believe his Yuki could truly be gone.

“No...you’re wrong." He protested.

The young lord spoke once more. “O’Brien-san, I...regret-”

“You’re wrong!” Kyle yelled vehemently, drawing a fearful look and cry from Kasumi, who still knelt beside him.

Noburo felt an uncharacteristic bit of sympathy fill his barren heart and continued to speak in quiet, even tones. “Tachibana-san was...a noble woman. I, more than anyone here can understand your pain.”

Kyle looked up at the semi-transparent ghost and chuckled without emotion. “You...understand my pain? You who once asked me to destroy Ayukawa-san for you? Do you think I’ve forgotten that? And did you also forget that you had threatened to kill Yuki yourself if I’d refused to go along with whatever you had said back then? Do you think I’m simply supposed to just believe Yuki is dead just because you say so? Give me a break.”

The other cast his eyes away. “Things were...different back then. I’m not entirely the same as I used to be.”

The young man ignored his remark and shook his head in dismay. “Yuki had also told me what Ayukawa-san had told her back then as well. About you forcing their marriage and humiliating her family. So much so that she slew you on their wedding night.”

The young lord of House Ogami cast him a dangerous look. “You know nothing, O’Brien. You know nothing of the love I once held for her, and of the shame I have endured for more than a century in knowing of her betrayal.”

Kyle shook his head once more. “Love? From what I hear, you just wanted to possess her and use her for your own selfish pleasure. Don’t speak of love, Noburo. You haven’t a damn clue. You also haven’t a clue of what I’m feeling right now. Until I see otherwise with my own eyes, Yuki is still alive and needs me!”

The other sighed. “Very well. Perhaps you are right. As much as you may distrust me, I truly hope you are correct.” He then changed the subject. “So what is it that you intend to do now?”

“Intend to do?” Kyle asked in irritation. “What do you mean, what do I intend to do now? How the hell should I know? You tell me.”

“Why not continue with your original plan? You’ve come to save the child next to you. Do so.” The ghost replied calmly.

Kyle looked at him angrily. “What are you talking about?”

Noburo pointed an end of his staff at Kasumi. “Have you yourself not assured her that you will do just that? Or was that only when you believed Tachibana-san still alive?”

“I still do.” Kyle turned and looked at the young spirit who continued to stare back at him calmly.

“She instinctively trusts in you for some reason, O’Brien.” Noburo continued. “Her attachment to you has surprised me greatly. In some way, you represent strength and hope to her, as is revealed by her clinging to you as such. Will you now turn your back on her just because your circumstances have changed?”

Kyle had no response but simply stared back at the calm ghost with her messy hair and ragged blood stained kimono.

“Will you not even try for her sake?” The elder spirit suddenly urged with an uncharacteristic tone.

“Why should you care?” The young man challenged back.

The other remained silent and stared down at him.

“I take it you have something in mind?” Kyle saw an odd look in the other’s eyes.

Noburo nodded. “Perhaps. I have been thinking about something you said a few moments ago and believe there may be just one possibility to undo the foul magic that has enslaved my home. As impossible as it may seem, there may yet be a way for us change our fates here. As we have nothing to lose and everything to gain, will you listen?”

“Oh, I’ll hear you out, Noburo." Kyle brushed a lock of Kasumi’s hair out of her face as she watched him intently. "I owe this little girl a lot. And a promise is a promise.”

“A promise?” The other echoed in inquiry.

The young man became very still and looked downward. “I once promised her that if I ever had the opportunity to repay her for saving my life that I would do so.”

“It seems that fate has called you into account for that promise, O’Brien-san.” Noburo observed.

“So what did you have in mind?” The other stood and faced him.

Noburo gave him a grim look. “To put it simply, the blood of my father needs to be purified somehow. A cleansing of sorts.”

“A cleansing?” The young man questioned.

“Yes. I can make no guarantee on this, but I believe that if the blood can be cleansed with the sacred waters that once flowed through this estate, they may yet be able to wash away the dark magic that binds us here. This was not an uncommon practice among those within the Shinto priesthood, as we would often use the sacred waters to heal wounds as well as in our rituals and ceremonies. But for something like...this, I’m uncertain as to whether or not it would be enough. But, I have my suspicions... ”

“Go on.” Kyle urged.

“As you have seen, it is from the old fountain in the garden’s center that this evil flows from. If we were to somehow restart the flow of water to that fountain, we may be one step closer to overcoming this new curse. But in order to do this, the water wheel behind the manor sitting upon the stream must be made operational once more. Once it becomes so, then the water will once again be channeled to the garden and into the fountain itself.”

“So why doesn’t it work now?” Kyle asked.

Noburo shook his head. “I’m uncertain. I only know that it was until the day my father had become fully overcome by insanity and murdered all those within this old house. Whether the problem is mechanical or something more, I simply don’t know. The estate’s water supply was the least of my concerns during those times, so I’ll leave it to you to now discover the truth.”

Kyle nodded. “All right. Will that be all that is needed, then?”

Regretfully, the other shook his head. “I’m afraid not. While it is true that the waters that flow through this land from the mountains are considered pure and sacred, they will not be enough. What is needed further is water that has been specifically prepared for such an event. Water that might possibly be found in only one place now.”

“You mean the place where we fought your father before?”

“No. While it’s true that we at one time had many such vials of sacred water down there, they have all since been destroyed over the years and I believe this to be no mere coincidence.”

“Then from where?”

“Do you remember the collapsed shrine at the front of the estate we at one time passed to take you and Tachibana-san back to that odd horseless carriage you’d both arrived in?”

Kyle recalled the dilapidated old structure and nodded.

“There may yet be some of this sacred water preserved somewhere within that wreckage. Beneath the building itself lies an underground storage room once filled with many of the things we Shinto priests relied upon to perform our ceremonial duties, including such water. If any of it has managed to survive over the years, it is vital that you add it to the flowing waters in the fountain’s basin at the proper time.”

“And then?” Kyle asked.

“And then?" Noburo considered. “Everything is far from certain, O’Brien-san. But this is the only chance that I believe we will have to completing what we had started when both facing my father back in that alter room. But even if we do everything perfectly, it may yet be not enough. I am certain of nothing, but am convinced this the only thing worth trying. The fact that I suspect sacred water being the key in this and that our access to it has been cut off nags at me greatly.”

Kyle sat quietly for several long moments deep in thought then finally nodded his consent. “Okay, Noburo. I’m in. I’ll give it everything I have to do what I can. Just take me to this water wheel and we’ll go from there. Maybe together we can fix it, and this mess.”

Noburo became solemn. “O’Brien-san.”

“What is it?”

“As I said before, I’m afraid that you are trapped within the confines of the manor itself, and are unable to leave. Even I have been restricted to these old halls and cannot go beyond into the surrounding land as I once could. Again, I feel that this is by no mere coincidence, given my growing suspicions. I am unable to get to that shrine, but you may be able to. If you can bring me some of the sacred water that may still be there, I can then attempt to perform a ritual upon it. If we are successful in then adding it to the clean waters of the fountain...”

Kyle inhaled deeply and thought hard. “But you said that I’m trapped here as well. How then am I to get to either the water wheel or the shrine?”

The ragged spirit smiled and stepped in closer. “The answer lies in your own boast of the ‘shaeiki’s’ powers. If they are strong enough, they may be able to weaken the seals that hold you within. However, my father’s power is quite strong throughout the manor, and I believe there to be only one place where his magic can be challenged, and that is through the secret underground passageway that connects this manor to the old shrine.”

“If you are able to break through the barrier there, and the tunnel is still intact, you may be able to reach the shrine, find the sacred water and continue on foot beyond to the water wheel and repair it. From there, you must find your way back into the manor and complete the task as we’ve discussed.”

Kyle sighed hard. “You can’t come with me?”

The other shook his head. “No. My presence will only make things more dangerous for you, and I am weak and must rest during these daylight hours. For when night finds us once more, the fountain will pour out my father’s wrath in full. I must use my time wisely to properly research the necessary steps to performing the purification ritual.”

Kyle then thought about something else. “What of Ayukawa-san?”

Noburo looked away. “She is our enemy now, O’Brien-san. Do not think otherwise. She is no longer herself, except in appearance. End even then, not quite so. She may have killed your Tachibana already, and will not hesitate to do so with you if given the chance. Know this, or all will be lost. We must also be careful not to make her aware of our plans. This is my father’s home, and he once knew what I know. How much of his memory remains today is unknown.”

“I have a hard time accepting that Ayukawa-san is beyond reach.” The young man conceded. “She had always seemed quite strong willed to me.”

Noburo Ogami rose to his full height and pointed his staff at him. “I understand and agree. However, what I tell you is the truth. Mark my words, she is no longer the spirit you once knew. She will be coming for you when night falls, so you had better find your way out of here before then.”

“Won’t she still come after me even now?”

The other shook his head. “No. I do not believe so. At least not for the time being. Until now, she, and the other spirits consumed by my father’s power have only appeared when the darkness comes and the blood flows. It is then that they hunt me and those not yet given fully to the curse. But each night our number become fewer and fewer, while his grow.”

“How many remain?”

“I am uncertain.” Noburo responded. “Each of us spend the day lit hours in hiding. Just know that our time is running out. I’m not certain there is anything more I can help you with for now and think it best I stay as far from you as possible so as not to alert her of anything we have talked about.”

He then looked down upon Kasumi. “I also think you’d would also do well to rid yourself of her until your task is completed. She can only impede you and draw unnecessary attention.”

Kyle looked down into the hollow eyes of the young spirit beside him and knelt in front of her.

As cold as he seemed, Noburo had a point. His incompetence and poor judgment may have already cost him the life of the woman he’d loved, but still, he wasn’t sure that leaving the girl behind would make her any safer, so after a moment of consideration, he simply put it to her. “Kasumi, I have to do some things that may be really dangerous, and I’m not sure us staying together is such a good idea. I don’t want to see anything bad happen to you, but just don’t know what is right. How do you feel?”

The young girl stared blankly back into his eyes, but slowly squeezed his hands tightly, indicating that she at least had some kind of idea of what was being talked about and seemed to not want to be left behind.

The young man nodded and hoped he was guessing right. He looked back up at the elder spirit and smiled. “Sorry Noburo, but I think I should keep her close for now. I’ve got a feeling that I shouldn’t part with her just yet.”

“As you wish.” The other shrugged his indifference. “I pray that this is not another miscalculation on your part, but I’ll leave it to you.”

Noburo then pulled free a small key with an emerald embedded within its end and handed it to Kyle.

“This key will grant you access to a part of the manor you have not yet seen and take you in the direction of your destiny. It is but one of three others, each with a different type of jewel to mark them. You will need to find the other three in order to unlock the underground passageway’s entrance to the shrine.”

The ghost then smiled grimly. “I’m not certain where they can all be found now, only that my father once carried the Ruby Key as I had this emerald one. The diamond and sapphire keys were once hidden, ironically enough, in the stonework of the fountain and the family altar, respectively. Given the fact that my father is no longer the entity he once was, I cannot be certain where his key can now be found or that the other two are where they once were. I pray for your sake that they have not been disturbed.”

Kyle accepted the small key and placed it in his pocket. “Great. Well, I guess we won’t know until I look. Once I find all four keys, where do I go from there?”

“Return back to the hall on this floor where you and the child once fled and hid from my father. In the armory I believe it was? On the opposite of side the armory you will find a stairwell leading downward. It is through there that you will find the hidden passageway.”

“All right. I’ll give this my best shot.” He tried to sound optimistic.

Noburo bowed slightly. “It is a difficult task, but one I believe worth trying. And should we both be successful, even then it may not be enough to stop my father. There is still so much that goes beyond my understanding. I’m afraid this is the best that we can do.”

Kyle smiled grimly. “Then it will be enough. I’m not about to give up without a fight. Besides, last time we ended up making a pretty good team. Let’s just call that time a warm up for this one.”

The other nodded slightly. “Then I’ll say good-bye to you now, as our time grows short. When you find your way back into the manor, come the alter room where we had first faced my father together. We will perform the ceremony there.”

“Gotcha.”

“O’Brien-san?” Noburo asked in a quiet tone.

“Yeah?”

“As hard as you may still find it to believe, I meant what I said about Tachibana-san. I truly hope she is not lost to you.” Before Kyle could reply, the ragged spirit of Noburo Ogami moved through the wall beside them and disappeared.

Chapter Nine

Together, Kyle and Kasumi walked the upper halls of House Ogami heading back towards the little library where he’d first entered in from the garden. As they drew near, the small spirit slowed and seemed apprehensive to walk in that direction any further. Kyle’s mind was still filled with heavy thoughts about Yuki, and didn’t notice the ghost had suddenly become wary until she quickly pulled on his hand causing him to turn and face her with a blank look on his face.

“What is it, Kasumi?” He asked, suddenly becoming alert, but feeling nothing other than her presence.

The small ghost remained quiet, but her white semi-translucent eyes glanced warily toward the door leading back to the garden. Suddenly he understood her fears and knelt before her, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

“Kasumi, if you’d like to wait here, I can go check the fountain by myself. You don’t have to go.” He found it ironic and sad that the one place the child had once loved in life had become not only the place where she has been murdered, but also the apparent conduit of flow for the present of evil that had now befallen the manor. He didn’t think the child would ever wish come to the garden ever again even if they should somehow lift the curse, and that was saddening to him.

Despite the small spirit’s obvious fear of entering the decrepit garden, her eyes became even wider at the idea of being left alone once more and quickly shook her head.

The young man nodded in understanding. “All right then. We’ll go together and stay close to each other. Would that be okay?”

Kyle wasn’t sure just how intact her mind was or whether or not she could truly understand much of what he was saying at all. He got the feeling she was merely acting on instinct alone and not much else. So when she said nothing, he smiled softly and nodded once more. “I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.”

The young man carefully approached the open doorway, quietly side-stepping the door he’d kicked off of its hinges earlier and peered outside. He felt the chill winter wind whip at his face harshly but saw nothing out of place. The fountain was quiet, with no blood visible anywhere that he could see. He looked around the whole of the garden carefully, but when nothing caught his eye, he found himself staring at the fountain once more.

He simply could not believe Yuki was dead. She couldn’t be. It just seemed too impossible to him, no matter what Noburo had said. But still, the bloody images of Shiori pulling her into the basin and sinking within its depths haunted him and suddenly brought him to his knees as tears welled up and poured down his face.

Kasumi Nagoya watched him with a blank stare and said nothing. He figured that she had no idea what had happened or that Yuki had even come with him. A moment later though, he felt a small hand on his face and looked up into the young girl’s eyes. Again, she remained silent, but the look she gave him was one of sorrow and pain. She could sense that he was in despair and tried to reach out to him in her own way.

“Thanks, Kasumi.” He smiled weakly. “I’ll be all right. We should get moving.”

Kyle looked down at his watch and noted there to be about five more hours of daylight. They would have to move faster if they wanted to be out of the manor before the darkness came.

Before the blood came.

“Kasumi, I’ll need your help, here.” He looked at her and wiped at his face. “You used to spend quite a bit of time here in your past. Somewhere down there lies a key that looks sort of like this one.” He pulled free the key Noburo had given him and held it before her. “We need to find it. Do you ever remember seeing it on or near the fountain anywhere?”

The young spirit remained silent but had her eyes fixed on the small gold and emerald key he held in his hand and stared at it blankly.

Kyle sighed. “Well, if you remember something when we get there, let me know, okay?”

They then carefully stepped out into the chilly wind and wound their way down the long spiral wooden staircase until they reached the ground level. From there, Kyle slowly advanced upon the fountain once more with the Camera Obscura poised for a quick shot if need be.

Though nothing triggered the camera’s spiritual sensors, Kyle could feel a dull latent force coming from somewhere deep below them and the debris filled basin. With a sharp breath, he began to move quickly and examined the old stone fountain, looking for any place where a key might be hidden. He moved his hands all over the cold rockery, shining his flashlight into every nook and cranny he could, as he methodically searched for what he prayed was still hidden there somewhere.

Every so often, he would look over at Kasumi and find her watching him intently, but staying several feet away. He couldn’t blame her for her fears and bad memories of the old fountain, and found himself recalling the dark image the camera had once shown him of Tsumano drowning her within its once clear waters. He quickly shook the image away not wanting to be distracted and moved a bit faster, hoping to get them out of there as soon as possible.

After about a half an hour of diligent search, Kyle began to fear the worst. Maybe the key has been taken to prevent the very thing we’re trying to do. He then pictured the key hanging from Shiori’s neck and covered in blood as she laughed darkly at him.

“Think, Kyle, think!” He commanded himself, not wanting to lose focus. “Where the hell are you?”

He then heard a sharp noise to his right and looked over, pulling the camera up to his face in an instant. In the view finder he saw Kasumi centered within a blue glowing reticle holding a carved rock. He lowered the camera and looked at her with curiosity.

“Kasumi?”

The small ghost silently floated toward him and held it out his way. He took it from her but found nothing unusual about it, other than some engraving. “What are you...”

She then pointed towards the part of the fountain where there were other similar rocks that made up the support for one of the upper, smaller basins and saw that there was one missing.

The one he held.

Taking the clue, he quickly got up and examined that part of the fountain more closely. Although there was nothing in the hole from where Kasumi had removed her rock, Kyle could see that there were other spots where they could be pulled out as well.

He began to remove them one by one, until finally he pulled free one that felt a bit lighter than the rest. He quickly used his flashlight and looked in the dark hole with excitement, but was quickly let down as there was nothing hidden within. With despair, he lowered his arm and dropped the useless stone.

He heard a small tinkling sound as it hit the basin’s bottom and quickly looked down. There, right in plain view, lay a key with what appeared to be a diamond embedded in its end. He blinked twice, thinking his eyes were playing tricks on him, but it remained at his feet, shining beneath the dull overcast sky above them.

It was hidden in the rock itself! Kyle felt a sudden wave of excitement and elation come over him as he reached for it...

Noburo Ogami carefully made his way down the darkened halls of his ruined home, passing several spirits far worse off than he as they hid themselves and waited for the darkness to come. Slowly, he descended into the lower depths of House Ogami in search of information he would need to perform the unusual cleansing ritual, while holding an ever growing respect for Kyle O’Brien. True, he thought the other’s return to House Ogami a poor choice, but deeply respected his motivations for doing so. Both he and Tachibana-san seemed to have felt compelled to return, believing the Nagoya child to have needed them.

In the past, such gestures of compassion and loyalty would have made no impression upon him, as he was raised by man who had imparted none of those things into him as a child. Tsumano Ogami had been a cold and cruel man, never interested in anything but his own power and status, and had cared nothing for such trivial matters as compassion or love. He certainly had never demonstrated anything close to it to Noburo as a child, having never felt anything other than the hard staff against his skin for even the slightest of offenses.

His mother, Sachie had certainly never been shown any sign of it, either.

Noburo slowed as his mind drifted back to the images that still haunted him to this day of how his own father would beat her routinely and constantly humiliate her in. He also recalled bitterly the sad and painful day that she had thrown herself over the cliffs in order to escape her tormented life. He was only seven then, and remembered her to be a kind person that had loved him dearly. When she was gone, all he had left was his pain and his father to remind him of the futility for feeling such things as love and kindness. They were but an illusion for the foolish.

Or so he was made to believe all his life.

But still, even now, after more than a century, something continued to burn within him that longed for the return of those fleeting feelings. At certain times in his life they’d surfaced only to be trampled upon ruthlessly by any and all without mercy, until one day, he determined to put them away forever. Shortly after that self-declaration he’d met Shiori Ayukawa, and despite her open protests, his heart truly yearned and burned for her. Something within the beautiful daughter of Kojiro Ayukawa had reminded him of his mother. Perhaps it had been her kindness or her gentle spirit. Even now, it was difficult at best to sort his thoughts out on the matter.

When the woman had made it clear that she would have nothing to do with him willingly, he’d then turned to his father, never considering the cost. He’d meant to possess the woman at first, but in time show her that he truly did love her, only the chance never came. Noburo grimaced visibly as he recalled the feeling of pain and shock he’d felt from her sword as it pierced him from behind on that night so long ago.

Who could have known at the time what her actions were to bring upon House Ogami? Certainly not Tsumano. The elder lord and former Shinto priest had played with things beyond his ability to control and unwittingly had unleashed the wrath of some dark god upon them all.

The young lord paused as he continued to descend and wiped at his face in anguish. In the deepest parts of his mind and heart, he knew that it had truly been he who was ultimately responsible for his current situation. His time spent in the days after Tsumano first thought defeated had forced him to truly deal with that reality.

He also deeply regretted his abusive treatment of his wife and the passage of blame to her for their situation. He’d allowed himself the luxury of casting everything on her in all of it. His anger for her betrayal, his hatred for his father, his powerlessness to protect his mother, everything. He’d allowed himself to make Shiori the symbol of all that had gone wrong in his life and had focused his rage against her over the years.

It wouldn’t be until the time of stillness after he and Kyle had taken down the dark and twisted apparition of Tsumano Ogami, that he could no longer hide behind that illusionary wall. Once freed of some of the curse’s power, he was once again able to see things a bit more clearly and for what they really were. It was when the woman he’d taken from her family had shown him genuine concern and compassion after their fight with the fallen Shinto priest that he’d realized that his feelings were not dead, but had only been buried by years of anger and misplaced hatred.

No longer able to deny them, he wrestled with them endlessly, focusing all of his mental strength to make sense of it. In the days after Kyle’s and Yuki’s departure, he’d found himself watching the other spirit, and let his heart wander a bit unchecked. Minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day, he fell in love with her all over again and could no longer deny himself what had been repressed in his heart for so long.

He loved Shiori Ayukawa more than he ever thought possible. Many times he had wanted to tell her of his heart change, but each time would recall the horrible things he’d done to her and could not. He had become just like his father and had abused her just like he had his mother. It was beyond the ability of his mind to comprehend that she could ever forgive him for such things, and so had remained silent.

He was wrestling with those very things the same night the two spirits of Ron Silvers and Azusa Umino had come to their front door unexpectedly. He recalled the pair looking quite bewildered as to their circumstances and surmised that since they had been freed from his father’s hunting that their minds had returned to them and were now seeking answers. It was also shortly about that same time that he had first felt his father’s presence return and had quickly torn their brief moments of peace from them. He would never have the chance to ever tell Shiori anything ever again. Or so he has always believed until now.

Was she truly lost to the curse of House Ogami? Until now he had accepted that as so. But something in the eyes of Kyle O’Brien had impacted him deeply. The man had refused to accept his own wife’s death and even now works hard at turning things around. Perhaps the young man was right. And if there was hope for his wife, then perhaps there was still hope for his own, as well.

Never the optimist, the tired spirit wrestled hard with such a possibility and dared to dream for just a moment. But then his dark thoughts returned and he suddenly considered it ironic that the face of his tormentor should be the one of his own wife, Shiori. The hands of justice were firm, he conceded. But still, if Kyle O’Brien were somehow able to undo this newest change of his family’s curse, he might just get that chance to set things right with her. Even if she were to never forgave him or was able to return his love, at least she would know his true heart on the matter. However hope was nothing he’d ever had a reason to trust in, and even now refused to fully believe that both he and Kyle O’Brien would succeed. But still he would try. What else could he do?

Putting the matter aside, he turned his thoughts upon Yuki Tachibana. No. Yuki O’Brien, he corrected himself. He sighed and fell weakly into his staff for support. Though Kyle had not received his words of consolation, or had even accepted the likely reality of her death, he had been sincere in what he had told him. He did know what it meant to love some one so much so, that it had become a torment to him, and truly understood the loss the man felt. He only wished that he had the chance to really tell Shiori that.

If fate intervened and took pity on him and the ‘gaijin’, he might just get his chance.

As Kyle reached down to pick up the small diamond encrusted key that lay at his feet, a ghostly hand covered in blood suddenly shot up at him though the ground and grabbed onto his wrist with a vice-like grip, causing him to cry out in pain. He pulled himself backwards as he struggled against the insanely strong spirit and felt the Camera Obscura pulse wildly at his side as it hung loosely from the neck strap. From somewhere behind him he heard Kasumi scream, but he couldn’t look back to see what was happening to her.

Kyle fought to keep his balance and dug his booted feet into the rock basin and pulled hard against the icy clamp about his wrist. A moment later it released him and he flew back and crashed over the edge of the fountain with his feet still propped up over the edge. He struggled to pull himself back but then stopped as his eyes widened in shock. A ghostly figure rose into his view holding the key in hand and smiling at him while covered in blood. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing and slowly shook his head back and forth.

“No way...no way....” He gasped.

The other, a large male spirit looked down at him with a look of pure hatred and insanity while speaking to him in English. “Why did you leave us here? Why did you abandon us?”

Kyle stared at the other as fresh blood poured from his mouth and ran down the front of his dirty and torn tee-shirt and jeans.

“Why did you leave us here? Why did you abandon us?” He repeated in accusation.

Kyle felt his throat go completely dry and his words sounded odd in his ears as he heard himself respond. “Ronnie! I...we...”

“Why did you leave us here? Why did you abandon us?” Ron Silvers accused for the third time as he slowly stepped forward, mere inches from the other lying on the ground before him.

Kyle felt the blood drip from the other onto his chest and it felt like ice water that quickly sobered him. Whatever this creature was, it was not his friend or the Ron Silvers he knew and had cared about, but was only a dark illusion created by Tsumano Ogami. It couldn’t be Ronnie, there was just no way...

Kasumi’s cry suddenly pierced his ears once again as the camera pulsed beside him, begging to be used. In an instant, he had it up and centered the face of his dead friend within it. The other did not recoil or change his demeanor in any visible way, and was either oblivious to the camera’s power or not truly aware of things at all.

For whatever the reasons, it gave the camera time to charge up to full and go red, just as the spirit reached downward for his face. Kyle snapped the shot and released a full powered blow right at point blank range into the other, knocking him backwards and to the opposite side of the fountain. In a moment, Kyle was back on his feet and calling out to Kasumi. He spun around and saw the small spirit behind him being chased by another spirit wearing a short skirt and modern casual top.

It was Azusa.

Kyle pushed past his surprise and centered the camera on her, even though he could hear the other recovering and rising from within the basin. “C’mon, damn it!” He cursed the camera’s slow build up time, realizing he was pinned between the two spirits and very exposed. He then changed his strategy, believing the child to be keeping the other busy for the moment and turned around to find Ronnie once more advancing upon him, repeating the only words he’d said the whole time, over and over again.

“Why did you leave us here? Why did you abandon us?” He continued to repeat angrily, though not truly seeming aware.

The camera pulsed read again, and once more Kyle hit the shutter release, sending a second shot into his former friend. With a shriek of agony, the other was blown back and began to vaporize before him. Just as he turned to find Azusa once more, he felt two hands latch onto his arms and looked right into the woman’s dead eyes as blood leaked from them. An icy chill tore through him, making his whole body go numb. With all of his strength, he twisted and tore himself from her and backed up as his fingers struggled to hold the camera.

“Help us, Kyle! I’m so afraid. Get us out of here!” She cried hysterically in Japanese.

The young man found the strength at last to hold the camera right. He backed up a step awkwardly as he struggled to get her in frame. Fortunately, she had stopped moving and now wore a look of terrible fear and pain upon her face that made him hurt inside badly. A second later though, he took the shot. As with Ronnie, the camera performed flawlessly and released its exorcismal forces into her, knocking her away hard.

His wife’s former childhood friend seemed to take no notice of the pain and struggled forward once more as fresh blood poured from her mouth. “Help us Kyle! I’m so afraid. Get us out of here!” She pleaded desperately.

“I wish I could.” The young man replied with a mix of fear and sorrow as the reticle went red for the forth time in half as many minutes. Again, he fired, and this time the tormented spirit fell to the ground and vaporized in a flash as her screams faded.

Kyle fell to his knees and panted heavily for several seconds, still finding it hard to overcome the others dark touch. Several long minutes passed before he could finally stand again and spied Kasumi hiding behind some trees off to the side, trembling with fear.

“It’s okay now.” He panted. “You can come out.” With great effort, Kyle moved over and sat on one of the benches as he looked over to where Ronnie had fallen. There, amongst the debris lay the Diamond Key. He crawled over to where it lay, retrieved it and thrust it into his pocket.

“Two down, two to go.” He breathed heavily with a shake of his head. “Piece of cake.”

From somewhere far below the fountain, an awareness felt Kyle O’Brien’s spirit above, and suddenly wondered about his purpose. He had been searching for something it seemed. But what? The awareness then began to remember something vague and long forgotten...

Kasumi now sat at Kyle’s feet and watched him closely with a worried look in her small eyes, as she waited for him to at last gather enough of his strength to move about. The young man had decided to take another few moments to rest and eat a little to restore his energy.

“I don’t suppose ghost’s like Snickers bars, do they?” He held the chocolate candy out her way. She looked at it with mild interest and slowly took it from him. “They’re pretty good, but if you eat too much you’ll get sick and get pimples.”

The young spirit took the offered treat, turned it over in her small hands a few times and then set it down on the ground next to her.

“I didn’t think so.” He chuckled. “But I hate to eat in front of people and wanted to at least offer.”

Kasumi continued to stare at him blankly.

“Not much for words these days, are you? It’s okay. I guess I can understand why.” Kyle took a swig of his bottled water and then placed it and the candy bar back in his pack.

He then inclined his head as they looked at each other. “You and I are a team, aren’t we? We’re going to look after each other until this is all over, I promise.”

After another moment, Kyle sat up and stretched his arms, feeling quite a bit better now, though still not fully one-hundred percent. Once before, he’d felt the chilling touch of a maddened spirit when looking for Yuki, and Kasumi had been there to distract it. How these spirits were able to draw the life force out of the living was something he didn’t understand. The child was as much a spirit, as was the Shiori he’d once known, but their touch had not been painful at all. Kyle then wondered if Kasumi were capable of draining the life force if she wished to, or if it was something that only accompanied madness. He wished he knew more about how it all worked instead of always learning on the go.

Something else he took notice of was that his ability to sense spiritual forces around him was somehow being dampened, and not able to feel them until they were almost upon him. Both he and Yuki had noted that when first entering the manor. It was if Tsumano were actively trying to handicap them in some way. If Noburo were right, and it was the dark spirit who’d called to them even while in America, and not the child before him, then it was certain there was a very well thought out plan of revenge being played out against them.

If that were the case, then certainly he knew they’d return with the camera and would be prepared for it. The more he thought about it, the more obvious and true the young lord’s words seemed to be. Kyle lowered his head in shame at the revelation that he’d fallen right into the trap and had taken Yuki right along with him. He started to curse himself, but then shook his head. No, it wasn’t his fault. They’d both believed the little girl to be in danger and needing their help. Together they’d made the decision to come back. They were not foolish, only deceived.

Even as Kyle reaffirmed that in his mind, it did little to comfort him. What if Noburo were also right in that his beloved was truly dead, as he seemed to believe? Certainly he could not deny what he saw happen, and could see no way that Yuki could have survived, if it was truly Shiori’s wish to kill her. The young man clenched his fists in anger and fear. If the ghost had truly slain her, then it would have to be proven to him. And if it were so, then he would kill her in turn. Or rather the monster within her.

He reminded himself that this was no longer the Shiori Ayukawa who had pulled him from the car wreck and had once tended his wounds with compassion. She was no longer the gentle spirit who’d cared for Yuki as well and had risked herself for them both. She was now a puppet of Tsumano. Shiori Ayukawa was truly dead in every sense of the word, and what he now faced was nothing but a bloody monster. The best thing he could do for her would be to set her free from the curse and see what happened then.

With a heavy sigh, he took Kasumi’s hand in his and motioned towards the back of the garden. “We haven’t a whole lot of time left. We’d better get to the altar room and see about the next key.”

He looked at the small spirit closely, almost expecting her to reply back. However, she merely looked up at him with trusting eyes. Feeling much of his strength returned, they made their way out of the garden and left the fountain behind without looking back.

“And just where do you think you’re going, young lady?” Mariko Watanabe called after her great-grandchild with an edge to her voice.

The young woman gave her a tired glance. “You know where, Grandmother. We’ve discussed this already.”

The old woman struggled to get out of her chair and pointed a crooked finger at her. “No! I forbid it. This is not your destiny or problem!”

Kozue zipped up the front of her winter coat and pulled a thick wool hat over her long black hair. “Maybe. But is my responsibility. I know something they do not. Something that may change how they choose to go about their business.”

“You cannot change destiny!” The old woman stated loudly and with fear.

“I’m sorry, Grandmother, but I don’t believe that. I can’t believe that with so much at stake for them both. I made a mistake by not telling them of my own powers that day they came.”

“And just what is it you intend to do, Kozue-chan?” Mariko sat back in her chair with fear in her voice.

Kozue faced her. “I wasn’t able to reach them by phone, so I’m taking the train to their apartment to see if I can speak to them there. I also have something that I wish to give them. Something I should have from the very beginning and hope now that its not too late.”

“Something to give them?”

“Nevermind.” The young woman waved away the inquiry. “I’m sorry, Grandmother. I know you love me and are just trying to protect me, but as you say, destiny cannot be changed. I do have one though, as strong and clear as yours and Grandfather’s were. I cannot run from it.”

The old woman stared at her for a long moment and reluctantly nodded. “Perhaps you are right. Perhaps this is your destiny, after all. But I don’t want it for you, child.”

Kozue saw tears running down the elder woman’s face and quickly knelt beside her, wrapping her in a tight hug. “I’ll be fine, so don’t worry. Please don’t worry.” She then pulled herself away. “I have to go now.”

Mariko turned away from her and watched the flames dance within her fireplace but felt none of their warmth. “I understand. Please come back to me soon.”

“I will.” The younger woman promised as she slipped out their front door and closed it quietly.

The old woman rested her head against the back of her chair and closed her eyes, wondering if she really would truly ever get to see her again. For what the Camera Obscura had also shown her was that not only were the O’Brien’s lost in House Ogami, but Kozue as well.

Chapter Ten

With both the diamond and emerald studded keys in his possession, Kyle and Kasumi carefully made their way through the decrepit and eerily silent mansion towards the altar room, each lost in their own thoughts. Kyle glanced down and placed a hand over his pant leg pocket just to reassure himself that both of the keys were still there.

They were.

His mind then wrestled on how to get the next two keys, the ruby and sapphire ones, knowing the next two, or at least one of them, would not easily come as the first two had.

Noburo had said that the former had always been carried by his father, and so he figured that one would likely prove to be the more difficult of the two to get, but was only guessing. He had no idea what sort of obstacles they would face along the way as they searched, and knew that time was moving against them. Night would be coming all too soon, and along with it the blood and full power of Tsumano Ogami. Kyle wished for Kasumi and himself to be long gone from the manor by the time that happened.

As Kyle was thinking on this, he stepped on a part of the floor board in front of him in the dark hallway and heard a loud cracking sound and froze. He quickly lowered his flashlight to his feet and held his breath. Dry rot hat had set in on the old flooring and was now beginning to break apart beneath his weight.

“Great.” He whispered as he remained motionless. Kyle could see the flooring dipping and breaking apart all around him. Slowly, he lowered himself to his knees, thinking to distribute his weight more evenly over the rotting wood and crawl his way out, but the moment he moved, he heard an ear piercing snap and felt himself falling.

With a hard crash, Kyle O’Brien hit something solid several dozen feet below him and cried out in agony as a sharp pain now burned through his left leg. After several long moments of excruciating pain, he finally managed to calm himself and look about. He was greeted by total darkness and tried not to panic as he felt around for his flashlight, but could not find it. He looked upward but could not see anything above him either.

“Kasumi!” He called out in pain and fear. “Kasumi, can you hear me?” His voice echoed loudly, telling him wherever he was now that it was a big and open space. “Kasumi, can-”

Suddenly, he felt her presence beside him and he reached for her and grabbed her by the hand. “Kasumi, I’m hurt.” He gasped. “I can’t tell how badly though. I need you to find my flashlight for me. Can you find it for me?”

Though he couldn’t see her, he could hear her breathing, or what passed for breathing in a ghost, and could tell that she was hesitating for some reason. Kyle then rephrased his request, realizing the century old spirit would not understand such a word as ‘flashlight’.

“Kasumi, I need the small lantern that I was carrying that helped me to see my way through the darkness. Did you see where it fell?”

The young spirit squeezed his hand. “I...will...look...”

Kyle’s eyes widened in surprise at her sudden use of words and would’ve normally been overjoyed at such a development. However, the intense pain of his leg robbed him of such thoughts.

She then released his hand and moved away from him. Kyle leaned back and shifted his weight slightly, sending another wave of intense pain through his leg that nearly knocked him out. “Aggghhh!” He cried sharply.

Kasumi was back beside him in an instant, breathing heavily.

“I’m okay...just quickly find the lantern and come back as fast as you can.” He assured her. Reluctantly, she flew off and left him alone once more. Yeah, like I’m really okay...He cursed himself for not being careful. He should have known that the structural integrity of an ancient mansion abandoned to the elements for more than a hundred years was bound to have some problems.

Not bothering to wait for the ghost to return, he carefully ran his hands over his leg and found the source of his injury. A foot long piece of wood around an inch thick had pierced his calf and ran straight through, with several inches exposed on both ends. Upon feeling it, he began to feel lightheaded...

Several moments later, Kasumi returned, holding the odd little lantern in her ethereal hands and knelt beside the injured man. “O’Bu-rai-n-san?” She questioned with great effort. When he didn’t respond she became really scared. “O’Bu-rain-san, O’Bu-rain-san, O’Brien-san! O’Brien-san!” She continued to cry out as her words gradually became more clear.

After several moments of her cries and gentle shaking, he stirred and opened his eyes, once again seeing nothing. He felt like he was floating on a cloud and wondered if he was now dead. A second later the pain returned and reminded him harshly that he was not quite gone yet.

“Kasumi?” He finally mouthed through dry lips as she continued to call to him over and over. She quickly became silent, and he suddenly felt her head on his chest.

“Don’t ever leave me alone. Don’t ever leave me alone.” She cried in clear Japanese.

Despite his own pain, he reached up and stroked her short hair. “Hey, I’m not going anywhere. We’re a team, remember?”

The young spirit remained silent then slowly pulled herself away. “I’ve found your lantern.” Kyle felt her place it on his chest and carefully reached for it, while looking in the direction of her voice.

“Kasumi, are you all right now?” He questioned with eagerness and hope.

The young ghost smiled coldly to herself. “It seems that way. Until now, I thought I was only dreaming that you were really here. I thought it all just part of some trick Ogami-sama was torturing me with. But now I feel as though I’ve been awakened from that dream. You really are here aren’t you, O’Brien-san?”

Kyle laughed dryly, reaching for the other’s hand. “You’d better believe it. You don’t know how relieved I am to see you’re well once more.”

Surprisingly, the young spirit pulled away from his touch and sat in silence.

“Kasumi, what’s wrong?” He became concerned at her sudden change in demeanor. She now really seemed like the old Kasumi he’d once met, which wasn’t necessarily the best thing. Once again, he reached for her hand and asked in gentle tones. “We are a team, aren’t we?”

Kasumi Nagoya regarded the other with mixed emotions, and felt again the barriers of mistrust being erected within her mind. In the past, her trust had always been rewarded with disappointment and pain. The last time she’d felt a man’s hands, they’d been around her neck, forcing her under cold waters and to her death.

The time that had followed had brought her only years and years of torment, having been forced to witness the madness of that man continue, as he repeatedly tortured her mother, Taeko, and everyone else for all that time. She often wondered if she and Ayukawa-sama had really had it any better than they, as they’d been spared that particular nightmare only to face the one forced upon them by his son, Noburo.

Just when she was beginning to believe the endless cycle of pain finally over, and House Ogami truly free from the curse, Ogami-sama had once again managed to take up his staff and shatter their hopes, forcing them all into a newer and far worse situation where not even she or Ayukawa-sama were safe.

Trust was something in extreme shortage these days. She’d trusted Kyle O’Brien and Yuki Tachibana once before, only to have things end up for the worse.

“A team?” She mouthed back.

Kyle began to feel very uncomfortable with this new change in the young ghost and tried hard to fight back the intense pain in his leg and focus on her. “Kasumi, I’m not sure what’s wrong or why you’re suddenly so withdrawn, but yes, we are a team. We have to trust each other-”

“Trust?” She cried back in anger. “It’s because of you that we are now like this! If you and Tachibana-san had not ever come here in the first place...” She let her words drift off, not sure where she was going with them.

Kyle then suddenly began to understand her pain and pulled his hand back.

“Kasumi”, he began, “Think about what you are saying. I mean, I know you’ve had it really bad, but you can’t really believe my wife and I are to blame for any of this. We never asked to come here in the first place. You’re not the only one to lose something precious to you.”

Kasumi remained silent as Kyle began to get emotional. “Even now, I may have to face the fact that my Yuki is...gone.”

“What do you mean?” She asked.

“You don’t know?” He replied in painful tones.

“No.”

Kyle closed his eyes and tried to keep his words clear. “The only reason we've returned here in the first place was because we’d both become convinced that you were in trouble and needed our help. We came back here for you, Kasumi.”

Kasumi’s eyes widened in shock. “For me?”

“That’s right. But Noburo seems to think it was really Tsumano’s doing in order to lead us back here to get revenge.” He answered.

Kasumi lowered her head in shame. “And so you came back...just because you thought I needed your help?”

“That’s right. Both Yuki and I.”

“Tachibana-san is here too?” She looked up at him. Though he could not see her in the darkness, she could see him clearly, and the look of pain upon his face that betrayed more than what his physical injuries were causing him. “Where is she now?”

“I guess you don’t remember too much of what Noburo and I were saying a short time ago. Yuki was taken by Ayukawa-san, or Ogami-sama, really, and dragged down into the fountain’s depths almost immediately after we’d first arrived here.” Kyle closed his eyes and steadied his breathing. “Noburo told me that she is dead.”

Kyle heard the young spirit gasp and then began to weep bitterly. “No...why did you
both...”

“Because...” Kyle also became emotional and felt tears began to well up and run down his face. “Because we love you Kasumi and would do anything to help you. You helped us greatly when we needed it. Yuki told me about how you had sacrificed yourself to hold off Tsumano that time in the ravine when I lay unconscious and she had fled in panic. I also told you back when we hid in that armory that if I ever had the chance to return the favor for saving me from him that I would do so.”

“You...love me?” She asked, focusing on his words.

He grimaced beneath the pain in his leg but kept his mind on their exchange. “Don’t be stupid. Of course we love you. Both you and Ayukawa-san. I’m not so sure about Noburo, though.” He chuckled. “He’s still a mystery to me. But somehow he seems different now.”

Kasumi stared at him, feeling the mixed emotions boil within her. “I...don’t know what to believe.”

Kyle then grabbed at the flashlight and pressed the power button. “Oh, no.”

“What is it?” She looked up at him.

“My flashlight...my lantern is broken. I’d hoped that it had only been shut off in the fall, but it seems its taken damage.” He ran his finger over the glass part at the end and confirmed it. He was silently cursing his luck when his mind turned to a darker thought and quickly began to feel around himself in panic. “Kasumi, the ‘shaeiki’! Where is it?”

The young ghost looked about them and saw nothing amongst the shattered wood except his pack a few feet away and moved towards it. She quickly turned it over but found nothing else.

“Kasumi!” Kyle’s voice became more panicked.

She looked all about them and then back up at the hole through which he fell and saw it hanging from a piece of wood where the neck strap had been torn from Kyle’s neck and gotten caught. Like a fish hanging from a line, it hung and swayed gently back and forth in the darkness forty or so feet above them.

“I see it! It’s caught on the wood beams above us.” She told him.

He sighed a breath of relief. Losing his light source was enough as it was. If he lost he Camera Obscura as well, things really were done for.

“Can you get to it?”

She rolled her eyes. “Of course. Hold on.” The insubstantial Kasumi Nagoya began to float upwards, not hampered by the gravity the rest of the world about her was subject to and drew close to the hanging camera. But then to her shock, a hand as ethereal as her own reached down through the hole and pulled it away.

Several hours after departing her great-grandmother’s home in Nerima, Kozue Hinata looked up at the apartment building and checked the address against the one she had written down on the paper she held in her hand. This was the right place. She told the cab driver to wait for her and that she would only be a few minutes at best and made her way to their unit. When she got there she knocked loudly and waited.

When no one answered after a few moments she began to worry. She looked through the small window beside the door and could see that it was dark inside and now feared for the worst. She hadn’t made it in time to stop them, and now paced the entry way back and forth in anxious thought. Damn, this is all my fault! I should have said something before. Now what do I do?

She tried the door handle but found it locked as expected. “This isn’t good.”

Not one to normally act impulsively, she let the importance of what she was doing guide her, and so, picked up a loose brick from a planter beside the door and smashed the small side window. She carefully reached her arm in and felt around the inside of the door until she felt the lock and released it. I hope I don’t get caught.

Having committed to her choice of actions, Kozue opened the door and stepped inside.

“O’Brien-san?” She called out. “O’Brien-san, are you home?” She walked into the living room area and her eyes went wide as she turned on the lights. All about her were the things the young couple had taken from her grandmother’s home. It looked like they had been preparing for something drastic.

What do I do now? She questioned herself. She had really been counting on catching them before leaving for House Ogami, and was now presented with a new problem. She had no idea where the old manor was, other than the general area. If she were to find it, and them, quickly, she would need help. There was only one person she felt she could really trust to give her accurate information on such a thing and pulled free her cell phone and dialed.

A moment later a woman’s voice answered.

“Miku?” This is Kozue. I’m sorry to bother you right now, but I need your help on something really important. It’s really life or death.”

The other woman replied cautiously. “Kozue, is everything all right? Is it your grandmother?”

“No. I’m fine. She’s fine.” She assured. “Look, I’m sorry to bother you, but I really need a piece of information I think that you might know.”

“What is it?” The other questioned anxiously.

“Well, I know both you and Kurosawa-san have been working together since the late 1980’s on paranormal investigations and was hoping you might have come across something on an old place in the Osaka area called House Ogami.”

The other remained quiet.

“Miku? Are you there?” Kozue asked nervously.

“I’m here. Look, why do you want to know about it?”

“Let’s just say I’ve got something I need to get to someone who has gone there and tell them something really important. I have to catch them before they go in there, but don’t know the exact location of the mansion. Both you and Kurosawa-san know these kinds of things. Please Miku, if you know, tell me. Like I said, it’s life or death.”

Miku Hinasaki closed her eyes and sighed deeply, pushing away the memories of both Himuro Mansion and the House of Sleep that still plagued her nearly two decades later, feeling very apprehensive about answering. The young woman simply did not know what she was asking for and for years had resisted Kozue’s persistent inquiries of the supernatural. It was bad enough that both she and Rei still had dealings with that world and felt a responsibility to try and keep Kozue out of it.

Since her time with Rei Kurosawa and the events following their bare escape from the 'Curse of the Tattoo' that had claimed the lives of Kei Amakura and his niece Mio, as well as many, many others, she and Rei had reluctantly continued their work together over the years, in effort to both deal with the past and not move forward. During that time, they’d discovered more of Yuu Asou’s heritage as well.

Yuu had been the boyfriend of Rei back then and had died in a horrible car accident one rainy night while Rei was speeding and going around a curve. It was both that event and sense of guilt Rei had felt, along with Miku’s own sense of pain over losing her own brother to Himuro Mansion that had worked as catalysts to bringing them both into the nightmare dream world of the sleeping priestess, Reika Yakishiro. Shortly after that, they had been both paid a visit by Yuu’s estranged aunt, Mariko Asou. It was then that they had both remembered her from Yuu’s funeral a short time earlier.

Mariko had told them that she’d felt drawn to find them and that Yuu had visited her in her dreams on many occasions since his death and had been calling to her to enter the dream world as well, but had refused to go. Mariko Asou, despite her fragile body and old age, was no novice to the spiritual world and its often devious enticements.

Through past experience and personal insight, she’d recognized the power of the 'House of Sleep' for what it was and had managed to defy its call. Fearing for the worst, she sought out Rei to warn her, but by the time she’d finally found her, they had already escaped the ‘Call of the Tattoo’ and had been freed from its grasp.

That same year, Kozue Hinata was born to Shin Hinata and Kyoko Asou, last of the Asou line. When Mariko had first held the baby Kozue, she’d felt what was perhaps the greatest and strongest spiritual power of all the Asou family, possibly even from Kunihiko’s time. Despite her own efforts to protect her, Kozue had grown up very much aware of her own uniqueness and it was only a matter of time before she’d met both Miku Hinasaki and Rei Kurosawa one day.

Mariko had kept in contact with the pair over the years and felt a kinship to Rei, even though she and her nephew had never been given the chance to marry or start a family. It was when Kozue had been visiting her grandmother sometime when she was around seven that she’d met the two older women and felt their spirits were as unique and as different as hers, Miku’s especially.

In the blink of an eye, Miku Hinasaki had become the unexpected big sister and would somehow always find the young girl beside her every chance she’d found, observing her work and asking questions. Miku hadn’t minded much though. She knew what it was like to look up to and love an older sibling. But Mafuyu, her brother, was twenty years dead and time had moved on. She’d received Kozue’s love as a little sister, though she was old enough to be her mother, and returned it. It was for that reason that she now hesitated to answer the distraught young woman.

“Kozue, I’m not so sure that’s a good idea. You know how I feel about-”

“Please, Miku, I really need your help. This isn’t just about me. I have to find these two or something really terrible is going to happen. And if it does, I’ll be to blame!”

The older woman could hear the anxiety and fear in her voice and ran her hand absently over her mother’s old hair comb that still adorned her now waist long hair all these years later. “Okay, calm down. Let me think. Rei and I did do some research on that for your great-grandmother a few years ago when she was still really active about finding out about her husband’s disappearance. We had never turned up anything concrete, though. She had begged us to not go there even for her sake, so we just sort of let the matter drop.”

“But you still remember its location, don’t you?” Kozue asked quickly.

Miku sighed once more, feeling reluctant to be the one to have to tell her and possibly bring her into the world she had desperately tried to escape on more than one occasion. The older woman had no idea what could possibly be going on at the old abandoned place, but knew not to underestimate the dark calls of such spiritual hot spots. Some things were best just left alone.

“Miku?”

“I remember, Kozue. Are you certain you really need to involve yourself in this?”

Kozue laughed without humor. “You sound just like Grandmother.”

“With good reason, Kozue. But...you are an adult now, and I can’t protect you from these things forever. If you’re bent on doing this...I will help you.” Miku conceded. “Where are you now?”

Kozue quickly gave her the directions to the O’Brien’s apartment.

Miku smiled to herself. “Actually, you are only a few miles away from the manor. But wait for me, anyway. I’ll need to find a few things and will meet you there in a few hours.”

Kozue protested. “Miku, I don’t have time for that, really.”

Miku held firm. “I’m sorry, Kozue, but you and Rei are all the family I have left, and I’m not about to let you go off on this until I’m satisfied about a few things, so you’ll just have to wait for me, okay?”

“Miku!” Kozue called back in frustration.

“I’ll be there in a few hours, so don’t go anywhere, I mean it.” Miku sounded very serious and so Kozue finally gave in.

“All right, I won’t. But please Miku, hurry.”

Chapter Eleven

“Hurry, Kasumi!” Kyle called out into the vast darkness around him as the young looking spirit ascended towards the Camera Obscura, unaware of the newest development, and feeling vulnerable out in the open with his injured leg and broken flashlight.

Kasumi Nagoya ignored him as she raced faster to see who or what it was that was trying to steal away their only weapon against Tsumano Ogami. As she flew back up through the hole in the floor, she spotted an apparition, whose form was not unlike her own, holding the camera protectively.

“Mother?” Kasumi cried out in surprise.

Taeko Nagoya appeared every bit as tattered and broken down as Noburo and Kasumi were, but still held a thin look of intelligence behind her lifeless almond shaped eyes. She was no longer the insane ghost Tsumano had made her into over the years in the past, but was neither fully herself either. She was only just beginning to come out of her shell during the short time she and Kasumi had spent together while free of the Ogami curse, when things had taken their turn for the worse.

Taeko had somehow managed to escape much of Tsumano’s wrath for a time afterwards and had relied on Kasumi for protection. But not even Kasumi could do much over time, as Tsumano slowly consumed those about her, the first being Shiori Ayukawa.

It had been months since she had seen her mother, having been lost to the curse herself and not able to think rationally until only minutes ago when Kyle O’Brien had somehow woken her from her dream.

“Mother, it’s me, Kasumi.” The smaller ghost said as she carefully moved toward the fleeing spirit.

Taeko looked about her in sudden confusion and nearly bolted, taking the camera with her, but then looked back sharply at the other. “Kasumi? I thought I told you not to play in the garden anymore. Lord Ogami has already told me to not let you in there.”

“Mother?” Kasumi hesitated.

The other spirit let her hands fall to her sides, suddenly forgetting about the camera and stared at her daughter while continuing to scold her. “Well, what do you have to say for yourself, young lady?”

“Mother, I-”

“Oh, save your excuses for another time.” The other continued. “It’s a good thing I found you before Lord Ogami has. I fear that he’s not in the best of moods these days since losing his son and daughter-in-law. We really have to be respectful of his wishes if we are to continue serving in his household.”

Kasumi flew up next to her, drawing the other’s eyes to her feet. “My goodness child, how are you doing that?”

Suddenly Kasumi realized that her mother’s mind was back to a time when they were alive and made of flesh and blood. She didn’t know quite what to say, but quickly lowered herself to the flooring and rested on her feet. Before Kasumi could come up with anything to say, her mother took on a frantic look and now held a wild look in her eyes.

Suddenly she screamed and fell to her knees, covering her head. “No, not my child. Not my Kasumi! Please I beg you...”

“Mother?” Kasumi became frightened and placed a hand on her shoulder. Taeko screamed once more, wrenched herself away and fled from her, taking the Camera Obscura along with her as she went.

Kasumi thought to give chase, but could suddenly hear Kyle calling to her in desperate tones and thought he might be in some new danger. Feeling torn as to what to do, she looked back at the way she’d come and then to where her mother had gone. With great reluctance, she sighed and returned to where Kyle called from below.

“Kasumi, what is going on? What’s happening. I could hear screaming.” Kyle cried in pain as he propped himself up.

The young girl was almost angry that there wasn’t some hungry spirit trying to get at him and fell to her knees beside him. “It was my mother. She’s taken the ‘shaeiki’ and run off with it. I was going to chase her and get it back, but...”

“But you heard me calling you and came back.” He pressed his face into his hand, feeling stupid. “I’m sorry. I thought you were in trouble and got scared.”

Kasumi stared at him in the darkness and shook her head in disbelief. He really does care about me, doesn’t he?

Kyle sighed audibly. “Oh, well. Any idea of where she may have run off to?”

Kasumi shrugged. “The servants quarters where we once lived would probably be the most likely place. Her mind was back in the time when Ogami-sama had...”

Kyle picked up on what she was trying to say. “I see. Well, let’s not give up on that just yet. More importantly, where the hell are we now? I still can’t see a damned thing.”

“We’re in one of the master basement storehouses where Ogami-sama used to keep all kinds of things. This one, aside from us, is empty.”

“That explains the echo.” Kyle stated. “Is my back pack anywhere nearby?”

“Back pack?” Kasumi repeated the words.

“Yeah, the bag with straps I was carrying. Do you see it anywhere?”

Her eyes opened wide. “Oh yes, It’s over here.”

The small ghost quickly retrieved it for him and waited quietly as he rifled through it. Silently congratulating himself on at least one tiny bit of wisdom and foresight, he thumbed on the power button of a second flashlight and panned it around him while looking around the large room for the first time.

Kyle thought it odd the way the light passed right through the little ghost and made a full circle of light on the wooden beam behind her, once again reminded that this girl was dead. He was getting far too accustomed to the fact that not all of his friends were alive and made of flesh. Somehow he now found it oddly irrelevant.

He then passed the light down onto his leg and examined it for the first time in the light.

“Oh, shit.” He cursed, finding his rare use of foul language appropriate. “I knew it was bad, but now that I can see it...” He then began to feel lightheaded once more and had to prop himself up.

“O’Brien-san?” Kasumi became concerned as she too examined his wound.

“I’m okay...I’m all right. I think. You’re going to have to help me here, I’m afraid.” He said through the pain.

“Tell me what to do.”

“Well, first thing is...stop calling me O’Brien-san. We’re past that. Call me Kyle.”

The young spirit nodded with a bit of embarrassment. “Kai-ru”. She tried to pronounce his name as best as she could.

“That’s close enough.” He smiled at her. He then pulled a few things from his bag and set them on top of it. She looked at the dressings and had no problem understanding what those were used for, but looked at the bottle of clear liquid he set beside them with curiosity.

“Is that water, to clean your wound with?” She asked.

“No, but we do have that too. That’s alcohol. It’s used to clean the wound after we wash it out. It will help keep it from getting any worse, I hope. Anyway, what I need you to do for me now is carefully pull that wood out of my leg and then clean it with both those things, then bandage me up as best as you can.”

“All right. I’ll do my best.”

“Thanks. And no matter how bad I cry out like a baby, don’t stop, you got that?” He told her in serious tones.

She looked at his wound once more and nodded. “I understand. But don’t worry. Even if you do cry out, I won’t think you’re a baby. I think even I’d cry if I had something like that stuck in me.”

Kyle smiled and laughed a little. “Thanks, Kasumi. Coming from you, that means everything.”

The flowers are so beautiful and colorful here. Yuki O’Brien thought and smiled to herself as she lay out in the warmth of the sun while wearing her favorite white Summer dress, not feeling as though she had a care in the world. The sky was now a gorgeous rich blue, with only a few white clouds rolling past her at a lazy pace, looking a lot like big marshmallows.

Yuki inhaled the crisp Summer air and could distinctly smell the wonderful fragrance of the flowers all about her as she lay upon the soft blanket spread out beneath her. Life was perfect. She had not one care in the world as she gently sipped at the fruit drink in her glass and thought the way the sunlight glistened through the red liquid and ice looked really pretty.

How long have I been lying here like this? She wondered to herself for a moment before the irrelevant thought vaporized and felt her mind wander again. What did it matter, anyway? She was happy and felt like she could stay as she was forever. Everything was perfect and so beautiful. Not since her wedding day has she felt...

My wedding day? Another stray thought entered her mind. Again she felt something nag at her, but found she could not hold onto it and relaxed as she took another sip of the cold red juice that never seemed to empty from her glass. She closed her eyes and smiled, sighing contentedly to herself. I could stay here forever like this...

She casually opened her eyes once more and looked all about her, feeling once again drawn to gaze upon the colorful beauty of the gentle world about her, and to taste once again the wonderful red juice in the glass she held onto.

A gentle breeze blew past her and ruffled the hem of her dress and felt caressed by its feel as it tickled her legs, arms and face. How she’d come to be in such a wonderful place, she did not know or care. It didn’t matter. What only mattered now was that she could finally relax and enjoy herself to the fullest, no longer bothered by the strains and stress of the world.

Strains and stress? Yuki couldn’t understand why these useless thoughts kept interrupting her relaxation and went to take another sip of the red juice, but held it just short of her mouth and looked upwards toward the sky once more, again noting the beautiful rich blue color of the sky. She’d seen that color before, somewhere else and now tried to recall where.

Again the desire to drink the red juice came to her forcibly and was just about to swallow more when a sudden image blinked inside her mind. She paused once more and held the glass just a mere inch from her lips. Her mind fought to recall the image and then slowly brought it back into focus. It was a man’s face, with eyes as blue as the sky above her. It was Kyle.

Kyle? Who was Kyle?

Suddenly the sweet smell of fresh flowers was replaced by a pungent iron-like one and she pulled the glass away from her, noting it to be coming from there. Her eyes went wide in shock as she realized that it no longer held the cold and delicious red fruit juice, but now held something entirely different.

Blood? Why is there blood in here? Suddenly, the warm gentle breeze became a chill wind and blew all around her. The sky then began to grow dark and the field of flowers began to wilt. What is happening?

Suddenly she began to cough and felt as though she were drowning somehow. To her shock she began to bleed from everywhere and watched as her pure white dress became soaked with blood. She found that she couldn’t breathe, but only vomit and couch up bright red blood. She felt like she was about to collapse when suddenly another figure appeared before her, equally as bloody. It was another woman who gazed down upon her with condemnation.

“You should have kept drinking, Tachibana-san.” Shiori Ayukawa admonished. “You really should have.”

Yuki’s mind then became clear once more and stared back at the other noting the cold smile etched upon her beautiful face. “Ayukawa-san...Shiori...why are you doing this to me?”

The other bent low and gently took Yuki’s head in her bloody hands. “Tachibana-san, I do this for your own good. I do it because of the love I have for you. Can’t you see that? What I’m offering you is an eternal peace in wherever it is you consider perfect. A fate far better that the one I’m forced to endure, don’t you think?”

Yuki shook free. “You’ve gone insane. There is no place for me that is perfect without Kyle.” Yuki then coughed up another liter of blood and raised her head once more to see that cold smile. “Shiori, please, this isn’t you. I know it isn’t. You would never do this kind of thing to me or Kyle.”

The other stared at her dispassionately as her smile faded. “You know so little. Don’t you understand we are all being made to suffer for our sins in life? This is my punishment and I deserve it, so I accept it.”

Yuki shook her head. “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, my dear Yuki, please don’t fight it. My heart is in pain to see you like this. Here...” The bloodied spirit held out the glass filled with blood. “It’s not too late. Drink again, and all will be perfection.”

Yuki recoiled from the other and felt the wilted flowers tear into her skin as though they were barbs on a wire, causing her to cry out in pain.

Shiori Ayukawa slowly shook her head. “Please, Yuki, just drink.”

“Never! Leave me alone.” The pained woman cried.

“Oh I cannot do that.” Shiori responded. “I could never do that.”

Chapter Twelve

The hours passed by slowly as the day became night and very chill while Kozue Hinata waited in silence within the O’Brien’s small apartment with the lights out. She had decided to keep them off to ward away other visitors who might think her a robber or something, and had even used some of the cardboard from one of the many boxes lying about to cover up the window she’d broken to gain entry.

She also considered that if she had been wrong about Kyle and Yuki going to House Ogami already and returned only to find her waiting within, then that would be the best thing possible. But she quickly dismissed that possibility as anything but a foolish hope and resigned herself to simply waiting. Miku hadn’t given her a choice, and she felt somewhat angry at the woman.

Kozue couldn’t blame her though. It wasn’t Miku’s fault that she’d made the mistake of not contacting the O’Brien’s sooner or for being forthright with them in the first place. This was her burden alone. Miku simply wished to make sure she didn’t make another, bigger mistake, and although it stressed her, she knew Miku was right and definitely knew what she was talking about when it came to dealing with the supernatural.

It took a long time for her to finally get her to open up and share with her the story of both Himuro Mansion and the nightmare that she and Rei Kurosawa had both barely managed to survive. Something she’d called the ‘House of sleep’. She now felt that the only reason she was finally told was not to satisfy her with a good story, but rather to deeply warn her and give her a sober understanding that such things are not fun and games.

It was then that she had first heard of the Camera Obscura and its power to reveal and even overcome the spiritual if used properly. She’d even managed to see the very one she and Rei had used in their dreams. Rei, to this day still kept the broken relic by her bedside as a dark reminder of the past. Miku had told her it was broken and no longer worked in the real world anyway. So it was to her great surprise when Kyle O’Brien had produced another one right before her eyes. Not only that, but one made by her own great-grandmother’s very hands.

As the minutes ticked by endlessly, Kozue lay on the soft cushions scattered about the living room floor and waited. Then suddenly there was a light knock at the front door which startled her. She quietly tiptoed her way to the door, looked through the little eye glass and sighed in relief. She opened it and pulled the other in quickly.

“Isn’t this breaking and entering?” Miku Hinasaki shook her head as she placed her hands on the hips of her still fit and trim figure. Miku took great care of herself, and aside from the long flowing hair secured in a ponytail by her mother’s old hair piece, she barely looked a few years older than she had when facing the dark spirits of Kuze House, twenty years ago.

“Yes, but that’s not important right now.” The other replied in anxious tones. “I really wish you could have just told me what I needed to know over the phone.”

Miku ignored her and looked around in the dark room. “No lights? You really are a criminal, aren’t you?”

“Miku, stop! I’ve no time for-”

“Listen, little sister, its like I told you.” She cut her off. “I need to see a few things for myself before you go off on this. Besides, I don’t think I could adequately tell you over the phone how to get there. I’ve only seen the mansion once, and that was more than ten years ago. I only have my original notes from back then to guide me, so you’ll just have to put up with me.”

Kozue nodded. “I’m sorry, Miku. I really do appreciate what you’re doing. It’s just that I’m really scared about some things that might happen.”

The other smiled softly. “I know. You’re a good kid, so no need to apologize. C’mon, you can tell me the full story in the car.”

“You drove?” The younger woman asked in surprise.

“Obviously not from Nerima. I took the bullet train then rented a car to get me here.”

“Oh, I see.”

The pair quietly exited the O’Brien’s apartment right after Kozue left a note with her cell phone number and placed it on the coffee table in the event that they came back unexpectedly and found the window broken. She’d tried calling their cell numbers several times again, but was never able to get through. It was as though they had turned them off.

Together they got in the small brown Toyota Camry Miku had rented and drove away. After a few minutes of silence, Miku turned to the other and spoke up. “All right, Kozue-chan, tell me what’s going on. And I mean all of it.”

“Aghhh!” Kyle cried through gritted teeth as Kasumi liberally poured the burning alcohol into his leg wound, thinking the pain worse than when she’d pulled out the shard of wood only a minute or so before. He’d bled badly at first, but Kasumi quickly had it under control a moment later as she applied pressure just a few inches above the wound with a strip of cloth Kyle had in his kit. Her small fingers moved quickly and expertly and seemed to keep calm throughout the whole ordeal.

A minute later she looked up into his eyes. “All done.”

Kyle lay on his back gasping and still fighting off the pain as he stared back at her. “Thanks...you’re pretty...good at this...”

She smiled sadly. “It’s not the first time I’ve had to treat an injury like this.”

“Really?”

“Before my mother and I had become servants to Ogami-sama’s household, we were the wife and daughter of the samurai, Nagoya Kenji. Our family was often engaged in disputes with other samurai, and so the occasional injury was nothing uncommon.”

“Ah, I see. I was wondering about your father. Any brothers or sisters?”

Kasumi nodded. “I once had an older brother, Hikaru, but both he and my father were killed trying to protect our village one day in a raid from another samurai family. In the end my mother and I, along with many other women, were made servants and auctioned off. We ended up here in the Ogami household.”

“I’m sorry to hear how that happened. That sounds terrible. How long were you here before...”

“Before I was murdered at the hands of Ogami-sama?” She supplied coldly.

Kyle nodded once.

“My mother and I came here when I was ten. I was twelve when...it happened.” She looked up at him and saw he was looking at her oddly. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

He shook his head. “Ah, it’s nothing. I was just thinking it was a shame you never got the chance to go to school. The way you talk makes you seem way older than twelve.”

She smiled awkwardly. “You think so?”

“Most definitely.”

“Well, for better or worse I’ve been around Ogami Noburo-sama for a long time and may have picked up on some of his mannerisms. That, and I like to read...”

“You still read?” Kyle asked, sounding surprised.

She narrowed her eyes. “Of course. What else has there been to do around here for the last hundred years? Reading has been my only escape. But all that has changed since you’ve last been here. Now, there’s not even been time for that.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound condescending. It’s just that when it comes to the daily routines of ghosts, I’m really at a loss. I’m the ignorant one here, so please forgive me.” He apologized.

“It doesn’t matter, anymore.” She sighed. “I’ve read everything in the library, anyway. Twice over.”

“Well, when we get through this, you’ll just have to come stay with me and...Yuki...and we’ll see about getting you some new things to read.” He glossed over the mention of his wife’s name, still not ready to accept that she may truly gone from him just yet.

Kasumi looked at him blankly. “You really are odd.”

“Why do you say that?” Kyle asked in confusion.

The small ghost shook her head. “Nervermind.”

“No, I’m serious.” Kyle assured her. “Look, I have no idea what the future holds, but if and when all is said and done, and for some reason you don’t leave this world, you’d be more than welcome to come stay with us. I know Yuki wouldn’t mind. In fact, I’m sure she’d love the idea. She’s a lot like you, and really loves to read. She’s been going to medical school, you know? She has a lot of books, though some look pretty boring, I admit, but you might enjoy them. And then there’s the libraries we could take you-”

“Kai-ru.” She interrupted softly as he went on, clearly seeing him getting emotional when he spoke of Yuki. “Kai-ru.” She repeated more firmly. "Things are going to be alright. I...believe in you. We're a...team."

He smiled sadly, and felt some of his enthusiasm return. “Thanks, Kasumi. You’re right. We are a team. Now, let’s find me something that I can use to support myself with and see about getting my camera back. Time’s running out fast.”

Once again, Yuki Tachibana found herself resting gently beneath the warm sun and breeze of the Summer air, as the fresh wild flowers filled her nose with a sweet fragrant smell. She yawned deeply, feeling as though she could drift off to sleep forever in such a peaceful place. Beside her, in her right hand she held a glass of delicious red fruit juice that quenched her constant thirst. She smiled to herself, thinking life couldn’t get any better than it was now.

Suddenly an image of a man’s face came into her mind, with eyes a wonderful blue that matched the sky above her. She felt like she should have known who he was, but she couldn’t seem to place his face. It didn’t matter though. It was her day off, and she was spending it relaxing and resting. The sun darkened a bit as a shadow fell over her. She looked up into it and smiled.

“Ayukawa-san.” She said happily, as the other beautiful Japanese woman wearing a pristine white dress as modern as her own, sat beside her and smiled warmly.

“Hello, Tachibana-san. You look so peaceful today.” She said pleasantly.

“Oh, I am!” Yuki replied with a wide smile. “Care to stay with me for a while and talk?”

“I’d be delighted.” She replied. “I see your glass is nearly empty. Here, let me fill it for you.”

“Oh, thanks.” Yuki said as she held up the glass and let Shiori gently fill it to its rim. “I’m not sure what kind of fruit is in it, but it’s just wonderful. You should have some too.”

Shiori nodded with a warm look in her eye. “I think I will.”

Yuki sat up after taking a sip from her glass and pulled her lips away fast.

“Anything wrong?” The other questioned with some concern.

Yuki shook her head. “Well, this sort of tastes a little metallic and thicker than before for some reason.”

“Really? Let me try.” Shiori carefully drank from the glass as Yuki watched. “Mmmm. Tastes perfect to me. You must be imagining things. Try it again.”

“All right.” Yuki received the glass once more and took another sip. She then smiled in delight. “Oh, you’re right! This is delicious, after all. It’s funny how the mind can sometimes play tricks on you, isn’t it?”

Shiori Ayukawa stared at Yuki with a coldness the other could not detect and finally smiled. “Yes, isn’t it?”

Kozue Hinata and Miku Hinasaki sped along the cold dark road that brought them closer to where Ogami manor lay deep within the woods, while the younger woman filled the other in completely on what had happened the day the O’Brien’s had paid both her and her great-grandmother a visit. Miku listened intently to the full account, interrupting every so often to get clarification. When Kozue finally finished, she turned to Miku and waited for her to speak.

“It’s amazing.” Miku began. “To think there’s yet another Camera Obscura that has found its way into my life somehow, even if not directly. And one made by Mariko Watanabe at that. Very interesting.”

Kozue smiled in the darkness of the car, as she pulled a small box free from her hand bag. “Not quite as rare as you’d like to believe.”

Kozue’s words drew the others eyes toward her lap as she opened the box and pulled free a small box-like object. The young woman then pressed a button and with a snap, extended the bellows to full. Miku’s eyes went wide and nearly lost control of the car.

“How many of those god damned things are there?” She looked apprehensively at Kozue’s own Camera Obscura, the very thing she’d hidden from Kyle and Yuki that day.

The young woman shook her head slowly. “I don’t know. I found this one among my great-grandparents belongings when I was younger and took it without anyone knowing. I figured it was a part of my heritage and was mine by birthright.”

Miku tried to keep her eyes on the road, but found them drifting down to the camera every few seconds, finding it hauntingly similar to the one that had once belonged to her mother and then her brother, Mafuyu. It was similar to the one that she had used to defeat Kirie, the failed shrine maiden of Himuro Mansion, and that had held a shard of the Holy Mirror.

All such a long time ago...

“I should have given it to them back then. I know that now.” Kozue broke the others thoughts of the past. “I was wrong to keep it, no matter what I felt about my heritage. It could have doubled their chances for success.”

“You don’t know that, Kozue.” Miku stated. “It’s true, the Camera Obscura can be a very powerful tool, but the real power lies within the person holding it. It didn’t save my brother from Kirie when he’d first entered Himuro Mansion, and it was mostly the research and quick thinking that got Rei and myself through the ordeal with Reika Yakishiro, the Sleeping Priestess. The camera played a big part, but in the end, it was us, or Rei, really, that got us through. If it weren’t for Rei, I’d be dead.”

“You owe her a lot, don’t you?” The younger woman asked.

Miku nodded. “I do. Are you sure you really have to do this?”

Kozue nodded. “I have to Miku. I really do. I told you what O’Brien-san’s camera had showed Grandmother. He’ll die if I don’t. I’m sure of it.”

Miku Hinasaki conceded. “I understand. I know what you have to do then, and...I’m coming with you.”

Kozue turned and grabbed her shoulder. “No! No, you’re not. This isn’t your business.”

Miku shook her head. “It is my business. From the moment you called me.”

The younger woman shook her head as well. “No Miku, it isn’t. Really. I appreciate what you’re doing for me now, but I have to do this alone. Please understand that. I know this deep down, and even though it scares me, I know it’s the truth. Please, please listen to me and do as I ask.”

The other sighed heavily and was about to argue further but caught the desperate look in her eye and conceded. She once felt the same when she had first decided to go after Mafuyu all those years ago, and saw a bit of herself in the other. “All right, Kozue. I guess I can understand your feelings. Probably better than anyone. But just remember, you’re only to give them the camera, that’s all. Once you do, you get the hell out and get back to the car. Those are my only conditions.”

“You’re waiting for me?”

“Don’t try to talk me out of that, Kozue.” The other stated adamantly.

Actually, the younger woman felt a sense of relief. “Thanks, Miku. I really appreciate that. I’ll remember my promise.”

“You’d better.” Miku kept both hands on the wheel and drove for another few minutes in silence then slowly came to a stop alongside a ravine. “Somewhere down there.” She pointed out in the deep woods that lay at the bottom. “Somewhere out there lies House Ogami.”

“Can you be more specific?” Kozue asked quietly.

Miku looked at her old notes from a decade ago and pointed out toward the northern part of the valley. “If you go in that direction and continue for approximately two miles, you should run into a trail. Take it in a northern direction uphill and eventually you’ll run into an old ruined shrine after about an hour’s walk. If you can get there, you’ll only need to continue up the trail for a while and you’ll run right into the manor.”

“Okay.” The other nodded.

Miku shook her head. “We should really wait until morning to do this, you know. It’s so dark and the trail might be overgro-”

“It’s okay, Miku. I’ll be okay. Please just wait here for me. I’ll be back soon, I hope.”

Reluctantly, the other nodded in defeat. “All right, Kozue. I’ll be waiting for you.”

Without saying goodbye, the younger woman got out of the car, smiled weakly in Miku’s direction and then disappeared down into the ravine, leaving the older woman alone with her own fears.

Miku wondered if there really was anything Kozue could do to change things. She wondered if there truly was anything she could do to keep this Kyle O’Brien from dying. Only time and fate would decide the outcome. All Miku Hinasaki could do was wait and see.

Here ends Book II of the Zero Shot Trilogy. Events will be concluded in the third and final book.

* * * * * *

If you enjoyed this story, please be sure to let me know by giving feedback, as its much appreciated and needed to do a better job the next time around.

Regards,
Scott

An interesting article on Spectral Photography

2006-01-19T18:50:00.000-08:00

While we all wait for me to complete the next book in the trilogy, I thought it would be fun to share a fun "article" that actually gives some historically accurate information on Spectral Photography, as well as ties to the Fatal Frame world. This of course, isn't real, but if it seems like it, then I did well. Enjoy!

The following is an article from Photo Journal Monthly's May 1967 edition, written by Thomas Feldman and re-printed with permission.

Photography and the occult?

Sounds strange, but actually this odd connection, officially recognized as Spectral or Spirit Photography, has quite the strange history and goes as far back as the first film cameras of the late 19th century and still continues to generate interest among those involved in the occult today. Most recently in the news was an incident that took place last year in Greenwich, London where a local clergyman by the name of Rev. R.W. Hardy had taken a very convincing photo of what has now come to be known as the "Greenwich Ghost" at Queen's House.

As a professional photographer and columnist I've found this connection to be a rather interesting and entertaining one over the years, but until recently have had no real interest in writing anything about it, as it all seemed rather silly and preposterous. That is until I met a certain Japanese gentleman named Watanabe a short time ago while attending a photography trade show abroad in Sapporo, Japan, and had the opportunity to change my mind a bit. I'll talk more about him and our encounter here shortly, as I would first like to take a brief moment to enlighten some of our readers a bit on the interesting and highly subjective field of Spirit Photography.

Since the earliest days of the first film cameras, this unusual profession has grown along side that of standard photography quite effectively and has enjoyed a certain amount of fame and prestige, as well as scandal over the years. As a brief matter of history, it was a man named William Mumler, a self-proclaimed medium for taking spirit photographs who first enjoyed quite a bit of fame during the 1860's, and reportedly has taken many photographs of such phenomena over his lifetime, including no less than one of our most famous presidents, Abraham Lincoln, at the behest of his widow, Mary Lincoln. Today, many still believe his "ghostly photos" to be authentic despite the ever increasing criticism from both the professional and non-professional world, alike.

Not surprisingly since Mumler's heyday, many others have come forward with similar claims and abilities to capture images of the deceased and have supplied quite a plethora of ghostly photographs over the years. The vast majority of which have been debunked as being fraudulent by those with even moderate knowledge of the art of photography itself, though there are some that have withstood that criticism quite effectively, such as one Captain Provand's "Brown Lady" of Raynham Hall in Norfolk, England, taken back in 1936, and currently the aforementioned photo by Rev. Hardy.

Seeing opportunity for financial gain, many con men have attempted to avail themselves of some poor fool's pocketbook by providing "proof" of a loved one's existence beyond the grave. One such man was a Frederick Hudson, whose trickery was exposed one day and was openly branded a fraud. Unfortunately, this was not before reportedly taking no less than 2,500 photographs over the years before finally being caught. Another such con-artist was a French photographer named E. Buguet, who in 1874 was arrested by the French government and was forced to admit his deception publicly.

In my opinion, and many other professionals as well, most of the older photographs can now easily be explained by the archaic techniques our predecessors had to endure with an excruciatingly slow exposure process, whereby the subject was forced to sit motionless for several minutes, and thus allow these so-called "spirits" many opportunities to silently walk into frame from behind, linger for a few moments before an open shutter and just as silently leave.

The end resulted in a semi-transparent and blurry image appearing in frame with the subject and quite effectively giving the photo a supernatural effect, when in fact it was usually nothing more than a paid accomplice dressed in ghostly garb taking advantage of the rudimentary exposure process of the day.

On other occasions, slight of hand was another technique used to switch the film plates beforehand with ones previously having been exposed to pseudo-spiritual beings and then allowed to capture the subject at the time of the photography session, as would be done normally. For all intents and purposes, it appeared to the subject and those witnessing the process that seemingly out of nowhere this ghostly phenomena had suddenly appeared and had been captured on film.

Fortunately, photography has advanced significantly since those early times to really make such unethical practices increasingly more difficult to get away with. But again, even today there remain some examples of these types of photographs that stump even the most advanced photography professional, including myself. I admit that in all my years of mastering the photographic field, I am at a loss to explain the good Reverend Hardy's "Greenwich Ghost". I say this without fear of reprisal from amongst my peers, as they too can offer no reasonable explanations at this time. Perhaps in the near future some hot-shot kid with a new camera will uncover the mystery and make us all look like inept old fools. I look forward to it, however, as it will mean the art is in good hands.

All this is a matter of history for which I'll include references if the reader wishes to investigate further. Now on to the real focus of my article. As I was stating earlier, I met with a man named Watanabe while In Japan, who was also a professional photographer of sorts. Together we'd struck up a friendly conversation and naturally it had eventually steered towards work. When I had informed him that I was a columnist for a major photography magazine, he spared no time in telling me of his own interests and focus as a photographer. He then informed me that he was a self-proclaimed "ghost-hunter", and spent most of his days researching and gathering as much information as he could to prove the existence of such spiritual phenomena.

At first I thought him possibly just some eccentric amateur, but as we talked more, it became clear that he was very well educated and knowledgeable about both photography and occult history. I was quite intrigued, and as he was a very likeable and well mannered person, we ended up having our lunch together later that day and talked in greater detail about both our chosen professions.

We'd begun to discuss the latest photography equipment on the market, and once again I was amazed at his level of knowledge. It was then that he showed me his own personal tool the trade: an older style folding camera. It was a special camera he'd informed me, specifically designed for the capturing of that which is unseen to the naked human eye. He called it the Camera Obscura (not to be confused the the old Latin term 'camera obscura', meaning darkroom), and took it out of his bag and set it on the table before me. I'd casually picked it up and noted the body to be that of a very common and low-end consumer folder produced by a Chicago based company in the early 1950's, and initially was unimpressed. How and why a man of his apparent knowledge and means would make such a poor choice on equipment was more than mildly surprising to me.

He must have sensed my initial lack of enthusiasm for a clearly amateurish piece of photography equipment and quickly explained that the body itself was selected for its strength of material and simplicity, and that the real secret to its power lay in both the lens and special film it required. I quickly smiled and nodded in relief. It was true that as a basic camera it was minimalist in its features, such as the shutter and lens, but it was also true that its all steel construction made it a solidly built piece of equipment, without a single bit of Bakelite or plastic to be found anywhere on it. I then opened it up and extended the bellows to full and noted that it indeed had been heavily modified from its original condition and became genuinely interested in this odd novelty camera.

One of the most intriguing features I noted about it were a series of Chinese characters arranged in a clock-like pattern on the shutter around the lens. He quickly pointed out that they were the twelve characters of the Chinese zodiac and a trademark addition to all of this type of special camera, first created by a man he named as Dr. Kunihiko Asou. He then informed me that some of the other models had a thirteenth character for "zero" added in as well, but on this particular one that character had been omitted.

I recalled coming across Asou's name briefly in my years of research and writing, and came to find out that the man's niece, a Mariko Asou, now Mariko Watanabe, was now the wife of the man before me, and that from early on in their marriage had been interested in continuing the research first started by her uncle. As we spoke at length I learned that Dr. Asou, now deceased, had been a fairly well-known Japanese occultist and inventor from the late 19th to early 20th century and had devoted his life to the pursuit of proving the existence of the spirit world, both through sight and sound.

Mr. Watanabe further told me that he had even created a radio of some sort that could pick up voices from beyond the grave, similar to a project Thomas Edison had once endeavored upon during his own lifetime. Unlike Edison's inventions however, his were never accepted by those in the scientific community. Mr. Watanabe then stated that he wished to someday change that and bring true esteem and respect to the field in which he worked and ultimately to vindicate Asou's work.

As I had casually turned the odd camera over in my hands and looked through its simple viewfinder, I found nothing unusual or out of place, other than a few minor cosmetic changes, such as the lens and shutter, whose design upon close inspection I could not identify. On the inside of the camera's film door there was also a small label which read:

Camera Obscura
Spectral Photography Equipment
Prototype Model no. 5
Patents Pending USA/Japan
1953 Asou & Watanabe
For use with
Spectral and Regular
120 Film

Mr. Watanabe then told me that both he and Mariko were absolutely serious about their commitment to their work and upon hearing the passion in his voice, I did not doubt him for a moment. When I questioned him about "Model no. 5", he informed me that several models of this so-called "Camera Obscura" had been made over the years, each being somewhat different in design, and that the one I now held was one of his and his wife's own creation based on the all but lost research of the late Dr. Asou.

Of course, all this led me to the next question of his personal experiences with the spirit world. However, when I asked directly about his own experiences and successes with the camera, he merely smiled and stated that he'd had a few odd encounters and that the camera functioned as he described, but declined to show me any actual photos he'd taken, or elaborate further on the subject. When he saw the curious look upon my face he then asked me that even if he did show me various images of things beyond our world, would I accept them as being real? When I had no immediate response, he then held his hands open wide, smiled warmly and told me that unlike certain men of the past, he had no interest in appealing his case prematurely and bringing unnecessary criticism upon the field any further.

He informed me that he was content to know that his findings were valid, as they'd come from first hand experience and was not looking for endorsement of others just yet. When undeniable proof had been made available, then, and only then, would he submit his research before the world. I deeply respected his answer, and found his approach quite different from others I'd read about in the past.

Sadly though, Mr. Watanabe further informed me that although highly regarded among his fellow occultists, Dr. Asou's inventions and research were all but dismissed by the scientific community at large during his lifetime and had never received the credit he was due for all his labor and efforts, and had no wish to compound that very problem. As the entire field has been highly scrutinized over the years, this is not at all unexpected. Mr. Watanabe believes this scrutiny, even amongst those who believe in otherworld presences comes fairly, and is mostly in part due to the decades of fraud that has surfaced from within their fold and thus has damaged the reputation of those truly serious and involved in genuine occult research.

I'd sympathized with his argument, as I had no real basis to dismiss his beliefs out of hand and offered up my best wishes for his pursuits, finding it somewhat refreshing to meet someone genuinely passionate about their work and apparently sincere in their intentions. When I informed him that I thought our conversation might make for an interesting article, he was somewhat reluctant for me share our time together but conceded it was no secret to what he was doing and only asked that I present our conversation evenly in my writing. I assured him that I would and he conceded with a nod, even giving me permission to photograph his unique camera for all to see (see top of story). I trust that if he does read this article as I hope that he will, he will find that I presented things accurately.

In closing, I would like to wish the best of luck to Mr. Watanabe and his wife, Mariko, as they both labor together to bring some respect to their field of work, and look forward to hopefully someday seeing the fruits of their efforts come to bear. Whether or not ghosts and spirits are able to be photographed, much less proved to even exist, I cannot say one way or the other, but I'll keep an open mind about it all. I believe that if there is anyone, or any one team that may one day prove these very things to the world at large, it will be that of “Asou & Watanabe”.

In next month's article I'll be bringing us the latest on Canon's directional changes for the new film standard as first revealed to us by their CEO, President Mitarai, last January, and how things are currently unfolding at this time. Until then.

Regards,

Thomas Feldman, Senior Columnist
Photo Journal Monthly

* * *

If you enjoyed this and thought it added to the overall experience, please let me know. Also, as a fun side-note, I even made a Camera Obscura, as described in this article and was looking for a way to show it off. That's when the idea for this little article came to me. Just having fun...

Regards,
scott