Mike was skulking down the beach, thinking about what his aunts just told him. He just couldn't believe this was happening to him. He ran into Micky, Davy, and Peter, and they were tossing a beach ball around.
"Hi, Mike," Micky said. "What are you doing out here?"
"I needed some air," Mike said. "My aunts just dropped the news on me, and I just can't believe it."
"What was it?" Davy asked.
"I'm not ready to repeat it," Mike said. "You'd never believe it. Matter of fact, even I don't believe it! Incidentally, where's the kid?"
"Franky?" Peter asked. "He's out surfing."
"Does he even know how to surf?" Mike asked.
"Well, no," Peter said, shrugging. "But he said how hard can it be, and Micky lent him his surfboard."
"That surfboard's bigger than he is," Mike said, looking out into the ocean. The other three followed.
Franky was balancing on Micky's surfboard pretty well. But it still made Mike a little nervous. Actually, it made all four Monkees a little nervous. But Franky was a pretty good surfer, for a kid who grew up in Connecticut. The relief didn't last long. A giant wave came crashing down on Franky. It had to be at least forty feet high. Needless to say Franky wiped out, and he was swept underneath the water.
"I don't like the looks of this," Mike said, a little nervously.
"I'm sure he'll be back up any minute," Peter said, trying, unsuccessfully, to reassure himself.
Suddenly, something began bubbling in the water. A blast of water flew up like a fountain, and on the top of it was none other than Mr. Zero. He was holding an unconscious Franky underneath one arm.
"Hello, all," he said. "Nice to see you. Peter, your nephew is an exceptional swimmer, but how long can he hold his breath under water?"
"What do you mean?" Peter asked.
"Well, my payment for the harp, of course!" Mr. Zero laughed. "You said I could take something of equal or greater value than your soul, remember?"
"You can't mean . . . . " Peter said, starting to get nervous.
"I can, and I do," Mr. Zero said, with a smirk. "It's your choice, Mr. Tork. Either give up your nephew, or give up your soul."
"That's low, even for you, Zero!" Mike shouted, thrusting an accusing index finger at the devil.
"That's one of the things I've always prided myself on," Mr. Zero said, coming down to Mike's level. "You have five minutes to decide, Mr. Tork."
"Mike, what do I do?" Peter asked, looking at his Texan friend.
"Nothin'," Mike said. "Absolutely nothin'. Zero, you can not force Peter to make a decision like this! Take back the stupid harp and get outta here before I lose my temper!"
"What use have I for the harp?" Mr. Zero asked. "I want his soul! And if I can't take his soul, I'll take the boy's soul. It's a fair trade. I asked Mr. Tork if he would be willing to give up something of equal or greater value."
"I'm warnin' you, Zero," Mike said, pointing his finger at the devil. He was about ready to lose his temper. "You take your harp and get outta here and leave us alone, or I'm gonna . . . ."
With every word, Mike's voice rose, and he thrusted his finger back and forth. Before he could follow through on his threat, sparks began to fly from his index finger, and that led to a gigantic beam of light, shooting right out of his it, and it hit Mr. Zero square in the chest. He was knocked off his feet, and taken aback, dropping Franky in the process. Peter ran to him to make sure he was okay. Mr. Zero just looked at Mike, wide eyed and slack jawed. Mike, Davy, and Micky had the same expressions on their faces as well.
"You," Mr. Zero said, once he got his wits back. "You're one of them! You are one of them! Ha, ha! This is wonderful! Absolutely marvelous! If you're one of them, then you gave Tork the ability to play the harp after I took it away! I knew it couldn't have been the power of love! There's no such thing as the power of love! This is delightful. I must convene a court and tell them of this new evidence! Your soul will be mine, Tork! Mine, I tell you!"
Mr. Zero then disappeared, cackling madly. Mike just stood there, too shocked to move. He had no idea what Mr. Zero was talking about, either. All he knew is that his aunts had been right. He really was part witch. Micky and Davy ran over to Mike, surprised as anything.
"Mike, what did you just do?!" Micky shouted.
"Yeah, man, 'ow could that light've come out of your fingah?" Davy asked.
"Did that really happen?!" Micky asked again.
"It did," Mike said, nodding absently. "Micky, could you do somethin' for me? Could you stand right there, and Davy, you stand over there."
Micky and Davy glanced at each other, and then stood in the places where Mike wanted them to, but they were a little confused.
"Why do you want us to stand here, Mike?" Micky asked.
"So you can catch me when I faint," Mike said. And with that, his eyes rolled back into their sockets, and he fainted. Micky and Davy caught him before he hit the ground. Peter looked over at them, and became even more nervous.
"What's wrong with Mike?" he asked.
"Man, I don't know," Micky said.
"We'd bettah get 'im, and Franky, back to the Pad," Davy said. "Petah, you take Franky. Micky and I 'ave got Mike."
Peter nodded, lifted Franky off the sand, and followed Micky and Davy up the back stairs to the Pad. Edith and Shirley were still there, and they immediately got to their feet when they saw Davy and Micky come into the Pad, with Peter right behind them.
"What happened?" Edith asked.
"I don't know, he just fainted," Micky said.
"This light or something shot out of 'is fingah and he just passed out," Davy said. "Is 'e gonna be okay?"
"I'm not sure," Shirley said. "Get him over to the couch, quick!"
"I'll just get out of the way," Peter said, and he carried his nephew up the stairs to the second floor bedroom.
Once Mike was on the couch, Shirley began patting his cheek gently, to wake him up.
"Mike?" she asked. "Mike's it's me, Aunt Shirley."
Mike stirred for a moment and started to wake up. Peter came back down the stairs and looked over at them.
"How's Mike?" he asked.
"He's fine," Edith said. "Nothing to worry about."
"How's Franky?" Micky asked.
"Sleeping," Peter said. "I checked everything I knew how to check. He's fine. He probably won't remember what happened when he wakes up."
"I can't believe it," Mike said. "I just can't believe it."
"Can't believe what, Mike?" Mickey asked.
"Sit down, all of you," Mike said. "Have I got news for you!"
Davy, Micky, and Peter looked at each other, and then sat down. Mike sighed, sat up, and looked at his friends.
"First of all," he said, "these are my aunts, Edith and Shirley. Aunt Edith and Aunt Shirley, these are Davy, Micky, and Peter. You would've met Peter's nephew, Franky, but he's up there sleepin' off a slight accident, so you'll meet him later. And I'll explain that slight accident to the two of you later as well. Anyway, fellas, my aunts just told me somethin', and I'm still gettin' over the shock."
"It can't be that bad, Mike," Peter said.
"It is," Mike said, taking a breath. "I'm a warlock."
In one ear and out the other. That was the response. The boys just stood there for a minute. And then the news sank in.
"You're a WHAT?!" they all screamed at once.
"Warlock," Mike said. "Well, half warlock, anyway."
"'Ow can that 'appen?" Davy asked.
"I guess a witch and a man meet or a warlock and a woman meet," Micky said. "Uh, which is it?"
"Witch and a mortal," Mike said. "My mother's side of the family has the witchcraft. And I don't know if my father knows about it. So to make a long story short, mostly because I don't know most of the darn story, my mom's a witch, my Aunt Kate is a witch, and several aunts and uncles and cousins are witches."
"So, uh, you're a warlock, huh?" Micky asked. "And your aunt Kate is a witch. And your cousins in Texas are witches?"
"No," Shirley said. "They didn't inherit any special powers. If a warlock marries a mortal woman, the girls inherit the powers. If a witch marries a mortal man, the boys inherit the power."
"You got magic powers," Micky said. "Hey, that's pretty cool. Can you turn the tax man into a beetle?"
Micky cracked up. He just started laughing like crazy. It was obvious to Mike that he didn't believe him. So, Mike concentrated on what he wanted to do and snapped his fingers. Lightning flashed across the room, and hit Micky directly. When it subsided, Micky was practically burnt to a crisp, and smoldering, but he wasn't too hurt.
"Convinced?" Mike asked. Micky coughed.
"Yeah," he said. "You made a believer out of me."
"Good," Mike said, then he sighed. "I just don't know what I'm gonna do."
"What's wrong, sweetie?" Shirley said, sitting down next to Mike.
Mike took a deep breath and told Edith and Shirley all about the incident with Mr. Zero and the pawn shop, which included everything that happened the day before and a few minutes ago.
"So now that I've shown off my magic in front of Zero," he concluded, "he somehow thinks I gave Peter the ability to play the harp when he took it away. But I didn't because I didn't have my magic yet, but I don't think they'd believe it. What am I gonna do?"
"Maybe if we can find a copy of the contract," Shirley said. "We'll see when Peter signed it, and then we'll check out your records, Mike."
"What would they have to do with this?" Micky asked.
"If Peter signed the contract before a certain date," Edith said. "Then Mike couldn't have possibly given Peter the power."
While Mike's aunts were digging for information about the contract Peter had made with Mr. Zero, Mike was just finishing telling his story for the third time. This time to Valerie who had come over only to be meeting Franky, and to Franky, for that matter, who had recovered quickly from his surfing mishap.
"This is beyond cool!" Franky shouted.
"You may think so, kid," Mike said. "But I sure don't! I don't have all my magic yet. My aunts said somethin' about gettin' them this week from the moon, but I don't think I will."
"Why not?" Valerie asked.
"Yeah, I'd think it be kind of fun to have magical powers," Franky said.
"That's just it," Mike sighed. "I don't want them! I don't want to be a warlock! I just want to be a normal, every day, out of work musician! My aunts said until I get my powers from this Blue Moon Saturday night, I have limited magic in my system. If I use it up before I get in the moonlight, that's it. And if I don't get them from the Blue Moon, I lose my magic completely. Sounds good to me, actually."
"Well . . . ." Franky said. "Can you at least show us your powers before you get rid of them?"
Mike shrugged and snapped his fingers, and a dove flew out of Micky's hair. Micky got a funny look on his face.
"Well," he said. "I guess you can call me a bird brain now."
The others immediately cracked up. As they were laughing, a clap of thunder was heard and smoke filled the room. When it cleared, there stood Mr. Zero. Valerie and Franky stared at him, completely shocked.
"Is this that Zero guy?" Franky asked.
"Darn right," Mike said. "Well if it ain't ol' Smokey. What do you want now?"
"Just delivering a little something," Mr. Zero said, snapping his fingers. Everyone in the room was now holding an envelope.
"What the heck is this?" Mike asked, as he opened the envelope. He read through it, and gave the others a strange look. "A summons to appear in court?!"
"Wha?" Micky asked, as he and the others opened their envelopes.
"It's a summons, all right," Valerie said. "It looks like all of us are to appear in court."
"You must be joking!" Davy shouted.
"Yeah, Zero, leave Valerie and Franky out of this!" Peter shouted. "They don't have anything to do with it!"
"They shall serve as witnesses," Mr. Zero said. "The trial is set for tonight, right before midnight. And if you don't show, Mr. Nesmith, I receive Mr. Tork's soul by default!"
And with that, Mr. Zero disappeared. The Monkees and their friends looked at each other. If Mike was found guilty, Peter's soul would belong to Mr. Zero. It didn't give Edith and Shirley a lot of time to search through the records. There was no way out of this.
"This is bad," Davy moaned. "What ah we gonna do?"
"I don't know," Mike said. "Man, if only I didn't have the power of witchcraft."
"I just hope your aunts get back before the trial," Peter said.
"So do I, Pete," Mike said, sighing. "So do I."