I'm so sorry about the wait guys. This chapter is the longest yet though, and I'm close to finishing the next one too. I will post it really soon to make it up to everyone. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy the latest chapter. Comments and criticisms are appreciated!

Saph's PoV

It was easy to slink away from the headquarters back into the Underground. I had originally thought there were going to be guards or at least a system to keep track of who was at the base and who was out. I was happy to find such a thing didn't exist. All I had to do was show that I was wearing a Survey Corps outfit before I was able to descend down the stairs. The place that had been my home for the past few years, where I didn't mean I had any fond memories of.

This wasn't a place where being recognized nor affiliated with the military would be a good choice. Taking off my cape, I rolled it up and set it into the backpack I had brough. Then I threw on a different cloak so it would be hard to distinguish my garb from the average criminal in this place. My hood was up so it would cover my face. Rushing along, I hurried inside the crowd where I needed to blend in before I reached my destination. Snatches of conversation could be heard around me as people flowed through the narrow alleys.

"How much do you think we'll get for it?"

"Less than we should, but it's not like there are enough buyers to begin with."

I shuffled aside so the burly men could pass without actually stomping on my foot. Running across the rooftops was beginning to seem like a good idea, but I didn't want to draw any attention to myself if other military members were in here.

"There haven't been any more people in the Military police killed."

"You think the Ripper is dead?"

"Not if the rumors about him are true. I don't think anything could kill him."

I kept trying to pass the group of people talking about the Ripper, but they were clogging up the entire spot. Hopping up and down, I realized that I was on the outskirts of a crowd watching a fist fight. This could take awhile if I wanted to pass without any trouble. Any minute someone could wake up and realize that I wasn't in the bed. Of course I had stuffed some pillows underneath the covers, but that wouldn't work for a close inspection.

Deciding that them discovering I had snuck out was more likely than someone from discovering me down here, I scrambled up on to the nearest roof. Sprinting, I made my way to the old woman's house. The smell of cheap perfume and booze were the strongest there. That was where the prostitutes were. Almost every building here offered food, booze, and pretty woman for sale. While I had never been one to pass up food, I wasn't here for that reason. This was also where the best information could also be found. Tongues tended to be looser in places like these. A heavy price was attached to every word though.

Three men were in front of the desk. An old, wrinkled, woman sat on the other side as she handed out pieces of paper. I kept my hood up as I peeked to see what topic of business they were discussing. Three names and an address were on the slip. My reading skills weren't top notch, but I could make out one, Mikasa. Curiosity satisfied, I moved back before anyone would think I was peeking.

"The mother is the one we really want, but you'll still take the daughter for the money we agreed on, right?"

Kidnapping. What a delightful way to make a living. Dealing in the human black market was a great way to make cash, a dangerous one too. That had never been an option open to me, not enough strentgh nor connections.

The woman hacked a little before nodding her head. "Just kill the father, he is of no worth to me."

It was probably the leader who leaned over and shook her hand. Then they all left, not casting a glance my way. What a group of guys anyone would be lucky to be friends with.

"Agni," I greeted as I approached her. "I'm in a rush, so just give me whatever you have."

"Everyone's in a rush, Saph. Here is all the information I was able to scrounge up about where your missing brother might be. You do realize that you didn't give me that many days so if you're willing to pay more…"

I shook my head as I took the notebook that was being held out for me. "I need to check all these places before I even consider paying more. You're prices aren't the cheapest."

"Do you want cheap information or good? You can't have both, sweetie. My girl's clients can't get to suspicious or else they won't be coming back. Gotta find a balance between getting good details, and pleasing them." Her sunken eyes held no warmth as she appraised me. "It's too bad that you aren't attractive, then you could get the information yourself. Just because some boys like them young doesn't mean they like them ugly."

"I wouldn't want to work for you anyways, Agni," I snarled at her dismissing tone directed towards me.

"I'm a busy woman. That's all the info I have since you came in here. Screaming something about you getting out of here, and having the cash to pay for info." Agni waved a hand carelessly.

I stared at the old woman. No affections were held towards her, but I had known Agni for years. This might be the last time I ever see her. "Goodbye. It was never a pleasure doing business with you, but at least you got me what I wanted." Feeling uncharacteristically generous, I gave her an extra coin. "If you ever happen upon any more information, I'll be on the surface happy to accept it."

"Will do sweetheart. It'll be extra for the delivery service, but I'm sure you will able to afford it now that you live outside," Agni grumbled.

Content that she won't forget the opportunity to make money any time soon, I headed out. Now I just needed to make a hasty return before Flagon came in to wake us up. Without a second thought, I hopped on the roof and made my way to the staircase to the surface. I almost tried to go up before I realized that I had taken my hood off. Hurriedly, I put the Corp's hood on before I rushed up.

The streets were empty, and my ability to disappear within the darkness came in handy as I slinked into the build, avoiding any wandering people. Hopefully, I would be able to get a few hours of sleep before we had to be rudely woken up at the crack of dawn. It seemed as if no one was awake, so I tucked myself in the sheets, weariness dragging me into slumber without a second thought.

It was still too early for me to get up. At least in my opinion. Training coupled with my outing last night had killed my muscles, and they made sure to let me know that fact.

"Saph! Wake up!" Isabel called tapping my face with her finger.

I scrunched my nose up at her while blinking consistently. Not coherent in the slightest, I dragged my body forward, forgetting that I was on the top bunk. Imagine my surprise when I put a hand out to touch the floor for me to only touch air. "Ack!" I cried as I hit the ground.

"Get off the floor and clean up your appearance. It's completely disgusting," Levi said while stepping on my back with his foot.

Getting on my elbows, I glared at Levi. Without hesitation, I quickly flipped over to grab his foot. A harsh tug was all it took to send the midget toppling forward. "Don't touch me!" I growled once he had landed in front of me.

Sensing the fight that was beginning to brew between us, Farlan hurriedly helped Levi up while Isabel did the same for me. "Someone didn't get enough sleep last night," Isabel said. "Come on Saph," the girl cheered while hooking an arm around me, "I'm sure breakfast will help you not be so grouchy!"

Together, the two of us headed towards the dining room. The movement and the smell of food helped me wake up; I could feel my mouth began to salivate. Nodding respectfully towards every member we passed, I was just met with cold stares in return. 'Useless thugs' seemed to be the term spat under their breaths most of the time. That didn't mean I would ruin my gentle demeanor.

Tables were lined up in neat rows spanning across the whole room. Farlan had commented that while they had prepared the area to be used for hundreds of people, it was barely filled up half-way most of the time. At the moment, my mind was to focused on the food by the plates to realize what he had been implying by saying that.

"Let's get a spot where Levi and Farlan can eat with us too," Isabel mentioned before scanning the area for the perfect spot. I was content to just shovel my food in while standing up, waiting for her to make up her mind.

I had just been done swallowing my bread down when I felt someone staring at me. Glancing to the side, I realized that Flagon was looking at me with an aghast expression on his face.

Giving my mouth a wipe with me sleeve, I tilted my head to the side. "Is there something I can help you with?"

Flagon just shook his head in exasperation. "I should have guess you guys wouldn't have had any manners."

I was getting tired of this. So what? We weren't raised in circumstances that allowed us to learn manners. When you are fighting to survive everyday, you don't care if how you eat is impolite. Plastering on the fakest smile I could, with a sugary sweet voice, I said, "My apologies. My parents had served in the Survey Corps like you guys, but they were both eaten on a expedition when I was young. It was a tragedy to be forced to live Underground without parents to teach me manners. I was more focused on not getting raped and killed when I lived there instead of how I should daintily eat my food." With that, I grabbed Isabel and tugged her to a table that had plenty of space between Flagon and I.

"Did that really happen?" Isabel inquired as soon as we sat down. "I thought you had been born in the Underground."

My palms rested flat on the hard wood of the table, and I considered pushing myself up to walk away. It hadn't been exactly my plan to convey my past in any way, shape, or form to Isabel. Instead of running away, I gave a gruff nod. "Yeah. That's most of it." I'm glad I hadn't mentioned my brother at all. Talking about him would be a painful, bad idea. At least now I had information on him from Agni. I had been excited to look through the folder today, but the chance to has yet to arrive.

"What were they like? I can't remember my parents at all, so I don't know how most parents act." Her eyes were filled with sadness, but she gave me a weak grin as when she asked.

I could see how her attachment to Levi had been more like one of a leading figure than of siblings. I should have guessed by how she called him Big Brother. Does Suzu view me the same way? Maybe he had, before I disappeared.

A small tap on my hand drew my attention back to the question she had posed. "I can't remember them that well. My mother liked flowers I think," I started beginning to stare at my nails caked in dirt, "my father would press the petals into journals for her. It seemed that during every expedition, the two of the would find new flowers to record." There was a tightness in my chest that wasn't going away. What would my life look like if they were still alive? "My father had a beard I would tug on sometimes. I got my ringlets from my mother, and I remember hearing that I got my height from my father."

"They sound like good parents," Farlan said as he came over.

I found myself looking up to see Levi and Farlan getting into the table with us. "I didn't see them often, not with all their training and expeditions. I do remember that they always told us stories of the outside world, so they couldn't be to bad."

"How did you end up down there then?" Levi muttered.

I heaved a sigh. "No one would take us in when they died, so they made us go Underground."

"Us?" Farlan asked, his curiosity piqued.

Damn him and his observation skills. I still wasn't going to bring up my brother. General details about my parents won't harm me, but the knowledge that I was searching for my brother might. "I mean me and the other kids who didn't have anywhere else to go."

Before anyone else could speak, Flagon stood up and pointed at us. "You four! Once your done eating breakfast, the commander wants you to go to the strategy room to learn the formation from Erwin."

Isabel, Farlan, and I all nodded our heads in consent, while Levi just crossed his arms grumpily. As soon as Flagon sat back down, we all put our heads together to whisper.

"This would be a good chance for someone to go through his belongings," I said.

Farlan shook his head, "I already checked everywhere inside his room, it has to be somewhere else."

"Maybe he has it hidden off of the grounds?" Isabel added.

"Not that important of a document," Farlan rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "it might be in a bag he carries around, that or on him."

My nails dug into the table as I brought myself closer. "Let's hope the documents are in his bag. I don't want to have to go searching inside his pant and coat pockets for it."

"If it is, we'll just have to wait for a chance to dig through those. He can't be wearing them all the time," Isabel sniffed as she pouted.

Farlan nodded at her words. "Today we will check his bag, but if it's not in there, we are going to have to wait for a opportunity to present itself otherwise."

With everyone in agreement, we ate our breakfast in silence. Afterwards, we headed towards the classroom with faces filled with determination. Our steps resounded heavily on the stone flooring as we made our way to the room that contained our enemy. Levi lead the way inside, no noise besides the sounds of our breathing could be heard. Erwin Smith sat up front, he almost seemed to be a statue with how little of movement he made.

A shiver of fear tingled at the base of my neck when our eyes met. His calculating gaze made me think that all was not well in this situation. He might have been clearly outnumbered, but I was the one who felt like I was in danger. There wasn't a desk far enough away from this man. Farlan had to yank Levi and I up closer because of our complete reluctance to be near him. Mine was because I was afraid, Levi's because of hatred.

Just as we settled into the chairs, did Erwin gift us with a brisk smile. "I'm going to show you four what the formation looks like, and where you're going to be in it."

The man then continued to go on about his creation. Why that was there. How this was supposed to help the Survey Corps. Who was placed in where. My eyelids began to droop because of the constant flow of information and my lack of sleep last night. Farlan gave me a harsh pinch. The pain startled me into action and I jerked away.

All it took was that little of movement before Erwin fixated his gaze onto me. "Is there something wrong, Saph?"

I wet my lips, rushing to find an excuse. "I heard not all Titans are the same. Would there be a certain kind that this thing wouldn't work on?"

"Deviants," Erwin said, giving a sharp nod. We then had to hear about how Deviants are more dangerous because they were unpredictable.

Frantically, I tried to think of a way to get to his desk without being suspicious. Just as I was about to give up on ever peering into the bag, Farlan leaned close to Isabel to murmur something. Isabel's eyes instantly shone with excitement.

"Sir!" Isabel shouted, leaping out of the desk with a hand raised, "can I draw a picture of what I think a Titan looks like?" Erwin couldn't get a response out before Isabel began to step over the furniture in her haste to reach the board.

"I want to draw one too!" I said with a mask of glee. Grabbing Farlan's arm, I tugged him up to where Isabel was at. "Don't you want to draw one too?"

Snatching a piece of chalk, I carefully outlined my Titan. Making sure Erwin was keeping his attention on Isabel and I, sometimes I would turn around just to ask a question or point something out.

"Do they have super long legs?" Isabel asked with her tongue sticking out in concentration.

Erwin had been quiet most of this time, but he responded, "some of them do."

Farlan was peeking into the bag, carefully making sure not to move any of the items it contained. He made a hurried gesture when Isabel had put the chalk down. I'm guessing he needs more time.

"Erwin, maybe Levi wants to try?" I said still staring at my drawing. It looked terrible, but I also hadn't put my entire focus into making it pretty nor an actual acurate rendition of what I imagine them to look like.

"No," Levi retorted. Farlan had pulled his hands out of the satchel and was trying to look as innocent as possible.

Isabel began to pout with her lips pursed. "Please?" she pleaded. Tilting my head to the side, I gestured that it would be for Farlan's sake.

After giving one last glare in Farlan's direction, Levi got up to make his way down to us. Right when he was about to draw, Levi shook his head no. "I can't draw on such a dirty chalkboard."

"Let's clean it then," Isabel cheered forcefully. Out of all of us, she was the one who hated cleaning the most. "Can you go get us some supplies, Erwin?"

It surprised me that he wasn't showing any signs of anger yet. Our antics were a bit on the extreme for their to be no punishment headed our way. Instead, Erwin seemed to agree with Isabel's proposition as he left the room after telling us the supply closet was close by. Just when he was about to leave completely, Erwin turned around and grabbed the bag.

"All that for nothing," Isabel sighed when the man was gone.

Farlan shook his head. "No. I had barely enough time to check if it was in there. Nothing suggests that the documents are in that bag."

Levi patted Isabel's head gruffly, "Good job."

That was all it took before Isabel was spinning around in circles, deliriously happy that her Big Bro had given her a compliment.

"Does that mean they are probably on him?" I asked, keeping an eye on the door the entire time.

"Unless we think of another spot, Erwin has been either keeping them on him this entire time or moving them from place to place."

"So we are going to have to kill him," Levi said without a hint of hesitation.

Resigned, Farlan wearily accepted the verdict, "If it comes to that then yes."

The burden fell heavily at that moment. Stealing off of the person himself was the worst option we could have been give. My pickpocketing skills could come in handy, but these were slips of paper we were talking about. Not a slice of bread. Not an apple. But paper. Chances of succeeding had dropped significantly, but if any of us wanted a life outside of the Underground, we were going to have to find a way to get those documents.