It's been a while since the last update. Work's starting to pick up again, so I'm a little bit busier now than I was a couple of weeks ago. To everyone that's favorited and followed this story, thank you so much. It still amazes me that so many people have taken an interest in this story and I know I sound like a broken record about it. But I am genuinely humbled and grateful for the support. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Only two or three more chapters left. We're in the endgame now. Constructive criticism is always welcomed, but any and all rude and insulting comments will be promptly deleted (i.e. calling me names, telling me I shouldn't be supporting a certain ship, etc.). And please be kind to one another. The world's a crappy place right now and a little kindness can really go a long way. With that said, enjoy the chapter!
Trost, Two Days Later
Armin sat at a table in a bar, glancing out at the window in hopes of seeing Annie approaching. His mind was buzzing over just how to best discuss the whole marriage situation with Annie, but also the future Culling as well. Taking a sip of water, Armin did his best to try and calm his nerves, but nothing seemed to be working.
Finally, after what seemed like hours but was actually minutes, Annie appeared in his line of sight. He waved to her to get her attention, which ended up working as she spotted him from outside the establishment. Once Annie had entered and found Armin, she sat down, both having rather pensive expressions on their faces.
"Thanks for meeting me here, Annie," Armin greeted, "I know it must've been a long ride from the interior."
"It wasn't that bad," Annie replied, her usual stoic nature still in play, "So, what did you want to discuss?"
Armin waited until a waitress set down their bowls of stew he'd ordered beforehand and left before answering, "I wanted to talk about two things, but let's get the Titan in the room out of the way first: the marriage proposal."
Swallowing nervously, Annie nodded so Armin could continue on.
"It was a bit shocking to get that proposal from you, Annie. Honestly, I feel like I'm the last person you should be considering as a husband. I'm not as strong as you, nor am I a really good leader."
"But you're intelligent and perceptive," Annie interrupted, "You may not be as strong as Reiner or I, but you're also selling yourself short on your strongest attributes. Don't do that to yourself."
Armin blushed a little before resuming, "Anyway, I'm still trying to wrap my head around this entire situation, so I need a little time to think this through. You okay with that?"
"That's fine," Annie answered, taking a bite of stew, "I know Bertholdt is going to try and propose once he finds out that I'm not engaged. While I still consider him my friend, I don't see him the same way he sees me."
"Yikes. Poor Bertholdt."
"That's why I asked if you would marry me. You challenge me, Armin. And I don't mind that you do. You're a very interesting person to me. You complimented me and see me as a good person even though I'm the farthest thing from it. I guess I…I've grown to like you, Armin."
Armin's spoon fell into his stew, the teenager in shock over Annie's confession. Sure, he'd had a bit of a crush on her for a while now, but he never expected that to actually be reciprocated. Now it made sense why Annie didn't ask Bertholdt to marry her. But, he needed to get one thing out of her. Just one.
Picking up his spoon, Armin said, "Annie, I need you to answer one question. Just one. Your answer will determine if I ultimately say yes or no."
Even though a small hint of fear crossed her eyes, Annie replied, "Go ahead."
Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Armin dared to ask, "Were you responsible for Marco's death over a month ago?"
Now Annie's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. She didn't expect Armin to be so upfront with her about that. How could she tell him he was right? Would he forgive her for her sins against her own squad leader?
"I…I…" Annie tried to answer, but her stuttering said it all to Armin.
"Wow, Annie," he muttered, "I can't believe you did that to him. Tell me, what did Marco ever do to you? Why did you take his ODM gear?"
"Armin, please, I…"
"No. I don't want to hear anymore." Standing up, Armin concluded, "I'm sorry, Annie, but I'm rejecting your proposal. Go find someone else to marry."
Leaving some money to pay for the meals, Armin then exited the bar, leaving Annie alone to her own devices. The girl didn't do anything but let her tears fall as she felt the weight of her actions from one month ago hit her like a ton of bricks. Burying her head in her arms, Annie quietly sobbed to herself as she let her regret flow through her mind at full force.
"I'm sorry, Marco," she sobbed, "I'm so sorry."
On the training grounds, Squad Levi were currently taking turns sparring with Eren to help him get better at hand to hand combat. It was currently Eld's turn and the older man was not letting Eren off that easily.
"Focus on finding a pattern in your opponent's movements!" Eld instructed as Eren dodged yet another punch, "The moment you learn how to do that, the easier defeating your opponent is going to be!"
"Yes, sir!" Eren replied, ready to take Eld's words to heart.
From the side, Levi stood watching with Petra, Gunther, and Oluo, the latter of whom didn't seem that impressed.
"If Eld wants to teach him anything, he needs to give him a good beating," Oluo commented.
"No, what needs to happen is that you need to stop imitating the Captain every chance you get," Petra retorted, "It's annoying and he's right here!"
Oluo chuckled, "If it wouldn't get me beat up, I'd comment something, Petra."
"Please, say what you wanted to," Levi nearly seethed, "I'd love to hear what you were going to say to my wife."
"W-Well, Captain, you see, uh,…"
"Captain Levi, sir!" Jean's voice sounded, earning everyone's attention as he saluted in greeting.
"At ease, soldier," Levi responded, "Why are you here?"
"I need to talk to Eren as soon as possible."
Levi's eyebrow cocked up, "Eren? Didn't you try to kill him a few days ago because he's engaged to Mikasa?"
Jean's face became slightly flushed with embarrassment, but he answered, "Yes, sir, but that's not important right now. What I have to tell Eren is in regards to one of our comrades that died in Trost."
"Which one?"
"Marco Bott, sir."
Levi remembered that name, as Eren had mentioned it once in passing during tea many weeks prior. Marco's death had affected him pretty hard, so to receive some news about it probably wasn't going to help him. Still, Levi wasn't about to deny Eren that. He whistled to get Eren and Eld's attention, the two soldiers ceasing their sparring match at once.
"Eren, one of your comrades needs to talk to you!" Levi announced, "Take a fifteen minute break for this then return as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir!"
When Eren turned and saw Jean, he was about to make a retort to the older teen, but his words died the moment he saw Jean's serious expression. He hadn't seen that in a long time, so Eren immediately surmised that this wasn't about the engagement to Mikasa.
"Jean," he greeted as he walked up to him, "Why'd you interrupt the training session?"
"Armin met with Annie in Trost," Jean explained, "He's got something he needs to tell you."
Eren tilted his head, now more confused than he was seconds prior. Still, he followed Jean back towards the castle, leaving Squad Levi alone to ponder what was going on.
"Must've been really serious for him to pull Eren out of training like that," Gunter surmised.
"Eren knew Marco Bott," Levi explained, "They were in the same Cadet Corps class. Apparently, they were pretty close friends."
"Ah."
"Poor Eren," Petra muttered, prompting Levi to wrap an arm around her shoulders.
The quintet watched as Eren and Jean entered the castle, the door making a soft thudding noise to show it had been shut. Levi then promptly returned his attention back to Oluo, his eyes steeled over once again.
"So, Oluo, what were you going to say about my wife?" he pressed yet again.
Knowing it was pointless to hide it anymore, Oluo admitted, "I was going to tell Petra that she's going to be good wife material. That's all."
"Is that so?" Levi's stared softened ever so slightly, "Well, you're a little late to make that statement. She's already the perfect wife."
Petra began blushing profusely and Eld replied, "I think that's something we can all agree on, Captain."
"Y-You're lying, Armin," Eren stuttered, unable to believe what Armin had just told him, "There's no way. Annie wouldn't…"
"Except she did," Armin regretfully confirmed, "At least, she had a part in it. I left because I had the answers I was looking for."
Tears started flowing from Eren's eyes, the boy collapsing onto his knees in disbelief. Mikasa was quick to kneel next to Eren and hold him, trying her best to comfort him. Eren clung to Mikasa with a visceral grip, letting himself cry into her shoulder as she rubbed his own. Armin was quick to follow Mikasa's lead, hugging Eren tight as the latter mourned the loss of his friend.
What surprised the trio, however, was the sound of boots coming towards them and a third pair of arms wrapping themselves around Eren. Mikasa gleaned up and realized it was Jean, who met her gaze with tear filled eyes of his own. The two shared a respectful stare before they leaned back into Eren, the four continuing to mourn their fallen friend and comrade for the remainder of Eren's break.
The Following Day
Erwin slammed his fists onto his desk in an uncharacteristic display of anger, causing poor Historia to flinch in fear. She had just received a letter from her father, Rod Reiss, that revealed the government's next move on the chessboard: all the unmarried women in the military and Cadet Corps were to be married in a mass ceremony that September. Apparently, neither Nile or Pixis were given a choice and now Erwin was faced with this same dilemma. It was a sentiment shared by Levi, Hange, and Mike, who all scowled at the news.
"Disgusting bastards," Levi seethed, "Going behind our backs again."
"How do they keep doing this?!" Hange all but shouted, her frustration growing with each passing second.
"According to my father, what they're waiting on is for me to take my rightful place as the new holder of the Founding Titan," Historia explained, handing Erwin the letter, "But I really think this would be the best time for me to take complete control of the monarchy."
Reading over the letter's contents, Erwin looked up at Historia and responded, "And how do you propose we do that, Ms. Reiss?"
"I can't believe I'm about to say this, but we overthrow the government. The current king is obviously a fake, but we need something to expose their priorities first."
"Like the Armored and Colossal Titans breaching Wall Rose?!" Hange suggested enthusiastically.
"Yes, something like that. It'll expose that they're more focused on themselves rather than the people of the Walls."
"That breaks Clause Six of the Charter of Humanity," Erwin said, his voice starting to regain hope.
"And putting in a fake king means absolute death," Levi added, impressed at Historia's suggestion, "Good thinking, Your Highness."
Historia blushed and bashfully replied, "Oh, please don't call me that. I'm not the queen yet."
"But you will be by the end of this," Erwin said, standing up, "Historia, are you sure you want to go through with this? We can postpone this mass wedding with an expedition."
"Yes, I'm sure. And the sooner we put this plan into motion, the better."
"Agreed. I'll write to Nile and Pixis and inform them of the plan. We can't let anyone outside of this room know about it, either. This reduces the chances of the government finding out."
"So I can't even tell Petra?" Levi asked, concern on his face.
"Unfortunately, Levi. I know that you confide everything in Petra, but this is the one time I'm encouraging you not to. This will ultimately be safer for her and everyone else in the military."
Levi scoffed before answering, "Fine. But don't blame me if my marriage is off to a shitty start."
"Petra's going to understand. She's that type of person. More than likely, she's going to get onto me for making me not tell you."
"It's your funeral."
Erwin chuckled before his serious expression returned, "For now, we steer the course. Don't let anyone in on the plan. We'll strike when the time is right. But, for now, we have a mass wedding to plan."
"Attack on Titan" and its characters belong to Hajime Isayama