Queen Priani

Queen Priani of Telziad

How a democratic countess ends up married to an absolute monarch is beyond me. Who arranged this?

Queen Priani is the third queen of Telziad, having held the position since her marriage to King Dravulean II in 411. She, alongside her step-child Larusion, frequently represents the royal family in domestic and international contexts.

History

Priani was born in 381, as the eldest of three children of Count Rost of Yulaston. When she was quite young, her parents marriage broke down in spectacular fashion, and her common-born mother Siari left one day with the three children and asked for a divorce. While this was granted, the children were made to spend equal time with each parent, Priani especially due to her status as Rost's heir. This arrangement was frustrating for all, but gave Priani an insight into the differences between the low nobility and commoners that shaped much of her life.
She was given a fine education through her father's connections, and was even able to move to Skarhu to study at one of their universities. It was in Skarhu that she was introduced to various Telziado democracy groups, quickly become a core member.
When she returned to Telziado upon the death of her father in early 403 to assume her position as Countess, she sought to implement what she had learned. She was forced to reign in many of her ideas in order to prevent attracting the ire of the notoriously aggressive Dravulean II, settling to improving the lives of those in her direct sphere of control and listening to them as often as practical.
Despite her democratic leanings and actions, when the King was desperately searching for a new wife in late 410, the well-liked and unmarried Countess was suggested as a fine candidate. How exactly the two came to a suitable arrangement for marriage was unclear, but within only a few weeks of meeting, the two were engaged. They were married in early 411 with little fanfare, and some of Priani's former supporters assumed she had traded in her values for influence.

Family Ties

Priani's father was the Count of Yulaston, with his own mother having originated the title due to her role in the Vosti Civil War which granted Telziad its independence. Her mother Siari was no-one of note, though she continues to support her daughter.
Through marriage, Priani is part of the broader Telziado Royal Family. Of particular note is that she is the step-mother of Larusion, who is only 9 years her junior. Her husband Dravulean II, meanwhile, is 19 years older than her. They have no other children together.

Species

Human

Ethnicity

Telziado

Honorary & Occupational Titles

Queen Consort of Telziad, Countess of Yulaston

Year of Birth

381 AC 44 Years old

Children

• Crown Larusion

Democracy, or not?

While Priani shied away from identifying herself as explicitly democratic upon returning to Telziad, and especially after her marriage, it is widely known that she prefers the systems of the republics of Skarhu and Waal Zaimyatl. In that light, her marriage to an absolute monarch who is remarkably all-controlling is puzzling.
Perhaps Priani had agreed to completely give up her values in exchange for wealth beyond what being a countess could provide. Maybe she had been able to convince the petulant king that her ideas had merit. Or maybe the two married purely for the convenience of shutting down discussions about royal succession amongst the nobility, which had sprung up in force after Larusion's poisoning in 410.
Whatever the reasons, the small acts she does make as queen are better than nothing, for some.

Gold Crown by Hans