"Mostly fish," Fiel explained. "It's the most plentiful food, and very nutritious for us. In the lowest valleys, we have huge orchards with trees of all kinds. My oldest brother loves working with trees, and he's in charge of the largest gardens in Tarilon. In the spring you can't see anything except fruit blossoms in that part of the kingdom. But we have to work very hard to keep the orchards alive. Most crops don't like the cold weather and rocky soil. And most places don't have room for cattle or sheep. There are some wild forests, with deer and rabbits and so on, but we usually forage for medicine there and leave the animals alone. The closest we have to bread is made from acorn flour, not wheat or barley. I don't like acorns much. And I've heard of cake and pie but never eaten any."
Lukas looked shocked, "Never had cake? But cake is amazing…mostly, and having only fish or well mostly fish is gross, I think..I have not had seafood much but I the few times I did I was not a fan, maybe because it was from the lake, not the best place to get food but anyway, you have to have cake. Like, I will force you if I have to" He said throwing the apple core away and facing Fiel.
Fiel raised his eyebrows and laughed slightly in surprise. "Well….all right, I suppose I can't say no. What kind of cake do you recommend?"
"Uh red velvet is godly, but not a lot of people I have found enjoy it. Um I don't know." He said with a yawn. And walked over to the cook, he whispered something to her and she walked off, he walked back to Fiel and shrugged.
Fiel watched curiously, trying to stand out of the way in the busy kitchen. "I've never heard of red velvet….I'll just have to take your word for it. Um, what are you doing?" He nodded in the direction the cook had gone, trying to guess what her errand was.
"Telling her to get a peice of cake" He said smiling brightly. He grabbed Fiel's wrist and gently led him to a small table that sat against the wall in the kitchen, He let go of Fiel and sat down in one of the chairs. One of the servants came by and whispered something to him before she left giggling.
Fiel allowed Lukas to lead him to the table, bemused. He sat, realizing just how hungry he was. "You seem to be good friends with the workers here," he observed. "It reminds me of the servants back home, they're practically family. These people act as if they're quite fond of you." He wondered a bit what they could be whispering about, but decided to give them the benefit of the doubt since he was being treated so nicely.
Lukas rolled his eyes playfully at the workers around him, "I spent a lot of time here..avoiding my family and such." He sighed, the cook came over with a slice of cake, with two forks sticking out of it. "Here you go Luka" she smiled setting it on the table and walking away. "Thank you Rosaline" He smiled taking a fork from the cake and eating a bite. He hummed happily.
Fiel took the other fork and speared the cake, taking a cautious bite. His eyes widened—it was sweet like fruit, but in a different way, and much more filling. He liked it a lot. "This is delicious," he said, taking another bite. "Maybe there's a way we can make this back home….or maybe we can trade with your kingdom for the ingredients, if we form an alliance. I'm sure there's something we could offer you in return."
It didn't escape him, though, how Lukas's mood changed when he mentioned his family. He hesitated, then tentatively asked, "Do you and your parents…..not get along then? I don't mean to pry, but I haven't seen them once since I arrived here."
Lukas shrugged, "They get along with each other just fine" He said not looking at Fiel. "but not so much with me." He set the fork down trying to keep his mood under control. He felt hurt just thinking about how his parents treated him. He sat silently for a moment before he put his hands in his lap and muttered to himself.
Fiel stopped eating as well, watching Lukas in concern. "I'm sorry…..are you…all right?"
It really didn't feel like his place to ask. But he couldn't help it. Lukas had been so nice to him so far, it was impossible to just ignore the other prince's unhappiness now.
Lukas forced a smile, "yeah, I'm fine" He said, trying to hide the fact that he was not alright. He stood up, "my father should be in his study so to speak, if you want to talk to him about the peace thing, I can take you there".
"I think I'd better talk to him," Fiel agreed regretfully. He rose along with Lukas. "Will you be available afterwards, to talk some more? If you don't mind of course. I've really enjoyed this…."
"I will wait for you in the library," He said smiling for a second before his expression became grim again. "Follow me" Lukas turned and walked out the door, and to his fathers study.
(sorry I'm being slow)
Fiel followed, trying to return to his original mask of calm, eloquent maturity. He had to impress the king and show him that Tarilonans were worthy of respect. Part of him worried that the man would be rude or unwelcoming, but he pushed the anxiety down. He only had to make his family proud and deliver his message, and then he could worry about everything else later.
(it's fine)
Lukas stopped infront of a closed door, he stepped to the side and motioned at the door, "My father is in there." He said plainly, standing so that when the door opened he could not be seen from inside the room.
Fiel nodded, took a deep breath, and smoothed out his expression. For some reason, he wanted to appear confident and collected in front of Lukas. Maybe as a way to reassure him, he didn't know. Without further ado, he knocked politely on the door.
"Enter" The King said from inside the room. Lukas flinched slightly at his father's voice, but tried not to show it.
Fiel opened the door and quietly stepped inside. "Greetings," he said. "I apologize for the interruption, Your Majesty. My name is Prince Fiel Raforte, of Tarilon. I am here representing my mother the queen on matters of peaceful business."
The King looked over Fiel silently for a moment, "Welcome to my Kingdom." He said with a soft smile, "what would a peace with your home do positive for us?". Lukas quietly walked to the library to wait.
Fiel returned the smile politely. "We do not have a great deal of resources to share, nor do we wish to affiliate with any kingdoms who would ask us to go to war with them, as we strongly believe in pacifism. However, we are a magical race, with abilities we are willing to use in aid of others. For example, we are proud to produce many talented healers and scholars of medicine. We also understand the ways of the sea and sky very deeply, and are willing to share our knowledge if you have any use for it. And finally, there is a mountain range in our kingdom that contains a great deal of quality iron and copper. We have little use for such metals and would be happy to trade them to you—in exchange for more diverse food, books on your sciences and industry, and music. These are the things we value greatly." Fiel thought quickly to make sure he'd remembered everything. "As a sign of good will, I have brought with me some gifts from the royal family of Tarilon, which I shall now present if you wish it."
The King nodded, "very interesting, I do believe that having another kingdom to trade with would be good for us, and no one bothers with war against my kingdom, we are far to vast to fight with." The King stood from the desk he had been sitting at and walked to Fiel, so that he was a few feet infront of him. "I do think that a peace with your kingdom would be beneficial with us both"
Fiel was filled with relief despite himself. "I am glad. In that case, please take this." From his jacket pocket he took a small, ornately carved box and held it in both hands. After a moment, it grew to fill his arms and he gently set it on the desk. "In this box, you will find: a packet of seeds from our finest fruit trees, a necklace which is charged with healing energy and will protect the wearer from illness, a dagger from our master craftsmen which cuts through darkness, and a song composed specifically for your royal family. We hope these gifts will be the first of many."
The King nodded and opened the box. "Very interesting" He closed the box and looked at Fiel, "Thank you for the gifts, I am sure you will find the things we have to offer as well to be…interesting as well"
"I am sure," Fiel replied courteously. "It has been a joy to make your acquaintance, Your Majesty. Is there anything else His Majesty wished to discuss?"
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