A/N: Here's the next chapter!
Also I've noticed a majority of the AoT/SnK fanfics are Modern Day AU's and I screech COWARD (jk jk jk lol) But seriously, why are there so few fics actually revolving around the Canon Universe?
…Meh, I guess people aren't as comfortable writing about horrific deaths and murder and trauma lololololol
Anyways, enjoy!
Blood on the Air
Chapter Three:
Planning for the Future
Once they'd gone their separate ways, Aria wasn't honestly expecting to see the Hat Man Kenny again. He wasn't in her dreams, and the shadows seemed content enough to continue as they did before, so she assumed that it wouldn't matter. The last thing she expected was for the man to come looking for her, and, if the shadows hadn't whispered in wordless excitement while taking his form against a wall, she wouldn't have even noticed him following her. As it was, she watched the shadows for a bit, staring at the blank wall they were on, until she figured out which direction he was in. Then, with an echo of laughter from the shadows, Aria turned in the opposite direction and trotted away. She weaved aimlessly through the alleys and the dilapidated markets, past brothels and patrolling MPs and Garrison soldiers alike.
The shadows urged her on, mocking laughter and gleeful whispers chanting in her ears, flickering visions of Hat Man in pursuit, of pointed fingers in different directions. Until, finally, she found herself in a dead-end alley and, with an exhilarated smile, heart pounding and fear gone once more, she scrambled up the wall and laid in wait behind a chimney. There was the sound of ODM gear, the whizzing hiss of the wires pulling, and the thumping of feet smacking into the roof tiles just moments after she hid.
"What the shit, brat," Hat Man's familiar voice groused. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were fuckin' with me…" Aria covered her mouth with her hands, the shadows giggling and shushing her, peering around her hiding spot for her. Biting her lip, Aria resisted the urge to check for herself where he was. She hadn't played like this in years, and, despite the memory making her heart hurt, it still felt so good to do something fun again…
The shadows suddenly disappeared, making Aria blink in surprise, before hesitantly turning to peek around the chimney.
"Boo!" Hat Man whispered, staring at her from directly beside the chimney, and Aria couldn't hold back a startled squawk as she flailed. The older man immediately cackled at her, and Aria huffed slightly before giggling.
"Found me," she sang, smiling up at him.
"Sure did, brat," he replied, leaning against the chimney with a smirk. "Now, why'd you make me chase you t' hell and back if you knew it was me? I thought we were friends!" He declared, placing a hand over his heart. "It hurt, kid, really hurt, right here." Aria laughed again, giggling a little as she pulled herself to her feet to peer up at him.
"I knew you'd chase me!" She told him honestly. "And no one really chases me for fun anymore! Everyone's too busy working, but I can't work real jobs because of my brain damage. I make people uncomfortable," she informed him, purposefully blasé even as she looked away from him, a pinch of hurt making her fidget.
"Yeah?" He asked, crouching down to smirk at her. "Well, it'll take more than a lil bit of crazy to scare me off, brat," he informed her, reaching out and roughly messing her hair; Aria couldn't help her flinch but offered him a small smile in response.
"You'll leave when you get what you want or figure out if its worth it," she told him easily. "Everyone does. And that's okay. It's okay to be selfish." Hat Man arched a brow at her.
"Cynical brat ain't you," he mused, before scoffing faintly. "I didn't come to get some weird ass self-acceptance speech, kid. I got some questions and you're the one who's gonna answer them," he stated, expression smoothing out, eyes cold, and Aria blinked up at him before shrugging.
"Okay," she replied simply, easily, absently glancing to the side when a shadow transformed into a strange man who smiled gently at Hat Man. She stared at him for several seconds, name on the tip of her tongue, before the shadow-man turned and lifted a finger to his mouth.
Secrets he whispered, and Aria bobbed her head absently before turning her eyes back up to Hat man.
"Can I wear your hat while we talk?" She asked; he arched a brow.
"You gonna tell me nothin' but truths?" He asked in response; Aria blinked.
"I don't lie," she told him easily. "It's not my fault most people don't believe me."
"It's a deal then," he stated, plopping down onto the roof and smacking his hat onto her head, making Aria stumble with a squeak. Huffing at his smirk, she sat down next to him, back to the chimney.
"Go ahead and ask, then," she told him easily; the man hummed.
"Where's your daddy at?" He asked easily. "He made some serious enemies just after Maria Fell." The shadows writhed, spatters of blood and familiar glasses glinting under moonlight as screams and tears filled the air—
"He died," she told him, looking up at the noon-day sun. "He got torn apart by a couple of Titans… He screamed a lot," she whispered, wrapping her arms around her knees and setting her cheek against them, the hat on her head shifting enough that the man next to her could see her eyes. "Mama died like that, too," she told him solemnly. "I watched as the Smiling Titan picked her up and snapped her back and bit her in half. Blood like rose petals, flying on the wind," she whispered, staring at the shadows next to Hat Man as they replayed the scene. Screams echoed in her ears, the meaty crunch of flesh being torn into, the scent of copper and sewage, making her choke back a gag, eyes closing and fingers digging into her bruised and scraped legs.
"Huh," Hat Man replied, dark eyes sharp when she forced hers open again. "That's a shitty way to go, I guess," he muttered, mouth twisting sardonically. "Guess I'll move on to the next one, then. You ever see anythin' in those visions of yours that's come true?"
"Yes," she replied simply, honestly. "Lots of things. And some of the things I see have already happened when I see them or are happening just then and I can't do anything anyways, and sometimes I see things that aren't real at all. Daddy said I had something special in my brain that was asleep, and when I almost cooked inside my own skin, it woke it up before it was ready and broke because of it. He said that Blood is the Soul's Memory and my blood remembered stuff but got scared and hurt so I started knowing things, but I couldn't handle it, so my brain broke. Although," she murmured, closing her eyes again. "Daddy always said I wasn't broken, no matter what anyone said…"
"What things have you seen that's come true?" Hat Man asked, something sharp and harsh and deadly in his eyes, fingers twitching, and Aria hummed softly, letting her eyes drift away to focus on the shadows.
"…I saw Mama die," she said quietly. "I saw the Colossal Titan come. I saw the Titan that ate Mama. I saw all the people dying, all of them. I heard the screaming. I heard the screaming and begging and dying. The crying and praying." Her voice trailed off, a hoarse whisper, anguish edging in as she dug her fingers into her legs, slowly rocking herself as she fell silent.
"You seen anythin' that's gonna happen soon?" Hat Man asked her, eyes intense, and Aria went still, staring into space for a long moment.
"…The governments gonna murder a lot of us," she whispered quietly. "They're gonna call it an act to reclaim Maria but it's a culling. Two hundred and fifty thousand lambs led to slaughter so the pigs can eat their fill without being denied their snacks while the remaining sheep are left to struggle finding hay to eat, and less two hundred of those lambs will come back… Grandpa's gonna die," she whispered hoarsely, jaw shivering as tears began falling. "He's gonna die and there's nothing I can do to save him," she choked, burying her face in her knees as she wept. "They, there are… There are so many bodies and they're screaming and crying and begging. 'Oh God I don't wanna die!' and 'No, no, no, no, no, God please no please!' over and over and over… Th-they're being torn to p-pieces an', an' eaten alive an' dropped like trash when they don't give the Titan what they want, can't give the Titans what they want, not, not enough, not enough, not enough—" the world faded as Aria got trapped in her vision, whispering and mumbling and sobbing wetly as she rocked violently back and forth.
She didn't know how long she was like that. An hour, at least, voice hoarse and choked from crying and talking, eyes swollen and stuck wide-open and horrified. She came to slowly, breaths hitching, shoulders aching from where they were continuously bumping against the chimney as she rocked, and Hat Man staring at her with a blank expression, eyes dark and considering. Staring at him, expression exhausted and eyes dark, she met his eyes quietly.
"…Any more questions?" She asked hoarsely; Hat Man hummed lowly, eyeing her, before letting out a huff and leaning back on the rooftop, throwing an arm up to cover his eyes.
"Fuck's sake, brat," he grumbled. "You ever see anything happy in these visions?"
"Besides you?" Aria asked, before she blinked and, for a second, she saw a flash of something bright and warm, and, in the next blink, something she knew would make Hat Man laugh. A sly smile quirked her lips as he glanced at her from under his arm. "I know I grow up to be taller than your nephew." Hat Man's eyes widened, before something like shocked glee flashed over his face and he threw his head back, guffawing. Aria smiling as she watched him, closing her eyes just to listen, exhausted.
…But it felt nice, knowing her visions could make someone laugh, and not in a mean way…
()()()()()()
For the next nine months, Hat Man appeared periodically, once or twice every other week. She knew the moment he appeared, her shadows gleefully urging her to run, and, every time, he easily gave chase. It did wonders for her endurance, her climbing, and her acrobatic abilities. He even taught her how to properly handle a knife and the places to hit if she wanted to make it hurt or if she wanted to make it quick.
"Arrogant assholes or information hunters make deaths slow," he told her. "It's sloppy shit, though. If you're gonna kill someone, brat, make it quick and make it permanent. Less likely for them to come back and bite ya in the ass…"
Between those days, she was chasing shadows around the district, finding small jobs and running errands for food and coin alike. She was a regular at one of the brothels, where she helped do the laundry in exchange for a couple coins and being allowed to wash her family's clothes for free. It was exhausting work, dozens of blankets, sheets, dresses, and spare men's clothes that were caked in filth and tears. Whenever she did her laundry, Mikasa usually came with her and silently repaired any torn clothes as long as they had the needed string. It was nice to spend time with her adopted sister, who was usually locked to Eren's side doing work at the market or near the barracks. Armin had gotten a job helping a merchant keep their ledger neat.
…Despite the four of them working, however, they still could barely afford to feed themselves. And Aria knew that, soon, the orders would go out, and Grandpa would be sent to his death. She'd waited until he was alone, the other day, to whisper to him about the Wall Maria Reclamation Act, but the older man had simply smiled quietly at her.
"You're a very brave girl, Aria," he told her gently, pulling her into a tender hug. "And I know that, when I'm gone, you're going to look after my Armin like you do your brother and Mikasa. I know I can trust you to keep them all safe for me." Aria stared over his shoulder as he hugged her, felt the faint tremor that went through him, and closed her eyes.
"I promise, Grandpa," she whispered, and gently hugged him back, ignoring the way that her shoulder got damp as he shuddered again.
"You're a good girl, Aria," he breathed. "A good, brave girl…"
A month later, the Act went through, and Aria watched as the only remaining adult in their lives walked away to his death. When the survivors returned, she stood silently beside her brother as Armin wept into his Grandpa's hat, Mikasa looking away from them from a few feet away. Four orphans with nothing but each other.
"We have to find a way to stop them," Eren whispered as Armin wept. "Our lives will never be our own until we do." Aria glanced at her brother, who stared down at Armin with grim eyes. "This world will never feel like home…" Looking forward, Eren crouched down beside the blond boy, Mikasa and Aria watching them both silently. "That's it. Next year I'll be applying to join the Cadets." Armin looked up, seemingly surprised, although Aria didn't understand why. Joining the Scouts was all that Eren had wanted since they were little, after all.
"To become strong enough to fight back," Eren hissed as Mikasa closed her eyes and Aria tilted her head back to look up at the cracked, filthy ceiling.
"I'm with you," Armin whispered.
"You don't have to—" Ere started, alarmed; Armin glared ahead of him.
"I do!" He interrupted firmly.
"So do I," Mikasa added simply, seriously.
"I as well," Aria agreed calmly.
"Damn it!" Eren snapped, fists white-knuckled against his knees. "I'm not trying to drag you in! Look, there's no point in following me to my death!"
"Yeah," Mikasa agreed, holding his eyes seriously. "And if I can help it than it won't be your death."
"I promised," Aria told him quietly, simply, looking away from the ceiling to meet her brother's eyes. "And besides the promise I made, you're my baby brother. Where you go, I go." Eren stared at her, then at Mikasa, before glancing at Armin. With a determined expression, he got back to his feet, hands fisted at his sides.
"Alright," he declared fiercely. "Together then!"
"Together," Aria agreed as the four of them looked at one another. The shadows were quiet, thrumming with power and knowing, and Aria stared up at the ceiling and closed her eyes.
Behind her lids, the future passed in flashes of blood and love and trauma.
"Together," she whispered again as a tear slipped down her cheek. "Or not at all."
I promise…
()()()()()()
"The Cadets, huh?" Hat Man asked as Aria struggled to catch her breath, the stinging cuts from his knife a constant reminder that she had nothing on his experience or natural talent. But, compared to ten months ago, she was leagues and leagues beyond her past self.
"Yep," she panted back, groaning as she heaved herself up into a sitting position. "And from there, the Scouts."
"Damn kid, haven't you had enough trauma in your life without willingly lookin' for more?" He asked, arching a brow as he cleaned his knife absently; Aria huffed.
"My brother's joining," she told him simply. "And I know that, together, we'd live. Him, me, Mikasa, Armin. Together, we'll live," she murmured, leaning back with eyes closed.
"Must be nice, havin' that kind of assurance," Hat Man remarked blandly; Aria hummed lowly.
"Not when some things are worse for the surviving," she murmured back. Hat Man hummed lowly.
"Ain't that the truth." The two remained silent for a few minutes before Aria heaved herself to her feet, grimacing as she took in the drying blood rivulets all along her arms. She made a note to stop by the brothel and wash it off before heading home again.
"How are you gonna get past the medical pass, brat?" Hat Man asked her; Aria blinked, looking at him in question. Hat Man arched a brow. "Military has a mandatory health check, kid. They have access to all previous medical records so you can't lie about shit that may get you killed. Only way someone with a brain like yours 'll get in is if you get recommendation from either three low-level soldiers or one high-level. So, how are you getting in?" Aria stared at him blankly for several moments, before slowly turning to stare forward.
"I… I don't know," she whispered, wrapping her arms tightly around her knees. "I… I only really know Hannes, but he's a Garrison soldier. He's up for promotion soon, but… But not high enough to give me a pass… I'll think of something," she muttered, slowly beginning to rock. "I can't… I promised Mama and Daddy and Grandpa," she whispered hoarsely. "I can't let them go alone. I can't!" Hat Man grunted and, suddenly, she found his hat shoved roughly onto her head.
"Fuck, brat, take a breath," he complained before taking his hat back and dropping something at her side as Aria stared up at him, wide-eyed. "This'll be the last time we see one another for a while, brat. Don't die. I'd hate to have wasted my damn time teaching a street rat like you," he huffed before stalking away, the whirring of his ODM gear kicking in before he darted away. Aria stared after him for moment, before glancing down at the thing he left behind, picking it up.
It was… It was a letter of recommendation… From Captain Kenny Ackerman of the Military Police… Anti-Personnel Control Squad? With… With a seal of Approval from the Royal Family…
Tears filled her eyes as her fingers trembled, before she gently closed the letter again and tucked it away. Then, she covered her face with her hands and wept with relief.
She didn't have to be left behind.
()()()()()()
"Name, age, and hometown," the MP accepting Cadet Applications asked as Eren, Mikasa, and Armin headed off.
"Aria Jaeger, twelve, Shiganshina District," Aria replied simply, calmly. The man grunted, turning to his companion who handed him a folder. Aria recognized it and barely bit back a sigh as the MP glanced it over and sneered at her.
"Recommendation letters or fuck off, brat," he ordered. "We don't take simpletons or crazies into the military."
"Yes sir," she stated, and handed him the lightly crumpled paper. The MP scoffed and opened it.
"What sorry schmuck thought you should—" he cut himself off, color draining from his face as he stared at the letter. His companion peeked over his shoulder before going equally as pale. Aria couldn't help but smile faintly as she stared at them.
"Is it acceptable?" She asked quietly, making the two MP's flinch faintly as they glanced rapidly between her and the letter and back again.
"Y-yeah, go on, um, go on through," the recruiter managed; Aria bobbed her head and padded off in the direction of her family, quietly climbing into the waiting carriage.
"What took so long?" Eren asked her, glaring back towards the recruiter suspiciously as Armin peered at her worriedly.
"I had to hand them my recommendation letter for approval," she said simply, easily.
"Your what?" Eren asked, confused, and Armin gasped.
"Oh man I completely forgot about that!" He stated, alarmed. "The military requires approved recommendation letters for anyone wanting to join the Military who have, erm… Specific medical requirements," he said, trailing off awkwardly with an apologetic glance at Aria. "Without the letters, those people can't join the Military in any capacity."
"What?!" Eren blurted, even as Mikasa leaned over to peer at Aria worriedly. "Wait, if we didn't know about this, how did you get a letter? Did you find Hannes?" Aria smiled at them all easily.
"Hat Man is apparently a Captain in the MP," she informed them easily.
"Whoa, wait, the weird old guy who's been stalking you and chasing you on rooftops and teaching you how to fight with real knives is an MP Captain?!" Eren demanded; Aria nodded.
"I'm just surprised he lets you call him 'hat man' if he's a Captain of the Inner Wall," Mikasa murmured, and Aria shrugged.
"I think it's because no one else calls him anything but 'Captain' and he gets bored," she stated easily.
"I still think its weird that some old guy has been meeting with you when you're alone," Eren muttered, crossing his arms over his chest; Aria rolled her eyes slightly.
"I was more at risk working in the laundry room of Madame Syenna's brothel than I've ever been with Hat Man," she huffed, crossing her arms as well, fingers tapping rapidly. "Even with Mikasa there sometimes, the customers there tended to get creepy."
"Did someone try to touch you," Mikasa demanded quietly, intensely, eyes going dark and vicious as she leaned closer. "I will eviscerate them for you, I promise, just give me their names." Aria let herself relax, smiling slightly as she shook her head.
"Don't worry, Mikasa," she assured the other girl warmly. "Madame Syenna took care of them. She has very strict views on how her customers should behave when it comes to underage girls and boys." Mikasa stared at her, searching her face, before slowly pulling back with a short nod, ducking slightly to hide her face in her scarf.
"Good," she murmured darkly, and Aria shook her head with a faint smile as Armin smiled nervously and Eren rolled his eyes. The other six Cadets just stared at them, some confused, a couple pale-faced, and the last one green-tinged and huddling in on himself. The carriage shook sharply as they were suddenly moving. Looking out the back of the carriage as her fingers tapped nervously against her knees, Aria wondered what the next three years would hold for her.
…She was going to miss Hat Man and the games they'd play. Hopefully training would distract her from it. And maybe, just maybe, she'd meet people who wouldn't mind her broken mind.
That would be nice, she mused as she watched a bird fly overhead.
That would be nice…
()()()()()()
A/N: Hope you guys enjoy! And I have vague PLANS for Kenny Ackerman and the future, okay, I have PLANS.