Transition Plan Chapter 62: In His Majesty's Service Part 11

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The Jacot's were both comfortable and uncomfortable in Abassi's family's longhouse with the Clayton's. They were very glad to be done with grueling trek through the endless steaming jungle, exposure to the elements, dangerous wild beasts, and scavenging for something to eat that looked remotely edible, despite the soldiers' survival skills. But the Jacot's were having a hard time adjusting to the shared, open living quarters of the long house with Abassi and his family and extended family, which included numerous aunts and uncles, cousins, and in-laws of Femi's and Abassi's, and the Clayton's. It was pretty crowded, and there were neither rooms nor dividers between families. There was no privacy, no coverings, and a lot of natural odors.

Jane and Tarzan were sensitive to Armand's and Josephine's discomfort by being as discreet as they could be around them, up to a point. Even though Jane had told Josephine that the Clayton's would switch from their English apparel to jungle loincloths the next morning, it was still jarring. Josephine quickly realized they would have gone completely natural like all their Nigerian friends if they had their choice. She appreciated some degree of their deference to normal English and French behaviors.

But no matter how challenging the living conditions and extremely different customs of the Nigerians and the Clayton's themselves, it was better than being lost in the jungle, and Josephine began to acclimate. Jeanne was adjusting very quickly. Armand just tolerated it all, as a necessary means to his real goal of defeating the Germans.

On the night of the second day, Abassi declared a special welcoming banquet for the French. It was a lavish affair by Nigerian standards and included the whole tribe, all the English and French soldiers, with the Jacot's as guests of honor. The Clayton's sat on one side of them and Abassi's family was on the other. The tribe worked all day in preparation of the meals. Jane and Josephine let Jeanne sit next to Jack, but she was overwhelmed by the huge quantities of food that were completely alien to her. The aromas were both exotic as well as somewhat nauseating to her French sensibilities, but she was consumed by hunger and saw that everyone else, especially the children, were digging in to the meal with gusto, including Jack. She wanted to belong, and wanted the other children to approve of her. And she didn't want to be hungry anymore.

So she asked her new friend, "What tastes good, Jack?"

Jack explained, "Well… the hyrax is my favorite. It's like roast pork back in England. Plus you get four drumsticks. Any of the bird dishes are good, but I like francolins and guineafowl the best. They're like pheasants and quail back in England that Dad and Mom and I hunt there."

Jeanne was excited to learn that Jack's mother hunted. Jeanne was expressly forbidden to do so: 'it wasn't ladylike' was the excuse. She hoped that perhaps Jack and she could learn to hunt together or that Lady Jane would teach her and could convince her mother that it was acceptable for women to hunt.

As Jack described each dish, he served Jeanne some first before his taking his serving, without even thinking. He really did have good manners when he needed to, and his mother was proud of him as she monitored their interactions. He tried his best to relate all the Nigerian cuisine to something Jeanne might already be familiar with in France to make her comfortable in the strange surroundings. It was working.

Jack described the Nigerian cuisine, and Jeanne paid close attention, "My family eats veggies a lot, and this fufu and uha soup is yummy. And Abacha salad is so tangy. Ukwa is sort of strange, but it fills you up. It's like a dumpling. The spicier the better. It's tasteless otherwise. Ndidi's Agege bread is fantastic! She's the best baker in the village and she's only a kid. My mom loves to make Jellof rice, with lots of tomatoes and peppers, with curry, thyme and nutmeg. It's tastiest with a scoop of francolin meat."

Jeanne tried a little of everything, and was amused using her fingers to eat. Her mom always scolded her about that. She purposely showed her mom her hand loaded with some food with a sly grin, and Josephine raised an eyebrow with at her mild act of defiance. "She's so independent, just like her father," Josephine thought.

Jack had given Jeanne a lot of good suggestions, and she replied enthusiastically, "Umm! Jack, this is good! Thank you for helping me."

She patted his hand and squeezed his forearm, making Jack very happy. He was proud that he hadn't done anything fundamentally stupid to her so far.

Her parents actually followed Jack's recommendations by watching her, though they were getting some help on what foods to try from Tarzan and Jane also. Josephine and Armand started off with the Nigerian dishes equally perplexed. The Colonel realized that none of his so called French jungle survival training really applied to what was actually a Nigerian State Dinner. This was going to turn French Army training doctrine with allies on its ear.

Having tasted and liked all of Jack's suggestions, Jeanne got more adventurous. Huge wooden serving trays were brought out to the people and were covered with all kinds of cooked insects. Entomophagy was completely foreign to the French visitors, and they tried not to be sickened. Ndidi worried this would completely turn Jeanne off. But this new experience actually reinforced Jeanne's desire to be just like the other children and Jack. She could see his and their eyes light up with all the choices to eat.

"I am going to do everything Jack does," she vowed silently, despite what her stomach was telling her.

"Show me what's best, Jack," she suggested, with a little trepidation.

Her offer to learn something completely foreign encouraged Jack further, "Sure, Jeanne."

Josephine completely rejected the insect fare, which did not go unnoticed by Femi. The Nigerian queen was more disappointed than offended. Armand knew he had to try something, and selected the few things he was familiar with, but was not really happy.

Jack recommended, "All right, Jeanne, try this. It's a jungle termite - nothing like the bugs back in France or England. It's good for a 'first timer'."

It was slimy and brownish rather than white, and much bigger than its French cousins, but it had been cooked and had a savory garlicky sauce on it. Despite her desire to try, Jeanne grimaced and had a very reluctant look.

Josephine almost stopped her, but Armand stayed her hand with a whisper, "No. Don't, Jo. Let her learn. I've had these in training. They're not bad. Jack really is trying to help."

Jeanne tentatively put the whole thing in her mouth like Jack did, fought back an urge to throw up, but scrunched her eyes closed and bit the termite. It popped, but the rush of flavor was delicious, and her eyes widened. She nodded her head in acceptance toward Jack, and tried to smile a little as enjoyed her very first termite, and then another and another until her serving was completely gone. She wanted seconds. Jack was delighted.

"These are like escargot back home, Jack!" she said with excitement, grabbing another handful, giving a few to Lily who wanted some but couldn't reach that far. The little girl was grateful for the help from her new 'big girl friend'.

"Except that it has legs…" Jack joked, and they both laughed, but he added, "Here, no one in their right mind would ever eat a snail."

He left out the part that most snails here were toxic.

"It's all in what you're used to, isn't it?" she grinned.

"Yep," he winked. He was proud she'd made another leap into something new. And liked it.

Undaunted by the termites, she followed all of Jack's other recommendations.

The beetle grubs were pretty mild, so he recommended them. In fact, he fed her some, and she responded with her infectious giggle. Their taste was amazing, and she was having so much fun with a boy feeding her she asked, "Do that some more Jack. It's fun and the grubs are yummy!"

The fried dragonflies were crunchy and salty like peanuts. The huge roasted Saturnid caterpillar covered with a rich sauce that they shared with Lily and Jane tasted like liver, which was not her favorite, but since the kids were devouring them, she knew she had to try. Lily was practically inhaling a large mound of roasted grasshoppers like gum drops she was sharing with her mother so Jeanne tried those too. Jack offered Jeanne some Water Boatmen roe that squished when bitten, and was very salty, but was very satisfying. It was every bit as good as the caviar she had tasted once at a rich aunt's wedding in Marseilles.

Everyone could see what was happening. Jeanne had every youth and adult's respect for being brave enough to try the insect cuisine. They respected Col. Jacot for trying too. The Nigerians knew European culture didn't consider insects food.

Jane was watching all this transpire and smiled, nudged Tarzan in the ribs, and asked fondly, "Do you remember?"

"Yes dear. I will never forget you eating your first termite. You looked just like Jeanne did now," Tarzan kidded.

"Really? That bad?" she asked.

"Uh huh. But I kept you anyway…"

They laughed and kissed.

They and her parents saw how sweet the children's interactions were. Never before in Jack's life did he have such a willing audience and his confidence was soaring. One day, Jack ate a live grasshopper and offered another to the Earl of Nottingham's daughter when the family visited the Castle. It caused her to run screaming and the visit was prematurely ended. Jane thought at the time she would never be able to console Jack, six at the time.

There was sometimes a downside to living in two worlds that Tarzan and Jane had never anticipated would impact their children more than them.

Armand was amazed at Jeanne's willingness to experiment. She often would turn her nose up at broccoli and peas. He realized that her desire to try all these new things was because of Jack's enthusiasm and encouragement and her trust of him not to hurt her in any way. He realized that his little girl's 'tom boy' tendencies, so often criticized or ridiculed by her French boy and girl peers, and often repressed by him and Josephine for her own survival in French society, were all accepted and encouraged by Jack. Armand could also see that men and women were very equal in this society, something that Jeanne believed and never understood being rebuffed for that. The Colonel realized that Jeanne was happy because she could be herself around Jack and his friends, and she fit right in.

He knew this was a dream come true for Jeanne to be in a land where boys and girls lived and played together equally in the outdoors all the time. Armand's negativity about her feelings for this jungle boy and the way the Nigerians conducted themselves began to soften.

Pretty soon everyone was full, and the village was filled with the sounds of belches, denoting satisfaction with the food and the cooks. None was heartier than Abassi's and Tarzan's belching, who appeared to have rekindled their ongoing competition for the loudest and longest burp, much to everyone's amusement. Femi and Jane just rolled their eyes with their husbands' continued carrying on. Jack followed his father with a loud belch, eliciting some applause from his closest buddies, and a giggle from Jeanne. Josephine was aghast at this behavior.

What shocked everyone was that Jeanne joined the cacophony with a very hearty, long, resonant rasp. Jack blinked. Josephine's jaw dropped, and Jane had to stifle a guffaw. Armand was actually impressed but dared not say in front of Jo, having won his share of belching contests as a boy and with his soldiers, never thinking that the old phrase, 'like father, like daughter' could possibly apply to this situation.

"Good one, Jeanne," Jack beamed, very pleasantly surprised.

"I always wanted to do that," she stated proudly, despite the fact that when she did so in front of a bunch of French boys at school, who themselves were having a belching contest, they ridiculed her, criticizing her for not being ladylike by trying to a boy's game.

Jeanne's very resonant burp caused her Mother to blanche and scold her, "Jeanne Marie Jacot! That is impolite! Say 'excusez moi'!"

Jane interjected, "Not here, Madame Jacot. That is the best compliment you can give a cook here. And Jeanne gave a particularly good one if I may say so."

Several of the banquet's cooks nodded toward the French girl and smiled. Ndidi was helping with the meal, as she loved to cook with the older girls and women, and she smiled at Jeanne, too, and thought, "This French girl is OK by me."

It didn't hurt that Ndidi had seen Jeanne consume several of her special bread rolls upon Jack's recommendation earlier.

Jane's statement caught Josephine off guard, but she relented in the correction of her daughter, and simply shook her head a little. Josephine knew they had so much to learn to play by this jungle culture's rules. She hoped she'd survive it all, but knew she must for her husband's sake with the mission and the much needed cooperation with the natives.

Finally, servers carried out a number of desserts. The bee larvae honeycomb became Jeanne's instant favorite, and watched the entire Clayton family consume a lot of it. Jeanne loved natural honey on fresh bread in France, but had never seen it presented like this. The larvae actually made it more savory. Even cautious Josephine liked this dessert.

Licking his fingers after his third helping, Jack observed, "We eat this all the time with the Mangani. Mom gets it without being stung. I have no idea how she does that. It's like the bees are happy to give her the honeycomb."

"So the Mangani eat like this?" she asked curiously.

"Almost. They don't eat meat, and don't cook, but eat almost everything else the Nigerians do. Mom has taught them a lot about how to season and how to mix foods together. My grandmother Kala experiments the most. She's really good at it."

Jeanne wanted to meet the gorillas with Jack even more and now wanted to try their food. And it was incredible to her that the ape making meals was his grandmother – Count Clayton's foster mom. She wondered what it would be like to be as free as the gorillas, but knew Jack would teach her how.

Jeanne and Jack talked animatedly about her dining experience, and what she wanted to try the next time, adding to the din of the lively after dinner conversation, most of which Jeanne couldn't understand without Jack's help.

But the special evening was not over. Abassi stamped his royal staff and said some words she didn't understand. Almost immediately, tribal music started, and with it the dancing began. It was mostly percussion and drums, but there were some reed pipes and chanting. After the obligatory first dance to start the festivities between Abassi and Femi, which was very amusing for everyone to watch her dance with her husband being eight-plus months pregnant, Jane and Tarzan quickly got up and danced together with many other Nigerian couples. There was not one normal European dance or song, but the music was very good, and Lady Jane seemed very familiar with the songs as she danced with Tarzan step-by-step, matching the moves of the other Nigerian women for their men. Being four months pregnant didn't slow her down, and her loincloth set off her beautiful figure well. Most of the moves were too suggestive for Josephine's taste, but she could see the love between Lady Jane and Count Clayton as they gazed at each other. It amazed Josephine that Jane could be just as much at home here in the jungle as being English gentry. These were remarkable people.

Jeanne really wanted to try the Nigerian dancing, and hoped Jack would ask, so she helped him do so.

"Your parents are really good dancers. This looks like fun, Jack. I dance ballet back home," she suggested, with an inviting twinkle in her eyes.

That was exactly what Jack needed to hear. He was working up the nerve to ask her, but just couldn't get there by himself. Dancing with a friend like Ndidi was one thing in all communal dances. Dancing with a 'girlfriend' was different. This set of dances was specifically for married or engaged or steady-dating couples though none of the Frenchmen knew that. His mom and dad and Ndidi would fully understand the implications of him dancing with her. He overcame his shyness, looked back into those anxious hazel eyes, stood up, and helped her stand up from her seated position with outstretched arms. He took both her hands and they momentarily stood face to face.

"May I have the pleasure?" He remembered to ask her and bowed graciously with a sweep of his arm, like asking any young woman of gentry at a social ball in England.

Jeanne was giddy at this. She hesitated only a little, felt a wonderful thrill run through her, being asked for the first time by any boy for a dance, and wanted to try, "Yes Jack, I'd love to! Umm… but I don't know the steps."

"Just do what I do. Boys and girls dance the same here," he grinned. Her confidence was buoyed by his charming smile not two inches in front of hers.

He led her out into the dirt circle surrounding the fire. They began to dance in the whirlwind of bodies moving with the throbbing heartbeat of the drums and chanting around the fire. She even tried some of the chanting. They were dancing just for each other, with their eyes locked – teacher and student, but obviously a lot more to each other and they didn't even realize it. Jane, Tarzan, Abassi, Femi, Ndidi and all Jack's childhood friends understood the significance of their dance together.

Even Lily realized the importance of what was happening, as her parents sat down for awhile for Jane, winded due to her pregnancy, and rested a bit. The four year old tapped on her father's shoulder and asked, "Daddy, why are Jeanne and Jack dancing the couples' dance?"

"Because that's what they are, honey…"

Jane just took Tarzan's hand with a tender smile of acknowledgement as they watched them dance. Lily looked in admiration at her brother and his special friend Jeanne, hoping they'd always be friends. She looked over at Ugo. They smiled. They were far too young to do this dance, but each wanted to someday.

Oblivious to being watched, Jeanne followed every move Jack made, and they danced near an ecstatic Ndidi, who was dancing for the first time with another very handsome native boy who had an interest for her for some time, and got the nerve to show his desire for the Chief's daughter now that Jack had symbolically declared his interests in this French girl. Children grew up fast in the jungle.

"He's nice, but not as handsome as Jack," Jeanne noted mentally.

Josephine leaned over to Armand, and was enjoying the entertainment, "Aren't they cute? Let's dance too, Armand."

Armand scowled a bit, despite his improving attitude to the night's events, "This is not dancing. This is just hopping around and twirling to the drums."

Jo was coming around to the significance of their experiences with the Nigerians, "Oh, Armand, don't be so stuffy. This is dancing. The Nigerian way. Don't be so stuck in your French ways. Your very own daughter isn't afraid to try."

Armand resisted, "Despite this special night, I told you I don't like this jungle family stuff for our daughter. I'm trained to fight in the jungle, not live in the jungle."

Josephine reflected, "I think these people are teaching us that to fight in the jungle you have to live here first."

Armand was stunned. Josephine was right, but he was still obstinate.

Josephine smiled at her husband of 15 years, "So then. Why don't we dance?"

Armand was still making excuses, "Because you're pregnant. And boys are supposed to ask the girls to dance."

Josephine was fed up with her husband's reluctance, "I don't see Queen Femi and Lady Clayton holding back one little bit just because they are pregnant. They are just being more careful and rest more often than the other women. Exercise is good for the baby, Armand. We used to dance all the time."

Armand just sighed and kept eating. Josephine was a very disappointed, but watched the Clayton's and Abassi and Femi dance, and her daughter dance with Jack. They were all having a delightful time. No French boy had ever asked to dance with Jeanne, and that subject was often a source of tears for Josephine to dry. Jeanne's eyes and smile said it all: she was having the time of her life with Jack.

Pretty soon Josephine had enough. Josephine got a determined look, stood up, and jerked Armand upright. She demanded, "When we are in Nigeria, Armand, we do as the Nigerians do. Do you want to create an international incident? If you want these people's help, you have to be friends with them. And socialize with them. Starting right now."

"All right. For you," he stated reluctantly.

"For France!" she teased, but scolded, "I swear Armand, if Jeanne and I hadn't come here, you would have started a war with the Nigerians, dear. You can't ignore their customs. Even if you and I disagree with them, and can't do everything they do, we do have to do this. Little Jeanne already understands that."

Josephine was never more right. And in the campfire light, she was never prettier. Armand's remaining reluctance evaporated and he remembered all the times they did dance together. And all his inhibitions let go and he danced enthusiastically with his Josephine, much to the amusement of his men. His frown changed to a smile and Jeanne beamed seeing her parents dance together. So did Abassi. This was a test. They passed. Jane, long ago in her dance with the Nigerian women, had set the standard of acceptance of the tribe's values that all other outlanders since were judged against.

The dancing continued and pretty soon the entire village, not just the couples, were dancing all together. Philippe and Armand watched the behaviors of their men carefully. Before the night's affair started, the soldiers and sailors were placed under strict orders not to take advantage of the nude Nigerian women, who sorely tempted all the men with their natural beauty displayed daily and even more tonight with their gyrations in the dances. Fortunately, these warriors were an elite fighting force, not conscripts, and maintained their discipline. They were well aware what any slip-up could cost them in terms of support from the Nigerians.

It had been quite a night for Jack and Jeanne as their friendship grew. They, like their parents and the villagers, were pretty worn out from the eating and dancing, and everyone slept well that night. No one noticed that Jeanne and Jack slept right next to each other in the long house on their adjoining grass mats, nodding off with smiles for each other, but only after a tender touch and squeeze of their hands together.

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Author's Note: Hope you had fun with this one. Yes all the foods are authentic Nigerian dishes. Warning to my readers: it might be two weeks before you get Chapter 63. My wife and I have a busy, fun week ahead.