Cyrena

"Its aptitude test time so listen up! There is no place for you here if you cannot perform. Fail and be shipped to the fields."

We hear Sargent Sardis voice but I have absolutely no idea where he is. I lean against the axel while Mina puts on the ODM gear. It's a big structure with four wooden beams that form a pyramid, hangin from it's tip are two versatile ropes that attach to a belt. There is a wheel and axel made for when I turn it, it should lift Mina off the ground, and hopefully, she'll stay up straight. We were assigned partners while we drill fundamentals. Mina was assigned to me.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to all this yelling." She says, fiddling with her belt.

"You will." I say flatly, but I'm not really paying attention to her. I'm scanning the crowd of cadets out now. Some are conversing in the middle of the park, waiting for their chance to do the ODMs. Others are already on the machines. It only hit me now that I'm looking for Armin. For validation, I tell myself, because last night was kind of surreal. A flash of hit blonde hair would be good enough.

"You sound confident." Mina continues. "I don't know. In Karaness we're kind of quiet. I mean, all we do is weave baskets and trick fish into biting hooks. That kind of work requires patience and concentration, the exact opposite of all of this."

"Not the exact opposite."

"Where are you from?"

I look at her and freeze.

My name is Cyrena. I am fourteen and a half years old. I am from Shiganshina. I was there That Day.

"Are you from Shiganshina, too?" she asks. My words are like a rock in my throat, and they don't want to move. I give her a tight smile and nod microscopically. She looks at me knowingly.

"I knew it. The way you reacted to Eren talking about the Titans, it must have been awful." I look away from her.

"I've been through worse." I say nonchalantly, mocking the Little Starlet.

"Seriously?"

"No."

"Oh." she sounds half relieved. "Well I'm sorry. If we upset you yesterday."

Mina is so sweet, it's hard for me to hate her. In fact, I decide that I don't hate her, no use in trying to hate someone. Just as there is no use is in trying to love someone. I look back at her and smile.

"You didn't upset me." I say. Of course, this is a lie. But I believe lying is not a sin if it is only to protect someone's feelings.

She smiles at me, I smile back, and again comes the heartwarming fuzz. Although it doesn't feel like honey, it still feels pretty good. Mina's the one who breaks the moment.

"Okay, I'm ready." She says. I realize she means the ODMs. So I step back and with all of my might I twist and twist and twist until she's off the ground.

Eren

"What is your major malfunction Jaeger?! Straighten yourself up!"

I don't know how it happened, but the world is upside down. Blood rushes quickly to my head but it does nothing to fuel my brain.

Why am I- How do I work this thing?

I look out into the sea of people that are now standing on the sky. They're all laughing at me. I feel a black hole open in my chest.

This can't be happening!

[PAGE BREAK]

"Just remember the basics and you should be fine. No need to try any fancy maneuvers, just focus on your balance. Then distribute the weight evenly between the belt and your legs." Mikasa instructs. I listen to every word she says but none of it makes sense. What about the rest of my body?

"Loosen up your stance a little bit." Armin adds, "I can do it, I know that you can."

Gotta give Armin credit, he knows exactly the right thing to say and when to say it. This time, though, it only helps a little bit. I'm still nervous as hell, if I don't get this I'm going to be plowing horse shit for the rest of my life. I'd rather be fodder.

"Okay…a loose stance but balanced. Let's give it a shot Armin." I say.

I can do this.

Armin nods and spins the axel and I feel pressure where the belt is.

Loose but balanced.

My feet begin to lift and I begin to feel a rush of confidence.

I got this. Loose but balanced. That should be easy.

But then as soon as my feet are a significant distance from the ground I begin to rock. I try to get myself steady but it's no use. I scream as I feel gravity pull me to the ground- no, it's like I'm getting pushed. And in a flash, I see nothing but white,

And then darkness.

Armin

"Hey Daz, he was talking real big about butchering all the Titans yesterday but he got real quiet after ODM training, didn't he?"

"I guess it's the fields for him tomorrow. Can't keep wasting food on the useless." Jean and his obnoxious friends are conversing over the other table.

Just ignore it. I think. Over the years, it's gotten easier, sometimes, to push people out of your mind. And sometimes it's not easy at all. I think back to boys who used to bully me back home. I never saw them again, they must have gotten what they deserved.

I am instantly horrified by this thought and decide to refocus my attention on Eren. He is staring blankly into space with new white bandages wrapped around his head. I can tell he is using his brain to death while his thoughts have taken him prisoner. He probably doesn't even hear the other kids talking about him. Mikasa touches his shoulder, something cracks and he yelps out in pain.

"Worrying won't solve a thing. There's still time to get in some practice come morning." There I go relying on good old rationality to save the day. It usually does, at least for me. If only a little bit.

"How pathetic." Eren says, "How am I supposed to kill them if I can't even stand up straight?"

My brows furrow in sympathy. I hate it when my friends are upset. It's almost impossible for me to be happy when they're down. It's almost like I feel their pain and joy as if it were my own, it is both a gift and a curse. I try to pick my brain for a solution. Mikasa has a different reaction.

"I think it might be time to let that dream die." She says innocuously, just as she says everything else innocuously. This, however, does surprise me. And Eren.

"What do you mean?" he asks getting defensive.

"I think you should give up this attempt on being a soldier. There's a lot more to fighting and combat than just throwing your life away in vain."

Eren is incredulous.

"What are you saying? After everything we saw that day? After what happened to my mom? You're crazy if you think I'm just gonna walk away!"

Not this again. I think.

"I get it, but it doesn't matter how determined you are."

"It- wait-what do you mean?"

"Because whether or not you're fit to be a soldier isn't up to you." She looks at Eren through placid eyes, and Eren's scowl could scare children. It's amazing how opposite they are, they fight like this all the time. And yet, we all know that without Mikasa, Eren wouldn't survive a week. Eren knows it, too, but he would never admit it even if you threatened his life.

The bell rings and everyone stands.

"Don't misunderstand me-"Mikasa starts, but Eren isn't ready to Listen. He stands up quickly beckoning me to follow.

"Let's go Armin." He says. He's furious and desperate, and probably having a full on panic attack behind that shell. That is a disastrous mix of emotions that I do not want to detest, so with guilt I respond compliantly.

"Okay."

We may never know what she said.

A little switch up in perspectives, I figured it was due time. Read and review, you might get a shout out :)

-freeangels43