Disclaimer: No don't shoot. They don't belong to me, I just borrowed 'em.
Communication Lines : Raoul
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To King Jonathan of Conte,
Jon, I don't know what to say. I guess I'll start with thank you for your good wishes about my marriage. Yes, we did tell my aunt. She was disappointed that I had wed beneath my station, but decided that after all this time any wife was better than none. She seems to think that I will domesticate the wild K'mir barbarian. I do not think that it is likely, nor would I want to.
To that end, I don't think I will be able to comply with your request to restrain Buri. As you know, she is a strong woman with many ideas all her own. I have spoken to her about your letter, Jon. Somehow, a single line expressing regret that I will be losing one of my best officers, doesn't seem all that insedeous. I had not noticed the conquest being made of Captain Flyndan, but there it is. By next midwinter, I fully expect to lose him. Unless, of course, the law is changed.
That said, I do have a list of suggestions for how to revise the law that might help convince some conservative minds. I will send along the list.
Your friend,
Raoul of Goldenlake
List of recommended limitations for members of the Own to wed:
1. Only commissioned officers:
a. this allows for only those men truly dedicated to the service of the realm and within the Own
b. Limits the amount of common soldiers who could get entangled by maids who want out of a situation and are willing to trap a young man with pregnancy to do so
c. Limits quantity of men who use their service in the Own to make marriage connections (especially those whose parents want them to ''make a good match''
2. Must get written permission
a. Limits number of men who try to marry a girl in each town or marry in a drunken/lusty haze
b. Limits quantity of non-combatant dependants and the extra rations
3. Woman must be self sufficient and willing to take up certain support roles.
a. This may include: Camp/fort necessities such as cooking, mending, blacksmithing, carpentry, gardening, hunting, healing, etc.
b. Allows for women with combat experience (such as former Riders) to serve as rear guard and town/camp/fort defenses so that more men may move to key positions. These positions also
allow for protection of children/ healers
4. Limit number of children
a. Saves resources and limits dependant budget
b. Pick a number and stick with it. Couple may have more if one dies or they chose to muster out
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A/N: Yeah, yeah, getting rid of the marriage law is a tired subject. Since I'm not going to nix it all together, though, I thought I'd give my lovely readers some insight into my insanity.
I did some research and the changes to the ''law'' that I'm suggesting are actually gathered from similar changes made to England's military law starting in the mid 1700's and truly gathering steam in the Regency period. (Known to Americans as the war of 1812 era)