CinderArmin
SUMMARY: Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful boy named Armin who wanted nothing more than to go to the ball and dance with the princess. Too bad his foster-family doesn't consider him muscular enough to go. But maybe with a little help from a certain disgruntled fairy godmother, Armin's dreams can come true. Armin x Annie, Levi x Mikasa.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Mikasa is pretty OOC in this fic and there's a good reason for that. This AU version of Mikasa is a fairy. She didn't have to endure what canon!Mikasa went through and has never really known him. Canon!Mikasa's personality was heavily influenced by Eren and the trials they underwent. Basically, this is how I imagine Mikasa to be if she was a magical being with a considerable amount of power.
DISCLAIMER: Don't own.
With the help of one sly fairy-godmother, Princess Annie began the search throughout her kingdom for the elusive beautiful boy who'd charmed her. Mikasa had suggested that Annie use the boy's dropped sweatband to search for him. And so, Annie did.
Going from house to house, Annie coerced every male to try on the sweatband. However, due to its small size, not a single person could manage to comfortably wear it.
"I'm never going to find him," she said to Mikasa.
Mikasa leaned on her magical staff, which was actually just a sixty-five pound barbell. "You'll find him," she assured Annie. "With me helping you, you'll find him for sure."
"Don't make it seem like you're doing this out of the goodness of your own heart," said Annie. "You're only doing this because there's something in it for you."
"Which I haven't received yet," said Mikasa, wiggling the fingers of her outstretched hand at Annie. "Didn't you promise me the key to Levi's chastity belt?"
"I'm looking for it," insisted Annie. "Can't you just break it open or use magic or something?" She pointed at Mikasa's staff. "You use magic, don't you?"
Mikasa sighed heavily. "Listen, if you want me to help you, you have to do something for me in return. Besides, if I use magic, your dad is going to know something is up. Or I might damage Levi."
Annie eyed Mikasa's toned arms and muscled stomach. "I'm pretty sure you would."
Mikasa flexed, her arms sparkling in the sunlight. "You're just jealous."
"Not really," countered Annie, stepping onto the cobblestone path of another house they were going to try. "I have some pretty nice muscles of my own."
"Not as nice as mine, I'll bet." Mikasa leaned on the side of the house as Annie knocked furiously on the door.
"You're a wizard. It's unfair to compare me to you."
"I'm actually a fairy."
Annie gave Mikasa an exaggerated once-over. "Well, you're the biggest fairy I've ever seen."
Mikasa quirked a brow. "Have you seen my sidekicks? Reiner's arms are the size of my calves," she said, just as the door opened.
"Can I help you?" Asked the owner of the house, a smiling girl with brown hair.
"Yes," replied Annie. "Where is the man of the house?"
The owner smiled even wider. "If by 'man', you're referring to owner, than that's me. And I'm not a man, actually. My name's Sasha."
"No, she means literal man." Mikasa spun her barbell around her wrist, letting the jewel on top catch the sunlight.
"Oh," said Sasha. "Well, Connie's just inside. Would you like to come in?"
"That would be appreciated," said Annie.
"I'll wait out here," said Mikasa.
"You're not coming in?" Annie asked. "Aren't you supposed to be helping me?"
"I am," replied Mikasa. "I'm making sure your father doesn't know that you're out here looking for a strange guy you danced with the other night. I'm masking your presence right now."
Annie rolled her eyes and followed Sasha into the house.
"Sweet potato!" Sasha called up the stairs. "Someone's looking for you."
With a series of loud bangs and thumps, a man came rushing down the steps, taking two at a time until he nearly tripped. "Did you call?" He asked Sasha.
"You bet!"
Connie turned to Annie. "Can I help you with something?"
Annie held up the sweatband. "Can you do me a favour and try this on?"
Connie eyed the band apprehensively. "What's this for?"
"It's for a survey," said Annie, using the speech that Mikasa had rehearsed with her earlier. "We're trying to research sweatbands and the effect they have on men."
"Sounds...interesting," said Sasha. "Connie, try it on."
Connie pulled on the sweatband. However, it wouldn't even go past his knuckles. Connie pulled again, but it seemed that the more he pulled, the tighter the sweatband became. With a huff, he eventually gave up. "I'm sorry," he said, handing the sweatband back to Annie. "I don't think it's going to fit me. Do you have anything larger?"
"No, I'm afraid not." Annie took the band back. "Thank you for your participation, though." She briskly walked out of the house.
"Did you find him?"
"No, Mikasa."
"Hm," said Mikasa. "Well, maybe you'll have better luck at the next house."
"How many houses do we have to check before I find him?" Annie asked.
"A lot, probably." Mikasa sped up, matching Annie's pace. "You know, I'm really surprised that you're putting so much effort into this."
"Because this is important," said Annie. "I want to find that boy."
Mikasa smiled to herself. If Annie had been looking at Mikasa that very moment, she would have seen that smile. It was the smile of someone who knew every secret in the universe and would not hesitate to exploit them for her own means. "You'll find him. I know it."
"I hope," said Annie.
Suddenly, Mikasa grabbed Annie by the arm. "Maybe we should try this house instead."
"Why?"
"Just trust me."
Annie strode up to the door and rapped on it thrice.
It was opened after the second knock. "Who's there?" A young boy with green eyes asked, peering around curiously.
"Only a couple of strangers," Mikasa chimed in. "May we speak with the men of this house?"
"Um, sure," he said shyly, not used to beautiful girls knocking on his door and asking to speak with him. He opened the door wider, letting the two girls in.
"I'm Mikasa and this is Annie. We're conducting a survey on sweatbands and their effect on men. We were wondering if you'd like to participate?"
Annie noticed that Mikasa's magic barbell had disappeared and was replaced with a red towel that hung around her neck in a manner that suggested she'd been working out for a while. The towel seemed to glow from underneath.
"Sure," said the boy. "Jean!"
An older boy came running down the stairs. "What is it, Eren?"
"There are two girls asking us to participate in something."
The frequency of Jean's footsteps increased exponentially.
"Don't you have another brother to ask?" Asked Mikasa.
"How did you know that?" Eren looked at her, awe and jealously present in his gaze. Mostly awe.
"I know everything," said Mikasa.
Annie rolled her eyes again. Mikasa could have a bit of an effect on humans when she wanted to.
"Wow," breathed Jean, slightly out of breath. But, whether it was from running down the stairs at top speed, or seeing the Princess and a fairy in one room, nobody could tell.
"We were wondering if you could participate in our survey," asked Annie.
"I'd do anything," he said, moreso to Mikasa. "What do I have to do?"
"Try that on," said Mikasa, pointing to the sweatband in Annie's hands.
However, like every other boy they'd asked, Jean failed to get the band on properly.
"It's too small," he said, dejected. "I'm sorry."
"Nice try," said Mikasa, smiling. Annie swore she detected something sinister in her gaze, but fae were odd creatures.
"Can I try it on?" Asked Eren. Annie handed the sweatband to him. Eren yanked at it, but it refuses to budge. "I'll pull harder," he reassured the girls. "It just needs a bit of force."
"Don't break it," warned Annie.
"He won't," said Mikasa. "It won't break even if you tried to cut it."
Eventually, even Eren had to give up. "I can't believe it didn't fit," he said to Annie, trying and failing to disguise a blush as the blonde girl watched him.
"Looks like nobody in this household can fit that sweatband," said Jean. "I apologize for disappointing you lovely ladies."
"Actually," said Mikasa. "You haven't completely disappointed us yet. Where's Armin?"
"How do you know about Armin?" Jean asked.
"You have another brother? Where is he?" Annie asked.
"Upstairs," answered Eren, eager to impress her.
"Could you get him to come downstairs for me?" Emulating MIkasa, Annie gave Eren a bright, if fake, smile.
The boy immediately complied.
Annie was looking up at the stairs when a slightly blonde boy appeared. He didn't look very muscular or strong. He walked with his shoulders hunched, a far cry from the boy Annie had danced with. He hardly resembled him.
"I don't think that's him," she whispered to Mikasa.
"Hm," said the fairy. "We'll just wait and see."
When Armin came down, Annie explained their reason for being there. Armin agreed to participate, taking the sweatband from Annie. He slid it down onto his wrist easily and it hung there like it was made for him.
"You're the boy?" Annie asked, her voice barely a whisper.
"Were you expecting someone different, Princess Annie?" Armin asked, seeing through the slight glamour that Mikasa had placed on Annie earlier to prevent anyone from recognizing her. "I apologize for not living up to your expectations."
Annie only gave Mikasa a fleeting look, but the fairy understood it immediately. "Eren, Jean," she said to the two remaining brothers. "May I have a tour of the town?"
"Of course," said Jean.
"And leave Armin with the Princess?" Eren asked, flabbergasted and a little angry that he hadn't noticed it was her.
"I'll be fine," said Annie. "Show Mikasa around."
Soon, they were gone, leaving Armin and Annie alone.
"You're very different from what I expected," said Annie. "But it's not a bad different."
"Really," said Armin. "You don't sound too happy."
"That's because I've been hanging with a fairy for several days in a row. Most humans can't even last one and I've had to endure three."
Armin nodded understandingly.
"Anyways," Annie continued, "I wanted to meet you because you're the first person who's ever really been nice to me and said that they liked me for my accomplishments and not for my looks."
"I appreciate your looks as well, to be honest."
"And I appreciate your honesty," said Annie. "Look, I'd really like a chance to get to know you better. Would you be okay with that?"
"Only if you're okay with the fact that I'm not super muscular like everyone else and I'm actually pretty physically weak."
Annie showed off her admirable biceps to Armin. "I think I have enough muscle for the two of us."
"I also prefer reading to exercise."
"Then you can read to me while I exercise."
"One time, I nearly fainted while-"
Annie cut him off with a kiss. It was only a soft touch of the lips, but it was enough to shut Armin up.
"Wow," he said when they parted. He put a finger to his lips. "I don't think I've ever been kissed before."
"Me neither," said Annie. She tried to sound as deadpan as she usually was, but her huge smile opposed her efforts.
"Wanna try it again?" Armin asked.
Annie chose not to answer and instead, wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him close.
And everyone lived happily ever after.
the end (but not really)
OMAKE
"Mikasa, what do you do to humans who fall in love with fae?" Levi asked, wringing his cravat nervously.
"It depends," said Mikasa. "Sometimes, we grant them eternal life and let them live with us and sometimes we turn them into rabbits and set our dogs on them."
The pair were enjoying a relaxing afternoon in Levi's chambers. Mikasa sat upright on the bed, practicing her bicep curls, while Levi lay down with his head in her lap.
"So, say that a Prince hypothetically fell in love with a fairy whose job was to grant wishes. What would happen then?"
Mikasa shrugged. "That depends, too. If the Prince was willing to leave behind his life as a human being, the fairy might consider giving him immortality and letting him live with her forever."
Levi sat up abruptly, banging his head on Mikasa's magic dumbbell. "Really?"
Mikasa cocked her head. "Of course. See, if the fairy was in love with the Prince as well, she'd be more than willing."
"I really do love you, Mikasa."
"I know," she said in a sing-song voice. "But what about the Prince's father?"
Levi scoffed. "I'm sure the Prince's father would rather his daughter and her incredibly intelligent boyfriend inherit the throne. The Prince just wants to be with his fairy soulmate forever."
"I hope you realize that you don't get magical powers, too."
"As long as I'm with you, everything is already magical."
EPILOGUE
"And so the Princess married CinderArmin and eventually the two of them became King and Queen of the kingdom. They were very much in love and had four children, each with beautiful golden hair and eyes as blue as the sky. When the Princess and CinderArmin died, the fairy turned them into stars and created the constellation, 'Those Idiots'.
"As for the Prince, he became immortal and lived with the fairy forever. And for some strange reason, he too, gained some magical powers of his own that allowed him to grant minor wishes. The duo became fairy godparents, helping people throughout the land in exchange for favours.
"The two brothers, realizing the important of knowledge, opened up a bookstore where they taught fitness and politics. It was the most popular place in the land and nobody suspected a certain fairy who had been feeling rather generous that day.
"And everyone lived happily ever after. Even the fairy's sidekicks."
"Bert, that was a terrible story." Reiner, the stockier of Mikasa's sidekicks said. "You should never be allowed to make up stuff like that again."
Bert slammed the book shut. "Say what you want, but it actually happened. And I didn't write it. Mikasa did."
Reiner scoffed. "The boss is a terrible story-teller, but even she isn't that bad."
"Who's a terrible story-teller?"
Bert began sweating nervously. "Hey boss. I'm a terrible story-teller."
Mikasa smiled sweetly. "Good. Now, let's get going. Some kid got kicked out of their home for being too beautiful and is going to get their heart cut out if we don't intervene."
"Please don't tell me you're going to turn us into dwarves, again."
the (actual) end
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