Coven Of Catastrophe: Book 3 in the Lorna Maximoff Series

Down, down

Agatha came into the living room a few minutes before five.
Teen had put up his poster and was looking proudly at it.
"Does this look centred to you?" He asked Agatha.
Agatha considered it, "Let me see, maybe if I just move it a little to the-"
She viciously ripped the entire thing from the wall.
"Really Agatha, he worked hard on that!" I scolded.
"No leave it up." Another voice entered the living room. It was Jennifer, It really, elevates the space. Oh god, am I the first to arrive?"
"The rest will be here shortly," Teen told her, "please come in, right Agatha?"
Agatha mumbled something inaudible. Teen went and offered Jen one of his pre road "appetizers".
Soon Lilia showed up, followed shortly by Alice.
Agatha clapped her hands together, "Well the gangs all here. Let's hit the road."
"Wait, where's our green witch?" Jenifer asked.
Agatha paused, "Oh, do we really need one of those?"
"Of course we do," Lilia said.
"Says who?"
"The ballad. Wake thy power, earthly and divine."
"No I've heard it." Agatha insisted, irritated.
"Earth magic is arguably the most important skill set for the road." Jenifer added.
"Getting cold feet already Jen," Agatha mocked.
Teen spoke up, "Well, there was one more name on the coven list." Agatha twitched slightly and it dawned on me, the final witch was Rio.
"What was the last name?"
"It was a black heart," Lilia said, "not a name."
Agatha tried to convince everyone otherwise.
"That's because you used a black pen." She laughed, but no one else did.
"Oh, I know who it is," Agatha said eventually, "be back in a flash."
I glared at her, "I'll come with."
I followed Agatha out the house and waited till we were out of earshot to speak.
"Agatha where are you going? Lillia said a Black Heart, she's obviously means Ri-"
"Don't say her name!" Agatha snapped at me.
"Oh come on, we need her."
Agatha scoffed, "No, we don't."
She pointed to where she was looking. I gawked,
"Ms. Hart!? Agatha that's insane, she's not even a witch, we can't take her on the road with us!"
"She'll do." Agatha replied, "See she's even gardening, if that's not green witch material than I don't know what is."
I shook my head, "Agatha we shouldn't, she won't know what's going on. Besides Rio and you clearly have history...maybe if you sorted some things out with her she'd be willing to come with us."
"We don't have time," Agatha argued, "The Seven are coming tonight, we need to be out of here by then."
"Why won't you just tell me what happened between the two of you?" I asked.
Agatha ignored me and began walking towards Ms. Hart.
"Wait up!" I called.

Unlike the rest of Westview, Ms. Hart didn't seem all that unfriendly towards my presence.
It made me feel even worse.
"Agnes!" She greeted, "And...Lorna, how are you?"
I didn't get a chance to reply before Agatha launched into her pitch
"Wow you look fabulous," she said to Agatha.
Agatha dawned her best fake smile, "Oh, thank you Ms. Hart."
"It's Mrs. Davis, dear."
Oh right, Hart wasn't her real name...
"Mrs. Hart was what...Wanda branded me, my name is actually Sharon."
She spoke my mother's name in a whisper, and she averted her gaze from mine as she did so.
"I know you get confused some times," Sharon continued, "but my name real name is Shaaarron." She emphasized her name.
"Right, well there's no time for details." Agatha said hastily, "Speaking of which, I was just wondering if you would like to come to a little party I'm having tonight."
I gawked at Agatha: a party?!
"Isn't that right Lorna?" Agatha turned to me.
I stuttered on the spot, but Agatha's eyes widened in warning."
"R-right, yeah, a party. We're having a party." I cringed over the lie.
"A party!" Sharon sounded so genuinely excited it made me feel so guilty.
"Really, well I haven't been to a party since Mr. Davis passed away..."
Oh great, we were tricking a widow.
"Are you in or out, Hart?" Agatha blurred out impatiently, unsympathetically.
"Oh, well, I think I'm just...I'm gonna grab my purse." she said finally. "Oh a party!"

"This is a terrible idea," I whispered to her as we walked back to the house, "The poor woman thinks she's going to a party. What are we supposed to tell her when she ends up on another plain of existence?"
Agatha ignored me, and ushered Sharon inside.
"Parties in the basement." she said cheerfully.
I shot her a death glare, "Your evil." I whispered.
"You went along with it!" She hissed back.
I let out a disgruntled sigh and made my way down to the basement.
"All right!" Agatha was cheerful now that we were so close to her goal, "Everyone circle around."
We all gathered, Teen and I standing beside Agatha.
"So do we drive to the road or-"
"The road is conjured Teen," she told him, "You know what, why don't you just head upstairs and let us do our thing, okay?" Just, close some windows while you're at it, cause it's feeling a little drafty." I scowled at Agatha for sending teen upstairs.
"Okay, ok. So, all we need to do is sing the ballad, and a door will appear, and we'll be on our merry way to having all of our magical dreams come true."
I raised a brow, Agatha was sounding like someone selling a car.
"Okay, all aboard?" She asked.
"So who's going high?" Asked Jen.
"Oh no thank you," said Mrs. Davis, I don't take drugs."
Oh god, this poor woman, but I still had to choke back laughter.
"She's talking about the harmonies." Alice told her.
"I'm an alto, is all I'm saying." Jennifer added
"Get off me!" We all looked in the direction of Lilia who had just had another one of her little freak outs.
"Okayyy..." I tried to diffuse the tension and Agatha cleared her throat, "Ready?"
Agatha rang the bell and began singing, "Seekest thou the road to all that's foul and fair..."
The rest of us joined in shortly.
I wasn't much of singer, but something about all of us signing together in harmony felt right. Actually...we sounded pretty great.
We kept singing, louder now, there was no going back. We needed to open the gateway, and we needed to do it now. The song master for a good two minutes.
Then it was over.
I looked down but no door or anything had appeared.
"Huh, Some feedback for you. I did not take this long last time." Agatha said. Everyone started arguing.
Just then there was the sound of glass smashing from upstairs.
I heard Teen scream.
"Shit...that must be the Salem seven."
"Are there any real witches in the house," Agatha asked, "Because all I see are has been's an and could've been's"
"Agatha!" I knew what she was trying to do, get everyone angry so that someone would lose their cool and blast her.
"And I was a fool," she continued, "you can forget the witches road, I'd die before letting you befoul it with your noxious mediocrity. Ugh, what a team of rejects." Her voice seeped with such distain.
"Agatha stop!" I yelled, "Their here to help."
The whole house was beginning to shake at that point.
"This is a power grab," Lilia realized, "She wants us to attack her."
"What?" Agatha asked, feigning innocence.
"You brought us here hoping our promixity, coupled with your cruelty, would get you a spark you could steal. You had no intention of bringing us on the road!"
"It's not my fault only a true coven could open the door." Agatha taunted.
I was close to blasting Agatha myself but I knew better.
The house shook more violently.
Agatha lost it, "Oh, I don't have time for this!JUST BLASY ME YOU BITCHES!"
"No one blast her!" I yelled, and stood between Agatha and the others. I let power swirl in my palms as threat, though I had no intention of using it.
"What is that?"
I looked down, under my feet was a door, and it was glowing.
"Was that there before?" Alice asked.
I shook my head and turned to Agatha, "Open it."
Teen screamed again. I helped Agatha pry open the door right in time for Teen to come screaming and running down inside it.
"Run!" He yelled.
There was a horrid screeching sound form upstairs.
"No thank you!" Jennifer said, and she along with Alice and Lilia quickly high tailed it down the trap door.
Agatha and I looked back to see some sort of human like creature crawling down her stairs.
"Lorna come on!" Agatha pulled me down through the door.
"Help me hold this!" She yelled, there was banging, rattling, and screeching. I held the door shut with my power, hoping it would hold. And then all at once the noises stopped.
I looked back up, Agatha touched the ceiling  where the door had been, only dirt remained.
"Was that-"
"A member of the Seven." Agatha confirmed.
I had to catch my breath, "This way." Agatha said, and tugged me down the spiral stairs.
We exited into the darkness, and what I saw shocked me.
The night sky was shining with a full moon and a trillion stars, the air was fresh and crisp, trees lining everywhere the eye could see.
And there it was...the road. A path made of luminescent blue leaves that stretched on for miles. It was breathtaking.
For whatever reason Agatha and everyone else took their shoes off. So I untied my converse and left them.
Agatha smirked, "I never doubted us for a second."
I was to stunned to scoff, or make any kind of snide remark as per usual.
My bare feet touched the road and I understood why we had left our shoes behind.We were connected to this place, and finally I was ready: it was time to walk the road.