So Mote it Be (5 page)

“Let me help you with that,” said Billy Himler as Kate carried her and Tara's failed experiment to the sink.

“No, let me,” said Peter James, trying to take the dirty beakers from Kate's hands. Unfortunately, he only succeeded in making her lose her grip, and the containers crashed to the floor and shattered.

“Steer clear of the chemicals!” ordered Miss Blackwood, coming over to see what was going on. “What happened here?”

“The guys were just trying to help me,” Kate tried to explain.

“Well, now they can help you clean up this mess,” Miss Blackwood said. “Be sure to pick up all the glass.”

Billy and Peter practically fell down in their rush to come to Kate's aid. They were joined by a couple of other boys, and soon the floor was wiped clean again.

“I don't know what you're up to, but whatever it is, it's working,” Tara said to Kate as they watched the boys throw out the last of the glass.

“I have no idea what this is all about,” Kate said.

But she did know what it was about. The spell was working overtime. She didn't know how or why, but instead of making just one boy interested in her, it seemed to have made
all
the boys interested in her. Wherever she looked, another guy was watching her. It made her feel a little nervous, but it also made her feel really good. She felt powerful. She'd done a spell, and it was really working.

“If your performances today are any indication, you're all going to be in big trouble tomorrow,” Miss Blackwood said from the front of the room, bringing Kate's thoughts back to the class. “I suggest you spend tonight studying, because this midterm counts for one third of your final grade.”

Kate gathered up her notebooks, and she and Tara left the classroom. As they walked down the hallway, they found themselves tailed by several boys. Kate also couldn't help but notice that Annie Crandall scowled at her and turned away as she passed by. But she quickly forgot about Annie as the group of boys continued to follow her and Tara.

“Okay, back off,” Tara said finally, turning around and standing between her friend and the group of boys. “I don't know what's gotten into you boys today, but give us a little room here. The lady needs to breathe.”

One by one the guys turned and reluctantly walked off, and soon Kate and Tara were walking by themselves again.

“I swear they're all just walking hormones,” Tara said as they made their way to their next class. “Word must have gotten out that you're looking for a date for the dance.”

“That must be it,” Kate said, hoping Tara would drop the subject. She was excited about all the attention the boys were paying to her, but the one boy she really wanted to notice her hadn't even made an appearance. But why, when she had specifically focused on him? She was starting to worry that she'd done something wrong and the spell had backfired. She tried to remember exactly what she'd said when she did it, but it was all running together in her head.

As they turned the corner, the two girls saw Jessica and Sherrie standing in the hall ahead of them. Jessica was holding a poster against the wall, and Sherrie was directing her on where to put it.

“A little higher,” she said as Kate and Tara approached. “Now to the left. That's perfect.”

Jessica taped the poster in place and stepped back to admire her work.

“Looks good,” Kate said.

“Only nineteen more to go,” Sherrie said, handing her a roll of tape. “Why don't you come with me and we'll do the second floor. Tara and Jess can do the rest of this floor.”

“What about class?” Kate said.

Sherrie waved a handful of paper slips at her. “Passes,” she said. “We're on official student government business. Now, follow me.”

Before Kate could protest, Sherrie started for the stairs. Leaving Tara and Jessica, Kate followed, tape in hand.

“I figure we should put three in each hallway and one in the other stairwell,” Sherrie said as she walked ahead of Kate. “Jess and I already put some by the gym, the art rooms, and the library, so that should cover everything. So, have you thought any more about your date?”

“Not really,” said Kate. Sherrie hadn't witnessed any of the Kate-induced craziness that had overtaken the guys yet, and for once Kate was thankful for the fact that her friend was so self-involved. While Tara seemed to be taking Kate's newfound popularity as some kind of freak accident, Kate knew that Sherrie would be suspicious, and she didn't know how long she could hold out under the interrogation she was sure to get. She told her friends absolutely everything, but this spell stuff was one thing she didn't think she could share with them. She didn't understand it herself.
Besides,
she thought as she remembered the way the boys had fallen all over themselves in chemistry class,
I like being the one who gets noticed for a change
.

“I'm only telling you this for your own good,” Sherrie said as they stopped outside Mr. Draper's room to hang a poster. “But it's high time you started paying more attention to your romantic life. I know you and Jess and Tara think the basketball team is the most important thing in the world, but there
is
life off the court.”

“Thanks for reminding me,” Kate said as she pulled off a piece of tape. “Is this straight?”

“Yes,” said Sherrie. “I'm just saying that maybe you should think about, you know, developing a more well-rounded personality.”

“Says the girl who thinks cheerleading should count for academic credit,” Kate shot back.

“Well, it does combine athletic skills with linguistic ability,” Sherrie answered primly. “But we're not talking about me. We're talking about you.”

“That's a refreshing change,” said Kate, “but let's not.” She picked up the posters and moved on. Of all her friends, only Sherrie had a way of making her feel like a total social disaster. She always had, ever since they'd met on the first day of second grade and Sherrie had immediately taken charge of Kate's untied shoelace and crooked barrette. Somehow they'd managed to stay friends, but sometimes Kate wished she could do something to show Sherrie up once and for all, to prove that she was just as popular as Sherrie was, or thought she was. Just once she wished she could be the girl everyone else envied.

They were standing at the end of the hall, putting a poster on the wall where everyone going up or down the stairs would see it. Sherrie had launched into a long speech about how Kate would look so much better if she would just wear a little more makeup and maybe do something different with her hair. Kate was attempting unsuccessfully to tune her out when someone came around the corner and stopped to look at the poster Kate was trying to center between the debate club announcements and the flyer for the upcoming jazz band concert.

“Masquerade ball, huh?” said a boy's voice.

Kate looked over her shoulder and almost dropped the poster. Scott Coogan was standing behind her, watching her try to pull a piece of tape off her cheek, where it had gotten stuck. She was so shocked she couldn't respond. All she could do was look at Scott dumbly, like a deer caught in car headlights.

“Sounds like a lot of fun,” Scott continued, seeming not to notice her silence. “What are you going to go as?”

“Well, I was thinking of going as Titania, queen of the fairies,” Sherrie said, giving Scott one of her prettiest smiles. “How do you think I'd look in a pair of wings?”

Does she have to flirt with everyone?
Kate thought as she tried to concentrate on sticking the poster to the wall and not looking at Scott. She'd been waiting all day for him to appear, and now that he had she wasn't at all sure she knew what to do.

“Fine, I guess,” Scott said, barely glancing at Sherrie. “What about you, Kate?” He turned back to her. “What are you going to go as?”

Kate turned around. Still trying not to look at Scott, she fumbled for an answer. “I . . . um . . . I . . .” she said.

“Kate doesn't know yet,” Sherrie said, moving in between Scott and Kate. “She doesn't have a date or anything.”

Kate wanted to kill Sherrie. She didn't know if Sherrie had thrown in the part about Kate's not having a date as a suggestion to Scott or to make him think she wasn't popular enough to be asked. But Scott ignored Sherrie, looking over her shoulder at Kate. He smiled, and Kate smiled back awkwardly, feeling like a little kid as she stared into his eyes. “Is that right?” he asked, moving closer.

Kate nodded, looking up at him. Scott was even more handsome in person than he was in her fantasies. He was taller than she was by a good six inches, and his broad shoulders and wide chest filled out his shirt nicely.
He even smells wonderful
, Kate thought.

“You're taking Terri Fletcher, aren't you?” Sherrie said to Scott, spoiling the moment completely.

Kate's heart sank into her stomach. She remembered the way Scott had looked at Terri in the library, and how they had been laughing at some private joke when she ran out. She thought about how she had wrapped the ribbon around the Ken doll, imagining it was Scott she was tying her heart to. Suddenly she felt like a total fool.

Scott shrugged. Then he looked right at Kate. “We were talking about maybe going, but I don't think that's going to work out.
You
don't want to go with me, do you?”

“Me?” she squeaked.

Scott nodded. “You know, if you're really not going with anyone.”

Sherrie turned and looked at Kate, her eyes wide. Kate had never seen her friend at a loss for words before, and she almost started laughing at the expression on Sherrie's face. But Scott was waiting for her answer, and she had to try to remain calm, even if she really felt like screaming and dancing around the hallway. The spell had worked after all! Scott Coogan was actually asking
her
to the dance.

“Well, I hadn't really thought about it,” Kate said, trying to sound relaxed.

Sherrie's eyes got even wider, and her mouth dropped open. She spun around. “She means yes,” she said. “Yes, she'll go to the dance with you.”

“Is that right, Kate?” Scott asked, smiling lazily.

Kate smiled back. “Sure,” she said. “I'd love to go with you.”

“Great. It's a date. I'll call you later to figure out what we should go as, okay? I'm not so great with that kind of thing, so maybe you'll have some ideas.”

Kate nodded, biting her lip to keep from saying anything dumb. Scott turned and walked away, and Kate stared at his retreating back, still partly in shock over what had just occurred. As soon as he was out of sight, Sherrie grabbed Kate's hands.

“I take back everything I ever said,” she gushed. “How did you
do
that?”

“Do what?” asked Kate dreamily.

“Do what?” mimicked Sherrie. “Only land the hottest guy in school as your date to the most romantic dance of the year.”

“Oh, that,” said Kate. “Just lucky, I guess.” She found herself thoroughly enjoying Sherrie's shock and bewilderment.

“Wait until the girls hear this,” said Sherrie. “They are going to die.”

She grabbed Kate's arm and dragged her down the hall in search of Jessica and Tara. Kate couldn't wait to see the expression on her friends' faces when they found out that she was going to the Valentine's Day dance with Scott. But almost as important, she now knew for certain that the spell had worked after all. The magic was real.

CHAPTER 4

I can't believe it all worked out so perfectly
, Kate thought to herself as she lay on her bed later that night thinking about everything that had happened. Jessica and Tara had been shocked at the news of Kate's date. At first they'd insisted that she was playing a joke on them. But Sherrie, after adding a few flourishes to the effect that, really, it had been all her doing, managed to convince them. And if they still didn't totally believe it, all of their doubts were erased when Scott stopped by their table during lunch to say hello to Kate.

Of course, there had been the little problem of having every other boy in school still interested in her. She hadn't figured out what that was all about yet. No fewer than seven different guys had asked her to the dance. Some of them, like Scott, had never even seemed to know she existed before Thursday morning, but suddenly she was the It girl of Beecher Falls High. It was a nice feeling, but a little weird. Kate assumed that her spell had just been too strong.

Maybe I have more power than I thought I did
, she thought. Although she had been skeptical about the whole witchcraft thing when she first started reading about it, now that her first spell had worked more or less the way she'd wanted it to, she wondered what else she might be able to do. As an experiment, she pointed her finger at the telephone and willed Scott to call her.

When the phone rang, she jumped and let out a little yelp of surprise. She stared at the phone for a moment as it rang two more times, afraid to pick it up. Then, remembering that it might be Scott, she grabbed it.