by Lara Chapman
Lady Rose pushes my back gently and hands me my journal. “Careful with your thoughts, okay?”
I nod, then walk back to my desk, every eye in the room watching every step I make.
I sit down next to Ivy and sigh loudly.
She looks at me with serious eyes, and I know she’s experiencing my gut-twisting fear. “It’s okay,” she says. “We’re in this together.”
As the weeks pass, dinner becomes more and more entertaining. As Seekers learn their gifts, weird things happen.
One night a girl was pointing at a small dish of butter, asking another girl to pass it to her. Before the girl could touch the dish, it slid all the way down the table to the girl pointing to it. It snapped to her finger like it was the world’s strongest magnet. That brought a round of applause, and she spent the rest of the evening zapping things to her.
Tonight, just as our dishes are being brought out, the girl on the other side of Kendall begins floating out of her chair. Her roommate pulls her back down and holds her in place until Miss A can get a seat belt. Turns out the power of levitation is hard to control.
When Miss A scoots past us to buckle the girl in, she whispers something into the girl’s ear to make her smile. Miss A is always helping others. She may be a little eccentric, but I’ve never met anyone sweeter.
Kendall barely notices the girl levitating next to her. Like on every other night, she ignores the activity around her and pushes the food around on her plate, eating only a bite or two of each meal.
Tonight, however, she’s more serious than ever.
I lean a few inches closer to her. “Wild, huh?”
Kendall’s fork stops moving, but she doesn’t look at me.
The familiar stab of rejection pierces my chest.
Why do I keep doing this to myself? Kendall will never change.
“Remember,” I tell her, “we have to work on our research project tonight. We only have a week left.”
She has managed to put me off or stand me up since we got the assignment, and now that we are a week away from the due date, I’m starting to panic that it won’t get done.
Kendall doesn’t look up when she answers, “I’m busy tonight.”
“You’re busy every night,” I shoot back. “We have to get this done. And we have to do it together.”
“Not tonight,” she says, shooting me a death glare.
The slow burn of frustration heats my face.
“If you don’t help with the project, I’ll make sure Lady Jennica knows.”
Kendall doesn’t acknowledge me, doesn’t look at me, doesn’t even blink.
I turn to Dru, who is watching the little bursts of magic happening around her. “Jeez, I wish I knew what my gift was,” she says.
“Don’t be so anxious,” I tell her. “You may not like it.”
Dru’s big black eyes roll in exaggeration. “Whatever. Like you don’t like your gift. You can make things happen. You can change people. Anyone would kill for that gift.”
I look at Dru. “Right. Sure they would.”
“Ask anyone,” she says.
The girls around her nod in agreement. Even Jo.
What if Dru’s right, and I’m looking at this all wrong?
Maybe my gift is exactly what I need.
Maybe my gift can change Kendall.
Sixteen
I look at the note in my hand one last time before leaving my room. Ivy had handed it to me after dinner, then raced off to her room before I could talk to her.
Meet me in the Seeker Sanctum at 7.
Great. The basement—again. And this time I’m going alone.
The hallway is quiet, most girls studying in their rooms or in the lobby. I take the narrow old steps two at a time, slowing down as I get closer to the entrance of the Seeker Sanctum. I thought I was only meeting Ivy, but the sound of barely audible voices greets me. I stop, listen carefully, thinking it must be Dru and Jo, but when I sneak closer to the room’s entrance, I see the two faces I spend most days trying to avoid.
Kendall and Zena are sitting cross-legged on the empty triangular stage, a large book in front of them. The seats we previously sat in are empty. One large candle sits beside them and serves as the only light in the room.
I look down the hallway behind me, but Ivy is nowhere to be seen. I fight the urge to run, to find Miss A. She’d know what to do.
But I can’t leave. I have to see what they’re doing.
Back against the wall, I peer around the corner in my best CSI cop stance.
Zena turns pages in the book gingerly. She’s talking as she does, but it’s so soft, I can’t hear a thing. Where’s Jo when I need her?
I look at my watch. 6:57.
Come on, Ivy.
Even with my glasses on, I can’t tell what book they’re looking at it. It isn’t a Book of Shadows. Those are smaller, the size of a large novel. This book is the size of the extra large dictionary you can find in libraries.
Suddenly a dark feeling washes over me and I know Kendall and Zena are breaking the no-dark-magic rule.
I put my hand on the amulet hidden beneath my shirt for comfort, for guidance.
Again I’m calmed by the power it brings me. I’ve looked less and less for the custodian, afraid to give up the amulet. I know its power isn’t truly mine, and I really shouldn’t have it, but I’m scared to walk the Dowling halls without it.
A hand touches my shoulder, and another hand slaps over my mouth to stifle my scream. I turn to see Ivy and, close behind her, Jo and Dru.
Ivy pushes me behind her and takes a look at the pair in a closet next to the Seeker Sanctum. Then she motions for us to move down the hall, closer to the main hallway.
Her voice a whisper, Ivy says, “I had a feeling something was going to happen today. Then Jo told me she overheard Kendall and Zena saying they were meeting at seven. Did you see anything?”
I shake my head and wonder how I missed these conversations. Where was I when she and Jo were talking about this? They hang out without me? I feel a tiny stab of jealousy but push it aside.
Sweet little Dru looks as confused as I do. “When did you hear that?” she asks her roommate. “And why didn’t you tell me?”
“If I told you everything I heard,” Jo says, “you’d get sick of hearing me talk. I’m already sick of listening to everyone else.”
Ivy leads us back down the hallway silently.
We attempt to position ourselves to see inside the room, but only the first person in our group can really see in without being caught. Jo hangs back, able to hear what she wants without seeing Kendall and Zena.
I try to think of something I can wish for, something I can make Kendall and Zena think or do that will make it easier for us to spy on them. But I draw a complete blank.
Great. I have one of the most powerful gifts in Dowling history, and it’s as useless as an ashtray on a motorcycle.
Ivy watches closely, her body frozen in position. Dru stands behind me and picks at her nails. I do my best to hear Kendall and Zena, but their whispers are too soft to understand.
Jo grabs Dru and starts walking away. I tap Ivy’s shoulder and point down the hall, motioning that we need to go, but she shakes me off and keeps watching.
I’m stuck, not sure if I should stick with Ivy or leave with the other girls. Common sense says I should race back to my room and act like I wasn’t here, but I stay with Ivy. She’s the only real friend I have, and I’m not going to abandon her.
The candle in the sanctum blows out, drowning us in complete darkness. Ivy spins around to leave, tripping over me and nearly falling. I grab her hand to steady her. Then we fly down the narrow hallway as quietly as we can. Once we’re up the stairs, Jo motions to us from her door. We race to their room and close the door behind us.
Everyone looks as freaked out as I feel. The only person halfway collected is Ivy.
Ivy sits on one of the beds, and I sit next to her. Dru and Jo sit on the other bed. Their r
oom is identical to mine and Ivy’s but smells like bubble gum. Since we aren’t allowed to have candy, I’m curious who snuck it in and how it hasn’t been discovered. But this isn’t the time to ask about gum.
“What just happened back there?” I ask shakily.
Ivy’s the first to answer. “I could tell Zena was up to something because her mood shifted dramatically. She went from being sad and desperate to excited. Really excited. Her adrenaline has been pumping through me all day.”
Dru leans forward. “Really? Man, that’s so cool!”
Ivy shakes her head. “It’s exhausting.”
“Then I heard Kendall and Zena talking in the bathroom today,” Jo says. “They were planning to meet in the Sanctum to do some spell. Zena insisted they use the Grimoire.”
“That sounds familiar. What is it?” I ask.
Ivy looks at me. “The Grimoire. Lady Silver mentioned it in history.”
“What’s so special about it?” Dru asks.
“It’s like the master spell book,” Ivy says. “It contains spells we’ll learn and perform, and spells no one should ever perform. It’s got every good and bad spell known to Dowling.”
“What did they say? What kind of spell did they attempt?” I ask.
Ivy looks at Jo for answers. It all makes sense now. Jo was needed to hear what we couldn’t.
Jo closes her eyes, repeating the words she heard.
“Take beauty from my enemies and make them now see
That no one is better or prettier than me.
Droop their eyes and misshape their hair,
Until no one will look at them, not even on a dare.
Replace their smiles with disfigured teeth
And let all their faults be visible to see.”
No one breathes. No one speaks.
Jo opens her eyes slowly. “You were right,” she tells Ivy. “They were up to no good.”
“How did you remember all that?” Ivy asks.
Jo shrugs. “I don’t know. I just did.”
“So what does it mean?” I ask. “Are we going to wake up ugly and disfigured?”
My hand instinctively touches my perfect teeth. And I was worried about a pimple on my nose.
Ivy laughs, tapping her braces. “My teeth are already a mess.”
“Why do they hate me?” Dru asks, eyes wide in fear. “I haven’t done anything to either one of them.”
Jo shakes her head. “It isn’t you they’re talking about.”
“It’s us,” Ivy says, gesturing to herself and me.
Jo nods in agreement.
“Well, great. Just great,” I say, jumping to my feet, desperate to do something to change the spell, to make sure it doesn’t work.
“Relax,” Ivy says. “The odds of them getting the spell right are pretty slim. They didn’t have the tools they needed for the spell anyway. I think they were just practicing.”
“Hate to break it to you, “ Jo says, “but they were doing it for real. I don’t know how important it is to have the tools you’re talking about, but if either one of them has been blessed as a master spell crafter, I’m not sure the tools matter.”
My breaths are short and shallow, and I see Ivy’s face getting flushed, obviously feeling what I’m feeling.
“Calm down,” she orders. “You’re going to make me hyperventilate.”
I take some deep breaths to slow my heartbeat, and we both relax.
“So now what do we do?” Dru asks.
“You two aren’t going to do anything,” I tell them. “You don’t need to get involved with those two.”
Jo grins. “I think it’s a little late for that, seeing as how I just invaded their spell.”
Nervous giggles consume us.
“Hallie’s right,” Ivy says. “We don’t do anything. We act like nothing happened, and when we wake up in the morning and nothing has changed, we laugh.”
“And if something has changed?” Dru asks.
“It won’t,” I say. It can’t.
I look at the clock on the desk. “I need to work on my ancestry research,” I say. Even though I’m not going to be a hedge witch, anything’s better than thinking about what’s going to happen to me.
Ivy walks with me to the door.
Before we leave, I look back at Dru and Jo. “Thanks for being such good friends.”
“And remember,” Ivy adds, “not a peep to anyone.”
Dru gives us a sharp salute.
Ivy closes the door behind us and walks with me to my room.
“Well?” she asks. “Nervous?”
I roll my eyes at her. “Psh. I have curses put on me all the time.”
“Yeah,” she says, smiling. “Stupid question.”
When we get to my room, she follows me inside. Kendall isn’t back yet, and the scared little girl in me wonders what she’s doing.
“I’ve been thinking,” Ivy says.
“About?”
“The amulet.”
My hand covers the amulet protectively. I’m not giving it up. Not yet.
“I think maybe you should keep it. At least for a little while.”
“Really?” I ask. “I’ve been thinking the same thing. Especially now, with Kendall and Zena casting spells on us.”
Ivy looks at me seriously. “If something changes, we go to Miss A. We tell her everything. We tell her about the amulet, and we tell her about what we saw tonight. Deal?”
I think carefully. If anyone can keep me from getting expelled for taking the amulet, it’s Miss A.
I nod at my first real best friend. “Deal.”
Seventeen
I’m awake long before my alarm goes off. I’m terrified to see what I look like today. Sure, Kendall and Zena are about as clueless as me when it comes to spells, but what if it worked? What if I’m covered in warts or my hair is gray or my nose has grown long and pointed?
I lift my hands to feel my face, then stop. I don’t want to feel the horrifying bumps and crooked teeth.
When the alarm finally sounds, I turn it off. Kendall doesn’t budge. I look at her in bed, at her flawless complexion, perfect hair, and model-worthy face. I don’t know why she has hated me all these years or why she’d want me to be disfigured. It isn’t like I’m a threat to her popularity.
Never have been, never will be.
I throw the sheets back, grab my glasses, and force my feet to walk to the bathroom. I go inside but don’t turn the light on. I stand there, in the dark, preparing myself for what I’m going to see.
Hand on the light switch, I close my eyes.
I flip the switch on, but can’t make myself look.
I’m not ready to face my new face.
Just do it!
One eyelid cracks open, and I can see dark hair. My hair. I breathe a sigh of relief and let my eyes open slowly. When I lock eyes with the image in the mirror, relief is replaced with shock.
I lean in closer to the mirror, touch my face. My milky-smooth face. The pimple on my nose is gone. And the chicken pox scar on my forehead is a memory.
Gone are the never-been-plucked brows I’m used to seeing. In their place are the perfectly arched eyebrows of a movie star. Surrounding my eyes are the longest, darkest eyelashes I’ve ever seen.
And my hair . . . my hair!
What used to be boring brown hair with weird waves and frayed split ends is now soft, silky hair with light brown highlights. It sits perfectly on my shoulders, like someone’s been working on my hair for hours.
Even my teeth are straighter than a witch’s wand, and so white, they’d stop traffic.
Ivy! I have to see her. I have to see if she’s been changed like me overnight.
I leave the bathroom, get my clothes from the dresser, and return to the bathroom. I half-expect to see the old me, thinking my eyes played tricks on me. But the new Hallie, the stop-you-in-your-tracks stunning Hallie, is still there.
I get dressed quickly, then brush my teeth. I don’t bother touching my
hair, because it’s perfect. Anything I do to it will only make it worse.
Kendall is still asleep, and I tiptoe out of the room as quietly as possible and race to Ivy’s door. The hallway is practically empty, and I keep my face down. I don’t want to draw attention until I see Ivy. I lightly rap on her door. Seconds later the door cracks open. Ivy squints through the space, then swings it wide open when she sees me.
“Omigod!” she whispers. “Look at us!”
Ivy has changed even more dramatically. Her hair is down, but instead of puffy, out-of-control frizzy curls, her long red hair is in perfect ringlets around her face. I reach out to touch her hair, and it’s so soft, it’s like putting my hand through silk threads. No tangles and no frizz.
She smiles wide, and the metal braces are gone, replaced by the most perfect teeth I’ve ever seen.
Ivy grabs the bag behind her and joins me in the hallway. She puts a finger to her mouth to quiet me as we walk to the dining room. It’s so early, we’re the only girls in here except the cooks.
We grab a seat and look at each other like we’ve never met.
Ivy’s freckles only make her impeccable face more adorable. Like me, her eyelashes and eyebrows are pure perfection. Together we look like models for Seventeen magazine.
“H-how—” Ivy stutters.
I shrug, confused. “It doesn’t make sense. Their spell was supposed to make us ugly. I thought I’d wake up with warts the size of gumballs on my face.”
Ivy giggles. “I told you they didn’t know what they were doing.”
“Oh. My. Gosh. Can you imagine what Kendall and Zena are going to do when they see us?”
Ivy claps happily. “This is going to be so good!”
“Wait. How do we explain it?” I ask, panicking.
“Who cares?” she says, giddy.
She’s right, of course. Looking like we do now, the only thing that matters is what it does to our popularity. Combine that with our newfound gifts—and Saffra’s amulet—and we’re going to be unstoppable.
For the first time in my life, I’m actually looking forward to seeing Kendall.
“Well, hello, ladies!” Lady Jennica says, surprised as Ivy and I enter the room. The students in the room match her wide eyes and shocked expression.
