#*❀ verse; arranged marriage ft. uncrvwned

[blossomhcir]

HOUSE OF THE DRAGON STARTERS; ACCEPTING  @uncrvwned​​ asked  ❛ we haven’t spoke much…since… ❜  ( From Edmure )

“No… We haven’t.” If the Lady of Sweetgrove had seemed distracted, it was because she was thinking about the night in question. She had been the entire time they walked in silence together, unsure of what she should say. She glanced back at the maids tasked with chaperoning their walk in through the godswood before she said more. They were chatting amongst themselves, only paying the couple occasional glances. With the impending wedding they seemed satisfied that they had reached the near end with only a chaste courtship. Blissfully unaware.

 That night had found her restless, unable to sleep. The air of complacency seemed to be the consensus that had settled over Riverrun and she found it easier than she'd imagined to make her way to Edmure’s chambers. Her intention had been only to talk, hopeful that more time with her betrothed would give her the peace to finally sleep. They had talked, for a long while in fact. It had been Adelaide who kissed him, cutting Edmure short as he spoke. She couldn’t be certain what exactly it was that compelled her in the moment. It could have been the way he spoke, full of charm and life. Perhaps it was his smile or the way he looked at her with his almost too blue eyes that made her heart race in a way that thrilled her when she held his eye. If given the chance Adelaide believed she could list a hundred reasons why she felt so compelled, but they all totaled to the simple fact that she wanted to kiss him. 

She supposed it surprised both of them how eagerly she responded, to his kisses, to his touch. She could understand if he thought her too demure, she had given him little reason to think otherwise, but when he pulled her closer she responded emphatically. The wanting came in waves, crashing over her in a way that made her shiver despite how overheated her skin felt. Wanting to be closer to him, wanting to feel his hands on her, wanting him. Desire made her bolder, and it had been Adealide who had undone the ties to her nightdress to slide it from her body. A silent reassurance for him that Adelaide had no intention of denying him, or herself. She did sleep well that night, but not in her own bed. 

“I want you to know that I’m not usually so easily lost to passions. Which isn’t to say I lack passion, just- I never-” She cut herself off, gathering her thoughts before speaking again. Her voice was quiet so as to not be overheard, but laced with a soft affection. “What I mean to say is that our time together was very special to me, because it was shared with you. I’ve found myself very taken with you, Edmure, and I’m glad those moments were for us alone. ” 

Though she had never intended for things to transpire in the manner they had, she truly was glad for it. It gave her an unexpected peace for their first intimacies to have been something private instead of during a bedding. An experience only for the two of them, even if it had to remain their secret. There was intimacy in that too, another thing shared only between them. “I only hope that your opinion of me hasn’t been changed. While I don’t regret it, I know it wasn’t behavior befitting a lady. Especially one you might take to wife.”

[blossomhcir]

ARRANGED MARRIAGE STARTERS ; ACCEPTING  @uncrvwned​ asked  ❛  You will learn to love. You have to be determined to grow a love that will sustain your marriage for a lifetime.  ❜ ( From Catelyn )

Family. Duty. Honor. 

The words of House Tully had been on her mind since the arrangement for her betrothal to Edmure had been decided on. Words that would soon be hers too. The Lady of Sweetgrove found them apt for this engagement. This was a wedding of duty, to bring their families together. She had been able to put on a convincing act of acceptance to her own father, as dearly as she loved him it had always been too easy to convince him she was happy. Why shouldn’t she be after all? This was a better match than she could have hoped for herself, some would say too good for her. Here between the two ladies, however, it was harder to hide her nervousness from the blue eyes of Lady Catelyn.   

“It’s silly, I know, but I had always hoped I would be in love before I was wed. It’s hard to let that hope go.” Adelaide’s fingers worried over the loose hair at her shoulder, smoothing the strands and herself. A habit she thought she’d broken herself of as a young girl.   

She had seen her own parent’s marriage in action. They had not been in love when they were married, but over the years she had seen the sense of friendship and care bloom between them. Douglas had always loved Esther more than she did him, and everyone knew it. It was that knowledge that Esther had never truly been happy at Sweetgrove that haunted her. Wasn’t that why she had always yearned for more? To have someone who wanted her, loved her, before they were married, not some prisoner shackled to her by obligation. Adelaide wasn’t sure she could bear the thought of a husband who resented her or worse still, that she may resent any children they had together as her own mother had.

Though, the Lady Stark’s words rang true there. Perhaps her mother had never been so determined to cultivate love in her marriage. What had grown there had been in spite of her lack of nurturing and if Adelaide were determined enough she could make this union a loving one. “If you would give me the kindness of your honesty, Lady Catelyn, do you think your brother’s heart would be open to building a love not of his choosing? Perhaps that could become my new hope.”