Corruption

Night of the Closing Ceremony/ Humanity's Comeback, Part 2

Two Years Later after joining the Cadets

"Pick up the pace you lead-heeled laggards!" Sadies yelled as me and the rest of the 104 walked through the mud and rain, gear backs on our backs with our rain hoods up. I was walking just behind Sasha and Jean, Conny beside me as we kept ahead. Over the course of the two years I drifted from Eren and Mikasa as I noticed that Eren did reckless shit being in the words of jean a 'Suicidal maniac' when it came to anything training or titan wise and Mikasa followed him into battle keeping her promise to Carla. "Your boots water-logged, Arlelt? Let's see some hustle!" Sadies yelled as he backed up to see my slow, blonde friend who was struggling to keep up, I sighed and shook my head keeping forward. The only other reason Armin is here besides what he told Sadies was for Eren, Mikasa just was looking after Eren. I wasn't going to let them slow me down, even if they from long ago were my only friends. Now I had made more friends as I kept my promise to Korie, I now had became friends with Jean, Conny, and Sasha along side the blonde brute himself, Reiner but that was a bit different, he was my best friend. Then there was Annie and Bertholdt, they were my friends but Bertholdt specifically acted so strange around me and I didn't understand why. "Gear too heavy for you, son? Hell, drop it! Leave it in the mud! The Titans'll have easier work digesting you without the excess baggage." Sadies told Armin before trotting on his horse, riding back ahead. Reiner was behind me but he turned back and went to Armin, "Seriously? Here. Focus on staying upright." I watched Reiner take Armin's bag from him, "You really are a brute, Rein." I said as I went back, matching my speed with there's. "We are being graded on this, you know?" I said, Armin looked at me, then Reiner, "Thanks, but uh. Won't they demerit you for helping?" he asked Reiner, the taller blonde looked down at Armin as we kept pace, "Yeah, if they find out. Just make the cut and we're even, alright?" Reiner said as Armin nodded and kept going, him still wheezing so I handed him my water canteen, "Just take a drink,  Arm, you obviously need it." I said but he shook his head, Reiner went ahead, "I'm no one's burden, you hear me?" he said going ahead of me as I slid the canteen back into my bag as Armin went and grabbed his bag from Reiner, running ahead. I went back up to Reiner, "You lit a fire under  his ass it seems. Thanks for helping him, Rein." I said looking up at him, "Yeah whatever. This stuffs light anyway," he said cockily, "Yeah? if its so light then take my stuff too." i said pulling one of the bag straps off, "Woah woah, no. You're up right so keep your short ass going. I'm not cheating for you." he said making me laugh lightly as we kept ahead, "Yeah whatever Reiner." I shook my head as a small smile was plastered onto my face. Besides the rain and woods training we had multiple other things done in the woods, the one that I did pretty good in was with the fake titans, even with the others I managed to take out 18 out, but my dumbass used too my gas and Reiner had to catch and carry me the rest of the time before I got chewed out by Sadies, luckily I didn't lose any points, I just had to fill the gas canisters for a month. Keiko Miyuzaki, top student only rivaled by Mikasa Ackerman for the top spot, excels in everything accept keeping her gas amount limited as well as letting others know when she needs assistance. It's not a bad thing to be independent but in situations when you run out of gas or break a blade, sometimes you need assistance from your comrades. 

A day or two later we were working on training against one another with blocking, attacking and defending where one of us had a fake carboard knife and had to charge at our partner, our partner had to take us down and remove the knife from their grip as well as other hand to hand combat. I was working with Mina, I took her down each time, when I had the knife she took me down once but not the other few times. "Mina, you need to watch my movements." I said looking down at the black haired girl who was sitting on the ground, "I know, you keep telling me that. Now again." I nodded and handed the knife, she backed up ready to charge at me and when she did I rolled my eyes and used a fake out tactic where I go one away after making it seem like I was going the other, then I swiped her legs out from under her. She landed face down on the ground and I pulled the knife from her grip, "Where did you learn that!" she asked with a slight whine in her voice, "I learned it from a friend, now get up mina." I said rolling my eyes again. I turned back as I saw Reiner looking down at Annie with Eren. Reiner had provoked the other blonde making Annie have a pissed look on her face as Reiner pushed Eren ahead, making Eren attacked her, Annie taking him down in a single movement. I bursted out laughing as Annie walked away and threw the fake knife to Reiner. Eren had Reiner go at Annie and I crossed my arms and tried not to laugh as Annie took him down when he didn't even finish what he was saying. I went over and helped Reiner up as I brushed the dirt off him, "You okay big guy? Did Annie hurt your pride." I teased as he turned back to Eren, shaking his head at me. Later on at dinner I was sitting with Marco and Jean, Jean was going on about the gas conservation, "Whatever." I mumbled, "Just let your momentum do the work for you." he said, Daz sitting across from Jean and I across from Marco, "Damn, that's pretty advanced." Daz said which just fueled Jeans ego, "Duh. It's called having a sixth sense for the finger points of your gear. You gotta do the strut if you wanna make the cut. The MP only recruit the best." he said, staring at Mikasa for a moment, "Listen Horse Boy, I'm still going into the Scouts. You may be my friend but nobody's going to convince me to go Garrison or the Mp's, all they do is laze about, the Mps. And the Garrison unit was my entire family, I for one am to be different and two they all are dead so many that unit's unlucky for my bloodline who knows." I said finishing my food, looking at Marco as he began to speak, "Ah. man, that'd be amazing. Workin' within a stone's throw of the king. No greater honor than that." Marco took a sip as Jean retorted telling the freckled boy to shut up and a hit off side his head. "We're not children. You can drop the misty-eyed B.S. Honor doesn't have any damn part of it. You lot just want a nice, cushy job in the Interior playing glorified sentry." I said looking at Jean and Marco, Jean looking right at Marco, "That's not true! That's not me at all!" Marco defended and I shrugged sipping my water, "Listen to you guys," a voice behind us said as we turned to Eren, I rolled my eyes as I prepared to lose braincells to his stupidity, "Interior? Five years ago, this was part of it." he said but Jeans fire under his ass got lit and I shook my head, "You got a point to make, friend? I'm right here." Jean said in response, Eren placed his drink down, "You two are toddlers I swear," I said as Eren spewed on, "Poor Jean. So misguided. And besides, I don't think your head'll fit in the interior anyway." Eren said looking at Jean, Jean got mad, a few around us like Reiner, Conny and others laughed quietly. "Very funny." Jean said looking at Eren, "Seems a little backwards to me. Fine-tuning your Titan-killing skills so the brass'll station you somewhere you'll never see one." Eren sad and I got up, "Idiots." i said and went over to sit with Conny and Reiner so I wouldn't be in the cross fire. "You'd rather I was good at gettin' killed? Thank you, but I'll pass. Better to play the system than get gnawed on." Jean finished and I shook my head as Eren stood up, "You son of a bitch!" and with that Jean got up, everyone watching them now, "Bring it on, you little bastard!" They got in each others faces and I stood up as did Armin, "Eren, please stop it!" the blonde begged with his hands on the table. "Children sit down," I said about to get between Eren and Jean when I felt a hand on my waist holding me from going over there, the hand belonging to my Blonde brute, wait when did I start calling him mine, besides the point he held me from going over there. Eren grabbed Jeans shirt as Mikasa got up, "Gentleman, please." as she grabbed Erens hand, lowering it. The two dark haired friends looked at each other till Jean grabbed Eren by his shirt and lifted him up, "You think you can judge me?" he yelled, "Huh? You rip my shirt and you're dead!" Eren yelled back, "I don't give a damn about your shirt! You piss me off!" Jean barked back, I gave up and sat between Reiner and Conny as I watched the two ahead of me, "What? Are you crazy?" Eren's eyes looked around as he and the blonde brute- I mean Reiner made eye contact. I looked around noticing Annie watching Eren too, I took Reiner's drink from him and took a sip as we watched ahead. It was like something clicked and he used the same tactics he learned today against Jean. Jean slammed to the floor and my eyes widened as I stood up again but Reiner only pulled me back down as if he heard Sadies start walking our way. "Damnit! What the hell was that move?" Jean asked sitting up, "Little something I picked up this afternoon while you were busy with your thumb up your ass. You honestly believe the Military Police are a ticket to the good life? You're not a soldier. You're a joke." As Eren finished his sentence, the room fell with pure silence. The door opened revealing Sadies, "Would someone care to explain the little ruckus I heard just now? I do hope everything's all right." Once he said that Jean and Eren returned to their seats, "Sasha passed some gas, Commandant." Mikasa said in response to Sadies. Sasha's eyes widened and gasped lightly, everyone including Sadies tried not to laugh at that, "Why am I not surprised? For the love of god, learn some self-control." Sadies said that and left, shutting the door behind him.