Do You Want to Save Her?

Yesterday, class ended with the usual loudness that came with people packing up equipment and the slow release of students into the corridor, a wave of voices and footsteps that filled the space like water.

Soren packed his things methodically, because packing was something he could control, and because it gave him a reason not to look directly at Esper until he was ready.

She had been two rows away all lesson.

Quiet.

Not angry, not sulking, not even bored in her usual performative way, just… behaving, which felt almost more suspicious than any teasing would have been.

Soren stood up, slung his bag over his shoulder, and walked over anyway, because pretending nothing was wrong seemed easier than acknowledging anything.

“Let’s go for lunch,” he said, the invitation automatic, casual, the way it had been every other day.

Esper blinked as if she had forgotten he existed.

Then her smile snapped into place, bright enough to be suspicious, and her voice went loud.

“Ooh, lunch with my fiancé,” she sang, loud enough that two students nearby immediately looked over.

Soren froze.

Esper clasped her hands together like she was playing the role of a delighted noble girl in a play, eyes sparkling, voice sickeningly sweet.

“How could I possibly refuse?” she continued, “I would love nothing more than to spend time with you, Cutie. Truly. Deeply. Devotedly.”

Soren stared at her.

Esper stared back, and for half a second, there was something sharp and frantic under the performance, like she was trying to drown a feeling by making it loud.

She leaned closer, lowered her voice just enough that only he could hear, and hissed a sentence through her smile.

“But unfortunately I’m superrrrr~ busy today~”

Before Soren could reply, she straightened again, waved brightly at the onlookers like she had just blessed them, and walked away at a speed that was one step away from fleeing.

Soren stood there in the lecture hall with his hand half-raised, looking like an idiot.

A girl walking past made a small sound that might have been “aww,” and he hated that he couldn’t tell whether it was directed at them or at his own misery.

• ••✦ ♡ ✦•••

Louise stared at him blankly, the kind of blank stare people used when they were trying to decide if something was a joke.

Soren stared back.

“That’s what I meant by weird.”

Louise didn’t blink for a full second, then asked a question very calmly.

“Are you sure you’re not dense?”

Soren’s eyes narrowed.

“Yes.”

Louise’s mouth twitched, not quite a smile, more disbelief trying to become one.

Soren leaned back, irritated.

“Listen, I know how it sounds.”

Louise lifted her brows.

“Do you?”

“I do,” Soren insisted, then exhaled slowly, because he didn’t want this conversation to turn into Louise dissecting him like he was a case study. “I just… she doesn’t like me like that.”

Louise’s gaze stayed steady.

“And you’re sure? Like really one-hundred percent sure?”

“Yes.”

Louise didn’t argue immediately, which was worse, because it meant she was choosing her words, and Louise was careful when she didn’t want to hurt him.

Soren filled the silence.

“I don’t have proof. I just know her.”

Louise’s smile returned, faint but persistent.

“You say that a lot.”

“Because it’s true.”

Louise’s eyes softened.

“Maybe. Or maybe you know her well enough to know what she does, but not well enough to know why she does it.”

Soren’s mouth tightened.

He didn’t like that, because it sounded too plausible.

Louise let the words sit, then changed tack before he could get stubborn.

“Alright,” she said. “Then what do you want?”

Soren blinked.

“What?”

Louise tapped her cup lightly, once, then stopped.

“You came to me. You’re telling me all of this. You want something. I do love that my precious little brother wanted to spend time with me, but I know you wouldn’t tell me all of this for no reason, especially knowing how I would act.”

Soren didn’t like how easily she read him, but she always had.

“I want her to go back to normal,” he said, blunt because dressing it up would make it sound like something it wasn’t. “The way she’s acting is awkward.”

Louise’s eyebrows lifted slightly.

“It’s awkward for you.”

“Yes.”

Louise leaned back, hands still around her cup, voice calm and practical in a way that made it feel like she was smoothing his hair without touching him.

“Then act normal.”

Soren stared.

“That’s it?”

Louise nodded.

“That’s it.”

Soren frowned.

“How is that helpful?”

Louise’s smile turned almost pitying, but not quite.

“Little Brother, if she’s overcompensating, it’s because she noticed something changed. If you keep watching her like you’re waiting for the next weird thing, she’ll feel it, and then she’ll keep doing it.”

“I’m not watching her,” Soren muttered, and hated that he sounded defensive.

Louise’s gaze slid pointedly to his left hand.

Soren’s eyes flicked down on instinct, and he hated that his body betrayed him so easily.

Louise’s smile widened.

“See?”

“That doesn’t count. I was just confused as to where you were looking.”

“Shush, it counts,” Louise replied, voice gentle, not scolding, just firm. “Treat her like you always do. Don’t make it heavier. If she wants to pretend it didn’t happen, let her. If she wants to tease, let her. If you try to fix it by forcing a serious conversation, you’ll corner her, and then she’ll either attack you or disappear.”

Soren’s gaze stayed on Louise’s face, because he did understand that.

He had seen Esper turn into polished perfection the moment she felt exposed, seen the way the mask snapped back on like armour because armour was easier than being seen.

Louise watched him absorb it, then softened slightly.

“She’ll settle.”

Soren exhaled slowly.

“Fine.”

Louise smiled, pleased, but not smug.

“Good.”

The conversation drifted after that, as it always did when the main problem had been poked enough to stop itching.

Louise asked how Soren had been sleeping, and Soren lied poorly, saying he was fine, and Louise didn’t call him out because she already knew.

He asked how Louise was doing, and she shrugged and said she was fine too, which meant she was tired but coping, and neither of them pressed because the café was meant to be a resting place, not an interrogation room.

Eventually, Louise’s tone shifted, the softness tightening into something more serious.

“Are you prepared for midterms?” she asked.

Soren’s mouth tightened.

“The writing section will be easy, don’t worry.”

Louise’s smile turned sharp, but not cruel.

“So does that mean the practical will be hard?”

“I’m training,” he insisted. “You already know I am.”

Louise’s expression didn’t change.

“Congratulations. Would you like a medal?”

Soren didn’t respond because it would be a losing battle.

Louise leaned forward slightly, gaze steady.

“I know you’re training hard, I’ve seen some of the insane stuff you and Amelia pull off together, but training isn’t everything. You need to perform well in the practical itself.”

“I know,” Soren replied, and the words were calm because he had already told himself the same thing, a hundred times..

Louise watched him for a beat, then nodded once, satisfied.

“Let’s leave it at that, I know you’ll do well if you try to.”

A short pause followed, and then Louise’s expression shifted again, the warmth in her eyes turning cautious.

“Have you heard anything from Sofia recently?” Louise asked.

Soren’s shoulders didn’t tense, but something inside him did, an old reflex that disliked hearing that name spoken out loud.

“No,” he said quickly. “Thankfully.”

Louise’s mouth tightened.

“Good.”

Soren’s gaze slid to his tea, then back up, because he couldn’t let that sit without acknowledging the rest of it.

“Essy told me my family is taking full advantage of the engagement.”

Louise grimaced immediately, unfiltered.

“Of course they are…”

“She said they’ve been dropping hints,” Soren continued, voice steady. “Acting like it’s some glorious alliance. Suggesting weddings. Like they have the right.”

Louise’s eyes narrowed with disgust.

“Fucking parasites.”

Soren blinked once, because Esper had used the same word, and hearing it from Louise made it feel more real, more solid, like a fact rather than a joke.

Louise caught his look and huffed softly.

“What? It’s accurate.”

Soren didn’t disagree.

Louise exhaled, then traced her finger lightly on the side of her cup, a small habit that only appeared when she was thinking about something she didn’t like.

“The festival is coming,” she said, voice more serious now.

Soren nodded.

“I know.”

Louise held his eyes.

“The academy is open to the public during the festival. Not just students’ families. Not just merchants and visitors. Anyone who can pass the initial inspection.”

Soren’s mouth flattened.

Louise continued, tone firm.

“That means anyone from the Arden family could come in if they wanted, even without your permission.”

Soren’s fingers tightened once around his mug, then loosened, because he refused to look rattled in front of Louise.

Louise’s voice softened by a fraction, not pitying, just careful.

“I’m not saying they will. But you need to be careful.”

Soren nodded slowly.

“I will.”

Louise studied him for a moment, then reached across the table and tapped his knuckles lightly, a quiet, grounding gesture that didn’t demand a response.

“Stay with people,” she said. “Don’t wander off alone. If you see anyone you don’t want to deal with, you leave. You don’t owe them a conversation.”

Soren’s jaw tightened, then he nodded again.

“Alright.”

Louise leaned back, and her expression eased, as if she had said what she needed to say.

Then the amusement crept back in, soft and affectionate, because she couldn’t resist ending on something lighter.

“To be honest,” Louise added, eyes flicking to his ring finger, “if they do come, I doubt they’d be able to do much to you considering the people you hang around.”

Soren stared at her.

Louise’s smile stayed gentle, not sharp, and that was what made it worse, because it meant she wasn’t trying to provoke him, she was simply stating what she believed.

“Sis,” Soren said, warning.

Louise lifted her hands slightly, still smiling.

“What. I’m not even teasing.”

“You are.”

Louise’s eyes crinkled slightly.

“Maybe a little, but I was also thinking of Alex, Professor Roseblood and Amelia, not just Essy.”

Soren exhaled through his nose, long-suffering.

“Whatever, I hate you.”

Louise’s laugh was quiet and warm.

“No you don’t, Little Brother.”

Soren didn’t bother correcting her.

Because, annoyingly, she was right.

————「❤︎」————