“You do not seem particularly excited to meet your wife,” the Empress said, with a wry smile.

“I am still not sure that I should be,” the young man said. He was wearing Imperial Military dress uniform in a pilot’s blue, with two brass squares on his collar. He had six ribbons pinned to his chest, but none of them stood out. Indeed, if one didn’t know who he was, one might simply see a reasonably handsome Junior Crewmate, and think no more about it.

Of course, if one recognized the Dauphin of Tannhauser, they were quite likely to rush over and begin a conversation. Prince Tiernan was the most eligible bachelor in the Empire – well, one of the two most eligible bachelors, now that Chyuri Tarsuss had turned eighteen – and he was not betrothed to anyone.

At least, that was the official story. But in the last month, his mother had let him know that she was strongly leaning toward selecting a partner for him. Tiernan wasn’t surprised, except for the partner that had been mooted.

“She is by all accounts smart and pretty, Tiernan,” said Empress Lorihar. “And I know, you’ve hinted more than once that if I must marry you off, you want it to be to a woman; honestly, I probably would have. Your grandmother always said that negotiations get tricky with same-sex partners; some houses are dead-set on getting their genes into the bloodline. As if those genes aren’t already there thanks to some marriage a few generations back. Anyhow, you could be doing a lot worse.”

“Is that how you ended up with dad?”

“Your father was a much better result than I had feared, Tiernan. And I know what you have said, for many years; neither of us is unhappy. Marriage is a partnership. It is not always a partnership built on love for each other, but there must be respect. Your father and I respect each other, and your father and I share a deep love for you and Arnealle. That is enough for both of us. From what I know of Rajenlief, she will be quite a bit better than you fear, too.”

Tiernan sighed as the shuttlecraft began its sharp descent. “I’m not saying anything about the woman, I don’t know her at all. That’s…part of the problem. I figured you’d push me into a marriage with one of the 79, and I know most of those people. As long as you weren’t trying to hook me up with Chyuri Tarsuss, I was okay with it.”

“What’s wrong with Chyuri?”

“Nothing, he was always pleasant at school, just don’t want the headache of having to deal with the never-ending Tarsuss family drama.”

“I have bad news for you then; that’s going to be a major part of your life whether you want it to be or not. I’ve been holding Erisego’s hand throughout my reign; you’ll be holding Chyuri’s throughout yours. If you live long enough, you’ll probably be holding his kid’s hand at some point.”

“Lovely.”

“The Tarsuss family is very powerful. My hope is that Chyuri will be a bit less scattered than Erisego. He seems bright. But we are off on a tangent, my son; I am proposing you marry a daughter of one of the seventy-nine families. I am not sure then why you are complaining.”

“I don’t know much about her,” Tiernan said. “You know the Jotunn. They are part of the Empire, but…I’ve crossed paths with most of the noble families. But I’ve met Rajenlif once, when we were both eleven. For about five minutes. She’s lived her life here, I’ve lived mine in the rest of the Empire…what do we have in common?”

* * *

“I still worry about what we’ll talk about,” Rajenlif said as she watched the shuttle descending. “I doubt he’s even had med.”

“Well then, you should offer him some,” said Dronung Hirera.

“I’ve heard that aemets don’t like it.”

“He’s not an aemet, and drop that language now. Unless you want him to call you a blueface.”

Rajenlif sighed heavily. “I’m not saying he’s a bad person. I don’t know him, ydni. I’ve met him once, when we visited Tuaut. He seemed okay, but we were both kids. He hasn’t spent time in Jotnarherath, and I’ve spent almost my entire life here. I don’t want him to take me for some kind of bumpkin if I don’t know which fork the Aementi use when they’re having water instead of mek.”

“I know you know all those court protocols, you’ve passed those tests with flying colors. What’s really bothering you? It can’t be that I’m arranging a marriage; you’ve known that would happen your entire life.”

As the shuttle neared the pad, Rajenlif said, “I’m worried that if I marry him…then I end up going off to the Empire. And leave Jotnarherath behind. And that I become an accessory to the Emperor, instead of the Dronung of my people.”

Hirera nodded. “Well, good. The best way to ensure you do not is to worry that you might. Now, stand up straight, Raja. Make a good impression for our people.”

The shuttle touched down, and the door to it opened. Two Imperial officers in full regalia stepped off, stepped to either side, and saluted as Lorihar stepped off the ship; Tiernan walked very slightly behind her.

Now, those of you reading this know that Tiernan and Rajenlif went on to become not just partners, but a couple that was, truly, in love with each other. You may expect that when they laid eyes on one another that they were instantly smitten. That does happen – Ted Martínez and Tig Belfsec will tell you that – but it isn’t commonplace. And it did not happen here. Oh, both Tiernan and Rajenlif could see the other was attractive, but they’d seen pictures, they knew that already. Attractiveness was not novel to either of them. They had no shortage of attractive people who were interested in meeting them – after all, Rajenlif was quite as eligible a bachelorette as Tiernan was a bachelor.

No, the first thing Rajenlif noticed was not that Tiernan was the light of her life unveiled, but rather that unlike his mother, Tiernan had eschewed a crown. He hadn’t even put on a diadem. Tiernan had, conversely, noted that while Rajenlif was certainly dressed well, she was not in fancy dress. Indeed, she had chosen a reasonably sensible outfit with slacks, rather than some sort of poofy court gown. Both heirs were not entirely sure whether this was a sign that the other did not want to put on airs, or a sign of disrespect.

“Your Imperial Majesty, welcome to Jutuneim,” Hirera said, stepping forward and reaching out her hand.

“High-Born Hirera, thank you for your hospitality,” Lorihar said, grasping her wrist in turn. As they had for twelve generations, they greeted each other respectfully, but Hirera did not bow to her, not here, an honor granted to only this one person, among all of her subjects.

Indeed, the Empress gave the Dronung a very slight smile, because this was the only place in the Empire where she would make this move first.

“High Born-Hirera, I would present my son, the Dauphin of Tannhauser, Crewmate Tiernan ColVanos.”

Even knowing that it was coming, it felt weird to Tiernan; many, many people had presented daughters and sons to his mother. She had never presented him to anyone. But he still stepped forward, came to full attention, executed a perfect salute, waited patiently for Hirera to return it, then bowed to her.

“Your Imperial Highness,” Hirera said, “it pleases me that you do not just wear the uniform of the Space Exploration Corps, but that you have not shirked your duty to defend our lands. I see that you have seen action on the Drazari border.”

“High-Born Hirera, many others have done far more than I have been able to do. I am simply glad that I have been able to serve.”

Hirera nodded; she had heard that the young prince had his head on straight. Maybe he did, maybe he didn’t, but he could clearly act the part. “Crewmate ColVanos, I should like to introduce you to my daughter, Princess Rajenlif.”

Tiernan did not bow to Rajenlif, but held out his hand, and let her take his wrist. She looked him in the eye, and grasped his wrist firmly. “Well-Born Rajenlif, I am honored to meet you again.”

“Your Imperial Highness, welcome to Jutuneim,” Rajenlif said. He kept his gaze level with hers; that was unusual. Most people were constantly looking off, a bit nervous about dealing with the princess. It was a nice change of pace.

“Your Imperial Majesty,” Hirera said, “I understand we have much to discuss about the bicentennial of reunification.”

“Indeed we do,” Lorihar said. “Including thoughts from my advisers about how we can finesse our joint declaration to keep the usual complaints to a minimum.”

“Mine had some good suggestions as well. You would think that we could all accept that both sides saw things differently, that we’ve had two hundred years to get over it, but….”

“There are still people who think we should view the conquest of Dunnermac as something that was good in the long run. I am not sure how it is that they think this, but they do. And people will listen to them, sadly.”

“And there are still people who think that if we admit that at one time, the Empire saw Jotnerherath as a rebellious province – which if we are honest, we were – that it somehow means we didn’t run our affairs largely on our own for a few centuries.”

“Which you did, and did quite well,” Lorihar said. She smiled to Hirera; this next bit was kabuki, but it was the kind of kabuki that has been practiced in many cultures for as long as hominids have existed. “I do fear that Tiernan will not want to slog through these negotiations with us, as he will be a spectator to them. I hope you do not take offense if I ask if someone can show him around the palace grounds? They are always spectacular the first time you see them.”

“I am always delighted to have a new visitor shown around our lovely woods and lake. Rajenlif will, I’m sure, be happy to show him.”

Rajenlif and Tiernan shot each other a look, and in that moment…they didn’t fall in love. But they did sense that the other was just as uncomfortable with this whole situation as they were. And in that moment, they knew that they may not have a friend, or a lover.

But they may have an ally.

* * *

It was about five minutes into their walk that Tiernan finally broke the silence.

“I will confess,” he said, “that I am a bit out of practice speaking first.”

“Oh?” Rajenlif said.

“Yes,” Tiernan replied. “It seems as if any social interaction these days is someone introducing themselves to me a bit too aggressively.”

“Your Jotnar is good, but I’m not sure you meant to say ‘aggressively.’ In Jotnar, it implies aggression. And I feel certain someone who tried to approach you in anger would find themselves stunned.”

Tiernan chuckled. “I’ve been learning Jotnar since I was seven, and I still stumble over little differences like that.”

“I’m impressed you’re speaking it at all. The stereotype of Aementi is that you do not speak any other languages without translator assistance.”

“First, I am not Aementi; the House of ColVanos is more Ankelan and Melpoman than Aementi. And second…the stereotype is unfortunately not wrong. There are still far too many on Archavia who think that it is a severe inconvenience that the Dunnermac and Avartle will not speak untranslated Archavian, despite the fact that they literally cannot. Fortunately, my mother has said since I was little that I needed to know Jotnar, and try to learn Lerish, and at least learn to read Avartle and Dunnermac. The last two…I do still struggle with them, but my Lerish is almost not entirely terrible; Commander G’vsdqnh says it’s ‘dafwef guz’dk lr!,’ or ‘approaching gloriously mediocre,’ which I take as a high compliment.”

“That almost sounded like Lerish, so I should think so. I’ve poured all my language studies into Archavian,” Rajenlif said, switching over. “I have got it polished to a point where I’m told I sound like a translation bot, which means, I know, that I don’t speak it naturally.”

Tiernan shrugged, and continued on in Jotnar. “Nobody sounds natural when they’re trying for Standard Galactic; truly, nobody actually speaks Standard Galactic. Every non-Jotnar Titan thinks they speak Standard Galactic, and everyone else speaks some weird dialect, but the truth is that there are too many of us spread over too many systems – everyone is saying something that is grammatically off, everyone is pronouncing something a bit wrong. The main purpose of Standard Galactic is to have a reference point to keep everyone’s dialects from drifiting out of reach – and I’m not sure the Depths won’t do so anyhow. As for you, you don’t have an accent in it, which is good – people will understand you, and if you sound a bit ‘off,’ that won’t distinguish you from a Grelauan. I, unfortunately, have both a Tuaut accent in Archavian, and a bad Ankelan accent in Jotnar. I appreciate you not mentioning it.”

Rajenlif smiled. “You speak fluent Jotnar. Criticizing you for speaking it with an accent would be rude. And speaking of rude…our mothers’ charade fooled everyone, I’m sure.”

Tiernan chuckled. “Yes, well, I doubt my mother cared if anyone was fooled. How do you feel about it?”

Rajenlif shook her head. “I’m still not sure, to be honest. Which has nothing to do with you; I don’t know you. You seem pleasant enough.”

“High praise indeed,” Tiernan said. “But I do understand. For the record, and I think it’s important for me to say this now – if you object to what they’re attempting to do with us, then I will too.”

“And if I don’t object?” Rajenlif said.

“You don’t?”

“I do and I don’t,” Rajenlif said. “At least…I’m kind of unsure about it. It’s one thing to be told that your marriage will be arranged, it’s another to find that it’s being arranged. From what I know about you, I could do much worse, but there is still something about being told who you’ll marry that seems…well, confining.”

“Thank you. Exactly my point. I have no objections to you; it’s the situation that is difficult. Not that the endless parade of people trying to convince me to elope is better.”

“Ugh, you get them too?” Rajenlif said. “I’m not saying it’s not fun to take a cute knadlegr goalminder on up on a date and…other things. But you end up wondering….”

“Are they interested in dating me, or my crown?” Tiernan finished. “Yes. And in my experience….”

“It’s the crown,” they said together, and laughed.

They walked on in quiet, down a trail into the old growth woods. “This is lovely. I had heard the palace grounds were almost wilderness…but you know how these things get exaggerated. It was not in this case.”

“I love it here,” Rajenlif said.

“I can understand why,” Tiernan said. “There is still a bit of the retreat left at the Palace of the Rising Sun, but most of the retreat is Tuaut now. And while Tuaut is certainly a busy and interesting place…there is much to be said for simply going out and realizing that all our grand buildings still lag behind what nature can create.”

“More than that,” Rajenlif said. “Dronung Throdr, it is said, walked in these woods as she contemplated whether to abdicate. Dronung Vanos walked these paths as she worried about the Drazari. And long after I have lived and died…well…I hope that my descendants will still walk these paths.”

“Why would they not…ah, I see,” Tiernan said. “You’re worried if they have you marry me that I’ll pull you away to Tuaut and keep you there. And I understand that worry. But do not worry. If this happens, I will spend a great deal of time on Jutuneim. And given the beauty of these woods, I will be happy to.”

“That will not be easy, with the legislature in Tuaut.”

“It will take some work, but I am not someone who wants ‘easy,’ and I suspect that you are the same. You dressed well today, but not so well that you could not take a walk in the woods. We could have had this conversation over a med, but you wanted to make the effort to show me this. At least, I suspect that this walk was your plan?”

Rajenlif paused, and looked at Tiernan. “It was. How did you know?”

“You had your speech ready,” Tiernan said. “You wanted me to see these woods when we talked. You wanted me know that if I marry you, I do not just marry you. I marry Jotnarherath. That you will still be responsible for these lands, and that our children…our children will need to know that these woods are still theirs. Always. They will need to walk these woods themselves. They will need to truly know that the Palace of the Three Shaars is as much their home as the Palace of the Rising Sun. And as I said, I will stand with you if you do not want to marry me – I do not want either of us to face that alone – but if we do marry, then I will do everything within my power to ensure that our children never forget that Jutuneim is their home, and that they are Jotunn as much as they are Imperial.”

Rajenlif looked carefully at Tiernan. “You really mean that, don’t you?”

“I do,” Tiernan said. “You love your people. You would sacrifice much, but never them. I worried that you and I would not have much in common. I was completely wrong to worry. I….”

Tiernan stopped, only because Rajenlif had rather forcefully kissed him, and it was impossible to speak for the length of that moment. That precise moment, the moment they had fallen in love.

When they came up for air, Rajenlif said. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

“That we need to be careful not to let on that they chose very, very well?” Tiernan asked.

“Exactly that,” Rajenlif said.