My family is large. Very large. In fact, the Fetcher family is the largest family out of all the cave systems that Cambiot has. We separate our cave systems into four zones, by the way. There's the dark zone, the light zone, the water zone, and the land zone. The dark zone is the deepest and the hardest to navigate in. That's where me, my mom and dad, four brothers, two sisters, seven aunts, six uncles, and twenty-seven cousins all call home. It gets loud at times. The light zone is the most lit-up zone, though everyone has access to fire in case it's ever needed for light or warming purposes. If you want to feel the sun, however, you head towards the light zone. The water zone is where all of our fish live. People live near the edge and catch what they can, as well as bathe. There are also more waterfalls located there. The land zone is the zone closest to the surface. The cave systems has multiple entrances and exists, though the land zone is the safest if you ever need an easier way to get in and out. The people who live by the land zone have easier access to the wildlife on the surface, so sometimes they hunt to feed the community. They can only catch at night, however. Daytime is a no-no. We can't risk being seen by those who live above us. We also burn easily in the sun, so that's another thing. A rule across all zones is to always stay hidden and safe from the outside world. If I'll be completely honest, there are some people who have never been to the surface. It's too scary up there, and I don't blame them. I wish I had that option.

"You stink," one of my brothers said, shoving me hard into a nearby wall. "Take a bath, Jessella."

"You first, Isaiah. You always stink more than me anyway. Go use that soap that you recently fetched."

Isaiah was my eldest brother. He was tall, muscular, and built like a stone wall. He was the strong one. Whenever we fetched, we used him for intimidation, and it always worked.

"I can't use it, Jess. I'm saving it for your birthday."

"Huh?"

"Mom said to get you something meaningful for your eighteenth. What's more meaningful than soap made from the milk of a goat's udder?"

"You're disgusting."

"Nah. I'm just caring."

"Get away from me."

"No."

"Get away from me, Isaiah. Consider this your final warning."

"What are you going to do to me?"

That's when I gave him a smirk. His smile suddenly turned into a worrisome frown. "No-I didn't mean-"

"Too late."

"JESS!"

My big brother had a weakness. He was extremely ticklish. The stone wall of a man fell whenever you reached your fingers towards his stomach. When I started tickling him he surrendered immediately.

"Jess! I swear! I promise I won't ever wrong you again!"

"That's such a lie."

As I said that, we both heard a few faint clicks. It didn't have to be loud for us to hear it-or for us to guess who it came from. We stopped fooling around as soon as our mother stepped up to us. Within our family (in the dark zone, anyway), she was the most intimidating of all. Even more than Isaiah was.

"I don't know what I'm going to do with you both."

"I don't know either, mom, but he started-"

"Ah-don't. You're getting too old. You're about to be eighteen. No more of that. And Isaiah, no more teasing your sister. She's a grown woman now, and she's the next female in line to take my place in fetching."

"She's still my little sister, mom."

"Doesn't matter. She's grown. For the most part, anyway. Come on, Jessella. Let's go to the surface. You are ready, aren't you?"

"Yes."

I was ready. Within our family, we had a rite of passage that we liked to call "The Fetching of the Fetchers." Each and every member of the Fetcher family had to undergo it to be considered a true Fetcher. For safety reasons, we always went fetching as a group of at least three. But during this once-in-a-lifetime event, we went to the surface world just by ourselves. It was just going to me up there. The goal? Bring back as much as I could. I had all day. Mom's record was never beaten. When she went on her own fetching journey, she brought back several wild hogs, pastries, clothing (mainly for herself), books, toys, and the list just went on. Isaiah and I still can't comprehend how in the world she caught so many hogs. We figured that she just set up multiple traps. But anyway, we went through several shortcuts to reach the land zone. The minutes we spent crawling there felt...shorter than usual. I was nervous. Once we finally did get to a cave opening, my eyes adjusted to the light. Those who were already around the opening bowed to us with respect. We were like royalty. The caves were our kingdom. I turned towards my mother, who looked at me proudly with a gleam in her eyes as dark as our zone. All of us Fetchers had the same features. Pin-straight black hair. Black eyes. Sharp jawlines. Dark lips, too. The only thing that wasn't dark about us was our skin. I looked towards Isaiah, who rolled his eyes as he ran a hand through his long beard. "Will you actually bring back some meat this time? I've been craving pork for a while."

"Why don't you get it yourself?"

"I'm the muscle, you're the brains. It's your duty to set the traps."

"And it's your duty to actually put some use into those muscles, grab a weapon, and beat the-"

"That's enough of you two," mom hissed. "Stop. Talking."

We fell silent. After a few moments, I could hear a few other footsteps come closer to us. The rest of our close family. Our dad, who had a long beard like Isaiah's, but his hair was longer. He kept it in a bun most of the time. My other brothers stood by his side. They were triplets. Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Each of them had the same slim, lean build and mischievous look in their eyes. They were the triple threat. Whenever somebody thought they had one of them, the other two came out like a terrible surprise. They had power in their number. Like Isaiah, they were also older than me. My sisters were the ones who were younger. Abigail, who was only two years younger than me, was the only one out of us who had a freckled face. She was a good actress when we needed her. Lastly, there was Olivia, who was only a little girl. She was our cutie. She took after Abigail with her acting skills, though she used her cuteness to get whatever she wanted no matter if she was in or out of the caves. She had some sort of folded black cloth in her hand. "For you, Jess."

"Oh?"

"It's a...mommy what is it?"

"It's your cloak that you accidentally tore from the last fetching," mom explained. "We were lucky to fix it. Be more careful this time."

"I will."

"She's the smart one, isn't she?" Matthew asked. "She'll figure out how to fix it if she messes it up again."

"Shh."

Mom stepped up to me, helping me put the cloak around my body.

"You know the drill."

"Gather as much as you can. Act invisible. Be back by nightfall."

"You won't disappoint me, will you, Jessella?"

"No ma'am, I wouldn't even dare to think it."

"Then go."

I sprinted out without a second thought. I needed to take advantage of all the time that I had. If I needed to get several items in one go, there was one place I could do it: Town Square. Town Square was located in the very center of Cambiot, and it remained a busy place throughout the day. It was the trading capital of the area. But it's also a place to begin a fresh start if you are looking to become a newer citizen of Cambiot. Many people went there to find jobs. Today, I plan on becoming one of those people. The walk to Town Square took about an hour of my time. Once I got there, I blended in like everyone else. Cloaks were a popular thing in Cambiot, thankfully.

"Looking for help!" I heard an older man shout. "Fresh produce sales! Good pay! Free produce!"

"That's all I needed to hear," I said with a smile. I went up to the old man, but he seemed a little taken aback when I stepped up to him.

"Miss, you're pale as paper. Are you Snow White?"

I fake laughed at his joke.

"No sir. I'm simply a girl hoping to make a few cambrings around here, that's all." (cambrings are what we call coins here in cambiot).

"Well I can pay you four cambrings for each hour you work, how does that sound? I'll give you more once you prove that you're a good addition to my team."

"That's fine with me."

"Great. I'll take you to the produce stand-"

The sudden sound of horns blaring cut the man off. Everyone who was in Town Square turned their heads and fell silent. The horns meant that royalty was about to come through the area. Whether it was our royalty or royalty from another land, the citizens of Cambiot had to pay respects to anyone with higher authority. Since I'm from the caves, those rules don't necessarily apply to me. It never hurts to play along, however.

"It's the princess," the man whispered. "She never comes this way. Things must be important."

As he said, the princess of Cambiot, Caspia Chapman, headed in our direction. Her long, golden, curly hair flowed well down her back. The people of Cambiot gave her the nickname "Rapunzel" because of how long her hair was. I have never seen Caspia with short hair. Her other features were captivating as well. Her skin was a nice tan glow-not dark, but not light. Her eyes were an icy blue that was the polar opposite of my black ones. And, every time I saw her, she always wore these elegant gowns as if she liked to showcase her wealth to her subjects. Today, she was wearing an expensive-looking red gown with golden laces and long sleeves. She rode proudly on her flawless-appearing white horse, the castle guards following close behind her. Surface people are so extra sometimes. I'm glad us cave people don't find flashy things important. We just care about the bare necessities.

"Hello all," she smiled. One of the guards helped her step off her horse. "I'm sure you're all wondering why I am here and not my brother."

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that she had a twin brother. Apparently, he was born first, so he gets the right to the crown before she does. I don't think she minds, though. She seemed happy with being a princess for the rest of her life. It was more common to see her brother interacting with the people-probably because he would be Cambiot's future king.

"I'll keep this short and simple. I need a new lady-in-waiting. My previous one died for some reason. I didn't kill her, okay? So don't look at me like I did. Anyway, I need someone by my side as soon as possible, preferably right this second. You'll be paid handsomely, and given a room to stay in at the castle. But, in return, you must always be available. Always. So if anyone is interested in my offer, please stand in front of me. In a line. Now."

Dozens of women rushed to her, them forming a line so long that it looked like it was a mile in length. The princess walked past each woman, her face growing more unimpressed with every woman that she passed.

"I need someone presentable," she muttered. "Someone who knows how to take care of themselves. If you can't take care of yourself, how can I expect for you to take care of me? Perhaps I went to the wrong place to find a-"

"Your Highness," one of the guards said with a cough. "This is the fifth place we've traveled to today. And remember, your father said that if it takes you six places to find a lady-in-waiting, he will find one for you."

"My father's tastes in ladies-in-waiting are horrendous," she shuddered. "And in everything else, too. I'll find someone, Fredrick. You have my word on that."

She continued to scan the crowd. Her face didn't show any emotion as she did it. The women she had lined up beforehand all looked either offended or disappointed. I thought that it was a good thing they weren't chosen-imagine having to serve someone like Caspia for the rest of your life. It sounded like a nightmare.

"You."

I wasn't paying attention to where she was looking when uttered that word. The man from before had to nudge me a little so that I could focus back in on what was happening. She was walking towards me.

"You," she whispered. "You'll do."

"No I won't," I laughed. "I won't do. Thank you for the offer, though."

"She could pay you five times more than I could ever pay you," the man hissed at me. "You must never reject an offer from the princess herself."

"But-"

"Why are you so pale?"

Caspia grasped my arm, revealing my skin underneath the cloak.

"Do you ever go outside?"

"I go outside as much as you stay inside that castle, your highness."

"Watch your tone," Fredrick ordered. "Or we'll make you watch it."

"No, Fredrick, it's okay. She's opinionated. Like me."

"I have no interest in being your lady-in-waiting."

"Well, I'm afraid you have no other choice. I'm forcing you."

"What?"

"You should be happy, you know. You get to live in the castle. Where royalty lives. You should be excited, shouldn't you? You no longer have to live...wherever you live."

"I live in a wonderful home with a family that deeply respects and appreciates me. For the most part, anyway."

I took my arm back from her.

"We have each other and-"

Suddenly I got an idea. Right then and there. If I became her lady-in-waiting, I'd have access to things people could only dream of. Things of high value. Things that would help improve the living conditions of my people.

"Never mind. I'll do it."

"Well, that was a quick turnaround."

"I know. I just realized how...grateful I am to be given this opportunity. However, I'll become your lady-in-waiting on one condition. Let me see my family before I go."

"...Okay? I'm not a monster. I was going to let you do that anyway. Where do you live? I'll have Fredrick take you-"

"I'll walk."

"Surely not!"

"It won't take me long. It's only an hour's walk back."

"And then another hour to walk back here...absolutely not. Fredrick?"

"I will take her, your highness."

I didn't get a chance to argue against him. He picked me up with ease and sat me down on his horse before hopping on for himself.

"Where to? Point."

I pointed back. He nodded, then looked toward Caspia.

"I'll bring her back to the castle within the next few hours, Your Highness."

"Thank you, Fredrick."

I held tighter onto him as we began moving. His silver armor was cold against my skin, and I was a little irritated at the fact that I was forced to ride with him back home. One thing was for certain though: I wasn't about to let him see where I actually lived.

"Fredrick?"

"That's Captain Fredrick to you," he said, looking my way. I hadn't had a good chance to look at him until just then. He had short, scruffy brown hair and light brown eyes that expressed a little tiredness. His face was a bit dirty as well, which told me that he'd been out for a while doing whatever his job required him to do. From the looks of him, he was probably in his thirties.

"...Captain Fredrick, sorry. You can drop me off in a few minutes."

"Where do you live?"

"Just a little ways past here. When you drop me off, I'll walk myself to...my house."

"I'd rather not have you do that. Besides, you'll need someone to come with you to help explain to your family that you're going to be serving the princess."

"I've got it handled."

"You live awfully close to those caves, don't you? We're headed in that direction."

"We live near them, yes."

"Why?"

"Why not? It's peaceful. Nobody comes to bother us. Other than the wild animals, of course, but they aren't much of a problem when you've got the proper traps to catch them."

"Your family isn't like others. To live this far out away from the rest of the kingdom...it must be a challenge."

"...It can be at times. But we have each other. That's all that matters."

"Hm."

"You can drop me off here. I won't be long."

He did so with hesitance.

"I'll be fine," I said, trying my best to reassure him. "Seriously. If something happens I'll make sure to call for Captain Fredrick."

"Hm. Alright, but I might need to call for you myself. I apologize for not asking earlier, but what is your name?"

"Jessella."

"Hm."

"...I won't be long," I repeated. "You have my word."

He wasn't a man of many words. Either that or he just didn't like me that much. I guess it didn't matter. I carefully inched my way closer to the caves until I eventually found one of the entrances. Before I went in, I turned around to check to see if Captain Fredrick decided to follow me. Thankfully he didn't.

"Why are you back so soon?"

I jumped at the sound of Isaiah's voice.

"Isaiah! I'm-wait, what are you doing up here?"

"I'm about to go do some fetching. Possibly some hunting as well. You should be doing the same, unless you've already brought back everything, that is. Right now you look pretty empty-handed to me, Jess."

"I am. Where's mom?"

"She's with dad in the water zone. Are you about to go over there?"

"I have no other choice. You probably want to come as well."

"Absolutely. I can't wait to see her reaction when she finds out that you're already back."

Thinking about her reaction made me a little nervous. She took tradition seriously. You can imagine how scared I was to start clicking for her name once we reached the water zone. We had to get about waist-deep into the water until we could finally hear her click back. She was by the water's edge with our dad, her eyes glaring right into my soul as she gripped a net in her hand. She probably wanted to choke me with it.

"Do you think that our tradition is a joke?" She spat out. "That it's just a game!?"

"Mom-"

"You told me that you were ready, and I believed you, Jessella. Unless you've brought back an unfathomable amount of goods, consider yourself an unforgiven young woman from our family. It's only been what, three hours?"

"...Something like that."

Mom was harsh. She was always harsh. But I could understand where she was coming from.

"I didn't bring back anything, mom."

"Leave us, then."

"Except news," I added. "I have news. The princess of Cambiot has asked me to become her lady-in-waiting while I was in Town Square."

"You have a life down here, so that won't do."

"Yes, it will. I know I'm breaking tradition by doing this. By not bringing valuables back within the day. But give me...a month. I'll bring back so many goods that I'll be able to become just like you. One of the best Fetchers that this cave has ever seen. Me becoming a lady-in-waiting will allow me to have access to goods that some of the land dwellers can't even imagine."

"...Your plan is to fetch things behind the royal family's back?"

"I'm going to try. I'll at least fetch the things that they don't want. The things we could use."

"And what happens if you get caught?" Our dad asked. "You'll be beheaded."

"I won't be beheaded because I won't get caught. I'll gain their trust. They won't suspect me."

"You impress me with your plans, Jess," Isaiah laughed. "But if you get put in their dungeon, don't expect me to come in and save you with my strength. You'll be on your own."

"I'd be able to break out before you could break in, Isaiah."

"If you're so persistent about this plan then go carry it out," mom eventually mumbled. "But as your brother said, you will be on your own. And we will expect nothing but the best from you from this point forward. If you are unable to do what you said, don't bother coming back to these caves. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes ma'am. You have my word."

I had the month. Starting now, I had the month to bring back what I could to these caves. There was pressure. Not to just make our mother proud, but also to show my people that I was a true Fetcher. My new mission was to become the best lady-in-waiting to Princess Caspia-to the point where she could trust me with anything. It was a mission that I couldn't fail. So I went back up from the caves with only a few of my belongings, but not too much. I knew that I would be back soon. I greeted Captain Fredrick with a wave as I walked back to him and his horse.

"Jessella?"

"I made it back quick, didn't I?"

"A little too quick," he muttered. "You didn't spend much time saying goodbye."

"I didn't need too much time."

"If you say so. I won't get into your business. Are you ready?"

"...Yeah. I'm ready."