This fanfic is dedicate to:
Jill Murphy, whose great imagination inspired me throughout my childhood,
and Kate Duchene, whose beautiful acting lifted HB from the page.
Hope you enjoy the story, it is my first so please go easy on me :). Will hopefully be writing more, but I'm a trainee teacher so time is pretty sparse!
(Dislcaimer - I dont own any of these characters)
A Strange Detention
"I believe 500 lines and a detention is an appropriate punishment Headmistress " said Miss Hardbroom.
"I agree, Miss Hardbroom"
"but i..i" started Mildred
"No Mildred, you have embarrassed this academy tonight" an unusual frown passed over Miss Cackle's usually jolly face. "I doubt I will be able to look Chief wizard Helibore in the eyes again, this is the second time you have made a fool of yourself in front of him, I know last time with the broomstick display it turned out to be Ethel's fault, but this time there really is no excuse! You cannot turn one of his apprentices into a cat! no matter what he says to you. It is simply unacceptable Mildred.
"and its against the witches code" cut in Miss Hardbroom.
"Frankly Mildred, I'm a little disappointed in you. I thought you had put all of this nonsense to rest. You may go, but I want the 500 lines in by Friday and you will serve a detention after lessons with Miss Hardbroom tomorrow evening.". Mildred lifted her eyes from her shoes and met Miss Cackles.
"I'm sorry Miss Cackle, Miss Hardbroom",
She left the room quickly, feeling desperately sorry for herself, and headed towards her dorm. She wished she could be one of those girls, like Ethel or Drucilla perhaps, that got away with everything. But no, trust Barry Dragonsbane to make a mad escape in feline-form, and for Ethel to tell Miss Hardbroom, who just so happened to be speaking to chief wizard Helibore at the time. It's not even like she had wanted to go to the picnic yesterday, with Dragonsbane and Grailsquest always laughing at her and her gang and showing off about 'Great' wizards and how witches just 'don't compare'. At least she had managed to shut them up, she chuckled to herself miserably as she got into bed, if only for a minute or two.
The lines were OK, Fenny and Gris had taught Millie a spell in which to get as many lines as was needed but prospect of a detention with Miss Hardbroom played on Mildred's mind all night. Its not that she didn't like HB, no Mildred found it difficult to dislike, it was that HB had this indescribable presence which stuck fear into all the girls within her care.
Constance slowly undressed and let out her flowing mane from its tight bun. She got into bed, flicking her finger at the alarm clock so that it would be set for precisely 6am. Another flick and her room was engulfed into darkness.
She sighed and rolled over. Today had been a catastrophe she acknowledged. How she hated taking the girls out at the weekend. It had been Amelia's daft idea that she ought to spend more time bonding with the girls, instead of simply being their disciplinarian and the invitation for a picnic with the wizard academy had come at the right moment. "You might even enjoy yourself Constance" Amelia had said, beaming at the self perceived brilliance of her idea. "Hmmphh Fat chance of that" Constance had thought, imagining a warm Saturday in the company of her ghastly second year form-group, Mildred Hubble and the likes.
She certainly didn't enjoy herself. What was it about young girls which made them unruly and wild? She had hated this 'picnic', especially as it had meant hours in the company of Helibore, him lecturing about the greatness of wizards and the lack of skill witches had in comparison. Heliboring more like! He needed to get his facts right! Constance knew that she could win Helibore hands down in a duel, a point which she was just about to make.
Luckily she had been interrupted by Mildred, who had accidentally turned one of Helibore's apprentices into a cat, and let him escape. She laughed inwardly at this, how she hated boys, especially young wizards! Atleast Mildred had learnt one spell since entering the academy and a complex transformation spell at that. Despite herself a flutter of pride passed through her, which she immediately suppressed.
The cat was easy to find, and even easier for a witch like him to transform back. "I will deal with you later" She had muttered to Mildred, singing her apologies to the Chief Wizard.
The school day passed quickly, and the detention loomed over Mildred like a rain cloud on this hot summer's day. Maud and Enid said bye to Mildred before rushing downstairs to sunbathe on the lawn near the woods. "With any luck, HB won't be in a bad mood and will let you leave soon enough" Maud hoped.
"Maud when is HB ever in a good mood?" Enid joked.
Mildred entered the classroom, which was strangely dim on such a bright day.
Miss Hardbroom was already there, grading tests, a red pen working furiously against the papers. "You will be arranging the potion ingredients ready for the fourth years practise exam tomorrow, Mildred, I want a few of each ingredient laid out on the work-benches, after that you can organise the remaining ingredients on the shelf, if you have any time left I suggest you attempt to make a truth potion again, the one which came from you yesterday was very unsatisfactory". She said all this without looking up.
Mildred sighed, typical HB. The woman had always been her harshest critic. She hurriedly got to work, her mind whirling with the few memories she had of HB being nice. She smiled at the thought of the time when she had saved the school from Miss Cackle's sister and HB had actually smiled and thanked her. It was unbelievable at this moment in time.
Inwardly smiling, Constance read Mildred's potions test.
Q4) what ingredients are needed for a shrinking potion?
Daisy roots, skinned shrivelfig, caterpillar, rat spleen, leech juice,
Mint
So close to being right, yet the mint being an activator would push to potion to overdrive, most likely causing any object to vanish completely.
Constance wrote a zero in the marking box and jotted down that mint was not needed. She was a harsh marker, but after all, get a potion slightly wrong and the consequences could be dire.
Mildred seemed to have a way of making sure she had the answer wrong, Constance could see her now, right answer already written, wondering if there was anything else in the potion, and making a random illogical guess.
Despite the way it probably seemed some times, Constance didn't hate Mildred. On the contrary, Constance admired the girl's strength of character and the way she bounced back from the disasters that followed her. But Mildred was everything Constance was not, and most of the qualities Mildred possessed were not the ones she valued.
"Miss, I'm um done with the cupboard now, shall I get started on a potion?"
"Yes Mildred" Constance replied in a tired voice. "That is what I asked".
Half an hour later, Constance looked up. Mildred long plaits were going frizzy from the heat of the Bunsen. "I don't know why she doesn't just tie it up tighter, a nice neat bun or ponytail perhaps" she thought. "Are you finished?
"I think so Miss".
"Then bring it here, I want to inspect it".
Mildred carefully poured the liquid into a test tube, hoping she had finally got it right. She walked towards the teacher's desk.
Just as she was taking her last trip she tripped, clumsily tipping the potion all over HBs head!
"Mildred Hubble, you silly girl! You've spilt potion all over me" Miss Hardbroom snarled, furious at the carelessness. "For once in your life I wish you would just do up your bootlaces like we are constantly asking!"
"Im so sorry miss, do you want me to go get you a towel?"
"I needn't remind you, this is a witch school Mildred" HB replied, hastily siphoning herself dry using her index finger. "The potion better not have sunk in, goodness knows what effect it will have. Now you can tidy away the cauldron and then spend the next hour putting the potion books into alphabetical order".
"But miss, you didn't mention the potion books earlier".
"Well that was before you practically threw potion at me, wasn't it."
"But, But I will be late down to sup-…."
"In SILENCE".
Mildred, wept silently, she hated being shouted at. It had been an accident, a mistake of her own stupid doing; she looked at her boots miserably. She really was the worst witch in the school.
She put all the books into order carefully, knowing Miss Hardbroom would shout some more if there was a single one out of place.
What seemed like an eternity later, Miss Hardbroom spoke. "That's enough now then Mildred, you may go down to supper." She looked over at Mildred who noticed that her eyes were not focusing properly, which looked very strange on the teacher who always seemed in control of everything.
"Now, what are you crying for" she inquired in a voice that was not at all unkind.
"Im so sorry Miss Hardbroom, truly I am. I know you must despise me, I can't seem to get anything right! I'm trying, I really am," The suppressed emotion spilled from Mildred.
When Miss Hardbroom replied, she sounded different to usual some how. Her expression also looked different, less stony more….dreamy? Mildred observed. "I don't hate you Mildred. I know you girls think I'm mean, and perhaps I am. But it's the only way I know and I only want the best for you. For you to grow into the best witch you can be, so you have a chance to do some good in the world."
Mildred stood in shock for a minute. She had never heard HB speak like that.
"But Miss, your always so harsh with me, more so than the others." Mildred spoke wearily of something that had been on her mind since beginning Cackles.
"Don't ask me to explain myself Mildred, I'm not sure I can, not fully anyway. Maybe I'm harsher on you than the others because I see a little of my self in you and it makes me care for you, I wasn't above making mistakes whilst I was your age."
"What?. You were like me?" Mildred was beginning to realise something wasn't right, the HB she knew would never admit something like that.
"Before my time at Witch Training College, I was known as the worst witch at Sorcellerie's Academy. I liked to rebel against the strict rules and expectations the academy set. I was a bored teenager, brilliant at finding trouble. I had no control over myself. That same gift for trouble seems to have been given to you Mildred". At this point Miss Hardbroom smiled knowingly. The truth potion must have affected her, Mildred realised. Despite herself, she was proud to have made a potion which actually worked! But with a jolt back to reality, she begun to panic.
"Oh gosh, Ive drugged Miss Hardbroom",
She sped upstairs, hoping that Maud and Enid would be in their rooms by now. She found them laughing in Enid's room.
"Maud, Enid, I need your help, Ive done something terrible! They'll kick me out."
"Calm down Mills, What's the matter?" Maud inquired gently.
"I spilt truth potion all over Miss Hardbroom, and now she acting strange. I don't know how to make an antidote!"
"Holy Cricket Millie" Enid gasped.
They rushed over to the potions lab, luckily HB hadn't moved, but her face was as dreamy as ever.
"I bet she'd tell us anything" Enid laughed, dying to seize the opportunity.
"Get mixing Enid, We need to make it quickly, before anyone see's." Maud hissed.
The girls worked quickly yet carefully, Miss Hardbroom couldn't seem to stop talking. She seemed to be in a sort of trance, and couldn't stop blurting out truths.
"Ethels not really my favourite, despite what everyone believes… the teacher in me has to like Ethel, she always gets everything right…. But she has a mean streak about her…."
"I was at school with Heliboring..I remember this one time I turned him into a mouse for saying that witches have crooked noises….my noise is quite straight. Oh how I got into trouble for that….."
"Ive become quite attached to Miss Bat's Mongolian chanting song, there's something soothing about it…"
"I really do like cheesecake, sometimes when Miss Cackle leaves the room I take a slice of hers, she never notices, just assumes she's eaten more than she thought…."
"I admire the way Miss Drill is with you girls, she's so relaxed, and you all seem to like her…sometimes I wish you'd like me as much, actually look forward to my lessons instead of dreading them…"
"Sometimes I have to bite my lip to stop myself laughing at some of the things you girls say to each other, like the other day Enid, when you called Drucilla a Snivelling
Sycophantic Suck-up… It was a lovely use of alliteration…"
"Quick Mildred… its ready." Maud muttered. Mildred grabbed the vial of antidote and headed towards HB.. she paused for a second..
"How am I supposed to convince her to drink it, she might not be in her right mind, but I doubt she'll drink it knowingly."
"Just do what you did last time!" Enid said standing guard at the door, "And Hurry…its Monday evening, she's on supper duty, Miss Cackle will be wondering where she is!".
"What throw it at her again?"
"YES!" Maud and Enid hissed.
"I am going to be in so much trouble." Mildred walked towards the desk and with her eyes closed threw the mixture over HB.
Constance woke with a start, she must have just drifted off to sleep. What a strange dream she had had…. She had been telling Mildred Hubble, of all people, all her secrets.
The scene before her came into focus. Mildred was standing over her with Maud Moonshine and Enid Nightshade peeking around her.
"Mildred, what have you thrown all over me?" she sighed, too tired to get mad.
"Ermm it was an antidote miss".
"an antidote to what exactly..?"
"well you accidentally got hit with a truth potion miss" Mildred mumbled looking at her feet.
"You mean to tell me your potion actually worked?"
"um yes miss."
Constance rubbed her aching temples and looked into Mildred's eyes, which wouldn't meet hers. She knew instinctively that the girl was telling the truth, goodness knows what she had said whilst being under the potion's enchantment.
"Girls, I want you to all go upstairs and get ready for supper." Mildred couldn't believe her luck. No punishment? "If you do not speak of the events that happened in here tonight, nor will I". Constance continued.
"Of course Miss Hardbroom" Maud replied, and the girls grabbed their things and escaped the room as quick as they could scarcely daring to look at each other.
Constance smiled; there was something quite comical about the whole thing. It took her back to her school days where she had accidentally dropped vanishing potion onto her own potion's mistress and the poor teacher had spent the rest of the day being completely ignored. Her thoughts were interrupted by Miss Cackle, who had knocked and entered without waiting for an answer, as was her way.
"Have you and Mildred finished now Constance?"
"Yes Headmistress, I will be down for supper in a moment."
"Constance…why are you wet?" Amelia peered at Constance through the sides of her glasses.
"Miss Hubble decided to trip over and dropped a potion on me".
"Oh dear, poor Mildred, I hope you weren't too harsh on her."
"No Headmistress, I've let the incident go, after all no-one gets it right all the time."
"Very kind of you Constance, and a little out of character if you don't mind my saying, have you turned over a new leaf with the girl?"
"Oh I doubt that, the only way she will learn is if she gets told what her mistakes are." Constance smiled to herself, remembering how quickly she had changed from the careless young girl with the constant criticism provided by Hecketty Broomshead at Witch Training College.
The trio had kept quiet all that day, Miss Hardbroom's glares at supper was enough to keep them from spilling her secrets. The next day however, the girls were walking to a chanting lesson and Enid couldn't hold it in any longer.
"I just have this image of HB nicking Cackle's cake every time she's not looking."
"Heliboring…" Mildred laughed "Im glad its not just me that finds him dull."
"Did HB say anything before we got there Mildred?" Maud asked.
"No, nothing much. It was nice of her to not punish us. You know I don't think she's as bad as we think she is.." Mildred mumbled.
"I hope your not going soft on the Hardbroom Mils…after all the old toad will never be anything but a hard-faced cow to all of us."
"No Enid". A chilling voice from behind them said quietly, making them all jump.
"And to prove that little fact. How about a detention tonight? The old toad needs somebody to clean out the leech tank, without magic. Ill see you at six o'clock sharp. Miss Hardbroom glared before dematerialising.
Back in the staffroom, Constance smiled to herself, that ought to stop them thinking she was anything but mean.