There's a knock at my door. The sun has begun to rise over the garden walls, the white roses shining, dripping with dew. The scent of the morning mist overwhelms my brain, causing me to get a bit dizzy. 

I wrap myself in a robe, answering the door. 

It's the maids. There's three of them.

"Goodmorning," I address them.

"Hello again, Lady Nessie. We're here to get you ready for today. Prince Thomas had informed your teacher that you will not be attending today's lesson, instead, you will be training with Major Criss and the General," one says.

"Oh...so soon? Alright, come on in," I push the door open all the way, giving them access to the entire room. 

The second maid holds a blue dress in her hands, half hiding it to maintain suspense.

The third maid rushes over to make my bed.

"Hey, you don't have to make my bed. I'm perfectly capable. Take a seat and rest for a sec," I offer. 

She politely shakes her head 'no' and continues making my bed.

"Hey, cut it out, okay?  I don't need maids. I appreciate you guys but come on," She stops and sits on the edge of the bed, slight shock on her face, "Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

A smile spreads on her fragile figure, "You're more intimidating than the king. That's saying something. You might even be up there with the General. You're going to make a great warrior."

The second maid fans out the dress and pulls the nightgown off of my body. She slips the thin dress over my body, smoothing the "cape" out.

"Wha--what the hell? Is this even allowed? It's so deep cut..." I ask, looking in the mirror.

"Yes, it is allowed. Every Warrioress wear them."

"How in the ever-loving fuck do they run around in these?"

"They find their ways. Now, Prince Thomas would like you to go to the Weapons room. The General will meet you there."

"Who is this "General" guy?"

"That's not for me to tell you, hun," She pulls my red hair back into small braids, braiding them into a larger braid, "Off you go now."

She slips a pair of black heels on my feet and pushes me out the door.

I walk down the hall, the other Chosen staring as I pass. I hold my head up high, my shoulders back. Beasty gives me a horrible glare, I just wink back, causing her to scoff. 

Major Criss catches up with me, leading me down a path to the gardens. I see Tom walking, a hot drink in hand. When I call his name, he smiles, blowing into the drink.

"Nessie, you were instructed to meet The General in the weapons room..." He eyes me up and down, "You look lovely."

"I know. Now, why am I dressed like this? I won't be able to fight in a dress."

"All the warrioresses wear them."

"Yeah? I'm not a warrioress, Tom, I am a fucking warrior. I will not be reduced to a dress wearing, only here for good looks, woman. I am a lady, yes, but I am not ladylike." 

His eyes widen and he sighs, handing Major Criss the cup, "Walk with me to the weapons room. We will get you weapons and you will be the best goddamn warrior Fois has ever seen."

He wraps his arm around mine, looking into my eyes. I wiggle my arms free and walk in front of him to the weapons room.

THE WEAPONS ROOM

I head straight to the keypad, punching in the numbers from yesterday.

"You memorized it?" Tom asks, obvious surprise on his face.

"I did. Now, give me your eye," I pull his face down to the retina scanner, placing his hand on the fingerprint scanner as well.

The door slides open, revealing the prince's secret weapons room.

The LEDs shine red, dark shadows taking up most of the room.

I run over to the wall of daggers, plucking a knife garter.

I pick up two knives to put in but Tom stops me, "I told you not to touch the knives." He takes them and places them back on the shelves. A deep menacing laugh radiates from a shadowy corner.

I do not see their face when they speak, "You're not even going to let her touch the knives? Wow Thomas, you even made her wear a dress."

"All the warrioresses wear them!"

"Tom, look around, there are no warrioresses. It's just her. Let her wear some damn pants," he emerges from the shadows, an eyepatch and a mask across his face. A singular dark brown eye shining against the red lights. I look up at him, my body extremely small compared to his, "You're a bit small for a warrior."

I raise my eyebrows and knee him in the crotch. He wheezes out a hard breath, grasping the wall, "I may be small, but I'll beat your ass up."

He laughs. His voice is extremely deep, deeper than any other person I've ever met, "She's got a mouth on her."

"Don't talk about me like I'm not here. Who the hell are you anyway?"

He straightens up and extends a hand, "I'm The General."

I take his hand and throw him over my shoulder. I lean over him on the ground, "I'm Spritz." I let go of him and allow him to stand, his figure still shaking with gentle laughter. 

"I've got your weapons ready at request from Prince Thomas here," he hands me a leather bag, the metal items clicking against each other. 

I eagerly open the bag, my eyes widening at the shininess. I pour them out onto the floor, picking up a dagger first. 

I drag the blade against my dress, cutting off the bottom of the skirt, "Now I can fucking move," I swish my leg out from under the dress and slide the knife garter up. 

"You can throw knives?" The General questions.

"Why else would I put throwing knives on my leg?"

"Good point. Stock up."

I slide a thin knife into my hair, hiding it from view. Followed by a derringer on my other thigh and blow darts in my waistband. 

"You're going to need a tiara, princess," The General pulls out a tiara lined with small darts. 

"I'm not a princess, don't call me one," he places the tiara on my head gently, laughing at my comment. 

"Noted. At the end of each day, I will deliver a small box to you. Every day. This box will contain more darts for you to hide in your tiara the following morning," The General responds.

Tom's eyes widen, "Wait...every day? Why every day? Is she going to use darts every day?"

I see The General's eye roll, "Yes. It will be part of her training. Now, stop asking questions, Tom."

I look to The General curiously, "Do you have a name? Other than The General?"

He laughs but doesn't answer.

Tom rolls his eyes, "They call him Corpse."

"Corpse?"

Tom coughs, "Yes."

I look at The General, his eye burning against the lights, "Corpse?"

"It's not my real name," he replies, a rough tone on his voice, "It's Randall. You can call me whatever the fuck you want to."

"Okay, whatever the fuck you want to, what's the deal with the knives?"

"Tom has to leave for this bit," he motions towards the prince. 

Tom nods and leaves the room, locking the door behind him. You just need the pin to get out.

The General turns to me, "I just wanted the chance to meet you. There's no deal with the knives, not really. The prince's knives are absolute shit. I make the daggers I gave to you. Top-quality."

"Thank you. So...Corpse...what's it like living in the castle?"

"Oh...uh...nice. I get fed and I live here with the small price of service for Fois. It's a win-win."

"Why do you wear a mask?"

"To hide my face."

"And the eyepatch?"

"Light sensitivity."

"So...the mask...why do you need to hide your face?"

"I--That's not your business, princess."

"Not a princess."

"Sorry. Here, take this, a token of my appreciation," he pulls out a long chain with a beautiful sun attached to it.

"It's beautiful, Corpse, thank you."

"You're welcome, Spritz. We need more warriors. You--I can tell that you are going to be a valued part of our team," he stares down into my eyes, a warm feeling radiating from my heart.

"I can't wait until this stupid Choice is over. We could actually...hang out...without getting banished from Fois."

"The rules are stupid and strict," he whispers onto my face. He removes my tiara and pulls down his mask. I can barely see the outline of his face in the dark. He plants a small kiss in my hair and pulls his mask back up. 

I take the tiara and place it back on my head, smiling up at him, "I'll meet you in the gardens for training after breakfast. Goodbye General."

A/N: Sorry for the wait...anyway...vote your team. #TeamTom #TeamCriss #TeamSirius and the newest team... #TeamCorpse