Creation began on 06-06-21
Creation ended on 07-21-21
Attack on Titan
Rise, Sasha, Rise: Let's keep it small
It wasn't really a bad decision. Maybe it was just the best course of action for them; since they didn't really know that many people, it was better for Sasha and Niccolo to keep their wedding small with just her family, friends and comrades from the Cadet Corps and Survey Corps. Their guest list comprised mainly of people that Sasha knew, with only five or six people that Niccolo knew, seven or eight if he invited Gabi and Falco, something he was not really going to do because of how it would affect Sasha with being reminded of that night she and the other members of the Survey Corps left Liberio after Eren's attack. It basically meant their guest list was at least thirty-eight men and women, minus the people that were either dead or indisposed of in one way or another.
But on the positive note, Sasha accepted, being hopeful, Historia has recovered from what happened enough to attend and promised that she would be there.
"You're getting married to someone who loves you, Sasha," the queen had told her in a letter that she had sent to her village. "It's been too long since one of us has ever been really happy for something that was good happening."
Still, it would be curious if anyone they knew were to suspect that Historia had been pregnant a few months ago; it would still be a few weeks before the queen's body had completely recovered from the miscarriage. If anyone started to get suspicious or question her absence from society, it would only be a matter of time before they were able to put two and two together on what happened and why it happened. But Sasha wouldn't be the one to say anything about it; she was just glad to know that Historia would be there.
Eren, unfortunately, was among those that wouldn't be attending due to his questionable behavior (among other things he has done, such as insubordination and an unprovoked attack on Marley, forcing the rest of the world to rally up against Paradis Island, making them believe that they were nothing but a threat, regardless of what the majority of the people actually desired). Not that Sasha would've invited him if he wasn't incarcerated; he was just too…angry, at either the world, his own father, his crazy half-brother…or anyone he needed some excuse to lash out against. And personally, she was familiar with the question the minister says before asking the people tying their knot would be asked: "If there's any among you that can find just cause for why these two should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace."
Anything he could say would just be biased if he were there, she thought as she tried to take her mind off the stress by firing arrows at target stands. I don't want to hear any of it. Any biased beliefs should just be kept to those that don't believe in true love.
Aiming her next arrow at the next target, she inhaled a new breath and fired.
-x-
"…I just wanted to find a way to make it so that Eldians, Subjects of Ymir," went the man in glasses that was the Beast Titan before Zeke Yeager, "a thing of the past…because I hated my own existence."
"But even the Founding Titan wouldn't have been used like that, Mr. Xaver," Frieda responded to this revelation. "No matter how much he despised his own people, Karl Fritz could never do such a thing to anyone, regardless of whether they were a Subject of Ymir or not. He didn't wish that on anyone, even his own enemies. His wife, his pillar in a storm of chaos, nearly died gifting him with his son."
"What's to stop Zeke from achieving such a goal now that he knows who has the Founding Titan?" Tom questioned.
"There's us," said Eren Kruger to him. "I don't care how much I'm despised by other people just because I'm a Subject of Ymir, I'm a person before that, who had a life that mattered. You were a person, too, before you were a Subject of Ymir, with a life that mattered."
"Even if the rest of the world hated me for living," went Lara Tybur, "I still wanted to live a life full of hope for a better tomorrow, with my family, having a family of my own."
"You really think gathering all the previous holders will change anything?" Tom wanted to hear from them.
"With you now, that just leaves the previous holders of the Female, Armored and Cart Titans to find," went Ymir. "Surely, you can think of the better things you can do with a second chance to live, can't you? Do things differently from before? Meet different people from before? There must be something you wanted to do while alive that you weren't able to do before, isn't there?"
"What is there to do when we have no life that is promised to us?"
"I left someone I cared about when I should've stayed with her. If I can return to her, I'd ask her again if she'd marry me…if I could return to her. That's what I'd do with a second chance to live again if I could."
"I'd stop Eren," said Bertolt, "before he can do something as crazy as implement the Rumbling and destroy the world. There are people out there that have nothing to do with the discrimination we get every now and then, and he'll kill them just ensure there's no chance of retaliation."
"Retaliation that he instigated by attacking Marley during a gathering of the military and political factions from around the world, killing them and marking Paradis as the enemy that needs to be dealt with." Lara stated, but even she wanted to prevent this from happening. "What about you, Ms. Reiss?"
"To see my little sister and help her live a life that's hers to live instead of being forced to live the way others want or need her to live."
"If you could go back in time," Kruger went to Tom, "if you could send your memories back in time to a younger version of yourself…would you change your past that way?"
-x-
"Nervous?" Artur asked his daughter as she paced around her room on the day of her wedding. "Judging by your pacing, you're very nervous."
"Father," she greeted him, stopping just beside a window, her wedding dress a change from what she normally wore. "Is it always like this on the day you start to go down the path to spend the rest of your life with someone you love?"
"As in tense and full of concern? It varies from person to person, sweetheart. Everyone reacts to this day in different ways."
Meanwhile, on the other side of Dauper, Niccolo, just as nervous as Sasha was feeling, felt like he needed to cook something just to stop feeling like something bad would happen. Today was the day he would spend the rest of his life with Sasha, no matter how long he had left to live if Marley ever found out he was tying his knot with an Eldian girl of his own volition…out of love and affection. He would be despised, persecuted by men and women with biased beliefs, put on display before the masses and then executed by a firing squad for what his people decreed a crime of the highest sort. However, even if they found out…he would be fine with that fate…because he really did love Sasha.
There was no political reasons for doing this. There was no strategic advantage, no hidden plot, nothing of any sort to hint at a hidden motive. It was just a guy from one country and a girl from another country…just getting married.
"If Sasha could see you right now, she'd probably eat whatever you made," he heard Mrs. Blouse say to him; since he couldn't see Sasha just yet, he was being visited by her mother to check up on him.
"Missus Blouse," he replied to her. "This is very embarrassing."
"Don't be embarrassed. Everyone feels this way on such a big day."
He nodded his head to her.
"Just promise me one thing," she told him. "Stay true to Sasha. She deserves happiness in her life that isn't just something that comes every once in a long time."
"Yes, ma'am."
She looked over at where the wedding ceremony would be taking place and smiled.
"It looks like everyone is here and accounted for," she expressed. "Shall we head over?"
"Yes, please," he agreed with her and followed.
-x-
The guards were aware that Eren Yeager was not the same as he was before he attacked Liberio, but knew they had to keep an eye on him in case he acted out. But it was difficult to keep watch over an angry man that possessed the power to turn into a Titan at will, and worse was that this man possessed the power of three different Titans, the most recent one being a Titan that could manipulate its flesh to become various structures or objects. Still, he needed to be kept in check until he could answer for his misbehavior and reckless attitude that left them all in threat of war from the world because of him.
"I tell ya," one guard said to another, "I'd rather be anywhere else than down here watching this jerk. All he does is sit or stand in front of a mirror, muttering the same nonsense over and over again. I can't even understand half of what he says."
"All he says is 'fight'," the other guard informed, "like he's just waiting for a conflict…or expecting one to come. If there's one thing I hate about this guy, it's his pathetic need to pick fights with others. He's been doing this ever since he was a brat…and he never knows when to back down, which is why he has nobody here to visit him or talk with him."
"I doubt he'd say anything to anyone. If all he wants to do is fight, then he has a death wish."
"A man with a death wish…is among the worst people alive…because they don't have a future."
"Pity."
Eren didn't mind them most of the time. He already knew what was going to happen in due time, and before it did occur, he'd be out in the world. What was three more days in his prison cell compared to his future once all of his enemies were gone and the world wiped clean of rage? In the end, nothing else would matter except what he had to do.
-x-
Sasha heard those words the minister had asked, and was relieved that nobody present, not Armin, Mikasa, Jean, Connie, Hange or Levi…said anything to indicate that they had any suspicions or personal opinions about her relationship with Niccolo. Even Historia was present and said nothing against the union.
"Do you, Sasha, take Niccolo to be your husband?" The man then asked her.
"I do," she answered truthfully.
"Do you, Niccolo, take Sasha to be your wife?" He asked Niccolo.
"I do," Niccolo replied, grateful to have been asked the one question that mattered here.
There was a small silence that seemed to last a long time before the minister said anything else.
"You may now kiss the bride," he announced, and Niccolo looked at Sasha.
He could kiss Sasha…and not have it be weird or looked down upon. He was allowed to lock lips with the woman he loved…in front of everyone she knew. Raising his arms up to her face, he leaned in as he tilted his head to kiss her.
Sasha felt like her entire life had led up to this one moment with Niccolo. Her imagination just lit up like a firestorm, bringing up different possibilities of what the future could bring. There was a vision of the two of them at the beach, just gazing out at the ocean as the sun disappeared over the horizon, one where they were one of the districts of Wall Maria, shopping for things, even a vision of herself holding a small child in her arms with Niccolo patting their head. Nothing wrong with fantasizing about the different possibilities of the future, even if none of them were to happen; they were just what any woman would feel entitled to once they met that special person in their lives.
There was applause from the guests as Historia watched with a twinge of envy. She was happy for Sasha, and nothing would change that, but she was reminded of her regrets when Ymir left and was killed to return the Jaw Titan she took from Marley. If she could've done that day over, knowing what she knew now, she would've told the girl to stay with her, no matter what happened, that they could protect her from Marley, from Reiner and Bertolt and whoever else was out to get them.
Could that have been us, Ymir? She wondered as the newlywed couple turned to face the people.
-x-
Something had changed in what Eren saw that was yet to come. He wasn't sure what, but all he could make out was that there was…oppression from these…shadows. Nine of them, each with a different reason for opposing him…and the people of Paradis cheering, either for him to defeat them…or for them to defeat him.
"Eren," he saw Mikasa in front of him in a desert in the night, "if I had spoken different when you asked me your question before you left…would you have done something different from what you did in Liberio? If I had answered differently…would you have stayed with us instead of leaving? Would you have, Eren?"
It was a memory of what had yet to happen, but it was a sign that something…or even someone…was causing things to be rewritten from what he had originally seen, either in minute gaps or in drastic ones. However, he refused to allow these to deter him from doing what only he could do to free the people. He would free them from the oppression caused by other countries, from the hatred, the agony…and they would be free for years to come.
"Except you can't promise something like that, even if you wanted to!" He saw Sasha yell to him. "You do something like this…then you're no better than the people that want us dead because of you now!"
That was when he realized something that was part of the changes he had seen. When he separated what he saw that was going to happen from what he saw that hadn't happened in the future, he recognized one subtle shift from what he understood: Sasha Blouse, the meat-crazed archer that had gotten shot because of an Eldian from Liberio…hadn't been seen by him ever since that night they were returning to Paradis, implying that the night he saw her last…was the last night he ever saw her alive. If this was the case, then it meant that her being alive was a sign that the future he had seen initially had been altered, but he had nothing against her being alive, still wanting all his friends and comrades to live long lives.
"How can we be expected to live long lives if the world out there comes to an end, Eren?" Armin asked him. "If you do this, there's no real future for those that survive…and we'll be responsible for the hatred they have for us. You can't make us forget that, even if you wanted to. Sure, you may have the Founding Titan and can make us forget because of it, but we'll still remember that it was you that wanted this to happen, that you caused us to suffer…you can't justify your reasons for doing what you did."
But Eren felt he didn't need to justify his reasons. They were facing a war from the world at large, and they would need the Rumbling to save them. Once their enemies were dead, they would be free. They would be free from all of it.
-x-
"…So, the Attack Titan…only fights for freedom?" Xaver asked Kruger as they and the other previous Titan Shifters searched this mysterious land for the remaining predecessors associated with the Female, Armored and Cart Titans. "It doesn't fight for anything else?"
"No," Kruger explained, "nor does it understand how to expand upon freedom. The Attack Titan has only ever understood the desire for freedom, to be unbound by all. It stood as the vanguard for Eldia's original attack force. To fight against others for freedom was to live…and to live for freedom was to fight against others. Out of all the Nine Titans, it was the most violent and most stubborn member."
"Most stubborn?" Ymir questioned. "What do you mean by that?"
"Unlike the other Titans, it doesn't listen to the Founding Titan, no matter who has it. To obey was to relinquish its freedom; therefore, it refuses to respond to even the simplest of requests or commands. It may not be the strongest Titan…but it's the most unpredictable."
"A Titan that won't listen to others is a Titan that promises no hope for anyone," they heard a woman's voice as they came across a hole in the ground, finding a woman with a claw-like marking on her forehead and red hair.
"Who are you?" Frieda asked her.
"Tell me who all of you are," the woman responded.
"Former Titan holders," Bertolt answered. "Colossal (points to himself), Founder (points to Frieda), Attacker (points to Kruger), War Hammer (points to Lara), Jaw (points to Ymir), Beast (points to Xaver). Which Titan were you in life?"
The woman sighed and climbed out of the hole, a towering height of eight feet tall, something most Marleyans considered an abnormality among Eldians.
"Selene Ranch," she identified herself. "I was the Female Titan for ten years."
"Why only ten years?" Tom asked her; he never saw her during the time he was the Beast Titan.
"My birth mark (she points to her forehead) earned me the scorn of the military when I chose not to cover it up. When you refuse an order given to you, you make yourself a target by everyone."
"Maybe you should've covered the mark," Bertolt suggested.
"If I had done that, I'd be betraying the promise I made to my parents. Never feel ashamed by my own appearance. Let the world see you as you are, marks and everything. Be willing to have those that don't see your beauty be disgusted by you. Stay true to yourself…and you can never go wrong, even if nothing goes right in your life."
"You embraced your flaws and refused to be ashamed by your appearance," said Frieda. "Not even Marley could break you."
-x-
"…They look really good together," went Historia to Mikasa and Armin as they sat in front of a bonfire, looking at Sasha and Niccolo as they were eating together.
"Yeah," Armin agreed with her, "they do."
"I still can't believe that Niccolo wanted to marry her," said Connie, seeing as Sasha laughed at something her new husband said to her. "But they can get along without any trouble, then maybe there's hope for the rest of us, huh?"
"Maybe," went Jean. "Except not a lot of people can just…forgive and forget."
"Can y'all tell me what happened during the time it took to prepare everything?" Historia changed the subject; as much as she wanted to believe in there being coexistence between Paradis and the rest of the world, she didn't want to worry about what may and may not happen, wanting to know about the days spent preparing for Sasha's wedding. "I want to hear about the ups and downs of what it took to get to this day."
"There's nothing much to tell," Mikasa stated; they knew very little.
"Let me be the judge of that, please."
"Well, we found out from Sasha that Niccolo proposed to her after they met at the hospital after her surgery and recovery," said Armin, "and after informing us of when and where their wedding would be, everything else just sort of fell into place."
Before Armin could say anything else, the delayed event that Sasha put off until the sun went down became active: Sasha had to throw her bouquet at her guests in order to see who would catch it and have a chance at a future romance.
"Ready?" She asked, turning around.
"Ready!" Everyone responded, and she tossed it into the air.
It flew several times into the air and wouldn't be grasped by anyone until it wanted to be…and fell into the arms of Historia herself.
"The queen caught the bouquet!" A little boy cheered.
"Heh-heh-heh," Historia chuckled, but then her thoughts returned to Ymir…and she was saddened by her absence from her life.
"If I ever see you again, Historia, I'd marry you," she thought she heard Ymir's voice just now.
Sasha looked at her friends and comrades and couldn't be happier right now.
"Sasha?" Niccolo questioned. "How are you feeling?"
"Good," she answered him. "Thank you, Niccolo."
"For what?"
"Being in my life right now."
"Thank you for being in mine."
To be continued…
A/N: Well, there you have it, people! Sasha and Niccolo are now a married couple! I hope you're as happy for them as I am! With this now a part of the world this story takes place in, what comes next can change everything. Reviews and opinions are welcomed. Until the next chapter.