by Aya Ling
Elaine saluted and winked. Then she bowed deeply towards Thane and Tristan. "I apologize for any impertinence I showed, and I will try not to break the rules anymore."
Tristan grunted and turned away, heading for the door. Thane was silent for a moment; he smoothed his beard and spoke.
"If your impertinence has prompted you to invent a printing machine, then I have no objection for further transgressions."
Elaine stared at him, a dazed look in her eyes. Surely the stately headmaster did not encourage her rule-breaking?
Thane cleared his throat and straightened his collar. "Lady Matilda, I believe you had expressed a wish to learn more about kelpies? Allow me escort you. Miss Leventhorpe, you are dismissed. I suggest you return to your studies immediately. Remember, the final has not even started."
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Three days before the exam, the University ceased all classes and gave the students full time to study. Elaine became a hermit; she did not leave her bed chamber until Winifred forced her to go for a walk. Surrounded by mountains of books and papers, the room was absolutely quiet except for the sound of page turning and occasional crunches of her eating apples.
Elaine ran her fingers through her hair, which was mussed up and straggly from pulling on the ends frequently. Her hands were smudged with ink stains. Her eyes were bloodshot, her expression wild.
"You'll pull through," Effie said loyally. Ever since Elaine designed the printing press, Effie's regard of the little princess had shot up exponentially. "If you can design machines, then you can do anything!"
Winifred poured a cup of hot chocolate for Elaine, careful not to spill a drop out of the ceramic cup. "I think you ought to be allowed to stay. A few Quelan boys failed in literature last year, but they were still allowed to pass. So why aren't you given the same chance?"
"I know!" Effie said. "Marianne told Kay, who told me that three years ago, a girl from the Wesley clan wanted to study at the University. But only a few weeks later, she quit. The work was too much for her, and she even tried to cheat on a test."
"Not me," Elaine said quickly. "I whine, lie and steal, but I don't cheat."
Winifred and Effie raised their eyebrows.
"All right, so I wrote lines on my palm when Miss Blair made me recite court rules. But I'd never cheated on an exam. It's my academic reputation at stake. Have more faith in me!"
Effie rolled up her sleeves. "Then we had better start preparing. Want me to go over the mock tests with you?"
On the exam day, Elaine was pale and nervous, but she wiped her clammy palms on her cloak and told herself to stay calm. No matter how much she prepared, she loathed exams. But it was only through exams could she prove herself. Surely, the students would see her differently if she scored high on the exams.
"Have some breakfast," Effie coaxed. "You can't expect to do a good job on an empty stomach!"
"You sound like Valeria," Elaine muttered. For Princess Valeria, food was the most important thing in life–apart from her family.
"Effie's right," Winifred said. "What are you going to do if your stomach starts growling in the middle of an exam? You can't expect the professors to let you go out for a bite. Your performance will certainly be affected."
Elaine relented. Once she inhaled the food on the table, her appetite was restored.
When Elaine had eaten and left, Winifred and Effie looked at each other.
"Do you think the princess will be all right?" Effie said anxiously. "Perhaps I'd better go and make sure that she doesn't throw up or..."
"Effie." Winifred caught the end of Effie's long braid, preventing the other maid from moving off.
Effie squawked like a startled goose. "Winnie! That hurt!"
"Sorry. But I just wanted to tell you, don't go after the princess. She is not a baby. She will be fine. And who was it saying that our princess is the smartest student in the University and would have no trouble passing the exams?"
"Um..." Effie fiddled her hands. "I know, but she looked so nervous and pale. Even though she studied so hard, she might not perform up to her standards."
"She will be all right," Winifred reiterated. "She had plenty of practice. Come, let us go down to the kitchen, Valeria will be needing us there. I'll also get you a nice cup of tea and some croissants as well. You look as though you haven't slept well these days either."
Elaine didn't know how she got through the rest of the day. Despite a valiant attempt to stay calm, her heart kept pounding fiercely and her palms wouldn't stay dry. She didn't know how many times she swiped her hands over her robes. It didn't help that the classrooms were hot and stuffy–although the temperature was cool outside, the University cleaning staff kept stoking the fire until most of them were perspiring. Elaine wished she had brought an extra handkerchief.
The first exam was literature. Tristan kept walking up and down the aisle as though wary that they might cheat–which Elaine found ridiculous. It wasn't as if it were history class, when one could sneak in scraps of paper with dates and details. One could hardly cheat in literature, with those long, rhetorical questions that required multiple paragraphs to answer. Elaine also suspected that he walked by her more often than others, but she forced herself to ignore him and concentrate on her paper.
The math exam was also more difficult than expected. Although she had done her best, she still struggled to finish on time. What if Albert couldn't read her writing? She tried to work out the problems so quickly that they looked barely legible. A lump formed in her throat and tears threatened to fill her eyes. When she handed in her paper, she fled the classroom with a hand over her eyes, not wanting to let anyone see that she was crying.
"Cheer up," Winifred said when the day was over. "If you found it difficult, then others must have felt the same. I'd bet that half of the others have done worse than you. Don't let your feelings influence tomorrow's subjects."
It was good and sound advice, but Elaine still wasn't happy. Math was one of her favorite subjects–apart from physics–and she so wanted to do well at it.
The second and third day passed. When the bell rung at the chemistry exam and everyone put away their pens, Elaine wanted nothing more than to slink away to her chamber and sleep for three days. She did not want to think of what might happen if she didn't pass--she did not want to think at all.
As she walked down the hallway, someone called her name. In her exhaustion, she thought it was Francis Wesley and rolled her eyes. But when she turned around, it was Bran, anxiety written over his face.
"How was your exam? You DID study the notes I gave you, I hope?"
"Oh, not too badly," Elaine yawned. "I think I mixed up a few elements, but the rest seemed all right. Oh, I don't know how I am going to bear these days until the exam results are out."
"You'll pull through," Bran said. "Lady Matilda threatened Thane not to expel you."
"She didn't threaten him!" Elaine paused. "Well, she may have intimidated him, but she didn't wave her staff or anything."
"It's not just Lady Matilda. Did you know Lady Wesley also stood up for you?"
"What?" Elaine was stunned. "Why, she was so determined to make me into a lady."
Bran shrugged. "Arnold told me. I don't know if you know him, but he's Lady Wesley's grandson. He said that when Tristan wanted you out of the University, Lady Wesley went to see him. 'Stop bothering her, she has every right to study there,' she said."
Elaine's eyes widened. "She didn't!"
"Kind of weird," Bran agreed. "But Arnold has no reason to make things up. Did you do anything that might have influenced her?"
"I don't think..." Realization dawned on Elaine. "It must have been that day!"
"What day?"
Elaine told him the day she went to the market and saved Lady Wesley from being cheated out of a bargain.
Bran laughed. "I suppose that's it. Maybe she'd even take some math lessons if she realizes how the inability to calculate can cost her."
Elaine gr
inned, but she wasn't much comforted. While she may have changed some people's mindsets, exams were exams. The results would be posted for everyone to see. If she failed in one subject, everyone would expect her to leave. Hugo had already intervened once. Rules couldn't be bent a second time.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The very next day, Elaine slept all day long–supposedly to make up for the lost sleep over the exam-preparation weeks. The second day, she started the copying for Tristan. A tedious job, but at least she didn't have a mountain load of other homework to be done.
By the fifth day, she was halfway through. It was also the day when the results were supposed to be out. When she finished the tenth copy, Elaine pulled apart the curtains of her window and stared outside. Outside, Valeria was taking Baby Charles for a walk. The toddler wobbled and swayed, his fat little legs making slow progress, but he did manage to get from one tree to another.
Elaine had a fleeting thought to join them, but she quashed the idea. Valeria would certainly ask her if her exam went well, and Elaine was not certain that she wanted to pour out her troubles. Valeria had enough to worry about.
Perhaps she should just stop worrying and go to the University to see results. And since everyone's score was up for everyone to see, the only difference would be her presence. As long as she had the courage to go...
Elaine sighed and got up. She opened the door and proceeded towards the stairs. In fact, she was so used to leaving from the window that taking the normal route felt strangely unfamiliar.
When she started down the stairs, she almost collided with Effie, who was racing up the stairs two at a time.
"Oh little princess!" she gasped. "You wouldn't believe it!"
Elaine felt her stomach roll. "Don't say it! I don't want to hear that..."
"But you passed!"
Elaine, who was still muttering about starting next year, stared.
"I... I passed? But I messed up the history dates and my essays were awful..."
"Well, you got some pretty low marks in literature and history, but they weren't complete failures. But you did excellent in math and physics! Guess what, you scored higher than average! Even several of your math class classmates have to retake the exam! They've been mortified that you passed–a girl who barely had any lessons in math! Congratulations!"
Elaine was dumbstruck. "I... I thought that when I made Tristan so angry, he'd give me a failing grade." After all, literature was more subjective and her essays were mediocre at best, despite her attempts to improve.
"Thane arranged for the drama teacher to correct your exam so it would be more fair to both of you," Effie said.
"Oh!" The truth sunk in. Elaine grabbed her maid's hand and danced wildly around the room. "I've passed! I can stay at the University!"
"And that isn't all," Effie said excitedly. "There's a notice on the board as well–it says that starting next semester, a select number of girls will be allowed to study in the University. They will take the entrance exams and if their grades are satisfactory, they can attend the University as well!"
Elaine stopped; partly because her head was spinning, partly because of the news.
"Truly?"
Effie nodded. "I bet Lady Matilda had a hand in this. Valeria said she was telling Thane that if you passed the exams, he'd have to admit girls."
"Hurray for Lady Matilda!" Elaine whooped. "But did Papa say anything? Even if Thane could decide, Father might have something to say. Or the courtiers. Some of them can be so stubborn. Sir Greenwood refused that I be admitted to the University."
"It doesn't matter now," Effie said. "Your grades–in math anyway–have been enough to convince everyone that girls can do well. There is no way that your exam could be rigged, since you're either wrong or right in the answers. And now, with your classmates retaking math and YOU not being one of them–it makes for a really strong case."
Elaine skipped down to the carpenter's–she couldn't wait to share her good news with Jims. On her way, she made a detour to the nursery.
She was in luck. Baby Charles was back, crawling in his massive cradle. Elaine caught him up in her arms and raised him the air. Baby Charles gurgled and giggled.
"Ooh, aren't you the cutest little baby boy," she cooed, waving a rattle at him and making it hard for him to catch. "Now say my name, or I am not giving you this rattle! Say it: Elaine. E-lay-n."
"'Laine! 'Laine!" Baby Charles gurgled, reaching out a chubby hand to grasp the rattle. Elaine let him wrap his fat little fingers around the handle, and then caught him up in her arms and raised him in the air. Baby Charles giggled.
The rest of the day passed pleasantly.
She celebrated with Jims and Andre by ordering platters of food from the kitchen. Princess Valeria, upon hearing of her success, had personally supervised the bakers and had Effie and Winifred deliver a whole pumpkin stuffed with chicken and cheese, roasting it in the oven until the chicken was cooked through and the cheese was melted and bubbling. Andre also introduced Tintagel specialties–candied apples and roasted marshmallows–which pleased Valeria greatly. They had fun melting marshmallows on sticks in front of the fireplace. Even Baby Charles joined in.
On the last day of the post-exam holidays, Elaine was copying lines as usual. Now that she had passed the exams, she wrote with more vigor even though she still found most of the passages boring.
Just as she finished one section and was ready to take a rest, Winifred entered.
"A professor has come to see you, little princess," Winifred said.
Elaine bolted up. Who could it be? Did Thane come to renounce his decision?
But it wasn't the headmaster. A middle-aged man with thick spectacles and long mustache entered the room. He was so tall that he had to stoop before coming in.
Elaine stared at him for a second. She had seen his face somewhere...up in the hallway, where the plaques were hung...
"Professor Hugo!"
He smiled. "Princess."
Elaine ran towards him. "Please, have a seat. Winifred, can you bring some hot tea? Professor, do you take cream and sugar?"
"No cream, but sugar is fine." The professor took off his spectacles and cleaned them. "You are still studying after the exam? I thought you'd be out on a day so nice."
"Er... I have some work to finish for Professor Tristan," Elaine said.
"Ah, the essay he told you to copy?" the professor smiled. "I heard that you designed a printing press to hand in that assignment on time. Do you mind if I take a look at it?"
"No, sir. Not at all!" Elaine was surprised, yet delighted. "It's right over here."
Hugo inspected the press carefully. He lifted the levers, took the machine apart, looked over the components. Then, when he put the components back together, he requested Elaine demonstrate for him. Even though Elaine was fairly certain that the professor knew how to do it by himself, she was happy to comply. When the first printed paper was done, followed by the next, the professor held up the paper and smiled.
"Did you really make this because Professor Tristan asked you hand in twenty copies?"
"I didn't have enough time, and I was afraid they'd kick me out of the University if I didn't pass the final exams," Elaine said, with a shrug.
"Well, you've found a creative solution. And you made it–you passed your exams as well!" Hugo said. "All right, Elaine. Actually, the reason I came is because I wondered if you'd like to go to the Science Exhibition."
"The Science Exhibition?" She had heard of the event before. But when she mentioned it to her governesses, they had told her the Exhibition was none of her concern.
"Yes. It is a magnificent event held every four years in different countries. This year happens to be Riviera's turn. At the exhibition, you will see all the latest technological gadgets and devices displayed. The steam carriage that the king now owns, in fact, was the highlight of the first exhibition. Last time, it was an automaton–the same automaton that I've shown to my upperclass students."
&n
bsp; "Oh! I want to go! Please, mayn't I?" Elaine was intrigued. She was curious to see what kinds of new and exciting devices would be on display.
"Of course you may. Now, normally entrance to the Exhibition is limited to a special group of people, such as scholars and entrepreneurs, but anyone from the Royal Society of Engineers are automatically accepted. I can bring two students of my choosing, and I have chosen you."
It felt like someone had handed her the biggest birthday present ever.
"You mean that from hundreds of students, I am one of the two you choose?"
"Correct. Unless you wish to give this opportunity to another?"
"No!" Elaine quickly said. "I'll go, I'll go! Oh Professor Hugo, thank you so much! Actually, I never had a chance to thank you for intervening when I failed the entrance exam. Did anyone tell you how wonderful you are?"
Hugo coughed. "Restrain your flattery to yourself, Miss Leventhorpe. There, now I've told you, you can resume your work. The Exhibition is held next week in the Dome. We shall meet in front of the University, eight o'clock sharp. All other details are mentioned here." He handed her a handsome red envelope. When Elaine opened it, a gold-embossed card fell out. The location, time, and list of major technological inventions were printed on the card. She was so happy that she couldn't speak.
"Well," Professor Hugo said, rising. "I will see you at the palace gates next week. Makes sure to complete your work for Professor Tristan by then, or I may revoke your privilege and give the invitation to someone else."
Elaine put the card behind her back and grinned. "You won't get a chance."
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Elaine was almost too excited to sleep the day before the Exhibition. She woke up with dark circles around her eyes, though her spirits remained high.
"Good morning!" Effie chirped, entering the room. "Going to that Expo thing today?"