"They're gone?!"

The Selected were all aflame, chattering nervously.

"Yes!" Amaya cried, her eyes widening as big as the moon. "They're gone!"

"Are you sure? Did you check their rooms?" Mary asked.

"They're all gone! All of their luggage, just… disappeared! Their maids, too!" Eva said. The girls gasped.

"Do you think…" Mary's eyes widened too.

"Do you think they killed them?!" a red-haired girl squealed. The rest of the Selected just stared at her.

"No, I mean… Do you think she eliminated them?" Mary whispered, her face falling.

"There's a good possibility," Eva said. "Why else would they wipe their luggage from their rooms? They've gone home."

"Or worse…" the red-haired girl whimpered. Mary put a hand on her shoulder.

"No, Thalia. I don't think she's cruel enough to kill them," Mary said soothingly. The red-haired girl—Thalia—sniffed. "I don't think a Mistress can just order an execution. That's the King's job."

"B-but what if-"

"They've been eliminated."

All eyes turned to Natasha, who stood in front of them, her expression grim.

"What?" Julia said. "How do you know?"

"A little bird told me." A grin emerged on her face. She didn't bother to elaborate.

"That's not fair," Julia finally said. "She's the Coordinator, not the Prince. What gives her the power to eliminate us?"

"I don't know," Eva nodded. "You're right. This is wrong."

A sob emerged from beside them. They turned to see Mary, her body shaking with anguish.

Mary bit her lip. "I… Katya…"

"It's okay," Julia said, sitting down on a wooden chair. "It was her choice."

"But she…" Mary said. "She… gave away her chance…"

"It's okay," said Natasha. "Better her than you, anyway. She knew she never stood a chance."

"But she passed the test!" Mary protested. "She passed the test but she still got eliminated!"

"This is a competition." Natasha put her hands on her hips. "In the end, she was just another obstacle."

Mary glared at her.

"No," she said, turning away. "She's a person, not an 'obstacle' to overcome."

Natasha sighed, stepping away. "... If you say so."

"Hey," Amaya said, taking Natasha's place. "If you need anything-"

"I think-" Mary shook her head. "I think I need some time to myself."

Amaya stopped, then nodded.

Mary bolted for her room and the rest of the Selected watched helplessly as she slammed the door.

"I hope she's okay," Amaya said. The other girls nodded, looking at Mary's door with solemn expressions.

A girl in the back scoffed. "What a drama queen."

Everyone turned to her. Julia searched her mind for her name. Giavanna, was it?

"Excuse me?" Julia said.

Giavanna raised her eyebrows. "I mean, Katya wasn't worth anything, anyway. I don't see what all the fuss is about."

"This fuss," Amaya growled, standing up and glaring at her. "Is guilt. Everyone feels it."

From the corner of her eye, Julia caught Natasha's eyes darting to the side.

"Whoa, there," Giavanna said, standing up from her seat. Her purple-pink gown swept behind her feet, dragging on the floor. "Aren't you quick to anger?"

"You little-"

"Hey, um…" Julia walked towards them and quite literally pushed them apart. "Please be nice?"

Awkward, but awkward was kinda Julia's thing.

Giavanna glared at her. "And who are you?"

Julia stared right up into her eyes. Geez, how tall was she? "Julia Ares."

"Ares?" Giavanna laughed. "Ah."

Julia sighed again. "Can you please just shut up? You are really cringy, in case you haven't noticed."

Giavanna rolled her eyes, but sat down on her seat, popping another grape into her mouth.

"Thanks, Julia," said Amaya as Julia turned back to them. "Wanna play?"

"Oh! Uh…" Julia looked back to her room. "No, thank you. I'm a bit tired from today."

"That's understandable," Eva said, yawning. "It's only been the third day, and I'm exhausted."

"Yeah," Amaya said, nodding. "I think I'm already homesick."

Julia smiled. "I think you'll get used to it soon. The palace is beautiful."

"I know," Amaya said, crossing her arms. "I see the gold."

"Not just visually, spiritually, too." Julia glanced up at the clock. "Oh. It's already midnight."

"Well, Eva and I are going to party deep into the night," Amaya elbowed her. "Right?"

Eva looked surprised. "Oh. Uh… sure."

Julia laughed. "Goodnight."

They waved. "Goodnight!"

Princess Alexandra wandered the palace halls, enjoying how the cool rays of moonlight lit up her face as she passed each window. There was complete peace, a calm state of mind that seemed to come whenever night came. As a child, Alexandra remembered staying up all night just to watch the stars. Alexander would constantly complain about it, though, as they used to share a room for a few years and her refusal to sleep would interfere with Alexander's busy sleep schedule, and they would get into brutal bickering that usually ended up in Alexander wielding his power over her head. Of course, Alexandra knew that her twin brother never really meant all of those threats. She knew that he would never really hurt her but…

Alexandra shook the thoughts away from her head. Now was not the time, especially with such beautiful scenery today.

She walked along the halls, closing her eyes, allowing her hand to guide her past the winding halls of the palace, bringing her straight into-

She tumbled to the ground and her eyes shot open. A blonde-haired girl stood above her, her eyes wide in fear.

"Oh- I'm sorry-" she offered a hand for her but Alexandra refused. She stood, dusting off her midnight blue dress.

"No. I wasn't watching where I was going," Alexandra said politely. "You are…?"

"Eva Schmidt, your highness," Eva curtsied. "One of your brother's Selected."

"Oh," was all Alexandra said. She began to walk away before Eva spoke again.

"Are you okay? Why are you wandering the halls at night?" Eva asked her. She paused, then added. "If you don't mind me asking."

"Oh," Alexandra paused. "No, I'm alright. This is just something I do from time to time to clear my head."

A beat.

"And why are you here?"

Eva blushed. "Oh… uh… I just wanted to admire the scenery. The palace is in a beautiful place- I can see the city so clearly from up here." She turned to the window.

Alexandra followed her gaze to the city. Lanterns gleamed from the distance, creating stars of their own. "I see."

"What about you?" Eva turned her head towards her. "What do you like most about tonight?"

Alexandra smiled. "I'd say the stars. I've always loved watching them from here."

"Oh," Eva said. "Is there a reason?"

Alexandra stopped. She wasn't sure if she should pour her heart out to this girl here, whom she had only just met. "I guess… they seem so far away," Alexandra leaned over Eva, reaching her hand up to the stars. She pressed her fingers on the glass panel. "So untouchable. They hang even above the clouds." Alexandra stopped and she stepped away, looking at the floor. "I guess it reminds me that there's always a higher power, always something to keep you in check, no matter how high you may seem."

Eva thought for a moment, then nodded. "You're smart."

"Not as smart as Elaina," Alexandra said. "I didn't think of that, actually. Elaina was the one who told me in the first place."

"I still think it's beautiful," Eva said softly, a bright smile on her face. "At least you… understand."

Alexandra leaned against the wall. "... Thank you. Are you… how do you think of Alexander so far?" Alexandra lowered her voice.

"Oh! Uh, well… he's fine, I guess," Eva shrugged. "I actually had a date with him earlier today."

"Really?" Alexandra raised her eyebrows. "It's only been a few days."

"Yes, well, I get the feeling that your brother isn't someone who'll wait."

Alexandra felt that familiar feeling of dark, sinister bubbling in her stomach. She reached into her dress and fidgeted with the vial in her hands, forcing herself to calm down. "What do you mean?"

Eva's eyes wandered down to where her hand was stuck in her dress. "I think you know what I mean."

Alexandra raised an eyebrow. "If you aren't hopelessly in love with him, why are you here?"

Eva avoided her gaze, turning back to the window, a streak of white moonlight hitting her face.

"I don't know," she admitted.

The Princess nodded, admiring how Eva's blue eyes matched so beautifully well with the moonlight.

"I get it," she said. Eva looked surprised. "The crown is a… very precious thing."

"I can imagine."

This made Alexandra laugh, for the first time in… what, a month?

"I should get going, now," Eva curtsied. It was swift and elegant, but very stiff. Like a certain way to curtsy had been drilled into her head. "It was nice to meet you."

"It was nice to meet you, too," Alexandra said. "I keep forgetting that there are thirty-four more people in the palace now. I should stop wandering off."

"Well, there's twenty-nine, now."

Alexandra raised her eyebrows, though her regal posture didn't change. "Hm? Has Alexander already eliminated?"

Eva looked embarrassed. "Oh… well… It's a long story."

They stood there in silence for another beat before Eva nodded and turned away, walking across the hall and finally turning the corner, away from Alexandra's line of sight.

She turned back to the stars, taking a deep breath.

And, at that moment, a shooting star came flying past, shining brilliantly past the plethora of bright balls of light, beckoning Alexandra towards it.

What do you want? Asked the star.

Alexandra only replied with a smile.

The stars knew what she wanted. She had spoken to them every day for many, many years ago. She had given up on the idea of a wish upon a shooting star, but maybe… it couldn't hurt.

With that, the Princess wished upon a star and walked away.

A/N Fun fact: What you just read was supposed to be a deleted scene, but I couldn't seem to rewrite it so I just copy-pasted it back from Google Docs history and let you all see it. This is one of the only times you will ever see a scene come back from its grave. Trust me, I already have at least ten scenes that will never see the light of day.

I know I said I would have a two-week hiatus, but I can update this week, but not next week, so I guess it's technically two weeks...? Just not consecutively.