hi guys! this is my first Soul Eater fanfiction as well as my first AU! i've been thinking about this fic for a long while and finally built it up enough to actually have a coherent plan and prologue for it. and so, here we go!

"He's waiting for you outside."

Maka knew what was coming by the way Marie avoided her eyes. Despite the snow, she spotted Stein waiting for her outside and caught the knife thrown at her with shaking fingers.

"Fight me."

"What's going on?" Maybe if she pretended not to know what he was talking about, he'd drop the subject and they could go to bed. However, she knew faking it would be futile. He had been training her for months and now she had to prove she was worth all the effort. She had known this day was coming; Black Star had had his initiation a few days prior. Picking pockets wasn't going to cut it anymore; she was surprised he hadn't come at her sooner.

"You heard me, Maka. Fight me. You know the rules, if you fight me and win, you can stay in the guild. If not, pack up your things and be gone by morning." Maka could feel her knees shaking, surprising herself with how she remained on her feet. One misstep and she'd go crashing to the floor; the pressure of his eyes a physical push on her back. She looked back towards Marie but the blonde women kept her eyes averted, fingers clasped behind her back. Despite the sting of dismissal against her cold cheeks, she hadn't expected special treatment from the people who raised her; orphan or not, she was not an exception.

"The clock is ticking, Albarn" Stein called, a smile blossoming on his scarred face at Maka's frigid glare.

I am no longer an Albarn.

I am not the little girl they found nestled in the snow.

Stein doesn't seem surprised when Maka charged towards him, teeth bared and aiming for his throat. He dropped easily to the ground and avoided her attack, sliding down so his back made contact with her stomach and sent the small girl flying. She managed to land on her toes but the impact against the wooden building caused scrapes along her sides, blood dripping down through her woolen clothing. She heard a small gasp from Marie but otherwise the forest was silent; distinct snores proof that no one was coming to her rescue.

I have to survive.

I have to stay here.

I have nowhere else to go.

I am on my own.

She launched herself again but he slammed the crook of his wrist against her shoulder, throwing her into the snow. He was the trunk of a tree and Maka barely constituted as a branch but she pushed herself forward and threw himself towards his face. She was a mess of elbows, knees, joints; her instinct to live overpowering her months of training. She gripped the knife and stabbed wildly; aiming for his shoulder, his arm, any place where she could draw blood. A flurry of tent flaps diverted her attention as Black Star ran out of the warehouse, eyes wide, hair flying. The distraction was enough for Stein to slam his elbow into her ribs, throwing her down to the ground. She let out a cry, sinking into the snow. Water seeped into her clothes; mixing with the blood and smearing across her skin.

"Are you crazy? You're going to kill her!" Before Black Star could get closer, Marie was behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist. He let out a growl and kicked, aiming at her solar plexus. But if Stein was a tree, Marie was a mountain; one finger pressed against his neck sent Black Star to his knees.

"Goddamit, Maka fight back!" She stays on the ground, pressing her palms against her eyes. She was done; what was the point of fighting if she knew she was going to lose?

I failed

"So that's it then?" Stein sighed, pressing his thumb to his temple to wipe away a drop of sweat. "You're just going to give up? How disappointing," he dropped down and yanked her up by an pale pigtail; sneering. "You had the option not to join Spartoi yet the second you're in combat, you drop to the floor like a child?" She whimpered, staring down at the blood stained snow. She watched the slow drop of liquid fall from his arm, sinking down into the floor in awe. She had stabbed him; it had worked.

"You have nothing to say?" Maka grit her teeth, looking up at his gray eyes.

"Let go of me."

"Are you going to lie there and cry like a spoiled brat or are you going to do something about it?"

"Let me go," she screeched, eyes wide, lifting her blade to reflect in the moonlight. Black Star watched as Stein twisted her wrist with calculating precision, pressing her deeper into the snow so that the knife slid out of her hands and landed in front of him. They all stilled in the silence: Marie with her eyes trained to the sky, Black Star ready to pounce on the knife the minute Marie loosened her grip. Maka however, kept her eyes glaring at the forest. She would run. She would claw her way off Stein; sink her teeth into his flesh, press her heels into the ground and try to flip him over with what little strength her bruised body could manage.

I will run.

I will run if I have to.

"What are you planning to do now?"

"Gouge your eyes out and escape." And suddenly, Stein grinned. Everything happened at once: he released his hold on her neck and Marie let out a cry of relief and Black Star is so busy running towards her he forgets about the knife. By the time he reaches her, she is lifting herself up on dirty hands, wide eyes never leaving Stein's gaze.

"Well then, welcome to Spartoi, Runner."

And that's it for this week! Chapter one is already finished so it will be uploaded next week. Please read and review!

~Harmony