Before we start, I guess I have a few things to throw at your face.

First, I am a huge EreAnnie fan, which I guess is weird coming from a dude...probably not.

Second, this is the second ever fanfic for something (the first was Resident Evil...that was shit), so give me a shot.

Third, there probably isn't going to be any overly sexual shit...jus' sayin' (but there might be).

Fourth...ehhh, I dunno, I might think of something, anyway, ON WITH THE STORY!

Chapter 1: Footing

"Come on, Jaeger, I have seen cattle that fight better than you!"

"You have not-eugh!"

Eren was surprised. He had hit the ground how many times? And still, his shoulder is located in the same area. This time, however, he slid on his side at least twenty feet across the dirt, his longsword going farther. If he wasn't wearing the iron armor that protected his vital organs and kept his limbs from being chopped off, he would've had something much worse than a huge bruise on his right shoulder.

As Eren rolled onto his back, the tiny rocks that were hidden in the dirt poked and prodded at only his bruises and cuts, like as if they were only there to make his training a living hell. These were the times where he hated his training. Maybe I shouldn't have decided to be a knight, he thought, lifting his head up to see a gleaming longsword pointed at his face. A short man held it in front of him, his sharp grey eyes looking down on Eren condescendingly through the slits of his helmet.

"Your footing is shit." He stated, his voice deep, unimpressed, but calm..

"You could've just told me." Eren panted, the armor heated up and dehydrating him. He reached up with both hands, pulling the rusty great helmet off, his wet and sweaty brown hair clinging to his skin, making no effort to give in to gravity. He threw the helmet off to the side and took a breath of air.

"You never learn when I tell you." His teacher remarked, stabbing his sword into the dirt between Eren's legs.

Eren pushed himself back from the blade, gasping as the sharp edge looked ready to neuter him, "Woah, Levi, I want to keep that!"

"Then start practicing on your own, or you won't have a need for it." Levi muttered, loud enough so that Eren could hear. Pulling off his close helmet, his perfectly groomed black hair fell down both sides of his head, his eyes narrowed at his student. He picked up his sword and sheathed it, "This session is over, go home." As he walked away from the dirt pit, Eren listened as his teacher's shiny beautiful armor clinked and clanked, the noise dying as it got farther away.

Eren laid in the dirt for a few minutes before a shape obscured his vision. It was a girl with black hair tied back into a ponytail, her dark eyes staring down at him with no emotion, a red scarf wrapped around her neck, tickling his nose, her leather armor strangely looking better than his armor. Then again, everything on or about his adopted Asian sister Mikasa is better than him. Her face was a mixture of worry and calm, "Need help?" She asked, her voice not wavering. She didn't sound worried, but Eren knew she was. She was overprotective since they first met when they were nine.

Eren slowly got up, groaning as he did so, "Ahhh, no, no, I got it." He picked up his helmet, holding it under his arm. He limped over to his longsword and bent down, groaning as he did so, picking it up. He turned and headed towards the wooden stands, an area for any who want to see Eren get his ass kicked, Mikasa followed behind him. He reached for his pack on the first stand, searching around it with his hand until he felt the leather of his water skin. He pulled it out, unstopped it, then put it to his lips to hydrate himself. Only a drop fell out and hit his nose. "Shit!" He cursed silently, throwing the water skin back into the pack.

Mikasa pulled out her water skin and held it out to him, but he sighed, pushing it back, "No, Mika, it's fine." He looked at her, "Hey, I am gonna go...do something, see you at home?"

Mikasa took a step forward, "I'll come with."

Eren rolled his eyes, groaning, here she is, doing it again. Always trying to follow him around to protect him. I can protect myself Mikasa, he thought to himself, not wanting to say it aloud. He instead opted for a different set of words.

"No, Mika, please, can I just have my time alone?"

Mikasa gave him a look, hesitating, before finally nodding, "Be home before sundown. Don't get in trouble." And with that, she turned around and headed home.

Eren sighed, watching as she walked. He waited until she was out of sight before slinging his pack over his shoulder and turning towards the forest west of Shiganshima, his home. He lived in a big village outside of the walls of the Maria, the main city and name of the province in the kingdom of Mitras. The forest used to be a place where he could play. Now that he is older, he does not have any time for playing. He needed to practice.

As Eren stepped past the tall trees and ducked under low branches, he thought of the times when he and his friends played out here. He remembered that no matter what, he would always play as the knight when they played pretend. He remembered the question, "Why do you always have to be the knight?" And his reply, "Because that is what I am going to be when I grow up!"

His green eyes darted here and there, seeing the markings he set up so that he would not get lost. An X carved into a tree here, a circle etched in dirt there, he remembered everything.

He stopped before a small river that cut itself between him and his destination. He crouched, dropping his helmet and pack onto the ground before taking his pack out of the latter. He dipped it into the water, feeling the cold liquid caress his hand as he filled his water skin. He stopped it with a cork and put it back in his bag. Reaching back in with both hands, he cupped his hands and brought them up to drink.

Eren felt refreshed after taking a few more drinks then washing his face. His hair no longer clung to his skin, but dangled in front of his eyes, water dripping from the fringes. He looked back down at the water, seeing his reflection. After staring into his eyes for a minute, he shook his head and stood up, taking his helmet. He stepped over the river to the other side. He was not far now, he continued on.

Eren finally reached his destination, a cliff overlooking the ocean. Trees were not abundant, but there was one tree that hung over the cliff side, giving a perfect spot to sit down in the shade. He always goes here after each lesson to reflect his mistakes in the battle fought with his teacher. It doesn't help him fighting wise, but it calms him.

He sat down near the edge, dropped his helmet and pack. He pulled his knees up to his chest, resting his elbows so that he can lay his head on his arms, gazing at the waves as they crash into the rocks. He loved the ocean, ever since he was a little kid when he and his friend Armin went out to this spot to watch. Sadly, Armin is busy with his studies, so he can never come out to even talk with him.

His adopted sister was never into this stuff. In fact, he never really knew what she was into. When he first met her, he gave her his scarf, which she held onto for her whole life. Recently their father have been looking for suitors that fit her, and so far, there have been two. Jean, a loud mouthed, horse-faced knight who made it his goal in life to annoy the shit out of Eren since they were children, and Levi, his teacher, a short, silent, emotionless clean freak. Jean makes sense because polar opposites attract, and Levi is almost the exact same as Mikasa.

As for him, Eren never really found that someone, and his father are not bothering to find him any partners either. He doesn't mind, he needs to focus on his knighthood. The problem is that, as his teacher says, he is shit. During the fight before, he constantly kept shuffling awkwardly, and going in to strike at the worst of times. He does need to practice outside of lessons. If only someone that isn't his sister could help. He doesn't want her help. Ever since they met, she made herself a guardian of Eren, as Eren would always get into fights with kids when they were younger. She was overprotective, so he didn't want to fight someone who might hold back.

Eren was about to get up when he heard a rustling in the shrubbery behind him. He slowly drew his sword and stood up. He turned to the forest, his arm outstretched, his long sword pointing towards the source of the noise.

The rustling stopped, Eren tilted his head to the side, wondering what it was. Step after step, he got closer and closer, until he was able to push aside some of the branches.

He didn't get any closer as a hand shot out and grabbed his wrist and pulled him in. He yelped, feeling a blow to his ribs which knocked the air out of him, and so caused him to drop his sword, the blade clanging against the dirt and rock. He felt a foot hook around the back of his leg, and a hand that pushed him in the face, sending him tripping over the foot and flat onto his back. He didn't get a chance to get back up as a knee pinned his chest down.

He coughed as he regained his breath, then looked up at his attacker. The person was wearing a waist length green cloak, so that he could barely see their face. But he could see a bit of blonde hair dangling down towards him. They were wearing lighter shinier steel armor, light enough to move fast in. White cloth bridged the gaps between the pieces of armor that we far enough from each other so that it wouldn't make a lot of noise. Compared to their armor, his was just clunky and big. They also wore white trousers, brown leather knee high riding boots, and brown leather fingerless gloves. What he noticed was two strange pieces of thin rope hanging from a source somewhere behind the chest plate.

He felt a dagger of some kind pressed against his throat. He held his hands up.

"Okay, okay, you win." He managed to choke out.

Under the shadow of the cloak, he swear he could see a hint of a smirk. The figure stood up, removing the knife from his throat. He saw that it was a Bollock dagger in their hand that belonged to a sheath behind the chest plate, the handle sticking out.

He got up, still coughing a bit, he looked at the person. The attacker looked to be even smaller than Levi, which, to him, was surprising. A hand reached up to the hood of the cloak and pulled it down, revealing the young face of a girl.

She had a unique look, her blonde hair tied back into a bun. She pushed back the right fringe of hair over the right side of her face, which didn't do much as the fringe went back into position. A pair of considerably sized, striking blue eyes set themselves on both sides of a rather pronounced curved nose, These eyes had a sullen vibe, like as if she wasn't interested in anything. Pink lips were below the nose, providing a light contrast to her pale complexion. A straight line cut itself between these lips, completing her look of utter boredom. But Eren could sense a hint of interest behind those eyes.

They just stood there, staring at each other, his green into her blue, taking in every detail of each other. She was the one to finally break the silence. Her voice was a flat tone, almost deadpanning.

"...Your footing is shit."

I don't know if this chapter is short or not, I am not a long chapter kind of guy..

So what did you think? I hope to turn this into a story that I can complete. Please if you have any criticism, tell me (make it respectful, please). I need to learn to you.

Also a big thank you to Euregatto for beta-reading this chapter, wouldn't have done well without her! (If it does well.)