A/N: Another plotless oneshot focusing on Luciano's greatness. I can't help myself, I don't know what's wrong with me, I don't usually act like some hormone-driven fangirl. Oh, well, it only goes to show Mary Hoffman's geniusness (what's the word I'm looking for...?), right? I hope you like it... It's just Luciano doing his dukely duties ;)
I'm sorry for any errors there might be.
The Mandoliere School
The Duke winced as he watched the Duchessa get dipped waist-deep into the water by the young priests. He knew by experience the coldness and the dirtiness of the Bellezzan canals. But the crowd was pleased and they were sure to let themselves be heard while colorful fireworks exploded above.
Luciano had been torn between helping his father-in-law with said fireworks and staying with Arianna during the ceremony but he thought that since this was his first Marriage with the Sea as a Duke he should stay with his wife. He, himself sat in all the luxury the small mandola could provide while she suffered the grime waters with no mask to conceal the grimace of discomfort.
'Is this tradition still needed? Isn't this a violation of our marriage?' he mused to himself while Arianna was being led back to the mandola under the shouts of the Bellezzans; "Viva la Duchessa! Prosperity and fortune!"
When she stepped into the mandola, Luciano wrapped his cloak around her shoulders while her personal maid Barbara started undoing the fastenings that held the bodice and the wet skirt together.
"Remind me to make a new law; hereafter the Duke Consort is obligated to suffer the same or similar ordeals as the Duchessa during the day of the Marriage with the Sea," Arianna said through clattering teeth, accepting a goblet of wine from her husband.
Luciano shrugged and took a sip from his own wineglass, smirking at her over the rim of it.
The mandoliers quickly and securely sculled the mandola back to the palace where Arianna was led to her chambers for dressing while Luciano went to meet Rodolfo and commence the banquet.
The evening passed peacefully and rather eventlessly. The Duchessa and Duke, linked by the arms, mingled with the nobles and the high-ranking members of the society –both secretly half-wishing they could be outside, partaking in the less glamorous celebration.
******
When the ducal couple arrived at the Mandoliere School early next morning, accompanied by Regent Rodolfo and his wife, there was already a large crowd outside. This was the first time Luciano was present at the ceremony as a Duke and he was slightly nervous about it. He followed Arianna up the few steps to the stage at the back of the over-crowded hall. The future mandoliers were already lined up.
Arianna was pleased to see three girls amongst the hopeful. It was the first change she had made in her reign; to allow girls access to the Mandoliere School along with the boys. There had never been many, one or two, perhaps three each time but the Duchessa had always let them in, merely to indulge herself. After addressing the gathering briefly, welcoming them and expressing her wishes for a productive day, she gestured the first applicant to an elevation on the stage.
The "examination" process was really more for show than anything. She based her judgment on their looks and their reactions to her (some were quite overwhelmed). She let twelve of them into the school and turned two away; one who didn't seem very interested –she guessed his family had more to do with his being there than his own decision –and the other one fainted when she stood opposite to him. The three girls remained standing on the stage.
The Bellezzan audience voiced their opinions unsparingly but when the Duchessa faced the mass and lifted her hand, all fell silent.
"It has been a tradition for decades and decades for the Duchessa to choose the lucky young men who will be accepted into the Mandoliere School. I am so lucky to have seen the time come for young women to stand beside them; to be acknowledged as professional mandoliers. It is of great personal value to me," Arianna paused and smiled to herself. "It has been a long time since Bellezza had a Duke and we are quite at loss at to what to do with him." She paused again for the anticipated chuckles. "I only find it fair, that while I choose the gentlemen, he should now choose the ladies." She turned her head and nodded slightly to her husband.
Luciano stepped forward so he was standing beside her. He cleared his throat. "Good morning, my fellow citizens. I am honored to be here today, and to be allowed such an integral part in this event. We all know how the Duchessa and her…" he shot a glance at Silvia, "predecessor chose their students. I will do it in a different way and I will have higher standards." He looked at the three girls who suddenly tensed up. "Please, do not let that alarm you, my ladies. Do not presume that I mean to humiliate you or belittle you in any way. In fact, I will discuss my ideas of changes with the Duchessa and hope she will take them into consideration so that they will apply to all applicants." He turned to the guards, stationed in front of the stage like security guards at a rock concert. "Please, bring me one of those boles there," Luciano requested, gesturing at a large stack of wooden pillars meant for maintenance.
The guards chose a four meter long bole which they carried to the stage and placed horizontally on the little platform at Luciano's command. The Duke turned to the first girl. A rather tall girl who stood confidently with her head held high, her long black hair done in a braid down her back.
"What is you name?" he asked.
"Emiliana," she answered firmly.
"Emiliana. I would like you step up here, please, and stand on top of the bole," Luciano gentlemanly helped her up to the platform. The girl's self confidence faltered a little but she managed to stand securely on the giant log. Luciano spoke to the crowd. "Balance. Balance is one of the most important things in sculling a mandola. Tell me Emiliana, have you any previous experience in sculling a mandola?"
"Yes, my lord. All the time with my siblings. Her Grace let my brother through earlier." Her eyes wandered to the group of young men that had already been accepted into the school.
Luciano nodded. "Ah. Good. Can you stand there on just one leg?"
-"My lord?"
-"Indulge me. Please."
Emiliana lifted one foot but the other became wobbly and she spread her arms to get better balance. She smiled at the audience, appearing to enjoy all the eyes on her.
"Are you honest in your intentions of becoming a professional mandoliere?"
-"Of course, sir. I would love to be a part of the ducal fleet."
Luciano smiled. "For nobler reasons than they had a few years ago, I daresay."
Emiliana kept her grin in check and had the decency to blush femininely. "Yes, sir."
-"Wonderful. You may step down now. Welcome to the school."
Emiliana jumped down, landed on her feet and beamed at the audience –presumably her cheering family –as she went to stand beside her brother who slapped her on the back. The other accepted male students looked her over appreciatively.
Luciano grinned secretively at Arianna before calling the next one up. She had large brown eyes that couldn't stay still, long, brown hair with a reddish tint and athletic built.
"Your name?"
"I'm Maddalena, sir," the girl answered, fighting to look him squarely in the eye.
"Well, Maddalena, let's see your balance," Luciano patted the log and continued speaking when she was standing on it. "I will ask you the same; Have you any previous experience in sculling a mandola?"
"Yes. My father transports goods from the mainland around the city as well as to the outer islands and I've helped him since I was a little girl."
"Excellent," Luciano nudged the bole with his hand so it moved slightly and Maddalena became unsteady but she managed to stay on. "In that case; have you studied calculus?"
The girl looked down. "I have not been schooled if that's what you mean. Sir."
-"No, no. That is not what I meant. Do you also help your father load the mandola?"
She blinked. "Ah… Yes, sir."
-"So you must have some sense of how much weight you may put in the front and back of the mandola and of sculling stances according to the placing of the weight, yes?"
-"Yes."
-"I was simply wondering… This is not important. You will learn these things at the school, of course –but if you already know them, you will have certain advantage, obviously," Luciano smiled encouragingly at her and she smiled brightly back. He helped her down and smiled once more. "I think you will make a good mandoliere. Welcome to the school."
"Thank you, sir." Maddalena let out a huge sigh that was drowned in cheers and applause from her supporters. Luciano noticed from the corner of his eye that Arianna and her parents were nodding approvingly.
He beckoned the last girl to come to him. He thought she looked a bit green in the face. She looked a little younger than the others, her dark eyes dull; glued to the floor and her lips pressed tightly together as if to keep them from trembling.
Luciano wasn't sure which was making her more nervous, the crowd or he.
"What is your name?" he asked kindly.
She had to make two attempts before she got out a sound. "It's…Gi-gi-Gigli-o-ol-a, m-my lord," she finally managed in such a low voice, he had to strain to hear her.
"All right, Gigliola. Why are you here today?" he asked in the same low tone.
Gigliola's eyes darted to the audience and back to the floor in front of her. "I… I want t-to be a… a mandoliere, sir," she answered unconvincingly.
"Are you sure of that?" Luciano couldn't help but ask but at that, her head snapped up, nodding franticly.
"Oh, yes, sir. Very much," her desperate eyes made his heart jolt with sympathy.
-"Have you done this before?"
She looked back down. "Not much. Not for awhile. We…" her eyes darted back to somewhere in the swarm of people. "We had to sell our mandola a few years ago."
The young Duke followed her glance, finding a woman looking tired and old beyond her years, surrounded by a group of skinny children wearing patched and out-worn clothes.
Natually people in 16th century Talia didn't look like middle class people in 21st century England but some looked notably poorer than others. Not necessarily in clothing and appearance but more in manners and expression. This was definitely such a family.
Luciano looked at Arianna in silent consult but she only shrugged slightly as if to tell him that it was his decision.
"Well, Gigliola, you must stand up just like the others. Let's see how you'll do." He assisted her up on the platform, "You can turn your back to the people if it makes you feel better," he said quietly.
Gigliola shook her head, not wanting to be any different than the others. She stepped up on the log and lifted one leg. She closed her eyes.
Luciano gave the log a small push like he had done with Maddalena. Gigliola lost her balance and fell, landing on her knees and knuckles. The people gasped instinctively.
She didn't make a move to get up and Luciano saw her shoulders shake and tears of humiliation fall down her cheeks. He got down on one knee opposite to her and laid a hand on her shoulder. The crowd had fallen very silent and her low but rising sobs carried clearly across the room. From the corner of his eye Luciano saw the woman he expected to be her mother, close her eyes and lower her head. He also noticed her hand; the thumb and the little finger pressed together and the three middle fingers stretched out.
"It's all right," he soothed quietly. "Don't worry."
Gigliola's sobs subsided. Her eyes were empty. "It's taken so long to gather the admission fees, I don't know what to do…" she whispered brokenly.
Luciano rubbed her back gently. "Tell you what," he whispered back, abandoning his formal conduct, "I'm going to let you in…" Her tearful eyes gazed at him in surprise and he continued.
"I'm not entirely sure this is the right profession for you but we'll see how you'll do and if this doesn't work out, I'll personally find you another job. -Perhaps as a maid in the palace or something. What do you think?" He smiled down at her.
Gigliola looked like she was about to burst out crying again but she managed to turn up the corners of her pressed-together lips and nodded eagerly.
Luciano stood up. "All good?" He offered her his hand.
She nodded again and accepted his hand to pull herself up. She took a deep bow. "Thank you," she mumbled, "Thank you so much."
He smiled at her and turned to the audience that had become rather restless in the quiet exchange of words.
"Gigliola has been accepted into the Mandoliere School, welcome. Congratulations everyone, well done," he said and applauded, causing everybody to break out in wild shouts and applause as well.
The Duke approached his wife, feeling rather proud of himself, but he lifted his eyebrows questioningly at her, asking her opinion.
"Well, you certainly bedazzled them all. You made me look very cruel and cold-hearted," the Duchessa grinned but then turned serious, "But Luciano, you can't always do it like this, you know."
He searched the crowd with his eyes, finding Emiliana and Maddalena speaking to the other students and Gigliola being embraced by her mother and siblings. He turned back to Arianna. "I know."
She cocked her head to the side. "Were you serious before? When you said you were going to try to pass your balance test as law?"
-"Is that any sillier than ruling people out because their noses are too big?"
-"I didn't rule anyone out based on the size of their nose!" Arianna said indignantly.
-"Oh, I'm sorry. Was it his ears?"
-I simply worried for the man's own safety. What if he'd fall into the canals? I'm sure that your head fills up of water faster if your ears are too big."
-"Of course. You are a saint, my dear."
-"Are you mocking me in public?"
-"No one's listening."
-"That's because there is no one's here with big enough ears. See how clever I am?"
Luciano laughed and looked around. Then he leaned closer to steal a kiss, knowing full well someone was bound to see. But he didn't care. "I love you," he never got tired of saying it.
Arianna smiled teasingly. "I know."
-"And?"
-"And what?"
-"Isn't there something you should say?"
-"Like what?"
-"Please, don't play dumb. It doesn't suit you."
Rodolfo cleared his throat behind them. Arianna was supposed to formally end the ceremony.
The Duke grabbed her arm before she could move. She looked up to him. "I won't tell you."
Luciano raised his eyebrows curiously.
"Have a little patience and I'll show you later," with that she walked away to the front of the stage to speak to the Bellezzans.
'My Goddess,' Luciano thought.