COMRADES • Eren Jaeger

CHAPTER 23: Little Talks

YOU SHOT UP from your thick sleeping bag to find your entire body covered in a sheen of cold sweat. The first thing that came to mind was that you had been dreaming of getting eaten by Titans. 

There had been a girl screaming for your help, but you failed to save her and she got devoured. Before the same Titan that had eaten her could do the same to you, the muscular Titan that had lifted up the boat yesterday came to save you from those four monstrous humanoids.

Huh. So Eren Jaeger had sneaked his way into your dreams yet again.

You slowly sat in an upright position as you surveyed the dim tent around you. Judging by the warm beams of light slipping through the closed flap, it must already be late afternoon. You had been knocked out for the whole day. You were the only one left in the tent you shared with no one, except for the leather suitcase that contained the very few belongings you had.

Peeking out of the small flap, you discovered that the world was indeed still yet to turn into dusk. The sun was still somewhere up above in the blue sky, but it would probably set sometime soon. A few stars were even starting to peek out from the fading light alongside a welcomingly white full moon. It was going to be nighttime in a few hours, meaning that the Survey Corps would be serving dinner in a few moments.

You sealed the tent shut from the inside and quickly changed into a fresh change of clothes, not wanting to wear your sleeping things out and about on your first day here in Paradis Island. It was nothing extravagant, just a plain baby blue skirt that reached your knees paired with a white blouse. You slipped on your comfortable black flats. The standard Marleyan fashion for teenage girls like you. You wondered what the Paradisians would think of it.

Now that you made sure that you were looking presentable, you pushed yourself out of the tent and emerged right into the bustling camp of Eldian soldiers and Anti-Marley volunteers. You regretted waking up late as you mindlessly walked around the grid pathways in search of a familiar face. As you passed by, many soldiers from the Survey Corps ogled at you for a few seconds before returning to their duties and going about their day. You noticed that they were all wearing that cropped brown jacket of theirs, the two-toned wings still present above their hearts and backs. A few even wore the green cloak.

You wandered around the camp in search of Yelena or Onyankopon as you waited for breakfast to be served. You looked perfectly out of place in your neat clothing as compared to those wearing grizzly military get-up, both that of Marley and Eldia, around you. Even if you weren't a stranger to the Paradisians right now, you bet that if you saw yourself strolling around in the clothes you'd be staring too.

Maybe you should have worn your own brown jacket and some pants so you wouldn't look out of place with the feminine blouse and skirt. The cloak might be a fine addition because the morning sea breeze was causing your hair and skirt to fly out in all directions and sending chills down your spine. Boots seemed like the wiser option as well, since the flats seemed more fit for walking on paved concrete instead of earthly floors. You would have to wash the thin rubber soles soon so they wouldn't get dirty.

Apparently you had made a mistake when you thought that the clothes you wore in Marley would be fitting for the environment that had been awaiting you on Paradis. The only clothes that seemed appropriate for this place were the ones that Zeke had originally hidden from you.

The rumours about how you attacked Eren Jaeger out of nowhere seemed to have spread around the camp like wildfire even though Commander Hange had reassured to them that it was an honest mistake. That created waves of wariness among them regarding you but you didn't exactly know why. Maybe it was because you had dared to assault a Titan shifter.

A small trail of murmurs followed you as you walked around the tents while you pretended not to listen in. Mostly silly gossip about where you must have come from and your unusual fashion choices.