"Your skin is smooth and your features fair, yet there is an undeniable fire beneath that pretty little dress clinging to your bones. Tell me princess, why? "
In a world where everyone belongs to a number, Sapphire Brooke is trying to find herself...
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"Saip, if you don't get yer backside in her' right now, I'ma cut that long hair of yers with sheers!" My father yelled, irritated from the barn house, causing me to drop the floppy, small book I was reading.
Slipping on a pair of tattered slippers, I rushed outside to the farm, wondering what all of my nine siblings are doing at this moment, and if any of them haven't done their chores either.
"Sorry pa! I was busy trying to finish my novel." I apologised, hastily grabbing a bucket and approaching the only cow that was on our farm.
"Ya gotta stop readin' that nonsense! You're ranking ceremony is next week, and yet ya still can't get a grip of reality."
"Sorry pa."
I couldn't help apologising, I always felt guilty when looking at my fathers tired eyes and being reminded that his upbringing was not as carefree as mine.
"Just get goin' with those chores of yours."
Oh, right, you're probably confused about what a 'ranking ceremony' is.
Well, everyone has a rank. Whether it's #1 or #1,000,000, it's a rank. People attend a Ranking Ceremony when their children turn 18, and it allows a seer to tell you what rank you are, therefore what section of the kingdom they belong in. The royal spies who keep our kingdom safe are in tier one. Royals are in two and three. Townsfolk, and my family, are in four to six and finally, forest folk are in seven to nine. It sounds simple, but trust me, it isn't.
I was done with shearing the sheeps within minutes, and luckily, it gave me enough time to get the grass stains off my skirt before heading to dinner with my family.
"Hey! Sorry I'm late!" I exclaimed, taking my seat in between my brothers and sisters. Currently, I have two younger brothers and two younger sisters living with me. Although I actually have nine siblings, five have been ranked. Like I will be next week.
"Thanks ma." My seven-year-old sister Astrid says to my mum as she eats her bread and soup, and ma smiles weekly in return.
"It's fine darling." Ma replies "Sapphire, how are you feeling about the ranking ceremony?" Even though she married down to Pa almost three decades ago, she still hasn't lost her accent from tier three.
"Uh, yeah I'm fi-" a loud knock at the door interrupted my response to my ma, and out of respect, my Pa stood from his position at the head of our very long table to go see who had arrived at our door.
We all sit in silence at the table, listening to the distant sound of chattering, before pa steps through the door frowning, with what looks like a palace escort.
"This guy 'ere seems to think that Saip was supposed to be ranked a week ago." Pa said, a hand rubbing his forehead.
"What!?" Ma exclaims, almost rising from her seat, all the colour drained from her face.
