7 – The curious case of Eren Jaeger
"Still here?"
Like a dog that has heard it's master call, Hange's head perked up, eyes wide upon landing on the speaker. A goofy smile erupted immediately on her oily face, making her skin shine more than usual under the candlelight. "Have you come to look at him too?"
"Like hell I would. I'd rather watch Irvin take a shit than stare at that sleeping kid." Closing the door behind him, Levi walked toward the seated female while acknowledging the Scout on guard beside her (who snorted at the joke but immediately resumed his poker-faced stature within a few seconds) with a little nod.
"What's up, Levi? Oh, and where's Mike?" Came her inquiry just as when she finished laughing.
"Mike's still with the Commander. He's not going to be happy smelling you today, though. You haven't even washed your face, have you?" Stepping closer, Levi squinted his eyes at the female, as if scrutinizing how much dirt she has on her face.
"Ah, no. In fact I haven't even taken a bath since we came home from the expedition. Or had breakfast. Or lunch. Or dinner, yesterday. Oh, don't be like that!" Zoe grinned, amused by her superior's worsening reaction to her answer. "It doesn't matter now, does it? Because here in front of me is the one person in the world who can turn into a titan! How is that possible? Why is he the only one? Or is he? What do you think?"
"I think the question that must be asked here is this: why haven't you brushed your teeth? Your breath stinks." Reeling away from the woman, the Corporal waved his hand in front of his face, as if dispersing a foul smell. "I should have sent Moblit down here instead."
Rolling her eyes, Zoe stood up from her seat and walked closer to the bed, her face ghosting above the teen's sleeping form. "Eren Jaeger of the 104th. Please tell me why you can turn into a titan! Or how! Hello? Eren?"
"Why don't you try speaking to him closer? Maybe he'll wake up from the stench of your breath."
Zoe turned back to Levi for the purpose of retaliation, but the door opened without any warning, revealing Mike, which immediately in turn snatched her attention away from revenge. "Mike!" Exclaiming, she skipped toward the tall male, grasping his arm before pointing at the shorter male. "Levi says I stink. Do I stink, Mike?"
The Squad Leader raised his bushy eyebrows, eyes blinking once at the question. "You smell like you, as always, Zoe."
"What? What do you mean by that? Are you saying that I stink, too?"
"You smell wonderful as always, that's what I meant," The blond smiled at the woman's playfulness, patting her head in an affectionate way after Zoe grinned at Levi in triumph at his reply. "Had Levi told you about the kid's change in custody?"
"I was about to tell her," The Corporal interrupted before shrugging, eyes focused at the odd pair before him. "I suppose you should do the honors then." Zoe blinked curiously, her vision switching over from Levi to Mike in a span of a second.
"The Military Police has Jaeger in their custody now. It had been decided by the high court."
A cry, almost of pain, came out of Zoe's lips as the news hit her ears. "No! What do they want with Eren? Knowing those fools, they'll just probably kill him in the end! They don't realize how important this is – how important Eren is! They don't understand a fucking thing!" Throwing her arms in the air, the Squad Leader almost growled, before turning to a wall and kicking the it in her frustration. Mike dismissed their fellow Scout who was on duty, the guard's expression sullen and angry, though for a different reason. The and the Scouts had always retained that unfriendly rivalry over the years; its almost automatic.
"It could be a good thing. We don't know if Jaeger boy over here is really one of us. What if he goes batshit crazy all of a sudden and devoured everyone on sight? Better them than us." Levi commented nonchalantly, pointing at the sleeping recruit with his thumb. "Wouldn't that be great? There'd be less assholes for us to defend if that happened."
"No, no, no, no!" Shaking her head furiously, Hange's cheeks flush with emotion. Frustration has always been her weak spot. "Eren is the answer to all of this! Eren is the key to everything. If we lose him, we lose our chance at freedom! Dr. Jaeger has something to do with Eren's titan-shifting power, I am sure of it! He knows something about titans that we don't! And its very vital that we know what that is because –"
"Okay Hange, calm down," Sighing and regretting he even said those words, Levi held up his hand to halt Zoe from her passionate rambling. "Goddamn woman, take a breath. Look. Did it ever occur to you that Ackerman and Arlelt might just be lying? Its too damn shady, alright. People don't just 'lose' memories like that. Its too convenient. Its suspicious."
"I don't think those kids were lying." Smoothing out his beard, Mike took the seat where Zoe had evacuated a few moments ago. "Besides... Some of their fellow recruits stated that Jaeger here is one hardworking boy. He graduated within the top ten because of it. If he's plotting something against humanity, he wouldn't be signing up to be a soldier, or expressing a rather passionate claim that he wanted to join the Scouting Legion to 'kill all the titans'."
"Who cares if he's spouting all that bullshit? Maybe he wants to infiltrate our ranks to destroy us all from within, I don't know, and frankly, I don't care. I don't trust him. I don't trust his friends. I don't trust their claims. And if they're not going to provide any concrete proof to back them up, then my opinion of them would remain unchanged." Crossing his arms, the Lance Corporal sent both of his companions a glance before glaring down at the unknowing teen sleeping soundly on the bed. "Nile Dawk can keep him. I don't want him in the Legion."
"That's not for you to decide." Zoe shot Levi a stern glance as a reply, while the blond fingered the bridge of his nose, sensing another argument is on it's way to butcher their evening. "Irvin thinks Eren is innocent. He believes Mikasa and Armin are telling the truth. Can't you see? Eren is our ticket out of this fucked up world. He is Hope. He –"
"Hope? I can't believe I'm listening to this."
"I am serious, Levi. He is the hope of humanity. He plugged that hole in Trost. He killed some twenty titans before collapsing. He saved his sister. He saved his comrades. He saved the people of Trost. His intention are clean! Isn't that proof enough?"
"No its not. Where is the guarantee that he'll never turn on us? Or betray us? What if he loses control? I'm not going to lose soldiers because of mere speculations about this boy. I'm not going to let our men die in exchange for a pet monster."
"Eren is not a monster," Zoe turned back to the still slumbering kid, her gaze softening. "Monsters are not so passionately loved by others, are they? Monsters don't have friends that are willing to kill for you. Or defend you, to their last breath, like what Ackerman and Arlelt did for Eren. He's just a boy who happened to have a power unlike everyone else's. Levi, please. Give the kid a chance."
The Corporal exhaled through his nose sharply, still unconvinced. Trusting someone so easily isn't actually a quality of his, especially considering that this certain someone can turn into a titan. "I'll think about it when I get the chance to hear what he has to say."
"Have some faith. Its not so bad to put our bets on someone who can turn into a fifteen-meter tall giant."
"I'll bet on him when he does something useful other than sleep while waiting for Prince Charming to wake him up with a smooch."
Mike was thankful that the two didn't argue as much compared to all the other instances where there had to be some kind of intervention from him. Added to that, Zoe was getting good at the art of manipulation, which means that he doesn't have to be the referee in their little fights much often now than before. "The MP's are gonna come by any time now to take Jaeger away. I'll see to it. Or do you guys want to join me and have a friendly chat with the Police?"
"I'd rather not see any of their kind," The Corporal unhooked his arms from each other and turned his heel, ready to walk out of the room. "And no, Hange, you're coming with me. Do you have any idea how desperate Moblit looked like when he came to me? Be an adult and get shit done."
"I am getting stuff done! I'm observing Eren right now!"
"That's called being creepy. Now do Mike's nose a favor and get yourself cleaned." Upon exiting the door, Levi left it open, as if making a statement that she should obey his orders without question, leaving her annoyed. Mike just snickered at this – he knew she didn't like it when Levi used his rank to make Hange do what he wants.
"See you at dinner later," Mike muttered as Zoe continued grumbling silently while she stood.
"See you, Mike. Try not to punch an M.P tonight." With a little laugh, the female extended a hand to squeeze his shoulder, before looking back at Eren, taking one last glance. After that, she too, marched out of the room, leaving Hope behind with Humanity's Second Strongest.
A/N: It feels rushed, because it is a bit rushed. Especially the ending. Ah, well. I'll supply a better chapter next time.
Also have you guys seen the previous anime episodes? Dang man. Producers be toying with them feels. ThatmeansImightwriteachapteraboutthatCOUGH.