Chapter - 1: When Eyes Meet
It had been three weeks since Commander Erwin Smith had given his recruitment speech at the training grounds after the Battle of Trost. The new batch of Survey Corps rookies had arrived at the castle a week before the expedition was to be kicked off. Amongst the inhabitants was Jean Kirschtein, who was assisting with stable work on his first day. He had just finished raking out the spoilt hay from the stables as Dita, a Survey corps veteran, saddled up the horses for the next week's expedition. But Dita suddenly remembered he had left a few saddles back at the castle, along with some fodder buckets for the horses.
"No problem, I'll fetch them for you," Jean offered. Dita thanked him with a nod. Jean went to the storeroom, and he found the saddles and the fodder buckets. It seemed like it was a lot to carry back, but he managed the load by hanging a couple buckets over his shoulders and and carrying the remaining saddles in his arms. While walking out, however, he tripped over a broken tile and fell to the floor, spilling fodder everywhere.
Hearing this racket, Petra rushed out of her room nearby and saw that Jean was picking things up.
"Are you all right?" she asked, looking concerned. "Are you hurt?"
"No, Petra-san, I think I'm OK," said Jean, trying to hide his slight embarrassment at the situation. As he brushed some fodder out of his hair, Petra helped him by brushing some off his shoulder. He raised his head to look at the petite lady, and felt his face flush almost instantly Wow, I knew she's beautiful but even more so when she is close, he thought to himself.
"Hey, is it okay if I help you with these saddles?" Petra asked.
"It's not a problem, I can manage things," Jean replied, his face still a bit flushed from embarrassment.
"Oh, don't be silly, it's okay to ask for help sometimes," Petra said with a light chuckle. Her light-colored ginger hair waved in the wind and her amber eyes glistened as a bit of sun shone through the corridor window. Jean couldn't help the barely audible "wow" that slipped out his mouth.
"Huh? I didn't hear you, Jean," Petra said with a smile.
"Oh nothing, nothing," Jean stuttered
The both of them talked as they tried to clean up the mess.
"Mikasa Ackerman is our batch's top graduate, Eren's sister? you know her? Ohh! and Reiner Braun is a close second by the way!" Jean spoke eagerly about his colleagues, "Armin may be small, but his cunning makes up for it!"
"Ohh? and what rank did you graduate at?" Petra listened attentively, getting to know the rookies better.
"Umm, I did so-so, sixth rank…" Jean tried to act modest.
"Well then, I'll have high expectations from you!" She replied.
Jean let out a giggle and continued," And then there's, Marco, he…" he paused abruptly.
Petra looked up and could see that a tear was running down his right cheek. She took his hand and her touch calmed him down slightly, but the memory of his closest friend's death was still overwhelming.
"I know how it feels when you lose friends," Petra whispered. "I owe my life to two of them, and even I don't know where they are now…I'm really sorry for asking you," she apologized, looking worried.
"It-it's ok Petra-san," Jean said softly. They walked in silence for a few minutes.
"Listen," she finally said. "I know that you have to finish up your work at the stable, and then Dita has to teach you men the long distance detection formation. After that, if you feel like you need someone to talk to, just let me know." Finally, they had reached the stable and Jean thanked her, wiping his eyes. As she walked away, Jean felt a strange tingle in his heart and turned back a couple times to look at Petra's back, still trying to take in a bit of her beauty. Unbeknownst to him, she was also looking back at him…
"What took you so long?" Dita asked, scratching his bandana.
"I'm sorry, Dita-san, I, err, fell over and, umm, had to clean the mess up." Even after his encounter with Petra, Jean had mixed feelings; though he was still sad about Marco, he felt happy about Petra, but he wasn't sure how the two emotions could be felt at the same time…
In the meantime, as she walked back to the castle, Petra still felt stupid about asking Jean those questions and felt as though she hadn't apologized to him enough. He's really cute though, wouldn't hurt talking to him again. Petra smiled.
"Oi, Petra! Get your daydreaming ass back in here! Corporal Levi has something to plan out!" Oluo, one of Petra's obnoxious, but skilled partners in the special operations squad, yelled across the way, breaking her train of thought.
"Where do you think I'm going, you pompous idiot?" She screamed back. Well, back to business for now…
Later that night in the dining hall, Jean scanned around the room with his eyes and finally found Petra. She looks so simple, yet she's divine, he thought to himself. Petra looked back at that exact moment and he blushed and quickly looked down. He slightly looked back up and she had a charming smile on her face. As much as Jean tried, he just couldn't look away; it was as if his mind and his eyes were glued on her.
He smiled, and Petra nodded; she apparently remembered their earlier agreement with talking to each other. He acknowledged that he saw her, and shortly after dinner was done, he cleaned up and took his leave from Armin, Reiner and Bertholdt. Walking past the storeroom, his heart began to race.
She's the only person who has ever heard me out, and truly tries to understand me. Though he had seen her all through dinner, he couldn't wait to be near her. As he walked to her room, Jean gulped nervously, his mind still trying to process what his earlier interaction with Petra meant. Was she just trying to be nice to him, or did she really feel the same way he did...?
As Petra waited for Jean to arrive, she sat on the edge of her bed nervously moving her legs and staring down to the ground in deep thought. All the men in the Corps were extremely dedicated and skilled, but she had always felt that they lacked emotions. Hardened by countless expeditions, it seemed that their comrades' deaths somehow had stopped having an effect on them.
But not Jean; he was a rare person. He valued people, and kept ties with them. He had a heart, though he rarely showed it.
Jean knocked on the bedroom door, and Petra opened it almost immediately, as if she had been standing next to it in anticipation. That was the first time that he had seen her without her Survey Corps uniform on. Instead of the uniform, she wore a simple dress of a white buttoned top and a blue knee length skirt. Even in something so plain, she still looked beautiful and delicate.
"Hi, Jean. How was dinner?" Petra asked softly. Jean blushed instantly, just like the first time she had spoken to him.
"Ohh it was good, Petra-san...umm." Jean stumbled over his words again. Petra giggled softly and took his hand to pull him into the room. Jean loved the feel of her touch.
"Jean, I'm sorry about what I had asked you earlier in the day. I feel as though I haven't apologized enough, which is why I wanted to speak with you again. And by the way, just call me Petra." Her casual attitude made him more comfortable and he was delighted to see that she had yet to let go of his hand.
"It-it's just that…" Jean felt an ache in his chest as he thought of Marco. "Everyone respected and adored him," he continued. "He was a brilliant person and a formidable soldier." He shut his eyes to hide his tears. "But the thing that saddens me the most is that I will never knew how he died," He lifted his head up. "So in order to carry on his will and strength, I decided to join the survey corps." While Jean talked, they had moved towards the bedroom window.
Petra had a concerned expression on her face, and she wiped a tear from his cheek. "Marco will live on through you, and the fact that his will and memory motivated you to join the survey corps is testament to that," she said. Thankfully, Jean had noticed that he was stuttering and stumbling less around Petra, and was becoming more comfortable
"Thank you," he replied, "I believe you are right." He turned his gaze back to Petra after looking outside for a moment. Her eyes were as vibrant as ever in the moonlight.
"The crescent moon looks really pretty tonight doesn't it," Petra said as she stared into the distance, occasionally looking back to Jean.
"Not as pretty as you, Petra." Jean said, used to just saying what he was on his mind, regardless of who was listening. In the silence that followed, he smiled as he felt himself peacefully accepting Marco's death. And with that memory put to rest, he could share what he really felt with Petra.
It was Petra's turn to blush, and with a laugh, she tenderly squeezed his right arm with both of her hands. Jean felt of all his senses come alive at the knowledge that he was standing in the presence of someone as beautiful as Petra.
"You have a really cute face, you know that?" Petra said suddenly.
"Really? My batch-mates call me horseface," Jean replied.
"Then it's a very cute horseface!" She chuckled at his almost serious expression. She pulled him close and he wrapped his arms around her waist.
"Should we really?" Jean asked, his nerves causing his voice to shake.
"Jean…you're special, and I don't know how many chances I'll get after tonight…to tell you, we might not..." Petra gently kissed his cheeks, but she did have to stretch up a little to do so. Jean bent his head down and their lips met. For him, the moment was so surreal; was he really so lucky that he could get close to someone as celestial as Petra?
Jean lifted her up by her hind thighs, and the action earned him an excited gasp. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and he breathed in her scent; it drove him crazy. But as much as he wanted to move things along quickly, he knew he had to treat her with the gentleness and respect she deserved. He placed her on the window sill with the utmost care.
In that moment, everything was perfect. Both Petra and Jean had no thought about the impending expedition, what might happen or if they would lose someone special. They were filled with the mellow touch of each other's bodies, the cares and worries of their future temporarily forgotten.
The rest of the night was something both would remember forever, but how long would forever last?
