Hospital of DeBakey, Houston, Duchy of the Aggies, February 2704
Before the Event, Houston was renowned as one of the leading medical centers of old America. Doctors, nurses, and patients from the many states would flock here for the latest treatments, surgeries, and medications. Now, the advanced treatments were lost to time, but the city maintained a medical neighborhood, which strived to maintain the best possible care for these dark days. It was here that Duchess Beth sought to give birth to her third child.
Beth Zanco wasn't expected to rule the Aggies, that would be her brother. That brother died under suspicious circumstances, however, And Beth and her younger sister Clementine were alloted various lands and titles in southeast Texas. Beth's husband was heir to one of the duchies in what was once Arkansas, so many saw this as disrupting the balance of power in the region. Some even accused Beth's husband of being behind the murder, plotting to double his son's inheritance.
Mirabeau Lamar thought it was bullshit. The boy had died of a nasty ailment, like too many people these days. But he was concerned about powerful hostile neighbors, so accepted an invitation to attend the birth of Beth's next child and attend the baptism and all that.
Most of the week had been spent visiting various locals of importance: the mayor of Houston, the overseer of the Twelfth Men division that watched the border between College Station and Waco, ranchers who supplied beef to the rest of the Texan realms. Commerce and trade may have been boring subjects on most days, but they were the lifeblood of any strong realm, and Mirabeau did his best to show interest, try as he might not to.
When it came to Clementine, however, he was much more interested.
Clementine was almost thirty, a few years younger than Mirabeau himself. In his youth, he'd been taken to College Station to meet her, during the days his grandfather had explored alliances with neighboring realms. Ultimately he'd been married to Ada of the Comanche, but he and Clementine had gotten off well and wrote each other monthly, a rarity in these days. They met in person a few times as well, when local fairs took place in Waco or Bryan. Mirabeau had always found her attractive and a good penpal, though he had no idea of what she truly thought of him. She'd been shipped off to Sequoyah as the second wife of the Cherokee ruler, giving him several spare heirs before his death. Now, she ruled Harris County as her private estate.
Clementine had dark black hair and a complexion that wasn't fair, but not tan at the same time. They'd managed to get a private moment after Beth made a public announcement to the local nobles and visiting dignitaries. "She's quite full of herself, isn't she?" Mirabeau asked. The rivalry between Clementine and her older sister was an open secret. Come to think of it, none of Beth's sisters liked her.
"All a front," Clementine replied with a snort. "She's quite dreary and stubborn behind the scenes, and I see a lot of that." She looked Mirabeau dead in the eye. "Don't tell me you're like that too."
"Depends, mostly. Do I want to piss off the important ambassador amusing myself with a quirk or do I want him to vouch for me in the next few years? Decisions, decisions."
Clementine smiled back at him and played with her hair a bit. "There's a good saloon not too far from here. Willy's Pub, it's called. They have their weekly mixer and karaoke night tonight, and I'd love if you'd joined me."
"This isn't some sort of trick to get me to do something stupid, right?"
"Of course not, silly. Unless you want it to be."
---
The bar itself was a nice hole in the wall, a favorite among the students of Rice University located not too far away. A number of rowdy medical students were in the booth next to Mirabeau and Clementine, who were enjoying a few drinks to themselves.
"So, three kids in Oklahoma?" Mirabeau asked, a bit tipsy from the imported tequila shots.
"Yes, and I try my best to write to them when I can. It's hard though, being sandwiched between the expectations my older sister forces on me and the inevitable new husband I'll have to take."
"Whos' the lucky man?"
"The count of Matagorda Bay, and he's not lucky. He's a fifteen year old brat with little experience in anything really."
Mirabeau considered a suggestive joke, but let it aside for now. "So this place is supposed to resemble a college bar from before the Event?"
"Supposedly." Clementine took a sip from her cup and noticed the dance hall of the bar had begun to heat up. The music was a tune from before the Event but it was catchy and had a good vibe. "Wanna dance?"
"Should I?"
"A little fun won't kill you, my lord duke." She made a mock bow and got up, inviting Mirabeau with her eyes to join her.
After a moment, he did. She looked great dancing solo, with none of the other people caring that she was technically their local ruler. Together they danced the night away, for the most part, worrying not about their public personas of rulers, for that came a different day.
---
Indeed that day came. It was the next morning, with the two of them in bed. Apparently they'd had too much to drink and one thing led to another. Though Mirabeau regretted nothing.
He woke up with her in his arms, no doubt after a wild night. He softly nuzzled her head and said, "Wake wake. Looks like you and I have a lot to figure out."
Clementine rubbed the grit out of her eyes, cursed a bit, and immediately got up, walking and pacing. "What did I do... oh that's right. We began making out after the club, then I invited you to my place, and..."
"No harm done," Mirabeau said. "It was just one night of fun, and you and I both know we can forget all about it if we want to."
"I know you, Mirabeau. And I suspect that neither of us will be satisfied with just 'one night', as you say." She sat on the side of the bed, opposite of Mirabeau, and brushed her hair a bit. "But you don't live in Houston, you live in Fort Worth. I wouldn't have to worry about you snooping all the time..."
"Long distance lovers?"
"If you want to call it that, perhaps. That would work: I wouldn't see you constantly, but enough for us to satisfy our needs."
"I woke up figuring I'd have just one night with you and I'd be happy with that. I suppose not." He tried to kiss her by she turned away.
"Not now, idiot. We have things to attend today and you need to slip out first so that no one sees."
"Fine, but I'm going to invite you to the next Waco fair and I'd expect you take a visit in your spare time."
"Whatever."
