Chapter 11 #2
He found that he liked her the more time they spent together. She gave him the space to be himself while also pulling at the layers he’d buried himself under to hide his truths.
At some point he looked down and realized his lumpy oval had become something resembling a small cup. Misshapen, walls too thick on one side, the rim uneven, but unmistakably a cup.
"Look at that," he whispered reverently.
Mira leaned over to examine it. "Not bad. You have instincts. You should trust them more.”
"I have stubbornness. I just kept pushing until it stopped falling over.” It felt odd to correct her, but Mira only laughed at his words.
"Same thing, in my experience."
He laughed then too, happy to see they could banter so easily.
As the room darkened, showing the passing hour, Archer realized he’d lost track of time completely.
He hadn't done that in a long time. Anxiety was usually a constant low hum in the back of his mind, a sense that he was taking up too much of someone’s time.
That he was using more than his fair share.
The sound of the studio door opening tore him from his thoughts. He looked up, expecting Eden or maybe one of the castle staff. The person in the doorway was neither.
They were tall and lean, with long dark hair that fell past their shoulders and eyes the same warm gold-brown as the rest of the Saints, though theirs held something the others didn’t.
A sort of guarded energy with a touch of exhaustion.
They were dressed simply, clothes less formal than Romilly's and less chaotic than Eden’s, though they held themselves as if they were about to walk a runway.
"Ah. There you are, darling. Come give me a hug.”
The person in the doorway looked at Archer as they made their way to Mira. Even as they wrapped their arms around the woman, they kept their gaze focused on him like they knew how out of place this all was.
"Archer," Mira said, "this is Soren. Romilly's sibling."
"Hi.” Archer waved foolishly since he wasn’t sure what to do. Did them being Romilly’s sibling make them important too? And hadn’t that been the name Eden and Hadrian said when they’d all frozen earlier after the prank?
"Hello," said Soren. Their voice was gentle, yet it held enough power to make Archer shiver with confusion. "I have heard absolutely nothing about you. What brings you to San Noctis?”
“I… Well, you see, I was traveling. And there was this wolf. And it...”
Soren whipped their head toward Mira. “A wolf was involved. But he is—”
“Yes, he is,” she interrupted. “Archer is a welcome guest. Your eldest brother is quite fond. I would not say anything aloud you do not want him to hear. He has mostly behaved himself so far.”
"Mostly," they acknowledged.
“I’m sorry if I’ve done something wrong.” The words came out in a rush as Archer feared he’d truly messed up somehow.
Mira reached her hand out, laying it gently on his cheek. “Dear boy, I do not mean you have not behaved. I was speaking of Romilly. He has managed to keep his cool so far despite wanting to come snatch you away every second you are gone from his side.”
“Oh.” Archer stared at her wide-eyed. The panic that had flooded his system didn’t fade this time.
It was paralyzing. His body wanted to run, to flee as far as he could go. Seconds away from doing just that, he felt a set of hands land on either side of his neck. Looking up, his vision cleared enough to reveal Soren holding him, their eyes closed as their lips moved rapidly.
Archer blinked a few times, trying to make sense of it all. The touch felt too personal for someone he’d just met. But at the same time he didn’t want to ask Soren to move. Their touch created a pulsing sort of euphoria. It counteracted the negative emotions he’d had just moments earlier.
When Soren opened their eyes, Archer found himself looking into yet another pair of glowing orbs. “Feeling better?”
“I do,” Archer whispered. “I’ve felt off most of the afternoon. The whole castle felt different somehow.”
Soren pulled away, their hands dropping to their sides. "You noticed that?”
"Hard not to. I don’t want to sound like I’m making this up, but I can like… feel it.”
“Can you now? That is interesting,” Soren agreed.
He looked at Soren. They were standing with their arms loose at their sides in a way that looked relaxed but wasn't, their shoulders not as regal as when they’d arrived. Archer recognized the stance for what it was. He'd stood like that plenty of times himself.
He thought about not saying anything. The smarter thing, probably, was to keep to himself. He barely knew this person. He was a guest in their home. He was also, by all metrics, an outsider to whatever world of secrets they had.
But he knew what it felt like when nobody asked.
"Are you okay?" he said, breaking the quiet.
Soren’s eyes widened, a flash of gold passing through them before they schooled themselves. "I am fine.”
"Okay.” Archer didn’t try to push Soren to say more. They were obviously not fine. Didn’t mean they wanted to talk about it with him though.
Things were quiet for several minutes. Mira and Archer worked their clay as Soren meandered around the room looking at their mother’s various pieces of work.
Eventually it was Soren who spoke. “I am glad you are here, Archer.”
Archer didn't know what had happened earlier. He didn't know what was going on or what this place actually was. He didn't know what Soren was carrying or why it had put that look in their eyes.
But he knew these people were changing his life in ways he had no hope of avoiding. They were carving themselves into his heart bit-by-bit, filling in spaces he thought would remain empty.
He'd been given more affection in a handful of days than in his whole life before arriving in San Noctis.