So in response to a guest review, I did contact Blessende on the only way I knew how and never got a response. If it upsets enough people that I reuploaded this, I will take it down if need be. If you want a copy of this as I type it back up, you can PM me and give me your email.

Also, I am retyping a 360 thousand word story. I have school. I am TRYING my hardest to keep up with typing this, but I apologize in advance if I delay in updates.

Chapter-2- Names

~.~

With a backpack rolled unceremoniously onto one shoulder, Eren Jaeger placed two mugs of malt on the table and flopped down beside the hospital bed. It wasn't often when Eren could be quiet and thoughtful...but at Stanley Memorial Hospital, the gloominess of the empty beds seemed to render him silent. HIs mother was knitting a sweater, perhaps in preparation for the winter to come. Eren traced the ends of the woolen strings as they cascaded down the comforter and rolled under the mattress. The colours of grey and black pooled together until branching off into two pachyderm balls hiding in the recess. he was suddenly struck by a memory of how he used to hide the same way. Away from prying eyes, away from his mother. Especially if he had stolen the bake-sale cookies and his mother was on a rampage around the house, trying to find him. Like she was a dragon breathing fire through her nose.

"Eren Jaeger, come out right now! Come out, you little punk!"

Eren would hide under the bed, with a hand clamped over his mouth. But no matter how much he stifled his own laughter and giggles, Carla would always discover his lair. She would wrap her arms around him tight and shake with laughter. Her apron always smelt of honey and gingerbread. The scent of home and a whole meal.

How old was he back then?

Six?

Seven?

In a way, he was always causing trouble to Carla.

He missed that she-dragon.

"You're awfully quiet today, Eren," his mother said, her hand curling with ease over a grey string and spinning it into a small loop. Today, her voice wasn't slurred from the medication. It resembled the susurrus of the oaks outside, calm and patient even in a tempest. It wasn't the delusion speaking. Just her. His mother. And it felt like years since he'd heard her calling his name. HIs comrades called him 'Jaeger', close pals nicknamed him 'Jaegermeister' for kicks, annoyed professors tended to address him as 'Mr. Jaeger'. (And considering his track record, there were always a couple of professors annoyed with him every semester.)

Armin was the only one who called him 'Eren' but there was no soft inflection to it. Not the way his mother called him.

Or that one other guy.

And that guy was a million light years away, apparently not bothered to call him even once.

"Eren," said his mother sharply. "Don't zone out on me!"

The young man blinked.

"Sorry...sorry. I was just thinking." Eren mumbled, grabbing one of the mugs absentmindedly. He took a sip. The chocolate was bitter to his taste, and he realized he'd missed putting in the sugar.

"Darn," Eren said, pulling a face. "Forgot to put in the-"

Carla gave her son a reassuring smile.

"It's alright. Just stay here…" his mother said. "I'm afraid visiting hours will be over soon."

There was a strained silence, and Eren locked his gaze on the white walls.

Visiting hours.

He'd almost forgotten about that.

His mother broke the silence with a sigh. Perhaps, she was endeavoring to change the subject.

"How are your classes at college? It's the final term, isn't it?"

Eren forced a smile.

"You should ask Armin. He is the one pulling our weights through."

Carla chuckled.

"Is that so?"

"Uh huh." Eren nodded. The young man rummaged through his backpack and got out a book titled Irodov's Problems in Physics. "Seriously. I am not joking...Take a look at this. There are a zillion problems listed here...and Armin's got the entire book solved out. He is a fucking prodigy, I swear."

His mother smiled warmly at him, her eyes flickering from the book to her son.

"Armin was always a good child. He visits me often, you know...bringing flowers and company. He reads books to me when you aren't around...he's a chip off the old block."

Eren's shoulders slumped, and he returned the mug to the table. There was that hint of disappointment in her voice.

"Do you hate me?" he asked her at long last.

Carla Jaeger shook her head.

"No. Of course, I don't hate you. I just want you to be...safe." she paused, eyeing him thoughtfully. "You're not being a troublemaker, are you?"

Eren rolled his eyes.

"Christ, I am not fifteen anymore."

Carla watched him evenly.

"Sometimes, I get the feeling you are not telling me something."

And there is was: the opening gambit. The part where he could own up to the truth. The part where he could tell her that he wasn't really enrolled into a military academy nor was he spending his six months cooped up in the barracks. Would she believe him? Would anyone believe that this world wasn't all there was to it? That there was another place far away...which had the resources to cure what people here called an incurable disease?

Aged hands stilled and his mother's twinkling brown eyes caught his, waiting for an answer. Sometimes he wondered...if she knew already.

Eren remembered the words of his oath, which he'd spoken in a gallery with his right fist placed upon his heart.

A peacekeeper, bound to serve and protect till death.

Honorable, loyal and to live for others before self.

That is our blood oath.

Titan shall prevail.

He hated that stupid oath.

..-..

Visiting hours were over and a heavy set nurse named Robbins arrived to kick him out.

Not surprising since Eren tended to overstay.

Eren sat on a solitary bend under the parking lot's light, papers sprawled over the length of the planks. He dug a pen under his chin, reviewing the scrawl of his writing. Illegible, all of it. He wished he'd taken up Armin's offer but oh no, he had to choose the high moral ground. And now he was stuck trying to decipher his own notes and puny diagrams, which looked akin to drunken sonnets put down by a sailor who had one drink too many.

He hated himself sometimes.

The young man wrinkled his nose and after a long struggle, snapped the book shut. He wondered if this would have been easier if he didn't sleep in class so much. Why couldn't he stay awake in class anyway?

"Why you ask?" said a new voice. "Because all work and no play makes Eren a dull boy." chimed the amused voice in his head. A voice that Eren was sure would be accompanied by amused grey eyes.

Eren bit back a smile.

True but that wasn't the answer, wiseguy.

It was because all his night were spent on vigils. He wondered for a moment how Annie did it. Leonhart was older than him, an adept peacekeeper though ruthless at times. Having manned the gates with her for four years, Eren still couldn't figure her out. His first impression of Annie remained. The blonde had a queer sense of humor and didn't look like she cared about much. But he'd never tell it to her face. Not unless he was looking for trouble. Annie Leonhart was the best at sparring in their entire squadron; Eren knew firsthand the damage that she was capable of inflicting. Still, there was much to be admired in her. They hadn't shared a lot on the personal front. There was a dad, he remembered. Was he still around?

Eren didn't know.

But unlike Eren, so very much unlike him, Annie wasn't attached to the world of Titan.

She hated it, despised its very existence...and Eren wondered if it had something to do with her partner.

There had been a rumor in the corps that Annie had committed herself to a civilian on Earth. No one knew who the mystery man was. No one dared ask.

The night grew chilly, and he was suddenly very glad for his parka. He pulled the hood over and flopped down against the back of the bench, staring at the moon in the cloudless sky. He stretched his arms and rubbed the skin of his nape.

And like a bolt out of the blue, his watch started ringing.

Of course, it wasn't just a watch.

Eren gave his wristwatch an odd look. He pressed the green button on its side and heard the familiar automated voice of Gale ring out.

"Suspicious activity observed on Gate Twenty Three, Avalon."

Eren's eyebrows furrowed into a crease. He grabbed his things clumsily and stashed them into his backpack.

"Okay, I'm on it!"