Chapter 11 – Potion's For Beginners

Arrow had soon found that Mildred's confidence in the potions department was worse than she realised. Though she was thrilled as this meant she could start from scratch with her. It was the weekend after her first week of tutoring Mildred. Potions hadn't exactly gone to plan. So, Arrow decided drastic times called for drastic measures. She had walked to the potions lab to speak to her mother. She was dreading the talk though she had a feeling she needed to ask the question. She knocked on the door and entered the lab.

Hecate looked up as Arrow sat on the same table. Hecate had been in the lab for a few hours, and she was currently sorting through a ton of ingredients. Each one being labelled correctly along with the expiration dates. She was also seeing if there were any ingredients with seeds that she could grow in the lab.

Arrow started helping her mum label the ingredients, though she left her mum to put the expiration dates on.

"How's tutoring going?". Hecate asked her.

Arrow thought hard for a good minute before answering. "Her flying is improving along with her confidence with it. Though potions have become a problem".

"You came in here for a reason, did you not?".

Arrow breathed deeply, whilst getting ready to ask the question she was dreading. Hecate had noticed and she was rather hesitant as to what she was about to say.

"I feel that Mildred needs to go back to the very basics for at least a week".

"OK?" Hecate responded though she wasn't sure what Arrow was saying entirely, there was more to this than the basics.

"So, I was thinking that with Mildred's confidence being so low in the lab that she would benefit from going through the woods and going through the basic ingredients. Like what you did with me. I also think it would be a good idea to take the main cause of the stress away for a brief period of time". Arrow took a sharp breath.

Hecate spoke slowly as she was trying to make it make sense as she was speaking. "So what your telling me, is that my lab is stressing her out, and that you want to teach her potions during the time she is meant to be in my classroom?" she blinked afterwards and gave Arrow a look with raised eyebrows at the same time.

"I just think for a week at least, if she feels she can beath and make mistakes without being ridiculed she will be able to improve. At the minute she's too scared to make mistakes. We both know mistakes happen and that's how we learn. If Mildred can't make mistakes, then she can't learn. She is more than capable, she's just really nervous around you. She's like a rabbit in the headlights, waiting for you to have a go at her".

Hecate took a deep breath and sat back in her chair, she knew she was hard on the girl though she didn't realise that she was that harsh on her. Dimity and Algernon had told her numerous times this year and she had shrugged it off. For some reason it was worse coming from Arrow.

"You're saying you need a week?". Hecate mused.

"Minimum, yes".

Hecate thought this through for a few minutes, whilst making a few faces in the process, Arrow resisted the urge to laugh though she was finding it entertaining.

"Hmmmm, how about I give you two weeks and if there's no improvement, at least you gave it a try". Hecate told her. "I would prefer an improvement. Oh, and well played". Hecate smiled as Arrow labelled the final ingredient and headed for the door. "I will let Miss Cackle tell her, is that understood?" Hecate called to her daughter, who nodded in response before she left the room.

Throughout the first week, Arrow took Mildred into the woods to familiarize her properly with the basic ingredients. She also had Mildred in the lab after classes to do some dicing. Hecate had left some ingredients out for her to use. Mildred's confidence was getting better.

The second week Mildred was taught to simmer properly. Arrow had taught her a spell to use on her books that worked like a moving highlighter to help Mildred focus a bit more. Mildred was finding potions wasn't as bad as she thought it was and that Arrow was very patient with her.

"This is our last tutoring session for potions before you go back to your normal classes. All I want you to do is brew a Crystal Ice potion today. It's not as difficult as it seems. Just breathe and take it one step at a time". Arrow informed Mildred though she had noticed the look of dread on Mildred's face.

Unbeknown to Mildred, Hecate was sitting in the lab, she was anxious to see how far Mildred had potentially come in two weeks. She had told Arrow she would be in there, though Arrow had protested until she was told she would be invisible, and Mildred would not see her. Though at the mention of the potion to be brewed she was shocked, and she felt like her eyes were popping out of their sockets.

Mildred grabbed a cauldron and the ingredients needed to brew the Crystal ice potion. Arrow had decided to put some music on and Imagine Dragons started playing, it was the song Zero. She had strategically put the song on as she knew it would help Mildred take her mind off the stress and it would help her mum realise how others might feel when ridiculed on the regular.

Mildred as it turned out was turning into a potions wizz. Hecate watched the girl dice the ingredients with skill and then add the ingredients into the potions evenly as well as double check what she was putting in before she did so. She realised if she had put her prejudice aside that Mildred wouldn't be needing tutoring for her subject. She was slightly kicking herself though, she couldn't help noticing that Arrow's methods worked and that she had taught her well since she was five.

"Mum?"

Hecate turned to look at Arrow as she made herself visible again, she noticed the look in Mildred's eyes. She didn't show it, though it stung, it was the look of fear. "You called?"

"Can you try Mildred's potion please?"

Hecate walked towards the cauldron and picked up the ladle and slowly lowered it into the cauldron. She lifted the ladle when she had a small amount in it. Mildred held her breath as she watched the ladle come out of the cauldron and towards her teacher's mouth. Hecate took a sip and her eyes widened. Within a split-second Hecate had turned into Crystal Ice. As she hadn't had much, it only worked for a minute and a half. Mildred was shocked and Arrow was thrilled. Though Hecate's opinion was final. As she turned back, she gave Mildred a nod of approval and a tiny half smile as she transferred herself somewhere else.

"That is mum's approval, well done". Arrow told her.

The following week Mildred had started moving up the class rankings and this was angering Ethel, she was feeling rather threatened at Mildred's drastic change in flying and potion brewing. Mildred however was thrilled, and it was showing as with each class her confidence was improving.

Arrow as always was sitting next to Mildred, and she hadn't helped her in any of the potion's classes that week. Watching Mildred improve gave Arrow a satisfying feeling and her mother was very proud of her.

Hecate was sat going through the homework of her third years on the Saturday evening and she had come across Mildred's. she was shocked with the amount of detail in her essay and the clear understanding of the assignment. She smiled as she wrote the letter A on her homework with a "well done, much better" note underneath. She came across Ethel's, and she was very disappointed, it seemed she could no longer be nasty at the same time as keeping her grades up anymore. The letter C was written on hers along with a note that said, "could be better".

Hecate handed the homework out the following Monday and she watched as Mildred looked up with disbelief and at how Ethel's face turned to thunder, she soon shot an angry look over at Arrow.

Ethel walked up to Mildred after class who was stood with Arrow, Enid and Maud. She snatched Mildred's essay out of her hand and noticed the A. She was livid.

"Ethel, do you need therapy?". Arrow asked as she snatched Mildred's homework off her and handed it back to Mildred.

Ethel was stood their looking livid.

"Earth to Ethel". Enid said as she waved her hand up and down in front of Ethel's face. Ethel soon batted it away.

"You cheated somehow; I know you did". Ethel spat at Mildred.

Enid slid Ethel's essay out of her bag as it was sticking out and laughed. "Your mad because Mildred got an A that she has worked hard for, and you got a C. You're not keeping your standards Ethel. It's not a good look, is it?". She taunted.

"I believe it's about time you focused on yourself and not on others, your grades are a reflection of you, not someone else". Arrow said in a levelled tone.

"Let me guess, you got an A+, I mean your mum is Miss Hardbroom after all" Ethel said with a cocky tone.

"Nope, I got an A-, my note said, try harder. She isn't going easy on me I can assure you. she's a lot harder to please when you're her daughter". Arrow smiled at Ethel as she spoke.

Ethel was fuming she stormed off and she had left Felicity on her own.

"Great friend that, Fliss". Arrow told her.

"Can I ask you something?" Felicity asked her. Arrow nodded. "Your dad, He's called Desmond isn't he?" Arrow looked really confused at how felicity knew this.

"Hang on, Desmond? As in Desmond Ravenwood?" Enid's mouth fell open.

Arrow wasn't ready for this conversation, not yet. Just like her mother it was a painful subject. She quietly walked away, she wasn't ashamed of her dad, he had died in a magical fire whilst trying to rescue an orphanage. Out of fifty children, two died and 6 had third degree burns. One of the children that died had four degree burns and died a few hours after arriving at hospital and the other had burned to death. Arson had caused this. Her dad had been labelled a hero.

"Whose Desmond Ravenwood?" Maud and Mildred asked at the same time.

"Are you joking?" Enid asked. "He perished in a magical fire just over three years ago. He was rescuing an orphanage of witching children. He's a well-known hero. He refused to leave any children in there, it was in the papers Maud. I'll ask my mum to send me it, though don't show Arrow, it looks like he's a sensitive subject. I had no idea he was with HB or had any children".

An older student approached them after hearing the four third years discussing the tragic event. "Miss Hardbroom changed the following year, just before you four came. She's harsher and we said back then, it's like a part of her has died. I might actually cut her some slack". The older student stated, she looked close to tears at the thought of what Hecate and Arrow had gone through.