"Top of the class, Isanna Herrmann."

"Top two, Erwin Smith."

"Top three, Mike Zacharias."

"Top four, Nile Dok."

"Top five, Adrian Schulz."

"Top six, Adalaide Müller."

"Top eight, Chiara Bauer."

Head Instructor Gricelda Koch stood in attention at the front of the cadets, on top of a stage in the middle of a wide empty plaza, within the campus of the main headquarters of the Training Corps. A flag pole was sticking out of a cemented holder at the very back of the square platoon formation of the new graduates, the wind fluttering the flag emblem of two blades crossed in an 'X', and standing at a distance in front of the platoon formation were the top 10 cadets of the 95th Squad, saluting to their instructor with heads held high. 

"Humanity has suffered limited freedom for over a hundred years because of those monstrosities outside our walls. Those of you standing in front of me this very moment, who have endured those 3 years of harsh training, are now finally off to your next path, to choose your desired military branch," the head instructor announced, her gruff voice loud and clear, ringing through the air. "I expect you all to bring your learnings with you in whatever path you choose to go down. Do not disappoint me, else I'll personally come to you and drag you back to train for another 3 years under me, and I swear I'll make you wish you'd rather get eaten by titans should that happen. Do you hear me, you little shits?!"

"Yes, ma'am!" 

The instructor formed a fist with her right hand and thumped it on her left chest while she folded her left arm behind her. "Dedicate your hearts to humanity! 95th Training Corps of the southern division, you are dismissed!" 

•

The mess hall cabin was extra livelier that very night. It was their last night together, and the 95th batch of cadets were throwing the traditional farewell party, enjoying a rare mountain stash of meal and drinks; it was a feast filled with goodbyes and heartfelt laughs, the perfect way to end their last night. 

Isanna had retreated out of the mess hall to the common restrooms located at the back of the cabin, and was now walking down the dim hallway, the lighting of the moon illuminating through the occasional open window she'd pass by as soft footsteps tapped against the wooden floor. She thought about the last three years she had spent padding down these hallways and realized that maybe some part of her will miss this place a little. The laughs and talks she had shared with her friends, the playful banters between them, and most importantly, the super rare hang outs she would have with Erwin from time to time as they snuck out to the rooftop and spend the night stargazing. 

The remaining month had passed by like the wind ever since Isanna had accidentally ran into Erwin and Marie kissing at the bar in town. While to some degree it certainly pushed her to a state of distraction, the girl had to slap herself back to reality especially since graduation had been right around the corner. After that incident, Isanna had made it a temporary personal goal to avoid the blond whenever they'd run into each other - at least until she could get her head out of the gutter and finally have the guts to face Erwin without having that unwanted scene flash in her memory. 

Now that they were finally official graduates, Isanna knew she'd have to stop avoiding the blond, especially since they would soon be walking through the barracks of the Survey Corps together with the rest of their friends. 

Isanna released a sigh and mentally calmed herself. This is it. We're finally joining the Survey Corps. 

"You're enlisting into the Military Police?"

At the familiar voice that suddenly reached her ears, Isanna stopped in her tracks. She turned her head towards the direction where the voice had come from and realized that the back door of the cabin was slightly ajar, allowing a slim strip of moonlight to pass through the crack. With curiosity, she stepped nearer and peeked through the gap, eyes slightly widening when they landed on two figures talking at the back yard. 

Erwin and Nile. They were standing face to face at each other, expressions morose as if they had been talking about something serious since a few minutes ago. What were they doing here? And more importantly, what was that about enlisting into the Military Police?

"Yeah, I am," Nile confirmed, a tense frown directed at Erwin, as if gauging his reaction. "I'm enlisting into the Military Police Brigade."

Isanna's thoughts seemed to have taken a pause at his statement, skeptical of her own hearing. Dok's joining the MP? She wanted to ask why. Why did he suddenly have a change of heart? Didn't all seven of them plan to join the Survey Corps together, for the sake of pushing humanity forward amidst the pillaging terror brought to them because of the titans?

Why?

"Is it because of Marie?"

Isanna heard Erwin ask, taking note of the frown on his face. 

Marie, she thought. What did Marie have to do with Nile's sudden decision? 

"Yes," Nile answered thoughtfully. "I.. want to stay with her."

And then it clicked Isanna. Marie. Nile was choosing her. He was choosing her over the Survey Corps. Over his friends. Nile was choosing her over them.

What the fuck, Dok? Isanna could only stare in shock as the two men intently stared at each other. She was able to feel the hanging tension between the two friends. For some reason - there was the slightest hint of an air of hostility between them.

It seemed like forever until Erwin finally broke the silence. 

"I see. I wish you the best for your decision."

Nile's brows twitched at the blond's seemingly indifferent response to his sudden change of decision, as if he had expected a stronger reaction. His lips parted but he eventually zipped them shut, looking like he decided against whatever he was about to say to Erwin. With brisk steps, Nile walked away, heading towards the door where Isanna was eavesdropping.

Taking a step back, Isanna stared with conflicting eyes of emotion as Nile pushed the door and walked back in, their gazes locking onto each other, the latter looking fairly surprised at her presence. Neither said a word to the other - a deep contrast to their usual playful banter, as a heavy silence trickled in between them.

Then, with a frown, Nile teared his eyes from Isanna and stalked down the corridor, his retreating back eventually disappearing into the shadows and out of the girl's sights. 

For a short few seconds, Isanna was stuck glued on her spot, eyes still staring at the direction where Nile had gone. She eventually snapped out of her daze and quickly stepped out of the back door, the cold night wind pouring over her as she saw Erwin still standing on the spot he had been since earlier, unmoving and deep in thought.

"Erwin?" Isanna called out, slowly making her way towards him. The blond finally noticed her presence and locked gazes with the girl as she closed the distance between them. 

"Isanna," Erwin nodded at her, acknowledging her presence. "It's cold. What are you doing outside?"

Isanna didn't answer straight away. She studied Erwin's eyes for a moment, trying to read whatever was swirling in his thoughts. She wanted to understand him in that very moment and what he was feeling after his conversation with Nile. 

"I heard," She said with a voice as loud as only ,a whisper. "Dok is.. Dok's joining the Military Police?"

Erwin's lone brow lifted and, after a short thoughtful pause, finally answered. "He is."

Isanna's fists balled, a tinge of betrayal and anger bubbling inside. "How can he - "

"Don't," Erwin cut her off before she could even finish. "Don't get mad at him for choosing what he wants. It's his life," he paused and mutely sighed, his shoulder's slackening. "he wants to be happy, and we don't have a right to stop him."

"But what about you?" Isanna insisted, catching Erwin off-guard at her outburst. "Don't you like Marie? And besides.. doesn't she.. like you too?"

You even kissed her, Isanna thought bitterly, feeling another pang in her chest, but chose to ignore it. She wondered what had happened between Erwin and Marie in the past month since she never got the chance to ask if they had gotten together or something. And it wasn't like she was eager to know.

Erwin seemed to consider her words deeply, a mulling look on his features as he contemplated about something. Then, a faint bitter smile slowly etched on his lips. "Love is a luxury I cannot afford to have," he looked at Isanna right in the eyes, allowing her to see the small melancholic emotion on them for the briefest moments. "You of all people should know that."

Isanna didn't know what to say after that. A luxury he couldn't afford to have - love. At the price of sacrificing his feelings for Marie, Erwin ultimately decided to pursue his dreams. He was that willing to throw away everything, even something so basic of a human need like love. 

And it just got her wondering, what else was Erwin willing to sacrifice for his dream? His fellow comrades? Her? His own life?

Isanna eventually broke their eye contact as her gaze fell to the ground. The cold air of the night was causing goosebumps to form on her skin, but she didn't pay it any attention. 

A few moments later, the two found themselves leaning against the wooden fence, deciding to spend the last of their cadet-in-training years together gazing at the stars in the trickling silence, for old time's sake.

"What about you?" Erwin's question broke the silence as Isanna turned to look at him. "Which branch are you joining?"

Isanna didn't hesitate. "The Survey Corps."

Erwin didn't seem to be shocked at her answer. "It's going to be dangerous. You'll be much safer in the Military Police."

The girl scoffed. Military Police? With that jerk Nile? She didn't want to be remotely near the guy. Besides, the nasty corruption going on behind that branch was something Isanna didn't want to partake in. "Having a lame unicorn hanging behind me goes against my sense of fashion."

A thick, amused brow lifted on Erwin's face. "Since when did you start caring about fashion?"

"Just now," Isanna shrugged, shooting the blond a snarky smirk in reply. 

Erwin let out a low, soft chuckle, and Isanna realized how long it had been since she heard him make that sound. She missed it. 

"I was worried since you've been avoiding me for a while," Erwin stated with a sort of relieved expression. "I thought I had done something to upset you."

Yeaaaaah, about that.. Isanna directed a sheepish smile to him, suddenly wanting to dash away from him, but opted not to. "Was I? I didn't notice." She wished he'd buy her crappy lie.

Erwin hummed and didn't say anything, which brought relief to Isanna. 

"Isanna," the said girl looked at the blond, no traces of his earlier playfulness. "I'm sure you're well aware. Joining the Scouts isn't something that should be done halfheartedly. You're risking your life in this line of work - you need to be dedicated to it."

Isanna noted the seriousness glinting in Erwin's eyes and immediately knew he was telling her this because the blond was aware that the main reason why she was joining the Scouts was to follow him. Erwin probably felt responsible for Isanna in a way, just like back in the past when they were kids, when he took her in. However, they weren't kids anymore. Isanna could very well take care of herself now - she trained hard for three years for him. For him, and if she wasn't going to use those results from hard work for Erwin, then for whom?

"Well, I'm certainly not dedicated to the Scouts," Isanna muttered, before looking at Erwin and continued. "But I'm dedicated to you."

Erwin blinked at her statement, clearly taken aback at the suddenness of her words.

"So," Isanna quickly added. "just.. keep on moving forward. Don't lose sight of your dream, and don't look back. Because I'll be right behind you, and I'll follow you wherever you go. That's a promise I made to your father, and a promise I'm willing to keep."

Isanna caught a brief emotion flashing through Erwin's gaze as the both of them stared at each other for a few moments, her vow of promise seemingly echoing between their ears.

Erwin was eventually the first one to break the eye contact, his small sigh not going unnoticed by Isanna, as the blond craned his neck to gaze at the stars high up in the sky.

"What's with the sigh?" Isanna frowned.

Erwin seemed to be in deep thought, eyes still directed above. "You just sounded.."

"What? Sounded what?"

The blond finally returned his look on her. "Since when did you started talking like an adult?"

With an embarrassed blush, Isanna sputtered. "Wha - ? I've always been like this!"

He probably found her reaction amusing, since the tips of his lips slightly curled upwards. "It feels like it was just yesterday where we were still kids, with you crying in the school campus because I had gone to the restroom during the break."

The pink shade on Isanna's cheeks turned darker. She playfully gave a series of smacks to the blond on the shoulder while Erwin released a hearty chuckle at her embarrassment.

Isanna had went through a lot of experiences during her three years of training. Experiences that gave her a mountain load of lessons, which she knew were definitely going to be useful in the Survey Corps. In those lessons included the do's and don't's she would have to consider should she follow through with her promise. Since Erwin had decided to sacrifice love for the sake of his ambition, Isanna figured she'd have to make the same choice if she wanted to stick to Erwin's side for a long time.

Back then, Isanna had three proofs why she was convinced she didn't view Erwin in a romantical way. The first two, she had crushed out after discovering and acknowledging her feelings for him. She was relieved upon knowing she wouldn't have to erase the third evidence as well. It took a few heartbreaks to get where she now was, but Isanna was contented already with where she stood inside Erwin's emotional circle. If he wasn't looking for love, then neither would Isanna.

She was aware of the high risks upon joining the Survey Corps. The future was akin to the foggy clouds on that day when Isanna had fallen off a cliff - murky, filled with mysteries, and uncertain.

But as Isanna stared at the blond beside her, that same boy who had basically grown up together with her and looked after her after all those years, she thought it wouldn't be too bad to wade through that uncertain future with him by her side.

Just like how Erwin had carried her through the foggy storm that day.