Chapter Text
The Council building was in the center of Atlantia. The large marble columns looked very imposing, and John wondered if people were supposed to feel small and powerless when they entered.
Rodney's request to marry John had been denied, but he'd expected that. His preparation had been for an appeal to the Council, which had the last word in all administrative matters in Atlantia. The Council member that would hear and decide their case was a Mr. Richard Woolsey.
Rodney said that he was rumored to be 'by the book', though they weren't sure if that would be good or bad in their case.
The room for their hearing was one of the smaller ones, but it still had several rows of benches for the public, though they were almost completely empty. Jeannie and Miss Keller had come to support them. Dr. McKay had to work, but he had wished them good luck.
John hadn't been present when Rodney had informed his father of his plans, but he wasn't surprised that Dr. McKay hadn't changed his mind even after hearing the reason for Rodney's refusal to marry Miss Keller—or any other woman.
Graham and a few of Rodney's—hopefully—future colleagues had also come to witness the appeal. Just before the official hearing began, Drake and David came through the door and took a seat apart from the others.
"What is he doing here?" Rodney hissed at John. "Even if my appeal is denied, he'll never have you."
John put a hand on his thigh and squeezed it. "Just concentrate on your arguments."
Rodney took a deep breath. "Right."
Mr. Woolsey entered and sat down behind the bench. "We're here to discuss an appeal to request MC-8741447." He looked at Rodney and John, who sat behind one of the desks in front of Woolsey. "You are Rodney McKay, son of Dr. Andrew McKay?"
"Yes, your honor," Rodney said, standing up.
"You've filed a claim for marriage to your body servant, John, which was promptly—and correctly—denied because the rules of the Courting Day specifically say that claims for marriage are to be registered by Atlantean gentlemen below the age of twenty-one for and with the consent of Atlantean gentlewomen," Woolsey said, reading from his papers.
"Uhm," Rodney said, "My claim for marriage was denied, however, I postulate that the decision was incorrect, which is why I appealed to the Council."
"Which part exactly do you think was incorrect?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
"Right," Rodney said, gathering his papers and, it seemed, his self confidence. "Your honor, I'm here to show that throughout history, marriage claims outside of the construct of Courting Day have been made and granted. The last case was at the beginning of the year when Mr. Joseph Felton made a claim for Mrs. Honor Shipman. Two years ago Mr. Robert Foster successfully claimed Mrs. Jane Bryerson. Six years ago—"
"May I interrupt you?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
"Of course, your honor," Rodney said.
"I am sure you can cite many more such cases. However, I do not see the relevance to your case. I'm only personally familiar with Mr. Foster's claim but I know for a fact that he is well over twenty-one, as I suspect is the case for all the gentlemen whose successful claims you were going to cite," Mr. Woolsey said.
"Uhm, yes, your honor, I believe that is the case. The point I want to make is a different one," Rodney said.
"And I will repeat that if the gentlemen whose cases you cite were over the age of twenty-one at the time of their claim, their cases aren't relevant to yours. It is specifically your age that determines that Courting Day ordinances need to be applied," Mr. Woolsey said.
"Oh, I understand your concern now, your honor," Rodney said.
"I'm glad to hear it," Mr. Woolsey said.
"Your honor, I concede that at the age of twenty the Courting Day ordinances apply to me," Rodney said. "However, I would like to submit that I am not going to marry within the months leading up to my twenty-first birthday. I officially dissolved my engagement to Miss Keller prior to making my claim for John. If the official records don't reflect that change yet, Miss Keller would be happy to confirm the dissolution of my claim. I would like to ask you to hear my case as if it were made the day after my twenty-first birthday, and I will accept your ruling as applying from that day."
Mr. Woolsey looked at Rodney for a long moment. John feared that this would be as far as they'd get today, with Rodney being refused permission to present his case. They could return after Rodney's twenty-first birthday, of course. But John would love to put this behind him.
The last days had been full of hope and uncertainty, and just like Rodney, John wanted to finally start living together without fearing the future.
"I will let you proceed for now," Mr. Woolsey eventually said.
"Yes!" Rodney said to himself, clenching his fist. Mr. Woolsey raised an eyebrow, but John only smiled indulgently at Rodney. This wasn't easy for Rodney. He was sure that he was right, but unlike his usual behavior, he had to watch his words because even a single insult could mean being dismissed and losing the case. "Thank you, your honor."
"Let's move beyond the age issue then," Mr. Woolsey prompted.
"Yes, your honor, I was going to get to that. The point I was going to make is that, in marriage claims that are made outside of Courting Days, the Courting Day ordinances for claims don't apply. However, I'm glad to see that you already conceded that point, your honor," Rodney said.
"I do concede that the ordinances for Courting Day are meant for gentlemen under the age of twenty-one. However, I can't help but notice that one of the cases you cited was the claim of a widowed gentleman for a widowed lady. I believe most marriage claims outside of Courting Day are of widowers for widows. And I do hope that you will concede that you and your body servant are neither one nor the other," Mr. Woolsey said.
A chuckle came from behind him but John concentrated on Rodney, who promptly gave his answer. "Yes, your honor. It's true that the vast majority of marriage claims outside of Courting Days are between widowed persons; however, not all of them are. Oh, and for the sake of completeness and for the record, I would like to cite the ordinance that governs these claims. It says, 'Marriage claims outside of Courting Days may be brought to the administration of Atlantia and are approved or denied under guidance of the Council.' As you can see, there aren't any further requirements cited."
"That's true," Mr. Woolsey said. "But the 'guidance' you cite has been that requests by widowers to marry a widow should be granted if there are no circumstances that would speak against it. I'm not aware of the same for young masters who wish to marry their body servants. Or does your list of cases include such a scenario?"
Rodney gulped. "Not directly," he said. "However, I hope you will let me show that in the history of the Council's decisions, which comprise the guidance for marriage claims, there is indeed precedence for my claim."
"Go on," Mr. Woolsey said.
"You are correct that there is no record of a master claiming his body servant in marriage, at least none that I could find. But there are several cases of a gentleman claiming a servant as his wife. I'm sure you are aware of at least one of them since it was so highly publicized," Rodney said.
"You mean Mr. Bergstrom's claim for his wife," Mr. Woolsey said.
"Exactly. The case is well-known in Atlantia. However, it is not the only case of a successful claim for a servant," Rodney said. "Ten years before the claim by Mr. Bergstrom—" Rodney stopped when Mr. Woolsey held up his hand.
"Are you going to start citing a list of cases again?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
"I wanted to illustrate that there have been several cases in the Council's history where servants have been successfully claimed by their masters," Rodney said.
"I appreciate your thoroughness. Though, to keep the length of this hearing manageable, I'd be interested to know if any of the servants claimed by their masters were male," Mr. Woolsey said.
"No, they were not," Rodney conceded.
"That was what I suspected," Mr. Woolsey said.
"However, I do have a claim by a gentleman for another gentleman," Rodney said, lifting his chin.
Mr. Woolsey seemed surprised. "You do? Can you cite the number of the request?"
"Yes, your honor. I have a copy of the official record," Rodney said, lifting a piece of paper.
"Could I see it, please?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
Rodney stepped up to the bench and gave Mr. Woolsey the paper before returning to his desk. He gave John a nervous smile on his way back. John smiled back encouragingly. He couldn't tell if things were going well for them, but he still had hope.
Mr. Woolsey skimmed over the record, frowning. Finally, he looked up. "Mr. McKay, this case is almost one hundred and fifty years old," he pointed out.
"That is true, however, the marriage claim rule that I cited earlier dates from even further back and the ordinance hasn't changed. This record can and should be seen as part of the guidance the Council offered," Rodney said.
The whole room was quiet as Mr. Woolsey took this in. This was the essence of Rodney's argument, an obscure old case that nobody had ever heard of. The question was whether Mr. Woolsey would consider it binding.
"Am I correct in assuming that this is the only case in which a man has successfully claimed another man that you could find?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
Rodney swallowed. "Yes, your honor."
"And what do you make of that?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
"I beg your pardon?" Rodney said.
"You've apparently studied our records of marriage claims very thoroughly, and yet you only managed to unearth a single marriage claim between two men. Don't you think there is a reason for that? Specifically, don't you think one could infer from that that the Council doesn't consider it a guiding rule to be applied in other cases?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
"No, your honor, I don't think you can infer that," Rodney disagreed. "It could simply be that no other gentlemen have tried to make a claim for another man."
"Or it could be that all other such claims have failed, thus forming a clear guideline," Mr. Woolsey said.
Rodney paled. "There is no public record of unsuccessful claims. I made my assumptions based on my knowledge."
"I'm sure you did, Mr. McKay. I merely wanted to point out that your conclusion isn't the only one that can be drawn," Mr. Woolsey said.
"Can be drawn?" Rodney repeated with a frown. "Your honor, if I may be bold, do you have access to or knowledge of unofficial or unpublished guidelines concerning marriage claims?"
"No, Mr. McKay, as far as I'm aware the administrators—and the Council members for that matter—operate on the same public record that you accessed," Mr. Woolsey said. Rodney exhaled in relief. "And their own experience in interpreting the intent of an ordinance," Mr. Woolsey continued. "I commend you for finding actual precedent for a marriage claim between two gentlemen. However, I think it's the other cases you cited that answer the question of how marriage claims should be decided. Specifically, I'd like to ask you if any of those cases involve a servant who was not the mother of her master's child or pregnant by him."
"Not that I'm aware of, your honor," Rodney conceded.
"That's what I thought," Mr. Woolsey said. "I think it is quite clear that the explicit rules for Courting Day and the guidance that the Council has offered over the years have one and the same goal: to guarantee the future of Atlantia by encouraging unions between men and women that result in children."
"Your honor, I will not disagree that this is one of the goals—maybe even the main goal—of the Atlantean ordinances governing marriage. However, I would like to point out that it is by no means the only one, nor is the result desired by this goal necessary. If you'll allow, I'll try to explain my reasoning," Rodney said.
"Go ahead," Mr. Woolsey said.
"Since the inception of Courting Day, the marriage claim has always involved an element of choice. I don't think there's any dispute that this is a good thing. However, if an argument is made that the only reason for marriage is procreation, marriages could easily be decided by pure chance since any two participants could facilitate conception of a child. Of course, it seems entirely absurd to randomly assign husbands and wives. In fact, as time has gone on, choice by the participants has been given more weight. The additional ordinance requiring the consent of the gentlewoman who is claimed shows not only the growing recognition of women as equal to men, but also recognizes that marriage should be based on a relationship of mutual respect, support, and love. We have moved away from marrying off young men and women before they have even met, to encouraging the formation of true partnerships. That these partnerships also often result in children is not a requirement."
"It is true that we do not police whether or not a married couple has children. However, the ordinances exist to encourage the best possibility that children will be produced," Mr. Woolsey said.
"That may be the case, but we also do not keep anyone from participating if they know they can't conceive a child. I'm not intimately familiar with the cases, and I cannot—and would not—betray any confidences, but I can say that medicine has advanced to the point where certain cases of infertility can easily be diagnosed. I'm not a medical scientist, but Miss Keller would gladly answer any specific questions," Rodney said.
"I don't think that's necessary," Mr. Woolsey said.
"So to reiterate my point, the ability to conceive children is not necessary to being allowed to make a marriage claim, so I do not think the Council can justify applying a requirement to my request that doesn't exist for others. The Council also has several recorded instances of allowing a master to claim a servant for marriage. I should point out that none of those marriages resulted in the servant achieving the status of gentlewoman of Atlantia. I don't expect my claim to be any different. I do not ask for John to become a gentleman as the laws of Atlantia define one, I only wish to marry him."
"Mr. McKay, I have to admit you've made a convincing case of why I could grant your request," Mr. Woolsey said. "However, I'm not sure that I should. I still believe that the spirit of the law is that we want young gentlemen to choose a wife and have a family. And I've seen in your record that you have claimed a woman on previous Courting Days. In fact you have claimed two, Miss Keller and Miss Brown. Don't you think that denying your request would persuade you to renew one of your previous claims, should that be possible, or find someone else to claim?"
Rodney stood stone-faced and didn't say anything for a moment. "Your honor, I will be frank with you. My situation may force me to take a wife, should you deny my request. However, I would not wish to treat her as my life partner, nor would I enter into any relations that could result in conceiving a child with her. So the result of your decision would be that a gentlewoman who could otherwise find a partner to have a family with, would instead end up without children and married only on paper. This is not what I or the gentlewoman would wish, and I'm quite sure that it would not be in the spirit of the law either. So I respectfully submit that, in my particular case, the spirit of the law would be served best if my appeal were granted."
Mr. Woolsey nodded. "Is there any other argument you'd like to make?"
"No, your honor," Rodney said. He dropped his gaze and sat down.
"Well, then I'll—" Mr. Woolsey stopped. "Yes?" he asked, looking past Rodney.
John and Rodney turned around. Drake had stood up and approached the bench.
"Your honor, if I may speak?" he asked.
Rodney stood up again, looking panicked, "Your honor, I do not see what Mr. Berenson could contribute to the hearing."
John put his hand on Rodney's arm, trying to calm him down.
"I'm sure he'll tell us in a moment," Mr. Woolsey said.
"But your honor—" Rodney began only to be sharply interrupted by Mr. Woolsey.
"Mr. McKay, I asked you if you had anything more to say and you declined. I think I've been very generous in letting you proceed, and now I'd like to hear what Mr. Berenson here has to say."
"Rodney, it's okay," John whispered. He knew that Rodney didn't trust Drake but John didn't think that Drake could make anything worse at this point. And honestly, John didn't think that he would want to.
"My name is Drake Berenson, son of Stephen Berenson. I would like to speak in support of Mr. McKay's request," Drake said.
Mr. Woolsey gave Rodney a pointed look. "Would you like to sit down now and let Mr. Berenson speak?" he asked.
"Uhm," Rodney said. John pulled Rodney down by his arm, making him sit.
"What would you like to say, Mr. Berenson?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
"Mr. McKay failed to mention one thing which I think is important. He and John love each other," Drake said.
Rodney covered his eyes with one hand. John gently hit him with one foot.
Drake watched the exchange and frowned. "I know that being in love is not a requirement to claim someone on Courting Day," Drake went on. "And I know that some have tried to argue that Courting Days should be abandoned and people should only marry out of love, which you obviously don't agree with."
"Not helping," Rodney sing-songed quietly. John shushed him.
"What I'm trying to say is, if two people have found each other and aren't just willing to spend their life together, but desperately want to do it because they can't imagine being apart, I think it would be cruel not to grant that wish if it is in your power," Drake said.
Mr. Woolsey took that in before speaking again. "Do you wish to add anything?"
"No, your honor," Drake said. "Thank you." He turned and looked at John, then went to sit down again.
"I think I've heard enough," Mr. Woolsey said. "Before I make a decision, I'd like to collect my thoughts and review the facts. Please return this afternoon at four to hear my decision." He stood up and left the room.
John turned to Rodney and took his hand.
"Soon we'll know," Rodney said.
John wished he could say that he was confident their request would be granted, but he wasn't. So he only nodded.
In a few hours they'd know.
~~
After eating a quick late lunch, neither Rodney nor John could concentrate on doing anything productive. They were even too distracted to have sex, so eventually they settled down in the living room, and John read from a book of humorous poems with science puns. Rodney didn't comment half as much as he usually did, but John didn't mind.
Eventually it was time to return to the Council building. Before they left, Rodney stopped John.
"I want you to know that no matter what the decision is, we'll be together. If I have to, I'll find someone who'll agree to marry me without actually being my wife. Jennifer said she's sure there are women who'd be happy to be allowed to work and not have children. The living arrangements will be more difficult, but I'm sure that there is someone out there who'd—"
"Rodney," John stopped him. "We haven't lost yet."
Rodney looked at him. "Right. Of course, we haven't. I just wanted you to know."
John smiled at him. "I do know. Thank you. But we really should go now. We don't want to be late."
They made it back in time before Mr. Woolsey entered the room. John couldn't read from his face what his decision would be, but he still hoped it would be in their favor.
"This wasn't an easy decision to make," Mr. Woolsey began. "You've done an admirable job of compiling your evidence, Mr. McKay. You have shown that there is indeed enough precedence to grant your request."
Rodney took John's hand, and John squeezed it. The way Mr. Woolsey had started, it sounded as if there was a 'but' coming.
"However," Mr. Woolsey continued, "I also have to consider that my decision could serve as further guidance for new cases. In that light, and considering that even you have acknowledged that the primary goal of our rules related to marriage is to foster relationships which will produce families, it would seem counterproductive to grant a request that precludes that primary goal from the onset."
Rodney glanced towards John, disappointment etched on his face.
"Then there is Mr. Berenson's brief statement," Mr. Woolsey continued.
Rodney looked at John, his disappointment relaxing slightly. John didn't quite dare to hope that Drake's words could turn around what sounded like a lost case.
"It was very interesting to me, Mr. McKay, that you didn't appeal to me by proclaiming your love for the man you wish to marry. Seeing your reaction to Mr. Berenson's statement, I think I know why you didn't use love as one of your arguments. You believe that because love is used to argue against all the rules that the Council has imposed on marriage, making your case based on love would be akin to asking for an exception to the rules because you don't believe in them in the first place. Such a path of argument would indeed be questionable, however, I can assure you that in and of itself, the fact that you appear to love your body servant would not have been seen as any disrespect to the Council and its rules. Love is, after all, considered a noble goal, and Courting Days have never been meant to discourage love, but rather to channel it into a structure that will most benefit society."
Rodney stood up. "Your honor."
"Yes, Mr. McKay?"
"I... You are correct that I chose not to base my case on my feelings for John because the Council has made its opinion on abandoning the tradition of Courting Days and their related ordinances quite clear. However, since you acknowledge that love is an important factor of marriage, I would like to expound on that," Rodney said.
"Go ahead, Mr. McKay, but please keep in mind that I think we'd all like to be home for dinner at some stage tonight."
"Of course, your honor. I only wish to say that my decision to ask to marry John is based on my feelings of love for him. I'll freely admit that unlike some others, I never saw marriage as one of the major goals in life. I did accept it as something I'd have to do, but I didn't necessarily look forward to it. Despite my lack of enthusiasm, I was prepared to honor the rules of Atlantia surrounding marriage by choosing a wife. And then I met John."
John looked at him and swallowed. He remembered how Rodney had sat on a bench at Pre-Selection, scribbling away busily because choosing a body servant in training was probably as much of a nuisance as choosing a wife.
"I selected John as my body servant before I ever set eyes on him. I made a purely practical decision to select whoever was best in math class. But then I saw him and...well, as Mr. Berenson would surely be willing to attest, John is the kind of man who can inspire fantasies in young men whose hormones are waiting to be channeled into action. If you are inclined towards men, that is," Rodney amended.
"I understand, Mr. McKay. I don't believe you need to go into any further detail," Mr. Woolsey said.
Rodney flushed. "In the beginning I only felt a superficial attraction, and I hoped that John would prove to be useful in assisting me in my work. In his training, John managed to far surpass my expectations. He proved able to learn rather quickly and to apply his new knowledge. Apart from that, it turned out that we shared an interest in science fiction and a compatible sense of humor. Your honor, I have never made friends easily and it never particularly concerned me, but in the two years of John's training he became a good friend." Rodney looked over to where John was sitting and smiled at him.
John smiled back. He never wanted to be apart from Rodney again but he remembered fondly how they'd grown closer through their exchange of letters.
"By the time we moved in together, I was already convinced that I couldn't ask for a more fitting companion. John is an invaluable assistant, who documents my work and who allows me to test out my ideas. In the time when we don't work, we exchange thoughts on books we both read, play chess, or simply share ideas about anything that comes to mind, whether fantastic or even silly. If I could choose one person in the world to come home to after work, it would be John. Apart from that," Rodney went on, hesitating for a moment and flushing. "I know your honor doesn't want any details, but I cannot talk about my feelings for John without mentioning the depth of our intimacy. Being with John is breathtaking for me. I had never hoped or imagined that sexual intimacy could be so intense or so light-hearted."
John swallowed. He was touched and slightly embarrassed by what Rodney was putting on the official record with his statement.
"I could go on about the reasons why I cannot accept sharing my life with anyone but John. I haven't even mentioned his cooking. But the simple truth is that John is more to me than I ever expected to find in a wife, body servant, colleague, and friend combined. I love him as I could never love anyone else. I love him more than I thought I was capable of loving someone." Rodney turned to John and took his hand.
John could only weakly squeeze it. He felt choked up with emotion.
"Thank you, Mr. McKay for expounding on this matter. I believe it makes the record much more complete. John?"
John was surprised to hear himself addressed. So surprised in fact, that he didn't answer until Rodney sat down and pushed him to stand up. "Uhm, yes, your honor?"
Mr. Woolsey smiled at him. "I know that it is unusual for the Council to hear the opinion of a servant. However, I wanted to give you a chance to make a statement if you wish."
John felt really thrown for a loop. Rodney had assured him his only part in this would be to silently support him. "Uhm, no, your honor."
"Very well then," Mr. Woolsey said.
"Wait," John said. "I'd...I'd like to state that I love Rodney too. Mr. McKay I mean."
Rodney gave him a fond smile.
"Is there anything else you'd like to say?" Mr. Woolsey asked.
There were many things that John could say about how he'd expected his life to turn out and how Rodney had changed everything. But this wasn't the place. "No, your honor," he said.
Mr. Woolsey nodded, and John sat down again. "Then I'll officially announce my decision now."
John took Rodney's hand, silently chanting, please, please, please.
"The Council's official position and continuing guidance is to support the formation of families. I would like to make it clear for the record that this hasn't changed. However, given the facts in this case, it seems clear that whatever the ordinances of Atlantia attempt to achieve, they have not managed to persuade Mr. McKay to find a wife for the purpose of having children and will not do so in the future. Given that the major goal of marriage will not be achieved no matter how I decide, I will agree with Mr. Berenson that it seems cruel to withhold a permission that I am free to grant based on Mr. McKay's excellent research. Mr. McKay, the Council hereby grants you permission to marry your body servant John no sooner than the day of your twenty-first birthday."
Rodney's mouth opened but no sound escaped. John didn't know what to say either. They'd be allowed to get married. Rodney would be able to work and publish, and John would be able to stay with him as his official partner. It seemed unreal.
"Thank you, your honor," Rodney said when he found his voice. "For making the right decision."
"I do hope, Mr. McKay, that you will not take my generosity as license to make further requests to bend the details of Atlantean law," Mr. Woolsey said with mild warning in his voice.
"I'll try not to, your honor," Rodney said.
"Very well. I officially declare the hearing over," Mr. Woolsey said, before getting up and leaving.
Jeannie and Miss Keller came towards them with congratulations. While Miss Keller hugged Rodney, Jeannie pulled John into her arms. "I'm so happy that my brother will have someone I know can put up with him."
John laughed. While Jeannie went on to her brother, Miss Keller approached John. "I'm so happy for you. And I'm sorry for whatever distress I may have caused you. Rodney had assured me that you knew that our relationship wasn't real."
"Uhm, yes, he did, I just..." John trailed off.
"It doesn't matter now. What matters is that the two of you will be allowed to get married. I could never have gone through with it even if I wasn't secretly engaged. While I enjoy Rodney's friendship, I wouldn't have the patience to be his wife," Miss Keller said.
"It's not a hardship to me," John assured her.
"Which is what makes you so perfect for each other," Miss Keller said.
She stepped aside and John looked towards Graham, who gave him a wave and a wide smile. John smiled back and out of the corner of his eye caught movement at the door. He turned and saw Drake looking back at him for a moment before disappearing with David.
John quickly excused himself and ran after Drake.
"Mr. Berenson?" he shouted down the hall.
Drake stopped and turned around. David walked on and stopped a bit further away, giving them some privacy even though he could still see them.
"Thank you," John said.
"You're welcome, John. I didn't think I'd ever have the chance to offer you something that you couldn't refuse, so I took it," Drake said.
John ignored the flippant words. "I will always be grateful for your help. You didn't have to do this, but you did, even when Rodney tried to stop you from speaking. I haven't always held you in the highest regard," he said, making Drake snort. "But with this act you have earned my respect. I'll never be able to thank you enough." After a moment, he added, "Drake."
Drake's eyes widened for a moment. "If you did want to repay me—"
"No," John immediately said.
Drake smiled. "I had to try," he said. His smile turned bittersweet. "Even if I know that the answer will never be yes."
"I'm sorry," John said. "Though, I think you should know that I'm not what you expect."
Drake raised an eyebrow.
"You don't even know me," John said. "I frequently refuse to listen to Rodney and insist on doing things my own way. You might think that having me as your...as yours would be a wish come true, but I'm almost certain that you would very soon grow tired of me or impatient with me and wish for David's companionship."
"I never meant to replace David," Drake said. "He wouldn't mind if you joined us, though."
"Oh," John said, looking over to David, who still watched them. Apparently, Drake had stopped pining after John at some point in the last years, which was a good thing and nothing to have a wounded ego about. "I'm very happy with Rodney, as you know. He gives me all that I could wish for in a partner."
"I know," Drake said. "And I should take the opportunity to thank you too. I was disappointed when David first thanked me for 'my' gift but I decided not to tell him the truth. It occurred to me that he deserved it as much as you, for what he had already done for me. At this point I couldn't imagine my life without him. I'm not ready to take the same step that your master took today, but thankfully I won't have to."
"Rest assured that if you were to make a claim for him, we'd be happy to speak in support of you," John said.
"'We'?" Drake asked.
"Well, Rodney might not be ready to admit that his evaluation of your character needs to be adjusted, but I won't hesitate to remind him of what you did for us if he hasn't already changed his mind about you," John said.
"Don't waste your time," Drake said. "I only ever cared what you thought of me."
John didn't quite know what to say to that.
"And here he comes, looking as suspicious as ever when it comes to me," Drake said, looking over John's shoulder. "Goodbye, John."
"Goodbye, Drake. And thank you again." Looking past Drake, John called, "Goodbye, David."
David acknowledged him with a nod, and they both left while Rodney came to a stop next to John. "Please tell me that he didn't just proposition you."
John didn't think it was necessary to share that particular part of the conversation, especially since Drake seemed to have been well aware what the answer would be, but he also didn't want to lie to Rodney.
Rodney pre-empted John's answer by saying, "I can't believe the man! You're engaged to me now. If he ever has the nerve to come near you again—"
"Rodney," John said, putting a hand on his arm. "I'd like to invite him and David to our wedding."
"What?" Rodney snapped.
"How do you think Mr. Woolsey would have decided if Drake hadn't spoken?" John asked.
"So he's 'Drake' now too?" Rodney asked.
John laughed at Rodney's obvious jealousy and took his face in his hands. "Do you think I'd do anything to risk the chance to marry you and stay with you for the rest of my life?" he asked.
"Well, I hope not," Rodney said huffily.
"I love you and nobody else. But that doesn't mean I can't be grateful to others for what they did. You were grateful enough to Miss Keller to kiss her," John reminded him.
"Please tell me you didn't kiss Berenson," Rodney said, going pale.
"No, I didn't and I won't," John said.
Rodney sighed in relief. "Well, if you must invite him," he said.
"We must invite him," John said. "Without him we might not have been able to marry at all."
"Yes," Rodney grudgingly conceded. Then he sighed. "I can't believe we'll have to wait until my twenty-first birthday to get married. I'd hoped I could start working next month."
John smiled. "What's a few more months?"
Rodney harrumphed.
~~
Even though he wouldn't be allowed to officially start working at the McKay Laboratories until he got married, Rodney started planning his first projects and was already calling meetings at their home.
Other than that, their daily lives weren't very different from before. Mr. Woolsey sent over the official orders, outlining the exact rules that John would have to follow in the unique status that he was about to obtain as servant and husband to a gentleman.
He would be allowed to wear the clothes of a gentleman when he accompanied Rodney in public. He would also finally be allowed to sit next to him in the theater. There were other rules, regulating what would happen after Rodney's death, but John didn't really want to think about that. He wasn't interested in Rodney's inheritance. His only goal had been to be allowed to stay at Rodney's side.
On the day of their wedding, Rodney's father pulled John aside. "I have already told Rodney this, but I also wanted to say it to you in person," Dr. McKay began. "I want you to know that my insistence that Rodney be married before he started working for our family business was never meant as punishment. I have always prided myself in hiring our scientists based on merit, not favoritism. I was among the first in Atlantia to hire women, because I saw no good reason to exclude them. Rodney's mother would have made a wonderful scientist, but she was never allowed to pursue science as a career. My goal has always been to treat all my employees uniformly. I couldn't break the rules for Rodney. I had to ask of him what I ask of all of my employees."
"I thought as much, Dr. McKay," John said.
"Please call me Andrew," Dr. McKay said. "You will soon be my son-in-law. I won't pretend that I haven't wished that my son had chosen a wife and had a family. Miss Keller would have made—" he stopped himself. "I'm sure she'll make a wonderful wife, but all things considered I can see that she couldn't have made Rodney happy. Even though it might not seem that way, I do want both of my children to be happy when they grow up."
"So do I," John said.
The wedding was small. Having his son marry his body servant wasn't necessarily something that a prominent member of the Atlantean community wanted to publicize to the world, even if he accepted it. John and Rodney hadn't wanted a big event either. The act of getting married was what made it significant in their minds, and they had as many guests as had come to the Council hearing that had made it all possible.
Drake had accepted the invitation and was there with David. To John's surprise, Rodney had been quite civil to him. Maybe the fact that he would finally officially claim John in marriage made him more relaxed when it came to Drake. Graham had brought Suzanne as his guest, and Miss Keller had come with her fiancé.
John's only regret was that his brother couldn't be here. He'd been chosen as a body servant in training by a friend of Graham's master, and it appeared that he was training to assist in his master's business—and nothing else. John was relieved to hear it, even though his own more intimate training had been very fulfilling. He wouldn't wish it on his brother, however, who might not have the same inclinations.
They exchanged the traditional Atlantean vows and were pronounced married on the afternoon of Rodney's twenty-first birthday.
Rodney joked that at least he would never forget his wedding anniversary.
That evening, when they entered their bedroom, John mused that nothing had really changed for them since the day before. But at the same time it felt different when Rodney came close and took his hand. Up until this moment, even the knowledge that they would be allowed to marry hadn't completely wiped away the doubts in John's mind.
A part of him had continued to fear that the life that he'd grown to love so much could be over in an instant.
Now that he had Rodney's ring on his finger and they were officially husbands, John finally felt that this couldn't easily be taken from him. He felt more in control of his life than he had ever imagined, and it was as if something unknotted in his chest and finally let go, leaving him freer than he'd ever been.
Rodney took his hand, pulling it close. He took the pendant on John's wrist in his hand. "I think I should remove this now," he said.
Strangely, John felt reluctant. The reluctance must have shown on his face.
"You want to keep it?" Rodney asked.
"I'm still your body servant," John said. Rodney's father had offered to send over one of his servants after they'd been granted permission to marry, and Rodney himself had pointed out that they would be able to afford a servant once Rodney began working, but John had declined. He'd start working as Rodney's assistant and see if he could still keep up with his household chores. Taking care of their home had never been a burden to John, and as long as it wasn't, he wanted to fulfill this duty himself.
"You're my husband," Rodney said.
"I'm both," John corrected. "When you first put it on me you asked me not to see it as a sign of ownership, but rather as protection. And that's what I did."
"You'll be even more protected now that you're my husband," Rodney pointed out.
"I know," John said. "I want to wear it, Rodney. I...I've always felt it was a reminder that I'm yours. Not your servant because I had no choice, but at your service because that's what I wanted."
Rodney looked at him, visibly touched. "And I'm at yours," he said. He cupped John's face and kissed him deeply. Eventually they moved apart. "Though it would probably be better for both of us if you kept cooking," Rodney said wryly.
John laughed. He wouldn't have it any other way.