A large hollow log lay by the side of the lake, having been chopped down a week ago due to safety reasons, and gutted as well to provide wood for the cold nights. It rolled over slightly as waves crashed against it, small giggles emerging from it and blossoming into the warm summer air. Inside the cramped space, a young girl was laughing.
"Hey little guy, what are you doing in here? Don't you know bullfrogs don't live in trees?" She stifled a laugh at her own attempt at humor and reached out, her small hand splattered with mud and pulpy wood. The frog, covered in greenish slime, breathed quickly, the balloon below its mouth bouncing rapidly as it watched her hand draw closer. At its contact with her finger, the slippery creature jumped to the side, causing the girl to retract her hand with a delighted squeal.
"Hanji! Get out of there, for God's sake!"
The girl jumped at the voice, startled. She wriggled her body out of the dark, damp wood, her feet touching the moist sand. "Sorry mama," she yelled, turning towards the small cabin house in the distance. A tall woman stood in the doorway, shaking her head in amused disappointment.
"It's time for dinner, sweetheart," she called from the porch. Hanji smiled widely, pulling her skirt up above her knees and running towards the small home, tripping over multiple natural obstacles as she did so. She panted loudly as her feet slammed heavily against the steps leading up to the porch. The front door swung as she opened it, stepping inside the small wooden home.
The room smelled earthy and sweet, the warm soup that was cooking above the stove wafting into all of the rooms, creating a pleasant aroma throughout the home. Hanji took off her shoes at the door, and then wiped the sweat and grime off of her forehead with her wrist. Her mother walked in, the same tall woman with long brown hair and tired eyes.
"Darling, you're a mess," she scolded with a sigh, putting her hands on her hips. She walked out of the room into the kitchen and returned with a ratted cloth. "Here, you wash off your face and go take a bath. We have guests coming over tonight.
"We do?" Hanji replied, taking the cloth and rubbing her cheeks, swirling the mud around.
"Yes, some new neighbors came into town today. They're staying in the house down the road for the summer. They're from Sina, so you'll need to look presentable. That means you need to be sure to wear your hair down, like a proper city lady. Not all ratted like…" she gestured to her brunette hair, with was pulled up into a sloppy ponytail.
"All right, mama." She held out the cloth to her mother, which was now covered in grime. "Sorry."
"It's fine, honey." The woman smiled and took the cloth back. "Just go wash up."
Hanji nodded and ran out of the room, heading down the small hall and turning left into a room with a wash basin. She filled it with water, taking off her long tan skirt and her red blouse, now spotted with the remains of her last adventure outside. After removing her undergarments she hopped into the water with a splash, sliding beneath the surface and listening to the pressure in her ears.
Being under the water calmed her. It was nice to sit in silence and in thought, pondering the day's events. She wondered if this was how fish felt, always floating in silence, only distantly hearing the muffled sounds of the surface. Maybe that's why fish were so jumpy and afraid. They could hear things growing closer but never knew what they were.
She opened her eyes, looking down at her legs stretched out in front of her and her hair floating weightlessly around her face. Light rippled above her, making shadows in the miniature sea she had created.
Breaking the surface loudly, she gasped, realizing the amount of time she had held her breath was far too long. She grabbed her hair in her hands and wrung it out, water dripping down into the basin. She stood and grabbed a towel, drying off, and then rubbed her hair with it to get rid of excess water. Once it was half dried it waved around her shoulders, dripping onto her skin. She shuddered with chill as she looked in the mirror, putting her skirt and blouse back on and walking out of the bathroom into the hall.
"There's my girl!" The door slammed shut and Hanji picked her pace up to a jog. A tall man with firey red hair walked in, hanging his coat on a rack next to the door. The girl jumped on his back, smiling. "Hiya, Daddy!"
"Hiya, kiddo! Look at you, all nice and clean. How was your day?" He ruffled her hair affectionately, squatting down and placing her on the ground while looking her in the eyes.
"Good, I went to the lake," she announced.
He smiled. "And what did you find today?"
"I saw…" she looked down for a moment. "I saw a lot, it's hard to remember it all. Oh! I saw a really big fish, almost the size of my arm! Oh, and I saw a lot of frogs, and some geese, and I saw the log, which was really fun! I wanna live in it! Its big and comfy."
"You do?" he asked, laughing. "I don't know, it would be pretty cold at night, don't you think?"
"I don't care, there are lots of things to look at in there. Tunnels animals made, and ants building their little mountains, and-"
"Cleaned up, honey?" her mother interrupted from the kitchen.
"Yeah, mama, I am."
"Could you get your sister? I think she's in her room."
"Okay mama." She looked over at her father with a smile and motioned for him to lean in close. "I'll tell you about it later, daddy," she whispered, then hopped up and ran out of the room.
"Mari, we're gonna eat soon!"
Mari looked up at her sister standing in her doorway. "Are we? All right, I'll be down in just a minute."
"Do you wanna hear about my day? I'll listen to your day if you listen to mine."
The redhead looked up, eyebrow raised. "Right now?"
Hanji nodded, and the elder girl sighed sighed. "All right, then. Tell me something."
"Okay, well I was walking along the beach, right? And I saw a ripple in the water, so I ran to a tall rock, one the size of the front door, and stood on it to see what it was. The water was really clear, and out on the horizon, where I saw the ripples, guess what it was?"
"A fish?"
She pointed at Mari wildly. "Yes, right, a fish! And do you wanna know how big it was? Come on, guess."
"…Big?"
"Yeah! Really big! The size of my arm!" She held up her arm above her head to show her sister a reference.
"That's nice. Today I learned how to cook the soup mom is keeping warm right now. It was really fun. Did you know it has a type of vegetable in it you can only get in early June? That's why we hardly ever have it in winter and spring."
"Huh. Doesn't sound to fun."
Mari glared at the younger girl. "Maybe not to you!"
Hanji giggled. "I'm kidding! Just hurry to dinner, the neighbors are coming."
"I know, idiot," she replied, standing. The front door clicked open and both girls diverted their attention to the direction of the sound, pausing.
"I'm gonna get there and meet 'em first!" Hanji shouted, running out of the room. She ran into the living room where her parents were conversing with a strange family. Mari walked in afterwards, frowning and smoothing her skirt as she entered.
"Ah, and here come the kids now." Hanji's father stopped his conversation and turned to the girls. "Girls, these are the Rivaelle's. Say hello."
"Hello there, sir, ma'am."
"Hiya! I'm Hanji! That's Mari, she's really not that polite, she just likes to act like it."
The man in the other family laughed loudly. "Well, aren't you a talkative one?"
"I'm very sorry." Her mother held up her hands. "She's not very, well, appropriate, most of the time."
"It's just fine, Mrs. Zoe." He looked back down at Hanji, his dark eyes shining. "Say, sweetie, how old are you?"
"I'm seven," she announced proudly, a smile on her face.
"Are you? Well our son is about your age, just a year older. Levi, why don't you say hello?"
Hanji peeked around the back of the tall man. A small boy peeked out from behind his leg, shaking his head.
"Come on, she seems nice," a short, stout woman, likely his mother, said warmly.
The boy looked at the ground. "Hi."
"Hi! So you're Levi? And you're eight? You're kinda short, you know, being older than me."
"All right, that's enough chatter!" Her mother broke in with nervous laughter. Let's sit and eat, shall we?"
"The soup is fantastic, Sara."
"Oh, well don't thank me, Mrs. Rivaelle. Thank Mari. It was her first time making it today." The mother motioned to her daughter, who looked down with humility.
"So you made this!" Mrs. Rivaelle looked delighted. "You did wonderfully, Mari, great work."
"Speaking of work," Mr. Rivaelle interrupted. "What would happen to be your profession, Mr. Zoe, if you don't mind my intrusion, of course?"
Hanji's father held up a hand, pausing to swallow. "I work in the town nearby. I own a shop, we sell pretty much everything. Everyday items people need."
"I see! Is work going well?"
"It's lovely, everything is going smoothly. Your work?"
"Houses don't seem to be selling very well, in all honesty. We had a large boom a few years back but it seems to be going downhill…"
Hanji looked up from her empty bowl of soup and across the table as the adults chattered in the background. Levi was sitting there, sipping from his spoon. He looked up at her, making eye contact, and she smiled at him warmly. He looked back down and his meal. Her smile faded into a pout.
"So, girls, do you have any goals, at the moment? What do you want to do in the future?"
Mari smiled warmly. "I'm hoping to be a schoolteacher. I'm learning all the necessary information and discipline techniques right now, so I can go to the University in the wall and get a job."
"That sounds lovely!" Mrs. Rivaelle clasped her hands together. "And what about you Hanji?"
"I wanna be a scientist and go around the world!"
Mrs. Zoe took in a deep breath anxiously. "Sweetie, I thought you said you wanted to teach science like your sister?"
Hanji turned to her mother, her eyes bright. "No way, I want to see all the weird bugs and trees and fish, and go outside the big wall to see where the water comes from and the mountains and the forest people say is full of giant trees."
The table was silent for a moment, all eyes on the excited girl. Mr. Zoe coughed loudly, trying to break the awkward atmosphere. "Well, Hanji, I think you should go outside and play if you're finished with your soup."
"How about Levi goes as well?" Mr. Rivaelle said, nodding towards his son, who had a spoon halfway to his mouth. Hanji waved to him from across the table and he frowned.
"Sounds like a great idea, you two should get to know each other."
"Yeah!" Hanji pushed her chair away from the table loudly. "Come on, Levi!" She jumped down from her seat, running out of the room and grabbing her shoes. At the table, Levi sighed.
A/N: Phew, that chapter was fun to write, I suppose I should write another, shouldn't I? Yes, Mari does not exist in either the show or the manga. I just enjoy the idea of Hanji having a sister. Thank you for reading, you guys. Feel free to review, I'm always happy to receive constructive criticism, and follow if you enjoyed it. Thank you!