by Shelby Hild
At the same time Prince Aiden spoke, his brother commanded, “Down. On the ground. Now.”
As quickly as they had all made it up the tree, they climbed back down. When Vivilyn dropped down on the ground beside the other two, she rolled her shoulders and her neck before looking up at them.
Prince Ethan slid in front of his brother fallen as though to shield him from Vivilyn.
Even in the dark, Vivilyn knew who they were, and she dipped into a curtsey. Or at least an attempt at a curtsey.
It made them both laugh.
“I’m sorry for startling you,” Vivilyn said, not daring to look at either of the princes. “It wasn’t my intention.”
“That’s fine,” Prince Aiden said, pushing his brother to the side. “You were right. Especially the Grand Trees.”
“Who are you?” Prince Ethan asked. Prince Aiden elbowed his brother.
“And can you explain the ‘enough of a tail’ comment?” Prince Aiden added. “You don’t have some sort of a tail, do you?”
“Oh, excuse my poor manners,” Vivilyn could almost hear her mother and Malcolm scolding her for not introducing herself immediately. “I am Vivilyn Minette of Treelyn, daughter of Magnar and Suzetta. And I was making a joke. About the tail. I don’t have one.”
“One of the Chosen? How did you get out here?” the younger prince demanded.
“What my little brother means is welcome to our home, Lady Vivilyn,” the taller one bowed slightly then reached for her hand and lifted it to his lips. “I am Aiden and the child rolling his eyes beside me is my brother Ethan.” Prince Aiden kissed her knuckles and released her hand. “We were under the impression that all of the Ladies were to remain in the Chosen’s Wing until most of them had arrived.”
“They… err… we are.” Vivilyn could feel her cheeks burning, hopeful the moonlight would keep her blush from showing. “I just… accidentally escaped. My bookshelf opened and I followed a path outside.”
Prince Aiden laughed again. His laugh was warm, almost like the first summer breeze after an exceptionally cold winter.
“Then we should get you back to your hallway,” Prince Ethan said. “You’re not supposed to meet us yet. Or be out here.”
“I didn’t mean to,” she said as she crossed her arms in front of herself. “It’s exceedingly difficult to remain in solitude inside with only a window to look out. I’ve never been cooped up like this before. I’d prefer sleeping outside than spending much longer locked up in there.”
“Really?” Prince Aiden asked.
“Yes,” Vivilyn said, turning away from them. She began to walk back towards the palace.
“Wait, we’ll walk with you,” one of the princes said. With her back turned, she wasn’t sure which one spoke.
“Am I unsafe?” She looked back, over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow. Both princes jogged to catch up and walked on either side of her.
“Of course not,” Prince Aiden said, verifying he was the one who’d spoken. They walked in a semi-comfortable silence.
It was a situation Vivilyn had never imagined herself in. Walking by moonlight at the palace with two of the three royals of this generation at her sides.
When they reached Vivilyn’s slippers and candle, there was no sign of the door she’d exited at.
“Why did you leave your stuff here?” Ethan asked as she slid her feet into the shoes.
“It’s right next to the door.”
“There’s no door here.” Ethan said as he tried to slide between Vivilyn and Prince Aiden. “I don’t see anything.” Vivilyn almost laughed at how protective Prince Ethan was of his older brother.
“Of course not. It’s hidden.”
“No,” Ethan said. “We’ve been through all the hidden hallways and none of them end on this side. Where are you trying to take us?”
“Well,” Vivilyn said as she looked closely at the wall, trying to find any indication of how to open it from the outside. “Obviously, you haven’t, because this is where I came out. And I’m not trying to take you anywhere—you two voluntarily followed me. Without my asking, I might add.”
Ethan was about to argue more about that when Aiden set his hand on Ethan’s shoulder.
“How else would she have gotten to the Summer tree? The other exits face the other trees, it makes sense there’s one facing this one as well.” Aiden said with a shrug.
“Thank you,” Vivilyn said to the prince.
She moved closer to the wall and touched it right around where she thought the handle had been inside. The door clicked and began its slow opening movement.
“How’d you figure that out so easily?” Aiden asked, his head tilted.
“I was just hoping it would work,” she said looking back at them with a smile. “It was luck that it opened the first time and I assumed it would be similar to get back in.”
“Hmph.” Ethan crossed his arms in front of his chest.
“Hopefully, my neighbor is now sleeping deeply enough that she’s stopped snoring,” Vivilyn muttered to herself as she stepped inside.
“Wait!” Aiden said as he half stepped in after her. “You might want your candle.” Something in his hand snapped and the candle flickered with the newly lit flame.
“Thank you,” she said as she looked up at him.
In the candlelight, Prince Aiden’s hair looked almost completely red and the silver of silver of his eyes was so light that they almost looked white. His smile made Vivilyn’s heart flutter ever so briefly.
“Until we meet again, Lady Vivilyn.”
She smiled back at him as he stepped back, and the door began to close.
The princes began talking before the door closed completely.
“If all the women are like her,” she heard Prince Aiden say, “this is going to be an interesting few years.”
The last thing she heard before the door completely closed was Ethan: “I don’t trust her.”
Chapter 8
Vivilyn couldn’t have been asleep for more than fifteen minutes before someone started pounding on her door.
“Go away,” she mumbled. “The sun hasn’t even gotten up, Duncan.” She curled her legs up in the warmth of the velvety blankets. As she nestled her face into the cloud-like pillow, her mind woke up. She wasn’t at home. Whoever was knocking on the door was not her brother.
With a jerk, Vivilyn sat up. What if someone had found out about her unauthorized excursion outside the night before? What if one of the princes had told on her?
It would be so embarrassing to be disqualified before the first day even began.
Maybe it’s for the better, she thought as she sat up. Less chance to get caught having a vision.
Whoever was at her door knocked again, but before she could say anything, the door crashed open.
“We don’t have time for pleasantries,” Malcolm said as he stormed into the room. “We have to get her prepared.” Andrea nodded from the door as she lowered her hand. She must have been the one knocking.
“Good morning, Vivilyn,” Nell said as she slipped by Andrea. Tia and Fiona followed. Within minutes, Malcolm had Vivilyn sitting in a straight-backed wooden chair in a robe having brushed her teeth and washed her face. Nell and Tia were playing with Vivilyn’s hair while Malcolm and Andrea were digging through Vivilyn’s closet.
“The last of the first forty arrived very early this morning, my lady,” Fiona said as she held sparkly hair clips for Nell. “They say everyone else should arrive throughout today and tomorrow. That means—”
“That means today you will have brunch with your initial group in three hours,” Malcolm interrupted. “Before that, you’ll have your introductory interview for the people.” He held a long, flowy outfit in front of Vivilyn then shook his head. “Which means we have less than an hour to get you ready. You were the first here, so you’ll be the first to be interviewed.” Malcolm switched the outfit he initially held up for something Andrea pulled out. “Yes, this will be perfect.” He spread t
he clothes out on the bed.
“I wish they had told us earlier,” Tia grumbled as Nell pulled and prodded at Vivilyn’s hair. “It’s not polite to make us rush through getting her ready.”
Tia moved away from the back of Vivilyn’s head and rustled through a bag before pulling out another smaller bag. She approached Vivilyn and started to brush creams and powders from the bag on Vivilyn’s face.
“Not too fancy,” Nell said to Tia. “She’s a real person, not a made-up doll like all of the others.”
“I know,” Tia said. Delicately, she started drawing with a pencil around Vivilyn’s eyes. “Hold still, child. I don’t want to accidentally stab you.” Tia laughed, but it made Vivilyn even more uncertain.
“Have you ever worn make-up before?” Fiona asked, as she handed one of the clips to Nell.
“No,” Vivilyn said. She barely moved her mouth as she tried to keep from moving her head at all.
“Well, you’ll have to get used to it before the end of all this,” Nell said with a pat on Vivilyn’s shoulder. “All done.”
“Very good.” Malcolm said as Tia finished up as well.
Another knock lightly sounded on Vivilyn’s door.
“Come in,” Malcolm said.
Grey entered with a covered tray, as he said, “I’ve got a few snacks.”
“Very good,” Malcolm said, lifting the cover off the tray before Grey had even managed to set it down.
“Pastries!” Tia said. Everything Tia held clanged loudly on the table as she dropped them to grab a warm, sweet pastry. She took a small bite and sighed happily.
When Vivilyn reached for one though, Andrea grabbed her hand.
“You’ll be snacking at brunch, not now. Can’t mess up your makeup before the interview,” Andrea said gently.
“Oh.” Vivilyn couldn’t keep herself from watching the food longingly. Her stomach growled her disappointment. Fiona broke a bite-sized piece of cream-covered bread and handed it to her.
“Thank you,” Vivilyn said before tossing it in her mouth.
As soon as Grey left the room, Andrea looked at her watch.
“It’s time,” she said. “We need to get moving.”
“We are almost ready,” Malcolm said before picking up the shirt, pants, and jacket he had set aside earlier. Vivilyn took them from Malcolm and walked quickly into the bathroom. She could hear someone digging through something in her room through the door.
She slipped off her silky robe and quickly changed into the navy-blue slacks, robin’s egg blue blouse, and white blazer. Then she took a quick glance at herself in the mirror.
Although Vivilyn could tell it was her face, it was almost unrecognizable. Her hair was half up and half down with clips throughout that looked like pearls. The makeup made her cheekbones more pronounced and her eyes seemed larger.
“A real person, not a made-up doll?” Vivilyn muttered to herself as she turned her head to the left and then the right.
“Compared to the rest of the people, you will seem the most relatable.” Andrea said. Vivilyn jumped. She hadn’t even noticed Andrea enter the room. “Are you ready?” she asked, handing Vivilyn a flat pair of shoes. They matched the shade of the shirt exactly, except for threads of a deeper blue and a white that created the appearance of clouds.
With one more quick look in the mirror and a single deep breath, Vivilyn nodded. “I am ready.”
The interview room lobby was located immediately to the right when exiting the Chosen Wing.
As she entered the interview room at the end of the hall, Vivilyn could hear other people bustling about. Lance and the other guard stood at attention at the entrance of the wing and didn’t even move their eyes as Vivilyn and Malcolm strode by.
As soon as she entered, Vivilyn’s nose was assaulted with a strong floral and metallic scent. There were bright lights shining down that from large fixtures imbedded into the ceiling.
Vivilyn glanced about, attempting to determine where the energy used for the lights came from. Despite the underground springs Fiona had mentioned when Vivilyn first arrived, it seemed a waste of energy to her. She kept that thought to herself.
Vivilyn didn't know what she was thinking when she'd said she was ready.
She was most definitely not ready.
People moved all around, shuffling papers, moving chairs, draping blankets over couches. Four cameras, which looked like larger versions of the device used to take stills, pointed at two chairs in front of a midnight blue background.
Two men stood talking to the side of the background, one of which Vivilyn vaguely recognized.
“Malcolm,” the man Vivilyn recognized said as he patted the other man on the shoulder, turning him to face the group. “You must be Lady Vivilyn.” Both men bowed to Vivilyn. She stood uncomfortably, holding her feet in the position for a rapid curtsey if Malcolm gestured that she was supposed to.
Even though Vivilyn memorized the packet about etiquette at court Malcolm had given her, she was still very unsure about rankings compared to hers. In any other situation, she would be supposed to curtsey to everyone she met, but she was one of the Chosen. That meant she didn’t have to acknowledge everyone.
Malcolm didn’t look at her at all, so Vivilyn shuffled her feet slightly so she was more balanced.
“Adontus,” Malcolm said, with a slight tilt of his head. “Gregory.” Malcolm nodded to the other man. “How are you this morning?”
“Quite well,” Adontus said before turning to Vivilyn with an over-large wave of his hand. “I am Adontus George of Zafton. I’ve been hosting the Enchanted Trials for the past fifty-three years. That’s eight trials. Stick with me and all will be well.” He then gestured to the chairs. Vivilyn only slightly questioned the amount of years he’d been hosting the Trials. He didn’t look that old. In fact, Adontus looked younger than Malcolm. His next statement caused all of her concern about his hosting timeframe to seep out of her mind. “Sit, sit. You are our first interview.”
Vivilyn felt her heart beat heavily, quickly in her chest. Shouldn’t she have been prepared for this moment? Malcolm hadn’t told her anything about how to act during the interview.
Her tongue felt thick in her mouth.
The chair was taller than most and Adontus held his arm out to help her climb into it. Vivilyn didn’t need the help, she could easily get in the chair, but took the offered hand anyway.
Malcolm looked at Vivilyn before leaning close to her face. She could smell the pastry on his breath, and her stomach rumbled hungrily. The pastries reminded Vivilyn of Maia. For a split second, she wondered what Maia was currently taking out of the oven at home. She could almost taste caramel brownies in the air.
“Although the meeting with your first host will be the first time the audience actually sees you, this interview is the first chance they’ll get to start getting to know you. Just remember most of the people out there want to love you.” Malcolm stood up for a second as he spoke, then leaned back down. “No matter what anyone tells you, be you.”
Then he walked to the other side of the room. The room remained crowded. Vivilyn tried to keep focused on Adontus and the cameras around her, but movement from the crowd kept grabbing her attention.
At least until Adontus cleared his throat and nodded to Gregory behind the camera.
“Places everyone,” Gregory said from behind the camera directly in front of Vivilyn. Three other people joined him at the other cameras. Lights were turned directly at Vivilyn and Adontus. It caused Vivilyn to squint slightly until she turned her head so she was looking more at Adontus than the people in room. “We start filming in three,” the man held up three fingers, “two,” he pulled one down and then mouthed one, zero.
A small red light blinked on at the top of the cameras.
“Hello everyone,” Adontus said with a bright smile, facing the camera. “I would like to welcome Lady Vivilyn Minette of Treelyn, one of the Chosen for Prince Aiden’s Enchanted Trials.”
He pause
d for a moment and the crowd all clapped politely. “Would you like to introduce yourself, Vivilyn?”
“Um,” Vivilyn said, still looking at Adontus, until he gestured with his hands to look at the camera. “I am Vivilyn Minette of Treelyn,” she shook her head. “You already know that. My parents are the orchardist Magnar Ray and the gardener Suzetta Minette of Treelyn. I have an older brother named Duncan.”
Vivilyn looked around the room and nibbled lightly at her bottom lip.
“I’m sorry,” she said looking back at Adontus. “I’ve never done this before. I’m not really sure what to say.”
“That’s alright, I’ve done this plenty of times.” He laughed. The crowd laughed with him. “Do you have any friends?”
“Of course.” Vivilyn said, her mouth raising in a smile as she thought of them, “Maia Bakers and Ryso Cliftin are my two best friends. And there are some youngsters that have recently moved into my family’s shop, Iza, Eso, and Mo.”
“Cliftin? That name sounds familiar.”
“His older brother Eric took Princess Elissa and her family’s official stills not too long ago.”
“Oh, yes, Eric. He left a few broken hearts when he returned home. Good kid.” Adontus tilted his head and looked at Vivilyn through the corner of his eye. “Did you leave any broken hearts behind in Treelyn when you were chosen? Maybe young Ryso had a claim on your heart?”
“Noooo,” Vivilyn said, moving her hand as though she were hitting that idea physically away. “Ryso is courting Cleo Tailors. And they are basically meant for each other.”
“That was a long no.” Adontus said and raised an eyebrow at Vivilyn.
“I mean,” she said. She tilted her head from one shoulder to the other before straightening her head again. “We’ve never been interested in each other. We kissed once when we were like six, but that was a dare.” The smile Adontus gave her caused Vivilyn to bite her lower lip.
Why did I just admit that? Vivilyn thought. I should not have said that.
“You kissed? Have you kissed anyone else?”
