Hand of Doom

[Teagan]

In no way did Teagan envy Yuki's task of carrying the object. Her respect for the girl doubled as she expertly wrapped the newspaper around it and lifted the hand off of the ground.

The icy glare Yuki shot at Teagan made her lose points. Oh well, nothing new. Point total at 0 out of 10 for Yuki.

"You don't have to ask me twice," she replied, eagerly heading for the door. "I wish we knew where Aiden was though. He should have brought us along if he was demon hunting. Who knows what trouble he'll get himself into?"

A cry from the girl behind her caused Teagan to pause mid step and involuntarily glance back. What the heck? The shattered glass that had previously been collecting dust on the floor now danced in dizzying formations. Oh-and there was the minor detail that a majority of them had risen and were in the process of flinging themselves at Yuki.

Teagan's eyes widened. "Or, maybe we have enough trouble without Aiden..." She took the hint and flew out the door. No need to play the roll of a dartboard. She slammed the door shut behind her, hearing the glass pound against the wood. Like that would hold it long. Her eyes darted left and right. Which way? Which way?

Ahead of her, Yuki darted into the forest. That worked. Glad she had worn her running shoes (in this line of work, it nearly always paid off to be prepared), she bolted back into the thick brush. Insects buzzed around her head, and in annoyance Teagan tried to swat them away. It really wasn't the time for biting. Leaves whipped in her face as she made her way into a small clearing where she caught sight of Yuki. The girl did not look pleased. Small cuts marked her face, blood threatening to fall from the edges.

She picked up her pace to run alongside her, only to receive a rebuking. "You think I would've forgot something as important as demonic glass?" Teagan shot back. "You've got to be kidding me. He didn't say anything about that!"

[Yuki]

Either Teagan had forgotten a vital part of her conversation with Aiden, or their faction leader had honestly no idea about the powers of the object. "Kuso," she whispered under her breath. The river ran noisily next to them, and a bird chirped from somewhere in the distance. Still clutching the black hand, this time without any newspaper to shield her hands from making contact with the skin, Yuki looked at it and then up at the girl. "Teagan, try calling Aiden. I doubt there will be any signal way out here, but we lose nothing by trying." Yuki then examined the artifact, turning it around, trying to find any markings, strange perforations, or other hidden signs, but to no avail. It simply looked like a withered black hand, nothing more, nothing less. Clearly, the object was cursed, but she had no idea to what extent. Did it animate inanimate objects? Was the curse restricted to the items inside the cabin? Could it only control glass?

Within a few seconds, the latter question was answered. Or at least, Yuki assumed it was a doing of the curse. It couldn't be coincidence, because just as these thoughts were passing through her mind, she heard the crackle of a tree branch above her, and then a snapping sound from the same tree, this time coming from the trunk next to them. In a heartbeat, Yuki rushed over to Teagan. The tree was about to fall. "Move, move!" Yuki shouted.

With a loud crash, water went splashing in every direction as the tree landed in the river. The screeches from a flock of birds could be heard from above as they flew hastily away from the site. Panting, Yuki looked over to Teagan. She wasn't hurt. Yuki touched the cuts on her face which were now visibly bleeding. Disregarding them, she turned to the girl. "We need to make our way back to the tavern. The car may be dangerous, but we will arrive there quicker than by foot. I am unsure as to what effects of this curse are, but after being attacked by glass and a tree, I do not want to remain here to find out."

[Teagan]

Teagan nodded and pulled out her phone, quickly dialing the now familiar number. As the ringer echoed in her ear, she studied the hand Yuki grasped. Ugly thing, that it was. Who on earth would just leave something like that in an abandoned cabin? Then again, Teagan understood why any sane person would want to get rid of it. The stench, the sight, and (she never wanted to try this) the touch.

"Pick up Aiden, come on," Teagan mumbled into the phone. Not answering on the first ring was a bad sign. Either he was too busy trying to smite the demon...or the demon had already done its work on him. Think positively. He might not have service... The fact that she did was nothing short of a miracle. Her previous phone had no reliability regarding availability of service and when it would decide to spaz out mid-conversation. "Will you answer already?"

Teagan was about to give up when Yuki nearly knocked her over. A loud crack broke through the forest, and Teagan's jaw dropped as one of the large trees in the clearing started to fall. She shuffled back rapidly, tripping over a large root. Her hands landed on something sharp.

The impact with the river sent a spray of icy water over Teagan, drenching the girl. The cold water soaked uncomfortably through her jacket and shoes. She blinked, mouth still open. "Say what-"

And then it came back to her.

"Crap!" She grabbed a leaf and swatted the wrinkled black mass out of Yuki's hands before shoving Yuki back three feet. Ensuring her own distance, she sent her faction mate an apologetic look. "I remember now. Aiden had mentioned he was following a demon, and I started talking over him. That's why I didn't remember first hand...I wasn't really listening. The last thing he said was something along the lines of 'don't touch it'."

Teagan glanced at the fallen tree, and the cuts on Yuki's face from both the glass and murderous branches. "I guess we figured out why."

[Yuki]

Yuki blinked at the girl from the distance she had placed between them. "...Nande kuso?!" she blurted after Teagan's sudden action. The hand had gone crashing to the floor and Yuki had gone stumbling backwards, almost tripping on a tree root on the ground. Had the girl completely lost it?! And then...the girl explained.

"No kidding!" Yuki snapped angrily. "How could you forget something so important?! Foolish child!" She ran up to the hand, clutched it in her grasp, and chucked it at the girl as if she were pitching a baseball. "You're holding that thing now! Follow me back to the car, we need to get to the tavern before--"

And then, she felt the ground give way underneath her, and she fell into the river. The part where she had landed was shallow, so it was fortunate that she did not fall into the current, but her fortune stopped short of her scraped knees and hands. Now completely drenched, she wiped the wet bangs from her eyes and stood up. "Car. Now," she hissed, and marched off in the direction of the vehicle.

[Teagan]

"Did you not hear me? I was a little more focused on the fact he was chasing a demon! Give me a break." Teagan shot the girl a glare. She was completely overreacting.

She yelped as Yuki chucked the hand in her direction, ducking just in time to avoid contact with the skin. What was that for? "Who's being childish now?" Teagan called out. With a frown, she took off her wet jacket and used a stick to push the hand into it. She carefully wrapped it tightly to ensure at no point the cursed object would chance touching her. "Are you happy?"

A large splash interrupted her question as the ground beneath Yuki collapsed and the girl fell into the muddy river. Ha. Now they were on the same level: wet. Teagan stifled her laugh for fear of pushing Yuki off the mental edge, but she took a sweet enjoyment out of seeing the girl get her just desserts.

"Car. Now."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Teagan agreed, very much ready to leave the area. She shifted the bundle in her hands. Way more trouble than it was worth. As she followed Yuki through the thick brush, she failed to notice on of the fingers on the hand sticking out of her hood, gently rubbing against her arm.

[Yuki]

They had paced the forest quickly without anything happening. Yuki was starting to wonder if perhaps the effects of the curse were only temporal, or if they weakened with a farther proximity from the cabin. Finally spotting the car, Yuki dashed over to the door and opened it hastily, sitting down in the driver's seat, buckling her seatbelt, and turning the keys in the ignition in one swift move. However, the car would not start. "C'mon..." Yuki hissed, turning the key several times, but the car was unresponsive. She didn't understand, it had beenfine when they got here!

Letting out a sigh of frustration, she kicked the accelerator pedal. For a split second, she feared that the car would start upon her action, but it did not. "It appears as if we'll have to travel by foot," she said to Teagan, who sat in the passenger seat next to her. Yuki went to unbuckle the seatbelt, but when she pushed the button, the belt would not come off. "What the--?! What the hell is wrong with this car?!" Yuki struggled in her seat, but the seatbelt remained in place. And then...was it her imagination, or was the belt beginning to tighten?! No, it most definitely was not her imagination. Yuki felt the belt pushing against her, making it difficult for her to breathe. She glanced over to the side and saw that the same was happening to the girl, though less because her seatbelt was not wrapped around her arms. She needed to break free of the belt before it placed too much strain on her lungs. If she could only reach her knife!

Suddenly, Yuki remembered an important detail, one she had set as an offensive option in the event access to the trunk of the car would be denied. She never imagined it would be used to break free of a seatbelt instead. "Teagan, there is a knife in the glove compartment, get it and cut me loose! I can't move my arms behind this thing to get mine from my pocket!"

[Teagan]

Teagan flew to the car at mach speed, probably breaking every record on television for fastest escape times. This mission was getting way to freaky fro her taste, and all it consisted of was a retrieval. Next time Aiden wanted an object, she'd tell him to screw the demon and grab it himself. She situated herself in a matter of seconds and proceeded to peer out the window to make sure nothing unsightly had followed them. "Yuki, start the car already!" Teagan hissed. Yuki was usually on top of things like this! It wasn't the time to slack off!

Yuki kicked the acceleration, frustrated at the lack of cooperation she had received. Walking? Teagan's face drained. They had just proved walking was a bad idea. "Are you sure you really want to-"

She was caught off guard by her seatbelt, which had started tightening on its own. Teagan tried to wriggle out of it, but the pressure holding her down was clearly not natural. Her breathing shortened as she pulled against the seatbelt. "Why can't you...obey...the laws of nature?" Teagan choked.

"Teagan, there is a knife in the glove compartment, get it and cut me loose! I can't move my arms behind this thing to get mine from my pocket!"

"I'll try," she grunted, regretting making sure that the belt was safely across her neck moments earlier. Her gaze dropped down to the glove box. Her arms were too short, but perhaps...she lifted up her foot, attempting to open the hatch with her shoe. C'mon...c'mon... There! With a satisfying click the door fell open and the knife clattered to the floor. Using both feet she lifted it up, and with a kick knocked it into her lap. In a flash she slashed the belt restraining her and took a deep breath. Sweet, sweet air. Her speckled vision disappeared and Teagan wasted no time freeing Yuki.

"I never liked this car anyways," she commented. "Aiden'll understand if we ditch it." She reached for the door handle and pushed it open.

Correction-she tried to push it open. With a sickening feeling, she rattled it back and forth, finally shoving her entire body weight into the door. It didn't budge. "I can't get out!" The car shuddered and without warning lurched forward, rolling down the beaten path. "Yuki! STEER AWAY FROM THAT TREE!"

[Yuki]

Stupid supernatural phenomena. Stupid Aiden. Stupid Teagan. Stupid "hand." Stupid, stupid, stupid. The whole thing---

Mendokusai! The whole thing was just one big burdensome disaster. Yuki had no time to deal with rebellious lung-crushing seatbelts! Fortunately, Teagan managed to get a hold of the knife from the glove compartment to cut them loose. Taking a deep breath, Yuki coughed to clear her throat. So much for seatbelts being a safety measure for cars. It was all the doing of that damned black hand. The sooner they got out of that vehicle, the better. They really needed to get rid of that thing. However, that desire was interrupted by Teagan's interjection, for just as Yuki had removed the keys from the ignition to the car...

"I can't get out!"

Impulsively, she eached for the handle of her own door, a sinking sensation befalling her stomach. Just as she suspected. ...Great. They were trapped in car, and would now have to find a way to break out of aluminum, low-carbon steel, fiber glass, or whatever the hell the car was made of. Perfect. As if things could get any more--

"Yuki! STEER AWAY FROM THAT TREE!"

Lunging, she spun the wheel to the side, sending the car head first towards another tree. Suddenly, Yuki really wished the seatbelts hadn't decided to gain minds of their own, because she really needed one at that moment. They were in a forest! How the hell were they supposed to avoid trees?! "Brace yourself!" she commanded, and the car collided against the trunk of the tree ahead.

Groaning, Yuki rubbed her forehead. She frowned in annoyance as she spotted blood on her hand. Kuso, she hissed. A minor injury, but now she had a splitting headache. The airbags of the car had failed to eject (of course), but the impact had not been rough. The car didn't gain enough speed to do any serious dismantling of the vehicle, and now, the doors appeared to have sustained some sort of damage that prevented them from being barred, as they had been previously.

She turned to the girl, and before the child had the chance to make some sort of comment about the situation, she cut her off. "Don't you say a word. Just grab the hand and let's get the hell out of here, before something else happens."

As they exited the car, Yuki led the way towards the tavern. It wasn't too far away, but the distance would be hard to traverse through a forest where any object could potentially kill them. As they ran, Yuki heard a loud noise coming from above them. It was a crackling sound, mixed with a rustling noise. Actually, it sounded a lot like--

"Teagan, watch out for the falling branches!"

[Teagan]

Her hands flew instinctively in front of her face as the car slammed into the tree trunk, sending Teagan's body weight against the dashboard. Her arms took the brunt of the damage, numbness swiftly spreading from her hands to her elbows. Once the car stopped, she lowered her hands, wincing. "My-"

Yuki cut her off, earning her a glare from Teagan. It wasn't like Yuki needed to tell her twice. She twisted her body and kicked the door open, grabbing the hand and backpack before jumping out and racing after her faction mate. All the trouble they were going through was for this stupid, insignificant smelly hand. Why couldn't Aiden have burned it when he had the opportunity? What possessed him to chase after that demon and send them to their deaths?

"Teagan, watch out for the falling branches!"

A rustling sound overhead caught her attention and she darted to the side just in time to avoid a huge branch barreling into the ground. Her face turned white, realizing that if an object that size had nailed her, she'd look more like a pancake than a human. The noise echoed menacingly throughout the forest, the threat becoming much larger than one branch. "We've got to get out of here!"

Branches began appearing left and right, forcing Teagan to adapt a random path consisting of constant darting. She wasn't even sure if she was going in the right direction anymore. Hopefully Yuki had some internal compass, because Teagan wasn't quite sure if she wanted to trust a real one right then. With their luck, they'd land in Canada.

A heavy weight landed on her shoulders, and Teagan reached up to shove it off. Her fingers brushed against a texture that in no way resembled the bark of a tree. No. No. No. No. She stopped suddenly, too afraid to move. Out of all the things to run into at the moment...why this? Why now?

"Yuki, stay back," she whispered harshly, beads of sweat forming along her brow. The object around her neck slowly crawled on top of her head, feeling more like a noose that could at any moment tighten. This couldn't be happening.

Were there even snakes in Oregon?

[Yuki]

Dodging branches left and right, Yuki struggled to keep heading in the direction of the tavern. Her herb-gathering expeditions had somewhat familiarized her with the nearby surroundings of the tavern, and she had a general idea of where to go. If only they could get their faster, without the impediment of falling tree bark! She mentally cursed Aiden again. He was going to be in for hell when she saw him again. She looked behind her to see Teagan following a similar pattern of movement, then looked ahead. What they had to do was find a clearing, a place where nothing could fall on them, then proceed from there, a place like...

Like that area up ahead! She sped towards it, and then looked up. Perfect. Very little trees to worry about, and the ones that were there were small. They wouldn't be able to do too much damage should they become animate objects, or something of the like. Unless the leaves suddenly became razor blades. Then they'd be in trouble.

She turned around, to see if the girl had followed suit. "Teagan, are you--"

"Yuki, stay back."

Her eyes opened in alarm as she saw what was perched on Teagan's shoulder. Hebi desu ka?! How had a...no, nevermind. She glared at the black hand in Teagan's hands, knowing the answer to her unspoke question. The snake...She knew enough about garden creatures to recognize the one before her--garter snake. Common garter snake. Indigenous to the Western United States. Good news was that although it was poisonous, the venom was not nearly enough to kill a human. Bad news was that it had a tendency to coil and strike multiple times if it felt threatened, which would cause some numbness in the infected area. It also could secrete a fluid that would cause a potentially bad rash. But at least it wouldn't kill. All they had to do was get it off of her, and then it would, hopefully, leave.

"Okay, don't move," Yuki whispered, advancing cautiously. "It isn't poisonous. It's just a garter snake--you Americans sometimes refer to it as a garden snake. That doesn't mean it's harmless though, it will bite if prompted. Just don't make any sudden--"

From behind her, Yuki heard a deep growl, and then breathing near her. A dark shadow cast itself in front of her, and she turned around slowly. Kuma?! A...bear?! And...it was apparently aggressive. Territorial. Of course, they had trespassed into its habitat. Kuso, kuso, kuso.

"Disregard the snake, Teagan! Run for it!"

[Teagan]

Teagan swallowed and nodded quietly, trying to focus on Yuki's words and not the creature slithering all over her. She had never felt something so...cold and lean crawl around her before, and it was a sensation she didn't want to replicate anytime soon.

She relaxed slightly once Yuki recognized the snake and let her know it wasn't harmful. Alright, so all she had to do was make sure that no sudden moves were made. Not that hard. Except when Yuki started yelling about something else chasing them. What could be worse than a snake on her head? Teagan slowly turned around, her eyes widening at the sight. A bear?! With a careless brush, her arm knocked off the reptile from above her and she darted behind Yuki into the forest.

Running, of course, faster than she ever had in her life. Then again, all training she remembered from camping lessons growing up centered around staying calm while encountering a bear. To Hell with that. Teagan bolted through the forest, branches nipping at her cheeks. She never should have agreed to coming on this mission. They should have just dealt with the hand once they first had it, not tote it around like glorified babysitters. Not that they had know what it did at the time.

The roof of the Tavern came into view, and a deep thankfulness over swept the girl. With second thought she burst through the door. "C'mon Yuki! Get in now!" She couldn't lock the door until they were both safely inside! Teagan swirled around, looking behind her for the elder girl and finding her nowhere in sight. "Yuki?" she called, eyes frantically searching the forest line.

[Yuki]

Her attention focused on running away from the dangerously territorial bear running after them, Yuki had not noticed when she stepped into a pile of leaves that gave way to a wide ditch underneath. Tumbling through the hard rock, she ignored the scrapes on her knees and arms and quickly recovered, turning around to witness the bear fumbling in the ditch as well. Yuki looked behind her, but the ditch would be impossible to climb with a bear attacking her. And she had a feeling Teagan's attention hadn't exactly been focused on the ground either. She turned back around to face her so-called opponent. Damn it! Ditch in the middle of the forest?! What is this, Pokemon?! she thought angrily.

Luckily, among Yuki's platter of skills and experiences, she had indeed trained with bears at a point in her life. She was tossed into the wilderness often by her sensei, as a test for survival. Rough, but effective. Nothing forces a person to live solely through nature like the fear of death. Where else had her extensive knowledge of herbs and animals taken root? Dealing with a bear would be no problem, though she hadn't really fought one in a--

Smack! A paw swiped at her face unexpectedly as it charged towards her. Yuki stumbled backwards, and she glared at the animal in front of her. Damn you! She was getting careless. Okay, Yuki, focus. Surely, Teagan would realize that she had left her faction mate behind. Surely, she would go back and find her. And when she did, surely she would find a way to get her out of the ditch she was in.

...Right?

[Teagan]

Where had Yuki disappeared to? There wasn't anything between the edge of the forest and the Tavern that would have had enough interest in the moment to divert her from the task at hand, and especially while in pursuit by a bear! Teagan ran a hand through her hair, panting, wondering what her next step should be. She could lock herself in the Tavern and curl up in a corner in an attempt to hide from the crazed world, but she had the sinking feeling that Yuki's wrath would assure her death if she followed that course of action.

And that left...going back out. Groaning, Teagan reluctantly peered outside the edge of the door to ensure that nothing lurked in the faint shadows. Quiet, for now. But that didn't mean something outside didn't wait. Bolting out the door, she retraced her steps she found herself skidding to a stop, tips of her shoes barely sticking over the edge of a deep pit. "What the crap? Who puts a hole in the middle of the forest?" Upon peering down, Teagan quickly located both Yuki...and the terror that stalked them without reason.

Her face scrunched up hopelessly, the girl completely at a loss of what to do. "Yuki, I'm here! I'll get you out...somehow. Don't worry!"

She took a step back, ensuring she moved out of the bear's line of vision. Now what on Earth could she do? The trees weren't think enough to throw down a branch as a rope, nor did they have vines. Even if they did, Teagan wasn't nearly strong enough to pull Yuki up. She didn't have enough time to run back to the Tavern and find rope to bring her up with before the bear malled her to death. And, for once in her life, Teagan had no pranking materials to draw upon and magically save the day.

That eliminated every possibility of bringing Yuki out. Teagan clenched her fists in frustration, eyes searching the forest ground for anything that could help her. A faint sound came from a bush nearby, almost as if an answer to prayer. She caught sight of a black tail with a small white stripe streaking down it.

Teagan's immediate reaction was to freeze and let the creature run away peacefully...but maybe she was approaching the bear situation the wrong way. Maybe she didn't have to get Yuki out, but just ensure that the bear wouldn't touch her until Teagan could find Aiden and have him figure out what to do.

...Yuki was going to kill her for this.

Taking a deep breathe, she trekked quietly toward the bush, grabbing the small creature from behind. It writhed in her hand, clearly unhappy about her tight grasp. She returned back to the edge of the pit.

"This is all I could find. I'm sorry Yuki!"

And with an apologetic cry, Teagan chucked the skunk into the abyss.

[Aiden]

Aiden had been in the tavern for a while now, waiting for the girls to get back with the hand. CHasing the demon had proved unyielding, it didn't give him any information on what the demons wanted with the hand, or where Ariel was, not that the girls needed to know that last bit of information. At the last second, before Aiden could exorcise the demon, it escaped in a black plume of smoke and off into the distance, leaving Aiden out of breath and with nothing.

He never heard a car, never heard much of anything as he readied the procedure to dispose of the thing. He knew what it did; if you touched it, bad luck of movie proportions fell on you. Almost like Final Destination, all until you died. He had warned Teagan, who had surely passed the message onto Yuki, but he was concerned at how long it was taking them; it shouldn't have been that long of a trip.

Finally, as he sprinkled some salt on a flame and watched it turn electric blue when the incantation finished, he smelled something...awful. His brow crinkled as the smell grew stronger and stronger until he opened the door and was met by a very angry looking Yuki and Teagan standing in the next room.

He was met by a "DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!"

And after being told to remove all metallic, sharp, potentially sharp, somewhat sharp, small parts, anything breakable, his shoes, belt, and cell phone before he was even allowed to breath again. "You guys touched it, didn't you?" he said flatly, his face going blank. "I knew I should have called Yuki instead!" he said in a raised voice, though it wasn't quite yelling. "I warned you, and you know it! I can't believe this."

He grabbed a towel from the other room, and approached the girls. "Slowly, and gently hold the hand out." Once he wrapped it in the towel, he walked over and dropped it in the small fire that was full of supernatural elements. He counted slowly, giving it a full minute before he placed a knife on the table. "Alright guys, come in now."

[Yuki]

Yes, her martial arts training had set her up against bears in her past. Bears and other ferocious animals. And yes, she was able to bring them down with either fist, foot, or weapon. But that was the past. Her days of training against animals and the forces of nature were over. The situation she had foud herself in--under the affliction of a cursed hand, trapped in a ditch in the middle of the forest with a teenage partner rendered useless, and also under the affliction of said curse--was not how she envision her next encounter with a bear.

Now back at the tavern, all that she could really say was that after having to battle the kuma off with a SKUNK in a match that would otherwise have traumatized any other person, Aiden's scolding and look of confusion was the last thing she wanted to see. After he eliminated the damnable hand, she walked in the room and gave Aiden one ofthe clodest glares she had ever given.

The next time they would have to deal with a cursed object, Aiden would be on his own.