First Impressions

We were ushered into the green room, which turned out to be a large room set up with various tables, mirrors, hooks, and rails with dresses on. We were each assigned a maid who helped us remove our clothing and shower in this large tiled room with various shower heads. I was not eager to have other girls see my body, or the maid for that matter, who was vigourously scrubbing my body, but I sang a song in my head and pretended I was alone until it was over and I was wrapped into a fluffy towel and taken into a small side room. There I was bade to sit in a large raised chair with a foot rest and shaved, plucked and slathered in creams and lotions.

Once that was over with and the maid took me back into the green room where I was sat down at one of the tables with mirrors and fitted with a long curly black wig. As I looked around I saw that the other girls were also being put into identical wigs. The effect was already noticeable, as we all looked more uniform. We were each put in black silk ball gowns, cinched in at the waist. The maids literally put their feet on our backs to pull the stays tighter. Why would anyone do this to themselves? When I became Queen I would refuse to wear these torturous things. I already felt so restricted. And I struggled not to trip over the dress, which was far too long. I glanced around and saw the rest of the girls also struggling except for Crystal, whose dress was the perfect length. Oh no, they wanted us all to look the same, and apparently that translated into height as well as dress. I knew what was coming. Once the gowns were on, our arms were covered in sheer black tulle sleeves and our hands were encased in matching silk gloves. And then the maids brought out the shoes. I admit, I was a little apprehensive. They were huge tottering heeled shoes, and once they were strapped onto my feet, I needed help to stand. Around me, the others were tripping and falling in these things, whilst Crystal got to wear flats. Witch. It was what we were all thinking and I just knew that one of us was going to fall flat on our faces in front of the prince and that would be it.

Our make-up was done exactly the same, dark eyes and red lips, with long fluttering lashes. Then we all had to put brown lenses in our eyes. The end result was astonishing. If I hadn't seen each of us being prepared I probably wouldn't be able to recognise anyone. Except Crystal as she was the only one of us sure on her feet. It was almost scary how similar we looked. Not identical, as of course we still had different skin tones and noses, but no one out there would be able to tell for sure who we were. Nara's mask was yellow, mine red, Crystal's was grey, Galatea's was blue, Rowena's was brown, Cille's was green and Opal's was purple. We were accompanied by maids who held us up as we entered the ballroom.

"And entering now, the Champions!" There was a smattering of clapping as people took the sight of us in. I heard a few gasps and exclamations of astonishment as they took the sight of us in. "You can barely tell who's who!" A woman intoned.

We spread out and started mingling, or at least tried to. A few of us were asked to dance, Rowena was caught by a few matrons and I somehow ended up alone, until a young man came up to me. He was tall, slightly chubby, but he held himself well. There was something about him that compelled you to give him all of your attention.

"Sorrel, right?"

"H-how did you know?"

"For one, I've seen you girls more than the guests and for another the way you hold yourself is different from the other girls. You are all individuals after all."

"I suppose that makes sense." We were quiet for a moment.

"Did you want to be a champion?" He suddenly asked me.

"Well, I-I was chosen. My Prime chose me as champion after an act of bravery. Besides, there weren't enough boys left."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when we come of age, girls go to the arena and choose a boy. Sometimes you have to fight for the good ones of course, but once you have a man, you can become a woman. Technically, I'm still a girl." I sighed. It really was quite sad.

"That, actually seems pretty similar to this then."

"Thinking about it, it kind of does."

"So love doesn't factor in then?"

"I know what you're thinking, but the Crocasant people believe that if you take the time, you can love anyone. We are all people. We all deserve to love and be loved. The way we do it means that nobody's feelings get hurt, and we avoid jealousy and fighting and affairs."

"How so?"

"Well, we're kept separate till we are of age. We are specifically warned against romance when we are young. If we love another and our hearts cannot be changed we become winsters. Single women who live alone and celibate. It is very rare though, and in my own lifetime it has only happened once. You can trade men within the first month though. We aren't barbarians."

I thought back to when I had learned what a winster was. Rain had met a boy who was tending to the gardens, an apprentice. She had snuck glances at him and then one day spoke to him. That was a big no-no. We only spoke to boys when interacting about our duties. She had spoken to him over trivial matters, trying to gain his attention. Popping up more and more frequently, she started leaving him gifts, trinkets from the peddlers. The women noticed, of course they did, but both of them would be at the next choosing, so they figured Rain would choose him and move on. At the time I was about twelve. It was the first time I had been to a choosing, something you could only attend once you had hit puberty. I remember her running wildly to and fro looking for a boy, wondering why she did not settle on one of the ones near her. But she did not, and when she found him he had already been chosen. She had pleaded with the other girl, begged her to choose another, and she was lucky, the girl was willing, but the boy was not. He refused to go with her and she lost it. She beat him blue and bloody, screaming and crying at him. Eventually she was dragged away. There was so much blood.

And then the Prime had spoken. "What happened here today was shameful, and unacceptable. As women we pride ourselves on our control, judgement, and of course, strength. What we saw here today held none of those things. We were also reminded that boys, men, are allowed to say no. It happens rarely, but it is allowed. Let it be known that we will never force a union between those who are unwilling. We are also reminded as to why we do not allow meeting before coming of age. The tumult of young emotion clouds judgment, and selfish children are not equipped to cope with the blinding haze of infatuated feelings they often feel. If I hear of any girl spending to much time talking to a boy, we will intervene. With force if necessary."

That was also the day that girls and boys were moved to opposite sides of the compound. The last day I spoke to Rowan. The last time we laughed together. It had not been love, we were too young for that, but it had been...something. But it was pointless to think about that now. He was gone and I was here. Tucking some hair behind my ear, I focused back on the conversation.

He laughed "Of course not. Your way of life is very different to ours. The things you profess not to have, well, you will find them in abundance here. Jealousy, betrayal, intrigue. I can only hope you survive Central. Who knows, perhaps you will find a light to guide your way."

He walked off and before I could dwell on it, I was approached by an elderly couple. I tried to be as earnest and open as possible. Silk said I was awful at being charming, and honesty was my best policy. Apparently I already had an inherent likeability if I was just myself. I had to take her word for it. I spun around on the dance-floor for a while with an older gentleman who reminded me very much of my Papa. And then that man cut in.

"Back again?" I asked

"I saw you twirling away and thought that I would quite enjoy dancing with you."

"Well I hope this has lived up to your expectations." We swirled around the dance floor for a few minutes, and then in a very daring move, he pulled me close and said "Things are moving Sorrel. Change is afoot. I suggest you persuade others to move with it or risk being left behind." Then he spun me round into the arms of another and he was gone.

Before I could chase after him, ask him what he meant, the first vote was announced. The people went to cast their votes and so I went outside to the gardens, where I met the loveliest couple. They were around my age and we actually found quite a lot to talk about. They were very interested in the natural beauty of The Village and surrounding lands. Apparently they were considering buying a farm or something along those lines.

Soon enough, the second vote happened and I was propelled to a small stage with the others.

The woman who had hosted the opening ceremony was back, and she came onto the stage and began the proceedings.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the results are in. In first place is... Cille Hughes!" She stepped forward and ripped off her mask and wig.

"In second place is Rowena Dowry! She tottered forward and struggled for a bit before pulling off her wig and mask.

"Third place goes to... Sorrel of the Crocasant!" I did it! I stumbled forward and pulled my mask off. I tugged off the wig too, letting my dark hair unfurl.

"And the bottom two champions are... Crystal Fraser and Nara Larif! Ladies please exit through the door behind you." Nara pulled off her heels in frustration and ran out crying, whilst Crystal looked...relieved almost. I had seen her lookiong fairly uncomfortable for most of the evening, so perhaps leaving was a blessing for her. Galatea removed her fakery and looked both scared and happy. Who knew how close she had come to the axe. Opal slid off her mask looking as if it was only expected that she would make it through to this stage.

"The five champions left will be examined and then prepared for the next challenge." We were helped down from the stage by the maids and escorted to another room. The maids took the masks and wigs away, and helped us remove the lenses from our eyes and our shoes. We were then helped out of the gowns and into plain white shift dresses. We were sat in a row outside what we were told was the examination room and we waited for our turn to be tested. I'd rather not go into it but they checked for fertility, for the healthiness of certain areas, and well... Bye-bye Cille. It would seem that she bleached her hair, which they felt was fraudulent, and she was pregnant! Only a girl yet untouched was wanted for the prince, and definitely not a pregnant one. I suppose it made sense since he was still innocent himself. Rumour had it (and by rumour, I mean I overheard Rowena and Galatea gossiping) that he had been kept away from girls since he hit puberty and all of his interactions were monitored by a woman called the Matron. It sounded quite lonely and a little scary. In The Village we were also kept separated, but we lived in pairs with other girls, and we were raised by the community. We were never ever truly alone. Well, the bookies would be losing a huge amount of money since their favourite had fallen at one of the last hurdles. Now it really seemed to be anyone's game.

Once all of our exams were finished we were told we would be staying the night in the palace, and I was taken to a nice cosy bedchamber to sleep. I missed Silk. I had not seen her since the morning, and I didn't know what was going to happen when the new day dawned. But I knew she would think me silly for fretting so I tried to relax, and soon enough I was snoring away.

In the early morning, I was roused by a maid who gave me a bath. It was the same maid who had assisted me the night before, and I learned that her name was Enna. I ended up soaking for an hour or so before having a proper scrub. Then Enna helped me into my assigned outfit. She wouldn't tell me what we were going to be doing, but I had a feeling it was not going to be pleasant.