Doves and their Peculiar Taste (Aimevout) - Prologue
After much debate (and because apparently I have to wait to make an AO3 account????) I decided to post the prologue to the fic I have been working on here, depending on how long AO3 takes to release me from purgatory I might just go ahead and post the chapters I have so far on here too.
NOTE: The fanfic starts with Aimée's engagement to Lannes and is meant to end with her wedding to Davout following her as she becomes disillusioned with Lannes and falls in love with Davout, who she meets by chance at an event hosted by her brother, the prologue is set before this. Although I tried to stick as much as possible to historical accuracy here there will most likely be bits that are not as accurate. I attempted to be as accurate as I could be to Aimée's initial engagement to Lannes and how things were going back then but I don't have a lot of specific info on that and the specific circumstances she was in and this fic is largely my own creative take on how the engagement was dissolved and how Davout and Aimée met. In reality, I don't even know if Davout and Aimée had met at all prior to their wedding, let alone have a soapy lovey dovey will they won't they slowburn romance develop between them. Likewise, I did my own take in characterization to some extent, I wrote the characters involved the way I see them/think of them, but some of them will change throughout the fic (notably Lannes, Davout, and Aimée). I apologize for any historical inaccuracies, like I said this is my own creative take about a very specific situation which I don't have a lot of insight on :((( . TLDR: there will probably be some historical inaccuracies here and there PLEASE dont be mean to me about it or I'm gonna cry and show up in your living room and throw up on your carpet, thank you.
Anyways, enjoy.
Prologue – Scene 1
“An illegitimate child with another man?”
The words slapped Lannes back into consciousness as they left Bonaparte’s mouth.
“I find I should be concerned myself, my situation is not much better than yours, but, how do you feel?”
Lannes realized he had been venting to Napoleon without a second thought, and only then did the reality hit him. What now? Well, Napoleon was the best person to ask wasn’t he?
“What now?” Lannes looked up at Bonaparte with a puzzled look, seeming almost as if half awake. “I guess I need a new wife”. Bonaparte could see his sorrow being converted into anger, typical for Lannes given his nature, “And have you thought of someone?” he asked, to which he earned a quick reply from Lannes’s increasing frustration “Fuck no.”
Bonaparte reclined on his chair, staring down at Lannes who sat on a camp bed, his back hunched, his eyes on the floor. “Lannes,” as Bonaparte called, he looked up, eyebrows still furrowed, “You’ve become a close friend to me… and what do we want in life if not to see our friends cared for?”. Lannes’s expression changed to one of confusion, “What? Do you have someone in mind?”, he didn’t like it when Napoleon was vague with him. “I have already sought connections for my sisters, they are cared for, however, they themselves have connections which aren’t.”
“Well honestly I’m not sure if I wanna think about women at all right now.” Lannes hastily got up as he spoke, grabbing his hat in the process and turning towards the tent’s opening, until Napoleon stood up and grabbed him by the arm, “God, listen to me won’t you” with a movement of his chin he gestured towards he chair he previously occupied, “Sit.”
“Fine”, Lannes sat “Hurry up.”
“My sister, Pauline, is married to Charles Leclerc, you know him do you not?”
“Yeah whatever I think so”, Lannes gestured vaguely.
“Leclerc has unmarried sisters, one in particular who is at proper age, Louise-Aimée-Julie Leclerc.”
“I never met this girl.”
“I have heard and read snippets of her character here and there, she seems like a docile girl, well behaved, just a bit shy but perfect for marriage, especially as a rebound after something like this. Not to mention, by marrying her, you would be brought into my family through her connection to my sister. You would be cared for in being provided with a good loving wife, a wealthy familial connection to the Leclercs, and a connection to me.” He spoke more as if he were pitching a business deal than as if he were pitching a marriage.
Lannes still looked at him, but this time with some interest. It would seem the ‘sales’ pitch may have been successful at hooking him in. Access to wealth… a connection to Napoleon… a docile wife who would not give him a bastard child. “Huh… What does she look like?”.
“Brunette, brown eyes, small stature, she is quite petite.” Bonaparte replied, still in the tone of someone selling furniture.
“Well you know how I am-“
“I do and I am hoping you would not take such a style with her.” Bonaparte replied sternly, “Her brother is quite protective of her Lannes, you should treat her as a crystal if anything.”
“Sure… well, fine, let’s give it a shot.” Lannes said, standing up once again, this time with a much more interested expression.
“Great.” Napoleon stood up as well, extending his hand towards Lannes, “I will propose the idea to Leclerc tomorrow, he has been looking for a suitor to his sister, surely he will be pleased.”
Lannes shook his hand “Surely”, he said with a smirk.
Lannes, having put his hat back on, then left Napoleon’s tent, as Napoleon sought an aide to write a letter to Leclerc on his behalf.
Prologue – Scene 2
Egypt had been hell for everyone involved, by then the campaign was falling apart and if anyone knew this for certain it was its leader, Napoleon Bonaparte, his return to France was already in plans. One of the many men condemned to stay in the hellish uncaring desert was one Louis Nicolas Davout. In a situation not too dissimilar from that of Lannes, having recently divorced his wife for an incident of a similar nature, he was down on his luck, one of the few things which at the very least kept him alive was his friendship to one Louis Desaix.
“Davout?”, Desaix whispered, entering Davout’s messy tent, a stained jacket sat in rough shape on a chair near his bed, where Davout himself was sitting, staring at his glasses, the left lens badly shattered.
“Still awake hm?” Desaix sat on the chair facing him, his eyes attempting to meet Davout’s downward gaze.
“Mhm.” He didn’t speak much, he never did, even to his closest friends, but still Desaix could read him so well, and he knew Davout was tired, he had been for a while.
Desaix gently took the pair of glasses from Davout’s hands, which made Davout look up at him, “I’ll get take these with me, and send you a brand new pair from France! Whaddya think?” Desaix smiled at him. Although his expression did not change, Desaix could tell Davout’s mood had lightened slightly at the interaction.
“Have you thought about what I said to you?”, Desaix kept his eyes fixed on Davout, concentrating in reading his expression. Davout looked down again, making Desaix concerned.
“I don’t see the point. I tried once, it did not go well, why should I try again? I doubt it would result in success, besides I don’t have much to offer, it would simply be a pointless transaction on both ends.” Davout answered in a matter-of-fact manner, he looked up at Desaix once more with a straight expression.
“You just haven’t met the right girl yet, you’ll see”, Desaix had been insisting a similar plea to Davout for long now, it wasn’t the first time Davout had heard him say this. “I am to return soon… I could… I could sneak you, yes, in the ship back to France, and-“
“General Bonaparte would never-“
“I don’t care what he has to say! I’ll sneak you in, I’ll take you to France, maybe you’ll meet someone there! Maybe at least you’ll change your mind, I could-“
“Desaix.” At this point, Davout was looking at him with concern. Desaix realized he was failing at hiding his distress. “I’m sorry.” He realized he had lifted off the chair towards Davout when he was speaking, he sat back down. “I worry about leaving you alone, I really do.” He placed his elbows on his knees and rested his chin on his knuckles. There was silence between them for a little while.
“I’ll be fine,” Davout spoke, as he did Desaix looked up at him, his smile slowly reappearing.
“I suppose as long as I am alive I am fine”, Davout shrugged.
“Surely”, Desaix chuckled. Hesitantly, he stood up. “Keep me informed Davout, we should meet as soon as you yourself return to France, which I am hoping will be soon.”
“I’ll try to remember to write to you, but you should write to me when you get there.” Davout responded, Desaix laughed at his response much to Davout’s confusion. “I will, have a good night Davout, I hope you’ll be at the port before I leave.”
“I am hoping you do not intend to-“
“I won’t sneak you into the ship I swear! I just want to say my goodbyes that’s all” Desaix spoke honestly.
“I’ll be there.” In a rare sight, Davout smiled at Desaix.
“See you.” Desaix gave Davout a pat on the shoulder before leaving his tent, still holding Davout’s glasses in his left hand. Not long after, Davout blew the only lit candle inside the tent, and tried his best to fall asleep.
Doves and their Peculiar Taste (aimevout) - Chapter 1
Notes: Once again begging u to not be mean to me for any potential historical inaccuracies. In this chapter Aimée meets Lannes for the first time.
Chapter 1 -
She was never a fan of travelling, the rattling of the carriage she occupied only exacerbated this fact. Her brother had informed her that she would meet her to-be husband halfway through her trip, wherein he would accompany her the rest of the way to one of Leclerc’s estates. He didn’t tell her much about the man, short of his name, where she would meet him, and his future status, it made Aimée more nervous than she already was. At least I have some time to think before meeting him. She thought to herself, the thought was short-lived as she observed the carriage slowly come to a stop. Out of curiosity, Aimée, who had been looking through the window which faced away from the passing estates, slowly turned to peak through the other window. She saw a man of short stature, in a republic typical general’s uniform, speaking loudly to another man, his laugh was loud enough even from far away to startle her.
Her chauffeur directed himself towards the general, shaking hands with him, briefly exchanging a few words, and gesturing towards the carriage. As the chauffeur himself returned the general followed suit, having said his goodbyes to the man with whom he was speaking upon the carriage’s arrival. The chauffeur opened the door to the carriage, much to a peaking Aimée’s fright.
“Louise-Aimée, is it?”
Still frightened, Aimée managed to timidly stutter out an answer “Yes, Louise-Aimée-Julie Leclerc.”
“I trust Charles has at least mentioned me to you, I am the Monsieur Lannes to your soon-to-be Madame Lannes…” He entered the carriage as he spoke, Aimée attempted to slide to the furthest corner of the tight seat. Adding to her discomfort, after she extended her hand to Lannes expecting some sort of formal greeting, Lannes ignored her hand sliding his arm around her waist, his hands were cold, or was it her who was too warm? Was she sweating? She didn’t even realize the carriage started moving again.
“We’re headed towards your brother’s estate, aren’t we? Have you been there? You should show me around...” His voice lowered as he finished the sentence. Lannes, having fully slid his arm around her, interlocked his fingers with those of his other hand, trapping her in his arms as he pulled her close, he looked her up and down, but mostly down. “Pardon me Monsieur Lannes but I believe you are coming off as a bit too upfront.” Aimée gathered her courage to meet his gaze at least momentarily when she spoke. Lannes chuckled, loosening his arms, but keeping her in his hold “Right, did I scare you?” Aimée couldn’t discern whether the question was genuine or from a place of mockery and gave him a puzzled look in response. “Sorry, sorry, I guess I did come off too strong”, he looked more awkward than remorseful.
An awkward silence followed between the two of them for most of the trip as the carriage rattled, moving across uneven patchy paths. Lannes, still loosely holding Aimée by the waist (much to her discomfort as she attempted to keep her waist as far away from his as possible) had leaned his head away from her towards the right. “Maybe you should tell me something about yourself…?”, she managed to speak, in a shy half-whisper tone, and noticed she accidentally woke him up. “Huh? Tell you what?”, Aimée gave him a disappointed look, ready to fall back into the more comfortable awkward silence, she turned her head to the left. Sensing her frustration, Lannes shifted towards her, leaning in close, his poor attempt at seduction was cut short by the carriage coming to a stop.
Upon the chauffeur opening the doors to the carriage, Lannes stepped out first, holding out his hand for Aimée to support herself as she stepped out. At least he has the most basic of manners. She thought to herself. The sight of her brother brought her some relief, but it seemed to have the opposite effect on Lannes.
“Aimée, Lannes, I hope you had a smooth trip”, Leclerc stepped towards the couple to greet them. Lannes cleared his throat, “A pleasant surprise to see you here.”
“Is it so? I suppose I have been quite busy, I am planning to leave not long after the wedding, I am unsure if I will even be able to attend the ceremony”, Leclerc shook hands with Lannes, and gently nodded towards his sister.
“Yes, of course, I umm… I sort of expected we would have the manor to ourselves haha…”
“I find that would be more appropriate after the ceremony…?”, Leclerc shot him a questioning look.
“Of course! Of course”, Lannes nodded while looking around.
“Well, Lannes”, Leclerc briefly turned his back to him gesturing to a woman standing at the main door of the estate who then slowly walked towards them, “This is my mother, Marie Jeanne, your to-be mother in law-“
“That’s it?”, the older woman interrupted her son, stopping in front of Lannes.
“…Pardon me?”, Leclerc looked at her, genuinely confused, Aimée seemed slightly taken back by her mother’s reaction despite her agreeable feelings.
“This is the guy? This is the one you chose for her?”, she looked Lannes up and down as she spoke as if she were analyzing a poorly built piece of furniture. “What of your friend? The one who likes birds… what was it?”
“Davout?”
“Yes.”
“He is still recovering… I did invite him to some of the events I will be hosting in anticipation of the wedding, but Lannes-“
“Hm”, she cut him of once more, giving Lannes a final inspecting glance before walking back into the manor. Leclerc was left to awkwardly look back at the couple and back at the older woman, “You must forgive me Lannes, my mother, she can be a little too expressive of her opinions sometimes, you and Aimée can come in, I will speak to her while you two get settled in.”
“I could speak to her if you’d like”, Aimée suggested.
“No need Aimée, besides I am sure you and Lannes must still get to know each other”, Leclerc replied, he hurried towards the door as he finished speaking, looking slightly concerned.
Before she could try to follow him, Lannes once again pulled her towards him, “He’s right… what a great suggestion… we should get to know each other~”, Aimée gave him the most tired look she could muster hoping it would get the message across. She hoped maybe Lannes would change as she got to know him, but insofar, the impression he had made was a terrible one. The wedding in of itself was already daunting to her, the events her brother planned to hold to precede it even more so, she knew she would have to brace herself for way more socialization than what she could possibly handle. For some reason what her mother had said stuck in the back of her mind. ‘Davout’…? Who’s ‘Davout’? Did I ever even meet him?. She decided she would keep the name in the back of her head for future reference. It intrigued her.
thinking ab writing a modern au fic involving my transfem bessieres x murat headcanons bcuz I have the whole concept in my head and it's just very cute slice of life w trans positivity but also I haven't even started on the Eylau fic and also I am still working on aimevout chapter 4, sobbing into a bowl of soup
I cannot stop thinking about Must be Love by Laufey in an aimevout context specifically in Davout's perspective as he falls in love with Aimée, like just the line "You made a sappy stupid something out of me... The kind I swore I'd never be..." AGJSHHJFKJKDS CRYING AND SCREAMING AND THROWING FURNITURE YOU CANNOT TELL ME THIS ISN'T DAVOUT FALLING IN LOVE WITH AIMÉE PLEASE LISTEN TO THIS SONG AND THINK ABOUT WHAT I AM SAYING HERE
anyways, speaking of aimevout: I am planning to release the other chapters of my fic when I finish chapter 4, I didn't even realize till now but I received my ao3 invite finally, I'll post here when I upload the other chapters ^-^
