Test Drive Meme #2

[seasonsmods]

Test Drive Meme #2
LOGS | NETWORK | OOC | MEMES | NAVIGATION

Arrival

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Part 1

You arrive in an unknown space, dressed in white clothes (player choice what kind of clothes, as long as they cover everything). Whatever was happening to you before no longer happens. It's like everything was put on a pause and you were transferred away from the situation without you realizing it happened.

The space that you find yourself in is one of these four options:

An empty landscape filled with snow and ice, almost like a blank canvas.
A field with cherry blossom trees and spring flowers.
A sunny beach near an ocean that seems never ending.
A quiet forest with falling autumn leaves.

All of the spaces seem to continue endlessly. No matter where or how far you walk it almost seems like you're not moving at all. There are no animals here - just those who happened to wake up there at the same time, in the same place. Everyone is wearing the same kind of plain, white clothes.

Despite the possible rollercoaster of emotions you might be feeling, the place somehow feels familiar. Like somehow you belong there.

And it looks like you're not alone.


Part 2

After half an hour has passed the surroundings change as everyone is teleported into a room with all the other new arrivals, no matter what space they woke up in. It's a large place with plenty of seats to sit in and beverages to enjoy. Medical attention is offered to those who need it and the doctors here are very prepared for any challenging situations.

Here, in this room, everyone gets an answer to where they are and why. A hologram of a man appears at the center of the room, waiting to be heard. He brings a message on behalf of the leaders of Ellipsa.

The Message [ Click to Expand ]

Hello, my name is Olwen. I'm one of the leaders of Ellipsa as it currently is. I'm also one of the four who summoned you here.

Our world is in trouble and we need your help. I apologize for tearing you away from your world and forcing you to come here but I hope you understand. The magic we used doesn't let us ask in advance, nor does it let us choose who we bring here.

This world is composed of four Seasonal Segments. All of them represent one of the seasons. They were the places we used to get our resources from, but now they're dangerous places no one should go into unless they have the power to fight back. All of them have their own sets of powerful monsters and natural catastrophes.

We used to have plenty of people here who could control the powers of the four Seasons. We called them Seasonal Power Holders. Unfortunately, due to a tragedy you can read about later, we lost almost all of them. Now only four of us remain and the world is in chaos. We have done our best to protect the world, but we need more power holders to do that.

That's where you come in.

All of you have been assigned to one of the seasons. Whatever space you were in just now is what season you represent. You will learn different skills based on the season and those skills are going to help you save this world.

These powers don't interfere with your own natural powers. They use a new energy that has formed inside of you. It's harmless to your health, but it's vital to your seasonal powers. Your own powers should still work, even if the dark energy outside the city might interfere with them.

Unfortunately bringing you here wasn't as simple as it sounds. We couldn't do anything about how to keep you anchored to this world other than making a simple spell that helps with it. That is, you need to touch someone else who is not from this world ideally at least once a day. It will help you stay in control of your powers and boost your magical energy. If you don't, the consequences aren't very good. But as long as you hold someone's hand or give someone a handshake, you should be fine.

That's all I have to say about the situation. The staff of the Research Center will give you more information about housing and other necessary things. I will, however, promise that you will be sent home once the situation becomes better. That's the least we can do.

The hologram can be viewed in private in a separate room later, should someone wish to look at it again. For now, the staff of the Research Center hands everyone their new smartphones with their small flower lucky charms (the flower is anything the player decides). They're also told that the building next door is where everyone can find a room assigned to them with some of their belongings there and possibly even any animal companions. Those concerned about their mount-sizes companions are welcomed to the stables downstairs to see if their friends are there. The mounts are allowed to stay there until you find a place more suitable for them.

Once you get your smartphone and necessary information, you're urged to go out and find your apartment. After that whatever you want to do is up to you.

Part 3

The building next door is where everyone can find their new apartments. As you enter, you're told by a friendly native that for the first two months you can live anywhere rent-free and five meals a day are paid for you. After that they get a monthly payment that helps with some of their living expenses, but otherwise they have to have a job to support themselves.

All of the apartments are comfortable, two bedroom apartments with all necessary utilities. They are also completely soundproof. Sometimes the magic system, however, does glitch and you might find yourself rooming with a stranger. This is not the intention and the staff will immediately prepare you your own room if you ask them. But maybe having a roommate isn't all that bad?

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Little April Showers

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Part 1

April is the time for a strange weather effect that affects all of the districts, save for the one in the middle and Frostreign. It's not weird that it rains, but it's what the rain does that has been dubbed as the Rain of Affection.

Anyone who stands in the rain will feel the need to get close to someone. It starts with a need to gently touch someone gently, but can escalate into needing to hug someone. The ultimate craving of the rain is kissing in the rain but that's the most it can make happen. It's a very Safe For Work Rain Effect.

After a successful kiss in the rain, the cravings slowly become less urgent, but the effect can start all over again at any given time.

Of course, there are individuals who don't get too affected by the rain (at all or not as badly) and it only works if it directly hits someone. So staying in a shelter or being in Nightwake Center or Frostreign is definitely a way to avoid this whole phenomenon. Even avoiding the worst of the effect is easy by just going under a shelter or purchasing a nice, maybe even a color changing, umbrella.

It's raining very often until the end of the month at different times in each districts.

Part 2

After the rain, a rainbow usually appears. Rainbows formed by the Rain of Affection are special, wish granting ones. The natives will explain that if you hold someone's hands and make a wish that wish will come true in some capacity.

Someone wishing for wealth may win a gift card for a shop while someone wishing to see a loved one they're missing may get pictures sent to their mobile devices (how? magic). Those wishing for world peace may find their very presence be calming to others. But the biggest prize is a free regain of a non-magical item or an animal companion. If someone asks for a magical item it will come as a non-magical item and the magical part of it would have to be purchased by a magical-regain, so it's cheaper to just not.

Be careful what you wish for, as each character only gets one wish, no matter how many rainbows they end up seeing during the rainy season.

Part 3

Solarpeak has a new way of battling against the hot summer days (you know, when it isn't raining). Many shops along the streets sell ice cream mochis of varying flavors. You have your very normal flavors like different berries, fruit and chocolate, but also some very excotic and weird ones.

There's even a flavor called random mystery that is literally that. A randomized flavor that is a mystery to all. It can even be a flavor that no one has thought of before or even something that definitely should not be in any kind of food. Anyone who buys a pack of two mochis will get a free mystery one if they want it (and sometimes even if they don't).

Other districts also have some treats out for different climates. There are various flavors of hot cocoa in places like Amberfall and Frostreign, and nice light treats like macarons in Blossomcrown. Of course various restaurants have their own menus that fit their own season, so you could definitely have a gourmet journey all over the city of Nightwake if you wished.

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When Life Gives You Portals

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Part 1

One morning, on all of the bridges leading outside into the segments, round gates appear. They're portals that bring in monsters. They look normal from the outside looking in, like portals to a lovely garden. But the gardens are the problem as they are infested with different monsters, waiting to attack the city. This isn't the first time natives have seen these portals and before they had people to deal with them, but now? They need otherworlders.

All of the monsters inside need to be defeated for the portal to disappear. No one knows exactly how many there are, but with the defeat of the last one, the portal will disappear from around anyone inside of it, leaving the characters on the bridge.

The portal can be entered from both the city and the segment side and it looks flat when looked from sideways. Like it's just a random 2D structure in the middle of the world.

Those who explore the portal further will notice that they will loop around. It's very similar to the place they started in, back when they arrived, as it doesn't seem to have an end, no matter how you explore the place.

For noncombatants, natives have set up stations to help with first aid and making food for the fighters so they can occasionally come back from the portals to take a much needed rest.

Anyone helping with the fight, either in the portals or outside, will receive a hefty 5000 Moon Coin reward for their hard work. A good way to earn some starting funds!

Monster List [ Click to Expand ]

All of the Monsters listed here will be in all of the portals and there will be several of each to fight.

The danger level is indicated with Stars. The lowest level threat is 0 while the highest is 10. From 7 and above, the likelihood of a beast going for a kill increases significantly.

Name	Description	Stars
Bubblefish	Bubblefish are lumbering, two-legged creatures, with fins for arms, a long, muscular, finned tail, and a big fish face. They are fast, dangerous predators while in water, but do not count them out while on land, as regardless of whether they are above water or below it, they can blow large bubbles which capture their targets. Once inside the stretchy bubble, victims begin to go numb, their body feeling like it's on pins and needles as the Dragonfish begins to cast various debuffs on them. The bubbles are tough to escape despite their appearance, but the debuffs are lesser when shared, and can be escaped with the propper application of mint or minty treats! Mint has the effect of weakening the bubble to allow it to pop, although you may then find yourself being charged as the Bubblefish goes wild trying to get that minty goodness.	5-8
Bugboars	These are really more like rhinocerous beetles, but they are the size of wild boars, and they act similarly, roaming about in family groups together, rooting through the ground to unearth any edible material. They are highly territorial, and charge at anything or anyone who gets close. Their eyesight might be poor, but they make up for it with their antennae and the fact that these massive beetles do have wings, and they possess enough control over wind to lift themselves off of the ground at great speeds, or send powerful gales at those who come too close to their young.	6
Crockodile	Crocodiles with elemental powers of earth, leading to them being able to travel through dirt and stone as if they were water, these large reptiles often hide beneath the earth with only their eyes and nostrils peeking out, resembling the stone they hide within. They are ambush predators, popping out of the ground, large stony jaws open to crush their prey, but even once dragged out of hiding they are hardly easy to defeat. These crocks are stony in appearance and their hide is just as hard to pierce. In addition, they're a little closer to the size of a small car than your average crocodile.	6-9
Flurry Flock	White birds acting like a swarm that may deceive you into thinking they are harmless doves at first. Upon closer inspection, they more closely resemble a vengeful murder of crows with pure white feathers that they can use to reflect light so brilliantly that one can be blinded, leaving the flock's victim open to attack as they descend upon their prey like a group of voracious piranhas, claws and beaks as cold as ice as they try to tear their foes apart	3-6
Lavapotamus	These large hippo-creatures seem to be either made of or covered in molten rock that hardens over time when in the air. Usually they prefer to soak in lava and be left alone. Pulled through portals in an environment far too cool for their liking and with people so nearby has them aggressive and dangerous, charging down anyone who gets too near and leaving a red-hot trail of lava in their wake.	3-8
Minosaur	This creature seems to be a horrific mash of other creatures, similar to a traditional chimera; it possesses the body and horns of a bull, a head like a Tyrannosaurus, the plates of a stegosaurus all the way down it's powerful back and becoming spikes as they trail down it's tail, which ends in a very angry snake head. There is no end of this creature's body which is not hard, sharp, and completely pissed off. If you manage not to get bitten or gored at it's head, you will still need to contend with the powerful hooved legs attempting to stomp down on you, and take care to dodge as the snake head on it's tail spits fire.	8-10

Part 2

Even after the defeat of the Portals, there's still a lot of things to do! All of the Guilds are open. There's a good training space outside of them to test our powers and computers where you can learn all about what kind of powers you can unlock.

All guilds also have the same Questboard open! Why not take a look and see what adventures await?

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OOC TIPS

- Ask your questions related to the TDM here.

- The TDM is available only to friends of the mods and their friends. If you're not a friend of the mods and want to play in the TDM, please leave a note here to inform us who invited you over. We will get to you as soon as possible!

- Feel free to visit the EMP/ATP - meme!

- New characters can add TDM on their subject line to indicate they're new! They can also comment HERE to promote their new top levels.

- Test Drive is open for current characters to make a top level as well.

- Current characters cannot access the starting area again to meet new arrivals. They can, however, be at the Research Center when the newbies are teleported in.

- The TDM is game canon so anything in the TDM can happen for your character(s) in the game as well.

- Smut is not allowed on the TDM. You can play situations leading to it, but if the thread is turning into smut, please move it to a private space such a post in your character's journal, or a locked post in the game's log community if you decide to app!

- Check Locations: City to find more areas to explore inside the city. Every place in the districts are open. Similarly, Locations: Segments is useful for outdoors adventures.

- You can find monsters to encounter on Beastiary.

- FAQ has information on characters' smartphones as well as general things about the world that might be handy.

code bases by tricklet

Comments

reiner braun | attack on titan

[hometown]

Arrival

It's a miracle that Reiner isn't dead.

Well, not exactly a miracle. More like really, really good luck. He saved himself in the instant before that blade pieced his neck, severing his spine in what should have been a fatal blow. The follow-up strike to his heart ought to have been overkill. But neither did the job; Reiner reacted in time, transferring his consciousness throughout his body, using those injuries to begin his transformation into the Armored.

It wasn't according to plan, but it was within expectations. Nothing that Reiner couldn't handle.

This, however? This abrupt and utterly unexpected change of location? This is beyond him.

Reiner sits up slowly, waving away steam that curls from the rapidly healing wounds on his neck and chest, partially obscuring his vision. A forest stretches out around him, vibrant red-and-yellow leaves dancing on a faint breeze, the smell of earth and drying leaves sharp in his nose. He shifts, leaves crunching with the movement, and looks down at what ought to be a bloody gash in his shirt. Instead, he sees white: white shirt, white trousers, white boots, white everything.

Is he… Did he actually die? No, he's certain he survived. Sure, too, that this place is familiar, though he can't figure out why. Is it one of Paradis' forests? But why is it autumn?

"Bertolt?" he calls—because if anyone is here with him, it would be his best friend. He pushes himself to his feet, striding forward more confidently than he feels, scanning the trees for any sign of allies. "War Chief Zeke? Pieck?"

Someone answer him. Someone. Anyone.

Research Center

He was so close to going home. So close to completing his five-year mission, securing an objective that should've been straightforward but turned into a fucking nightmare. So close to taking Bertolt and finding Annie, then fleeing that damned island with all its awful memories. So close to returning to his hometown, a hero instead of a traitor, his sacrifices justified, his sins turned to virtues.

He was so close.

Instead, Reiner watches a strange, semi-transparent man in a "hologram" tell him that he has to save the world. (Again.) He has to learn a new and strange set of powers to accomplish his task. (Again.) And he can't go home until the mission is complete. (Again.)

Bitterness swells within him, hot and heavy in his chest, tinged with exhaustion that he tries to ignore. He became a Warrior for his mother, a soldier for his mission. What is he supposed to be here? For what purpose should he nod his head and do as he's told?

… To go home, of course. That purpose is always the same. They need to return to their hometown. They will return.

He was close before. He'll get closer.

For now, Reiner stands from his chair (back to a wall, good view of the room) and rolls the tension from his broad shoulders, his long-sleeved shirt pulling across his chest. Then he makes his way to a table with beverages, scanning them with a considering eye.

"Hard to decide between liquor and water," he mutters to no one in particular. A comment that might seem strange coming from a young man in his late teens, but hey, at least he's upfront.

April Showers

Reiner doesn't have any clothing suitable for this weather. He barely has any clothing at all, one of his only shirts being a slashed and bloodstained mess. So he braves the rain in nothing but a long-sleeved green shirt, brown trousers, and combat boots, his trusty knife strapped to his belt.

He's soaked with minutes, of course, shirt plastered to his skin and water droplets clinging to his blond eyelashes. But eventually, he finds what looks like a clothing shop, releasing a relieved "finally" beneath his breath as he starts toward it.

And then gets distracted halfway there, because that person? That one almost close enough to touch, rain-soaked and moving in the opposite direction? Reiner suddenly alters his course, his muscular arm brushing against them for no discernible reason, just because he … really, really wanted to touch them.

What the hell.

"Uh," he gets out, turning to look down at their face. (Or up, if they happen to stand taller than his six-foot-one.) "Sorry, I—"

What does he even say as an apology?

Memory Portals

( snagging this option from the recent event! pick from the following and i'll write a starter:

• Childhood memory: watching his mother cry over them being Eldians; striving to become a Warrior; or meeting his father (cw: racism).
  
• Warrior memory: choosing to carry on with the mission after Marcel's death (cw: violence by children against children); working with Annie and Bertolt to breach Wall Maria (cw: mass murder, destruction); or deciding to join Paradis' military.
  
• Soldier memory: breaking up a silly argument between Jean and Eren; helping Eren to his feet during training; waking Bertolt from a ridiculous sleeping position; or meeting with Annie and Bertolt and deciding to destroy Wall Rose.
  
• Conflicted memory: asking why Marco is being eaten and then killing the Titan that killed him; informing Annie of Eren's location and then tending to Armin's head injury; helping Bertolt fight off a Titan with a pitchfork and then protecting Connie; or an intimate, revealing conversation with Bertolt after capturing Eren and Ymir.
  
• Recent memory: fighting Zeke in Titan form to try and rescue Annie; or talking to Zeke and Bertolt atop Wall Maria just before the Battle of Shiganshina District. )

Wildcard

( hit me with whatever!! )


ooc notes: i default to prose but am happy to match brackets; please use whichever you prefer!

i'm 100% fine with reiner finding out ~future spoilers~. the only word of caution is re: bertolt's fate; if he's told about that, he'll likely start distrusting whoever told him & could get hostile. oocly i'm totally fine with this, icly it would be the opposite of a bonding experience.

hmu by pm or on the atp for any questions/additional plotting/etc!

Wildcard forward date

[rustyhonesty]

It had been a wild start of the month. Jean was still very shaken up by literally dying and being brought back to life do he stayed in the relative safety of the city for now.

On top of that he had heard that another person had arrived from home. Someone Jean didn't care to meet in person, if he could avoid it. He wasn't ready for that.

Unfortunately there was always the risk of running into said person on accident. Like he does now on one of his walks.

"..."

Does he just turn around and pretend like he didn't stare at Reiner for a good while standing there? Or does he say something? Earlier he would have immediately jumped at Reiner and punched him but right now he was a little too tired and broken to do that.

"So you really are here."

[hometown]

Adjusting to this place has proved a challenge, even for Reiner. It's not the technology that throws him, although that's a marvel in itself. Nor does the prospect of having new, "magical" powers prove an impossible pill to swallow. He holds the power of one of the nine Titans; to many, that probably seems "magical," too.

No, what throws Reiner—what keeps him awake at night, pacing around his room, grateful that the soundproof floors soak up his footsteps—are the people from his world. The people he knows, but doesn't know. The people who changed while he wasn't looking, or wasn't here, or whatever the fuck happened.

Is this how the other members of the 104th felt when they learned who he, Bertolt, and Annie were? Did they feel like they were staring into the eyes of strangers, bewildered by the change, struggling to comprehend something they could never fully grasp?

That's how he feels when he spots the man who looks like Jean. The man who might be Jean. The man who was both friend and enemy, sometimes at the same time. The man Reiner last saw while fleeing from the Survey Corps, his Titan's heavy stride pounding the earth, Bertolt held protectively beneath his hands.

"It's not a lie, Connie! Jean!!" Bertolt had shouted, voice choked with tears. "It's true that we deceived you, but it wasn't all lies! We really did think of you as friends!!"

Is that who this man is? Reiner's friend?

"Jean," Reiner says, the man's voice more familiar than his face, his bearing. Reiner doesn't move closer, holding his ground as he stares at Jean's face, working to reconcile it with the Jean he knows. (Knew? Remembers?)

He shakes his head, willing himself to focus. Willing himself to stop forgetting who he really is. "Wow," he says, the word carefully neutral. "You look different."

[rustyhonesty]

Just hearing his name said by Reiner somehow pisses him off. It's the same problem Jean has with Eren, except with Eren it's more of a standard friendship thing they have. This? This was just pure loathing.

"And you look exactly like the traitorous bastard you are, so the same as last I saw you."

That probably answers a lot of what he remembers and what he thinks Reiner is. Not a friend, but an enemy. Even if they're removed from their situation, Jean can't help but to think of him as an enemy and it would be the same for any of the three traitors.

Even if at the same time, he doesn't really want enemies. But it got very personal after he found out what happened to Marco. Which he's not bringing up in the middle of a street when he's still recovering. He needs more mental strength to tackle that.

"I've been away from "home" for years. The last thing I remember is leaving to beat your sorry ass in Shiganshina." Well, they were just going there tor reclaim Wall Maria, but they knew the shifters would be waiting. "So there. You don't need to wonder how I see you as."

For someone who has been away from home, he still holds a surprisingly lot of spite in his tone.

[hometown]

Jean's hostility is warranted. It comes as no surprise; it's no more than Reiner deserves. Even so, Reiner can't suppress a slight twitch, body flinching from the sting of those words.

A traitorous bastard. A title Reiner earned. A title that would be his no matter what he believed he was: Warrior or soldier. He would always end up betraying someone—Bertolt or Connie, Annie or Jean. And even if he doesn't know what's right anymore, even if he lost his sense of self somewhere along the way, he knows who he has to be. He knows which betrayal he can live with.

So he doesn't argue with Jean. Doesn't react aside from that initial flinch, right before his expression hardens, shoulders tensing, back straightening. If Jean sees him as a traitorous bastard, then that's what Reiner will be.

"Good," he says, his tone crisp and firm. "Don't go back if you can help it."

It's a small mercy, but it's the only one Reiner can give. After all, if Jean goes home—if he arrives in Shiganshina—then he'll die along with the rest of the Survey Corps. And Reiner may be a traitorous bastard, but that doesn't mean he wants Jean dead.

for levi

[hometown]

[ Fighting Zeke isn't a good idea. It isn't Reiner's idea at all, knowing damn well how powerful the Beast Titan is, how small and young and weak Zeke always made him feel. However, Reiner doesn't have any other option. If proving his strength is the only way for the Warriors to go and save Annie, so be it.

He transforms into his Titan, the Armored encasing him like a second skin, that familiar scent of hot earth and ozone filling his senses. For a moment, he allows himself to feel comforted by it. Allows himself to feel safe for one of the first times since Eren escaped. Then he bares his teeth, breathes a jet of steam, and rushes forward.

… Right into the volley of horse-sized stones that hurl toward him at impossible speed, slamming into his body, throwing him back.

It doesn't hurt, per se. Not the way that the Pure Titan's teeth hurt when it snapped the bones in Reiner's forearm, or the way Mikasa's blades hurt when she chopped off one hand and split the other arm in twain. But Reiner feels each impact, feels the armor ripping from his Titan faster than he can heal, steam pouring from the wounds as Reiner struggles to fight. If he can just close the distance between them, he can take Zeke down. If he can just get close, he can pummel Zeke's face with armored fists, and he'll win. For once, he'll finally win.

And then they can rescue Annie. They need to save Annie.

Another volley slams into him. The third? The fourth? He can't tell. Reiner screams, furious, and his Titan roars, shaking the earth. It's a call that usually summons Bertolt to his side—but not this time. This time, Bertolt is counting on him. This time, Reiner has to win alone.

Beside himself, inside but not attached to the Titan, Reiner leans forward. Eyes wide, pupils dilated, he bellows in his own ear: ]

GET UP! GET UP! THEY'RE TORTURING HER! GET UP AND WIN!

[wingbound]

[ It's getting a little old, really, the way those damned portals just seem to come out of thin air and form about whoever's in the crowd. Levi had been getting a feeling at the back of his skull, an itch of sorts, a sense of impending danger and yet not quite, so he'd tried to seek it out, pushing past the people on the sidewalk minding their lives. It has to be someone he knows, he thinks. Someone he knows and doesn't like, most probably. Who could -- ]

[ There's a moment where he thinks the back of a huge blond guy looks vaguely familiar, and then reality is warping around them, weaving itself into yet another memory that does not belong to him. ]

[ And then he knows, the moment he sees the Beast and the transformation of the Armor next to him, that his hunch had been correct. When was this? Probably before Shiganshina. That name is still a hole in his chest. Over two hundred of them had set off that day; nine returned. All because of -- ]

[ There's nothing he can possibly do. He doesn't have his gear, he can't even fucking run, all he's got is a knee brace and a boot knife, but all the same, something snaps inside him as soon as he lays eyes on that fucking monkey. He lets Reiner eat the boulders -- he's probably fine, that guy's got to be the most durable bastard in the world -- and starts walking toward Zeke with dreary determination while he's busy turning the Armored Titan into swiss cheese. ]

[ He only pauses when he hears those words -- words too loud, too clear to belong to the scene in front of them. That has to be Reiner; Levi can't blame him -- he too has yelled at his past self at least once during this last week. Some memories just were that painful, filled with regrets like beach sand in a shell. It's the content of the words that leaves him confused, though. ]

[ They're torturing her. ]

[ What? Who? He can't possibly mean-- ]

[hometown]

[ In another time, another place, Reiner might spot the deceptively small man doggedly making his way toward the Beast, murderous intent bleeding from every step. But not now. Not here. Here, Reiner is screaming at himself, fury and frustration rolling off of him because he knows how this goes. He knows how this ends.

He knows he will lose this fight.

He knows that they keep torturing her. ]

YOU GOT HER INTO THIS! [ he shouts, willing the Armored to stand faster. ] SHE'S COUNTING ON YOU! HE'S COUNTING ON YOU! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE MARCEL! GET UP AND WIN!

[ Oblivious to the screams but fueled by desperation, the Reiner attached to the Armored drags his Titan to its feet. ] We're going to save her, [ he hisses through clenched teeth. ] We're getting her back. We're going home.

[ The next volley hits him in the fucking face.

The memory blurs as Reiner's consciousness flickers, resolving as Reiner finds himself facedown on the ground, the armor torn from half his Titan's face. Groaning, he clings to awareness, the faint sound of running footsteps in his ears. ]

Reiner!

[ It's Bertolt's voice, breath ragged from a dead sprint. Moments later, Bertolt circles from the Armored's face to its nape. Reiner emerges in a wash of steam, and Bertolt wraps his arms under Reiner's, pulling him from the mass of too-hot Titan flesh, holding him close.

A massive thud shakes the earth, booming, echoing. The Beast Titan crouches over the two teenagers, meeting Bertolt's grimace of helpless anger with no apparent reaction. ]

I won, [ the Beast intones. ] You can worry about saving Annie later.

[wingbound]

[ It's... odd. For all intents and purposes, Reiner is an enemy. He's killed thousands of innocent people, directly or not. He cost Scouts' lives, too. But then, he's different from Zeke, in that Levi knows he at least regrets it. Regrets it enough for it to eat away at him for years, and to join forces with the remnants of SC to try and avert another, even bigger tragedy. At one point, so recently for him, they had fought together. ]

[ He may not have dealt the final blow, but if Reiner hadn't been there, if he hadn't held back The Thing, they may have never stopped Eren. He's both an enemy and an ally, however temporary. Perhaps even worthy of respect, though jury's still out on that one. ]

[ And that makes it more difficult to ignore those screams of anguish, because Levi now (somewhat) knows the person behind them, and those are real emotions. Real suffering. It's almost tempting to alleviate it; it would be so simple to stop, turn around, let Reiner know that even if they wanted to torture Annie, they couldn't, thanks to that crystal prison of her own making. That she's... safe, as far as she can be. ]

[ Or he could say nothing, and wait for Zeke to exit his bloody Titan, because that's about to happen, isn't it? He doesn't know if he can affect this memory at all, but there's one way to find out. ]

[ He lingers a moment, glancing between the steaming Armor, Bertolt's pained expression, Reiner's sore state, and the goddamn furball of death. ]

[ So he was like that even with his own subordinates, wasn't he? That piece of shit really didn't care about the lives of others. Levi had that part right. If only he'd been as accurate when considering his willingness to die. Maybe he didn't care about his own life, just like all the rest. ]

[ Levi should have ended his damn suffering when he had the chance. His mangled hand clenches around the knife, and he presses forward. ]

Warrior Memory

[nodevils]

"Oh geez, another portal....?! Hasn't this happened enough?!"

Gabi grumbled to herself as she ground her feet into the grass in front of her a couple times and took a look around her abrupt new setting, a grassy field, somewhere. She'd been spontaneously dropped into a memory portal about four or five times now and man, by this point, she was over it. So many awful, unpleasant, violent memories....one could be forgiven for coming away with the impression that their world was a pretty bad place to live!

"Whatever...I dunno if this is my memory or someone else's, but I'm just gonna look for the exit right away this time..."

"Hrrrrgghhhhk!"

Gabi's shoulders suddenly tensed up. She looked around. That had sounded like someone retching. She scanned the area until she saw someone beneath the shadow of a large tree up on a hill. She wasn't sure if this was the memory or the person the memory belonged to. Much as she wanted to just look for the exit.

"....ehhhh...they look like they're having a pretty bad time..." She murmured to herself, rubbing her head. If this person was sick or freaking out or something, she couldn't very well leave them here, could she? So, much as she wanted to just go, she made her way towards the hill.

"Heeeeey! Are you having stomach troubles up there or something? I keep antacids in my purse, so I can help with that! Or are you just puking for another reason? You're not saying anything, so I'm betting your a memory! So I'm just talking to nothing, then? Looks like it! Cooooooooooooooooool!"

Her tone gradually became less sincere and more annoyed as she walked up the hill, until she was just grumbling to herself.

"This is your last chance to be real, buddy, I'm turnin' around and leaving if you don't say something right now," she said flatly when she made it to the top, hands on her hips. Finally this close, she could see the guy, a young man with blond hair, was clearly in a lot of distress over something. She squinted at him for a second....

"Bertolt...! Annie...! Marcel...!"

Those names made her tilt her head to the side...

"They all got eaten because of me...! And I'll be next!"

And then her eyes got big and her mouth hung open. And before she knew it, she was down on her knees next to the boy, reaching a hand out towards him. A boy who, the last time he'd seen her, she'd just been a baby. Even if he could see her right now, there was no way he'd recognize her.

"...R...Reiner...?"

using a mix of manga & anime dialogue, don't mind me

[hometown]

The boy doesn't react to Gabi's presence. His wide, gold eyes stare blankly as he curls in on himself, falling to his knees, forehead pressed against the grass. His body trembles, and he clutches his head, pure adrenaline giving way to terror. To grief. To shame.

"This is where I'm gonna die," he whispers, believing it. It's only a matter of time. Marcel is gone. Marcel was eaten, all to protect him. The others must be dead, too. All because of him. All because he was never worthy of becoming a Warrior in the first place.

Unbeknownst to him, a blond girl and a dark-haired boy—Annie and Bertolt—finally reach Reiner's side, gasping for breath. Without preamble, Annie hauls back and kicks Reiner in the chest.

Reiner screams. Screams and flails backward, eyes closed, panic erasing all his years of combat training. When nothing else happens, he finally opens his eyes—and there's Annie, exhausted but alive, standing beside Bertolt.

Reiner's screams die in his throat.

"Not bad," Annie gasps. "That's the … first time … I've ever lost to you … in a foot race."

Bertolt slumps to his knees wordlessly, still trying to catch his breath. Reiner says nothing, the pride he might have felt at such an accomplishment absent in the face of everything else.

"If we … had immediately gotten a hold of the Titan … that ate Marcel," Annie continues, her breath slowly returning to normal. "We wouldn't have lost … the Jaw Titan. But you two ran, and … I didn't know what to do, either." She closes her eyes. "He's … not coming back … now."

He's not coming back. Marcel isn't coming back. Because Marcel is dead, and it's Reiner's fault.

"But," Reiner protests, as if his words might change anything, "there weren't supposed to be any Titans yet! They said they'd be … closer to the wall…"

"Not all of them." Bertolt's voice is harsh; when he raises his head, fear fills his eyes. "It's not like every Titan is going to be acting exactly according to our plans… Didn't you learn that…?"

Bertolt has never looked at Reiner like that before. Never looked at him with such overwhelming disappointment. It cuts deep, hurts more than Annie's kick to his chest, leaves him speechless for a moment too long.

"Enough," Annie declares, turning her back on Reiner. "Let's go back. We'll find Jaws, then we'll go back. That Titan will probably have turned back into a human somewhere by now. And it's not as if we can complete the plan to retake the Founder without Marcel's leadership. The plan has … already failed. This place isn't safe, either. A Titan could show up at any time."

Wordlessly, Bertolt stands, turning to follow Annie. Reiner remains on the ground, watching his fellow Warriors' retreating backs. Watching, terror churning in his gut as they decide to abandon the mission.

"… Wait."

The word is spoken in two voices. One voice is the boy's, still seated on the ground, his wide eyes pleading. The other comes from behind Gabi: a young man's voice, his tone far more forceful, gold eyes burning with intensity.

"No, we can't go back," the two Reiners say—the child on the ground, reaching out a beseeching hand; the young man with his fists clenched, staring over Gabi's head as if she isn't there, his eyes locked on Annie. "We'll continue the plan."

no prob I'm doing the same

[nodevils]

Gabi almost didn't even recognize him. She's never seen Reiner look, well, smaller than her. But the more she looks at him, the more she recognizes him - she can barely, barely remember this boy from her youth, she can remember him being around her and then he was just not there anymore. But what she mostly remembers is seeing pictures of him at Aunt Karina's house, and hearing her aunt and her parents tell her how her cousin was the pride of their family, how he had bestowed the highest honor about their family by becoming a Warrior, but fighting for their Motherland Marley, fighting for all of them far away on an island of devils.

Her entire youth, she'd grown up hearing how her cousin Reiner was a hero.

Seeing him like this, younger than she is now, in a foreign land, fearing for his own life, feels her with a lot of conflicting feelings.

"--WHUUUH!"

Whoop, not so alone anymore. Gabi jumps back, hands up when Annie suddenly kicks him and he, similarly, yells his head off. She wants to yell at Annie to knock it off, but of course, she can't hear her. Gabi already knows at this point she can't affect anything in these memories--

--memories. Wait. If this is a memory portal...then someone who this memory belongs to must be in Nightwake?! She quickly looks around and even looks up to make sure nobody's in the tree. This memory...belongs to one of these three. Annie, Bertolt or Reiner. That means one of the Marleyan Warriors is in Nightwake, which...again, fills her with a lot of conflicting feelings that she can't even begin to parse as Bertolt and Annie start to walk off.

(If it's Annie, it's probably fine, right? She may not be popular with Jean and some of the others, but she can explain the alliance to them and Hange-san will back her up, even Levi will even if...she doesn't wanna think about some of the stuff she saw Annie do in Levi's memories, right now....if it's Bertolt, that's a lot more complicated. She never knew Bertolt and he doesn't know about the alliance...)

Gabi's barrage of quick thoughts, all mashed together in the space of a few seconds, are suddenly pierced by another voice.

"I know you'll be able to complete your mission." She places her hands over her ears and blinks. "And I'm sure your father is praying for your success too."

She instantly recognizes the voice of her Aunt Karina. She remembers something like this happening in Levi's memory. When his inner thoughts became so strong, Gabi could hear them as well. This is the same kind of thing. Which can only mean this memory belongs to...

Her eyes fall to the boy on the ground as he calls to his two fellow Warriors. Her breath catches in her throat as she hears two voices saying to wait. She hears both, but her eyes stay on the boy. Just like the Braun behind her, she's too focused on the past to realize what's right next to her just yet. Even if she's focused on a past of a slightly different sort.

"That day, when Marcel was eaten....Annie and Bertolt wanted to abort the mission."

"True..." Annie says, an unpleasant frown on her face. "You" can't go back like this." She then dispassionately lays out the reality of the situation. "If you go back to Marley now, they'll strip you of the Armor for this disgrace. The next warrior will eat you..." And in a way only Annie can, she matter-of-factly adds, "...not that it makes any difference to me."

"And you're so sure that'd only happen to me?"

"Not just to save my own skin, but..."

Within a couple seconds, Reiner is throwing out every conceivable reason to not abandon the mission. All three of them will be purged -- they can't catch the Jaws anyway - if they transform, they'll just attract more titans - they can't go back with nothing to show for it. And with what she's seen in Eren's memories, she understands exactly why he's so desperately arguing to continue on, despite this fiasco.

"Because I wanted to be a hero! I wanted to be respected!"

The boy in front of her is only 12 years old, but at this moment, she can practically see right next to him, down on his knees in practically the same pose, her cousin nearly twice as old, crushed by his guilt, baring his soul to his enemy. She starts to raise a hand.

"Don't..." She murmurs, barely above a whisper.

"If we ever want to go back to our homeland...we need results," he says. "We need the founder...we can't go back without it now..." And Gabi knows that he successfully convinces them. And she knows that they successfully infiltrate the walls. And she knows how they spend the next five years. And now, she knows in agonizing detail what it does to her cousin.

"Your mother was eaten by a titan because of me!"
"I can't stand this anymore...please, just kill me!"

She tries to reach out and grab him. She tries to call out to him. She should know that he can't actually hear her. But she's still practically begging a 12-year old ghost to do something that's simply not an option for him, in any sense of the world.

"We were wrong, Reiner...! Please, don't break the wall!"

[hometown]

The teenager behind Gabi can't see what she sees: the overlaying of his past and future, a desperate boy and a broken man. He knows the consequences of this moment; he knows that pressing forward will rip him apart, shred his sense of self into disparate pieces that he doubts he'll ever reassemble. He knows that this will fracture him, and that the only person who will hold him together is the dark-haired boy sweating with terror.

But this is what has to happen. Their fate was sealed years ago. They can't go back; they just have to keep moving forward, carrying out their duties as Warriors until the end.

And Reiner cannot—will not—turn away from this path.

But there's something wrong with the scene. Even as Annie speaks again, pointing out Reiner's utter lack of composure when the Titan attacked, the real Reiner—the one watching his memories—finds his attention dragged away. He sees a brown-haired girl reaching for his child-self, saying his name, pleading with him. He hears her words—

Please, don't break the wall!

—and something in him snaps into place, his loyalty to his hometown surging to the surface, his mother's rhetoric blaring in his ears.

"What did you say?"

Annie kicks the child Reiner in the face. Starts screaming at him, berating him, stomping on his face again and again. Reiner barely notices. He reaches out, trying to grab the strange girl by the arm, demanding her attention.

If Gabi looks, she won't find the face she likely remembers most vividly: thinner, sharper cheekbones, a goatee on his chin and bags beneath his eyes. Nor will she find the face of Reiner after everything ended, when he shaved and got some decent sleep. This is the face of Reiner when he returned from Paradis, just before he was shipped off to fight a war caused by his defeat. Younger, healthier, maybe three years her senior—

And there's not a trace of recognition in his eyes, wide and intense, staring into her. Not a hint of fondness or familial love.

"TAKE THE BLAME AND DIE!" Annie screams, kicking one last time. Tears are running down Bertolt's cheeks. The child Reiner is lying facedown in the grass, his face a bloody pulp.

But Reiner only has eyes for this stranger, her words ringing in his skull.

"Why would you say that?" he demands, anger leeching into his voice. "Who the hell are you to say that?"

April showers ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ tw for some injury/body horror stuff and aot's uhhh everything

[dreamsofwings]

Wow, after all this time, Eren still just goes out without an umbrella? Situations like this are literally avoidable, and he does nothing to actually avoid them. He's always been a fast learner at things like combat and a slow learner and things like how to not get into stupid ass social situations that end horribly for everyone.

Here, it makes sense that Reiner wouldn't recognise him from the back. He's almost as tall as Reiner is. His hair is long, though he often pulls it back in that style that Hange once said looks cool like it's messy on purpose (it's messy because he's messy, probably). He might even move different now. He wouldn't notice that so much himself but the weight of the end of the world sits heavy inside a person, even when it hasn't quite happened yet, even when it's his own fault.

He didn't bother with a jacket either, since the weather has warmed, leaving his arms bare. He has no real fashion sense, choosing just a t-shirt and black pants. The weird emotional rain has died down, for the most part, but today it's back to torment them. Lucky them. But it's old hat, so when Eren feels that brush against his skin, he doesn't think twice about touching back, hand turning to slide his fingers in between someone else's.

Several things happen in Eren's head at once. The first one isn't bad, largely due to the rain. He doesn't touch people enough, generally. He has that one guy he sees sometimes. Hange and Mikasa won't let him turn to stone, of course. (Neither would Levi if it came to it, but he doesn't tend to touch Levi either.) Even without the rain, he misses touching people, the easy contact he once had with his friends. Reiner's hand is bigger than his, just a little, and that's almost startling. Most people who bother coming near him aren't bigger than him at all. Jean is taller than he is, but his hand is shaped differently, and Jean wouldn't take his hand like that anyway, rain or not. Still, it's nice, but something snags at him, something familiar and strange all at once.

He knows before he turns that he's going to spin out. That spark of familiarity is a clue, right? He ought to know by now, since it happens all the fucking time and he can't get a handle on it. Since that bullshit in the metal titan, he's on shakier ground than usual anyway. He hasn't told anyone that, but they probably know. Well, whatever. It doesn't make him more dangerous. He's always dangerous. He has to choose, over and over, not to be.

But he couldn't possibly have guessed that he was going to look into Reiner Braun's face for like the fifth time in a month. He stops walking, hand tight in Reiner's, time spiralling out around him (only in his head, of course, but it's still happening).

That repetitive feeling of when is this slams into him, exacerbated by the fact that Reiner doesn't look the same as he did the last time Eren saw him. When was the last time? Who knows. "When" seems such a relative term these days.

Liberio. Reiner on his knees, his face hollow, recognition and fear written all over him. A memory of a memory, Levi watching that conversation. Gabi, crying at Reiner's feet, watching that memory. Ozymandias's cool gaze watching that memory.

The lived experience of it, the itchy strange sparking feeling of his leg finally growing back after endless months in the hospital. The adjustment of his depth perception as his eye repaired itself and he could see again, right before the world broke open above him and he unleashed hell on the people above them, many of whom didn't deserve it. Some of whom did. That's not an incident he's all that sorry for; he never claimed to be sorry. He just said he didn't want to have to live the terrible inevitable future that still waits for him.

Reroll.

Shiganshina, again and again, the day this started, the day this will end, the days in between, Reiner screaming at him, the crash of the Attack Titan against the Armored Titan. The Colossal Titan, when it is Bertolt.

The Colossal Titan, when it isn't Bertolt.

The War Hammer's spikes. The Jaw Titan, on Paradis, in Marley.

Reroll.

Some of this hasn't happened yet, for either Eren or Reiner. Some of it, Eren has known for years.

How long has he been standing here, staring? In a crowded street, will they fight, murder a bunch of people on accident as they crash into each other, get Levi and who knows who else on their asses to get them to stop?

No. He doesn't want that. He said he wouldn't be that monster anymore, even if the terrible shitty truth is he can't be anything else. But he's not bleeding, not yet, not any more of a threat than just being Eren Jaeger makes him. (Spoilers: he's still a threat.)

Reiner's hand in his still somehow feels good and he wants to wake up from this. But he's not asleep.

"Reiner," he says, softly, disbelieving, even though he knows how this place works. The present falls back into place, such as it is, and the rain keeps falling. He hasn't let go yet.

[hometown]

The press of someone's hand against his own is hardly an unusual sensation for Reiner. He's a physical person by nature, affectionate in words and touch, readily reaching out to others. If someone is distressed, he clasps their shoulder; if a kid needs a kind word, he pats their head; if a comrade falls, he grasps their hand and puts them back on their feet. But the slide of someone's fingers in between his own? That intimate intertwining, linking them together without a hint of hesitation, as if the act were as natural as breathing? That's a hell of a lot rarer, and it's not the sort of thing Reiner would usually initiate with a random person on the street.

So why did he do it in the first place? Why doesn't he break contact? Why do his fingers tighten their hold, keeping their palms pressed together, the warm kiss of skin against skin momentarily making him forget the rain?

His first thought upon seeing the stranger's face is that the man is handsome. Remarkably so. Stunning, if Reiner is honest, from the wisps of brown hair falling over his forehead to the decidedly unsmiling mouth. Even the man's eyes are pretty, although it looks like he could use some extra sleep.

And then Reiner really looks into those eyes. Sees those eyes, vivid green staring up at him, their gaze distant at first before recognition stirs in their depths.

His stomach plummets as icy dread shoots down his spine, breath hitching, fingers tightening their grip. It can't be. This can't be who he thinks it is, who his body and instincts and subconscious know it is. There's no fucking way.

But even as his mind protests, his hands start to tremble, adrenaline and anger and fear surging through him all at once, fight or flight instincts stuttering to freeze. He knows the truth even before his name passes those lips he'd idly labeled "pretty."

It's Eren. Eren, who holds the Coordinate. Eren, who wants him dead. Eren, who was his friend. Eren, who he needs—to capture, to take back to his hometown, to despise him, to look at him like he's someone worthy of respect, someone worthwhile, someone worth something. Eren, who he betrayed. Eren, who will never, ever forgive him.

It's Eren, but he's … older. Somehow, he got older. Taller. Wearier. And he's holding Reiner's hand, not tearing out Reiner's throat—a fact far more surreal than anything else, sending Reiner's mind skittering for answers and coming up completely empty.

Eren Yeager is holding his hand.

What the fuck is Reiner supposed to do with this…?!

"Eren," he chokes out, gold eyes wide, fingers still trembling. He wants to ask what the hell is happening. Instead, he asks, "What happened to you?"

The Reiner that Eren knows is dead. Yet those words come out in the old tone: a comrade concerned for their friend.

[dreamsofwings]

Eren feels Reiner's hand shake, though with what, he's not sure yet. His own hand is tense, tight, but steady. His whole body is like that, primed for a fight because he's Eren, because that's his first instinct at all times. Violence is second nature to him. No. If he's honest, it's first nature, always the very first thing he will choose, attack first and ask questions later. The boy who became a monster. The boy who was born one.

But he doesn't. He knows better. Not here, not like this. Of every person he has ever fought in his life, he thinks he might have fought — will fight — Reiner one on one the most times. It's like part of his fucked up inevitability thing, isn't it, that he and Reiner clash again and again, nearly murdering each other over and over and never succeeding. They don't need to repeat that cycle here.

He hopes they don't need to repeat that cycle here.

He will never forgive Reiner; he's not capable of forgiveness. He doesn't know how to do that. But he understands Reiner, maybe better than anyone left, better than Reiner could possibly know. They're so much the same. Eren is so much worse, so much more ruthless and bloodthirsty and remorseless, than Reiner will ever be.

He's not sure what words he expects to come out of Reiner's mouth but what Reiner says sure isn't it. He's not very expressive these days, definitely not like Reiner would remember, but he does look surprised for a long moment before he gets that under control. His expression settles again, into something Reiner hasn't seen yet, but will several years from now in that memory Eren recalls so vividly. Liberio, the beginning of the end of the world.

"Who knows?" Eren answers, finally. "I turned 20."

It's not an answer, not really, not in any meaningful way. It tells nothing of the blood and death and horror that followed whatever the last thing Reiner remembers is.

We're the same, Reiner, words Eren has thought over and over for weeks in this place, years of repeating memories at home as he grappled with what it meant to destroy the places and people that others held dear.

But that number, 20, is significant to Eren. He will never live that long at home. Reiner might not know the math, the year Eren became a titan. If he does, he'll know it gives Eren about three years left to live now. It's not much, but it seems like quite a long time to Eren.

He glances down at their hands, too tight against one another.

If he holds on, will he stay here in the present? If he holds on, will it keep them from exploding into violence, into titans? He can't fight Reiner as a regular human. He can't effectively use his fire powers in the rain even if he wanted to, and even with Eren this tall, Reiner absolutely has him beat as far as strength goes. The effect of the rain might chill them out a little bit, but how much?

"I don't want to fight you," he says, looking up again. It could sound like a threat, but he doesn't mean it as one. Probably.

Research Center | We'll all give you a little bit of everything :')

[titanscience]

"You might suddenly find that decision a lot easier to make than it was a moment ago."

Hange spends a lot of time in the Research Center, it's kind of their thing, so when it becomes apparent that a new group of arrivals had made their way into its welcome halls, it's only natural that they should take a peek at the new recruits. Hange doesn't necessarily expect to find anyone else they know, even though it would be nice, but this world has already proven that you can meet all sorts of interesting people.

Of course, that expectation is shattered once they set eyes (or rather, a singular eye) on a familiar face, though it looks several years younger in comparison to the last time they'd been face to face. Hmm. This could be.. problematic to say the least. Watching momentarily from their spot within a doorway, Hange opts to follow once Reiner makes his way to the beverage table, offering a cryptic answer to the blond's statement.

The way Hange sees it, this can go either one of three ways. The first, while unlikely, is that Reiner actually has no idea who in the hell they are in which case the drink conundrum will be forgotten in favor of determining an exit strategy away from the weirdo beside them.

The second option is that Reiner knows exactly who Hange is, but is unaware that anyone from Paradis knows his secret (his secret being, well, literally everything) then he will likely choose to continue playing the role of the diligent recruit, and with a superior officer looming over your shoulder, you pick the water, right?

The third and final option, the one that shall prove to be most problematic, is the possibility that Reiner is acutely aware that the Scouts know everything about him and his friends, and it could become even worse if he has knowledge of the battle in Shiganshina and its aftermath. They had both lost people dear to them that day.

This isn't the Reiner that Hange had spent their final days with. He's young. If he had been plucked from any moment after that fateful day upon the wall, the day they tried to capture Eren and take him home, then he likely sees Hange, and any other scouts by proxy, as an enemy. He'd feel trapped. He'd expect a fight. If that's to be the case, in a matter of moments they'll be able to cut the tension with a knife. If that is to be the case, Reiner might not be the only one reaching for the booze.

"So which is it, Reiner? Hmm? Water or alcohol?"

[hometown]

It takes a second for Reiner to recognize that voice. It's not one of his old comrades from the 104th whose voices he'd recognize anywhere: they spent years together, training and talking, laughing and crying, bonding and fighting over the silliest things imaginable; he'd know their voices in his sleep. Nor is it one of his fellow Warriors, the ones who stayed in Marley and whose voices faded with time, recalled in nightmares more than memories. Instead, the voice falls somewhere in between. Someone he knows but not well; someone who makes him stand up straighter, mind his Ps and Qs.

Then it clicks. Survey Corps. Hange Zoë, the squad leader obsessed with Titans.

Reiner turns his head, meeting their eyes—no, eye. (When did they get an eyepatch?) Their expression is hard to parse; at a guess, Reiner would say it's more scrutinizing than teasing or hostile, but some veterans like to mess with recruits by making them sweat over the small stuff.

… Not that Reiner is a recruit. Not anymore. Not since he blew their cover wide open and made a run for it, Eren's armless body in his teeth and Bertolt on his shoulder, Ymir clutched in Bertolt's arms.

Not that Reiner always remembers that he's not a recruit. But he seems to know it right now. Seems to have it straight in his mind, if only because he knows Hange is no ally.

Hange is still watching him. Reiner realizes that he's delayed for a second too long, his pause tangible, his quick analysis likely noticeable. So he delays a moment more, Armin's words swirling to the forefront of his mind, soft and sickly sweet:

"As soon as they heard her screams, they realized… The wounds on her body might heal, but she can't make the pain go away. They're being careful not to kill her. But they won't let her rest. At this very moment, they're inflicting pain on her every way they know how—"

Reiner's fingers twitch, itching for a blade he doesn't have. Zeke assured him that Annie was fine, resorting to threats when reassurances failed. But if anyone on that island is torturing Annie, wouldn't it make sense for it to be the devil at his side? Or would their apparent adoration of Titans stop them from inflicting needless pain? Would they see it as needless? Or would it be justified, one more experiment for mankind?

Reiner reaches for a glass. Plucks it from the table and holds it up in a mock salute. It's orange juice.

"What'll you be having, Squad Leader?" he asks, his voice low and flat, as emotionless as he can manage.

[titanscience]

Hange continues to stare intensely while waiting for a sign, a word or a movement that gives away what Reiner is thinking. He's obviously having an internal debate, the silence has dragged on too long for it not to be happening, but he isn't fighting, isn't running, so that's a good sign.

Eventually he reaches for the glass, holding it up as he asks his question, and for a moment longer Hange simply watches...

He called them 'squad leader' so he definitely knows who they are, so the bigger question is how much does he remember? Or maybe.. that doesn't matter? Whether he comes before the incident on the wall or not, doesn't it all play out the same way eventually? He's a titan, whether everyone else is aware or not, and they're all nothing but island devils, right? It would be a simple thing to mention that in the future they aren't enemies, that they end up fighting for the same thing in the end, but bringing that up so casually is rather like opening Pandora's Box and could cause more harm than good. No, it's better to ease into it..

"Hah!" The questioning glance is replaced with a smile, the low and steady voice morphing into something much more light and cheerful. Feigned lightheartedness to diffuse a situation, a tactic they often resort to. "The water's fine. Though maybe I'll come back for the wine later.."

Will he reach for one, or will the former commander have to grab a glass themselves? Only time will tell.

"By the way, in case you're wondering, when people are brought here it isn't always from the same time in their lives. I don't know how long it's been for you since we last spoke, maybe it was a month ago, perhaps even an hour ago. But it's been a few years since I've seen you this young!" The silent implication is there, that they have seen him at a later point.

"That's why I have this." Hange reaches up to tap the eye patch. "It's been a while since I lost my sight in this eye. But it looks fashionable, right?"

april showers

[meliorated]

( Reiner isn't the only one who's decided to take shelter from the rain. Historia had thought that she was going to have more time to make her way back to the apartments, but that had been short-lived. What started as light rain had grown heavier far more quickly than she could anticipate.

She finds shelter under a nearby rooftop -- already completely soaked and shivering to boot. When she feels the warmth of someone not only standing next to her, but brushing against her - she can't help but pause. It feels like instinct to move closer to that warmth -- a strange newly-found need to want that warmth all the more.

Funnily enough, the voice sounds so familiar to her. She can't help but turn, will-power assisting her in pushing herself away. )

No -- I apologize-- ( She starts softly, only to stop when she finds just who had joined her. )

.... Reiner? ( If she looks as though she's seen a ghost, it's because that's how she feels. The last time she had even had a chance to speak with him was the last time she had seen--

.... Ymir. )

[hometown]

[ There are any number of people Reiner might've expected to see when he looks down to apologize to the small blond figure. A stranger, more than likely. Annie if he's lucky, Armin if he's unlucky. But he's still surprised to find Historia staring up at him, her large blue eyes wide with shock, looking as if Reiner just returned from the dead. ]

Krista?

[ It's not her true name; he knows that. She's Historia. That's the name Ymir used in her letter, and as far as Reiner knows, it's the name Historia prefers. But "Krista" is the name that falls from his lips, their years spent training together forming a habit that's difficult to break—especially when so many other things in Reiner's mind are muddled.

But then his surprise fades, and he smiles down at her. A genuine smile, not one born of bitterness or a desire to conceal other emotions. He's just happy to see her. Happy that she's alive and well; happy that she can still be saved from the fate of those inside the walls. ]

What're you doing here? No, wait, that's a dumb question. You must've gotten the same message, right?

[meliorated]

( There's so many thoughts running through her mind right now. She hasn't seen Reiner since she had last spoken to Ymir. For a while, she had partially blamed both Reiner and Bertholdt for Ymir ultimately leaving and choosing them over her. She had gone over it in her head over and over again -- knowing that she didn't have a choice at first, and then coming to the conclusion that she had chosen to go with them rather than return to the walls. Even now, after everything had happened, those words echo in her mind as if she's reliving that very day.

There's no future inside the walls!

There's still so much that she doesn't understand. When it came to the truth and Ymir's letter, she still doesn't know why she ultimately chose to sacrifice herself for them. But... if there's something that she knows, it's that neither of them wanted to live their life without regrets.

At least, that's how Historia felt now. If not for those words, she knows that her path would have been very different from how it was now at home.

For a while, she had been angry for Reiner for more selfish reasons than she cared to admit. There was betrayal, but her listlessness and heartbreak had preoccupied her mind with things beyond that. To this day, she still doesn't quite understand his reasons. Did he, like Ymir, have no choice? Did he help breach the wall because he felt as though he had to?

She had never doubted that the days when he was their friend were genuine. Even now, she can see how truly relieved he is to see her. That couldn't be an act, right? Or... did she simply want to believe that it wasn't? The way he calls her Krista may very well indicate that he's still from a time before he had admitted to what he had done.

For a moment, her expression is downcast -- unreadable -- crossing her arms in a subtle way to distance herself. The rain is pushing them to touch, but she wants to prevent that in favor of what she wants to ask. )

... Reiner -- ( She starts quietly. ) What's... the last thing that you remember from home?

( Surely, a time well before her own. What other reason could he have to call her Krista now?

She hasn't had a chance to speak with him again like the others had. This is her chance to perhaps understand him better. But, what possible reason could he have? So much pain and death has been left in the wake of what's been done.

Despite it all, she doesn't want an antagonistic relationship with him. Even after everything he's done, she still cares about him. And that's what hurts the most. )

arrival!!!

[scrappyjedi]

Cal had a similar thought. Wherever he ended up, he was sure his best friend would be there too. As strange as it was to wake up here dressed in new clothes, he was more focused on trying to find BD-1.

"BD? Hey, you out there, buddy?"

He does get an answer, though. Well, not technically — the response definitely wasn't for him, calling out unfamiliar names, but it's the only voice he's heard aside from his own, so he drifts towards it cautiously. Until he sees someone, that is.

His instinct is to reach back to his holster, check to see if his lightsaber was at the ready, only it wasn't there. One would think Cal would panic, but he doesn't. This place...it feels right. Familiar. It reminds him of the way he slips into meditation, the way he connects with the Force. It just...is. It happens.

"Uh, hi," he starts awkwardly as he approaches, completely clueless on how to approach anyone in this situation, despite the familiarity.

[hometown]

Reiner hears a voice, at last, although it's not one he recognizes. Honestly, that could be a good thing. There are plenty of people he wants to find, but plenty more people he hopes never find him. Top of the list: the man who stabbed him through the neck and heart.

There are still faint wisps of steam around Reiner, rising from the front and back of his shirt. (At least the wound to his neck is fully healed; for him, that was by far the more serious injury.) So when he turns, there may be a slightly hazy quality to it—at least until he impatiently waves the steam away again, revealing its source.

"Hey," he greets, friendly enough despite … well, everything. The stranger is shorter than Reiner—not unusual, considering Reiner stands at six-foot-one—with a head of bright red hair Reiner suspects he'd recognize anywhere. He definitely doesn't know this guy, and yet…

… And yet, everything still feels so familiar. As if this is where they were meant to meet. Where they're meant to be.

Reiner studies the stranger's freckled face, pleased when those freckles don't trigger a sickening swoop in his stomach. Maybe this place is to thank.

"Do you … live here?" he asks, unsure where here even is.

[scrappyjedi]

Cal spots the steam rising from him, though the slight curious quirk of his brow and confused expression could also be attributed to the whole...situation — so maybe his reaction isn't as obvious as it feels.

The question gives him pause. Does he? Would it be correct to say he lives in his own mind, were this a dream, or a deep meditation? Come to think of it...he was meditating on the Mantis before he woke up here, wasn't he?

That realization fills him with a sense of relief, one he hadn't even realized he needed until now, having felt as if all of this was just. Right. But, now he knows why.

At least he thinks so.

The stranger before him is still confusing, though. Cal hasn't known many people. He's met a lot of people, but not known them. Not anyone who would inspire such a strong feeling of familiarity in him despite only seeing them briefly enough to forget their face but still remember...something. And quite frankly, said stranger is someone he would remember. He seems like such a strong figure. Imposing. Maybe that's what draws him? That aura that he is so familiar with, seeing it in the Masters when he was growing up, adult figures he looked up to for guidance. Even now, he attaches himself to those who are strong. Merrin is downright terrifying, walks with a scary but elegant confidence. And Cere has seen and been through so much, fought through so much, and has come back from the darkest pits. And it all shows in the way she stands ready. Maybe his mind isn't manifesting a person but an idea. An ideal.

"I guess...in a way." Despite his realization...he still doesn't sound confident in his answer. While he feels as if he answered his own questions...there are still some that linger. For example...what's with the white clothing? Why was the guy steaming? Is he mad? He doesn't seem mad. Seems a bit too on the nose anyway.

Cal sighs, laughing awkwardly as he pushes the hair from his face. "Sorry, I'm just...still trying to make sense of things. Uh, I'm Cal, by the way. Cal Kestis."