Chapter 13

The trip back to the Survey Corps was quiet, the Hosts feeling slightly subdued. None of them were relieved, which was what they hoped for at this point. They were going to leave the walls and be faced with Titans again. When Zackley had made the announcement, the Hosts looked towards Haruhi, whose face had dropped. How could they expect them to go out there? After they had told them about the lack of titans in their home as well!

"Everything will be fine," Erwin reassured. "We'll have you all trained and put in the safest part of the formation."

Tamaki smiled, a small one, since none of the Hosts were really in control of their emotions yet. None of them wanted to speak. The ride home was silent almost the whole way. When they were almost home, Tamaki spoke. "What now?" He asked, looking at his friends, no his family. Nobody knew what to say. "We'll have to do as they said," Honey answered. "If we want to get home, we'll need to return to the basement."

"Do you think they'll go?" Kaoru asked. "They said it took them a long time to get to the basement. Would they be willing to go back?"

"Who says we have to stick with them?" Hikaru questioned. "We could-"

"I think we should save this conversation for later," Kyoya told them. "It'd be best to be on our own when making plans."

The Hosts all agreed, before falling silent once again.

"You guys are a part of the Survey Corps now, huh?" Sasha said, walking up to their table in the mess hall with a slice of bread in hand.

"It appears so," Kyoya answered, while the twins moved over to make room for her on the bench.

"Training's tough, you sure you're up for it?" Sasha asked, grinning.

"I don't think they're up for it," Jean answered, standing next to the table, while Connie slid onto the space on the end. "I think it's too hard."

"Guys, leave them alone," Connie scolded, even though it amused him. "I'm sure you'll be fine."

"We aren't worried at all!" The twins chorused.

"I heard you two have already got 3DMG down," Jean commented, making them shrug.

"What about this guy?" Connie asked, slinging his arm around Honey. "He managed to take Levi down! That's awesome!"

"It's a good job he's not in here," Armin told him. "Or he'd have you clean the whole castle."

Connie laughed nervously, while Jean and Eren pulled one of the benches over, so they all had somewhere to sit.

Honey smiled at him.

"Do you think you can manage it?" Eren asked. "It's pretty difficult."

"We're the Host Club," Tamaki announced. "Nothing is too difficult for us. As long as there is love!"

Eren scowled. "Love? What difference does that make?"

"It's makes all the difference!" Tamaki exclaimed. "Everything we do is for love!"

"Not everything," Eren muttered, glaring at Tamaki.

"Give me an example then," Tamaki challenged.

"Fine, why do we kill titans? How is that for love?" Eren snapped.

Tamaki smiled, "aren't there plenty of different reasons? Maybe to protect someone you love, maybe because you love the thrill, maybe because you love the new experiences and discovering new things about them. Maybe to avenge someone you love."

Eren thought back to the death of his mother, how he swore to kill every titan, and his scowl deepened. He lunged forwards, knocking Tamaki off the bench and onto the floor. "Argh!" Tamaki exclaimed, trying to push Eren away, who began to punch him.

"Ah!" Someone shouted, rushing forwards and pulling Eren off of Tamaki.

"Hey!" Eren snapped, turning around and instantly regretting it.

"Sorry, Squad Leader Hange," he apologised, although Hange wasn't paying attention.

She was looking at Tamaki, her face a light. "That speech was... amazing!"

Tamaki looked at her, as she kneeled down to his height on the floor. "What would you kill titans for?" She asked, looking hopeful.

"Err... I suppose I'd like to learn more about them," Tamaki answered, feeling uncomfortable by the look in Hange's eyes. Who then squealed.

"You can help me!" She exclaimed, hopping on her knees. "Together we can discover new things about titans!"

In the background, multiple people groaned. "Do you know much about them yet?" Tamaki asked, getting eager.

Hange looked even more excited, beaming at Tamaki. The Survey Corps members behind her shared a look, before standing and slowly exiting the hall. The Hosts watched them, their eyes growing wide, before they copied, figuring this was about to get annoying.