Work Text:
Ever since Epel learned how to read at a very young age, he was deeply fascinated with soulmates. It was not a thing in his family to keep it a secret, it was both a trophy and a joke to discuss, and everyone had such lovely phrases on their wrists, like a beautiful poem.
Hell, his great-grandmother had “As lovely as a red apple”, such a powerful witch like her only felt even more elegant with that! Both father and mother had beautiful writings too, he adored every single one of them as a memory by itself, one he didn’t get to experience, but felt more personal than to the bearer of the wrist and the soulmate.
It was at age seven that he was supposed to get his, a moment he was expecting with pleasure, and so did his tight knit family. The first defeat was that he got his mark by almost eight years old, and not only that:
“Cute”
He read out loud what his wrist said, and that look made him both angry and embarrassed, the Felmier were all poets except his soulmate apparently, something he could not bear to know, it wasn’t a thing to just think a single thing of someone at first glance either, much less in such a small place like Village of Harvest, where everyone just knows each other and every cow there’s around.
With time, Epel started to despise that thing in his wrist. He tried to hide it, change it or even just hurt himself in order to make it go away, his family wouldn’t care if it were just “apple carving” in the first place, so why bother to think something more of it.
Epel wanted to grow big and tall for the sake of his farm and family, he didn’t want to use a broom in order to reach the treetops in the search for good apples, and everyone was growing old but him, he had to work hard. Nothing worked really, and that simple word on that damn wrist condemned him even more, hurting his expectations for the future.
If at least this soulmate person had physical strength he wouldn’t really mind, but again, would he really think of someone with such a simple line? No, not at all, his Felmier blood was poetic in mind although not in words, and the pressure of his future mind also ate him alive, he could not stand all of that.
Magic became a focus after some time, he believed that wielding magic as his grandmother and great-grandmother was a good quality of his and had to exploit it for the sake of the Felmier. And so, with a lot of studies and not so much attention of his never changing nature he got into NRC, the first time he’d meet people his age.
The robes were long and very elegant, and hid even that hideous mark underneath black, a silk black very soft to the touch, and relaxing to some extent. On the sorting ceremony he met a very buff guy named Jack, he sure was athletic and wanted to be like him, “Out of an action movie” he thought to himself and smiled, the now not stranger smiled back.
They didn’t end up in the same dormitory, even more, he got in the dormitory that believed in everything he despised, beauty. It must be torture! Was what he repeated himself in both the introduction and in the fact that he was being called a potato all the time.
That same night he met vice-dorm leader Rook Hunt, which was both pompous with words and attention-stealing. Maybe it was just him that felt that way, but he was so helpful and understanding, making the awful Pomefiore just a little easier to stay in.
Before going to bed, after changing his robes a simple glimpse at his very harmed wrist let him know another unexpected thing, he had met his soulmate that day, the now old words of his mother that said something like “Color is just another flair, when you meet the one, your wrist will turn a pretty color too.”. Of course, even if that were the case today, he’d never find them, considering how common it was “cute” of a thought, so he just let it pass, as if it didn’t have happened.
Weeks went by with not much more, Epel later discovered the prowess Rook had with hunting and general physical activities, awesome magic skills too! Just a perfect person to be, though the boy also started to look up to his now classmate Jack, also very strong but not very artistic with magic whatsoever, still pretty good by his standards.
Both Jack and Epel hung out a lot, taking lessons, flying, training for magishift, time flew past with fun and before they knew, half a year almost passed by, full of fond memories and little worries.
In all that time, Epel’s eyes couldn’t help but wander to Rook’s direction, at dinner, flying lessons of the third years, he even went out of his way to visit him in club hours with simple ‘plants’ excuses and such, just to see him act, maybe in the same way that Rook went out of his way to watch closely whom he’d name as “prey”. He was just so vigilant, a very good quality to have.
A Friday afternoon both first year friends sat at the outskirts of Savanaclaw just enjoying the fresh breeze and the warm sun when a very out of place question escaped Jack’s mouth, almost if it wasn’t supposed to be heard.
“Do you think Rook is your soulmate?”
It took Epel a few seconds to think about it, before erasing the smile on his lips, just paying real attention to the clear blue sky above them, and the yellow soil beneath them.
“No, I don’t think so…”
There were many reasons he thought this way, he knew well that Rook wouldn’t think of anyone with anything but “Beautiful” as an added adjective to describe people or things, but there was also a very hard fact that weighted out everything else.
Pomefiore’s dorm leader had many problems besides educating Epel, one of them was also finding his soulmate, which was something he often discussed with Rook in private. The apple boy wasn’t very fond of gossip, of course, but there was this opportunity when he heard by mistake something that crushed him deeply.
“My soulmate hates me…” declared Rook with certain bitterness to his tone, immediately after Epel ran away from the dorm building and felt his stomach sink into his own body.
Epel didn’t hate Rook, it was far from that, so it was obvious that Rook knew who it was his soulmate, and now Epel, sadly, gave up his hopes with Rook too, because his family always taught him that true love was with you were destined to be, and not with someone you randomly chose, that was the allure to love in the first place.
After the boy’s response, the duo of friends went silent, just admiring the tranquility of the afternoon without a word or a glance at each other, and again, Jack tried to form a conversation about the topic.
“Do you love Rook?”
“Yes, I do, a lot actually… But maybe is just one sided after all.”
Now Jack was the one that one silent first, his eyes were wondering around, he was obviously focused on thinking something, Epel couldn’t decipher what was it exactly, even if looking at him from his position laying down.
“Why don’t you try it?” Asked Jack from nowhere, it was a little surprising.
“Try what, exactly?”
“Telling him how you feel, maybe he feels the same way you know? A phrase doesn’t decide your love towards someone.”
A chuckle was the answer, Jack looked back to his friend and saw him smiling again, a soft look in his eyes and just the feeling of the sweetest apple he’d ever taste, that was Epel and the friendship they shared.
“I will. I’ll tell him how I feel.”
“That’s the spirit! It’s just the right thing to do.”
“Thank you, Jack, ever since I met you, you’ve been like a superhero to me.”
Jack sat uptight like if he was shocked or rather surprised, Epel just got a little startled but also sat up, maybe was just a wild animal passing by, even so, both looked rather puzzled, Jack was flustered too.
“You should do it right now!”
It was almost a stammering response the one Jack blurred out, hurrying Epel up his feet and out of Savanaclaw without a word, too quick to even argue or differ in opinion, but kind of hyping at the same time. That (nervous? Why?) energy gave Epel a feel of confidence to overcome his insecurities.
He went back through the mirror to his homely Pomefiore and took the path towards the forest of the dorm, to which he stepped in with little fear and much desire to confess his feelings, even if he knew the response.
Just a light walk led him right into the shining blond guy, the one that caught his heart, seconds before shooting an arrow to the far distance, it was always an impressing sight to enjoy, one that in this opportunity fueled his confidence.
“Rook!” Epel greeted, running towards him quickly, it was certain that he was looking for him.
“Monsieur crabapple, what brings you into the woods?” Rook took off his hat and bowed to the younger boy, his heart fluttered with excitement.
“I, umm… I just… “
Those green eyes pierced through his innocent intentions in a somewhat warm way and a smile, all that courage he built up went away in a second, replaced by his characteristic shyness around him.
“I wanted to tell you that… That I love you!”
“Oh, I appreciate you t- “
“No! I love you! I’m in love with you! Even if we aren’t soulmates, I’m enamored by you!”
The expression of Rook was almost the same Jack had some minutes ago, kind of shocked but surprised, this time with a visible blush across his face, Epel didn’t know the hunter could get flustered in the first place, he wanted to take a picture.
Rook got on one knee taking his hat off again, like if proposing marriage, and answered with a genuine smile on his face.
“I’m afraid the same ailment has struck me in the same way, your sight is one of the most beautiful I’ve seen in my humble life as a hunter, and you too have captivated both my view and heart… I adore you too, Epel.”
It was left unsaid, but Rook only knew love from lovers that weren’t soulmates in the first place, ones that fought for a fairytale in a world made of plans, and Epel got it somehow by the glow of Rook’s eyes.
Their soft embrace surrounded by all those trees was very intimate, comfortable, a hold of one another that couldn’t be replaced by anything on earth, a love they held for ach other the way they felt their bodies clash in that hug, a very long and silent one.
It was the first time by a long shot that silly soulmate thing made him happy, happy that it wasn’t supposed to be true.