For the first time in just about ever I've decided to explore a new category, so wish me luck and enjoy! Also, this is an SYOC (exciting!) so the form is at the end of the chapter.
It was an unusually hot summer that year. Nearly all of Angeles had seemed to slow to a grinding halt. Having escaped the heat, Prince Everett was in his room studying. As he reveled in the coolness he was startled by a knock at his bedroom door.
"Come in," he called.
He looked over from his desk and stood when he saw that it was his older sister.
"Elisa!" He beamed, walking towards her. "You weren't supposed to get here until tomorrow."
"I wanted to surprise you!" She laughed, wrapping her arms around him.
Everett glanced over her shoulder, expecting to see his niece close behind her. She was usually no more than a few feet from her mother.
"Where's Sera?" He asked, letting his sister go.
"She's at home, with Thorin," Elisa said, glancing around his bedroom. "I'm only staying to help prepare for the Selection, then I'm going back home."
He sighed. He should have known. Since marrying her husband Elisa had spent as little time in the palace as possible. She claimed that since she was no longer a princess that it wasn't her home, despite having been born and raised there.
"Did mom ask you to come?"
"Goodness, no. Queen Emily doesn't ask for help, not even from her children," she laughed, taking his arm. "Why don't you take me for a walk? I want to see all of the changes."
He would have protested, but since Everett hadn't seen his sister since their father's funeral he decided to indulge her.
Everett led her out into the hallway. As they walked he asked her about how things were in Likely and what she had been doing. He discovered that Thorin had been getting into politics, while his sister had been spending her more than abundant free time volunteering at one of the local hospitals.
As they walked they passed the portraits of their ancestors. Everyone from Gregory Illéa to King Porter to Queen Kerttu had their portraits up. Once their father's had been completed he would join them. And one day hopefully many many years down the line, Everett would have his very own fancy painting.
"I wish dad were here," Everett told her, stopping where the portraits ended and where the empty spaces on the wall began.
"I know," Elisa sighed. "We all do."
In the year since their father, Prince Alexander had died Everett and Elisa had grown close, despite the distance between Angeles and where she lived, in Likely. Though in all fairness, his death had brought many people together. Grief was one of the few things not confined to certain castes.
The accident had been horrific. Everett could still see his parent's car flip when he closed his eyes. He remembered the way his car came to a screeching halt behind theirs, and how he had told his younger sister to stay in her seat as he had gotten out to help. By the time he had made it to their car it was in flames. The guards were able to pull Queen Emily from the wreck but by them time they had gone back for her husband the flames were too much. As his mother screamed for the guards to let her go, he stood in shock, watching the fire reflect off the shattered glass that covered the ground.
The siblings continued walking, finally making their way out to the gardens. Elisa commented, saying that Likely never got nearly as hot as Angeles and that she didn't miss the heat. They were discussing Everett's eventual coronation when they were interrupted by someone yelling their names. Glancing over, Everett saw their younger sister, who was about a hundred yards away, running towards them.
"You'll make a much better ruler than I ever could have been," she told him quickly, turning to reach up and touch his cheek. "Besides, after three generations of queens, Illéa is ready for another king."
She pulled her hand away just as their sister caught up to them.
"Ellie!" She exclaimed. "I thought you weren't coming until tomorrow."
"Everyone keeps saying that."
She let go of her brother and leaned forward to hug Clara.
"I've missed you," Clara said, holding her older sister tightly.
Everett glanced down at his watch. They were two hours out from the Report, and he still had to have dinner with his family, go over his speech a few more times, and Clara still had to change (which was commonly known to never take any less than an hour).
"I know there's a lot of catching up to do, but we have two hours until the Report," He told his sisters.
"Already!?" Clara exclaimed. "I need to change."
She went up onto her toes to give her older sister a kiss on the cheek, then without saying goodbye she hurried away from them.
"I guess Illéa will be in for a surprise," Everett said to Elisa, as he watched Clara run towards the palace.
"Ah, yes," Ellie smirked. "How excited they'll be to see the 'runaway crown princess."
He laughed. Everett had never heard his sister refer to herself that way before.
"Who calls you that?" He asked.
"All of the papers. Well, the gossip ones at least," she laughed. "It was quite the scandal."
Calling it a scandal was an understatement. The people of Illéa had been horrified. At age eighteen their beloved princess had renounced her title and had announced that she would be marrying her guard. Everyone had been greatly disappointed. The people of Illéa felt that they had been cheated. Instead of the Selection and televised wedding they had hoped for they got a "runaway crown princess' and an untelevised elopement.
The Report was drawn out as usual. Everett didn't listen to a single thing that was said. He was too distracted with going over what he would say. It wasn't until his mother cleared her throat that he snapped back to reality. He knew that it meant it was his turn.
"Tonight we will end our program with an announcement from the handsome Prince Everett Schreave," Graydon Novak said.
He motioned to Everett. For the first time all evening he felt the eyes shift from his sister to him. Suddenly it was as though he was all that mattered. Everett walked across the stage and greeted Graydon with a firm handshake.
"Welcome, Prince Everett."
"Thanks, Graydon. It's always a pleasure to be here."
"Now, I know tonight all the attention has been on your lovely sister, Lady Elisa, which must be unusual for you."
"Yes, I know," he laughed. "She surprised us by being here tonight, though I'm sure Illéa will agree that it's a welcome one."
He could hear the crowd give a small applause. He didn't mind her being the center of attention. Since getting married and moving away she hardly ever appeared on the Report anymore, so there was bound to be excitement. She had become all but a mystery.
"I have a feeling you didn't come here to tell us about Lady Elisa, am I correct?" Graydon gave Everett a knowing smile.
"Yes, you usually are," Everett laughed.
He took a deep breath before turning to face the camera. He was moments away from changing his entire life.
"Illéa, as you know these past few years have been filled with many changes. We have gone from my sister, Lady Elisa, being the heir to me being next in line. Our family has welcomed my niece, Lady Sera. My mother, Queen Emily, lost her husband and our father, Prince Alexander. But now it is time to add someone new to our family."
Everett paused and looked out into the crowd of advisors. They all knew what was coming. It had been their idea. But the rest of Illéa would be in the dark for a few more moments.
"A time for change is again upon us. It is time for me to turn to the next chapter of my life. And so Illéa I call on you to celebrate with me as I begin my own Selection."
There was more applause from the audience. He could practically feel the smugness emanating from the advisors. "Illéa needs a distraction, Your Highness," they had said "It's been nearly a year since your father's death. People need to be happy again."
"Tomorrow, letters will be sent to all the eligible young ladies of Illéa. You will have two weeks to decide whether you would like to compete."
He took another deep breath.
"Goodnight Illéa. And goodnight to our future princess, who is out there somewhere."
Here's the breakdown of the Royal Family
Prince Everett (age 22)-pronounced ever-ett
Princess Clara (age 19)-pronounced cl-are-uh or claire-uh
Everett's younger sister
Lady Elisa (age 24)-pronounced elle-ee-suh
Everett's older sister
Lady Sera (age 4)-pronounced sarah
Everett's niece and Elisa's daughter
Mr. Thorin Waters (age 27)-pronounce thor-in
Elisa's husband
Queen Emily (age 45)
Everett's mother
Prince Consort Alexander (deceased)
Everett, Clara, and Elisa's father
Queen Mother Madeline (age 67)-pronounce mad-elle-in
Queen Emily's mother
Prince Consort Wells (deceased)
Queen Mother Madeline's husband and Queen Emily's father
PLEASE READ THIS
Please be as detailed with this as possible! Each person is allowed to submit up to 3 Selection applications. I'd prefer to get these through PM, that way there can be some secrets that I'll reveal as time goes on. The provinces will be listed on my profile page, which is where you can see what's been taken so far. If you would like you can request a certain province before submitting your application, that way it's reserved. Also, caste (other than eight) is unimportant. The queen's husband was a seven so it's unimportant to the royal family. So if you want a seven, then you go Glenn Coco.
Another important thing is that I'm really striving to have some diversity in this Selection. While the royal family already has some diversity in it, that isn't enough to make up for no diversity in the girls. I'd like at least 3/5 (or 21 girls) girls to be diverse.
There will be a Pinterest board! It will be titled a Moment in Life. The link is on my profile.
And one final note, you can get creative with names. I'd like to see a few interesting ones. If you struggle, I suggest Nameberry.
SYOC Application (ages 16-22)
Full Name:
Nicknames (liked/disliked. Any and all):
Age:
Birthday:
Caste:
Occupation:
Reason They Chose Their Occupation:
Province of Choice (If there's an important reason please specify):
Celebrity Look Alike (please pick someone age appropriate- she should be no more than 5-7 years older than her character at most):
Hair:
Eyes:
Skin Tone:
Height/Weight/Build:
Other Facial Features:
Style Before Selection (can be brief):
Makeover Changes:
Selection Style (Casual, Formal, Jewels, Hairstyles, Makeup, Etc.):
Personality:
Quirks/Character Facts (as many as possible, please):
History/Background:
Health Concerns (even if small):
Languages Spoken:
Likes/Hobbies/Talents:
Dislikes/Weak Areas:
Family (Name, Age, Job, Personality, Appearance, Relationship w/Character) Please make these as detailed as possible:
Pets (if applicable):
Best Friends (Name, Age, Caste/Job, Personality, Appearance, Enter the Selection?):
Past Relationships (Name, Age, Caste/Job, Personality, Appearance, Current Relationship w/Character, if any):
What They're Looking For in a Friendship:
How They'd Get Along with the other Selected (optional):
How they would get along with Princess Clara (and Lady Elisa if she appears):
Maids (three: Name, Age, a bit on Personality and Appearance):
How They'd Treat The Maids:
Thoughts on Prince Everett:
Thoughts on Lady Elisa: (Elisa was the heir of Illéa but when she was 18 she gave up her title and married a guard. She now lives in Likely with her husband, Thorin and her 4-year-old daughter, Sera)
Thoughts on Prince Alexander's accident: (He was killed when the Queen's car was in an accident. The guards were able to pull her out but the car quickly went up in flames and he was killed. Clara and Everett were in the car behind them and witnessed the entire accident.)
Ideal First Date:
Reason for Entering:
Reaction to being Selected:
Family's reaction to her being Selected:
Important Personal Items:
Theme Song:
Anything Else:
As always, reviews are much appreciated, and I'd love to know your thoughts. Hopefully, you'll choose to take a chance on this with me! Thanks for reading!