Title: The Evolution of a Miracle

Summary: AU The members of the Generation of Miracles are part of the original Training Squad sent out during the first Titan attack. Set in the Shingeki no Kyojin universe.

Rating: T

Genre: Angst, drama, romance

Major Characters & Pairings: Aomine Daiki/Momoi Satsuki, Midorima Shintarou, Murasakibara Atsushi, Kise Ryouta, Akashi Seijuurou, Kuroko Tetsuya

Warning: Violence, blood, cursing, psychological breakdowns, mentions of death

Author Note: I tried to keep everything as canon as possible, but I took creative liberties in changing certain things for the sake of the story. Some of the quotes that I will use later on are from the manga, so there might be some spoilers. I don't own any of these characters.

PART I

Aomine yawned.

He blinked wearily at the crystal blue sky as he scratched his head; the fog of sleep still clouding his mind. His 3D maneuver gear lay uselessly in a metal heap next to his sprawled body—not that he ever planned on using it again after next week. Aomine smirked, thinking of the coming days. Easily one of the top scorers in every exam, he knew his acceptance into the Military Police was a given.

A life of security and of privilege.

He liked the sound of that.

Brightened by this thought, he hummed a soft tune to himself, and crossed his arms behind his head. A gentle breeze ruffled his navy hair every now and then. He closed his eyes once more, basking in the warm sunrays of this beautiful April day.

But like always, his peace was short-lived. Just as he was almost lulled into a light sleep, a shadow loomed over his sprawled frame and blocked out the sun. Aomine swallowed a groan. Even with his eyes closed, he already knew who the culprit was. The familiar scent of cherry blossoms only confirmed his suspicions. Peeking up at his childhood friend, he felt the familiar coils of irritation beginning in his stomach as his earlier serenity evaporated. He mustered his ugliest scowl and bored his eyes into her.

A lesser person would have tremble under the intensity, but Momoi merely narrowed her eyes and clenched her fists in response. Her 3D maneuver gear clanked as she shifted her stance to point an accusing finger at her idiotic friend.

"Where the hell were you today, Dai-chan? You're missing all of the new exercises Harasawa-san prepared for us."

Aomine trailed his sapphire gaze on the smudges of dirt and debris clinging onto her face and clothes.

"Not interested," he deadpanned as he turned to his side, and yawned. "Besides, those exercises are useless for me. There's no point in practicing all the time when the others can't even keep up." Aomine yelped suddenly when Momoi smacked him in the back.

"What the hell, Satsuki? I'm trying to sleep here!" Aomine grumbled while trying to snuggle into his arm. He knew that his uncooperative behavior wouldn't deter her at all. But at the same time, he prayed to whatever deity out there for her to leave him alone. He shut his eyes again, and mourned for the loss of his earlier peace.

Momoi heaved a deep sigh. She rubbed her temples. Normally she would just bother Aomine to submission, but today's training took a taxing toll on her mind and body. Taking a moment to calm the raging storm in her head, she looked out from the rooftop.

At least he has a knack for finding good hiding places, she thought.

From where she stood, the entire Shiganshina District lay beneath her. She watched several of the merchants below lead wagons of new imports from the inner walls to the town market. Children loitered aimlessly as their parents purchased goods. Momoi liked watching people during this time of the day— with the noon sun shining brightly upon them.

A couple of rowdy boys played kick ball by the corner of the street, and Momoi smiled with nostalgia when one of them feinted the defense. The carefree style of play reminded her of Aomine when he was younger – all cheeky grins and exuberant shouts. She looked beyond the town and her gaze stopped short at Wall Maria.

Towering at around fifty meters, Wall Maria was their only protection against Titans. Everyone living in this area already knew this—that any sort of breach in the Wall would mean the death of most, if not all, of the people living here.

She shook her head to get rid of these ugly thoughts. The Wall hasn't been breached for nearly a century.

"Satsuki?" Momoi startled when she heard Aomine's husky voice. She had assumed he had fallen asleep again. She raised her eyebrows in question; her earlier annoyance had already dissipated.

"Yes, Dai-chan?"

Aomine continued to stare at the birds soaring above them.

"Have you given any thought to which division you're going to join?"

Momoi's eyes widened in surprise before turning her gaze to the birds. She tapped her index finger on her lower lips as she thought of a response. Honestly, she had already made up her mind, but she was not sure how well he was going to take it.

"I was thinking the Survey Corp." she said after a beat of silence. Aomine snapped his eyes to Momoi. She stared back with an unreadable look on her face as Aomine's gaze hardened.

"What?"

Jumping to his feet, he crossed the distance to his childhood friend in three long strides. Momoi sighed quietly, knowing that this conversation cannot be put-off any longer. Steeling herself, she straightened her back and looked straight into Aomine's stormy blue eyes.

There, she saw his warring emotions.

Rage.

Worry.

Disbelief.

And oddly enough…guilt.

He gripped her arms—exasperated because he swore that this girl will one day be the death of him. She can't be serious! Who in their right minds would join the Recon Corps? It's practically a death sentence. He searched her eyes.

Maybe this is a joke. Some stupid joke she's playing on me because there's no way—

Momoi smiled sadly. This entire time, she had not uttered a single word. Yet she continued to look at him with a soften gaze, as if she knew that he would come to understand her decision eventually.

Aomine's heart tightened. After twelve years of friendship, he knew her like the back of his hand and this…this was non-negotiable. The irritable ache in his chest became a full-blown panic. Because, as annoying as she can be sometimes, he knew that he could always count on her to stand at his side.

She's Momoi Satsuki.

She's family.

And the thought of her cold and dead made him want to kill someone.

"Why?" he gritted out. "You're in the top ten of our year. You have other options."

There was no mistaking which option he wanted her to pick. Momoi sighed, and Aomine dropped his arms in defeat.

"And do what? Be trapped inside more walls? Aren't you sick of it?" Aomine stared at her with a hurt look, but she steeled her resolve and continued. "Do you remember why we joined the Training Corps all those years ago?"

His body tensed, and Aomine immediately averted his eyes.

"You said you wanted to see the waters. Not the little rivers or the ponds we have, but the ocean, like the pictures in the books. Do you remember how excited you were when you saw those red critters? You promised that you would catch one for—"

"—So what?! You're basing your decision on some childish promise we made years ago?" He couldn't believe this. She was willing to throw away her life for some far away fantasy. His anger came back in full force. "Grow up, Satsuki! People die in those recon missions all the time, and you'll be lucky if you even survive the year!"

Momoi bristled.

"And how is being in the Military Police any better? You're locked in for life. What's the point if you're just going to rot away in a castle forever? At least I get to see the part of the outside world."

"And what good would that be if you're dead?" Aomine's body tensed with rage. His mind flashed back to his earlier memories in the Training Corps —a time when he was happy and shared Satsuki's wanderlust. But those innocent times were now distorted with memories of wounded men, bodies with missing limbs, and grossly disfigured corpses.

And he'll be damned if Satsuki became part of that statistics.

"You're not joining." He said with finality. Momoi gaped at him for two seconds before gathering her wits.

"Who the hell are you to tell me that? If I want to join the Survey Corps, you can't stop me—"

"— Fine! But if you think I'm just going to stand here and watch you throw away your life for some stupid childhood dream, you got another thing coming! Why don't you just get out of here if you're so set on killing yourself? Don't ever show your ugly face around here again!"

Aomine regretted his harsh words the moment they left his lips and saw the tears pooling in Momoi's eyes. Her breath came out in small huffs, and her tiny frame shook with violent emotions. But before Aomine can take back his words and apologize, Momoi drew her hand back and slapped him. He barely felt the sting of the slap—too busy trying to stay afloat from the guilt and desperation churning uncomfortably in his gut.

"What the hell is your problem, you ganguro! See if I care!"

Aomine's eyes widened.

"Satsuki, O-Oy…" He reached for her, but before he could grab her arm, she released her grapple hooks and, in a few moments, became nothing more than a dot in the distance.

.

.

.

Aomine can't recall how long he had been staring at the birds above him. Sprawled on the rooftop, he watched as the leaves rustled from the light breeze. The deep grumbles of his stomach reminded him that it has been hours since he had last eaten. He felt a sharp pain in his chest at the thought of lunch—no doubt Satsuki's original intention of finding him involved getting food (aside from scolding at him for a bit for missing training).

He sighed. His mind returned to the fight for the thousandth time.

He admitted that he had done a lot of shitty things in the past. In his fits of anger, he has a habit of speaking without thinking first. But she knew that. And each time, Momoi had forgiven him. So this time shouldn't be any different.

Right?

Aomine scratched his head. He considered finding her right now, but knew that she needed time to cool off for a bit. As far as his mistakes went, this was probably his worse one to date.

He sat up. Running his hand through his cobalt hair, Aomine decided to give Momoi a few more hours to cool off before finding her tonight. He grabbed his 3D maneuver gear, and right after he had locked the equipment into place with the intent of finding food, a flash of light followed by a loud crack resonated throughout the district. A huge wave of wind rushed from Wall Maria –blowing debris and shattering the glasses of nearby stores and homes. Aomine cursed as he grabbed onto the railings when the impact of the vibration caused the old building to creek dangerously. Below him, people screamed as some fell over.

"What the—" Aomine stopped short when he saw smoke arising from the top of the Wall.

Two beat of silence passed.

He heard people's low muttering, but Aomine kept his gaze locked on the Wall. Suddenly a red hand—the size of a building—sliced through the air, and swept away all of the weapons on top of the Wall before slamming down on the stone. The people in the streets stared in shock as the Wall buckled and deep crack lines appeared.

Aomine's breath grew shallow as slowly, the head of a Colossal Titan appeared from behind the Wall.