675-09-16 - Clearing up the Mess
| Clearing up the Mess | |||||||
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| Summary: Barret invites Agostino for another talk to clear up a 'misunderstanding'. | |||||||
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A servant has been sent to find Esther, and once found she will have been told the request of the king, that he wished to speak with the leader of the Ningo and would ask her to inform the man. King Barret Brais would wait for them in the council chamber. Her presence would of course be required for translation purposes.
When they will arrive, they will find the Council Chamber almost empty, apart from two guards standing vigil at the door. Barret is there of course, attired in a tunic and breeches in the red and black of his House. He sits at the table, on the royal seat, recognizable as such by a slightly higher backrest, showing off some impressive carvings of the Brais coat of arms and a crown. Beside the king sits - at least for now - Lord Jarvis Bainsworth. It seems they have been engaged in some kind of conversation that has just come to an end, as the man rises now. A bow is offered to Agostino when he enters, but Jarvis does not seem to intend to linger. A brief slightly restless glance towards the king indicating he waits to be dismissed for now.
Agostino waits outside the doors, out of sight of those inside until Esther arrives, only then does he walk in as though he had just arrived, expecting her to follow him inside. Once inside he returns Bainsworth’s bow with a brief nod then a respectful bow of the head to his soon-to-be father-in-law. He remains silent for now, though as they mentioned it so often before, he makes his way over to take a seat across from the king of these lands. He seems to be waiting for the reason for the meeting to be announced, or perhaps simply waiting to see if Bainsworth will be leaving or not before they begin.
"Ah. Patrician Agostino. I am glad you could follow my invitation so swiftly," Barret says as he rises from his seat, meeting the bow of the Ningo leader with a bow of his own. His lips are curled into a polite smile, and that is what his manner is overall: polite. The choice of seat seems to meet his approval. A gesture is made towards a servant who was standing close by - unnoticed for now, and a flagon of red wine along with two cups will be brought. "Would you care for some wine, Patrician?", asks the king. A wave of the hand offered to Bainsworth finally, the sign he may head out.
Bainsworth's pale-grey eyes have lingered briefly on the Ningo leader when he has entered, taking him in attentively when his own greeting is acknowledged with a nod. No word will leave his lips, apart from a brief "your majesty" he offers to his king when he is dismissed, along with a bow, before he heads for the door ad leaves the council chamber.
Once the door has closed behind his advisor, the king's gaze drifts to Esther, and he puts some more degrees of warmth into his smile. "Thank you as well, for coming, Esther. We are still in need of your skills, or a talk would be very difficult indeed. Given the matter, and yes there is one, that I would like to discuss. After all we are allies now, aren't we?" And here he turns his attention back to Agostino, looking at him now to make clear he is addressing him. "Any concern that may lead to discomfort of either of the parties should be addressed as swiftly as possible as to avoid bad blood, am I not right?"
Barret will pause, accepting the goblet of wine that has been poured for him from the servant, as his attentive brown eyes linger on Agostino, while Esther translates what he has just said.
Agostino offers the wine bearer a dismissive gesture and after Barret speaks and before Esther has the chance to translate, he starts speaking himself. His voice is calm and polite as he speaks. Once done he then looks to Esther and adds something extra.
Esther bows her head to the King, when she hears his words and then listens carefully, before translating everything to Agostino. Then she smiles warmly at the man and listens for his answer. The young woman nods slowly, before turning to Barrett and answering to him, “Thank you for the offer of drink, but I am fine, say Agostino here. He also says that he has been informed of a bit of a misunderstanding, which he sure can understand given the language barrier, and he hopes, that you can understand it too. He assumes this meeting is about his second wife who is still alive and what that will mean for your daughter, correct?”
Barret inclines his head when he hears the translation. "Indeed.", he confirms. "This is what I was going to talk to you about. During our first meeting you have given information about having been married twice before. There was the impression that your wives had passed away already. I am not sure...", the king pauses, maybe pondering on how to put this diplomatically, "...whether Esther can really be blamed for this misunderstanding, as you call it. She may not be acquainted yet with all subtleties of your language. And I doubt she can have mastered it to such a high degree during the short time she had." A glance is shot the translator’s way. "I am not wroth at you, Esther. We are all human after all, aren't we?"
Esther blushes slightly, hearing the words of Barret and lowers her head, "Aye aye," she says for the King and then turns to Ago, translating each word, said by the King, not changing anything.
Agostino nods upon hearing the translation and says something back in the same calm, polite tone. After which he then smiles softly to Esther as though to show he doesn’t blame her for any misunderstanding either.
Esther translates: “It is partly true, it sounds as though it might have been the subtleties. I married my first wife when we were both sixteen, legal age for my people. My second wife I married when I was twenty-two and she eighteen. My first wife died giving birth to her second, my fourth child. My second wife is still alive. Perhaps this is the cause of the confusion.”
Barret looks at the Ningo leader while he speaks with a polite smile curling his lips, his gaze shifting to Esther then as she gives the translation. When she is done his brown eyes find Agostino again and he nods. "In a way, yes. But that is only part of the problem. While I wonder of course about the position my daughter may have in such a family - a family, that in such a way is unthinkable in our culture - I have heard from my daughter that you and her spoke in more detail about this after our meeting. Sufficiently so to make her realize this difference in our cultures, but you as well. Still, during our subsequent meetings where we discussed the contract in all its many many details you failed to point us to the fact. And you will certainly agree that for us to learn this /very important detail/ after the contract has been signed - could have a not very desirable effect and lead to another 'misunderstanding'. That you wanted to keep that fact from our attention."
Listening to the translation Agostino holds up his hands in a placating gesture and speaks for quite a bit, then awaits Esther to translate.
“I spoke of this matter when we first met, I can only assume there was confusion in the translation. After all I was honest my first wife died and I miss her to this day, was this not what you were told? Perhaps the misunderstanding was a confusion of terms as I had spoken for a bit to answer multiple questions at once, and did mention my second wife and my four children. As to your daughter and the ‘unthinkable’ nature.”
“As to your daughter, she would hold a position below that of my current wife, though she would be treated with no less respect by my people. There is also the possibility that through her actions she could claim the position of primary wife, which is to say the favored wife. That is up to her. As to being unthinkable, perhaps knowing the situation of my people would help you to at least understand why it is allowed for the Ningo.”
“We are primarily pragmatic survivors, this is due to how dangerous our lands are. Esther survived a few days alone and has earned respect for her effort, she can no doubt offer at least a few examples of how dangerous things can be. To survive for generations is a constant, daily struggle. As a result of this anything that improves the chances of survival is accepted by my people. We greatly value healthy children and actively encourage siring as many children as possible. As I understand it you have only two daughters currently and have lost at least a few other children previously, this is known well to the Ningo as on average we lose nearly half of our children before they reach adolescence. I lost one of my own sisters to an illness before I was even born in fact. This gives an idea of what life is like for us.”
“With that said, multiple spouses, which men and women both can have, is allowed to further promote the production of children, it also helps in political marriages as well. It is nothing more than a practical solution to improving the chances of at least one child, if not more surviving to adulthood for my people. I will also point out that it is not a common practice, as only those who can provide, in terms of survival, for each spouse and child is allowed to have multiple spouses anyway. If your daughter ever feels she cannot accept this matter then she is free to leave me and return to live here permanently. In such an event any children we may have by then can be discussed where they shall live. After all if we have only one son then of course he would come with her here to live so he can still hold his place in your succession if it comes up. If you have any other questions on the matter feel free to speak it. If you can understand why Ningo allow this, then I see no reason to change any plans. Simply do not inform your people about the matter, after all why would they care what happens beyond the borders?"
Leaning back in his chair Barret will listen patiently to Agustino's explanation in the Ningo language, while his eyes will linger on the leader, studying his posture, his gestures if any and his facial expression. When Esther begins to translate he turns his head her way, his gaze now and then shifting back to Agostino, as he inclines his head a touch, as if to signal he understands the Ningo's way of reasoning. When Esther is done he straightens, and his hand abandons the goblet of wine as his fingers lace before him.
"Very well. Let me get this straight. I do not place any judgement on your customs. When I said 'unthinkable' it pertains only to 'our' way of living. According to Two Rivers customs such a thing would not be allowed. There is however a light concern, that a bond or alliance, based on a marriage to a 'lesser' wife may not have the significance a marriage to a primary wife would have. Also... should Barbeta choose to leave you or you to leave her... what will become of our alliance, I wonder?"
He smirks, a dark flicker briefly appearing in his eyes when he realizes Agostino evades the topic of staying silent about this on purpose, by not getting into that at all. His final request has the Two Rivers raise a brow though. "Now, am I getting this right? You ask me to lie to my subjects? By pretending my daughter, Princess Barbeta will be a second and a 'lesser' wife? Or is this another case of failed translation?"
Agostino remains relaxed and calm in his posture, it seems as though this is the kind of dispute he has handled often in his homeland. His composure seems more that of a skilled mediator or diplomat, not someone who is unconcerned or self-assured. When Esther translates the King’s words Agostino replies in the same calm, polite tone as his dark eyes stay on the king.
Esther translates: “I may be mistaken, but given your tone and expression I believe there might be one. Primadonna is the title of the primary wife of the Patrician, it is not a social distinction however it’s a personal one. When my first wife was still alive both of my wives were treated equally by my people, the reason my first wife was Primadonna is because I loved her more than my second wife, and my first wife had more influence. In short I enjoyed the company of my first wife more than my second and my first wife also had more influence. If your daughter can manage to pick up Ningo culture quickly enough its possible she could gain more influence than my second wife. In that event your daughter would be my Primadonna. To the matter of ’significance’, if I understand the word correctly, your daughter’s significance will be equal to that of my second wife. My people would not hold a distinction between the two.”
“As to the alliance, as far as I’m concerned, once we are wed, and especially if we have children the alliance between our peoples would remain intact. As long as you or your descendants do not attempt to break the alliance then our people will remain allies for a long time indeed. Ningo hold vows highly, to break a vow without proper cause can potentially ruin a man or woman. Depending on the nature of the breaking of a vow a Patrician could even be rendered to the status of a commoner. When I say our alliance would remain if your daughter chose to divorce me, the alliance would hold."
Barret listens, his elbows now on the table as he leans his chin against his folded hands. He too seems used to this kind of negotiations, after all he has many years of experience in that area. The reply of the Ningo leader does not displease him however, as can be seen from the faint smile that conquers his features.
"Fine." He says, once Esther is done with the translation. "And very well. I respect your difference in your customs. But now, after the clarification, I feel I understand a little better how they work." The king smiles and takes a sip from his wine, leaning back now in his chair. "If Barbeta is fine with this I see little need to object."
Brown eyes linger on Agostino for a moment, before the goblet is put down once again. "However. It is unfortunate this matter has not been addressed earlier, as the alliance has already been signed. These details would have needed to be addressed in the contract, don't you agree?" His tone is calm, but there is a faint sparkle in his eyes as they meet the Ningo's gaze. "In fact, I would go so far as to say the contract, as it is, is not valid, and would pose a threat to the alliance if we leave it that way. Because if we don’t acknowledge the fact of polygamy and don’t specify what it means to the alliance in there, one could argue we did not know and were betrayed." 'We' in this case referring to himself. "People would rightfully assume such a contract is not valid, as it was based on wrong premises, once this detail becomes known."
Agostino listens to the translation before finally responding in the same calm polite tone. Seems the only thing to anger him so far has been the mention of the word dragon in the common language. There is some initial confusion in his tone but that is all.
Esther translates: “I admit my ignorance concerning your culture in regards to this matter. Having only a single spouse I can understand, but as you said, as long as your daughter accepts it what does it matter to others? You are her father so I can understand, though the only ones among your people who would be aware of this is perhaps those who live in Ningo lands. They would learn quickly enough the Ningo stance on the matter, they may find it distasteful, but would those working alongside my people and those on the Administrative Council you insisted on be so put off by such a matter as to cause political issues over it? Is such cultural traditions not the reason why we have agreed both of our peoples will live together to learn from one another? It is not as though we are forcing our traditions on your people, and the same is said of your own people towards mine.”
“I do not see how the contract we signed is invalidated by this matter on the point of ‘wrong premises’. It is a personal family matter, it is not the basis of an inter-cultural conspiracy. If the contention is on potential heirs, it is not as though I could hide the fact my children do not belong to your daughter. She will be the one giving birth to them, if anything I would have to trust her to not lie to me regarding whether the children are mine or not. I have no reason to doubt her on such a matter, so if any sons are born they would meet with the requirements as set down by article 1.c of the alliance contract. The other terms of the contract simply speaks of matters regarding our relations and the trade hub we are to build. The only other thing in regards to your daughter is the vow we are ‘betrothed’ as you call it, and we are to marry in the coming months. I simply do not see how any of this is affected by my previous marriages, as you said, you understand this and feel as long as your daughter accepts this you have no issue with it. That is unless there has been an error in translation."
Again, Barret waits for the translation of Esther before he ponders Agostino's reply. "I agree, in a way with you, that the common people of Two Rivers may not need to know of this right away. But after all, when this project of the trade hub will start to work out as planned, these details of your culture will become public knowledge. Knowledge that may spread to the Two Rivers as well. The contract was not read to all the citizens of our lands. It was read before witnesses and they signed it."
A sigh leaves the king's lips. "All I really try to achieve is that this contract cannot be appealed against in the future, for legal reasons. We need to add a passage in there that contains the information you have just disclosed to me, such as Barbeta's position as wife, that she may not be Primadonna at first. The meaning of divorce and how it would affect the alliance. That the contract signed before is still valid under these premises. All of this needs to be put down on paper and signed by us both, with witnesses. As some sort of addendum to the contract. These papers will be stowed away then, at a safe place. In case a man of the law would check them in the future, we should be safe." A smile curls his lips, as he states that, before he continues with a light shrug.
"I'd prefer the safe road to relying on lies and keeping quiet. It would give my enemies the weapon they need to cause my downfall, once they found out about this. I am sure political intrigues do happen in your society as well?" The tone is matter-of-factly, with a hint of amusement. King Barret takes another sip of his wine, giving Esther the time she needs to translate.
Agostino listens to the translation and nods before saying his piece.
Esther translates: “Such intrigues do happen, it is the primary form of gaining influence within our culture. It is how one proves they deserve to rule. The plan was to have both documents stored away, your people having the copy in your language and my people having the one in our language. I do not see the need for the matter of Primadonna, though I admit your people may take more of an issue on it then mine would. I agree for legal reasons in regards to the matter of divorce, as that concerned you more than anything else in regards to the alliance. I will have our copy of the document brought out for the addendums to be added, as you can do the same. Is there anything more on the matter?"
"They do happen in Two Rivers as well," Barret concedes with a smirk, after he has heard Esther's translation. "So yes, I am glad you agree to have such an addendum written and added to the contract. Believe me, if we want this alliance to be of duration it is the only way to go."
The king leans back in his chair. "We need to mention the fact of multiple wives, and clarify that the status of primadonna or not wouldn't affect the validity of the alliance. As for anything else, I believe we are settled. Shall I send for Bainsworth right away to create a draft of the contract? So we can get these formalities done as swiftly as possible?"
Agostino nods and says something in reply as he remains seated. Whatever he says at the end, he offers an almost challenging grin, as though he’d take personal pleasure in doing whatever he is saying.
Esther translates: “Acceptable enough, we can work out the details of the text, once agreed upon the addendums can be added to the document and signatures given once more. I would say, as the alliance has been announced, no mention of the addendums be made public, as it would only draw attention to them. Beyond that, send for him if you must. On a another minor matter, as I will remain here a bit long I would like to go out into your capital to see more of your people and how they live. I intend to dress in a style befitting of royalty of Felaguria so my status is known. In addition this would help your people to see the Ningo are not savages. With your permission I would ask that my wife-to-be act as guide. Between myself, and the guard you and I have both assigned to her, I doubt she would come to harm. After all she is to be my family and I will kill to protect my family, and if any are foolish enough to threaten her with harm they will have two very skilled and experienced Ningo to deal with, in addition to the guards of your own lands.”
Barret nods once Esther has translated Agostino's words. "I'd prefer Bainsworth to set up the document, he is much more skilled in finding the right wording, as well as he is my legal advisor as well. As for clothes... forgive me, I have being neglecting my duties as your host. I will send for a tailor to provide you with a befitting wardrobe. Of course, you shall be treated according to your station. Your eagerness to ensure my daughter's safety pleases me." As does the mention of the Brais guards, that are still assigned to watch over Barbeta. "However, I do not believe you will meet with any atrocities. My daughter is a Princess and as such well-liked. So no, I have no objection to her showing you around." He smiles, his bushy brows lifting as he takes another sip from his wine.
A servant is sent off, soon returning with Bainsworth. The advisor carries writing utensils with him as well as some parchment. He'll take a seat by the table. Waiting, listening then writing down the addendum according to the wishes of both parties.
