"Remember Nelliel, were only here for the money, we're doing this fast and easy" Said girl huffed, before sending a playful smirk toward the dark haired man. "Whatever my dear husband wishes for!" He spluttered looking for the right words.
"Oh, so now I'm your husband" Nelliel shot a seductive look his way while chuckling at his flustered form.
"Howdy, partner" He shot her a disgusted look, snapping back into his professional mode.
"Nelliel" The dark haired girl snickered, putting both her hands up as a sign of surrender. "Alright, alright. I'll be more serious from here on out." The man sent her a skeptical look, one sharp eyebrow raised.
"Aww, c'mon Ryuske, have more faith in me. Will ya!" Ryuske sighed bringing a leather gloved hand to sooth the oncoming headache. How'd he get stuck with such an idiot? No matter, they came here for one job only. After they were done he would have all the time in the world to smack her upside the head.
The pair walked down the halls of the school receiving strange looks from the teenagers that occupied them, some turning to their friends to whisper, while others stared at his partner with a cloudy looks in their eyes. Unbeknownst to him he was also obtaining the same looks, though they seemed to be coming from the females instead of the males. He almost scoffed, damn hormonal teenagers.
"The fuck is your problem Arlert, you trynna start somethin'?!" A blonde kid was roughly shoved into the blue lockers and pinned there by a gorilla of a teenager. The blonde's eyes pricked with tears, but gulped roughly as to calm himself enough to speak up.
"N-no! N-not at a-all!" He stuttered out, avoiding any sort of eye contact with other in front of him. Gorilla sneered and huffed sending a breath of warm and lethal smell into the scrawnier kid's face. Armin pushed down the urge to wrinkle his nose at the smell. Gross, had this guy ever heard of mints?
Nelliel grimaced, how rude, from what she had seen the poor kid had accidentally bumped into Gorilla. If anyone was trying to start something it was Sausage Fingers over there. She took a step forward before being stopped by Ryuske's hand on her shoulder, giving her a look that clearly said he wanted no part of this. The mission always came first. Nelliel scrunched her nose at him, it would only take a second anyway.
The girl stalked forward sending a small amount of killing intent at Gorilla's direction. The kid sensing something was wrong when a shiver had gone down his spine looked up from his victim's petrified face only to meet the eyes of what he thought were Lucifer's himself. Gorilla's grip on Arlert loosened, the she devil had clearly noticed and took the advantage because the second he tried to readjust his grip on the blonde, he was staring at the school's white dotted ceiling. Or was it black? Since when was the ceiling black?
If everyone wasn't staring before, they sure as hell were now. He listened, noticing how there weren't any more whispers, but shouts and gasps of amusement and astonishment.
"Oh Shit! Did you see that?!"
"Hell yeah! Hottie's got a backbone!''
"Wow! She's so strong!"
Another duo pushed past the people to the front of the crowd to see what was going on, they quickly rushed over to their friend's side to help him up, he had fallen from the shock of seeing someone move so fast and flip another over. Ginta had to be at least three times the size of that girl, yet somehow he had gotten thrown on his ass without the slightest difficulty.
Nelliel walked towards Gorilla, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt with a gloved hand, bringing him dangerously close to her face. Gorilla gulped loudly meeting the (e/c) shadowed eyes of the She Devil. He shuddered.
"Listen up you unsophisticated ape, that was my nephew you're sausage fingers were touching" Ginta helplessly tried to scoot back from the She Devil, but she only tightened her iron grip on him.
"Y-your n-nephew you say? S-sorry I wasn't aware, if I was I would have n-never-" The crowd murmured amongst each other at the information. How could such a loser kid have such a bad ass for an aunt? Why didn't he know any cool moves to have people on their asses in seconds?
The kids beside the blonde sent a questioning look at their friend. They didn't know Armin had any other relatives besides his parents (that had been dead for a little more than a decade) and his grandfather who had passed away a couple years ago. If he did-have any other living relatives- then what was this person doing here now? Had she recently been informed of his grandpa's death? Talk about bad timing.
But Armin shook his head furiously whispering to them, "I've never seen this lady in my life.'' Eren's eyes widened before quickly furrowing his eyebrows and turning his head to look at the lady who had saved Armin. Mikasa on the other hand, looked at her cautiously, analyzing her every move.
"Damn right you wouldn't have" Nelliel brought the kid up to his feet with one hand effortlessly, "If I ever find out that you harass him again in any way" She paused for dramatic effect. "I'll come looking for you. Now scram." Ginta nodded tensely and turned towards the crowd, planning to get as far away from the She Devil as possible.
Nelliel turned towards the trio behind her with a sweet smile, walking towards them, the trio visibly tensing. She reached out to pat the blonde's head, but Mikasa acted quickly shooting her hand towards the woman's bicep planning on grabbing her, but she side stepped her hand quick and swiftly, grabbing the raven's hand gently making it look like Mikasa was reaching out to shake her hand all along. Mikasa tried to yank her hand out the woman's grip, which she responded to by squeezing her hand sternly, giving her a signal to sit still and play along. Mikasa narrowed her eyes at the woman. She's fast. Mikasa had concluded.
"It's so good to see you again dearie! How have you three been!'' Eren opened his mouth to call her out but was cut off before he could say anything, "My, just look at how much you've grown!'' The woman said turning her attention towards him and finally back at Armin.
"Hmph! Why didn't you tell me those kids were bothering you! I would have taken care of them a long time ago if you had!" By now the crowd had dispersed, most likely to spread the word about what had just happened. No way was anyone not going to be informed on the She Devil that took down Ginta by the end of the day. Gossip did to spread like wildfire.
"Nelliel honey, it's time to go. Or we'll be late to our meeting with the principal'' The teens turned to look at the man behind the lady, resting a firm hand on her shoulder. He looked like a business man, fancy suit and tie along with a suitcase that most likely contained piles upon piles of paperwork. Though the leather gloves were a bit excessive, it was nowhere near the time of year to be using gloves. They must have been one of those matching couples, they both had gloves -though the woman's seemed to be made of rougher type of material- that were dark. The man was more professional looking than the woman, who had on dark colors from her hips up, and light blue jeans that hugged her curves snug like.
The woman gave a care free laugh "Oh yes! That completely passed my mind!" She looked back at the kids "I'll catch you cool cats later" Ryuske resisted the urge to smack his head against the nearest locker until he blacked out. Nelliel chuckled, from what she had seen on various missions family was known to embarrass each other putting their loved ones in the most awkward situations possible.
The pair walked away from the thoroughly confused teens and made their way towards the front office. Now for the fun part.
"Alright old man, you know what we came here for" The principal stiffened, Nelliel choked back hyena like laughter when the man's shiny bald head reflected sunlight nearly blinding Ryuske when he turned around to face them.
"W-what are you two doing here!? This is a school!" He whispered harshly looking at the maniacs with wide eyes.
"Business is business." Ryuske replied sternly, setting the small suitcase on the mahogany desk clapping it open to reveal the drugs the man had asked for. The man tensed, wanting to rip the suitcase out of the black haired man's hands and high tail out of there. Just seeing the addicting substances was enough for his brain to start pounding and hands to twitch, desperately wanting to feel that intoxicating high.
"This is what you wanted, correct? The thing is, Mr. Jacobson, your knees deep in debt and Boss is getting restless" Jacobson gulped, he hadn't paid them for at least three batches, and the things weren't cheap either- the genuine stuff was expensive.
"Y-you see, I can get the money! I promise you-" He froze, feeling the nice cool metal on his sweaty hot head was the tiniest relief, only when he realized it was the barrel of a gun that relief was quickly shredded by the claws of fear.
"C'mon old man, you've already used that excuse, remember! Could've at least come up with a better one" Nelliel grumbled firmly holding the gun against Jacobson's bald head.
"Of course, we can't shoot you here" Ryuske cleared his throat "But I assure you we do have other ways of disposing of you in the most painful ways possible, without anyone ever hearing a peep come from you"
Jacobson gulped.
#&#&#&
"I just don't understand, she acted like we'd known each other for years! But that was the first time I've ever seen her and that guy that was with her too!" Eren nodded brows furrowed. That girl talked to him like she was his long lost friend or something, but he was glad that she was able to step between Armin and Ginta. Most of the time Mikasa and him weren't able to come to the blonde's aid right away either because they didn't know or because they were too far away. The trio did have most of their classes together, but there were three in which Armin was alone (something about advanced classes for only the smartest of people) and those bullies had eventually figured out when he was by himself.
Even though Mikasa was scary when wanting to be, it never seemed to be enough. Death glares just didn't strike fear into their hearts like they used to anymore, though at times she did take action, a good sucker punch to the face here and there, though they were becoming less and less recent, what with all the increase in security -which still hadn't been explained- it would be a sure fire way to get them to the principal's office, which Armin definitely did not want.
But one thing was for sure, that girl had put Ginta in his place and he had to have definitely told all of his other friends about what had gone down. They wouldn't be bothering Armin any time sooner or later, not if they didn't want their asses handed to them, which the lady could most certainly provide as seen by her actions and threats. And she was strong. And hot. And pretty. And-. He shook his head getting rid of the thought.
Mikasa on the other hand, though grateful to her for saving her friend was still skeptical and cautious about the girl. Why would she lie about Armin being her nephew? She didn't gain anything from it. So why?
"Well, at least she stopped the situation from becoming worse. Right?'' Mikasa said lowly while the other two nodded.
#&#&#&
"Yes, I would like to pick up these kids" The lady at the front desk asked for their names "Eren Jaeger, Mikasa Ackerman, and Armin Arlert" The lady nodded at the middle aged woman before turning to her computer to type away.
Nelliel's ears perked, wasn't Arlert the name of the kid she had helped a while ago? She could only assume that Eren and Mikasa were the names of the other two kids that were beside the blonde one. The boy did seem like the type to be called Eren, the same went for the girl as well- Mikasa seemed like a name that fit.
The woman -who she had noticed looked a lot like the kid named Eren although with softer eyes- came towards her and Ryuske in the waiting area. They had left the principal's office a little while ago, he was on his way to his home to retrieve the money he owed them. Of course he could have been lying about that, but it was difficult to lie to someone on where you were going when they knew your location at all times. Ah, the wonders of tracking devices. Old coot hadn't even noticed when she placed the chip on him with the barrel of her gun, of course the thing was so minuscule the human eye had difficulty catching it. A real wonder how she hadn't lost the thing, really. Though she did get a -well deserved one, she had to admit- scolding from Ryuske for placing the tracking mechanism in such an obvious place and not on his clothes or something. But she felt like it was worth it. Something about putting the thing on the man's shiny bald head where there was not a single strand of hair to cover it existed was amusing.
Nelliel snickered to herself, yes, very amusing. Considering the thing almost blinded Ryuske, which was at the moment a sore topic for him. Poor guy, out of all the things he could have been blinded from, it had to be a man's bald greasy head.
"You know what we should do when we get home?'' Nelliel drawled out looking up at Ryuske, "Bake a cake" Ryuske choked looking at her with an incredulous look, "Hell no, last time we did that we spent more than a hundred dollars on repairs. Baking is not our strong point"
"Huh?! What do you mean it's not our strong point! We can totally bake a cake!" "A hundred dollars, Nelliel, One zero zero." He wrinkled his nose "How do you not know you don't pour water on a grease fire!" Nelliel crossed her arms "How do you start a grease fire while baking a cake!"
Ryuske flushed at that "Y-you know very well as I do it was an accident! A-and if it weren't for you-" Laughter cut Ryuske off, and Nelliel had to take a second to steady herself taken back by the beautiful sound. It struck something in her that reminded her of comfort and warmth, like she had belonged and was being accepted into it with warm secure arms. It was, she bit her tongue, it was- homey. She hadn't felt that in such a long time. It was a good feeling. Immediately Nelliel knew that she liked this woman.
"My, what a wonderful couple you two make! Tell me, are you newlyweds?" The duo looked at each other obviously flustered from the attention they were getting.
"Y-yeah, how could you tell so easily" The woman continued chuckling. Well they weren't married at all, nor were they in any type of romantic relationship. They were just partners in crime. Literally. They had come as a married couple picking up their misbehaving child -which they found was the few of many ways to get past security, why were there so many in the first place? It was merely an undercover position, and infiltration happened to be the pair's strongest points. Getting past guards was nothing.
"Oh sweetie, I've been in a marriage myself for many years! Grisha and I used to be the same!" Then she stopped for a moment looking as if she was chastising herself, "How rude of me, I haven't introduced myself! My name is Carla Jaeger, it's a pleasure to meet you..."
"O-oh I'm Nelliel and this is Ryuske, a pleasure to meet you as well" Carla nodded a sincere smile on her face indicating she was enjoying herself with the young couple.
"I imagine you're here for any children of yours" At that Ryuske's cheeks brightened "N-no" He stuttered out before he could catch himself. Crap, there goes their original story of picking up their kid. Luckily for him Nelliel strangely thrived in these type of embarrassing situations. "No, we don't have any kids. We're here for my sister's boy, she and her husband are always off on business trips so they leave it to us to watch for his wellbeing" Carla nodded "You don't have kids? Well not yet anyway I suppose" She smiled when she saw how red the man beside Nelliel was getting.
"Yeah, you know how these kids are; "It's not a phase mom!"' She chuckled "Along with their raging hormones at this age, it's nearly impossible to keep them in check!" Carla put a hand over her mouth to stifle her unstoppable laughter, tears slightly pricking the corners of her eyes. It had been a long time since she had laughed this hard.
Nelliel's phone made a 'ting' sound "O-oh sorry just a moment" she elbowed Ryuske signaling for him to keep Mrs. Jaeger busy. Nelliel looked at the new message her face instantly hardening. Orders were orders.
Nelliel gave an exaggerated sigh and turned back to look at the two "Looks like my sister and her husband already came to give the boy a talk and took him home. I guess that means there's no use for staying here longer, it was a pleasure to meet you Mrs. Jaeger, maybe we can continue talking another day over a nice cup of tea, if you like" Mrs. Jaeger nodded a welcoming smile on her face "Yes I'd like that very much-"
Ryuske was the first to react, bringing Mrs. Jaeger down to the floor and covering her ears as to minimize the damage to them by the head splitting explosion. Nelliel quickly followed in suit, putting her arms over her head shielding it from any possible falling debris.
Just as fast as the explosion came, so did the screaming from all directions. High pitched wails of pain and fear coming from all sides injuring Nelliel's and Ryuske's ears more than it should have thanks to their highly sensitive hearing. After that came the human instincts of all those around them, fight or flight. Many fled out the now shattered windows with minimal-if not any injuries- while many stayed put and coward under their mahogany desks, some weeping and others shaking while some wouldn't stop screaming curling themselves into a fetus position on the floor, holding themselves tightly.
For Nelliel and Ryuske on the other hand, it had been beaten down into them to fight, but they were on an infiltration mission -no matter how childishly easy it was- protocol stated that if something were to go astray and not fit in line with the mission, they were too flee, leaving not a single trace that they had been there in the first place.
And so they did just that, though they couldn't use the windows to escape for a crowd had gathered around them pushing each other mercilessly into the glass covered floor and dry walls desperately trying to escape. So the duo left the front office and charged into the school's debris filled halls, they're instincts kicking in and running faster than what was considered normal speed, but at the sound of Mrs. Jaeger calling out to them for help, they both stopped and turned around to give her assistance.
They didn't know what it was that made them want to help the frail woman, those emotions about caring for others -other than yourself and partner- had been thrown away years ago, deemed worthless and un-useful, a hindrance; something that only got in the way of what was really important and that was put before any one's life. The mission. No matter what, the mission always came first. It came before your life, your partner's life, and any bystander's life. Nelliel and Ryuske never had a problem leaving anyone before, they had done it countless times without regret, for going back to save those people would mean the death of them no matter if they came out alive with the people. They would be put to execution with a flick of a wrist, and they didn't want that. Not when the possibility of saving someone could mean your death or leaving them behind would mean you coming out completely unscathed.
So why now?
They hadn't noticed before but there were these creatures-these things, and they were eating other people, sinking their yellow teeth and black gums into flesh, while others tore open stomachs, red liquid overflowing and spilling to the polished ground, as they devoured their intestines hungrily, it was like a banquette for these things. Their appearance was even more unsettling, like they had been buried for months, letting worms, fungus, and decomposition do their thing- like... like they had been shoved deep underground and whoever left them there let them rot and wither away like they knew exactly how long to wait to achieve the perfect point of green and grey flesh that hung loosely to bones, threatening to fall or peel off at any time, and then dug them up and released these animals to the public.
When they had surrounded Mrs. Jaeger Nelliel turned a little green at the thought of touching these things, but even so, swiveled to connect the back of her heel against ones neck, a killing blow. Of course it was supposed to be a killing blow, she even heard the crack and popping of the neck being dislocated and the spine shattering, but the thing only stood back up as if nothing happened, its head lolling uselessly from side to side and back to front with every drunken like step it took. She figured the same must of happen to Ryuske when he let out a surprised sound from the back of his throat, barely audible but loud enough for her to hear and get the message. Nelliel sent back a grunt of her own telling him she understood.
Their attacks were enough to set back the things into a reasonable distance away from Mrs. Jaeger-though it was only for a couple seconds the time was sufficient enough to grab Mrs. Jaeger's hand and sprint in the other direction. The trio ran narrowly missing all types of obstacles varying from falling pieces of ceiling, people running, the creatures, and glass covered floors.
Most of the threats she and Ryuske could have avoided easily but Mrs. Jaeger on the other hand wouldn't be able to, she didn't have the same speed and endurance to pain they did, nor the stamina- for she had started panting the second they fled. But then again it could also be the shock from all of this, the complete and utter chaos.
Mrs. Jaeger halted in her step nearly sending the woman that held her by the arm stumbling, but she quickly caught herself standing up straight, she wouldn't have caught the thing if it weren't for her critical eye for detail. Though she barely time to mentally congratulate the girl on how graceful she was, Mrs. Jaeger stored it as a mental note. "Wait! My kids, we can't leave them behind!"
The other two shifted uncomfortably, and shared a look for the smallest of seconds. She thanked her trained eyes again, because she knew that look, knew it far too well. They didn't want to take anymore people with them, even if they were children, and suddenly it all made more sense. Their swift and skillful lying, the way they had looked at each other with reluctance and fear when they brought her along, how they both landed killing blows on those things, and they're fast reflexes for avoiding obstacles, even if they were holding back she could clearly how fast they assessed the situation and directed her another way, where she could follow along with ease, their flawless teamwork, communicating without words and knowing exactly what the other was thinking. Poor babies, she thought, they don't deserve that kind of life, the things must have gone through. She momentarily closed her eyes, as if in pain, no one deserves that kind of life.
But her kids needed her, and she needed them.
Mrs. Jaeger bolted in the other direction, knowing the school layout enough to guess where she could find her kids. She almost gave a sigh of relief when a set of footsteps trailed after her, she couldn't do this alone, not with her limited capabilities.
"Mom!" She smiled in relief at the sight of her baby boy and his friends. They were safe. "Eren, Mikasa, Armin! We need to leave. Now!"
Eren nodded brows furrowed, and eyes fierce, definitely determined. No doubt he must be confused as to what was going on. But she would explain it all later. When they were truly safe.
Eren noticed the two strangers from before following his mom, and stepped in between them. He didn't know who the hell these people were, but he wasn't going to let them anywhere near his family. "Hey, listen. I don't know where you think you're going, because it sure as hell ain't gonna be with us!" His mother put a comforting hand on his shoulder "Eren, its fine, they're good people'' He sent her doubtful look "Trust me" she said sternly to him. He nodded warily, Eren had already seen that they could be good people, his mother saying so was enough he supposed.
The pair almost gave a frustrated sigh, they had been thoroughly relieved when the boy had told them to leave. Gladly, was the only thing that seemed to go through their minds, we're already too much of a target, this many people in one place could attract those things. Considering that killing those things seemed to be a challenge, they would rather avoid confrontation. These people would only slow them down, but the woman had sent them such a meaningful look that it almost screamed at them that she wanted the duo to stay, so they did.
The group continued running, the Asian girl seemed to be leading them knowing exactly which turns to take, having far superior knowledge of the school's layout than any other person at the moment. Thank years of trying to locate and save Eren and Armin from any kind of trouble in this maze hole.
Nelliel and Ryuske kept up a reasonable pace with the teens, not going too fast or too slow as to not give anything away or slow down the group. Mrs. Jaeger on the other hand seemed to be running out of steam as the seconds passed. The duo should have seen it coming. They should have, and they didn't. But the building shook once more and the ground gave off a terrifying tremor, and Mrs. Jaeger was already so far behind the group the chances of doing something seemed to be so far out of reach.
So when that gigantic portion of the ceiling fell, the inevitable took place, and it crushed her from the waist down. It wasn't only her though, there were at least dozens or more that were also crushed, some had died on impact, others were screaming but it was muffled, and the blood that had splattered each and every way couldn't be only hers. No, not such vast amount could belong to her only.
But Eren, he could only focus on her. Could only focus on the sound of her bones crushing, her screams, and her blood. Not the other dozen or so that were crushed with her. Only hers. Only his mother. Only is caretaker. His birth giver. Only the horribly wretched sound that came out of her, the same voice that used to be laced with gentleness and care. Only her face that twisted into a disturbing one full of pain, the same face that used to smile down at him with comfort and warmth.
It made him scream, scream with such ferociousness, anger, and pain, it had startled both him and his best friends by his side. But he didn't care, his mom needed him. So he ran to her desperately heaving at thing on top of her, trying to make enough space for her get out. At that moment everything seemed to be difficult, trying to think was like swimming through syrup, breathing was like he was underwater, trying to make his muscles move while they felt like he had weights attached made him even more angry. But focusing wasn't hard, he only had one thing in mind. Get mom out of there.
Mikasa and Armin ran to his side and started trying to lift the thing with all their might, but it wasn't enough, soon the pair also tried giving the trio their strength, but it still wasn't enough.
"C'mon don't stop! We're gonna get mom out of there" Mikasa grunted trying to lift the thing with all her might, tears accumulating in the corner of her eyes. Armin struggled uselessly, already knowing the outcome of this. But still, they couldn't just leave her.
"Eren honey, listen to me. You have to leave-"
"No! I'm not leaving you, we're getting you out of there!" He shouted crying tears of anger and frustration. Mrs. Jaeger turned to Nelliel, determination in her eyes and suddenly she could see where Eren got such a vicious look from.
"Nelliel I want you to promise me something. Please take care of my children, I know they can be handful sometimes, but they're good kids, really they are, so please-"
"No! Mom, I said we're getting you out of there!" Carla shook her head solemnly, desperately wanting to hug her babies one last time. She took in a shaky breath, this was for them.
"No Eren, my legs were crushed on impact, even if you were to get out, I wouldn't be able to run!"
"I don't care! I'll carry you on my back if I have to!" Nelliel nearly flinched, she had never heard such raw emotion come from someone before, it was so desperate, so helpless. Like an injured cub crying out for its mom desperately.
"No! Eren! Hush your mouth and listen to me!" Carla turned back to the dark haired girl.
"Please, Nelliel take care of them. I know you two are far more than capable, and I'm sorry you had to live such a life full of hurt and to have you promise something like this to me. But please, as a dying woman's last wish, this is all I want. So please. Please''
"I-I don't know-"Nelliel took in a shaky breath, "Alright, mama bear, you have my word. I'll protect your cubs" She said with smirk, and the look of complete relief she got from Mrs. Jaeger was bittersweet to watch. This woman who she knew nothing about, seemed to know so much about her, who she had met only today, grated her with such kindness like they had been friends for years, and she was trusting Nelliel with her children, even though she must have had an idea of all the terrible things she had done.
Well, one thing she was certain of, she sure as hell wasn't going to let mama bear down.
"Thank you. Oh, and Ryuske, if it counts for anything, you have my blessings" She gave him a wink and the man instantly reddened. Blessings!? He didn't need those! He didn't. No.
"T-thank you, Mrs. Jaeger, I'll make sure Nelliel doesn't screw this up" Said girl huffed at that, she could be responsible when ever she needed to. Mrs. Jaeger laughed, the familiar sound sending an inviting warmth through the group of five. Three of them who were currently crying, and one who so desperately wanted to keep on trying to save his mother.
"Yes, please don't let this turn out like that cake incident of yours" The pair flushed at that. They could definitely bake a cake if they put their mind to it. Definitely.
"Alright" They both said in unison, it held so much certainty and firmness it sent a shiver down the older woman's back, her own heart filling with courage.
Yes, mama bear could rest assured, her cubs would be in good hands.
"Ryuske" The raven nodded and heaved Eren over his shoulder, if left to walk alone he would be sure to struggle and even after he was being carried by Ryuske he did so, elbowing and punching at the man's back and head, hopelessly kicking and kneeling the man's chest and stomach. Ryuske having dealt with stronger blows didn't bat an eye at the boy. Instead he turned the corner with his partner and the other two trailing slightly behind her.
As he did so, out of the corner of his eye he could see the creatures limping towards Mrs. Jaeger, one of them bending toward the woman's head, jaws open to take a bite. Ryuske turned his head wanting to be the last thing he saw of the woman to be her grateful smile. But he could tell the boy didn't know what to do, look away or watch till the very end. Judging by his scream, the boy had chosen the latter option, whether it was by choice or not.
"MOM!"