~~~In the Tristain Royal Palace, July 13, 6141~~~
"You must be absolutely perfect, Your Highness." the old woman affixing a band to Henrietta's hair cooed as the princess shifted uncomfortably, looking to the side where her mother sat watching. "Your outfit is already lovely, but you have a tendency to wear your hair in that dreadfully messy style."
"Anne, I've always kept my look the same, it was fine when I was being coronated as heir apparent too." Henrietta complained, and the woman frowned, giving a light tug as she pulled the strands to cover the band, meant to be structural rather than decorative.
"You were a child then, but now, you're a fully fledged adult yourself. You must make a good impression, not just on your citizens, but on Germania as well."
"Mother, is this really necessary? I know that it has to be formal, but I've already rehearsed this so many times with Andriy that it'll confuse him to see me dressed up so much when I was in my normal outfit the other times. You know how he is, he can't handle surprises well."
Marianne smiled, crossing her hands together in her lap. "Lord Andriy may be easily startled, but he isn't a fool. He's been groomed as a Vindabona since his birth, he knows how the ceremony will function. You only have to bear with it for three days, and then you can go back to normal." The woman tilted her head, humming as she frowned. "I know it's difficult to grieve for Wales without anyone noticing, but it's time to move on. That couldn't have worked out, even if you were not cousins, since-"
"Mother. I know." The princess' face changed to a forced smile, ignoring the servant checking her over. "The Tudors weren't innocent themselves, there are real reasons why a rebellion happened." She frowned, sighing as she shook her head, to Anne's annoyance as the woman chastised her before making the final adjustments she needed to determine that the princess looked presentable.
Marianne nodded, raising her arms to cross them over her chest. "You've publicly made your opinion known already, as your father was a Tudor and thus you are too, but Tristain is not capable of handling a full scale war without having any allies who are also interested in invading the island. Gallia have pledged manpower and weapons, but Germania are the force you will actually need to accomplish your war goals. I won't step in and give my thoughts because I always allowed your father to handle the decisions, and you have certainly inherited his tactical genius, but as someone who has experience in politics as well as fighting against a rebellion myself, what you need is not emotional strength, but simply military power. Anti-royalist factions will not disappear if they aren't crushed."
Anne backed up, waving her hands happily beside her head as she nodded. "You're look stunning, Your Highness." she said, turning her head to the queen. "If His Majesty were still alive, he would be proud. Don't you agree?"
Marianne nodded, giving a small smile to the servant. "I do. Thank you, Anne, I will take over from here. You may go."
The old woman nodded, backing away to leave the mother and daughter alone in the room as Marianne stood up, walking to rest her hand on Henrietta's shoulder and make eye contact, her eyes narrowed with a serious expression.
"You can hardly be called a girl anymore, you've been a woman for years now. Ever since you first met Louise, you've been someone who knew what she wanted and was smart enough to plan for it. However, you have a different role now. You will be wielding the full power of our country, so you can't let your emotions get the better of you. Tristain has the Council for a reason, heed Cardinal Mazarin's advice and my experience, and stop that constant sneaking out and running around the city in disguise. You're an important noble, as well as a beautiful woman who will attract attention." She frowned, and Henrietta smiled, reaching an arm to bat away the hand resting on her shoulder and step back, flicking her wrist to pull her fingers through her hair and undo the band Anne had put in, allowing her hair to return to its normal shape.
"I know what you're saying, and you don't need to worry about my handling Andriy." she stated, laughing. "He is an orc, but he isn't as tall as many and is certainly not capable of taking the lead, plus he's close to my age. Of course, I'd rather be able to pick my husband for myself, but I'm fully capable of settling for the good of Tristain's survival."
Marianne sighed, but nodded in approval at her daughter's reasoning. "I was fortunate to fall in love with a man who was legitimate to begin with, but it is more typical for something like this to happen. If you had chosen someone eligible earlier, you would have had more options, but…"
"I only had eyes for Wales, and you know I never really thought about marriage. I never really considered that Father wouldn't be a long reigning ruler…"
The queen consort frowned, stepping forward to wrap her arms around Henrietta, who smiled and returned the embrace, patting her back reassuringly. "For my father to be assassinated, followed by yours only three decades later...Even though the public will only be told that it was a sickness, what misfortune, it's almost as if the King is cursed."
"You know I don't believe in those superstitions, it was just coincidence." Henrietta said as the two separated, and she laced her fingers together in front of her, tilting her head as she closed her eyes in a wide grin. "And now, there's a lot more strong people than there were back then. 'L'ère du renouveau', isn't that what Duke Erikson called it?"
Her mother nodded, reaching to tap her chin. "A thousand years ago, Square-class was a classification for legendary figures, and Chevalier Style was in its early research, but now, both are more common and mages are growing as a collective every day. Duke Erikson didn't coin that phrase, that came back when the Milan dynasty still ruled Tristain." The woman smiled, shaking her head. "One of their descendants coming back to become one of those figures, and then there's the return of Gandalfr and the void after having vanished for so long. You have a talent for bringing people to you."
Henrietta laughed, waving off the notion. "Neither Agnes nor David came to where they are now because of me. If anything, it was Enjya who brought Agnes here, and David...Well, Louise was the one who inherited void. I can't say I did anything but bring those two to meet each other."
"You've been very keen on making him a special person even when you first met him." Marianne stated. "Even though your father and I were well aware you didn't see him romantically and only looked towards Wales, we still pressed when we first met him. You know why Henri did that, don't you?"
"I just thought it was one of his jokes, he liked to give even other nobles nicknames, so that 'King of Commoners' thing was also an empty promise, wasn't it?"
"You were only ever exposed to his childish side, but Henri was a cunning man. I'm sure that even back then, he knew that boy you'd discovered would be something unique, and perhaps he expected him to eventually become a noble himself. Unfortunately, he still has yet to earn Karin's approval, and I know how restrictive her standards are." She tapped her chin, a small smile playing on her face. "Hmm, but it is possible that, as a Furst, he is eligible for marriage to Agnes, don't you think? They are six years apart, but he acts older than he is."
Henrietta's nose crinkled at the thought, and she quickly shook her head. "Agnes isn't interested in marriage, and David's still not aware enough of our system to be talking about arrangements yet, especially since he isn't bound to any existing family name. Besides...Isn't it bad luck to talk about someone else's potential wedding when I'm in my own marriage outfit?"
The queen chuckled, reaching to rub her head and further mess up the meticulous effort the old woman had put into making her hair look nice. "I thought you didn't believe in superstition?"