The Worst Witch All at Sea (7 page)

peration Rescue-Tabby had taken longer than Mildred had calculated, and she arrived in the yard to find everyone, including Miss Cackle and Miss Hardbroom, all lined up and ready to set off. They were standing in rows, in absolute silence, as Mildred burst through the main door and clumped to her place in line.

‘Ah, Mildred,’ said Miss Hardbroom crisply. ‘How kind of you to join us. Perhaps you had a little problem getting up so early in the morning?’

‘Yes, Miss Hardbroom,’ agreed Mildred, relieved to be provided with an excuse. ‘And then I had to wait for Ebony to come in from his hunting and then I couldn’t get him to go into the basket and
then
I couldn’t…’

‘That will do, Mildred!’ snapped Miss Hardbroom. ‘I really don’t want to stand here all morning listening to a never-ending list of all the things you couldn’t do before we were graced with your presence. Now then, if Miss Cackle is agreeable, we shall proceed to Grim Cove and the splendid holiday which awaits us.’

Miss Cackle smiled and nodded at the girls. ‘Most certainly, Miss Hardbroom,’ she said. ‘Let us proceed at once! We don’t want to waste one moment of our jolly holiday, do we, girls?’

Form Two let out a loud cheer of agreement.

‘That is quite enough, girls!’ exclaimed Miss Hardbroom. ‘Miss Cackle doesn’t want to be deafened. Now, Mildred Hubble, a word in your ear. Mr Rowan-Webb has kindly bestowed this holiday upon Form Two out of gratitude for your helpful action in saving him from the pond. He obviously thinks most highly of you, so let us hope that you will not do anything whatsoever to disillusion him. Do you think you can manage an entire week without drawing any unwanted attention to yourself? In other words, Mildred, no silly nonsense – all right?’

‘Oh, definitely, Miss Hardbroom,’ said Mildred, feeling distinctly nervous as she held the cat-basket containing the wrong cat underneath her cloak.

‘Good,’ said Miss Hardbroom. ‘Then let us depart. Ethel, dear, lead on. Follow the river.’

The girls commanded their broomsticks to hover and hooked their suitcases and cat-baskets over the twigs at the back. Then they all arranged themselves side-saddle, jammed their hats on as firmly as possible and took hold of their broomsticks – some more grimly than others. Ethel sat as upright as a telegraph-pole, her fingers

loosely curled around the stick. At the other end of the scale, Mildred was hanging on so tightly that her knuckles were white and she was almost bent double.

Ethel led the class over the wall and down the mountain towards the shining river, which was like a mauve and pink ribbon in the sunrise.

‘Gosh, Maud,’ said Mildred. ‘It looks really beautiful at this time of day, doesn’t it? Perhaps we’ll have wonderful weather and it
will
be a great holiday after all.’

‘It won’t be if your cat doesn’t shut up,’ said Maud, looking back at Mildred’s cat-basket, from whence a desperate yowling had just started.

Ethel swooped back alongside Mildred. ‘There’s something
about
you, Mildred Hubble, isn’t there?’ she observed unpleasantly. ‘I mean, even a superb cat like Ebony goes berserk the

moment it falls into your clutches. Perhaps being worst at everything is catching – you know, like measles.’

She zoomed ahead again to take her place as leader of the Form.

Miss Hardbroom and Miss Cackle were in front of everyone and Mildred heard Ethel say, ‘I just went to see if Mildred’s cat was all right, Miss Hardbroom. Any cat of hers seems to become nervous of flying – even one like Ebony.’

‘Thank you, Ethel,’ said Miss Hardbroom. ‘Most thoughtful of you, my dear… Mildred!’ she called over her shoulder into the wind. ‘What on earth is the matter with Ebony?’

Tabby was scrabbling at the basket and miaowing at the top of his voice.

‘He ate rather a large mouse, Miss Hardbroom,’ replied Mildred. ‘I don’t think he’s feeling very well.’

‘We’ll take a look at him when we land for our breakfast,’ Miss Hardbroom called back.

Mildred was horrified. They had not even arrived at Grim Cove and she had already got herself into the most awful trouble. One glimpse of Tabby, and Miss Hardbroom would probably expel her on the spot, holiday or no holiday.

fter an hour of flying, everyone was beginning to feel exhausted and hungry. Although the sun had risen into a perfectly blue sky, the wind was cold so high up, and Tabby’s desperate complaining was beginning to grate on everyone’s nerves.

Miss Cackle and Miss Hardbroom signalled to the girls to begin their descent to an area where a loop of river passed through a wood with a large shingle bank on either side of the water.

‘Breakfast at last!’ whispered Maud to Mildred. ‘I’m starving.’

Mildred wasn’t listening. She was wondering how to get out of having Tabby examined by Miss Hardbroom.

‘Land at the shingle bank!’ called Miss Hardbroom, as they descended like a flock of birds into the woodland. ‘Only a quarter of an hour for our break, girls. We must press on as soon as possible.’

Miss Cackle and Miss Hardbroom landed perfectly, followed by Ethel and the rest of Form Two, all except Mildred. Tabby finally stopped

yowling as he and Mildred fell off into a dense thicket several yards from the landing-place.