Grisha had found it in one of the last remaining members of the Ackerman clan. Apparently he had married the last member of the only other race within the walls. He was of course going on a checkup for them. Mrs. Ackerman belonged to a dead race known as "Orientals"; rumor has it that they come from some eastern land.
He took his two sons along with him on his visit. They lived in the countryside north of Shiganshina district.
"Dad, where are we going again?" asked Eren, who was now ten
"We're going to visit a friend, and he has a daughter about your age" Grisha replied.
"Oh, well, um…" Eren said, before he turned to his younger brother Friedrich, who was now going by Fred just to make it short.
"Do you know why we're going?" Eren whispered
Friedrich shook his head.
"Oh, I have a checkup to make, I think you and his daughter are going to get along just fine" Grisha explained.
"But dad; we're boys, we do boy things, and she's a girl who does girl things" Eren complained.
"I guess you'll just have to deal with it" Grisha replied.
There was an awkward silence before Eren decided to strike up a conversation with Friedrich.
"Hey Fred, did you know if you say some one is bad at something then you must be perfect at it" Eren said with the upmost confidence.
"… What?" Friedrich answered in confusion
"If you say some one is bad at something, then you must be perfect at it" Eren explained.
"So is if someone is bad at something… you have to be good at it?" said Friedrich
"Yes" answered Eren.
"What if they're just really bad at something?" Friedrich asked
"Then you must be perfect at it" Eren replied.
"That doesn't make any sense, like if someone bakes a cake and it always comes out burnt, then they are just bad, we don't need to be cake judges to know that" Friedrich reasoned.
"Yeah but it's hypocritical" Eren explained.
"So, they always burn the cake, so they can't bake good" Friedrich countered.
"They can't bake well, Friedrich" Grisha corrected.
Eren was kind of taken aback by his little brother's argument. Usually he always corrected him on whatever wrong thing he said. Even though Fred had superhuman abilities, Eren had always prides himself as being the brains and willpower of the duo. It helped with this jealousy that he couldn't seem to get rid of. Eren decided to change the subject.
"Fred, what do you think lies beyond the walls?" Eren asked
Grisha sighed, they really liked to talk about this, but it was an endangerment to their safety.
"Maybe a world like this one" Friedrich answered solemnly, "I wanna know what lies beyond the sky".
The three paused for a moment. The fact that Friedrich came from the sky was something they initially were uncomfortable believing, but have come to accept it. But his origin was more a mystery than what lied beyond the walls. It could mean that there could be whole worlds out there among the stars. It was a concept that was hard to grasp, but one could imagine. Friedrich had drawn pictures of what his original home would have looked like ever since he found out the truth.
At first he didn't want to believe, but then his curiosity got the better of him. Unlike his family who have accepted it, he didn't know who he was, and he wanted to find out.
The trio continued on their way in deep thought, but Friedrich heard something. It sounded like a woman screaming, and it was coming from the direction they were going!
"Dad, I think they are in trouble" Friedrich declared
"Who?" Grisha asked with concern
"The people we are going to visit" Friedrich answered with some fear in his heart.
Grisha knew that Friedrich could hear thing from miles away, he's even tested it. He once told Friedrich to repeat a poem Grisha was going to recite. Grisha rode off to the next town and recited the poem. When he returned, Friedrich could repeat it word for word. Something was wrong.
"Come on, we have to hurry up" Grisha ordered before going up to a jog.
Eren didn't know if he could run that far, but someone was in trouble, he would have to try.
A bit earlier:
"Ow" Mikasa whined.
Mrs. Ackerman was stitching in a pattern into her daughter: Mikasa's wrist. It was a beautiful symbol with intricate stripes and lines. It was the mark of Mikasa's people on her mother's side.
"This brand must be passed down from generation to generation in our family" Mrs. Ackerman explained as she tenderly wrapped the cloth around Mikasa's wrist, "when you have a child, you'll bequeath it to him or her"
"Unh… it hurts" Mikasa complained.
"You're holding up well, Mikasa" Mrs. Ackerman said softly.
"How can I have a child?" Mikasa asked
"Err… why don't you ask your father that" Mrs. Ackerman said clearly trying to avoid the question.
As if on que, Mr. Ackerman entered the room.
"Honey, why don't you tell your daughter about the birds and the bees" Mrs. Ackerman suggested.
"Yeah daddy, tell me!" Mikasa cheered
"Well, um, I'm not an, um, expert on the subject, but you know what, that nice doctor Jaeger is scheduled to make a visit so you can talk to him" Mr. Ackerman answered clearly caught off guard.
Mikasa frowned and scratched an itch on her head. She had long silky black hair, a trait she inherited from her mother. also inherited from her mother was her almond shaped eyes that made her look almost as if she were squinting. but unlike her mother, who had a slightly flatter face and slightly broader nose, Mikasa had had a nose and face more similar to her father, and everyone else. a slightly less flat face and slightly more pointed nose than he mother.
Rain started to pick up outside. but not long after, two knocks could be heard.
"Heh hey, speak of the devil" Mr. Ackerman jeered.
The knocking continued as Mr. Ackerman went to answer the door. He was about to greet them when a knife planted itself in his gut. Mr. Ackerman looked down to the knife before his life slipped away and he fell to the ground with a loud 'thump'. It revealed three men standing at the doorway. Both of the female Ackerman's looked up in shock at the men standing at the doorway.
"Sorry, I hope we're not interrupting" said the man in the front with a chilling voice.
Mrs. Ackerman was horrified but knew what she had to do. She slowly reached for the scissors in preparation.
"Alright, let's take this nice and slow, I'd rather not split any skulls open" said one of the men raising an axe.
She then rushed at him with the scissors. The man managed to grab ahold of Mrs. Ackerman as they struggled.
"RUN MIKASA! RUN AWAY FROM HERE AS FAST AS YOU CAN!" Mrs. Ackerman screamed in despair
"Mommy, your scarring me!" yelped Mikasa
"I want you to be scared!" Mrs. Ackerman screamed once more as she struggled with the man
Mikasa looked around amidst the chaos. She saw her father's lifeless body and her mother struggling for her life against this stranger. It filled her with fear that she had never felt, a fear of the unknown coming into existence. All of a sudden she heard a scream. She saw her mother falling to the ground with blood gushing out her neck. She finally realized the gravity of the situation.
She heard men yelling, but she didn't focus on them, only on her now dead parents. Fear crept into the darkest parts of her soul. Her parents were now… dead. The man walked over her mother's dead corpse. He picked her up and said "hey, let's not give me any attitude okay; if you feel feisty, you get this" the man said before he knocked her out.
They then carried her off to their hideout. It was about 30 more minutes before the jaegers arrived. They had tried to run there, but it proved to be too much. Friedrich could have done it but Grisha refused to let him go in alone.
They arrived there panting. In desperation, Grisha started pounding on the door yelling "Mr. Ackerman! Are you there! Mr. Ackerman!" there was no answer.
Friedrich looked though the walls with his x-ray vision and instantly vomited. He saw dead bodies; it was something he just couldn't take. He fell on his knees; strangely, he didn't feel like crying, he felt something else. It felt much worse.
"Friedrich! What's the matter!?" Grisha asked
But Friedrich didn't answer, though fear was clearly in his eyes. Grisha then opened the door and was greeted by a revolting sight.
"So are they there!?" Eren asked in desperation
Grisha remained silent for a few moments before entering the cabin. He checked everywhere for signs of the daughter who was now missing. Eren stood at the door. He saw the dead bodies, their lifeless eyes, and the blood. He was filled with fear, disgust and then rage.
"Oh god no, I need to alert the military police about this" Grisha said in a shaky voice, "Fred! Eren! Wait for me at the edge of the mountain! Swear to me!"
Both Eren and Friedrich remained silent but obliged. They marched down the mountain with the rain pouring down like mini-cannonballs. But as soon as Grisha was out of sight, Eren turned to Friedrich.
"Fred, tell me where they are going" Eren demanded.
"What? But da-" Friedrich was cut off.
"Where are they going" Eren said with more gravity in his tone.
"WHERE ARE THEY GOING?!" Eren shouted
Friedrich jumped back in fright. He now feared his brother. Something was wrong with him; his eyes seemed to show no emotion yet he sensed this aura a rage within him. Tears started to roll down Friedrich's cheeks and his lips started to quiver. But Eren paid no attention to his younger brother's sorrow.
Despite all this, Friedrich clenched his eyes shut and listened. He took slow breaths to calm himself down, to focus. He cancelled out the pouring rain and listened to the forest. He heard many things but nothing noteworthy came. He focused harder and he heard some human voices among the other things. He zeroed in on them. While it wasn't quite clear but he could make out some men arguing on how they shouldn't have killed her and how much they were going to sell her. It was them.
Eren patiently waited for an answer. Friedrich pointed towards the ridge of a mountain. At that, Eren dashed off, leaving Friedrich alone in the rain.
Eren dashed through the forest, leaping over logs and leaves. The mud wasn't going to slow him down. As he ran, adrenaline pumped through his veins, growing angrier and angrier.
'Those animals are going to pay!' Eren thought to himself, 'they murdered innocent people '
Then something snapped in him. A new type of anger rushed through him, filling his primal desires with bloodlust.
"I AM GOING TO KILL THEM ALL!" Eren shouted
No longer will he be shackled by moral codes. Nothing to obstruct true justice. Those animals would pay with their life! And he, Eren would bring hell upon them.
Then he thought of his little brother, the way he looked at him with fear. Then it all became so clear to him; his brother, despite all his great power, was weak. Tormented all his life and he did nothing but stand there and do nothing! He could lift heavy boulders over his head, run faster than a horse and nothing could hurt him. But his cowardice made him vulnerable, when he could have ruled over them. Eren would not make that mistake.
Even with the strength that his brother had, Eren now knew he was stronger. He would do what his brother never could. And that was bringing justice.
He ran up the slippery ridge, taking care not to slip. When he reached the top of the ridge, he saw a large cabin. He knew it was them. Eren reached down into his pocket to grab a knife. He stared at the silver blade as it cast a reflection upon him. He devised a plan on how he would kill those pigs. There was no turning back.
Within the large cabin:
Mikasa lied on the floor tied up with a bloody lip. She looked out the window to a cold rainy sky, which made sense because it was cold. She didn't know what to make of the world anymore. Everything she knew was gone. It was cold, but her soul felt colder.
"Uh huh, all I'm sayin' is she better go for a decent price" said one man, "I didn't get blood on my hands for nothing".
"Look at her face and tell me what she's worth" another said.
The first man turned her over with his foot and examined her features.
"Sure she's cute and all but just young, wouldn't go for her myself" said he.
"Then I guess we're lucky you're not the one we're selling to" said the other man, "there are plenty of folks who would pay premium for her; she's exotic, what they used to call an oriental, you know about that right? When there were still a bunch of different people, a bunch of them from the east came scramblin' here for safety; the old perverts in the capitol really go for that sort of thing, this little beauty is going to fetch a mint at auction. It's great business, she's the last of her kind, all the rest of em' died out"
"Tell me another one, it's not like she's a pureblood or anything; her old man wasn't oriental" the other man replied.
The first one stomped his feet on the ground in anger.
"Good point there! The mother would have been a nice addition! Right?! Too bad she's in pieces" the other man shouted
"Give me a break, what was I supposed to do, she was putting up a fight!" the first man retorted
"So you couldn't have just knocked her unconscious!" the other shouted
'It's so cold' Mikasa thought, but then, she heard the door open
Back at the foot of the mountain, a bit earlier:
Friedrich stood there in the rain. His older brother had just left him. He didn't know what to think. Emotionally exhausted, he sat down. The rain and clouds fitted his mood. He just couldn't wrap his head around why anyone would do such a thing. Then he heard someone shout "I'm going to kill them all!"
He knew it was Eren. Friedrich was taken aback by this; Eren was always headstrong sure, but killing. It was like being told the titans could break through the walls. But he thought to himself; do they deserve death? No! No one deserved death. But they killed two people and kidnapped a kid. Would two wrongs make a right?
Friedrich pondered these questions. But then he realized something. Maybe they could still face justice and not get killed, but instead get locked away where they belong. After all, Friedrich possessed abilities no one else could dream of.
A little sliver of hope found its way to Friedrich's heart. Instead of squandering his abilities and constantly have to hide them, he would use them to help mankind. Maybe even retake the land outside the walls.
Friedrich stood up and looked onward to his destination. Then he dashed up the mountain.
He went faster than any horse ever could, some could say that he look like a little brown blur. A little more hope went into his heart with the realization that he was going to save someone.
When he got to the ridge, he saw the cabin. some of the wood was rotten, the rain making the tree's leaves turn a bluish green. He used his binocular vision to zoom in through the window. There! The girl. But then he heard a voice, a voice he recognized as Eren. He heard s little conversation between two of them; not sure what about. Then he heard a faint gargle and then a 'plonk'. Has his brother died? The reality was just as terrifying.
Soon after there was screaming and some noises he hears at a butcher shop. The next words came from Eren.
"YOU'RE AN ANIMAL YOU HEAR ME!" Eren shouted, "YOU'RE A DISEASE! THIS IS WHAT YOU GET YOU SON OF A BITCH! THIS IS WHAT YOU GET FOR BEING WHAT YOU ARREE! DIE! DIIEE!"
Friedrich couldn't believe what he was hearing. His brother was murdering, shouting like a psychopath. The little hope within him had died. His own brother doing what they did, murdering in cold blood. He was horrified. Little tears trickled down his cheeks once more. He simply couldn't believe it.
But then he heard another scuffle. He zoomed in with his binocular vision and activated his X-ray vision. He saw his brother being choked out by a man! He also saw the girl now free. Hut he also heard Eren say: "fight, kill or be killed, fight for your life, it's- it's the only way, the only way to live is to fight".
As much as Fred hated to admit it, he was right. There was still time to do it; to save all of them. But he didn't know if he could do it, or how he could do it. However, this was no time for self-doubt, it was time to act. He took a deep breath and charged towards the cabin.
He heard a large boom behind him as he dashed towards the cabin, he felt it too, and he knew he had caused it. Time seemed to slow down. But the cabin was still approaching, and approaching fast too. Friedrich tried to stop but instead crashed into the cabin.
He busted through the wooden wall; luckily, the wall took most of the force because he slammed into the man with much less force than the wall. The man that was chocking Eren flew across the room and was knocked unconscious.
He felt something pinned against his chest. He turned to see the girl from before. Mikasa as his father said. She had a knife against his chest; the handle was broken and the blade was bent a bit. She looked dead into his eyes. Her eyes were a dark shade of gray, and he saw a distinct kind of coldness within them. She didn't show it, but he could still detect faint traces of fear.
She took two steps back dropped the knife before falling to her knees and sitting down. She looked down and didn't say a word.
Friedrich looked over to the dead bodies and then to Eren. Fred had the look of disbelief in his eyes. How could Eren so this. Eren looked back at him. He had a light scowl. All three sat there in silence until Grisha and the M.P arrived.
Later, at night time. The Jaegers had made a campfire at the cabin. Grisha found the fact that his son Eren had murdered just as hard to believe as Friedrich.
"Damnit son, I made it very clear that I wanted you to wait at the foot of the mountain; do you have any idea of the magnitude of what you've done here today!" Grisha scolded
"Sorry dad, but I'm not going to feel bad for what happened" Eren hissed, "they were animals disguised as humans who needed to be put down"
"Listen to yourself!" shouted Grisha
"By the time the military police had gotten there, they would have been long gone and you know it!" Eren shouted back, "we couldn't afford to wait"
"That's not what I'm arguing about!" Grisha shouted, "you through caution to the wind and survived by pure luck! You're strong yes, but you're too damn young to be so casual about gambling with your life"
"But I didn't know how else I was supposed to save her" Eren said now saddened.
Grisha softened up a bit and stood up and walk over to Mikasa.
"Mikasa, remember me? We met a few times before when you were just a tiny little thing" Grisha said soothingly.
"Yes Dr. Jaeger" Mikasa replied in a quiet and tired tone, "sorry, but can you just tell me how to get home, it's cold, I'm tired, there's nowhere else for me to go"
Grisha and Eren gave her a solemn look before Eren walked up to here taking his scarf off. He wrapped it around her. It was a plain red scarf but it kept anyone warm.
"Don't worry, can keep it; that oughtah' keep you warm, right?" Eren said softly
Mikasa looked down in sadness, but the gift was much appreciated. It felt as if the scarf had melted some of the ice in her heart.
"I think so" Mikasa replied weakly.
"Mikasa, how would you feel about coming to live with us?" Grisha asked
"W-what?" Mikasa asked surprised
"I can't even imagine what you've been through, but I do know you need your share of rest" Grisha said softly.
Mikasa looked as if she was about to break into tears.
"What's the problem? Don't think about it, just come on" Eren said grabbing her hand, "we gotta get home"
"Y-yeah, okay" said Mikasa shedding a tear.
But she couldn't feel that something was missing. She looked over to where Friedrich was sitting at the edge of the woods.
Grisha looked over Friedrich. Sure he had busted to the wall, but he managed to capture one of the human traffickers. His other associates could now be tracked down as they suspect it's a larger ring.
"Come Fred, it's time to go home" Grisha called out.
Friedrich stood up and walk over to where the others were standing at. Mikasa had never seen someone like him. His skin was dark and he managed to but through a wall. She had stabbed him but the knife did not pierce him. She wondered; what was he?
"Mikasa, this is my son, Friedrich" Grisha introduced
"Hi, my name is Friedrich" Friedrich said softly and sticking his hand out, "but you can call me Fred".
She accepted his handshake. It felt strong, like he could easily crush her hand. But at the same time, it felt limp somehow.
With that, they walked home. While they walked, curiosity took over Mikasa and she asked Friedrich something.
"What are you Fred?" Mikasa asked
"I don't know" Friedrich answered.
"That question will be answered once we get home" Grisha answered.
Once they got home. Carla was deeply upset of what Eren had done and catered to Mikasa's every need. She felt bad for her, but at the same time was glad that she had a daughter now. And Mikasa fared worse. She was once a cheery girl, but now almost never talks, and it was a phase she never grew out of. But she still had compassion. She still cared deeply for Eren, sometimes crying remembering what he had done for her. And Friedrich filled her with wonder, and his personality was more tolerable than his brother's head strong. The two were almost like polar opposites. But she still enjoyed spending time with the two. But over time, she learned to control he emotions, so she couldn't show it. And she always wore that red scarf.
As for Eren and Friedrich, it took months to repair their relationship, even made his own friend, named Armin. he was a small blonde boy with blue eyes and a fascination for the natural world. But before that, the Jaegers revealed Friedrich's secret to Mikasa.
They took her down to the basement while the other two were gone on an errand.
"What is all this?" Mikasa asked
"This is all my equipment, but that's, why we brought you down here" Grisha explained.
"You know Fred, with all his abilities" Carla said, "well; he's not from this world"
Mikasa was taken aback. They couldn't be serious.
"W-what?" Mikasa asked
Grisha cranked up chain that opened up a hole in the floor. And up came an object. It looked like a white metal pea pod, with and intricate 'S' shaped symbol on it.
"What is that?" she asked now filled with wonder
"It's what he came in" Grisha spoke up.
"You can go ask him for yourself" Carla suggested, "but you have to swear not to tell another soul, or they'll take him away, never to be seen again"
Mikasa nodded understanding the consequences. She studied the craft. She could have never imagined this or her adopted brother came from the stars. But then again, he looked like everyone else, sure his skin was much darker, but he still looked somewhat similar. She herself knew that she and he mother were not the same as everyone else. They were persecuted because of that.
She had seen the torment he received because of what he looked like. And even though she looked different, she never received that much of it. In a way, she had more sympathy and empathy for him than anyone else.
So she asked him what he was herself, later at night. Friedrich was outside looking at the stars with deep longing. Out there laid his origins, his identity, and it frustrated him that he couldn't reach it. The sky was like a wall protecting them from nothing. She walked outside and sat beside him.
"Is it true that you come from the stars?" Mikasa asked in her signature nonchalant voice
"Um, what?" asked Friedrich before he realized the question
"Well, that was what I was told" Friedrich answered, "I've always wondered what was out there, beyond the walls, beyond the sky"
Mikasa didn't seem to answer, so Friedrich talked some more.
"You know, you also look pretty different to, your eyes always look like they're squinting" Friedrich said
Mikasa gave him an unemotional look. He had lost the ability to read her emotions.
"But that's okay, I was called the chocolate baby for a long time and still am" Friedrich explained, "it's really nice to have another 'different' person around".
Mikasa finally smiled a bit. Fred had succeeded.
"Well, my people have long since been wiped out, all I know is that they came from the far east" Mikasa explained, "but you're from the sky, my ancestor's land seems puny compared to yours".
"Well I wouldn't say that" Friedrich retorted.
Mikasa unrolled her sleeve showing a marking on the wrist. Friedrich studied it.
"This is the marking of my people" Mikasa said a bit solemnly.
"Oh, uh, cool" said Friedrich, "Kind of looks like a flowing river".
"Really?" Mikasa asked a little cheered up
"Yeah" Friedrich answered, "but tonight, let's look at the stars"
Friedrich, who had gained a huge interest in astronomy, had learned almost all the star and constellations in the sky. The rest of the night was spent showing Mikasa the stars and showing her constellations, and the story they told.
And that's a wrap. Hope you guys enjoyed. And if you guys are wondering when the breach is going to happen, it's going to happen in chapter six. I wanna spend next chapter developing the aesthetic of Fred, Eren, Mikasa and Armin so I can depict their relationship as well as possible. So yeah… R&R.