Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Tour ended a few days ago and Maxx couldn't sleep. He could be in bed with his amazing, beautiful, wonderful fiance but instead he's awake at 3AM eating dry cereal at the kitchen island.

Pistol sat on the corner of the island countertop. If it hadn't been 3AM Maxx probably would have set her down on the floor. But Maxx hadn't seen Pistol in months and he was too tired to care about the island getting dirty. He'd just wipe the counter down afterwards.

Maxx mindlessly scooped up another spoonful of cheerios. He chewed them almost mechanically as he stared at the wall without seeing it. He's had a lot on his mind since the whole body swap incident a couple weeks ago.

Magic was definitely cool. The way Allex had talked about intent and the ‘rules of the universe’ had been intriguing. Maxx found himself thinking that he wanted to learn more about it. But was that really a good idea?

If absolute power corrupts absolutely, then who's to say that he wouldn't go on a power trip? What if he started using it to curse people? Win wrestling matches? Making one or more of their songs hit the top ten billboard charts? It would be cool, but it would also be cheating. He'd be bending the universe for his own gain and Maxx didn't think that would be okay.

Maxx ate another bite of cheerios.

But magic was about intent right? So what if he intended to win a match and magic picked up on that? Would he ever win a match of his own merit, or would magic ensure that he'd win every match he intends to win? What if he intends to be the best drummer? Would he actually be the best or would everyone just believe he's the best? Was there any limitations to magic, or did it only do certain things?

If he decided to pursue magic, would that change him and how he lived his life? Would Sarah be upset? Would Cody and Zach be supportive? Especially after the whole body swap incident. Would Cody be ok with Maxx doing magic around him? Would Zach want to try magic as well? He'd always been obsessed with Harry Potter, he might get jealous if Maxx starts doing magic.

He took another bite of cheerios.

How would he even do magic in the first place? Allex mentioned herbs and rock salt, but what kind of herbs? Would he need a familiar?

“Mmrow?” Pistol meowed.

Maxx's eyes snapped to his cat. Pistol was still sitting on the counter. She looked at Maxx, blinked and stretched before walking across the counter over to Maxx.

He reached out and pet Pistol, giving her some scratches behind her ear. Maxx smiled and figured that Pistol answered his question.

He sighed and looked down at his almost empty bowl and his phone, which had been laying next to his cheerios. He drummed his fingers across the counter top as he thought of one last question.

“Would it really hurt to ask?”

He picked up his phone and unlocked it. The phone was still open on a short text conversation from two weeks ago.

‘Cody?’

‘YES!!!!’

Maxx sighed. This could go very poorly.

He typed out ‘Allex?’ and sent the message. It was only after he sent it that he remembered it was currently 3AM and they were likely asleep. He was about to put his phone down and grab another bowl of cheerios when he got a message.

‘Yes? Who is this?’

Maxx frowned. ‘It's Maxx’

A solid couple of minutes went by as Maxx watched the ‘currently typing’ bubble appear and disappear. It was actually quite entertaining. 

‘OH! Sorry. I deleted your number off my phone. I figured you wouldn't want a random stranger to have your number.’

Maxx nodded. That was really considerate of them. He kind of wished he'd done that. Then again, he wouldn't be able to ask any questions if he had.

‘Thanks that's very kind of you. I just had a couple of questions about magic I was hoping you'd answer’

‘Sure! What's your questions?’

Maxx bit his lip and gave Pistol a couple more pets.

‘Can anyone do magic?’

‘Theoretically, yes. Actually, not so much. You have to be able to believe it's going to work, otherwise it won't. It also gets easier the longer you practice. Kind of like a muscle. The body swap only worked because I have such a large pool of magic to pull from. There's also a certain level of creativity that someone needs to have if they choose to try magic.’

That was a pretty thorough answer.

‘so if I wanted to try magic, would I be able to do it?’

‘I don't know, do you believe you could?’

Maxx thought about it for a bit. What is magic other than intent? Maxx thought about moments in his life that were so special that he had called them magical. The first time they sold out a show. Playing his first headliner. Meeting Sarah. Winning the HOC briefcase.

He looked at his phone.

‘maybe I already have’

‘Then I definitely believe that you can.'

Chapter Text

Pinterest. That was Allex’s suggestion.

They said “That's where I got my start!” as if that made it any better. How was he supposed to be a badass witch if he learned everything off of Pinterest!

Yes, witch and not Wiccan. When he asked them what the ‘culture differences’ were between the two, Allex told him “Wicca is a religion, witchcraft is just magic.”

So yeah, witch.

Maxx sat at the kitchen table as he scrolled through Pinterest. It was breakfast so he had his second cup of coffee and a bowl of cheerios.

Sarah sat across from Maxx eating scrambled eggs with toast. She frowned at Maxx's bowl of cheerios as if it had just insulted her.

“Why are you eating cheerios?”

“Because it's comforting.”

“Does it have anything to do with how you're glaring at your phone?”

Maxx huffed and put down his phone. He hadn't actually gotten around to telling Sarah about the whole body swap incident yet. As a result, He hadn't told her that magic was very real or that he was going to try it out.

Maxx took a deep breath. “So a couple of weeks ago, Cody got body swapped with a fan by accident. We learned magic is real and I had to call the fan's phone to talk to Cody. We were able to get them swapped back really quickly but it got me thinking; can anyone do magic? So since I still had their number in my phone, I texted the fan to ask a couple of questions about learning witchcraft and they told me to look on Pinterest.”

“Wait,” Sarah interrupted, “Pinterest?”

Maxx blinked. “Yeah! It's how they got started apparently. You're not surprised?”

Sarah laughed and rolled her eyes. “Honey, I already knew magic was real.”

“What? How?” Maxx asked.

Sarah smiled. “I met you, didn't I?”

Maxx melted like an ice cube in a volcano. “You know babe, I thought the exact same thing.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.” Maxx grinned before leaning forward conspiratorially. “How'd you know?”

Sarah grinned back, matching Maxx's energy. “Do you remember Helen?”

“Is she a witch?” Maxx asked.

“No, her sister is.”

“I didn't know she had a sister.”

Sarah scoffed. “According to Helen she doesn't. She got really drunk one night and ranted to me about it. Apparently her sister told Helen and their parents that she was practicing witchcraft while being Christian and they disowned her on the spot! I was able to track her down through Facebook and ask a couple of questions. Haven't talked to either her or Helen since.”

“Wow,” Maxx exhaled, “I didn't think Helen would be like that. What did you ask her sister?”

“Not much,” Sarah admitted, “I apologized for reaching out and told her what Helen said. Then I asked her what exactly is witchcraft. She told me, I thanked her and haven't bothered her since. I did some research on my own but I didn't look on Pinterest for that information.”

“Where'd you look?” Maxx asked, taking a bite of cheerios.

“Reddit.”

Maxx snorted and almost spat his cheerios back into his bowl. He swallowed and took a deep breath. “I wish I'd thought of that.”

“I'm glad that I could save you from the hellscape that we call Pinterest.”

“That's Twitter.”

“Of course, my mistake.”

They smiled at each other before going back to their breakfasts. It was silent for a few minutes as they ate. Maxx looked down at his phone and thought for a moment.

“So…” Maxx began apprehensively, “if I was going to become a witch… would you be ok with that?”

Sarah laughed. “Maxx, I would help you research. I'm not interested in doing magic but I would love to learn more about it.”

Maxx felt his entire body relax. “God I love you so much, Sarah.”

“I love you too.” Sarah smiled. “Now, what have you found so far?”

Chapter Text

Over the course of the next week, Maxx and Sarah threw themselves into research. Sarah looked up what kind of tools a witch would need or have and Maxx focused on learning what different herbs or crystals did and how they would interact with each other. It was a slow process, information they could find online was sporadic but light at best and dense but untrustworthy at worst.

They also didn't have a lot of time to research. Between the band, working out, Sarah's job, going on dates, wedding planning and other various activities - their week was packed. As much as Maxx wanted to learn magic, he wasn't going to ruin his life for it.

However, on one of their dates, Maxx and Sarah ended up walking past a bookstore. Sarah got excited and dragged Maxx inside.

Maxx laughed as she dragged him around for a minute before stopping at a collection of journals. Sarah was practically vibrating as she looked at Maxx and exclaimed, “Pick one!”

“Uhhhhh…” Maxx thought for a minute, “that one?” He finally said, pointing at a simple leather bound book with a clasp.

“You're sure?” Sarah asked.

“I guess?” Maxx frowned.

“Okay!” Sarah picked up the book and shoved it into Maxx's hands. “It's yours now!”

Maxx blinked. “Okay???”

Sarah laughed. “It's your new book of shadows!”

“OH!” Maxx exclaimed. “Thank you!”

Sarah had told Maxx about them a couple days beforehand. It was basically a diary for witches. You can record spells, ingredients or even dreams. When they got back home that day, Maxx immediately started to use it to record all of their findings. He'd made a list of all the basic tools and what they were for. Then he made a second list of some of the most common herbs and crystals as well as their uses. By the end of the week, Maxx had filled out several pages and was contemplating buying a second book.

Sarah was out that day visiting some friends so Maxx had a few hours to himself. It was the perfect opportunity to do a bit of shopping.

When asked about the best places to buy supplies, Allex told Maxx that the grocery store was a good place to start. Several herbs that are useful in spells, potions and hex bags were very easily found there. However, most other things are easier (and more expensive) to find at a spiritual shop.

Maxx went to both a Trader Joe's and a Costco to look for herbs. He ended up getting less than a dozen different kinds but it was a little more limited than what Allex had suggested. Things like salt and cinnamon were easily found but some stuff (basil, cloves, thyme, ect) weren't there. He decided to cut his losses and head to the spiritual store he found.

The store was called “Soul Bound” and was tucked between two larger shops on a quiet road. If Maxx didn't know what he was looking for he would have completely missed it. They had a small wooden sign hanging in the window with their store name and hours.

SOUL BOUND

OPEN EVERY DAY

FROM 10-10

Maxx opened the door and smiled when a soft ring came from above the door. He looked up expecting to see a door chime only to blink in shock at the bird sitting in a massive cage that was bolted to the ceiling and walls. The bird made its way down the side of the cage until it was in the lowest section which was about eye level to Maxx. It tilted its head and made the same soft ring from before. Maxx felt like he was being judged.

“Hello.”

Maxx jumped so hard he bumped his leg on the table under the cage. He quickly righted the bag of bird food he almost knocked over and turned around. He was startled when he saw a woman standing behind the counter.

Maxx shuffled his feet and cleared his throat. “I thought that was the bird for a second.”

The woman smiled tightly. “Hermes does a lot but he can't speak English.”

Maxx moved away from the door into the shop. “Hermes? Isn't that a god?”

The woman leaned back against the wall. Maxx had the sudden realization that he couldn't see her hands.

“He lets us know if anyone enters the shop.” Her voice echoed.

Hermes let out a long haunting whistle. Maxx felt the hairs on his neck stand up and lightning flash through his veins. His skin felt cold and his body was tense. Something deep within him seemed to whisper ‘leave’ and a large part wanted to listen.

A part of him felt electrified. He felt like he just got off the stage. It was the feeling he got after he finished a workout. When he wins a match. With the whistle still ringing through his mind, Maxx whipped around to look at the bird.

The bird wasn't there. Instead there was a massive green snake curled around the inside of the cage. Its eyes seemed to glow as it hissed at Maxx. “Leave.” The voice in his head repeated louder. Maxx took a step towards the door.

His head was ringing and pounding. It was hard to focus or see without feeling like his skull was going to split in two. What was he doing? Did he get a concussion? Maxx took another step.

Why did it feel like someone was using his head like a drum? Where did that snake come from? What did the woman even look like? Was there even a woman there? Maxx took another step.

Something is wrong. The pounding got louder.

bum bum, tak. bum, bu bum, tak.

He KNOWS that!

…Where does he know it from?

Maxx took another step as he focused on the pounding in his head. He felt like he could hear it out loud.

Buried behind the pounding, Maxx could just barely hear Cody's voice.

“...shw em wt hy wnt..”

Maxx froze. Camouflage.

Maxx blinked into awareness. His body immediately relaxed and he felt the same feeling from before. Post workout exhilaration.

He was standing in front of the door, looking directly at the bird. It was a raven.

Maxx brought his hand up to the cage. He nestled a single finger between two of the bars. “Hey Hermes!” He spoke to the raven as if it were a puppy. “Are you a good employee? I hope they're giving you lots of treats as compensation!”

Hermes tilted his head and walked over to Maxx's finger. He only looked at it for a moment before closing his eyes and resting his beak against Maxx's finger.

Maxx gently petted the raven’s beak as he turned to look at the counter.

The woman was a short redhead with the curliest hair Maxx has ever seen. She had big round glasses and a butterfly pin holding her hair out of her face. She was wearing a loose, brown, long sleeve t-shirt and a dark brown apron with green patches all over it. She kind of looked like she was dressed for gardening. She also looked shocked.

“Well that was fucking weird.” Maxx stated plainly. “Was that all in my head or was that you? Because let me tell you, I've hallucinated before but NEVER like that!”

“Uumm… it was me?” She hesitantly responded. “How'd you break out?” The woman looked ready to bolt out the back door.

Maxx smiled and started drumming his hand against his leg.

bum bum, tak. bum, bu bum, tak.

The woman looked confused. Maxx smiled wider. “It's one of my drum beats! ‘Show them what they want, social camouflage’ I couldn't stop thinking about it!”

She still looked confused but she did relax a little. “You're not angry?” She asked.

“A little.” Maxx admitted. It was rude to magically whammy someone like that after all. “But it was super cool!! I wanted to get out but everything kept reminding me of ‘Fake Ass Friends’! The snake was really cool too!” It was also the first time he thought that he actively felt magic. Which was a much better thing to focus on than casual mind control.

She smiled and lit up. “Thanks! Hermes and I worked really hard on it!”

Maxx looked back at the raven. “You're such a good magic raven! Yes you are! You did such a good job being a scary snake!”

Hermes puffed up and stood taller, basking in the praise.

“I'm sorry, are you a witch?”

Maxx turned back to the woman. “...Yes?” He answered after a moment of thought. He's only really been one for a week and he basically JUST did magic so...

The woman let out a sigh. “That's a relief. Sorry about the spell. We don't normally get male witches in here.”

“Do you whammy all your customers?” He asked.

She winced. “Only sometimes, mostly males.”

Maxx frowned. “Why did you whammy me?”

She gave him a long look. “Sir. You're six feet tall, in a leather jacket and I can see your neck muscles from across the room. You're not our usual clientele.”

Maxx rubbed his neck almost subconsciously. “I'm a drummer and a wrestler?” He offered lightly.

She sighed. “Of course you are. What can I help you with, sir?”

Maxx made his way over to the counter. As he walked, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his book of shadows. He opened it to the first couple of pages that were covered in tools and materials.

“Which of these would you recommend for a beginner?” He asked nervously.

The woman blinked, looked at his book and looked back up at him. “For you?” Maxx nodded back. Her eyes widened. “You have none of them?” Maxx nodded again.

Her jaw dropped. “You broke my spell as a beginner?!” She nearly screeched.

Maxx blinked back. “I guess?”

“You guess- How?!” She demanded.

“The power of music?” He suggested sarcastically. “I don't know, dude. Your guess is as good as mine, if not better!”

She sighed again. “I’ll get you what you need at a discount. But in return I'd like you to come back sometime to meet my coven leader. You don't have to buy anything when you come in and it doesn’t have to be right away. She works in the mornings on weekdays. She can answer any questions I'm sure you have. Deal?” She held out her hand towards Maxx.

Maxx reached out and grabbed it. “Deal.”