The last Selection that Illéa has seen is that of King Philip and Queen Brigitte Schreave, almost twenty years ago. From the stories I've heard over the years, the Selection is a magical event. Personally I feel like the whole situation would be a bit awkward, but I'd be lying if I said I hadn't dreamed of being in it as a little girl.
The Selection was the reason that right now, at this very early hour, my little sister was standing by my bedside begging me to wake up. The past few days she had been waking up at the crack of dawn to check the mailbox for a letter, no, the letter. The letter that invited me to sign up for the Selection, the letter she was currently waving in my face.
I groggily rolled over away from Sophie. "Go away, Sof." I complain. It wasn't very often that I got to sleep in, we did fairly well as a family of Fives but I still had to rise early to help Mother with breakfast, and make it to my job on time.
Truth be told, the only reason we weren't completely starving and dirt poor is because my mom use to be a Two and came from a wealthy family. Technically castes didn't exist anymore, but the people still labeled themselves. I suppose we were considered middle-class, but I never paid much attention to labels anyway.
"But Sutton it's here! The letter! Come on your have to fill it out, it's finally here!" Sophie exclaimed, breaking my thoughts. I sighed, there would be no sleeping in for me today, not as long as a screaming eleven year old was jumping up and down beside my bed.
Rolling back over I forced my tired eyes open. It was hard to be upset about her waking me up, not when she was standing there bright eyed with the biggest smile on her face. She wanted nothing more than her big sister to be the next Princess of Illéa, to fall in love with one of the princes. I couldn't blame her, though, when I was her age I was ready for the Selection to come. Over time, I grew out of that stage. I learned to be more practical. The odds of me being picked out of the thousands of other girls entering were next to nothing, and even if I was picked I wasn't particularly pretty or charming. My family didn't need the money, and it was much more likely I would find someone around here.
Sophie stuck out her arm, a clear indication that she wanted me to take the letter. I rolled my eyes but grabbed the letter, hastily opening it.
"C'mon Sutton aren't you excited?" Sophie asked, disappointed that I wasn't as excited as her.
I couldn't stand to see my sister unhappy, it broke my heart too much. I forced a smile to my face before reading the letter out loud,
"To the House of Carter," I began,
"The recent census has confirmed that a single woman between the ages of sixteen and twenty currently resides in your home. We would like to make you aware of an upcoming opportunity to honor the great nation of Illéa. Our beloved princes, Ashton Schreave and Alexander Schreave, are coming of age this month. As they venture into this new part of their life, they hope to move forward with a partner, to each marry a true Daughter of Illéa. If your eligible daughter, sister, or charge is interested in possibly becoming the bride of Prince Ashton or Prince Alexander and the adored princess of Illéa, please fill out the enclosed form and return it to your local Province Services Office. Forty-five women will be drawn at random to meet the princes. Participants will be housed at the lovely Illéa Palace in Angeles for the duration of their stay. The families of each participant will be generously compensated for their service to the royal family." I finished, the light shining in Sophie's eyes being more than enough to make me forget about my lack of sleep.
"You're going to be the next princess, I just know it!" she squealed. At some point Sebastian, Mother, and Papa had walked in my room. Sebastian smirked, Mother smiled, and Papa looked as if he might have a tear or two forming in his eye.
"It doesn't matter, Sophie, I'm not even filling out the form." I said with the shake of my head.
"Why not!" she cried, as if my decision was completely uncalled for. "You're so beautiful, Sutton, and I just know you'll have both the princes fawning over you!" she giggled.
I sighed, there would be no way to explain this to her. Sophie's mind was made, and nothing could change it. I didn't consider myself to be very pretty, my dark brown hair was long and wavy and in a constant state of tragic knots and tangles. I had blue eyes, and that was probably my most striking feature. When I say their blue, I don't mean ocean blue or a soft, gentle blue-green. I mean their bright, crystal blue. At night they almost glow when there's a full moon to shine down on them. They sort of remind me of ice, in a strange way. I actually happen to like my eyes, but that's as good as it gets, and both my brother and sister have the same eyes anyway, so its not like I'm special. Unfortunately I was not blessed with the great curves that my mother has, who even after three kids looks like she could pass for just a little older than my age. I was more on the lean side, but not particularly tall. I was just average, in my honest opinion.
Sophie on the other hand, truly was beautiful. She had light brown hair, but in the summertime it almost looked blonde in the sunshine. Her skin stayed sun kissed throughout the year, and she always showed off a healthy glow.
Even Sebastian was handsome. I seemed to be the outcast. He has hair a little lighter than mine, but darker than Sophie's. He was seventeen, almost the same age as the princes, and with his broad shoulders and good natured smile, it was a wonder he hadn't married someone yet.
"Sutton, you may as well sign up. This was always your dream moment, up until a few years ago." Sebastian said, rolling his eyes.
Then my mom chimed in, "Yes, honey you never know. What would be so bad if you got picked? You stand as good of a chance as any of the other girls." My father, thankfully, stayed quiet.
I thought for a moment, really what would be so bad? Besides, I didn't think I would ever say this again but a small part of me was actually excited, actually wanted to.
I looked at my father, then moved my eyes to my mother, brother, and then rested them on Sophie, who still had such a hopeful look on her face that it would kill me to crush her spirit.
Sighing, I held out my hand. "Someone get me a pen."
