But then, you did not come here merely to inquire about my welfare, did you?
You came to speak of Michael.”
Aedan nodded. “It is true,” he said. “I must admit I am at a loss to understand him sometimes. I came
to you in search of guidance.”
“You are overwhelmed by the task of choosing a wife for him,” she said.
Aedan sighed. “You see straight to the heart of the matter. My wife has taken it upon herself to free me of the burden of the initial selection process, for which I thank the gods, but for the life of me, I just cannot imagine what sort of woman he would like.
Or would put up with him.”
“You know Michael much better than I do,” Raesa replied. “He comes to see me on occasion, but you have spent far more time with him than I.”
“True, but I lack the proper perspective when it comes to such matters,”
Aedan said. “And while a marriage can easily be arranged based upon a woman’s rank and social standing and ability to bear strong children, I would like, if possible, for it to be based on something more.
Compatibility, at least, or even love.”
Raesa smiled. “That is something neither you nor anyone else could guarantee,” she said. “Love cannot be planned. It may grow, under the right circumstances, but there is no predicting how or when. I came to care deeply for Hadrian over the years, but I was never in love with him. At least, not the sort of love a girl dreams of when she is young.
There was fondness and affection, but never any passion. And for love to exist, there must be passion, at least in the beginning. A greater, gentler sort of love may grow from passion as time passes, but it needs that seed from which to sprout. If that is what you hope to accomplish, and not merely a marriage of political convenience so that Michael may sire an heir, you will need to bring him together with a woman he can feel passionate about, and one who will feel passion for him, as well.”
“But what sort of woman would that be?” asked Aedan with exasperation.
Raesa smiled again. “One who is strong enough not to be intimidated by him,” she replied.
“That is almost exactly what Ariel had said,” he said.
“Then she is wise, and you must listen to her. But that alone is not enough. Michael is a driven man, obsessed with his plans for the future of the empire.
It is all he ever speaks of. He is a great man, and great men are often ambitious, selfish, obstinate, arrogant, and even cruel. You seek a young woman strong enough not to be frightened of such traits and determined enough to wish to change them. Look for an expert horsewoman.”
“A horsewoman?” Aedan said with incomprehension.
“Not one who merely rides well, but one who can control the most spirited of mounts,” the empress said. “One who would not be afraid to saddle an unbroken horse and tame him, one who would regard it as a challenge.”
“I see,” said Aedan, slowly. “Yes, I think I understand.”
“Seek also for a woman who is not afraid to express her opinions,” Raesa went on. “Not one who is talkative or stubbornly willful, but who speaks when she has something of substance to say and is not easily swayed from her beliefs. Michael would not respect a wife who would defer to him in all things regardless of what she truly felt. He needs a strongrooted mountain rose, not a shrinking violet.”
Aedan nodded. “Yes, that makes excellent sense, Your Highness.”
“Beyond that, look to your own knowledge of Michael,” Raesa said.
“Look for those things in him that make you prize his friendship, those qualities that inspire loyalty and admiration in his soldiers.
Women have similar qualities, as well, though they may manifest them differently. Follow your instincts. And then let nature take its course.”
Aedan thanked the empress for her words of wisdom and returned to the Imperial Cairn, feeling a bit more confident, but still anxious as to where such a woman could be found. That night, however, Ariel came to him in an enthusiastic mood to report that the work of the committee was done at last.
“We’ve found her, Aedan!” she said excitedly. “We need not even bother with a list of final candidates.
We have found the perfect woman for the emperor!”
Aedan seemed a little dubious as he received the news. “Well, that is all very encouraging,” he said, “but don’t you think it would be best if we could present Michael with some choices?”
“If that is what he wishes,” Ariel replied, “then we have narrowed down the list to five, and we could hold a feast, with dancing, during which he could meet them all. But I feel confident that the moment Michael meets Faelina, he will have eyes for no one else.”
“Faelina?”
“She is the daughter of Baron Moergan of Aerenwe,” said Ariel.
“I was not aware that Moergan even had a daughter,” Aedan said.
“He has two,” said Ariel, “but the youngest is only twelve and already promised, by a long-standing arrangement, to Gaelin of Dhalaene.”
“And how old is Faelina?”
“Sixteen,” said Ariel. “But she possesses a maturity beyond her years.
She is simply perfect. Wait till you meet her.”
Aedan thought of Moergan of Aerenwe, whose holdings lay to the east, on the southern coast north of the Erebannien, near the Gulf of Coeranys.
Moergan did not often come to court, only on important state occasions.
He was a rough-hewn, taciturn man who brought to mind a stout and weathered oak, enduring and unbending. Aedan found it
