I promise after this chapter there will be more Rivamika action happening :) x


Chapter Three


"You!" Rivaille barked aiming his finger at a childlike boy meandering about. "Get Christa and tell her to bring the emergency bag." He instructed.

"Y-Yes sir." The boy answered with an alarmed look on his face. Then he sprinted off hunting for Christa.

When he returned Christa was hindering hurriedly behind him with the emergency bag. As soon as she saw Mikasa's bleeding leg Christa began to drain the bag of its contents onto the prairie.

"Mikasa are you okay?" She queried agitatedly but the sable – haired girl did not reply. Instead she tried to seal the wound up with her hands. The blood clot forming in her clothing had spread; it had developed certainly a lot larger and bloodier. "Corporal, help me lie her down." Christa instructed.

Rivaille unquestioningly assisted Christa as they leisurely supported Mikasa down on the steppe. Her stallion wailed stridently and flipped its stumpy, charcoal tail. Maybe it had sensed that her rider was not in moral shape and the only way it could upkeep her was to shake its tail.

"How the hell did you manage to cut yourself in open land?" The Corporal questioned.

Christa somehow managed to tear a part of Mikasa's pants away to examine her wound. Drastically, she began to search for the alcohol bottle and when she did, she cultivated to Mikasa's wound and started to sterilise it. Bemused by the coldness and sudden sharp pain, the injured girl groaned and winced in quick response as the alcohol devoured her cut.

The blonde's eyes averted to Mikasa and she scrunched her face. "Sorry," Christa hand-picked up a sterile, white wipe then smoothly polished Mikasa's pitiable leg. "How did you manage to wound yourself?" She repeated.

Mikasa exhaled a huge groan of liberation, feeling like a vast heaviness had been fortunately elevated off of her shoulders. "I got tired. My eyes – I couldn't keep them and I accidentally steered my horse into a low branch." Lately, she had been feeling a little queasy, more exhausted than she frequently was. Never in 10 years had she ever felt so drained and shattered, the entire feeling of just wanting to faint and not ever wake up gratified her. What if she could just do that? Never wake up and never concern ever again? Mikasa shoved the unhealthy thought away. "But I was quick enough to steer it back properly though." She continued, the questions sitting in the back of her mind.

The wind howled like a lone wolf on a dusky, melancholy night. It echoed in the trio's ears and sent a bleak shudder cascading down each of their spines. Silence plunged upon them and the girls' hairs wavered like sleek, silky cloths absent in the wind's breeze.

"You're a fool Ackerman." Rivaille spoke.

Christa rummaged through the contents apprehensively. Her eyes widened and when they did, she unexpectedly cursed out loud. "Crap. The bandages. The last person I bandaged up was the boy who came looking for me, and that was the last one." The panic-stricken blonde averted her eyes from the contents and searched up and down for a spare cloth to replace the bandage. When her eyes passed over Mikasa they came back and stopped snappishly at the cherry – red piece of fabric perching silently around her petite neck. "Mikasa – " She started but knowing how much that scarf meant to Mikasa, Christa pushed the idea from her head. "You know what? Never mind." The blonde stuttered.

Mikasa unwrapped the crimson scarf from around her neck and handed it to Christa. "Just take it." The ebony girl insisted. Reluctant of Mikasa's action Christa takes the fabric and securely loops it around the girl's wound.

Distant shouting suddenly occurred and second by second additional people got involved and they all began to argue. The trio all turned their heads at the scene simultaneously. "Corporal go." Mikasa insisted.

Rivaille shook his head in refusal. "I want to stay here." He believed maybe now would be the time to tell her about Eren. If only he wasn't so fearful to hurt her mental state. Needless to say he was unconfident himself why he was so anxious about Mikasa, they'd spent an entire 10 years enduring together what altered their relationship all of a sudden?

Rivaille didn't want to say it, he was too troubled to say it.

When Christa caught that Rivaille did not want to sort the senseless quarrel out, she glimpsed up for a second at her superior, and then to her friend. They were both too engrossed with the crowd they didn't notice Christa's uncanny look.

Does Corporal have a soft spot for her? She thought.

Gently, she patted Mikasa's wound. "There. It shouldn't hurt, by the time we get home it will have healed a bit. Just try not to put too much pressure on the leg and – try not to fall asleep on your horse." She advised before beaming a smile at her friend then gathered the contents back into the bag and exited swiftly.

The raven – haired girl waited until Christa was out of eyesight before desperately asking, "Corporal —" Mikasa began, she bit bitterly into the inside of her cracked lips. "Please…Is Eren still alive?"

Damn it Mikasa. He thought.

Even if there were a billion other things to talk about Mikasa was too persevering to let the subject of Eren go. She necessitated to know about Eren and she demanded it in the politest way possible which made Rivaille even more anxious.

In Mikasa's eyes there was no world in the universe, no matter how many dimensions if Eren was not in it.

But who could blame the girl? She hasn't seen her only family for an entire decade, obviously if that were Rivaille he'd want to, to a great extent, know if his family were alive too.

With no other choice other than to wait for the right time Rivaille sighed and tentatively said, "He's excited to see you."


Later on that evening the quarrel had been sorted out, everyone was gathering around a campfire to keep themselves warm. A majority of the townsfolk were slumbering soundly or greedily devouring on the food provided.

On the other side of the so-called 'camp' Jean, Connie and the Corporal were congregated around a miniature fire they had created for themselves and discussed plans for the next expedition to the following destination.

"If we leave at midnight we'll arrive at Bar-le-Duc in the morning, then we can set off to the French border in the evening." Jean offered.

Over the years Jean had become keener, not because Christa had taught him some factual things but as a person he became more sovereign. He became self – motivated and he constantly relishes riding on his horse to anywhere where he can find exposed land. Although, there might be an occasion where Jean would fall into a cavernous slumber and won't wake up until several hours later. The guy simply rides until he tires himself out.

Connie on the other hand, was still the same, witty and out – going kid he was. He'd never actually grown up, maybe just physically but mentally? He was still the entertainer, the one to make everyone sneer or giggle. The joker.

Connie added with confidence, "By the time we reach the border it will be morning. We can probably stop for a couple minutes to nourish the horses then maybe head to the Rhineland by evening." He took a sip of water and gulped it down smoothly. "At least we know we're close to Germany if we're in the Rhineland."

The group leader was about to step in to respond to Connie's contribution but Jean got there before him. "Wait — I just want to ask one question, which I'm sure we're all desperate to know the answer to." His eyes glanced over to Rivaille who only blinked.

"Shoot."

"Why did we leave so early? Is Commander Irwin that frantic to see us?" Jean asked.

Rivaille sighed deeply and exchanged looks with the duo in sat in front of him. "Irwin – he's – he's in a predicament."

Connie's eyes widened, "What kind of predicament makes us leave so early?"

The Corporal took a short pause debating in his mind whether he was going to truthfully answer. Unfortunately he made a mistake and accidentally thought out loud. "Eren."

"What do you mean, 'Eren'?" Jean added.

Rivaille exhaled again, not exactly sure how he was going to break it to them. On the Brightside at least it wasn't Mikasa he had to say it to. "Eren's in a coma and there's a possibility that he might die or might be dead."

Both their faces hadn't stimulated a single muscle. They were both just frozen like a pair of appealing ice statues. "What – " Jean started but couldn't find the determination to carry on. Even though he was the one who had numerous wretched arguments with Eren he did care about him because at one point Jean favoured Mikasa.

"Irwin and Armin devised a plan to take on Annie in Eren's Titan form but he somehow was incompetent to change despite his newly accumulated skill to shift just by the thought of shifting. Because of this Annie condemned him. When they took him into Hanji's care she told them that a few broken bones weren't healing at all and he wasn't responding." The Corporal groaned and shut his eyes. "I won't say it again so I ask a favour that you do not speak a word of it to Mikasa. She doesn't know yet and I intend to keep it that way 'til the time is right." He pleaded in a monotone.

When the superior re-opened his eyes he witness Connie changing his glance to something or someone behind him. Rivaille trailed Connie's gaze and was dazed to see Mikasa standing there like a lost puppy looking insipid and nauseating. For a moment he thought his heart had stopped beating.

"E-Eren, he's —" She stuttered. "He – He's de-de?" She was incapable of finishing her sentence but everyone knew what she was intending to say. Without a backwards glance she seized the nearest stallion, mounted onto it and heaved its reigns sadistically. The stallion jumped back in distress and hurriedly careered away wailing, waking the snoozing folks up unintentionally.

"Mikasa wait!" Rivaille yelled after her but she was already too distant away to hear her superior's explanation. "Damn it." And he cursed to himself whilst ascending his weight onto a close stallion nearby.

The Corporal looked over to a man who jumped up from his slumber, terrified of what was happening. "What the hell is going on?" The man roared, angry that he had been awoken by a terrifying noise.

"Corporal –"Connie shouted but was stopped midway through his sentence.

"I want you to tell Sasha and Christa to get everyone on their horses and start setting off as quickly as possible. We have to stay together, we can't afford to lose any more than we already have so attempt to catch up. Christa – she has a bag with a map in, find it and follow it east to Bar-le-Duc. Scrap the plan, it looks like we're going home earlier than we expected. I'm putting you in charge now." Rivaille instructed quickly, almost too quick that Jean didn't even hear a single word the Corporal had said. Jean felt a little privileged to be put in charge, he was going to take the responsibility seriously if two of the strongest soldiers were leaving him a duty to fulfil.

Rivaille hauled the reigns rapidly and the horse jerked the ground with its thick, metal hoof, setting off to chase after Mikasa.

"Wait, Corporal—"


I'm not too keen on if you liked this chapter, I'm not entirely happy with this but I had to update :) thank you for the reviews again, you all make me very very happy 3 x