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 — 𝘔𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘧 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘨𝘰, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 —

❝𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘐 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥... 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴❞

— 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘉𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘢 𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘺!—

❝𝘑𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺, 𝘧𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺❞

— 𝘈 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘦.  —

❝𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵...❞

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I can't do it.

What was I thinking? I never could do it, I was just fooling myself.

It won't matter anyway. Not if they get their way. There won't be anything left. Just the ashes of a burned and broken world.

They've won't stop until the world burns and empires fall.

Nothing can stop them. They'll keep coming until no one's left.

I'll stop them.

Whatever it takes. I won't let them take him. It doesn't matter what happens to me, whether I win or not, but I will protect Keefe from his legacy. No matter the cost.

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Heels clicked on the tile floor of the servants wing as the door creaked open, and Edaline's head popped out. Edaline was the mother I never had. She's been taking care of me for as long I can remember. She gave me a small smile and said, "You've been requested to clean the prince's quarters."

I internally groaned. I had to clean the prince's quarters? Keefe Sencen, the prince of Illéa. Another member of the so-called great nobility. I suppose he wasn't as bad as the rest. Then again, what did I really know? I had never even spoken to him, only seen him on TV, or walking the halls of the palace. Does anyone really know who the nobles really are? I’ve never seen them do anything useful for the country. Though the Vackers are by far my favorite noble family. They're so kind, and so pretty, and-

"Sophie?" Edaline asked. I shook my head to get rid of my thoughts. I grabbed my apron and sprinted out the door as fast I could. The faster I completed my job, the more free time I had. Plus, it isn’t good to be late for a call. 

Not that I was specifically called, whoever it was simply rang for a maid. I don’t want to get demoted into the laundry room, or worse. Edaline called after me, "Sophie, wait! I have something to tell you!"

Her words went through my head like a blur, and I continued sprinting through the halls as if I was running a marathon. Unfortunately, I was so preoccupied in my thoughts that I barreled straight into someone. We tumbled onto the ground, and the other person groaned. My head spun from the collision, and when I opened my eyes, I was lying on top of none other than Prince Keefe.

He smirked at me and said, "I know all the girls fall for me, but isn't this a little much?" I scrambled off of him, and smoothed out my maid uniform. I made a very ungraceful curtsy, and quickly said, "I'm so sorry Your Highness, I didn't mean to run into you!" Before I could embarrass myself any further, he put his hand up to stop me. Prince Keefe replied, "It's not a problem, Miss.... uh, what's your name?"

I gulped and stammered, "It's Sophie Foster, Your Highness." He made a face. "Please stop calling me 'Your Highness', I really hate it." I just nodded. Prince Keefe gave me a strange look. "Are you alright? You look like you're going to hyperventilate. I'm not that scary, am I?"

He then proceeded to make a big show of rumpling his clothes and messing with his hair. He raised an eyebrow at me, and asked, "Better?" Before I could respond, I heard a familiar commanding voice say, "You know better than to talk to the servants," I shrank back, as King Cassius appeared from the shadows. I dropped into a shaky curtsy, and he waved me away. "Off you go now. Don't you have some floors to clean or something?" King Cassius snapped. Prince Keefe glared at him. I quickly walked off in the other direction as fast as I could without it looking like I was running away.

King Cassius was by far the scariest person I had ever met. How could someone who looked so kind from the outside be such a terrible person? As I continued walking, I realized I had been walking in the wrong direction, and I had no idea where I was. Sighing, I was about to ask a guard for directions, when someone placed a hand on my shoulder.

I yelped, and jumped away, before I saw who it was. I whirled around to be faced with Prince Keefe. "Sorry if I scared you," he said sheepishly. I looked down at the floor. "You're not supposed to talk to me." I whispered quietly. He just laughed. Prince Keefe smirked, "Do I look like I care what my dad thinks?" I tilted my head to the side, letting my blonde hair fall in front of my face.

"I don't think I can answer that question. I can't talk about the king like that," I replied in the same quiet voice. He pouted, but then a grin spread across his face. I was starting to like this less and less. Before I knew it, Prince Keefe had grabbed my arm and was dragging me down the hallway.

———————- Time Skip brought to you by Dex —————————

Prince Keefe pulled me into his room, and locked the door. I gulped, "I'm really not supposed to be here." He just smirked and said, "Come on, live a little!" "It's living that I'm worried about," I muttered. Prince Keefe whistled. "Now that's the sass I'm looking for!"

He pulled a chair over and gestured for me to sit. I tentatively sat down. "Prince Keefe-" I started. "No more 'Prince Keefe'," He mimicked. I sighed, "I really need to do my job." The last thing I needed was getting yelled at by the head maid for not doing my job.

Keefe rolled his eyes. "Fine, Foster. Go ahead and do your job," I let out a breath of relief, then he added, "as long as you let me help!" I just gave him a look, but didn't protest. He led me over near the window, where a green liquid was spilled from a bottle, and it smelled terrible. I covered my nose, and asked, "What is this?!"

Keefe squatted down, snatched a towel from me, and started wiping it up. I looked at him in alarm. "What are you doing?!" Keefe gestured at the mess, "What does it look like? Cleaning up MY mess." I frowned. "That's not your job."

He sat on his knees, looked up at me, and asked, "Why should it be your job? You didn't make the mess." I plopped down next to him, and snatched the towel back. I shrugged and answered, "That's just the way things are. I'm a 6, you're a 1."  Keefe looked away, "That doesn't mean that's how things should be."

He was right, of course. But sometimes other people are just luckier and better off that you are. You just have to be happy for what you have and not complain, and if you do feel like complaining, think about how much worse you could have it. Well, that's at least what I keep telling myself. I could have ended up as an 8, and I’m lucky to be an orphan that’s well taken care of here at the palace. 

Honestly, this isn't what I thought Keefe would be like. He wasn't like any other royalty I had seen, like the visiting princes and princesses from other countries. They all seemed pretty stuck up, but what more can you expect? They had been given everything they had wanted their entire lives.

I finished wiping up whatever the green liquid was, straightened my skirt and stood up. I bowed my head, and said, "I should be going now." Keefe looked a little disappointed. I must have imagined it.

But, as I turned to leave, Keefe grabbed my hand to stop me. I whirled around, and he looked down. "Do you have to go? I've never had anyone to talk to before, well other Fitz and Biana, but they don't visit as often as they should," I probably looked shocked, because Keefe waved his hand in front of my face. "Hello? Earth to Foster? You still here?"

I slowly nodded. Keefe pouted like a puppy, and asked, "Well? Can you stay a little longer?" I bit my lip, and replied, "I guess I could stay a little longer." He brightened, and dragged me over to the other side of the room.

Keefe opened the doors, and led me out onto the balcony. He waved his hand at the chair, and said, "Ladies first." I rolled my eyes and sat down, and he turned to face me. "Sooooooooo..." he dragged out. Keefe propped feet up on the extra chair and said, "Tell me something interesting about you,"

Something interesting, I thought to myself. Well, my entire life has been interesting. "Well, I'm pretty sure I'm an orphan, I used to live with a family in the city, but I didn't even look like them, then suddenly one day I was shipped off to the palace." I answered. Keefe looked at me sadly. "That must be awful. Though, I couldn't say I have it much better in the parents department..." He trailed off. I wanted to ask more, but I figured he didn't want to talk about it, even if his parents were the king and queen of Illea.

Keefe frowned. "Wait, then how did you start working here in the first place?" I sighed. "I was sold to the palace when I was twelve years old." Keefe looked shocked. "I-" before I could finish, there was a knock at the door.

I froze, and looked up at Keefe. He motioned for me to look like I was cleaning something, and he slowly walked to the door. I twirled around to the bookshelf to look like I was dusting. The door opened to reveal Queen Gisela, who had a stack of papers with her. She said something I couldn't make out from all the way back here, dropped the papers on Keefe's desk, and sauntered out the door.

Keefe ran his hands through his hair, and walked back over to where I was. He looked away. " You should get going, you don’t want to be late." he said quietly. I nodded, and got out of there as fast as I could. After I was back on the servants' floor, I let out a breath I didn't realize I had been holding.

I pushed the door open to the room Edaline and I shared, and found her sitting down with her eyebrows raised. "Where have you been all afternoon?" she demanded. I glanced out the window to see the sun setting.

Had I really spent the entire afternoon with the Prince?

Edaline waved her hand, and said, "You know what? It's not important. I do have some important news for you though." I perked up at that. "What is it?" Edaline's grin was so wide I thought it might fall off her face.

She squealed and yelled, "I ENTERED YOU IN THE SELECTION!" I just stood there, downright shocked. She had entered me in the Selection? Why? I had no desire to be with the prince, and even lesser desire to be dressed up like a doll. Even still, the province of Eternalia was huge, the largest province, and it was where the capital city was. There was next to 0 chance it would be me.

Chapter Text

I continued staring at the wall, while Edaline danced around the room from excitement. As I overcame my shock, I remembered one of the very huge problems that had stopped me from entering by myself. Nothing to do with marrying the prince, I didn’t want to be a stuck up bitch like all the other noble girls I had met, like that one girl named Stina. 

I thought that if I did get picked, we could use the money to move out of here. I frowned and asked, "How did you enter me? If you work for the palace you're not allowed to enter." Edaline's face once again spread into a grin.

She pulled out a thick sheet of paper and waved it in my face. I grabbed the sheet from her, and quickly scanned it. Bolded words at the bottom caught my eye. They said, 'Release and Adoption Offer Accepted.' I looked up, with tears in my eyes, at Edaline who simply could not stop smiling.

I managed to choke out, "You adopted me?" Edaline pulled me into a hug. She whispered, "We no longer work for the palace. We're moving out into the city, and we're going to bring you with us!"

"Oh!" Edaline cried. "How could I have forgotten? With all this excitement...." she trailed off. She didn't have to answer as I followed her eyes which were looking at a photo on the wall. It was a photo of Edaline, her husband Grady, and their daughter Jolie. I never found out what had happened to her, Edaline and Grady didn't talk about her much. Perhaps they had a disagreement and are no longer in contact? Either way, now it was my turn to squeal. Where's Grady?!" I squealed. 

Grady worked in the stables, and as far as I knew, had been working here at the palace for quite a while. Just as I thought that, there was a soft knock at the door. Edaline got up to open the door, which revealed Grady. Grady had always been that father figure in her life, and she couldn't have had better adoptive parents.

Grady pulled me into a hug. "I assume Edaline told you all the news?" he chuckled. I nodded furiously, as Grady dropped his arms around so he could hug Edaline. I guessed they probably wanted some time to talk alone, so I said, "I'll be back soon!" I practically skipped out the door, and decided to take a walk around the servants' floor.

I walked slowly, popping my head out of the windows and taking everything in. After all, I wouldn't be here much longer. I turned the corner, and I saw a figure in a brown cloak tip-toeing through the halls. They looked around my size, but who were they? This was the servants’ floor, you didn’t have to wear the brown cloaks here. 

Time to do some investigating. I tripped on my skirt, and my flats made a scraping noise against the floor. The figure whirled around, and I quickly hid behind a large vase. As the person turned back around, I caught a peek of their hair. It was blonde.

I didn't know anyone else around my age with blonde hair. Unless.... I shook my head, and started walking back the other way, when someone grabbed my arm and pulled me into the room on my right.

I tried to scream, but whoever had yanked me in there covered my mouth with their hand. This is going to sound real gross, but I licked their hand. The person yelped and dropped their hand. "Sophie, stop freaking out! It's just me!" the figure said. Wait a minute.... 

"Keefe?" I ventured. "The one and only," he replied, and I could just imagine the smirk on his face. "What are you doing here?" I asked exasperatedly. Keefe shoved a piece of paper in my face, and I just rolled my eyes.

"It's dark in here, how do you expect me to read that?" I asked. Keefe sighed and turned on the lights, revealing the room as a small storage closet. I snatched the paper from him, but I didn't need to read the whole thing. At the top, in curly letters, was my name, Sophie Foster. It was my Selection application that Edaline had submitted. 

Keefe raised his eyebrows. "Wanna explain?" I shrugged. "What's there to explain?" He just shook his head. I put my hands on my hips. "If you're trying to imply something, just say it already!"

He just sighed. “It’s fine if you don’t want to tell me.” Keefe said quietly. I just watched as he walked away, leaving me confused. Why did he just leave like that? 

Chapter Text

I just stood there, staring after Keefe as he marched away. What is going on today? Maybe it was all a dream and I'll wake up and nothing will be real, I thought to myself. I shook my head and walked back to my room, but as I started walking, I realized I had absolutely no idea where I was.

I jogged around the corner, and peered down two hallways that I had never even seen before.

Panic filled my lungs as I frantically looked around and recognized nothing. My vision blurred with tears as I ran. Where was I running? Who knows? I sprinted through the halls, and my flats caught on the rug and I fell over. 

"Woah!" exclaimed someone as they caught me before I hit the ground. I groaned, and looked up into the face of none other than Lord Fitz Vacker. 

I quickly backed up and made an ungraceful curtsy. What were the chances I would run into him? Wait, wasn't Prince Keefe saying earlier that Fitz and Biana weren't visiting? What were they doing here?

He grabbed my hand and pulled me up. "You don't need to bow to me," Fitz said. I tilted my face up to look into his impossibly teal eyes. "I- Um-" I stammered, not knowing what to say.

Fitz smiled at me, "I'm not royalty, so you really don't need to panic yourself like this," I gulped in a breath of air, and found the ability to say something. "What are you doing here?" I blurted out. 

Fitz raised an eyebrow. "I think I should be asking you that. What are you doing on the 4th floor of the palace?" he questioned. I muttered, "I didn't realize I was on the 4th floor, I got a little lost."

He frowned. "I thought servants weren't allowed to wander on this floor unless they were doing a job?" Before I could respond, he quickly corrected, "Sorry, I didn't mean to call you a servant, that was probably really rude."

Why was he looking at me like that? As if he had seen me before.... but that doesn't make much sense, I had never even met him before?

I blushed, just as someone else came around the corner. Please don't be the king or queen, I wished. I got lucky, which doesn't happen often. It was just Lord Fitz's sister, Lady Biana.

Lady Biana picked up the skirt of her dress and hurried over to Fitz and whispered something to him. Fitz paled, as Lady Biana whirled around to face me.

I gulped and stared at the ground, while she just looked at me. Lady Biana glared at me. "You're supposed to bow," I quickly scrambled into another ungraceful curtsy. Fitz suddenly elbowed Biana. Hard. She yelped as Fitz glared at her.

Fitz leaned over and whispered something to Biana while I just stood there awkwardly. Lady Biana gasped, gave me another one-over, then grabbed Fitz's arm and dragged him away. Fitz called out as Biana dragged him, "Nice to meet you, Sophie!"

Wait. I had never told him my name! How had he known?

I shrugged it off, I probably told him and just forgot that I did. As my mind slowly pieced itself back together from multiple encounters with royals, I again became aware of my predicament.

"I really should have asked him where this was," I muttered to myself. Once I wasn't so panicked, I slowly began taking in my surroundings, trying to figure out where I was. I was about to look out the window and see if I could see what part of the palace I was in, but someone stopped me.

"Oi blondie!" someone called. I froze as a guard ran up to me.

I turned around to find, surprisingly, the guard grinning at me. She whistled, "No wonder Keefe-" Before she could finish that sentence, I decided to interrupt. "Who are you, and why aren't you yelling at me for being up here?"

The guard just smirked. "Name's Ro, and I just figured Lord Hunkyhair had something to do with you being here." Everything she had told me just went right through my mind as I focused on the one thing I heard.

"Lord Hunkyhair?" I questioned. Ro snorted. "That's just Keefe, I have to call him that 'cause I lost a bet..." she continued saying all sorts of other things, but I was too busy realizing that Ro must be one of Prince Keefe's personal guards.

Ro stared at me. "Did you listen to anything I just said?" I shook my head, and Ro just breathed an exasperated sigh. She raised an eyebrow at me curiously. "So what are you doing here?" My cheeks reddened as I said, "I got lost and ended up here."

"Really?" Ro murmured, more to herself than to me. "Sooooooooo," she dragged out. "Would you have, by any chance, run into anyone else?" she asked.

That was a weird question. "I did. I ran into Lord Fitz," Ro's eyebrows shot up as she cursed under her breath. I swallowed nervously. "Was that the wrong thing to say?" She shook her head. "Turns out I need to have a little talk with Pretty Boy," She muttered as she pulled out her dagger and started cleaning her nails.

I did NOT want to be there when she had a talk with him. Whatever that meant.

I backed away slowly, "Could you show me the way back to the servants' floor?" I asked, but Ro wasn't paying attention. She was muttering about micro bacteria, Fitz, and drama. Now I really didn't want to know what she was going on about.

Ro walked away, and I ran to the window I was going to open earlier. As I peered out the window, I realized it was almost dark out. What time was it?

I groaned and ran my fingers through my hair. Why couldn't I just ask someone for directions?! I turned around, and saw someone coming down the hall.

It was a boy around my age with messy strawberry blond hair, and he looked up at me and asked, "Wait… are you the Sophie girl?"

How does everyone know my name?

Chapter Text

I looked up at the strawberry blonde boy who knew my name, and I realized that I had seen him at the palace before, and he was one of Prince Keefe's friends.

His name was Dex Dizznee, and he and his family were 3's. His father Kesler was an alchemist who worked for the palace, and his shops were all over the province of Mysterium. His mother Juline came from one of the northern provinces. But, despite being so successful, they weren't nobility, because they were a bad match. Meaning they were in different castes but married each other anyway. Marrying out of your caste was considered a “bad match.” Bad matches didn't happen often, and if they did, everyone talked about it, especially since Juline had been doing work for the Council.

I should say something, I thought. Then I began to wonder if he was Lord Dex, and that ended my thought process as I scrambled once again to curtsy.

Dex yelped and said, "Woah don't bow! I'm just Dex! I'm not royal or important, for real, unlike Wonderboy,"

I stood up and asked, "Wonderboy?" Dex rolled his eyes. “Lord Fitzroy Avery Vacker? I hate that guy. I swear, the Vackers are so annoying..."

Dex continued saying all sorts of things about the Vackers, but I wondered why he hated the Vackers so much. Was there something about them I wasn’t realizing? They seemed pretty great, well except for Lady Biana. She was just plain rude. While Dex continued bashing the Vackers, I tuned out. 

As I opened my mouth to say something, I heard loud yelling and banging in the distance. "What is that noise?" I blurted out, interrupting his rant about the Vackers.

Dex groaned, and said, "That would be my wonderful siblings, the triplets, Lex, Bex, and Rex." An alarm bell sounded in my head. Triplets? It was uncommon in Illea for someone to have multiple births at the same time.

Dex looked down, and I realized he must have seen the look on my face when he said "triplets." I quickly said, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to look so surprised."

Dex smiled, and said, "It's fine, I'm used to it anyway."

You shouldn't be, I thought to myself. Suddenly my mind flashed to earlier today when Prince Keefe had said something similar.

I sure met a whole lot of important people today...

Dex flashed me a grin. "Well Sophie, I better go before the triplets try to destroy the palace. I'll see you tomorrow!" Dex ran off down the hallway, where I heard more sounds of breaking objects, and assumed that's where the triplets must be.

Wait... see me tomorrow? How would he see me tomorrow? It's probably nothing, I convinced myself, as I finally found the stairwell to the servant's quarters.

I scrambled down the stairs, and as I ran I glanced at the clock, which said the time was... No way! It was almost midnight, and Edaline and Grady were probably freaking out by now.

I knocked on the door to Edaline and I's room, and she threw the door open. "Where have you been?! It's midnight for goodness sake Sophie!" I swallowed, and answered, "Sorry Edaline, I got a little lost, and uh, maybe we should talk inside?"

Edaline's eyebrows shot up, and she pulled me into the room. I opened my mouth to say something, but she shoved a plate of food into my hands, and insisted I eat before telling her.

My stomach rumbled as I looked at the food, and I realized I hadn't eaten anything since breakfast! I quickly ate, and was about to spill everything to Edaline, when a tiny voice in the back of my head was telling me not to tell her yet....

Maybe it would be better to wait, instead of worrying her now. Edaline smiled softly at me, and asked, "What was it that you wanted to tell me?" I bit my lip, "It's nothing." She frowned, and tucked me into bed. "Get some sleep, Sophie. Tomorrow's a big day."

What? What’s going on tomorrow? Then it hit me. Tomorrow they were announcing the names of the Selected on the Report. Nerves churned in my stomach, but why should I even be nervous? I didn’t want to be in the Selection at all. 

With that thought in my head, I fell into a restless sleep.

*Time Skip Brought To You By Dex*

I awoke to someone furiously shaking me. I groaned and pulled the blankets over my head. "Leave me alone," I mumbled. Edaline pulled the blanket off the bed, and said, "Come on, wake up Sophie! We have a lot of work to do," I opened my eyes, and was blinded by the outpouring of light from the windows.

I rubbed my eyes and sat up. Edaline stood over me, and tossed my maid uniform at me. She clapped her hands. "Get up Sophie! Someone personally called for you today" she said in a sing-song voice. That got me up. "WHO?!" I yelled as I jumped off the bed.

Edaline raised her eyebrows. "You didn't tell me you ran into Lord Fitz Vacker last night." I stopped in my tracks. "He- I- What- Huh?" She just shook her head, but I could see her smiling.

"I can tell by your reaction that happened?" I ignored Edaline for a minute as I pulled out the small compact mirror I had, and tried to do my hair nice for once.

Edaline laughed. "Looks like someone's getting all dressed up!" My cheeks reddened as I changed into my maid uniform and walked out the door.

I stopped as I reached the stairwell. I facepalmed at my stupidity, as I realized that I had no idea where I had been called to, and I should have asked Edaline before walking out.

It was too late to go back and ask Edaline, as she probably had already gone to work in the kitchens, and the cooks had already shooed me away multiple times for bothering her.

Looks like I would just have to go to the 3rd floor then ask a guard for directions. I climbed up multiple sets of stairs as I finally reached the third floor. "Hey! You're back, blondie!" I whirled around, and I found the guard from yesterday, Ro.

I smiled, and replied, "Ro, right?" She just smirked. "The one and only, any chance you're looking for our favorite Lord Hunkyhair again?" I shook my head. "I'm looking for Lord Fitz? He called for me?"

Ro cursed, and muttered some things I really didn't want to repeat. She scowled. "So looks like Pretty Boy's making a move, huh? His room's down the hall, take a right, 2nd door on the left. Another guard will probably be there to help you. I got to have another chat with Lord Funkyhair."

I wanted to ask what in the world she was talking about, but decided against it. Ro looked downright murderous, and I did not want to end up on her bad side. 

I backed away, and once I was far away enough, I took off running. I followed Ro's directions, and ended up in front of what hopefully was his room. If it wasn't, I was about to have a very awkward conversation.

I knocked on the door, and it was opened by someone. And that someone was not Lord Fitz. It was his father, Lord Alden. "I-" before I could finish that sentence, Lord Alden opened the door wider for me. "He's in there," he said. I made a quick curtsy and walked inside.

"Uh, Lord Fitz?" I called. "Over here," he replied. I tentatively walked into the room, and found a very odd sight. Lord Fitz was laying on the floor, staring at the ceiling.

Seeing me, he sat up and turned around to look at me. He grinned and nodded. "You came!" I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Not like I really had a choice, and not like I would turn it down if it was a choice either. "And you can stop calling me Lord Fitz." He added.

Before I lost my nerve, I blurted out, "Why did you call for me? And I know it wasn't to clean something." He just raised his eyebrows and plopped down in a chair and gestured for me to sit down.

"What makes you say I didn't just ask for you to clean a mess?" he asked curiously. "Probably because you were clearly expecting me, you called me by name yesterday, and I had never even met you before." I muttered.

Fitz just flashed me a movie star smile. I blushed and looked away. He took my hand. "Sophie, I-" Before he finished, someone rushed into the room. It was Fitz's mother, Lady Della.

She smiled warmly at me. "You must be Lady Sophie!" I stared at her confused. "Excuse me? I'm no lady, I'm a maid..." I trailed off. Lady Della covered her mouth with her hand in shock.

"You don't know yet, do you?" I just shook my head. Lady Della sighed. "Come on Fitz, we have to get going. The Report will be starting earlier than normal today, because of the announcement." Fitz started to get up, as my mind drifted off to what she had said.

Lady Sophie? She must be mistaken, I thought.

I got up and was about to head back to do my daily chores, when Lady Della pulled me back. "Where do you think you're going, darling?" I looked at her confused, once more.

"To do my daily chores?" I said questioningly. Lady Della furiously shook her head. "You're going to come with me! You need to get dressed up! What would people think, seeing you wearing a maid uniform?" She continued rambling, but I had zoned out by then.

What is happening? What in the world is everyone talking about?!

"Mom!" Fitz interrupted. "You're overwhelming her," "Of course, maybe we should wait until after the Report then?" Lady Della asked. I nodded, not realizing what I was agreeing to.

After Fitz left, it was just me and Lady Della. She clapped her hands. "Let me at least do your hair and give you a little makeup," I opened my mouth to protest, but it didn't seem like she would take no for an answer.

Lady Della pulled me into the room across from Fitz's. "I'll be right back," she said. I nodded as she walked away, her heels clicking on the floor.

I leaned back in the chair and took in everything that was happening. Why were the Vackers suddenly so friendly to me? Well, minus Lady Biana. She didn't seem to like me very much.

A little too soon, Lady Della returned with her arms full of hair and makeup products. She must have seen my alarmed expression, because she just laughed. "Don't worry, I won't do a lot."

After she finished, I couldn't believe what I looked like in the mirror. "You're so pretty, Sophie." Lady Della squealed. She waved her hands. "Now off you go, it's almost time for the Report!" She said.

I thanked her and wandered through the halls a little before heading to find Edaline and Grady to watch the report.

*Time Skip Brought To You By Keefe*

Edaline, Grady, and I, along with many other servants gathered around the TV to watch the Report. Whispers ran through the group as other maids, servants, and butlers tried to guess who might be picked.

Someone tapped my shoulder and I whirled around in surprise. It turned out to be Miranda, one of the other maids, and someone I considered my friend.

I smiled. "Hi, Miranda." She just glared back. "Don't act like that! Everyone already knows that you spent the whole afternoon with the prince yesterday, and spent this morning with the Vackers! Did you bribe someone?" Miranda scoffed.

I just looked at her shocked. "I-Why- How-" Turns out, I didn't have to make an answer for her, as the Report came on and everyone quieted.

The king and queen made the regular announcements and such, but the anticipation was killing me. Couldn't they just announce the names of the Selected first?

Finally, after what felt like hours of waiting, Councillor Kenric walked up to the mic. He grinned happily into the camera, and said, "Good afternoon Illea!"

He received a smattering of applause. Councillor Kenric had always been one of the nicer Councillors. He, along with Councillor Oralie, had done many projects to help those in the lower castes.

Kenric continued, "And it's now time for what we've all been waiting for, the names of the Selected!" I nervously pulled out an eyelash as Kenric took the list from King Cassius.

Kenric smiled, and announced the very first name.

"Lady Biana Vacker of Everglen, 2!" Cheering followed after he announced her name, and the next names were announced. Of course she was one of the Selected. She was Biana Vacker, after all.

"Lady Linh Song of Choralmere, 5!" 

"Lady Marella Redek of Fluttermont, 4!"

"Lady Stina Heks of Sterling Gables, 3!"

"Lady Maruca Chebota of Solreef, 3!"

There were many names after that, but I only cared for who it would be for Eternalia. The last province announced.

Kenric said, "Now, the final Selected, from the Province of Eternalia, is Lady Sophie Foster of Eternalia, 6!"

Cheering erupted around me as I stared at my name and picture on the screen, slowly realizing that I would be one of the girls competing for Prince Keefe's heart.

What was I going to do?

Chapter Text

Ever since I had been chosen for the Selection (3 weeks ago,) I had been rushed about the palace being "prepared". I wasn't totally sure why that was necessary, but everyone was acting weird and nobody was telling me anything, and just avoided the question if I asked. 

Despite spending most of my time with the Vackers, apparently no one thought it was important to bother telling me why everyone seemed to know who I was.

I had been moved to different room on the 3rd floor, and it was humongous. I mean, not that being Selected was a bad thing. It had been great, being treated like a royal.

But every success will be tinted was a coat of bitterness. None of the guards (other than Ro, who came by way more often than she had too) or servants would even look me, even those that had once been my friends.

Edaline and Grady had postponed moving out of the palace, and they too had been moved to a giant suite on the 3rd floor as well. I'd barely been able to see them, either. Why would they keep me from seeing my adoptive parents? 

Everyone acted like they knew them, too. That was shock, especially when Lady Della and Lord Alden chatted with them like they were old friends. Had they been? Edaline and Grady didn't talk about their past a lot. 

I spent most of time with Lady Della, who was mentoring me. Mentoring me in what? That would be a good question. She mostly taught me how to act like a royal, corrected my posture, proper manners, curtsying, things like that. Not sure why I would even need stuff like that.

I heard a knock at the door. I immediately sat up and called in the sweetest voice I could muster, "Come in!" The door slowly opened, to reveal not Lady Della as I had been expecting, but Prince Keefe.

My eyes widened. "Keefe?" I asked, surprised. Keefe just stared at me for a minute, and started laughing. Laughing hard. "I-" He tried to say something, but it was lost to a fit of giggles.

I looked myself over. I looked fine, didn't I? I was wearing a red dress with my blonde hair pinned back in waves, paired with scarlet red flats. 3 weeks ago, I would have been shocked to see myself wearing something like this. This was normal now. A new kind of normal. Not that I liked that new kind of normal. 

Now I was starting to get impatient. "What are you doing here, Keefe?"

He held up a hand, and finally got a grip and stopped laughing. Keefe smirked, "I see that Della has gotten to you," I rolled my eyes at him. "Not like I had a choice."

Keefe just grinned. "You look great, Foster." I blushed. "Thanks," "Now are you going to tell me why you came here in the first place?" I questioned.

Keefe sauntered into the room and said, "Aw, can't I just come by to see you?" As I was about to answer, the door flew open and slammed against the frame. The figure in the doorway winced.

Keefe whirled around. I grinned. "Dex!" Throughout all the craziness of the past 3 weeks, Dex and I had become good friends. It was nice having someone to talk too. Keefe raised his eyebrows. "Huh, I didn't know you and Dexy were friends," Dex gave him a look. "Don't call my Dexy!"

"Whatever you say, Dexy!" Keefe laughed. Dex grumbled something about annoying princes under his breath, and said, "Come on, Sophie. We have to go."

I looked at him confused. "What?" Keefe seemed surprised as well. "I thought Della and Alden were busy today?" He asked. I turned to Keefe. "They are, that's why I'm not with Lady Della right now."

Dex snorted. "Good thing too, I don't know what I would've done if you had been with Wonderboy right now." Keefe frowned at that. "Has Fitz been coming by to see you?" Keefe asked.

I shook my head. "I haven't seen him since the day they drew the names." Dex facepalmed. Keefe looked away. "What?" I mouthed to Dex. He just shook his head at me.Then it hit me. In exactly 1 week, all the Selected would be here, at the palace. And Keefe would have to pick a wife. That seems a lot closer than I thought it was.

Dex said hurriedly. "I have to take Sophie to Elwin, I'll catch you later, Keefe!" Dex grabbed my arm and half dragged me out the door. After we were far enough from my room, Dex turned to me.

"It was rigged." He said simply. I just stared at him confused. "I have no idea what you're talking about." I replied. Dex groaned. "I meant the names, the Selected, all of it! The Council hand picked all of the names, so did King Cassius and Queen Gisela too." He said.

I looked at him equal parts shocked and horrified. "They hand picked the girls?" Dex nodded. I leaned against the wall for support. All this time I thought I had gotten lucky and been picked. Me, Sophie Foster, a Six, girl of the lower castes. My head spun and I almost fell over.

Dex grabbed my shoulders. "Sophie? Sophie? Sophie!" He called. I couldn't hear his words. The surroundings blurred together, and the world went black. 

*Time Skip Brought To You By Wylie*

"Is she going to be okay?" a voice asked. "Okay? Okay, Dizznee?! She passed out in the hallway!" another voice yelled. "Keefe, please calm down." Someone else said. My eyes fluttered open, and I was met with many worried stares.

I tried to sit up, but someone wearing a very brightly colored tunic and weird glasses pushed me back down. "Huh?" I said groggily. Keefe sighed in relief, but Dex still looked worried. "Sophie, what happened back there?" He asked. I shook my head. "I don't know, one second I was walking with Dex, and then I just collapsed I guess." I replied.

I sat up and saw Keefe pacing around the room. "Did you eat something weird?" Keefe asked. "I-" he cut me off. "Did you get enough sleep? Or what about-" The doctor who I assumed was Elwin interrupted this time. "Alright I think it's time for you to go, Keefe. You're probably panicking her." As Elwin tried to shove Keefe out the door, the door flung open.

"OW! Watch where your going, Fitzy!" Keefe groaned and rubbed his head where the door had hit him. Dex gave out an over exaggerated sigh. "Looks like Wonderboy's here." He mumbled.

I looked up into Fitz's teal eyes as he asked, "Are you alright, Sophie?" "I-" before I could respond, an alarm started blaring. (A/N: Why does everyone keep getting cut off? Why do doors keep slamming? I'm literally asking myself that as I edit this at 12 am-)

Keefe turned 10 shades paler. "What the heck is that?" Dex yelled over the noise, his hands covering his ears.

Fitz cursed. "That's the attack alarm. We need to go, Now!" Dex looked at him like he was insane. "Attack alarm? ATTACK ALARM?! Why is there an attack alarm?!" Dex was practically screaming by now.

I sat up. "I always knew there was one... it's never gone off like this before!" Keefe nodded. "The Council had one installed a long time ago, but I've never heard it been used."

Elwin who had apparently been standing there this whole time, cleared his throat. "As enlightening as this all is, I think we need to go!" he said hurriedly.

Fitz turned to me. "Can you stand?" I nodded and stood up, and being the ungraceful person I was, I fell over.

Keefe caught me before I hit the ground, and smirked as he said, "Want me to carry you, Foster?" I rolled my eyes at him and pushed him away. "I'm fine."

Keefe shrugged. "If you say so." Dex ran to the door and pulled. "Guys, the door isn't opening!" I ran over to him and pulled on the door handle. "It's locked!"

Fitz, Keefe, and Elwin scrambled over to the door. Fitz pulled on it again, and it still wasn't opening. Keefe smirked. "Let the master try," Keefe pulled on door, and... did not succeed. Fitz just sighed helped Keefe up. Dex leaned against the door. "Their must be some kind of security that locked all the doors... I wonder if I can get through it..." he said, mostly to himself.

Keefe ran his hands through his hair. "We don't have time for you to figure that out, their could be kidnappers in the palace right now!"

Fitz looked at him strangely. "Why kidnappers? Wouldn't it just be thieves?"

Keefe shook his head. "If it were just regular thieves, they wouldn't have bothered using the alarm."

Fitz frowned. "Why is there even an alarm? It's like once every 20 years that crimes even happen." Keefe shrugged and said, "I have no idea, pretty sure that's classified stuff."

Dex looked up. "Aren't you the prince? Don't you do classified stuff all day?" He asked. Keefe thought about that for a bit. "Huh, I guess so. Why did that never occur to me before?" Keefe said as he paced around. Fitz facepalmed and leaned against the wall. 

Dex muttered sarcastically, "You're going to make such a great king someday." Keefe whirled around. "Hey!" he complained. Dex and Fitz just laughed. How were the boys just joking around right now? 

I wanted to panic. There were people in the palace that wanted to kill us! Well, not me. Why would anyone try to kill me? I'm not even important. They would be after the Council, and the king and queen, and Keefe... and probably Fitz, Lady Biana, Lady Della, and Lord Alden. Maybe even Dex and his family. 

Elwin's eyes lit up. "We can use the hidden exit!" I'd almost forgotten he had been standing there watching the boys argue. Fitz gave him a look. "Couldn't you have thought of that before?" "Couldn't you have said that before I tried to figure out how to unlock this door?! I worked so hard!" Dex complained. Elwin shook his head. "All I know is that their are secret passages running through the palace, and they lead to the safe room. I know there's one in this room, but I'm not trusted with the location." Elwin rolled his eyes. "After all, I'm just doctor saving people's lives! No need to trust me with the location." 

"Time to find a secret passageway! Everyone search the walls!" Keefe announced. We all took one side of the room to search, hurriedly running over hands over cracks in the walls and pulling at shelves and paintings hoping something would open a passage.

We all gathered in the middle of room. Keefe groaned. "I bet the Council sent guards to look for us by now, and I do not want to deal with them. Why are their so many bookshelves in here anyway? It's the hospital wing, not the library! Keefe grabbed a book from the shelf pulled it out, but it made a screeching noise instead. Keefe whirled around.

Fitz grinned. "You found it!" Keefe smirked. "Of course I did," The bookshelf moved to the side, revealing a dark, empty passageway. Dex looked at us. "What are we waiting for? Someone to come and kidnap us? Let's go!" 

Chapter Text

I was never wearing heels ever again. After trying not to faceplant into the carpet for the 10th time, my personal guard Sandor offered to carry me, but that would have just increased my embarrassment. I clumsily made it to the 3rd floor stairwell, which was guarded so no one but the royal family or those with special permission could enter. Turns out the guard was none other than Ro, Keefe's personal guard. She just winked at me and said, "He's been waiting for you." I groaned, and slowly climbed the stairs to keep from tripping like an idiot.

I knocked on Keefe's door, and called, "Keefe? You here?" I opened the door to find Keefe laying on the floor, and when he saw me, he grinned and said, "Come on, Foster!" I rolled my eyes at him and plopped down beside him on the floor.

When he saw the package in my hands, he quickly snatched it out of my hands. "Hey!" I complained. Keefe looked up at me, and replied, "Sorry Foster, cookies first!" He tore open the package to find the elf shaped fudge cookies that he had begging me for forever. His eyes went wide, and he squealed. "YOU GOT THEM!" Keefe yelled, dancing around room, holding the box of cookies in his hands. A laugh escaped my lips, and he grinned.

In just 10 mintues, Keefe ate the whole package. He groaned, "I should have saved some!" I gave him a look. "Yes, you should have, you didn't even give me any!" Keefe snapped his fingers and jumped up. "Then we'll just go get more!" I frowned. "How? They don't have these at the palace," Keefe paced around the room, thinking. He looked at me, and asked, "Where did you get these cookies?" I looked at him confused, "The grocery store, where do you think?" Now it was his turn to look confused. "How did you leave the palace, then?"

I shook my head, and replied, "I didn't, I sacrificed it from my secret cookie stash!" Keefe put his hand over his heart, and said, "You've had a secret cookie stash, and you didn't bother to show me?!" I rolled my eyes and said, "Well you would have eaten them all!" Keefe nodded vigorously, "I would have," I laughed and stood up. I wiped my hands and said, "Well that's that, then..." I trailed off.

Keefe looked at me flabbergasted. "We can't give up on the cookies!" I let out an exasperated sigh. "Why do you even like them so much? You have so many better desserts at the palace, like mallowmelt and ripplepuffs," Keefe gasped, and said, "Did you just INSULT MY COOKIES?!" I snickered. He shoved the package in my face, and shrieked, "We need these! Or I need them! I can't live without these!" I pushed the box away, and asked sarcastically, "Then how were you living before this?" Keefe flailed his arms around, and shook his head. "You just don't understand the pure awesomeness of these cookies, Foster."

I dragged my hands down my face. "Then how are you going to get them?" He grinned, and I regretted asking that question. Keefe wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and pointed at the ceiling. "We're going..... wait for it.... ON A QUEST TO THE MAGICAL LAND OF THE GROCERY STORE!" I laughed, and Keefe looked satisfied. "Knew I could make you laugh, Foster," He said teasingly.

I smiled, and said, "How do you even plan to get out of the palace?" Keefe waved my question away. "We'll figure it out later." Keefe rubbed his hands together. "We're going to need everyone else! I'll get Dizznee and Fitzy, you go get Biana and Linh," He said. I frowned. "What about Tam?" Keefe threw his hands up in the air, and replied, "We can't bring Bangs Boy!" I rolled my eyes. "Why not?" I asked. Keefe pouted and said, "Because he'll steal my cookies! Which are rightfully MINE!" "I don't think Linh's going to like that reasoning very much on why you excluded her brother," I warned. He shrugged. Keefe grabbed me, and yelled, "OFF WE GO ON OUR QUEST FOR COOKIES!" I laughed and was about to follow him out the door, when I noticed he stood frozen in the doorway. I walked over to him and was about to ask if he was okay, when I saw someone in the black cloak of the Neverseen standing in front of him. The figure threw back her hood, and it revealed none other than Queen Gisela. 

Chapter Text

We all stared at the dark passageway in silence, with the alarm still blaring in the background. Keefe finally broke the silence by saying, "So... Are we all just going to stare at each other, or actually go in there before someone comes to kill us?"

Dex snorted. "Why don't you go in first then?" Keefe shrugged and walked into the deep, dark passageway of doom, though we were more likely to be doomed if we stayed here in the Healing Center.

As soon as he walked in, the bookshelf door started to swing shut, as if it wanted to lock Keefe in there. He yelped and stuck his foot in the door to keep it from shutting all of us out.

Keefe called out, "Hey guys? Maybe hurry it up before this thing gets trigger happy and decides to lock me in here!"

Dex went next, and ended up running right into Keefe and sending them both tumbling down the stairs. "OW," groaned Dex. "This is why I don't hang out with you, it usually turns into a disaster." Dex sighed, shaking his head.

"You good down there?" Elwin called.

Fitz and I were next. He offered me his hand. "We'll go together," I grabbed Fitz's hand, which sent tingly feelings down my spine. Unfortunately, that happy moment did NOT last. As soon as we were through, the bookshelf door slammed itself shut, locking Keefe, Fitz, Dex and I all in here, leaving Elwin outside. (Back to the door slamming... thought I was done writing that-)

Dex pounded on the door, trying to get it to open. Fitz ran his hands through his hair. "Is there a light switch in here?" Keefe placed a finger on his chin as if he was thinking.

I interrupted before he could say anything. "There probably isn't, if there was wouldn't someone have to know where the safe room was?"

Fitz nodded in agreement. "Sophie's right. We should probably just keep walking and see where this leads." Dex gave him a look. "What about Elwin? He's still stuck on the other side!"

I walked up to the door, and called out to Elwin. "What should we do? We can't open the door." The sound was muffled, but Elwin said, "Just keep going without me, I'll find another safe room."

Dex said quickly, "Let's get out of here and find the royal safe room, this dark passageway in creeping me out..."

TIME SKIP BROUGHT TO YOU BY MR. FORKLE

We couldn't find an exit. Dex slumped down in the middle of the cold stone floor. I sighed. "I don't think this is the way to the safe room." Fitz sat down beside Dex. "No, it clearly is not." he replied.

Keefe leaned against the metal wall. "I think we got stuck in one of the safe rooms used by servants," Servants. Wasn't that what I was, just three weeks ago?

"Mhmm," was all I said in return. Keefe looked up at me. "Sorry, Sophie. I didn't mean it like that..." But we all knew that was what he had meant.

"What should we do? Just wait it out?" I asked. Just as Fitz was about to reply, a loud bang sounded from outside.

Keefe shot up, and motioned for all of us to be quiet. The banging continued, and we heard a raspy voice say, "Where is that damn safe room?"

I froze. I'd heard that voice before. I knew I had. Dex's eyes widened, as if he had heard it before too. I leaned over and whispered as quietly as possible, "Do you recognize that voice?" Dex nodded.

Fitz dug into his pocket, and pulled out some kind of silver contraption. Keefe made a choking noise.

He whispered-screeched, "Why are you carrying a melder?!" Fitz clamped a hand over Keefe's mouth to keep him quiet as the noises outside the room came to a stop.

"Did you hear that?" another mysterious voice hissed. We all froze. "Be quiet!" I muttered. Fitz lifted the- what did Keefe call it? A melder?

"There's someone here," the raspy voice said. Who were these people? What were they doing? Unfortunately, Keefe took that moment to try and snatch the melder from Fitz, which led to them both toppling over each other fighting for the melder, causing loud clanging as the melder hit the metal wall.

I turned around with wide eyes to find Dex looking at me with the same expression. "Owwwwww," Fitz groaned as he pushed Keefe off of him. Dex clamped a hand over Fitz's mouth, successfully shutting him up.

Bang Bang Bang

Someone was trying to open the door. I leaned over to Keefe. "Keefe? Can they... can they open the door from the outside?" I asked quietly. He tilted his head to the side and replied a little too loudly, "Let me ask Fitzy!"

The banging stopped. The raspy voice hissed, "There's more than one person in there," This time, I heard another voice as well.

"I heard the Vacker boy's name... He hasn't found the girl yet. She isn't here." This voice sounded commanding, as if it was the leader of the other two.

Wait... what girl were they talking about? Why was Fitz looking for a girl?

Fitz paled. "They know. How do they know?" he muttered. "What girl?" I asked. "What are you talking about? They know what?" Keefe asked, looking just as confused. Dex interceded. "Actually, better question; Who's they?"

Fitz shook his head. "That's classified." I turned to him. "Isn't Keefe the prince? Shouldn't he know about this stuff?"

Keefe clapped his hands. "Exactly, Foster! I'm the prince, and I should know all!" Dex facepalmed. "How can you guys keep forgetting that there are literally people that want to kill us outside this-"

Dex got cut off from a knock on the door. "Who is it?" Keefe asked. Fitz whirled around. "Did you really just-" "It's Elwin! The guards have completely checked the property, and there wasn't a sign of anyone entering the palace, so the alarm must have been an accident."

Keefe got up and was about to open the door when something suddenly struck me. "Keefe, wait! It could be a-"

It was too late. Keefe had already opened the door. "-trap." I finished. But when he opened the door, no one was to be seen.

Fitz poked his head out the door. "I don't see anyone." Dex snorted. "Gee, thanks for pointing out the obvious." Fitz frowned. "I was just saying that-"

I interrupted before Dex started a fight with Fitz. "It doesn't matter, I don't think we should leave until a guard or someone comes to get us. Whoever that was, they were trying to get us to open the door, which Keefe did," I started.

"Hey!" Keefe complained. "Well, we can't stay here, they know where we are know. Or, they at least know Keefe and I are in here. But if they knew that we were here, shouldn't they have tried to take us ransom, or something like that?" Fitz said.

Keefe just laughed. "Fitzy's got a big ego, take us ransom! Haha, why would they do that?" Dex sighed, as if used to this. "Does he frequently forgot that he's the prince or something?" I asked him.

Dex nodded in return. Fitz let out an exasperated sigh as we slowly trudged out of the safe room and into the heart of the palace, looking for someone to tell us what was going on...

Chapter Text

Fitz Vacker’s POV

2 WEEKS AGO

My head felt heavy, and I couldn’t walk straight. How much did I drink last night?

I heard laughter coming from the other side of the hallway, but by the time I walked down, there was no one there. “What?” I muttered.

“BOO!” yelled Keefe as he shook my shoulders from behind. I yelped, dropping the letters I was holding. Keefe pouted, saying, “Don’t be such a wimp, Fitzy!” I rolled my eyes at him, “What, I was supposed to know you were going to scare me?”

“They don’t call you the great Lord Fitz for nothing, do they?” Keefe asked jokingly. “Oh cut it out, you were going to help me go through these letters but you never showed up!” I grumbled.
Keefe sighed. “You know how it is with all the Selection preparations, I can’t catch a break.”

Keefe collapsed onto the nearby armchair, and I plopped down on the sofa next to him. I propped my head up with my elbow and asked, “Maybe we should do something fun today-” Keefe cut me off before I could even finish. “Yeah! Let’s go to the party tonight,” he said excitedly. I frowned. “What party tonight?”

Keefe looked flabbergasted. “How have you not heard? Biana didn’t tell you?”
I shrugged, not knowing what he was going on about. Keefe exaggeratingly sighed, “Of course you don’t know, you spend most of your time locked away in your room. What do you even do in there, I have no idea.”

I glared at him. “I do not spend all of my time in my room!” Keefe just laughed as he walked out the door, pulling me along with him to get ready.

“You think this tie looks good?” I asked Keefe, who was desperately trying to figure out how to even put on a tie. “Ties are hard,” he whined. I took the ice blue tie from him. “They aren’t hard, you just aren’t doing it right.”

In return, he snatched my teal tie out of my other hand. “Hey!” Before I could complain more, Mom came in. “Are you boys ready yet?” My Mom did a once over of the two of us, and just as she opened her mouth to say something, Keefe tackled me into the ground.

“Mhmm?!” I mumbled as I hit the floor and Keefe stood over me. “That’s my tie, bestie!” Keefe exclaimed. I stared up at him from the floor. “You have no idea how much you sound like Biana right now,” I groaned.
Keefe snickered and dropped my tie onto my head. My mother cleared her throat. Keefe finally took notice of her. “Della! It’s been a while, how have you been?” he asked, smiling.

Della smiled back, “I’ve been great Keefe, but my son Fitz on the other hand… he could really use some more-” “MOM!” I interrupted before she could say anything embarrassing about me.

Keefe smirked, “You have something to hide, pretty boy?” I smirked back at him, “You think I’m a pretty boy?” Keefe awkwardly cleared his throat and looked away, face red. I saw Mom raise her eyebrows out of the corner of my eyes.

I looked away, not wanting to look at my Mom or Keefe. After an awkward silence, Mom clapped her hands. “Let’s get going, shall we?” she turned and elegantly swept out the door, as if floating on air.
Keefe grinned at me. “Come on, man! You really need to get out more, anyway!” I didn’t answer him as I was brutally dragged out of the comforts of my room at the palace, and thrust into the spotlight and burden that came with being a noble, and with being a 2.

The party was nothing like I expected. It wasn’t one of those perfect, filmed parties that they would show off to the common public. This looked more like a gathering of everyone that was in the palace for the Selection. In other words, a personal party to celebrate the royal family’s “good fortune” and Keefe's future marriage.

“What the hell is going on?” I whispered to Keefe, who didn’t answer. My eyes followed his, and I saw him looking at Queen Gisela. Gisela hadn’t even looked his way. “Keefe!” I whispered again, shaking his shoulder. “Huh?” he muttered back. “Snap out of it!” I said louder, shaking him so hard he almost fell over.

“OW, FITZY WHAT WAS THAT-” Keefe stopped yelling at me when he noticed Gisela glaring at him. She put her finger to her lips, signaling him to be quiet. The lights in the Great Hall dimmed, with a spotlight on King Cassius.

I squinted as my eyes adjusted to the darkness, seeing the silhouette of a man standing on the balcony. I zoned out during his speech, and when everyone began clapping, I was about to turn away when I noticed something strange with the queen. “Why isn’t she up there with Cassius?” I murmured to myself.

I looked up, seeing out of the corner of my eye; Queen Gisela was talking to a man with long blonde hair.

Keefe looked down at his feet, not wanting to look at the faces of the people who expected so much from him. I casually bumped his shoulder. “Cheer up, Keefe! They have snacks~” I said in the happiest voice I could muster.

Keefe stared up at me, wide-eyed. I was worried I had said something wrong, until Keefe started laughing so hard he was hugging his stomach and bending over. I put my hands over my face, silently cursing myself for trying to cheer Keefe up.

When I peeled my hands off my face, Keefe wasn’t there anymore. I jogged around the party room, spotting Biana in the corner, sipping from a crystal chalice. She looked unusually unenergetic for being in her favorite place: at a party, surrounded by people.

I walked over to her. Her once dull eyes lit up with excitement. “Fitz!” she cried, setting the glass on a nearby table and throwing her arms around me. “What the-” I slowly hugged her back, wondering what this was all about. “Are you trying to get me to do something for you?” I asked her, dead serious.

Biana pouted back, “I can’t hug my brother?” she asked. I bit my lip, “Is something wrong, Biana? You look tired.” I whispered to her quietly, not wanting anyone to hear. Biana stared down at the floor. “N-nothing, everything’s fine!” she waved off my concerns, turning back into her energetic, and annoying, self.

“Well, I’m off! Have fun, brother dearest!” Biana called out, bouncing away on those five inch heels that look like hell in object form. My head snapped up, “Don’t call me that,” I called back, but Biana was already long gone.

“BOO-” I whirled around before Keefe could tackle me, surprising him. “Haha, I got you for once! You’re always trying to sneak up on me.” I laughed, with Keefe still in shock that I caught him in the act.

“Well, you two certainly look like you’re having fun,” stated King Cassius. “Your Majesty.” I gave a small bow, and Keefe bowed with me. “How nice… to finally see some respect from my son.” King Cassius murmured quietly.

King Cassius walked away, leaving Keefe staring at his footsteps as he barely gave him a second glance. Keefe’s hands curled into fists, and silently pulled me along with him.

We were back in Keefe's room, and he still hadn’t said anything. The atmosphere was too thick to talk, and I didn’t know what he wanted to do.

“Keefe-” I started, but he simply ignored me. Opening up the closet door, he pulled out a crate and set it down on the table in front of me. He gestured to the box, so I opened it up. It was full of alcohol.

I raised my eyebrows at Keefe, and asked, “This is what you plan on doing? Drinking your pain away, huh?” Keefe still didn’t answer me, but opened a bottle and waved it at me. I reluctantly took it from him, as he did the same…

I woke up to the light filtering in through Keefe’s windows as my head pounded. “Ugh!” I mumbled, trying to stop the throbbing pain in my head from the hangover. Keefe was still asleep. “I’ll come find him later,” I said and left him a note saying that I’d already left. I have a bad feeling about this, I thought as I walked back to my room.