Halloween Magic and Mayhem (2 page)

I screamed, loudly.

Sitting on top of my clean laundry on my bedroom chair was an honest to goodness ghost. A boy of about my own age, but in a transparent grey.

My door banged open and Duncan stood there in a t-shirt and boxer shorts. “What the bloody hell are you screaming about?” He demanded, rubbing his eyes sleepily. “I thought you were being murdered!”

“Ghost!” I whispered pointing at the chair.

The boy in the chair sat up startled. “You can see me?”

“Yes, I can see you!” I scrambled off the bed towards Duncan, “Go away!”

Duncan looked at me like I was mad. “I guess you were having a nightmare? Don’t worry, I’m going!”

“Not you.” I clung to Duncan.

He looked extremely surprised. Normally I avoid being anywhere near him.

“Can’t you see him?” I asked Duncan, digging my nails into his arm.

“It was a bad dream,” Duncan said in a soothing voice as though dealing with a child. “Go back to bed.” He shook off my hand and slid out of the door before I could display any more unusual behaviour, shutting it behind him.

I made a move to open it and run after him, but the ghost held up his hands as if surrendering. “Please wait! I promise I won’t hurt you.”

I looked at him suspiciously.

“Please,” He said again, “I’ve been here for years and no one has ever been able to see me.”

“Here?” I was horrified, “In my bedroom?”

“Well, I can go anywhere in the house, but I like it in here best.”

“You’ve been watching me all the time?” I was getting mad, “Like some kind of peeping Tom?”

He had the audacity to smile. “Nothing else to do. I like watching you.”

I put my hands on my hips. “As in, when I’m getting changed?” I shuddered to think of all the things he might have seen. Somewhere in my anger at being spied on I had lost my fear of him.

“Yes,” He confirmed cheerfully. Then seeing my expression he added, “I don’t follow you into the bathroom though. I think you should have some privacy, and some things are best left unseen, don’t you agree?”

“Oh, well that’s alright then!” I said furiously, “I suppose I should be grateful you have some limits, you bloody pervert!”

“Now, now, Emily. I’m only human. Well sort of anyway. You didn’t know I was here, there was no harm in it. Spying on your parents is pretty dull, though sometimes I hang out with Duncan and watch him play computer games, but it’s boring when you don’t get a turn.”

I sat back down on my bed. “How long have you been here? What happened to you? What’s your name?”

“I’m Peter,” He held out one hand as though to shake mine but I leaned back away from him. “Ah, yes, right, can’t shake anyway.” He said not in the least offended.

“How long have I been here?” He sat back down on my pile of clothes and tapped his lip thoughtfully. “Quite a while I think. For a long time before you came anyway.”

“What happened to you? You don’t look very old to be, um, dead.”

He couldn’t have been more than sixteen himself, and actually he would be kind of handsome if he wasn’t all grey and ghosty.

He smiled. “It’s a great story. My whole family were butchered to death right here in this room. It was a bloodbath. We never found out how the killer got in, and they never caught him, he could still be around now. My four brothers are still here too, roaming around the house, spying on any naked girls they can find.”

I put my hands over my mouth in horror, looking round the room for some signs of blood on the carpet or walls. “I feel sick.” I genuinely thought I might throw up.

“I was just joking!” He said, seeing my white face.

“What? You sleaze rat! You scared the spit out of me. What really happened?”

“Well, it was early in the eighteen hundreds, and I was working as a chimney sweep. I was getting a bit big for the job and I got stuck in that chimney there.” He nodded at the chimneybreast that ran from the living room up through the house. “My boss got me from a workhouse and was a cruel man. No one cared that I didn’t come back out, in fact my bones are still just behind that wall.”

I looked at the chimneybreast with concern but I didn’t react quite as badly this time. “Are you serious? It sounds like something from a bad movie.”

“Hmm, you got me, I think it is from a bad movie actually.”

“Peter!” If he’d been solid I would have whacked him.

“Ok, ok, well, there was this great white shark…”

I folded my arms and glared at him.

He smiled ruefully. “Sorry, so much time on my own, I think I’ve gone a bit peculiar. The truth is that I don’t remember. I don’t remember anything much about my life at all. I know I’ve here since before television was invented. It totally brightened up my dull existence when I saw my first TV show. I love TV!”

He looked longingly at the small television in my room. “You couldn’t put your Friends DVD on for me could you? The one where Phoebe teaches Joey to speak French? I love that episode, it’s hysterical.”

I groaned, but got up, flicked through the box set and inserted the requested DVD. I put the sound on low and climbed into bed. I was just plumping up the pillows behind my head to watch it better when Peter sidled onto the bed next to me.

I gave him a look, but moved over slightly so he could lie next to me comfortably, though why I cared about the comfort of a ghost was beyond me, surely he could just sort of float?

One of my arms drifted downwards and went through his stomach. It felt cold, but nothing more. I pulled my arm back.

“Emily?”

“Yes Peter?”

“How come you can see me now? You never could before.”

My eyes snapped open wide. “Because it’s gone midnight.” I said slowly letting it sink in. “And I’m now a witch.”

“Oh right.” He seemed to accept that without question. Then he looked excited. “You could help me cross over! I seem to remember that only a priest or a witch can help a stuck spirit to the other side, is that right?”

“I don’t know, sorry. I’m kind of new to all this. I’ll ask my aunt tomorrow.” I yawned and tried to focus on the show as my eyelids drifted closed.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

My eyes snapped open. It was daylight and I was in bed alone. I wondered if it had all been a dream after all, when the tapping noise started again.

I glanced at the clock feeling disorientated; it was already half past ten in the morning. I guess my father let me sleep in because it was Saturday.

I looked around for the source of the noise. A huge crow was standing on the sill right outside my window.

“Come on witch, open up!” Surely the bird didn’t just say that?

I approached the window tentatively. “Hello?” I said feeling stupid.

The bird tipped his head to one side, “Hello.” He answered quite distinctly, “Any chance of opening the window, its bleeding freezing acorns out here.”

I must be going mad, I thought. I considered shouting for my father. Aren’t crows supposed to be evil? But this one could talk. Maybe it was some kind of rare parrot?

“Look lady,” the crow said, “I aint got all day whilst you dither, I’m here on a matter of business.”

I opened the window and inch. “What kind of business?” I said suspiciously.

“I’m ‘ere as your new Familiar.” He ducked his head to me, in what I guessed was a respectful gesture.

“My Familiar?” The word itself sounded familiar. “Is this a witch thing?”

“Yes Mam, You’ve just come into your powers, I figure you don’t have a Familiar yet?”

“Well, no.” I cracked the window open a little more, still suspicious. “Who sent you?”

“No one sent me. I heard the gossip of course. There’s lots of gossip when a new witch gets her powers, and you’re radiating power, all the animals can sense it.” His beady eyes were fixed on mine.

“So let me get this straight,” I tried to get my sleep-addled brain working, “You heard I needed a Familiar, and so you flew over here to offer your services?”

He bobbed his head; “The early bird catches the worm, if you’ll excuse the pun.”

“I see,” I said thoughtfully, but I wasn’t sure about it at all.

“You’ll get a lot of cats applying for the position,” he went on, “but I can be much more useful, take messages for you, spy without being noticed. I know owls are popular right now, but honest gov, owls are useless, they sleep all day and keep you up all night asking for dead mice. I fend for myself and I’m housetrained too, I don’t poop indoors.”

“Um, good,” I said, wondering if perhaps I was still dreaming. “So what’s in it for you? Why would you want to be a Familiar? Wouldn’t you rather just do what you like?”

“It’s worth it, especially for a bird.” He answered. “Gets me higher up the ‘pecking order’ if you’ll excuse another pun. I’d be under a witch’s protection. No one messes with a Familiar, I could even taunt the foxes.”

If a bird could smile then I’d swear he was smiling at that idea.

I shook my head, trying to clear my brain. “How come I can hear you talking?” I narrowed my eyes on him.

“Because you’re a witch now.” he gave me a look that said ‘Duh!’

I mulled that over for a minute. “Why do I need a Familiar?”

“All witches have a Familiar!” He seemed shocked by the question, so I didn’t pursue it. I figured I had a lot more reading to do if I wasn’t going to look as thick as two short planks in this new world.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Bob.”

“
Bob
?”

“What’s wrong with Bob?” He looked offended.

I felt bad for insulting him. “I guess I was expecting something more otherworldly.” I said lamely.

“What, like Rumplestiltskin?” If a birds eyes could roll this ones did. He grumbled quietly for a bit, then clarified, “It’s short for Blackbobhead. But I prefer Bob.”

“Yes, I can see why. Bob, thanks for stopping by and all that…”

“Listen lady…”

That was the second time he’d referred to me as
lady
. “Don’t call me that, it makes me sound old, I’m only fifteen. No, hang on, it’s my birthday today, I’m sixteen!” I felt all giddy and happy to finally be sixteen.

“If you take me on then I would call you Mistress.” Bob said.

“Really?” I sort of liked the sound of that.

He cocked his head, “Wanna give it a trial run? Just call when you need me. I’ve memorised the timbre of your voice now and we birds have an amazing sense of hearing.”

“Ok Bob, you’re on. Come in. Come and meet Casper, I mean Peter, he’s my ghost.” I had totally lost my grip on reality now.

“Peter?” I called, unable to see him anywhere.

His head appeared through the wall. “Oh, good, you’re up. I got bored when the DVD finished, and I can’t put on a new one. Could you put the next series in for me?” His body followed his head into the room.

“This isn’t the time for watching TV.” I said. “It’s my birthday and it looks like I’m definitely a witch.”

“A very powerful witch,” Bob said proudly, “and born on Halloween too? A very powerful witch indeed.”

“Yeah, but all that Halloween stuff is just nonsense isn’t it?” I said, suddenly not sure if it was or not.

Both Bob and Peter gasped at my ignorance. “It’s All Hallows Eve!” Bob chided me. “The veil between this world and the next becomes very thin, a lot of spirits creep through, especially those that are invited, and they bring a lot of magic with them. The air literally hums with it. Everything you do on Halloween is more powerful, and being born on the 31st of October makes you doubly powerful. The planets line up in the same place they were at when you were born, don’t you think that would have some effect? Not to mention that this particular Halloween is also a full moon. It’s like a cosmic overload out there today.”

“So, I’m like the witch version of The Omen?” I felt really out of my depth.

“I don’t know The Omen, Mistress, but I do know you need to be careful, today of all days, not to do anything stupid.”

I sighed, “Why do people keep telling me that?” I had a feeling that maybe I should just spend the day in bed with the duvet over my head.

“I’m up now.” I said more to myself than to my two strange companions. “Why don’t you two take yourselves off so I can get dressed?”

Bob nodded obediently and flew out of the open window. I closed it behind him to keep out the October chill.

Peter settled himself back in my chair. “Don’t mind me,” he said, “I’ve seen you getting dressed hundreds of times.”

“Yeah, well I didn’t know you were there then! The free porn is over.” I went over to my chest of draws and started pulling out clothes.

“Wear the black lace undies, they’re my favourite.” He teased.

I collected a bundle of clothes, and added some huge grannie knickers to make a point, and said, “I’m going to change in the bathroom. If you even think of following me in there I will personally locate your bones and stomp on them, got it?”

He leaned back in the chair and laughed, but I figured he was smart enough not to push me.

Half an hour later I’d showered, dressed, and was fixing my makeup back in my bedroom.

“So I guess we should go and see my aunt?” I addressed Peter who hadn’t moved. “She might be able to give me some advice about helping you?”

“I cant leave the house remember?” Peter sighed.

“Oh right, of course. I’ll go see her and get back to you. I have a party to go to tonight so I need time to get ready for that. I’m going to have breakfast and then I’ll go straight there. I should be back around four, is that ok?

Peter shrugged, “I’ve waited this long, I can wait a few hours.”

Breakfast was great. Irene, my dad’s girlfriend, had laid the table for a birthday brunch, with me at the head and several presents in front of my plate. She can be quite nice sometimes.

“Hello Pumpkin.” My dad put down his paper and gave me a kiss. “Happy birthday.” I think he calls me pumpkin because I was born on Halloween.

They had all been waiting for me, and Irene went and made scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, which are my absolute favourites.

I opened my present from Duncan first, he’d got me all the batman films in a box set, which was pretty cool, even though I suspected he just wanted to see them all again himself. I thought that Peter would probably enjoy them too.

Next I unwrapped one of the parcels from my dad and Irene. It was soft and black. I held it up. It was a floor length black cloak, with fur trim and a velvet lined hood. It was gorgeous, and just perfect for the party tonight.

“Thank you, I love it!” I gave my dad a hug, and even gave Irene a kiss on the cheek as she appeared with our food. She looked surprised and quite pleased.

I opened the others after we’d eaten and got a pretty good haul. Grannie Mara had sent me a book on the magical properties of plants, as well as fifty pounds. I wondered if she knew I would be getting my powers today.

Taking it all upstairs, I dumped it on my bed and then picked up my mothers wand and Grimoire before heading out to see Iris.

I entered the shop behind a guy and two girls. Lyra was sitting on the counter giving all the customers a once over. She was looking at the three people in front of me.

“Dead-beat. Time-waster and possible thief. Really ugly skirt.” I heard her say, commenting on each of them.

“Lyra!” I chided, really excited that I could hear her talking.

“Miss Emily.” Lyra jumped down off the counter, looking flatteringly pleased to see me. She rubbed her face against my ankle. “I’ll go and tell my Mistress you’re here.”

“Thank you.” I said it quite quietly because the girl that aunt Iris employs to help her on a Saturday was looking at us.

Iris came out of the stock room at the back, cleaning charcoal off her hands.

“Emily, how lovely. You haven’t done anything, uh, unusual, yet have you?” Iris glanced at Jill, who was serving ‘ugly skirt’.

“Not really. But I would like to talk to you. Are you very busy?”

“Fairly. Halloween is always my best day, plus I have an awful lot to do before my Coven meeting tonight. But I think your needs probably merit some special attention so Jill will just have to cope.” She raised her voice to Jill, “I’ll be upstairs, just push the bell if you need me.”

“Lyra said that one of those girls was a potential thief.” I whispered as we went over to the stairs.

“Not a problem,” Iris smiled. “There’s a protection spell on the shop. If she tries to steal anything in her pocket or bag it jumps right out again before she gets to the door. Very embarrassing for the thief, they never try it twice.”

Up in her flat, I noticed white powder along all the windowsills and even a line across the doorway. “What’s that? Something magical?” I asked.

“Just regular salt.” She said, “It keeps out the evil spirits, they can’t cross a line of salt. And there will be a fair few of them out tonight. You should do the same at your house.”

“Yeah, I can just imagine Irene’s face if I put salt in all the windows!” I grimaced. “Speaking of spirits…” I filled her in on my encounter with Peter.

“Oh that poor boy!” She said. “Do you have any idea what his unfinished business might be?”

I shook my head. “He doesn’t seem to remember much about his own life. Not even his last name. I can’t quite work out what his clothes are, some kind of suit I think, so it’s hard to date when he died, but I think it might be quite a long time ago. He speaks as if he is modern day, but he does like to watch TV, so he might have caught up.” I shrugged, “If he died a long time ago then presumably anyone connected with his unfinished business would also be dead?”

“That is a problem.” Iris tapped her foot whilst she considered it. “It’s quite a specialist subject. If only your mother was here, she was great with helping ghosts pass on.”

“Really?” Another new bit of information about my mother, and perhaps another gift I might have inherited from her?

“Hmmm, but it takes a while to master, we really need someone who already knows what they are doing. I know!” She turned to me excited as a thought struck her, “You must come to my Coven meeting tonight. It would be a great chance for you to meet other witches, and I know they would all be thrilled to meet you too. There’s a witch there, Theresa, who has some experience with spirits. Bring Peter with you.”

“But he can’t leave the house.” I said, not at all enthusiastic about going to her Coven meeting.

“Can’t you bind him to you instead of to the house? I’m sure the instructions will be in your mothers Grimoire. As I said, she did quite a bit of work with spirits.”

I shrugged, “Maybe. But I have a party to go to tonight. Would it take long?”

She pulled a face at my selfishness. “I don’t know, I’ll ask Theresa for you. We meet at eight at The Severn Sisters, you should have plenty of time to get to your party as well.”

The Severn Sisters were a famous group of beech trees on the town common near my house. It was right on the edge of town, so fairly private, but also fairly easy to get to. Planted hundreds of years ago, the trees were now incredibly tall, and stood in a large circle surrounded by open space. I could see how they would make a good place for a Coven to meet.

Despite several interruptions from the shop downstairs, Iris managed to teach me quite a lot over the next couple of hours.

I learned about casting a circle and about the four elements. It turns out my aunt is an Elemental Witch, her element is fire. I was excited about the idea of being able to control one of the elements, but after a lot of failure at trying to get a response from fire, earth, water and even the air, we had to conclude that I probably wasn’t one of the elemental witches.

I couldn’t imagine being a Kitchen Witch like my mother, my dad and I lived mainly on baked potatoes before Irene and Duncan moved in and Irene took over our meals. I could chop up a salad no problems, but cooking was not my strong point. Only last month I had tried to microwave some eggs, but they had all exploded quite spectacularly; apparently you can’t microwave eggs still in the shell.

I also seriously doubted I was a Hedge Witch, like my Grannie. Years ago I had tried to grow cress and mustard for a school project. I was the only person in the class whose seeds did absolutely nothing at all.

Iris patted me and said we would find my ‘metier’, whatever that was. “You’re probably an Eclectic Witch, Emily,” She said, which confused me even more, “It means you have a bit of this and a bit of that, but hopefully a bit of everything you need. It would make sense.”

We went thorough some of the spells in my mother’s Grimoire. All the spells had to be said in rhyme, and some of them had to be said three times over, which seemed rather a faff.

We took a break for afternoon tea, and I slumped down on the sofa. I was starting to get frustrated. Apart from being able to hear animal’s talk and seeing a ghost, I had not actually managed to perform any magic at all so far.

I had waved my wand and said spells but nothing had happened. I had put ingredients in a cauldron and stirred it anticlockwise while chanting, but it could have been done by anyone, nothing magical occurred at all.

I could see Iris was beginning to wonder if I really had any magic as well. I felt a total idiot waving a wand, and like a total cliché stirring a cauldron. It was hardly inspiring.

“I think I’ll go home,” I told Iris. “I’m clearly not a risk as a witch. Less of the ‘powerful’ and more of the ‘pathetic’ I think.

Iris gave me a hug. “It will come Emily. I don’t think we’ve found where your talents lie, but I’m convinced you will have some. You
must
do.” She said the last bit forcefully and I wondered if she were trying to convince herself as much as me.

“Try to
feel
it a bit more.” Was her last piece of advice as we went downstairs. “It’s not a mental thing, magic must come from the heart.”

As a birthday present, Iris said I could have any supplies I felt I needed from her shop, so I went round with a basket picking out the things that took my fancy. I stocked up on tall thin candles of all colours as well as some thick white pillar candles. I got some incense called Halloween, which had a lovely cinnamon smell, and a wicked looking ‘ceremonial’ knife, which is apparently called an Athame. I also selected a red velvet cushion, as a little present for Bob to sit on.

“Please think about coming to the Coven meeting.” Iris said as she showed me out.

“Mmm, maybe.” I said deliberately not committing myself. There was no way I was missing the party for that.

When I got home the house was empty. I ran up to my room to get ready.

“Peter, are you in here?” I called. I got no response so I started to undress.

“Boo!” He popped out of my wardrobe.

“Aghh! You creep!” I was already down to my bra and knickers. “OUT!” I pointed at the door. He smirked at me and went through the wall instead.