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I do not own Attack on Titan.

Trost District, Wall Rose, Year 845

Lilly returned to where Eren, Armin, and Mikasa were, a loaf of bread in her hands. She sits cross-legged and begins eating. It had been a few weeks after the fall of Wall Maria. Eren had somehow met up with his father, and the key to his basement hung around his neck. The prideful brunet hated this charity, but there was nothing anyone could do. Food was running low.

She had two secrets held in her heart: first of which was an expedition outside the walls as basically a suicide mission to thin the amount of people who had fled Maria. The second was that she had seen a notice for signing up for the military. She didn't need the training, but this training corps would be pushed harder, a year behind the other cadets, but graduating at the same time. Lilly was old enough to join... And she was going to. She trusted Mikasa (begrudgingly) to take care of the two boys.

She finished her bread as Eren was, once again, refusing to eat the bread that was his meal for the day. Lilly had lost weight and she was starving, but she made do. She had to tell them.

"Um..." Lilly had no idea how to begin. The other three Shiganshians turned their gazes to her. "I... I'm joining the military. There's a corps starting in a couple days." She shifts uncomfortably.

"If you're going I'm going too! Beats just sitting here," Eren said heatedly, but Lilly shook her head.

"You have to at least be twelve. I'm thirteen. I'm sorry..." Lily stressed to him. "But you have to stay here."

"What if I lie? I can't sit here and do nothing!" Eren snapped.

"That's not your choice to make." The quiet, cold voice of Mikasa spoke up. "You'll just be putting yourself in danger."

"But..." Eren looked to Armin for help.

"She's right, Eren." Armin shrugged a bit helplessly.

Eren looked very downcast, so Lilly took pity on him and stood to hug Eren gently. "Please don't do anything stupid while I'm gone. It'll only be for a couple years." She pleaded into his ear softly. She felt Eren nod against her as he returned the hug.

Armin was next. "I'll miss you, you brainiac." Lilly smiled and hugged him close.

"I'll miss you too." The blond gave a weak smile back.

"Don't sell yourself short. You have a big brain. Keep using it. Survive." Lilly instructed, and Armin too nodded.

Lilly backed away and turned to Mikasa and gave her a nod. "Keep them safe."

"You train your hardest," Mikasa said, her tone implying she couldn't care less about Lilly's well-being otherwise, "and I'm more than capable at keeping them safe."

Lilly bit her lip to keep from snapping at her. She turned and quickly walked away, trying to ignore Eren's look of longing to follow, or Armin's look of hopelessness as she was leaving. She always liked Armin in a brotherly sort of way.

The training camp was between Trost and Wall Sina, in the large section in the middle. It'd be a while before she got there on foot. Trost was the same size as Shiganshina, yet the layout was different. It wasn't familiar for her, so she was bound to get lost eventually. And while most would assume there being a straight roads from gate to gate, finding that road was what she was worried of. She was off it, in a smaller square by the left side of the Wall. The back alleys were as twisting and confusing as they were back home.

The thought of Shiganshina brought tears to Lilly's eyes, yet she resisted them and blinked them away. She just focused on putting one foot in front of the other, on finding her way to the main road. She knew for a fact she was going to have to find somewhere to spend the night, preferably inside the wall. While there were no Titans between Rose and Sina, there were wild animals and bandits. Not that she had anything valuable... Save herself. Eren had told her of human traffickers who had tried to sell Mikasa. Those she wanted to avoid.

She walked until nightfall, where she stopped in a tiny inn by the gate to the interior. She entered, and explained that she was from Wall Maria and joining the military, before pulling out the few steel coins she owned from a pouch sewn onto her belt. The innkeeper was a kind woman who gave her a key with no charge, and a sad, pitiful smile. Lilly took they key and went to her room, the mutter of "poor child" following her.

She had a fitful sleep in the filthy charity-case room. She hated it, but beggars can't be choosers, and she was definitely a beggar. The few coins she had were reserved for if she was absolutely starving, since she had no way of getting more food nor coins to pay for said food.

The next morning came too soon, and Lilly got up with groan. She brushed the filthy and dust off her clothes before leaving the room. She was about to leave, when the kind innkeeper sat her down and forced her to eat. The food was much better than the room she stayed in. Lilly was soon done, chatting a bit with the woman, before waving goodbye.

Maybe I'll return if we survive this... Lilly swallowed her nervousness. Her mother had told stories of training, how some cadets dropped out, how some had even been killed. And it's not like I don't have the upper hand already... She set her jaw before plodding down the main road again.

The crisp air made her shiver. Spring was just beginning to subside, yet the cool temperatures persisted. She didn't mind, it would make it easier for training. And she had already been trained most of what she would need to know. She just thought a formal training would be what she needed. Maybe Uncle Erwin would let her join as a Squad Leader, one rank below her mother. It was a tall order, but maybe... since she had technically joined the Scouts years ago...

"State your name and business!" A Garrison member's orders broke her from her reverie.

"L-Lilly Zoe-Ackerman from Shiganshina District, joining the military, sir!" She managed a hasty salute.

"Fine. You may go, and good luck," the guard gave her a strange look, as if her name struck a chord in his memory, before he allowed her to go through the gate.

Lilly relaxed and passed through the gate, troubled by the fact there was a guard... Probably because of access to Sina. Didn't want any shady folk to get into the inner city, she figured. As she left the small tunnel that the wall made, her breath hitched.

She was used to the sight of seemingly endless land, but this was different. This was foreign, wild territory. There were few wild flowers and much more tall grass. Scraggly trees dotted the landscape. And on the distant horizon, the faint blur of Wall Sina was just visible.

It's so different... Lilly thought as she walked down the worn-down path, temporary signs up to guide new recruits to the training camp. She followed them, a couple times nearly getting lost at some forks in the road, but a marker, sometimes barely visible in the tall grass, pointed the way to her.

Around midday, she stopped by the side of get road and took a small break. She ate some of the cloth-wrapped food the innkeeper had given her. The kind woman had also given her a small canteen to hold her over to the camp. She missed the woman's company, hating the silent loneliness. As she bit into the soft bread of her sandwich, her mind drifted to the bread she had been eating the past couple of weeks, then to Eren. She swallowed the bite slowly.

His amber eyes shone before her vision, smiling and happy. They were full of life and curiosity… before they shifted to a look of sadness and rage. She wished desperately she had gotten a chance to tell him how much she meant to her.

Those amber eyes then shifted to a bright blue, blond hair falling into them. She couldn't help the small smile that crept across her face as she though of Armin. He was so cute, so curious, so pure... She loved him, but he was so like her mother she couldn't help but view him as a brother. She hoped he found a good girl to take care of him. The next growl of her stomach encouraged her to keep eating.

After her meal had ended, Lilly sighed deeply and stood, her feet aching. And she knew it was only going to get worse. Uncle Erwin told her that the man he replaced took over charge to train the new recruits... He was frightening. Keith Shadis, his name was. She had only actually met him once, and she could barely remember that meeting.

Just as the sun was setting, the poor thirteen-year-old's eyes glimpsed a high fence. Oh fucking finally! She quickened her pace to reach the camp before the sun was fully down.

She slipped into the camp after telling an older cadet who she was and why she was there. The moon rose, casting little light from its fingernail-like shape. She found her way to the dormitories in the dark. She heard the rise and fall of conversation from both. With a bated breath, she entered the females' dormitory.

There was bunk upon bunk, about 15 total in this particular room. The voices faded to silence as they took in her ragged appearance and the fact she had no bag full of her belongings. A tall girl with sandy blonde hair and sky blue eyes led her to an empty bunk.

"You can stay here... you must be from Shiganshina," the girl has a soft, sad smile, "otherwise you'd at least have a change of clothes. Amy!" She barked to a black-haired girl. "Get her a change of clothes and a jacket." She turns back to Lilly. "I'm Arianna, or Ari, by the way. The oldest cadet in this dorm, part of the 102nd." She offered a hand, which Lilly took.

"Thank you very much... and I did come from Shiganshina." Lilly's confirmation was greeted with a few gasps of shock, pity, and amazement from the surrounding girls. "But my parents were in Trost at the time, so they're fine..." She balled her hands into fists to fight down the memory of Carla Jaeger's death, the spray of blood filling the air...

"Well that's good to hear," Ari put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't dwell too much on it, wait until you can remember it fearlessly... Er, I don't believe I ever caught your name."

"L-Lilly Zoe-Ackerman," Lilly's voice was quiet, the memory still fighting to emerge.

"Well, Lilly, welcome to the 103rd training corp." Ari smiled gently.

††††††††††††

"LISTEN UP YOU USELESS MAGGOTS!" Not exactly the best way to start a morning, but Keith Shadis had two volumes: louder than hell or dangerously quiet. Both volumes were intimidating, and both, if directed at you, meant that you were fucked. "This corps is an impromptu corps! Being here means that you think you can beat the Titans. You think you can be a hero after the fall of Wall Maria and claim the land back. Here's the truth: YOU ARE WORTHLESS AND YOU MEAN FUCKING NOTHING!"

Lilly inwardly winced at the harsh words, outwardly blank, hands behind her back. She wore a light purple button-down shirt with the Training regiment jacket on and standard white pants and black leather boots: gifts from the girls in her dorm.

Shadis continued screaming at the one hundred and eight cadets (which was about half the size the average training corps graduates), completely beating down their self-esteem. Uncle Erwin had observed this induction process a couple times, and had told Lilly he believed this verbal abuse was to reshape the cadets to mold them into the perfect soldier.

"YOU!" Shadis had moved to walk among the ranks of the cadets. His victim was a girl with straw-colored hair in a low ponytail. "Why the FUCK do YOU think you're GOOD ENOUGH to be HERE?"

The girl saluted. Lilly wished she could have seen her face, but she was behind the taller girl. "Heike Friedrich from Dauper Village, sir!" Her voice was surprisingly strong. "I want to join the Scouts and fight for humanity, sir!"

This declaration caused a ripple of surprise from the one hundred and seven other cadets. Join the Scouts? That's a death wish! Does she really value her life so little?

"So you think you'll be a hero if you join the Scouts, eh? Think that you'll make a difference in the world?" Shadis' voice was dripping in sarcasm.

"No sir! I-" Heike began, but she was cut off.

"GOOD, because YOU fucking mean NOTHING! First squad, about face!" Shadis barked, the front row turning around.

And this verbal abuse continued on. Lilly watched in fear as he demolished cadet after cadet, steadily getting closer to her. And far too soon, he stopped in front of her, brief recognition flashing in his brown eyes.

"And WHO might YOU fucking BE?!" He screamed into her face, knowing full well what the answer was.

A hand jumped up to a salute. "Lilly Zoe-Ackerman, sir!" She said, voice strangely steady, despite her heart pounding in her chest.

"And WHY the FUCK are you HERE?!"

"To join the Scouts and follow in my parents' footsteps, sir!" Oh, why did she have to say that? Now she would get unwanted attention.

"And WHO might your PARENTS fucking BE?" If he had lighter skin than his light brown skin tone, he'd be red from all this shouting.

Ohshitohshitohshitohshit... Lilly swallowed nervously. She'd be put up on a pedestal... Hell, she might even be kicked out based on unfair advantage!

"HEY! I ASKED you a FUCKING QUESTION!" His screaming voice caused Lilly to realize she had been silent for too long. Time to deal with the consequences.

"L-Lance Corporal Levi Ackerman and Senior Squad Leader Hanji Zoe of the Survey Corps, sir!" Lilly held her head up a little higher, trying to ignore the fact her glasses were starting to slip down her nose.

As expected, a murmur of shock and surprise rippled throughout the one hundred and seven other cadets. The girls in her dorm were probably some of the most surprised. Her name didn't mean anything beforehand because Levi's last name was all but unknown. Now everyone knew... and they knew of Lilly's legacy she had to live up to.

Lilly doesn't move a muscle, brown eyes meeting brown. Oh, she was used to holding terrifying gazes. She had to meet her father in the eye more than once after making a giant mess.

"Oh, so YOU think YOU can meet THIER greatness? Make them FUCKING PROUD? Here's the TRUTH maggot: you'll be FUCKING TITAN CHOW before you can do ANYTHING with your MISERABLE LIFE!" After getting a bit of saliva on her glasses, Shadis moved down the line, calling her squad to an about face, and she turned around.

Lilly waited until Shadis was harassing another cadet before cleaning the disgusting filth off her glasses, dropping from her stance for a moment. Luckily she wasn't caught.

The rest of the day, after the "initiation" of all the cadets, was fairly relaxed. She was pleased that her dorm wasn't filled to the brim. There were about eighteen girls in it, the other girls' bunker being the full thirty. That meant she got a bunk all to herself, only four being full.

Lilly collapsed into her bed with a mighty wince and closed her eyes, mentally and physically exhausted. She could feel the heat radiating from her new sunburns, and the discomfort of the sheets against them.

"Dinner starts in half an hour, you know." Heike's voice sounded tired as well, but also more cheerful. She entered the dorm and started fixing her hair, brushing her bangs from her sunburnt face.

"Shhhhh let me reeeest." Lilly smiled, glancing at the blonde.

"You're gonna be late." Heike chuckled.

"Good. Maybe then I don't have to have a million questions being asked about my parents or what happened in Shiganshina." Lilly sighed.

"Going in late is exactly what'll draw attention to you!" Heike grabbed Lilly's arm and pulled her from the bunk. "Now come on. You want to make a good first impression, don't you?"

"Fine, you win." Lilly sighed, but let Heike tend to her raven hair, making it look decent. Besides, she seemed to be her first friend.

"Eeeeeee!" Heike squeed as she finished, "you look gorgeous! Now come on!" She tugged Lilly to the door.

Lilly followed Heike and ran a hand through her hair. There was a braid across the top of her head, keeping her hair out of her face, but it also let her hair cascade down her back. A smile tugged at her lips.

"Here we aaaaaaaaare~!" Heike sang as she opened the door to the mess hall, dinner just beginning. "Come on." She pulled Lilly inside.

Silence fell as the small raven-haired girl entered the mess hall. All eyes were trained on her, the living legend; the child of Humanity's Strongest and Humanity's Smartest. Lilly awkwardly got her dinner, feeling the multitude of eyes boring into her. She sat down beside Heike, wishing she could melt into the floor.

The moment her ass hit the chair, she was surrounded by people.

"Have you ever been outside the Walls?"

"How many Titans have you killed?"

"What was the Colossal Titan like?"

"Did you see the Armored Titan?"

"Is Levi really as strong as they say?"

"Do you get a free pass into the Scouts?"

"What are the Titans like?"

The questions kept coming, flooding her. She felt like she was drowning, each question dragging up memories. The last question had a spray of blood filling the air, and a flower crown laying in the wreckage of a house she knew so well. She froze, tears threatening to fall beneath her glasses.

"YO! Fuck off! Can't you see she doesn't want to be bothered?" Heike snapped at the interrogators. "She obviously has memories she'd rather not think about, so go. Shoo." She waved her hands like she was shooing away a dog, and the crowd dispersed, shooting Lilly glances; some jealous, some full of pity, some curious.

"Th-thanks..." Lilly murmured to her soup, returning to her food.

"Anytime, chica." Heike winked and began eating as well. "Figured that you'd rather eat in peace. Although I'm surprised how much they swarmed… did you even get to answer them?"

Lilly shook her head. "There were too many. I could barely even think straight… Felt like I was drowning." She gripped her spoon tighter to cover up the shaking.

"Hey, you'll be fine." Heike rubbed her back soothingly. "I've got you're back."

"Literally." Lilly chuckled lightly, not entirely recovered. She looked at Heike, wondering how she made a friend.

"Not meaning to sound rude or anything," Lilly began hesitantly, "but why are we friends? Why me?"

"Well…" Heike thought for a moment. "Guess it's because I felt like you needed someone. Most people who joined the military know at least someone here... but I'm sensing you came alone."

Lilly nodded. "Yeah, my friends are all a couple years younger than me, so I had to leave them behind since they weren't old enough." Lilly finished her soup and moved onto the bread, using it to wipe up the leftover soup. "Thanks Heike." She flashed her a smile.

The straw-blonde girl winked and gave Lilly a high-five. "No problem. Now let's kick this training corps ass."