[center][h3]Jade Stone - Wall Maria: Shiganshina District [/h3][/center]

Rays of light managed to slip through the old, tattered curtains that hung in Jade's room. For once she was able to sleep in, as she had asked her parents now for several weeks. Every morning was an early one for the young girl; being woken up by her mother right before sunrise so she could gather firewood for their bakery's oven. 

The rays of light hit Jade directly on the eyes, which caused her to stir a bit until she sneezed and woke up suddenly. Letting out a soft groan, the girl wipe her nose with her sleeve before focusing on opening her eyes. "I need more sleep..." she managed to croak out before yawning. Her body felt sore from the amount of sleep that she had gotten but it didn't bother her one bit. She reveled in the fact that she was finally able to live a kid's life without having to worry about the godforsaken bakery.

[i]"Jade! Your food is going to get cold if you don't come down... it's already mid-day!"[/i]

Her mother's voice filled the blissful silence that was making Jade doze off as she sat up on her bed. "Mom's still here? Mid-day? It's already mid-day?!" The fact that she had managed to sleep for so long and get up so late startled Jade and had her sit up properly. Her stomach growled in response to her fully waking up which prompted her to get on with her daily morning ritual: restroom, brush teeth, wash face, put up her half bun, wear her normal attire of a white dress that fell down to just above her knees with a pink cardigan.

"Sorry mom, I didn't think I'd sleep... so... late?" Jade had skipped down but heard silence once again. "Mom?" With a quick peek at all two rooms downstairs Jade remembered that mom usually disappeared at the bakery around mid-day and would always return soon after with a basket of food. [i]'She must have came for food for dad'[/i], she thought as she went over to the table and picked up her rice balls before heading out the door.

It seemed as if she had picked out the perfect day to not work. There were a few birds chirping near by and a light breeze that kept her feeling cool. 

Rather than heading down to what she always called the 'market area', Jade quietly went about her way down a familiar path that lead to a patch of grass and some trees. It wasn't far from home which always made her feel secure, but it was far enough that if she was in trouble, she couldn't hear her parents yell at her. 

Content with her morning, Jade sat down underneath one of the trees and began munching away at her breakfast, watching the birds fly by and wondering what it would be like to be able to fly around and not have to worry about anything. Including the threats of the monsters that lingered outside of the walls. 

Her mind raced back to when she first saw a tiny glimpse outside of the wall. She had been sitting standing nearby with her father, waiting for the Scouts to return from the adventures outside. At least that's what her parents called them so that she would be spared from the gruesome reality. She eyes opened wide with wonder and curiosity as the Scouts rode in on horses. She paid them little attention as she stayed fixated on the green grass on the other side of the gate. The people began to get a bit rowdy as they shouted and yelled out their questions towards those that were coming in, but Jade didn't look away. It was a mere few seconds, but they held her attention due to the fact that out there was unknown to her. 

Snapping back to reality, the young girl decided to push her thoughts to the back of her mind once more. She did not want to recall the look of despair and mourning that the Scouts had when she finally looked up at them. She had managed to make eye contact with a fair haired man with piercing dark eyes that would give her nightmares.