Rogue

Titanic Friend

The outliner district of Shiganshina bustled with activity at the rise of the sun. Everything went on as it usually did, a pattern that had not been disrupted in nearly a century. Sure, it wasn't as glamorous as the interior cities of the three walls with its wooden and lacquer buildings, but it was leaps and bounds better than nothing. Still, like most of the lesser districts, it was always plagued with problems - something that mankind had grown very familiar with over the years. However, it was home.

Armin sat with Mikasa on the Jaeger's doorstep eating breakfast, a simple loaf of bread, but thankful for nonetheless. The blonde glanced over at the girl who was reticently picking at the crust on her bread. Quite a bit had happened in the following week after her parents' murder. Amazingly, the Jaegers had taken in Mikasa with open arms. Armin had known Mrs. Carla and Dr. Grisha Jaeger since he had been small. The family name was well known amongst Shiganshina despite the couple not being nobles. Dr. Jaeger was incredibly inapt in medicine and medical practices. He was always making house calls, but his biggest feat that everyone knew the doctor for was his success in curing a deadly plague that had swept through Shiganshina a while back. Dr. Jaeger was a soft spoken and mild mannered man; to those who knew him well he was also a quiet and reserved person - the opposite of his wife Carla. Mrs. Jaeger was a beautiful woman with a warm personality- the ideal mother figure. It was no surprise to Armin that the Jaegers would accept Mikasa as their daughter. For one, they had known each other well. Two, being that Carla was unable to have children. Although, Mikasa had a new family, Armin was worried for her. Since that night, the young girl was still stoic. She still remained somewhat restricted, only talking about things other than the events of the incident - except for the only thing they had kept between themselves, the titan.

In the past week, Armin had found himself in denial. His mind could not decide if Rogue was truly real and a miracle - or a severe illusion brought upon by trauma. Sure there was the evidence such as the scarf, but Armin's mind wanted to believe otherwise. His doubts about the titan had all began three days prior during a special lesson at school:

(Flashback)

Armin sat in silence at the back of the small schoolhouse in Shiganshina, listening intently as his teacher introduced the uniformed guests, Scouting Legion members. Every great once in a while, different soldiers from different military branches would come to educate and persuade students to join the cadets when they came of age. Usually during these visits, Armin would do his best to ignore them and read a book in secret, but the Scouts were different. Though they were often ridiculed, they were the very few that were brave enough fight titans and venture beyond the walls. It was Armin's dream to break free of humanity's cage and see everything the world had to offer. Perhaps one day, the Scouts could give him the chance.

The boy watched eagerly as the teacher gestured to the two officers. The first was Section Commander Hange Zoe, an energetic looking woman who seemed to be a bit of an oddball. She had very oily and messy hair that bounced every time she rocked excitedly on her heels and glasses that hugged her face. The man next to next to her was none other than Captain Levi, Humanity's Strongest Soldier. Everyone had always said that he was a brigade all himself and the way he slayed titans was legendary. To Armin, so far Levi did not seem to meet his expectations. He was a short-statured man with a black undercut and he wore an ugly scowl upon his stony face - making it painfully obvious he'd rather be elsewhere.

As Levi retreated to a seat in the front corner in both exasperation and boredom, Hange began lecturing with great enthusiasm about the Scouts but even more so about the biology of titans. Both Armin and Mikasa listened intently as the Section Commander informed them of their encounters and even about her experiments with titans. While time passed on as she spoke, Armin kept Rogue on his mind. The more he heard Hange go on, the more he became skeptical. The titan in the cove was truly unique.