[Claude frowns, and shakes his head.] Well, they haven't quite met the harrowing fate they subjected the people of Duscur to. Faerghus will recover. Some houses will be more resistant than others at submitting to rule from Derdriu, but if they truly wish for their people to thrive, they'll see the sense in cooperation.

[And ultimately, ordinary people will simply be happy to see the end to the fighting. The manoeuvrings of the nobility won't concern them so long as there's food on the table.

Never one to dwell on the negatives for long, Claude smiles, his hand moving from Lorenz's hair to caress his cheek.]

Anyway, thanks for filling me in. It sounds like things are gonna shake out well, even if they're rough right now... And whatever happens, people will continue to rally around Teach, given everything she's done for Fódlan.

And here you always nagged me for being not very noble, but maybe I should've been nagging you to be more common and relatable! Although...

[After Lorenz kisses his palm, Claude playfully leans in and boops him on the nose.]

...all this unnoble lounging around is a good start!

Hey, I've done plenty of middle-meeting. All those roundtable conferences didn't lead themselves, you know, and I was on my best behaviour in those.

[Mostly, besides when he was butting heads with Gloucester. It was almost a relief in the period Gloucester stopped attending to appease the Empire. Still, Claude did have to learn to act a little more noble picking up from his grandfather, whether he liked it or not.]

And I'm glad you noticed your own scandalous state of undress. Would have hated to have pointed it out to you. One wrong move, and... Oops! [He mimes tugging the gown open.]

What? I didn't do anything!

[He holds his hands up to feign innocence, though it isn't working well at all given he has that smug smirk on his face.]

It seems to me like you have an overactive imagination.

[Claude laughs; that reaction is even more dramatic than he'd anticipated. Still, he pats Lorenz on the back... which might seem to be a gesture of comfort, but of course, Lorenz will know better, and that he's just doing it to tease him even more. There there!!]

And you are adorable. [He kisses his temple, then--] Get any redder and you just might explode!

[Claude feigns an expression of innocent confusion throughout... whatever that was. Well, he's not a mind reader, but he has an idea of what the mental gymnastics were that Lorenz just performed. So once the bathroom door is shut, he follows after him and knocks, affecting concern.]

Not what? You're behaving very strangely, Lorenz. Do I need to come in there and check up on you?

Unbecoming? All you said was that you were going to go get a shower.

[Sure, he flounced away dramatically, but that's just Lorenz being Lorenz. He leans against the wall, crossing his arms. He knows Lorenz is right by the door, but he's not about to disrespect his privacy and try barging in.]

It's really okay, I was just teasing you. No need to get so agitated.

But you can tell me anything! No walls should stand between us. Or doors, for that matter.

[Is this a metaphor or literal or both... Well, the point still stands.] You weren't being inappropriate dressed like that, and it'd be very hard to think of anything that'd shock me, you know.

C'mon, Lorenz. Open up?

[He spreads his arms, as if to indicate wanting to give him a hug -- and whether he allows it or not, he'll continue.]

The only one judging you here is yourself. Personally, I really like seeing you loosen up, like I said before. This is your home, and you can kick back and relax in it however you want. I promise I wasn't trying to upset you about it.

Well, I think it's okay. [Then Claude blinks as something occurs to him, releasing him from the hug with a surprised expression.]

Wait-- you're not saying only married couples should be undressed around each other or something, are you? Come on.

[Claude can read his body language well enough. He runs a hand through his own hair, evidently agitated but willing himself to dial it back a notch.]

Lorenz... Convention and I don't get along very well, so I don't have much patience for it. But I also know that doesn't mean you'd think like me. I just... don't want to act like something I'm not.

[All this modesty and unspoken rules are simply not for him, but trying to get close to Lorenz means coming up against them constantly. But he doesn't want to rail against them too much if that will simply make Lorenz unhappy too, so... Is Claude being unreasonable, trying to be too pushy too soon?

He doesn't have an answer to something they're both still figuring out, so he simply sighs.]

Um-- maybe I should give you some privacy for a while. I did interrupt you going for a shower and all, so...