"Boss, how is it?"
"There's nothing wrong with the house."
Ding-dong—
Click!
"Hello."
"Come in. That talisman of yours is pretty useful. Xiaorui hasn't had any strange feelings lately. Does that mean it's gone?"
"We can't be sure yet."
"Can I buy one of those talismans?"
"Sure."
"Oh!"
"This is the floor-to-ceiling window you mentioned, right?"
"Huh? Yes."
"Your bedroom is over here."
"Yes, my bedroom doesn't have a bathroom, so I've always used this one..."
"Hey, you're so rude! How can you just look around a girl's room?"
"Boss, how is it?"
"There's nothing wrong with the bathroom or the house."
"Did you scare it away?"
"What do you mean, scare it away?"
"Little girl, I told you last time: if you don't know when to keep your mouth shut, get out."
"Shishi..."
"Let's see what you can do!"
"Now, let's run a test."
"What test?"
"Miss Zheng, you're wearing the talisman now, right?"
"Huh? Yes. This..."
"Good. Now, go into the bathroom alone and look in the mirror."
"Are you kidding me? You took away the talisman and now you want Xiaorui to go in there alone..."
"This will show us whether the talisman works. We're right here, so if anything happens, you can call out. But I hope you'll be brave. If you feel someone watching you, look in the mirror and see what's there. Don't look away until we come in."
"Ah... I..."
"Don't joke around! Are you trying to use Xiaorui as bait? We didn't pay you to do something like this!"
"Ling, talk to her."
"Okay. Xiaorui, come with me."
"Hey, wait! You... Let go of me!"
"Little girl, don't get in our way."
Click.
"What do you mean, get in your way? I won't let you do this! You're fired! Wh-what are you doing? Mmmph!"
"All right, Boss."
"Mm. Little girl, have you learned to keep your mouth shut now?"
"Mmph!"
"I'm going to let go. When your friend comes out, don't say anything, got it?"
"What do you mean? Is that a pinhole camera?"
"Your parents may have been right."
"Ah... Could it really be Xiaorui..."
"As her friend, you should encourage her to face the truth, not indulge her and deepen her fear."
"..."
Click.
"All right, we've talked it over."
"Can I go in now?"
"Yes, you can. I... I'm ready."
"Don't worry. If you feel unsafe, call out. We'll be right outside the door."
"Okay. Shishi..."
"I'm right outside. Don't worry. I'll keep my hand on the doorknob. As soon as I hear you, I'll come in."
"Okay. I-I'm going in."
"Yeah! You can do it, Xiaorui!"
Creak—click!
"She's in front of the mirror."
"Phew... Don't appear, don't appear, don't appear..."
"She's opened her eyes. Mm... It's been ten minutes."
"Phew..."
"Six fifteen."
"..."
"Six twenty."
"Open the door."
"Ah..."
"Open the door."
"Oh."
Click! Creak—
"Shishi?"
"Xiaorui, you..."
"Looks like the ghost has left."
"Huh?!"
"You didn't see anything strange or feel anyone watching you, right, Miss Zheng?"
"No, I really didn't. Has it been driven away?"
"That's right."
"Then... are you going to take back the talisman?"
"You can keep it. Think of it as a memento and a good-luck charm. You won't have to go through anything so frightening again."
"That's wonderful! Thank you!"
"You're welcome."
"Little girl, do you still want to buy a talisman?"
"...Yes! Xiaorui and I will get a matching pair!"
"Our office's talismans all look the same. We don't have matching pairs."
"What? You have no business sense at all... No wonder your office is in such an old neighborhood..."
Attachment: Video file 07820131214.avi.
December 14, 2013: Investigation concluded. Case resolved. Confirmed as a non-paranormal incident.
December 20, 2013: Received a call from Duan Shishi. Call recording 201312201212.mp3.
"Is this Greenleaf? Can you... can you come to the school now?"
"Is this Miss Duan? What happened?"
"That talisman... The talisman is gone. Xiaorui's terrified. She... she's locked herself in the bathroom. It's lunchtime, but class starts at one, and the teacher will come. Can you get here quickly?"
"Of course. We're on our way."
December 20, 2013: Went to Huangnan District No. 1 Middle School and found the client. Arranged leave for her and brought her to the office. Audio file 07820131220.wav.
"Don't be afraid. Here's a new talisman. Hold on to it. You're all right now."
"Sniff... sob..."
"Don't worry. We're going to the office now. It's a quick drive. If you're scared, don't look around. Close your eyes. I'll sit beside you and hold your hand, okay? I'll keep talking to you."
"Xiaorui, don't be scared. Please, don't be scared... I'm here too."
"Boss, I've spoken to her homeroom teacher. We can leave now."
"Okay, let's go."
"Miss Zheng, are you feeling better?"
"Mm."
"Have some hot water."
"Mm..."
"Can you tell us what happened now?"
"I... I joined the school choir. We had rehearsal and needed to change clothes... I didn't notice... I didn't notice when I changed. When it was over and I went to change again, I realized the talisman was gone... I looked for it... in the music room, the hallway, the classroom, and the bathroom... It wasn't anywhere..."
"I helped look too, but we couldn't find it. I told Xiaorui that maybe someone had picked it up, or maybe the cleaner had thrown it out with the trash. I gave her my talisman for the time being."
"Where's your talisman?"
"Here."
"Miss Zheng, didn't you take it?"
"No! I wanted to, but... but at the time..."
"Xiaorui was staring at something behind me... We were in the music room. There was a grand piano and a window behind me."
"Did you see your reflection, a strange shadow, or anything else?"
"Sniff..."
"Miss Zheng, we don't know how to help unless you tell us. You're safe now. Please be brave and tell us what happened."
"...It was a bird."
"What kind of bird?"
"I don't know... It was brown, but it wasn't a sparrow. It was huge, perched on the windowsill... It... it had the talisman in its beak..."
"Ah! A bird took it! Why didn't you say so?"
"It was looking at me... It was staring at me with the talisman in its beak..."
"Xiaorui..."
"Did it fly away afterward?"
"Yes, it flew away... But it'll come back... It came back again..."
"Xiaorui, don't be afraid. You're all right now."
"Were you so scared that you locked yourself in the bathroom?"
"Sniff... sob..."
"Xiaorui... Don't cry. It's all right now."
"Ling."
"Mm. Xiaorui, come wash your face with me. Don't be scared."
"I... Huh?"
Tap tap tap... Creak—click!
"Little girl, can you contact her parents?"
"D-do we have to tell her parents?"
"What she needs most right now is a psychologist, not us."
"B-but this is strange, isn't it? How could a bird carry off a talisman? Could that thing be clever enough to trick us on purpose?"
Before you continue