During the Renaissance Festival in Night Howls on the Hudson, Neal and Sara give impromptu performances of some of Shakespeare's most romantic moments. They're unaware that their actions inspire another to perform a rendition of another Shakespeare play, The Tempest. Astrena, goddess of witches and vampires, who is currently living among mortals as Electra, is not amused when Neal kisses another. She is as merciless as the witches in Macbeth, and she has no need of a cauldron to exact vengeance.
Warning for minor spoilers to Night Howls on the Hudson
The malevolent Electra fits the traditional profile of witches. During the Elizabethan period, witches were persecuted and routinely blamed for any misfortune which occurred. With the three witches in Macbeth, Shakespeare sought to please King James I who a few years earlier had written Daemonologie—a treatise on black magic. In it, the author describes the evil inflicted upon the world by witches as well as vampires and werewolves.
But as Chloe and Christie point out, witches were not always viewed so harshly. In the Middle Ages, many revered good witches as healers. In modern times, the spread of Wicca has helped to improve the image of witches. Their public image has further been enhanced by sympathetic portrayals in films and novels such as All Souls Trilogy.
In Night Howls on the Hudson, a trio of good witches emerges. Up to now, Chloe has never called herself a witch, but in this story, as she learns more about her ancestry, she begins to embrace the term. Peony, the leader of the Silver Cauldron coven, also has many of the attributes. As for Maia, she is determined to shed her evil ways. Now that she knows she and Chloe are related, she has an even greater incentive.
Dean has been a hunter virtually all his life. With very few exceptions, the people he's met with supernatural powers have been evil. Becoming comfortable with Chloe's abilities is a difficult challenge. Sam is more sympathetic to witches, but he doesn't know about the dark secrets Maia is hiding. Neal could tell Maia that secrets are very difficult to maintain. Will guilt drive her to enact another scene from Shakespeare? Will she, like Lady Macbeth, see bloodstains when none are present? Alas, Peony's cauldron contains no clues about Maia and Chloe's future.
Night Howls on the Hudson on Archive of Our Own
Night Howls on the Hudson on FanFiction
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