Peas, beets and picked ginger

Beets and Pickled Ginger

After two days of her self- imposed  diet, Princess Oishi was suffering quite a severe withdrawal for her wasabi fixation. Her tongue had a cramp from licking her lips  in vain,  for salt and spice. Her eye had a slight twitch, and her breathing was more like little sighs of frustration.  She did however notice- to her vindication, that her cheeks were on the pinker side of green. Her tongue, when she checked it out in the mirror, was almost red ( from the borsht she had just consumed), and her hands were rather more ivory than chartreuse. She clapped them together in satisfaction and  went to see her father.


The king was in his throne room, pacing and wringing his hands.  Oishi entered the room, and he looked at her with surprise. "Oishi, you look almost normal! I mean, how lovely to see you my dear. "Oishi smiled. This was surprising .  She was more often scowling at her father than smiling. He wondered suspiciously what she was up to. Then scolded himself for assuming the worst. "I have decided" Oishi announced," That I will see that rude prince again. Just to see what he has brought to offer me. "

The King started wringing his hands again anxiously. He told her that the prince was not to be found. Apparently, after he had left the castle he had walked straight back to his ship and sailed away. Princess Oishi was quite devastated. She left her fathers throne room and actually went for a walk around the palace grounds . The princess had not gone for a walk in over 3 years. She merely stomped  or glided from place to place (Depending on her mood- which fluctuated often)


As the Princess walked the  grounds, so the Price Paced the decks of his faithful ship.  He cursed the Princess for being a rude and spoiled brat and muttered phrases of various levels of rottenness in multiple languages under his breath. He sailed his ship away in a northerly direction, and he drank some tar porter that he had imported from Finland the winter before.  

As he sailed, he thought about his kingdom, and how destitute it was. He thought about how his people were expecting him to bring back a lovely wife and a fortune as well. He thought about how much money he needed in order to invest in a new egg salting factory. He also thought, and he cursed even louder when he thought these thoughts about the lovely green tinge of the princesses ankles as she had descended the starers, her skirts swishing around them. He thought, and he sighed as he thought, of the delicate sea foam of the princesses throat, as she had come closer to him. And most of all he thought about the glorious  emerald green of her eyes as they had snapped angrily at him.
As he lay in his hammock that night, (like a true pirate), Prince  Theo (short for Theo Herculanis Tritonerus Rex) sighed and grumbled. He tossed and he turned. He could not get Princess Oishi's emerald eyes out of his head.

As the red orange sun rose, out of the crashing waves, Prince Theo rose creakily from his hammock, (for they are not that comfortable. )He made some strong sumatran coffee, and swung the ship around . Behind him, a wind began to whisper.