His own expression is soft too, though there's a little of that what-if ache inside him again. He's so untried -- but Claudius looks so happy with his glass of wine and his animated conversation, the rather wry set of his mouth and the way Galahad can almost hear the drawl as he speaks. He laughs at something Laertes says, and Galahad's heart clenches like a fist, not in anxiety or jealousy but in love.

He wants to tell Lan Wangji that they're betrothed -- he hasn't told anyone yet, because Claudius himself already told Magnus, and Claudius should certainly be the one to tell Lan Wangji, his best friend -- but Galahad wishes he could, nonetheless. He rubs his thumb along the braid of his watchband, and tries to resolve the ache of both love and uncertainty inside him.