Disclaimer: I don't own Shingeki No Kyojin, nor the image. They belong to Isayama Hajime.

Author's Note: As promised, here's the second entry, enjoy!


Title: The Red String of Fate, Part II.

Prompt: Scarf.

Summary: Mikasa tells Eren a story her mother used to tell her. It has unexpected results.

"Mikasa, I'm bored." Eren muttered as he watched the fire of the chimney.

They should be tired, Mikasa thought, they had spent all day cleaning their cabin, leaving it perfectly clean for that shortie that had just become their Squad Leader. The others had already left the living room, too tired to continue sharing stories of happier times, when they didn't have to worry about Titans and treasons.

"What do you want to do?" She asked quietly, contented by just sharing some alone time ─even as short as it was─ with the boy she didn't think of as her brother.

"I know, tell me a story! You never actually got to tell the others one." Eren said, as he rested his head on Mikasa's lap. Mikasa couldn't help but blush, yet her voice managed to remain as stoic as ever.

"What kind of story do you want me to tell you?" She asked, her fingers slowly reaching their way to the boy's soft locks.

"One of those your mother used to tell you!" Eren said happily, a bit of his past self returning for that night only.

"Well, I remember the story of the Red String of Fate…" Mikasa muttered, as memories from her past returned to her. Of a loving father and mother, sitting in a similar living room in a similar cabin sharing stories every evening.

"Yeah, that one!" Eren said with glee, smiling as he felt Mikasa's tender caresses.

"Once upon a time there lived a king who was very sad." The girl started saying, her voice foreign to her. For a moment, it wasn't her voice, but her mother's the one she heard speaking out loud.

"Why was he sad?" Eren prompted when he noticed Mikasa had become silent.

"Because, despite having all the riches in the world, he didn't have anyone to love. Not a wife or children to spent his days with."

"Poor bastard, he must have been one ugly son of a bitch to be all lonely. Or maybe an asshole. Perhaps both… Hey, I bet he was just like Jean!"

"Eren, do you want me to tell you the story or not?" Mikasa asked just slightly annoyed at his antics, though a chuckle managed to escape her lips. Typical Eren.

"Sorry, go on."

"Well, he searched for years and years to find the right woman for him, but always had to return home wifeless. However, during one of his journeys, he came upon an old man reading a big, thick book. The king asked the old man what book he was reading, and the old man told him: 'This is the book of marriage records. I only need to use one of the red strings in my bag to tie a man's pinky to a woman's. Once they are tied together, they are sure to become husband and wife.'"

Eren listened intently to the way she told the story. Smiling at the way her tone of voice changed to match the characters of the tale.

"'Will I ever find my wife?' The king asked the old man. The wise man smiled and pointed to a girl that was passing near them. 'Do you see that girl over there?' He asked. 'That is your future wife.'

But the king didn't believe in the old man's words, and, in anger, ordered his servant to kill the girl. Thankfully, the servant merely made a small cut on the girl's forehead. Years later, the king finally found a woman he wanted to marry. On the wedding night, the king discovered his wife had a small cut on her forehead. When asked about it, she replied that when she was a child, a man had cut her there, and she had had that scar ever since."

As the Oriental girl finished her tale, Eren got up from his comfortable position and turned to look at her. "He got to marry that girl? After he sent someone to kill her?" Eren asked in disbelief.

"Well yes, they were joined by the Red String. They couldn't escape their destiny, they were meant to be together." Mikasa said, as she recalled her mother's words: The red string of fate may stretch or get tangled, but it will never break.

"So are you saying that everyone has a red string tied to their little fingers, and that the person they are tied to is their soul mate?"

"According to this story, yes."

"What a load of crap!"

"Eren!"

"Don't get me wrong Mikasa, it was a nice story. All I'm saying is that people need something more substantial than some string to be soul mates." He said as he gently touched the red scarf he had given her more than six years ago.

"Eren…" Her cheeks turned red when the boy, who was no longer a boy, came closer to her.

"Something that binds them together, like a little boy saving a little girl from some motherfuckers, or that same girl saving the boy over and over again because of his dumb ass decisions, or…" He paused, his fingers lingering over her neck. "Or wrapping a red scarf around someone who needed a home…"

They got quite, both taking in what Eren had just said. Suddenly, Eren pressed their foreheads together and whispered, "Guess this scarf is our Red String of Fate, isn't it?"

Mikasa nodded, still madly blushing. She closed her eyes when she noticed Eren started leaning in. They could feel each others' breaths as the distance between their lips got shorter and shorter…

"Jeager, what are you doing still up?! You're wasting our wood!" Jean screamed as he went down the stairs. Eren and Mikasa jumped and quickly separated from each other, their cheeks turning red in embarrassment of almost being caught in a compromising situation.

"And you're all alone with Mikasa, nonetheless. Damn it, Jeager, you're such a pervert!" Jean screamed in outrage when he finally saw Mikasa sitting inches away from Eren while blushing furiously.

"Who are you calling a pervert, Horse Face!" Eren screamed, jumping from his sit and attempting to punch Jean in the face for ruining the moment.

"What? I don't look like a horse!"

Regaining her composure, Mikasa gracefully got up and walked towards the stairs. "I'm going to bed, now." She simply announced, while her lips formed an almost imperceptible smile when she looked at Eren. The Titan-shifter managed to notice her smile and gave her one in return.

"Have sweet dreams, Mikasa!"

"Oi, where do you think you're going, Jeager?!"


P.S. I don't own the Red String of Fate story, I adapted some parts of the original tale, which belongs to the Chinese folklore.