Miri Larendaughter is the main protagonist in the series Princess Academy. Miri and Peder Doterson are betrothed. They become betrothed in the second book, Stone Palace.
Biography[]
Miri is the main character in the Princess Academy. She is 14 years old. In Princess Academy, Miri lives with her older sister, Marda and her Pa. When Miri's mother was pregnant with her, she suffered a severe accident in the quarry while she was stone setting, and was seriously injured, Miri was born prematurely. Nevertheless, her mother held her for a week straight before she died due to her injuries. Miri was going to be named Linder but her Mother refused "I don't want a daughter named after a stone," and instead named Miri after the flower that conquered the rock and faced the sun. As a child, her father forbade her from setting foot in the quarry where the villagers work daily because that is where her mother died, and to him, Miri is her mother reborn. Also because she was born early she is very small with thin limbs and is too weak to work in the quarry. As a result, she felt unwanted and assumes her small stature prevents her from being useful to her community.
Peder is her best friend who she has a crush on. They grew up together and have always been best friends. She was fascinated by quarry speech, a thing that the workers used as a way of talking without speaking aloud because they had clay in their ears so they wouldn’t go deaf from the mallet blows.
Miri is named after a small mountain flower, the miri flower which children make wishes on... When the chief delegate of Danland announces that Mount Eskel would be the home of the future princess, Miri is chosen, along with other eligible girls, to attend the Princess Academy. At the academy, she discovers a passion for reading and manages to stand out among her peers due to her intelligence, critical thinking and leadership skills, and willingness to help her classmates despite bitter competition. Her exam scores eventually earn her the title of academy princess. In the end, she returns to her home with dreams of starting a village school.
The Academy[]
One day, a palace messenger informs the Eskelites that the priests of the creator god have divined their village to be the home of the future king's bride. However, a coarse mountain girl is unfit to be royalty, so every girl of marrying age is required to attend an academy that will educate them in everything from mathematics to etiquette so that they each may become ladies worthy of being chosen to be a princess. Miri is taken away to the large, decades-old house three hours away from the village that will serve as a school.
The Palace of Stone[]
After being at the Princess Academy, Britta invites Miri, Esa, Frid, Gurtie, Bena, and Liana to Asland for her and Stefan's wedding. Miri starts going to the Queen's Castle a school in Asland. there she meets Timon, a scholar-to-be and a commoner. Timon and Miri become fast friends. later Timon takes Miri to Lady Sislia's house aka Sisi's salon. Here Miri learns about the rebellion against the king and royalty.
Timon and Miri[]
About the middle of the book Timon tells Miri that he loves her and basically proposes. She says she'll think about it. Later than Peder asks if Miri likes him, she says she prefers Peder romantically.