Training shifted.
They sparred now not to win, but to dominate and endure. Reinhardt forced Owen into awkward positions, bad footing, uneven ground. He'd shove him mid-step, laugh when Owen stumbled, then smack him again for losing focus.
"Real fights don't wait for you to be ready," Reinhardt barked. "They happen when you're tired, hungry, grieving, or all three."
Owen took the hits.
Got back up.
Again. And again.
At night, he sat alone with Seishi laid across his knees.
He stopped asking it for anything.
Instead, he spoke.
Not out loud, just intentless thoughts. Memories. Regrets. The names he refused to forget.
The blade stayed dark and dull.
One afternoon, the Baroness found Reinhardt drinking in the shade.
"You're sharpening him too fast," she said.
Reinhardt scoffed. "I'm keeping him alive."
She crossed her arms. "He's still grieving."
Reinhardt stared into his cup, expression unreadable.
"So am I," he said quietly.
Silence followed it like a convoy of carriages heading to a ball which was only interrupted when a maid arrived before lady Delia in a rush.
"My lady" she spoke softly while lowering her head. "It appears that Young Master Cedric has arrived."
Lady Delia smiled. " Alright then, I'll be right there shortly."
Meanwhile Owen who was training in the courtyard suddenly paused mid swing. A familiar presence had returned.
His hand tightened around the hilt of his blade as he stared at the man standing before him.
Cedric felt it too. His steps faltering as his eyes locked onto the figure standing across the courtyard.
"…Owen?" he said.
The man who turned wasn't the boy he remembered.
Dull eyes. Sharper posture. A presence that pressed against Cedric's skin like a held breath before a strike.
They stared at each other.
No insults.
No words.
Just recognition.
" Just how did he get so strong." that thought crossed his mind like a hurricane.
" Oh I see you're just in time." a voice echoed through the hallway as it approached the courtyard.
It was baron Aldric.
"Ah" Cedric exclaimed. "Greetings Father I have come with the documents you requested."
"Owen." Aldric turned to him. "Would you like to join us inside, I'm sure this is something that will pique your interest."
"I'm busy with training." Owen shrugged.
As Aldric and Cedric walked off to the office Cedric turned around only to see Owen back at his training.
The following day at the crack of dawn, Cedric found Owen by the old training yard, the one no one used anymore. The wooden posts were splintered, the ground uneven from years of neglect.
Owen stood alone, blade sheathed, eyes half-lidded as the wind tugged at his coat.
"You've changed," Cedric said.
Owen didn't turn. "So have you."
Cedric clicked his tongue. "You disappeared. No letter. No warning."
"…I didn't expect you of all people to be concerned," Owen replied.
That stung more than Cedric expected.
"You're walking around with mana like a calamity," Cedric said sharply. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?"
Owen finally looked at him.
Not cold. Not angry.
Just tired.
"I know," he said. "That's why I'm here."
Cedric frowned. "Then riddle me this you left because you hate orders. You hate structure. And yet you still came back to this why? Why back here of all places?"
"I came back because I this was the only place I could come back to," Owen said simply.
Cedric went quiet.
The silence stretched.
Then Cedric exhaled. "You hate me right?"
Owen's brow creased faintly. "That's not true."
Cedric shook his head. "You know there's after you left, mother resented me for doing all that shit to you"
Owen studied him for a moment. "She probably didn't mean it Cedric."
Cedric hesitated.
"…I hate how right you are."
That made Owen laugh, soft, breathy and, surprising.
"So do I," he admitted.
They stood side by side, watching the sun climb.
"Still don't want to be knighted?" Cedric asked.
"Nope."
Cedric smirked. "Figures."
A pause.
"You leaving again?" Cedric asked.
"Yes."
"When?"
"Soon."
Cedric clenched his fist, then relaxed it.
"…Then don't die," he said.
Owen glanced at him, genuinely startled.
Cedric scoffed. "What? I'm allowed to say that."
Owen nodded. "Yeah."
He hesitated, then added, "You too."
Cedric turned away first this time.
"Cedric" Owen called out "I haven't forgotten our promise."
Cedric paused. For a moment, just a moment, something shifted in his chest.
"See you at the top then." He scoffed, as he walked off.