A/N: I literally got this idea when it was mentioned that Eren had his own place a year prior in the recent chapter, so that would have been when he was infiltrating the Marley, assuming he was there for a year. ANYWAYS this is another TIME SKIP WARRIOR ANNIE AU, similar to 'Fathers', but this story, and how Eren & Annie meet will obviously be different. The setting is around Ch. 93/94, before Reiner and the kiddos got aboard the train to Liberio, and when we got our first glimpse of HOBO Eren from behind. Keep in mind, I tried to write Eren just as he was in the meeting with Reiner, but with added creepiness. lmao

Waver PT. I

The rickety stairs gave a quiet groan each step Annie took. Up, and up she went, following the tall man in white.

He calls himself Kruger now, an alias perhaps… or the name of someone that he knew?

Her eyes never strayed from his back as he led her through littered alleyways, and vacated backyards, she suspected he made the route to be a more difficult path for her to trace back to, should she want to seek him out again.

Well, as cautious as he was, Annie Leonhardt did not rise in rank for nothing, she hadn't been made Vice Commander just because she had fought valiantly against the Marley's enemies for nearly four years. She was the one who had formulated battle plans with Chief Zeke, the one who led the young warriors alongside him, the one who trained them in combat. The one who picked up Reiner constantly because his incompetence, and his weak mind often made him a secure target to their enemies.

Bertolt was dead. Or presumed dead. Even years later, it still ached to think about it. So, on Bertolt's behalf, she took his place as Reiner's voice of reason, as much as she loathed to do so. She was a bit harsh to him, still; she never forgot what he made her do back on that island. She never forgave him for it either.

She wondered if Eren would ever forgive her for all the trauma- all the betrayal she'd inflicted on him, all the deaths she was held accountable for.

Did he come to Eldia to sate his revenge? Did he come to kill me… To kill Reiner?

She watched him, watched his long brown hair swish with every movement he made, then finally when they were nearly to the roof of the tenement building, he turned down a dimly lit hallway, she followed swiftly after.

At the end of the hallway, the gray light of afternoon shone through a window looking out to the filthy alleyways below. A small table was pushed underneath the window, it held a cracked vase, but no flowers. Eren stopped at a door that was painted a murky shade of green.

Like his eyes. She thought.

"This is it." He spoke after not saying anything for the whole of the trip. Then he rummaged in his coat pocket and took out a small, rusted skeleton key. Annie was faintly reminded of the one he used to wear around his neck as a trainee. That one had been the key to his basement, Reiner had informed her, the key that had led Eren to the truth.

The door whined as Eren pushed it open after he'd unlocked it. An uneasy feeling settled in the pit of Annie's stomach than, twisting, and turning her innards. It felt like she'd swallowed a can of worms, and it didn't go down right. Annie grimaced, taking a step back, She wasn't quite so frightened as she was determined to find out why Eren was here, and how. In the back of her mind, she always knew she would meet Eren again, but she'd thought it would be on opposite sides of the battlefield, as titans, not as people.

Perhaps that was why she was beginning to feel nervous. He did say he only wanted to talk. When he sought her out in the market place as she lagged behind Reiner and the young warriors. He had caught her by the arm before she even realized they were being followed.

"I'm going back to my apartment. Follow me if you want to know why I'm here, I'm sure you have questions, and I have answers." He whispered into her ear.

"And if I don't?" She had replied.

His shadowy green eyes had then flickered to the young warriors, then to Reiner, then to her. And she'd caught the meaning.

Now she was here. Alone, with him. The most wanted man in the country.

I shouldn't have left so abruptly… Reiner would wonder where I've gone off too.

In hindsight, it was stupid of her to leave without so much of a word to her underlings, and Reiner. But, she did not want to draw attention to Eren. Reiner would surely know it was him, just as she had. Even behind the long hair that covered his eyes, the bit of facial hair he'd hadn't shaved in days to disguise himself.

She hoped Reiner wouldn't seek her out, she hoped the kids would keep his attention off of her long enough.

Stay where you are safe, you idiot.

"Are you coming in?" That murky green settled on her again. Annie hugged herself, she did her best to appear unperturbed, stepping into the room. She squinted, making out the shapes of his sparse furniture, It was too dark inside… and colder, she noticed once the front door had been shut.

"Sorry, I don't have any firewood." Eren was a white shadow in her periphery as he moved around, "For now, I'll just open the windows, and don't worry, I've chosen the most secluded part of town to live in, there's hardly anyone outside that would hear us."

That last part did little to quell Annie's nerves.

Eren unlatched the little lock of the window, drawing it open. The warm breeze kissed Annie's skin, she closed her eyes momentarily taking solace in the outside, and the smell of sea salt in the air, it did feel unbearably stuffy in here.

She heard the sound of wood scraping on wood, turning to see Eren holding out a chair for her. He had no kitchen space, the room was boxy, and closed in, she guessed this was one of those apartments where the washroom was located outside, but she caught a glimpse of a large basin underneath the bed. The room didn't looked much to lived in either. It was practically bare, safe for a few of coats hanging in a little wardrobe opposite of the bed. That made it all the more difficult for her to decipher how long he had been here.

Eren beckoned to her. "Come, sit."

The table was round, and small, but no smaller than the one outside, and a mug of whatever he'd been previously drinking was left right on the middle. Annie took the seat he held out for her, still observing every corner of the room.

Eren took his time removing his white trench coat, hanging it up among the others in the wardrobe.

No doubt none of those clothes are actually his. Nor did he pay for them.

After wandering about, he finally sat down across from her, his hair tied back into a knot, reminiscent of the way she used to wear it. She wore it differently now, as her hair had grown longer, and Annie found she had little time to keep it short as war closed in on them. Some of it fell loose around her shoulders, while the rest was tied back in an old fashioned bun. She decided she'd be the one to break the ice between them.

"How did you get this place?"

"Is that the first thing you want ask me?"

"Yes."

He nodded, scooting his chair closer, enlacing his hands a top the table. "I needed somewhere to stay and lay low for awhile, so I started to look for inns to live in this district, luckily I found a woman in a textiles shop who was renting out this room," Eren gestured to the bed that was situated in the corner of the room, "told me an old man used to live here, but he died of a heart attack on that very bed, so she was having trouble finding a tenant."

Annie knew he was only revealing this much because the information was outright useless to her… She would have to ease in on him until he slipped something important up. But she would have to be discreet upon doing so. Have patience. Though she was never one for waiting.

"How long?"

"How long what?"

"How long have you been staying here?"

Eren quirked an eyebrow, "How long have you been fighting that war with the Mid-East union?"

"Three years." She answered before she could stop herself. Annie pressed her lips together, mentally berating herself.

Well, it's not as if that bit of information mattered to him. He might have already figured it out given that the warriors hadn't invaded the island… yet.

"You've been here for three years?" She questioned him carefully, observing his reaction. Yet no amount of emotion passed over that stone facade of his. His passiveness nearly mirrored her known.

"No." His heavy green gaze bore into her, "Far less in fact, but I didn't expect to stay this long. It was my curiosity that got the better of me."

So he was here for less than three years… but he's stayed in this room for more than a day, perhaps even weeks… months... a year?

"What do you mean?"

"The people here, the so-called 'pure bloodied Eldians'. They're not so different from the Eldians on the Island."

The way he spoke the words pure bloodied Eldians, it did not sound as if he resented them for the self proclaimed title, but rather he couldn't believe it was leaned in than, searching her face for a glimmer of… something. Annie schooled her features into apathy. She'd learned to hide her emotions long ago, she was better than at it then he ever will be.

"You knew that to, didn't you?" Eren cocked his head, never taking his eyes off her, and she the same.

"I always figured the Eldians here would at least think differently," He continued softly, "have different views from the Marley. But… They think of us Islanders just the same as the rich used to think of peasants outside the wall of Sina."

Annie clasped her hands tightly beneath the table.

"The Eldians here, they live just as we do. They suffer from the same hands, they're oppressed by the same group of people."

It's true. We do think we're better than those who live on the island. But in the eyes of the Marley, a rat is a rat, no matter how 'pure' our vermin blood is.

"Not to mention, there is no royalty ruling this country," Eren leaned back, "Is there? All I ever see are Marleyan Military men and Eldians."

"The Marley don't have a monarch, they have their own government."

"Yes, but there is always someone controlling them from behind the curtains. Our king on the Island was a fake, I'm sure that news reached you long ago."

It had. You're new ruler is Historia Reiss. True heir to the throne.

Annie dare not speak her thoughts, however. She had known Historia Reiss as Christa Lenz, the doll-like innocuous girl of the 104th squad who put the care of others before herself. The news of the Reiss heir only reached her when Pieck had come to her rescue in the dungeons of the Survey Corp base. While Eren and the rest of the Survey Corp traveled to Shigansina. It still came as a surprise to Annie. She'd known the king had been a fake, known the true heir had been hidden among them… She just never would have guessed it would have been that girl of all people.

"Who is ruling Paradise?" She asked, a bit rashly. But she knew, given that kind of power, Historia could not have held the Island up on her own these past four years.

Eren's mouth pulled back into a slight scowl. "Whoseruling this country?"

Annie studied him for a couple of seconds, then sighed. "If it's not the Marley, then I truly don't know. Maybe there is a secret royal family like there was on the Island, but I haven't heard or have seen anything of them, nor do I know if they are Eldian or not."

That was the truth of it. At least part of the truth. The Marley hid their secrets well enough.

Eren nodded, "We… Paradise has a queen now," Eren snatched the mug from the middle the table, staring deadeye into it, before placing it back on the table. His mind seemingly elsewhere.

"She's reliable… good to her people, too good in fact."

Annie didn't miss the way he gritted out that last bit.The Queen is a sensitive topic for him. Annie guessed. Given that reaction. Something odd went down in Paradise, and it had involved the Queen herself.

"Was she the one who sent you here?"

He fixed her with resolute stare. "I have my own reasons for being here."

And what could those reasons be?

Eren allowed her to mull over his words. Outside, the birds chirped happily, resting on the clotheslines of tenants, a dog barked from someone's yard in the distance. She could almost here the waves of the ocean crashing onto the shore. Somewhere around the Seaport's Marketplace, Reiner began to worry for Annie's absence.

"Tell me," Eren said after a moment, "those kids you were with, they are your successors?"

Annie sat up, peering at him through narrowed blue eyes. "One of them is, yes."

"Which one would that be?"

Her temper rose. "You haven't even told me why you are here, why should I tell you who is going to inherit my power?"

He was silent for a minute, then he shrugged. "I'm curious, is all."

"I know who are the successors for the armored titan." He added before Annie could get a word out. Her mouth hung open slightly, blue eyes wide, shocked for all of a second, before she masked it. A little too late, though, Eren saw it all.

"That little brunette girl, and that fair haired boy. They were talking loudly of it when I tracked you down."

"How long were you following us?!"

"Long enough."

Annie leaned against the chair, trying to compose herself as she tucked back strands of blonde behind her ear. "They're… only one of them is going to inherit the armored titan."

Eren snorted. "Obviously."

"I guess one of them would have to prove themselves better than the other, is that it? That they're worthy to wield such power?"

Annie said nothing.

"You went through the very same kind of training didn't you?"

We had the jaw's and colossal titan than. Annie glowered at him. There was not much competing against the others, not unless we had too.

Eren ignored her tenacious expression, "Do you know who was the female titan before you?"

The question caught her off guard. She never once thought of the previous female titan… Often when she tried, the memories of them came up foggy, unclear.

"I don't… My memory of that day is blank. I woke up with the power of shifting, that's all I know."

It was the truth. All that she could recall really, was that she had been clutching the very trick ring her father had insisted she take with her to the island.

"Aren't you curious of that day?"

Yes.

"Why should I be?" Annie did her best to sound dismissive. "It's just one warrior passing their shifter ability to another, who possessed the female titan before me doesn't matter."

"Is that the same mentality your little warrior is going to have once they devour you, and take your power?"

"It should be."

"So you don't care for living until the end?"

Annie almost scoffed at that. She had two years left before the life began draining from her body, before her wits completely abandoned her, and she wouldn't be able to tell apart one face from another. Her heart ached when she thought of her father having to care for her in such a vegetative state… No. That was no way to live the remainder of her life. Her father deserved better than that. Better to be through with it. Better to die quickly, than to start wishing for death.

"My end is nearing," Annie put a hand to her chest, right above her heart, "as is Reiner's I'm sure you guessed, we have another year until our successors became titan shifters."

"What about your father?"

A beat. Annie blinked slowly. "What?"

Eren shuffled closer, picking her apart with those green, green eyes of his. "Back when we were trainees, you used to talk a lot of your father when we sparred together… You even compared me to him once. He was also the one who taught you how to fight in that unique way you do, am I right?"

"He did… yes."

Fury bubbled to the surface, frothing, boiling, and so very hot. It made Annie's skin itch, she wanted to rise from the table and grab Eren by his collar, shake him and seethe into his face that if he even came within a mile distance of her father, she will kill him.

"I wouldn't get so curious about my family," She managed to say through clenched teeth, "Don't think I'm so naive as to believe you came to this country alone."

Eren raised his eyebrows at her barely contained threat. There was glint of something in his eyes. Something like amusement… And something else. "Protective of your father, I understand. Don't worry. I don't even know what he looks like, though if you bear his resemblance, I'm sure I'd be able to tell him apart from other men just from his face alone."

Annie scowled at him. Much to her irritation, Eren smiled, though it was a peculiar kind of smile.

"You always did have a fierce look."

Why does he sound so impressed?

"If you're not going to tell me why you've come here, then why did you seek me out?" Annie stressed, folding her arms. She was growing tired of his mind games. "How do I know you're not going to attack this port tomorrow, or the day after? There must be some reason you chose me, of all people, to reveal yourself too. What's your gamble?"

Eren's face became serious, his mouth drawn in a tight line. He swallowed, focusing those green eyes somewhere above her head.

"Remember that day you kidnapped me from the Forest of Giant trees?"

Annie's grip on her forearms tightened imperceptibly. Yes. How could she forget that day. An utter failure it'd been.

"You slaughtered my Captain's Squad right before my eyes, every one of them, I watched each of them fight to protect me, only for them be crushed or stomped to death like insects."

She closed her eyes. Yes. She could still feel how easily their bones crunched beneath her large limbs, the way their blood permeated the air like a fine red mist, clouding her senses, her judgement, making her sick to the stomach.

I could still taste it even. The blood. The smoke...

She felt sick even now, just thinking about it. Just remembering.

"And I was too late to save any of them because I chose to believe in them, believe that I wouldn't have to use this power I was given. I was wrong."

Annie shuddered.

"Tell me Annie, Is that what they were to you? Little bugs that got in the way of your mission?"

She snapped her eyes open, her hands coming down so hard onto the table, that it splinted, and blistered beneath her tightly clenched fists, the force knocked the mug that was teetering at the edge of the table off, it cracked as soon as it hit the wooden floors, pieces flew everywhere. Eren did not move. He simply watched

. "I did what I had to do!"

The outburst left her panting, she pushed away from the table, standing on shaky legs.

I need to get out of here. I need to find Reiner… The kids…

"All for nothing, because you failed regardless. All those lives, gone. And you, coming back empty handed, bearing the weight of it all."

She swallowed, twisting her neck to look him over. Eren remained seated, staring at her coolly. Her fingers furled, then unfurled. She wanted to hit him.

"Guilt." He said, as if she didn't know this weight he spoke of. "I can see it clear as day in your eyes."

She wretched her eyes from him, looking to her boots. She was trembling. From anger, from fear.

Eren placed his elbows on the table, leaning forward. "... Reiner isn't fairing much well either isn't he? I remember when he kidnapped me as well, when he started talking to me as if nothing had changed, when he had only just revealed he was the cause for the breach in Wall Maria."

Eren shook his head. "I found him infuriating, I even told him and Bertolt that I'd make sure they die by my hands, a slow and painful death."

The way he was speaking, like he was reminiscing of a fond memory, it made Annie want to gag. It made her want to bolt out the door.

"Thinking back on it now," Eren scoffed, "it's quite embarrassing, what I said. I didn't know the full story, I didn't know why you guys invaded the Island, why you attacked the walls, killed so many innocent people, why you tried to kidnap me… I was so blinded by my rage back then, I was too hurt to pay attention."

He stood from his seat than, but his eyes stayed on her. Green. Stormy, leaden with pity. Pity for her. Annie unconsciously took a step back.

"I never stopped to realize you three were only following orders. Three innocent children… Sent to an Island far away, trying to keep your identity hidden while you mingled among us for years. It's no wonder Reiner lost his mind in the end."

Annie exhaled as he crowded her in, she walked backwards until her back hit the wall, and there was nowhere to go. His eyes alone turned her to stone.

"Four…"

"Hm?"

She looked up at him, her mouth moving on it's own. "There was… four of us… He died before we got to the wall, I wanted to go back, but Reiner… Reiner wanted to continue the mission, we we fought, but in the end I realized it was too late to go back… And, Reiner, he always wanted to be like him, like Marcel. The hero in the group, the leader. I told him were were useless without him, so Reiner told me if we truly needed a leader… If we truly needed Marcel… then he would become Marcel." She let out a shaky breath, remembering how she had kicked Reiner's face bloody, knocked a few of his teeth out, only for him to jump back at her, with promises spilling from his bruised mouth

Eren said nothing, but tilt his head.

It's partially my fault Reiner became mentally ill. Annie thought miserably. But it is your fault too. She peered up at Eren, who watched her listlessly.

"Do you still want revenge on us, for what we did?" She hated how meek her voice sounded.

I am afraid of him. But should it come down to that, I will fight him. I must protect Reiner, and the other warriors. I must protect my father.

"No. All I know is that I have to keep moving forward, until all of my enemies are no longer a threat. Until we are free of oppression, free to roam the world."

"... We?"

"Yes. You're the same as me, y'know." Eren grabbed her hand, Annie nearly flinched from the contact. "We're both Eldian, unless you buy into that Marley propaganda that the Eldians of paradise are 'Devils'." He spat the word out like a curse.

Annie shook her head frantically, a chill ran down through her spine as Eren held her small hand in his own.

"Yet every Eldian in this country speak of us that way, the descendants of Ymir, the girl who made a pact with a demon. The wretched blood, they call us. Traitors, outsiders, murderers, criminals. And me?"

He chuckled, it was a mirthless sort of laugh. Deep and resounding. "Well, I'm just as frightening to them as the devil himself, aren't I?

He pulled her in. "You- you have the founding titan's power." She stuttered as she tried to yank her hand back, but that only made him tighten his hold on her.

"I do."

"You are a danger to us." She tried to push Eren, tried to kick him even, but he was far too close, and he pulled her with him each time. His height, and strength eclipsed her own.

I can't make him bleed. And I can't shift in this building!

"And you are in dangerous territory," She warned him, "the Marley aims to recapture the founding titan, they all gathered in this very district to discuss how they would."

"I'm sure they had. I'm not much of threat without it after all. I also aim to capture a titan shifter here as well."

He let the idea sink into her. Annie stopped struggling against him, struck with morbid curiosity.

"Have you heard of the War Hammer titan?"

Annie opened, then closed her mouth. She shook her head, though she was more confused than anything. "Only in meetings, I've never seen the actual titan, nor the person who wields the power."

He wants the War Hammer shifter? Not me… Or Reiner, Or even Zeke?

She felt relief, for less than a second.

"No you wouldn't. The family keeps themselves well hidden. Even for an Eldian family, they've had close ties with the Marley for many years, but the War Hammer is exclusively they're own, the Marley do not own them."

"So you're going to kidnap one of our shifters?"

"I'm not going to kidnap the War Hammer, I'm going to eat them, their power is valuable, and I aim to steal it."

She didn't know what to say to that. So that is his plan, to claim the War Hammer's abilities? He revealed it to her so casually she almost couldn't believe it.

As long as it's not in Liberio… as long as he stays within this district I… I don't have to fight.

The very thought was traitorous, but her life was in Liberio. Her home, her father. If Eren's plan did not involve her, nor Reiner. Then… she supposed it was no concern of hers. Marley be damned. Unless they call upon her to engage him in combat, but by then she should be miles away from this damned Seaport.

"I think- " She tugged at his hold on her, "I think I've been gone long enough, I have to go back Eren." She looked up at him, her eyes a clear chilly blue, and her tone just as biting. "Let. Me. Go."

He did, in an instant. Annie rubbed her hand, now reddened by how tightly he clutched onto her. She turned her back to him, heading for the door, ready to bolt out, just as she twisted the knob he was upon her again.

"Annie."

She yanked the door open, almost ran out, but he caught her arm. She was all but ready to reel back and sock him square in the face.

"You won't tell anyone." It wasn't a question, but a statement.

She whipped her head back, tossing an icy glare over her shoulder. "How do you know I won't?"

"You're not as loyal to the Marley as the others, they might pass it off as aloofness, but I can see through you."

He let go of her arm, but his fingers remained touching her.

"You waver on a line between the Eldians in Paradise, and the Eldians here."

"I care nothing for your people." She hissed.

"And you're terrible at lying." His fingers grazed her elbow, she could feel his feather light touch trailing up her arm.

"I won't pressure you to join my cause, it's your decision who you side with. But know that back on the Island, I have more power than all of the Marley hoped to have. An army that sleeps, and they're stronger than all of the nine titans combined. They'll only awaken at my command, once I get back."

His fingers grazed her shoulder now. Annie shivered involuntarily, not just from his touch. "Why are you telling me this?"

"I know you better than you think, Annie. You stay serving the people who you believe will allow you to live normally, but you don't want to keep fighting any more than I do."

She felt the tips of his fingers press down on her neck, he was leaning into her ever so slightly.

Even his voice became soft as a whisper. "If you join me, I will make sure this war ends more quickly, Paradise will soon have peace, and they'll be no more fighting. Perhaps for centuries to come."

No more fighting. No more war...

It sounded like a dream, really. All she ever wanted… even as a little girl. Was to live an untroubled lazy life with her father. Unbothered by world around her, not tangled within other people's affairs, fighting their wars, winning their victories, bearing their shame of failure. Even with two years of living left, she imagined she could do all of that...

But it is only a dream.

She felt Eren's breath ghost over her lips, and the way his hand rested carefully on the nape of her neck, drawing her in closer, and closer.

"And then what?" Annie mumbled, blue eyes flitting between his mouth, and half-lidded green eyes.

But then his lips grazed hers, and she gasped, shoving him away with all her strength. Without even thinking Annie swung her leg up and kicked his stomach, air was pushed out from his lungs, his back hit the floorboards with a loud 'Crack', Eren rolled onto his side, coughing wildly.

"Would the Survey Corp just pardon my treason?" Annie seethed, irked by his actions. "All the people I've killed? Don't think you can me fool with your speech, I'm not so easily manipulated. I know no matter whose side I fight for, I will always be a prisoner."

She turned than, and she fled the room. Racing down the hallway, she couldn't get out of there fast enough. Her boots stomping down the rickety stairs could be heard throughout the whole building.

Eren winced as he tried to sit up, but he was smiling even through the pain. "I'll see you again, Annie."