Chapter Eleven

Things at Cackle's were still not very good. It is true that the Pentangles and Cackle's students had finally started to separate but all the room-mates were still not happy living together.

Mildred and Ethel were still enemies and sharing made everything worse because it caused tension and led to more fights and the thing was Mildred felt like she was sharing with three people and not one.

Mildred was actually quite friendly with both Esmeralda and Sybil and of course she did not mind the two other girls being in her room as she had her friends in the room all the time, the problem was when the three of them were together Mildred was basically invisible, she knew it was a sister thing they didn't mean to ignore her but it still annoyed her.

Mildred walked into her bedroom and saw Ethel and Sybil sat on Ethel's bed giggling away as they read a book. Neither girl seemed to have notice she had just entered the room as they were too busy looking at the book. Before Mildred had a chance to even greet the two girls Esmeralda appeared in the doorway with her arms folded staring at her two sisters. At this Ethel slammed the book shut and put it behind her back.

"Come on where is it?" Esme asked looking at each of her younger sisters.

"Where is what?" Ethel asked pretending she had no idea about what her sister was talking about.

"My advanced potions book." Esme said knowing they had it.

"Esmeralda I am insulted you would think one of us would steal something of yours." Sybil replied playing along.

"I found blonde hairs on the bookshelf." Esme replied with a smirk.

"Maybe they are yours." Ethel replied smartly.

"I cleaned that bookshelf this morning, they are not mine and then I thought who else is blonde...oh my little sisters." Esme said as Sybil started to laugh.

"Where is it?" Esmeralda replied knowing they were guilty. Ethel knew it was hopeless to hide it and gave the book to her sister.

"You know I don't mind you touching my stuff but this book is dangerous in your hands you are not old enough to use these spells correctly." Esmeralda told them seriously.

"Sorry Esme, we were looking up how to make a love potion...Ethel wants to give it to Zac." Sybil blurted out.

"No I don't, you were going to use it on that Pentangles guy who always stares at Esme." Ethel replied defensively.

"Oh yes that guy totally loves you Esme." Sybil replied dreamily.

"Esme and Marcus sitting in a tree." Ethel said starting to sing to her sister. At this Esme walked into the room fully and went towards Ethel's bed. "K-I-S-S-I-N-...Ahh" Ethel said as her sister grabbed the pillow and hit her with her. The three sisters were laughing and started having a pillow fight all hitting each other and laughing. Mildred sat on her bed watching and rolled her eyes before she decided to try something. She stood on her bed and shouted.

"I STARTED THE FIRE"

This got no response in fact the sisters were laughing so hard as they attacked each other with pillows Mildred could barely hear herself think.

"Oh don't mind me, I will just go." Mildred said as she got up to leave the room.

The thing was Mildred did not understand it. She had never had a sibling before or felt that bond with someone so found it difficult to understand they were just being sisters. She left the room and went to see Maud in her room and found Enid there too.

"What is up with you?" Enid asked as she saw Mildred walking in with her arms folded.

"Why did I get stuck living with the Brady Bunch?" Mildred asked annoyed.

Maud looked at Enid before looking back at Mildred and replied.

"The Hallow sisters ignoring you again?" Maud asked knowing what was happening.

"Yes, I feel like I don't exist, I shouted that I started the fire and none of them even blinked." Mildred replied sharing what she did.

"I wouldn't take it personally, I am sure it is a sister thing." Enid replied though she was as clueless about it as her friend as she was an only child too.

"I don't mind them spending time together but...I feel like I am intruding on something personal, this must be how Ethel feels when her mum ignores her." Mildred commented. As she made that comment she realised then how Ethel actually felt daily, how it felt to be ignored.

"Did you just find something in common with Ethel Hallow?" Maud asked with a laugh.

"Imagine feeling like that all the time, like you are in the way." Mildred said out loud but not to anyone in particular.

"Well it cannot feel good." Enid replied to her friend.

It was that moment Mildred realised exactly how it felt. Mildred had always felt Ethel made a big deal about her mother's treatment of her, that it was her behaviour that made it so she was treated differently but then Mildred remembered how none of the sisters had noticed when she had shouted about the fire. That was when it finally hit her properly. You can't force someone to notice you and look what she was doing now, she was insulting the girls and moaning about them...just like Ethel does when she is hurting.

"I have got to go." Mildred replied as something entered her head and she ran out the room. Maud and Enid looked at each other but shrugged.

Mildred went back to her bedroom and found just Ethel there. Now her sister's had gone Ethel was sat on her bed flicking through a book and looking a lot less happy than she had half an hour before. Mildred went and sat next to Ethel.

"Yes?" Ethel asked as she raised her eyebrows at her room-mate.

"Ethel Hallow I never thought these words would leave my mouth when talking about you but...I am going to help you." Mildred told her.

"I don't need help with anything." Ethel replied confused.

"Yes you do, you need help with making your parents notice you." Mildred told her.

Ethel stopped reading and looked up at Mildred wearing a look of confusion.

"I never knew how it felt to be ignored, but well...let's just say I do now and living with that everyday is something I could not do and you should not have to either." Mildred told her.

"Oh so what do you want me to do? Clone myself into Esme?" Ethel asked not understanding how Mildred knowing how it feels to be ignored would solve anything.

"No, we have one hour until our mirror time begins and today I am going to give you my slot, you Ethel are going to spend that time talking to your mother about how you feel." Mildred told her as if it was an order.

"I am not talking to her about it." Ethel scoffed.

"Oh yes you are, unless you like being ignored." Mildred told her.

"It won't make a difference, she does it on purpose." Ethel told her.

"Maybe...or maybe she has no idea she is doing it, either way it is worth a try." Mildred told her.

"But what if it doesn't solve anything?" Ethel asked unsure still.

"Then it doesn't solve anything, at least she knows the pain you feel when she ignores you, she might be a witch but even she is not physic Ethel she can't read your mind and know how you feel." Mildred told her logically.

"Why do you even care?" Ethel asked her not understanding at all where this was coming from.

"Because Ethel despite what you might think I do not hate you." Mildred replied honestly.

Ethel sat there looking at Mildred not sure how to reply and for once both girls realised maybe being room-mates was not so bad. Maybe they could learn to be civil with each other. The two girls went back to doing their own things Ethel reading her book and Mildred on her bed and did some reading of her own, feeling proud of her self for thinking of a way to help Ethel.