fandomtownies | Il Pollo, Saturday Night

Current Mood: anxious

Entry tags:

Il Pollo, Saturday Night

Rinoa was ready. She had worked all week for this. She had picked out an elegant gown, and done her hair up. She'd even considered an elaborate headdress or a henna tattoo, but no. Understated was better.

Okay, her dad was a complete jerk, and maybe after tonight she could happily never, ever talk to him again. That would be good. Or maybe he'd be less of a jerk and they would ... something. Talk?

She wasn't going to hold her breath for that. Even just the phone call a week ago had gone disastrously. She was still angry about so much. Like, say, the entirety of her childhood, and him being a cold, uncaring bastard.

Tonight wasn't about them. Tonight was about Timber, and trying rational arguments to secure its freedom. Tonight, she had research on her side. Military, strategic perspectives, about why the occupation was a good idea. So tonight she was the Sorceress, addressing Galbadia's interim president, and not an angry teenage girl having dinner with her estranged father.

It might take slightly more than five minutes before the whole evening went to hell.

(Rinoa's here for her father, but it's open for all of your Il Pollo needs!)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

If his little girl wanted to play at being a grownup, Fury Caraway could go with that. She was a Sorceress now, after all, and as the interim president of his country, he needed to deal with her diplomatically. If she threw a childish tantrum now, it could start a war.

"Sorceress," he greeted her, bowing formally. "Good evening."

"General Caraway," she said, offering him her hand. Did Sorceresses bow? Edea had never told her. She should ask, next time she visited.

Also, if he was interim president, that might be his title right now, and maybe she should go with that, but 'General' had slipped out before she had thought about it. She was going to pretend she hadn't realized, and act gracious if corrected.

"I trust you found the place easily," she said, leading them inside the restaurant.

He liked 'General' better, anyway. He was only going to be president until things got settled and someone else could take over. And Sorceresses did whatever they wanted -- no one was going to tell them differently, after all.

"Easily enough," he told her. "I trust you are well?"

"Well enough," she said. Was he teasing her? He was treating her as if she was someone entirely different than the daughter he'd spoken with a few hours before. Which was what she wanted, sort of, but not if he was rolling his eyes whenever she turned her back. "And yourself?"

The hostess sat them quickly, in a nice table off to one side. Which would be helpful in case they happened to argue, and it was nearly guaranteed that they would.

She concerned herself with ordering off the menu and fussing with her water glass. She didn't want to start the real topic until after they weren't going to be interrupted for a while.

General Caraway had spent twenty years serving under a president who sometimes sent people to jail for upsetting him. Appeasement had become one of his strong skills.

After ordering, he took a sip from his own water glass and cleared his throat. "...but we're not here just for dinner," he began. "You had something you wanted to discuss."

"I did," Rinoa said. She straightened her shoulders and tried to remember her opening speech. She had most of it. Okay, then.

"It was around twenty years ago that a sorceress named Adel came to power," she started. "She took control of Esthar and used it to start a war. Galbadia mobilized against Esthar, and was perhaps the largest force standing against it. One of the early casualties of that fight was a small sovereignty named Timber, adjacent to Galbadia itself. Timber did not support Esthar, but Timber had many important resources as well as key transportation infrastructures. Galbadia stated that Timber's occupation was of a benevolent nature; ensuring that Timber did not collapse so that Galbadia's supply lines were not hampered in the time of war. Detractors said that Galbadia was pushing an expansionist agenda at a time least likely to raise suspicion. Is all of that correct so far?"

Yes. She was showing off. And there was more to come. So he had better be impressed. She had done homework. Take that.

Edited 2011-10-02 03:20 (UTC)

Fury nodded, impressed. He hadn't expected her to have a speech rehearsed. Of course, he was never sure WHAT to expect from his daughter. "You forget the pragmatists, who believed that occupation was not benevolent, but WAS necessary," he reminded her. Not that he was going to give away that he was one of them. This was her moment, and he wasn't going to play his cards just yet.

He couldn't stop setting up hoops for her to jump, could he? She huffed, her mood slightly dampened.

"I was summarizing," she said. "I didn't cover every possible perspective on all actions. I thought that was understood. May I continue?"

Edited 2011-10-02 03:32 (UTC)

Why was she getting huffy at him? He was here, humoring her, and giving her point due consideration, wasn't he? What did she want from him?

Fine. He'd continue to be the adult, and maybe she'd follow suit.

"By all means," he told her. "Please do. I'm impressed -- you've done some research."

Okay, so he realized it. If he had responded with that, first, instead of criticizing, maybe she wouldn't have been so short with him.

In any case, her feathers were smoothed, and so she could continue.

"Thank you," she said. "Whichever argument one makes for the invasion, it occurred, despite the number of Timber soldiers who died in a futile attempt to prevent it. The Sorceress War came to an end, and Esthar closed its borders. After that, there was no more threat of Adel, so far as the world knew. And yet Galbadia continued its occupation of Timber, even though the wartime necessity it claimed was over. Galbadia now said that it had traditional claims on Timber, and intended to re-integrate Timber into Galbadia; Timber insisted it was still a sovereign nation, and that Galbadia's continued occupation was illegal, unprovoked, and immoral."

She took a long sip from her water glass, happy that she hadn't flubbed any of the major parts so far, and vexed that she had let her temper flare. She had to do better than that.

"The next time a Sorceress threatened the world's peace, it used Galbadia's might to do so, and President Deling himself was the first casualty. And so you are now the interim president. I believe that --" This. This was a hard sentence. "-- that you are a more reasonable man than your predecessor. And I would like the opportunity to discuss with you the future of Timber, and why I believe it is in not just Timber's interest, but Galbadia's, that Timber be an independent state once more."

And that was her introductory speech. Finally.

Edited 2011-10-02 04:00 (UTC)

Now it was Fury's turn to have his feathers ruffled. "Most men are more reasonable than my predecessor," he insisted, grumpy. "He wasn't elected for his reasonableness." Deling was a man of vision, and sometimes those visions were egomaniacal. "I'd like to think I'm a reasonable man in general."

He squeezed some lemon into his water glass and gave his daughter a pointed look. "I'm interested in what you have to tell me. "

It should not make her happy that she had ticked him off. That was really, really immature of her. Shame on her.

Luckily, the waiter picked that point to drop off their food, and so Rinoa could use the time to settle in without needing to point out that, well, he could think anything he liked, because it was certainly a free country. At least, it was here! It certainly wasn't in Galbadia!

So ... the food arrived at a good time? Yes. Okay. Being a smartass: not helpful.

More sips from her water glass. Keeping her composure. Right.

"I don't have to point out the obvious PR advantages, do I?" she asked. "Galbadia's not exactly popular on the world stage at the moment."

...PR advantages. Right. Even now, months after the war's end, PR was nowhere near Caraway's top priorities. She had a point, though -- and he'd have to appoint a PR secretary when he got home.

"That's a good point," he told her. "But there are important things to fix in the country, still, before we have the luxury of PR."

"Of course not," she said. "But Galbadia will get more help from outside sources once you make it clear to other countries that you're no President Deling."

Not that he'd ask for help in a thousand years. He was too proud.

"More importantly, as you say, you're short-handed," she noted. "And you have troops on the ground, maintaining order and martial law in Timber, when they could be helping to rebuild Galbadia itself."

Squall had suggested that point. And he was getting a really thorough thank-you if it got her anywhere.

Caraway nodded, considering.

"But the people of Timber need those troops, to maintain order and protect them from monsters," he countered. "They're Galbadians, too, even if they don't want to be, and I have a responsibility to them. I can't just abandon them to anarchy and chaos."

He didn't have a high opinion of the people of Timber's ability to fend for themselves -- he'd been "fighting" their revolution for twenty years, after all.

Okay, she didn't have a response to that one. She was going to take a few bites of her pasta something-or-other while she thought that over.

"You'd need fewer if Timber wasn't actively working against you," she pointed out. "Right now, most citizens on the ground are actively or passively involved in resistance movements. Your troops encounter difficulties, sabotage, civil disobedience, and whatever attacks the various movements can muster. If Timber was with you, and not against you, you'd need far less of a presence. Average citizens wouldn't hamper your efforts, or stall your supply lines. Because that's happening now, whether you realize it or not."

None of the resistance movements might be gaining much ground, but Timber had certainly made the occupation as laborious as possible for Galbadia. It was treason to actively fight against the troops, but passive-aggressive obstinacy let you play innocent.

"And would that really stop if we withdrew?" Caraway countered. "Can you guarantee it? Because it seems to me that an autonomous Timber would shut us out entirely. Without those rail lines, Galbadia would be devastated."

Rinoa drummed her fingers on the table, which was weird enough, since she had to do that carefully what with her kind of strange claws. He hadn't noticed those, had he? She'd been wearing gloves all weekend. Maybe he just thought she was being fancy.

Not really the time to worry about that. She chewed her lower lip for a few moments before forming all the pieces together.

"Okay," she said. "I've got it."

She pushed her plate to the side and leaned into the center of the table, using anything on the table that wasn't bolted down to make her point.

"You go to the TV station in Timber, and you make an official announcement that you're turning Timber back to its rightful citizens, because it's the decent thing to do and you're a good guy like that. Instant PR bonus." He was the pepper shaker, going to Timber, which was going to be ... this spot, over here, near the candlestick.

"You call upon Garden for assistance during this difficult time of transition, which is fine because I'll get Quistis to agree to it beforehand." Somehow. She would manage that somehow. And the parmesan cheese shaker, that was Quistis, over here in Garden.

"Anyway. You begin pulling troops out of Timber, in a slow, structured process, and back into Galbadia." That was the march of the candlestick, off to the left side of the table. "Before any of this happens, I go back to Timber and send word to my contacts on the ground that I can make this happen, but only if everyone's going to play nice. One wrong move, and it's back to occupation, and this time, no one's going to have as much of sympathy for them, either." So the white salt shaker was joining the black one here in ... Timber. Yes.

"SeeD comes in to handle the day-to-day monster-fighting. Timber's okay with SeeD, so you don't have the grumblings against Galbadia, and it's free, so you don't get interference." She needed some SeeDs, now. Her water glass? Sure. That would go over to the parmesan cheese -- to signify that it was connected to Quistis -- and then over to the salt and pepper shakers, on assignment in Timber.

"Meanwhile, we get an interim government going. I lived there for two years, Daddy. I know who the reasonable people are. We set up a committee filled with people who want what's best for Timber -- not to punish Galbadia, or to close off the borders spitefully. The rail lines help Timber as much as they help anyone else, don't they?"

They brought commerce and travel in. Retaliating against Galbadia was an understandable urge, but it didn't help matters if all the methods for doing so would hurt Timber more.

"They trusted me, when I was part of the resistance. I'm not sure if becoming the Sorceress has changed that, but I can find out. So ... so then, we can ..."

She stopped there, trailing off suddenly as she leaned back in her seat.

She had just come up with a plan for Timber's freedom that involved moving around condiments on top of their table.

Hyne's wrath, no wonder he didn't take her seriously.

Maybe she could convincingly pretend she needed to go to the bathroom, and not come back.

General Caraway was beaming at her. Moving condiments around -- well, shot glasses, usually, but it came down to the same thing -- was exactly how some of his most successful campaigns were planned. It was one step up from drawing in the dirt with sticks, and didn't require you to wait for an art department to build you a pretty little map for your war room.

"If you" -- he tapped the salt shaker -- "can manage the people of Timber, and the SeeDs" -- the water glass -- "then maybe this could work. We'd need to make it clear that they're from Balamb Garden, since Galbadia Garden has been under our influence for far too long." His knife, over here near the candlestick, was Deling City, and his water glass, between that and Timber, was Galbadia Garden.

No, wait, it wasn't -- he pulled the glass away again. "Galbadia Garden is out of the picture, anyway," he mused. "Martine quit, the students are all in Deling City, and the building's been missing since the Sorceress took it."

He tapped the parmesan cheese. "You're on good terms with Quistis?" he asked. "I'm not familiar with dealing with her, the way I was with NORG."

"Do you mean behind-the-scenes?" Rinoa asked, carefully. "I don't ... I don't want to be in charge of Timber. I don't even want to be a figurehead. People get scared when Sorceresses get power. I don't want to be in a position where anyone can see me as a threat."

She examined all of the layout again with a sigh.

"I can't take Edea's path and hide who away and hope no one discovers who I really am," she said. "Everyone knows. I refuse to believe I'm going to be Adel, or Ultimecia. So I'm hoping to be something else. Maybe a diplomat. Someone not really tied to any of the countries themselves. Someone to promote peace. I don't even know if that's possible, for me to be accepted like that."

Her hand went up to her rings. With gloves on, she didn't feel the cool metal against her skin, but it was still reassuring.

"Quistis ... is a friend," she said, finally. "More of Squall's than mine."

She didn't know what should represent Squall. Her heart, but it wasn't on the table. She settled for a bottle of what looked to be olive oil, and set it next to her salt shaker.

Squall was with her. Always.

Fury nodded. Squall would protect his baby. He'd better. She wouldn't let Fury himself protect her, anymore, and now he constantly worried about her.

"I didn't mean in charge," he reassured her. Quite frankly, the idea of Rinoa in charge of a country terrified him. "But you can manage the people who will be? Get them to play nice? I can handle a resistance, but I don't think the country's ready for another war."

He toyed with the pepper shaker idly, thinking. "We'd need safe passage through Timber territory for our soldiers. Armed guards on our supply trains. Losing Timber interrupts routes to the southern part of Galbadia, and I'm not going to do this if it means I can't protect towns like Winhill."

"Winhill doesn't deserve your protection," Rinoa said, darkly. "They sent two children to an orphanage rather than to their father, simply because they didn't approve of him."

Sir Laguna seemed like a good guy to her. And he would have been a wonderful father. Instead, Squall was ... Squall.

"If I set a threshold for who deserves my help and who doesn't, I'd end up not helping anyone," Caraway told her. "People are horrible a lot of the time, especially to each other. They're still Galbadians, and they're still my responsibility. I don't know why they didn't like Lieutenant Loire, but that was decades ago."

She still hated them for it, but it was useless. It was in the past. She could sit here and rave about Winhill, or she could try to save Timber. Only one of them was useful.

"Timber doesn't want war," Rinoa said. "The counter movement has been persistent, but underground, and ..." She closed her eyes, hating to admit this to him. Maybe he wouldn't rub it in? "... largely toothless. Most citizens will assist the revolution, but haven't been willing to risk their livelihoods or their well-being to overthrow Galbadia. If Galbadia was willing to leave, I don't see why any of those passive resisters would suddenly move to arms."

Caraway nodded. That was his assessment, too, but...

"You'd make it clear to them that continued passive resistance could provoke a war? If they interfere with our trains, or impose unreasonable taxes and fees, I would be forced to invade again."

Rinoa rescued her water glass from where it was serving as Garden troops.

"So long as we're clear on the term 'unreasonable,'" she said firmly. "Galbadia currently does not pay any fees whatsoever for using those natural resources and infrastructures which belong to Timber. But if Galbadia is running armed-guard supply trains through Timber, a sovereign nation, then it will of course pay reasonable taxes and fees to do so."

She was not going to give away the kitchen sink, or let Timber turn into some propped up puppet that wasn't really free of Galbadia. He understood that, right?

Caraway nodded. "Of course. But not excessive taxes and fees. You're the one who said that they like passive resistance, after all."

Oh. Well, she had.

"Only because it's the only path available to them," she said.

Hang on.

"Does this ... are we still talking hypotheticals?" she asked. "Or are you really saying ..."

General Caraway gave the Sorceress a shrug. "Identify a transition committee, and guarantee for me that Garden will protect the citizens. When you're confident that they're ready, Galbadia will begin a phased withdrawal."

Wow. Wow.

Okay. She needed to call Quistis, and ... something. The rest of it.

"I may not be able to return to Timber right away," she said. "There could be a few weeks' delay on this end, in assembling the committee."

Possibly months, but if she said that he might think she wasn't serious about this.

"Of course," he replied with a nod. "And I'll need time to organize logistics, as well. Keep me informed."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Il Pollo, Saturday Night

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject