Chapter Ten

After another awful potions lesson, Enid stormed up to Ethel and Drusilla and started shouting "You're an evil cow Ethel Hallow" Enid stated.

"Oooo, how harsh of you" Ethel replied as she smirked.

"What kind of person would want to be headgirl by cheating anyway?" Maud responded "We know you and your dad are playing games" the bespectacled girl went on.

"You cheated, Mildred wasn't even a student at the time, and Cackie Cackle has made Hardbroom soft so she put a spell on those letters" Enid responded.

"Aww what's wrong Ethel? Jealous that even stoneface HB has someone who actually likes her and doesn't only hang around with her as there is no-one else?" Ruby responded. By Ethel's expression, she could see she had struck a nerve, as after all Drusilla switched sides all the time and was not loyal to Ethel.

"Shut up!" Ethel shouted.

"Let's just try calm down" Mildred said not wanting to get into an altercation with Ethel.

"You might be headgirl right now but no-one actually listens to you" Ethel replied "And my dad isn't going to change his mind, so you might as well give in Hubble" Ethel replied laughing.

"We will deal with Softbrush, there is no way we are going to let you be headgirl" Jadu responded glaring at her.

"We will see, Cackle will give in as Softbrush is hopeless" Ethel replied walking past them and thumping into Mildred, whose mind was in overdrive.

Mildred was quiet a lot of the time over the next week, which wasn't a good thing as it meant she was miserable. She was currently sat having lunch and watched as Winnie, who was been closely watched by Amelia in case she caused some issue, somehow tripped on a fallen spoon of all things, and fell into a second year, knocking her bowl of soup out of her hands and over her arm.

"OWWW" the student yelled as the hot liquid burned her. Amelia glared at Winnie, who burst into tears, as she rushed over to the student.

"It's alright my love" Amelia said "Let's get you to the sick bay and patch you up" Amelia said to the crying student. The student's friend asked if she could go with them, which the headmistress agreed.

"Bloody hell, let's hope she isn't scarred" Enid stated as she watched.

Mildred watched as Amelia helped the student soak her arm with cold water, as you are meant to with burns, before leading her out the hall, and then watched as Imogen kept serving the other girls, glaring at the crying Winnie.

"How do you reckon she qualified?" Enid said interrupting Mildred's thoughts "I bet she slept with her examiner!" Enid said.

"Eww Enid please, I don't want to think about Softbrush doing...that!" Maud replied pulling a disgusted face.

"Yes eating this stuff is hard enough without that thought" Jadu responded.

"I am just saying, how else would she have qualified?" Enid responded.

At that moment there was a crash as Winnie hit her leg on a desk and pulled at the tablecloth as she tried to straighten up, sending bowls of soup on the table on the floor.

"Who do you reckon is going to survive this year?" Ruby asked her friends.

As Mildred saw what happened, she had had enough. She came to a decision.

"Come in" Amelia said in response to the knock on the door. Mildred opened the door and saw she had caught her headmistress just in time as she was leaving soon as she was dressed for travelling.

"Mildred, is this important or can it wait until tomorrow?" Amelia asked throwing a glasses cloth in her bag.

"Not really Miss, I am sorry I know you need to see Miss Hardbroom but I couldn't wait until the morning, how is Ayla Winters?" Mildred asked referring to the second year who was burned.

"She's alright, no long term damage, thankfully the soup was not boiling" Amelia told her.

"Miss Cackle" Mildred said "I heard you the other day, when you were telling the other teachers about Mr Hallow" Mildred admitted.

"Which part?" Amelia asked as she stopped fiddling and looked worried.

"About him blackmailing you, that he will get rid of Miss Softbrush if you make Ethel headgirl instead" Mildred told her. Amelia sighed and nodded.

"I didn't know you had heard, but there is no need to worry, I am not going to give in to him" Amelia told her reassuring her as she touched her shoulder. Mildred sighed.

"Things are getting worse Miss Cackle" Mildred stated "Someone could end up seriously injured or killed" she told her, knowing Winnie was unsafe to be around.

"I am not going to do that to you Mildred" Amelia told her with a sigh.

"I know, you would never do that to anyone" Mildred responded before she looked at her teacher and took of her headgirl pin badge.

"Miss Cackle...I want to resign from my position as headgirl" Mildred told her holding the badge out in front of her.

Amelia stared at her for a few moments, before she found her voice "No, you can't do that, I am finding a way to deal with Mr Hallow" Amelia told her.

"Miss...we all know how stubborn the Hallow's are, and how trying to make a deal with him is not going to work, the only way that we can get rid of Softbrush is if I give up my status and you give it to Ethel" Mildred said knowing her headmistress did not have it in her to take it off her herself.

"Mildred you earned the status fair and square, I won't accept your resignation" Amelia told her, in shock as to what was happening.

"Miss Cackle, whenever Miss Hardbroom doesn't want to do something, which is often…." Mildred commented but quickly spoke before she could get told off for insulting her. "You always tell her it is for the greater good of the academy, and in this case me giving up my status as head girl is for the greater good" Mildred replied, rebutting her headteacher's worries.

"I didn't know you paid so much attention when I tell her that" Amelia said, surprised she had paid so much attention as she always assumed the girl's zoned out. "But even so this mess of a situation is not for you to sort out Mildred" Amelia replied.

"Is Miss Hardbroom going to return to teaching anytime soon?" Mildred asked her.

"No dear" Amelia said "her virus is still present" Amelia said keeping up the lie about her deputy's illness.

"In that case...I resign...I have already decided Miss Cackle" Mildred told her.

"But Mildred.." Amelia said cutting in and trying to get her to change her mind.

"Please just take it, it's honestly alright" Mildred said placing her badge on her headmistresses desk and then rushing out the room before she could stop her.

Mildred wiped tears as she walked down the corridor. She knew for the school she had done the right thing but it didn't mean she wasn't heartbroken about it.