TW for mentions of disordered eating
I imagine that Soren has a rather complicated relationship with food. I mean,
He nearly starved to death as a child, after eating all the food in the old mage’s house.
While living in the streets, it’s likely that Soren had to scrounge for scraps, meaning that he really could not afford to be picky.
His first memory with Ike involved Ike giving him a sandwich, which was also the first time Soren can recall anyone showing him any kindness.
Oscar mentions in his support with Ike that Soren “doesn’t like anything” in regards to food, and
In Engage, Soren mentions that there’s no particular food he likes, nor any particular food he dislikes, and also that it’s unwise to be picky during a war.
All of this suggests, to me, that Soren’s relationship to the food is (at least on the surface) very utilitarian. He refuses to be picky, and while he will eat anything, he does not exhibit any sense of enjoyment while eating (at least, not that Oscar can see). To him, food serves the singular function of keeping him alive.
Yet I cannot help but wonder if there is something more than that.
This is all conjecture, but I think it would be fitting if Soren actually enjoyed food quite a lot, nearly enough to compete with his foodie boyfriend. Only, Soren has some hang-up’s in regard to expressing this.
I imagine that, once he first got access to regular meals, it took him a while to get out of the habits he learned while he lived on the streets. For example, not eating food as quickly as physically possible.
He probably had to be taught to slow down, to not eat too much in one sitting.
So it’s my headcanon that, while Soren does enjoy eating nearly as much as Ike, he is also hyper-conscious of the way he eats. He might force himself to eat slowly, to take small portions, for fear of being seen as too greedy. And so eating in front of others can be stressful, because he’s so focused on what others might perceive.
Which would explain why Oscar thinks that Soren doesn’t actually enjoy eating.
But, to end on a fluffier note, I like to think that, when it’s just Soren and Ike eating together, Soren feels comfortable enough not to worry about how fast or how much he eats. After all, Soren really can’t compare to Ike, whose stomach might as well be a bottomless pit.
Additionally, Ike probably catches on that Soren eats more when it’s just the two of them, so when he notices Soren taking small portions, he makes sure to take extra for himself, and subtly sneak bits of food onto Soren’s plate when he thinks no one is looking. Of course, Ike really isn’t all that subtle, so people do notice. And Soren notices them noticing.
It’s a little embarrassing, maybe. Soren’s really not a fan of PDA. But he can’t find it in his heart to complain.
Every time Ike shares his food with Soren, Soren is reminded of their first meeting, of the kind-hearted boy who saved him from the brink of death and, more importantly, who treated him like a person.
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