Fic - Fox Hunt
Jun. 15th, 2009 03:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cornerofmadnessFox Hunt
Author –![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
cornerofmadness
Disclaimer – so not mine, no money made, all rights belong to Fuyumi Ono & Shiho Inada
Rating – PG-13
Pairing – Naru/Mai
Fandom- Ghost Hunt
Warnings: none really
Prompt: Naru/Mai; something special
Word count: 1763
Summary: She wishes Naru was more like his dream self
Timeline/Spoilers – no direct spoilers, set sometime after Mai’s abilities come to light but before Monk-san mangles his hair.
A/N: Written for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
springkink This is my first time writing this pairing but I’ve wanted to do something for this fandom for a long time now. Thanks to evil_little_dog for the beta and the kitsune idea you can see the inari shrine here and click on the link to the actual shrine in the story
* * *
“Where’s Monk-san?” Naru asked, his gruffness not cutting through Mai’s excitement to be at the Fushimi Inari-Taisha in Kyoto.
“Talking to the priest, I think,” Mai said, twirling in place. “Can you believe this place? It’s beautiful.”
Naru made a noise that could have meant anything but Mai took it to mean he was bored or annoyed again.
Mai stood in front of the Kitsune statues that guarded the gates. Their red yodarekake fluttered in the warm fall breeze. The creatures’ jaws held firm over a granary key. “We should have brought some fried tofu for the shrine.”
There was no mistaking the disgust in Naru’s tone this time. “We’re here to document the weird happenings, not make an offering.”
“Well, it wouldn’t hurt,” she protested then volleyed a wicked grin at Shibuya. “Too bad Ayako-san has to miss this shrine.” Mai knew full well the Miko had wanted to come with them but she had broken her big toe on their last case and still couldn’t put much weight on her foot, let alone run as they all too often had to do.
“Having a Miko might have been helpful,” Naru conceded, dragging equipment out of their vehicle. “If for no other reason than we have to carry all of this to the inner shrine.”
“So?” Mai asked.
“Because it’s in the middle of the mountain,” Lin said quietly, pointing the way.
* * *
When Lin said the middle of the mountain, Mai thought he had been kidding. Much of the luster had worn off the inari shrine by the time Mai had lugged all that heavy equipment up the mountain past thousands of vermillion torii. She was sure she was going to be seeing bright red columns in her sleep. Carefully setting her equipment down where Naru pointed, Mai rolled her shoulders, trying to work out the knots. She couldn’t help but notice Monk-san had gotten out of the heavy lifting once again, seeing him chatting amiably with the priest.
“Naru, this is Himura-san,” Monk-san said, gesturing to the older man. “One of the priests here. He can tell you more about what’s been happening here.”
“I’m listening,” Naru replied.
The old priest shot Naru a consternated look, one Mai knew all too well. Very few expected Naru to be as young as he was and it wasn’t uncommon that the adults ended up addressing their comments to Monk-son or Ayako instead. At least the priest didn’t do that. “So far it’s been nothing harmful, mostly pranks. For one, all the offerings are gone overnight and sometimes the prayers have been erased from the torii.”
That one got Naru’s attention, Mai noticed, more so than the food. “Has anyone tried to find out who’s done this?” Naru asked.
“We have but we haven’t had much luck. Also things get moved about the temple and end up in the most improbable of places,” Himura-san said. “Like someone is having great fun. As I said, no one is particularly worried harm will befall us but this is the main inari temple. It wouldn’t do to have it known that odd things happen here.”
“One would think that odd things would be normal for a kitsune shrine,” Monk-san muttered and the priest gave him a look.
Naru nodded. “We’ll be here for three nights with our equipment. We need the run of the temple and at the end, we’ll make a report for you.”
Himura-san wore a pleased expression. “Thank you. I’ll give you a tour of the temple. Feel free to do whatever you need to.”
Mai sighed, thinking that she might have to walk to the top of the mountain at this rate. At least, Naru let her and Lin leave the equipment where it was.
* * *
“All right, Lin and I will monitor from the main gate to here,” Monk-san waved his arms to include the area around them just before the inner temple. “You and Mai can do the inner temple and beyond into the tens of thousands of mounds at the top of the mountain.”
“Figures we get the top,” Mai groused.
Monk-san ignored her, canting his face skyward. “It’s an exceptionally clear night. Just look at all those stars, so romantic.” He turned to Mai and Naru, his ponytail swinging. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” With that, he headed back downhill toward the main gate where Lin was already set up.
“Idiot,” Naru groused.
Mai rolled her eyes. “Where do you want to start?”
“Why don’t we sit here?” Naru sat down just before the main gate. “We can see down the path from here. If we don’t see anything after an hour or so we can move into the inner shrine. We have three days so we don’t have to cover anything tonight. We put motion activated cameras in the shrine and at the top of the mountain already.”
“Sounds good.” Mai settled next to him, staring down the winding trail marked with torii. This was the part of the job that Naru seemed to really enjoy. She, however, was less thrilled by it. Usually monitoring was made up of hours of boredom and if something did show up, it usually scared the pants off her.
After two hours of Naru’s silence and nothing but staring at torii, now looking black in the darkness instead of red, Mai’s eyelids had a will of their own. She was vaguely aware of her head doing the rubber-necked, chicken thing until she was snapped out of it by her name being tossed at her like a burning coal. Rubbing her eyes, she muttered, “Did I miss something?”
“Yes, you missed five kitsune dancing in the moonlight while you slept,” he replied, dead-panned.
Mai snorted, glancing over at him. Unless it was a trick of the moonlight, Naru actually had a hint of a smile on his face. He almost looked like the gentler version of him that turned up in her dreams from time to time, the Naru she wished he was. Some days Mai wondered what had made him so closed off to everyone. “You wish.”
He snorted. “It would be interesting.”
Mai shifted her weight, her backside feeling numb. “Was thinking a little about what Monk-san said.”
His eyebrows beetled. “What? Why?”
“That almost-smile on your face. It reminded me of the dream-you, you know the one who’s actually nice to me. He’s always smiling and you never do.” Mai gazed at him in all seriousness. “I wish you would, just a little. It makes you more approachable.” She realized it was probably the wrong thing to say, judging by how stiff his back got.
“I am who and what I am,” Naru replied, turning his gaze back down the mountain, anxiously scanning, no willing, for something to show up and end the conversation.
“I know. I just wonder sometimes why you aren’t more like my dreams.”
Silence stretched out like honey bridging from jar to spoon. Mai gave up on talking to Naru and on looking for supernaturals. She turned her gaze skywards. Monk-san had at least been right about that. It was beautiful.
“You never really talk much about those dreams I’m in,” Naru said. “Your dreams aren’t just dreams sometimes.”
“You didn’t seem too comfortable with them,” she replied, worming closer to him. She was surprised by his willingness to talk about this. “I guess I was waiting for a special time when the others weren’t around since it didn’t really involve them.” Mai left out that both Ayako and Masako could be jealous of any attention showered on Naru.
“So why bring it up now? Because of what Monk-san said?”
Mai turned to him. Naru didn’t sound angry or stuck up or any of the other negatives she often associated with him. He sounded curious and that was one of the things she liked best about him because Mai knew one thing was true; she really liked Naru. “No, I think because it’s such a pretty night out and we’re alone and there isn’t going to be some magical special time. If I wanted to do it, I just needed to make that time.” She shrugged, hoping she sounded casual instead of like she was baring herself to him, which is what it actually felt like.
That ghost of a smile came back. “That’s probably true.”
Mai couldn’t stop herself. She wanted to touch that ghostly smile. She pressed her lips to his, feeling him jump just a bit. Mai sat back, feeling her face flush. She started to stammer an apology but saw nothing in Naru’s face that suggested he wanted one. He seemed more disappointed that she had stopped so Mai leaned in giving him another kiss, this one deeper, warmer. She opened her mouth a little, feeling the press of his tongue. A vague thought of this was exactly something Monk-san would do flitted through Mai’s mind. When Naru broke the kiss, the smile on his face was real and substantial.
“Guess there is something special about the stars tonight, after all,” Mai said, breathless.
Naru touched her cheek. “You’re the something special, Mai.”
He said it so softly Mai nearly missed it. Somehow she didn’t expect him to repeat it, at least not this early on. Instead, she tried to steal another kiss. Naru, however, went wide-eyed and pulled away, fumbling for his camera. Mai twisted around, staring down the torii-lined path. Coming toward them in luminous robes were two people, a man and a woman with vulpine features and distinctive red hair not often seen in this area.
The interlopers seemed as shocked to see her and Naru as they were to see them. With a little bark of laughter the two strangers whipped around, disappearing down the path but not before Mai spotted the fact that the man had five foxtails sticking out from the hem of his robe and the lady had seven. By the way Naru was chasing after them with the camera, Mai knew he saw them, too.
Mai snagged her camera, sprinting after them. “Are those what I think they are?”
“They can’t be,” he replied, not turning around to look at her.
Mai sighed. For someone dedicated to studying the supernatural, Naru certainly had no belief in them. As for her, she knew kitsune when she saw them. She couldn’t wait until hear Naru’s explanation of this to the priest. Until then, she hoped for a few more nights under the stars alone with him.
Author’s Note – yodarekake are votive bibs that are tied around the kitsune statues. Torii are gates that the prayers are often inscribed upon.
Author –
cornerofmadnessDisclaimer – so not mine, no money made, all rights belong to Fuyumi Ono & Shiho Inada
Rating – PG-13
Pairing – Naru/Mai
Fandom- Ghost Hunt
Warnings: none really
Prompt: Naru/Mai; something special
Word count: 1763
Summary: She wishes Naru was more like his dream self
Timeline/Spoilers – no direct spoilers, set sometime after Mai’s abilities come to light but before Monk-san mangles his hair.
A/N: Written for
springkink This is my first time writing this pairing but I’ve wanted to do something for this fandom for a long time now. Thanks to evil_little_dog for the beta and the kitsune idea you can see the inari shrine here and click on the link to the actual shrine in the story * * *
“Where’s Monk-san?” Naru asked, his gruffness not cutting through Mai’s excitement to be at the Fushimi Inari-Taisha in Kyoto.
“Talking to the priest, I think,” Mai said, twirling in place. “Can you believe this place? It’s beautiful.”
Naru made a noise that could have meant anything but Mai took it to mean he was bored or annoyed again.
Mai stood in front of the Kitsune statues that guarded the gates. Their red yodarekake fluttered in the warm fall breeze. The creatures’ jaws held firm over a granary key. “We should have brought some fried tofu for the shrine.”
There was no mistaking the disgust in Naru’s tone this time. “We’re here to document the weird happenings, not make an offering.”
“Well, it wouldn’t hurt,” she protested then volleyed a wicked grin at Shibuya. “Too bad Ayako-san has to miss this shrine.” Mai knew full well the Miko had wanted to come with them but she had broken her big toe on their last case and still couldn’t put much weight on her foot, let alone run as they all too often had to do.
“Having a Miko might have been helpful,” Naru conceded, dragging equipment out of their vehicle. “If for no other reason than we have to carry all of this to the inner shrine.”
“So?” Mai asked.
“Because it’s in the middle of the mountain,” Lin said quietly, pointing the way.
* * *
When Lin said the middle of the mountain, Mai thought he had been kidding. Much of the luster had worn off the inari shrine by the time Mai had lugged all that heavy equipment up the mountain past thousands of vermillion torii. She was sure she was going to be seeing bright red columns in her sleep. Carefully setting her equipment down where Naru pointed, Mai rolled her shoulders, trying to work out the knots. She couldn’t help but notice Monk-san had gotten out of the heavy lifting once again, seeing him chatting amiably with the priest.
“Naru, this is Himura-san,” Monk-san said, gesturing to the older man. “One of the priests here. He can tell you more about what’s been happening here.”
“I’m listening,” Naru replied.
The old priest shot Naru a consternated look, one Mai knew all too well. Very few expected Naru to be as young as he was and it wasn’t uncommon that the adults ended up addressing their comments to Monk-son or Ayako instead. At least the priest didn’t do that. “So far it’s been nothing harmful, mostly pranks. For one, all the offerings are gone overnight and sometimes the prayers have been erased from the torii.”
That one got Naru’s attention, Mai noticed, more so than the food. “Has anyone tried to find out who’s done this?” Naru asked.
“We have but we haven’t had much luck. Also things get moved about the temple and end up in the most improbable of places,” Himura-san said. “Like someone is having great fun. As I said, no one is particularly worried harm will befall us but this is the main inari temple. It wouldn’t do to have it known that odd things happen here.”
“One would think that odd things would be normal for a kitsune shrine,” Monk-san muttered and the priest gave him a look.
Naru nodded. “We’ll be here for three nights with our equipment. We need the run of the temple and at the end, we’ll make a report for you.”
Himura-san wore a pleased expression. “Thank you. I’ll give you a tour of the temple. Feel free to do whatever you need to.”
Mai sighed, thinking that she might have to walk to the top of the mountain at this rate. At least, Naru let her and Lin leave the equipment where it was.
* * *
“All right, Lin and I will monitor from the main gate to here,” Monk-san waved his arms to include the area around them just before the inner temple. “You and Mai can do the inner temple and beyond into the tens of thousands of mounds at the top of the mountain.”
“Figures we get the top,” Mai groused.
Monk-san ignored her, canting his face skyward. “It’s an exceptionally clear night. Just look at all those stars, so romantic.” He turned to Mai and Naru, his ponytail swinging. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” With that, he headed back downhill toward the main gate where Lin was already set up.
“Idiot,” Naru groused.
Mai rolled her eyes. “Where do you want to start?”
“Why don’t we sit here?” Naru sat down just before the main gate. “We can see down the path from here. If we don’t see anything after an hour or so we can move into the inner shrine. We have three days so we don’t have to cover anything tonight. We put motion activated cameras in the shrine and at the top of the mountain already.”
“Sounds good.” Mai settled next to him, staring down the winding trail marked with torii. This was the part of the job that Naru seemed to really enjoy. She, however, was less thrilled by it. Usually monitoring was made up of hours of boredom and if something did show up, it usually scared the pants off her.
After two hours of Naru’s silence and nothing but staring at torii, now looking black in the darkness instead of red, Mai’s eyelids had a will of their own. She was vaguely aware of her head doing the rubber-necked, chicken thing until she was snapped out of it by her name being tossed at her like a burning coal. Rubbing her eyes, she muttered, “Did I miss something?”
“Yes, you missed five kitsune dancing in the moonlight while you slept,” he replied, dead-panned.
Mai snorted, glancing over at him. Unless it was a trick of the moonlight, Naru actually had a hint of a smile on his face. He almost looked like the gentler version of him that turned up in her dreams from time to time, the Naru she wished he was. Some days Mai wondered what had made him so closed off to everyone. “You wish.”
He snorted. “It would be interesting.”
Mai shifted her weight, her backside feeling numb. “Was thinking a little about what Monk-san said.”
His eyebrows beetled. “What? Why?”
“That almost-smile on your face. It reminded me of the dream-you, you know the one who’s actually nice to me. He’s always smiling and you never do.” Mai gazed at him in all seriousness. “I wish you would, just a little. It makes you more approachable.” She realized it was probably the wrong thing to say, judging by how stiff his back got.
“I am who and what I am,” Naru replied, turning his gaze back down the mountain, anxiously scanning, no willing, for something to show up and end the conversation.
“I know. I just wonder sometimes why you aren’t more like my dreams.”
Silence stretched out like honey bridging from jar to spoon. Mai gave up on talking to Naru and on looking for supernaturals. She turned her gaze skywards. Monk-san had at least been right about that. It was beautiful.
“You never really talk much about those dreams I’m in,” Naru said. “Your dreams aren’t just dreams sometimes.”
“You didn’t seem too comfortable with them,” she replied, worming closer to him. She was surprised by his willingness to talk about this. “I guess I was waiting for a special time when the others weren’t around since it didn’t really involve them.” Mai left out that both Ayako and Masako could be jealous of any attention showered on Naru.
“So why bring it up now? Because of what Monk-san said?”
Mai turned to him. Naru didn’t sound angry or stuck up or any of the other negatives she often associated with him. He sounded curious and that was one of the things she liked best about him because Mai knew one thing was true; she really liked Naru. “No, I think because it’s such a pretty night out and we’re alone and there isn’t going to be some magical special time. If I wanted to do it, I just needed to make that time.” She shrugged, hoping she sounded casual instead of like she was baring herself to him, which is what it actually felt like.
That ghost of a smile came back. “That’s probably true.”
Mai couldn’t stop herself. She wanted to touch that ghostly smile. She pressed her lips to his, feeling him jump just a bit. Mai sat back, feeling her face flush. She started to stammer an apology but saw nothing in Naru’s face that suggested he wanted one. He seemed more disappointed that she had stopped so Mai leaned in giving him another kiss, this one deeper, warmer. She opened her mouth a little, feeling the press of his tongue. A vague thought of this was exactly something Monk-san would do flitted through Mai’s mind. When Naru broke the kiss, the smile on his face was real and substantial.
“Guess there is something special about the stars tonight, after all,” Mai said, breathless.
Naru touched her cheek. “You’re the something special, Mai.”
He said it so softly Mai nearly missed it. Somehow she didn’t expect him to repeat it, at least not this early on. Instead, she tried to steal another kiss. Naru, however, went wide-eyed and pulled away, fumbling for his camera. Mai twisted around, staring down the torii-lined path. Coming toward them in luminous robes were two people, a man and a woman with vulpine features and distinctive red hair not often seen in this area.
The interlopers seemed as shocked to see her and Naru as they were to see them. With a little bark of laughter the two strangers whipped around, disappearing down the path but not before Mai spotted the fact that the man had five foxtails sticking out from the hem of his robe and the lady had seven. By the way Naru was chasing after them with the camera, Mai knew he saw them, too.
Mai snagged her camera, sprinting after them. “Are those what I think they are?”
“They can’t be,” he replied, not turning around to look at her.
Mai sighed. For someone dedicated to studying the supernatural, Naru certainly had no belief in them. As for her, she knew kitsune when she saw them. She couldn’t wait until hear Naru’s explanation of this to the priest. Until then, she hoped for a few more nights under the stars alone with him.
Author’s Note – yodarekake are votive bibs that are tied around the kitsune statues. Torii are gates that the prayers are often inscribed upon.
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}