Cherry and the Twitches

chapter 17

Meanwhile in the Spellman house...

Hilda frowned as she sat in front of the family crystal ball. Drell promised to call her today, but he hasn't.

"He's always been late for your dates before you got back together," Salem nearly deadpanned. "Maybe he's just running late again."

"No, Drell wouldn't do that anymore, he's been more responsible nowadays." Hilda replied, very nervous and worried for her boyfriend.

"Maybe the Darkness got him." Salem said, kidding around.

Hilda let out a scream.

"Hey, I was just kidding, sheesh!" Salem relaxed her. "He's probably lifting weights or somethin'."

Hilda glared to him. "Don't joke about that, he turned you into a cat, I'll make him turn you into something even worse!"

"You need to take a chill pill..." Salem wandered off.

Sabrina followed her other aunt into the living room. "But Aunt Zelda, I wanna see Harvey for the movies!"

"I'm sorry, Sabrina, but it's too dangerous for you to go out with the Darkness out there, you might get swallowed up." Zelda coaxed.

"Oh, come on! The Darkness could be miles away from here." Sabrina told her.

"I'm sorry, Sabrina..." Zelda sighed.

"It might not even eat me anyway," Sabrina insisted. "I'm only half a witch, remember?"

"You still have magic powers, you could get in trouble, and--" Zelda tried to explain, then saw her miserable sister and sighed. "What's wrong?"

"Drell still hasn't called!" Hilda wailed like a distressed baby.

"Well, maybe he's just busy making sure the Darkness isn't in the house." Zelda assured her sister.

'Oh, you'd be right about that, only one small problem, he isn't there anymore.' The dark voice said evilly.

The others looked around.

"Salem!" Hilda glared to the black cat.

"It wasn't me!" Salem defended.

'For once, he's telling the truth...' the voice confirmed.

"Oh, no, that voice." Zelda said with widened eyes.

"What's happening?!" Sabrina cried out.

'You four are going to be our next victims.' The dark voice said.

"Oh, all of us?" Salem laughed a little nervously. "C-C-Come on, I'm just a cat! What do you want from me? I mean, meow! Meow!" he then tried to hiss like a cat. "Uh, I hate dogs!"

The dark voice just laughed.

'And I thought you liked a little world domination, Salem...' the dark voice mused.

Hilda and Zelda held each other in total fear.

'I'm even hungry for you two who have more magic in your pinkies than your niece does in your whole body!' the dark voice taunted Sabrina's half-witch status, threatening Hilda and Zelda's lives before hers.

"Hey! I don't know who you are, but you better leave before I use a spell to get rid of you!" Sabrina threatened.

'Just try me, half-witch!' the dark voice taunted with a laugh.

Hilda, Zelda, and Salem grew very nervous and worried about their fate now.

"'Mysterious voice beckoned from the invisible sky, you, make like a fly and shoo-shoo-shoo'!" Sabrina recited and wiggled her fingers, making an energy blast from her fingertips.

The voice seemed silent a moment, but just laughed at her. 'You call that a spell!? Let me show you one of mine!'

"Oh, now you've done it, Sabrina." Salem said.

"What's going on...?" Sabrina was really scared.

Suddenly she was kicked clear right out of the house and the house was surrounded by Darkness and Hilda, Zelda, and Salem's screams. Sabrina got up and rushed to the front door, trying to open it, but it was locked sealed shut.

'Give up, you'll never be able to get inside.' The dark voice said.

"Don't you even think about hurting my aunts or Salem!" Sabrina sneered, but gasped as the screams and cries faded. She looked into the window to see Hilda, Zelda, and Salem were no longer home. "No..." she whispered, her face paling in true horror.

'Yes, they have now been engulfed by the Darkness.' The dark voice said.

"No!" Sabrina repeated with tears in her eyes, she then fell to her knees and started to cry her eyes out. "I couldn't save them..."

"Sabrina, don't give up just yet." Her father's voice said.

Sabrina sniffled and looked around, knowing that voice anywhere. "Dad...?"

"Down here." Her father's voice said.

She looked down at the ground to find the spell book her father was in. She bent down and picked up the book and turned to her father's page. "Daddy..." she whispered.

"You mustn't quit, Sabrina..." Edward told his daughter.

"But you heard them,..." Sabrina said with small tears still in her eyes. "I'm only half a witch, I don't have a lot of magic in me like you, Hilda, or Zelda."

"No, but you are more powerful when you're with your friends." Edward told her.

"My friends...?" Sabrina asked softly, rubbing one of her eyes, but kept the book open.

"You must go to them, Sabrina..." Edward told her. "What has the Witch Academy taught you about the three principles of witchdom?"

"'To use magic wisely, be true to one's friends, and be true to one's self'..." Sabrina listed. "But how do I get to my friends?"

"A teleportation spell." Edward told her.

"Do you think I can do it?" Sabrina asked.

"What do you think?" Edward asked her to test her self-confidence skills.

Sabrina looked upset still, but she then narrowed her eyes in determination. "I'll show them who's a real witch!"

"That's my girl..." Edward sounded proud. "Now get to your friends so you can conquer the Darkness and those foes together!"

"I won't let you down, Dad..." Sabrina vowed before closing the book and trying to concentrate. "'Although every beginning needs an end, send me straight to my everlasting friends'!" she recited, her voice echoed in the last bit which made her teleport away from in front of her house.

"Good luck, my daughter..." Edward whispered.