𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐔𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 || 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥

Chapter 16 - I Have a Katherine Pierce Too

The frown deepened on my face as the girls poured over the Book of Shadows, trying desperately to figure this out.

"Is that the mark?" Paige asked her eldest sister, stopping on one of the yellowed pages.

Piper frowned as her eyes swept over it, "No, it looked more like a bird,"

"A bird. So you're saying maybe the Audubon society sent the demon after us?"

I cracked a smile at that but it didn't reach my eyes.

"Just keep looking," Piper growled, sitting back down in her chair.

Chris, who had been previously pacing the floor like a madman, stopped, "Guys, I'm telling you - I'm fine, don't sweat it,"

"You sure she wasn't a Darklighter?" Leo asked, "Or one under a spell, maybe? It'd explain the similarities,"

"I'm sure," Piper said quietly, eyes locking on mine briefly.

"What else would be after a Whitelighter?" Phoebe asked.

"I don't know, that's what worries me..." Leo trailed off, blue eyes serious.

Chris interrupted them, "She's gone! Piper blew her away, what's the big deal?"

"The big deal is someone who eerily looked like our Mattie tried to kill you, Chris," Phoebe cut in harshly.

I stayed silent through all of this but couldn't help glance up at the sound of my name, biting down hard on my lip.

"Look at me - not a scratch, nothing! Because like I've been trying to get through to you, it was not Mattie, okay? I would know." Chris snapped, evasive as ever as he began to pace again, managing to step on a squeaky floorboard in the process.

"You know, how did she get that close to you, anyway, if you didn't even know who she was?" Leo questioned, suspicious.

"We really ought to fix that, you know," he changed the subject, glancing up from the floor.

"Come on, Chris, who's after you?"

"Has it crossed your mind that maybe she wasn't after me? Maybe she was trying to get to them," Chris gestured at the girls and myself.

"It kind of makes sense," Paige shrugged, making a face.

Chris lifted up both arms over-exaggeratedly in her direction, "Finally! Somebody's listening. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some work to take care of."

Strands of hair fell across his eyes as he turned to leave and my stomach flipped, knots forming. Gosh, he was gorgeous...

When he was out of earshot, Leo finally spoke up again, "He's not telling the truth,"

Paige shrugged again, "Leo, maybe there's nothing to tell,"

Leo's blue eyes flitted to Phoebe then, "Could you sense anything?"

"From Chris? No, I can never sense anything from him," she replied, head resting on her hand.

Piper, whose eyes had been watching me ever since the incident, shifted then to that of her ex, "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that if we can figure out who she was, we might be able to find out who Chris is,"

"Well, we're not gonna find it in here. At least not until we have more to go on. So guys," Paige announced, slamming the book closed with a heavy thud, "You know where I'm gonna be if you need me."

Phoebe agreed, getting up to leave but not without a gentle squeeze of her hand on my shoulder as she left with Paige. Taking in a deep breath, I got up from my seat as well, deciding to leave Leo and Piper to chat.

My Disney Villain sock-clad feet made no noise as I made my way down the hallway to my room.

So many emotions swirled inside, giving me a migraine. That girl...she couldn't be me. It wasn't possible. Even if it had been just a demon, it wasn't possible for one to just mimic...but wait, no, I suppose it would be possible. The girls had told me of one who could change their face once... Still, it had been vanquished long ago.

I admit, though, it wasn't the only thing bothering me. Twisting the knob so that the door swung open into my room, I trudged over to my bed before flopping down in the middle of it, incredibly exhausted from the day's events. Burying my face in the covers, I sighed.

Truthfully, the fireballs that I now knew I could conjure were also unsettling. In fact, it terrified me. What if I was turning more demon than witch? I always knew I possessed that side - that it was apart of me, apart of my DNA, my genetic makeup. But I never thought I really manifested those traits. Or rather, I was determined not to. I'm not even sure what happened, why the powers seemed to "wake up" now.

It scared me.

Unbeknownst to me then, Chris was going through a similar situation right across the hallway.

A situation with consequences that neither of us could run from. 

Or predict.