*comment ñáéç *temp gown1color *set samesex false *advertisement *label Hair The next few days meander past. Nothing of note occurs, except for the arrival of your Uncle Pedro and Aunt Leonor for your coming-of-age ball. Your uncle is in fact financing the ball, with money gained from a recent successful campaign abroad, or you wouldn't be having one at all. Your parents could certainly never afford it. Finally, your birthday arrives. Downstairs, your mother and father await the guests, talking with your aunt and uncle. Up in your pleasant, but plainly-furnished bedroom, your fourteen-year-old ${brother} ${Mateo} helps you dress for the party. Chattering without a pause for breath, ${Mateo} finishes tying all your laces. "There!" ${he} says. "Now you can look!" You turn to look at yourself in the glass–a very fine mirror indeed, one of the few remnants of your family's former glory. "You look splendid!" ${Mateo} declares. And indeed, you are quite pleased with what you see reflected. The rich color of your ${gown} complements your… Would you like to specify the color of your hair? *choice #Golden *set hair "golden" *goto Eyes #Brown *set hair "brown" *goto Eyes #Black *set hair "black" *goto Eyes #Auburn *set hair "auburn" *goto Eyes #No preference *temp randomhair *rand randomhair 1 4 *if randomhair = 1 *set hair "golden" *goto Eyes *elseif randomhair = 2 *set hair "brown" *goto Eyes *elseif randomhair = 3 *set hair "black" *goto Eyes *else *set hair "auburn" *goto Eyes *label Eyes And your eyes? *choice #Blue *set Eyes "blue" *goto Overall #Green *set Eyes "green" *goto Overall #Gray *set Eyes "gray" *goto Overall #Hazel *set Eyes "hazel" *goto Overall #Brown *set Eyes "brown" *goto Overall #Black *set Eyes "black" *goto Overall #No preference *temp randomeyes *rand randomeyes 1 6 *if randomeyes = 1 *set Eyes "blue" *goto Overall *elseif randomeyes = 2 *set eyes "green" *goto Overall *elseif randomeyes = 3 *set eyes "gray" *goto Overall *elseif randomeyes = 4 *set eyes "hazel" *goto Overall *elseif randomeyes = 5 *set eyes "brown" *goto Overall *else *set eyes "black" *goto Overall *label Overall You look at yourself in the mirror, admiring your new ${gown}. It is made of silk, in a *if hair = "golden" soft blue *goto Shade *elseif hair = "auburn" vibrant green *goto Shade *elseif hair = "brown" rich purple *goto Shade *elseif hair = "black" rich purple *goto Shade *label Shade shade that allows your thick ${hair} hair to be shown to best advantage, and edged with ribbon and lace that perfectly set off your ${eyes} eyes. *if sex = "female" Your mother has loaned you her wedding jewels, and they wink around your throat and in your hair. You feel like you have suddenly changed into someone completely different. *goto MateoClaps *elseif sex = "male" Your father has loaned you an emerald tiepin to fasten your cravat, and it winks at your throat. It makes you look suddenly much older. *goto MateoClaps *label MateoClaps ${Mateo} claps ${his} hands in delight. "Come on, ${given_name}! I can hear guests arriving! It's time to go downstairs!" *goto Preferance *label Preferance *page_break You stand with your mother and father, receiving guests and graciously accepting their best wishes. The guests are mostly families from nearby estates, plus a few friends of your parents' from farther away. Everyone looks most splendid, dressed in formal coats and beautiful gowns in a rainbow of colors. Everyone has a smile for you. Some of the adults look at you appraisingly–only to be expected as you are now considered to be of marriageable age–and many of the youngsters of your age try to flirt. You flirt back…but only a little, since your mother and Aunt Leonor are standing nearby. Oh, by the way, are you flirting with the young men or the young women? *choice #The young men. There are many handsome young men to flirt with. *set he_pref "he" *set his_pref "his" *set him_pref "him" *set don_pref "Don" *set he_pref_opp "she" *set his_pref_opp "her" *set him_pref_opp "her" *set gown_pref "coat" *set man_pref "man" *set men_pref "men" *set husband_pref "husband" *set hidalgo_pref "hidalgo" *set bows_pref "bows" *set king "King" *set queen "Queen Consort" *set agustin "Agustín" *set ines "Inés" *set carlos "Carlos" *set gabriel "Gabriel" *set luis "Luis" *set hm "His Majesty" *set gentleman_pref "gentleman" *set gentlemen_pref "gentlemen" *if sex = "male" *set monarch "King Consort" *set queen_same "King" *set samesex true *goto Ball *else *set monarch "Queen Consort" *set queen_same "Queen Consort" *goto Ball #The young women. There are many lovely young women to flirt with. *set he_pref "she" *set his_pref "her" *set him_pref "her" *set don_pref "Doña" *set he_pref_opp "he" *set his_pref_opp "his" *set him_pref_opp "him" *set man_pref "woman" *set men_pref "women" *set gown_pref "gown" *set husband_pref "wife" *set hidalgo_pref "hidalga" *set bows_pref "curtsies" *set king "Queen" *set queen "King Consort" *set agustin "Agustina" *set ines "Esteban" *set carlos "Carlota" *set gabriel "Gabriela" *set luis "Luis" *set hm "Her Majesty" *set gentleman_pref "lady" *set gentlemen_pref "ladies" *if sex = "male" *set monarch "King Consort" *set queen_same "King Consort" *goto Ball *else *set monarch "Queen Consort" *set samesex true *set queen_same "Queen" *goto Ball *label Ball You stand in the receiving line for what seems to be hours. Behind you, the guests circulate and talk, and snippets of gossip drift to your ears. "…did you hear about Don Alonso's youngest? Foolish girl, she turned down a most advantageous proposal last year–and it was her third Season at Court!" "What does she think to do now? She can't possibly offer a proposal to anyone; her parents cannot afford to set her up in her own household…" It is the way of things. One either courts or is courted. A youngster of sixteen or so is courted, generally by a well-established adult of twenty-five or thirty. Among the nobility, an eldest child is likely to have his or her own household, and seek to bring a husband or wife into it. Younger children are courted by others. There are exceptions, of course: wealthy parents may be able to provide all their children with sufficient inheritance to set up households, and poverty-stricken families–like yours–cannot even do it for their eldest. "I heard that she turned down that proposal because she had hopes of Doña Beatriz offering for her!" "Foolish indeed! Doña Beatriz has no money to support a wife!" "I heard that Beatriz's sister Eugenia is having a love affair with Don Carlos de Vargas…" "With Don Carlos? But he is a Life Mage, and she is a Death Mage! How shocking!" That, too, is the way of the world. There are Death Mage families and Life Mage families. One tends to marry within one's set. Except for the ${King}, of course. ${King} ${Agustin}, like all the Monarchs of Iberia, has married across mage lines. $!{He_pref} is a Death Mage, and ${his_pref} ${Queen} a Life Mage. This means their children are more likely to be Life Mages, and so a Life Mage will succeed a Death Mage to the throne. That has always been the way of things. Of course, it is only the way of things if the ${King} and ${Queen} succeed in producing an heir. "…I heard Their Majesties have lost another unborn child," you hear another thread of gossip start. "How dreadful!" It is dreadful. Their Majesties have only the one child, and she is a Death Mage. She cannot succeed to the throne. "I heard that the ${King} has commanded young Tomás de Reyes to be brought to Court…" Aunt Leonor clears her throat and changes the subject, reminding the speaker that there are youngsters listening. At last, your duties in the receiving line end. Now what? *fake_choice #I shall go and dance. #I see a group gossiping in the corner. I shall go and see if I can hear more about this Tomás de Reyes. #There is another group who appear to be discussing magic and other studies. I shall go and join them. I would rather do that than dance or gossip. You have taken only the first step when your uncle's voice booms out, calling for everyone's attention. "I wish to propose a toast!" he says. "In honor of my ${nephew}'s birthday!" There is a smattering of applause. Goblets are raised. "And I wish to make an announcement!" Uncle Pedro continues. He pauses to be sure he has the attention of the entire room, and then says, "I have been so fortunate as to receive the favor of our most gracious ${King}! In recognition of my service abroad, ${he_pref} has awarded me with a suite of rooms in the palace, and given me permission to bring my ${nephew} ${Given_name} to Court when the Season starts in the autumn. ${Given_name}, you shall have a proper Season after all." *page_break "I can manage a Season's worth of ${gown}s," he adds the following morning over breakfast, when it is just family again, "not more than that; you won't be able to return next year if you don't manage to find a spouse this year. But four months ought to be enough." "I am very grateful to you, Uncle," you say. "Only doing my best for the family," he replies, somewhat pompously. "And giving you the opportunity to do your best, in turn. Depending on whose eye you catch, you may be able to secure me a spot of influence commensurate with our family's honor, if not its recent fortunes." "Even if you can't do that," says your father, "a match with a suitor of means can improve our family's fortunes." "And secure your own comfort," says your mother. "And then after you are married, you can chaperone me when it is my turn to be presented at Court!" says ${Mateo}. What about you? What are you hoping to get out of this? *choice #Security. I want to make a good marriage with someone wealthy, so I don't have to worry about money any longer. *goto FairlySaid #Fun. I'll never have any here in the country! This is my only chance. *goto FairlySaid #True love. Surely among all those courtiers, there is someone destined for me, just like in a fairy tale… *goto FairlySaid #The chance to influence important decisions. *goto FairlySaid #Adventure! Nothing ever happens here, but things happen there! *goto FairlySaid #I don't want to go, actually. Then why are you? *choice #It's my one opportunity to make a good marriage, for my own comfort and security. *goto FairlySaid #It's my one opportunity to get somewhere I can carve out a life for myself. *goto FairlySaid #My duty to my family–particularly my younger siblings–demands that I take this opportunity to raise the family fortunes. *goto FairlySaid *label FairlySaid Fairly said. In any case, you are off to the capital with your uncle and aunt as soon as your clothing can be made. *finish