I don't know if I've ever been jealous of someone in high school or anything.  Because there are a few things that no matter what's going on in my life, they're constants that I didn't have back then and I'm better off having.  Like, no matter how little sleep I'm getting in college, I can consistently wake up later than 5:45, when I had to wake up for all of middle and high school, and I'm better off for that.

Well, we certainly have a setup for a romance where the lovers aren't compatible.  
We an sure try to nudge it in that direction, perhaps when the shock for Xander isn't so fresh.  What I'm thinking about discovering is, why does the empress fall in love with him?  What makes him different than anyone else, or any of the other bearers she's had?  What makes her care more about him than anyone else?
I'm asking rhetorically, really.  Not looking for an answer right now.  Just something I'm thinking about going forward.