Academy

I read over that letter so many times. I couldn't believe what was even going on. I sat there pondering what made me so special. I read the letter again.

Dear Ms. Romanov,
Due to your exceptional abilities, we advise that you cease going to Crenshaw High School. The reason we have contacted you is quite simple. You have abilities that qualify you for a school beyond your wildest dreams: Legerdemain Academy for Advanced Individuals. We hope to see you soon.
Best Regards,
Kimberly Conclave

I could hear my parents arguing in Russian...
My mother saying, "Maybe, she's just a late bloomer. You don't know if she will inherit anything yet."
My father replied coldly, "Nikoli showed his gifts before he was five! Why do you think we put our daughter in all those activities, so maybe she could be sent to where the non-specials live, and thrive in that kind of society!"
My mother calmly replies, "Ivan, please just give this a chance she could possibly develop her gifts at the Academy."
My father just nods.

I already stuck out because I didn't have any gifts like Nikoli. I was always being compared to my absolutely "perfect" brother. The Romanov family had an extremely high reputation for being wealthy and having strong gifts. My mother looked like a super model standing at 5"7 with long, blonde, wavy, hair and beautiful, soft blue eyes. She was the absolute definition of perfect. Her gift was that she could influence emotions and had the ability of mind control. Which she only used rarely. My father had a very structured face, with piercing green eyes and stood at 6"4. He has strong telekinetic powers. My brother was the spitting image of my father with the same gifts and everything. My family believes that only the strong will survive. It is a wonder why they kept me around. All though I didn't see it at times, I am considered very beautiful according to my people. I'm only 5"4, with long black hair and oddly enough violet eyes. I have a very voluptuous figure ... which is the exact opposite of my mother's lean and thin figure. My parents constantly put me through different activities like playing the violin, piano, and guitar. Dance lessons, and martial arts ....hoping that something would trigger any sort of significant ability. Honestly, the only thing that I can do is not really something I can control...the weather only changes with my mood...which isn't that's great so I didn't tell my parents.
One thing I did learn, was if I can hit a certain pressure point on someone it disables their powers temporarily...which is helpful when Nikoli is being mischievous.

My father came in the room and barked orders at me, "Get your stuff packed Ivanka, you're going to that Academy."

I didn't really understand why I was going because I didn't have any powers,but I'm guessing it was my parent's last resort.
As I waited outside, Nikoli looked at me and said, "I really do hope you don't go away with the non-specials...I'm just saying I don't want to lose my baby sister, so can you please try?"
I looked at him with the most sincerity and replied, "I will."