A Cause for Concern
Disclaimer: I do not own the Worst Witch or Weirdsister College series or any characters associated with them. No money is being made from this story.
Chapter 13: Heartbreak
The Atomic Nightclub in Lions Street was one of the most popular late night venues in Cambridge, a town not especially noted for its vibrant nightlife. Every night it was packed out by crowds of young people in their late teens and early twenties, mostly University students but some local residents as well, who wanted to dance, drink sophisticated but relatively inexpensive cocktails and generally have a fun evening.
Mildred and Ben had spent a couple of hours there but left just before nine o'clock. Mildred wanted to return to Cackle's by lights out so she could keep an eye on Cynthia.
After she had caught Cynthia and Annabel bullying Edith on Monday, the two of them seemed to have backed off and Mildred had seen no signs of any further trouble on that score. It was encouraging as well that the other First Years seemed to be making a deliberate effort to include Edith more. What concerned Mildred more now was Cynthia's strange excursion to the East Wing a few nights ago. She had kept a close eye on both Cynthia and the East Wing but there had been no signs of that escapade being repeated. A couple of times she had wondered if she wasn't making too much of what might have been just an adolescent whim, but Mildred just could not persuade herself to let it drop. Not long ago she had told Constance Hardbroom that experience had taught her to trust her instincts, and they were telling her now that something rather sinister was going on.
"You're very quiet, Millie." Her boyfriend's voice startled Mildred out of her introspection. "Haven't you enjoyed this evening?"
"Yes of course I have," Mildred told him, smiling. "I just love those dance anthems. They really get me going!"
"Yeah, I noticed!" Ben Stemson grinned at his girlfriend. "You're a good dancer, Millie!"
Mildred laughed, a bit ruefully.
"I used to be a rubbish dancer," she admitted. "Then in my third year at Weirdsister, Cas started dragging me to all these all night raves. I got plenty of practice that way."
Ben suddenly grabbed Mildred's hand and dragged her into a dimly lit alley they were passing as they made their way back to the café.
"Ben, what…?"
Her surprised question was cut off as Ben's lips descended on hers, his hands moving to her hips and pulling her hard against him. She returned the kiss eagerly, wrapping her arms around his neck. After several seconds Ben pulled away.
"You looked so sexy on that dance floor," he whispered. "God, I want you so much Millie!"
"Ben!" Mildred laughed a little breathlessly. "We've already made love twice today."
"I want you again!" Ben's hand slid up from her waist to cup and fondle her right breast.
Mildred whimpered, intense desire flaring in her belly and she pressed her lips to Ben's again. It had not been what she had planned, but a quick shag in the back of a dark alley suddenly seemed the perfect way to end the evening.
Unfortunately this wasn't so easy to accomplish and as the two of them struggled with her clothing, Mildred silently cursed herself for deciding to wear tight jeans instead of a skirt. Reluctantly, she decided they needed to take this somewhere more comfortable and private and pulled herself out of her boyfriend's embrace.
"Millie, what's wrong?" Ben asked in confusion.
"Nothing's wrong," Mildred reassured him. "I just think we should take this somewhere more convenient."
Reaching out, she touched Ben's arm and the two of them vanished in a flash of light, only to reappear a second later in a darkened room. Mildred snapped her fingers and the light turned itself on.
Ben's room was a fairly small one with light blue wallpaper. The bed was at one end next to the door with a desk at the other, near the window that had dark red curtains. The only other furniture was a chest of drawers that had an elaborate stereo system on top of it and a bookcase with a small TV.
Ben looked around him in surprise, scowling fiercely.
"I thought you weren't suppose to do this sort of thing for selfish reasons?"
Mildred shrugged. "If it rebounds on me then so be it!" She wrapped her arms around Ben's neck, pressing herself against him sensuously and dropping her voice to a seductive whisper. "Maybe good witches aren't supposed to do this sort of thing, but when I'm with you I'd rather be a wicked witch!"
Ben pulled himself roughly out of Mildred's arms, sending her staggering.
"For God's sake Millie, can't you think about anything except sex?"
Mildred stared at Ben in shock, confused and bewildered by her boyfriend's increasingly bizarre mood swings. A minute ago he couldn't keep his hands off her, and now he was acting as if she had been the one coming on to him and was some sort of raving nymphomaniac.
"I think about lots of things besides sex," she said at last. "But what's wrong with sex anyway? We're a couple aren't we? That's what couples do!"
"Not all the time," Ben snapped at her. "I'm getting tired of keeping up with all your demands."
"Well I'm so sorry you find making love to me such a tedious chore!" Mildred snapped back. "But if you fancy a change, maybe I can just take care of myself and you can watch!"
"Yeah, I'm sure you've had plenty of practice at that," Ben sneered. "Is this a witchy thing?"
"Is what a witchy thing?" Mildred asked, puzzled.
"Being oversexed?"
"I am not oversexed!" Mildred protested indignantly. "I'm just a normal healthy girl who happens to be in love with her boyfriend."
"Normal?" He laughed derisively. "The last thing you are is normal!"
Mildred stared at Ben in disbelief at what he had just said. She couldn't understand what was happening and was fighting against an almost overwhelming urge to burst into tears. Her free Sunday, that up until now had been fun and romantic, had suddenly turned into a nightmare.
"And I bet you've done more than just pleasure yourself over the last couple of weeks," Ben continued in the same sneering tone. "How many wizards have you cheated on me with?"
"I would never cheat on you," Mildred gasped, horrified that he could even suggest such a thing. "Ben, I haven't even seen any wizards over the last two weeks, apart from my old lecturers at Weirdsister."
"Yeah, right!" The disbelief in his voice was almost palpable. "Don't try and tell me you weirdos have the same morals as normal people. I'm sure you haven't told me even half the stuff that really goes on."
Mildred tried desperately to calm him down and restore some sanity to the situation.
"Ben, please stop this!" She put her hand on his arm but he angrily shook her off. "I love you and I'd never cheat on you."
"I don't believe you!"
Before Mildred could react, Ben slapped her viciously across the face, sending her reeling. He quickly seized her wrists and pinned her against the door.
I know you've been cheating on me," he screamed at her. "And you've been laughing at me behind my back with all your weirdo friends, making fun of the stupid normal guy who thinks he can satisfy a witch. You have, haven't you? Admit it!"
"I haven't done any of that!" Mildred struggled desperately to free herself but Ben was too strong. "Ben, let go. You're hurting me!"
"Oh so I'm hurting you am I?" he sneered at her. "Well that's a turn up for the books, an ordinary guy like me hurting the great and mighty witch, Mildred Hubble!" He spat contemptuously in Mildred's face, making her cry out in shock. "Not so high and mighty now, are you? Let's see you magic your way out if this one, you unnatural bitch!"
Mildred had finally had enough. There was a crackle of magical energy and Ben was sent flying, crashing into the desk at the far end of the room. The light suddenly flickered wildly and an unnatural wind starting blowing, rustling the curtains and scattering the papers on Ben's desk.
As Mildred advanced towards Ben where he lay sprawled on the floor, her anger was so great that she barely looked human, her eyes glowing eerily and magic crackling and sparking across her entire body. She pointed at the expensive hi-fi system that was Ben's pride and joy and a bolt of light shot from her hand, blasting it into a thousand fragments.
Ben screamed in terror and covered his face with his arms.
"Please," he whimpered as Mildred halted in front of him. "Please don't!"
Mildred took several deep breaths, struggling to control her magic before she involuntarily blasted the young man cowering at her feet into nothingness.
"I'm not going to hurt you," she assured him. "But we're finished Ben. It's obvious now you'll never accept me as a witch, so it's best we go our separate ways before we hurt each other more. I'll find myself a nice wizard who isn't intimidated by my magic, and I'm sure you'll find a nice 'normal' girl you can slap around without fear of being turned into a frog!"
With those words, Mildred abruptly disappeared in a flash of light.
Even as she dematerialised Mildred knew she had misjudged the distance, which was instantly confirmed when she reappeared not in her room but on top of the Staff Room table where the other teachers were sitting after a late supper. It was an ironic echo of an incident in her first year at Cackles, when Enid Nightshade had similarly misjudged a transportation spell.
"I'm sorry!" Mildred apologised hastily, amid exclamations of surprise and alarm from her colleagues. She quickly jumped off the table "I misjudged the distance from Cambridge."
"Mildred, what's wrong?" Miss Hardbroom asked. She reached out, gently grasping Mildred's chin and turning her face to the side, her expression becoming hard as she saw the angry red mark on the young witch's face where her now ex boyfriend had slapped her. "Did someone hit you?"
"Just leave me alone!" Mildred screamed, pulling out of the older witch's grasp. "I don't want to talk about it!"
Ignoring the concerned questions from the other teachers, she rushed to the door and left the room, slamming the door behind her.
Mildred leaned against the Staff Room door, taking deep breaths and trying not to cry. There was still nearly half an hour until lights out and she didn't want any of the girls to see her upset. She needed to stay composed until she was alone in her room, and only then would she allow herself to give way to tears.
Mildred started walking towards her room, not trusting herself to get there magically in her present state. Turning the corner she suddenly collided with Cynthia Hazelmere, who had been walking in the opposite direction.
"Oh I'm sorry, Miss"
"Cynthia?" Mildred was surprised to see the girl. "It's not that long to lights out. Shouldn't you be heading to your room?"
"I will in a minute Miss. I just wanted a word with Miss Hardbroom about the essay she assigned us."
"Well you'd better be quick about it." Mildred advised her.
"I will," Cynthia promised. "Are you all right Miss Hubble? You look a bit upset."
"I'm fine," Mildred lied, trying to keep her face composed. "Thank you for your concern Cynthia, but you'd better hurry along now."
"Yes Miss!"
But as Cynthia turned to leave Mildred clearly saw the look of malicious satisfaction in the girl's eyes. It was as though the First Year somehow knew exactly what heartbreak and emotional turmoil her form tutor was going through and was inwardly gloating over it.
Mildred shivered. The urge to cry had gone and she now felt strangely empty and desolate. It suddenly struck her just how alone she really was. She no longer saw much of her parents except on special occasions and her colleagues were all much older than her as well as being her former teachers, which made confiding in them awkward. These days she didn't have much regular contact with her friends from school and college either, apart from Cas Crowfeather, and living so far apart and in different time zones made it difficult for the two of them to meet up often. Now that she had broken up with Ben, there was just no one her own age she could easily confide in and Mildred felt very isolated and somehow rather vulnerable.
Acting on sudden impulse, Mildred folded her arms and vanished. Instead of returning to her room she reappeared in the open air, not far from the small village close to Cackle's. She walked resolutely into the village, ignoring the odd looks the few people still out and about gave her. Right now there was only one thing she really wanted to do.