Malefica

Chapter Eight-We Would Like You To Join Our Coven

Max stood anxiously in front of the gas station, waiting for Rowan and her friend Lilah to arrive. Her fingers were sore from playing guitar- she had played for hours the night before, and though the transition between chords was still awkward, she was getting better. She had even learned to awkwardly play "Never Say Never" by the Fray, because it was only five chords, four of which she had learned in Mr. Roger's class.

Finally, a white convertible Mustang pulled up in front of her, with Rowan behind the wheel, and a girl with impossibly long brown hair tucked beneath an elegant black hat in the passenger.

"Get in loser, we're going shopping," Rowan laughed, and Max cracked a smile as she slid into the incredibly small backseat. The entire inside was lined with genuine black leather, soft as butter.

They drove for a few minutes, circling back to the neighborhood where everyone seemed to live. "I thought we were going to town?" Max asked, suddenly very nervous. The girl in the passenger seat, Lilah, had yet to speak. She was staring moodily out of the car.

"Oh, um...we have a surprise for you," Rowan smiled. Max narrowed her eyes.

"Um, okay?" They drove, Lilah remaining silent the entire ride, until finally they pulled into the driveway of a large, fully restored, white victorian house. "Woow, beautiful," Max exhaled.

"Thankyou," Rowan smiled, hopping out of her car. Lilah exited as well. She was wearing a shapeless black dress that hit mid-thigh, and platforms. "Ooh, that big house over there, the gray one," she said, gesturing towards a similar, yet bigger, Victorian era house, "is Mayor Nicks's house," she said, smiling grandly, but Max's heart sped up in her chest. Phoenix. She hoped she didn't see him, she wasn't sure how to react to him at the moment. Even so, she found herself staring at the house, wondering which room was his, if he was even home, and if he was, what he was doing.

"C'mon, I'll give you a tour of my humble abode," Rowan said, linking arms with her, and dragging her into her house. The first room they walked into was painted a dark, deep scarlet, with black and white furnishings. "This is the living room," she explained, gesturing towards the leather sofas and the enormous flatscreen tv. It was perfect, to a point of not looking lived in. Like a doll house.

"It's beautiful," Max said, taking in all of the sights. "I think this room is probably worth more than my entire house," she laughed, and Rowan sort of looked at her out of the corner of her eye.

She gestured vaguely down the hall. "That's the kitchen," she said. "Let's go upstairs."

The stairs were elegant, lacquered black, and twisting upwards. The hallway upstairs was lined with expensive contemporary art pieces and vases, and a few photos of Rowan as a baby. "This is my room," she said, dragging Max into a room that was somehow bigger than the living room. The walls were painted baby blue, the bed was surrounded by curtains. The walls were lined with sticky notes, a massive bookshelf covered the left wall, lined with seasons of TV shows, albums for pop bands, movies, and books. So many books. In the corner, there was an overstuffed couch facing a flat screen, a few beanbags, and a large table.

"Wow," was all Max could muster. "Wow." Lilah strolled to the couch, and sat down like she owned the place. She regarded Max curiously, like she was a specimen in a lab.

"We would like you to join our coven," she said, her voice flat and serious, her eyes open and honest. Max snorted.

"Um, okay. But I probably need to write to Aslan and tell him that my vacation to Narnia has been delayed, first," she said.

Neither Rowan nor Lilah laughed, or even smiled. "Are you serious?"Max asked. "Wait, is coven slang for sorority or something?"

Lilah lifted her perfectly manicured hand, and a tiny orb of glowing light appeared, floating as it omitted a soft green glow. "No, it's slang for coven." Max stared at the light, her heart beating quickly in her chest, she backed away quickly.