Going to Cumbridge

"I'm home!" Zoe called as she closed the door behind her. She could hear her mother working in the kitchen and noticed several envelopes laying on the cupboard in the hallway. They had her name on them. She picked them up, noticing right away that they were rather flat.

"Hi, honey," her mother said as she looked through in through the kitchen door. "How was your day? I see you've already spotted the letters. All from universities?"

"Yeah," Zoe said. She felt apprehensive about those letters. For the last few months, she'd been awaiting replies to her university applications, but hadn't had any luck yet. She started to wonder what the problem was. She achieved almost perfect marks and her applications had been checked by half a dozen of her friends before she had sent them but still she'd received no word. And these slim envelopes didn't look promising.

"No luck?" Her mom walked over to her as Zoe opened one rejection letter after another. She still hadn't heard from her number one choice, a prestigious institution with increasingly low acceptance rates, but at this point, she'd lost all hope and any confidence of being accepted anywhere.

"Maybe I should apply to some local university," Zoe said as she tossed the next letter on the growing pile of rejections. "I hear community college is great for up-and-coming burnouts." As she reached for the last envelope, she noticed that it was a bit thicker. Hope welled in her, but she quashed it down. Could be just thicker paper, she thought. She turned it over and her hand began to tremble "Oh, it's from Cambridge."

Her mother began to look hopeful too.

Zoe quickly tore open the letter and started to read. The words can offer you admission immediately jumped out at her, but then she noticed something odd.

Dear Ms. Miller,

I recently received your application files and I am pleased to inform you, that I can offer you admission to Cumbridge University. However, please be informed that we do not offer the courses you applied for. Regardless we would be happy if you would consider joining our organization on the 1st of September.

Please return the enclosed enrollment form as soon as possible. A student mentor will contact you and help you acquire all the necessary items if you decide to enroll.

Yours Noot Nooterson, Dean

Zoe couldn't believe it, and reread the letter three times to make sure she understood. She knew that Cambridge was offering the courses she applied for, but the dean casually swept over it here. Then she noticed the writing error on the letterhead. How could such a thing slip through? Although, what if? She turned the envelope over and found the same logo stamped on the front.

"Cumbridge University for Erotic and Arcane Arts," she read. "What the heck?"