Love in the North
In the North, love is quite black and white. There is companionship on one end, while everything else, specifically, sexual love, falls on the opposite end. Sexual love has a poor reputation. In a way, it is thought bestial. Bestial because of the connotations ascribed to it: selfishness bereft of sacrificial love. To be “in love” (a phrase never spoken without derision) is unbecoming to Northerners, for it is held to come from the loins rather than the heart. The highest value of love in the North is the love of companionship for a reason: it is “pure.” In other words, it does not involve lust, which is an aspect of self-interest, and self-interest sacrileges the ideals perennially espoused by the scutum: solidarity, comradery, self-sacrifice.
The above is to say that the soldier mustn’t pursue passions detrimental to the scutum. Because when the scutum suffers, the fight against Sin is the worse for it.
Purpose
Although sexual relationships may be frowned upon, they are not discouraged, especially not in the Cold War where the population levels across the land are alarmingly low. Therefore, the sole purpose for any sexual relationship is the promotion of procreation, not recreation (for that would be thought exceptionally tasteless) and certainly not in pursuit of finding a soulmate. These relationships are basically hook-ups then. They continue on until the woman is known to be pregnant and thereafter they are ended. However, not every relationship of this kind is so insensitive and ephemeral in its makeup. Some couples defy the status quo and attempt a genuine lasting relationship, or something like it, so long as the Comissar does not forbid it.
Profiling
Being that the Comissar is the be all end all of the scutum, they even have the role of playing matchmaker for their subjects––if they choose to be that hands-on. A Comissar can decide to pair two soldiers together, which invariably comes down to pairing a couple with attractive physical attributes. The logic is plain enough: to produce healthy and viable offspring. A particularly vindictive Comissar might force a couple to stay together against their will and for as long as that Comissar chooses, where each individual is forbidden to see or sleep with anyone else. Inversely, a Comissar can force a couple to split apart. These actions are not generally popular, though.
Restrictions
There are a few restrictions that limit what kind of sexual relationships can be formed and that have traditionally been followed by Comissars. For example, no soldier may enter into a relationship with an auditor, including those scutums that practice bonding (which is permitted between auditors only). Thus, practices like pederasty or pedophilia are not sanctioned in any shield. Those shields that do not practice bonding forbid auditors from forming relationships and not until an auditor graduates may they initiate one. In some scutums, no male soldier may enter into a relationship with another female soldier 40 years or older (a regulation put in place to prevent unwanted pregnancy). But there is nothing to stop a 40 plus year old male from hooking up with another soldier still in their late teens. In general, there are no proscriptions against homosexuality or even polygamy, though the latter is often considered in bad taste.
Confidants
Should a soldier prefer something deeper than the typical sexual fare, they may enter a “confidantship♦”. These are more alike to a serious emotional and mental relationship that usually involve sex, though not always. Sometimes the individuals initiate one only for the non-physical connection: for that human need to be vulnerable with another fellow human. In this regard, they’re not all that different from a companionship. The individuals may even become companions.
To strike up a confidantship is quite formal, asking something to the effect of, “Do you want to be confidants?” The question conveys a sense of secrecy as confidantships are not common enough, or acceptable enough, for one to occur either casually or organically. For fear of judgment, the persons involved often go out of their way to prevent the scutum at large from knowing about them. They rarely succeed for long.
There are no signs that typify a confidantship: e.g., hand-holding, kissing, baby talk. Romantic gestures are not ordinary either. Being in one’s personal space with the occasional gentle touch or romantic cast of the eyes is about the ideal expression of the relationship––in private, without the threat of judgmental eyes. These moments are more rare than not as soldiers must always be doing something: training, working to support the sustainability of the shield, etc. The word “private” is a bit of a dirty word in itself as it connotes someone who doesn’t want to chip in, who would prefer to be shiftless, or, worst, who is seen as an outcast: a label forever associated with the despicable ronin.
Nevertheless, soldiers are granted breaks from the daily regiment of their scutum, and if the Comissar allows it, confidants can be granted “personal time” and especially if it’s for purposes of procreation. Gossip abounds when these indulgences are provided. Confidants can decide to give these personal times themselves, of course, most often at night. But given that these are not officially sanctioned, they run the risk of being disciplined if found out.
♦There is no tenet regulating what number of partners a confidantship may have. However, because of their modest notoriety, and due to humanity’s proclivity towards monogamy, a confidantship typically consists of two partners.
Time & Place
As for where soldiers may have sexy time, the act is permitted strictly at night, away from the barracks. There are specially designated structures for sex called, colloquially, “butt huts.” So as to reveal their occupancy, not only are the entrances shut, but a long cloth is draped over the door. The origin of this unassuming custom is unknown. Of course, soldiers may choose to have sex outside of these butt huts if they be more adventurous, but that is technically in violation of the Code and thus they can be punished for it. Still, that punishment is often light. It is severe should the lovers be discovered during daylight hours, outside of personal time. And yet it is not nearly as severe as a soldier who reneges on her nightwatch to go fool around. She may be expulsed for her transgression.