Welp, this is the first chapter of this story I guess. I'm not sure how long I'll keep this up, but I just finished the manga and felt like I needed to write something to get my feelings out haha. This is just the intro, the next chapter should be longer. It's already about half done, so depending on the response to this I will probably upload it sometime in the next week or so.

Decided to go with an M rating just in case, I don't anticipate anything especially steamy coming up, but I don't want to have to change the rating later if it does. Plus, it's AoT lol. The canon story should be classified as rated M, considering how brutal things get.

Also, I know there are a few inconsistencies in what Eren and Mikasa are learning in this chapter; they should be explained in later chapters (unless I made a mistake and just messed something up by accident lol).

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the first chapter

The first thing Eren noticed was the fact that his neck was sore.

He figured initially that it was some sort of eternal punishment, because of the whole genocide of the world thing. At some point the idea occurred to him that perhaps he was just sore- he'd never had his head cut off before, but imagined it probably hurt the neck area.

However, as his senses slowly began to return, he realized that this was the sort of soreness that he was familiar with after his time in training and the Survey Corps. This was the feeling his neck got after he slept on the ground too long. Slowly realizing that he had control of his body, Eren decided to try to open his eyes.

Before he managed that, though, he froze as his mind did a quick reboot upon consciously noticing that he had a body, and he could feel it. The last thing he had remembered was seeing Mikasa bring her blade down towards his head as he waited for the end, so realizing that he could feel his legs sprawled out on whatever surface he was laid upon was quite the shock.

Of all the things Eren was expecting to see when he opened his eyes after his death, a strange man in baggy pants and a loose-fitting shirt sitting next to a fire was not one of them. While it might have just been the shock of waking up after having died, something about the scene he was looking at was deeply disconcerting to Eren in a way he could not yet describe. He closed his eyes and opened them again, but the scene a few feet in front of him did not change.

Deciding to try to sit up and gather his thoughts, Eren managed to drag his somehow reformed body into a seated position as he struggled to understand what was happening. He realized he would probably have to approach the strange man sitting a few feet away at some point, but decided that he would prefer to get his head on straight before attempting to talk to someone else.

Suddenly Eren realized what had been bothering him about the scene in front of him- there was no ground. He, as well as the other man and the fire, were clearly sitting upon SOMETHING, but at least as far as Eren could tell it was simply black nothingness. In fact, besides the man and his fire, everything Eren could see was just empty darkness. He frantically looked down to make sure that his body was there, and let out a short sigh of relief upon seeing his chest rise and fall beneath him.

Realizing that he would not be able to figure out anything by simply sitting on his own, Eren decided to approach the strange man. He had gathered his thoughts enough that he felt ready to face whatever it was that was going on.

Walking up to the figure, Eren expected the man to say something to him. Or at least turn to acknowledge him. Instead, the man kept staring serenely into the fire, not seeming to have even realized that Eren was there. Eren noticed that the man seemed to be sitting on something, though to his view it was the same empty blackness that everything else around him was made of. Shrugging, Eren carefully lowered his body until he felt a surface underneath him, even though he couldn't see it, and resolved to sit next to the man until something happened.

Maybe this is the afterlife, just sitting peacefully staring into a fire forev-

"Not quite. You're not far off though."

The sudden intrusion of a voice in the stillness shocked Eren out of his thoughts. It took him a second to realize that the voice was actually addressing his thoughts as though he'd said them aloud. Or, wait- had he spoken his thoughts out loud without meaning to? He didn't think so but-

"You didn't. I can just hear your heart quite easily," the man said with a wry smile as he finally turned to face Eren. He didn't look like anything special; sparse facial hair, wavy brown hair that tickled the nape of his neck, and simple brown eyes. If Eren had seen him on the street, he likely would have struggled to describe him a scant five minutes later. But something about his… aura, or presence, some sort of unexplainable feeling that Eren had assured him that this man was important.

Of course, his ability to apparently hear Eren's thoughts on a whim certainly didn't do much to disabuse him of this notion.

"So," he started, "what exactly is going on? Where am I? I thought for sure that I had been-"

"Killed? Oh yes, you were. Quite dramatically, I might add. Struck down by someone who loved you deeply, breaking a 2000-year-old curse and saving what was left of the world. Rather spectacular, I must say."

Eren looked down briefly, feeling some shame begin to well up in his stomach as he heard the quiet admonishment in the strangers' words. What was left of the world. He did what he had to, he reminded himself. He should have no regrets at what happened.

"Really? No regrets at all? You think so?" The dry voice of the man sitting next to him broke through Eren's thoughts. He whirled his head to the left, ready to defend his position with vigor, but the man spoke again before he could. "You committed a genocide to stop a genocide kid, you won't be able to convince me that was a great decision no matter how you pitch it," he said with a deadpan face.

Eren opened his mouth to angrily inform the man that he didn't care about the fate of anyone as much as his friends but once more the man interrupted him before he could start. "I know, I know, you have your reasons and believe you were justified, whatever. I don't really care about what silly justifications you have. Anyway, it's almost time for us to go. We have to meet our other guest now that you're finally awake."

Eren's anger at the man's casual dismissal of his feelings vanished as he remembered where he was and what had happened. This man was clearly someone…. or something important. "Where are we going?" Trepidation filled him as he awaited the answer.

"Like I said. To meet our other guest. Now then…"

The man trailed off and suddenly stood up. As he did so, Eren became wildly disoriented- it seemed almost to him as though the entire world was spinning in front of him, even though his body told him he was sitting perfectly still. Suddenly, the feeling stopped and he realized he was now sitting on a plush armchair in what appeared to be some sort of office. Bewildered, he swung his gaze to the left and took in a bookcase filled with heavy-looking tomes, an ornate globe, and several filing cabinets. He continued his survey of the room, noting the heavy, wooden desk in front of him, but his examination stopped cold when he turned to his right and saw the person who occupied the other chair. She had her eyes wide open and was frozen in shock, a face of pure surprise stuck on her face, which he imagined was mirrored on his own.

Seeing that it didn't seem like she was going to speak anytime soon, Eren decided to be the one to do it. "Mikasa? Is… is that really you? Don't tell me you died too?" Eren's questioning turned somewhat desperate as he considered how Mikasa might have ended up in the same place as he had after she severed his head.

"Not quite," the man from before interrupted before Mikasa could open her mouth. Both of them whirled in their seats to face the man that Eren was certain had not been sitting behind that desk just moments prior. "Though, I suppose her being here means she's not quite alive, either." The man stroked his chin, apparently lost in thought at the existential question of whether or not Mikasa was currently alive, which was not exactly comforting to Eren.

Before he could lambast the man, however, Mikasa spoke up beside him. "Who… are you?" she quietly queried. Eren quickly forgot his ire as he was reminded that he still did not know who the mysterious stranger was either.

"Hm… well, that's kind of a tricky question for me. I don't have a name, and it's hard to explain exactly what I am… But you can just think of me as a personification of the world itself," he finished with a satisfied smile. Clearly, he felt that he had explained his situation sufficiently, but Eren still had no idea what he was talking about, and a single glance at Mikasa showed that she was just as lost as he was.

Before either of them could voice their confusion, the man sighed again and crossed his arms. "Look, let's just say I'm a force of concentrated energy that is infrequently directed by the whims of the world to intervene in events happening. The last time I did so that you will know of might sound familiar: I gave a special power to a girl named Ymir."

Both Eren and Mikasa shot upright in their chairs at the implication of what the man was saying. Eren hesitated, but one look told him that Mikasa wasn't about to speak up, so he slowly voiced the thoughts swirling around his head. "You're saying… you're the one who bestowed upon Ymir and her descendants the ability to turn into Titans?"

The man nodded, and Eren's head threatened to explode. That meant… that meant this guy was basically a god… right?

"I wouldn't call myself a god personally, if that helps," he chimed in. "While I've developed some personality of my own through talking to people like you two over the years, I rarely even exist in the way things do where the both of you live. Most of the time, I am simply a fog that hangs over the world, absorbing the thoughts and desires of the people who inhabit it."

After hearing that, Eren had more than a few questions he wanted to ask. But he ends up blurting out the first one to occur to him. "How was cursing a woman and her bloodline for 2000 years to become insane monsters "the will of the world" though?"

The man smiled. "Very astute. The truth is, the will of the world is rarely a simple and united vision. At that time, the most prevailing wish of all of humanity was for change. Civilizations were stagnating, the powerful were abusing their positions, and the majority of the world simply wished for something to break the chains of monotony humanity had been placed under."

The man paused, seeming to reminisce briefly about a time long past, before he sighed and continued. "Under those circumstances, a small girl found her way into one of the entrances to this space. They appear infrequently in different places over the years, allowing one to access this area where time and space have no meaning, and one is closer to the center of life than anywhere else. Upon entering, she was able to wield far greater influence on the will of the world, and her fervent desire to be strong melded with the world's desire for change to create the Titans you know."

Eren couldn't help himself. "You chastised me for genocide, when you allowed the Titans to come into existence and nearly destroy the world because people wanted change? Really?" He would've continued if not for the sharp jab to the ribs he received courtesy of Mikasa's elbow. "Hey, what-"

"You don't get to play the victim because people are mad at your for killing over half of the world, Eren," she said in a tone that was filled with both annoyance and hurt. He quickly shut his mouth as he remembered what she and the rest of his friends had gone through in order to stop him and looked away in shame. The voice of the mysterious man- Eren realized he should probably be calling him a god, but he just couldn't bring himself to think of the stranger as someone with such a station- interrupted his thoughts.

"It may not make sense to you, but trust me, the creation of the Titans fulfilled humanity's wish for change. Empires were toppled, wars were fought, bloodlines mixed wildly and there was migration across the world. While it's true that great tragedies also occurred, the undeniable fact is that the structure of the world was forever shifted by the appearance of the Titans." The man sighed, and ran a hand down his face, suddenly appearing far more tired than he had before. "But we're not here to discuss what I've done in the past. We're here to talk about what I'm going to do now."

Eren suddenly realized why he was here. He had a feeling that most of the entire world had been fairly united in their thinking just recently, when they all wished not to be crushed to death by colossal feet. He winced.

"I see you've finally figured out what's going on," the man said calmly as Eren felt his stomach drop. "Indeed, this was the most united the world's thoughts have been in some time, perhaps ever. However, simply wishing for something to stop will not cause it to go away. This mess is complicated enough as it is without me simply returning to life everyone killed by the Rumbling you initiated."

The man sighed and ran his hand over his face again. "Not even considering what would happen to the people of this world if they knew that something like returning from the dead was possible, it just wouldn't work. People would just go right back to the same situation before the event started."

Mikasa slowly spoke up in response, seeming to gather her thoughts as she went. "But… if your goal is to fulfil the wishes of the world, shouldn't that be irrelevant to you? Even if there is another war that starts after the people return, surely it is what they wanted most as they died? And surely the people remaining want those they've lost to return. So shouldn't you just return everyone to life and let things play out as they will?"

The man gave Mikasa a knowing smile, and for some reason her face immediately flushed. "I wonder why you are so in favor of that idea, hm? But no. It is not a viable option. As I said already, I am not purely beholden to the whims of the masses; else the Titans would have vanished hundreds of years ago, when they terrorized the world. No, I am limited by two things. One is my power. It is not infinite, and I can only intervene every so often before I am forced to withdraw and regain my strength." The man paused and allowed them to take in the information that even this seemingly god-like being was not without his limits before he continued. "And secondly, I love this world. Every person and animal living in it is dear to me, and so I will not do anything that could lead to the world ending. Reanimating over 80% of the world after they had been killed in a brutal genocide and just expecting them and the rest of the world to rejoice and move on is too much.

"And don't think that I'm just making this up," he added as Eren opened his mouth to argue. "I've already simulated it over ten million times, and while it's not always catastrophic, in over eighty percent of my tests humanity is reduced to less than a third of the population before the Rumbling. It's not viable."

Eren and Mikasa sat there for a moment in silence, trying to consider everything that had just been dumped on them. Eren slowly said "so… where does that leave us? Clearly we're here because you have some sort of plan for us that doesn't involve bringing everyone back to life."

"I do. And you've already been volunteered for it. However, Mikasa here has a choice, since she did not choose to violently murder most of the planet," the man said while staring impassively at Eren.

Eren crossed his arms and sat back with a fierce scowl, but did not say anything. The man nodded and turned his attention to Mikasa. "I will explain what is going to happen, and then you will be able to make your choice about whether you wish to participate or not." Eren saw Mikasa nod hesitantly out of the corner of his eye, determined as he was to glare at the mysterious being of power who apparently found joy in needling him.

"I am going to send Eren's mind back to his body in the year 847 of the current calendar, right after he joined the 104th Training Corps."

Of all the things Eren was expecting to hear come out of the man's mouth, that was near the bottom of the list. Eren's mind reeled as he considered what was being proposed- to go back to the past? He wanted to say it was impossible, but the events that had preceded it had severely shaken up his perception of what was and was not possible. Before his thoughts could spiral further, Mikasa spoke up beside him.

"I'll do it," she stated firmly, eyes determined as she stared down the deity in front of them. Eren knew he shouldn't be, but still found himself shocked by the calm determination in her eyes. She was already fully committed to accomplishing her mission.

"Are you sure," the man queried kindly. "It will not be an easy path to take-"

"I'm certain," Mikasa interrupted. "I won't let Eren go alone." Eren found himself touched despite his best efforts to the contrary. "Besides, if I don't go, he'll surely just end up doing the same things and get us back in the same mess again" she stated matter-of-factly.

Eren sighed but couldn't deny her point. Now that he thought about it, she was right, which brought a question to the front of his mind. "It occurs to me that it seems like you'd be happier if the island of Paradis was simply destroyed along with all of its inhabitants, wouldn't you? After all, that's a far cry from the amount destroyed by my… decisions, so to you it would probably be a win, wouldn't it?"

"I can see why you'd think so, but no. The destruction of Paradis only leads to more death, as Eldians are slaughtered across the world without the threat of the Founding Titan hanging over the rest of humanity. Furthermore, the destruction of the Eldian race would lead to a massive war engulfing the entire world, as without the deterrents of Titans, the world would be eager for the first time in a millennium to test the strength of their nations in battle. No, your duty will be to save Paradis and the world with it." The man finished his speech and stood, turning to face the wall behind the desk he had been sitting in. As he walked towards it, it vanished and a hallway appeared in its place. He gestured for Eren and Mikasa to follow him as he sauntered away.

"I wish I could give you some masterful plan to follow in order to make everything right, but unfortunately that would be exerting a bit too much influence upon the affairs of the world, something I am unable to do. I cannot guide humanity, merely empower it."

Eren huffed out a disbelieving snort at the explanation, but the man paid him no mind and kept talking as though he had been silent, "I will give you both a gift you before you go, so as to make your task slightly easier. Eren, for you I have snipped the ribbon that ties you to the curse of Ymir. Even if I sent you back to your younger body, your mind would be connected to the pathways of the world, and you would die four years after you awoke in the past. So you are now free of that curse, and will only die as any other human would."

Eren felt surprisingly empty at the declaration. He had never expected to live past the end of the thirteen year period in the first place, so finding out that it no longer existed didn't inspire much feeling from him. Next to him, however, Mikasa had flinched violently when the man first began talking and was now looking at him with a strange glint in her eyes. He nervously leaned away from her slightly, not having forgotten the elbow she had driven into his ribs not minutes before.

The man kept a steady pace through the nondescript hallway as he talked. Nondescript was a good word for where they were, Eren thought, as he tried to look at the walls more closely. While they seemed to be adorned with certificates and picture frames, it all seemed weirdly out of focus, and whenever he tried to pay close attention to one in particular it just became more blurry and harder to read. It was like walking through scenery that was actively trying to make you take no notice of it whatsoever.

"Mikasa, for you, I will gift the power of a tenth Titan." Eren found his focus snatched violently away from the hallway walls by the man's words. A new Titan shifter emerging hundreds of years after the first nine were born would shake the world in more ways than one. It might make their job of creating peace even harder if the world believed them capable of creating more Titan powers.

Mikasa looked just as shocked as Eren felt. "I… are you sure? I'm not certain that this is a good idea…" Mikasa's words echoed Eren's thoughts as she shook her head in what looked to Eren like disbelief.

The man chuckled, then praised Mikasa, "You're certainly very sharp to have so quickly realized the potential pitfalls associated with this gift. I will not force you to take it of course, but I will warn you: your task will be extraordinarily difficult. Having the power of an unknown tenth Titan on your side might be the difference between success or failure. Of course, it might also damn you and ruin your plans if exposed recklessly. I will leave it up to you as to which path to follow." The man paused his speech for a moment and stopped walking as he turned to face them. Behind him was a massive pair of wooden doors, easily fifty feet across and many times taller. Eren hadn't even noticed them approaching this mammoth entrance; the doors, like many things in this space, seemed to have just sprung out of nothing without him noticing. "If it affects your decision at all, know that you too would be free of the curse of Ymir, as your Titan powers will be coming directly from me."

She spent a moment or two in thought, and while Eren had no idea which choice she'd ultimately make, he had a feeling that she would be willing to face the extra danger if it meant having the power to match him as a Titan. Before, he would've said that she wanted the power in order to keep him safe, but after what had happened between them before his death… he wasn't so sure.

Sure enough, though, Mikasa's eyes hardened, and her jaw clenched as she nodded and quietly spoke. "I'll do it," she said in a voice that somehow was simultaneously as soft as a whisper and as determined as a war cry. "I'll become the tenth Titan shifter."

"Great! Then our last order of business before I send you on your way is to choose which Titan you should be crowned as. I could pick a cool name like the Dragon Titan or the Sword Titan, but that's boring. What do you think about something like the Diaper Titan? Or maybe the Mud Titan?" Eren and Mikasa both stared silently in shocked disbelief at the enigma in front of them. Eren found himself wondering if this was truly supposed to be a representation of the entire world before the man suddenly shoved his face very close to Eren's. "Trust me kid, a LOT of people on this planet, people of all ages, races, and creeds find adolescent toilet humor funny. Which means that I find it funny too as a result. But I can see that you two are not among those numbers," here he heaved a deep sigh and leaned back from Eren, "so I will restrain myself. Let's see here, which of these… ah."

The man stopped looking at the ceiling and turned back to them with a faint smile on his face. "I know. You, Mikasa Ackerman, shall become the first Free Titan. You'll have to discover the powers that come with this form on your own, but I already informed you of the most important: you are free of the curse of Ymir, inserted into the pathways of the world and endowed with the power of the Titans separately from her offspring."

Mikasa briefly lit up, silhouetted by a strange golden glow, before it vanished just as quickly as it had appeared. She caught his eye and turned to meet his stare resolutely. She nodded once.

Despite himself, Eren cracked a smile. He hadn't even had time to think about what was about to happen, or reconcile how things had ended the first time. But something about going back to face the entire world with only Mikasa at his side had him feeling nostalgic for old times.

"Okay, well I guess this is it. Good luck you two, do your best, and remember that if you fail and I have to intervene again I'm going to ensure you suffer for an eternity. Have fun!" The man somehow moved from in front of them to behind them during the course of his speech, despite that Eren never saw him move. When he finished his ominous final words, he gave both Eren and Mikasa a hearty shove on the back before they could inquire as to what exactly he meant by "suffer for an eternity". The two of them tumbled forward through the door and into a darkness so dense, Eren felt like he was suffocating. Before he realized what was going on, his eyes drifted shut and his consciousness left him.

Eren slowly opened his eyes, feeling like he had the world's worst hangover. His temples were throbbing, and he wanted nothing more than to fall back asleep, but something had prompted him to peek out through his tired lids. Upon seeing the familiar ceiling of the Training Corps dormitory, he relaxed and rolled over in his bed, determined to get some more sleep before he had to wake for the no doubt hellish training that was in store for him in the morning.

Just as he had settled into a comfortable position so that he could fall back asleep, Eren suddenly shot up straight in his bed. He looked around in disbelief at the sleeping forms around him, recognizing Armin's silhouette through the covers in the bed next to his immediately. Despite himself, he began to tear up slightly. He couldn't believe it.

He'd really come back.

Yep so that's it for chapter 1. Like I said, mostly just an introduction here to set up how and why they end up in the past. Next chapter will start off from Mikasa's point of view briefly, I anticipate this story mostly switching back and forth between the two of them for POV but we'll see.

I hope you all enjoyed! Leave a review if you want, or don't. What am I, your boss?

-D.