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“P-Please, I promise that this is just an ordinary medical kit!” Sigewinne clutched the handles of her bag as she earnestly begged to not part ways with it.
Across from her stood a Garde, who appeared less than sympathetic towards her plight.
“Silence. Convicts do not possess the right to carry personal belongings with them to the Fortress. As such, we require you to hand over your—”
The Garde’s words were interrupted as they noticed the expression on Sigewinne’s face change. Her eyes widened in alert, and she was no longer looking at the Garde, but at a familiar presence that appeared behind them.
When the Garde turned around, their face paled in an instant.
This third presence was none other than the Iudex, whose displeased and narrowed gaze threatened to pierce right through them. Though he was completely drenched from head-to-toe, it somehow made him look even more intimidating. The Garde was dumbfounded at how he could stand to be in such heavy rain without an umbrella, especially someone like the Iudex, who always maintained an orderly appearance.
“Ch-Chief Justice Neuvillette!” the Garde greeted him with a panic-filled salute. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
Even when Neuvillette had yet to say anything, Sigewinne carefully observed the way his jaw tightened, and how he gripped the head of his cane more firmly than usual. Subtle gestures that were imperceptible to the average human, but all too obvious to the little Melusine that stood before him.
Neuvillette then spoke coldly, enough to have turned the raindrops over his lips into ice.
“I don’t recall there being a protocol which demands that you confiscate an inmate’s belongings, much less something as innocuous as a medical kit.”
He spoke nothing but facts, impartial as always, but even the Garde could sense the disdain which laid beneath his words. They cleared their throat, and with a few obedient nods, quickly corrected their mistake.
“O-Of course!” The Garde then looked back down over to Sigewinne, their expression much more kind than before, though obviously stirred by an unacknowledged force.
“My apologies, uh, Miss Sigewinne. You are permitted to bring your medical kit with you to the Fortress.”
Sigewinne shined a smile at them, as if they had done no wrong. At that, the Garde felt a sting in their chest, and quickly looked for a way to excuse themselves.
“I-I’ll go ahead now, and call the elevator to take you down to the Fortress.”
The Garde turned their head to Neuvillette and sought his permission to leave. He nodded at them once, his aloof expression still unchanged from before. Understanding that their presence was no longer welcome, the Garde left Neuvillette and Sigewinne with their tail between their legs.
Sigewinne continued to silently watch as Neuvillette’s eyes, darkened with grief, regained a bit of their light once they looked upon her.
“Sigewinne. I...”
Neuvillette’s icy demeanor had thawed completely with the Garde’s absence. His voice shook beneath all the sentiments he forced himself to repress.
I wish things hadn’t turned out like this.
If only there was a way for me to have pardoned you myself.
I’m sorry.
No. None of those will do.
The Chief Justice of Fontaine, known as the Iudex, is renowned for his unassailable impartiality.
“I’ve come to say goodbye.”
As he said those words, the rainstorm above them persisted with even more intensity. Even Sigewinne found it difficult to maintain her cheery smile, but nonetheless, her eyes turned into crescents as she offered Neuvillette a sympathetic grin.
“Monsieur Neuvillette, there’s no need to be sad...”
Her voice was barely audible above the droplets that crashed around them, but she continued to speak with the hope that her words would reassure Neuvillette.
“I was the one who accepted to be put on trial, remember?” she asked as she opened her eyes and placed a hand over her chest. “I understand that I broke the law with what I did, and even so, I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Neuvillette's expression became painted with an even greater sorrow. Rather than soothing him, Sigewinne’s unwavering respect only deepened his remorse. For a soul as kind and gentle as hers to be condemned to spend even a day within that underwater prison... Was that not the antithesis of justice?
Neuvillette’s doubts were interrupted as a small hand found its way to his. Sigewinne stood next to him, and pointed her bag in the direction of the passage that led down to the Fortress elevator.
“Let’s go! We don't want to keep the Garde waiting.” Still, she sounded bubbly as ever, as if she were about to embark on a field trip. Neuvillette choked back his anguish, and slowly walked her to the open passage.
“Should you ever find your safety or comfort under threat,” he began to warmly say, “do not hesitate to write to me.”
“Oh, of course!” Sigewinne giggled back at him, like his request was a given. “I was planning on writing letters to you anyway!”
Neuvillette furrowed his eyebrows in uncertainty. “Really? Are you sure? You will likely be very busy within the Fortress... Please, do not feel the need to burden yourself any further.”
Though his voice was firm, Sigewinne could tell he spoke with hesitation to reject her offer. He refused to show it, but she understood how heavy his solitude weighed on him.
“A burden? Don’t be silly! My spirits are always lifted whenever I get to hear from you!”
At that, Neuvillette looked over to her, and his eyes welled even further. He took a deep breath as they arrived to the door that led down the underground steps to the Fortress elevator.
“Then... I would be more than happy to stay in touch.”
Sigewinne beamed up at him from under the hood of her raincoat.
“It’s a promise!”
She then stood in front of Neuvillette again as they said their final goodbyes, before Sigewinne would descend the staircase and begin her sentence.
“Take care, Monsieur Neuvillette!” Her eyes twinkled as she waved her little gloved hand at him.
Neuvillette waved back, his expression mournful.
“Take care, Sigewinne...”
He then watched as Sigewinne disappeared into the ground, the door closing slowly behind her. She took a moment to appreciate the sound of the water as it pattered against the metal above, for she knew that where she was headed, there would be no more rain. And there would be no way for her to have known that the rain persisted for seven days straight, until the first of her many letters made its way to Neuvillette’s desk.