IV
TO YOU, DURING INTRODUCTIONS
You really had tried your best to mind your business as the chief yelled at new fresh-faced cadets, the people he seemed to verbally harass weren't in some sort of pattern. There wasn't any similarity between the people he decided to yell at - all he did was get real close and scream.
You recognized Jean Kirstein - the boy you had met a few years back. He was standing proud and tall, honorable if it weren't for his aspirations. But someone wanting to live a good life and being honest about it was respectable. To some, however, it was childishly dumb. It seemed Keith sided on that belief, headbutting the boy to eat dirt.
Then there was Marco, apparently, he wasn't from Trost. So then he must've just had the habit to wander around, right? His reasons for being there were similar to Jeans in a way, but more... Childish.
And then Connie Springer, he didn't seem like the smartest. You'd think if he didn't know which way to salute - he'd copy those around him. It's what you would've done. Then again, you weren't in his position.
Sasha Braus, the poor girl had been put on Shadis's shitlist by the get-go, only to be slapped in the face with no lunch and running miles around the field. What a devil the chief was. Finally, it was your turn to be walked past. Only then did you turn away, eyes disinterested in hopes that he would walk right past you. There was no reason for him to interrogate you - he had already gone and dug somebody else into the floor with embarrassment.
Hopes never come true in this world, you learned that much pretty quickly. It was just reappearing in front of your eyes as the commander peered down upon you with his sunken eyes. He was figuratively looking down on you. (literally too, if you're shorter.)
"Weren't you staring just now, don't you know how to mind your business, cadet!?"
You blinked, eyes coming up to meet his. You didn't want to make it on his shitlist, so you changed your expression. "I do, sir! I'm usually more discreet." Shadis stared his gaze hardening further into that glare of his. You weren't sure if his wrinkles were a result of old age or his anger.
"Tell me your name and district before I decide to put you on my damn shitlist!"
You mentally cursed yourself, after going out of your way to steer clear of his anger, you managed to make it anyway. He could tell by the pucker of your lips that he managed to rise something out of you. "[Firstname], from Shiganshina district, sir." You pulled the best neutral expression you could.
Now it'd been one... - Or had it been two - years since you reunited with your friends from Shiganshina. It didn't feel the same as it used to, not having anywhere to return after hanging out, but your friends were similar to how they used to be. It was better than being all by yourself.
"The hell is your surname, cadet!? Don't try being secretive with me!" The chief's voice was loud, so loud it had you tilting your head back. You thought it over beforehand, some childish rebellion in you manifesting itself in the form of not wanting to associate with your parent's last
name any longer, but another side of you knew that it was just anger manifesting itself.
"Just [Firstname], sir."
It was a trick you heard someone else pull earlier - but you figured she had some real excuse, not just some pathetic excuse of rebellion. Although not content with your excuse - the chief told you to straighten your posture before walking away. Since you were from Shiganshina, you didn't have to spit off some excuse as to why you were participating in the training corps.
You weren't sure you even had a real reason for being there.
From afar, Eren listened to your introduction, he himself didn't need to spout out the nonsense of why he was there or what his name was - it could've been the look on his face. Not sweaty or nervous, but stoic. Even if he wanted to introduce himself and rant off about killing every titan, he couldn't. But now that he thought about, he never heard your last name before. The curiousty to know was never there, or maybe he hadn't ever realized he hadn't heard it before.
"Just [Firstname], huh? Seems like none of you brats ever had a family." You raised a brow, your expression faltering. A lot of people here didn't have families anymore. "What are you here for?"
You didn't have a reason to be here.
"... For rations..." Your voice came out a lot weaker than you meant it too, as a response, Keith had leaned in even closer, demanding for you to repeat what you said.
"To reclaim Shiganshina, sir!" It was initally a lie - but now that you said it outloud, you didn't mind the idea of reclaiming your hometown from the titans. But that boulder a few blocks from your house would surely haunt you if you managed to get it back.
"Reclaiming land from titans, huh?" He repeated your answer, straightening his posture and leaning away from you. "You'll make great rations for the titans! Just like the ones you're here for!"
"So he did hear me...." The twitch of your eyebrows told him all he needed to know. You were there, you saw what happened. And whatever childishness that remained after would expose itself in ways you probably didn't notice. Finally, he turned away, your shoulders slacked when he began to walk.
"But we're gonna teach you got to fight them! So I suggest you learn fast so you don't end up dead by the first titan you see!"
He was brutally harsh and honest with his words, but he had a point. You'd all die if you didn't put your all into training. - You weren't sure you were up for such hellish training now that you were here, but whatever little pride you had left wouldn't allow you to take the walk of shame back home.
"For the rest of the damn day, I want you all to settle in! You better all be awake by the time I tell you too, or there'll be serious consequences!"
Those around you saluted the chief harder, it looked like you were the last unlucky victim of his yelling before training really started. But you were never a lucky person to begin with.
Everybody began to seperate, nerves piling into their stomach in the form of butterflies as they curiously followed Keiths command.
Armin was just across from you, a nervous smile on his face, his hands falling from his salute and to his sides. He wasn't sure where in the crowd Eren and Mikasa were, but he was with being alone with you. Actually, it he had to chose any of his friends to seek out, it would be you.
Since you were his first friend.
He wanted to ask you why you didn't tell Shadis your last name, but he figured it wasn't his business, yet Armin was the only one who knew your last name. He wasn't even aware of that fact.
So he came up to you with the same sheepish smile, he wasn't able to keep his cool on the first day of training. Who knew what things would come from here on out, probablt harsher things than being yelled at. Would he change by then? Would he be able to stand up for himself?
By the time he made it by your side, you already began to walk. Mindlessly leading him toward where the others would've been grouping up. Armin followed you without a second thought, not saying a word. But that didn't make it a long uncomfortable walk, silence in your presence was natural - and comforting.
"I didn't know people other than Eren were capable of yelling so loud."
Armin blinked, taking a monent to process your usual jab at Eren. You always had a thing or two to say about him - so much so Armin couldn't decipher if you were being serious or you were just joking. But they were all jokes....
...Most of them.
"You're right, it's like Eren has been training us to put up with loud voices since the beginning." Armin smiled, staring at you for a second longer before looking ahead. "I have a feeling were gonna make a lot of new friends. Don't you think?"
Finally, you turned your head to look at him. Your eyes were wide before returning to their natural state as the result of a long, slow blink. Armin turnes to look at you, a smile forming onto your face he did.
"Yeah, I bet. Are you excited?" He would guess you were teasing him, but your expression was void of any hint of it. You were being geniune - he could tell by the soft smile on your lips and the upturn of your eyes.
He found himself staring longer than necessary before nodding, looking down toward the ground. "Yeah! I mean... Having you and the others is enough for me, but..." Whether it be out of embarassment or fondness of the idea, Armins cheeks went pink.
"Everybody seemed like a good person, so I'm excited to meet them."
You stared at him, it wasn't for more than a few seconds, but it felt like enternity to Armin under your watchful gaze. Must've been because they didn't seem like the type to brutally beat him to a pulp, right?
"Meeting new people is a good thing sometimes. You should introduce yourself." Finally, you looked away. Allowing Armin to loosen up and breathe. It took a moment for your words to process through his head before he answered.
"Hold on, aren't you going to introduce yourself, too?"
Eren called out Armins name before you had the chance to respond. To answer his question truthfully, you didn't want to go out and meet new people - anyless go out of your way to be buddy-buddy with them. You figured that during training to fight titans - you shouldn't get attached to anybody. And you shouldn't let anybody get attached to you. - If you wanted to save yourself the tears.
Your footsteps slowed as Armin picked up his pace to catch up with Eren. The loss of you in his peripheral vision had him halting in his steps altogether, looking back at you.
"Is something wrong?" He asked, watching they was your eyes flickered from his face to behind him, then back to his face. He never thought of you as the shy type, but he assumed that was your problem at the moment. "Come on, we can introduce ourselves together."
"I was gonna go get changed." You lied, looking away from him and to your right. "... Go on ahead without me."
Armin blinked slowly, taking in your appearance before nodding. Ever since you all reunited, your friends had been hesitant to let go anywhere by yourself, Mikasa seemed especially hurt to see you go. Sometimes it felt overbearing - being treated like some child that couldn't do anything themselves by someone the same age as you was humiliating. But that wasn't the only reason why Armin was hestitant to let you go. He couldn't shake the feeling that you were lying.
"That's alright! I'll tell Eren and Mikasa." He managed to offer you a smile, a gesture you didn't return. For a second, you wanted to tell him not too - that he didn't have to go out of his way to inform the others - but you only ended up nodding.
"Yeah, thanks."
Now that he thought back on this memory, watching you turn and leave with that glum look on your face - he wished he just told you to stay. He wasn't even sure why you looked so sad, atleast he didn't know in that moment. But of course, after knowing why, there wasn't anything he wouldn't do to go back and change things. It was such a small difference, something that didn't reoccur afterward, but it should've been the first hint.
But you didn't seem off, not to Jean when he bumped into you while walking back from the boys cabin. Originally, he was angry - telling you to " Watch where you're going!" But when he took the time to look at you, the anger sizzled into nothing.
"Sorry.. I guess I bumped into you." He mumbled, staring at you for a second before stumbling back. "Oh, wait! You're - "
"Ah, [Firstname]!" It was Marco who said your name, appearing from behind Jean.
They had stopped you from your walk, so you stood in place and stared. It took you a lot longer than you'd like to recognize them - or atleast remember their names.
"Hello, Marco!" You smiled, before turning to look at the other boy. "Hi, Jean."
You hadn't seen them again since you reunited with your old friends. They looked relatively the same - other than growing taller, and maybe they lost their baby faces. Marco said ge would see you again - and while it wasn't exactly 'soon' like he said, you supposed he didn't actually lie... Since you were seeing him here now.
"It's been a while, hasn't it?" You had just gotten out of the girls cabin after changing. Nothing overly complicated, just a mix of what you thought would be nice to wear after a hot day in the sun.
Marco nodded, "Yeah, I'm sorry. I got in big trouble and wasn't allowed to go out any more..." He turned toward Jean, patting his shoulder. "And I don't think Jean would be allowed-"
Jean shrugged his friends hand off of his shoulder, "Hey! If I wanted to, I would!" He defended himself, cheeks red in embarassment. You didn't take any offense to his words, seeing as you were one of those wanted thiefs he was after, he must've just not wanted to be seen with you.
Marco sheepishly laughed, bringing his hand back down to his side. "By the way... I thought you weren't going to join the training corps?" He asked, tilting his head with his usual smile.
You nodded, turning around to walk. "I just... Changed my mind." It wasn't a lie, the sudden change of heart had no reason behind it, no motivation, and you didn't want to die.
"Hold on... Your friend didn't convince you to join, did he?" Jean blurted, taking long strides to walk beside you. He must've been talking about Eren, but that wasn't the reason why. As strong-headed as he was about killing every titan, that mindset never rubbed off on you. Maybe it was Armins drive to go beyond the walls and explore the outside world despite not being the strongest - it was an interesting concept.... But not interesting enough to make you risk your life for it. Or maybe it was Mikasas eagerness to protect those she cared about, it was a noble reason - she was strong ever since you were young. Maybe you wanted to be like her - strong and intimdating, somebody no one would mess with. No, that wasn't it either.
"Calm down, Jean! During orientation, she said she wanted to reclaim her home town, didn't she?"
You weren't sure why, but Marcos voice had you turning your head back to look st him - eyes wide. Jean had spoken and you ignored him, and Marcos sentence was a lot less answer worthy, so why did you respond to him?
Looking at his face, you felt a memory at the back of your mind, no it wasn't some memory - since you never lived through it before - yet it was such a vivid image ingraved into your head. A response bubbled at the back of your throat, lips parting open before you turned to look away.
"I... Want to change things."
They weren't sure what they were expecting your answer to be - but it wasn't that. Maybe you had just worded it weirdly, like you wanted to make a difference - help people, maybe make a change in the lazy military police? Or maybe it was to make up for the stolen bread and pickpocketed money. Though, you mentioned reclaiming Shiganshina, so then that would be leaning toward the Garrison or the Scouts.
"Hold on, what regiment are you joining?" Marco asked, you had gone quiet again - you weren't sure of your answer for that. They all seemed like fine options - the military police definitely meant you were safer from titans. The Garrison regiment didn't mean you had to go out of your way to throw your life, but you could still be a part of something good. Then the scout regiment.. Well you had a feeling all of your friends would be joining them, Armin so that he could see the ocean, Eren to 'kill all the titans' and Mikasa to... Not leave Eren behind. It wasn't bad - but dangerous.
"I'm no sure yet. I'll make up my mind by the time we have to choose."
They left it at that, deciding to not press you further for any details. Not like they needed to know anyway. So they only spoke about random things - to check on how you had been. It was weird to you - you thought you were the only one who felt as if you'd known them for years, but Marco was so eager to talk - it felt as if he felt the same.
He didn't say anything when you eventually left their side to regroup with Armin, he said bye and watched you leave. There were going to be many opportunities to talk to you again over three years of training, and there would be many opportunities to make new friends.
Keeping to yourself for three years and not talking to anybody new? That was a lot easier than said. That was the reason behind the dread pooling at your gut as you sat in the mess hall, mindlessly stirring the soup you were given.
"You shouldn't play with your food." Mikasa pointed out, sliding into the seat beside you. You turned to look at her with a jolt, startled by her sudden appearance. "You need to eat," she urged, leaning in a little closer. You blinked, leaning away out of instinct - but you continued to stare at her face. While her expression wasn't one to give away what she was feeling, there was always a shine in her eyes. She was always passionate about... Something.
"I was going too, I promise." You muttered, embrassment seeping into your voice as you looked back down at your rations. You picked the stale bread off of the napkin it was on and tore it in half. "I was just thinking, so I got distracted." You dipped the bread into the soup before taking a small bite.
"About what? You can tell me anything." She placed her hand on yours, causing you to stop mid-chew to stare at her. "Your burdens are mine, too." She looked so serious, so sure that she was fine with the words that spilled out of her mouth. You couldn't help your audible gulp, swallowing the chunk of bread hurt your throat on the way down, but it went ignored.
The way she looked at you made you completely forget about the people surrounding your table - Eren boasting and enjoying the attention he recieved from retelling his story of Shiganshina - their murmurs and gasps were all drowned out by the sight of Mikasa. You hadn't even noticed when Eren stood to pick a fight.
"It's-"
Before you had the chance to conjure a full thought, the bell had gone off. Signifying that it was time for... What was it time for? You weren't sure, but only then was it that your enviornment filled your peripheral vision. Mikasa looked away for a moment, turning back to look at Eren and Jean behind her before looking back at you.
"What were you saying?"
She looked so earnest - she wanted to know what was bothering you, to help in anyway she could - but you just shook your head, looking down at your rations to finish your meal. "It's nothing, thanks for the concern." You took a few bites out of your food before looking back up.
"... You already ate, right?" You asked her, already sliding your plate toward her in the form of an offer. But she nodded, pushing it back toward you.
"I have, so you should finish eating, too."
You brought another spoonful of soup to your mouth, taking slow bites of the vegetables it had. Mikasa seemed intent on knowing that you ate everything given to you - she wanted to know you ate what little it was you got in such a cruel world.
"By the way, what were Eren and Jean talking about? He seemed a little pissed, don't you think?" You asked, sheepishly looking away from Mikasas intesnse stare. A majority of the people there had already left.
"Are you worried about him?" Mikasa asked.
You hummed, a response bubbling at your throat as you finished your spoonful of food before responding.. "I guess I am. I don't want Eren to make a bad first impression on his first day."
Mikasa was silent, gaze focused on the back of your head before she stood up. "I'll tell him then, you should stay and finish eating." She urged, slipping away from you with minimal effort.
You turned your head to look back at her - to call out her name and tell her to wait for you - but you instead scooted away in your seat at the random brunette at your side.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." She started, eyes flickering from your face to the unfinished bread on the table. "I was just wondering..." She brought her hand up to point at said bread. "Were you.. Going to finish that?"
You felt your eyebrow twitch - a small action you couldn't control, it wasn't out of annoyance toward her - no. You recognized who she was, the girl who got stripped of meal rights for a good five days. It was a cruel punishment, if she actually managed to make through all five wouldn't dropping out and into the fields - you wouldn't have a choice but to respect it. Though, since she was infront of you now - you figured asking others for leftovers would be her way of scraping by.
You stared at her, reaching over to grab the bread without looking for it - you managed to stuff the piece of bread into her mouth in a swift motion before you stood to leave, sliding your untouched cup of water toward her so she could drink. She hadn't even noticed you leave - not until after she devoured the break you had given her. The thanks that formed in her mouth died down into nothing before she looked down at your cup of water. Untouched, clean and refreshing... She could just about cry at the flavorless taste of it as she gurgled it down.
She remembered your nameless face, she'd search for you tomorrow and make sure to thank you a hundred times. If she didn't forget by the time she woke up from her nap on that very table.
. . .
"I don't know how you aren't nervous about this!" Armin was panicking, sweat drenching his face as he attempted to calm himself. The first day of training had already begun - ODM gear being the very first topic was reasonable - seeing as survival against titans practically relied on them.
"I don't know how you're so nervous." You answered, fastening the straps of your gear to make sure it was on extra tight - you didn't want it slipping off on you because you had applied it wrong. "Just make sure you have your gear applied correctly and balance, no way you can suck as much as you think you will if you can do that much..." Because of your advice, Armin copied your movements and tightened his straps.
"Thanks... That makes me feel a little bit better..." Armin exhaled, eyes glued to the floor. "How do you think Eren and Mikasa will do?"
Finished with your gear, you took a good look at how he applied his. He was a smart guy - he probably managed to figure it out in a few seconds while you were stuck reapplying yours for minutes in the changing rooms. The number of leather straps that were applied everywhere was a bit overkill to you. "I'm sure Mikasa will do great," you looked away from him and toward the crowd of the first few people testing their gear. "Eren though..." You searched the crowd for said boy, "We'll just have to hope he's not all bark and no bite."
Armin audibly gulped from beside you. "I'm sure he'll manage it, he wouldn't stop trying until he succeeded anyway..."
You smiled, your eyes finally landing on the boy you searched for. "Yeah, you're right..." Your smile dropped as quickly as it appeared. "That bonehead doesn't know when to quit!" Armin followed your gaze to look at Eren, suddenly feeling the pair of eyes on him, he turned around.
He first saw your form of a glare - it had him sucking in a careful breath. Then he gazed toward Armin, his stare didn't hold any velocity to it, but he found himself getting weirded out by the long stares. You broke off the tension with a wave, a small smile forming on your face as you did so - Eren smiled back, bringing his hand up to wave back. Armin waved back at him im return - but you were waving at Mikasa, who finally looked back to see you.
"Good luck!" Armin called out, cupping his hands around his mouth to give his shout extra velocity. Eren smiled and nodded, yelling it back - he didn't have to cup his hands for any extra support to make him any louder - he's just.. A loud person. "Good luck to you guys!"
There was a proud smile on his face, you could practically hear his thoughts - 'You don't have to wish me any luck, I got this!'
If only he was able to live up to that bold thought of his, out of the group of people that went up to test their ODM gear with him - he was the only one that managed to flip over. Since you had gotten closer, you could see the look of terror on his face. If he wasn't so hung up in horror due to the threat of being thrown out - he would've been red in the face with embarrassment.
Armin mumbled something under his breath - probably due to his worry Eren - before he began walking. The two of you joined the group of people staring at him, causing Erens eyes to flicker toward you. If it at all possible, his face went paler in horror, his mouth falling open. "Shit..!" He flailed, stretching his arms out to place his hands on the floor in order to steady, but instead his movement had him flipping over. It worked for just a second - getting him back upright to give him a false sense of hope - only to twirl him back down to his previous position.
"I-I can still do it!" His voice was wavery - he was less sure that he could, his words were more like a plea - begging to give him a second chance so he could try it.
Everybody else around him seemed to be doing great, Mikasa completely still - like she had been doing it for her entire life. Jean was almost on par with her, ceased of movement other than swaying. Sasha was completely at ease, swinging back and forth like it was something anybody should know how to do. Connie was the only one who stood out - arms held up to his sides to keep his balance - but he was doing it without a hassle. Eren - as plain as he was, was the only one standing out.
"Let him down." Shadis commanded, opting for the helper-boy to reel him down onto the floor. The defeat he felt was instant, falling onto his knees in shame.
"Eren..." Armin mumbled, taking a step forward to reach him - but you stopped him, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"It's gonna be our turn next, Eren isn't in need of comfort or anything. He'll be back up on his feet after he gets a little help, everybody is bound for mistakes." It was a clear statement - one that sounded like you were just waiting to say - but Armin nodded. Eren shouldn't be ashamed or disheartened at not getting it right the first try - despite the giggles and murmurs of the crowd around him. Infact, Armin was sure he'd be at the same level as he was.
Well, if that was true, the he would be having problems while hanging up on the ODM gear. But he was suprisingly stable - only experiencing a few bouts of misbalance, jerking to his left or right - but corrected with the swing of his arms.
Then he turned toward you, your station happened to be right next to yours. He always knew that Mikasa was talented at just about anything, but he never knew you to be a natural. There were a handful of things you had gotten good at over time - like using both of your hands to write or draw - actually, you intitally began learning how just so you could put up a real good fight against those who tried to rob any rations you had. With two strong arms, who would mess with you? Mimicking voices was also a hobby you picked up - just to mess with Eren. Although your knack for that wasn't something that would come in handy, it was definitely something Armin found amusing.
But nothing you had ever done had to do with balancing - yet next to him, you looked as if you'd been training for years. Balanced and still without much concern, not blinking even when they had raised you just a bit higher - maybe you hadn't even realized it - with your spaced out look, it was a possibility.
It was a good thing Eren wasn't there to see - just so he could be spared of any humiliation he might've felt from being the only one from the group of you that flipped over. Even if he did know, he didn't mention anything during lunch. Not while he was busy moping around, spacing out while staring at the ceiling.
"Eren, you're spacing out so hard your head is steaming." You spoke from your seat in front of him. "It's making my meal less enjoyable." Your voice managed to do him good and snap him out of whatever trance he was in. Usually, he would spit back whatever response he could offer, but he just slammed his hands on the table, leaning halfway across it to stare at you.
"[Firstname]! Please, how did you do so good with the ODM training? Can't you help me?" He asked, desperation in his voice. He watched the way your eyebrow quirked, the spoonful of food coming up to your lips before you offered a response. "Just balance." With that vague answer, you put the spoon into your mouth to eat.
"I'm being serious! Please help me! I already asked Mikasa and Armin, but..." He placed a hand onto his head, "I... Messed up."
"...Really badly." You finished for him, a smile came onto your lips, it was always the smirk you reserved just for him - mocking. You were always mocking, weren't you? You had your fun for the day, though. You liked when he would respond - not frown in defeat and actual hurt. "I'll help you, okay? But you have to eat first, you need a full stomach to balance."
Eren eyes went wide, finally sitting back down to look at his food. "Wait, really?" He asked with wonder, quickly picking up his spoon to take a bite.
"Yeah, so eat it all. No leftovers like yesterday." It was all just a ploy - to get him to eat the already small amount of food he was given - you wanted him to eat well. He seemed eager to eat it after what you said - the speed in which he ate eventually slowed once he realize it was just a ploy.
"Hold on, that was a lie, wasn't it?"
You ignored him, at the end of your own meal. Finishing the last few bites, you stood up, grabbing your empty plate. "Let's go."
Eren followed you out onto the training grounds, eager to get even the smallest amount of pointers. He had asked a few people for tips on the way there - only to be met with cocky jerks who told him they were simply naturals - and that he sucked.
Now that he was strapped onto the gear once more, he felt his nerves spike, scared for another impending hit to his head.
"I'm gonna lift you up slowly, try and keep your balance until you atleast get to the point where you won't hit your head if you flip over. You can atleast do that, right?" You asked, helping him strap in from behind.
"Yeah, I can do it!" He assured, nodding his head. He turned his head to look at you once your hands stopped moving behind him. "Are we ready?" He asked, watching the way your eyes focused down at his gear. You were silent for a second, staring at his gear before beginning to remove it.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Eren almost sounded offended by the fact you were messing with his wiring, but he quieted down after you sighed - removing his gear completely in one tug. "I think I know what made you eat shit."
Eren let out a sound that was a mix of 'huh' and 'what'? Like a "Huwhat?" Before he turned around.
"Your gears messed up." You spoke clearly, lifting the strap up to give him a good look. "I wasn't able to strap it on right," - not that you were any good at that anyway - "actually if I'm being honest, this more looks like someone messed with it than just wear-out."
Eren looked at it, then up to you. "How did you- how do you know that?" He could tell it was messed up now that he looked close, but how could he tell the difference between being tampered with and being worn-out?
You stayed silent for a moment, a look of confusion making its way on your face. "Actually, I don't know. But its obviously messed up." Eren didn't believe it - not for a second. You had to have some sort of expierence to know the difference.
"You can just use my gear." You offered, already reaching down to unlatch yours, but you stopped at Erens loud voice.
"But then what would you do with your gear?"
You thought for a good second before continuing to remove your gear. "I'll just tell Shadis somethings wrong with mine." You shrugged, "If he asked what happened from today and tomorrow, I'll just say-"
"No, keep your gear!" Eren objected. "I'll tell the chief something happened, okay? I can do it myself..."
Your hands stopped once more before looking up at him. "That's fine by me... Now that you know the problem, I'm sure you can do it."
"Hold on, can I try your gear for a second? I wanna see if I actually can..."
You laughed - but you didn't object, finally removing your gear so he could put it on himself. Like a miracle, he was actually upright. Although a little - very wobbly, he was doing well. After all that mocking, you were sure people would stop after witnessing that.
"Don't forget to tighten your stomach." Upon your words, Eren flexed his stomach as best as he could while suspended in air.
".... And clench your butt!" As if on command, he did so aswell. You couldn't see if he had - since you were standing infront of him instead of behind him, but based off of the pink in his cheeks and angry look on his face, you were sure he did.
"Stop mocking me!"
Your laugh died down before you cleared your throat. "If you manage to do it with broken gear, Shadis won't have a choice but to respect you." It was an obvious tease - just your attempt at prodding him to try using the broken gear again - and it worked. The next day, instead of telling Shadis the problem with his gear - he tested it out.
Nobody in the crowd was more impressed than you - and telling by the look on his face, Eren was sure he did great. That's why he threw his arms up in triumph when given new, functional gear - and gave you your thanks mentally, he was glad to have made it, afterall.
You were just glad to see him so happy.
"It's nice to see someone succeed after failing so hard." You were the first one to speak from the row of impressed people beside you.
"Yeah, even more impressive that he managed to do it with broken gear." Armin nodded, "I knew he could do it!"
Mikasa hummed. "He looks proud."
"He should be proud, he showed us all." Your turned your head to the left at the sound of a new voice. A part of you wanted to be angry at the intrusion, joining a conversation you were invited to just seemed wrong. But whatever you might've thought up died in your throat. The boy was built - looked like he'd been training before training to secure himself into training.
So... A lot of training.
"I'm sorry... Who are you?" You asked, only hoping that you sounded more curious than annoyed.
"I'm Reiner." His smile was proud and natural, it made you quirk an eyebrow.
"No last name?" You asked.
He laughed, crossing his arms. "No last names aren't a problem, is it? Didn't seem to be one for you." As much as you hated his smug look, he had a point.
"Good point." You dismissed the topic easily with the shift of your head, looking back in front of you. You didn't care if Reiner actually did have a last name or not.
"Well actually, it's Braun. Reiner Braun."
You weren't sure why, but you found yourself recognizing that surname. It was nothing special, nothing distinct and out-of-this-world, but it had you looking back at him. He was staring right back. No, you didn't know him. You would recognize such a built man with a strong face.
"Have we... Met before?"