Tuileries Palace, Paris
May 15th, 1836
The change did not co all at once.
It had been gradual at first. Subtle enough that it could be dismissed. A little less strength in his voice. A longer pause before he moved. A slight tightening in his expression that lingered even after the pain had passed.
But by mid May, it was no longer sothing that could be ignored.
Napoleon I was failing.
The reports reached Versailles before the morning had fully settled.
The physicians no longer spoke in cautious terms. They no longer described uncertainty.
They described decline.
Napoleon II did not delay.
The automobile was prepared imdiately. No formal notice. No escort beyond what was necessary. The journey to the Tuileries was made in silence.
He did not look out the window.
There was nothing outside that mattered.
The palace felt different the mont he arrived.
Quiet.
Not the usual controlled quiet of a residence under discipline, but sothing heavier. The kind of silence that spread without instruction, carried by those who understood what was happening without needing to be told.
Servants moved carefully. Guards stood with less movent than usual. Conversations stopped as he passed.
Marie Louise was waiting.
She stood near the entrance to the inner chamber, her posture steady, but her face showed what she could no longer conceal.
"You ca," she said.
"Yes."
Napoleon II did not ask.
He already knew.
"How long?" he said instead.
Marie Louise exhaled slowly.
"The doctors say... not long."
There was no hesitation in her voice now.
No attempt to soften it.
Napoleon II nodded once.
"Is he awake?"
"Sotis," she said. "He fades in and out."
A brief pause.
"He asked for you."
Napoleon II stepped forward.
"I’m here."
The room had grown dimr.
Not because the light had changed, but because the man within it had.
Napoleon I lay on the bed, his fra thinner than it had been even weeks before. The strength that had once defined him had receded, leaving behind sothing quieter. Sothing that no longer needed to prove itself.
His breathing was uneven.
Not labored in the way of panic, but shallow. As if each breath equired attention.
Napoleon II stepped closer.
For a mont, he said nothing.
Then Napoleon I’s eyes opened.
Slowly.
It took him a second to focus.
Then he saw him.
"You ca back," he said.
His voice was faint, but clear enough.
Napoleon II nodded.
"Yes."
Napoleon I’s hand shifted slightly against the bed.
Napoleon II took it carefully.
There was no strength in the grip, but the contact remained.
Napoleon I looked at him.
"You’ve been busy," he said.
"Yes, there is a lot of work to be done..."
Napoleon I gave the faintest trace of a nod.
"Good."
"I think I’m already losing this battle, my son," Napoleon I said.
"Father..." Napoleon II wanted to tell him not to utter those words but he couldn’t bring himself to say it. After all, it’s the fact, and knowing Napoleon I, he knew being told a lie is sothing he would not accept.
Napoleon II held his hand a little firr.
There was no argunt that would change this. No words that could push it back. Napoleon I had spent his life facing reality as it was, not as he wished it to be. Even now, that had not changed.
Napoleon II exhaled slowly.
"You’ve faced worse," he said, though the words carried less certainty than before.
Napoleon I gave a faint breath that might have been a smile.
"Yes," he said. "But those were battles I could fight."
A brief pause followed.
"This one..." he added quietly, "is different."
The room remained still.
Napoleon II did not look away.
Napoleon I’s gaze stayed on him, steady despite the strain.
"You don’t need to say it," he continued. "I can feel it."
Napoleon II nodded once.
"I know...Father, if I may, I want to spend ti together as I know, and there’s really no denying it, even with dical intervention, you won’t last long. I want to stay by your side and cherish every mont of it. Because I think I wasted so of it when I was too busy running the Empire. I forgot how little ti we actually have."
The words ca out steady, but there was weight behind them.
Napoleon II did not look away.
"I should have co sooner," he added quietly. "I should have stayed longer. I kept thinking there would be ti after everything settled."]
Napoleon I listened.
"No," he said.
The word was soft, but firm.
Napoleon II frowned slightly.
"No?" he repeated.
Napoleon I shook his head, just enough to make it clear.
"You don’t get to do that," he said.
"Do what?"
"Regret ti that was used properly."
Napoleon II held his gaze.
"I wasn’t here," he said.
"You were where you needed to be," Napoleon I replied.
There was no hesitation in it.
"You were not wasting ti," he continued. "You were building sothing that required it."
Napoleon II remained silent.
Napoleon I’s eyes stayed on him.
"You think I don’t understand that?" he said. "You think I would rather have you sitting here while the Empire waits?"
A faint breath escaped him.
"No."
The word carried more strength than the rest of his voice.
"You did what you were supposed to do," he said. "That’s what matters."
Napoleon II looked down briefly, then back at him.
"I still could have co more often."
Napoleon I gave the slightest shake of his head again.
"And what would that change?" he asked.
Napoleon II did not answer.
Napoleon I continued.
"You think this would be different?" he said quietly. "That it would stop because you were here sooner?"
The truth in it settled without resistance.
Napoleon II exhaled slowly.
"No."
Napoleon I’s grip tightened just slightly.
"Then don’t waste ti on that," he said.
A brief pause followed.
Napoleon II looked at him again, steadier now.
"I still want to stay," he said. "Not out of regret. Because I want to."
Napoleon I studied him for a mont.
Then gave a faint nod.
"That," he said, "is different."
The room grew quiet again.
Napoleon I’s breathing remained uneven, but his focus did not drift.
"If you stay," he said, "you stay as my son. Not as Emperor stepping away from his duties."
Napoleon II nodded.
"I understand."
Napoleon I held his gaze.
"Good."
He shifted slightly, the movent slower now.
"There’s still work," he said.
"I know."
"And you’ll go back to it."
"Yes."
Napoleon I gave a faint breath.
"That’s what I expect."
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