Ｔｈｅ Ｓｅｌｅｃｔｉｏｎ {Ｓｅｍｉ－Ａｄｖａｎｃｅｄ Ｒｏｌｅｐｌａｙ} discussion

This province has a dry and hot climate, people that live here generally are really tan.

Sixteen year old Catherine straightened her sundress as she got out of the car. "Thank you," she told the driver, who handed her the small bag she had brought. She slung her purse and bag over her shoulder, then walked up the walkway to her friend Lillian's house. When she reached the door, she rang the doorbell and waited for the door to be answered.

Lillian's day had been as chaotic as ever. Her mother was ordering maids around while her father was entertaining guests that they had scattered around the room. Mingling, eating judging. The room was just full of actions when the door bell rang. Lillian picked up the end of her blue ball type dress, and went to answer the door. When she opened it up she saw a friend she hasn't seen in what felt like forever, Catherine.

"Lillian!" Catherine said, smiling and moving to hug her friend. When she stepped back from the hug, she realized what Lillian was wearing and that she was wearing something way more casual. "Oh, have I come at a bad time? You look beautiful by the way."

Lillian motioned Catherine outside so she wouldn't have to see her parent's scowling faces. Once out side she smiled at her friend. "It's no big deal. You know how my parents are. There's always a party going on." She absentmindedly brushed of the length of her skirt, and twirled. "Thank you though. It's a new gown, mom said specifically for special occasions." Like the selection...

Catherine nodded. She did know her friends parents. "Well, that color suits you beautifully." She hoisted her bag higher on her shoulder and said, "So, are you entering the Selection? I almost thought I wouldn't get the invitation because I turned sixteen two months ago."

((Sorry I'm kinda ghosting for a little bite I should be back in an hour or so.))

((Okie dokie))

Lillian wanted to jump up and down and scream like a school girl, but with her luck her parents would hear her and scold her for it later. So she smiled as wide as she could without her face hurting. "Yes! I just got the invitation a week ago. That's actually what the party's for, my celebration/ coronation." She winked and giggled.

Catherine laughed and hugged her friend. "I'm entering too!! Do you think we'll both make it? Oh, I hope we do. Because then I'll have someone to talk to that I know won't be trying to stab me in the back." She clapped her hands together as she smiled widely. "What do you think Prince James is going to be like? And the rest of the royal family?"

Lillian hugged her a second time and smiled when she started talking boys. "Oh I don't know, to be honest I'm kind of scared. Sure I could get any guy that I want but... I've never had to express real feelings, and I don't want to start that relationship on lies. You know? And as for the other royals I have no idea what I'm going to be up against."

"We'll get through it together," Catherine promised her. Then, she reached into her purse and pulled out a small camera. "Help me document this. When we both make it, this will be the beginning of our journey together," she told her. She stood beside her friend and held out her arm to take a picture of the two of them.

Lillian smiled brightly, truly happy that her friend was here. So far Catherine was the only one who knew the real her. In front of everyone else she was the snobby rich kid, getting done what she needed to, it's what the press liked. When chattering was done with the phot Lillian stepped back. "So do you want to come inside? I can even let you borrow one of my dresses if you want?" Mother wouldn't like it but Catherine was an exception.

"Alright. I'm sorry I didn't write to tell you I was coming. It was kind of a last minute thing. I just had to get away from my sister-in-law," Catherine said as she put away her camera. "It's a good thing we're pretty much the same size. I've missed working with you."

((Lol phones are not a thing yet ^.^, being that the United States never really became i depended it knocked technology back a few years. So only cameras and electricity exist.))

((Ok I'll change it. I mixed this up with the books lol))

((Changed it.))

Lillian waved of her apology, it really was no big deal. She knew how easy it was to get busy, and be in a rush. "Yeah it is, I was thinking you could wear that bright yellow mermaid tail dress that I have, with your skin tone it would like perfect! When I were it I look like a banana." She opened the door to let Catherine in.

Catherine giggled. "You do look kind of like a banana when you wear it. Blues definitely look much better on you than yellow." Catherine walked through the door and walked with Lillian through the house.

Lillian tried to steer her away from the party, and towards the stairs that lead to her room. She could see her mother's glare out of the corner of her eye, but she tried to ignore it. "Moms on my case about being more proper when my whole life's she's taught me to act like I own the world. I swear she bipolar." She muttered to Catherine.

Catherine scoffed. "You are proper. You know how to be all sorts of things. That's why you were such a good actress," she told her older friend. "Just don't listen to her. You're eighteen now. Soon you'll be able to move out of the house. Especially if you make it to the Selection."

Lillian looked back at her mother before grabbing Catherine's hand, and dragging her up the steps. "Try telling my mother that." She said will doing so. She let go of her hand and opened her bedroom door, and waited for her to walk in.

Catherine looked sadly at her friend as she ran up the stairs after her. "She has to let you go sometime," Catherine insisted as she walked into Lillian's room. "It's not fair to you that she keeps trying to control every single aspect of your life," she said as she flopped onto the bed.

Lillian made her way to her closet, looking around for the yellow dress she spoke of. "I mean to be honest I'll do anything for them. They are my parents after all Cat. They're all I have now that Jeremiah's gone.

"I know, Lil. I wish they hadn't made you start modeling though. There's this new movie I'm auditioning for, just in case I don't get into the Selection, and you would be perfect as the best friend." she said, remembering how her friend had talked about her brother abandoning her family. "Oh, I just remembered, my sister-in-law is pregnant. You should see the way she's acting about it. Like she's the queen." Catherine rolled her eyes. "I wonder how upset she'll be if I get Selected and take her spotlight."

Lillian shrugged as she pulled out the yellow dress from her closet. It was a solid bright yellow, with thin straps the went around your neck, and the skirt had black thread designs. She smiled and tossed it to her friend. "Here." She then began to hunt for some shoes deeper in the closet. "Wow really? Have they even been trying to get pregnant? I thought they just got married a short while ago?"

"They've been married for about a year now," Catherine said as she got off the bed and took off her sundress. She slipped into the yellow mermaid tail dress. She wriggled her hips to pull it up and slipped the strap over her head. "Could you help me zip it up?" she asked when she couldn't get the zipper all the way up. "I know she's been trying. Jacob's more of a go-with-the-flow kind of person. She plans on naming the baby after either the King or the Queen, depending on if it's a boy or a girl."

Lillian walked over wordlessly, doing this kind of thing happened often for her, changing in and out of clothes, preparing for her next line on stage. She zipped up Cat's dress easily gave her a shocked expression. "She really needs that much attention? I'm sorry but who would name a child after the royals? That had butt kissing all over it. " she giggled and then went back into the closet for some yellow pumps, or maybe some wedges... Hmm...

Catherine shook her head and followed Lillian over to her closet to help look for shoes. "I know. I don't know what she's thinking. She's always trying to blame me for stuff but it never works because my parents know she's lying. I caught her in my room once going through my scrapbooks. I was so mad." A pair of wedges with a cork heel and yellow straps caught her eye. "Ooh, what about those?"

Lillian eyes the shoes carefully, she was glad to switch her thoughts to something as simply as which shoe her friend should wear. "I don't know... You know me I'm a pumps girl myself, but I'm not the ones going to wear them." She shrugged and caught a glance of herself in her full length mirror oh how she changed. She used to be the young aspiring actress with amazing talent. Now she was a model, with acting on the side.

Catherine looked between the yellow pumps and the wedges. "I think you're right. The pumps go way better with this dress than the wedges." She reached into the closet and grabbed the shoes, then scooted to back to start putting them on. She looked up to see Lillian looking in the mirror. "What's wrong, Lil?" she asked her oldest friend.

Lillian's attention was brought back to Catherine. Lillian didn't know what to say, she had never wanted to be a model? Why did she need to go to such lengths for her parents happiness? Why did she have to do all the horrible things that she's done? "I was just looking at my dress." She lied easily before turning away from the mirror. "Come one we don't want to miss the party." She forced a smile, her dress swishing behind her as she made her way to the door. Lillian wasn't as happy as when she entered this room moment before.

Catherine got to her feet quickly and walked after Lillian. "Lil, that's not what you were doing." She took her friends hand and led her back to her bed. "Come on, tell me what's bothering you. I know you very well, Lil."

Lillian didn't resist being tugged back to her bed, but when she opened her mouth to speak nothing seemed to come out. Honesty wasn't something that she was good at. "Catherine it's nothing really, I just know that mother will be upset we are taking so long." That's not what she felt but anything to leave this conversation alone was worth it.

Lillian knew that if it was anyone else doing this to her she would have pushed them away. But with Catherine, it's just the way it was. So she sighed and said, "Okay Cat... " she gave a smile small and held onto her arm lightly, and began to walk down the steps into a party that was congratulating her, but was for her parents. Yay!

Catherine sighed and looked at her friend. She knew her friend was lying. Something had been different about her these last few years, but they'd never really had enough time together alone for her to ferret it out. "Alright. But I'm not giving this up. You and I are doing nails tonight and I'm going to get you to talk about what's wrong," she told her friend firmly, before linking arms with her. "Let's not keep your mother waiting."

Catherine smiled to herself as they walked down the stairs. She knew it was hard for her friend to talk about her problems but was glad that she had agreed to do it tonight. It was going to make her job of getting her to talk much easier if she was willing to talk about it in the first place. The frown she saw on Lillian's mother's face did not make her smile waver. She simply let go of Lillian's arm and greeted her with a kiss on the cheek.

Lillian wanted to tell her mother to stop being so harsh, and judgmental, but Cat fixed it all when she greeted her mother like nothing happened. She waved to her mother, before finding her way to the snack table. Her mother had catered for an army, and when the part was over her mom would throw out the rest, what a waste. So Lillian silently grabbed a napkin, and put some in it, and tied the ends of the napkin together before hiding the bundle in the breast part of her dress, before anyone noticed.

Catherine soon made her way to the snack table as well and loaded up a napkin with different kinds of food. She got sick on car rides, she she hadn't eaten all day and she was hungry. She ate as she picked out a few more pieces before she turned to look out at the other guests. "We should hide some of this away for a snack tonight," she told Lillian.

Lillian jumped a little when she heard Cat. She blushed, she was caught stealing food. "Um yeah sure." But Lillian lied, she actually planned on giving this food to people who needed it. But seeing a two do this for other people, ... not everyone thinks it's noble. She put on a convincing smile, and turned back to the food. "There's just so much..." She said in disgust more than wonder.

"What's your mom going to do with all of it?" she asked curiously. Two's normally were too worried about their figures to eat a lot of food. "What did you put that down your dress?"

Lillian shrugged, her eyes looking around at the other guests as they passed by the two of them. "What she always does. Throw it away." She ignored the last part. This was not something she would let Cat know. "So I know we are both in line for the prince... well hopefully anyway. But are there any cute eligible guys in your life?"

Catherine shook her head. "Why does she order so much if no ones going to eat it?" She thought about the question Lil asked. "Well, there are some cute actors I've worked with recently, but they've all got girlfriends and the ones my age are way too immature. What about you?"

Lillian started to walk to a couch that was surprisingly empty. Every guy that Lillian met was either an arrogant two, or someone that her parents set up for her. None of those pleased her. "Ah, there's really no one in mind. In fact..." She looked around to make sure her mother wasn't listening. "I don't think I'm going to marry a two at all."

Catherine followed her to the couch and started eating. Her eyes opened wide in surprise at her friends declaration. "Really? What do you want to marry then?" It was unusual for a girl to marry below her caste. They tended to marry someone in theirs or someone in a higher caste.

((hehe that makes me laugh cause Reid. Catherine is not gonna let her forget this when she finds out about the two of them lol))

Lillian shrugged, and leaned back into the seat. "I don't know, maybe a five? Their art is beautiful and peaceful, or a three. Someone really smart." She smiled at the dream of it. Though the idea of her doing anything other than acting was strange.

"What would you do as a three or five though?" Catherine asked. "You'd have to find a job to help support your family." Here, Catherine assumed that Lillian wanted at least one child. "But, your right, fives art is very beautiful." She pulled out her camera and started taking pictures as inconspicuously as she could.

"I don't know. I just know that if I had to I would find something. No offense, but twos can be really self centered. All we care about is money and fame." Lillian smiled when she saw Kat taking pictures, she always liked that about her. She wanted to save the moment before it was lost.

"None taken," Catherine said as she snapped a picture of a woman taking a bite of food. "I know I can be a little spoiled sometimes, but honestly, I really love acting. I don't really do it just for the attention." She put her camera down and ate a bite of food. "I wonder, if I get picked, do you think I could bring my camera with me?"

Lillian giggled, "I Don't see how they could tear that thing away from you." She smiled but it disappeared when she continued to talk, "But honestly do you really think that everyone is like that? I mean think about Jeremiah. He hardly ever speaks to us anymore. And all he does is party to forget about his problems. I don't want to be that. So if being a teacher, or a horrible painter doesn't make me become that, then it would all be worth it."