Work Text:
"Hey! This isn't funny!" Gallica's voice cut through the walls of the palace, punctuated by the slam of her fist into the air at her side.
Barely paying her any mind, Will muffled his laughter into the document in front of him, eyes scanning over the words as he tried to keep his focus somewhere between it and the fairy hovering in an agitated sway over his desk.
"I didn't bring you that article so you could giggle over it!" She snapped, prompting little response from Will beyond his attention. "Do you realize what can happen with rumors like this?"
Strohl took stock of the situation underway as he peered around the doorframe. A mere few months ago, such a scene wouldn't be surprising or particularly alarming. Now, though, he dreaded its cause.
"Your majesty?" He called as he stepped into the room proper, "Gallica indicated something needed my attention? Urgently?"
Will lowered the pages to his desk as he alerted to Strohl's presence. "There you are", he chimed while blinking away lingering amusement, waving the newspaper in his hands with a gentle bump. "I was hoping to get your opinion on this."
Strohl titled his head at the dissonance from Gallica's earlier brief, let alone current demeanor. "Alright, what is it you'd like me to see, exactly?"
Gallica sighed into a composure of her own sort as she shifted her attention from Will to Strohl. "Ok, look, have you read today's edition of the Tradian Chronicler?"
"I can't say I make a habit of it," he noted, glancing to the papers in Will's hands, article just out of view. "That publication isn't exactly known for its… reputability."
"The front page story is about us," Will added, stifling a grin creeping across his face.
Strohl's expression stiffened at the implications as he shuffled through every action, appearance, or statement he could recall from the past few weeks that may have been the subject of scrutiny. Struggling against reputations not of their own making was a battle the two of them had equally learned not to fight, and yet the air of the room suggested today's grievance had more legitimacy to it. Neither of them held formality or tradition in high regard, though much to their mutual dismay, many regarded these as tantamount to professionalism. Or could it instead have been some unsavory detail resurfaced from even earlier? The tournament, perhaps?
"May I… see it?" He stepped forward to catch a glimpse from above the king's desk. From where he stood, he could begin to work out the larger print of the headline, distorted and reversed as it was from his view. Only one word needed to be legible to see the cause of concern: conspiracy.
Will abruptly clutched the newspaper toward himself, holding it close and fully obscuring before any more of it could be made sense of.
"Wait," he interrupted hastily, "let me read it to you." Yet, the creases of a smile that poked over the edges of the paper would indicate otherwise.
Strohl held his breath as he awaited the damage report.
"The promotion ceremony of the United Kingdom of Euchronia's newest general was a momentous occasion in many ways," Will began to recite evenly, "signaling the long awaited restoration of our stagnated and underperforming state army; and, to supporters of Will I, a much-needed step towards the reforms he promised."
At that natural pause, he met Strohl's widened eyes in a brief effort to check on him. Suspecting this agonizing ritual wouldn't continue until he was calm, Strohl made a concerted effort to breathe visibly.
"But, the ceremony, as many which have come and gone since the new king's coronation, was a far cry from the flawless motions conducted by the late Sanctifex."
Strohl scoffed at the comparison, coaxing a gentler smile from Will as he returned to the article.
"Indeed, before it even began, whispers crept through the large crowd. After all, General Strohl is the youngest individual ever to achieve that rank, the very honor expected to have gone to the slain Count Guiabern."
"Please," Strohl whispered, rolling his eyes at the mere mention of the man.
"With so little experience behind him, some have even taken to calling the affair an initiation ceremony. This, of course, proceeds in the trail of many more appointments of the young king's closest aquaintances to prestigious government stations."
Strohl's posture stiffened at the first well-aimed and decisive attack the editor managed to bring, one which he had no excuse to dismiss or cleverly retort. "They do have a point," he conceded, "I raised the same concerns when you proposed the idea."
"Better than the last guy, at least." Gallica had seated herself on the desk, looking somewhat bored.
Admittedly, those concerns were voiced more out of disbelief than criticism.
Will, in turn, adjusted his gently amused expression with a glint of some intent. "If you'd like to resign now, I'll take any suggestions for alternatives."
"Absolutely not." Strohl's definitive answer came in the very tone of command he had perfected over his short time in the role, refined from the rage once released in battle alone and tempered into poise. "Was there even a single ranking officer left in the whole army who hadn't been part to ignoring requests for aid outside the capital? Who hadn't lined their pockets with bribes from nobles looking to arbitrate for their own interests, or who passed over talented recruits to promote only those of their own tribe? To not even speak of those who remained loyal to Louis or Forden while serving in the army?"
Revealing no concession, Will smiled. "See?"
Strohl took an exasperated breath in place of an unprepared answer, crossing his arms.
"And regardless", Will continued, "you're doing a great job. Aside from rumors— and this one slip— I have yet to hear any complaints actually addressing your performance."
"It's only been a matter of days, Will." A tapping foot quieted in response.
"Well, regardless, you did earn this position." Will fully set the newspaper onto his desk, directing his full attention to Strohl. "Maybe not the way others have, but you helped save the country— we all did."
"As we continue to, under your guidance," Strohl clarified.
"You're the only one of us who takes to this role like you do."
Gallica shoved the corner of the paper back towards Will as she roused from her disinterested recline on the desk. "Just to be clear, that wasn't the part I was worried about."
With a pout, Will resumed his place in the article.
"As detailed in the many speeches given on the matter, his majesty claims that his six partisans were every bit as responsible for his accolades as he was," he recited with an exaggerated lull. "And yet, among them one will find veteran knights, civil servants, and gentry of the very regime he's renounced. It leaves one to wonder whether the young prince was really at the helm of his own campaign. Or whether he still is."
He paused a second time, observing Strohl's unusual stillness at the story's development.
Though he recognized what Will was looking for in that break, he had nothing to offer in comment.
"General Strohl's initiation ceremony only stoked the fires of these murmurs among the attendees. As per custom, lord Strohl kneeled before his majesty as his vows were recited to him. Then, as the nobleman lifted his head to the king to make his oath, what followed left the crowd in shock."
"See!" Gallica's shout amplified as she dove towards him. "You did something, and people noticed!"
"Was I that obvious?" Strohl directed his attempt at an answer past the fairy animated in wasp-like motions.
Will projected his voice over them both as he continued reading aloud, "The young king lurched his head as though suddenly faint. Those fortunate enough to observe from up close reported that he looked feverish and dizzy." He recounted his own apparent distress through a sardonic grin.
"That wasn't supposed to- it was a stupid idea. I'm sorry-" Strohl stammered in a frantic defense, avoiding Gallica's scrutinizing gaze. "I shouldn't have even considered it, really."
"It was", Will spoke in a mischeivous tone. "Honestly, how did you even think of that?"
"But what did he do?" Gallica demanded.
"I- I just-"
"You just what?" Will cut him off with equivocal mercy. "I think you should tell her yourself."
"To my defense, it was nothing unprecedented for how his majesty had been acting while we prepared for the ceremony."
Will tilted his head, putting on a coy expression. "Me? What did I do?"
"To start with, you insisted on having that damned cloak made large enough to give me trouble fitting through doorframes."
"How else am I supposed to sneak past Hulkenberg when I'm tired of paperwork?"
"You compromised your own ceremony over a cape?" Gallica paid no mind to Will's shameless excuse as she continued her interrogation.
"And I think it looks nice…" Will added, sheepishly.
"Gallica, you must have seen how his majesty caused me nothing but trouble over this whole affair. Do you remember our last meeting with the previous state army liaison, how he provoked me into nearly jeapoardizing the entire negotiation?"
"That sounds like a self-control issue," she griped.
"If you recall, he was folding on practically every demand. The bastards couldn't even help contradicting themselves trying to secure every inch of ground they could manage."
"Didn't you see all those times Will debated the other candidates? He knew what he was doing."
"Sure I did", Will clarified. "It would have worked out in our favor eventually. But it really sped things along when you chewed them out instead. That's why I tried really hard to look sad while we were negotiating."
Gallica groaned incredulously.
"Gallica, believe me, he was constantly acting just like this. My one attempt at retaliation was meant to stay out of view, between the two us and no one else."
"Can we get back on topic please?" She insisted. "What happened during the ceremony?"
"What I meant to explain is that I hadn't intended for such a commotion, only to get back at him for what I had been subject to."
Will interrupted once again with an amused lilt to his voice. "It's fine, Gallica. It's really not a big deal."
"Well, whatever it was you did, clearly it is a big deal if the press caught onto it. And at your own ceremony, really? What were you thinking?"
"That our captain had more composure than that!"
Gallica took a breath in preparation to argue. But, eyeing more of the article yet to come, and nothing provoked from her escalation at a visibly guilty general and unabashedly cheeky king, she reassessed. Turning back to Will, she spoke in a calm voice. "So what did the tabloid make of all that?"
"The ceremony proceeded, however, and the king swore in his new general. The scandal doesn't end there, however. As the proceedings concluded and the stage began to clear, one witness caught a glimpse of something truly damning— the newly sworn in general lifting a hand to his king's shoulder, breaching rank and decorum alike within minutes of recieving his title. What could have possibly inspired such an act?"
Will lowered the paper definitively as he concluded his read, looking intently to the general in question, who sat quietly in a deep grimace.
"Would you like to explain, General?" Though still teasing, his voice assumed a gentler tone than his previous attacks.
Looking away, Strohl responded in a murmur, "I meant only to check on you after your… how did they put it, faint spell?"
"See, Gallica? He only meant the best by it."
She pouted, a guilt of her own crossing her small face. "Poor choices aside, they definitely exaggerated what happened. Honestly, I don't even remember noticing anything off about that ceremony. You looked a bit nervous at points, sure, but you have a point that it wasn't anything out of the ordinary."
"It wasn't. Reporters will turn anything into a big deal, that's all." Will answered on both of their behalfs as Strohl hummed almost imperceptibly in distressed agreement.
"It's bit confusing, though, isn't it? Everyone in the kingdom knows you two traveled and fought together before you had any titles. This couldn't have been that shocking, right?"
"Of course not." Will shook his head. "They didn't even see the wink."
"The wink?"
Strohl's shoulders tensed unbelievably further than they had already, raising his collar high enough to allow him to hide under it.
"Mhm, Strohl winked at me before giving his oath."
"That's what this was about, you got a bit flustered because Strohl winked at you, and some rag journalist wrote up a whole conspiracy about it?"
"See, I told you it wasn't anything worth panicking over," Will reassured, staring through Strohl's hopeless attempts at avoiding the conversation. "I just wanted to enjoy the absurdity with you a bit, that's all."
Nonetheless, Strohl lifted his hands to hide his face fully.
"I doubt he'll be trying anything like that again anytime soon," Gallica noted with a twinge of the king's earlier teasing affect, "but still, you do need to fix this before people start spreading rumors."
"I'm well aware," Strohl muttered through a sigh as he pulled his hands away from his reddened face. "It's not immediately apparent that this was an innocent, if… poorly thought out blunder. The public are likely to draw more unflattering conclusions if we allow them."
"Ok, so what's the rest of the article about?" Gallica hovered over the paper still in Will's hands. "It looks like there's a whole other page of this."
"Oh, um," Will pulled the article towards himself, freeing a hand to fidget with his collar. "They think Strohl is in some kind of collusion with Neuras, Hulkenberg, and Heismay and that you're all controlling me behind the scenes. Also that you're poisoning me so I can't do my own duties effectively? Or that I'm still cursed. Wasn't really clear on that."
"Damn it all… Must we deliberate every gesture to appease these vultures." Strohl spat his curses away from Gallica, attempting to spare the fairy the worst of vitriol's effects on ambient magla.
The flutter of her wings slowed a bit nonetheless, anxiety in the room doing little compared to her own thoughts. Her expression was taut, and in the absense of any more information to press for, she turned deep in thought.
"Look, you two figure out for yourselves how to deal with the crisis," she said after a few moments of consideration. "I'll go back to town to see if any other publications picked up this story, ok?"
"I would really appreciate that." Will smiled at her. "Thanks for all your hard work, Gallica."
"I'll be right back, ok?" Finally, her expression relaxed. Within an instant, she was gone, glittery scales trailing through the palace window.
A moment passed in silence between the two that remained. Will fixed his gaze across his desk, assessing his brave general's momentary revulsion to being perceived.
Before he could attempt to do so himself, that tension broke with a heavy sigh as Strohl rose from his seat to approach the desk.
"How should we attempt to remedy this, your majesty?"
"It's just us here. You can use my name, Strohl."
His brow twinged into a slight crease at the request, momentarily interrupting a dawning sense that he could return to a more familiar posture despite the weight of finery that seemingly prevented it.
"I really am sorry, Will. I should have taken the magnitude of the role you entrusted to me seriously to begin with." From his position facing the king, he kneeled, propping up a knee to echo the motions of the oath he took at his appointment ceremony. "I'll not allow my behavior to reflect poorly on you again."
"Strohl, this isn't your fault. You know we'll be criticized for anything," Will pleaded in response. Voice of a ruler or a friend besides, his expression betrayed genuine concern. "Remember how hard it was for me to build support?"
Leaving the newspaper on his desk, Will, as well, rose from his seat to meet Strohl where he kneeled at the other side of the desk. With a quick nudge to his elbow, he prompted the other man to stand.
"But still, that means a lot to me," he continued. "I'm sure you won't let this get out of hand, not with that kind of devotion."
Side-by-side, this arrangement was now truly familiar.
"I intend to show nothing but loyalty to you as a general." The gentle tone that found its place by campfires and over meals at the Hushed Honeybee came forth despite his best attempts at formality. "Do you think there's anything else to be done?"
"I'm not really worried. You should see what I've been reading from public grievances." Will attempted a laugh, hushed in its first breath as he gestured at the other papers on his desk which formed a neat but daunting stack in the corner.
"So I've noticed." Strohl held back a wince. "And you're managing well enough? I know I've always said those in power don't deserve the luxury of keeping secrets from the people, but I'll admit it's not been easy to put it to practice. Even moreso when I see the kind of scrutiny you've endured."
"I can handle it, really. Especially if you're here with me."
Strohl felt the urge to turn his head away, to leave what that evoked unspoken and concealed— a fragile feeling shared between them which was never committed to words amid all the chaos.
"And, um, I'm sorry if I went too far earlier. With all the teasing, I mean." Will had fought that same instinct, peeking up through silver bangs that hung over a downturned face. "I really didn't mean to make you feel like that."
Part of him felt that one necessary sacrifice of serving the public was to let it die, but here Will was, insisting otherwise.
"There's no need for that," Strohl replied softly. "Besides, it was a relief to see you acting with such levity again. I'm glad you're still feeling like yourself, despite this. No one would fault you for delegating, you know."
"The work itself isn't that bad. I'm in no rush," Will answered in an innocent cheer. "There are only so many because people have faith in me to answer, right? Before, a letter like this wouldn't even be seen by someone who could do something."
The gravity of leadership that had faded from his voice gave way. "So, if I don't, I'll probably start getting fewer of them anyway."
In its wake, he sounded more like the boy at the northern border fort who faced the world with an open heart despite its cold answer to him, endlessly yet trepidly curious.
"Ha, I would never have thought a stack of papers could best you." He paused, feeling all angles of his hard-won smile. "What I mean to ask is, are you able to step away from time to time?"
"I am now that my favorite general is here to commiserate with me." And Will seemed to bask in it. "Though it would be nice if he didn't take everything so seriously."
He scoffed instinctively, "This is still work, you know," regret choking his voice into a whisper.
"Maybe, but I needed this."
Strohl allowed the silence to steep a little longer, prolonging that reprieve. "I suppose we've both been rather encumbered lately. To speak freely like this is a welcome change of pace."
"That's one of the things I miss most about traveling. As easy as it was to get bored over the days of waiting to get to our next stop, we had plenty of time to rest and enjoy one another's company. I miss it." His voice quieted to a mumble. "I miss you."
Strohl's recognition of those quieted words was preceded by a warmth rising in his chest, shattering any remaining sense that bound him to the day's work. "A proper step away is probably in order then. Would you like to go into town for a moment?"
"I think I'd really like that." Will said cheerfully. "Oh, but there's one more thing I need to ask, while we're still here."
"What's that?"
"I was wondering, do you think Batlin can perform church rites? Outside of being a crier, I mean."
"That seems outside his purview, but I doubt he'd mind. Why do you ask?"
As that same cheeky grin flashed across his face one more time, he reached for the discarded article. "Should I have him read this out before our wedding vows?"