𝑹𝒆𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒏 [𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧]

5- The Palace

1 July, 2396

The dress was beautiful. It was a deep navy blue, and it fell over my feet, so my feet were covered. I insited in wearing flats because I was already taller than most of the girls here and heels were uncomfortable. Plus, what was the point if no one could see them anyway.

We were informed by Miss Hera that we would all be having our first meeting with the Prince straight after breakfast. I was joined by Piper as a maid was leading me to the dining hall.

Piper was wearing a very simple peach gown that went excellently with her skin tone. She was already easily the most beautiful girl in the Selection, and this dress just provided more evidence.

"Hello, Annabeth." Piper said, joining me in my slow walk toward the dining hall.

"Hi. How was your night?" I asked.

Piper shrugged. "Not much different than the ones at home, really. Not that I enjoy the privilege." She added, and she actually looked like she meant what she had just said. I gave her a smile, but I didn't know I was heading straight into someone else.

"Watch it." the girl I bumped into told me angrily. She was wearing a long dark purple gown and she had waist length silky, midnight coloured hair, it was so dark that even the sun couldn't make it seem like a different colour.

"I'm really sorry." I apologised.

She seemed to notice the sincerity behind my words so she shook her head. "No, I should've seen where I was going." She said, offering her hand. "I'm Reyna. "

"I'm Annabeth." I shook her hand briefly before releasing it.

Then she noticed Piper. "Hi, Piper."

"Hey." Piper responded with a wave. "We met earlier today." she informed me.

"Shall we head to breakfast together?" Reyna said. She held herself like a true princess, it'd be hard to beat her. Her stature was regal and she was confident and firm with herself.

Together, the three of us made it to breakfast. There was a distinct sound of chattering and excited squeals. Reyna, Piper and I sat together at one of the tables at the corner.

We began to talk amongst ourselves. I discovered Reyna was royalty by birth. Her mother was the sister of the king of China, effectively making her a princess. That explained her poise and reserved nature. The more we talked, the more I started to like these girls. They were so laid back and nice, though I excpeted they could be violent and sassy when needed.

Three people entered the dining hall and silence enveloped the room. King Gabriel was very tall, perhaps around 6'8, and very muscular. He looked like a wrestler more than a king. Queen Sally followed him. She was beautiful, with navy blue eyes and and flowy brown hair. But the Prince, he was a completely different story.

He was tall, maybe a few inches shorter than his step father, around six feet. He wasn't incredibly muscled, more lean for that matter. He was wearing a black suit and a blue tie that matched my dress exactly. Raven black hair that looked purple in the filtered sunlight formed a mess on top of his head, where a crown was resting. His eyes, god, now I knew why everyone wanted to marry him. They swiveled into a mixture of green and blue. One second, they would look blue but a slight shift of angle, green would be more vibrant. They had to be the most beautiful set of eyes I'd ever seen.

His ego must be flying with the birds.

As the three approached the large table in the center, the Queen waved for us to sit down and eat. King Gabriel began to talk to Prince Percy and the Queen started to eat her pancakes. I stopped staring and resumed my conversation with my two new friends, but this time in a hushed whisper. The food was even better than the dinner I'd had last night.

Reyna and Piper continued to talk, but my eyes were fixed elsewhere. The Prince. There was something magnetic about Prince Percy, something that was completely unrelated to his looks. As soon as we were done and the Royal family had exited for their own purposes, Miss Hera returned with her clipboard.

"Ladies," she announced. "Follow me to the Ladies Room, it is the where the Prince will be waiting for you."

Silently, we followed her as she led us to a large room in the south of the Palace.

"This is the ladies room," Miss Hera said in an authoritative tone. "You are allowed to lounge her at times when you are free. And, this is where the Elite will have lessons with me and Queen Sally."

The Prince was sitting on a large blue sofa in the front of the room. He was wearing an easy and carefree smile.

"Take a seat." Hera ordered as Reyna, Piper and I sat down at one of the sofa's near the door. Without any implication of a specific order, the Prince began to call out girls one by one for a conversation. He seemed polite as he talked to the girls, and amused as he talked to others.

"Bet he's going to love Drew." Piper said, rolling her eyes.

"She's a nightmare." Reyna agreed. "Gives me the creep vibes." I stifled a laugh as Hera sent the three of us a glare.

"Annabeth Chase." the Prince called.

I got up.