Diplomatic Missions

[Armorica]

Dominique's plane landed in Eschenbach, the first of many capitals on this mission. Madame Dumont had been clear, "Dom, don't expect to see home for a few weeks. Some of these replies are demanding a meeting in person. I simply don't have the time to jet around Gallia and Germania. But you do. Send me a postcard from Villesen."

Dom, with only a briefcase and the clothes on his back, hailed a taxi.

"Emmène-moi au ministère des affaires étrangères immédiatement."

("Take me to the Foreign Ministry immediately.")

"Du bist in Elben-Mann, nicht in Burgund."

("You're in Elben, man, not in Burgundy.")

"Merde! En allemand? Uh, das ... außenministerium."

("Shit! In German? Uh, the Foreign Ministery.")

The cabbie looked scandalized, but put the pedal down and off they charged into the city.

@Elben

 

[Elben]

Dom had been left waiting in a holding room for awhile. He had been served drinks and even a meal and given access to a restroom. Officials occasionally came in to ask a question.

Eventually Dom was ushered into the office of the foreign minister himself, who greeted Dom in French, "Welcome to Eschenbach, monsieur. Sorry to keep you waiting, but it took some doing to arrange matters. You see, the regents of Bourgogne, His Majesty's son and daughter-in-law, needed to be advised of your presence here. But now all matters are arranged and I am fully empowered to speak on Bourgogne's behalf at this time. We can go forward."

And so they did. After a full day's worth of negotiations, framework, to be fleshed out later by experts, had been created for the eventual division of Bourgogne's military. The key points had been the carriers. Schlabrendorff had held out and gotten a few things in return for giving them to Neustria, no strings attached. Of course, with rump Bourgogne's lack of a real coastline, they were almost worthless, but it was the principle of the matter. Carriers were prestigious!

A car was waiting to take Dom to a hotel. The foreign minister himself walked out with Dom. "It was a pleasure doing business with you. I hope you enjoy our hospitality and I wish you safe travels."

 

[Armorica]

The hotel was quite nice, though a little conservative for Dom's Frankish tastes. He ordered room service and then had the hotel's tailor take his measurements.

"Clothes ... morning ... checkout. Entendre?"

"Ja, verstehen."

When he woke up in the morning, Dom was horrified to find that the hotel had produced several outfits of Elbener Tracht, lederhosen and all. Fortunately, his suit had been cleaned and pressed overnight, though Dom still relunctantly put it on for the short journey to Gunnland.

"J'espère qu'ils ont un meilleur sens de la mode à Gunnland."

("Hopefully they have better fashion sense in Gunnland.")

(OOC: @Gunnland arrival RP or skip ahead, either is fine with me.)

 

[Armorica]

Dominique Luc Lamar's flight to Serenierre, with a two-day stopover in Chagny, was pleasant one. And then he arrived in Villesen, he was feeling rested and ready. The new tailor-made wardrobe bought his government expense account helped. The first order of business was to visit Neustria's diplomatic mission to check-in and arrange a meeting with the Serenierren foreign ministry.

@Serenierre

 

[Serenierre]

At the grand chamber where the official meeting was to be held, Commissar Bernard Lavosnier was talking to a few of his aides as they waited for the Neustrian delegation to arrive. As was the appropriate protocol in such occasions, the protocol officer from the Government would be playing host to the guest. And in fact, it would be the protocol officer who would formally introduce the Commissar to the Neustrian man.

As M. Lamar arrived and entered the room, Bernard greeted him with a smile and welcomed him to the table. The meeting would be conducted over a formal working lunch, with the best of Serenien cuisine on offer.

The break up of the Burgundian state had been a welcome turn of events and Villesen was committed to getting the Ouistreham based nobility firmly on its side.

 

[Armorica]

Dom returned M. Lavosnier's greeting and made a polite comment about the setting for their meeting, "somptueux."

Sitting down at the table, he leaned back and allowed a napkin to be placed on his lap. "I am looking forward to this meal. Ouistreham is quite cultured, but I am certain it is nothing compared to what Villesen has to offer."

 

[Serenierre]

"So, Monsieur Ministre, what are the grand messieurs of Ouistreham envisaging? I hope you realise the historical importance of the pushback of the Burgundian super-state. Many of the old understandings of Gallia seem to have come undone by the brave actions of your government. As you may remember, Serenierre was the first nation to recognize Neustria. It is our full intent to prevent the same rancor to mark our bilateral ties which haunted Chagny and Villesen." The first course was rolled out: l'aperitif a la grande. And of course the choice of champagne, bourbon, wine, and whiskey to choose from.

 

[Armorica]

Dom chose whiskey to go with his appetizer. As he rolled the liquid around in his glass and inhaled the liquor's fragrance, he smiled. "Ouistreham sees itself inheriting Bourgogne's power and prestige in GalloGermania. We want to be a stabilizing force; by ourselves if necessary, with like-minded nationstates preferably. When a nation in GalloGermania considers a course of action, Neustria and its allies should be a part of the calculus."

After a sip of his whiskey, Dom went on. "Ouistreham would also like to be influentiai further afield. This business in Long and Retalian Seas, perhaps an honest broker would be worthwhile?"

 

[Serenierre]

Well, that was a rather grand view, quite indeed, Elisabeth thought as she sipped her red wine. The best from the province of Vaujours. "Yes. Stability in Gallia. This is our goal as well. But whether Germania can sustain that dream is something which remains to be seen. I am sure you are aware, Eiffelland and Lars continue to court the Post-delegationist ideologies opposed to the very notion of a nation-state and national sovereignty. The other countries are enigmas from my view. Only perhaps Gunnland and Elben are worth mentioning, but even there, especially with Elben — now that a claimant to former throne of Serenierre is the co-regent of Bourgogne — are problematic in another sense. You see, it is a very tacky situation for me, when it comes to dealing with royalists who seek to uphold their titles to the former throne of Serenierre."

"However, M. Dom," Elisabeth spoke carefully, "I could not help but notice you say... 'Neustria and her allies'... which makes me think. Who exactly are its allies? Given the change in circumstances, which aspect of the former Burgundian foreign policy continues now? Is Trier this ally you speak of? Is it your old royal masters in Chagny? Or has Ouistreham adopted a new foreign policy doctrine now? You must forgive my ignorance, you see, everything changed rather dramatically in the north." She smiled disarmingly.

"But, M. Dom, I am hopeful that Serenierre can start afresh with the Kingdom of Neustria. As, I believe that despite our obvious political differences, at our core, our ideals of a stable Gallia are identical. That is something we can agree with and I think should offer us tremendous room for cooperation between our countries. But I am curious to hear what the new government in Ouistreham sees in partnering with Villesen. Beyond the obvious net positives, I am genuinely curious to hear what the perspectives are in your government."

She knew she spoke quite a lot. But that was often the case when she was in good company. She wondered what the first course would be. Her chefs had assured her the meal would be trés magnifique.