Moving in together was a learning process for both of them. Soul was not accustomed to doing things on his own, and Maka was not familiar with depending on someone else. After her mother had moved out, her father spent little time at home and she became self sufficient. They agreed they were going to split everything evenly, rent, chores, cooking, all responsibilities, but when Maka caught him Googling how to do laundry she suggested they work on chores and cook meals together until he felt comfortable doing it himself, plus it would be a great way for them to bond as partners.
He was embarrassed by how much he didn't know, she was younger than him (only by a few months, but it seemed like a big difference to him) but was already way more capable than him. She assured him that he would get better at all of this, it was a lot to adjust to so quickly. She never asked about his past, why he was lacking so many basic skills, he could tell she wanted to, but she respected his privacy and tried her best to keep him comfortable.
She had no issue sharing her past with him. Every night over dinner, she would tell him about herself, sharing stories about growing up in Death a city so he could learn more about her and what the city was like. She told him about Black Star, her childhood friend who was more like her adopted brother, and his incredibly sweet partner, Tsubaki. Tsubaki and Black Star had partnered up a few weeks before she had met Soul, she had only talked to Tsubaki a few times but she had already decided she liked her. Anybody who would willingly partner with the boy must have been a saint.
She spoke fondly of her mother. Her inspiration and the strongest person she knew. Kami Albarn was originally from Japan but had moved to Nevada to become a Meister, she had partnered with Spirit Albarn, turned him into a Death Scythe, and married and gotten pregnant at a young age. Maka reluctantly told him about her father. His cheating and her parents divorce. It explained her strained relationship with him and her anger when he had insulted her partner the first time they met. She would get upset at times when she spoke about her mother. Soul could tell she missed her mother, but he could feel there was something more. A feeling of abandonment perhaps, but it didn't feel like his place to discuss it.
When she asked him questions about his past, she tried not to pry, asking questions mostly to compare their experiences growing up. She was really curious about schools outside of Death City. There were some classes she never had in school, and she was fascinated when Soul mentioned his history classes. She asked how teachers taught history without discussing Death and Kishin, they were an important part of the history of the world. Soul didn't have an answer for her.
Based on the number of books that filled their apartment, he guessed she liked to read, so one night he called Wes and asked if he wouldn't mind sending some of his old school textbooks to his new address. A few days later, the books showed up and he offered them to Maka. To say she was thrilled was an understatement. She stayed up most of the night to read them. He found her the next morning passed out on their old worn couch, one of his old algebra books lying open on her chest. Carefully, he removed the book from her hand, went to grab a blanket and laid it gently over her.
Guilt struck him, she was trying so hard to learn more about him, working around his reluctance to indulge too much about himself. He wanted to tell her, he really did, but she was right, this was a lot to adjust to so soon. He was going to tell her someday. He just had to prepare himself.
The least her could do was make her breakfast, to say thanks for being such a cool partner. He had gotten pretty good at making breakfast, he was sure he could do it on his own. She was startled awake when the spoke detector went off.
She bolted into the kitchen, "Soul, what's going on?"
"Nothing, I don't know why the stupid alarm went off. Didn't even burn anything this time." Using the handle of a wooden spoon, he hit the reset button on the detector to quiet the high pitched beeping.
"You forgot to turn on the vent over the stove." Maka flipped the switch. "Smoke detectors are stupidly sensitive."
"Oh. " Feeling like an idiot again, he moved the pan from the stove and started dividing the scrambled eggs onto two plates. "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you."
"Did you make me breakfast?"
"Uh, yeah?" She placed her hand on his shoulder, he glanced at her and was stupidly delighted when he saw the genuine smile on her face.
"That was really sweet of you, thank you." He turns back to his task so she can't see the blush on his cheeks. He doesn't know how she does it, but she makes his small gestures seem like the biggest gifts he could have given her, and it makes him feel better about himself.
"Don't sweat it. It's the least I could do."
Maka has an incredible knack for making friends, and being her partner means that her friends become his friends too. Black Star is a little overwhelming when he first meets him.
Make that super overwhelming.
The first time he sees the strange boy, he tries to hit Maka with a flying kick to the face. Maka narrowly avoids by bending backwards at her knees, in a move that reminds Soul of The Matrix. She straightens just as Black Star lands and turns to face her.
"Oy! no fair, you weren't supposed to duck, Maka!" He's unnecessarily loud, and it puts Soul on edge.
"I wasn't going to let you just kick me in the face!" Make shouts back, she spares a glance over her shoulder, "Hi Tsubaki!"
Soul expects Black Stars partner to be just as insane as he is, but it pleased to find a tall girl who personifies calmness and modesty. "Good morning, Maka! Is this your new partner?" She turns to Soul with a smile and bows politely. "My name is Tsubaki, it's very nice to meet you."
"Soul, good to meet you too." Soul nods his head in response.
"Oy, who's this weirdo?" Soul whips his head around and Black Star is uncomfortably close to him. He takes a step back to regain some of his personal space.
"Who you calling weirdo, you blueberry freak?" He's never been so rude to someone in his life, but something about this boy is telling him social constructs don't exist to him. The boy puts his fists on his hips, throws his head back and cackles loudly.
"I like him! " Black star decides and gives Maka a thumbs up. "Name's Soul right? Cool name, not as amazing as your God Black Star, but still pretty good. I can accept you as one of my followers!" He cackles again. Souls eyes seek out Maka for help, she merely shrugs and turns to converse with Tsubaki. Black Star slings his arm over Souls shoulders, "hey, you into video games? Bet I could kick your ass in mortal combat." Not how he expected it to happen, but he realizes that Black Star had decided they were friends.
Soul rolls his eyes, "you're on freak."
The first time they fight together, Soul becomes acutely aware of the growing soul wavelength between them.
A few months into their lessons, Sid has the students spar between each other to get accustomed to their weapon partners and apply some of their physical education lessons. Maka's up against a boy named Ox and his partner. Soul transforms into a full scythe, still a strange experience for him, and lands in Maka's waiting hand.
As soon as they make contact, Soul can feel their bond. He had felt traces of the link since moving in with her, but now it hits him full force. If he focuses hard enough, he can read her emotions and feel a little bit of what she's thinking, not really like reading her mind, more like they're communicating without words.
He feels like he should alarmed, this isn't exactly normal, but there's something comforting about it. Now he understands how weapons and meisters can trust each other so completely in battle. This is the definition of teamwork. They make the choices together, he can watch her back while she focuses on the battle at hand. She spins and maneuvers him like she's done it her whole life. He guesses she's practiced fighting with a staff when she was younger, probably fighting against Black Star.
Soul notices she's a little reckless with his blade, obviously not used to fighting with an actual scythe. At some point she swings him low, his blade making a path towards her leg, and he knows he's going to leave a nasty cut on her. Panicked, he wills himself to move and his path changes, Maka's startled by the sudden movement, but she adjusts herself, understanding what happened and feeling his concern over the link.
Sid calls for the end of the spar, providing both meisters with positive feedback, he suggests they practice in their free time and excuses them from the rest of the lesson. Maka drags Soul to the forest and decides they should practice immediately. He can still feel traces of the bond lingering even though he's outside of his weapon form. He can feel her excitement and giddiness at finally being able to wield him. He's positive he's just as excited as she is, and he's more than eager to feel her soul wavelength again.
Their first battle against a kishin is a little messy, but they make it out alive with the first of one hundred souls. It's awkward applying what they've learned in class to an actual battle, but Maka learns fast and adjust quickly, slaying the low level kishin with little issue. Souls baffled when presented with the corrupted soul. He knows he should be able to eat it, the question is how? They never really covered this in class. Is it like eating an apple? Can he chew it? There's no way he can swallow it whole. Maka senses his worry and tells him yes, he can chew it. It doesn't matter how he eats it as long as the whole soul is consumed.
He pops the whole thing into his mouth, chewing slowly. His sharp teeth were definitely suited for eating souls. There's no taste, more of a sensation. Like chewing mint gum and then going outside in the dead of winter. It's not an unpleasant sensation. When he swallows, he feels satisfied, like he's just eaten a filling meal after a grueling practice session.
"How was it?" He forgot Maka had been watching the whole time.
He ponders for a moment. "Kinda weird. It's not too bad." He doesn't know how to explain it to her, but she understands through the link.
"Well, you only have to do that 99 more times and then eat a witch's soul."
It seems like a lot, but so had a hundred souls, and they already had one. It was a small accomplishment, but it was a start, they were one step closer to their goal.
Soul would learn later on that weapons didn't have to literally eat souls. Each weapon would consume kishin souls in a way that suited them best. The Thompson sisters would remain in weapon form, Kid would feed the souls into their chambers as one would load a clip into a normal gun. Tsubaki would embrace the souls and absorb them directly into her, a final moment of comfort for the tainted soul.
Soul was fine with eating the souls, he did decide to call himself Soul Eater after all, he had a certain image to maintain.
On the way back to the apartment, Soul noticed Maka walked a little slower and stiffer than usual. Was she limping? There was definitely the start of a nasty bruise on her ankle. Oh Death, it was his fault, he should have been faster and more alert. He hadn't given her nearly enough notice when he saw the monsters razors tail aiming to slice off her head. She narrowly avoided it and made a sloppy landing, probably spraining her ankle. She wasn't dead, but she was still hurt because of him. His job as a weapon was to be the perfect tool for her to use to attack kishin and defend herself. It wasn't fair that he was nearly indestructible in his weapon form and she was so vulnerable, though she'd probably hit him with a book if he ever said that out loud. He would just have to work harder to make sure he made no mistakes, he couldn't risk her life.
He was her partner after all, he had certain duties to uphold.