The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy

Neumann laughs at my inappropriate remark, shaking his head. "I was hard on you to push you, Clark. You work harder when you're terrified. Someone has to herd you along towards your potential, after all," he looks around the room now, glaring a bit at my friends and my family, who all beam at me. "These ones, I suspect, pet you a little too much."

"Thank you, sir," Rafe says formally, coming forward, but Neumann just waves a hand at him, turning his attention back to me. I grin, a little pleased to have a professor pay more attention to me than Rafe, who is usually the golden boy.

"Don't listen to what those other Cadets said at the final test, either," Neumann says, stern. "Do you hear me on that? Half of them failed anyway, so they don't know what they're talking about. You're very promising, and we're incredibly excited about your future in the department. Not every successful cadet needs to be a bastion of physical force in order to be useful to the nation's military. Understood?" I nod eagerly, tucking my hands behind my back and straightening my shoulders, bolstered by the fact that he believes in me. And, quite frankly, the fact that half my classmates failed out.

Jerks.

"And," Neumann says, leaning forward to speak softly to me now, conspiratorial, "if any King has any particular objections on the matter, you can tell him that I said that. And that if he has any questions about your aptitude and potential, that he can ask me directly. I want you here in the Spring, Cadet... Clark."

My mouth drops open a little as I realize that Neumann... knows. He has perhaps always known.

striding down the hall. "I wish you all a happy winter break!" he calls to us, "get it out of your systems, children! When you return

him, shock

in the room, all quietly beaming

shout, punching my fists up into the air,

and suddenly I'm swept off my feet. I laugh, hugging my brother back as he spins me around, and then I'm passed from arms to arms as everyone hugs me, and kisses my cheeks, and tells me how wonderful I am and how they're not at all surprised. I laugh the whole time, barely able to process it, almost knocked out

joy of it, when someone clears their throat at

smile on my face, to see Jackson standing there, frowning around

I can hear in his voice that he's pleased

"What," he says, slowly, looking around at everyone. "And you guys are

news - that he never, ever thought

my feet are flying across the room. I throw myself into Jackson's arms, where