Chapter Text
The golden rays of a setting sun slither into the vast library of Palais Mermonia. It sets on the book that Furina has been reading for the past hour, seemingly reminding her that she had spent her whole day searching for something she does not know of.
She glances at the grandfather clock; it is nearly six in the afternoon.
Thirty more minutes. She quietly tells herself, because she would hate to stay at the library past its closing hours.
The book before her is one that is nearly as old as her. The author, she remembers, was from a noble family, and who frequently requested for interviews with her at the beginning of her reign. He had left quite an impression with his strange and specific questions — she used to deem him as a threat to her charade. How ironic, considering that she has been very much indulged in his work for the past hours.
Its name had intrigued her at first: Power of the Divines, and the fact that it was hidden in one of the deepest corners of the Palais’ ginormous library tempted her. She picked it up and started reading it almost immediately. It is rare to find a book on the study of divine power, after all; and it might just have the one thing she’s looking for — at least, so she hopes.
Three hundred pages, and hours later, Furina still hasn’t seen anything that she is not already familiar with, other than the confusing style of writing that makes her head spin. It does not tell her how to prevent her people from drowning when the flood comes, it does not tell her how to push back a flood from Celestia with merely her divinity. If she were to be honest, the book just seems like a biography of the archons — including her — with a few theories and opinions every now and then.
His theories are, however, very interesting.
So Furina goes back to reading the book.
Her days lately have been consisting of writing plays and reading old texts — and, frequently, sobbing out of frustration — both of the former she does within the library of the Palais Mermonia, the latter she only allows herself to do in the comfort of her own home. Although, she supposes that the Palais Mermonia is slowly becoming her home again, considering the abundant amount of time she’s spent here this past week alone.
Despite no longer being the archon, she still has her privileges of accessing every part of the Palais at any given moment, courtesy of Neuvillette, again; which means she’s been arriving way before the opening time, and leaving way after the closing time. Though it’s much to her displeasure to stay in the library past its closing hours, because it really just makes her seem out of touch, when she’s trying desperately to live a mundane and humble life.
Considering everything, though, has her life ever been mundane and humbling?
Furina flips the page of her book, only to realizes that she’s been reading with her eyes instead of her brain yet again. Her constant zoning out adds to the ridiculous amount of time she’d spent reading this ridiculously long book. So she sighs and tries to concentrate on the previous page.
She’ll stop reading by the end of this chapter.
______________________
“Furina?” A familiar voice calls out from somewhere in the vast library, snapping her out of her reading trance. She nearly gives herself a whiplash by how fast she turned to the source of the voice — which, not to her surprise, is Neuvillette’s.
“Neuvillette.” His name on her lips feels more pleasant than she expects, despite the surprise in her voice.
He clearly notices her shock and walks over to the windowsill where she sits. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d still be here.” She gives him a confused look.
“Why would I not—“ A glance at the grandfather clock. Oh.
It is nearly nine o’clock.
“Oh, archons, I did not see the time.” Furina makes a mental note of the page she’s on before snapping the book close. She gets up from the windowsill and begins making her way to where she originally found the book. “I’m so sorry, I completely lost track of time.”
He follows her to the bookcase. “Don’t be sorry. The library is literally yours, after all.” He says, pointing to a sort of panel on top of the entry doors, one that’s as old as the Palais itself and encircled by carvings of mirth.
On it, written in gold: Salle Furina de Fontaine.
“Oh my goodness, Neuvillette. I completely forgot about that!” She lets out a good laugh.
Nearly half a millennia ago, only around a year after the start of her reign, she had ordered for the construction of a public library in the Palais Mermonia and for every book published in Fontaine to be stored there and be accessible to the people. She, of course, could not build a library without making sure she has a trace in it, the people would criticize her humbleness if she doesn’t; so she named the room after herself.
“Well, it’s hard not to notice when you enter the room.” He turns to the door to take another look at it.
“I doubt the people would look back the moment they walk through the door.” He shrugs and she chuckles. She puts the book back in its original position, which perked Neuvillette’s attention back to her.
“Keep the book with you.”
She spins her head over to him in incredulity. “I can’t possibly. The library only has one copy of this, and it considered a historical artifact—“ she points to the panel hanging over the bookcase— “It’s okay. I’ll come back tomorrow morning to continue.”
“Wouldn’t it be simpler to have it with you, so you can read it whenever?” Neuvillette questions, Furina raises her eyebrow at that. Is he seriously suggesting her to break a rule?
“It wouldn’t be any problem if you take it with you, Furina.”
Ugh, he should know that he’s tempting her.
But then again, if the nation’s Chief Justice says she can take it, what’s stopping her from doing so?
“Alright then,” a slight smile forms on her lips, “if you insist.”
“Always.” He reciprocates her smile, and she commits it to memory. He rarely ever smiles.
Ugh, he should also know that he’s making her yearn again.
No, her poor heart refuses to be bewitched by him again. It would do her more harm than good. She won’t be able to have a future with him, anyway; she won’t even be able to last for over two more years.
The thought makes her stomach churns. She should go home.
As if Neuvillette could read her mind, he speaks, “It’s getting rather late. Would you.. like to stay at the Palais for the night?” He hides his hands behind his back, Furina knows better and silently chuckle to herself.
Is her Iudex getting nervous?
Under normal circumstances, she’d decline the offer and walk back home; but she pities the state that their relationship had gone to, so she says yes.
“I’ll get someone to arrange a room for you.”
She doesn’t point out him letting out a breath he’s been holding back, but she notes it mentally nonetheless. “Thank you.”
She walks over to the window as Neuvillette leaves the library to call for a melusine. She admires the nation that she had spent hundreds of years putting on a charade for, and the disappointment for yet another day without discovery sweeps into her.
“What are you thinking about, Furina?” She feels his presence behind her before hearing his voice. A sigh escapes her.
“Take a guess.”
He doesn’t say anything, which means he knows exactly what she’s thinking about. And he’s offering his silent comfort — her favorite.
At least they still understand each other.
They stand silent beside each other for a while, both staring down at Fontaine. That is, until a voice breaks the silence.
“Monsieur Neuvillette, the room you requested for is ready.” They both turn around at the same time to the sight of a melusine, one that Furina is not familiar with yet.
“Thank you, Verna.” Neuvillette makes his way to the double doors and Furina follows suit, making sure to give Verna her nicest smile. “We’ll be retreating to our rooms, then.”
“Of course, Monsieur.” The little green melusine bows before leaving the two of them alone yet again.
The walk to their rooms is a comfortable quiet one. Neither of them spoke in acknowledgment of each other. It is, in some ways, their own form of communication in itself. For five hundred years, the end of a day was nearly always reserved for a calming tranquility — something that they both desperately needed after a full day of ruling a nation. This feels like the past again, and it makes her more nostalgic than she’d prefer.
Neuvillette stops at a door, sitting right beside the corridor that leads to Neuvillette’s and, what used to be, Furina’s wing. She guesses this would be where she’ll be staying for tonight; and, much to her own surprise, she doesn’t know whether it is glad or disappointment that fills her.
“I wasn’t sure whether you’d like to be back in your old chambers,” He pulls at the door handle and holds the door open for her.
She steps in the rather large room and smiles, “Thank you for letting me stay, Neuvillette.”
“You’re always welcome here.”
“I know.” She sighs, remembering the multiple times that he had repeated that same phrase to her. “Good night.”
“Good night, Furina.”
______________________
Furina cannot sleep for the life of her.
After Neuvillette left, she had gave herself a little tour of the room. It’s a large one, though not nearly as large as her old chambers, adorned with beautifully carved cornices and molding, and covered in soft floral wallpapers. Next to a fireplace stand a door leading to the marble bathroom, where she had changed into a silky sleeping gown that she found in the closet.
By the time she was done with snooping around and getting ready for bed, it was already late enough. So she went to sleep— or should she say, tried going to sleep.
Time feels endless in the dark. What feels like hours to her could just be a few minutes, but she doesn’t bother to check. All she knows is that she is far from fatigued and her mind is a cacophony. So she stares out to the moonlit sky out the window and thinks.
There are so many things for her to think about, yet one thing stand conspicuously in her mind: Neuvillette.
Their relationship is now barely a fragment of what is used to be before; a wall had formed itself between the two of them after the trial, and she isn’t sure if it could ever be broken. Every move is restricted: no more were the times when neither of them bothered about decorum nor formality — when, in the world of high society, they were each other’s break from tiring expectations.
It’s strange missing somebody who’s only a few doors away from her, somebody who she just spoke to just a while ago. But that doesn’t stop her mind from replaying the memories.
She knows that he still cares for her — whether it be for guilt, for old times’ sake, or for another reason that she refuses to think about. He had made that obvious enough. But she doesn’t want to reconcile when she knows it won’t last for over two more years.
That is obviously a lie, she knows she wants to reconcile.
Letting out a groan, Furina tugs — with more force than usual — on the cord to turn on the bedside lamp and snatches the book beside it. Thinking is far from therapeutic, it’s making her go even more insane.
She flips the pages so harshly, it should’ve ripped under her frustration; but, thankfully, it does not. She isn’t sure if she’s even remotely close to where she left off previously, but she reads anyway.
‘The Infamous Library of Palais Mermonia
The new Hydro Archon, Focalors— or, preferably to the great goddess: Lady Furina de Fontaine, Regina of All Waters, Kindreds, Peoples and Laws—‘
She cringes at her ridiculously long title—
‘—had recently constructed one of the grandest libraries of the nation. Henceforth, allowing the entire population access to knowledge.’
She skims through the two pages that is solely dedicated to praising either her or the library itself— Gods, how can someone write so much on a single topic?— until something catches her eye:
‘—hidden between looming wooden bookcases is a marble door. One had tried asking to enter, but was adamantly denied access. What is in there? A mystery.’
The rest of the page is simply the author coming up with far too unrealistic conspiracies, but Furina is no longer paying attention. Her head is racking itself, trying to remember what that door leads to.
She knows of the existence of a hidden room in the library, obviously. She knows of the existence of multiple hidden rooms in that library alone, actually. The Palais Mermonia had been her home for half a millennia; she knows every corner, every passageway, every hidden space in the palace. There are just too many to remember where each of them leads to individually.
The curiosity is eating her up, and she still feels far from sleepy; so after a quick moment of decision, she decides to go exploring.
______________________
Her footsteps barely make any noise on the marble floorings of the palace as she walk through the dimly lit corridors. She had glanced at the clock before leaving, and it read past midnight, therefore there should not be anyone else wandering around these halls, except for maybe a few guards, but they’re usually not stationed on her path. So she makes her way to the library with ease, and with a blue shawl wrapped around her — one that she also found in the closet.
Down the carpeted stairs and a right turn, she sees the mahogany doors of the library. They were open, as always, so she enters and heads straight for the specific door that the book mentioned.
There it is. It’s hidden in plain sight, standing between two bookcases at one end of the room. Still, other than recognizing the door, its sight doesn’t ring a single bell in her head as to where it leads to; so she tries pushing on it, hoping that it would simply open. The door doesn’t bulge. Of course it’s locked, why did she even try?
Furina takes a few steps back, slightly defeated but undeterred. If she wants to know what’s behind this door, then she will find out. She racks her brain for a slither of memory, just something that would help her open the door. For what felt like an eternity, she stands under the moonlight coming from the giant windows, completely lost in her memories; but then she snaps out of it and decides for the oldest trick in the book.
Her plan is to check all the books around to see whether one of them would trigger the mechanism. Although, A glance around the two bookcases tells her that that is simply going to be impossible, and she’ll look ridiculous if someone finds her, therefore she has to think more rationally (she ignores the voice in her head that tells her the most rational thing she could do is to go back to her room).
She spends a ridiculous amount of time staring at an inanimate object, taking in its every detail, trying to see an anomaly when everything feels like one. For a while, she contemplates giving up and wait until dawn to ask Neuvillette, but then something catches her eye.
Like the moonlight is trying to tell her something, its ray sets on a small section of the bookcase. Under the light, she can see how that one particular section sticks out just a little more than the rest. She rushes over and pushes on it until a little snap gets to her ears, and a compartment shows itself— with a small golden key.
Something akin to glee fills her as she lets out a breath she didn’t even know she was holding.
Furina picks up the key and shoves it in the marble keyhole. The door opens before her to a really dark room.
Gods, she should’ve ordered for more lights during her archonhood.
Stepping in, she finds that this room is even darker than the moonlit library, for obvious reasons. She tries to find a light switch, but she can’t really make out anything in the dark. There’s a torch, she thinks, in the corner, but she really doesn’t want to burn the place down, so that idea’s out. Furina looks down to see something glowing— her vision!
It feels strange to use her vision, of all things, as a source of light, but she has to do with what she got.
She uses her vision to find a little switch beside the door, and finally, some light. With it she can finally make out the rows of wooden cabinets, each marked with letters and numbers, and a particular stone slate that makes her stomach churns. The prophecy slate.
This is the evidence storage room, she figures that much from the evident. She sighs, slightly disappointed at the fact that it isn’t some huge discovery. But, in the end, at least she remembers what this room is for now. Furina rarely ever comes here, it’s mostly Neuvillette who tend to rummage through evidences of centuries-old cases in his free time; so of course she doesn’t remember it.
But since she’s here now, she might as well snoop around. Maybe she’ll find something interesting for her own case.
The stone slate from the prophecy is the first thing to catch her eye. It’s the only one out of the four that is found separated from the other three in Poisson; the one that shows Egeria creating the people from Oceanids. She steps closer to observe it, traces the details of the slate as her mind wanders to the second flood. An idea pops up in her head: what if she makes stone slates similar to the old ones, but depicting the second flood and Furina’s role in it? If she hides it exactly where she knows someone will look, then it’s only a matter of time until the people discover it, and hopefully be gullible enough to believe them.
Gods, she’s a genius!
Excitement takes over her at the idea that feels foolproof. She might not know a way to save the people yet, but this guarantees the people faith, the faith that she needs for her ‘divinity’ to feed off, until she finds a way.
With the new revelation and a head full of exhilaration, it’s unclear how Furina finds herself in front of the doors to Neuvillette’s chambers, she isn’t even sure whether he’ll still be awake at this hour. But it doesn’t hurt to try; she’ll just knock lightly, and if he doesn’t show any signs of consciousness for a few minutes, she’ll go back to her room and find a way to sleep until dawn — hopefully.
“It’s Furina.” She speaks quietly to the door, hoping that if he’s awake, he’s still able to hear her.
Furina waits for a bit, until, much to her surprise, the doorknob turns and Neuvillette appears. “Great! You’re awake. I just came up with something really important.” She blabbers to a very confused looking Neuvillette, “Can I come in?”
He opens the door wider, letting her in, but he’s still staring at her without saying a word. The stare unnerves her, so she takes a closer look at Neuvillette. “Oh, I’m so sorry, did I wake you?”
“No,” He replies, his voice clear and not that tired. “I was just caught by surprise—“ a yawn escapes him. Oh, so he is tired— “How are you still awake?”
Furina glances at the clock and realizes that it’s much later than she thought it would be, but that’s a topic for later. “Long story. I’ll try to be quick so you can rest.”
She plops onto one of his cushioned chairs, the exact one that she had unofficially claimed hers from the amount of times she visits his room, and begins: “So I was thinking…”
Furina explains briefly her idea as Neuvillette finds himself a seat on the couch beside her chair. His eyes don’t leave her face until she finishes speaking— and she really hopes that it only means he’s pay attention to her speech, and not some other reasons that might make her go mad.
By the time she’s done explaining everything in a concerningly fast pace that she’s sure only Neuvillette could decipher, he seems to finally be fully awake. Although his eyes still don’t stray for away from hers.
“So? What do you think?”
“I think it’s a great idea.”
______________________
Dawn arrives and the sunlit sky replaces the moonlit one. The birds awake and chirp at the morning air, the flowers awake and turn to the sun, and the people awake and resume their routines. For those fortunate enough, their routines take place in the grandest palace of the nation.
And none of them dare to judge the state the two most influential figures of the country woke up in.
No one dare say a word about the Chief Justice and the former Hydro Archon deep asleep on chairs and couches, when the bed is just a few steps away; and the clutters of crumpled sketch papers all over the floor.
After all, they could never be so stupid as to play with luck.