A Second Chance (Marco x Fem Reader)

Chapter 31

(Edited)

"Looks like someone has been here recently", the male scout named Henning speculated, referring to the knickknacks, like kettles and cups, you found once you entered the room.

"That's odd for a place this close to the wall. Must have been bandits using it as a base", Nanaba suggested as she adjusted the burning firewood with her blade. You were huddled up against Connie close to the fire, your arms wrapped around your legs as you pulled your knees close to your chest. You were extremely tired, but the coldness in your body from riding in nothing but a blouse and a dress all day and all night surpassed all other discomforts you were feeling. You closed your eyes as you let your muscles relax and take in the warmth from the fire, trying to stop the shivering.

"It said 'Ruins of Utgard Castle' on one of the signs. Who would have thought there was a castle around here?", the female scout you had now come to learn which name was Lynne, said.

"Hey, check out what I found", Gelgar said, entering the room with a green flask containing some kind of liquid.

"Gelgar, is that booze I see?", Lynne asked him, trying to suppress her excitement. Unlike the other regiments, booze and alcohol weren't consumed often in the Survey Corps. The scouts have long understood the importance of staying sharp and alert; being intoxicated could end in disaster should something unforeseen happen. But Scouts still casually drank every now and then, mostly when titled veterans invited to organized drinking evenings in mess hall. You and everyone else who were under eighteen years old were not invited of course.

Gelgar gulped in an exaggerated manner, inspecting the bottle further. Gelgar was actually quite a drinker, you had learned from both Nanaba and Miche telling you funny stories from said drinking-evenings you weren't allowed to attend.

"What the heck does it say?", he asked himself, staring intently at the label.

"You're not going to drink it now, are you?", Nanaba asked him with a raised eyebrow. Gelgar quickly straightened his posture.

"Don't be stupid. Not at a time like this", Gelgar assured her, making his way over to the group.

"Typical... All this contraband to enjoy for ourselves, and we can't even consume it", Henning said sarcastically.

"Now you're making us sound like the bandits", Nanaba joked back with a little laugh.

"You rookies should try to get some rest", Gelgar insisted, your eyes jerked open as he addressed you. "Titans won't be roaming around at this hour, but the rest of us will take turns keeping watch". You smiled at him, thankful that these four veterans where here with you and your friends. There weren't much you could have done without their protection here. "We'll leave from here four hours before daybreak".

"Um...", you heard Crista's soft voice speak out from the corner behind you where her and Ymir chose to rest. "What if the wall isn't actually broken after all?", she started saying carefully. "The titans... Where could they be invading from?", she asked nervous. Everyone was on edge, the very same question had lingered in the back of all of your minds ever since the two teams met up.

"Finding the answer to that is our job for tomorrow... Rest now», Gelgar said as he started ascending the stairs leading to the very top of the tower.

"But what if?", Crista continued once he was gone. "Maybe it's not nearly as bad as we thought from the start? I'm just saying, but...", her voice trailed of as she noted the down expressions from the rest of you.

"Yeah, I guess I get what you mean. The only group we've really seen was during the initial sighting at the base earlier. Maybe it was just those, which is a considerable improvement from our earliest suspicions", you chimed in, trying to see the positive solution to this situation. You leaned your head back against Connie's shoulder again, looking into the fire.