Prologue
Carla Jeager's funeral - 2.5 years prior.
14-year-old Eren Jeager watched as his mother's casket was lowered in the ground. From the corner of his eye Eren noticed a figure approaching him. He'd had enough people express their sympathy for him in the last 2 hours. If he had to listen to one more person he didn't recognise talk about how much his mother would be missed he thought he might explode. He was the one who would have to go on without his mother. Come of age without her. Sit at the kitchen table across his father in silence, wanting to talk about her but knowing that it wouldn't change a thing. These people, her friends, would mourn her but eventually get on with their lives. Eren would not and neither would Grisha but they had to continue, living in the same house, living the same lives. Two men with half their hearts burned away from sorrow.
The figure had reached him now and when he spoke his blue eyes were, surprisingly, devoid of emotion.
"When i see you again your whole life will change" the stranger said, towering over him.
Despite his earlier thoughts Eren found himself annoyed. It was, after all, common courtesy to express your condolences to the family of the deceased.
"My life has already changed in case you haven't noticed" Eren replied, ice coating his words.
"This, Eren, is only the beginning" the man said and this time his eyes seemed to soften a little, his sadny-haired head bowed in just the tinniest bit in sorrow.
An amazingly dramatic line to deliver in someone's funeral, Eren thought but aloud he said "What do you mean? Who are you?" After all this was not a day for sarcasm.
"It doesn't matter right now. All you need to know is that we'll be meeting again and it will be under even direr circumstances. You have 3 years to live life as a normal boy. Cherrish that time. It won't last. "