May 2nd, 1935. Ochoco National Forest.
"Mikasa!"
"Yeah?"
"Come back a second. Take some of this," Mikasa's mother said, holding the front door nimbly open with her foot while she sliced Mikasa some bread. It had just come out of the oven, and carried with it a smell that made Mikasa's stomach rumble with hunger.
"Thanks, Mom," Mikasa said, walking back a few paces to the house and taking the bread. Usually black coffee would be all she'd have for breakfast, but for some reason today was ravenous.
"What time are you going to be home?" She asked, leaning against the door.
"Probably after lunch. Will Dad be up by then?"
"If luck is on my side," she said. "I think he's still sulking because Erwin wouldn't let him join in with his ranger duty."
Mikasa laughed. "Poor Dad. Anyway, I'd better go."
"Make sure you're back for two o'clock, okay?"
"Yeah, okay, Mom." Mikasa said, and she set off again, stretching as she walked. The clouds overhead were dark and soon rain began to fall, gently and softly, making pattering noises on the ground. Mikasa tied back her hair and felt the hairs on her arms rise as she walked and a cold breeze snake past her. The bread didn't last long, and soon Mikasa was running. She wanted to swim in the lake and visit the hollow tree so that she could be alone with her thoughts; Mikasa's mother had given her the whole day for herself.
Her last letter from Eren had excited her to the point where she could hardly think of anything but seeing him. Meeting Eren had been the fabric of her daydreams for the past six years, but now that it was happening, she could hardly imagine what it would be like.
I'll let you know in my next letter the exact date I'll be able to see you, he had said, because Dad's not back yet and I need to ask him for the details. I'm sending you a surprise too!
Mikasa was eager to collect it; if not at the hollow tree, Mikasa decided that she would run to the town to see if the letter was there. She took a shortcut to the lake, straying from the woodland path, and jumped over bushes and tree roots. As the trees passed she admired the way raindrops rolled down their budding leaves, pausing slightly before they fell to the ground as if they had a choice. The woods were the closest Mikasa had to a place that felt like home. The cherry blossoms on the trees reminded her of the pictures Armin had given her. These trees, unlike the Japanese ones, were painted on a backdrop of grey. Her feet pounded against the ground as she ran, causing birds to fly from their nests and woodland mice to retreat into the bushes.
When she exited the forest the lake was suddenly ahead of her. The raindrops made ripples in the water, spreading outwards and disappearing, but not before new ones came. It was ringed with trees, completely obscured from an outsider's view; if one didn't know it was there, it would be almost impossible to find. Even though she knew she didn't need to, Mikasa looked around to check if anyone was there before shrugging her bag off her shoulders. She began taking off her clothes, shoving them into her bag with her towel. She quickly glanced at her watch; the time was 11.30 in the morning - she had plenty of time. Mikasa threw her back under the shelter of a tree and entered the lake.
The water was freezing cold. Shivering, Mikasa did her best to ignore the icy feeling as it crawled up her legs and began swimming. She was slow at first, but soon sped up as adrenaline replaced the cold. She moved easily with the water, gliding through it. Her heart began pounding in her chest; she loved swimming like this. It was tough and made her limbs sore the next day, but in the lonely forest, swimming offered a distraction to her worries. She didn't have to feel guilty for deceiving her parents, she didn't have to think about what Erwin was training her for; she could be completely and solely herself. Eren was in her mind, as always; she thought of him swimming next to her, laughing, with Armin sitting on the shore reading while Jean bothered him. Her heart ached with the memory of them. What if they had moved on without her? What if, after all this time, they couldn't recognise her for who she was? Worry started crawling through her and she started swimming faster, powering through the water, until she realised what she was doing, took a deep breath in, and slowed down.
Soon, the rain stopped and the clouds turned from a dark grey to white, though they still covered the whole sky. Mikasa stopped swimming and let herself float for a while, daydreaming. The burning cold had subsided to a quiet tingling and Mikasa, in the back of her mind, was dimly aware of it, though her thoughts were preoccupied. She wondered what the surprise in Eren's letter would be. She hoped it would be something she could hide easily from her parents.
She ran to her towel from the water thirty minutes later, pulling it quickly from her bag. Drying herself off, she watched for people in the forest surrounding her again. It's always better to check than be sorry, she thought to herself, but the park was silent save from the rustling of leaves in the trees.
Once dressed, Mikasa began her run to the hollow tree. She tied her roughly towel-dried hair up into a long ponytail and ran, gazy fondly at the large mountain range in the distance. She had climbed one every year with Erwin since she was twelve years old. It had been extremely difficult but the rewarding feeling Mikasa had felt when she reached the top and the view she had seen made every second worth it. She could see whole park from the peak of the mountains, to all of the surrounding towns, the other rangers' houses. She had never spoken to another ranger before; as far as she knew, they were the only family staying in the park.
The clouds were darkening as Mikasa reached the hollow tree. It was empty - Mikasa sighed, almost despondent. She checked her watch. 1 o'clock. I'll make it home in time if I'm quick, Mikasa said to herself, deciding to go and find Gelgar. The run was tiring and Mikasa found herself gasping for breath when she reached the town. Rain was brewing in the sky, waiting to fall to the ground at any moment.
Mikasa had reached Gelgar's house in twenty minutes and when she walked into the post office he looked at her confusedly.
"What are you doing here?" He slurred.
She could smell the alcohol on his breath. "Has a letter come through for me?" She asked.
"Yeah, but you already got your uncles to come get it for you, right?" The man said. Mikasa heard the first raindrops begin to fall onto the road.
"No… you were supposed to take it to the tree, like usual."
"Well, that's what I was going to do, until you told your uncles to pick it up."
"Gelgar, I don't have any uncles. You probably imagined it."
He laughed. "I do remember! They looked like you, and they had a car and everything. I told them the way to your house, too, they said they hadn't visited before…"
Mikasa was suddenly aware that her mouth was dry and her heart was pounding. "And they took the letter? When?" She said, her voice hollow.
"Yeah… about a half hour ago… why are you lookin' at me like that?" He said, but Mikasa had already turned, bolting out of the shop and out into the pouring rain. "Mikasa! Did I say somethin' wrong?" He called after her but she ignored him.
She was soaked in a matter of seconds, but Mikasa paid no attention to the rain as she sprinted back home. She grabbed her watch from her bag and checked the time; she had half an hour before she was due home. Not that that mattered much to her now - who were these men? Dread and adrenaline pumped through her veins, making her run faster and panic more. Her mother's words were all she could think of - we made it out by the skin of our teeth.
If these people had found them before, of course it was possible that they had done again. And this time, there was no Erwin to warn her of their arrival. The minutes ticked by and Mikasa ran as quickly as she could through the woods, jumping over the same bushes and tree roots she had earlier in the day, when the clouds hadn't been as dark nor the rain as heavy.
Uncles. Mikasa was sure she didn't have any. Then why would they be there? Mikasa knew she had to assume the worst or she would be too late to do anything about the situation. Eventually her house came into view, as did a large black car. Mikasa hid behind a tree branch; through the window of her home, she could see two men. One was tall and the other was short, and they both had dark, straight hair. Mikasa guessed they had come from Japan, and her heart sank as she saw no sign of her mother or father through the window. There was a strong scent of burning stew in the air.
Her mother never burned the stew.
Her chest was tight; painfully so. Mikasa tried her hardest to calm her panicked breathing and tell herself everything was alright when she heard one of the men speak. He spoke in English, with a heavy accent, but Mikasa couldn't distinguish the words he said over the rain. It definitely wasn't safe to go through the front door; not at all. Realising a way to get into the house, Mikasa quickly scampered around the back of Erwin's shed and stood with her back against it, looking directly at the tree she used to sneak out at night. Making sure she could not be seen, Mikasa climbed it as nimbly as she could, crawling along a tree branch and into her bedroom. It was a mess; it looked like it had been turned upside down by the two men. Her clothes lay scattered on the floor and her mattress had been upturned. Staring at it, she felt her heart sink. This was real. It must be them - those people they had been running from for all these years. Mikasa lay down on the floor and pressed her ear to the wooden boards.
"-going to kill us." One of the men said angrily.
"Why did you do that?" The other said; his voice was a slightly higher pitch. He sounded panicked and afraid.
"She was going to kill me first!"
Mikasa slapped a hand over her mouth to stop herself from screaming. They had killed someone? Was that… her mother? Were they talking about her? She could still smell the burning stew.
Footsteps; then men were moving. "What are we going to do now? You know Reiss wanted the woman alive. Where's the girl?"
Tears were falling fast from Mikasa's eyes. She couldn't think straight, and tried to listen harder; but the rushing of blood through her ears deafened Mikasa to their words. She had to get closer. Was it safe to open the bedroom door? She wasn't sure, but crawled towards it. Slowly rising to her feet, Mikasa turned the doorknob and pulled the door open a crack.
There was no sign of her mother in the kitchen area. But she had a better view of the two men. The taller one had his back to her, and the slightly shorter one was peering out of a window. That was when she spotted the scarf. It was strewn on the kitchen table, next to an opened letter. Mikasa had to stop herself from gasping. It was the same scarf from six years ago - the scarf Eren had tried to give her as she left. It was a bright scarlet. Seeing it made Mikasa feel calmer slightly, more confident. She had to find her parents; she had to get downstairs.
"I'm going to find the boy," the shorter man said. The other still had his back to her. "You stay here in case the girl comes back. She's the priority now."
The taller one nodded and watched as he left. Mikasa was terrified. They were going after Eren and Mikasa had no way of stopping them - they had a car. And he was here today? She would never reach him in time. Mikasa fixed her eyes back on the tall man. He turned around slowly, looking at something in the part of downstairs Mikasa couldn't see. When he turned, she got to see his face for the first time.
It was smeared with blood.
Mikasa let out a quiet yelp and the man looked up immediately, spotting her through the crack in the door. Mikasa slammed the door shut and jumped straight out of the window as the man began running up the stairs. Mikasa grabbed a tree branch, catching herself as she fell. She swung from it, jumped, landed on the ground and began running around to the front of the house, trying desperately to find a weapon. She flung open the front door and grabbed the nearest thing she saw - a pair of knitting needles. They would do - Mikasa looked up to see the man running back down the stairs, a gun in his hands, but then her eyes caught sight of something.
It was her mother and father; they lay on the ground, unmoving. Their eyes, still and glassy, stared at her, and Mikasa found herself being filled with a sudden wave of fury. She looked up at the man, who had just reached the bottom of the stairs. It was as if something inside of her had been switched on; she screamed at the man and ran towards him, hardly noticing the look of utter shock on his bloodstained face. He took a step back before trying to stop her. He pointed the gun at her and screamed for her to stop but she raised her hand, the knitting needles held firmly within her fist, and kicked him straight in the stomach. He doubled over, dropping the gun, and tried to grab her. Catching a fistful of her hair and pulling her closer, the man attempted to subdue Mikasa, but she leaned forward, rolling the man over her back. All of her training seemed to come together in a single moment when she jumped on top of him and stabbed him straight through the throat with the needles.
He stopped struggling almost straight away and began to gurgle as blood filled his mouth. Mikasa stared in astonishment at what she had done and vomited almost immediately, tuning her head to the side. He was dead. Remembering her parents, she ran over to them, falling to her knees.
Her mother's bun had fallen out of place and her hair lay strewn around her head, matted with blood. Her hand was clasped around a bloody pair of scissors. A knife she didn't recognise lay embedded in her chest and her father lay face down, a bullet wound in his back.
"Mom!" She screamed, shaking them violently. "Dad!"
They were both dead. Mikasa wailed, pleading for them to wake up. Was this her fault? How had they been found out. Mikasa felt guilty, so guilty it felt like her heart was being squeezed; why hadn't she listened to her mother, taken her seriously? Why did she have to write to Eren-
Eren. He was in danger - in her flurry of rage, Mikasa had forgotten about the smaller man. She turned to the table, tears still falling from her eyes and grabbed the letter on the table. The blood on her fingers smeared onto the paper.
Eren was waiting ten miles from where she was. If she left now, she would probably make it to Eren - on Saint, she could ride where the cars could not. But if she left now, this would be the last she saw of her home. She wouldn't be able to come back, not now whoever was chasing them knew where they were. She had to go.
Still crying, Mikasa gathered a bag of things and washed the blood from her hands and face. She kneeled next to her parents. She had rolled over her father, and his eyes stared into hers.
"I'm sorry, Mom. Dad, please forgive me. I have to go." She whispered, and kissed them both on the forehead.
Mikasa took one last look at them and stood up. Before she left she took the knife from the man she had murdered, and threw the gun away. She didn't want to fight with the weapon that had killed her father. She searched his body for anything that might help her, but found nothing. The scarf caught her attention again and she grabbed it. It was soft and when she wrapped it around herself she could smell Eren's smell on it. It helped ease the vice-like grip on her, and then Mikasa walked out of her home, leaving her dead parents behind her.
Saint waited in the stable. Erwin had taken his horse away with him. Mikasa wanted to go and find him, to tell someone about what had happened, but she didn't think it would be safe to. She had no idea what kind of connections these men had, and she needed to find Eren.
She rode as fast as she could towards the town where Eren was. The soaking rain washed the rest of the blood from her hair, and Mikasa held the scarf tightly, praying blindly that when she reached Eren, he would not be dead too.