Solo Log: Lunch with Lloyd

**Early-mid spring, 501 AOV**

"Cleone! It's been so long!" The restaurant's owner embraces her tightly for a good long moment, then stands back and surveys her and Lloyd. "Risur's been treating you well, then? You look good. We've heard stories."

"They've ruined her, Armand," Lloyd informs him mournfully. "Twisted her accent with that crazy language of theirs, and knighted her to boot. She's one of them now."

Cleone shoves him, and it’s a little more sharply than intended out of shock. He didn't...of course he doesn't know about what King Aodhan said, how could he? "It's good to see you, Armand," she says with precise politeness, and Armand only laughs.

"I see what you mean about the accent!" he teases, ushering the two of them over to a booth. "I hope the Risuri haven't changed your taste in food too. Still the pilaf?"

"Always."

"And unlike my friend here," Lloyd teases, "I'll actually be looking at the menu and taking a few minutes to decide."

Cleone feels a little more grounded as Armand heads off and she settles into her seat, mouth already watering. It's been well over a year since she had Armand's pilaf, and the familiarity helps settle her nerves back down. Lloyd didn't mean anything by the comment, she reminds herself, even if it does hit harder than intended. It's not like he knows what happened.

"I can't believe you're still ordering this same pilaf dish. Are you going to work on your capstone after this, too?" Lloyd is teasing, leaning back in the restaurant booth with a lazy grin as he sits opposite her. Jerk.

Cleone pokes him in the arm with a mock scowl. "You have never known the pain of a country whose spice cabinets contain only salt and pepper. Three weeks in I'd have been willing to subject myself to one of Ignace's spice experiments, just for the variety."

Lloyd shudders and clutches his stomach. "That's desperate. Remember the Manon Special?"

Cleone cackles. "Will any of us ever forget?"

Lloyd grumbles goodnaturedly. "She was lording it over me and Enora for ages, too." He pitches his voice up mockingly. "*'Some tieflings, you can conjure fire but you can't stomach it?'* Are you sure she isn't another deva? I'm sure that spice arms race is proof she can't be human."

"I wish being one gave me Manon's stomach." Cleone pats him on the shoulder. "It's all right. Manon is on a higher level than all of us."

They keep going on the tour through old memories for a good while, through Lloyd's food order and the ensuing wait. Old in-jokes, gossip about their old classmates, good-natured gripes about old jobs they'd had, some very bad ventriloquism with Floyd that does a very good job of embarrassing Lloyd, the progress of Lloyd's clock business and discussions of his strangest commissions...

It's all very safe talk, as well as comfortable. It has to be, and Cleone tries to convey to Lloyd with her eyes that she's grateful for his cooperation.

Which is, of course, when Armand's nephew Romain brings out their food. He fidgets once he sets down their plates, and looks rapidly between Cleone and Lloyd before staring at a spot behind Cleone.

"Hey, uh, Ms. Weld...can I ask a question?"

Cleone trades glances with Lloyd before answering. "Depends on the question."

"Well..." Romain lowers his voice to what he must imagine is an inconspicuous volume. "Is it true? What Risur said about that giant Colossus? You have to know."

Cleone knew someone was going to ask about this sooner or later, but she still doesn't know how to answer. She can feel interest pique from a few booths down, where her assigned escort (spy) is seated and listening in.

She opens her mouth but nothing comes out, and Romain takes it as a cue to continue. "I've heard some students from the university talking about it, but all they know is the government stories. Is there any chance we--"

"Can we get a new pot of tea?" Lloyd asks loudly. "I'm pretty thirsty, and we're almost out."

As Romain hurries away, Cleone does her best to convey a novel's worth of gratitude through her body language. Lloyd is pretending to watch Romain when he's really eyeing Cleone's escort, but when they catch eyes again he smiles and shrugs. "While we're waiting on that, let's eat."

It's not easy, trying to walk the tightrope of keeping a foreign government's secrets while maintaining loyalty to one's own. Luckily Florette knows this intimately (save for the foreign part), and Lloyd is astute enough to understand with minimal excuse.

*I love them,* she thinks to herself.

*This is what King Aodhan asked you to give up,* a bitter corner of her mind adds. *Do you think he even appreciates you keeping his secrets?*

It's an open wound that she tries to ignore as she recounts another university memory to paper over the awkwardness Romain left behind. She and Lloyd start to dig into their meals as they chat, and thankfully the incident isn't enough to sour Armand's pilaf. The taste is as good as she remembers it, and it goes a long way to easing the tightness that's developed in her shoulders the past few minutes.

Romain comes back with a new pot of tea, and while he casts a glance at Cleone she pretends not to notice. He leaves again, and the rest of their lunch goes peacefully.

Cleone suggests a walk in the local park when they leave, perhaps a bit too quickly but Lloyd goes along with it. Once they're somewhere reasonably private (save for her escort) she pulls him close and gives him a long hug.

"Thank you," she murmurs to him. "I know I haven't been able to tell you much, but..."

He pats her back. "And we're all happier that way. I wouldn't trade jobs with you if the Sovereign himself asked me."

Cleone tries very hard not to think about the Sovereign as she lets go and steps back to give Lloyd some space. "I thought you wouldn't because we both know you're better at clockwork designs and I'd ruin your reputation as a craftsman."

"That too."

Cleone mock punches him in the arm before a thought occurs to her. "Hey, Lloyd, would you be willing to take a commission for the next month? I'm thinking some fine engraving work here, and I'm willing to pay the premium for it."

Lloyd raises an eyebrow. "What do you have in mind?"

Cleone grins and pulls on his arm, ushering him along the path to continue their walk. "I can't tell you much about my job, but I can tell you a bit about the coworkers I've mentioned. Now, there's this young man named Marcel..."

There's only so much she can do about the forces above her, but Cleone didn't take on a career involving the public sector expecting to revolutionize her country in a day. All she can do is focus on doing the best she can for her home - or homes - and the people she cares about.