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On with it, shall we?
CHAPTER EIGHT- HAND OF GLORY
I sat on the damp wooden floor, listening to Dean murmur to Sam.
"You can't save everybody, Sam."
"Yeah, right," Sam snorted. "So-so what, you feel better now or what?"
"No, not really," Dean admitted.
"Me neither."
They both looked over to me, and I shrugged helplessly.
I supposed I wasn't as good as hiding my emotions as they were.
"You gotta understa-"
"It's just lately," Sam sighed. "I feel like I can't save anybody."
Somebody knocked at the door, and Dean stood up warily, poking his head outside.
It was Bela.
He exchanged a long look with us before opening the door.
"Dear God, are you actually squatting?"
She waited for a second.
"So how'd things go last night with Peter?"
I averted my gaze, shame coursing through me.
Bela clucked her tongue.
"That well, huh?"
"If you say 'I told you so', I swear to God I'll start swinging," Dean growled.
"Look, I think the four of us should have a heart to heart," Bela leant against the doorway casually.
"That's assuming you have a heart," Dean snapped.
That was when Cas appeared.
"We don't need her," He said flatly.
"On the contrary," Bela smirked. "I come bearing gifts."
Cas stared at her dispassionately.
"Try anything, and I will kill you."
Bela winked at me with easy familiarity.
"Handsome, but a bit of a drama queen, yeah?"
I flushed a deep shade of pink.
"What gifts?" Sam demanded.
"I've ID'd the ship. It's a merchant sailing vessel, quite a colorful history. In 1859, a sailor was accused of treason. He was tried aboard a ship in a kangaroo court and hanged. He was thirty-seven."
"Which would explain the thirty-seven year cycle," I said grudgingly.
"Aren't you a sharp tack?"
She paused a beat.
"I have a photo of his somewhere….here."
We looked at it.
"Isn't that the ghost we saw last night?" Dean cocked an eyebrow.
"You saw him?"
"Yeah, that's him," Dean nodded. "Except he was missing a hand."
"His right hand?"
"How'd you know?" Sam asked Bela sharply.
"The sailor's body was cremated, but not before they cut off his hand to make a hand of glory."
"A hand of glory, I think I got one of those at the end of my Thai massage last week," Dean laughed.
Cas stared at him blankly.
"Dean, the right hand of a hanged man is a serious cult object and is very powerful."
"So they say," Bela admitted.
"And officially counts as remains," Dean added.
"But still, none of this explains why the ghost is choosing these victims."
"I'll tell you why," Bela rolled her eyes.
"Who cares? Find the hand, burn it and stop the bloody thing."
"I don't get it," Dean's eyes narrowed.
"Why are you telling us all of this?"
"Because I know exactly where the hand is."
"Where?"
"At the Sea Pines Museum, it's a carp bit of maritime history. But I need help."
"What kind of help?"
~Supernatural~
I adjusted the straps, glaring at my heels with trepidation.
I looked at myself critically in the mirror.
Sam ruffled my hair lightly, careful not to mess it up.
"You look amazing."
I flushed in pleasure, inching my way down the steps.
i took one look at Cas and froze.
I sighed, massaging my temple.
"You need to change your clothes, Cas."
He looked at me blankly.
"I am not going to pretend to be someone I'm not."
"Okay…" I sighed again.
I tilted my head as a new idea struck me.
Before Cas could object, I pulled off his trenchcoat.
As I suspected, he was wearing a black tux underneath.
I couldn't help noticing how good he looked.
I clasped my hands together.
"Now you won't have to change. Come on, Cas."
He blinked, and I found his deer-in-the-headlights expression adorable.
"Look, I'm sixteen, and in this dress I look a bit older, and you look around twenty. Nobody's gonna notice us."
Cas shifted uneasily.
"Please?" I pleaded.
He nodded, his expression resigned.
I could hear Bela and Dean bickering in the other room.
I caught Cas staring at me again.
"Something the matter, Cas?"
"No," I could have been imagining it, but pink tinged his cheeks as his eyes traveled down the length of my white dress.
"At least," He muttered. "Nothing of import."
Dean walked in, studiously ignoring Bela.
He suddenly grinned as he looked at me.
"Talbot, I think you just got upstaged."
Bela's expression soured.
…
"Cas," I tugged on his elbow.
"Everyone else is dancing. We need to fit the part."
Bela had pretended to pass out, and hopefully she and Dean had taken the hand of glory by now.
Cas' eyes widened.
"But I don't know how to dance."
I laughed quietly.
"Don't worry, I'll show you."
Cas looked even more nervous.
I suppressed my smile.
"You trust me, right?"
He let me lead him out on the dance floor, and the song changed.
"Hand on my waist," I instructed.
I placed mine on his neck.
"Now sway."
Cas wasn't half-bad as I steered him across the floor, and I hid my smile as we twirled.
I caught Sam giving me an odd look, but I decided to ignore it.
Cas' voice came out slightly strangled.
"What kind of dance do you call this?"
"Slow," I replied. "Slow dance."
I cast a sympathetic look towards Sam.
Gert was all over him.
I smiled a little.
I'd never expected to slow dance with an angel.
By the time Dean and Bela returned, I was disappointed that the song had finished.
Sam, on the other hand, was vastly relieved.
"You got it, right?" Sam jumped into the Impala.
"Tell me I didn't get groped all night by Mrs. Havisham for nothing."
I shook with laughter, and Sam shot me a dirty look.
"Just let me see it."
Dean rummaged in his bag, then cursed.
"What?" Sam demanded.
"I'm gonna kill her," Dean snarled.
Bela had taken the hand.
~Supernatural~
Dean was fuming, and no attempt to reason with him worked.
Cas had finally told us the motive behind the victims.
Someone knocked anxiously on the door, and Dean opened it with a grimace.
"I can explain," Bela said rapidly.
"I sold it, I've had a buyer lined up since I knew it existed."
"So the whole reason for us to go to the Charity Ball was…?"
Sam crossed his arms.
"I needed a cover, you were convenient."
"Look, you sold it to a buyer, just buy it back," Sam said disapprovingly.
"It's halfway across the ocean, I can't get it back in time."
"In time for what?" Dean demanded.
"What's going on with you, Bela?" I stood up.
"You look like you've seen a ghost."
"I saw the ship," Bela whispered.
"You what?"
I shook my head, appalled.
"Cas told us the spirit's motive, Bela. He's going after a very specific kind of target. People who've spilt their families' blood."
But then again, who was I to judge?
I'd shot my only remaining family in the head.
"So who was it, Bela?" Dean sneered. "Who'd you kill, was it daddy? Little sis, maybe?"
"It's none of your business," Bela swallowed twice.
"No, you're right," Dean agreed.
"Well, have a nice life, you know, whatever's left of it."
"Let's go," Sam pulled me along.
"You can't just leave me here," Bela said incredulously.
"Watch us," Dean clenched his teeth.
"Please," Bela said reluctantly. "I need your help."
"Our help?" Dean laughed.
"Now, how could a couple serial killers possibly help you?"
"Okay, that was a bit harsh, I admit it, but it doesn't warrant a death sentence!"
"That's not why you're gonna die," Sam said quietly.
"Whatcha do, Bela?"
"You wouldn't understand," Bela turned away. "No one did."
"Never mind, I'll just do what I've always done, I'll deal with it myself."
"You do realize you just sold the one thing that could save your life?" Dean looked at her disgustedly.
"I'm aware."
"Maybe not the only thing," Cas answered.
~Supernatural~
Cas etched out the sacrificial circle in the graveyard.
"Is this going to work?"
Cas looked at me impassively.
"Almost definitely not."
The sky was stormy, and rain began to pour down, icy cold against my skin.
"Sammy, you better start reading," Dean told him.
"How'd you know about this?" I whispered to Cas.
He turned back to look at me.
"This spell calls for me. How could I not know?"
Sure enough, when Sam started reading, Cas was mentioned.
"Aziel, Castiel, Lamisniel, Rabam…." He continued in Latin.
"Stay close," Dean commanded Bela.
"Behind you!" She screamed.
Dean groaned, and I latched onto his hand as we were thrown through the air.
Bela was starting to cough up water.
I struggled, holding her head back.
"Sam, read faster!" I shouted.
Bela started weeping.
This time, it was two ghosts who appeared.
"You….hanged me," The first one rasped.
The brother whimpered.
"I'm sorry!"
"Your own brother…."
"I'm so sorry!" It screamed.
They charged at each other, and Cas pulled me out of the way as light flooded through the cemetery.
I knew they wouldn't be back.
