The day finally came.
I stood inside the ceremonial hall of the academy. The place was packed.
Students had filled the upper galleries. Faculty lined the side walls with their arms folded. Guards stood at every entrance. Even the maids had gathered near the corners pretending to be working while their eyes stayed glued to the stage.
And most of them were women.
My little confession yesterday must have spread like wildfire. A tragic love story between great houses. The heartbroken weak hero fighting for his forbidden romance. To them this was better than any novel their world could produce.
One female professor was staring at me with eyes so pitiful you'd think I had survived some horrifying trauma. Like I was a wounded soldier returning from war with nothing but memories of the woman he lost.
I ignored her. Scanned the rest.
