Since their clubs took place right next to each other Fie found herself making the trek with Laura at her side. The rest of the class had dispersed as they left for their own respective clubs, with the exception of Rean who had no club, but had promised his assistance to the student council president instead. Sara's meltdown meant that the other students were still in class for a couple more minutes so the halls were empty, much to their relief.
"So what are you even doing today? Didn't think the swimming club had any festival plans." She asked the older girl curiously.
"That is correct." Laura agreed readily enough. "But at the same time it has been well over a week since I last got the chance to swim, so this wasn't an opportunity I was willing to let pass. Monica will be joining me and it will be nice to see her recent progression."
Fie hadn't actually ever spoken with the red-haired girl that Laura was so fond of, but from what she knew the girl seemed nice enough. She kinda envied her friend for that. All of the Swimming Club members seemed so... normal. Nothing at all like the chaos that she knew was waiting for her at the Gardening Club.
"What about you?" Laura continued. "Are you planting anything new?"
Fie shook her head in the negative. "Gonna wait a bit before I start growing anything else for myself. Edel is growing stuff for the festival. Flowers, medicinal herbs, and edible plants. Promised her I would help her out as much as possible... Kinda regretting that promise right now."
Laura couldn't stop herself from laughing awkwardly in agreement, knowing that she spoke the painful truth. By this time the two had exited the main building and were now in front of the Gym. The two bid their farewells with the Arseid entering the building while Fie continued the last few arge towards the garden next to it.
The garden was still empty, and had it been a few months prior Fie would have taken the opportunity to catch a quick nap. Now however, she instead sought out the watering can and filled it in the pond. There hadn't been any rain in a few days and some of the plants were starting to look a little thirsty.
She had just started watering the first plants when a bell chimed, signaling the end of the day. From experience she knew that Vivi and Edel were relaxed individuals who moved at a slow pace unless in a rush. Well, Edel was, Vivi was just lazy. So she figured she still had a few more minutes of peace and quiet...
"Fie!" Never mind. She had forgotten one very important detail. When playing a prank or pursuing some juicy bit of gossip Vivi could move at far greater speeds. This was proven true by the sight of the pink-haired girl bounding up to her with a massive grin on her face. Maybe she too was a secret jaeger? "Is it true? Is it? Please tell me it's true!"
Normally Fie would be able to force the prankster to at least give her some space by countering her exuberant attitude with the flattest glare possible, but today the mischievous twin appeared completely unfazed by her favorite defense mechanism as she crowded inside the ex-jaeger's personal space. Seeing no other escape aside from answering the question, Fie sighed. "It's true."
Vivi squealed. A loud, shrill, annoying sound. To make matters worse the girl pulled her into an awkward hug. "You gotta tell me all about it! Who made the first move? How'd it happen? How did Laura get involved? Is Rean a good kisser? Have you guys done 'that' yet? How big is he?" Even if she had wanted to, Fie couldn't keep up with the rapid-fire questions. And from what little she heard of the last couple posed, she was glad for that.
"I know you're curious," A calm placid voice interrupted the pink-haired twin, "but you need to give her space if you want answers."
Despite the pleasant words and warm smile there was something distinctly terrifying about Edel that compelled Vivi to hurriedly back off. Sure enough she was standing there, gardening tools in hand. She wasn't alone, either.
Alongside the second-year gardener approached another noble. It was Rean's fishing buddy... Kenneth, if she recalled correctly. His presence, while somewhat unusual, wasn't completely unexpected as he did occasionally show up to fish in the pond. Which given the rod in his hand was exactly what he intended to do this time.
"Hehe, sorry." Vivi admitted with little shame as she backed off, not wanting to incur the pleasant wrath of the noble flower girl. "But I can't be the only one dying to know how it happened, right?"
"Can't deny I am somewhat curious myself." Kenneth admitted easily enough as he cast his line into the pond. "Even before all this festival stuff I noticed Rean had been spending far less time fishing, but I certainly wasn't expecting that to be the reason."
"See? He gets it!" Vivi crowed triumphantly.
Edel rested her cheek in her hand. "Well I did have my suspicions. All the times Fie lit up whenever Rean came to help. It was adorable just how happy you were when you two were raising your flowers together...
Fie flushed in embarrassment. While it was true that Fie had enjoyed having Rean around to help with the flowers, she didn't need the club leader to treat her like one of those characters from the cheesy romance novels Emma loves so much. "Edel!" Her voice wasn't a whine. Not at all.
It didn't help matters at all when her two fellow gardeners giggled at her reaction. "I'm kinda jealous. You should have told me you wanted another girl to help you seduce a hunk like Rean. I would've volunteered my services instantly!" It was hard to tell if Vivi was being serious or not, so Fie chose to ignore that comment. "But you can't leave me hanging! At least tell me how it happened!"
Fie knew the girl well enough to know that she would never truly relent, even if Edel could get her to back down temporarily. There were a lot of plants to take care of and doing all that while trying to ignore Vivi would be nigh impossible. So with a sigh, Fie relented.
The version she told was similar to the one Laura gave to the entire class earlier that morning, with a few noticeable changes. Mostly pertaining to Rean and his dark power. Outside of a few people already in the know that was a secret that had only been shared with the members of Class VII and she had no intention of betraying his trust. Still, even without that element the story was clearly interesting enough, given the fact that both Edel and Kenneth were paying attention while doing their own work. Vivi wasn't even paying the faintest attention to the flowers she was supposed to be tending, instead all of her focus was on the younger girl as she listened to the tale with obvious delight.
If Fie had thought that sharing the tale would get Vivi to back down, she was sadly mistaken. "Hehe. That's pretty hot. So what are you gonna do next? Seems like you're the one setting the pace so how fast are you gonna go?"
The silver-haired student shot a look towards Edel, wondering if the older girl was going to intervene. Sadly it seemed like she was going to receive no further assistance on that front as the club leader conveniently chose that moment to focus her attention on the flowers. She sighed as her friend chattered on relentlessly, and wondered if the others were having better luck.
After separating from the rest of their classmates, Rean, alongside Machias and Emma, began the trek towards the student council building. The topic of conversation wasn't something he was truly interested in, as Machias had complained to Emma that all the festival emphasis was causing their academic studies to decline, but he did his best to participate enough in the discussion as to not appear rude.
This wasn't the first time it happened either, as ever since the day he scored 7th on the midterms the son of the imperial governor had deemed him worthy of being included in their discussions. Flattering, really, but he certainly did not feel like he should be lumped alongside the two bespectacled geniuses walking alongside him. He once tried to bring that up, but Machias had simply ignored his opinion, stating that as the third most intelligent person in the class his opinions held great value (While pointedly ignoring the fact that a certain son of the Albarea household actually held that spot).
Emma, despite being one of the kindest people he knew, seemed to delight in his misery by doing her best to put him on the spot whenever possible. She had to have noticed his discomfort, but that didn't deter the girl at all. Rean was starting to wonder if the girl was secretly an evil witch sent to torment him under the guise of a kind class president.
Fortunately he was able to keep up just well enough to not make a total fool of himself in the eyes of his more intelligent classmates before they made it to the student council building. After seeing the two off at their respective clubs he continued down the hall and made it to his destination. At least he didn't need to wait around as he knew that Towa and many of the other second year students on the council had the final period free. He knocked, waited, and once given permission he opened the door and entered the student council office where the president waited.
"R-Rean!" A red-faced Towa stared at him in shock as he entered.
Right, he had almost forgotten about the menace to society named Crow Armbrust. He could already feel the headache approaching as he sighed. "Listen, Towa. Whatever Crow told you? It isn't true. Yes I'm d-dating Laura and Fie," Curse that stutter! "but anything else Crow told you is definitely a lie."
"Ahah... Sorry." She apologized sheepishly as she calmed down. Just what exactly had Crow said anyways? At least it was nice that she so easily believed his word. "I know you're a good person and am genuinely happy for you. I was just caught a bit off-guard, that's all."
Despite the kind words it was clear she was still a little wary of him and also was burning with curiosity, but if there was any word that described Towa Herschel it was diligent. It only took a second for her to regain herself and switch back into student council president mode.
Reaching to the side of her desk she pulled out a stack of documents, which she handed to Rean. "These festival documents need to be handed out to all of the teachers and the principal by the end of the day. Can you handle that for me?"
"Sure, that seems simple enough." He wouldn't have offered his assistance if he couldn't handle an easy task like that.
The tiny president beamed at him. "Great! Thanks! I would handle it myself, but as you can see..."
He did see. A massive stack of papers that nearly dwarfed the girl. Her normal workload was already so massive, but this was just downright ridiculous. "...I'm sorry I can't do more to help." He admitted at last.
Towa frantically waved her arms in front of her. "Not at all! You've already helped me so much. I'm really excited to see what you guys do for your concert and want you to do the best you can! So don't worry about me. I can handle this."
Rean never really considered himself a very religious person, but it was blatantly obvious to him that a living saint sat in front of him. Despite her words he contemplated if there was any way he could free up some time to assist her in the next couple weeks. Maybe he could stop in for a few minutes before classes each morning? Either way, standing there distracting her wasn't helping matters at all, so documents in hand he bid the president farewell and exited her office.
Since school had just ended, he was fairly certain that most of the instructors would still be located in the academy at this time. Instructor Sara was a wild card, as that woman had a habit of exiting the school just as quickly as the students did, but if he was lucky she might still be there, even if it was just to harass Instructor Neithardt or slack off at her desk.
The cafeteria was already filling up with students as he departed, and he was forced to make a hasty retreat under the numerous glances and whispers he heard directed his way. At least these were unlike the harsh words and glares he was subjected to when he was a child recently adopted into the Schwarzer family, but he couldn't say he was much of a fan of these envious looks either. The path to the school wasn't much of an improvement, but at least he wasn't trapped in a single room with everyone.
The first place he checked once he made it back to the academy, obviously, was the teacher's office. There he found Instructors Mary, Makarov, and Neithardt. The first two accepted their papers easily enough, but Instructor Neithardt stared at him for a good few seconds. "...I am proud to be your instructor."
"Um... Thanks?" Was all Rean could say. While he respected the military officer greatly, he wasn't sure he wanted to know what exactly was going through his mind at the moment. He was, after all, a fervent believer in the 'Manway Method'.
The principal's office was next, and the man in question was there at his desk. The kind leader gratefully accepted his form and the two briefly engaged in small talk. Since Class VII was using the Old Schoolhouse for their practice they were able to keep tabs on the building and had seen no further changes since the final floor had been cleared. Because of this, Principal Vandyck made it clear that he saw no reason for the students to worry themselves about it while the festival was approaching. While it was a nice sentiment, Rean didn't think it was that easy, as they were all invested in the building and if the layout did change again they would be compelled to further explore it, even without orders from the man himself. The student was worried that telling that to the principal would offend him, but he merely laughed heartily at the words and told Rean how proud he was of his class.
With the easiest faculty members out of the way Rean moved up to the second floor in search of the rest. Checking the history classroom he wasn't at all surprised to find Instructor Thomas poring over a book. While he did like the history teacher well enough, he couldn't help but dread the possibility of the man saying something unfortunate.
"Ah, Rean. Just the man I was hoping to see!" Rean cringed. That boded poorly for him indeed.
"Instructor Thomas. I uh, I brought this for you." He held out the piece of paper and hoped it was enough to distract the man from whatever was going through his mind.
That hope died a terrible death when the bespectacled teacher took it from his hand and set it on his desk without every breaking eye contact with Rean. "My, my. It's always so fascinating to see history repeating itself. This school has constantly produced great and influential men, and looking at you I can tell that tradition is continuing in earnest...
And you know what is a mark of many of those great charismatic figures?" 'Please don't say it. Please don't say it...' "Why, the size of their harems, of course!" 'Damnit all!' "Why, you might very well be the living reincarnation of Emperor Valius Reise Arnor. Or perhaps the legendary General Othard? Or maybe even one of the founders of the four great houses, who all possessed large harems of their own...?
What followed was the most horrifying history lesson Rean could ever recall, as the teacher proceeded to go into a lecture on the myriad influential figures in history who took multiple lovers of their own. It was flattering being compared to some of the most famous people in Erebonian lore, but not for a reason like that! Rean liked history, he really did, but he felt like he enjoyed the subject a lot less by the time he convinced the teacher that he had more papers to hand out and really needed to go. Had he looked back he might have noticed the ominous smirk and glint in the eccentric teacher's eyes as he watched him depart.
Both to his relief and dread, the next target was exactly where he hoped she would be in her classroom. Relief because he really did not want to go running around all of Trista and the dorms looking for Instructor Sara. Dread because... it was Instructor Sara.
"Oho. And here comes Rean looking to seduce his beautiful teacher and add another notch to his belt~" Yeah, that was pretty much exactly what he expected.
He let out a miserable sigh. "I'm not even going to justify that with a response."
"Aww, don't be like that. Normally I'm into more experienced men, but I might be willing to make an exception for you. We could have some real fun if you did that transformation of yours!"
He was already starting to regret many of his recent life decisions. He did his best to ignore her completely insane suggestion of using his transformation in that way. "How long are you going to be like this?" He all but pleaded to the teacher who was grinning madly at his distress.
"At least a couple of weeks." She admitted with absolutely no shame whatsoever. "Teaching a bunch of ungrateful brats is boring work, gotta have my fun where I can find it. So if you aren't here to ravish your wonderful teacher in this abandoned classroom, why are you here?"
The bracer looked distinctly unimpressed with the piece of paper forcefully handed to her. "Paperwork? Really? You have no idea how to please a woman, do you?"
"Just take the damn paper." He growled, finally losing patience with this insufferable woman. She grinned at her success of finally getting a rise out of the normally placid swordsman.
Grumbling he turned and began to make his exit from the classroom. "Rean!" Despite himself, he stopped and turned back towards his instructor, fully expecting a final inappropriate comment. "I know you don't need to hear this, but I'm gonna say it anyways: Most people are idiots. Don't let their opinions bother you."
That warning felt oddly specific. "Thanks?" Still, despite her flippant attitude towards pretty much everything, the older woman usually did know when to look out for her students, so he would keep her words in mind.
And with Sara done that just left one member of the faculty to visit. While Instructor Thomas could be embarrassing and Instructor Sara was an absolute pain at the best of times, he could at least admit he generally liked the two. He could not say the same for the final person: The homeroom teacher for Class I, Vice-Principal Heinrich.
As he had with Sara before, he found the baron in the classroom for Class I. The door was ajar so he didn't bother to knock, but he did clear his throat as he entered to announce his presence, lest he offend the staunch traditionalist. The gaudy noble watched him warily as he crossed the room, but said nothing as Rean handed him the final paper.
He attempted to make a hasty departure, but failed to make it out of the room before the teacher opened his mouth. "Rean Schwarzer."
The swordsman cursed as he turned his attention back to the man. "Yes, Vice-Principal?"
"I must insist that you be more thoughtful of your actions and their consequences."
"...What do you mean?"
The baron paused for a second, as if considering his words carefully. "Despite their low rank among the nobility, both the Schwarzer and Arseid families are well respected and hold many ties to the Imperial Family. A union between those two houses is to be lauded..."
Rean had a sinking suspicion that he really was not going to like the next words out of the teacher's mouth. "...But?"
"It is your dalliance with Valestein's jaeger girl that is the problem."
Rean thought he was prepared for the worst, but come to find out he actually wasn't. It took considerable willpower to not lash out at the man as he stiffened in anger. "Excuse me?" He all but hissed.
If he noticed the dangerous tone from the Schwarzer heir the Vice-Principal chose to ignore it. "Even disregarding her... previous affiliations, she is still a girl of unknown parentage who probably wasn't even born in Erebonia to begin with. While I understand that you are young and emotional, if you are truly committed to finding yourself a mistress I would strongly advise you to look elsewhere."
Rean remembered once thinking that Vice-Principal Heinrich was the most punchable member of the faculty, and at that moment he strongly considered acting out on that thought as his fists clenched painfully at his sides. He was used to people speaking poorly of him, but hearing someone speak ill of a person so dear to him was a new concept and one that threatened to ruin his composure.
Still, as close as it came, after having spent most of his life fearing what might happen if he truly got angry and let his inner demons free, he was able to clamp down hard on his temper before he it overwhelmed him. Despite having obtained some control over those powers he was not ready to test out what might happen if he truly got angry. It just wasn't worth it, especially not for a detestable person like the noble in front of him.
"Thank you for the advice." He managed to grit out as he turned and left the classroom, ignoring whatever reply the instructor was sending his way, politeness be damned.
After getting away from that encounter Rean began the trek back towards the student council office, fully intending to see if he could assist Towa more. Thanks to his foul mood, however, he wasn't able to ignore the gossiping students like he normally would as he made the trek. The comments he heard about his status as an adopted noble were nothing new. They were hurtful, but he had dealt with it enough to not let it bother him. The real problem was that he heard the word 'jaeger' muttered on multiple occasions and knew that it wasn't being used in any positive light.
"Schwarzer!" Great. He was already feeling miserable and now he had to deal with Patrick Hyarms.
"What is it?" He asked tersely.
Something which Patrick noticed easily enough. "Hmph. I had thought you were better than this. Are you really letting the opinions of your lessers bother you so?"
"Huh?" Alright, Rean was not expecting that at all. Had he been in the right state of mind he would have noticed his words were eerily similar to the advice that Instructor Sara had given him recently.
"Everybody knows that Class VII is... unique in how they act. And as much as it pains me to admit it, it's that uniqueness that makes you and yours worthy rivals for myself and the rest of Class I. So you shouldn't go getting upset just because others don't approve of your actions."
Patrick was... being supportive? This was not something he would have expected in a million years, but it was remarkable how much those words did to calm his spirits. "I... Thanks, Patrick."
"Don't be thanking me, Schwarzer. I only want to make sure you are at your absolute best so there will be no excused when Class I prevails at the festival."
Rean grinned. "Sorry, but after the hell we've been going through while practicing I can assure you that that won't be happening."
"We shall see..." The third son of Marquis Hyarms paused, as if debating whether he should ask this next question. "...Do you happen to know if Lady Elise plans on attending the festival?"
Oh Patrick. And you were doing so well, too.
Laura couldn't deny that she might have spent a little too long in the pool as she could see the sun starting to set in that October sky as she exited the gym. Still, it wasn't something she regretted at all as the pool was a good place for her to relax after a rather hectic and stressful week. Swimming with Monica was fun and seeing the less experienced girl last in the pool that long was rewarding as it showed her growth. She just wished the experience had been a little less awkward.
While her friend hadn't said anything pertaining to the rumors swirling about, it was blatantly obvious that she wanted to. On more than one occasion did the swordmaiden spot Monica staring at her with a blush on her face, even if she did her best to avert her gaze whenever Laura noticed her looking. A little curiosity was to be expected, but it was enough to make her feel a little self-conscious. It wasn't enough to ruin the entire experience, but it certainly wasn't pleasant.
A glance over her left shoulder confirmed that the late hour meant that Fie and the rest of the Gardening Club had already made their exit. Unfortunate, but not really unexpected. While she knew she could look forward to an enticing dinner courtesy of their dorm maid later, all the exercise she had done had left her feeling a little hungry, so she decided to detour to the cafeteria for a snack and a drink before returning home for the evening.
The pudding she got for herself might have been something of an indulgence, but as long as she moderated herself it was fine to do the things she wanted to do, even if it wasn't the most optimal for her growth as a sword user. A simple concept, but one she was just now starting to appreciate for herself. Food in hand she sought out a table for herself.
Since she had no intention of sticking around long and not wanting to get caught up in all the gossip swirling around she chose an empty table for herself. It proved to be a fool's hope, however, as she had barely eaten half of her oh-so-delicious pudding when a group of three girls in white spotted her and rushed over to take seats alongside her.
Despite having been at this school for half a year Laura still didn't know any of their names, which was slightly inconsiderate of her since this wasn't the first time they had approached her. Early in the year they were quite insistent that she join them in the salon, and it had taken many refusals before they accepted that she had no interest in such a luxury. That hadn't stopped them from occasionally seeking her out, especially when she wasn't around any other Class VII members.
"Hello, Laura." Greeted a girl with black hair. With no other way of naming them she was forced to rely on hair color to identify them. Black, Red, Blonde. Crude, but effective.
Not wanting to be impolite, she greeted them in return. "Hello there. Is there something I can help you with?"
Thankfully none of the three seemed to realize how brusque her greeting was. "We heard the rumors. Is it true that you are dating that Rean Schwarzer guy?" Asked Red curiously.
"...It is." She answered slowly, not liking the way she asked that. "Is that a problem?"
"Not at all!" Blonde replied quickly while shooting a dirty look at Red. "Even if he is just adopted nobility there is no denying that he is pretty attractive."
"Even if Jusis Albarea is far more handsome." Red added with a wistful sigh, causing the other two girls to nod their heads in agreement with dreamy sighs of their own.
Even their attempts at placating her only served to upset her! The notion that Rean's status as adopted nobility made him her lesser and that his only good quality was his physical appearance offended her. The fact that she was beginning to understand that opinions like this were fairly commonplace among the nobility only further reinforced her opinion that she had been a painfully naive girl when she left Legram, blind to the cruel reality of the world she lived in.
"Is that all?" Laura asked tersely, really wishing this conversation would hurry up and end. Just these few short words had managed to ruin her appetite, which was a shame as that pudding was quite exquisite.
Sadly for her, it wasn't. "Well what about the rest of the story?" Black asked. "The rumor that the two of you are also involved with that jaeger girl?"
Annoyance gave way to anger, but the disciplined Arseid practitioner wasn't one to give into her emotions so easily. "'That jaeger girl' has a name." She replied calmly, completely at odds with her inner feelings. "Her name is Fie."
"So the rumors are true? But... why? I know you are supposedly friends with her," Black continued, frowning dubiously at the very notion. "...but fooling around with a girl like that has got to to be dangerous. So why do it?"
The notion that they were just fooling around with Fie was simply ludicrous, but the rest of that statement bothered Laura greatly. It wasn't long ago that shrouded in her own ignorance she believed something quite similar. To have that same ignorance reflected back upon her in so cruel a manner hurt her more than she cared to admit. But perhaps she could enlighten them like she had been? "She's not-"
"Oh! I figured it out!" Red cut her off, inadvertently sealing the fates of all involved. "Father once took me to a traveling entertainment group. One of the attractions they had were some exotic beasts that they had tamed. It was really terrifying at first, but it was really fun to see those scary monsters acting so docile."
"Wha-?"
Blonde giggled at the thought. "My brother told me about those. Once they remove everything that makes them dangerous they are completely harmless. That girl is pretty cute so I imagine it is something like that."
"No, it's-"
"Is that what it is?" Black asked excitedly. "Take in a girl like that. Train her and civilize her before keeping her around as a pet? That sounds so hot!"
"I know, right?"
"I wonder if my boyfriend will let me adopt a commoner?"
Laura considered herself to be a calm person, slow to anger and quick to forgive. But even she had her limits. Unlike Rean, she didn't need to worry about her inner demons causing chaos if unleashed, so she never really prioritized suppressing her emotions like he had. It wasn't easy, but she could be roused to anger and if that did happen she lacked the discipline to control herself.
And as the three girls started laughing to themselves as they discussed increasing absurd scenarios involving her closest friend, she reached a level of anger never felt before. Their ignorance she could forgive, having suffered from it herself. But that ignorance combined with the cruelty and superior attitude that was still unfortunately quite common among the nobility? It was more than she could handle.
Red was the closest to her and was the first to experience the result of her rage. Black and Blonde stood there gaping at their downed friend and the fist that put her into that position and as such failed to defend themselves from the subsequent blows. The entire cafeteria stopped as every eye turned to the sight of the blue-haired noble panting heavily as she stood above the three unconscious girls.
Whew. If you had asked me at the start where I thought this story would be at around 75k words I would have guessed the end of CS1 or even early into the sequel, but here we are and we aren't even close to the festival. And this is with me glossing over the events that have no reason to change from canon just yet. That will probably continue for a while longer, but eventually there will be ripples of change that will start causing deviations from canon.
I suppose in hindsight it should have been obvious, as I wanted to make the core change of this story (the three-way relationship between Rean, Laura, and Fie) appear somewhat plausible, especially in a traditionalist class society like early CS Erebonia was. Hopefully I have done a somewhat decent job of that!
Another goal of mine is to build up Laura's character a bit. Rean is the main character so of course he gets a good character arc, and Fie has probably the best arc of the non-Rean members of Class VII, but after the tiff with Fie it's like they ran out of ideas with Laura. There's so much potential there and I think there are interesting routes for the character to take without changing her core fundamentals.
Anyways, just felt like chatting for a minute. Hope you guys are still enjoying the story and will see you with the next chapter in two weeks!