wordsinhaled · 2 years ago
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it's the fact that arthur "merlin is MY servant. he has my absolute trust" pendragon actively notices when merlin's sad and asks him what's bothering him and then tries to cheer him up and beams when merlin smiles again and says "that's better" as though all is right with the world
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red-streaks · 7 years ago
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millie and her youtube channel
 mildred has 300 followers on her youtube channel. it’s mostly videos of her responding to challenges, imitating HB, and doing tutorial videos for potions that went wrong once. Sybil comments on every single one. Enid calls herself the producer.
an idea discussed in the worst witch chat, bear with me.
A black screen. There is no sound for several seconds, but then a thump, a giggle, and a long-suffering sigh of an eleven-year-old who is breaking about ten school rules.
“Is it rolling? Cut! Action!” Enid Nightshade’s voice cuts through the darkness.  Another thump, followed by a high-pitched sound.
“The light’s green, Enid,” Maud sighs again. “Millie said that means it’s on, right Millie?”
“Right,” Mildred Hubble’s voice is barely audible over the static. “But you’ve got the lens on, and you’re covering the microphone.”
“Bats,” Enid murmurs. One final thump. The video ends, suddenly, before restarting again and focusing shakily on a smiling Mildred.
“There we go. Millie, say hi!” Enid shouts too close to the camera, and the image shakes and shakes until Mildred’s nostril takes up the entire frame.
“Not so close, Enid,” Mildred says, but the camera catches her grin, just visible in the corner of the frame as Enid backs away.
“Just zoom in from where you were standing,” Maud says quietly, and the camera moves quickly through the room, cauldrons and desks and dark jars blurring together as Enid swings the camera to Maud, who is standing guard by the door.
“How do I zoom in again?” Enid asks again, shaking the camera. Maud’s face comes in and out of focus.
“With that little button up at the top.” Mildred’s voice is heard out of shot. “No, not that one, the other –.“
A black screen. Enid Nightshade’s shoes suddenly come into focus. One of her shoelaces are untied.
“Alright, take three, then.” Enid says, and the camera swings around until Enid’s right eyebrow takes up the entire frame. “I’m Enid Nightshade, witchiest witch at Cackle’s Academy. Maud Spellbody eats slugs for breakfast and Mildred Hubble still sleeps with her – .”
A thump. A shriek. The camera shakes violently.
A black screen.
“Take four,” Maud Spellbody’s voice accompanies a shaking frame, focused on the frowning face of Enid Nightshade. Her shoulders are slumped. “Enid has been demoted to guard dog, until she’s proven to be a responsible camera woman.”
Enid Nightshade sticks her tongue out, arms crossed over her chest.
“Can we start, please? HB’s gonna start making her rounds soon.” Mildred’s voice, out of shot again.
The camera zooms in to Enid Nightshade’s left eye and stays there for several seconds. “Gross,” Maud says, and laughs out loud.
“How come she gets to be camera-woman, Mildred?” Enid shouts. Her eye disappears from screen rather rapidly. “Give it here!”
The camera shakes as Maud runs from Enid. It follows Maud’s feet as she jumps up a step. A shriek. Mildred Hubble’s groan, heard above the screech of the chairs Maud hastily moves over.
Maud’s breathes heavily over the microphone.
“I swear to God – .“Mildred’s voice.
A black screen.
“Okay,” Mildred Hubble’s cheery voice is heard behind the camera. Enid and Maud come into focus, both girls glaring at each other when the other isn’t looking. “Take five!”
Mildred’s skirt appears in front of the camera, her sash knotted haphazardly. She adjusts the camera and backs away, bends at the waist sideways until her head and hanging braids are in the frame.
“Perfect,” she straightens up, rounds the table and stands between Maud and Enid. There’s a cauldron in front of them. All of their faces, except Enid’s chin, are out of the frame.
Mildred clears her throat.
“Welcome to my channel! I’m Mildred Hubble, and these are my friends, Maud and Enid!” She elbows each of them until they both give out half-hearted greetings. “Today, we’re going to be making a Level Three potion – a sleeping drought -- because several of you commented that you’d like to see it done.”
“And because we messed up the one we were supposed to finish in class today,” Enid’s chin moves in the shot.
“And because we’re being tested on it tomorrow,” Maud’s ponytails swing back and forth, the ends just barely visible as she’s the tallest of the three of them.
“Okay,” Mildred claps her hands. “First, we have to set the cauldron to 45 degrees -.”
“It’s 60 degrees, Millie.”
“Right. I’ll just edit that part out later.” She begins again.
The air crackles. There’s a pop somewhere outside of the shot.
“Mildred Hubble. Enid Nightshade. Maud Spellbody.” A fourth voice, out of frame. The camera suddenly suspends in air, and the terrified faces of the three girls are perfectly captured before the camera flies backwards at a terrifying speed. “Using unsupervised magic and non-magical devices. Why am I not surprised.”
Mildred drops the ladle in her hand. Her mouth drops open.
“Uh,” Mildred stutters. The camera shakes again, and Miss Hardbroom’s legs are suddenly in the shot. A muffled harrumph!, the shake of the camera, and then Miss Hardbroom’s sneer takes up the whole shot.
“What have I told you about such devices inside the castle?” Miss Hardbroom’s voice booms. A very large eye peers straight into the camera, before backing away.
“Shit,” Enid murmurs out of shot. A strange strangled noise comes out of Miss Hardbroom. A sharp inhale. The creak of plastic. The camera shakes very, very violently.
A black screen.
Silence for a couple of minutes.
“But, but it helps us learn! And we’re only practicing for tomorrow! Perhaps, if you supervised us…”
“Enid Nightshade, I can see you recording!” A blurry image of Miss Hardbroom looming over Mildred in front of her cauldron.
A squeak from Enid Nightshade.
A black screen.
“Alrighty then!” Mildred Hubble’s voice sounds extra chipper. “Welcome to my channel! I’m Mildred Hubble, and this is Maud, one of my best friends, and this is our special guest for today’s episode, Miss Hardbroom!”
There is darkness for several seconds, before Enid’s soft “Oh, wait,” is heard behind the camera. There’s a rustle, and the room suddenly comes into view.
“Uh, try that again, Millie,” Enid says. The camera slips from her hands briefly, a thump, and another, and the room goes spinning. “From the top!”
“Welcome to my channel, I’m Millie, this is Maud, and this is Miss Hardbroom!” Mildred rushes out, looking annoyed.
“Miss Hardbroom,” Enid hisses loudly, and the camera shakes again. Enid’s hand comes into view as she motions jerkily. “Step into the frame.”
Miss Hardbroom’s shoulder appears. Enid sighs.
“More.”
An awkward looking Miss Hardbroom  takes one very careful step towards Mildred. Her shoulders are tense and she’s staring at the camera with large, round eyes that make her look both terrifying and terrified.
“I am Miss Hardbroom,” her voice is very grave. Maud cringes and there’s a stifled giggle from behind the camera.
“You don’t have to re-introduce yourself, Miss Hardbroom,” Maud explains, shaking her head.. “Mildred already did that for you.”
“I’d rather introduce myself.” She slowly walks out of the frame again, one shuffle at a time, never breaking eye contact with the camera and her arms very stiff by her sides.
“Let’s just….let’s starts over.”
A black screen.
“Hi! Millie, here, with Maud and Miss Hardbroom! Oh, wait –.“
Three groans.
A black screen.
“Hi, I’m Mildred, this is Maud and this is –“
“I am Miss Hardbroom.”
“You have to step into the frame, HB!”
“Enid Nightshade, you are one more disrespectful comment away from earning yourself a week of detention!”
“This is my literal nightmare,” Maud whispers, bringing her palm against her forehead. “Just zoom out!”
“Oh, right.”
The camera zooms out. Miss Hardbroom comes into focus, looking very uncomfortable and like she’d rather be anywhere else but here.
“We’ll be making a sleeping drought with Miss Hardbroom today. As always, don’t forget to subscribe below!” Mildred points to the ground and dances about a little. Miss Hardbroom’s lips could not turn down further if she tried.
“We’ll start by heating the cauldron to 60 degrees and measuring out bee’s brain.” Mildred continues.
“You’ll want to chop them up into smaller pieces, if possible.” Miss Hardbroom says tersely, almost as if the words are being pulled painfully from her mouth.
She looks straight at the lens as she materializes a jar of bee’s brain and presents it awkwardly to the camera, head turning to the side as if to capture her best angle.
The camera shakes and beeps.
“Uh, Millie? You said your mom lent you the charger, right?”
“A red light has appeared on your camera, Mildred Hubble.”
“Bats, is it running out of batte –.“
A black screen.
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