ATTACK ON TITAN: 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖑𝖆𝖘𝖙 𝖈𝖔𝖒𝖒𝖆𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗 // an erwin smith fanfiction

chapter seventeen /// sofia, zeke

POV: Sofia

It's hard to believe it's almost January now. In a month or two, we'll be graduates of the Training Corps. The thought is equal parts exhilarating and terrifying, so I don't dwell on it too much. The past three months or so have passed in an exhausting, flurried rush of intense physical training and mental toughening, thanks to Shadis' harsh, albeit effective, training practices. He didn't need Captain Levi to tell him twice to turn his troops into proper ODM experts - by now, all of us can competently use the gear, even Xander. 

Now, we're sent on more individualized training exercises instead of doing them as a group. Like my current objective, for instance. Shadis sent us in groups of two into the wilderness beyond the training camp, to test our survival skills in the bitter winter weather. Each pair is allowed two rifles, two bedrolls, a twenty-foot length of rope, one small handaxe, and a tarp. Besides these supplies, we're on our own, and he expects us to survive for the next three days. At least.

My partner - unsurprisingly - is Xander. Shadis pairs us together often. I don't mind in the slightest, since Xander is a strong and helpful ally, especially in survival situations like these. He's both mentally and physically strong, and I can always count on him to cheer me up if I start to get cranky because my socks are wet or because I fell asleep funny wedged up against a rock. Strangely, he has a way of setting me at ease.

"Right, well, that's as good as the shelter's gonna get." Xander straightens, clapping his hands against his thighs to dislodge the snow crusted in his gloves. 

I step back and regard the shelter. We've tied the rope between two trees and slung the tarp over it, clearing the snow beneath the peaked roof we created. Then, we packed snow on top of the edges of the tarp, to seal the bottom from the wind and to hold the tarp firmly in place. We tried to build up two snow walls on the open ends of the tent as well, packing the snow into a hard mass, but I'm not confident they'll stay upright for very long. Whatever. We'll only have to sleep here for two nights anyway.

"It looks pretty good," I agree. "Should we get some food next?"

He nods. "Probably smart. We won't find much foraging, obviously, but we could try to hunt something. I thought I saw some pigeon nests on our way over here."

"Ah." I bite my lip. "I'll do my best. But you do know I don't have the best aim."

He flashes me a grin, raises one of his shoulders. "Well, there you are - practice."

We each grab a rifle and head away from camp. I let Xander lead the way, towards wherever he saw those pigeon nests, and keep a close eye on the white forest surrounding us. Snow still amazes me - who knew such a substance could fall from the sky?! - and even though it makes every aspect of training miserable, I'm still in awe at the beauty of it. 

"All right, shhh." Xander places a gloved hand on my shoulder and points towards a tree branch a little ways above us. "There's a nest. Chances are, the birds will stay mostly nearby."

"Do we stay here, then?"

"Sure. We can wait for one or both of the pair to come back and get 'em then."

"There's no eggs in the nest, right?" For some reason, the prospect of waiting around for a mother to come back to her babies, and shooting her while she does so, unnerves me a bit.

"No. There won't be until spring. It's probably a mated pair," he explains.

"Right." The information doesn't comfort me any more.

We settle at the base of a large tree and begin our stakeout. I wonder at how efficient it is to sit and wait on the off chance that two birds will show up, but I figure it would waste precious calories to traipse around the woods for the same purpose. It's our only option for food, after all, unless we try fishing in the stream nearby. But it's probably too shallow for fish at this time of year, anyway.