A/N: Hello, people. I think it should be noted that this is my first attempt at writing fanfiction so my characterization might not be exactly spot-on. Though it is an AU so I kind of have an excuse...kind of. But regardless, I shall try my best. Hoping for feed backs, either constructive criticism or otherwise. But the most important thing is, enjoy!
WARNING: Contains yuri and yaoi so...if you're not into this stuff, why are you still here?
Pairings: Annie x Mikasa (Obviously), Ymir x Christa, Armin x Jean, Eren x Levi, possibly others.
Disclaimer: I don't own Attack on Titan or any of its related stuff. I don't get anything from this, except for enjoyment.
The Art of Connection
Chapter 1
"Behind hate is a greater love"
Like most good news tends to, it happened on a rainy day. The sun was out yet no warmth could be felt and the streets were empty except for few people. A rainbow hung in the background, its colours faint and melded together; it was a sight that was commonplace in a wet city such as Maria. But not only was Maria well-known for its wet climate, it was mostly known for its poverty. The city as whole lacked money, thanks to the rich and influential people from Capital city Sina stuffing all the taxes they pay into their pockets. Due to this, the average income per family was low and a good education was hard to come by unless you were talented enough to get into a school in city Rose or Sina through scholarship. But cases like that were rare, especially from a small and insignificant town such as Shiganshina.
So one would not be entirely wrong to say that what happened on that rainy day was not merely good news, but rather a miracle.
(0)(0)(0)
Mikasa heaved a sigh as she lowered her bag to the floor and slumped into her chair. She had just come back from her part-time job at the smoothie place and after 4 hours of doing nothing but serving smoothies while being ogled at by the manager, she could honestly say that she was sick of the beverage. The only reason she put up with her job was because of the money but lately, even that wasn't enough a reason for her to stop herself from entertaining some of her darker thoughts which involved a knife and a certain manager.
It wasn't like the Jaeger family was poor. In fact, compared to regular families in Shiganshina, they were what people considered the 'rich snobs' though if they were to go to Sina, they would be rendered to nothing short of 'homeless'. But yes, in a town so small and poor, the Jeager family was well-off, due to Dr Jaeger's well-paying job at the local hospital and his famous reputation that even reached city Rose and Sina. Both Mikasa and her adoptive brothers Eren and Armin had plenty of education so Mikasa actually had no reason to work part-time other than to save up and rely less on Carla and Grisha to pay for her everything. She was grateful enough that they took her in without any conditions so she was determined to not be a burden, at the very least.
Just as she began to close her eyes, the sound of the front door being burst open reached her ears and frantic footsteps soon followed. Mikasa immediately tensed and stood up, preparing for the worst case scenario. Before she could even blink, the door to her room received the same treatment as the front door and she found herself staring at a beaming Eren in its place. She relaxed her muscles and watched in amusement as Eren started ranting incoherently, waving a piece of paper around in the air. She waited for her brother to calm down and he did, after roughly five minutes. Even then, Mikasa could see that Eren's body was practically humming in excitement which made her wonder what exactly got him so pumped up.
"Calmed down?" she asked playfully. Eren smiled at her sheepishly and nodded, finally taking a deep breath. When silence filled the room for a minute, Mikasa couldn't resist the curiosity and gently prompted for Eren to continue. "What's got you so excited?"
Eren grinned so wide, Mikasa wondered how it didn't split his face.
"Well, remember how dad's got a job at the Grand hospital in city Rose? And remember how we're moving there to a new house?"
Mikasa nodded, signalling Eren to get to the point.
"And remember how we took the test to get a scholarship at Trost academy?"
Once again, Mikasa nodded. She definitely remembered. About a month ago, just after hearing that Grisha had gotten a job in city Rose, Eren had looked up different schools to attend along with an overly eager Armin who was the most academically gifted one out of the three siblings. By chance, they had stumbled upon Trost Academy's official website and had briefly looked over the descriptions and requirements. They were scrolling down the requirement section when they found out that Trost Academy specialized in teaching students Art, Design and Music and any student who wished to attend must excel at one of these topics.
At the word 'Specialize' and 'Music', Eren and Mikasa were immediately hooked. Upon further reading, it turned out that Trost Academy also offered scholarship to talented teenagers whom were less fortunate. After that, it only took '… a wonderful geography and mathematics programs' to convince Armin. Together, they had taken the test to apply for the school's scholarship with Carla and Grisha's approval.
"We got in!"
Mikasa blinked. Eren looked at her expectantly, waiting for her reaction. When none came, he repeated his sentence except with less excitement and more worry.
"Mikasa? I said we got in. You know, to Trost Academy?"
"I know," she replied softly. Eren looked at her in concern, his eyebrows drawn together. That is, until he saw the huge smile on his sister's face. He relaxed and smiled along with her. It wasn't every day that you get see someone like Mikasa smile so widely and sincerely so he wanted to treasure this moment. The only shame was the fact that Armin wasn't there to celebrate with them.
Just then, the sound of soft footsteps interrupted their moment and a blonde haired boy poked his head into the room.
"Hey guys. For some reason, the front door was open. Did anything happen?" Armin asked; his mind was racing through all the different scenarios that could have taken place. To his question, Mikasa and Eren's eyes lit up and Eren practically pounced on Armin while Mikasa was more reserved and chose to simply stand closer to him.
"We got in, Armin! We did it!" Eren shouted, literally thrusting the piece of paper he was holding to Armin's face. The latter took the paper and quickly scanned over the text. His eyes widened and turned to stare at Mikasa and Eren, both of whom were sporting wide grins on their faces. He looked back at the letter and again at his siblings. When they nodded as if saying 'It's true', Armin's vision went black and he promptly fainted.
There was an awkward silence in which Eren and Mikasa spent staring at Armin's body that lay on the floor. He was clutching the piece of paper so preciously; it might as well have been the bible.
"That…wasn't the reaction I was expecting…" Eren muttered. Mikasa rolled her eyes in response.
"Shut up and help me carry Armin's body to the bed."
Outside, the rain continued to pour.
(0)(0)(0)
"Ugh. Why is the Saxophone so heavy?" Eren grunted, walking towards the hall where the welcoming speech was about to start. They had moved into a nice, average sized house within the city of Rose few weeks ago. Conveniently, the house happened to be very near to the school so there was no need for them to be dropped off by car. Unfortunately for Eren, however, it meant that he had to lug his instrument to school every morning and drag it back home every afternoon.
"Stop complaining. You were the one who chose to play it," said Mikasa without even sparing a glance at the brown-haired teen. Eren huffed in response, glaring at her back.
"You have it easy. All you have to do is carry two sticks around in your pocket. Even Armin only has a small case and the clarinet isn't heavy."
Armin opened his mouth to retort when a heavy body slammed into his side and sent him stumbling. Mikasa was at his side in a flash, checking over his body and acting like a fussy mother in general. Meanwhile, Eren glowered at the person responsible for sending Armin flying. He was slightly taller than Eren, his hair a similar shade of brown except for the layer beneath which was a darker shade. He was carrying a slightly smaller leather case and his face sported an unpleasant scowl. Eren bristled, feeling hatred for the guy despite only having known him for ten seconds.
"Hey, watch where you're going. You nearly broke my brother's ribs thanks to that stunt you just pulled," Eren said with a glare. The guy turned his scowl to Eren for a second before taking a look at Armin who was still nursing his sore side. His scowl softened and concern entered his eyes for a brief second before it was covered by irritation when he saw Eren glaring at him.
"Huh? What are you talking about? I was the one who was shoved by some bastard. It wasn't as if I slammed into Blondie over there on purpose. Anyway, I don't have time to talk, I'm in a hurry so whatever," the guy said, starting to walk off. Before he even took five steps, he paused and after a moment of hesitation, turned around and looked directly at Armin before saying, "Look, sorry. My name's Jean Kirschtein. I swear didn't slam into you intentionally; I have better things to do." With that, Jean continued to walk away, leaving Armin staring after his retreating back. Despite the guy's apparent toughness, Armin had sensed an aura of sadness coming from Jean and something told him that it wasn't a trivial matter like a squashed cake or a lost book. No, it was something deeper…something more emotional…
"That guy really pisses me off," Eren gritted, snapping Armin out of his thoughts.
"Someone once said that behind hate is a greater love," Mikasa deadpanned.
"Then that person must be out of their mind."
At this, Armin perked up and opened his mouth to counter the statement in his usual matter-of-fact fashion.
"Actually, Eren, from a psychological point of view…"
"Please… Armin. Can we not go into psychology and the mysteries of the world so early in the morning? My brain isn't ready," interrupted Eren with a slight groan.
"Your brain is never ready."
"Shut up, Mikasa. Not everyone can have a photographic memory like you."
"You're just jealous."
"What? No I'm not…"
…and thus started another argument between Eren and Mikasa. Maybe it was because they were close even before Armin got to know the two or maybe it was because he got adopted by the Jaeger family the latest, but he noticed that both of them bickered with each other over the smallest things while neither of them ever sparked an argument with him. He wasn't jealous in the slightest but it was just something he noticed from observation.
Besides, Armin pouted, he really wanted to explain the psychological implications of Mikasa's comment to Eren. Maybe another time.
"Come on, guys. Let's put our instruments away in the lockers first before heading to the hall. We better hurry because the speech is going to start in five minutes and I really don't want to miss it."
Armin sighed when neither of them responded. He had a feeling that his first day at Trost Academy was going to be a hell of a long day.
(0)(0)(0)
Roughly a month had passed and Mikasa had enjoyed her time at the school. They taught her everything she already knew yet the way it was taught made it seem like new material and she fell in love with playing the drums all over again. She had thought, before she applied for Trost, that her interest in the instrument would dwindle over time. She only practiced occasionally to keep the memories of her deceased father alive though she hardly touched the piano; it was just too painful. When she first came across Trost Academy's website, a fire deep within her had lit up and she felt as if she had found that thing she was missing all these years. Now, as she felt the rhythm course through her body, she knew that she had made the right choice in coming to Trost.
Her teacher Keith Shadis was a top-notch percussionist and his lessons were valuable although his methods were cruel and unforgiving. Any tiny mistakes would result in infinite amount of repeats until your hands were bleeding and you could play the part perfectly in your sleep.
Before she knew it, she had hit the crash cymbal with vigour and her routine was finished. She took a moment to close her eyes and immersed herself in the vibration, inwardly naming all the notes she could identify within the vibration as it thinned out, silence soon regaining its reign. Checking the clock hung above the door frame in the practice room, she saw that it was well into lunch break and remembered that she was supposed to meet up with her friends in the cafeteria. She quickly stuffed her drum sticks into her bag before hurrying out of the room only to collide into a stranger.
Mikasa took few steps back, quickly regaining balance. However, the person she collided with had no such luck and fell on their butt, cursing loudly.
"Ow. Watch where you're going, dumbass," said an irritated voice. Mikasa took a look at the form sprawled on the floor and saw that it was a girl around her age. The girl stood up whilst brushing herself off, muttering with a scowl on her face. Even in her full height, she was a head shorter than Mikasa but the taller girl knew that underestimating your opponent based on their stature was one of the easiest mistakes one could make during a fight. Not that Mikasa considered the girl her opponent, seeing that they barely just met, albeit not in the best situation.
"Sorry, I was in a hurry and didn't you from inside the room," Mikasa offered as an apology. The girl looked up and Mikasa noted with amusement that the girl seemed to be annoyed at Mikasa's taller form.
Her amusement stopped short when their eyes met; cerulean blue clashing with storm grey. Mikasa stared at the girl's eyes, transfixed with the shade of blue and inwardly in awe at how they seemed to just belong, and how the soft golden hair framed her face and half covered her right eye. The girl however, seemed to be unaffected and said in a monotone voice, "Whatever. Just make sure this doesn't happen again." And with a look of utter boredom and disinterest, continued to walk in the direction she was originally heading.
Mikasa knew she should have just let her walk away and forget about it but her body betrayed her rational thought and shouted after the blonde girl.
"What's your name? My name is Mikasa."
The girl stopped short for a second but said nothing and resumed her walking. Just as Mikasa thought she had failed in her attempt to get the girl's name, she heard the girl say one word before getting out of ear shot.
"Annie."
(0)(0)(0)
"What took you so long, Mikasa?" Eren asked as she approached the table that was currently occupied with her friends bickering and talking. She sat down and said thanks to Armin who handed her some food he had bought for her at her request.
"Nothing. I just didn't realize the time," she replied before munching on her sandwich. She greeted some of her friends sitting around her.
"Geez, I swear you're like the only one who spends their lunch break doing more instrument practice," said Connie, pausing in his food eating contest with Sasha to comment. His attention quickly turned to the said girl when she started choking on her food, a result from stuffing way too many bread into her mouth at once.
"You're not overworking yourself, are you? If you feel ill, you can tell me and I can give you some painkillers; I always carry them around." This time, it was Christa who spoke. She was the 'goddess' of the group, first dubbed by Sasha when the petite blonde had offered her some of her own food when the brunette had ran out of money one lunch time. Since then, it had stuck due to how fitting the title really was. Christa was the epitome of sweetness and kindness, a stark contrast to her girlfriend's mean attitude and crude sense of humour. They were polar opposites: Whilst Christa was always caring and never pushing, Ymir utterly lacked any sense of tack. Whilst Christa would readily sacrifice her time to help someone in need, the tall brunette was the type of person who would help others out just for the purpose of creating a debt, so that they would need to pay her back in some kind of form. Most people wondered how their relationship functioned.
"No, I'm fine Christa. Thank you for your concern," Mikasa reassured. Ymir grinned and looped an arm around the small blonde, jokingly asking to marry her, causing the said blonde to cutely blush and stutter. Nobody paid them any heed, already used to their interaction. Mikasa thought back to the blonde she had met earlier outside her practice room.
"Annie."
"Annie…" she muttered, testing the name on her tongue. She decided that it had a nice ring to it.
"Who's that?"
Mikasa snapped out of her daze and met her gaze with Armin's. He was looking at her expectantly, curiosity written all over his. Mikasa glanced at Eren to make sure he hadn't heard and thankfully, he was in a heated conversation about saxophone versus guitar with Connie and Sasha. All three of them were leaning more towards their own instruments.
Turning back to look at Armin, she thought over what she could possibly say. In the end, she decided it wasn't worth telling her brother so she simply replied with a cool, "No one."
Armin looked unconvinced but he knew better than to push the issue. He shrugged and joined in on Eren, Connie and Sasha's argument, bringing the clarinet into the discussion in the process.
Mikasa went back to her thoughts, her mind once again drifting to the captivating blue eyes…
She shook her head to get rid of the thoughts about the girl.
She probably won't be seeing her again anytime soon.
A/N: Did you like it? If you did, click that button down there. You know you want to. It would encourage me to write more, certainly.
-Neuro