Saturday Night Séance

by S.J. Drew

She yawned. "I don't mind sleeping in here."

  "Great," Leah said. "You do your thing and we'll try to forget about this."

  Maryann helped Isabella put up some wards of protection and they finally went to bed. They didn't rest well and had to wake up earlier than they wanted. A different manager was on duty when they went to check out.

  "You were in the Master Suite?" the manager said with a start. "Who put you in there?"

  "The night manager," Nora said irritably. "And it's not very comfortable. It's drafty and there are a lot of weird thumps and bangs."

  "Many people have said so," the manager replied. "I'll give you another ten percent discount and I'm very sorry about that."

  They took the discount and headed to the show. It actually went pretty well and soon they were on the road again.

  "So is this kind of thing going to keep happening?" Nora asked after about an hour of silence in the van.

  "I don't know," Maryann said. "It could."

  "But I thought all the weird stuff had to do with, well, your home," she replied.

  "What, like it was cursed?" she asked as indignently as she was capable.

  "Well, kind of," Nora admitted. "I know that's ridiculous, of course, but I kind of thought if we ever got on the road we'd get away from this kind of thing. But we haven't."

  "Oh, it's not like we run into something weird every single day," Maryann said.

  "Yeah, but most people only run into something weird once in their lives," Leah suddenly said. "But then again, maybe we're just not most people."

  "What, this is just our lot in life?" Nora asked.

  "Maybe," Isabella said quietly. "But maybe the better question isn't is this going to keep happening but what do we do about it if it does?"

  "What can we do?" Nora asked.

  "Pretty much what we've been doing," she answered. "And I know that's not what you want to hear."

  "No, it's fine," she sighed. "I mean, not really. It is what it is." Privately, she wished the strange happenings would stop happening to the band.

  "Anyway, we could get some ideas for some really great songs," Maryann said.

  "That's it, always look on the bright side."

  "Thanks!" she said without the least hint of sarcasm.

  Nora rolled her eyes in the front seat but smiled.

  The Lyrics:

  You were all that I wanted

  You were all that I needed

  But I had just a few doubts

  Doubts I should have heeded.

  I went out when you asked

  And did what you wanted to

  But when I suggested something else

  That just didn't work for you.

  Refrain: You only thought of yourself

  There was so little I asked for

  As for what you gave me

  It was always less and never more.

  When you finally did join me

  You acted like it was such a chore

  Neither of us enjoyed ourselves

  Would it have hurt to give a bit more?

  You showed me your world

  And mine I wanted to share

  But when I made the offer to you

  You acted like you didn't care.

  Refrain:

  I've finally had enough of this

  I'm tired of dealing with this mess

  All you had to do was care a little

  And give a bit more instead of always less.

  I'm completely over you

  I'm walking out the door

  As for what you felt for me

  It was always less and never more.

  Refrain:

  Track 4 - Heart's Desire

  The Interview:

  Jana: You switch musical genres again with this fourth track. This is a slow, minor-key rock ballad with just a hint of the blues.

  Lee: Sure.

  Nico: This is kind of a dark, angsty song. What was your inspiration?

  Anna: Well, generally, life on the road as we tried to make it big.

  Lenore: There's a lot of heartbreak and frustration in this business. Sometimes we were offered shortcuts to fame and fortune. Or, at least, opportunities that seemed like shortcuts.

  Belle: But when we looked closer at what we were being offered, we realized that shortcut would cost us so much more in the long run.

  Lee: As much as we wanted to make it big, we realized that there were just some things we couldn't give up. Some things we shouldn't give up.

  Jana: But you've said repeatedly this is a hard business. How did you know you weren't making a mistake by giving up these opportunities? I mean, a big break doesn't come along every day.

  Lenore: We considered that, sure. And I won't say we weren't tempted.

  Anna: What's that saying? Everything costs something, and anything that's free costs even more? Something like that anyway.

  Belle: The path to fame hasn't been easy or straightforward by any means. Sometimes we wanted to give up. Sometimes we wanted to take an easy out. And eventually we realized what we wanted had its own consequences as well.

  Lee: We gave up a lot to be here, but we could have given up a lot more if we hadn't stopped to really think about what we wanted and what we needed and the best way to get that.

  Lenore: We hope our foresight and planning will help us endure the pressure of this business.

  Nico: It seems to be working for you so far.

  Anna: Thanks!

  The Story:

  The band Nevermore and the Ravens was making their way through Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

  "Okay, everything is confirmed for tonight's show," Nora said, putting away her tablet. "I didn't even want to do this sort of thing again, so let's try to avoid trouble this time."

  "Hey, I'm fine with avoiding trouble," Leah replied.

  "No pick-up games," Maryann said severely.

  "How was I supposed to know the GM was some kind of mage or something?" she said. "Anyway, since we don't have a lot of time, I think I'd skip a game anyway to see more of the con. I've got to say, even if the GM wasn't very nice, he runs a good game."

  "Yeah, that could have killed me or those other people," Nora said with venom.

  "Let's not get into that," Isabella sighed. "We don't really know the GM's motivations."

  "Right. Let's just focus on making AwesomeCon awesome," Leah said.

  "You made costumes for us, didn't you? And you're just dying to show them off, aren't you?" Nora asked with a raised eyebrow.

  "All I ever do is sew. You guys know that. And yes, I've got costumes for you all and I'll even tell you who you are."

  "Do I have to wear fishnets again?" Isabella asked.

  "Nope."

  Isabella frowned slightly. "I'm wearing another leotard thing, aren't I?"

  "Nope. I got you a full on body stocking costume this time."

  "There aren't any weird cut-outs, are there?"

  "Nope."

  "Well, thanks for that," Isabella said.

  "Am I running interference again?" Nora asked. At the last con, Nora had taken the lead in dealing with any attendees who got annoying or tried to harass them.

  "You're really good at it," Leah said. "You have this way of saying, 'hey, back off!' and people actually do it."

  "Well, thanks for that," she answered, but she was flattered.

  They turned their attention to their social media and band management until Isabella pulled the van into a parking space at the convention center. They changed into their costumes in the van, which they were accustomed to.

  "Okay, so tell me who I'm supposed to be," Isabella said, looking at her blue and white full covering costume.

  "You really don't know? Look at the '4' on your chest," Leah replied.

  "I'm the Invisible Woman?" she guessed.

  "Yes! See, a full costume and you're awesome. She's the most dangerous member of the FF in my humble opinion."

  "I'
m just glad I'm not wearing fishnets again."

  "Nora, do you like your costume?"

  "I'm not real thrilled with wearing this white wig all day, but I'm not going to complain about being Storm. This is one of the more modern costumes, right?"

  "Yep."

  "I can't help but notice," Isabella said with an annoyed expression, "that the neckline on this black one-piece thing is so low you've added clear shoulder straps to hold it up. How is this supposed to stay up in the comics when she's actually fighting?"

  "Um, suspension of disbelief?" Leah answered.

  "There's definitely suspension of something involved," she muttered.

  "I really am doing the best I can here. It's not like I gave you any of the swimsuit-style costumes and believe me there are lots of those to choose from if you'll remember the last time we were here. Besides, Nora looks great."

  "I agree. I know we take your sewing skills for granted, but thanks."

  "Oh, that's so nice. So, Maryann, you're Phoenix in the classic green and gold costume. I always liked that one best."

  "Am I awesome too?" the redhead asked.

  "You are a goddess."

  "Cool!"

  "And I'm Spider-woman Jessica Drew. And no, I couldn't think of a team theme, so let's go already," Leah said. The look of their costumes was slightly marred by their purses, however.

  AwesomeCon was billed as the biggest board game, role-playing game, video game, sci-fi, anime, fantasy, and comic book convention in the country. The claim may have been exaggerated, but it was certainly a big convention. While the band did want to promote their show, Leah also wanted to go to the con for its own sake. The convention center hosting the con was the same as the last time they attended. The building had an outer perimeter for food vendors and a few short corridors with smaller rooms for discussion panels and other functions. The main attraction was of course the main floor, which was full of booths and people, many of which were in costume.

  "And the geek-out will commence in three, two, one..." Nora said sarcastically.

  "This is awesome!" Leah said. "Come