Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"JEAN!"
The voice of a small child rung through the forest, carried through the wind that weaved between the towering trees. It was a light voice, soft and gentle but loud enough to be heard from a distance, which was the owner's intention. The boots on her feet prodded along the fresh green grass, a woven basket in her small arms that threatened to spill the contents within it - a variety of fruits and vegetables.
Margot Boudreaux came to a stop by a large tree that was many times bigger than herself, her hand flat against the bark as she took a pause to catch her breath, the basket resting on her hip. But she couldn't keep up the basket for long and set it by her feet before doing a 360 spin to see if she could spot the boy she was looking for. She couldn't. Scratching her head, the ten-year-old hummed in confusion before placing her hands on her hips and calling out again.
"JEAN-BOY!"
"I told you not to call me that, Maggot." The voice of Jean Kirstein from behind her caused the girl to turn around - so fast that she would have tripped over the basket had he not held her arms to steady her balance. Jean was a tall boy for his age, even though they both still had some growing to do, with short ash-brown hair and light-brown eyes. He used to be chubby but had lost some of the weight growing up. A small huff left her lips, and she lifted her fist, jabbing it into his shoulder.
"I've been telling you for years not to call me Maggot, yet, here we are," Margot retorted with a shrug, but was unable to hold back the smile from her face. Neither was Jean, who ruffled her black hair before throwing his arm over her shoulder and helping her to pick up the basket. They each held one side of the basket and began to head back to where they had come from. "Where did you go? I was looking everywhere for you."
"Me? You left me in the market!" Jean complained. Margot snickered, not realising she had been the one to lose him rather than the other way around, before reaching up and pressing her finger into his chubby cheek. He swatted her hand away. "Maggot."
They made it back to his house rather quickly, placing the woven basket of fruit and vegetable in the kitchen just as his mother entered the room. The kind woman was stout and resembled Jean greatly, and always seemed to be wearing a closed-eye smile. Margot couldn't help but return it and manoeuvred around the table to hug the woman.
"Afternoon, Ms Kirstein," Margot greeted, before feeling Jean's hand wrap around her upper arm and attempting to drag her upstairs and out of the kitchen. Jean's mother laughed at their antics, returning the greeting and watching as they ran upstairs, trying to shove each other out of the way as they did so.
This was a routine for the two friends, and had been so for many years. They would spend time at each other's houses regularly since they were around three years old, and nothing had changed since, even seven years later. They were as close as friends could get, and he had adopted a protective nature over the girl that she usually waved off and laughed about but he took it seriously, as if it was his job.
As they grew older, he would notice how boys would grow interested in the girl, and it angered him, as he didn't believe any of them had good intentions - or deserved her, anyway. Especially when they were much older than her. He would often scare them off, but she didn't necessarily care. However, that didn't stop her from scolding him for his rude behaviour towards the innocent ones. Some even questioned whether the two of them were dating, and Jean would be disturbed by the notion while Margot would laugh.
Sitting on his bed in the small bedroom, Margot gestured to the floor, commanding Jean to sit down in front of her. He did so, sitting down by her legs and handing her a pair of scissors. He trusted her to cut his hair, and she did a good job. Pushing his hair up, she began to trim the sides, humming quietly as he began to speak.
"I saw some of the Military Police today," Jean started, trying to look up at the girl, but she moved his head back into the correct position, causing him to huff in annoyance. "One day we'll be one of them, won't we, Margot? Both of us."
"Of course," Margot agreed with a grin, putting down the scissors for a moment before wrapping her arms around his neck from behind and giving him a hug. If they had been in public, he probably would have flicked her forehead or started complaining. But in this instance, he merely smiled. "Just three more years, and we'll start the training."
Jean nodded, patting her arm. She continued to cut his hair, all the while thinking back to the time when there had been three of them. Jean, Margot, and Augustine. Augustine Boudreaux. His name caused tears to spring to her onyx eyes, but she blinked them back, a fond smile replacing it as she remembered her late twin brother who had passed only five years ago. He had been just as close to Jean as she had been and had left them both so suddenly after an illness took over his health. He didn't last four days.
Jean heard the girl behind him sniffle and glanced behind him. Margot wasn't crying - she wasn't really a crier. But he could tell she was almost there, her eyes glazed over with fresh tears threatening to spill down her reddened cheeks. Before he could speak, she put down the scissors, having finished cutting his hair.
"He was going to come with us," Margot spoke quietly, her hands running through Jean's hair a couple of times. "Augustine. He always wanted to... he always wanted to join the Scout Regiment."
Margot knew how Jean felt about the Scout Regiment. He saw it as suicide to even consider joining and had always scolded Augustine for wanting to join. But that didn't sway her twin, not even once. However, Jean didn't seem to care at that moment, as he too missed her brother and wished he was there with them. Alive and well.
"He is with us," Jean answered after a few moments, standing up in front of her and holding out his hand. Her eyes flickered down to his palm before she placed her hand in his, watching as he placed his other hand on top. "He always will be."
word count : 1143
·̩͙✧ AUTHOR'S NOTE ! ━━━
welcome to my book! sorry this chapter is kinda short, it's just the intro.
also, i know i already said this but not everything will happen EXACTLY as it happens in the anime. i'm not really changing the plot, i just mean minor details and stuff like that.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
