Mind over Matter | Armin Arlert

Familiar faces

"You look terrible."

There was not a hint of fear in Freyja's voice. If anything, she sounded as if she was mocking him. Her elbows were prepped on the metallic bars of the prison cell, as she leaned forward to get a good look at the state the commander was in. 

But despite his beaten up and scattered body, Erwin's eyes looked up at hers without a trace of defeat. His sapphire eyes held it's stance, confidence breaming in the pools of his hue. However, his face had been tarnished badly, his eyes swelling up to reveal a mixture of blue and black as bruised traced his cheeks. His hair was a mess too, which was certainly a sight.

Freyja would pity him, but she knew better. As far as she knew, everything was going according to plan. 

He hadn't even looked too shocked at the fact that she had appeared wearing the military police's uniform. It was way too big for her, and she had to awkwardly pull up the pants each time she felt it practically slip off her. 

"Have you found it?"

Those were the only words he replied. Freyja sighed, opening the front of her coat to reveal a thick hardcover book, only for him to see a glimpse. 

"Almost got caught. Twice."

A hint of a grin touched the corner of her cheeks, quite proud of herself. Thankfully, she had spent enough time arranging records in the survey corps headquarters to know how information was sorted in the database department. 

"I know you won't tell me. But I know what you're planning," Freyja said, taking an anxious glance around. She only had 5 minutes as the guards took turns switching their position. 

"And it's genius."

Her praise probably was an empty one to him, but that didn't stop her. But when Erwin turned around, his mouth was curved into a grin. It stunned her for a second, for the commander rarely smiled in general. 

And Freyja had spent enough time with him to know what that meant; he was one step closer to his dream.

Sometimes, she did admire the man for having such a goal in his life, to prove a theory his father had before him, and for actually being able to take such a big effort to achieve that dream. Freyja never really had that kind of purpose in her life. Her way of living was simple; she only wanted to be able to live comfortably, to have the people she liked close to her; that was all she would ever need. That was what she had now, and she'd do everything to keep it that way. 

But of course, she wasn't always like that. Years ago, when her mind was still young and her soul full of fury, she had a dream before; one that she would've stopped at nothing to achieve. 

Thinking about the topic lead her mind to a certain blond, with eyes that shone in determination each time he spoke of his dream, of his curiosity to explore the outside world. It made her heart skip a beat. 

Why am I thinking of that now?

"Why are you here?"

Erwin's voice brought her back into reality. 

Freyja merely glanced down, at her dusted shoes, then at the dirty stone floor below them. She didn't really know what to answer, as she didn't know why herself. It was a weird feeling, for she always knew what to reply to any question. 

"I guess... I just wanted to check up on you. But it seems that you're doing just fine," she finally said, removing her hands from the bars as she stood up straighter. 

"So, good luck."

Armin Arlert's mind was plagued with stress and concern, the burden of his thoughts weighted down like bricks. So much had happened in just a few days, so quickly that he never really got a proper opportunity to process it. His downcast eyes glanced down at his hands, and his heart seemed to down. In less than twenty-four hours, he been turned into a murderer, his hands dirtied from sin that was irreversible. His past self would have never believed that this was happening, that one day, those criminals he had stared with such wrath would be him.