Please excuse bad grammar, I am working on it.
I do not own Attack on Titan/Shingeki no Kyojin.
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The Elder and Levi had been talking for over half an hour. Mikasa, Armin and Eren were waiting in the square. It was reasonably quiet and there were some villagers also waiting. Eren always thought that the villagers were really nosy, but taking that nothing happened in Shiganshina, anything would be entertainment.
It was until the sound of horses reached people's ears that they came out of their bored state.
Eren turned his head towards the sound and saw a group of men making their way towards the square. Eren's eyes widened when he recognised the lead horseman; it was the head guard of the royals. What were they doing here?
The villagers looked at them and stepped back a little. The blonde man's blue eyes searched the square, until he set his eyes on Eren.
Eren could feel his heart racing as the man got off his horse and began walking over to him. Why was he coming over to him? Did he know him? Did Levi say anything to the Prince about him?
Armin and Mikasa stepped in front of Eren to protect him. The blonde man stopped in front of the teenagers.
"You're that male Omega, aren't you?" he asked, ignoring the Betas glaring at him. Eren was scared at that moment. He was trembling and wanted to run. He glared at the guard.
"How do you know of me?" he asked, close to shouting. The guard rolled his eyes.
"Don't worry, kid, I'm not here for you. Have you seen the Prince anywhere?" he asked. Eren stopped glaring and frowned.
"Prince? The Prince isn't here. I haven't seen him here," Eren replied, thinking that the guard was joking with him. The guard looked puzzled.
"That's strange. He's usually here. He always says he would be going to Shiganshina to meet up with a male Omega," he said.
It was that moment when everything around Eren shattered. He was trembling and even the two Betas in front of him turned to him worried. Eren felt like his heart was crashing down and he couldn't breathe.
At that moment, the sound of a door opening was heard, and all of the guards bowed. Eren didn't dare turn around, he felt too broken. He felt all sorts of emotions: anger; confusion; disbelief; heartbreak. Mikasa was glaring at behind Eren.
"Eren," Levi's voice said. Eren just shook his head, not turning around. It was that moment when Eren felt a slap across his face. The blonde guard had just struck him.
"How dare you, you filth!? How dare you act this way to -!?" but he was interrupted when Levi punched him square in the face. Erwin was pushed back a little and held his face in silence.
"You're the filth here, Erwin," Levi said before turning to Eren. Eren didn't look at him. "Eren, please look at me."
"You liar," Eren hissed, making Levi frown, "you fucking, lying, prick!" he shouted. Levi didn't flinch and just stared at Eren emotionless. "I'm going to ask you this once, Levi. Who are you?"
Levi sighed and stood up straight. "My birth name is Levi, however, my royal name is Rivaille Ackerman," he said. Eren was furious and gritted his teeth.
"You lying prick!" he exclaimed.
"You already said that," Levi said. Eren felt like crying now.
"Why? Why the fuck did you hide it from me? Who was that at the ball? What the fuck is wrong with you? You promised me that the Prince would never know of me. It counts if that's the person I was dancing with" he asked.
The villagers were starting to stare and some even glared. It was that moment when the Elder stepped in.
"Eren, Levi was going to tell you when the time was right," he began, but Eren wasn't having it.
"I don't care! You knew him, didn't you, Elder? I saw that look on your face when you saw him. Why didn't you say anything?"
"For fuck sake, Eren!" Levi shouted, making Eren jump, "if I ever told you who I was, would you have seriously allowed me to get to know you? I saw that look in your eyes that night at the ball. You ever absolutely terrified by me finding out. I wanted a masquerade so that who ever I chose, I wouldn't like them for their face. And then, guess what? I saw you, I saw those familiar green eyes of that six year old. That person, who was disguised as the Prince, was a fake. He's the real friend of the Prince. Besides, I promised that that Prince in that room would never know of you, I never said this Prince. Also he wasn't a Prince."
Eren bit his lip before laughing a little, scaring the people around him.
"Oh my god, of course. I've been so stupid," he said, "I should have known you were playing with me. You never wanted me, did you? You saw a strong mate, and what are strong mates best for - strong offspring. Well, listen hear, you fucker: I will never be your whore." Levi shook his head.
"You really are stupid, aren't you?" Eren's eyes grew dark full of angry. He bared his teeth and growled. "Grow up, Eren. I've said this enough times. You're just being a prejudice brat. You know why? Because for the past month, you have gotten to know me and bring down your walls - hell, you probably have fallen in love with me - but as soon as you find out that I'm royal, you bare your teeth and call me a liar."
"It's because you are!" Eren hissed. Levi sighed.
"Please, Eren, can we just talk about this?" he asked. Eren violently shook his head.
"No, get lost. I never want to see you again. I will never have a mate and be used. Never! Go pick on someone else who will gladly spread their legs for you," he said. Levi started to glare.
"So what the hell was that kiss a few weeks ago? Must I remind you that it was you who kissed me? Can you honestly say that you feel nothing for me?" he said. Mikasa and Armin were surprised by the mention of the kiss; Eren, of course, never told them. Eren looked down.
"Okay, so I may have had feelings for that Alpha, but you aren't the Alpha that I kissed. It was all a game to you. I knew something like this would happen, I just didn't expect this. I'm such an idiot. I should have controlled what I felt and not be tempted by a few kind and soft words," he said. His hand grazed the wrist cuff on his wrist. He forcefully took it off, cutting himself slightly in the process, and threw it at Levi's feet. "Go give this to your real mate. Just how many Omegas have you used this trick on? How many bastards do you have?"
Levi looked down at the cuff and slowly picked it up from the muddy ground, polishing it with his sleeve.
"Usually in these moments I would have you locked away for speaking to me like that, but this time I'll let you got," Levi said. Eren growled.
"Is that a threat?" Levi chuckled darkly.
"I can make it reality, if you want." Eren snapped and walked over to Levi, dangerously. The moment he was about to lift his hand, Mikasa and Armin grabbed him. Eren fought against them, wanting to punch Levi so hard. Levi just stood there, completely emotionless, but Eren wondered if he could see a glimpse of sadness in it.
Eren growled and spat in Levi's face. Levi glared, but Eren smirked.
"Is that enough to get me locked away? Go on, I dare you to show what you really are. Show everyone that their Prince is nothing but someone who hunts down Omegas, make them feel special, before fucking them. You were going to do that to me weren't you?" Eren said. His mind wondering to the nightmare he had. "You were getting bored of me and wanted to quicken things up, right?"
Levi hissed and turned around.
"I'm getting bored of this," he said, "Erwin, fetch my horse." Erwin bowed and ran off into the woods.
"Don't you dare come back here. If you do, you know I have to power to take you down," Eren threatened. Levi hummed, still not looking at him.
"Oh, so you're the one threatening now. Okay, I'll bite. I'll go and I'll never see you again. But, Eren, even if you hate me, I just want you to know that all those things you say about me are false. I didn't play you. I didn't trick you. But I will tell you something that I did do, and I still do," Levi said. He turned his head around slowly and looked at Eren dead in the eye with all the seriousness in the world. "I love you."
Eren's eyes widened before he glared. "Get out of here! Leave!" he screamed out as Erwin came back with Lucas. Levi got on and gave one last glance to Eren before riding off at top speed. The guards glared at Eren before trying to catch up with their Prince.
Eren felt weak and his friends let him go. He dropped to the muddy floor and he felt wetness come out of his eyes. He was crying. But why?
Everyone around him looked at him with a worried expression. Mikasa and Armin knelt down and hugged him.
"It's going to be alright, Eren," Mikasa said. But Eren didn't want any of that, so he immediately pushed both Betas away and began walking home. No one followed him.
As he came through the door, his mother was about to greet him, until she saw the look on his face.
"Oh cub, what happened," she asked. Eren didn't want to hide anything from her, so he just let go. Tears came out of his eyes rapidly, he sobbed and hiccuped and he ran to his mother. He felt so pathetic and weak.
His mother welcomed him with opened arms and allowed him to spill his heart out. "Cub?"
Eren continued to cry, "i-it was nothing but a lie. Levi betrayed me. Levi isn't who he said he was. Levi's the Prince; the very person I didn't want to notice me," he cried. His mother was shocked by this news, but her eyes softened and she ran her fingers through her son's hair.
"Oh cub, I'm sorry. It must be hard losing a friend like him," she said, but Eren violently shook his head.
"No, it's worse than that. He did something that no one else could. He broke down my walls, the walls I spent my whole life building, and he broke them down in a little more than a month," he sobbed. His mother's expression turned to a puzzled one.
"Eren, what do you mean?" she asked, hoping she wasn't misunderstanding. Eren's sobbing stopped at that moment, but his trembling did not.
"I-I love him," he whispered.
. . . .
After that day, Eren had reverted back to his silent life. He would sometimes go back to the clearing and see if Levi had ever returned, but he never did. What was Eren expecting? He told Levi never to return.
Apparently, the reason that the guards had even come to Shiganshina was to tell Levi that the King had died, making Levi the new King. Eren didn't want to be part of it and become something like a mistress to Levi.
Eren had stopped talking to the Elder, he couldn't forgive him for not telling him, even if he had known for a few minutes.
The days passed and it was Eren's birthday. Eren woke up to the sun shining through his curtains, on to his face. He didn't feel older, he felt the same as yesterday.
Eren couldn't remember the last time he had cried as much as he did on the day he learned the truth, he never cried. He slowly slipped out of bed and got dressed, brushing himself down and looking in the mirror. His eyes were swollen a little from crying. He hated himself like this, he was so weak.
He rubbed his eyes, hoping that it would help, and went down stairs. His mother was there, but Mikasa wasn't. She smiled at him.
"Happy birthday, cub. You're finally seventeen," she said. Eren hummed in response.
"I don't feel seventeen," he replied. His mother sighed and walked over to him.
"Come on, Eren. I know you're still sad about this Levi thing, but just for today, pretend it never happened. You only turn seventeen once," she said. Eren nodded and forced a small smile.
"Actually, we are our age for a year, so I turn seventeen for 365 days," he joked. His mother giggled and shook her head.
"We are not celebrating your birthday for 365 day, so this is your only chance. Enjoy it."
Eren felt a little better, his mother could always cheer him up. He sat down at his chair.
"Where's Mikasa?" he asked.
"Mikasa has gone out with some friends for the day," she replied. Eren looked down. He really wanted to spend the day with his friends; now that Levi was gone, they were all he had. "Cheer up, cub. I'm sure she'll be back to give you your birthday beats," she said smiling.
For as long as Eren could remember, both his friends gave him birthday beats. In a way, it made him feel loved my the Betas because they weren't treating him as something which was delicate.
Eren smiled for real this time and nodded.
"So, what do you want to do today?" his mother asked. Eren shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't know."
His mother huffed. "Come on, cub. You're usually so excited for your birthday. Do let one Alpha get the better of you on your birthday. It's his loose," she said. Eren sighed and leaned back on his chair, his fingers tracing over the small bandage on his wrist from the cuff.
"Actually, it's not his fault," he said. His mother looked at him puzzled. "Just think about it. Levi was right, I wouldn't have gotten to know him if I knew he was the Prince. I'm pissed as hell at him for hiding it from me, but maybe it was for the best."
His mother looked down and sat in the chair opposite her son. "To be honest, Eren, you and me could both feel something off about Levi, but he was still good. That month you spent together changed you. You would have never gone to the neighbouring town, even if I said I could mask your scent. Maybe your walls are coming down," she said.
"Why does everyone know about my walls?" he said to no one in particular. His mother laughed.
"I've been with you your entire life, cub. I'm your mother and I know these things," she said. "Now, finish your breakfast. The Elder wants to speak with you." Eren huffed.
"Well, I don't want to speak with him," he said stubbornly, earning him a pull of his ears.
"Birthday or not, you will still get your ears pulled," his mother said, letting go of his ears, "please, cub. He didn't mean to hide it from you, he only knew for a while and wanted to respect Levi's wished. Just go see him."
Eren looked down at his finishes breakfast and slowly nodded.
"Fine, but your present to me better be amazing," he said. His mother giggled and nodded.
Eren left the house and made his way to the Elder's. It was located in the square and Eren didn't really feel like going to the square. The last time he went there, he was heartbroken by Levi. Eren shook his head, getting rid of the thought.
Heartbroken? Never. Why would he be heart broken? So what if he supposedly fell for Levi? Alphas are Alphas, and they do nothing but lie. He thought Levi was different, but he wasn't after all. He was just like all the others.
People wished him a happy birthday as they walked passed him. Eren tried to keep a happy face, but it was difficult as he hadn't really been around the village since that day.
The Elder's house came into view and Eren took a deep breath as he stood on the doorstep, ready to knock. He lightly knocked, only for it to open a few seconds later. The Elder smiled at Eren before signalling him to come inside. The Elder led him to the kitchen.
"Would you like a cup of tea?" he asked him. Eren shook his head. The Elder looked down, but his smile never wavered. "Please, Eren, take a seat. Make yourself at home. Happy Birthday, by the way."
"Thanks," was all he said before sitting down. The Elder sighed and sat down in the opposite chair.
"Eren, I'm sorry. You know I only knew it was the Prince, ahem, King for a few seconds. I met him ten years ago, so I wasn't certain. Rivaille is always one to do things for a reason, so it didn't feel right to say anything. He was going to tell you, just at the time when you trusted him enough to not be angry at him for hiding his identity," the Elder said. Eren bit his lip.
"I understand why you did it. My main focus of anger is not pointed at you, it is at Levi," Eren said, his face completely straight. The Alpha hummed in response.
"I'm surprised Rivaille told you his birth name. I would have expected him to use a completely different one, but then again, only a few know of the name his mother gave him," he said. Eren frowned.
"What do you mean by that?" he asked. The Elder smiled, pleased that Eren was beginning to talk to him again.
"When Rivaille was born, no one expected him to become King; his mother wasn't Queen, you see. Kuchel, Rivaille's mother, was the sister off the late King Kenny; although, you knew that. Her husband had died before Rivaille's birth, so Kuchel was left to care of him. Kuchel, however, died when Rivaille was very young, so Kenny took him in. Kenny didn't have children because both his wife and child died in child birth. Everyone was dying around those times. Kenny refused to remarry and took in Rivaille as a son. Rivaille, who was Levi at that time, refused for people to know his true name; no one knows why, though."
Eren thought for a moment. What was Levi hiding? The Elder tilted his head a little.
"You must be very special to him if he would give away his name," he said. Eren huffed and crossed his arms.
"Well, I'm not. All this time, he was playing me. How can I trust him? Everything he told me was a lie," he said. The Elder shook his head.
"No it wasn't, young one. He just didn't want to put stress on you. That morning, when I was speaking to him, I was asking him why he was hiding the truth from you. Do you know what he said?" Eren shook his head. "He said that 'Even the strongest of people have fears. You see someone who has experienced so much, and because of that, they will always be on their guard. Those people will always be like animals in those situations: you get to close and they'll run away. But if you sit by it and allow it to trust you, it will no longer be that scared animal.'"
Eren chuckled a bit. Levi could always make something deep, but he understood what he was saying. Was Eren really like a scared animal?
"How does that help me to determine whether he was lying or not?" Eren asked. The Elder sighed.
"Well, I can see that this topic isn't your forte. Eren, even I know you understand. He was treating you as a scared animal, because that is what you are. You are terrified to be known. You are terrified to have a mate. So Rivaille took the liberty of hiding his identity for you, not against you. If you ever decide to meet again, I'm sure he will tell you why," he said.
"But why can't you tell me?" Eren asked. The Elder shook his head.
"Because I can't. It isn't my job to. It is Rivaille's and one day you will understand that. He may tell you, he may not. Many Alphas don't tell their mate these things because they don't really care, but Rivaille does."
Eren frowned.
"He is not my mate, and he never will be," he said glaring. The Elder sighed.
"Eren, do you remember when I was talking to you about people's destiny?" the Alpha asked. Eren hesitantly nodded. "Well that's the thing. Maybe you and Levi are bound by destiny."
"Pfft."
"I'm serious, Eren. How can you laugh at something you aren't sure of either?" the Elder asked. Eren stood up from his chair.
"Because if me and Levi were bound by this so called destiny, then I'm sure he wouldn't have threatened to lock me away. Face it, Elder, destiny doesn't exist, and if it did, I'm not interested," Eren said before turning and walking toward the door.
"You can't control your own destiny, young one," he said. Eren didn't stop as he opened the door.
"Watch me," was all he said before leaving the house. The Elder sat there in complete silence, before speaking.
"Oh Rivaille, I hope you're right about this."
. . . .
Eren stormed out of the Elder's house. But why was he angry? He was frustrated and he could easily say that this was already not a great birthday. Eren slowly wondered back to his own home.
"Eren!" called a voice. Eren turned around and saw Armin running towards him. "Happy Birthday!" he said, giving his best friend a huge hug. Eren wasn't really in the mood for it, but welcomed it anyway. He patted the Beta on the back.
"Thanks, Armin," he said. Armin withdrew and smiled a smile of sympathy.
"Come on, Eren, cheer up."
"Apparently everyone is telling me that," Eren said. Armin lightly hit Eren's arm.
"Don't be like that. I heard you spoke with the Elder. What did he say?" he asked.
"He was just trying to make me think that Levi is part of my destiny," Eren said. Armin huffed.
"I wish my destiny was as exciting as yours. In ten years time, I see myself working in a library." Eren smiled a little.
"Oh come on, Armin, that won't happen to you. You are too smart to work in a library - hell - you could be a scientist," he said. Armin smiled.
"I'm happy you have faith in me, Eren, but I doubt it. Science doesn't go well with this era. If you take it too far, it could be called witch craft; boy or girl. Anyway, moving away from that dreary topic, I got you something for today," he said, excited. Eren raised and eyebrow, curious.
"Armin, you know you didn't have to get me anything; your grandfather struggles enough as it is," he said, but Armin shook his head.
"It's okay. This present is between me, grandfather and Mikasa, but you have to follow me to get it," said the Beta. Eren could tell that Armin was up to something. He was smiling like crazy and could never keep a secret. Eren nodded and followed the Beta to Armin's house.
Armin opened the door and walked inside. Their house, which was usually filled with books, was exceptionally tidy.
"Happy Birthday!" multiple people called. Eren jumped as Mikasa, Armin's grandfather and his mother all sprung from their hiding places. His eyes widened. Mikasa walked over to him.
"Did you really think I would miss your birthday to hang out with my friends?" she said, pulling him into a hug.
Suddenly, Eren felt like all his problems were forgotten - for the time being.
"Happy birthday, Eren," Armin's grandfather said. Eren nodded in appreciation. He felt like he didn't need to force a smile anymore, his smile wouldn't budge.
"Well, Eren," began his mother, "this may not be an amazing party, but we have presents and cake. Which one first?"
"Presents," he said. Even though Eren's family wasn't rich, his mother was always able to provide for him. She did have a job as a delivery lady, after all, but only in the afternoon. And the Elder did give her some money for child benefit.
Eren was given two presents: one from his mother and the other from Mikasa, Armin and his grandfather.
"Open mine last, cub," his mother said. Eren nodded, a little curious, and moved to open the other presents. It felt a little heavy as he picked it up and moved it on to his lap, tearing away the paper.
As the paper was torn away, a book was revealed to him. Eren's eyes widened as he stared at the picture on the front.
"We know you have difficulty reading, but this is an easy read and is about the sea," Armin's grandfather said. Eren smiled, he felt so close to tears, so unlike him. He looked up at the people around him.
"Thank you, this must have been expensive," he said, cradling the large book. Mikasa shook her head.
"No. If you put three separate people's money together, it's not that bad."
Eren looked down at the book and carefully opened it. The pictures were well drawn and Eren felt like he was actually staring at the sea. Memories of him and Levi by the sea in Trost popped up in his head. He bit his lip and held back the tears.
His mother notices his discomfort and placed her present in front of him.
"Here you go, cub, one amazing present," she teased. The present was rather small. Eren put the book down and took the present, unwrapping it. It was a wooden box container. Eren opened the box and inside was a key. Eren frowned and took out the key, staring at it.
"This key may not look much, but it was the last thing your father left. I wanted to give it to you, even if I don't like the man. He said that the key had been handed down from generation to generation. Now it is your turn to carry the Jäeger key, Eren. Your father told me that the key could open the door into a room that could change how people see things. I don't really believe that, but it is a family heirloom," his mother said.
Eren studied the golden key. It looked very old, but it was clear that it had been recently polished. He smiled and went to hug his mother.
"Thanks, mum," he said. His mother nodded.
"Eren, may I take a look at that key?" asked Armin's grandfather. Eren turned to the old man and nodded, handing over the key.
The man put his glasses on and studied the key from different angles.
"hm, yes, I remember seeing Grisha wear this. He never took it off. I was always intrigued by the design. It certainly doesn't open any doors around here," he said, handing the key back to the Omega.
Eren took ahold of the string that went through the top of the key, tying it around his neck.
After that, they had the cake. It wasn't a nice fancy one, but Mikasa and Armin said that they made it, and it was delicious.
Eren kept on fiddling with the key around his neck. It made his curious of what the key stood for. What was so special about it? What was behind that door? Where was that door?
"Eren, are you alright?" Mikasa asked. Eren snapped out of his daze and realised that everyone was staring at him. He smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, don't worry, I'm fine," he said. Not really knowing if that was the truth or a lie.
That night, after a long day of Armin helping Eren to read his book, Eren finally went to bed. For once he wasn't concerned about what Levi was doing. Levi knew that his birthday was today, so there was a little curiosity, but it was mainly focused on the key in his hand.
Eren lay back in bed and dangled the key in front of his face. It was the first thing that was given to him that belonged to his father. In a way, Eren always wanted to know what father-love was like, he felt like he was missing something. He put the key down and left it around his neck as he tucked further under the sheets.
The past week may not have been the best, but maybe things were starting to look up.
. . . .
A week passed since his birthday. Things were beginning to turn back to normal and Jean, of course, was being an utter ass as always. Eren began talking to the Elder again, but the subject of Levi was always left out of it.
It was until that one morning, exactly one week after his birthday, that everything went down hill.
Eren woke up to his whole body aching. He was sweaty and hot and his head felt fuzzy. It was at that moment he knew what was happening. He shot out of bed and ran downstairs.
"No no no no!" he chanted until he saw his mother. He didn't even have to say a word for her to know he was behind her. He could hear her inhale, before her head shot around and stared at her son, wide eyed.
"Oh, cub," she said, feeling heartbroken.
"Mum, help me," he pleaded. She shook her head.
"I'm sorry, cub, there is nothing I can do. You're in heat."
Ohhh, cliffhanger. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. How do you feel about the reveal of Levi's identity. Don't worry, if you guys have any questions just ask, but I would prefer if you asked after the next chapter because that's the chapter that explained most of it. I added the key in.
Eren has gone into heat, so you can imagine that the next chapter is about his heat, and it is. I have already written it and it is rather longer, so yay you.
I would like to thank these people for the following:
Reviewing - Yana5, turtlelover19, Tee, Anime. Panda. Girl, wolfsblood13, YAOI-IS-MY-COPILOT (great review), mitsuyo-chan, A1phaw0lf, Captainbethany and Nausica.
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As I say every week, you guys are amazing and I will continue to say that. I'm already excited to upload chapter 7, but I know I can't and it's killing me. I can't wait to hear what you think of this chapter. Seriously, please be honest. I like constructive critazism, however, some people take it to far and ask me why I did this even though they know it is my story and I can do the hell I like with it. This should keep you occupied for the next week and trust me, the next chapter is better.
Well, until next Friday.
