Anecdoche

A conversation in which everyone is talking, but nobody is listening.

Hannes was the guard that let her keep all sorts of outdoor junk from gypsies at town, including her well-tended flowers that swallowed up the entire room. He was also the man currently climbing through the tower's only official entry, the window, only to find a fragile looking boy holding Mikasa with another one standing nearby, that looked ready to pounce at anything. Hannes was not drunk enough for that kind of trouble.

When he met Mikasa, he instantly felt sorry for the lost girl, not that he could do anything to help her besides letting her do as she wanted with her prison. He knew of the secret entrance from the beginning but hadn't alerted his commander thinking that it could at least bring peace to his heart if she managed to escape. "You're going to get caught missy, but I'll trust you know what to do." He had warned her the first time he discovered a different pot in the room, not knowing if she even understood him. In the beginning of her exile, she was all nails and teeth against everyone, scratching and squirming like a rabid raccoon. No one had talked to her ever since, limiting their interactions to tossing food through the gap. That was until Hannes.

What he really wanted to know was her reason to coming back when she knew they would find out of her escapades and probably lock her in a dungeon. "You'll help me. You're kind." She had muttered and those where the first words anyone but Hannes had heard from her. Hannes knew he was probably wrong to not inform anyone of the little girl running free when he was patrolling. She was smart, observant and the reason why his head would roll on the stone.

"I knew I should have sealed those stairs." Hannes growled, entering feet first, taking a long stride to shove Armin's head away from Mikasa. The boy' skull almost fit in his hand like a ball and he was worried from his looks that he would actually break him. "They got lost looking for a job! Please Hannes they were just leaving." She sobbed using her tiny wrists to shove Hannes hand away, trying to take distance not realizing how obvious her lie was. She was protecting them.

"Heck not! You're coming with us even if we have to shove this beggar out the window!" This time it was the animalistic looking kid that was already clutching to his leg, pushing even though he did as much damage as a chained dog barking at a horse. Now Hannes knew he could easily kill the kids and blame it on a forest animal, if only he wasn't bound to the feeling of regret. There he was looking at the heartbroken tears in Mikasa's eyes, reminding him of how she looked when he had locked her inside a golden cage like a rare animal.

He sighed feeling his chest expand and contract senselessly. He actually didn't have a choice. Hannes grabbed one of the boys currently biting his armored lower legs and effortlessly picked both by the back of their shirts with the grace of a cat picking her kittens, only to drop them through the hidden wood plates, all the way down the dark tunnel not caring about the toe curling shrieks Mikasa made when they fell and disappeared. This was the only choice they had now.

Eren thought he was going to die for the third time this day. He was gratefully rewarded with actually not dying three times, even though he fell through wooden planks and stairs he had climbed with Armin that morning and that the height was considerably deathly. To his relief the pit of that tower felt cold and earthy against his cheek, blanketed with the same moss that cushioned the walls. The only problem would be his shoulder that felt like a mirror had shattered inside and that Armin's head was forcefully pierced between his neck and arm. That couldn't be good for his ribs. The only good news was that he knew Armin wasn't dead, not if Eren had been his safety pillow.

The next thing he heard after being thrown from Mikasa's room was the stretching and grinding of metal rope. Hannes' boots were in front of his eyes the second he regained focus in his blurry sight even though he couldn't lift any limb. Armin finally had moved his body from Eren's back and was currently holding his head upright, thankfully alive and well except for a few bruises. "You kids aren't going to make it easy now are ya´?" The tall blonde man slurred, not even trying to look intimidating.

Eren knew his type, bluffing, drunk soldier, good for nothing other than emptying taverns and ruffling maiden's skirts. He hated them as much as he hated nobles. Everyone knew they meant nothing when people really needed them; for example they hadn't done anything to assure his mother that Grisha would be found one day. "I bet Armin and I can kill you right now." Eren yelled only to be hushed by Armin.

"Eren! He's not the only guard around." Armin whispered even though it had actually echoed equally loud in the hollow pit they were in. He was right though, they had climbed at dusk and there were at least five foot soldiers half asleep parading around. The current issue spoke "Listen kids, I won't hurt you, but I can't help you if you don't do what I say now." The man looked frustrated by their entire charade. Not like he could be trusted anyway, he had no right to rush them to do anything.

"I'm sorry for not believing you sir, but you just threw us from a tower. We could have died." It was Armin this time, always the voice of reason. "Well I don't care for believing anything from a drunk traitor" Eren groaned not minding for his tone, even though he was trying to calm the pounding headache in favor of finding a stone to crush the soldiers head. If anything he was getting Armin out of there, even if it meant having to hit other five skulls on their way. He could still hear the sobs raining on them constantly. If they didn't alert the others, Mikasa's crying would.

Eren clenched his fists until his nails caked with blood, he didn't care if this assassin said what he wanted, he would save his friends whichever way he could. He was about to take a wooden stake and recreate his thoughts until the rope man pushed them out.

"You don't need to trust me now, 'cause you'll be on your own, I don't even care if you die." He paused, blinking from the sudden blindness of the outside world. The sun was already high in the sky and thankfully no other witnesses around. "You just need to get her out." He finished pushing Eren's shirt up until his feet were touching air. He made the right choice because a second later the soldier's hand was bleeding with a wooden stick piercing through it. His howling was muffled by Eren's tiny fists punching his way out of his grasp. Armin had done enough watching, his blue eyes watering at the sight of blood.

"Eren calm down! What are you doing?" Scrawny arms lifted Eren from his armpits locking his body for a moment, even that wasn't enough to keep him from kicking and wiggling with all his might. "We can't let him live if we want to take Mikasa away!" Eren yelled jumping free from his holder. "Yes you fucking can brat if you listen to me!" No longer grasping his face, the limp looking man took a swing with his good hand landing straight into Eren's nose. The fist, considerably larger than his face, was enough to make him fly into the stone wall next to the tower.

"Why should we listen to a murderer we don't know!" It was Armin this time, shivering in fear but still managing to get the words out with authority. Eren wasn't even impressed, he knew Armin was fierce but right now Eren was trying to regain control of his own body, he felt his nose scurrying with more than just mucus, and was trying not to pass out from the sudden nausea that hit him. "Because I have a debt with her mom, you don't need to know more! And I'm Hannes, so don't call me a murderer!"

Eren gave his best fear enforcing glare, at least he thought he did, before falling face first into fresh morning dew grass.

Armin wasn't proud about his physical skills, he could climb a slope but ended up panting hard and he could swim in ponds but he always finished gasping for air. He was proud of his hunches; particularly the hunch that this man that had just pummeled Eren's face wasn't going to kill them. He indeed threw them from a precipice of death, but probably he knew about the soft plant bed that prevented them from cracking like eggs. And he did say he knew Mikasa's mother. Had this been a town guard he probably would have stabbed them, without going through so much trouble. Then there was the fact that he wasn't killing them now but dragging them towards the stables even though his hand was still dripping liquid blood. Hannes had taken out the stake but the hole was still there. Armin was trying hard not to look at it although it was impossible since it was dragging them by the collar.

At least Eren was silent now that he passed out. "Fuck, I knew he was dangerous, felt like watching a reptile in there." Hannes groaned, finally throwing both boys onto a stack of hay. "You're not gonna stake me with a pitchfork now right?" He groaned falling ass first on the ground, tending his wound with a nearby cloth.

"I don't think I could." Armin thought to himself, it wasn't common for him to solve things with violence anyway. "Listen kid, I don't want to kill anyone, and I won't if I don't have to…" He paused to wince when he tightened the cloth in his hand. It was already soaking red. "But you don't have a choice now; if you try to go out the way you came you'll find at least ten guards. You heard the girl wailing back there, that place must be hell right now."

Armin wanted to argue that they had still sneaked pass by all those guards he had mentioned and made it through, but it wasn't the same. They had done it before the sun was raised so high it blinded, and no one was crying in the tower. If they went out now they would be spotted like a wild geese in hunting season.

"And why would you help us?" Armin asked, not really caring for his answer but for more clues as to where they could go unnoticed and take Mikasa. He wasn't going to leave her alone again.

"Kid, I don't have anything to win by deceiving you. And I'm not an idiot like your pissoffed friend here wants to believe. You know Mikasa, probably more than I do. I want her out of here, the end. Besides you don't have more options and we have no time, you have to trust me."

Armin tried to digest the huge chunk of information just thrown. What he couldn't figure out was the how. How was this Hannes man going to get not only them but also Mikasa out. She was definitely going to call attention. Not one girl in town had pure black, straight hair with slanted big grey blue eyes. Even if they left the castle unharmed today, when they found her missing they would raid the village. Armin could almost smell the burnt wood and blood that would come from whatever decision they made.

"And if we did agree to trust you, what do you want?" He questioned, finally looking up, locking eyes with the man that could prevent any tragedy. "You'll have to become stable boys." Hannes answered, almost like he had just thought that up and feeling proud of his quick thinking.

"They're the new boys huh?" Eren heard someone slur through the darkness. He didn't know if it was dark or if he simply couldn't open his eyes. "Yes sir, we want to be soldiers!" This was Armin's voice, he was sure, but he was speaking lies. Eren was truly mad or Hanne's punch had left him in a comma. No way were they going to serve the fucking king now. "Sorry kid we don't just accept anyone" Several voices now, mocking them, gurgling chuckles that almost made him snap out of this sick twisted dream. "Really? Because I don't see many people offering." Damn, well this could be real. Armin was defending his way through words like always. "Stop torturing them, they're just stable boys." Hannes this time, Eren recognized his easygoing tone, even if the man was no saint and surely wasn't friendly. That man was a potential murderer. "That one looks dead." Someone faraway said. "He just sleeps like a log." Armin said, thankfully not sounding like the liar he was.

"What happened to the hand?" Eren was tired of this questioning, not only was he still blind and his head hurt like it had split up, he had no clue what they were talking about. "Fought a baby boar in the forest, was a tiny thing with horns, left it for Carla so she would cook it and …" Eren's sight was coming back, together with his smell. He wished it hadn't because the first thing that hit him was horse shit and dry hay. "She's not going to give you anything back for it Hannes." Another man said hinting a second meaning that felt disgusting. What Eren wanted was to see this phony men, people still looked like black blobs. Armin's head was suddenly in front of his, more focused and looking panicked.

"Eren go back to sleep!" What? He wasn't sure what he was saying all he remembered was Mikasa crying and stupid Hannes man throwing them off a tower, the same man now laughing with a crowd of royal guards. He was about to use the little force he had left to kick him when everything went dark again.

It was dark again, only this time it was dark blue, moonlit, and black clouds where shaping in a starry sky through a square window. Eren rose quickly, too quick that had his head spinning again. "You shouldn't move like that Eren." He knew that sound, a new voice now, tender and soft. Mikasa was staring at him, doe eyed and worried. That wasn't what worried him though; he looked at the familiar bed, at the wooden plates shielding them and the sound of his mother's voice singing somewhere in the back.

"Why are you in my house?" He said, sounding ruder than he intended. "Gee Eren, I think you should be asking me first how we got here." Armin was sitting beside Mikasa, how come he hadn't even noticed him there. "I would but you're a traitor that hit me in the head."

"You were going to get us caught Eren! It's a miracle we're alive." Eren wanted to believe Armin had got them all out safely but he knew that wasn't true. They were in the middle of a pack of guards last he remembered and he was promising them stupid things. "We're not becoming soldiers Eren." Freaking mind reader, Eren was starting to fear Armin. Said boy had narrowed his blue gaze and started pacing.

"Look, long story short, we got Mikasa out and Hannes will cover for us, all we have to do is bring her back every day." Eren knew Hannes couldn't be trusted.

"Then you did nothing. She just came out and she'll be locked when she goes back."

"Would you let me finish, she'll go with us as your sister and we'll be working at the palace for a few days."

Eren wanted to hit something, if only Armin knew. Hannes had tricked them, he didn't know why they were still alive or why Mikasa was sitting by his bed but they wouldn't be safe anymore. "Why did you accept such a deal?"

"You can't be angry all you did was cause a scene, and if I hadn't done that we would be dead! There were more than ten guards there." Armin said, raising his voice and finally shutting Eren's whining.

"How come we have to work there? How come they won't ask anything about Mikasa?"

"Hannes was the only guard that has seen her for months, the only one she let up the tower. If he keeps quiet she won't be recognized."

Eren looked now at the girl that hadn't opened her mouth, she looked breathless with fear and concern. He had fed his eyes enough of her strange differences, hair, skin, eyes, lips. How would anyone not notice her. Eren glared back at Armin, wanting to transmit through this look how he felt, how he knew they weren't going to fool anyone. Armin's eyes were cold, staring back with empty rejection.

"I will not let her get recognized." Armin finally conveyed with words, making Eren's gut turn in envy for the braveness his friend had. He wished he could believe him.

A.N.: Thank you very much to all those who subscribed to this story and reviewed it. Really I continued since it received feedback. Shoutout to these five reviews that made my day:RachelGarfield12, Kaniel Lau, An average guest, PamPotterEvans, Irene1603, Bravo One Zero.