The bubble head charm was one of the few spells Cliff knew relatively well, although it wasn’t as if he knew any spell well enough to be confident when using it; it was always his go to to cast it before sticking his head into the water to see what kind of fish he was dealing with, and if he was feeling really adventurous, sometimes he’d dive into the water for fun. So far he hadn’t drowned, so he must be doing something right. He liked to fish – he liked the thrill of having to reel one in and the self-fulfillment when he realized it was going to feed them for days. Hopefully he’d get the same fulfillment from keeping them from being poisoned today.

His eyes narrowed before he grinned at her and nodded, watching with interest as she lit the candle; he jumped as the flame turned jet black just as Ida backed into him, and Cliff couldn’t help but chuckle as his fingers brushed against her waist to keep her from… what? Falling? He frowned then and rubbed his fingers against his pants before his grin widened. It was accompanied by a shrug. “Why wouldn’t you blow it up is the question. But fine. This is your fun just as much as it is mine.” There were always other things he could blow up at the farm, and unlike Ida who always seemed the slightest bit concerned for his safety, Meena would just egg him on and raise the stakes. He really ought to introduce the pair.

Cliff followed Ida without hesitation when she pulled him, although instantly was peering around the corner toward the girls. They were standing in the middle of the maze staring at their reflections, the one named Bonnie staring at her hands that appeared to have all the flesh melted from it, leaving just bone. His own nose wrinkled because that looked terrible, but as his eyes were drawn to the empty floor, Cliff came to the conclusion that her flesh hadn’t actually melted, and it must be the candle doing its job. Bonnie’s eyes flicked up toward her friend and she shrieked. Her friend’s head resembled that of a shrunken head complete with decrepit wrinkled skin. “Oh my god. Where’s the exit to the next room?” One of the girls panicked as she continued to press her hands against the glass, banging on one of them as if it’ll help.

The candle flickered, unnoticed by the two shrieking girls, and Cliff turned back toward Ida as he breathed out “holy shit, are you seeing this Ida?” Because now Bonnie was screeching about the fur that was popping up all over her skin to replace the flesh that had all but disappeared. “What the hell kind of animal is that?” He asked, narrowing his eyes as he amusingly watched the fur spread across parts of her face. The girl next to her, unfortunately, was getting the same treatment with scales.

The candle puffed a ring of black smoke followed by a ring of yellow, and Cliff held his breath despite having his (hopefully) protective bubble around his head. He didn’t want to turn into some kind of animal-monster. (What if they were turning into beastie committing all the murders?!)

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