Mᴀʀʀʏɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴜᴋᴇ ᴛᴏ sᴀᴠᴇ ᴍʏ ᴄᴀᴛs!?『ɴᵉᵘᵛⁱˡˡᵉᵗᵗᵉ ˣ ʳᵉᵍʳᵉˢˢᵒʳ!ᴍʳ』

XIV

A ᴍᴇᴀɴɪɴɢғᴜʟ ᴠɪsɪᴛ

Once morning breaks, Neuvillette asked if M/n could take him to Kline's tomb. It caught M/n by surprise for a moment but he could tell how sincere the hydro dragon was. So M/n asked the chef to pack a lunch for them and asked that a maid play with the kittens while they were gone. The staff lit up at these requests and quickly agreed to them. They adored M/n very much for many reasons but the main two were that he brings a bright and airy aura to the mansion and Neuvillette was changing in a good way. So M/n never encountered pushback or roadblocks when he needed help.

While M/n made agreements, Neuvillette wasn't sure how he should dress since he decided now was the time to take his vacation time to be away from central Fontaine for a while. He sent a letter through his head butler to be delivered to Furina so he could further avoid her.
"Don't try too hard Neuvillette, just throw on a dress shirt and some pants."

"Ah! Oh, it's just you Clorinde, what a fright you gave me just now...Uh, thank you."

🫧🫧🫧

M/n felt as if he was in his element now being in the countryside again. Though Neuvillette lived just outside of the city it wasn't the same as being surrounded by the country folk. It was a sight to see for him and for the people who lived there, it was rare to see the Chief Justice this far out but they offered their heartfelt smiles and greetings.

Eventually, the two reach the headstone of Kline and they pay their respects.
"M/n?"

"Audrey, Mon Dieu! How have you been and how is your mother!"M/n hugged the young girl and checked around her, it had been three years and she'd grown up a bit.
However...Neuvillette felt odd seeing the girl before him, something didn't sit right but he pushed his suspicions aside and smiled as best as he could.
"Why is he here..Where's Wriothesley?"

"Audrey, he came with me instead to apologize for what happened to Kline—"

"Tsk, whatever, it happened three years ago. Enjoy your time with Dad."With that, she storms off without another word.
"Sorry about Audrey, she took it just as hard as anyone did but in the beginning, it was odd, like they say grief hits everyone differently."
Neuvillette nodded to this, he too still found it hard for himself after his parents died, so that much he understood but something bugged him... Mainly Audrey's tone when she called out to M/n and how she said Wriothesley's name.
"Ah, could I bother to learn more about your driving days?"

"Sure, come on let's take a seat. Over there after I fix these flowers in the pot."M/n unwraps the bouquet of Rainbow roses, Kline's favorites, and places them in the vase with a somber smile etched onto his lovely face.
"Over there seems perfect. Come on."

"Yes, watch your step."The two get settled a distance away from the headstone and M/n asked what Neuvillette wanted to know first before he went on a tangent.
"Who did your team consist of?"

"I was the head driver and racer, Ferminet was my second lead, Kline was the overall path runner, but Audrey was the team pathfinder. Wriothesley was just there for support but still one of our members."

"Interesting, I didn't know you were Freminet's teacher."

"I sponsor him as well! My darling protege is doing great! I learned from Kline and then I taught Ferminet."As M/n happily talks about how he trained Ferminet something occurred to him in that moment...Why didn't M/n mention Audrey as a student or even a trainee?
"Now that I think about it, ever since Audrey obtained her vision three years ago she seemed a bit different."

"Huh? Vision, what element?"

"Uh, I think it was Geo. I'm not sure if she carries it around or not but enough of that let's eat what Maria made for lunch today! I just know she worked hard on this as usual!"