katherine mcnamara, twenty four, she/her, cisfemale. rilea o'neill has just arrived. they’re a princess from ireland. their eyes seem to tell us a million things but a handful of pink pearls, a shared secret in the woods, a glass of champagne sitting on a piano are seen from the surface. penned by mandy, est, she/her, 24.
BACKGROUND:
Rilea was always the one who followed the rules. She believed that you couldn’t be rewarded if you did whatever you wanted. That was the work of selfish fools, the kids who always got punished and didn’t get ice cream after dinner.
Was she “the golden child”? Perhaps some would say, from a distance, it would appear so. Rilea has the gentlest smile, the straightest posture, a lifted chin, a strong understanding of ruling and politics, even an elegant selection of dresses. But it’s all just a shell; the shell of a girl who’s never done anything for herself, who’s never spontaneously taken a trip on her own whim or even taken a day off.
That was evident the first time she fell in love. An untouched young lover’s heart exploded into a million wild actions; the parties, the late drunken nights, the secret night spent in passionate embraces. But, of course, it didn’t last. Rilea’s perfect reputation was in jeopardy when the boy left her, breaking her heart and causing her to hide her face from the public. She was ashamed of what she’d done, ashamed of how she’d fallen so far from grace.
It hardened her heart. That gentleness turned into grit, that sweet exterior froze into ice. A princess who was once a tenderhearted advisor to all was now a believer of tough love, telling the truth no matter whom it hurts.
She’d thought she was in place for a good marriage arrangement once she’d hardened her heart, but alas, it went astray rather quickly once more. Once she’d noticed she was giving into her whims once more, she realized the root of the problem... love. The prospect of a loving marriage made her irresponsible, and therefore, made it known that Rilea, Princess of Ireland, would never get married. She’d take a position of power, when the day arrives, without a husband, hoping to inspire little girls that they can do it on their own.
Remaining unmarried was a cause she knew would be for a good cause; her country. But ever since then, she’s had moments of distance, leading her to the ocean’s side or on a walk in the woods whenever she’s not needed. Of course she’s still a friend to all, though she’s decided, in her heart, that being alone is the best way to go.
WANTED CONNECTIONS:
These are a basic outline as I have a page on my blog in the works!!
Best friends (probably royals)
Frenemies (an opposites attract kind of friendship)
Saltmates (a friend she can bitch with)
Political Allies (the nature of this connection can be super diverse, like positive or negative, i think it’d be super interesting)
Former friends (from before her first heartbreak, before she changed)
JEFFREY DEAN MORGAN, 44, HE/HIM, CISMALE. HÉCTOR RODRIGO FERNÁNDEZ DE CÓRDOBA has just arrived in greece. they’re a KING JURE UXORIS from SPAIN. their eyes seem to tell us a million things but THE LINES AT HIS BROW, THE UNFAMILIAR FIT OF FORMAL DRESS, HIS RIGID POSTURE, AND THE SCARS OF WAR AND WORK ON HIS HANDS are seen from the surface. he hopes to gain PRESTIGE FOR SPAIN (AND MAYBE A LITTLE RESPECT FROM HIS WIFE) while here in greece.
Hey, it's JJ. Now is the time to probably mention I have a lot of feelings about feudal Spain, but also, it's far too late for me to be sorry, so...
⚜ Politics and intrigue have always been the interest of the ruling seat of Southern Spain, (for better or for worse,) but in the Northern providences where Héctor was born, life is a bit more simple. Situated as basically the border guard to Spain's neighbors, the two main goals of the noble houses are to 1.) have many children, and 2.) teach those children how to fight.
⚜ As being such, Héctor is the oldest of 6 (4 surviving) and has held a sword long before he could even read.
⚜ There's no dispute he's a talented military commander, but it's never quite set right with his family how their eldest son seems to posses none of the fire of their Spanish blood; missing both the passion of his sisters and the inherent charms of his brother. Calm. Strategic. Tepid and Quiet. They could almost accept their son in consideration of his battle prowess, but his sullen demeanor is often hard to overlook, and his complete lack of ambition in furthering their house is the ultimate deal breaker.
⚜ There's been whispers for years on how to usurp him as heir of the house in favor of a much more suitable younger brother, but nothing has ever come to fruition. That is, until a solution presents itself in the most unlikely of places -- civil unrest with the current ruling house of Trastámara, and a suddenly available princess. Héctor is quickly offered up as a suitor, as long as he swears to abdicate his titles and claims in the providence. The marriage is just in time. His father dies literally weeks later, and his brother takes reign of the family.
⚜ One would think the House de Córdoba would have wanted to put their favored son on the throne, but frankly Isabela is the last jewel in a tarnished crown, and there's a certain sense of legitimacy Héctor can offer in being his stoic, graying, world-weary self. (His military record doesn't hurt either). If anything, the House de Córdoba is playing the long game, making moves in confidence that the throne will fall under their house in a generation or two, if they only show a little of the patience their son is known for.
⚜ If only they could have anticipated Héctor would finally find his passion...and she has a far different ambition for Spain. There may come a day when the family will come to rue their choices.
OLIVER JACKSON-COHEN, 33, HE/HIM, MALE. ERIC WINDSOR has just arrived in greece. they’re a CROWN PRINCE from ENGLAND. their eyes seem to tell us a million things but BLACK SWEATERS, LONG FOREST WALKS, TWILIGHT, BOOKS, DRINKING RED WINE ALONE IN A ROOM FULL OF ART COLLECTIONS are seen from the surface. He hopes to UNDERMINE THE GREEK COURT while here in greece.
Here is my second darling~ hope you guys like him, i wanna play him quite... idk, but def not good lmao
Eric is a very meticulous person, almost a perfectionist if one might comment. Everything has to be in order or else, he’ll be very displeased.
Nobody wants to see Eric displeased. He has a bit of a temper problem.
He likes to go out hiking, riding, hunting, and being in the outdoors in general. But if you asked him what his favorite thing to do is, he’d say that sitting in his room with a nice cup of coffee while reading a book.
His usual reading material involves political books, psychology, and philosophy. In a literary sense though, his favorite are horror novels.
He’s very protective of his younger siblings, he thinks of them as his responsibility as well. Sometimes he can be a bit controlling over them, but it’s all out of love.
He’s a family guy, sometimes he can show his affection to his family in a bit of an extreme way. But he usually means well... Usually.
He’s had a knack for politics and is perfect for the crown. His only flaw is that sometimes his anger clouds his judgement.
He collects blackmail materials for basically anyone he meets, you never know when you need it. He’s always working hard to make sure that his country is on top of everything.
His goals in life is basically just having every country under England.
NATASHA LIU BORDIZZO, 𝘛𝘞𝘌𝘕𝘛𝘠-𝘖𝘕𝘌, 𝘚𝘏𝘌/𝘏𝘌𝘙, 𝘊𝘐𝘚 𝘍𝘌𝘔𝘈𝘓𝘌. 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐀 𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐑𝐓 has just arrived in greece. they’re a 𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐒𝐒 from 𝐒𝐂𝐎𝐓𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃. their eyes seem to tell us a million things but 𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐊 𝐇𝐀𝐈𝐑 𝐓𝐈𝐄𝐒, 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐖𝐇𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐒𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐒 & 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓 𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄 are seen from the surface. she hopes to gain 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐏𝐄𝐄𝐑𝐒 while here in greece. as written by moon, est, 25, they/them.
LANGUAGES SPOKEN: MANDARIN, CANTONESE, ENGLISH, FRENCH, GERMAN, JAPANESE, KOREAN, SPANISH
ORIENTATION: BISEXUAL ( female pref )
the winter before lina was born, scotland had seen its worst winter in over a decade. as the stories were told, it seemed to drag on for months, far longer than any year before it. far longer than anyone could ever remember. even the great spirit brought by their revered royalty couldn’t keep the scottish people from growing weary and restless –– it was the type of bitterness only endless biting cold could bring.
still, the scottish people were hopeful. their beloved princess was due with twins any day, and nothing cheered people up quite like a fresh born heir.
in the womb, lina would’ve never known it to be competition. too small, too new, she wouldn’t realize the only reason she was chosen to be the future heir of scotland was by a stroke of luck. that and lina always hated being fashionably late. so she went first, a full twenty-three minutes ahead of her sister. if she’d had known then it would lead to her one day being crowned princess of scotland, perhaps she would’ve counted her cards more carefully.
still, the joyous birth of two new twins was like any other. as the tale goes, princess lina’s first cry broke our harshest winter – we’d never seen the plants flower so quick in all of our years. if you ask her even now, lina still thinks she gets too much credit for it. if only they knew the doctors were pulling mucus out of her nose at the time she turned winter to spring, the story might not be so glamorous.
in fact, she’s still trying to live up to that legacy today.
𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧.
lina is the eldest of three and heir to the scottish throne. gifted with an angelic voice, the legacy of her first cry isn’t entirely fabricated. the way she speaks even is musical, but moreso than that, lina is one of their greatest opera singers.
tackling music was one of her favorite things to do. she didn’t roll her eyes at piano lessons or forget to practice. in fact, it provided a way to quell what would only become festering anxiety. it didn’t take many years for lina to realize the way her mother was admired –- the way lina viewed meili wasn’t simply a child’s wonder that would fade with age, and the world always seemed to agree. this only packed on the pressure for lina’s desired to be liked and loved the same way. after all, the history books were full of rulers that were hated for not living up to their parents reputations. and what happened to them?
granted, lina grew up in the best household she could ask for. not one full of stuffy arranged marriages and children treated as political pawns. their familial love was deep and true, but even with that support, lina’s immense ability to criticize herself only pushed her to do more.
she shoots herself in the foot a lot by doing things to be likable. sing beautifully, play all the notes right. iron every wrinkle out of your clothes, have the best smile. always be graceful, always be poise. and don’t ever give anyone a reason to hate you.
unfortunately, life doesn’t work this way, and sometimes lina’s habit of overworking herself to maintain all of these ‘likable’ attributes only works to cripple her social skills. she tends to spend too much of her time trying to be perfect, that she sometimes forgets bonding is the most important part of being loved. they can’t love you if they don’t know you, and lina’s always walking the line of being views as aloof. which, quite frankly, is her biggest nightmare.
she doesn’t trust that her people will love her as much as her family does and because of that she tends to compartmentalize a lot of her life. a lot of the time, this takes the form of secrets. lina doesn’t divulge her personal relationships, especially being closeted, and she’s very careful about what she says or does, despite the encouragement from her mother and other family to open up and let them help with the burden.
outside of this anxiety, lina’s actually quite alike her mother. generous, loving and loyal almost to a fault, lina’s a bleeding heart underneath that pressure. if she didn’t put up as many mental barriers, she’d be well on her way to ascend the scottish throne with equal or greater success, but first she has to work through all of that and learn to squash her habit of being so fearful.
𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬
ride or die/childhood friends: i’d love for lina to have someone she opens up to. maybe they met in a court somehow or through their parents when they were really young and have been inseparable ever since. alternatively, this could be a non-royal who lina trusts w/ all her <3? taken by: open!
enemies: being hated / disliked absolutely destroys her tbh, so .. bring it on. lina can really seem like a try hard or honestly like she’s got major resting bitch face bc she’s just lowkey anxious all the time so.. maybe someone that reads her wrong? or thinks she’s fake? taken by: open!
exes: unofficial or official exes could work here. perhaps lina got too in her head and pulled away, or they ended it for other reasons. taken by: open!
friends to strangers: they were close at one time but something drove a wedge between them. now, neither of them have reached out to figure out why they stopped talking at all. taken by: open!
arranged romance: since meili doesn’t believe in arranged marriages, perhaps this is someone whose parents keep pestering lina’s parents for them to get together in order to create stronger ties with scotland. it hasn’t worked so far because of aforementioned reasons, but it hasn’t stopped their parents from trying. this connection could be for the heir/royal in question, or by an older muse with a child they’d like to marry off to the future queen of scotland. taken by: open!
SYDNEY SWEENEY, 24, SHE/HER, FEMALE. LUDOVICA SAVOY has just arrived in greece. they’re a princess from ITALY. their eyes seem to tell us a million things but FLOATING AROUND CORNERS, HAIR IN THE GRASS, LOOSE RIBBONS, GLASSY EYES are seen from the surface. she hopes to gain REDEEM HERSELF IN THE EYES OF HER MOTHER while here in greece.
Hey all!! I’m here with some of Ludo’s headcanons, if anyone wants to start a thread maybe like this and we can have a cheeky chat about it.
TW: death.
Her mother doesn’t like her, not only favouring her brother above her, but treating him like he’s the pride and joy of the family. She was always closer with her father so when he died it really affected her.
Her father died when she was 13.
She had a reasonably pleasant childhood, she and her brother got along really well, and for the most part her parents had a fairly loving marriage.
When she was 7 she was walking through the courtyard right by the castle in which she lived, and found a dead body, one of the young maids had jumped from the roof, she never found out why, but she was never the same.
She’s usually the quiet one at the table. But she doesn’t try to hide herself from others. She makes it a little bit of a game to make people uncomfortable with eye contact.
She loves finding new places, every part of her home in Italy was discovered by Ludo, so she’s very likely to be in places she shouldn’t at court in Greece.
She’s very active, enjoys sports and active games, being idle for too long makes her uncomfortable, so it’s no unlikely for her to just randomly get up and walk out of a room once she’s bored of it --- which often happens quickly.
Meeting new people is exciting for her, but because she’s not a talkative person, it’s not very obvious to those who she’s meeting for the first time.
She is really nice and polite but honestly is just straight up a flirt, a lot of women tend to not like her, and she grew up not being liked by her mother so it doesn’t really phase her anymore.
The only thing that her mother did like about her was that she grew up to be beautiful, it was something that she could work with, something she could be proud of. Having offspring that were attractive boosted the popularity of the royal family among the people. Humans being superficial meant that they were drawn to beauty.
As a result of her education growing up, she speaks Italian, French, German and English. She is also quite a proficient piano player.
She hasn’t cried since her father died, and even that was extremely uncharacteristic for her.
The three times her mother tried to marry her off, she was a complete asshole to them and despite the power and money they would get from the marriage, she managed to repel them enough to walk away. Her mother didn’t even try to find someone who she could actually fall in love with, all three of them were old nobles who were either widowed or too repulsive to have ever been married. She knows that more than anything her mother wants her to be married, so when they were invited to Greece, she hoped she maybe could find someone who was a decent match for her, someone that would make both Ludovica and her mother happy.
blanca suárez, thirty, she/her, cisfemale. sofia trastámara has just arrived. they’re a crown princess from spain. their eyes seem to tell us a million things but hushed secrets whispered behind closed doors, a serpent slithering beneath a beautiful rose, the stroke of a powerful quill against parchment, and a dashing smile that hides a million secrets are seen from the surface. penned by rebecca, gmt +1, she/her, 24.
tw: mentions of death, pregnancy, miscarriage
a sweltering spanish summer day brought about the unexpected delivery of the first spanish princess. born small for her age but with a fierce fighting spirit, the newborn child thrived and grew up into a bubbly child with a keen interest in the world around her. sofia always took her education seriously. she always had a yearning to learn more, to know as much as she possibly could about everything and everyone.
politics had never scared her. some members of the court had been concerned that she was too young to be involved, but sofia was too headstrong to listen to them. she knew that in order to be a good queen one day she had to get herself involved and learn from her father as much as possible. as she grew older she learned that politics was all about schemes and secrets. the more she knew about others, the more power she could gain. it was her yearning for more information that led to her gathering spies - ones who were always well-informed, and helped her make calculated decisions for herself and her family. she has always been at the forefront to offer her father advice and opinions in the interest of her country. there is nothing she wouldn’t do for spain or her family, no matter how shady and no matter the cost. sofia’s hands never seem to get dirty, but her commands are what get things done.
sofia had been barely two years of age when she was promised to the eldest son of the duke of aragon. a betrothal that ensured a union between the royal family and the most powerful dukedom in spain had been long overdue. the two had grown to know each other over the years, and by the time they married there was no denying that they had found a wonderful companion in one another. even if he always loved her more than she ever loved him, sofia could not deny the fact that she had been truly blessed. bernardo was not a political man, and he knew better than to interfere in sofia’s business. she was the one who led, and he merely followed.
her brother-in-law, on the other hand, was the stark opposite. he was politically motivated like sofia, and the two shared common views on most issues. quickly he became a man that she trusted blindly. he understood and supported her schemes, and he believed in her ability to be the greatest ruler to sit on the spanish throne. even if his constant companionship was often the subject of rumours, sofia could not be bothered. small town gossip would never hinder her ambitions.
despite almost ten years of marriage, sofia had never given her husband an heir. she only managed to achieve a pregnancy once, but the child was lost. the war broke out just a few weeks after and sofia was allowed little time to grieve her loss. she attempted to gain what she could from the war, but it would only give so much without taking something in return. and just as the war was nearing its end the war took her husband in a battle on spanish soil. a widowed sofia returned to her home shortly after, with the ceasefire being announced just a month after her return to the spanish court. sofia is now intent on making the best deals for spain and her family out of the conflict that arose.
wanted connections
brother-in-law, the duke of aragon, and sofia’s advisor: see wanted connection on main
friends: childhood friends, newly formed allies, or anyone that sofia has crossed paths with throughout the years.
enemies: with sofia being so actively involved in politics, she has made her fair share of enemies during the years. be it personal enemies, or ones with whom a dislike has formed due to the war.
spies: people who spy for sofia, obtaining information about events, people, and political situations in different countries. sofia has been known to pay and protect them well, and she considers her spies to be invaluable for her work.
potential betrothed: after the passing of her husband sofia had no intent on searching for a new husband. with sofia not having achieved an heir through her first marriage, however, the pressure is on for her to find herself another husband.
SIÂN BRYCHAN has just arrived in greece. they’re a PRINCESS from WALES. their eyes seem to tell us a million things but HARSH, CALCULATING EYES+A DROP OF BLOOD FALLING FROM A PRICKED FINGER are seen from the surface. she hopes to gain A MARRIAGE TO AN HEIR while here in greece.
Ever since she was a child, Sian has always been the picture of a perfect princess. Obedient, dutiful, and graceful, she’s probably the one Brychan child who’s taken more to the Queen of Wales herself, always worrying her mind with practical and sensible subjects rather than with adventures or stories.
Ambitious and resourceful spirit that she is, she has always known just how to bend and manipulate the rules as to do as she pleases while still keeping a flawless image. This also often bleeds into her relationships with others; Sian is good at reading people and even better at saying what they want to hear.
She can be a cold hearted and manipulative at times, not really caring of other’s feelings or needs as long as they don’t affect her; though, if they do, she’ll be quick to help resolve any matter. She is, on top of this, not an affectionate person, she doesn’t hug or kiss anyone outside of her immediate family, and even with them she’s reserved in her actions.
Seeing her mother rule Wales as the great queen that she is, Sian’s greatest ambition is to become a queen herself. She mostly wants it to prove herself as her mother’s daughter, and perhaps even surpass her.
She genuinely loves her family, even if she’d rather not show it. She cares deeply for them and they are probably the only people she has loyalty to other than herself. Because of this she knows that there’s no safe way for her to the throne of Wales, being even second or third, but fourth in line to be ruler.
But she was also raised knowing she would one day marry to strengthen or form a political alliance, so now she has the hopes to gain a marriage that not only will benefit Wales but that will also make her a queen.
GABRIELLA WILDE, 26, SHE/HER, FEMALE. ASTRID HABSBURG has just arrived in greece. they’re a princess from AUSTRIA. their eyes seem to tell us a million things but MULLED WINE, FROZEN FLOWERS, DIAMOND TIARAS AND ROSE GOLD are seen from the surface. she hopes to gain more independence while here in greece. as written by kiki, cst, she/her, 27.
Hello! sorry this is late also I’m not the best at intros but anyway. Hi I’m Kiki and I’m very happy to be here and cain’t wait to rp with everyone, here are the basics of Astrid things will be expanding as I play her and things happen and so on, but yeah!
Astrid is the youngest of the Austrian royal family, she wasn’t exactly planned but she was a welcomed surprise.
She however was a not a healthy baby and there was a possibility that she wouldn’t make it. And even throughout her childhood her health was a concern making her family to be rather over protective of her
Although not extremely sheltered she wasn’t allowed as much freedoms as other royals of even her own brothers, as a child she didn’t mind much but she really has grown to want to be able to have more say over her own life especially since the days when she was weak and sickly are long past her.
Even with her frustrations she loves her family very much. They are the most important people in her life.
Likewise she loves her country, she does as much as possible for the good of it and wants to make sure Austria and its people thrive, she knows that she is a extremely privileged position and so its her responsibility to ensure the well being of her people.
She is friendly and loyal, tried to see the good in people and will give people a chance but once her trust is broken is almost impossible to get it back
