<div align="center">Prince Julian de Wessex</div><div align="center">Prince of Aradin</div><div align="center">Age 21</div><br/><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 10pt;">Julian frowned as he walked through the grand archway of the palace, to meet the new arrivals. It had been carefully arranged of course as no one suitor could be favored with even a moment of his attention before the others. He would prefer to skip the pretenses if he could, but his father insisted on the pomp and circumstance. To be honest he would not truly mind, if it weren’t that his father was ignoring everything else that he should do. People were suffering, dying and his father was doing nothing to help them. Instead he was having balls, and trying to host a party for his son. It was vexing to him beyond the bounds of stubborn son and father.<br/><br/>But Julian could not openly defy his father, even in private the man practically ignored him. It was a troubling thing for him, to know that his father felt and thought so little of him that he could not even be bothered with his son’s opinions. All he could hope is that this would enough to distract his father from the executions he was fond of using as a means of quelling the outcries from their people. Even in the palace there were whispers of the revolution. The tragedy was that Julian sometimes wondered if it wouldn’t be better if the people did revolt. It was a terrible thought especially as it would certainly mean that his father would be killed.<br/><br/>‘Me too most likely,’ he thought grimly while walking along the corridor, his fine boots hugging his strong calves. Julian had not adopted his father’s habits of gluttony, sex and letting himself grow fat and lazy. Despite having no wars, the prince trained regularly with the sword master, he was rigourous in his training not missing a day, the movement within the hall was that of a warrior ready for action. There had been would-be assassins in the palace, though they were often just hungry men in need of coin. Julian hadn’t told his father about it. He had sent the man away with a few coins and sent him away.<br/><br/>He just knew that there would come a day when the assassin might not be stopped. He missed his mother, she had been the point that had kept his father grounded. Though he was certain that his father was having numerous affairs, his mother had never strayed. She had often tried to steer the king to the best affairs, but now she was gone, Julian was trying to follow her ideals even if his father had not. As he walked towards the great hall he paused by the door steeling himself to greet his guests.<br/><br/>Opening the door his face was the mask of political neutrality, even at the beginning he could not be perceived to show any favoritism to any of the ladies. “Greetings to all of you, I am honored to welcome you to the palace. I regret my father could not be here to greet you as well, but he was drawn away by affairs of state.” Julian had become quite adept at lying for his father’s benefit. It was one of his most practiced talents but he smiled at them.<br/><br/>“My attendants will see to your chambers and ensure that you have your needs seen to,” he didn’t need Reginald’s subtle prodding to remind him. The old many was always trying to remind him of protocol. He was not going to get out without meeting and greeting each woman individually. He began at the end of the line and smiled a bit wryly at the positioning of the women. Their chief rival, the  Princess Diana of Korrawyn, was first in line because the first had the chance of catching his eye before he had even heard the other women’s names.<br/><br/>“Greetings your highness, it is an honor to have you here,” he bowed and kissed the back of her hand. The fact was that he hoped to discus peace with her to at least end the war. His eyes glanced down the line curious at a woman at the end of the row. Something about her was different as he moved down the row greeting the other women in turn. Slowly he stood before her bowing and meeting her eyes.<br/><br/>“And you are?” He knew her of course, or suspected who she was. The order had notified him that he should anticipate their agent’s arrival. He had been given very little information but he knew the other ladies in the line. She was the only stranger in the line.</span>