Hello once more. I am writing a story about a 13th-century civil war in a fictional country called Cavallia. The war has been going on for seventy years and comes to an end around the 1280s, when the book is set. It's kind of inspired by the Wars of the Roses. It began when one of the most important noble families in Cavallia, the House of Vauquelin, felt that they had been improperly rewarded for their years of service when the King died. In revenge, the then-patriarch (who's long-dead by the time the story starts), decides to use the instability created by the new King's minority to make a bid for the throne, with the argument that when he founded the country two centuries ago, the first King of Cavallia simply decided he was King - so why couldn't they? They did not believe the King or his descendants, the House of Babineaux, were chosen by God (an important requirement for the King at the time), so anyone could just become King. Most of the other noble families pitched in on whichever side they thought would yield the most rewards, and so began a seventy-year battle for the throne. The story is told from the perspective of the new King's niece, Alienor (who is eighteen), and it begins when the home of one of the leading members of the Vauquelin family is attacked and his wife and two daughters, Marguerite and Isabella, (aged seventeen and thirteen) are brought to Court as prisoners. The new King, Jean, (the grandson of the minor King) is kind to them, putting them in their own chambers in the palace instead of a cell and occasionally visiting them, sometimes bringing Alienor with him, but they are still prisoners and they are not allowed to leave (and they therefore don't enjoy all of the privileges court life brings). I still haven't worked out all the details of the plot, but there will be battles, and a lot of political manoeuvring in the hopes of securing the freedom of the three prisoners (and also other, more minor prisoners in less agreeable conditions). Jean often confides in Alienor about said manoeuvring since they have a close relationship and he finds her to be a good listener, but, this being the 13th century, she doesn't have any influence due to her gender, so Jean doesn't expect her to fully understand or offer solutions. This means, however, that Alienor will be in the loop about what's going on and able to note it all down in the story. So, to get to the point (finally), in the end the Babineaux thoroughly trounce the Vauquelin in battle and capture or kill enough family members and supporters that they surrender. In an attempt to bring unity, Jean decides to marry Marguerite, by now aged eighteen, in order to merge their lines, and declares that their children will have the name Babineaux-Vauquelin. In addition, he was claiming ownership of their name and coat-of-arms in order to make sure the Vauquelin stayed defeated. (Executing large amounts of those involved in the fighting was also helpful.) However, he was not too ruthless and only executed those who had been onto the battlefield or directly involved in political plots - no innocent Vauquelin women or children were sent to their deaths. So he's (hopefully) been established as a strong but fair ruler, but Marguerite is terrified of him and doesn't particularly want to marry him. (I was thinking he was in his mid-late twenties, so not old enough to be her grandfather, but still a lot older than her.) I want this to have a happy ending, but I don't see how. I kind of like to think about how all these events would be written about in a history book, and so I'd already decided that from their letters and diaries (such as the one kept by Alienor), historians could gather that Jean was always kind to Marguerite and she eventually grew to be very fond of him, but I can't portray that immediately after the news breaks that they're getting married. How can I make this ending sound happy when it's merely better than Marguerite was expecting and won't be happy for many years?
First, don't underestimate the power of women in history. They may not have had the legal authority to proclaim laws or issue orders, but access to the ruler is a very valuable thing, and the right word in the right ear can make a lot of difference. Just look at Lady Macbeth. And if he's in his twenties and she's seventeen, she's kind of lucked out. Even now (if we upped her to eighteen) that sort of an age gap wouldn't raise too many eyebrows. He could find out that she's a lot smarter than he thought she would be and come to rely on her advice, which would make her feel more valuable and possibly even come to love him in due course. Or there's good old Stockholm Syndrome
You could take a look at arranged marriages. The people in the marriage made it work because they knew they had to. This was going to be their marriage and they were going to love each other, even in they had just met. I dont know if that helps any, but there you go. Might wanna do more research about it, I'm not an expert or anything so...
What is the reason for the happy ending? It helps to understand what you want this part of the story to accomplish.
Which characters are we meant to be invested in? If I am meant to be attached to her and rooting for her, if the ending isn't happy for Marguerite then it will be disappointing for me. You say he goes to visit her, how often? Wouldn't that be sufficient time to develop some kind of pre-romantic feelings? Maybe there is something that she confided in him, something special to her, and he presents it to her on the day he proposes/announces their betrothal?
Thanks for your responses. The issue is that the announcement of the betrothal comes at the end of the story, and I don't want them to fall in love or anything. I want a happy ending pretty much because I like happy endings. I like feeling we've accomplished something at the end of a story. So I'm trying to balance realism with optimism. Political marriages (arranged marriages) were of course the norm among royalty at the time, and the couple didn't necessarily love each other: they just did their jobs as husband and wife. I don't really want to go the Romeo and Juliet route. We're mostly rooting for the Babineaux side (so Alienor and Jean), but also Marguerite and her mother and sister. So I want to show that even though Marguerite is afraid of Jean (he has just had large numbers of her family executed, after all), she's going to be OK and she won't be miserable for the rest of her life.
I think you have gotten good advice from all posters before me. So this is partly covered. You need not have romance, it’s enough with respect and a shown will from him to make this work. Show that he respects her (no sex before marriage?) Show that he values her opinion. Show that he is willing to compromise when they have different opinions. Show that he sees her as queen and that they will govern together. (show that he thinks she is beautiful) And of course show that she understands those things and takes them to her heart. Your readers will, with joy, add the romance that will come after a few years.
