"You're in the tree again? Really?"
"Yeah, I am. So fuck off already, Marlowe."
The man at the base of the weeping willow, Marlowe, sighs as he looks up at the mayor's son who is high up in the tree.
"Young master, please, your father wishes to see you. So I suggest that you behave like an adult and speak with him."
"I'm fucking seventeen."
"You'll be eighteen within a week. You've had plenty of time to learn how to be a proper, mature adult," Marlowe spits out, clearly frustrated with the younger boy in the tree. "Come down right now. Your father is waiting for you and he is not to be kept waiting for long. He's a very busy man and you're wasting his time."
"Can't you see I'm busy as well up here? Or wait, I'm sorry. You probably can't see past that big nose of yours."
"Jean Kirstein. Get down from this tree right now or I will forcibly remove you," Marlowe shouts up to him, grabbing onto the lowest branch and hoisting himself up. Jean moves quickly from his sitting position to a standing one, making sure to be cautious and maintain his balance on the branch.
"Don't you fucking come up here. I'll push your ass back down," Jean warns Marlowe as he continues climbing the branches of the old tree.
"I am your personal guard and it is my duty to ensure that you are safe and that you do as you are told. I will not go back to the mayor empty-handed."
"No! Fuck you!" Jean screams as he moves quickly to another branch, almost slipping in his haste.
Marlowe hurries up, skillfully climbing each branch in his pursuit for Jean. Once high enough, he reaches out and manages to grab onto Jean's ankle, holding him in place. Jean digs his fingers into the bark of the tree, trying desperately to keep himself in place.
"I'm not going to talk to my dad. I know exactly what he wants to say to me."
"You're just being a spoiled little brat. Get over yourself and face your problems. Running away and hiding up in trees is no way to behave, especially since you're in such a high political position."
Jean growls, muttering under his breath about how politics are worthless. Sighing, he gives up his little fight with Marlowe, allowing the older man to bring him down to his level. Marlowe snaps his fingers and points to the ground below them, silently telling Jean to climb down first and stay put.
He carefully steps down on each branch, making sure not to make any wrong steps as he descends. Jean looks above him and furrows his brows as Marlowe follows close behind.
"You're an annoyance. I don't know why my father even bothered with you," Jean snaps.
"Because I'm good at my job and good at keeping the peace. At least I'm doing something to help society," Marlowe retorts, watching Jean closely.
Jean hops down onto the grass with a small thud, followed by Marlowe. He brushes dust off from his black vest as he waits for his loyal guard to push him along. Marlowe points his finger ahead of them and they walk off the lavish estate not too far from their current location.
They enter through the large, glass doors and into a side room that leads to the main foyer. Once there, Jean and Marlowe are greeted by a tall, older man pacing around in a circle.
"Jean! There you are. Where in the world have you been? You missed your lessons with Levi…again." Jean ignores him and picks his hand, clearly frustrated that his relaxation time was cut short.
Marlowe stands up straight in the mayor's presence and clears his throat, ready to speak. "I do apologize, sir, but I found young Jean out in the tree again." The mayor nods understandingly, waving his hand dismissively to Marlowe. Marlowe bows his head slightly and turns around to walk off, giving Jean a side glance as he passes him.
Once Marlowe exits through the same doors he entered, the mayor sighs and looks at his son, face full of disappointment.
"Jean, what are you doing? What's been going on in that mind of yours lately? You've been skipping classes, running away, and getting even more irritable than usual." He places a broad hand on Jean's shoulder, coaxing him to look up. "Jean, look at me."
He looks up to his father, completely annoyed, and says, "Nothing's been going on. Just leave me alone and stop sending Big Nose after me all the time."
"Jean, stop it. I've been watching you closely." The mayor looks at Jean sternly, narrowing his eyes. "You stare out far beyond the wall and the forcefield. What are y-" The mayor stops speaking abruptly, eyes widening in horror as he looks down at his son. Jean's eye flick away, unable to keep looking at his father's.
"I'm just…I just hate being stuck here. It feels like a cage."
"Jean. Listen to me very carefully. Don't you dare go around thinking like that Arlelt boy you used to be friends with. He left the safety of Trost and hasn't returned for three years. The Others probably got to him by now."
He takes his hand off of Jean's shoulder and crosses his arms. Jean backs away slightly and clenches his fists, ready for another disastrous argument with his father. They've been happening more and more frequently as Jean began shirking away from his responsibilities. The mayor keeps a stern gaze on his son before sighing in defeat.
"Levi's waiting for you. Go." He points to his left the main set of stairs leading up to the second floor. Jean growls and thumps off, leaving his father behind without another word.
Jean stomps down the long, winding halls of the mansion, passing by old paintings of the Kirstein family and other items of vast wealth. His lessons with Levi are normally held a few rooms away from their enormous library. Jean could always tell when he drawing close to the classroom by the sudden smell of old books at the end of the hall.
He often associated that smell with an impending sense of doom.
Jean comes to an old, wooden door, much different from the newer doors that were just put in place. It looks like some of the workers were lazy, or they just didn't want to be anywhere near Levi. Jean would sympathize, but Levi's just more than a teacher to him; he's almost been like a second father to him.
He reaches for the knob, turning it quickly, and enters into the tiny room. It's a cramped room with one large desk, that's obviously Levi's, and a smaller table just a few feet away. Lining the walls are bookshelves crammed with pages and books, all organized alphabetically. Not a single edge is out of place and everything is aligned perfectly.
"It took you long enough, Jean. Where the hell have you been?"
Jean rolls his eyes as Levi speaks up, somewhat thankful that the smaller man is not facing him.
"Been busy." Jean shrugs and takes his usual place at the smaller table.
"Busy hiding in your room and in local plant life?" Levi sighs, finally turning around the face the younger boy.
Jean props his elbow up on the table, resting his head in his hand, and watches Levi carefully. Levi stares back intently, causing Jean to eventually drop his gaze.
"Well, in your absence, I do hope you studied. What are the four main human settlements on the continent?" Levi asks, opening up a thick book and smoothing out the yellowed pages. Jean looks around the room, racking his brain for the obvious answers.
Sadly, Levi was never known for his patience and blurts out a response before Jean has the time to answer. "You're living in one of them now."
"Okay, so Trost is one." Jean throws a hand up and lets it fall limp onto the table. "Uhh, what else is there…fuck, I guess Stohess?" He continues looking over to Levi, hoping for some relief from the question. He flinches slightly from Levi's hardened gaze.
Levi clears his throat, speaking firmly, "Trost is the Southern capital, Mitras is the Northern capital, Shinganshina is the Eastern capital, and finally, Stohess is the Western capital. Honestly, for a future leader, it should have been embedded into your brain already."
"What's the point of even knowing that if all I'd have to do is send them letters and shit? It's not like I can waltz right on over to those settlements. Not with the Others running around rampant."
Levi slams his hand down on the desk, causing Jean to jump slightly, before taking a deep breath and calming himself down. "They're called Elementals. You know this, Jean." Jean pauses for a moment, watching Levi carefully, and slowly relaxes in his seat. "The Others, as the commoners call them, is a derogatory term for the species and honestly, it's quite lazy."
"S-Sorry…" Jean speaks quietly.
"Now tell me all the Elementals currently known. Come on, this review is only supposed to last a few minutes; we have a lot to cover."
Jean stutters, "Fucking, I don't remember, Levi. I'm still trying to figure out why it's so important to learn about the Oth- Elementals. Aren't they evil and bent on killing humans?"
Levi pinches the bridge of his nose, inhaling sharply. "That is the reason why I'm trying to teach you. Misinformation is dangerous, even more so than not knowing at all. Yes, there were wars, but Elementals and Humans haven't interacted ever since the forcefield was brought up. How long ago was that?"
"I think around a hundred years ago?" Jean turns his gaze away from Levi, looking at a few maps rolled up in the corner.
"Ninety two years, to be exact, but I'll give that to you. Now tell me the Elementals that exist as far as we know. Start with the first two that appeared."
Jean gets off of the table and leans back in his chair, mulling over the answers. He crosses his arms over his chest and bounces his knee up and down.
"What are they, like, Light and Darkness?"
"Light and Shadow. Don't mess up that name; it is incredibly important." Levi neatly rolls his sleeves up to his elbows and reaches to his left for his glasses. He sets them on his face neatly and sets them into place firmly before twining his fingers together and looking at Jean. "What are the next four?"
Jean groans loudly, lifting his hands up to rub his eyes. "Can we just start today's lesson? You're torturing me here."
The room is filled with a thick silence as Levi looks over Jean, failing to conceal his ever growing annoyance with the younger boy. He adjusts his glasses swiftly, hiding the bold creases under his eyes, revealing his apparent lack of sleep.
"All right, fine. Water, Fire, Earth and Wind. I'll quiz you on all six of those tomorrow as well as the four settlements. Go get some damn paper already." As Jean stumbles out of the chair in search for some paper to take notes, Levi chides, "And if you feel the need to go hide in trees again, at least bring the notes with you."
Jean swears.
Passing through the well guarded gate and not giving Marlowe another glance, Jean makes his way down the path to the marketplace of Trost. Marlowe simply scoffs as the mayor's son walks by but makes no effort to engage in conversation.
Not that Jean would even stop to acknowledge it.
Jean keeps his hands clenched in his pockets, kicking up dirt as continues down the trail to his destination: his friend Sasha's house. He had agreed to meet up with her in the afternoon to help her settle into her new home. She was ecstatic to finally leaving her father's home to be able to live on her own.
So excited that she begged Jean to help and come see the new place. Jean never really learned to say no to her, especially when she'd drop everything to accommodate him whenever he needed help. Jean always wonders how he was even able to make friends.
Friends like Armin. The one that ran away from the safety of the settlement to explore the outside world.
The outside world filled with the Others.
Jean's left hand fiddles with two small stones in his pocket, pulling them out quickly to gaze at them once more. He only has two but he's never seen the likes of them before in Trost. The first stone is cool to the touch and is a bright, electric blue with a smooth, matte surface. The second one feels warm and is a blazing crimson color with a smooth and glossy surface. It shines magnificently as Jean holds it up to the sun.
These were Armin's parting gifts to him when he left three years ago.
"Please, take good care of these, Jean. They're very important."
Jean never understood why he put so much emphasis on their importance. They're just unnaturally colored stones, right? For all Jean knows, they could have been painted or made artificially.
But the red stone retains its warmth no matter what.
"Where the hell did you go?" Jean whispers to himself, staring intently at the stones. He sighs, looking up at the clear blue sky, and squints as he catches sight of the sun. As he looks up, the forcefield flickers slightly, causing small ripples to flow through. It's fairly easy for all the citizens to forget that there's a powerful forcefield covering the entirety of the settlement, unless someone were to watch it closely and see the ripples.
Jean's taken out of his thoughts abruptly as he bumps into a random bystander. Before he can offer a quick apology, the man pushes him away, muttering profanities under his breath. Jean growls, spitting out an insult to the man instead and stomps off.
The marketplace is loud and bustling with all sorts of everyday, ordinary people running their shops or running errands for their families. Sasha picked a small apartment in the heart of the town to move into and Jean curses her for making him mingle with the commoners.
He frowns when he remembers that the only friends he could make are commoners. Where did he go wrong?
Jean barely dodges a collision with a man tending to his cart and awkwardly stumbles to the side of a building, trying his best to stay out of everyone's way. It's nearly impossible, considering the ever growing population of Trost.
Being born and raised in the largest Human settlement was the worst thing to ever happen to Jean Kirstein.
He rounds the corner of the building and finds himself in the more open central square, where the roads transition from the plain, dusty earth to faded burgundy cobblestones. Towards the center of the square lies a large fountain, spouting out water from the two statues in the middle of it. The water flows gracefully from the statues' hands into the small pool below. Jean heads straight to the fountain upon seeing Sasha sitting at one of the stone benches, looking into the fountain. Her thick ponytail is over her shoulder, obstructing her view of the world around her.
Jean smirks, sneaking up to Sasha, and roughly puts his hands on her shoulders, causing her to jump in fright. She catches herself before falling into fountain, grasping tightly at the rough stones. Jean stumbles back, laughing obnoxiously as Sasha whirls on him with widened brown eyes.
"Jean! Don't sneak up on me like that! Honestly, I don't even know how you managed that with your clunky footsteps."
Jean dodges an angry swat from her, continuing his loud, raucous laughter.
"Aren't you supposed to be moving? Or are you saving all the heavy lifting for me?" He calms down, wiping tears from his eyes and clutching at his stomach. Sasha rolls her eyes and loops her arm though his, gently leading him across the square.
"And what if that's exactly what I'm doing?"
"Then you're an awful human being and I'm leaving." Jean starts to step away slightly before Sasha tugs him back to her, gripping his arm tighter. She gives him a wide, toothy smile and hurries back along the dusty roads towards her new apartment.
"You know, if you're moving out to get away from your father, why are you moving to the apartment complex over? He can still see you." Sasha reaches up to ruffle a bit of Jean's hair, effectively shutting him up as he spouts a few protests and rakes his fingers over his hair roughly.
"Be grateful, Jeanny boy. At least you have less distance to move my things."
As they continue walking, arm in arm, they pass by even more citizens hurrying through the streets. Among them is a fit young man with golden blond hair and thick sideburns. Jean awkwardly keeps his gaze away from the man while Sasha blatantly points him out.
"Hey! Isn't that your old boyfriend, Thomas?" Jean throws his hand over her mouth quickly, muffling her voice and walking faster.
"Sash, will you shut up? I can't have the whole town knowing the mayor's son almost fucked another guy." Jean's golden eyes look in every direction but Thomas' and he reaches down for his collar in a poor attempt to hide his face from the other male.
Sasha groans, letting Jean act however he wants. "You're being such a baby. Honestly, you two were cute together, why'd you break up?"
"Shhh! He might come over and talk to us!" He hurries Sasha along, rushing past where Thomas is standing. As soon as they're out of sight, Jean lets out a sigh of relief, wiping his brow carefully. Sasha takes her arm from Jean's and turns to look at him seriously.
"So was it because you were a prick to him or did he not suck your dick properly?"
"SASHA!"
Sasha erupts into a giggle fit, taking a few steps back from an angry but blushing Jean. He frowns, feeling the heat in his cheeks increase tenfold as random citizens give them questioning glances. Jean clenches his fists and stares daggers at Sasha as she poorly attempts to compose herself.
"O-Oh my god, Jean, your f-face! Your face is priceless right now!"
"Let's just hurry up to your damn house so I can fucking leave."
Jean stretches his entire body before landing ungracefully onto the small wooden chair in Sasha's new living room. He stretches his arms out and cracks his knuckles sickeningly before letting out a tired sigh.
"Why do you have so much shit?" Jean mumbles from his spot, refusing to move any more muscles unless absolutely necessary. "I mean, you even had a fucking crate of potatoes! A crate!"
Sasha sticks her tongue out at her friend, settling herself down on a few of the aforementioned crates. She pats some dust and dirt off of her long, brown skirt and props her feet up on a small pile of books.
"I snatched them from my dad; he didn't need them anymore," she says with hint of mischief in her voice. "But I really appreciate your help, Jeanny boy." Jean waves her off, not bothering to respond to her. He instead opts to looking over the tiny apartment. The kitchen and living room are connected and the only two separate rooms are the bedroom and bathroom. The floors are a dark chestnut color and seem to have been well kept.
Jean begins tapping his foot against the wooden floor, trying to fill the silence but not able to think of words or a conversation. The stones and Armin are back on Jean's mind, just as they have been for weeks on end. Armin was one of Jean's best childhood friends; of course he couldn't forget him so easily.
But his thoughts have been completely preoccupied with his friend and his parting words. He vividly recalls the short blond boy, with eyes rivaling the deep blues of the ocean, hurriedly placing the stones into Jean's palm and running off. Jean reached for him, chased after him, but couldn't reach him before he slipped past the forcefield. Jean was only fifteen at the time and terrified of the outside world.
He couldn't bring his legs to move any farther. He stayed, paralyzed with fear, as his young friend ran off before him.
Jean is brought out of his thoughts by Sasha placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. He blinks at her a few times and brings his hands up to his eyes to rub them thoroughly. He didn't realize he was clenching tight to the stones in his pockets until they hit the floor with a loud clatter.
"Shit!" Jean shouts, dropping to the floor and scrambling to pick up them up.
Sasha watches him, concern turning to sadness as she kneels down to his level. She offers to wipe the stones clean for him and he slowly hands them to her.
"You can't stop thinking about Armin, huh?"
Jean crosses his legs and remains on the floor, carefully watching as Sasha cleans off the blue stone. "No, I can't. I just…feel so guilty for not stopping him or at least, not following him."
"Jean, don't beat yourself up over this," she speaks softly, handing back the stones. "There wasn't anything you could do, and besides, what would have done if you followed him? You would have rushed off with nothing in hand, no strategies in mind."
"Wow, I didn't think you'd lecture me like my father would." Sasha rolls her eyes at the statement, remaining in her kneeling position.
"Well, I'm just saying. What could you honestly do? You'd send the entire settlement into a fuss because you're gone, your dad and Levi would be in hysterics, and overall, it would be such a bad idea." Jean keeps his eyes on the floor, eyebrows furrowed and frowning. "Jean, I'm not trying to put you down. I'm your friend and I want to tell you the truth."
The corner of Jean's lips twitches a bit before returning to his frown. "I appreciate that. Too bad you're saying it for the wrong thing."
Sasha shrugs. "Jean, you're a realistic guy. You, of all people, should know that you've done all you can." She pats his shoulder and stands up, smiling brightly in an attempt to change the mood. "So are you staying for dinner? The fiancé should be home soon, so you two can catch up."
Jean pockets the stones and mimics her actions, standing up as well. "All right, fine. You owe me anyway after the torment you put me through today," he says with a smirk.
Sasha lightly swats his arm before turning on her heel to the kitchen and looking through some crates for her cooking pans.
"Thanks so much for helping her, Jean. I'm glad it was you and not me," Connie says cheerfully as he reclines back in his chair, patting his stomach. He throws a smirk over to his brooding friend before smiling to his fiancée. "Thanks for the dinner, Sash. I guess you're expecting me to help you unpack, yeah?"
"Oh, of course, little man. You're not getting out of this so easily." Connie grumbles while Sasha gathers their dishes. Jean leans on the table with his head in his hand and chuckles loudly at Connie.
"You're already a whipped man. It's all downhill from here." Jean makes a gesture with his finger, going in a downward spiral as he whistles.
"One day you'll be like this, Jean. Then I'll get you back for all the times you mocked me."
Jean scoffs. "Yeah, as if I'll do that. There's no one around here good enough."
"I thought Mina was pretty nice."
"Oh god, not her." Jean shudders, thinking back to his brief time with Mina. "She was too loud and spunky for me. Not to mention, kind of weird."
Jean crosses his legs and turns his gaze towards the window across the room, looking out at the twilight where the last moment of the fading red sun is covered by the wall surrounding the settlement. The only way to ever see the true sunset is to be free from the cage. Jean finds himself wondering if Armin is out there, safe, looking as the evening transitions to night.
"Hey, Jean, you all right?" Jean's taken out of his trance as Connie waves his hand a few inches from his face. He pushes his hand away and sighs.
"Yeah, I'm good. What were you saying?"
"We were talking about you getting laid finally."
"Fuck face."
"Horsie."
"You son of a bitch!" Jean shouts, standing up from his seat. Connie jumps out of his chair, knocking it over, and quickly snaps into a fighting stance. Jean has his fist ready to strike but Sasha comes in between the both of them.
"Hey! Stop it! Connie apologize to Jean!"
"But I didn't do anything!" He protests. Sasha gives him a glare and he sighs, huffing out a very basic apology.
"Now you, Jean. Apologize for calling him names."
"Okay, mother." The two boys settle back down in their seats, grumbling about the other as Sasha watches them carefully. Within minutes, Connie snaps back to normal as if nothing had just transpired. Jean, on the other hand, remains ticked off and frowns at Connie's sudden optimism. For once, however, Jean decides to let it go, worried about making Connie too angry to help him with his request.
A request that he just remembered he needs to ask.
"Hey, Connie, I need to speak to you outside." Both Sasha and Connie look up at the sudden request, eyebrows raised high. He turns to Sasha and she nods her head, extremely curious. Jean gestures his head towards the front door and gets out of the seat to walk over to it with Connie right behind him.
They walk out of the apartment and down the stairs, leaving the complex. A cool breeze rolls by, ruffling Jean's hair as he turns to Connie.
"What's going on with you? That was kinda out of the blue?"
Jean sighs, raking his thin fingers through his hair, searching for the right words.
"I need your help. It's urgent, Connie, and you're the only one I can really trust to actually help me," Jean says quickly in a hushed whisper. He stuffs his hands in his pockets, keeping them shielded against the wind and coolness of the night.
"Wow, it's been awhile since you've asked me to do something behind Sasha's back. I'm guessing…she didn't like your idea?"
"I'm leaving Trost. I'm going to find Armin."
Connie takes a step back, completely and utterly in shock from Jean's outrageous plan.
"You're…you're joking, yeah?"
Jean's solemn look confirms his fears. Connie puts a hand to his head and takes a few steps back, making sure to not say anything as a couple of people pass by them. He looks back and forth between Jean's hardened eyes and the street lamp that shines just overhead.
Once they're alone again, Connie speaks up, "…What do I need to do?"
"Meet me at the old willow tree near the mansion before you go to work. I'll need some help getting over the wall."
"I mean, Jean, are you really sure about this?" Connie gives his friend a sympathetic, almost pleading, look. "Do you know how much of an uproar this'll cause?"
"Yes, yes, I know. But I can't…just sit around and wonder if he's alive. I need to see it for myself." Jean clenches his fists, stones in hand, and looks down to the ground. "And if he's okay, then I'll come back. I'm not leaving forever."
The two are silent as Connie processes Jean's words and mulls over them carefully. A gentle breeze flutters by, filling the tense silence with a soft howl. Connie gives a long, exasperated sigh and holds out his hand to Jean, giving in to his need to help his friend. Jean takes his hand in his firmly, signaling their agreement.
"Just come back in one piece, okay? Sasha'll kill me if she finds out I helped you escape and you didn't come back."
"It'll be for a little while. I'll be back insulting that bald head of yours soon enough," Jean says with a smirk. Connie smiles back.
"See you later, cowboy."
Jean, feeling giddy and relieved to have some help, laughs off the nickname and pats Connie on the shoulder, heading back to his home.
Only four more people to deal with this night.
Jean isn't looking forward to dealing with his two sets of parents.
"You better wipe your goddamn shoes before you set one foot in here, so help me God, Jean."
"Hi Levi, great to see you're in a good mood tonight." He kicks off his shoes, leaving the dusty brown pair by the door. He wipes off his hands and any extra dirt on his pants before stepping out into Levi's cozy and tidy living room.
Erwin, who's seated in a navy blue recliner, looks up from his book and smiles warmly as Jean enters. "Oh, good evening, Jean. How are you?"
Jean offers him a small wave, returning the smile. "I'm pretty good, Erwin. Levi obviously wasn't too mad at me today, otherwise I wouldn't be standing here." He chuckles, not daring to glance at Levi's direction. Levi quietly sneaks out of the room to finish his cleaning in the kitchen. Jean follows after him, silently hoping that Erwin won't eavesdrop on what he'll say next. He almost wished that the tall blond man wasn't home for the night.
"Dad must've let him off early," Jean thinks to himself, passing a quick glance behind him. When he turns around, he's cautious not to bump into the small, off-white chest of drawers. As much as Levi keeps everything spic and span, the chest of drawers always seems like the most unfitting thing in the room. It's rough to the touch and covered with cracks where the paint has chipped off.
Despite its horrendous appearance, what's on top of it is what matters the most. Levi's prized possessions are photographs and small knick-knacks of his family and friends. His wedding photo is the most prominent, standing in the center with an ornate golden frame. Jean always admired how handsome Erwin and Levi looked in this and especially loved how its only one of two pictures where Levi is actually smiling.
The other picture is of Levi holding Jean as a toddler. Even if he was a chubby, slobbering baby, Levi was always happy to hold him. Jean reaches for the picture to get a closer look at Levi's smile.
"Even after almost eighteen years of me telling you to keep your grubby hands to yourself, you still don't listen." Jean jumps back from the chest of drawers immediately, his back ramrod straight as he slowly turns over to face his death. Levi stands before him with his arms crossed but doesn't look too angry — just mildly annoyed. He gestures for Jean to follow and turns on his heel.
"Levi, there's a few things I need to ask you."
"If you want the answers for tomorrow's quiz then forget it."
"No. No, I need…" Jean pauses, gathering the words he needs. "I need to know if you've taught me everything there is about the outside world."
Levi looks at him skeptically and stays silent. His eyes shine for a brief second before he snaps, "Whatever stupid idea you have about leaving, forget it. Your place is in this settlement."
Jean throws his arms up, furrowing his brows, and glares down at Levi.
"Now why the hell are you so concerned? You're the one who told me that Oth-Elementals aren't bad at all! You used to travel the world yourself! Hell, even Erwin goes back and forth between settlements and comes back home without so much as a scratch. Why are you opposed to me leaving?" He huffs after he's finished yelling, disregarding the fact that Erwin can now hear every word without even trying.
"Jean, don't you dare raise your voice at me," Levi growls, his voice dangerous and low. "As far as I'm concerned, you're still a child and I'm under obligation to make sure you don't do anything stupid, especially a choice that you'll regret."
Jean grits his teeth, glaring daggers at Levi. He's still wary and intimidated of Levi despite his aggressive display.
"You don't understand. You don't fucking understand. My friend is out there and I have to…no, I need to see him. I need to try and beg him to come home."
"He's not coming home, end of story. There, I just saved you the disappointment."
"Why aren't you on my side!? You were always there for me! Why are you against me now?" Jean's shaking. He almost never argues this hard with Levi; it's something completely foreign to him.
"I am on your side because I'm looking out for you. You're just a stubborn little brat who doesn't even know how the Human world works, let alone how the Elemental world works."
Unbeknown to Jean, Erwin has quietly entered the tense kitchen, hoping to quell their argument.
"Jean, Levi's only looking out for your wellbeing," Erwin starts, pausing to let Jean calm himself after being startled. "The outside world is safe but to an extent. In my last few jobs out there, I've heard many rumors of a Shadow uprising." Jean glares back into Erwin's metallic blue eyes, already feeling a miserable defeat.
"And I've told you how dangerous Shadows are, Jean. This goddamn forcefield was built to keep them out specifically."
Jean growls lowly, looking back to the dark hardwood floor, barely illuminated but the dim lights in the room. He crosses his arms, mimicking Levi, and slowly looks back to meet his hardened gaze.
"Your friend Armin is safe and healthy. He'll be protected by whatever group he settles with from the Shadows. So leave it be and stop thinking about him," Levi snaps sharply, his tone final.
Jean keeps his head down in defeat, completely in disbelief that his second father for once refuses to agree with him. He thought that Levi of all people would understand his situation. He's the one who teaches Jean about the outside world with such enthusiasm and passion, yet he's denying Jean a chance to even see it.
"So, Jean? What do you want to do now?"
"I'm going home."
"Erwin, go with him to make sure he doesn't run away."
Erwin nods and walks over to Jean, patting him on the shoulder with a broad hand. "Hey, it's getting late. I'm sure your father and mother must be worried as well."
Jean leaves Levi and Erwin's little cottage feeling completely betrayed and even more eager to prove them wrong.
Jean paces through the main foyer and up the stairs of the mansion, slightly relieved to finally be home. He still has his mother and father to speak to as well as packing for his journey. He sighs, yearning the comfort of his bed and a good night's rest.
He's checked the rooms his father frequents, such as his study, the library, and even the conference room. He must be settling in bed with his mother right now. Jean needs to hurry down the hall to the bedrooms before they fall asleep.
He makes it to the plain, white door and knocks on it three times. The door opens up soon after and Jean is greeted with his father, rubbing his tired golden eyes.
"Oh, Jean-bo? Did you just get back?"
"Yeah, I was with Sasha helping her move. Can I, uh, come in?"
"Yes, of course." The mayor opens the door fully, stepping to the side to let Jean enter. Jean quietly thanks him and walks in, finding his place on the small beige sofa located a few feet from the bed. As he enters, his mother smiles at him from the bed, her honey brown hair let down over her shoulders.
"Hello, Jean-bo, how are you feeling sweetheart?" she asks him lovingly as he sits down. Jean offers his mother a warm smile as the mayor takes his spot in bed next to her.
"I'm all right, Mama. Sorry to bother you two so late."
"Jean, you know you're welcome here whenever you need something," his father reassures him, wrapping an arm around his wife and holding her close. She giggles, nuzzling into his warm embrace.
"Reggie, our son is in here. Wait until later for that."
Jean can't help but smile and laugh with them. Watching his parents interact and be affectionate with one another always helped him calm down. Jean sighs and clears his throat, ready to speak.
"So, uh, I just came in to tell Dad that…I'm sorry about earlier. And about that past few weeks." Jean looks down, his smile fading. "I must've been pretty annoying."
Reginald scoffs at his son's response. "I think you mean insufferable. You snapped at me and your poor mother. You constantly ran away from your guard, Marlowe, and you skipped out on Levi's classes. You've been avoiding everyone."
Jean hangs his head low, silently wishing his father wouldn't list off all his wrongdoings. Wasn't it enough to just vaguely apologize?
"I know, I know I was a little sh-brat. But I'm really sorry, okay? I promise I'll…take all this politics and education seriously from now on. I'm going to be an adult in a week, yeah?"
Reginald gives his son an approving look, smiling at Jean. "As long as you understand what you did wrong and are willing to fix it, I'm willing to forgive and work with you. Thank you, Jean."
"Honey, it's getting late now. You should head to bed."
Reginald chuckles. "Cosette, dear, the boy's becoming a man and you enforce a bedtime on him." Cosette gives him a side glance before opening her arms up invitingly for Jean. He gets up from the sofa and walks to the bed, giving his mother a tight hug. She kisses his head lovingly as he holds onto her.
After he lets go, Jean rounds the bed to his father's side and gives him a hug as well. Reginald reciprocates, patting Jean on the back.
"Good night, son."
"G'night, Mama. G'night, Daddy."
It's been a long time since Jean referred to his father like that.
And it will certainly be a long time before he can do it again.
Jean sighs as he enters his bedroom, groping around for the lamp near his door. He manages to turn the knob, illuminating the room in a golden light. He stretches his back and yawns, walking over to his bed and sitting down.
Before getting too comfortable, however, Jean slowly stands back up, surveying the room for necessities. He heads to his closet, wrenching the door open, and looks inside for a bag of any kind. By some grace of God, he lays his eyes on a barely used, brown rucksack. Jean retrieves it from the bottom of the closet, throwing it onto the bed, and goes back into the closet to search for more useful items.
Within minutes, Jean emerges with a few sets of clothes and a jacket. It's the end of March, so the weather outside is still cold. It'll be a few more months until it gets warm again but Jean figures it's worth it to lug the coat around.
He hastily packs the clothes inside the rucksack, struggling to fit all of them in. Muttering a long string of profanities, Jean discards a few of his shirts, tossing them to the side. The next thing on his list is to make sure he pockets enough money with him. No matter how much Jean tries his hardest to think, he can't remember for the life of him if Levi said anything about the currency in the outside world.
The Outside World.
"I'll be there soon, Armin. Just wait for me."
Jean has one final thing to do before retiring for the night. Seeing each of his loved ones in person wasn't enough; he has to leave them with one last proper goodbye. Jean settles down at his desk, taking out a few sheets of blank paper, and begins writing accordingly.
He begins the first sheet with "Daddy."
The second with "Mama."
And the final sheet with "Papa Levi."
Jean bites back his tears as he says goodbye to his family.
It's still dark out when Jean wakes up, slobbering on his pillow. He pushes himself up from the bed quickly and runs to the window to check for any light. Of course the wall makes it impossible to discern the location of the sun, so Jean looks up to the forcefield. He found out, long ago, that the ripples will barely reflect the light from the sun. He holds himself at the window for a few moments until a few scarcely colored ripples flow through.
"It's time."
Fortunately, Jean slept in his clothes from yesterday, which gives him one less thing to worry about. Connie should be heading towards the old willow tree any moment now and he needs to act quickly.
One wrong more or one minor delay can cost him this important mission.
At least Marlowe should still be asleep. His duties won't begin for another hour at least, allowing Jean to be long gone before anyone notices. Jean turns to the bed, making it hastily and sloppily before throwing on the coat and slinging the rucksack over his shoulder. He ties on a pair of fairly new boots and stands in place, looking over his room. Jean's heart beats rapidly, adrenaline coursing through his vein as a thin layer of sweat coats his forehead.
His final task is to lay the letters he wrote the previous night down onto his bed neatly. As he lays them down, he hand lingers over the final letter, the one addressed to Levi.
"I hope you're not too mad at me," he whispers solemnly.
Jean tiptoes back to the window, looking around for the safest way to climb down. He reaches out to the wall to his left hand and gropes around until his skin comes in contact with the rough wood of the lattice and a few leaves of ivy sprouting from the vines. He tugs on it for good measure before carefully climbing out of the window. Jean grabs firmly onto the lattice and holds on briefly without moving or jostling it around.
He slowly descends until he reaches the ground safely, wiping the slick dew from his hands. Jean looks back up to his window one final time and rushes over to the willow tree.
"Jesus, Jean, are you really sure about doing this?" Connie questions in a hushed tone as he catches his breath. He looks up and down, seeing Jean packed and ready to go.
"Connie, I'm an honest man. I wouldn't have made such a declaration if I was going to chicken out. Now hurry up and help me over before I really change my mind." Jean waves Connie off to the stone wall just a few feet ahead of them.
"You know this shit is like ten feet tall, right. How the hell am I going to help you get over it?"
"I'm just three inches short of six feet, Connie. All you'd have to do is lift me up all the way and I can reach it."
Connie gives him a skeptical look, not moving from his spot. He sighs deeply before bending his knees slightly and holds his palms out, making sure brace himself. Jean takes a few seconds before stepping up into Connie's hands. As he does, he steadies himself and reaches around desperately, trying to get hold on one of the stones.
"Fucking hell. For such a scrawny bastard, you weigh a fucking ton, Jean."
"Piss off, baldy. I can't help it that you have wimpy little noodle arms," Jean shouts, almost losing his grasp on the stones. His hands are just a few inches from the top of the wall. He can almost taste freedom.
Almost.
"What in the hell do you think you two are doing!?"
Jean and Connie's eyes widen in pure terror as Marlowe bellows across the field. Jean turns around for a brief second, watching as the larger man rushes over to them.
"Fuck! Jean, hurry the fuck up!"
"I-I'm trying!"
Jean grabs onto the top of the wall, thanking whatever deity he can for such a rough surface, and hoists himself up.
"RUN! GET AWAY NOW!"
Connie gulps, doing exactly as Jean commands, and sprints away along the wall from Marlowe. Marlowe snaps his head back and forth between Connie and Jean and settles on Jean, the boy he swore to protect. He gets to the wall and attempts to climb up.
"Jean! Get down here this instant!" Marlowe shouts in full fury.
"Fuck off, Big Nose!" And with that, Jean looks over the other side of the wall and jumps, his heart threatening to beat right out of his chest. His stomach drops during the fall and he lands on his side, rolling over.
The breath is knocked right from his lungs and he takes a few hazy moments recovering from the jump. Jean coughs a few times and slowly pulls himself from the ground; he's not safe just yet, especially with Marlowe on full alert.
Marlowe will run back and alert his parents. He'll run and notify Erwin and his squad. Jean rushes forward without another moment's hesitation, getting closer and closer to the forcefield that's always kept such a cruel distance from him.
He knows its harmless. Humans can pass through freely but yet, he still feels anxious passing through. However, his adrenaline and fear of being brought back overrides the unknown and he runs straight through the forcefield.
Jean stumbles onto the ground once again, feeling lightheaded and weak. The world is a blur to him as he tries to look around but can't make out any solid shapes. Jean's sweating profusely at this point, only getting wetter as he rolls around in the morning dew.
Within a few moments, his tawny eyes can focus on the outside world before him. He rubs his eyes roughly and looks out into the horizon, seeing the first specks of lavender and gold appearing slowly.
The sunrise!
Jean grins from ear to ear, overjoyed at seeing his very first sunrise. His triumphant victory is short-lived as he's reminded that Marlowe could be anywhere at this given moment. He pushes himself off of the ground and sprints across the plains to the nearest form of shelter.
There's a thick, green forest just a mile away and that's where Jean sets his eyes on. He runs as fast as his thin legs can carry him, hoping and praying this not be the end of his journey.
Jean crosses the clearing and makes it to the forest's entrance; his lungs are burning, desperate for rest after such rigorous activity. He doubles over, hands clenched tightly onto his knees, baring white knuckles, and pants. He tries his hardest to take deep breaths, starting with shallow ones at first.
He looks over his shoulder, making sure Marlowe hasn't somehow followed him or that Erwin isn't on his way.
But he will be soon.
"I-I need to…I need to c-climb," Jean huffs out, viewing the large oak trees in front of him. "I need to get high. I need to h-hide."
He sprints further into the forest, searching for a suitable tree that he can easily climb onto. He passes by many trees, deeming them too high up to climb quickly.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Jean pants, panicking and running faster. As his eyes scan the forest quickly, seeing nothing but darkened blurs of blue and green, Jean's foot misses a step completely and he stumbles down an incline in the forest. He grunts and curses as he rolls down the slope, his arms and legs flailing. During his descent, the strap on his rucksack snaps off, detaching from Jean and rolling down ahead of him and into the river passing through.
Jean lands just a foot from the river, scrambling as he hears a splash in the water. He tries to reach for his rucksack, but it's too late. The rushing water of the river carries it off quickly, leaving Jean's sight within seconds.
"Y-You've…you've gotta be fucking kidding me," Jean whimpers, sitting down and taking a proper break. "Okay, Jean, you're smart. You can survive. You just have to find the nearest village…never mind that it'll be full of Elementals."
He takes many deep breaths to relax and calm himself down. Jean holds his head in his hands, racking his brain for the next move, anything to keep himself alive without having to shamefully return to Trost. If he went back now…
"No. I'm not fucking going back."
Jean stands to his feet, surveying the land before him. He needs to take this slowly and really pay attention to foreign landscape in order to avoid another mishap like this. He brushes the dust and dirt from his pants and coat and winces as he hits his thigh too hard. Jean takes a careful step forward, limping his way along the river in search of a tree.
After walking briskly for around an hour, Jean comes to a tree with low branches that's easy for climbing, especially in his condition. He reaches up, digging his fingers into the bark, and lifts himself up onto the first branch. Jean ascends swiftly, just as he had in the past as a child with the old willow tree. A pang of sadness hits his heart, remembering the home that he's leaving behind.
Once Jean is high enough, he sits down on a particularly thick branch, confident that he couldn't slip off even if he tried. From this view, Jean can see Trost just in the horizon, a few miles away. Further to his right is the sunrise. The bright yellow star has peeked over the flat landscape, lighting up the sky in its path, and changed the once dark blue hues to lighter, softer pastels with a hint of orange.
In a few minutes or so, Trost will be able to see the sunrise, and all those busy people will set up their shops or tend to their morning errands. His mother and father will wake up shortly to begin their day, always having breakfast together. On the rare occasions that Jean would wake up at this time, he would always join his parents.
Jean rests his head against the trunk of the tree and closes his eyes, enjoying the small rest. He has to stay and watch for any sign of movement from the settlement but for now, he'll take it easy.
"Is this what you first saw Armin? Was it as lovely as this?" he mutters to himself.
Jean dozes off with a sad smile painted on his lips.
Hours later, Jean awakes to the sound of birds flying past him. He clutches at his chest and frantically looks around at the unfamiliar setting. The sun is up higher than earlier and the world is lit with its blinding light. Luckily for Jean, the leaves on the trees filter the sun's light, giving his eyes adequate time to adjust.
He palms his eyes, rubbing them roughly before looking around again. All's quiet except for the occasion bird that chirps or flutters through the trees. Jean looks back out to Trost and doesn't notice any sign of commotion.
"Tch, I'm too far away to honestly see anything anyway," he grumbles, stretching his legs out before attempting to stand. He's at least twenty feet off the ground and would be damned if he were to slip right off.
Jean carefully stands from his spot and searches for the next branch to climb down to. No point in wasting any more time here if he wants to hurry and find more supplies.
His descent is smooth and every movement is expertly planned. Jean lands on the ground with a soft thud and continues along the grassy trail ahead of him. He trudges along, making no effort to silence his steps as he rustles the leaves at his feet and snaps sticks in half.
Jean keeps his arms by his side, fists clenched slightly as he prays that there'll be some sort of civilization at the opposite side of the forest. Overall, the forest is silent, save for the birds overhead and dull sound of water flowing to his right.
"That goddamned river. That fucking hill," Jean growls as he walks along, keeping his eyes straight ahead, making sure he doesn't take another wrong step.
After twenty minutes of taking an unknown path, Jean looks up as he comes up to another oak tree. He squints at it, noticing that it looks awfully familiar.
"What a second. What a fucking minute…" Jean reaches up to touch the lowest branch. It's the same height as the previous tree's branch that he climbed hours ago. Jean stares up in disbelief as he realizes it was the same tree he was at before.
He had been walking around in circles.
Jean kicks at the trunk of the tree in anger, quickly regretting his decision as he hurts his toes.
"Son of a fucking bitch! What the hell!? WHERE AM I SUPPOSED TO GO!?" he screams at the top of his lungs. Jean growls, opting to go in a completely different direction than last time, hoping that it won't lead him back to this same tree.
He hurries through the leaves on the forest floor, barely paying attention to any additional landmarks or for anything that he could trip over. His vision is blinded by his frustration and eagerness to get away from this place.
Jean steps too quickly onto a large pile of leaves and, before he has time to even comprehend what's happening, is suddenly lifted up with force. His world has literally turned upside down as he hangs by his ankle from a rope tied around a tree branch. Jean's face is in a state of utter shock, listing off every thing that has gone wrong since he started his journey a few hours earlier.
His thoughts are interrupted suddenly as his wide golden amber eyes look into a pair of emerald eyes that shine as brilliantly as fire.