A Match Into Water

Don't Fear

Mavis

May 19.

The morning was quiet and sad. She expected as much; Ling's birthday was slowly approaching.

May 23. Less than a week away.

She plucked a marigold from a vase and positioned it on her hat and smiled slightly.

'I wonder what Archibald is doing!' She thought, walking out of her room. 'Me and him have lots to do today.'

She even held a whole list on her phone. Raven had asked her to fix up a ritual to send positive wishes to Ling. Even if she didn't believe it, Raven thought it would be comforting nonetheless.

Mavis stopped upon seeing Archibald's door, still shut. She knew he had a bad habit of leaving it open when he left for the day, so seeing it shut either meant he finally stopped his habit or he was still getting ready.

"Archibald?" Mavis called, knocking on the door. "Can I come in?"

She heard Archibald shuffle to the door and slowly open it.

"Mavis!" He whispered. "Hurry up, I'm being pranked!"

"Pranked?"

"All my things! They've been moved!"

"Are you sure? Last time you told me that, you pranked me with Q!"

"I'm being serious now!" Archibald opened his door wider and pointed into his room.

It was a mess. Clothes were sticking out of his drawers, his notebooks had been stacked onto his floors, and sheet music was all over his floor.

"What happened here!" Mavis gasped, carefully walking in and picking up a sheet.

"I told you, I'm being pranked!"

Mavis looked around. She could feel a ghost's faint presence, but whoever it was left a while ago.

"Why would someone prank you like this?" She questioned.

"Uhm, I don't know."

"I think it's actually the work of a ghost..."

As she said this, she walked to his window. She noted the messed up blinds and the hastily closed glass.

"I think someone must of came in," she said, turning back to Archibald, "and left through the window."

"A ghost! But what ghost could be here?"

"We need to investigate! Oh, but we're so busy today..."

Archibald thought for a moment before snapping his fingers, a common gesture he'd do when he had an idea.

"We can do it tonight!"

"Oh, yes! Very smart, then not many people will be awake either."

Archibald smiled proudly at the compliment, his dimples creasing his cheeks.

Mavis smiled back before pulling out her phone and showing him the list of things they had to do.

"Let's start with this one! The faster we do our tasks, the faster we can ghost hunt!"

***

Mavis knew that ghosts were usually nice. Archibald was the prime example of this, before he was turned into an Esper and revived.

So she was pretty shocked when she saw that this ghost was violently trying to hid themself from her.

She and Archibald, starting from just below his window, searched around the Union HQ for any clues. They were pretty unlucky until Mavis noticed something—or someone—behind a dumpster.

Upon trying to get closer, she saw it was a ghost.

"Archibald!" She said, turning. "I found-"

This spirit began to get very violent when he realized she saw him and attacked them with the dumpsters.

"Eek!" Mavis held her staff above her head, blocking the oncoming trash. Archibald ran close to her, wide eyed and shocked.

"It is a ghost!" He said.

"I know!" Mavis looked from her hat's rim to try and see who this ghost was.

The ghost had crazy, black hair that stuck to his face. His chest was exposed, and a scar traveled all the way across his chest, from the tip of his collarbone to his pelvis. She couldn't make out his face, as smoke was beginning to obstruct it, but maybe if she could, she'd be able to calm him down.

"Cover me, please!" She ordered Archibald as she pushed forward. He nodded and made sure no trash hit her as she closed in on the spirit.

The ghost hissed at her, shaking its head and becoming more violent. She couldn't even begin to understand why he was acting like this; it was like nothing she'd seen before, outside of wild animals but even then they couldn't cause actual destruction.

"Stop it," Mavis yelled, "and let me see your face!"

She rushed forward and stared up at the ghost, holding her staff and hand up at him. Huffing and puffing, she death-glared the ghost, and he stared right back.

She knew this person. Who he was, she wasn't sure yet—the smoke was quickly covering more of his face—but she knew that she could talk him out of his current state.

"Mr. Sir! Stop it, we only want to help you!"

"...leave me alone."

She gasped in shock when the ghost stopped throwing trash as her but instead duked her out by running straight through her. A chilling feeling, although fleeting, made her bones themselves shiver for but a moment. He must of also not expected the sensation, for he stopped, wide eyed.

"Mr. Sir," Mavis said sternly after she recovered, "you can't throw trash at us! It's inappropriate and very rude."

"Yeah!" Archibald said, folding his arms, "when I was a ghost, I didn't hurt people."

The ghost groaned and scowled. He thrashed as Mavis, but stopped before he could make contact with her. Mavis didn't flinch, instead trying to make herself look sterner.

"Please tell me your name, and we can help you feel better. Maybe we can find you a place to let out all your anger?"

The smoke lessened. Noticing this, Mavis quickly thought of more solutions.

"We can get you a therapist. It would be difficult to communicate, but I think we could make it work."

"You can try music," Archibald added, catching onto what Mavis was doing, "music heals the soul, as they say!"

The smoke blew away into the ghostly abyss, chipping away little by little. Soon, only a thin line of smoke remained, obscuring only the ghost's eyes. He seemed so familiar, no, he was familiar. Mavis was sure of it, but she couldn't seem to rack her brain for this person.

"It's working!" Mavis said. "We're so close...we just need one more push!"

Archibald took Mavis' hand and smiled. "If we yell together, we'll be able to...do whatever you're thinking!"

Mavis smiled back, a new determination filling her.

"Stop it and talk to us!"

The ghost groaned and shrunk down, cradling his head in his arms as if he were afraid. The mist was all gone, and the ghost relaxed but didn't look at them.

"Are you ok?" Mavis asked the ghost, slowly walking towards him.

The ghost shook his head.

"I want to come back."

"Come back? Like..." Mavis tried to catch a glimpse of the ghost.

"Home..."

The ghost lifted his head and Mavis finally could see his face.

Her eyes widened and her hands went to her mouth.

How was he here? He died in a miracles miles away.

She didn't think she'd ever see him again.

"I want to go home." Li Ling said.