Disclaimer: I don't own The Worst Witch.
A/N: Some Hicsqueak relief was needed after a horrible week!
Music To The Ears
Turning the small rectangular parcel in her hands several times, she bit down tentatively on her lip as she wondered what could possibly be inside. The blush in her cheeks rose as her mind went through and then discounted a whole host of options, unable to decide whether or not she would be horrified if it turned out to be one of them or disappointed if it turned out to be none of them.
Realising that she had now been having a staring competition with the post for the best part of an hour and a half, she decided just to bite the bullet and open the damn thing, or else she would be here until the next anniversary of her birth. She was seriously going to kill Pippa Pentangle once the College term started back up.
Hecate Hardbroom didn't do birthdays!
Running a well-manicured nail down the edge to break the seal, she carefully unwrapped the brown paper, eventually revealing the contents of the mysterious parcel, and breathed an involuntary sigh of relief that it didn't appear to be anything too embarrassing.
There was a note enclosed.
Never one to bring herself to break the rules, not under any circumstances, the Hardbroom followed the instructions on the front of the accompanying letter. She was instantly greeted with the familiar scent of her friend's perfume that had clearly been lovingly sprayed (or quite possibly spilled, given how strong it was!)on to the pale pink parchment.
Dearest Hiccup,
I know you told me no fewer than a dozen times not to get you a birthday present, but before you murder me, let me remind you of one thing:
You once promised to wear pink at my funeral!
Anyway, now that I have both my life and your attention, I was going through my music collection, and I came across some songs that reminded me of you so I thought I'd put them onto a tape for you.
Hope you like!
Speak to you soon,
Pipsqueak
XxX
P.S I hope you appreciate that I had to actually go and buy that ugly brown paper!
Hecate's heart was practically hammering in her chest as she took in the words on the page in front of her.
A mixed tape.
Pippa had made her a mixed tape.
It seemed a strange gift to give a studious witch such as herself, who usually only received books, yet she still smiled wider than she had the entire day. The smile faded almost as quickly as it had appeared though as her ever-logical mind began frantically trying to analyse exactly what this gesture meant.
Having been homeschooled for the majority of her early life, the Hardbroom did not have a great deal of romantic expertise, but from what she had seen in the movies that had been inflicted upon her, it did rather seem to be something one did when they wanted that person to know that they had a crush.
... Could it really be?
Just for a few seconds, she allowed herself to dream, fantasy uncharacteristically taking over as she planned a future with the blonde beauty.
Hecate had known for a while now that her feelings for her friend ran deeper than ones of just friendship, but she had never, and would never, say anything. She'd rather die of embarrassment first! Besides, she didn't even know if Pippa liked women in that way …
Maybe this tape held the key?
She wondered if the love hearts atop the "i's" held any significance, before remembering that the Pentangle always did that — it was a writing flourish that frequently got her into trouble in her classes.
The witch was trying not to get too carried away as she picked up the cassette box to view the enclosed track list, but it was no good. The anticipation was already rising, and the same giddy feeling that came over her insides every time she was near Pippa, washed over her like gentle waves on a beach.
No sooner had she gotten to Track 1, that anticipation and giddiness died, snuffed out immediately like the flame from a candle; there was no warning flicker, just an instant plunge into darkness. If anyone had entered the room at that point, then they would have found a crestfallen teenager. Far from the powerful witch that she was so far proving to be, they would have found a heartbroken young woman who had just had her first experience of the saddened reality with an unrequited love.
Hecate cursed as a tear trickled down her cheek, wiping it away furiously, as quickly as it had appeared.
As if really intent on driving the message home, the next two songs seemed to refer to friendship as well. She didn't know why she was getting so upset — there had never been anything to suggest otherwise.
Her eyes fell to the framed picture of the two of them on her bedside table. It had been taken at the night of the Winter Snow Ball, and it was the night that Hecate had realised, once and for all, that she was madly in love with her best friend.
She sniffed, blinking back another tear.
If friendship was as much as she was going to get from this unlikely union, then she would still take it. Everything Pippa Pentangle did fascinated Hecate. The bubbly blonde injected a bit of sparkle and whimsy into her ordered life, and she never wanted be without it.
Taking a minute or two to regain her composure, she continued working her way though the homemade playlist.
At Track 5, the Hardbroom blushed heavily, wishing that she really could kiss the girl, or more specifically that the girl — well, one girl in particular — would damn well kiss her!
It did seem to be an odd choice to have included though.
Maybe ... ?
No, Hecate, don't be stupid!
If Tracks 1-3 screamed friendship, and Tracks 4-6 hinted towards romance, then she wasn't quite sure what the hell was meant to be going on in the next couple.
The choices were ... bizarre to say the least!
Hecate angled herself somewhat awkwardly as she tried to see better in the mirror, hoping there was no element of truth regarding Track 8. Settling herself back on her bed, she was just about to cast her eyes over side B, when her father knocked on the door before entering.
"Oh, Bubble, Squeak is on the phone for you."
Ever since her father had heard their nicknames for one another, he had teased her relentlessly for it.
Porcelain skin flushed as Hecate half-grabbed the phone from him, quickly ushering him out of the room. He smiled kindly at his only daughter before closing the door over, and leaving her in peace.
"Hi, Pipsqueak. I've just opened your present, thank you."
"You don't like it, do you?"
The Hardbroom could actually hear the disappointment in her friend's voice, and she instantly felt guilty. She hated it when Pippa was upset. She especially hated if she had been the one to cause that upset in the first place.
Of course she liked it.
Then again, she reflected, it could have been a sack full of socks and she would probably have still been over the moon purely because it had come from her Pippa. The sheer effort and time that must have gone into the tape made her heart swell.
"I do, actually. I was just looking at side A."
"Wait until you get to side B," Pippa gushed. "That's the best side!" The lilt was back in the Pentangle's voice, and Hecate knew she was back to her happy self.
Hecate couldn't help but smile over how enthusiastic her friend could get over the things she was excited about. She too could get that excited, but she didn't have that effortless confidence to portray those feelings aloud, so instead she kept quiet, even though she was normally feeling it all inside.
There was silence for a few moments as the dark-haired witch worked her way through the second side of the playlist, her sharp eyes noticing how this side seemed to be much more romance based than the last one. Her heartbeat quickened with each new track that she read.
"Stop rolling your eyes, Hecate Anna Hardbroom," Pippa quipped as Hecate's eyes came to rest on Track 12. "You know how much I love Titanic!"
"I am not."
"Are too."
"I am not!"
She was.
As she got towards the end, she noticed how the genre tailed off of romance, seeming to go back to being more friendship oriented. Speaking as a straight A student, Hecate Hardbroom did not fail to understand most things, but this tape had left her completely and utterly bamboozled.
Never mind a mixed tape, this was an utterly mixed message!
In her own room, Pippa paced nervously back and forth, the fear in her heart growing by the minute as she wondered whether or not this had been such a good idea after all.
Ever since the night of the Winter Snow Ball, her feelings towards her friend had started to develop into something more than just a standard friendship. She had tried to tell Hecate before, but each time she had tripped over her words and eventually bottled out, changing the subject to something utterly trivial, and earning herself rather a few warranted eyebrow raises over the past few months.
The Pentangle had a feeling that the Hardbroom felt the same way she did, but she had to know for sure. The tape had been her brother's idea, and within the next few minutes rested her entire happiness.
"Hiccup," Pippa said slowly, after they had caught each other up on all the goings on. "There's one more song," the blonde stuttered, uncharacteristically nervously, "But I didn't have enough space to fit it on the label-"
"That's because you will insist on doing love hearts that take up half the page!" Hecate teased her gently, hastily trying to cover her own nerves as she wondered what was to come.
Pippa didn't laugh.
In fact, her voice suddenly held a note of seriousness that was rarely present in the popular blonde.
"Once you've listened to it, call me back and let me know what you think ... promise?"
"I promise."
"And Hecate, whatever happens, know you'll always be my best friend."
Hecate swallowed, suddenly having the strong urge to cry. "And you mine, Pipsqueak."
"Speak to you soon, Hiccup ... I hope."
Having fast-forwarded her way through the majority of the tape (which some may have regarded as cheating ... ), Hecate had at last come to the final track — the only one that was not listed on the given playlist. The slight gap between the end of the previous track, and the beginning of this one seemed to last forever, but, finally, the opening chords started up.
She recognised them instantly!
Ever so slowly, she opened her eyes, letting out the breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding. As the song progressed, her smile grew wider and wider. She was like the cat that had most definitely got the cream, and it looked like she had somehow gotten the girl too.
As the end of the song faded into the background, she hastily grabbed for the phone, dialling the Pentangle's number.
"Hello-"
"I love you too, Pipsqueak."
Maybe birthday's weren't so bad after all?
A/N: I've deliberately kept it sort of vague with regard to the songs, but if you really want to know what was on 'Pippa Pentangle Productions Playlist', then I suggest listening to/googling "Mix Tape" from the Avenue Q Musical as that is the song that inspired this one-shot. :)