&&. is that ( matthew goode )?? no, it’s just ( julien d’orleans ). he is a ( prince ) of (france ). he is ( 39 40 ) years old and his birthday is the ( 21st ) of ( june ) which makes him a ( gemini ). he is ( easy-going & debonair ) and ( flamboyant & flattering. ) but, unfortunately, also ( fickle & deceitful ). those traits just make him a ( slytherin ) and in scientific terms an ( estp ). he is ( heterosexual ) and the plaza’s ( magnet ). his theme song is ( paris sur mer ) by ( morcheeba ). his interests include ( fine wine & polo ). he practices (atheism ) and is a supporter of ( Les Républicains ). his quirk is ( to regularly button and unbutton his jacket ) and favourite quote is ( le temps est un grand maître, dit-on. le malheur est qui’il tue ses élèves ) by ( hector berlioz ) because ( it’s a reminder that there is no time like the present ). last but not least he ( does ) believe in true love.
i played him for five minutes last time so not much has changed besides age !
anyway introducing my dude julien. i was going to write a really long and detailed intro, but if i’m honest, the 5-6 months years now or however long it’s been that i’ve kept martha waiting while i “thought” about this did not yield me much, so i’ll just have to feel my way through this one, and you’ll have to bear with my quite short bullets.
a quintessential frenchman, gentlemanly, with good taste and a generous splash of arrogance that’s coated evenly with beautiful words and charm
he has a way of showing keen interest in things and people, where everything matters, from his own posture, the gentle touch upon your person, the way his body is angled, the imploring clear gaze that takes in every little thing you’re wearing, whether you fidget, whether you smile or don’t — but make no mistake, this doesn’t mean he’s necessarily a good listener, or that he cares, it’s behaviour to make you subliminally more agreeable to what he says when it’s his turn to speak, his turn to perform. reciprocity in human nature is a marvellous thing if you know how to exploit it
with arnauld, he has a fairly easy relationship. he loves france and he knows the right words to use, even when he doesn’t agree. his attitude towards arnauld’s oftentimes bizarre decisions is seemingly the epitome of laissez-faire. if arnauld or giselle were a rough wall, julien is the sandpaper. he knows how to navigate them, smooth things over, make helpful suggestions that seem so much milder than the immediate alternative that it would sound almost like an easy compromise . . . but compromise is such a dirty word, julien will never use it. their interests are aligned, what more could you want? outside of this bubble though, it’s hard to know where you stand with him
all this being said though, he has some really really ugly, terrible thoughts. and he has a nasty temper that he covers up well
for france, julien is ambitious, just like arnauld. where arnauld makes international moves, julien focuses his energies inward. internal manipulation and control for the monarchy, making puppets of parliament and politicians is his very own little chess game.
he plays this game like a meticulously choreographed dance, with his partner (wc coming soon). she is as cunning and as hungry as any. a social climber whose flair caught julien’s eye years before. now they are a pair so synchronous they’ve become far more effective together than apart. one would think a wedding would be in the horizon, but they have decided to wait. plans won’t make themselves, and at the moment, it is more beneficial for both of them to give off the illusion of being available. it makes persuasion more... fun. neither of them are opposed to doing whatever it takes to get them what they need, even that. besides the fact that they are both mutually understanding of this makes the deal so much sweeter ( semi-open relationship sshhh ). makes each truly feel that they’ve met their match — finally.
julien has many vices, he smokes often, and he adores his wine, and in his youth, sampled far too many women. while he is partial to french wine of course, one would be surprised at his proficiency for italian and south american wines and how he can identify nearly every note with a single taste.
he can be very very slightly hypocritical, he’s not always living up to the standards he sets for his approval of others, and that realisation of himself often comes a bit late, in that sense he can be fairly forgiving of himself, he thinks he deserves the privilege, so he’s naturally also quite selfish.
see told you this would be short, here’s some ic things i wrote for the app.
1. what kind of a relationship do you have with your family ?
“ we don’t get to choose our family. we choose our associations, and we choose whether or not to accept the circumstances in which family puts us in. with a family like ours, if you smell a fish, and you don’t see a fish, you’re probably the fish. i’d rather have one of dysfunction that lets me know when i smell, than one that preaches the sweet, but useless concepts of unconditional support. if you catch my drift. ”
3. what are you not willing to tolerate ?
“ ah, i find at this age i am discovering a great many things in which compromise just seems like too much of an ask. a lack of conviction for example — ironic, i suppose, since there are certain times i can barely tolerate myself. poor taste, in youth i might’ve had the energy to put on a facade to pretend i’m not above riff-raff, but i was born into this life, this family, for a reason don’t you think? chalk it up to chance or otherwise, it would be a shame to misrepresent, and represent i do. with finesse. i suppose a lack of manners deserves mention as well, i don’t think that needs much explanation, do you? things are much more pleasant over graceful conversation and a good drink. ”
" how long do you think it will take the germans to bring their troops to saarland ? it can't be good for morale to be moved from basel to another front. " arnauld tapped the tip of his pen against the desk. " i want to start haggling but i'm afraid of appearing desperate. " [ ;; @jvlicn ]
" i think they'd be extremely committed to avoiding another semi-loss. morale's just speculation, morale can be changed with the right words, the right motivations. would you do otherwise if it were you in their shoes ? " what a fucking waste. if the germans had only stayed in basel a bit longer. " what are our odds if you waited ? "
" i will spend most of december and the beginning of january in russia. i expect not to be bothered with stupid work. " in a sense, ALL work was stupid if you asked giselle. " will you survive christmas by your own ? make sure someone plans something. " she gave the brothers an intense look. the LAST thing she wanted was for julien to spend the festivities with chantal and leave arnauld alone in his misery — or worse, with just their parents. " can you two promise to plan something ? " [ &&. @jvlicn + @vrnvuld ]
arnauld raised his brows immediately. " they are not letting margaux travel for christmas ? " it was a great shame that the russian representatives were no longer in morocco, arnauld wouldn't have hesitated to knock on their door. " there will be a speech in the early afternoon, a lunch, a dinner and then i will enjoy whichever book i receive. there, i planned it. " giselle had to give him a bit of credit ! did she think she was the only person on earth capable of requesting a christmas dinner ? " i think december will be too busy a month for me to care what happens on the 25th. " [ ;; @jvlicn / @giselledorleans ]
while giselle's gaze is captured by their brother, julien allows himself a delicate roll of his eyes. arnauld is behaving predictably. amateur. giselle just needed to be painted a nice picture that would still make her feel somewhat needed, she'd quiet down. " arnauld's just upset we won't all be together, of course we're planning something. honestly giselle, we weren't raised in a bloody barn. we'll have the table set, invite a few friends, open a couple vintages, exchange gifts. it'll be fine. " fine. not wonderful. [ @giselledorleans ]
❝ THOUGH IT MIGHT not weigh much to you now, you have my word. ❞ which probably didn't offer the princess the reassurance she needed but barbara hoped would help even if a tiny bit. ❝ thank you for coming, we're very appreciative of your attending after the island. ❞
“ freja has ambition but... ” there was part of her that appreciated the more profound things in life. how she derived enjoyment from those things was a mystery to arnauld — and one he wasn’t very motivated to solve. “ and leave a scandal to be remembered by ? i’d rather be remembered for andorra and south belgium. ” and he hated the idea of an ill-prepared person on the throne. no, he needed to be followed by someone who could hold the reins and be respected by the members of the court. “ i can’t believe this is going to be the biggest hurdle. giselle has had a million suggestions already. i may have to take them seriously. ” people were just so uninteresting. they were always missing some quality or they had an unsettling aspect to them. “ i just fear i’ll pick poorly and i’ll be stuck with someone absolutely uninspiring. there is only so many inane conversations i can have in one day. i’d have to minimize interacting with giselle to preserve my sanity. ” he shook his head. he could feel how his blood pressure had risen just from thinking about the conundrum. “ are you genuinely thinking about marriage ? ”
good lord, this actually seems to be working. he ought to let giselle whine at him more often. the incentive in devising a strategy to make her stop is rather effective. he'll still have to play it very carefully, of couse. " i do think she is the one. she and i not being married has its advantages, " many of which relied on both of them appearing more available. " but i'm not looking forward to being another laughing stock in the eligibility department. another year or two and it'll seem like a family trait for the men in this family. the sympathy for being jilted only lasts for so long. no offence, " hands twist upward with just the right touch of earnest defence as if to say, sorry, i had to be honest. this trend of leaning toward fanni croÿ is making him look like the guilty party. the sad schmuck. the timing of her departure, following what happened in belgium sent a clear message. if arnauld somehow convinced her to give him another chance it would look like just that. that he'd crawled over broken glass. that he'd done something wrong, she'd punished him, and he'd repented enough for her. the fools would find that romantic, but the days where the bulk of the population was made up of fools are long gone. the best publicity teams would not be able to spin that into some star-crossed redemption story, not when they have been working overtime to convince everyone that the king had done no real wrong. their coffers still haven't even recovered the losses they'd suffered yet. " i could wait. i don't want to shed a spotlight on your situation right now by being hasty. god knows giselle will need convincing, you know how she feels about chantal, " the headlines write themselves, even prince julien has tied the knot while their poor king remains alone because of his own failure(s). it wouldn't take long for the line of succession turning into gossip. " but as you're saying so yourself, no one you want seems to be picking you, not in a way that helps you anyway, and you're risk averse to picking the wrong person. there's no end in sight to this. "
“ how would you have me do it ? ” of course there were benefits to doing it on his own terms, but the list of people who might take it to the papers hadn’t grown too rapidly. “ as long as freja wants to pretend she has an idyllic family, who am i to get in the middle of that ? ” at least in this way. he would have gladly watched her tear it apart just six months ago when it had benefitted him.
" the king of france ? " does he detect bitterness in that wording ? " sounds like a short-term thing, that doesn't seem like her... " even if she wanted to reject arnauld surely she wouldn't wish to keep her son from the throne. tongues would wag, but this kind of gossip will die down especially if they are coming off the tail of a win. saarland is in their clutches, he dares hope. " well i just think with margaux on track for the belarusian throne, i'd want to know if i should start worrying for my progeny —- before i start shopping for a ring. " he thinks for a moment, " although i suppose if you wrote it into your will, you'd escape all consequence, i doubt lucien will outlive you by very much. "
“ and how has your evening been ? ” arnauld asked, stopping at the end of the table to address his siblings. he had needed a breather and the two offered safety. “ i hate to admit but the second tempranillo was actually enjoyable. ” [ ;; @jvlicn / @giselledorleans ]
“ ha ! i KNEW you were going to be impressed. ” she directed a very smug look at julien — as if she had beaten him at some game just by making a prediction. “ it was nice. very warm. i liked the shiraz more. ” she glanced past julien to take a glimpse at arnauld’s table. she pursed her lips. “ you’re lucky to have cecilia there. have you behaved ? ”
he hadn’t contradicted her, simply tossed her a light wrinkle of his left cheekbone. “ both were fine. but it is also true i would have still enjoyed a good burgundy even more. the tempranillo came close, but the note of cherries were only a reminder. ” he raises his glass, for the point and takes a sip, extended forefinger tapping at his lip as he glances at giselle. he had said he’d talk to arnauld, but their conversation with freja and work had overshadowed the intention. he had prioritised. giselle would not be pleased. “ ye of little faith. must be going alright so far. i’m sure both cecilia and our brother are both very good at breaking up the monotone — ” drone of the eldest croÿ’s voice and the trill of fanni’s. “ for each other ? ”
“ not anymore than the REST of us, i don’t believe. ” she shrugged. “ well, actually there was something about her husband, but that’s all. ” arnauld’s tone was enough indication that chatty gossip was not the information the question warranted. she turned from the counter, “ WHY ? “
“ something grave ? ” he hoped but that wasn’t something that was appropriate to say even if all three of them were thinking it. “ i want to make a move. la trémoille is… ” understandably, she wasn’t behaving. she had ran out of patience and was demanding action. “ she’s determined to shake things up. i’m also afraid that the situation in basel will die down and we will have wasted a great opportunity. if wittelsbach is not functioning properly, decision making and communication between them and the german king cannot go as smoothly as it should. ” [ ;; @frejaedb + @jvlicn ]
“ the man’s built like a tree. maybe a weak heart ? ” it is mere speculation and he loathes it the moment it leaves his lips. weak and pointless. “ if they increased their numbers with the aid of other duchies in basel, that means they needed the extra padding that they couldn’t supply by themselves. if you want to call wittelsbach’s bluff... ” he looks to freja, “ is there a third option ? ” [ @frejaedb ]
“ AH… yes, you should have been more specific. ” she wished it happened sooner than a tangible catastrophe. arnauld would resent being forced into a decision — and then they would be walking on eggshells for two or more years. the ring itself would be a reminder. “ hmm… i just think the motivation needs to be intrinsic. if he thinks he has solved a problem before it has become a great issue, he will feel victorious. ” and it might do arnauld some good to get a win. it had been a while. aside from getting hélène convicted, he had not had a win. “ i’ll consider my options. though perhaps i should request the presence of mademoiselle océane here. she’s the niece of the duchess of provence. our family could benefit from southern blood. ” and the friendship of camille la fayette. “ she’s very pretty too. a bit over thirty. still appropriate. ” old enough not to look odd next to arnauld, young enough to have a child or two. she hummed softly, momentarily lost in thought. “ WELL. perhaps a near death experience will help him decide. ” she clasped her hands together. “ shall we go ? ”
good issue, bad issue, great issue, pretty niece, he lets giselle prattle on, ( he is listening ) slides a pair of sunglasses up his nose before muttering, “ i daresay a near death experience will make him cling even harder to what he wants. we’ll see. i’ll talk to him. ” giselle is assuming that putting priorities into focus would mean that her definition of priorities might be the same as their brother’s. some might overlap, but sometimes those things are still subjective.
“ are there no advantageous marriages outside of france ? ” he leans back in his seat, being served a meal in a well supplied restaurant will be the highlight of his day after all that exploration of morocco’s finest offerings, most of which had been nothing to write home about.
“ yes. they have an abundance of nitrogen there. great for grass growth over here. ” she had almost said oxygen. it was a sign to let go. “ hm.. oh yes. absolutely. ” though giselle knew the mistake had been made when he had fought poorly to make fanni stay. it was a small surprise that being overly confident had been his downfall even with that. “ the catastrophe is here, julien. he’s… ” how to describe it without giving away too much ? “ he’s far from himself and he knows it. the lack of control is the catastrophe. ” she almost let the subject go. “ what if… oh gosh, no it’d be too mean. ” but she was already grinning. already being entertained by the little game she had thought of. “ what if we forced his hand a bit ? it wouldn’t be too difficult to make the papers insinuate all sorts of things. he’ll be devastated if he thinks the public’s opinion is shifting against him. ” or rather, more against him. arnauld d’orléans did not have an abundance of wiggle room. “ it’s been two years. plenty of time to plan a wedding and get pregnant. all i’m saying is that at least one of you needs to have a child and soon. it’s beginning to look like it will have to be you. ”
if he were a lesser man, he would have rolled his eyes. instead, his lips spread, bland and mocking as they press together with slow nods, setting his glass down before he shifts forward. “ mm, let me rephrase then, a tangible catastrophe that he cannot pretend is not happening. ” being relatively uninvolved compared to giselle in this matter does not mean julien does not have eyes... or a brain. arnauld’s sluggishness is obvious. he is also playing it far too safe, and submits to sentiment far too much. giselle’s lens were tinted with empathy and compassion for their brother, poor arnauld, failure in love and self control — in some worlds, a good thing, he’s sure, but framing it this way does not promise any results whatsoever. “ i suggested this already. well... not the same thing, but it was still puppeteering. to encourage freja to say yes. ” giselle has only moments ago made her stand on this clear. divorce, broken family, a bastard, all very risky, but if that risk paid off, their king would have a capable woman at his side, and an heir that no one will have to wait for. “ which is why, he will see through it, just as he had said freja would have seen through a honeytrap plot. a shame, it would have been entertaining. ” he leans backward, legs stretching out under him. “ i am not in any rush, however, maybe suggesting it will be enough. ” surely arnauld will be able to see how the cards will fall. he checks his watch and offers her a renewed sly smile. she is running out of precious minutes of spending his money on retail therapy the longer she spends not moving.
“ the fertilizer gets shipped from the himalayans. ” the conversation topic dared to turn gossipy, which naturally made giselle lean into it more. getting julien to pour even a fraction of the thoughts inside his head was a rare treat ! “ oh dear ! both of them leaves no one, doesn’t it ? it’s a difficult time to be arnauld d’orléans. ” it somewhat amused giselle, the situation they were in, julien did not like either of the options and if giselle had to guess, not even arnauld was loving his options. he loved the women, CERTAINLY, but he did not like the circumstances that surrounded them and what he would have to accept by going forward with either. “ no, i can’t say i have. he seems to be battling his pride. ” and what giselle had spotted had been vulnerability uncharacteristic to their brother — but she would not mention it to julien. it was too personal, it was too rare, and it would have meant disrespecting the confidentiality arnauld did not even know giselle was practicing. “ but i think he ought to forget freja. i was never on board with that plan. it’s too… ugly. a divorce, a broken family, a bastard. no, no. even a shotgun wedding with some common floozy would be better. ” giselle’s nose scrunched at the mention of roman’s great uncle or whatever he had been. “ no, i won’t allow that. he’ll get celibate or i will kill him personally. i’m not going to subjugate myself to seeing that. ” she sighed loudly and slowly. the issue of an heir would be upon them. “ have you thought about settling down finally ? starting a family ? ”
“ right... where the climate is opposite of here. ” she is putting in zero effort into her pretence so he lets it go. “ is it that difficult ? he’s rather done that to himself... i think he knows that. ” it explains the bullishness. the inaction in this area prolongs the admission that he had erred. settling on a third option would mean he was yielding — failing to reach a benchmark he’d set for himself. arnauld’s dissatisfaction tends to fester. “ it took catastrophe for him to move on from belgium, i don’t think he’ll behave differently in his personal life. ” what that catastrophe will be, julien cannot fathom. freja would hardly be the one to cause it. how much damage could one blonde hungarian waif cause ? “ we have thought about it yes. but after the hungarian called off the engagement, i figured it’d cause too much talk. ” besides, why end their fun before they absolutely have to ?
“ i welcome the company, ” she assured him, rolling her eyes. “ my grass is quite expensive. i’ll buy you a haystack. it will probably have more flavour. tangy, if i had to guess. ” the quid pro quo of the century ! “ have you talked to him ? i’ve been taking a break. good for my nerves, i think. i don’t want to end up like one of those 19th century madwomen. ”
“ imported grass is it ? ” it is a dry delivery, but there is a wry slant to his lips. “ about work, yes. i’d rather stay out of whatever else he’s doing. i’ve lost favour for both of his options. ” he leans freja’s way of course, but the complications that come with that and the fact that there still has been no clear answer lowers her value and his confidence in it, significantly. “ you’ve had no success i presume, and i don’t have an alternative suggestion. fifty is not far away for him. he will continue to waste time and perhaps in a decade we’ll see a rerun of belarus. arnauld in place of the late king pyotr, with a woman a third of his age, pregnant. ” he will have to pick someone. anyone of good stock.
“ you’ll take me shopping. ” giselle was UNSURE if she had heard him right. julien entertaining her like this was unexpected. did he want something ? giselle’s eyes narrowed briefly before she chose to discard her suspicion and flashed julien a charming smile. “ and i assume we will be using your allowance as well ? it’d be unpolite to suggest an outing and make me pay. ”
“ would you rather go by yourself ? ” the sardonicism bleeds from his tone out of habit, not actual intention. repetition is something he does not enjoy, and it makes giselle look rather daft. “ that is what it means yes. ” there was a time when the two of them were united in handling their brother — at least he had been much better at making it seem that way while occupying a happy medium. “ impolite is the word, but no, we can even find a spot for dinner. if you bleed my account dry, i’ll just eat your grass until the end of the month. get dressed. our dear brother can survive for a day. ” his two companion options would be freja, or fanni. night and day. either option would create some semblance of movement.
“ we should go out, i’ll take you shopping. ” he says quite suddenly, on the tail of a grimace, peering into his glass. moroccan wine is not terrible, but still a little worse than he’d been expecting. “ we’ll take security. ” after the business with her trash bundle of an ex, and having to more or less give her daughter away, giselle could use some time not needing to berate their brother for his admittedly questionable personal choices or to have to sit still and try not to be noticed by the very terrorists she’d been accused of being in league with. and on his part, this is as much as he can suggest, it’s better than sitting around and feeling useless. all things considered, things could be worse. this place is better than the farm they’d been forced to spend time in last, with all its fucking clucking chickens. [ @giselledorleans ]
You think 782′s going to help you with your research, don’t you? It could explain our origins, yes. But we aren’t going to go extinct tomorrow. There are still plenty of creatures in the world. I have a different sense of time to you.
