Sorry for the delay once again, still focusing on my other two stories since this one's a little trickier. Don't worry it will never be forgotten. For those wanting to see more of Reiner you'll have to wait a few chapters. When I do it'll mostly be my rendition of chapter 91 onwards till we see more of the Marley Arc which I actually hope is coming to a close. I wanna see my island babies and what they've been doing these past 4 years. As usual drop a review. Let us begin.

Two truths

About 3 days had passed since the confession between the two shifters, and while they hadn't told anyone else about it, it was fairly obvious that there was a change in both of their behavior. They would be caught spending more time around each other, either at meal times or sparring together in one of the larger rooms the scouts had underground.

But that too would change, for in two days time Annie and Eren would be facing each other once more as Titans for the first time as Allies. There were obvious jitters about seeing the Female Titan once more, but most of them seemed to be accepting that Leonardht would not betray them. But then again only time would tell if their hopes were right, a hope not shared by a certain person currently watching the two eat together. Of those still very reluctant to trust or even interact with Annie since her Awakening, Mikasa Ackerman was by far the worst.

She had been more reserved than most would think when Eren had escorted Annie to her cell, and afterwards when he and Armin would go in there to discuss things with her. Now while it wasn't like she wanted to go in there, she could detect the feeling that she would be far from welcome by both Annie and Eren. Ever since their argument before the blonde woke up He hadn't been talking to her outside of lunch. And that's only if she came to sit where he and Annie sat with a few others who might've had the particular courage that day to sit with the newly woken Female Titan.

Today was one of those days as she saw Jean of all people sitting with them, and for once he and Eren weren't yelling at each other form what could see. She could also see Connie and Sasha near her, though Armin was busy and not eating with the rest of them. Mikasa felt another feeling of betrayel, after all it was Annie who was wearing his best friends gear when they confronted her so long ago in Stohess. While she knew how the other two had been when they nearly killed Reiner, she thought they would've been keeping some distance for a while. But Jean, he was one of the few who should've been avoiding her, but it didn't seem that way. She decided to take matters into her own hands and made her way over.

"So are you guys going to be alright doing it? You did try to kill each other last time you guys fought, plus the time before that." She heard Jean asking the two shifters, and she narrowed her eyes at them when they replied with ease "Hey I was only trying the first time, you know I almost couldn't do it in Sina. And plus this time we're all in the same boat here, on the same side." Eren told him, taking care to keep his temper in check.

Annie then followed Eren up with "And by the way, neither time was i trying to kill him. In the forest I was just trying to kidnap him to explain everything and bring him to my side to help me. I planned to use his power to reveal the truth about our kind's history to Reiner and Bertoldt with Historia's help. But-" a cold voice interrupted her as they took in the newest addition to their conversation.

"But we stopped you. We cut you up and left with Eren back to the walls because of all the losses you and the titans you brought caused." Eren looks annoyed at Mikasa sitting down next to Jean, and Annie turns her eyes after glaring for a moment at her. Eren began to scold his sister "Mikasa, now is not-"

"No Eren, she's right. She did cut me, bt she failed to do it alone. It took the captain to even slow me down, otherwise you and I would've been long gone. But since she took you back she instead cause more deaths by helping draw me out in Stohess. Isn't that right, Ackerman?" Annie replied to the half-asians taunt in a cold tone, one they weren't happy hearing because of the memories associated with them. Past memories of a time they were all ignorant to the wolves among the sheep's that were the 104th cadet corps.

Mikasa said nothing at the blonde and sat there glaring, before she turned to the others "And your all just fine with her being like this? Walking around free after all the death she's caused?"

"But Mikasa, she's on our side now, that's what she said when she came out. That she was trying to help us befo-" Connie tries to say but he's cut off by her. "And? She also pretended to beone of our friends, but she's killed innocent people she never even knew as well as our own!".

"Mikasa stop.." Eren started to protest but she turned her attention to Jean, which made Eren freeze as he thought of what she might be about to say. But her next words couldn't be stopped. "Like Marco Jean, remember? We still don't have a clear story on what happened, but we do know is she was there, and she had his gear on. She didn't even have the humanity to give us an explanation, just so she can save her filthy murdering skin." The words hit Jean hard, and he struggled to clear his mind off the subject before looking to Annie for an explanation.

But to his surprise and everyone's Annie stood up suddenly and smacked Mikasa hard across the face, and Eren saw that her face was even more livid than the day she chased him for the first time in the forest. But this time there was no creepy yet excited grin of success, only an icy stone cold glare as she stared right at his sister. Jean and the other three had to grab Mikasa before she could lunge at Annie for hitting her, but she stopped as she heard Annie scream at her.

"How dare you! You have no idea of the decisions or things that I've done, things I hated doing with every goddamn fiber of my body. Do you really want to know what happened in Trost or what I had to do before I came here to this hell ?! Will that satisfy you Ackerman?! Why can't you just leave me alone already?! And don't you sit there and act like you wouldn't have done any different if you were in my position and trying to protect Eren! Your just as bad as I am, the difference is that you haven't killed as much as I have, but at least I admit it!!

They all looked at her in shock from her violent outburst, and the others in the mess hall, which thankfully were very little, began to get jittery as they began anticipating a fight. Ackerman didn't look intimidated or fearful, she just glared right back at her, and Eren tried to step in between them. "Hey, let's just take it easy, Annie c'mon. We can just go and cool off, alright? We can spar if you want to take-"

"And what's with You? Your still defending her knowing all of that, and for what?! Because she taught you how to fight? Showed you the tiny bit of emotion in her fucked up husk of a heart that isn't mailcous or evil? I'm starting to question whether or not you ever considered Her your enemy in the first place." Mikasa nearly shouted at her brother, and Jean, Connie and Sasha all stared at her now. They never knew her to ever get that mad at her step brother, much less yell at him like how she just did. Nor were they expecting Eren to glare at his sister with such ferocity like he did now, nor the hurtful words he spat out at her.

"Maybe it's because she never tried to hold me back. She strengthened me in ways you never did because of your stupid overprotective love for me. She opened my eyes to the world before I even knew about her secret, and she opened them more since I've spoken with her outside of that crystal. Get it through your head Mikasa, its enough. It will never happen between you and me, and do you know why? It's because I found someone who actually deserves it." And with that he grabbed Annie's still tense hand and slowly walked out of the mess hall with her. Jean watched as Mikasa stood there for a moment, before she began shaking increasingly harder. He and the others could see tears began to make their way down her frozen face, and made to get up.

As much as Jean heavily disliked the way she was treated just now, Eren had a pretty valid point. Her protectiveness and downright obsession for her step brother was unhealthy, they all saw it clear as day back in training. He never learned how to be better at most things, incuding being a soldier or shifter in general when she was around. It was Annie who showed him how to fight, it was her move and philosephy he used on him that night in training. It was Annie who Eren never wanted to betray him, who he wanted to try and talk to when they came back from the beach. And know from the way he's been acting as well as what he just witnessed, it was Annie who he had deemed deserving of his love.

He stood and walked over to Mikasa, and saw her draw her scarf slight higher before letting it go. He wrapped his arms around her and listened to her weep quietly into his shoulder. "Shoosh. It's alright, it's gonna be okay." He said to try and soothe her, in the same way his mother had done to him when he was younger. He missed his mother terribly, having not seen her since Trost was first taken back. She'd always been there for him to cry on when he was bullied as a kid, and now he was able to help someone else he cared about the same way she did for him. Sasha and Connie stayed silent, but they tried to comfort her by holding her as well.

In the aftermath of today's lunch, many things were shared by those left of the 104th. Jean knew he still wanted some closure about Marco, and he would ask Annie about it. Sasha and Connie would also want to know, though he wasn't sure if either of them or even if he was ready for it. Mikasa Ackerman, humanities second strongest has broken inside. And the reason why was because Eren Jaeger was openly in love with Annie Leonhardt. But it's like what he'd once heard Mikasa say long ago, seemingly to herself when she thought she was the only one using Odm in the forest that day.

"It was a very cruel world, but also quite a beautiful one." And they all lived in it, together.