CHAPTER TEN

The doorbell rang and Lily jumped up from the couch and hurried to answer it. She had been doing her nut for the last few hours wondering why the hell Eric hadn't turned up yet and if Chris, Coop and Phoebe were all right.

'About t-' She started, but stopped short at the sight of two people standing there that she never wanted to meet. Eric was slouched against the doorframe, smirking at Scott Lopez stood awkwardly but looking livid.

'Hi,' Lily said with trepidation. What was Scott doing here? And why had Eric rang the doorbell? He normally came round the back.

'Hey you,' Eric said in his deep voice, winking and flashing her his dangerous smile.

'Lily,' Scott demanded in a completely different tone, 'Why have you been avoiding my calls?'

He hadn't planned to ask her this at all but once he saw this tough biker dude at the door eyeing him up like he was beneath him it just popped out.

Eric shot an interested look in Scott's direction, as if he had only just realised he was there.

'Er come in, both of you.' She opened the door wider and invited them into them into the entrance way.

'So who are you?' Eric shot at Scott the moment they had got through the door. He shrugged his jacket off comfortably and slung it on a coat hook, while Scott stood uncomfortably.

'I'm one of Lily's best friends, who are you?' Although the biker guy intimidated him, Scott tried to hold his ground. He tilted his chin arrogantly and folded his arms across his chest signifying that he meant business.

Lily looked between both guys, speechless. Why were they being so weird? It was as if she had just walked into a Jane Austen novel and they were having a stand-off to defend her virtue.

'I'm Eric, you boring human, and you don't need to know what I am to Lily,'

Scott tried not to laugh. Was this the new Hells Angels talk or something? God, at least he didn't have to suffer them at school. Not for the first time he was glad that his father paid an extortionate amount for his private education to keep scum like this Eric out of his life. But what was Lily doing hanging around with a guy like this? He thought she had better taste. First a sister who gets drunk and disorderly, now this guy? Lily definitely wasn't the girl he thought she was.

'What did you just say?' Lily directed at Eric angrily, giving him a warning look.

Scott smiled. At least she wasn't putting up with his rudeness. But she didn't have to put a hand on his shoulder did she?

'Can't you get rid of him?' Eric hissed in Lily's ear.

'I've had enough of this,' Scott snorted, 'it's quite clear that there's something going on between you both! But did you have to act like that in front of me?'

'What?' Lily asked, shocked, 'He's my cousin! Nothing's going on between us!'

'You could have had the decency to tell me and not make me look like a complete idiot for weeks following you around! God, what was I thinking to be interested in someone like you? You're so selfish,'

'What did you just say to her?' Eric demanded, protective over his favourite cousin.

'Oh yeah,' Scott said, rolling his eyes, 'Nothing's going on between you two,'

'I can't believe you think I'm the selfish one! You only followed me about because you wanted to get into my uncle's business,' Lily burst out, 'You don't care about anyone but yourself!'

Eric looked disgusted.

'You used her? She's worth better than that!'

'Don't I know it!' The words were coming out of Lily's mouth before she could stop them, 'And I've been avoiding you since our so-called date because of what a complete and utter ass you were on it! What was I thinking? There is no way in hell I could ever find anything worth being interested in in you!'

'No,' Scott corrected, 'I'm too good for you. I don't want to be with someone who's sister's makes an ass's out of themselves and who associates with this sort of trash.'

'God you're a prick!' Eric laughed.

'I don't have to listen to this,' Scott wrenched open the front door, 'I'm going. I can't believe I was ever interested. You're just like every other girl on the planet. A tease. There's nothing remotely different about you at all,'

'A tease! God, you're so clueless to everything around you!' She blurted out. It was like she had no control over her thoughts! They were just pouring out, 'It's not me who even likes you, its Myra!'

'Myra?' Scott, for the first time, looked nonplussed, 'What are you talking about?'

'Why don't you ask her?' Lily asked huffily, but Eric overrode her.

'Bye!' He gave Scott a pinky wave and showed him to the door.

The moment he was gone Eric burst out laughing.

'Ha,'

'Ha nothing!' Lily rounded on him, 'What was all that talk about humans and-'

But Eric ignored her.

'-What an idiot. I'm so glad I don't have to put up with people like that anymore,'

'Yeah well,' Lily grumbled, 'Good for you,'

She couldn't believe she had told Scott about Myra's crush on him. Myra was going to kill her. But what was that? All that honesty? There was no other word for it, it was so surreal, like magic almost.

'Holly!' Lily yelled up the stairs.

Why was Holly always acting up? Couldn't she have a normal sister instead of a complete whack job?

Holly came down the stairs, an irritated expression on her face. She stopped short at the sight of Lily who was looking uncharacteristically furious.

'What is it?' Holly asked hastily.

'WHAT IS IT?' Lily exploded. 'What have you been doing?'

Holly raised an eyebrow.

'I've been watching TV,' She said defensively. 'What am I supposed to have done this time?'

'You've cast a spell, haven't you? How else do you explain why everyone is being so truthful around here all of a sudden?' Lily shouted, getting angrier by the minute.

Holly also began to feel her patience fading.

'I haven't cast any spell! For God sake! I've been in my room all afternoon!'

They both stood there, staring at each other, the air between them thick with electricity.

'Poppy,' Holly said, in twisted admiration and exasperation, 'It's Poppy, she cast a truth spell. That's why I was telling her about Owen'

Lily didn't know who she was talking about, neither did she care.

'POPPY!' She shouted up the stairs again. 'Why would she want to do that at a time like this?' She shot at Holly.

Holly shrugged.

'Maybe she could figure out what's going on between Brice and her or something,'

Poppy came down the stairs impatiently.

'Why did you cast an honesty spell?' Lily barked, Scott's opinion of her still smarting.

Poppy stopped short on the bottom stair, her eyes widening in horror.

'What?'

'Don't play the innocent! Scott just came round here spouting his raw honest feelings!'

'Scott?' Holly asked, 'I thought you didn't like him?'

'Shut up!' Lily snapped at Holly.

'I thought it would've worn off by now,' Poppy said, then clapped a hand to her mouth.

Lily let out a frustrated noise.

'You know these things have a twenty four hour lifespan,' She sighed. Great, that's all she needed, Uncle Chris to find out that they were practising magic when they were all risking their lives.

'What are we going to do?' Poppy faltered.

'Why are you asking me? I don't know! I've got enough on my plate without having to think of a way to get you out of trouble!' Lily groaned,

'Jesus Lily, get a grip,' Holly said at once, surprisingly coming to Poppy's defence 'It's only a measly truth spell. Hardly life-threatening!'

'How could you even...argh! This just adds to a whole list of problems I have. I can't deal with it!'

'Just what kind of problems do you have?' Holly sneered, 'You don't have a social life, you are the president of all of your extra-curriculars and your powers don't even work. Just how are you supposed to have so many problems?'

Lily's eyes flashed.

'Why don't you say what you really feel, Holly?'

'How about you remove that stick you have up your ass?' Holly shot back, well practised in the art of being a bitch.

'How about you stop acting like me and go back to being the skanky ho we hate you for?' Lily shouted, going too far.

'Girls come on,' Eric said wearily, slouching into the hall, but the hurt had been done. Holly was stepping backwards, eyes wide with shock and hurt. 'You can come over to mine for the night and we'll do something real cool like egg your principal's house or something.'

'I'm the one that's going to get into trouble, so I don't know why you're going ape,' Holly said to Lily, ignoring Eric, 'You two can get away with anything,'

'Are you kidding? This is all going to look bad on me! Oh Poppy, why did you have to cast a spell without adult supervision?' Lily asked Poppy tiredly, who had been standing there getting increasingly freaked out.

'Don't lay into her...stop trying to control people!' Holly shouted back.

'Someone has to be responsible for you both! You're too busy with soccer and mirrors to even notice anything!' Lily cried,

'I don't notice anything? I haven't played soccer for weeks now, I quit the team!'

'I've had enough of this!' Lily announced, bursting into tears, 'I'm so stressed out I can't breathe anymore!' Holly, Eric and Poppy all gaped as she went over to the front door and slammed it shut behind her.

'Don't worry,' Eric sighed, 'I'll go after her,'

Poppy and Holly stared after him, speechless.

'I can't believe it!' Holly stated, 'and I can't believe her! I knew she wasn't made out of stone,'

Poppy didn't say anything but started to cry, knowing it was all her fault. Holly went over and put her arms around her. Even though she and Poppy didn't get on that well, she didn't like it when someone else was saying horrible things to her. And Lily! What was her problem?

'Don't worry,' Holly told her, 'seriously. I'm not pissed at you. At least you owned up to it,'

'Of course I'd own up to it!' Poppy said, smiling through her tears, 'I cast a truth spell didn't I?'

Phoebe was the only one who returned to the house a few hours later. After being hugged to death by Poppy and Holly, she told them that everyone was all right and that it was OK for Poppy to go to the football game now the threat had been 'dealt with'.

'Great,' Poppy muttered as she stomped upstairs to change. She had been counting on missing the thing all together.

'You all right?' Holly poked her head around Poppy's bedroom door. She had heard her sister tearing through her clothes in anger.

'I have nothing to wear!' She shouted incredulously.

'Let me help,' Holly offered, and began to rifle through her sister's wardrobe, which had a considerable amount less in it than her own.

The doorbell rang.

'Brice!' Poppy cried in panic.

Holly quickly flung her an outfit of a faded dark blue sweater, a pair of burgundy cotton jeggings and a denim jacket.

'Just wear what you normally wear, you're not going to a party and you're cool as you are.'

Poppy tore about the room in frenzy looking for socks and applying some eyeliner and then put her long hair in a ponytail before pulling on her chequered Vans slip-ons. Holly pushed her out of the door and they both ran downstairs.

'Say hello to Brice for me,' Phoebe smiled as she passed the sisters on the way up to the attic, the Book of Shadows in her arms. Both girls stood rooted to the spot, expecting Phoebe to question as to why the spellbook had been open but she continued past them.

'Oh God! What am I going to do about the truth spell?' Poppy asked once Phoebe was out of earshot.

Holly just grinned.

'I think it's the least of your worries, looks like the whole Whitepath family is in the pick up,' She nodded out the window, where the Brice's mom's Land Rover was parked outside.

Poppy was already regretting what she'd done by now. She hadn't anticipated Holly and Lily finding out, and Lily's reaction! Oh GOD! What was Chris going to say when they realise she's been casting?

'What about Uncle Chris?' Poppy asked, 'He's going to kill me,'

'I'll deal with it,'

'You know, what Lily said about you being too self absorbed to notice anything...you notice much more than I realise,' Poppy smiled as they continued their way downstairs and into the hallway.

'I'm your sister, of course I notice things' Holly said simply, and opened the door to reveal a nervous looking Brice on the doorstep. 'Hey Brice.' She said in the most polite tone she'd ever used on him, 'Have a nice time guys!'

Sorry for the late update! I've been working quite a bit and generally collapsing as soon as I've been getting home. Chapter Eleven should be done soon, and I'll post either later or within the next few days. Thank you for reading and your lovely comments. They are really appreciated. Please keep reviewing.