Chapter Text
It's Child's Play
With the setup of the cameras and microphones all around the house, the investigation was underway.
Skyler was in the same room as the doll, sitting on the girl's bed.
Chase was situated in the living room, setting up for a ghost box session. Due to how focused the activity was, the team wasn't as spread out as they usually were.
Lucian was situated in the parents' room, sitting at the mother's vanity, the light dimmed.
As Eiji watched it all, he kept his eyes specifically on the monitor to his left. On it, was a night vision camera, focused specifically on the doll itself. It was eerie to say the least, only watching it but it made sense.
The thermal imaging camera was nestled on a shelf by the doorway to Charlotte's room, giving a readout of it and its inhabitants.
An SLS camera was also set up, showing a rough field of vision. The SLS camera was to show anomalies as figures if they were in the room. One of the best ways to catch an apparition in the act.
We got all eyes on you, demon doll.
Go ahead.
Eiji leaned forward.
"Go ahead. Make my millennium."
oooooo
Skyler kept her focus on the doll, her EVP recorder in front of her as well as her pendulum.
"Well, looks like it's just us, huh?" She asked. "Wanna tell me what your name is?"
Nothing. Not even a faint hint of movement from her pendulum.
"Alright…" She cleared her throat. "Yes or no, do you hate Charlotte?"
For a moment, all was quiet… until her pendulum moved back and forth.
Pendulums were meant to give yes or no questions specifically and had their own unique way of movement for each one.
For Skyler, yes was back and forth.
"Why do you hate Charlotte?"
In the nerve center, Eiji nearly jumped out of his seat when the room went down in temperature. There was a figure, a large one, standing in the imagery of the SLS camera.
After a few moments, Skyler picked up her recorder and played it back.
"Jealous. Living."
"You're jealous she's alive?" She let it go for another moment before playing it back.
"Dumb brat."
Skyler narrowed her eyes. She let the recorder go again.
At that moment, the doll's hand snapped up as the woman leaned back away from it.
"Skyler." Eiji's voice came through on her comm. "There's a figure where the doll is supposed to be on the camera. Keep going."
"R-Right." She cleared her throat. "Alright, why possess a doll?"
The EVP recorder shook a bit before Skyler lifted it up off the bed.
A monstrous voice hissed.
"She opened the door."
What?
"What door?"
Skyler looked around, eyes narrowing. If Charlotte hadn't been fully honest with them then they had a whole slew of issues now.
"What door did she open!?"
Something clattered behind her. She slowly turned as the cabinet beneath the shelf the thermal imaging camera was on flew open.
A single large piece of wood fell out. Even in the dimmed light, Skyler could make out the patterns.
Oh, you have to be kidding me.
oooooo
"Oh, you have to be freakin kidding me." Eiji muttered, a growl low in his throat.
There was no mistaking it. The wood… was a spirit board.
Of course. Someone played with the board and opened a door then didn't close it.
He was furious. His clients were supposed to be 100% honest about ALL of the happenings but this girl had not said anything about using a spirit board.
Yes, it's a tool… but it's a dangerous tool if in the wrong hands or in the hands of someone who is ignorant with it.
The doll on the camera to his left moved its hand up and down… waving.
Uuuuughh!
Eiji grabbed his communicator.
"Alright, team, be aware we might have multiple entities! The spirit just mocked Skyler by showing that this gal opened up a portal. I repeat, there is a spirit board in the house."
"Oh, you have to be KIDDING me!" Lucian groaned. "Are you freakin kidding me right now?"
"Welp, we're in for a long night." Chase sighed heavily.
Eiji sat back down in his chair, lowering his head.
Of course… Of course when I accept a freaking haunted doll case it turns into something worse.
He looked up at the SLS camera. Skyler was virtually surrounded by multiple entities around her that she couldn't see.
"Sky… Sky you have to move. Now. Get out of there."
She moved to respond… as the doll's eyes rolled into the back of its head, showing only the whites of the glass eyes.
Skyler's hand moved to her throat as she gagged, gasping for air.
"Luce! Charlotte's room, now! Sky's in trouble!"
Nerve center be darned.
All three men rushed to the room. By the time they got there, Skyler was thrown back against the wall, trying to get any kind of air in. Her vision was dotted with black spots. She could barely see her team.
"Skyler!"
Eiji slammed a spell tag onto the doorway as the air rushed from the room.
Skyler fell forward, inhaling as the force around her airway faded. She gagged, coughing as she tried to catch her breath.
"Easy, easy…" Lucian knelt by her, patting her back. "Deep breathes… Lemme get a look."
"R-Right." She tilted her head up, small bruises just like on Charlotte's neck on her own.
"Dangit…" Lucian looked to Eiji. "Alright, Boss, what do we do? This wasn't what we signed on for."
Eiji looked down at the spirit board then up to the doll on the shelf.
"I…" He hated leaving clients without all the help they could get. But this… this was getting dangerous. It wasn't like they hadn't been scratched or pushed before or even outright thrown.
Choking was entirely new. Not to mention, they were out numbered.
"... We finish the game." He finally said, with a frustrated sigh, picking up the board and finding the planchette after a moment. "I hate this."
"Whoa, WHOA." Chase clamped a hand on his arm, giving him a warning look. "I thought our policy said, no spirit boards, even if you know how to use them because it's unpredictable."
"The thing is, we use tools similar. We just know our limits, like with the pendulum. We're finishing what this kid started." He narrowed his eyes. "We're not going to do more than that. Just make it clear we're going to say "goodbye" and then we're confiscating it too."
Chase narrowed his eyes.
"You're not comfortable with that."
It wasn't a question.
Eiji flinched, lowering his head.
"The portal is gonna stay open no matter what we do if we just leave now. I'd rather cleanse the house AND close it."
Chase let him go, letting out a sigh.
"Alright, you heard the boss." He went over to Skyler and Lucian, helping Skyler to her feet. "You get the salt, I got Sky."
Lucian nodded.
"Right… I'm making it clear now, I am one hundred percent against this."
"I think we all are." Skyler sighed, rubbing her neck.
Eiji looked towards the doll.
This was still, all too familiar.
"AAAHHH!"
"Carmen!? Carmen what's-Oh Divine! CARMEN!"
oooooo
In time, there was a thick circle of salt around the dining room table, the board set up on it. Four candles lit, representing the four corners around it.
The team had already gone through the house with sage burning or with sprays made of salt water that had been blessed by one of Eiji's relatives.
It was time to close the portal.
The four sat down, all hesitantly taking hold of the planchette.
"Divine, I don't think I've done this since highschool." Lucian hissed under his breath.
"Dude, we all did this once in highschool. Right, Eiji?"
Eiji gave him a look.
"Memoria Coven, do you think I was using ouija boards? My mom would've smacked me with her slippers."
"Good point."
He nodded, taking a deep breath.
"We are here to finish what was started. To end what has begun." He spoke, the planchette shaking wildly under their fingertips, moving across the board to the "NO" painted on the right side.
"Too bad, it's time." He growled.
The piece moved again at such a pace that it broke free from their grip. It moved across the board over several letters, spelling out a message… a message that sent a chill through Eiji's being.
"I KNOW YOUR FACE."
"Knows who's face?" He asked, growling a little.
"SON OF MIYAMOTO."
Eiji's eyes widened in horror, leaning back in his seat.
"Leggo! Put me down! NAOMI, RUN!"
"Oh, don't worry. I will, Son of Miyamoto."
Don't be afraid.
It can't' get you now.
Eiji took control of the planchette, shuddering as a wave of energy washed over him, causing him to tremble.
This dark, foreboding energy… He knew it. He knew it very well.
"I'm not ten years old anymore." He whispered. "I end this portal and I close it now! BE GONE!"
He forced the planchette over the goodbye symbol as a loud scream echoed through the house, the sound of glass shattering in Charlotte's room.
Eiji panted, sitting back down, putting his head in his hands.
Lucian stroked his back, giving him a concerned look.
"What the heck was that?"
The man didn't look up, shaking his head wildly.
"Give… Give me a few minutes."
What the heck? We… We sent that thing to the other side almost twenty years ago.
"Luce. Help me with this piece of trash." Chase nodded to the board, a grim look in the man's eyes.
Lucian sighed, getting up, grabbing it.
"We're burning this. We can burn it now right?"
"We can."
Skyler got up, heading to Charlotte's room, not surprised to see the doll had basically exploded off of the shelf, pieces of fabric and porcelain all over the room, one glass eye in front of the doorway, looking up at her.
"Yeah, we're definitely done here. Chase! Where's the broom?"
Eiji tuned out his team for the most part, trying to process what had just happened.
That energy… he recognized that energy from long ago.
Back when he was young.
Back when his closest friends were spirits.
Back when I had eyes like Ken's.
He slammed his fist into the table, getting up.
"I'm packing up!" He called, starting to get the equipment from the nerve center.
He didn't expect to have two things from his past drug up like this. Far from it.
From the case that led to a month long nightmare for himself and his wife… to something that happened long ago.
This is why I don't do haunted objects.
Lesson learned, never ever AGAIN.
Just… why now?
Eiji looked at the monitors with a heavy sigh.
I have a bad feeling this isn't it.
… But I can worry about all this later though.
I just wanna go home.
"Eiji."
He looked up as Chase gave him a worried look.
"You look exhausted. You want me to handle this?"
"Nah, I'm fine… Really."
"Let me help you at least."
As they cleared the house of the investigation, no one mentioned the message on the board. They all knew the story. Eiji hadn't bothered to hide it when they were teenagers and hadn't tried to hide it when they were in college either and Lucian joined the team.
Right now, their concern was their friend and making sure he was alright.