Attack on Titan: A Warrior of Devils Chapter 13 (Call of Silence) (Patreon)

One Week Later

"Listen up, Maggots." Keith shouted to the rows of cadets in front of him; it was still early in the morning, and the sun had just peeked over the horizon as if saying 'Good Morning' to everyone. The cadets looked exhausted, but Shadis could see some of them seemed more exhausted than the others, the dark bags under their eyes were a clear sign.

Shadis quickly told them about all the training they would do today. First, they would do pushups, sit-ups, and run laps around the place. Once that was done, they would train with their ODM Gear; once Shadis was done giving orders, he expected the cadets to groan or maybe even complain, but it was mostly silent; their eyes didn't have the same brightness they used to have. Shadis knew and hoped they all would return back to normal soon.

Once the orders were given, Jaime wasted no time; he started doing push-ups and then sit-ups; near him were the boys since boys and girls would split up into two groups before they started doing push-ups.

Jaime occasionally looked at the others; even someone like Marco wasn't as joyful as he used to be; they only smiled now when Connie made a dumb comment.

"Armin, are you tired?" Jaime heard Eren near him as he kept doing sit-ups. Jaime looked from the corner of his eyes; it seemed Armin was having trouble doing his push-ups. Jaime looked back forward and soon was the first to complete his push-ups and sit-ups. The Instructor said nothing since Jaime had the right to rest for a few minutes, but he wasn't in the mood to rest.

Jaime grabbed a skin bottle filled with water as he walked amongst the cadets still doing push-ups; many of them were struggling. Jaime was there to help; he occasionally told them to move their arms or legs to make it easier. Eventually, he reached Armin; he was still struggling more than all the others. Jaime could almost see a younger version of himself in an identical position when his mentor had first started training him.

"Armin." "I don't need help." He interrupted before Jaime could say anything; his purple eyes briefly flickered at Shadis; the man was busy yelling at a cadet who apparently needed to pee. The one watching over the girls doing their push ups was a female helper of Instructor Shadis.

"I never said you do," Jaime said, taking the bowl head by surprise, causing him to stop doing push-ups momentarily, looking up at him.

"Armin, we have been here for more than just twenty months. If you were already at the point where you still needed help, then you would have fallen from the Training Corps long ago." Jaime said, causing Armin to try harder to do his pushups, his head almost drowning from the sweat.

"B-But I saw you helping cadets."

"All I did was tell them to move their arms a little, they still would have made it," Jaime said dismissively before looking down straight at Armin's eyes.

"You can do it, your muscles might burn, but I know that from all the cadets, you are one of the few with the biggest talents." Jaime's words made Armin look at him with appreciation before trying to do push-ups again.

"So clench your teeth, strengthen your arms, and complete your training."

Armin didn't need help again; he was the seventh boy cadet who completed his push-ups, followed by Connie, Marco, and Samuel. Eren appreciated Jaime's help, and the same for the bowl head. After they completed their training, they ran laps around the place.

The three of them discussed the upcoming ODM Gear training, which resulted in Eren saying he would one hundred percent do better than Jean, but unfortunately, or fortunately, Jean heard him. It didn't take long for them to start bickering like an old married couple, as always. A few cadets gathered around, watching them bickering like this was a show, and since they had been in the Training Yards for twenty months, their lives didn't have much excitement.

"You know Jean. I think you should just tell him." Jaime said with a growing smirk, causing both Jean and Eren to turn their heads to face him simultaneously.

"Tell me, what?"

"Well, Eren, there's a reason why he wants you away from the Survey Corps. Our dear, Jean doesn't want to see the love of his life perish to the Titans." Jaime teased while wiping away fake tears; his words earned a round of chuckles from everyone nearby while Jean glared at him furiously.

"That's Not True!" Jean all but shouted, looking embarrassed, while Eren stepped away from him.

"Now, now. I'm simply stating what I have observed, isn't that right, Armin?" Jaime asked, giving him a side hug; the latter chuckled in amusement.

"Well, Jean. I have never seen anyone try so hard to change Eren's mind about joining the Survey Corps, not even Mikasa is that persistent." Upon saying that, many others busted out laughing; even Bertholdt chuckled in amusement; the only ones not having fun were Eren, Jean, and Mikasa.

"Is Not Like That?!!" Jean shouted desperately, but soon they were interrupted by a voice.

"What Are You All Maggots Doing Here?"

"Shit, it's Shadis." Connie cried out loud first as everyone else scattered, allowing Shadis to look at Eren and Jean, both glaring at one another.

"Are you all here to laugh or train, and you two," Shadis shouted, pointing an accusing finger at both Jean and Eren who gulped, not knowing what kind of punishment they would receive.

"Since you two love each other so much. You two will help the chef to make the dishes." Shadis shouted, many closed their mouths, trying not to laugh, Jean turned red with embarrassment, he looked like he wanted to explode.

"And you Cadet Midget. Since you love running your mouth. You will clean the common room until I can see my own reflection on the tables." Shadis told Jaime with a cold glare.

"Still worth it," Jaime said as he looked at all the smiling faces; even if it would be momentarily, he still couldn't help but feel the joy that they all seemed happy, even if it was only for a few short minutes.

Since the incident with the Kidnappers a week ago, the mood of his friends had dropped dramatically. Usually, despite all the training, they were full of smiles, but since the incident, Many of them weren't as joyful anymore, so Jaime wanted to bring back the joy that used to be felt every day. So far, it was only momentarily, but he knew he could come up with something to help.

But that wasn't the only downside. After the incident, it spread like Wildfire that Jaime had killed people; while many didn't really care, he knew some of the cadets were afraid of him. But Jaime felt no regrets when it comes to saving those that he loves. He would do everything; his body moved on his own, and in those moments, he didn't care what happened. He wouldn't allow more people to die if he could.

Upon entering the common room, the place smelled of rotten food and dirt. Jaime grabbed several items and started cleaning the place. He found it quite relaxing, and being from the Underground City, he knew how to clean. Jaime had lost count of how many times he needed to clean his clothes with whatever he could because of rats and cats roaming the streets.

Jaime put his hands underneath a table before lifting it up easily. He placed it on top of another table. He didn't know yet what to make of his newfound strength. He didn't know how much stronger he had gotten, but he knew he had grown stronger; the first to see the results had been Annie.

' "Where have you been?" Annie asked, with a hand on her hips. It's been a whole day since the incident, and Annie couldn't find him anywhere until Krista told her that she had seen Jaime walking into the forest.

Annie had checked the place where they trained, but he wasn't there. She found him by the bank of the lake; she knew Jaime loved to draw in this place, but she didn't find him drawing. Instead, he was busy punching and kicking a tree. The tree's skin had fallen off from his kicks.

"Training, I wanted to see it myself," Jaime answered with a puff; as he stopped kicking the tree, his feet felt sore, the skin had peeled slightly, and a sensation of burning spread on his feet, but the pain wasn't as bad as he had expected. Jaime had made sure not to kick the tree with all his strength and take several breaks in between; he wasn't in the mood to break his foot.

"See what?"

"I have never felt this— strong before, even when I completed my training with my mentor. I tried to fight him, thinking I could give him a good fight, but he easily overpowered me, but now. I feel much more content that I could give him a good fight." Jaime explained as he looked at his own hands; he still remembered the way he easily overpowered the man who almost killed him. The way his body had felt. A burst of electricity. Jaime wasn't sure yet what this 'Awakening' was, but he knew there was some kind of connection between him, his mentor, and Mikasa; he just wasn't sure yet.

"Annie. Do you want to fight?" Annie was taken by surprise; as she analyzed his stance, she could see he had changed it slightly. It was similar, but it wasn't the same.

"If you want to blow off some steam so badly, the tree is right there." Annie retorted while pointing at the tree. Jaime didn't look dejected; an evil smirk formed on his face. Annie narrowed her eyes; she knew that smirk meant Jaime was about to open his big mouth.

"The tree is quite a formidable opponent, but she stood no chance against-ouch!" Jaime rubbed his knuckles; he punched the tree to get his point across, but his knuckles were quite sore. Annie smiled in amusement.

"But you are right. I think I should just call Mikasa." His words made Annie narrow her eyes, and the amusement disappeared from her eyes.

"Why her?" She couldn't help but ask with a slight growl.

"Now, now, Annie. We all know Mikasa is on par with us-"Jaime stopped mid-sentence, placing his finger on his chin, looking as if he was thinking deeply about something.

"Hmm, she might even be stronger than you, my dear Anni-" He stopped mid-sentence as he swiftly dodged a punch from her. Annie glared at him while Jaime simply smiled as he took a few steps back.

"I will show no mercy."

"I would be very disappointed if you did," Jaime smirked as he rushed her. Annie was taken by surprise; his fist brushed against her cheek; she hadn't expected him to be much faster.

Annie quickly followed it with a jab that Jaime deflected. Annie kept throwing punches, but he easily dodged everything, something new from him. Usually, Jaime wasn't fast enough to dodge her; he usually blocked her attacks. Annie threw a kick at his arm that he grabbed, but she quickly followed it with a spin kick that he dodged, forcing him to let go of her leg. Jaime quickly rushed her; now it was Annie's turn to defend herself.

As she kept blocking and attacking, Annie couldn't help but enjoy the fight immensely; she felt excited, her blood pumping faster than ever before, a smile on her face as a punch hit her shoulder; she ignored the pain as she kicked him in the waist, Jaime smiled back, enjoying the fight just like her, the pain only made things better.

Annie threw her arms around him, trying to get him in a chokehold while pulling him onto the ground; her arms gripped around his neck. She added pressure as they both fell on the ground, but before she could secure her victory, Jaime got hold of her by the waist before lifting her up like she weighed nothing and forcing her down. Annie moaned in pain, her back hitting the ground.

She opened her eyes to see that Jaime was on top of her, his purple eyes looking back at her, his hands pinning her down; for the first time, it seemed he had won the fight. Every other fight ended with a draw, but not this time. Jaime quickly noticed that Annie wasn't really trying to free herself from him.

She couldn't help but be mesmerized by his eyes; it felt like she had seen them for the first time. They seemed bright and soft and showed something Annie hadn't expected to see.

Jaime breathed heavily; despite his sore shoulder, he couldn't help but be mesmerized by her blue, adorable eyes. Her eyes were always cold, but right now, they were soft and as beautiful as the stars in the sky.

Jaime couldn't help but feel as if he was leaning closer to her, her hot breath on his face, her lips parted slightly, and looked delicious and beautiful; he felt warmth on his face; he knew he was flushing. Usually, he would look away, but at this moment, he didn't want to look away from her.

Jaime knew deep down he deserved none of this, not after what he had done, but he hoped he had the right to be happy, at least for a minute...

"Jaime. I think we should return back." Annie suddenly said, completely flustered.

"R-right," Jaime said reluctantly as he stood up, helping her up; he noticed the way she ignored him; he could see a flush on her cheeks, but she quickly turned on her heels, walking away without saying anything to him.

Jaime took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, wondering if he had done something wrong; he kneeled in front of the bank of the lake, his hands cupped together as they sank below the surface; the cold water filled his hands, and he quickly splashed his face with the cold water. '

After that day, Annie had once again trained with him, and they would talk normally, but she acted as if what happened didn't happen, but he wasn't going to force her to say anything. Jaime knew there was a chance she simply didn't want him as anything more than a friend, but he would tell her.

Time was running out; soon, he would join the Survey Corps, and she would go to the Military Police behind Wall Sina. Even if he survived the Titans, they wouldn't see each other much, so he decided to take a leap of faith; he didn't want to die with more regrets than he already had. If she felt the same, he would have the opportunity to be happy for one more year before joining the Survey Corps; if not, he would cherish her friendship.

As he kept cleaning, he soon found himself singing; two days ago, he had started writing a song he wanted to sing when they all graduated. Under the Tree, He thought of the name for the song. It sounded like a good name.

"Jaime." He looked over his shoulder as Mikasa opened the door and walked inside; he quickly stopped cleaning and turned to face her.

"Lady Mikasa, what can I do for you?" Jaime teased with a small bow; since she didn't like 'Badass Queen,' he had started calling her 'Lady' or 'My Lady,' and every time he called her that, she would roll her eyes, but he knew she enjoyed his antics, especially when he saw a small smile of amusement in her face.

"I wanted to help you with the cleaning." Mikasa offered; Jaime cocked an eyebrow; he had expected her to offer that to Eren, not him.

"What about Eren?"

"Eren didn't want my help; he said he wanted to clean his section faster than Jean without help." Of course he does, Jaime thought, rolling his eyes. Everything between the two of them was somehow a challenge. It was only a matter of time before they started challenging each other on ridiculous things.

"Well. There's no need to, I'm used to cleaning. I find it very relaxing." Jaime said dismissively, but it seemed she wasn't accepting 'No' for an answer as she grabbed a used towel and dripped it in water; soon, she started helping him.

As they kept cleaning, Jaime while he enjoyed her presence, he wanted to get to know her even more. "So Mikasa, do you have any hobby?"

"My mother taught me how to plant and water flowers. Even in Shiganshina after I started living in Eren's home. Carla, she had a whole small garden behind the house; she used to tell me that I could spend time there." Her voice was quieter with every word she said; Jaime realized it was a hard topic for her.

He had understood long ago that Mikasa and Eren weren't really siblings, at least not by blood. "Hey, you don't have to tell me more," Jaime quickly said with concern; he wanted her to smile again, so he knew something that might work.

"Hey, Mikasa. Yesterday, while eating, I made a few drawings. I wanted to ask you if you think they are good enough." Jaime requested as he pulled out his small notebook from his pocket, flipping through the pages he showed the first one.

Mikasa's eyes widened slightly. The drawing was of her and Eren eating together while Armin had his arms up as if he was explaining something exciting to the two of them; the three of them had wide smiles on their faces.

"This is beautiful," Mikasa said, amazed; Jaime's lips twitched upwards at the sight of her smile.

"You know you can have those three. I don't mind." His words caused Mikasa to look at him with surprise, which was quickly filled with gratitude. Slowly, she ripped the three pages, making sure not to rip the page into two.

"Thank you, Jaime." She said with a slight smile as she looked at the drawing like it was a precious thing. Her eyes went to the notebook as Jaime put it back in his pocket.

"That notebook is important to you." Jaime nodded right away with a smile of melancholy.

"Is my most precious thing. I draw people so I can never forget them, even if one day they are not anymore. I can always look at the drawings to remember them, so anyone who looks at them will remember them." His words made Mikasa look at Jaime with a new look, as someone whom she would gladly consider a friend. She wanted to berate herself for not being good with him from the beginning.

"Jaime. I'm sorry." Her sudden apology made Jaime blink in confusion, making them stop cleaning as he turned to face her. He had no idea why she was apologizing, but before he could ask, Mikasa talked.

"When we were on the same team on the first training with ODM Gear. I wasn't kind to you, and thought nothing of your own losses. I'm sorry." Mikasa apologized with a downcast look, her voice sounding genuinely apologetic.

Jaime had a look of realization. "I would be lying if I said your words didn't hurt me." His words made her lower her head until he placed his hand on her shoulder, making her look up at him, her gray eyes looking back at his purple ones.

"But I hold no ill thoughts towards you, Mikasa. I forgive you; we are friends, after all." Jaime said with a smile adoring his face; she smiled back in agreement.

"Yes. We are friends." Mikasa agreed, and soon they returned to cleaning, with Jaime saying that if they didn't clean the common room soon enough, Instructor Shadis might grow grey hairs.

"Can I ask you something?" Her voice came out somehow reluctantly, something he had never heard before from Mikasa.

"Sure."

"How did you know there were two groups?" When those words left her mouth, his grip on the table's edge caused it to creak; the wood almost broke from the pressure.

"That night wasn't the first time. Years ago, they ran into me. I was young and foolish. They tricked me but unlike Eren and Krista. I had no one who was coming to save me." Jaime answered reluctantly as he cleaned the top of the table; until he could see his own reflection on the surface, he could still feel the tight ropes around his wrists.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean-" she stopped mid-sentence when Jaime raised his hand, stopping her as he turned to face her.

"It happened long ago. I made peace with it, and they got what they deserved." Jaime answered with a slight growl of anger; his bright purple eyes seemed cold at that moment. He still remembered when the house burned down, their screams echoing in his ears.

Silence followed as Jaime kept cleaning every corner he could find; it helped him stop thinking about the ugly past. A past that still haunted him one way or the other.

"Why did you draw the three of us?" Mikasa eventually asked, breaking the silence as she was cleaning the windows.

"I admire the way the three of you stick together. It r-reminds me of me and Arthur. We used to be as thick as thieves in the Underground. So seeing the three of you like that is amazing. I hope the three of you never break apart." Jaime explained with a wide grin. Mikasa seemed to appreciate his words, but she could see a hint of grief and guilt in his eyes.

"You mentioned his name, the two times I found you lying on the grass. You kept apologizing to him-" she stopped mid-sentence as she approached him, her grey eyes looking at him with genuine concern and intrigue.

"What happened to him?" Jaime felt his head throbbing and pulsating; every beat felt painful; he gripped the side of his head as he tried not to think of what he had done. His hand reached out, taking hold of something, trying not to lose his balance. What I did to him...Jaime thought as he clenched his teeth, his eyes closed tightly to the point of pain.

He could smell the blood on his mouth, his jaw wide open, before biting down on a piece of meat. He wanted to vomit, but he was just TOO HUNGRY.

"Jaime!!" He gasped, realizing he was on the ground, his cheek touching the cold floor. Why does this always happen to me? Jaime asked himself with irritation as he reached up, trying to grab something to stand up, but what he grabbed was warm; he looked up to see Mikasa, who had grabbed his hand and was helping him to stand up.

"Thank you, Mikasa," Jaime said, feeling relieved, standing up; he knew she looked at him with concern; he couldn't help but feel warm that she cared, something that his mentor used to do but quite rarely.

"What happened?"

"Nothing," Jaime said dismissively. He knew she wanted to ask, but he wasn't in the mood to explain what happened to Arthur, so he decided to just change the subject and forget about it.

"Mikasa, I think I have another drawing to give to you." Jaime said with his usual friendly smile.

Mikasa frowned; she knew he was changing the subject since that night after he had saved Eren. She wanted to know more about him, especially since they had something in common. Mikasa had ignored him; she had been wary of him. She didn't know why, but now, she realized that all that wariness had been for nothing and that Jaime was a good friend, and she had simply wasted the last nineteen months trying to ignore him. She wanted to fix that and be as good of a friend to him as Krista and Ymir.

But she could tell that 'Arthur' was a sore subject for him. So she decided to go along; perhaps one day he would see her just how he looks at Krista and feel comfortable enough to tell her everything.

"Two days ago, I dreamed of you three," Jaime said excitedly as he flipped through the pages.

"You did?" Mikasa asked, puzzled.

"Yes. I was confused too. I have never been to Wall Maria, but I dreamed of you three, you were much younger. After I woke up, I draw what I dreamed." Jaime explained she remembered him having a similar situation with Armin when he gave him the drawing of the ocean. As he finally reached the correct page, he quickly showed it to her.

Mikasa gasped the moment her eyes laid on it; the drawing was of her, Armin, and Eren before the fall of Wall Maria, the three of them racing towards a tree; the background showed Wall Maria in the distance as it used to be.

Her eyes lightened up as she gently grabbed the notebook from his hands. She could feel her eyes welling up with tears. After everything that had happened, she had almost forgotten, but this drawing made her remember a time when the three of them used to run together. When the three of them were together, and back in the old days. Before everything changed.

"Mikasa!" His voice filled with concern.

"It's so beautiful. C-can I have this one? I swear I will repay you back." Upon hearing her words, Jaime chuckled before giving her the drawing.

"I don't need anything, you can have it." Jaime said with a genuine smile, but it seemed his words weren't enough for Mikasa.

"I still want to repay you back— it wouldn't be fair if you just gave it to me, and I didn't give you anything." Mikasa insisted, her grey eyes looking back at his purple eyes.

Jaime couldn't help but blush slightly in embarrassment as he scratched his cheek with his index finger. Mikasa was beautiful, and it had that reaction to him, but still, she wasn't as beautiful as Annie.

"Well. We still have that fight, so how about a proper fight." Jaime said, with her nodding in agreement, a beautiful smile adoring her face. Jaime thought she looked more cuter like that.

Later

Reiner groaned in pain as his body crashed into the rough ground.

"That hurts!"

His partner in close combat sparring was Eren, "I'm sorry, Reiner. I don't do a good job of controlling myself."

Reiner accepted the brown boy's assistance after extending his hand.

He handed him the wooden knife and pretended to be an attacker, saying, "Don't worry, nothing a soldier can't handle. Now it's your turn to Attack."

Eren regarded the knife with a puzzled expression before turning to face Reiner again.

"Is there a problem?" He asked when Reiner observed his partner's apparent reluctance.

Eren picked up the knife, frowning before saying, "I just don't see the point in this training. Why should we practice combat with others? We must prepare to battle the Titans. Additionally, only a fool would confront a person brandishing a weapon while unarmed,"

Eren glanced at the phony knife, and a flash went through his mind. He had a dim memory of himself standing on an adult's dead body. At that, he scowled even more. He didn't feel bad about what he did. He believes he has eradicated the human-skinned animal from this planet.

Reiner's stern voice jolted him out of his reverie, "It's reckless of you to think that way. We serve as soldiers. We are powerless to run away, no matter how dire the situation. We are unsure of our potential adversaries. For this reason, they instruct us on how to handle knives and rifles. And how to combat them without a weapon. We need to be able to fight even without weapons."

Eren nodded his head; hearing his words was quite eye-opening. Reiner was undoubtedly the person he was paying attention to. One of the few recruits he truly respected was him. To reclaim the house he had lost to the Titans almost three years prior, Reiner desired to enlist in the military. Eren could almost come to think of him as the older brother he never had because of how well he could understand him.

Pointing at one of the recruits wandering the training area, "Look at that, anyway." Reiner said.

"Annie, I see," Eren said. "Once more, she skips class without the instructor noticing."

"Alright, Eren. Give that slothful girl a lesson, please. We'll demonstrate to her how a proper soldier should act."

"Huh?!" Eren yelled and moved away. "Do you want to have broken bones and wind up in the hospital? You have witnessed what Annie has done to her trainees." He said, personally, he had yet to fight her, but he doubted he would be able to win against her. The only one who seemed capable of going toe to toe with her was Jaime, and surprisingly, Eren noticed he was absent; usually, Annie trained only with him.

Reiner grinned; an idea grew in his head. "Get going, Eren. If you're too scared to confront a girl who is several inches lower than you, how can you defeat the Titans?"

Reiner then turned to face Annie, leaving Eren behind, who let out a resigned sigh and followed the taller blonde.

Annie was moving through the training area while checking to ensure no instructors were nearby when she came across Reiner's bulky body, which impeded her progress.

"Do you want to wash bathrooms for a whole month or what?" Reiner questioned with a snide smile. "Remember why you joined in the first place, and take this seriously if you don't want to shrink any more than you already have."

"Hey, why are you saying that?" Eren interjected, fully convinced that Reiner had a few screws loose.

He took a step back when he turned to face the blonde girl after being startled by her murderous expression.

She is furious. He swallowed loudly; he understood a bit why not that many talked with her. But he couldn't help but feel that Annie, for some reason, hated Reiner, and it wasn't just dislike.

Reiner grabbed Eren by the shoulders and pushed him in Annie's direction before saying, "Okay, it's your turn, Eren. Give her a lesson, please!"

"Huh?! Why me?!" Eren enquired while concealing his growing dread. "You wanted to teach her how to act as a soldier; why are you hiding behind me now?" Eren questioned, seeing that Reiner was pushing him forward while standing behind him, making it a funny picture; a man taller and more muscular than him was using him as a shield.

What irony, thought Annie. "You fervently cheer that we together can kill all the Titans, but you are afraid to face me. What a coward you are," she mocked him.

Because of her words, Eren froze in place. He gripped his fists tightly while glaring at Annie.

"What did you say?" Eren said with growing anger.

"I think you heard me perfectly fine unless you have problems with your ears too," Annie replied with a slightly annoying smirk. Eren couldn't fathom how Jaime could make her smile. Hell, sometimes she giggled with him, something no one had ever achieved before.

"Will you fight, or are we going to talk until we are bored to death?" Annie questioned with a bored look on her face.

Eren scowled as he firmly grasped his wooden knife. Being taken for granted was something he really detested.

He growled, "Don't expect me to hold back. Here I go,"

Annie didn't panic and didn't even hesitate when she kicked Eren hard in the shin, causing him to stumble back, holding his shin with his hand while clenching his teeth.

"Damn! Oh, that hurts." While clutching his hurt leg. "What in the world was that?" He questioned her.

"A low kick. Did you not anticipate it?" Annie said, looking at him over her shoulder,

"Quite a sneaky ploy," he remarked, actually intrigued by her fighting style.

"In a fight, there is no such thing as that. If your life is on the line, winning is winning, no matter how you do it." She turned to face Reiner. "Is that sufficient for you?" She asked, bored of this kid game.

He shook his head with a smirk on his face, "Not yet. Training isn't over until you disarm him,"

Annie sighed in frustration before looking at Eren. She almost appeared to feel bad for her victim. Almost.

"Annie, wait!" Eren protested, backing away as some fear crept into his voice. "There is a proper way to carry out this."

Eren's complaints went unheard as Annie grabbed him by the chin and swept his legs with a stern expression on her face. The boy tripped and fell hard to his back, letting out a painful groan as his legs crossed over his face in the position Annie often left her adversaries in when they dared to confront her, whether foolishly or bravely, except with Jaime, of course.

When Annie threw the wooden knife at Eren, Reiner jumped out of his reverie as he watched his fallen friend.

Tucking a hair behind her ear, "Here. You now have the opportunity to attack me." She said.

Reiner attempted to justify himself by saying, "N-No," but his voice was trembling.

From the floor, Eren commanded, "Do it, Reiner." He was still standing with his legs crossed over his face, looking at the person who was responsible for him being in that position with disturbed eyes. "Wasn't she going to learn what a soldier should do from you?"

Annie seemed to be anticipating Reiner's response as he turned to look at her. He sighed.

"Yes, there are instances in which a soldier is unable to flee," On his face, a determined expression appeared. "Just now!"

After five seconds, that is how long it took Reiner to get to where Eren was.

Eren was trying to stand up when he heard someone running towards them. "Eren, Come fast. It's Mikasa and Jaime." Armin's words made the three of them quickly follow him.

Soon, they saw a large gathering of almost every cadet of the training corps. Eren walked through the crowd, and upon reaching the end, he saw what had drawn so much attention. Jaime and Mikasa were locked in a battle; a circle had formed around them from the cadets watching excitedly; many of them were already betting on who would win.

"What happened?"

"Mikasa and Jaime started fighting; at first, it was just a friendly fight, but now. I'm not so sure." Armin explained. Eren could see what he meant; the way they looked at one another, it seemed they wanted to kill one another.

"Who will win?" Sasha asked nervously, her village accent momentarily slipping for a moment.

"Jaime. One hundred percent." Ymir said right away, without a hint of hesitation. While Krista looked at the fight concerned, she knew Jaime was capable of defending himself, but Mikasa was one of the few who could go toe-to-toe with him.

Jean seemed conflicted; on one hand, he wanted to support the girl he liked, and on the other, Jaime was his friend.

"Annie, you fight with Jaime more than any of us. What do you think?" Reiner questioned with a smile of excitement. This made almost everyone look at the cold blonde girl, waiting for her to give her opinion.

"Mikasa has the strength, but she lacks stance and knowledge on Hand to Hand Combat, and Jaime can be quite cunning when he wants to be," Annie said with a look of pride on her face; her words made Bertholft lower his head while Reiner looked at the fight even more excited.

Jaime

Blocking her fist, Jaime smiled widely; his heart echoed in his ears as they exchanged blows at one another. They had been at it for thirty minutes now, but Jaime wasn't exhausted, and neither was Mikasa, who kept her eyes locked on him like a hawk.

Another punch, Jaime swiftly dodged before throwing a jab. She flinched from the pain, but that did little to stop her from throwing a kick. Jaime swiftly dodged her kick before grabbing her feet; he quickly rushed forward, her leg over his shoulder as he pushed her to the ground, she tried to fight back, but Jaime quickly pinned down her hands while her right leg was being held down by his body keeping it down, her feet still over his shoulder, her left leg could hardly move.

"Mikasa, come on. I know you can do better." Jaime whispered as he kept her pinned on the ground until... Armin whispered something in Eren's ear. He looked confused, but reluctantly, he turned to look down at Mikasa.

"Mikasa, come on. I know you can do better." Eren surprisingly encouraged her; this made her eyes go wide; before Jaime could stop her, her left leg was positioned below his chest before pushing him, throwing him away from her.

Jaime quickly stood up as Mikasa rushed him, her eyes even more furious than before; she almost looked possessed as she threw kick after kick. Jaime winced in pain as she swiftly, out of nowhere, performed a low kick, causing him to drop to the ground; Mikasa quickly pinned him down with her knee on his chest while using her forearm on his neck, adding pressure, causing him to start choking.

"Jaime!" Krista cried out in concern while being held back by Ymir.

Mikasa was ready to tell Jaime that the fight was over; she didn't want to hurt her friend when suddenly Jaime looked right into her gray eyes, a grin spread on his face; the grin was so unsettling that it caught Mikasa off guard she couldn't help but shiver from the grin alone, as Jaime whispered.

"You really should watch your back." Before Mikasa could even do anything, his legs moved upward, getting a hold of Mikasa's neck with his feet as he let out a roar, throwing her away with his feet alone.

Mikasa fell to the ground. Her throat was sore as she coughed, but her moment of distraction was enough for Jaime to quickly get a hold of her. His arms quickly moved around her neck; he lifted her up in the air before slamming her down on her back. Mikasa groaned in pain as Jaime quickly locked her body in place, using his arm and two legs; his right hand turned fist had stopped inches away from her face, his purple eyes looking at her with a raised eyebrow, waiting for her to either keep fighting or give up.

"I-I surrender." Once she said those words, gasps were heard; Jaime quickly pulled away from her, and Mikasa winced slightly; every muscle in her body felt sore and burning; she couldn't remember the last time she had pushed herself to her limits like this.

"That was wonderful, Mikasa," Jaime said with a comforting smile as he extended her hand to him; she quickly grasped it, and he pushed her to her feet.

"You fought well, Jaime." Mikasa couldn't help but speak the truth, but a part of her wished she had been the one to win; she knew Eren wouldn't really want to train with her, knowing she wasn't better than Jaime.

Mikasa watched as Jaime walked past her. She expected him to walk up to Krista, but instead, he walked up to Eren, of all people. He quickly asked about his fighting style until Jaime whispered something in his ear. Mikasa didn't hear what it was, and she almost leaned forward, perhaps to hear a few words, but before she could, Jaime leaned away from him before patting him on the back.

"Remember what I told you, Eren," Jaime said as he walked towards Krista and Ymir. Mikasa watched as Sasha, Connie, and a few others congratulated him for his victory. Annie looked at Jaime with a look that made Mikasa a little uncomfortable.

Despite not knowing him for a long time, Mikasa was observant enough to know that Annie was cold and cruel towards everyone but Jaime. She personally could never understand why Jaime sought out her company, and the way Annie was looking at Jaime, Mikasa couldn't help but not like it. For a brief moment, she felt the same way she always felt when she needed to protect Eren, and at this moment, she felt she needed to protect Jaime from Annie; she never liked her in the first place.

"Mikasa." She escaped her thoughts as she watched Eren approach her with a look of determination.

"Ereh?"

"Do you want to fight?"

.

.

"Huh?!" Mikasa's smart response; she was completely caught off guard; even Armin, who was nearby, started choking on the water he had been drinking.

"Fight?" She quickly added, knowing she needed to say something more and not just stand there watching him like a mute.

"Yes. Jaime taught me a move." Mikasa remembered what Jaime had told her, so she decided to put that theory to the test.

.

Soon, both Mikasa and Eren started throwing punches and kicks. Mikasa occasionally allowed one of his attacks to land on her; while it didn't hurt much, the results were apparent immediately. Eren's face brightened up right away, but Mikasa knew not to allow him to think he had the upper hand, making it clear that he still needed to get stronger, but at the same time, making sure he actually got better.

By the end of their little training, Eren was breathing heavily; he had bruises all over his body. Mikasa remembered Jaime telling her that Eren wanted someone who wouldn't hold their punches, so reluctantly, Mikasa had fought Eren and punched him quite a few times. She expected him to get mad that she was clearly still stronger, but Eren didn't even bring it up.

"I didn't know you could hit so hard, Mikasa," Eren said amidst breaths, holding his stomach; one of her punches had hit his stomach during the training.

"Are you alright?" Mikasa was quick to ask as always, afraid that she might have gone too far, but the face Eren held made it clear that he was pleased.

"Yes, I'm already feeling better; the pain is gone," Eren said reassuringly. Mikasa smiled gently as Armin walked up to them; she realized that he had been watching them since the beginning.

"Guys, the ODM Gear training will start now."

Later

Shadis watched carefully as the cadets used their ODM Gear; for someone who wasn't trained, they all appeared no different from one another, just young fools flying around the trees like headless chickens, but not for Shadis. He could see the little mistakes that someone else might not be able to pick up. He watched as Carla's son slashed through a bag; his cut was deep enough, but it was a knee bag.

Shadis watched as he tried to slash the nape, but a blur passed; the Instructor's eyes widened as the entire bag, including the neck of the mannequin, was obliterated, and the blur quickly flew away using his ODM Gear.

"Was that Jaime?" He heard the boy shout in disbelief, and for the first time, Shadis was in shock at what he had witnessed.

Out of all cadets this year, the three best Cadets when it came to ODM Gear were Mikasa Ackerman, Jaime, and Berthold Hoover; those three were easily better than the others. The tall cadet didn't really try, but Shadis was sure there was hidden potential in that boy.

But Shadis knew Jaime was in some kind of rivalry with the Ackerman. But despite how hard he tried, Mikasa Ackerman was always the best in ODM Gear.

Until today, apparently, Shadis watched closely, paying attention to every little movement, to every gas spent, the way he handled himself, the way he held his swords was different than before, and for the first time, Jaime appeared to be in the same league as Mikasa in ODM Gear, maybe even better, Shadis wasn't sure yet, but this new development made his lips twitch upwards slightly.

But unlike Mikasa, who was more of a lone wolf, Jaime had no problems working with others to take down an enemy. Shadis watched as he, Cadet Krista, and Cadet Ymir obliterated a mannequin.

Soon, the training came to an end, and as he was reading the names of the people who got the most bags, many were shocked when the second place belonged to Cadet Ackerman.

"Second place is Cadet Mikasa Ackerman." His words echoed throughout the air; even cadet Yeager was surprised to hear that, while Mikasa didn't seem bothered; if anything, there was a small smile on her face.

"First place is Cadet Jaime." Once he said the last name, cadet Krista cheered loudly while cadet Jean patted Jaime on the back.

Shadis saw the look on Jaime's face, a look of clear determination; he seemed even more eager now to prove himself.

Days Later

"Why exactly are we here again?" Jaime asked, letting out a sigh as he followed Krista behind on the streets of Trost. The sun had just risen over Wall Rose, engulfing the city in an orange glow. People had just woken up, shops were being opened, and the merchants were calling out for potential customers.

All cadets had three free days ahead of them; the majority of them had returned back to their homes, rest, and then returned back to the training corps, but only a few had decided to stay behind.

Jaime didn't really have anywhere else to go, it is not like he had a family waiting for him in Wall Sina, and his mentor basically told him to 'fuck off' the last time they had a 'normal' conversation with one another, so Jaime highly doubted the man wanted to see him again, and even if he did, Kenny was never one to be in the same place for a long time.

Knowing he had no training for three days straight, Jaime had decided to train in his skills with ODM Gear, that was until Krista and Ymir invited him to go to the market of Trost; well, Krista invited him, while Ymir complained that his existence was ruining her free time with her Krista.

"I have told you, ugly freckles, and I will say it again. Krista is not just yours; she's mine, too. Isn't that right, my beautiful Krista?" Jaime japed while mimicking Ymir, who growled, while Krista blushed at his words, making her look more adorable.

"You know I can just stomp on you, toddler?" Ymir loomed over him like a giant, speaking in a threatening voice; Jaime simply snickered; he never really felt threatened by Ymir.

"You wouldn't do that; your heart can't handle a world without Jaime; it would be too boring without me." He japed with an innocent grin as Ymir rolled her eyes, much to Krista's amusement. '

But Jaime quickly realized that there was more to this visit than simply seeing stuff and perhaps buying something, especially when Krista told him that she needed his help to buy something special.

"To buy something special," Krista answered vaguely; Ymir was further behind them, looking at something that perhaps Krista would like.

"Special can mean many things, Krista. What exactly?"

"Something special for Ymir." She answered as a merchantman shouted as loudly as possible for people to check his shop, which grabbed her attention; she quickly ran up to the merchant, looking at everything he was selling.

"What is that?" Krista asked, pointing at what seemed like a scroll; the merchant unrolled the scroll, revealing a map of the three walls. Jaime had to admit the details on the map were quite impressive; the map was fully painted, and the streets, the villages, the mountains, and the cities had numbers on them. Beside the map was a letter that showed the numbers and a name near each number.

"It's a map!"

"Not just any map, my beautiful lady. It has sixteen times the details of all the other maps." The merchant boasted much to Krista's amazement.

That's bullshit, Jaime thought as he led Krista away from the merchant.

As they kept exploring, Jaime quickly noticed something a merchant was selling; all kinds of beautiful necklaces were lying on a large table covered with a red carpet.

"Is there a special day coming that I'm unaware of?" Jaime eventually asked, knowing Krista must have a reason to want to buy a gift for ugly freckles.

"It's her birthday," Krista answered with a small giggle; her words caused Jaime to stop abruptly.

"When?"

"Two days later, why?" Jaime had a sudden idea in his head. Since the incident with the kidnappers, he knew everyone was feeling a little down, so having a party would do well to uplift everyone's mood.

"That's amazing. I think I need to buy her something." Jaime said before looking at the necklaces that the merchant was selling; the merchant was quick to try and convince him to buy the most expensive one before saying something about it being made of gold.

"Jaime, when is your birthday?" Krista asked curiously, only now remembering that they never celebrated his birthday the previous year.

"I don't know." Jaime answered casually with a small shrug.

"What do you mean, you don't know?" Krista couldn't help but ask, completely forgetting the fact that Jaime was raised differently from her.

"Krista." Jaime said her name somewhat hesitantly. "I was raised in the underground city, my parents dumped me somewhere like a piece of shit, and I'm sure you can guess that there are barely any calendars down there, and I had no one to tell me when I was born. So I have no idea when my birthday is." Jaime said, his voice suddenly heavier.

"Ohh," Krista said in realization, suddenly feeling bad for asking him. "When would you like your birthday to be?" Krista asked hopefully.

"I'm pretty sure that's not how that works." Jaime paused, a thoughtful look on his face. "But if I could choose then it would be on 15 May." Jaime answered with a warm smile.

Eventually, they both brought something for Ymir. Jaime knew ugly freckles would love anything that Krista brought her.

Once they returned to the Training Corps, Jaime made sure to start his evil plan to celebrate.

Two Days Later

"Krista, where are we going?" Ymir asked in confusion.

Throughout the whole day, Krista had been somewhat quiet with her, and often Ymir saw her talking with Jaime, but far enough away so she wouldn't be able to hear them, which was unusual for both of them.

Ymir wondered what they were talking about; Jaime, despite being annoying sometimes, knew he never looked at Krista in a romantic way, so she had no idea why they were talking away from her.

But Ymir had noticed that Jaime and Krista weren't the only ones acting odd today. Even Annie, the cold-hearted girl, was rather odd today, odder than usual; Ymir had seen her talking with Reiner, Jaime, and Jean away from the others. She didn't know what they were talking about and hadn't bothered to ask.

Tomorrow, the rest of the cadets would return from their homes; some had already returned, including Jean and Marco. When Jean explained that he wasn't really in the mood to stay one more day in his home with his mother, which made Eren furious, who started another fight with him, but this time with words, shouting at Jean that he should respect his mother.

Ymir hadn't really paid much attention to their squabbles; Ymir couldn't blame Jaime for calling them out, saying they were like an old married couple.

Eventually, the evening came; Ymir watched as, one by one, they all left, but instead of going to their domains, Ymir saw them going to the woods; soon, Krista told her to follow her, saying a surprise was waiting for her.

"It's a surprise." Krista said with a bright smile; Ymir sighed wearily, having a feeling that she wouldn't like this 'surprise.' She knew Krista wouldn't say anything else, so she bit her tongue and decided to just follow without questioning.

As they walked through the trees, Ymir started hearing people talking, including the lights twenty meters away from them, illuminating the forest. Ymir suddenly understood what was happening, the odd way Jaime and Krista had been acting.

Shit!!

As soon as they reached a clearing in the forest, Ymir saw Jaime and Mikasa chopping some wood; Jean, Marco, and Eren were trying to start a fire. Well, Marco definitely was; Eren and Jean were already busy yelling at one another about the stupidest things.

"I collected more wood than you!"

"Well, you are clearly blind, Eren; my wood is thicker than yours and definitely longer."

While Reiner, Bertholdt, and Connie were busy unlocking a box, with Sasha shouting things about meat or something, Annie was busy cutting some potatoes, much to her surprise.

"We are here." Krista suddenly announced for everyone to hear. This made everyone stop doing their job. Jaime walked up to Ymir with a smile, which wasn't a teasing one.

"Alright, Jaime, you told us you would tell us everything once Krista and Ymir are here." Connie said as he stood up while Reiner was busy opening the crate.

"Today is a special day, and I wanted to have a party," Jaime stated, grabbing everyone's attention. Ymir suddenly felt a little bit of dread as Jaime walked up to her before turning to face everyone else.

"A special day?"

"Today is the birthday of our beautiful freckles, over here." Jaime claimed, giving Ymir a side hug, his arm around her waist. Ymir both wanted to kick and praise Jaime, but she wasn't sure which one.

"Ymir, Happy Birthday!" Everyone was quick to say. Ymir felt herself blushing, her face turning red; she hated herself for acting like this; she was known for being tough, not like Krista.

"Why didn't you tell us before?" Armin asked.

"Well, we were still in the first year, so I didn't really tell anyone." Ymir excused herself as she walked further into the small, cozy camp they had all set.

"Yess!" Sasha suddenly shouted in joy as she looked at the second shortest guy in the group. "Jaime, does that mean we can eat your meat tonight? Pretty Please!!" Sasha begged with puppy eyes, drool leaking from her mouth like a dog. Ymir groaned; for a moment, she regretted ever telling Krista when her birthday was.

"Yes, you can eat all the meat you want. But I didn't bring just meat tonight." Jaime said as he pointed at the boxes they had brought; there were three of them in total, and Ymir already had an idea of what those boxes were filled.

"Yeah, what's there?" Armin was first to ask, as always.

"Reiner, can you do the honours?"

"As you order, Captain," Reiner said playfully with a salute; Ymir couldn't help but notice just how happy Reiner seemed, even more than usual, while Bertholdt seemed a little nervous as always.

Once the box was opened, Connie quickly pulled out... bottles of wine!

"Holy crap, you brought alcohol?!" Connie almost shouted. He seemed ready to open the bottle right away, but Jaime quickly grabbed it from his hands.

"Yes, yesterday I was in the Hermina district; a shop there sells the best wine you can find," Jaime explained as he and Connie pulled out the rest of the bottles, enough for all of them to get drunk. Ymir grinned like a maniac; getting drunk was something she knew she would enjoy, especially knowing she could get Krista drunk, too.

"Good job, shiny head." Jaime said jokingly as Connie looked annoyed while Sasha giggled.

"Shiny head?" Armin couldn't help but ask with amusement.

"Yes, he has no hair, and because he's short, someone might mistake him for an overgrown egg." Jaime joked, earning a burst of laughter from Sasha; many snickered at the comment, even Connie, before rolling his eyes.

"I'm not bald. I decided to cut my hair." The others laughed; even Connie found himself chuckling in amusement.

.

"Please have a seat, Ymir. Me and Annie are almost done with the food." Jaime instructed before walking up to Annie, who had been mostly quiet the whole time.

"Thank you for the help, Annie. You are the best." Jaime said with his usual smile. Annie kept cutting potatoes as Jaime had instructed her; she had no idea why she had gone out of her way to help Jaime with his cooking; she knew he was more than capable of doing it by himself. So why was she helping him?

.

.

.

Shit, Annie cursed under her breath; she wasn't stupid, unlike some; she knew the feelings she was trying to suppress were quite real and not just stupid imagination.

How many times she wished she could act cold towards him like she easily does with everyone else, yet every time she looked at his purple eyes, all thoughts of acting cold would melt away like snow, and she always found herself wanting more of his company.

"Can I help you, Jaime?" The moment she heard Mikasa's annoying voice, Annie's eyes were as cold as snow. She almost wanted to tell the Ackerman girl to go to Eren like the good little dog that she is, but she held her tongue.

"Oh! Sure, you can cut the tomatoes." Jaime instructed with his usual cheerful smile as he started cutting the meat with precision. Annie met Mikasa's eyes, both glaring at one another like they were waiting for who would draw the knife first.

Annie wasn't afraid of her, and it seemed neither was Mikasa, whose glare intensified. Annie wondered what her problem was; she usually was like this only when her master was involved, and currently, Eren was busy making a bet with Jean on who could drink more wine, with poor Armin trying to convince him that it wasn't worth it.

Annie decided to test something with an evil smirk, looking right at Mikasa. "Jaime, can you show me again how to cut the skin of the potatoes?" Upon hearing her request, Jaime walked up to her. He looked confused, but he showed her nonetheless; while grabbing her hands smoothly, Annie had to admit that his hands felt soft and warm, but as soon as her eyes landed on Mikasa, just as Annie expected. The girl's glare looked murderous right now.

"Thank you, Jaime," Annie said with a devilish smirk, briefly looking at Mikasa to see her reaction; her eyes were so cold that Annie thought hell might freeze over. Jaime turned red, which made him look adorable in Annie's eyes.

"Anytime."

.

Soon, the dish was made and served by Jaime, and since it was Ymir's birthday, she was served first. "Happy Birthday to Ymir." Krista said joyfully, soon followed by everyone else who wished her happy birthday.

As expected, the food was delicious; even Eren seemed to enjoy every bite. Jaime felt proud at the sight of them, seeing all of them enjoying the food he had prepared. It brought a smile to his face, and it didn't take long for one of them to finish her plate before everyone else.

Sasha started licking the plate once she was done eating before looking at Mikasa with puppy eyes; sadly, the latter looked away, much to Sasha's despair, who looked on the verge of crying.

"Here, Sasha." The village girl turned to see Jaime and Krista offering her a piece of their food, just as they had done on the first day of the training corps.

"You two are the best," Sasha said dreamily before abruptly kissing Jaime on the cheek without thinking; the latter turned red from embarrassment, while Ymir burst out laughing; Sasha, on the other hand, turned red, quickly looking away from Jaime but Ymir quickly noticed the look that Annie was sending Sasha, Ymir gulped slightly at the sight.

Good luck, Potato Girl.

"Sasha, we didn't know you like Jaime." Connie couldn't help but tease her, causing the said girl to turn redder.

"That's not true." Sasha quickly protested, hiding her face with her hands.

"Alright, enough. Ymir, me and Krista bought you something." Jaime stopped their little conversation.

As expected, Ymir looked touched when Krista gave her a wristwatch. Jaime gave her a pocket necklace, its chain made of silver; Ymir had to admit it looked beautiful.

"Open it."

Ymir wasted no time, and what she saw inside the necklace made her heart skip a beat. It was a drawing of her and Krista sitting close to one another, holding each other's hands. Ymir wondered how he had been able to put so many details in such a small drawing, but she was still surprised; even Krista's face brightened up like a star, a blush on her face.

"I-Thank you, Jaime." Ymir didn't know what else to say. She would be lying if she said that his gift didn't please her a lot and touch her feelings, and Jaime himself looked pleased to hear that.

"You're welcome, beautiful freckles." Jaime said teasingly with a smile.

.

"Alright, we are going to play a little game," Jaime said as everyone formed a circle, with Annie sitting to his right; Jaime gave each one a glass full of wine.

"A game?"

"Truth or Dare. The rules are simple: I will spin this empty bottle in the middle; whoever gets head will choose either truth or dare or drink the wine, and the one who gets the bottom of the bottle will get to either ask or dare the other." Jaime explained as he placed an empty bottle in the middle; Eren gave Jean an evil look, as did Jean; Connie rubbed his hands together and looked excited at the thought of playing.

"Ohh boy." Armin murmured under his breath, already feeling nervous.

Jaime spun the bottle...

"Shit!" Jean cursed as Eren gave him the biggest smug smirk he could muster.

"Do your worst, suicidal bastard, Dare." Jean said with a nasty glare.

"I dare you to admit that the Survey Corps is much better than the Military Police," Eren said smugly; Ymir rolled her eyes while murmuring something about them being morons.

Jean simply drank the whole glass of wine, some leaking from the corners of his mouth. "On your dreams, Eren." Jean said the moment he swallowed the wine, with Jaime filling his glass again. Eren looked a little disappointed, but a look of victory was still apparent on his face.

Another spin...

"Dare."

"Sweet. Jaime, I dare you to ask Sasha for a kiss." Connie said teasingly. Sasha turned red, looking away from him before looking at Mikasa as if trying to find protection from her.

While his dare made Jaime groan loudly, Jean smirked before telling Jaime that he should do it since Sasha would probably kiss him, but Jaime wasn't in the mood to play with anyone's feelings when it came to this sort of thing; he wanted to make it clear that Sasha was just a good friend.

"Sasha, you are a beautiful girl. But I will drink this one." Jaime said before drinking the entire cup; Marco quickly filled him the cup. Connie got an earful from Ymir for his stupid dare.

Another spin...

"Truth."

"Reiner, when did you and Berthodt meet?" Armin asked the first completely normal question.

"Ohh, well, we... me and Berthold knew each other way before. In our village, I saw him away from everyone else. I asked him why he was quiet and wasn't talking, and he said he didn't know what to talk about, so I asked him about his name, and once, he told me. I told him that we now had a reason to talk." Reiner explained before drinking his cup nonetheless. Bertholdt blushed in embarrassment when everyone else gave him funny looks.

Another spin...

"Truth."

"Very well, Armin. Which was your biggest lie?" Jaime asked; what sounded like an innocent enough question made Armin gasp; suddenly, he looked very nervous, his face turning paler; even Mikasa looked at him concerned.

"Armin, you alright?"

"...Yeehh," Armin said nervously with sweat rolling down his face; suddenly, he emptied the entire cup of wine in his mouth, quickly wiping the wine left away from his lips with his sleeve, much to the shock of everyone, even Annie was surprised to see Armin drink a whole cup like that.

Another spin...

"Truth." Jaime said right away.

Mikasa looked pleased that she could ask him a question as she took a small sip from her cup."You told me that you want to explore the entire world, but what do you want to do after?"

Jaime had thought about that, and while his dream was very unrealistic, he still had thought of his life after he fulfilled his wish. "I want to build a beautiful house, marry the girl I love, and have three children. Two girls and a boy." Jaime answered with a blush on his cheeks; his eyes briefly flickered at Annie as he drank the entire cup nonetheless.

"That's it, that sounds quite a boring life." Eren couldn't help but comment.

"Eren, you, too, need to think about a future with someone eventually, someone that can make you happy," Jaime said, looking over the rim of his cup. Eren seemed like he wanted to make another comment until Armin tapped his shoulder.

Another spin...

Annie glared at Reiner, who suddenly looked nervous. "Truth." He murmured after a small pause. Jaime wondered why Annie seemed to have a personal vendetta against Reiner. As far as he knew, they had never met before the Training Corps started.

"Reiner, do you feel regret?" The question caught many off guard. Jaime wondered what the history between the two of them was. Reiner didn't answer. Instead, he drank from the cup.

Several more spins...

"T-Truth." Reiner said confidently, but it was clear that he was a little drunk as he slipped on his words.

"Well, Reiner, do you wish there was something you could have changed in your life?" Marco asked with his usual bright smile, but Reiner suddenly lost all the color. He looked like a ghost.

"...Yes, a lot. But one thing in particular. I wish Marc-" "Reiner." Bertholdt suddenly interrupted him with a shocked expression, which seemed to make Reiner's face go even more pale; he said no words as he emptied the cup in his mouth.

Jaime noticed that out of all of them, Bert was the one who had drunk the least. Annie was sitting a bit closer to him; her knee was touching him; he almost wanted to put his arm around her waist to bring her closer.

"Another Spin..."

"Dare, ugly face," Eren shouted; they all had drunk quite a bit by now, five empty bottles lying on the grass. Sasha had her back against Mikasa's shoulder, her face red from alcohol, while Mikasa seemed to still be quite there.

"Drink the rest of the bottle." Eren started doing so without hesitation. Thankfully, it was only a third, but still, Eren's face turned green, and he looked on the verge of vomiting after he threw away the bottle.

Another spin...

"Truth," Jaime answered right away as he drank more from his cup; his tongue had loosened up a bit by now.

"Why do you have a half-finished drawing in your notebook?" It was Armin who asked; Jaime took another sip of wine.

"It's Arthur, but— I wanted to draw him how he would have looked by now, but— he—I—I don't know how he would look like right now, if he was still alive." Jaime answered with melancholy. Armin looked apologetic, but Connie looked intrigued.

"What happened to him?"

"I—" I killed him; Jaime almost said the rest; suddenly, he could feel the blood on his mouth, but surprisingly, he felt Annie's soft hand on top of his right hand. The sight didn't darken this time, and Arthur didn't appear; Jaime suddenly felt much better, not as drunk.

"Jaime, can you sing us a song?" asked Sasha with a blush on her cheeks.

"Yes. I wrote a song for Ymir." Jaime said before clearing his throat.

"Don't you think about me enough?

I've been burning my heart out.

Got to face me to tell you.

I will run cause I'm innocent.

You will know you're reborn tonight.

Must be rough but I'll stay by your side.

Even if my body's beat to the bones.

I don't want to go through that ever again.

So cry no more, oh my beloved.

Go ahead, be proud and fight it out.

You are the one, a rising star

You guide us this far to home yet girt.

"That was beautiful, Jaime," Krista said with a dreamy look. Jaime felt a rush of warmth in his chest as he looked at the people that had gathered. He couldn't help but wish that these moments would last forever.

Chapter 14 (A Song for Love)

Chapter 15 (The Last Day in Training Corps)

Chapter 16 (The Battle of Trost)