by Robin Roseau
Her cart held more of the devices as well as a variety of other accessories for hair including combs and clips.
Pippa went straight to the girl to look at the device in her hair. Tranquility and Serenity stepped to the cart and began fingering the various goods.
“We must teach you of Talmon,” Kalorain said. “You must first greet Relstarain.” She shifted to Talmonese. “Relstarain, have you met my Galatzi Wife, Maddalyn?”
“I haven’t,” she said.
“A pleasure to meet you, Relstarain,” I said, offering a brief hug.
“This woman is Maddalyn’s mother, Felda,” Kalorain explained. “I know she looks like a younger sister, but it is their magical rejuvenation.”
“Mother,” I said in German. “This is Relstarain.”
Then Kalorain said quietly, “her family makes everything here.” So I added that to mother.
Mother was gracious. Of course she was. She stepped forward and exchanged a greeting then expressed how beautiful the hair accessories were. I translated, and the woman beamed. “They would look beautiful in your hair, Felda,” she said.
Kalorain handled introductions for my friends. Then she said a few more things about my friends and said, “Relstarain works in the shop. They make many things, but she is the perfect model for these.”
I translated all that for mother and then quietly added, “This is the Talmon way. You do not just shop for items you wish to buy. You establish a relationship, however fleeting. It takes a little longer, but you can see the pride in workmanship, and the vendor grows to see you as a friend. She is more interested in pleasing you than a sale.”
Mother nodded but said nothing.
The niceties handled, Relstarain said, “Felda, your hair is beautiful. Could I show you something?”
Mother nodded, and so Relstarain looked for a moment then selected another of the accessories. It was a single piece of material, whatever that material was, with spines somewhat like a comb. The ridge, the handle of the comb, was gently curved for a portion but then turned sharply, and the way Relstarain wore hers, the sharp curve followed the curve of her ear, but perhaps three centimeters away The spines faced away from her ear, and I realized that was how it stayed in place.
“Felda,” Relstarain said, moving closer to Mother. “May I?” She tentatively brushed at Mother’s hair.
“What does she want?” Mother asked.
“I think she wants to turn you into a model,” I said. “She may undo your braid.”
Mother paused, then nodded. “All right.”
Relstarain smiled and went to work on Mother’s hair for a minute. She released the braid and then ran fingers -- and then the comb -- through Mother’s hair, straightening it out until it hung about her shoulders.
“You have such lovely hair,” she said. Then she applied the comb, carefully tucking it back into place. She fussed at it for a minute then smiled. “There. Lovely. There is a mirror.” She pulled Mother to a mirror and spoke for a while about the comb.
Mother looked at it. “I have never worn something like this.”
“It’s perfect on you,” Pippa said, moving closer. I stood nearby, quietly providing translations. Relstarain worked on her sale, and I let Kalorain handle those translations.
Pippa picked one up and looked at it, then turned to me. “What is this made from?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “Ask Relstarain.”
“She doesn’t appear to speak English.”
“Kalorain does.”
Pippa barked a short laugh and simply looked at Kalorain. She translated Pippa’s question. Relstarain replied, using several words I didn’t even know.
Kalorain put on a face. She didn’t know the English words. I didn’t know the Talmonese words. Kalorain turned to me. I shrugged. “I didn’t understand half.” I switched to Talmonese. “Relstarain, can you explain?”
“It is…” and the words I didn’t know.
“Okay,” I said. “But I don’t know those words, and Kalorain doesn’t know them in English.”
“Oh. It is an animal from the sea. This is the…” And that was another word I didn’t know.
I shook my head. She paused. “The animal as an adult is this big,” she said, using her hands. “It is soft on the inside, but it makes this like a… Like a house?” Then she held her hands together. “There are two sides, and they open and close like this.” She cupped her hands together but opened them wide, then closed them again, as if she was holding something inside.
I’d never heard of anything like that. But Kalorain had been translating into English, and then Tranquility said, “It’s like a clam, or an oyster.”
I didn’t know those words, either. But I told Mother, “Please don’t react poorly. It is the shell of a sea creature.” Her lips tightened for a moment, but I continued. “It’s no different than the leather I am wearing.”
Mother thought for a moment then nodded before looking at her reflection more carefully. “Sehr schön.”
“Very beautiful,” I translated.
“Tranquility said it was an oyster?” Mother asked.
“Like an oyster. I don’t know what that is.”
“A creature from Earth,” she said.
I turned to Relstarain and asked, “Is this creature from Earth?”
“No, no,” she said. “The native animals eat it, so it isn’t from Earth.”
“There was a creature on Earth like this,” Mother explained. “Sofia Fischer had a necklace that has been in her family since before the exodus. It was made from little stones that she said were made from these oysters.” Mother checked her reflection, touching the comb with her fingers. “How much is it?”
“Let the others decide if they want something first,” I said. “This is the Talmon way.”
Mother nodded. Then she pointed and said, “Pippa?”
Relstarain worked with the three of them, finding accessories for each. For Serenity she found another of the combs, this one curved in the opposite direction and going on the right rather than the left. Pippa received a hair net that was adorned by small pieces of the shells. And Tranquility found her hair captured in two of the combs forming a clip at the back of her head, capturing a ponytail.
I leaned to Kalorain and spoke Talmonese. “Is this common?”
“The creature grows in warmer water. Relstarain’s family has a boat. They sail down, past First, and bring back the shells.”
“How do you know all that?”
“I bought something from her for Mother,” she said. “I haven’t had a chance to show you. It’s not common.”
“Do you like it, Mama?”
“I think I do,” she said. “Is it time to ask how much it is?”
“They bargain here.” I explained about first price.
“I’ve never done that.”
“Do you want Kalorain to bargain for you?”
“Do you think she would?”
“She loves it,” I said. I switched to English and had a similar conversation. Then I turned to Kalorain and smiled sweetly.
The Talmonese really do enjoy bargaining. I wasn’t very good at it. I tended to give in too early. It’s not that I minded paying a higher price than necessary. But I didn’t provide a satisfactory experience for the vendor. The best arguments for a higher price come near the end of negotiations, so when I give in too early, the vendor loses that opportunity.
Some vendor had ways of managing that. If I missed the best selling points, they would tell me those points after we had reached agreement as a sort of buyer satisfaction moment. But most seemed a little bewildered when suddenly I would agree to their price.
Kalorain, however, was an expert. It was fun watching her this time, however, as she also translated the entire exchange for my friends.
I translated for Mother.
Five minutes later, they each pulled money from the pouches I had given them and carefully counted out the funds. Mother was quite precise
about it, as was Pippa. But then Pippa actually counted everyone else’s pile before Relstarain collected the pile of coins and thanked them.
“And that is how it works on Talmon,” I said. Twice.
* * * *
Mother wasn’t ready to do much clothes shopping, but Tranquility and Serenity double-teamed her, convincing her to buy a pair of boots. They looked fabulous.
Tranquility bought an entire outfit, and it wouldn’t be the only one she would buy over the coming weeks. Serenity was happy with a long coat, but she would eventually dress like a native of Talmon.
And Pippa? She bought a dress, although I told her that tonight she should dress in whatever she brought with her.
“Why?”
“Diplomacy,” I said. “Governor Grace will wear her smart dress. I’m going to wear that dress you helped me find on Tarriton.”
“Oh, I like that one,” Pippa said. “All right. But there will be opportunities, right?” She studied herself in the mirror. “I really like this.”
“More opportunities than you can imagine,” I said.
“Good. Kalorain, would you help me buy this dress? And then could we find shoes? Do they make good shoes here?”
“Boots are more common,” I said. “Or sandals. It’s a little early in the season, although it won’t be long now.”
She studied herself and nodded. “And so we’ll need to go find another pair of boots.”
“The horror,” Tranquility said sarcastically.
* * * *
Dinner was work, as I wanted to keep mother engaged in the conversation. This would have been so much easier if my friends and Mother had come on separate trips, but I was so happy to have all of them that I was willing to translate between multiple languages.
And with that thought, something occurred to me. I turned to Cecilia. “Governor?” She turned to me. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” she said with a smile. “What are you thanking me for?”
“When I first arrived here, I barely spoke any English at all, and not a word of Talmonese. And now look at me.”
Her smile broadened. “There are others here who have had more to do with that than I have.”
“Like me,” Pippa said. “Do you remember our language lessons?” She grinned at me.
“Were they at all like your Talmonese language lessons with me?” Kalorain asked.
“They were quite different, I’m sure,” I said. I turned back to Cecilia. “You gave me these opportunities. I know Aunt Anna and Chaladine had something to do with it as well, but they aren’t here to thank, and you are. So thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Maddalyn. I’m glad Anna sent you to us, and I’m glad Chaladine yelled at me.” She lifted her glass. “A toast, to Anna White, for everything she does for Talmon.”
“Hear! Hear!” yelled the three vendarti together, lifting their own glasses.
We all sipped, and then Cecilia said, “To Chaladine of Talmon, who has done as much for this planet as anyone, and who will one day return to us to do even more.”
Luradinine sipped, but she dropped her gaze for a moment. I felt for her. But then she turned to Mother. “Governor, will you translate for me?”
“Of course.”
“Felda,” Luradinine said. “I know you came to visit your daughter, but I want to bring you to Beacon Hill with me for a week or three while you are here. We’ll find a means of communicating. Perhaps I will learn some German.”
Mother listened to the translation then said, “I would love to join you, but there is little need to learn my language. I will work on one you know. That is more useful.” She paused and then said, “I am confused. You told me not to use titles, but I hear some people say ‘Vendart’ and others don’t.”
“Ah,” I said. “You might say ‘Sudden Vendart’ or ‘Beacon Hill Vendart’. But you only say ‘Vendart’ to your own vendart, not to another. With some of us, it is more confusing, as we either have no vendart or perhaps more than one. In a way, I have four.”
“Four?” Cecilia asked.
“Vendart Governor Cecilia Grace,” I said. “Vendart Sartine. Vendart Luradinine. And Vendart Baardorid. I have used that title with all four of you, and no one has told me I shouldn’t. Kalorain smiles when I do it, but that is all.”
I turned back to Mother. “Within their villages, or when addressing someone of their village, they hold much authority. It is not absolute; there are laws, after all. I use the title to offer recognition of the authority all four hold, although I do not say ‘Vendart’ to anyone else.”
Mother nodded. “So what am I to do?”
Cecilia translated that and then said, “Vendarti, how would you guide our guests?”
“None of us are their vendarti,” Baardorid said. “It is no different than when Darratine comes to visit. I do not suddenly become ‘Vendart’ to her. If anyone is Vendart, it is you, Governor.”
“And that’s a title I use only for one reason,” Cecilia said.
“Which we won’t discuss today,” I said in Talmonese. “I don’t want to shock anyone.” I switched back to German and explained the conversation to Mother and did so honestly, even skipping the opportunity to get her calling Sartine by her title. I knew Cecilia would never let me get away with forcibly keeping Mother here, anyway, although I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t have taken that path if I felt it was necessary.
She had to love it. How could she not love it? She’d stay. Wouldn’t she?
* * * *
Aston had arranged a sound system for us. I authorized Serenity’s tablet, and soon we had music playing, music of a style that had probably never been heard on Talmon before.
And then Serenity and Tranquility came together to demonstrate the dance style as performed by one couple. Everyone stared, and a portion of me ached. This was something I’d missed, but hadn’t realized.
The two were, of course, fabulous dancers, and I enjoyed watching them. Kalorain stood beside me, holding my hand. At one point, Mother leaned over and said, “They are sisters.”
“Yes,” I said. “It is just dance. Does this frighten you?”
“No, but I’m not sure I can do that.”
“We’ll teach you from the beginning. Will you try it, Mother?”
“Yes. It looks like fun. Is it always two women?”
“It is any combination,” I said.
“I’m not sure I want to dance with a man in that fashion,” she said. “I barely know any of them.”
“But you’ll dance with the women?”
“Yes,” she said. She paused. “I’m not sure I want to dance with my daughter in that fashion, either.”
I laughed. “That’s all right.”
They song ended, and the two dancers held a pose then straightened and turned to their audience. I paused the music so more songs wouldn’t start, but before I could say anything, Cecilia stepped forward. “You are both very accomplished.”
“Thank you, Governor,” Serenity said.
She looked around the room then said, “I am unable to judge the Talmon reaction.”
Luradinine stepped forward. “Is this a common dance in the empire?”
“It has become popular on Tarriton,” Serenity answered. “I do not know if it has traveled beyond our planet.”
“This is the first time I’ve seen it,” Cecilia said.
“It is only about ten years old,” Pippa said. “It started in one club and has spread throughout the planet.” She smiled. “We would love to import this to Talmon, but not if you find it shocking.”
“That was the tame version,” I added.
“There is an untamed version?” Kalorain asked.
“There are a variety of untamed versions,” I said. “And there is even a version where relatively poor dancers such as me compete for fun. If you lose, you must pay.”
“And what do you pay?”
“You donate time to a charity as chosen by a representative of the dance club.”
“I do not know this word: Charity.”
“On some planets,” Cecilia explained. “No. On most planets, there are organizations devoted to helping people in need. Each organization may focus on different needs. This is a concept not needed on Talmon, because here, if you need help, you receive it.”
Luradinine took another half step forward, gathering attention. “I think our imperial friends worry we are prudes.” Then she looked at Mother. “Or perhaps worry that someone else is.”
“She’s talking about me,” Mother said. “What is she saying?”
“She wants to know if you’re a prude,” I said. Cecilia snorted.
“I am not a prude,” Mother said.
“Mother wants to see you dance one of the less tame versions,” I translated back into English. And yes, Cecilia snorted again then translated back into German.
“Daughter! That is not at all what I said.”
“But you do, don’t you?”
Mother smiled. “I wouldn’t avert my eyes.”
“Well, Valtine,” Luradinine said. “Should we encourage another demonstration?”
“I believe we should,” Valtine said. “Tell me, Tranquility? Will I be shocked?”
“What happens to us if you are?”
“I don’t understand your question.”
“She’s worried about the dungeon,” Sartine said, “or the pillory.”
“Let’s not talk about the pillory,” I said with a glance at Kalorain. “If they’re shocked, they’re shocked.”
The women nodded. Then Serenity stepped up to Kalorain. “May I dance with your wife?” Kalorain paused, looking the woman in the eyes for several heartbeats before nodding, just once. I let Serenity claim me, and then Tranquility and Pippa stepped together. “How do I make the music start?”
“I’ve got it,” I said. I commanded Melina to play the next song.
I had missed this, although I was very self-conscious, dancing the more sensualized style in front of both my mother and my wife. But we danced the song through with Serenity spinning me out and straight into Kalorain’s arms as the song came to a close. I knew I was flushed. I clung to Kalorain as I caught my breath.