How it Begins:
They meet at the most discussed event of the year, if not the century: the wedding of Her Highness Princess Katniss and His Highness Crown Prince Peeta, meant to unite their warring countries, Seamlyn and Merchantra, and usher in a new era of peace, but Katniss's cousin, His Highness Crown Prince Gale, is wary of sending his beloved cousin into this country, alone, and Her Highness Princess Margaret (Madge), cousin of Peeta, fears for the type of woman that her cousin will share his bed with, and under these mutual suspicions Gale and Madge immediately loathe each other.
They dance together, once, because they are required to, and Gale expects a flighty, empty-headed girl, as is the reputation in Seamlyn of Merchantra's youth, but he stumbles in the dance steps when instead, the sapphire-eyed princess asks a nuanced, specific question about the new treaty signed between Seamlyn and Merchantra, just earlier that month, and he is stunned, then flustered, and then defensive— three of his worst sides, and a simple question, though told with gleaming blue eyes, quickly becomes a heated debate, and it's only when Katniss and Peeta themselves intervene does the wedding manage to continue without bloodshed.
"I'm glad I don't have to see him anymore," Madge mutters much later, thinking herself to be alone, but quickly learns otherwise when a slight laugh huffs in her ear— she turns and sees Katniss, her favorite cousin's new wife, with a slight, amused smile on her face: "I'm Gale's favorite cousin," Katniss explains, "so he told me to expect him to unexpectedly visit often, just to make sure my new husband treats me well," and maybe in the recesses of Madge's chest her heart begins to pound in anticipation, but aloud she simply groans.
*Originally posted as Chapter Sixteen in my "Across the Universe(s)" series as a 3-sentence fic prompt.