Mildred would find out through Fenny and Gris later that (- bar the odd moments they'd gone off topic with Mildred's questions) - Miss Cackle had taught almost the same lesson more less every year on the dot, since the year dot.

Outside of lessons, Mildred was slowly getting used to navigating the social jungle of school life. She'd started to notice with the older girls the Cliques that had established, who took what tables at meals and which groups hung out where. It was more pronounced the higher up the food chain you looked but even on the first year's fresh meat level there were a few patterns forming. Ethel and Drucilla for example had begun to hover with some older fairies. Fae tended to stick to fae, and fish to water sorts. Or amphibian to water sorts in the case of Gloria and Harriet's friendship.

But plan A (or Operation Find the Broomstick as it had been unofficially named) was going as well as Mildred's plan B. that is to say it hadn't taken off at all.

The first attempt was on that same day as spells with Miss Cackle. Mildred had tried when she went to give Mr Blossom back his spellotape after lessons. She found him outside his shed sat on the yard steps polishing the brass on what looked like door name plates.

"Claw maarks already. Only put them up lar-st week." He complained gesturing at them with his rag. "Oh ta. I did hope it should come back. Useful stuff is spellotape. Can hold a leaky pipe for weeks."

"It was, thank you." Mildred said edging around to see what was behind him in the shed. That was where Miss Cackle had told him to take it. There was something under a white sheet, but she couldn't see around the door. Having no luck, she Asked straight out but very very politely if she could have a go on the Blossom & Drill Portable and Virtual Reality Broomstick Flight Simulator: Mark Three Prototype.

"how'd you four know about thaaaat?!" the caretaker gasped then shook his head so hard you could see his brain wobble through the crack in his skull. "Never mind; no, no you can't! T' 'ead mistress said none of you girls are to go on it till she knows it's safe. And wot t' eadmistress says goes. Besides it's supposed to be a surprise!"

"Please! we'll keep it secret!" Mildred assured Backed up by Maud Ruby and Jadu. The other three had hovered behind uncertain of the zombie. But now practically crowded him.

"Honest."

"Please Mr Blossom!"

"We only want Mildred to have a go really!"

"Please sir!"

"Pleeease."

But while Mr Blossom was the sweetest zombie one could imagine, He wasn't a complete push over. He stood up, shut his shed door with a snap and a very stern warned to the first years "not to go a-meddling and the like" then shooed them off.

operation Find the Broomstick didn't get a chance the next day. Or the next. Mildred still struggled with her body clock adjusting to the almost nocturnal hours of the so-called day walkers. She slept in too late to try anything before breakfast. And she had so much homework and catching up to do even from the first few days of term her free time wasn't really free to explore at all. Even with Maud's help, especially on the witch history and legends homework.

History was hard because Mildred didn't know any of it. just she'd been taught in her old school. Henry the eighth was nowhere near as important for one thing. Divorced Beheaded Died Divorced beheaded survived was not going to her in a pop quiz about the first witch to the north pole in 1300s. the same applied with chanting. Despite practice, she was still messing up Eye of Newt.

PE was hard because super peppy survival of the fittest attitude Miss Drill seemed to have about everything, even with just the warm up.

Maths was hard because Mildred hated numbers. English was hard because words hated Mildred. and because once they had HB covering it last minute.

Spells were hard. Potions were hard. both in a good way at least.

But Flying was defiantly the hardest and worst of all. The first years had a flying lesson every day and would do so up until the BATs. And every day they were also encouraged to practice during breaktimes, under the watchful eye of whoever was on playground duty. Poles had been put up to act as to weave between or fly around. and a high jump beam borrowed from the PE shed to fly under.

"The only good use for it." HB had muttered. Before adding loudly, "Mildred if you could do it without the screaming and dramatics that would be a step in the right direction!"

Mildred tried but was still awful at it. Miss Hardbroom had taken to keeping Mildred in one area of the courtyard where she could keep both an eye on her and the ground soft enough for a landing. But this and HB's insistence on repeating the same maneuverers with them, made Mildred and friends all the more determined to get at the Mark Three.

But there was now no sign of the Mark Three being introduced to training. Or any news of it in assembly. Or any signs of any further testing going on under their noses.

Mildred hoping to find out more had let Fenny and Gris in on Operation broomstick. only if they promised to keep it top secret mind. but even with their ears to the ground the second years didn't know either. Ottoline the yeti had told them that Penny the 3rd year poltergeist had said that Soini had told her when she'd been coming back from the bathroom, she'd heard Miss Drill- (or at least she thought it was Miss Drill) talking angrily with equally frustrated Miss Mould about something Miss Hardbroom and Miss Gullet had said in some meeting. but Fenny and Gris wasn't a hundred percent on the cause being the Mark Three. Or if it was Miss Drill, Soini had seen after all. It didn't help that apparently Soini was both a malleolus gossip and was supposed to also wear four pairs of glasses not just the one.

And on Thursday, there was no sign of it in the shed at all.

"Maybe Mr Blossom had to get rid of it after all." Maud said after another unsuccessful sneaking about. They'd Snuck a peek though the shed window one break while Mr Blossom was in the castle fixing a sink. Well Ruby Jadu and Mildred did. Maud refused a leg up so her feet dangled her nose pressed against the glass for all but still didn't see much.

"Maybe he's moved it?" Jadu said. "I think he was getting suspicious about us hanging about."

"I hope so." Mildred sighed.

"maybe we could get hold the plans instead and make a Mark Four?" Ruby suggested. "I bet if I got some help from dad and Igor, I could build it."

But Mildred was beginning to find the situation a bit hopeless. She was Only just managing a sort of stalling stop start kind of flying when Miss Hardbroom had that lesson introduced hoops of magical light in to their training. These would float in every changing point that would mark out the course. Going in the wrong order or Missing one entirely would result in a penalty.

"As will completely missing out any obstacle. Three penalties or more on the actual BAT's will result in a fail." She informed them. which seemed fair. Mildred had yet to perform a run with less than four. And even then, that had only been because the bell had gone when she was half way around the circlet.

By the end of Friday's broomstick practice, Only Ethel was getting consistently perfect marks. which Mildred didn't think was fair given Ethel had wings anyway so didn't even need a broom to fly.

"She can't fly with them yet." Bryony pointed out. Mildred privately thought she could. Ethel used them well enough to hover a few inches off the floor, (or from the ceiling with a good jump,) and zip over very short distances. But she mostly just fluttered them enough get on everyone's wick, as one might toss their hair.

"Show off." someone muttered as the fairy landed with no hands on her broom. and deliberately too close, forcing the other girls to shuffle back to give the handle end space.

"Just practice that's all." Ethel smiled as she dismounted. but not nicely with a pointed look at Mildred, tuning Mildred's own mantra on her. "I've been flying before I could walk. Then again some witches are just more natural on broomsticks then… others."

Mildred had never been a particularly violent person. But the urge to wallop Ethel with her own broom stick over took her ever time Ethel was uppity with her.

"at least you can get off the ground now Millie." Maud said brightly once Ethel's back was turned.

"not for very long- Ow!" Mildred scowled. Jadu had Clubbed on the the back of the leg with her sock wrapped tail.

"negative thinking won't get you anywhere." Ruby reminded her, as Miss Hardbroom called them to stop dawdling and resume their hover practice. "especially not around the Vamp or the BATs!"