The Wings Of Our Dreams
7 The Cook-off in Trost
AN: Hey there dear readers! Back with another chapter! I hope you enjoy!
Now to reviews.
Guest: It will get more serious, but not just yet. And I read Blacksmith's Tale. A very good fic.
TheMack123: Let's just say we'll find out who it is later.
Year 849
Forty-first Entry
So, today we had special training in the Trost District. And I have to say, that day was definitely interesting, and not because of the training.
Let's just say that it involved… some cooking.
The cadets of the 104th Cadet Corps were currently walking with many other visitors to the Trost District gathered in a huge line headed into the outer wall gates. All of them were packed with backpacks filled with only necessary things like some food or clothes, but they traveled light.
Once they passed through the gates, a lot of them looked around to take in the sights of the District's interior. Multy-story stone buildings, market places, and long streets, all were sights that were unfamiliar to many who lived outside the big cities.
Even Collin couldn't help but look around the place. Sure, he did pay several visits to the Shiganshina District, but this one seemed better off. Well, of course, these days it would definitely be better off since it's not crawling with Titans, but even without that, it was true.
The further within the Walls you got, the better living conditions you got. In Karno, Collin's life was the best, and it could be hard sometimes, but it was still good in his book, and he didn't see a point in trying to live it fancier.
"So have any of you been to a big city before?" Collin asked as he looked back at the two teammates that were assigned to him
"Well, not really," Bertholdt said as he looked around. "It actually looks pretty nice."
"Can't say I have. It's fine, I guess," Ymir answered, looking unimpressed before giving a sigh. "Man, why did I have to be stuck with the Country Bumpkin and the Sweaty Boy?"
"Because that's how the teams were picked. If ya have a problem with it, ya might wanna check with Shadis on that. I'm sure he'll take it well," Collin said while giving Ymir a smirk. "And don't worry 'bout her, Bert. You know that she cares. In her own way."
Bertholdt was about to formulate a response but decided against it, and just gave Collin a nod before readjusting his backpack.
They walked past a group of people that seemed to be looking at something on the wall of one of the buildings. Taking a better look, Collin saw a drawing of some sort of a huge boar that was confronted by a man that was half its height as he aimed a spear.
"It appeared again."
"Someone has to kill it."
"We can't go out hunting with that monster around."
The people in the crowd murmured as they looked at the poster with worry in their eyes.
"Well, looks like even here they have pest problems," Ymir commented.
"Heh, pretty sure a giant pig is a little bit more than a pest," Collin said.
"At least it's none of our concern," Bertholdt added.
The time for training began as the cadet teams were placed all around the city. The point of the exercise was if a theoretical Titan attack happened, most likely caused by the Colossal Titan or the Armored Titan appearing again. Since Titans usually came from the south, and Trost was located on the southern edge of Wall Rose it would be the most likely target.
There were Titan dummies placed all around the city for the cadets to take care of while the civilians were to practice proper evacuations protocols.
Stationed on the rooftops were the cadets of the 104th Cadet Corps, all of whom were in teams of three. Collin was paired up with Bertholdt and Ymir, the three designated as the 19th squad, with some of the other teams being, Jean, Armin, and Annie, or Sasha, Reiner, and Connie.
The bell then rang, signaling the start of the exercise. The civilians began their mock evacuation while the cadets ran forward with their equipment ready.
"Let's go, guys!" Collin exclaimed before the three of them ran off the roof and fired their cables before being hurled into the air.
The three flew through the wide city streets with Collin in the front, acting as a de facto leader of the team.
"There are three in the front!" Collin exclaimed after seeing some Titan dummies. "Let's take 'em out!"
Bertholdt nodded with a serious expression. "Right!"
"Whatever you say!" Ymir said with a grin.
The three quickly dashed over the dummies, and near-instantly the fake napes were slashed through with their special blades.
"If only these things weren't stationary!" Ymir said as they once again began flying with their gear. "The Titans aren't really going to just stand there and let us kill them!"
"It ain't the best, but it's what we got," Collin retorted.
"Collin's right. We have to make due with what we have," Bertholdt agreed.
As the three soared, ready to get to their next targets, something dashed right in front of Collin, making him jolt in surprise and slightly stumble in the air, with Bertholdt and Ymir being caught off guard as well.
Collin quickly gathered himself and fired a cable to get back in position. He saw Jean flying through the air, and based on his direction Collin immediately pieced together that it was Jean who flew in front of him so abruptly. Annie and Armin soon followed behind Jean.
"Why don't you watch where you're going, you big oaf?!" Jean called out.
Collin blinked. "Me?! Why are you here?! This ain't your post!"
"It's obvious!" Ymir said as she narrowed her eyes at Jean. "Horse-face wanted to show off for a bit! He probably thinks this will get him closer to the MPs!"
Jean looked back at them with a smirk. "Hey, it's not my fault you guys aren't flexible!"
"Sorry, about that!" Armin said as he glanced back. If Jean wasn't going to apologize then Armin might as well have.
Jean looked at the near Titan dummy and got ready to strike, only for the nape to be slashed through by Mikasa. Instead of being annoyed, Jean gave a smirk before redirecting his gear and going for another target.
Jean, Armin, and Annie then went for the next three Titan targets. "Alright, I got one!" Jean exclaimed as he readied his blades.
"Thanks, Jean!" a new voice exclaimed, making Jean look up to see the smirking face of Connie who then struck through the nape of the Titan.
"Why you…!" Jean glowered as he tried going for the other dummies only to look in shock as the rest were taken care of Reiner and Sasha as they flew in.
"Sorry, Jean," Reiner said as he landed on a nearby building.
"Yahoo! I got one!" Sasha exclaimed in joy, her blades raised in the air as she stood on the fake Titan's back.
Collin then flew right next to Jean, startling him. "Karma's a bitch, ain't it, Jeanie-boy?" Collin said with a smirk before giving Jean a mocking laugh.
Ymir even flew by and stuck her tongue out at the frustrated cadet who just continued glaring at the people who took his moments of glory.
The cadets were then soon gathered in a town square near a marketplace after the exercise was over and decided to do a bit of relaxing.
"You thieving bastards!"
Well, it would have been relaxing if not for a certain Horse-face.
Jean stood over Connie and Sasha as they sat near a wall and ate some steamed potatoes with Reiner just standing next to them with his arms crossed.
"Huh?" Connie just said in confusion as he stopped himself from taking another bite.
"That was playing dirty! I spotted them first!" Jean angrily exclaimed as he glared at the two.
Collin and his team were just a little bit away from the scene and couldn't help but watch it unfold.
"He seriously still on that?" Collin asked as he watched Jean practically screaming at Connie and Sasha.
"It's Jean," Bertholdt said as he rubbed his temples. "It shouldn't really come as a surprise by this point."
"Now if only Eren were here. Then we would the complete set of screaming idiots," Ymir said.
Sasha gave Jean a smug look. "Playing dirty, eh? You sure like coming up with some baloney. You think those rules apply when it comes to hunting?" she asked as she took another bite of her potato.
"Don't give me that hunter logic, Potato Girl," Jean said in a calmer but still annoyed tone.
"Potato Girl?!" Sasha exclaimed before looking to the side. "I honestly thought everyone would have forgotten about it by now."
Collin couldn't help but chuckle at her antics. 'Yeah, like that's ever gonna happen.'
Sasha then stood up. "And will you stop calling me names?!"
Connie then got up as well. "Yeah, you better apologize."
"Regardless, that area was in our zone," Reiner said calmly.
"Yeah, that's right!" Connie said. "And what is with you, anyway? You're even more rousey than usual." Then he got a teasing expression. "Or maybe Jeanie-boy is eager to see his mommy?"
Sasha's face then lit up as if she realized something. "Wait, is that it?"
Jean then narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth. "Like hell it is!" He then got ready to throw a punch. Connie and Sasha quickly reacted and got into… their special battle stances.
"Alright, stop it, all of you," Reiner said as he got between the three before turning to Jean. "And Jean, you won't get into the military police with that behavior."
Jean scoffed before putting his fist down. "Then how about this? Once we finish our training tomorrow, we'll see who can take out more targets."
Collin raised an eyebrow. "Really, Jean? Is that ego of yours so hurt that you're makin' a competition out of this?"
Jean then turned sharply to Collin. "And how about you join as well? Or what, you afraid I'm gonna kick your ass?"
"Well, somebody's got a big mouth on 'im," Collin commented before getting closer to the group.
Ymir then leaned closer to Bertholdt with a smirk on her face. "Okay, this is getting really amusing."
Bertholdt just sighed before shaking his head. They really were a rowdy bunch.
Collin stopped in front of Jean and leaned down to be on his eye level. The large teen couldn't help but find amusing the fact Jean was trying not to look the least bit intimidated. "So ya think you can kick my ass? I just might take you up on such a challenge."
"Isn't this interesting!" an elderly voice said a little distance away, to which almost all cadets immediately saluted.
The man in question was Dot Pixis, a commander of the Garrison Regiment. He was an older man with visible wrinkles on his face, a completely bald head, gold eyes, and grey mustache. He was also accompanied by a male and female officer at his sides.
The rest of the cadets also quickly saluted at the commander's presence.
"Wrong side," Collin quickly whispered to Connie who got a panicked look on his face.
"Shit!" Connie quietly exclaimed before switching his arms in a salute. Feeling something amiss, Connie looked down to see that the salute was only now inverted. "Wait, that wasn't…" He then switched back before giving Collin a glare, which only got a chuckle out of the large teen.
"Listen here, younglings," Pixis began. "While your fighting spirit is commendable, using a training exercise to win an argument isn't acceptable here."
Jean slightly shifted in his place as he thought they might be in trouble. Pixis, however, just took a flask out of his military jacket and took a swig.
"You should fight by cooking," Pixis suggested.
That got several people to blink in shock.
"Um, excuse me, sir?" Jean asked confused.
"Fight by cooking!" Pixis exclaimed.
'I think this guy took more than just a few swigs from that flask,' Collin thought as he looked dumbfounded at the commander. Though Collin could notice the man's cheeks were slightly rosy so he probably wasn't that far off.
"Huh?" Jean said, not sure how to formulate a proper response.
Sasha on the other hand gained an ecstatic look on her face. "Cooking?"
"That's right! You'll have a cook-off!" Pixis said with his arms spread.
The tall male officer beside him, Gustav, tried his best not to look embarrassed. "I should have confiscated that hip flask from him."
The female officer, Anka, just frowned and gave a nod.
"L-look, commander, I don't mean to be rude," Jean started nervously. "But we're soldiers. Cooking isn't really-"
He was interrupted as Sasha suddenly put her hand in front of his face, still grasping her potato. "Jean, are you really backing out on something like cooking?"
"Of course he would!" Connie exclaimed. "His mom probably did all the cooking for him and he's now chickening out."
"Well, are you saying you won't have a contest in one of the best arts in the world?" Sasha said before taking a huge bite out of her potato.
Collin couldn't help but smile as he saw Sasha's expression. 'Is it just me, or does she look adorable trying to look so serious while munching on a mouthful of potato?' He then took out his journal and began scribbling.
Jean's hands trembled for a moment before his fists clenched. "Ugh, fine then! Cooking, cleaning… You can throw at me whatever you want. If I win, then you'll have to get out of my way forever! Get it, Potato Girl?!"
Sasha only narrowed her eyes in determination, though her munching didn't stop.
"Excellent! Both of you will cook and serve your dish at dinner!" Pixis said. "Do your best, cadets!"
That got some excited shouts from other cadets as they were actually looking forward to the cook-off.
"Well, this took quite a turn," Ymir commented.
"Yeah, no kidding," Bertholdt agreed.
Collin stood there thinking for a minute. He may actually use this to his advantage. Considering what day today was, he wasn't willing to let an opportunity like that go.
Approaching Pixis, Collin gave him a salute. "May I have a moment of your time, commander?"
"Oh? And what do you need, cadet?" Pixis asked.
"I actually wasn't plannin' on joinin' the cook-off, but I still ask for your permission to use the kitchen, sir," Collin said.
Pixis raised a curious eyebrow at that. "And just why do you need the kitchen, especially if you don't want to participate?"
"Well, today is a special day, sir, and I fear that I might not get another opportunity to cook somethin' like this," Collin explained. "And I'll make sure that you grab a bite as well. Ya won't regret it."
Pixis fingered his chin for a moment, giving the proposition some thought before smiling. "What's your name, cadet?"
"Collin Holt, sir."
"Ah, I see," Pixis said before putting his hands behind his back. "Very well, then. Cadet Holt, you have my permission to use the kitchen for tonight. I can't wait to see what you have prepared."
"I thank you very much, commander!" Collin said with a grin.
'Man, this kid knew which strings to pull with Pixis,' Gustav thought as he watched the interaction between his superior and the cadet.
Collin then retreated back to his teammates who looked at him confused.
"Okay, why did you go through the trouble of convincing the commander to give you permission to cook?" Ymir asked with her hand on her hip.
"As I told Pixis, it's a special occasion," Collin simply replied. "By the way, can you two help me?"
It was late afternoon as Collin, Ymir, and Bertholdt found themselves walking through a forest near the Trost District. After hearing Collin's proposal, the three of them soon mounted some horses and rode in the wilderness inside Wall Rose, with Collin explaining that he needs to hunt something.
So, armed with some rifles they went into the woods, a smile never leaving Collin's face during the entirety of the hunt.
After a little while, Collin, Ymir, and Bertholdt finished with the hunt, and Collin was carrying two dead rabbits in his hand, with a rifle safely strapped to his shoulder. It was a good thing that Collin remembered this part of the year was more abundant with rabbits. He had plenty of experience before… the tragedy, so he may as well put it to good use.
Ymir then groaned. "Why did I agree to do this instead of hanging out with Krista?"
Collin turned back to her with a smirk. "'Cause you love me."
That made the freckled girl laugh. "Yeah, you wish! I just probably felt bad for your sorry ass, and decided my schedule is open enough for a little distraction."
"Sure, keep tellin' yourself that," Collin said amused. "By the way, that was some nice shootin' there, Bert. You have talent."
Bertholdt slightly blushed at the praise. "Oh, um… thank you. But, it was nothing, really," he said before remembering something. "So, Collin, what do you plan to do with the rabbits?"
"I'm gonna make some rabbit stew," Collin answered.
"But… isn't only one rabbit enough for rabbit stew? Why did we have to hunt for two?" Bertholdt asked before slightly looking away and rubbing the back of his head. "Look, I admit I'm not some culinary expert or anything, it's just I'm asking from experience."
"Don't worry, Bert, that's totally valid question," Collin said dismissively. "But yes, usually only a single rabbit would be enough. However, I plan on makin' a double servin'."
"Let me guess, it's for some form of a celebration," Ymir suggested.
"You could say that."
"Well considering we have Potato Girl with us, she'll need an entire pot for herself," Ymir jested.
"Guys, wait a minute," Bertholdt suddenly said, halting them. "Do you… do you hear some rumbling?"
Slightly shifting in place, Ymir and Collin began listening for the rumbling that Bertholdt mentioned, and sure enough, there was some rumbling alright. In fact, not only was there rumbling, it seemed that the ground beneath them began to shake.
Looking at the direction of where they thought it was coming from, the three were greeted by a sight of a giant boar running near their direction, with Sasha right on its back and Connie and Reiner following with their ODM gear. Jean and his team then came soon after, following with their own gear. Looks like all of them got the same idea of what they wanted to serve for dinner tonight.
The boar whizzed past them, picking up wind that ruffled the trio's hair as they watched it run and be pursued. They could also hear Sasha on top of the boar repeating the word 'meat' with determination.
"Should… shouldn't we…?" Bertholdt stammered as some sweat dripped down his brow.
Collin nodded. "Yeah. Just in case."
Ymir rolled her eyes. "Look, this isn't our problem, so we should just-" she stopped herself as she heard some cables being fired and saw Collin and Berholdt already joined in the pursuit. "Ugh, bloody hell." Soon, she also fired a cable and flew in the boar's direction.
The trio then soon closed in on the boar and its pursuers, with Collin positioning himself right next to Reiner who was the furthest from the action.
"So, how are things goin'?" Collin asked with a smirk on his face.
"Fine enough! We'll have that beast in no time!" Reiner exclaimed as he focused on the escaping animal and his teammate on its back.
"Are you sure you should be doing this, Reiner?!" Bertholdt asked in concern as he nervously looked down at the large boar. "This seems fairly dangerous!"
"Sorry, Bertholdt, but I can't give up now!" Reiner said with determination. "This prey will be ours for the taking!"
Bertholdt was honestly shocked to hear that while Collin chuckled. "Man, I knew you were a determined guy, but I didn't expect this!" Collin commented.
Ymir looked back to see Jean and his team on their trail. "Well, looks like you might be having some competition!"
Armin quickly flew past them, and in front of the colossal boar, but still keeping himself high enough and out of its reach. He then dangled some potatoes over.
"Hey, Sasha! Here are some nice potatoes for you!" Armin yelled, trying to get Sasha's attention.
The redhead, however, ignored him and just continued moving across the boar's body and muttering to herself. "Smoked! Boiled! Roasted!"
"Not good. The smell of meat is too overpowering," Armin said as he stopped dangling the potatoes.
"Okay, this is really getting ridiculous!" Ymir was annoyed as she watched the display in front of them.
"Oh, stop bein' such a sourpuss, Ymir," Collin said. "Ya wouldn't change 'em for the world, and ya know it!"
Ymir just scoffed. "Being pretty presumptuous there, don't you think?!"
"Hey, you may be insufferable sometimes, but you ain't heartless, I know that much!"
Sasha was now standing on top of the boar and readied the bow and arrows she was carrying. "So many ways to cook the meat!" she said before suddenly jumping and aiming her bow. "And it's all mine!"
Sasha then let her arrow fly, and it struck the colossal boar right through its skull. The boar then slowed down, before its legs completely gave in and it collapsed, skidding across the ground before eventually ending up on its back and its hind legs in the air.
Everyone then stopped in mid-air as they halted their gear mechanisms. One by one, they dropped to the ground by their cables before retracting them.
Sasha landed right on top of the downed boar's belly and began jumping in joy. "Yahoo! Tasty meat here I come!"
Collin clicked his tongue. "Well, I don't think I've ever seen 'er so ecstatic over anythin'… ever."
"Oh, great," Ymir groaned out. "We just had to waste our time here."
Sasha let out a happy laugh. "Connie, Reiner! We got this in the bag!"
"Hell yeah!" Connie exclaimed as he brought his fist up in triumph.
Reiner just grinned before giving a thumbs up.
Bertholdt looked over to his blond friend with a bit of concern. "Um, Reiner, you were strangely enthusiastic about hunting this thing down."
"Yeah, I have to admit that's a bit weird of ya," Colling agreed.
"Guys, how could I not?" Reiner said in a higher tone and with a serious expression, a fist over his heart. "I mean otherwise, what would my ancestors think of me?! The entire world… is connected!"
Silence reigned for a few moments as Bertholdt, Ymir and Collin gave Reiner some deadpan stares. The silence soon became awkward before Collin broke it.
"Um, the hell's that s'posed to mean?"
Reiner then got a complicated expression on his face, as if he couldn't decide if he was confused, baffled, or shocked. "I'm… honestly not sure. It's something Sasha told me," he said before composing himself. "But I just couldn't help but feel inspired!"
That got him even more silent, and longer deadpan stares. Some swore they could hear crickets nearby.
"How on Earth are ya one of the top cadets, exactly?" Collin asked baffled.
Ymir facepalmed. "That proves it. We're all fucked."
Bertholdt silently groaned before rubbing his forehead. "Why, Reiner? Why?"
"Hey!" Sasha's voice got them out of their stupor. "C'mon! We need to get that meat back to Trost! You better help me!"
Their trip back was somewhat a lengthy one as it lasted to the afternoon, which was no surprise considering the boar was enormous so it would take some effort into pulling its giant hide. Sasha was on top of it the whole time saying "meaty-meat" in a sing-a-song voice. It was a pretty amusing sight.
The cadets soon found themselves in the Garrison mess hall, being served some simple food servings.
Jean sat with his teammates, a frown etched on his face as he lost his chance at getting the colossal boar for tonight's competition. He needed something good to counter it otherwise he was definitely going to lose.
Collin stared at the frustrated cadet from his own table where Bertholdt, Ymir sat along with Krista, who decided to join them much to Ymir's delight.
"Looks like old horse-face is in a bad mood," Ymir commented with a smirk on her face as she leaned back into her chair.
"Well, his chances of winning do look low," Bertholdt commented before taking a sip of his water.
"I'm sure everything will turn out fine in the end," Krista said before taking a spoonful of her soup.
"Regardless of how all this turns up," Collin said, finishing his bread and rising. "I still have to get my cookin' done. I shouldn't waste any more time." He then looked over his team. "I could use some help. You already helped me get the rabbits so might as well."
Ymir slightly chortled. "Yeah, right. Like I'd waste more of my time to help you roast some rabbits."
"Ymir, stop being so mean!" Krista exclaimed. "Collin is our friend, and we should help each other!"
"Is Jean Kirstein here?!" a Garrison officer called out, making the said cadet jolt slightly.
Jean rose and moved to the officer. "Yes, sir! Here I am!"
"Your mother is here for a visit," the officer to which Jean looked shocked.
"Huh?!"
Then a middle-aged woman walked into the room. She was on the heavier side and almost a head shorter than Jean, with brown hair tied in a ponytail. She was clothed in a long brown dress and a white apron, a brown basket in her hand.
"Jean-boy!" she said as she approached Jean.
Ymir then snickered. "Jean-boy? Oh, that's just great."
Jean actually looked mortified to see his mother here. "You-"
"Jean-boy, why didn't you pay a visit?" Jean's mother asked as she put her hand on his shoulder, making Jean flinch backward. "Mrs. Wagner's boy, Thomas, already visited."
Several cadets looked at the display and began murmuring amongst each other.
"You're such a troublesome child," Mrs. Kirstein said with a slight smile while Jean still looked morbid. "Hm, did you spill soup on yourself on something?" she asked before taking out a napkin and wiping the stain on Jean's left leg. "You can be so clumsy some-"
"Stop it!" Jean yelled, catching everyone off guard by his tone.
"But Jean-"
"It's fine! Just go home already!" Jean angrily exclaimed as he shoved his mother away from him.
"Oh, well," Mrs. Kirstein began as she reached into her basket before putting some apples on a nearby table. "These are for everyone-"
"You don't need to do that!" Jean then swiped the two apples she took out off the table.
Collin was honestly baffled by what was going on. Why was Jean acting like that towards his own mother?
"Excuse me for a minute," Collin said before walking over to the mother and son.
Ymir rested her head on her palm. "Oh, here we go."
"J-Jean-boy?" Mrs. Kirstein said before turning to other cadets. "I know he's a problem child but please be friends with him." There was a moment of silence as she looked at her son who still appeared angry. "Oh, I forgot." She then pulled a wrapped box. "I brought you your favorite-"
"Just go home!" Jean yelled as he began pushing his mother much to her protest. "Seriously, just get-!"
He was stopped when something pulled him by the back of his jacket and made him turn. He was then met with the narrowed eyes of Collin Holt.
"The hell's your problem?!" Collin asked.
Jean grumbled before getting out of Collin's grip. "What's it matter to you?! This is none of your business!"
"Too bad! I'm makin' it my business!" Collin exclaimed.
Jean's mother tried to calm the situation down. "B-boys, please, no need for such-"
Jean then turned to her, still frustrated. "And will you please just knock it-?!"
He was again interrupted when Collin roughly grabbed him by the hem of his shirt. "Okay, I know ya can be a jerk, but what did your ma do to ya to yell at 'er like that?!"
Jean grabbed Collin's wrist to try and pry him off, but this time Collin held tighter. "Oh, will you stop acting all goody two shoes all of a sudden! What would you do if your nagging mother suddenly barged in like that?!"
With a gasp, Jean was lifted up until he was at Collin's eye level, those brown eyes glaring daggers at Jean's own. "Ya mean if she was STILL ALIVE?!"
That made everyone go quiet at that moment. At Collin's table, Bertholdt held a sympathetic look. He knew Collin's situation very well, but what happened to him wasn't something he really liked to advertise to others, so many cadets like Jean weren't aware of what exactly happened.
Ymir simply frowned, while Krista's bright blue eyes were wide, a hand covering her mouth in shock.
Jean's mouth hung open, his eyes trembling in shock the moment he heard Collin tell him his mother's fate.
"To answer your question," Collin continued in a more hushed tone. "If that happened, I'd be happier than I've ever been." He then slowly dropped Jean down. "So ya better appreciate what you have. Think 'bout that when you tuck yourself in the Interior."
Jean wanted to say something in retort, but what could he say to that? Insult Collin for having a dead mother? Yeah, there was nothing he could say without looking like a complete asshole in front of everyone here, even he knew that.
"Y-young man," Jean's mother spoke to Collin. "I'm truly sorry for your loss. No one your age should suffer something like that. And please, forgive my son for his behavior, he really spoke out of turn." She then reached into her basket. "Here, how about I compensate-?"
"That ain't necessary, ma'am," Collin said as he raised his hands. "Ya don't need to apologize for nothin'. 'Sides, I need to prepare for somethin' tonight. Pleasure meetin' ya."
Collin then departed, heading towards one of the kitchens in the Garrison headquarters. Krista then rose from her seat and quickly headed for him.
"Hey, where are you going?" Ymir asked.
"To help him!" Krista said, quickly catching up to Collin.
Ymir groaned. "I swear, that attitude is going to be the death of her," she said before also rising up. "You coming, Bertie?"
Bertholdt looked at her for a few moments before looking at Collin's retreating form. "Um, sure, might as well."
"Well we better hurry up," Ymir said as she headed for the two. "Don't want Collin to get any funny ideas."
Bertholdt just sighed and followed.
Jean stood silently beside his mother as they watched the group of four depart. He honestly wanted to say something, but words failed him.
"Jean-boy, you should really go apologize to that young man. You can tell that what you said hurt him," Mrs. Kirstein said. She then reached into her basket and pulled out the wrapped box again. "Oh, and this is yours if you still want it."
Jean's attention was then brought to the box, and he slowly took it in his hands. "Um, thanks, mom."
"I know you don't want me around, so I'll be going now," his mother said. "I just hope you pay a visit before you leave."
"Yeah, I'll… I'll do that," Jean said. His mother smiled before leaving.
In one of the kitchens, Collin was finishing up with cutting up the rabbits into pieces and then putting those pieces in a pot. Right now he was in his casual wear but had a white apron over it.
"Alright then!" Collin exclaimed. "Krista, you start cuttin' the carrots! Bertholdt, you get the celery, and Ymir, you get the onions!"
"Okay!" Krista said before taking a knife and cutting the carrots.
Bertholdt only nodded and began carefully cutting the celery.
"Ugh, of course, you're going saddle me with onions!" Ymir complained as she began peeling the onions before cutting them.
"Just a happy coincidence, I swear!" Collin said with a smirk. "Now stop complainin', and start choppin'! You're on potatoes next!"
Ymir then grinned. "You know, you'll make a really good housewife one day if you keep this up."
"At least I'll make somethin'," Collin shot back.
"Stop it, you two! We have work to do!" Krista said before any more insults could be thrown around.
In the other kitchens, Sasha and Jean began cooking their own dishes, with their teammates helping them out. Sasha was ready to serve the Garrison Commander the unbeatable boar meat, as officially dubbed by herself, and Jean was ready to serve something that was inspired by his mother.
Soon the sounds of cooking pots, knife chops, rattling appliances, boiling water, and loud exclamations from the cooks filled the room, with the others trying to keep up with their enthusiasm.
The competition then came, with Sasha and Jean presenting Pixis with their dishes. While Collin wasn't a participant, he decided to watch the competition alongside everyone else.
Sasha was first, presenting the commander with a plate that held a large stake of grilled boar meat. The moment Pixis took a bite, his half-lidded eyes flew wide open and his mouth hung, seemingly completely flabbergasted by the taste.
"Well, looks like Potato Girl's got this in the bag," Ymir commented. She then gave Collin a look and was somewhat surprised to see that he was… staring? At what? Turning back towards the podium, she couldn't help but smirk as it wasn't a 'what' but a 'who' he was staring at. 'Well, looks like Sasha got Collin's country brain to halt for a bit.'
Unlike the rest of them, who for the event were out of uniform and dressed a lot more plainly, Sasha in quite a contrast opted to wear a shoulderless white blouse under a small black vest and an ankle-length brown skirt.
Ymir then elbowed Collin on his side, making him jolt. "Hey, just what exactly are you watching? The competition, or the competitors?"
Collin's cheeks got rosy for a moment before he composed himself and crossed his arms. "Will ya stop bein' so nosy already?"
That just got him a shrug from the freckled girl. "Hey, if you ask nicely maybe she'll wear that thing when you take her to pound town."
Collin's eyes widened in surprise as he blushed in embarrassment before letting out some annoyed grumbles. Ymir let out a small laugh.
"Bet you wish you didn't bring me into this," Ymir said smiling.
"I'm startin' to feel that way," Collin said annoyed.
Next was Jean, and what he presented caught everyone off guard. Mostly because it was a simple omelet. Compared to the meat served by Sasha that didn't really seem like much.
Nevertheless, Pixis began eating and quickly finished, without the extreme reaction he had from the boar meat.
Pixis then stood up. "I'll now decide a winner," he said, letting tension slightly rise. "And contest goes to… cadet Jean Kirstein!"
This got several surprised exclamations from the cadets in the audience before they turned into cheers.
Jean smiled as he got a thumbs up from Armin, while Sasha ran up to Pixis' table and protested, thinking there was no way a simple omelet could defeat meat. Pixis then proceeded to explain that meat by itself was nothing special, it was simply what it is. At least, that's what Collin and the others thought he meant. The commander may as well have drunk a bit too much. Regardless, that dropped Sasha to her knees as she whimpered in her shame, berating herself for only roasting the meat.
Jean walked over to Sasha and helped her up, also saying he didn't really do anything special with that omelet and mostly just roasted it as well.
Collin couldn't help but smile as well. Looks like some fences ended up getting mended in the end. Well, there was still one thing left to do.
A bit later, Pixis was seated at one of the tables in the mess hall, a small bowl of rabbit stew in front of him. He looked at it curiously before taking a spoon, scooping up some, and tasting it.
Collin stood to the side along with the others, looking anxiously as the commander began chewing on his spoonful.
"Mmm. This is quite good, young man," Pixis commented as he went for another spoonful.
"Thank you very much, commander," Collin said respectfully.
After a minute, Pixis was finished with the bowl, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and rose. "It's a shame you weren't in the competition. You might have even won," he said.
"As I said, that ain't really for me," Collin said with a shrug. "You don't mind if we use this hall a little while longer? I want to share this with my friends."
Pixis let out a laugh. "Not at all. I think you've earned the opportunity," he said before walking away. "You cadets enjoy yourselves."
Soon, everyone was seated at their tables. Collin, Jean, Sasha, and their respective teams, along with Eren and Mikasa were all spread on three tables, each one having their own bowl of rabbit stew.
"No wonder you took two rabbits," Bertholdt said. "I think you just cut it close with how many of us you're serving."
"As I said, I ain't wasting a chance like this," Collin said with a smile. "Now ya'll dig in!"
Soon everyone took some of the rabbit stew and began eating.
"Man, this is good!" Reiner said.
"Really good!" Eren added.
Even Annie managed a slight smile.
The moment Sasha got a taste, her eyes lit up and she began wolfing down her bowl, making its contents disappear in a matter of moments.
"Gotta admit, you have some talent," Ymir said as she took another spoonful.
Collin couldn't help but smile as he saw his friends eating his dish.
"Hey, Collin," Jean said getting the young Holt's attention. "Look, I'm sorry about what I said earlier. It was… totally uncalled for."
Collin sighed. "Look, it's fine. Ya didn't know, and that's all in the past," he said. "Now get to eatin', otherwise Sasha'll eat your stew."
Jean chuckled before continuing to eat.
Sasha herself felt bad that this was the only bowl she could eat since the stew was actually really good. Curiously, Collin didn't begin when all of them did and seemed to wait. But soon, Collin took a spoonful of his stew and ate.
Sasha expected a lot of emotions that could have gone through his head. But when she read his expression the moment he ended up swallowing, she was surprised to see that Collin looked… disappointed.
That was quite unusual considering how good the stew seemed to be.
The rest of the evening was spent with the cadets finishing their meal, and soon after joyfully going to their beds.
Collin himself decided to stay outside for a little while longer, standing on a balcony of the barracks and watching the starry sky.
He then closed his eyes. "Man, that was quite a day," he said before inhaling and exhaling some cool air. His brown eyes then went back towards the night sky. "I hope you were watchin' me today, ma." He then smiled. "And happy birthday."
"Collin," he heard Sasha's voice come from the entrance to the balcony.
"Oh, hey there, Sash," he said. "What do ya need?"
"Oh nothin' much," Sasha said, letting her own accent slip through. "I was wonderin' what you were doin' here, and decided to check it out."
Over some time at the training camp, Collin has confronted Sasha about her accent after she accidentally slipped it that day when she found him exercising. He was able to convince her that she didn't need to hide it from him, so when they were alone, Sasha was able to speak in her natural accent.
They actually tried to get Sasha to be more comfortable with it around others, but when she tried Eren told her that she sounded weird, wondering why she suddenly spoke like that, so Sasha reverted back to hiding it.
The process was slow, but it was there.
"So, is that the reason why ya were determined to cook today? Because of your mom's birthday?"
Collin sighed as his expression softened. "Yeah, it would've been today," he said. "Y'know, rabbit stew was my favorite meal, and ma used to cook it for me durin' special occasions, or when she found the time. I helped 'er make it several times, and I made a promise that I'd make it myself for her one day as a birthday present."
"Oh." So that was it. Now Sasha really understood why he was determined today. He was trying to fulfill a promise he could never actually keep. She then put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Well, I'm sure she's proud of ya. That meal was fantastic!"
Collin chuckled. "I'm very glad to hear it, but," he paused for a moment. "I hoped that I would've been able to make it as good as she did. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised when that didn't turn out to be the case."
"Hey, no need to sell yourself short, ya still did a very good job," Sasha said with a smile.
Collin smiled back at her. "Thanks, Sash," he said. "By the way, are ya still sad 'bout the competition?"
She rubbed the back of her head before responding. "I'm over it. But it's still too bad. I could've won if I hadn't just relied on meat alone to do the trick," she said before shrugging. "But, you know, as they say, ya git what ya git…"
"And don't throw a fit," Collin finished catching her off guard for a moment. "What, ya think Dauper invented that sayin'?"
She shrugged. "Eh, I s'pose not."
"Oh, there's somethin' I'd like to show ya," Collin said before taking out his journal from his pocket. "I have some drawin's I'm sure you'd like to see."
Curiously, she looked at the page from the journal Collin was showing her, only for her expression to drop once she saw that it was a picture of her eating a potato with a serious expression, no doubt from today.
Sasha let out an audible groan before rubbing her head. "Why are ya only drawin' me in embarrassin' situations, ya big lug?!"
Collin laughed at her reaction. "Sorry, sorry, I couldn't resist. You looked too adorable like that," he explained. "But if ya want somethin' more flatterin'..." He then turned the page.
This time it was just a drawing of Sasha, but dressed in the outfit she was currently wearing and the one she wore for cooking.
"Oh, why did ya draw me like that?"
"Well, it's just that you…" he stammered. "The outfit looks nice on ya."
Sasha's cheeks were then adorned with a healthy shade of pink as she turned her gaze away for a moment. "Um, thanks."
He then put his journal away, a slight shade of red adorning his cheeks as well. "Yeah, no biggie," Collin said. After a few moments of silence between the two, he spoke again. "So, should we tuck in for the night? Don't wanna stay up too late."
"Yeah," Sasha agreed. "We better hit the hay before others get worried."
AN: And that is it, my dear readers! This mostly covers the second OVA and is mostly character interactions. I hope you liked it.
I also implore you to leave a review, they are great motivators. And check out my other stories. Trust me, they're worth it.
See you next time!
