Author’s Note: This is a new fantasy story/book I’m writing, and I thought I’d share part of the first chapter with you all. Though this post is not about the Black Lives Matter movement, I encourage everyone to continuing educating themselves and supporting the cause. I personally just purchased two books about understanding and combating racism in America. The fight’s not over yet!!!
I stared meekly down at the scrap of paper in my hand, the faded yellow paper emblazoned with my signature. Aurora Wendel. The inky black scrawl bled slightly as I wrote it, so the little “a” in my first name nearly collided with the “W” in my last.
“Good enough,” I sighed. With that, I reached forward and threw the paper into the Elders’ Cauldron. As I turned away from the enormous black pot, the surrounding crowd swarmed to fill my spot. Snaking past countless villagers, I managed to escape by the bakery. There, with trace amounts of dirt smeared across his face, stood my brother Leo.
“Took you long enough,” he called with a smirk as I drew nearer.
“Shut up and let’s get out of here. If I see one more piece of paper I might vomit.”
Leo and I strolled side by side around the corner, soon out of sight from the enormous crowd in the town square.
“So, what are the odds of you actually getting elected to the council?” Leo asked, his strawberry blonde hair flopping annoyingly in front of his eyes.
I glanced over at him, blowing away a strand of my own crimson hair in the process. “Slim to none, I’m sure. It looks like every person in Rimps over seventeen wants to be chosen.”
“True, I guess, but aren’t girls historically more likely to have their names drawn?” he asked eagerly. “I think I heard that at school once.”
I scoffed at this statement, especially since Leo hadn’t attended school in almost a year. “No, that’s just a myth. The selection process is completely random.”
“That’s not true,” Leo argued. His freckled face swam in my peripheral vision as we left the main part of town and started down the snake-like path to our cottage. “You know as well as I do that the palace performs background checks before announcing which name the Elders drew. So, for all we know, everyone else will fail the background checks and you’ll win by default.”
I could sense the excitement in his voice, and I did my best not to damper it as I replied, “I suppose that’s true.”
“I knew it,” he proclaimed with triumph. “You’ve got a good shot of getting elected. And then you’ll go to Golderia and live in the palace and become famous.”
“Ugh, Leo,” I groaned, stopping in my tracks and turning to face him. It still amazed me that Leo and I were nearly the same height, despite him only being fifteen.
“Why do you want so badly for me to be chosen? All that would mean is I have to move away, and you’d transport all my goods for me. We’d never even get to see each other, and you’d be all alone taking care of Mother.” My throat closed a little at the thought of Leo, tending to Mother at her sick bed while I gallivanted around the palace.
“You’re thinking about this all wrong,” Leo insisted before starting to walk once more. “If you’re elected to the council, you could actually do some good. You could improve life for not just people in Rimps, but all across the kingdom. Arcus would be lucky to have someone like you on the council because you know exactly what the people need.”
As he spoke, we kept pace with one another, our sandy-colored cottage growing ever nearer. I watched his face flush—with pride, perhaps?—as he argued. The sight of him, so certain about my ability to make change, made my heart swell.
“As for Mother,” Leo continued, “We’ve already discussed that. Aunt Elizabeth can be there whenever I’m out on deliveries, and we’ve got the Becketts and Mr. Middleton just over the hill if I need more help.”
I shuddered. “Don’t go to Mr. Middleton, Leo. The man gives me the creeps.”
Leo rolled his eyes and waved her off with his hand. “You only say that because he likes me more than you.”
I opened my mouth to retaliate, but thought better of it. The kid had a point.
“Aurora,” Leo started, his tone more serious now than excited. “If you get elected—”
“That’s a big if,” I interrupt.
Leo sighed and plowed on. “If you get elected, I think you’ll make Arcus a better place. That means helping me, mom, our village, our province, everyone. That’s not something we should be afraid of.”
With these last words, we arrived on our front step. I looked around at the tall grass and cobblestone path as I avoided Leo’s gaze. I knew he was right. I knew he was sincere. Worst of all, I knew I would get emotional if I stared into those big brown eyes.
“I suppose you’re right,” I muttered, still looking down at the ground.
“Of course I am,” Leo said with a devilish grin. Then, he opened the front door, and the two of us were home.
