What We See (Honorverse, T, M/M)

[extrapenguin]

Wordcount: 345
Synopsis: Denis' secretary ponders on the smutsies and how they reflect the values of society.

Oh, I know, I know, the newsies are just looking for scandals and manufacturing them when they can't find any. (For smutsies, add ‘titillation’ to the list.) Yeah, the Boss shouldn't care. It won't matter anyway.

Except when it matters.

 

I've put in some effort on why things are the way they are. Sure, it's kind of fascinating on a purely intellectual basis, but it's also something that's relevant for the Boss.

The best I've come up with is that it's a relic from the early times, just after colonization, when everyone had to reproduce to get the colony to a reasonable size. Apparently, peer pressure was enough to get everyone to reproduce. Also, the colonists wouldn't have been representative of the general population of Earth, et cetera.

Nowadays? Turns out attitudes don't change very fast. Any progress on that front was erased by the Legislaturalists and especially the Committee of Public Security; people tend to regress to prior values systems in times of crisis, perhaps yearning for a mythical golden age.

So, understandably the Boss wasn't thrilled when the smutsies manufactured an affair between him and Kevin Usher. (Also, weird standards much? Queen Elizabeth III having sex with her treecat gets an explicit picture on the front page; Denis LePic kissing Kevin Usher gets censored. Apparently two men kissing is more explicit and shocking than bestiality porn.)

In the end, the comment made to the press was “The Attorney General does not get romantically or sexually involved with his subordinates.” The newsies seemed almost relieved to hear it.

 

I don't think the Boss understands just how little noise his office door actually blocks. I don't think he's realized that I know. I'm not the type to go running to the newsies. Still, it'd be interesting to see the media reaction to the knowledge that Admiral Theisman, hero of all, isn't actually a virginal saint. Well, let the masters of the counter-revolution have each other in peace. They certainly seem happy.

I wonder if the artist that made yesterday's sensationalist porn picture is accepting commissions…