"Woah, you guys are Wiccans?" Dusk gasped.
"I'm sorry!" Nia stuttered. "We promise we didn't mean to lie to you! Wicca's just a touchy religion where people think it's the same thing as witchcraft and…"
"It's okay." Thorn assured. "I'm a Wiccan too."
"Oh my gosh, really?!" Sam exclaimed.
"Yeah, she is. Well, only 1/16th on her mother's side." Dusk laughed. "She doesn't really practice it."
"Actually, it's funny you mention that." Thorn chuckled. "I just started reading a book on Wicca a couple nights ago. It seems like a really interesting religion, and maybe something I want to practice."
"You mean that same book that's been collecting dust on your nightstand since we moved in together?" Luna inquired.
"Yeah. My dad reminded me during one of my shifts how my mom gave it to me, and I thought maybe it was time to finally give it a read." Thorn elaborated.
"That's such a relief." Bridgit sighed happily, as if a huge load had been taken off her shoulders. "To be honest, we don't really tell too many people we're Wiccans, because people are so judgemental. They think all Wiccans are evil sorceresses or something."
"Tell me about it." Thorn rolled her eyes.
"If you want, we can teach you what we know about Wicca." Bridgit offered. "I can't guarantee we'll know everything, but we know some stuff."
"That'd be nice. So, where did you get that charm, if you don't mind me asking?" Thorn inquired.
"And why'd you give it to me?" Dusk added.
"Oh." Bridgit chuckled. "I got it from my mom. Well, indirectly. My mom died before I was born, but my dad gave it to me as a keepsake."
"My mom died too." Thorn admitted, vulnerability present in her tone.
"I'm sorry. Having only one parent is always hard. I never knew my mom, but I'd do anything to meet her." Bridgit sighed.
"I mean, if you want it back, I don't want to take something that your mom gave to you." Dusk looked like she felt guilty.
"No, no. That's not what I meant." Bridgit explained. "It's moldavite, a Wicca charm that's supposed to bring good luck. When you guys found the charm after I lost it, I thought maybe fate intended for you to have it. Like, you needed the good luck or something. You're such a talented band, and if not for you guys, who knows who would have found the charm? I can't think of anyone I'd want to have the charm more than you."
"Aww. That's so sweet." Thorn put her hand up by her heart.
"I'm honored that you gave this to me." Dusk smiled, showing a rare moment of vulnerability.
"Of course. And I'm really glad the fact that we're Wiccans doesn't change how you think of us." Bridgit replied.
"Not at all. In fact, I'm excited to learn more about Wicca from you guys." Thorn smiled.
"Why don't you guys sit down and join us?" Dusk suggested. "I was just finishing up my shift anyway and about to have lunch."
"Oh my gosh, we'd love that!" Sam exclaimed.
"Maybe we could even teach you some more about Wicca while we eat." Nia offered.
"I'd love that." Thorn smiled.
The weekend had come and gone, and another week had already begun. The girls had spent much of the weekend practicing for the Autumn Fest, and had just finished their first work shift of the week. Thorn was currently enjoying a leisurely lunch at Jack's with Luna, while they waited for Dusk to finish up her shift. As Thorn scribbled down some potential lyrics for songs in her notebook, Luna interrupted her thought process.
"Oh! I had an idea for a song I wanted to tell you about!" Luna suddenly remembered. "I was thinking about last year's Autumn Fest."
"We already wrote a song about that, remember?" Thorn reminded, referring to "The Witch's Ghost."
"Yeah, but that was about Sarah." Luna vaguely said. She obviously didn't want to be overly obvious, as the few other people that had witnessed Sarah Ravencroft return from the grave had kept relatively quiet about it, mostly because they didn't want people to think they were crazy. "I was thinking about writing a song about those four people and their dog that we met."
"Oh yeah. They were pretty interesting people. It's not everyday you meet professional mystery-solvers." Thorn lightly chuckled.
"A line that Ben said stuck in my head. Meddling kids." Luna said. "I was thinking that could be the title. Or something like, 'Those Meddling Kids.'"
"I really like that idea." Thorn smiled. The song very much felt like they were sharing an experience they had with the world, which was the black-haired goth's favorite type of song to write.
"I was thinking it could start with something like this… 'here come those meddlin' kids…" Luna's quiet singing was cut off by Dusk's arrival at their table.
"Alright, I'm ready." Dusk slipped her pink apron off. She was wearing an old t-shirt from last Autumn Fest, which read 'I Met the Ghost of Oakhaven and Lived.' The statement was quite true, ironically.
"We can write more later. We've got to get to that meeting with Gus at 2." Thorn said. "I liked that line, though."
"Thanks!" Luna exclaimed.
Thorn quite liked the idea of writing a song about those mystery-solving people they met. They were certainly quite a unique group, that was for sure.
It felt like it had been forever since Thorn didn't drive the Soccer Mom Van, given that seemed to be the arrangement that worked out best when driving to work. This time, Luna drove the vehicle whilst Dusk sat in the passenger's seat, and Thorn sat in the back. Thorn didn't even really mind being wedged up against the instruments; she just was happy she had a break from driving. Luna was currently in the process of explaining her song idea to Dusk, right as she pulled into a parking space at Decade Records.
"Yeah, I really dig that." Dusk nodded, getting out of the car and grabbing her drum set. They had brought the instruments just in case Gus wanted them to play again.
Then, something happened that Thorn never would have expected: she realized that this felt like a normal routine. She no longer felt the butterflies in her stomach of what this record producer was going to say to them. Gus was now their manager and record producer, and a meeting with him felt just like a regular task. In fact, instead of being jittery and worried about if Gus would like their music, she was excited about the meeting and looked forward to hearing his insights.
The girls slogged in the building at a slow pace, carrying their heavy instruments into Gus's office. It was a relief reaching Gus's office, as it would allow Thorn to set her instrument down to knock on the door.
"Come in!" Gus's voice called from behind the wooden door.
"Hey, Gus!" Thorn waved, feeling a sense of relief as she set the instrument down on the ground and sat in a cushioned chair.
"Hello girls! How are you groovy goths doing?" Gus inquired, a hint of lighthearted playfulness in his voice.
"We're really good! We got invited to play -" Dusk's voice was cut off by Gus.
"- The Autumn Fest? Yes, I heard! That's quite exciting! I'm sure you girls are quite busy this week practicing." Gus presumed.
"Yeah. Plus, we've got a concert at Jack's tomorrow night." Dusk informed. Thorn had admittedly forgotten that the concert with Jack's was coming up so soon. There had been so much going on lately that Thorn felt a bit more scatterbrained than usual.
"That indeed sounds like quite a busy week. You girls certainly have had a lot happening lately. In fact, I wanted to start our meeting by informing you of another thing going on. I looked into the contemporary hit radio adds schedule - where radio stations add new songs to their playlists - and I wanted you girls to look over it with me." Gus explained.
"Okay!" Thorn was surprised how easy the process was.
"Next week, we've got a release from one of our biggest artists, and then, two huge artists from another label are sending their songs for adds the very next week. It looks like the following week isn't much better, as a number of popular artists are pushing their songs to radio that week." Gus said in a disappointed manner.
"Wait...pushing to radio? Sending for adds?" Luna looked confused.
"Oh, my apologies. I forget you're not quite versed in the music industry language yet. Pushing to radio and sending for adds are the same thing." Gus elaborated. "It just means promoting the song to radio stations in attempt to get them to add it to their station's playlist on that date."
"Okay. That makes sense." Luna nodded. "Thanks!"
"When would be a good day to send our song for adds, then?" Thorn inquired.
"Well…" Gus eyed the schedule again. "Ironically, this week doesn't have that many releases. The only things on the schedule are "Cowgirls, Beer, and Trucks" by Farmer Jones, and "Bitches and Henny" by Lil Stereotype."
"They really allow that last one to be played on the radio?" Dusk's jaw dropped a little in shock.
"Well, they'll play the clean version, "Witches and Kenny." They've done quite a fine job replacing all the references to promiscuous women and binge drinking to a story about witches and a curious little boy named Kenny." Gus explained. "Works quite well, surprisingly."
"So you're saying that we should send our song to radio this week?" Thorn looked shocked. "That's only a couple days!"
"Well, in fact, the radio adds days are Tuesdays, so if you girls want me to, I'm ready to push "Hex Girl" tomorrow." Gus said. "If you can make a decision by the end of this meeting, I can get it on the adds schedule before the end of the day."
"Is there even any decision?" Thorn looked at Luna and Dusk.
"I don't think so." Dusk excitedly replied. "When are we going to have an opportunity like this again?"
"Yeah. I say we send it for adds." Luna agreed with her two bandmates.
"Well, it's decided then." Gus smiled. "Your song will be sent to radio tomorrow. I believe you've heard that a few stations have already begun playing "Hex Girl," correct?"
"Yes!" Thorn confirmed. "We're really excited."
"I'm glad. Now, since it's been over a week since we last met, I wanted to ask you how your album's coming. Do you still have seven songs finished?" Gus asked.
"Actually, it's now eight. We started working on a ninth today, in fact." Thorn proudly informed.
"Wonderful! Do you have ideas for any of the remaining songs?" Gus inquired.
"Not yet, I don't think." Thorn's proud tone became a little more subdued.
"That's perfectly okay. If you didn't, I wanted to make sure I suggested the idea of covers. Have you thought about covers?" Gus wondered aloud.
"Well, we were just thinking it would be a picture of all three of us looking super gothy, and - " Dusk began, before Gus interrupted.
"No, not album covers!" Gus corrected. "I'm talking about covering songs from other artists. As in, creating your own version."
"Oh, no. We haven't thought about that." Thorn admitted.
"You certainly don't have to. Just maybe give it some thought." Gus advised. "Goth and punk music is one of the most unique types of music in my opinion, and I think it would be quite interesting to hear you girls provide your own interpretation on a popular song."
"I think that'd be wicked." Dusk blurted.
"Yeah, it'd be so cool to remake another artist's song in our own style. Thanks for the suggestion, Gus!" Thorn appreciated.
"Of course, girls." Gus smiled. "The other thing I wanted to discuss with you is your album release strategy. Have you thought about how soon you want to release your album, once you finish it?"
The Hex Girls all looked at each other blankly.
"I don't know, what do you think?" Dusk said uncertainly to Gus.
"Girls, I'd like you to think of me as a mentor." Gus's tone became more serious. "Some labels want to dominate their artists and call all the shots. My philosophy is that the artists always know what's best for their music. You can have a huge team of people helping you with your music, but at the end of the day, it all comes back to believing in your music and putting in that work for yourself. It's not about what I want. What do you want?"
"That's really good advice." Thorn said in awe, even though she realized she hadn't answered his question.
"I think we were more just asking for what artists typically do." Luna elaborated Dusk's earlier question.
"Music is an art of authenticity; it's about what you have to say as an artist." Gus philosophized. "To answer your question, some artists take up to 8-9 months to put out an album once it's finished. I also had a band that once put out a song the day they finished it. I don't want you to think about other artists, though. I want you to come up with an album strategy that feels like something you're proud of."
Gus paused for a moment, before he resumed talking.
"I don't want you to feel like you need to give me an answer today. This is something that you can think about, and we'll talk about it next time we meet." Gus resumed speaking. "Another option is seeing how your first single does. Sometimes, it can build excitement if an artist releases the album quickly after a first single becomes successful."
"You've given us a lot to think about, Gus." Thorn replied, not sure what else to say. She had never really seriously thought about a "strategy" to release their album. The band had just assumed they would release the album whenever they finished.
"Well, please do think about it. That's your assignment for our next meeting." Gus instructed in a lighthearted way. "It was nice seeing you girls today."
"It was great seeing you too!" Thorn replied.
"I was thinking we could set a permanent meeting time every week, if you'd be up for it. I think it would be helpful to you girls to have a space where you can ask me any questions you may have about releasing the album." Gus offered.
"Yeah, I think that would be helpful." Luna nodded.
"Well, we all work in the mornings, so it would need to be sometime after 1." Dusk added.
"How about every Thursday at 2?" Gus suggested.
"That would be perfect." Thorn agreed.
"Then it's settled! You girls have a busy enough schedule this week, so let's start the meetings next Thursday." Gus planned. "Good luck at the Autumn Fest, by the way! I'll be there, so I'll have to stop and say hi after the performance!"
"Thanks!" Luna appreciated.
"We look forward to it!" Thorn smiled.
And with that, the girls headed out of Gus's office and went home after a long day, knowing that tomorrow would be an even longer one.
Thorn was beginning to like the routine of eating the lunch she had packed every day at Jack's whilst waiting for Dusk's shift to conclude. She and Luna used their spare time to work on "Those Meddlin' Kids," the song Luna had suggested yesterday. Luna had scribbled down a few lyric ideas in her notebook. Thorn leaned over her shoulder to look at the lyrics.
"When it seems there's no one left to call now; when it seems there's no hope left at all now." Thorn read. "I like that. Very angsty."
"I do too, but I feel like it needs something at the beginning." Luna critiqued her own work.
The songstresses were interrupted by Jack coming out of the back with two orders on a large gray platter. From what Thorn could see, it appeared to be a hamburger and some soup.
"Hey girls! Working on another song?" Jack asked, stopping for a brief second.
"Yeah. Maybe we'll even be able to perform it here tonight, if we finish it in time." Luna said. She was quite shy around most people other than her bandmates and family, but she seemed to be slightly more comfortable around Jack than with other people.
"Great! Well, you girls are welcome to stay here until the concert if ya want!" Jack invited. "I'm happy to brew up some coffee on the house, if you'd like!"
"That'd be great, Jack!" Thorn warmly smiled.
"Wonderful! Lemme just get these orders delivered, and I'll tell Dusk to brew up some coffee." Jack informed, as he raced off to give a table their meals.
"We're going to need a lot of coffee if we're going to write this song today. We wanted to talk about the album release strategy thing too, once Dusk gets here." Thorn remembered. "Hey, do you really think we should perform our new songs? We've always just performed those original six songs we've had forever. Do we need to switch up the list a little?"
"Well, I don't think we should perform all of them. Maybe just one of them to give people a little tease that new music is coming." Luna suggested.
"Like anyone's actually paying attention." Thorn laughed.
"Those radio stations are. They picked up our song before it even went for adds." Luna reminded.
"I mean, I guess." Thorn shrugged. Even though she knew things were beginning to look up now that they had signed a record deal, it still didn't feel like anyone was really paying attention.
Thorn and Luna looked over to see Dusk, struggling to balance a platter of three coffee cups and a pot of coffee.
"Here's our coffee, guys." Dusk said, as she poured a cup for Luna. "I just wanted to warn you, it's a little stronger than the milkshakes with a drop of coffee you usually drink."
"I've had coffee before, Dusk." Luna rolled her eyes.
"Okay, if you say so. I can bring you a thermos of creamer if you're scared." Dusk further teased.
"Well, I was going to ask for cream and sugar, but now I'm going to drink it straight just to spite you." Thorn laughed.
Dusk handed Thorn her cup, before pouring herself one. Unfortunately for her, the cup fell off the platter she had it perched on, and shattered in a dozen pieces on the floor.
"Argh!" Dusk growled.
"Aww...not again, Dusk." Thorn tried to hold back her giggles.
"Shut up!" Dusk said in a half-irritated, half-playful manner, as she went in back to retrieve a broom and a new cup.
"Anyway, yeah. We need to confirm with Dusk once she sweeps that up, but I'm fine with performing this song, if we can finish it." Thorn agreed.
Dusk quickly hurried back with a broom before someone could step on the broken pieces of cup.
"Dusk, if we can finish this new song today, do you think we should perform it?" Thorn asked.
"Finish it today?" Dusk exclaimed in surprise. "That's a tight margin. But I guess if we do, sure."
"We'd better get to work, then. Well, once you sweep that up, of course." Thorn tried to hold back her giggles.
It seemed poor Dusk just couldn't get the hang of waitressing.
"Here come those meddlin' kids." Thorn reread the line she had just written in her lyrics notebook. "What do you think about ending the song like that?"
"I like it." Dusk nodded.
"It feels very full-circle to end the song with the first line of the chorus." Luna agreed.
Thorn looked up at the clock on the back wall of the restaurant, which read 4:54. The girls were set to start performing at 5:30.
"And that's how you write a song in four hours." Thorn said, setting her pen down in a silly-triumphant way on the table.
"Hold on, we're not done yet." Dusk dissented. "Let's read it over one more time before we perform it."
"Before we do that though, let's quickly talk about the album release thing." Thorn suggested.
"Wait a second, Thorn. Slow down." Luna urged for the black-haired goth to pause. "The album release strategy is something we should take time to think through. I don't mean to be rude, but you're always trying to rush things just so you can say you have them done. It's not a race. Attention to detail is important."
"Yeah. I guess." Thorn hung her head feeling a bit embarrassed, but only because she recognized the truth in Luna's words. She occasionally rushed work because she wanted to feel productive, rather than taking the time to ensure it was as perfect as she wanted it to be.
"I'm glad you see what I'm saying. Let's talk about it another day when we have more time." Luna answered.
"Okay." Thorn nodded, hoping she wasn't blushing. It was ironic because Luna was usually the soft spoken, shy one, but Thorn always got quiet whenever she felt she screwed up or didn't live up to someone's expectations of her.
"We should probably get set up." Dusk pointed to the clock, which now read 4:58.
"Yeah. We probably should." Thorn abruptly said.
"Oh...I'm sorry, Thorn." Luna apologized. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything."
"You didn't! Everything's fine." Thorn curtly replied. "I promise."
Thorn wasn't lying when she said this either; it usually just took her a bit to recover. The distraction of the concert would be helpful.
Patrons were starting to file into Jack's. Thorn wasn't really sure if it was to see them play or just to eat dinner, but she always had a tendency to assume the latter.
"Did ya finish up with the new song you girls were working on?" Jack asked, as he passed by their booth.
"We did!" Dusk revealed. "You'll get to hear it at our concert tonight."
"Well, if it's anything like all the other music you girls have put out, I'm sure it will be amazing!" Jack complimented. "I can't wait to hear it!"
"Looks like we'll have a decent audience." Luna looked around at all the people currently sitting at tables. Even if they weren't there specifically to hear the girls, they would have at least 20 audience members from the looks of it.
Thorn saw a couple of familiar faces as her eye caught Bridgit's wavy pink hair.
"Hey!" Bridgit looked especially excited. She looked even more elated than usual, which was definitely saying something given how easily excitable the pink-haired girl could be.
"Boy, do we have some news for you!" Nia exclaimed.
"What's that?" Thorn inquired, as she took her guitar out of its case for the performance.
"My dad just told me the adds report came back. "Hex Girl" got added to the playlist of 15 top 40 stations!" Bridgit exclaimed. "Not to mention the two rock stations and the one hot adult contemporary one, and your song didn't even get promoted there yet."
"15?!" Dusk shouted in surprise.
"How is that even possible?" Luna gasped.
"I'll tell you how it's possible, people love your music!" Sam reminded.
"My dad said by the end of the week, your song will likely be played up to 100 times on the radio. And that's not counting any of the times it's been played in previous weeks." Bridgit added.
"100 times?" Thorn's jaw dropped.
"Hey, sorry to interrupt, but I just wanted to remind you girls that you've only got 15 minutes left until the performance." Jack pointed at the clock.
"We better get set up then." Thorn suddenly felt invigorated. "We can't let our fans down."
"Here come those meddlin' kids." the girls all sang, as they concluded the song.
"And that was our brand new song, "Those Meddlin' Kids." Now, we want to perform one of our most popular songs, "Hex Girl," which just got added to the playlists of 15 different radio stations today!" Thorn informed.
The comment was met by some excited clapping.
"I'm gonna cast a spell on you…" Thorn sang. While she continued singing, her attention became just a bit divided when she saw a man in a fancy suit enter the restaurant. It appeared he was talking to Bridgit, which caused her to point to the girls on stage.
"I'm a Hex Girl, and I'm gonna put a spell on you!" Thorn continued to sing, as the other two girls responded with an echo of the last phrase. The black-haired goth wondered for a moment if the suited man was going to interrupt their performance, but her question was answered as the man sat down next to Bridgit, Nia and Sam.
Thorn had admittedly been distracted and was just singing the words without really paying attention to the crispness of each word like she usually did. In fairness, this was the song they had performed the most out of any song, so it wasn't like she was going to forget a word. Once she realized that the man had sat down, her focus shifted back fully to singing.
"You'll wake up in the dead of night, missing me when I'm out of sight!" Thorn performed.
Just then, her eyes shifted back to the same suited man. He seemed to be observing them very closely. Thorn didn't feel unsafe, but she wondered why the man had his eyes so glued on the girls.
"We're gonna put a spell on all of you!" Thorn, Dusk, and Luna chanted in unison, as the audience began to clap.
"Thank you so much for coming out tonight, and if you want to see us perform again soon, we'll be performing at the Autumn Fest this Friday at 6:00pm." Thorn informed. "Have a safe drive home, everyone."
"Excuse me, miss?" a man's voice asked. The black-haired woman was half-expecting it to be the man in the suit, but it turned out it was someone she was more familiar with. It was the same elderly gentleman who had told them a few weeks ago that they could sound like Don Knotts with a little more practice.
"Do you girls have any cassette tapes or records I could buy?" the old man questioned. "I haven't heard such a groovin' jam since Martha and I discovered Ella Fitzergald in college!"
"No, I'm sorry." Thorn apologized. "We're working on an album now though, and hopefully we'll have it out soon."
"Oh, that's quite alright. C'mon, Martha." the old man called to his wife, as he headed for the door.
"Excuse me ladies." Thorn heard the voice of another much younger-sounding man. Turning around, she saw that it was the man in the suit who had been watching them closely.
"My name is Derek Johnson and I'm with the Larcom Theater in Salem." the man introduced himself. "I've been listening to your music, and you've got some real talent. If you girls would be interested, I'd love to invite you to play a show at our theater next Wednesday night at 7 in Salem."
"Oh my gosh, we'd love that!" Thorn exclaimed.
"That would be wicked!" Dusk agreed.
"Thank you so much, sir!" Luna appreciated.
"You're very welcome. The only catch is that you'd need your own transportation." Derek warned.
"That's no problem." Thorn answered. "We can easily drive there."
"Wonderful!" Derek said. "I'll see you then."
"Holy shit, we've got a gig in Salem!" Dusk gasped.
"I can't believe it. Everything's just happening all at once!" Luna responded in disbelief.
The girls could barely contain their excitement. Between getting jobs, releasing their first single, having that single be played on the radio, being invited to play the Autumn Fest, and now booking a concert in Salem was something the girls never even had thought about as a possibility just a few weeks ago.
Thorn, Luna and Dusk wanted to be sure to arrive at the Autumn Fest as early as possible. Besides needing lots of time to set up their instruments, they also wanted a little bit of time to wander around. The Autumn Fest was one of their favorite traditions, and even if they did have a big role in it, they certainly didn't want to miss any of the attractions. The Autumn Fest looked just as expansive as it did last year, with lots of booths scattered across the fairgrounds and people bustling everywhere.
"Do you think it's safe to leave our instruments in the car?" Luna inquired.
"Yeah." Thorn shrugged. "Theft rates are way down here, and besides, no one really steals anything in Oakhaven. In fact, you'd be more likely to have someone warn you left your car unlocked than to have someone take your stuff."
"Good. I wanna walk around a little before we set up. Besides, if we're going to be traveling the world by next year, I want to enjoy this while I can!" Dusk teased.
"Oh stop!" Thorn laughed. "We're just getting lucky with "Hex Girl" is all."
"Guys, look!" Luna pointed to a large banner, which said "Oakhaven Autumn Fest: Featuring The Hex Girls."
"Hey, it's the same banner they used for us last year! Cheap bastards." Dusk joked. She immediately started blushing when Mayor Corey came over a few moments later. She was pretty sure he hadn't heard her goofy remark, but nonetheless, she still looked a bit embarrassed.
"Hello girls! Thank you so much again for playing the Autumn Fest last minute like this. I hope it wasn't too much of an inconvenience to you." Mayor Corey apologized.
"Not at all. We're really excited about this." Thorn assured.
"I'm glad!" Mayor Corey jovially remarked. "You've still got an hour and a half before your performance, so plenty of time to look around. We've got lots of stuff this year: candle making, bread baking, butter churning, souvenir stands, and a petting zoo right over there."
The girls looked over to where the mayor was pointing. There were a couple of ponies, several alpacas, and some sheep.
"What happened to the turkeys?" Luna inquired.
"Well, you see, they weren't too happy about the...irregularity...with the one last year." Mayor Corey blushed. Thorn knew he was referring to the turkey that Sarah Ravencroft's spell made gigantic, but if the mayor wasn't going to say it, she certainly wasn't going to be the one to bring it up.
"I could go for something to eat." Thorn changed the subject. "How about we go get a slice of bread from Tim's over there?"
"Sure." Dusk shrugged.
"Well, I'm looking forward to the performance, girls." Mayor Corey said, as he began heading to greet another guest. "Enjoy the Autumn Fest!"
Just as Thorn, Dusk and Luna began heading over to the bread stand, Thorn heard a familiar voice behind her.
"Hey, Sally!" her father's voice greeted.
"Hi daddy!" Thorn exclaimed, embracing her father with a warm hug.
"We were just about to head over to get some fresh-baked bread." Dusk informed.
"I could go for a slice myself." Robert laughed. "I haven't eaten since breakfast with how busy I've been, between the dentist's office this morning and working at the souvenir stand all afternoon!"
"Oh right!" Thorn had admittedly forgotten her father had told her this morning that he was going to be working the souvenir stand. "How's the stand been?"
"Oh, it's in good standing." Robert chuckled at his own pun, before shifting his attention to the man working at the bread stand. "Hey, Tim! We'll take four slices."
"You got it, Mr. McKnight!" Tim said, just as he picked up his wooden peel and took a loaf fresh out of the wood stove. He quickly grabbed a knife and cut four pieces from the crispy loaf, handing it to each girl and Robert when he was finished.
"There you go! Enjoy!" Tim smiled. "If you want butter, Mae's churning a batch right over there."
"You always get this bread just the perfect amount of crispy." Robert said before taking a bite of his bread. "Thanks, Tim. Have a great day!"
"You too!" Tim replied as the girls moved on to the booth directly adjacent to his. A woman was at the booth, which had a large butter churner at it. The woman was currently letting a small child wearing a blue shirt use it.
"Hey, Mae." Thorn greeted.
"Oh hello there, Sally!" Mae waved. It was always jarring to Thorn to have people call her something other than her nickname and stage name. Since everyone knew everyone in Oakhaven, there were some people that had known her since she was a little girl, but didn't see her often enough to know the change in her name preference.
"Would you girls like to take a turn churning the butter?" Mae inquired.
"We'd love to." Thorn smiled, as she took the stick from Mae's hand, and moved it around to churn the butter.
"It's so great to see you girls again! And you too, Robert." Mae said. "I heard you girls will be playing the Autumn Fest again tonight!"
"Yeah!" Dusk nodded in affirmation.
"They just got their first song released to radio, as well." Robert informed her. "It's already been added to 19 different radio stations!"
It was only 18, but Thorn wasn't going to risk coming off sounding rude and correcting him.
"Oh, how darling!" Mae's voice became high-pitched, almost sounding like a light shriek. "Our little Oakhaven girls are growing up!"
Once Thorn had churned the butter for a minute or so, she picked up a knife off of Mae's table to spread the butter on her piece of bread. After she was done, she handed the bucket to her father, who in turn gave it to Dusk and Luna when he was finished.
"Thanks Mae." Dusk appreciated.
"Oh of course!" Mae said. "Always a pleasure to see you girls!"
"Mmm...this bread really hits the spot." Thorn noted in between chewing.
"Kimmy!" a voice was heard shouting. It was no mystery who it was, as only one person called Luna by that nickname.
"Hey mom!" Luna waved. "What are you doing here?"
"Are you kidding? We wouldn't miss our daughter performing at the Autumn Fest for the world." Trish exclaimed.
"Great to see you girls performing here again. What an honor!" Mark exclaimed.
"Knowing my parents, they won't even bother to show up." Dusk muttered to no one in particular.
"Oh, don't be silly, honey!" Trish comforted. "Of course they'll be here. I'm sure they're just running behind, is all."
"Well, thank you for coming to support us." Dusk replied.
"Of course!" Mark answered. "Luna, your brothers wanted to make it, but both of them got busy down in Boston."
"Oh, it's okay." Luna smiled. Her brothers rarely ever came to visit anymore, ever since they had moved out a few years ago, so she was quite used to it.
"Ooh, Kiki's got her candle making booth again this year!" Trish pointed out. "Let's go over there. I'd just love to get another one of her homemade candles!"
"I wouldn't mind getting another one myself." Luna said. "They always smell so good."
"Well I'll be!" Kiki exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips as the group came over to her booth. "If it isn't The Hex Girls! How's your little band going?"
"It's going well." Thorn lightly chuckled. It felt like everyone in town still thought of the girls as being little, and didn't realize they had grown at all. "We're actually starting to get one of our songs played on the radio."
"How lovely!" Kiki responded. "I guess I can't say the kids these days have no taste in music anymore!"
Everyone chuckled at Kiki's remark, though the older adults most certainly laughed harder. Thorn, Luna and Dusk lightly chuckled out of social obligation, as none of them really cared for the whole "kids these days don't have taste like we did" type mentality that many adults had.
"So, how many candles would you all like?" Kiki inquired.
"Mark, honey, do you want any?" Trish inquired.
"No, I'm good." Mark shook his head.
"I'll take one!" Robert jumped in.
"Me too!" Luna added.
"I wouldn't mind having one myself." Thorn realized.
"I guess I'll take one too." Dusk said.
"Alright, six candles, coming right up!" Kiki said, as she grabbed a multi-pronged tool off the table. The tool had six different prongs, each with a wick on it. Kiki dipped the tool in a pool of hot wax, then after a few moments, took it out and held it up to air-dry it.
"After our candles are ready, I need to head back over to the souvenir stand." Robert informed. "I don't want to inconvenience John by making him staff my stand for longer than he needs to."
"Oh my gosh, look!" Thorn put her hand up by her heart as she looked over towards the petting zoo. There was an adorable looking pony with soft looking white fur glancing over in her direction.
Thorn went over to the petting zoo and lightly pet the pony's head. Luna was quick to follow, and began petting one of the alpacas. The pony began to gently nuzzle Thorn's hand.
"I think it likes you!" Luna smiled.
"Aww!" Thorn cooed.
"Alright, your candles are all ready to go!" Kiki informed.
"Bye, sweetie." Thorn said, as she gave the pony a few last pets on the top of its head. Luna did the same with the alpaca.
"Thanks again, Kiki." Thorn warmly stated, taking her candle.
"Oh, always a pleasure, girls!" Kiki replied.
"You girls should come back to the souvenir booth with me and see if there's anything you might want." Robert offered.
"We've already got plenty of t-shirts." Dusk laughed. Usually the booth was just filled with knick knacks and t-shirts.
"Oh, we've got other things too!" Robert chuckled back, as he led the girls over to the booth.
"We're going to look around a little more, Kimmy, but we can meet up with you later if you want!" Luna's mom offered.
"Thanks, I think we've got to start setting up for the show soon, though." Luna declined.
"That's alright, honey!" Trish assured. "We can't wait to see your show!"
"See you later, darling." Mark said, as he began to head in the opposite direction with Trish.
"Bye!" Luna waved back.
Thorn, Luna and Dusk followed Robert back to the souvenir booth.
"Thanks for watching the booth, John." Robert thanked.
"No problem, Robert!" John dutifully nodded as he walked away.
"We've got a wide assortment of knick knacks here." Robert informed, pointing at all the various souvenirs on the table. There were some cheesy-looking pilgrim figurines, a turkey bobblehead, and some leftover "I met the ghost of Oakhaven and lived" t-shirts from the prior Autumn Fest.
"I really wish we'd sell those t-shirts. I don't think any of us wants to talk about last year with...you know…" Robert stuttered. "At least there are only 10 left."
"Hey, what's this?" Dusk asked, showing Robert a silver medallion. The medallion had a rectangular shape on it, and had a string attached to it.
"I don't know, Jane." Robert shrugged in confusion. "That's not something from my stand."
"Where'd you find it, Dusk?" Luna asked.
"It was laying right below the souvenir stand." Dusk said. "This medallion looks pretty badass!"
"Oh no. Are we going to meet three new 'biggest fans' now?" Luna teased.
"What do you mean, Kim?" Robert inquired.
"Oh...nothing. Just an inside joke." Luna blushed.
"I'm not seeing anything here. Sorry, daddy." Thorn apologized.
"It's no problem! All the good stuff sold out this morning, to be honest." Robert chuckled.
"We've got to start setting up for the show." Luna reminded.
"Yeah, we better go so we have enough time before the show. Bye, daddy!" Thorn waved.
"Goodbye girls! Good luck with the show! I'll be over right when it starts." Robert informed.
"See you later, Robert." Luna reciprocated the goodbye, before shifting her attention to Dusk. "You're really going to keep that medallion?"
"Yeah! It looks pretty wicked." Dusk defended.
"Wicked is a good word." Thorn's tone turned more cautious. "Something about that medallion creeps me out."
"Oh, stop worrying about everything." Dusk snapped. "Even if the first necklace ended up being a Wiccan charm or whatever, doesn't mean this one is."
Thorn was almost scared to say it, so there was a few second pause before the next words left her lips. It wasn't awkward though, as the girls were close enough friends where they were comfortable enough in each other's presence that not all silences had to be awkward.
"That engraving on the necklace, it...um...it almost looks like that creepy shoe buckle that Ben Ravencroft used to open Sarah's journal." Thorn gulped.
"Oh…" That was the only sound that left Luna's mouth, because she was so shocked to hear Thorn say something like that.
"No it doesn't!" Dusk rolled her eyes. "It's just in the shape of a rectangle. Lots of things are, you know. Like, have you ever heard of a table? Or a window? Besides, the first charm ended up being good. If this medallion even has any powers - which it doesn't - it'll probably end up being good too."
"I don't know, Dusk." Thorn still looked nervous.
"Yeah, it's like that saying, don't take candy from strangers." Luna compared. "You shouldn't take medallions you find on the ground either."
"Oh my god, not you too!" Dusk growled.
"Just put it back where you found it, Dusk." Thorn attempted to persuade.
"Just to prove you're wrong, I'm not going to, Sally." Dusk sassed. It was very rare that the girls called each other by their real names anymore, but if they did, it was usually because someone was pissed. "Look, if you're so worried about the medallion, why don't you ask your Wiccan friends if it's a charm or not?"
"That's actually a good idea." Thorn's tone softened. "I will, next time we see them."
"Yeah, they'd probably know if it was something to be worried about or not." Luna agreed, as she arrived on stage.
"Where's the outlet for this?" Thorn asked as she took out her guitar, searching for a way to hook it up to the sound system.
"It's over here!" said a voice that was not Luna or Dusk. It was Bridgit.
"Thanks, Bridgit." Thorn appreciated. "Hey, by the way, we wanted to ask you something."
"Oh, of course! What is it?" Bridgit wondered.
Dusk let out an annoyed sigh, as she walked over to the pink-haired girl.
"Thorn and Luna think this medallion I found is 'cursed.'" Dusk said, doing air quotes with her hands as she said the final word in her sentence. "Is it?"
Bridgit lightly tugged at the necklace around Dusk's neck so she could hold the medallion in her palm to examine it.
"No, I've never seen this type of medallion before. I think it's just a regular medallion." Bridgit postulated. "No curses or anything."
"See, Thorn? You and Luna were just worrying over nothing." Dusk said, sounding as if she thought she were superior.
"Well, we did find a charmed necklace not more than a couple of weeks ago. I think I have the right to be cautious." Thorn snarked back, annoyed at Dusk's cocky tone.
"I think I'm all hooked up here." Luna changed the subject. She hated conflict, so Thorn and Dusk's sassy banter likely made her uncomfortable, even if it was meant to be somewhat playful.
"Me too." Thorn nodded.
"And just in time." Dusk pointed to the area next to the stage, which was filled with at least 40 people already. A few more continued to stream in to watch the girls' performance.
Despite the annoyance of her argument with Dusk, the sight of all these people here to watch them all perform made her happy. It reminded her of last Autumn Fest, except without the trauma from nearly being killed by two maleficent beings.
Mayor Corey was just walking towards the stage.
"Oh, hey. I guess Trish was right." Dusk quietly commented to Thorn and Luna, pointing at her parents in the audience, as well as her four sisters. Dusk's parents, Debbie and Aaron, did not look particularly interested in their daughter; it almost seemed they just felt they needed to be there because it was obligatory.
The red-headed mayor had now walked up on stage and had approached the microphone.
"Happy Autumn Fest, Oakhaven! It's so wonderful to have you all here again for this lovely yearly tradition our town has. I'm very excited to introduce you to Oakhaven's very own band, The Hex Girls!"
As the crowd erupted in cheering, Thorn took a deep breath and got ready to sing her heart out.
"We're gonna put a spell on all of you!" The Hex Girls sang-threatened, as a cloud of colored smoke billowed around them. Thorn hadn't realized the mayor had arranged for smoke again, though she certainly didn't mind it. It made the show look a lot flashier.
The crowd vigorously clapped and cheered as "Hex Girl" concluded, with some minimal whooping and excited yelling. The band had tried to make it a habit to end their performances with that song, in an attempt to save the best for last now that the song had become popular. The mayor came back up on stage again once the smoke had cleared.
"Thank you all for coming out tonight, and a big thank you to The Hex Girls for their stupendous performance!" Mayor Corey boomed through the microphone.
The audience began to disband and headed back to their vehicles, with a few sticking around to compliment the girls, as well as some little kids asking for their autographs.
"Girls!" a voice shouted.
Thorn looked over to see an excited look on their manager's face.
"Wonderful performance! I was blown away." Gus complimented.
"Thanks, Gus!" Dusk responded.
"Yeah, it's really sweet of you to come over here to tell us that." Thorn smiled. "By the way, we booked a show in Salem!"
"Actually, Bridgit had mentioned that to me! However, that's not all I wanted to tell you." Gus excitedly foreshadowed. "Your song has been played on the radio...wait for it...192 times in the past four days."
"What?!" Dusk exclaimed.
"How is that possible?" Thorn shook her head in shock.
"People love your band, that's how it's possible!" Gus chuckled warmly.
"I can't believe it. At this rate, our song will have been played on the radio nearly 400 times by the end of this week." Luna said to the other two girls.
"I hope you girls have a wonderful weekend. I'm really looking forward to our meeting next Thursday." Gus smiled. "You should do something to celebrate!"
"Hell yeah we should!" Dusk agreed.
The girls were so in disbelief they forgot to say goodbye to Gus. After excitedly packing up their instruments and quickly talking to their parents, the girls headed to their car to celebrate at home.
The Hex Girls remained excited their entire way home. After briefly stopping off to get some ice cream cones to celebrate, the usually long drudgery that was bringing their instruments up the stairs didn't even seem to bother them anymore.
"I'm so freaking hyped up right now." Dusk informed.
"We should write a song!" Thorn exclaimed. "Let's channel this excitement into a piece of artistry."
"Well, has anyone got any song ideas they haven't shared yet?" Luna lightheartedly chuckled.
"I've got one!" Dusk shared, as Thorn used her key to unlock the apartment. "Now, the lyrics might sound a little cheesy on paper, but I think it will sound awesome if we sing it."
"Sure, I'm down for a little harmonizing." Thorn giggled.
Sitting down on the tan couch in their living room, Luna and Thorn gathered around the notebook and Dusk counted up for them to begin singing the words together.
"Alright, 1, 2, 3…" Dusk counted.
"Cuz it's terroooooor time again! They've got you runnin' through the night!" the girls sang in harmony.
Author's note:
So I'll just confirm it now, yes, "Terror Time" was written by The Hex Girls in this fanfic. Even though it wasn't originally by them in Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island, I thought the song would fit very well with their artistic image and the type of songs/lyrics they put out. Plus it just feels like it gives it a fun backstory, since Zombie Island was in the same era as Witch's Ghost and both films have a similar tone.
Speaking of The Hex Girls' songs, this chapter officially marks the introduction of all of the songs that they have sung canonically, including all the ones I'm going to use from the Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost soundtrack. I know "Scooby Snacks" and "Zoinks" weren't introduced, but they are not part of the canon of this fanfic. My reasoning for that is that the songs sound quite cringey in my opinion and unlike the artistic style of the band. How many goth bands do you know that sing about "Big stacks and sacks of lots of snacks?" lol. I admittedly had never listened to these songs until about a month before writing this chapter, so I was listening for the sole purpose of researching for this fanfic, and it just didn't feel like they fit here. So I hope no one is super offended by my decision not to include those two songs, but I'm confirming now that they're not going to be an official part of the discography in this story.
The Larcom Theater which the girls were asked to perform at is a real theater in Salem, MA. In addition, Gus's explanation about radio adds was not made up, this is actually how it works in the music industry. Also, now that I've made semi-snarky jokes about electronic music, country music, and rap, I do want to make it clear that this is just some silly satire on my part. I don't hate all music genres lol. Well, although I'm really not a fan of pretty much anything country except for a select few songs, which seems to be completely random. There isn't really any pattern I can determine to the songs I like lol. I know the genre isn't all "Beer, Cowgirls and Trucks" like the title of Farmer Jones's song might suggest lol, I've just never really cared for the twang of it. Also, I'm 99% positive there probably is a song out there called "Bitches and Henny," I'm just too afraid of what might come up if I actually search that lol.
Anyways, seems like I'll be able to keep up publishing every week now, at least for the time being, so you can expect a new chapter every Friday! Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and thank you for reading!