By Monday Mildred was all for snapping her broom in half. That was of course, if it hadn't been broken already. Another day another flying practice gone wrong.
(This one in nicer surroundings at least. The fourth-year synchronised broom team had use of the court yard that evening so the four first years were out were outside the actual castle for a change, where gardens gave way to a brown grassy bank that marked the edge of the surrounding woods.)
One minute Mildred been perfecting a very basic turn. The next she was staring at the sky, once again flat on her back. She lay stunned for a second. Albeit on a pile of cushions and snow, rather than the cobbles or the bins. Maud Jadu and Ruby were getting rather good at summoning or creating soft things for her to land on. They could even do it while riding their own brooms now.
Mildred was about to get up again when a shadow loomed over her. "Hello again you lot."
A two headed shadow. and Mildred was very glad it wasn't Ethel this time, but Fenny and Gris.
"Wow Having fun?" Fenny asked as they helped Mildred on to her feet.
"You look very glum." Gris pointed out, then grinned at Fenny. "Ha we should talk in rymes more often."
"Please don't." Jadu winced as she and the other two came into land.
"Are you okay Mildred? That was quite a high drop." Fenny said suddenly quite serious.
"I'm fine." Mildred said Brushing off snow mud and the concern. She pulled a twig out her plaits. "I just fell off again."
"You've missed a leave." Maud frowned getting it for her. She vanished the snow she'd made too but left the cushions.
"What are you shrimps even doing out this late?" Gris asked. "Nurse is worried you'll miss Supper and it'll be getting dark soon."
"WE'RE PRACTICING-!"
"Ruby, you're shouting!" Mildred winched.
"Take your earphones out before HB catches you again!" Maud warned as Jadu tugged at them. Ruby battered her off.
"They help me fly better!" Ruby insisted again. But she turned the music down and took them out so they dangled at her collar, and turned back to the Siamese second years.
"We're practicing." she said. "Or more Mildred's practicing and we're making sure she's okay. Don't look at me like that. It's getting better Mildred. You're screaming less at least. And you get back on the broom and up again quicker."
"But you know you're supposed to be the other way up when you fly right?" Griz said.
"I know." Mildred sighed sitting back down. "What I don't know is how I'm going to become a decent flyer by Wednesday."
"the test can't be that difficult." Maud insisted as they all joined Mildred on the floor. "Hardly anyone fails it."
"It's true." Fenny said, the pair taking a seat on the vacated pillow. "The BAT has one of the highest pass rates of any test you'll be taking. You wait till HB starts with her week Potions tests next term."
"What did you have to do for your aptitude test?" Mildred asked the pair genuinely curious. They shrugged, an almost lurching movement of three shoulder blades.
"I think we had same set up as the year before did but clockwise." Griz said. "Zig zag through a bunch of posts. And sharp swerves at Pictures of witch hunters. Over a high bar and under a low bar."
"And everyone passed?" Jadu pressed.
"There were a few minors but no one failed out right our year."
"And only two girls have out failed in the past five years." Maud added. "Twelve in the past twenty."
"Somehow this year I think it's going to be different. Oh Jadu don't I'm not in the mood." Mildred sulked batting away the tail.
"Oh Mildred."
"You are improving." Jadu pointed out. The others agreed.
"And trying. That's the main thing."
"Not if I don't pass." Mildred argued.
"You will! I'm sure of it."
"What makes you say that?"
"Well,for one you've these three helping you," Fenny said. "speaking of BATtitude…Lucky for you first years you've got me and Grizzy in your corner too."
"And more importantly We've something that might help even Mildred out." Gris smiled, and with a twist of their hand pulled out a scroll of paper from the air. They unrolled it so the others could see. Mildred didn't get it at first, it looked like a bunch of scribbles with labels. But then the more she looked the more it appeared to be some kind of blue print.
"Is that- it's map. that's the court yard." She asked, "wait your kidding? So this this-?"
"It is! This ladies, is your flight path for this year's BATs, obstacles and all!" Fenny and Gris grinned.
"How on earth did you get this?!" Maud gaped.
"We have our sorcery sources!" They winked. Then Fenny sighed.
"Actually it's not that bigger secret." She revealed. "The staff have all know for at least a fortnight. Gullets doing risk assessments by the dozen. The art department's doing the decorating and blossom and Drilly needed something to do after you lot blew up their other pet project-"
Mildred winced at that bit.
"so, they've got roped in which means there's more equipment involved with them doing the heavy lifting and setting up."
"And HB told the prefects about the coarse details because they always monitor with what she calls crowd control. In confidence mind."
"So all the school will know by our lights out."
"We found out via the head girl."
"Gracie Gloom in third year that one who's just a floating head by the way not the actual Headgirl." Gris explained. "Anyway-!"
"We thought you four and your friends could do with a copy, that way you could know exactly what you're up against." Fenny said. "and Miss Mould was kind enough to deliberately look the other way during craft class while we made a copy from the teachers copy."
"Mouldy doesn't think flying should be 'creatively stifled' ," Gris whispered conspiratorially despite there being no one around and tapped the blueprint. "Study hard though it won't last."
"Oh is it enchanted?" Maud asked.
"What? No, it's in water colour pencil, that never lasts in this damp old place."
They laid it out flatter and took the first years through it.
"This year the teachers have been a bit crafty. Nothing hard though. You have the standard maneuverers to cover, so hover up and away stick to the rings bla blah blah take the corners. This year however you have to fly though a spooky dark tunnel of doom." Gris said pointing it out.
"A what?!"
"Relax it's bunch of sheets and curtains sewed around some broken hula-hoops that they're going to bewitch." Fenny said. "Fly around the court yard and avoid a couple of posts, a pick-up ring of garlic off this post here on the shed roof, tunnel of doom then up. Then finally while hovering hang the garlic on the top of battlement flag pole."
"no throwing it at The vampire or fellow classmates." They winked, rolling up the plan. " return to earth in the same spot you took off from And That's it."
"That is it." Mildred said. And getting up stormed indoors, dragging her broom behind her. "that's it! I've had it then. "
"Millie!"
"Normally it's the tall tower weather vane!" Gris called as she and Fenny scrambled to get up and catch up with the first years.
"I can't even stay on my broom at let alone fly all that!" Mildred shot back stomping up the stairs to her room. "How am I going to manage all the normal stuff plus a tunnel of doom and then hover straight up for ten metres?"
"Thirty feet actually." Fenny corrected unhelpfully.
Mildred's witty response was to open her door and flop face down on to her bed.
"I might as well catch the bus home now!" She mumbled into her pillow as her friends all piled onto Mildred's bed. "I'm certain to fail."
"Don't give up Millie!" Maud pleaded, Turning her best human back over. "Also for what it's worth, Cackles don't have a bus. It's old hearse with a clamped out motor that'll take you to a bus depo the other side of the valley where your parents can pick you up."
Ruby made a face. A 'that's not very helpful thing to say' face. But said "It'll be okay Mille, we'll help you practice. We don't want you to go just yet."
"And us two." Agreed Fenny and Gris.
Above them the bats began to stir and chirped out
"Hear that Mildred?" Jadu cooed gesturing to them. "Winkey doesn't want you to go either. Or is it Blinky?"
"It's Nod my dear-!" the bat next to it replied.
"Argh!" the girls shrieked.
"Argh!" shrieked-
"Miss Bat!"
"Oh! Sorry my dears! I've takin that wrong turn again."
"…I hope that's not going to become a running joke." Maud sighed as they'd recovered from the shock and Miss Bat had flew off again.
"But it's alright for her. And them!" Mildred grumbled jabbing a thumb at the real bats who'd settled back down for a snooze. "They're all brilliant at flying."
"Even though they all blind as bats." Ruby laughed.
"Batty certainly needs to get her eyesight tested." Fenny said, now stood at the window with her conjoined companion.
"She needs to learn her left from her right." Gris agreed, as they watched Davina Baton nearly dive into the keep.
"And they're not scared of the dark!" Mildred complained still discussing actual bats. "Or flying in it. Or heights!"
"I've never understood how they don't bump into things." Maud pondered aloud.
"They use echoes. bats make high pitched noises and the sound bounces off things in the way so they listen their way around." Mildred said.
Mildred then bolted up right so fast she nearly dislodged the others from the bed.
"That's it! I know they listen! Bats listen their way around!" she gasped with her face suddenly bright and snatching Ruby's ear phone explained; "That's what I'll fly! I'll be a bat to pass the BAT!"
Gris frowned and looked at Fenny. fenny shrugged back at her just as baffled. But the other three cottoned on very quick.
"OH!"
"Yes!"
"Mil that's brilliant!"
"Brilliant!" Maud agreed. "but oh Millie are you sure?"
"No. But it can't be worse then the Mark three." She reasoned Then turned to a still confused Fenny and Griz
"Thank you for the plans." Mildred said "but I Don't suppose you two know where we could get hold of a set of walkie talkies, do you…?"