The Birth of Freedom

The Nature of Things

Aurora

"Do you think that's enough wood Aurora?"

I looked over to the young girl whose red scarf was dancing in the wind, carrying a large bundle of sticks and making my own meagre pile look pitiful, Mikasa watched me with expressionless eyes as she awaited my answer.

"A few more I think and then we will get the boys and head home. Don't want Carla to pull our ears again" I said giving the Raven-haired girl a lopsided grin. Mikasa scoffed and went to collect more wood and following suit, I collected what little wood remained around me.

Grandfather will not be impressed with this amount, I hope Rian has found more.

Thinking of my twin, I wondered where he and Eren had gotten to. Scanning the fields around us, I felt a spark of anger as I spotted Rian's lanky form sat by the only tree in sight with a book in his hand and Eren laid out beside him with his head on Rian's lap.

I'm going to kill him.

"Of all the lazy... useless... idiotic..." I huffed as I stomped over to the boys.

Following behind as I beelined for the tree, Mikasa stretched on her toes to see saw what had irked me and smiled. My red hair swayed in its heavy braid hitting my back as I stomped towards my lazy targets to give them an earful about pulling their weight.

"Beloved sister" Rian greeted without lifting his strawberry blonde head from his book as I came to stand before him. Somehow, he always knew where I was, no matter how far away, he always knew. A weird twin thing Eren called it, and I guess he was right it kind of was weird but also comforting in its own unique way.

"Wood Rian, remember what were here for" I scolded. Looking down I saw his free hand stroking Eren's dark brown hair while he slept and unable to remain angry, my face softened as I looked at the young boy and noticed his eyelids were shiny as if they were wet.

Was he crying?

Appearing from behind me, Mikasa nudged Eren with her foot startling him up in a sitting position, his head clattering with Rian's elbow making him hiss in pain and a smug smile pulled at my lips as he furiously rubbed his funny bone trying to soothe the pain.

Serves him right, lazy git.

"Eren its time to go back" Mikasa stated while looking back toward the Gate house in Wall Maria before tilting her head up to the darkening sky. Groaning as he rubbed his head, Eren looked around as if to get his bearings and Rian looked down at him with an eyebrow raised.

"It just feels like I had this really long dream or something. What was it about? I can't remember" Eren muttered as Mikasa gasped, pointing at his face with a concerned expression.

"Eren have you been crying?" she asked as she reached out a hand to him and pulled him up. Rian too pushed to his feet and stretched to his full height as he popped his joints, towering over all of us.

Had he grown again? If he kept this up, he would be taller than Grandfather before long.

Grumbling about dreams and tears, Eren pushed past Mikasa and the four of us headed back to the gate of Shiganshina with our pitiful piles of wood to take to our families.

"I hope you were reading something good instead of helping with the wood" I sniped while pulling the book from my twin's hand and I pulled a face at him before giving him the book back.

Battle manuals of the survey corps really Rian? Not you too.

"Uncle Alert gave it to me when I last walked Armin home. You know how Eren talks about them all the time. I guess I was curious" Rian shrugged. Handing the book back to me he pulled the tied sticks from my shoulders and placed them on his own to carry the burden home. Smiling in thanks, I thumbed through the book as I squinted at the complex words, trying to remember what Grisha taught me to help read the words.