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saetoshi · 7 months

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you’ve lost track of the times it’s rained during the past few weeks. the amount of trials held by the chief justice have gone up, just like the chances of rain.

it was upsetting the first time it happened—your notepad getting soaked right after you’d finished getting information for your steambird column. the second time was more annoying, drawing your personal tea party to a close and leaving you drenched (and with a few soggy biscuits).

it’s a force of habit now—the familiar weight of your umbrella having become soothing rather than a burden. it almost feels like muscle memory, having to open your umbrella to shield yourself from the downpour as soon as the skies turn gray.

the rain does nothing but put a damper on people’s mood. or, at least, that’s what your neighbor tells you. you don’t dislike it, though. you don’t think you can bring yourself to do so.

there’s a certain stillness that comes with the rain. it’s calming, almost—most people who’ve forgotten their umbrellas at home seek refuge under the overhangs of the buildings, so it’s easier to navigate the streets of fontaine when they’re not so crowded.

it’s nice, almost. it’d be better if you didn’t have to work. (you’d give anything to stay curled up in bed during days like these. but you don’t think you can give yourself that luxury. at least, not when you’ve got bills to pay).

the way to the opera epiclese is nice. the aquabus is emptier when it rains. and, somehow, the landscape seems prettier with the faint mist the rain leaves behind.

it’s a little bit more crowded near the fountain of lucine. a few children run around while holding their umbrellas, jumping on some puddles before running back to their parents.

you’ve grown familiar to seeing the sight. sometimes you think this might be the reason you don’t resent the rain like most of your neighbors do.

or maybe, it’s just the sight of neuvillette standing just a few steps away from the stairs to the opera epiclese, his hand outstretched as he lets the raindrops fall onto his glove.

“you’re going to catch a cold if you keep standing under the rain like that, neuvillette,” you say, lifting your arm a little to cover him with your umbrella. it’ll do nothing, really—not when he’s already soaked to the bone.

he turns his attention to you, the corners of his eyes softening when they meet yours. he gently takes the handle of your umbrella from your hand, mindful to keep you covered from the rain more than him.

“i suppose that would be the case, yes,” he replies, his eyes focused on yours. he turns his attention to the fountain, his jaw tensing for a moment before it relaxes.

you still notice the faint crease to his brows, the slight downturn of his lips. it’s almost imperceptible—but it’s still there.

you’re not sure what to call your relationship to him. you’re not quite friends, but you’re far past acquaintances. you’re close enough to have dropped the honorifics, but not close enough to consider yourself important to him. close enough to recognize the subtle shifts to his expressions, but not close enough to pry about them.

perhaps just naming it reporter and chief justice would be better. reporter who got lucky enough to get the chief justice to open up about the court trials and proceedings, maybe. (part of you would like to ascend to reporter who gets to ask the chief justice out for a cup of tea when the rain stops).

“how was the trial today?” you ask, reaching into your pouch to pull out your notepad and a pen. part of you wishes you could feel bad for missing it, but you’ve never been one for the spectacle of the courtroom. it’s inhumane, you’d argue—how people’s grievances and crimes are exposed for the whole nation to see as if it was nothing more than a play.

neuvillette adjusts his grip on the umbrella, his eyes focused on you. “difficult,” he says, his tone measured. he blinks, and for a moment you think you hear the rain fall a little harder before it turns into a drizzle. “the evidence procured by the attorneys was not as sufficient as they had originally thought.”

the light, hurried scratching of the pen against the paper fills the air, barely audible with the sounds of the raindrops pelting down on your umbrella. you glance away from your notes to look up at him. “that sounds messy,” you muse, pursing your lips.

“quite so,” he solemnly nods, his grip tightening around the handle to keep your umbrella from swaying with the wind. his lips press into a fine line, “it ended up being far more complicated than i had thought it would be.”

you nod, acknowledging his words as you write them down on your notepad. he inches infinitesimally closer to you—enough for you to notice when a droplet falls from his hair onto the ground, but still far away enough for you to not consider burdensome.

it almost makes you smile, how mindful he is. always a gentleman, you think. it fits him—not as chief justice, but as neuvillette. part of you wishes you could write that in a column, if only for the rest of fontaine to be privy of the surprising gentleness the chief justice possesses. but you don’t think you will. (it’s a piece of information you wish to selfishly keep for yourself).

he angles the umbrella, his eyes focused on the top of your head as you organize your notes. the sun faintly peeks through the clouds, letting the soft orange hues of the sunset shine through the drizzle. his eyes study your face while you’re unaware, the corners softening the longer he stares at you.

“what did lady furina think of the trial?” you ask, your eyes drifting from your notes to his face. the troubled expression he was sporting when you first saw him is gone, replaced by some sort of warmth you can’t describe.

“she found it less entertaining than the previous ones,” he says, his tone losing that firm edge to it. he adjusts his grip on the umbrella’s handle again, making sure to cover you properly even if the rain is starting to let up.

“what about the attorneys?” you continue, tapping the tip of your pen against the paper. “what was their reaction when they realized they weren’t properly prepared to defend their client?”

“i will get you the court records for the full description,” he says, his eyes flitting to the people around the fountain of lucine. his grip on the handle eases when he sees the others start to put their umbrellas away. still, he makes no move to do the same with yours—not until the light rain stops completely.

his eyes flicker back to yours, the corners of his lips quirking up into the hint of a smile, “but, it seemed like steam was coming out of their heads.” he pauses for a second, a faint pink dusting the tips of his ears. “those were lady furina’s words.”

they’re not. you’ve interviewed him for long enough to tell when he adds an observation of his own. (still, you’ve never pointed it out to him. it’d be a shame if he stopped giving them out if he knew you were aware of this habit).

you softly hum, smiling in amusement, the corners of your eyes crinkling, “you want me to include that on the column?”

“preferably not,” he clears his throat, returning to his stoic façade. still, he can’t help the way the corners of his lips quirk up again slightly. “let that be our secret.”

“alright,” you whisper, the amusement in your smile giving way to a slight fondness. “it’ll remain between the two of us.”

“i’d hate for our dear lady furina to be branded as a gossip,” you add, your eyes drifting to the sky. a soft hum leaves your lips, your hand peeking out from under the umbrella. a hint of a smile tugs at your lips when you realize it’s no longer raining.

“it would be most unfortunate,” he says, his tone soft as he watches you. he lowers the umbrella, giving two firm shakes—the way he’s seen you do it before—before closing it.

“i will get you the finalized court records by sunset tomorrow,” he says, holding the umbrella out to you. “would that work for you?”

you nod, placing your notepad and pen inside your pouch. your fingers brush against his gloved ones as you grab your umbrella, a small jolt of electricity shooting through your hand. “that’d be great.”

neuvillette’s eyes soften once again, a soft hum rumbling in his throat. “i will give them to you over dinner, then.”

you blink, the tips of your ears burning at the implication of his words. your heart races in your chest, your eyes meeting his. “dinner?”

“if that works for you, as well,” he says, softly clearing his throat. your heart skips a beat when you take notice of the faint flush to his cheeks.

you can’t help the smile that grows on your lips, a pleasant warmth filling your chest the longer you gaze at him. (he looks unfairly pretty with the sunset framing his face, you think).

“it works perfectly well for me,” you say, your voice hushed. your smile widens when you recognize the relief on his face, your heart fluttering in your chest.

perhaps, your relationship of reporter and chief justice is not such a bad label. (at least not when it means you’re the reporter who’s going to get dinner with the chief justice).

#i love neuvi sm he’s so pookie babygirl loml #i havent finished the archon quest yet so this might be a little ooc idk #im trying to get back into writing so bear with me pls #also this is me running away from my other drafts .#neuvillete x reader #genshin x reader #genshin x you #neuvillette #genshin neuvillette #genshin fluff #genshin impact #genshin impact x reader

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