#event: interview

yixing and his love for chilli crabs 🦞 ZHANG YIXING • E-JUNKIES WITH ASIAONE (2022)

BONUS:

What? Self-Portrait Celeste Guipure Lace Asymmetric Top | Sold Out

Where? Hollywood Game Night

When Valeria had told her mother than she’d be competing in Crownstrial Valeria was concerned that her mother would have a heart attack. And the long, terrible, silence that stretched between them after she’d told her had almost convinced her that she’d been right. And then she’d let out the highest pitched scream Valeria had ever heard. She prattled on about how amazing this opportunity would be. How proud she was of her. Most all of it went in one ear and out the other for Valeria. She wasn’t doing this to compete for the throne. She was doing this for Orion. To protect him from the cruelties of the Silver court. It was all for Orion.

Which was how she found herself in the most ridiculous dress she’d ever seen, hardly breathing. He mother had practically had to squeeze her into it and no amount of complaining would deter her. The worst part wasn’t even the dress though. It was interviewer. Valeria hadn’t liked them the moment she’d set eyes on them. Add in the fact they were making her wait and Valeria was in a foul mood and fighting to hide it. Her relief was almost palpable when they sat down and asked their first question, ridiculous as it was.

Q1: “Could you introduce yourself to the camera?”

What a ridiculously easy question. Straightening and painting on a convincingly pleasant smile Valeria nodded. “My name is Valeria Macanthos and I am King Orion’s personal guard.” She tilted her head a little, subtly letting the interviewer know it was their turn to talk again. And they wasted no time in asking the next questions. Almost rapid fire, it nearly tripped her up.

Q2 & 3: “Why are you doing Crownstrial? Are your words true? Do you mean what you say? Can we trust you?”

Valeria’s smile dulled but only enough to, hopefully, let the viewers know how serious she was about her next answers. “I’m competing for King Orion. We’ve been friends for many years and...” Valeria took a calculated pause, tangling her fingers together tightly in her lap. “I simply wanted him to have an option to marry someone he knows will always be on his team.” Valeria opts to lock her eyes on the interviewer as she answers the next question. Hoping the truth of her words is echoed in her intensity. “I am not known for being a liar, nor would I ever lie where it involves King Orion. And I never say something I do not mean. It is not in my nature. My father has always said that I am not one to beat around the bush.”

The lack of a reaction to her answers from the interviewer unnerves Valeria but she keeps her thoughts to herself, glad that they’ve turned off the camera and left her alone to breathe. Gather her thoughts. There’s no one in this room aside from the interviewer and her but it feels like the whole world is there with her. It’s unnerving. Even when the interviewer returned with a meal (the gall) Valeria wasn’t bothered by it. In their attempt to unnerve her they’d simply given her the alone time she needed to gather herself up again for round two. As the interviewer settled in and ate Valeria watched them, her face impassive. It was clear this interviewer was playing a trying game. Briefly she wondered if there would be some contestants who cracked but she brushed it aside. She would not be one of those people. She watched as the cards fluttered to the ground, unsure if this too was a ploy. If she bent down to help would she be perceived as weak or kind? If she didn’t would they think her rude? If it was a ploy, it was a damned good one. Picking the lesser of two evils Valeria stood and gently bent at the knees to gather up the cards the interviewer hadn’t picked up already. “Is the fish greasy again? The cooks here are fantastic but they can’t seem to make good fish. It’s always so greasy.” The interviewer made no response, just took the cards from her and settled back into their seat, clearly moving to continue the interview.

Q4: “Let us pick up where we left off. Do you agree with the ideals of our king?”

It took all of Valeria’s personal will power not to reply with the first thing that popped into her head. Of course she agreed with Orion’s ideals. There was no one else out there that Valeria had ever felt the need to throw her lot in with. He was a visionary. A leader. So she smiled and spoke. “King Orion...I knew from the minute I met him that he was a man worth following. And every day since he has become King I can see that I was right. He is not perfect, no, but there is no one else in all of Norta that cares so deeply for all of his people. There is a greatness in him and I will follow him where ever he goes.” She nodded and untangled her fingers, laying her hands flat on her lap, her gaze affixed firmly on the interviewer. True to form however, the interviewer wasted no time in moving on to the next question.

Q5: “Now give a closing remark. Keep it short. I will cut whatever I do not like.”

How rude. And terrifying. A closing remark? What on Earth was she supposed to say? Vote for me? I promise not to turn the king into a puppet for my sick and twisted pleasure? I promise to be fair and just? Those were the answers she figured the other competitors would say, the answers that would all be lies. And Valeria refused to be like them. Wiping the sudden indecision off her face Valeria replaced it with a fiery look. “Long live King Calore.” Simple and straight to the point. And for the first time since the interview began Valeria felt like it had been the best answer out of them all. She inclined her head to the interviewer smiled again. “Thank you for your time and consideration.”

A beat and then then the camera was off and the interviewer was out of their chair. Valeria followed them and pushed out her hand to them. “Thank you for your time.” And she meant it, mostly. Their questions had been hard but Valeria appreciated that. It would weed out the weak ones first and Orion deserved a strong partner. For the first time since Valeria had met them the interviewer smiled as they shook her hand. They didn’t speak as they exited the room in a flourish, leaving Valeria to stand on her own.