AN:

It feels good to be back

Chapter 14 - Sword and Scales

Eren head snapped to the doorway to see Jay standing there, his head lowered and his eyes fixed on him. His black coat hung over his shoulders and his arms were behind his back and he stood as still as a statue. Eren turned to face Jay, concealing the knife from view behind his back and trying not to look so surprised.

"Well?"

"Quite an armoury you got here…" Eren stated darkly, glaring at Jay.

Jay slowly tilted his head and raised an eyebrow as he stepped towards Eren, "Tell that to Al. You haven't answered my question…"

Eren clenched his jaw as he squared his shoulders, "What's it to yo-"

"It means everything if you plan to do what I think you're doing…" Jay cut in as he moved forward until he was a metre away from him. "Now stop avoiding the damn question and answer it…"

Eren didn't say anything and only glared at Jay, not trying to hide any hostility whatsoever. Jay only regarded him with a patient, bored stare as he stood as straight as an arrow and wasn't even moving an inch. It didn't even seem if he was breathing. Eren exhaled and suppressed a shudder. The room felt as if the temperature had dropped like a stone. Eren glowered as he tried to look at Jay straight in his eyes, to show he wasn't threatened. But he couldn't help but feel as if he was staring at two gaping black endless voids which were fixated onto him.

"Ignorant, stupid and arrogant…" Jay noted without blinking, his expression remaining disturbingly neutral, "How disappointing…I guess I'll start with something simple...Let's see… What do you think about killing people?"

Eren's face fell as he heard Jay's comment. Jay's jaw clenched momentarily, a scowl flickering momentarily across his face and he sighed out.

"Besides.. You've have done it before," Jay stated calmly, "Killed people… I mean that should be pretty obvious… What I'm specifically wondering is about that mess you and Mikasa got yourselves into..."

'He's trying to find a weakness. He's trying to taunt me, intimidate me…' Eren scowled, 'Well, let him try…' He thought as he tilted his head at an angle and stuck his chin out, "Why the hell would you want to kno-?"

"I'm curious…" Jay stated flatly. Eren exhaled loudly, trying to find any way out of the situation or to change the subject but to no avail.

"Yeah...Course I have killed people before…" Eren grumbled after a moment's pause, not tearing his eyes away.

Jay rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath, clearly unsurprised. "How?" He asked, the question sounding like more of a statement.

"I killed two people when I was 10. Stabbed both of them…" Eren continued.

"Why?" Jay asked, one eyebrow raised in growing curiosity, his head tilted at an angle. Eren blinked before talking again, his voice raised and his scowl deepened.

"Because they deserved it!" Eren blurted out angrily, "Because they were animals who deserved to die! They killed Mikasa's parent, kidnapped her and tried to kill me! So that's why we killed them! So don't you dare think I can't do the same to you too!"

Jay's eyes snapped onto Eren's direction as he heard Eren's statement, his expression unreadable, "Is that a fact?" Jay raised an eyebrow as he stood up straight and gave Eren a dark abysmal stare as he loomed over him.

"I think we both know it is…" Eren growled out, an icy edge to his voice. His hand slowly crept down to his back and was gripping the knife handle, his knuckles turning white and his jaw was clenched. 'Come on, I dare you… Try and fight back….' Eren thought savagely as he glared at Jay who didn't say a word. 'Yeah... That's what I thoug-'

Eren suddenly stopped in mid-thought. His eyes widened slightly and his brow furrowed slightly as he saw Jay's reaction. Jay stood there unblinking but the corners of his mouth curled upwards slightly. Jay noticed Eren's reaction and his mouth curled ever so slightly more.

"I'm afraid, Yeager...that we don't…" Jay spoke, his voice icy cold and his head tilted slightly to the side. Eren's face creased in confusion as he noticed where Jay's arms were.

'They're behind his back…' Eren realised, 'He knew what was going to happen an-'

"I prepared for this…" Jay cut in smoothly, completely shocking Eren. He finally broke into a thin smile, his gloved hands tightening on the sword handle and the gun concealed behind his back. "Yeah, you got me...I knew that you'd find this place, that a neat little idea popped into your head, and you decided, why not grab something sharp to get the job done. You got so caught up with your little story that it took you this long to figure out that I could have slashed your neck or put a bullet in your skull all this time..."

Eren dropped his composure and stared at Jay, completely overwhelmed.

"And the reason how I knew all of this…" Jay continued, taking another step towards him, "Is that I know how think. How you act. And what you are… What can I say? Freaks of nature think alike…"

Eren swallowed and clenched his jaw, "Don't star-"

"Don't start? I honestly think we're past that. You show no remorse about what happened. You not disturbed by the fact that you could do that when you were 10. So you don't feel anything about that? You're numb to that sort of thing?"

"I never said that!" Eren snapped back but Jay interrupted him.

"So you're not so thick-skinned then… I guess it's natural, you were only a child, you must have been scared of dying, you wanted to fight for your life... I mean, I only started when I was 15, at that time I killed my first. He was a criminal, like your first one. I drowned him in a barrel, the same thing he did to his own victims. Although…I made sure to use hot oil instead of water, there was barely anything left of his face after I was done …" Jay nodded, pausing to choose his words, the silence between each of his phrases unnerving as he averted his gaze, "It was...unsettling… not because of what I did but… because of how I didn't feel anything about it… I was expecting something bad but… nothing… and the more he struggled, the greater the feeling... of absolute control… It's… rather daunting…" He turned to look at Eren. He didn't say a word and his eyes were wide with shock. Jay only shrugged and continued, his voice became lower and deadly serious. "What? You wanted your scapegoat, your monster...and you got your wish, here I am… You can't kill me because you know that if you do, the others would tear each other apart. And the same goes if I do the same thing as well. But do you know what I want you to do?" Jay asked flatly. Eren scowled at Jay, and shrugged.

"You… you expect me to give up? To hand over to you what I'm carrying?" Eren demanded only to be replied with a shake of the head from Jay.

"Just give up? No, Yeager, we're going to clash sooner or later so there's no point...I want you to get whatever you're holding right now, hell, use the entire armoury if you want to… and just try to kill me…" He stated as he stared at Eren, his voice laced with pure venom, "Because I'm not going to kill you… I'm just going to beat you senseless until you wished I'd finish you off, that whole fight between you and me just a couple days a go, that was just a tiny, tiny glimpse of what I can do… So you should imagine what would happen if I decide not to hold back..."

Eren's blood turned cold as he stared at Jay, "You really think I can'-" Eren began, infuriated.

"I know you can't…" Jay growled as he glared at Eren, who was at a complete loss for words. Jay tilted his head, expecting some sort of a retort but was only greeted by silence. "...Typical…" Jay muttered as he slowly turned and walked away from Eren, who stared at him in bitter loathing, his hands trembling by his side.

"But… there is one thing…" Jay added finally as he stopped at the doorway before turning his head into Eren's direction. "...It's good to know we both agree on something… They did deserve to die… You just killed them far too quickly..." And he left without saying a word. Eren stared at the door, his fists clenched in absolute fury until his knuckles turned white. He looked down at the knife and adjusted his grip on the knife. 'Think whatever you want, freak…' He thought, 'After I'm done, you'll be next…'

Next day

Connie put a finger to his lips, causing Sasha to stifle her giggling as much as possible. Both of them were waiting outside Dante's door, buckets of ice-cold water in their hands, just waiting for him to open door. Connie adjusted his grip on the handle as Sasha placed more ice in her buckets. They had been outside collecting ice for over an hour and their hands were numb from the cold. But both knew that if they managed to pull this off, it would be totally worth it. 'Let's see his smug face now' Connie thought, grinning to himself as he held the bucket perfectly still, waiting for the door to open. They waited, seconds felt like hours, each second agonisingly slow as their hands twitched in anticipation. Suddenly the door flung open and Connie shouted out, throwing the buckets of water at the open doorway. A loud series of splashes could be heard and a loud sound of metal buckets hitting the floorboards rang out. Sasha and Connie opened their eyes and paused.

"Is...is that an...umbrella…" Sasha asked, blinking as she tilted her head and looked at the open umbrella in the doorway. But before they could utter anything else, the umbrella whirled around, soaking the two of them instantly. Both of them staggered back from the barrage of water and saw Dante toss the umbrella and look around, "Never try and beat a Blackwood at his own game. Never."

"Wha- Wha- How!?" Connie exclaimed, wiping his eyes with his sleeve.

"A true mastermind never reveals his secrets!" Dante grinned as he made an elaborate bow, slowly backing away towards the corner of the corridor.

"You honestly think we're going to let you have the last laugh!?" Sasha demanded, giving Dante a look of pure fury.

Dante's smile grew even wider as he backed away, "Two people as stupid as you!? You won't even get near me!" He began laughing as he sprinted off. Sasha and Connie sprinted after him, almost slipping on the large puddles of water on the floor.

"Come on! We can't let him get away!" Connie yelled as he sprinted ahead. He turned around the corner to see Dante standing in the middle of the corridor, a small smirk on his face and giving them a wave. Connie then rushed forward, ready to tackle Dante to the floor. His eyes were fixed on Dante, not noticing the tripwire until it was too late. Connie tripped over, his arms flailing wildly to grab something only for him to fall face first onto the polished wooden floor. Connie groaned as his hands went to his face before Sasha fell for the same trap, causing her to fall and crash into him.

"GAH! What the hell!? Get your elbow out of my face!" Connie screamed as he tried to push Sasha away.

"I'm trying! It's your fault!" Sasha whined as she tried to get up. Dante grinned as he leant down and rubbed both of their heads roughly.

"You realise how adorable it is when two screw up. It's like two babies!" He remarked as he stepped over them. "I'll see you two later… Loosseeerrss!" He laughed as he disappeared out of sight. He slowed his paced down after a minute of running to look back to see that no one was following him. He chuckled before whirling around only to stop in his tracks, his blood turning cold and his smile fading.

Standing in front of him was Levi.

"Oh...h-hi, Captain…" Dante gulped and blinked nervously as he saw Levi stare blankly at him. Levi only blinked as he fixed him with his signature scowl. Dante stood perfectly still, his eyes fixed on Levi. Finally, Dante nodded slowly before edging slowly out of the room. As soon as Dante was about to leave, Levi called out his name, causing him to curse under his breath and look back at Levi who was now a metre away from him.

"...You alright?..." Levi asked dully, taking Dante aback.

"U-Uh… Yeah… of course… sir…." Dante added uncomfortably.

"Tch…" Levi shook his head as a scowl was fixed on his face, "Says the guy who pulled out a gun and shot something while I was in the damn room…"

Dante opened his mouth to say something but stopped. He let out an embarrassed sigh and gave a small shrug, shaking his head slightly and at a loss for words. Levi glared at him and Dante could feel himself shrink where he stood.

"Seeing that you're either too stupid or ignorant to come up with a half decent answer, let me ask you this question," Levi stated, "What the hell happened between you and your dad?"

Dante blinked in shock as he stared at Levi. Levi only let out an annoyed sigh as his eyes narrowed as he focused on Dante, his frown deepening, "What? You think I'm an idiot? It's clearly obvious. So what happened?"

Dante let out a slow sigh as looked down at the floor. He took off his fedora and smoothed down his hair, struggling to find the words. Finally, he shrugged and began to speak. "My dad...uh… Let's just say he got involved with people he shouldn't have… and me and another person very close to me almost died because of that…" Dante admitted slowly. Levi's eyebrows raised in mild surprise. "Yeah… We were only 11 at the time. So what kind of a scumbag of a dad would put his only 11 year old son and his friend at risk?"

"So… The girl in the photo? She was with you?" Levi asked, causing Dante hand to flutter instinctively towards his front pocket and he nodded. "What's her name?"

"Myra… Her name is Myra…" Dante admitted, a small genuine smile appearing on his face.

Levi nodded and he shrugged. "We all had someone in our life who we rather not mention, I should know…" He paused before sighing and stating quickly, "So just don't get into any more stupid stuff and we're good… Are we clear?"

Levi blinked in shock. Suddenly, a wide grin appeared on his face, causing Levi to almost regret saying it. 'God, he's like a child.' Levi thought in disbelief as he looked at Dante's overjoyed face. "Yes sir! Thank you, sir!" Dante nodded eagerly.

"Tch… Get out of my sight…" Levi shook his head and Dante almost instantly began to jog off, his grin still plastered onto his face. Levi lower his head for a second only to look up and focus on Dante. "Blackwood…" He called out, stopping Dante in his tracks.

"Yes, sir?" Dante asked uncertainly as he looked back over his shoulder, his grin faltering slightly.

Levi lowered his head in deep thought, "... Nothing… forget I said anything…"

Dante nodded slowly and blinked absently. Finally, he gave a shrug and walked down the corridor out of sight. Levi watched him leave, his brow furrowed and his jaw clenched, 'Besides… He's not the person to ask about that…"

Days ago, after the wall incident

"With all due respect Erwin, do you really expect me to agree with this bullshit!?"

Erwin sighed as he smoothed his hair down as Levi slowly paced around the room. "Captain Levi, may I remind you that this is non-negotiable, something that needs to be done-"

"Getting me to join the Survey Corps was non-negotiable, this is different! I've followed your orders before, Erwin, but I doubt that you can assure me that what happened on the walls was justifiable for whatever cause you have in mind!" Levi retorted, struggling to keep his voice calm. "It hadn't even been an hour and I almost lost my squad three times. Once when they were fighting your secret squad, the second for that church blowing up and the third for whatever the hell that was on the wall…"

"I can't justify that what had happened on the wall was morally right and even I would prefer an alternative method, but considering the threat we are facing within the walls, I can tell you that it may have been necessary!"

Levi breathed out as he sat down and his his head slowly, "And it involves working with Northerners? We both know what they're like, stubborn and pedantic to a fault… Well, do fill me in on whatever this threat is, why you need us to work with your secret squad made up of a clown, a pretty-boy and a psychopath…"

Erwin gave a small humourless chuckle, " Well, they do whatever needs to be done…"

Levi stared at Erwin, his face completely unreadable and his eyes filled with a mixture of shock and anger. Finally he breathed out, all of the anger and shock dissipating out and being replaced by a sense of weariness and annoyance. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms, "Fine… Then tell me… What the hell are we involved in?"

"Take a look at this…" Erwin stated as he reached beneath his desk. He pulled out a thin file and pushed it out towards Levi who flicked it open and began to read over it slowly. "Oh look more bullshit..." Levi muttered in his typical manner, unimpressed by the lack of information.

"Only in recent months have we been alerted to a potential threat beneath the walls. You had to deal with the First Interior Squad and the Rod Reiss but this is much bigger and greater than this. This group is called the Senator's Ghosts and we have reason to believe they've been operating for some time. As of yet, we have no idea about the extent of their numbers but we do know that there are three prominent members we have information on. Three men who go by the names of 'The Senator', 'The General' and 'Burkhardt'.

Levi flicked to the next page, disinterested, "Sounds like the Senator is the idiot in charge. The other two stooges?"

"The General is their tactician and leader in combat. 'Burkhardt' is mainly responsible for their finances, buying and distributing weapons, that sort…" Erwin continued, "We got a lead on a batch of weapons being transported under his name and soldiers were sent to intercept and gain more information…" He trailed off, his expression darkening as he continued on, his eyes fixed to the table. Levi blinked, looked up and noticed this. He tilted his head at an angle and raised his eyebrow, a spark of morbid curiosity finally arising.

"Well… What happened?" Levi asked bluntly. Erwin finally looked up, his jaw slightly clenched.

"The General happened… It was an ambush…"

It only took Levi less than three seconds to piece together what Erwin was implying. He slowly closed the report and pushed it towards Erwin, sitting forward "...How many men did you lose to get this information?"

Erwin sat up straight and fixed Levi with a calm, blue gaze, "...23 men… 13 from the Northern Garrison and 10 from the Survey Corps..."

Levi's eyes widened slightly and his brow creased, "That many people? How come we haven't heard anything about this-" He stopped and let out a low sigh, "Because you covered it up… Of course…"

"If this news went out, all of humanity could plunge into chaos…" Erwin stated calmly, "And furthermore, our involvement in the North…"

Levi sighed out, "What involvement? Since when have the North helped us in any way?"

Erwin exhaled as he leant back in his chair and pulled at his bolo tie. "Ever since we overthrew the old government and placed Historia Reiss back to her rightful place, we had to deal with any possible outbursts or rebellions that could potentially occur. You think that what happened here was bad, the North was a lot more resistant. But instead of sending soldiers into unforeseeable odds, the Winter's Fury made sure that the threat was dealt with quickly-"

"Winter's Fury?" Levi stopped pacing around the room and looked at Erwin, "You don't mean the Northern Garrison Commander do you?"

"I'm assume you've heard the story behind the name?"

"Something about being some lone survivor north of Maria in a blizzard but that besides the point"

"As I was saying," Erwin continued, "The trio I've just introduced to you earlier today also were instrumental in doing so… No matter what way you would put it, the fact still remains that the Northern Garrison and the Golden Spear Company helped prevent more of our soldiers getting killed..."

"So those three killed people before…" Levi asked scornfully only to be answered with a patient stare from Erwin.. 'To stop rebellions?"

"Pest control…" Erwin stated, "The Winter's Fury's words, not mine about what happened in Nedlay…I'm sure you're aware of what happened there..."

"Of course I should know… It was the bloodiest and worst one of all of the rebellions…" Levi grunted and shook his head, rolling his eyes as he did so. "Why am not surprised the Northern Commander would take care of it like that. Just like what happened on the walls… His involvement must have been some ploy just to get more power…"

Erwin gave an enigmatic smirk and lifted his hand in an open gesture, "It may have been… but if it helped our cause, then so be it…" His smirk fell as quickly as it had appeared and he went back to his deadly serious tone. "But this is why I need you and your squad to join force with the Golden Spear Company. The Northern Commander is adamant that we collaborate more closely now and honestly, they are some of the finest soldiers I have seen and we need as many of those as possible now. The new threat would bring down humanity and cause chaos. If that happens, standing up to the Titans would be a pipedream… To ensure our future, we need to do what has to be done, before the body count becomes too high…"

Levi listened intently and sighed out, rubbing his eyes. He clicked his knuckles and raised an eyebrow, "Don't you think it already is… especially since you've forced us to join forces with a squad including the Mangler?"

Erwin stopped completely. Levi blinked, perplexed at what had happened. Erwin leant back in his chair, his brow was furrowed and a smile was playing on his lips as he stared at Levi, his expression almost unreadable. Levi sat up and blinked, his confusion growing.

"You think I paired you and your squad with a mere Northern rumour?" Erwin asked as he got up, his smirk growing wider as he organised the folder to put it back in the drawer. "Even I wasn't expecting you to believe something like that…I'm surprised..." Levi's eyes widened as he was about to say something but stopped dead in his tracks as realisation hit him like a punch to the stomach.

'He doesn't even know…' Levi realised in shock, 'He doesn't even know that Jay is a killer, let alone how many people he must have killed…'

"Anyway… We've already wasted enough time here. You should get your squad ready to move out. You have a long journey ahead of you." Erwin continued as he nodded.

"And where exactly are we headed for?" Levi asked.

"To the mountains north of here. More precisely to the Winter Retreat." Erwin responded, closing the drawer and sitting back down in his chair, "I'm sure Alphonse will be more than capable to fill you in on the details regarding it."

'In an isolated area, far from any other area…' Levi thought of all of the possibilities, 'If things get messy, there's practically no chance of reinforcements and only those three know the area of the land well enough. We're practically sitting ducks, let alone the fact that we got a killer and his group that are accompanying us…' Levi got up and nodded, not saying anything before walking out, his mind racing with the thought of the new members of his squad.

Levi breathed out as he stormed down the corridor, his fists clenched and his arms down and rigid by his side. 'All that matters now is that I need to find Jay and get some answers. But I need to do that when the time is right…' Levi thought.

Meanwhile

"Y-You remember the positions of every piece from our last game?" Armin asked in surprise as Jay quickly placed the pieces on the board, adjusting them to a very precise detail.

"Of course I would… Why wouldn't I?" Our last game was stopped just as it was getting interesting" Jay asked, looking up at Armin and gestured him to take a seat. Armin sat down and looked at the chessboard in surprise, "I also remember it's your move…" Armin snapped out of his trance and examined the board before moving his bishop.

"So… you're adopted as well?" Armin asked as Jay made his next move.

"Yep… Into another noble family like Al's… The Talbots. My father's a surgeon and taught me everything he knew... my mother's… well… my mother…" He muttered in a flat tone, as if he had to drone on about it a million times before.

"And you have a younger sibling…" Armin added, causing Jay to look up, "I've seen the picture you keep framed in your room. It's of you and another person."

"...Good observation…" Jay stated calmly after pausing. He looked down at the board, his eyes glued to Armin slowly moving his piece across the chessboard. "It was drawn by my sister, Penelope, when I came back from training…"

Armin sighed out as he rested back in his chair and inspected it, "... I don't get it… I honestly don't…"

Jay looked up and stared at Armin, his dark stare fixed on him, "You don't get what?"

Armin returned his stare, "I don't get what you're doing. Al and Dante come from a family associated with the military. You on the other hand… You're adopted into a fortunate family, you have a family which care for you deeply and you join the survey corps…"

Jay focused on the board as he placed his rook down with a loud CLACK! "...Your point is?" He asked, an eyebrow raised in curiosity.

Armin shrugged as he shifted his bishop forward again, "My point is… Why? Compared to most of the others, you have more to lose compared to any of us-"

"Yeah because being the adopted kid in a family which can't produce a male heir really does make me fortunate, doesn't it?" Jay grumbled sarcastically, "You probably don't need to be reminded how those 'upper classes' are just cowardly, ignorant rats trapped in their bubble looking down on everyone else… This may not happen in the south but you know they can buy their way into the military..." Jay looked at the surprise that flickered across Armin's face, "Yeah, I thought so… And they have the guts to call themselves soldiers… They deserve to be used as titan bait…"

"Is that what you think about all of them?..." Armin questioned, his curiosity growing.

Jay exhaled quickly as he looked down at the board, "No… Few of them understand… Only a handful really care… Al and Dante are two of them, I guess…"

Armin nodded slowly and looked down at the chessboard, his mind racing with questions. 'That wasn't what I was expecting at all' Armin thought, 'The others said he was a cold heartless monster but I don't understand… Maybe I could learn more about what happened exactly back then.' Armin took a deep breath and sat up,"I got something to ask you...It's… It's about what happened on the wall…"

Jay's head snapped up to Armin's direction with an erratic, quick action, causing Armin to flinch slightly. Jay let out a humourless laugh as he leaned back in his chair and smoothed his hair, "What? Didn't you hear it from your friends? From Levi and Al?" Jay demanded, an icy edge to his voice.

'He's really annoyed by that, I got to think about what I say carefully…" Armin thought as he pushed down the welling source of panic inside of him and cleared his throat. "Of course I have… I just want to hear it from you…"

Jay stared at Armin for a long time. Finally, he sighed out, the anger and anticipation diffusing from his face. He shrugged and licked his lips, "Well…. What do you want to know?"

Armin breathed out, "What exactly happened, what did you do and why?"

Jay moved his hands off the table and let them rest by his side, his attention finally withdrawing from the game itself. "When Dante was leading you and the others away, we got the two of them on the wall and we found out how they were involved and what they know. But we also find out how they had information on every single one of you and your squad and in the end, they also figured out about the Mangler and were secretly armed and ready to escape. So I acted to prevent an already bad situation from becoming worse..."

Armin blinked, taken aback by how simply and flatly Jay had clearly outline what had happened. "Is… Is that it?"

Jay's frown deepened as he looked at Armin, "Yes of course… Did you want me to say anything else?"

Armin exhaled sharply, "Yes, I was. What did you do exactly to the people on the wall? How did they find out about the Mangler?"

Jay's face darkened momentarily as he glared at Armin. He rested his arms on the table and gave Armin his abysmal stare, "Are you sure… That's what you want me to answer?" He asked, his voice low and icy cold, "...Because I wouldn't be telling you this if I honestly thought this was something you truly wouldn't want to know…"

Armin stared back, not breaking eye contact with Jay and trying to suppress the chill that threatened to run up his spine and the hair that was standing on end. Instead, Armin tilted his head, trying to analyse what Jay was thinking. "Why? Do you think after what had happened to me before, you think I shouldn't know?"

Jay growled as he pursed his lips and leaned back in his chair, diverting his attention to the floor and folding his arms across his chest. 'He didn't answer…' Armin noted, as he felt the pieces slowly come together, 'He didn't answer because… He doesn't want to talk about it? He's ashamed of it? If that's the case, then there might be some good in him. He did try to apologise to me after the others broke into his room so that's a start...'

"I don't know, Artlet, you tell me about why I should?" Jay grunted as he pushed his piece forward and stared at the chessboard. Armin licked his lips as he studied the board and moved the piece forward, "Because it's certainly better than not wanting to talk about it at all?". Jay only replied with a shrug but this time, was looking directly at Armin.

"Because you saw it at the time as the only possible solution while others may disagree." Armin stated, noticing how he got Jay's attention and began to continue, "And if you must have thought it had to be done, despite you thinking it was unpleasan-"

"Despite thinking it was unpleasant?" Jay asked. Armin stopped, taken aback by his question. Slowly, he dared himself to look up from the chessboard to look at the person opposite him. His eyes finally fixed on Jay. He remained perfectly still, his head tilted at an angle.

"Well, of course. You must have. It only makes sense…" Armin spoke slowly, trying to make sense of the situation but also noticing how Jay appeared to be a little provoked and on edge, making him even more uncertain of what he was saying.

"What makes you think I would say otherwise?" Jay asked, his confusion becoming greater and greater. "It doesn't make sense. How can you assume it does!?"

"Your adoptive father?" Armin blurted out, trying to convince himself that Jay wasn't trying to imply what he was fearing, "You said he was a surgeon. He saved lives! He helped people! You were raised in an orphanage. Surely they both taught you that-"

"Taught me what!?" Jay snapped "Taught me that all life is sacred? Everyone should be treated equally? Well, to his credit, he tried very hard to teach me... But the one thing from my father which really stuck in: You have a fault, a disease, an illness. You find it. You isolate it. Then you kill it. You make sure it has no chance of ever coming back! It's no different with people. You find the scum and you eradicate them! You make sure they can't harm anyone else!"

Armin stared at Jay, completely speechless. He was about to speak but was cut off by Jay.

"And as for the orphanage? I learnt how screwed up we all are, how screwed up humanity is. We talk about fighting against the titans when we can't even sort ourselves out! It's like a cesspit with the criminals and scumbags dragging the rest of us down with them. I learnt that from h-" Jay paused and checked himself, "That's what I learnt…"

Armin's face creased in suspicion, "What? You learnt that from who?" Jay looked up and his brow furrowed, "You learnt that from what? Him? Her? Who?"

"It doesn't matter!" Jay retorted as he leaned back and studied the board, a savage tone becoming more and more evident in his voice, "It doesn't! What matters is that the people I kill, the people I put down. The absolute filth here! They don't deserve any second chance!"

"S-So you think you of all people alone can just decide who does and doesn't get a second chance!? Based one just one act? Not considering the reasons why or the repercussions after!?" Armin exclaimed in disbelief.

"That's irrelevant! I don't see anyone else having the guts to do so, especially those fat degenerates you call the upper classes or those 'elite' few known as the military police, do you!?" Jay demanded, failing to keep his voice calm. "They're all vermin. Just like the people I kill!"

"And what happens if someone thinks you don't deserve a second chance!? What would your family think? Your little sister!?" Armin demanded, shocked.

"My family doesn't need to know, they won't and they never will!" Jay stated firmly, "And you really think that hasn't occurred before when people tried to kill me? It practically happens on a daily basis. But the one thing they all have in common is that they all missed and by the time I get to them, they all wished that they hadn't."

"Unbelievable…" Armin breathed out, shaking his head.

"Unbelievable!? Is that what you honestly think!? And you of all people can understand, hmm!?"

"I can, Jay! I lost my parents as well!" Armin stated.

Jay stared at Armin and sighed out. His voice was now lower and the savagery in his voice had died down a little, "Well… hypothetically... let's say someone killed your parents? Do you honestly think your parent's killers should walk away with it? From robbing you of a childhood you should have had!?" Jay asked, taking Armin aback. Armin lowered his gaze for a fraction of a second before replying defiantly.

"Of course not! But just killing them like that, I wouldn't know. I don't think one person have the right to decide for themselves." Armin stated. Jay shook his head and rolled his eyes, chuckling humourlessly, "Come on Artlet, be realistic! There's no way that you can remain on the fence with something like this! You have to make a choice on your own and when you have the chance before someone else decides for you. And the right one is the one that guarantees the safety of those around you as well as your own! You must have done it before!"

"That was a matter of survival. We were at war!" Armin argued. However, deep down, he suppressed a shudder as he remembered blowing someone's brains out to save Jean while fighting the First Interior Squad.

"Then how is what I do any different?" Jay remarked, "We have to do 'bad' things in war to ensure the safety of others. Like how I do 'bad' things to wipe all of the filth out there!"

"So it had never occurred to you ever that you are deliberately hunting for human lives!?" Armin blurted out

"Why the hell should it!?" Jay retorted, "All of them deserving every bit of punishment and more as well as no evidence whatsoever to tie me to what happened to them!"

Armin shook his head bitterly, "Yeah, that's right. Kill them all anyway and wipe out whatever small shred of good they may have!" He saw Jay roll his eyes and open his mouth but Armin interjected, "You can't deny it! You can't just know that someone is irredeemable!"

"So the people who killed Mikasa's parents, kidnapped her and almost killed your best friend had a shred of good in them!? Just think of what they were planning to do with her! Think about what could have happened if Eren didn't arrive!? You think that is redeemable!? Just think on that and try to justify it, Artlet! The only thought that had ever occurred to me is how they ruin other people's lives and no matter what I do to try and change that, they would always get off easy. Kidnappers, human traffickers, child killers!? You honestly think they're redeemable!... I dealt with them all..." Jay leaned in closer and his voice was low, full of venom, and almost unrecognisable, slowly getting louder and louder and trembling with pure unbridled anger. "You can't even begin to understand what I had to do. I had to dig out the bodies of dead children with my own hands… I witnessed people get tortured and killed in front of their own families… And I had to watch people suffer whilst others just looked the other way! And when I do get to those responsible, I just do what I can... I could rip their entire organs out, I could skin each of them alive, I could drown them in the blood of their friends. Hell, I could hang their corpses outside the Military Police HQ as decorations for everyone to see but that still wouldn't be enough!" Jay finally yelled out slamming his fist down on the table, breathing heavily and full of anger. Armin stared at Jay, completely and utterly stunned and horrified as he stared at the teenager in front of him.

"...So that is what this is about!?" Armin asked, his voice was small and quiet, "You're doing this because you hate them… You hate practically everyone around you. You don't think anyone can redeemed at all. But most of all... You're just bored… you're bored and sadistic, you just want to dish out as much pain and hurt as possible and you feel you can't do that to one person. All because of how they took away your childhood. You killed those people responsible but even that wasn't enough. So you just kill more and more people-"

"Oh, enough of the psychological bullshit!" Jay scorned, "I do it to save the people we still have here and now and make sure that the threat doesn't happen again! So if you really do want to know what happened, what I did and why, well here it is. I recognised a threat no one else did. I recognised that my friend as well as yours were in danger. I hacked off one man's limbs, I shoved a maneuver gear hook into his mouth and pulled the trigger. I tore his entire face open. I stabbed the other through the heart twice. And I did that because I had to do what had to be done and if I had to, I would do it all over again!" With that Jay got up, brushed down the front of his jacket and began to storm off. "Consider yourself the winner. I need some air…" And with that he slammed the door, leaving Armin alone in the study. Armin stared at the door and then looked at the chessboard.

'I didn't want to face it.' Armin reflected, his stomach turning and his blood becoming cold, 'I really didn't want to believe the others. I tried to convince myself otherwise from what I had seen earlier but they were right all along…

You really are a goddamn monster…'

Later that day

Eren scowled as he stormed down the corridor, his patience wearing thin as he looked all around the Retreat for Al or Jay but to no avail. 'How many rooms does this stupid place have!?' He thought as he was on the verge of losing his temper, 'And how long does it take just to find one of those two!?' He turned around the corridor, his arm brushing something as he walked past. His head craned to look over his shoulder and saw a large, colourful vase about to topple onto the ground. Before Eren could do anything else, there was a blur, causing Eren to jump back in shock as Al rushed past and caught the vase before it shattered onto the floor.

"Quite the clumsy one, aren't you?" Al breathed a sigh of relief as he carefully lifted the vase and placed the vase back where it was, making sure it was steady. Eren blinked in surprise before snapping back into the real world.

"Hey! Where the hell did you come from!?" He demanded, a mixture of confusion and shock welling up inside him. Al blinked as he raised his arm to the door only a metre away from them.

"...From the library…" Al remarked, "I always spend my evenings there… I'm sure I already said that before…' Eren just shook his head and Al just shrugged, "Well, whatever, I guess I only really told Mikasa… Anyway, I'm sorry if I scared you. It's just a reflex thing, especially if Jay's running around after Dante and beating up for his pranks, something in here's bound to break… Anyway, did you need anything? I'm just reading so… There isn't much to do anyway."

Eren was about to reply instantly but checked himself. 'Hold on a second… This is my chance to find out what he know, what he's truly after. Jay's a lunatic and Dante just acts like an idiot. But there's something about him that just bothers me. He may seem alright but he's definitely hiding something. I know it…'. Instead, Eren cleared his throat and shrugged casually, "Yeah… I was hoping I could ask you a few things…"

Al nodded, "It's funny cos I actually have a few myself. You can ask first"

"I'm just curious...How did you even get a place like this?" Eren asked, eyeing what Al's reaction would be, "A bit big for just three guys, right?"

Al grunted in laughter, "In hindsight, maybe a little. But it's a pretty good hideaway and base for us." His face had a cheeky smirk, "It especially helps if you want to throw the biggest party possibly or if you can invite a friend or two round…"

"Quite the popular guy, hmm?" Eren remarked, uninterestedly.

"I guess you could say that. I have been known to get quite a bit of attention in the past. But as I was saying, the place was being constructed for my older brother but… after he died, my father made sure it was fully built before handing it over to me when I finished training". Al replied with a smile.

Eren sighed out, "...Must be nice having everything handed to you on a silver platter…"

Al stared at Eren, his smile faltering slightly, "I wouldn't so quick to judge. Even nobles have to earn things…" he said slowly, trying to find an appropriate reply to what Eren had said before remaining sent, the tension thick between the two of them.

"Anyway, you said you had a question" Eren remarked after a short pause, stifling the smile that threatened to form on his face, thinking that he was putting Al at unease. 'I could probably just lie and he won't even think twice about it…'

"Oh I yeah I did…Did you access the armoury recently?" Al asked as he looked at Eren. Eren's face remained perfectly calm but did his best to stifle a shudder. 'What!? Dammit! Did Jay tell him!? No, he couldn't have. Otherwise that would cause a lot of problems for him as well as us… Eren cleared his throat and shook his head, "No… Why?"

Al shrugged, "I was a little...um...occupied yesterday. I was meant to lock the door but I forgot to. When I double checked the weapons, I found that some of them were missing. I'd assume I might have misplaced them, but I don't know. If you see anything, you'll tell me, right…"

Eren nodded, "Sure…" He lied, trying to digest what Al was saying. 'A little occupied? Why put it like that? You were around Mikasa, so why didn't you just say that?… Well, what matters is that he doesn't suspect a thing… And since he asked me to make sure, he wouldn't expect me to have a weapon on me…' He ran a hand through his hair.

"You said you had a few things to ask. What else was there?" Al carried on.

"When and how did you know that Jay was the Mangler?"

Al's face fell as he looked away, a little uncomfortable. Eren waited for Al's answer, clearly noticing how uncomfortable Al was, "Well… Last year…" Al admitted, "Long story short, me and some friends were on a wild goose chase after him. We found out who we was and we kept it to ourselves… Jay was our friend and he did save me twice, during and after the whole mess… So, I do kind of owe him one…"

'Not so proud of that, hmm?' Eren noted, 'I guess you are hiding way more than you're letting on. Especially how you hid the truth of what he really is…' Eren nodded towards Al, "That's all I got. You?"

"Alright...um," Al paused as he tried to find the right words, "...have you… seen Mikasa anywhere?" Al asked hopefully. Eren was taken aback, his brow furrowed as he stared at Al.

"No… why?" Eren asked, suspicion rising through him as he tried to suppress every thought or reason to why Al would ask that out of the blue. Al only cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his head, a smirk appearing on his face.

"Well, to be honest…" Al admitted, "The two of us have been getting along quite well. I was hoping I could find her and try and get a rematch with her considering the last few times we would always end up drawing."

Eren lowered his gaze, his jaw clenched, 'Of course you would. Like hell you could even try and beat her…'

"I'd be lying if I said it wasn't infuriating. But honestly, I'm getting closer. I almost did beat her a couple times now…' Al's smile grew wider. Eren stopped and looked up at Al, completely taken aback.

"Yeah, you'd be surprised. She has one hell of a right hook, that's a fact but much to my surprise, she has quite a few weak points to exploit. Now I know what to do next time, she won't see it coming. Another thing that surprised me is that she did tell me about what happened before to her. You know, with the kidnapping, Trost, all of that…"

"She told you all of that!?" Eren blurted out in shock. Mikasa hadn't said a word to anyone else about the kidnapping on her own accord and she dismissed what had happened at Trost almost entirely. 'So why on earth would she tell Al that? The others fought alongside her for years and they had to find out for themselves at the trial… What did Al do to make her admit that!?'

"Yeah, of course," Al shrugged, "I mean that's good. She's opening up to her comrades. Honesty and trust is important. We fall back on each other and depend on that. All of our actions have consequences and we have to carry out our duty until we die. That's how you follow the path of a soldier…"

Eren's face remained calm but he felt confusion rise through him, 'Wait...Why does that sound familiar… That sounded like …'

"I know it was my own choice to follow the path of the soldier" Reiner spoke aloud, sitting on top of the wall resting his head against his fist.

Eren paused as his eyes widened with realisation. '...Reiner… He sounds just like Reiner! Just before…'

"But what I do know is that no matter what results, my actions and the consequences of my choices bring about. As a warrior, I gotta take responsibility and fulfil my duty till the bitter end"

"He said that just before he revealed himself to be the Armoured Titan!"Eren remembered.

Al tilted his head in curiosity, waiting for an answer, "So… Have you seen her?"

Eren looked up at her and only shook his head, "...No… I haven't…"

Al sighed out as his smile cracked a little and he shrugged, "Oh well…I'll guess I should find her tomorrow then…" His smile then returned, "Was there anything else?"

Eren shook his head slowly, his mind racing. Al didn't notice and continued to speak, "Well… … Where do you think I would find her? I'm thinking of heading off outside and I was hoping that I could bump into her along the way."

Eren stayed perfectly still, his blood running cold, "I… I honestly don't know… She doesn't talk to me about that…"

"Well… that's a shame…" Al shrugged, something like disappointment showing on his face.

'...Why didn't I see it before…" Eren realised in horror, 'I was too preoccupied with Jay that I couldn't see it earlier. You wanted to kill her! You're trying to get close enough to kill her. That's it, isn't it!? You see her as a possible threat and the only way to deal with her is to try and stab her in the back.' Eren thought scornfully. ' Can't say I'm surprised. You're the kind of scumbag who always reminded me of him, of Reiner. I knew you were hiding something! Thanks for the final proof, idiot…'

"Anyway, that's all. I guess I'll see you around!" Al grinned as he slapped Eren across the back and began to walk off, "Tomorrow's should be fun"

'I should say so…' Eren thought as he watched Al leave, 'Since I'll be the one to kill you before you even try to lay a hand on her…'

AN:

Guess who's back!? :D

Certainly an interesting chapter to write, especially Jay's and Armin's ethical argument and building up some tension between Eren and Al which would lead to some crazy scenes in the next chapter.

Thank you so much for staying with the story despite it being on hiatus for a lot longer than expected (so sorry about that). Writing after a long break really doesn't help at all. Still, it really does mean a lot and it's truly impressive and great to see all of the comments, follows and likes from those who enjoy the story. It really does show that the story is going in the right direction.

Again, thank you so much and until the next chapter!