(A/N: So, I like to say a few things before you, the readers, begin with this chapter. 1.) I, and my brother[the co-author of this whole thing], decided that for Across The Multiverse, we're going to be rewriting characters/episodes/plots of the original source material[i.e. T.V. shows, movies, video games, books, fanworks, etc.] the stories in the Across The Multiverse series are based off, starting with both the previous chapter and this chapter and going onwards.
2.) As for how the story kind of seems to have gone everywhere, we apologized for that. At the beginning, we had no clue what we were doing and decided to go with the plot. However as we progressed, we started making minor changes until we decided to go with the decision above. So for all of you who were confused about where the story was going, we're sorry for the confusion and we'll clear up that confusion in the upcoming chapters and stories.
Other than that, let's get on with the show[and the jokes]! P.S. I'm planning on practicing my drawing skills[which isn't bad, but it isn't good either] to do some designs for the characters. The designs will be at the end of the book, so stay tuned for that.)
Aaron's P.O.V.-Thursday, December-Greendale Junior High
December had finally descended upon us and yet no snow had fallen yet. Though the wind was colder than before, so there's that.
Sabrina and I were at our lockers, grabbing our school stuff when Chloe walked up to us.
"Hey, Sabrina, Aaron. Mr. Jensen is putting together this year's chorale. I'm gonna sign up," said Chloe, looking at the bulletin board.
"Chorale? Cool! Sign me up too!" exclaimed Sabrina, smiling. Something she had been doing recently.
"And I'll be there to support you two," I say. What, you expect me to join the chorale? I mean, sure, I can sing well.
But if I do it in front of everyone, well, let's just say Donald Duck with a head cold sounds better in public than I do. That's the bad thing about my stage fright.
Chloe and Sabrina put their names on the sign-up sheet. However, the three of us noticed one thing.
"Wow, the open slots are really limited this year. What if we both don't get in?" Sabrina asked Chloe.
"Don't think like that. We'll get in," Chloe assured Sabrina.
"Thanks, Chloe, for the assurance." Sabrina said.
"Of course. I mean, we're friends, so, of course I've got your back," Chloe said.
"And it's less hassle than if you two were to argue about which one of you got a better shot at getting the spot. Now, let's head to algebra class before Harvey starts bragging about his 'rich' friendship with Gem," I say, as the three of us head towards class.
After School-Everyone's P.O.V.-Spellman's Residence
Hilda, Zelda and Quigley were playing Gold Fish.
However, Salem was getting annoyed with the sounds coming from the cards smacking on the table along with Quigley's foot tapping, water dripping from the kitchen sink, the clock ticking, Zelda's pencil tapping on the table, Hilda's shuffling the cards.
Quigley's question of "Do you have any threes?" was the last straw for Salem.
"Stop that infernal racket! I'm trying to think!" Salem shouted at the three adults at the table.
"Salem, you're just playing tic-tac-toe," Zelda points out.
"Against yourself," Quigley deadpanned.
"And losing, thanks to you people," Salem grumbled.
"Jeez, who coughed the hairball from hell into his litterbox?" Hilda asked with an eye roll.
"Hey, everybody. Guess which two people are going to sing in the chorale?" Sabrina asked, as she, Chloe and Aaron entered the room.
"Great, another tie! Thanks, Sabrina," Salem said sarcastically.
"You're welcome, Salem." Sabrina replied coldly, giving Salem the death glare.
"Salem, what's really bugging you? Talk or I'm gonna zap it out of you!" Hilda threatened.
"And no, Hilda's terrible snacks is not an option in your long list of excuses," Zelda adds.
"Yeah. Wait, what?" Hilda asked.
"And Aaron is not part of that list either," Sabrina states, coldly.
Salem let out a sad sigh. "If you must know, I just got a magic fax." Salem said, using magic to change his tic-tac-toe sheet into said magic fax. "Hephaestus is coming to visit, today," he explained.
"Hepha who?" Chloe asked.
"Hephaestus, the Greek God of forges," Aaron said.
"Not that Hephaestus. That Hephaestus is ugly. I'm talking about Hephaestus the warlock, my best friend from Wizard School. Idiot," Salem muttered, directing the insult towards Aaron, who decided to ignore it.
"So you think since your friend is coming for a reunion, you can call Aaron an idiot?" Sabrina asked, having heard that.
"One, yes, I can call Aaron an idiot. And two, I can't let Hephaestus see me like this: being turned into a cat by the Witches' Council," Salem said, closing the door.
"One, Aaron is not a idiot. And two, why not? Isn't this 'Hephaestus' guy your friend? That is, if you're telling the truth," Sabrina said, the memories of Amelia Earhart, George Washington and Jean Lafitte still fresh in her mind, along with Salem's betrayal.
"Are you doubting the fact that I had friends? Why don't you ask Amelia Earhart, George Washington or even Jean Lafitte?" Salem asked.
"I did. Amelia Earhart and George Washington outright hate you and Jean Lafitte wanted to keep Aaron and me hostage until we told him how to travel through time. Other than that, he also hates you, or did you forget the fact you, yourself, admitted that you knew they hate you?" Sabrina asked.
"Details, details. No one cares about them, unless they're about me. Like my history with Hephaestus," Salem said, as Sabrina and Aaron rolled their eyes at Salem's ego trip.
"This was back in the 12th century, long before the Witches' Council turned me into a cat. Back when I was able to travel through time via my own magic, mind you," Salem explained, beginning the road down memory lane.
Flashback-12th Century(AKA, the 1170s)
The flashback shows a younger, clearly human Salem, flying on a magic carpet with Hephaestus on the other. Both were wearing 12th century clothing, as they raced against each other, crashing through a tree.
"Hephaestus and I would compete at everything. Who would eat the most, who could attract the cutest girls," Salem explained as said events happened. "Our favorite contest, however, was racing carpets."
"Behold, our marvelous Stonehenge!" A random person exclaimed, as all of the stones were stacked up into a tower.
Soon, Salem and Hephaestus raced by, causing Stonehenge to appear as it does these days, much to the men's dismay.
Present time-December 2011
"Yeah, right. First off, Stonehenge wasn't a tower. Everyone knows that. Second, no one wore tights during the 12th century. Third, I doubt there were flying carpets in Europe at the time. Four, you're younger than Hilda and Zelda. And five, if you had time travel magic, why didn't you use it to save Atlantis or even stop yourself from being caught by the Witches' Council?" Sabrina asked.
"Dang it, this is why I hate details. They ruin my opportunity to brag," Salem complained.
"Tell us the truth," Sabrina said.
"Fine. Hephaestus and I caused the Great Plague of London and the Great Fire of London, all just to see who can cause the most pain and misery," Salem admitted with a smug grin.
Said smug grin was wiped off his face when Aaron and Sabrina both punched him hard in the gut, causing him to curl up in a fetal position as he clutched it.
"Ohh, my stomach." Salem said in pain.
"Are you okay, Salem?" Quigley asked.
"Dude, shut up!" Salem groaned.
Two minutes later
"Anyways, now you know why I avoided Hephaestus all these years," Salem said.
"Speaking of Hephaestus, there's a hammer coming your way," Aaron said.
"Now you're just spouting nonsense, you little br-" Salem began to say, only to get hit by a glowing hammer.
"Guess Hephaestus the god doesn't like it when people call him ugly," Aaron snarked.
"To change the subject, no, Salem, I don't see the picture," Quigley said.
"Do I have to paint you a picture, Quigles? Hephaestus is still human and has all of his magic," Salem said, talking to Quigley like the latter is stupid, or mentally slow. Then again, to Salem, the majority of mortals that don't manage to terrify him(which is all mortals excluding Jake and Mary) are mentally slow.
"So?" Sabrina asked as the hammer vanished in a glow of red light, back to its owner...wherever he is.
"So, if Hephaestus saw me like this, it'd mean finally after all of these years, he'd finally had something on me and he'd be sooooo smug about it," Salem said.
"So, you don't want him to have an actual reason to be smug?" Aaron asked.
"For once, you're seeing my point, Aaron. Especially since, despite the fact that you had betrayed me badly, you managed to realize the bigger problem at hand: my problems," Salem said, a smug smile on his face as Hilda, Zelda, Quigley went into the kitchen and Chloe went into the restroom.
"By the way, Salem, I forgot to give you a second birthday present. This is something Sabrina and I came up with, right, Sabrina?" Aaron asked.
"Sure," Sabrina said, as Aaron picked her up.
"Sabrina's my present?!" Salem asked with a big smile.
"Nope, it's what coming out of her in the next twenty seconds," Aaron said, cocking Sabrina like a gun.
"Uh..." Salem said.
"Not like that, you freak! I don't want hybrid cats!" Sabrina snapped.
"Oh, thank go-" Salem began to say.
"It's called the dreaded DEATH RAINBOW!" Aaron said in a surprisingly low voice.
Meanwhile, in the kitchen-Quigley, Zelda and Hilda's P.O.V.
Before any of the adults could say anything, they heard Salem scream, "MY INSIDES ARE BURNING!"
Zelda turned towards Hilda. "You taught Sabrina how to do the dreaded DEATH RAINBOW? When?" Zelda asked.
"After the incident in Manhattan. It was just a precaution for just in case if she needs to defend herself. By the way, I found this and thought it's time to give it to you. You know, to bury the hatchet between us," Hilda said, giving Zelda a cake.
It said 'Sorry for killing your bride with the dreaded DEATH RAINBOW' in rainbow frosting.
"Where was this?" Zelda asked.
"I found this in Quigley's dresser. Other than that, I don't know where it was during the past couple centuries," Hilda said.
"What the heck is this death rainbow?" Quigley asked.
"It's something Hilda came up with, when she offed Madi on our wedding day," Zelda said, eating a piece of the cake. "And this cake somehow tastes good, despite being centuries old," she added.
"Anyways, the magic is determined by age and negative emotions. In fact, I'm sure this is the only magic where the power is determined by age. The younger you are, the weaker the powers are. And if someone uses any emotions except for anger, the pain will be reduced by a huge margin.
"In fact, the only time I used the dreaded DEATH RAINBOW in anger was the day I vaporized Madi off the face of the planet." Hilda explained.
"Hilda, if you continue talking about that day, not only will it make it harder for me to forgive you, but it'll be much harder for Madi to rest in peace. Right now, we should be raising Sabrina so she doesn't go through the same things we went through," Zelda said, giving Hilda a plate with a piece of the cake.
"But why would you give Sabrina the power to hurt anyone?" Quigley asked.
"Don't worry. She's not gonna use it on mortals if that's your concern." Hilda waved off Quigley's concern.
"That still doesn't answer my question," Quigley said.
"Because eventually, Zelda wants to learn it to use it on you," Hilda said.
"You're joking, right?" Quigley asked, only to hear the sound of a gun cocking. He was relieved for a brief moment to see Zelda holding Hilda like a gun, only for his expression to change into horror by Zelda's words.
"No, she's not joking. And neither am I," she said.
Quigley's screams of pain rang throughout the neighborhood.
Three minutes later-Everyone's P.O.V.-Living Room
"So, does anyone have any good ideas?" Salem asked as Zelda, Aaron, Sabrina and Chloe were heading towards the front door.
"Yeah: I'm taking these three to the movies," said Zelda.
"But what about my problems?" Salem asked.
"Well, since they're your problems, you're the expert on how to fix them," Aaron said.
"Plus, we're not in your world, so we can't help you. So, bye Salem," Sabrina said.
"I think they said everything," Chloe said as the three pre-teens and Zelda exit the house.
"Dang it. First, Aaron used a dog to turn Sabrina against me, then he tricked her into thinking he's her 'friend', and now this. What do I have to do to get people to realize that I'm the one who's important?" Salem asked, walking to the kitchen, where Hilda was fiddling with her phone.
"Aha! Successfully used Facenovel, Tweeter and Hooters!" Hilda exclaimed.
"It's Facebook, Twitter, and Hooters is a restaurant, not social media," Salem corrected, irritated at the fact that Hilda, who is older than him by about 100 years, doesn't know social media, while he used it to increase his popularity. That is, he'll use it...when he's human again.
"Dang it, I thought it was a place to sell owls," Hilda said.
"Well, it's not like you're telling the whole magical community that I'm a cat thanks to the Witches' Council," Salem said, a bit relieved.
"Actually, I am." Hilda said.
"What? Why?" Salem asked.
"Because you got me in trouble for serving snacks when I worked for you," Hilda said.
"Oh come on, those snacks were good," Salem said.
"They were filled with kitty litter, you sicko!" Hilda shouted.
"Well, can you help me make a golem?" Salem asked.
"Hmm, no. You can do that yourself," Hilda said.
"But I have no thumbs," Salem complained.
"Didn't stop you from doing magic before," Hilda said, leaving the kitchen.
"Ugh, fine," Salem said, heading up to the attic.
Soon-The Attic
Salem looked over the spellbook, double-checking the page.
"Ah, the golems: a magical, hollow robot I can control from the inside. Ingredients: clay and dragon's bane. Good thing I always keep a bottle of dragon's bane on me to keep my fur nice and glossy. Now, where do I find clay?" Salem asked, before noticing a large red and purple clay vase.
"I'll take it. After all, the taller they are, the more handsome the body is," Salem said, dragging the clay vase over to the podium. Then he poured a small amount of the dragon's bane into the vase.
"Dragon's bane, vase of clay, become a golem and save my day!" Salem recited, spicing up the incantation.
The clay vase shook before transforming into a golem that looks like Fabio. "Ah, exactly like me. Fabio stole my looks back when I made it cool," Salem said, climbing onto the golem and opening the back panel, jumping into the seat.
"Good thing I know how to operate these things back in the Second NetherWorld War. Of course, I started that war to get back at Madison for the payment I owed, but no one cares about the details unless it's how awesome I am," Salem said to himself.
He looked around, making sure the coast is clear, before reaching for the controls. It had been years since he last control a golem, so he was a bit rusty.
"Here goes nothing," he said, going forward. The golem hit a pole, causing the pole to fall on it, which caused the two to fall on the ground. "I sure hope that pole wasn't holding up anything important, like the roof," Salem groaned.
Salem continued having issues controlling the golem, due to the fact he hadn't operated one in centuries.
At the same time, the doorbell rings, which Hilda opened the door. Only so that she would get back to binge-watching the Nostalgia Critic
At the door was a male in his late 30s with brown hair, though there were gray at the sides, who was wearing a magician outfit.
"Okay, who's idea of a prank is this?" Hilda asked.
"Oh, no. I'm the astounding, enchanting, extraordinary and disarmingly humble wizard, Hephaestus," the male introduced himself.
"Oh. Salem's friend." Hilda said, disinterested.
"Yes. Now, if you excuse me, I had to talk to him about important matters," Hephaestus said, stepping past Hilda to enter the house.
"To think Salem has a big ego. ...No, Salem still has a huge ego either way," Hilda said, closing the front door.
"Salem, Hephaestus is here!" Hilda called out, before turning to Hephaestus. "He'll be down in a moment. Do you want something to drink or eat while waiting?" she asked.
"No, I'm good. I'm just anxious to see Salem again. Where is he?" Hephaestus asked, crossing his arms.
"This is Salem we're talking about. He's probably grooming himself," Hilda said.
"True. He did do that a lot when we were younger." Hephaestus said as Hilda went up to her room to update her social media status.
Meanwhile, Salem flipped a coin, before trying to move the golem again. All he managed was to crash into the walls.
The golem soon burst through Quigley's room, startling the poor mortal man(i.e. causing Quigley to scream like a little girl). Salem attempted to stop it, but all he did was get the golem to twirl. In the end, though, it finally stopped alright. It stopped due to overloading, falling onto the ground and breaking.
"Normally, I would be mad about you lying, but then again, I guess this one's on me. After all, I didn't tell you not to lie. Mainly because I was recovering from that death rainbow," Quigley said, wincing in pain.
"You too?" Salem asked.
"Yeah." Quigley said.
"Quigley, what am I gonna do? Hephaestus is here and I'm a-"
"A mangy cat," Quigley finished Salem's sentence.
"I think cat would've been sufficient," Salem said.
"Well, just tell him the truth, Salem. It's always the best way." Quigley said.
"Yeah, but it's not my way of doing things. And if I can't do my way, then there is no best way. Plus, it might be Plan C, just in case," Salem said, conjuring up a broom and dustpan.
"Salem, he's going to know the truth anyways once he sees you," Quigley points out as Salem swept up the golem pieces.
"You're right, Quigley. Oh, if only some lucky artist had decided to take up this challenge," Salem said, feeding on Quigley's acting prowess.
"What challenge?" Quigley asked.
"I'm sorry. Did I say that out loud?" Salem said, not meaning it.
"Something about a lucky artist?" Quigley said.
"Oh, just a whim of a vagary of a notion. I could never find an actor with the skill to pull it off," Salem said.
"Actor? Excuse me, but you happen to be talking to the assistant treasurer of the Gilbert and Sullivan Booster Society, Greendale Chapter." Quigley said.
"Goodness, you're right! You are an actor! I had almost forgotten," Salem said dramatically, crossing his paws behind his back.
"But do you think an actor like yourself can pull off a role of a warlock?" Salem asked.
"Of course I could. Salem, I was born to play this part," Quigley said.
"Congratulations, you're gonna play the role of a lifetime! Me!" Salem said, shaking Quigley's hand.
"I got the part! I can't believe it!" Quigley exclaimed.
"It's true. Now, let's go," Salem said, turning to leave the room.
"Don't I get a script?" asked Quigley.
"No, it's all ad-lib. Don't worry, I'll be right there with you. I'll pretend I'm your familiar," Salem said, pushing Quigley towards the hole in the wall.
"My what?" Quigley asked.
"Familiar. Like an assistant. Now, let's go and maybe after this, I'll give you some money to kickstart your new business," Salem said. However, Quigley moved away from Salem's pushing range, causing Salem to fall flat on his face.
"Shouldn't I have a hat or something?" asked Quigley.
"Just go!" demanded Salem, pointing at the hole.
"My first role in years and I have no script and no wardrobe. Oh well, the show must go on," said a dramatic Quigley, going through the hole in the wall.
"Actors," scoffs Salem.
Soon-Living Room
"Hello, old pal," 'Salem'(Actually Quigley doing his Salem impression. It's not a good impression.) said as he ran into the room and gave Hephaestus a hug. The actual Salem went in the room at that moment.
"It is I, your old chum, Salem. And this is my, uh, familiar, Quigley," 'Salem' said, pointing at 'Quigley' the familiar.
"Salem, old friend, you look so different." Hephaestus said.
"Well, I try to eat right, get lots of exercise," 'Salem' said, flexing his non-existent muscles.
"Okay, you said hello, now say good-bye," 'Quigley' whispered, hanging onto 'Salem's' arm.
"Is something wrong with your familiar?" asked Hephaestus, pointing at 'Quigley'.
"Oh, you know how it is. One simply can't get good help, can they? Get good help, that is," 'Salem' said, elbowing Hephaestus's gut as a joke while chuckling.
"Great, I have created Frankenham," 'Quigley' muttered.
"Anyway, I'd love to catch up. If you have some free time, I'd be honored if you show me around your acquainted little village," Hephaestus said.
"No," 'Quigley' said, almost meowing as he shook his head no. Unfortunately, 'Salem' didn't get the memo.
"Sounds great, old friend," 'Salem' said, giving Hephaestus two thumbs up.
"Good. Maybe you should zap us around, since we're on your home turf, and your way is always the best way, according to you. Unless you're still having problems with basic spells." Hephaestus said.
"Like how he caused the Second NetherWorld War to end quickly because he had all the golems had self-destruct buttons on the bottom of their feet?" Hilda shouted from her room.
Flashback-1645
"And forward march!" Salem shouted, only for all the golems to blow up by stepping on the self-destruct button that was placed on the bottom of their feet. Salem's reason for such thing? So that Madison and Zelda wouldn't press them.
Speaking of Madison and Zelda, the two were dumbfounded by what happened. Madison turned to look at Zelda, who gave her an awkward shrug, unsure of what just happened.
Hilda, on the other hand, face-palmed herself, embarrassed by what happened.
"I told you this would happen, but did you listen? Nooooo, you thought you know more than I do. Just, do whatever you want with him, you two," Hilda said, leaving the area.
"Well, she did say we can do whatever we want with Salem," Zelda said.
"And I know what I'm gonna do," Madison said, her fingers charging up with Force Lightning.
"Mommy?" Salem said, horrified.
The sounds of Force Lightning hitting flesh, along with Salem's screams of pain and agony, were the only sounds throughout the night.
Present time-2011
'Quigley' was fuming at that memory while Hephaestus was laughing.
"Salem, remember the time you stared at your crystal ball for an hour before realizing that I switched it with your bowling ball," Hephaestus said, laughing harder.
"Are you gonna stand there and let him insult us like that?" Salem asked quietly.
"He's not insulting me, he's insulting you," Quigley quietly pointed out, breaking character for a moment.
"Got a little more acreage in the old backyard these days, eh, Salem?" asked Hephaestus.
"What was that?" 'Salem'(Quigley resuming his Salem impression) asked.
"Oh, nothing. I have tried to keep myself fit over the centuries, that's all. You look like you've slowed down," Hephaestus said, smirking.
"Well, is that so? Well, I bet I can still beat you in a race with both hands stapled to a manhole cover!" 'Salem' challenged.
"Oh yeah? Then let's race. The usual stakes?" Hephaestus asked.
"Sure," replied 'Salem', shaking Hephaestus's hands.
"Great. The loser becomes the servant of the winner for the next 50 years," Hephaestus explained.
"Good," 'Salem' said.
"Great. The race is tomorrow at high noon. Also, I don't have my flying carpet, so I need to borrow one of yours." Hephaestus said, leaving the house.
Quigley turned around to see Salem's unamused face.
"Uh, what?" Quigley asked.
"Do you have any plans on how to race him tomorrow? Unless you secretly want to be his servant for the next 50 years," Salem said as Quigley realized his mistake.
"I lost my head! I got competitive and I lost my head! Why did I listen to you? Oh, we've got to come clean and tell Hephaestus the truth!" Quigley said.
"No way! My lie was nice, simple and would've worked. You're the dim-wit who decided to challenge him to a race! You're not chickening out now!" Salem scolded.
"Well, I did made the challenge. I suppose I do have a moral obligation to race him," Quigley accepted.
"Yeah, and you're gonna beat him. Once I get some magic carpets. Oh, Hilda, can you conjure up some magic carpets?!" Salem called.
"You get your own magic carpets! I don't work for you anymore!" Hilda shouted from her room.
"Well, there goes that option. Guess I have to do everything myself," Salem grumbled as he went to do just that.
"Oh, make ours strong since the both of us will be on it," Quigley told Salem.
"Both of us?" Salem asked, facing Quigley.
"Yes. Either you fly with me or I'll tell Hephaestus the truth, like we should've done in the first place. Plus, you're the one with magic, so you're going to have to control our flying carpet," Quigley pointed out.
"Okay, okay." Salem said, grabbing two rugs and shaking the dust out of them before placing them on the floor.
"Persian rugs, get off the floor. Time has come for you to soar. Silly warlocks will be your masters, help us be faster," recited Salem, causing the rugs to become flying carpets.
Friday-Everyone's P.O.V.-Greendale Junior High
"So, how did it go?" Aaron asked Chloe and Sabrina as they exit the choir room. The people in charge of the chorale wouldn't let him go in the room to cheer for Chloe and Sabrina due to the whole not auditioning thing.
"We won't know until Monday. That's when they post the list of those who got in," Sabrina said.
"I hadn't felt this nervous since auditions for the Romeo and Juliet play we did a month ago," Chloe added.
"Well, no matter the results, I still think you two had the voices of angels and could be in any choir group you want," Aaron said.
"Thanks, Aaron." Sabrina said.
"You know, I don't know what happened after the whole Alvin mess and whatever went down in Manhattan, but you've changed Aaron. You're more caring about others and you haven't tried to find a situation where you're popular. It's a good change," Chloe said as the three friends exit the school building.
"Thanks for noticing, Chloe. And trust me, those experiences were eye-opening." Aaron said.
"So, what exactly happened in Manha-" Chloe began to ask, only for it to get interrupted by Quigley screaming as he, Salem and Hephaestus were on flying carpets, followed by Hilda and Zelda on flying vacuums.
"You know what, maybe this isn't the best time to ask questions," Chloe said.
"Yeah, I think we noticed," Sabrina said.
"Right now, we have to figure out what's going on," Aaron said as the three of them checked to see if the coast was clear. As soon as they made sure no one else was around, Sabrina whistled, causing two flying vacuums to appear: one for her and one for Aaron.
"See you once we get this handle, Chloe. Somehow, this is Salem's fault," Sabrina said.
"Okay. I'll stop by your house, waiting for you," Chloe said, heading towards Sabrina's house.
With that in mind, Sabrina and Aaron took off on the vacuums, soon flying next to Hilda and Zelda.
"What the hell is going on?" Sabrina asked.
"Flying carpets aren't built to go faster than 40 miles per hour. Salem and Hephaestus are pushing those carpets too hard," Hilda said.
"Not for the first time." Zelda dryly commented.
"True. It's how they got stuck with detention during their school days," Hilda admitted.
"Anyways, we're trying to warn them, but they won't slow down," Zelda said.
"Okay, but why is Quigley on the carpet?" Aaron asked.
"Oh, Salem managed to convince Quigley to pretend to be him so Hephaestus wouldn't know the truth. After all, honesty isn't Salem's way of doing things," Hilda said as everyone flew through a flock of geese. Luckily for them, these geese decided to walk instead of being violent.
"Salem, your carpet is unraveling!" Hephaestus warned.
"Well, so is yours!" Quigley shouted back, still trying to be Salem, though I don't know why anyone wants to pretend to be Salem of all beings.
"Well, slow down!" Hephaestus told Salem and Quigley.
"No, you slow down!" Quigley shouted.
"You first!" Hephaestus shouted.
"To blazes with both of you! Carpet, slow down! Carpet, stop! Whoa, carpet!" Quigley shouted at the carpet, before turning to Salem. "Why won't the carpet obey me?!"
"Duh, these are Persian rugs! They don't understand English commands." Salem said.
"Salem, that's another bold-face lie! Admit it, the person who brings them to life is the one who can stop them!" Sabrina shouted.
"Salem, please tell the carpet to stop!" Quigley pleaded.
"Not until we beat Hephaestus!" Salem shouted as the carpet went much faster than before.
"Zelda, Hilda, please tell us there's another way to stop the carpet. Anything! Otherwise, Salem's own stupidity might get someone other than him and Quigley killed!" Sabrina said.
"I'm thinking, I'm thinking," Zelda said.
"Zelda, I think you're gonna have to think much quicker," Hilda said, pointing at the carpets.
"Stop, carpet!" Hephaestus shouted.
Quigley, grabbing Salem, jumped off the carpet he and Salem were on, which was half gone, on to Hephaestus's carpet, as they barely dodge trees.
"We're safe now. Hephaestus can use his magic to save us. Go on, Hephaestus, zap up a giant pillow or something." Salem said.
"I can't. It's Salem's rug, let him slow it down. After all, his way is always the best way, no matter what," Hephaestus said, crossing his arms and looking away.
"I'M NOT SALEM!" Quigley shouted, finally done with the ruse.
"What?" Hephaestus said, surprised by the reveal.
"He's Salem!" Quigley pointed at Salem.
"Wait a minute, you're Salem?" Hephaestus asked Salem, still surprised by the reveal.
"Alright, alright, here's the truth," Salem said solemnly, finally doing something that isn't his method of things: being honest.
"Finally!" Quigley interjected.
"See, the Witches' Council turned me into a cat to punish me for trying to take over the world, though technically, I dared them to. Anyways, it's a long story and the point is, you have to use your magic save us!" Salem pleaded to Hephaestus, once again going against his own methods: admitting he needs help from others.
"I am truly shocked: a once mighty warlock turned into a mangy cat," Hephaestus said, holding Salem by the gruff of his neck in a tender way.
"I think cat would've been sufficient," Salem grumbled.
"Even I never thought you would fall so low," Hephaestus said, dropping Salem back onto the carpet.
"Look, are you gonna save us or not?" Salem said, only for Hephaestus to get decapitated by a tree branch.
"Well, shucks, your friend's head seems to have fallen off," Quigley jokes.
"I smell a rat," Salem said, just as a mouse with a turban and a goatee dazedly poked his head out of Hephaestus's headless body.
"Make that a mouse," Salem said as he jumped onto Hephaestus's shoulder. "Who are you?" he asked the mouse.
"I'm Hephaestus. Hey. you think you're the only one that has problems with the Witches' Council?" Hephaestus said.
"What? You lied to me?" Salem asked, hurt by Hephaestus's actions.
"I couldn't let you see me like this. You would've been so smug," Hephaestus said.
"Really? You thought that. Jeez, Hephaestus, I'm sorry," Salem said.
"Me too, pal!" Hephaestus said as he and Salem hugged each other.
"I hate to break up this freakish little love fest, but are you telling me neither of you two have the power to get us down safely?" Quigley asked.
"'Fraid not," Salem and Hephaestus said in unison.
"What do we do now?" Quigley asked as Salem and Hephaestus jumped into Quigley's arms.
"HELP!" the three of them cried out in fear and panic.
"Hilda, you've been with Salem more than I had back then. How do we stop those carpets?" Zelda asked.
"That's the problem: we never used magic carpets back then. Europe and Britain had their own magical governments that banned magic carpets, so we couldn't use them." Hilda said.
"Well, it looks like they're slowing down. If they can hold on just a little longer," Sabrina said, pointing at the three on the carpet. Unfortunately, the carpet unraveled at that moment, causing Quigley, Salem and Hephaestus to plummet down 40,000 feet towards the ground.
Wasting no time, Aaron, Sabrina, Hilda and Zelda force the vacuums to speed up so that they could catch the two falling warlocks and the falling mortal, barely catching them only a few feet from the ground.
Hilda had Quigley and Hephaestus in her arms, Zelda had the Hephaestus's golem, which she promptly tossed away, and Sabrina had Salem while Aaron flew next to her.
"They don't make flying carpets like they use to," Salem said.
"Salem, shut up for once in your life," Sabrina said as the seven of them flew back to the Spellman's house.
Later-Spellman's Residence
"I hope you two learn something today. Now shake hands and make up" Sabrina said firmly to Salem and Hephaestus, as Quigley was slumped in his sitting chair.
"We were so busy competing that we lost sight of being friends," Salem said, holding his hand out.
"And we wasted a couple centuries avoiding each other. It's not gonna happen again." Hephaestus said as he and Salem shook hands. Or more accurately, Salem shook Hephaestus due to the latter's small size and slim body.
"Good. Now, Chloe, Aaron and I are going to hang out together during the weekend so that we're not stressing over the chorales, just in case if Chloe and I don't make the cut." Sabrina said, leaving the house and heading off to the arcades with Aaron and Chloe.
"Of course, there's one tiny, tiny detail you've overlooked, my dear old chum," Salem said.
"What's that?" Hephaestus asked, only for Salem, with a cold smirk, to grab his tail.
"I happen to be the predator and you're the prey. And consider this as payback for making me break my moral code more than once. After all, I'm the one who everyone goes to for help, not the other way around. Everything revolves around me. And my way is always the best way." Salem sneered.
"Yeah? Well, I haven't met a cat who could beat me in the 50 yard dash," Hephaestus said, biting Salem's nose, causing the latter to drop the former.
Hephaestus, smirking, ran.
"You're on! And when I catch you, there won't be any second chances for you, because I! Will! Eat! YOU!" Salem snarled as he chased after Hephaestus.
"Some folks never learn. At least I finally got that money needed for the restaurant in Aron City, though," Quigley noted, patting the pocket stuffed with money Salem gave him as payment for his acting role.
Monday-Aaron's P.O.V.-Greendale Junior High
"So?" I asked, as Sabrina and Chloe glanced at the list. They gave me somber looks. I was about to comfort them when they broke out into smiles.
"We got in!" They shouted in joy.
"Really? You're not pulling my leg?" I asked.
"No! Look," Sabrina said as she showed me the list. Right there, as clear as day, their names were on the list.
"And the best part was we weren't over competitive during this whole thing, so we managed to support each other," Chloe said.
"Congrats, you two! I've never doubted you two for a second!" I exclaimed, throwing confetti into the air, giving Sabrina and Chloe 'Congratulations' cards I bought at a card shop over the weekends.