You Give Liberty a Bad Name (a Percy Jackson AU)

Postponing a Marriage

   Massachusetts July, 15 1776
    Naomi was surprised when her son told her he was enlisting. Will Solace had always seemed to be cool, calm, collected and never one to fight. He was the type of boy who made splints for inured sparrows and preferred to clean up blood rather than spill it.
     "I'll be a medic, Mother," he said. "I'll avoid the worst of the battle."
    Naomi shook her head and let her tears say what she was not willing to: that her son would probably not going to come back alive. She thought her son wanted to fight for the liberty of the colonies. She didn't know that he was also hoping to postpone his upcoming marriage with Katie Gardner.
Will had nothing against Katie. Like him, she preferred reading Thomas Paine's Common Sense over romance novels and would rather attack weeds than people. Will wished he could love her, but no matter how much time he spent with her, he never felt anything stirring in his chest. He loved her, yes, but only platonically.
If he had to, he would marry her, but he knew she would be happier with a man who could appreciate her beautiful face and sarcastic remarks. He had seen the way Travis Stoll looked at her and if she ever reciprocated his affections, he could envision a happy life for them together. If he left, perhaps they'd marry. Will knew his mother would try to get him married if and when he returned, but hopefully by then, he could move out and decide his own life.
      "You need to say goodbye to Katie," Naomi told her son.
     Will felt his heart drop. How would she take it? She might see his enlistment as the rejection it was. She might even think he was going to marry her when she returned and refuse any marriage offers that came her way.
     "Alright," Will said, getting up and leaving his mother's house.
     Though it was July, a breeze lifted the messy hair on Will's head. His hair was a light blonde — too dark to be the powder-white many men favored and too light to make him a tall, dark, and handsome man. Will had long ago decided he'd have to settle for just being tall.
        Will arrived at Katie's house and knocked on the front door, which quickly opened. Will smiled at Demeter Gardner, Katie's mother and the best gardener in all of Massachusetts.
      "You want to speak with Katie, dearie?" she asked and Will nodded.
       "Katie, your fiancé wants to talk," Demeter said. "Don't keep him waiting."
     Katie arrived and beckoned Will to follow her into her mother's garden. Flowers blanketed the ground and perfumed the air. Rows of herbs and various plants were growing thickly. Katie's sharp green eyes were the same shade as the glossy, green leaves of the apple tree they say beneath.
       "What do you need to talk about?" she asked.
        "I'm going the Continental Army as a medic," Will said.
      "Alright," Karie said, her gaze calm.
       "You're not surprised?" Will asked.
         "Oh, Will Solace, I knew you'd leave me," Katie said. "I'm not blaming you, but don't give me any more illusions of marriage. I'm ready to move on and I hope you are to. Go. Fight the war and find a man."
      "Find a man?" Will asked.
        "I've see you look at men before like I wanted you to look at me," Katie said. "I won't hold it against you, but others will. Be careful."
     Will nodded and embraced his friend. They had never hugged before. Katie quietly shed tears, while Will felt a bubble of warmth within his chest. There was hope after all.