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There they were: the end of the Road.
Agatha was standing in front of the door, at the end of the path. It was so tall that you couldn’t see its end, it just kept going higher and higher and disappearing into the magical fog of the Road. She looked around her, her gaze stopping on each person besides her: Jen, Billy, and… Well, that was it. She closed her eyes, letting a sigh escape her, and faced the door again. Opening her eyes, she read the inscription.
The Door to the End of the Road can only be opened by a full Coven.
“That wasn’t in the song,” she heard Billy speak.
She rolled her eyes.
“Thank you for your groundbreaking observation, Billy .”
The boy frowned, Agatha having said his name like it was poison in her mouth.
The witch sighed. “It’s impossible. We need the full coven.”
“They’re dead,” Jen said, “in case you’ve forgotten.”
“Obviously I haven’t,” she answered, sounding colder than she had wanted.
She let her body fall to the ground, sitting on a rock by the edge of the Road. Jen and Billy followed, sitting far enough from her so that they wouldn’t anger her somehow, but close enough, so that Agatha could feel she wasn’t alone, despite everything.
As they sat in silence, waiting for… anything , a voice cut through the painfully quiet woods.
“Need my help?”
Agatha stood up as quickly as her body allowed her. She sighed in relief, seeing deep brown eyes looking at her.
“Rio,” she breathed out.
The woman smirked, and it took everything in Agatha not to close the distance between them and hold Rio immediately. But the green witch took a small - almost imperceptible - step forward, and Agatha gave in. She wrapped her arms around Rio, who melted into her instantly. She closed her eyes as she hid her face in the crook of Agatha’s neck, breathing her in.
Billy cleared his throat, and Agatha wanted to strangle him. As if reading her mind, Rio squeezed her arm gently, as she stepped out of the hug.
“Why are you here, Death ?” Billy asked, trying to sound snarky.
He only earned a snort from Rio, and she turned away from him, putting all her attention on Agatha as she grabbed her hand.
“I brought some people,” she told her.
From behind her emerged Alice and Lilia. Without a beat, Jen ran to them and managed to hug them both at the same time.
“They’re only here to finish the Road with you,” Rio explained,” but they’ll have to go back.”
“That’s just awful,” Billy jumped in.
“We knew the cost,” Alice spoke. “Rio told us. We know we’ll have to go back, but we wanted to be here.”
“For Agatha,” Lilia added.
All were silent now. Billy’s eyes were moving fast between the two women.
“What did Rio say to you?” he asked.
Lilia shrugged. “She’s more human than anticipated, that is all.” She paused, looking at Rio, who was still holding Agatha’s hand. “So is Agatha.”
Lilia saw on the coven leader’s face that she had touched something; she could see her feelings in her eyes, and not her unwavering facade anymore.
Jen jumped in, facing Rio and Agatha. “I trust you,” she said to Agatha. She turned to Rio. “But not you.”
“You don’t need to,” Agatha told her. “I do.”
Jen stared at them a little longer, and finally nodded, convinced. They suddenly all stood straighter, realizing it was time to go through the door, together.
“Mommy?”
The word echoed through the forest all of the sudden. Agatha’s heart started pounding in her chest immediately, and Rio dropped her hand in shock. A small child, looking no older than six years old, was running toward them.
“Mommy?” he repeated, sounding a bit more scared this time.
Rio was by his side immediately, lifting him off the floor to carry him.
“You shouldn’t be here baby,” she said, her voice softer than the entire coven had ever heard it - except Agatha.
“I followed you!” he said, almost proud.
“I told you not to,” Rio scolded him, gently.
She started to walk away from the group, determined to bring him back to where he was supposed to be: the Underworld. But the boy looked over her shoulder, his gaze stopping on Agatha.
“Mama!” he called.
Agatha dropped to her knees, her body completely giving up on her, the shock of seeing her son being too much to handle.
“Please,” she whispered, tears rolling down her cheek. “Let me see him.”
Rio shut her eyes close and stopped walking. She couldn’t help it.
“Can I see mama?” the boy asked her, placing a hand on her face.
Rio could do many things. Hell , she was Death herself. But she couldn’t, ever, say no to her boy. She let him down gently, and as soon as his feet hit the floor, he ran to Agatha. On her knees, Agatha was at the perfect height to hold him. She gasped as she felt his small arms wrap around her, more tears rolling down her cheeks as she held him tight.
“Nicholas…” she breathed out.
She missed him, oh , so much. Her heart had ached, for centuries, from having lost him. And it ached, now again, knowing that he could not stay. There were rules she just simply couldn’t break, no matter how hard she tried. The dead could not come back, not like this.
He let go of her, but stayed close, watching her face.
“Why are you crying?” he asked.
She chuckled, more hot tears burning on her cheeks. She sniffled, and saw Rio in her peripheral vision approaching them.
“I’ve missed you,” Agatha told Nicholas.
He wiped the tears on her face, and she closed her eyes, unable to look at him anymore. Her heart hurt so bad, she thought it might break and she might die. For a second, she wished she would. To be with him.
“We can’t stay,” Rio said, placing her hand on his shoulder.
“I can’t stay with mama?” he asked, disappointed.
“You know you can’t,” she answered, a slight tremor in her voice.
He looked at her, pouting, and nodded. He reached up for her hand and she grabbed it, helping him step back, away from Agatha.
“I’m sorry,” Rio mouthed.
Agatha just shook her head, looking down at the floor. The situation was similar to when Rio had to take him away, long ago. Yet, it was so different.
“Bye mama,” Nicholas said. “I love you.”
Agatha felt her heart break in two, and held in a grunt of pain. She looked back up at him, and reached up to place a comforting hand on his cheek.
“I love you,” she echoed.
He smiled at her, all teeth out - except one that was missing - before looking back up at Rio.
“I’m ready to go, mommy,” he told her.
She nodded. “Want me to carry you?” she asked.
He shook his head. “I saw a bird, I think it was a sparrow, can I run after it?”
Rio smiled at him and nodded once more. “Go on baby.” She held him before he could go. “Be careful,” she instructed.
He squealed, excited about the bird, and ran, away from the group. Agatha watched him, her heart still feeling like a sword had just gone through it, but slowly, she was coming back to her senses. She tried to stand up, but tumbled. Rio was quick to catch her, and helped her stand.
“He’s happy?” Agatha breathed out. She couldn’t believe it.
“He is,” Rio answered. “The Underworld isn’t hell, it’s just… something more.” She watched Agatha’s face, her own heart thumping in her chest. “He has friends,” she added.
Agatha’s mouth turned downward, but somehow, the revelation warmed her heart a bit. Rio grabbed her chin, making her look up so their eyes could meet.
“I’ll tell you everything,” she said.
Agatha nodded. She pulled Rio in an embrace again, and held her as tight as she could. They heard Nicholas calling for Rio, saying something about the sparrow being fast, and separated.
“I have to bring him back,” Rio said.
Agatha nodded, and they heard sniffles behind them.
“Sorry,” Lilia said, before blowing her nose. “Carry on. I'm not crying.”
“Me neither,” Jen sobbed.
Rio let out a nervous laugh, looking at them, before turning to Agatha again.
“You have your coven,” she said, softly. “You can finish the Road.” She nudged her, trying to motivate her.
“Right,” Agatha answered. She wiped her tears, holding Rio’s gaze.
“I’ll be back for you,” Rio told her. “I promise.”
Agatha nodded. The green witch stepped away from her, holding her hand for as long as she could, until she was too far away, and dropped her hand. Agatha stayed still, watching Rio turn around and walk away. Her mind knew it was for the best. Nicholas couldn’t walk the Road, and he could not stay out of the Underworld for long. She also knew Rio had to show him the way. But her heart, oh , her heart. It did not want Rio to go.
“Wait!” she called.
Rio turned around. Agatha ran to her, grabbed her face and pressed her lips on hers. Rio all but sighed against her mouth, melting under her touch. She placed her hands on Agatha’s face, kissing her with everything she had, everything she was holding back since seeing her again. Hot tears were on Agatha’s cheeks again, but this time they weren’t hers: they were Rio’s. They parted, painfully, but stayed there for a moment, their forehead resting together, eyes closed.
“I love you,” they said at the same time.
Their eyes opened, and they smiled, a nervous giggle escaping them both. Agatha sighed, and Rio let go of her face, her fingers lingering on her cheek as she backed away, slowly.
“I love you,” she repeated, walking backward, eyes still on Agatha.
“I love you,” she echoed, staring at Rio’s face, scanning it, as if afraid she would forget it, not knowing when she’ll see her again.
“I’ll be back,” Rio said again.
“You’ll be back,” Agatha repeated, as if to make it more real.
And then Rio was gone.
Agatha walked back to her coven, wiping - yet again - tears from her face. She sighed, and as she looked at the witches around her, she saw their sympathizing looks. Despite having just said goodbye - again - to the two people she loved most in the world, she felt at home, with her coven.
She cleared her throat.
“So are we gonna finish this road or what?”