#first post kinda..

its only so long you can bear to spend so little time with the man you love; neuvillette, no less. the dragon with the entirety of fontaine on his shoulders.

they say the heart grows fonder the longer you’re apart, but that’s not entirely true. all your heart feels is a little dagger carving its way into your chest each and every time a date is overruled due to unexpected work. again. or anniversaries that only begin in the afternoon, waking on cold sheets, because he had to get up early and quickly finish paperwork if he wanted to at least spare the rest of the day without several important documents hanging over his head

and then comes the day he arrives home late, again, due to more trials coming in than usual—something about a scandal causing unrest, on top of all of the paperwork he must complete. he’d promised you that morning that he’d cook dinner for the both of you that evening, and you could finally spend some time together as he’d been so busy as fontaine’s chief justice. he loves you, incredibly so, and it’s important that he demonstrates this in spite of his work being a time-consuming responsibility. he told you that himself

but it had all taken longer than calculated, and he arrives home long after 10pm, when you’ve given up waiting, most probably having eaten already, and possibly even asleep.

the clouds in fontaine’s starry sky start to turn grey when he sees your resting face.

peaceful, yes, but wet. not with water, but your own tears. it’s not difficult to deduce why either, with how you cling to the stuffed otter he’d gifted you himself; after learning how much joy they brought you. the entire side of the pillow you rested your head on was damp with your tears. fresh.

this is not to say you did not expect him to be busy. this was the chief justice. the iudex of fontaine. the sovereign dragon of hydro. he may as well have the busiest job in fontaine.

but there’s only so long one can go recognising the importance of their partner’s great responsibility, which may as well be above you in priority, without the heart growing weary and somber. you’d never want to burden him with your desperation for more time together, knowing neuvillette was hardly the one that decided who he gave it to, but that hardly meant it was easy either.

and now he’d returned much too late, seeing you having sobbed your eyes out with no one at all to hold you, curled up alone as though forcing yourself even smaller to the world that insisted on keeping your partner away from you.

the rain may as well have warranted several flood warnings outside as he ever so carefully climbed into bed, not wanting to wake you.

it seemed he was the one judged guilty this evening, as he held you like glass for the rest of the night, refusing to lose consciousness so that he could preserve this memory in his mind; he couldn’t forget this. he never wanted to let go of you again, not when he was the reason you cried and cried in his persistent absence.

the next morning, you’re startled to see him still in bed with you, rather than getting dressed and asking you to tie his hair, as per his routine. asleep, no less.