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Azura, Zephyr, Tansy, Lycidia, and Barbeau sat in the living room, watching tv.
“We now return to ‘Relative Man,’” the tv voiceover announced.
The screen showed a fat man with brown hair, glasses, and a big dumb look on his face sitting next to a woman with red hair and a large nose.
“PATTON,” she screeched in a nasally, harpy-like voice, “DID YOU SELL OUR KIDS TO THE CIRCUS?”
“Yup,” the fat man confirmed with a voice that somehow sounded even dumber than he looked.
“WWWWHHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYY,” the woman squawked.
“Probably because I’m a dangerous sociopath with a long history of violence, random acts of stupidity, and no concern for the safety and well-being of others,” the fat man surmised succinctly.
The woman sat there for a moment, utterly silent. “Oh...”
“I don’t understand how you keep forgetting that.”
The young ones all looked at the screen with no joy, except for Barbeau, he was more confused than anything.
“I know I am not an expert on humor, but I do not find this funny at all,” the sahuagin observed.
“It hasn’t been funny for a long time, Beau,” Azura explained, “my guess is that the network’s just gonna keep renewing it until it finally wins an emmy.”
“Out of pity,” Tansy added smartly, “a pity Emmy.” Azura immediately met her girlfriend’s comment with a high five.
The group went silent, nothing further to say on the fact. Tansy got a small devious smirk on her face. Faking a yawn, she stretched an arm out before slowly putting it around Azura’s shoulder.
She didn’t mind, as a matter of fact, she embraced it. Being in the arms of her love, what bliss. Sadly though, not all things last, as the girls heard a loud “ahem” from behind them.
They looked back to see Amity looking over them, arms crossed and a disapproving glare on her face. Tansy retracted her arms and the young couple scooched farther apart.
“You kids good on snacks,” Amity asked, satisfied.
“We’re fine, mom,” Azura said, trying her hardest to disguise her annoyance. Amity then walked into the kitchen, leaving the group alone.
“Ugh, can we do something about this show,” Zephyr groaned.
“On it,” Azura said as she made a spell circle and summoned the sword she made in blacksmithing class, Owl Cleaver. She then threw the blade at the tv, utterly destroying the screen
The others stared at her with wide eyes and slacked jaws. “What,” she said.
“THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEANT, AZURA,” Zephyr exclaimed.
***
Amity walked into the kitchen, only to be greeted by Luz glaring at her with crossed arms. “What?”
“Amity, do you not like Tansy,” Luz asked.
“Of course I like her,” Amity said, surprised by her wife’s accusation.
“Then why are you so intent on keeping her and Azura apart,” Luz interrogated further.
Amity sighed, “Look, I’m happy our daughter has a girlfriend, I just wish they would take their relationship a little slower.”
Luz approached her wife. “Mi amor, not everyone can have a relationship that moved as slow as ours.”
She was right: back when they were young, their relationship moved at a snails pace. Amity was almost always too shy and too nervous to make a move, and Luz was the exact same way. If it wasn’t for Hooty, they probably never would’ve started dating.
“Honestly, I’m glad they were able to confess to each other so quickly,” Luz confided, “because all that waiting was torture.”
“Tell me about it,” Amity agreed, “I just wish they’d take things a little slower. I mean, I want grandkids, but not within the next year.”
Luz just looked at her, unamused. “They’re both girls, Amity.”
Amity tossed her hands up, “That didn’t stop us!”
They were then interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. They looked in the doorway to see the Azura, Zephyr, and the gang. “Everything alright, kids?”
Azura rubbed the back of her neck. “Yeah, moms, sorry to interrupt you, but—”
“Azura destroyed the tv,” Zephyr said, matter-of-factly.
“Again,” Amity exclaimed incredulously.
Luz pinched the bridge of her nose. “What was on this time?”
“Relative Man,” Azura answered.
Luz then put her hands to her hips. “Okay, then you made the right move.”
Suddenly, Luz’s phone went off. “Hello,” she said as she answered it, “oh hey, Anne! It’s been so long, how’ve you been?”
Luz nodded as her friend talked to her over the phone. Her happy smile was replaced with a concerned frown, “Wait, what,” she said in shock, “you’re kidding me?!”
Amity and the kids watched, growing concerned as Luz carried on with her conversation. “Alright, we’ll be there tomorrow,” she said before hanging up.
“Who’s Anne,” Lycidia asked.
“An old friend of mamá’s,” Azura explained, “she was in a similar situation when they were young, but instead of being sent to the Boiling Isles, she was sent to a world of frog people.”
“I think I have heard of this ‘frog world,’” Barbeau said, “what was it called, ‘Amphibiland?’”
“Amphibia,” Luz corrected, “I first met her twenty four years ago when Eda, King and I went there to get a special ingredient for a potion Eda was brewing.”
“So what happened,” Zephyr asked, “is Mrs. Boonchuy okay?”
“Apparently her real estate firm got a new house to sell, but no one bothered to mention it was haunted,” Luz explained, “so she called us, hoping we could get rid of the ghosts.”
“Luz, I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” Amity objected, “if it really is haunted, it would be better if we left the spirits be.”
Luz looked at her wife with big, pleading, puppy dog eyes, and a quivering lip. Amity could feel her resolve weakening, why did Luz have to be so darn cute?
“Alright, fine,” Amity exclaimed, “we’ll help her!”
“Cool,” Azura said before turning to her brother, “looks like we’re goin’ to a haunted house.” She then turned to her friends. “You guys wanna come too?”
The other youngsters murmured excitedly about the opportunity. “NOW HOLD ON,” Amity objected, “this is not a field trip! We said we’d take care of it, you, your brother, and your friends are not included in that!”
“Oh, come on,” Azura pleaded, “please, mom.”
Amity shook her head defiantly. “Nope, you and your friends are not coming with us, and there is no possible way that you can convince me otherwise!”
***
“I can’t believe she convinced me otherwise,” Amity exclaimed in front of the portal to the human world.
“You know how stubborn our little girl can be,” Luz said, “once she gets her mind set on something...”
“She gets it from you,” Amity grumbled.
Azura and her friends had assembled that morning, each having brought something they felt would contribute to this excursion. Azura held a list in hand, checking off the items as they confirmed their presence.
“Alright, sage,” Azura called out.
Zephyr held up a few bundles of sage. “Check.”
“Spirit lens so that we can see hidden ghosts?”
Barbeau held up a strange magnifying glass with a light blue lens and a frame resembling a gnarled root. “Check.”
“Iron weaponry and spirit deflecting jewelry to prevent possession?”
In one hand, Lycidia held out bag filled to the brim with metallic weapons, like daggers, claws, brass knuckles, and even a crossbow with iron tipped arrows. In the other hand, she held a cluster of metallic necklaces, all made of iron. “Check, and I am thankful none of these have any silver.”
“Strength glyphs in case we get stuck in some kind of death trap?”
Tansy held up multiple slips of paper, all with the construction covens symbol on them. “Check, babe.”
“And I’ve got Owl Cleaver, and my light bracelet,” Azura said, holding up her sword and the panja bracelet Lycidia made her for her birthday.
Barbeau looked puzzled by Azura’s equipment. “I’m confused, why would your sword come in handy?”
“Because Owl Cleaver is made of an alloy of every holy metal I could think of,” Azura explained, “except for silver, not gonna risk your safety, Lycidia.”
Lycidia clicked her tongue and winked at her friend. She then pulled out some more supplies, supplies that seemed less beneficial than the others: a bag of marshmallows, a box of graham crackers, and some candy bars. “And I’ve got stuff for s’mores!”
The others looked at her with raised brows. “Now why do we need that,” Tansy asked.
“What, you got something against s’mores,” Lycidia asked, offended.
“Wait, I recall you being allergic to chocolate,” Barbeau inquired.
“Yeah, that’s why I got carob instead.”
“Eww, hippy chocolate,” Zephyr exclaimed in disgust.
“Alright, kids, did everyone eat, and more importantly, use the bathroom,” Amity shouted, demanding everyone’s attention, “because the last things we need are one of you using the bathroom at the haunted house, only for the toilet to come alive and eat you, or for any of you to eat tainted, cursed, or just really expired food.”
The youngsters all looked at each other then at Amity. “We’re good, mom,” Azura said.
“Alrighty then,” Luz said as she activated the portal to the human world. “To the Haunted Mansion!”
The group then shuffled through the portal, with the doorway disappearing after they left.
***
The group of witches emerged from the portal in front of an iron gate which sat at the foot of a small hill, which they could see their destination resting on top of. It was an old, decrepit manor overlooking the riverfront, like something you would see in a Hitchcock film.
Barbeau fanned himself with his hand. “Ugh, why is this area so warm?”
“It’s Thunder Mesa, Arizona, Barbeau,” Luz explained, “it’s kinda known for its deserts and great heat.”
“Luz,” they heard a feminine voice call out.
They looked over to see a slender, Thai-American woman with light brown skin and curly, auburn hair. She wore a purple blazer, grey dress pants, and yellow dress shoes.
“Anne,” Luz exclaimed as she ran over and hugged the woman. Amity half-smiled and walked over to the pair.
“It’s so good to see you again,” Anne said, “you look amazing, I especially love the boots.”
Luz then looked down at her footwear. “Thanks, but sometimes they’re more trouble than they’re worth.”
“Either way, you make it work,” she said before noticing Amity. “Amity, get in here!”
Amity extended her hand for a handshake. “It’s—“ She was interrupted when the realtor pulled her into a bear hug. “Nice to see you too, Anne,” she said, struggling to breathe, “please... let... go... can’t... breath...”
Anne released her hold on the witch, “Sorry, Amity.”
“Mrs. Boonchuy,” Azura and Zephyr shouted as the ran over to the woman.
“Hey, kids,” she exclaimed as she met the pair with a hug. “Man, you two grew since last time.”
“Well, that was three years ago,” Azura said. Her friends then joined them, “Oh, Mrs. Boonchuy, these are my friends, they’re gonna help us.”
She walked over to introduce her companions. “This is Lycidia, Barbeau, and my beautiful girlfriend, Tansy.” She then gave her girlfriend a small peck on the cheek, eliciting a blush from Tansy, and a disapproving growl from Amity.
“Nice to meet you all,” Anne greeted.
Amity then stepped between Azura and Tansy. “Well, now that introductions are out of the way, let’s get this exorcism underway.”
“Right,” Anne said as she opened the front gates, gesturing everyone through.
The group entered the grounds, taking note of it’s disheveled state. It was unattended, overgrown with weeds and scattered with dead vegetation. Azura stopped when something caught her eye: a bat guard box and a plaque on the wall with some strange writing on it.
“Ravenswood Manor,” she read aloud, “‘Non Omnis Moriar,’ What’s that mean?”
“It’s Latin for ‘I shall not die completely,” Tansy explained, earning surprised looks from everyone. “What, I took Latin as an elective.”
The group continued forward and approached the front doors. “Nice knockers,” Barbeau commented.
Shocked, everyone looked at the young sahuagin. “BARBEAU,” Luz gasped.
“What,” Barbeau said, gesturing to the door, “the knockers on this door look like they were made by an exceptional craftsman.”
“Oh,” Luz replied, blushing like the others.
The group pressed onwards, into the foyer. It was decrepit: faded wallpaper tore away in patches to reveal the wood underneath, floorboards creaked with every step, and cobwebs lined the ceiling and the furniture. The only thing in the room that looked remotely presentable was a portrait of a man and a young woman standing in front of the manor.
“So what’s the deal with this place,” Lycidia asked bluntly.
“Well, I did some digging, and apparently this house has quite the history,” Anne explained.
“Back during the gold rush, this guy, Henry Ravenswood, struck gold in the neighboring mountain, but the natives warned him that digging for it would anger ‘The Thunderbird,’ the guardian of this land and its treasure. Being your stereotypical 1800s guy though, Henry ignored the warnings and founded the Big Thunder Mining Company, and the neighboring town of Thunder Mesa. Eventually, he got married and had a daughter, Melanie, and she grew up into a beautiful young woman, with a lot of potential suitors, but all of them met mysterious untimely deaths before they could propose. Meanwhile, gold was getting more and more scarce, so he started digging deeper and deeper in the mountain. Eventually, Melanie became engaged to a foreman named Jake, who promised to take her far away from Thunder Mesa. Needless to say, daddy didn’t approve.”
“Huh, kinda reminds me of someone else I know,” Azura muttered under her breath.
“What was that,” Amity said.
“Nothing,” the witchling quickly replied.
“Before he could do anything to stop the wedding, a massive earthquake happened, sinking most of the original town underground, and killing Henry and his wife,” Anne continued. “Free from the controlling grasp of her dad, Melanie was set to marry Jake, but on the day of their wedding, he never showed up. She waited and waited, but he never came.”
“That sucks,” Lycidia observed.
“It gets worse,” Anne added, “Years later, it was revealed that on the day of the wedding, a mysterious phantom appeared in the house. While Melanie was getting ready, he lured Jake up to the attic and—“ She then looked down at innocent little Zephyr. “He... un-alived him.”
“You mean he killed him,” Zephyr asked.
“Uh, yeah, pretty much,” Anne said, surprised by how unshaken the boy was.
“That’s a really sad story,” Tansy commented, “it kinda reminds me of ‘Phantom of the Opera.’”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen that,” Azura added.
“Well then, I guess I’ve found our next date,” Tansy said flirtatiously before turning her attention back to Anne. “So what happened to Melanie?”
“She continued to wait; the days turned into weeks, the weeks turned into months, and the months turned into years,” Anne exposited. “According to the locals, Melanie is still waiting for her groom. On moonlit nights, you can hear her singing melancholy songs, all while the Phantom laughs at her devotion.”
“Alright, so now that we know what we’re dealing with,” Luz said, semi-uncomfortable, “where do we begin?”
Suddenly, a door opened across from them. “Uh... we’re all just gonna pretend that was the wind, right,” Anne asked nervously.
“Nope,” Amity said before leading everyone into the room.
Zephyr, however, stayed in the foyer, just looking at the painting. As he stared, it seemed to change. The colors became muted and grey, the woman’s expression became sad, and the man’s became stern. Additionally, the girls sundress changed into to a wedding dress, with the man holding the veil over her face.
“Zeph,” Azura called out, causing her brother to look away, “come on.”
“Coming,” Zephyr responded. He quickly looked back at the portrait, it was back to it’s original, less ominous form. It must’ve been in his head, Zephyr then ran off to join the others.
***
The group stood in a large, octagonal room, adorned with four paintings depicting a man and a woman, pinstripe wallpaper, and small gargoyle statues holding candles, two beneath each painting. Strangely, there was no furniture to speak of in the room, not even a window. Aside from the paintings and the statues, it was completely barren.
“What is this room,” Luz asked.
“I don’t know,” Anne said, “it looks like some kind of portrait gallery.”
“Hold on,” Barbeau said, “look at the woman in the paintings, do you notice something?”
Everyone looked at the paintings and came to a sudden realization. “It’s the girl from the painting in the foyer,” Lycidia exclaimed.
“Which means that must be Melanie Ravenswood,” Amity posited, “but then who are all these men?”
Tansy rubbed her chin before letting out a small gasp, “They must be her previous suitors.”
“I think you might be right, kid,” Anne said before inspecting the tiny metal plate at the bottom of one of the frames. “Ignatius ‘Iggy’ Knight.”
“Barry Claude,” Luz read aloud from another painting.
“Captain Rowan D. Falls,” Azura added.
“Sawyer Bottom,” Barbeau read aloud, eliciting a snicker from the other youngsters.
Amity crossed her arms, “Honestly, kids, try to be a little more mature.”
Luz snickered as well, “Bottom.”
Amity turned around, only to make a startling discovery. “Uhh, the door was over here, right?”
The group looked back to where they had entered, only to see a blank wall.
“What the,” Lycidia exclaimed, running over to the wall, “the door was right here!”
Lycidia, Amity, and Azura started hitting the wall, as if hoping it would open some sort of hidden passage.
“Uh, guys,” Tansy said, terrified, “look at the paintings.”
They looked back, only to see Melanie had vanished from all of them, and not only that, it looked like the room was stretching.
“What’s happening,” Zephyr panicked.
As the room stretched, the paintings did as well, which only added to the groups anxiety, as each painting seemed to depict each suitors demise. Ignatius Knight stood on top of a lit stack of explosives; Barry Claude sat upon a tree branch, just out of reach of a ferocious and angry bear; Rowan D. Falls was seated in a rowboat about to go over a waterfall; and Sawyer Bottom was strapped to a log approaching a large buzzsaw.
“Huh, guess we know what happened to Melanie’s other suitors now,” Luz joked uneasily.
Suddenly, they heard the loud crash of thunder, and saw the flash of lightning (which was especially concerning since there were no windows), punctuated by an ominous cackling from above. They all looked up, and their hearts were sunk by what they saw. A dead body, hanging from the rafters, but what held the noose was even more shocking.
It was a figure dressed in a black tuxedo suit complete with a long black cape with a red underside, a black top hat, and black leather gloves. But the feature that stood out most about him was his face: he didn’t have one. His head was a dark skull with piercing, evil red eyes that shone from his empty sockets. It was the Phantom. The skeletal figure looked down at them and cackled maniacally. Chills ran down everyone’s spines.
“Okay, when the skull starts laughing, it’s time to get out,” Tansy exclaimed.
She then pulled out a power glyph and slapped it on her wrist. Her eyes went wide, and she let out a furious roar as a fiery aura erupted from her being, like something out of a certain anime about monkey-tailed martial arts aliens. She glared over at the wall where the entrance once was.
“Babe, move out of the way,” she barked.
Azura, Lycidia, and Amity quickly leapt to the side before Tansy barreled into the wall, making a nice big hole.
Anne helped Azura up, “That’s some girl ya got there, Zuri.”
Azura blushed as she let out a small chuckle. “Yeah, she’s amazing.”
The group ran out of the room. Luz turned back and slammed her staff into the ground, causing a wall of vines to shoot up from the floor. She then twirled her staff around and pointed it at the vine wall, turning the once living vegetation into pure iron.
Everyone huffed and puffed, trying to steady their breathing. They looked around, they weren’t in the foyer anymore. They now stood in a hallway adorned with various portraits that gave them all a feeling of great unease.
Outside, a thunderstorm raged on. Barbeau approached one of the windows, “Strange, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky when we entered.”
As the lightening flashed, the portraits around them morphed into malicious variations of themselves. One depicting a sailing ship flashed into a burning ship, another portraying a cowboy and his horse shifted to skeletal forms, and most telling of all, one of Henry Ravenswood in a gentleman’s duel changed to show the gold magnate shooting his opponent in the back.
“Man, Daddy Ravenswood was a huge jerk,” Lycidia observed.
“Well, the 1800’s wasn’t exactly a high point of morality for the rich and powerful,” Anne commented.
The group pressed onwards, passing by a large portrait of Melanie Ravenswood in a wedding dress at the end of the hallway. They then approached a grand staircase under a large window overlooking the grounds of the manor. Luz stepped forward, standing atop the landing.
“Alright, everyone, listen up,” she announced, “as of this moment, we are operating on horror movie rules! First rule, no splitting up into groups smaller than four, anything less will make it easier for us to be picked off! Rule number two, don’t go into the basement, nothing good ever happens in a creepy basement! Rule number three, if it’s something that would boost a movie’s rating to PG13 or R, don’t do it; illicit acts are as good as putting a ‘kill me’ sign on your back. Rule number four, if you find something that looks cursed, don’t pick it up, it’s probably cursed! And rule number five, if you think you’ve taken down a threat, double-tap, they’re just waiting for you to let your guard down!”
The others started to ascend the stairs to join her. “You’re forgetting ‘keep your head on a swivel, be careful around closed doors, and always have a weapon handy,’” Tansy added.
Luz put her hands on her hips, impressed by the young witch’s knowledge. “Didn’t know you were so savvy to the rules of horror, Tansy.”
“This one’s taken me on a LOT of horror movie dates,” Tansy said, putting an arm around Azura.
Amity growled softly before removing the young witch’s arm from her daughter’s person. “Alright, we need to find the room where the spiritual activity is strongest,” she announced, “that’ll be the best place to set up the incantation so we can exorcize the spirits.”
Suddenly, something curious started happening to Luz’s staff. Her palisman started to flicker with green light. Seeing the strange occurrence out of the corner of her eye, Luz got a closer look at her little friend. Then, the staff started to move around on its own, with Luz still clutched onto it.
“Luz, what’re ya doing,” Anne asked nervously.
“I think something’s hijacked my staff,” Luz panicked as she was dragged around.
The staff stopped for a moment, giving Luz a brief reprieve. She let out a relieved sigh, but her staff then rocketed up the stairs, with Luz in tow. “I THOUGHT I GREW OUT OF THIS CRAP,” she screamed.
“MAMÁ,” Azura screamed as she and the others ran after her.
They followed Luz and the runaway staff through a corridor lined with doors. As they ran past them, they heard knocking, pounding, and shouting from the other sides. Ordinarily, this would be cause for them to stop and investigate, but they had more pressing concerns at the moment. They then passed by a small hall containing a demonic grandfather clock, with a large "13" on its face and its hands spinning backward as it chimed.
“I get the feeling we’re running past some pretty creepy imagery, here,” Anne wheezed.
“I don’t care,” Amity shouted, “my wife takes priority over some cheap ghost tricks!”
The staff rocketed into a round room with a table sitting in the center, and a singular chair with a humongous back seated in front of it. It levitated for a moment before the green light flickered off and it fell to the ground, dropping Luz with a thud.
Luz rubbed her aching head as the others raced into the room. “Mamá, are you okay,” Zephyr asked as Amity and Anne helped her up.
“Yeah,” she groaned, “I’ve been through worse.”
“Now what’s this place,” Tansy asked.
“It is my seance room,” they heard a feminine voice answer.
The group looked around, trying to pinpoint the source of the voice. “Who said that,” Amity demanded.
“Down here, on the table,” the voice explained, snarkily.
They looked down to see a crystal ball, emanating a eerie green glow. Most discerning though, was the fact that there was a woman’s head inside of it! She had long curly hair that floated around her and pale blue skin.
“WHAT THE,” Anne exclaimed, “who the heck are you?!”
“I am Madame Leota, seer of all, voice of the spirits,” the woman said, “and I have a matter to discuss with all of you.”
“Hold on,” Azura butted in, “you’re a medium?”
Madame Leota nodded, “Yes.”
“And you’re a ghost,” Lycidia questioned.
Leota let out an exasperated sigh, “Yes, I am a ghost.”
“A ghost medium,” Azura added.
“Yes, I am very aware of the irony present in my vocation and my current state of being,” Leota snapped, “does that really matter at the moment?!”
“Sorry, it’s just kind of interesting,” Anne chuckled, “like baker who’s a gingerbread man, or an exterminator who’s a giant talking rat.”
Madame Leota did not seem amused. Using a form of ghostly telekinesis, she made the chair pull out and sweep Anne’s feet out from under her, seating her. “Are you done, because I would very much like to discuss why I have brought you here.”
“Wait, you hijacked my staff,” Luz asked, agitated.
“Apologies, but I felt it was the best way to get your attention,” Leota asserted, “from what I have observed, you seem to be a group of strange individuals, with very ‘special’ talents, talents that could prove beneficial for a favor I must ask of you.”
Amity crossed her arms. “What kind of favor?”
“I can tell you wish to free the spirits of this manor, but I am afraid it will not be so easy,” Leota explained, “you see, the Phantom has placed a terrible curse on this mansion: all the spirits within the premises are trapped and cannot leave, and more are still being drawn in.”
“So this curse is not only some sort of beacon for ghosts, but it also acts as a cage,” Barbeau inferred.
“Exactly,” Leota confirmed.
“So then how do we break it,” Azura asked.
“Two conditions must be met,” Leota continued, “The ghost bride and her groom must be reunited, and the Phantom must be vanquished.”
“And you’re sure there’s no other way to put the spirits at rest,” Amity asked desperately, “like an exorcism ritual or putting burning sage all around the house?”
“Others before you have tried similar methods, and they have all become permanent residents,” Leota warned, “the only way to break the curse is to reunite the bride and groom and vanquish the Phantom.”
The group all looked at each other, worry and dread in their eyes. They could tell this wouldn’t be easy, but there was no other way. Luz then stepped towards Leota, “Alright, where do we begin?”
Leota smiled, “Very well, you should find the bride first, it should be easy enough, she wanders the halls, singing melancholy songs while she searches for her lost love.”
“Got it, follow the singing,” Azura said.
“Next, you must ascend to the attic, that is where you will find the groom,” Leota added.
“His ghost is haunting the attic,” Barbeau asked.
Leota shook her head, which was impressive considering she didn’t have a neck. “No, thanks to the Phantom, his spirit is trapped in his own rotting corpse, unable to leave and be reunited with his bride. Whenever poor Melanie gets close to the attic, she gets chased away by the cruel specter.”
“So we’re heading into the lion’s den with that one,” Lycidia inferred.
“Possibly, the Phantom spends most of his time stalking Melanie, it may be plausible that he isn’t even there to guard him,” Leota theorized. “After that, you must find a way to vanquish the Phantom.”
Lycidia then put the bag of iron weaponry on the table where Leota could see it. “Will these do?”
The ghostly medium smiled, “Yes, these should work just fine.”
Lycidia closed the bag and hoisted it back over her shoulder. For anyone else, it would be unbearably heavy, but Lycidia was strong, she could handle it.
“Alright, I know some of you may not like this idea, but we should probably split up,” Anne suggested, “we split up into groups of four, and each try to find the bride and groom.”
Luz crossed her arms and rubbed her chin. “That’s actually pretty a good idea. Amity, you, Anne, Barbeau, and Lycidia go up to the attic and get the groom. Azura, Zephyr, Tansy, you’re with me, we’re gonna go find the bride.”
It sounded like a solid plan to everyone, except for Amity. “Actually, maybe I should go find the bride with Azura, Tansy and Zephyr.”
Luz crossed her arms and squinted at her wife. “Why?”
“Uh... because I have a crippling fear of heights,” Amity fibbed.
Luz knew that was a bold-faced lie, but she also knew there’d be no way of talking her out of it. Who knows, maybe this would give Amity a chance to talk things out with Azura and Tansy, finally realize that she needs to back off a little and let the young couple be. “Okay,” Luz acquiesced, “I’ll go with Anne to find the groom.”
Anne then reached over the table and picked up Madame Leota’s crystal ball, “But we’re taking her with us.”
“WHAT,” Leota exclaimed.
“Look, you definitely know this mansion better than anyone, so we’re gonna need a guide,” Anne explained.
Leota sighed begrudgingly, “I suppose you make a valid point, but try not to get smudges on my ball!”
“Alright, everyone, let’s break that curse,” Azura said, leading her group out of the room.
Luz and Anne’s group stood there for a moment, silent. “So, how are the Plantars,” Luz asked.
“They’re great,” Anne replied, “Hoppediah II just lost his tadpole tail.”
Luz put her hands to her cheeks and cooed. “Aww, he’s growing up.”
***
Azura, Amity, Zephyr, and Tansy wandered through the halls, being extra careful not to make any noise. They had to listen for the singing of the ghost bride, and they didn’t need any additional noise obscuring it. They listened closely, trying their hardest to detect even the smallest hint of harmonious vocalization.
As they snuck around, Azura put her ear to the doors and listened, hoping to hear singing from the other side. Sure, it was definitely risky, but she was willing to take that chance. She felt kind of sorry for Melanie; falling in love, only to be denied by her overprotective dad, she could kind of relate.
She held her ear up to a door, and she could faintly hear a voice on the other side. “Pssst, guys,” she whispered, “I think I hear her.”
The others joined her, Azura gently grabbed the doorknob and slowly turned it. She creaked the door open as softly as she could, on the off chance that it wasn’t actually Melanie, she didn’t want to be caught off guard. She peered inside the room, only to see it was completely empty. It was just a plain old bedroom, covered in dust and cobwebs.
Azura opened the door all the way. “That’s weird, I could’ve sworn I heard singing.”
She then took a step into the room, and the door slammed shut behind her. Azura quickly spun around and tried to open it, but it was locked.
On the other side, Amity was trying to open the door frantically. “Azura,” she shouted as she pounded on the door, “Azura! Can you hear me?!”
“I can hear you, mom,” Azura said from inside the room, “the door won’t open, I think I might have to find another way out.”
She then walked into the middle of the room, hoping to find another exit. She saw a dusty old bed, a night stand, and a mirror. She walked closer to the mirror, feeling there was something off about it. Within a matter of seconds, her reflection changed and morphed into that of Melanie Ravenswood.
Azura gasped and fell back, but as she moved away from the mirror, Melanie’s arms jutted out and pulled her out of the mirror. She floated above Azura, wearing a beautiful wedding dress, a veil, and had her long auburn curls flowing like they were in the wind.
She gazed down at Azura with her piercing blue eyes and shrieked, “WHERE IS HE?!!!”
Azura screamed. “Have you checked the bathroom,” she joked nervously.
Melanie looked at her with a raised brow. “Now what kind of a suggestion is that?! Of course I’ve—“
Melanie put her hand to her chin, as if she was pondering something. She then flew back through the walls behind her. A few seconds later, she reentered the room. “He was not in the restroom.”
“Sorry, about that,” the young witch apologized. Melanie then turned to leave. “Wait, Melanie,” Azura called out, “I need to talk to you!”
Melanie turned around, surprised. “You wish to have words with me?”
“Yeah,” Azura confirmed.
The ghostly bride floated over. “That is most assuredly a first, whenever anyone has caught a glimpse of me, they usually run away screaming.”
Azura crossed her arms confidently, “I’m not exactly like everyone else.”
***
Outside of the door, Amity, Zephyr, and Tansy were panicking. They heard Azura scream, and that was all they needed to know to realize she was in trouble.
Amity started pounding on the door and fiddling with the lock. “Azura? AZURA?! AZURA, WHAT’S WRONG?!!!” No matter what she tried, the door wouldn’t budge. Amity was starting to get frustrated.
“GET OUT OF THE WAY,” Tansy roared as she pushed Amity aside.
Amity huffed angrily, “What are you—“
“Look, Mrs. Noceda,” Tansy growled, “you can yell at me all you want later, but right now, the love of my life, you’re daughter, is in danger inside this room, and I am not gonna rest until she is SAFE IN MY ARMS!!!”
Amity backed away, surprised and slightly impressed by the young witch’s determination. It kind of reminded her of someone else she knew.
Tansy pulled and pushed on the door, but it wouldn’t budge. “Mom, Tansy,” Zephyr shouted, “move out of the way!”
The pair turned around to see him brandishing an axe he conjured out of magic. The young witch then charged at the door and slammed the axe blade into it. The boy was chopping away at the wood like there was no tomorrow.
***
“So there is a way to be reunited with my beloved, Jake,” Melanie asked with hope in her voice.
“Yeah,” Azura confirmed, “my mom and my other friends are getting him down from the attic right now.”
“The attic,” Melanie repeated, as if she were having a “eureka” moment. “I tried to search the attic on numerous occasions, but every time, the Phantom would chase me away.”
“Yeah, because he didn’t want you finding your fiancé,” the young witch explained, “then his curse would be one step closer to being broken.”
Melanie growled and gripped the seams of her dress. “That rapscallion! Who does he think he is?!”
Azura inhaled sharply, had Melanie really not figured out who the Phantom was? She was able to figure it out within a few seconds of hearing the story. “Uh... Melanie—“
She was then cut short when they heard a pounding in the door. The pair walked, or floated in Melanie’s case, over to the door, and were greeted to the sight of an axe blade slicing through it, creating a nice big hole.
Zephyr then poked his head through the hole, with a ticking stopwatch in his hand. “I'm Mike Wallace, I'm Morley Safer, and I'm Ed Bradley! All this and Andy Rooney tonight on 60 Minutes!”
Melanie shrieked and hid behind Azura. “Woah, Zeph, what the heck?!”
Zephyr reached up and opened the door. “Sorry, I just always wanted to try that.”
Tansy and Amity raced over to Azura and pulled her into a warm embrace. Amity squeezed Azura tightly while Tansy peppered her love’s face with kisses. “Don’t you ever scare me like that again!”
“I’m fine, guys,” Azura coughed as she struggled out of their grip.
“Then why did you scream,” Amity asked.
Azura then motioned over to the ghost bride, “Melanie just scared me a little.”
“Apologies, it wasn’t my intention to frighten her,” she lamented.
“It’s alright, Melanie,” Azura reassured, “now let’s go find the others.”
The group then left the room, with Melanie accompanying them, searching for the rest of their party.
***
Luz, Barbeau, Lycidia, and Anne crept through the mansion, searching for a way up to the attic. While the witches and Anne were unfamiliar with the estate’s layout, they fortunately had a guide. Madame Leota, the ghostly medium who had settled in the house. She may have been a head in a crystal ball, but her otherworldly abilities and years in the manor made her the perfect guide for their quest.
“Take a left up here,” Leota ordered.
The party did as the head instructed and went left, they were met with a long hallway lined with doors. They started to look around, trying to find a way up to the next level. Barbeau looked up, finding a door with a drawstring.
“I think I have found the entrance to the attic,” he called out.
The others reconvened around the young sahuagin. “Good catch, Barbeau,” Luz complimented.
Anne reached up and pulled the string, setting up the stairs to the attic. The party then climbed up into the attic. It was dustier than the lower levels of the manor, with even more cobwebs scattered throughout. It was to be expected though, it hadn’t been touched in over two hundred years. There were numerous pieces of old and decaying furniture scattered about: armoires with busted doors, chairs with torn upholstery, and torn paintings.
“Man, and I thought it was creepy downstairs,” Lycidia shuddered,
The group searched around, but couldn’t find the groom’s body anywhere. It wasn’t in any trunk, it wasn’t in any cabinet, they couldn’t even find it under any of the tables. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack, only the needle was about the size of an ant.
“Ugh, this is impossible,” Anne complained, “are you sure the groom is up here?”
“You dare doubt me,” Leota growled.
“Hold on, I just remembered something,” Luz cut in, “remember when we first came in the mansion, in the stretching room?”
Anne started to mentally retrace their steps. They entered the mansion, they walked into the portrait room, it started to stretch, then they looked up to see the Phantom and...
Anne gasped, “That’s right, we saw the Phantom hanging a body on the top of the portrait room.”
Luz put a finger to her nose, indicating she was right on the money. “So that must mean there’s some sort of entrance to the portrait room in here!”
The group then started to examine the walls closely, looking for any breaks or cracks. They pressed and knocked on it as they went around, looking for any hollow areas that would indicate a hidden passage. Luz finally came across a stretch of wall that responded to her actions. The patch of wall made a clicking noise when she pressed on it, before opening to reveal the upper level of the stretching room, and across from her was the hanging body of the groom.
Luz turned back to the others, “Guys, I found it!”
The others joined her, they found the groom, but a new problem laid before them.
“How are we gonna get it down,” Anne asked.
Luz twirled her staff around, creating a rope out of magic. She then lassoed the neck of the groom and started to pull gently. “Lycidia, think you can cut the rope?”
The young werewolf nodded before creating a spell circle. She shot a small blast of fire at the rope, severing it. The corpse would’ve fallen if it hadn’t been for Luz. She reeled it in like it were a fish and pulled it into the attic.
“We did it, we got the groom,” Anne said as she held the skeleton aloft.
Barbeau looked at her, puzzled. “You seem surprisingly comfortable holding a dead person.”
Anne shrugged, “I owe it to my time in Amphibia, that place was littered with bones, they were practically everywhere.”
“Alright, now let’s go see if the others found the bride yet,” Luz said as they turned around.
Their optimism and accomplishment then deflated, and was replaced with shock and dread. Before them, staring at them with malicious intent, stood the Phantom. He was even more horrifying up close. He was dressed like a gentleman, contrasting greatly with his vile actions and gruesome appearance. Luz drew her staff, and she and Lycidia moved to the front to face their foe.
“I’m afraid that doesn’t belong to you,” the Phantom decreed.
“HE doesn’t belong to you either, ya sicko,” Luz objected.
“Now, now, ladies, we’re all reasonable people here,” the fiendish ghoul bargained, “tell you what, if you drop the deadbeat, I’ll let you all leave with your lives.”
“Oh yeah,” Lycidia taunted, “how’re you gonna do that?”
“Please do not make him explain how he is going to kill us,” Barbeau objected.
The Phantom shook his head. “Tut, tut, what a rude little brat.” He then snapped his fingers, and some strange creature rushed to his side, with the bag of iron weaponry in its mouth.
“What the—“ Lycidia exclaimed.
The creature dropped the bag at the Phantom’s feet before looking back at the party and snarling. It was some kind of dog, with bits of rotten and decaying flesh clinging to it’s eviscerated frame, and green eyes that glowed an unholy shade.
“WHAT THE HELL IS THAT,” Anne screamed.
“That is the Phantom’s loyal lapdog, Goliath,” Leota explained fearfully.
The Phantom snapped his fingers again, “Goliath, kill.”
Goliath growled and jumped at the group, but Luz used her staff and knocked him away. Taking advantage of the moment, the group ran past the Phantom and out of the attic, but the rotting corpse hound quickly got up and gave chase, all while the Phantom stood in the attic and cackled.
“At times like this, I wish I had gone with my twin sister to Louisiana,” Leota screamed as they ran from the beastly hound.
***
Azura’s group trekked through the corridors, looking for Luz’s group. As they walked, Azura and Tansy held hands, meanwhile, Amity scowled at them from behind.
Melanie floated up next to Amity. “I am very familiar with that look, it’s the same look my father gave whenever he saw one of my suitors.”
“What?! No! This is completely different,” Amity objected.
“Then why do you look at your daughter and her love with such distaste?”
Amity sighed, “It’s not that I don’t approve of them, I do, it’s just that I think their relationship is moving way too fast.”
“Father said the same thing about me and my dear Jake,” Melanie reminisced, “he didn’t like the idea of me leaving Thunder Mesa, so he did everything in his power to stop our union. He never trusted my judgement when it came to my suitors. In the months leading up to his and mama’s deaths, we fought and argued constantly; hurtful words were said and bridges were burned, bridges that can never be repaired.”
Amity looked at her with concern, “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying from what I’ve seen of your daughter, she is a bright and kind-hearted girl,” Melanie praised, “don’t make the same mistake my father made, trust her, don’t ruin your relationship.”
Amity looked at Azura and Tansy with concern, then back to Melanie. “But what if she makes a mistake and I’m not there to help her?”
Melanie chuckled, “We all make mistakes, that’s how we learn.”
Amity started to reflect on the ghost brides advice. Was she right, did she need to let go, let her daughter make her own decisions, her own mistakes? Melanie herself was an example of what can happen if a parent never let’s go of their child, maybe an extreme case, sure, but her’s was definitely a cautionary tale. She also started to think about how her relationship with her own parents used to be. They never approved of Luz and tried multiple times to tear them apart. Sure, their disapproval came from a place of conceit rather than love, but it was still a similar situation. Was she really like them?
She was snapped out of her stupor when she heard screaming approaching them from down the hall. She looked ahead to see Luz and Anne’s group running towards them as fast as they could. “Luz, what’s wrong?!”
“DOG,” Luz shouted as they ran past them, “DOOOOOOGGGGG!!!”
“Dog,” Zephyr questioned.
They then heard a loud snarling and thumping coming towards them. They looked ahead to see Goliath galloping towards them.
“ZOMBIE DOG,” Azura shrieked as she picked up Zephyr and ran away from it with the others.
“WHAT IN THE NAME OF THE TITAN IS THAT THING,” Tansy screamed.
“Apparently, that’s the Phantom’s guard dog,” Anne exclaimed.
“That looks like Goliath,” Melanie suspected, “but that doesn’t make any sense, he was father’s dog, why would he work for the Phantom?”
The others looked at her incredulously. Could she seriously not figure out who the Phantom was? “Uh, Melanie,” Azura tried to say gently, “about the Phantom—“
“HE’S YOUR DAD,” Lycidia roared, running on all fours.
“WHAT,” the ghost bride gasped.
“LYCIDIA,” Azura shouted.
“What, we were all thinking it!”
“Yeah, but you could’ve handled it a bit more gently.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Lycidia huffed, “but running from a literal HELLHOUND makes me a little agitated!”
“That can’t be true,” Melanie objected, “my father and I had our disagreements, but he would never be so cruel!”
“Oh come on,” Anne interjected, “It’s pretty obvious! I mean, your dad, who objected to your marriage, dies in an earthquake, then some creepy phantom shows up on the day of your wedding and kills your groom before the ceremony? Seems pretty suspicious to me!”
“WE CAN TALK ABOUT MELANIE’S CRAPPY DAD LATER,” Amity barked, “PREFERABLY WHEN WE AREN’T BEING CHASED BY THE BARKING DEAD!!!”
The group raced through the decrepit manor, the beastly Goliath practically nipping at their heels. They swung a left at a corridor, and ended up racing through the ballroom. It was covered with wedding decorations that were ravaged by time, their once pristine white hues were faded into a dusty brown. The table was set for a reception dinner, with a moldy cake sat in it’s center, untouched for years. The scene was only made more foreboding by the fact that there were numerous ghosts waltzing about the room, like it was a party.
Goliath burst in after them, scaring some of the ghosts. He leapt up onto the table and continued the chase, barreling through the cake. Chunks of stale frosting flew everywhere, Melanie looked back and gasped.
“My wedding cake!!!”
“That cake was over a century old, I would not recommend eating it,” Barbeau suggested.
“She couldn’t eat it anyway, SHE’S A GHOST,” Tansy screamed.
The party finally made their way out of they ballroom, but they weren’t out of harm’s way yet. They had entered the western half of the manor, which just so happened to be where the earthquake did the most damage, putting a huge gash in the property. The gigantic canyon was just in the next room, the one they were rushing towards, unbeknownst to any of them.
Knowing the layout of the house, Madame Leota quickly warned them. “WAIT, DON’T GO THROUGH THAT DOOR!!!”
But it was too late, they ran through the door and were immediately met with a cliff that overlooked an dark pit. Those in front came to a screeching halt, but the ones behind bumped into them, causing the entire group to fall over the edge. They would’ve all fallen to their dooms if it wasn’t for Amity. Acting quickly, she cast a spell and created a lifeline hooked into the wall that linked everyone into a chain, except for Melanie.
The ghost bride floated over them as they dangled. “Don’t worry, I’ll help you back up!” The kindly spirit reach down to help them, but a gloved hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.
Melanie gasped at who the hand belonged to, the Phantom. “You’ll do no such thing, my dear!”
Melanie struggled to get out of the fiend’s grasp. She pulled, jerked, and yanked, but it was no use. “Why are you doing this?! Why do you insist on hurting me?! What have I ever done to you?!!!”
The Phantom wagged his finger. “Now, now, Melanie,” he taunted, his face morphing and changing, “is that any way to talk to your father?”
Melanie couldn’t believe it; before her very eyes, the Phantom’s face shifted to that of her father’s. She shook her head in disbelief as he cackled. “No, no it can’t be true!”
“I’d hate to say I told you so, but—“ Lycidia started.
“NOT NOW, LYCIDIA,” everyone else shouted, shutting the young werewolf up.
“Father, how could you,” Melanie pleaded.
“How could I not,” Henry replied, “he wanted to take you away, THEY want to take you away!” He then glared down at the dangling group, “And no one takes what is mine!”
“Oh, you SON OF A—,” Luz said as she reached for her staff, not realizing it fell into the chasm, “oh, hijo de puta!”
“You’ll never take her, no one will,” Henry taunted, “she’s mine, you hear me?! MINE!!!” He then knelt down and grabbed the line, starting to pull them up, “And I will make sure none of you ever try again.”
The group started to panic, Henry almost had them in his grasp, and who knows what horrible fates he had in mind for them. They all looked around, hoping to find a way out, but there was nothing they could do. Azura’s gaze darted around frantically, there had to be something. She looked down at the chasm, and something caught her eye.
She looked back up at Amity, “Mom, undo the spell!”
“What,” Amity exclaimed.
“WHAT,” everyone else added.
“Trust me, mom,” Azura pleaded, “I know what I’m talking about!”
“She does not speak for all of us,” Lycidia screamed.
Amity looked between Henry and Azura frantically. What was she gonna do? What could she do? She was running out of time and options. The group was being pulled closer and closer to the psychotic phantom. Amity looked back at Azura again.
“Trust me, please,” she begged her mother.
Amity looked at her daughter, right into her pleading, desperate eyes. Amity closed her own eyes and with a twirl of her finger, made the magical rope disappear. The party fell into the chasm, screaming all the way down.
Henry and Melanie watched as the group plunged into the darkness. Henry just shrugged while Melanie reached out to them. “NOOOOOOO!!!”
“Oh well,” Henry said, his face changing back to it’s skeletal form, “I guess it saves me the trouble of doing it.” Henry then dragged Melanie away, cackling while the poor girl looked back at where the group that could have been her salvation once was.
***
The Nocedas, Azura’s friends, Anne, and Leota screamed as they fell.
Amity looked over to her daughter, “Sweetie, if you have something planned, I’d suggest you do it now!”
Azura created a spell circle, and out of the darkness that laid beneath them, massive tendrils of water shot out and caught everyone. They then slid down the tendrils, like they were water slides, before finally landing safely in an large body of water. Everyone resurfaced with a gasp, except for Barbeau and Leota, as neither of them breathed conventional oxygen.
They all swam over to the nearest dry land they could see, which was right over by a large tunnel. Amity, relieved to be alive, started to laugh. “Azura, how did you know?”
“I saw it while we were hanging,” the young witch replied as she wrung out her ponytail.
Amity walked over and placed a hand on her daughter’s shoulders. “Well, if it wasn’t for your quick thinking, I don’t even want to know what could’ve happened.” She then pulled Azura into a hug, “I’m proud of you.”
Azura then pulled away awkwardly, “Thanks, mom.” Amity frowned, it looked like Azura wasn’t entirely ready to forgive her yet.
Tansy shook the water out of her hair, instantly returning it to it’s original, puffball style... somehow. Suddenly, she realized something. “Hey, where’s the corpse?”
With that question, everyone started looking around frantically for the dead body of Melanie’s groom. They had to find it, otherwise they’d never break the curse.
“Let’s see,” Barbeau started to recall, “we got the corpse from the attic, Mrs, Boonchuy had it as we ran from the Phantom and his dog, then we fell off the cliff—“
“Um, I think I found him,” Zephyr interrupted, pointing over to the water.
Luz summoned her staff and held it aloft, illuminating the entire chamber. The party gasped as the looked where Zephyr was pointing. They saw the skull of the groom floating in the water... and his torso floating a few feet to the left... and his shin a few feet to the right. Apparently, Anne dropped the body when everyone went over the cliff.
“Xô phracêā,” Anne gasped with her hands over her mouth, “what have I done.”
Luz put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, “It’s not your fault, we were chased off a cliff.”
Amity also walked over to the grieving realtor to help comfort her, but she noticed something. The water was starting to move as if something was rumbling beneath it. “Something’s happening with the water!”
Everyone stepped away, remaining cautious of whatever was happening. Suddenly, a figure burst out of the water and flew around cave. “I’m free,” he exclaimed jovially, “I’M FINALLY FREE!!!”
The ghostly man floated down in front of the group and smiled at them. He had dark hair and a thick mustache, and he was dressed in a wedding tuxedo. “Thank you, thank you all so much!”
It took a hot minute, but they all finally started to realize who the ghost before them was. “Wait, you’re the groom,” Barbeau questioned.
“Yes, Jake Evans at your service,” he said with a courteous bow, “I’d say I owe you my life, but, well, you know.”
Tansy stepped forward, “So, Jake, you know what happened?”
“Indeed I do,” Jake replied, his joy replaced with seriousness, “my dear sweet Melanie is being held by her heel of a father, and he needs to be taught a lesson.”
“Well, he’s got all our iron weaponry, so there’s not much we can do against him,” Amity explained.
“I still have my sword,” Azura piped up.
As the others discussed their next course of action, Lycidia’s ears started to twitch. “Guys, do you hear that?”
Azura looked at her, confused, “No, what is it?”
Lycidia stared down the tunnel. “I hear something, down this way.” She then ran into the tunnel, the others running after her.
“Lycidia, wait,” Tansy called out as they chased her.
The group ran through the dark tunnel. They probably would’ve gotten lost if it hadn’t been for Azura’s birthday gift. She tapped on the light glyph on the bracelet, and it started to glow brightly, helping light their way. They continued to run after the young werewolf, until she finally came to a stop.
“Lycidia,” Azura said through gasps, “don’t do that! We need to— What in the...”
The group was stunned by what they saw: it was a ruined old west town, buried deep beneath the surface. It was like someone had taken an entire town and moved it underground. While it was definitely a strange sight, what caught their eye most of all was the town’s inhabitants: ghosts.
“Mamá,” Zephyr said.
“Yes, cariño,” Luz replied.
“I see dead people.”
“We see dead people all the time on the Isles,” Azura said, “what’s your point?”
Zeph let out an annoyed sigh, his reference now thoroughly stepped on. “Nevermind.”
“Hoopa de boopa,” Anne exclaimed, “what is this place?”
“It’s Thunder Mesa,” Jake informed, “the original one that sank underground when the earthquake hit.”
“That’s correct,” a deep voice bellowed from behind.
The party jumped and turned around. They were greeted by the sight of a pale, portly, ghostly, bearded man dressed in a red suit, with a red top hat, and a blue mayoral sash. “Welcome to Phantom Canyon, foolish mortals,” he said with a tip of his hat... his decapitated head going with it.
The party, excluding Leota and Jake, cringed at the display. “It’s not often we have living guests down here,” the man said as he put his head back in place, “I’m the mayor of this fine town, and it is a pleasure to— Jake Evans, is that you?”
“It’s good to see you again, Mr. Mayor,” Jake greeted.
“It’s been so long, where’ve you been, my boy,” the Mayor asked.
Jake crossed his arms, “That fiend, Henry Ravenswood, came back from the dead and killed me on my wedding day, now he’s holding Melanie against her will.”
The Mayor scoffed, “You sound surprised. That man always was a brute in life, only makes sense that he’d be such a cruel butcher in death.”
“Yeah, and it’s because of him that all the ghosts are stuck here” Lycidia added.
“I beg your pardon,” the Mayor exclaimed, surprised.
“The Phantom has placed a curse on the grounds,” Madame Leota explained, “as long as he continues to haunt this land and Jake and Melanie are separate, none of us will be able to pass on to the next plane of existence.”
The Mayor growled, “Oooh, that Ravenswood! It’s bad enough he caused the earthquake that killed us all, now he won’t let us pass on?!”
The group tilted their heads at his remark. “I’m sorry, what’s this about Ravenswood causing the earthquake,” Luz questioned.
“You mean you don’t know,” the Mayor replied in surprise, “come with me, I’ll explain everything.”
The mayor then led the group on a tour of the literal ghost town. The buildings were sagging, twisted and broken, looking like they were about to fall apart, and the ground was split in places by glowing fissures, remnants of the fateful earthquake. The entire town was like something out of an old west movie, but with a ghostly twist. They saw a ghoulish Ticketmaster offering passes for a ghost train, an apothecary drinking his own concoctions, and a honky-tonk specter playing piano for invisible gamblers at the local saloon.
As they walked through the ruined town, Tansy heard something that caught her attention. It sounded like... singing... acapella singing. She nudged Azura, “Psst, babe, you hear that?”
Azura listened closely, after a while, she was able to filter out all the other noise and zero in on what her beloved was hearing. “Yeah, let’s go check it out.”
The pair snuck away from the group to investigate. As they got closer and closer to the source, the singing became more clear.
“When the crypt doors creak, and the tombstones quake
Spooks come out for a swinging wake
Happy haunts materialize
And begin to vocalize
Grim Grinning Ghosts come out to socialize.”
They finally reached the source of the singing; four white marble busts with expressive faces. They sang in perfect acapella, they had definitely been doing it for years. The girls had to admit, they weren’t half bad, but they felt they needed an update.
Tansy stepped forward, “You guys are really good, but I kinda feel like you need a new song or two.”
The busts stopped singing and paid close attention to her as she grabbed a stick to use as a conductor’s wand. She looked back at Azura, who had seated herself on a nearby rock. “Any requests?”
***
Back with the others, the mayor had brought them to a mysterious large cave. “This is the lair of the Thunderbird,” the Mayor explained.
“You mean the legendary guardian of the land,” Luz questioned.
“The very same,” the Mayor confirmed, “thanks to Mr Ravenswood’s constant digging in Big Thunder, it created an earthquake that killed him, and tragically, the rest of Thunder Mesa.”
Zephyr took a step closer to the cave, but the Mayor quickly stopped him from going any further. “Careful now, lad. The Thunderbird is an ornery beast, it snatches up anyone who gets too close, living or dead, and takes them away, never to be seen again.”
With that word of warning, the entire party took a collective step back. “So, what are we gonna do now,” Anne questioned.
Luz put a hand on her chin as she looked at the Thunderbird’s lair. “I think I’m starting to get an idea.” She then turned around to address the group, but noticed someone was missing. “Wait, where’s Azura and Tansy?”
“I saw them go behind the saloon,” Barbeau answered.
“Why didn’t you tell us,” Luz questioned further.
The sahuagin just shrugged, “No one asked.”
Luz facepalmed as Amity started to run back over to the saloon. “I’ll go get them!”
Amity raced back through the town, ignoring the spooky imagery surrounding her. If those girls were doing what she thought they were doing, she was going to have some serious words with them. She finally reached the saloon and rounded the corner of it. She slowed her pace as she heard the sound of laughter, and not just any laughter, Azura and Tansy’s laughter.
She hid behind a tree and watched as the pair joked around. It felt good to see them enjoying each other’s company so much, it kind of reminded her of her and Luz when they were that age. She then started to reflect on how she had treated the pair so unfairly. All they were doing was having some fun, and she immediately jumped to her worst case scenario, maybe she was too overprotective. Maybe she was just as bad as her parents used to be? As she took a step forward, she unknowingly stepped on a twig, breaking it with a loud crunch and revealing her presence.
Azura and Tansy looked at Amity, surprised. “Uh, mom, what are you doing here?”
“We noticed you weren’t with us, so I went off to find you,” Amity said as she approached the pair, “so, what are you doing?”
“Oh, you gotta check this out, Mrs. Noceda,” Tansy said as she faced the marble busts. She started to conduct them and the quartet began singing.
“Don't you know I'm still standing better than I ever did
Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid
I'm still standing after all this time
Picking up the pieces of my life without you on my mind
I'm still standing (Yeah, yeah, yeah)
I'm still standing (Yeah, yeah, yeah).”
Amity clapped for the animated statues. “Not bad,” her amused expression then dropped to a more somber one. “Azura, Tansy, I... I’m sorry.”
The young couple looked at each other, then back at Amity, surprised. “What?”
“I’m sorry,” Amity repeated, “I know I’ve been a little overprotective—“
“A little,” Azura interrupted with crossed arms.
“Okay, very overprotective,” Amity relented. “but being here, seeing what happened between Melanie and her father, it’s put some things into perspective.” Amity put a hand on her daughter’s shoulders, “I am so happy you found such a wonderful girlfriend.”
“Then why have you always been so hard on our relationship,” the teenage witch asked.
“It’s because I felt like your relationship was moving too fast, but now I see that I have to trust you and let go. It’s been hard because you’re my daughter and I want to be there for you, to pick you up when you fall, to make you feel better when something goes wrong, to do right by you in ways my parents never did for me,” Amity explained, “but I know now I can’t be there for you all the time; you’re growing up, I have to let you make your own decisions, your own mistakes, and I have to let you learn from them, because... I don’t want to lose you.”
Azura watched as tears developed in her mother’s eyes. She quickly wrapper her arms around her. “Oh mom, you’re not gonna lose me. Sure, sometimes you can be a bit of a pain—“
“Watch it,” Amity scowled with a hand on her hip.
“But I know you’re just looking out for me,” Azura continued.
Tears of joy welled up in Amity’s eyes, she wrapped her arms around her daughter and the pair embraced. Tansy and the busts awed at the display of affection between the pair.
“So, does this mean you’re gonna ease up on me and Tansy,” Azura asked as they separated.
“Sure,” Amity said with a soft chuckle, “just don’t come around the house with any babies.”
Azura and Tansy chuckled at that last remark. “Mom, we’re both girls.”
“That didn’t stop me and your mother,” Amity joked again, causing the trio to erupt into a fit of laughter.
Amity looked over to her daughter’s girlfriend. “And Tansy, there’s no one I’d trust more with my daughter.”
Tansy walked over to Azura and held her hand. “Thanks, Mrs. Noceda.”
“Now come on you two,” Amity said, “I think they’re making the plan to beat the Phantom without us.”
“Alright,” Azura said before looking back at the busts, “bye, guys.”
The trio of witches then left the group of living statues behind. The quartet waited until the witches were gone before they started singing one of the other songs Tansy and Azura taught them.
“My anaconda don’t
My anaconda don’t—“
***
Azura, Luz, Anne, and Amity floated out of the chasm and back up to the mansion on a platform of magic, with Anne carrying Madame Leota. They stepped off and Luz turned back to the group, “Alright, is everyone clear on the plan?”
The others nodded and got into their respective positions. Anne, Amity, and Leota walked into the manor. “Alright, where’s Melanie,” Anne asked the gypsy ghost.
Using her otherworldly powers, Madame Leota located Melanie’s exact location in the manor. “She is being held in her boudoir on the second floor... and a please wouldn’t hurt.”
With that said, the trio raced up to the second floor, determined to rescue the poor girl from her controlling father. They made their way to the boudoir. Amity grabbed the doorknob, but upon touching it, it zapped her.
Amity jerked her hand back and winced in pain. “Looks like Henry took some precautionary measures.”
Anne pounded on the door, “Melanie, are you okay?”
Hearing the commotion just outside, Melanie floated over to the door. “I am fine, but I am afraid my father has placed a curse on my room: I cannot phase through the door or the walls.”
“Don’t worry, Melanie, we’ll have you out in a second,” Amity exclaimed as she summoned an abomination. “Abomination, break!”
The goopy homunculus lumbered forward, and with a single swing of it’s arm, knocked the door off it’s hinges.
The creature retreaded as Melanie poked her head out of the room. “Come on,” Anne encouraged, “you’ve got a groom waiting.”
Melanie smiled, she was finally going to be reunited with her lost love. The group started to run back to the chasm, but as they rounded the corner, they were met with the Phantom blocking their way.
“Going somewhere,” he asked maliciously.
Amity stepped forward. “Look, Henry, you can fix your relationship with your daughter, you just need to let her go. I know it’s scary, but she’s got to be free to make her own decisions.”
Henry stopped for a moment, as if he was mulling over what she said, then he growled at them. “NEVER!!! She is my daughter! MINE!!! And no one will ever take her from me; not the likes of you, not that meddlesome foreman, and most certainly not her other previous suitors!”
With that revelation, Melanie let out a gasp. “You were responsible for their deaths?”
“Of course,” the Phantom cackled, “I lit the fuse for Ignatius, I fed Barry to the bear, I led Rowan astray, and I tied Sawyer to the log.”
Tears started to well up in Melanie’s eyes. “All those poor men, I loved them, and they’re dead now because of you!”
The Phantom wagged his finger, “Now now, Melanie, we can discuss this later. In the meantime...”
He then snapped his finger, summoning Goliath to his side. “Goliath, kill.”
The beastly hound growled and lunged at the trio. Anne handed Leota to Amity and stepped forward, an angry look on her face. “I. Have had. Enough. OF YOU!!!”
In a flash of light, Anne’s hair and eyes turned blue, and her body was surrounded by a burning blue aura. She looked up at Goliath as he leapt towards her, contempt in her eyes. Faster than anyone could see, she punched the beast so hard, it turned to dust.
Melanie, Leota, and the Phantom watched in shock, while Amity just watched with a smug smile on her face.
The Phantom knelt down to the pile of dust that was once his pet. He grasped a handful of it and looked at it, grief in his eyes. He then clenched his fist and growled at the party.
“You will pay for that.” He rose to his feet, “You. Will. PAAAAYYYYYYYYY!!!”
The Phantom’s howls of rage and grief caused the grounds to shake and the lights to flicker. “Anne,” Amity said shakily, “I think you made him angry. Let’s go!!!”
The party raced away from the furious fiend, making their way back to the chasm. As they ran, Melanie was puzzled by Anne’s display of power back there. “Anne, if you don’t mind me asking, why were you glowing blue?”
“It’s a long story, dude,” Anne huffed and puffed, “I’ll tell you about it later!”
Amity looked back, the Phantom was hot on their trail, flying after them like a bat out of Hell. “Chat later! Run like there’s no tomorrow NOW!!!”
The group had finally made it to the chasm, but the Phantom was only moments away from catching up to them. They stood at the edge, looking down into the darkness below them. Melanie was starting to panic, how were they going to get away from the Phantom now?
“Alright, on my signal, we jump,” Amity ordered.
“WHAT,” Melanie shrieked.
Suddenly, the Phantom bursted into the room, roaring like a monster. “NOW,” Amity commanded. The party then leapt into the chasm below.
“NO,” the Phantom roared as he rushed over to the edge. He tried to grab Melanie, but she was too far out of his reach. The sinister specter growled furiously.
“HEY, SKELETOR,” he heard someone shout from behind. He turned around, only for Azura to smack him in the face with the blunt end of her blade, knocking him into the darkness below.
Luz flew over to the young witch on her staff, “Come on.”
Azura climbed onto the staff and sat next to her mother. The pair then flew into the chasm, passing the Phantom and catching up to Amity, Anne, and Melody. Anne glowed blue again and started to slow her descent.
Amity quickly made a spell circle. “Abomination, wings!” Suddenly, some abomination matter appeared on her back and morphed into large, draconic wings. Amity flapped the wings, slowing her ascent as well.
Anne and Leota looked at Amity with shock. “Wait, you mean you could’ve done that when we were falling earlier?!”
“Yep,” Amity replied confidently.
“Then why didn’t you,” Azura asked.
“Because I trusted you,” Amity replied.
The group then floated down to ground and sprinted into the cave at the bottom of the chasm. The Phantom quickly slowed his ascent as well, landing gently in front of the tunnel. He glared into the darkness and growled.
“You think you can escape me? HA! NO ONE CAN ESCAPE HENRY RAVENSWOOD, THE PHANTOM OF THUNDER MESA!!!” He then flew into the cave after the women.
***
Luz, Amity, Azura, Anne, and Melanie ran through Phantom canyon. The town was much more quiet now, like all it’s inhabitants were hiding. The group made their way to the outskirts of town, to a familiar cave where the others were standing.
Melanie gasped at the sight of her beloved’s ghost. “Jake?”
“Melanie,” Jake said with tears developing in his eyes.
“JAKE,” she cried joyously as she flew over to her long lost love.
The ghostly couple caught each other in a loving embrace. They both shed tears of joy, after years of searching and longing, they were finally reunited. The pair pulled apart to look at each other in the eyes, it was like a dream come true.
“I can’t believe it,” Melanie cried with joy, “we are finally together again.”
“Yes,” Jake said, “and now nothing can tear us apart.”
“Is that so,” they heard a familiar voice say from behind.
The group turned around to see the Phantom, glaring at all of them. His eyes were glowing furiously, and he was grinding his ghastly teeth. Of anyone who had entered the mansion before, these “insects” had given him the most trouble.
The witches and Anne got into battle-ready stances, meanwhile Jake and Melanie held each other close. “Look, Henry,” Tansy said, “just let your daughter be with her fiancé. You’re all dead now, so there’s literally nothing you need to protect her from, because nothing can hurt her.”
The Phantom cackled maniacally. “I don’t care about that! No one is good enough for my daughter, especially not a lowly foreman!!!”
The Phantom then flew over to the ghostly couple. He knocked Jake to the ground and grabbed Melanie by the wrist. “My daughter is mine! This land is mine! And you are all mine! AND I WILL NOT BE DEFIED BY MY POSSESSIONS!!!
Suddenly, the ground started to shake periodically, like massive footsteps. The rumbling seemed to originate from the cave, and it was getting closer and closer to them. They all stared into the cave, curious and terrified by what was approaching them.
Something emerged from the darkness of the cave. It was a humongous bird resembling an eagle, but with dark feathers and glowing blue eyes. It peered down at the Phantom and let out a deafening screech. The witches and Anne covered their ears, causing Madame Leota to fall. Luckily, her crystal ball didn’t break.
The Phantom shuddered, “It can’t be... that’s the— the—“
“The Thunderbird,” Azura finished, “and it really doesn’t like you, Henry.”
Fearing for his life... er, afterlife, Henry threw his daughter in front of the massive guardian and tried to fly away, but Thunderbird wouldn’t allow that. It quickly grabbed the Phantom with it’s beak and spread it’s massive wings, bolts of lightning emanating from it’s body. It then turned around and flew back into it’s lair.
The Phantom shrieked as he was dragged away, “No! NO! NNOOOOOOOOO!!!”
The Phantom and the Thunderbird were gone, never to be seen again. The witches, Anne, and ghosts all let out a collective sigh of relief.
“I don’t get it,” Azura said, “why couldn’t he just be happy for his daughter?”
Amity walked over and put a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “Some parents just don’t know when to let their kids grow up.”
“Also, he was a murderous, greedy, psycho,” Luz added.
Madame Leota let out a relaxed sigh, “The Phantom has been vanquished, now there is only one more task to take care of.” Everyone instantly knew what she was referring to.
***
Back in the Ravenswood manor, the ballroom had been decorated for a wedding, using illusion magic to make it look good as new. The seats were packed with the inhabitants of Phantom Canyon and the spirits of the ballroom. Melanie and Jake stood at the altar, with Madame Leota on a pedestal, acting as the justice of the peace.
“Do you, Jake Evans, take Melanie Ravenswood as your lawfully wedded wife,” the ghostly gypsy asked, “to have and to hold for as long as you both are dead?”
“I do,” Jake replied, not averting his gaze from Melanie’s.
“And do you, Melanie Ravenswood, take Jake Evans as your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold as long as you both are dead?”
“I do,” Melanie replied, overwhelmingly happy to finally say those words.
“Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
Jake and Melanie kissed passionately. The guests in attendance all stood up and clapped.
“Ya know, when I woke up this morning, I did not expect to attend a ghost wedding,” Anne said.
Lycidia cried with tears of joy, eliciting strange stares from her companions. “I always cry at weddings,” she explained through tears, “if anyone says a word about this, they’re dead!”
“Most of us are already,” the Mayor replied jovially.
Suddenly, a bright blue light shone down from above. It was done, the curse on the Ravenswood estate had finally been lifted, all the spirits trapped in there could finally move on. Many of the wedding guests started to float into the light, joyous smiles on their faces.
Melanie and Jake walked over to the witches and Anne. “Thank you,” the happy bride said with tears in her eyes, “Thank you all, so much.”
“If it weren’t for all of you, we’d still be trapped,” Jake added.
“It’s no problem at all,” Azura said.
Tansy held Azura’s hand, “We’re happy we could help.”
The ghostly newlyweds then floated up to the light as well. The mortals waved goodbye to their ghostly friends.
“Goodbye,” Luz said, “enjoy eternal peace!”
Madame Leota’s spirit floated out of her crystal ball and up to the light. “Farewell, my friends.”
“Farewell, Madame Leota,” Barbeau said, “we could not have done any of this without you!”
The party watched on as more and more spirits floated into the afterlife. It was kind of beautiful in a way; all those troubled spirits were finally going to be at peace. They could even hear the ghosts inhabiting the singing marble busts as they ascended, they were singing “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.”
Luz and Amity walked over to Anne. “Well, Anne, the house is ghost free now.”
“Thanks, guys,” Anne said, “but ya know, I’m thinking maybe this house shouldn’t be sold. I’m gonna see about getting this place registered as a historical landmark.”
Lycidia stood there for a moment, gobsmacked. “SO YOU MEAN WE JUST DID ALL THIS FOR NOTHING?!!!”
“Not really,” Zephyr chimed in, “we lifted an ancient curse and put a lot of innocent spirits to rest.”
“And if you ask me, turning this place into a historical landmark sounds like the best course of action,” Amity said.
“Ugh, fine, whatever, let’s just go home,” Lycidia grumbled, “didn’t even get to make s’mores.”
“It’s probably for the best,” Luz whispered to Anne, “she was gonna use carob.”
“Ugh, hippy chocolate,” Anne nearly gagged.
***
“And that’s how we put an end to a centuries old curse,” Luz recalled as she, Amity, Eda, Raine, Lilith, Willow, Gus, and King sat in their living room.
“That’s a great story, Luz,” Willow said, “but it doesn’t really explain why there are three ghosts haunting your house now.”
Three ghosts floated above them. One was a portly man in a top hat, the other was a skeletal man in a top hat, and the third was a short man covered in hair.
“Apparently not all the ghosts passed on, and these three hitchhiked home with us,” Amity exclaimed annoyedly.
“Um, pardon me,” the portly ghost said, “but would any of you be willing to go to the market to procure more of that delicious cereal with the brightly colored marshmallows?”
“You’re a ghost,” Luz shouted, “you don’t need to eat!”
The portly ghost looked at them, confused for a moment. “And your point is?”
“GET OUT,” Amity and Luz screamed.