Chapter 12: Patent and Parent

[Carman POV]

I'm not sure why I felt compelled to hold my umbrella over Neuvillette, it wasn't like it was an easy thing to do, our differences in hight made it so I had to stand on the balls of my feet.

All I know is that the vauge sense of sadness I could feel in the rain was only a fraction of what it carried, and that seeing him stand alone in the rain made me sad too. I couldn't just stand around and let him do a reverse Colonel Mustang, so I moved closer despite the increasing amounts of pressure and held the umbrella as well as I could.

It took him a couple of seconds to notice the rain had stopped hitting his face and I watched as he opened his eyes and looked back at me. We stared at one another, I wasn't sure what to say in this situation.

I am still not used to interacting with these people, especially the people who were once characters I could play as in the game. I knew so much about them, sure, the mortal ones were much younger than in the game, but the ones like Lady Furina and Ludex Neuvillette were centuries old at least. Having dove into their lore, I could understand many of their traits and quirks. It was off-putting to say the least to see them like this, and despite however much I want to categorize them as former N/PCs the palpable amount of sadness I could feel from this being was too much to ignore. I guess at some level I was thinking of these people as game characters. Clearly they are so much more.

As I was thinking, Neuvillette finally changed his facial expression and raised his eyebrow slightly in a way that conveyed feelings of curiosity. Seeing as he was probably wondering why I was holding the umbrella over him., I quickly tried to explain.

"I heard you can catch a cold standing in the rain for too long, and the rain is sad today, I don't know what kind of effect that would have."

I shut my mouth after saying that feeling I had said a little too much. I heard Livre ask something along the lines of "what do you mean sad? It's just rain Carman. Monsieur Neuvillette, my most sincere apologies, I tried to stop him but it was like he was in a trance and ignored me."

Neuvillette made a small courteous smile and said "No need to apologize Mr. Lepaute, how is your father? I was quite saddened to hear of your mother's passing last year, the two of them were quite the ingenuitive pair back in the day."

Neuvillette said this to Livre and listened to his response, but I could tell he was still intrigued by me as his eyes would occasionally flit over to me, I'm not entirely sure why but it probably has something to do with the fact I had said the rain was sad. Damn my slippery tongue.

Having finished his small talk with Livre, Neuvillette turned his attention back to me and once again raised an eyebrow as he asked. "Why do you believe the rain is sad today? It rains here in Fontaine quite often is it sad every time it rains?"

Subconsciously I started to shake my head, while I know rain isn't uncommon here in Fontaine, today's precipitation was not normal. "The rain just feels sad today." I said, keeping it brief.

"Is that so. intriguing.." said Neuvillette somewhat surprising Livre. I was more wondering why he was looking at the air around me. His face was presenting a courteous smile but did not reflect any emotion, in his eyes however there was a myriad of emotions, sadness being a major one, but curiousity and a few others I couldn't identify also made their presence known.

Looking up at the still pouring rain, I got an idea, and said "when I was still at the orphanage, they told me stories about a dragon who lived in Fontaine, they said that whenever the dragon was sad that the skies would cry with them."

I look up to the sky and glance over towards Neuvillette as I say, " there was something they taught me to say, Hydro Dragon, Hydro Dragon, Don't Cry..." I pause for a second, before adding my own rendition at the end, "find comfort in flowing waters, let the river of time remind you there is always a possibility of a better tomorrow."

I saw a flicker of surprise and a hind of fear in Neuvillette's eyes before they melted into pleasant surprise and then intrigue once more.

When I finished my little prayer, he responded, "that was an interesting little prayer you made, most people stop at the don't cry part, but that part at the end I haven't heard before, did you come up with it?"

"Yeah, I didn't think it was nice to just tell the hydro dragon to not cry, I didn't like it when the sitters told me not to cry, so I kinda revised something I heard a bard in green say." I say lying about the part about the bard, but since Venti was a well known traveling bard for using obsure and profound language from time to time it was a good excuse to use in this instance.

"I see." Said Neuvillette as the skies started to clear. "Well then, it seems that the skies have cleared up, I was about to head inside, I have matters to attend to, however, before I take my leave, may I ask what brings the two of you young gentlemen to the Chemin de L'Espoir today?"

Livre stepped in, "ah, I almost forgot with all this talk about sad rain and the hydro dragon stories, Carman and I are here to learn of the process of receiving a patent for designs."

"I see, if memory serves, they are commonly requested by members of the Research Institute to give them sole production rights over designs they have developed, however some businesses have also been known to file for patents. The patents last for up to five years and are nonrenewable, despite the efforts of certain noble houses, notably house De Isigny. If you go inside one of the clerks should be happy to assist you."

After some more small talk from Livre towards Neuvillette, the we slipt up and went our sepperate ways after entering the entrance hall of the courthouse.

[3rd person POV]

Livre and Carman walked down the aisles and waited in line until they reached the counter, it just so happens that the clerk that they went to was the one Livre had spoken to prior regarding adopting Carman.

"Ah Monsieur Lepaute, are you here to file the adoption papers I see you have young Carman with you."

Both Carman and Livre froze at that greeting. Livre halfway through a hasty gesture to tell the clerk to stop taking, and Carman freezing before slowly and jerkingly turning his head towards Livre.

The clerk, realizing that he may have accidentally broken the news before Livre had covered her mouth with a hand subconsciously with an Oh, Sh#t. expression on her face.

Carman could feel his heart starting to beat faster, memories of his mother in this world's cold gaze and how she said "good riddance" as she turned her back, leaving him on the orphanage's doorstep. It felt like fire and ice were clashing in his veins as his usually calm feminine cracked and panic and terror made themselves known.

The sounds of his infant self crying rang through Carman's head getting louder and louder as he turned to face Livre who was looking at the usually calm boy breaking down in a way he had never seen before.

Before Livre could say a word to Carman, he bolted. Out the of the small meeting area, down the hall, and out the doors of the courthouse.

Running farther and farther, Carman wasn't sure why he was running, just that he had to get away. Something was screaming and burning inside him, repressed memories surfaced, times when he had hoped for his new mother's love, only to be shut down and ignored, despite his best attempts. Times when she could raise her voice and tell him how much she hated having him, having to see a reminder of what the nobleman had put her through and feeding it, how other maids thought she only got her position for spreading her legs to the nobleman. The way her face grimaced when when he managed to make his first words and tried calling her when he was hungry and cold.

The memories became overwhelming. Carman barely noticed that he was running along the stone pathways that contained the aquaducts, running towards the now familiar streets of Fontaine city.

Ryuzu, who had been out exploring the city from various high vantage points saw a small figure running towards the city. Focusing on the small figure, she recognized Carman, looking to be in a highly distressed state running towards the city.

She jumped, leaving crack's on the concrete where she had been standing as she quickly made her way to Carman's location, not caring for small things like property damage.

Lady Furina spat out the afternoon tea she was drinking as she saw a dark shadow zoom from one end of the city to the other in a matter of seconds, memories of a past assassination attempt adulting her mind, causing her to hurriedly close and lock her windows, draw the curtains, lock her apartment's door before locking herself in her bedroom, hiding beneath the large bed as she activated her security Mekas to patrol the apartment.

Nobody else noticed Ryuzu apart from the sudden gust of displaced air from herswift movements. Using her scythes to jump faster and farther, Ryuzu made it Carman as he was about three quarters of the way across the aquaduct.

Catching him in her arms and holding the child close, she asked, "Mr. Carman, what is the matter, what has transpired to cause you to be in such a state?"

Carman barely heard her, but the feeling of her embrase helped calm him down a little.

Noticing the effect of the gentile hug she had him in, Ryuzu gently tightened her embrase on Carman, and started petting his head like she used to for AnchoR.

Eventually, Carman had calmed down enough to make sense of his surroundings, finding himself in Ryuzu's arms, hearing her comfort him saying things such as, "there there, I am here," and "don't worry I will not leave your side."

"It seems that you have some trauma regarding parental figures if my analysis of your mumblings are correct. Is there something that triggered this reaction?"

"It seems that I wasnt as uneffected by my mother's treatment than I originally believed." Said Carman with a dark self depreciating chuckle.

"I thought you were raised in an orphanage, most people would not be able to retain any memories at the age you told me you were abandoned."

"I remember everything since the day I turned one year old." Replied Carman to Ryuzu's surprise. "While I wount swear be 100% accurate to the last detail, I still remember the disgust she always had towards me..and I can't say i fully blame her, after all she never wanted me. She only had me because a nobleman forced himself on her and threatened to hunt her down if anything happened to the child she was carrying."

Ryuzu's face became grim and even held Carman closer at the last part.

"When we went to the courthouse today we were originally there to try to file that patent like I mentioned to you yesterday, but apparently Livre had visited before inquiring about the process he would have to go through in order to adopt me. When I just heard that out of the blue, not even from Livre himself, something inside me just snapped and all those memories came back, overwhelming me and I had to leave. I just couldn't be in there any longer."

From a distance, Ryuzu could hear a voice, presumably Livre, calling out Carman's name.

Ryuzu let Carman know and asked him what he wanted to do. Having had time to calm down and rationalize himself once more, Carman decided to face Livre, and tell him he needed time to process the adoption thing as there was many things to unpack from the memoried he had just uncovered.

He also asked Ryuzu to stay by his side as he did this, as he didn't want to be alone and Ryuzu knew most of what he wanted to say if he broke down again.

They finalized their plan as Livre finally caught up with them, panting and wheezing. "There you.... Are... Carman....jeez you are fast .... Are you ok?...what happened? And who is this you g lady with you?"

To be continued...