Woo! First fanfic on here! I'd really appreciate any feed back I can get on this so I can improve on it and whatnot. Also the picture is not mine, I simply borrowed it from Helene S. on Pinterest. Don't kill me! But I do hope everyone enjoys the story! ^W^

Prologue- Midnight Meeting

One month before the fall of Wall Maria

In the dead of night, the sleepy district of Shiganshina was dark and silent. Every window of every humble home was black. Even the street lamps were dimmed much too low to be of any use to the rare street wanderings who happened to be out. It was an ordinary night for most residents, slumbering peacefully in their beds, but near the center of town a small flickering light wavered in the window of a simple home.

The source was a dribbling candle sat between two people at a rough wooden table. The man and woman were discussing topics that could only be voiced in the cover of night, away from prying eyes and ears, but even with the precaution, there was still an eavesdropper in the form of a small, brown-haired boy with perpetually curious blue-green eyes.

Eren jolted awake in his tiny cot, shaken by some dream he could no longer remember. His clothes were slightly damp with sweat and his body felt jittery. Whatever that dream had been it must not have been a pleasant one. He yawned widely and sat up, rubbing sleep from his eyes. It would be awhile before Eren's adrenaline-riddled body would calm down, so going back to bed wasn't an option. Across from him, his adopted sister, Mikasa, slept away on a similar lumpy cot. Their house wasn't large so they had to share a room, despite being of the opposite gender.

The young boy frowned at her as she fidgeted and squirmed in her bed, black hair spilled over her face and pillow and her delicate face scrunched up in distress. Clearly she was not sleeping well either and Eren wondered what she could be dreaming of that made her so tense. It could be her recurring nightmare of that traumatic event. It had been about a year since Mikasa had witnessed her parent's murder and was then subjected to the torment of human traffickers. Eren had managed to make it time to save her and as a result, she was graciously accepted into their home. Sadly, no amount of comfort the Jaeger family could give would completely erase the damage of that night, so it would be no surprise if that was what haunted her dreams.

Thinking that sleep was a lost cause, Eren stood and silently walked to his sister's bed. He tentatively picked up the blanket Mikasa had kicked off and draped it back over her shivering form. As if she knew he was there, her body stilled and her face relaxed, a small smile forming on her lips. Eren sighed in relief and tiptoed to the door, thinking of grabbing a cup of water for his parched throat before attempting to fall back asleep.

Being mindful of the creaky steps, Eren crept down the stairs but halted suddenly when he heard low murmurs and saw light flickering across the bottom steps and the floor of the main room. The boy frowned, wondering why his parent's would be talking at a time like this and deciding that whatever it was, it was something they were trying to hide from him and Mikasa. Being the rebellious and curious boy that he was, there was really no other option than to quietly climb down the last couple steps that were still shaded from the light and listen to their secret words. Eren sat and peered down the stairs into the first floor of the house, which acted as a living room and kitchen.

Sitting at the kitchen table were two people, one of whom was surprisingly not Eren's parent. The man was obviously Eren's father, with his long hair and round spectacles, it was hard to mistaken him from anyone else, though, it was odd to find his father so tense and frustrated. The woman sitting with him was clearly not his mother. This woman was tall, elegantly slim, and framed in an expensive looking dress. Her hair was longer and darker than Eren's mother and where there should have been gold instead there was an off-putting lavender color. While Carla Jaeger could be strict, especially with such a misbehaving son, there was always motherly warmth in her soft face. This woman, however, had a cold demeanor to her sharp features and an aura that could chill the bones of any titan. She was beautiful, of course, but Eren was thankful her attention was not on him.

Why would his father meet with such an awful looking woman? Especially at night while his wife slept a floor above? Eren was incredibly confused but stopped his troubled mind when he heard the ice woman speak.

"So, you plan on leaving the entire project then? Abandon all our hard work and pretend like you're the innocent family man you want to appear as? What kind of nonsense is that?" Eren shivered at her voice, and was extra happy to be oblivious to the adults. He could practically feel the ice trickle down his spine at her words.

"It is not nonsense to care more for my family than for an experiment I barely have ties to, as I have said before. I agreed to lend my knowledge and experience but that was all. This has gotten too far out of hand for me, especially when you come knocking at all hours of night," Eren's father retorted, his irritation growing at the mention of the time. "Surely there is a better time to discuss this?"

"I would agree, but considering you have been avoiding any contact with us, I decided it was time to…pay a little visit," the woman replied, glaring around their simple home. "Trust me, nothing would please me more than to be home in bed, and yet here I am, trying to convince a stubborn man to understand how selfish his actions are."

Eren quietly huffed at that, glaring daggers at the woman who insulted his father. The fear he had felt before melted into anger. Even though he had no idea what they were talking about, he could agree with Grisha in saying family was always more important and how dare this person scold him for thinking that way.

"You would know quite a bit about selfish actions, wouldn't you, Violet?" Grisha sighed, his anger fading to exhaustion.

The woman, Violet, chuckle lightly at that, the tension fading just slightly from the room as she replied.

"My decisions may be considered selfish to some but I think the outcome far outweighs the actions. Once we're done with the experiments, who knows? My selfishness could be one of the greatest things to ever grace humanity," Violet said, haughtily. Eren was starting to like this woman less and less, if that were even possible.

"If you say so," Grisha muttered, shaking his head. "Now, if I've answered all your questions, I would appreciate it if you would allow me to go back to bed as it is very late and I am very tired."

"Well, there is something else I would like to ask you about…" Violet started, drawling out the sentence slowly.

Grisha glared suspiciously. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you aren't finished. You wouldn't come all the way to the outer wall just to try and argue a case you knew would fail. Fine then, what is it you want to ask me?"

"How is your son, Grisha?"

Every trace of forced pleasantry left Grisha's face and his body jolted to a stop. It was hard to read his face in the dimming light but from where Eren sat it looked like his father had paled considerably. Then, surprise and shock turned to unbelievable rage.

"Don't you dare even think about bringing my family into this," he snarled, his fist balled furiously.

"I simply asked how he was, why would you assume—."

"Because I know how you work, Violet!" he hissed, trying to keep his voice down. "You don't honestly care about anyone to ask unless there's something in it for you. No, my son is not a topic of discussion."

"But can you imagine his potential?! He could become an excellent addition to the project!"

"I said NO!"

Eren jumped in his seat and almost tumbled down the stairs. He had never, in all his young life, heard his father sound so angry. Not even after his reckless mission to save Mikasa had he ever been so furious. Whatever it was this woman wanted from Eren, it couldn't be good.

The two adults were silent for a moment, assessing whether anyone had awoken from Grisha's outburst. When no sounds of stirring were heard Violet spoke in a much softer voice.

"I see I won't be getting anything out of you tonight, will I? Fine, I'll leave you alone for now." Violet stood and walked to the door, grabbing a sleek fur coat from the rack as she passed. "But keep this in mind, Grisha, you can't stop the wheels of progress once they start turning. You can quit the project all you want, but don't expect us not to check up on you…and your son as well."

Eren shuddered at the harsh promise, hoping desperately that this woman would never crossed his path again.

Grisha didn't even bother showing her out. He simply waited for the door to slam shut before letting out a long held sigh of relief. He slumped over the table for a moment, head in his hands, before standing and rummaging through one of the cabinets. Eren craned his neck to see what his father was looking for and was surprised when he saw a glass bottle and a cup appear in his hands.

Eren decided it was time for him to leave his father to his troubled thoughts. The boy stumbled back up the stairs as quietly as he could manage and slipped into his dark room. Mikasa was sleeping a bit more peacefully then when he first left and didn't move when Eren crawled back into bed and lay facing the wall.

What was this special project his father was supposed to be a part of? And what did it have to do with Eren? Eren wasn't the brightest child, nothing like his best friend, Armin, so whatever this woman wanted with him, it couldn't be for the same reason as his father. What would make Eren different from any other kid in Shiganshina? And would this Violet woman make due on her promise? He hoped not. He'd had enough of hearing her smug voice for one lifetime.

Sleep seemed to finally want to take him, because even with his swirling questions, Eren's eyes closed and he slipped into a dreamless darkness.