The Contest

Chapter 5

I opened my eyes, and squinted in the morning sunlight. It was early, probably about seven or eight o'clock. I closed my eyes to get back to sleep, but then remembered something. The journal. I got out of bed and went over to the box that was in the corner. I pulled the small leather bound book out, and opened it, flipping to the first page.

Today I arrived to the contest. It's going to be a nerve wracking experience, especially with Andrew back home, but I have a feeling I will learn to love the Prince. When we got to the castle, I was rushed into a powdering room, in which I am still confused by the term. It was some sort of room, with seating areas, and a tea table. We didn't get to have tea, there were maids there to help us get ready for meeting the Prince. I was put in a green floor length dress with sleeves to my elbows. My hair was fixed up into a fancy and difficult looking bun. I had never seen so much make-up in my life. There were tons of lipsticks, eyeshadows, and blushes to choose from. I guess growing up in Performance you don't get the luxury of make-up. They fixed me up, and I was sent out into the dining room. The dining room was enormous. You could fix fifty people in there, perhaps even a hundred, and they would fit quite comfortably. I was sat near the end, being the only girl chosen from Performance. I also, was the last one to get to meet the Prince. When I walked into the room, he was sitting there in a chair. It looked casual. Well, if you could call a meeting with the Prince casual. He was perfect looking. His blonde hair was neatly parted, a small circlet on his head. He was wearing a blue suit with golden embroidering and stitches. It was expensive looking. I told him my name, and he repeated his. I told him I already knew what his name was, and he looked taken aback.
"A minute into meeting you, and I've already said something wrong." I had said. He chuckled, and told me that no, I hadn't said anything wrong, that he had never considered that people already knew his name. After that we had a nice conversation about where I lived, and where I worked. The most interesting part of the conversation was when he asked me what the conditions were like living in Performance. I had answered him honestly, and told him that they weren't the best, but being an only child in my family, I had a few things more than the other children in my section. He nodded, and then informed me that, unfortunately, our time was up. I curtsied and left. We were then escorted to our rooms. I met my maids, Hadley, Ila, and Tesla, and they pampered me with a bath and other things. We were given dinner in our rooms, and told to rest up for the next day. I'm excited to see what tomorrow brings. After dinner my stomach was feeling weird. I figure it's just the new food, and the amount I have eaten today. I don't think I've ever eaten this much!
I chuckled, and turned the page. Before I could begin to read, my door opened.
"Amberlyn?" Ana called in.
"Yes Ana?" I asked.
"Mama wanted me to come wake you up. Its 8:30, and she wants you to have enough time to get ready before you have to be escorted to the airport at ten." She told me. I nodded, and tossed the book on my bed. I would bring it with me to the castle. I took a quick, cold shower, all my family could afford, and braided my hair. It would have to dry this way. I took out Mama's dress. The one that had been in the box. I put it on over my head, and looked at myself in the mirror. I felt fancy. Maybe too fancy for this occasion. I didn't want to come across as snooty. I took it off, and put on a dress I used to perform. It wasn't too nice, and it was kind of old, but it would have to do. I would take Mama's dress with me too. I grabbed a small carpet bag out of my closet, something us kids had played with when we were younger, and put the dress, the book, and the bracelet in the bag. I hadn't been told to pack anything, but I wanted to bring a few things from home anyways. I looked at my night stand, where I had thrown Evander's proposal the week earlier. I grabbed it, took the ring off my neck, put it in the envelope, and stuck it in the bag. At this point, it was getting slightly full. I had heard a story when I was a kid, about a magical woman with a magical carpet bag. The old tale was that, supposedly, she could fit anything in this bag. I had always hoped that my carpet bag was like hers. It wasn't.
Mama came into my room, just as I was snapping the bag shut.
"You all ready?" She asked. I nodded, and picked up the bag. I followed her out into the living room, where a tall burly man was waiting.
"Hello Lady Amberlyn, I will be escorting you to the Airport today. You will be having to take two flights, one to get to Section 3 and then one to get to Section 1." He informed me. I nodded, and followed him out. I got into the car. Harmonia and another girl I had seen around before were in the car.
"Amberlyn! Oh my gosh, I was so nervous when you didn't get in at first! I didn't want to have to face this alone!" She told me as soon as I got in the car. I giggled.
"Well I'm here now aren't I Monie?" I said. I looked at the other girl. "Hi, my name is Amberlyn, which I guess you picked up from my friend here. Yours?" I asked.
"Eliza." She said, almost too quietly. I could just hear her.
"Nice to meet you! This here is Harmonia. Hope she didn't scare you too much." I said, as Harmonia smacked my arm.
"Hey!" She complained. I giggled. The rest of the short car ride was quiet. There were a few small remarks and laughs, but other than that it was awkward. Maybe tense. I couldn't tell. The driver stopped abruptly and turned back to us.
"Here we are." He said. The door opened, and I stepped out into the sun. A multitude of cheers and screams met my ears. I looked around to see people crowding the entrance of the airport. Many signs were being held up.
"Baylock for 
"Close the lock for Baylock!"
"Princess Amberlyn!"
I smiled knowing at least someone was on my side. That's when I spotted that blonde mess of hair, those piercing green eyes. It was Evander. We locked eyes, and I froze. Harmonia bumped into me.
"Amberlyn...move." She hissed in my ear. I shook myself out of the daze I was in, and began to walk, our eyes still locked. That's when I noticed something. He was holding hands with a girl. It was Dealiah, a girl who worked in the market place in his section. Of course he liked her. She was perfect, and in his section. I turned away and ran forward. As I walked into the airport I heard him shouting my name, but I chose to ignore it. To everyone else, he just looked like a fan, so why should I make him more than what he was? I followed the guard who lead us to an waiting area. There were many other girls waiting.
"Welcome ladies!" A woman said, smiling at us. I looked at her, the crystal blue eyes shimmering at me.
"Tesla!" I exclaimed, and I ran to hug her. She laughed softly, and hugged me back.
"I told you I'd see you again." She whispered, winking at me. I smiled. "Ladies, this is Amberlyn, Harmonia, and Eliza, and for our newcomers, this is Evangeline, Ember, Kelsey, and Shayleigh. Evangeline and Kelsey are from Celebrities and Ember and Shaeleigh are from Thinking." Tesla informed us. A girl with super curly blonde hair and pretty sea green eyes came up to me.
"Hi there! I'm Shaeleigh!" She said, and gave me a big hug. I giggled, and hugged her back.
"Amberlyn! I'm from Performance." I told her.
"Ooo, does that mean you sing really well?" She asked.
"I can sing, sure! It's what I do for my family, along with playing the guitar, and other things. Some of my sisters paint, or do photography, and my brother likes to design movie sets for smaller movies in section 2, so he's up there sometimes. What about you?" I asked.
"Well my dad is a scientist, and that's what I wanted to do too before I was chosen for this! It's so exciting don't you think? I mean we are one step closer than we ever thought we'd be to becoming a princess, or even a queen!" She exclaimed, I saw Evangeline roll her eyes.
"Hi, I'm Amberlyn. You're Evangeline, right?" I asked turning to her.
"I'm surprised you had to ask. I'm sure you've seen me in magazines-" I hadn't. I didn't get magazines. "Or in movies." I hadn't. We didn't have enough money to buy movies. "But yes, that's my name. Evangeline Greenway." She said.
"Are you excited for this Contest?" I asked, leading her to the answer I wanted.
"Well of course hon!" She answered, trying to sound sweet, but her voice being thick as molasses. "Who isn't excited for this opportunity? We are all one step closer to being a princess, and a queen!" She exclaimed loudly.
"Well that's the spirit, Evangeline! I'll have to tell the Prince you said that!" Tesla said.
"But-" I started, then realized it was no use. Shaeleigh deserved that credit, not Evangeline, but there was nothing I could do about that now.
"Now ladies! We are going to get on the plane soon. Once we land, the maids will be on top of you at once. There have been maids assigned to you, that will get you ready for the day. You won't be meeting the prince today, but instead tomorrow at lunch. I know that in the past, the contestants have met the prince the day they arrived to the castle, but the Prince is away on a business trip and is arriving home late tonight." "The Prince isn't even greeting his future wife?" Evangeline asked, managing to sound astounded.
"Unfortunately, he wasn't able to get an earlier flight home from Europe. He had to go on important business with his father to talk to Paris. They are our allies in the war, you know!" Tesla reminded us.
Paris had been allies with us for 2 years now, and as far as we had heard, they had done nothing to help us. But if they were helping us, even in the smallest way, I was glad they were with us.
"Whatever." Evangeline muttered. It seemed only I had heard for, because Tesla went on.
"The plane has arrived!" She announced, and a door opened into a small hallway. I followed Harmonia and Shaeleigh down the small hallway into the even smaller airplane. Tesla showed us 7 girls our seats. I was sitting next to Ember. I smiled at her.
"Hi I'm-"
"Amberlyn. The lucky winner." She spouted back at me. She sounded like a machine.
"I'm sorry?" I asked.
"You're the lucky winner. If Prince Jaxon hadn't counted, you wouldn't be here." She answered, not turning her head to look at me. She seemed even more machine like.
"I believe I would anyways. The paper would have been found, or when they counted they would have found out they missed me. I think either way the Prince, or someone else, would have noticed I was miss-" Tesla popped up. She held out a blue pill, that was about the size of a thumb tack.
"These are for you girls, they will help those who get airsick, and help fears of the hight. Just a motion sickness and anxiety pill, nothing dangerous!" She added, handing me the pill. I smiled, and got a bottle of water from the seat back in front of me. I swallowed the pill, and sat back. The plane started to move, and I felt myself getting sleepy. I looked over, and Ember was passed out. Then I fell asleep.
I awoke to Shaeleigh shaking me.
"Come on! We gotta get off the plane." She said, and I shook my head to clear it. Ember and Harmonia were standing there, looking slightly sleepy still.
"Why aren't you as tired as us?" I asked.
"I didn't take the pill. I've been on planes before, and they don't bother me, so I rejected it. It was okay with Tesla." She said. I nodded, standing up.
"You may wanna fix your hair. Eliza has my comb right now, but you can borrow it when she's done." Kelsey said. I smiled.
"Thank you!" I answered, and Eliza handed me the comb. I brushed my wavy hair, having to pat it down in places where it was sticking up awkwardly.
"Are we ready ladies?" Tesla asked, as I handed the comb to Kelsey. 
"Well we've waited this long." Evangeline muttered, once again very quiet.
"Yes." I called to the front of the group.
"Well then let's not wait another moment! Come along!" Tesla said, and us girls followed quickly. Kelsey and Eliza whispered to each other, probably finishing a previous conversation. Evangeline walked in the front of the group, her nose in the air. Harmonia walked up to my side.
"Honestly who does she think she is? The queen?" She asked, rolling her eyes.
"She's not yet, and with that attitude I don't think she ever will be, unless the Prince is into bit-"
"Okay ladies!" Tesla spoke up, turning around. "We have assigned 3 maids to you ladies. In this room you will get to meet the other girls, and also get your make-up and hair done, and also put on dresses."
"If we aren't meeting the Prince today, why are we getting this fancy?" Kelsey asked.
"You may not be meeting the Prince, but you are meeting the rest of the Royal Family for dinner, excluding the King of course." Tesla smiled. A small whispering arose in the girls. Harmonia slapped my arm a few times excitedly.
"Ow ow! Harmonia stop!" I giggled. Despite the fact that I wasn't excited, she always managed to cheer me up.
"Now I'm going to bring you in one by one to meet your maids, and they will take you into the castle and show you to the powder room." She said. "Evangeline, you're first!"
"Like I should be." She said, looking pleased. As Tesla and Evangeline walked through a set of doors, Kelsey spoke up.
"Gosh, who does she think she is?" She snarled at the closed set of doors.
"She's a brat." Shaeleigh complained, crossing her arms.
"I would say something negative to express how I feel about this competitor, but I have just arrived here and do not wish to depart so early." Ember spoke monotoned. Harmonia looked at her, eyes confused and her eyebrow arched.
"Uh, okay?" She replied. The doors opened again. Tesla asked for Eliza. Next was Ember, then Shaeleigh, after her Kelsey, and then Harmonia. As the doors opened one last time I was led into the small chamber. There were three young girls standing by a second set of doors.
"Amberlyn, these are your maids. Amy," A small girl with skin almost as pale as her platinum blonde hair, baby blue eyes, and a splatter of freckles on her face, "Emma," a tan skinned girl with strawberry blonde hair, and beautiful brown eyes. She looked to be about 14, but was probably much older, "And Teony," The oldest looking of the three, but certainly not by much, she had beautiful dark chocolate skin, green eyes, and curly black hair.
"They will show you around the palace, to your room, and to the powder room. I will see you later, have fun!" Tesla said, and left. The girl she had named as Amy came over to me.
"May I take your measurements? I want to find a dress that fits you for tonight, and be able to make you one for tomorrow when you meet the Prince! He's very lovely, you'll love him!" She told me.
"Of course!" I replied, giving her a smile.
"Perfect! Emma, the tape measure please?" She asked, holding out an empty hand. Emma silently handed her a measuring tape. Amy scurried around me like a mouse, taking my measurements probably quicker than I could even begin to take someone's measurements.
"I'll be back with a dress! Emma and Teony will show you to the powder room!"
"Of course. Follow me Miss." Teony smiled, gesturing for me to come with her and Emma. Emma opened the door, and I walked out with them. As we walked Teony pointed things out to me, as Emma kept quiet.
"Down this hallway is your room. We will bring you to it after dinner." She said. "And right down this hall is the powder room. I'll take you in, and you can meet some of the other girls while we fix you up." She told me.
"Okay. If I may ask, how old are all of you?" I asked.
"I'm 18 in a few days, Amy is 17, and Emma is 16." Teony answered.
"In a month." Emma squeaked out. Her voice was small and light, almost childlike.
"Yes. In a month." Teony affirmed. I could tell Emma didn't speak often, but when she did you had to make her feel good about it. My sister has been that way when she was younger.
"I see. I'm 17."
"You will get along greatly with Amy, I can already tell. Let's go in and get you ready. We don't have much time, they took long enough getting you here." Teony complained, opening the door. I walked in. The place was huge. Hair and makeup stations were set up along the walls, enough for all the girls to sit. There were large couches and chairs around the room, and many windows. The room was busy with girls and their maids, getting ready for dinner. I was sat somewhere near the middle, and Teony and Emma got to work.
"Hi!" The girl next to me spoke. I turned slightly, earning a small swat on the shoulder from Teony. "I'm Leona Evergreen." She greeted.
"I'm Amberlyn Baylock. Nice to meet you!" I said.
"Oh you're her." She held out the last word as if remembering something. "Oh." She said again, and turned back to her maids.
"Don't mind her." Someone on my other side said. I turned the other way, and got a small squeak from Emma. I saw a girl with pixie cut dirty blonde hair and green eyes. She was very short. "She was being rude to everyone. I hope she gets cut first. Tink Starre. Spelled with two R's and an e at the end, not to be confused with the things in the sky." She said, matter of factly. I grinned.
"Amberlyn Baylock." I told her.
"The lucky winner." Another voice said from behind me. Another girl walked up. She had Asian features, but curly red hair. "Akima Lee. We're both in Business. You?"
"Performance." I said.
"One of three." Tink grinned.
"And one of the first to go home probably." Leona spoke from the chair on the other side.
"Oh shut it! You're nothing but jealous, cause she's wanted here, and you were chosen to go in place of your sister." Tink snapped. Leona rolled her eyes, and left.
"She was chosen in place of her sister?" I asked.
"Yeah. I spent a little time talking to her before you got here. She's from Business like us, but her sister got extremely sick right before the results came out. They took Leona over here in her place."
"The nerve of this girl though." Akima muttered.
"You'll hate Evangeline even more than her, let me tell you-" Akima interrupted me.
"I was just over there. She is probably the single most vain person on the planet. Her and Leona will get along wonderfully."
"Your hair is done, Miss." Emma whispered. I looked into the mirror. It was halfway up, with many flowers in the curled and pinned up parts of my hair, while the rest of it was curled and falling gently on my shoulders.
"Woah." I whispered, barely audible.
"Who's the hottie in that mirror!" Tink called, and Akima smiled.
"You look lovely." She told me. "Looks like my maids are back with my dress. It was great talking to you. I hope we get to stay so I can talk to you more! See you later!" She said, and left.
"Amy is back with your dress as well, Miss." Teony said. I spun around in my chair to see Amy standing there with a blue dress. The top was dark blue, and it faded into light sky blue. It was covered in sparkles, and the top had many sparkly gemstones. The dress had small straps. Amy was also holding a pair of small silver heels.
"This is beautiful!" I exclaimed.
"Nothing but the best for you, Miss!" Amy said. "This color will go will with your hair." She told me, and handed me the dress.
"I will do your make-up when you get back from changing." Teony told me, pulling her coffee colored hair back into a ponytail.
"You look like you're getting ready for some tough work!" I joked.
"Not tough, but make-up is a very delicate procedure!" She informed me. I giggled. "Now go change!" She ordered, and led me to the changing room. I slipped on the dress. It fit perfectly around my waist, and fell loosely on my hips down the length of my legs. It was absolutely stunning. I put on the shoes. It completed the look. I stepped out, and received an ovation from my maids.
"Amazing work Amy!" Teony complimented.
"Thank you! Emma the hair looks great!" Emma smiled, and blushed.
"My turn!" Teony said, and brought me back to my chair. The girls had slowly started to trickle out and go to the dining room. It was mostly the girls who had arrived with me left. I spotted Harmonia. She was wearing a deep red gown that shaped her waist and jutted out at the hips. It had sleeves to her elbows. Her hair was down and pinned to the side with pretty silver pins. She looked amazing. Teony sat me down, using things I had never seen before, patting and brushing things onto my face. She stepped back after a while, and I looked in the mirror.
"I'm beautiful!" I exclaimed.
"Keep saying things like that and you'll sound vain!" Harmonia said, coming over.
"That's not what I meant, I-"
"I know what you meant. You really are." She complemented.
"Nothing compared to you! You look amazing!" I told her. She blushed.
"Thank you! Now let's go! Shaeleigh and the other girls left already." She said, and pulled me out of my seat. Our maids showed us the way, and told us they would be there to help us find our rooms later, and then we went in. The powder room was nothing compared to the dining room and that was saying something. The room was dome shaped with a huge chandelier in the middle of it. The long table fit all the girls, the royal family, and more. I sat and the end with Harmonia across from me. The queen sat at the head of the table, with the prince and princess on her right and left sides. The rest of the girls sat where they arrived. A light chatter ran through the room, but when the Queen rose it ended.
"Welcome all! I'm so sorry my son could not be here to greet you as you arrived, but you will be able to meet him tomorrow. Why don't we go around and introduce ourselves so we have a chance to get you all name tags for the Prince tomorrow. We will start here, and just go around." She said, pointing to the girl next to Princess Isabel. "Just say your name and which section you are from."
"My name is Josie Krasinki and I'm from Thinking." The first girl said. Then there was Tink. After her Akima. Taylor Demi from Celebrities, Justice Hathway from Celebrites, Wren Lancaster from Thinking, Allie Orion from Business, Summer Atticks and Kathrine Lister from Celebrites. After them came Ember and Kelsey, Shaeleigh and Eve Hec from Thinking. Charlotte Fideles from Business and Anabel Idenway from Celebrites. Then there was me.
"Amberlyn Baylock from Performance." I said, smiling.
"Amberlyn...that name sounds familiar." The queen said.
"She's the last girl. The paper Archer lost." Jaxon told his mother.
"Yes but the name...I've heard it before. What did you saw your last name was?"
"Baylock, your majesty. My parents are Andrew and Allison. Andrew Baylock and Allison Heartford." I said, knowing Heartford would spark her interest. As I expected, it did.
"I see! Thank you." She said, and never said anything more. The girls went on. Harmonia and Eliza, Jessica Bravora from Celebrites and Rylan Canson from Business. Indiana Jance and Mackenzie Denmark were from Celebrities. Zianna Lemonway, Faber Garrick, Ellie Hanse, and Kassady Pellon were from Thinking. Marlowe Swift and Joy Sandow were from Business. There was Evangeline, Luna Samuels from Business, and Rose Amera from Thinking. Last but not least, Leona from Business.
"It was so lovely meeting you girls. Now to start dinner. I'll begin the conversation, and you all may join in at any point." She told us. She clapped her hands softly, and plates of food were brought out to every girl. We started with soup, a small shallow bowl full of a white purée, which tasted amazing. All the girls made comments on how it tasted to the queen, and she pleasantly thanked us.
"Jaxon, have you heard anything from your brother while he has been away?" The queen asked.
"Yes, he says Paris will finally be getting us that money they promised us last year. We should be receiving it in the next month or two."
"What's the money for?" Tink asked.
"Just weapons for the war." The Prince answered.
"Do we know who's a part of the war as of late?" Kelsey asked.
"Most of Asia, excluding China and Japan, South America, excluding a few smaller countries, Australia and smaller sections of Europe, excluding France of course." He said.
"Of course." Harmonia muttered across the table. The salads came out. Mine had a little bit of dressing on it, lettuce, carrots, turnips, cucumber, and some kind of cheese.
"Why didn't Paris give us the money when they promised it?" Akima asked.
"They thought we were an enemy at the time, so they put it on hold."
"Why did they think of us as an enemy?" Ember asked in her robotic tone.
"Korea reached out to us last year to ask for some help in separating back into two sections again. We couldn't help them out unfortunately, but we gave them provisions to help them out for the time being." The Prince answered.
"Weren't we the reason they are one country?" I asked. The room got quiet.
"Not entirely." The queen answered, not waiting for her stunned son to answer. "Many many years ago, when we declared war on the entirety of Korea, we went over to the country. They were already on the bridge of becoming one country, and when a bomb of ours landed on their wall, North Korea raided South Korea, and we won the war." She told me. I nodded.
"They never cleared that up in school. I was just wondering honestly." I told her.
"Of course dear. Now let's get back to dinner." She said. The rest of dinner was eaten almost with no questions. A few small things were said, and dinner ended. As we were trickling out, I stood up. "Amberlyn, could you stay here please?" The queen asked. My stomach flipped. I nodded and sat down. They last of the girls left, whispering and looking at me.
"You two may go also." The Queen told her children. They got up and left. "Come up here dear." She said. I got up and went to where the Princess had been sitting.
"You're Allison's daughter? You remind me of her so much. You look just like her, and act just like her too. How is your mother?" She asked.
"Very well, your Majesty. Very happy with my father and six kids."
"Six?! Goodness! I don't think I could handle more than what I have now! How is she managing to provide for all of you? I know how terrible the conditions in Performance are."
'And you're doing nothing about it.' I thought. "Well we have my father, and also when us kids are old enough we get jobs as well. I'm a singer." I said.
"I see! Well, it was lovely talking to you dear, but my husband is about to come home, and I must go meet him. I would love to talk more later." She said, and got up and left.