Chapter Text
Rush of the river filled Clay’s ears, pressure around him making breathing difficult. He didn’t want to be in the river again.
Everything hurt, his head, his ribs and his arms. His body kept switching between too hot and too cold, and he was constantly shivering or sweating.
Clay tried getting comfortable, but nothing worked. Moving hurt and every time he moved too much, Clay could feel hands holding him still, muffled voices that he couldn’t understand speaking over him.
Occasionally, one voice was clearer than the others, soothing and telling him to rest. A gentle, cool hand brushing back his hair and silencing the rushing river.
A few times he was somewhat awake and not delirious from fever, Clay tried to open his eyes. But his eyelids always felt too heavy, and he always ended up slipping into unconsciousness again.
Eventually, he managed to blink them open and keep them that way. Through half open lids, he recognized the room as the castle infirmary, with the multiple beds and a desk near the door filled with medical items and potions. Ponk himself was sitting by the desk, writing something on a notebook.
The heavy blanket over him was comfy and Clay felt like falling asleep again, but then Ponk stood up and turned around, noticing that he was awake.
“Oh!” Ponk exclaimed, walking over. “You’ve been out for a few days. How are you feeling?”
“Like shit…” Clay groaned, voice hoarse from not talking for a long time.
“That’s not surprising,” Ponk agreed, placing his hand on Clay’s forehead. “Your fever’s finally down a bit. From one to ten, how bad is the overall pain?”
Clay thought about it for a bit, before speaking. Everything was still a bit fuzzy and definitely achy.
“Maybe… Seven?”
Ponk hummed, walking back to his desk and picking up a few potions, mixing them in a cup and bringing it over. After placing it on the small desk next to the bed, Ponk then helped Clay to sit up and drink the mix.
“Should help with the pain,” Ponk said, taking the empty cup back to the desk. “Also, George might be over soon, since it’s nearly noon.”
Clay blinked, a bit surprised.
Noon?
“How-” he was interrupted by a painful coughing fit. Once it subsided, Ponk offered him some water, which helped to clear his throat.
“How long have I been unconscious?”
“A bit over three days,” Ponk told him. “You were awake a few times but clearly not aware of what was going on.”
“I- I Remember bits and pieces,” Clay said, holding his head.
There was no river.
“How bad is it?” He asked.
“Pretty bad. You lost a lot of blood and broke multiple bones. And a few of the wounds got infected, hence the high fever,” Ponk explained. “Some old injuries really didn’t like that though. But you’re on the mend now.”
“What do you mean older injuries didn’t like-?”
Light knocking on the door caught their attention, before opening slightly. George peeked inside, noticing Ponk first.
“Hey, is this a bad time?”
“If you’re here to see Clay, then no,” Ponk said, gesturing towards Clay.
George turned to look at him, his eyes widening as he realised that Clay was awake and looking at him. With a relieved smile, the Prince quickly crossed the room and sat down on the edge of the bed, facing him.
“ Clay! ” he exclaimed, cupping the knight’s cheeks, tears in the corners of his eyes. “You’re awake! How do you feel? Are you in pain?”
Chuckling softly, Clay leaned into the touch, closing his eyes.
“I’m fine… Ponk already drugged me up, shouldn’t feel a thing in a bit,” he murmured. George’s hands were cool and nice on his still slightly fevered skin.
Nodding, even if Clay didn’t see it, George leaned in and pressed his lips on his forehead.
“I’m glad that you’re feeling better. I was so worried,” George whispered. “But I also really, really , want to punch you in the gut.”
Clay wheezed at that, wrapping one arm around his middle as his broken ribs ached from laughing.
“Please don’t.”
“I’m trying very hard not to,” George said. “But only because you’re already so injured.” The Prince ran his thumb under Clay’s eye, and then down his cheek to his neck. He could see the white bandages peek from under his loose shirt. Some were also wrapped around his arms and wrists too. The sight made George’s stomach turn.
George turned to Ponk.
“How long will it take for him to fully recover?”
Ponk sighed, taking a notebook from the desk and going through it until he found the right page.
“Unfortunately, the thing is… I don’t think Clay’s going to fully recover from this. Of course he’ll live, but because of his new injuries on top of his older ones from Schlatt’s first murder attempt, I don’t think he can walk normally again or carry heavy things.”
Both Clay and George stared at him with wide eyes.
“Which means- I can’t be a knight anymore, ” Clay said. “ I can’t protect George anymore .”
The realisations felt like the explosion all over again. Like he was underwater-
“Clay, my love, breath. It’s okay, everything is okay,” George murmured, caressing his cheeks gently, his other hand holding Clay’s own to George’s chest, while the Prince took exaggerated breaths for him to follow.
“But-!”
“Shhhh, my dear,” George shushed him, pressing another kiss on his forehead. “You’ve done more than enough. There’s plenty of other, skilled people around us, who can protect me. Protect us . It’s about time you step back, and rest.”
At George’s words, Clay relaxed, leaning his head against the other’s shoulder. His breathing had slowed down again, and he felt very tired suddenly.
“Just relax, and get some sleep,” George whispered. “We have all the time in the world to talk more later.”
With George’s warmth and gentle words whispered into his ear, Clay drifted off to peaceful sleep.
For the next few days, the Prince refused to let his lover out of his sight, even though Clay was still bedridden. Leaving the infirmary only when he had to go eat in the dining hall or to sleep in his own bed, George wanted to be there for him. Clay ended up sleeping most of the time and was still quite out of it whenever he was awake, mostly due to the pain medicines. But George just couldn’t help the irrational fear of losing him again.
The second time Clay was awake, he was very insistent that George heard him out. Even if he was a little loopy from the medicine Ponk had given him for the terrible pain in his right knee.
“I just wanted to protect you,” Clay nearly sobbed, trying very hard to make sure George knew the reason why he hid his identity from him.
“Schlatt would’ve done something bad, I couldn’t let that happen! I love you and I missed you so much…”
George smiled, chuckling a little at the drugged up ex-knight crying against his chest. Running his hand soothingly through his hair, George murmured soft reassurances against his head.
“It’s alright Clay, I forgive you. It’s alright.”
Sapnap also visited, sometimes hand in hand with Quackity.
“Are you doing okay man?” Sapnap asked, sitting on the edge of the bed. It was just the two of them, Sam having dragged George to have dinner with Eret a few minutes ago.
Leaning back against the large plush pillow behind his back, Clay hummed.
“Yeah… Still sore but I’ll be- As fine as I can be.”
“Ponk told me. It really is too bad…But you know what?”
Clay raised an eyebrow at his best friend.
“About time. Honestly, you’ve been through so much, you’ve earned your retirement. And, fucking finally , you get to spend more time with George and get married.”
Clay snorted, swatting his friend over the head.
“So you’re happy that I’m injured to the point I can’t be a knight anymore? Rude.”
“No-! I’ll miss sparring with you and going on patrols and stuff. And of course it’d be always better if you weren’t hurting but think about it. You can just be . With George.”
“I- I guess that does sound nice,” Clay agreed, smiling softly as he thought about all the things they could do now.
After a few more days spent in the infirmary, Clay was allowed to be moved to a more comfortable bed, aka the bed in George’s chambers. It allowed George to fuss over him more and sleep next to him.
It reminded Clay of the nights early in their relationship. When he would wait for the last knight to pass him around midnight, as he stood in front of George’s chambers, before slipping inside and under the covers next to the Prince. Soft whispers and giggles filled the room as they got to be together without any additional eyes on them. Even when they both knew that Eret wouldn’t mind their relationship, it was fun to sneak around for a bit before they came clean to the King.
The first night, George helped Clay to change his shirt to a clean one. Sitting on Clay’s lap, as he helped him raise his arms to get the shirt off, George could see the multiple scars that littered Clay’s skin. Peeking from under the bandages still wrapped around his torso and arms. And that was just the front side. George was sure there were more underneath and across Clay’s back.
Carefully, the Prince traced a scar that went over Clay’s collarbones. It was a new one. Sure, Clay had some before he “died” but there were so many new ones now. Not just from Schlatt’s stunt in the chapel. But from the rough river that had carried Clay away from him.
Leaning down a little, George peppered the scar with light kisses, making Clay laugh.
“Stop it, that tickles!”
Smiling, George pressed one more kiss against Clay’s neck before pulling back a bit.
“There’s so many new ones…” George muttered, eyes half lidded as he continued to trace the scars.
Clay hummed, settling his chin on top of George’s head, arms wrapped around the Prince’s waist.
“Yeah…”
“I like them because they show that you’ve survived,” George whispered. “But I hate them because they mean that you’ve been hurt.”
After George had helped the new shirt on Clay, the two just sat there, holding each other. It was comforting but George also felt himself getting lost in his thoughts. Two years was a long time to be apart, even though technically they’d been together for the past few months.
“We’re still fiances, right?” George asked.
Clay was silent for a moment before speaking.
“If you want us to be.”
“Yeah- Yeah, I’d like that.”
“Me too. I love you, George.”
“I love you too.”
It would only be right to end this story with another wedding, right?
Half a year later.
In four months, Clay recovered as much as he could. He still limped and couldn’t stand or walk for long, and carrying heavy things was a no for him. But otherwise, he was fully healed and living life as normally as possible. Well, except he wasn’t an active knight anymore, let alone George’s personal knight. Sapnap received that position again and everyone was happy with that decision.
To keep Clay occupied while George had his own duties, Sam had him plan out the training schedule and program for new, young recruits and oversee their practice sessions. Clay loved it, getting along with the students well and they were all excited to be taught by him. His reputation as one of best knights assured that despite his injuries, he was still treated with respect.
George especially loved seeing him interact with the young ones, thinking that Clay would make a wonderful dad someday.
The next two months after Clay had recovered, were spent planning their wedding.
George already had a notebook full of plans from decorations to foods they wanted, how the wedding would go and what music they wanted to be played during their first dance. Clay insisted that he could dance at least once, as long as it was a slow dance.
The chapel was also rebuilt within the six months and everyone agreed that it was even more gorgeous than before. Eret hired a foreign architect, a young blond man, and his friend to design and build it. The other man, with a fabulous moustache, created a fancy machine that would shoot out fireworks at the end of the evening. They did an amazing job and were paid accordingly. Of course they were also invited to the wedding and they happily accepted.
George was a lot happier during the months leading to the wedding, excited and motivated to work hard to make it the happiest day ever.
The day of the wedding was of course very busy. George made sure everything was tiptop before retreating to his chambers to get ready. He hadn’t seen Clay at all since the day before as the tradition was that the fiances were not allowed to see each other the night before the wedding. They had slept in different rooms, George in his own (theirs) while Clay spent the night back at knights’ quarters with the other knights. The Prince didn’t really care about the tradition but he knew how much spending some time with his knight friends meant to Clay.
George felt a strong sense of deja vu as Niki helped him get ready once again. Even though his outfit was a lot more simple this time, George liked it a lot. He wore a very light blue suit, gold decorating it, with the same headpiece and a long veil following behind him as last time.
He hoped Clay would like it too.
For a moment, George wondered what Clay was going to wear. Colour wise he had an idea and he found the idea that maybe he would be the one wearing a dress funny.
“Nervous?” Niki asked, stepping back for a moment, before returning to fix something.
“A little bit. More excited though!”
“Yeah, you’ve been waiting for this for so long. I’m really happy for you.”
“Thank you Niki. For everything,” George said, as sincerely as he could. He really appreciated all she did for them, not just as a seamstress.
“Oh don’t get sappy on me now, again ,” she chuckled. “Just doing my job and helping my friends.”
“Well, still. I mean it.”
“This is going to be a disaster.”
“For the fourth time, Clay. It’s going to be okay. Nothing bad is going to happen,” Sapnap sighed, sitting on the bench in the chapel without care in the world, while his best friend paced the altar.
“But-”
“ Clay ,” Sapnap said, more sternly. “Sit down, or you’re going to be in pain during the ceremony.”
Finally stopping, Clay sat down next to him, massaging his right knee.
“You’re right, for once,” he admitted. “Prime, I’m so nervous.”
“Just deep breaths, deep breaths.”
“Yeah,” Clay muttered, running his hand through his hair.
Sapnap groaned, throwing his head back.
“Duude, you’re ruining your hair again!”
Reaching towards him, Sapnap combed the stray locks back.
“Idiot.”
“You’re an idiot.”
“Real mature, Clay.”
“Come on now boys, no fighting. The guests are going to start arriving in a few minutes,” Sam chimed in, as he walked over. “Clay, everything is going to be alright.”
“Thanks Sam,” Clay said, smiling. “That means a lot more coming from you.”
“Hey!”
George stood in the small room before the chapel again, Eret by his side.
“Ready to go again, this time for real and willingly?” Eret asked, smiling fondly at their little brother.
“Yeah! I can’t wait to actually be married to him.” George smiled so hard his cheeks hurt.
“I’m glad you’re happy.”
The doors opened, and George felt hundreds of eyes on him again. But this time, he wasn’t nearly as scared as last time. With Eret escorting him down the aisle once again, George felt confident.
At the end of the aisle, he saw Clay, with Sapnap standing behind him. Just in case Clay felt like he couldn’t stand at some point and needed help because of his bad knee.
The number of guests was way less than last time, only their closest servants and
friends, and the royal family of the Antarctic Empire attending. George and Clay didn’t want to make a huge deal out of it. As long as they finally got each other, nothing else mattered.
The chapel was decorated from the ceiling to the floor with green plants and light blue ribbons, filling it nicely despite there being less people. Sunlight filtered in from the large windows and everything looked so magical.
George’s eyes were only on his fiance. Blond locks were pushed back, a thin golden crown on top of his head. He wore a light green suit, with his golden medals decorating it. He looked very handsome in George’s opinion.
Once he was right in front of his fiance, George felt like he could cry from happiness.
Once they said their vows, both of them had tears falling down their cheeks but bright smiles on their faces.
Once they were told they could kiss, their hearts felt full.
Once they laid in bed together later that night, after dancing and celebrating all night, the lost knight had finally returned home.