The First Compliment of a Few
After a full day of lessons, training, and conditioning, the recruits of the 104th usually had evenings off.
Once their gear was stowed away they were left to their own devices, free to do whatever they pleased within the limits of military decorum. Most cadets opted to rest and chat away with other recruits, reminiscing of better times or gossiping about camp affairs. A few continued to train and practice their learned skills, either to pass their given tests, or try and achieve a position among the top ten.
More often than Eren expected, Annie usually sparred with him during these free periods, learning and honing his close-combat skills in ways he never would have imagined. The more they fought, the more he understood the girl – her nihilistic outlook, biting humour, and the enjoyment she was getting out of their training.
Oddly enough, he knew some of these things before she displayed such behaviour, hammering the idea that she was someone familiar despite having never interacted with her prior to joining the Corps.
And the visions.
The damn visions that leave him panicked and confused. Things he couldn't understand, but felt real, as though they were happening in the moment. Or already happened. Or will happen. Or could happen.
His mind's a mess.
As he had no idea what the imagery in his delusions meant, and they don't seem to be relevant in any way, Eren chose to do the rational thing: ignore it. No point in getting worked up about things that didn't seem to mean anything, especially with the daunting task ahead. Distractions were unwelcome, and so he buried or immediately forgot the things he saw and felt.
However there was one he refused to forget, and if these were actually premonitions of the future, then he would endeavour to never let it come true.
The sun had nearly set, but there was enough light for one more fight.
Annie's blue eyes were focused on him, jaw clenched in concentration, taking her usual stance and poised to strike. Eren stared back intently, taking a low stance, one fist raised at his chest while his other hand hung loosely in front of him, palm open.
The pair circled each other waiting for an opening, tension palpable, an uneasy silence around them. A full rotation passed before the brunet made the first move, rushing her with a fist reared back. Annie swung her leg high, with the intent to kick his unprotected head, knowing that her reach was longer than his punch.
Knew it! His deception worked; anticipating the coming kick Eren dropped to one knee, her leg passing dangerously above him. Annie was tackled before she could regain her balance, the air was forced out of her lungs as Eren slammed her back on the ground. His frantic movements fought to get into a full mount but Annie was experienced, she used her knees to rebuff his advances and put the boy into a full guard instead.
The exchange was brief but intense, both of them panting from exhaustion. Eren swung a hammer fist that Annie intercepted by grabbing his wrist, before she pulled the limb over her head. This caused him to jerk downward and smack his nose on her cheek, while Annie's free arm wrapped around his head, pinning him against her.
His other arm was locked between her elbows, When did she do that?
"Dammit." He tried to break free, but Eren found that the blonde's legs were wrapped around his waist as well, effectively locking all his movements.
"What are you gonna do next, Jaeger?" Annie panted from underneath him.
I don't know, he wanted to say, but never the quitter he wriggled up and down, trying to dislodge the lock as best he can to break free.
"H-Hey, what are you-" She gasped involuntarily, causing Eren to freeze.
"Shit, did I hurt you?"
He could feel the pulse in her neck racing, "I'm fine."
"You sure?" He pressed, "I know we haven't exactly been holding back, but I've never heard you make that sound before."
"What do you mean?"
"We've been sparring for the last five months, so I have an idea of the noises you make when you get hurt." Eren felt her thighs tighten around him, "That's the first time I've heard that."
"Hm, didn't know you were paying that much attention."
"I kinda just picked up on it." He admitted, "Eventually, I learned what each sound meant."
Annie's arm trapping his head squeezed harder, then her other arm followed suit, freeing his hand while pressing him tighter against her, "That's pretty creepy."
Eren didn't really have a response to that as it was admittedly abnormal, but he couldn't feel too bad about it. After all, despite telling the truth, here she was embracing him in her own way. It felt nice, comforting, just laying there and feeling the warmth coming off her body during the cool autumn evening.
She must have realized he was distracted because Eren suddenly felt himself being kicked off. Annie's feet were pressed against his thighs as she escaped the hold. With a heave and a twist of the hips, the blonde disentangled herself, but in her haste she slipped and fell on her stomach.
Eren took advantage of the situation and pounced, pressing his weight on her back and straddling her waist, while his hand pressed her shoulders down against the ground.
A sea of flames and rubble surrounded him.
Pinned underneath his hands was a fleshy mass, red and pink, resembling a body that had its limbs and head removed.
"I will destroy this world!" The words he screamed came out as a deep roar, a rage he'd never felt before overtook his senses.
Looking down, Eren saw Annie Leonhart within the meaty substance, trapped in it like a splinter embedded on a finger. She appeared very small, but her light hair and cold features were oh-so-recognizable.
There were tears running down her face.
His wrath ebbed at the sight, replaced by regret, betrayal, and pain. He cares very much for her, and in his fight for freedom, it felt as if he had caged her in turn.
Eren paused in shock – he planned on eating her.
A sudden, bright, blue light emanated and obscured his vision.
"Annie?! What's happening?" Thundering noises escaped his mouth instead of words.
Everything turned black.
"You're heavy, Eren."
He snapped back to the present, "What?"
"You're heavy, get off."
He rolled off and ended up on his back, while doing his best not to scream. What was that? Eat her? Like a titan would?
Annie stood up and brushed herself off, "You should really take it easy on this body of mine, I'm a delicate maiden after all."
The loud, raspy laughter in his mind helped shake off the troubling experience, "I'll remember that when you break my nose for the third time."
She extended a hand to help him, "It's unusual how good you are at this."
"What do you mean?" Eren replied with a grunt as he was hoisted up.
"You have no idea how seriously I'm taking you when we spar. I've been training since I was a little girl and you're able to keep up somehow."
"Maybe I just have a really good teacher."
Annie gave a small smile and turned, hiding her face from view, "Let's go, the sun is gone."
They walked side-by-side back to the barracks, both of them sweaty, dirty, and very much spent. Eren was just thankful that tomorrow is a free day for the cadets, as the 3DMG had to undergo monthly maintenance. A comfortable silence settled between the two, having gone through this routine numerous times they've become acclimated to each other's presence.
Thank her, "Annie," He spoke, breaking the silence, "thanks for teaching me all this time."
She looked at him, then away again, before brushing the bangs off her face, "If anything I should be thanking you. These skills require practice, I'm glad to have someone to train with."
I'm gonna make you cry, "I hope you don't regret getting to know a suicidal bastard like me."
"I just said I was glad, Jaeger."
"To have met a punching dummy."
Annie snickered, "At the risk of inflating your ego, you're not half bad: you're strong, you have good instincts, and these techniques are like second nature to you."
"I meant it when I called you a great teacher."
A light dusting of pink graced her cheeks, "You actually said 'really good', but I'll take great as well."
"I don't really know how to say this," He scratched the back of his head awkwardly, "I think you should be in the Scouts because you're very skilled. In everything." And he meant it, especially with her current position in the top ten.
"Flattery won't bring me over to the suicide squad."
"At the same time," Eren continued, ignoring her quip, "I like the idea of you being safe in the interior, with the Military Police."
Annie cleared her throat before responding, "Well, which is it?"
He thought about it for several moments, long enough that the lights from the barracks were visible. "I think you-" Eren interrupted himself mid-sentence as he noticed the silhouette of a tall figure from a distance. An anger welled from his chest as realization dawned on him, "Is that Bertholt?"
The blonde gazed into the distance and frowned, "It is."
"Why is he waving at us?" Eren's hands balled into fists as he heard shouting coming from the figure's direction.
"Annie!" Bertholt's voice echoed in the night.
She groaned, "I should see what he wants."
"Are you two…?"
"Friends? Not really."
"I was gonna say together, but that answers my question too."
Annie gave a humourless laugh, "I don't have the kind of charm it takes to make someone fall for me."
Eren pointedly looked at her, mildly confused, "You're kidding right?"
He caught her off guard, "W-What?" She matched his gaze, but in the darkness he couldn't see her face clearly, "Because I teach you how to fight?"
"It's not just that. I think you're amazing and I respect you, but it's also your realistic view on life. You've opened my eyes about a lot of things."
"I've knocked down your idealism, that's not charming."
"It is." Eren insisted, "You don't let what other people think decide how you act – there's a charm to that, for me anyway. It's like you're free and true to yourself."
Looking away (for the hundredth time today?), she donned her hood, "Freedom, huh?"
"Annie!" Bertholt's voice continued to shout.
I'm going to kill him if he doesn't shut up.
"What do any of us really know about it?"
Eren couldn't think of anything to say and ultimately chose to remain quiet, fighting the irrational anger rising in him as they approached the tall boy. Unable to tolerate the thought of seeing Bertholt up close, he patted Annie on the shoulder and walked away towards a copse of trees.
"Where are you going?" She asked.
"I'll see you in the mess hall, just got something I need to do first."
"Sure." Eren could tell she was curious but chose not to inquire further, which he appreciated.
Once he ducked behind the trees and was out of her sight, the boy covered his mouth and stifled his cries. The emotions from the vision came back with a vengeance, a mixture of regret, longing, and anger pooled in his being, rendering his thoughts undecipherable. Eren buried his head in his arms, tears flowing freely from his eyes.
I can't let that happen. I don't want to kill Annie. I don't want her to get hurt.
Resolving his will, Eren Jaeger vowed to never let what he saw come to pass – even if it meant his own death. Does this mean I love her? His thoughts inquired.
No. A harsh reply echoed from the back of his mind.
Not yet.
Thoroughly baffled and confused, the boy collapsed at the foot of the tree and screamed into the night. Pure, raw, and unfiltered despair echoed throughout the darkness and went unanswered, making him feel even more alone in his suffering. Eren bit his knuckles in frustration and echoed his goals to centre himself, finding focus amidst his emotional maelstrom.
Join the Scouts. Kill all the titans. Get to the basement. Learn the truth. Save everyone.
Then he added for good measure, Protect Annie...
From me?
The snow had begun to settle.
Winter for the cadets mostly meant survival exercises – fire starting, camping, foraging, and trekking through blizzards. Due to the weather, maneuver exercises were put on hold and more facilities were available longer for the recruits' benefit, such as the library and study hall.
Time spent with Annie drastically decreased, their reason for being together removed by the cold temperatures and Mikasa's insistence at spending more time with Eren. Although they did eat and speak frequently, it just wasn't the same: the physical exchanges between them spoke deeper meanings than words ever could.
What hadn't changed were the assigned chores given to them arbitrarily by Keith Shadis. Regularly, several pairs of cadets were assigned to different housekeeping duties such as cleaning, cooking, laundry, mopping the lecture halls, and gathering firewood. Cleaning the latrines were usually a monthly thing reserved as punishment, but the cold temperatures have left everyone lethargic and tired, meaning everyone was too lazy to misbehave.
Therefore, it was with great annoyance when the instructor informed Eren and Annie that they would be the pair to clean the latrines, "Luck of the draw, Jaeger, Leonhart. Start cleaning this evening and it better be spotless in the morning."
"Yes sir!" They replied in unison, while both were inwardly dismayed.
XXX
The pair found themselves scrubbing said latrines after dinner, their activity illuminated by a single lamp as the sun had left a long time ago. Eren was starting to regret eating prior to cleaning, his food threatening to leave the way it came.
"This is disgusting."
"Stop complaining," Annie replied, "the sooner we finish cleaning this crap, the sooner you can get back to that incestuous sister of yours."
Eren paused to give the blonde a look of repugnance, evident even through the bandana he had on, "What the hell?"
"I don't know if you're blind or an idiot, but you should see her in the barracks," The girl continued furiously brushing during her dialogue, "always letting Krista and Sasha know that you two are family and that you'll always be together. It's obvious that she's trying to get the two of them to ignore you as a potential romantic partner, since they're the only other girls in your group. Not a bad plan, but it's weird."
"I'm not interested anyway." Eren mumbled, and continued on his work, "Did she bother you?"
"She actually offered to do this instead of me."
"And you refused because?"
This time Annie did pause to look at him, "Listen, Jaeger, I don't care about your drama. What I do care about is making it to the top ten, joining the Military Police, and staying safe." (Liar.) "If Shadis shows up and sees I skipped, that works against me.
Eren didn't intend to say it and he wasn't even aware of the words escaping his mouth, but the girl's reaction made him realize that he hit the mark, "Maybe if you say it enough you'll believe it."
She stopped abruptly and glared at him, "What did you say?"
"Umm… Nothing."
"Don't give me that, what did you say?"
Eren stuttered before answering her, the words manifesting before he can give them thought, "I-If you honestly didn't care, you wouldn't be worked up about it the way you are now. Do you know your eyes become a deeper blue when you're angry or frustrated?"
"Oh?" Annie spoke low, dangerous, "Is that so, Jaeger?" She took slow, deliberate steps towards him, attempting to scare him with each stride, "You really think I care?"
"I know you do."
She was right in front of his face, eyes narrowed in anger, nostrils flared as she lowered her bandana, "I don't."
"You're a shitty liar, Annie Leonhart." Eren lowered his own bandana, a cheeky smirk on his visage.
"I'm going to punch that smile off your face."
"Take off your gloves first."
"I'll break your nose a fourth time."
"It'll fix itself the next day."
"I'll snap your knees."
"That's all you can reach anyway."
"You're playing with fire."
"Winter's the best time to do it."
"Why are you like this?" She asked in exasperation.
"I like to tease cute girls."
The sudden reply caught Annie (and himself) off guard, abruptly stopping their banter and causing her to take a step back. An awkward silence settled between them, punctuated only by the sounds of the girl removing her gloves and washing her hands in the nearby sink.
Eren was worried that he said something he couldn't take back, something that would destroy their connection (Friendship? Mentorship? Partnership?) to each other. Choosing to remain silent, he turned back to the latrines, utterly devoted to scrubbing the grime off.
"What are you doing?" Annie's voice cut through the silence, "Wash your hands and follow me outside."
Confused, he replied, "It's cold out there, and we're almost done this."
"It's good enough, as long as it doesn't look like an absolute pigsty, Shadis doesn't care."
"Alright," Eren removed his equipment and washed his hands, "still doesn't explain why we need to go outside all of a sudden."
"Isn't it obvious?" As soon as he finished washing, Annie grabbed him by the elbow and steered them outside, cold be damned, "We're going to spar."
"Really? In these conditions?"
She looked him in the eyes and with the moonlight, Eren could tell that her irises were a very sharp blue. A sinking feeling settled in his stomach, fear made his heart race, and Annie's next words confirmed his impending danger.
"What have I always told you, Jaeger?" Quick as lightning her arms snaked around his neck, and she locked it there in place by gripping her wrist, "Your enemies won't warn you."
Annie's leg hooked around his as she flung and twisted their bodies, launching Eren in the air.
"Son of a b-"
Author's Notes:
A little explanation on the visions - they are canonical events from the actual AoT universe, with the exception of one or two that I decided to make up. It's there for a reason, promise! The combat jargon might be a bit too much for some, but a quick google search should help with visualizing the positions and moves. If there's any confusion, don't hesitate to ask in the reviews or send a quick PM. Next chapter should be another 2-3 weeks so keep an eye out.
To ILikeFoxes828: Thanks for the review! I'm slightly worried that you might feel that the banter between Annie and Eren near the end is a bit out of character, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.
As always, many thanks to Lucadina for editing - there was definitely some dialogue and word usage that needed changing. Very badly.