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Chapter 11: Les Ornielles

Clap, clap made the hooves in front of the car that rolled along the country road. That was a regular noise, there were no irregularities and no swaying, no step changes. And that was not surprising, because the horse in front of the little two-wheeled wagon was no ordinary horse - it was a golem horse. An artificial creation that had been given a pseudo-life by magic. The coachman on the stake had little work to do with this doll. You could almost have done without it, had it not been for the occasional need to crank the brakes. The golem horse responded to spoken commands and found its way on its own.
Louise and Saito sat in the car and Louise had her daughter on her lap. The baby laughed and grabbed Louise's locks of hair with her little hands, while Saito watched this lovely picture with glee.
"What do you expect in Les Ornielles?" Louise broke the silence.
"Certainly there haven't been any major changes," Saito replied. "You know that the land around Les Ornielles is not one of the most fertile. So the composition of the population will not have changed much. And in Les Ornielles itself? Henrietta told us that she sent a majordomo to Les Ornielles and he saw his main task in maintaining what had been achieved. "
"I would like to keep him. We will have a variety of tasks to deal with, and we will not have the opportunity to live here often. Will Grandmother Helen still be there?"
"That would be nice," Saito said thoughtfully. "But we mustn't expect too much. Even then, Helen wasn't the youngest, and even if she's still there, she can't do much anymore."
"It is a strange thought that we will, so to speak, live in our own museum," said Louise, pulling a strand of hair out of Mariko's little hand.
Saito laughed. "I hope we can replace the reminiscences of our past glories with new things. I very much hope for the expertise of Sato-san."
"When will he come?"
"That is still undetermined. Count Merwin has asked him to assess the agriculture in his domain. This will be his test. And the journey from there will take some time. Perhaps we will be in La Valliere by then."
"Somehow I'm afraid of going back to my father and mother," said Louise.
Saito smiled. "There will be a lot to tell. How you fared in my world and what should now begin."
"That's exactly what scares me!"
"We need a mediator," Saito agreed. "And there I hope in Mariko. If there is ice, she will break it. Grandchildren have this ability - you will remember I mentioned that. And in the worst case, we can shake the dust off our feet and go back to Les Ornielles . "
Louise shook her head. "That would be so sad - if the encounter with my parents ended in incomprehension."
"You look too black," Saito replied.
"Do you think?" returned Louise. "That I threw myself into your arms when we went into your world ... You could blame me for that. Their expectations and plans certainly did not include my leaving this world to follow you."
"You should see it that way, that these 1 1/2 years have broadened your horizons immensely. Just your knowledge that there is another way is a treasure. And don't forget - you are no longer a young girl. You are the wife of a Viscount and mother of a child. Knowing about it should give you strength. "
"We can only hope so," sighed Louise. "I  know that. But whether that also applies to father and Karin ..."

"In any case, Eleonore and Catteleya are on our side."
Louise gave a short laugh. "As for our marriage, they were. But what we're about to do now is something completely different. The idea of restructuring our society doesn't have to be applauded by them. And as for my father, I'm almost certain that he'll reject it will."
"We have to feed them bit by bit. I have an idea ..."
"And what would it be?"
"It builds on loyalty. Your father is not happy with Henrietta as queen, is he? But on the other hand, he would rather allow himself to be torn to pieces than be disloyal to the crown."
"That sums it up well," agreed Louise.
"The idea came from a novel I read once. It was about an experiment that could have unknown and potentially dangerous effects. What these people did was this: They chose its toughest critics to oversee the experiment. His task was to stop the experiment immediately if the results did not produce the expected results. "
"You want to use father as a safety valve!"
"You could put it that way, yes."
"And you are not afraid that he could sabotage the project in his care?"
"In this respect I am building on his loyalty. He has to listen to me! The alternative is too unpleasant for us to be able to ignore the forces that have begun to stir."
Louise nodded slowly. "I see. He doesn't have to like it, but what we need is not his gut instinct. What we need is his experience."
Saito shrugged. "So far he has seen his task in keeping things as they are. If he realizes that all these developments have already started before we burst into this world with the plane, then he will not be able to ignore the knowledge, that we need him to direct all of this in a direction that avoids the bloodshed through which the earth has passed. "
Louise twisted her mouth. "I can only hope that you are right."
"Your father is not stupid, beloved mistress! If he were, he would have long been deported to a post where he cannot cause any harm."
Louise forced a laugh. "You're right again. Not even I like it all, but it seems that Brimir didn't create this world for us to enjoy."
Saito laughed. "Right now I am delighted with your presence - and that of our daughter." He stretched his arms and stretched. "I'm looking forward to Les Ornielles ... and the hot spring."
"Lusty pig!" replied Louise. "You just want me to bathe in it with you again."