[door creaks]
Oh. Hello there.
And welcome to Thornhill,
the Blossom family's ancestral home.
A house of secrets and mysteries,
and the most haunted place in Rivervale.
Is it haunted by ghosts or memories?
Or something else? A curse?
Perhaps all three.
[clock chimes]
Well, would you look at the time?
It's 7:00 am.
And the women of Thornhill, past and present,
are waking up across the decades.
In the here and now,
Cheryl Blossom wakes up from a dreamless sleep.
-[alarm ringing] -[Cheryl groans]
[Jughead] As 65 years ago,
Poppy Blossom stirs awake in the same room,
in the same bed.
And while further back still,
Abigail Blossom opens her eyes to meet the day.
Three blossom women,
one story echoing across time,
burning as bright and eternal
as a comet's tail in the night sky.
[suspenseful music playing]
[knocking at door]
[mouthing]
[knocking at door]
Today, we will be discussing comets,
in particular, periodic comets.
Bailey's comet passes through
the inner workings of our solar system
once every 65 years.
Tonight's a momentous night.
You lucky girls will be able to marvel
at the comet's beauty on the North hill
as it streaks through the night sky
and over Rivervale.
- Mm-hmm? - Mistress Cheryl,
will Nana Blossom be able
to join us for the viewing tonight?
She's feeling quite weak today, so I'm afraid not.
And I will not be with you at the North hill either.
I will be by my Nana's bedside,
conducting certain rituals
to help her transition into the afterlife.
- I have some good news, Nana. -[Nana Rose] Oh.
[Cheryl] Tonight's the night we've been planning
for all these years.
Bailey's comet returns to our skies.
Oh. You bring me such relief, dear child.
Now I must ask you again
while you are in your right mind.
Roseanne Blossom, are you certain
you wish to continue down this road?
Once done, it cannot be undone,
and there is risk.
There's always a risk when spellcasting.
I have never been more certain.
Very well then. Let's begin with the ritual.
To walk in their shoes,
you must first know their stories,
their histories.
Who do you wish to begin with?
Both. For their stories,
as you know, are intertwined.
All right. Let's see.
Ah. Yes.
Poppy had just hosted one of her delightful salons.
Thanks for letting me stick around
- and bend your ear alone, Poppy. - Of course, Tamtam.
And you did seem quiet
during our discussion of Lady Chatterley's Lover.
Oh, it's so silly, Poppy.
I want to start working at the diner,
but my husband is dead set against it.
Home is where I belong, he says.
But I know I would do
a better job of managing Pop's than he does.
[Poppy] Hmm.
[sighs]
What's this?
Some herbs from my garden.
Sprinkle them in your hubby's eggs Benedict
and he will come down with a nasty stomach bug.
And then you can be the heroine
and step up and run Pop's for the day.
[chuckles softly]
Oh, Poppy,
I don't know what we'd do without you.
I see here from your resume that you have
five years teaching experience.
- Is that right? - Yes.
When I came across your hiring announcement
in the paper, I was moved to apply.
My old school was shut down, you see,
and turned into a hospital after the war began.
A wretched affair, isn't it?
My own dear brother James
is fighting on the western front.
Tell me, the pox is rampant throughout our land,
have you been afflicted by it?
Yes, when I was but a babe.
I too survived that hellish plague.
Are you married?
- No, ma'am. - Good.
I have no need for women with husbands.
You're hired.
Is it Thomasina or Miss Topaz? Which do you prefer?
Thomasina.
Very good.
- Where did you say you were from again? - Nearby.
Greendale.
[swishing]
Today, ladies,
we shall be discussing proper table etiquette,
especially in regards to share plates
and clear soups.
Actually, Ms. Blossom,
I had a notion about today's lesson.
Bailey's comet is set to pass over Rivervale
in a few days' time,
and it offers an excellent
scientific opportunity for the girls.
Firstly, Thomasina, it is quite unladylike
to be traipsing around the woods after dark.
But, more importantly,
the Thornhill Academy for Girls is a finishing school.
But a comet, like any celestial body,
is fundamental to the understanding of our lives.
It's much like a poem, you see.
Everything, the stars, time, and even you and I,
we're all part of an intertwining cosmic fabric.
I see.
And I suppose next you'll be wanting to teach my girls other similarly
impolite topics from the world of men.
Indeed, I will.
Because men have all the power,
and the world need not be that way.
That's quite enough of that talk, Thomasina.
So long as you teach at my school, you will follow my curriculum.
Class dismissed.
All right, ladies, if you could please take your seats.
So, for this week's salon, I was thinking
maybe we discuss Bailey's Comet,
which I just read will be passing over
our little town later this year.
What do we think?
We should have a viewing party, set up on the roof of Pop's.
[Betsy] That's a swell idea, Tammy.
Though I can't imagine Jack would be
very interested in a comet.
[Tammy] Oh, by the way, Poppy,
guess who's working the diner's register these days.
Curious timing, this comet.
Didn't the Soviets just launch Sputnik?
Wait, is that the missile I keep hearing about?
It's the Russian space satellite, Velma,
for spying on us Americans.
You're absolutely right, Betsy.
Can they really do that?
Oh, by the way, did you hear?
Wendy Weatherbee was just arrested
for conspiracy.
- No. - Yes.
Wendy is as red-blooded American as the rest of us.
Well, apparently now she's just red.
My question is,
are our children safe at school?
Ladies, ladies, no need to fret.
My opinion is, if people discuss their
different ideas in the privacy of their own homes,
well, what's the harm?
Poppy Seed Blossom, do you really mean that?
I truly do.
[sighs]
I suppose I'm just not a fan of witch hunts.
Of any kind.
Thank you for letting me stay behind, Poppy.
I promise I won't take up too much of your time.
Oh. Oh, Betsy,
time spent with you
is always the highlight of my week.
But what's going on?
The truth is, I'm not happy in my marriage, Poppy.
I've wondered.
Jack thinks the answer is to have another child.
Even though my first pregnancy was... [sighs]
Well, you remember how hard that was on me.
Have you considered divorce?
Divorce? Jack?
No, I couldn't, Poppy. Jack's Catholic.
Well, maybe it's just about not getting pregnant right now.
Have you ever looked into birth control?
Oh, I couldn't possibly ask Dr. Curdle
- for something like that. - Not to worry.
I have just the thing.
Take this special ginger root from my garden.
A few flakes every day in the morning
will make sure you don't start
baking a bun in the oven.
[sighing] Poppy...
I'm so grateful to you for listening
and understanding. What would I do without you?
Oh, my. What the devil am I doing?
I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Poppy.
Oh, Betsy, Betsy, everything's fine.
Nothing bad happened.
Everything will work out.
You'll see. Okay?
Okay. Okay.
[Abigail] Thomasina.
-[Thomasina] Yes. -[Abigail sighs]
I...
I wanted to apologize for my outburst earlier.
I'm afraid I should be the one to apologize.
After all, it is your curriculum, not mine.
True. But...
after some quiet reflection,
I've realized you're right.
From now on, we're going to teach these young women
hard truths,
tough knowledge.
Prepare them for a world that might not exist yet,
- but someday will. - Yes, Abigail.
What can I do to help?
♪ I'm gonna drive you Through the night ♪
♪ Down the hills
♪ I'm gonna Tell you something you ♪
♪ Don't want to hear
♪ I'm gonna show you Where it's dumped... ♪
-[song stops] -[Velma] Earth to Poppy.
Velma, I am so sorry.
You were telling me about your husband.
Yes. It's just that...
lately, things have been a bit...
- vanilla in the bedroom. - Hmm.
And I want to spice things up a bit with the mister.
But I don't know how to, exactly.
Hmm. Well,
I have got some spice for you.
The Kama-sutra.
[Poppy] Oh, it's the bee's knees.
Oh, also.
What's this?
My own special aphrodisiac mix.
Sprinkle that into his roast beef and...
he'll never want to leave your bed.
[Thomasina sighs]
Abigail,
why didn't you wake me?
Because you are so beautiful when you sleep.
Thomasina,
how I wish we can live in this
little perfect world of ours forever.
[knocking at door]
Who could that be?
Only trouble comes knocking at this hour.
[loud knocking]
[man] Abigail Blossom, open up.
I'm here on official business.
Constable Keller, state your business, sir.
[Kirk] I'm looking for a murderess.
The harlot's name is Thomasina Topaz.
There's no one here by that name. Now, please go.
For your own good.
We have a confirmed case of the pox here.
There's a plague upon this house.
[coughs]
[footsteps receding]
Thomasina Topaz,
I would have the truth from you.
[loud knocking]
Don't say a word.
I know what you did with my wife.
I beg your pardon.
Don't you play coy with me, Poppy.
Well, go on, tell her.
I might have given you the wrong idea about us, Poppy.
I've never been happier in my marriage.
And I would be very lucky
to have another child with Jack.
So just butt out, okay?
You hear that?
Keep out of my marriage, woman.
And so help me,
if you get anywhere near Betsy again,
I will kill you.
[Abigail sobs]
Why did Constable Keller call you a murderess?
When I came seeking employment,
you asked if I had a husband.
I said I did not, which is true.
But once I did.
It was an arranged marriage.
He was a cruel man.
He didn't like my ideas of educating womenkind.
He didn't like my rituals.
He just sought to control me
with the back of his hand and his belt.
Men are such monsters.
[Thomasina] One night...
I saw a look in his eyes...
and I knew it was either his life or mine.
So I choose mine.
I chose to live.
Stay here.
Stay with me forever.
[Britta] Mistress Cheryl, may I come in?
[Cheryl] Britannia?
What are you doing here? And where are the other girls?
They left.
To see the comet from the North hill.
And why, pray tell, aren't you with him?
Please, Mistress Cheryl.
I notice things.
I know you and Nana Rose
have been planning something in secret.
I just don't know what it is.
But I'd like to be here for it.
[Nana Blossom] Oh.
Let the child stay.
Oh. Very well then, you can stay.
But not a word out of you. Pull up a chair.
I was just about to tell Nana what happened to poor Poppy.
♪ Feel guilty When you kissed me ♪
♪ Last night...
[knocking at door]
Well, hello, boys.
Excuse me. This is my home!
Who the hell do you think you are,
telling our wives we can't satisfy them?
I see.
So that's why none of your wives came today.
You bullied them into submission.
Pathetic, if you ask me.
Well, we're not asking you.
In fact, we want you to leave Rivervale ASAP.
The Blossoms have outstayed their welcome here.
And if I don't leave?
Don't push us on this, Poppy.
You know what I do for a living.
Kirk Keller, Thornhill is my home.
I'll never leave it.
Okay, suit yourself.
But don't say we didn't warn you.
[knocking at door]
Who is it? Who's there?
My name's Fen Fogarty, ma'am.
I'm a friend of your brother's. I come with news of him.
Mr. Fogarty,
come in and warm yourself by the fire.
- Welcome. - Yeah.
Miss Blossom,
it is my sad duty to inform you that your dear brother James
was killed during our last battle.
He gave me this letter to give to you,
right before he passed.
"In the midst of this brutal war,
it is my dying wish
that you, my beloved sister, Abigail,
would take the hand of my dearest friend,
Fen Fogarty...
in marriage."
"Dearest friend."
How intimately
did you and James know one another?
War makes all men bedfellows.
Abigail, you cannot marry this man, this stranger.
Thomasina, you don't understand.
My brother was my twin, my soul mate.
If this was his dying wish, I must honor it.
There is a darkness in Fen.
I do not know what, but I have a sixth sense
about these things.
And my intuition tells me he means you harm.
Nonsense.
He was my brother's confidant.
Letters can be forged.
Tomorrow, when he goes hunting, we will search his room
for proof of his true intentions.
I'm certain that man is not who he says he is.
I will not let
any harm come to you. I swear it.
Hello, Tammy.
It's nice to see you working here.
I'll have my usual, please.
A patty melt with a side of coleslaw and a glass of buttermilk.
Do you maybe want that to go, Poppy?
No. I'd like to eat it here.
Thank you very much.
Fine.
What's the meaning of this?
What are you doing here, Kirk?
We've received an anonymous tip
that you, Miss Blossom, are a subversive.
A suspected communist sympathizer.
That's an outrageous lie, and you know it.
Is it?
What about the closed-door meetings
you've been coercing
the unsuspecting wives of Rivervale to attend?
What are you doing? Those are my precious heirlooms.
You've left us no choice.
I'm sorry, Poppy.
We're taking you in for questioning.
[Abigail] What, pray tell, are we looking for?
[Thomasina] Evidence of his malfeasance.
[Abigail] This isn't my brother's hand.
This is someone practicing my brother's hand.
My family seal.
This is the official Blossom crest.
Thomasina, I think you were right.
The betrothal letter was forged.
Which means you don't have to marry that imposter.
Objects of the occult.
I knew he was trafficking in the dark arts.
Abigail, I'm afraid it's worse than I feared.
Fen Fogarty is not just a scoundrel,
he's a warlock.
What?
But how could you know that?
I have knowledge about these things.
Heaven protect us.
These are death portraits, Thomasina.
I think he's a murderer.
My lord.
I think he murdered my brother James.
Women, I'm back with supper.
What the devil are you two doing in here?
Be gone from my house this instant.
You do not give me orders, woman.
Once we are married, I will become
the Lord of this manor.
- Will you now? - Abigail, get back!
- Stop! -[Fen grunts]
Do it, you devil!
Obey me or I slit her throat where she stands.
Fen, please.
I'll marry you, Fen. I'll marry you.
Good.
Yes.
We'll do it tonight. Legally.
Properly.
We'll need a vicar then,
to perform the ceremony and bear witness.
You'll have to fetch one in town.
Oh, no, you'll go fetch him.
If I leave, you two will collude
to kill me and run off together.
I'll lock
this saucy sapphic wench in the chapel
if you're not back within an hour with the vicar!
I'll kill her.
All right.
[Kirk] All you have to do is cooperate.
We know you're a communist.
Just admit it so I can let you out of here.
I won't admit to a lie.
I haven't done anything wrong.
Is it true you once visited Russia?
Yes.
To participate in a chess tournament.
Are you loyal to this country?
This government? The flag?
Yes, yes and yes.
Are you against God, religion?
I'm against witch hunts and group think.
And yet, you organize gatherings,
unsegregated I might add,
where you read banned books.
Is it true you use contraceptives?
What is it you really want from me?
Admit you're a commie, sign the confession,
or I will put you in jail to rot.
Do what you want.
I'm not signing anything.
I'm surprised they let you in to see the red devil.
You're not the devil, Poppy.
But you do need to sign their confession.
[sighs]
It's just your name.
But what else do I have other than my name?
My principles.
All the things those men are terrified of.
[Betsy] If you want to stay in here
and suffer for your principles,
then go ahead.
But I thought you cared a little bit more...
about...
you know, about us.
But, Betsy, don't you see?
I am doing this for us.
For you.
For womankind.
For all the free-thinking,
independent daughters who will come after us.
♪ Ooh
Betsy...
don't tell me you're pregnant.
We'll get through this somehow.
♪ And I'll tell you
♪ Yeah, yeah, ooh, ooh
[Betsy sniffles]
No. This baby is exactly what Jack and I need.
[chuckles]
I can't believe I let you fill my head
with your silly, stupid ideas.
Jack was right about you.
You're just a sad, jealous,
sexually repressed spinster.
I know you don't mean that.
Well, you don't know anything about me.
[sighs]
After Betsy visited Poppy in jail,
they didn't see each other for the next nine months.
[Britta] Why so long?
And what brought them together again?
[Jack] Poppy, I need your help.
It's about Betsy.
Did something happen to her?
She's gone into labor. She's convinced herself
that something is wrong and says you're the only person that can help.
If you do this, you will not return to this cell.
I swear it.
Okay, yeah.
[Cheryl] Interestingly,
in a confluence that can only be called cosmic,
the night Betsy's baby was to be born
and the night Abigail Blossom was to be married,
were both nights
when Bailey's comet passed over Rivervale.
Same as tonight.
♪ Down by the river...
[Britta] So Abigail did marry Fen?
[Cheryl] She didn't have much of a choice, did she?
But fret not, dear Britta,
for Abigail's story is far from over.
An idea for how to catch Fen at his most vulnerable
was already taking shape in her mind.
♪ When by the water We drink to the dregs ♪
♪ Look at the stones On the riverbed ♪
♪ I can tell from your eyes
♪ You've never been by The riverside ♪
♪ Down by the water The riverbed ♪
♪ Somebody calls you Somebody says ♪
♪ Swim with the current And float away ♪
♪ Down by the river every day
♪ Oh my God
♪ I see How everything is torn ♪
♪ In the river deep
♪ And I don't know why
♪ I go the way
♪ Down by
♪ The riverside ♪
♪ When that old river Runs past your eyes ♪
♪ To wash off the dirt On the riverside ♪
♪ Go to the water So every near ♪
♪ The river will be Your eyes and ears ♪
♪ Oh, oh
♪ Ah, ah, ah
♪ Oh, oh
♪ Ah, ah, ah
♪ Down by
♪ The riverside
♪ Down by...
Say hello to your beautiful baby girl, Betsy.
She's perfect.
I just wish I were bringing her into a better world.
Actually,
this little one was born under Bailey's comet,
Betsy.
It's a sign of great things to come.
Nothing will hold her back.
Before I forget.
It was in my pocket book.
Something for when the time is right.
You'll know when to use it.
Come now, dear one, join me.
Hurry.
It's time to fulfill your wifely duties.
Did you ever hear, Fen,
of that terrible case in Fall River, Massachusetts,
about the young woman, Lizzie Borden,
and what she did to her tormentors?
Ugh. What's this now?
She killed them with an axe.
Thomasina, my love.
Thomasina.
Thomasina, please help.
Oh, no, no, no, no.
Wake up. Please wake up.
[Fen grunting]
[Fen] She was the perfect
addition to my collection.
You monster.
You're going to burn in hell for what you've done.
[scoffs]
How right you are, Abigail.
The comet.
What perfect timing.
Calling upon my dark knowledge,
fueled by the midnight light,
I curse you, Abigail Blossom.
May your life be as everlasting
and solitary as the comet's. [coughs]
May...
you remain unloved
and alone
for all your miserable days.
[Abigail] Thomasina...
Oh. [sobbing]
[door opens]
Well?
Both mother and daughter are fine.
[Kirk] Okay, let's get you out of here.
[Poppy] What are those for?
You told me if I helped, I'd be free.
No. We said you wouldn't have to go back to your cell,
and you don't. You are however under house arrest.
- What? - I told you.
- For how long? - Indefinitely.
Now come on, Poppy, don't make a fuss.
[Cheryl] And so, Poppy was shut away.
Doomed to spend the rest of her days
haunting the halls of Thornhill.
[Britta] Okay, so Poppy was arrested,
but what happened to Abigail?
She too lived out her days in this house,
forever alone.
I'm afraid to ask what happened to Betsy.
Funnily enough,
her husband died under mysterious circumstances
about a year after their second child was born.
Some say he was poisoned, though the coroner
didn't find any poison during his autopsy.
Then again, some plant-based toxins
don't leave a trace.
[doorbell ringing]
Oh. Is that her?
Is she finally here?
♪ Must be the season Of the witch... ♪
Well, well, well.
Look at what the black cat dragged in.
If it isn't Sabrina Spellman.
Cheryl Blossom.
Feels like it's been centuries, doesn't it?
Thank you for coming.
My Nana and I are forever in your debt.
Oh, don't be ridic.
You know I'd do anything to help a fellow witch.
[Cheryl] Nana, Britta,
there's someone I'd like you to meet.
Hey, ladies. What's happenin'?
Sabrina is a dear old friend,
and she's come here to help us with our little ceremony.
How do you know each other?
Oh, we have a lot of mutual friends,
share a lot of the same interests.
And our covens are in the same softball league.
Sabrina is the first person who told me
about performing a transference.
[Sabrina] Yes, indeed.
My cousin Ambrose taught me how to do it.
Essentially, a transference is a very tricky spell
that can only be performed
on a night of great cosmic significance,
like tonight, with Bailey's Comet approaching.
Speaking of, it's nearly time.
Britannia, we witches must spell cast alone. Do you mind?
Yeah.
Are you ready?
Yeah.
Okay. Let's begin.
[both] Our flesh and blood are but a cage
that withers as we wear our age.
But there is a way to switch
to willing souls with one we wished.
Let asunder body and soul,
to exchange to spirits, new and old.
Our flesh and blood are but a cage
that withers as we wear our age.
But there is a way to switch
to them souls with one we wished.
Let asunder body and soul,
to exchange to spirits, new and old.
[chuckles]
It... it worked,
the transference.
How do you feel, Abigail?
Free.
At long last.
Fen's curse
is broken.
Let it go, Abigail.
Let it go, and finally be at peace.
Reunite with your dearest, Thomasina.
[Abigail sighs]
[inhales sharply]
[chuckles]
Happy-sad endings are the best.
Did Nana Rose pass, Mistress Cheryl?
- Um... - I'll take this one.
Nana Rose's body did die,
but not before we transferred her soul into...
Mistress Blossom's body?
Yes. And vice versa.
It was a classic body swap,
Freaky Friday style. But you should know this,
there was no Cheryl. Not really.
Or there was, but she was also Poppy.
And before that, she was Abigail Blossom.
I don't understand.
When the warlock, Fen Fogarty, died,
he cursed Abigail with immortality.
To hide that fact,
she created the persona of Poppy Blossom,
then Cheryl Blossom,
so that no one would suspect the truth.
But Abigail was
forever haunted by the loss of her first true love,
Thomasina.
She wanted more than anything
to be reunited with her.
[Sabrina] The only way to do that
was to move her soul into a body
no longer meant to be in this world.
And tonight, that's what we did.
The soul that once inhabited this body,
Abigail's soul,
has moved on to a peaceful eternity
in the sweet hereafter.
And now, I, Roseanne Blossom,
can once again enjoy my precious youth.
And Cheryl, Poppy, Abigail...
- she's really dead? - No.
No.
There is no death for witches.
Only transformation.
I mean, I died and came back.
Abigail was a witch?
She was.
As was Thomasina.
Which we can definitely talk you through.
But how about we do it over a milk shake at Pop's?
♪ I'm gonna tell you♪
♪ Yeah, yeah Yeah, yeah, yeah ♪
♪ I'm gonna, ooh, ooh
♪ I'm gonna
♪ Tell you how
♪ To tell you how
♪ Tell you how
♪ Ooh, ooh, ooh
♪ I'm giving you a nightcall
♪ To tell you how I feel
I feel like the twenty-something witch, Sabrina Spellman,
visiting Rivervale from the neighboring township of Greendale,
summed it up perfectly.
Happy-sad endings are the best.
Enough said?
♪ And how I feel