Yourself

Knocking for no one

In the morning, completely exhausted after a sleepless night, Reiner got up, changed and rushed out of the house as fast as possible, before his mother would stop him and and start asking questions.

Reiner approached Leda's house. He cleared his throat and knocked on the door.

Just say: I am sorry. I am sorry. And... - he tried to rehearse his speech in his head, but even in his head it didn't sound good.

Just say, just say it honestly and simple. That's all - he kept convincing himself, waiting at the porch in front of her house. He knocked again. He low-key expected her not to open - yesterday's evening was a complete disaster, he would understand if Leda felt offended.

Can we speak about what happened yesterday? I am sorry, I care about you - Reiner repeated it in his head - It sounds better, I should just say it to her.

He cleared his throat once again. Closed doors in front of him were mocking him with their silence. He knocked once again. Having spent around 10 minutes in front of the doors, which he doesn't remember even being closed for him. Reiner decided that it won't be a problem, if he peeks inside.

Reiner lightly opened the door, the mere crack just to push his head inside and look around.

"Leda?" - he called her over just to receive silence in reply.

He entered to look around. Things were at their places, but the house was obviously empty.

Why would she leave the door open and just go somewhere?

Reiner shrugged, went outside. He sat on the steps of the porch to Leda's house, put his elbows on his knees and just waited. He didn't even know how long. He stared on the street, looking at every female entering the street in hope in was Leda. Then he gave up on this strange activity, being worried that he might be taken as a creep.

Reiner sat and sat, but Leda didn't seem to be returning home.

Reiner felt lost, he wasn't sure where he could go to find her. He looked around with the last blink of hope and when turned his gaze in the direction of his house, in the very last moment he composed to catch Gabi, who was jumping into his hug. He caught Gabi, causing her giggling, but didn't manage to push some giggle out of himself in return.

"MORNING!" - Gabi shouted in his face with a chuckle - "Are you slow or just with bad memory?"

"Huh?" - Reiner asked sheepishly.

Gabi got out of his hug and crossed arms annoyed.

"Did you see the time? You promised me the weekend." - she said bossy.

"Right. I did. I was about to go to you" - Reiner quickly mastered up. He got so stressed after yesterday's evening that he actually didn't even think that Gabi wanted to hang out both on Saturday and on Sunday. Well, yes, I did promise her the weekend.

"Meh. You owe two buns. Let's go" - in her bossy manner.

Reiner one last time looked at Leda's house with sadness and followed Gabi. He couldn't deny the little rascal. And maybe once I'm done here, Leda would return home.

Leda's day went as one of her usual days. Work, then work and to finish... more work.
Doctor Croix was a little stunned at first seeing her alone in the mess hall that early, usually other internee especially eldian ones, doesn't sleep in the dormitory but during the years he had that girl under his jurisdiction, after Magath entrusted him with her, he quickly learned to never expect from Leda a predictable way of behaving.
She was diligent and loyal, cautious but self driven when needed so he just walked past her and patting her shoulder.
"Gotta go to work young lady."

Leda nodded and followed doctor Croix outside the mess hall.

"I want you to help with preparing the prisoner, tomorrow morning Galliard will inherit Jaws."
The information fell without her even blinking. She was already mentally prepared to it and little by little the feeling of guilt for having condemned Porco to receive the Ymir's curse was slowly fading, buried under the immense guilt she felt for, well, everything else.
"Yessir" She replied

The cell in which the Paradis prisoner was chained was located in a basement far from the main buildings of the barracks. Leda had never gone down into the cells that were used for the handover of the power of the Titans, when seven years earlier her friends had inherited their powers, she had not been allowed to assist, so she proceeded hesitantly along the seemingly infinite mazes that they would lead her to the room where the prisoner had been awaiting her fate for weeks.
Before then, Leda had never met any Eldian who was not a resident of the Liberio internment district, and although since she was a child she had never felt the fear that many parents instill in their children, towards the people who lived in Paradis, she couldn't help but wonder what this "Ymir" would be like.

Thanks to the name she bore, the prisoner of Paradis was, in Leda's mind, a woman with a robust, almost powerful build, with a proud look and an indomitable determination; the girl imagined her to be strong despite her imprisonment, exactly like the progenitor whose name she bore, a creature impossible to stop or bend.