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“Oh, my head...” I groaned.
The hangover the morning after was always the worst, especially when everyone around me was experiencing the same problem. It had never been this quiet in the Valkyrie dorm and the one person that dared start a washing machine had quickly been identified and stopped.
This was why we partied on Saturdays. We needed that day after to recuperate and suffer. It was a communal activity, just like the party itself.
“Coffee?” Stina offered, holding out a steaming mug.
“Fuck yes.” Desperate, I took a sip from the liquid goodness and sighed. That was exactly what I needed. It wasn’t nearly as good as Thea’s coffee, but that didn’t matter at this point in time. It was scalding hot, bitter, and mostly, non-alcoholic. My liver would thank me for that.
“What a night.” She poked a suspicious stain on the couch, but sat down regardless. “I’m knackered.”
“Me too. My eyes are stinging,” I admitted. I stared at the other girl, confused about how to feel about her. She was my enemy, but she was a friend. We’d known each other for so long, I had more memories with her than without. How could someone whose life was so entwined with mine be so... Evil?
Wouldn’t I have noticed over all the years?
Maybe Grandmamma was right. Maybe I’d misheard and this was all a big misunderstanding. I wanted it to be, so I could keep my friend. As ruler, I would need people by my side, people to support me, to love me, people to love.
“Hey, Stina?”
She jolted out of her hungover slumber. “Yes?”
“Great party. It was nice spending some time with you.”
“It was.” She nodded, which quickly turned into nodding off. She curled up on my couch, her eyes closed and her smile peaceful. She looked so innocent and vulnerable. Surely, she couldn’t look like this if she was truly bad.
I grabbed a blanket and placed it over her.
Grandmamma had to be right. I must have misunderstood.
***
DESPITE MY POUNDING headache, I dragged myself out of the dormitory to see Doctor Wagner. Apart from checking whether he transferred Heike, I had to go face the damage I dealt last night.
Would I have shoved Arne out of the window sober? Maybe not...
Did he deserve it?
I didn’t have an answer to that. Maybe it would depend on how badly hurt he was.
I stepped into the infirmary, the lackluster light a welcome change from the bright hallways.
“Miss Brynhild... You again,” Doctor Wagner said as he adjusted his lab coat.. “You’re keeping me busy.”
“Funny.” I did a quick take of the beds, counting only one occupancy. “I assume you’ve transferred Heike as instructed?”
“I did.”
He handed me a piece of paper with Ria’s signature, a wind mark I’d seen many times before. It was definitely hers.
I nodded. “Good. What about Arne?”
He checked the chart at the foot of the occupied bed. “Just a bad concussion. He’ll be good to new in no time.” Doctor Wagner sounded disappointed.
Why was he a doctor if he didn’t want people to get better? That made no sense.
It didn’t matter either. This was my last year at the Academy, soon, I wouldn’t have to deal with him anymore.
“That’s all,” I said, satisfied with my findings. Heike was back home where she’d get the care she deserved and Arne was alive. That was all I needed to know.
“Wait.” Doctor Wagner rummaged through his metal shelving, opening shrieking drawers and checking dusty bottles. “Here.”
I glared at the vial he held out. The dark liquid looked suspicious.
“What is it?” I asked.
“For your hangover.”
“Oh. How did you—”
“You reek of alcohol and there’s a drunk, unconscious guy in my care,” he interrupted. “I’m sharper than you think, Miss Brynhild. How do you think your friend survived her poisoning?”
My eyes widened and my blood froze. “P-Poison?”
“Yes. That’s why you sent her away, isn’t it?”
“I... Why didn’t you tell me?” I stared at the slender man, my thoughts racing through my mind. He knew? Why didn’t he tell anyone? Why didn’t he tell me? What—
“I don’t occupy myself with politics,” he explained softly. “I just heal. Besides, you knew.”
“I suspected...”
My hopes to Stina as my friend shattered. I hadn’t imagined things. She’d pulled the wool over my eyes and I’d been fooled by it, just like all the times before.
How could I have let this happen? Again?
I was such an idiot.
With shaky hands, I gathered a deep breath and collected my thoughts. Everything was so clear now.
It was time to take Stina down.
I turned to Doctor Wagner, locking him in my firmest gaze. “Are you willing to testify for me? About the poisoning?”
He blinked slowly. “I’d be willing to tell the truth.”
The truth was fine by me, since it would confirm what I’d been trying to prove to Grandmamma. If I had overwhelming evidence, she couldn’t ignore me and Stina and Heike would get what they deserved. Justice.
To prepare and set all this up, I’d need help though. Unfortunately, there was only one person I could count on, but I’d alienated her in favour of gaining popularity. I should never have listened to Stina or Grandmamma, but I did.
If I was going to fix this, I had to go talk to Thea and beg for her forgiveness. I just hoped it wasn’t too late.
***
MY HAND HOVERED IN front of Thea’s door. I was daunted, but I had to talk to her. She was the only person that knew what was going on, that would understand. I just hoped she’d talk to me after what I’d done.
I was such an idiot, but I would stay an idiot if I didn’t start fixing my mistakes.
I knocked softly, my breath hitched in my throat. My fingers were crossed, but I wasn’t sure what I was hoping for.
The door cracked open and Thea’s familiar face appeared. The light in her eyes quickly vanished as she saw me.
“You. Where?” she signed, her forehead wrinkled in a hard frown.
I gulped. I’d never seen her quite like this. All the softness was gone and the steel in her eyes bore right into me. It made me feel even worse about not showing up.
She signed again. “Where?”
“I...” I looked over my shoulder, aware that anyone could see me in the hallway. “Can I come in?”
“No.”
Fair enough...
Oh, this was painful. How was I supposed to explain this? How could I tell her that everything I told her used to be true, but now it wasn’t anymore? That just sounded crazy.
She clicked her tongue dismissively and tapped her foot impatiently on the floor, only adding to her anger. “Where? I share secret. You. Not here.”
“I can see how that came across wrong, it’s just hard to explain. I talked to Grandmamma and she... I... She pressured me into it, okay? I’m still the Heir, I still have to do all these tasks and duties, and what not. It’s serious business, okay? I can’t just waste time learning Banshee sign language, I have serious things to do,” I spewed, the anger that I carried with me unleashing. It was just at the wrong time and at the wrong person. “No, that came out wrong.”
But the damage was done. Thea’s face said it all. The hurt in her eyes, the disappointment. She took a deep breath and swung the door back closed.
Rejected.
That stung, but it was nothing less than I deserved.
I brought my fist down for another knock, but the door stayed shut.
What was I supposed to do now?
I could wait, but the longer I stood in the Triad hallway, the more people would talk and speculate. Leave? But that wouldn’t solve anything.
“I didn’t mean it like that,” I tried, waiting for a reply, only to realise that with a door in between us, there was no way we could communicate. Unless she let me in, this was it.
I waited for a couple of minutes before I turned away. I couldn’t force her to talk to me and so, I carried the heavy disappointment away. I was leaving a trail of ruined friendships in my wake and I couldn’t even blame anyone else for this one. This was my fault.
With a heavy heart, I had no choice but to walk away.