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rix_scaeduThis piece runs to 2,922 words, and I hope that you enjoy it.
Hakkarsday, 17 Deichen, 1893 C.E.
Sebti, 7 Kaalen, 2187 T.M.L.
2 Mikistli, 22 Coatl, 6.11.2.1.8.4.3
Dear Journal,
More rain this morning, but I think that it looks like it has settled in for the day. It is probably a good thing that my laundry for the trip home is well underway.
When Nais brought up my warm water this morning, she agreed with both my assessment of the laundry and weather. This morning she will pack all my clothes and shoes I am not planning to wear today or tomorrow or for travelling in when I leave into my trunk. Before I went down to breakfast I made sure to check with her that she has everything she needs for herself for the trip. She assured me that she does, and then I asked her if she needed time to herself either today or tomorrow to run personal errands while businesses are open. She looked surprised and I reminded her that, according to her references, she has been in Tlemutsiko for several years, and so it would not be unreasonable for her to have her own farewells to make and affairs to settle. Nais thanked me for the thought, and asked if she might have some time tomorrow morning to deal with such things, if it would be convenient. I replied that it could be made to be convenient, and went down to breakfast.
I was in time to exchange greetings with Miztli as he prepared to go out to his early morning obligations. As the front door closed behind him, I noticed that one of his fellow Jaguar Knights was waiting for him on the pavement outside. Matlal obviously saw the other man, but Matlal does have an excellent 'butler face' - the doings of family and staff will never appear to surprise him.
The full usual complement of male cousins was present at breakfast. Cousin Mizti told Axolin, who had pulled out a chair for me, that he had weeks of my company ahead of him whereas the rest of them were going to lose me in a few days, and so I found myself seated between Cousin Mizti and Cuixtli. Cuixtli told me that he is going back to school the day after my party leaves for the Empire. I asked him whether he will miss his brother, and he told me that it will probably depend on how long Axolin is gone for. He said that he has episodes at school when he misses all his family, so that is not in itself unusual, but he has attended this school for a number of years and finds this quite normal. If Axolin were to become attached to the Confederation embassy or a consulate within the Empire, then that would likely lead to a longer absence and then he would probably find that he misses his eldest brother more. Mizti wanted to talk about hardwood forestry. I had to confess that it was a subject I know little about, except that it is a skilled profession, how you do it depends on what trees you have and what you want to produce, and that deadwood, generally speaking, is considered something to be dealt with. It seems that, for unexplained reasons, Cousin Mizti's interest is in oak gall ink. Obviously, then, he needs oak trees but I don't know whether all species produce galls or if it's only one species of wasp that stimulates the galls to develop. Oaks are not native to the Confederation, and Cousin Mizti asked how many species there are (Sura would love his vocabulary) and I replied that I didn't know that but at least three grow naturally within picnicking distance of Umbrial. I added that we rarely use oak gall ink these days because the ink eats away at the paper, making it unsuitable for long term record keeping. Cousin Mizti gave me a funny smile and said that someone had already mentioned that to him. Conversation at our end of the table, driven by Cousin Rudhain, then turned to Axolin, Cousin Mizti, and Tallaig's marriage prospects - which led my two cousins to jointly deflect a number of quips and serious comments. I confessed that I had no ideas of my brother's thoughts on the subject. Some of my cousins broached the subject of Miztli's possible marriage, and both Cousin Ghrus and Axolin advised against raising the subject with him. The explanatory story, in Coac-htl, involved someone being dangled out of a window above ground level. (None of my cousins would translate the details for me.)
I crossed paths with Miztli again when he returned home from training for his proper breakfast and I was going upstairs in response to a summons from Cousin Poktlilui and Great-aunt. They told me that they were taking me shopping this morning to ensure that I have everything they think I need to return home, and to help me get all those little card games and other oddments I have expressed an interest in. They gave me an hour to be ready, so I went back to my room, summoned Nais to help me change, and tell her about the new plans for my morning. As a precaution, we made as good an estimate as we could of how much room I had left in my luggage for anything my relatives might buy for me or require me to buy.
This was the point when I remembered my bank account, the one I set up with the letter of credit Tallaig sent me that I received on my arrival here. I sent a note to Lord Elnaith asking his opinion on whether, in his opinion, it would be more advantageous to keep the account open or to close it, given that I hoped to do some business with the Confederation in the matter of beans. I also sent a note to Axolin, asking if I may speak to him this afternoon or the evening about what might be needed for me to operate a Confederation bank account from the Empire.
Great-aunt, Cousin Poktlilui, and I set off in the barouche at the appointed time with no maids, but with a driver and a footman. We attended a number of shops where we purchased, I believe, at least one set of every parlor game and card deck my cousins have in their home. In the case of card decks, I now have at least two of each. I also have a new winterweight dressing gown, a spare blanket each for myself and Nais (things were said about inns in southern latitudes by my great-aunt), heavy men's socks, and an ugly pair of winter slippers big enough to go over the socks. We also looked in the display shopfront for a pottery that makes, among other things, expensive dinner services. My great-aunt and cousin insisted that I give my opinion on the various patterns, and although I pointed out that I am beginning to be shorter of packing space that I expected, I suspect my lady relatives are up to something.
At lunch we were short our usual complement of gentlemen. It seems that much business is being conducted elsewhere today. We had so few gentlemen present that I sat between Nantli Yahari and Cousin Teicuih for the meal. We discussed the composition of what I would call genteel society in our hometowns. It sounds to me like everywhere has someone like the mayor's wife but with varying levels of actual social influence. (As opposed to the power they want everyone to believe they have.) As we were talking about genteel society we all accepted that there are local noble and aristocratic families with whom we are not acquainted. Nantli Yahari's tale of one of her contemporaries, Lady(?) Umemikistli, and her...personal relationship with a man she believed to be a blacksmith was a highlight. The truth is even more remarkable than her belief, and the story is not one I believe I can repeat because I don't know the ramifications of the families involved and who I might be telling it to.
After lunch Nais and I packed the morning's purchases into my luggage, she carried her blanket off to pack in her luggage, and I took my embroidery downstairs to await visitors. Crimson Blossom of the Ninth was one of our earliest visitors, after two donation seeking priestesses. I took the opportunity to ask Crimson Blossom of the Ninth if I might add her to my regular correspondents. She asked me why and I replied that correspondence between ladies of like station, tied by blood, marriage, friendship, alliance, and acquaintance is one of the factors that ties together both the social landscape of the Empire and what we refer to as a person or family's connections - which really are nothing more than a small portion of the Empire. My forthcoming marriage will lead to a vast expansion in the list of my correspondents, and I would like to write to her as someone I admire and respect, and whom I have actually met. She laughed at the last point. I added that I would quite understand if such correspondence with an Imperial citizen would be distasteful to her. She promised to consider the matter and send me a note with her answer in the morning.
The priestesses and their order were unknown to any of my lady cousins. However, when I asked, they were happy to explain their cause in excruciating detail. My cousins and our other guests obviously found it excruciating too, and ordinarily I would have let things be, but there were several points that seemed unclear or incongruous to me and when I asked a question about one, it became clear (even to me) that they were making their reply up on the spot. Two more questions like that, and I looked their leader in the eye and said something close to, "Thank you for calling and bringing this cause to our attention. Now you have done so thoroughly, please do not let us keep you from the other calls you have planned for this afternoon. Please be assured that we will be sure to carefully consider everything you had to say before your next visit here." Then I gave her a polite half smile - the one Mother's friend Mrs Bhughairgn described as the polite cousin of a predatory snarl. They immediately excused themselves from the room, and I listened to make sure Matlal had shown them from the building. The rest of the room just looked at me while I listened to make myself as certain as I could be that they had not stopped outside the parlor window, then commented that I didn't think they would be back. Cousin Ghraimh asked me what I meant, and I replied that they might want to make independent enquiries into the cause our visitors had claimed to espouse but even I knew that they had been putting their alleged centre of operations in the wrong althepetl. (Something I knew from my male cousins' breakfast conversations.) I added that if I was wrong, then they could apologise and blame my behaviour on my being a crass Imperial. Crimson Blossom of the Ninth agreed with that, and tartly added that I had been a crass Imperial, but then she commented on the priestesses' expression when I said, "everything they had said," and gave a snerk of laughter. I commented that some people believed that elderly widows were easy to obtain money from and that one got used to several types of approach. Then I resumed my embroidery.
Later visitors included Hutitlahuatli ladies, several committee members from Great-aunt's charity, and the wives of two Obsidian Knights. The latter two ladies are younger than Cousin Poktlilui but I found their tone towards her to be somewhat condescending. So much so that when one of them was introduced to me and sat beside me (that she was introduced to me and there are no noble indicators or titles in her name was telling) I asked her how long her and her husband's families have been supplying members to the Obsidian Knights. She seemed slightly taken aback, but told me that it was five generations in both cases. She seemed to relax when I complimented her on that history of public service, and that was when I commented that I appreciated the arrangements, that I know about, that the Order has put in place to ensure Axolin's unmolested safety in the Empire while he escorts me home to Umbrial and then returns here. [I strongly suspected that these two had their noses out of joint because Axolin is junior to their husbands, but has been given consular powers for our forthcoming trip. I live in a provincial town, at the money-poor, if not impoverished end of genteel society, so I know and can recognise petty when it presents itself.] The lady I was seated beside, at least, was much politer to Cousin Poktlilui after that.
My lady Cousins and Great-aunt did speak to me about my behaviour after all our guests had left. I explained that I do not like those who prey on others they think foolish or naive with money, and that I was not prepared to tolerate the rudeness I saw given to Cousin Poktlilui in her own home. I said I would write notes of apology to the Obsidian Knights' wives if my Cousins required it of me, but I thought I gave them less than they deserved. At that point, Cousin Teicuih turned to Great-aunt and remarked, "So they get it from your family," and shook her head in a despairing manner. Cousin Poktlilui commented that she was sure that Lord Elnaith knew what he was doing, and added that she looked forward to seeing what the next generation of Nearbhigans or bh'Nearabhigans would be like.
At dinner I was seated between Cousin Ghrus, on his left, and Axolin - which leads me to believe that Cousin Poktlilui had spoken to them about my behaviour this afternoon. Cousin Ghrus and I did not discuss the matter at all - we talked about the silver and cochineal trades. My main role was as a sounding board. Axolin and I discussed the details of opening a Confederation bank account from the Empire. He agreed that it would make of any type with Confederation suppliers easier. He also talked about the different types of financial proxy that operated under Confederation law and the requirements of each. He did confirm for me that it would be easier to keep the current account open than to close this one and open another from the Empire.
When the ladies withdrew from the dining room, I discovered that Lord Elnaith's note in reply to mine had arrived while we were at dinner. Rather than read it in company, I put it in my reticule, to read when I returned to my room.
There was some discussion among the ladies, before the gentlemen joined us, of the niceties of social rank in the Confederation. From this I gathered that I had come very close to being fatally rude to two ladies who might, just, outrank Cousin Poktlilui on the social scale. I repeated my position that they had been unpardonably rude to Cousin Poktlilui to her face and in her own house. I offered again to write letters of apology if I had been wrong, and pointed out that it was not too late to put it about that I was being sent home in disgrace, and for everyone here to whisper in company how disappointed they had been in my behaviour. Necuametl asked me if I was really suggesting that they blacked my name to protect their social standing and reputation. I agreed that I was, and pointed out that while it was by no means certain that I would have the pleasure of visiting Tlemutsiko, or anywhere in the Confederation again, they lived here, so I felt their needs had precedent. If they did say those things about me, and I did visit again, then they can say things like, "We've been told her tongue has mellowed with maturity," "Everyone assures us that Lord Elnaith has her behaviour well in hand," or even, "Well, it is our turn to have her to stay while the feathers she's ruffled elsewhere calm themselves." Great-aunt said something about forlorn hopes and last stands not being the sole province of our male relatives, and then the gentlemen joined us.
I was promptly swept up into a game of maistoto with Axolin, Miztli, Cousin Mizti, Cousin Huitzitl, and Yeitlaulli. The rest of the company entertained themselves, and my attention was concentrated on my cards. Cousin Huitzitl revealed himself to be a cunning player, and I found the evening very educational and I do not think I would care to play against him in a game involving money.
I excused myself when I started yawning, and read my letter from Lord Elnaith after I had changed for bed and dismissed Nais. He agreed that keeping the account I have open is the best course. He listed several reasons, one being that I can be certain of the name on the account and its operating conditions. He offered to acquaint me with several legal precedent cases if I wished for more information. I tucked the note inside my novel, and now I am for my bed.
Anadrasata Nearabhigan