The Contest

Chapter 1

"It's here, its here, it's here!" My youngest sister ran around the living room squealing.
"Slow down Addie. What is that?" I asked looking up from the piece of music I had been going through.
"It's the letter for The Contest. You're signing up right?" Another one of my sisters, Abby, asked me.
"Oh no. I'm not starting that just to get rejected at the top of a hat."
"But you're pretty enough to make it through Amberlyn." My older sister Amethyst said from the kitchen table.
"What are we talking about?" My younger brother asked coming out of his bedroom.
"Amberlyn is going to do the Contest. The papers just showed up!" Addie squealed.
"I am not Addie! Don't listen to her Ashton." I told him. The fifteen year old shrugged, and went into the kitchen. His twin sister crashed through the front door.
"Harmonia just got hers, she's on her way now." She said. "Sooo let me see it!" Ana asked teeing the letter out of Addie's hands. The ten year old squealed but her older sister shushed her.
"I hear that it's going to be Prince Archer for this Contest instead of Prince Jaxon." Amethyst said, placing her pen down. She wasn't going to get much work done with the entire family in the living room now. Our family was busy. Mama and Papa were pushing Amethyst to move out and live with her husband, but she was still filling out all the paperwork. This paperwork was necessary for her to move.
We lived in a country where we were separated by what we could do. My family was in Performance. Amethyst's new husband was in Thinking. She was moving up two sections, but that was what she wanted to do.
Her husband was nice. Darren was 23 years old, not much older than Amethyst, who was only 20. Amethyst seemed to love him, and he treated her well, so my parents didn't think much of it.
Then there was me. I was the oddball of the family. I looked nothing like them. I had auburn hair, while the rest had brown. I had brown eyes, they all had blue. I was 17 years old, close to the next siblings in the family, the twins.
The twins were 15, and the most active children in the family besides my youngest sister. Ashton was the only boy in the family besides Papa, so he often spent time in his bedroom. On the other hand his sister Ana was very outgoing. The complete opposite of Ashton.
Abby, who was 13, was sweet and kind, and the closet thing you could get to an angel. She was slightly shy, but wasn't extremely quiet. Unlike Addie.
Addie was 10, and a bundle of energy. She loved the idea of the Contest, and wanted me to sign up, because she would never be able to.
"So are you going to sign up Amberlyn?" Ashton asked from the kitchen. He leaned on the island.
"Probably not." I shrugged.
"Oh come on Amberlyn! You're beautiful, you have a great personality-" I cut Ana off.
"Have you seen our current Queen? She's the definition of poise. Elegant, refined, polite. Stop me when I get to something that sounds like me." I retorted. Amethyst rolled her eyes.
"You could be all of those things if you wanted Ber." She used my nickname. I took the paper from Ana.
"I'm not going to pretend to be something I'm not, and besides my real personality would come out eventually. It's just better I don't do this." Just then my front door burst open.
"Okay so I know you said you weren't going to do this when it came around but you seriously need to reconsider." My best friend said, coming to sit with me on the couch.
"You don't ever knock, do you Harmonia?" Ana asked.
"You would give up the chance to be with the prince? Prince Archer and all his princeyness." Harmonia rambled.
"You don't know anything about Archer do you?" I asked, a smile growing on my face.
"No. I do know he's amazing though!" She said excitedly. "Please do this with me Amberlyn!" She begged.
"I don't think so Harmonia. I'm not really into the whole princess thing." I told her. She groaned.
"Fine. Maybe someone else can convince you." She said. "Im going to go home, I have to get dinner ready, and I'm going to find a dress to wear to the picture tomorrow!" She said, and I watched her hopeful black curls run out of my house. Knowing what my wardrobe looked like, she only had two or three nice dresses. That's what most of us Performers had. We weren't poor, we made it through the day with our stomachs full when we went to bed, but that was about it. The next section down was much worse than us. It was surprising how bad it could get.
Mama walked into the living room.
"Amberlyn come help me with dinner." She asked. I nodded, and walked in, folding up the paper and putting it on the counter.
"What's that honey?" My mom asked as I walked in.
"It's nothing Mama." I sighed, getting out the potatoes.
"Amberlyn." She said sternly.
"It's the paper for the Contest. I'm not doing it." I said, bracing myself for a negative reaction like I had gotten from the others.
"Why not?" She asked simply.
"I just don't want to. Im not ready for the princess lifestyle." I told her, peeling a potato. She washed some carrots.
"I see." She replied quietly. She didn't speak for a minute. I felt like I should feel guilty for something, but I hadn't done anything wrong. Right? After a while, she turned off the sink, and turned to me, drying her hands.
"Amberlyn, you know I was in The Contest the last time it came around right?" She asked. I nodded. She had told me stories about when I was little, in place of a bed time story. Just another thing we couldn't afford. "Queen Fawna was my best friend during that time. She and I were in the last four standing. I was eliminated along with another girl. Queen Fawna still writes me letters occasionally, and when I told her I had a daughter old enough to compete in the contest, she was ecstatic. You don't have to do this Amberlyn. I'm not telling you this to persuade you into doing the Contest. I'm telling you this because I think you could make amazing memories by doing this. But it's your choice Amberlyn." She said and continued to make dinner. I turned around to continue to peel potatoes, and thought about what my mom had just told me. She is friends with Queen Fawna? That sounded amazing. I looked over at the paper on the counter, and shook my head. There was one more person I needed to talk to before I could do this. I needed to make sure this was okay with them.

~~~

Dinner was over and my family sat down in the living room to watch the News. It was the only we we ever got information on what was going on in the country. Papa turned on the tv.
"Welcome to the News!" Joren, the news caster, energetically announced over the television.
"Today on the News, information on the war, recent happenings in the country, and of course the much anticipated, Contest." The crowd on the television cheered.
"News on the war. The outlaws haven't made it past the business section yet. That's only 4 sections they've made it into folks, don't worry. We're safe." He said. Not all of us were safe. Sections 4-8 weren't safe, so why was he saying that? It was probably what he was supposed to say, but it made everyone seem so snobbish. They couldn't really think we were safe with criminals getting into the sections every day, more and more people dying when they did.
"The northern outlaws from China haven't been seen for months, but the southern outlaws got into section 5 yesterday, thankfully being stopped before they got any further. As far as we know no one was hurt. In other news, riots are starting in the last three sections. Over what, we aren't sure, but we will know in due time." He said. He shifted a piece of paper, and Prince Archer stood. Ana and Addie sat up in their chairs.
"Now for the long awaited news. The Contest is beginning!" The crowd erupted in cheers and screams. The Prince walked over to the podium and gestured for silence. The crowd hushed.
"My fellow citizens, and dear country. I am excited to announce that I will be taking over the throne when the time comes. I have just turned 18, and as tradition states, I will begin to look for a wife and future queen." He told the audience, his smile a fake one. How did this boy stay so put together? He looked just like his mother, lighter brown hair, blue eyes, but unlike his younger brother Jaxon, he had a light splatter of freckles on any skin surface you could see. His face was thinner, like his brother, they were almost identical. Jaxon was 10 months younger than Archer. Jaxon looked just like Archer, of course minus the freckles. They had a younger sister who was 7. Her name was Isabel. She looked just like the King. She had long blonde curls, green eyes, and rosy cheeks.
"The letters have been sent out to girls ages 16-18 in Sections 2-7." I stopped listening. Two through seven? What was wrong with the girls in eight? Too dirty for his royal highness? Spoiled, that's what he was. I crossed my arms watching the smiling Prince on the screen.
"The pictures will be taken tomorrow, and the contestants chosen by next week. You will be announced on the News Monday. Have fun, and remember, it's just the spot of the queen you're fighting for. No need to look anything more than yourself." The tv clicked off. I looked at my father.
"It's time for bed. That means for anyone under 18." He said, winking at me. I stuck my tongue out playfully and got off the couch. My sisters went to their room, Ashton to his, and I went to the one I shared with Amethyst. I could easily sneak out if she wasn't in the room. I got into my pajamas, and slipped into my bed, turning the light out. I heard the house get quiet.
"I'm staying up to do paperwork, goodnight papa. Goodnight mama." I heard Amethysts voice travel down the hallway.
"Goodnight baby girl." Mama said, and I heard footsteps leading to their room. The door closed. I silently got out of my bed, and opened the window. There was someone climbing into the playhouse we had in our backyard. I knew that figure all too well. I climbed out my window and ran to the playhouse, my feet slippery in the dewy grass. I crawled into the playhouse. There he was. My best friend.