Amaranth

Chapter 9: Cornflower

The next morning, Mikasa woke up around 7 in the morning. She noted that she had no nightmares last night, thankfully, so she was in a relatively good mood. She rolled out of bed and stretched a little, smiling when she heard the satisfying crack of her joints.

After she stretched, she changed into some casual clothes before going downstairs to eat something. When she made it to the kitchen, she brewed some coffee. She wasn't a big fan, but she didn't get much sleep.

When it was ready, she poured some milk into it and added some sugar. Once she had it prepared the way she liked it, she sat at a small table in the kitchen and sipped it. She sighed happily as the warmth filled her mouth and throat. The taste wasn't as sweet as she would've liked, but it still tasted good.

She put her head down on the table when she finished drinking. She still felt tired, and she wasn't hungry. After a few moments like that, she got up and decided to sit on the dock. She pulled on a shoe and walked out the back sliding glass doors.

She walked across the dock slowly before sitting on the edge and crossing her legs. At this time of morning, the lake looked clear, and it was a gorgeous, sparkling blue. Mikasa was surprised it looked so clean, but it was a private lake. Perhaps she should've expected it to be clean?

After a while, she fell on her back and stared at the sky. Somehow, the water was bluer, and she found it amusing. She tilted her head back, attempting to get a better look at the sky, but when she did, she saw something behind her to her left. She propped herself up on her hands, looking to her left to see what exactly was behind.

Upon further inspection, she saw a small blonde. She immediately knew it was Annie since the only other small blondes were Historia and Armin who weren't early risers like her. She watched the blonde from a distance, trying to understand what she was doing.

Mikasa watched in awe as the blonde punched forward and kicked. It was oddly mesmerizing, especially from a distance. She looked almost ethereal. It looked like she had perfect form, and it suddenly made sense why the blonde was so fit. This was likely something she did everyday, or at the very least, often.

Thoughts of the previous night hit Mikasa in the face, and she couldn't stop herself from groaning. Ymir surely would show everyone the picture, and everyone would get the wrong idea. The two didn't even like each other, let alone like each other in that way. She was sure Annie hated her guts, and the blonde would only be pissed off to see it.

That's when she got an idea. Without any more hesitation, she jumped up from her spot and ran back inside. She quietly made her way up the stairs and slowly opened the doors of the rooms until she finally found Ymir and Historia's.

She carefully tip toed inside and walked to the bedside table where she saw Ymir's phone. She cautiously picked it up and attempted to open it, only to be greeted by a password. "Fuck," she cursed quietly, double checking her voice didn't wake either girl.

What would Ymir make her password? Her birthday? Historia's birthday? Something completely unrelated? Mikasa thought, I don't even know their birthdays....

"Damnit," Mikasa huffed as she put Ymir's phone back down and left the room, carefully closing the door behind her. At least no one could say she didn't try.

When she went back downstairs, she saw Annie walking back in from whatever she'd been doing outside. Annie scowled slightly at her while Mikasa just nodded her head in acknowledgement. The two walked past each other, and Annie went up the stairs, presumably to shower.

Mikasa, finally feeling a little hungry, opened the fridge and cabinets, looking for anything she could use to prepare breakfast. She had hoped to make pancakes, but they didn't have everything she needed. Instead, she found the things needed to make french toast, so she went with that.