Why come ye not to court?
May. 9th, 2013 09:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
marycatelliPlugging along at the outline, the heroine returns to the court where she had just arrived in the opening -- and left soon after -- and the queen is telling her that her departure means that she can not receive something. . . .
And the muse starts to fuss about the notion of why she arrived at court when she did, and not a month, let alone years, earlier.
I knew that she arrived somewhat older than ordinary -- girls could come to court as young as fourteen, and while she can be twenty, she will hit twenty-one within a few months. I knew it had something to do with her father, who had come to the land for some reason, and did not entirely approve, and perhaps sequestered her in the countryside. (Perhaps he even came from the fortress on the borders, after being wounded.) But then, why did she end up in court anyway? Not because she hated the country, because she didn't, which is important for the plot.
Come to think of that, how was she supported growing up, and whence came the money to support her at court? Perhaps she came into an inheritance. Can't have been a close relative, since she has long been a sibling-less orphan, but the ties of blood go very far here. Or perhaps a distant relative decides to try some match-making. Perhaps a bride of his family died, and a more distant one is needed. But it still raises the question of where the money was coming from as she grew up. It is not a land of trust funds. Though a distant relative may have supported her, and regards as a reason to summon her.
The easy part would be taking away any property of hers. The oath she took would allow the queen to remove it on the grounds of no longer having her allegiance. It will not entirely please the queen that her reaction is oh, yes, of course. . . .
And the muse starts to fuss about the notion of why she arrived at court when she did, and not a month, let alone years, earlier.
I knew that she arrived somewhat older than ordinary -- girls could come to court as young as fourteen, and while she can be twenty, she will hit twenty-one within a few months. I knew it had something to do with her father, who had come to the land for some reason, and did not entirely approve, and perhaps sequestered her in the countryside. (Perhaps he even came from the fortress on the borders, after being wounded.) But then, why did she end up in court anyway? Not because she hated the country, because she didn't, which is important for the plot.
Come to think of that, how was she supported growing up, and whence came the money to support her at court? Perhaps she came into an inheritance. Can't have been a close relative, since she has long been a sibling-less orphan, but the ties of blood go very far here. Or perhaps a distant relative decides to try some match-making. Perhaps a bride of his family died, and a more distant one is needed. But it still raises the question of where the money was coming from as she grew up. It is not a land of trust funds. Though a distant relative may have supported her, and regards as a reason to summon her.
The easy part would be taking away any property of hers. The oath she took would allow the queen to remove it on the grounds of no longer having her allegiance. It will not entirely please the queen that her reaction is oh, yes, of course. . . .