Saturday morning brought relief from dawn training, and William slept until almost nine which felt like absolute luxury after weeks of four-thirty wake-up calls.
He spent the morning in his room reviewing notes and practicing essence manipulation exercises that Master Erian had assigned, and by noon his concentration was shot so he decided to get food before attempting more studying.
The dining hall was less crowded on weekends with most students either sleeping in or off doing their own activities, and William grabbed a tray of food before finding an empty corner table where he could eat in peace.
He was halfway through his meal when someone sat down across from him without asking, and he looked up to find it wasn't one of the usual suspects but rather a girl with short red hair and an easy smile he didn't recognize.
"You're William Cross right," she said while extending her hand, "I'm Sara from House Valoris, I've seen you in combat training and wanted to introduce myself."
William shook her hand while trying to figure out if this was another curse attraction for just normal social interaction, and he decided to give her the benefit of doubt.
"Nice to meet you," he said neutrally, "what can I do for you."
Sara laughed like his caution was amusing rather than offensive.
"Nothing really, I just think it's impressive how much you've improved over the past few weeks," she said while taking a piece of fruit from his plate, "most people who start at your level give up or drop to remedial training, but you're actually getting better which is rare."
William relaxed slightly because genuine compliments without hidden agendas were refreshing compared to the usual academy social interactions he usually had.
"Just trying not to fail out," he admitted while finishing his food, "and I've had some help from people who are way better than me."
They talked for another twenty minutes about classes and training and the general insanity of academy life, and William found himself actually enjoying the conversation because Sara seemed normal in ways most students at this place weren't.
"Some of us are meeting up tonight in the eastern courtyard," Sara said while standing to leave, "nothing fancy, just hanging out and complaining about how hard everything is, you should come if you want."
William agreed because spending Saturday night alone in his room sounded depressing, and Sara left with a wave while he headed back to his dormitory to attempt more studying.
He made it maybe two hours before his brain refused to process any more magical theory, and he decided evening training practice would be more productive than staring at textbooks.
The smaller training courtyard was empty when he arrived, and William started running through sword forms while trying to incorporate everything Seraphina had beaten into him during their sparring session.
He'd been practicing for maybe thirty minutes when he felt someone watching, and he turned to find Seraphina herself standing at the courtyard entrance with her usual intense focus.
"Your stance is still wrong," she said while walking over, "you're compensating for weak foundation by overextending which leaves you vulnerable to counterattacks."
William lowered his practice sword and tried not to feel frustrated because he'd thought his forms were actually improving.
"Show me," he said because arguing with someone who was objectively better seemed pointless, and Seraphina stepped close enough to physically adjust his positioning.
Her hands were surprisingly gentle while moving his arms and legs into correct alignment, and William tried to ignore how uncomfortable the physical contact made him given the curse situation.
"Here," she said while demonstrating the strike from a proper stance, "feel the difference in power transfer when your foundation is solid."
They spent the next hour with Seraphina drilling corrections into his muscle memory through repetition and physical adjustment, and by the time she seemed satisfied his body was screaming from the sustained effort.
"Better," she said while stepping back, "keep practicing like this and you'll actually be decent eventually."
William wasn't sure if that was encouragement or just observation, but he took it as positive feedback anyway.
"Thanks for the help," he said while catching his breath, "I know you have better things to do than fix my terrible technique."
Seraphina gave him that small smile again, the one that made him nervous because he couldn't tell if she was pleased or plotting something.
"I told you already, watching you improve is entertaining," she said before walking away, "same time tomorrow if you want more corrections."
William limped back to his room feeling exhausted but accomplished, and he found Kai reading on the couch as usual.
"Seraphina Ashenheart is spending a lot of time training you personally," his roommate observed without looking up, "people are starting to notice and gossip about why she's interested in the intermediate group's weakest link."
William collapsed into one of the chairs and wished people would stop analyzing his every interaction.
"She said my essence signature interests her," he explained while knowing it sounded weak, "and apparently watching me struggle is entertaining."
Kai finally looked up from his book with something approaching concern.
"Just be careful," his roommate said seriously, "Seraphina's interest might seem innocent now, but she has a reputation for becoming possessive of things she considers hers, and you don't want to end up in that category."
Hearing this William had a grim expression, 'If that behavior multiplied with the curse won't she just become like an ultimate yandere or something?'
That evening William made his way to the eastern courtyard where Sara had said people were gathering, and he found about twenty students scattered around in small groups with bottles being passed around.
Sara waved him over to where she was sitting with a few other House Valoris students who all seemed relaxed and didn't seem to judge him or even care.
"Glad you came," Sara said while handing him a bottle, "everyone, this is William Cross from House Ascendant."
The introductions were casual and friendly, and William found himself actually relaxing for the first time in weeks while listening to other students complain about brutal training schedules and impossible assignments.
He was laughing at some story about a student who'd accidentally set their dormitory on fire during essence practice when he noticed movement at the courtyard entrance.
Liam Hemsworth had arrived with his usual group of followers, and the protagonist's presence immediately shifted the atmosphere as people gravitated toward him.
William stayed where he was because getting anywhere near the main plot seemed like a terrible idea, but he couldn't help noticing how both Seraphina and Lyanna appeared shortly after Liam with expressions suggesting their arrival wasn't coincidental.
"That's going to get messy," Sara commented while following his gaze, "Seraphina and Lyanna both want Liam's attention and neither of them share well, plus half the other girls here are trying to figure out how to get close to him."
William silently agreed while making sure to stay on the opposite side of the courtyard from that particular drama bomb, and he spent the next hour talking with Sara's group about normal things that didn't involve supernatural curses or deadly heroines.
He was about to call it a night when Lyanna appeared beside him without warning, and he nearly dropped his drink from surprise.
"We need to talk about the project," she said while ignoring everyone else, "I've been reviewing our research and found several gaps we need to address."
William looked at her and wondered if she ever relaxed or if constant intense focus was just her default state.
"Can it wait until our next scheduled session," he asked while knowing the answer, "it's Saturday night and we're supposed to have at least one day off."
Lyanna gave him a look of disappointment as though taking days off was for weak people without ambition.
"Fine," she said with clear disapproval, "but be prepared for extra work on Monday because we're behind schedule."
She walked away before he could respond, and Sara whistled low.
"Oh? Are you familiar with Lyanna?," she asked with amusement, "that's either really impressive or really sad depending on how you look at it."
"Well we were assigned a project together so…" William said, making Sara look at him with pity.
"You'll be fine as long as you don't do anything stupid" Sara said with a chuckle as she turned to the rest of the house Valoris members.
'Anything stupid? What is that supposed to mean?' He questioned inwardly.
William decided it was probably best to ignore, then he went back to his drink while trying to ignore the fact that Seraphina was now watching him from across the courtyard with that same unreadable expression.
The gathering continued for another hour before people started drifting away, and William was heading back toward his dormitory feeling a little light headed when he heard footsteps behind him.
He turned to find Clarie Hivolt following with her usual predatory confidence, and his stress levels immediately spiked.
"William Cross," she said while closing the distance between them, "you've been avoiding me."
William stood and stared at her with a peculiar gaze he hadn't given her before making her a little surprised.
"I've been busy with classes and training," he said calmly, "and surely not avoiding anyone specifically."
Clarie smiled, seemingly enjoying this new personality that William portrayed.
"You're lying," she said casually, "but I find it charming how you keep trying to maintain distance when we both know I'm going to get what I want eventually."
William felt his jaw tighten because the assumption that he'd just give in eventually was exactly the kind of thing that triggered his stubborn refusal to be controlled but then he smiled.
"You'll get me eventually? That is assuming I do not own you before you do" he said with a calm smile while meeting her eyes, "Assuming to own me is pretty arrogant don't you think? Or is it that I seem like a push over to you?"
Clarie's suddenly had a surprised expression seemingly not having excepted William to suddenly behave completely different from how he usually did.
"This…," she said with a surprised expression, "I love it! I didn't know you had such an interesting side to you."
She reached out to touch his face but William caught her wrist before she made contact, maintaining firm but not aggressive grip.
"Boundaries," he said with a simple smile, "I've mentioned them before."
Clarie stared at him for a long moment before laughing.
"You really are fascinating," she said while pulling her wrist free, "fine, I'll respect your boundaries for now, but understand that my patience has limits William."
Hearing this William chuckled, "So do I and I'm pretty sure it's at the cap."
Claire didn't reply and just smiled and walked while William chuckled and turned around heading to his room.