----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A knock came at the door, and the nine year old girl opened it, expecting her parents. Instead, there was a different man, but dressed the same way her parents were when they had left. The man's dark hair hung in front of his eyes, and he looked down at her. "Elenore Abendritter?" The girl nodded sheepishly. "I'm... I'm sorry, little girl. Your parents.... they didn't make it back with us."
Lenore simply stood there, trying to take the man's words in. They didn't make it back? Then... "Oh." She murmured softly, casting her gaze at the ground. Beyond that, however, the girl's face was void of emotion.
The man placed a reassuring hand on the girl's shoulder. "They were heroes, Elenore. Don't ever forget that." The girl nodded wordlessly.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Elenore? I don't think you remember me, but I'm your mother's sister, Anastasia. You'll be living with me from now on." Lenore looked up at the kindly woman who looked somewhat like her mother and nodded. "Do you have everything packed?" The girl gestured to the bags to her left. "Alright, then, let's go. The carriage is waiting."
The two loaded the bags into the back of the carriage before getting in themselves, and then they were off.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Praise be to the Walls! Holy Maria, Rose, and Sina! Let all bask in their divine light!" Lenore looked up as she was walking to Aunt Anastasia's house, carrying a bag of groceries. There, atop a soapbox, was one of the wallists. She had never actually paid them much heed before, and she was still good for time, so she decided to stop and listen for a moment, curious.
"Let those who forsake their divine protection be smote for the heathens they are!" Lenore froze. "For man is nothing without the love of the walls, for the walls are life itself! May those who spit upon Maria, Rose, and Sina know the gods' wrath, and may they be forgotten as they deserve!" The girl clenched her tiny fists, pulling the groceries closer to herself and stormed off.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aunt Anastasia glared at the girl as she entered the house later that night. "And where have you been, Elenore? Do you have any idea what time it is? Did you even get the groceries?"
The girl's mood was foul enough without her aunt berating her. "This is why mom and dad went and got themselves killed..." She muttered, and a dark silence fell over the room.
Anastasia's voice was cold as ice as she pointed behind the girl. "Get out. Right now. Get out of my house."
Dropping the groceries on the floor, Lenore left without a word.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lenore pulled her mother's jacket tighter around her as she walked through the streets alone. "It's cold..." She whispered. The girl took a shuddering breath as tears threatened to form in her eyes. Wiping at them, she shook her head. She had to figure out where to go.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lenore stood in front of her old house. She tentatively took hold of the door knob, and turned it. Opening the door revealed a barren room, covered in a thick layer of dust. Probably no one had been inside since the girl had moved out. Closing the door behind her, she walked over to a corner of the room and sat down, hugging her arms around her legs.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Are you hiring...?"
The dark skinned man with green hair looked down at the girl from his desk with a raised eyebrow. "You're kinda young to be looking for a job, aren't you? Why don't you help your parents at home?"
The girl's eyes remained focused on his face. "My parents are gone. Are you hiring?" She repeated the question.
The man sighed. "Look, kid, I'd love to help you, but I can't just hire anyone. Especially not a little kid like you, who's probably never read a book in her life. I'm sorry."
The girl's face was impassive. "I know a lot about books."
The man chuckled. "Alright, kid." He held up a book entitled 'Secrets of the Silken Stone'. "You ever read this book?"
Lenore shook her head. "No, but if you give me a few hours I can."
The man stared blankly before laughing. "This book took me a day to finish, and you're going to finish in a few hours? Tell you what, kid. If you can finish the book by the end of the day, and get most of my questions about it right, I'll hire you. Sound fair?"
The girl nodded as she reached for the book.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Harold called out to the girl. "Hey, Lenore! We got a customer, see about getting him a book he'd be interested in, alright?"
Lenore set the book she was reading down and stood up, walking over to the customer. He gave her a blank stare before turning back to the manager. "Uh, is this a joke? She's just a little kid." Harold laughed. "That's what I thought, too, but she's actually really good. Just answer her questions, alright?"
The girl gave the man a blank stare. "Are you looking for a story, or information...?"
The man looked down at her. "Uh, a story, I guess. It's for my nephew's birthday."
"Does he like the military?"
The man thought for a moment. "Come to think of it, yeah. He seems kind of fascinated by the survey corps, though I don't know why."
Lenore nodded and walked over to a nearby shelf. Pulling the ladder closer to her, she climbed up a few steps and began to browse the selection of literature. She pulled out a book and handed it to the man before climbing down. "That book is about the survey corps fighting a huge titan. He might like it." With that, she went back to reading her book.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lenore's eyes opened slowly, and she rubbed the sleep out of them. Looking down at the book at her side, she picked it up and began reading again.
