The Arboreal spirits teacher was a short, yet slender woman dressed not unlike a tree herself- wearing various shades of brown and green, and appeared as if she had simply found some rather hideous patterned curtains and decided to drape herself in it.
"OH, we have guests today! Welcome, welcome, ladies of Cackles! I am Miss Terra, and since I don't believe in last names, you may call me as such. None of that formal professor, or Miss nonsense" she explained. Millie glanced backwards and giggled quietly at Miss Hardbroom's horrified face."Now, this is Natural Studies, and here at Merlin's we believe that our young wizards must learn to harness the power of nature with their magic, and that requires communication and collaboration with the Arboreal spirits" she said plainly. Mildred cocked her head. "Can anyone tell me what an arboreal spirit is?"
Percival's hand raised tentatively. "Isn't it just a tree spirit ma'am. Every tree has one, and each , spirit embodies the personality, and age of their specific tree or type of tree"
"Absolutely correct, Percival!" Miss Terra complimented."For today's lesson, we will start by simply summoning the Arboreal spirits from their trees, now keep in mind some of them may be reluctant, as they are slumbering. If you open your books to page 44, you'll find the chant to summon them from their tree to appear before you. Work in pairs, and be very polite! If they are offended, they will retreat right back"
Mildred worked with Enid, who swore to be on her absolute best behavior.
"I guess this is where chanting comes in handy huh?" Enid said, looking over Mildred's shouder.
"Yeah I guess" Mildred mumbled, staring blankly at the page.
"Mildred what's wrong?" Enid asked. Mildred sighed.
"It's Maud. She's been acting strange ever since we got here- and now she's dating Elliott. And then she said…she said…" her voice wobbled. "she said she didn't want to be friends anymore" Enid gasped.
"What? Maud said that?" Enid exclaimed. "I'm going over there and I'm going to talk some sense into her" Mildred had to grab Enid by the arm.
"No. I mean thanks, but don't do that. She's not herself- I, I don't think it's her fault. I think it's Elliott. I think he's put some kind of spell on her"
"What kind of spell?" Enid asked. Mildred shrugged.
"I don't know. Love potions usually would've worn off by now" Mildred wrung her hands. Enid hugged her friend briefly.
"Let's just focus on the chant for now, and we'll figure this Elliott thing out together" Enid said.
The tree spirits were summoned with varying degrees of success. Mildred and Enid were struggling, as they had a particularly pernicious one who whined whenever they tugged at her with their magic.
"But I'm so comfy…..please please don't make me go out there it's cold…" the ethereal being whined from inside the tree.
"It's 80 degrees" Enid pointed out. The spirit shot her a dirty look.
"Please come out" Millie sighed. "Didn't we say the chant right?" she said to Enid.
"Didn't we say the chant right" the spirit mocked. "Yes, little strange seedlings. You did. But you're so little your magic is only a little irritating bug to me"
"Great" Millie sat down dejected on the grass. "Now I'm going to fail this lesson just like I've failed Maud" she felt utterly defeated. As Enid left to go ask the professor a question, a familiar shadow fell over Mildred, as she sat plucking at the grass fighting not to cry in sheer frustration.
"Hello Miss Hardbroom" she said without looking behind her.
"Why do I not see a tree spirit before me, Mildred Hubble" she asked.
"Dunno, Miss Hardbroom. Ask her. She's the one refusing to come out. Apparently since she's resisting, she's stronger than both me and Enid" Mildred said flatly, flicking a beetle off her shoulder with a vengeance. Miss Hardbroom sighed.
"This is exactly why we do not teach such a fickle subject at Cackle's. It is not fair to you, Mildred Hubble or to your classmates, because your success has nothing to do with your magical ability. It has to with your ability to persuade these…creatures to leave their homes" she said derisively. To Mildred's shock, her teacher inspected the ground beside her, and settled down on her knees beside her.
"Exactly. Besides the professor didn't warn us some of the tree spirits are so strong. It's setting us up for failure" Mildred ground out. Miss Hardbroom nodded.
"Indeed" she remarked, examining the tree.
"And that's what I feel like. I failed this lesson just like I failed Maud" Mildred said miserably. "And that's an awful lot of failing to happen in only two days"
"Mildred. That person…I won't call her a teacher because she does not deserve the title, has failed you" she said intensely, taking Mildred's shoulders in her hands. "And as for Maud, if anyone failed her it is me. It is my job to protect all of my students from harm, magical or otherwise" Miss Hardbroom said brokenly. Mildred shook her head firmly.
"It wasn't your fault Miss Hardbroom, you couldn't have known there was anything wrong. I mean, apparently we're all at the age to be you know..into boys…" Mildred rambled. Miss Hardbroom smirked. "But anyway, we'll figure out how to fix it, together" she said firmly.
"Thank you Mildred" Miss Hardbroom said softly."And as for this lesson, I will not allow any pupil of mine to give up so easily. Now, up!" Miss Hardbroom said in her usual voice, transferring to a standing position.
"The key to gaining the respect of this creature is to be an authority figure. You are not asking, you are commanding" Miss Hardbroom whispered forcefully. "So stand tall, posture is everything" Mildred drew herself up.
"Use a loud and clear voice, and order her from the tree" Miss Hardbroom said, stepping backward. Mildred grinned, puffed out her chest, and strode towards the tree. Miss Hardbroom's lips lifted slightly at the comical way she did so.
"OI! I'm Mildred Hubble of Cackle's Academy and you come out of this tree right now before I come in and kick your stumpy bottom from here to the moon" she hollered, summoning up a small lighting spell for extra effect. There was a slight screech from inside the birch, and the ethereal being rushed out of the tree as if something were chasing her. She wore an long gown made of white bark with odd bits of moss here and there. Her hair was a turquoise tangle of branches and leaves, and her face and skin were wood-like in appearance. Her eyes glowed a brilliant turquoise, with no pupils. She reminded Mildred of a very pretty puppet. She looked terrified for a moment, then turned annoyed when she saw Mildred.
"Oh for Gaia's sake. It's you again. Here I was afraid for my life only to discover it's the little girl from before. Sure, sure scare a poor dryad out of a tree. 100 points! We've really got to find a way to get rid of this class. I was in a very good centuries long nap!" she ranted.
"Sorry, um, sorry. I'm not actually a student here. I'm just visiting from Cackle's academy" Mildred explained.
"Well that makes sense. I could've sworn this was a Wizard's academy but then, I've been asleep for thousands of years" she replied nonchalantly.
"Well would you mind just staying out here until my teacher comes round" Millie asked. "I'd really like to pass"
"I suppose if I'm out, I'm out and a few more minutes won't hurt" the spirit grumbled. Mildred glanced over at Eliott and Maud, who weren't even participating, but were seated on a hollow log at the edge of the clearing, talking animatedly. The spirit followed her gaze, and blanched.
"Woah that's some dark energy stank coming off of him" she said waving her hand in front of her face. Mildred grew excited.
"That boy" Mildred said, pointing at Elliott.
"Yeah he's bad news" the spirit said, coughing. "I'd really like to go back into my tree, the smell is killing me"
"No, wait please!" Millie said. "Can you tell me anything about the black dust? My friend's been acting strangely and she had some on her" The dryad grew quiet.
"Black dust" she said quietly, becoming somber. "Was it shiny? Or sparkly? Sort of hissed when it hit the ground?" Mildred swallowed.
"How did you know that?" she asked. The dryad put her hands on her hips.
"First of all, I could see you and your friend from inside my tree. Just because I'm asleep doesn't mean I'm not vaguely aware of what's going on out here" she said sassily. "I usually don't care but when I saw that dust I knew I wanted to stay in my tree. I won't touch the stuff" Miss Terra came by, saw the spirit and nodded approvingly.
"Can you tell me what it is then?" Mildred asked. The spirit wrinkled up her face.
"I could. I'm not sure why I should" she said matter of factly. "Your friend is doomed anyhow"
Mildred narrowed her eyes, and cleared her throat.
"Miss Terra! I think this class is the best ever! I think we are depriving the young wizards of this academy by holding it only twice a week. We should teach it year ro-"
"All right!" A branch covered her mouth. "You really aren't messing around are you?" Mildred shook her head furiously.
"The dust is called root dust. It occurs when a tree spirit has been murdered" Mildred squirmed and the spirit retracted her arm. "Normally when we die, our essence flows naturally into the soil without a trace. But if a tree spirit is taken before her time- it is considered a sacred violation to the earth, creating a toxic powder that has immense power, manifesting our normally peaceful energy into a warlike angry essence. Only an extremely dark and powerful witch or wizard could have committed such an act and create the dust" the spirit whispered. "And that is all I know sapling, I swear on mother earth herself" Mildred's eyes widened, processing and trying vainly not to panic. "Now please, won't you and your irritating classmates leave me in peace" she said vanishing back into the tree.