" - and here I thought the age difference was some kind of economic thing about people having reasons to get their adult daughters out of the house as quickly as possible."

"There's definitely that. But even if that changed there'd remain reluctance to marry older."

"All the pretty girls they have wandering the palace half-naked are nineteen, twenty."

" - I didn't even know you had - nevermind. Anti-aging magic seems like a very cynical thing to assume you'd need, honestly. I would think that if women had enough skills for those to be worth measuring, people would stop picking marriage partners based mostly on what they look like."

" - huh. I guess that's probably true. I mean, women's skills do matter a lot for how well your home is run, but if it were more measurable it might get counted for more."

Nod. "Might as well look into both, I suppose, but I don't think we ought to assume that people have to be shallow."

"I don't think they have to at all," he says earnestly.

"Well. Osirion's problems are still less pressing than several other places. Including the new world. Do we know if the new one has, like, a plan, of any kind?"

"Not that I know of yet."

"I guess she sort of - has a lot on her metaphorical plate."

"And she's following up on all of it very diligently but it's still a lot. I think she might want to find a husband first."

"Maybe. Did she say anything about that?"

"No, just asked questions."

"Wonder what she figures her options on that front are."

"She might just ask someone in her work crew, I take it that's the conventional thing."

"I suppose that would probably be sensible."

Nod.

"Do you want to marry her?"

"I don't have a good way to ask her - community leaders - if it's a good idea, and I'm not going to consider it without their guidance."

"Sounded like she wanted to talk to them at some point. Might be they'll end up coming here."

"Well, then maybe I'd ask them."

"All right then."

"She will definitely not take a hint, just so you know."

"I wouldn't want her to! If they think it's a good idea I will tell her that I'd like us to spend some time together with an eye to determining whether we ought to marry, and if they don't I won't, no hinting."

"I guess that seems sensible."