Author's Note: Hey guys! So, I started another AOT fanfic because I got kind of attached to the Yeager family. I even did the artwork for it! Check it out, drop a review and let me know what you think!

Chapter 1

Year 842:

Erwin watched in frozen horror as the enormous hand reached for him. No blades. No fuel. Nowhere left to run. This was it. He would die without ever avenging his father's death. What a stupid waste of a life. Stupid. That's what he thought when he saw her willingly jump into the titan's hand in his place. Her blades spun, sending a spray of blood through the air as the severed fingers landed on the grass. His ice blue eyes met her emerald green ones for a brief second. Her long black hair whipped in the wind all around her. She shot out a grapple to the titan's head and swung her body until she was behind the monster. Her blades gracefully sliced its nape and she landed lightly on its head, on the toes of one foot, letting the falling beast carry her down. It crashed face first, and she hopped gently before impact, landing in front of Erwin as if she had just completed an elegant and acrobatic dance rather than slain a 20-meter giant.

"Are you alright, squad leader?" she asked with the same stoic look she always had. Not once had he seen lines of stress blemish her forehead, or a frown push out her bottom lip. Her face was stone—no, it was harder to break. It was diamond: perfect and immovable. Though there had been times that Erwin thought about what her smile would look like. He wanted to see it just once before he died.

"Yes, I'm fine. Though, I can't say I'm thrilled with you jumping into a titan's hand." he confessed. "Avoid taking unnecessary risks."

"I apologize, sir, but I respectfully disagree." She shook the blood from her blades and sheathed them. Her eyes bore into his. "If I had gone directly for its nape, it would have grabbed you." She whistled for the horses and the familiar sound of hoofbeats made Erwin smile with relief.

"I can handle being grabbed." he assured her. She hesitated for a bit before speaking up again.

"I apologize, sir." she repeated. "My objective, as set forth by Commander Shadis, was to protect you. Your value to the Survey Corps is too great to take any risks with. Letting you be grabbed by that titan was not an option."

"And what if you were injured in the process?" Erwin challenged. She stared back at him with that same emotionless face.

"I don't understand the question, sir." What a strange response. He raised an eyebrow at her.

"You being injured in the process is not worth the risk that you took." he clarified. She looked away. It was the only hint she gave when she was deeply considering something. He had at least learned that about her.

"I respectfully disagree, sir. The sacrifice of us dispensables is always worth the protection of elite warriors such as yourself." She turned and mounted her horse.

"Cassandra!" Erwin's voice was authoritative. She met his gaze. "No soldier is dispensable. Especially not you."

Year 832:

"Again." Grisha demanded, staring down at his small children. His son glared up at him with mirrored green eyes. "Again, Zeke." Grisha repeated. His daughter struggled to her feet, holding up her arms in a shaky fighting stance. She kept her emerald eyes focused on her older brother.

"She needs to rest!" Zeke pleaded with his father.

"I-I'm fine!" she assured. "Please, let's continue." Her shoulder length black hair clung to her face and neck with sweat. Zeke tugged at his pale blonde hair in frustration. He looked over to his mother, silently begging her to intervene on her children's behalf. But she just sat there watching. Detestable. Zeke scowled at her. He turned back to his little sister—the one he had held and promised to always protect since she first entered this world—and threw the full weight of his larger body behind his punch. She quickly dodged it, leaning back and to the left. Zeke followed through with a kick, knocking her legs out from under her. She landed on the ground with a sickening thud—like someone had tossed a bag of potatoes. She pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, making a final effort to stand before collapsing. Dina finally approached her. Did you finally decide to be a mother? Zeke bit his tongue to avoid causing any trouble for his sister.

"Cassandra…" Dina cooed, stroking her daughter's face.

"I'm sorry…." Cassandra squeaked out. "I really have been training." She looked up into her mother's face, distressed and disappointed in herself. Dina smiled and stroked her cheek.

"You're only five." Zeke reassured her, taking her delicate hand in his. "You'll get stronger."

"It's not about her strength." Zeke visibly tensed at his father's voice. He wanted to scream at him, to tell him that he was done letting him use his children as pawns. He hated what was happening to Cassandra. Hate. It wasn't a strong enough word to describe what he felt. He wanted his parents dead. He wished they were dead. "Lean forward when you're dodging an attack, not backward. You need to keep solid footing. Remember, Cassandra, if you're not an elite warrior, you're a dispensable nuisance. I don't want my children growing up to be cannon fodder for the Marlyean government." Cassandra nodded obediently at her father's instructions. Dispensable. Zeke couldn't bring himself to be upset. It was how his father saw them. They were just a means to an end. Marley wanted child soldiers to mutilate, and their father was more than eager to send his children to the training camps to infiltrate them on his behalf—to gain the power of a titan for his cause. Zeke just wanted Cassandra to live a long, healthy, and happy life. What kind of a life would she have as a weapon? "We're done for today. Clean up." Zeke helped her stand, leading her to their bathroom. He ran the hot water and glanced at Cassandra as she stripped. His eyebrows pushed down against his doleful eyes, drawing a crease from the bridge of his nose, deep into his forehead. His jaw clenched with rage and indescribable agony. Yellow, purple, and blue blotches spread across her tiny body. Each bruise in a separate stage of healing. Each a reminder of her parents' continued cruelty. Each a testament to her brother's broken promises. He helped her into the tub and turned to the window, opening it wide and letting the cold night air in. It soothed his headache, if only for a moment. The soft sounds of Cassandra's whimpers and sniffles filled the room, and Zeke obscured his own tears from her by keeping his face pointed squarely toward the window.

"Someday we'll make it out of here." His words were probably of little comfort to her. After all, he was only seven. For all he knew, they could die tomorrow. His eyes caught the fences of Liberio in the distance. Penned in like cattle. It could happen at any moment. The Marley Public Security Authorities could storm their internment camp and exterminate the remainder of the Eldians. Send them to heaven.

"He loves us." Zeke turned to see Cassandra's fingers gripping the edge of the claw foot tub as she gingerly peeked her chin over the raised edge. "I know he does. He just wants us to be strong." Her words were of little comfort to him.

"Come on. It's time for bed." he said softly, grabbing a towel for her. He wrapped her up in the plush fabric and lifted her out of the tub. She smiled at him. Her smile was beautiful. He wished he could keep her this safe and happy all the time.

Zeke approached the Marley Public Security Authorities cautiously. He waited for a while for them to notice him, and when their conversation lagged for a bit, he spoke up.

"Um…excuse me." He did his best to sound like a nervous and frightened child as he exposed the Eldia Restorationists one by one, starting with his parents. He talked about their propaganda, their contacts, the Owl, and everything that he had been told—save for his father's plan to enlist him as a child warrior for Marley and his Fritz bloodline. Grisha and Dina had told him and Cassandra over and over again how important it was to keep their, and their mother's, royal bloodline a secret. They had the ability to control the Founding Titan and that was of value to Marley. Of course, such an awesome power would not be given to the children or wife of an Eldia Restorationist. They would force Dina and Cassandra to spend their lives having children—child warriors for Marley that could be groomed into the role. The thought had kept Zeke up at night. He would sit by his sister's bed and watch her sleep, afraid that a momentary lapse in attention would be the difference between Cassandra's safety and her death. No, he would not make his father's mistakes. He would not trust the wellbeing of the most precious person to him to the Marleyan government. He would not trust it to anyone but himself.

"You did the right thing." an officer reassured Zeke. He looked up at the tall, well-built man. The pronounced features of his face made it difficult to read his emotions. He seemed to accept the bloodshed in front of him with indifference. Not joy, not righteousness, not disgust, not pain, but rather if it were just another insignificant event in his day. The officer began walking away and Zeke kept his eyes glued to his back. Tufts of grey mixed with his short inky black hair. He was getting old.

"I want to be a warrior for Marley!" Zeke suddenly called out. It was an ill thought out plan, but a plan nonetheless. The soldier stopped in his tracks and glanced at him over his shoulder.

"Is that so?" the soldier asked. "What's your name?"

"Zeke Yeager." A hint of a smile tugged at the officer's lips.

"Well, Zeke Yeager, I am Officer Eren Kruger."

Year 839:

"You need to rest."

"No! I can keep going!" Cassandra insisted, standing up and wiping the blood from her cut lip. She went on the offensive, throwing punches and kicks at Zeke. He dodged each one effortlessly and retaliated. She was getting faster. Stronger. Their sparring matches lasted longer now. She still leaned back to avoid incoming attacks, but it was different now. It had just clicked with her one day: she was flexible and that was her advantage—her niche. When Zeke had kicked her legs out from underneath her that day, she had gone with it, throwing back her locked arms until she was staring up at him in a handstand, and snapping her legs back onto the floor. He had fallen for the same trap today. Ferocity burned in her eyes as she lunged from her position on all fours, while Zeke was still on one leg, and brought him crashing to the ground. He was proud. At only twelve years old, she was a better warrior than most of the kids he trained with.

"Now we're really done." Zeke joked. Cassandra laughed and stood, helping him up as well. He smiled down at her, taking a lock of her silky, long black hair into his hand. Their differences were funny to him. Zeke had received their father's tall, muscular build, but his mother's pale blonde hair. Cassandra had received their mother's short, petite build, but their father's straight, black hair. They both had their father's green eyes, but Cassandra's were more beautiful and vibrant. He frowned. Thirteen years. He would have just thirteen years to live after inheriting the Beast Titan. He was the favorite. He was the 'boy wonder.' Of course, it would go to him. It was necessary for his plan. But thirteen years was too short to ensure Cassandra's permanent safety.

"What's wrong?" she asked him, noticing the concern on his face.

"I need a favor from you, Cassandra." he said.

"Anything!" She grabbed his hand in hers. It brought a smile to his face. She was fiercely loyal, ready to lay down her life at a moment's notice for her objectives. It worried Zeke. Their father had beaten obedience into them. And, sure, he would occasionally hold Cassandra close and tell her how much he loved her and how much he wanted to keep her safe from all the monsters in the world, but it mattered very little to Zeke. Cassandra may have insisted that their father was a loving and kind man, but he was not so brainwashed and easily led astray by pretty words and small gestures of kindness intermittently dispersed into a lifetime of cruelty.

"Let me show you heaven."