Chapter Text
POV: MIKASA ACKERMAN.
I know my people when I see them.
It's been years since my mother died. But I know. I may not know about my culture, but I know who my people look like. I may have never seen another person like me my whole life, but how could I not know if my own people were to walk through the doors at training camp? I know my mother's lineage. Why they were killed in the first place. Why my mother had to flee, why my mother and father were killed, and why I had been kidnapped.
Because of who I was.
Because of my people.
So... why?
Why, after my whole life, am I seeing them now?
Why, after spending my whole life thinking that I was alone, that I was the last of my kind, that the only people I had left in this world were the people who saved me from certain death, was I seeing my people now?
"Tell me everything." I need to know. Where they were.
Where they were when our clan was being beaten and killed. Where they were when the world fell apart. Where they were when my family was taken from me twice over. Where they were when I had lost everything, left only with two people I could do nothing but hopelessly care about.
Were their lives destroyed too? When the walls fell? Where were they when their homes were taken from them? Did they suffer? Did they lose their families too?
"Tell me, now."
Did they go through what I did, too?
The looks on their faces told me so much, yet nothing at all.
"I need. I need to know."
They all looked resigned. Unsure.
Do they recognize me as one of them? I'm one of you guys, you know?
Judging by the looks on their faces, they did.
The one with messy black hair looked me in the eyes. His eyes were a light brown, almost yellow.
"Do I know you?" The man with hazel eyes says. I clench my fist.
"No. But, we should've."
He remains quiet. Either from inability to respond, or silent agreement. I couldn't tell which. I look at the other six boys.
"We... We should've known each other ages ago, right?" I say, my voice escaping my throat. It's becoming harder to talk, for some reason.
Maybe because these are the people I should've been with my entire life.
"My... My name is Mikasa Ackerman," I say. I just barely remembered the entire Cadet Corps was watching me stomp up to these complete strangers.
And from across the table, Eren is looking at me.
He's looking at me, and his eyes are sad.
He knows, doesn't he? He should realize it by now.
"So... what do you want us to tell you," Another one of the men say. Except his hair is somewhat curly, and his eyes are a beautiful tealish blue. His eyes are like Eren's, yet his eyes are like mine. How does that work?
"We- I- You..."
The man with hazel eyes ruffles his eyebrows as I trail off. I have so much I want to say, yet for some reason, I'm at a loss for words.
"I'll tell her what happened, okay guys?" He says. The others nod. The whole room holds their breath.
"Well, uh, first things first, the name's Tetsurou Kuroo. And, these are my group mates."
A pause. He clears his throat.
"Long story short. We ran. Home... was taken from us. That, or we were taken from home. Eventually, we found each other. We lived together for a little bit, then, the Walls came crashing down, and because we're alike, and all we have left, we got together and ran. By then, we had to learn how to fight and survive on our own. That is, until the Scouts found us, and took us in to train us. Apparently we had potential, or something like that."
It was an answer, yet it wasn't what I was looking for. I know that there's more to this. More to them. I wanted to know. I needed to know.
"I said tell me everything."
"Was that not the answer you wanted to hear?"
I bite back a scream. A sting came to my eyes.
"Are we... alike?" I ask. My voice felt weak.
They exchange glances.
"I... I think we are."
Just like that, my world felt like it was flipped upside down.
"Thank you," I muttered under my breath. That was all I needed to hear. I pushed through the crowd, and headed for the door.
I needed fresh air.
It really was them. And now, I don't know what to do.
But the thought that they were somewhere out there, made everything I had gone through feel... so much less lonely.
I walked under the stars, and finally let myself cry. I don't know why, yet I knew.
I cried with relief, I cried with sorrow. I wasn't alone. Yet the people I could've grown up with had suffered, and I couldn't be there for them. With them.
There when they lost their families just because of who we were. Or when the walls were breached, and no longer left with land to live on.
Maybe I cried for the fact that they couldn't have been there for me, too.
I had so much to think about.
"Hey, Mikasa," A voice says. I turn around, and it's just Armin.
"Oh, hey," I try to say, but my voice is raspy. When was the last time I truly cried?
From behind him, Eren catches up, and there's that sad look in his eyes from earlier. I turn around. The last thing I want is for him to see me like this. Breaking down just because I finally found the people who I could've, and should've grown up with if the damn world wasn't such a cruel place- I should be happy to see them, damnit!
If that's the case... why am I so sad?
"Mikasa... Are those... Really?" Armin says, seemingly at the same loss of words as I am.
"Yeah, Armin. They are," I say, ignoring the fact that instead of stopping, I only cried harder. I genuinely don't think I've cried like this in years.
"So... what now?" Eren asks. I hold my breath, hoping that just maybe my tears would hold too. They didn't.
"I- No, I... Maybe I'll find out what happened."
Armin walks up to me, and puts his hand on my shoulder. "Mikasa, they already told us what happened. Their homes were either destroyed, or they were taken from it, so-"
"No! That can't be just it! They have to know! I-"
I don't know.
"...I can't be the only one out there who doesn't know what her own people are like!"
I let myself turn back around, only for my eyes to meet Eren's. His greenish blue eyes were whiplash, and they met mine with such... purpose.
"Mikasa, but we're your people."
Oh, Eren.
"You don't understand," I choke out.
"No, I do. They might be from the same clan as you, but they didn't grow up with you like we did. They weren't there for you, because they didn't know you," He says, and with each word, it's a sting to my chest.
"No-"
"I understand how much this means to you, okay Mikasa!? I understand- I understand as much as I can understand, alright! But please, don't forget who your people really are! And that's me, and Armin! We grew up with you, alright! Not them!" Eren was shouting again. That kind of shouting thing he does when he's desperate. I know he doesn't mean to- he never does - but the fact that he said it out loud, only made it hurt more.
The fact that he had said it out loud, only made it real.
I didn't grow up with them.
I love my family. I love Eren and Armin, and I couldn't ever imagine a life without them.
But... are my people not my family too? We've never met before, but we should've. And that fact alone makes me want to kick, curse, and scream. What could've been peaceful, happy lives together was taken away from us for the simple fact that we were part of the Eastern Clan. How could I just continue letting my life pass if at this point, we're all we have left of each other?
I kick dirt like a small child, and give Eren and Armin the biggest hug I could possibly give them. What good would anger do at this point, anyway?
"You're both always going to be my family. But please, don't deny me of the chance to get to know who my people really were. Please."
Armin hugs me back. Eren pats my back.
"Fine."
"Thank you, Eren."
I stood under the stars, and I finally felt my tears dry down. I had made up my mind.
I would make up for lost time.
I just don't know where to start.
[+]
POV: TOBIO KAGEYAMA.
I know that we were told to be prepared for anything. Racism, agressive training, constant questioning, discrimination, possibly more racism, avoiding talking too much, Racism-
But my god, I was not prepared to be literally mobbed. People crowded us like we were like some sort of idol group, and I couldn't even hear my own thoughts over the shouting and questions. And as the cherry on top of all the chaos, a girl comes pushing through the crowd, slams her fists on the table, and demands that we tell her everything. At first, I had no idea what she was talking about, and then, I had every idea of what she was talking about. Holy shit, she's part of that Eastern Clan the Scouts told us about, isn't she?
(It's moments like these that make me thank whatever gods that could possibly exist that Nekoma's captain somehow ended up here. I don't think I could've dealt with this myself.)
Why on earth did nobody consider the possibility that we could actually be meeting another Asian? Let alone someone Japanese? And the girl who introduced herself as 'Mikasa Ackerman' (as in the volleyball brand, that would've been hilarious if it weren't for the situation we were in) clearly recognized how weird it was too! How on earth were we supposed to explain that? Sure, we had a whole fake story made up, but it's an entirely different story when somebody else knows what actually happened! It's safe to say neither parties in this situation were prepared. At all.
She said that we should've known each other, and I could feel my brain using every bit of energy to try and piece this together.
While my brain was still trying to catch up to the fact that another Japanese person was actually here, the look on Mikasa's face suddenly snapped me back into reality. I still don't know if this is reality.
She looked... She looked lost. Yes, she probably had the most intimidating glare I've seen since Daichi, but something underneath that all was more than what meets the eye. Because she had those eyes that only ever belonged to someone overwhelmed with grief. The shake in her fists. The tremble in her voice. The way her face couldn't express anything other than anger, yet her voice was so tired. Small. It hit me. She probably knew better than everyone here what it meant to lose someone.
I recognized that in her eyes. Because I was there, once. Because I knew too.
Kuroo tells her the story - it's just some stupid, fake story - and I feel so guilty I don't know how to act. She listens, and probably believed every word of it.
The silent pause that follows is deafening. I could see the way she's lost for words.
"Are we... alike?" She asks, and from that one sentence, I had almost lost my appetite for dinner.
She's been alone this whole time, hasn't she?
"I... I think we are," Kuroo answers. I want to curse. Maybe we are similar. Maybe we're the only Asians in the room. But that doesn't change the fact that we're both from entirely different worlds.
Nothing we could say, or do, could change the fact that we had just lied to her face right then and there.
Mikasa mutters a small "Thank you," and pushes through the crowd of people. Two boys frantically follow her, and I clench my fist.
"Kuroo-san-"
"I know, Kageyama-kun," Kuroo whispers from across the table. My mind is telling me that we shouldn't be talking with any sort of honorifics right now, but it slipped. It slipped out, and all but half the people gathered around us could hear it. But so much as seeing another Japanese person was enough for me to let go of restraint on my speech.
Kuroo looks frustrated. "I know."
I don't know what to do other than look at the table. From that one interaction, this mission to get back home was suddenly much harder than I thought it would be.
Beside me, someone clears their throat. I don't bother to look.
"So, you guys wanted to ask questions... right?" Not to my surprise, but to my utter dismay, it just so happened to be Hinata speaking out. I hold back a groan, but don't refrain from rolling my eyes. Why did he have to be so... talkative?
The eruptive questioning starts again, and none of us could even speak above the volume of people talking. And I wonder, where the heck is Shadis? Shouldn't there be somebody stopping this?
Like some sort of miracle, it was like my thoughts were heard. One of the trainees pushed himself to the edge of the table, put his arms out to his side, practically functioning as a human barricade, and spoke above the rest. I could vaguely see that he had freckles on his face.
"Guys, give them space! I'm sure they're tired right now, especially after their performance earlier!" He shouts, and thankfully, people actually listen to him. I take a bite of bread that I realized had been left untouched, and the boy with freckles rubs the back of his neck.
"I'm so, so sorry! We, uh- It's just that... everyone got a little too excited. First of all, wow. You guys are all really good at ODM combat. That was freaking amazing," The boy with the freckles claims, and everybody around him nodded in agreement.
"Oh! I never got to introduce myself, did I? I'm Marco Bodt. It's a real pleasure to meet you guys- So, um, how about yourselves?"
So much for avoiding interaction.
[×]
After briefly introducing ourselves, it practically became an interview where Marco was mediating. Although, Kuroo, Bokuto, Hinata, and occasionally Akaashi took turns answering. I really wasn't in the mood to be talking to everyone while I was eating my delicious stale bread dinner, so I sat back and listened instead.
Every answer was crafted to the story Commander Erwin had made for us.
You're all so good at ODM gear, how on earth did you learn? Well, we had Captain Levi train us personally.
That question was met with hundreds more questions about Captain Levi himself, and a skeptical "If you guys were being trained by the strongest soldier in the Walls, why are you even here?" Kuroo smoothly answered with; "We're minors, so we have to go through the Cadets to get accepted into the Regiments."
Where in the Walls did you guys come from? Around the outer areas of the walls near Shiganshina. We were trying to get back home by the time the Walls were kicked in. All six of us narrowly escaped by running by the river until we reached Wall Rose. Since then, we've been surviving in the areas between Trost and Ermich until the Scouts found us. (That's how Akaashi 'explained' it, at least.)
When Akaashi mentioned Shiganshina, people instantly had hundreds of questions.
Really? What was it like? Where were you guys when it happened? Did you see the Colossal Titan? All of which was glossed over when nobody had an answer, Marco (I wanted to thank him. He's being so nice, and for what?) picked up on our silence, and said; "Let's- Let's move on. I'm sure they don't want to relive that. If you're all so curious, ask Eren. He's been bragging about that for over a year, have none of you even talked to him?"
If you couldn't already tell, our 'story' goes like this: All six of us were members of the Eastern Clan. Because of the clan being chased to the outer regions of the Walls, we grew up in poverty. Our families were easy targets due to the lack of financial status, so eventually, we were either kidnapped and managed to escape, or our families were killed, and we were the sole survivors. We all met each other at Shiganshina, and sticked together because we all needed someone to lean on after losing our families. We tried to make a home for ourselves in the forest near the major cities, hunting and gathering food to eat, and wood to sell in Shiganshina. When the Walls fell a little over four years ago, we escaped, and ended up trying to live our lives between Trost and Ermich. As for the rest of the smaller details, we had to handle that on our own. Commander Erwin hammered this story into our minds every time we ate with him, so I can strongly believe I remembered everything.
But no matter how much planning we did, there's still a shit ton of improvising we have to do. And lying. Lots of lying.
If anything, the only way we can avoid having to tell anyone the truth is to stay distanced, and until we leave, they don't need to know anything. But that plan clearly looks like it's going to be harder to go with now that we've been surrounded and mobbed.
A girl with brown hair in a ponytail (I was instantly reminded of Hange) and a steamed potato in her hand groaned, took a bite, and babbled with her mouth full. "But Eren'sh shtoriesh are borin'! I wanna hear it from shomebody elsh! I'm tired of hish braggin'!"
Beside her, a shorter, shaved-head kid nods agreeingly, gesturing wildly with his hands about how tired he was of 'Eren's' story of the walls, and how "It's the same thing over an over again, it wouldn't hurt to get a new perspective!"
Marco lets out a noise that sounded like a mixture of a sigh and a groan. "Connie, it's literally the same story. The walls were knocked down, people ran, that's all you need to know! Right, Jean!?"
From the other side of the room, a voice that was nowhere near the crowd shouts back; "Don't be an idiot, Connie! At this point you're as stubborn as Eren himself!" Now who the heck is Eren?
The boy who I assume was named Connie groans, and crosses his arms. "Ugh, fine!" I thought that he was done, but shortly after that, he leans in next to Hinata, and whispers something I can barely hear. "Can you tell me about it later, though?"
I can see the way Hinata's throat bobs. And I think; what in the name of the Mikasa volleyball brand have we gotten ourselves into? We had a heck of a whole lot of things to lie about, and having to recount an entire event that we've never even seen just had to be one of them. Never more in my life have I wanted to run into a gym and keep hammering serves until my arms break until now. This was agony.
I take a deep breath. I just have to stay calm. I've done infiltration missions before. That is, if you count as spying on Seijoh's practice with college students, than yeah, I've done infiltration.
Just blend in. I'm a normal student- I mean trainee. I am completely normal, and have gone through everything people think we've gone through. I am completely, entirely, calm, and normal.
"Hey, is it just me or is this guy over here really mad? I hope I didn't say anything too bad..."
This Connie kid is whispering like I'm not sitting right next to where he stands, completely capable of hearing him.
"Nah, it's okay. He's just like that. Oh yeah, my name is Shoyo Hinata! How about you?"
And now Hinata's whispering back, like I'm not literally sitting right next to him.
"Connie Springer! Pleasure to meet ya'!"
I was doing everything in my power to not beat up Hinata at that very moment. "I can hear you, Hinata..." I mutter through a clenched jaw.
"Yeah, and?"
"YOU LITTLE-"
A bell rings, and the crowd begins to dissipate. I gawk at the fact people are leaving - just like that? - and realize that the piece of bread I was holding earlier had completely disappeared.
"Ah, that's the curfew bell. Dinner's over! It's time to go to the barracks now, guys. Which cabin were you assigned to?" Connie says. I don't bother listening, though. Because somebody took my bread, and I don't know where it is. I look behind me, and I'm appalled.
The girl holding the potato was no longer holding a potato. She was holding bread. My bread. And I was going to eat that bread.
"Hey. Give it back," I ask politely, standing up.
She's cowering. She's shivering, and she's clearly scared. Good, I think. That means she'll give me my bread back-
With wide eyes and shaking hands, the girl steps back, takes a bite.
The scared girl, takes a bite of my bread. Why? What did I do to deserve this? Why the heck did she steal my bread?
"MY-"
"Kageyama! Let's go!" Hinata says, pushing me back with that stupidly irritable smile of his. He's actually trying to stop me from getting my food back. I couldn't even finish it. And as he's pushing me out the door, I feel my heart sink as the girl eats the rest of my dinner.
"C'mon, Kageyama! Apparently, we're in the same cabin as Connie!"
"I hate you, you know that?"
"Sure, you do. And Connie, can you show me your bunk later?"
"Sure thing!"
Connie puts his thumbs up, and gives a dumb smile. I then notice that he's actually shorter than Hinata, and I realize why the idiot is so excited to be friends with Connie. I'm pretty sure that he wants to cherish the fact that he's actually taller than someone else for once in his life.
Although, he's already taller than Nishinoya, Petra, and Captain Levi. I accept the fact that Hinata is just becoming greedy at this point. He's taking every damn opportunity he can.
I have no more energy left to do anything other than sigh. We make our way back to the barracks. I desperately want to take a shower, but showers, let alone baths, don't even seem to exist here. It looked like an issue I'll have to figure out eventually.
Walking in, a few other guys who I hadn't seen before were already on their beds, either chatting or doing their own things by their beds. When we stepped in, another wave of silence washes over. And for some reason, it felt much more awkward than when we first walked into the dining hall.
Kuroo once again walks in first, saying hello briefly, then walking straight to his bunk. I follow with the rest, feeling like a baby duck. Nobody else says hello, but we nod in greeting. The people nod back. Then, I recognize Marco as one of those people. Thank goodness, we're bunking with the saint.
Connie and Shoyo- I mean Hinata. I'm not going to call him anything other than his surname unless necessary. Screw western customs. I swear, it's only because of everybody else calling him Shoyo that it's starting to get to me. We're not even that close. Anyways, Connie and Hinata were already chatting away, and it wasn't even about the invasion of the Walls. It was about the bunks. And why they're so uncomfortable. And I almost slap my forehead about this because we just got here and they're chatting about the beds.
I ignore the fact that of course, Hinata had to be the first one completely sociable, kick off my shoes, and crawl into bed. At this point, all there is to do is just go to sleep. But everyone knows that nobody is just going to sleep after today. And in a room with around thirteen guys, six of which are a group of glorified 'chosen ones,' someone was going to say something, and I'm not sure if I'm willing to deal with that again.
Of course, it eventually happens.
A boy with light brown hair and a brown knit vest stands up, walks into the middle of the room, and puts his hands on his hips like the proudest person on Earth. A smirk graces his face, and I cringe.
"Alright, since we're finally away from the gawking crowd of idiots out there, I guess we can finally chat normally. We're all roomates anyway, why don't we get to know each other?" The boy suggests, and I roll my eyes.
"The name's Jean Kirschtein. It's nice to meet you all." The arrogance in his tone is almost tooth-rotting. Then I think about how I acted in middle school, and I realize that I don't really have the right to be talking.
"Didn't you hear us earlier? I don't need to introduce myself again." I say, trying to show my lack of interest. If now's a chance to distance ourselves, now's the chance. We didn't come here to make friends, we're here to train, and then get the fuck outta here.
"Oh, c'mon, Tobio. It wouldn't hurt to make friends!" Fukurodani's captain so conveniently says. I'm trying to do the exact opposite of what he's encouraging. What have I done to deserve this torture? Also, does he really have to call me by my first name? At this point, I'm done following western customs. I'll call people by their surnames because I feel like it, damnit.
"Ignore Mr. Pissyama," Hinata mocks me, and I hold back the urge to sock him for the nickname. "I'm Shoyo Hinata. It's nice to meet you, Jean! Oh, and the guy on the upper bunk next to Kageyama is Kenma Kozume!" He says, pointing to Kenma, who I can't see on his bed. All I know is that Hinata's bed is on top of mine, and Kenma's bed is next to his.
"And Kageyama is the guy down there with black hair and looks suuuper mad all the time. His name is Tobio Kageyama. Say hi, Kageyama!"
I was practically grinding my teeth at that point, but the looks Bokuto and Akaashi were giving me was the only thing holding me back from beating Hinata up. They're damn lucky I have any semblance of respect for my seniors. "Whatever, Hinata," I grumble. The fact that Hinata looks extremely smug after that doesn't help at all.
"Nice to meet you, Tobio," Jean Kirschtein greets. He's sounding just as smug as Hinata, and I don't like it. I give up on trying to stay awake, and fall back onto my bed. I begin to understand why Hinata and Connie was having a whole conversation about them. They're really uncomfortable.
I sigh for the hundredth time, and go under my blanket. I try to ignore the sounds of talking, (and if I'm being honest, body odor as well,) and try to fall asleep. As you can expect, that didn't really work. I only ended up listening in while avoiding talking to anybody.
"And you guys?" Jean asks who I assume to be Fukurodani's members, and Kuroo.
"I'm Tetsurou Kuroo. Let's get along well, yeah? Bo?"
"Kotarou Bokuto! Nice to meet ya' Jean."
"My name is Keiji Akaashi."
And I'm sick of this. Why can't we just go to bed now? I'm tired after riding for at least two hours, surpassing limits on ODM that I didn't think was humanly possible, getting mobbed for questions, and getting my bread stolen.
I'm just tired of being here in general. I wanna go home. I wanna play volleyball.
Can you please just let me sleep?
Of course, I couldn't get what I wanted. Because I heard the shuffling of footsteps, and Jean's muttering. For some reason, I found myself listening to what he was saying.
Something along the lines of "Introduce yourselves guys, c'mon! We don't wanna make them feel unwelcome or awkward or anything, alright?"
More shuffling, more whispering, and I don't know how to react.
This Jean guy was trying to be nice.
Once again, I sigh. But this time, I sit up, and decide to try and listen for once. It was the least I could do since this arrogant looking bastard looks like he's making an effort.
Jean was now leaning on the front of his bedframe, and from one of the upper bunks on the right side of the room, someone cleared their throat. I leaned out to see them, and it was a guy with short blond hair, and what looked to be a well-built body. He looked to be in his twenties, and had a stern face. He smiled, and introduced himself. "Uh, I'm Reiner Braun. It's nice to meet you guys. You say that you're all chosen by the Scouts for training, right? That's impressive. You guys are pretty cool for that. Oh, and down here's Bertholdt. Bertholdt?"
Below him, a young man with black hair cut into choppy bangs was clearly out cold, snoring on his bed. It seemed he had already fallen asleep, and was- wait, was he upside down?
"Yeah, looks like he's asleep," Reiner murmurs. "That down there is Bertholdt Hoover. He's a friend of mine, and quite frankly, sorta unsociable. But you guys'll warm up to him eventually, don't worry. He's also a heavy sleeper, so you'll just have to talk to him tomorrow..." Reiner rubs the back of his neck, looking somewhat embarrassed.
Across from them on the bed next to Jean's, Marco sat, with a book in his hands and a smile on his face. "Looks like we're roomates, huh guys?" He laughs awkwardly, and clears his throat. "Just in case you forgot, my name is Marco Bodt. If you need anything, or have any questions about training, I don't mind helping!" He says. Hinata does that dumb thing where his eyes light up like New Year's Eve.
"Thanks a lot, Marco!" Hinata says, his grinning ear to ear. I try to ignore how I'm getting irritated with how easy it is for him to just get along with other people. And I've thought about this many times before, but I think about all the problems I could've solved if I had been just a bit more like Hinata.
"No problem," Marco dismisses, waving his hand in the air. Akaashi speaks up, saying how we're really grateful for his kindess, and Jean laughs. Makes a snide comment about how us tough guys have to stick together anyway, and falls back onto his bed. Connie laughs with a finger under his nose, and a smirk on his face.
"I'm Connie Springer, and I'm already friends with Shoyo here. If you guys ever wanna spar with me, I'm always available to kick your ass," He brags, and Jean rolls his eyes at him. "You're talking big for somebody who slacks daily in hand-to-hand combat class," Jean comments, and Connie mutters a "Whatever."
Jean puts his arms behind his head, and lets out a sigh. "There's also two other guys who sleep here, Eren Jaeger and Armin Arlert. They're probably somewhere talking to Mikasa or something. They always get to curfew late," He explains, I briefly recognize Eren's name, and I begin to wonder about Mikasa again.
"All three of them are from Shiganshina too, so that's something," Jean adds. I forget his words, and let my mind run.
Of all the people that we've seen since we've gotten here, Mikasa was the only Japanese, let alone Asian we've seen. In fact, she looked to be the only person who wasn't European in some way. That much was painfully obvious when she slammed her fists on the table and demanded we tell her everything - like we weren't getting mobbed for that already - and asked if we were alike.
The Scouts explained our extremely unique situation to us, and how we very closely resembled members of the Eastern Clan. What I also know, is that in this world, the rest of humanity was devoured by the Titans, and that the few survivors were chased into the Walls.
The fact that Mikasa exists alone means that there used to be different cultures and races. If all of what was left of humanity was really here, how do we know the other races, countries, or clans aren't surviving somewhere outside the Walls? What if this civilization isn't the only one left? There might be a whole other Wall situation on the other side of the world, and the people here could know nothing about it because they simply can't leave.
I was about to continue my train of thought, but the sound of the door opening cuts it off. Standing at the entrance stood two boys, one with a blond bob of hair slightly like Kenma's (who looks a little bit more like a girl than I'd like to admit), and one with short, dark brown hair and noticeably green eyes. The looks on their faces are a cross between shocked and confused, and the boy with brown hair slowly blinks.
"Speak of the devil," Jean murmurs.
"Uh, hello," The boy (he is a boy... right?) with blond hair greets with a kind voice, and waves his hand awkwardly. I nod back. The boy with brown hair still doesn't say anything.
"I'm- I'm Armin Arlert... This is Eren Jaeger," He gestures to the boy standing next to him. I remember the name as the one mentioned earlier by the girl who ate my bread. He was also one of the two boys who went after Mikasa.
"It's nice to know that we're bunk mates, isn't it?" Armin remarks, but his voice is trembling, and his voice is shaky. (yeah, this is a boys only cabin. he's a boy.) He looks like he's about to say something, but is cut off by Eren putting a hand on his shoulder. The two look at each other, nod, and step inside.
Eren Jaeger walks to the center of the room, clenches his fist, and takes a deep breath. "Are you six members of the Eastern Clan?"
I almost choke at how direct that question was. Nobody had explicitly mentioned the clan until now, and I don't like the idea of claiming to be part of a clan I've had nothing to do with, and said clan most likely being entirely wiped out by now. With the exception of Mikasa, of course. Reluctantly, I nod my head.
Eren looks like he scrunches up his face in thought, before letting go of his tightly clenched fists, and his tense stance from before relaxes. "Where have you guys been for the past four years?" He asks, and I completely resign myself, glad to have Kuroo doing all the talking.
"Between Trost and Ermich, sellin' firewood. We're also hunters, and that's how the Scouts found us. We've been training with them for a little over..."
Kuroo pauses, and I feel a lump form in my throat. "...Six months."
Eren nods, but he still looks like he has more to ask. At this point, I'm lying down in bed again, pretending to toss a volleyball up and down.
"Hey Eren. Did ya' know that they're from Shiganshina too?" Jean comments, and I can begin to feel my heart race. I'm silently praying for Kuroo to be able to handle this. Eren's eyes suddenly widen.
"Well, how did you guys escape?"
Kuroo looks at Akaashi, and nods. Akaashi takes the reins of the conversation. He also looks at each one of us individually, as if he's telling us; listen carefully.
"We ran along the river because we couldn't catch the boats in time. It took us five days, and we narrowly avoided the Titans. We were let in through the gates from sheer luck of meeting one of the Scouts members at the gates. We were let in, and eventually we met again a few years later." I try my best to take note of everything he's saying, and Eren looks to the ground.
"I was there when it happened," He begins. Nobody asked for your life story, but please, by all means, continue.
"The Colossal Titan kicked down the Walls, and a piece of the rubble landed on my house.
My mother was eaten."
I hiss. That sounded terrible. Connie begins deadpanning, visibly tired of the story.
"We managed to get onto the boats. So I guess we're lucky, right?"
Eren looks back up again, his expression looking more determined than sullen. "We've both seen what the Titans can do. I guess that sets us apart."
You're not wrong there.
"Let's become teammates in the Scouts. What do you guys say?"
I don't know how to respond to that. One part because this guy sounds a little too ambitious for his own good, and another part because none of us have really ever been... affected by the Titans. They just so happen to be an obstacle we have to overcome to get home.
Bokuto on the other hand, gives a big smile. "Why not? Eren, was it?"
Eren nods. "Yeah."
I give up entirely, and decide to go to bed.
So much for avoiding interaction.