Allies
By now the sun had set and cadets were gathered in the mess hall. Many of the cadets in question were gathering around Eren, questioning about him and his experience in Shiganshina. Shia, Klaus and Uroah were at a table in their own corner of the hall.
Klaus smirks at the shocked looks on some of the other kids faces when they questioned Eren's experiences, "I don't know why, but its entertaining to see the looks on peoples faces when they actually hear about titans". "Keep up that kind of talk and people are gonna start to think you're a psychopath", Shia warns.
Klaus chuckles, "Let them think all they want, I can't be any worse than the guy who is actively asking to get himself killed". Uroah is a bit disinterested in the conversation, "Markus is gonna be hella tired once he gets done, which should be soon".
"Hey, aren't you two Shia and Klaus? Children of Leonardo Crossford?". This comes from Cooper, who is a table away from them. Klaus sighs, "And thus our cover is blown". He turns to Cooper, "You're Fisher? Same blood as our commandant?".
Cooper nods, "Yea, the one and only. My sister, Dakota, is also here. Both of us are trying to get into Garrison in order to sucee-". "Look man, I didn't ask for your life story. I just wanted to make sure I was right".
"Well, I think that's an admirable goal". Another cadet leans into the conversation, his brown eyes welcoming the idea, "You definitely have the potential, you give me the feeling that you're determined, insightful, and pretty balsy for getting wordy with the commandant".
A third cadet puts his two cents in, "Making a cheeky comment to the commandant about your old man isn't proof that you're suited for commanding the Garrison". A flustered Cooper attempts to cover up, "Well, I mean I-I didn't intend to come off as smart mouthed, it just sorta came out".
"Well thats just something that you can fine tune during our time here. I'm Xander by the way", the cadet extends his hand, his black hair complementing his serious face, a serious face that warmed up with his introduction. A look of recognition came from Uroah, "Xander von Nhord? Aren't you the son of a noble from the interior? What are you doing out here in the military?".
Xander's warm face turned back to serious, "My sister and I never really liked the cushy and posh lifestyle of a noble, that and we never had the best relationship with our dad". Xander turns his attention to the brown eyed cadet who had greeted Cooper, "You are?".
"Jesse, Jesse Adiar", he shakes hands with Xander. Cooper turns his attention back to the Crossford siblings, "What about your brother? He sure seems like the most ambitious of you three".
Shia shrugs to Coopers surprise, "Did you see the fire in his eyes when he was talking to the commandant this morning?". Shia explains, "I mean, we've seen this kind of talk from him before. He's serious about paying back the elementals for what they did on that day and he'll do whatever it takes to make them suffer".
The room went silent and the group turned to see Eren staring down another cadet, the guy had a smirk and looked rather laid back. Klaus whispers to Shia, "Whoever this guy is, I hope they fight".
Just then a bell rung from outside, signaling the days end. "Saved by the bell", Klaus mutters as he gets ready to head to the sleeping quarters. Cooper comments on the interaction, "I actually don't think Eren wanted any problems from Jean Kirstien though-". Klaus interrupts, "Don't care, don't care".
Uroah taps Shia on the shoulder, "Should we wait for Markus to finish up?". Shia continues walking, "He'll find his way to a bed, I wouldn't worry about it". Uroah decides to trust Shia and migrate with her to the girls quarters.
Markus collapses on the ground, exhausted from the day's worth of running. 'At least I caught up with Sasha. She had quite the head start but damn, I didn't think that this kind of work would be thrown at me the first day'. A few minutes pass of heavy breathing and Markus hears another thud near him, 'And thats her'.
Both recruits lay on the ground in exhaustion before a pair of footsteps could be heard approaching them, 'Oh great, please don't be the commandant, please don't be the commandant, please don't be the commandant'. Markus hears sniffing, then the sounds of something pouncing accompanied by a growl and a high-pitched shriek.
The exhausted cadet sits up to see Sasha ferally shredding a piece of bread, then turning to a small blonde haired girl who had offered water. 'It's funny to me how after all this running, she still has the energy if even a hint of a smell of food is nearby'.
He stared at the night sky for awhile before 2 cadets came into his vision, a buff guy with short blonde hair as well as his tall companion with short black hair. The blonde speaks first, "I imagine that was quite the workout for you today huh?".
Markus manages to choke out a response, "Yea, I guess that's not too much for someone like you to handle though". They notice him wheezing between every other word so the taller of the two kneels down to hand him some water.
Markus gladly accepts and drinks, careful not to choke himself. After a bit, his attention goes back to the two cadets who are now hoisting him up with each of his arms around their shoulders. The trio began migrating to their rooms as the blonde comments on the exhausted, "Don't let the looks fool you, I don't think I would've faired any better than the Potato Girl over there".
He decides to finally introduce himself, "I'm Reiner by the way and this here is Bertolt". Markus glances over at Bertolt, who just nods with a small smile, "Well thanks for the help guys. I honestly don't know if I would've made it to a proper bed by myself".
Reiner smiles, "There's no need for thanks, we're comrades now so it's best for us to form a kind of camaraderie between us right?". Markus nods, "So, while we're making our way back to the barracks do you guys mind me asking what brought you both here?".
Bertolt starts on their journey, "We came from a town near the south side of Wall Maria, meaning that we were also involved with the titan invasion on that day. News travels slow so we had no idea what was going on until they were right on top of us". Markus recalls the terror of that day and as he stared into Bertolt's eyes, he gained some semblance of his fear.
Bertolt continues, "I joined in hopes of being sent to the Military Police, I'm not sure if I'm suited for anything else. Something like reconnaissance requires someone with a will of iron and I don't think that's me". Markus nods his head understandingly, "Of course, not everyone has the ability to just be willing to throw away their life on a whim".
Reiner states his goal, "I joined the military to return to the hometown that was taken from us on that day". Markus gains some footing and manages to stand on his own, "Then it seems like you and I have similar goals then, great to know that I'll have someone reliable on the journey". Markus and Reiner grip hands, then Markus looks over to Bertolt, "I hope you do end up finding what you're looking for in the MP's but if you ever decide to take a shot with the Scouts I'd love to have you along for the ride".
The three agree on their goals and continue to their barracks, ready for the challenges that await.