Ways Of Reality - The Untouched Scenes

Confrontation (Royal!AU)

A knock on the door.

Vernon lifted his head, raising an eyebrow at the sudden noise. He had been deep in his thoughts, so he hadn't really registered the knocking till just then.

The ink on the page was still wet, which frustrated him slightly, but he carefully picked up the notebook and set it on the ground next to his chair behind the desk. He didn't need anybody knowing what he was writing there. Instead, he picked up a half-written letter that had been shuffled to the side of his desk and placed it in front of him. He continued the letter.

"Come in."

The door opened, and a young man stepped into the room, with a very distraught look on his face. "Sir?"

"Is everything alright?"

"Sir, may I close the door?"

Vernon was puzzled with the request. If something was so urgent, why not just exclaim the issue and rush back out to help? What was with the privacy of having the door shut?

But this wasn't normal. This was León of all people rushing in with a distressed look on his face. What was so bad that he couldn't handle it?

Oh.

Oh he knew what was happening.

John León's voice had dropped the formality. "Have you heard?" He exclaimed, taking a deep breath to try and calm down. "That they have Norris?"

"Who has Norris?"

"Redcoats! Who else? Up in Philadelphia, he is!"

George tapped his fingers on the desk. He had heard of this little situation that reckless Norris had gotten himself into. He hadn't told John yet, however. 

"Well..."

"Well, when are we going to get him?"

"Going to get him?" George wouldn't, but his mind thought of laughing at the suggestion, instead shaking his head in hopes that it would keep the situation as calm as it could be.

"We have to go get him, Sir. We can't just leave him there; they'll kill him, everyone there is as good as dead, to be hung!"

"Do you recall what he was caught for?" 

León went quiet, thinking back to the visit he just had. Didn't they just find him and snatch him up? For the hell of it?

"I am not sure. I wasn't aware they were taking prisoners there till this morning."

"They're trying to cut us off from contact with Congress, separate the North from the South to cause panic. Besides, they ought to take prisoners." John still stared. He had not received the answer yet. "Espionage. That's what they have him for."

His face changed into a frown. That couldn't be true- he had never heard of such a thing. And his Norris was much too sweet to do such an intensive job. Appalled by the general's words, he stated his thoughts. "You lie."

"I do not." And with this, George stood up. He rounded the table so that he could face the young man properly, he knew this would get bad. "John, you are aware that this young man has been spying on us for the British, too? And that- without telling me they wanted from him as well. His allegiance and loyalty was questionable, money seeming to be a determining factor in the situation. They caught him in a lie, and seeing that our secrets have spilled from his mouth, I can not say I am mad."

"He's a soldier, not a spy. And how dare you imply Francis's loyalty; Honesty; can be bought!"

"So when I pulled Norris out of a position close to you and sent him off somewhere else, what did you think I was doing?"