A Purple Mist

Mildred?

"One, two,"

"Come on Mildred!"

"Tree, four,"

"You can do it!"

"Fiv-"

"ouch"

Mildred slammed on the ground with a loud thot. Concern spread across Enid's and Maud's faces. HB had only allowed them to watch the Spelling Bee power training because she was convinced that the duo was the only thing that could motivate Mildred to push through. Apparently, even that wasn't enough.

"Mildred Hubble, how do you expect to perform high-end spells if you can't control your body enough to endure simple power training."

The inexperienced witch pushed her romp up off the ground; "I'm sorry, Miss Harbroom"

"Keep your excuses girl." The Deputy's head shifted her focus to Ethel; "Well done, you can stand up now."

Both girls got up from the floor. Ethel with a glow of triumph, her ableness had once more been confirmed by the strictest teacher in the school, while Mildred shared a sad smile with her friends. Slightly surprised, she got a hopeful and reassuring one in return from Enid as Maud said; "I know you can do it. Next time hold on just a little longer. We believe in you." Mildred shook the worry off of her face and refocused on her teacher. She will not let her friends down.

"Don't be confused girls, this is not to punish you, it is to help you. However, this was the easy part. Now let's get to work. Maud, Enid, thank you for your..." HB thought for a second, trying to find the right word. "..support. But you'll be needed more in spell science than here." Before any goodbyes could be exchanged the duo vanished into thin air. Mildred could only hope they landed in Mister Rowan-Webb's class.

~

The next couple of days were more or less the same: Early morning cross country, harvesting ingredients, cold breakfast, morning lessons, which Miss Hardbroom had only allowed because Miss Cackle insisted they should still attend some classes, cold lunch, potions and spell practice, cold dinner, power and/or flying training, and an early night. Ethel had been huffing and puffing because she wasn't learning anything new and it was all too simple. Mildred had been huffing and puffing because it was all too much. Miss Hardbroom had started with an afternoon of revising spells from last year, Except Mildred had misunderstood and was convinced that it was new material from their third trimester. She had truly no idea what she was in for. Her being behind also had a terrible effect on HB's mood, it seemed to worsen every single day, if not every single hour.

It came to a climax the Friday before the competition. The school was in chaos. Miss Pentangle and her two bees had decided that morning that they were going to fly in a day earlier than the rest. To be truly prepared, but also because they forecasted strong winds and rain for Saturday morning. Hecate had called the decision ridiculous:

"Are we really training a generation of witches that is scared of a little weather?"

But both Ada and Pippa found it irresponsible to let second-years navigate stormy weather. So now most of the festivities had to be ready an afternoon earlier than planned and Mildred couldn't handle the stress. Especially because she was tired, hungry, and worried about Tabby. In true Hubble fashion, she was distracted while mixing a potion, and everything just-

Boom!

"Mildred Hubble what have you done" Her teacher inspected the damage. Both students were nearly unrecognizable and the cauldron had imploded. It was the first time Midred saw Ethel without her high ponytail intact. The blond was steaming and ready to start berating her classmate but Miss Hardbroom beat her to it. Mildred had never seen her so angry. Even Ethel was taken aback by it.

~

"Hi Mildred! I saved you a plate. How did potions go- Not so great I see" Enid said when the bees entered the spacious dining hall.

Shower spells apparently can't clean up magical residue. Mildred had tried to joke that they learned at least one new thing from this whole ordeal, but Ethel wasn't having it.

"She blew up the potions lab. Again." Ethel said as she sat down, her plate immediately handed to her by Felicity.

"I said I was sorry." Mildred joined the table and picked up her spoon.

"I'm sorry it's cold. The soup was already lukewarm when it got here." Enid said.

"Don't worry about it. After this morning I'll eat anything." They laughed.

"There is nothing to laugh about a traditional witches brew, where is the most rational member of your trio anyway?" Ethel said, interrupting them.

"This is just tomato soup your greatness, and Maud is busy preparing for Miss Pentangle's visit," Enid answered.

"That is right Enid. But sadly this delicious tomato soup is not for you two," Miss Drill said, making the whole table jump in surprise. "Dandelions and nettles, freshly picked this morning." She added, presenting two plates of greens and placing them on the table. "As for Maud, I needed to tell you that she was on her way. Bon appetite"

Mildred pushed the plate of greens as far away from her as she could with a face of disgust, while Ethel, always the one to please the teachers and tradition, began eating. Her face was better at hiding her true feelings.

"I can't believe my eyes. Ethel Hallow and Mildred Hubble sitting at the same table in peace?" Maud said as she walked up to the table.

"I wouldn't say peace, just not active conflict" Ethel chimed in.

"I'll take that"

~

"It's such a beautiful trophy," Mildred said to herself, admiring the cristal cup in the glass cabinet. She understood why Ethel wanted to win it so badly. Because of her parents' positions in the council Ethel had been walking around magic academies ever since she, well, could walk. That trophy just absorbs all the sunshine like a spotlight and reflects it around the room, creating intricate designs on the ceiling. It was so captivating, no wonder Ethel was obsessed with it.

Mildred Followed the reflections on the wall until the sun shone right in her eyes and all of a sudden the sun seemed to turn pink. She walked up to the window to investigate but got blasted in the face with pink glitter and stumbled back. Now, for the second time that day, she was unrecognizable. Mildred was still in awe when she took a look at herself. The glitter melted off her clothes and vanished into thin air.

"Magical glitter, that's the bats!"

When Mildred looked up again, the pink glow was gone and she could see the courtyard clearly again. On the courtyard stood the reason why everything turned pink. A blond woman, clad in pink yet traditional flying gear was being welcomed by Miss Cackle and Esmeralda. Miss Pentangle, Mildred assumed. She took a deep breath and took a turn towards the school hall.

"Well, here goes nothing"

A/N: Hi there! I hope you're well and thank you for reading. If you enjoyed this, please consider leaving a star or a comment. Feedback is always welcome!

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