Sickness, Freckles, and Magenta (ON HIATUS AND SLOW UPDATES)

Chapter 37

Six months later:

Philip was relaxing in the stream by Montpelier. The trio had taken to James's house for a while to celebrate James's term in Congress ending. Thomas still had to go to DC for some things, so sometimes it was just James and Philip.

James walked over with two glasses of water, undressed as much as Philip. He climbed into the stream next to the boy and handed him one of the glasses.

"Shall we toast? To the newest Congressman in training.", he grinned. Philip blushed and touched his glass to his lover's. He finished his first courses necessary for a career in law, and was pursuing a degree in politics.

"What's Thomas up to?", he asked, holding the cup with both hands.

"He said that he received a letter from Washington's brother announcing his passing. The funeral is in a few days."

Philip fell silent at that. He knew his father had been close to Washington, seen him as a father figure. He made a mental note to write to his father about it. James rubbed his arm and pulled him to his chest, knowing the boy's heart must feel like shattered glass.

"He also said there are good discussions in the Kentucky legislature about those resolutions we wrote.", he continued, nuzzling into Philip's hair.

The boy sipped his water and hummed. "That's good.", he said. "Are we going to the funeral?"

James nodded, playing with the boy's hair. "Yeah, I was planning on us leaving after dinner. We'll meet Thomas at Mount Vernon. We still have a few hours."

Philip hummed softly, falling back into his thoughts as he felt the cool water run over his body and the heat from James. He had seen Washington as a grandfather when he was growing up and felt at a loss for words.

They sat until their glasses were empty before traipsing back up to the house. Once inside, Philip spent a while deciding which of his suits to wear. He decided on the one Thomas had given him on his 20th birthday.

James cooked them a quick, solemn dinner of butternut squash soup before they got their trunks and met the carriage outside.

The carriage ride was silent as the two rode. Philip laid his head in James's lap and the older man stroked his hair. The full emotion of the loss hadn't hit the boy yet, but he felt a bit off. The mood of the carriage was melancholic, yet both were hanging on, not quite over the edge yet. Philip was in a catatonic state, staring ahead. The strokes from James's warm hand and his body under him were felt, but to the boy, it felt like a distant touch. They didn't change positions over the entire carriage ride.

When they pulled up at Mount Vernon, Thomas was there to greet them. It was far too sunny for such an occasion, and all three men despised the weather. Jefferson thought hail would be more fitting; Madison, a thunderstorm; Philip, a blizzard. The boy all but fell into the Vice President's arms as James climbed out of the carriage.

Thomas wrapped his arms around the boy as Madison stood next to them. He gently kissed the former Congressman with wet eyes. The smaller man pulled him down to keep their lips together. Jefferson pulled away to stroke Madison's hair before leading the two into the house where they would stay until the funeral. The Vice President walked the boy over to the Hamilton family. Eliza was sitting on a chair, sobbing and Alexander was trying to console her while wiping away his own tears. When Jefferson delivered the boy, Eliza choked and reached out for her son, pulling him to his knees in front of her and cradling him to her chest.

The emotion finally hit Philip and he started to sob with his mother, burying his face into her chest. Jefferson laid a hand on Alexander's shoulder as a gesture of solidarity and went to find Madison, who was talking to Martha Washington and giving his condolences.

"... He was a great man, and I'm honored to have worked with him.", James was saying as Thomas wrapped an arm around him Madison leaned into him and Martha smiled at the two men.

"Thank you, very much.", she said kindly. Thomas smiled.

"Although we may have disagreed in the later years, he made an impact on all of us and he will be remembered as the man who led us to independence", he said to her. Martha nodded her thanks before they parted ways.

"I still like to think you're the one who got us to independence.", Madison whispered. Thomas hummed softly.

"I may have written our independence, but Washington was the one who risked his life fighting for it.", he said, stroking James's cheek gently as they walked around the house, watching other guests mourn the loss of the president.