Winifred—or Winnie, as she preferred to be called—had spent the morning as most folk her age ought to do. She rose with the sun, had a light breakfast of eggs and fruit, and then read as her three white kittens played on the floor in front of the fireplace. A lovely morning. She only wished that her hands were well enough that she could work on some embroidery. She loved to embroider things like pillows and sleeves and skirt hems, but alas, the arthritis in her hands made it too painful. So reading it was.

There was only one appointment in her book that day—spring and summer could be so slow for her. No one yearned to cuddle with a could-be soulmate when the temperature was rising. The young man as she was told from his mother was a castle guard, a count, and too old to still be unwed. That seemed to be a growing problem in Loren of late. However, that just made her job easier as she did not need to turn over every rock and blanket to find a potential mate for her clients. Each new young person that came through her door, eagerly seeking help brought her a little spark of joy. She remembered being so young, so hopeful. Seeing the young people today well…it made her feel as though she were a young debutante again.

Winnie’s only maid, a pretty, plump thing in her late 20s with dark hair and eyes, bustled into Winnie’s sitting room and curtsied, “The young gentleman you have been expecting has arrived, my lady,” she said in a voice that sounded as though the woman had won a screaming match with someone some time ago.

The old woman gently shut her book, “Very good, Prudence,” she said as she set her book aside, “Let him in.”

The maid would exit the room to usher in the count. Then the girl would leave to prepare tea and refreshments for the appointment. For what sort of gathering would it be without tea and little sandwiches?

Winnie rose as the count entered the room and would offer him a grandmotherly smile, “Count Montgomery, correct?” Her voice was as sweet as honey and would have no trace of insincerity. Winnie was genuinely happy to meet anybody, “Please, do sit down,” she would gesture to a rather comfortable looking armchair that would face her rocker, “I hope you are well this day? My girl should return soon with some refreshments, but is there anything else I can provide you for your comfort?” Winnie gestured to a neat pile of blankets near the hearth, “It can be so drafty, even as the weather grows warmer.”

October politely thanked the maid, Prudence, when she guided him into the room before she disappeared again. As he was met with the sight of the matchmaker he couldn't help but smile at her warm presence and nodded at her question. "Yes, that's correct. It's a pleasure to meet you Baroness Whistlebottom," he said as he sat down across from her. She was easily one of the oldest people in Lorendale that he'd ever met and he had the feeling she may quite soon be passing the general life expectancy they usually saw here. Even so, she carried herself with grace and affection and he had a feeling he'd quite like her, even if the reason he was here was one he considered rather unfortunate.

He glanced towards the blankets as she pointed them and the offer made him smile further. Well wasn't she just the sweetest thing. "Not at all, I'm quite well at the moment," he assured her though took another brief glance at the blankets. "I'm doing quite well today actually, it's a beautiful day. How are you?" A handsome smile remained on his lips, feeling quite at ease with the woman. He wondered if that would change. Was she going to brutally ask him what was wrong with him or would she continue with her warm demeaner? He could see it going either way.

At the denial of needing a blanket—although Winnie would surely keep an eye out for shivers from the young man—the old woman settled back in her chair. Such a handsome young man, she thought, almost lamenting that she’d married off her youngest daughter already, “I am very well, thank you,” she smiled, “I’m very happy that the weather is warming up. Winter can be so hard on old bones.”

She would wait for Prudence to bring in the tea things before broaching the subject of why he was at this appointment. She poured them both some tea, and handed him his cup, “You’re mother told me that she is eager to see you wed, my lord,” she said pleasantly, “I do believe she hopes that I will set you up with the first available woman, but I do not believe these things should be rushed. Milk? Sugar?” she would put either of those things in his tea if he wished before continuing on, “Why, I didn’t marry my late husband until I was thirty-two,” she laughed to herself, “My mother was beside herself that I had waited so late, but I was glad I waited,” she let out an almost dreamy smile, “My Bertrand was a wonderful man, and a good husband. A marriage is so wondrous when there is love between spouses.”

The tea arrived and October grateful took both cream and sugar, though only a little of each, and the light chink of spoon against porcelain tinkled as he stirred it up.

He tensed at first as they got to the topic at hand but soon his muscles had relaxed again. He hadn't expected that the matchmaker would have words such as these. He fully expected her to arrange a marriage with the perfect woman on paper that would benefit him, his family, and the woman all at once and that would be that. Instead she spoke of time, connection, and real love. The surprise on his face wasn't hidden well.

"I- I'll be honest, I didn't expect that. I think everyone hopes for such a thing but, when you have a title, love falls to the wayside in favor of 'a good match'. Honestly I'm...relieved."

Winnie chuckled softly as she poured her own cup of tea, “I won’t lie, my lord, some of my clients only wish for a political alliance and nothing more,” she poured a splash of milk in her tea, “Such a shame, I say. Not that I disagree with finding a good, political match, but one must also think of their happiness. After all, you will be with your spouse for a long time, and an emotional bond goes very far in keeping harmony in the marriage,” the old woman smiled at the young man before patting his hand, “So I cannot tell you how much of a pleasure it is to meet those who wish for more of a connection than is strictly political.”

Winnie would take sip of her tea, letting the flavor roll over her tongue before continuing, “Why don’t we start with you, my lord? Tell me about yourself.”

Yes, maybe this really wouldn't be so bad after all. He was already feeling better about this, Lady Whistlebottom really had a way about her that made one feel comfortable.

He hummed thoughtfully at her question, he'd never particularly enjoyed talking about himself but he supposed that it was an important question to ask in this case. "Well, let's see. I'm a royal guard and work particularly close with the Queen and the royal children." His loyalty to Iliana was unmatched and there was perhaps the smallest hint of longing in his gaze that he quickly pushed away. "I believe that life should be enjoyed and not just endured with only your responsibilities. I enjoy hunting and riding, often with my dogs at my side, and I love being around people. I rarely turn down an invitation to a social event and just love to get to know people and build close friendships with them. I think everyone deserves to have hobbies that make them happy and not only what they're told to do."

Winnie listened to Lord Montgomery speak, making little notes in her notebook here and there. She smiled delightedly when he said that he was close to the queen and the royal children, but did not miss that touch of something in his gaze that made her suspect that he felt perhaps more than loyalty toward their monarch. She could have misread it, but she suspected that she knew perhaps a small reason that he was unwilling to marry.

“My!” She said delightedly, “Such an honored position. Your family must be very proud of you, my lord,” she knew she would be had any of her children been in such a position, “And you seem to have a good work like and personal life balance,” she drank from her cup, “If my daughter were still single…” she said more too herself than to him. Such a catch! He must have been dodging all the ladies as they threw themselves at him, “What beast or animal do you prefer hunting, my lord? And what sorts of dogs do you have?"

“When you think of your ideal woman,” she said, turning to a new page in her book, “what traits do you think of? This can be physical or personality based.”

October smiled gratefully as Winifred expressed how good of a position he was in. He was very well aware of how lucky he was, he was grateful for it every day and he dipped his head in humble thanks at her praise. He quirked a little smile when she mentioned her daughter, eyes twinkling, but made no comment on it.

"I typically hunt deer most of the time, lucky if I come across a buck. Fox, though not as much lately since the Wyndham's stopped hosting their yearly fox hunt. Bear if I'm feeling particularly adventurous," he said with a little chuckle. "My family breeds hunting dogs. We have 5 different breeds that we focus on but my personal dogs are a Saluki and a Belgian Shepherd. We're actually going to be doing a sale coming up on some of the new pups we have," he added though gave a little shrug as he realized this wasn't necessarily helpful but him just engaging in small talk.

The next question was harder to answer. She had not been wrong in her guess of his feelings regarding their Queen though he had never shared those feelings with a single soul. It did make it harder to want to try to a match of his own when he secretly wished things could be different with the woman he already cared so deeply about. So he attempted to try to imagine what he might like if those feelings didn't exist.

"You'd think that I would have thought about this already before coming, but...I suppose physical traits don't matter too much as long as there is still some sort of chemistry and attraction there. I don't have a preference for certain body types or hair color or anything of that sort, just so long as she cares about her health and general cleanliness." Not that he thought that Lady Whistlebottom might try to pair him up with a girl who lacked personal hygiene.

"I suppose I imagine a woman who is kind but one who has her own goals and motivations too. Given that we will have the ability to pay for maids and such at home, I don't necessarily need a woman who is the homemaker type. I'd love for her to have her own hobbies, wants, even a career or other passions. I imagine a life where my wife and I are deeply connected and enjoy our time together but that neither of us rely only on one another for life to be fulfilling. Does that make any sense?" he asked with a little chuckle, unsure if he was doing a decent enough job of getting his thoughts across.

"I do very much want children of my own one day, so the desire for a family is important to me. Rank matters very little to me though I suppose my parents would prefer she not be a commoner...still...I can't say I wouldn't at least be open to meeting someone in that position..."

“Oh my!” She laughed, “My husband loved to hunt deer when he was able to,” she leaned forward in her chair, “‘Winnie!’ he says to me after I request he bring home some less gamey meat, ‘It feeds the whole family and those blasted cats you love to keep inside the house!’” She sighed, looking back at what had been quite the irritation at the time, but time had softened her feelings enough that she now found it quite humorous, “I do love dogs,” she said, “And if I didn’t just purchase my two kittens, I might just look into one of your puppies.”

She took some notes as he spoke of the traits he would like to see in a potential spouse, nodding and smiling as he went. She sipped her tea, “That does make sense, my lord, indeed it is very fine to spend lots of time together, but it is also lovely to spend time separately,” she set her cup down, “Just because you are married does not mean you are joined at the hip or loose who you are individually,” she settled back in her chair as she thought of the women that had come to her for help in seeking a spouse, and ones that she had kept an eye out for just in case she could give a strategic push or nudge, free of charge, “I do believe I have two women in mind for you, my lord, I daresay you may find both of them pleasing enough to take a turn about gardens at the very least. They are both noble—which should please your parent,” she smiled, “both desire children, and they also have hobbies that are outside of their stations in life.”

“Before I tell you their names,” she said, “Feel no obligation at all to wed either of these women or even court them. I do love making matches, but forcing someone into the matter, in my experience, has very ill results. Would you like to hear the two ladies’ names?”

October found Baroness Whistlebottom to be one of the most charming people he'd ever met and if nothing else came out of this arranged meeting, he hoped it would be a growing friendship with the woman. He felt an odd sense of protection over her, as if she were his own grandmother and that she ought to have visitors from her children and grandchildren all the time. He hoped her family was treasuring her.

He listened closely to all she had to say about the potential options and though his stomach twisted with nerves to actually take a step forward, he was comforted to know that there was no sort of arrangement in which he'd be required to choose between the two to wed, that courting was an option to just see how things went. He supposed that couldn't hurt and deep down he knew it would be in his best interested if he could let go of his other...attachments.

He nodded with a thoughtful smile. "I would very much like to hear their names, yes," he replied, wondering if he'd know the women in question or if they would be completely strangers to him.

She was pleased that he seemed happy with the descriptions of the women. The old woman sincerely hoped that he would still be pleased once the identity of the women were revealed.

“The first lady I have in mind for you is very well connected. She is related to raincoats through marriage, and has a very successful vineyard. She also enjoys playing music and singing,” she leaned forward with a wicked little smile, “And she’s very pretty. Very pretty indeed,” she leaned back, “Are you familiar with Lady Florina Bellerose?”

“The other lady is also very well connected, and holds a prestigious position in court,” she drank from her cup, “She is very skilled in the sword, and appears to have the people’s best interest at heart,” she looked up from her cup, “And she is also very pretty,” indeed, Winnie would boast that she had no plain women on her roster that year. Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing was up to personal taste or upbringing. Some beautiful women were too vain to care for anyone but themselves, after all, “I’m sure you are likely familiar with the lady’s name, but have you had the opportunity to make an aquaintence with Lady Scout Kane?”

October did know both women actually, though neither of them very well. "I have to give credit where credit is do, Lady Whistlebottom. Those are very respectable options indeed, I know my mother would be particularly delighted with them. I have met both of the lady's in question and would be interested in seeing if perhaps there might be anything there between us. I feel Lady Bellerose is of particular interest between the two. How does this typically go?" he asked. "Do you set up meetings or is that up to me? And do you wait to see if the ladies in question are also interested in meeting me or is more of a surprise for them?" He was just interested in what this process typically looked like.

“I am very pleased that you think so,” Winnie smiled, as she took note of which two ladies he preferred, and also that he did not outright reject either of them. It was even better that no introductions had to be made. Things went more smoothly that way, Winnie thought.

“How it usually goes,” Winnie started, setting her book down and reaching for her cup of tea, “Is that I will interview each potential suitor, and I will see if they like any of my suggestions. If all parties seem amiable, I will arrange a meeting unless one or the other wishes to reach out instead.” A smile, “And I must say, both ladies have expressed an interest. Would you like me to set up a meeting?”