Ju-on Syndrome

Please Read: This is loosely based off of the Ju-on movies from Japan. I do not own nor have I worked on it. The characters, except one, are copyright of me however and most of the story is part of my own ideas for making the Ju-on series a little more interesting.

Thank you.

Miroko:

Espio slowly blinked awake as she heard a soft growl. She sat up seeing it was morning before seeing Kirara seated in the window, swishing her tail back and forth.

“I’m pretty sure they’re scared of you Kirara. You’re stuck behind glass.” Espio smiled.

Kirara mewed then purred as she looked at Espio. The kitten then leaped off the windowsill and bounced into Espio’s lap after she’d swung her legs over the edge of her bed. Espio looked at the kitten blankly then tickled her stomach making the kitten mew and squeak.

----------

Espio poked at the omelet on her plate then looked at the other items and sighed. Vector blinked and looked back.

“What’s wrong?” Vector asked.

“Huh?” Espio blinked.

Espio shook her head and smiled as Kirara looked up at her worriedly. The kitten mewed and pawed at her closest foot. Vector looked at her blankly then tilted her head. Espio looked really concerned for some strange reason now.

----

Vector swept off the back steps then looked at the sky. At least this assignment was almost over then it was back to her simple little apartment with all of her books and classical CDs and her secret supply of bubble bath she had to hide for the twelfth time from Espio.

Kirara scooted outside and sat beside Vector’s feet before mewing up at her happily. Vector looked at her then couldn’t help but smile. So far that silly idea of a curse had been forgotten since nothing bad happened so far. It was silly to believe in such things anyways. Wasn’t it?

Vector and Kirara then looked back as they heard a crash. Both looked at one another quickly then ran back in with Vector’s broom clattering to the pavement.

Espio was calmly washing dishes as they both burst in.

“Are you okay?” Vector panted.

“Yeah, fine. Why?” Espio looked cluelessly at them.

“What was that crash then?”

“Crash? What crash?”

“Hm?!”

“I’ve been doing the breakfast dishes and I haven’t heard a thing.” Espio replied as she shook her head slightly.

“You sure?”

“Positive.”

Vector then walked toward Mrs. Takeda’s room and looked in seeing she was gone. Vector blinked before Espio walked out of the kitchen, drying a plate; stopping by her friend.

“Where’s Mrs. Takeda?” Vector blinked.

“Huh, I dunno. I haven’t noticed her all morning.” Espio replied casually.

“She was here this morning right?” Vector looked panicked.

“I guess so. Maybe she felt a little better today.” Espio shrugged.

“What do you mean?” Vector narrowed her eyes.

“I dunno, she was talking a little more clearly last night. Something about a black cat.” Espio shrugged.

“A black cat…?” Vector repeated quietly.

Espio shrugged again as she kept drying the dish in her hands. She then blinked as Vector grabbed her shoulders with an even more frantic expression.

“We’re in charge of this woman and you’re not even panicked?!”

“Not really. Like you said, we’re only volunteers. We’re not getting paid.” Espio replied calmly.

“So?”

“So, does it matter? It’s not like they’re gonna dock our pay or anything.” Espio sounded unusually calm.

“They’ll fire us.”

“So?”

Vector groaned and nearly pushed Espio backwards before she walked out of the living room hurriedly.

“That was hardly necessary…” Espio muttered with Kirara mewing in concern.

Vector ran upstairs and opened one door to one of the empty rooms as she searched for Kimiko. She walked to the taped up closet she’d come across before and pulled the tape down harshly before sliding open the doors and tearing out the items that were neatly folded on the shelves.

“What’s wrong with her? Usually she’d be the worried one.” Vector muttered as she pulled the closet apart.

She then spun around and attempted to leave but bumped into something. Vector jumped and was face to face with a boy with black hair and bright red eyes.

“Who-who’re you?” She swallowed.

He didn’t say anything but stared at her silently.

“How’d you get in here anyway?! I didn’t hear the steps or anything!” She hissed.

He still stared at her silently.

“Answer me!” She demanded.

“Miroko.” He said quietly.

After a few more moments passed she pushed past him and went into another room. Like she really had time for this. The boy looked back then looked at the closet.

----

Vector nearly broke a glass as she set it on the side of the sink. Kirara meowed then yelped as a few shards of glass rained onto the floor.

“I can’t believe how calm she was! That woman could’ve wandered off and be hurt. Figures she’d drag me down with her for something like this!” Vector hissed.

“Vector…”

Vector looked up along with Kirara before gasping. Espio stared at her silently. She was soaking wet and naked yet. Vector blinked before she collapsed.

“Espio? Espio!” Vector pulled her up.

Vector cleared some of her wet hair away from her neck seeing something that looked like a bite mark. She then noticed other bruises in odd places near her neck.

“Kirara? Can you get the cordless phone?” Vector looked back.

Kirara mewed and darted out of the kitchen as Vector struggled to keep her unconscious friend standing.

What the hell happened to her?!

------

Espio slowly came to before shielding her eyes and sitting up. Vector blinked awake from a chair nearby with Kirara curled up on her lap.

“Where am I?” Espio looked around the sterile room.

“The hospital.” Vector replied.

“Why?”

Espio kept looking around seeing nurses passing back and forth and hearing the indistinct P.A. announcements for surgeons to be in other places. Espio then groaned and laid back.

“What happened to you? I don’t know how you did that but it’s scary.” Vector said worriedly.

“Did what?” Espio groaned from a migraine.

“Those bruises and bites. There are other marks the doctor said looked like claw marks.” Vector replied.

“Huh?” Espio looked at her arms.

“You sure you’re okay? Maybe we should quit.” Vector murmured.

“I didn’t do this!” Espio hissed quietly.

“Hm?”

“I didn’t do this. There’s no way I could’ve, I mean I’m not that strong.” Espio shivered.

“If you didn’t, then who did?” Vector asked softly.

“I couldn’t see anything. I felt someone but I couldn’t see them.” Espio said.

“I’ve heard that before. You have to stop watching those stupid movies.”

“This was real! I felt someone but…I couldn’t see them.” Espio insisted.

“What do you mean?” Vector tilted her head.

“Just what I said!”

Vector thought then snorted and shook her head.

“Believe me, how in the hell could I bite my own neck?!” Espio pointed to the wound.

“That’s what I wanna know.” Vector muttered.

Kirara mewed and looked up sleepily before curling back up into a ball and returning to her oblivious slumber.

“I didn’t do any of this to myself.” Espio said.

“So, explain it then. You’re being too vague.” Vector sighed before crossing her legs.

“Well, I felt strange all day. I felt like myself but I wasn’t myself. Like some kind of surreal dream or something like that. It seemed to start after I heard that clawing last night. I felt okay when I got up but after that I didn’t feel like myself.

“Anyways, I felt strange after dinner so I decided to take a bath. I figured it was stress or fatigue or something you know? I was fine until I got into the bath. Then I kinda started dozing off before I felt someone sitting on me. I tried to get up but then I was forced back and hit my head, which I think is why I have this stupid migraine. That thing then got worse. I managed to get up but then it grabbed my ankle and nearly made me fall.

“Another odd thing was after a while I felt really drained. Like the life was literally being pulled out of me. Before I realized it I was being attacked.” Espio rested her chin in her palm.

Vector blinked then yawned drowsily.

“So how’d you get away?” Vector scoffed.

“Not easily. I think it was done with me so it let me go. But like I said I felt like my life was sucked out of me.” Espio replied.

“Not exactly a romance story to shake the ages but—“

“I’m serious!” Espio hissed.

“So you want me to believe it? Whatever.” Vector sunk down in her seat a little.

“I could be a rape victim here and you’re laughing at me?”

“I’m not laughing at you. I’m just finding it hard to believe something out of a movie.” Vector murmured sleepily.

Espio growled then laid back and folded her arms to her chest. Vector blinked then sighed seeing she’d made her mad. But Vector really did believe her friend in some way deep down. Was it that kid? That weird kid with the black hair? Miroko wasn’t it? Vector glanced back at her friend then looked up as a meek little nurse walked in from behind the green curtain.

“Ms. Matsuno?” She stopped in front of Vector.

“Yeah. What is it?” Vector asked.

“There’s a phone call for you. The man said it was urgent he spoke to you.” The nurse said.

“Okay, where can I take it?” Vector got up.

The nurse caught Kirara then pointed ahead. Vector nodded then looked to Espio again who looked interested then turned away. Vector sighed and walked out. The nurse held the kitten in her arms then looked from her to Espio.

“Are you alright?” The nurse asked.

“Fine.” Espio snorted.

Vector took the phone from off the desk and felt her stomach sink for a moment.

“H-Hello?” She cleared her throat.

“Is this Vector Matsuno?”

“Yes. Who is this?”

Espio looked at Kirara then picked her up and held her up toward the ceiling. The kitten meowed sleepily then blinked awake as she dangled in the air. Espio then nearly dropped her as a scream tore through the practically silent hallway. The nurse looked behind her then looked worriedly at the floor as she faced forward once again.

“What as that?!” Espio blinked.

…..

A black cat stared out from a nearby bush as the police and paramedics remained scattered over the street.

“That kid slid out in front of me then there was some weird cat. I tried to miss both of them.” A man gulped.

His wife sat nearby and looked at the bloody street. The cat meowed then ran out from the bushes and down the street. The woman watched the cat then shivered seeing the boy’s parents nearby in complete shock.

The cat jumped into a boy’s arms before looking toward the site of the wreck. The boy blinked a few times then looked at the cat expressionlessly. The cat only meowed before its eyes flashed as it looked back toward the wreckage.