Well, that's fine, too.

After one in which she didn't win, while Zoyah shuffles, Cyllene lets her expression go pensive again, for a moment, and writes -

I have been thinking I would like to court your brother.

"...oooooh. Well, you are a princess, so that helps... but if you're like, a runaway princess whose dad is really mad at her that's less good... he's not like engaged to anyone already though, you have a shot!"

Oh good.  Oh good, she was really worried about receiving an instant shut-down, here.  Wiggle.

"Mother and Father were talking to the Duke of Chont about his daughter but she fell off her horse and died and that was a couple years ago."

I'm sorry.

"I didn't actually like her. Cymbeline seemed to think she'd be acceptable but he wasn't that into her."

I see.  Do you have advice for me?

"Uh... so there's like, kind of two parts to royals getting married? For humans. There's like, the being married part. I think he likes you and you're super useful and interesting and cool! So that's good! But there's also the politics thing. It has to be, like, good for Loegria for you to be the next queen, else you can't marry him. So if it'll make your father really angry - or if it'd get in the way of marrying him to some princess from somewhere else who'd be bringing a whole country of alliance along although there is not one of those in line right now I don't think - then that would not be so good."

She nods seriously.

I think at this time my father thinks I am dead, and will not find out that I am not unless I decide that he should know.  I can think about how I might bring in an alliance of sea people.

"He can't like, magically tell that you aren't dead?"

My uncle made sure he cannot.

"I guess if your uncle does his coup thing then you'd be a very useful alliance probably?"

Nod!

"But you don't know when he'll do that, right?"

No, and he may not.  He wants things to be better for sea people, not to win against my father and be king.  If he does not, and we could bring wonders to sea people, he would still be on my side.

"How do you mean?"

She switches to paper.

I do not want to go back to my father in some years, with a ship full of gifts and a clever speech and powerful magic which gives him a way to win if he goes along with accepting me and will make him lose very badly if he doesn't.  If I say, "Your lost daughter has come back to you, and brought strong humans to be in alliance with, for the power of your kingdom, all along acting for you," in front of many sea people.  I would hate this.  But my father is a simple bad man who will choose to win, and not lose.  So we would not have to fight all those loyal to him or have problems like that.

(This is why my uncle has not done a coup, is because of problems like that.)
(I do not think he would at all want to rule a land kingdom and will like an alliance instead of trying to eat Loegria, even if he has human wonders.)

"Father likes to say - the job of a king is to not have a war. It doesn't always look like that's a king's job, because one way you don't have a war is making it obvious you'd win and sometimes you do that by having some war. But the main job is to not have one. If you can just not have one, that's your job, if you're the king. I think Cymbeline agrees with him."

I have done things I hate before.

 

I crawled up the steps with you.

Nod nod.

.....Back to slate.

I was thinking I would tell you, then him, and then your parents.  Does this sound smart to you?

"...probably, yeah. If somebody wanted to marry me they'd probably go to my parents first but a prince isn't the same thing as a princess."

Should you tell him or I?

"I don't know. I can if you want me to."

I can also.

....Hm.

Maybe I should have another gift to give him for this?  What does he like?