The President (Flash Fiction Fridays #63)

Katie had always been a curious person. There was, of course, that famous saying about curiosity killing the cat, but she wasn’t a cat… and she had a small army of ninja rats who would gladly drag curiosity outside and stab it to death if it so much as looked at her funny. That said, her curiosity had once again gotten her into trouble, not unlike the time she’d expressed an interest in how her master became so good at picking locks manually.

Cue multiple sessions of being locked in a cage over a vat of slime with a set of lock picks.

To be fair, the slime wasn’t really that dangerous. It felt icky and smelled gross, but it was otherwise harmless. A quick bath was more than enough to deal with the consequences. In contrast, her master had learned from his master using a similar method… except it had been acid under the cage.

Yeah.

In any case, it was hard to argue with the results. In her eagerness to avoid being dropped into the slime, Katie had learned how to pick locks with incredible speed, and the skill had proven to be very handy indeed over the years. Yes, she could just smash most doors down with her magic, but there were times when subtlety was required and when magic was not an option.

More recently, Katie had expressed curiosity about the Student Council of the Academy. As the most prestigious learning institution in the country – arguably the world – it wasn’t all that surprising that the faculty allowed the students a certain degree of self-governance. After all, the students were the best of the best, the aspiring experts and leaders of the future. Managing their own affairs to some degree should be child’s play for them.

After examining the various positions on offer, Katie had decided that she would throw her hat into the ring for the position of treasurer. She was good with money, and it would allow her to involve herself in student affairs without having to do too much work. Technically speaking, it wasn’t necessary for the treasurer to stand for election. Instead, the president of the student council was usually allowed to nominate the treasurer of their choice. However, it was considered good form for prospective treasures to stand for election anyway to demonstrate their willingness to be scrutinised by the student body.

So Katie had added her name to the list of students vying for a spot on the student council…

Only to find out a few weeks later that she had somehow been elected as president of the student council.

She’d been horrified. Her? President? How? She hadn’t even campaigned, and the position of president was supposed to go to whoever got the most votes! She’d asked the rats if they’d done anything, but they had all denied taking action. Instead, they had suggested that it was only natural for the students to choose her as their leader, given her outstanding abilities and hard-won experience. She’d then asked her master if the whole thing was a prank of his, but he’d denied doing anything either while doing his best to hold back his laughter at her combination of outrage and incredulity.

At her wits end, she’d asked her friends and instructors why anybody would vote for her when she didn’t even campaign.

Their response?

She was an actual, real-life war hero.

She had the best grades in the academy.

She had yet to lose a duel against any other student and had made short work of several instructors too.

Also, her decision to not campaign was apparently ‘cool’ and an indication of her ‘incredible confidence and composure’.

…

So now Katie was student council president. It wasn’t all bad. Being student council president did come with a lot of nifty privileges, such as access to certain archives, laboratories, and other facilities that were not available to the general student body. She was also willing to admit that seeing so many competent people obeying her commands was oddly gratifying, and it was nice being referred to as President Katie.

In any case, the position came with a lot of work. Thankfully, it was the sort of work she was familiar with. Organising events, wrangling various individuals, and balancing budgets were all skills she had acquired throughout her training as a necromancer. If anything, it was easier than her usual work since she didn’t have to worry about a rebellious zombie trying to bite her face off.

However, the last few weeks had been especially busy. With the Academy Festival coming up, it was up to her to make sure that everything ran smoothly and that all of the various exhibits, stalls, and other events organised by the students were ready in time. In keeping with the Academy’s excellent standards, the overwhelming majority of students were doing the right thing. However, there were also a few… miscreants.

---

Katie glanced up from her paperwork as Evelyn continued to play fetch with Patches. Theoretically, her friend had come to keep her company while she finished up some paperwork. In truth, however, she’d mostly come to hang out with the zombie dog. For all that Patches might not be the smartest zombie or dog around, he was incredibly affectionate, and he had a knack for lifting people’s spirits.

“Oh, you might want speak to Janine and Samantha later,” Evelyn said as Patches ran around her in quick, happy circles before chasing after the little ball she threw.

“Do I even want to know why I’d need to speak to them?” Katie asked. Janine and Samantha belonged to two different noble families. Their families had, apparently, disliked each other since before Everton had gained independence from the empire and had spent the vast majority of their history trying to tear each other down.

“They had a duel earlier today.”

“…” Katie sighed. “Nobody is fatally wounded, right? It would be such a hassle if either of them ended up dead.”

Evelyn giggled. “No. They at least had the good sense to call an instructor to oversee their duel, so while they’re both in bad shape, neither of them are likely to have any permanent injuries.”

Katie scowled. “This is the third time this semester. It’s getting annoying.” She rubbed her chin. “Spot is coming to visit next week… maybe I could ask him to threaten them.”

Evelyn grinned. “Being threatened by a dragon does tend to work wonders.”

“Still, I can’t rely on him to threaten everyone who steps out of line… and knowing how annoying those two can be, he might actually end up eating them.” Katie made a face. “I’ll speak to them this evening.”

“And by speak to them?” Evelyn asked.

“Not like this.” Katie gestured vaguely at the room around them. “Like this.”

Suddenly, the room was transformed into a nightmarish vista of twisting shadows, tenebrous teeth and claws, and writhing, jagged pillars of living darkness that hinted at the primordial secrets that lurked in the long, hungry darkness that awaited beyond even the furthest edges of the night.

And then, just as quickly as they’d appeared, the shadows vanished.

“You know,” Evelyn said, shuddering. “That’s kind of creepy.”

“So I’ve been told. But I’ve tried reasoning with them, so terror and nightmares it is. Maybe this time, they’ll actually listen.”

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Author’s Notes

Katie is from Unconventional Heroes, and Evelyn appeared in a previous snippet.

Even after the war, Katie’s struggle isn’t over. Whether it’s paperwork, wrangling other students, or organising events, there’s always something to do.

As an aside, Vicky was student council president during her day. She ruled with a smile and an iron fist in that she is totally the kind of person who could kick the absolute crap out of anyone while smiling and being polite. Timmy was the treasurer. Much like Katie, Vicky’s election was essentially a foregone conclusion, and she may or may not have allowed Timmy to make use of the facilities she got access to.

Also, if Spot ever attends the Academy, he will one hundred percent try to get elected and then insist on being called Supreme Dragon President Spot.