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rix_scaeduIt is purely happenstance that this episode includes the engagement dinner, but it does make a nice highlight for this entry.
If anyone thinks that my comments about the Southern Ice and the Circle Mountains are a little extreme, I would point out that the Baltic is still bouncing up and down as a result of the icecap over Scandinavia melting....
This piece runs to 4,158 words and I hope that you enjoy it.
Daighsday, 10 Deichen, 1893 C.E.
Sebti, 28 Sajibu, 2157 T.M.L.
8 Ueuehayomatilistli, 15 Coatl, 6.11.2.1.8.3.16
Dear Journal,
The wind was still blowing when I woke this morning. When Nais brought me my warm water, she reported that Cook in in her element, overseeing the receipt of deliveries, managing both breakfast and the beginning of dinner preparations, and making sure that her subordinates don't get too tired to think and do their jobs properly before work for this evening's dinner really gets underway. Aside from Lord Elnaith and two others from the consulate, everyone coming tonight is staying here already so the timely arrival of guests is one thing that should not be a problem tonight.
I was slightly surprised not to meet Miztli and Tekatl Umetlalliyaotl in the foyer at breakfast, but when I entered the breakfast room I was surprised to find them, Tekatl Redfeathered Night Crow, and two other Jaguar Knights eating breakfast with Cousin Ghrus, Axolin, and most of my male cousins. I had a choice of two seats and wound up sitting beside Teopixkitekatl Nahuiyaualli who is the chaplain for the local Jaguar Knights. I must say that I had never expected to have a meal seated beside a gentleman wearing a loin cloth and a cloak, but the Teopixkitekatl is extremely well spoken, if a trifle blunt, and his Imperial better (so much better) than my Coac-htl. He was kind about my Coac-htl and complimented me on my pronunciation saying that I sounded as if I had an accent that hovered somewhere between Tlemutsiko and Tapajos without actually touching on anywhere in between.
I did ask if something had happened in the night to bring everyone to breakfast here this morning, and he agreed that something had happened but that he was not at liberty to discuss it at this time. I remarked that I hoped that he and his charges were well, and then asked if today's weather is typical for this time of year. He observed that it was not unusual, and congratulated me on my engagement. Somehow that led into how many languages we both speak (he has six, including Imperial, mostly languages from within the Confederation) and a few sentences on comparable theology. I wound up repeating my observation that since Imperial religious persons are surprised that when they insist on young ladies being educated in the Imperial church's theology, those young ladies then develop opinions on the subject. That led to him describing how his priesthood decides theological differences of opinion, which led me to make a comment about vigorous cut and thrust of debate, which made him laugh.
After breakfast I asked if anyone wanted or was able to come with me to investigate the workshop Yeixi had mentioned down near the docks. When everyone said they had other plans, I asked Cousin Poktlilui if it would be acceptable for me to take Nais and venture down there on my own, and whether, if it was, I might borrow a small carriage and a driver. Several cousins looked at me a little oddly, and Cousin Poktlilui asked me why I was asking, although she appreciated the courtesy over the carriage. I pointed out that since arriving I have not left the house without Lord Elnaith or one of my cousins so I wasn't sure if it would be acceptable of me to do so. I also reminded her that this was the first time the subject had come up. Cousin Poktlilui thought for a moment and then agreed that this was in fact so. She followed that with a Coac-htl statement that is used where we would say, "How extraordinary!" She said that she was happy for me to use one of the smaller carriages, and had word sent to the stables and downstairs that this was to be so, and that we would be accompanied by a footman as well as the driver.
When we went out to get into the carriage, we found that it was a two seated conveyance where the driver stood behind the passengers and the reins passed over the top of a hood over the passengers to reach the pair of harnesses animals that pulled the vehicle. The footman who accompanied us handed Nais and myself into the seats, and then took up position on the standing bench beside the driver.
I, for one, greatly enjoyed the drive to our destination. The streets got narrower as we went towards the docks, and I believe we went through the edges of the neighbourhood where the fishing families live. Strings of laundry hung from one side of the street to the other to take advantage of the morning sunlight at the third floor level, with the lines going from a window on one side of the street to a pulley on a blank wall on the other, and back again. Instead of individual cottages, these were a type of row house with each dwelling either sharing walls with their neighbours or having their outer walls right against each other. All these houses seemed to be four storeys high and some seemed to have impromptu additions on their roofs. This style of architecture carried over into the area where the workshop we were seeking stood. Most of these buildings seemed to incorporate homes over the business frontage/place of business. This, of course, is not new to me although row houses like this are. The concept makes so much sense when land is limited that I am wondering whether I just didn't notice it before or whether it is only now making an impression on me, because surely the other Circle Sea cities I have visited were doing something similar?
I think that what sets these ones apart is that they were so clearly built at the same time and as a complete piece.
The workshops where we alighted from the carriage worked on small metal items, some of which were then decorated with set gems, or enamels, or inlays. Some workshops used castings in their work while others used hammers, tongs, and wire-making properties. Not all of the workshops made items for personal adornment. The craftsman that Yeixi had recommended had a small shopfront at the front of his workshop that was manned by, I think, his mother and his wife. Certainly the older woman was very much on her dignity as the senior member of the team. They didn't have very much in the way of cravat pins, but there was a wide range of cloak pins (there being more call for those locally). The pieces that particularly interested me were made from a silver metal I didn't recognise. I asked some questions about it and it is a metal of itself, not an alloy, doesn't tarnish easily, and its Coac-htl name means tears of the moon. I worked out that it must be platinum, which I had never seen before and have only heard of in connection with the new technologies fuelling the precious metals problem in the eastern Empire. The ladies in the store conveyed to me that it is quite a common metal in parts of the Confederation. I wound up choosing a cloak brooch of braided platinum wire, with an enameled boss surrounded by tiny emerald chips. The enameled boss has a lovely leaf motif on it, which may have some significance but which I hope has not.
I also bought a set of thirteen pewter spoons from the workshop next door before we got back into the carriage to come home.
We arrived back at the house in plenty of time for lunch. There were no Jaguar Knights present, and I was given to understand that they had napped for several hours before leaving the house again about half an hour before I returned home. I sat between Yeixi and Cuixtli at lunch. Yeixi and I discussed the workshop he had recommended and my purchase there. Tehaneume, who was sitting opposite Yeixi, expressed a desire to see my purchase and I suddenly found there would be a meeting of ladies in my room immediately after lunch to look at my purchases. Cuixtli and I discussed his favourite sport, which is not riding or boxing but a ball game where two teams compete against each other to propel a ball through a series of rings and hoops by hand. There is one ball between the two teams, and the ball can go through the rings on the side of the court any number of times but it has to pass through one of the rings at least once before it goes through a hoop, and it is going through the hoop that scores winning points. Thering coun t begins again each time the ball passes through a hoop. It sounds like a very vigorous game, and apparently many locations have annual or semi-regular tournaments. Cuixtli expressed disappointment on my behalf that I will miss Tlemutsiko's mid-summer tournament.
Straight after lunch all the female cousins came up to my room to look at and exclaim over my purchases. Several of my younger cousins thought that the cloak brooch wasn't spectacular enough for a betrothal token but Great-aunt Giltreeada pointed out that I am on a budget, Lord Elnaith is not a flashy gentleman, and tears of the moon is much rarer in the Empire than it is here - people in the Empire will value it based on the piece's workmanship and the value of tears of the moon there. No more was said on the matter.
The pewter spoons as well as the bedding and tablecloths I bought in the Kerajaa were also admired. Everyone agreed that they compared favourably with linen and cotton, and nodded sagely when I said that I had bought the sheets after enjoying the comfort of my bedding in the Kerajaan government hostel.
Afterwards I took my embroidery downstairs to spend my afternoon quietly before preparing for dinner tonight. We received a number of visitors, most notably friends of my visiting cousins who had heard that they were in town. However, Cousin Poktlilui received a formal call from members of the extended Tepeyahuitl family to acknowledge her attendance at their kinsman's funeral. Naturally everyone who was present when they arrived extended their condolences on their family's loss. [I have now realised that it was the formerly missing Jaguar Knight's relations that I met and not those of the deceased. I am so pleased that I had not commented on that publicly!]
I was among the first group of ladies who went upstairs to change for the evening - bathwater requirements, etc. Nais and I had selected my blue dinner gown for this evening, and both Great-aunt's and Cousin Poktlilui's lady's maids came to my room to check whether we needed any help. As it happened, both of them turned up when extra hands were very helpful to get my hair just right. We had selected a suitable local style needing combs and pins, and both more experienced maids pronounced it very appropriate. I am absolutely certain that Nais and the other maids arranged for me to come down the stairs and enter the foyer, where we were assembling for dinner, with Great-aunt and Cousin Poktlilui - something about sponsors was mentioned and I do recall reading something about a bride's sponsors being important in various (non-obligatory these days) rituals surrounding weddings.
I believe that my relatives, the newly arrived ones that is, were surprised at how well I looked. Tekatl Umetlalliyaotl was moved to give me flowery compliment. Cousin Ghrus and his two eldest sons were exuding some sort of smug benevolence - which made me wonder about conversations I was not part of that may have commented on my appearance. And then Lord Elnaith arrived.
He was accompanied by two people from the consulate who were standing for his extended family - Mr dh'Bhraigh and Miss dh'Arhaign who is, of course, Lord Elnaith's fourth cousin. All three of them were dressed in the Imperial style. Miss dh'Arhaign wore an evening dress made of dark green silk with a green net overskirt and embroidered panels on the bodice and the skirt's centre front. Mr dh'Bhraigh wore a dark green coat over a bottle green waistcoat with silver embroidery in a dandelion puff motif. Lord Elnaith wore a dark blue coat over a blue silk brocade that echoed my dress so much that I wonder whether Nais and Lord Elnaith's manservant colluded to have us turned out in similar colours. [I cannot deny that Lord Elnaith looked very well in that combination of colours.]
Fortuitously, not only is Mr dh'Bhraigh known to Axolin, Miztli, and Cousin Ghrus through their official duties, but Miss dh'Arhaign is acquainted with several (a number even?) of Axolin and Cousin Ghrus' fellow Obsidian Knights from both other postings she has accompanied her cousin and his wife on, but postings those gentlemen had within the Empire. It seemed slightly odd that on being introduced to Cousin Mizti, Lord Elnaith remarked conversationally that he had been briefed on him, but Cousin Mizti returned, just as conversationally, that he had found Lord Elnaith's file to be interesting reading. Lord Elnaith then told me that Cousin Mizti is a noted Confederation cryptographer, then Cousin Mizti remarked that you never know just what an Imperial Gentleman of the Bedchamber might have been tasked with - something that Lord Elnaith acknowledged to be true. Then they smiled at each other, and I think they seem to be (cautiously) friends, but I don't know gentlemen and their little ways as well as I know ladies.
That exchange didn't quite put the cat among the pigeons, but I gathered from snatches of conversation that not all of the cousins had known that Cousin Mizti didn't just sit in his allegedly remote cloud house monitoring his plantations, supervising his workers, and directing his factor. (I understand these to be considered the occupations of a lazy man.) It did, however, lead to a discussion about what a Gentleman of the Bedchamber does (individually assigned ad hoc tasks) and how it differs from what a lord (or gentleman) in waiting does (assigned functions in the running of the Emperor's household). As Lord Elnaith remarkedto me later in a private aside, it is perfectly reasonable for my family to want to know what he does with his time, in a more than general sense, before we are married. He added that they ask intelligent questions, which is more than he can say about some people who have asked him about his position in the past.
I took the opportunity to give Lord Elnaith my gift before we went in to dinner. He seemed appreciative.
At dinner, Lord Elnaith and I were seated opposite each other, without large table decorations in the way. Cousin Ghrus and Cousin Poktlilui sat at the table ends, and Lord Elnaith was flanked by Great-aunt and Cousin Ghraimh. If I understand the seating protocol in play, a combination of Imperial and Confederation sensibilities, I should have been flanked by the two senior male relations present, however.... Mr dh'Bhraign was seated by Cousin Poktlilui's right hand, and Miss dh'Arhaign was seated at Cousin Ghrus's. I was seated between Cousin Huitzitl and Cousin Rudhain. From what I heard from across the table, Lord Elnaith and my Ladt relatives discussed this year's fashions in the Imperial capital, the political situation in one of Imperial provinces bordering the Confederation, and the marriage prospects of the Emperor's niece, Princess Lhainh. On our side of the table, we spoke about the althepetls in which my cousins live, various bits of mutual family history I hadn't heard before, and changing Confederation views on what constitutes a hero. Apparently, parts of the Suchitl family history are both an inspiration and a burden.
After dinner we ladies withdrew to the parlor and had our kasoohlt. Miss dh'Arhaign has been to enough locally hosted dinners to become accustomed to the beverage, and complimented my Great-aunt and Cousin Poktlilui on the smoothness of their beverage choice. There was more discussion of whom Princess Lhainh might marry, I would not have expected this to be of interest in the Confederation but one of the gentlemen who is considered a leading suitor is a nobleman from the Imperial western provinces who has distant links through his maternal grandmother to both the Suchitls and the Hutitlahuetlis. Miss dh'Arhaign volunteered that she was not more than merely acquainted with any of the gentlemen involved, but she did have some interesting stories and history about their extended families.
The gentlemen joined us in great good cheer just before the tea tray came in. Cousin Mizti was finishing off the story of a turkey race held in his home village as he came through the door and all the others were laughing. That story led into an explanation of the two different types of turkey (uexolotl in their language) here in the Confederation which I would summarise as the ones that are farmed and the pretty, wild ones. We Imperials were assured that parts of the Confederation have a population of wild "farmed" turkeys. Someone asked why they are called turkeys in Imperial and it was Mr dh'Bhraign who told us that it was a pre-Age of Cataclysms word that someone had discovered in a scholarly archive when the Empire had begun to find out about the Confederation. He added that he had doner a lot of random and eclectic reading on Confederation linked subjects when he was first appointed to his current position and had picked up a lot of unconnected but vaguely interesting pieces of trivia.
Someone asked a question about poultry breeding in the Empire, and I asked how they get turkeys, which I have seen at home but never eaten before I came here, from the farms to the towns and cities where they are sold. As an example of what happens at home, I described the goose flocks being walked to Umbrial and Satdrel at home. Poultry being transported by airship, as at home, is caged which is how most of the poultry eaten in Tlemutsiko arrives. Most of my lady cousins though, know the farms that their table birds are raised on. Cousin Mizti's household raises most of their own, Eloxochitl has them delivered freshly killed and cleaned by the farmer's second son to her kitchen door, and Cousin Teicuih places orders for her forthcoming needs four times a year so that the farmer can set the eggs to hatch.
Miss dh'Arhaign complimented Great-aunt and Cousin Poktlilui on the quality of the tea, and asked if she might have the names of the supplier and the mixture. She commented that tonight's beverage is in a style she prefers to the one favoured by her cousin's wife and that she would like to have her own supply. Those ladies continued with a conversation on tea while Chicmacteskatl (Ghilhaidha's husband) asked Lord Elnaith and I where we might live. Lord Elnaith said that our permanent base would be within the Empire, although we might need to travel and reside elsewhere for a time on occasion. I said that apparently my trust included several residential properties, and that I thought we needed to find out exactly where these were and what condition these were in before making a decision. I added that as far I know, I have never seen any of them.
My cousins were surprised by this, and I explained that my great-great-uncle had died when I was very young so I have, I think, no memory of him or his home. Cousin Nochehualt was surprised that my trustees had not discussed these matters with me, and I pointed out that I had not known that I had a trust, and thus trustees, until after I left home. I said that until various knowledgeable and well-meaning ladies had told me, I hadn't even known that there was supposed to be a trust. It was, as I recall, Lord Elnaith who first told me that there was one, and any details thereof. Tallaig had not been that far behind him. I added that the whole thing pointed to a hole in my education, and that I needed to have some pointed conversations with my mother and brother on my return home.
Someone, Umeatl I think, asked what the weather was likely to be on our return trip to Umbrial. The answer is, much like the weather here until we leave the Confederation, and then it will become cold and stay there. It will be summer, or close to it when we pass across the bottom of the Circle Sea, but the temperatures will be no better than a warm winter's day in other places with unwarmed water freezing every night. Additionally, he said, the Southern Ice seems to radiate cold, although that is not what it does. Cuixtli asked what it does do, and the answer is that it chills the air around it so, of course, the closer you get to the ice then the colder the environment feels. We can also expect a strong tailwind as that latitude is notorious for them and is why airship passages westward down there take longer over the same distance eastward. The other thing he said that we are likely to find notable is that the Circle Mountains appear lower there. Chictawametetli asked why this is so and was told that the weight of the accumulating Southern Ice on the southern side of the mountains is so great that it is pushing the land down, or so the scientists say. Someone else asked if it snows that much there and Lord Elnaith replied that it doesn't snow that much there, but the snow accumulates down towards the South Pole, it compresses into ice, and then flows outwards like a river or an unconfined spring or fountain. In other places it continues onwards until it falls into the ocean or melts on land, but the Circle Mountains place a limit on that outward movement and the ice begins to turn around on itself looking for somewhere to go. Someone asked wouldn't that mean that the ice is wearing away at the mountains, and Lord Elnaith said that he understood that this is indeed so. Chiccitlalti asked in a slightly facetious tone (no doubt trying to lighten the conversational tone) how long the scientists thought the Circle Mountains would continue to hold back the ice. Lord Elnaith's very sober reply was that they don't know, given that the ice is coming from the 'soft' side and that the 'hard' shell holding the Circle Sea is not, geologically speaking, that thick.
Tekatl Umetlalliyaotl suggested that we might all enjoy a change of subject and offered to teach us a parlor game particular to his home city. It involved shuffling a deck of cards, everyone being dealt one card off the top of the deck, and the rest of the deck being left on a central table. Each person in physical order then goes to stand beside the table, show their card to the company and then add a few sentences to the story started by the first member of the company - taking inspiration from their card. When they finish, they place their card on the discard pile and take the next card off the deck and sit down until it's their turn again. We wound up with a very silly story about a wedding where many, many things went wrong. The cards we used were a Confederation deck, and my first card was what I would call the seven of flowers so I added a piece about the bride's bouquet. The second was the first of serpents (first being the equivalent of king in our decks) and as it depicted on the card I have as having wings, I had the sainted dragon in the lake rise up to settle a shenanigan and bless the event. The game was over when we had run through the deck. At that time our guests made their farewells and left to return home.
I believe the evening was a success. Lord Elnaith whispered as much into my ear when we said goodbye. Several of my cousins remarked favourably on the evening after our guests had left, everyone who hadn't met him before seemed to think he was a most suitable future husband, and Cipac Chan said that he'd happily be in a war party with him. This is, apparently, considered a great masculine compliment about another man in his particular cultural background.
I came up to my room tonight not quite trailing clouds of glory, but certainly happy that things went well and that all is right with the world.
I think I want to get a deck of those cards to take home with me.
Anadrasata Nearabhigan
no subject
Date: 2025-10-01 09:28 pm (UTC)