TESSA'S POV

Let's make one thing clear, before I say anything. I'm a fairly simple girl. I was never one for the frilly dresses and the colorful bows like most girls my age. I never needed much. That being said, I didn't want to be a One. I didn't want to be royalty. And I certainly did not want to marry William Herondale and become the princess of Idris.

Earlier today, my mother had received the letter in the mail. The standard letter that every single household with a teenage girl got. While it may have been customary for some, it was the letter that changed my life.

"My goodness, Tessa dear, this is your opportunity! You could enter the Selection, win, and become a princess! You just have to enter, isn't this exciting?" Elizabeth Gray exclaimed as she bustled around the household, fixing dinner. She may have been excited about the Selection, but I certainly was not.

The Selection, to put it simply, is a contest between 35 girls in which they all fight and compete for the chance to marry a royal member of Idris and become a princess. In this case, they were fighting for William Herondale, the prince of the Herondale household.

I don't believe myself to be an unkind person, or a judgmental one at that, but there is certainly something to be said about William Herondale. I've never met him, but from all of the magazines and news channels I have seen, he's just about the most annoying, arrogant boy on the planet. He's always out with a new girl every week, and the scandals are published on every newspaper. Honestly, I can't even believe that they're holding a Selection; I can't imagine him being tied down to one person for the rest of his life. I seriously pitied the poor girl who would have to be stuck with him.

With my mother looking at me expectantly, I remembered that I had to respond to her question. With a look on my face that told all, I said, "No way. You know how I feel about William Herondale, he's despicable. There is no way I would put my name in there and risk being selected."

I already knew that there would be hell to pay after I said that, maybe some yelling and a stern talking to. But instead, she decided to pull the guilt trip. "But Theresa, think about your father, us as a family. We work so hard every day and barely scrape by. With this money, we could really have a better chance. We're already so low on the caste system I'm not sure how much longer we can tire ourselves out like this."

In my heart, I knew she was right. My family is a 6, meaning that we are two away from being the lowest class on the caste system. We were essentially just laborers, doing the odd jobs no one wanted to do, like cleaning, and getting payed for it. It was really hard work, and has definitely taken a toll on my family. I mean, my hards are scrubbed raw every day, and I have some of the lighter jobs. My father, Richard Gray, is a hardworking man who can barely make it home in time for dinner. I love him, but I rarely get to see him. My mother, Elizabeth Gray, is… very bossy, to put it simply. I know that she has a good heart, and sometimes she can even let loose and have some fun, but lately we haven't been able to see that. She's constantly stressed with all of our jobs, and getting home on time to put food on the table. Everything's changed since my brother, Nathaniel, left on his mission.

When the word "mission" pops into mind, it might sound heroic. But you're sorely mistaken if that was believed to be the truth. He left us, embarking on his quest to work his way up the system to become a 2. It seems to be his lifelong journey, and he will stop at nothing to get it. In that, he left me to take over the burden to help support our family, and the wages just haven't been the same ever since. So we're struggling to make ends meet.

It was a pretty solid reason to enter, all in all. But later that night, as I snuck out, the leaves making a soft rustling noise in the wind, the moonlight illuminating the path I was taking, I was reminded of why I couldn't. I walked to an abandoned shack near my house, a basket of leftover food in my hands, waiting for Jem to come.

Suddenly, I heard a rustling noise and I heard the sound of a young man saying, "Fancy seeing you here, Tessa." Immediately, I turned and a wide smile crossed my face. And I saw Jem.

James Carstairs. My pure-hearted, kind Jem. Jem, who is much to good for this kind of world, the horribly oppressive world and caste system we abide to. He is a 5, but he actually has it much worse than my family. He is the oldest of four children, and ensuring that he can provide for all of them and his mother was a difficult task. I've always felt for him, seeing how he can manage to do all of that while maintaining such a pure heart. But what I really admired about him was his perseverance and gentle strength.

Although it may not look like it, Jem's been through more than anyone else I have ever known. A long time ago, when Jem was just a child, he used to live in another village with his parents. They had a happy life until one day, tragedy struck. The notorious village leader some would even describe as demon-like, by the name of Yanluo, took control of the village and forced them to take yin fen, a horrible drug that forces one to become reliant on it to sustain life. As a result, Jem's hair and eyes were turned a silvery color, as opposed to his former dark hair and dark eyes that were prominent features in his Asian heritage. Everyone in Jem's family was fine, except for his father, who was killed after bravely attempting to stand up to Yanluo.

Some have thought that Jem's strange, unusual hair color was extremely odd. But I think that it only adds to his gentle character and reminds us all what he has been through and how strong he has been. But he can't always be so strong.

Even to this day, Jem constantly relies on the yin fen to sustain him, and he gets sick because of it. It hurts my heart to watch him and his family struggle to be able to afford to buy the yin fen, as times were as tough as they could get, while being able to provide food and shelter for themselves. All of the money they acquired from their occupations were barely enough to scrape buy, and Jem runs himself ragged just trying to do all of this.

Because Jem is a 5, he is deemed as an artist. He plays the violin, and the sound itself is so beautiful, it seems as if heaven had been brought down to Earth for the brief minutes the song lasts. I love it when he plays for me, but unfortunately, he spends most of the day playing ridiculous songs the rich request when they buy his talent for an event.

Getting lost down memory lane, I briefly forgot that Jem was standing in front of me, looking at me worriedly. "Tessa… hey Tessa, are you okay?" he asked, concern lacing his voice.

"Quite all right, Jem. I just got caught up in my thoughts again," I remarked as I walked closer to him and gave him a chaste kiss. Always the gentleman, Jem is constantly proper, when in private and in public. "Look what I brought you."

I opened the basket of leftover food I had brought and spread it out, laying out an assortment of chicken, slightly stale bread, and water. "Tessa, you really shouldn't have," Jem said, a slight frown marring his usually gentle features.

"I wanted to. Now hurry up and eat, I have the most ridiculous thing to tell you." As he ate, I began telling him all about the Selection and how my mom wanted me to enter. Jem listened carefully, looking thoughtful as he heard all about it.

Suddenly, he said hesitantly, "It's not such a bad idea, you know. You could do it. You could enter."

I jumped up, looking aghast. "Jem, how could you even say that? You really want me to enter and compete for the affections of some shallow, arrogant prince? I love you, I could never do that to myself, nor you."

Gently, he slowly got up, and took my hands. "I know you don't want to darling, but think of it this way. You probably won't be one of the Selected, so first just do this to appease your mother. Secondly, on the rare chance you do get selected, you get money for being there. If you truly do not wish to be there, you could easily leave. I just want what's best for you, and your family. It would truly make their day."

Looking at him, and thinking about what my family could do with the money should I get Selected, I knew that it was the right choice. I was just reluctant to admit it because of that blasted William Herondale. Goodness, it would be absolute torture just being in the same room as him. I bet he's just a puppy-hating, book-burning monster.

But no matter. I was going to do this for my family, and for Jem.

Taking a deep breath, I looked at Jem and said, "I'll do it."

A/N: Ahhh oh my god guys! I was sitting in history class and all of a sudden, the inspiration for this story just hit me! I figured, I've never written a story about the Selection, or the Infernal Devices before, so why not? I love both series so much, it's a surprise that I haven't done this before. BTW, this has to be the longest chapter I've ever written for something.

Anyways, let me know what you think of the story and which TMI/TDA/TID girls and/or boys you want to see appear in the story, as either the Selected, or as guards. I already have a few in mind, and I was really struggling to come up with even 15 girls for the storyline!

As always, read, review, or favorite [why not all three? It would mean a lot :)]

Xoxo, Lexielovely