Giggles escaped the children as they chased one another through the streets of the interment zone.
The small blonde and brunette boy raced ahead of y/n.
"Wait for me Pock!" She called out to them between soft chuckles.
She always fell just short of them.
The blonde boy stopped in his tracks letting her catch up.
"Marcel, hang on!" He called to the brunette boy who had now left them behind.
"Wait for us!" She whined.
"Last one there is a loser!" The brunette called back.
The brunette slowed down, letting the younger two ahead of him.
She ran as fast as she could, reaching the front steps of the house within seconds of Porco.
"Marcel you lost." She heaved. Exhaustion plaguing her lungs.
A small smile formed on Marcels lips.
"I guess so." He agreed.
The trio pushed through the door of y/n's home.
Her father greeted them kindly as they continued up the winding stairs to the young girls bedroom.
"Can you believe we get to be warriors soon?" Porco smiled excitedly.
"We'll be honorary Marleyans!" Y/n squealed.
Training for the young trio started the following morning. The next few years would decide whether or not they were fit to wield the power of the titans.
"Then us and our friends can be free! Our families won't have to live like devils anymore." Marcel added.
The children and their friends had spent their lives dreaming about it. Every kid in the internment zone wanted to bring liberation to their families and honor to their names.
Just a taste of freedom and renown from the people who looked down on them so harshly motivated them to fight.
As the years went on they grew to discover their strengths and weaknesses, always under the watchful eyes of the Marleyan's scouting them. Although incredibly intelligent and diplomatic y/n never would wield a titan. She never could catch up to the rest.
With the competition came resentment toward their peers, driving wedges between them.
"How come Reiner gets the Armour and "y/n and I aren't even chosen?" Porco snarled at the group.
The seven warrior candidates stood around after receiving the verdict.
"I vowed my life to Marley! I will do everything I can to protect our home." Reiner argued.
Reiner and Behrtoldt stood side by side glaring at the Galliard brothers.
"Oh General! Want me to lick your boots clean while the others carry my weight?" Porco mocked.
Reiner's face twisted in anger, his cheeks showing bright red.
"At least you and your little girlfriend can stay behind together!" He shouted.
"Shut your mouth, Reiner." Porco shouted back.
The two were enraged.
"There's no sense fighting. What's done is done." Annie said flatly.
She looked on with a blank expression.
"That's easy for you to say." Y/n replied softly.
Her heart had been broken. She was about to be left behind by her friends. She wouldn't receive the honor of being the closest thing to human she was aloud to be.
She gave everything she had and it wasn't good enough. She ached with insecurity at her short comings.
She yearned to turn back the clock to a time when it didn't matter and she didn't have to feel the pain of growing up in the world she lived in.
Porco looked over at her with a heavy heart. Seeing her in such pain killed him but he wasn't done being angry.
"You're useless Reiner!" He scowled before turning away.
The group dispersed. The angry preteens stalking off to fester in their emotions.
Y/n remained unsure of what to do or where to go.
A pair of arms wrapped around her unexpectedly.
Pieck held her close for a few moments, trying to comfort her friend.
"You're still one of us y/n. We love you." She whispered.
Y/n smiled.
"Thanks Pieck."
As the weeks passed each warrior had inherited their titans. Biding farewell to the past generation of shifters. Marcel, Reiner, Behrtoldt, Annie, and Y/n were to be sent to the walls of Paradis.
Although she had not been granted a titan Y/n was determined to be an incredible strategist.
Her ability to communicate was unmatched. She would be their key to infiltrating the military and bringing the founding titan back to Marley.
Her last day in Liberio was upon her. She and the others were to board the ship that night and not return until they were done. Whether that was weeks or years depended on them.
She hugged her father close.
"I'll be back before you know it. I'll make you proud." She whispered in his ear.
"I know you will." He smiled.
She looked into his kind, wrinkled eyes before leaving her home behind.
"You're going to make us all proud kiddo."
She walked toward the docks when someone grabbed her arm.
She turned, startled, to see Porco behind her.
"You're leaving already?" He asked with a frown.
"I have to get to the ship soon. I don't want to be late. I don't get as much grace as the others." She answered, returning his frown.
"Can I walk with you?" He asked nervously.
"Of course you can." A small smile breaking through her lips.
The pair began moving down the dilapidated sidewalk together.
A comfortable silence between them.
"I can't believe you're really leaving." The boy finally said.
"I know. I'm going to miss you Pock." She replied sadly.
He looked over to her suddenly.
"I- I'm going to miss you too y/n."
As they approached the crowd they stopped. Porco turned to her.
He looked at her delicate features, memorizing them to the best of his ability. He wasn't sure how long it would be until he would be able to do so again.
Someone shouted from the ship. Signaling all personnel to board.
"I have to go." She whispered, a small tear escaping her eye.
She threw her arms around Porco, squeezing him as hard as she could.
He squeezed back gently. Wishing he didn't have to let her go.
"Promise me you'll come back." He whispered into her ear.
"I promise."
The feeling of being left behind weighed heavier on him than ever before.
Y/n and Marcel both leaving so suddenly.
Reluctantly she boarded the ship.
She forced herself to not look back. She couldn't bear looking at the home she was walking away from.
