Broken Kingdom

by Dariia Popova

- What are you doing with me? - asked the cup of coffee. Trina put it away and took a deep breath.

- Why can’t it just end? I agreed that I’ve lost the game. So what do
you want from me?
She was sitting alone in the dormitory kitchen, which was one for students
from the whole floor. It was rarely empty, but that day there was a huge
university party, where most students of Trueverse were involved. So not
only the always crowded kitchen, but also the whole dormitory was almost
empty.
Trina took the cup again looking at the old building illustrated on it. The cup
was not talking anymore.
Trina took a deep breath. Playing games for wishes in the university of
magic was not the same as playing them at school. It was fun when last
week James jumped every time he said the word “but”. However it was not
fun when strange things happened to her. Everything she touched more
than two times began talking and sometimes couldn’t shut up. Moreover,
only she heard all that stuff. So people around could probably think that she
was crazy telling something to her plate or chair. However, sometimes they
had great conversations. When her acquaintances, who had imposed the
spell, asked her how she was, she always answered that it was much more
interesting to talk with furniture than with them.
Her perfect conversation with the cup was interrupted by a girl who ran into
the kitchen having a hysteric. Trina waited for somebody to follow her trying
to calm her down, but nobody else entered the room. Trina angrily looked at
the girl. She had so much work, but now she had to stop doing it because of
drunk girl she didn’t know. However, Trina’s conscience did not allow her to
ignore a crying person, so she couldn’t just leave.
- What has happened to you?
Trina tried to make her voice as mild as it was possible.
- My photos... Photos of me... Right in the corridor...
- What photos?
- There!
She pointed at the door. In her other hand there was a crumpled piece of
paper.
- May I look at it?
Trina asked.
The girl nodded. Trina smoothed the piece of paper and stood shocked with
what she had already seen.
The half-naked girl was standing in a little room and smiling with several
guys around her.
- I don’t remember anything. I have drank a lot, but not so much... I
don’t know, how it happened.
Trina also learned that the name of the girl was Miranda. She rejected
to have sex with Peter Reckbur, the son of the university director. Trina
has heard much information about Peter. He was narcissistic, arrogant
and was sure that he was allowed to do everything he wanted. Students
often were afraid to quarrel with him. Such “jokes” as the one he made
with Miranda appeared on the dormitory walls one-two times on semester
(6 months). There were some widespread stories about people who were
kicked up from the university because Peter wanted so, but there were no
real evidence of such situations. Maybe Peter and his flunkeys made those
stories themselves?
Trina looked at that photo thinking that such stuff couldn’t be displaced in
an easy way. All those pieces of paper, which covered the whole dormitory
walls, were strongly bonded with a spell and taking off even several of them
would take lots of time.
She took a deep breath and hugged Miranda.
- I think it’s nothing important. Everybody knows, who Reckbur is. They
will understand that it’s not your fault.
- No, they won’t.
Triny hugged the girl again understanding that Miranda was right. Of course,
not everybody would understand and she really was in trouble.
Triny made her tea with a calming down effect and took Miranda to her
room. Miranda locked her door and turned off everything that could remind
her about what had happened. Shocked and angry Trina went away from the
dormitory.
The university parties were often full of events and adventures. During all
next week everybody was talking about the dressings of the students, how
drunk they were, who had sex and who scuffled.
Sometimes there were surprises after the party. In spite of all the spells
that were put on the dormitory walls students found ways to put something
on them and that “something” was usually harmful for a person, which was
pictured.
That morning people saw the white shits of paper again and with interest
came closer to the walls.
- WHAT'S THE FUCK?
A guy in a black jacket and stylish grey pants shouted. Students stood in
silence. Some of them barely restrained laugh omitting heads and smiling.
That were photos of Peter standing in a little room with several guys. He was
half-naked and also had girlish boobs.
Peter ran to Miranda’s room, but it was locked. He shouted and pounded as
hard as he could, but nobody reacted.
He began to cast spells, but the photos didn’t obey. They were confidently
hanging all over the dormitory.
He ran to his room and locked the door. He tried to think about revenge,
but he couldn’t as feeling of his own miserableness was more powerful than
anything else at that moment.
- Sophia, are you sure that nobody will understand, who have done
this?
- Oh, Triny, calm down. You’re on the first grade. Nobody will think
that you can do it. Moreover, if they try to find an intruder, they will
find only Peter as he made and hang those photos. Linda and I only
corrected them a little.
The girls giggled.
- Sophia, you forgot that we also put a strong lock conjuration, so if
they don’t call the police, they won’t identify the origin of magic.
Triny joyfully clapped her hands.
- Thank you very much.
- You’re welcome. Moreover, it was a good did.
- Yes, really. I don’t want the university I’ve graduated from to become
a kingdom of one jerk.
Trina took her glass and it told her something about the weather. She
giggled and continued to drink. It was one of the best evenings in her
university life.