Chapter 1- Prince Theo
My mother, the queen of Illéa, was standing at my door. "Theo, your father and I want to talk to you. Can you let us in?" Sigh. Whenever my parents wanted to talk to me, it was probably really important, considering that they were the king and queen and didn't have a lot of time on their hands. I opened the door. They walked in, graceful as ever, and sat on the foot of my bed. My father quietly told my valet (and friend), Felix, "You are dismissed." What could be so important that my valet couldn't even hear it?
"Theo, the country is in a state of unrest right now. We want to provide the country with a source of happiness and hope in a time of turmoil." Wow. The words just came to her? My dad chimed in, "Yes. And we think you are the perfect person to help us out." Me? How would I help my mom and dad do the biggest job in the country?
"We want you to have a Selection," they said in perfect unison. Wait, what? "But Mom," I whined like a little kid. "I don't know if I'm ready to get married yet. I'm only eighteen! Besides, how am I supposed to choose a wife out of thirty-five girls? That's a lot of girls, not to mention that I have no dating experience whatsoever." It was true. Despite being declared one of the handsomest men in Illéa, I had never had a girlfriend. "We thought you'd say that," my dad interjected. "So we'll allow you to have only twenty girls in the Selection and you can finish it without being married at the end." I eyed them warily. There had to be a catch coming in this little deal. "We just ask that you keep the Selection going for a few months while your father and I listen to the grievances of the country and try to fix them." I thought this was a reasonable catch. "Okay, I'll do it." My parents exchanged smiles quickly then looked back at me. "But if I do fall in love with one of these girls, you have to promise me that you'll let me marry her, even if she's from a lower caste." My father opened his mouth to object, but my mother, face set, said, "Deal." I chuckled quietly. Mom had won; Dad loved her so dearly that he gave her everything (within reason, of course). "Don't forget the Report tomorrow, son; prepare your answers for questions relating to the Selection." My dad clapped me on the back and left. I had inherited his long, lanky frame, but other than that I looked very much like my mother, having inherited her dark brown hair and startling blue-green eyes. Some people even said we had the same nose and chin. She gave me a proud, loving smile and left my room. The thing I still don't get about my parents is how they can be so graceful and poised all the time when they have a country to run and two kids; me and my sister Callie, who is fifteen and probably awaiting her own Selection in a few years, now that I think about it. The strange thing is, I can remember when she was born. The whole country was rejoicing, and I wasn't very happy because I wasn't getting any attention from my parents, who were cooing over the newborn Callie. Well, I guess I would be getting the attention now, being the prize in a Selection and all.
Felix came back in. "Time to get dressed for the Report, sir." I sighed. It was hard to get suits to fit me because I was as tall and slim as a piece of Silly Putty stretched out. There were a few that fit after being extensively altered, and they did fine for the Report. I just realized how many more suits I'd have to get to fit and be somewhat comfortable during the Selection. I huffed in frustration as I picked out my favorite suit, a three-piece navy suit with a black tie. I threw it on and tried not to run too fast to the studio, not wanting to look sweaty during the show.
"Oh, there you are, Your Highness. We're on in ten minutes!" a woman with garishly dyed red hair said frantically. She was Emili Nixon, the host for the Report. She would be the one to grill me… on the questions I had forgotten to practice! Well, no time now. I'd have to wing it and use my natural charismatic abilities to miraculously make up properly princely answers to Emili's questions.
"On in three… two… one… " Here goes nothing.
"Welcome Illéa to your Weekly Report! I'm Emili Nixon, your host, and let's get started with the low-down on the country. Then, Prince Theodore has a very special announcement for the country!" I resisted the temptation to roll my eyes and instead plastered a grin onto my face. "And now we have Queen Miranda on the stage to talk about the new recreational program for Fives and below. The stage is all yours, Your Majesty." My mom walked up to the stand. "Thank you Emili. During my Selection, my philanthropy project was to fund after-school clubs and activities for lower-caste children who may not have the money to do them otherwise…" I stopped listening. Mom had told me about her plan beforehand, and I thought it was awesome. You could really tell that she was passionate about this, and she didn't have to pretend to smile as she thought about all the kids she could help.
Before I knew it, Mom left the stage to a rigorous round of applause and I was next on the chopping block. I walked over to the comfortable interview chairs, one for me and one for Emili. I took an inconspicuous deep breath.
"So Prince Theodore, what's your special announcement to the country this evening?" I injected some fun into my smile, making it seem like good news, and (hopefully confidently) said, "It is my great honor to announce that I will be hosting a Selection." Emili almost jumped out of her seat with excitement. "Oooh! And what are the guidelines?" Whew. This was easy. My father had told me this. "Five provinces will be drawn at random. These lucky five will have the privilege of submitting both a young lady into my Selection and a young gentleman into Princess Calliope's Selection a few years down the road." At this, the group of advisors and governors in the audience started whispering excitedly amongst themselves. I just plowed on. "Fifteen of the thirty other provinces will provide a young lady for my Selection, and the other fifteen will provide a young gentleman for Princess Calliope's Selection later. That adds up to twenty girls in my Selection."
"Tell me, Prince Theodore, why did you choose to have only twenty girls in your Selection, rather than the usual thirty-five that your predecessors had?" Oh, good. This was easy. "I just wanted to reduce stress on myself and my sister," I said, smiling at her. She smiled back and winked. Ugh, she's a lifesaver sometimes. "I'm sure the girl I'm meant to be with will show up in the pool somehow," I said, trying to joke away some of the tension. Luckily, Emili seemed to think it was funny and chuckled, getting the rest of Illéa to chuckle along with her. "I actually have the drawing ready, if you want to hear the lucky provinces now, Illéa." Felix came in with a glass bowl with all the provinces written on them. "Would you like to help me?" I asked Callie. "Of course," she said with a playful grin, her bright blue eyes alight with humor. "You first, my lady," I said gallantly. She giggled, then reached into the bowl. "The first lucky province is… Whites!" She fished around for a while until she pulled out the next one. "Next we have… Panama! Your turn. I can't pick everything for you!" I didn't have to fake that smile. "The third province is… Hudson!" I chose a different tactic and plucked the one right on top. "The fourth is… St. George!" Wow, we were picking a lot of northern provinces. "Together?" I asked Callie. She smirked and we both grabbed the same paper at once. Callie started, "The last lucky province is…" I finished. "Honduragua!" Wow, that was where Queen Amberly came from. She had to have been one of the best loved Illéan queens. Was something happening here?
"Thank you, Prince Theodore. Notices of the Selection will be sent to all single women between the ages of sixteen and twenty. Watch your mail, ladies! That's all for tonight, Illéa!" Emili finished with her usual catchphrase. The cameras switched off and I let out a huge breath I hadn't realized I had been holding.
"Great job on your responses, Theo." My dad came out of nowhere and gave me an approving look. "It sounded like you are a confident leader ready to walk life's path." I just gave him a smile. "Thanks dad." If only he knew. I managed to hold in my laughter until I got to my room.