by Robin Roseau
“He’s serious,” I added.
“I will, Your Majesty.”
“Good. To answer your question, yes, we have an improving relationship with Gandeet. Ms. Sessen, do you understand enough to answer the other half of your coworker’s question?”
“We can grow more citrus. And some of it gets used in inefficient fashions to use up what we can’t sell.”
“What else?” Father asked. Tess grew silent. Father watched her. “Do you not know, or are you just unwilling to say?”
She turned to look at me. I smiled to her and nodded. “Sales to Gandeet are at a poor price. My family would do better if we could expand markets. We used to do better, when we sold more to Charthan.”
“Gandeet used to pay better prices,” I added. “And they’re going to start paying better prices in the future. But it’s a bad idea to depend on that.”
“Do you have an issue with that, Ms. Leyviel?”
“No, Your Majesty,” Talith said. “Thank you for helping me understand.”
“Good. Darfelsa, if I send you to Ressaline City, will you go?”
“Yes, Father. Immediately?”
“No.” He paused, then sighed. “I forgot about winters up there. Make a proposal, send it to Allium, and if they’re interested, head north in the spring.”
“I’ll have to spend a month or two in Charth on the way, or send people early.”
“Handle it however you feel is best. Ahlianna, get her new credentials, when we get back.”
“I will.”
“I want a complete plan, including expected economic difficulties.”
“I don’t know if I can complete that until Allium has a chance to solve the transportation problems,” I replied.
“Do what you can with the information you have,” he said. He smiled. “That should keep you busy.”
“Yes, Father,” I agreed. “Father, I believe I’ll need to take representatives with me.”
“Will you?”
“One or two.”
“I’m not paying representatives from the citrus farmers so they can help me sell their fruit.”
“I wasn’t asking you to. I think when we’re ready to head home in a month or two, Tess should take us to visit her family.”
“Agreed. Feel free to use a courier to arrange an invitation.”
“Tess, I shouldn’t have volunteered your family. Are you on good terms?”
“Princess Darfelsa, they would be overjoyed to see us.”
“I’ll want a tour of the region,” I said. “I’ve actually never been there. And talks about trade, and that should be with area representatives.”
“I know what you need.”
“Then take care of it, but we’re not sure when we’ll leave. The weather and Mother’s mood will decide.”
“I’ll handle it, Princess.”
I looked Father in the eye, and he nodded. When the meeting broke up, I hugged him and whispered, “Thank you.”
“They’re rough, but they’re loyal to you and will learn,” he said.
* * * *
Grandmother was not at all impressed with Ahlianna and me. She was especially displeased when I pointed out that her daughter married the king, which was as lofty a goal as was possible, and had become the most popular queen in several generations, and then asked her why that wasn’t good enough for her.
Before she could answer, Ahlianna added, “We’re not interested in marrying just to please you. If and when we marry, it will be our choice, and the harder you push, the less influence you will have.”
“I personally removed from my list of possible suitors a certain Alluin Cairolei.”
“For heaven’s why? He’s a perfectly nice man.”
“Because he was foisted on me when I wasn’t in the mood for it, and that was entirely because you’ve been browbeating mother.”
“We get it,” Ahlianna said. “You can hound her until she does what you tell her, against her own better judgment, but guess what?”
“Her judgement on these issues is better than yours!”
“And you’re a fool not to recognize that,” Ahlianna added.
Grandmother sputtered. We let her, then I said, “If you want to make suggestions for a particular person, you may.”
“But that’s the extent of it,” Ahlianna added. “We can tell when you’ve been after Mother because she does something stupid.”
“It’s not advancing your cause.”
“She taught you terribly if this is how you treat your elders.”
“She taught us to protect each other,” I said hotly.
“And Mother clearly needs protection from your scheming,” Ahlianna added somewhat more coolly.
“Respect is earned.”
“And beating your daughter into submission isn’t how you earn it.”
“It wouldn’t hurt either of you to entertain someone once in a while!”
“Ahlianna,” I said. “I’m not at all in a hurry to get married. Are you?”
“Nope.”
“Let’s go.”
We both spun and headed for the door. Grandmother climbed to her feet and would have run past us if she’d been spry enough to do so. We made it to the door before she said, “Please.”
We both froze. By the time we turned, she was on her feet, walking towards us. “Tell me why that set you both off.”
“You honestly don’t know?” Ahlianna asked.
“When was the last time I was invited to court? When was the last time either of you wrote me to tell me what you do with your lives?”
I looked at Ahlianna. “She’s trying to manipulate us. If she doesn’t know what I just spent a year doing, I’ll…”
“You’ll, what?”
“You pick.”
She laughed. “Take my next discard off my hands.”
“Agreed.” We turned to Grandmother. “Tell me you don’t know where I’ve been for a year. See if we believe you.”
“You were off in Gandeet, and Charthan before that. Whyever you were there, I couldn’t say.”
“Learning how to handle issues like the one in Gandeet,” I said.
“You should be looking for a good match.”
“I think, Sister, that she just indicated the base problem.”
“I agree, Sister,” Ahlianna said. “But our wager is not complete. Grandmother, do you know what your granddaughter was actually doing?”
“Not looking for a husband.”
“That’s true,” I said. “But you heard the wager. If I take her next discard, that’s less room for your next attempt.”
“Not if my next discard is one of hers,” Ahlianna observed.
“I didn’t say I’d keep him.”
“True.”
“May we please sit down?” Grandmother asked. “Do you think I’m an old shrew with nothing to do but scheme?”
“Yes,” Ahlianna and I said together.
“Well, I’m not. Do you think your mother turned out as well as she did without someone to learn from?”
That stopped us. “We can sit,” I said. “But this is a conversation.”
“It wasn’t when you arrived.”
“True,” Ahlianna admitted. “But would you actually listen if we had come in and asked meekly.”
“Probably not.” But she gestured, and we all moved back to our seats. “Darfelsa, you were negotiating a trade agreement of some sort. I understand it went well.”
“Is that the limit of your understanding?”
She looked pained. I folded my arms. “You were seen about town with a variety of women.”
“And?”
“But you were decidedly not entertaining future husbands.”
“Ahlianna,” I said. “You’re the judge. I’ll accept your decision.”
“That actually sounds like a reasonable explanation, Darfelsa. I wouldn’t have expected many more details.”
“No, but I would have expected her to know I wasn’t just seen arou
nd town. I was charming the town. I was being sweet and entertaining, which is the claim she made we should do more of.”
“How many prospective husbands did you introduce to your parents?” Grandmother asked. “You both must make the right matches. Ahlianna, you must choose especially carefully.”
“You’re right about that part,” Ahlianna said. “I need someone who will support the future queen, someone the lords won’t rally behind as a king.”
“And Darfelsa will become the second-most powerful person in the country,” Ahlianna added. “As she will serve as my right hand. Her consort must support her challenging role.”
Grandmother’s eyes flicked back and forth between us, saying nothing.
“Are you going to fight me, or support me?” Ahlianna said. “Will you side with the forces that hope to assassinate me?”
“What?”
“You are either with me, or against me, Grandmother,” said the crown princess. “It isn’t your nature to stay out of a power struggle, after all. Father thinks most of the lords will support me. Darfelsa’s successes enhance those chances. You’re not a lord, but as Mother’s mother, you have influence. Are you going to support me?”
“Ahlianna is our future queen,” I said firmly.
“You can undermine me by stirring people up, but if you do, I can expect assassins, because no one is going to sway Father or me,” Ahlianna said. “Grandmother, we will entertain the occasional man you send mother, but frankly, I wish you would just let us make our own choices.”
“That’s not how it works. And I don’t browbeat Ralifta.”
“Yes, Grandmother. You do,” I said. “And you don’t listen to any opinion but your own. You particularly place little faith in us.”
“You’re both children.”
“And you clearly have no respect for either of us. How many international treaties have you negotiated?”
“You are impertinent!”
“You’re the one unwilling to show either of us one bit of respect,” I told her. “You’re the one who dismisses us entirely, completely out of hand. We’re nothing to you but pawns for power.” I stood up. “I’m no one’s pawn, and neither is Ahlianna. We’re certainly not yours. I have ample responsibilities, and I don’t need you suggesting I am shirking my duty because I don’t offer my hand to your choice. Ahlianna, I’m leaving. I’ll wait for you outside.”
Ten minutes later, I said, “I have such diplomatic skills.”
She laughed. “It’s like talking to a tree with her.”
“Do you think she’ll back off?”
“No.”
“Then I’m going to order the courier service to begin returning her mail unopened.” I smiled. “Do I have that much authority?”
“You can’t do that.”
“I can. It’s unclear whether they’ll listen to me.”
“They won’t,” she said. She sighed. “She’d find a way around something like that, anyway.”
“We tried,” I said. “Did you tell Mother where we were going?”
“No. Did you?”
“No.”
* * * *
We reached Father’s estates in the south. Father declared he was on vacation and available for emergencies, but he kept track of what was going on, and that meant that Ahlianna and I did as well.
We entertained locally. We held a few dances, assisted by my staff, and that was nice. Mother, Ahlianna, and I played music together, not every day, but often. That was nice, too. We stayed for six weeks.
But we received word that the worst heat of summer had broken. Father was anxious to get back to Barrish. We all felt deeply refreshed, and so Mother said, “We can depart next week.”
The day came. Hugs were passed around. I stood on the patio, taking a slow circle, remembering all the times here. And then I walked out to the gates, climbed on my horse, and turned my team west while my family headed northeast.
* * * *
The citrus region was beautiful, with orchard after orchard. Tess seemed excited, but also a little nervous. And then she brought all of us to a stop at a drive that would lead between two groves, lemons on one side and pomelos on the other. I’d never seen a pomelo tree, and I stared for a minute.
“This is my family’s farm,” Tess said. “Darfelsa, they’re simple people.”
“I expected that.”
“They told me they would make room, but…”
“Tess, if it’s a dry roof, that’s what matters.”
“It might be the barn.”
“How long has it been since you’ve been here?”
“Six years.”
“Well, if it’s terribly unpleasant, then we’ll make adjustments. I can handle a rough bed in the barn. Is there anyone who can’t?” I already knew the answer. “All right. Tess, I’m anxious to meet your family. I want an education, everything I can learn. And I want to meet people. Do you think that can happen?”
“That can happen,” she said. “I can promise that.”
“If there can be an occasional bath, even better. But we’ll make do. Now, you need to trust me.”
“I trust you,” she said. “But-”
“But, what?”
“It might be the barn.”
I laughed. “Then it’s the barn. Perhaps you noticed I didn’t bring any gowns, just a couple of dresses, and I’m not even expecting to use them, but I like to be prepared. Calm down. Tell me about pomelo trees.”
That got her – and our group – going.
She had described the farm as “not very big”. I was probably a poor judge. It took us five minutes of easy riding to travel from the road to the farm yard. And then Tess brought us to another stop, staring at the farmhouse. She pointed and looked over at me. “That’s new.”
“The house?”
“Yes. The main house is on the other side of the barn. They didn’t tell me they’d rebuilt.”
I began to have a sinking suspicion, but I wasn’t going to chastise anyone, if I was right. We rode the rest of the way. Tess dropped from her horse and opened a gate, and the rest of us rode our mounts into a paddock before climbing down.
And there was another farm house, this one looking much older than the first one we’d seen.
So far, we hadn’t encountered anyone, but I assumed everyone was working. We saw to our mounts, pulling gear from them, checking the water, and letting them loose. I was just about to carry my tack into the barn when a ringing began. We all turned to look. In front of the older house stood an elderly woman, using a hunk of iron bar to bang against a large metal triangle, ringing like a bell. Tess saw, dropped her things, and yelled, “Grandma T!” She took off, slipping through the fence. As Tess drew near, the woman dropped the bar, which hung from a rope, and opened her arms widely.
“Well,” I declared. “We seem to be in the right place. Let’s see to introductions.”
Leaving our things where they were, we followed Tess. “Someone run ahead and tell her ‘no curtsies’.” Renishta stepped ahead, and by the time we arrived, the three were turned to face us, Grandma’s arm around her granddaughter’s shoulders.
“Grandma T,” Tess said. “This is Princess Darfelsa Cinnabar. When speaking formally, you can refer to her as Princess, Princess Darfelsa, or Your Highness. But she has asked us to simply call her by her name. Darfelsa, this is my paternal grandmother, Tanulia Sessen, but pretty much everyone calls her Grandma T. Even my maternal grandmother calls her that.”
“The old bat,” said Grandma T. “Welcome to Sessen Farms, Darfelsa.”
I offered my hand, and when she gave me hers, I added my other. “Thank you for having us, Grandma T. This is my first visit to the Lorafar region, and I must say, it is absolutely beautiful here.”
“It’s not so bad,” Grandma T replied with a smile. “We’re not a big farm, not compared to some others, but we do all right.”
I released her hand. “Tess,” I said. “Why don’t you introduce the others?”
<
br /> Tess handled that, and then Grandma T said, “They must not have heard the bell. Tess, teach one of these sweet girls how the bell works. I’d like to walk with the princess.” She took my arm and turned us, and I let her lead me away. Behind us, the bell began ringing.
Grandma T was elderly, but confident on her feet. She took me far enough from the bell we could talk. “Before it turns hectic here,” she said. “I want to thank you for what you’re doing for my granddaughter.”
“She’s become a valuable member of my staff, especially with this new project Father has assigned me. Did Tess’s letter explain?”
“Quite well. We’re absolutely delighted, Darfelsa. We’ve never had a royal visitor, and to have one who wants to help us is something special.”
“You should know: you’ll be able to raise prices in what gets sold to Gandeet, perhaps about a tenth. That’s not much.”
“No, but it gives us far more room for profit. We won’t be squeezed as tightly. Do you understand how that works?”
“One tenth better price doesn’t mean you earn one tenth more. It may mean you actually earn twice as much, after your expenses.”
“You do understand,” she said. “You’re not just a pretty face.” She gestured. “We have space for you and your staff, and the living room can be a sort of office, if you don’t mind people coming and going. Some of them will need to double up, but Tess said they’re accustomed.”
“How old is that house?” I asked.
“It’s the guest house.”
“Grandma T, how old is that house?”
“Don’t you worry about that.”
“That sounds like something old men say to me when they also say, ‘she’s just a girl’.”
She pulled me to a stop, and we turned to each other. “Everyone helped build it. The entire region. After you’re gone, Tess’s sister will probably move in, with her family. I have four grandchildren now, and the main house is getting a little loud for my tastes, if you know what I mean.”
“This is very gracious,” I replied.
“You probably didn’t know what to expect. It’s not grand. It’s not what you’re used to. But there are beds, and they’re comfortable. The mercantile donated the bedding. It’s good cotton. None of the furnishings are new, but it’s all in good shape. Everyone helped, Darfelsa.” She smiled. “We’re actually being opportunistic.”
