♊ Spirited Away

[eternalritual]

One of the ropes moved on its own, Mayu thinks. Something hit her in the darkness a minute ago, causing the girl to yelp and press her back against the wall in surprise. How many of them are hanging from the ceiling? The hall has practically no light; it's difficult to move down it without something rough brushing against her shoulder or hitting

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[strangledkirie]

[Just to confirm that she wasn't in a place where she was used to, Mayu gets a little gift.]

[First, the overwhelming hatred and malignant aura. Then, in the mirror, Mayu would be able to see her.]

[An unfamiliar yuurei, staring her down.]

[eternalritual]

Wh-what...

[No, no. Mayu doesn't want to feel anything like this anymore. She slowly backs away from the mirror the moment she's able to sense that aura, arms wrapped around herself to keep her from shivering.]

[Her legs freeze when something other than her reflection appears in the mirror. 'Run!' she thinks desperately, but she can't. Why does this happen every time? Every stupid time-]

[She wants to go back to the castle. There were people there - people that understood her, people that could fight otherworldly monsters and spirits. She wants to go back!]

[strangledkirie]

[Surely though...Mayu has the urge to look back...to see if that ghost is really there.]

[I mean...its only human....]

[eternalritual]

[Something bad always happens when you look back. Mayu can't run, can't fight. What was she supposed to do if something was there? 'Move! Move!']

[She turns her head slowly, glancing over her shoulder as her heart begins to race...]

[strangledkirie]

[Darkness there. And nothing more.]

[How lucky for Mayu, the feeling of sheer Malice left the second she looked back. And the reflection in the mirror vanished too.]

[But there was something...something was shining where the ghost would have 'stood' if she was really behind Mayu.]

[eternalritual]

[Mayu relaxes the slightest bit, looking back and forth between the mirror and empty hallway. Nothing... it's nothing, but what if that spirit comes back? She can't stay here. She doesn't want to.]

[She doesn't notice the object right away, but when she does she approaches it with caution. Crouching down, Mayu reaches out for the item in the darkness. What is this?]

[strangledkirie]

[It was several slips of paper. Most of them were illegible, but one was clear as day.]

[But the contents....]

"Dear Ryozo, It's all my fault...
It's all because I let Mikoto use the camera that day!
And now evil spirits have gone and taken her away from us...
It's all my fault. I'm sorry.
- Yae"

[The object keeping the paper's down and making them shine was, luckily enough, a stone mirror, waiting to be picked up.]

[It seems somewhere in this place, a good spirit was looking out for the poor girl...]

[eternalritual]

[She has to squint hard to make out anything on the scraps of paper; it sucks, not being the one with the flashlight. Mayu recognizes one name: Yae. This house... wasn't part of the village, was it? Mio had never taken her through any place like this.]

The camera...

[The stone mirror is picked up and examined closely. Mayu's seen a few of these before, back in the village. Mio pocketed one of them - said it made her feel a little safer. She doesn't know why, but she feels a little bit at ease, holding the stone, and so she decides to keep it.]

[strangledkirie]

[A sound echoes out through the darkness. A door opened to her left...and another one, behind her]

[Wherever she went, though, there was no escape. The manor did not let go of its secrets easily]

[eternalritual]

!!

[Doors opening on their own... Wonderful. The mirror was creepy enough (heck, everything here was), Mayu isn't going to spend another minute near it. Clutching the stone mirror close to her chest, the girl stands and approaches the door close to the mirror, her free hand trailing along the wall.]

[Should she call out? Would anyone be able to hear her? Anyone...living.]

[strangledkirie]

[The door opened into some kind of cluttered brazier room. The room has clearly been unused for quite some time but...somehow....everything seemed to be in pristine condition, as if it was being kept ready for use]

[The silence is oppressive. A rickety staircase awaits on the other side of the room and a door stands next to it]