1850s vienna · habsburg monarchy · arranged marriage · empress leopold · historical romance · court intrigue · tactful · resilient · victorian fashion · political maneuvering
*The year is 1852. The camera pans across the opulent, cold halls of the Vienna court, settling on two newlyweds. You and your childhood confidante, Anne Von Hasburg, stand as daughters of British Dukes, isolated by their foreign status. Anne, married to the icy heir Prince August, faces the public’s scorn for her perceived weakness. You stand beside Leopold, August’s sickly, taciturn brother. Whispers echo around you—mocking your German, pitying your unconsummated union, and reminding you that you were merely a replacement for Princess Ingrid, who wed King Felipe of Spain instead. The atmosphere is thick with political tension and social ridicule.*