If you have not seen Mel Brook's Young Frankenstein, stop reading now and go watch it! You'll find out why soon...

The last thing Gus expected to do that day was be ejected from a fireplace. In fact, it wasn't even close to being on his list of planned activities, yet somehow, here he was, being spat out in a cloud of ash and splinters. So much for crossing off owning a human bucket as the next thing from that list. At least he had the desk to break his fall. Even if it was solid oak.

"Ow!" He felt the heavy object barely move when his shoulder blades connected with the corner, knocking every ounce of air from his lungs. Wheezing, Gus peeled his eyes open to look at where he had been launched from. A blur of red was his warning. "What the?"

Skara crashed into his stomach and the small bit of precious air he managed to take in was gone. This was going to be a very long night.

Groaning, Skara rolled off his flattened legs, her eyes shut tight from the pain. "Boscha, remind me to never agree to do something like this with Luz again."

"I'll let her know when I see her."

At that, Skara's eyes popped open and she stared at Gus, recognition dawning in her features that her trusted leader was no longer with her. "Agustus? Why are you here?"

Gus slowly pulled his legs to his chest and, using the desk for support, stood. "Not sure. If I were to guess, our Ghost Host friend paired us off to solve the riddle." He had to swallow his disappointment at not being paired with Willow, much like he could guess Skara would have vastly preferred Boscha. Pity the poor witch, or human, who was stuck with her. Rubbing the stiffness from his neck, Gus looked around the room they were in.

Oddly enough, it looked a lot like where they had been just moments ago, except for the fact most of their friends and the Ghost Host were absent. The room was large, more rounded in shape than the previous, and full of books. Tall shelves stuffed full of many different volumes lined the walls, a library ladder set into each one for scaling assistance. A wide paned window looked out onto the large landscape beyond, still currently being ravaged by the boiling rain, only now Gus could see patches of lights in various colors bobbing about, ranging from silver-white to blue to green. Behind him and Skara was a huge open fireplace and above it, a portrait of a lean-bodied black dog with tall ears, a snowy owl, and between them, a white and black fox.

"Why send us here?" Skara asked, getting up.

Walking around so he faced the desk as if he were sitting at it, Gus looked at the many books and papers strewn across the surface. Though most of the surface was covered in years of dust and cobwebs, he noticed one book sitting next to a worn head bust was clean. Leaning over to read the title, Gus reached for the book and summoned a light spell in his hand.

Friends on the Other Side and You: the Art of Demonic Summoning

There were other strange titles scattered about and all of them on demon summoning, with a tome of necromancy tucked in as well. Gus frowned. Why would there be so many books on the forbidden magics left just out in the open for others to see?

The use of summoning a demon had become a mut point hundreds of years ago, back when the Isles were first discovered. Gus remembered from his history class one speculation as to why there were so many demons living among the witches was from the earliest attempt to summon Greater Demons as a form of worship. But, that was way back at the start of the Savage Ages. Why have it now? And, what was with the necromancy book?

If there was one magic frowned upon by all the others, it was reanimating and controlling the dead. Even before Belos rose to power, necromancy had been outlawed as a disgrace to the natural order and the use of magic. Cautiously, Gus nudged the book out from the mess of cobwebs to see it was a copy of the Book of the Dead. Swallowing, he backed away from the desk as if it were a dozing Slither Beast.

A soft tune drifted through the air, making his ears twitch and he turned around to where Skara was currently studying the bookshelves.

"Skara?"

"Yeah," she nodded, pressing an ear to the shelf. "I hear it too."

The tune was faint, too much for Gus to tell what was creating it, but Skara's face was furrowed in concentration. "Whatever is making this music, it's coming from behind one of these bookcases."

Behind the bookcase? A thought struck Gus and he dashed to a nearby case, quickly grabbing a random book from the shelf, and leapt back. Nothing happened. Frowning, he returned the book to its spot and tried another one, his frown deepening when he got the same result. He pressed his ear to the wall, listening intently for the strange music. Behind him, Skara watched as he grabbed yet another book and lunged away, both her eyebrows raising quizzically.

"Augusts, what are you doing?" She stepped back when he darted to the shelf she was at.

"Luz told me about houses from the human realm that hid secret tunnels behind the walls!" He scanned the vast array of books for anything that stood out of place.

"She said there is usually some sort of key or device that opens the entrance. So where would it be?"

Scanning the titles of another shelf, Skara noticed some seemed to stand out, brighter covers against the more dark-monotonous ones. If only she could get a clearer view…"Hey, Agustus?"

"Call me Gus,"

"Gus," she pointed to a burning sconce nearby. "Hand me that torch, would you?"

Obligingly, Gus walked over and lifted the torch from its ring. There was an audible click and the shelf Skara was standing before flipped around, violently pivoting on the floor and taking the wide-eyed Bard girl with it. Gus froze, his arms halfway raised, hands gripping the iron torch. There was a very awkward pause as he tried to process just what happened.

"Put the torch back!" Skara's voice cried from behind the wall.

Gus quickly slipped the torch back on its ring for the bookcase to spin around, giving him a blurred glimpse of Skara's shocked face, and disappeared back around. There was another pause.

"Okay!" Gus heard her yell confidently. "I think I know what to do! You take out the torch and I'll block the bookcase with a strength spell!"

A stretch, but Gus was willing to test that theory. He grasped the heavy iron torch and lifted it from its ring, bracing himself as the shelf whipped around. There was a flash of light as Skara started to draw a spell circle, then a very loud crunch. Gus held his breath for a moment when he did not see Skara move. Just as he was about to walk over, he heard her voice waver out from between the wall and the shelf.

"Now listen to me very carefully,"

If he was to guess, it had been her body that blocked the bookcase, not a spell.

"Don't put the torch back. With all of your might, shove against the other side of the bookcase. Is that perfectly clear?"

Gus looked at the slanted exposed half of the wooden shelving. "I think so," Carefully setting the torch in the pail used for storing ashes, Gus took a deep breath and charged at the shelf, his shoulder ramming into the flat back. Instantly, he was thrown into darkness, only the feel of the wood against his hand to tell him where the exit was. From the opposite side, he heard Skara gasping.

"Thank you Gus. Gus?"

"Put," he yelled over his shoulder. "The torch back!"

There was a loud click and he felt the bookcase start to move, then another click followed and it stopped, halfway open to show the room he had just been in. Before him, a dark hallway of stone led towards a staircase that spiraled up out of sight. Skara stood close to the bookshelf, a different torch in hand. Seeing the case had stopped, she stepped into the area and paused at Gus' side. Listening to the music that carried down from the stairs, the witchlings nodded to each other and carefully inched their way up the steps.

There was the sound of gears creaking behind them and the bookcase slid back into place.

"Looks like we've got one way to go now," muttered Skara.

Summoning a light spell in his hand, Gus followed her up the narrow stone steps that evened out onto a small platform that dead-ended. Looking around, he noticed one section of the wall did not match the rest and ran a hand over its surface. He was surprised to feel not wood or stone, but a soft material, just like the canvas of a painting. When he gave it a light push, the entire wall gave way to reveal the start of a hallway.

"Nice find there, Gus," Skara quickly snuffed the torch and set it down, stepping out of the secret door. "Wow, these people really liked paintings."

Gus stepped into the hall and looked around. Paintings filled every available inch of the walls on either side, depicting not just different witches and demons, but also dramatic landscapes of the Boiling Isles, cities, and even a couple ships daring to sail the Boiling Sea. A flash of lightning lit up the hallway and for a split second, the portraits took on a haunted, skeletal appearance, leering at Skara and Gus with fang-filled grins.

"Whelp, I'm out of here!" Skara spun on her heel and started down the hall, then stopped. "Um, Gus? Exactly what part of the riddle are we supposed to solve?"

Scratching his head, Gus tried to think back to all they had heard, but only one part of the Ghost's Host's voice echoed through his mind. The music it plays for the dead ones delight, the tunes do entrance in the Oracle's sight.

"So," Gus stared down the hall where the melody came from. "Following that music will most likely lead us to...whatever we need to find? Or at least it could be a good start?" He looked at Skara. "You're the Bard student, can you make out anything?"

Skara crossed her arms and frowned. "Just because I'm studying Bard magic doesn't automatically mean I know everything about music!"

"Oh, so then, what are you studying?"

Her shoulders went to her ears and she looked away. "Rhyming poetics and instrumental magics."

"So, music?"

"Okay, fine, music!"

Gus bit his lip to hide a chuckle and they continued to follow the music, doing their best to not stare at the eerie portraits watching them. At one point, they passed two stone busts set into an alcove and Gus could have sworn their heads turned to follow them. The hallway soon turned to the left, and then to the right, winding about the floor in a labrynthian manner that had Gus wondering just how the heck they would find their way back out.

"It sounds like a band of some kind," mused Skara, her ears twitching to analyze the music. "Definitely a drum, a trumpet, that's a violin, a harp, and...a tambourine?" She shook her head. "That melody sounds a lot like something only mediums would play. But, I thought the Ghost Host said everyone here was dead?"

"Maybe someone moved in?" Gus said with a shrug.

Skara deadpanned. "Yeah, a marching band would move into an abandoned mansion in the middle of the woods haunted by its dead residents. Makes perfect sense."

The style and colors of the hallways soon altered, switching from the foreboding dark-red wallpaper and clustered portraits to a bleak wood with odd little nooks set into the separating panels. Lights of green, blue, and red hung from the ceiling, diffused by strips of cloth draped about. Hearing the music grow louder, Gus and Skata turned another corner, and stopped. At the end of the hall was a tall door propped open to reveal what appeared to be a large room with a table on which a large glowing crystal ball sat. From that table came a deep, feminine voice.

"Serpents and spiders, tail of a rat... Call in the spirits, wherever they're at. Rap on a table, it's time to respond... Send us a message from somewhere beyond. Goblins and ghoulies from last Halloween... Awaken the spirits with your tambourine!"

Instruments swirled around the ceiling of the room, playing the haunting melody that Gus knew was what they had been listening to. Squaring his shoulders, he nodded at Skara and they pushed open the door. The instruments stopped.

"Um, hello?" Skara glanced at the floating band and at the plush chairs seated around the circular table. "Is anyone here?"

Gus blinked at the chair set farthest away from them, a tall-backed throne with a strange array of cards splayed before it. "We heard you, but don't see you. Where are you?" A flash of green caught his eyes and he looked down. A female witch stared up at him from the crystal ball, thick curly black hair framing her face engulfed in a brilliant green light.

"I am Madame Leota, seer of all, voice to the spirits. Whom do you seek?"

He yelped and sprang back, almost hitting Skara. "You-you're a head?!"

Suddenly, their feet were shoved out from beneath them as a huge chair scooped the witchlings off the floor and pinned them to the table.

"Hey! Hey!" Skara pushed Gus's cheek from her face while trying to shove away from the table. "What are you doing?! Let us out!"

"Silence!" Madame Leota commanded and fixed her gaze on the duo. "Whom do you seek?"

Skara's elbow nailed Gus's stomach and he grunted from the effort to scoot to the side so they both could fit on the wide seat. Shifting to be at least mildly comfortable, Gus leaned towards the crystal ball. "Um, we're not really seeking anyone. We were sent by the Ghost Host to break the curse that's keeping the souls from moving on." He studied the witch for a moment, glancing at the instruments hovering over them. "Are you...the oracle from the riddle? Can you help us?"

A huff came from the crystal ball and Madame Leota raised a dark eyebrow. "Of course that shadowy demon would send you to me. What exactly were you told about this 'riddle'?"

Pulling her arm from behind Gus' back where it had been pinned, Skara recounted the words the Ghost Host had spoken. Madame Leota listened, though her expression made it hard to tell just how intently she cared. When Skara finished, the witch laughed, the sound echoing along with the instruments rattling about.

"So, the caretaker of the happy haunts thinks they have found the ones needed to free our tortured lovers?" Her chuckle deepend, sending shivers down Gus' spine. "This will be interesting. Fine then, here is what I have to say. First, to break the spell, you must look within,"

"We don't want to look within," Skara hissed. "We want to look without!"

Madame Leota closed her eyes, at first Gus thought to ignore what Skara had said, until she spoke again.

"Dark spirits from the grave, come forth. Lift us from the black and show us, show us the way back!"

There was a rush of air and shadows began to dance along the wall.

"Lift us, lift us up to the light! And lead us through this stormy night!"

Gus swallowed. "Hey, don't you make no dark spirits come out! We've had enough of those already!" Suddenly, their chair and the table floated from the floor, making the two witchlings yelp, their fingers digging into the arm rests. Madame Leota's crystal ball levitated from its frame as the chair began to spin around the table like a crazy carousel, the instruments playing an energized version of the earlier tune. Yet through it all, the witch's voice carried to them.

"Enter the tomb under the great dead oak, and travel down deep under the ground, and there you will find the familiar that must be found. Find the black crypt that bears no name or soon your fate shall be the same! Two hearts for two souls, love given new life, the willing shall dance by the end of the night!"

There was a very uncomfortable tugging in Gus' stomach growing in urgency by the second from the intense spinning. "I'm getting very queasy here!"

"You are?!" Skara moaned.

Madame Leota cackled at her captured party and, suddenly, the spinning halted and the chair dropped to the floor, jarring Gus and Skara from their seat. Gasping, they stared up at the table from the floor, took one look at each other, and screamed, leaping to their feet and bolting out of the door. There was a rattling of brass and wood as the invisible band rocketed after them, each instrument playing its own solo tune.

Turning a corner, Gus pointed to the narrow gaps in the panels and darted between a set, his stomach scuffing the fraying wood. Skara wriggled her way between two other panels just as the marching band flew by in a blur and they shared a concerned look. Everything went quiet. Curiosity getting the better of him, Gus peeked out from his hiding place. A snare drum caught him full on in the face, knocking him on his back.

"Agustus!" Grabbing him by the shoulders, Skara pulled the stunned Illusionist to his feet and down the hall in an effort to put a safe distance between them and the band. Turning another corner, Skara shoved Gus behind and began to draw a large spell circle in the air, rose-red light trailing her finger to complete the magic. The instruments sailed around the corner and, with a yell, Skara threw the spell at the maniacal band. The moment they passed through the circle, the instruments froze in place and, shuddering, collapsed to the floor in a heap.

For a moment, Gus and Skara stood where they were, gasping for air. Cautiously, Gus scooted up to the pile of haunted instruments and nudged a trumpet with his toe.

"Well, that was a waste of time!" Growled Skara, pushing a few stray silver bangs from her face. "Instead of a clue to break the curse, we just get another lousy riddle on top of the one we already had! This is why no one likes Oracle magic! What the heck are we supposed to do with that?"

Gus was silent for a moment, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, muttering. "The music it plays for the dead one's delight, the tunes do entrance in the Oracle's sight." He frowned. "I don't think it was a complete waste, but it was a painful one." Rubbing his tender forehead, Gus turned to Skara. "The Ghost Host didn't exactly say the clues would all be items, and, technically, we did get a clue."

"Right, another dumb riddle!"

"But it's still a clue! Enter the tomb under the great dead oak. Skara," Gus pointed out the window they had stopped beside. It looked out on the wide expanse of land part of the manor estate and, just barely in the distance, was a domed building. Beside it was an ancient looking tree weathered by age and boiling rain.

The blood instantly drained from Skara's face. "Oh no, no, you can't be serious."

"I don't think we have a choice right now," Sighing, Gus stared at the dark shape, feeling his queasy stomach drop like a stone. "I think to break the curse, we have to go to the Pandor family crypt."

So yeah, I did some borrowing from both Young Frankenstein and the 2003 Haunted Mansion movie for this chapter. But, you can't just pass the opportunity to reference "Put the candle back!" You just can't. Don't worry about Luz and Amity, and King. we'll be seeing plenty of them, and the Ghost Host, in the next chapter, along with some long-awaited Lumity fluff. building the lore for the Pandor mansion took a bit longer than I expected, but it's all ready to go now!

See you in the next chapter!