bakerstreet | ARRANGED MARRIAGE

ARRANGED MARRIAGE

Marriage for love is a such a modern concept. In the past, marriage was
recognised as a social contract. Unions were entered into for many
reasons: to obtain property, to unite families, to carry on a bloodline,
et cetera. Whatever the reason, congratulations, you're getting married!

HOW IT WORKS:
❧ Post a comment with your character's name, canon, and any preferences.
❧ If there's a specific set of circumstances you like best, set the scene.
❧ Or leave your comment blank and let others use RNG to choose the scenario. Feel free to mix and match.
❧ Please note the prompts below are merely suggestions and you're more than welcome to come up with your own situation.
❧ Have fun!

POSSIBLE REASONS FOR MARRIAGE:
① Station → You come from a royal, noble, or otherwise distinguished family who has chosen a suitable spouse for you.
② Feud → You are being married to put an end to the bitter enmity between your two families.
③ Economics → Your economic state and/or your station will improve through the union, though one of you may be marrying down.
④ Empire → You and your spouse are merging your businesses and/or property to create something more influential or profitable.
⑤ Tribute → You have been offered as a gift or appeasement, alternately you're the spoils of war.
⑥ Bloodline → Carrying on your distinguished family name has fallen to you and the equally well-bred spouse of your family's selection.
⑦ Disapproval → Your marriage has been arranged to keep you away from the person with whom you truly wish to be.

POSSIBLE SCENARIOS:
① First meeting → This is the very first time you're meeting your future spouse.
② Courtship → To get to know each other and encourage affection, your family has approved of you going on dates.
③ Engagement party → Be it a huge, formal affair or a small, intimate get together, you're celebrating (or pretending).
④ Wedding day → The big day!
⑤ Reception → The big party!
⑥ Wedding night → Every meme needs a smut prompt, right?
⑦ Honeymoon → Where will you go with your new spouse and what will you do there?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only | Expand All

In truth, Coulson could care less about this ridiculous 'fued'. It wasn't even between his blood family, but his family of choice--who seemed to have more enemies than anyone else he knew.

Though, given that these enemies usually wanted to end the free world, he could understand.

Still, the idea that marrying th eman they called Hawkeye, Clint Barton, to try and keep the rest of his own group from making a mess of things...it juts seemed archaic.

But that's the PR machine for you.

Straightening his tie, Coulson sits at the small cafe, waiting for Clint to show up that evening for their date. If he has to get married to the archer, he wants to get to knowh im a little better, at least.

Clint looks in the mirror one more time, he doesn't own a suit, he's never been that fancy, of a guy, or had that much money of his own.

He hates the idea of them marrying him off like some pawn, but he wants the killing and the fighting to stop, which might sound weird, because assassin. But the people he takes out, he takes out on his own terms, human traffickers, drug runners the worst of the worst.

He didn't even have a real family presay, but this was as close as he'd ever gotten, Barney had dumped him off with them when he was 10...

He straightens his white fitted button up, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, purple suspenders, black jeans slightly frayed at one knee, and purple high top converse.

He walks into the coffee shop, and lets out a slow breath and moves over to the table. "Are you Phil?"

Couslon, as usual, had already done some recon on Clint Barton--and while he can't help but raise his eyebrows at what the man is wearing, he can't deny that he's actually surprised. He's never met a man who seems to enjoy purple as much as Mr. Barton does.

Though Phil isn't going to say that the shit doesn't look very good over the man's muscles.

Standing up once Clint comes in, he extends a hand, giving a careful smile. "Yes. You must be Clint. Come, sit down." Might as well get this started. No way to avoid the end of it, after all.

Clint laughs a little and shakes his head and licks his lips as he shakes Phil's hand. He sits down and looks Phil over, liking very much what he's seeing. "I uh, didn't know coffee was going to be so fancy..." He laughs, "Well I don't own a suit sooo." He shrugs a little lips twitching at little.

He decides right then to just treat this as a blind date, it will make it easier, pretend like there isn't any pressure or that they aren't being pushed. "So..." He says looking at the little menu, "What's good here, I haven't been."

"This is what I normaly wear, Mr. Barton." Phil looks down at his clothing, and gives a little shrug. "Though don't assume that means I was not attmepting to impress you." Not that he was, exactly; but casual clothing isn't something he does unless he is within the confines of his own home.

"Everything, actually. It's one of the reasons I like to come here. Makes things easier." He gives a tight little smile, happy to see Clint laughing so much, already.

Clint wrinkles his nose a little and shakes his head, "Don't call me Mr. Barton, makes me think of my dad." He says easily. "Well it's working, you look good in a suit." He says easily. "Call me Clint... can I call you Phil?"

"Grilled peanut butter and bacon..." He says licking his lips a little, "That sounds like it will give me a heart attack, and delicious." He says biting his lower lip a little.

"So other then coffee shops with good menus and suits, what do you like?"

"Thank you. Though I assure you, here isn't any need to flatter me. This is all political." He knows he isn't as fit as he once was, and with the thinning hair, and the age difference, Clint could do a great deal better than himself. And at some point he'll have to make sure Clint knows that he isn't going to expect fidelity out of him--after all, being tired to someone you barely know isn't going to be good when Clint actually meets someone he likes.

"And yes, Phil is fine." Phil has to smile a bit at Clint's choice. "It is good. Though I personally go for something a bit more simple." And boring. But he has settled into a habit over the years (to make up for the lack of habit in the rest of his life).

"Trashy reality television." He motions for a waiter before continuing, "Given the chaos in my own life, it is nice to see that parts of the world are still trivial."

Clint shakes his head a little giving Phil a small smile, "Not trying to flatter, and if this was strictly political, we would've just gone to the court house yesterday, instead of being on what I think is a really good first day so far." He says pushing his fingers through his slightly unruly blond hair.

"Okay are we talking Toddlers and Tiara's trashy? Or Intervention trashy?" He asks a smirk spreading across his face, "Because I am more of a Hoarders and Cops kind of guy..." He says warmly.

"We could have, but from what I've read on you, you aren't the type to take the most direct route." Clint is known to be notoriously difficult, after all. One of the reasons he was chosen for this, and not someone else. Sometimes he wishes he wasn't known for his unflappable nature.

"I like all but Hoarders. That sow makes me feel like I could develope an obsessive cleaning cumpulsion." Those houses all make him feel entirely too dirty. "Super Nanny is my favorite, actually."

"I always end up cleaning my space after watching." He admits with a slight laugh. "Super Nanny? The one with the frightening parents?" He asks licking his lips, "Sometimes I can watch it, but sometimes I want to kick the parents in the teeth..." Some of the episodes drag up old memories.

"Yeah, this is more fun then going to the court house..." He laughs a little, "Oh so what else have you read about me?" He asks arching an eyebrow lips twisting into a smirk that's all trouble.

"Yes. It's...it reminds me a great deal of what I do in my daily life, actually." The parents are horibble, but he often is cleaning up the same sort of messes. Tony is a toddler, in most ways.

Coulson can't help but smile a bit more genuinely. "I'm a SHIELD agent, Clint. There is very little I don't know about you." Which he has to be honest about; it will most likely make Barton uncomfortable, but it can't be avoided.

Clint rolls his eyes a little but there is a fondness to it already, "I know your SHIELD, I know you have my file, you probably have my foster care file too, and my juvi record." He snorts a little shaking his head.

"I've got intel on you too." He grins a little, there is a hint of trouble in it. "But I am talking about the skill you have Phil, for reading people, not what you picked up on what my papers say about me." He grins cutting his sandwich in half diagonally.

"Like I can tell, you like powdered doughnuts..." He says sharp eyes landing on a speck of powdered sugar 99% of people would miss. "I prefer glazed, but powdered is good with one of those little cartons of milk." He laughs, "You're also right handed, and spend a good amount of time on the range judging by the callous on your trigger finger."

"Maybe I've just killed a lot of people." Phil responds, with a mirthless smile. It's true; he has killed more people than he has wanted to. But he has also managed to save more than that. There was blood on both their hands. One of the reasons that this might work. Hopefully.

"You can shoot with both arms, if necessary, but you prefer your left," Phil answers, giving Clint some of the observations he wanted. "You don't always use a guard, which is why you have light scarring on your forearm." He waits a beat, then, "I suspect you use humor to cover up any weaknesses you have."

"As long as they've where baddies, I don't mind how many people you've killed." he says taking a bite of his sandwich.

Clint listens and nods lips twitching a little, as Phil gets things right. "I grew up with clowns, literally, humor is a side effect of that." He says easily.

He thinks this going well, he hopes Phil feels the same. "What's the plan after this?" He asks giving Phil a little smile.

"Considering you have been on that list before, I don't know if you should hopign that they've been all bad." But no, he hasn't killed any good people. Or at least, he's tried to make sure that he hasn't--and believe he hasn't made any mistakes.

"I don't know," Phil answers honestly, pausing as their food comes. "It depends if you mean after we finish eating, or the bigger 'in general' idea."

"Why would I be on a hit list with you guys..." He asks arching an eyebrow at the man licking his lips a little at their food arrive, "I only take contracts on human traffickers, drug runners, and other scum." He says easily picking up a fry and popping it into his mouth.

"Both." He says easily, taking a sip from his drink.

"And that's still without any sanction. We don't condone vigilantes most of the time, Clint." Phil speaks with an even tone, even as he works into his food. Coulson doesn't disagree with what Clint is doing, but it still isn't sanctioned, and he knows SHIELD wants it to stop.

"I don't know, in the short term. I didn't plan ahead, not knowing how you would react to me." Phil answers honestly. "In the long term? We'll manage the marriage, as best as possible. I don't expect anything from you. I'm not asking you to be faithful to a man you barely know."

"Sanction is for squares..." He says popping a fry into his mouth, "Also Shield doesn't always make the right call." He says shrugging a little.

"Mmm I can be faithful, not like I am swimming in suitors in my line of work..." He a laughs a little, "Look I know I'm not a catch for a guy like you I get it, so yeah you can do what you want." Clint shrugs starts to sulk a little.

"What if we didn't manage it, what if it's just a piece of paper, and you know we just treat it like we're dating, at first?" He asks arching an eyebrow.

"We make the right call, most of the time. And that's what matters." That is what has to matter. He takes a sip of his drink, working into his own side salad with a bit of a shrug.

"Nothing is even saying we have to..." He flushes, slightly, "Consummate. This isn't something from medieval times, despite the situation." Still, "I don't know if you have looked in the mirror, Clint, but I'm not the one people are looking at, in here."

Clint rolls his eyes a little, "Phil... don't knock yourself." He says lips twitching a little. "You're a looker too, between the suit and the muscles, I'm liking what I am seeing." He shrugs. "The twink in the corner is checking you out." He nods toward a small red head sipping from a large round mug in the corner.

Phil can't help but color a bit more, a small frown tugging at his lips. "No, I think he's looking at you." Still, "Regardless, I don't think attraction matters, here. I suspect it will make things easier, but as I said, this is more a business transaction than some sort of love connection." Phil isn't foolish enough to think that it could become something like that.

Hurt flickers across Clint's eyes before his can school his expression into something cold and distant. "Fine boss man." He shrugs body shifting like a wall is going up. He pulls out his wallet and puts a few bills on the table.

"Here, enjoy the rest of your meal, I'll see you at the wedding." He stands grabbing his jacket off the back of the chair getting ready to leave. "I know I'm not much, I don't have a fancy degree, or work for some agency... but I at lest wanted to try."

Coulson frowned, but he moved quickly enough to put a hand on Clint's arm. "I wasn't rejecting you, Clint. I was just being realistic. One in two marriages end in divorce. And those people aren't forced into it." Not that they have that sort of option, at the moment. "It wasn't a judgment against you.

"Yeah, but you're giving off the vibe that you don't even want to try to be happy with me..." He says with a shrug, but he is sliding back into his seat. "There's being realistic, which is okay we tried and it didn't work new plan, then there is just closing your eyes and saying there is no fucking way this will work so I'm not going to even bother giving it a chance... take a risk, we could at lest have some fun."

"I take calculated risks, Bar--Clint." He feels a headache coming on, pressing a finger to his temple. "I have not known you for long enough to even hazard if you would be happy with me, or vise versa. We will be lucky to end up friends. I don't--"

He breathes out through his nose.

"--I don't do well on hope. There is a reason I'm the one here, instead of one of the others." Because his relationships don't work out, so he stopped trying long ago.

ARRANGED MARRIAGE

hope this works!

It totally does.

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sorry was at a con all weekend

No worries! :D Was it fun?

it was! Just tired now!

I love going to con, I haven't been to one in a bit tho, hopefully next year.

Cool :)

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