Wriothesley's POV
In the end, Sigewinne's request to go to the store was unfortunately accepted.
Neuvillette even offered to drive us to a large supermarket close by as he also had some groceries to do.
This offer, I managed to decline.
The least I could do was drive.
While the two took their sweet time getting ready, I ate the breakfast Neuvillette had apparently left out for me. Sigewinne just failed to inform me about it in her note.
Breakfast was surprising, considering he told me Sigewinne ate the same thing.
She usually refuses to eat anything that does not have an unhealthy amount of added sugar in the morning, but what I found on the table was a plate of cutely cut fruit and a sandwich.
Does Nuevillette have superpowers or something?
I want to know how he managed to convince Sigewinne to eat this.
By the time I finished eating, the two were done dressing up.
Oh, and they went all out for sure.
Sigewinne was wearing a cute red dress with white dots. There was a black ribbon around her waist tied beautifully. She also had on a pair of stretchy black pants that I reckon Neuvillette forced her to wear because it was cold outside.
I can imagine her whining about how the pants wouldn't fit with a dress like this even though it looked perfectly fine.
She looked all dolled up and ready for a celebration, severely overdressed for going to the grocery store.
But I'm not gonna be the idiot to tell her that. I know better than to shoot myself in the foot.
As for Neuvillette...
Damn!
Neuvillette in anything but his usual suits is bad for my heart.
What is this?
Some childish crush?
What am I? Twelve?
Get yourself together, Wriothesley.
Neuvillette too was wearing a black pair of pants, coupled with a grey turtleneck and a long beige coat.
In one hand he had his cane while in the other he was holding a small white jacket that was probably for Sigewinne.
"Look, Dad! Aren't I super pretty?" Sigewinne hopped over brimming with excitement.
"You're always pretty, princess."
"But aren't I extra pretty today?"
"Of course. Of course, you are." I nodded as I petted her head.
She grinned before grabbing my hand to pull me along.
"Let's go already!"
You say that like it was me getting dressed for over half an hour.
I was dragged all the way to the front door and got my jacket tossed at me.
Fortunately for me, Neuvillette calmed her down enough that he managed to get her shoes and jacket on while I put on mine.
I had to hold her by the shoulders as Neuvillette put on his own shoes lest she ran out the door.
"Can we go now?"
"Yes, yes. We can go." I sighed.
"Yey!"
Oh dear.
It's been a while since I've seen her so excited.
We somehow managed to get into the car and get on the road before Sigewinne exploded from impatience.
"Let's go to the mall first, okay? Groceries later."
"Aw... Why?"
Because if Neuvillette has to give me another pair of underwear I might just die.
"Because we need to buy some things we're missing."
"Fine..."
I held back a laugh at her dejected grumble.
"Anything you have to buy, Neuvillette?"
Surprisingly enough, he pulled out his phone, opening something that looked like an incredibly long list.
"Most of these I'll have to order but I think we should be able to find a rope, duct tape, and a small saw."
...
As we stopped at the intersection I gave him a long probing look.
Sigewinne on the other hand...
"Do you want to kidnap and murder someone, mister?" She asked straightforwardly.
"Kidnap and murder? What- Oh."
The list of items only just now seemed to hit him.
"The rope and duct tape were requested by Lyney and Lynett for one of their tricks which does in no way involve kidnapping. The saw is for Freminet, the youngest sibling, who will not be murdering anyone with it." He clarified seriously.
Pfft!
"Any other incredibly suspicious list of items you wish to purchase?" I asked jokingly.
"The light is turning green in a second. You should concentrate on that." He dodged the question.
That one second was enough for me to take a quick glance at him and catch sight of the rosy end of his ears.
When we got to the mall, the first thing we bought was the three things on Neuvillette's list.
I had to try really hard to keep a straight face as the cashier gave him a weird look when he paid.
"So, where is our next destination?" Neuvillette asked with a straight face, as if the cashier hadn't just used their gaze to accuse him of murder in a hundred different ways.
"Clothes for Sigewinne come first, then her school supplies, and finally my clothes."
That should be everything that's absolutely necessary.
Neuvillette opened his mouth to speak just as his phone started ringing.
"Please excuse me for a moment."
He answered the call and even from some distance I could hear the one single sentence the person on the other end said.
"You've been spotted, so come upstairs while I'm still being nice and bring your friends along."
That was it.
The call ended just like that.
Neuvillette grimaced as he let his phone fall back into his pocket and looked up to the 3rd floor through the open area in the middle of the mall.
I followed his line of sight to see a woman leaning against the railing, waving down at us.
"She is...?"
"An acquaintance of mine. One that is most likely very annoyed at me right now, seeing as how our appointment has been delayed for over a week now." He sighed.
"Do we need to-"
"Oh, no, no. There is no need for you two to come upstairs. I'll deal with it. At most, she will throw a few more insults than usual."
Yeah...
That's not gonna happen.
Not when he's doing us a giant favor.
"Sigewinne. Come here we're going up to the third floor for a bit." I called out.
"Wriothesley-"
"Unless you want me to bring up the topic of payment for the duration of our stay, a topic you've been working really hard to ignore all ride long, talking about how wonderful our current weather is- I don't think I have to point out that it's pouring rain. Yeah, so unless you want us to return to that topic, let us at least help up so you don't get into more trouble than you already are with that lady."
He flinched slightly at the accusation but didn't protest further. As such, we all went up to the third floor in silence.
As soon as we got out of the elevator we came face to face with the lady we saw from downstairs. Just as Neuvillette assumed, she looked incredibly annoyed.
"Well, if it isn't Neuvillette. Delaying our appointment while out on a date with his... boyfriend and... child? Did you get married without telling me?"
?!
What the hell?
Date?!
Boyfriend?!
Married?!
"We are not-"
"We are not out on a date. Wriothesley is not my boyfriend. No, I did not get married." Neuvillette fired back.
"This is why I'm telling you that you need glasses." The lady mumbled.
"I don't need glasses, nor a hearing aid. I can see just fine. Just as well as I can hear you mumbling."
Ignoring Neuvillette's retort, she turned to me.
No. To be exact, she was looking at Sigewinne in my arms.
"Hello, little lady." She greeted Sigewinne.
"Hello."
"Is this your father?"
"Yes."
"Is he married?"
"No."
"Is he dating anyone?"
"No."
"Is he single?"
"Yes."
"Does he like men?"
"Most likely." Sigewinne nodded.
Oh my god!
Sigewinne!
"So, what are you up to with Neuvillette?" The lady asked.
"We are out shopping for a bit before going back to his house."
"Oh? His house? Are you both staying there?"
"For a while." Sigewinne confirmed.
With that, the lady nodded and looked back to Neuvillette.
"Incredible luck, zero EQ, no eye for beauty. All in all, a complete lost cause." She said to him with a deadpan expression.
"Hello to you too, Chiori." Neuvillette sighed in deafeat.