A couple of interesting Ankhonventional Courtships

[daibhidc]

(Yes, apparently that's what I'm officially calling these.)

Via my custom version of john_amend_all's Unconventional Courtship Generator.

First off, the one that's had me closest so far to actually writing a story. (Naturally, because this is me, it's a synopsis that doesn't directly mention romance or sex in any way.)

528) Silent in the Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn
Christmas festivities at Bellmont Abbey are brought to an abrupt halt by a murder in the chapel. Blood dripping from her hands, Lady Angua von Uberwald's cousin claims the ancient right of sanctuary.
Forced to resume her deliciously intriguing partnership with the enigmatic detective Sam Vimes, Lady Angua is intent on proving her cousin's innocence. Still, the truth is rarely pure and never simple.

I could almost get that to work in near-canon; after an alternate version of Fifth Elephant, Angua has remained in the barony (or ascended to baroness?) but has to call in Vimes to solve a murder that everyone else is convinced is the work of a werewolf...

This one was another one where a lot of it fitted astonishingly well (Angua and Sybil as aristocrats, Carrot as a mysterious stranger with a significent birthm... sorry, tattoo). Which makes Angua as the villain of the piece look even weirder by comparison.

161) Highlander Claimed by Juliette Miller
Since his adoption by peasants of the Uberwald Clan, Carrot Ironfoundersson has been marked as an outsider. His fair hair and golden complexion set him apart, as does a mysterious tattoo he keeps hidden at all costs. So when Laird Angua von Uberwald corners him with an indecent proposal, Carrot has no reason to stay, but his escape is interrupted by Sybil Ramkin, the wild and beautiful sister of nearby Clan Ramkin’s leader.
Sybil is honor bound to marry into the family of a valuable ally. But when Carrot sweeps her off her feet — literally — settling for an arranged match is no longer an option. Torn between duty and desire, Sybil dedicates herself to Carrot's protection, but Laird Angua knows his secret and will stop at nothing to steal Carrot back.
Now, these star-crossed lovers find themselves in a fight to defend both their hearts...and their lives.

(Oh, psst, John, the generator doesn't recognise "Laird" as a gendered word, apparently.)

There was also one I forgot to copy which was basically Vimes having to choose between saving Sybil or obeying his King (Ridcully, as it happens). Now that's liable to be a pretty short story, possibly involving an axe...

Comments

[john_amend_all]

I have a vague recollection of wondering whether 'Laird' should be gendered, and if so what the counterpart would be -- 'Lairdette'? Wikipedia says 'Lady', but that title can also be used for a lot of other ranks.

[daibhid-c.livejournal.com]

"Lady" would be right; "Laird" is just a Scots version of "Lord". (If you were writing in Scots, it'd be "Leddy", but for some reason the male version has passed into Scottish English, and the female hasn't. I quite like the idea of putting that one in the generator though.)

[john_amend_all]

<clickety-click> Done.

161) Highlander Claimed by Juliette Miller
Since her adoption by peasants of the Master Clan, Nyssa of Traken has been marked as an outsider. Her fair hair and golden complexion set her apart, as does a mysterious tattoo she keeps hidden at all costs. So when Leddy the Mistress corners her with an indecent proposal, Nyssa has no reason to stay, but her escape is interrupted by Sara Kingdom, the wild and beautiful sister of nearby Clan Kingdom’s leader.
Sara is honor bound to marry into the family of a valuable ally. But when Nyssa sweeps her off her feet — literally — settling for an arranged match is no longer an option. Torn between duty and desire, Sara dedicates herself to Nyssa's protection, but Leddy Missy knows her secret and will stop at nothing to steal Nyssa back.
Now, these star-crossed lovers find themselves in a fight to defend both their hearts...and their lives.

[daibhid-c.livejournal.com]

Ooh, I like that one, mostly for the thought of who in the Master Clan would be Nyssa's adoptive father...