#santivation

[terramental]

uhhh i got tagged by @asymptonic and @naoreco!! um.

uhhh i gotta tag people to do this too right @cinappses @siilkmoth @santiv @snewbew wow like all of you are s-sounds . play my games .

[alistonjdrake]

I think your post was supposed to say "spare" not "space" but it did get me in the mood to talk astronomy so. For WBW this week I'm asking: What's space like in your world? Any constellations or stories about the stars? I'm sure space travel is, at any given point, centuries away, but does anyone dream of it? Do anything fun with moons or suns or planets at all ever?

oh lol yeah I tend to type really fast when I'm on my phone and I don't reread because that's for cowards.

I don't understand space so what an unfortunate typo! I try to avoid it or talking about astronomy extensively so as not to reveal my one weakness!

There are constellations in the ORG world that I've mentioned though. As I touch on sailing a little in the first and second books and early navigation and stars go hand in hand. And it's a known "fact" of Santivism that after the Saints died parts of them were given up to the skies/became stars and thus constellations. There's the hand of St. Yves which points to the moon where his lover is supposed to be buried and St. Orlin's Hammer. That one doesn't have much of a story. Just big hammer in the sky.

Also for some reason all the second point makes me think about is how the concept of space travel would give Miko the worst existential crisis and that boy doesn't need any more stress. Period-wise there should be a bunch of astronomers running around with the world's weirdest opinions and convincing royalty to make bad decisions because the stars said so but alas, I'm afraid of the sky.

I've found I've always tried to stay away from doing anything fun with suns and moons (boring, I know) but in an early draft of ORG they were supposed to have multiple moons and they had names. I cannot remember why it got cut. In some of my newer and unposted projects, I'm relaxing on my "never talk about the sky" thing.

[theladybeatrice]

Staring at Santi and it's so good

[omi-papus]

Ahora, los únicos que tienen derecho a asesinarme son todos los pobres fans de Santival que terminare prácticamente estafando mas adelante en mi fanfic. El resto, no se quejen. Betolentina es mi derecho.  

[embittered]

HEADCANON 001. prothean gender and sex.

protheans have four traditional genders born from their four biological sexes, and one gender which was longstanding and accepted in prothean society but not as historically embedded as the initial four. culturally and socially there’s a plethora more. the reason for their initial four genders is thanks to their quad-strand DNA.

their five genders are split into two subsets: primut (loosely translated as “primary”) and niac (loosely translated as “concomitant”). there are three genders in primut, and two in niac. most genders outside the five are often considered in the subset of niac.

primut genders include:

santiv;   (one of the initial four) a gender that, when congruent with their biological sex, serves as the creator of impregnating fluids. socially, santiv protheans take more domestic career roles.

dorativ;   (one of the initial four) a gender that, when congruent with their biological sex, serves as the creator of eggs which can then be impregnated by santiv protheans. socially, dorativ protheans used to take more teaching and leadership roles, which then bled into strong yet intellectual behavioural expectations.

flortiv;   (one of the initial four) a gender that, when congruent with their biological sex, serves as the birthing parent. socially, flortiv protheans were well-regarded, as their intermediate pouch that serves to protect and incubate their children was considered highly necessary, especially since flortiv protheans occurred at a lesser rate than dorativ protheans or santiv protheans.

niac genders include: 

blediv;   (one of the initial four) a gender which, biologically, showcases a combination of santiv and dorative and flortiv characteristics — something akin to humans’ bigender, except it’s more trigender than bigender. socially, blediv protheans were more likely to be chosen as avatars of prothean virtues.

aniniv;   a gender which is something akin to humans’ agender, where a prothean rejects their birth-assigned gender wholly.

similarly for human civilisation, protheans also understand and open their arms to transgender-akin individuals. they had long-since created and whetted technology to allow for transition from one gender to another. unfortunately, many protheans towards the latter end of the reaper conflict didn’t have the privilege of being able to spend time to medically transition should they have had wished for such; they were built from the ground-up as soldiers and soldiers alone.

as for what javik is? javik is blediv. it just so happens that contemporarily javik ‘displays’ characteristics which other races code as male. when assumed male and assumed masculine pronouns, javik doesn’t bother correcting nor relenting; he doesn’t expect the primitives to understand — then again, he rarely does.

[alistonjdrake]

It's wbw so. Free space for you to vent your current worldbuilding woes or wins. Lay them on me, pal

I currently have a lot of woes.

For OBS I need to flesh out the process in which a new Reverend Mother is chosen. Somewhere in my dead renassiance TSS project I mention that a living Reverend Mother often chooses her successor from her order but I think I leave room so that just because this is the person she wants doesn't mean it easily passes hands, and in this case when Mother Ulrike died I never mention that she ever had a chosen successor. I was playing with the idea or ritualistic/symbolic cannibalism aka "absorbing" the body and knowledge of the previous Mother of all Nuns and through this they would pick a new one. I haven't worked it all yet besides that this is a process kept mostly secret to all non-nuns in the world and even priests don't know how they do it.

For A Woman of No Importance because I'm not focusing too much on "larger" stories and just the fued between two women over several years I feel like I have a lot less to flesh out. The religion and really even the politics of the world all just serve as background information. My biggest and only issue with it right now is language and how I want ideas expressed. Other than Cierrra, the story is narrated by a lot of "one-time" characters through deeds, journals, reports, etc so things like word choice are really gonna build an image of what the world is like.

In Council of the Olive Grove I just have one non-human race I want to build on because I overthink and I felt like my early descriptions of them could fall victim to bad-faith reading and I also (unsurprisingly) have to do a lot of work on religions considering my setting is based on an area where a lot of them mixed/interacted and I want to have something similar without copy and pasting real faiths over.

This all brings me back to the current stuff I'm outlining because I have the big 3 day Escana wedding to write and it made me realize that (without saying who is getting married) one of the characters not being Escana raises a lot of questions. Like, how these traditions could offend someone more religious and dedicated to Santivism than the Escana or if the Escana will let a "foreign" spouse include any of their own traditions in the events (given the way the empire is run it feels a lot more "our way is the only way" so maybe not) but I also do like making jokes about how often people choose not to do the traditional Escana wedding just because of how much effort it is but damnit they're doing it this time.

Completely unrelated but I also noticed you notice my short post about jumps the other day. For those unaware jumps are, in laymen's terms, like the comfy version of stays. They have little to no boning, were often quilted, and they've been on my mind because lately I'm obsessed with the idea of scenes of Zurina in "lounge" wear since so much of historical clothing seems to be focused on the most done up versions and I just like the idea of her still being mean and glamorous in like, the royal 18th century version of house clothes.

[alistonjdrake]

Too late to be a WBW ask, but I was reading HoR recently and would love to know more about Palogne!

Hello! Sorry I took so long I’ve been off my game (but I am excited to see someone reading THoR 😭)

By the time of this book the reputation of “peacemaker” of the continent has shifted from Escan to Palogne but for vastly different reasons. As a country Palogne has always been more focused on scholarly pursuits and kinda playing the field with everyone (making deals with opposing sides, etc). They’re the only country on the continent to have never had a monarchy but they do have a big, bulbous government that, much like the Conclave in Mignola, is now usually habited by the usual families but they would hate that comparison because Palogne is also not traditionally religious. Most of its residents wouldn’t call themselves Santivians but not in the way that’s pissed off Mignola before.

Palogne (as it’s known in the modern era) was founded by different groups escaping religious persecution, meaning their oldest families are descendants from different sects of Santivism and plenty of newcomers who arrived to Nomworth for educational reasons are from different religions and cultures. So Palogne does practice a sort of unspoken tolerance (with still a nod that certain people maintain the upper echelons of both society and the scholarly halls).

There is a kinda mismatch with Palogne being being high on the list of having a very diverse population where a lot of free thinking movements were born, groundbreaking discoveries in different fields, they’re also a very hard community to break into with a lot of rules even pertaining to who someone can talk to depending on what social circles they’ve fallen in with. In THoR it’s also mentioned that Justyna has a lot of frustration with languages in Nomworth. Their upper class and many students have basically stopped using the native Placker in most scenarios, opting instead to speak Kellish, Escan, or even Oskyi and plenty of places in Nomworth reflect this switch (street signs, etc)

[alistonjdrake]

June’s World Building Cheat Sheet: Part Four - I Love God. Do You Love God?

I’m gonna be honest. My main focus when I created the religion for Of Rust and Gold/The Saints’ Song series was the political side and the hierarchy of positions within the institution. The actual belief system was not something I fleshed out until maybe months into writing the story. It’s actually surprisingly easy to get away with the bare bones of what makes a religion without question. Again, not an expert. But I have a fully realized fictional religion now. More than one if I want to brag, so I can talk about it. 

Is It Real?

I mean. Yes. It should be real to the characters who believe in it. I find in most fantasy stories I read their religion is undoubtedly true. Sometimes their gods are actually interacting with the characters or they worship literal magic or something but I write low fantasy so usually in my head the things I care about most is 

Religion as an explanation for the unknown.

Religion as an institution 

How much power religion holds over people

I read a lot of books about medieval Christianity (wild by the way) and corrupt popes. The amount of demon babies, flagellants, and people going on about the genderless spirits of angels is something we all greatly lack in our daily lives. Basically though, when something happened that people could not explain they often turned to religion or folklore. There’s a storm so god’s angry or Billy’s acting weird so clearly he was replaced by a mystical creature. A lot of the time, since religion in fantasy is real it just explains the things that are known and true about the world but I personally like it still being around to fill in gaps in things a community may not have discovered yet, or just blatantly refuse to believe because they already have an explanation that works for them. 

Back to my buzz words of making a world feel full and lived in: Characters can have conflicting beliefs about the same things. Or y’know, why aren’t there more fantasy atheists? Religious branches and sects of the same core also make things feel more realized and for me it makes it easy to start talking about the institution if it’s broken into so many different parts with new belief systems popping up under the same umbrella. 

I write political fantasy so religion as a power is what is most interesting to me. How much does it control? Is there a pope-like figure in the fantasy world? Do they crown and uncrown monarchs or play with worldly politicals or cause holy wars? How much significance is religion given? Does more than one nation share the same religion or similar figures? What parts of life does religion control? 

Ya know. Things like marriage and wedding ceremonies or education or maybe it’s just the place for local gossip. 

If there are different religions within a setting, do they overlap at all? How, if at all, do they interact with each other? 

I think it’s also important to ask what role it's supposed to serve in the story.

Alright. I’ll Talk About Holidays  

Yes. I know all holidays aren’t religious but for non-religious holidays we can just jump back to creating a history and deciding what a society/culture prioritizes. Or look at their environment. What gets them to celebrate? The Escana Empire cheers on the end of the hurricane season with festivals and parties. Oskya celebrates the victorious end to the Republic of Abenland. 

Now, religious holidays. I often find myself coming up with what a religion celebrates as a gateway to me figuring out what they worship. And what holidays are more widely celebrated vs ones that are considered for the strongly devout? And if more than one country worships the same religion, how do the cultures put a different spin on the same holiday? 

I said in my last post that the Escana Empire recently switched religions and as such a lot of their old holidays they just slapped new names on or switched out who or what they were celebrating because they’ll be damned before they lose an excuse to party. The abundance of festivals and drinking is a vast difference than the more stern and subdued celebration of the same holiday in another country. 

Really holidays can be anything from celebrating important achievements, birthdays or special dates relating popular figures, times of year, shared religious dates, and then I just decide based on the culture I’ve built a base for how the people within it are most likely to interact with the idea of said holiday.

Goddamn Calendars  

I was specifically told to mention this. So I will. I usually model my calendars off a religious one where dates are recorded after some significant event in the popular or most powerful religion. In Of Rust of Gold, all months are named after 12 Saints (and one extra month for New Year’s day) and the years are recorded after the date the Saints had a war and left humanity. And of course, any time before that is simply recorded as being before the current age. I don’t think calendars have to be produced from a religious institution, however. I just found this the easiest to adopt for my own world building and for the purposes of my story. 

tagging interested parties:  @emofairykei​ @asablehart​ @space-cadead​ @mirror-of-too-many-books​ @shattered-starrs

[alistonjdrake]

Of Blood and Stone: Till Death

Of Blood and Stone, The third book in The Saints’ Song Series, showcases the Escana Empire on the verge of crumbling as a murdered king and a divided government threaten to tear the country apart. As some grapple for power and wealth, others decide to jump ship.

Season One World Building Posts:  1 2  3  4 5 6 7 8 9 10 

Season Two World Building Posts:  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 

Season Three World Building Posts:  1 2 3 4 5 

Bonus Episodes: 1 2 3 

Main Wip Intro here 

Much of Escan’s culture revolves around big, loud celebrations. From citywide festivals to celebrate the end of hurricane season, holidays commemorating the day volcanoes erupted to throwing parties and dances simply because the weather was nice or certain fruits are in season, it’s no surprise much of this excessiveness presents itself in their weddings.

A traditional Escana wedding lasts three days. This stems from one of the pinnacles of their old religion before Escan converted to Santivism that held the number in high regard and a symbolic callback to the “Three Rites” that encompassed the rituals one had to pass in order to truly be considered an adult in old times. Depending on social class and means, the three days can end up being a brilliant display of extravagance but for the most part everything is based in cultural tradition. There are, of course, plenty of Escana who do not observe the traditional marriage rites and instead choose to have a quick and simple ceremony but this isn’t about them.

Day One: Family

Respecting and honoring ones parents was/is very important to the Escana. The family home being very significant in both modern and ancient culture and there was never a push for younger generations to step off the path their ancestors treaded on. 

On the first day of an Escana wedding, the couple is supposed to wake up at dawn or earlier, say their goodbyes to each other, and exchange families. Ideally, the families have already been introduced to each other but the day starts with the couple attending to their partner’s family’s needs. This can be done by either doing chores, labor, or favors for the family. In the case of many upper class and royal weddings, this is satisfied by the giving of gifts or even land/titles. Upper class and royal weddings also tend to exchange this practice with an “introduction breakfast” where the couple eats with each other’s family. They are often allowed to bring one member of their own family with them, usually a parent or someone they are significantly close to  .

After the introduction breakfast or the usual exchange of gifts/favors they move onto having separate parties. The point is to impress each other’s family. This is usually done by dancing (with each member of the family), singing, playing an instrument, or anything that satisfies them (within reason). Weddings held in cities such as Graza tend to invite strangers to cheer along with the newcomer to the family and many people show their good spirits to the couple by throwing money or small gifts their way. This practice has also made its way into royal and upper class weddings although they usually tend to throw flowers or jewelry instead of pocket change. 

The party usually goes on until the evening, after such there is a dinner where the couple is allowed to meet again. At the dinner, if the family is not thoroughly impressed with their child’s partner, they can end the wedding then and there. If they are impressed with the partner, they usually present a gift of their own as an official welcoming into the family. The couple is then wrapped in a blanket usually woven by a member of the bride’s (or whoever was proposed to) family and are sent to bed. While the Escana aren’t known for being concerned about the concept of virginity, the display of lust leading up to the wedding ceremony is considered bad luck and so each family chooses three representatives to stand guard around the bed to ensure the couple does not have sex. This role is often filled by siblings, aunts/uncles, or cousins. Parents and grandparents tend to go to another room to count any money/gifts given to them throughout the day and, if they feel up to it, may choose to share or split what’s been gathered. 

Day Two: Unity

The six guards wake the couple up on the second day and escort them to either the nearest church, place of worship, or member of the clergy. The blanket is taken off them and their hands are tied together. For those paying homage to true Escana tradition, the blanket will be cut off of them, made into strips, and that is what will tie their hands together. If the couple is choosing the Santivian route the priest will first dip their hands in hands in holy oil, draw a half circle on both of their foreheads, and use any cloth available (although the practice of using ash to draw half circles is not usually seen in other Santivian weddings this practice came about after Escan converted). In the Santivian version, the priest will also ask for a blessing from each of the Saints (besides the ones who preside over the dead, they will be specifically asked to leave the couple alone or to keep their souls bound both in this life and in the next). In non-traditional/shorter weddings, this is often the only marriage rites the couple reserves. 

The cloth is symbolic and very important. For the rest of the day, if at any time the knot comes undone it is considered a sign of bad luck or that the marriage is doomed to fail. Once again, if this happens the couple may choose to back out of the wedding at that point. 

This day is obviously about the couple becoming “one” and in many cases tend to be the most religious of the day as plenty of couples may choose to spend it in prayer and asking the Saints for their approval. As this day also is spent in preparation for the union of their souls, they may choose to give their prayers to dead loved ones/deceased couples of their family as in acknowledgement that they are still together in the afterlife. 

For most royal weddings, the second day is also the day most/non-familial guests arrive and this is when the couple chooses to greet them, often holding court to talk to each guest one by one. As with the day before, there are more parties but in consideration that most will be either hungover or groggy from the day before this is satisfied by either settling for tea or lunch. 

The couple also choose this day to present each other with gifts of their own making. This is supposed to symbolize their dedication to the relationship. It is very important that the gift was created with their own hands and anything else is also considered bad luck or a sign of a sham wedding. 

At sundown, if the cloth remains intact the priest returns to cut it off of them and anyone eager to get married next takes a strip for good luck. The couple once again separates and spends the night surrounded by candles in prayer both for their ancestors and the Saints whose job it is to watch over the dead asking both for the guidance from those who came before them and to beg for there not to be a tragedy. They are watched over by three of the guards who watched them the night before and while this is more superstition than tradition, the partner who is seen to fall asleep first is said to be the one who will also die first. 

Day Three: Romance & Ceremony

The Escana are said to be licentious but truly they are a people who love love. On the third and final day the wedding turns not just into a celebration of a couple but of romance itself. Although, not all weddings in Escana history have ever been considered romantic and much of the ones that follow these rites can even be purely political, the hope of romance remains strong as it is also an Escana belief that romance in a marriage makes for a healthy family and further ensures the possibility of children in those sort of unions. 

In cities such as Graza, this is also the day flowers are thrown in the streets if they’re in season. For upper class and royal weddings, the bells of the Pilla de Calenos ring and people might feel especially generous. The couple and their party might give out favors either in the form of fruits, baked goods, small trinkets, or coins.  Often in Graza, in celebration for royal weddings or any significant person there might also be free plays and food will be passed out. In this case, the couple will often also hire entertainers to dance and sing in the streets.

In the morning, the couple spends hours having their skin meticulously painted by members of their family. In Escan’s old religion, the markings are supposed to tell a story of the person’s own life. Under Santivism, there are new markings that signify the Saints and their blessings. 

Once painted, those looking for romance themselves will often either pay or give favors in order to dance with the couple in hopes some of their “love” will rub off on them and they will have better luck finding a partner of their own. Children will be chosen to run around to pin flowers on anyone who is single and of marriageable age so that they can find each other. Public displays of affection are encouraged and the couple might even be awarded for it. 

There is, of course, also an another ceremony after the dancing where the couple is once again escorted to the church to get their second set of marriage rites. This can either be a giving of vows or silent prayer. Much of the principles of unity bleed into this day as well as giving respect to each other’s family. Rings aren’t necessary but if the couple chooses, this is the day where they are finally given and they are officially considered married. 

The partying and dancing resumes after this and the couple also tends to invite their guests to a final dinner. In coastal areas in Escan, once the night starts to wind down water is dumped on the newly married couple to wash off any remaining paint before they go to bed. 

Some small things that are considered tradition but are not required for all three-day weddings:

Leaving a baby in the couple’s bed

you will often see this practice in upper class and royal weddings where much of the point of the political union is to produce children. The baby is supposed to bless the bedsheets with the promise of fertility. Having a baby be chosen for this is often considered very honorable and many landed people will happily offer up their child for the opportunity. The younger, the better. Obviously, once the baby is found in the bed it will be quickly removed. 

The couple sneaks off before the end of the party on day three

If the couple successfully gets away without anyone noticing this is considered another sign of good luck for their marriage. If they do not they usually owe a gift to whoever catches them. 

Stripping the bride/groom

Also a tradition of political unions. In some cases (again where the union was done specifically for the production of an heir) the couple will be carried to bed by a selection of important nobles and stripped in preparation for their duties. This practice would sometimes often include some staying behind to ensure the couple actually got down to it. This started to fall out of favor during King Frederick’s reign and King Cidro absolutely forbade it from happening during his wedding to respect both his and his wife’s privacy. 

Kissing

Specifically kissing a member of the newly married couple. In the same vein that people want to dance with them in hopes some of the good luck with romance comes their way, someone might ask to kiss them and offer money/gifts to the couple if they say yes. For obvious reasons, this has also declined in popularity. Although in some regions in Escan it would be considered rude to say no. 

Thanking the Guards

In old Escana tradition, the guards from days one and two whose job it was to “fight” the temptation of lust were then rewarded with lust on the final day. Some saw it as a great honor or challenge to sleep with one of them. 

On day two of a traditional Escana weddings, happy couples will usually hear this “May St. Yves guide your hearts, St. Orlin protect you, St. Milit bring you joy, St. Korden help you prosper, St. Remus keep you honest, St. Maior keep you fed, St. Hurro keep you warm, and St. Uyelius give you strength. We beg St. Clarial, St. Vanni, St. Rolias, and St. Nencio to leave your souls be and to keep them bound in this life and in the next.”

In Santivian lore, St. Clarial, St. Vanni, St. Rolias, and St. Nencio were given the duty of watching over the dead and guiding souls to the afterlife. In Escana culture, death itself is something both to fear and celebrate. The Escana have a lot of ritual and holidays surrounding their dead. In some regions deceased persons are often dug back up after some years, their burial site cleaned, they are wrapped or sometimes put in fresh clothes, and then given another send off in the form of dancing and the giving of food before being put back into the ground. However the Escana also believe that your soul can be stolen and taken before its time and often after someone dies they will ensure the body won’t be moved, everyone stays away from the light, and other dead offerings are left out (usually small animals) so that the Saints don’t take anyone other than who they need to. 

However, Escana funerals are not somber. Once they are sure that the Saints have removed the soul from the body and the deceased is already on their journey to the afterlife, color and joy become the main points of the celebration. While the Escana mourning color is dark green (a symbol of stagnant or dirty water) on the day of the actual funeral that color is usually forbidden as it tempts the memory of death on a day that is supposed to be about life. 

This is another ceremony in which people choose to paint their skin but instead of markings and symbols, most will cover themselves in either colorful powders or Santivian ash and holy oil. They will spend the day eating the deceased’s favorite food, the ceremony will be a celebration of the deceased’s accomplishments and values, and the deceased will be buried in a way that best signifies who they were in life. The Escana Kings, for example, are often buried in a copy of the ceremonial crown and covered in coins and jewelry as a way to ensure they’ll be wealthy and taken care of in the afterlife (and so the Saints know who they were). Members of clergy might be buried with scripture sewn to their hands, valued members of a community with gifts, etc. 

Now, mourning culture in Escana can be very different than the actual funeral as it often becomes a competition of how close someone was to the deceased. Dark green again makes an appearance and how long one chooses to mourn is usually symbolized by how long that remains a staple in their wardrobe. For members of the royal family, the required mourning period is six months for the king and three months for everyone else. After the first few weeks, most people who don’t have a personal relationship to the deceased can move onto wearing a pin or something small in the mourning color, wearing nothing at all (in the case of royals) can result in a fine or jail time. A spouse is often required to mourn for longer than the set time but there are usually exceptions.

For example, King Frederick very rarely adhered to the set three months mourning period after the death of his wives and this was excused because the mourning period forbids someone from getting married and most wanted their king to have a queen. Mourning periods often sometimes forbid working, celebrations of any kind for families, and even the birth of children and this too can be excused without fines. 

[alistonjdrake]

Part Five: The Witch’s Daughter

Princess Zurina ana’Frederick Harver Born: Year 1755 after the fall of the Saints Mother: Queen Lilia ana’Victorio Hidalgo No Spouse

Princess Zurina is King Frederick’s only daughter (that we know of) and as such was paid a lot of attention as a baby. There were four several day-long festivals in celebration of her birth, completely overshadowing Queen Lilia’s death and mourning period in order not to damper the moment.

As par for the course, Princess Zurina was engaged a handful of times before she even reached adolescence. 

While there’s plenty to be said about the intimidating reputation of Prince Leonides, Princess Zurina has also been known to scare courtiers in Graza Palace. Since childhood, she was known for a cold demeanor and a strong temper. 

If thrown into a rage, Princess Zurina was quick to destroy things or go out of her way to make things considerably harder for those around her. During her time there, the royal nursery was reportedly chaotic and two nursemaids quit due to her behavior. 

Nobles gifted their daughters as potential companions and eventual ladies-in-waiting. There is a story of one girl being bitten because she dared to touch a toy Princess Zurina wanted to play with and another being forced to cut the hair off a third girl who had upset Her Highness. 

She was raised with incredibly high standards. She had special tutors, a sperate manners and etiquette teacher, and was given a harsh regime of lessons and practice. She had to learn to speak a certain way, to stand a certain way, how to walk and carry herself. All of which Princess Zurina took to with ease, she was a clever child and she appreciated the care that goes into upkeeping the appearances of the royal household. 

The topic of Princess Zurina and marriage was broached by the council early in her life. First thinking that the alliance between Escan and Oskya should be secured by marriage. At the time, Princess Zurina was twelve and her potential suitor the five-year-old Prince Aayden. Sources claim upon discovering this was to be proposed to the council, the princess locked herself in her room and refused to eat or see anyone until King Frederick denied the prospect. 

King Frederick certainly doted on his only daughter. Anything she wanted, she received. In the height of her spoiling, Princess Zurina collected countless yards of silk, had a personal stable with nine horses that she named after her brothers, ten dogs, rare artifacts, and illegal books. Princess Zurina shared Prince Orland’s interest in the occult and in dead or foreign religions but she took it a step further, eventually buying idols and scripture of these gods she didn’t worship. More than Orland, Zurina grew a keen taste for the taboo not unlike her late mother. She enjoyed the study of anatomy and also attended surgical theatres and invited such displays to be put up in Graza Palace.  She collected skulls of rare animals.

Rumors would spread that Princess Zurina also went beyond simple study and could curse people. Although Princess Zurina never paid much mind to court gossip. She built a close circle of ladies who she kept in her employ more for their obedience than for friendship.

Princess Zurina was also expressively educated and surprisingly a pleasant student. She exceled at language study and on the rare occasion when she felt like playing nice, was easily able to express ambassadors and diplomats with her skills. She had an expansive knowledge of literature, could hold her own when it came to topics of mathematics and science, and was also very interested in politics and the relationships between Escan and other nations.

As well as being smart and quick to rage, Princess Zurina was often openly critical about Santivism and wasn’t very religious herself. 

Despite her fearsome reputation, Princess Zurina has also never been short of romantic offers. She has denied most of them, often claiming that there’s no reason for her to ever marry considering she’ll find no better position than being the daughter of an emperor. That is to say, she has not been short of companionship either and has had her share of scandalous dalliances with men and women. The most notable being an affair she had with a priest while traveling through Mignola 

Zurina is also very easily bored and spends her days tiring to avoid that by being increasingly difficult, whether that means enacting means of cruelty on her staff, sticking her nose into the lives of courtiers and messing with them, or starting brief affairs with people the public would strongly disapprove of. 

She likes to treat herself, whether that means buying expensive things or spending her days being pampered or in complete leisure. Princess Zurina has very rarely found herself in want of anything she could not have. 

In 1782, Princess Zurina is twenty-seven and, after a trip to Mignola, has returned with news that causes Prince Orland to panic. 

[alistonjdrake]

Part One: The Smiling Prince

Prince Cidro an’Frederick Harver Born: Year 1748 after the fall of the Saints Mother: Queen Isolde ana’Juliano Rios Wife: Lady Liliana ana’Ignacio Verona of Veron, Princess Consort of the Escana Empire

As first in line for the throne and Crown Prince of Escan, Prince Cidro was born in the months after King Frederick’s coronation and wedding and as the smoke cleared on the repairs to Graza city after the siege.

And he was born, as noted by contemporaries, scandalously early. 

Much of what is known about the trial of Queen Isolde’s birth comes from Lady Helena, King Frederick’s mother, as she was strictly attentive of her daughter-in-law in the early days of the Harver reign. 

The Queen Mother wrote in her diary that, “The midwife took Her Majesty the Queen to the birthing chamber in the early evening after a complaint of stomach problems and I followed soon after. I found the woman on her hands and knees and fretting over a little blood. The midwife assured her it was not enough to cause worry over the babe. I had not the mind to hear her complaints and, eager for her to get to the business, called for the physician to prepare a draft to ease the going. Our prince was born in the morning. A small and wrinkled thing but he had the same dip in his forehead that I recalled seeing on both of my own boys in their first days. The midwife seemed worried about his fragility but he screamed for life with powerful lungs and I made sure one of the servants went to alert Frederick, for now his claim was secure.” 

At the time, the court had been whispering about the timeline and the very evident animosity between the royal couple. Queen Isolde had had attentions to marry another before the treaty with King Frederick and the man had been in Graza during the duration of the pregnancy. There was also some speculation that Lady Helena threatened Queen Isolde, going so far as to hold a knife to her throat while the midwife cleaned and prepared the baby for viewing in case it was revealed that the child was not King Frederick’s. This event, true or not, later inspired a song and a rhyme often giving in warning from parents to their child’s spouse on the eve of weddings. 

Whatever the rumors were and if they were founded in truths, King Frederick and Lady Helena both accepted Prince Cidro as a member of the Harver family. And his birth came with great fanfare as it was likely used as an excuse to wipe the slate clean. In the months after his arrival, there were festivals throughout the streets of Graza, King Frederick minted a new coin and named it after him and had it given it out generously to the people, there were several ceremonies in which King Frederick simply displayed his son to the court.

However, as he got older few would say Prince Cidro was particularly spoiled. After the death of his mother, he was raised under the attentive care and strict scheduling of Lady Helena. She hired an array of tutors for the first born as she wanted him to be excessively well-read. It should be noted, King Frederick was the first worldly king of Escan, the first one that the rest of the continent paid any true attention to, and so they likely felt they had a lot riding on the reputation of the first son. 

However, Prince Cidro did not excel in much. He was not talented in arts, did not take to military stratagem or showed any signs of being a tactician, was not incredibly wise about politics, and never really took to learning languages outside of Escan, basic Oskyi, and passable Ceoye. And yet, the one thing all his tutors would agree on was that Cidro was marvelously charming. 

By the age of nine, people would say he could light up a room. He was very personable and people felt draw to the small prince. It was said King Frederick would sometimes have him tag along as a good luck charm. If the young boy had any talents, it was in diplomacy and carrying conversation. Those in his inner circle said he was never jealous, never bitter, always supportive, always kind. He did not shy away from his own ignorance on subjects and would make a point as he got older to invite experts to court to explain something when he did not understand. 

Prince Cidro was very fond of all his siblings and would often describe himself as a family man, but he was undoubtedly closest to Prince Leonides and they worked together on most things. While Cidro was the charming and personable one, Prince Leonides was the elusive and stern one, and one often complimented for his brain. Dissenters in Graza’s court would say that Prince Cidro was empty-headed who let his younger brother do all the thinking for him. 

Cidro was not unaware of these statements and he did establish himself in other areas. While he did not have the cunning and talent to earn himself the title as the youngest appointed councilman like Prince Leonides (in fact he would not join until he was twenty in contrast to Prince Leonides’ appointment at fourteen). Cidro placed most of his focus in foreign affairs and into their relationship with the nations underneath Escan’s banner. Most notably, and controversial, it was found in letters with the vicereine of Karri that Cidro was incredibly critical of Escan’s actions in the Rhine nations and wanted some sort of reform. This is often credited as one of the reasons he traveled to frequently during his twenties.

Speaking of, Cidro was famously romantic in his youth. He was a very obvious eligible bachelor by the time he was an adult as the heir to a rich nation. He was offered the hand of foreign princesses, influential aristocrats, and there was no shortage of suitable options at Graza Palace. Most of Cidro’s attempts at courtship were short-lived and there doesn’t seem to be any reason why. There was some talk of similarities between him and his father, but as far as anyone knows Prince Cidro did not have any lovers or hidden children. In fact, plenty of his romantic attempts would be later called quite juvenile. 

Although not often talked about, Prince Cidro did partake in Graza’s tradition of excessive drinking and partying but somehow avoided causing any long-lasting scandals from this period of his life. Prince Cidro was also at times a bit of a gambler and lost money easily to courtiers at card tables before needing to be dragged away. He was, at the very least, a courteous loser much to the point it was reported people would give him his money back because they felt bad. 

Before leaving court, Cidro always took time to spend with his siblings. He was famously the one who had to report the assassination of Queen Luca to Prince Argus. He was very fond of all of them, supporting their hobbies and at times funding some of their projects if their father could not fit it into the budget. He preached the importance of family time and occasional dinners. He gave them many gifts (both while he was in Graza and later he would shower them in souvenirs from his travels) and was always more than happy to offer brotherly advice. He has always tried to be respectful and accommodating to the many queens and stepmothers he’s had throughout his father’s reign and often quoted that he was not close to his own, and as many of his siblings did not have the benefit of knowing their grandmother like he did, took it upon himself to fill that space. 

He would eventually meet and marry Lady Liliana ana’Ignacio Verona in 1770 when the couple were twenty-two and would begin the aforementioned decade of traveling throughout Escan’s territories. 

Cidro would become a big supporter of Lady Liliana’s charitable endeavors and the couple would open schools and religious institutions together, although Prince Cidro’s dedication to Santivism was never strictly stated and at times he often treated convents more as convenient sanctuaries for Escan’s orphans than a place for the Saints. 

In 1782, at the age of thirty-four, Prince Cidro returns to Graza with the news that his wife is pregnant and eager to reunite with his beloved family. 

[alistonjdrake]

Of Blood and Stone: How Strong Was King Frederick’s Claim To The Throne?

I’ve been writing a lot about the Escana royal history lately and even in my thinking to redo the posts for the ten Harver children now that I’ve done the queens and King Frederick himself, my mind came to this thought. I also recently forced myself to do as fleshed out of a family tree of the three related families we seen mentioned side by side (and because I am still a history nerd and see people debate this with real royalty all the time I figure it makes sense people in ORG’s world would discuss this as well) so, it’s Of Blood and Stone, it’s been some years since King Frederick has died, we can now talk about this.

How strong was his claim to the Escana Throne?

First we have to discuss Queen Isolde ana’Juliano Rios who did rule as Queen Regnant in the aftermath of her father’s death and before her union in marriage with King Frederick. 

Queen Isolde, out of everyone I will discuss on this post, had without a doubt the strongest claim to the throne. She was of course the natural child of the last reigning monarch and the direct heir of the Rios and Espinar lines. The criticisms of her inheritance came mostly after the Siege of Graza or from outside sources. Everything that directly challenged Queen Isolde’s succession was actually not her fault. 

A weakened Escana government due in part to her father’s own parents dying when he was young, thus giving Escan into the hands of regents and allowing the noble class to take a lot of unchecked control.

Escan’s change in religion from ola tra to Santivism both made them untrustworthy to more devout Santivian states (leaving her unconfirmed by Justice Giachetti)  and an enemy to their closest neighbor Nava who had not converted 

King Juliano had not been popular due to the aforementioned years of regency and his continued allowance in his adulthood to leave issues in the hands of advisers.

The fact that her reign was immediately challenged by King Frederick and the presumed threat of Oskyan forces also did not help.

So what about King Frederick? What made him attractive in comparison to Queen Isolde’s perceived faults?

Tadrus was rich and most of this was credited to his strong rulership in the short time he’d taken over the city-state

He was allied with Oskya, a country with a strong standing military while Escan had none.

He was both Santivian and attracted to the Justice and Mignola because of his upbringing in Oskya but seen as Tadrune and thus a member of the old faith by the Navanese.

He himself did have Rios and Espinar blood with his great-grandmother being Princess Estrella ana’Marco Rios (making his grandfather King Juliano’s cousin and Frederick himself third cousins’ with Queen Isolde). His mother, Lady Helena, was a Garrido and thus they both shared Barraza blood which also carried relation to the Rios line so it would not be impossible to claim that King Frederick sat somewhere in the line of inheritance. Princess Estrella’s line had never been disowned or formally excluded.

So, long story short? King Frederick, even if the argument made during the initial conflict was over whether or not a proposal had been promised, did have some claim and attractive qualities to people who wanted a changed Escan but his claim was significantly weaker than Queen Isolde’s and he might have been completely overlooked and forgotten had Escan not had so many problems at the time. We can owe a lot to his being king to religious conflict and fear of militant powers. Very little of it had to do with whether or not he has tight arguments. 

It should be said that this weakness to his claim was recognized to the point where, after Queen Isolde’s death, there was talk to immediately discard King Frederick and let the throne ascend to her closest blood relative which did not happen as part of the alliance to end the war was to cede ruling power to King Frederick which made him King Regnant instead of King Consort.

This is just all the OBS good stuff I usually put at the top but this is a short one so

Season One World Building Posts:  1 2  3  4 5 6 7 8 9 10 

Season Two World Building Posts:  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 

Season Three World Building Posts:  1 2 3 4 5 

Bonus Episodes: 1 2 3 

Main Wip Intro here 

[alistonjdrake]

Part Four: The Witch’s Son

Prince Orland an’Frederick Harver Born: Year 1754 after the fall of the Saints. Mother: Queen Lilia ana’Victorio Hidalgo No spouse

Prince Orland was born to much fanfare as King Frederick and Queen Lilia had a passionate and loving marriage and were eagerly excited to welcome their first child and while the rapid pace of changing queens did not come without its criticisms, people were at least happy for the distractions. Escan was prosperous, the royal nursery was full, and some didn’t mind the rumors that the Hidalgo queen was either cursed or a witch.

As told by Prince Orland himself, he was born with his hand raised and would claim it as a sign he’d been waiting for the sister who would follow him a short eleven months later. And despite not being much younger than Prince Manolo, never recalled spending much time with him when they were in the nursery together. 

In his own words, most of Prince Orland’s early life was dedicated to being close to and protective of Princess Zurina. Or waiting for her to catch up his own speed.  The nursemaids would say he would not eat without her, did not sleep until she did first, would not speak until she could, and likely would have stunted his own growth if he could. 

Prince Orland was born with a rather weak constitution. He was a thin and sickly child and required attentive care as some weren’t even sure if he would survive childhood. That is perhaps the blame of the melancholic moods that would burden him for the rest of his life and the brooding habits he would pick up. As Orland was raised in the shadow of the rumors of his mother still being alive or cursing future Escana queens from the grave, he took an interest in the occult. 

In his youth, he was argumentative, a trait he would later say he passed on to his sister in exchange for a calmer demeanor. But as a kid he was critical of almost anything. Many of his tutors considered him curious and studious, but a pain to teach because he could not get through lessons without posing questions about the validity of the material. This was especially true whenever the topic of religion was broached, as Orland had quickly looked into Escana history and the time before they converted to Santivism. He studied dead and foreign religions and would claim to happen upon discrepancies either in scripture or Santivian history. 

He would soon grow out of this as, once he reached twelve, Prince Orland would go through another period of poor health. The physician would claim he was sensitive to sunlight, to most high energy activities, and simply had a delicate body. As a result, Prince Orland would mostly keep to himself and liked to keep his rooms dark and cool to block out the sun, he would rarely been seen outside unless tagging along with Princess Zurina on one of her walks and as such much of the population of Graza Palace took to calling him gloomy and a mood ruiner. 

During these years, Prince Orland found solace in his occult books and would become a self-proclaimed practitioner of the “dark arts” himself which would mostly include claiming to speak to the spirits of the palace’s old wing and a brief period of bloodletting where he ended up having to be confined to his rooms under watch until the habit was past him. A thing he quickly agreed to as Orland was “riddled with misery” whenever separated from his sister for long periods of time. 

Much to the surprise of the nursemaids who first swaddled him, Prince Orland reached adulthood. He was also shockingly easygoing with few ambitions and rarely took part in Graza’s social culture. He continued to keep to himself, only occasionally showing himself in court and often occupied himself with books and board games. If Prince Orland is seen out of his chambers at all, it’s in the shadow of Princess Zurina.

While not as woefully romantic as Prince Cidro or salacious as Prince Manolo, Prince Orland would also go onto to have his own dalliances. All of them usually involving older, widowed women. It’s likely because of this specific interest that Prince Orland has never been in danger of long-lasting courtship in his young adulthood.

Even with some of his dark hobbies, Prince Orland has also never been described as anything short of polite and that could also be due to his need to conserve energy. He is not famous for his outbursts or grand display of emotions and there was even a story of a courtier mistaking him for a sculpture due to is ability to stand still and stare into the distance. For the most part, Prince Orland has even described himself as “pleasantly enviable” as he enjoys music and wishes he had the constitution to dance or the strength to withstand loud noises and crowds for prolonged periods. 

In 1782, Prince Orland is twenty-eight years old and still spends most of his time with or fretting Princess Zurina. With no clear plan for his future, he’s content with spending his days in leisure when he’s not already busy worrying over possible calamities. 

[alistonjdrake]

Part Three: Hypocrites & Priests

Prince Manolo an’Frederick Harver Born: Year 1753 after the fall of the Saints. Mother: Queen Crisanna ana’Ivan Saelices No spouse

When Queen Crisanna left her marriage and her status to become Abbess Mother Isabella, she also abandoned her two-month old son Prince Manolo.  According to contemporaries, she more or less used him to secure her divorce. A deal she and King Frederick came to in order to end their disagreeable arrangement and preserve his reputation by gifting both his queen and his son to the Santivian church.

As Manolo was bound for priesthood in an arguably un-Santivian nation, he received a different education than his older siblings. He was put in the care of Graza’s Archpriest once he was old enough to exit the royal nursery and had passed the basics of manners and etiquette still befitting someone of his status. 

As a child, Prince Manolo was notably bitter about this. There were some stories of him refusing to attend church services, he did want to learn scripture, and spent two years pretending he couldn’t even read Ardunese. He especially hated the teachings that once he took vows, he would renounce all worldly possessions. Including his titles. 

On rare occurrences, Prince Manolo would visit his mother’s convent. Despite being the only Harver child who had a living mother, by all accounts the two were never close and some would even say the once-queen was completely disappointed with what she had produced. Abbess Mother Isabella had always wanted a career in faith. Her son felt burdened by it and whatever lectures she gave to reassure him  seemed to only temporarily curb his rebellious nature. 

While his two older siblings managed to avoid comparisons to King Frederick’s licentious nature, Prince Manolo quickly embraced and fell into it almost out of spite. He would be found sneaking out of the palace, playing patron to Graza’s charming prostitutes and had one summer where he was caught by his tutor, Archpriest Davalos, to be “demeaning” himself with an older woman beneath the pews in the palace’s chapel. 

Prince Manolo quickly built a name for himself. Even at fifteen he was a cursing, angry, drunk. He cultivated a liking for collecting excessively expensive things and loved being covered in jewelry.

However, either by scolding from his father or his mother, Prince Manolo eventually did take his theology studies seriously. This is likely also due to the fact that Prince Manolo soon caught wind of ambition and the success possible in a good career in the Santivian church, most notably either earning the seat of Justice or being a chancellor on the Conclave. And Manolo, being no stranger to nepotism or the nature of plenty of priests in the holy capital of Mignola taking lovers and living in villas against their vows, stopped being so disturbed by his future. 

Even if, at times, it seemed a bit uncertain. With the appointment of new justices and changing attitudes between the church and Escan’s take on faith, Manolo’s future within it always seemed at odds. By the time he finally reached adulthood, there was already talks of postponing his exit from the royal household and by then he had already earned plenty of criticism for his “sexual deviancy” that had become famous in Graza’s gossip circles. And truthfully, Manolo was likely very happy to stay home and continue benefitting off his allowance and privileges as a prince. 

He garnered a lot of attention, if not for his relationships with prostitutes, than for his temper. Most close to him would say he was incredibly quick to anger and flinging insults, most usually directed at his own family or anyone who dared to either get in his space or comment on his behavior. For the few faithful that did exist in Graza, he would shut down their criticisms by screaming about how he hadn’t taken vows yet and could do as he pleased without judgement of the Saints.

As an adult he also very rarely spoke to his mother. The only instance of them really communicating was in one event where he visited her for Santius and, enraged, she snagged a gold necklace from his neck after one of her sisters made a comment about what Prince Manolo had been up to in Graza Palace with a woman known as “Madame Nazarena”. He apparently groveled at her feet until she kicked him off and was heard saying, “I regret to see you in this manner. Do not show yourself to me until you’ve gotten yourself fixed.” 

Abbess Mother Isabella was also quoted with describing her son as “an embarrassment to Santivism” and a “fiendish mirror image of his father”. The two do not keep in close contact and have kept to sending the rare letter. 

It is apparent that Prince Manolo did not fix his behavior. He would continue his drinking. He would continue his relationship with Madame Nazarena and countless others. He would continue starting screaming matches with his siblings that would only be stopped either by attempted violence or another one stepping in. He would begin to preach morality and condemn others for perceived sins  and character flaws, and he would continue collecting expensive things to cover himself with. 

In 1782, Prince Manolo is twenty-nine and still not a priest but is banking on eventually finding the right position for himself within the church that will be both lucrative and comfortable. 

[alistonjdrake]

Part Five: Respect and Love

Princess Hadley ek Ponsonby | Niężckna Hajnalka lik Villumsen Role: Princess of Letros | Wife of Crown Prince Aayden Ponsonby Born: Year 1762 after the fall of our Saints. 

On the eve of her birthday, in the palace of Valoye, home to the Villumsen royal family that has ruled Letros for countless generations, a rumor was spread by the chambermaids of Queen Bogna that the mother to be had an insatiable thirst for blood in the early hours of her labor. 

A thirst that would be quenched by none other than King Celestyn who, was said out of love for his wife, cut his thigh to feed her. 

Letros is not a country that brags about much. Not very exciting to others, excelling in animal husbandry, contributions to Santivism, and having a long history with piracy problems due to their peninsula and watery surroundings, and a language not often taught south of their borders has made them seen as undesirable to their main continent neighbors. The Letrossi are thus tight-knit and secretive, inherent revisionists of their own history. 

In truth, King Celestyn and Queen Bogna hated each other. A story revealed in a series of diaries found after King Celestyn’s death (once attributed to bloodletting in favor of his wife but most definitely connected to a sour wound from a hunting accident.) Such rumors only took root because the child born in the aftermath was considered monstrous to some and strange to many.

Hajnalka was born in the dead of winter, the time of year in Letros where more humble villages take tallies on how many citizens they will lose from starvation and cold, and Hajnalka herself was cold and had to be forced to life by several midwives and (probably) a screaming Queen Bogna. She would be the youngest of three girls and the last child of four (the oldest being her brother the soon to be King Aksel). The closet of her sisters having a seven-year age gap on her, Hajnalka spent much of her childhood in the care and watch of her mother. 

Queen Bogna and Princess Hajnalka did not get along from the start. Queen Bogna would claim that her daughter terrorized, disobeyed her, cried to just be an annoyance. By the time she was two, her mother’s cousin Queen Lukova of Oskya would reach out to Queen Bogna and the newly crowned king to discuss the idea of an eventual engagement between Hajnalka and Prince Aayden. 

The arrangement was put in writing by the time she was three. Hajnalka would learn of it when she was five. Letros and Oskya have long been aligned and several princesses in the past have taken the short boat trip to Oskya’s icy shores for political marriages. At five, it’s uncertain how Hajnalka took that news. 

Hajnalka’s oldest sister was already married, the second engaged, and the third promised to a Letrossi duke. It was not a concept that would have been too wild for her. As a child, she was often found either in the stables or running around the palace gardens. With age, rumors would spread that she often escaped into Valoye along with King Aksel, who was known for putting on disguises and going to taverns and betting houses. She grew very fond of her older brother and would often be found hiding beneath the flaps of his long coats during meetings to hear stories of pirates, food shortages, and the very lazy happenings that occur when governing a country like Letros. 

Hajnalka would grow farther and farther from the dowager queen. Queen Bogna and Queen Lukova would write each other about their child’s progress, and while Queen Lukova seemed to have nothing but glowing praise about Prince Aayden, Queen Bogna was often lying to cover up for her daughter's bad behavior. 

Drinking with supposed pirates by the time she was eleven. 

Getting into fist fights with stable boys. 

Running away from the palace and living in the woods for up to two days before being found by guards. 

At the age of twelve, Prince Aayden made the first trip to visit her. King Aksel took them on a short tour of Letros and would later report the two spent most of their time together talking about and chasing dogs. 

Growing up, Hajnalka was not a diligent student either. She, like many ladies of standing in Letros, never learned how to read and instead took to hiring a scribe. She found no interest in playing an instrument. Often ignored the social part of court life to lean over her brother’s shoulder and learn about what it was like to wield power. 

Though it was said Hajnalka and Queen Bogna did not get along, they still talked. Out of all her daughters, Hajnalka was set to be the only one who would become a queen and so, if not reluctantly, Queen Bogna took her youngest under her wing. She was very honest about her relationship to Hajnalka’s father and what she could expect, only she suspected it would be worse given Hajnalka would have to learn a new language, leave her home, and adopt a new culture. 

At fifteen, with the the engagement becoming more and more set in stone (Oskya being more closely aligned with Escan than it had ever been under previous monarchs, there was thought—and some attempts—for Prince Aayden to marry an Escana princess or someone of their choosing instead), Princess Hajnalka was given two Oskyan tutors by the name of Fedulov and Lady Yulka. Fedulov was to teach her history, language, the importance of the Oskyan military, their customs, the nuances of their culture, their folktales and superstitions. Lady Yulka would fill in the gaps by teaching Princess Hajnalka how to be an Oskyan lady. How to dress, how to carry herself, what would be expected of her.

Prince Aayden’s visits would become more frequent. He was dubbed the traveling prince as he spent much time in Escan or away from Oskya. They didn’t get to spend a lot of time together as King Aksel took a great interest together, and when they did it was never alone. Queen Bogna watched their every move. 

Princess Hajnalka confided once in Lady Yulka that she could not tell if her future husband liked her because he didn’t speak much. She was told that Oskyan men don’t often show their emotions and walked away from that discussion more determined than ever to make him. 

The two would finally marry when they were both twenty. Princess Hajnalka had two weddings. One by proxy due to her betrothed being busy during the intended date and she still in Letros, the stand in being (to her displeasure) her own brother whom she hugged goodbye before boarding a ship to Oskya. She would actually marry her husband some months later and as is the Letrossi tradition, officially take on the “Southern” name Hadley (although it had been used to refer to her before this). 

Their wedding night likely the only time the two of them had been truly alone during the entirety of their relationship. Oskyans are strict and restrictive. And the Ponsonby family has a history of misfortunes when it comes to the marriage bed (King Vadik not having a child or attempting it until 20 years in, King Niclas not being able to produce a surviving heir) and so it was rumored Queen Lukova took no chances and hired someone to watch the “proceedings”.

The validity of this challenged directly by Princess Hadley herself, who would ashamedly go on to talk about her wedding night and her nervous new husband who “did the deed with a little encouragement”.

Almost as if it was fated, Princess Hadley did not get along with Queen Lukova either who saw her new daughter-in-law as less than respectable. By this age, Princess Hadley was unabashed, loud, a drinker, and always spoke her thoughts. She would often let slip something rude and vulgar during dinners or meetings. She would “secretly” drink Letrossi mead (when all alcohol is forbidden in Oska Paltrosken). She would run off with her hunting dogs and live in a tent for a few days (something she would do especially during pregnancies as it scared the hoard of maids and midwives Queen Lukova had to spy on her)

But much to both of their surprise, this did not bother the often stern Prince Aayden. The two quickly took to each other. They would go on long hunting trips, ice fishing, and would seek her counsel. Early into their marriage, King Vadik would take a large step back from being present in governing Oskya, locking himself away in his own chambers and leaving his country and its duties to his wife and son. Prince Aayden would share much of this responsibility with Princess Hadley, especially during his trips away from Oskya or the capital. 

Princess Hadley did not shy away from this. While not well-versed (but not by ignorance) in court etiquette, she became hooked with exerting power. Although she was often challenged (and at one time, it’s rumored almost killed) by Queen Lukova, this would change once the couple started having children. Something few of Aayden’s predecessors had been able to (or as willing) to do before him. 

And they took great delight in it. Although not an expected match, Princess Hadley quickly found herself fond of Prince Aayden and the honesty and respect they reserve for once another. Often seeing each other as the only true allies in the deceitful and deadly inner palace of Oska Paltrosken. They do not exchange flowery words and certainly don’t throw around the “L” word, but they have moved onto pet names and only threaten each other jokingly. Which is probably the warmest relationship Oskya has seen in decades. 

During the events of Of Vipers and Saints, Princess Hadley and Prince Aayden have three daughters and Princess Hadley has set her position as an important figure in Oskyan politics by speaking on her husband’s war council and routinely pissing off ambassadors, the Orthodox Santivian Consistory, and Queen Lukova (of course). But has also made herself irreplaceable as a symbol of their alliance with Letros and now as the mother of three Ponsonby princesses. Even if she is drunk 30% of the time.