"Ok, start from from beginning Eren" Historia commands, the 104th squadron in Jean's room, alongside Erwin, Levi and Hange, all intent on listening what Eren has to say.
"Ok. When I kissed your hand, I started to have visions - at first I thought they were memories, but they both were and weren't" he pauses, trying to find words to best explain what happened.
"I think that when I see those memories, I see them as they are happening at the moment" he continues, seeing Levi squint his eyes, a hand coming to rub his head, Hange and Erwin instead listening in, evidently not as shocked as the others were.
"That's it? That's what you saw that made you freak out?" Levi interrupts, not seeing anything worthwhile or something that would warrant Eren's behaviour.
Eren doesn't answer, just breathing in and out, Mikasa at his side holding his hand in support, staring down the shorter commander in defiance, a silent threat to not make comments.
"No...another thing that apparently I can do is...that I can put myself in those memories, and see me from another perspective" Eren starts, already getting too confusing to explain in simple terms,proven correct when Levi sighs and sits down on a chair, not even bothering to understand that part.
Erwin simply looks at the shorter leader, chuckling at the reaction, and turns to Eren, trying to see if he understood -"So basically, since you're seeing these memories happen, it's always the same one , correct? And if you're able to enter these memories, you should be able to see yourself in those memories" he explains, watching Levi slowly connecting the dots and turning towards Eren, still not fully grasping the concept.
"Exactly - but there's actually one more thing - I saw myself in those memories, and I was...grown up". At that part, no-one speaks up, baffled by the statement. Hange looks at Eren, eyes widened, surprised by the development, and urges him to keep talking -"And? What did he...you do?"
Eren swallows air, closing his eyes, feeling Mikasa's hand grasping his own, squeezing back tightly, using her presence to keep going -"I saw what I'm going to do" he manages to speak, inhaling deeply to stop himself from breaking down. Levi grunts, waving a hand to stop him once more -"And how is that possible? Actually, I don't care, I already have problems following this conversation - what are you going to do?" he asks bluntly, not allowing Eren to collect himself.
At this point, everyone listens in, the squad only knowing up to that point, and in vague terms also the visions, hopefully that he'll be able to share more details.
Mikasa leans in, whispering in his ear, making sure that other people wouldn't be able to hear -" Don't worry about it...no-one will judge you for it" she finishes, gently nudging his head with her own.
"Eren" Historia speaks once more, tone commanding attention -"Speak" she simply says, her expression neutral, but still full of confidence and authority. Ymir looks at her side, to see a completely different Historia than what she is used to.
She must be on royalty mode.
Eren locks eyes with Historia, and nods once. Everyone else leans in, not wanting to miss a single word.
"I still don't know the entire story. I do know that I somehow turn into the founder. And I...I...make the Titans in the wall move. Towards Marley. That's it" he exhales, knowing that he'll have to explain in more details, and also tell his friends how he hurt them.
"You're nothing but a slave"
Eren flinches at that thought, vowing to not let Mikasa know that he said those things, hating himself for even thinking of saying that. No-one speaks, everyone processing what their friends just told them.
"So you activate your powers to the maximum, and command the Titans in the walls to walk towards our enemy?" Erwin speaks first, looking at Eren for any signs of the boy lying.
The brunette nods, not daring to look the Commander in the eyes, its stature more intimidating with the boy sitting on the ground.
"Interesting - wasn't your goal to kill all Titans?" Erwin continues, immediately speaking again once Eren confirms his question -"And yet you used them to, we can guess, wage war against Marley" he pauses, allowing Eren to answer.
"Yes...there's actually one more thing...I have one last memory...it's not clear, but I know that I mamage to remove Titans from the world. But i don't know how"
At that, everyone perks up a bit, the knowledge that there might be an end in sight and be free from the Titans lifting everyone's spirit. Mikasa nudges Eren with her foot, not looking at him -"Do you know what happens to you?" she asks, no more words necessary to explain her question.
Ymir and Erwin focus on the teen, wanting to know the answer to that question as well, managing to hide their anxiety to the others. Everyone remain silent, not wanting to disturb or interrupt Eren, who still doesn't speak, worsening Mikasa's feelings.
Eren is trying to see if there are any images of his friends, of himself, of Ymir and Erwin, but the only thing he is able to see is light, coming from an opening in front of him, and a figure flying in.
Then darkness.
He opens his eyes, breathing heavier and heavier, starting at the ground with an incredulous expression, the feeling of literal emptiness of that image talking a big toll on himself.
"Eren?" Levi calls out, his loud voice breaking through Eren's mind, and making him look at the commander -"You didn't answer the question" he says, his tone of voice implying that him answering is not an option.
"No...I'm sorry, I...I don't know" he breathes out, Jean noticing how again he's not telling what he just saw -"Eren. You're doing it again. You're hiding something" he says, making the brunette flinch, angry that once again someone saw through him.
When Eren doesn't speak, Levi stands up, walking in front of Eren, and lifts him up off the ground holding on to his shirt -"Talk, Yeager - this isn't an option. Say everything you know, now. I'm getting tired of waiting for someone else to pull one word out of you" he threatens, Eren feeling small, despite the added height.
Mikasa jumps up, putting a hand on Levi's arm, glaring at him, growling out -" Put him down, now" , unblinking staring at her superior, ignoring the small chances she has at overpowering Levi. The rest of the squadron steps back, not wanting to be caught up in their feud, not daring to speak up to avoid getting stared down by either of the strongest soldiers.
"Alright enough!" Historia slams her hand onto the table, catching the rest off guard, forcing everyone to look in her direction -"Right now we're getting nowhere! Put him down now!" she orders, Levi obediently dropping Eren, him falling to the ground on his back, Mikasa immediately on his side helping him up.
"Now everyone is going to shut up and let Eren speak at his own terms - if he refuses to tell something, then you may manhandle him, but not before!" Historia finishes her speech, sitting down again on her chair -"And someone bring more chairs, everyone should be sitting down" Connie and Jean rush out to grab more chairs, afraid to incure in the young momarch's wrath.
Ymir brings her chair closer to Historia's, smirking at her openly -"And where is this Historia when we're alone?" she chuckles, her girlfriend trying to ignore her mocking tone, waiting for everyone to be seated.
Connie and Jean return, handing everyone a chair, and Historia waits for everyone to be seated, before speaking again -" Now. Eren. Talk" she orders him.
Eren takes a deep breath, looking around the room, seeing all eyes on him, and starts speaking
"Here is what I know - I can access my father's memories. But, since I am seeing the actual event happen, if I access that memory multiple times I will see myself in that memory as well. Myself from the future did this - he...I mean I accessed some memories, and showed myself what to do, some key moments" he pauses, checking off a list in his mind what he has to say.
When no-one interrupts, the brunette keeps talking -"I haven't seen everything - but I do see myself becoming the Founder, and calling all the Titans in the walls, making them march against Marley. I also...I think I also see my death" the last part makes the atmosphere become heavier, everyone staring at him, waiting to explain himself in more details.
"What do you mean" Erwin asks, his need to details greater than his patience to wait for Eren to explain. Mikasa stares at the ground, her eyes widened, still hearing that word in her head, not allowing her to focus on anything else.
"How could you know if it's actually...that" Jean starts, looking at the brunette -"And how would you be able to see that - aren't you seeing this visions through your father's memories? That would mean that you accessed those memories at your..." he stops speaking, not wanting to say that word.
Armin just looks at his best friend, wishing he could actually see what Eren saw, in hopes to help him make sense of it -" The how isn't important for now...Eren, how can you tell you're seeing that specific thing?" he asks, his tone soft and quiet, seeing the brunette still breathing heavy.
"It's just that...I felt nothing...it was different from when I simply stop seeing something, I...it was cold...I was in a dark place, the only light coming from in front of me - then, something flies in...and that's where the darkness starts. I...I don't want to feel that" Eren tries to explain, seeing how most people are barely grasping at what he said before.
The group remains silent, not knowing how to follow up that statement. Mikasa is still looking at the ground, her posture hunched, pulling her scarf up to her nose, and breathing in deeply. Jean scratches his nose, and even though he knows that afterwards the group will be feeling worse, he presses on, turning towards Eren -"You said that you hurt us. How?"
At that, the leaders and Historia turn surprised, looking at Jean, wanting an explanation -"Before, he said that he hurt us...I want to know how" he clarifies, still watching Eren, who is looking back, silently pleading with him to not push on that subject.
Please don't make me say it...
Armin and Mikasa can see his despair, Eren's eyes filling up with tears, not wanting Mikasa to know that part, thinking that she'll hate him -"N-No, I don't...please..." he manages to get out, words coming out in a garbled mess, not being able to speak without sobbing openly.
"Is that really important now? It doesn't help us in any way" Mikasa interrupts, looking at Jean, who doesn't look away, despite the menacing glare from the raven -"It doesn't, but I still want to know" he explains calmly, looking for support from the others -" I mean I can't be the only one, right?Armin, you would want to know, am I correct? And don't tell me that you" he says, pointing at Mikasa -" aren't interested in what he will do to you?"
"Alright, everyone - stop now" Erwin commands, standing up, his imposing height forcing everyone to obey him -" Personal issues aren't important. We learned enough for now. Eren will certainly learn something else. As of this moment, we can only wait" he faces Eren fully, making the teen look back, slightly scared from the staredown -"Your job now is to keep digging in those memories. If at any moment you see anything that's relevant to this war, you are to report it to the first member of this squadron, understood?No exceptions" he finishes, sure that Eren doesn't need another threat to make him follow the rules.
He walks to the door, opening it and stepping out, gesturing to the others to follow him -"This session is over"
Jean shakes his head, following the others out of his room. He meets Mikasa's eyes, still intensely staring at him, her intentions clear as day - Don't bother Eren - he sighs, and moves past her, joining Connie and Sasha, going to the kitchen to grab something to eat.
This is going to get difficult
Armin is climbing down the basement of the military building, thinking about what transpired today. Eren was almost inconsolable, being pulled aside by Mikasa to rest, her going as well.
He reaches the lowest level, a big wooden door in front of him, with a guard stationed in front. He takes a few steps, the soldier taking notice of him.
"Sorry, no-one is allowed in here" he starts, before Armin flashes the medal that Historia had given him that morning, the soldier immediately recognising it, but still hesitant to let him pass.
"Still, the rules are to only let superior officers through-" he continues, before seeing a piece piece paper that Armin is handing to him, on it a written statement from Erwin, a passpartout of sort. The soldier moves aside, after unlocking the door to let the blonde in.
It's been a while since we saw each other...In the room there is a giant transparent stone, and in it a blonde girl, her hair still in a messy ponytail bun. Her eyes are closed, for all intents and purposes appearing dead.
"Hey Annie" Armin starts, taking a sit on a chair, looking at the girl encased. He looks at her, seeing if he can see any signs of her moving, aside from the barely there breathing that he's not even 100% sure about.
"A lot of things happened since you did this" he talks again, looking around the dark room -"You don't get a lot of light here" he notices, wondering if that is a tally a good thing.
"I know that...that Bertholt liked you..."
The thought of that Traitor brings some pain to his mind, imagining what could have happened if they decided to confess right away, Reiner being first among them.
"It's weird that I still think about him getting angry at me for talking to you" he chuckles, that weird sense of respect still present for the teen. He looks up at Annie, her face still not changed.
"But I'm also sure that he would've pushed me to talk to you...we would probably be rooting for the other..."
Armin breathes deeply, closing his eyes, for a while imagining a place where all of them could live together, happy, no threat from Titans of other humans.
As he opens his eyes again and meets up with reality, he sags his shoulders, the weight of these events weighing on him.
"I don't know if you can even hear me...this defense mechanism of yours would be more of an hindrance than anything if you couldn't assess the situation outside" he reasons, trying to imagine how exactly would it feel to be in there.
"We would need your help right now..."
The girl remains unmoving, apparently not caring about their issues. The room becomes a bit colder, Armin starting to rub one of his arm down the sleeve, hoping to warm it up a bit.
"We have so much stuff we need to know...and I'm sure you could help us"
He looks again at the girl, wondering what would it take to break through the crystal, and releasing the girl.
"I'm not sure about it, but I think that you would even help us on your own - you never were convinced about doing your duty as warriors...maybe you were just doing it because of some sense of loyalty...or maybe you just thought it was a way out of your city"
Armin gets up, walking to the crystal, and puts a hand on it, the material still incredibly hard and unyielding. Due to the fact that Annie is suspended in the middle, they're not face to face, Armin having to stand on his toes in order to do so.
"I really want you out of here...you were always nice to me...and you went along with me even when you figured it was a trap..."
He looks behind him, making sure no-one is with him, somewhat embarrassed by this display of emotions.
"Sorry about that, by the way...I truly wanted you to be innocent"
Armin leans his head on the rock, his eyes closed, hoping to hear anything at all, once again his own heartbeat being the only audible thing.
"And...this isn't a trick, by the way...I'm not lying. I don't know whether everyone would agree with me, but I'd argue for you not to be eaten by someone"
He sighs once again, leaning away, and looking straight at the girl, wishing that she would move, or even open her eyes.
He puts the chair away in the corner, and walks to the door, lifting his hand to knock at it, signalling the soldier to open up.
Before doing so, he turns back, a crestfallen look on his face, looking at Annie's eyes.
"I just want you out of there"
He knocks, the door opening after a few seconds, and he steps out, darkness coming back to the room immediately.
Sorry, Armin...
Mikasa and Eren are in his room, both trying to get some sleep, cuddling on the single bed present. They're facing each other, holding each other's hand softly, almost afraid to let go.
Soft breathing can be heard in the room, mostly coming from the brunette's mouth. Mikasa is still awake, looking at Eren, in her mind replaying what Jean had said before. The raven actually was even more curious than he was, anxious to know how Eren would hurt them, but also afraid to know the result.
I did say that no matter what he said, I would never hate him...
Right now she's debating that sentence, her subconscious cooking reason after reason that would deeply wound her, breaking that unwavering affection that she has for him.
But he seemed truly troubled by that
She stares at the boy again, softly sighing, adjusting her position on the pillow, and closing her eyes, after squeezing Eren's hand.
Meanwhile the brunette was beginning to agitate, squeezing his eyes shut, mumbling noises starting to grow in volume.
"The Ackerman are specifically designed to protect the person who they bond with"
Eren keeps seeing flashes of visions, seeing himself, a deadpan expression on his tired face, and he tries to cover his ears, not wanting to see more.
"My father had nothing to do with my intentions"
The images quickly change from one to another, Eren unable to stop them or wake up, already giving up the struggle, and kneeling in place, softly crying at new revelations.
"You've been waiting for 2000 years for someone"
Then the images shift again, this time focusing on two people, immediately recognising their grown up faces - he drops down, curling into a tight ball, trying to cover his ears again with his arms, desperately wanting to avoid hearing that.
"You bonded with me"
"STOP THAT! DON'T SAY THAT!" Eren's cries do nothing, the vision still proceeding, the tears on the girl's face now flowing freely.
"From the moment I met you - I've always hated you"
Eren jolts up from the bed with a scream, the crying face of Mikasa the last thing he saw. The raven immediately hugs Eren, his crying having woken her up, but he resists, scooting away from her, a terrified expression on his face.
"E-Eren? What did you see?" Mikasa asks tentatively, one hand stretching towards Eren, his expression shocking her to her core.
Eren doesn't answer, shaking his head vigorously, those images still burned into his mind, not giving him any rest.
"Eren...please tell me..." The raven starts to weep, the inability to help him and his unwillingness to be helped both contributing to her breaking down, crying as well, Eren still staring at her with widened eyes.
"You're hurting us right now...you're hurting me..." she manages to whisper, her vision blurry and unfocused, letting the hand drop on her lap, looking down on the bed, softly crying.
Eren feels a cold wave wash over him, the realisation of his friend still getting hurt over his actions hitting him at once, mouth slightly opened, watching his girlfriend crying, the sight stabbing him in his heart.
He immediately scoots towards her, hugging her with all his strength, letting her cry on his shoulder, whispering soothing sounds in her ear.
"Please...tell us..."
He can hear noises from outside the room, and he sees the door opening, revealing on the other side Armin, himself having heard the screams, now seeing his friend hugging.
The blonde silently signals to Eren, a questioning look on his face, and the brunette nods in answer, before kissing Mikasa's head.
"I will"
The 104th squadron meets up once again, this time in Eren's room, sitting in a circle. Mikasa has calmed down, her face again wrapped in her scarf, helping her not break down again.
"So. Now you're ready to talk" Levi starts, his trademark deadpan expression on his face, clearly already ticked off from earlier.
The brunette inhales deeply, and nods -"I saw something else. More visions. And I think I know how I kill all Titans - but I'm not sure" he starts, seeing Erwin waving at him to keep talking.
"Ymir, the founder, she's still alive - not really, but her presence is still active. She's connected to all of us, somehow" Eren continues, waiting to see if anyone is going to raise any questions.
"She makes sure that the vow of the first king is active - she's the reason why all of the previous holders of the Founder couldn't do anything. Ymir was influencing them"
Levi exhales loudly, rubbing his temple, having trouble following the conversation, looking around at the others, somewhat relieved at the confused expressions on Hange and the others - At least I'm not the only one"That part we already knew, though - not in much details, but having more doesn't help us. We're still stuck at square one!" Jean exclaims, struggling to follow the conversation.
Eren keeps talking, preventing anyone from interrupting his flow -"No. Now, this is a lot of information to have, so please bear with me - Ymir doesn't want to remove the Titans. She protects them" he turns to Ymir, hoping to confirm a few things.
"Ymir, do you know anything about the first king? The one from 2000 years ago?" he asks her, the freckled girl confused by the question. She thinks for a bit, trying to remember any tidbit of information that she knew.
"Mmmhm...not much - I know that Ymir wasn't part of the royal line. After she somehow created the Titans, she stuck with that king, until she died...or not died" she corrects herself, recalling Eren's news.
"Great...I was hoping you could fill some holes, but apparently not" he leans back on his chair, wiping his face in resignation. Everyone waits for him to start again, Eren not noticing the stares from the group, until Erwin coughs, catching the boy's attention -"You said you knew how you will kill all Titans"
"Sorry - got caught in a thought. Anyway, Ymir was forced to create those Titans for the King. But she...actually cared for him. She knew that the King was using the Titans to destroy other nations, but she cared for him so much that she ignored that"
Levi squints his eyes at Eren, evidently not convinced with the explanation -"I don't know...seems very simplistic of an explanation. If you're saying that Ymir could, at any time, kill all Titans, but she refuses because of this king that died 2000 years ago, it seems very stupid" he comments, still glaring at Eren -" You are telling us the truth, right?"
The brunette swallows air, feeling scared from the implied threat -"I am" he says, hoping that his glare is at least comparable to Levi's.
"Ok then...how do you kill all Titans then?" Hange interjectes, seeing that Erwin is still thinking. Eren takes a deep breath, and starts talking -" Basically, I had to...I mean I will have to show to Ymir that love isn't a reason to not stop the Titans"
Mikasa looks at him, wondering what he will say next, having a feeling that it will involve her as well.
"How?" Erwin speaks for the first time, asking a single question, leaving the spot open for Eren to answer.
"Again,I don't know all the details, but...I think...that I will betray you - I have to...I will have to...turn you against me...make sure to hurt you enough so that you will be angry enough to...to...kill me"
Erwin sighs, closing his eyes, connecting everything that Eren said up until that point -"So you make the Wall Titans move, and march them to Marley just so that we could kill you, and showing Ymir that even thought we care about you, we still need to stop you - have I missed anything?" he asks, Eren flinching at the question.
"Yes...there's a specific person that has to kill me..." he turns to his side, looking straight at Mikasa, who widens her eyes and freezes, wishing desperately that Eren will look away from her - " No..."
Eren just keeps looking at her, a crestfallen look on his face, wanting to be able to tell her otherwise, but unable to -"Sorry..."
Armin is shocked by this, knowing full well that Mikasa wouldn't even think of hurting Eren voluntarily, until he remembers what Eren said before -"How do you hurt Mikasa? How could you? What do you say to her?" he fires off, imagining the disrespect and insults that Eren would have to provide for Mikasa to willingly kill him, much less hurt him.
Erwin interrupts them, standing up, commanding attention -" Silence - we know enough now. So basically you're saying that even if we were to try our experiment, we still wouldn't be able to actually remove all Titans" he speaks, waiting for Eren to confirm that.
"Exactly"
The atmosphere in the room becomes almost unbearable, the knowledge of their inability to act bringing the overall mood down. Levi stands up, about to leave, when he gets stopped by Hange.
"Where are you going?"
Levi looks back, almost confused by the question -" I'm going to get some rest. If there's nothing that we can do about it, we might as well just wait it out - we still have a ton of things to take care of right now"
Hange stands up as well, wearing an incredulous expression -" We might still be able to do something! Eren, you said that Mikasa has to kill you to show Ymir that love isn't a good reason to hurt more people?"
Eren looks back, a tired expression on his face -"Yes...what of it" Hange frowns at this, clearly not seeing how Eren could not understand -" If we manage to contact her, we could explain things to her! Explain how King Fritz was just using her!"
Hange's speech ends, the rest of the group clearly not on board with that logic -"And how are we supposed to talk to her?" Levi fires back, waiting for someone to explain that detail.
"We do our experiment" Erwin speaks again, looking at Levi. He turns to Eren, a small smile on his face -"Eren. You and Historia are going to touch. Maybe that way you or Historia can actually connect with Ymir. The rest should be easy"
"Is it actually going to be this easy?" Connie asks, tired of feeling hope for all of this to end, afraid that, like the other times, it will get ripped out.
"We don't know yet - no reason it can't" Erwin answers , smiling at the shorter teen -"Ok. Everyone get some rest. We all need it - especially you, Eren"
The squadron leaders exit the room, leaving behind the soldiers. Jean, Connie and Sasha all look at each other, and get ready to leave, standing up.
"Why are you leaving? Didn't you want to know what Eren will do?" Armin challenges Jean, still perturbed by Eren's statement.
Jean rubs his eyes, knowing that the shorter blonde will never let it go -"Yes.But it's obvious that this doesn't involve all of us. I'm pretty sure that our level of hurt pales in comparison to Mikasa's"
"Stay. I'm going to tell it now" Eren speaks, not looking up from the ground, hearing the footsteps of his friends getting back on their chairs.
"I'll betray you. Don't know the details for that one either, but...I know that I trick you somehow" he stops, looking at Jean -"Sorry I can't tell you much more", the blonde simply nodding his head.
Eren turns, facing Mikasa, the girl wrapping her scarf around herself, then stopping momentarily her movements -" Mik. I...I'm sorry. In the future I will use your affection , and insult you, so that we can win"
No-one speaks, allowing the brunette to continue speaking -"I think I will tell you about your lineage. Of how you became so strong - I...I...will tell you that you get this strong due to your genes - the Ackerman were originally protectors of the crown, apparently. There are some blind spots, about how an Ackerman will bond with someone, protecting them from threats" he pauses, still watching the raven.
Mikasa breathes a bit heavier, knowing that what will come next will hurt her.
"I tell you that since you bonded with me...you've...that this is the reason you stay with me. Not because...not because you care about me...b-but because...you bonded with me" Eren continues, trying to ignore the disappointment showing in the rest of the group, Armin's face on the brink of hatred.
"I will tell you that it's all your genes making you follow me" the brunette's speech becomes garbled, tears starting to flow from his eyes, his vision getting blurry -"And...and that...y-you a-are nothing but a-a...a slave to me"
Everyone is going shock at the last part, Jean and Armin ready to grab Eren and shove him outside, managing to restrain themselves, wanting to hear the last part.
"What next, Yeager?" Jean demands, his tone leaving no place for softness.
"I will say that I have always hated you"
Silence takes over the room.
Sasha starts crying, looking at how unresponsive Mikasa is, knowing that the girl must be breaking inside.
Historia clenches her hands, glaring down Eren, while Ymir just audibly scoffs at the brunette.
Connie is still in shock, slowly blinking, not believing that Eren of all people could hurt someone else like that.
Armin and Jean don't react, their expressions almost neutral, both staring at the brunette, who is avoiding everyone's eyes, looking at the ground again.
"Mik?" Eren speaks, his voice still muddled by his crying -"I...it will be the only way...I...I...I am sorry" he stands up, wanting to go bury himself in a grave, when his sleeve gets grabbed by a hand. He looks down, Mikasa strengthening her grip on his sleeve, not allowing him to walk away.
"I told you, Eren" she starts, her voice soft, almost a whisper. She looks up, her eyes shining with tears, looking at Eren, a small smile coming to her face.
Eren looks back, his breathing getting heavy, also becoming physically tired from the stress. He stands still, waiting for her to talk again. Mikasa stands up, now face to face with Eren, and starts to speak again.
"I will never hate you"
Most of the group relaxes their stance, seeing the couple sharing a kiss, hands holding on the other tenderly, clearly seeing their care for each other.
Jean sighs once, and relaxes fully, sliding down the chair, the stress getting to him as well, relieved that the blockhead didn't do lasting damages.
Armin is the only one still on edge, watching his best friend apologise to Mikasa, her nodding understandably. He locks eyes with Jean, who subtlety nods, silently telling him that his best friends will be ok. At that, he relaxes too, breaking into a smile.
He thinks of what will happen if they manage in their quest, his thoughts going to the blonde in the basement, his smile getting a bit bigger.
Would be nice...