Rise of the Night Witch

Chapter 4.2 - Underworld High

Recap: Last time, we got Halloween at Marissa's magic school. Now, we get it in the mundane world, too. (Also, Whateley High is now called Summer High. Gonna change it in the earlier chapters.)

There was one awesome thing about Halloween. I didn't have to wear anything different at Summer High than what I wore at the Cunning Folk Academy. My practitioner's robe and my pointy hat didn't feel unnatural in my World Issues class. Everyone else dressed up like skeletons, mummies, or headless horsemen while Simon looked like an astrologer wizard.

Mr. Weber was the only person not wearing a costume. Dressed in the same tweed jacket he probably got married in, he showed us the NYU Department for Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology's press report concerning the Nuckelavee green goo. The police sent it to them after arresting members of the town militia trespassing the PPE Library crime scene. They reported elements not found in the periodic table, although due to the slime's metastability, they couldn't reproduce their results.

After discussing it with us, Weber showed a YouTube video by NYC-based conspiracy theorist Xander James who rambled incomprehensible stuff about how aliens must be behind everything. Weber scoffed at him and handed out texts about conspiracy theories and why people believed in them.

I talked to Simon later during the football game. Summer High's Sunshine Crusaders played against the Sleepy Hollow Horsemen under the gloomy afternoon sky. Rows upon rows of students sat around the field where two big lantern posts illuminated Summer High and spotlighted our cheerleaders and football players. Our school mascot was dressed like a sunflower which, admittedly, looked extremely lame compared to the Headless Horseman mascot that the Sleepy Hollow Horsemen had.

Sleepy Hollow and Summer Hill were similar towns. Both lay miles apart in the New York Upstate area and both had creepy rumors attached to them, even if Sleepy Hollow was way more well-known. It didn't have as many Veil breaches as Summer Hill, but Washington Irving's famous poem The Legend of Sleepy Hollow put its name firmly on the map. And if we faced off, there could be only one winner.

Our crowd cheered when we scored a touchdown. Simon cheered much like everyone else and had both his hands held up in a victory sign. His astrologer wizard costume consisted of a blue robe with galaxy patterns and zodiacs while he held a magic staff. It lacked the kind of sigils that a real magic staff would've required, but I didn't mind the technicalities. It looked nice.

I tapped him on the back.

"Can't that wai-, oh, it's you!" he said.

"Yep," I said. "Nice costume, even if anyone knows that witches are much scarier than wizards."

"Thanks. I already predicted you'd pick your robe and I wanted matching clothes."

"Yeah," I said. "What's your sis doing?"

"Whining all day about how she isn't as good as she thought and about this Nathan like he's her ex-boyfriend. I can understand why you fell out with her."

Yeah, because I didn't tell you the full story. Because the little devil in my head doesn't like it if I tell anyone about her. I mean, I can tell people if I don't mind getting a cocktail of every disease ever at once until I land in a coma with barely functioning lungs.

"Anyway, I'd like to watch the game," he said. "How about we meet in the parking lot after it for Operation Pumpkin Party?"

"Of

Summer High won the game. Not that I was surprised - the guest team tended to play weakly in such events. Everyone dispersed once it was over. Most went to the gym to dance, but many, especially the younger students, preferred the schoolyard. Our school had tightened security measures in light of recent events. They shortened breaks and employed extra staff to prevent students from going to places where they shouldn't. Including the basement. Two new janitors currently tried to prevent a bunch of boys from hurting themselves with their silly pranks.