Not This Time

by Rowboat Girlyman 1

When Armin and Mikasa are given the chance to fix the mistakes of the past they will do everything they can to save their friends. Even if they need to abandon their very humanity to do it.

33. First Blood

Hello all, hope you are all keeping well as this dreaded year finally reaches its end.

This monster chapter is 16k words long, easily the longest chapter I've done so far, so please be gentle as I definitely felt like I was running out of steam near the end. I don't think I can do bigger chapters than this without going crazy lol.

Some of my eagle-eyed readers might have noticed NTT has lost two chapters and you would be correct. I was doing some reorganisation of this fic (not a re-write don't worry!) and decided to remove some bits. The first was the April fools chapter since while I had fun writing it, it obvs didn't fit in with the tone so that's been removed (might post it as a spin off side story is anyone cares for it lol) the other chapter I removed was deliverance part 2.

With the benefit of hindsight, I realise now how stupid it was to do the story like that and how it removes the majority of the narrative tension.

Of course, for those of you who have been reading along so far, it won't change anything except a small rework that chapter will be the same as before when I post it again in its proper place, but I'm hoping new readers (especially with the anime starting up again) will get a more enjoyable experience.

I hope you can forgive this amateur writer for that stupid mistake.

---

Orvud District Market Square – Wall Sina

Two days after Armoured Titan sighting

The central market was never a quiet place. Hundreds of people bustling into each other, drifting from stall to stall, browsing and bartering. Countless voices played over each other each trying to be heard more than others as they shouted about sales and prices, quantity and quality. The smell of baked goods, fresh meat, and animal dung permeated the air, mixing with the densely packed crowd's body odours.

Arguments were common, pickpockets even more so, but the worst of chaos and violence was tempered by the squad of MPs who monitored the market place, taking up positions in the most visible location to dissuade any criminal activity.

That was why Djel Sannes and his squad was currently sitting around the central fountain, fulfilling their official duty of policing the area, and doing their not-so-official duty as well.

"You hear about all that shit going on down south?" One of the four MPs asked, leaning against his rifle as if it was a walking stick. "It's crazy."

Sannes grunted non-committedly in response. He had heard.

The 'official' story down the military grapevine was that the sudden evacuation of the southern and western-most districts was a pre-planned, large scale drill to assess military and civilian response times. Apparently, the recent incursion at Trost and the lethargic reaction of the populus made such a drill necessary.

Unofficially, countless rumours had made their way up north through military and civilian channels, all contradicting the official line. Some rumours suggested there had been a rebellion stirred up by the remaining Marian refugees or a riot between them and the residents of Wall Rose over living conditions. Others told of a hole being discovered in the Wall between Trost and Klorva, and that Titans had been spotted spewing in.

Sannes, however, knew the truth. Or at least the portion of it he had deciphered from Captain Ackerman's furious debriefing the night before. Somehow, the interior squad members sent to capture the King's bastard had not only failed to apprehend her, but had somehow caused the Armoured Titan to appear within Wall Rose and devastate their assault squad.

And because of their failure, the bastard had slipped under their noses and was now roaming free. The entirety of the interior squad, not already protecting the King and the usurper in the underground, had been tasked with finding her.

'And if she isn't found soon,' Kenny's parting remark to them played in his head, his terrifying voice whispering in his ear. 'You'll wish you had been the ones squashed by that Armoured fuck.'

Trying to find the girl in the vast territories of Wall Rose would be like looking for a needle in a haystack, so the interior squad needed to adapt. They had put eyes and ears in every district, while sending out small bands of loyal men and women, with the unknowing support of the standard MPs, to scour the territories of Wall Rose, gradually tightening the net around her.

"Who gives a shit about the south? The whole place is a Titan infested shithole." Ralph, Sannes's right-hand man, gestured toward the other man with his half-empty bottle. "Even the southern half of Sina is shit compared to here. Fuck'em."

Sannes snorted. Ralph was a northerner through and through, and held nothing but disdain for everything further south than Mitras. He was lucky then that Sannes had only scouted him for the interior squad after the fall, seeing as before Sannes's squad had been posted as south as south goes, monitoring Shiganshina and the area surrounding it for nearly a decade; stomping out dissidents and rebels who threatened to break the King's peace.

That shithole district had always been a hotbed for that sort of thing, from idiot teachers talking about things they didn't understand, to fools trying to fly over the Wall in a balloon. Sannes had dealt with them all, and thanks to his unwavering loyalty, the King had rewarded him with a reassignment to Orvud. One of the safest and wealthiest districts around.

In a way, it was basically his retirement position. Sannes had already worked his way up the interior squad ranks, and no longer had to deal with constant petty bullshit like before. Nowadays, he only had to eliminate the occasional loudmouth or trouble maker, and that was becoming an increasingly rare occurrence. Delegating was bliss.

Even his current mission to look out for the King's bastard was little more than a formality; the girl was likely hiding somewhere down south, an area she knew well and where all her little 'friends' were as well.

She'd have to be a complete idiot to come this far north and try to pass through a Sina district.

"Hey! I'm from the south, arsehole!" Normon Nobyl, the newest member of their squad, protested snatching the bottle away from Ralph and helping himself to the remaining contents.

"Exactly," Ralph smirked, pulling out a second bottle.

Sannes rolled his eyes and looked away from his two underlings, lazily sweeping his gaze over the crowd which dominated the market, listening to snippets of conversation to pass the time.

"Bread! Loaves and buns! Freshly baked! Get'em while they're hot!"

"Knock off 10%, and you've got a deal."

"Four silvers?! You must be mad!"

"Apples! Get your apples here! Ten silvers for a kilo! Apples!"

All the usual stuff heard in a busy market square; nothing of any interest or importance.

"You're telling me that's not worth twenty coppers?!"

"Meat! Get your meat here! Pork! Beef! Lamb!"

"For you sweetheart, I'll take off an extra 5%, but no more."

Wait, what was that last one?

Sannes's dark brown eyes snapped back towards a food stall where he had heard that tidbit coming from. He wasn't quite sure what about that statement caught his attention, but he had been in this job long enough to know when to trust his instincts. And right now they were screaming at him.

The stall was like any other; wooden frame, cloth cover, and stacked up with foodstuffs like bread and vegetables. The owner was a fat, balding man, with truly disgusting sweat patches growing under his arms. He was one of the owners in the market who paid the MPs a premium for their additional 'services', where they made sure to clamp down harshly on both thieves and upstart competition. Apart from the coin he lined their pockets with, the owner was otherwise completely insignificant, and Sannes automatically filtered his presence from mind as his gaze flicked over to the person the sweaty man was talking to.

The first thing he noticed about them was the green hooded cloak they wore, wrapped around their short body. As they handed over a few copper coins for a loaf of freshly baked bread, Sannes took note of how small and dainty the person's hands were; similar to a child's but not quite. All other sounds seemed to fade away into a low drone in the background; his arguing comrades, the general buzz of the crowd and even the gusts of wind became muted as his gaze remained transfixed on the individual.

Looking down past the cloak, Sannes could see the hem of a pale pink skirt poking out the bottom, which fluttered around their boots as they walked away from the stall with their purchase.

There was nothing odd about a short woman wearing a skirt, and was in fact remarkably common. But the hooded cloak was not. It wasn't raining or cold enough to justify another layer, and cloaks had fallen out of fashion for the higher classes which dominated the inner districts. The only reason Sannes could think of was that she was trying to hide her face.

Well, there was only one way to find out.

"Hey! You in the cloak!" He shouted out, his commanding voice carrying across the market square with ease. "Stop right there."

Sannes didn't remember rising to his feet but found he was already on them as a hush settled over the crowd. Many glanced between the standing MP and the cloaked figure with unabashed curiosity while others started moving away, wanting nothing to do with what was going down.

At his back, the rest of Sannes's squad shot each other confused looks, wondering what had got their Captain worked up like this. Cautiously the three men stood up, each picking up their rifles, still unsure of what was happening.

The figure stopped mid-stride and stood perfectly still, unwavering under the collective gaze of hundreds of people. Even as the four MPs stepped away from the fountain and started moving closer, she didn't react. It was only when the MPs got within a handful of metres did she turn her head, just a fraction of an inch, allowing a single blue orb to peer back at Sannes through the gaps in the bright blond hair which had slipped out of the hood.

Sannes's eyes went wide, the air catching in his throat. Short, slim, blond hair, blue eyes, trying to hide her identity. No way…

"Reiss." He barely got the first stunned syllable out of his mouth before the girl dropped the loaf of bread like it was a lump of hot coal burning her hands, and bolted.

Frozen in disbelief, Sannes just blinked, stupidly staring at the now vacant spot where his King's bastard had just been standing. It was almost unthinkable she would be here. Maybe this was a case of mistaken identity, and he had found some other blond waif trying to hide from the authorities. But if it wasn't… if she really was Reiss and she managed to slip through his fingers here...

"HEY!" Sannes cried out, stumbling forward as his old legs struggled with the abrupt change from slow intimidating walk to the desperate chase. "GET BACK HERE!

The crowd threw themselves back, trying to get away from the MPs as they charged through the central mass of people after the fleeing girl. Some people tripped over each other in their haste to move, spilling bags of fruit and vegetables onto the cobbled streets which were then crushed into paste under the massed movement of feet.

"STOP HER!" Sannes shouted again, hoping one of these useless civilians might finally do something to justify their continuing existence.

Out of the hundreds of people milling around, watching the chase with wide, almost excited eyes, as if they were betting on a horse race, there was only one have-a-go hero willing to do something. A man with a cane and a top hat stuck his leg out in front of the fleeing suspect, in a halfhearted attempt to trip her up.

What little doubt Sannes had left regarding who this figure was, it evaporated entirely at how she reacted to the trip hazard. Rather than being taken by surprise by the sudden obstacle and attempting to either slow down or go round it, the girl ran even faster and just leapt straight over the leg, tucking herself into a ball so she rolled into the landing and was immediately back on her feet in one fluid movement.

That was a textbook safety landing, and precisely the sort of thing they taught in the military.

"STOP!" He pointlessly ordered again, forcing his legs to move even faster. But the girl was pulling ahead, her youth and size making her far more agile and light-footed than any of the MPs chasing her. She was getting away, and it was in that moment of dawning horror when Sannes caught the glint of steel out the corner of his eye.

"FREEZE!" Norman bellowed, levelling his rifle and taking aim straight at the running girl's back.

Sannes barely reacted in time, grabbing the barrel and yanking it up to the sky. The sound of the bullet exited the gun struck like a thunderclap as the iron ball flew wildly into the air in a cloud of smoke.

"YOU IDIOT!" Sannes tore the rifle out of Norman's hands, barely able to hear himself over the ringing in his ears and the deafening screaming of the crowd. "WE NEED HER ALIVE!"

The gunshot could have the sudden appearance of a Titan right in the middle of the square for all the mindless terror it threw the civilians into. Hundreds of people were fleeing in every direction, running for their lives fearing they might be the one to catch the next bullet. They slammed into each other and the MPs in their haste to escape, shoving and pushing people out the way, uncaring of their or other's station or social class. It was complete chaos, and Sannes could barely see a foot in front of him thanks to the wave of bodies crashing into him.

He lost sight of Reiss almost immediately.

'No, no, no!' Sannes forced his way through the frenzied crowd. 'We can't lose her! Not now!'

After pushing through what felt like the entire district's population towards Reiss's last known location, Sannes and his squad broke through the worst of the melee into one of the side streets connected to the central square. Here the crowd was slightly thinner, and they weren't being jostled and barged into every other second. Finally given a reprieve, Sannes could afford to properly look around, searching the street for any sign of Reiss.

'Where are you, bastard? You're not getting away again.'

If he had too, Sannes would have both gates sealed and the district locked down tighter than a Titan's non-existent arsehole. Even if he had to gather up every MP in the district he would do so and make them go house to house and search every damn room, attic, basement and cupboards until Reiss was found.

"Captain!" Ralph shouted in his ear, pointing down the street. Sannes turned his head just in time to spot a flash of green slipping into a side alley two dozen metres down the street.

His legs were moving before his mouth was, the rest of his men following without having to be told. As they reached the alleyway, Sannes slapped the stolen rifle back into Norman's hand and fixed him an intense glare. "You stay here. These alleyways are all dead ends so this is the only way out. You fuck this up again, and you can explain everything to Kenny." With that threat hanging in the air, the rest of them rushed into the dark and narrow alleyway, the pungent smell of piss and other unmentionables assaulting their noses.

"Keep your eyes open." Sannes hissed out, stepping over piles of rubbish that built up over untold years, only visible thanks to the thin slit of light piercing between the overhanging roofs above them. "I don't trust that moron not to screw up if she slips past us."

"Djel, do you really think it's her?" Ralph asked, finally able to question what he heard his captain breath out before. "This far north?"

"Aye, I'm sure of it. You saw how she reacted to us."

"But what if-"

"If it's not her," Sannes cut him off. "Then I'll shoot whoever it is and leave their body to rot for wasting my time. But I sure as hell ain't going back to Kenny and telling him we had a lead but didn't investigate. Unless you want to be the one to tell him that?"

Ralph looked away.

"That's what I thought. Now-"

A loud metallic clang echoed down the alleyway, like someone had just knocked over a bin. It came from ahead of the MPs and to the right, down a small passageway that stank of rotting meat. Fighting the urge to gag and pinch their noses shut, the three MPs followed the noise like bloodhounds, jogging down the passage which broke out into a slightly wider back street where they saw the cloaked figure sprawled out on the ground, clearly having failed to clamber up one of the walls in their attempt to escape them.

"End of the line, Reiss." Sannes spat, breathing heavily from the chase. Flanked on either side by his comrades, three rifles were now pointed at the girl who had carefully risen to her feet, still facing away from them.

"Put your hands up, and turn around. Slowly." He pulled back the firing pin, the sharp click reinforcing how serious he was. If she tried to run again he would shoot her in the leg without hesitation, and drag her back to the King kicking and screaming if he had to.

The bastard might be needed alive, but that didn't mean unharmed.

Reiss complied, her thin slender arms slowly lifting at her side until her hands rested high above her head. With the soft shuffling of feet, she turned around her still keeping her head tilted down, her face overshadowed by the hood and the hair dangling out of it.

Sannes gritted his teeth in annoyance, growing tired of this game. "Head up, bastard." He growled, keeping his rifle firmly aimed at the girl's kneecap.

The head came up, and the hood fell back.

It was strange. What Sannes saw matched Reiss's description practically down to a tee, but at the same time he was filled with an almost overpowering sense of wrongness at the sight. Her jawline was just a bit too square and cheekbones a bit too pointed. Her ears were just a bit too large and hair just a bit too short. And the eyes…

When Sannes looked, really looked, he saw there was something else in those light blue orbs. Something haunting and dangerous. The eyes of an adult embedded in the face of a child.

It was as if someone had tried to recreate Reiss, shaping the face like clay till it was almost perfect.

Almost, but not quite.

"Hey." A deeper than expected voice left not-Reiss's smirking lips.

"W-what the fuck?!" Ralph recoiled, his aim wavering. He had come to the same conclusion as Sannes, that someone had gone out of their way to make this boy look like Reiss, and led them here on purpose. By the time they realised that, however, it was already too late.

"NOW!" Armin Arlert shouted, and dived aside as multiple figures dropped from above.

---

Scout Hideout - Five miles north of Orvud

Several hours earlier

"-and once we've captured an informant we'll bring them back here for questioning. Those are the basics of this plan." Erwin calmed announced to the room of scouts as he unrolled a map of Orvud district across the table. "Are there any questions before we start?"

"Errm… Commander Erwin, Sir… How are we supposed to lure these people out if Historia is staying here? Won't they just ignore us if they don't see her?" Sasha asked, nervously picking at her sleeve as she asked the question many of the scouts present were thinking. Erwin had made it very clear Historia would be kept out of danger, to the point where he informed the majority of Hanji's squad that they would be staying behind with Historia and Ymir (even Erwin found he didn't have much choice on that in the end) to protected her while the rest of them went to Orvud.

With that in mind, the Commander's plan seemed to be contradicting itself, as they needed Historia to be bait while at the same time not having Historia anywhere near the district.

"Indeed, Sasha." Erwin nodded at the girl, who blushed slightly under his gaze. "That is why we are going to employ a body double."

His head turned towards the boy in question, who stood next to Mikasa on the other side of the table, gazing down at the map with an inquisitive eye.

"Armin," Erwin called, preparing himself for a whole range of possible reactions. "You will be our Historia in the field."

The majority of the reactions Erwin got from the strike force was entirely predictable. The older, more mature scouts simply nodded along to their Commander's words, seeing the logic behind it, with only a handful having to avert their eyes to hide the mirth shining within them.

The younger scouts, those who were friends with Armin, expressed their emotions far more openly. Hands slapped over mouths. Muffled laughter and snorts of amusement. Pitying looks and open smirks.

Like he said. Entirely predictable.

It was Armin's reaction, however, which took Erwin by surprise. He had expected some kind of negative response; be it just open-mouthed shock, a wince, or his expression curdling in a look of disgust at the suggestion, but he saw none of that. Instead, Armin simply nodded once, not even breaking his gaze away from the map, seemingly oblivious to the mix of apologetic and teasing looks being sent his way. It wasn't every day you were ordered to cross-dress, yet Armin took it in stride.

Perhaps Armin had foreseen such an order and had already worked through his misgivings. Or, seeing how easily he had accepted the order, maybe this wasn't his first time disguising himself as a girl. However, following that particular line of thought quickly led Erwin down an increasingly dark and disturbing path as he recalled that Armin had been an orphaned refugee after the fall with only Mikasa and Eren at his side, and may have had to take drastic and deeply unpleasant action to survive.

That… wasn't something Erwin wanted to think about, not when he had just ordered the boy to pretend to be Historia. Hopefully, this was just his natural cynicism playing up and making him assume the worst possible scenario. It helped when planning for an operation, but not so much when he found himself concerned with the wellbeing of one of his soldiers.

"The market will be the best place to do this. That way we can have some of our people on the ground pretending to be shopping while the rest stick to the roofs with their gear." The sound of Armin's mild voice dragged Erwin out of his dark spiral as he watched the young scout point at the central squad then dragging his finger across the map. "If I pick up a trail, I can lead them to these back streets. If this map is correct it's all dead ends so we won't have to worry about any civilians wandering into our ambush."

Armin glanced up. "If you agree, of course, Commander?"

Genuinely taken aback at how indifferent Armin was and the still lingering doubts in his mind, it took Erwin a few moments to collect himself enough to answer. "The market will be busy, we could easily lose sight of you in the crowd," Erwin warned, but otherwise agreed with Armin's plan in principle. If he was the cult trying to monitor an entire district with limited resources, the market and the gates would be his goto positions to station his informants in.

"Mikasa won't." Armin simply stated, pushing himself back from the table. Beside him, Mikasa gave a firm nod, and that was that.

Preparations were made, orders given and roles assigned. Erwin was still bent over the map discussing contingency plans with Levi and Hanji when Armin left the room with Historia at his side, likely heading to one of the spare rooms so he could get change.

Erwin could see the two of them speaking in hushed whispers, and while he couldn't make out what was being said thanks to the general noise in the makeshift command post, from the look on their faces they seemed to be having some sort of quarrel. Something Erwin found very odd seeing how mature and accepting the two of them had been about this plan. It didn't make sense they would lash out at each other about it now, unless of course, the cross-dressing wasn't what their argument was about.

He might not be able to hear them, but if he focused on the movement of their lips he might be able to read-

"You are not bringing that shitty stone with us, four-eyes."

"What?! Why not? You never know, it could be helpful!"

"If I see that shitty thing out there, I will fire it out of a fucking cannon."

Erwin was forced to look away from the arguing teenagers to deal with the arguing adults who made up his left and right hands. By the time he had silenced his two senior officers with a look, Armin and Historia were already gone, leaving Erwin with the impression he had just missed something very important, but wasn't sure what.

'Hmm, strange… very strange.

---

Being on rooftops always came with a sense of peace for Mikasa. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but being elevated above the writhing mass of humanity below, to where the thing around her was open sky felt like a small taste of freedom. And the rooftops of Orvud District were no different.

"Ackerman, report." Levi's gravelly voice quietly called out from behind her. "Where is he?"

Crouching behind a chimney which overlooked the central square, Mikasa's gaze remained firmly fixed on Armin as she replied. "Two o'clock, thirty metres. By the green and white market stall." She saw Armin handing over some coins to the stall owner, causing the corners of her mouth to twitch upwards. "He's buying some bread."

"Well it is nearly lunchtime." She heard Jean mumbling under his breath, as Connie and Marco breathed out a snort.

"Quiet," Levi snapped at them, before turning back to Mikasa. "Has he picked up a tail yet?"

"Not yet," Mikasa answered honestly, allowing her eyes to momentarily drift away from Armin and towards a squad of MPs sitting in the middle of the square. "Hold on. One of the MPs is looking his way. He's standing up."

The MP shouted something Mikasa couldn't catch over the general noise of the district, but judging by how a noticeable portion of the crowd went still, she could guess he had just called Armin out.

"We've got a lead. Four MPs, all armed, rifles but no 3DM." She listed off the crucial information, even as her eyes darted back to Armin who was standing stock-still.

'Run, Armin. Run.' She instructed in her head, wishing they had one of those radio things from the outside world. Being able to directly communicate with him from up here would make this whole operation much easier and far less stressful.

But then again, when had they needed to talk to know exactly what the other was thinking.

With a blink of an eye, Armin scampered. While he had always prided himself on never running away from bullies or other threats, Armin could move extremely quickly when he wanted to. A fact he was proving to the MPs right now as they struggled to keep up.

Pulling away from the chimney, Mikasa nodded to Levi as she grabbed her 3DM handles, getting ready to follow Armin across the rooftops. "He's heading towards the rendezvous. MPs are in pursuit."

"Alright," Levi said as he did the same. "Springer, go signal Hanji and Blouse to ready our extraction. The rest of you on me."

With a round of "Yes Sir!" the scouts sprung into action, with Connie peeling off from the group and headed over to where Hanji and Sasha were waiting with their acquired wagon, while the rest of them followed Levi, running across the rooftops and jumping across streets with their gear.

Had anyone been looking up and made a scene their cover would be blown and they would be forced to go to plan B. Fortunately, no one ever looks up at the rooftops, not when there's something 'interesting' happening right in front of them, such as a person running from the MPs. And the racket said MPs were making in the process conveniently masked the reeling sounds of their cables and the blasts of pressurised gas which propelled the four scouts along.

*BANG*

The crack of a rifle hit Mikasa like a Titan's fist. The sound of it alone was enough to disturb her confident flight between two buildings as she faltered in midair. Below her feet, the crowd had regressed into a panicked frenzy, like a pack of rats who had a cat thrown in their midst.

Mikasa almost fell over when she landed hard on the other building, lacking any of her usual grace or skill as she stumbled in her haste to swivel around and see what had happened.

What were the MPs doing?! They shouldn't be shooting at 'Historia', they needed her alive!

'Come on, Armin, where are you?' Despite her promise, Mikasa had lost sight of Armin in her momentary panic about the gunshot, and struggled to find him again in the swarm of fleeing civilians.

Part of her was terrified that any moment now a gap would open up in the crowd and she would be greeted with the sight of Armin's bleeding body sprawled out on the ground. The logical part of her knew that wouldn't be the case, that a bullet would do little to a shifter even if it did hit him. But when bullets are being fired at your- friend it's not the logical part of your brain which takes over.

'There!' Mikasa cheered out inside, breathing a sigh of relief as she saw Armin's cloaked form vaulting over an overturned stall.

"I've got him." She called out, vaguely aware that Levi was talking to her, and pointing towards Armin. "He's over there."

"Is he still moving?" Levi demanded to know, clearly struggling to spot Armin himself.

"Yes, he's fine. The MPs have fallen behind but they are still following him." Mikasa hauled herself onto her feet, heart still pounding more than it should be. She was very very tempted to jump down and deal with the four MPs then and there, determined to stop them shooting at Armin again, but they had a plan in place. Armin's plan. And she wouldn't ruin it with a hasty and ill-thought-out decision. Especially since if she dropped down now, there would be no one keeping an eye on Armin.

'Why do you make me worry so much, Armin?' Mikasa shook her head, as she started running again, firmly keeping one eye on Armin as she lept from roof to roof towards the alleyway where he was heading.

Admittedly, she might have been slightly over-eager in her rooftop escort, managing to overtake Levi and leaving the others in her dust as she zipped across the district, towards the rendezvous point. When Mikasa arrived, she slid to a halt across the tiles, kicking up a small cloud of dust before shuffling over to the building's edge so she could look down into the winding back alleys below just moments before Armin made his way into them.

Mikasa followed Armin from the rooftops as he ran deeper into the maze, making sure to keep out of sight just in case one of the pursuing MPs decided to look up. It was only when Armin ran into a dead-end, breathing heavily, did she poke her head over the lip of the overhanging roof and let out a faint whistle to catch his attention.

Armin jumped slightly and quickly looked up, locking eyes with her. Mikasa gave him a faint smile and a nod, letting him know they were here, ready and waiting for his signal. Armin smiled back before he took a deep breath and snatched up the lid of one of the numerous metal bins around him and tossed it against the wall, baiting the MPs towards him with a loud clang before dropping to the ground, pretending to have fallen off something.

Mikasa ducked back, grip tightening around her swords as she saw the MPs come barreling down the passageway, finally 'catching' Armin and ordering him to stand up.

"Ackerman, the middle one is yours, I'll take out the other two. Don't give a chance to react. Kirstein you follow after us." Levi softly whispered, squatting down beside her, flicking his blade into his signature reverse grip. "The rest of you stay up here and keep an eye out."

Mikasa took a breath, even and steady. The MP wouldn't even know what hit them.

"Head up, bastard." She heard her target spit out, as he pointed his rifle at Armin's knee. Her eyes narrowed at the man, a plan of attack quickly forming in her head, as she started counting down from five seeing Armin ever so slowly comply with the demand.

Five.

Four.

Three.

"Hey."

Two.

"W-what the fuck?!"

One.

Mikasa was already moving when the signal came.

"NOW!"

---

"NOW!"

The reaction to the shout was as unexpected as it was decisive. Sannes didn't even have time to process what the boy had just said before a flash of red and black cut into his vision and he found himself flying backwards through the air, feeling like his chest had just been caved in from a bone-rattling kick to the sternum.

All the air in his lung was forced out in a single strangle wheeze as his body slammed into a wall. Sannes heard something crack, and his vision quickly started to blur and spin as he struggled to understand what had just happened. Something warm and sticky started to ooze down the side of his face and it was only when he tasted a coppery tang in the corner of his mouth did he realise it was blood.

Sannes could barely think straight, feeling like his brain had been wrapped in cotton wool. Where had his rifle gone? He had been holding it a minute ago. A handful of slurred, nonsensical noises escaped his throat as Sannes tried to look around, searching for his missing rifle. He had just enough sense of mind left to know he was under attack, but by who and what he didn't know.

A shadow fell across his face, as something tall and terrible landing gracefully in front of him. Sannes looked up, and the last thing he saw before he was knocked out was that of a young woman in a red scarf towering over him like a Titan. One of her arms was already raised mid-swing, as she brought the blunt hilt of one of her blades slamming into his temple.

While Sannes had been unlucky enough to be Mikasa Ackerman's target, his two comrades fared little better. Still in a state of shock from both Armin's reveal and the sight of their Captain being sent flying backwards from a truly brutal dropkick, they had no time at all to react when another figure landed beside them. With a single slash of his swords both their rifles had been left broken in two, leaving them holding only the wooden stocks as the severed barrels dropped to the ground.

Then, with a sweep of the figure's leg, Ralph found his world being upended as he went crashing down onto the grime coated floor in a flail of limbs. He never got the chance to regain his bearings or see who had attacked him before a third figure dropped from the rooftop, landing hard on his chest and holding a sword to his throat.

"D-don't move!" Jean demanded.

Ralph's comrade who had somehow avoided getting knocked off his feet by the slimmest of margins made a high pitch squeaking sound in the back of the throat as he lurched back, tossing the rifle stock at his blindingly fast assailant as he desperately tried to put some distance between them.

Unfortunately for the terrified MP, he was facing Captain Levi and was nowhere near fast enough to evade the shorter, 3DM equipped man. With a duck under the hastily thrown stock, Levi took two quick steps forward and was right back in the MPs face. The man tried to bring up his hands to defend himself but was beaten to the punch, both figuratively and literally, as Levi's fist rocketed into his nose. There was a wet crunch of broken cartilage as the MP dropped like a puppet with his string cut.

All in all, it had taken Levi and Mikasa less than five seconds to take out all three MPs.

Surveying the aftermath of the 'battle' Levi gave a tight nod to himself as he twisted his head to look at Armin who was in the middle of getting back on his feet.

"Good job, Arlert." He curtly said before kneeling down beside the MP he had knocked out and checked his pulse. As he did so, Levi looked over at Mikasa and the MP she had sent flying. "I hope he's still alive, Ackerman. We need answers, not corpses."

Rather than giving a verbal response Mikasa simply 'nudged' the bleeding MP in the side with her foot and allowed the low groan that escaped his lips to be her answer. Levi briefly raised an eye at Mikasa's behaviour before letting out a small huff. "Tsk. Whatever, we got what we came for. Ackerman you can carry him, I've got this one. Kid, put that one to sleep and let's move." Levi directed the last remark at Jean as he grabbed the unconscious MP by his shirt, tossed him over his shoulder and started moving away. Mikasa moved to do the same with her bleeding MP.

Ralph, the only MP still awake, clearly had other ideas about going anywhere quietly. "Do you have any idea who you are fucking with right now?!" He spat, glaring at Jean with eyes full of hatred. "All of you are dead men walking! You hear me?! Dead!"

"S-shut up!" Jean moved the blade closer, hoping the threat would silence the raving MP.

The MP ignored the shaking sword at his throat. "Oh and it won't just be you either. Your friends, your family, everyone you've ever spoken to, everyone you've even looked at. They're gonna suffer for this as well, mark my words you little shit!"

"Kirstein, hurry it up. We're leaving." Levi ordered, frowning at Jean and the ranting MP who should be knocked out already.

The MP shot Jean a sadistic grin, hearing what Levi had said. "Kirstein, huh? Can't be many of them around. It'll be nice and easy to find your family, boy. Maybe I'll pay them a visit once I'm done with you. Don't worry, I'll let your mamma see your face before she dies. Too bad the rest of ya won't be there."

The threat to his family caused Jean to snap, and he let out an enraged cry as he lifted his blade to copy Mikasa's hilt strike into the man's face.

"Jean! Don't!" Armin shouted, crying out in alarm as his friend unwittingly played right into the MP's hands.

The second the blade was pulled away from his neck, the MP exploded into action. Putting his years of experience fighting both as a standard MP and as a member of the interior squad, Ralph's hands shot up and grabbed the unexpecting Jean by the collar. With an iron grip, he yanked Jean's upper body down and slammed his large forehead straight into Jean's mouth.

There was a painful crunch as Jean's head snapped, blood spewing from his mouth and nose, as his grip around his blades when lax, allowing the swords to clatter uselessly to the ground as his hands instinctively moved to shield his face from further blows.

Jean didn't even get the chance to cry out in pain before the MP had his next move. With a furious, bloodcurdling roar, the older man threw Jean off his chest and rolled over the cobblestone until he was the one on top, straddling the young scout's midsection and bearing down on him with murderous intent. In his right hand was Jean's sword which he had snatched up during the roll, and held high above his head.

Then, with another bestial cry, Ralph swung the blade down.

In that moment, several things happened at once.

Levi had tossed the MP he had lifted off his shoulder, and had thrown himself towards the grappling pair, hands reaching towards his sheathed swords to save his young squad member.

Further down the alleyway, Mikasa's grey eyes had blown wide in alarm at the unexpected reversal. Since she was already bending down to pick up her unconscious MP, Mikasa's ability to move as quickly as Levi had was limited, and in the split second she had to think, Mikasa knew she wouldn't get to Jean in time even if she tried. And, even more alarmingly, neither would Levi.

So, Mikasa did the only thing she could, and twisted on the balls of her feet pivoting her hips around as to try to get an angle on the MP with one of her 3DM hooks. But trying to line up a clear shot in this narrow dim alleyway without hitting Jean or Levi was near impossible.

Furthest away from the MP and his fallen friend, Armin, who had started to move the second he had clocked on to what the MP was about to do, had already reached into his skirt, grabbed the small two-shot pistol he had been given, and torn it out of the holster. With a quick flick of his thumb toggling the safety off, Armin lifted the pistol to take aim.

Three people, three reactions, one goal. Armin's arms, Levi's legs, Mikasa's hips. All three of them were moving as fast as they could, yet they each felt like they were moving through quicksand. Their limbs felt slow and sluggish, moving at a snail's pace compared to the falling blade which threatened to end Jean's life.

And in the middle of it all, trapped beneath the MP was Jean. Head spinning; mouth full of blood; body unmoving, paralysed in fear.

As he watched the sword coming down on him, Jean saw his life flash before his eyes; memories of his mother's smile, his father's booming laughter, the sights and smells of his home town, and the faces of childhood friends he thought he had forgotten.

He saw his years in bootcamp; the endless backbreaking training with Shadis screaming in their ears, Marco's unending optimism, Sasha and Connie's dumb pranks, even Yeager's stupid Titan rants. He saw Mikasa and Armin, Reiner and Bertholdt, Ymir and Historia. Then Trost, the expedition, the cave...

Jean saw it all in a blink of an eye, and he knew that this was where he died. In some scummy back alley to his own blades. Fuck. He hadn't even made it to fifteen.

'Sorry mum.' Some distant voice echoed in his head. 'I'll say hi to grandma for you.'

*BANG*

Something warm splattered across Jean's face, forcing his eyes shut as the sword point smashed into the ground mere inches away from his head. The air was once more driven from his lungs when the MP's lifeless body slumped forwards, smothering Jean under his weight.

It was only a moment before Levi skidded to a halt over them and hauled the corpse off Jean. He glanced at the body for a moment, and at the rapidly forming pool of blood which poured out of the hole in the MP's forehead, before reaching down and yanking Jean back onto his feet. The Captain gave the petrified, blood-covered boy a quick once over to make sure he was fine before looking over at Armin who he assumed fired the shot. However, when his eyes landed on the blond scout, he saw that Armin was gazing down at his unfired pistol in confusion.

Levi stole a glance back at the unusually pale Mikasa, wondering if she had somehow been responsible for saving Jean, yet she seemed just as baffled if relieved.

Then as one, the three non-frozen scouts looked up at the rooftops. There, kneeling on the edge with the sun glimmering behind his back, was Marco Bott. And in his hands lay the still smoking rifle.

"Shit." Levi cursed under his breath knowing half the damn city probably heard that shot. This area would be swarming with MPs soon. They had to leave, now.

"Ackerman, grab the bastard and go with Bott. Get out of here." He called, ordering the two kneeling scouts to head towards the wagon, before turning back to Jean. There was a well of anger in his heart at how badly the boy had screwed up, but it was softened by the genuine concern he felt for his temporary squad member.

He had been right about most of them being too young for this, and what just happened proved how valid his objections had been. Thankfully, due to the admittedly impressive reaction time of the Bott boy, Kirstein was still alive and they still had two captives which they could interrogate. He should have put his foot down and brought along some of Hanji's squad for this instead of just the kids.

"Kirstein? Kirstein!" He shook the teen. There would be time to chew Kirstein out later, but now was not the time. "Look at me."

Jean's eyes cracked out, his pupils dilated. Through a mouthful of blood he managed to croak out a word. "C-cap-tain?"

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

"W-wh-"

"How many?" Levi repeated, firmly.

"T-three."

Levi released his grip on Jean and exhaled through his nose. At least the boy wasn't concussed. It wouldn't have been easy to carry him, the MP and Arlert out of this filthy alleyway.

"Arlert get your ass over here, you ride with Kirstein. We're leaving. Now."

Armin shoving his pistol back into its holster and scurried over, stepping over the dead body and latching on to his taller friend's arm. He held on tight, his heart still thumping in his chest at just how close that had been to disaster. Another second or two and...

"Jean come on. We have to go." Armin hissed, pulling on Jean's arm as Levi snatched up his MP.

"B-but w-what ab-" Still dazed, Jean started to reply before his thousand-yard stare landed on the body behind Armin and a strangled gasp left his throat horrified by all the blood, viscera and brain matter he saw.

Jean continued to stare until a deceptively soft hand touched his cheek and forced his head to turn away from the sight.

"Jean," Armin tried again, growing more anxious with every passing second. He knew Mikasa and Levi would double back for them if Jean remained unresponsive but they needed to secure the interior squad MPs and get out of this district as soon as possible. "Focus. Please. If we don't leave now we're going to be caught. Just get us onto the roof and I'll do the rest, alright?"

"I-I… o-okay." Feeling sick to his stomach Jean allowed Armin to pull him away and jump onto his back. He tried not to panic when Armin threw his arms around his neck and held on tight as they took off into the air.

---

Sasha liked to think of herself as a brave young woman. She might not be as fearless as Mikasa or Ymir but those two were in a league of their own. On the scale of normal people bravery, Sasha would give herself a seven out of ten when it came to guts… okay maybe a six and a half, but the point remained.

Not many people could say they faced Titans as a half-trained cadet and then voluntarily joined the division which sought those monsters out.

But right now in the middle of a Wall Sina District and far away from any Titans (the 'normal' kind and the changy ones) Sasha was scared. In fact, she'd go as far as to say she was terrified for two main reasons.

Firstly, she was riding the wagon up front next to Hanji, totally exposed. They were dressed casually, wearing the plainest, most uninteresting clothes they could find as to slip beneath anyone's notice. They weren't even wearing their thick woollen cloaks as despite it being noticeably cooler than down south, according to Miss Nifa 'This isn't cloak weather for us northerners. You'll draw an eye wearing that stuff.'.

Armin had been allowed to wear his, because they had wanted people to see him. But then again, Armin was also wearing a dress so Sasha supposed it was only fair.

But it wasn't her bland apparel that was causing Sasha distress, but the lack of gear. Obviously Hanji and herself couldn't wear 3DM gear in the open, and without a cloak to hide it beneath they had to leave it behind at the hideout. She had grown so used to that familiar chafing of the countless straps and buckles that its absence was unsettling and made her feel vulnerable and weak. The only protection the two of them had if something went wrong was the two small pistols Commander Erwin had given them before they left.

Sasha wished she had her bow instead. She'd be much more comfortable with that.

And comfort was something Sasha was desperately seeking as the wagon slowly trundled through the clogged streets of Orvud towards the outer gate. A thin canvas cover tossed over a wooden frame was the only cover her friends, Captain Levi and their MP captives had, as they hid in the back.

This part of the mission was supposed to be relatively simple, but the panic stirred by the two gunshots in a normally peaceful district had sent the civilian population into a state of hysteria. Seeing so many people running away led to a domino effect as others who weren't even near the market when it happened joined in with the fleeing crowd like a herd of startled deer.

Squads of MPs ran past them, running right past their wagon and shoving people aside as they converged on the market place, hoping to restore at least some sense of order to the district and find out what happened. Sasha could feel her heart leap into her throat every time she saw one of those green unicorn badges, fully expecting to hear one of them shout at them to stop.

"Relax Sasha." Hanji whispered to her under her breath, cracking the reins to hurry the two horses pulling the wagon along. "They're not looking for us. Just stay calm and keep an eye out, alright?"

Stay calm. If only it was that easy.

Had Sasha's only fear been the MPs it might have been possible, but not with the other big worry on her mind and that concern could only be resolved once they had left the city and she could safely stick her head into the back and find out what the hell happened back there.

When Connie arrived to tell Hanji and herself the operation had started, he had told them that Armin was being followed by four MPs, so that was how many Sasha expected to see bundled into the back. Yet when the escort and capture team returned, Captain Levi and Mikasa only had two MPs with them and perhaps the most alarming thing was that Jean was covered in blood. Everyone else seemed physically fine, but Sasha didn't like that look in their eyes, especially not Marco's.

"Your friend will be fine." Hanji reassured, as if able to tell what Sasha was thinking. "I don't know what happened but the main thing is that they're all got back in one piece. That's the best outcome we can ask for, so let's keep it that way." The wagon rattled and shook as Hanji pulled the reins to the side turning them onto the main street out of the district. "We just have to get through that gate and we're in the clear."

Sasha slipped a hand into her pocket, fingers brushing against the heavy pistol and toying with the safety latch as they slowly approached the gate and the MPs who were guarding it.

"Halt." One of the MPs called out, blocking their path as she stepped out into the road. The rifle slung over her shoulder glinted in the midday sun.

"What's in the back?" She asked, sounding like the most bored woman on earth.

Sasha felt a cold sweat dripping down her back, and had to suppress a shiver. If the MPs looked inside…

"Potatoes." Hanji answered with a smile, gesturing over her shoulder back towards the centre of town. "My daughter and I were planning on selling them in the market but then… well… That all happened, so we decided to just come back tomorrow. Might have better luck."

The MP just sighed and rolled her eyes, muttering something that sounded like 'bumpkins' under her breath. "You got your permit?" She asked, folding her arms over her chest as another MP moseyed on up next to her.

"Permit?" Hanji echoed. Her confident smile was still in place but the nervous confusion lingering in her eyes told a different story. They hadn't needed anything like that to enter the district.

"Yes, permit. Have you forgotten that transporting food out of Sina without it is illegal?" The MP narrowed her eyes, and cocked her head towards her colleague who started moving towards the back of the wagon. "If you don't have one, your goods will have to be confiscated and you'll have to pay a fine or face jail time."

Had Sasha not been so nervous that she found it hard to breathe, she would be outraged. It was illegal to transport food out of Sina?! That's- that's horrible! Did they have any idea how many struggling communities and hungry mouths there are living inside Wall Rose?

Every year they gave up a portion of their harvest to keep Sina fed despite all the hardships they are dealing with, and these wealthy, pompous arseholes repaid them by making it illegal to send anything back without a stupid permit?!

How was that even remotely fair?

"Ohhh that permit!" Hanji exclaimed, slapping her forehead with a goofy grin. "Gosh, I must be getting old. It's having kids you see, it ages you. Yeah, no worries, I've got it right here."

Hanji reached into her breast pocket, and Sasha tensed up, wondering if the section commander was going to pull out her pistol and make a break for it. Sasha gripped her own gun in a tight, trembling fist. The MP in front of them would likely be Hanji's target of choice which left the other one to her. All she had to do was lift it, take aim and fire, just like when she was hunting.

But then, just as Sasha's nerve was about to break, Hanji pulled out a small leather pouch and tossed it to the MP. The woman caught it with well-practised ease and after using two nimble fingers to quickly unravel the string, she peered down at the mass of silver and gold coins which filled it.

The MP looked back up, staring at Hanji for a long moment before pocketing the pouch and calling over to her comrade. "Leave it, Lino. It all checks out."

The other MP, who had just reached the back of the wagon and had been seconds away from pulling back the flaps to look inside, let out a frustrated grunt as he turned and stomped back to the crate he had been sitting on, clearly annoyed at having to get up over nothing. Had he been just a tiny bit faster he would have discovered an entire squadron of heavily armed scouts and two hogtied MPs in the place of the promised potatoes.

Sasha breathed a silent sigh of relief. That was far too close.

"By the way," The female MP said as she sauntered up to one of their horses. "This permit expires tomorrow. I hope you know that..."

"Ah so it does." Hanji awkwardly chuckled, running a hand through her messy hair as she shifted on the spot.

"Make sure you renew it." The MP warned them with a loaded stare before delivering a hard slap to the horse's rump, seeing it and the wagon lurching through the gate to freedom, and unknowingly dooming the two interior squad members to their fate.

---

Sometime later

Scout Hideout basement

Consciousness returned to Sannes with a bucket of water being splashed across his face. He jerked awake, dragged out of the dreamless void he was in, only to be met with a burning pain shooting up his side.

"AH!" Still dazed and coughing out the water which had entered his mouth, Sannes tried to move his arms but found they had been tied down to a chair. The same had been done to his legs. "Wha- where-"

Blinking through the haze of pain originating from his cracked ribs, Sannes glanced around the strange room he had awoken in, before settling on the tall, blond man who sat before him, with two others standing at his side.

"You!" Sannes growled, fury replacing his pain and confusion as he recognised who it was. "You traitorous dog. I'll see you hanged for this!"

Ignoring the MP's threat of execution, the blond man started to speak, allowing his firm, domineering voice to fill the room.

"I'm going to ask you one very simple question, and you will answer it, one way or another." Erwin Smith leaned forwards in his chair, steepling his hands over his chin as he stared Sannes dead in the eye. "Where is Eren Yeager?"

Sannes bared his teeth like a feral dog. So that's what this is about. They wanted to find the usurper. Well, if these Titan-fuckers thought he was going to betray Kenny and his King then they had another thing coming. He'd die before he talked.

"Go fuck yourself." He sneered, glaring back at the Commander of the survey corp with all the considerable hatred he could muster in his eyes.

"Is that your final answer?" Erwin asked, calmly sitting back in his chair and folding his arms over his chest before giving a small wave of his hand. "Very well."

Without a word the man and woman flanking him stepped forward, approaching the restrained MP looking like two steel mill workers with their oversized aprons and insulated gloves. The woman, the taller of the two and with a pair of goggles dangling around her neck, placed a metal tray on the small table beside Sannes revealing numerous knives, pliers, hammers and other crude instruments.

So, Sannes thought, they were to be his torturers, and those are their tools. Fine then.

Sannes hardened his resolve and grit his teeth. He had been trained by Kenny fucking Ackerman, the Ripper himself, and was no stranger to pain or torture. Just let these amateurs try and get anything from him. He'd laugh in their faces as they grew more and more desperate. Then, when the rest of the interior squad came for him, he'd show them how to really torture someone.

A firm hand took hold of his hair, forcing Sannes's head back and giving him no other choice but to stare into the blazing grey eyes of Captain Levi.

"So, you're one of the MPs who work with Kenny, aren't you? The man who hunted your lot down for sport?" Levi asked. "Maybe you lot are a bunch of masochists and get off from that crap, but I can promise you that you won't enjoy this. Now, I'm going to give you one last chance to talk before I force it out of you." The grip on Sannes's hair tightened, tearing strands from his scalp. "Where. Is. My. Squad?"

Sannes lied. They were going to get something from him — just one little thing.

With a hawk, Sannes spat a glob of saliva straight at Levi's face, taking a great deal of satisfaction at the look of disgust that flashed the shorter man's face. The goggle-wearing woman to his side inhaled sharply, and seemed to mutter something under her breath as she glanced between Sannes and her co-torturer.

Slowly, purposefully Levi brought a hand to his cheek and wiped off the spit with a single finger.

"That..." His cold voice rang out, echoing off the cold, moss-covered walls that surrounded them. "Was a mistake."

---

Jean had left the hideout long before any screaming started, having sought refuge behind one of the outhouses almost immediately after being dismissed. He didn't know how long he had been there, slumped down against the building, one arm wrapped around his legs while the other held a bloody cloth to his mouth.

What happened in the alleyway endlessly looped in his head, driving home again and again just how badly he had fucked up. He had completely frozen up at first, panicking even when he had the upper hand. All he had to do was knock the MP out, and he couldn't even do that.

Jean had just sat there, trembling like a useless piece of shit, while the MP threw him off balance both mentally and physically. If it hadn't been for Marco, he would be dead right now.

Jean squeezed his eyes shut, hugging himself tighter. By the Walls, what was he even doing here?! He wasn't a soldier or a fighter, he was just a stupid little boy playing pretend. He was a danger to himself, his friends, even his damn family.

He had let everyone down; Captain Levi, Armin, Mikasa, Marco…

Maybe he should just leave. Just go home, forget about ever being a soldier and just help his mother around the house, or his father in the factory. All he could do here with the scouts was be an egotistical, arrogant, jackass who screws everything up.

Yeager was right about him. He really was useless.

"Jean."

Great, now he was hearing Mikasa's voice in his head. That's just what he needed right now, his own brain playing tricks on him. Was it using her voice just to make him feel even worse? No, that's stupid. It would use Marco's voice if that was the case, seeing how Jean had done everything in his power to not even look at his friend during the deathly silent wagon ride back from Orvud.

He was such a fucking coward.

"Jean." The voice repeated, only this time it came with the sensation of a hand landing on his shoulder.

Jean's eyes shot open at the unexpected touch, and he looked up at Mikasa in surprise. He didn't think she was actually there.

"M-Mikasa, I-" Jean stammered out, his spiral of self-loathing momentarily overwhelmed by her presence before it came back with a vengeance, forcing him to look away from the young woman who still held the key to his heart, painfully aware of his red eyes and shaking hands.

She had probably come to chew him out for putting the plan, Armin, Captain Levi and herself in danger, and as much as Jean knew he deserved her fury he just didn't want to deal with it right now, not when he was already on the verge of tears.

"Are you okay?" Mikasa asked softly, her hand still resting on his shoulder.

Huh? Why was she asking that?

Wasn't she mad at him?

"Y-yes. I'm fine." Jean lied, hoping for perhaps the first time that Mikasa would just leave him alone. "It's just my mouth." He pulled the bloodied cloth away and opened his mouth slightly, showing her his badly chipped tooth and the split lip he had received from the MP's headbutt.

"Baby tooth?" Mikasa knelt down in front of him. It was only then Jean realised she was holding something under her arm. It looked like a bundle of clothes. Probably for Armin.

"Yeah." Jean brought the cloth back to his mouth, thanking the Walls for that small mercy. He'd just have to put up with the gap in his teeth until his adult one came through.

"That's… good, I guess." Mikasa replied, somewhat awkwardly, before letting out a small sigh. "Jean, about what happened…"

Jean tensed up, and tried to look anywhere else but Mikasa's face. "You don't have to say anything. I know I fucked up. I just- I thought Captain Levi was going to knock him out and I was just picking him up, but then I saw he was awake and he started shouting about hurting you guys and my family and I just…"

Jean stopped himself, realising how pathetic he sounded. He hadn't been asked to kill the MP, just knock him out. He literally had the easiest job of the group and he still fucked it up. Armin had put himself in mortal danger to lead the MPs into the trap and he played his part perfectly. Even when he got shot at and the crowd went wild he still did his job! Mikasa and Levi had disarmed and knocked all three MPs down in a brilliant coordinated attack, leaving their enemies defenceless and vulnerable. All Jean had to do was hit the one still conscious man hard over the head. Captain Levi could have given a literal child a stone and they would have done a better job than he had.

"I panicked, alright? I'm sorry." Jean finished loudly, the anger he felt at himself bleeding into his voice. "If you're here to yell at me just hurry up and get it over with."

There was a loaded silence between them as Mikasa considered what he said. Her steely grey eyes peered at him, through him, as all the while her angelic face remained impassive as ever, giving him no clue as to what she was thinking. Was she angry? Disappointed by his failure? Disgusted by his incompetence? Jean simply could not tell, and the wait to find out was killing him.

"Jean, I'm not here to shout at you." Mikasa sighed again, sounding like she was trying to reassure him but didn't quite know how. "I'm not angry that you froze up, I just need you to understand that itcan't happen again. I know it's difficult. I know it's hard. But when we're in the field like that, Jean, I need to know I can count on you to watch my back, just like you can count on me to watch yours. When you hesitate like that, it's not just your own life you are putting at risk, but the lives of everyone you are fighting with. If we can't rely on each other, then we'll just get picked off one by one. And I don't want to lose any more friends."

Jean flinched, and pressed the cloth hard against his mouth, allowing the dull throb of pain to refocus his mind. Friends. What a cruel joke. A few days ago he would have been overjoyed to hear Mikasa thought of him as more than just an acquaintance (even if he had once hoped for more) but now the word just filled him with regret.

Friends didn't put each other in danger like he had.

"Then I should leave, right now. Transfer to the Garrison or something. I-I'm not cut out for this, Mikasa. I'll never be cut out for this." Jean confessed. "I'm just a danger to you all."

Jean wasn't sure what reaction he would get from saying that, but Mikasa's hand tightening around his shoulder and her firmly rebuking his idea with more certainty and passion than he had ever heard from her was definitely not it.

"No! You're a good soldier, Jean. One of the best. You're strong, smart, loyal and even though you make mistakes, you learn from them. That's what sets you apart from others. And that's why I know you won't freeze up again."

Honestly, Jean had no idea what was happening right now. This was easily the longest and most genuine conversation he had ever had with Mikasa, and she was saying all this crazy stuff about him as if she knew him better than he did himself.

Could- could that really how she saw him?

"Y-you're a much better soldier than me." Jean blurted out the first thing that came to mind, unsure what to do with all the conflicting emotions bubbling up inside him. "You're number one."

"Then you should believe me when I say you are a good soldier. I want you fighting at my side, Jean, and I know Armin feels the same way. We both believe in you." Mikasa rose to her feet, the hand slipping from his shoulder and left jutted out between them as an offering. "Now come on, up on your feet."

Jean looked at the offered hand for a moment, ignoring the faint stabs of pain as he chewed on his lower lip considering what Mikasa had said. Was she just making it up to make him feel better? To try and trick him into staying?

No. Mikasa wasn't that sort of person. She was too frank and forthright to do something like that. If she thought he was a waste of space and a danger she would say so. Just like back at Trost when she had happily shamed the rest of them into action.

"Why?" Jean asked, not quite sure what 'why' he was referring to even as he cautiously reached out to take the offered hand.

Was he asking why had said that stuff to him, or why he should stand up? Maybe it was both.

Their hands connected and with a single tug Mikasa lifted Jean to his feet so fast that it made his head spin from the rush of blood. But even through his lightheadedness Jean heard Mikasa's answer loud and clear.

"Because I know you want to make this right, and to do that there's someone you need to talk to."

Marco's face flashed before his eyes, as Jean recalled those few times he had dared to look at him during the ride. He had never seen a living person's eyes so empty and lifeless before.

"Armin is with him at the moment, but it would be better if you were there." Mikasa continued, her hand dropping back to her side. "He'll need his friend."

Jean wasn't sure about that; Marco would probably prefer to see anyone but him right now. After all, he was the one who all but forced Marco to kill someone to save his life. But Mikasa was right. He had to check on him, even if Marco hated him. He owed his best friend that much at least.

Taking a deep breath, Jean shoved the bloody cloth into his pocket feeling that the worst of bleeding had stopped and nodded his head.

Hopefully Marco wouldn't take his rightful anger out on him with a punch to the face.

---

The putrid smell of vomit was almost overwhelming. Armin's nose wrinkled and he could feel his eyes burning, but he didn't move away or stop what he was doing as he continued to gently rub small circles into the back of the sobbing, heaving Marco.

"Just breathe, Marco. Breathe." Armin instructed, well versed in what to do during a panic attack like this.

"I-I d-didn-n't- I-I j-just-" Marco was almost incoherent, repeating himself over and over again in between bouts of vomiting. It was only the firm grip Armin had on the taller boy's arm which stopped him upright as he once again emptied his stomach against the tree. "H-h-he w-was-s ab-"

"Just focus on me, alright?" Armin tried again, taking exaggerated breathes in the hope Marco would copy. "In, and out. In, and out. Yes, like that. Now slow it down. Slower. Slower. That's it."

In between anguished sobs Marco did his best to mimic Armin's slow methodical breathing, fighting for control of himself. Eventually the erratic heaving of his chest slowed down and the sobs gave way to quiet sniffling. Tears were still falling down his face, but at least now Marco didn't feel like he was suffocating.

Armin let out a sigh of relief. He had been worried Marco would pass out if that kept up for much longer.

"Here, drink this. You'll feel better." Armin murmured softly, as he reached for the small flask of water he had in his pocket and handed it over to Marco. With shaking pale hands, Marco accepted the offered bottle, and brought it to his lips. A good amount of the water ended up spilling down his chin, but most of it entered his mouth which he swirled around before spitting it back out, trying to remove the vile taste of bile which clung to the back of his throat.

"T-t-thanks." Marco stammered out, his voice hoarse and cracking as he took another small sip of water. This time he swallowed it down, only for it to come straight back up seconds later.

"S-sorry." Marco shakily apologised, as he wiped a still trembling hand across his mouth and cheeks.

Armin looked down at his boots and the speckles of vomit which dotted them. "Don't worry about it. It'll clean off."

"I-I'll do it." Marco slurred out before his wobbling legs finally gave out beneath him. Had Armin not been expecting that, Marco might have fallen straight into the puddle of sick below. Fortunately Armin had already tightened his grip around Marco's bicep in anticipation of just such an event and was able to pull the ashen-faced teen back up onto his feet.

"It's fine, Marco. Honestly." With a reassuring pat on the back, Armin started to guide Marco away from the befouled tree now that the retching had finally stopped. "Why don't we go sit down for a minute so you can catch your breath?"

Marco put up no resistance as he was led away, leaning heavily on Armin as the two boys walked over to a knee-high stone wall which lined the outskirts of their secret hideout. As soon as Armin helped Marco down, the freckled teen drew his legs up under his chin and wrapped his arms around them.

Armin dropped down beside him, letting his hands rest in his skirt-covered lap. Fighting the urge to fiddle with the fabric, Armin set his eyes forward and stared into the wooded area before them, deciding to let Marco choose if he wanted to talk or not.

"...You don't have to stay." The soft words drifted into Armin's ears, as Marco hugged himself closer, shoulders still trembling. "Y-you've probably got better things to do than look after me."

Armin looked at his young friend, seeing how his face was tucked away behind his knees. He thought back to his own first kill, and how he had felt after. Even now, years after it happened, the memory that came with it was still startlingly clear. It was impossible to forget something so raw and life-changing like that. He had been lucky to have Mikasa with him at the time, to hold and comfort him in his darkest moment. Walls know what would have happened if he had gone through that alone.

Marco might not have a Mikasa to support him but he did have an Armin, and Armin wasn't going to leave him to deal with this alone.

"It's alright, you shouldn't be alone right now." Armin placed a hand on Marco's shoulder. "I know it doesn't feel like it, but you made the right choice. You saved Jean's life."

"B-by taking another." A pained hiss shot out of the gap between Marco's knees and his face. "I kil-" The rest was cut off by a faint gag followed by a loud sniffle.

"Look, Marco, I know-"

"No you don't! You don't understand… I killed a person, Armin. Not a Titan. A living breathing person!"

"I do understand, Marco, trust me. I-... I felt the same way."

Marco looked up from between his knobbly knees, his tearful red eyes widening in surprise. "You've…" The question died in his throat, but both of them knew what he meant to say.

You've killed before?

'Thousands.' Armin knows, casting his mind back to Liberio and the devastation he had left in his wake. 'Tens of thousands.'

Depending on if Reiner was still alive or not, then he easily had more blood on his hands than everyone else on this island combined. But Marco didn't need to know that. Not yet anyway.

"Yeah… I have. It's horrible, I know, but losing a friend- that's so much worse." Armin confessed, releasing the hold he had on Marco's shoulder as the memory of Sasha's lifeless body on the airship flashed before his eyes. If he had to choose between losing another friend or being roasted alive again, he'd pick the latter in a heartbeat.

"Oh." Marco broke eye contact. For a moment, it looked like he was going to tuck his face away again to hide from the world and Armin, but then he hesitated. His hands twitched by his legs, gripping the fabric of his trousers and pulling it taut if for no other reason other than to keep his hands busy.

"Does… does it ever go away?" Marco sounded so young and vulnerable at that moment that it tore at Armin's heart, and he was almost tempted to look away and lie.

Had Marco asked that question to Sasha, Connie or Jean, none of them would know what he was talking about. They would have asked what he was talking about. But Armin didn't, because Armin knew exactly what 'it' was.

It was that feeling of emptiness; that immense sense of loss, as if something you never knew you had was just brutally ripped out and tossed away.

It was that gaping hole in your heart which whispered 'monster', 'murderer', 'killer' in your ear.

It was that almost overpowering fear that you are no longer yourself, and that the real you was now dead and buried forever.

"No," Armin answered honestly, shaking his head. "But it does fade. Eventually."

That might not be the answer Marco wanted, but it was the truth. You put a bullet in someone, and you think you're not you anymore. That you'll never be you again. But then you wake up the next morning and you're still the same person. And then you realise, that was you all along. Learning to accept that was just part of the process.

Marco didn't ask any more questions after that, but the shivering of his shoulders did slowly die out as they sat there, propped up against the wall, listening to the distant chirping of birds and the wind which blew through the trees.

Armin rather lost track of time sitting there, letting his mind wander and drift. He thought about Eren a lot, missing him greatly and wondering where he might be. There was still that feeling of frustration and self-loathing that they had allowed him to be taken, but the sense of hopelessness and defeat had been tempered.

Ymir had been right. When they had discovered the crystal cave was empty they had just given up. Even when Eren's kidnapping occurred and proved to them that their actions were starting to change things outside of their control, they had become so reliant on their memories of the past that, when they found that knowledge being pulled from under them and leaving them in the dark they just shut down.

It was only after Ymir shouted some sense into them did they start thinking clearly again. Their memories might not tell them where Eren was but they could help them find him, and remind the pair of them that no matter what, Rod Reiss was a coward. As long as Historia was alive and out of his reach, he couldn't kill Eren. He wanted the founder back, but won't inflict the curse on himself unless he had no other choice.

They had time, and now, they had two MPs who might know where Eren was. And once they found out where, they would get their best friend and missing family member back.

The sound of gravel being crunched underfoot drew Armin out of his pondering, and he swivelled his head round to see who was coming. He smiled when he saw Mikasa striding over to them, but stiffened when he spotted Jean lingering a few steps behind her and heard Marco sucking in a sharp breath beside him.

This might not end well...

For a fleeting moment there was an awkward silence between the four of them as no one knew what to do, until that indecision was ended by Mikasa clearing her throat and nudging Jean forward with her elbow. The light push managed to shake the taller teen out of his stupor as he shuffled forward towards the sitting Marco and nervously rubbed his arm.

Marco unsteadily rose to his feet, using the wall as support as he stood before Jean, his face once more unreadable. Something unspoken passed between them and whatever Jean was going to say died in his throat, as he bowed his head submissively, unable to look his freckled friend in the eye. It was a small movement but its meaning was clear, Jean would accept whatever reaction Marco deigned to give him.

Armin watched the two boys carefully, and could see Mikasa doing the same. Both of them would intervene if things got violent and while they hoped it wouldn't come to that, this really was unchartered territory especially when it came to Marco, and neither of them was sure how the principled and kindly boy would react.

They were about to find out, however, as Marco opened his mouth and started to speak.

"Jean," He croaked out the name, voice dry and cracked. "...Is your mouth alright?"

Armin's eyes widened a tiny bit. That wasn't the reaction he was expecting, and from the confused look on Jean's face, he wasn't the only one.

"Huh? My mouth-" Jean repeated, dumbly. It was hardly his most eloquent moment, but Armin couldn't hold it against him. That was probably the last thing Jean was expecting.

"You're bleeding." Marco gestured toward Jean and the semi-dried blood dotting his collar and neck.

"Forget about that, man. It's not important."

"Of course it is, you're hurt."

"I don't care!" Jean blurted out, loudly at first bordering on anger, but then his voice dropped back down to something far softer. "I don't care about that. I care about you. I-I fucked up, and you had to pay for it." Jean ducked his head again. "I know it's too late and that it won't change what happened, but I'm so so sorry. Please forgive me."

Marco flinched, nervous unsure eyes darting over at Armin for support. Not wishing to interrupt and force himself into the moment, Armin kept his mouth shut but gave a small nod in return, confident that Marco would understand.

Letting out a long rattling breath, Marco turned back to the quietly awaiting Jean. "I-I don't regret what I did, Jean… I don't regret saving you. I'd do it again if I had to but I'm worried that if it happened again, then I might not be fast enough..."

Now it was Jean's turn to wince, as he stole a quick glance at Mikasa. "I-I understand. Next time… next time I won't hesitate, I promise. And thank you for saving me."

Jean proceeded to throw his arms around Marco, who stiffly returned the gesture completing the awkward embrace. Armin and Mikasa both looked away, knowing that wasn't for them to see.

When the hug broke apart, Jean stepped back, his face red. "We should head back." He mumbled, gesturing over his shoulder. "If you want to, I mean. You don't have to. I just thought you might want to..."

The look on Marco's face couldn't be described as a smile. His skin was still unnaturally pale with dark tear tracks which had dried down his cheeks and his eyes were still downcast and hollow. However, it was a softer look than before, more benign and genial at the effort Jean was making.

"Yeah," He said. "I'd like that."

"You should avoid the main building for a while." Mikasa warned, finally speaking for the first time since her arrival. She gave no further context or reason why but both boys seemed to understand and Marco nodded his thanks to the girl as they moved away, leaving Armin and Mikasa alone on the outskirts of the hideout.

"Will he be alright?" Mikasa asked aloud once Marco and Jean were out of ear-shot.

"I think so." Armin replied, even as a darkerpart of him knows Marco will have to be. This wouldn't be the last time he'd have to kill, not if they wanted to rescue Eren and then survive what truly lay beyond the Walls.

With a faint non-committal hum, Mikasa cocked her head towards the wood and started moving towards the tree line. Armin followed her without a second thought.

Once they had slipped past the first few layers of trees Mikasa opened up. "I talked to Jean before we arrived. He told me he panicked and just froze up."

Armin nodded along. "He hesitated last time as well. We should have seen that coming."

"I guess so. It hit him hard though. He talked about leaving and joining the Garrison."

"What?" Armin genuinely couldn't believe his ears. Jean? Join the Garrison? Just picturing his friend wearing a rose jacket felt wrong.

"I talked him out of it, of course, but he was really shaken by what happened. I didn't think he'd freeze like that just knocking the MP out."

Swallowing down a knot of discomfort, Armin started to worry they had neglected and failed their friends as much as they had Eren. They had dragged them along on this wild ride without thinking, being so used to having them all beside them. Had they given a single thought as to how it might affect them? Just because they were shifters and night-impervious to harm that didn't mean their friends were. All it would take was one slip up, one miss-step, and they would lose one of their friends forever.

Should they have encouraged the others to join the Garrison or even the MPs instead? That way, even if they never became the friends they once were, at least they would all be alive and well. And in the end, wasn't that the most important thing?

Armin chewed his lower lip as he answered. "He's not the man we remember, Mikasa. None of them are. They're younger than we were back then, and greener as well. We need to be extra careful."

Mikasa let out a weary breath. "I know, I know. I'm just not used to this halfway point they've reached. There's times when it's almost like talking to the old them again, the people we knew, but then they say or do something weird and it throws me. I nearly slipped up the other week when Sasha started her-" Mikasa abruptly cutting herself off as a faint pink glow appeared on her cheeks. "Um, nevermind. It's just confusing, that's all."

Armin looked at Mikasa in confusion, wondering where she was going with that before Mikasa just shook her head and started talking again. "I'm guessing you did something similar for Marco. How was he?"

"I did. He- He wasn't taking it well at first. Similar to how I reacted, to be honest." Armin could feel Mikasa's eyes on him as he said that. "I told him that I know how he feels. I didn't give any details obviously, but I just let him know he wasn't alone."

"Well if you think that will help, then it's probably for the best. Levi already suspects you have, so if Marco says anything it won't be too much of an issue." Mikasa noted aloud as she stepped over a fallen branch. "If it comes up, just say it happened back in the camps. That will get shorty off our backs."

Armin grimaced. Mikasa had already informed him what Levi had said before the raid on the chapel. Was he really so obvious that the Captain who had only known him for a month had somehow sussed that out? If Levi told Erwin about that, they could be in a lot of trouble.

"I'll think of something, don't worry."

They continued to walk through the wood in companionable silence, each digesting the day's events. They had plenty of time to do this as well, knowing they wouldn't be needed back at the hideout for a while, or at least until Hanji, Levi and Erwin got some information from their two captured MPs.

It was only when Armin heard the sound of running water did he think to ask where it was they were actually going.

"Hey Mikasa… are we going anywhere in particular or just wandering? I don't mind either way."

Mikasa gestured with her free hand at their grime-covered clothing, hers which were dotted with a bit of dried blood (not Mikasa's own of course) and his with the sort of general filth one might find in a back alley. "Since there's no running water at the hideout, we're going to the stream to clean up. I've brought some spare clothes as well in case you wanted to get changed." She said, rather pointedly eyeing the dress he was still in.

Armin felt a small playful grin pulling at his lips as he reached down and tugged at the skirt's sides, putting on a thoughtful expression. "Hmm, I don't know. I wasn't sure at first but I think it's starting to grow on me. What do you think?"

Mikasa raised an eye. "I think you should leave the dresses to Historia. You'll give Ymir too many mixed feelings otherwise."

Armin let out a barking laugh, ruefully shaking his head. "Well we wouldn't want that."

Had the others seen them joking around like this they would likely be horrified, refusing to believe the two of them could act so callously after what had just happened. But the simple truth of the matter was that violence and death had become such a common occurrence in Armin's and Mikasa's lives, they were almost completely desensitised to it. Once someone has seen and caused as much death as they had, what was one more unknown body on the pile?

Humour was just one of the many coping mechanisms they had developed over the years to keep them sane. Something their friends would unfortunately soon discover and likely participate in themselves.

'And Ymir isn't the only one.' Mikasa thought to herself as she walked beside the still chuckling Armin. 'I much prefer you in trousers.'

---

Omake #1 - It's a trap!

It had been funny at first. Hilarious even.

Potato girl and Cue ball had been practically falling over with laughter, while Horse boy and Freckles had been grinning behind their hands and trying to muffle their giggles. Ymir herself had been richly amused by it, but since it was being done to protect Historia she had decided to be magnanimous and keep her mockery to herself. That had probably been for the best as well since Scarfy had not been in the most lenient of moods and had swiftly kicked the others out of this back room with a look that promised terrible retribution should they attempt to sneak back in.

Ymir had gotten away with only a scathing look, and it had taken almost all her willpower not to flash scarfy a mocking smirk and mouth the words 'similar interests'. But considering she was already on thin ice with the girl following the wake-up call she had given scarfy in the cave, Ymir decided to just lean back against the wall and watch. It was funny enough without ribbing scarfy.

However, as the minutes passed and the dress was put on, hair straightened, and powder was dabbed on cheeks, Ymir didn't find it funny any more.

"Can I just say for the record, how fucking weird this is?" Ymir blurted out, unable to keep a lid on her thoughts any longer. "Because I'm really uncomfortable right now. I didn't sign up to the scouts to take part in Commander eyebrow's creepy fetishes."

Alas, if Ymir was expecting some sort of sympathy from the three others in the room she was sorely disappointed. Leaning out around her girlfriend's unturned back, came a flushed pale face which raised an immaculately shaped eyebrow at Ymir.

"You're uncomfortable?" Her 'girlfriend' asked, lips pressed together in a tight line, expressing his own intense discomfort.

Rather than firing off some snarky remark in retaliation like she usually would, Ymir just averted her gaze as a faint pink hue formed on her cheeks. If Ymir thought looking away would grant her some kind of reprieve from the strange mix of emotions welling up within her breast she was once again disappointed, for by averting her gaze away from Arlert, she had accidentally looked directly at Mikasa who was still standing guard beside the door.

The stoic girl caught Ymir looking her way and held her gaze, silently warning her not to say a word.

"Don't move, Armin. I haven't finished with your hair." Ymir's actual girlfriend said, lightly tugging Armin's head back to continue tying up his hair. Mikasa looked over to the two blonds and her expression softened somewhat at the sight.

"And Ymir, darling, could you be a dear and ask Sasha if I can borrow one of her hair ties? I don't have a spare."

Historia, Walls bless her, was clearly giving Ymir an out, easily picking up on her growing distress. While normally Ymir wouldn't run away from anything, the sight of Armin Arlert sitting cross-legged in a chair, in a light pink dress, powdered cheeks and silky smooth hair had started to cause Ymir's mind to wander in very strange, very awkward places.

Because damn it to hell and back, Arlert didn't look half bad.

Ymir tried to rationalise it by telling herself that, of course, she would find her girlfriend's body double attractive! That was the point of a body double was it not? To look as close as possible to the real deal? Even if they had different… um… equipment downstairs, for lack of a better word.

It was fine. Ymir wasn't worried. It was a totally natural reaction to have, and she shouldn't be concerned. There was nothing strange about her finding Arlert dressing up as Historia to be oddly captivating. Nothing strange at all...

"Ow!" Arlert let out a yelp when Historia brushed another knot out of his blonde locks. "Careful with the hair. You're pulling too hard."

Oh.

Oh no.

Ymir's mouth went dry and her heart leapt into her words, in that tone of voice, with that getup, triggered a rather particular memory to crop up in her mind's eye, a very fond memory indeed, and Ymir felt a familiar twinge in a rather particular part of her body. It was the sort of twinge that came with a certain sensation that Ymir refused to name.

In an instant, the freckled girl shot up from the wall she had been resting again, her face noticeably warmer than before.

"R-Right! Potato girl, hair tie, I can do that." Ymir stammered out a confirmation, swallowing down the newly formed lump in her throat as she turned to flee the room in a fluster before her reputation as an unflappable hardass was ruined forever.

"Be right back!" She shouted over her shoulder as she slipped out of the door, shrinking under the heavy-lidded stare Mikasa gave her as she left.

As soon as she had left the room and had made sure no one else was around, Ymir buried her head in her hands and let out a muffled scream.

'...I swear if this awakens something in me, I'm going to be so pissed off.'

---

So when I was planning this chapter I couldn't decide how I wanted the 104th to deal with killing for the first time. My original draft basically had Armin and Mikasa going sicko mode on a bunch of MPs and the others just being kinda horrified but I decided against it.

Forcing one of the 104th to do the deed themselves would be more impactful and I settled on Marco as he is basically too precious for this world so who better than to put through mental anguish like that...

I'm not a psychopath I promise.

Anyway, next chapter will have the scouts finding out where Eren and Petra is and going to after them and depending on the word count or not Armin and Mikasa are going to go on a little side quest.

As always, thank you for all the reviews, favourites and follows. It means the world to me.

And finally I just wanted to answer the review left by horriblechanse. You are absolutely right about what you said, and I definitely missed several opportunities to show a real change in EMA's relationship in the beginning. If I could go back in time I would put a lot more focus on that in the early chapters, but I am actively resisting the urge to go back and redo the start of NTT cause as I'm sure most of my readers know that 99.9% of fics that start getting rewritten will be inevitable be abandoned.

Eren will be a character I put more focus on again once everyone is reunited.