Champion

Today was the day. Finally. At twenty years old I would become a woman. I rolled over and sat up at the edge of my pallet. I had been waiting for this day for so long. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and started getting ready. The sun was already high in the sky as I pulled on my dress.

"Sorrel!" Freesia was calling me. I was running late again.

"I'm coming!" I replied as I pulled my hair back with a leather hair tie and ran out of our hut after her down the road.

"Here." Freesia passed me a bread roll once I caught up with her. I tore into it, ravenous as always after waking. We slowed down as we reached the arena, recessed into the ground, and followed the crowd inside.

It was huge. Rows of tiered benches lined the oval shaped room and they were quickly filling as the crowd streamed in. Freesia and I walked down to seats nearer the arena floor and sat near some of the others like us, soon to be women. Chatter filled the air as people anticipated what was to come. This year's crop of girls would become women. They would claim a husband and no longer would they wear dresses. No longer would I wear the dress of a girl, of a child. Women wore cropped vests and leggings for movement. After all, the tribe was a tribe of hunters.

As the Prime entered the arena and took her seat the chatter subsided, coming to a full halt when she raised her hand. Our Prime was the strongest of us, our leader and protector.

"Welcome, to the Annual Choosing!" There was a shattering round of applause, hooting and cheering.

"Every year we see more of our daughters ascend into adulthood, taking the final step that will mark them as women and see them become fully fledged members of our tribe, with all of the responsibilty that follows. It is a moment of pride for us all to witness this each year, so without further delay, girls, come forward and choose your husband!" All around us, other pairs of girls stood and descended further into the arena. Freesia tugged on my arm and we too hurried down into the pit. We stood on the arena floor on the opposite end of the oval to our Prime, clumped together in nervous anticipation.

The Prime gestured and the boys were brought in. They were indeed boys as they were all younger than us to encourage co-operation. There were 40 of them just as there were 40 of us. Little did I know what was in store.

After a moment of silence, hesitation, one girl ventured forward and approached a boy near her. As if floodgates had opened, girls began grabbing boys, tugs of war going on over the larger, handsome ones. I did not care for muscles, or looks, I just wanted someone I could talk to. Someone who could hold a decent conversation. I walked around and saw some of the others coolly assessing as I was. This boy would be our partner for life after all. It would not do to make a choice in the heat of the moment that I would then regret.

I saw Freesia reign victorious has she sent a girl flying and grabbed the boy she was after. He seemed acceptable, tall with dark blonde hair and brown eyes. Freesia seemed happy with him and that was the important thing. I continued with my search; it wouldn't do to be stuck with whoever was left.

As I looked around I saw noticed one of the boys in particular. He had dark curls and dark eyes, but he was on the shorter side, which meant there were no girls fighting over him or even approaching him. He looked shifty somehow. His eyes darted back and forth and he held a nervous energy about him, like he would shoot off at any moment. His eyes narrowed and all of a sudden he let out a wild cry and ran towards the Prime. My body moved before I noticed, and acting on instinct alone, I ran in front of him, blocking his path, swivelled on the ball of my foot and drop kicked him. The noise of the arena quieted as people noticed what had occurred and the silence became deafening. And then there was the stamping of feet and banging of drums as the whole arena burst into noise. The Prime stood and raised her hand again for quiet.

"Young warrior, you have shown great skill and reflex here today. You protected your Prime before many of us even had time to blink," a chorus of chuckles ran round the room.

"Your bravery is much appreciated and indeed serves as an example to us all. A feat such as this deserves a reward, and so I have decided that you will represent The Village at the Betrothal Championships!" Once again the room erupted in cheers and whistles.

I stood in shock. ME? I-I- what? She couldn't possibly be serious. Could she? The Betrothal Championships? They were incredibly important! As if on autopilot, with panicked thoughts still swirling round my mind, I numbly bent on one knee and bowed my head in respect and acquiescence.

After that everything faded away. I vaguely heard the choosing carry on but that was it.

The Prime took me into her private chambers and what transpired for the next 6 months I dare not say. But when the championship finally rolled round I was a ruthless, skilled warrior, stronger than I had ever been.

"Sorrel, come." The Prime's third advisor, Silk, led me away from the baths into the fitting room.

"You are not officially a woman in the eyes of Central, and so you must wear a dress during the championships." I sighed. It wasn't a surprise though I would've preferred to be seen as a woman of my tribe when winning the Prince's hand in marriage.

"However, that can work to our advantage. Women all over the Domain are going to be fighting, and the easiest thing for us to do is eliminate you as a threat in their minds. So, you will not only wear a dress, you will look delicate, fragile, weak. The Prime especially asked me to make you some dresses that match that. I bought some fabric from the travelling merchant and well, I think you will like them."

Silk covered my eyes with cloth and helped me into a dress. It felt smooth and soft against my skin, a novelty when usually my dresses were made from leather, linen and wool. Practical and hardy. This dress felt like none of those things, so already I knew it would be very different. When I opened my eyes however, I was without words.

It was a soft pink, what was generally considered in our community to be a childish colour, yet it did not look so on me. It looked... sophisticated. The design was fairly simple, with a sweetheart neck-line, it nipped in at the waist and then went back out again, falling to my knees. I had never in my entire life worn a dress that hit the knee. They were far too impractical, so ours usually hit mid-thigh.

The fabric was apparently pure cotton.

"Yes, you look incredibly weak don't you? Though in Central they will call you feminine, girlish, pretty."

"I didn't know girls could look like this. I look... vulnerable."

"Quite. This is exactly the look that we want. The rest of the competitors will underestimate you. They will cast you to the side as you do not possess a blatant strength. You will have the advantage. Come, one of the men will pack the rest of your clothes. You need to get your face on." For the next 2 hours my face was made up and my hair was tugged and pulled until the final result was a completely different person. I looked young and innocent. I looked so unassuming. My face was made up so that it had a kind of glow. Only nude colours had been used but it was almost as if I had been kissed by the Heavens. My hair was up in an intricate set of braids, varying in thickness all twisted round my head like a crown. Silk had tucked some peonies in for added effect.

"She looks absolutely helpless." The Prime came in, nodding in approval. "We will ride when the night is darkest. You my dear shall be tucked away in the carriage with Silk. When we arrive, Silk will take the lead. They believe that she is the leader. This way, you can still call me Prime. They will just believe that it is my name, rather than my title." I nodded in suitable awe of the clever plan.

Outside, I was helped by one of the men into the carriage. It was brand new, as before the tournament we had never had need for a carriage. Everyone rode, and the injured were carried on wagons. Of course, we had seen them before, as some of the richer merchants used them. But that was another story.

Inside were plush velvet seats and velvet curtains across the windows. They had real glass in them, something we had little use of since it was so easily broken.

"Better get comfortable Sorrel. This is the only chance of sleep you'll be getting for a while. As soon as we get to the Capital we have to register and preliminary rounds start that evening."

"Why are we leaving so late?" I asked "While it would have been desirable to leave earlier, the Prime deemed it worth the anonymity it would give us. The other teams would think us disorganised, stupid even. As competitors who have not been allowed to join the Domain's other activities for several hundred years we are an oddity. We want to draw as little attention to ourselves as possible." After that Silk handed me a blanket and a pillow and bade me goodnight. I curled up on the plush bench and soon the rocking and rolling of the carriage carried me into a deep, dreamless sleep.