Character Profile: Mai Kashiwagi

Mai is a middle school/high school student (it differs depending on which version of the anime you watch) who showed signs of Contractor powers manifesting early on in her life. Her father, Kozo Tahara, attempted to stop these powers by putting a special seed in her wrist. The seed came from a flower he found in the Hell's Gate when he was part of a reconnaissance team working for Pandora.

When he quit, Mai's father managed to smuggle two seeds out of the lab. One he put in his daughter's wrist to hinder her powers and the other he planted in an attempt to have enough for the rest of her life. However, her powers started to show up again when she unconsciously lit a pile of garbage on fire. She claimed to not have done it, not realizing what she was. She is also very resentful of her father because he spends most of his time in his lab and almost never coming home (though she doesn't realize it's for her sake).

Hei (as Li) tried to befriend her out of his good-nature. She didn't want to go home, knowing no one would be waiting for her. so he suggested just hanging out around the city. They go to a closed carnival and Hei turns on all the power because she says the place is creepy without all the lights. They then have fun running away from the security guard at the carnival.

When the dawn finally comes, Mai says she had a lot of fun, and that Hei was almost like a big brother. (This causes a bit of consternation on Hei's part.) She then shows Hei the glowing seed in her wrist, saying it was brighter before, and that her dad had told her it would keep her safe, like a good luck charm.

Hei then realizes they are being followed and he tells her to run as he fights off a couple of thugs. Mai does so only to be chased by two more thugs into a construction site. She knows she is in danger, and this seems to activate her powers; she sets fire to the entire site killing everyone in it.

It is after this we find out Mai is a Moratorium; someone with Contractor powers but not bound by a contract. Moratoriums are completely unpredictable and dangerous because they have no control over their powers and the powers are triggered at random.

The city is ordered to evacuate, under the reason of some dangerous chemical leek or other. One of Mai's friends from school find her, and she and her father attempt to get Mai out during the evacuation. Mai, realizing what she did, does not want to hurt them, and goes into hysterics when they continue to try to get her out. She then unwillingly sets them on fire, killing them.

Mai is found by Pandora agents trying to get her father to work for them again. They take her to a warehouse after contacting her father. She does not seem to have put up a fight, and is in a doll-like state when Hei arrives on the scene.

Hei, having just interrogated the Doctor Tahara and found out Mai's condition, attempts to save her. The Pandora agents remark on Hei's seeming incompetence as a Contractor (though he actually does not want Mai to get hurt). The doctor then walks in and throws down the wilted flower of the other seed telling them it is his research.

While the Pandora agents suffer apoplexy, Tahara beckons to his daughter so they can leave. Mai, still in the Doll-like state, does not think he is her father, saying her father is kind and good and handsome. He hugs her even though she has set fire all around them (and to the flower too). Mai finally realizes her father loved her all along. Unfortunately, this epiphany comes too late as one of the Pandora agents is a Contractor and kills her father.

Hei retaliates by electrocuting the Contractor and Mai kills the other agent. She begins to sing, and Mao and Huang walk in. Mao remarks on the near-zero chance of a Moratorium becoming a Contractor, which is what happens to Mai. Her remuneration is to sing.

Mai seems to have been handed over to the Syndicate, because later we see her guarding the Saturn Ring. Due to Amber's powers over time, Amagiri, her henchman, knows Mai is coming and attacks her. He still gets toasted like bread, though.

At this point it seems that Mai died in the protection of the Saturn Ring, though that's open to speculation, since she was only seen injured, not necessarily dead.