*6 months earlier*
The sun was fading behind the hills and many of the cadets were retreating back toward dinner after a long day of training, but Alexandra lagged behind, sitting near the edge of the training grounds. An envelope clutched in her hand had gained her attention once again. Alexandra stared down at her mother's neat writing shining bright up at her. She should open it, but after what her mother had said when she left… What if it was an apology? She flipped the envelope over and looked at the seal. She ran her fingers over it, debating. To open it, or to not open it.
"What are you still doing out here? You should come inside with everyone."
Alexandra jumped at the sudden interruption and folded the letter quickly before shoving it in her pocket unceremoniously and turning to Marco. His eyes flickered to Alexandra's hand where she had been holding the letter, but didn't ask.
"Just reminiscing." She lied. "We have our initiation ceremony tomorrow, the last real chance to be out here. Last night we'll all be together."
Marco nodded and smiled sadly. "Yeah I guess you're right." He looked up at the moon and then back to Alexandra, "Well then we should get back to everyone, right? Last night to all be together?"
Alexandra nodded and started toward the hall with Marco falling into step beside her. "Do you know where you'll go after tomorrow?"
"I'm joining the military police."
Alexandra faltered in her steps for a moment, hoping Marco hadn't noticed. "I'm sure you'll do great there. I'm sure you'll be running the place before too long." She joked.
Marco laughed lightly. "You're still joining the scouts, I guess?"
Alexandra nodded. "Yeah." She paused as they reached the doors of the hall. She could hear the laughter and chatting of the 104th cadets inside the hall and turned to face Marco. "I'm going to miss you."
Marco's hand fell onto Alexandra's shoulder and gave it a light squeeze, "I'll miss you too, but not tonight. Tonight we celebrate the end of our training."
*Present Day*
"What did you say, Horseface?"
Eren slamming his hands down onto the table broke Alexandra out of her trance. Before anyone could react, Eren and Jean were on their feet and at each other's throats once again. Armin was standing trying to calm the situation, like he always does. The rest of the scouts either watched the exchange or ignored it, too used to the bickering to be bothered by the sudden interruption.
Alexandra shot a look at the table where the squad leaders sat, waiting to see if any of them reacted to the disturbance. Most of them had already left the hall and none of the ones who were there seemed to care about a couple of cadets arguing.
"Knock it off. You don't want Captain Levi to come in here and find you arguing, do you?" Alexandra asked, taking a sip from her water cup.
The boys separated, Eren looking quickly to see if the captain was in the area, obviously not eager to face any punishment that the captain would have for them. Jean straightened his jacked and returned to his seat, flashing an annoyed look to Eren.
"He's not here, but you were giving me a headache." Alexandra gave them a forced smile and shoveled another bite of food into her mouth. She stood up while she was still chewing.
"Wait, where are you going?" Jean demanded.
Alexandra grabbed her plate and shot him a look, "Back to my room? Is that okay with you?"
Armin broke in before Jean could say anything, "Alex, it's just that you didn't really eat that much. You need to be in top condition to go outside the wall tomorrow."
Alexandra smiled and nodded, "I know, I'm just not hungry." Alex could feel eyes on her, but she shrugged it off and looked to Sasha, "Hey Sasha, do you want this?"
Alexandra didn't wait for an answer before tossing Sasha the untouched bread from her plate before going to clean off the plate.
The night air chilled Alex's face as she left the warmth of the hall. She walked out toward the courtyard and took a seat on one of the planters. She assumed they used to be filled with flowers, but as the Fall moved in, the planters were filled with only dirt and stray leaves. Fingers dug into the soft soil, allowing her to lean back and stare up at the stars. The moon peeked out from behind clouds and she watched as the clouds passed over it. The breeze blew the loose strands of hair across her face.
Alex closed her eyes and let herself take in the moment. Tomorrow, she would be going outside the walls. Tonight could be the last night she saw the moon, felt the cool breeze, smelled the earthy odor of the dirt in the planter behind her. Tonight could be the last night she saw the scout headquarters.
"Cadet Spare, what are you doing out here?"
The captain's voice startled Alexandra and she jumped to her feet, splashing her shirt with dirt from the planter in her quick salute. "Captain, I was just enjoying the stars before heading back to my room to rest for tomorrow's mission outside the walls.."
"At ease, Cadet." Captain Levi looked up to the sky, clouds had shrouded the moon making the stars shine a little bit brighter. The captain looked back at Alexandra and wrinkled his nose, "Make sure you wipe off that dirt before you come inside. If I find any dirt inside the barracks, you will clean it before the mission tomorrow, do you understand?"
"Yes, Sir." Alexandra saluted again and watched for the captain to leave the courtyard before she dropped her arm back to her side.
Dropping back into her spot on the planter, she leaned forward onto her knees and stared at the ground, sighing as she did. The clouds moved away again, letting the moon shine brightly again when Alexandra looked up. She inhaled deeply and let it out again before she stood up, brushing the remaining dirt off her hands and shirt before heading inside.