I could hear Eren's terrified wails, the murmuring of soldiers and Levi's calm breath beside me. The soldiers still stood with their weapons draw, all pointed at Eren and to say they were scared, would be an injustice. They were terrified. I can do this. I can get Eren out of this.

"Hold off your men," I ordered, looking to Levi. I don't need his piss babies getting involved. "You can be mad at me later; just do it. I need to calm him down and they're not helping."

"Stay calm." His steely voice silenced everyone in the yard. His authority had some uses then, I thought to myself. "Keep your weapons sharp, but you do nothing unless ordered. Understood? Anyone who isn't Special Ops, I want you gone. Petra, calm the kid down. The rest of you, make sure the area is clear. Understood?"

They nodded and sprang into action, clearing the unwanted soldiers, while Petra knelt by his side. Bastard. That's not what I asked. No matter, I can work with it. I approached Eren and the steaming arm, knelt by his side and unsheathed one of my blades. "What happened, kid?"

"I don't know," he cried, panic evident in his voice and in his eyes. I need to calm him down, otherwise we're not going anywhere. "One minute, I was reaching for my spoon, the next-"

"-shh, it's okay. It doesn't matter. All I need you to do for me is breathe. Just breathe for me, Eren. Ignore everyone else, just focus on me and Petra, okay?"

Both Petra and I took deep breaths with him; in and out, until his face and eyes were calmer. Okay, good. This is progress. Now what? Get him detached from the arm. How the fuck do I do that? Just think, Salem… Fuck. Right, okay. God, I hope this works. I nodded to Petra, stood and beckoned Levi over to me. "We're going to cut him out, like we did before."

"What?"

"You heard me," I murmured, forcing a pathetic smile towards Eren, who looked thoroughly terrified. "We're going to cut him from the arm and pray that this is the way we free him."

I knew I was going to face some sort of punishment for the way I was addressing him, I was delusional to think otherwise, but in that moment, I couldn't have cared less. Wasting energy on Shorty and his shitty short-fuse temper was a waste of my time and everyone else's. I needed Levi to do it, because if anyone was going to get it exactly right, it was him, but all of the training from the Underground and the Survey Corps, couldn't have prepared me to make this decision. And I most definitely didn't know if this was the right call to make, but what other choice did we have?

"Is someone going to do something?"

Eren's wails interrupted my silent thinking and we all sprung into action. We only have one shot at this, so we better get this right.

"Okay everyone," I yelled, moving towards Eren and Petra again. Eren looked as though he was ready to pass out; the strain of having the titan arm connected to his body must have been taking a toll. We need to move quick and Erwin better give me some recognition for this, because I certainly didn't sign up for this. "Let's get this shit done. I want you to hold very still, Eren. Can you do that?"

"Are we really doing this?"

"Yes we are," I said, responding to Petra's worry-filled question. We were all gathered around Eren and the arm, Levi included, and I pulled a blade from it's sheath. "Captain, I think you're best for the job. I need you to cut around the flesh of his arm."

"You want me to do it?" He questioned, though he'd already taken the blade from my outstretched hand. Good, he's already on board with my idea and who knows, maybe my stroking of his ego would lessen the punishment I'd receive later. I nodded. "Then let's get this over with, brat."

I thought I'd have more time to pre-warn Eren that it was time, but in one swift and graceful arch of my sword, he'd sliced through the steaming flesh, freeing Eren who finally slumped forward from exhaustion, sweat dripping from his forehead. This kid was going through hell and back.

"Eren?"

I was quick to roll him onto his back, burnishing the hair from his face. You're okay. You're strong, I know you'll be okay. His eyes were shut and rolling, and he was mumbling to himself, but he was breathing, and the damage was… minimal? I glanced down at his arm, which had just been encased in titan flesh and winced at what I saw. It was hot and red, clearly burnt and already blistering and peeling. That was going to be a bitch healing and he was going to be in a lot of pain.

"We need t get him to Hange," I said calmly, letting Gunther through to pick him up. I followed them to the infirmary, sitting with him until he woke up; incredibly aware that I'd ignored Levi who'd called me back, and that I still hadn't been found and punished. I was going to pay dearly. My day blurred dangerously waiting for him to open his eyes, but immense relief filled my body when his eyes fluttered open. He was okay.

The rest of the evening was spent conversing with him, Armin and Mikasa, who joined us the moment word got out that he'd woken up. I could see the panic in his eyes in his first moments, but my assurances that everything was okay, that he wasn't going to be punished and that no one was hurt, seemed to calm him down enough, so Hange could asses him and re-wrap his arm. Except when she removed the bandages away, what should have been a red and blistering arm, was instead a healthy and undamaged one. How was that possible?

After much experimenting and theory building, Hange concluded that it had to be something to do with Eren's titan shifting abilities. That 'clearly, a titan's ability to regenerate it's body, had been passed to Eren somehow'. It was the only logical solution, she decided, and I had to blindly accept her decision, because what did I know? She was the only one qualified to make these calls, so she had to be right?

I made sure Eren was alright, before leaving him to find Shorty, who I'm sure by now, was out for blood.

"Are you going to be okay?"

I was still taken back every so often by Eren's innocence and concern. I chuckled lightly and nodded. "What's the worst he can do, kid?"

"You handled that situation quickly and efficiently, brat." Huh? He was praising me? I thought he was going to lay into me, but- "But if you ever undermine my authority like that again, I'll punish you with the full extent of my power and you'll never walk again. Do you understand?"

There it is. There. It. Fucking. Is. But you know what, I wasn't going to fight him. It wasn't worth fighting him, and in all honesty, I did exactly what he accused me of. Old Salem would have put up a fight, bared her fangs and snarled until she was punished dearly, but now, now I knew when it time to kneel and accept fault. In fact, I completely understood why he was angry. If it had been me in his position, down in the Underground, I wouldn't have been yelling, I would have killed the disobedient slave that defied me. But this wasn't the Underground and I wasn't in charge.

"I understand, sir."

Shock. Shock crossed his face. I actually shocked Captain Shorty. He definitely wasn't expecting me to agree so quickly, but to be fair, I didn't exactly have a good track record.

"I know you're expecting me to fight you," I continued, running a hand sheepishly through my messy hair. "I know that's what I usually do, but you're right and I didn't mean to undermine your authority. I was just concerned about Eren's safety and Erwin trusted me with looking after him; I was just doing what I thought was right at the time. It won't happen again."

The shock was gone almost instantly, and his signature scowl graced his lips. He didn't say much, only nodded.

"You're excused. So get out of my sight, brat."

How can I not love mine and Shorty's little talks?

After the whole Eren situation and Shorty's stern talk with me, I wanted nothing more than to collapse into my bed and sleep my troubles away, but of course, the Survey Corps never slept.

"What's going on?"

"The rest of the 104th are arriving tonight," Hange explained, pointing to the approaching torches and horses at the castle gate. "They're late, which Levi isn't happy about, but at least they're here. It's time for the real work to begin."

The real work? What? Since when had Glasses been all secretive and cryptic? I would have asked, honestly, I would have, but I was so god damned tired.

"Do you need me to help?" She shook her head. "Good. I'm going to sleep. Goodnight, Hange."

"Goodnight, Salem."

When morning came, my mind and body protested rising; everything hurts like a bitch. I asked myself if it was worth facing Shorty's wrath for five more minutes of sleep, but of course it wasn't, and I was dressed and eating breakfast ten minutes later. Stupid fucking Survey Corps ruining my precious sleep. It was worth noting as well, that the eating area was a lot busier now, with many familiar faces in the crowd. One in particular that caught my eye, was Jean, except he was different now; that boy had seen death. He looked beyond miserable and he was all alone. Where were his friends? Huh…

I finished my soup and deposited my bowl in the correct bin. I could have left him, but I had a spare five minutes and I was curious.

"Who died?"

I caught him off guard it seemed by the small jump that shook his body. Guilt, fear and panic crossed his face, so I petted his shoulder awkwardly and sat beside him.

"How did you know'?" His voice was tired and almost completely emotionless. So whoever it was, they meant a lot to him.

"Come now, I've seen more grief than I'd care to admit," I chuckled darkly, earning a small grimace from his direction. "So, who was it?"

"His name was Marco. He was my best friend," he began, clearly re-living something behind his eyes. If I was honest, I only vaguely remembered a 'Marco' in the 104th. Tall with dark hair; kind too, if I remembered correctly. I also remembered deciding he wasn;t going to get very far in this business. I hated being right sometimes. "When the Colossal titan attacked, we were separated, and when I could find him, I went looking for him. I found him… torn in two. He didn't have a chance. I should have been there to protect him, and maybe then, he wouldn't be-"

"-you're not responsible for his death, Jean."

"But-"

"-but nothing," I continued, a coldness in my voice which silenced him very quickly. "You didn't stab, or shoot or feed him to the titans, did you? I know it's easy to blame yourself, trust me, I know, but being a Scout is unpredictable and beyond dangerous. Marco knew that when he signed up. Don't tarnish his memory with guilt. Honour it, by holding your head high and killing every titan that crosses your path. Make the titans rue the day they decided to kill your best friend. That is how you honour him, okay?"

Maybe I was too forward; too harsh with my words, but he needed someone to tell him. Grieving for the dead was meaningless. Of course, I knew this better than a lot of people. You had to live for them, honour their memory by doing all the things they didn't get to do. I lived by that every day. It was the only way I could keep the memory of my family alive; everything I did, I did for them.

I watched Jean, who had a flabbergasted look on his face, stand and rub his face wearily. I think my message hit home. He started walking away, so I called him back.

"Hey, Jean?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry about Marco."

And then he was gone.