A/N Yay, new chapter! Sorry for the short delay, but I made this one especially long for you guys! You are so awesome... Thank you to Reader the Fish, The Rashinator, pllforever23 and Guest for their lovely reviews, I appreciate them so, so much.

I am delighted to annonce that this story has had over 3,000 views, which is pretty wicked considering how few Selection FanFics there are online. I currently have 37 reviews, and if you guys bought that up to 45, I promise to have a really long chapter up next, maybe 2500 words?

I am going on a school trip til next Friday, so won't be able to post another til then, but be patient, I have some great ideas!

Chapter 12

"Shhhh, baby. It'll be alright, you're safe now." I say soothingly, stroking my little sister's hair and rubbing her unbroken hand as she whimpers quietly in her hospital bed. They have bandaged her up and put a cast on her broken arm, but she looks no better than she did just after we found her. Or should I say, Aspen found her. When I saw him carrying her, I rushed over to him and threw my arms around his neck. He then pulled me away and stared deep into my eyes. "You don't love me anymore, do you? You love him, don't you?" He had said. I remember not knowing what to say. "Thank you so much, Aspen, how can I ever repay you?" "There's nothing more you can give me, America." "Wait, there is." I had said suddenly, remembering something I had been thinking about earlier. "When all this has died down, there is someone I want you to meet."

"May, baby, I know you have only just woken, but do you mind if I go to bed, I have been waiting all night for you to wake up. There are two people here to see you, though." I say, feeling awful about leaving my sister now. But it's true. It's what, 3 o'clock in the morning? And I haven't caught a wink of sleep. May nods her head and gives me a weak smile and I lean over to kiss her head before scarpering out the room. I tred slowly to my room, shocked at the number of unmoving guards on the ground. Guns are strewn across the marble floor and I can even see splashes of red. It's easy to tell who are the rebels and who are the guards, though.

My room is completely ransacked when I get in. I don't mind about about anything else, but my heart breaks when I see my jar with Aspen's penny smashed on my carpet with the coin nowhere to be seen. My last piece of him. Gone.

My maids aren't there, and I don't mind at all. I hope they are tending to Lucy and then go to bed themselves. They all deserve it. I quickly change out of my dress and into my lacy night-gown, not bothering with a wash. I'll have time for that in the morning. I lay back in my bed, but my head is too full of troubling thoughts to fall asleep. A few minutes later my door is pushed open and cracks of light seep through. I look up to see who it is and when I recognise Maxon's silhouette a wave of something I don't quite recognise flushes through me.

"America? Are you asleep?" he whispers, stepping into my room and closing the door behind him.

"No," I whisper back, "I couldn't sleep."

"Me neither." I stare as Maxon crosses the room and comes to lie down next to me on my double bed. I can see from the moonlight that he is in pajamas, and although there is nothing revealing about them at all, I can still feel my cheeks flushing. It's a bit ridiculous, if I think about it, I mean I am going to be married to him, for goodness sake!

"I can't believe this has happened," he murmurs, reaching for my hand under the covers.

"Neither can I. But at least she's back now."

"Yes, at least she's back now. Talking of which, we are holding an emergency Capitol Report tomorrow and Guard Leger will be presented with a medal for his bravery and honour. His status will also be updated to a Three." I smile at this, just think of all the difference that will make to his family.

"Thank you." I say, leaning over to kiss his mouth gently. He seems a little surprised but kisses me back.

"Stay with me, Maxon." I say, leaning back into the pillows.

"Of course, America." He whispers back. I eventually fall asleep in his arms, nothing plaguing my dreams.

When I woke up the next morning, Maxon was already gone. A little wave of disappointment flooded through me until I remembered all the meetings and press conferences he would have to do to sort out this mess. My maids came in through the door like they did every morning, but this was not every morning.
My room was still a tip, I had to tread tentatively around shards of broken glass just to reach the bathroom. My maids practically bundled me into the enamel bathtub and immediately got to work scrubbing down my mud-crusted legs. After what felt like an hour, but was actually a few minutes, they helped me climb out and into a day dress. It was a frilly little thing, pink and lacy. I hated it, but I didn't want to complain. I doubted that they had much time to organize my wardrobe.

"We're terribly sorry about the dress, miss. It was all we could find." Stuttered Anne, probably terrified that I would be cross.

"It's fine," I insist, "Makes a change, if anything." It did actually, it made me feel quite girly and pretty. I hoped Maxon would like it. I really wanted to impress him; he made such a brave choice choosing me. I bet he will face lots of criticism for it. I mean, who in their right mind would pick a Five over a Two or Three? Even I can't believe it sometimes.

"Stop!" I say as they begin to curl my hair into bouncy waves. They all turn to look at me. "Mary, I want you to take Lucy down to the hospital immediately. Anne, you can stay to finish my hair."

They all stare at me, shocked. "Um, miss. Why?"

I send them a look. "Lucy is in no fit state to be holding a curling iron, is she?" They nod in agreement. It's true, Lucy's hands are shaking quite uncontrollably. "Tell the nurse to give Lucy a bed and treat her after they have tended to the injured guards and my sister. Tell them I sent you."

They nod frantically and scurry out the room. Anne gets back to work immediately. "That was kind of you, miss." She says, arranging my curls.

"Thanks," I say. "Are you nearly done?"

"Yes."

I slipped on some little blue heels and waved goodbye to my maid. Outside of my room I was really shocked to see no sign of the horror that had been here last night. There were no guards propped up against the wall, no blood stains on the floor. All the rubble had been cleared away and the palace looked as good as new.

Downstairs in the dining room Maxon was already seated, next to his mother and father. I took my place next to him and was little disappointed when I saw there was only fruit for breakfast.

"The chef was injured in the attack." says Maxon, registering my confusion.

"Ah."

"I spoke to MAY, by the way. She seems okay, shaken up but not mentally scarred."

"But she's physically scarred, Maxon!" I cry, tears actually rolling down my face.

"Don't cry," he whispers, taking my hand and kissing a tear away. I smile at him.

"You look really pretty today, America." He murmurs into my ear.

"Thanks." I say back.

"May, stop fidgeting." I hiss, resting my hand on her leg. She is recovering remarkably quickly, it was just yesterday that Aspen rescued her from the hands of her sadistic kidnappers, and yet here she is with me, dressed and ready to appear on the Illéa Capitol Report. They've put her in a dress that stops just above her leg cast, with sleeves that stop just before her bandages. It has obviously been designed to show off her war scars. I can hear Gavril talking to the audience, his voice low and grieving. At the moment he is reading a list of all the guards who died in the attack, every so often you hear a cry from the audience, a sob as they realise it's their son. All I can think is: That could've been May. But it wasn't, and for that I am entirely grateful.

After what feels like an eternity, the list ends and Gavril returns to his normal, energetic tone of voice.

"And now we call up the lovely Prince Maxon and his luscious bride-to-be, Lady America Singer!" He shouts out to the audience whose response it to clap and cheer and whoop. I rise from my seat and, taking Maxon's hand, head over to the middle of the stage. We sit down on the sofa together, opposite Gavril.

"So, any injuries to tell of?" he asks.

"No, sir. Luckily, America and I got out pretty fine, with just a few scrapes and bruises to show for." says Maxon.

"That is lucky," agrees Gavril, "but Lady America's sister wasn't so lucky, was she?" Here's May's moment of fame...

"No, sir." I say, "but fortunately she is still with us. In fact, she is in the studio today." I figure I might as well be honest.

"Well, isn't that handy!" exclaims Gavril, "shall we bring her up here?" he calls out to the audience. The answer is cries of agreement.

"Alrighty, then. Can Lady May come up, please?" I watch intently as May collects the skirt of her dress and limps up the stairs of the stage. The audience applauds politely as she sits down next to me. I take her hand and squeeze it tightly.

"Good luck." I whisper in her ear.

"I think we should all take the time to take in May's injuries, don't you agree?" begins Gavril, as May lifts up her arm to show the bruises and the cast, "Would you like to tell us what happened, young lady?"

"Certainly, Gavril." May throws a winning smile at him. "We were at a drinks reception for important people and so on. I was outside, re-adjusting the hem on my dress, when this man dressed entirely in black rounded the corner. I was about to scream, but he was too quick. Before I knew what was happening, he had his hand clamped over my mouth and was hoisting me into the air. By now, rebels had got into the dining room, and people began to shout. I screamed as the man ran off, me in his arms. He took me into this room of the palace I had never seen before, with a metal floor and practically nothing else. He threw me onto the ground and gave me a kick for good measure. 'Make noise and you'll die.' He growled at me. I was so scared, Gavril. I really thought he would murder me. Then after what felt like days, but was probably only a few hours, he turned on this microphone and began to speak. He told everyone who had got to the safe room that unless they gave him what he wanted, he would kill me. As an added incentive, he was going to break every bone in my body, one an hour. When he broke that first bone, it was horrible. The worst moment of my life. This went on for hours, my body becoming more and more broken until all of a sudden, my kidnapper fell to the floor, looking unconscious. I didn't know at the time what had happened to him, but now I know that it was a certain guard who pressed the button to let a gas into the air stream. I was unaffected because I had already been fed the cure. The guard in question saved my life, and I will be eternally debted to him."