"Philip!"

Philip snapped his eyes to his mother's perturbing voice. She had asked him a question, but he was half asleep and not paying attention. Later, he knew that she would give him a stern talking to for embarrassing her in front of the political advisors or whomever were guests for dinner.

"Yes, mother dearest?" He replied as sweetly, and drenched it with as much sarcastic malice as he could without it sounding too overbearing.

"I asked, do you have any questions about your impending Selection? Your father and I can answer any of them. After all, we did undergo one ourselves." The queen looked lovingly at her husband, but it was all for the guests.

Philip knew she deeply loved his father, but there love was strange, for lack of a better word. His father showed his love for her more than she did. Most of the time, she hardly spared the king a second glance, much less gaze dotingly.

"What happens if the one isn't there? Do I just marry a girl who will eventually grow to resent this and kingdom and me?"

That wasn't his main concern. He wanted to know who was sending those letters, and if they would hurt any of the Selected. Philip couldn't ask his father, because he would laugh it off. He couldn't ask his mother; she would tell him too grow up and be a man. Cleobella would eventually tell the whole kingdom. Daily was too young to even understand rhymes that didn't emd with dog and frog.

That left Elian.

His younger brother was a whole lot smarter than him. Elian wasn't raised to be king, but he was too royal to pursue a job in science or whatever his latest educational passion was. Philip tended to forget because his brother would master one subject and then move onto the next too frequently.

He would pull him aside after the Report and talk to him then.

"Nonsense! Of course she will be there! I found your mother, and my father found my mother, and his father found my grandmother. You worry too much son, you should lighten up!" The king laughed heartily, as if he made a joke that no one else caught onto. Which, knowing the king, he probably did.

"But it's random. It's not as if I get to choose who I could have the potential to fall in love with and go from there." Philip pouted. This was the least of his worries, but nevertheless, he still wanted to fall in love and all that nonsense.

King Phineas sighed. "It's random. But it's not. It's up to fate and destiny. I guarantee that every girl chosen is chosen because of them. After all, there are no coincidences." He reached out and grabbed the queen's hand. "But I am just a silly old man. What do I know?"

This time, everyone joined him in his laughter, except for Philip.

Fate and destiny, huh? He wasn't sure how he felt about that. As Elian would say, there was no circumstantial proof. But Daily would point out that if fate didn't exist, then Cleobella wouldn't have gotten the pie in the face on the Report that one time instead of Elian.

"Oh Philip, must you be such a bore?" Cleobella tightened her grin, and proceeded to cut her steak delicately next to him.

"When it comes to my future, yes." He started to cut his, but not nearly as neatly at all. Steak juice erupted everywhere on his place, and more than once, his knife made that terrible, deafening noise against the plate.

She didn't look at him, but he could feel her scowl directed towards him. "I'm sure the Report will love talk of the Selection."

"Love? They'll dig it up. Cameras will swarm the palace. We'll never be left alone." Philip wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"You and your girls will never be left alone. I, on the other hand, will be forgotten." Cleo pouted as she took a bite of her steak. Slowly, she crossed her fork and knife over her plate and pushed it in front of her.

She must be dieting again, because she only took one bite of her steak, one of her broccoli, none of her potatoes, and all of her wine. Philip rolled his eyes. He hoped the girls in the Selection wouldn't be like his sister.

"You won't be forgotten, Cleo." He gulped down his tongue so he wouldn't insult her anymore than she felt.

"Oh yeah? The camera forgets an old princess where the future queen is involved." She sighed dramatically put a hand on her forehead to express how much of a diva she was.

"I hardly doubt it." She raised an eyebrow. "You'll be the main source of drama."

She swatted at his arm. "Philip! I will not be the one to start any drama! I am a kind person, and kind people do not start drama!"

Cleo stood up abruptly stomped away before he could get in a word of apology. The queen stood up to follow after her, her mouth agape with embarrassment, but the king pulled her back down to her chair. Immediately, the queen diverted her glare to Philip.

"Philip, sweetie, is everything okay with Cleobella?" She asked in her nicest, yet most menacing voice.

He shivered. He knew his mother's wrath would be harsh on just him. She favored Cleobella, so the two would sympathize with each other and talk nonsense about how terrible Philip was. If they weren't careful enough, Daily would join in.

"Yes, of course. She just has an upset stomach." Well, so much for keeping Cleo's dignity.

"I see." The queen nodded and kept staring at him for a few minutes. She finally dismissed him by looking over at the king. "Will everything be ready for the Report tonight?"

The king nodded, twirling the broccoli on his fork. Philip wondered if his parents had gotten into some sort of passive aggressive argument over the course of a few minutes. His father only pouted like that when the queen was mad at him, and the queen's ears turned red when she was angry or cold.

"Yes. Laurent should be making the final adjustments now." The king sighed and put down his broccoli. So he was upset.

Philip knew that the Report tonight had to go perfectly. If there was one fault, then the Selection would be ruined before it started.

Greetings, everyone! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter almost as much the Olympics! I'm going to try to post every Sunday, but forgive me if I post a little late. Also, I'll make the next chapter a bit longer, and hopefully it will include one of the girls. The SYOC is still open, so please send in your girls! Thanks! xoxo Buttercup