Perfectly Arranged Marriage / Fan Works

• Chapter 10 of a Case Closed fic, 30 Hugs: Heiji and Kazuha. In a slight variation, they had the Slap Slap part down just fine, but it wasn't until after they found out about the marriage that they realized the Kiss part sounded pretty nice too. They still freaked out about it immediately upon realization, but calmed down and came to their senses eventually.
• As Fate Would Have It: After seeing Nate prove himself as a Trainer and saving their daughter's life, Yancy's parents offer him the chance to become their daughter's fiance. While initially unsure on whether to accept the offer or not, the young couple eventually accept.
• In Blind, a Naruto Fanfic, 99% of arranged marriages with a Hyuga end up this way. How, you ask? Well, the bride and groom are told at the age of 3 who they're arranged to marry but told that the other person doesn't know. They then have the option of trying to win the other person's love but have until they are 15 as they have to tell their spouse about the arrangement and when they're 16 they marry whether there is love or isn't. Many choose the former.
• While Astrid in Bound (How to Train Your Dragon) was upset when she found out that her parents set her up with Hiccup behind her back, they become friends rather quickly when her mother asks her to get to know him, with Astrid eventually realising that Hiccup is the only person her age in Berk that she would actually want to marry.
• By the Sea: Ahsoka, a princess of the Togruta, is offered to the Mandalorians for betrothal, as a condition of the political alliance set up between the two past enemies. She decides to take matters into her own hands and sneaks off with the Mandalorians to vet her potential husbands herself away from her mother the Empress's supervision. Fortunately, the man she chooses and falls in love with happens to also be a more than politically appropriate mate as the crown prince of Mandalore. Their daughter is named the current monarch's successor and is placed next in line for the throne.
• Child of the Storm has Frigga mention that she and Odin became this, despite the age gap, once she realised that most of the gruffness was a front.
• Contact at Kobol features an interesting case where the arranged marriage backfired for the people arranging it; the highly religious Spiros family arranged for their son to marry the daughter of the equally religious Contos family, but husband and wife discovered that they each shared monotheist beliefs, to the extent that they basically 'defect' to the Tau'ri to enjoy religious freedom.
• In Harry Potter and the Restored Legacy, by Crossoverpairinglover, Lucius and Narcissa are described to be this way... unlike most fanfics where they are definitely not.
• In Hetalia: Axis Powers fanfiction, the Austro-Hungarian Compromise is described as such by the fans of the Austria/Hungary couple. If not, well, either of them will be subjected to Die for Our Ship. (Most frequently Austria.)
• While their marriage was political in The Home We Built Together, Astrid has no ill-will towards him while Hiccup respects her as a person and already had a crush on her. As time goes by, they develop a fondness for each other before it escalates to actual romance.
• There are a lot of Éomer/Lothíriel The Lord of the Rings fanfics running around to the tune of this trope.
• In the Dragon Age: Inquisition AU fanfic The Lady and the Lion, Cullen Rutherford and Evangeline Trevelyan are complete strangers when they meet the day before their wedding. Altar Diplomacy brings them together, and the first few months are rocky thanks to both of them being Twice Shy. A pair of Imaginary Love Triangles only adds to the confusion. But once they figure themselves out, they are extremely happy together, so much so that Dorian refers to them as being "that rare exception who make [an Arranged Marriage] look like a good idea."
• A Man of Iron:
  • When he was betrothed to a Frey girl, Robb Stark was understandably nervous but resigned to do his duty. Then he was introduced to Roslin Frey and fell hard AND fast.
  • Jon Snow and Natasha Sand were both bastards, so they never expected to have a spouse picked for them. Until their families - Stark and Martell - decide to ally through their wedding, and the teens realize they do get along quite well. This is later complicated somewhat when it is revealed that Natasha is the Black Widow, answering to the mysterious Council. Jon, unsurprisingly, feels betrayed and believes she doesn't' really love him - though he still loves her, as she loves him.
• In the Code Geass Alternate Universe Fic Mosaic, Suzaku married Euphemia for political reasons, but that doesn't stop the couple from loving each other.
• My Father's Son is a more optimistic look at Westeros, and so this isn't a constant, but does occur more regularly than expected.
  • First, there's Rhaegar's dual marriages to Lyanna Stark and Elia Martell. He didn't choose either of them, and Elia's marriage was rough for the first few years. But with Lyanna's influences on all of them, they eventually cultivate a highly passionate Threesome where they all get some, and begin producing plenty of heirs in the process.
  • Garlan Tyrell is forced into a marriage with one Melissa Fossoway to stabilize the Reach after Mace committed suicide after the death of Wilas. Given the Age-Gap Romance element of the marriage (Garlan was only 14 while Melissa was already 31 and a widow) it could've been highly uncomfortable, but Garlan's young honor and Melissa's calm understanding makes for a solid relationship overall.
  • In the midst of the Greyjoy Rebellion, Tywin Lannister uses some leverage to get a betrothal between his daughter Cersei and Ned Stark. Of course, he already knew they were Star-Crossed Lovers with a bastard child, so the marriage immediately turns passionate and glorious, with Cersei already having several children by the last timeskip.
  • Also during the Greyjoy Rebellion, Stannis Baratheon, partially due to the political needs of getting some favor from the rich House Hightower, and partially because he liked her during the one conversation they had beforehand, arranges to marry Lyneese Hightower. While stunned that he could be so reckless after a life built on serious preparation, the two turn out to be good for each other. Lyneese gets to keep a high class life with a man she can respect, and Stannis gets a smart wife who along with their daughter Shireen brings him all the best joys of his life.
• In the A Song of Ice and Fire fanfic Ned Stark Lives, where Ned Stark isn't executed by Joffrey, Robb Stark returns to the Twins to fulfil his marriage pact as part of the agreement made to stop the Lannister siege of Riverrun. He is extremely apprehensive at first, given that the Freys tend to be physically unattractive and that he had no say in the matter, but when he meets Roslin Frey, his squire's sister, he falls for her. The marriage goes along very well, even though the Freys were planning to betray the Starks just moments ago, and only stopped when Walder Frey became aware of the inevitable backlash that would happen.
• In no matter how bright a torch may burn, Peggy Sue Sansa-in-Cersei, knowing that not all of the royal couple's marital issues came from Cersei, has a painful chat with Robert, who believes this trope was in effect with him and Lyanna Stark. Sansa proceeds to deconstruct this outlook and forces him to acknowledge that in the end he didn't really know Lyanna, and that had she survived, he would not have been satisfied with her either. Her devotion pays off, and later their relationship improves, first in appearance, then in private, until they start moving closer to the trope, with Robert as the gregarious, approachable king and Cersei as the quiet, devout, and clever queen.
• In Our Blades Are Sharp, Lord Bolton sends his son Domeric at Winterfell hoping for a betrothal with Sansa Stark. They hit it pretty well, which pushes Ned Stark to agree to the match. Of course, they still have to marry, and this being Westeros...
  • Robb Stark and Myrcella Baratheon have shades of this, with Robb trying to write bad poetry to the princess and Myrcella daydreaming about Robb crowning her Queen of Love and Beauty. As with the above, unfortunately, there is no guarantee of a wedding at the end of the line.
• Queens of Mewni:
  • Skywynne, Queen of Hours, fell in love with a boy named Filbric because of his charm and kindness. She's delighted when she finds out he's the Flowers boy she's been betrothed to, and reportedly 'couldn't stop smiling'.
  • Played with in the case of Hekatia the Necromancer and Edmund Cross: they got along quite well...but it was as Platonic Life-Partners, as they just weren't interested in each other romantically and only married because Hekatia's mother forced them to.
  • Lancel McKnight and Sky the Weaver also genuinely loved each other, to the point that when Lancel was killed, Sky started to succumb to Death by Despair (although it was ultimately Death by Childbirth that got her).
• A Rose and a Lion: The betrothal of Margaery Tyrell came from Kevan first, but Tyrion wanted to be sure she would understand what she was entering into. As such, both of them have difficulties putting down their political minds or facades with each other, but they enjoy each other tremendously. Their sharp minds, breaking down the walls of each other, and finding a common connection in their empathy towards others make for an enjoyable if not perfect marriage.
• In Smoothie andLuffy, what starts as Altar Diplomacy so Big Mom can get access to the Revolutionary Army quickly results in actual affection between the two with Smoothie even arguing with her mother to let Luffy merely be an ally rather than a subordinate, citing that Dragon already insisted the alliance wouldn't go through if Luffy wasn't a willing participant.
• Such a Doting Father depicts Enji and Rei Todoroki's marriage as this (as opposed to canon, where it was most definitely not). Sure, Endeavor's parents were looking for a Quirk Marriage for him and approved of Glacia because her Quirk fit the bill (the reason they got married in canon), but Enji romanced Rei normally, and they're quite Happily Married in the present day.
• The main characters of Terms Of Engagement have this. Saito realizes how perfect the match is when he finds out his fiance Tokio has spent the fic disguised as two different people, secretly terrorizing him and his best friend, running a spy ring and executing a Batman Gambit.
• In Through a Diamond Sky, it's implied that Tron and Yori were "bundled" as one of these when their Users decided to team them up. Of course, it kinda helped that their Users became Happily Married.
• In The Torn Prince, this is the backstory of King Elias II and his first wife Queen Astrid. Unfortunately, their harmonious marriage ended after the queen died shortly after Felix's birth. Later, the king's advisor pressured him into marrying the daughter a duke, who became Hans's mother Ava.
• In The Young Stag, Steffon Baratheon is put in an arranged marriage with Arya Stark in order to unite their houses at the beginning of the story. While Arya is initially unhappy with the arrangement, she is eventually won over by Steffon and the two make a mutual effort to make the best of things before eventually falling in love.
• In Second Bite of the Cherry, Lan Wangji and Wei Ying know that they are getting married from a young age and can't wait to be old enough to finally wed.