You ran through the rain, your cloak being soaked and your hair drenched as you made your way past everyone else. You were carrying 2 bags of gear whilst everyone else only had one.
You pulled your fingers through your hair as you exhaled sharply, turning your attention back to the track as you continued to run. Shadis was watching and you knew it, you ignored him however and kept making progress.
Y/N L/N. A beast like no other, he's strong enough to carry twice a average soldier's load and fast enough with it to beat an adult without weights in a race. Smart enough to put the technicians in the Garrison to shame, he has drive and determination equal to Yeager, however instead of picking fights every other week he's just cold to people he doesn't agree with. Still one of the "big brothers" of the 104'th but can switch on a dime of needed. H-T-H combat isn't a issue for him, capable of taking on and beating Ackerman consistently, even while making sure to not hurt her. ODM technique is unusual but not ineffective. He'll do as asked in a team but won't communicate any more then that. He can make his gas last 2 times as long as anyone else and can almost fly without the grapples. A true prodigy. (rank #1)
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Years passed as you and the 104'th trained, you had gotten to know them like they were all your brothers and sisters. You had very few days off but today was one of them, probably the last you would get before graduation, and you knew what you wanted to do with it.
"Name and purpose?" A voice called from behind the door.
"Y/N L/N, I'm here for permission to exit training grounds."
There was a shuffle of noises and furniture before the voice called out again. "Enter."
You opened the door and stepped inside shutting it behind you.
"What is it cadet L/N?"
You nodded, swallowing before speaking.
"I'm here to ask if I can have permission to leave the training area today to go see my family back home."
"What time will you be returning at?"
"I'll be here at either midnight or mid-day tomorrow sir, it depends on whether I can get a boat back through the walls again."
Keith nodded, putting to his finger to his mouth as he thought over it.
"I don't see why not, you'll miss just under half a day of training, but you don't need it do you Y/N?"
You merely shook your head.
"Alright fine, you have permission to leave grounds for today and tomorrow, we'll be doing some ODM training by the time you return, you'll know where we are."
You nodded saluting him before walking out.
Now you just needed to get out of here.
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You knocked on the door, it had been a while since your last visit and you were super-hyped to see your family again.
There was a click at the door as it opened to reveal your sister, her bright purple eyes in all their glory.
"Frieda!!!" you called out, hugging her as she held out her arms.
"Come inside, we were just about to have lunch."
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"So Y/N, the cadet corps giving you any trouble? I hear they're kicking training into overdrive in the few weeks up to graduation, just to see if any placements change." Rod started the small talk as you caught up about the things you had missed.
"Not really. I know they have kicked training up a bit but not much worse then before, I'm definitely going to be top 10, hate to blow my own trumpet but it's impossible to say otherwise. The corps are actually a bit more spread out in terms of who wants to join which branch. There's actually a few going for the survey corps, obviously people are shooting for the garrison and MP's mostly, but that's not a surprise."
"What about you, which branch are you going to join?"
"Garrison, the scouts are a death wish, despite the noble cause, and the military police just doesn't appeal to me. I'll actually be able to put my intelligence to use as a technician. I've already come up for a few ways to improve the ODM gear. It's a shame people only want to join so their asses don't get turned into titan food, the training corps exists for that. They can train others but instead laze about all day."
"It truly is a tragedy."
You put your knife and fork on the plate, your food had been finished and you leaned back in the chair.
"Well I can stay here until tomorrow, I'll have to be back by mid-day however. So is there anything you have planned?"
"Nothing much, we were going to go pray but that was it for today. Care to join?"
You were slightly taken aback, you had never been allowed to go with them before, not like it was going to stop you.
"Yeah sure, it'd be nice to see where you all go for once."
"Very well then, we should head off now if we want to make it before nightfall."
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You watched in awe, you had no idea this place existed, it looked like it was made of diamonds.
"Now Y/N, do you ever remember seeing this place?" Frieda asked.
"No, never." you answered back, Frieda nodded.
"Well, you unfortunately won't be participating in the ceremony, we never made a outfit that was appropriate for this for you. But now you are old enough to not intervene and ruin the process." you nodded, leaning back on a pillar as you watched your family gather in a circle.
"Oh, I almost forgot." Frieda mentioned while walking up to you with a box. Opening it to reveal a silver ring with intricate patterns all over it. "If you ever find yourself in a life or death situation, with no way out. Rest your thumb on the landing and focus on escaping. You'll probably need this while being a soldier." She demonstrated what she meant by opening a portion of the ring, the cover sliding back as a small hook fell out.
You nodded, taking the ring and putting it on, resetting it back to the way it was.
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Soon enough the prayers had ended and you were back at the Reiss Estate, you waved to your family as you got in the carriage.
"See you all, I'll visit you on my next day off after graduation!" You called out.
"Stay safe!" Frieda yelled back to you, you nodded and leant back in the seat as they faded from view.
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"The following cadets are those in the top 10! We will be going from highest to lowest. If your name is mentioned, please come forward!" the commander called out.
"Number 10: Sasha Braus!" A girl with long brown hair walked up, she was addicted to food and got into many fights over it.
"Number 9: Connie Springer!" A grey haired short boy saluted, bit of an idiot.
"Number 8: Marco Bott!" The hopeful optimist walked up and saluted with a genuine smile on his face, he was too naive for this world.
"Number 7: Jean Kirstein!" another grey haired approached with a cocky grin on his face, spineless coward with a sparky attitude but it was justified.
"Number 6: Eren Yeager!" Ah yes, the rambunctious titan slayer wannabe, a fool with a dream that surpassed all others.
"Number 5: Annie Leonhart!" The blonde girl with ice blue eyes and a equally icey personality took her spot.
"Number 4: Bertolt Hoover!" A generic boy, no self will but a nice person all things considered.
"Number 3: Reiner Braun!" The other big bro of the cadets, built like a wall and easily capable of crushing people underneath his giant figure.
"Number 2: Mikasa Ackerman!" The perfect cadet, cold and strong, follows orders to perfect conditions.
"Number 1: Y/N L/N!" You stepped up to your spot, saluting as you did so.
"From this point you are all certified soldiers, dedicate your hearts and work, sacrifice body and limb for humanity. You will now have to pick one of three branches. The scouts: who venture outside the walls to take back what was once ours. The Garrison: They reinforce and protect the wall, the last line of defence against the titans. The Military Police: who uphold the law and serve the king, only the top 10 cadets who were previously mentioned may enlist to them."
The man rambled on about things you couldn't care about, eventually you were all allowed into the mess-hall to party and feast the night away.
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Everybody was chatting and enjoying themselves, people were questioning why you and a few others had turned down the MP's, you gave your automated response and so did Eren.
"Are you insane?!"
Your mouth was left slightly agape as you looked at the blonde, this fool was trying to get himself killed. Did he know this was Eren Yeager?!?
Bastards gonna die...
The blonde noticed his mistake and immediately tried to rephrase. "About a fifth of the population died out there, if that doesn't explain how much of a risk it is I don't know what will."
"What of it?" Eren started.
Oh lord, here comes the fucking beef.
"You wanna take it and lie down somewhere? Things changed, not much maybe but enough. They aren't the mystery they used to be, it's not a lot but we've made progress. Every time someone died, we learnt something, you trying to tell me it's better we cut our losses and let the death and destruction be meaningless? Our future is outside the walls! And I'll be damned if I die before I see the outside!"
Everybody looked at the brunette, there were tear pricks in his eyes.
He's gonna run off won't he?
Just as you predicted, Eren ran off and outside. You looked to Reiner and he nodded. You sighed and made your way to follow him, Armin and Mikasa in tow.
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"Quite the speech Eren." You said to him as you unfolded your arms.
"Yeah, most of it was Armin's, mostly from what he used to say back in the day with our Y/N."
You sat down next to him, this would probably be some sort of bonding moment that would take ages to be done with.
"Y'know, you never told me much about him. What was he like?"
Eren perked up slightly.
"Y/N? Oh well uh, he was-" Eren was quickly cut off by Mikasa.
"He was the best brother someone could of asked for, perfect to talk with and had courage enough to match Eren, identical to you in almost every way, but less cold. I don't know where he is. But he's not dead, I refuse to believe it."
You looked at Mikasa, it was rare for her to speak out like this, she was covering her face with her scarf but you could tell she was blushing beneath it.
"He also gave me my scarf..."
"That's technically mine Y'know, he stole it right off my neck and wrapped it around you." Eren reminded her of the fact.
Mikasa gripped the scarf harder.
"I know, and I'm never gonna give it back either, it's the last thing I have to remind me of him."
"Yeah..." Armin injected himself into the conversation. "I'm joining the scouts too!"
You and Eren looked at him, saying the exact same thing.
"What? You'd be way more useful as a captain or in the garrison!"
"I don't want to have people fight for me any more."
"I'm joining the scouts as well."
You looked towards Mikasa, you weren't surprised, she wanted to keep Eren safe, which was completely fair.
"What about you Y/N?"
You looked back to Eren.
"Garrison for me bud, the military police seem like a bunch of upright snobs. The scouts are respectable but I don't want to put myself in too much danger, the garrison is the best place for me, I'd be able to support the scouts by improving the functions of ODM as a technician. I'd occasionally be able to kill the odd titan here and there, so my training won't be entirely for nothing."
"Understandable I suppose, your not like the rest of them who would join the garrison, you would actually do your job and be useful. That garners my respect. Good luck with them Y/N." Eren commemorated you.
"Don't die in the scouts either green-eye." You stood up and made your way back inside as you left the group.
<==To be continued...===============