Author Notes: Three songs in one chapter? Somehow a thing that happened, believe it or not. The first two are from the workshop versions, particularly 'Schuyler Defeated', and I really just ran with my own ideas with Cabinet Battle #2 to mark out some very key differences. Shoutout as always to the very lovely Arya_Chan and her incredible ideas and support! As always, enjoy!
Small TW Warning: Non-con kissing implied toward the very end!
Chapter Summary: The audacity of certain parties are too much to handle despite the best effort of those with opposing beliefs. The political divide becomes more personal, and to not plant firmly on either side would mean falling into obscurity.
Angelica Hamilton had hardly believed her eyes when she read the newest post. Their grandfather's portrait was included in the newspaper, his thin and proud face as recognizable as any other member of her family's , and underneath it informed the general public he was in danger to losing his Senate seat to 'young upstart Theodosia Burr'. Though she felt bad for her old war veteran of a grandfather, she'd always looked up to any woman who knocked the traditional figures of society off their pedestals. The longer she in class, however, she realized that her mother would more than likely not appreciate a friend going for their family, and given how impulsive she'd become under her co-workers, the twelve year old could hardly imagine this ending well if she didn't warn somebody else first. She'd ran out of the school building and hurriedly grabbed one of her best friends and allies and snuck out, telling herself and her sibling that they'd be safe from punishment as long as their father protected them (and of course he would).
"Papa!" Phillip barreled through the home, his curly brown hair flying behind him as he looked frantically for their father. "Papa, Papa, Papa!"
"Pip?" Their parent appeared from their mother's study, his lengthy hair tied back in a very messy bun atop his head. "Angie? What in the world are you two doing home; did your mother escort you home?"
"We came home ourselves!" Her ten year old brother chirped while hugging home. "Angie promised we wouldn't be in trouble if you told them you knew we were coming!"
"Rest assured, my boy, those headmasters and headmistresses shan't lay a finger on you or they'll have everything to pay. You both know well your mother and I made it well clear no form of striking a child is acceptable, especially not from a place of claimed intellect," the man soothed and ruffled the boy's hair. "Now, what's the occasion?"
"Look! Grandpa's in the paper!" She exclaimed, showing him the bundle. "War hero Phillip Schuyler nearing the loss of his Senate seat to Burr!"
"Aaron Burr?" Their father looked genuinely surprised, enough so she had to huff at his problematic and old fashioned assumption. "I thought your grandfather was unopposed."
"Aaron Burr is still bedridden, I think!" She replied with a pointed point. "Or at least I haven't seen him around the city…Anyway, it's his wife! She's apparently been going all over the place getting lots of support!"
Alexander glanced between the two of them before gently pushing Phillip in the other direction. "Son, go make sure the doors are closed. Angelica, make sure your siblings are inside."
The twelve year old wasted no time, power walking through their expansive home and clicking her tongue in disapproval when she saw Alex Jr. completely covered in soot along with James. She grabbed them both by the napes of their necks and scrubbed them off, scolding them about playing their room's fireplace before realizing with a start she still didn't know where their younger sibling, little John, was. The toddler was fortunately in the kitchen, happily chewing on a piece of tough meat their father had evidently given him to work on and keep him out of mischief. She scooped him up and nuzzled his face, listening as her Papa rushed through the home and emerged in the foyer with a bundle of papers.
"We have to go!" He called hurriedly, his hair now partially falling around his face and coat very poorly buttoned. "Boys, I mean right now! Get down here and clothe yourselves at once, young men!"
The urgency in his tone had clearly inspired something in her younger siblings, as they hurried down and threw clothes over their still soot accented play clothes and skin. Papa seemed to pay no mind, simply ushering them out the door and leaving her to quickly hurry to his side with John in arms while Pip held onto James and Alex Jr.
"Where are we going?" She asked immediately upon catching pace.
"The city, to speak with your mother!" He replied, his hair now a proper mess.
"We must let her know we're on her side!" Angie agreed, reaching up to rescue the dangling piece of ribbon that once held his mane back. "Papa, you can't go into town looking like that."
"She's going to consider Mrs. Burr's actions a personal slander!" He exclaimed anxiously. "We must stop a homicide."
The preteen was surprised, and yet she understood; she'd been thinking the same thing earlier. "Oh! Look around, boys, we have to look around!"
"Let's go and find your mother down in New York!" Papa called back, causing the boys to repeat the city name excitedly and dash in different directions once they reached the square.
Angelica sighed to herself; how in the world had she gotten stuck with the baby? She smiled to John reassuringly never the less and settled him against her chest/neck, briskly walking through the town until she heard the familiar shout of her mother. Immediately the preteen rushed toward it, screeching to a halt in between two of the shops when she realized she was talking to none other than Theodosia Burr herself. Deciding not to interrupt and get caught in the crossfire, she stood still and settled her toddler brother on the ground, signaling for him to 'shush' pointedly before honing her listening completely.
"Since when are you a Democratic Republican?" Her Mama demanded sharply. "Next thing we know, I'll find out you're a Jeffersonian!"
"Being one put in me in a position of greater prosperity!" Mrs. Burr exclaimed, looking a little surprised but nearly as much as she should if she was feigning innocent. "Wouldn't you do the same if it benefited your family?"
"Nobody knows who you are or what you do! At least they have some stability in Schuyler!"
"No one needs to know me, they don't like you," Burr countered thoughtfully, an insult that made the young Hamilton swallow hard.
Mama just looked shocked. "Excuse me?"
"Let's be honest now, ma'am. Wall Street may think you're great, but you'll always be adored by the things you create," Mrs. Theodosia said while wrapping an arm around her parent. "You're remarkable, nobody denies this, but upstate? My dear lady, the word is crooked. You're a brash young woman in need of someone more experienced to take the reins, and that notion was only strengthened by you so impulsively trading away the capital-"
"Wait a moment-!"
"Dear girl, you're considered to be an ass who taxes the alcohol!" The older woman laughed well naturedly; the lack amusement in her mother's face was as clear as day.
"You're going to make a fool of me through the man who raised me?" Mama's eyebrow twitched in anger, her face flushing the more she spoke. "You have a lot of nerve to consider my political moves crazy! You wait and you wait for your opportune moment to strike, and yet when the time comes to step on the very hands who helped you, you're not shy?! You have a lot of nerve!"
"It's not my fault you don't think twice about saving your reputation," Burr scoffed, and the twelve year old suddenly realized that of all the people her mother had fought, she was the hardest to knock down permanently.
Her mother pushed away the comforting arm lightly. "I've always considered you a friend."
"I don't see why that must end!" The political rival spread her arms out wide. "I am making a mockery of nobody; the seat was up for grabs and I took it, and for that I have done nothing to provoke your rage. Your pride will be the death of us all, good ma'am, but beware: it goes before the fall~"
Angelica knew her mother was about to go off further, but it was at that exact moment her father came rushing up with the boys right behind him. "Eliza, there you are!"
"Alexander?" Mama blinked and looked back to him, her face still red but hard glare softening immediately.
"You forgot some papers," he told her with a gentle cheek kiss, setting them in her hands.
"But I nev-"
"Mrs. Burr, madam, it's been so long," Papa continued easily, stepping to their evident new enemy and bowing deeply. "How are your husband and children?"
"As a matter of fact, my husband is still quite ill," the older woman conceded with a soft sigh. "He is barely out of the bed these days with terrible stomach pain."
"I am very sorry to hear it; I'll be by to visit very soon," Alexander said thoughtfully. "And your baby?"
"He's my pride and joy," Theodosia replied with a soft smile. "He's fluent in French, Latin and one of the best writers I know."
"So am I!" Phillip declared excitedly from their father's side, encouraging Alex to place his hand on his head.
"He's the same as your daughter, now that I think of it," Mrs. Burr continued. "Is she well?"
"She is in town somewhere," he noted with an eye roll, one that made said daughter screw up her face immediately. "She's with our youngest, you see. I reckon she's gone off to the shops to find new sheet music."
"She is a very talented musician," Mama interjected in a proud tone. "One day, I swear she'll run Manhattan."
"We must be going, ma'am," Papa immediately followed up. "Please, send Mister Burr our love."
"Nice to see your sons," Mrs. Burr agreed and smiled to her brothers before turning around and walking off.
"We're not done, Theodosia!" Her mother suddenly snapped, but her father simply careened her back with his arms.
"My love," he stated softly and firmly.
"If I were you…" Burr paused and looked back over one shoulder pointedly. "I'd stick with him, ma'am."
Her maternal parent clearly still wanted to fight, but she decided to hurry into the music store before they'd known she was spying in hopes of actually getting new sheets. When she turned around, however, she saw a figure rushing out and the air of his movement moved her hair slightly, proving he'd been close to her. The young teen immediately scooped up her brother and rushed after, spotting a mass of dark hair underneath a headband taking off down the street. John squeaked and giggled in her arms as she made haste after him, dress hitched under the weight of her brother, and caught up swiftly by nearly missing crashing into the boy, who was evidently about to sharply turn around and dash the other way.
"Hey!" She began in a normal commanding voice, but she was immediately pulled into an alleyway; it was then she saw they'd been very close to Mrs. Burr, who was just now looking around curiously before going on her way.
"That's my mother!" The stranger hissed, pushing her mop of damp waves away from his face aggressively. "Are you trying to get me in trouble?"
"Are you trying to give me a heart attack by spying right behind me?" She hissed back pointedly, her grip tightening on the baby at once. "You should be much more careful about how you talk and act around ladies! One day you'll get slapped and you'll deserve it!"
The young man before her looked alarmed and vaguely offended before looking down, letting out a very soft sigh. "I am sorry if I hurt you or anything; you were just living your life, I suppose. I feel it only right to point out, though…you were spying on them, too."
"One of those ladies happens to my mother," she confessed with a small mischievous grin. "I couldn't resist."
"And the other is mine!" He exclaimed, his eyes twinkling despite the shadows in the space between stores. "That must make you Elizabeth Hamilton's daughter!"
"And that makes you Theodosia Burr's youngest son," she replied easily, setting town the toddler. "Jackie, remember your manors?"
As she cleanly curtsied, her sibling bowed so deeply he had to push his weight back up with his tiny hands. "H-hi! 'm Jackie!"
"Angelica and John Hamilton, respectively," she corrected while taking the toddler's hand. "I know how proud of you your parents are; you're all they seem to talk about when they visit and I'm around."
"Quite the same here. Theodosius Burr," he chirped and bowed more properly than her sibling. "Man, I thought our mothers were friends, but apparently not anymore!"
"Indeed." Angie sighed and looked around nervously. "Someone might catch us and say tattle on us if we keep talking. I don't want my mama mad at me for 'talking with the enemy' or whatever."
"May I write you, then?" His boldness surprised her and made her smile immediately, though it was part just nervous.
"How are you to write me when our parents are enemies?" She inquired, and he immediately drooped.
"I suppose not, then," he stated with a grunt.
She let out a disappointed sigh; was he really going to roll over so easily? "You seem to have quite the head on your shoulders, Theodosius. I would've quite liked to write you."
Theodosius immediately took her free hand, boldly bowing down partially and placing a light kiss on her knuckles. "Between first and second lunch, the courtyard spanning between our boarding schools. I shall leave a note in the centermost rose bush post my fourth lesson, as I pass through it for recreational sports. I anticipate your reply the next day, yes?"
"Should your words be worth the ink and parchment they are placed upon, you shan't anticipate more than is due," she replied with a genuine smile creeping across her face.
The two school aged youths hurried in opposite directions, Angelica tugging along a fussing John while Theodosius hauled himself back home swiftly. The young teen girl had barely made it inside the music shop when she saw her mother on the other side, her expression tense and frantic as she visibly looked around.
"Mama?" She called right after pulling her very irritated youngest brother behind one of the shelves.
"Angelica, there you are!" Mama exclaimed and hurried over, scooping up the baby immediately. "Your father and I were looking everywhere for you, young lady! Come now; we must go home, I have some very important letters to write…"
"Can't I have just one piece of new music? I've gotten top marks on my past two essays with no reward yet!" She suddenly exclaimed, wrapping her thin around her mother pleadingly.
"Now, now, little miss, the reward itself is getting such excellent marks. You are old enough to perform well and not expect immediate gratification!" Eliza scolded firmly, but the eldest Hamilton child did not let her charm and being the only girl go unused.
Angelica Hamilton, therefore, happily walked back home with three new sheets of piano music in a shiny new folder in her arms.
Alexander always had a way of calming her down in moments of intensity, but that certainly did not mean Eliza would admit it. She was still silently stewing about the audacity of her so-called friend when they arrived back home, wasting no time after laying the napping John in his bed to go to her office. Her husband was already there, a knowing expression on his face, and somehow that did nothing to put a cap on the fury she felt.
"What in the hell was that?!" She demanded angrily. "Why in the hell did you bring our children downtown?! You know very well that Theodosia is trying to make a fool out of me! I will not let our family be disrespected this way! I will not let her gloat in a position she practically stole! I'll grab a pen and paper, let this whole world know if you come for my family you better not miss, you better have another shot to throw!"
"You could let it go," Alexander interjected gently, his hands cupping over her trembling ones. "Why not stay alive for me? You can let it go, and let it slide right by! I've learned that people will always be cynical, and try to make the personal political. Leave all the others to the subliminal and let it go!"
"That would be better fit advice for a man," she countered with a sigh. "Being quiet and submissive is my enemy. Unless I want to lose the position I worked my ass off to get, I have to address these things!"
"You have to address the things that directly affect your position. Maybe you and Mrs. Burr don't see eye to eye on a lot of things, but that certainly doesn't mean she's coming for a position you know well you'll maintain as long as you want," he responded in the same calm voice. "Instead of showing everyone you fly off the handle at every little thing that anger you, why not let them know you can take a body blow?"
"This is my father we're talking about!" She threw her hands in the air. "If I don't stand up for him, nobody will, and they'll all know her intent as clearly as I do!"
"Let everybody know you can take a body blow," he repeated pointedly, taking her hands and giving her a guided spin around her fancy office chair. "My Eliza, you have a reputation to protect by your own actions, too. Wouldn't you rather be known as a badass woman who ignores petty things like this rather than a badass woman who'll act aggressively no matter how small a call back is? Isn't roasting your really big enemies in your newspaper enough?"
She couldn't help the small smile that played on her lips. She'd founded the New York Post, one that provided accurate news while giving her a ruthless medium to combat the slander she constantly underwent through the men she hated so intently. As much as she didn't want to admit she was behaving irrationally, she knew her husband had very good points, but admitting it would take a lot more than that when she'd outright confronted the offender publically.
"You're smiling because you know I'm right," Alexander pointed out with a knowing look.
"HA!" She exclaimed, waving her hands wildly and dismissively while grabbing her quill from the ink pot.
"You know that if the first lady or John were here they'd tell you the same thing!" He continued while propping his upper torso against the back of her chair.
She simply huffed. "No, Lady Washington and John aren't here, and-"
"I heard about Mrs. Burr!" A familiar Southern voice called, and she immediately flushed while perking up when John Laurens appeared in the doorway with Alex Jr. and James hanging off of him. "You didn't kill her, did you?"
"You old sneak!" Eliza laughed while standing up before pausing pointedly, looking to her spouse disbelievingly. "Was he here the whole time?!"
"I came to surprise you all, but this admittedly lit a fire under me to get here earlier in the day," her best friend conceded while walking over despite the boys hanging off of him. "Elizabeth, seriously, let it go! Stay alive for me~"
"Let it go!" Alexander chimed in, slowly spinning her around in the chair by her hands before pulling her to her feet. "Let it...slide right by!"
"You don't have to bring a knife to gun fight," Laurens continued pointedly while taking her hands in his own. "You know it's not a case of your money or life, and you know you really oughta listen to your husband, right?"
The remarkable woman sighed and looked between her beloved men. "I know."
"So let it go!" They insisted in unison, making her boys giggle and cling onto her.
Looking down at Alex Jr. and James, she could only see the man she loved in their eyes; it encouraged her hug them both a little nearer and sigh. "Fine, fine, you win! Now tell me at once what the occasion is of your unannounced visit, Mister Laurens!"
"I wished to inform you that my dearest Martha is with child," he replied with a solemn half smile. "However, this pregnancy is rather fragile in nature, and all the doctors we've been to insist that if she is to survive this one, this must be her last for the sake of her health. I was therefore wishing that my children stay here for a bit of time, as premature labor is a constant risk and I wish not to expose them to the pains of their sibling's or mother's untimely departure from life."
"Of course, John," Alexander said before her, the solemn and mortified expression likely matching her own. "We're here to help you out any way we can. I'm so sorry to hear about your Martha; she is a lovely woman."
"I am grateful you would stay with her," Eliza agreed quickly, wrapping her arms around him tightly. "I do hate to say this, but we will need some financial retribution for keeping the children in order to see to their schooling and recreational pursuits are kept up. I know we are wealthy, my old friend, but with your five we'd have eleven including Maria's little Susan."
"But of course, my bosom sister," John noted with a kind smile. "I figured that was a given, in truth. I will be sending them to you with my usual coachman within the next week then along with their belongings. I cannot thank you and Alexander for this enough, truly."
"May she have a speedy recovery," Alexander pardoned and hugged his companion tightly. "I insist you lodge here for the night, old friend. It is a long journey back to South Carolina and I wouldn't want anything more tragic to occur when night is rapidly approaching."
For a change of pace that was welcome by her family, Eliza spent the evening with the children, spouse and close friends. She sat with Angelica and Phillip after the youngest three had been sent to bed, the sounds of her daughter slowly mastering her unfamiliar and intricate first sheet music while her son wrote with a seeming endless passion on the ground nearby.
"Mama, what kind of note is that?" Her eldest exclaimed, clearly irritated.
She took a long look before slowly demonstrating, but given how riled her girl clearly was, she gently tucked the parchment back into the folder. "I think that's enough for tonight, my loves. Why don't you prepare yourself for bed?"
"At least let me practice those of which I am familiar!" The preteen squeaked pleadingly, and Eliza had to admit to herself that discontent that could only be satisfied with visible and hard earned success had come from herself.
"Only for a little while," she conceded, her words immediately sending the two back into motion in their tasks. "But when I come to retrieve you again, straight to your rooms for sleep, young lady and young man."
A synonymous 'yes Mama!' was enough to lift her from her sitting position, wandering into the kitchen to make a strong cup of tea. Even if she completely disregarded the audacity of that Theodosia, her next Cabinet meeting was the morning after the slowly approaching and she was still deeply discontent with her means of defending her position. She was just adding sugar to the concoction meant to keep her up through the nighttime when Maria wandered in, her expression knowing despite the tiredness weighing down her features.
"Eliza, you and the children should be in by now," she implored softly. "Why are you making tea at such a late hour? You won't be in top health for your meeting the day after the morrow if you miss out on vital sleep; it will all catch up with you tomorrow night and you'll sleep right through the whole affair!"
"I have to go in there and implore a restless government to not provide aide and ally to the French troops when I was openly very close friends with a Frenchwoman who saved thousands of lives, Miss Reynolds. This is hardly the time for easy rest," she retorted with an exhaustive sigh. "God help me, I can only imagine what Adrienne would say if she saw what I was setting here to do."
"She is a very smart woman," Maria mused kindly. "I'm sure she'll fare just fine on her own, and you are correct in stating we're better off remaining her to work on our own tribulations."
"As much as I hate to say it, Jefferson may have a point as well." The thirty six year old slumped over the counter and raked her hands through her hair. "We fight for freedom, do we not? How can we expected to be held in such a high regard by the rest of the world if we cannot do this for the very better who turned the tide against the British bastards? Not to mention I am technically an immigrant for England! What will that make me look like?! A damn Loyalist, that's what! I could be jailed for treason!"
"It'll make you look like the logical person you are," the younger woman insisted. "If we're fighting in every revolution, we're nothing at all! Besides, should they be in a time of great need in the future and we're in a position to help, we will and Hell, we would! My mama used to say that you can't assist someone drowning if you're unable to keep your own head above the water; think of it like that rather than us being 'selfish' or 'Loyalist.'"
Eliza slowly nodded; her companion had excellent points, the same ideas she'd been positioned to propose now agreed with and spoken aloud by a fairly unbiased source. "You're right. Thank you, Marie; I needed that."
"Anytime." She walked up behind and wrapped her arms around her, resting her head against her shoulder briefly. "Now, will you come to bed?"
"You know I'd love to, but-"
"No buts!" The smaller lady exclaimed at once, pulling the cup of tea away from her hastily and grabbing her hands. "It is time for the entire house to be at rest now! Besides, your husband and our visitor are quite frankly too cute for me to be sleeping alone tonight, and I shan't rest until you're with me. We can play at this all night, but I assure you I'll chase you with the broom again sooner rather than lady, Mrs. Hamilton."
She couldn't help but smile to herself despite her own desires; Alexander was a steady, intellectual opposing force that kept her happily chasing after, but Maria was all too much like herself, a spitfire with a level head who had no inhibitions doing whatever it took to get the results she demanded. "What do you mean my husband and our guest are too cute?"
Putting a finger against her plump lips, the younger woman lead her up the stairs until they reached the master bedroom and she slowly swung open the door. All curled against each other like they were all the other had were Alexander and John, the curly haired man practically disappearing underneath her lolled over and softly snoring spouse. Her heart immediately melted; she figured a lot of women would hate to see such an intimate sight, but she found it comforting for someone to give the physical contact her husband craved while said husband brought great comfort to their suffering, closest friend.
"I agree, that is adorable," Eliza whispered knowingly. "I suppose I'll tuck Angie and Pip in and join you after all, then."
"Of course she's the one making such a crucial decision today," a sarcastic voice grunted from behind Eliza, one that made her turn and give an angry glare that sent the sexist onlooker move all the way to the back rows.
"Lady Washington!" She greeted warmly and with open arms in an attempt to calm down a little before a certainly-meant-to-be meeting. "It's been quite some time, ma'am. How are you doing?"
"You don't have to try so hard to be cheerful, child. The doctors said George will be quite alright," the older woman replied steadily while cupping the younger's face fondly. "I am doing alright with that news in mind, therefore."
"I'm glad to hear it!" She was admittedly relieved and pulled her close in a tight hug. "Lord, I've prepared and prepared for this day and yet I still fear I'm not ready."
"You have a remarkable head upon your shoulders; you don't have to worry about getting your point through with a resource like that," Washington countered warmly. "Go ahead and take your position.'
Feeling a bit more invigorated, the remarkable woman did as she was told. On this day, she was wearing something new as per the suggestion of Maria, who'd noticed how much she was stressed about little details in preparation. This gown was light blue and thick, as per the weather, and had sleeves that were as fashionable and practical as on her iconic green gown. She contently smoothed down the gorgeous fabric over her fluffy new petticoats, ones that her youngest children helped her husband make, and thought fondly how John was here just to see her in action along with her husband. The knowledge was enough to make her not immediately sneer when Jefferson came strolling in, not even when she realized the bastard had the audacity to wear a pastel green rather than his usual purple getup. Madison, as per usual, was right him in a plain grey suit, but she was stunned to see Theodosia in swift pursuit of her two very public enemies. She'd known her first friend had slipped somehow into a dangerous political agenda, but this was hardly condonable.
"Theodosia Burr, ma'am!" She hissed furiously and stormed up, getting so close their noses nearly brushed and clearly scaring the wits out of her companion. "Can we bloody confer?"
"That's strong language for such a formal place!" Burr hissed back and grabbed her arms, pulling her just behind the presidential podium. "You must get a hold of yourself or you'll make an ass out of yourself up there!"
"An ass out of myself?" Eliza could feel the color up and down her face, her eyes narrowing in a way she usually reserved for Thomas or James. "Good ma'am, look in the mirror! You have some audacity to ally yourself with the likes of them!"
"Respectively, ma'am, you have a lot of audacity to defy against a system I see less problems with in," Theodosia retorted coolly. "The separation between state and the government is vital. Your plan to have the upper control all aspects of our new nation is ridiculously, and what's this I hear of you not supporting providing France in their time of greatest need? Have you gone absolutely marbles?! Adrienne is a prisoner of war as we speak, and yet you claim we ought to concern ourselves with our own problems? They are our only stable ally! They are our problem!"
"Adrienne is one of the most brilliant minds I've ever had the pleasure to know! She doesn't need our charity, and who would we give it to? Are we just meant to throw money to the masses and pray for the best?" She shot back, venom dripping from her speech despite the rip it tore in her to think of her friend.
"The meeting will now begin," Lady Washington called out, and with a final hard set glare to Theodosia, she swept back to her position. "The issue on the table: France is neck deep in the war with England; now, do we provide aide and allies to our French allies or do we stay out of it? Remember that Congressional approval is not vital for this, and that the only person you have to convince is me."
"Are you sure your mind isn't already quite made, respectively, Mrs. President?" One of the Congress men called condemningly.
The look the aging woman gave him sent chills down the spines of the most allied with the Washingtons, including Eliza. "I am a non-biased head of state. Do not challenge my authority or you will be handled and punished for obstruction of justice. Am I made quite clear?"
The man, now pale and eyes flitting back and forth to his fellow Jeffersonians before looking to her. "Y-yes ma'am. I'm very sorry for my outbust, ma'am."
"And Mister Belone…" Her role model kept her unforgiving gaze on him. "That is 'Lady Washington' to you."
"Y-yes ma'am!"
"Mister Jefferson," she settled back into her seat, her face all business and her eyes glinting dangerously across the remaining members of Congress and onlookers. "You have the floor, sir."
"Thank you, Lady Washington," Thomas drawled and stood in a smooth motion despite tightening his grip on his fancy cane. "I'll cut right to the chase, as we lose time we could spend reaching out while we confer amongst ourselves. Mrs. First Lady, we were once weakly knocking on the door of death, needing a sliver of hope to replenish our hopelessly outnumber troops. We struggled against the oppressors valiantly as ourselves, but truthfully, we needed money and guns and half a chance. Uh, and who provided those funds?"
Madison coughed behind his hand before declaring quite plainly. "France."
"In exchange? They didn't ask for land!" Jefferson threw up his free arm, and the Congress mumbled in agreement. "They only pleaded for a promise that we'd lend a hand should they ever need a similar hand, and revolution is messy but now is the time to stand! How could be turn a cheek against our brothers-"
Hamilton could feel the female Congress members shift and hear them grunt or whisper angrily; a man such as that could not afford not to bend with the times, and she hoped it would eventually break his pompous ass.
"Their blood is on our clothes as they rebel against tyranny! Now, I know that Elizabeth Hamilton is here and she'd rather not have this debate, let me remind the room that she is not Secretary of State!" He announced, giving her a smug look as the Congress coughed and spoke outcries amongst themselves. "Lady Washington, surely you know this woman knows nothing of loyalty! She came into this country claiming to be from nothing, and yet she stepped off the ship with more change in her wool pockets than many of our farmers make in a lifetime! She makes claims and accumulates power like fake royalty, and then has the audacity to be contrary toward those of us who've done anything remarkable since the war? Please! Ma'am, everything she does betrays the ideals of our nation, and how sound can her judgement be when she'll throw away all the comradery she herself had with our hero, one Adrienne de Lafayette? It's pathetic, and if you don't know, now you know, Lady Washington."
Martha was clearly not too pleased with Thomas's outbursts, but she didn't show it but for a moment before turning to her with the same even expression. "Thank you, Mister Jefferson. Mrs. Hamilton, your response?"
She could see it in her maternal eyes before she said a thing. All of the eyes in the room were on, a lot more boring than they were supportive, kind, or curious, and she was jarred to remember Commander Greene's warning that history had its eyes on her held the truest now. She smoothed her gown down once more and stepped out, her hands trembling the more she tried to steady them, and decided the second she made eye contact with the traitorous Theodosia that historians ought to have something to write about in the face of such persistent ignorance. She knew a thing or two about loving and having ones back, but this country she loved had to come first when she knew Adrienne could stand well on her own two feet.
"You, sir…" She began politely before striding to his level and snatching him by the cravat. "Ought to be hung your blasphemous beliefs if you'd ever conceive even for a moment that the First Lady's going to bring our country into the middle a cataclysmic military mess, a broken up, no-rules game of chess where France is queen and kingless!"
"We had a treaty, mind you!" Madison snipped from behind him, and she roughly released her taller opponent to turn to him.
"And you! A man so shaky in his political runs, he won't say a word unless his companion loads the gun!" She practically spit. "We signed a treaty with a king whose head is now in a basket. Would you like to take it out and ask it?"
Whirling on her feet, she went to one of the Congresswomen who was nodding along her, one who flushed and smiled nervously and excitedly when she came to her side. "Well, should we honor our treaty King Louey's head?"
The woman smirked and looked to the Republicans with the same contempt Eliza did herself, the mark of a true Federalist and revolutionary badass. "Well, Mrs. Hamilton, do whatever you want; I'm super dead!"
"That's quite enough!" Martha declared while smacking her mallet down a couple of times. "You need not make a scene; I know that Hamilton is right."
"Mrs. Washington!" Thomas exclaimed and stepped closer to her, his cravat still sweaty and bundled from her light assault.
"Mister Jefferson, we're fragile to start another fight," she retorted resolutely. "Your ideals are fantastic, and you have quite the way of crafting ideas on parchment, but practically they just can't take precedence."
"Ma'am, I worry about your objectivity," he insisted, face flushing immediately. "We are a country who clawed their way out from under a dictatorship; do we not fight for freedom?"
She let out a sigh. "I would not mind and would be behind you, but when will the French figure out who will lead them?"
"The people are leading!" Theodosia stood up swiftly, face just as flushed, but her stance was the most confident Eliza had ever seen it displayed, especially publically.
"The people are rioting," Martha shot back very calmly, standing up and scanning the room as she spoke. "Frankly, Mister Jefferson, Mister Madison, Senator Burr, it's more than a bit disquieting you'd let your optimistic ideals blind you to reality. If we were to combat in every revolution, where would draw the line? Elizabeth, you are to at once draft up a statement of neutrality for John Jay to take along."
The tone of the room was far too somber for a proper gloat, so the founder of the Federalist Party simply bowed respectively. "Yes ma'am."
Post getting the contact information of the Congresswoman who'd helped her when she was on the floor, Eliza was beginning to jot down ideas for how to term the paper when she encountered a very disgruntled Jefferson in the hallway. She straightened her back immediately and even tried to walk past to save a little face, but a harsh tap of his cane against the floor was enough to make her instinctually tense and stop.
"So you have forgotten Lafayette," he said coldly. "You have not an ounce of regret. You sit on your throne of power with no regard to your roots; my, I'm sure she'll be pleased to learn of how much you stand behind her, as your betrayal is uncouth."
"Say what you will. Adrienne is a brilliant woman; she and her husband will prevail fine," she retorted while turning around very sharply. "Before she was your ally, she was my friend. I'd watch my tongue if I were you; that's awfully high talk for someone who can't afford the votes to help those you advocate for."
He turned himself on one heel, giving her the same infuriating snake-like grin. "My, my, so quick witted."
"Alas!" She threw a hand over her forehead before rolling her eyes. "I admit it."
"I bet you were quite the little lawyer."
"My defendants were acquitted."
"Hm. Well, women do need to put in their place-"
"Make no mistake, Jeffershit, I only hold back in court to avoid my validity being breeched. Make another comment like that and I'll slap you so hard you'll cease being able to flex around your horse's ass looking face," she sneered.
Surprisingly, his cheeks were brushed with color. "You're so much like your sister it's alarming sometimes, little lady."
Eliza didn't feel her feet move beneath her, but suddenly she held his well-made cane in her arms and he was on his backside after a sharp jab of the spherical end to his stomach. He scowled up at her, a cough wracking through his body, and she immediately took for the other direction to maintain safety behind the sanction of a public area with her John and her Alexander. Despite his evident lameness, however, he still seized her rather unforgivingly by the back of her corset and pushed against the door. She was horrified to realize his lips were awfully close to her own despite her death grip around her neck, so she spit aimlessly on his face with all the conviction she had in such a compromised position.
"I hate to be the one to remind you…" He hissed menacingly in her ear. "But you are nothing without the First Lady behind you."
"Mister Jefferson, you will unhand her at once!" A furious female voice suddenly yelled with such command that the apprehender jumped hard and immediately backed away from the newly relieved Hamilton. "You need not worry for resignation, Thomas. You are dismissed permanently. Eliza, come at once to my office."
Holding his stomach and beginning to turn with his cane, Jefferson looked to her with a dangerous darkness to his eyes. "Mommy's callin."