Chapter 40: Planning Three Passages

“You know? I’ve never made love to a queen before,” I said as Jeanne opened her eyes. The Wednesday morning sun was streaming through the window as she lay beside me. “Come to think of it, I’ve never danced with one either.”

“What brought that up?” she asked.

“I was just thinking about how you have come back into my life, but soon, you’ll be gone again. Back to being a queen,” I replied.

“It isn’t like you think. The title is mostly ceremonial. But I think I enjoy it. I’m not sure what I can do for all the people of Céleste. There is so much that they need and I’m not sure how to get it for them. Or how it will affect their lives.”

“You’ll figure it out,” I said.

“Well, for now, I just have to figure out how we can win the Senior Open,” she said. “C’mon. Let’s get this day going!”

We showered together and then dressed and went downstairs to breakfast.

Wednesday was much like Tuesday in that we practiced our dances for most of the day. At supper that night, Cynthiana announced that she was sending us to Zurich tonight so that I could take Yachtmaster Coastal exam in the morning. We each threw some things in a bag and headed to the airport. Samantha and Sarah went with us as security.

Jeanne had never seen the house in Zurich, so I spent some time, showing her around. She loved the giant atrium and the statue of the giant Panda.

Thursday morning, I was up early and after a quick breakfast with Captain Franc, Larry drove Captain Franc, Sarah, and I to the marina where they were conducting the exam. Sarah and I walked around the marina until the Yachtmaster Coastal Exam was scheduled to start.

At 8:30am, I paid my fees and was introduced to my examiner, C.D. ‘Duffy’ McCrae. Duffy was a Scotsman from Dumbarton and had been sailing since he was a ‘wee laddie’ (according to him). I discovered that he had sailed in college and spent several years in competition sailing, including a couple of America’s Cup races.

This exam itself is practical and is taken under sail or power and the certificate endorsed accordingly. It lasts about eight hours, and is conducted in a boat between 7 meters (23 feet) and 24 meters (78 feet) in length. I was using Captain Franc’s Catalina 22 which was barely 23 feet, but Duffy explained that larger boats were not very practical on Lake Zurich. Had I been testing at a marina on the ocean, a bigger sailboat or catamaran, such as the ‘Serendipity” would have been preferable.

The examination included an assessment of my skippering skills, boat handling, general seamanship, navigation, safety awareness and knowledge of the IRPCS (collision regulations), meteorology, and signals. They set tasks for me to demonstrate my ability as a skipper and asked questions on several parts of the RYA (Royal Yachting Association) syllabus for all practical and shore based courses up to Yachtmaster Coastal level.

Once we returned to the dock (which was the hardest part for me) and tied up, Duffy spent another hour going over my knowledge of the boat, inside and out. He tripped me up on a few things, but I got most of them right. Finally, with the sun setting behind the mountains surrounding Lake Zurich he said, “Well, my boy, ye’ did a right fare job and me thinks you may just have passed your exam. But I’d like to hear more about these rescues you performed. Maybe over a pint at the pub one night?”

“Yes, sir,” I told him as I waved goodbye. I was exhausted!

Larry took Sarah, Samantha, Jeanne, and me straight to the airport. Because we were flying on a private jet, there is no security check points, no concourses crowded with people, and no food. I was starved. There were snacks on the plane, but I needed nourishment. I finally convinced Sarah to let us stop at a fast food drive-thru on the way home.

Once there, I followed Jeanne to our room and fell into bed. I remember waking as she removed my clothes, but I couldn’t wake up enough to brush my teeth.

Friday morning dawned way too early.

“Please! Let me go back to sleep!” I begged.

“No way, buster! You pooped out on me last night, so you owe me and I’m here to collect!” she announced as she slowly sank down on my morning wood. As far as a way to wake up, I haven’t found one better. And if it hadn’t been for a full bladder, I would probably have stayed there until noon.

“Maria (Grazia Chiuri, the creative director at Dior) will be here to fit your costumes in about thirty minutes,” Cynthiana said when we joined her for breakfast. “Also, I asked her to look at a few designs for Jeanne to wear to formal functions. We can’t have the queen showing up in blue jeans or grass skirts,” she said with a laugh.

“Now there’s an idea for a ballroom dance costume. A grass skirt!” I chimed in.

“And what would you wear?” Samantha asked. “A loin cloth?”

We practiced our dancing around our fittings, and fortunately for me, Jeanne seemed to take it a little easier on me.

Just as we sat down for a late lunch, Denise announced that I had guests.

“Who is it?” I asked, surprised that I would even have guests in Paris.

A Captain and Mrs. Fourreau,” she replied formally.

“Please. Show them in and let the cook know that we’ll be having two more for lunch,” I replied excitedly. “And let Cynthiana know, in case she wants to join us.

She did, and once everyone was settled and the introductions made, lunch was served. I suspected that the cook had upgraded our meal from our normal fare since I had visitors, and I reminded myself to thank her later.

In typical French fashion, the meal was unhurried and much time spent in conversation between courses with Captain Alfred and Princess Archara telling Jeanne all about my first cruise with them. Finally, the dishes were cleared and Captain Alfred got around to why they were here.

“As you know, Herr Oberland has asked me to pick up his new yacht from the builder and deliver it to Monte Carlo. I would like Alex to be my skipper. Archara and I are thinking we would like to make the cruise more as guests. I would still be available if Alex needed anything, and I think I’ve found someone to serve as his first mate, but I still have to find a chef,” he explained.

“When do we leave?” I asked.

“When is Jeanne going back to Céleste?” he asked.

“Sunday morning,” Cynthiana supplied.

“Then we’ll leave out Sunday as well. We can pick up the yacht in Antalya on Monday morning, provision and be out no later than Monday evening. With a cruising speed of nine knots, we should be able to make the trip in no more than eight days, putting us back here on the 22^nd of February,” Captain Alfred explained.

“Tony is planning on leaving for Martinique the day after we get back,” Archara said. “His crossing should take twenty to twenty-two days, depending on weather. He’ll join up with the Serendipity somewhere between the 16^th and 18^th of March. We’ll cruise the southern Caribbean with him, returning to Martinique on March 31^st, and fly back to Paris on April 1^st.”

“That should give you approximately forty days of sailing and three passages,” Captain Alfred added. “The question is, do you think you can handle forty days at sea?”

“No, sir. The real question is ... can Cynthiana be without me for forty days?” I directed my question to her.

“I can see where this would go a long way towards helping you reach your Master’s ticket. And there is no question that the Lavigne’s are valuable people to know. Somehow, I have a hunch that they will play an important role in your future. And Herr Oberland is also a very important person to know, so I would say that these endeavors, as the Fourreau’s have outlined them, should be very beneficial to the Foundation in the long run,” Cynthiana said.

“That’s great!” Archara said gleefully. “Alex, will there be anyone traveling with you?”

I immediately looked to Jeanne.

“I’m sorry, Alex,” Jeanne said. “I’m already behind in my duties.”

“And I had hoped to send both Samantha and Sarah with him for security,” Cynthiana supplied.

“Hmm ... I see,” mused Archara. “Let me ask you, since our accommodations are limited, would it be possible for one of them to serve as the chef? They could actually swap this duty back and forth with each other. One as chef one day and the other the next.”

Cynthiana looked at the twins. “It’s up to you. If you would rather not, then I’ll be sending one of you with Alex for the first passage. We’ll see after that.”

“Would we be gone the entire time? Until April?” Sarah asked.

“I don’t know yet. We’ll have to see,” Cynthiana said. “However, at least one of you will be gone the entire time that Alex is gone.”

“What does the chef have to do?” asked Sarah.

“In this case, we just need help preparing the meals and cleaning up the galley. Our guests will be responsible for their own quarters. And you will not be asked to serve anyone,” Archara explained. “I anticipate the chef’s duties will take approximately three to four hours a day. But, for this passage, the pay will be as a fulltime chef.”

At the word ‘pay’, both girls looked their question at Cynthiana.

“In this case, you may consider it a bonus for working for Alex and if both of you go, then the two of you will have to decide how the bonus will be distributed,” Cynthiana told them.

“We’ll go,” Samantha and Sarah said at the same time.

“Before you make that decision, you should know that my wife and I practice a naturist lifestyle, and we will be doing so on board,” Captain Alfred told them. “I believe our guests will also do the same.”

“He means that we will all be naked,” Archara supplied when she saw their confused looks. “And we would hate for someone to be uncomfortable because they weren’t informed in advance.”

I don’t know why she looked at me just then. I got the feeling I might never live that one down.

“When do you have to know?” Samantha asked.

“Well, we had hoped to know before we leave here, because if only one of you is going, we’ll need to find a chef. And there is no guaranteeing that the person we find will be female,” Archara explained. “Our space on the ship is limited so that means that Alex’s security person will be sharing a cabin with the chef.”

The girls put their heads together and whispered furiously back and forth while the rest of us chatted about the dance contest tomorrow night.

“Mrs. Rappeneau, if we decide that we can’t do this, the going naked part, I mean, will that affect our future employment with the Foundation?” Samantha asked.

“I’m sorry. I had hoped that you would be the long term solution for security for Alex. However, I understand your concerns. I’m sure that we can find something else for you to do, but I doubt that you would remain together,” Cynthiana told them.

Again, they retreated to a furiously whispered conversation. Finally, Sarah looked at Archara.

“We’ll do it,” she said. “But we may need some help on fixing the meals.”

“Don’t worry. I’m sure you will find plenty of help in that area,” Archara said.

“I guess that wraps up what we came for,” Captain Alfred said. “We’ll meet you at the airport on Sunday. Just let us know what time.”

And with that, we said our goodbyes.

The Maison Ruinart Trophy French Senior Open Ballroom Championship is the single largest ballroom dancing competition for sixteen-to-eighteen-year old’s in Europe. And just like the US Golf Open, you have to be invited or qualify to be there. Jeanne and I were entered on an invitation based on her winning the Junior championship last year.

When we arrived at the King Louis XV Exhibition Hall, it was a madhouse, with people running everywhere.

Roberto and Giselle, our ballroom coaches led us through the madhouse to an area that was cordoned off for just the dancers and their coaches, in order to register for the event. We were entered in four events. The Viennese Waltz, The Quickstep, the Paso Doble, and the International Rumba.

Then they led us to a smaller hall, where we separated to get dressed. Samantha followed me and Sarah went with Jeanne as her bodyguard. At least the girls side had small curtain dividers to dress behind. The guys just had a single cramped open area and a chair to throw our costumes on. Roberto told me to change into the pants part of my costume and began my warm-ups.

“You’ve got about twenty minutes,” he explained. “I’ll be right back.”

I just looked at Samantha as I dropped my jeans. She didn’t bother to look away.

Roberto was back in ten.

“Get dressed,” he said. “We’re going to go get ready.”

I was dressed in no time, then Roberto led Samantha and me down a couple of corridors until we came to another hall. The sign outside said it was a practice hall. We stepped inside and just stood there. Soon, Jeanne entered looking nervous.

“Giselle said that we could practice here for a few minutes. It seems that they are already running behind,” Jeanne told me. So I struck my hold for the Viennese Waltz and she seemed to just melt into my arms.

“Chin up, Alex. Keep your eyes to the balcony and try not to look like you’re going to eat her,” Roberto reminded me quietly from my shoulder. I swear, I thought he was dancing with me.

“That’s beautiful, sweetie,” Giselle said to Jeanne. “Can you get that worried look off your face?”

“I can fix that!” I said as I leaned down and kissed her.

“Oh dear. Let me fix your lipstick!” Giselle said with a smile.

“It’s time,” Roberto said. “Let’s go.” Then he led the five of us through another maze of corridors until we reached a hall that was filled with people.

“Wait until they call your number,” he said. “You’re couple 178.”

We were introduced to polite applause and took our position on the dance floor. The music began and Jeanne just melted into my hold. The music surprised me. It was The Piano Man, by Billy Joel, and after a brief mental stumble, I focused and soon immersed myself in the music as I steered Jeanne around the floor.

For events of this type, the judging is usually done in groups of 8 to 12 couples at the same time. After all groups are finished, the scores from all the judges are tallied and the scores posted. This occurs for all the different types of dances, and then the winners are announced.

Many say that the trick to high scores in this type of competition, is to do something to catch the judges eye early, but Jeanne had coached me to just dance our dance. It we did that well, the judges would notice, she told me. So that’s what we did.