What a beautiful morning. The sun was shining, the sky was blue and it was...
"9:30?!"
Mildred leapt out of her bed and ran downstairs in her pyjamas. Oh no! She was an hour late for potions class!
"Mildred Hubble!" She suddenly heard. Oh no... Miss Hardbroom!
"Oh, I'm sorry Miss Hardbroom! I was just on my way to the potions lab. I overslept! I'm so sorry, I..."
"Mildred, are you aware of the fact it is Saturday?"
"Uhh... Saturday?"
"Yes, Mildred. Saturday. And on Saturdays you have nothing to do in the potions lab."
"I know... I'm sorry Miss Hardbroom, I thought..."
"It's okay Mildred. Maybe you should get dressed and have breakfast. Miss Cackle expects you in her office at 10."
"Oh Miss Hardbroom, whatever it is, I didn't do it, I swear."
"Mildred, please."
Miss Hardbroom vanished again. Mildred went back to her room and got dressed. She should buy a calender. A few days ago she thought it was Sunday so she slept in when she actually had potions class... It was always the same. Miss Cackle obviously wanted her to come to her office to talk about that. Or maybe about the cauldron she broke yesterday. Or the tea she spilt over Miss Hardbroom. Oh, whatever it was, she would be put in detention anyway. She went to the great hall and sat down next to Maud.
"Good morning Maud." Mildred said.
"Morning Millie. You're late!"
"I know, I don't really have time to eat, have I? I have to be at Cackle's office at 10."
"Millie, it's five past ten."
"What?! Sorry Maud, I gotta go!"
Late again, she couldn't believe it. She ran out of the great hall, to the staircase and upstairs to Miss Cackle's office. She knocked on the door.
"Come in, Mildred."
Mildred walked in.
"I'm so sorry Miss Cackle, I didn't know what time it was. I didn't even have time to eat breakfast, but I'm here. I'm terribly sorry, I swear!"
"Mildred... It's alright. Please sit down."
Mildred sat down. Why did she always make a fool of herself in every possible situation.
"Mildred, I wanted to talk to you. You know you've had a couple of conversations with Miss Mustardseed, the psychologist, haven't you?"
"Yes Miss."
"And you and your parents have done some tests, is that correct."
"Yes Miss, but why..."
"I wanted to tell you that you've been diagnosed with ADHD. Do you know what that is?"
"ADHD? I know what that is but I can't possibly have ADHD. I'm not hyperactive at all, not at all, honestly. You know that!"
"Mildred, hyperactivity is only one of the signs of ADHD. Other symptoms are having difficulties maintaining focus on one task, being easily distracted, daydreaming, having trouble sitting still during class or dinner, being very impatient, finding it hard to follow instructions... Do you recognize that Mildred?"
"Yes I do, but I'm sure I can't have ADHD. I'm just... Well I guess I'm just not a very good witch."
Miss Cackle laughed.
"Oh dear girl, that doesn't have anything to do with it, I'm sure you'd make a great witch when you get medication."
Mildred didn't understand. Medication against what? ADHD?
"Medication against what Miss?"
Miss Cackle gave Mildred a little white box. It said Ritalin.
"These pills will help you a lot, Mildred. Life will get a lot easier for you when you take these. You will finally be able to concentrate on your school work."
Mildred sighed. She probably didn't have a choice.
"You take one right after breakfast, one right after lunch and one right after dinner. I suggest eat something in the great hall and take one pill when you're done eating. Is that alright with you?"
Mildred didn't know.
"Yes Miss..."
"Well Mildred, if you have any more questions about this you can always come to my office to ask them."
After breakfast Mildred went up to Enid's room and told her about the diagnosis.
"ADHD? You?" Enid asked.
"Well, they've done a lot of tests and I have most of the symptoms, so, yes..."
"And now you're on drugs?"
"Well drugs... These are... Concentration pills."
Enid laughed.
"Concentration pills. Honestly? Please don't take them, okay?"
"But I already have..." "I don't notice any difference though."
Neither did Mildred. Was she really so difficult the pills didn't even work on her?
"No, neither do I... I don't understand."
"Well anyway. Want to come take a walk with me and Maud?"
"Oh I'd love to, but I'm so tired. I better take some rest."
"Well okay. See you Millie."
Mildred went to her own room and sat down on her bed. She really was tired, and a little dizzy. Yes, it was better to lie down than to join her friends, she was just too tired.
"Millie? Were you sleeping?"
Mildred woke up and opened her eyes.
"Maud, Enid. I'm sorry, yes I was. I was exhausted."
"Well, do you want to come over to my room? We have a lot of sweets and the new Spell Girls CD!"
"Oh, that's nice. But honestly I really need to catch up on my potions homework, I'm sorry girls."
Mildred took her potions textbook adn her notebook out of her school bag and started the first exercise of the new chapter.
"Mil?"
"Shhh, I'm trying to do my homework."
The weekend was very boring, according to Maud and Enid. Mildred didn't want to have fun at all. She used to be such a happy, energetic girl, but she became to boring.
"It must be the pills..." Enid said.
"What pills?"
"Didn't Mildred tell you?"
"No, she didn't talk to me at all this weekend. Whenever I went to her room she was doing her homework."
"Well, ask her during class, we have to go there now anyway."
Just like Friday, Thursday, Wednesday and practically every day they were late. They ran to the potions lab.
"Come in girls, come in." Miss Hardbroom said.
Maud looked for Mildred but she couldn't find her anywhere. Obviously she was late too, she was probably still sleeping. But a few seconds later she saw, much to her horror, that Mildred was sitting next to Ethel.
"Mildred!" Maud whispered.
Mildred turned around.
"Ssshhh, we're in class!" She said. Maud sighed and sat down. Because Enid always sat next to Ruby Maud had to sit all by herself.
"So, let's get on with the class. So who knows the right answer to the following question?"
Maud hadn't even seen what was on the board when Mildred raised her hand.
"The elixer of life, Miss Hardbroom!" Mildred said.
"Surprisingly enough, you are right, Mildred."
Maud didn't recognise her friend at all. She was so different all of a sudden. Maud couldn't believe that was because of some pill. She knew it would change some things in Mildred's behaviour, but not her personality.
After class Maud still couldn't forget about it. Had she lost her friend forever? She decided to see Mildred and talk about it. This time it would be just her and Millie. She went to Mildred's room and knocked on her door.
"Come in."
Maud walked in.
"Hiya Millie," she said. "How are you doing?"
Mildred shrugged.
"I suppose I'm okay. I just have lots and lots of homework to do."
Maud laughed.
"Homework? You?"
She sat down next to Mildred on the bed.
"Shall we go outside for a walk? Miss Hardbroom said we could go togheter if..."
"Maud, I'm sorry to interrupt you, but I really have to finish my homework. Maybe some other time?"
Maud couldn't believe what Mildred was saying, but she had to say something, so she asked: "After supper?"
"No, I can't. I want to take a shower after supper and call it an early night."
"But..."
"Maud! We have a potions test tomorrow, remember?"
"Yes, but..."
"Maud!"
Maud didn't know what to say anymore. She felt tears coming up. How could Mildred be like this? This wasn't her best friend, was it? Before she dissolved into tears she walked out of Mildred's room and walked into Fenella and Griselda.
"What's up Moonshine?" Griselda asked.
Maud sighed.
"I don't... It's Mildred. She's changed." Maud said.
"Has she? What happened?" Fenella asked.
"Well, apparently she has ADHD, some sort of disorder, and she's taking pills to control that, but... It's like she's become some other person."
"Oh... Ritalin." Fenella sighed.
"What?"
"She's taking Ritalin pills, isn't she?"
Maud felt stupid for not knowing what that was.
"I used to be on Ritalin. But it wasn't helping at all." Fenella said when she figured out why Maud looked so confused.
"What? Do you have ADHD?"
"No," Fenella replied. "But I do have Asperger's Syndrome, some sort of... Well it's an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Autism and ADHD are not really similar, but they're both developmental disorders. For some reason they thought I needed that, and it did fix some things, but it ruined more. Like Mildred, I changed. I became quiet, boring... Even concentrated!"
Griselda laughed when Fenella said that word.
"Fenella, concentrated, can you imagine?!" She asked laughing.
"Shut up, Gris!" Fenella said, and continued. "But yeah, it fixed the things the teachers didn't like, but it ruined the things my friends liked. And the things I liked about myself. I'm glad I stopped taking them."
"Why is she taking these things..." Maud said while shaking her head.
A door behind her opened.
"I'm not taking them anymore."
Maud turned around and saw Mildred.
"Millie?" Maud asked.
"I heard you guys talking. I don't want to change that much. And I most certainly don't want to disappoint Maud. I'm not taking them anymore. I swear, I'm not."
Mildred took the little white box from her nightstand.
"Do you have a moment? I'm gonna return this to Miss Cackle."
"Are you sure you don't want to take these anymore, Mildred? You've only been on them for two days." Miss Cackle said when Mildred tried to hand the box over to her.
"Yes, I'm sure. I'm not changing myself for better results. I don't want to do bad or anything, but I'd much rather be the worst witch in the entire school then someone I am not."
All of a sudden Miss Hardbroom appeared and said: "Well, Mildred. It's not surprising that you're making a wrong decision again, but I didn't know you'd get that used to your infamous title. Miss Cackle! This girl has been a nightmare in class and now she's finally concentrated and earnest. Are you really allowing her to become that clumsy slattern again?"
"Constance, I promised her life would get a lot easier if she took these. But if that's not the case, well... Mildred has to do what's best for her."
"Best for her? Miss Cackle! You should have seen her in class today, you can't do this!"
"See Miss Cackle," Mildred said before Miss Cackle answered Miss Hardbroom. "I'm not myself! Even my friend think so. I am not taking these anymore. Even if you don't take them back."
"I've heard enough, Mildred." Miss Cackle said. "Miss Hardbroom, I'm sorry, but I can't force Mildred into something she doesn't want to do or take. You can give them back to me. But if you ever want to try them again. Feel free to ask."
Mildred returned to her room. She still felt a little different, but relieved. She walked back to her room where she was surprised by Maud, Enid, Fenella and Griselda.
"Welcome back Mildred!"