A/N: So another crossover idea that's sort of like my first SNK-DN crossover "Don't Forget Me", so it may have the same names and characters from my last crossover. (Why? Because I liked those names and it's my fic. *Raises hands* Come at be bro!)

So it's not the same fic... but it's the same fic...

...

...you'll understand when you read it. Point is, it's a new fic inspired by an old fic and current events in the series.

I hope you enjoy, reviews are much appreciated, and thank you all for checking this story out

(Mello P.O.V)

Shiganshina… the southernmost region in the entire Kingdom…

…

…and my own personal hell.

It was a small and crowded district. The land here less than desirable but cheaper to pay off. And when people had no money, this was the place they could live. It was better to live in the north, where the air was cool and titans couldn't be much of a bother, but the fact remains that money was always an issue. No one had it but those who were born into it… or clawed their way to get to it. It didn't surprise me one bit to see people less than charitable when it came to money. Not when there was practically none of it to share. Soldiers were paid handsomely, of course, and merchants made a killing on raising prices on food when there were shortages going around. And when there were shortages, people were bound to go hungry.

And when people went hungry… the shortage became less of an issue.

…

…it was horrifying.

Thank god we weren't that desperate.

My father had made his mark in the army. He fought alongside the soldiers outside the walls and killed titans upon titans to earn his rank. Fifty kills and seven assists. With this, he was asked to be leading commander of the Survey Corps after a certain period, but declined in order to be with his family. I was grateful for this, and I was happy to have him around more to help with my mother and brother, but I couldn't help but think he missed the days of his adventures; slaying titans and being a hero to younger children. I felt bad about being part of the reason he had retired early. However, I knew my brother couldn't grow up without his father being there to look after him. I'd been through that pain as a child, and I didn't have that much of a connection with our father because of it. He tried to establish a relationship with me, but I just didn't feel inclined to be part of his life. I was too angry, too upset to forgive him for all the birthdays he missed, for all the letters of empty promises to be home soon. I lost my faith in him.

And in the scouting legion.

I dropped my pen when I realized I'd stopped writing my story and drifted into my own mind. I did that a lot now, I'd noticed. My mother told me it had something to do with my head having one too many thoughts to focus on one thing alone. I guess she was sort of right. I was a bit of a scatterbrain when things were hectic around the house. But nowadays, when my brother was out with his friends or my parents were quietly working on their own things, I still felt myself slip into the back of my mind and become almost like a corpse. Still and cold… unfeeling. Armin had caught me in one of those moments once and had to tap me to make sure I was still breathing. I remember a time when he believed I'd had a heart attack once and went running to our parents. They told him, when I was out of my trance and normal once again, that I was just overthinking a few things and went into my own head more or less. He understood almost instantly and now just left me to my thoughts. He was smart like that, and I appreciated his understanding.

I'd never wanted a younger brother, and the fact that I'd gotten one hurt me as a child. Like my father and mother hadn't even wanted me, or that they thought I wasn't enough. I always knew Armin was the reason my father retired early, but not in the way I'd first believed. The truth was, he didn't want Armin to grow up hating him like I had. And Armin didn't hate him. He loved and respected the man in a way I never could.

To my brother, he was a dad.

To me…

…

…he was a man.

Not a dad…

…barely even a father…

…

…just a man.

That isn't to say I didn't respect him. With everything he'd done for humanity and the Kingdom, how could I not respect him? He was a good man, with great intentions, and he did his best to support his family even when he was nowhere to be seen. My mother always trusted him to come home. To love and laugh with her like they did when they were young. And he did come home, and he did laugh with her, and loved her for all she was worth. They were perfect together.

I closed my journal and stretched out my numb limbs. I'd been sitting for so long now that I could barely feel my arms and legs anymore. I had to get out and go for a walk… maybe get some inspiration flowing.

I stood from my chair and grabbed my pack from beside my bed. I shared the room with my brother, but since it was a fairly large room it wasn't that big of an issue. I loved Armin with all my heart now anyways and I no longer hated the idea of having a younger brother. The little blonde was smart too so I had no problems with talking to him whenever he wanted to spend time with me. I just wished he didn't spend so much time with that Eren kid from across the street.

What could I say about Eren that hadn't already been said? He was overemotional, strong-willed, and not easy to get along with. Not to mention he was mostly anger driven to a point where he hurt the people around him. Armin was one of his victims, but not like Mikasa or others he was around. Mikasa was verbally abused by the brunette on a constant basis due to her overprotectiveness of the boy, and Armin was only mildly abused since he was the only one who stood by him when things got rough. Armin was very forgiving, so I could see why he stuck around… but that didn't mean I had to like it.

I packed my bag with my leather journal and headed downstairs. The house we lived in was old, but sturdy. It was made for a family like ours in a sense that we couldn't destroy it if things turned ugly. Not that that happened often, but… I was known to have a temper.

I blamed the Garrison for most of it though. The pigs we paid to protect us were nothing more than drunken slobs getting fattened up with bread, butter, and beer. If they knew how to kill a titan I'd pay them in everything I owned just to see them take one down without falling over drunk. It was pathetic, really, and I constantly got in trouble for berating them in public and calling them out on their bullshit about being drunk in order to 'keep the peace'. Honestly, there were better ways to keep the peace than to pass out in the streets, plastered from days of nonstop drinking. They wear their uniforms with pride but don't do a thing to show they were real soldiers in the King's army…

…

…well… most of them didn't.

Matt, however, was a different story altogether.

The stairs led me directly into the dining room that connected into the kitchen where I could see my mother washing dishes in preparation for dinner. At the table I found my father, as relaxed and carefree as ever, speaking with her about some story he'd heard from a neighbor of ours, Armin on his left reading a book our grandfather had given him. The old man himself quietly napping in his own chair across from my father.

I always felt a bit sorry for my father, for although both of his boys had his strikingly bright blonde hair, the both of us were almost exactly like our mother. Small and beautiful, thin and graceful. Armin was a bit shorter than expected, and I was taller than what was first believed, but we both carried the same elegance and hard-headedness as our mother. I guess this is what got me to Matt in the first place, but some part of me always secretly wished I was large and bulked up like our father. I suppose that bulk came from years in the army, serving to find out more about humanity and what we came from, but I knew I'd never join up in the military. I hated the soldiers too much to even begin to entertain the idea of being on their level.

And my family knew this.

Armin noticed me almost right away and smiled brightly.

"Got any chapters done on your story!?" He asked favourably. He always enjoyed me reading out my chapters to him before bed.

I ruffled his hair slightly and shook my head, grinning slightly at his overzealousness. "Not really. I zoned out while writing and I lost track of my thoughts. I'm gonna head out and hopefully get the thoughts back. Maybe get some inspiration flowing."

"Can I come?" He asked – practically begged – using those puppy eyes he didn't know he had.

I shook my head once more. "Not today. I'm going to be meeting up with Matt as well and you'd just get bored with us talking."

I heard my grandfather chuckle at this as he looked up. I suppose he hadn't been as deep in slumber as I believed.

"You and that soldier spend almost every day together. He should just pop the question on you already and stop playing games. You need to get out and get yourselves a home of your own."

I scoffed slightly at this, but still managed my grin. My grandfather – as well as the rest of my family – were well aware of my little affair with Matt. We'd been inseparable for years now, even when he'd gone off into the cadets we'd written to each other day in and day out. It wasn't until he came back, as part of the Garrison, did things turn into something a little more heated. I'd reluctantly told my parents about it when they caught us together in my room, half naked and lip-locked, and they let it pass. Neither of them cared who I was with, just that I was happy. It was sad to think that I was only truly happy when I was around Matt, but I suppose it was because he understood me more than they did.

Matt was my angel… my soul… he was everything to me and so much more. When I'd felt abandoned when I was young, when I felt like no one cared, he'd come to me and brought me back to my feet and guided me to a path of happiness once again. He'd loved and cherished me like I was worth more than gold. He always told me how much he cared for me, how much he loved me and how he would continue to love me without question. And he did. Like a loyal puppy would their master, he followed me through thick and thin, and carried me when things were too tough for me to walk through by myself. I loved him with all my heart, and it killed me to see him join in on the Garrison regiment. I told him I'd never forgive him if he became like those fat pigs that hit on me and touched me with those greasy hands of theirs. And for the five years he'd been part of the Garrison, he'd stayed true to his word about remaining pure and simple like he'd always been beforehand.

And to this day, Matt is the only soldier in the Garrison I'd ever loved and respected.

My father looked up at me, his eyes somewhat begging for even a hint of love from me. "You and Matt should think about starting up a home of your own. As a soldier he has a high pay and many opportunities in his grasp. The two of you could head up north and live in peace."

"That would mean abandoning you, mother, Armin, and granddad." I countered. "And I don't think Armin would be too forgiving if I left him here without any of my stories to read."

"I wouldn't," the boy slightly joked, "but if you're safe and happy…"

"Not to mention," I added, "that marriage between two men is illegal." I grumbled. "For now at least."

My father hummed at this before resting his chin on his hands, his elbows on the table. His eyes were closed, but his brows were furrowed, meaning he was relatively annoyed at this news.

"It's odd, isn't it," he began, "that the cadet instructors don't care if you go for a rut with other males, but marriage and love is out of the question. It makes me ill."

"You can't blame them, son." My grandfather spoke up. "Some of those cadets will die at the hands of titans, so they're encouraged not to die as virgins. It may be sickening, yes, but if you were put into their shoes…"

"Nonsense," the blonde man interrupted, sitting back in his chair, "rutting with someone and being in love are two completely different things. I'd sooner die as a virgin than die knowing I'd given up something so personal. Then again, in today's youth, it shouldn't surprise me to see them running about and rolling in the hay with different partners each night. I sure hope Armin's generation will be better than that."

Armin grinned up at the man, rather embarrassed about the topic. "You don't have to worry about me being a whore. I doubt I'll find anyone worth my time as it is. Eren's the only friend I have so far, and he's thinking about joining up in the survey corps so… I'm not sure the friendship will last as long as I'd like it to."

I glowered at this, looking into Armin's eyes for more to this story. "And what about you? Will you be joining up in the Cadets when you're old enough?"

The blonde boy went rigid at this. "N-No! Not at all! They wouldn't want me anyways! I'm too small, too fragile! They'd send me home on my first day, I just know it!"

I huffed at this and turned away from him. "Good… now I really must be off. Matt is waiting for me."

I didn't give them a chance to say goodbye before I left the house and didn't look back. I was getting angry at the thought of my brother being in the military and I didn't want to take it out on them. Not when they did nothing to provoke my feelings of rage.

I really couldn't stand the soldiers nowadays. The Survey Corps were alright in my books, but not if my brother wanted to be part of them, and of course Matt was a pass without question. The rest of the soldiers could be eaten by titans for all I cared. They did nothing for the good of humanity anyways, being but fat and slovenly, making life a living hell for the rest of us that worked for a living. I was sick of it, and I didn't understand why anyone wanted to be part of something so useless. Eren had his reasons, of course, but there were other ways to get outside the walls… were you looking to get out that is.

I wanted out, and I knew a way out, but I just couldn't do it. I couldn't bring myself to leave. Not with Matt and everyone I loved being here. Besides, with titans right on the other side just waiting for one morsel of human to eat, it was useless to escape to the outside world. My parents had planned to venture out beyond the walls, and their plan was being fleshed out as I walked these streets. But the thing that stopped them more than anything was the fact that the King had banned everything to do with the outside world, and those who sought for answers paid quite dearly for them. Usually with their own lives.

But if my parents were as determined as I thought they were, I knew we'd be outside sooner than believed.

I just had to trust them.

I met up with Matt by the docks and he greeted me with a loving hug and a kiss. The one thing I loved about him more than anything was the fact that he always greeted me as if we hadn't seen each other in months. Even if it was only a few moments, he treated it as if it'd been forever and a day since he kissed me last.

"And how is my Mello today?" He asked in his soft voice.

I revelled in the way he said my nickname. The name Matt had given me after my first angry rant at a soldier for not taking care of his duties like he'd should have. He'd called it his 'ironic nickname' considering it was the exact opposite of what I was truly like. I accepted it when we were kids, and it'd stuck with me for the rest of my life. Even my parents called me Mello once or twice when they felt like being a friend more than a parent. But when I was in trouble or needed to be spoken to, I was Mihael Keehl. Not Arlert, like my father or brother. Keehl, like my grandfather and mother before she was married. I'd been my choice to be a Keehl since I wasn't attached to my father, and no one dared to correct me. Sadly, I think they understood why I was so adamant on not being my father's son. And that made everything more strained between me and the man.

Still to this day we weren't close…

…

…but he still tried.

I hummed. "I'm better than yesterday. I got a few chapters done in my book so I'm ahead of the game. But I'm still looking to publish it professionally, which we both know is going to take time and money."

"I'd be happy to pay it for you!" He proposed happily. "My offer is still open!"

I shook my head. "I can't ask you to do that, Matt. You need the money to move up north, remember."

"And I've told you before, I'm saved up and already got a house ready for me… for us. I'm just waiting for you to accept my proposal and come live with me."

"Matt," I spoke sternly, "not only would have to find a minister or soldier willing to marry us in order to make this legal…"

"You're forgetting that I am a soldier, and can marry us on my own." He interrupted. "Or have you forgotten that I've thought this through to the last detail?"

I sighed, crossing my arms. "…but also that I can't abandon my family like that. I'd love to live up North with you and be your family, but I have a duty to my family and what they mean to me. My brother needs me more than you do, what with all the bullies he has to deal with and the extremists trying to make his dreams seem like nothing more than a fairy tale. Not only that, but my parents and grandfather need someone to help support them thanks to food prices rising because of the shortage. I'm sorry, but I can't leave with you."

He shrugged at this, still smiling. "Then I guess I'm staying here with you, because I'm not leaving you for something as trivial as a nicer home up in the North."

"Matt…" I tried to fight him.

He ended up just pressing his lips to mine before pulling away with a smile.

"I'm not leaving you, Mello. We're in this together. And I admire that you'd want to stay close to your family. It makes me happy to see that you care so deeply for them. Lord knows I didn't have a childhood with people like that. What with my mother whoring herself out, and my father being a drunken sot of a soldier who happened to be at the local whore-house at the time a week before I was conceived. Bastard never showed up again once my mother said she was pregnant with me, and she always blamed me for not being able to land a husband. I'm glad I ran off from the Utopia district. I got to meet you and your family, to leave for Cadets and become a better man than anyone thought I'd be. And most of all, I got to fall in love."

I rolled my eyes at this but the blush still appeared on my face. Even after years of hearing this man compliment me and flirt with me, he still managed to make me smile and blush as if we had just begun dating again. I remember when I met him when we were little and the first thing he said to me was how beautiful my eyes were. I thought he'd been the sweetest boy on the face of the earth for noticing my eyes first before my face, and to freely compliment them as if we'd known each other for years. I fell in love with how open he was, with how sweet and innocent he'd been, and it'd killed me to think that the Cadets might've ruined him while he was away for those long years. But instead, he was the same as ever, and he still loved me without question.

I hugged the man close to me, my face buried in his chest. I felt bad for rejecting his proposal over and over again, but I just couldn't leave my family so abruptly like that. I'd have loved to run off and marry this man, to have a home with him and live out the rest of my days not having to worry about anything going wrong. But if I did that, I'd forever regret not having taken my family with me. I loved them, and I wanted them to be safe.

So I stayed…

…

…even if it made me unhappy.

Matt kissed my head and hugged me tighter. "I'll never stop asking you to come with me, and I'll never stop loving you for all you're worth. Until the day I die, I'm yours to do with as you wish. My heart belongs to you, and I will never leave your side."

I snickered at this before glancing up at him. "I thought soldiers were supposed to give their hearts to the fate of humanity."

He pulled back a bit to rest his forehead onto mine. "And aren't you part of humanity?"

I gave him a peck on the lips for this and I felt my heart flutter like it had every other kiss before this one. Matt was my angel, sent from above to give me all the happiness I needed in life. I loved him, and he loved me. And because of other people's hatred we weren't allowed to formally be together as nothing more than friends. In secret we were lovers… but to the world we were just friends.

But the fact that this didn't hinder the man's love for me, made me all the more happier. There was nothing he wouldn't do to show his love, and nothing I wouldn't do to prove my loyalty to him.

As much as my mother, father, brother, and grandfather, he was my family…

…

…

…and I'd sooner die than have him getting hurt.