The Month Of May

Chapter 16

"THERE WAS A MONSTER ON THE LOOSE...WE'RE ALL IN SO MUCH MORE TROUBLE THAN I COULD HAVE EVER KNOWN."

I fought the urge to turn and laugh at them or smirk. I was walking through town nonchalantly, just trying to see what everyone was saying. I had my sweatshirt hood over my head; it was long enough to cover my blue eyes. Thank goodness we were allowed to wear uniforms; if we couldn't, I would have had to dress up...and I really wasn't about that.

All day, people had just been speaking with worry and fear. There were less people outside as they had all holed up indoors. Like a house would keep Bertolt out...I decided I had had enough of laughing at people and I headed back to the barracks.

As I stepped back toward the base, I heard a sudden movement behind me. Without a moment of hesitation, I turned and grabbed the person's hand, flipping them down onto the ground backwards...when I realized it was just Armin.

"Oh, sorry," I apologized instinctively. I wasn't sure why it was an instinct; I had never felt bad about accidentally harming someone. Perhaps it was because Armin was much more innocent than anyone I'd ever pushed around. I held out my hand to him, and he took it gracefully.

"It's alright. Good to know your guard is up in case that thing comes back," Armin tried to say it cheerfully, but the fear still seeped through his voice. I...didn't like hearing him so afraid. It was weird. I had just walked through a town making fun of people voicing their concerns, yet here I was, feeling bad about one person....it didn't matter. I needed to accomplish my mission. Thankfully, Armin had given me a good excuse as to why I was so jumpy.

"Yeah. I've been on edge ever since yesterday," I lied, pretending to fidget with my fingers. I had never been a good liar, but Armin seemed to buy it.

"Everyone is. Officer Nile went down, too..." Armin sighed, a distraught look on his face. I tried not to wince at the sound of Nile's name. Armin sounded so upset...he had no idea of the atrocities Nile had committed. "I can't believe someone went for an assassination while that crazy thing appeared!"

"It's awful," I said flatly, unable to mask my hatred for the officer. Still, I could tell my tone sounded too emotionless. I tried to make my voice a little higher. "It was poor timing."

"...Could it really have been poor? Maybe it was all collaborated," Armin pondered, and I just about felt my heart stop. I didn't know how to respond. How in the world-? "...But how would that happen? Those monsters couldn't have gotten in here, they were too big...and the wound was from a sword..."

"I'm sure it was just a jerk trying to take advantage of his situations," I said hurriedly before trying to switch the subject. "Are you alright, Armin? I heard you were one of the soldiers who approached that ti-thing and lived."

Geez. I needed to be more careful with what I said...Armin didn't know what Titans were, and he didn't need to.

Well, yet.

"It was terrifying," Armin admitted, his blue eyes wide in terror as he relived the moment. People were always terrified of Bertolt's form, but I had never been. I was much quicker than he was, I could easily outmaneuver him. Still, I did feel a bit of pity for Armin. I was surprised Bertolt hadn't accidentally killed someone in his Titan blindness. "I couldn't do anything, either..."

"...Maybe you all scared that thing away," I tried to give him a little reassurance. It was a poor excuse, considering Bertolt was a giant in that form and Armin was a tiny human with just a pair of swords, but it seemed to help the tiniest bit.

"I doubt it...I wonder where it came from," Armin mused, a concentrated look on his face. No matter how hard he tried to figure it out, I knew he never would get it. He didn't even know about the true outside world! He frowned. "And what it wants."

I just nodded, pulling down my hood. My blue eyes sparkled dangerously. What we wanted...I would achieve. I'd make sure of it.

"I wonder."