Chapter Nine - We Can Work It Out

Life is very short, and there's no time

For fussing and fighting, my friend

I have always thought that it's a crime

So I will ask you once again

The Queen's idea of projects for Azkedellia turned out to be in-palace administrative work. Over the course of a week, Jeb watched Azkedellia slowly get angrier and angrier. As she finished going over the kitchen's budgets for the next month, she slammed the ledger shut, threw down her pen and stormed onto her balcony. Jeb immediately followed; in her current state, Azkedellia was vulnerable to assassination attempts.

"Leave me alone, Jeb," said Azkedellia.

"You know why I can't do that," said Jeb. "Talk to me."

"It is very frustrating to be constantly doing drudge work," said Azkedellia, "when my magic could be helping thousands of people to live better lives. And it's my fault that they are miserable in the first place!"

"Technically, it's the Witch's fault for using your body," pointed out Jeb. "And it's DG's fault for getting you possessed in the first place."

"Don't you dare blame her," Azkedellia flared. Her body completely tensed.

"I don't blame her," Jeb said. "She was a little kid. So were you."

"I should have protected her better," said Azkedellia. "I should have protected everyone better. And now I can't even fix everything that I destroyed!"

"You did try to protect DG," said Jeb. "But you were so young—"

"I was older," said Azkedellia, "and I'm a princess—"

"Just because you're a princess doesn't mean you have to do everything right all the time."

"Yes it does!"

"You're a person too, Azkedellia! People make mistakes."

"Not such costly ones."

"Yes, they do. Everyday. Maybe not on the same scale, but they make mistakes."

"Like you ever made a mistake."

"I did. My mistake killed forty-six people, most of them children."

Azkedellia paused. Then burst into tears. Jeb stood there, flummoxed. Azkedellia gasped out, "I'm sorry. I'm just so frustrated with my mother and myself. I know that what I'm doing needs to be done, but there just isn't money in the treasury for all the labour that needs doing. If DG and I used our magic, we could halve labour costs. Mother knows this and still she won't let me help."

"Talk to her," said Jeb. "Talk to your father. I think that you can get one or both of them on side. You need adventure too. You're just more cautious about it than DG is."

"I am sorry," said Azkedellia. "You're right. I should not have shouted at you."

"I understand where you're coming from," said Jeb. "I've been watching this build for days so I've been expecting it. How are the Presentation dressing coming?"

"Really well," said Azkedellia. "I've done some more youthful ones for my sister. I think she'll like her final dress. It's more of a jumpsuit than a gown, so I think she will go for that."

"That should be interesting," said Jeb. "What am I wearing?"

"The traditional guard uniform," said Azkedellia, "unless I can think of an excuse for you not to. I think it's horrible."

"Is it ugly?"

"No, it just looks really uncomfortable. You'll see."

"I'll take your word for it."

Azkedellia turned and headed back into her rooms. Jeb followed her into the sitting room area of her suite, where she worked. She collected all of the finished paperwork and arranged it in a neat pile, which she picked up. She nodded to Jeb and swept out of her rooms and down the hall towards her mother's public working rooms.

"Is her Majesty available?" asked Azkedellia of the Queen's secretary. Jeb flinched at her sharp tone.

"Yes, for the moment," said the secretary. "I'll see if she'll see you, princess."

"No need," said Azkedellia. "I need to speak to her urgently." And she passed the protesting secretary, Jeb in tow, and went into her mother's office.

Queen Lavender looked up when her daughter entered the room. She put down her pen and waited for Azkedellia to speak.

"I've finished the accounts you sent to me," said Azkedellia, "and while I am sure that my work on them has saved you time and has helped to put the OZ back into order, it is not the kind of work that I would like to be doing."

"What do you have in mind?" asked the Queen.

"I need to go out into the OZ and repair the damage I have done," said Azkedellia. "You know as well as I do that half the projects that need to be completed cannot be funded because there is no money for them. Please, just let me go and repair things, like the Fields of the Papae and the Yellow Brick Route. I know that I can do it."

"I want to let you go," admitted the Queen, "but I am not prepared to lose you, Azkedellia. There are too many who want you dead. I am barely holding off the courts from trying you for crimes against the people of the OZ."

"Then let them try me," said Azkedellia, frustrated. "I have already decided to give up public life, Mother. DG will be the queen after you. I cannot do nothing when the Witch did so much wrong."

"Very well," sighed the Queen. "Over the next few weeks, organize a plan to rebuild Central City. The amount of unsatisfactory housing is unacceptable. I am putting you in charge of the rehabilitation of Central City. That includes the Tin Men."

"I can run that," agreed Azkedellia. "Do you want to help me, Jeb?"

"I'd like that," said Jeb. "I know people in the slums that can help give us better insight into what's going on down there."

"Wonderful," said the Queen. "Then I leave this project in your capable hands."

"And my budget?" said Azkedellia.

"I'll leave it up to you to find a way to pay for everything you will need," said the Queen.

Azkedellia nodded and left her mother's offices. Jeb followed her as she went down the hall to her father's office. Coincidentally, Ahamo was meeting with the Treasurer. Jeb watched as Ahamo eyed his daughter warily as she approached the desk.

"Good afternoon," said Azkedellia. "I was wondering if I could talk to you, Bloome. About getting treasury money."

"Oh no you don't," said Bloome the Treasurer. "You had the Treasury at your disposal for a decade and the poor thing is a shambles. I'm not giving you any money for anything."

"Not even to revitalize Central City?" said Azkedellia.

"No," said Bloome. "Absolutely not."

"Not even to pay for the recruitment and training of a new Tin Man corps?"

Bloome paused. "The Queen put you in charge of that?"

"She did. So do I get money for that?"

"I'll consider it," said Bloome.

"What about to improve the sewage system?"

"I'll consider that too."

"Thank you Bloome. Daddy, will you have tea with me this afternoon?"

"I suppose I have time for tea with my daughter," said Ahamo. "I feel like I've seen so much of DG and so little of you, Azke."

"I feel much the same," said Azkedellia. She smiled one of her shy smiles. "I shall see you later then."

"You will," promised Ahamo.

"Wonderful," said Azkedellia. She waved as she left Ahamo's office and headed back to her rooms. Jeb followed her, turning the two encounters over in his mind. Once the doors to Azkedellia's suite were closed, the princess curled up in a ball in one of her chairs and stayed that way for a full fifteen minutes. Jeb sat on a chair near her and waited.

"I'll make this right," said Azkedellia, her voice muffled by her skirts. "I have to."

"But not alone," said Jeb.

"That's what I'm counting on," said Azkedellia.