SPLOOSH. Or had that been more of a splish?
Mariah jolted sharply at the sound, having been in a caffeinated daze, and she turned her attention to Isla. Shouting rapidly, Mariah told her, "Bitch-- stand up-- Sis? Just stand UP--" she took her shoes and socks off with shaky hands as Isla floundered about "--ay, we ain' gon' drown in three feet'a water, sis!" Why was nobody else moving to help her? Obviously Isla was somehow drowning, despite the fact it was less water than a kiddie pool, which would be a plain old embarrassing way to die. She plopped her cellphone and fan into her shoe and stepped into the pool. Of course, being tall as fuck, the water only came up to her thighs, and she walked over to try and YANK Isla up with a scooping motion, aimed under her arms like a FORKLIFT to facilitate, you know, her standing. "Joder-- get it together--" Mariah told the flailing woman as... the fatal BOOP from Penny was comin' in hot.

Slowly, Mariah looked up from the single finger aimed for Isla, to the person it was attached to. Was this girl straight out of a Country Music Awards worthy Video or what? On the heels of that thought, Mariah was half tempted to plop her cowboy hat on the other woman's head. With a flat expression, Mariah was going to try and EVER SO SLIGHTLY move Isla out of boop range by just an inch, if she'd even managed to grab her. No one gets booped today-- it was entirely too close to GLOMP-ing and she'd had ENOUGH of that kind of behavior to last a lifetime.

“--it’s going to be your goddamn fault!”

Distracted by the angry yelling, Mariah looked over at Vashti, then scrunched a face. "Hold on, who the fuck is them?" Her eyes narrowed on whoever-the-hell Vashti was yelling at-- she didn't look familiar. When did she get here? Was this girl able to go invisible? How did she sneak up in BROAD DAYLIGHT?. Confused, she looked back to Penny then squinted, "Or you? Who're you? What--" she looks back to Vashti and the Kim Gang, then back to Penny "--y'all ain't just secret members of the coven I ain't met or somethin', right?" All these questions would be asked whilst holding Isla if she didn't manage to wiggle away.

---

Now Madison realized that she was the last person that should be doing the talking with the super ghost hunter... Madison knew that she wouldn't be their savior, the magical cure-all to their problems. However, she also knew that Maya of all people should not be the one that does the talking. Especially because she was acting like Kimberly was a threat and... explained the situation in a completely unhelpful way.

"Maya," Madison spoke, "Let someone else do the talking please."

And after that Madison had crossed her arms and remained silent. Someone spoke up, and that somebody was Vashti, who she started out whining as per usual. Madison couldn't help but roll her eyes as she started playing with the zipper of her track jacket... until this bitch had the nerve to gesture at her and then start slinging insult after insult, lie, and exaggeration, complaint after complaint. It was blatantly obvious that this was just a big ploy by Vashti, who probably had Herik and Emily in the middle of it. It was all a big ass plan to put the final nail in the coffin and get Madison out of the Coven. To get her to finally crack and show what a monster she had become.

She clenched her fists tightly as she stared at Vashti as her eyebrows furrowed and teeth bared. Madison was about damn near tempted to go punch this girl in the face. Her heart was racing and every instinct in her fucking mind was telling her to finally tell Vashti about herself. However, she realized something.

She had enough.

"... Know what Vashti, fuck you, I mean straight up fuck you!" Madison shouted right back at her as she flipped Vashti off. "You are one of the most annoying, whiny, entitled little bitches I had ever met! You need to take this little scared doe Bambi act and shove it up your ass! I have every fuckin' nerve to go beat the breaks off of you for saying that you'll fuckin' kill me. But, you know what, I'm not playing this game. I know you're just a little attention whore. Don't deny it."

Madison looked at everyone around her, every single face. "All ya'll must think I'm crazy or something. Well, I can't fix that. I would fuckin' say that I didn't tell my-" Madison shot a look towards Maya, "-dinosaur to attack Vashti, that I'm sorry. Ya'll wouldn't believe me and it doesn't fuckin' matter."

She walked up to the center, where Claudette was. Before she flipped Vashti off again, "You wanted me out? Well... All ya' had to do was ask. I've had it to here with this bullshit. All ya'll want me out? Ya'll want out ya' girl that stuck with ya' from the start throughout all the arguments and other bullshit? It's great to see where ya' loyalty lies."

Madison's expression went flat as she shrugged.

"You don't gotta worry about it because I'm out!"

Madison stormed right off... before she stopped and turned on her heel. She walked up to Claudette as she said,

"... And I want my dinosaur back." She stuck her hand out.

"But-" Claudette tried to protest.

"Now." Madison shook her head as Claudette put the Jaws keychain in her hands and she was quick to place him back around her neck. Madison heard her guttural growl and paused for a moment as she listened. Afterward, she turned on her heel and said, "Kim, I'll call ya' later. Everyone else, don't bother."

Madison went back inside the beach to take what few things she had left and take the rest of their booze. She knew that none of them would stop her.

---

"Why don't you introduce your two friends, so we know they're not going to try anything. We can do the same, but there's a ton of us and only three of you."

Kimberly's smile went flat.

... Did they tell her I was coming?

The hostility in the small girl in the sundress' voice was not lost on Kimberly... it was just unexpected. She glanced towards Penny as she complied and introduced herself, which made Kimberly sighed. She had the feeling that Penny would start something with her. However, she had to be honest here when this girl did not make a good first impression on Kimberly.

"Name's Rowan," He introduced himself as he crossed his arms... making sure to stay close to the two to activate his abstraction. He didn't know what they were packing in terms of power but he never protected against more than two different abstractions at a time. "I'm the camera-man... you know that thing doesn't float itself." He chuckled.

"Let me assure you that we come in peace... which goes without saying because you guys did ask for our help, right? Right?" Kimberly had to make sure that this girl was on the same page. Who knows, maybe she was slow on the draw or something.

"A lot, you know, one of our own turns into a massive lizard that tried to kill us. Another of our own can't control her dinosaur and also tried to maul a member. There's also the murderous cannibal who killed our only healer and our weird, ugly bat allies. The list goes on. But today we're concentrating on finding someone that can cure curses or whatever, and heal people. We were hoping that you, with your large network of supernatural simps, could help us find someone with that ability."

When Maya finished, Kimberly awkwardly coughed.

"... They're not simps, they're fans."

She clarified... she picked up everything the girl said but it was... extremely roundabout. And not very helpful. They were looking for someone to help their curses, that she'd help with. The other stuff? Well, Kimberly hated to say it; but she had more important things to deal with than Coven's drama. She sighed as she was about to ask Maya (or someone else) to go into a bit more detail. However, Kimberly was pulled into the Coven's drama when Vashti took the stage and started pouring out all of her woes. The issue was that Vashti became incredibly emotional and started an attack... honestly, it was a lot for the Ghost Hunter who turned towards Penny for a second while Vashti was slinging all this vitriol. What was worse was that Vashti was accusing Kimberly of something that she had no idea about and then Madison started screaming herself.

The Ghost Hunter survived and help defeat an eldritch abomination and defeated Apparitions that threatened the world... but she was woefully unaware of how to deal with all of this. Madison walked out and honestly, Kimberly had reached her breaking point.

"Look!" Kimberly shouted over all of the Coven, "I just got here and everyone is dumping all of this on me... I don't know what you all think about me, but I'm not your savior." She put her hand on her chest as Rowan crossed his arms. He could tell this was a lot... and it was honestly a lot for him. He could tell that she was deflecting the accusations that Vashti lobbed her way... because he knew the big secret of Madison Brown as well. He stepped up and placed a hand on Kimberly's shoulder as she found his touch... calming.

She took in a deep breath as she collected herself and thought of the best way to phrase this. "Okay! Can someone who's not you-" she pointed at Maya, "-or, don't take this the wrong way, you-" that finger drifted over towards Vashti.

"-explain just what is going on in a calm and rational matter or I'm leaving."

And she meant that.

---

For once, there was a silent moment of agreement between Emily and Maya. She thought that Kimberly was coming, not her two little blonde-haired friends. She narrowed her eyes at the girl, in particular, there was an air of untouchableness that Emily attributed to Liao. Maybe she was cocky, maybe she had something in her pocket that she didn't know about. However, Emily saw the strands between them all and she could tell that they were friends... though the strand between the boy and Kimberly was thicker than average. From what she tested these were personal connections... the strands that connected people that Emily could tug on with words. Emily stayed quiet... even as Maya tried to explain everything.

Emily facepalmed as she rolled her eyes and she was about to be the one to tell them useful information (because the great and mighty Kimberly Walton obviously couldn't be bothered with their little ant problems, could she?). However, Vashti was the one that did the talking, and if she wasn't facepalming at Maya, she was double facepalming at Vashti's theatrics. Now, Emily understood that Vashti was scared after being mauled by a ghostly dinosaur, she got that Vashti was pissed even that Madison tried to kill her. However, the way she went about it was definitely... not the best way.

And then Madison started throwing vitriol back at her, took the Jaws from Claudette, then left. Not that Emily was giving much of a shit... if they got her sister cured, Emily couldn't care less. Though she wished the person that walked out was Maya. The only problem was that Kimberly was perturbed by this and... why wouldn't she? She just got here and all this drama happened. She crossed her arms as she rolled her eyes with a sigh in a very dramatic fashion.

"Vashti, the theatrics was very appreciated..." Emily said in the most sarcastic way possible, but she couldn't hold in her irritation at Vashti. Her irritation at the events. It was so much that she had to drop something that she was keeping a secret. "... But, some of us have other people on the line here. And you're making everything about you. And if you can't get it together... let me stop here."

She turned towards Herik.

"Herik," She started as she dismissively waved her hand at her. "Please get Vashti, she's a mess right now."

---

"Maya, please let your sisters handle this,"

Claudette had to say as she was getting tired of the girl constantly prattling off... and giving half-assed explanations about things (which weren't incorrect but for an outsider they were useless). She sighed as she decided to be the leader that handles everything... and Vashti finally spoke up. Claudette could tell that she was emotional, however, Vashti started lobbing accusations that Kimberly (and Madison but honestly that wasn't as important).

"Vashti!" Claudette said in a very thick accent as she temporarily regressed and started speaking French unintentionally... she knows for a fact that Madison wouldn't take this well. And she didn't. Madison screamed and shouted at the entire Coven and then announced that she was leaving. Unfortunately... mostly because without Kayla, Madison was the only raw powerhouse that they had. And the Jaws would not listen to anyone who isn't Madison... which Madison walked up to her and demanded.

"... And I want my dinosaur back." Madison stuck her hand out as Claudette went digging into her purse for the Jaws.

"But-"Please don't leave. Claudette thought to herself.

"Now," Madison demanded and she knew that there was little chance in getting through to Madison when she got angry like this. She loudly sighed as she handed her the keychain before Madison turned and stormed off. Her eyes were pretty much shut as she shook her head and started massaging her temples. She was at a loss for words as leader-mode turned off... and honestly, she understood why Agatha and Kayla left them now.

She wouldn't be surprised if Kimberly just turned and left right now.

---

“Bad. Really bad. As in he could pass any second now. We have plans to give his Collecti-"

Maximillian was lying in his hospital bed. A tube ran out of his mouth and connected to a respirator nearby. A neck brace kept his head still, although his body showed no signs of movement any time soon. There were IV lines running everywhere. Lyss could hear the slow, but thankfully steady beating of his heart from the monitor nearby.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep-

The lights shut off and the room was encased in darkness. Lyss could only see Maximillian’s dark form in front of her but… there was something else. Standing directly behind his bed.

Skeletal fingers, elongated and dark with a substance Lyss didn’t want to identify began to creep over the edge. They moved slowly towards his head until they covered his beaten face. Lyss tried her best, but she couldn’t move. She was trapped in place like a deer before a car. She could only watch in terror as the deformed skull of a deer slowly lowered itself from the darkness and peered directly at her. For a second they were both still, suspended in a staring contest until the skull turned its head towards Max and-

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEE-

Lyss gasped, her hand reaching outwards in an attempt to stop her, but she only found the empty space of the bed beside her. She sat upright and breathed heavily. Her heart was still racing. Her hands moved behind her head to rub her neck. It felt like she was being watched by those dark eyes.

Lyss turned to look behind her, but she could only see the headboard and the wall behind it. The room was empty. Only the dream and the fear remained. She let out a heavy sigh and turned forwards again. Her shoulders sagged.

She’d been to see Max the evening after Meifeng delivered the news. He looked awful. As much as she sympathized for Max, and as much as she couldn’t bear to see him this way, she could only think of the power that Annabelle possessed. Maximillian was the strongest awakened Lyss had seen in a while. If Annabelle Heart could cut him down so easily, how could Meifeng- or even herself now, think that they could stand a chance against her?

Meifeng had been there that day. She popped in right as Lyss was thinking of the DENs and their number one target. At first Lyss wanted to walk right out of the hospital. She’d expected Meifeng to greet her with harsh words. To kick Lyss out of the hospital because she didn’t necessarily belong beside Maximillian’s deathbed, but Meifeng was kinder than usual. Lyss could see in the Agent’s eyes that she was grieving too. Still, Lyss didn’t say anything at first. The two stood together in the quiet room until Meifeng began first.

"It was difficult coming to you for help... I know it wasn't a good idea to drop in on you all but every night she kills more and more people. I hate to say it but we may need to put aside our differences and work together."

Lyss didn’t know what to say. She stood there, staring at Max’s lifeless looking body, and wanted to say yes to the DENs agent. She’d willingly put herself in danger to stop Annabelle. Especially now. Yet… She wasn’t sure that the Coven would do the same. She didn’t want to put them in danger and it wasn’t her place to ask them to. For the first time, Lyss was completely honest with Meifeng. She told her she didn’t think that the Coven was ready for the fight. That Meifeng would have to wait, or she would have to find help elsewhere. It was up to the entire Coven to decide, and the Coven themselves were in a tough situation on their own.

She left the hospital room then. A pit of guilt and anger sitting in her stomach like a rock. There was nothing she could do for Max, or the DENs, without her sisters.

---

A text suddenly took Lyss’s mind away from the DENs and Max’s condition. She grabbed her phone from the night stand and saw Claudette’s message.

Claudette - Just Now
Please join the girls by the pool. It’s important.

Lyss sighed softly and she solidified why she hadn’t agreed to help Meifeng just yet. The Coven needed her, and she was more loyal to her sisters. Even if they weren’t the best in the world, they were all Lyss had. She needed to focus on them. To bring them together so that they could handle a threat like Annabelle in the future.

---

Lyss eventually made her way downstairs to the pool. She walked up to the group with her hands in the pocket of her black joggers. She’d just caught the beginning by the way Claudette was speaking. Quietly, Lyss took a seat and listened.

At the mention of Annabelle’s name Lyss felt her chest tighten. She could feel the eyes looking at her again, and she had to rub her neck once more to make the feeling go away. She was thankful that Claudette moved on from the subject. Instead of planning to join a dangerous cause, their leader suggested helping the members of the Coven that came to them for help.

“Does anyone have any ideas?”

Lyss had no clue. She only knew of a few sources from the Black Market, but they operated out of Miami. She didn’t even know if they were still reliable, or if they’d turn her in to her old partners the second they recognized her.

Maya prattled on as usual. Lyss could tell that the events of the training fight were still weighing on her. It seemed that it was still weighing on the others too.
Mentioning the DENs only gave Lyss a headache. They were the ones asking for help this time. If they couldn’t heal Max, how could anyone expect them to know of a healer? Lyss rubbed one temple, but she felt eyes on her. Real eyes. She looked up to see Emily staring, and instead of shrinking into her seat she raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t a shock that Emily looked at her with such distrust. What irked Lyss was the fact that Emily wasn’t even giving her a chance now.

Claudette thankfully explained the DENs situation. Although she didn’t exactly explain the gravity of it. Hunting down a cannibalistic extra-normal that killed hundreds over night was much more than a handful, but Lyss didn’t want to talk about that right now.

Herik, of course, was standing by Vashti like a bodyguard. His eyes were glued to Madison, and Lyss frowned. It wasn’t Madison’s fault that the Jaws went out of control, but after Babylon attacked Emily and Ellie, she knew that Herik was going to be aggressive towards anyone else with a rogue apparition tied to their body. At least Herik had a good suggestion.

“What about Kimberly Walton?”

Sure, the Ghost Hunter may have run into other extra-normals than their little Coven. It wasn’t a bad idea to ask her for help, or for any leads that they could follow. Hell, Madison even had her number for some reason. She must be helpful, if Madison trusted her so easily. And, almost like magic, Kimberly was there. She even brought friends.

Lyss hardly moved from her seat at their sudden appearance, but she straightened a little out of her slouched position. In front of the Coven, she didn’t mind relaxing anymore, but in front of strangers she couldn't show the weakness of it. She suddenly regretted keeping her hair in a messy bun, and wished that she’d at least worn a t-shirt that didn’t have toothpaste stains. For satan’s sake, at least she was wearing lipstick.

Lyss decided to sit back and let the others speak, which… wasn’t exactly the best idea. Her eyes flew back and forth between Madison, Kimberly, Vashti, and Isla and Kim’s friend by the pool, so much that she could feel her headache getting worse. Vashti’s words were pretty much the truth, but Lyss felt like she was being over dramatic about most of it. Sure, her curse was extremely dangerous and out of control, but she couldn’t just stand there and act like the Coven or Madison didn’t regret how things went down on the training grounds. She couldn’t just stand there and act like she was the only righteous soul among them. Lyss was beginning to feel the anger bubble within her when she noticed the rage in Madison’s face.

Oh, fuck.

Lyss sat up further in her seat and her hands rested on the arms. If a fight broke out, she would step in to stop it. She eyed Madison cautiously as she began to defend herself. Honestly, Lyss was agreeing with Madison at this point, but she had to agree that her sister was terrifying when she was angry. No wonder Vashti was so scared. Madison turned her eyes onto the rest of the Coven and continued to rant.

Lyss almost spoke up in her own defense. She almost tried to reason with Madison, and explain that she believed that the Jaws acted on its own…

… but she didn’t have the energy to do it at the moment. There were bigger things to fight about now besides Vashti’s whiney attitude about her curse and Madison’s pride. Lyss would deal with those later. The poor ghost hunter came to see the Coven because they asked for her help. They didn’t ask for a fucking therapist.

So, she let Madison storm off, and she let Herik go after Vashti. Hopefully loverboy would get her to stop whining. For now, someone needed to explain the situation, like Kim said, before they decided to ditch the Coven and get back to their own business. Which was…? Lyss didn’t know, and she would ask that later.

As the air settled after Madison’s dramatic exit, Lyss took a moment to breathe before standing. She looked first at Claudette. “I believe Madison. The Jaws acted on it’s own and she needs our help too. If you want her to stay, go after her. I can handle this.” She gave her best encouraging smile before she turned her attention onto Kimberly and her friend. Rowan, wasn’t it?

“Look, I’m… really sorry you had to experience that. We’ve been through a lot the past month and I think what happened between Vashti and Madison was the breaking point of it all.”

Lyss sighed softly and stuck her hands into her pockets before holding her chin up high. This was business, as usual. She didn’t expect anything else from Kimberly but a yes or a no. They just wanted to know if she knew anyone that could help. That’s it.

“We invited you here because we’ve run out of options. Many of our members are cursed, afflicted, or they have family members in need of a healer. We didn’t call you here specifically asking for your help, but if you know anyone that could, or any leads that could take us in that direction, we would be grateful.”

“So, can you think of anyone or any organization that works with curses and healing? I’m sure you’ve needed help before, too.”

And although Lyss was asking this information for her sisters, she couldn’t help but think of Max too.

---

“Look, I’m… really sorry you had to experience that. We’ve been through a lot the past month and I think what happened between Vashti and Madison was the breaking point of it all. We invited you here because we’ve run out of options. Many of our members are cursed, afflicted, or they have family members in need of a healer. We didn’t call you here specifically asking for your help, but if you know anyone that could or any leads that could take us in that direction, we would be grateful. So, can you think of anyone or any organization that works with curses and healing? I’m sure you’ve needed help before, too.”

"Aunt Lyss saves the day again," Emily said to herself and shrugged as Lyss pretty much did what Vashti and Maya were too stupid to do. In fewer words, too. Look how easy that was? Emily would have done it herself but she was just so... irritated by the stupid drama that her sisters were too preoccupied with.

Kimberly nodded her head after everything was starting to calm down after the departure of Madison. It was tough... but at this point, Kimberly would rather not think about how the impact of her actions and how they affect other people. She sighed, a quiet breeze escaped her lips as she looked at Lyss and realized that she was the one person that she was looking for. Someone who isn't a screaming maniac! That wasn't that hard, was it? Kimberly listened intently to Lyss, even though it was pretty much the same thing that Vashti and Maya said, except conveyed in a far more level-headed and collected manner. One that Kimberly could get behind.

Still, she was kind of looking to them for help with an affliction of her own.

"I don..." Kim was about to turn her down before a lightbulb went off in her head. An option that was closed off to her not because she couldn't find it but they closed the doors on her. They could probably solve all their problems... for a price, of course. And it wasn't just a monetary one, but a moral one. Her mouth remained open as she stared off into the nothingness of the pool for a few seconds before she answered. "... Actually, I do know somebody. Or a group of people..."

She stopped for a few seconds before she said, "... The Dollhouse, they're pretty much a magical black market organization that has cures for afflictions in their repertoire... I used to get my cures for Afflictions from them before they found out that I was a famous Ghost Hunter and refused to do business with me. But, they're legit, albeit a bit pricey..."

She looked at Lyss, whom she identified as the leader if it wasn't for Madison freaking out and walking away. It was tough but Kimberly decided to leave out a bit of information about their true nature or their main goal... or even some of the prices that she had to pay. Only because Kimberly knew that if she told them about what the Dollhouse really does, they would not agree to go help. And if she had to be honest, stopping Annabelle was. "... If I get you in contact with them, will you help me?"

Maybe a bit of honesty was in order for the Coven to get on her side. "I... I take it that you've already heard of her. Annabelle Heart, she has a name you know, that "monster bitch" that has been going on a rampage. She took has an affliction, but a very powerful one. I'm sorry that she killed your friend but a lot more people are gonna die unless we stop her." Probably including your little Coven. Kimberly thought to herself given how effortlessly she cleaved through the Greenwood Estates.

"I know that's a lot," Kimberly said, "But all I need you guys to do is get me a cure for Afflictions from them and you can get whatever you need to from them."

Of course, Kimberly left out the little comment that whatever cures they get won't matter if Annabelle continues to snowball like this.

---

“Dude! Don’t be a dick just because you only have one superlame simp following you around,”

“I’m not jealous, if that’s what you think,” Maya snorted, rolling her eyes. She kept her mouth shut otherwise after multiple people told her to (including Kimberley). She still eyed Rowan with a bit of suspicion but otherwise relaxed at the introductions… because people wouldn’t give out names if they were trying to hide something (probably).

It wasn’t that she didn’t know that they’d asked for help, she just wasn’t too fond of two extra people tagging along and right into their base.

She snorted as Vashti somehow managed to explain things even worse than she had (from lack of effort) and then went on a fucking self pitying speel. Oh yeah, so they were meant to bring it right up rather than tiptoeing around it like sane people who didn’t want either the Jaws or a lizard to eat them? Where was the gratitude for the fact that Maya was the reason the Jaws had even stopped mauling her. She was yet to see Vashti do something for any of them.

Maya also wasn’t at all surprised when Madison went off right back at her. She held up her hands at the look shot towards her, but it was pretty clear she didn’t care either way. It wasn’t like she didn’t believe Madison or had explicitly told her to leave. Honestly, if she had to pick a side, she’d rather Madison stayed? Because aside from that one time her abstraction generally didn’t try to actively eat them.

Not that she bothered to say it because Madison had latched pretty hard onto her calling the Jaws her dinosaur and as someone with a looott of anger issues herself, she wasn’t about to take a beating for it. Sure she wholly agreed with her but Maya wasn’t exactly the one to show any kind of support.

Thankfully Lyss stepped in to put them all out of their misery and explain what was needed. And then they were getting somewhere with the whole reason they’d asked an internet sensation there.

For once in her life, Maya actually listened properly and didn’t instantly shoot off her mouth. Sure, she was pessimistic but they were actually getting information rather than flailing about wildly. Surely it was a step in the right direction.

“So you’re saying that if we have enough money, we’ll be able to get some kind of cure from them?” she narrowed her eyes, brain momentarily switching on (a rare occasion outside of academics). “Or is the price more than just monetary? Because it almost always seems to be when it comes to shady dealings.”

Doubly so if it was supernatural. She didn’t want to be selling her soul to cure other people.

“And a cure for affiliations would work on Annabelle Heart?”

Seemed a little too easy but, it seemed like a good deal to Maya. She wasn’t about to make the final decision but they could get rid of two things at once: their own afflictions and the murderous cannibal that could kill any of them at any moment.

---

---

Isla’s brain was going an absolute mile a minute as she flailed about, hand hitting something distinctively hard and tile like. From an outside perspective she looked an awful lot like a floundering fish, lying in the shallow end flopping about and managing to choke on water.

“Hey stranger, how about you just try standing?”

The words just about got through her running wild brain and she stilled, just in time to be scooped up under the arms by Mariah. She went half limp in her arms and let out a slight sigh of relief.

“Thanks for saving me again,” she laughed before looking down and very belatedly realising she’d fallen into the shallow end. “...I’m allergic to water?”

Definitely one of the worst lies she’d ever told and honestly she knew she wasn’t going to save face. She was quite happy to just hang in Mariah’s arms as Penny’s finger honed in towards her nose. She found herself actually leaning towards it like some kind of weirdly excited dog, before she was moved out of the way of it by Mariah. It felt like a crisis had been averted… or maybe caused, because whenever Odessa had booped her back in paradise it had stopped her saying a lot of dumb shit.

“‘Ello,” she replied eventually to Penny with an almost genuine smile as if she hadn’t just fallen into a pool at the shock of seeing her and then almost drowned in three inches of water. “Fancy seeing you here, I’m assuming you got home alright after that strange girl sent us away because lemme tell you she must’ve got something wrong for me cause I very much did not plan to end up in Florida… It’s definitely a nice holiday, though! You really got right back involved in supernatural shit after all that huh. Not that I can say anything since I’m hanging out with a coven of witches wow!”

She cut herself off as she heard the tail end of Vashti’s rant and Mariah’s very confused shouts about it. She also had basically no idea what was going on, since she’d been too occupied with the uwuing monster during the end of the capture the flag.

"Or you? Who're you? What y'all ain't just secret members of the coven I ain't met or somethin', right?"

“She’s Penny,” Isla helpfully supplied. “Definitely ain’t a coven secret member, she’s way too competent for that, no offence to like everyone here.”

Not that anyone but Penny and Mariah would hear her (and it was pretty much a self burn considering she’d decided to join this mess).

---

---

Penny was going to miss. She never missed. Sigil glowing, her finger course corrected as Mariah lifted Isla out of the pool. However, she had to snap her hand back as she felt her weight begin to shift. Any further and she would’ve thrown herself into the pool, and frankly Penny didn’t put as much value into a good booping as other people rightfully did. Yet she still felt the disappointment. She adjusted her sun hat as she stood back up, readied a mock scowl to throw at laundry day cowpoke who’d “saved” Isla that immediately broke as the Scotswoman started rambling.

Penny was trying to find a way to get a word edgewise when all of their attention was drawn to the shouting at the other end of the pool. Some girl in a headscarf was yelling and gesturing wildly between Kimberly and Jordan’s cousin. Madison, right? Penny raised eyebrows graduated into a single laugh as she saw the tired look on Kimberly’s face. She gave her friend an unhelpful thumbs-up. It was becoming a trend where each time they offered to help someone they got yelled at instead. At least Kimberly wasn’t getting threatened with a gun. The shouting girl began to back down, but Penny kept an eye out just in case things turned ugly. She wouldn’t let Kimberly stew in witch drama if she didn’t think Kimberly couldn’t manage it.

"Or you? Who're you? What--" said Mariah. "--y'all ain't just secret members of the coven I ain't met or somethin', right?"

“I’m Pen—”

Isla, quick as ever with her tongue, beat Penny to her own introduction, “She’s Penny. Definitely ain’t a coven secret member, she’s way too competent for that, no offence to like everyone here.”

“Yeah I’m beginning to get that impression,” said a distracted Penny, her narrowed eyes relaxing as the situation at the other end of the pool seemed to diffuse itself as other members of the Coven came forward to put a stop to the drama. She shook her head and focused her attention on the two in front of her. “Anyway, yep, I just can’t get enough of this supernatural shit. Helping a friend hunt down a man eating monster in return for her helping me investigate a doomsday prophecy. You know.” She shrugged. “The usual.”

Penny’s eyes drifted over to Mariah as she spoke. Momentary confusion over her bizarre wardrobe faded as she smiled and gave a head nod up, “Thanks for saving my friend from the pool. I told her she needed to start wearing floaties everywhere after the boat incident.” Penny paused as she focused on the top of Mariah’s head, her brow knitted. She was pretty sure she had the same one back in the day. Shit, it was definitely gone now. “I like your hat.”

“And hold up, did you say you Florida was nice? Is that what drove you to joining a bunch of witches instead of just getting a plane ticket home?” said Penny, turning her attention back to Isla.

---

---

Madison unleashed the verbal assault as Vashti closed her eyes, her finger tracing the ridges of the quarter. She wasn’t trying to keep the Leviathan back. The Leviathan was in deep hibernation, unwilling to come out while Kimberly was present. Vashti just didn’t want her crying to be as obvious as it was while Madison hit her with brutal accusations. She was shocked by the remarks because of how deadly accurate they were. They pierced right through her scales and cut her deep. What had been her gut reaction just now, as Madison berated her? To cry, to play the victim, and to complain about how Madison always targeted her.

No, fuck that, this was unfair. She was a victim. Madison had assaulted her. Before that, Madison had insulted her, bullied her, picked on her. Kimberly had abandoned her to a pick of uncaring bitches that operated under false pretenses of being a sisterhood. She had been cursed to turn into a goddamn monster, and it was all because of some jerk from the internet. She had agreed to only meet with that asshole because she wanted to...Vashti choked back more tears. She was standing on a dangerous precipice. Not many people survived falling from the pedestal that had been built upon the refusal to take responsibility for their actions. She froze.

And took the verbal lashing in silence, still frozen on that edge.

Madison left. A pyrrhic victory if there ever had been one. The quarter was cutting into her flesh now. She hadn’t been pushed over. Not yet. Emily was the one to do that. Instantly, Vashti felt like pleading, backing up to say that she wanted to find a cure for both her and for Emily’s—somebody. Vashti let out a ragged breath. Emily had told her and Herik about needing to find a cure for a curse in private, and Vashti had practically forgotten about it entirely. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand as Emily called for Herik to come get her as if she was a bratty child throwing a tantrum that was incapable of taking care of herself. She was falling now. She wasn’t a child. She just wanted to know why everybody was always being so mean to her when all she had ever been was supportive and nice and friendly and any time she wasn’t it was because her curse made her do it and really they should appreciate all she has done for—

“Oh my god,” muttered Vashti, horrified, as she hit the bottom.

Opening her eyes, she shrugged off Herik, walked over to a deck chair as Emily and Lyss saved the situation, sat down, and, finally, kept her wayward mouth shut.

“She’s Penny! Definitely ain’t a coven secret member, she’s way too competent for that, no offence to like everyone here.”

“Yeah I’m beginning to get that impression,” mumbled Penny, causing Mariah to snicker in response. It was at this point that Mariah gently released Isla from her lifesaving hold. She listened to Penny in curious silence, especially when the doomsday prophecy and man-eating-monsters were brought up. Wait. There was ANOTHER man eating monster besides the thing in the woods? Yes, that was likely, but also, the concentration of man-eating monsters in this one state was already high, with the tigers and alligators involved-- Florida had too many damn teeth.

“I like your hat.”
Tilting her head to the side, Mariah stared up at Penny, then replied, "I kinda like yours too--" she took hers off and held it forward "--wanna trade?" Mariah shrugged.

“And hold up, did you say you Florida was nice? Is that what drove you to joining a bunch of witches instead of just getting a plane ticket home?” Penny asked Isla which caused Mariah to look down and also ask, "--yeah, why not jus' go back home ta Germany?" The seriousness with which she asked this clearly indicated she...wasn't joking.

"Or uh? Switzerland? Slovakia? Whateva-- I ain' an accent-ologist," Mariah shrugged, then would proceed to back-stroke into the deeper end of the pool, with her hat on her chest, whichever one she got. Staring up at the sky, Mariah gave a slight yawn, then told Isla, "If you go and there ain' a whole buncha monsters out there, jus' take me witcha, sis." Giving a loud yawn, she floated gently away from Isla and Penny for a solid second, and when she said that, her tone was halfway between resignation and--SNZZZZ. Mariah fell asleep as she floated further into the deep end of the pool, like a narcoleptic or some shit, but in her defense she was well over a full day without sleep. And. There she goes.

---

“I don…”

There it was. The disappointing answer for the Coven and for Max’s future. Lyss looked away from the ghost hunter. Her hope was just starting to fade, but as Kimberly changed her answer Lyss looked up at her with anxious excitement. Kimberly had a lead. The Coven could seek it out. If it worked for these girls and their families, it could work for Maximillian too. Maybe Lyss could solve the Coven and the DENs problems with one stone.

Everything looked like it was going to work out, until Lyss heard Kimberly mention the words “Dollhouse” and “black market.” Lyss immediately felt her stomach clench. She’d heard about the Dollhouse once in passing. Something about how they helped a fellow apparition dealer cure a curse that had fallen upon them during a job. She was surprised that she hadn’t remembered the encounter until now. Even so, if she’d remembered the dealer’s story, would she have shared it with the group? The Dollhouse operated in Miami. The central hub for the black market in the U.S. If the Coven wanted to go, to give this group a chance, Lyss would put herself at risk for being found. Could she risk a trip into the city if it meant helping the Coven? If it meant saving Max’s life?

Lyss swallowed as she watched Kimberly continue. It was only fair that if Kim got them into the group’s den, the Coven would help her in turn. What she didn’t expect to hear was the name Annabelle Heart escape the celebrity’s lips. For the second time in this conversation Lyss was uncomfortable. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise but she didn’t rub her neck again. It seemed like every corner the Coven turned Annabelle Heart loomed over them like a thunderstorm. The universe was bringing them closer and closer to her with every step. All of the signs were there that this was the time to act, but was the Coven ready? Was Lyss herself ready?

For a second there, Lyss thought that Maya had completely ignored the fact that Kimberly mentioned Annabelle until she asked if a cure would even work on Annabelle. Then Quinn, as insensitive as ever, asked if the cure would kill Annabelle. Lyss pressed her lips together and gave Kimberly an apologetic glance before turning to Quinn and Maya.

“There is a chance that the cure will work on Annabelle. It depends how much the curse has consumed her soul whether she will survive or not. There is also a large chance that the curse has become too powerful, and the cure won’t work at all.”

She looked back at Kimberly.

“You’re not the only ones looking for Annabelle Heart. There is an extra-normal organization called the DENs that is also trying to stop her, but they have been unsuccessful so far.” One of their own has fallen too, like poor Izzy. Their names would only fall into a long list of lives that Annabelle has taken so far.

“I think we have a deal, if Claudette agrees to what I have to say.” She gave Claudette a glance. The other leader needed to give her opinion too. “We will bring back a cure and give it to you, but I also think that we should ask for help from the DENs as well. They have many powerful agents, and they could be there to help us whether the cure works or fails. We cannot do this on our own.” She looked back at Claudette. “I don’t want to put anyone’s lives at risk, but I think it is time that we do something about Annabelle. She’s already taken Izzy. What if she comes for us next?”

She looked at Kimberly now, a question popping into her head. It was more of an itch that Lyss wanted to scratch.

“Do you know anything about the origin of Annabelle’s condition? Are you sure that she is cursed, and not just affixed to some powerful apparition?” She also wanted to know about the one who made her this way. “Is Luther Saul responsible for her rage?”

“I just want to fill in the details that I’m missing about this. I’d like to know everything you have about Annabelle Heart and what caused this in the first place.”

---

"... Do you really think we can survive on our own?"

That was the first thing that the Jaws said to Madison when she claimed him back from Claudette. She sighed as she kept walking into the house and far as she could tell, nobody followed her. It was confirming her suspicions that nobody wanted her here and honestly, she didn't want to be here either. Madison wished that they could see the light but people like Vashti were actively bringing down the Coven more than people like Emily. It was with their self-important, "feel sorry for meeeee!", act that distracted them from their actual shittiness. Madison wished that things didn't go the way that they did, but the Coven were their own worst enemy if they put Vashti, a bitch that didn't do anything, above Madison - someone that had their back no matter what.

Well, Madison still does.

The first thing that Madison did was go for the wine cellar and took the last four bottles of expensive rich people wine that they had. She held two under her armpit and the other two in her hands as she walked out. But, she stopped when she heard someone running up. Madison turned her head and saw Grace... someone she really couldn't be mad at because, well, she was too new to the Coven for Madison to feel betrayed by her.

"Hey! Madison! D-Do- _fuck -Don't leave! Quinn told me what she saw yesterday... I...I know you would never hurt coven members like that. I just wanna know what happened exactly, I... I am on your side already. I can tell from the look of your face yesterday that it was not on you to do something like that. Whenever you do something you always owned up to it."

Madison heard Grace out and sighed. Unlike Vashti, she couldn't stand around pitying herself, she was far too prideful and tough for that. Still, she did think that it was nice that Grace was willing to see from her perspective and understand. The only problem was that she couldn't come up with a good answer to her question... but she wasn't going to dance around it either.

"I would, but... I don't even know what happened, honestly," Madison said. "After Vashti transformed back, the Jaws just... locked me in a shell of my own body and then attacked Vashti. I don't even know why I think he was trying to kill her."

Madison reached into her track jacket and pulled out the T-Rex necklace and stared at it. "This is weird because he never did this before- once we went to the strip club he started acting like he had a mind of his own all along!" She shrugged. Madison would toss him but... she wasn't stupid enough to go out there without an abstraction with the DENS and (if she exists) Annabelle Heart running about. She knew that the Jaws was incredibly powerful, and she was the strongest in the Coven... but she was willing to put her strength elsewhere.

"I wish I could convince everyone else, but they're too busy buying into Vashti's Bambi act," Madison rolled her eyes. "I want to apologize to her, but... people like her live off this kind of bullshit, as you can tell. They would rather keep this pity-act goin' as long as they could. She probably doesn't even want to be cured." Madison rolled her eyes.

However, around this time she started glowing... and out of her back came three long, skeletal, snake-like necks that ended with miniature tyrannosaurus rex skulls. They hunched over as they faced Grace.

"... Our intention," The leftmost skull began,

"Was to eliminate the beast," The center skull continued,

"While she was weakened," The rightmost skull finished.

"Our best interests,"

"Were our master's,"

"And that beast was a threat to the entire Coven,"

"We will protect our master,"

"With the savagery,"

"Of a cornered animal,"

"Or we have no..."

All three skulls spoke in unison to Grace.

"... Purpose."

---

“So you’re saying that if we have enough money, we’ll be able to get some kind of cure from them? Or is the price more than just monetary? Because it almost always seems to be when it comes to shady dealings.”

Someone like Kimberly was in the game long enough to tell that what Maya meant to ask was the second question. It was a... icebreaker question. Maya had her concerns, and even Kimberly was concerned. Fortunately, it seemed that nobody here knew anything about the Dollhouse!

"Far as I know," Kimberly fibbed to Maya, "They only want money, but if you follow a script I'll provide, everything should-" Hopefully "-go fine."

"Grace is rich as shit-"

"... And did you forget we have Blake Schmidt at our beck and call?" Emily was relatively quiet during the whole exchange because she was, for once, satisfied with her sisters. Still, Quinn had to open her mouth all the time and be dumb and it was quite honestly eye-roll inducing. "Why should we waste Grace's money when we have him?"

"Does she die when her affliction gets removed? Quinn by the way, my bad for not introducing myself as soon as you got here."

Suddenly another girl was giving Kimberly the stink eye! It was almost like these people didn't trust her! Well, they're a Coven of Witches and she's a Ghost Hunter. Unless they were making pacts with shady Apparitions or doing other less than savory things. The group had Claudette, Vashti, and Madison... she was certain they were at least trying to be on the straight and narrow. However, the girl's question kind of hurt Kimberly. It was less of the question itself and more of how she said it. There was a flat emotionlessness to her tone that implied that she didn't care or even wanted her to die.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Kimberly. Hopefully, there's a chance I can still save her," Kimberly answered and gauged for her reaction. "I know she killed one of your sisters, but... she isn't in control of her actions right now. It's the curse compelling her to kill people. And I will do everything in my power to save her."

Maybe that wasn't the answer that Quinn was hoping for, but Kimberly was a woman of her word. "... What if it was one of your sisters that was cursed to do this? Would you do everything to help her?"

“There is a chance that the cure will work on Annabelle. It depends on how much the curse has consumed her soul whether she will survive or not. There is also a large chance that the curse has become too powerful, and the cure won’t work at all.”

"That is correct," Kimberly affirmed with a smile as the responsible leader (she was starting to like her!) answered Quinn. She figured that she knew a bit about the supernatural, but the question was why? Still, it was a welcomed experience to meet another expert! Maybe they can compare notes. "Hopefully, the cure will work but if I have other options, then we'll find a way to kill her. As much as I think she needs help, I can't let her kill people."

“...There is an extra-normal organization called the DENs-”

Upon hearing that acronym, Kimberly tilted her head at Lyss. As she had never heard of that organization before.

"... The what?"

“I think we have a deal if Claudette agrees to what I have to say. We will bring back a cure and give it to you, but I also think that we should ask for help from the DENs as well. They have many powerful agents, and they could be there to help us whether the cure works or fails. We cannot do this on our own. I don’t want to put anyone’s lives at risk, but I think it is time that we do something about Annabelle. She’s already taken Izzy. What if she comes for us next?”

It seemed it was finally Claudette's time to speak. She was still massaging her head after that annoying exchange between Vashti and Madison but it seems that they are back on track. Honestly, Lyss was proposing that they join the fight against Annabelle Heart...? Claudette didn't know. She intended to leave for New York the second that she was cured because she had zero intentions on fighting their war. However, she wasn't going to agree to something on the behalf of the Coven, especially since she was planning on leaving.

"I don't know..." Claudette seemed hesitant to agree.

"... Well, how about we let whoever wants to join this insane mission decide for themselves opposed to making it a group order?" Emily suggested to both Lyss and Claudette as she uncrossed her arms. Far as Emily was concerned, Lyss was a DENS puppet and the worst part was that she was more or less the leader. It was unfortunate that Emily was the only brain in this Lesbian Sex Cult, but still... she was going to contradict her thoughts. She took a step forward as she sighed.

"... Like me," Emily hung her head, and finally explained her reasons for joining the Coven, "Before the Coven was formed my sister was attacked by an Apparition, she survived, but she was left with a curse that's slowly killing her. What I'm trying to say is, help me cure my little sister and I will join this insane mission to stop Annabelle." If she even exists. I'm still not convinced that she's legit.

“Do you know anything about the origin of Annabelle’s condition? Are you sure that she is cursed, and not just affixed to some powerful apparition? Is Luther Saul responsible for her rage? I just want to fill in the details that I’m missing about this. I’d like to know everything you have about Annabelle Heart and what caused this in the first place.”

The questions that Lyss barraged Kimberly made her glow with compassion as she could tell she was a very introspective supernatural expert at that! She liked it. She had an answer to each question that Lyss presented, but something didn't feel right. She opened her mouth but closed it because she knew that words were... insufficient.

"I know the answer to all your questions... and how about I show you?" Kimberly said as she walked up to Lyss and grabbed onto her hand with her own and locked her fingers with her own. "Everyone... well, everyone who, actually cares... grab hands, close your eyes, and then clear your minds." Lyss felt Claudette grabbing her and Claudette felt Emily grabbing hers.

Kimberly focused as she tried to transmit the information that she gained from her mind to their own.

And then the Recollection began...

---

"... Great job, Naomi,"

A group of around five girls stood staring at the ruined tire of their vehicle, a silver Dodge Grand Caravan that had all the tires destroyed. Which would have been fine if they were on a busy highway... but they were on the side of the road in a heavily wooded part of South Carolina. They didn't see a house for miles before their tire got shredded.

"I knew we should have taken the highway but you just had to flex, "Oh, I've lived in South Carolina all my life, I know these roads like the back of my hand"!" One girl, with brown hair and blue eyes and relatively pale skin and a bony figure, spoke as she rolled her eyes. She pulled out her phone as she eyed the big red X next to her phone's reception and had to make a dramatic show of rolling her eyes yet again. "Now we're stuck. In the middle of a hell state. No phone reception. Nothing. We're probably going to get eaten by alligators or something."

"Kiss my ass, Annabelle," A short and slender African-American girl spoke her name like an insult, as she put a hand on her hip. "Like I knew the tires were going to get ripped apart like this."

"Something doesn't seem right, y' know," Another girl who had a head of flowing brown hair and similarly pale skin spoke. "Did anyone see us running over something? Just like how did the tires get destroyed like this?"

"Beats me, the roads on this fucking state are shit," Annabelle shrugged as she shook her head before she looked down the long ass road. It was around this time where the storm clouds up above finally opened up and it started raining. Hard actually, as Annabelle facepalmed and shook her head. "... Well, we better start walking, maybe we can reach Myrtle Beach before the sun rises." She snorted.

However, they saw a car coming down their road and an idea popped in her head. "Everyone! Wave your hands around like idiots!" Annabelle shouted as she did just that...

A minivan came rolling down the road and came to a stop right before them. The window rolled down and it revealed an older, black hair woman in the seat with a child in the other seat staring at them. "Oh, you got a flat?"

"... Obviously," Annabelle said with a roll of her eyes. "We got no cellphone reception out here, can you call somebody?"

The woman reached down and pulled out her phone and revealed that she also doesn't have any reception. "Sorry, cellphones don't work too good out here."

"Do you at least know how to change a tire?" Annabelle asked.

She looked at the child, then back to Annabelle.

"... Does it look like anyone knows how to change a tire here?" The woman answered. "You know what? Get in, you all shouldn't stand out here in the rain like this." She unlocked the doors.

"Um, no thanks?" Naomi answered.

"Sorry, but I don't want to become a victim to a serial killer or something," Annabelle said as she looked back at Naomi. The rest of the girls seemed to be fine with going with the woman and Annabelle didn't want to get stuck out here. "You can stay with the car if you want."

Naomi shook her head as she just watched the rest of the girls and jammed up into the minivan.

A short ride later and they arrived at her house in the middle of the woods and it was a huge three-story house with a large number of different trucks and other cars in front of it. So that implied that she was a family woman, or had a bunch of friends over. Still, Annabelle glanced at her phone and still no reception. They definitely would have a landline out here... but then again it was South Carolina. Hopefully, it's not like the Texas Chainsaw massacre where they're a cannibal family. Annabelle and company got out of the vehicle and were lead into the house by the woman.

"You can use the phone," The woman answered as she walked into the kitchen, she pointed at the yellow phone on the wall by the kitchen. "But I'm going to have dinner ready shortly."

The rest of the girls found themselves sitting on the sofa and turned on the really large widescreen TV and started watching away. There was something wrong here, and Annabelle was not staying the night. She just wanted to get a ride to their motel room in Myrtle Beach and then they were going to party away from this little hitch. Annabelle walked over to the phone and grabbed it and then stared at the number pad.

... She has no clue who the hell to even call.

Right when she was about to ask that nice lady where the phone book was when she felt something prick her in the neck. "... Huh?" Annabelle turned her head in that direction and she saw the woman with a needle in her hand and then her legs started going weak and everything went dark...

---

"... Why didn't you tell me there was a sixth one!?"

"Saul, I couldn't get her to come! I didn't want to look suspicious."

"You shouldn't have taken them then... no matter, the men are looking for her as we speak and we have a sacrifice. We're going have to pack up and move shop after this."

She heard a conversation as she slowly came to... she heard the rain pounding outside but she was not in the room she was... how long ago? Jesus. She came to and she looked around and she was in a concrete cell and she tried to move but she felt a yank constricting her by her foot. Annabelle looked and saw that she was chained to the wall. It caused a jingle and she looked up to see that very same woman and a strange man having a conversation.

"Oh, you're awake," The man said.

"What the fuck is going on?!" Annabelle asked. "Who are you?"

"Not important," The man said as he walked away, "You just stay put, keep an eye on her."

And then Annabelle's attention went to the woman as she screamed, "What the fuck is going on!? Is this a joke or something?!"

The woman walked over with a disconcerting smile on her face and then knelt until she was eye-to-eye with Annabelle. She said, "It's okay, it's okay, you're about to see something beautiful,"

"... What?!"

"You have been chosen to meet Mother, she will take you inside of her and you will see perfection. I've seen it and it's beautiful. Eye-opening...."

"What the fuck are you talking ab- Sophia!? Sophia!?"

"I'm here!" Her sister answered right down the hall. "I don't know where the others are."

"They're meeting Mother," The woman answered. "They're going to be happy."

"Go to hell, you fucking psychopath!" Annabelle shouted.

"I gave myself to Mother, so will-"

At that point, a monstrous boom was heard like metal slamming against concrete. The woman turned her head and it was barely a second later a matter stone went flying through the air and slammed the woman directly in the face. The sickening sound of her skull being shattered into a million pieces ingrained itself into Annabelle's soul as she heard footsteps. Annabelle was terrified to see just who was coming but she saw...

Naomi.

The black girl was covered in dirt and blood as she was clutching her arm. Blood was dripping from underneath her hand as she grits her teeth as she walked up to the cell.

"... Hate to say I told you so," Naomi said, "But I knew they were up to some weird shit."

Naomi released her bloody arm and pointed her hand at Annabelle and the chain that was connecting her to the wall was snapped in half. Seemingly out of nowhere. She felt relieved feeling free but she had a question as the cell door was ripped open by... nothing?

"What the fuck? Are... you doing this?" Annabelle answered, "How did you find us... how are you doing this?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Magic." Naomi answered in a way that Annabelle thought was sarcastic, as always. "Don't worry about how; let's get the fuck out of here." She said as she walked up to Sophia's cell and released her as she walked out. She rotated her ankle a bit.

"What about the others?" Annabelle asked, "We... can't leave them."

"Let's call the police and let them handle it," Naomi said as she walked towards the door. "Sorry to say it, but I'm bleeding out here."

"But..." Annabelle said as she realized that was probably the best choice right now.

Running.

---

They quickly made their way to the cellar door and Naomi did her weird superpower shit to blow it open. They were immediately assaulted by the monsoon level rainstorm that was going on outside. Annabelle sighed as her best chance was to retrace their steps and find the police. She didn't want anything to do with this weird cult-y bullshit but something felt wrong about leaving her friends to whatever fate that man had planned. The three quickly ran out into the rain until her moral compass was forcing her to stop. The rain was pouring down on them as Naomi turned around and looked at her.

"... What's wrong?! We gotta go!"

"I can't leave them," Annabelle said,

"Well, we gotta!" Naomi shouted. "The longer we fuck aroun-"

There was that loud boom as Naomi's head was splattered into a million bits right in front of their eyes. Both of the Heart sisters screamed as they looked back towards the house and Annabelle saw that man from earlier... he was aiming a smoking revolver directly at them with a cold look on his face. Her eyes glanced downwards towards Naomi's dead body and she didn't even think. She grabbed Sophia and hauled ass as fast as she could... she didn't even consider the possibility of Saul shooting them. She just had to get the fuck out of there. Annabelle and Sophia disappeared into the treeline."

Saul lowered his gun, "... I should have known one of them practiced witchcraft." He shook his head as his men took his side and he pointed forward. "Get them, I want them alive so they can be sacrificed."

And they charged into the woods wielding rifles, pitchforks, knives, and other weapons that they had on hand.

The two girls were hauling ass through the woods, trying to get the hell out of there. They could hear the shouts of the crazy cultists behind them as they had no clear where they even going. They just had to get the hell out of there. Unfortunately, the barely noticed that they reached a very steep hill and barely stopped at the edge.

"Shit!" Annabelle said... and heard those psychopaths catch up.

"Stop!" One of them shined a bright flashlight on them and Annabelle covered her face. She could hear them approaching her and then she took a step back instinctively- forgetting that steep incline that was right behind her. Annabelle felt her footing completely give out as she felt herself fall backward. Annabelle screamed as she lost her footing and went tumbling down the hill.

"Annabel-" Sophia screamed before she was snatched by the men.

---

---

The whole world was spinning as Annabelle went tumbling down the hill... she hit a tree when she reached the bottom of the incline and screamed in pain as she felt her forearm snap in half. The terrified woman got up to her foot and then loudly yelled again as she looked around. The adrenaline was wearing off and she could start to feel all the agony... Annebelle was hitting in pain, but she had to get out of her- no, she had to go back for Sophia! She couldn't let them do things to her little sister!

The rain stopped, the clouds faded, and she looked around and... she heard the men coming. Annabelle's eyes landed on a cave and she quickly ran inside. Unaware that she had left a trail for them to follow. She panted heavily as she kept running more and more throughout the dark cave and she forgot that bears exist. Or that she couldn't see a damn thing in this cave. Annabelle tripped and she put her hand out and fucked up her other, good, hand. She sighed.

However, she saw the cave get illuminated with a strange light... she lifted her head and saw a creature of some sort.

So she did the only natural reaction.

She screamed at the top of her lungs and crawled backward until she hit the wall of the cave, and then kept screaming. "... What are you?!"

The creature with long, predator-like claws, floating horns, and glowing red eyes sat cross-legged as he looked down on Annabelle. Not a hint of emotion on his face. "I am the Wendigo, the man-eating monster that inhabits the woods," The monster said with a deep, gravelly, voice, "You are too late to become my dinner."

"That's..." Annabelle didn't know what to say as she realized that monsters and superpowers were real. "... Thank you."

"I can tell you are in need of help," The Wendigo answered, "It is your lucky day that I am in a very... generous mood. Tell me... what is your name?" He growled.

"Ann-Annebelle Candy Heart," She answered as she looked around, "Wha-what's even going on?"

"I have lived in the woods for months now, and I can tell you I am not the only predator out there, I saw your friend's death... Unfortunately, she would have made a great breakfast," The creature chuckled again as he floated over to her. "Your friend was an Awakened, and if it wasn't for her... you wouldn't have a chance."

"I don't know... what even is an Awakened?"

"Out there exists another world that intersects with your own, the best way to explain it would be magic," The Wendigo explained, "That world is the same world that spawned me, and can grant fantastical powers."

The Wendigo stuck his hand out and flipped it over and appearing out of nowhere was a black heart, still beating, as it was surrounded with black fire. "... And I've come to offer you one."

"What... is it?" Annabelle asked as she stared at the heart in morbid curiosity.

"The key to stating your lust for revenge," He said, "The Hunger."

She had no clue what a Wendigo even was or if this was a good idea, but she could hear the men approaching her... That heart, that Hunger, was seeming more and more appetizing as she thought about it. The Wendigo climbed up, hunched over as it stood on three of its limbs. The Heart of the Hunger floated there in front of Annabelle.

"Accept my power or die," The Wendigo started, "The choice is yours."

The Apparition disappeared deeper into the cave as Annabelle stared at the heart. The footsteps of the men echoed and she just sat there... before she grabbed the heart and jammed it into her mouth and ate it fast as she could. It started as the worst tasting thing she had ever eaten like she was eating rotten flesh. She stopped... but then she wanted more. And more. She finished eating the heart...

... Her pursuers shined a flashlight on her and saw her hunched over something, eating.

"Stop right there," He said as he pointed a Glock at her.

Annabelle lunged at him, her fingertips sharpened into claws and her mouth was full of sharp teeth. She let out an inhuman roar as he fired wildly at her screaming...

... It didn't help.

---

Another group of men was going all over the woods, looking for Annabelle.

"Where the hell did she go?!" He asked.

They kept going through the woods before they saw a body on the ground. Someone had gotten torn to shreds by... an animal? He was covered in claw marks and his organs were all over the place. He loudly wretched when he saw the sight.

"Oh, God!" He vomited.

"Some animal must have got him!" He said... before they heard screaming in the distance among a bunch of shouting and shooting... then it went silent. "What the fuck was that?!"

"I don't know," He said,

"We gotta get the fuck out of here!" Another one shouted as he ran back towards the way he came... and it wasn't long before they heard him screaming.

"Shit! Everyone stick together!" They all went back to back, aiming their weapons in every single direction that they could. Even though some of them were armed with simple pitchforks and baseball bats. They were tense, and the one with the rifle had his finger on the trigger, ready to fire. Sweat was dripping down his head as he bared his teeth. He looked to the left, then to the right...

... and when his gaze centered he saw Annabelle, staring at him, covered in blood... with their friend in hand, his body was completely limp.

"Fuck!" He screamed as he fired a round off at her and completely missed and Annabelle tossed him at the group and knocked them over like they were a bunch of bowling pins. At this time she closed the distance on them and the one with the pitchfork was the first to die as she rammed her claws directly through his skull. They had somewhat gained their footing as Annabelle lunged at the next person and bit down on his throat and ripped it out with her teeth. The man with the pitchfork charged her and rammed her through the stomach with it and slammed her into the tree... and he let out a sigh as it was all over.

Then she stabbed him in the stomach with her claws before she pulled it downwards and let his guts spill out. Annabelle pulled the pitchfork out of her stomach as the man with the rifle decided to cut and run. The wounds inflicted instantly closed as she held it... and then charged him and managed to tackle a grown man to the ground. He screamed as he tried to fight back but Annabelle ripped him to pieces and violently shoved everything she could down her throat...

... until he stopped moving and let her eat.

---

In the distance, she could see a massive fire.

The house in which her life was turned upside down was set on fire, likely by that coward. Annabelle kept walking towards the house without a care in the world as she held the man's spine which had his cleanly picked skull at the end. She walked past her friend's dead body as her focus was on one person, who was on the ground.

Sophia.

She was face down on the ground with an obvious hole in the back of her head. She was shot in the head by somebody and then she flipped her body over as tears ran down her face. Annabelle's hearing was enhanced and she heard a car starting and then Annabelle dropped her body and ran around to the front of the house. She caught a glimpse of the man that started all of this in a red car as he sped down the road.

Annabelle watched him leave, staring at him as rage built in her heart.

Annabelle began marching down the road after Saul and... at some point, Sophia joined her. She grabbed onto her hand and walked alongside her with that chipper smile on her face. Annabelle's mind was so degraded that she couldn't comprehend it anymore, the only thing on her mind was her target...

"... Saul."

---

... The Recollection ended and barely a few seconds had passed in real-time.

Kimberly released Lyss's hand and took a step back as she looked her in the eyes. She gauged her reaction, no she gauged the reaction of everyone present. Kimberly sighed as she began her explanation,

"I got on Annabelle's trail about a few weeks after all of that went down," Kimberly started, "I caught reports of a bunch of people being killed by a "monster" in South Carolina and I decided to investigate... then I saw that Recollection and knew everything. It was... too late for me to stop Annabelle by conventional means because she simply grown too powerful. If only I was sooner, but..."

She hung her head in shame before valiantly held a fist up around her chest as she said,

"... But, I am going to set things right, I am going to be the force that helps people and I'm going to find a way to save her - and then I'm going after Luther Saul and bringing a stop to him, the Forgiven, and whatever the hell they worship. I promise you that no more of your sisters are going to fall to Annabelle."

It was less of a speech to Lyss and the Coven, and more a speech to herself. This call to action was a mixture of disgust at Saul, sympathy for Annabelle, and... guilt. She failed to help people at Farmer Hill, and now she's continuing to fail people.

Kimberly was going to protect the world the only way she knows how.

---

For a moment, Lyss felt like she’d asked too many questions. Then she realized that she didn’t give a fuck. If this was where the universe was taking her, to Annabelle Heart, she wanted to know all she could before she got herself involved. Hell, even Emily was agreeing to join the fight. It was shocking to hear, but Lyss was glad to know that at least one of her sisters was going to be by her side.

The ghost hunter didn’t react like she’d asked too many questions anyways. In fact, it looked like she was pleased to hear them. Lyss could sense a mutual respect between them already, and she felt better. The celebrity was beginning to show a deeper side to herself than capturing footage of apparitions and following leads.

Still, Kimberly hesitated instead of giving up the information outright. Lyss was confused at first, but then she understood what Kim was getting at before they’d even touched palms. She found herself intertwining fingers with a stranger with ease. Her eyes slowly closed and she was comforted by the touch of one of her sisters too. She wasn’t the only one that needed to see this. To know these horrible truths. They’d experience the horror of it together.

They’d experience their first recollection, together.

---

When the recollection had finally ended, Lyss immediately broke contact with the rest of them. She took a step back, her breathing heavy as her heart continued to race. At first she looked away from the group. Her mind was reeling. It all made sense now. The tragic history of Annabelle Heart and Luther Saul’s sinister plan. The Mother? She hadn’t heard of her before. Still, she knew that something much, much darker was happening in the background while Annabelle took the spotlight. Annabelle would just be the beginning of a war. It shed new light on the hungry woman. If anything, it looked like she was on the right side of this fight.

Yet they still had to kill her to finish this.

Once Lyss had calmed her breathing again, Kimberly had just finished her speech. Filled with a new sense of direction, Lyss looked first at her sisters and then Kimberly. “I... I understand now. Annabelle Heart must be stopped. The cure will only do so much, but we must strike while it is battling the curse.” She ran her hands over her forehead to push any stray hairs back. A simple soothing act to clear her mind of the images from the recollection.

“I’m afraid that it’s too late to save her soul, but we can save the souls of anyone involved with Saul after she’s taken out. ... I don’t know what this Mother figure is, but I can tell you that she is a much greater threat to the world than Annabelle Heart.”

And we barely have a chance of defeating her ourselves, but we have to try.

“I will be by your side to bring down Saul, but we’ll have to leave for Miami as soon as possible. The stronger the curse becomes, the harder it will be to stop her.”

“And we must help our own before we try.”

---

---

“Oh yeah, sounds like loads of fun,” Isla nodded even when it sounded like the opposite. She was right about them being shown doomsday though! Not that she could remember the name of the guy who did it yet… but Penny was investigating it! No need for her to worry. “I’m sure you’ll get to the bottom of that whole doomsday thing cause, y’know, would be a real bummer if it actually happened.”

She nodded as Penny talked to Mariah, not at all put out by the teasing jab in her direction. She had just almost drowned in the pool… and hey, Penny had called her a friend. She guessed they were? They’d survived whatever shit happened in Paradise together (for half of it). While listening she blinked out of the pool and shook herself out, much like a dog would after a swim.

“And hold up, did you say you Florida was nice? Is that what drove you to joining a bunch of witches instead of just getting a plane ticket home?”

"--yeah, why not jus' go back home ta Germany?"

“Scotland,” Isla corrected. “But aye, I’ll take you there someday.”

Not that the other girl heard her, since she was floating away and napping. She turned back to Penny with a frown as she considered her question. “Welllll… You know, I don’t have a passport or anything that identifies me so I get the feeling they’ll take one look at me and throw me to a random country. I’d rather stick around America with some company than be thrown out elsewhere, you know?”

Though she was pretty certain if she found a british embassy, she could get everything sorted. Maybe a bit of a hassle but definitely a possibility. Or she could get in contact with her parents. But there was something holding her back from that… she didn’t really want to explore that right now. Or ever. She was quite content to stay here, mess around with a crazy coven for a while (some of the members were nice!).

She turned her head to see the others doing some gay hand holding thing. She had no idea what the hell was going on but she didn’t want to be left out.

“I’m gonna join that!” In no way as an excuse to avoid awkward questions, Isla blinked over and grabbed Emily’s hand, joining the Recollection.

---

---

"Far as I know they only want money, but if you follow a script I'll provide, everything should go fine."

Maya let out a long, thoughtful hum at that. She didn’t entirely believe it but didn’t have any reason not to. And if it was just money then that was easy, since Blake was basically their sugar daddy sans the sex. She tilted her head and listened carefully to what Lyss and Kimberly had to say… and even Quinn, since she wasn’t talking absolute garbage for once (she didn’t feel bad at all for ignoring her earlier, though).

"... Well, how about we let whoever wants to join this insane mission decide for themselves opposed to making it a group order?"

Wow, Emily said something that she agreed with for once. It was stupid to make it a group decision and it really wasn’t how they worked at all. If they even worked, it was really pushing it to describe the coven that way.

Unlike Emily she wasn’t so quick to agree to join, waiting for more of an explanation and joining the shit handholding (not without pulling a disgusted face) and the recollection.

---

Maya’s hand jerked back from the hand she’d grabbed hold of (that weird scottish girl), visibly wincing. Her first thought was that men fucking sucked. Especially men running cults. She didn’t know much about this Saul person but she knew he was a dick. No wonder Anabelle turned to some horrible creature to help her get revenge.

She understood that.

“I’ll join,” she spoke up, folding her arms. “I don’t have anything that needs curing, but I know others do, and I’d rather avoid meeting a horrible end because I didn’t help. The more of us, the better, or something.”

“I’ll also come!” Isla piped up, with a wide smile. “Wait… what are we doing?”

Maya glared at her and she quieted down before anyone actually answered her question. She’d find out on the way, she guessed.

“And I’ll help with going against Saul after we find the cure.”

---

---

Penny looked down at the offered cowboy hat, then up at Mariah, and then back down at the hat. Her eyes betrayed the mental arithmetic that was running through her head as she tried to determine how she’d look in it, the chances that it might contain lice, and the likelihood that Kimberly would ridicule her for performing a hatswap with a complete stranger. She settled on the fact that she’d look absolutely awesome in it, Kim could easily delouse it in a snap with her abstraction, and that her friend wouldn’t dare pass up a chance to knock Penny down a peg or two. Plus, her hat was just a skosh cuter. With a click of her tongue and apologetic smile she shook her head no.

“You pull it off better,” she said, politely lying as if she had intentions for running for office someday. She glanced across the pool, trying to eavesdrop on the other group while playing the part of the handshaker and the baby kisser. She was only able to pick up bits and pieces.

“Welllll… You know, I don’t have a passport or anything that identifies me so I get the feeling they’ll take one look at me and throw me to a random country. I’d rather stick around America with some company than be thrown out elsewhere, you know?”

“I’d say it would depend on the company,” said Penny, folding her arms as she side-eyed the rest of the Coven. “Now I ain’t much of a gambler, but I think the odds are that you’d get deported somewhere better than fricking Florida.” Although, considering they had a nice beach house, perhaps not. It sparked Penny’s curiosity. “Hey, how’d y’all even afford a place like—”

“I’m gonna join that!” blurted out Isla before vanishing, reappearing on the other side of the pool to get in on the daisy chain.

Unable to control the roll of her eyes she hid them behind her shades instead. Penny turned to restate her question to Mariah...who had drifted off towards the deep-end of the pool. On further assessment, she had drifted off in the deep-end as well. Frowning, Penny pulled out a cigarette from her fanny pack and lit it, watching as the Coven crowded around Kimberly to join in on the Recollection. She noticed the girl who’d caused a ruckus was now sitting silently away from the others, sulking. It appeared like she didn’t want to partake. Penny drifted over to the main group, sidling up to Rowan.

“What’d I miss?”

By the time the others were done with their Recollection, Rowan had caught Penny up to speed on the matter at hand. Ashing her cigarette, Penny tilted her chin up and glared down at the Coven, as if she was calculating how capable they actually were of doing what Kimberly had asked of them. Penny took a drag. Really, it was on par with going to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription. If it was something truly daunting, Kimberly would’ve trusted her to do it. They couldn’t possibly cock it all u—a cloud of smoke exploded out of Penny’s mouth as she failed to prevent the bark of laughter that she let loose as one of the girls fell on her ass. She pulled down her hat and bit her lip, thankful that her sunglasses had hidden the twinkle in her eyes.

Yeah, no.

Penny pulled herself together in time for Kimberly to make her statement of intent and her promise to the Coven. There was nothing there that Penny could disagree with in her words. She flicked her cigarette. As her friend finished her spiel, Penny clasped a hand on her shoulder. It was a show of deep respect and unbreakable support. But more importantly, it allowed her to get close enough to whisper into Kimberly’s ear without seeming suspicious.

“I’m going to join them. Make sure they don’t fuck this up,” she said in a low voice so that only Kimberly could hear her. She even turned her head to hide her lips from the others.

It wasn’t just incompetence Penny was concerned about. One of them had voiced her belief that Annabelle was beyond saving. Honestly, Penny felt the same. However, if Kimberly meant to save the girl, then Penny would see to it that it got done. That meant making sure the Coven picked up the correct cure, instead of something that would make the Hunger easier to take out. She cast one final uncertain stare at Lyss before changing her expression and removing her sunglasses. Smiling, she stepped forward to join Kimberly at her side.

“Think of it like we’re saving all of the people,” said Penny lightly, correcting Quinn’s statement to Isla. Obviously, she wasn’t serious; she waved her words off with the back of her hand. Besides, one girl had for certain survived the alleged end of the world. “It sounds more important that way.”

“Oh, I’m coming too,” said Penny. It wasn’t an offer. Snickering, she added, “Honestly, I just need to see what helping the living shit out of someone looks like.”

Herik watched Vashti shrugged him off and move to another seat, taking herself out of the conversation. He wanted to join her, but figured she needed her space after everyone jumped down her throat. He could tell she was spiraling, barely keeping it together with the way she clenched her hand around the quarter he gave her. He wishes there was more he could do to make her feel better, help her, but he couldn't fix any of her problems. The only thing he could do was make sure she knew he was there if she needed him. He shook his arm and Asta appeared. He motioned for him to sit at Vashti's side so she wasn't completely alone. The giant lion brought him comfort during his first week with his cast on. Maybe he could do the same for her.

It took longer than it should have for Kimberly to point them in a direction to get what he, Emily, and Vashti needed. The problems were A) a dicey black market organization that could get them in trouble with DENS if they're caught, B) cost more money than he had, and C) they'd have to help Kimberly take out Annabelle Heart and possibly die trying. Just when he thought there was finally a solution to help his mother it dashed all his hopes and dreams, because he was too broke to afford whatever price the Dollhouse wanted. Emily suggested they dip into Blake Schmidt's wallet, but he didn't want to do that. That meant he'd owe him something one day or he'd come to collect if there's ever a moment he stops fearing the Coven. Taking money for a crooked man to give to a more crooked black market organization? Since when did the Coven get caught up in illegal activity and world saving events? He was so caught up in his own that he almost missed connecting to his sisters to watch Kimberly's memories. Or rather, someone else's memories.

And it was disgusting what happened to that poor girl. She didn't deserve to suffer what happened to her. Damn his empathy. Sometimes he thinks it's just better to not care, but he can't help it. His mother would ashamed of him if he didn't do the best he could for people in need.

"I'll take your word Kimberly that none of us will die helping you, but the Dollhouse doesn't seem like the type of place we should get mixed up in. Are you sure you don't know anyone else that's not illegal that can help us? I need to be sure before we go knocking on Mr. Schmidt's door asking for a hand out."

---

"Purpose... Hold on, I'm new and trying to piece everything together, there's just a lot of information on the table right now. Your uh... Uh... Master did say that Vashti wanted to be cured of being a big lizard thingy right? Killing Vashti isn't curing her, so maybe... Don't do that next time?"

Given the Jaw's nature, he was difficult to read the Apparition like any other human being. He had no facial expressions, nor did the beast gesture or even change the tone it speaks in. The only way to get its true feelings was from its words.

"We were not made privy,"

"To this information,"

At this moment each of the Jaw's skulls looked at each other and after a brief moment of silence, they all faced Grace yet again.

"Regardless,"

"We were protecting our master,"

"From the beast,"

"We will give the beast the benefit of the doubt,"

"But should she attack us again,"

All three skulls leaned into Grace's face until they were merely inches away. They moved slowly not to get the impression that they were going to attack her, but given the Jaw's inherent nature Grace was probably intimidated in some way. They spoke in unison when they said,

"We will show no quarter."

Madison was pretty quiet when the Jaws spoke... not that she was intimidated by the thing given that she defeated him in combat before. She was trying to understand how he thinks, and get some reason why he attacked Vashti. Trying was the keyword here because it was probably impossible for her to decipher the thought process of a dinosaur. From what she gathered, the Jaws saw Vashti as a threat even after she transformed back. Madison sighed as she finally spoke.

"Please," Madison said, "Don't do anything unless I tell you to, this... wasn't helping."

She sighed and the Jaws were silent before he said.

"Very well."

"We will obey."

"Master,"

"... And don't call me that," Madison rolled her eyes up into her head.

"I know that most of the coven does not agree with each other, that's been very clear, but I should at least let you know that you're not alone in your corner anymore, I now know your side and will help as best I can."

These words, even if they could be bullshit, really brightened Madison's day after this. Though she thought about it and maybe it wasn't Grace that was the only person... and maybe she was being as overdramatic as Vashti for flipping out like that and assuming that everyone was conspiring against her. Madison shook her head as she sighed, she placed down the bottles of wine as she placed her hands on her hips. At the end of the day, everyone's human and makes mistakes, but she at least saw herself as being better than Vashti in that regard.

And she wasn't a little bitch either.

"Well, thanks sis," Madison looked her straight in the eye, "I really appreciate it, and I mean that."

"Stupid question but uh... Will you kill me if I try to pet you?"

"We will not,"

"However,"

"We are no mere pet,"

"If you touch us,"

"We will not kill you,"

"We'll just stop at-"

"Okay, that's enough!" Madison interrupted and awkwardly laughed. The Jaws retracted and then disappeared and she wished that Vashti would understand what happened... however, Madison knew that Vashti was beyond convincing or saving. Well, at least she's aware that the Jaws is capable of some degree of sentient thought. However, Madison had to admit that some of the others had a point when they said that the Jaws was dangerous. And she was going to take her dangerous ass out the door with their liquor.

"We should hang out sometimes though-" Then Madison heard some footsteps approach.

---

---

“I will be by your side to bring down Saul, but we’ll have to leave for Miami as soon as possible. The stronger the curse becomes, the harder it will be to stop her. And we must help our own before we try.”

“I’ll join, I don’t have anything that needs curing, but I know others do, and I’d rather avoid meeting a horrible end because I didn’t help. The more of us, the better, or something.”

“I’ll also come! Wait… what are we doing?”

"I'm in. I said I was going to pay more attention and now I'm going to help the living shit out of everyone."

Despite it all, Kimberly couldn't help but crack a smile at their enthusiasm. She wasn't even sure if they'd even get past Annabelle killing their friends, but they did. Maybe she just underestimated the humanity of a bunch of witches. However, Lyss was correct, they had to help each other before they helped her. Which she understood, nor was she going to pressure them on.

"I'm glad all of you are in," Kimberly said.

Though, Kimberly was not going to give up on Annabelle just yet... if there's a will, there's a way and the world of magic and the Extra-Normal had shown her some incredible things. Kimberly knew that nobody was above saying, but she also had that small doubt deep in her heart.

"I'll take your word Kimberly that none of us will die helping you, but the Dollhouse doesn't seem like the type of place we should get mixed up in. Are you sure you don't know anyone else that's not illegal that can help us? I need to be sure before we go knocking on Mr. Schmidt's door asking for a handout."

This was a valid concern, Kimberly knew that. The Dollhouse was... scary and Kimberly only went with them before because they were simple to deal with and they got the job done. However, there was one problem. "Unfortunately, I don't," Kimberly started. "I've been trying to find somebody else but Extra-Normals that are helpful are few and in-betweens unfortunately. And I will try-" Keyword here because she wasn't trying to buy thirty different cures when her priority, at the moment, was Annabelle Heart. "-to help you all out."

Emily thought the Recollection was... tragic. Nobody should have to go through that, and the only thing that came to mind was what if her sister was caught up in that? Emily wouldn't like it, but if Lyss says that Annabelle is beyond saving then she's probably right. She didn't believe that Lyss truly had their best interests at heart anymore, but she wasn't wrong about the supernatural. Still, there was something that the Reed girl had in mind about Luther Saul.

"Blake donates a lot of money into Saul's organization," Emily started. "Maybe we can get some information out of him." She shrugged.

One person came to mind that didn't join the circle and it was Vashti, who was pretty quiet during the whole discussion. Which kind of affirmed Emily's suspicions that she was only in this for herself, if that little outburst didn't tell her anything. If she had known that Kimberly wasn't useless beforehand she would have been a lot harsher when speaking to her earlier, but she figured that she should stop here. Emily noticed that Herik was doing a whole lot of not talking ever since Kimberly came and that outburst started, and she knew that silence told her everything she needed to know. Emily didn't want to look like she was targeting Vashti and lose Herik's support.

However, there was something very important that came to mind that a lot of the group (I.E anyone with a brain) was hopefully already thinking: Vashti should be the last person to come. Regardless of her self-pitying and theatrics; at best Vashti was useless, and at worst a liability. Emily looked at Claudette and then looked at Lyss.

"Hey, I really hate to say this-" Emily stopped as she even she cringed at her blatant lies, and drifted into her secretary demeanor. "-but maybe we shouldn't bring Vashti on a trip to meet a shady black market organization in case she hulks out or something." There were so many reasons not to bring Vashti along and she was hoping that they'd see the light for once in their God damn lives.

Claudette was silent for a few moments before she answered. "... I agree that Vashti should remain behind." It was simple; if Vashti snapped and transformed on the trip there or when they meet the Dollhouse, it would be a disaster! Claudette was counting on this cure saving her and some of the others. They couldn't risk it, also just why should she come?

“I’m going to join them. Make sure they don’t fuck this up,”

Kimberly felt Penny's hand on her shoulder and listened to her friend's secret message. She was hoping that none of them had any type of telepathic ability or enhanced hearing ability, but she understood Penny's concerns. The Coven so far seemed a bit... dysfunctional. She wasn't just talking about Vashti's outburst, it was just that some of them gave her a bad feeling. Like one of them were going to find some way to mess this up even though Lyss made a great first impression on her. So far Kimberly was going to give them the benefit of the doubt, but Penny? She knew that Penny got stuff done, but she wasn't sure if sending Penny off with a bunch of strange witches was the best idea. She'd give Penny the same courtesy but they were talking about how Vashti should stay behind. That was something that Kimberly agreed with but she had another thought.

"... I'll stay behind with her," Kimberly said as she took a step forward around the time Penny let go of her. "The Dollhouse doesn't deal with me anymore, and if they find out that I'm in town they might get suspicious about a huge group of Extra-Normals-" I mean, not that you guys aren't conspicuous on your own. "- moving into their city." Also, it's so she can get some space from the Coven without them acting like she's their savior.

Kimberly shrugged as she pulled out her camera and looked at it. "I'm going to remain here in Tampa and keep an eye on Saul and Annabelle and keep you all posted on anything that they're doing." That way, the Coven isn't scrambling around trying to figure out what's going on in Tampa when they get back in a few days.

"Sounds good," Claudette said before she turned to the entire Coven. The meeting went better than she thought it would! She thought that with the departure of Madison the whole meeting would fall apart but Ms. Walton saved the day. She sighed as she clapped her hands together and said, "Everyone, let's get ready and meet up back here in a few hours, ideally we can get to Miami before midnight."

Emily shrugged, "I can phone up Blake to get us a hotel in Miami... but I don't think we should get a five-star hotel. Too conspicuous." She suggested.

"Sounds good," Claudette said before she turned to Lyss, "... Let's see if we can catch Madison."

---

The Coven was not aware of this, but they had another guest in their meeting. Somebody who didn't have their best interests at heart. Savannah Farrow, she was right there in the middle of the meeting, sitting on one of the pool chairs with one leg crossed over the other. Not one person noticed her because not one person could even perceive her. That was the power of her... abstraction?

She listened to everything and found it frustrating how childish the Coven was... was Saul convinced that they were a threat when they're about to tear each other's throats out? However, they were after Annabelle Heart... then they were going to move onto Saul. They also seemed to have the government dogs in their pocket, however, Savannah was not going to let this slide. Part of her wanted to pull out a pistol and unload on the most capable members of the Coven but that wasn't going to do them much good. Especially since they were off to get a cure for their little problem...

When they left, Savannah also left, unperceived by the Coven to report her findings to Saul.

---

The Coven quickly assembled all of their things and got Blake to get them a nice hotel in Miami. Hopefully, they'd come off as a bunch of girls going on vacation rather than a bunch of Extra-Normal weirdos doing weirdo shit. At least that was what Madison was hoping... even though she technically quit the Coven. Claudette, Lyss, and Grace told her their thoughts on what happened and then told her their new plan. Madison was on board with only so that she can visit Miami, and help her sisters out. They were probably fine with her coming or didn't care enough to bother speaking up.

The words "Vashti's not coming" was all Madison needed to hear to grab her bags and engage in the impromptu drive to Miami. The only problem was that they stipulated that she helps drive some of them there, and she agreed. She just had to suck it up so that she could enjoy herself... though, she had to remember it was to help her sisters. So they had a caravan of sorts heading to Miami, Maya was driving one car she knew. It probably would have been easier to just take a train there but some of them were griping about missing the "road trip" experience.

Well, Madison wasn't with putting miles on her car.

Still, she had no idea where the other girls' cars went and she wasn't worried about them. She stipulated that Herik doesn't drive with her. No offense to the big guy, but she could tell that he's on Vashti's side on this. Not that it matters given that Vashti's not here and maybe he'll stop trying to get some puss for one second and clear his head.

Though, Madison realized how awkward the car ride was without people talking so she figured that she made a conversation. An awkward conversation. "You know I heard this song before in a twerking class..." Madison trailed off, "... At a church."

Okay, that wasn't helping, she turned to Grace as she realized that she had the perfect silence breaker!

"So, you ready to hit up the clubs in Miami? I know some places," Madison stated, "... If your girlfriend will let you go, that is. Heh." She chuckled to make it sound like a joke... even though she was pretty certain that Grace and Quinn were dating. Or at least horny for each other.

---

---

Maya wanted to kill Madison.

If she didn’t have the Jaws, she probably would have attacked her right on the spot when she had not so subtly suggested that Emily goes in Maya’s car. And, in some horrible turn of events, that was how it had ended up. When she’d agreed to drive this was absolutely not what she had in mind.

Honestly, she’d hoped there were enough cars that she’d end up alone. But nope! Of course not! Her not so large car was crammed full and fucking Emily of all people was in it. Maybe she should just drive them off a cliff. Or better yet, right into Madison’s car to end them both.

“If anyone of you backseat drive, I will fucking sound blast you out of this car,” she’d threatened right at the beginning of the drive, before absolutely blasting out her music of choice (rap, half of which was Korean, because she was pretty certain Emily would hate it). As much as she could drive she wasn’t really someone who enjoyed driving… and hadn’t driven out of Florida more than a couple of times.

At least this time it wasn’t to see some kind of prospective husband her parent’s had forced onto her.

She wasn’t quite content, but she was happy enough with the lack of conversation as she loudly tapped the wheel (with her non broken hand) along to the music. Eventually, however, her broken finger began aching to the point that driving was pretty hard and probably dangerous. The occasional spasms of pain and swerving? Not ideal. It hadn’t even been that long… Thankfully she’d brought painkillers! Which would take a while to kick in but mean they wouldn't have to stop again.

“We’re stopping for a break,” she commented out of politeness she normally didn’t have, mostly to prevent getting shouted at as she pulled over into the nearest service station. “I don’t care what you do, I just need to rest my hand.”

Once she’d stopped she twisted around and eyed the people in her car, gaze landing on Emily. A slight smirk crossed her lips. “You know what, it would be pretty great if one of you got me some coffee. I am driving you all free of charge and it would be a shame if I fell asleep at the wheel. And something to wash down painkillers.”

As she spoke she grabbed her phone from it’s inconveniently placed stand and narrowed her eyes at the maps that should have been directing her. That looked kinda wrong. Fuck, she hoped they weren’t lost.

She absolutely didn’t want to spend longer stuck in a car (with Emily) than necessary.

---

"Oh! You mean Quinn? Did everyone think that? Oh no no no! We're just friends, gosh I can't believe everyone thought that! But yes, I would love to hit the club!"

As Grace talked, Madison cracked a bigger and bigger smile. Before she just couldn't contain it anymore and broke out laughing. Not because she didn't necessarily think Grace was lying, but the way she was speaking was not very convincing. In Madison's eyes, maybe they weren't an item but probably having sex or at the very least attracted to each other. Not that Madison thought that was a bad thing in any way... she was used to the Coven's weird freaky lesbian ways.

"Sorry sis, but the first thing that came to mind when you poured your heart out for Quinn, the first thing I thought was," Madison faced forward as she raised her fingertips off the wheel and kept her palms off it and her questions went open. "'Quinn must be fuckin' her real good'... because, no offense, that's what it sounds like!"

Maybe that wasn't the most appropriate thing to talk about, but Madison, due to her background as a stripper, was kind of used to these weird and inappropriate conversations. Though, thinking about her sisters that bastard Blake sacrificed made her blood boil. They made sure to get vengeance for them and get something out of Blake. At least her car wasn't weirdly quiet.

"Unless you don't swing that way-" Which Grace did. "-and this conversation makes you uncomfortable. But, sis, this the Coven. We've talked about shit a trillion times worse than this."

Still, there was some part of Grace that seemed... sheltered? From what Madison heard Grace was rich and probably unused to this kind of stuff. Though, she seemed brave enough to agree to meet a shady ass black market organization. Madison sighed as she figured she should drop the topic of Grace's sexuality. Though, Madison did admit she was pretty good looking - enough to be a stripper! She didn't want to pull race into the mix but white dudes love Asian women and she'd probably leave with at least five G's a night. Where Madison would have to work her ass off just to get a thousand!

"I mean, have you ever been out to a club or anything?" Madison asked, "Like... it ain't like the movies. It's crazy and intense if it's your first time... Plus it's Miami. It's a special place."

She shrugged before she cracked a smile as another question popped in her head. "... At least tell me did you ever blow trees before?"

The car in front of hers, she thought was Quinn's, turned into a gas station and Madison shrugged. She needed to stretch her legs out after driving for so long. "We're taking a break, I guess," Madison said as she turned into the gas station. She pulled into a parking spot before she turned the car off and got out. The first thing that Madison did was stretch one hand up above her head and roll her neck. Madison then stretched out her legs.

"Ya'll go do whatever, I'll be in there in a minute," Madison said.

---

---

Claudette offered to ride with Quinn since she too didn't want to be in the same car as Maya and Emily. Now the latter has definitely done a lot of growing, and the former isn't that bad, but they were still pretty... obnoxious. Each of them alone would make a four-hour-long car ride seem a few days long. Also not too many people wanted to ride with Quinn so Claudette bit the bullet. Herik also came with them not that it was unwelcomed but she couldn't shake the feeling that he had some resentment towards her. Or maybe that was just by association with Madison.

Maybe he was just uneasy given that they lost two sisters due to Apparitions and almost lost another due to Madison's abstraction going out of control. Claudette sighed as she stared into her book and realized that it was almost over. All they had to do was get this damn cure and she would let the Coven to their own devices. They can go fight Annabelle if they wanted to, but Claudette was going to toss the Witches Darkness into the ocean and go back to New York.

A sigh escaped her lips. This was a nice car to drive around in... but it was too high profile. Especially if they were going to meet a group of shady black market dealers. She wasn't going to argue with Quinn's car fetish or Grace's almost comical naivety. She just buried herself in this book as Quinn and Herik talked... and then Quinn turned the vehicle into a gas station and Claudette shrugged. They should probably take a break, even if Claud wanted to get to Miami as fast as possible. A road trip like this was taxing on a person.

Claudette got out of the car and watched as Quinn went over to Maya's car and walked into the gas station. The first thing that Claudette did was grab several bottles of water because everyone needed to stay hydrated. She kept her eyes on the Coven just in case somebody did something stupid.

---

---

Back and forth like a yoyo.

Emily was desperate not to start a fight with Maya or something especially since she was more or less shunted into the same car as her. It was almost like these sluts wanted her to start something with her. So, not to start a fight Emily practiced with her brand new abstraction. She had a ball that she had connected to her green telekinetic tethers and was yanking it back and forth. It wasn't a whole lot but if Emily was going to be a hair above useless and avoid a repeat of the capture the flag game.

However, Maya just had to break her concentration and blast this obnoxious ass Korean rap song. She rolled her eyes as she just knew that Maya knew that she didn't like rap. It was hard to keep the ball moving... until she lost focused and hit herself in the face.

"Maya..." Emily trailed off, "... Could ya' play anything other than this garbage?"

Predictably Maya ignored her and Emily just crossed her arms and realized that she should have brought headphones of her own to drown out this garbage. She paid more attention to what Maya was saying for once if only to distract her from the horrid music.

“I don’t care what you do, I just need to rest my hand.”

"... What is your wrist sore from jerking off your boyfriend?" Emily muttered underneath her breath to no one in particular as the ball started floating in the air. She had to resist starting shit with Maya, but it was just so hard when she didn't like how she acts. Or her voice. Or her stupid face.

“... And something to wash down painkillers.”

Emily cracked a grin as she couldn't resist saying it.

"... And Trevor. You probably have a lot of him left in your throat."

---

---

Penny had fucked up.

When they had all piled into cars to head to Miami, Penny had fully intended to stick with Isla—until another girl took the front seat before Penny even had a chance to call shotgun. Socially awkward situations were uncomfortable, but sitting in the motion sickness of being stuck in the backseat was worse. So she had thought, anyway, as she climbed into the front of Maya’s car. Perhaps she’d find that she had plenty of things in common with the witches riding with her, or at the very least she’d get to learn a little more about their operation. None of that happened.

Instead, Maya’s threat to blast any backseat drivers out of the car immediately set the tone, and her decision to just blare music as loud as possible cemented it. Penny squirmed and leaned her head against the window. She had faced axe-murdering school bullies, dimensional-travelling cultists, world-eating abominations, but none of them compared to the harrowing experience of being stuck in this car for several hours. The girl in the backseat did nothing to ease the pain as she popped in headphones and proceeded to practice with her abstraction. Penny watched the ball bonk her in the face and smiled. Amateurish control, but they all had to start somewhere. She remembered her afternoons spent hiding in a janitor’s closet blasting coins at makeshift targets.

Right now, as they swerved in and out of traffic to an ear-shattering, utterly incomprehensible rap song, Penny kind of wish one of her coins had ricocheted off of the target, bounced off of the ceiling, and lodged itself in her brain, effectively rendering her comatose for the rest of her life. Unfortunately, she couldn’t go back in time and become brain dead, so she did the next best thing and pretended to be asleep. She pulled her hat down, slumped in her seat, and prayed that they hit the oil tanker next to them, gulfing them all in a fiery hellstorm to put an end to this torture. Life was cruel, however, and they passed by the truck without even a singe.

“We’re stopping for a break.”

Penny let out an audible sigh of relief and had already unbuckled herself before they pulled into the gas station. She had to use every ounce of self-restraint not to just throw open her door and tuck and roll out of the still moving vehicle. The urge back even harder to deny as she overheard Emily’s jerkoff comment. Readjusting her hat, Penny sat up and turned to Maya. She was about to offer to get the girl something when Maya spoke up.

“You know what, it would be pretty great if one of you got me some coffee. I am driving you all free of charge and it would be a shame if I fell asleep at the wheel.”

“I feel like we’ve already been made to pay,” muttered Penny, a look of disgust passing over her face.

“And something to wash down painkillers,” continued Maya.

"... And Trevor. You probably have a lot of him left in your throat, " added Emily.

“Oh god,” said Penny, stepping out of the car. She did not want to continue to be part of this conversation. “You know what? I’ll get us some coffee.”

Penny had never been happier to hear the jingling of bells as she crossed the threshold into the gas station, separating herself from Maya and Emily with an actual physical barrier. It was like a weight had been lifted from off of her shoulders. Unfortunately, the gas station didn’t have real coffee. Oh, sure, it had a few pots of drip coffee burning away next to some paper cups, sugar packets, and crusty looking syrup bottles, but that wasn’t coffee. She scoped out the coolers, hitting the jackpot as she came across the motherload of Starbucks frappuccinos. She grabbed enough for the girls in her car and hit the checkout. She bought herself an extra pack of cigarettes despite already having a full one, knowing that she’d need them before the end of the trip.

As she left the store her phone buzzed.

Kimberly Walton
Please keep me posted on everything that's going on in Miami. If anything goes wrong, say the word and I'll be right there. I don't trust Dollhouse but I have no other options.

Penny pocketed her phone, cracked open one of her shitty coffee drinks from the horde she had hiding in that little black plastic bag, and lit a cigarette...which meant she couldn’t possibly head back to the car without risking the lives of others. She’d have to stay her, a respectful, safe distance away, and away from the bickering girls. What a damn shame. She found herself a nice corner to duck behind, again, just to respect the rules of the gas station, and leaned up against the wall.

Penny locked eyes with Madison as she got out of her car. Surely, Madison would be able to find room for her, because Penny couldn’t go back to Maya’s car. They couldn’t make her. She could sit on somebody’s lap. She’d ride in the fucking trunk. Hell, tie her to the trunk. Anything! Staring at Madison like a shell shocked soldier returning home after the war, Penny pressed two fingers to her temple, mouthed “help me”, jerked her head to the side, and then shot an angry glare at Maya’s car.