The Ambassador Ch 2

AU Note: Obviously, these talk shows are based off the talk shows we have nowadays. This is not a plagiarism thing, but a way for you to know what the type of shows are about. This chapter is a good 2 months after the wedding of Prince Maxon and Princess Kriss.

Transcript of HELLEN, a talk show hosted by Hellen.

Hellen: Well, I shouldn't have to tell you who my next guest is, but, in case you've been living under a rock the last two months, let me introduce her. She was a member of Prince Maxon's Selection, but then came back to the public sphere during his wedding in a brilliant move. The next morning, she left for Italy, where she has captured the public through Italy's social media outlets. She spent her time there learning about Italy, politics, and just generally having some fun. Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce Lady America Singer!

Audience: *applauds*

Lady America Singer walks out on the stage, wearing tight khakis and a light green blazer (a fashionable recognition of her past as a Five).

America: Hello!

Hellen and America embrace and sit down.

Hellen: Wow! Wow! Look at you! You look fabulous!

America: Thank you! My mother actually picked it out for me.

Audience: *laughs*

Hellen: Your mother? She's got good taste.

America: She does, thank God. I literally just got back from Italy so I had to just change and come here.

Hellen: Well, I'm thankful for you doing that. But, let's talk about Italy, because…to say the least, you've been busy.

America: Yes, I have.

Hellen: When you were there. First off, you were there for two months, and the first week was just a tour of Italy, by some really impressive tour guides. Tell me about that.

America: Well, first off, when I got to Maxon and Kriss' wedding, I had no idea that I was going to Italy. When I got to the wedding, I did a couple of interviews and then one of the women who helped the Selected during the Selection gave me a phone. The Italians offered to have me come, but they wanted it done right away. They had a jet in the area, so they had it land, one of the flight attendants went into the airport to get me a new outfit to change out of my gown, and I was off as soon as the reception ended.

Hellen: You had no idea that you were going?

America: No! The interview that I gave where I told everyone happened about five minutes after I knew. I hadn't even told my mother.

Hellen: You were so grounded, weren't you?

America holds a finger to her lips: Shush! I think she forgot.

Audience: *laughs*

Hellen: So, you went. And you actually got on the plane at the same time the newly-weds got on theirs. And you managed to grab a bigger crowd of photographers than them.

America: Yeah, apparently it was like a big thing for a member of the Selection to leave the country.

Hellen: Then, you spent the first week you were there getting a tour from whom?

America: From the Royal Family of Italy. All of their kids were there: three daughters and a son. And the mother was there for half of it. Obviously, the king couldn't get away from his duties, but while we were in Rome, he would clear his schedule for a family dinner with us.

Hellen: That's pretty incredible!

America: It was amazing, yes.

Hellen: So, tell me. What did you all do?

America: So, obviously, it was a tour so we went to some of the big cities: Rome, Florence, and Venice. We spent a day on the Amothei coast. They got me attached to social media.

Hellen: Which, by the way, has made a rise of kids going to the library so that they could log on and keep up with what you are doing.

America: Apparently!

Hellen: Let's talk about one of these posts. It wasn't one that you posted yourself, you were just tagged in it. The Prince of Italy Prince Benedict posted this picture of you and him in an Italian club with the caption: "So glad that some of us are still single and free." Now, this caused quite an uproar around the country because Prince Maxon and Princess Kriss had literally just gotten back from their honeymoon.

America raises her arms like "What are ya going to do?": I still don't see what caused the uproar. It wasn't like Maxon was going to take me back, he had just gotten married. It wasn't like I had stepped into the dating scene too soon because most of the Selected were engaged within a few weeks they were thrown out of the palace. How am I so different?

Hellen: I don't know. I couldn't tell you, but it did rub people the wrong way. Part of it was, I think, that many did think that you were going to win the Selection.

America: I'll let you in on a little secret: so did I. But, you know, maybe it was for the best. They say hindsight is twenty-twenty, and I think that's right.

Hellen: Why do you say that?

America: Well. I loved Maxon, but there were certain things that we didn't see exactly eye-to-eye on. It wasn't anything really. It was just the way we were both raised. I was raised as a Five and he was raised as a One. We both take pride in that, and there's nothing wrong with it, but it did affect our relationship in a way that I don't think either of us saw.

Hellen: That's understandable. The castes are so different that relationships could seem difficult.

America: Exactly. He's always been in the foreground, but I was raised in the background. I wasn't used to having my love life put out there with me having no control over how people saw it. You know, Five, Sixes, Sevens, and Eights, we've been taught how to disappear. How to blend in and just be background music, to only be there when called and then shrink back into the shadows.

Hellen: And of course, when you shrink into the shadows, you need someone to look out for you so that you don't always stay there even when you need something.

America: Exactly.

Hellen: So, while you were in Italy, you got some training to do just that, it seems.

America: You're correct.

Hellen: And this training is quite hefty. The Italian Royal Family says that they took the foundation of what you learned from the Selection, but added on a great deal. These lessons included, and I quote from the Royal Family's report: "lessons in politics, contemporary issues, diplomatic relations, foreign policy from all countries, law, war strategy, Italian language, world cultures, geography, and, not to mention, an in depth look at every situation in Illea whether economical, political, class, gender, and diplomatic relations."

Audience: *Applauds*

Hellen: Wow! That's a lot to learn in two months.

America: It is!

Hellen: What are you going to do with that?

America: Well, nothing yet. The Italian family keeps hinting that I might need these things later on, but I have no idea what it is.

Hellen: Well! I think we've run out of time, but I think I speak for everyone when I say what a privilege it was to have you on the show. Ladies and Gentlemen, Lady America!"

The moment I stepped off the stage, my phone started ringing, "You just couldn't stand it anymore? Missing me that much, Ben?"

"Come on, bella. You know I love you too much to be away for more than fifteen minutes."

"My Lord! How will I sleep?"

"I could think of a couple of ways to help you sleep."

My breath stopped in my throat, "Oh? If I remember correctly, I wasn't allowed to have the best of those ways."

"Not until I know—"

"I know. Not until you know for sure that I'm not doing it to forget Maxon. I know."

"Yes. And when I know…"

"Yeah?"

"You'll be standing in a puddle of your own creation."

Oh, but I already was. "You mean I'll throw-up? Do you look that bad shirtless?"

"Piccolo diavolo."

I laughed, "How did I do? In the interview?"

"You did brilliantly, mio caro. Just a couple more little interviews like that and—"

"I know what we need. I'll get it."

"Looks like you're halfway there." There was a pause on the phone, "Mio caro, you can quit at any time. You don't have to do this. I know that Illea is your country—"

"Ben. I want to. I want to, okay? I want a future for Illea like the one that Italy has. I want a future with you, and I want to show Maxon…I want to show him that I'm better without me. He took that ring from me like you take a doll from a child. He ruined us for a punishment, and threw us away like we were a toy."

"I'm sorry, Ami."

I took a breath, "Just a month."

"Just a month. Then, I'll be there with you."

I smiled, "What will you do until then?"

"Pine and dream."

"Sounds like I've got you completely wrapped around my finger."

"You do, you piccolo diavolo."

I hummed, "Good."

"We'll make things right, Ami. I promise you. We'll help them into the nation they were meant to be."

"I know we will. With you by my side."