Let It Slip

Part XXVI

Chapter XXVI

The moon shone brightly across the clearing in the Greendale Woods where Lilith stood in a thick velvet gown the colour of fresh blood spilling out around her, the crown of Hell perched firmly on her head, and the Book of the Beast held in her hands. Zelda and Hilda Spellman stood before the Queen of Hell as Ambrose watched from the edge of the clearing, ringing his hands. As Hilda took the quill from Lilith and dipped it in the bat's blood inkwell, Zelda reached out to grab her wrist and forced her sister to look at her.

"Sister, are you absolutely sure? There are no guarantees that this will work to summon the Incubus, and if he is summoned, that he will even accept you in payment for the seals. We don't even know for sure if he took them!" Zelda's green eyes were wide with desperation, her mind whirling as she tried to convince her sister to reconsider.

Hilda gritted her teeth and gripped the quill until her fingers were white, looking up at Lilith she nodded to the book; "Open it...err your Majesty." Hilda smoothed her demand with the honorific denoting her respect for the Queen of Hell.

"It's not worth your life, Hilda!" Zelda hissed.

"SILENCE." Lilith swept her hand through the air and Zelda found her mouth magically shut. "This decision is Hilda's and Hilda's alone. This path should be taken with no hesitation and no regret. The Book will know what's in your heart and if you falter and sway from the path you have indicated, it will not be just the witch who dies. Do you understand?"

Hilda met Lilith's intense gaze and nodded, "I understand."

Lilith opened the Book the Beast and murmured the younger Spellman's name, the pages of the book flipped to a space nearer the front than the middle and Hilda's name jumped from the page. Laying the Book down before Hilda, Lilith raised her hands with her palms towards the moon; "By the power of Hell and all that is unholy, as my crown and station commands, I give you, Hilda Spellman, the freedom to choose Death."

Zelda's protests were muffled but the tears streaming down her face spoke loudly of her dismay. Hilda's face also shone as she looked at her sister and mouthed her apologies before squaring herself back to the Book and Lilith, holding her quill above her name and waited for permission to proceed.

"By striking your name from the Book of the Beast, if your heart is true, you will kill the Witch within. The process of such a Death will be incredibly painful as your soul splits in two and half of you leaves this mortal coil, leaving a husk of your former self behind - a mortal. I caution you to consider this decision carefully for if your heart is not true, if there is even a crumb of uncertainty, you will not be granted mortality and Death will descend to fully claim your soul." Lilith was avoiding looking at Zelda, afraid that her resolve would crack if she saw the pain this was causing her lover.

Hilda swallowed thickly and filled her lungs with air, letting it out slowly as she nodded; "I understand. May I have a minute?"

Lilith nodded and Hilda turned to her sister, "Zelds, please. We can't spend eternity in Death grieving one another. Our lives were intertwined with Sabrina's the moment she was brought into this world and if they end by bringing her back to it, we will have succeeded in fulfilling our destiny - to love, protect, and carry her. Between worlds if we have to!" Hilda reached out and wiped Zelda's tears away, "I'm not afraid."

Zelda felt the magic binding her lips dissolve and she opened them ready to beg but the protest died on the tip of her tongue, "There is life in Death, sister. I will accept your decision, for it is yours to make." The redhead reached out and grabbed Hilda's free hand, holding tight.

"Thank you, with your blessing I can confidently take the first step on this new path." Squeezing Zelda's hand tightly, Hilda reached out and deftly struck her name from the Book of the Beast.