Okay, so I started a new story while in the middle of Enough. I just had this idea and really wanted to work on it. I will be back to my other story soon enough (ha ha! get it?)

I run across the field, laughing the whole time. "Wait up!" I call to my best friend and cousin, Lake. She giggles and runs faster. I chase after her for a few more minutes and eventually give up, stopping to catch my breath as she sprints on ahead of me. I walk the rest of the way home, panting. Lake stands outside the door, waiting for me. "You're slow, Freya," she teases. I respond by sticking my tongue out at her (in a very mature manner, of course). She laughs again and steps inside."Oh!" she says. "I almost forgot! Look what I got today!" She reaches into her pocket and pulls out two identical looking envelopes.

"Ooh, what is it?" I say, reaching for one of the envelopes. Lake holds them over her head, high enough that I can't reach them. "I don't know what they are, silly, I haven't opened them yet! But I do know that they're from the Palace!"

"Really?" I say, not entirely believing her. My cousin has tricked me before.

"Yes, really!" she says. "Look!" she hands one of the envelopes to me, showing me the Royal Illean seal on the front. "Wow," I breathe, barely able to believe that I'm holding a letter from the Palace. I slowly open the envelope, my hands trembling slightly. I pull out the letter and hand it to Lake. "What does it say?"

"To the house of Galeson," she reads in an overly dramatic voice. "A recent Census has confirmed that a single lady between the ages of sixteen and twenty currently resides in your home. It is a great honor to invite this lovely Daughter of Illea to enter in the Selection of His Highness, Prince Elliot Schreave. Families of those Selected will be generously compensated-"

I cut her off there. "A Selection? Really?"

"Well, that's what it says," Lake shrugs. "And it sure would take a whole lot of work if this were a prank." At the word 'prank' I can almost see the gears start turning in her mind. I laugh at my mischievous friend. "Are you going to enter?" I ask her.

"Probably not."

"Why not?" I ask.

"If I did, who would be here to take care of you?" she says.

"Lake, I'm sixteen years old. I think I can take care of myself."

"You're only barely sixteen," she points out. "Your birthday was only two months ago, Freya. Besides, the Prince isn't my type."

"How would you know?" I challenge. "You've never even met him!"

"He's too serious for my liking," she says simply. "And," she adds in a matter-of-fact tone, "his nose is too big."

"What? It is not!" I insist.

"it is so," Lake says. "I'm surprised he doesn't fall over from the weight of it. Good luck kissing him with that thing in the way!"

"Who says I'm going to kiss him?"

"Well, you're going to need to do a little more than kissing if he chooses you." Lake raises her eyebrows suggestively.

"What?" I say, not quite understanding what she's implying.

She giggles. "You're going to need to 'produce an heir', Freya."

"Lake!" I yell, shocked.

"You need to think ahead, Fray," she says, still giggling.

"Not that far ahead!" I insist. "I don't even know if I'm going to enter!"

"What? Of course you should enter!" Lake says.

"But . . . I don't even know him, " I point out.

"Duh!" Lake says. "That's why you're entering! So you can meet him."

"I can't even fill out the form, Lake. How am I supposed to survive in the Palace?"

"I'll fill it out for you," she say, suddenly serious. "And you'll do fine. Fray, look at me." She cups my chin and tilts my head up towards her. "You can do this, okay? And you should. It's what Granddad would want."

I soften at the mention of Granddad. "Okay," I say. "I'll enter."

So, a fairly short chapter to start with. This story is an SYOC but I'm only accepting a few characters so I can really get into their personalities. I'll be accepting up to five girls to be in the Selection and up to three non-Selected characters (maids, palace staff, rebels, etc.)PMs are preferred, but if you have to do it through reviews, that's okay, too.

First name:

Middle name(optional):

last name:

Nickname (optional):

I'm still deciding whether or not I want there to be castes in the story. Go ahead and put one for now:

Occupation:

Languages spoken:

Hair color+length(doesn't need to be a measurement, just say something like "shoulder-length")

Eye color:

Height:

Weight:

Age:

Level of education/grade level completed:

Approximate grades while in school(if they went to public school):

Personality(the more you write, the better):

Why they entered the Selection:

Hobbies:

Family members:

Background/history:

Interesting habits (like biting nails, always looking around a room before entering, etc. Can be bad, good, or neither):

Anything else I should know about your character:

Have fun!