Queen Terys has to bring Mistress Yolda to heel, a task accomplished with some difficulty. Garia finally gets something resembling exercise gear, receives an unexpected gift and then Gerdas has a proposition for her.

Somewhere Else Entirely

by Penny Lane

16 - Wrath of the Queen

Disclaimer: The original characters and plot of this story are the property of the author. No infringement of pre-existing copyright is intended. This story is copyright (c) 2011-2017 Penny Lane. All rights reserved.

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Garia thrashed about in the bed and then came abruptly awake. Her eyes felt as if they had been sandpapered and her mouth tasted as if a cat had slept in it. Rolling on to her spine she used the backs of her hands to try and clear her eyes.

"Mistress?"

"Uh? Uh, morning, Jenet."

Garia pushed back the covers and awkwardly raised herself up in the bed, blinking in the half-light.

"Ugh. What a night," she said. "I don't think I slept very much at all. Are there many nights as warm as last night, Jenet?"

The maid came round the bed and shrugged. "I wouldn't have said that last night was much different to any other, Mistress. It's a bit more stuffy, that's because the air isn't so dry any more. That's one reason why we were so uncomfortable at the funeral yesterday. It's the earliest sign that the rainy season is on it's way, and that will be good, because it means the fields will be properly watered for next year's crops."

"Oh. I guess so." Garia rubbed her eyes again and then adjusted her nightdress. "Tell me about the rainy season. People keep mentioning it."

"Yes, Mistress. It starts soon after the harvests are all gathered in, about four weeks or so from the last full Kalikan. Generally the sky gets more and more cloudy and then one day it just starts raining, and it goes on raining. For two to three months. By the time the skies clear again the weather will be a lot cooler and we will be moving into Fall."

"Two to three months? Wow. On Earth we would call that much rain a monsoon. Hey, wait. If it rains that much, I suppose the river rises? Do we get floods here in Palarand?"

"There used to be heavy floods, Mistress, but the river doesn't rise quite so much any more. Some of the fields nearest the river still flood but the farmers plant rice crops in those which need the water to grow." The word Jenet used wasn't rice but it was apparent that the grain referred to was grown and used in a similar fashion. "You've had some stressful days recently, Mistress, as well. That might explain why you're not sleeping properly at the moment. I found it difficult to sleep very well myself after what happened yesterday."

"Yesterday? Oh, Yolda! Jenet, do you think the Queen is going to lay down the law to her?"

"I don't know what to think, Mistress. Mistress Yolda has been doing her job in the palace for so long that I'm not sure what might happen today. If I may say so, Mistress, it's quite apparent that she disapproves of what you want to do. For myself, I'm curious to see what you can teach us. It never occurred to me, and probably not to most women either, that we might be capable of such things as you have spoken about."

"Yes, well, I'm not sure at the moment that I am capable of any of it either, Jenet. That's why I wanted to get use of a room where I could try things out."

"I hope that you'll succeed, Mistress. Are you ready for your bath?"

~o~O~o~

Mindful of what might happen that day Garia had chosen a sober but still light-weight gown of dark green to wear to the breakfast table. When she entered the dining room Queen Terys came immediately to her.

"Garia, my dear! You can't have slept well, you look terrible!" She gave Garia a look of concern. "Are you sure I can't get you to try some face paints? It would make a big difference to your complexion."

"Thank you no, Your Majesty. I'll manage."

"Do they not use such arts on Earth? Is that why you do not wish to wear paint?"

"Uh, no, Your Majesty, uh, Ma'am. Most all the girls start wearing cosmetics from about the age of ten or so where I come from. You remember, I wasn't a girl there so I don't have any experience putting make-up on. But, the main reason is that I know that a lot of make-up from earlier times was made from substances that were later on considered dangerous."

"Dangerous?" Terys's eyebrows rose. "How so?"

"There are a lot of chemical substances used in make-up which can get into the body through your skin, Ma'am. Some of those can cause disease, disfigurement or even death. Substances your people couldn't even identify today. Sometimes it can take a long time for the effects to become apparent, years even. People in those times didn't know any better, and didn't know that the diseases they caught had anything to do with what they put on their faces and bodies."

"Oh." Terys looked alarmed. "How can we find out if we are using these, er, dangerous substances?"

"Short answer, Ma'am, is you probably can't right at the moment. There are substances I can tell you right off you shouldn't be using, like lead, or anything with lead in it, but I'll have to think of a way of testing what you use to find out what's in it. Are there chemists in Palarand? Uh, would they be Questors, or would they be Guildsmen, would you know?"

"I don't know, dear. We'll have to ask Gerdas I suppose, he might know. Maker, this is distressing news to hear. There are a lot of women in Palarand who will be very cross with you for frightening them off their face paints."

Garia shrugged. "If we tell them the alternative is a shortened life and a painful death, they might get over it. But, there will be other, safer materials that can be used instead. We just have to find them and test them."

"I hope you're right, dear, otherwise you could be very unpopular."

"I'm not unpopular already?"

Terys grimaced. "A sore point at the moment, dear. Come, sit at the table, and we shall plan the coming campaign. We'll need Bleskin as well, I think."

The Mistress of the Wardrobe usually attended the communal meals but she was absent this morning, no doubt wishing to avoid any confrontation. That meant that those on the King's table could discuss the matter quietly without restraint, but it also meant that the whole room soon became aware that something was about to happen and the murmur of conjecture rose around them. When the meal ended Bleskin and Kendar, the Chamberlain, followed Terys, Keren and Garia back to the Queen's sitting room where she gave the Guard Captain his final instructions.

"Take as many men as you think you'll need, Captain. Borrow men from the training detail if you have to. Get everyone out of the area and seal it. Make sure you search every one of those huts in the courtyard, too. Bring Mistress Yolda to me here. The rest of her staff, anyone else you find there, you can dismiss for the day, but I want her brought here to me."

"If she resists, Ma'am?" Bleskin knew he had the full backing of both King and Queen but he was still unsure about handling the forthcoming operation. This was a situation that his years of training and experience hadn't prepared him for.

"Use whatever means you can to persuade her, Captain. If she still resists, you may inform her that you have my full authority to draw blood if necessary."

Bleskin stood straighter as he realized what that must mean. "Aye, Ma'am. I'll try not to injure her but she'll be in no doubt that I mean business."

"Good. You'd better begin, then."

Bleskin banged his fist on his breast and then left. Terys turned to Garia.

"Garia, dear, I think it best if you were not to be visible when she is brought here, it might make her back into a corner. If you and Jenet go into the bedroom, you'll be able to hear everything with the door open and I can call you when I need you."

The Queen had suddenly stopped looking like Keren's mother and started looking very regal. Garia curtseyed and licked her lips. Even though Terys looked as if she had everything in hand there was no way of knowing exactly what might happen next.

"Yes, Ma'am."

She led Jenet into the ornate royal bedroom where they took positions near the door to hear whatever would be said in the sitting room without being seen. They stood there for some while and Garia was considering sitting down when a knock came at the door from the corridor to the sitting room.

"Enter," Terys commanded, and the door opened to admit two guardsmen with drawn swords, Mistress Yolda, Captain Bleskin, and two more guardsmen holding naked steel.

"Your Majesty, I must protest!" Yolda said. "I have been manhandled by guardsmen!" She made the last word sound as if she had been forced to consort with sewer workers. "You did not have to send so many, I would have come when requested."

"But you didn't, Mistress, did you?" Bleskin pointed out to her. "When I told you that the Queen commanded your presence, you flatly refused to accompany me, saying that you were busy."

"Is this true, Yolda?" Terys asked softly.

"I was busy, yes, Your Majesty. Captain Bleskin seemed incapable of waiting until I had finished. He insisted that I come that moment. When I refused he threatened me with his sword. His sword! You know that I would always attend to your requests at the earliest possible moment, Your Majesty."

"But that is the point, isn't it, Yolda? I didn't request your presence, I commanded it. When I issue a command I expect it to be obeyed immediately. Captain Bleskin did exactly what I commanded him to do. Very well. Now that you have arrived, you can describe to me your actions of yesterday afternoon, when Mistress Garia visited you and requested certain items of clothing."

Yolda spread her hands. "What is there to tell, Your Majesty. She came and requested shoes to wear to the funeral, I provided them. She also requested soft boots and I provided those as well, although I can't understand what she wanted them for, they are not footwear that a lady of the court should be wearing. She also asked for some strange clothes, a guardsman's tunic, would you believe! I told her I couldn't give her that, and she went away."

"That's not exactly what happened, is it?" Keren put in. "The truth is, you went away, leaving us standing in your office with the impression that we were both children who should leave the grown-ups to get on with their jobs."

"Your Highness," she told Keren dismissively, "that's no more than the truth, isn't it? You are not yet an adult, and Mistress Garia is younger than you. I have no time to spend dealing with the fantasies of the young. With the Harvest Festival approaching there is much that needs doing in my department at the moment."

"Harvest Festival is four weeks away, Yolda," Terys said severely. "If you need that long to prepare you are obviously not up to the job and should be retired."

Yolda's face showed stubborn determination. "Your Majesty, there is more involved than you might appreciate. I have to ensure that the standards of the palace are maintained, and that requires methodical attention to detail. That takes time."

"That might be so, Yolda, but you should still have provided Mistress Garia with all that she asked for. She visited you with my express approval."

"Your Majesty, what can such a young woman want with such outlandish things? I fail to understand her purpose, and the garments she asked for should never be seen on a lady of the court. Or on any woman, for that matter. I considered that she had some kind of fantasy such as the young have before they come to their senses. I could not give her what she wished, it would bring the palace, and the royal family by association, into disrepute. She is only young, after all, she is new to Palarand, how can she know our customs? I thought best to nip such silly ideas in the bud, encourage her to develop as a young lady of the court should."

"Yes," Terys said thoughtfully. "She is new to Palarand, isn't she? Did it never occur to you that she was not enjoying a fantasy but only attempting to do something that is normal in her own country? Doing so with my express permission?"

"I did not know that, Your Majesty." Yolda's face had paled but the stubborn expression remained. "As I said, I have been busy. I do not follow the rumors in the palace."

"Perhaps not," Terys said, "but you could hardly fail to have noticed her at meal times, could you? Because Mistress Garia's appearance and position in the palace is not fully explained to all as yet I gave her a document which requested that everyone comply with her requests as though they were mine. Did she show you this document?"

"She did, Your Majesty. I believed that she had written it herself."

"Even after I told you that my mother had written it?" Keren asked her. "You tried to confiscate it from Mistress Garia."

"That was my mistake, Your Highness," Yolda told him coolly. "I intended to bring the document to Her Majesty or His Majesty so that they could tell me if it were authentic or not."

Terys waved her hand at her Chamberlain. "Taking it to Kendar would have been sufficient, but you should never have attempted to confiscate it in the first place. That is not your job in this palace. Your job is to provide clothing, footwear and regalia to those who request it of you and very little else, do you understand? Maker, you should understand, you've been doing the job long enough! Now, you will do as I say. Mistress Garia will describe exactly the clothing which she requires and you will provide it to her promptly and without question. Do I make myself understood?"

"As you say, Your Majesty." Yolda looked at Terys and Keren and gave a quick curtsey. "Now, Your Majesty, if you will excuse me, I have work to do."

She turned and began walking to the door but the two guardsmen either side immediately crossed swords. Uncertainly she came to a halt.

"If you go through that door," Terys's voice came from behind her like a whip, "it will be because you are on your way to the cells. Do you understand? Turn around and face your Queen!"

Yolda turned, her expression white, but the stubbornness was still there.

"I have not yet dismissed you, Yolda," Terys said in a cold, clear voice. "Your conduct is bordering on insolence just short of treason. I am Queen of Palarand, you are merely Mistress of the Wardrobe. You forget your place."

"Your Majesty," Yolda said, and there was the beginning of a tremor in her voice, "I sought only to preserve the standards that the royal house of Palarand is renowned for. I have served the King, the King's father and his grandfather faithfully. If I have made an error I beg your forgiveness for it. Perhaps there is no longer a place for me here at court. With your permission, I shall retire and let a younger person take my place."

"Permission refused," Terys said coldly. Yolda gaped at her. Terys continued, "You have responsibilities here which cannot easily be transferred. I have no doubt that were you to leave the palace today your department would collapse in chaos within a week." Terys nodded to herself. "It is true that it is probably time you retired, but first of all a successor must be found and trained. As you have so carefully explained, preparation for certain public events requires care and attention and the Harvest Festival is coming up. I will not release you until a successor has been chosen and properly instructed, and that will probably not be complete until the rainy season is over. I am not going to let you run away and leave someone else to clear up your mess. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Yolda said in a small voice.

"I do not like your excuse for an apology, either," Terys added. "'If I have made an error', indeed! The mere fact that I had to send Captain Bleskin for you - and some of his men, with drawn swords! - before you would come to my presence underlines that you have strayed from your duties and your responsibilities. Not to mention your manners! You are lucky that I do not demand your head for the way you have treated my son, who will be the next King of Palarand."

Yolda gulped, lifted her skirts and fell to her knees before the Queen. "Y-Your Majesty, I humbly beg your pardon. I forgot my place. It will not happen again." She bowed her head.

"No, it most certainly won't," the Queen replied grimly. "Consider that I have given you your final warning. You may rise."

Yolda managed to get to her feet, an operation not easily undertaken for one of her age. In the end Bleskin had to help her stand.

"But, Your Majesty," Yolda said when she had recovered herself, "I do not understand Mistress Garia's position in the palace. Have we begun taking in waifs and strays now? Surely, she is just an ordinary young woman, wherever she may have come from? Should we not treat her as we do anyone else of her age?"

Terys eyed Yolda for a while without speaking, then called, "Garia? You may come in now."

Garia and Jenet re-entered the sitting room, which was now appearing crowded. She took a position beside Terys.

"Mistress Garia probably is, as you have suggested, just an ordinary young woman," Terys replied to Yolda's question. "Ordinary where she originally comes from, that is. Mistress Garia, as has been explained to you, is not from Palarand. She is not from anywhere in the Valley, either." Yolda looked at her uncomprehendingly. "She is not from Alaesia, in fact she is from nowhere on Anmar at all." A flicker of disbelief came into Yolda's eyes. "She comes from somewhere else entirely, from a country called Kansas on another world called Earth. The society she once lived in is somewhat different than ours is, and the customs of her world are very different. She does not know how she came here and there is little possibility of her returning to her home."

"Your Majesty, pardon me, this is a tale of fantasy, surely?" But Yolda looked uncertain as she spoke. "She is just like us, how much different can her home be?"

Garia spoke. "Mistress Yolda, you have no idea. I could spend hours telling you about my world and how different it is, but you would say it is all a crazy story. This is the problem I faced with Morlan, how to convince him that I was serious. You are not a Questor, I do not know how I could convince you. Suffice it to say that the King, Queen and the Prince all believe me. Questor Gerdas believes me, Master Metalsmith Parrel believes me."

She shook her head, thinking. Yolda presumably had some level of intelligence, but there was almost nothing in common between the worlds they moved in which could be bridged. It would be no good writing equations or explaining rainfall or bridge building. She looked helplessly at Jenet for assistance.

"Your clothing, Mistress," Jenet suggested. "Your original clothing."

"Of course! Yes, go and bring them, please."

Yolda looked curiously at Garia as Jenet disappeared.

"When I was first introduced to you," Garia said to her, "you were told that I owned no clothes at all, which is why you had to measure me and supply me with a basic wardrobe."

Yolda nodded. "As you say, Mistress. I thought that was strange at the time."

"Well, that was not strictly true. When I was found, up on the mountainside, I was not naked but was wearing the clothes I had on when I disappeared from my own world. You will see that they are nothing like anyone on Anmar would wear."

Jenet reappeared with a bundle and spread the clothes on the small table in the sitting room normally used for drinks. Yolda looked to the Queen for permission and when Terys nodded she moved forward to pick up the jeans. Her eyes widened immediately and then she took them to the window to examine them more closely. She turned abruptly to Garia.

"How is this possible, Mistress?"

"What do you mean, Mistress Yolda? The fact that they are trousers, or the construction? I do not know the intimate details of their manufacture but I can tell you that these garments are made by machines, in the tens and hundreds of thousands each year. We do not make them especially for each wearer but simply go into a shop and buy them off a rail. Oh, and they probably cost as much as a couple loaves of bread do here."

"A machine? How could a machine make this, Mistress? I do not understand."

"Well, I don't either. Most jeans are made the other side of the world these days, my world that is. Have a look at the stitching. Tell me if any of your seamstresses could make seams that even."

"They cannot, Mistress. This is beyond the ability of anyone I know."

"Now have a look at my tee-shirt." Garia pointed. "Turn the edges over and look at how they are finished."

Yolda exchanged the garments and held up the shirt to the light, squinting.

"This is impossible, Mistress! No one can make detail this fine!"

Garia shrugged. "Another machine or two, Mistress Yolda. Certainly nothing that exists on Anmar, at any rate."

Yolda stared at Garia. She was now totally out of her depth and unsure how to proceed. There were things she wanted to say, to ask, but she didn't want to risk the wrath of the Queen again.

"Mistress, are there any more of your garments?"

"Sorry, that's almost all there is. I have a pair of shoes unlike anything you have here, far too large to fit me now. There's a small underpants made of material similar to the shirt, that's all. I think it may be acceptable for you to examine them more closely some other time if you wish, but I don't think I want you to start pulling them apart, I'd rather hang onto them for now."

"These trousers," Yolda said, her eyes narrowing, "it does not seem to me that they would fit you, Mistress."

Garia shook her head. "No, I don't think they do any more. It's complicated, but let's just say my body wasn't quite this shape before I came from my world to Anmar."

"Do women really wear trousers like this on your world?"

"Yes, Mistress Yolda, they do. Not all the time, though. They also wear skirts and dresses and all kinds of other clothes, most of which would probably horrify you. I don't intend to inflict my world's fashions on yours, so you can rest easy there."

Yolda returned the garments to the table, then faced the Queen.

"Your Majesty, I wish to apologize to Mistress Garia. I did not understand her circumstances, and I made no attempt to find out. I merely assumed that she was the same as any other girl of her age."

"Garia?"

"Apology accepted," Garia said. "As you yourself said, my story sounds like a teenage fantasy."

"But," Terys added, "your treatment of her was unforgivable, whatever her story. I trust there will be no further lapses of judgment?"

"No, Your Majesty."

Terys turned to her Chamberlain.

"Kendar."

"Your Majesty?"

"You bear some responsibility for this business."

"Ma'am, I recognize that I do. I apologize, I did not realize how long Mistress Yolda had worked in the palace. I assumed that her department has special privileges."

"You now know that it does not. Captain Bleskin will escort Mistress Yolda back to her office where she will work for the rest of the day. Yolda, I have dismissed everyone in your department for today, you will have to handle any requests by yourself. You are not to enter any of the storage areas unaccompanied for now, is that clear?"

"As you command, Your Majesty."

"You are dismissed. Captain?"

Bleskin saluted and the party of guardsmen escorted Yolda from the room. When they had all gone Terys sighed.

"That was difficult. I wish that I never had to do that, but sometimes one lets things go too far and the situation has to be corrected. Kenila? I think we can all do with some pel, if you please."

"Yes, Ma'am." Her maids bustled off to prepare the drinks.

"Garia? I hope I didn't upset you."

"I'm all right, thank you, Ma'am. It was a bit of a shock, I'm not used to being around someone who can..."

"Wield this kind of power? You did tell me there was no King or Queen in your country, didn't you?"

"That's right, Ma'am. We have Senators and Governors and such, but someone like I was wouldn't get anywhere near people like that usually." Garia considered. "Actually, people like that wouldn't be seen dead near someone like me." She smiled at the Queen. "I'm glad you do, Ma'am."

"Kendar?"

"Aye, Ma'am?"

"I want to go through those storage areas of Yolda's while we have the chance, that's why I had Bleskin clear everyone out. Can you find some people to go and survey what's actually in all those huts?"

Kendar thought for a moment. "It will be difficult, Ma'am. My staff is only six people, as you know."

"Hmm. Harvest Festival is coming up, I didn't want to disrupt things for too long. But we can't, surely, need to keep everything Yolda has hoarded up? I'm sure there is much that should be sold off or just thrown away."

"Mother?" Keren made a suggestion. "What about borrowing some bodies from the tax office? They are experts in doing audits, after all."

Kendar brightened. "An excellent idea, Your Highness! I'll go and have a word with Chamilar when I leave here."

Terys continued, "You do realize that the first two of those huts were temporary erections for Robanar's coronation? It seems that Mistress Yolda's little empire has been growing for some time. I'd like to see if it's possible to get that courtyard cleared."

"A major project, Ma'am," Kendar diplomatically said.

"This is the Royal Palace, Kendar," Terys reminded him. "What other kind of project is there?"

~o~O~o~

Lunch was quiet. Word of the Queen's wrath had permeated through the palace and everyone kept looking at the high table out of the corner of their eyes while eating, as if she was about to order everyone's execution between courses. Needless to say, Terys deliberately ignored the glances, keeping the conversation with those around her to light topics. No-one was fooled. There was an almost audible outpouring of held breath when the Queen's party processed from the room on the way to their afternoon nap.

"Garia, dear."

"Yes, Ma'am?"

"Are you going to go back to Yolda after our nap and try to get those clothes you wanted?"

"I had thought to do so, Ma'am."

Terys nodded in satisfaction. "Good. I'm pleased to see that this morning's drama hasn't frightened you off."

"Actually, Ma'am, let's say I intend to be a little bit more careful of myself in future. But I do want to do this, so I need the clothes."

"Good," Terys repeated. "Keren had better go with you again, because the whole area is going to be full of people who aren't sure who you are or what they're doing. You realize that what happened this morning isn't the end of the story? That you will probably get further resistance from Yolda? Don't be too hard on her, please. On the other hand, make sure you get what you asked for."

"I will, Ma'am."

After the afternoon sleep and the cup of pel which inevitably followed, Garia led Keren and Jenet through the corridors to the place she now thought of as 'Yolda's Lair'. They entered her office past the two guardsmen standing outside the door and the Mistress of the Wardrobe rose from her seat. She had a resigned expression on her face as she curtseyed towards Keren.

"Your Highness, Mistress. You have come for the clothing you spoke about yesterday, I suppose?"

"That's right, Mistress Yolda."

Garia had decided to be as polite and 'correct' as possible when visiting Yolda. It cost her very little and she didn't want the older woman to get the idea that Garia didn't have manners. It had also occurred to Garia that perhaps girls had to mind their manners more than boys did, something that she was sure was going to irk her in the future.

"Mistress, perhaps you could tell me again what you need?"

Garia explained and Yolda measured her to make sure she understood what was wanted before heading off to find something suitable. She returned with three tunics over her arm and a pair of thin tights.

"Mistress, these three are different sizes. You should try them all to see which might suit your purposes best."

One was too tight across the bust so was discarded immediately. Another was a comfortable fit but hung well below Garia's knees. The third was much better, the hem reaching only midway down her thigh. Of course, it was a snug fit over her hips and there was a lot of spare cloth at waist level. She wondered about the shape and size of the guardsman it had originally been made for.

"Have you a sash I could wear, Mistress Yolda? That might keep all this loose cloth in check."

Yolda looked at Garia and Jenet as they stood in the changing booth, her expression one of distaste.

"What color sash should I bring, Mistress? Do you have a particular choice?"

Garia shrugged. "I don't see that it matters, Mistress Yolda."

"I ask because I don't think you would want to be mistaken for a guardsman, Mistress."

"Me? A guardsman? I don't think so, really. I mean, do I look even remotely like a guardsman, dressed like this?" Garia paused, thinking. "Actually, you do have a point, Mistress Yolda. I could be mistaken for one at a distance, couldn't I? That means light blue is out, doesn't it? I don't want to use the royal colors, let me think." Tricky. I bet all these colors mean something to somebody. I don't want to make a faux pas here if I can help it. She had a thought and smiled. If the boys are wearing blue, then perhaps - "I know, how about pink? Does wearing a pink sash have any special meaning?"

Yolda considered. "Not to my knowledge, Mistress. Let me go and see if I can find something suitable."

The sash which Yolda returned with was a color her Mom would have called 'coral', and it shaded perfectly with the rust-brown of the tunic and tights. Even Yolda was forced to admit the outfit looked good, despite the poor tunic fit and the sight of far too much of Garia's legs.

"Now, I'll need a skirt to go over this, to hide my legs. To start with, it can be anything you have that fits. I just need something that will get me from my rooms to the Small Training Room and back without upsetting anybody."

"You will look strange, Mistress, if the bodice and skirt mismatch."

"I'll put up with that for a day or two. If this whole thing works out then I'll ask you to make me a suit of clothes that fits me properly, but first of all I have to find out if it's worth doing at all."

"As you wish, Mistress."

Yolda returned with a wrap-around skirt of very dark blue that came to just above Garia's ankles. Despite all the color mismatches the ensemble didn't look to Garia's eyes to be that bad. Although the skirt was rather long to be seen about the palace corridors during the day, it had at least the virtue that it would conceal the fact that she was wearing men's tights.

After changing back into her green gown and with Jenet carrying the bundle of clothes, they made their way back to her suite. There she again changed into the new exercise clothes and walked into the Queen's sitting room. Terys was reading state papers and looked up in surprise as Garia entered with Keren in tow. She regarded Garia's new outfit with interest.

"Let me have a look at you, dear."

Garia did a twirl, feeling very self-conscious.

"Nothing fits, I can see that, but presumably you need to have some looseness for what you intend to do?"

"Yes, Ma'am. I'll ask for something that fits better when I know what works."

"And do you wear that skirt as well?"

"No, Ma'am, that's just for going to and from the hall." Garia pulled the waistband from under the sash and undid the ties, pulling the skirt away. "I'll be like this."

"Goodness! My dear, you do look strange." Terys eyed Garia. "Are you sure this is what you intend?"

"I think so, Ma'am. This is only my first try."

Terys gave Garia a smile. "Thank you for showing me, dear. That was considerate of you. Are you going to try some... exercising tomorrow?"

"If Captain Bleskin will let me, Ma'am. I'm afraid I've got a sort of mental itch, I'm so used to exercising that I feel uncomfortable not doing it. I want to see what I can do with the new me."

"Keren? What do you think of Garia's attire?"

Keren grinned. "It's certainly not what I'm used to seeing, Mother. In practical terms, I don't think she'll be showing anything she shouldn't be though. I somehow don't think this fashion is going to catch on in Palarand, they'll be fainting in the streets if they saw her like this."

Oh, yeah? Garia thought. Shows how much you know about teenage girls, doesn't it? Guess you might be in for a shock in a year or two.

She re-wrapped the skirt about her waist and Jenet knotted the ties. A knock came at the door and Kendar came in followed by a footman carrying a box.

"Your Majesty." He bowed. "This was found in one of Mistress Yolda's huts."

The footman placed the box on the table and Kendar opened it revealing a silver tiara sparkling with jewels. Terys rapidly rose and crossed to the table, lifting the tiara.

"My silver tiara! It's been so long since I've seen it that I've almost forgotten all about it. You say Yolda had it in one of the huts?" Her expression hardened.

"It was behind some other boxes at the back of a top shelf, Ma'am," Kendar explained. "If I were to be fair-minded to Mistress Yolda, it is possible that it was mislaid and that she had no idea it was there."

"And if I were not being fair-minded," Terys completed the thought, "she could have hidden it there hoping I'd forget it."

Kendar bowed an acknowledgment. "As you say, Ma'am."

Terys turned to Garia. "Come here, dear."

Terys placed the tiara on Garia's head, adjusting it until she was satisfied.

"Despite your haircut, dear, I think it will look well on your head. A woman must have some jewelery and you have none, so consider this the first piece of many for your collection." She gave Garia an apologetic look. "I'm afraid I can only lend it to you, dear, but it is yours to wear while you live in the palace. What do you think?"

Garia moved to the sitting room's long mirror and studied herself. The gear she was wearing made it look strange but she could see that the piece did something to her face. She stood up straighter. Now I really look like a princess, which is so unreal. I suppose I'll have to get used to all this as well. I wonder what gown would go best with it?

Did I really just think that? I can't go there yet, I really can't. There's too much else going on at the moment. Oh, God, do I really want to get all girly?

"Garia? Dear?"

"Uh, yes, Ma'am. Thank you very much, Ma'am, I'll be very careful with it. I'm really not used to wearing jewelry, b-, uh, it's not the sort of thing someone like me would have done where I came from." Which is exactly correct, however you care to interpret that statement.

"Kenila," Terys directed, "Show Jenet where and how our jewels are kept and make an area where Garia can keep hers, will you?" She turned to Kendar. "Are you keeping a record of all this? I suspect we will need another reckoning with Mistress Yolda before we are done."

"I am, Ma'am," Kendar replied. "With your permission?"

"Yes, Kendar, carry on. And you two," Terys indicated Keren and Garia, "it will soon be time for dinner. Why don't you both go and get changed?"

~o~O~o~

Dinner was more relaxed than lunch had been. The full story of what had happened to Mistress Yolda had now done the rounds of the palace bush telegraph and everyone had decided that she was the Queen's only target. One or two of them, however, had made private resolutions to make sure that the Queen didn't find anything wrong with their own particular area of palace responsibility. After the meal Gerdas approached Garia.

"Mistress Garia."

"Master Gerdas. I thought you were returning home today?"

"I decided to stay, Mistress, until after the Council meeting tomorrow evening. There was little point traveling home and then back again the next day."

"Of course. Do you live far?"

"About five marks, Mistress. Far enough away from the center of the city that my view is not obscured by smoke from all Palarand's chimneys. What I wanted to suggest to you, Mistress, is that since I will be here this evening I would like to take another look from the tower as we did the other night. Would you like to join me? I have already spoken to Captain Merek and he has permitted a visit."

Garia thought briefly. "Of course, Master Gerdas. Although, I don't think I can stay quite so late tonight, I didn't sleep well last night and I'll probably get tired quite quickly. But otherwise, yes, I would like to come."

Gerdas beamed. "Excellent, Mistress! If I may suggest, we could ascend before sunset and you may see more of Palarand. And there are questions we may discuss while we wait for the sky to become dark."

"Yes, all right, Master Gerdas. That's a good idea. I'll go and make sure the King, Queen and Prince know what we're doing, and then I need to go and change. I'll meet you at the door to the tower, like we did the last time, if that's convenient?"

"It is, Mistress. I must change my attire also."

Garia and Keren were waiting when Gerdas appeared and they ascended the stairs without waiting for an escort. No-one seemed surprised when they appeared on the roof, merely offering bows to the party. Garia immediately crossed to the wall to look at a Palarand lit by late evening sunshine.

It's a typical medieval city, she thought. Or perhaps a bit later, early thirteen colonies, perhaps. These people are sharp, they just haven't had some of the light-bulb moments that we've had on Earth in the past. Given even the slightest of clues I guess they can take anything I'm able to tell them and run with it. Which reminds me.

"Master Gerdas, you were organizing some means of making paper, I believe."

"As you say, Mistress. I've spoken to several Guildsmen and they are preparing a place where the experiments can take place, within the city. I have no word of progress yet, do you wish to take a look? I can find out what progress has been made tomorrow morning after breakfast."

"Yes, please. I want to get that off the ground so that we can start other projects. Paper will help greatly with everything else that follows."

"Very well, Mistress, I will make inquiries for you. Now, I have questions about the use of telescopes at night. You said something the other night that made me think -"

The sun set but Garia didn't notice. She and Gerdas were engrossed in a conversation that no-one else on the roof could possibly understand. Gerdas borrowed parchment from the officer of the watch and drew diagrams to Garia's instructions by the aid of the dim red lantern on the table. It was only when Kalikan finally rose that she realized how much time had passed, but she also realized that the evening had not been wasted at all.

Tomorrow would be an interesting day in many respects.