Author note - Ok, so I tried to rewrite this chapter a couple of times, but I'm giving up. It's going to be a little bit of word and information vomit. I didn't want to spend anymore time on it because I want to get to the good stuff. The fluffy smutty good stuff. I understand if you don't want to keep reading after all the info dumping, but it will get better...well in my opinion anyways.
I don't own Attack on Titan characters/etc
Walls, walls and more walls. As far as the eye could see. That was Eren's life. He reclined against a tree and glared at the steely gray wall. It was a cage and he was trapped. Well for now. Someday though Eren would get outside this wall and face the monsters that lurked in free world.
He had never seen the monsters, but he had heard a many of tale told about them. Great mutated furry cat like beasts that walked on two legs. They were referred to as Nekoti. Some experiment gone wrong. One bite alone would spread a virus and then bam, you were one of them too. They were said to spread like a plague. They were hunters and their meat of choice was human.
Then there were those monsters that looked like humans, but had blood red eyes and gleaming pointed fangs. They craved human blood way more than those furry creatures did. They referred to them as Level E vampires. Although Eren wasn't sure if the vampire stories were a hundred percent accurate seeing as his adorable adopted sister wasn't a crazy Level E. Yep. Mikasa Ackerman, the cute little girl, they found in the woods surrounded by ash and human bodies was a vampire. Eren didn't care though what she was. When he saw her, he knew she wasn't evil. He just couldn't bear the thought of leaving her or reporting her to the military troops that protected their little outcropped city of Shiganshina. The military had a zero tolerance policy on any monster found within the walls. They were exterminated immediately to keep the population safe.
Mikasa didn't seem like a blood craze beast like the stories portrayed. He once asked her about it and she explained it was because there were different ranks of vampires with Level E's being on the very bottom. Eren assumed if Mikasa could blend in with society, there must be other vampires walking amongst them as well. It kind of creeped him out, but at the same time it didn't. Mikasa was pretty kick ass after all which improved his opinion of vampires. Well except those Level E's everyone talked about and Mikasa said couldn't be reasoned with.
Eren was pulled from his wandering thoughts when Mikasa plopped down next to him in the shade.
"Eren can we hurry up getting the wood and go back. The sun is to hot" Mikasa complained next to him.
Eren glanced at his sister and noticed the sweat on her brow. He mused that it must really suck to pretend to be a human and spend all day in the sun. It must be torture. He could see the little burns puckering at the edge of her exposed skin. The wide brim hat only covered so much after all.
"Yeah alright" Eren conceded. He stood up and brushed himself off. He offered his hand to pull Mikasa to her feet. They then picked up their respective back baskets filled with wood. Mikasa's of course had a bunch more because she was physically stronger then him even in the power draining sunlight.
That night they sat down quietly for dinner. Eren's parents asking how their day went. Mikasa answering in her soft voice. Eren grumbling about stupid walls that left him with a whack to the back of his head. After dinner Eren's father took him into the basement and filled a syringe with a see through blue liquid. Eren pouted and crossed his arms.
"Why do I have to get a shot? None of the other kids do" Eren pouted.
"Because none of the other kids have a doctor as a father" Grisha, Eren's father, replied calmly as he tapped the syringe to get rid of the air bubbles. "Now no more pouting. Give me your arm."
Eren huffed. "So not fair." He grimaced when the needle pricked his skin. He hated whatever this stuff was because it always made him feel weird.
Grisha pressed cotton to the injection site until the blood dwindled off. He ruffled his son's messy brown hair. "Now remember no giving Mikasa blood tonight. You need to absorb this medicine. It's stronger than normal because I'm going on a trip for a while and I'm not sure when I'll be back."
Eren rolled his eyes. "But she's going to be thirsty."
"Then your mother or I will take care of it. Now no more arguing. How do you feel?"
Eren swayed on his feet and the world started to swim. "Dizzy" he drawled. "Wha…?"
He never finished his sentence because he passed out almost instantly. Grisha caught him in his arms and nuzzled against the fluffy brown hair. "I'm sorry Eren… This should last you for a couple of years. I'll try to get back as soon as possible before it wears off" Grisha whispered against his little son's head. He held the boy a little bit longer before he hoisted him in the air and carried him to his room.
Mikasa was sitting on Eren's bed doodling. Her head sprang up when they walked through the door. Her dark gray eyes locked onto Eren's limp body with concern. "What's the matter with him?" she asked quickly and scooted over on the bed.
Grisha chuckled as he tucked his son into bed. "Nothing. The medicine just made him sleepy." After patting down Eren's hair he turned to his beautiful daughter with her pale complexion and black hair and smiled fondly. "How are you? Do you need something to drink?"
Mikasa tore her eyes off of her slumbering brother and nodded slowly. Her skin was still trying to heal from the sun exposure and it had been almost a month. Grisha smiled and sat down on the bed next to the small girl. He rolled up his sleeve and nicked a cut into his skin. Mikasa mumbled thanks before attaching herself to her father's arm drinking quickly.
Grisha patted her hair soothingly. "Promise me to always look out for each other no matter what."
Mikasa detached herself and licked her lips. She stared up at her father and with all the seriousness she could summon she responded. "Of course Papa. I will never let anything or anyone hurt Eren."
Grisha nodded and pulled the little girl into a hug. His eyes locked with his wife's, Carla, as she watched from the doorframe. Neither of them knew what the future held, but at least they knew their children would always look out for each other.
X
"Eren get up. We're going to be late" Mikasa nudged at her brother in irritation.
Eren groaned and swept her hand away. "Alright I'm getting up jeeze." Eren yawned as he stretched out his stiff muscles. A moment later he was hopping off of the bed and wiggling into the tight white pants of the Military.
"Well hurry. You have 15 minutes before we're supposed to report" Mikasa sighed at the display her brother currently made.
"Why are you even here? This is the boys' dorms" Eren said as he pulled his beige shirt over his head.
"Because it's our first day of being with the Survey Corps and I just want to make sure I'm here for you if you need anything" Mikasa said calmly as she fidgeted with the ends of the red scarf Eren gave her. The first thing she ever received from him from the night he had found her.
"You don't need to baby me Mikasa" Eren grumbled as he started putting on his straps.
Mikasa rolled her eyes and was about to say something else when Armin popped back up next to them. His almost shoulder length golden hair bouncing with the movement. His light blue eyes twinkling with excitement. "Are you guys almost ready? I heard that we might get our first mission today."
Eren was just about done putting on his straps and grinned back at his best friend. His own jade colored eyes gleaming excitedly. "Really? That would be awesome! I'm so ready to get the hell out of these walls."
Mikasa's stormy gray eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms. "You shouldn't be so excited about going out there. No. You should be wary and on guard." Mikasa watched as Eren struggled a little with the straps. "Oh for crying out loud Eren" she said in exasperation and stepped forward to manhandle the tall slim muscular man.
Eren glared. "I could have done that…" he mumbled petulantly. Armin chuckled behind his hand and Eren turned his pout towards him.
"Just hurry up and put your jacket on and lets go" Armin said peacefully although he was still grinning.
Eren grinned back too excited about a possible mission to stay pissy. He slid his arms into the new tan military half jacket he was provided. Instead of the plain back of the Training Corps, it now had the Wings of Freedom insignia. He then quickly pulled on his knee high black leather boots. Lastly, he ran his fingers through his tussled hair to try and make it a little more presentable. "Alright I'm ready!"
Mikasa sighed and fell into step next to Eren and Armin as they headed for the door. They didn't pay much attention to the remaining soldiers getting ready. There wasn't a lot of time left anyways for idle chit chat. Not that Mikasa was one for idle talking. She always felt slightly awkward around new people because at a moment's notice she could be persecuted and sentenced to death. She only really liked talking with Eren and Armin. She glanced at her adoptive brother who was talking excitedly with Armin about where they might go or what they might see and that's when it hit her. The awful stench wafting from Eren's mouth. Her face scrunched in displeasure. "Eren you have to brush your teeth."
Eren's eyes flicked towards her and then he shrugged. "Sorry my dear sister, we just don't have time today. You'll just have to suffer through my lovely morning breath" Eren said with a sly grin and then blew some air her way. Mikasa made a disgusted face and fanned the area in front of her with her hand. Armin chuckled again.
"Oh speaking of time. Here I brought these with me from the canteen" Armin said as he pulled two scones from his jacket. "I know they're not much, but it's better to have some kind of breakfast than nothing at all. I figured you might be running late this morning since you were up practically all night vibrating with energy."
Eren smiled again widely. Man this is the reason he loved his adorable blonde best friend. He pulled him into a side hug as he grabbed one of the scones. "Thanks Armin. You are literally the best."
"Yeah thanks Armin" Mikasa said quietly as she took the remaining scone. She really didn't need to eat as much as humans, but appearances were everything. She ate about half and then made Eren eat the rest of it. He didn't complain about it like he normally might. He was kind of hungry after all. Plus he knew Mikasa would be fine. Especially since he had given her some blood three nights ago.
They made their way to the large courtyard and fell into line next to Sasha, an excitable brunette with an endless pit of a stomach, and Connie, a boy with buzzed dark brown hair and Sasha's partner in crime. "Morning you three" Sasha greeted cheerfully as she bounced a couple of times from foot to foot. "God I'm so excited! What do you think they'll have us do on our first day?"
"Probably mucking out stables and other crappy jobs" came the sarcastic reply as Jean fell into line next to them as well. Eren glared at the tall muscular man with two colors of hair. The top layer of hair was light brown versus the dark undercut layer. God did Eren dislike this man. Well not really. Maybe.
"Shut it Horse Face" Eren growled.
"Make me blockhead" Jean responded back.
"That is enough. Quit it you two" Mikasa said in a tight threatening little voice.
Jean grunted and went back to ignoring them. He instead turned to his right and started talking to his bestie, Marco. A tall black haired freckled angel that tried to keep the peace by being patient and kind unlike Mikasa who just knocked heads together and scolded.
They continued to murmur among themselves until one of the scout leaders climbed the lifted platform in front of them. He was bald and the glare in those eyes was impressive. "Alright listen up newbies. My name is Keith Shadis and I'll be leading you today. We're going to be venturing out of Wall Rose and back into the Trost District. You'll be split into different teams with established members of the Survey Corps being your leaders. The goal is to ensure the gate to Trost District is still functioning. If it is, we close it and lock it up tight. We will then start eradicating any of the Nekoti or vampires that are still roaming about. As you all know, provisions are getting tight around here. We need to start reclaiming what was stolen from us. We need to get humanity back on its feet. Am I clear?"
"Yes sir!" The collected Scouts yelled back.
Eren was determined. They would for sure get Trost District back today. He knew they would and once they did, they would start working on reclaiming Wall Maria's territory. Then maybe he would make it back to Shiganshina District and reclaim his own home. He still remembers it. The screams as a large pack of Nekoti terrorized the small outcropped city. No one knows exactly how they got in, but the military stationed there weren't prepared. Most too drunk to respond properly. They had become complacent over the years without a single breach. The felines spread through the population. People were either outright killed or turned from the virus.
Eren's mom falling victim herself. He was too late to save her and watched as furry beasts devoured her. He would have still gone to her if it wasn't for Mikasa and her super human strength scooping him up and running like their lives depended it on it.
Level E's followed closely after which only meant that the spellbound gate had been sabotaged or something like that. Eren wasn't too sure on the details. He had only been 11 at the time and 7 years later didn't help his memory. He had to somewhat rely on what other people said.
The infiltration didn't stop there though. A couple of days later the gate leading into Wall Maria was destroyed meaning they lost a crap ton of land. The remaining three outcropped cities attached to Wall Maria were cut off from the rest of humanity. The Survey Scouts had managed to check up on them once, but they were left to fend for themselves as it would be damn near impossible to transport their population into the safety of Wall Rose not to mention stupid. Supplies were thin just with the added refugees. All in all, they really needed to reclaim their lost land before starvation became their downfall. It was also a matter of pride. They wouldn't go down so easily.
The troops strapped on their 3d Maneuver Gear. The gear allowed them to fight the monsters from the air versus the ground where they were at a disadvantage. Vampires were quicker and stronger after all, but still earth bound. The Nekoti were natural hunters due to the predator blood pumping through them, but they were also limited to ground combat.
Much to Mikasa' distress, Eren was put on a different team than her. He was reporting some woman name Marlene. Eren told her to quit being dramatic and he would be fine. God did she hate it. She had to protect him that was the only thing that really mattered. It also didn't make her feel any better that none of their sort of friends would be joining him. She felt a lump in the pit of her stomach, but she was a soldier. She would obey commands.
The mission was going according to plan. Eren's team was taking the west most course towards the gate eliminating targets as they appeared. However, when a pack of Nekoti launched through windows at them, all hell broke loose. They hadn't expected creatures to fly out of the building and tackle them from the air. Eren fought and watched desperately as one by one his team fell victim under the claws and fangs. He finished slicing the neck of the beast in front of him and then shot his hook into the tallest freaking chimney in the area. He felt a claw tear at his boot as he was propelled upwards into the air. It was too chaotic for him to notice that the defeated Nekoti were crumbling to ash. As his heart pounded loudly in his ears, he tried to take deep breaths to get oxygen back into his lungs. He did a quick scan of himself and when he was sure there was no bites on him, he shot the smoke signal into the air. Black. Signaling defeat. As two Nekoti clawed up the side of the building, Eren shot his hooks to another one. At this point all he knew was that he needed to find Mikasa or Armin's team or at least another team in general. Being on his own would surely mean death.
Mikasa had just finished slicing through the neck of a Level E with her silver blades when she saw the black smoke rising from the west. Her heart dropped into her stomach. Eren. That was where Eren's team had been. She quit being a soldier at that moment and became the protective older sister she had always been. She shot her hooks and started flying west. The shouted 'Ackerman' was distant noise.
She was flying between buildings when a glint of golden blonde hair caught her eyes. She paused on the side of a building and took in the scene. Armin was on the ground. One of his hip casings was broken and he was being approached by blood thirsty Level E's. Mikasa's heart fluttered again with panic and she was torn. She needed to find Eren, but she couldn't leave Armin. He had just defended against the first wave, but he was being pushed backwards. Mikasa shot her hook into a building near him and let it propel her towards her best friend slicing heads off as she went.
"Mikasa!" Armin cried out in relief as she landed next to him. "My gears broken and there is too many of them. We need to get to higher ground." Armin explained as his blades caught an approaching vampire with bloody fangs. The blood no doubt belonging to one of his teammates. Mikasa busy on his other side doing the same. "I think" Armin paused to fight back. "We should be able to do it together if we use my…"
"I understand Armin. Hold onto me and we'll use our hooks together" Mikasa replied calmly.
"R-right" Armin stammered and wrapped his arm tightly around Mikasa's waist. They were just taking off when desperate hands pulled at them. They tumbled to the ground underneath the weight of snapping fangs. Armin cried out in terror as one of his blades was ripped from his grasp. Mikasa grunted as fangs slid into her arm. She wouldn't die here. She couldn't. Eren still needed her. She fought desperately against the fangs ripping into her and then her heart stopped as she heard the most beautiful voice cry out in sheer panic.
"Mikasa! Armin!" Eren yelled from a rooftop he had just landed on. He had heard Armin's screams and instantly came to find his friend. What he saw had his heart pounding in sheer terror. His family was being torn apart. No! He couldn't let that happen. A growl tore from his throat and he launched himself into the fray of blood thirsty vampires.
Somehow in the scuffle, Eren lost his blades. He didn't give a shit though. Instead he just fought desperately against the remaining vampires with his claws and his own row of fangs. He ripped out throats and clawed through skin. Mikasa was back on her feet decimating anything that escaped Eren's frantic fighting. Armin huddled on the ground between them too weak to move. His arm was definitely broken and he was bleeding from where fangs had torn into him. The blood only drew more vampires from the surrounding area. It also drew Nekoti and unluckily for the three friends the vampires and Nekoti didn't start fighting against each other like they normally would have. They were both too concerned getting to the tasty meat in the middle of the street. Armin finally came to his senses and fired off a red smoke signal requesting for back up. They were in the central part of Trost. Nekoti had claimed the west and the Level E's had claimed the east. Now they were battling in the middle. To sum it up, it was somewhere between hell and more hell.
Eren could have cried with relief when he saw the familiar green capes and tan jackets flying through the air towards them. With some of the nearest creature's attentions drawn by the fresh meat, Mikasa scooped Armin up into her arms and awkwardly shot her hooks into the roof of a nearby building. Eren's hooks a moment behind. They landed in an exhausted heap on the shingles. Mikasa could have kept fighting, but there was no way she would leave Eren and Armin alone. Speaking of Eren…Mikasa looked at him with wide eyes where he was kneeling on the shingles breathing heavily. His mouth parted to reveal a row of pearly white fangs. Two pointy ears popped out of his messy brown hair and twitched. A striped tail swayed back and forth behind him.
"Eren…" Mikasa started tentatively.
"Hmm?" Eren responded in an exhausted tone. When there was no response, Eren opened his eyes and looked at Mikasa who was staring at him with wide eyes. He glanced at Armin for explanation, but the blonde was also staring at him in shock. "What?" Eren asked with furrowed brows.
"You have ears…and a tail…and fangs…" Armin said in a stunned voice.
Eren looked at him in utter confusion. "Huh?" He followed Armin's eyes and squawked in surprise as a striped tail twitched. He pulled at the weird thing and then shuddered as a very uncomfortable feeling coursed through him. "What!?" he screeched. He then hurriedly touched the top of his head feeling velvety soft appendages sticking out of it. He fell backwards on his ass and looked at his hands like he had never seen them before. There were pointed claws extending out of the tips of his fingers. He looked up at Mikasa with large terrified eyes.