Family

Chapter Three; The Recruit

"I'm looking for a boy, about yey high, with brown hair and green eyes." Levi said to the training officer.

"Sorry, Captain Levi. Can't remember every boy who's come through here." The training officer handing sign-ups, a short man with gray hair and glasses, said apologetically.

"This is extremely important. He ran away from home to join the trainees, but he has no idea what he's getting into." Levi said quietly.

Dawn had come and passed, and the groups of boys and girls who had just signed up for training milled around, talking excitedly. Levi searched the crowd, looking for Eren, who had no idea what he was in for. How brutal the Titans were. What it was like to be out there, so small compared to a monster towering fifty feet above you, a monster that could kill you with a flick of its fingers, who ate you just for the kicks. Eren didn't know the horror of standing among bloody corpses, wondering how many of them you knew. Eren didn't know what it was like to inform the loved ones of your dead comrades that their brother, or sister, husband or wife, parent or child, was never coming back. Eren didn't know the fear, Levi had made sure if that for twelve long years.

But now the carefully placed veil Levi had placed over Eren's eyes was about to be yanked off, revealing the cruelty of the world.

"Check the list for anyone listed under the name 'Jaeger'." Levi commanded.

The training officer complied, but shook his head.

"Sorry. Nobody listed under Jaeger here." The officer said quietly and began to turn away.

Levi grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait! Here, Let me show you a picture of him, okay? Please, let me know if you see him." Levi said, pulling a picture out.of his pocket. It showed him and Eren, one of those lazy Sunday's when Eren was younger. His brown hair was wild, and his green eyes gleamed.

The training officer nodded.

"I'll keep an eye out for him." The office promised, then walked away, leaving Levi alone with his memories.

He didn't notice the small, tan skinned boy with black hair and emerald green eyes watching him with longing eyes.

*********

Earlier that night...

Eren looked at his reflection, distorted slightly in the moonlit water of the lake. He slowly raised the knife blade to his messy hair, which he had wet in the lake and combed through with his fingers.

The blade flashed in the night, and locks of chocolate brown hair floated down to settle in a ring around Eren. He kept cutting, slowly.

The knife fell from his hand and he let out a small wince as Eren felt the blade prick his ear. He put a finger to the nick, which was shallow, and he sighed in relief. Quickly he picked up up his knife and continued on.

When Eren was satisfied that his hair was somewhat even and much shorter than it had been, he carefully slipped the knife back into his pocket and ran his fingers through his hair to dry it out a bit. Then he rummaged in the pack for the only other thing he had taken with him.

Finding the black dye, Eren started carefully soaking his hair in it until it was soaked through with the inky black dye.

Capping the canister, Eren waited patiently for fifteen minutes, then rinsed his head in the lake. Holding his breath as he looked in the lake, he was pleased when he saw the dye had held. Now his hair was a short, close cropped black. There was nothing he could do about his eyes, but Levi wouldn't be looking for a child with short, black hair.

Levi... Eren ached for his dad right then. He felt like he was a million miles away from home already.

Pushing his feelings aside, Eren saddled up again and climbed on his horse, the path lit only by the light of the moon.

It was a lonely journey. And quiet. So, so quiet. That made Eren long for the warm, loud comfort of the Survey Corps Headquarters. So to fill the eerie silence, Eren started humming.

After awhile, Eren realized he was humming the song Levi had taught him, when he was still very small. When he was scared of the dark and the thunder, or the things he was sure lived under his bed as a child. The song Levi used to hum to calm him down.

Leaves from the vine, falling so slow.
Like fragile, tiny shells,
Drifting in the foam.
Little soldier boy, come marching home.
Brave soldier boy, comes marching home.

As Eren rode away quietly, he didn't realize how much he was like Levi. Now they even shared the same black hair, along with the same short temper and hot-head.

But they also shared the same courage, and kindness, and determination.