"Really," the Queen whispered in' surprise. "Well, I thought it was stronger."
"Very perceptive, Your Majesty, very perceptive. You have a very refined palate. I knew I wouldn't be able to fool you."
"Indeed. But are you sure it isn't too powerful? I can feel the enlightenment sweeping through me already."
"Your Majesty," his eyes shifted among the guests. "Where your mandate is concerned, I feared to make it any weaker." His eyebrows lifted up. "Lest any traitor go unfound."
She smiled at last, and nodded. "You are a wise and loyal cook. From now on, I put you, exclusively, in charge of the drink of enlightenment."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
He bowed a bunch of times and left. Rachel was glad he didn't get in trouble.
"Lords and ladies, a special treat. Tonight, I had the cook prepare the drink of enlightenment extra strong, so none loyal to their queen could fail to see the wisdom of Father Rahl's ways."
The people all smiled and nodded how pleased they were about this. Some told how they could already feel the special insights the drink was giving them.
"A special treat, lords and ladies, for your entertainment." She snapped her fingers. "Bring in the fool."
Guards brought in a man, and made him stand in the center of the room, directly in front of the Queen, all the tables around him. He was big and strong-looking, but he was bound with chains. The Queen leaned forward.
"We here have all agreed that an alliance with our ally, Darken Rahl, will bring great benefits to all our people, that we all will profit, together. That the little people, the workers, the farmers, will benefit the most. That they will be freed from the oppression of those who would only exploit them for profit, for gold, for greed. That from now on, we all will be working for the common good, not individual goals." The Queen frowned. "Please tell all these ignorant lords and ladies"-she swept her hand around the room-"how it is that you are smarter than they, and why you should be allowed to work only for yourself, instead of your fellow man."
The man had an angry look on his face. Rachel wished he would change it, before he got in trouble.
"The common good," he said, sweeping his hand around the room like the Queen had done, except his hands had chains on them. "This is what you call the common good? All you fine people look to be enjoying the good food, the warm fire. My children go hungry tonight because most of our crops have been taken, for the common good, for those who have decided not to bother to work, but to eat the fruit of my labor instead."
The people laughed.
"And you would deny them food, simply because you are fortunate that your crops grew better?" the Queen asked. "You are a selfish man."
"Their crops would grow better if they would plant seeds in the ground first."
"And so you have so little care for your fellow man, that you therefore would condemn them to starve?"
"My family starves! To feed others, to feed Rahl's army. To feed you fine lords and ladies, who do nothing but discuss and decide what to do with my crop, how to divide the product of my labor among others."
Rachel wished the man would keep still. He was going to get his head chopped off. The people and the Queen thought he was funny, though.
"And my family goes cold," he said, and his face looked even more angry, "because we aren't allowed to have fire." He pointed at a few of the fireplaces. "But here there is fire, to warm the people who tell me we are all equal now, how there will no longer be some put before others and I must therefore not be allowed to keep what is mine. Isn't it odd, that the people who tell me how we are to all be the same under the alliance with Darken Rahl and do no work other than to divide up the fruit of my labors, are all well fed, and warm, and have fine clothes on their backs. But my family goes hungry and cold."
Everyone laughed. Rachel didn't laugh. She knew what it was like to be hungry, and cold
"Lords and ladies," the Queen said, with a chuckle. "did I not promise you royal entertainment? The drink of enlightenment lets us see what a selfish fool this man truly is. Just think, he actually believes it is right to profit while others starve. He would put his profit above the lives of his fellow man. For his greed, he would murder the hungry."
Everyone laughed with the Queen.
The Queen smacked her hand down on the table. Plates jumped and a few glasses fell over, spilling a red stain across the white tablecloth. Everyone fell quiet, except the little dog, who barked at the man. "This is the kind of greed that will be ended, when the People's Peace Army comes to help rid us of these human leeches that suck us all dry!" The Queen's round face was as red as the stains on the tablecloth.
Everyone cheered and clapped for a long time. The Queen sat back, smiling at last.
The man's face was as red as hers. "Odd, isn't it, now that all the farmers, the workers in town, are all working for the common good, that there isn't enough good to go around, like there used to be, or enough food."
The Queen jumped to her feet. "Of course not!" she shouted. "Because of greedy people like you!" She took some deep breaths, until her face wasn't quite so red, then turned to the Princess. "Violet dear, you must learn matters of state sooner or later. You must learn how to serve the public good for all our people. Therefore, I will put this matter in your hands, so you may gain experience. What would you do with this traitor to our people? You choose, dear, and it will be done."
Princess Violet stood. Smiling, she looked around at the people.
"I say," she said, as she leaned forward a little, across the table, to look at the big man in chains, "I say, off with his head!"
Everyone cheered and clapped again. Guards dragged the man away as he called them names Rachel didn't understand. She was sad for him, and for his family.
After the assembled crowd talked for a while longer, they all decided to go watch the man get his head chopped off. When the Queen left and Princess Violet turned to her and said it was time to go watch, Rachel stood up in front of her with fists at her side
"You're really mean. You're really mean to say to chop off that man's head."
The Princess put her hands on her hips. "Is that so? Well you can just spend the night outside tonight!"
"But Princess Violet, it's so cold out tonight!"
"Well, while you're freezing you can just think about how you dared speak to me in that tone! And so you remember the next time, you are to stay out all day tomorrow, and tomorrow night, too!" Her face looked mean, like the Queen's did sometimes. "That should teach you some respect."
Rachel started to say something else; then she remembered the trouble doll, and that she wanted to go out. The Princess pointed at the archway toward the door.
"Go on. Right now, with no supper." She stomped her foot.
Rachel looked at the ground, to pretend she was sad. "Yes, Princess Violet," she said, as she curtsied.
She walked with her head down, through the archway and down the big hall with all the rugs hung on the high walls. She liked to look at the pictures on the rugs, but she kept her head down this time, in case the Princess was watching; she didn't want to look happy about being put out. Guards, wearing shiny armor breastplates and swords and holding pikes, opened the great, tall, iron doors for her without saying anything. They never said anything to her when they let her out, or when they let her back in. They knew she was the Princess's playmate: a nobody.