Knights of Shiganshina

Ain't Right

Message: I'm not sure why, but Wattpad wasn't fine with me indenting and changing font...so deal with boring Calibri and less novel-based looking story. :D (On my phone it's times new roman, but on my laptop, it's Calibri, so Idk ._.)

The sound of metal whistled through the air as Eren brushed his whetstone against the sharp blade. He had been sitting in the courtyard of the castle for an hour, making sure every inch of his sword was met with the utmost care.

"You think it could get any sharper?"

A shadow cast over him. He looked up and was met with the gaze from Lord Shadis. He was stroking the hair on his chin, eyebrows burrowed, with the same air of superiority that he always had. He wore brown leathers and a black cloak that brushed against the ground. Eren always wondered what he'd look like with some hair.

"Maybe, want to give it a try?" Eren asked, tossing him the stone. Shadis made no effort to catch the stone. It instead bounced from his chest and dropped to the ground. His face made a slow transition from somewhat content expression to a disappointed one.

"Get up, an' grab the sparing blades, now!" Eren snapped to attention and quickly scrambled to the bundle of dulled training swords that laid on a wooden bench. He grabbed ahold of two and went back to Shadis. He handed him one, this time making sure not to prompt any unnecessary wrath.

The old man tossed the blade from hand to hand, almost as if he was testing the weight to make sure it wasn't unbalanced. He undid his black cloak and tossed it on the parapet, then began walking across the yard.

"Think you're forgettin' something lad." He said with a grin. Eren looked around nervously, but all he could draw was a blank. Confused, he looked back towards Shadis for a sign of guidance in the hope that he wouldn't harp on him too bad. Shadis shook his head then began clenching his left hand.

"Shit," Eren whispered, turning towards the shields that were sitting right beside the bundle of dulled blades. How could he have forgotten? Before he could make it to the shield, he heard a grimace come from behind him. He turned and saw a sword being swung at his head, Eren ducked and pivoted around the figure. He brought his own steel up and saw Shadis lightly swinging his blade around.

"The hell?" Eren shouted, clutching the sparing blade in both hands, circling his opponent.

"You think a man who's tryin' to kill you would let you go grab a shield?"

"You're not trying to kill me though."

"Not yet," Shadis grinned and lunged at Eren, trying to jab at him. Eren managed to parry the blade and come around with his own retort. He swung high, trying to hit Shadis in the shoulder, but the old man was quick and blocked the blow. The blades were caught against each other now, and Eren was trying his best to find a way to withdraw, get some ground. But the old man gave him no options for retreat. So, if you can't move backwards, only one thing left to do. He released the pressure against Shadis's blade, slid his own blade around him, pivoted off his foot, and rolled past him.

The old man stumbled past Eren, but it didn't take him long to find his footing. He turned and dashed at Eren, delivering an overhead strike. Eren managed to get his sword up just in time to block the powerful blow. The loud metal clashed against each other producing a loud screeching sound. Eren's hands rattled, and were left with a stinging sensation, but he had to recover, or he'd have more to worry about than his hands.

Shadis lifted his sword to deal another strike, but Eren was faster. He gripped his sword with two hands and swung it hard into Shadis's ribs. The old man rolled to the floor, heaving as he struggled to control his own breath. Eren fumbled with his sword but had enough strength to keep the grip and get above Shadis.

"I win." He said hoarsely, trying to catch his breath and pointing the end of the dull blade at him. With a cough, Shadis let out a laugh and eventually got up.

"Good strike lad," he groaned, patting Eren's back. "Good strike." The two walked to the edge of the parapet and took a seat. Shadis pulled out a waterskin and took a long swig.

"You could still work on your footin." He said, wiping away the left-over residue around his lips. He gestured it towards Eren, and without hesitation, he grabbed it and let the cold water down his throat. "So...you're certain it's what you want?" Eren's face lowered to the floor, then back up to the sky.

"I'm a bastard Shadis, there's no place for me here."

"Shit on that boy, the people here adore you." Eren jolted up from the parapet and looked at Shadis bitterly.

"You think I don't know what's said behind my back? I'll always be looked at as the son of a whore. You know what that's like?" Shadis remained silent, patiently listening like he always did when Eren went on a tangent.

"It's not easy you know. Always being compared to Zeke, every damn second." He said, kicking a stone and watching it fly across the yard. "I-I just want to be me."

"An' you think join' the scouts is gonna change that?"

"I think it'd be a lot easier than being the laughingstock of Sheena. Lady Dina doesn't have a lick of love towards me I can tell. Best get out her hair, huh?" Shadis shook his head and snatched the waterskin from Eren.

"What about your father or brother? They'd hate to see you go." He said, taking another sip.

"They'll be fine, Father's never around anyways, and Zeke...Zeke's already commanding forces against the land Maria. He'll barely be here. Who knows, if I join, maybe I'll see him out there."

"War is no game boy. Take it from me, I was a Scout once. No one joins 'cause they wanna. An' if they do, they're not right."

"Guess I'm not right."

Shadis let out a sigh, attached the flask to his hip, and got up. He placed both his hands on Eren's shoulders and gave a weak smile.

"I promised your mother I'd look after you, an' teach you what I could. I can't stop ya, but I can make sure you don't get yourself killed, eh?"

"I'm not askin' you to come with me."

"You askin' ain't gonna change what I do boy." He said, grabbing his cloak and walked towards the gate. "Grab what you need an' tell your goodbye's boy. Then come meet me at the market district. We got some folk to meet."

Eren couldn't help but grin. "Aye, I'll meet you there."

If you read the message to my board, this was the first story idea. I wanted to know if this is one that people wanted more of. If not, the second idea was more of a school-based one. Let me know :).