I awoke in a terrifying room. If I had a pulse, it would have been racing. Everything happened within a second for me, but finding myself in a completely different room and wondering how much time had passed made my head spin and my ghost-nausea return.

My head bobbed a couple of times before I could get a hold of myself. I found myself standing in the middle of the darkest room I’d ever been in. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all black. Everything was lit by tall mismatched candelabras and there were bizarre symbols painted everywhere. My mind spiraled into worst-case scenarios—most of them involving Lucifer and giant tentacle gods.

I felt pressure all around me like a tight blanket. When I attempted to move, I looked down and squawked—yes, like a parrot. I was standing in the middle of some satanic symbol with hundreds of rats spiraling around me on the floor. They moved in unison, circling me.

“No, stop that. Cheetoh. I told you to go back upstairs!” Cecile barked at her roommate.

“What’s happening?” I gurgled, as the two girls came into focus in front of me.

Cheetoh was still in her pajama pants and tank top, waving a hair brush, while Cecile tried to push her away. She was shorter than Cheetoh, but she looked strong.

“Hey! You think I don’t know you try send me back too? I’m staying here to make sure you don’t trick!” Cheetoh hit Cecile on the head with her brush.

Cecile backed away, gripping her head. “Ow, you stupid mummy! I told you already that I don’t know those kinds of spells yet! If I did, you’d be nothing but sand, you miserable fossil!”

“Hmph.” Cheetoh crossed her arms and looked away, visibly offended.

“Cheetoh, help me! Don’t let her do—whatever it is she’s going to do. Cheetoh, I need to see my family. Help me, please,” I begged her, hoping she would sympathize with me.

“Pfft. Please, you think she’s going to help you? She’s probably been thinking about how to eat you,” Cecile snapped as she walked over to what looked like a stolen school podium.

Cheetoh turned and stared daggers into Cecile. “Disgusting,” she said and turned to stomp off upstairs.

“Cheetoh! Wait! Don’t go. Help me, please!” I struggled again against the invisible barrier that held me, but it was no use. I was completely trapped.

The basement door slammed, leaving me alone with Cecile.

Undeterred by the fight, Cecile returned to her work. She read aloud from an opened book as she prepared ingredients in a small copper bowl on the podium. “Now, let’s see... Oh, okay. This here says I need oak charcoal and theeeeen… Ah, banishing salt. Okay, and lastly, one raven feather.”

Two huge, black, tapered candles burned to either side of her and down the podium, forming long wax curtains that trailed onto the floor.

She read over the pages a couple more times, nodded to herself, and picked up the copper bowl. As she approached me, I could only watch in terror. I wanted to beg and plead; I wanted to see if I could talk some sense into her, but in those last moments, I stood tall and faced her. There was nothing I could do, and I knew it, but I would be damned if I was going to spend my last moments begging and crying.

I lifted my head and our eyes met. I attempted to harden my face, but the gentleness I saw in her eyes softened me. She truly believed what she was doing was right.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“Will it hurt?” I asked.

“No.” She smiled softly.

“All right. Let’s get it over with.”

Cecile took the black feather from the bowl and held it up as she dumped the rest of the ingredients inside the circle and star that contained me. The rats all stopped and sat back on their haunches as they stared up at me. The room was silent.

I gulped and looked back at Cecile. We held each other’s gaze a moment before she said, “I was always shit at Latin.”

I couldn’t help but smile at her. I had no idea what she was talking about and the whole thing was so stupidly scary, but I realized how lucky I was to not be alone as I crossed over to the other side, and especially with someone so beautiful.

She raised the feather, and as her gaze lifted, she said, “Great spirit of the veil, black feathers, black bill, please carry this spirit safely to the other side. Great Raven, please make my request your will.”

As she spoke the last words, she let the feather fall from her hand and we both watched it float down and land inside the circle.



I closed my eyes, waiting for whatever was coming my way. I pictured myself riding on the back of a great black bird, attempting to imagine the whole thing like an adventure. Maybe I’d see some incredible things on my journey.

After a couple of minutes, I heard Cecile shuffle and opened my eyes. She was looking around the room and running her fingers through her hair. She let out an exasperated sigh and shook her head.

While I waited, I wondered if I’d end up in the scary blue place again or if I’d be picked up by a giant bird, like in that movie with the elves and the gold ring.

“Huh,” Cecile said, looking at the floor and shuffling her foot again.

“What?” I asked.

“Whelp, it didn’t work. We’ll have to figure something else out,” she replied and waved her hand.

I felt the pressure release around me. It’s strange to say, but I felt light and like I could breathe again.

I stepped toward her, brave with hope. “You’re letting me go?”

“No. You can’t leave the house. It’s warded. Something’s wrong and I can’t quite put my finger on it. You’ll just have to stay here until I straighten things out.”

“You never did practice your Latin,” a beautiful voice chimed from behind me in the dark.

I stiffened and turned around. A very tall, voluptuous—gorgeous—albino woman stood behind me. She was wearing a long, black gown with wavy ribbons of night that snaked and floated around her. They faded and disappeared at the ends, but being a man, my focus was really just on her cleavage and her face. I didn’t care about the dress.

She smirked as she took me in with her vibrant red eyes.

“Hey.” I smiled stupidly.

Cecile walked over and sighed again, “Hi, Mom.”