Dances and Ruin// Reiner Braun x OC

Chapter Five

When Peri agreed to trade posts with Daz earlier, she did not expect canon servicing to be so boring. When she arrived, almost every canon had a decent amount of people tending to it. Needless to say, Peri only felt as if she were there for moral support, considering all of the important jobs were already taken.

For the past several minutes, Peri has been sitting on the edge of the wall watching over the district of Trost. Her eyes trail after people walking to and fro going about their lives. They seem so carefree about everything, like nothing in the world could harm them. She wonders if she could have been perceived that way if she'd decided to become a seamstress as her mother had. A piece of her wonders if she would have felt more fulfilled if she'd done something else or if this was the best decision she could have made for herself.

Regardless of her train of thought, she snaps back to her senses as she hears Eren telling from somewhere behind her. "... throw your butt in the clink for that!" He finishes as Peri finally focuses on what he's saying.

She looks over her shoulder to see Sasha standing in front of everybody. "Hey, Sasha! What've you got?"

Sasha looks back at Peri with a smile. "Come look. I'm willing to share. Just think of the sandwiches."

A giggle escapes Peri. Based on what her cousin just said, she's able to deduce what she's got in her hands. "Would you mind doubling the meat up on my sandwich? I heard we were having some kind of hash for dinner and I'm not really in the mood for that."

Peri turns her attention back to the people living out their lives below. She can hear her comrades continuing to bicker in the background all the way up until Samuel raises his voice and pleads for a slice of meat as well.

Sasha, the spearhead of petty mutiny.

The silence is nice and almost familiar enough to be called an old friend, but it's fleeting. Thunder roars and the ground shakes beneath her. She can see everybody stiffen and freeze where they stand from within the safety of wall Rose. She jumps to her feet and turns to the other side of the wall. She's briefly met with the sight of a skinless titan whose head towers above the wall. Her heart and stomach trade places as she comes to the realization that this must be the colossal titan that attacked in Shiganshina all those years ago.

Peri is able to draw her blades but it proves futile as steam rushes toward her in an instant, blowing her off the edge of the wall. Panic almost overwhelms her before she can respond, but before she knows it, her anchor is lodged within the wall's surface and she's safely suspended above the ground. She looks to each side of her to see that almost everyone has managed to do the same, save for Samuel who has one of Sasha's anchors lodged into the calf of his leg. The moment stills just long enough for Peri to notice the small burn on her right hand. It's not too bad, but it might just blister later. Damn, that stuff was hot.

Despite how badly Peri wants to remain distant from the entire situation, she can't shake the sound of her comrades yelling that the wall has been breached and that Titans are going to get in. She looks down at the gate for the first time only to realize that they're right.

A giant hole has been born into the side of wall Rose and debris litters the surrounding area. most notably and regrettably, there are already early signs of carnage. Peri and her comrades were lucky to have been out of the way of the rocks, but the people she'd been watching live their lives earlier weren't so lucky. The same souls who'd been so carefree only seconds ago no longer exist here. She squeezes her eyes shut, "They deserved better. I should've been better."

Peri springs into action, maneuvering her way safely down the rest of the wall. Above her, she can hear Eren urging everyone to move ahead as well, but instead, they go back to the top of the wall. Surely, if Peri knows anything about Eren, he's going to do what he can to engage in battle with the colossal. She can't worry about that right now, she needs to find any civilians she can in the area and get them started with evacuating. Every second counts.