Annie
She knocked on the door of the appartment at the attic, then checked the time. The watch on her wrist showed her that she still had an hour until the next meeting.
After a while the door opened. Annie saw a young blond man with glasses. The boy widened his eyes, apparently surprised to see her. Armin Arlert. She didn't have the opportunity to meet him yet.
"May I come in? Grisha sent me" the girl muttered, showing Armin the envelope she was holding. "Or do you want me to give you the payment right here?".
"Sure, sure, come in!" Armin replied quickly, making a way through the door. "Your name is Annie, right?".
The girl went inside, looking around. The place looked like a typical male apartment, there was a mess everywhere. The dirty clothes, the empty cups, books and documents on the floor… Armin hastily started clearing the table. The girl watched him stealthily.
"So, you do know my name?" She asked, coming over to the boy and crossing her arms over her chest.
Armin looked at her and blushed a little.
"Yes! I mean… Grisha must have mentioned you once... It is quite possible, that he..."
"Come on, I know what you do for a living. What else do you know about me?".
Annie stepped closer to him. Impressed, the boy leaned on the edge of the table.
"What do you mean?".
"You know what I mean... Armin, right? I'm sure he told you to do a little research. You had to collect some information about every one of us, is that right? He wanted to have something on us. Come on, tell me I'm wrong".
Armin swallowed. He didn't answer, so Annie kept talking.
"I will ask again, what do you know about me?".
The boy answered after a while. He removed his glasses from his nose and wiped them off his white shirt. Annie had to admit that he was quite handsome without the glasses… Although he must have been a few years younger than her.
"You're twenty-four. Your father is a former cop, he was fired for abusing his authority. He started less legal business and owed Grisha a lot of money. Due to the fact that he has health problems, you have offered to help him. It was Bertolt who got you this job. You train a lot, you don't drink alcohol, you hate the smell of cigarettes. You like to drink cocoa in the evening and to read a book".
Annie nodded slowly. Armin watched her, not knowing what was going to happen next.
"Good job. Grisha must be really satisfied with you. All right, if we're going to be even, tell me about yourself".
"Whaaat?" Armin widened his eyes.
"Anything you want". Annie shrugged. "Since you know so much about me, I want to know something about you. All I know is that you and Eren are good friends".
"Yes" the boy replied, putting the glasses back on his nose. "Well, there's not to say… I know computers, hacking, I know how to find things on the internet. I enjoy spending time with Eren and Mikasa, but we don't have time for that lately. They're both busy, but you already know that. My parents are long gone. I was brought up by my grandfather who died a few years ago. He was a really good man and I miss him. What else… I would like to travel the world if I could. I would love to see some places. I also like pizza. And chocolate".
Annie laughed softly. Armin was surprised to hear that sound, but he slightly lifted the corner of his mouth.
"You're such a dork… Here" The girl handed him an envelope. Armin picked it up without much interest in its content. "I'm out of here. Take care".
"You can come more often if you want" she heard his voice. Annie turned only to meet the blue eyes staring at her. The girl raised an eyebrow.
"You should hope to never meet me again" she confessed, and left the apartment.
Levi
The pace, at which information appeared on their board, was astonishing to Levi. Usually it took them a few weeks to find a new lead, while their meetings with Eren gave them more and more details about his father's organization.
They met with the boy every few days on average, so as not to gain anyone's attention. They communicated by the short messages, which they sent to each other from two cell phones Levi had bought.
Each time the meeting took place in a different motel so that no one would remember them. After an evening like this, he and Erwin were driving back together, analyzing everything they had learned.
As for Eren… The boy was extremely focused and applied himself to every meeting. He was answering all their questions, unless the subject was getting too focused on Grisha's whereabouts. It was the only topic he didn't want to talk about. He explained that it had nothing to do with them, but with their superiors, who could do something reckless. Levi wasn't angry at it, on the contrary: he understood Eren's decision very well and he liked to slowly dig into the subject, though he couldn't wait to finally get to the action.
Levi was irritated by something else.
For every meeting, Eren started bringing along some snacks, crisps, cookies, muffins… Levi had no idea what that means. Was Eren showing his lack of seriousness in their investigation? At one point, however, Ackerman was surprised to find that it made Eren more cheerful and relaxed during the conversation.
Levi finally realized that Eren's constant meetings with police officers must be stressful. After all, he was still a kid, involved in things he shouldn't have dealt with at that age.
Erwin must have come to the same conclusion, because one day, just before meeting with Eren, he ordered Levi, who happened to be behind the wheel, to stop in front of a roadside pizzeria. Ackerman despised fast food, which made him glanced at his work partner with obvious dislike.
"Come on, Levi! I think Eren will be happy" Smith confessed, as always skilfully reading Levi's thoughts.
Ackerman shrugged and pulled into the parking lot.
Half an hour later they were sitting at the appointed place waiting for the young Yaeger. When he finally showed up and saw the three huge pizza boxes, he widened his eyes with excitement.
"Is that for real? But my birthday is in a few weeks!" He exclaimed with a smile.
"Levi and I agreed that all three of us deserve something from life". Erwin also smiled and handed them a paper plates.
They sat down at a small table that could barely contain the three boxes. They started eating, and even Levi had to admit that the pizza was edible, though only one slice had tempted him.
"My friend, Armin, loves pizza" Eren suddenly confessed. Both men looked at him.
Levi suddenly felt the unusualness of this situation.
They were really sitting in a crumbling motel, along with their informant, and were eating pizza. Just like that. He would never have imagined that this would be his everyday life.
But he had to admit that he was getting used to the kid. He was starting to trust him. He saw sincere determination in his green eyes, a strong urge to act, and he shared his emotions. He felt that they wanted the same and only by joining forces can they achieve that goal. He was still careful, the thought that at some point Eren might betray them never left him. But watching the boy eating with a delight a parched slice of pineapple pizza, he was almost sure they had a real ally on their side.
His attention was suddenly drawn to the scratches on Eren's hands. He studied them for a moment.
"What happened?" Levi asked finally, pointing to the small wounds. Eren looked at his hands and for some reason blushed slightly.
"This, uhm... I cut myself by an accident, nothing serious" he confessed, then hunched over a little and looked a little sad. Levi felt the boy wasn't telling them the truth and he didn't quite like it. But he guessed it was a shame, not a desire to hide something from detectives. He found it better to change the subject.
"I don't know how anyone can eat pizza with fruits on it" Levi blurted out before he could bite his tongue. Erwin looked at him in surprise, then laughed. In turn, Eren widened his eyes, then smiled charmingly.
"Oh, do you, detective? Are you so disgusted by the combination of pineapple and ham? People eat worse things".
"Like what?" Levi continued, leaning back against the chair and never taking his eyes off Eren. "I can't imagine anything that is more weird than this".
"I don't find it weird". Eren shrugged, his smile became very innocent. "Many other things are weirder. I don't know, like maybe... Talking to flowers?... Ouch!".
Eren rubbed his aching ankle, because Levi kicked him under the table.
"Don't push it, kid".
Erwin laughed again.
"I didn't know which one you like, so I picked three different kinds" said Smith, looking at Eren with a smile. "But you seem to like them all".
"Yes, thanks!" Eren smiled back, then reached for another piece. "I love all food in general. No exceptions".
"Yeah, I can see that" Levi crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes. "At this age, you still should beware of the baby fat".
Eren chuckled with his mouth full as he looked at Ackerman sitting across from him. He answered after he swallowed.
"Oh, really?" Eren reached for the ketchup sauce that was included in the kit and applied a double layer to the slice of pizza he was eating. "My mom always told me that if I don't eat a lot, I won't be tall".
Levi's eyes widened, then narrowed with rage.
"You little..."
"Little? I wouldn't say that".
Erwin put a hand on his friend's shoulder and laughed out loud while Eren ate his pizza with a smile.
When everyone was full, they started the talk. Eren gave the detectives a report of his recent escapades with Zeke, during which they were gathering the money. All of that took Eren some time. Besides, the detectives wanted to know more about the drug production itself.
"Grisha has a network of laboratories that are built underground. Completely untraceable from the surface. All employees have been properly trained and are properly paid. They will keep their mouths shut. Of course, Grisha is not stupid enough to control the production himself. He doesn't show up at the laboratories, sometimes he sends Owl or Zeke to oversee the whole process. He also trusts Xavier, who manages everything".
Levi was silently taking notes. Erwin was sitting with his elbows on his knees. Smith was staring at Eren intently.
"Xavier? Is he one of his men?".
"Oh yes. Tom Xavier is actually responsible for the whole drugs production. He is a chemist. Zeke adores him. As for drugs... You probably know what they produce. It was only marijuana at first, but it was less profitable. Ever since Grisha made new contacts with people overseas, mostly with Marley traders, he switched to amphetamine. It started to bring him the income he had dreamed of from the beginning".
Eren talked about the laboratories for a moment. When Levi asked him if he had ever been there, the boy nodded.
"Two years ago, during the summer holidays, I even worked at the production. I was preparing the packages for transport" the boy confessed as he tucked his long hair back. Erwin and Levi exchanged shocked looks. "Grisha said that if I want to take over the business one day, I need to know how it works from scratch. Kind of like a chef's son, who is doing dishes".
"Shit…" Erwin shook his head. "What was your mother's reaction?".
"Carla?" Eren sighed and smiled. "As for her, then… Too much to say… I think that's material for the next meeting".
"Did it bother her that her son was working by the drugs?" Erwin couldn't accept this.
"Her relationship with my father is very strange..." Eren's eyelids drooped and he was staring down at his shoes. "It's hard to describe".
"I don't understand. Does she somehow participate in all of this? Was she ever in the lab? Or does she only take care of the hotels?" Erwin wanted to know, but suddenly he felt Levi nudging him with his elbow. Ackerman frowned and shook his head slightly. Understanding appeared on Erwin's face. He quickly looked at Eren. "You know what, that's enough for today. We should get going. Do you need a lift?".
"I drove by myself, but thanks".
"Aren't you afraid that someone will stop you and identify you one day?" Levi asked as they started cleaning off the table.
"My car has good acceleration" Eren replied with a slight smile. "But don't worry, I drive according to the rules. And I look much older than I am. That's very useful sometimes".
"You did well today, Eren" Erwin said, looking at the young Yaeger with appreciation. "You're the best informant we've ever had. Even our supervisor is impressed, although he is still waiting for something more specific".
"Cool. All in due time. I'm curious, did you have a lot of informants so far?".
Erwin and Levi shook their heads.
"Generally speaking yes, but in Grisha's case, almost none. Our friend had someone, but he didn't hear from him for a while now. We don't know anything else".
Eren's eyes widened slightly.
"You probably mean the Colossus".
"What?" Erwin asked, blinking in surprise. "How do you know? Did Grisha found out?".
Eren nodded. His face suddenly looked as if it had aged a few years.
"Yes. He was one of the Titans. I knew him a little, he wasn't that bad. Grisha found out that Bert had betrayed him and... He got rid of the trouble".
"What did he do to him?" Erwin asked, frowning.
Eren was already opening his mouth to reply, but the sight of his tired face was an obvious sign for Levi. He put a hand on Eren's shoulder and announced:
"Enough for today, have I made myself clear? You will tell us at the next meeting".
Eren closed his mouth and nodded. His pale face quickly smoothed out.
Erwin looked at Levi apologetically.
"I'll go first. See you next time" Eren said, then smiled at the detectives. "Thanks for the pizza".
The boy reached for his jacket.
"Wait" Levi growled, then handed Yaeger one of the boxes into which they had put the rest of the pieces. "Take it with you, eat at home. You will share with this friend who loves pizza so much".
Eren raised an eyebrow, but didn't argue.
"Oh... thanks. Surely it won't be wasted" the boy replied, nodded to the detectives and left the room.
"I'm sorry, Levi" Erwin blurted out, looking immediately at his partner. "I didn't want to put pressure on him, I just really wanted to know what Grisha did to Hoover..."
"I know, but you gotta slow down! Geez" Levi narrowed his eyes. "Remember, he's still a kid. I don't even want to imagine what he must be going through. Have you seen his hands? It can't be anything good. I'm sure it's connected to Zeke. Besides, you can guess what happened to Hoover only by looking at Eren's face. We'll hear the rest next time".
"You're right. I'm glad you're here with me, Levi" Erwin confessed, and lifted the corners of his mouth slightly. "You always know what to do".
Levi looked back at his friend. They were exchanging the glances for a longer moment.
He suddenly remembered his last one-night adventure with a stranger. That time, when he was thinking about Erwin. He should at least feel a twinge of shame... But he felt nothing. He snorted softly, then reached for the room keys.
"Let's get out of here. Another second in this place and I'll go crazy. This room hasn't seen the cleaning lady in a long time".
Eren
He knocked twice and then stepped inside. Armin was sitting in the same spot as usual. The curtains in his bedroom were closed, and he stared at the computer screen, typing furiously. At the sight of his friend, he immediately broke away from the laptop. He watched Eren set a huge pizza box on his desk and then tossed himself onto his bed.
"Busy?" Asked the newcomer, stretching like a cat.
"I'll finish in a minute. Oh my, where did you get the pizza?".
"I was at the meeting. They brought it, we ate together".
Arlert turned his chair and fixed Eren with a surprised look.
"They?".
"Yes!" Eren laughed happily. "It was much nicer to talk having a full belly".
"Wow. It's so great of them" Armin smiled charmingly and leaned comfortably on the headrest of the chair. "Maybe they are really not that bad as we thought at first. From what you say, I have the impression that they really care about you".
"I wouldn't say that!". Eren threw his head back and laughed out loud. "They want to pull out everything I know out of me. But I must admit that today's gesture was indeed unexpected. And quite nice. The taller one, Smith, seems really cool. He is really talkative and kind".
"He must like you".
"Yes, but…" Eren's eyes narrowed slightly. "Not that I consider him insincere or anything like that, but there are times when I see in his gaze that I'm just a tool. They need me for their goal". The boy rolled his eyes after a moment. "Okay, maybe I should use other words. I know why I am meeting with them and that they need me. And I also have a purpose in all of this. It's obvious. But to me Erwin seems to be a type who will do anything to achieve what he wants. Literally everything. Today we were talking for really long time. I was with Zeke out of the city almost for all night and I felt really tired. Erwin must notice that I was fed up but he kept pushing me".
"And what did you do?".
"Nothing, fortunately we just finally finished the meeting".
"And that other detective? The harsh one?"
Eren suddenly laughed, which surprised Armin a little.
"Ackerman only pretends to be a cold bastard. He's like the Erwin's opposite. I always have the feeling that he'd love to cut me into pieces, whatever I do. He seems to be irritated at all time, even when I'm breathing. But today… It was him who ordered the end of the meeting". Eren looked as if he remembered something. "In my opinion, he is very sensitive to others. And… Maybe that's weird but I think he understands me".
"Sounds really okay" said Armin, and smiled with a relief. "I'm glad you met them".
"Me too. Okay, finish the job and I'll warm up your food, how about that?".
"Yes! Reheated pizza, there's nothing better!" The boy closed his laptop and got up. "Maybe you should ask them to order it for every meeting. And then you can bringing me the rest".
"I was thinking about pancakes".
"Or maybe something oriental?".
Two boys laughed.