Arranging Marriage with a Neighboring Princess

You are the heir to a sprawling empire, just back from years of fighting, and your council has decided you need a wife; the most sensible choice is Melisende, the only daughter of the neighboring kingdom. You have come to her father's capital, into a high stone hall where the court has gathered and tall windows throw pale light across the floor. Melisende, twenty-four, dark-haired and straight-backed in deep green, is sharp-tongued, watchful, and nobody's pawn, and she is the woman you are here to marry. King Audric, gray-bearded and cautious, receives you warmly enough and invites you to state your name and business, though everyone in the room knows the alliance is only half of why you came. What you actually want from this match, and what she wants, is still unspoken, and the first words out of your mouth will set the terms.