The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy
Chapter 0432

To one one's surprise, Neumann again glances at his watch. "I already told Cadet Sinclair that I'd be disappointed if she didn't return. I've put quite a bit of preparation into her continued enrollment this semester." He glances at Alvez and the Captain on either side of him. "If either of you have objections to the Princess's continued enrollment please be aware that you will incur my wrath as well as the...shrimp's." He smirks here, turning his eyes to me, clearly tickled by the diminutive he hasn't yet heard. I scowl, hating that he knows my stupid nickname. And here I was, hoping to have his respect!

"I am pleased to continue," Alvez says evenly, folding his hands behind his back and smiling around the room at all of us. "Cadet Sinclair - Ariel, I mean, for clarity - is the only one of my students to have begun manifesting their powers. At least..." he takes a moment here to smirk at Jacks - a fact no one misses. "As far as I know."

Jackson doesn't react at all, staring back at Alvez with perfect equanimity. I fight a smile, pleased that Jackson's secret still remains safe with me.

"Anton Davis, of course, has manifested his - but he came in that way," Alvez continues with a casual sigh. "So, as you can imagine, I am eager to continue working with the one pupil whose course seems to be...working for her." He gives me another sly smile and I glance at my parents, still shocked that they don't seem to be noticing this.

Rafe too just blinks and nods.

But down the bond with Jackson, I feel his wolf raise his hackles. I send a little burst of panic his way, inquiring why no one else is noticing the way Alvez is looking at me. He sends back a feeling like a hand smoothing down my hair - cool and calm. I exhale slowly, leaning into that calm hand, trusting him.

But there's no time to consider it - not really - as the Captain begins to speak.

"So," he snaps, clearly not as happy as my other to professors. "It's all down to me, then? To levy discontent, when everyone else is happy to let her break the rules simply because she's a princess?"

Anxiety turns in me, easily overtaking the cool calm that Jackson passed me a moment ago. Because he's right- of course he is. I'm only still here because I have the right connections.

"To be fair," my mom says, her voice calm and considering. "If another young lady had accomplished as much as Ariel this past semester and I were on a panel to decide whether or not she could continue her enrollment, I'd vote for it. My fondness for my daughter aside, I think she's earned her place here."

"I won't be accused of misogyny in this situation," the Captain snaps, looking my mother evenly in the eye and then ensuring that each of the rest of us get the same treatment. "I have no problem with women - I'm not the type who thinks that they're lesser than men, or weaker. But I was on this council at the start of this school twenty years ago when it was decided that single-sex education would be better."

"I was on the council as well," my dad says, and we all turn our attention to him. "And I remember that your opinion was split. Rest assured, Ivan, whatever your decision today - we won't hold it against you or make assumptions about your politics."

"I'm grateful for that," the Captain says as I blink, absurdly surprised by the fact that he has a first name and isn't just The Captain. "But I have to say that I agree with the decision. Girls at the school - it's too much chaos. I'm not saying it would be anything the girls themselves did - but the boys will get distracted. Falling in love, having fights over who is dating who." He shakes his head with a grimace. "It would be chaos - which we can't have, not at a serious institution that is working hard to turn out fine warriors."

I blush horribly when I realize that what he says is true - that all of that did happen when I showed up, and I'm just one girl. But...I mean, none of us are any further behind in our studies for it, are we?

"Your point about the chaos of enrolling young women is well taken," Neumann says, speaking quickly and on a bit of a sigh as if he really doesn't have time to indulge in this. "It unfortunately fights against hundreds of years of gendered ideology to assume that a group of idiotic young men won't go to pieces just because a girl is around. But luckily there is an easy solution to this."

The Captain turns to him, as the rest of us do, with eyebrows raised.