Tiara- Part Two

by Robin Roseau

  Everyone not staying in the palace was staying in one of the nearby multi-family houses. I never learned whether people were displaced, but I assumed they were.

  At no point did anyone complain, and I actually found it comforting to be surrounded by familiar people. I won’t dwell on this, but throughout the duration of our trip, I made sure all my charges were doing well.

  There was only one distressing point: Shalendra and I would have a difficult time finding any sort of privacy. But she told me simply, “Do what you need to do here, Darfelsa. If you need me for anything, I will do what I can. Valsine is taking care of me. I’ll be fine.”

  We had a simple dinner in the palace our first night, those of us living in the palace. Conversations began in the morning.

  * * * *

  The great hall had been used as the dining room the night before. Today, the arrangement of tables was similar, and there was ample space, in spite of the numbers. In addition to the people who had come with me, Queen Lisdee had her own staff. Lisdee’s closest advisors were not ministers; they were councilors. And it appeared that division of labor wasn’t remotely similar to how things were done in Flarvor. There was no councilor of transportation, or of agriculture, or supply. Instead, they were councilors, and they all seemed interested in everything.

  And so, we met five councilors. There were three women who seemed to be more directly concerned with supply in Ressaline City, and two who were road engineers.

  The great hall was quite busy.

  Once introductions were performed, Queen Lisdee said, “We are here to discuss two basic topics: enhanced trade relations with Flarvor, and improved transportation to Ressaline City. Would you agree, Princess Darfelsa?”

  “Yes, although I would like to address a minor topic first. I would accept a less formal form of address, but perhaps that is not your way here.”

  Lisdee looked around. “It is not often I have hosted conversations with so many people, and far less often they have included foreigners. What is it your father does?”

  “He dispenses with formality, behind closed doors.”

  “I am not above taking lessons from King Leander,” Lisdee said. “I wish to be addressed formally upon initial greetings, but once we settle down, we can become less formal.”

  “Very good, Lisdee,” I said. She nodded. “Thank you. I didn’t want to presume. Queen Lisdee isn’t so much to say, but Princess Darfelsa is a mouthful.”

  She offered a brief smile and then looked me up and down. “A delightful mouthful.”

  I blushed. “Mother!” Gionna laughed.

  “Well,” I managed to say. “I also do not expect so many people at subsequent meetings. Allium and I will attend both sets of conversations, but we have specialists here, and they do not need to sit through conversations well outside their purview.”

  “Agreed,” Lisdee said. “Let’s see how things go this morning, and perhaps we can set a schedule. Darfelsa, all this was your idea, as I understand it.” I inclined my head. “Why don’t you explain, then.”

  I nodded and stood, deciding to pace. “This began in Gandeet, actually.” I gave a brief description.

  “The Gandeetians have been much more difficult to work with,” Lisdee said. “I approve of your approach, Darfelsa.”

  “Thank you. The maps I drew served multiple purposes. I let the Gandeetians see them. But if I were going to cut trade with Gandeet, I needed to replace it with trade elsewhere. And so the maps helped me work through that.”

  “We were your contingency plan.”

  “Yes,” I confirmed. “But once I had laid that out, I realized I didn’t need to throw it all away. Gandeet pays us poorly for some of our goods, and I also found it likely we are able to produce more, if we have markets.”

  “And that is why you are here.”

  “Yes, Lisdee. At that point, there are limited issues, some more difficult to solve than others. First, the people who provide the goods we will trade to you deserve fair compensation.”

  “Of course.”

  “Ressaline’s ability to provide that compensation has had limits.”

  “Unfortunately true.”

  “But you have ample land, and I believe there are things that can be done about that. You could produce goods we would value. Your northern wheat has a distinct flavor, and you also grow two styles of rice that would see a market.”

  “All the wheat and rice we produce is used to feed our citizens,” said one of the councilors.

  “And I have absolutely no intention of taking food from the people of Ressaline City,” I said. “Which means to sell them as cash crops, you would need to expand production.”

  “We’re cultivating as much land as we can.”

  “So that’s a problem to solve,” I said. “I can think of several solutions, some of them easier to resolve than others. You could also produce more wool. You have ample land for grazing. We would not buy large amounts of wool, as our climate is far warmer than yours, but we would buy some, most of which would be used by people living in our more northerly reaches. You also have natural resources. If you can find a way to transport it, we would buy timber.”

  “We do not wish to deplete our forests,” said another councilor.

  “I am only making an offer,” I said. “But new trees grow. Silver and tin mines do not. In exchange for these goods, we are originally offering to sell you citrus. A yearlong supply of citrus can combat diseases I understand are common here but are unheard of in Flarvor. I would think it’s worth time trying to find a solution. Wouldn’t you?”

  I looked around. “The other half is this: citrus is not as easy to transport as wheat and rice. It isn’t even as easy as salted meat. We cannot ship fresh citrus this far, even if a road all the way from Flarvor to Ressaline City could be built. The fruit would spoil.”

  “Then what good is this conversation?”

  “We can ship dried and canned food. Dried, it can be made to last much longer, but it is typically then also sugared. Canned is actually a better choice, but then it is bulky and heavy. We do not need Allium’s help as a builder of roads if we are to send you dried citrus. And it may be we could send you canned, but you would find transportation more challenging.”

  “And so we are left with the other half of our conversations,” Lisdee replied.

  “Exactly. But before we talk about transportation, I have a proposal. Renishta, if you would. I’m sorry, we didn’t make enough copies for everyone.” Renishta, with help from Terla and Selzen, passed out several sheets of paper.

  “Queen Lisdee,” I said formally. “Flarvor is prepared to sell to you all the citrus you care to purchase. The first sheet lists prices for the citrus as typically paid for transportation within Flarvor. These are recent prices, and there are annual fluctuations due to the success of the harvest. You will see there is a single rate for some choices and a range for others. This does not represent a range over time, but are recent seasonal fluctuations. The second sheet has prices from recent trade agreements with Gandeet. The third sheet is similar to the second, but are the prices after my visit. You will see they are all higher, but still less than prices for internal delivery.”

  “Why?” Lisdee asked. “Did you make poor arrangements, Darfelsa?”

  “Perhaps you will compare them to the prices arranged by the previous ambassador. Our goal for prices are the first sheet, but we do not expect those prices initially. The remaining sheets are prices for internal use when the foods in question are canned or dried. We also have descriptions of the various fruits, but we didn’t make as many of those. We can deliver fresh fruit year-round as far as Charth, assuming good roads.”

  I let that hang out there. All the women were reviewing prices, but then it was one of the councilors who looked at me. “I believe I misheard you, Darfelsa.”

  “I do not believe you did.”

  “You said you could deliver fresh fruit all year long.”

  “Yes, but it would
spoil if we attempted to send it further than Charth, and some varieties do not travel at all well.”

  She stared. “You are mistaken.”

  “You may not have the descriptions,” I said. “Gleanns and tarsannas produce fruit throughout the year. Pendillas only produce fruit in what you would consider late winter. You will see the price is high. Winter does not mean to us what it means to you, and Lorafar is particularly far to the south, near the ocean, which moderates the seasons and brings significant rain. I do not say prices will not fluctuate. I say we can deliver fresh citrus to your nearest regions in any amount we anticipate you would ask.”

  “What good does that do us?” another woman asked. “We need more fruits here in Ressaline City. Charth does not.”

  “Ah, if you know we can satisfy the needs of Charth, then you can transport fruits grown in southern Charthan into northern Charthan, and those from northern Charthan here. I cannot promise there will never be shortages. There will be. We can get devastating storms. There’s nothing I can do about that. Any agreements made will take that into consideration. Rosaniya, perhaps it is time to introduce them.”

  “We didn’t bring fresh,” Rosaniya said. “It wouldn’t have lasted.” But then, with help from Selzen, we put a large tin on the table. Rosaniya slid it across the table. “This is a tin of dried, sugared fruit. It is considered a candy. This is a decorative tin, the sort you might offer as a gift. We assume you would prefer plain tins. This tin is still sealed. It is produced to be particularly dry when sealed, and the contents should be good, but when we open it, I will offer an inspection. However, you can pass it around to see one form of what we can sell you.”

  The queen took the tin and inspected it. While she was doing that, Rosaniya, Selzen, and Terla began setting jars of canned fruit on the table. Lisdee passed the tin off and stared at the jars. “What we’ve brought today is a gift to this meeting,” I said. “We’re going to open them shortly. Lisdee, we brought forks, but perhaps spoons and small bowls would be helpful.” She made a gesture to one of the slaves. “For now, we thought you should see how we package, and from there, you will understand why transporting canned fruit to Ressaline City comes with challenges.”

  Rosaniya slid the jars across the table.

  “I don’t even know what any of this is,” said one of the councilors. She held up one of the jars.

  “Those are tarsannas,” Rosaniya said. “From my family’s farm. That particular jar is lightly sugared. Some of the jars are not. Sugared lasts longer.”

  “Lyeneru,” I prompted.

  “I am Lyeneru, if people don’t remember,” she said. “I am a veterinarian, a doctor for animals. But I understand the health aspects of what we’ve brought you as well as anyone, and as my job is to travel much of the region, I know a little about everything.” She then talked about what we knew about the health aspects of consuming fruit. She admitted she knew little about the diseases they faced, so it was possible that the serving sizes we thought were necessary wouldn’t be entirely sufficient to combat each disease.

  In the meantime, the jars made their way around to everyone, and Lisdee held onto one, staring at it.

  Two servants arrived, pushing a cart. They had brought a variety of bowls as well as glasses, more water, serving utensils, and the like. Lyeneru paused, and I said, “Lisdee, we have more than enough for everyone here, but we do not necessarily have enough of each variety. Rosaniya, let us start with something ample.”

  “The gleanns,” she said.

  She opened a jar, and was ready to dish, but Lisdee said, “The slaves can see to that, Rosaniya.”

  “Oh. Yes.” She turned to the waiting slave. “A sample in each bowl, enough for the Ressaline women here. I have two more jars. We don’t want people to fill up.”

  “I understand,” said the woman. She eyed the jars. “Are you opening everything?”

  “We’re prepared to.”

  The servants saw to everything.

  “Before you try that,” Rosaniya said. “I will warn you. The liquid is sugared. It’s going to be very sweet. And the fruit is soft, part of the canning process. Try a small sample first. It may not be to your taste, although this is perhaps the most popular of fruits, especially amongst our children.”

  The queen took a small spoonful. I couldn’t read her expression, but she quickly took another.

  One of the councilors moaned. Someone else exclaimed, a phrase I hadn’t heard before.

  Rosaniya opened more jars. The slaves distributed the fruit. Not everything was equally popular. Lisdee sampled everything, and then she invited some of the slaves over and fed them portions from her spoon.

  And then tears crawled down her cheeks. Gionna stared at her mother; I presumed that wasn’t something that happened often.

  She brushed them away then looked at me. “I never want to be your enemy.”

  “You are far more fearsome than I am,” I replied. “You can enslave everyone here with a touch; all I’ve done is feed you.”

  “I’ve never heard of half of these,” she said. “And tasted only two.”

  “You can sell as much as we can buy?” someone asked.

  “Understand something,” I said. “Until I came here, I never went a day in my life without some sort of fruit. Never. Most days included several servings, typically in a variety as well. We couldn’t satisfy your entire country if we were your only source. But we’re not. Charthan grows apples and berries. But yes, we believe we can sell as much as you’ll buy. Rosaniya, let’s show them dried now.”

  Rosaniya collected the tin. She demonstrated how to open it. She then did an inspection. “I was confident it would ship properly, although we have a few smaller tins if this one fared poorly. This is a solstice sample tin. Well, it would be, but it’s the wrong season. This won’t last forever. There are six different varieties.” She took out one piece. “The temptation is to gorge. I don’t recommend it. Some people take one and suck on it for a while. My little sister used to nibble at them like a rabbit.”

  And then she did just that before pushing the tin to the queen.

  “This is not the best form for eating day after day,” I said. “But we wanted to show you.”

  The queen took a piece. She sniffed at it before taking a small bite and then shoving the tin to the next person. She put the rest of the piece in her mouth then grabbed the edge of the tin and withdrew two more pieces. I smiled but didn’t all out laugh.

  She was a kid in a candy store, shall we say.

  The tin made it all the way around. The queen gave a piece to each of the waiting servants. And then it made it to us, and we all took our favorites as well.

  Then I sat back, waiting. The queen looked around. The enjoyment was clear, hers and everyone else’s. And then Rosaniya said gently, “The canned fruit we opened won’t last. And these other cans are yours now, Your Majesty.” She pushed them across the table. “Once you open them, the contents should be consumed within a day or so, or longer if you can keep them chilled.”

  “Chilled is easy for us,” Lisdee replied.

  “Chilled, they’ll be good for several days.”

  Lisdee nodded then passed jars to her councilors. “Share these with your families,” she said. “A gift from our very good friends.” She turned to the servants. “These are open. Store them in the ice box, and share them with the household staff. They must be eaten within a few days.”

  “Yes, Your Majesty.”

  The slaves cleaned up. Rosaniya left the tin on the table. And then I said, “That is our offer, Lisdee. Perhaps you do not need our help resolving obstacles, but we’re here. Perhaps fresh eyes would help.”

  “I think we should take a short break,” Lisdee replied. “I would like a little walk. Would you walk with me, Darfelsa?”

  “I would love to.”

  She gestured, and so Gionna, Olivia, and Allium walked with us. But she took my arm, and we strolled easily, taking a path out the back of the pala
ce. Outside, it was brisk, but the mountains were beautiful. Eventually I said, “You seem troubled, Lisdee.”

  “Why are you doing this?”

  “I offer no subterfuge. We want a strong neighbor.”

  “Is King Leander afraid we will invade?”

  “Lisdee. Everything has occurred exactly as I said. I used you to win in Dennaholst. Then once I did, I realized I should carry through. It will be better for the people in the Lorafar region. They’ll get better prices and have a market for their goods. People throughout Flarvor will gain access to other things they need. And frankly, I am fairly sure that some of the solutions will involve additional opportunity for us.”

  “You expect to send us more farmers.”

  “I wouldn’t say ‘expect’, but yes, I suppose.”

  “We already have a program. It has only been a small success.”

  “Well, perhaps we should discuss the obstacles,” I said. “And perhaps we should discuss whether some of your policies should be adjusted.”

  “My policies are of no concern in Flarvor.”

  “That may be,” I said.

  There was a path. She led us to it. I said nothing further, but then Lisdee asked, “Which policies? I suppose you feel I should drop the requirement for your citizens to experience their First if they will travel here. I already gave you and your sister permission to travel through Ressaline. Now you want more?”

  “Lisdee, everyone with me has had her First. But let us offer an example of a policy that you could consider adjusting. The age of consent in Flarvor is 18.”

  “I’m aware.”

  “And when a Flarvorian comes to have her First, you require a two-month duration.”

  “Yes, but that is true even if she is 30 years old, when by our laws, we could sell her for a year.”

  “I understand that, but a two-month duration complicated my trip here.”

  “And so, you want additional concessions, and you have bribed me with your sweet food.”

  I pulled my arm away from her, stopped, and turned to her. “I came as a friend.” I raised my voice. “I came as a friend! I have embraced the life here. I brought my suitor here, partly so we can both see what it is like for her to travel with me, and partly so she could experience life here. You have people here who get sick every winter. As your friend, I am trying to help you! And you accuse me of subterfuge anyway. I lived in Charth for three years. Is it so hard to believe I might actually care what happens here?”