Essence Of The Heart (The Royal Tutor) (10 page)

 

          The people of Bernodia loved to see them together. That is, they
loved to see Alexander with the princess. To them there was no doubt he
was worthy of her. She thought to herself that she could somehow deal with
her own father in this matter, but she wondered if Alexander's wounded
spirit would ever heal to the point that he would feel secure in her love.

 

          As they continued to walk through the market, arm in arm, she
noticed that he didn't seem to be interested at all in the pretty, handcrafted
items. He was taking her down to where they sold food. He seemed to be
looking for someone. Still, he did stop here and there. They tried some
different foods that made Louise's mouth water with excitement. Alexander
would buy some, but he always insisted on knowing how to make them for
himself. They would describe how they were made, and Louise wondered if
Alexander would truly remember, since he never wrote any of it down.

 

          As they neared the end of the market Alexander smiled excitedly,
and Louise knew he had finally spotted who he was looking for. Alexander
introduced the vendor as Gareg, the trader from whom he had purchased the
many new plants he grew, including the strawberries and the corn.

 

          The man smiled when he saw Alexander, and his eyebrows raised
slightly as he glanced at Louise holding onto Alexander's arm. "I see you
have woman friend." She could tell Alexander was just about to explain to
Gareg about her as he had to the others, but Gareg continued before he
could. "And how grows corn, strawberries, potatoes, and beans?"

 

          Louise couldn't remember if Alexander had shown her potatoes and
beans because of his excitement for the corn. She didn't have time to ask
about it, since Alexander was happily talking about the new things he was
trying. Gareg said, "Good. Good," as Alexander described how the corn
looked. He shook his finger at Alexander. "If starts look yellow, give more
manure and less water. If looks too green, give more water and less
manure."

 

          Alexander promised he would. Finally came the moment both men
knew the other was dying to get to. Alexander asked if there was anything
new. Gareg got a sly look on his face. "I have most wonderful plant from
New World. It called pumpkin."

 

          He pulled out a large, round, orange thing that Louise thought
looked like a strange luggage carrier. Gareg continued. "This what look
like. When grown, boil, scrape, and eat inside." He then pulled out a small
pouch of seeds. "Here seeds."

 

          Alexander looked at him narrowly, though Louise could feel his arm
tighten next to hers in excitement. "I don't know. What would I use it
for?"

 

          Gareg laughed. "It taste most grand with butter on it. And never
know until try."

 

          Alexander acted as if he was only slightly interested. "How much?"

 

          Louise knew he was just fooling, trying to get a better price. The
problem was, she could see by the look on Gareg's face that he knew the
same thing.

 

          Gareg looked up at the sky as if pondering. "Very expensive. Cost
much from New World. But for friend Alexander, only two gold coin."

 

          Louise gasped. Two gold coins for a small bag of seeds? Her
beautiful necklace only cost three. Alexander paused, but because of how
tight his arm was squeezing against hers, she knew he was going to get them
somehow.

 

          "I don't know, Gareg. Two gold coins is a lot."

 

          "But friend Alexander be only one have such delicacy."

 

          He had Alexander now. Alexander sighed. "All right."

 

          He pulled out two gold coins and handed them to Gareg. Louise
almost laughed. So, her white knight had a chink in his shining armor after
all. If he had to have one, she was glad it was a weakness for new foods and
plants.

 

          After Alexander had the seeds safely in his hand, he turned back to
Gareg. "Now tell me how to plant them and prepare them."

 

          Gareg spoke slowly. "Put them in little hill with lots of manure
mixed in dirt. Then, when grown, cut pumpkin open, scrape out seeds, boil
rest, and scrape orange inside to eat."

 

          Alexander had dropped his arm and grabbed Louise's hand in his
excitement, unknowingly cutting off the feeling in her fingers, but it only
made her smile.

 

          "Would they yet grow this summer?" Alexander asked.

 

          Gareg shrugged his shoulders. "That I not know. Would like buy
another bag so try, and have also for next year?"

 

          Alexander sighed, but handed over two more gold coins. Gareg sold
Alexander two more kinds of seeds called 'tomatoes' and 'peppers'. They
were not for growing this year and one had to be careful to not let those
plants freeze. Alexander only bought one pouch of each of them.

 

          Finishing his purchases, Alexander wanted to head for home. He
wanted to get back and plant his pumpkin seeds. They had barely walked
back to their horses, not even out of sight of the market, when Louise could
contain herself no longer.

 

          She exploded into laughter, drawing an embarrassed smile from
Alexander as she said, "That Gareg sure is clever."

 

          Alexander blushed. "I don't know about that. He says we are to
boil every food he sells me. Boiled strawberries are terrible."

 

          She laughed again. "Maybe. But he sure knows how to get you to
spend your money."

 

          "Well, I.." Alexander stuttered, even more embarrassed. His face
glowed. "I... I only buy them so I can get new things for the people of
Bernodia to grow."

 

          Before she knew what she was doing, she leaned up and kissed him
on the cheek. Suddenly she realized what she had done, and she, too,
blushed. She spoke quietly. "I think it's cute."

 

          There was a moment of awkward silence as they stood and looked at
each other. Then, to ease the clumsiness of how she felt, she tried to change
the subject slightly. "Besides, you are going to have to let me taste the
results."

 

          Alexander smiled and nodded vigorously. As they mounted and
headed back to the castle, he could hardly contain his excitement about
planting his pumpkin seeds. He would click Lady to a trot, only to
remember to slow down for Louise. She was sure if it were just him he
would have galloped all the way back, not stopping anywhere for the night.
Instead, they stopped in a small village and stayed with a family.

 

          The next morning he hid his last coins in the family's flour sack,
gave them the last strawberry plants, and then they headed for Denville
Castle - for home. As they rode along, there was only one other thing she
could have wished for. She wished she could have had the time back she
had lost by not being his friend sooner.

 

 

 

 

          The day finally arrived when Alexander declared some corn was
ready. Louise marveled at the plants. The long rows stood higher than her
head. Alexander had saved almost all of his seed the year before and
planted it. He declared that this year there was enough to eat. He planned
to save half of what they harvested for seed, and, of that, he would dispense
half to the people he visited around the countryside.

 

          He showed her how Gareg had told him to check to see if it was
ready. He peeled back a bit of covering to check if it was yellow.
Alexander could not remember what Gareg called the part that held the
food. He said he thought he had called them something on the body, like
"finger", or something. She thought they did indeed look like big fat
fingers. Since Alexander couldn't remember, he just called them 'corn
pods'. He said they kind of looked like the pods the peas grew in, only
bigger.

 

          When Alexander triumphantly carried some corn pods to the
kitchen, the cook, though used to his new foods, was suspicious, as always.
Alexander said that the year before, they waited until it was really dry, and
then they boiled and ate it. He said it was edible, but not that good. Gareg
told him he needed to pick it just after it got yellow and eat right off the
thing Alexander called the 'corn stick'.

 

          Alexander took all of the peeling off of a few corn pods, leaving just
the corn sticks, and put them in a boiling pot of water. He said Gareg had
told him not to wait too long. Shortly, he used a rod to pull one from the
boiling water. He stuck some butter and salt on it, like Gareg had
instructed.

 

          Many of the servants, and even Duke Reginald and Lady Margaret,
gathered around for the event. Alexander would not let anyone else try it, in
case it was bad. Lady Margaret was always sure he would poison himself,
and kept wanting him to try it on some animal first. But when Alexander
was ready, he took the corn stick and bit into it. He tried to bite clear
through it, but then remembered Gareg said you only ate the seeds off the
outside. He bit an edge off. Everyone watched him as he carefully chewed.
Pretty soon a big smile spread across his face. "Oh! That is good!"

 

          Everyone clamored to try it, but he insisted that his parents and
Louise were next. He assured everyone there would eventually be enough
for all to try some. Alexander prepared three more corn sticks. When he
handed the one to Louise, she took it carefully. She held it like she had seen
him do, and she, Lady Margaret, and Duke Reginald all bit some off at the
same time.

 

          As she chewed, Louise tasted the warmest, most wonderful thing she
could ever remember. She could only describe it as if she were chewing on
sunshine. She looked over at Lady Margaret and Duke Reginald, and saw
rapturous expressions spread across their faces as well. Everyone else,
seeing the looks on their faces, clamored even louder for the last ones. The
next corn stick was for the cook to try, so she would know what it was like
and how to prepare it. He did promise that everyone in the castle, down to
the last servant, would get to try it once more had ripened. The cook took a
bite from her corn stick and grinned. "My boy, you've done it again."

 

          Alexander was true to his word and made sure everyone had a
chance to try some. He had planted most of a field with corn, thinking that
would be more than enough for everyone to have all they wanted. But he
could have used many times that to satisfy their appetites. He was cautious
to save half for seed, and he wanted to make sure there was plenty for
Louise's parents to try when they came back.

 

          Before the summer was out, Louise had tried potatoes and beans as
well. It took Alexander quite a while to get the hang of cooking potatoes,
but he found they tasted good boiled like Gareg said, with butter and salt,
just like the corn. At first he tried to boil them and put the butter on the
outside. The butter just rolled off, so he took to cutting them and laying the
butter inside them.

 

          Louise found she liked potatoes, but she wasn't sure the beans were
all that good. They soon were eating corn every evening as the cool nights
of fall were starting to hang in the air. Alexander was afraid it would all
ripen before Louise's parents came.

 

          Over in one small corner of the gardens, Alexander had had the
servants mix a lot of manure. There he planted a few of his precious
pumpkin seeds. He didn't let anyone touch his seeds, and at two gold coins
for a small bag, Louise couldn't blame him.

 

          The pumpkins did very well and put out long vines like a grape
plant. Alexander wondered if he should tie them up like they did grapes,
but thinking about the big orange pumpkin Gareg had shown them, he
thought it might break the vines. Soon they spread all over, even into his
potato plants. He said he had to remember to give the pumpkins more room
the next year.

 

          Louise could still remember the day Alexander grabbed her hand
and pulled her out to see the little green balls on the plant. It was almost
impossible for her to imagine they could ever get as big as the orange one
Gareg had shown them. But big they did get. Alexander was so proud of
them. He always checked them first thing when they would get home from
one of their trips.

 

          Alexander's got even bigger than the one Gareg showed them.
Alexander said he could hardly wait to see how big it would get with a full
season. As the cool fall was arriving and the pumpkins turned orange,
Alexander announced he could stand it no longer and had to try to eat one.
It was almost all he could do to haul it to the kitchen. He cut it open and
scooped out the seeds as Gareg had said. He carefully set them to dry for
the next year. He then cut a piece of the pumpkin and boiled it. When he
thought it had boiled long enough, he scraped off some and tried it.

 

          By this time the usual crowd had gathered. Louise watched his face.
He chewed slowly. His face had a bland expression. "Let's try a little
butter and salt." He liked it better, but he said it sure wasn't as good as he
expected. He tried all sorts of different things, but didn't find any that he
thought improved it much. His last taste test was with a little honey candy.

 

          He said that was quite good, and, soon, others had to try. No one
felt it was as good as had been expected, since the pumpkin was so big and
pretty. Alexander was sure there would be something good found for them
and said he would still keep growing them.