It had started when he had first met Mob. He had told himself that he wouldn't get attached to the boy, however Reigen couldn't help the growing affection that had sprouted for the kid. Sometimes, he felt the urge to just shield Kageyama Shigeo from the world, because honestly? The kid deserved so much better, deserved someone else other than the dubious con man, however Reigen couldn't help but want to stay friends (If they were even that).

Today Reigen had work, although he had given Mob the day off, for he had sustained an injury in their last exorcism (mostly due to Reigen, he didn't realize that having a cold would make him sluggish), and although his injuries were minor, Reigen didn't have the heart to force him to work today. Rest would be good for him.

He was only scheduled to meet one client today, however he doubted that there would be any spirits involved. The email he had received informed him of a possible spirit inhabiting a building, however the sender claimed they couldn't leave the room due to the danger of the ghost.
Although it seemed suspicious, whoever sent the message was willing to pay a large sum for an exorcism, and despite Reigen knowing that he was in fact not an esper, he planned to visit the building to see if it was really a spirit.

There was no problem if it was, Reigen would just call Mob and see if he had any free time to help. And if there weren't any spirits, well, he could just solve whatever problem was occurring inside the house.

Grabbing his essentials, Reigen headed over to the address sent to him, noticing that they were in the quiet part of town, and eyed the structure in front of him. He made note of the cracked steps leading to the doorway, and saw that it looked like a normal, if not old, house.

Upon entering the house, Reigen immediately noticed the damp air, and the absence of light inside. There was a certain coldness seeping into the man's skin, however that did not prevent sweat from rolling down his neck. Using his phone light, Reigen gently called out to see if anyone was there, however only received the soft whispers of a draft entering the room. Turning on his phone light, he jumped as a sudden tapping sound filled his senses, and he looked around, looking for the source.

He admitted that this was starting to spook him, however the wood chips and beads of blood splattered on the floor did assure him that there was someone here, although it wasn't exactly a comfort.

In this moment of realization, Reigen slipped in a pool of blood and fell, and although he reached out his hands to catch himself, he didn't quite anticipate the
(Whatever was on the floor) from slamming into his face, effectively causing a stream of blood to trickle down from his nose.

"Ah, hell…."
Reigen got up and, ignoring his scraped up palms, wiped his nose and picked up the box he had hit himself against. It was black, with broken seals haphazardly slapped onto the top, along with some of his blood smeared onto them. The seals were not unlike his own, which were currently in his pocket, although he wasn't sure if they'd be any use in a situation involving spirits.

Now, Reigen wasn't an idiot.
He knew that all of this added up meant the high probability of a spirit, and even though it was probably dangerous for him to be there, he really needed the money.

So when he heard the sounds of groans coming from the bathroom, he couldn't just ignore them.

Well, he could have, but what kind of role model would he be if he did?

He stepped towards the door, and being the type of person he was, he opened it rather suddenly, jumping as a startled yell came from inside.

It was only a man cowering in the corner, bleeding heavily.
Well, that was better than an evil spirit, Reigen mused.

"Hey, are you the client that e-mailed me?"
The man looked up, an expression of relief spread upon his face as he saw Reigen.

"Oh, um, yes…. Thank you for coming…"
He took a deep breath and, clutching his side, stood up, swaying in place.
The man looked weary, and just as Reigen was about to ask if he needed any help, he shuddered, spine straightening, taking on a more relaxed pose.

"I take it since you're here, the spirit must be gone for now…."
Reigen offered his shoulder for the man to lean on, and he continued speaking, a faint smile on his lips.

"I'll come by your office later to pay you for rescuing me… Ah, but you don't have to take care of the ghost, it probably left to go torture some other soul…"

Reigen didn't really object to this, after all, he could always just come back with Mob to make sure there really was no ghost anymore, and plus, he was getting a little hungry.
He didn't want to ask why the man was bleeding.

"Well, alright, if you insist. Let's go then."

The man put his hand on Reigen's shoulder and smiled, gripping him firmly.
And then the pair left.

Reigen opened his emails and checked his messages lazily, a dull ache in his shoulder.

"Did you recently purchase 20 pounds of salt on-"
"Try our new product, sure to-"
"BEWARE! Watch your community-"
"Your blood makes me want to-"
"Can you please take better care of my brother? Because he came home and-"

Reigen began to delete them until he noticed the fourth one, looking unsettled as he read it.
Someone had sent him a message about wanting to eat his flesh, detailing what they had "yearned" to do to him. Of course, he was creeped out, (who wouldn't be?), however he looked at his last message and felt his stomach drop.
It was from Mob's little brother, not-so politely asking him to stop hanging around Mob.
He usually wouldn't be so anxious about Ritsu, however he still felt guilty about his injuries, so he wasn't entirely wrong.

Rubbing his shoulder, Reigen groaned in discomfort, an odd weight settling into him.
He heard the chime of the door opening, and looked up to see a man, his earlier client.

The man smiled, eying Reigen, who was still seated.

"Hey, I've come to clear my debt~"
Pulling out a practiced smile, Reigen agreed, and soon they both settled with an acceptable price. The man never stopped grinning, and Reigen noted that he looked ecstatic, as if he were getting a present on his birthday.

"Well, it was a pleasure doing buisness with you….
Oh yes, and Reigen?"

The man paused at the door, casting an unreadable glance back at Reigen.

"Take care of that shoulder, okay?"
Reigen felt a bitter shiver go through his spine.

The next morning, when Reigen woke up, he vaguely noticed the overbearing pressure on his neck, coming to the conclusion that he was coming down with something.
Perhaps the dust in that house had gotten to him.

Upon arriving at his office (after spending an hour trying to get up), Reigen glanced at the time and noted that Mob would be arriving in a few minutes, so naturally he began to brew some tea. It was winter, and the chilly mornings only made Reigen worry about his student's health.

Hearing the door open, he looked up to see a troubled Mob entering the room, his eyes fixated upon the ground.

"Oh, good morning Mob."
"Mm. Morning."

Mob looked up at Reigen, and he couldn't help but notice the flash of concern written upon the kid's face, however it quickly disappeared and was replaced with his usual stoic expression.

Reigen noticed that something was bugging his student, and although they sat down and nursed their tea, Mob didn't seem as if he were going to start talking anytime soon.
So Reigen asked first.

"Hey, Mob? Something on your mind?"

The boy flushed, somewhat ashamed that his concerns were too obvious, even if he were trying not to show it.

"Ah, well… Can I ask you a question?"
Mob looked up at his teacher again and seemed to stare through him, as if seeing some invisible thing that no one else could see.

"Hm? Sure Mob, what's up?"
Reigen was hoping that the question wasn't a hard one, mostly because whenever he didn't know how to answer a question, he pulled answers out of his ass and hoped they would suffice.
Usually, he didn't have to resort to that. (Usually.)

"Well… If I ever see a spirit that's not doing any harm, should I leave it be?"

Reigen grinned, not missing a beat.
"Mob, if you think it's not doing anything, then leave it. But if it looks dangerous, make sure you call me, okay?"

The boy nodded, shoulders relaxing slightly.
"Ah, thank you shishou… What if I see someone with a spirit and it's harming them without their knowledge though? Should I still call you?"

Mob stared at Reigen, eyes searching for an answer.

"Oh… Of course, anytime Mob."

"Shishou."

"Yes Mob?"

"There's a spirit on your shoulder."

"Oh."

Oh.
Reigen laughed nervously, however he smiled as to not worry his student.

"Must be too weak for me to see, heh…. Although now that you mention it, I do feel a little under the weather…"
He rubbed his neck and laughed a little, and Mob continued.

"Shishou, should I get rid of it? It's wrapped around your neck…"
Mob looked anxious, as if he were worried he had overstepped his boundaries.
So Reigen assured him.

"If you think it's for the best Mob, I can barely feel it though. Thanks."

But he did feel it.
Reigen didn't want to worry Mob however, not over a little soreness and aches.
No, he wanted to make sure Mob felt comfortable here, well, as much as possible anyway.

Mob dispelled the spirit, and their day continued on as normal.
Reigen massaged some clients, and Mob dealt with any spirits that happened to actually exist.
The day went along smoothly, and when Mob went home after he closed up, Reigen almost forgot about the spirit that Mob got rid of, and believed that his day would end there.

He was, of course, wrong.