Hannah Keen's silver tiara glinted under the field's floodlights. She clutched a bouquet of red roses, smiling ear-to-ear, and looked out at her classmates. Nearly everyone had tears in their eyes. For that night, she was their Queen, and it seemed like the whole school had been pulling for her and the Homecoming King, Gus Ashbury. This was their big debut.

Hannah and Gus are both special needs students, but their coronation was no mean-spirited prank — it was a symbol of pride for the students at Dunwoody High School, near Atlanta. "That's what we're all about here," Principal Tom McFerrin said. "Be good people and do good things in this world."

Homecoming last Friday was a night both students likely won't forget. Haley Pierce, a senior at Dunwoody who has known Hannah since kindergarten, remembered the mood. "We're all sitting there, like, 'Hannah and Gus, oh my gosh! They have to win!' We were all on the field and we all had tears in our eyes, like, 'Oh my gosh!'"

Days later, back in their classroom, Hannah and Gus were still glowing. They were royalty.

— Harry Smith and Daniel Arkin