"Before you torment the beast, you better think; can you kill him?" Armin watched as Captain Levi beat up his best friend. He was restraining Mikasa but he honestly didn't know how long he could restrain himself.
Sure Eren may have the ability to shift into a Titan, but he in no way was a monster or a beast.
The blue eyed boy had to look away as the Captain continued to assault his best friend. He didn't understand! He'd helped people by sealing the gate, after the cleaning up the Titan's, it'd be safe to rebuild and live where the Titan's once ruled.
Blood poured from wounds, bruises marred his once tanned skin. His face was contorted into a look of sheer agony.
He could see as Eren gasped for a breath, desperately whenever Captain Levi let up on his attack just for a moment.
"Sir," Armin turned as Erwin began to speak, "I have a proposition."
"Proceed."
"There's still too much we don't know and no doubt his danger will be ever-present as such I suggest this, Eren Jaeger be placed under Captain Levi's supervision. We'll conduct a recon mission outside of the wall."
"Jaeger will join you in this excursion?" Darius queried.
"Yes, sir." Was the smooth reply. "You can look upon the missions results yourself and if he successfully controls his ability, Eren will have proven his value to mankind."
"Eren Jaeger will be closely supervised and if he should lose control?"
Armin spared a glance towards Eren as he was left gasping at the ground, unable to move. It hurt him to see his friend like that.
Levi didn't remove his eyes from him.
"I can definitely kill him if it comes to that, the only downside is there's absolutely no middle ground."
No middle ground?! There's plenty of middle ground! You just don't kill him, simple!
Darius rubbed his hands together, his glasses glinting in the light.
"Then I have made my choice."
Armin could only heave a sigh of relief as Darius Zachary allowed the Scouting Legion to gain custody over Eren. Granted there were some rather disliked conditions, but he was safe.
He turned to Mikasa, the girls hair was pushed back and her face was clearly visible.
"He's safe," she muttered, a small smile gracing her lips, "I thought for sure they were going to give him to the Military Police."
The blond haired boy turned to his friend, a smile spread across his face, his eyes brightening with every passing second. "He is. He's safe now."
Together, the pair walked outside of the court house. The sun was beating down hard, it's rays almost blinding.
"Do you think he'll be alright? I mean, under Captain Levi's supervision." Armin wondered. Him and Mikasa continued walking, the female rather quiet.
He'd been wondering it for a while, sure they'd gained custody, but would they treat him right? He knew the conditions of course, but the question was; would he be treated as a human or a monster?
Armin guessed that it depended on the person, but he'd personally have Mikasa hurt anyone who treated him as less than human. The teen was sure he could also help Mikasa hurt people, he wasn't a genius for nothing.
"I hope he is. I'm going to get that short bastard back," She growled.
"Mikasa, you know that the Captain had to do that right? If he hadn't then Eren may have been handed over to the Military Police. They'd kill him instantly."
Armin glanced at the raven-haired Asian. Her eyes were slightly narrowed, her lips pulled downward, her now short hair blowing gently in the wind.
He looked away, a smile on his lips.
"You helped him you know."
"How? I told them he tried to kill me."
"You told the truth, along with the fact that he saved you. If you had lied, others would have pointed that out, then Eren would have been seen as a danger. If you lied, they'd think you have something to hide."
Mikasa didn't reply.
As they continued walking back towards the barracks, where they were staying, the sound of people became evermore present.
The polar opposites hurriedly walked through the wooden doors, hey had barely made it a few feet before they were spotted and bombarded with questions.
Armin stood there in shocked silence, whilst Mikasa was just doing her best to block them all out. God, it just wasn't normal how calm and collected she always was.
As the blond prepared to try and answer the questions queried by his friends, he noticed a figure coming towards him.
Jean...
The teen had big black bags under his eyes, his face pale. His hair was greasy and ruffled, clearly displaying where hands had been running through it. His body was trembling with what looked to be stress and nerves, yet he still managed a small smile, despite it coming out more like a grimace.
"So, what's the verdict with the suicidal bastard?" His voice was hoarse, as if he'd been crying, but nobody commented on it.
A relieved smile crossed Armin's face, his sullen look brightening. "He's safe," he breathed, "the Scouting Legion gained custody."
Their friends erupted into cheers, planning on a celebration.
"We need details!" Sasha exclaimed.
Armin looked to her, wincing slightly. "He, ah, he got beat up by Captain Levi." Almost growling at the memory, his teeth clenched together.
The room went silent before Jean's quiet chuckles filled the room, "only him. Only him." He muttered before sitting down.
As the group of people began to settle down, Armin dragged Mikasa over to a table and grabbed them both a drink.
"Let's celebrate 'Kasa. To Eren and his stupidity that keeps him alive!"
The raven snorted quietly. "I never pegged you for one to drink, you always seemed more interested in books and quieter things. What's changed?" She responded.
"Nothing's changed. It's just, everything. We're joining the Scouting Legion, right? After that, we could die any moment. I want to make memories, celebrate the good times. I want to be happy."
"Happy? In a world like this, such cruelty. How could we ever be truly happy?"
Armin sighed around his cup, "happiness doesn't have a specific definition. Some people are happy staying safe, others keeping people safe. You can only ever be truly happy if you do things you enjoy. If you focus on the bad in the world, you miss all of the good."
"I also never pegged you for an optimist." She snarked, a small grin on her face.
Armin snorted, unashamed and continued to drink. "To Eren!" he only grinned wider when he received multiple 'To Eren's' in return.
The day had dragged on quite normally, well as normal as they could get. The trainees had resorted to completing chores and cooking meals for the other trainees, it was a desperate attempt to try and forget about their experiences with the Titan's.
The first time had been bad enough, Armin had watched his entire team die. His best friend sacrificed himself to save him. Armin still relived the moment, it physically pained him to remember his own screams of anguish. The horror of watching his worst nightmare happen, it was too much.
He often woke up, drenched in sweat, tears falling heavily from his eyes. He'd look around the room, seeing his bunk mates sleeping soundly on the beds besides him, and, despite knowing his friend was alive, he would refuse to sleep because he wanted to see the brunet safe with his own eyes.
And as the night grew closer, Armin found himself dreading sleep the closer it came.
The teen watched the sunset with weary eyes, his body sagging with exhaustion. He had no choice but to sleep. He reluctantly clambered into bed, glancing around at his comrades and friends as they did the same.
How did no one have nightmares about it?! Was he the only one? He frowned in frustration before letting the darkness overtake him.
"Eren!"
The blond stared as his friend struggled to hold open the Titan's mouth. The brunets face was covered in blood, his leg missing from when he was bitten.
But he was still alive.
Armin watched as he reached out, he threw himself forward his own arm desperately outstretched.
"Eren! No-!"
The already wide eyes filled with tears as he watched the bearded Titan finally clamp down. His best friends forearm was bottle clean off, left to fall to the ground below.
And he was screaming, his voice wearing itself hoarse as his anguish let itself out. The horror of the event processing through his head.
Eren...
With a gasp, the teen opened his teary eyes. Armin panted heavily as he looked up at the dark ceiling. He squeezed his eyes shut and let out a shaky exhale. His throat burned, had he been screaming?
The teen sat up slowly, looking around from the top bunk. Nobody was awake. Well, as far as he was concerned. Maybe he hadn't been screaming, it was probably from crying. Yeah, his face was sodden with tears.
Leaning back against the wall, Armin rubbed the excess wetness off of his flushed cheeks. His breathing was beginning to regulate when he heard it. A sniffle.
Was someone crying? If so, who?
The blond squinted into the darkness, trying to pin the sound. Where were they? He let out a quiet sigh when he heard it again. Right below him.
Wait, Jean? Why would he be crying?
"Jean?" He whispered.
The crying instantly stopped, to suddenly to act like he was asleep.
"Jean, I know you're awake." The blond closer to the wall, "are you alright, Jean?"
That was all it took, the crying started again, just more more pronounced and loud. Armin's head shot up.
"Jean. Jean, come up here."
He knew the taller male would be mortified if anyone else heard him crying. He let out a smile when he heard the ash-brown haired teen climb up.
"What, Arlert? Going to make fun of me for crying?" The brown eyed boy tried to sound unbothered, but his voice was shaky and clogged with tears.
Instead of answering, Armin simply leant forward and wrapped his arms around the other male. He gently pulled them both down, basking in the happiness he felt when the other cuddled up to him.
Despite being smaller, the younger boy guided Jean's head to the crook of his neck. He could feel the shaky breaths of his teammate as the other tried to settle. Now awake, the blond leant down, catching the scent of shampoo in the two-toned hair. But, there was something else.
Sniffing once more - probably not at all discretely - Armin finally figured the scent out. A presenting omega. Armin himself, as of yet, hasn't presented, so, it's much harder for him to smell scents of people's secondary gender. But, up close he could make out the faint scent of pine trees and the even fainter scent of distress.
Concealing his shock, he looked down at Jean. Presenting would explain why he was so emotional, the taller would probably also feel stressed at presenting as an omega.
Omegas weren't treated badly to say, but, they were definitely treated less than an alpha. But it all depended on the person. Most alphas treasured omegas, but some saw them just as an object to use and abuse.
"Jean, why didn't you tell anyone you were presenting?" He asked, sitting up. Jean looked like a startled deer. He shot up, eyes wide, a look Armin had never seen on the other.
"How did you know?" He was trembling now, probably with anxiety.
"I could smell it on you. Is this why you're upset?" Armin didn't want to push it, but he wanted to help his friend.
"No, of course not. I'm presenting as an omega, my mum always told me that omegas were treated like princes."
Armin let a smile crack at that, before it faltered. "So why're you upset?"
Jean looked down and Armin gave into the urge to run his fingers through the brown hair, shocked when Jean leant into his touch - and was he..? Oh! Armin had never heard such a sound. Jean was purring!
"It-It's Marco.. He's injured. Badly. The doctors don't know if-if he'll make it. His spine's chipped and his left arm and leg are broken. If he hadn't been found, he would've died."
The teen was sobbing, not bothering to hide it. "He'll be ok, Jean. He's strong. He'll pull through, just to see you again. Let's sleep now, forget your worries."
And Jean listened, the sound of his even breathing lulling Armin to his own slumber.
Snickering. That's what Armin woke up to. He groaned and tightened his arms around Jean.
"Armin!" Connie's voice pierced the silence and the blond shot up, eyes wide. He turned slowly, glaring at the shorter male. But Connie didn't care, he was giggling like he was drunk.
"Armin, are you and Jeanbo doing naughty things together?" He teased.
Before Armin could answer, Reiner spoke up. "Leave him be, Connie, he'll need time to gain his energy after such activities."
The pair howled with laughter, Bertolt just chuckling, horribly failing at hiding his grin.
Armin frowned as Jean stirred. "You're waking him up. Hush."
"Aw, does Jeanbo need his sleep?" Connie taunted.
"Shh!" Armin hissed.
But it was too late, Jean sat up, groaning and scratching aggressively at his swollen scent glands.
"Stop," Armin scolded, frowning, "you're only going to irritate them more." He gently pulled the teens hands away from his neck, receiving frantic tugging in return.
The trio had shut up as the other had woken. They were now staring in a mixture of awe and shock.
"Why's everyone staring at me?" Jean questioned, looking around.
"You're presenting? What's your dynamic?" Reiner asked, rather bluntly.
Jean flushed in return, from the tips of his ears to his neck. His hands wandered to his neck again, where he continued rubbing.
"Jean. Stop. If you keep rubbing and itching, they'll only get worse. Not only that, but your scent will be all over your hands, spreading everywhere."
Said boy groaned at the lecture and hesitantly pulled his hands away.
Armin winced in sympathy as just how red his neck was, "I'll ask around and see if anyone has any cream." The boy offered.
Connie snorted but didn't comment.
"Let's go meet the girls, breakfast starts in about five minutes. Sasha won't wait around."
The others nodded in response, "you's go ahead. We'll meet you when we're ready."
The trio exited the room and Armin could only flush when Reiner not-so-subtly threw a thumbs up and a wink. It so wasn't like that.
The two boys met up with their friends in the mess hall. Unsurprisingly, Sasha was to engrossed with her food to keep up with the conversation, but the others looked to be discussing something interesting.
As they both walked over, Armin had a sneaking suspicion they were talking about them. Oh, guess what; he was right.
The pair sat down, the conversation not wavering.
"-Let's find out then!" Ymir goaded with a smirk. "Oi, horse-face. What're you presenting as?"
Jean just narrowed his eyes. "Nunna your business." He snapped, turning and sitting with his breakfast.
"Is Jeanbo embarrassed?"
Armin watched the exchanges with a frown. Jean was literally a ball of hormones right now, one wrong word and he'll either be yelling or crying. No middle ground.
"Come on guys, he's obviously not going to tell us." Annie said, not looking up from where she was uninterestedly poking her food.
Her voice must have been cold enough because the boys stopped the teasing. Ymir though? Ymir, just liked to be annoying.
"Why should we listen to you, shorty? He'll eventually give in."
Annie's eyes narrowed to a point where you could hardly see them. Her fists clenched with a force strong enough to turn her knuckles white. To any sane person, they'd run as fast they could. But no one said anything about Ymir being sane.
The freckled brunette smirked once more as Annie muttered something, "sorry, what was that? I couldn't hear you, you were too far down."
Christa managed a very nervous chuckle before shifting away from the taller female.
Annie stood abruptly.
"Hit a sore spot did I?" She laughed.
"That is enough." Mikasa's voice left no room for argument. The quiet fury startling them into silence as they realised it was far too early for Mikasa to be messed with. "Ymir, stop with your childish antics. Go and goad at someone else. Annie, don't rise to the bait. It's pathetic."
Annie snorted and stormed out, probably to go and spar with someone.
Well. That was interesting, Annie was never really one to get so worked up about things.
I guess her height really gets to her.
Armin smiled softly before discretely touching Jean's knee. Even unpresented, Armin could smell the scent steadily getting stronger. It would do no one good for an alpha to get a whiff of the recently presenting omega.
The male seemed to understand and stood.
"We'll catch up later. Jean and I have some errands to run. Meet up with me later, 'Kasa?" Mikasa nodded, seemingly dejected about being left alone. She'll survive though.
As the pair walked out of the mess hall, Jean spoke up. "So, what 'errands' do we have to run, coconut?"
"Your scent is getting stronger. You need some scent blockers."
"Why?"
Armin resisted the urge to roll his blue eyes, Jean was just curious, but surely he wasn't stupid. Jean had grown up in Trost, a once respectable area. Not that it wasn't respectable now, just with wall Maria gone, some dodgy people have been forced to live there. Some places are still nice, but a wandering omega would likely be caught up by some desperate, lonely alpha, whom drink their sorrows away.
"There are bad people out there who wouldn't mind taking advantage over the 'poor, helpless omega'."
Jean frowned. "I'm not a poor or helpless omega."
"I know that, but honestly some people don't care whether you're willing or not. They take what they want."
"But why? I mean, that's selfish."
"There are a lot of selfish people out there, Jean."
The taller huffed, running a pale hand through his ruffled hair. "How do you think Jaeger's holding up?" He questioned.
"Honestly? I don't know. It's been his dream since childhood to join the Scouting Legion, but not like this. To be treated as a monster, the kind that killed his mother, would hurt. But, I hope, for his safety, he hasn't ran his mouth about saving humanity."
The pair chuckled together, god, Armin couldn't wait to see his friend again.
Word count: 3149
Characters: 18106
Paragraphs: 153
~Authors Note~
Hey, I know this is shit. I'm sorry about having no Eren, but I'm thinking about alternating the POV's every chapter to 'spice it up'.
I'm not gonna lie, I've only spent like two hours on this out of the three days I've made yall wait. I've been with my friend for two days and currently living off of 9 hours sleep in 72.
This isn't proofread, I'll do it tomorrow if I remember. So, peace.
~Solar Hibiscus x
