Authors note: This chapter features a lot of original dialogue and scenery from the episode 'It's a frog's life' to set the scene. I loved this episode and wanted to write my own version. This is what I came up with. PM's and reviews welcome.
Chapter 1
The second years were lined up in rows of four in the courtyard of Cackle's, each with a broom hovering patiently and horizontally before them, well all bar Ruby Cherrytree's.
"Not at a rakish angle ruby cherrytree, it isn't a hat." Miss Hardbroom chastised her student in mild displeasure at the sight of the jaunty angle of her broom.
"Sorry Miss Hardbroom," Ruby replied merrily, not sorry at all, slowly bringing the broom down until it was level with a twitch of her fingers.
"That's better," Miss Hardbroom said, evidently glad to see that symmetry had been restored. Next she promptly instructed the class to make their cats perch on the brush end of the broom. They set about doing it immediately, it didn't do to keep HB waiting.
Mildred had been dreading cat training class. Now she remembered why. She looked to her left to see Ethel's jet black cat sitting perfectly still on her hovering, intact, broomstick. Mildred felt a spark of frustration shoot through her brain, blowing her concentration, and daresay a few other circuits as well on route.
Ethel had once again, seeing as she had nothing better to do, been winding Mildred up, claiming some ridiculous story about her leading her sister astray. Mildred finally snapped.
"I think she's a bit of a weed,"
Mildred snapped in whispered fury at Ethel. Ethel glared down her nose, for the first time allowing her hat to point straight up in the air, rather than its usual backwards lean that came with her snobbery.
"Weed, nobody calls a member of my family a weed," Ethel retorted with equal vehemence, ever quick to defend her families honour, not, Mildred noted, her sisters.
"Just stop it Ethel, I'm not going to get into a fight with you over some silly little first year, whether she's your sister or not," Mildred cried out with a mixture of agitation, exasperation and desperation, this was not what she needed with Miss Hardbroom patrolling the ranks of the class.
"I won't forget this, no one insults my family and gets away with it," Ethel shot back at her, sensing her prey was weakening.
Before either could utter another syllable, Maud, who had been listening to the whole argument from Mildred's other side, intervened,
"hey, you two," she called imploring them to stop, casting an obvious glance over her shoulder to where HB was checking a cat's posture on the back row.
"Just lay off," said Mildred as loud as she dared, "all Hallows are weeds, weeds, uaaah,"
Tabby fell from the battered banana broom that Mildred had been trying to force it sit on for the last few minutes, making an annoyed REOOOOOOW sound as he landed on the flagstones below.
HB turned on her heel and strode briskly to the source of the commotion, already sure of the culprit without needing to lay eyes on the cat, drawing level with Ethel.
"Mildred Hubble," she shouted in her usual emotionless, monotonal voice, for at least the fifth time that week, "how many terms have you been training that animal," her glare of rage prompted no immediate response from Mildred, who by now knew better than to interrupt the deputy mid flow.
Mildred waited for a second until she was sure HB had stopped for an apology.
"Sorry Miss Hardbroom," she stammered as she slumped forward slightly, mainly to express her sorrow to HB, but partly to accommodate Tabby now curled up in her arms.
Miss Hardbroom's posture was as perfect and straight as ever as she cast her eye over the shambles that was Mildred. Lifting her head high, and ignoring the slight snigger from Ruby at the fact that she now almost rivalled Ethel in terms of haughtiness, she continued to vent her frustration on the girl before her.
"None of the other's seem to find it so difficult to sit on their brooms, it's not as if they're being asked to do an aerobatic display Mildred," her voice lifted slightly in mild delight at reminding Mildred how inferior to the others she was, being the only student possessing a non witch background, especially in front of her favourite student; Ethel Hallow.
"No Miss Hardbroom," Mildred rattled off hastily, hugging Tabby to her chest for some comfort.
"That creature is not fit to be seen until it is better behaved; now I suggest you take it to your room and work with it alone for the rest of the session,"
Mildred hung her head dejectedly and murmured, "Yes Miss Hardbroom," her misery tugging down the corners of her mouth and pinching her eyebrows together.
"honestly, it's a disgrace to the Academy," HB added unnecessarily to reinforce her point, not to mention to once again air her views about Mildred in general in front of the rest of the class.
And with that she resumed barking orders at the rest of the second years, while Mildred picked up her broom and made her way sourly past Ethel.
"I won't forget about this," Ethel said in an almost whiny voice as Mildred passed her. Mildred couldn't even summon the energy to do any more arguing; instead all she managed was a deep melancholy sigh.
Ethel smiled smugly, turning her nose up as far as it would go without attracting attention. Maud glared daggers at Ethel but held her tongue, realising it wasn't worth retaliating in front of HB, instead she praised her cat loudly as it walked the length of her broom with all the grace and elegance of a panther.
She would get Ethel back later.