Disclaimer: I own nothing but a warped imagination and a weird sense of humour.
A/N: This has been clogging up my brain for way too long and I need to at least get the the start of it out there. It's loosely based on Hocus Pocus - very loosely. The 'Old English' that's to come probably won't be accurate, so sorry for that and I've tried to keep everyone in character, but they'll probably wander out a few times...anyway, hope you like it!
Chapter 1
It's Halloween and Caroline Forbes is drunk, no not drunk, tipsy. She's seventeen, tipsy and has enough hairspray in her overly backcombed hair to freeze a small army, but she's having the time of her life at her best friends—and twin sisters—Elena's and Katherine's Halloween party. She moved to Mystic Falls, Virginia around seven months ago, fearing she wouldn't make any friends and would end up spending most of her time alone. On her first day of school she was so nervous she was almost sick and protested against going. Her mom wasn't having any of it of course and forced her to go, but it was the best thing Caroline had ever been forced in to. She hates to admit it, but without her pushy mom, she wouldn't have made friends with the amazing people she's partying with.
She grins to herself and looks towards her best friends Lexi and Bonnie who've been in some form of heated argument for the past hour. Caroline isn't entirely sure what they're discussing, but Lexi's arms are flailing all over the place and her voice is raised. Bonnie on the other hand is pouting like a petulant child and trying to out-shout Lexi. It really isn't working.
"Why can't you just believe it's not some made up story? It's the honest truth, it really happened!" Bonnie yells, standing on her tiptoes to point in Lexi's face. The overly large hat on her head comes undone once more and falls in front of her eyes. She huffs and lifts it up.
When they came to pick Caroline up, the stupidly large thing had been secured to Bonnie's hair with numerous clips and pins. Caroline—excited and slightly giddy—had snatched the hat from Bonnie's head, placing it on her own so she could wear it and cackle loudly. Since then, despite Elena's attempts to re-secure it, it's refused to remain in place. "There's no way we can go up there, it'll anger the spirits of the dead witches!"
Lexi scowls and waves her hand around in her superstitious friends face. "It's just a stupid Urban Legend, Bonnie." She laughs and turns to Caroline, waving her alcohol bottle filled hand around and spinning froth on the tiles of Katherine's and Elena's parents kitchen. "This is Caroline's first Halloween in town, Bennett. We need to pull out all the stops and make this a night she'll never forget."
"Heck yes!" Caroline calls enthusiastically. "I want this to be the best night ever…well at least until our next party comes round." She adds, taking a step forward and clinking her own bottle against Lexi's. "So, where are we going?" she questions, grinning excitedly at Lexi who wraps an arm around her neck.
"The Mikaelson Cottage." Lexi says in a voice worthy of a horror movie and grins menacingly at Bonnie who pouts and shakes her head in disapproval, the witches hat falling down and covering her eyes. She blows out a breath and lifts her arm to push it up, elbowing Matt in the ribs as he goes to pass.
"Watch it witchy," he chuckles, rubbing his ribs and placing Bonnie's hat back on the top of her head. "Am I hearing things or did someone mention the Mikaelson Cottage?"
"Well aye, that's what I be sayin' laddie!" Lexi cackles, putting on her best pirate voice and squeezing her arm a little tighter round Caroline's neck, causing her to choke slightly. "We're gonna take Caroline to see some real ghosts!"
Matt rolls his eyes and folds his arms across his chest, leaning back against the kitchen counter. "Is that really so?"
Caroline grins and nods excitedly before looking towards Lexi. "What's the Mikaelson Cottage?"
"Seriously?" Lexi blinks rapidly and Katherine who's seemingly appeared from nowhere snorts. "You don't know the story?"
Caroline is still grinning widely as she shakes her head, her hair flying across her face and smudging the fake blood. "I am new here, I didn't grow up around all this stuff."
"You've been here for like seven months." Matt exclaims, pulling himself up to sit on the counter. "I can't believe you haven't heard something already."
"You guys have practically held me hostage since I got here, I haven't exactly had time to research the Legends of Mystic Falls."
"Hostage? Please." Lexi scoffs loudly, "You've been loving our company. We're the best people you could ever hope to meet."
"Okay, as you're the best people, are you gonna tell me the story or not?" she looks expectantly towards Lexi who's face lights up like Christmas has come early. Caroline can tell the excitable blonde loves nothing more than telling the tale of the ghost story to anyone who asks about it or is willing to listen.
"Yeah Lexi, tell the story." Elena says as she walks into the room, pulling herself up onto the counter beside Matt and resting her head on his shoulder.
"Okay so," Lexi says, leaning against Caroline a little and waving her bottle around as she starts to set the scene. "There was this witch years ago called Eliza Mikaelson right, and—"
"Esther Mikaelson." Katherine corrects as she hops up onto the table and crosses her legs.
Elena pipes up, "You've told this story like a million times and you always get her name wrong. I don't understand it, we've corrected you so many times yet still never manage to get it right."
Lexi waves her arm around, spilling more beer onto the floor. "Whatever, her name really isn't the point."
"It's really disrespectful though, she'll hear you and she'll—" Bonnie pips up from the corner where she's sat on a stool, picking absentmindedly at the label on her beer bottle.
"Bennett, am I telling this story or are you?" Lexi scolds. Bonnie snaps her mouth shut and Katherine mutters 'you unfortunately' before ruffling her curly hair.
"Fine then, so there's this old witch called Esther," Lexi puts emphasis on the name, ignoring the glare Katherine shoots her. "And she came here from Salem or whatever it's called, y'know the place where the witch hunts were going on. She wanted to avoid being detected and stuff."
Caroline nods and takes a swig from her bottle, hanging on to Lexi's every word.
"Right anyway, so she moves into this cottage on the outskirts of town located right in the centre of the old forest. The place is secluded and she thinks it's safe so she brings her two nieces with her—"
"They could have been her granddaughters," Bonnie interrupts. " I heard they were her granddaughters because her daughter was caught in the witch trials and she had to look after them."
"They were her daughters, actually." Katherine corrects in a matter-of-fact tone and pokes her tongue out at Bonnie.
Lexi glares and casts them both a sickly sweet smile. "Nieces, granddaughters, daughters, cousins, neighbours, what-the-hell-ever, it's not really that important."
"But you need to tell the story right, otherwise what's the point? If you're not going to get the facts right you might as well have just made some random stuff up." Elena states, linking her arm through Matt's and snuggling into his side.
Lexi rolls her eyes and takes a gulp of her beer. "Anyway, they lived in the cottages for years and did loads of witchcraft and stuff." Lexi stops and takes a drink of beer before pausing and looking towards the floor.
Caroline raises an eyebrow and looks at Lexi sceptically. "And that's it?"
Lexi rolls her eyes again and takes another drink. "No Forbes, have patience, this story telling gives me dry mouth and I really need to burp." There's another pause before Lexi burps rather loudly. Everyone sighs but she doesn't pay them any attention and instead carries on her story. "So, they lived in this cottage for years and they never aged, like not even—"
"—How can she be an old witch if she never aged?" Bonnie asks smugly and Caroline can't help but giggle at the tinge of red that starts to glow in Lexi's cheeks. She isn't quite sure if it's from embarrassment or annoyance, but knowing Lexi she figures it's most-likely the latter.
"Screw the lot of you." Lexi snaps, removing her arm from Caroline's neck and downs the rest of her beer. "Y'know, I thought it would be nice if I told a story, but no, you lot just had to go and—"
"—Stop acting like a baby," Katherine says, leaning back and resting on her hands before turning her attention towards Caroline. "Basically, to cut a long story short, the towns folk found out about the witchcraft and one of the daughters—"
"Uh—" Lexi goes to interrupt but Katherine holds up a hand to 'Sshh' her.
"—Or nieces were caught by one of the towns girls coercing with the Devil and they were all tried and hanged."
Caroline blinks, her mouth open ajar. "Tried and hanged?" she croaks, swallowing thickly. She brings a hand up to her throat and rubs it.
"Well back in those days it wasn't really much of a trial. All you needed was to own a black cat and have at least one wart and they'd be convinced you were a witch." Bonnie shrugs and pushes the hat back up from her eyes. "In fact, they probably just believed what the girl said, told them what they were being accused of, convicted them and then hanged them."
"So what you're all trying to say is that the place is haunted?" Caroline asks, looking around at her friends faces.
Katherine shrugs, jumps down from the table and takes the bottle from Caroline's hand. "That's what people say. I mean they're supposed to have died out there…on one of the trees right outside so if it's true, I guess it's possible."
"Only if you believe in ghosts." Lexi says sceptically. Katherine sticks her tongue out but flashes her a smile.
"Yes, only if you believe in ghosts—"
"—Which I strongly do," Elena pipes up. "I've felt a presence before at night."
"Was that not just Matt's hand under the covers?" Lexi snorts, popping open another bottle and taking a large drink.
"Shut up, Lexi."
"And you want to take me out there? On Halloween? When it's night?" Caroline questions towards Lexi who shrugs and leans her back against the refrigerator.
"If you're up for going, I'm game. This party is lacking and needs something to liven it up."
"Lex," Caroline says in a serious tone, walking forward and taking hold of her friends face. "That would be one of the nicest things anyone has done for me, like ever."
Lexi raises an eyebrow as Caroline pinches her cheeks and coos. "Forbes, you really haven't lived."
"So we're definitely going then?" Bonnie sighs, wringing her hands nervously together.
"Heck yes we are!" Lexi fist pumps the air before pointing in the direction of the door. "To the Mikaelson cottage me harties!"
Thanks for reading xo
So…any takers? Let me know what you think! I probably won't update this for a while, I need to finish one of my other stories first (Baby Is This Love for Real?) but I've hit a complete mind block on it...if anyone could help with that just PM me, it would be much appreciated. Cheers M'dears! xo