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Neuvillette had always reminded Wriothesley of the otters that could be found around the Court of Fontaine— the cute little sea creatures that slept in pairs and never separated. Neuvillette, he knew, was the Hydro Dragon Sovereign, but in the Duke's eyes, he resembled an otter.
So when Wriothesley saw an otter stuffed animal in one of the shops around the Court of Fontaine—he had to buy it. There was no other option. It was otterly adorable and it reminded him of his husband quite a bit. Plus, he didn't have many personal things in his office at Meropide, so something to bring memories of his beloved would be a nice touch.
"Hello, I'd like to buy that stuffed otter, please." the Duke hummed, pointing to the basket of otters in the corner of the shop. The shopkeeper looked at him, confused as to why a grown ass man was buying a stuffed animal, but rung him up anyways and allowed him to purchase it.
"That will be… seven hundred mora." said the lady, still lost.
"Jeez, okay." Wriothesley whistled, but fished the mora out of his wallet and handed it to the lady despite the price. "Thanks! Have a great day, miss!"
After leaving the store, he held the otter in his arms, very happy with his choice to buy it.
He digressed, it was probably a stupid purchase, considering it was very overpriced… but… it was just so cute!
But, c'est la vie, he thought, and moved on with his day. Wriothesley now had an otter in his pocket and wasn't afraid of people seeing him carrying a stuffed animal. He spent so much time in Meropide anyways that nobody would even be able to chastise him for it.
Wriothesley became a little addicted to holding the otter throughout his trip to the Court. When he wasn't with Neuvillette, he had the stuffed toy on him at all times, usually in his arms. He even discreetly placed it in he and Neuvillette's bed before the Iudex came to bed, so that Wriothesley would be able to cuddle it while waiting.
"Wriothesley, beloved?" Neuvillette chirped, opening the door to their shared bedroom. "I just have to finish this last piece of paperwork revolving this case and then I will come to rest with you."
"Sounds good, sweetness!" replied the Duke, grinning from ear to ear at the prospect of his spouse coming to bed soon. So he tucked the plushie under his arm and nuzzled into it, waiting for his husband to retire for the night and come to bed.
He didn't think much of it, thinking it was just a really cute thing he did to remind himself of his husband. But… he hadn't particularly considered how Neuvillette would feel about something that was supposed to be something that reminded Wriothesley of him.
In fact, he hadn't imagined that Neuvillette would disdain it so much that he would become upset, and furthermore—make it rain in Fontaine.
It was no secret that the Hydro Dragon's emotions controlled the weather in Fontaine, so immediately when Wriothesley saw that it was raining, he knew that something was up.
So immediately after his meeting with some of the Gardes, he headed towards le Palais Mermonia.
Upon entering, Wriothesley noticed that something was amiss. The Melusines around him were a bit more on edge than usual (likely because of the downpour outside, as they were more sensitive to Hydro than all of the humans in Fontaine), which was not a reassuring sign.
The Hydro Dragon was distressed. So Wriothesley strode down the long hallway towards the door to his husband's office. Though, when he approached, he was almost immediately stopped by Sedene, Neuvillette's Melusine assistant.
"Sorry, the Iudex isn't taking visitor—oh! Wriothesley." she said flatly. "Go in, I suppose. And good luck."
Good luck? Whatever did she mean by that?
"Um… thanks? I think?" replied the warden before entering the office.
The air was tense in the office, something that Wriothesley didn't like. He glanced forward, noticing that his husband was hunched over a massive stack of paperwork with a tired expression on his face.
"Neuv? Hey… uh… it's me." Wriothesley walked towards his husband, then stood behind his chair and placed his hands on the dragon's shoulders. "You okay, sweetness? It's been raining for the past two days."
"I wonder why?" Neuvillette hummed, clearly uninterested in this conversation.
"I also wonder. That's why I'm here."
"Why don't you guess, beloved?"
"No thanks. I'd like to know what's wrong with my dear dragon as soon as possible." the duke murmured, massaging the Iudex's shoulders gently. "Please, Neuvi."
Neuvillette sighed. "Well then. Allow me to draw your attention to that idiotic otter stuffed animal you bought the other day."
Wriothesley didn't have it on him, but he knew what the dragon was talking about.
"What about it?" asked the duke.
"You are giving it more attention than you are giving me, lately. I feel… replaced. Like I am inadequate for you, so you resort to finding other means to happy yourself." explained Neuvillette, and Wriothesley froze.
Ohhhh shit.
Neuvillette was jealous, that much was clear, but he sounded more hurt than anything.
"Shit." Wriothesley muttered, removing his hands from his lover's shoulders to facepalm. "Neuv— I—"
"I understand if I have been non-sufficient for you, I just… I wish you would have communicated that to me so that I could have become better—" Neuvillette started, placing his pen down onto the desk and turning his chair to face his beloved.
"No." interjected the warden. "You— don't think that. Just… don't. You are more than adaquate for me, Neuvillette. Fuck—you're like the only person I actually care about other than Sigewinne in the entirety of Teyvat."
"Then why—"
"Because it reminded me of you."
Neuvillette paused. "I remind you… of an otter?"
Wriothesley nodded. "Yep. Clingy creatures, but super smart, really sweet but also very aware of what's going on around them."
"So you bought that stuffed toy… because it reminded you of me?"
"Correct."
"Why… why did you hold it more than you held me, then? I felt like you were avoiding me." Neuvillette murmured. "I know that's probably not the case, but I would like an explanation."
"…I thought you didn't want me to hold you. You'd been sleeping on the other side of the bed, and I didn't think you wanted me to—"
"That was because you were holding the plushie, Wriothesley. I thought it took priority over me!"
The Duke of Meropide shook his head nearly immediately, and pulled Neuvillette into a hug. "Shit… I never meant to make you feel that way… you should've just told me… Archons Neuv I'm so sorry. You aren't replaceable. I'd never replace you."
He kissed the ring on Neuvillette's finger. "This is proof of that. Until death do us part, remember?"
The dragon growled lowly.
"Right, right! No death! Sorry!" He held Neuvillette's hands tightly. "I'll hold you properly from now on. I really only bought that otter to keep me company at Meropide when I can't see you."
"Ah, I see. That… makes more sense. I am glad you… miss me." replied the Iudex. "I am sorry for getting upset with you."
"Nah, you were totally justified. I was kind of being a dick."
"…kind of?"
"Don't worry Neuvillette, sweetness, love of my life, my pretty dragon—"
The judge swatted at him. "No need to be so… sentimental."
"Ah, but I love you so! Plus, you're otterly irreplaceable."