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"On thisthe laws that have divided our people for centuries The students of this school--and schools across our nation--will no longer look upon one another as vendors, servants, counsel, or outcasts, but instead as classe to you"

For a moment there was silence, and I wondered if I should say soh of a state ret

Then a ruh the croith a life of its own, as cheers and shouts rose to a thunderous roar Colorful bits of torn paper were thrown, tossed high into the air, and looked very much like feathers as they were carried on the breeze My heart soared with thehter and burned hotter as I stood there, watching it all

As the cries died down, the door to the vehicle opened on the street below, releasing the first of the children who’d been transported for their first day at the Acadean

Almost louder, it seemed, than the cheers of hope And they calaise

"Go back to your own schools"

"Servants don’t belong here"

"You’re not our kind"

"Death to the queen!"

I heldfor trouble as I scanned the crowds I searched face after face, not sure what I expected to find I could feel both Zafir and Brook right at er

Then I saw the first boy, s his way down the sidewalk toward the school Toward me

I moved away from the podium and hovered at the top step I went down one and then another

Brook stopped o down there now," she hissed under her breath