The Wings of Truth

2.

"The government is planning to cut the funding for our next expedition so we will either have to abandon the mission and reserve resources or make the expedition shorter so as to waste less resources. Winter is almost here and resources always become scarce then even when we do not have a shortage like this," Erwin spoke as he and his squad leaders sat at a table in the dining hall, cadets and other higher ups sat at the tables around them, all lost in chatter among one another. Levi was quiet in thought for a moment before he gave a scornful scoff and turned to Hanji. She looked up quietly from her plate, a couple more than timid bites taken out of her meal.

"Those pigs in Sina are just being fucking greedy shit stains, the whole lot of them. What do you think, Hanji?" Levi sneered and she just shrugged quietly. Levi looked at her with concern glistening in those grey eyes. Hanji wasn't her normal rambunctious self that night, and that seemed to be common that night. The mail had come and with it came bad news for many of the soldiers. Not all the mail was bad, but it was common for mail like the two she received to be sent to unsuspecting soldiers that were not ready for loss to hit them so soon after leaving home. Hanji had been there less than a year and her dad had already passed of tuberculosis. She was fighting for them, and her efforts couldn't save them because she was fighting the wrong evil.

"Either way, we work for the branch in Sina, so you best watch your mouth, Levi. Not all of the 'Sina pigs' -as you so affectionately call them- are so bad, and you know that," Erwin replied and he gave a smile at Hanji. He was one of her only friends to know of where she came from as he watched her wagon get brought to camp a day late after an issue with a military checkpoint being damaged and the gate not opening. She looked up at him with hopeful, thankful eyes before she flinched at Levi's harsh retort.

"I haven't met one that I haven't hated," he began and she looked visibly bothered by his comment. He looked off to the side as he thought. The government and headquarters in Sina were always making things hard for them, but the difficulty came from Levi's resentment of the rich and noble because of his years in the underground had made him hate those that acted better than others since everyone was suffering down there and acting better than anyone else just made you an asshole that would wind up dead because no one could stand you. Unfortunately, Wall Sina was entirely populated by the rich and noble aside from the main workers that had well paying jobs and were better off than most. "They're all stuck up shit stains that some one needs to scrub off the underwear of the world," he spat and she locked her jaw.

'He doesn't know, Hanji. He doesn't know.' She reminded herself, repeating those words over and over in her head. She hadn't told anyone, but a few knew, like Mike, Erwin, and Nile since they saw her wagon come in from the direction of the wall and with how she could afford to own actual glasses... well, it was hard to interpret the situation as her being from anywhere other than inside the wall. Their suspicions were confirmed when she requested goggles that had her prescription in them, giving a silver Sina coin to the supply cart and a paper with a name and address on it. When a pair of girls in her barrack had found out, though, they weren't as kind to her as the boys had been.

She was cornered in the mess hall after the evening meal had been served and everyone had filed out, except for Hanji, who they had occupied to get her to stay last. They beat her and yelled profanities and insults at her, crying out that she was an idiot for leaving Sina and that she wouldn't survive the training because she was raised too pampered and unaware of hardship. She'd sat there on the floor of the mess hall all night, crying, wanting to go home... until Mike saw her. He was passing by to go to the bathroom and heard her sobs from the hall and he'd made his way over. She was curled up with her face in her knees and arms hugging herself tightly, her glasses shattered across the stone beside her, the metal frames stamped on until the pins that held them together broke. He sat down with her and held her as she cried while he told her that he didn't care if she was Sina and that he'd help her survive the training. Mike helped her, true to his word, and she joined Mike, Erwin, and Nile at all the meals every day and was taught the things she didn't get by them.