Bright_Ops

A kings' political marriage plan- closed

@Mistress Dizzy

Once a girl starts talking about the finer points of rapiers, while an assumption is not assured to be correct an educated guess can be made.

A kings' political marriage plan- closed

@Mistress Dizzy

It was an interesting thing, watching the contrast between the shock and horror that was on her face as he told her of a sample of the political realities of Tushina to the spark and joy that came into her eyes as she spoke about her homeland. He privately made a mental note that she was somewhat obsessive about weaponry and that if she was to be his bride, it would be a good idea to do some study on the subject.

As she faltered, he couldn't help but feel the need to try and comfort her a little. "Don't be too harsh on him. If it was up to him I suspect he would have let you follow your heart when the time came, but alas he sits on the throne of Apura. It is the nature of thrones that while you may use one to impose your will on others, the throne imposes its will on you in turn."

A kings' political marriage plan- closed

@Mistress Dizzy

It appeared that letting the Princess have a say in what they did was the right option. Droka couldn't help but chuckle softly as he answered "For what it's worth, it's likely for the best. Because between you and me, I don't really know that many dances."

The question about his home country and why it might hurt him to talk about confused him for a moment... before he remembered mentioning the death of his half brother earlier. Perking up as understanding reached him, he chuckled again before explaining "Oh, you're not familiar with how Tushina... okay. I won't go into the full, in-depth details of the history of Tushina inheritance laws because it's so tangled up with religion and politics that I would literally need to give you the full history of Tushina in order to give everything the context it needs to make sense." The look on his face suggested that he was completely serious about that as well, but he took a quick breath as he slipped into teacher mode.

"The short, relevant briefing of it is that when it comes to inheritance, lands and titles are equally divided among the sons of the deceased... with it being split among the daughters only if there are no sons. Now this is all well and good for most people, but when it comes to the ruling family of Tushina it becomes something of a problem because historically it's a fairly fast way to kick start a civil war over succession. So the general practice is that the current ruler will go through their current selection of valid heirs and select one to be the heir of the throne. This decision can be changed with time and circumstance and isn't locked in... until either the ruler believes the end is coming or they suddenly die. Either way, standard procedure is for all valid pretenders and any male offspring they might have are to be executed as swiftly as possible to prevent the possibility of a succession crisis."

Despite the fact that most people would have been horrified by just hearing about such a brutal practice, let alone be one of the people who has to live with the possibility of being caught out by it, Droka seemed completely at ease. "Even without that hanging over our heads, my half brother was a complete ass and we didn't get along all that well. The fact that he's dead and I'm here to marry either yourself or one of your sisters more or less locks me in as the heir of Tushina so... if it looks like I'm strangely joyous about the death of my half brother and the possibility of an arranged marriage, it is because for the first time in my life the shadow of the executioner is not hanging over me."

"I would love to hear more about you and your kingdom through." He added, deciding to try and lighten the mood just a little.

A kings' political marriage plan- closed

There was a moment where Droka's eyes blinked in surprise at her offer to dance. While it was true that back in Tushina there were those who asked him to attend events or take part in something, usually there was an undercurrent of obligation and tradition behind such requests that actually refusing them without losing face or having it used against him unless something truly horrible was in progress.

The chance to actually politely decline was a novel idea... but one that he wouldn't indulge at this time. Taking a step away from the wall, he politely reached out to take her hand somewhat gently. A small smile appeared on his face as he explained "Considering that this gathering was organized in part so that I could meet yourself and your sisters, I feel like it would be the height of rudeness if I refused to spend any time with you. Besides, you were the first to come and speak with me so... I am at your disposal. What would you care to do Jinayah?"

Pokémon: New Horizons

@Bartimaeus

Tag me if that happens.

Pokémon: New Horizons

Are you still accepting people?@Bartimaeus

A kings' political marriage plan- closed

@Mistress Dizzy I believe I'm waiting for you. Not sure about anyone else.

A kings' political marriage plan- closed

Prince Droka

In armor


Out of armor

Name: Droka Yew

Age: 18-20 years old

Bio: The second born prince of the Yew family and pretender to his father's throne, there was always a degree of tension between Droka and his fully elven older half-brother Droke. This was not helped by their kingdom's traditional method of preventing civil war among the children of the former king; An heir would be selected from the king's various children and, when the king felt his time was coming to an end, he would remove the other contenders from contention by killing them all. A brutal practice, but an effective one.

When the call for the princes was sent out by the King with four daughters, Droke was selected by their father to attend and find a wife. Droka, fearing that this was a sign of his father selecting the elder brother as his heir and that he would be executed soon after Droke returned with a secured political alliance, challenged his older brother to a duel for the 'honor of attending the ceremony'. It was a flimsy excuse for a duel to the death between them for the purpose of settling the inheritance between them rather then letting their father decide, but while on paper it was merely a duel for them to decide a matter of honor both brothers understood what was truly at stake.

The witnesses of the duel between the half brothers agree that Droke was the better combatant, through Droka was a worthy rival on the dueling field. Victory seemed certain for the eldest brother... until a pike that a watching guard was holding came to life in his hands and flew into the fray, stabbing Droke in the back and giving Droka the opening he needed to land a killing blow. While most of the witnesses were confused by what had happened, the judges and their father the king recognized exactly what had taken place: Droka had used magic to cheat in the duel by enchanting the weapon to attack and slay his brother.

However, with no other children and unlikely to have any more, the King had a word with the judges and the matter was considered settled: Droka had won and as the new heir, he would go to the neighboring kingdom to find a wife.

Role in the story: Prince seeking Princess.

A kings' political marriage plan- closed

@Mistress Dizzy

Droka had noticed the woman that was approaching him rather easily. To be fair it wasn't like she had been going to any actual length to try and hide her interest or her approach. He didn't ignore her either, but it wasn't until she had curtsied that he offered her his full attention and a respectful bow in return.

"Good evening to you as well. You are correct in that I am rather late to the festivities." He answered easily enough in her native tongue of Apura; His mother had insisted that he learned it in respect for her culture, even if it was only used at home or when speaking to humans travelers from her homeland. "Unfortunately there was a rather unavoidable change of plans on our part. You see my elder half brother was meant to be in attendance instead, but in his vainglorious pride he decided to get himself killed in a duel just as the carriage was packed. Had to delay the trip by several hours so that I could properly pay my respects to him before coming." For someone talking about the sudden, untimely death of a sibling Droka didn't seem that broken up by it. In fact he seemed to be rather relaxed.

"Then again he dedicated his whole life to be an inconvenience to everyone around him, it seems only fitting that his death do the same. Prince Droka of Tushina." He introduced himself easily enough, offering another small bow as he did so before requesting "And who's company might I be enjoying?"

A kings' political marriage plan- closed

Sorry for the delay in posting. Been somewhat busy all of a sudden in RL.