[242230A May 2013] [Honorverse] - Laws of Inertia (I've Always Kept This Push From Shoving)

[aoifes_isle]

Title: Laws of Inertia (I've Always Kept This Push From Shoving)
Day/Prompt: 24. I've Always Kept This Push From Shoving
Fandom: Honor Harrington Series - David Weber
Characters: Honor Harrington/Michelle Henke
Rating: G
Author's Note: AU (Daughter of Three Worlds Setting); takes place pretty much immediately after "Now We're On Display (There's Always One Door You Forgot To Lock)". Honor's spent much of her childhood on Beowulf; Mike became Heir Apparent when Elizabeth became queen.
Summary: Mike fumbles her way through an apology for the way they were outed.

"That ... wasn't the way I planned to tell the rest of the family about us, Honor." Mike's shoulders hunched slightly in on themselves. "In fact, after what you said at the academy about not wanting ... I -" she stopped, fumbling for words. "I'm not ashamed of us. God, I want us to be a public couple, but I'm the Heir Apparent right now, until Beth, bless her, gets married and has kids and I didn't want to inflict any of that on you. I'm sorry love."

"I would have thought your mother or Calvin was the heir, Mike?" The question was soft and made her calm down a little to explain properly.

"Their marriages disqualify them. And with Michael dead along with Uncle Roger, that puts me immediately after Beth in the succession by strict constitutional law. We just haven't pointed that out to anyone yet, so I get a chance at a normal career while Beth gets around to finding a love match. Most people seem to think Mom is next in line, so they've been thinking of me as a spare, which is what I prefer, frankly, but -" Mike waved her hands in frustration. "- people are starting to notice, and after what you said about hating the attention that came with being a Benton-Ramirez y Chou, I really didn't want to drag you into this, love!"

"You didn't drag me into this, Gloria Michelle Samantha Evelyn Henke. I knew exactly who you counted as family before I decided that I wanted you anyway." Honor smiled a little wickedly. "Are you forgetting who was the one who actually raised me, Mike? I might not enjoy what going public will be like, but if that's the price to keep you, then that's the price I'll pay - and it's not like I'm a complete novice at dealing with newsies, is it?"

Mike stared at her girlfriend for a long moment, before asking carefully, "You mean you're not going to break up with me over this, Honor?"

The other woman smiled. "Of course not. I think Nimitz and Monroe would probably kill me in my sleep if I did ..."