Like many organisms in the universe, Elysians often seek to find a romantic partner or mate, whom they can live and start a family with. Of course, an individual's preferences are their own, and Elysians are no exception to this. In general, Elysian men and women are more focused on long term commitment when it comes to forming an official relationship, making “couples” less commonly seen - but also significantly reducing the amount of breakups. It is not uncommon for a traditionally-minded Elysian couple to be dating for nearly a decade before becoming married as spouses, and marriages will in most cases last for life.

It is believed that the tradition of slowly forming a relationship came from prehistoric times, when lifespans were a fraction of their current lengths and the wild nature of their surroundings meant that a poorly-supported family could easily die of starvation, exposure, or predators as a lack of cohesion weakened them. Consequentially, “snap decisions” in a relationship were often discouraged by the ancient civilizations. As technology and society advanced to a more civilized state, the dangers of forming a family quickly became irrelevant - but the public opinion remained still.

Due to the mixing of cultures caused by Elysia's status as an interstellar polity, many Caelisolans and Plebians have begun to behave more similarly to other sapient species, especially in mixed-culture areas such as Planet Yamatai, Funky City, and aboard orbital station-cities: commitment is more frequent and fluid compared to the slower pace of traditional Elysian romance. This is additionally influenced by the inherently interspecies nature of Plebians and Caelisolans, who were born from relationships between Patricians and “lesser species” like humans¹⁾; they are more likely to collect pieces of other cultures and mold them together.

Some Patrician families often seek to arrange marriages between children, and these “spouse-searchers” often will school or train their children in advanced skills such as high-end cooking, commanding servants, or combat for future military service. The children in this situation often still form their relationships in a fairly normal way for Elysians, but there are multiple family-based incentives that can accelerate the formation of a couple and marriage.

Despite the much slower pace of relationships for Elysians, much of the overall process remains the same to that of other species: individuals, commonly a man and woman, form a bond with each other emotionally (and on occasion psychically) which strengthens as they spend time with each other, and can be tested by internal or external stresses such as arguments, mistakes, and unaccounted for events such as wars and industrial accidents²⁾. Weddings are commonly carried out and celebrated in temples, shrines, and other religious locations, and wedding receptions may be held which provide food, alcohol and entertainment after the ceremony. A wedding is legally recognized and as such a lawyer may be present during the ceremony.

Traditional Elysian wedding bands do not take the form of rings; instead, wedding bands are worn on the wrist or arm of a married person, and are incredibly varied in design. A wedding band can be the size of a typical wristwatch, fitting snugly below the palm, but some designs are known to cover the entire arm up to the shoulder. Traditional wedding bands are commonly made from precious metals such as gold and platinum, and decorated with extravagant carvings, gemstones, additional metals, and in some rare cases electronic components such as lights. Wedding bands are commonly presented to the spouses during the wedding ceremony, and do not always need to match in design. Wedding bands are traditionally worn on the dominant arm of married Elysians, and often are quite visible.

Non-traditional wedding bands are becoming more common in the modern era, with bands being made of metals such as titanium and Zesuaium, or non-metallic materials such as rubber, silicone, and glass. In some cases, technology-enticed couples may even create volumetric displays on their wedding bands similar to fancier Aureas cards.

Arbitrated created this article on 2020/04/12 15:16.

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