Berry High is Magical(A HSS Fanfiction)-Prologue
Author’s Note: Happy Holidays Choices fandom! I decided to start this fanfiction today since it’s the holidays! It took a minute but the prologue is finally done. The official chapters won’t start until January. I hope you all enjoy and Happy Holidays!!
Also wanted to tag @lover-also-fighter-also @cadybear420
The highway was bustling with multicolored cars. Different shapes of vehicles were either going one way or the other. Going backwards meant going to Westchester...going forward meant going to who knows where.
One particular car held a family of five. A girl who looked the youngest looked out the window with her hazel eyes. She saw as the town of Westchester disappear. Internally...she was actually kind of relieved. That town wasn't exactly...welcoming for her. Westchester was more of a gloomy and dark town, and this girl was sunny and bright. The woman next to her noticed the girls soft look.
"Erica...The woman asked, Are you ok?"
Erica soon turned to the woman with a big smile on her face. "Absolutely, mom!"
Erica's mom looked at her with a confused smile. She figured Erica would be so sad leaving her hometown but she was actually...happy? "Maybe she's just masking...hiding her true feelings not to make a scene in the car...yeah...that's it!" She thought. Erica's mother soon had an idea.
"Hey Erica! Erica's mother suggested, Why don't we set up the store and the boys can do the house?!"
A long groan came from the backseat of the car. It was one of Erica's older brothers, specifically the middle child, Yarrow.
"Mommy! Do we really have too?" He sighed.
The other older brother glanced at his younger sibling and asked. "How are you going to volunteer to help move, then complain when you need to do work?"
"Because building the house is going to take so much work, Ivy!" Yarrow complained.
Just then a older man rose a little from the middle seat.
"Now boys, most of the hard work is done, all we have to do is put the finishing touches in the rooms and furniture!" He said.
"Thank you Scott!" Erica's mother said.
"You're welcome, Alice." Scott replied.
As they kept driving, Erica soon noticed the sign, the new town that they would be moving to.
Erica then took this time to look at the new environment. There were people smiling, riding bikes, jogging with dogs, there was even a few girls around her age walking with ice cream. Erica smiled even bigger at the revelation before her. This was truly a place where she belonged.
The rest of the drive was smooth as the family soon arrived at the new house. Sure it was smaller, but it was more put together and brighter than the old one.
Alice gave each of the men a sheet of paper that said which rooms to do while she and Erica were out. Once Alice was back in the car, it was time to get a move on.
The store wasn't really far from the house and was going to be located downtown. The duo soon arrived to a cozy third of a three part strip mall. As they walked in, nothing but empty shelves and full boxes awaited them.
"Erica, why don't you stock the shelves with herbs and I'll stock the ones with crystals!" Alice said with a smile.
Erica nodded and got to work.
Mugwort, Sage, Lavender, Camomile...special herbs used by so called magical people called "witches".
It's true! Erica's mother is a certified "witch". In fact, Erica's extended family are a bunch of witches! It is a traditional belief system for the people her mother's side of the family, based on traditional African beliefs and the beliefs of the Flowain people. Erica and her siblings however...don't follow that path. Ivy declared himself as a atheist and a believer of science, Yarrow just uses tarot cards and believes in a afterlife, but he can care less about religion, and Erica herself was a whole hard Christian! The kind of Christian to carry a bible with her, the type to pray a lot, type to invite friends to Sunday service...that is if she had any real friends.
Erica didn't even notice when her mother placed her hand on her shoulder. A tiny "Eep!" escaped from her mouth. Erica soon calmed down as she realized it was her mother.
"Erica...are you sure you're okay?" Alice asked.
"Y...yeah! Why do you ask?" Erica responded.
"Well...Its just that this has been a big move for all of us, and I want you to know that you can talk to me about it..."
Erica only blinked at her mom. "Don't worry I'm fine!" Erica said with a huge smile.
Alice gave a fake smile back, but internally she was extremely worried. After a certain...incident...Erica was barely sad or mad at things anymore, and while it's fine to have a positive outlook, its not normal to repress negative thoughts.
Erica turned around and went back to stocking the herbs, then it was the tarot decks, the brooms, books, shells and all kinds of stuff. By the end of it all the store was complete. Alice and her daughter high-fived. Opening day will be in a few days before Erica started school and Alice was excited to finally sell.
As the duo drove back home, Alice continued to eye her daughter. It just felt unusual to not say anything after a big change. Was this a teenager thing? Alice didn't know but she didn't want to pressure Erica any further.
Erica looked out the window and noticed a big high school labeled "Berry High". It wasn't like Westchester High at all, from the outside the school looked well put together, shiny and most of all...friendly. She noticed the court, a diverse group of guys were practicing football and in the back a group of girls were practicing cheerleading. This really made Erica smile, she always wanted to be a cheerleader. This triggered a memory in which she tried out for the Westchester Cheer Team and gave it her all, a girl named Stacy liked it but the captain, Britney scowled and told Erica to look at the board on Monday. Needless to say...she didn't make it.
Erica shook her head as she tried to erase that memory from her head. It was going to be a new start and Erica was determined to erase any form of Westchester from her mind.
The women soon got home and noticed that all the boxes were empty. The men have actually put together the house. As Alice and Erica walked in, they noticed Ivy, Yarrow and Scott all passed out of the couch. Alice soon whistled and all three woke up immediately.
"You boys look tired as all living hell!" Alice exclaimed.
"Ugh! My back is killing me! I don't think I can move a another bone in my body..." Yarrow moaned.
Just then Yarrow's phone rang, his face went from exhausted to exclaimed in under a second! Ivy saw the look on his brothers face and gave a smug grin.
"Myrtle again?" Ivy joked.
Yarrow just nodded and giggled as he went outside to talk to Myrtle. Erica smiled, she was happy that Yarrow found someone to make him happy. She hoped it would be a wedding soon, despite Yarrow's objection to marriage and children.
Ivy just rolled his eyes and began to show the family what they have done to the house. They began with the basement, then the living room, the bathroom, Alice and Scott's room, then finally Erica's room!
Erica stood in amazement at her room. It was beautiful with a mix of reds, pinks, and whites along with floral decors. She soon laid on the bed, it was Heaven on Earth.
Soon, it was time for dinner for the first time in their new home. Alice turned around to give herself and the male members steak, brown rice and broccoli! Unlike the rest of the family, Erica had stove fried tofu with her sides. Erica was a full-fledge vegan and believed that eating and harming animals was wrong!
Yarrow cringed at Erica's plate, he was cool with Erica's dietary choices, but the smell of tofu makes him uneasy. It wasn't helping that Ivy was putting hot sauce and ranch on his broccoli. Alice decided to break the ice.
"So Yarrow, when was your flight again?" She asked.
"Its August 23th, Myrtle and I are going to the robotics convention!" Yarrow answered.
"You always had a thing for nerds!" Ivy teased.
"Shut Up! Myrtles just really excited to go!" Yarrow responded.
"Well, after that what are you going to do?"
Yarrow cringed again. He didn't really have a...safe job...so he didn't know what he'll do.
"I'll go on a road trip or something..." Yarrow said.
Scott then smiled at Erica. "So Erica! Are you excited for your first day at your new school?"
Erica blinked but smiled. "Yeah! I think it's going to go well!!" She responded.
Alice just looked at her daughter trying to put on a supportive face but her eyebrows were screwing things up. On one hand she didn't want to bombard Erica with many questions but on the other hand she didn't believe that Erica was just 100% "OK" with the move. She decided to keep her peace.
A few days had passed and it was Sunday, the grand opening of the store. Erica and her mother stood in the building, Alice was armored with a green apron to fight against hungry customers. She looked at her daughter and came up to her with her hands behind her back.
"Erica..., Alice began, I know that this is a big day for us, and now I believe that it is time..."
"Time for what?" Erica asked.
Alice soon took her hands from behind her back revealing another green apron, however unlike hers it had cute patches on it such as: A cute manatee, a heart, a sun and a final one with wording that said "John 3:16".
Erica's eyes shined at the apron then looked at her mother's grinning face. This meant that it was finally time...time for Erica to work at the store!! Even though Erica was highly against witchcraft she always wanted to work along her mother. Alice was one of the few family members to accept her kids beliefs, after all they weren't really harming anyone and those were always going to be her children. Erica also had a close bond with her, especially after the "incident"...but she didn't want to think on that! For now, she gladly put the apron on and spun.
"Now Erica, tomorrow you will be at school so I don't expect you to work full time!!" Alice noted.
"That's ok mommy! Erica saluted. I'm just happy to work with you!"
Alice smiled and nodded and soon went to unlock the door. The store was opened for business!!
Just then a customer walked in...then another...and another. A group of gothic teens walked in, a couple that looked like hippies followed through, a man with dreads and a brown coat came in as well. Business was surely booming.
Erica was helping the customers as well. She noticed a few that could be around her age. She saw one bigger guy with a red hoodie and a friendly face, another had a shaved head and was genderqueer, then one was a super goth girl with red hair. She wondered if anyone of these people were going to be her classmates.
Just then a couple of girls went up to her giggling. They seem to stand out from the crowd as it was clear that these girls were from Westchester. The girls tapped Erica's back.
"Glad to see you're accepting your fate Vine!" One said.
Erica gasped and turned around to see old tics from back home:
Erica trembled as the girls presence brought back bad memories. Memories as being labeled as a witch despite her Christian beliefs, memories of not making the cheer team, and memories of being made fun of due to the "incident". Still, Erica stood tall and calm.
"Brittney? Jocelyn? It's been a while! What are you too doing here?" She asked.
"I have family out her Vine, Brittney responded, Jocelyn's just here to pick me up, thought we make a stop first..."
"Your future coven is so cute Vine!" Jocelyn added.
"I'm not a witch...you both know that!" Erica noted.
"Oh My God, Vine you don't have to lie to us!!" Brittney mocked.
"Oh Oh Oh!! Doesn't Ava practice witchcraft too!! You should call her! I think you too would be besties!!!" Jocelyn squealed.
"Tch...more like girlfriends...I've seen the way you used to look at her!" Brittney said.
Erica squawked. If Erica hated any part of her self it was that. She hated her bisexuality of herself and always masked herself under heterosexuality to seem innocent and pure. Erica began to tear up and once again put on a smile.
"Is there anything I can help you with today?" She asked.
"...Nah...your walls being broken was plenty for us! Ta-ta." Brittney waved.
Erica stood there. While the store was crowded, she felt like she was the only one there. As the tears were forming her hearing became blurred as she could barely hear her mother calling out to her. Erica realized an immediately put on the cheerful happy face people know and loved.
"Are you ok?" Alice Asked.
"Oh, I'm fine, just ran into some old classmates!!"
Alice blinked, but decided to leave Erica alone and continue to work.
After the long grand opening it was time for the duo to return home. They were greeted by Scott who welcomed the women with a homecooked meal! Dinner was normal, some nice tofu stir fry! Alice gazed at her daughter, something was clearly up so she decided to investigate.
"So Erica! How did it feel working at the store for the first time?" Alice asked.
"Oh it was nice!" Erica responded with a limp smile.
Alice was nervous. She pestered again.
"Just...nice?" She asked again.
Alice was slightly annoyed but decided it was best to leave it alone. If Erica was truly upset she would of said something by now.
It was soon night time and Ivy, Scott, and Erica soon headed to their beds. Alice took one last glimpse of Erica, she was happy but nervous at the same time.
"Yes mommy?" Erica responded.
"If...If you're ever feeling down...just know...you can talk to me...ok?"
With that Erica went to bed and rested for tomorrow would be the first day at Berry High!
Alice sighed and went into the living room. She went into the corner where a nice altar had been made. The altar had roses and rose quartz crystals. A statue of the goddess Isis stood at the top, where two smaller female statues stood next to each other. With that Alice lit up some frankincense sticks, blew them out, got on her knees and prayed.
Watch over my daughter...
Give my daughter your strength
I just need her to fit for this new challenge...
With that, the incense burned out and Alice went to bed. Hoping that the prayer would be answered...
